It's been 2,000 years since
the glorious light of the cross
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illuminated a world veiled in
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darkness and confusion
about the character of God.
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And still today, the
greatest need of mankind
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is a revelation of God's love as
revealed in the life of Christ
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Amazing Facts presents
"The Everlasting Gospel"
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with Pastor Doug Batchelor
coming to you each week from
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Sacramento Central
Church in sunny California.
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Discover hidden
treasures in God's word today!
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I kept seeing these
advertisements everywhere,
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"Free Credit Report"
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and I was just mildly curious
about what that involved.
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Praise the Lord, we paid off
our home loan not too long ago,
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and our cars are paid off
and so I didn't need any credit.
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I thought my credit was perfect!
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As-a-matter-of-fact, I
don't think a week goes by
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when we don't get half-a-dozen
applications in the mail
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of somebody that wants us
to get one more credit card.
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And so, some of you
might need an extra one,
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we got lots of them at
our house - applications.
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But I was curious and then I
saw something on the internet,
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it said that these
credit reporting agencies are
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required to give you one
free credit report a year.
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And so I thought, "Well, may
as well find out - I'm curious."
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I thought, "Well I
probably have stellar credit,
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and industrial
strength, good credit!"
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So I sent off for one of
these free credit reports.
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And it was pretty
good, but it wasn't perfect!
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And that really
bothered me, and I thought,
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what in the world happened?
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And I found out,
yeah - Karen, I guess,
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gave the wrong address
to a doctor or something...
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I don't know what
happened but some doctor
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that we went to -
we gave them the wrong
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address and they kept sending
the bill to the wrong address,
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and the people there
didn't want to pay it,
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we don't know who they
were, and so they turned it over
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to a credit agency -
we got that taken care of,
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and everything is okey-dokey,
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but just in that interval
that the bill wasn't paid,
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it blemished our credit!
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And I guess to try and
fix that, here we're making
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credit confessions right now...
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I guess to try and fix
that, takes an act of congress
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because once your
credit is besmirched,
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you are flagged
for life... evidently!
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Well, I'm not worried about
it right now because I'm not
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trying to borrow any money.
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But, some people are
and I guess they've got this
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whole very elaborate
system right now where
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everything you borrow
and your payment schedule
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and your bills that
you pay and if you're late,
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somebody out there is
keeping tabs on everything;
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all this electronic world
that we live in right now,
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having perfect credit
- that's questionable.
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Well, I want you to
know God has perfect credit,
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and the title of
our message today is:
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"God said it, and that's
of course, part of the saying
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that we've said before,
"God said it, I believe it,
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that settles it,"
have you heard that before?
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Why don't you
say that with me...
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"God said it, I
believe it, that settles it?"
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There are some songs
that also bear that out.
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Well God has a perfect credit
score, I want you to know...
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In the Bible, it tells us
that His promises never fail.
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Now right now, we've got
an epidemic of failed promises
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in the country and
credit issues because of the
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financial crunch...
some people are losing
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their homes; they sign
covenants to make payments
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that they can't make
or they went to buy a car,
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and they're being repossessed.
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We look around and we see an
epidemic of failed marriages...
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You wonder - can you
trust anybody's word these days?
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Does a promise
still mean what it says?
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I want you to know
when God says something,
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He never fails - His record
is perfect in keeping His word.
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Now I'm going to cover a
lot of Scripture with you today
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and the goal of my
message today is, of course,
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to get you to read your
Bible more and to get you to
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believe it more and to cash in
on the promises in God's word.
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Numbers 23:19, Moses
said, "God is not a man that He
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should lie... God
can't lie nor the son of man
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that He should repent, has
He said and will He not do?
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Or has He spoken and
will He not make it good?"
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Why good God make a
promise He couldn't keep?
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Why would He do that?
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He doesn't have to promise
anything to anybody, does He?
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Sometimes we'll make a
promise to somebody because
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we're in trouble or we're afraid
... a promise that we can't keep
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But God is never threatened
with that, so why would He
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ever make a
promise He couldn't keep?
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Does that make sense...
Everything He said, He will do.
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Joshua 23:14- You just
might jot some of these down
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and look them up later
and gain some encouragement.
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When the Lord brought
the children of Israel
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into the Promised Land and
Joshua is becoming an old man,
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one of his last
assemblies, before the people,
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he made a
statement to the folks,
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"Behold this day I am
going the way of all the earth."
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He says, "I'm getting
old, I'm going to die,
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I'm going the way
of all the earth."
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"And you know in all your
hearts and in all your souls
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that not... I've underlined
this... not one thing has
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failed of all the good
things which the Lord your God
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spoke concerning you."
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God has spoken good
things concerning you...
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And the promises that He
made for the children of Israel
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not one thing failed of
everything that He promised.
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"All has come to pass for you,
not one word of them has failed"
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So how good is
God's credit report?
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Perfect! But I'm not done yet.
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1 Kings 8:55-56- Here when
Solomon dedicated the temple,
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we just did a whole
series on Solomon...
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and he blessed the
people; "He stood and he blessed
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the congregation of
Israel with a loud voice saying,
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"Blessed be the Lord
that has given rest unto His
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people Israel, according
to all that He promised.
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There has not failed one
word of all His good promise
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which He has promised by
the hand of Moses, His servant."
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Not one word! Perfect record!
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God keeps His promises,
He never fails, and yet...
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we fail to
capitalize on His promises.
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Matthew 24:35, Jesus
said, "Heaven and earth will
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pass away but My
word will not pass away."
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Well Lord, You said you're
coming back, where are You?
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Has His promised failed?
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Well, He promised to
come the first time, He did,
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it was 4,000 years, but He did!
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He promised to come again;
it's just now about 2,000 years.
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I think He's just about to come!
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Everything God says will happen.
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The world might forget;
His word, He doesn't measure
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time the way we
do, it never fails.
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Everything God says happens!
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Psalm 89:34, - We
sometimes break our
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promises, break our
covenants - God does not.
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"My Covenant I will not
break, nor alter the word
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that has gone out of my lips."
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Isaiah 40:8, "The grass withers,
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the flower fades,
but the word of our God
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stands.. for how long? Forever!"
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God's word never
fails, it is eternal.
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Jesus said, "Who is going to
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survive the
storm that is coming?
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He that hears these
words of mine and does them,
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he is like the man building
on a rock, it will not move,
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it will not fail - you
can trust the word of God.
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Before I go too
far, maybe I should just
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simply define what is a promise.
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According to the
"American Heritage Dictionary,"
00:08:34.39\00:08:36.95
It comes from the
Latin word, "promittere,"
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"pro" means "forth,"
"mittere" - "to send."
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To send forth - it's something
that you're sending on ahead,
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a guarantee.
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Now, one reason God
cannot lie is because He's God,
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and He's perfect.
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He is also a king and a
king cannot break his word.
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I can think of a couple
of examples in the Bible
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of kings that spoke, earthly
kings, that then regretted
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what they said and maybe wanted
to change it and they couldn't.
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You remember when King Darius
signed a law that if your prayed
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to any god or man,
except him, for 30 days,
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you went to the lion's den.
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And then Daniel was
brought before him because
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Daniel prayed 3
times a day publically.
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And the king was so
displeased with himself.
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He wanted to
change what he had said,
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but a king's word is law.
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And the law of the Medes and the
Persians could not be altered;
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it could not be
changed; it was a firm decree.
00:09:48.31\00:09:51.30
Ahasuerus made a law
that all the Jews should
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be attacked on a certain day,
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then he found that his
wife was a Jew... Esther.
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And he could not
take back that law;
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all he could do was
make another law giving them
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the right to defend
themselves in advance.
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Who was it... Herod spoke
and promised that whatever
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Salome wanted, if
she danced, up to half
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his kingdom, he'd give it.
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She then said, "I want
the head of John the Baptist,
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but because the king had
spoken and his word was law,
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he could not break his promise.
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Now these are vacillating,
weak, indecisive, earthly,
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sinful kings that
would not alter their word.
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Do we think that God
is going to alter his?
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I heard a story one time
about a man who was brought
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before the king and he had been
condemned and sentenced to die
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by beheading and as
he heard the judgment,
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he began to tremble.
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And the king said, "Well,
we'll give you one final wish.
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He said, "Could I
have a drink of water?"
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And they brought
the man a porcelain cup,
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and he took it in his
hands and he was shaking,
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and the water was sloshing
around and the king felt
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sorry for the man and
he said, "Look, you're safe
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until that water is drunk,
you don't have nothing to fear.
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You will not die
until that water is drunk,
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so relax, drink your water."
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And the man heard what
the king said and he tossed
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the cup down and it
crashed on the floor."
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And said, "You
promised I would not die until
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that water was drunk!"
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And the king kind of gave
him a wiry smile and said,
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"Very clever, my word
is law, you're free to go!"
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He'd never drink
that water, could he?
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Can we trust God to
keep His political promises?
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Will God keep His word?
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And yet, we're so slow
to take God at His word.
00:11:42.81\00:11:48.71
A promise is a
promise! Now we, as people,
00:11:48.74\00:11:51.98
should realize that
promises should be kept.
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I'm not saying - because
He's God, He keeps His promises,
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we don't have to keep
ours, we should keep ours.
00:11:57.59\00:12:00.14
You know, we've all
heard about "Honest Abe,"
00:12:00.17\00:12:03.74
and we heard the
story about one time that he
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realized he was given
5 cents too much change
00:12:09.59\00:12:12.53
when he got home
from the country store,
00:12:12.56\00:12:14.85
and he walked 10 miles back
one way, 20 miles round trip
00:12:14.88\00:12:19.30
to bring a nickel back
because he just couldn't keep
00:12:19.33\00:12:24.07
someone else's
money and it bothered him.
00:12:24.10\00:12:27.22
One time Lincoln was
riding along in a buggy with a
00:12:27.25\00:12:30.04
general who offered
him a swig of his whiskey.
00:12:30.07\00:12:32.65
It was a cold day,
Lincoln said, "Thank you, no,"
00:12:32.68\00:12:36.40
and he said, "Well, would you
like a cigar, I've got an extra"
00:12:36.43\00:12:39.87
and he pulled one out,
offered it to the president,
00:12:39.90\00:12:42.46
and the president
said, "No, I made a promise,
00:12:42.49\00:12:44.85
and I don't drink or smoke."
00:12:44.88\00:12:46.96
He said, "You made a promise?"
