Music...
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Welcome to 3ABN
Australia Homecoming.
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Music...
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Welcome to the 3ABN
Australia Homecoming 2018,
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our second-last sermon,
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this has gone so fast.
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It really has,
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it's kind of a
sad thing, isn't it?
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There's a lot of
preparation for this
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but what a blessing it has been,
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we want to hear a
hearty "Amen" from you.
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Audience: Amen.
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I know that I've been blessed,
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Jill and I, and the team
that has come from 3ABN USA,
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what a blessing it is to be here
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and to meet with each
one of you, it's encouraging.
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So, this is number 12.
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Is it really?
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Yes, and that's just amazing
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I just hope that everybody is...
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been as blessed
as we wanted them to
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and you're getting
to know God better.
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You're getting to know
different aspects of God
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and to appreciate Him
and to grow closer to Him
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because that's
what we're trying to do.
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We want people
to have eternal life
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and to have eternal life,
you need to know God personally
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so He can put His
character into you.
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Yeah, that's really important,
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for breakfast this
morning, I had a Weet-Bix.
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That's quite an
Australian thing I understand.
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You know, not only do we want
to feed ourselves physically
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with wonderful
food from Australia,
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there's good
food in USA as well,
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we want to feed
ourselves from the Word of God
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and I think that's so important,
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I appreciate all the messages
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that we have
heard here, Rosemary,
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all of Camp Meeting...
all of this Homecoming...
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it's been about
studying God's Word...
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immersing
ourselves in the Word of God
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because in it, there are so
many treasures that we can find.
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That's right and that's
the way we get to know God.
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Well, before we
have our Speaker come on,
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we have Kevin Petrie again,
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he's a Lecturer
at Avondale College
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and I really am
blessed when Kevin sings
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because I find his
voice very soothing
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and he's going to be singing
a song called, "Missing Me"
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and who's speaking today?
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Today, we're again
blessed with Geoff Youlden
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who is the Union Evangelist
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and his passion is to share
the Word of God with others.
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And he's good at it.
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Oh, he's really good
and his message today is,
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"Knowing God as He
pursues the Lost. "
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So, we'll listen to
Kevin and then Geoff will come
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and bless us with a
message from God, thank you.
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Pause...
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Music...
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I wonder what He thinks of
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as He looks at His
nail-pierced hands,
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Does He think of all He suffered
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as His blood fell like the sand,
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And the scars upon His temple
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made from thorns
pressed on His head,
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Does He think of
all He went through
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as a lamb to slaughter led
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But I know He sees my face
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And He does recall my name
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He remembers all His love for me
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That cost Him so much pain
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He remembers how eternity
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Would somehow never be
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Quite the same for heaven
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Because God would be missing me.
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Music...
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Hands reached out to strike
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All with vented rage
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Animals for cruelty
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Satan's anger for all age
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music...
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Spitting out their venom
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A hatred born elsewhere
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Does it come back to His memory
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How He was treated there
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But I know He sees my face
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And He does recall my name
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He remembers all His love for me
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That cost Him so much pain
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He remembers how eternity
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Would somehow never be
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Quite the same for heaven
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Because God would be missing me.
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Music...
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Because I know He sees my face
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And He does recall my name
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He remembers all His love for me
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That caused Him so much pain
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He remembers how eternity
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Would somehow never be
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Quite the same for heaven
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Because God would be missing me
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He remembers how eternity
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Would somehow never be
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Quite the same for heaven
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Quite the same for heaven...
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Because God would be missing
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me...
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music...
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Pause...
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Just recently, I
was visiting a business
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and when I went
inside the front doors,
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the desk was in front
of me and up above the desk
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was the Mission
Statement of the business
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and I read it
with interest and...
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of course we've all
been to businesses...
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we've all been
involved with Organizations
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that have mission statements
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in which they try to crystalize
the purpose of their being.
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Jesus had a
mission statement too
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and I'd like to invite
you to open your Bibles
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to that Mission Statement
over in Luke the 19th chapter.
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Luke the 19th chapter and we'll
notice His Mission Statement.
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Pause...
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Chapter 19 and
verse 10 where Jesus says,
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"For the Son of man is come
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to seek and to save
that which was lost. "
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Pause...
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I want to submit to you that
that's Jesus' Mission Statement
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pause...
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crystallized
into just a few words.
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Pause...
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To seek and to save
that which was lost.
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Pause...
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Every great work
that's ever done in this world
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has someone who
has great passion.
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It doesn't matter
whether it's a business...
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setting up a business...
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running an
Organization... the Church...
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whenever
something is successful,
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you will look behind
it and see that the person
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that organized
it... that's behind it
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has a deep passion for it
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pause...
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and any
significant accomplishment
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will have that deep passion
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and Christianity... if
it's going to be successful
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must be driven by
people with a deep passion.
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Pause...
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The message of the three
angels of Revelation chapter 14,
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"To every nation,
kindred, tongue and people... "
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I would like to suggest to you
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that that has to be
driven by people with passion.
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Pause...
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Unfortunately, we live in an age
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in which passion has
been diluted by worldliness
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and today, all of us
are affected by prosperity.
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Pause...
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And there's a tendency
for us to look after ourselves
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and then, our
passion comes second.
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Pause...
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A new convert told me
that he went to his church
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and he was enthusiastic about
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spreading the gospel
that he'd just learned
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pause...
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and some older
member said to him,
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"Just settle down...
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in a few years' time, you'll
be just like the rest of us. "
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Audience: Laughter...
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That's a tragedy
really, isn't it?
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Audience: It is.
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I mean, the angels, I think,
are going to over their epithet
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pause...
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and that would be a
sad angel that does it.
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Light but no heat...
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and for passion,
we must have both.
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I want to read
you a modern parable.
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See if things that
you understand and know...
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you can identify
with this parable.
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Pause...
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On a dangerous sea coast
where shipwrecks often occur,
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there was a crude
little life-saving station.
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The building was just a
hut and there was only one boat
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but the few devoted members
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kept a constant
watch over the sea
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and with no thought for
themselves or their safety,
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they went out day and night
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tirelessly
searching for the lost.
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Many lives were saved by this
wonderful life-saving station
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so it became famous.
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Some of those who were saved
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and various others
in the surrounding area,
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wanted to become
associated with the Station
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and give their time
and money and effort
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for the support of its work.
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New boats were bought
and new crews were trained
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and the little
Life-saving Station grew.
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Some of the members of the
Life-saving Station were unhappy
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that the building was so
crude and poorly equipped.
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They felt, a more comfortable
place should be provided
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as the first refuge of those
who were saved from the sea.
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So, they replaced the
emergency cots and beds
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and put together furniture
in their large building.
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Now the Life-saving Station
became a popular gathering place
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for its members
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and they
decorated it beautifully
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and furnished it exquisitely
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because they used
it as a sort of a club.
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Fewer members were now
interested in going out to sea
00:12:12.63\00:12:16.80
on life-saving missions
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so they hired lifeboat
crews to do that work for them.
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The life-saving
motif still provided
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in the club's decorations
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and there was a
liturgical lifeboat in the room
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where club
initiations took place.
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About this time, a large
ship was wrecked off the coast
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and the hired crews
brought in loads of cold,
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wet and drowned people.
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They were dirty and sick
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and the beautiful new club
considerably was messed up.
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So the Property Committee
00:12:46.73\00:12:49.20
immediately had a shower
house built outside the club
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where the victims of shipwrecks
00:12:52.60\00:12:54.90
could be cleaned up
before coming inside.
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Pause.
00:12:56.94\00:12:59.01
At the next meeting, there was
a split in the club membership.
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Most of the members
00:13:01.41\00:13:02.84
wanted to stop the
life-saving activity altogether
00:13:02.88\00:13:05.35
because it was unpleasant
00:13:05.38\00:13:06.72
and a hindrance to the
normal social life of the club.
00:13:06.75\00:13:09.98
Some members
insisted upon life-saving
00:13:10.02\00:13:13.29
as their primary purpose.
00:13:13.32\00:13:14.96
They pointed that
that they were still called
00:13:14.99\00:13:17.63
a Life-saving Station
00:13:17.66\00:13:19.23
but they were finally voted down
00:13:19.26\00:13:21.90
and told that if they
wanted to save the lives
00:13:21.96\00:13:24.17
of various kinds of people
00:13:24.23\00:13:25.57
that were
shipwrecked in those waters,
00:13:25.60\00:13:27.67
they could begin their
own Life-saving Station
00:13:27.70\00:13:30.37
down the
coast... which they did.
00:13:30.41\00:13:32.77
As the years went by
00:13:32.81\00:13:34.94
the new station
experienced the same changes
00:13:35.01\00:13:37.25
that occurred in the old...
00:13:37.28\00:13:38.88
it evolved into a club...
