Participants: Pr. E.C. Polite
Series Code: HG
Program Code: HG000003
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00:35 Turn to the Lord now that we are thankful
00:38 for what He's done for us. 00:40 I just want to praise You forever and ever and ever. 00:44 Let's sing it together. 00:46 I just want to praise You 00:49 Forever and ever and ever 00:57 For all You've done 01:01 You've done for me 01:06 Blessings and glory and honor 01:11 They all belong to You 01:16 Thank You Jesus for blessing me 01:22 Let's sing it again saying... 01:24 I just want to praise You I just want to praise You 01:27 Forever Forever 01:30 And ever 01:31 And ever 01:33 And ever 01:34 And ever 01:35 For all 01:37 For all 01:38 You've done for me 01:44 Blessings and glory 01:45 Blessings and glory 01:47 And honor 01:48 And honor 01:50 They all belong to You 01:55 Thank You Jesus for blessing me 02:02 Take it up, take it up a little higher saying... 02:05 I just want to praise You 02:08 Forever and ever and ever 02:15 For all You've done for me 02:23 Sing blessings and glory 02:24 Blessings and glory 02:26 And honor 02:27 And honor 02:29 They all belong to You 02:34 Thank you Jesus for blessing me 02:41 Take it up a little higher, saying 02:44 I just want to praise You 02:47 Forever and ever and ever 02:54 For all You've done for me 03:02 Sing blessings and glory 03:03 Blessings and glory 03:05 And honor 03:06 And honor 03:08 They all belong to You 03:11 Sing blessings and glory 03:13 Blessings and glory 03:15 And honor 03:16 And honor 03:18 They all belong to You 03:21 Sing blessings and glory 03:23 Blessings and glory 03:24 And honor 03:26 And honor 03:27 They all belong to You 03:31 Sing blessings and glory 03:32 Blessings and glory 03:34 And honor 03:35 And honor 03:37 They all belong to You 03:41 Thank you Jesus 03:42 Thank you Jesus 03:45 For blessing me 03:50 Sing halleluiah 03:55 I just want to praise You forever and ever and ever. 04:00 And if you believe that we should praise Him 04:03 forever and ever and ever, 04:06 then I need the church to say... 04:09 Amen. 04:10 And if You believe that He's gonna bless you in 2012 04:14 with an abundance so big, 04:16 you won't have room enough to receive it, 04:19 I need for the church to say... 04:21 Amen. Halleluiah. 04:24 Let's sing this song 04:27 and it's the simple song just says... 04:31 Let the church say amen 04:39 Let the church 04:42 Let us say amen 04:46 God has spoken 04:50 So let the church 04:53 Let us say amen 04:58 Everybody in the building 05:00 Let the church 05:02 Let the church say amen 05:07 Let us say amen 05:09 Let the church say amen 05:15 God is so good 05:17 God is so good 05:20 Let the church say amen 05:22 Let us say amen 05:27 And this is what I want you to say amen to... 05:32 When you are hungry 05:34 Amen 05:36 When you are thirsty 05:38 Amen 05:40 You're in trouble 05:42 Amen 05:44 Depressed 05:45 Amen 05:48 Persecuted 05:49 Amen 05:52 You're in doubt 05:53 Amen 05:55 When you are lonely 05:57 Amen 05:59 When you are sad 06:00 Amen 06:02 You need to say amen 06:04 Amen 06:07 Say amen 06:08 Amen 06:12 Amen 06:14 Just say amen 06:15 Amen 06:17 God has spoken 06:21 Let the church say amen 06:29 You all sing with me let the church say amen 06:32 Let the church say amen 06:40 Let the church say amen 06:47 God has spoken 06:51 Let the church say amen 06:59 One more time let the church say amen 07:02 Let the church say amen 07:09 Let the church say amen 07:10 Let the church say amen 07:16 God has spoken 07:18 God has spoken 07:21 Let the church say amen 07:29 Let us say amen 07:33 God has spoken 07:36 Let the church say 07:43 Halleluiah 07:45 For salvation and glory 07:49 We're gonna praise the Lord right here 07:51 Honor and power unto the Lord, our God 07:58 For the