00:12:47.00\00:12:48.04
He said, "Well, here's
how it happened, General."
00:12:48.08\00:12:50.91
He said, "I was 9 years old,
my mother called me to her side;
00:12:50.94\00:12:54.97
she was sick and dying;
she said, "Abe, I want you to
00:12:55.00\00:12:57.70
make me a promise right
now that you'll always keep."
00:12:57.73\00:13:00.47
"Promise that you will
never use alcohol or tobacco."
00:13:00.50\00:13:04.33
He said, "I promise, mama."
00:13:04.36\00:13:06.24
He said, "And then she died."
00:13:06.27\00:13:07.70
He said, "I made a promise
and I've never broken it."
00:13:07.73\00:13:11.52
And the general
said to the president,
00:13:11.55\00:13:13.14
I would never encourage
you to break that promise,
00:13:13.17\00:13:15.21
and he said, "I wish I had made
a similar promise to my mother,
00:13:15.24\00:13:17.57
I would have been
a lot better off."
00:13:17.60\00:13:19.61
But that's something that I
think we could all learn from.
00:13:19.64\00:13:27.01
That promise that he had made
to his mother and he realized
00:13:27.04\00:13:28.87
this was something
that was going to last
00:13:28.90\00:13:30.40
the rest of his life.
00:13:30.43\00:13:31.57
Sometimes we make
promises in haste and you say,
00:13:31.61\00:13:33.41
"Aw well, you know, I was
weak and so I made a promise
00:13:33.44\00:13:35.78
and I didn't
really mean to keep it."
00:13:35.81\00:13:38.77
The Bible tells us,
"Better not to make a promise
00:13:38.80\00:13:42.29
Ecclesiastics 5:5, than
to make it and not keep it."
00:13:42.32\00:13:45.21
"Better it is that
you should not vow,
00:13:45.24\00:13:48.32
than that you vow and not pay."
00:13:48.35\00:13:52.06
In Deuteronomy
23:21, "When you make a vow
00:13:52.09\00:13:57.21
to the Lord your God, you
shall not delay to pay it.
00:13:57.24\00:14:00.64
For the Lord your God
will surely require it of you,
00:14:00.69\00:14:04.11
and it would be sin to
you, but if you abstain from
00:14:04.14\00:14:07.21
vowing it, shall it
not be a sin to you?
00:14:07.24\00:14:10.06
That which has
gone from your lips,
00:14:10.09\00:14:11.72
you shall keep and perform."
00:14:11.75\00:14:13.39
We need to keep our vows.
00:14:13.42\00:14:15.64
That would be our
promises to one another.
00:14:15.67\00:14:17.98
I think that Christians
should be very careful about
00:14:18.01\00:14:22.03
filing bankruptcy.
00:14:22.06\00:14:24.29
I remember reading
the history of Mark Twain.
00:14:24.32\00:14:27.71
He was very successful as
a writer and at one point,
00:14:27.74\00:14:31.61
when he was in the glory,
his golden years of writing,
00:14:31.64\00:14:34.29
he was a very wealthy man.
00:14:34.32\00:14:36.15
His books were selling
all across the country,
00:14:36.18\00:14:38.11
Huckleberry Finn,
Tom Sawyer and others,
00:14:38.14\00:14:40.35
and he had become very
successful, very wealthy,
00:14:40.38\00:14:43.04
and then he went
into the printing business
00:14:43.07\00:14:45.96
which was a big mistake.
00:14:45.99\00:14:47.07
Figure out what you're
good at and stick to it.
00:14:47.11\00:14:49.45
He was a good writer;
he was not a good printer.
00:14:49.48\00:14:51.21
And he invested thousands
and thousands of dollars
00:14:51.24\00:14:54.40
in this automated
type setting machine.
00:14:54.43\00:14:57.10
Back then, remember,
they used to set type by hand,
00:14:57.13\00:14:59.28
and some guy had come
to Mark Twain and said,
00:14:59.31\00:15:01.21
"I've got a machine that I've
invented that will automatically
00:15:01.24\00:15:03.54
set type -All the
papers will buy it;
00:15:03.57\00:15:05.16
all the publishers will buy it."
00:15:05.19\00:15:06.71
And Twain thought, "This
would be a good investment."
00:15:06.74\00:15:08.26
So he poured all of his
money into this automated
00:15:08.29\00:15:12.25
type setting machine
and the thing was extremely
00:15:12.28\00:15:15.07
complicated; they
could never get it to work,
00:15:15.10\00:15:16.84
and they kept
needing a little more time,
00:15:16.87\00:15:18.60
a little more tweaking
and then they couldn't sell it
00:15:18.63\00:15:20.95
because it kept
breaking down and basically,
00:15:20.98\00:15:23.80
he lost his entire
fortune and was totally broke.
00:15:23.83\00:15:27.16
Had no money for his family
and all they had left was a
00:15:27.19\00:15:31.04
home and he had to go to a
friend that loved his books,
00:15:31.07\00:15:34.25
to invest and trying
to pay to keep his house.
00:15:34.28\00:15:38.37
Twain lost everything!
00:15:38.40\00:15:40.05
He didn't want to file
bankruptcy because he felt,
00:15:40.08\00:15:42.56
"Look, I made
promises to pay these debts,
00:15:42.59\00:15:44.56
and I want to pay them."
00:15:44.59\00:15:48.14
So his friend that had
lent the money to help him
00:15:48.17\00:15:50.62
keep his house, he said,
"You need to go on the road,
00:15:50.65\00:15:53.38
do what you're good
at; do your lectures;
00:15:53.41\00:15:55.78
keep on writing, and
he went on a world tour
00:15:55.81\00:15:59.11
and during that world
tour, he went to India,
00:15:59.14\00:16:01.26
he went to England,
he went to Australia,
00:16:01.29\00:16:02.94
he sailed around the world,
going everywhere he could go
00:16:02.97\00:16:05.70
to try and work to
pay off his debts...
00:16:05.73\00:16:07.97
He was already old enough
to retire when this happened.
00:16:08.00\00:16:10.73
And he did, he
finally paid up all his debts,
00:16:10.76\00:16:13.36
and he ended up
again with enough wealth
00:16:13.39\00:16:16.61
that he could retire
and live out his days.
00:16:16.64\00:16:19.18
But he would not
give up and just say,
00:16:19.21\00:16:21.51
"Oh well, I'm not going to pay."
00:16:21.54\00:16:23.40
Because that was back
in the days when a person's
00:16:23.43\00:16:26.01
word meant something.
00:16:26.04\00:16:28.95
Well God, wants us
to keep our promises.
00:16:28.98\00:16:31.90
Psalm 15:1 and 4, By the
way, would you like to know
00:16:31.93\00:16:35.37
who is going to heaven?
00:16:35.40\00:16:37.61
Those that believe
the promises of God,
00:16:37.64\00:16:39.51
and those that keep
their promises - you hear that?
00:16:39.54\00:16:43.32
That would mean
your marriage vows,
00:16:43.35\00:16:47.27
baptismal vows.
00:16:47.30\00:16:50.63
"Now Lord, who will
abide in your tabernacle,
00:16:50.66\00:16:54.39
and who will
dwell in your holy hill?
00:16:54.42\00:16:57.61
He that swears to his
own hurt and changeth not."
00:16:57.64\00:17:02.66
That means someone
who makes a promise...
00:17:02.69\00:17:04.92
You buy something and
say I'm going to pay for it
00:17:04.95\00:17:06.92
and then you can't and
just say, "Well I tried,
00:17:06.95\00:17:12.18
and throw your
hands in the air."
00:17:12.21\00:17:13.70
We need to keep our promises.
00:17:13.73\00:17:16.52
"He who swears to his
own hurt and changeth not."
00:17:16.55\00:17:19.18
Like Twain - if you
got to go around the world
00:17:19.21\00:17:21.46
on a speaking tour and write
until your fingers are raw,
00:17:21.49\00:17:23.80
you do it and you
pay back your debts.
00:17:23.83\00:17:27.04
I heard about a man
in France, an attorney,
00:17:27.07\00:17:32.16
and there was a 90-year-old
woman that lived in an
00:17:32.19\00:17:36.44
apartment that he
realized had a good location
00:17:36.47\00:17:38.25
and he wanted the apartment
and he asked to buy it from her,
00:17:38.28\00:17:41.74
and she said, "Well,
where am I going to live?"
00:17:41.77\00:17:43.02
He said, "Look,
I'll make you a deal"
00:17:43.05\00:17:44.89
He said, "You are 90 years
old, if you'll sell me this
00:17:44.92\00:17:50.16
apartment when you die,
sell it to me right now,
00:17:50.19\00:17:52.62
I'll buy it, I will pay the
rent, I'll pay your payments
00:17:52.65\00:17:57.62
for the rest of your
life until you pass away."
00:17:57.65\00:18:02.09
You know, banks
are doing that now -
00:18:02.12\00:18:03.23
They call it a
"reverse mortgage."
00:18:03.26\00:18:05.38
So she said, "okay."
00:18:05.41\00:18:08.02
She was 91... he had no
idea she would live to be
00:18:08.05\00:18:12.35
France's oldest woman.
00:18:12.38\00:18:15.87
Jeanne Calment lived to 121.
00:18:15.90\00:18:19.85
The attorney
died before she did.
00:18:19.88\00:18:29.22
His family needed to keep
paying her rent for 30 years
00:18:29.25\00:18:34.06
beyond her 91st birthday,
who would have thunk, right?
00:18:34.09\00:18:39.72
That would happen that way,
but they kept their promise.
00:18:39.75\00:18:44.53
Gotta be careful
what you promise.
00:18:44.56\00:18:49.70
Someone once said, "He who
is slow in making a promise,
00:18:49.73\00:18:52.34
is more likely to
fulfill it or to be
00:18:52.37\00:18:54.52
faithful in the
performance of it.
00:18:54.55\00:18:56.22
Don't make promises quickly.
00:18:56.25\00:18:58.67
Take them seriously if
you're going to make it.
00:18:58.70\00:19:01.58
Oswald Chambers said,
"It's better to run the risk
00:19:01.61\00:19:04.56
of being considered indecisive,
than to promise and not fulfill"
00:19:04.59\00:19:09.42
Take your time.
00:19:09.45\00:19:12.04
Now... When God makes a promise,
we can count on it that He
00:19:12.07\00:19:17.75
is going to keep His promise.