00:13:38.91\00:13:40.45
and yet another
Life-saving Station was founded
00:13:40.48\00:13:43.69
and history
continued to repeat itself
00:13:43.72\00:13:46.19
and if you visit
that coast today,
00:13:46.22\00:13:48.62
you'll find a number of
exclusive clubs along the shore.
00:13:48.66\00:13:51.86
Shipwrecks are still
frequent in those waters
00:13:51.89\00:13:55.83
and most of the people drown.
00:13:55.86\00:13:58.97
There's a deep
message for those of us
00:13:59.00\00:14:02.17
who belong to God's
church in that story
00:14:02.20\00:14:05.84
because there are
alarming similarities.
00:14:05.87\00:14:09.34
I'd like you to
take your Bibles again
00:14:09.38\00:14:12.38
and read
Jeremiah chapter 9 with me
00:14:12.41\00:14:15.42
and the first verse,
00:14:15.45\00:14:16.82
Jeremiah chapter 9 and verse 1
00:14:16.85\00:14:19.02
and here is an interesting
statement made by Jeremiah,
00:14:19.19\00:14:23.83
of course,
Jeremiah is often known
00:14:23.86\00:14:25.59
as the weeping prophet isn't he?
00:14:25.66\00:14:27.33
And this verse would
be supportive of that,
00:14:27.36\00:14:32.53
look at Jeremiah
chapter 9, verse 1.
00:14:32.57\00:14:34.74
"Oh that my head were waters,
00:14:34.77\00:14:37.14
and my eyes a fountain of tears,
00:14:37.17\00:14:40.08
that I might weep day and night
00:14:40.11\00:14:42.98
for the slain of the
daughter of my people!"
00:14:43.01\00:14:45.15
Pause...
00:14:45.18\00:14:49.05
You know, that emotion is
very, very foreign to us today,
00:14:49.08\00:14:52.85
very foreign.
00:14:52.89\00:14:55.42
You know, if you start
to get excited about things,
00:14:55.46\00:14:59.59
people begin to think that
00:14:59.63\00:15:01.46
maybe you're
bordering on being a fanatic.
00:15:01.50\00:15:03.67
"You know, you've just
got to be peaceful and quiet
00:15:03.70\00:15:07.47
and don't get
involved with emotion. "
00:15:07.50\00:15:10.77
When I read Jeremiah, his eyes,
he said, are full of tears.
00:15:10.81\00:15:15.21
"I just don't have enough
tears... " he's saying here
00:15:15.24\00:15:18.45
"to contain my sorrow. "
00:15:18.51\00:15:20.15
Pause...
00:15:20.22\00:15:23.52
And as I said, that's
very, very foreign to us.
00:15:23.55\00:15:26.62
I, over the years,
and I'm sure, some of you
00:15:26.65\00:15:29.52
would be able to
quote me stories like
00:15:29.59\00:15:32.43
I'm going to share with you
00:15:32.46\00:15:33.80
where people
have left the church
00:15:33.83\00:15:38.13
because of trivial bad things...
00:15:38.17\00:15:42.40
for example, I know
some people who get upset
00:15:42.47\00:15:44.74
because someone sits in the seat
00:15:44.77\00:15:46.61
that they
normally sit in in church.
00:15:46.64\00:15:47.98
Audience: Laughter.
00:15:48.01\00:15:49.34
It's true,
00:15:49.38\00:15:51.08
"You know, I have
my seat just up there,
00:15:51.11\00:15:52.91
everyone knows
that it's my seat,
00:15:52.95\00:15:55.38
I sit there every week.
00:15:55.42\00:15:56.89
And someone comes in
and sits in their seat,
00:15:56.95\00:16:01.39
or, they do something in
the church and... and... and...
00:16:01.42\00:16:05.19
we're very
grateful for what they do
00:16:05.23\00:16:07.06
but no one recognizes it,
00:16:07.10\00:16:09.60
no one says anything to them
00:16:09.63\00:16:12.07
and they get put
out as a result of it.
00:16:12.10\00:16:15.04
Pause...
00:16:15.07\00:16:16.91
And in some churches,
it might be like here,
00:16:16.94\00:16:19.54
I have a certain parking spot
out there that I always park in,
00:16:19.57\00:16:23.38
it's just close to the
toilets and it's close to the...
00:16:23.41\00:16:25.58
and if it rains,
I can get in quickly
00:16:25.61\00:16:27.95
and someone has
parked their car there today.
00:16:27.98\00:16:31.55
Audience: Laughter.
00:16:31.59\00:16:33.25
And I get my nose out of joint
00:16:33.32\00:16:35.89
and I want to leave the church,
00:16:35.92\00:16:38.43
well, you know, we smile
but I tell you, it's tragic.
00:16:38.46\00:16:41.36
When I went to Edinborough
00:16:41.40\00:16:44.50
and those of you who've
been to Edinborough, Scotland,
00:16:44.53\00:16:46.87
pause...
00:16:46.90\00:16:48.60
so many famous
things in Edinborough...
00:16:48.64\00:16:51.57
the code of the Royal Mile...
00:16:51.61\00:16:53.07
that's the mile... I don't
know whether it's an exact mile
00:16:53.11\00:16:57.65
but they call
it, "The Royal Mile"
00:16:57.68\00:16:59.58
between two castles.
00:16:59.61\00:17:01.58
The Edinborough
Castle... on the top end
00:17:01.62\00:17:04.69
and down the bottom
end is Holyrood Castle
00:17:04.75\00:17:07.76
pause...
00:17:07.79\00:17:09.12
and you may know that
Queen Mary Queen of Scots
00:17:09.16\00:17:12.73
Catholic Queen Mary
00:17:12.76\00:17:14.96
was imprisoned in
Holyrood Castle for a period.
00:17:15.00\00:17:19.03
Now she was the... the queen
00:17:19.07\00:17:22.70
when John Knox was
the Reformer in Scotland.
00:17:22.74\00:17:27.84
Now, John Knox founded
the Presbyterian Church,
00:17:27.88\00:17:31.81
I don't know whether
he set out to do that
00:17:31.85\00:17:34.02
but that's how the Presbyterian
Church was established.
00:17:34.08\00:17:37.65
I was brought up in
the Presbyterian Church
00:17:37.72\00:17:40.89
so I have a little
bit of oatmeal porridge
00:17:40.92\00:17:43.93
and Scottish in my
background too, you see,
00:17:43.96\00:17:46.93
pause...
00:17:47.00\00:17:48.83
but what impressed
me is that Queen Mary
00:17:48.86\00:17:52.27
said that she feared more...
the sermons more of John Knox
00:17:52.30\00:17:59.31
than all the armies in Europe.
00:17:59.37\00:18:01.84
Pause...
00:18:01.88\00:18:03.85
Now that means
that he must have been
00:18:03.88\00:18:05.41
a very, very lively
preacher, wouldn't you think?
00:18:05.45\00:18:08.52
In fact, someone said,
00:18:08.55\00:18:10.52
"So mighty was he in
his yearning for lost souls
00:18:10.55\00:18:14.09
that it was thought
00:18:14.12\00:18:15.92
that he would break
the pulpit into bits. "
00:18:15.96\00:18:18.03
Audience: Laughter.
00:18:18.06\00:18:19.49
So what does it indicate
when he was up the front?
00:18:19.53\00:18:21.90
You think he just
stood there passively
00:18:21.93\00:18:24.07
and had a little
chat to everyone?
00:18:24.10\00:18:26.33
That's not John Knox.
00:18:26.37\00:18:28.07
Pause...
00:18:28.10\00:18:30.77
You read some of his books
00:18:30.81\00:18:32.71
pause...
00:18:32.77\00:18:34.88
and he thundered against the
apostate church in those days
00:18:34.91\00:18:39.48
and he turned Scotland around
00:18:39.51\00:18:43.15
and made them "Pro...
testants" well, Protestants.
00:18:43.18\00:18:47.72
Then there was John
Wesley who, it is said,
00:18:47.79\00:18:53.90
saved England from the
revolution like France had
00:18:53.93\00:18:58.73
because of his preaching
00:18:58.77\00:19:00.60
and stirring the
social conscience in England.
00:19:00.64\00:19:03.91
He travelled 350,000
kilometers in his life
00:19:03.94\00:19:10.61
mostly on foot
but on horse as well.
00:19:10.65\00:19:15.15
Pause.
00:19:15.18\00:19:17.25
He gave away 200,000 dollars.
00:19:17.29\00:19:20.82
Now you think of it,
that's the end of the 1700s
00:19:20.86\00:19:23.86
200,000 dollars... huge amount!
00:19:23.89\00:19:27.66
And he lived in
a most careful way.
00:19:27.70\00:19:32.83
Never spent a single
penny more than he had to.
00:19:32.87\00:19:36.67
He dressed very simply.
00:19:36.71\00:19:39.14
He preached two-and-a-half
thousand sermons in his life
00:19:39.17\00:19:44.35
and he stirred
the soul of England.
00:19:44.38\00:19:47.65
I went down there
to Bristol in England
00:19:47.68\00:19:50.32
and there you
can see the monument
00:19:50.39\00:19:52.55
that's been
erected to John Wesley
00:19:52.59\00:19:54.69
who used to get up and
preach at 4 a. m. in the morning
00:19:54.72\00:19:58.49
and he would be
preaching to the coal miners
00:19:58.53\00:20:01.76
who were going to go
down into the coal mines.
00:20:01.80\00:20:04.87
Now, those of you
who have lived in England
00:20:04.90\00:20:07.97
and been to
England in the winter
00:20:08.00\00:20:09.57
will know how
bitterly cold the place gets.
00:20:09.60\00:20:12.01
Pause...
00:20:12.04\00:20:14.08
How the British
live there, I don't know.
00:20:14.11\00:20:16.24
Audience: Laughter.
00:20:16.28\00:20:17.81
But they successfully do.
00:20:17.85\00:20:20.25
It's so bitterly cold
00:20:20.28\00:20:22.62
and the crowd egged on
by those who were opposed
00:20:22.65\00:20:28.39
to what Wesley was teaching,
00:20:28.42\00:20:29.76
mainly the
popular church in England,
00:20:29.79\00:20:31.46
encouraged those who were
the dissidents among the group
00:20:31.49\00:20:37.20
to pick up
rotten eggs and tomatoes
00:20:37.23\00:20:41.47
and as he was preaching,
they would throw them at him.
00:20:41.50\00:20:45.07
Pause.
00:20:45.11\00:20:46.78
You know, we think sometimes
00:20:46.81\00:20:48.14
we get a little
bit of opposition,
00:20:48.18\00:20:49.51
but I want to tell you
00:20:49.54\00:20:51.41
it's nothing compared
to what those amazing men
00:20:51.45\00:20:55.05
who have lived before
00:20:55.08\00:20:56.42
and to my mind, John Wesley was
the greatest of the Reformers
00:20:56.45\00:20:59.75
pause...
00:20:59.79\00:21:01.76
and we have a lot in common
with what John Wesley taught.
00:21:01.79\00:21:05.99
He had a passion for the lost
00:21:06.03\00:21:08.36
and I... every time
I read about Wesley,
00:21:08.43\00:21:11.57
I pray a prayer that God
will give me the same passion...
00:21:11.60\00:21:15.24
the same conviction...
00:21:15.27\00:21:17.77
some of the
ability that Wesley had...
00:21:17.81\00:21:21.98
in order to be
able to reach the lost
00:21:22.04\00:21:26.18
and to lead them to Jesus.
00:21:26.21\00:21:28.72
I think of George Whitfield.
00:21:28.75\00:21:31.95
He was a contemporary of Wesley.
00:21:31.99\00:21:35.42
George Whitfield had such zeal
00:21:35.46\00:21:38.79
that he lived in
patched clothing.
00:21:38.83\00:21:40.76
Pause.
00:21:40.80\00:21:42.70
Often during the night,
00:21:42.73\00:21:45.00
he would spend
all night in prayer
00:21:45.03\00:21:47.04
agonizing with God to
give him the Holy Spirit
00:21:47.07\00:21:50.21
so he could reach more people
00:21:50.24\00:21:52.01
and those who were
writing up his biography,
00:21:52.04\00:21:56.91
will tell you that he
would wipe away the sweat
00:21:56.95\00:22:01.75
from his forehead in the
middle of winter in Bristol
00:22:01.78\00:22:07.76
because of his deep
passion for the lost.
00:22:07.79\00:22:12.43
John Newton who
wrote "Amazing Grace"
00:22:12.49\00:22:17.07
said, "I don't know
who is the second best
00:22:17.10\00:22:20.14
preacher in the world
00:22:20.17\00:22:21.50
but I certainly
know who was the best...
00:22:21.54\00:22:23.57
George Whitfield... "
00:22:23.61\00:22:26.01
and he was an amazing man.
00:22:26.04\00:22:29.44
Then I think of the
passion and the commitment
00:22:29.48\00:22:32.11
that James and Ellen White had.
00:22:32.15\00:22:36.35
It would do us good to
read some of the early works...
00:22:36.38\00:22:41.06
she lived not far from here
00:22:41.09\00:22:42.99
pause...
00:22:43.02\00:22:45.23
known as that little old
lady that did so much good
00:22:45.26\00:22:49.20
in the neighborhood...
00:22:49.23\00:22:50.60
pause
00:22:50.63\00:22:53.10
lived very frugally.
00:22:53.13\00:22:54.74
Then I think of
John Loughborough
00:22:54.77\00:22:58.71
and Joseph Bates
00:22:58.74\00:23:01.61
who sold his ship to
advance the cause of Christ.
00:23:01.64\00:23:06.78
Everything that he had, he
put into the cause of Christ
00:23:06.82\00:23:10.22
and when I read
about our pioneers...
00:23:10.25\00:23:13.39
those intrepid men and women,
00:23:13.42\00:23:15.59
pause...
00:23:15.62\00:23:17.53
I am forced to
bow my head in shame.
00:23:17.56\00:23:21.70
When I think of the
passion and the conviction
00:23:21.73\00:23:26.23
that each of those people had
00:23:26.27\00:23:29.27
to advance this cause,
00:23:29.30\00:23:31.57
pause...
00:23:31.61\00:23:33.21
and often the thing
that concerns me today
00:23:33.24\00:23:35.78
is that we're still
living off the fruits
00:23:35.88\00:23:39.15
of those who have lived before
00:23:39.18\00:23:42.98
and I wonder what type of legacy
00:23:43.05\00:23:46.79
that we're going to leave
for the generation to follow.
00:23:46.82\00:23:49.42
Pause...
00:23:49.46\00:23:52.76
Amazing people...
00:23:52.79\00:23:54.13
pause...
00:23:54.16\00:23:55.76
O for that flame of living fire
00:23:55.80\00:23:59.47
which shone so
bright in the saints of old;
00:23:59.50\00:24:04.07
which bade their
souls to heaven aspire,
00:24:04.11\00:24:08.64
Calm in
distress, in danger bold!
00:24:08.68\00:24:12.98
Remember, Lord,
the ancient days;
00:24:13.01\00:24:17.55
Renew Thy work,
Thy grace restore;
00:24:17.59\00:24:21.72
And while to Thee
our hearts we raise,
00:24:21.76\00:24:25.86
On us Thy Holy Spirit pour.
00:24:25.89\00:24:29.20
There's another hymn
that we need to sing often.
00:24:29.23\00:24:33.54
Pause...
00:24:33.57\00:24:35.80
You know what I
love about the hymns
00:24:35.84\00:24:37.64
pause...
00:24:37.67\00:24:40.11
compared to many of the songs
that are composed in our day,
00:24:40.14\00:24:44.25
is the fact that
most of the hymns...
00:24:44.31\00:24:45.98
if you check the stories
are written by men, usually,
00:24:46.01\00:24:50.22
but some women
too... some amazing women...
00:24:50.29\00:24:52.85
who have written experiences
and they've put them into words.
00:24:52.89\00:24:59.66
Pause...
00:24:59.69\00:25:01.96
you take that hymn, "God
moves in a mysterious way"
00:25:02.00\00:25:08.17
that man was going
down to commit suicide
00:25:08.20\00:25:11.27
and his horse lost the way
00:25:11.31\00:25:13.88
and as a result of that
00:25:13.91\00:25:16.38
he believed that Lord
had his hand over his life
00:25:16.41\00:25:18.81
and he wrote: God
moves in a mysterious way.
00:25:18.85\00:25:21.12
Pause...
00:25:21.18\00:25:23.42
That song, "It is
well with my soul"
00:25:23.49\00:25:26.42
is a song of experience,
00:25:26.45\00:25:29.59
of a man who lost
his daughters in the sea,
00:25:29.62\00:25:34.40
you know the story...
00:25:34.43\00:25:35.83
pause...
00:25:35.86\00:25:38.10
devastated...
00:25:38.13\00:25:40.00
any parent that's lost a child
00:25:40.04\00:25:43.10
pause...
00:25:43.14\00:25:48.24
can identify with the emotions
00:25:48.28\00:25:52.08
that would have been associated
00:25:52.11\00:25:54.65
with that man
00:25:54.68\00:25:58.49
and he's put it into
words and we still sing it,
00:25:58.52\00:26:02.62
"It is well with my soul. "
00:26:02.66\00:26:04.96
Pause...
00:26:04.99\00:26:07.50
That's why the hymns are
going to last until Jesus comes
00:26:07.53\00:26:10.90
and we'll still be singing
them in the next generation.
00:26:10.93\00:26:14.80
We need to tell our young
people about those stories
00:26:14.84\00:26:18.67
to remind them...