00:19:17.78\00:19:20.07
He never files
bankruptcy, He never gives up.
00:19:20.10\00:19:23.78
Now sometimes man has
broke his promise to God.
00:19:23.81\00:19:26.97
Some of those
things are conditional,
00:19:27.00\00:19:28.13
but God will never
break His promise to us.
00:19:28.16\00:19:30.74
And when we fail to
believe in His promises,
00:19:30.77\00:19:33.74
our unbelief insults God.
00:19:33.77\00:19:37.95
Deuteronomy 1:32- After the
Lord did all He did to bring
00:19:37.98\00:19:43.36
them out of Egypt, they
would not believe that He could
00:19:43.39\00:19:45.38
bring them into
the Promised Land.
00:19:45.41\00:19:47.32
"Yet for all that, you did
not believe the Lord your God
00:19:47.35\00:19:51.61
who went in the way before
you to search out place for you,
00:19:51.64\00:19:54.55
to pitch your tents, to
show you the way you should go.
00:19:54.58\00:19:57.45
There, they had the
pillar of fire guiding them
00:19:57.48\00:19:59.39
through the desert.
00:19:59.42\00:20:01.62
In a fire by night and a cloud
by day and the Lord heard the
00:20:01.65\00:20:05.56
sound of your words and
was angry, and He took an oath
00:20:05.59\00:20:07.94
saying, "Surely not one of these
men of this evil generation
00:20:07.97\00:20:12.64
shall see that good
land of which I swore to
00:20:12.67\00:20:15.25
give their fathers."
00:20:15.28\00:20:16.38
When he brought them to the
borders of the Promised Land,
00:20:16.41\00:20:18.42
and those spies went and looked
things over and came back,
00:20:18.45\00:20:21.06
10 of the spies said,
"You know, we're not so
00:20:21.09\00:20:23.73
sure we can believe
that He's going to give us
00:20:23.76\00:20:26.05
the "promised land."
00:20:26.08\00:20:28.21
Why was the promised land
called the "Promised Land?"
00:20:28.24\00:20:30.38
Because He
promised to give it to them.
00:20:30.41\00:20:32.33
And so when they came back and
said, "We're not sure He can do
00:20:32.36\00:20:35.27
what He has promised,..."
The Lord said, "Okay then,
00:20:35.30\00:20:38.64
if you don't
believe My promises,
00:20:38.67\00:20:40.51
you will not be in
the Promised Land."
00:20:40.54\00:20:43.87
Now there's a very
simple lesson there for us...
00:20:43.90\00:20:46.83
How many of you want
to get to the heavenly
00:20:46.86\00:20:48.46
Canaan promised land?
00:20:48.49\00:20:50.51
You must believe, "Without faith
it's impossible to please God."
00:20:50.54\00:20:54.83
You must believe He can
do what He has promised.
00:20:54.86\00:20:57.08
And if I were to ask you, right
now, "How many of you believe
00:20:57.11\00:20:59.54
that He has a mansion He is
preparing for you in heaven?"
00:20:59.57\00:21:02.03
I think every hand would go up.
00:21:02.06\00:21:04.03
I believe the promises of God.
00:21:04.06\00:21:07.19
But if I were to say, "How
many of you believe that He
00:21:07.22\00:21:09.01
can give you victory over sin?"
00:21:09.04\00:21:14.56
You know why? Because
we failed so many times.
00:21:14.59\00:21:19.10
We think, "Well,
but I believe God,
00:21:19.13\00:21:21.67
but I don't believe in myself."
00:21:21.70\00:21:25.09
This is probably the most
important place for us to trust
00:21:25.12\00:21:29.58
His promise and how it
plays out in your victory.
00:21:29.61\00:21:35.30
Because, you know,
we're real long on believing
00:21:35.33\00:21:38.11
that God can do what He can do
outside of what He does, in us.
00:21:38.14\00:21:43.72
Probably the most important
place for us to realize
00:21:43.75\00:21:47.77
trust and faith in God, is
not that He can part oceans
00:21:47.80\00:21:51.09
out there and rain fire and
brimstone down on the enemies,
00:21:51.12\00:21:55.51
but do you believe He
can keep His promise about
00:21:55.54\00:21:58.97
giving you a new heart?
00:21:59.00\00:22:00.97
Do you believe He can keep
His promise about keeping you
00:22:01.00\00:22:03.55
from falling?
00:22:03.58\00:22:06.10
Oh come on, let me hear
an amen better than that!
00:22:06.13\00:22:08.29
AMEN... Even if you have
to manufacture that amen,
00:22:08.32\00:22:10.94
You ought to do it because it
might influence your own heart.
00:22:10.97\00:22:13.58
Our unbelief insults Him.
00:22:13.61\00:22:16.66
When Israel stopped believing
in the promises of God,
00:22:16.69\00:22:19.98
they lost the Promised Land.
00:22:20.01\00:22:22.10
Hebrews 3:19- also
going over into chapter 4:1
00:22:22.13\00:22:27.99
"So we see they could not
enter in because of unbelief."
00:22:28.02\00:22:33.29
That's still
true today, friends.
00:22:33.32\00:22:35.78
Therefore since a promise
remains of entering his rest,
00:22:35.81\00:22:39.11
... It's not just talking
about the Sabbath rest here,
00:22:39.14\00:22:41.37
it's talking about entering
the rest of the Promised Land;
00:22:41.40\00:22:43.80
entering the rest of Jesus...
00:22:43.83\00:22:45.85
"Come unto Me and
I'll give you rest."
00:22:45.88\00:22:47.63
"A promise remains,
of entering his rest,
00:22:47.66\00:22:49.88
let us fear... Fear
what? Fear that we will
00:22:49.91\00:22:53.49
not believe.
00:22:53.52\00:22:54.83
"Let us fear, lest any of you
00:22:54.86\00:22:58.60
seem to have come short of it."
00:22:58.63\00:23:00.14
And we fall after the
same pattern of unbelief.
00:23:00.17\00:23:04.17
Romans 4:21, "And
being fully convinced
00:23:04.20\00:23:08.40
that what He has promised,
He was also able to perform."
00:23:08.43\00:23:12.95
Do you really believe that He
can do what He says He can do?
00:23:12.98\00:23:17.08
So, how do we cash in
on the promises of God?
00:23:17.11\00:23:22.97
How do we finally get to where
00:23:23.00\00:23:25.05
we can realize
the promises of God?
00:23:25.08\00:23:27.43
Now you heard me mention before
that one of the great gimmicks
00:23:27.46\00:23:31.48
companies take advantage of
during the holiday season is
00:23:31.51\00:23:34.82
gift cards.
00:23:34.85\00:23:36.54
People are given
gift cards at restaurants
00:23:36.57\00:23:38.81
or they're giving gift cards...
00:23:38.84\00:23:40.59
I feel sorry for you if you've
got a gift card to Circuit City
00:23:40.62\00:23:45.27
now - they're
going out of business.
00:23:45.30\00:23:47.76
And people get gift
cards and sometimes they'll
00:23:47.79\00:23:50.65
take it to the store and
you know, it's got $50 on it,
00:23:50.68\00:23:53.11
but they only spend $30
and they come back with $20,
00:23:53.14\00:23:55.51
and they forget how
much is on this card,
00:23:55.54\00:23:56.85
and they lose track
of it and it's a fact,
00:23:56.88\00:23:59.76
that these companies make a
big profit selling gift cards
00:23:59.79\00:24:02.87
because many people
forget to even use them
00:24:02.90\00:24:04.64
or they don't use them all
00:24:04.67\00:24:06.07
and it turns into almost 50%
profit just to sell the card!
00:24:06.10\00:24:11.00
They are unused!
00:24:11.03\00:24:14.93
Promises in God's Word are a
lot more unused than gift cards.
00:24:14.96\00:24:20.07
There are so many
promises here that people just
00:24:20.10\00:24:22.05
do not take advantage
of that are available.
00:24:22.08\00:24:25.39
So, how do we cash
in on His promises?
00:24:25.42\00:24:28.30
God's promises become
effective when we read
00:24:28.33\00:24:31.91
about them,
accept them as our own,
00:24:31.94\00:24:34.84
and appropriate
them for ourselves.
00:24:34.87\00:24:38.16
Some one once said,
"Tarry at the promise
00:24:38.19\00:24:40.80
until God meets you
there, He always returns
00:24:40.83\00:24:44.76
by way of His promises."
00:24:44.79\00:24:47.77
You can track the Lord
through history by His promises.
00:24:47.80\00:24:52.35
His actions are always
following His promises.
00:24:52.38\00:24:57.05
And so often, there are
promises of God that are just
00:24:57.08\00:25:00.04
not experienced or realized
because we don't read them,
00:25:00.07\00:25:03.65
and then we don't
wrap ourselves around them.
00:25:03.68\00:25:06.66
You won't enjoy
it, unless you see it.
00:25:06.69\00:25:10.22
The Word of God is everything.
00:25:10.25\00:25:12.49
But the Word comes
alive in our minds and hearts.
00:25:12.52\00:25:15.48
It must be seen, it must
be heard, it must be believed,
00:25:15.51\00:25:18.80
and embraced
and then it happens!
00:25:18.83\00:25:21.48
Wonderful things happen
when we believe the Word of God.
00:25:21.59\00:25:25.14
Some of your remember a famous
pastor within our denomination,
00:25:25.17\00:25:30.68
"Glen Coon," who
did the seminars on
00:25:30.71\00:25:33.44
"The ABCs of Prayer."
00:25:33.47\00:25:35.68
And he talked about
how important it was...
00:25:35.71\00:25:38.35
ABC's being: ASK
- BELIEVE - CLAIM
00:25:38.38\00:25:44.10
And that's really the same
principles for experiencing
00:25:44.13\00:25:47.02
a promise coming
alive for you in the Bible.
00:25:47.05\00:25:49.98
Read it - say "I believe
it," and then embrace it,
00:25:50.01\00:25:55.51
and say, "All right, Lord,
I'm going to thank you for this,
00:25:55.54\00:25:57.72
I claim this promise."
00:25:57.75\00:25:59.16
Sometimes you basically
have to present it to the Lord.
00:25:59.19\00:26:03.24
"The promises of
God are like stars,
00:26:03.27\00:26:05.60
the darker the night,
the brighter they are."
00:26:05.63\00:26:08.76
God's promises are
an inexhaustible mine
00:26:08.79\00:26:12.45
filled with wealth.