00:26:18.71\00:26:20.68
to instill in them a
passion for the truth.
00:26:20.71\00:26:27.78
Now, Jesus also
had amazing passion,
00:26:27.82\00:26:32.12
I want to read to
you some of that passion
00:26:32.15\00:26:34.22
over in Matthew chapter 9.
00:26:34.26\00:26:35.86
Matthew the 9th chapter
00:26:35.89\00:26:37.43
if you will turn with me please,
00:26:37.46\00:26:40.30
Matthew chapter 9 and verse 35.
00:26:40.33\00:26:43.13
Matthew 9 and verse 35.
00:26:43.16\00:26:47.14
Pause...
00:26:47.17\00:26:53.11
"Then Jesus went out to
all the cities and villages,
00:26:53.14\00:26:57.55
teaching in their synagogues,
00:26:57.61\00:26:58.95
preaching the
gospel of the kingdom,
00:26:59.01\00:27:00.65
and healing every sickness...
00:27:00.68\00:27:02.08
every disease
among the people. "
00:27:02.15\00:27:04.65
But when He saw
the multitudes... "
00:27:04.69\00:27:07.19
what does the next line say?
00:27:07.22\00:27:08.92
"He was moved with... " what?
00:27:08.96\00:27:10.63
"compassion... "
00:27:10.66\00:27:12.09
What does that mean?
00:27:12.13\00:27:13.46
What does it mean that
Jesus was moved with compassion
00:27:13.50\00:27:16.63
when He saw the multitude...
00:27:16.67\00:27:18.53
as it goes on to say,
00:27:18.57\00:27:20.07
"because they were
weary and scattered,
00:27:20.10\00:27:24.87
like sheep having no shepherd.
00:27:24.94\00:27:26.41
Then He said to the disciples,
'The harvest truly is plentiful,
00:27:26.44\00:27:31.41
but the laborers are few.
00:27:31.45\00:27:33.98
Please pray... the
Lord of the harvest
00:27:34.02\00:27:36.89
to send out
laborers into the harvest. '"
00:27:36.92\00:27:39.72
There's the appeal
that Jesus is saying to us,
00:27:39.75\00:27:41.92
"Pray that God would lay upon
people a burden to preach. "
00:27:41.96\00:27:45.96
because the harvest is ready. "
00:27:45.99\00:27:48.50
I don't know of a
time in... in history
00:27:48.53\00:27:51.00
when the harvest is
not more ready to be reaped
00:27:51.03\00:27:53.40
than it is at the moment.
00:27:53.44\00:27:54.87
You know, when I
became a Christian
00:27:54.90\00:27:57.64
and understood
these three messages...
00:27:57.67\00:27:59.67
you heard about an
earthquake every now and again,
00:27:59.71\00:28:02.38
I'd never heard of the word,
"Tsunami" when I was growing up,
00:28:02.41\00:28:06.38
wouldn't have known what it was.
00:28:06.41\00:28:08.25
Earthquakes...
00:28:08.28\00:28:11.49
everywhere... almost weekly...
00:28:11.52\00:28:16.39
and then what about all
the fires and the droughts
00:28:16.42\00:28:20.30
and the floods...
00:28:20.33\00:28:21.66
almost every day
there's some serious issue
00:28:21.70\00:28:25.73
going on somewhere in
the world, isn't that right?
00:28:25.77\00:28:28.20
If that not ought to wake us up.
00:28:28.24\00:28:31.87
When we read the Bible,
00:28:31.91\00:28:35.24
and Jesus here says that these
things are going to take place
00:28:35.28\00:28:41.25
and what we're
seeing is not something new
00:28:41.28\00:28:43.75
because there's always
been those issues in the world
00:28:43.79\00:28:46.45
but what we're seeing is
the intensity of those things.
00:28:46.49\00:28:49.12
They're gathering momentum.
00:28:49.16\00:28:51.19
Pause...
00:28:51.23\00:28:53.60
And Jesus is saying,
"The harvest is ready... "
00:28:53.63\00:28:58.13
but the problem
is the reapers...
00:28:58.17\00:29:01.80
God help and lay
upon people today
00:29:01.84\00:29:05.41
a burden to share the gospel.
00:29:05.44\00:29:07.51
Pause...
00:29:07.58\00:29:09.84
In fact, Jesus
told the three parables
00:29:09.88\00:29:11.91
over in Luke chapter 15,
00:29:11.95\00:29:14.62
I would just like you to have
a look at these three parables
00:29:14.68\00:29:16.99
because they again emphasize
what Jesus is saying here
00:29:17.02\00:29:22.29
about the lost.
00:29:22.32\00:29:24.49
This is Luke the 15th
chapter and verse 1, it says,
00:29:24.53\00:29:27.76
pause...
00:29:27.80\00:29:29.13
"Then all the tax
collectors and the sinners
00:29:29.16\00:29:31.20
drew near to Him to hear Him. "
00:29:31.23\00:29:32.83
It's interesting the people
came to hear Jesus, isn't it?
00:29:32.90\00:29:35.30
Pause...
00:29:35.34\00:29:36.94
"And the Pharisees and
the scribes complained... "
00:29:36.97\00:29:40.31
they are the critics...
00:29:40.34\00:29:42.48
"This Man receives
sinners and eats with them. "
00:29:42.51\00:29:45.98
So He spoke this
parable to them, saying:
00:29:46.01\00:29:48.12
"What man of you,
having a hundred sheep,
00:29:48.15\00:29:50.19
if he loses one of them,
00:29:50.25\00:29:51.59
does not leave the ninety
and nine in the wilderness,
00:29:51.62\00:29:53.82
go after one which is
lost until he finds it?
00:29:53.86\00:29:56.46
And when he has found it,
00:29:56.49\00:29:58.26
he lays it on his
shoulders, rejoicing.
00:29:58.29\00:30:00.30
And when he comes home,
00:30:00.33\00:30:01.80
he calls together his
friends and neighbors,
00:30:01.83\00:30:04.13
together, and saying to them,
00:30:04.17\00:30:06.53
'Rejoice with me,
00:30:06.57\00:30:07.90
for I have found my
sheep which was lost!'
00:30:07.94\00:30:09.90
And I say to you that likewise
there will be more joy in heaven
00:30:09.94\00:30:15.08
over one sinner who repents
00:30:15.11\00:30:17.31
than over
ninety-nine just persons
00:30:17.35\00:30:20.22
who need no repentance. "
00:30:20.25\00:30:21.88
Pause.
00:30:21.92\00:30:23.25
This would be
very much understood
00:30:23.28\00:30:25.15
in an agrarian society
that Jesus was living in.
00:30:25.19\00:30:28.76
Everyone understood
about sheep and shepherds...
00:30:28.79\00:30:32.26
and it was a very
serious thing to be a shepherd
00:30:32.29\00:30:35.53
because there was a
fair amount of responsibility
00:30:35.56\00:30:38.77
and accountability for example,
00:30:38.80\00:30:40.50
if one of those sheep were lost,
00:30:40.54\00:30:42.17
then the shepherd
was held responsible.
00:30:42.20\00:30:45.51
That's why he had to
go out and find that sheep
00:30:45.54\00:30:50.81
and if the sheep was
devoured by some wild animal,
00:30:50.85\00:30:55.15
he had to gather up the
carcass and take it back
00:30:55.18\00:30:59.45
because otherwise, he might
be accused of stealing the sheep
00:30:59.49\00:31:03.16
because they're extremely
valuable in that society.
00:31:03.19\00:31:07.63
Pause.
00:31:07.66\00:31:09.83
So, look for it until
it's found... you find it.
00:31:09.86\00:31:12.53
What is Jesus
trying to illustrate here?
00:31:12.57\00:31:14.50
He's trying to illustrate to us
00:31:14.54\00:31:16.94
the value that
He puts on a soul.
00:31:16.97\00:31:19.04
Pause...
00:31:19.07\00:31:20.64
That's what He's
telling us in this story
00:31:20.68\00:31:23.28
because the Lord
Jesus is the good shepherd
00:31:23.31\00:31:25.85
and here we have the...
the picture of the 90 and 9
00:31:25.91\00:31:29.22
when one goes astray
and He counts them through
00:31:29.25\00:31:32.22
and you know when
you're trying to count sheep,
00:31:32.25\00:31:35.06
it's not an easy thing.
00:31:35.09\00:31:36.83
Pause...
00:31:36.86\00:31:38.23
And He starts
again... and He got 99...
00:31:38.26\00:31:42.16
they start again...
00:31:42.20\00:31:45.50
one of them moves again
so you've got to start again
00:31:45.53\00:31:47.44
but eventually He's
convinced that there's 99
00:31:47.47\00:31:50.04
and then, He realizes
the one that's missing
00:31:50.11\00:31:52.57
is the one that's got that black
mark on its... on its head,
00:31:52.64\00:31:55.68
and it's got a mark on
its right paw... leg...
00:31:55.71\00:31:59.75
pause...
00:31:59.78\00:32:01.82
because He's got a photographic
memory of those sheep,
00:32:01.85\00:32:05.45
He knows them all...
00:32:05.49\00:32:06.86
in fact, He even has
a name for each of them
00:32:06.89\00:32:10.63
pause...
00:32:10.66\00:32:12.63
and He goes out
and finds that sheep
00:32:12.66\00:32:15.93
and when He does find the sheep,
00:32:15.96\00:32:17.97
He rejoices.
00:32:18.00\00:32:19.87
You know, sheep are a
most defenseless animal
00:32:19.90\00:32:24.01
and those of us
who've got a tender heart
00:32:24.04\00:32:28.04
don't like to understand a
picture of a lion or a bear
00:32:28.11\00:32:32.91
or a wolf attacking a sheep
00:32:32.95\00:32:36.32
because the sheep
would have no defense at all,
00:32:36.35\00:32:39.42
it's finished...
00:32:39.45\00:32:40.79
pause...
00:32:40.82\00:32:43.29
and they're a senseless animal.
00:32:43.32\00:32:45.19
You know, a dog and a cat
00:32:45.23\00:32:46.66
can find its way
home, isn't that right?
00:32:46.70\00:32:49.10
You know, people have
tried to lose their cats
00:32:49.16\00:32:52.83
and found it a
week or two later,
00:32:52.87\00:32:55.47
that things turns
up again, amazing!
00:32:55.50\00:32:58.11
Dogs... the same...
00:32:58.14\00:32:59.47
but a sheep... hopeless.
00:32:59.51\00:33:02.58
I was down in...
00:33:02.64\00:33:05.21
in New South
Wales some years ago
00:33:05.25\00:33:07.82
and I was running some meetings
00:33:07.85\00:33:10.35
and I needed to
visit this sheep farmer
00:33:10.39\00:33:12.59
and it was in the dead of night,
00:33:12.62\00:33:15.82
there was no moon
out, it was cloudy
00:33:15.86\00:33:17.19
and stars were not
there... it was just black...
00:33:17.23\00:33:19.93
and I drove into
this farm, opened the gate
00:33:20.00\00:33:23.16
and then, drove in,
closed the gate behind me
00:33:23.20\00:33:25.73
and as I was
driving up toward the house,
00:33:25.77\00:33:27.87
I could see the
light in the distance,
00:33:27.90\00:33:29.97
pause...
00:33:30.01\00:33:31.37
there was a flock of sheep,
00:33:31.41\00:33:33.41
so I had to stop the car
00:33:33.44\00:33:35.34
while these sheep
ran in front of me.
00:33:35.41\00:33:39.65
I sat there for
over five minutes
00:33:39.68\00:33:42.35
I thought, "Dear, oh dear,
there's plenty of these sheep,
00:33:42.38\00:33:45.29
where are they all coming from?"
00:33:45.32\00:33:46.82
and I sat there patiently
00:33:46.86\00:33:49.22
then I decided that
I would just get out
00:33:49.26\00:33:53.36
to see where
they were coming from,
00:33:53.40\00:33:54.96
you know what I found?
00:33:55.00\00:33:56.33
They were running around the...
around the car like this...
00:33:56.36\00:33:59.40
so there weren't a
lot of them really at all,
00:33:59.43\00:34:02.64
around and around and around...
00:34:02.70\00:34:04.51
and I thought,
"That's just like sheep,
00:34:04.54\00:34:07.34
they just follow one another"
00:34:07.38\00:34:08.84
and I've never forgotten
that... that experience.
00:34:08.88\00:34:12.98
They're also helpless,
00:34:13.01\00:34:14.75
I mean, they can't
provide for themselves,
00:34:14.78\00:34:17.69
a camel can smell
water a long distance away,
00:34:17.72\00:34:20.59
but a sheep...
absolutely hopeless,
00:34:20.66\00:34:23.69
cannot do anything for itself
00:34:23.73\00:34:26.36
and Jesus is
teaching in this parable,
00:34:26.39\00:34:29.13
the importance of a soul
00:34:29.16\00:34:31.47
even if the
person is defenseless
00:34:31.53\00:34:33.84
and has no idea...
00:34:33.87\00:34:35.57
pause...
00:34:35.60\00:34:38.44
Jesus is illustrating
how He regards each of us
00:34:38.47\00:34:42.31
and it teaches me that I must
have compassion for the lost...
00:34:42.34\00:34:46.65
for those who do not understand
what the Bible teaches.
00:34:46.72\00:34:50.32
Pause...
00:34:50.35\00:34:52.19
Jesus understands the wounds
00:34:52.22\00:34:54.56
that sin brings
to a person's heart.
00:34:54.59\00:34:57.36
You've probably
seen like I have,
00:34:57.39\00:35:00.23
parents
interviewed on television
00:35:00.26\00:35:03.06
when their child is lost
00:35:03.10\00:35:04.47
pause...
00:35:04.53\00:35:06.90
and the passion and the emotion
00:35:06.94\00:35:11.04
and the concern those
parents have for a lost child.
00:35:11.07\00:35:14.74
Pause...
00:35:14.78\00:35:16.85
Remember this,
00:35:16.88\00:35:18.71
that passion that we
have for our children,
00:35:18.75\00:35:21.92
who put that passion there?
00:35:21.95\00:35:24.85
God did because
it's a reflection...
00:35:24.89\00:35:28.19
particularly mother's love.
00:35:28.22\00:35:29.56
God put mother's
love in her heart
00:35:29.59\00:35:34.73
because mother's love
is the closest illustration
00:35:34.76\00:35:38.77
that God has given to
us of God's love for us
00:35:38.80\00:35:42.77
pause...
00:35:42.80\00:35:45.17
and a mother's
love is so strong,
00:35:45.24\00:35:47.31
it's stronger than iron.
00:35:47.34\00:35:48.68
Pause...
00:35:48.71\00:35:51.21
Jesus is illustrating
that that's His love for us.
00:35:51.25\00:35:54.38
Then He told a second
parable, after the lost sheep,
00:35:54.42\00:35:57.52
He then told another parable.
00:35:57.55\00:35:59.62
This time, it concerned a coin.
00:35:59.65\00:36:01.92
Have a look at verse 8, it says,
00:36:01.96\00:36:04.16
"Or what woman,
having ten silver coins,
00:36:04.19\00:36:07.66
if she loses one
coin, does not light a lamp,
00:36:07.70\00:36:12.03
sweep the house,
and search carefully
00:36:12.07\00:36:14.27
until she finds it?
00:36:14.30\00:36:15.70
And when she has found it,
00:36:15.74\00:36:18.21
she calls her friends and
neighbors together saying,
00:36:18.24\00:36:20.38
'Rejoice with me,
for I have found my piece
00:36:20.41\00:36:24.11
which I lost!'
00:36:24.15\00:36:25.48
Likewise, I say to you,
00:36:25.51\00:36:27.55
there is joy in the
presence of the angels of God
00:36:27.58\00:36:30.75
over one sinner who repents. "
00:36:30.79\00:36:33.66
This time, Jesus
illustrates with a lost coin.
00:36:33.69\00:36:37.13
Very precious to her, I
mean, back in those days,
00:36:37.16\00:36:40.60
a denarius or
a... like a penny...
00:36:40.63\00:36:43.50
we would say a
cent... that was a day's wage
00:36:43.53\00:36:47.77
so, you can
imagine, a silver coin...
00:36:47.80\00:36:50.47
that would be worth a lot.
00:36:50.51\00:36:51.84
She had ten of them
00:36:51.87\00:36:53.34
because back in those
days there were no banks
00:36:53.38\00:36:55.74
and you had to look
after your own money
00:36:55.78\00:36:58.31
which was very dangerous
00:36:58.35\00:37:00.32
because you could
very easily lose it
00:37:00.35\00:37:03.69
and so, she was
distraught over the fact
00:37:03.72\00:37:06.99
that she had lost this coin,
00:37:07.02\00:37:08.92
so, you know what it's
like, when you lose something,
00:37:08.96\00:37:12.33
you got to try to
remember, where was I last?
00:37:12.36\00:37:14.26
And you go back
and have a look there
00:37:14.30\00:37:16.43
and couldn't find it,
looked under the cupboard
00:37:16.46\00:37:19.30
may have rolled under the
cupboard and she got down...
00:37:19.33\00:37:22.37
tried to have a look,
couldn't find it anywhere.
00:37:22.40\00:37:26.11
So she contacts her
friends where she last visited
00:37:26.17\00:37:29.84
yeah... she traces her steps...
00:37:29.88\00:37:31.71
"Did I leave it at my friends?"