00:26:12.48\00:26:14.25
Hebrews 11:33- How did
the winners in the Bible win?
00:26:14.28\00:26:21.02
"Who through faith, they
subdued kingdoms, they robbed
00:26:21.05\00:26:25.01
righteousness,
they obtained promises."
00:26:25.04\00:26:27.76
How did they get these promises?
00:26:27.79\00:26:29.48
Through faith they
embraced the promises,
00:26:29.51\00:26:32.06
and that's how they
stopped the mouths of lions
00:26:32.09\00:26:34.45
quenched the
violence of the fire
00:26:34.48\00:26:36.35
escaped the edge of the sword;
00:26:36.38\00:26:37.95
out of weakness
they were made strong;
00:26:37.98\00:26:39.60
they waxed valiant in fight;
00:26:39.63\00:26:41.50
they turned to fight
the armies of the enemies."
00:26:41.53\00:26:45.00
I noticed that part
there where it says,
00:26:45.03\00:26:47.40
"Stopped the mouths of lions,
00:26:47.43\00:26:49.44
quenched the
violence of the fire."
00:26:49.47\00:26:51.31
You know, there are Psalms that
talk about victory over lions.
00:26:51.34\00:26:55.46
Daniel probably knew
those Psalms that David wrote,
00:26:55.49\00:26:58.63
don't you think... and
I think it encouraged him.
00:26:58.66\00:27:01.81
There is a promise that
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego
00:27:01.84\00:27:06.36
could have read in Isaiah
- let me tell you what it is.
00:27:06.39\00:27:08.38
Isaiah 43:2, "When you
pass through the waters,
00:27:08.41\00:27:12.34
I will be with you
and through the rivers,
00:27:12.37\00:27:14.29
they will not overflow you.
00:27:14.32\00:27:15.86
When you walk through the
fire, you will not be burned,
00:27:15.89\00:27:19.36
neither will the
flame kindle upon thee."
00:27:19.39\00:27:22.28
And I believe,
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego
00:27:22.31\00:27:24.41
read that verse - they
probably learned it at their
00:27:24.44\00:27:26.38
mother's knee and
when Nebuchadnezzar said,
00:27:26.41\00:27:28.66
"I'm going to throw
you in the fiery furnace,
00:27:28.69\00:27:30.55
the Holy Spirit
reminded them of that promise,
00:27:30.58\00:27:33.18
they claimed that
promise and they said,
00:27:33.21\00:27:35.16
"Our God who we serve is able
00:27:35.19\00:27:36.32
to deliver us from
your hand, oh king."
00:27:36.35\00:27:38.90
And did God honor His Word?
00:27:38.93\00:27:40.44
I can just see it now...
As the soldiers were tying up
00:27:40.47\00:27:43.08
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego,
00:27:43.11\00:27:44.43
they were probably
muttering to each other,
00:27:44.46\00:27:46.14
"Remember the
promise - Isaiah 43:2,
00:27:46.17\00:27:49.27
"When you go through the
fire, it will not burn you!"
00:27:49.30\00:27:53.39
"Okay, Lord - You
hear that, You said it!"
00:27:53.42\00:27:56.28
And they
presented it to the Lord.
00:27:56.31\00:27:58.69
What could God do?
00:27:58.72\00:28:01.62
The whole world would
have to pass away before
00:28:01.65\00:28:03.49
God becomes a liar.
00:28:03.52\00:28:05.44
So they get tossed in the fire
00:28:05.47\00:28:07.09
and He preserved
them during that time.
00:28:07.12\00:28:12.51
We're to pray in Jesus' name.
00:28:12.89\00:28:15.50
The Bible says in
2 Corinthians 1:20,
00:28:15.53\00:28:17.72
"For all the promises
of God are in Him yes."
00:28:17.75\00:28:22.62
When you find a
promise in God's Word...
00:28:22.65\00:28:24.35
and you know, I
don't even have time now,
00:28:24.38\00:28:25.76
there are
thousands of promises in the
00:28:25.79\00:28:27.61
Word of God - I
thought about making a list
00:28:27.64\00:28:29.21
and it just kept
getting bigger and bigger,
00:28:29.24\00:28:30.78
of what God has
promised for you and me.
00:28:30.81\00:28:33.05
We come to Him and
we claim the promises,
00:28:33.08\00:28:35.20
not that we deserve it,
but in the name of His Son.
00:28:35.23\00:28:37.30
Now, think about
this for a second...
00:28:37.33\00:28:39.21
If God cannot lie - if His
Word is perfect and unfailing,
00:28:39.24\00:28:44.43
and if you're asking
Him to keep His word because
00:28:44.46\00:28:48.52
He said it and to
honor it because you now have
00:28:48.55\00:28:52.29
the righteousness of His Son,
00:28:52.32\00:28:54.12
how good is the
righteousness of Jesus?
00:28:54.15\00:28:56.40
What's His credit
report? Perfect - 100%
00:28:56.43\00:29:00.45
How dependable is God's Word?
00:29:00.48\00:29:03.25
So if you approach the Father
with the integrity of His Word,
00:29:03.28\00:29:08.46
and you're asking
Him to honor His promise
00:29:08.49\00:29:10.49
based on the
righteousness of His Son,
00:29:10.52\00:29:13.95
and He promises to
give that to you by asking,
00:29:13.98\00:29:17.41
what are your chances of
getting that promised answered?
00:29:17.44\00:29:21.35
Pretty good! I think it's 100%
00:29:21.38\00:29:25.74
Our part is to believe in
His promises - to claim them.
00:29:25.77\00:29:30.92
He has promised to
give us His Holy Spirit,
00:29:30.95\00:29:33.43
did you know that?
00:29:33.46\00:29:34.79
It's the most important
need that anybody could ask for
00:29:34.82\00:29:37.32
is the Spirit of God.
00:29:37.35\00:29:39.79
Jesus said in Luke 24:49,
"Behold I send the promise
00:29:39.82\00:29:44.40
of My Father upon
you, but tarry ye in the
00:29:44.43\00:29:47.88
City of Jerusalem until you
be endowed with power on high."
00:29:47.91\00:29:51.27
This is a good example
of how the principle works.
00:29:51.30\00:29:53.62
He said, "I'm going to
give you the power of the Spirit
00:29:53.65\00:29:55.72
to go into all the
world and preach the gospel -
00:29:55.75\00:29:57.91
Wait in Jerusalem until
you receive what I promised."
00:29:57.94\00:30:01.58
Did He tell them exactly
when they would receive it? No
00:30:01.61\00:30:06.04
It turns out
they waited 10 days.
00:30:06.07\00:30:08.34
Did they receive it? Yes
00:30:08.37\00:30:10.90
Does God keep His promises?
00:30:10.93\00:30:12.82
They were to watch and pray
00:30:12.85\00:30:14.62
for the Holy Spirit,
that's what they did.
00:30:14.65\00:30:16.86
They stayed in the
Upper Room, they waited...
00:30:16.90\00:30:19.08
And all that time they were
waiting, they were preparing
00:30:19.11\00:30:22.36
as they prayed -
they didn't even know it,
00:30:22.39\00:30:23.90
but they put
aside their differences,
00:30:23.93\00:30:25.20
they humbled themselves,
they emptied themselves,
00:30:25.23\00:30:27.02
they read the Bible, their
hearts were being prepared,
00:30:27.05\00:30:29.64
and they were
assembled together praying,
00:30:29.67\00:30:31.57
and then suddenly the
power came, the promise came
00:30:31.60\00:30:35.20
of the Holy Spirit.
00:30:35.23\00:30:36.62
He has promised the
Spirit other times...
00:30:36.65\00:30:38.37
Acts 2:38, Peter said,
"Repent and let everyone
00:30:38.40\00:30:44.25
of you be baptized in
the name of Jesus Christ
00:30:44.28\00:30:46.70
for the remission of
sins and you possibly might -
00:30:46.73\00:30:52.52
Any of you know that verse?
00:30:52.55\00:30:55.21
There is the
possibility you could...
00:30:55.24\00:30:59.02
He says, "You shall receive
the gift of the Holy Spirit
00:30:59.05\00:31:04.76
for the promise is
unto you and your children,
00:31:04.79\00:31:09.90
and all who are far off
as many as the Lord Our God
00:31:09.93\00:31:12.86
will call" - in other words,
whosoever and be baptized,
00:31:12.89\00:31:17.46
call on the name of the
Lord, the criteria of baptism,
00:31:17.49\00:31:20.83
and you will receive the
gift of the Holy Spirit -
00:31:20.86\00:31:23.26
just as when Jesus was
baptized, part of that was the
00:31:23.29\00:31:25.90
Holy Spirit came down
to prepare Him for a life
00:31:25.93\00:31:28.45
of holiness and ministry.
00:31:28.48\00:31:30.46
God will do that for you.
00:31:30.49\00:31:31.93
And I just wonder
how many people have been
00:31:31.96\00:31:33.36
baptized and they've
never received the Holy Spirit
00:31:33.39\00:31:35.58
because they went
through the baptism part,
00:31:35.61\00:31:38.24
but they never went through
the claiming of the Holy Spirit,
00:31:38.27\00:31:40.97
praying and asking to
receive the Holy Spirit part.
00:31:41.00\00:31:44.62
And I think
especially in our church...
00:31:44.65\00:31:47.25
if you go to a Pentecostal
Church, they don't ever
00:31:47.28\00:31:50.09
leave out the Holy Spirit part.
00:31:50.12\00:31:52.35
But in our church, we just want
to make sure it's by immersion!
00:31:52.38\00:31:56.17
Baptist also - want to
make sure we're doing it the
00:31:56.20\00:31:57.81
right way, but we forget
about the most important part,
00:31:57.84\00:32:00.98
you not only need to
be born of the water,
00:32:01.01\00:32:02.35
you need to be
born of the Spirit.
00:32:02.38\00:32:05.03
I wonder if it's too late
to ask for that or do you have
00:32:05.06\00:32:08.46
to go get baptized again?
00:32:08.49\00:32:10.92
Does God sometimes
send the Holy Spirit
00:32:10.95\00:32:13.49
even after the baptism?
00:32:13.52\00:32:15.71
He can even pour out the Holy
Spirit before you get baptized,
00:32:15.74\00:32:18.65
like with Cornelius.
00:32:18.68\00:32:20.01
So if you're still waiting
to receive the Holy Spirit,
00:32:20.04\00:32:22.52
maybe God has been waiting
for you to ask for the promise,
00:32:22.55\00:32:25.87
and you need to claim it.
00:32:25.90\00:32:27.05
He can still give it to
you again if you want to get
00:32:27.08\00:32:30.01
re-baptized that might be
possible too, but I don't want
00:32:30.04\00:32:32.94
to cause a mass re-baptism here.
00:32:32.97\00:32:35.16
Because the Bible tells
us the disciples received the
00:32:35.20\00:32:38.13
baptism of the Holy
Spirit after their water baptism
00:32:38.16\00:32:41.25
when they learned to
claim the promise. Amen?
00:32:41.28\00:32:45.29
Ephesians 1:13- Still
talking about the Holy Spirit.
00:32:45.32\00:32:48.93
"In Him you trusted, after
you heard the word of truth
00:32:48.96\00:32:52.45
the gospel of your salvation
in whom also having believed
00:32:52.48\00:32:57.38
you were sealed with
the Holy Spirit of promise."
00:32:57.41\00:33:01.22
I love this verse because
it talks about you trusted,
00:33:01.25\00:33:04.80
the Holy Spirit promised
and it says, "You are sealed."
00:33:04.83\00:33:11.21
You know, it used to be
that years ago, if you bought
00:33:11.24\00:33:14.28
a piece of land... I'm
talking back in the 1400s.
00:33:14.31\00:33:17.22
They would cut a
piece of sod from that land,
00:33:17.25\00:33:19.68
and then give it
to you and that was a
00:33:19.71\00:33:21.24
token that you
now own that land.
00:33:21.27\00:33:23.45
Or if you bought an orchard,
the farmer that you bought
00:33:23.48\00:33:26.08
the orchard from would
break off a twig of that tree
00:33:26.11\00:33:28.97
and give it to you and it
meant you now own the fruit
00:33:29.00\00:33:31.44
of that orchard, it's yours.
00:33:31.47\00:33:33.67
You bought a house -
they used to take some of the
00:33:33.70\00:33:35.97
thatch from the roof
and they would tear it off
00:33:36.00\00:33:39.03
and put it in your hands
and that was a token that meant
00:33:39.06\00:33:41.68
you now own the house.
00:33:41.71\00:33:44.51
There's a token that God gives
us that we have eternal life.
00:33:44.54\00:33:49.88
That token is the Holy Spirit.
00:33:49.91\00:33:52.69
The Holy Spirit is the evidence.
00:33:52.72\00:33:54.51
Does God give the Holy
Spirit - does He pour the
00:33:54.54\00:33:56.22
Holy Spirit on
people that are lost?
00:33:56.25\00:33:58.94
Or does He give the
Holy Spirit to His children?
00:33:58.97\00:34:02.30
See, His gift is for His heirs.
00:34:02.33\00:34:05.46
The Holy Spirit is a
gift of the Spirit for those
00:34:05.49\00:34:07.66
who are heirs of
everlasting life.
00:34:07.69\00:34:09.93
And so when He gives you the
Spirit, that will encourage you
00:34:09.96\00:34:12.18
that - Hey, I've got a token of
His promise that He'll save me.
00:34:12.21\00:34:18.40
That's what it says!
00:34:18.43\00:34:20.45
It says, "You were
sealed with the Holy Spirit."
00:34:20.48\00:34:26.12
God keeps up with His promises.
00:34:26.15\00:34:29.31
You know, another
promise some of us will enjoy,
00:34:29.34\00:34:32.74
you might jot this down...
00:34:32.77\00:34:34.01
He wants to promise
to save our children.
00:34:34.04\00:34:39.64
You know, we want
assurance of our salvation,
00:34:39.67\00:34:42.40
but for those who are parents,
00:34:42.43\00:34:44.10
if you could choose between
assurance of your salvation
00:34:44.13\00:34:46.99
and assurance of your children's
salvation, I'll tell you
00:34:47.02\00:34:49.43
right now, I'll sleep
better at night if I could be
00:34:49.47\00:34:52.17
assured of their
salvation. That's what I want!
00:34:52.20\00:34:56.49
I like the
promises of my salvation.
00:34:56.52\00:35:00.76
I like that kind of assurance,
but if I had to choose
00:35:00.79\00:35:03.26
between the two, I
would want the assurance
00:35:03.29\00:35:06.00
that He'll save them and
hear my prayers on their behalf.
00:35:06.03\00:35:11.36
Isaiah 43:5- I know a lot of
parents out there know this one.
00:35:11.39\00:35:16.85
"Fear not for I am with you,
I will bring your descendants
00:35:16.88\00:35:21.14
from the east and
gather them from the west;
00:35:21.17\00:35:23.39
I'll say to the north,
"Give them up and to the south,
00:35:23.42\00:35:26.30
do not keep them back."
00:35:26.33\00:35:27.68
"Bring my sons from afar and
00:35:27.71\00:35:30.19
my daughters from
the ends of the earth."
00:35:30.22\00:35:33.39
And again, Isaiah
49:25, "But thus says the Lord,
00:35:33.42\00:35:37.72
even the captives of the mighty
will be taken and the prey
00:35:37.75\00:35:40.90
of the terrible
will be delivered.
00:35:40.93\00:35:42.61
For I will contend with
him who contends with you,
00:35:42.64\00:35:45.66
and I will save your children."
00:35:45.69\00:35:49.46
You know, this
is caveman theology,
00:35:49.49\00:35:55.18
but it's probably worth sharing.
00:35:55.21\00:35:57.88
I think God is so honored
by our faith that sometimes
00:35:57.91\00:36:01.30
He will keep a promise
that we find in His Bible
00:36:01.33\00:36:04.56
we maybe even misunderstand.
00:36:04.59\00:36:07.79
I remember one time
hearing a native American pastor
00:36:07.82\00:36:11.43
get up and he had
no formal education,
00:36:11.46\00:36:13.41
he was reading this
verse in Psalms about, he said,
00:36:13.44\00:36:17.43
"My heart is fixed."
00:36:17.46\00:36:19.64
And, I don't know, I think
the pastor had had heart surgery
00:36:19.67\00:36:23.56
or something and he
thought the word "fixed" there
00:36:23.59\00:36:26.39
meant like - repaired.
00:36:26.42\00:36:28.46
It doesn't mean that.
Fixed means it's settled
00:36:28.49\00:36:31.06
like when
something is nailed in place.
00:36:31.09\00:36:32.53
My heart is fixed upon God.
00:36:32.56\00:36:33.61
When you fix your
vision on something,
00:36:33.64\00:36:34.98
and so I heard him
preaching this and I thought
00:36:35.01\00:36:37.35
"He misunderstands the Word,
but I think God is going to
00:36:37.38\00:36:39.79
heal him anyway
because of his faith."
00:36:39.82\00:36:42.34
He was taking it as a promise!
00:36:42.37\00:36:44.31
I remember also hearing
one of them preach about
00:36:44.34\00:36:48.30
the book of job... j- o-b
00:36:48.33\00:36:53.31
And it was a great
message, but he kept saying,
00:36:53.34\00:36:55.59
"And job did this
and job did that,"
00:36:55.62\00:36:57.44
well that's how
you spell job right?
00:36:57.47\00:36:59.87
But, so - I've seen
people sometimes go through
00:36:59.90\00:37:04.04
the Word of God and maybe
they see something in there
00:37:04.07\00:37:06.40
and it really strikes them
and they claim it and I think,
00:37:06.43\00:37:08.98
"You know, they're
reading that out of context,
00:37:09.01\00:37:10.24
but I'm not going
to tell them otherwise,
00:37:10.27\00:37:12.35
because I think the Lord is
00:37:12.38\00:37:13.65
glad that they're
finding a promise in there.
00:37:13.68\00:37:16.65
And rather than have
one of His children doubt
00:37:16.68\00:37:20.50
His faithfulness, I
think God will honor a promise
00:37:20.53\00:37:23.51
that He didn't even
make... but you think He did!
00:37:23.54\00:37:29.75
He'd much rather... have
you ever had that happen?
00:37:29.78\00:37:33.46
... With your kids?
00:37:33.49\00:37:34.99
They're telling you
you promised something -
00:37:35.02\00:37:36.71
you don't
remember ever promising it.
00:37:36.74\00:37:38.83
But rather than them
think that you're lying to them
00:37:38.86\00:37:41.49
you say, "I don't remember
that one, but all right."
00:37:41.52\00:37:45.51
Rather than ye who doubt me...
00:37:45.54\00:37:48.04
Well if we're like
as earthly parents,
00:37:48.07\00:37:51.15
I think God is that way
too and sometimes we might
00:37:51.18\00:37:54.12
read something in His
Word and you might misapply it,
00:37:54.15\00:37:56.31
but, you know what, He might be
saying something just for you!
00:37:56.34\00:38:00.33
I heard a story just this week
about a family of missionaries.
00:38:00.36\00:38:03.83
It was, I think,
on the Hope channel.
00:38:03.86\00:38:05.58
A family of missionaries
that went to the mission field
00:38:05.61\00:38:08.26
in - was it Indonesia?
Somewhere that was just
00:38:08.29\00:38:11.92
absolutely rife with cobras and
the family as they got off the
00:38:11.95\00:38:15.89
plane and they saw everything,
they were kind of having
00:38:15.92\00:38:17.76
second thoughts about
doing mission work and the
00:38:17.79\00:38:20.44
father, when he stepped
out of the van onto the ground
00:38:20.47\00:38:23.52
in this new mission field,
he put his foot right down on
00:38:23.55\00:38:26.68
a cobra - pulled it
back in; they just arrived -
00:38:26.71\00:38:29.96
Said to the family, "Don't
unpack, we're not staying."
00:38:29.99\00:38:34.97
But then he began to wonder,
they had done all this planning
00:38:35.00\00:38:37.95
and preparation and thinking
about - How am I going to
00:38:37.98\00:38:39.87
tell everybody about my
years of mission service
00:38:39.90\00:38:41.73
when it only lasted 30 seconds.
00:38:41.76\00:38:44.68
And he said, "Well,
let's pray about it, but look,
00:38:44.71\00:38:46.95
I don't want to endanger
my family - there are cobras
00:38:46.98\00:38:48.94
everywhere here and
I just stepped on one,
00:38:48.97\00:38:51.37
I don't want to lose my
children and God knows that...