00:37:31.75\00:37:33.52
And they... and she
asks them to help her find it
00:37:33.55\00:37:37.55
and eventually
she finds the coin
00:37:37.59\00:37:39.99
and she is so happy
that she's found this coin
00:37:40.12\00:37:43.39
as the Bible says
she... "Rejoice with me,
00:37:43.43\00:37:46.59
for I have found the
piece that I had lost!"
00:37:46.63\00:37:49.23
What is Jesus
trying to illustrate here?
00:37:49.26\00:37:51.77
The joy that's in heaven over
one person who comes to Jesus.
00:37:51.83\00:37:57.11
Pause...
00:37:57.14\00:37:59.34
And then, He told another story.
00:37:59.37\00:38:01.41
The story that we're
probably much more familiar with
00:38:01.44\00:38:04.51
and that is
starting in verse 11,
00:38:04.55\00:38:06.58
the parable of the lost boy.
00:38:06.61\00:38:08.62
Actually there were two
lost boys in this story,
00:38:08.68\00:38:11.85
we often refer to it as
the story of the lost boy
00:38:11.89\00:38:15.02
but there were two boys
involved with this story
00:38:15.06\00:38:18.13
and I'm not going
to read the whole story
00:38:18.16\00:38:19.76
because you know it very well,
00:38:19.79\00:38:21.83
but if you go down to verse 22,
00:38:21.86\00:38:23.90
it says here,
00:38:23.93\00:38:25.83
"But the father
said to his servants,
00:38:25.87\00:38:28.14
'Bring out the best
robe and put it on him,
00:38:28.17\00:38:31.14
and put a ring on his
hand and sandals on his feet.
00:38:31.17\00:38:34.34
And bring the fatted
calf here and kill it,
00:38:34.38\00:38:37.95
and let us eat and be merry;
00:38:37.98\00:38:41.22
for this my son was
dead and is alive again;
00:38:41.25\00:38:45.95
he was lost and is found. '
00:38:45.99\00:38:49.22
And they began to get merry. "
00:38:49.26\00:38:50.59
Pause...
00:38:50.63\00:38:53.26
Now, that
merriness had a reaction
00:38:53.29\00:38:55.63
because if you go
down to verse 32, it says,
00:38:55.66\00:39:00.40
the father... because
the oldest son now objects
00:39:00.44\00:39:04.87
to all this merriment
over this boy that was lost,
00:39:04.91\00:39:09.31
and finally the father says,
00:39:09.34\00:39:11.45
"It was right that we
should make merry and be glad,
00:39:11.48\00:39:13.85
for your brother was
dead and is alive again,
00:39:13.88\00:39:16.92
and was lost and now is found. "
00:39:16.95\00:39:20.12
What is this chapter about?
00:39:20.16\00:39:22.89
Why has Jesus put these
three parables together?
00:39:22.92\00:39:25.16
Because they're
basically saying the same thing.
00:39:25.19\00:39:27.40
Pause...
00:39:27.46\00:39:29.43
What's the key word that
you find in every parable?
00:39:29.46\00:39:32.47
Pause...
00:39:32.50\00:39:34.34
Yes, there's... there's
a positive adjective though
00:39:34.37\00:39:39.87
what's the
positive word that's used...
00:39:39.94\00:39:43.24
Audience: Rejoice...
00:39:43.28\00:39:44.75
Rejoice... it's
picturing God Who is rejoicing
00:39:44.78\00:39:51.65
because who's the father
in the prodigal son's story?
00:39:51.69\00:39:55.86
That's God.
00:39:55.89\00:39:57.63
God is pictured as rejoicing.
00:39:57.66\00:39:59.86
Who's leading the party?
00:39:59.89\00:40:02.36
God.
00:40:02.40\00:40:03.77
And also, who is
leading the rejoicing?
00:40:03.80\00:40:07.87
It's God... and the picture
that the Bible is giving to us
00:40:07.90\00:40:12.34
is how happy and how rejoicing
00:40:12.37\00:40:14.44
the great party
that's being held in heaven
00:40:14.48\00:40:16.81
over even a single soul
that's lost... that's come back.
00:40:16.85\00:40:20.65
Pause...
00:40:20.68\00:40:23.02
And verse seven gives us a clue
00:40:23.05\00:40:25.62
of chapter 15 verse 7, it says,
00:40:25.65\00:40:28.16
"I say to you that likewise
there will be more joy in heaven
00:40:28.19\00:40:32.03
over one sinner who repents
00:40:32.09\00:40:34.50
than over
ninety-nine just persons
00:40:34.53\00:40:37.37
who need no repentance. "
00:40:37.43\00:40:39.33
Do we get the message?
00:40:39.37\00:40:41.20
God is very excited
when people are won to Him.
00:40:41.27\00:40:45.97
When they've come
from sin into salvation...
00:40:46.01\00:40:50.71
God rejoices...
Heaven rejoices...
00:40:50.75\00:40:53.28
I wonder whether we
have that same concern.
00:40:53.31\00:40:56.38
Pause...
00:40:56.42\00:40:58.85
As long as we're happy
00:40:58.89\00:41:00.22
and, you know, we come to church
00:41:00.26\00:41:02.12
and have a nice time,
00:41:02.16\00:41:04.73
is that our... our aim...
00:41:04.76\00:41:07.26
is that really what
church is all about?
00:41:07.30\00:41:09.36
Or is church...
00:41:09.40\00:41:11.43
should be church
about training us
00:41:11.47\00:41:13.87
so that we can
become more effective
00:41:13.94\00:41:16.91
in helping our neighbors
and our friends and family
00:41:16.94\00:41:20.78
because Jesus said, "The
harvest truly is plenteous"
00:41:20.81\00:41:24.65
now, either He's
telling a fib when He says that
00:41:24.68\00:41:28.02
or it's true.
00:41:28.05\00:41:30.49
I happened to
believe it's true...
00:41:30.52\00:41:32.12
that there's plenty
of people everywhere
00:41:32.15\00:41:36.06
that are
wistfully looking to heaven.
00:41:36.12\00:41:40.00
Pause.
00:41:40.03\00:41:42.76
No, they're not going
to come to us usually...
00:41:42.83\00:41:45.10
we've got to go to them.
00:41:45.13\00:41:46.47
The sheep was lost, it
didn't even know it was lost,
00:41:46.50\00:41:49.20
the coin didn't know it was lost
00:41:49.24\00:41:51.17
and in the majority of cases,
we have to find those people.
00:41:51.24\00:41:58.71
Verse 10,
"Likewise, I say to you,
00:41:58.75\00:42:02.75
there is joy in the
presence of the angels of God
00:42:02.78\00:42:05.15
over one sinner who repents. "
00:42:05.19\00:42:06.92
Some people say,
"Well the angels rejoice. "
00:42:06.96\00:42:09.92
Well, actually, it
doesn't say that does it?
00:42:09.96\00:42:12.73
although I do
believe the angels do rejoice
00:42:12.76\00:42:15.66
but it's not saying
that in that text, is it?
00:42:15.70\00:42:18.60
Pause...
00:42:18.63\00:42:20.54
Where is the
rejoicing taking place?
00:42:20.57\00:42:22.70
In the presence of the angels
00:42:22.74\00:42:26.44
which would
suggest... who's rejoicing?
00:42:26.47\00:42:28.31
The Godhead...
00:42:28.34\00:42:33.72
and of course, I
believe the angels would be...
00:42:33.75\00:42:35.95
would be involved in that too
because they are part of heaven.
00:42:35.98\00:42:39.72
Why did Jesus come to
seek and to save the lost?
00:42:39.75\00:42:44.29
Because that brings Him joy,
that brings Him great happiness.
00:42:44.33\00:42:48.90
All heaven rings when
a soul comes to Jesus.
00:42:48.93\00:42:54.37
Pause.
00:42:54.40\00:42:55.74
And if that is true,
00:42:55.77\00:42:57.74
how important it
is for you and for me
00:42:57.77\00:43:00.34
to be involved in
helping heaven to rejoice
00:43:00.38\00:43:03.65
because God has given
to us that responsibility.
00:43:03.68\00:43:06.82
He didn't have to give it to us,
00:43:06.85\00:43:09.08
He could have done a lot better
if He had given it to the angels
00:43:09.12\00:43:12.15
but He didn't choose to do that
00:43:12.19\00:43:15.16
because you and I
need to be involved
00:43:15.19\00:43:17.33
and if we're going to
grow in our own experience,
00:43:17.36\00:43:20.43
you and I need to be involved
in helping others to know Jesus.
00:43:20.46\00:43:23.80
Pause...
00:43:23.87\00:43:25.83
And Jesus called each of
the disciples to be evangelists
00:43:25.87\00:43:29.40
He said, "I want to
make you fishers of men. "
00:43:29.44\00:43:33.61
And you know, when you
think about those disciples,
00:43:33.64\00:43:37.45
they were a pretty
thick lot weren't they?