00:38:51.40\00:38:53.37
and so Lord, I'm going to do
something that's pretty reckless
00:38:53.40\00:38:56.43
- I'm going to pray, I've never
done this before and I'm going
00:38:56.46\00:38:59.96
to put my thumb in my
Bible, flip through my Bible,
00:38:59.99\00:39:02.18
close my eyes and put
my thumb in my Bible -
00:39:02.21\00:39:03.75
If You want us to stay
here, I need some definite
00:39:03.78\00:39:06.25
assurances because I sure
don't want to risk my children's
00:39:06.28\00:39:10.38
life unless I
know You want us here."
00:39:10.41\00:39:13.84
So he flipped through the
Bible, he put his thumb there,
00:39:13.87\00:39:15.85
he opened the
Bible, he moved his thumb,
00:39:15.88\00:39:17.77
and it was Mark 16 where it says
"You will tread on serpents."
00:39:17.80\00:39:23.98
Actually that was Psalm 91,
00:39:24.01\00:39:25.90
Mark 16 is
another one on serpents.
00:39:25.93\00:39:28.20
And he said, "Humph -
that settled it for them!"
00:39:28.23\00:39:30.55
So they stayed in the
mission field - they were there
00:39:30.58\00:39:32.52
and he said they killed 9
cobras while they were there,
00:39:32.55\00:39:34.71
and nobody ever got bit.
00:39:34.74\00:39:36.03
But, that's not the way God
wants you to read your Bible!
00:39:36.06\00:39:41.05
He promises us eternal life.
00:39:41.08\00:39:44.62
How many of you would
like to claim that promise?
00:39:44.65\00:39:48.86
Titus 1:2, "In hope of
eternal life, which God
00:39:48.89\00:39:56.63
that cannot lie, promised!"
00:39:56.66\00:40:00.79
That ought to get you
to take a deep breath,
00:40:00.82\00:40:02.87
way down in the lower
lobes of your lungs there,
00:40:02.90\00:40:05.68
a sigh of relief.
00:40:05.71\00:40:07.88
God has promised
eternal life and He cannot lie.
00:40:07.91\00:40:12.96
So we don't need to
worry about His promise...
00:40:12.99\00:40:15.84
The question is - Are you
going to cash that one in?
00:40:15.87\00:40:19.05
Are you going to have that
gift card disappear somewhere
00:40:19.08\00:40:22.77
in your piles of papers?
00:40:22.80\00:40:26.99
You know, with the contracts
of men, someone said once,
00:40:27.02\00:40:29.84
"The big print gives and
the small print taketh away."
00:40:29.87\00:40:35.66
And so we're wondering...
where's the fine print?
00:40:35.69\00:40:38.79
Well the fine print
says, "If you believe,
00:40:38.82\00:40:41.40
all things are
possible if you believe."
00:40:41.43\00:40:44.09
If you're not there, if
you're not in the Promised Land,
00:40:44.12\00:40:46.54
it's because you didn't believe
that He could give it to you.
00:40:46.57\00:40:48.74
By the way, Joshua and Caleb
did make it to the Promised land
00:40:48.77\00:40:52.05
among those spies
because they did believe.
00:40:52.08\00:40:55.75
Caleb said let's go up at
once for He is able to give us
00:40:55.78\00:40:59.66
victory over the
enemies of the land.
00:40:59.69\00:41:03.41
1 John 2:25, "And this
is the promise that He has
00:41:03.44\00:41:06.70
promised us -
even eternal life."
00:41:06.73\00:41:08.89
Case 1- Witness is not enough,
there's a second witness for you
00:41:08.92\00:41:12.42
He has promised eternal life.
00:41:12.45\00:41:13.84
You want a third witness?
00:41:13.87\00:41:14.94
Hebrews 9:15, "And for
this reason, He is the Mediator
00:41:14.97\00:41:19.54
of the New Covenant
to those who are called
00:41:19.57\00:41:22.92
that they might receive the
promise of eternal inheritance."
00:41:22.95\00:41:27.87
Wow! God had promised to
give us everlasting life!
00:41:27.90\00:41:32.96
...Oh, but I'm not good enough!
00:41:32.99\00:41:35.97
Well He
promises to fix that too.
00:41:36.00\00:41:38.27
He knows you're not good enough!
00:41:38.30\00:41:39.85
But He promises to change
your heart and prepare you.
00:41:39.88\00:41:44.12
...But I don't
have enough faith!
00:41:44.15\00:41:45.80
He promises to give you faith!
00:41:45.83\00:41:47.62
Everything you need to be there,
He has promised to provide
00:41:47.65\00:41:51.59
all things if you believe Him.
00:41:51.62\00:41:55.63
Just believe Him.
00:41:55.66\00:41:57.48
Now, one of the ways promises
work is not that God forgets,
00:41:57.51\00:42:02.22
but He wants you to remind Him.
00:42:02.25\00:42:05.43
Love likes being pursued.
00:42:05.46\00:42:09.12
Now, when Jacob was
wrestling with the Lord,
00:42:09.15\00:42:12.69
God had made a promise
to Jacob to bless his seed,
00:42:12.72\00:42:16.94
to do good unto him even though
he had lied to his father,
00:42:16.97\00:42:20.17
and lied to his brother and
tried to steal the birthright,
00:42:20.20\00:42:22.26
God said, "I'll
forgive you, you've repented,
00:42:22.29\00:42:24.52
I'm going to make a
great nation out of you."
00:42:24.55\00:42:26.07
Now he comes back
into the Promised Land,
00:42:26.10\00:42:28.22
he has been gone for 21 years,
his brother is coming with
00:42:28.25\00:42:30.68
and army of 400
men to annihilate him,
00:42:30.71\00:42:34.95
and he wrestled in prayer.
00:42:34.98\00:42:39.18
And when the angel
appears, he tells the angel,
00:42:39.21\00:42:41.37
"For you said, "I
will surely treat you well,
00:42:41.40\00:42:45.58
I will do good unto you
and make your descendants like
00:42:45.61\00:42:48.25
the sand of the sea that cannot
be numbered for multitude."
00:42:48.28\00:42:51.24
You promised me something
- did God honor His promise?
00:42:51.27\00:42:54.74
Jacob reminded him.
00:42:54.77\00:42:56.71
When Moses brought the
children of Israel out of Egypt
00:42:56.74\00:43:00.24
and all the people
sinned with the golden calf,
00:43:00.27\00:43:02.05
then God said, "Get
out of My way Moses,
00:43:02.08\00:43:03.59
I'm going to wipe them out,
I'll make a great nation of you"
00:43:03.62\00:43:06.38
God knew what He was going
to do, He was testing Moses.
00:43:06.41\00:43:09.31
What did Moses do - he reminded
the Lord of what he had promised
00:43:09.34\00:43:13.52
Exodus 32:13, "Moses
said, "Remember Abraham,
00:43:13.55\00:43:17.51
Isaac and Jacob, your
servants to whom you swear by
00:43:17.54\00:43:20.71
your own self and you
said to them, "I'll multiply
00:43:20.74\00:43:24.01
your seeds as the
starred heaven and all this land
00:43:24.04\00:43:26.64
that is spoken of,
I'll give it to your seed,
00:43:26.67\00:43:28.65
and they'll inherit forever."
00:43:28.68\00:43:30.17
"And the Lord
repented of the evil
00:43:30.20\00:43:32.35
that He thought
to do to His people."
00:43:32.39\00:43:33.50
Why? Because Moses
conjured up the promises of God
00:43:33.54\00:43:38.21
and presented
them before the Lord.
00:43:38.24\00:43:40.39
He wants you to
learn to do the same thing.
00:43:40.42\00:43:42.60
God has a lot of promises
in there and He wants you to
00:43:42.63\00:43:44.67
take them and say,
"Lord, remember this?"
00:43:44.70\00:43:46.94
And God says, "Yeah, I remember
but I'm glad you reminded me."
00:43:46.97\00:43:50.83
See how it works? God
doesn't forget anything.
00:43:50.86\00:43:54.35
But sometimes you
gotta say, "Remember this?"
00:43:54.38\00:43:57.72
And then God acts!
00:43:57.75\00:43:59.64
Because you're
claiming His promise!
00:43:59.67\00:44:01.97
I think the devil
tries to cloud God's promises
00:44:02.00\00:44:05.90
with out doubts and when
we say, "Lord, I believe this,
00:44:05.93\00:44:08.76
You said it and I believe it,"
00:44:08.79\00:44:09.99
then God can act upon it.
00:44:10.02\00:44:11.63
He can activate His
promises when we claim them.
00:44:11.66\00:44:15.73
You need to
present it to the Lord.
00:44:15.76\00:44:18.47
2 Samuel 7:28, "Oh Lord
God, You are God and Your words
00:44:18.50\00:44:24.64
are true and You promised
this goodness to Your servant.
00:44:24.67\00:44:27.68
Now therefore, let it
please You to bless the house
00:44:27.71\00:44:31.68
of Your servant that
it may continue forever
00:44:31.71\00:44:34.36
before You, Lord,
Oh Lord God, You have
00:44:34.39\00:44:38.00
spoken it and with Your
blessing, let the house of
00:44:38.03\00:44:40.78
Your servant be
blessed forever."
00:44:40.81\00:44:42.48
David said, "God, You
promised to bless my house,
00:44:42.51\00:44:44.82
I'm reminding You said
it, let it be established.
00:44:44.85\00:44:47.56
I'm claiming it, I accept what
You have said for my house."
00:44:47.59\00:44:50.94
Did God honor the
promise He made to David?
00:44:50.97\00:44:55.11
Yeah, not only did
He preserve his seed...
00:44:55.14\00:44:58.16
even though Solomon
sinned, when Solomon sinned,
00:44:58.19\00:45:01.02
God said to him, "Because I
made a promise to your father,
00:45:01.05\00:45:03.72
I'm going to give you a
tribe in Israel forever."
00:45:03.75\00:45:07.10
And of course, Jesus came
through the tribe of Judah.
00:45:07.13\00:45:09.88
Jesus the Son of David is
going to reign forever and ever,
00:45:09.91\00:45:13.07
and so God's promise to
David that none would fail from
00:45:13.10\00:45:16.53
his seed to sit on the
throne forever is true!
00:45:16.56\00:45:20.82
God's promise never fails.
00:45:20.85\00:45:23.81
I like when God said
to Elisha through Elijah.
00:45:23.84\00:45:27.89
Elisha said, "I want a
double portion of your spirit."
00:45:27.92\00:45:31.22
And Elijah said,
"You've asked a big thing."
00:45:31.25\00:45:34.98
Here's how it works and by
the way, this is 2 Kings 2:10
00:45:35.01\00:45:38.42
"If you see me - there's
a conditional promise here -
00:45:38.45\00:45:42.15
"If you see me when
I'm taken up from you,
00:45:42.18\00:45:44.12
you will receive a
double portion of my spirit,
00:45:44.15\00:45:45.89
but if you don't
see me, you won't."
00:45:45.92\00:45:48.20
So as they walked
along and talked together,
00:45:48.23\00:45:50.10
Holy group of angels came down;
00:45:50.13\00:45:54.64
a fiery chariot
took Elijah up to heaven,
00:45:54.67\00:45:56.70
and the Bible says,
"And Elisha saw it."
00:45:56.73\00:46:01.27
So when Elisha picked
up the mantle of Elijah,
00:46:01.30\00:46:04.06
he went back to
the Jordan River;
00:46:04.09\00:46:05.84
he claimed the promise of God.
00:46:05.87\00:46:07.55
Sometimes you've
wondered why he said this;
00:46:07.58\00:46:09.51
"Elisha said, "Where
is the Lord God of Elijah?
00:46:09.54\00:46:13.39
And when he had said this,
00:46:13.43\00:46:14.47
he smote the
waters and they parted."
00:46:14.51\00:46:16.66
He basically says, "Where
is that promise you made?"
00:46:16.69\00:46:19.55
You made me a
promise, I'm claiming it now,
00:46:19.58\00:46:21.70
and he did the same
thing Elijah did and the waters
00:46:21.73\00:46:24.46
parted for him just like
they had parted for Elijah.
00:46:24.49\00:46:27.44
Because he made a conditional
00:46:27.47\00:46:28.50
promise and Elisha
met the conditions.
00:46:28.53\00:46:31.64
Said - If you see me - in
other words, if you don't take
00:46:31.67\00:46:33.49
your eyes off me,
you'll receive a double
00:46:33.52\00:46:35.48
portion of my spirit.
00:46:35.51\00:46:36.80
By the way, that's
still true for you.
00:46:36.83\00:46:38.65
Keep your eyes on Christ and
you'll receive a double portion.
00:46:38.68\00:46:42.44
This was our memory verse:
"We're believing in the promises
00:46:42.47\00:46:45.90
of eternal life,
believe this one.
00:46:45.93\00:46:48.28
2 Peter 1:3,
"According as His divine power
00:46:48.31\00:46:53.70
has given unto us
all things that pertain
00:46:53.73\00:46:56.25
to life and godliness -
there's a promise right there.
00:46:56.28\00:46:58.96
His power has
given us how many things?
00:46:58.99\00:47:01.64
All things that pertain to what?
00:47:01.67\00:47:03.27
Life - practical
living and godliness.
00:47:03.30\00:47:08.02
Everything you need for
godliness is in His Word.
00:47:08.05\00:47:11.39
Through the knowledge of
Him that has called us to
00:47:11.42\00:47:14.35
glory and virtue,
whereby are given unto us
00:47:14.38\00:47:18.36
exceeding great and precious
promises, not just promises,
00:47:18.39\00:47:23.61
not just great
promises, but exceeding great
00:47:23.64\00:47:28.02
and precious promises!
00:47:28.05\00:47:30.25
Can't get a better
promise than that - can you?
00:47:30.28\00:47:33.20
That by these - what do
we do with these promises?
00:47:33.23\00:47:36.28
By these, you might be
partakers of the divine nature.
00:47:36.31\00:47:41.93
Whose nature is
that? The nature of Christ!
00:47:41.96\00:47:45.25
You can be a
partaker of His nature!
00:47:45.28\00:47:48.73
... I don't know, Pastor Doug-
00:47:48.76\00:47:49.82
Well, maybe you won't - Why?
Because you don't believe it.
00:47:49.85\00:47:53.60
If you believe it, you can!
00:47:53.63\00:47:56.08
Do you believe His promise?
00:47:56.11\00:47:58.13
By the promises,
you've got it right here -
00:47:58.16\00:48:00.20
You can be a
partaker of His divine nature.
00:48:00.23\00:48:02.20
And some would say, "Well, that
just means that God looks at you
00:48:02.23\00:48:04.16
and He pretends you've
got the nature of Christ."
00:48:04.19\00:48:06.31
That's not what He's saying...
00:48:06.34\00:48:07.84
He's saying,
"You partake of it."
00:48:07.87\00:48:10.55
"You are changed -
having escaped the corruption
00:48:10.58\00:48:15.40
that is in the world through
lust," is that clear enough?
00:48:15.43\00:48:18.44
You become a
partaker of the divine nature,
00:48:18.47\00:48:20.42
and it's shown in that
you escape the corruption
00:48:20.45\00:48:23.49
that is in the world by lust.
00:48:23.52\00:48:25.85
That's an exceeding great and
precious promise all in itself
00:48:25.88\00:48:29.50
that we can be new creatures.
00:48:29.53\00:48:32.13
And then, of course, you've
got what I quoted in Jude 1:24
00:48:32.16\00:48:35.50
"Now unto Him that is
able to keep us from falling,
00:48:35.53\00:48:40.05
and to present us faultless
before the presence of His glory
00:48:40.08\00:48:43.14
with exceeding joy."
00:48:43.17\00:48:44.71
He is able to
keep us from falling.
00:48:44.74\00:48:47.30
And that's why we used
to sing that song at every
00:48:47.33\00:48:49.20
evangelistic meeting,
"He is Able, He is Able"
00:48:49.23\00:48:52.07
So you're not
trusting in your ability,
00:48:52.10\00:48:53.99
you're not trusting in
your word or promises...
00:48:54.02\00:48:56.55
You're trusting in His
promises and His dependability.
00:48:56.58\00:49:01.04
If you believe, all things are
possible to him that believes.
00:49:01.07\00:49:05.11
Yes, even your holy
living, everything is possible.
00:49:05.14\00:49:09.24
How many believe it's
possible for the devil to
00:49:09.27\00:49:11.09
tempt you to sin?
00:49:11.12\00:49:12.47
Let me see your hands...
How many believe it's possible?
00:49:12.50\00:49:16.19
Do you believe it's possible for
the devil to tempt you to sin?
00:49:16.22\00:49:18.90
How many of you
believe it's possible for
00:49:18.93\00:49:20.90
Jesus to keep you from sin?
00:49:20.93\00:49:23.22
If you don't raise
your hand the second time,
00:49:23.25\00:49:25.38
but you raise your
hand the first time,
00:49:25.41\00:49:26.85
that means you believe
your devil is more powerful
00:49:26.88\00:49:29.03
than your God...
00:49:29.06\00:49:34.69
All things are
possible for those that believe.
00:49:34.72\00:49:40.75
I heard,
somebody wrote one time,
00:49:40.78\00:49:43.15
" Robert Murray McCheyne,"
"If I could hear Christ
00:49:43.18\00:49:46.78
praying for me in the next
room, I would not fear for a
00:49:46.81\00:49:50.52
million enemies."
00:49:50.55\00:49:52.48
Isn't that true? If
you could, right now,
00:49:52.51\00:49:55.46
know that Jesus is in the
next room and overhear Him
00:49:55.49\00:49:57.93
praying and interceding for you,
00:49:57.96\00:49:59.74
would you be afraid of anything?
00:49:59.77\00:50:02.01
How many of you would be
more confident of your victory?
00:50:02.04\00:50:05.69
Now I didn't finish the quote.
00:50:05.72\00:50:07.66
"Yet distance
makes no difference."
00:50:07.69\00:50:10.11
"He is praying
for me - He ever lives
00:50:10.14\00:50:13.07
to make intercession for us."
00:50:13.10\00:50:15.80
So just because He's a
little further away and maybe
00:50:15.83\00:50:18.51
you can't hear, do you believe
He's praying for your victory?
00:50:18.54\00:50:24.19
Then it can be yours.
00:50:24.22\00:50:25.93
We need to cling to
these promises that are here
00:50:25.96\00:50:30.15
because it is a
matter of life and death.
00:50:30.18\00:50:32.05
The devil wants to break your
hold on the promises of God.
00:50:32.08\00:50:35.61
You gotta hold on to Him as
though your life depends on it
00:50:35.64\00:50:38.02
because it does!
00:50:38.05\00:50:39.60
Your eternal life depends
on - your victory depends on
00:50:39.63\00:50:42.17
your success - your walking
in His will - all depends on
00:50:42.20\00:50:44.95
your trusting His
Word, stepping out in faith,
00:50:44.98\00:50:47.86
claiming His promises
- knowing what they are.
00:50:47.89\00:50:50.97
A lot of us don't even
know the power of them!
00:50:51.00\00:50:54.85
And not letting go!
00:50:54.88\00:50:56.92
Heard about a sea captain
once that counted how he was
00:50:56.95\00:51:00.24
making his way across
the Caribbean to Cuba,
00:51:00.27\00:51:03.65
they heard the
shout "man overboard."
00:51:03.68\00:51:06.00
The boat was frequently trailed
by sharks that used to pick up
00:51:06.03\00:51:09.33
the garbage that
was thrown off the ship
00:51:09.36\00:51:11.45
or discarded fish
that they had eaten,
00:51:11.48\00:51:14.01
and when a man fell overboard,
it was a serious matter
00:51:14.04\00:51:17.17
because those big lumbering
ships couldn't turn around
00:51:17.20\00:51:19.80
often in time to recover
them if the water was cold
00:51:19.83\00:51:22.50
or if there were sharks...
00:51:22.53\00:51:24.14
And when they
shouted "man overboard,"
00:51:24.17\00:51:25.81
they always had a
rope coiled up at the stern
00:51:25.84\00:51:28.22
and they would hurl
it as fast as they could,
00:51:28.25\00:51:30.78
and you were supposed
to get a hold of it before
00:51:30.81\00:51:32.78
the ship got too far away.
00:51:32.81\00:51:35.47
Man overboard!
Seaman at the back
00:51:35.50\00:51:38.93
hurled the rope off the stern;
00:51:38.96\00:51:41.18
the man who had fallen
from the ship got a hold of it
00:51:41.21\00:51:44.69
and he held on for dear
life because the ship was still
00:51:44.72\00:51:47.69
moving - so it's kind
of like waterskiing slowly
00:51:47.72\00:51:50.11
submarining through the water.