00:43:37.48\00:43:39.98
Pause...
00:43:40.02\00:43:41.35
I mean, He spent
three years training them...
00:43:41.38\00:43:43.69
three years...
00:43:43.72\00:43:46.25
and even at the
end of the three years,
00:43:46.29\00:43:48.56
they weren't
very wise, were they?
00:43:48.59\00:43:53.26
And they had spent three
years with the greatest teacher
00:43:53.29\00:43:57.20
that's ever lived on this earth.
00:43:57.23\00:43:58.73
That ought to give
us some encouragement...
00:43:58.77\00:44:01.30
those of us who are
involved in the church
00:44:01.34\00:44:05.54
and we find that there
are some sleepy ones...
00:44:05.57\00:44:06.94
some disinterested others...
00:44:06.98\00:44:09.64
give us encouragement
00:44:09.68\00:44:12.05
but even Jesus
had those problems,
00:44:12.08\00:44:15.02
they were a tough lot.
00:44:15.05\00:44:16.62
In fact, if you look
at Matthew chapter 13,
00:44:16.65\00:44:20.19
the parables of
Matthew chapter 13,
00:44:20.22\00:44:22.32
and we haven't got
time to look at them all
00:44:22.36\00:44:26.06
but that's the
wheat and the tares
00:44:26.09\00:44:27.83
and the mustard
seed and so forth,
00:44:27.86\00:44:29.53
all of those parables,
00:44:29.56\00:44:31.03
chapter 13 is full
of them... Matthew...
00:44:31.07\00:44:34.57
all of those
parables are dealing
00:44:34.60\00:44:38.27
with the evangelistic situation
of what needs to take place
00:44:38.31\00:44:43.14
when we go out into the earth
00:44:43.18\00:44:44.51
and to... and to win...
00:44:44.55\00:44:45.88
each one of those
parables has to do
00:44:45.91\00:44:47.98
with the type of reception
that we're going to meet,
00:44:48.02\00:44:52.19
you look at them all
and read them through.
00:44:52.22\00:44:55.29
The wheat and the tares...
00:44:55.32\00:44:57.29
the sower...
00:44:57.33\00:44:58.89
how apt is that
story of the sower.
00:44:58.93\00:45:02.33
You know, when I was over
in Israel a few years ago,
00:45:02.36\00:45:06.60
I... I just happened
to be driving up north
00:45:06.63\00:45:09.27
to the Sea of
Galilee from Jerusalem
00:45:09.30\00:45:12.37
and the morning
sun was just coming up,
00:45:12.44\00:45:15.44
it was a beautiful morning
and I couldn't believe my eyes,
00:45:15.48\00:45:19.71
for there in the field
was a sower... sowing the seed
00:45:19.75\00:45:23.95
with a horse
00:45:23.99\00:45:25.99
and the horse was
digging up the ground
00:45:26.02\00:45:29.62
and then, I
presumed it was his wife
00:45:29.66\00:45:33.19
coming behind,
00:45:33.26\00:45:35.33
throwing the seed,
00:45:35.36\00:45:37.37
and I thought,
"How wonderful is that!"
00:45:37.40\00:45:38.97
Because I could just picture
00:45:39.00\00:45:41.37
that Jesus saw
something like that
00:45:41.40\00:45:43.04
to... to inspire
Him to tell that story.
00:45:43.10\00:45:46.01
Pause...
00:45:46.04\00:45:48.51
And then, Matthew 10,
00:45:48.54\00:45:49.94
if you look at the
parables in Matthew 10,
00:45:49.98\00:45:52.25
you'll find that
they're all to do with the...
00:45:52.28\00:45:54.92
with the opposition...
00:45:54.95\00:45:58.65
with the type of reception
00:45:58.69\00:46:00.02
that the
disciples were going to get
00:46:00.06\00:46:01.66
when they went forth
00:46:01.69\00:46:03.02
because it always
wasn't going to be easy
00:46:03.06\00:46:04.73
and you read through
the parables of Matthew 10
00:46:04.76\00:46:07.80
with that in mind and
they make wonderful sense.
00:46:07.83\00:46:10.83
So that was the instruction
00:46:10.87\00:46:12.93
that Jesus was
giving to the disciples
00:46:12.97\00:46:14.30
because remember this,
00:46:14.34\00:46:15.67
the parables weren't
given to the Pharisees
00:46:15.70\00:46:19.04
and the Sadducees, were they?
00:46:19.07\00:46:21.64
Why did Jesus tell parables?
00:46:21.68\00:46:24.21
The Bible says,
"To hide it from those
00:46:24.25\00:46:27.88
who didn't have a
heart to want to listen
00:46:27.92\00:46:31.52
and it was
instruction to the disciples,
00:46:31.55\00:46:33.69
it says that in the Bible
00:46:33.72\00:46:35.06
so the... the
parables are for instruction
00:46:35.09\00:46:39.33
for God's people in the church,
00:46:39.36\00:46:41.06
and what amazing
hidden truth there is
00:46:41.10\00:46:47.00
in each of
those... those parables
00:46:47.04\00:46:50.07
Jesus said, "I want you
to become fishers of men. "
00:46:50.11\00:46:52.81
Then, finally He
gave the instruction
00:46:52.84\00:46:55.21
to go out into all the world in
Matthew chapter 28 and verses 18
00:46:55.24\00:47:00.58
"Go into all the
world... preach...
00:47:00.62\00:47:05.22
teaching them to observe
00:47:05.25\00:47:07.72
everything that I
have instructed you... "
00:47:07.76\00:47:10.69
this was the last instruction
that was given to the disciples
00:47:10.73\00:47:14.20
before Jesus
went back to heaven.
00:47:14.23\00:47:15.63
Pause...
00:47:15.66\00:47:19.03
And then, in Acts
chapter 1 and verse 8,
00:47:19.07\00:47:21.40
would you just come
over to Acts 1 and verse 8,
00:47:21.44\00:47:24.47
once again, these
texts are known to us all
00:47:24.51\00:47:26.81
but it's good to remind
ourselves of these things,
00:47:26.84\00:47:30.95
Acts chapter 1 and verse 8
00:47:30.98\00:47:33.25
where Jesus' instruction
was given as to where to go.
00:47:33.28\00:47:40.22
Acts 1 verse 8, Jesus said this.
00:47:40.26\00:47:42.49
"But you shall receive power
00:47:42.52\00:47:46.26
when the Holy
Spirit has come upon you;
00:47:46.29\00:47:48.80
and you shall be
witnesses to Me in Jerusalem,
00:47:48.83\00:47:53.74
and in all Judea and Samaria,
00:47:53.77\00:47:59.27
and to the
uttermost part of the earth. "
00:47:59.31\00:48:04.48
Pause...
00:48:04.51\00:48:06.48
You know, someone has
pictured the disciples
00:48:06.51\00:48:09.88
gathered around Jesus
when He talked this way to them
00:48:09.92\00:48:13.29
and the look of amazement
00:48:13.32\00:48:18.53
on the disciples'
faces when He said this.
00:48:18.56\00:48:21.90
"Lord, You're not asking
us to go back to Jerusalem
00:48:21.93\00:48:26.80
where they
crucified You, are You?"
00:48:26.84\00:48:31.37
Is that what You're saying?
00:48:31.41\00:48:33.21
And Jesus says calmly to them,
00:48:33.24\00:48:37.28
"I want you to
go back to Jerusalem
00:48:37.31\00:48:39.11
and tell that murderous lot
00:48:39.15\00:48:43.18
that there's hope for them all
00:48:43.22\00:48:47.22
and Peter, I
want you particularly
00:48:47.26\00:48:50.43
to find the man
that spat in My face
00:48:50.46\00:48:54.03
and Peter, I
want you to tell him
00:48:54.06\00:48:57.57
that I'm preparing a
home for him in glory
00:48:57.60\00:49:00.84
and Thomas,
00:49:00.87\00:49:03.61
I want you to find the man
who made that crown of thorns
00:49:03.64\00:49:10.51
and shoved it into My brow...
and I want you to find him
00:49:10.55\00:49:17.42
and I want you to tell him
00:49:17.45\00:49:20.36
that I am preparing a
crown in heaven for him
00:49:20.42\00:49:23.66
but tell him Thomas,
00:49:23.69\00:49:26.56
there'll be no
thorns in My crown for him
00:49:26.59\00:49:30.97
and James, I want
you to find the man
00:49:31.00\00:49:35.30
that pierced My side...
00:49:35.34\00:49:37.74
that shoved that
spear into My side
00:49:37.77\00:49:41.44
and I want you
to tell him, James,
00:49:41.51\00:49:45.11
there's a much closer
way to My heart than that. "
00:49:45.15\00:49:48.38
You know the... the forgiveness
00:49:48.42\00:49:51.59
of the Lord Jesus
Christ is amazing.