00:51:50.14\00:51:51.48
He knew if he let go,
sharks would probably get him
00:51:51.51\00:51:54.15
before that ship
could turn around...
00:51:54.18\00:51:55.65
And all the men got
hold and they pulled him in,
00:51:55.68\00:51:58.80
pulled him up the
side, got him onboard
00:51:58.83\00:52:01.37
and the captain said,
"It was 2 hours before
00:52:01.40\00:52:04.00
we could get his
hands off the rope."
00:52:04.03\00:52:07.57
He would not
let go of that rope!
00:52:07.60\00:52:12.53
I remember one
time riding a motorcycle
00:52:12.56\00:52:14.53
for 2 hours in the rain and
I couldn't open my hands up,
00:52:14.56\00:52:17.90
and they were just so
cold, they were frozen.
00:52:17.93\00:52:22.04
But that's the idea, you get
a hold of the promises of God,
00:52:22.07\00:52:25.26
and don't let the
devil discourage you and say,
00:52:25.29\00:52:27.22
"Aw, you're not good enough,
you're never going to make it,
00:52:27.25\00:52:28.96
you can't make it,
you can't believe it...
00:52:28.99\00:52:30.81
What about all
the times you failed?"
00:52:30.84\00:52:32.50
The devil is going to
try and loosen your grip.
00:52:32.53\00:52:34.92
Don't let go - the Bible
says, "Cleave unto the Lord
00:52:34.95\00:52:38.05
for He is your life."
00:52:38.08\00:52:39.95
A lot of unclaimed promises
out there that we're missing.
00:52:39.98\00:52:45.37
Years ago, when the Canadian-
Pacific Railroad need to
00:52:45.40\00:52:49.48
take their train track
across some Indian territory,
00:52:49.51\00:52:53.65
the great Blackfoot
chief by the name of Crowfoot
00:52:53.68\00:52:56.64
gave them permission to
cross their land and in exchange
00:52:56.67\00:53:00.36
the Canadian-Pacific Railroad
gave him a lifetime pass
00:53:00.39\00:53:04.10
to travel for
free on that railroad.
00:53:04.13\00:53:07.44
Well, he said he appreciated
it, he coiled it up in a little
00:53:07.47\00:53:11.67
scroll and stuck it in a leather
pouch in a bag around is neck,
00:53:11.71\00:53:15.88
but to their knowledge,
for the remainder of his life,
00:53:15.91\00:53:17.66
which was considerable,
he never got on the train.
00:53:17.69\00:53:21.30
Never took the ride
that he could have taken!
00:53:21.33\00:53:26.05
And that's the way it is
sometimes with God's people
00:53:26.08\00:53:28.45
We just kind of
carry it as an ornament.
00:53:28.48\00:53:33.07
The promises of God - we
wear them instead of live them.
00:53:33.10\00:53:36.63
And God is wanting us to
take the ride to get on board
00:53:36.66\00:53:39.44
and to say, "I personally
am going to put my weight down
00:53:39.47\00:53:41.95
on the promises of God."
00:53:41.98\00:53:43.22
You can lean all you
want on the promises of God,
00:53:43.25\00:53:45.55
they will not break.
00:53:45.58\00:53:47.70
Kind of like a story I heard
one time about a man years ago,
00:53:47.73\00:53:50.72
needed to get
across the Missouri River.
00:53:50.75\00:53:52.74
It was in winter and he
was making that pilgrimage with
00:53:52.77\00:53:55.39
a lot of settlers
across the river and he came
00:53:55.42\00:53:58.52
to the banks and it was frozen.
00:53:58.56\00:53:59.67
He didn't know how
thick the ice was and so
00:53:59.71\00:54:02.15
he got down on all
4's, he figured if I
00:54:02.18\00:54:04.76
spread out and displace my
weight - if I walk, you know,
00:54:04.79\00:54:09.24
the more concentrated weight.
00:54:09.27\00:54:10.33
If I get on all 4s and so
he's crawling across the ice...
00:54:10.36\00:54:14.24
Soon he heard bells and
he heard the crack of a whip,
00:54:14.27\00:54:17.34
and he looked to his
left and there was a sleigh
00:54:17.37\00:54:21.07
going across the river
pulling a wagon filled with coal
00:54:21.10\00:54:25.78
and horses galloping by him.
00:54:25.81\00:54:27.78
And they looked at this man on
all 4's crawling across the ice.
00:54:27.81\00:54:33.09
And I wonder sometimes if that's
not what the angels see...
00:54:33.12\00:54:36.33
God has got these
promises that have never failed,
00:54:36.36\00:54:39.24
and we're tiptoeing out there
on the ice and we're getting
00:54:39.27\00:54:42.05
down and they're
going, "You know it will hold
00:54:42.08\00:54:44.20
a lot more than you!"
00:54:44.23\00:54:45.96
The sacrifice of Jesus is
adequate to keep the promises.
00:54:45.99\00:54:50.80
It's better than any
billion dollar government
00:54:50.83\00:54:52.76
bail out, I'll
tell you right now.
00:54:52.80\00:54:55.24
There's enough for everybody!
00:54:55.27\00:54:56.34
The blood is sufficient
- His promises are sure,
00:54:56.37\00:55:00.89
and you can set your
weight down on them, friends.
00:55:00.92\00:55:03.80
How many of you
would like to become better
00:55:03.83\00:55:05.72
acquainted with the promises of
00:55:05.75\00:55:06.79
God this year that
are found in His Word?
00:55:06.82\00:55:08.78
You're going to
have to read them.
00:55:08.81\00:55:10.11
Start underlying
them, start claiming them.
00:55:10.15\00:55:12.47
Ask, believe, claim and
you'll experience transformation
00:55:12.50\00:55:16.32
in you life
whatever your challenges are.
00:55:16.35\00:55:18.14
Whether it's something where
you work, in your character,
00:55:18.17\00:55:20.90
we've all got that, in
your family, pray for miracles.
00:55:20.93\00:55:25.05
Don't underestimate
what God can do. Amen?
00:55:25.08\00:55:28.01
Is it easier to
stand on one foot or two?
00:55:28.04\00:55:30.61
Would you be more
stable with 2 feet or 4?
00:55:30.64\00:55:35.59
You got hundreds of
feet you can stand on in the
00:55:35.62\00:55:39.16
Word of God, friends. Amen!
00:55:39.19\00:55:41.23
It's in the
promises of His Word...
00:55:41.26\00:55:43.15
And you look at them,
claim them, believe them,
00:55:43.18\00:55:45.20
and you'll have
that solid assurance.
00:55:45.23\00:55:48.17
Let's pray together...
00:55:48.20\00:55:50.40
Loving Father,
Lord, we thank You for
00:55:50.43\00:55:53.75
the assurance that Your Word
never fails; that not one word
00:55:53.78\00:55:58.52
of all You've
promised has failed.
00:55:58.55\00:56:00.71
And that You are the same
yesterday, today and forever.
00:56:00.74\00:56:04.10
Jesus Christ does not change.
00:56:04.13\00:56:06.79
Lord, I pray that we can
have more confidence that You
00:56:06.82\00:56:11.42
will fulfill
what You've promised,
00:56:11.45\00:56:13.32
that we will do our part
to lay hold on those promises;
00:56:13.35\00:56:17.72
those exceeding great
and precious promises,
00:56:17.75\00:56:20.65
that we might partake of
the nature of Jesus Himself
00:56:20.68\00:56:23.97
in our lives; that we
might escape the corruption
00:56:24.00\00:56:26.96
that is in the world by
lust and reflect Christ,
00:56:26.99\00:56:29.73
and be real Christians.
00:56:29.76\00:56:31.93
Help us, Lord, to
get the specific promises
00:56:31.96\00:56:34.44
that we need, not only for
eternal life and the Holy Spirit
00:56:34.47\00:56:38.53
that You will save our
loved ones, but in the various
00:56:38.56\00:56:41.23
areas of our
lives where we struggle.
00:56:41.26\00:56:43.62
Direct us to those promises
that we need in Your Word.
00:56:43.65\00:56:47.05
I pray that You'll bless
these people in this church.
00:56:47.08\00:56:50.10
Be with those in a special
way who have come forward
00:56:50.13\00:56:53.04
with some needs -
some who may be accepting
00:56:53.07\00:56:54.93
Jesus for the first time.
00:56:54.96\00:56:56.25
Come into their hearts and
give them that sweet assurance
00:56:56.28\00:56:59.36
that they are Your children.
00:56:59.39\00:57:00.79
Also Lord, we pray for
the many who may be listening
00:57:00.82\00:57:03.54
or watching and that Your
Spirit will meet with them
00:57:03.57\00:57:06.42
right where they are
right now and they can
00:57:06.45\00:57:08.55
experience that
assurance, that peace
00:57:08.58\00:57:11.31
of everlasting life that
You've promised in Your Word
00:57:11.34\00:57:13.57
because of Jesus and
it's in His name we pray,
00:57:13.60\00:57:16.86
and we thank You... Amen
00:57:16.89\00:57:20.65
A website whose roots date
back to the beginning of time
00:57:20.68\00:57:23.61
SabbathTruth.com
is the definitive
00:57:23.64\00:57:25.91
resource for Bible
light on the Lord's day.
00:57:25.94\00:57:28.67
Clear Bible answers for
every question you've ever had
00:57:28.70\00:57:31.43
about the Sabbath.
00:57:31.46\00:57:32.55
Seven key topic headings guide
you through the purpose of the
00:57:32.58\00:57:35.42
Sabbath; which
day is the Lord's day,
00:57:35.45\00:57:37.91
the Sabbath in prophecy;
questions about the Sabbath;
00:57:37.94\00:57:40.91
how to keep it holy;
the Sabbath in history;
00:57:40.94\00:57:43.29
and many Sabbath resources.
00:57:43.32\00:57:45.22
Visit SabbathTruth.com
00:57:45.25\00:57:47.10
today and share your
newfound treasure with a friend.
00:57:47.13\00:57:50.78
If you've missed any of
our Amazing Facts programs,
00:57:50.81\00:57:53.59
visit our website
at amazingfacts.org
00:57:53.62\00:57:56.23
There, you'll find an
archive of all our television
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and radio programs including
Amazing Facts Presents.
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One location - so many
possibilities - amazingfacts.org
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