00:49:51.62\00:49:55.22
Pause...
00:49:55.26\00:49:57.49
Absolutely incredible.
00:49:57.53\00:49:59.33
I was talking to a man who was
attending my meetings recently
00:49:59.36\00:50:05.73
and he said, "I just don't
believe the story of Jesus,
00:50:05.77\00:50:08.14
it's a myth... it's made up. "
00:50:08.17\00:50:10.31
Well, I said to him, "I
got a problem with that,
00:50:10.34\00:50:14.71
the problem I have is this,
00:50:14.74\00:50:17.08
'if Jesus didn't
exist... who made the story up?'
00:50:17.11\00:50:24.09
Pause...
00:50:24.12\00:50:26.76
Because the story of
Jesus and His forgiveness
00:50:26.79\00:50:32.13
is so far beyond
00:50:32.16\00:50:36.93
which any human being
would ever be able to do...
00:50:36.97\00:50:41.64
it would be
impossible for a human being
00:50:41.70\00:50:44.57
to think up that story,
00:50:44.61\00:50:46.34
impossible...
00:50:46.37\00:50:47.94
so if you deny
that Jesus exists,
00:50:47.98\00:50:51.88
please tell me,
who made the story up
00:50:51.91\00:50:55.72
because all the
other religious leaders...
00:50:55.75\00:50:58.25
they took their
holy book in one hand
00:50:58.29\00:51:00.62
and the sword in the other
00:51:00.66\00:51:01.99
and then if you
didn't accept the book...
00:51:02.02\00:51:03.36
then the sword finished you off.
00:51:03.39\00:51:05.26
That's how their message
was taken around the world... "
00:51:05.29\00:51:09.23
pause...
00:51:09.26\00:51:11.33
and there are some religions
that still use that tactic today
00:51:11.37\00:51:13.94
pause...
00:51:14.00\00:51:16.54
but Jesus said,
"Love your enemies...
00:51:16.57\00:51:20.28
pause...
00:51:20.31\00:51:23.11
bless them that curse you...
00:51:23.14\00:51:25.31
pause...
00:51:25.35\00:51:28.68
and be kind to those who
say terrible things about you
00:51:28.72\00:51:34.29
and when they do
that, leap for joy. "
00:51:34.32\00:51:37.56
I notice that most
of us leap, all right,
00:51:37.59\00:51:40.80
when people say things about us
00:51:40.83\00:51:43.20
but we don't leap
for joy, is that right?
00:51:43.23\00:51:47.17
But Jesus said,
"Forgive your enemies. "
00:51:47.20\00:51:51.07
That's the Savior I need.
00:51:51.11\00:51:55.18
You know, I was
over in Washington, D.C.
00:51:55.21\00:51:58.78
a few years ago
and I went to the
00:51:58.81\00:52:02.25
Holocaust Museum in Washington,
00:52:02.28\00:52:05.65
it's quite a place...
00:52:05.72\00:52:09.39
and I remember sitting there
having the pictures and so forth
00:52:09.42\00:52:12.56
and then I sat down and
watched a film of this lady
00:52:12.59\00:52:16.83
who was telling her experiences
00:52:16.87\00:52:20.14
in the 2nd World
War... the holocaust...
00:52:20.20\00:52:23.10
and I just sat there and I...
00:52:23.14\00:52:25.71
it was just
terrible to listen to...
00:52:25.77\00:52:27.54
it was excruciating...
00:52:27.58\00:52:28.91
that poor lady... and
what she'd been through
00:52:28.94\00:52:31.11
pause...
00:52:31.15\00:52:33.25
but what impressed me most
was what she said at the last,
00:52:33.31\00:52:36.95
she said, "I
will always remember
00:52:36.99\00:52:41.89
but will never forgive. "
00:52:41.92\00:52:45.16
Pause...
00:52:45.19\00:52:49.26
You see, that's...
00:52:49.30\00:52:51.93
that's the indication
of someone without Jesus
00:52:52.00\00:52:55.74
because it's only Jesus that
can give us grace to forgive.
00:52:55.77\00:53:05.21
Audience: Amen.
00:53:05.25\00:53:07.12
Pause...
00:53:07.15\00:53:10.15
It is so different...
00:53:10.19\00:53:12.35
it is so far away
from our natural tendencies
00:53:12.39\00:53:16.22
because when someone kicks
you, what do you want to do?
00:53:16.26\00:53:20.60
Only a bit
harder, isn't that right?
00:53:20.63\00:53:23.37
Of course, we all understand
because that's our nature.
00:53:23.40\00:53:28.30
All of us are like that
00:53:28.34\00:53:30.64
but Jesus taught us
to be different to that
00:53:30.67\00:53:35.78
pause...
00:53:35.84\00:53:38.95
and it's only the
righteousness of Jesus
00:53:38.98\00:53:42.12
in a man and a woman's life
00:53:42.15\00:53:44.35
that can enable him to do that.
00:53:44.39\00:53:46.59
You know, sometimes I pray
the Lord's Prayer and you do too
00:53:46.65\00:53:51.43
and there's a part
of the Lord's Prayer
00:53:51.49\00:53:54.56
that causes me to
tremble every time I read it
00:53:54.60\00:53:58.17
and I pray it.
00:53:58.23\00:53:59.57
You know what part it is?
00:53:59.60\00:54:00.94
Pause...
00:54:00.97\00:54:02.60
"Lord,
00:54:02.64\00:54:04.44
forgive me for my sins... "
00:54:04.47\00:54:07.58
what does the
rest of the verse say?
00:54:07.64\00:54:10.05
"as I forgive those
who sin against me. "
00:54:10.08\00:54:15.38
I tell you, do you feel
like forgiving some people?
00:54:15.42\00:54:21.62
Pretty hard isn't it?
00:54:21.66\00:54:23.73
Pause...
00:54:23.79\00:54:25.86
Pretty hard...
00:54:25.89\00:54:27.80
and that's why we need the
grace of Jesus in our hearts
00:54:27.83\00:54:31.00
to forgive...
and when we forgive,
00:54:31.03\00:54:36.47
God enables us
to have a passion...
00:54:36.50\00:54:41.91
passion for the lost...
00:54:41.94\00:54:45.35
pause...
00:54:45.38\00:54:48.75
and today, the
church needs men and women,
00:54:48.78\00:54:53.52
young people... who will
stand and stand for truth,
00:54:53.56\00:54:58.73
stand for
everything that is right...
00:54:58.76\00:55:02.96
pause...
00:55:03.00\00:55:04.70
and turn their back on
perhaps well-paying jobs
00:55:04.73\00:55:09.24
so that they can
devote their life
00:55:09.27\00:55:11.37
like those who
have lived before us
00:55:11.41\00:55:13.48
for the cause of Christ.
00:55:13.51\00:55:15.14
Pause...
00:55:15.18\00:55:18.78
Today we live
with an opportunity
00:55:18.81\00:55:23.05
of being faithful
to God and I pray...
00:55:23.08\00:55:25.45
and my prayer today is
that we will be faithful,
00:55:25.49\00:55:28.89
that we will ask God to
fill us with His righteousness,
00:55:28.92\00:55:32.66
as we discussed before,
00:55:32.69\00:55:35.53
the work of Christ
not only for us but in us
00:55:35.56\00:55:39.93
to change my life,
to make me like Jesus
00:55:39.97\00:55:42.70
so that I can forgive
like He taught me to forgive.
00:55:42.74\00:55:47.28
Let's just bow
our heads in prayer.
00:55:47.31\00:55:50.15
"Our Father in heaven,
00:55:50.18\00:55:52.65
I just want to
thank you again today
00:55:52.68\00:55:54.88
for the
marvelous story of Jesus.
00:55:54.92\00:55:57.09
I want to thank you for
a Savior like we have...
00:55:57.12\00:56:01.96
the Savior that has forgiven us
00:56:02.02\00:56:05.06
and has taught us by His
power that we can forgive those
00:56:05.09\00:56:09.13
who sin against us,
00:56:09.16\00:56:11.50
Lord, we confess that this
is probably the hardest thing
00:56:11.53\00:56:15.20
that ever a
person has to confront
00:56:15.24\00:56:18.04
but I pray Lord,
that you will give us
00:56:18.07\00:56:20.88
such an
outpouring of Your Spirit
00:56:20.91\00:56:22.61
that we will be faithful
00:56:22.64\00:56:23.98
and that we will do
what you want us to do
00:56:24.01\00:56:26.98
to spend time with Jesus so
that He can change our life,
00:56:27.02\00:56:30.15
bless us to this end please
00:56:30.19\00:56:31.55
and keep us faithful
until the day when Jesus comes
00:56:31.59\00:56:35.96
is my prayer today,
for Christ's sake, amen. "
00:56:35.99\00:56:39.79