Lord, our God is mighty 08:00 For the Lord, our God is mighty 08:03 And the Lord, our God is omnipotent 08:05 The Lord, our God is omnipotent 08:08 The Lord The Lord, our God, 08:14 He is wonderful 08:18 Come on, altos 08:19 All praises 08:23 Be to the King of Kings 08:30 And the Lord, our God 08:35 He is wonderful 08:41 Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah 08:48 Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah 08:52 And the Lord, our God 08:55 He is wonderful 08:59 Come on, tenors, sing the song 09:03 Hallelujah, salvation and glory 09:10 And the Lord, our God 09:14 He is wonderful 09:16 He is wonderful 09:20 All praises 09:21 All praises be to the King of Kings 09:24 Hallelujah, salvation and glory 09:31 And the Lord, our God 09:33 Honor and power 09:36 He is wonderful 09:40 Come on, church. Sing it. 09:42 All praises be to the King of Kings 09:44 Hallelujah, salvation and glory 09:51 And the Lord, our God, 09:57 He is wonderful 10:01 All praises be 10:03 All praises be to the King of Kings 10:04 Hallelujah 10:08 Salvation and glory 10:13 Honor and power we love You, Lord 10:17 He is 10:19 Wonderful 10:26 Hallelujah, Hallelujah 10:54 Great 10:57 Is Thy faithfulness 11:03 O God 11:07 My Father 11:13 There is no shadow 11:20 Of turning 11:24 With Thee 11:30 Thou changest not 11:36 Thy compassions 11:39 They fail not 11:44 As Thou hast been 11:50 Thou forever 11:53 Thou forever 11:56 Wilt be 12:02 'Cause great is 12:05 Thy faithfulness 12:11 Great is 12:14 Thy faithfulness 12:21 Morning 12:23 By morning 12:29 New mercies 12:33 I see 12:40 All 12:42 I have needed 12:50 Thy hand 12:53 Hath provided 13:00 Great is 13:05 Thy faithfulness 13:12 Oh, oh, Lord, 13:17 Unto, unto me 13:28 Morning by morning 13:35 New mercies 13:40 I see 13:44 Oh, Lord 13:50 Great is Thy faithfulness 13:56 Unto me 14:00 Oh, Lord, unto me 14:07 Unto me 14:09 Oh, Lord 14:17 God is 14:19 Oh, Lord 14:22 God is 14:27 He is faithful 14:34 God is 14:36 Oh, yes, God is 14:38 God is 14:44 He is faithful 14:47 I know He is 14:51 God is 14:54 So faithful 14:55 God is 15:00 He is faithful 15:06 Great is Thy faithfulness 15:12 Unto me 15:17 Oh, Lord, our God 15:21 Unto me 15:25 Oh, Lord 15:32 Great is 15:34 Thy faithfulness 15:40 Great is 15:43 Is Thy faithfulness 15:49 Morning by morning 15:55 His mercies 16:00 I see 16:06 Great is Thy faithfulness 16:12 Unto me 16:16 Oh, Lord 16:21 Unto me 16:25 Oh, Lord 16:29 Unto me 16:33 Oh, Lord 16:38 Unto me 16:42 Oh, Lord 16:46 Unto me 16:50 Great is Thy faithfulness 16:54 Morning by morning 16:58 New mercies I see 17:03 Oh, Lord Unto me 17:08 Oh, Lord 17:12 Unto me 17:20 Unto me Lord. 17:26 I certainly appreciated the worship 17:30 in our service today. 17:32 Amen. 17:33 I appreciated the ministry of music today. 17:36 Amen 17:38 I appreciated the call today. 17:41 By the way, you're gonna be home next week. 17:47 And of course, 17:51 it's always good 17:54 when the saints of God just pause 17:56 and thank God for another year's journey. 18:03 As Donna and I were coming to service this morning, 18:06 we had to pause for a funeral train. 18:14 It occurred to me that 18:17 this close to the end of the year 18:19 somebody didn't make it. 18:27 This close and they got put to sleep. 18:32 And yet, God allow us to come today. 18:35 Amen. 18:37 We move, breathe, have heartbeat 18:41 and we all not take that for granted. 18:43 Amen. 18:46 Because although the New Year starts in just a few hours. 18:51 Just as quickly our past can you slip out. 18:54 Amen. 18:56 And the next choice, 18:59 the next voice that you will hear 19:02 will be that of the father 19:05 speaking eternal commendation 19:10 or eternal condemnation. 19:17 I've been led today to divert your attention 19:19 to Revelation the third chapter... 19:26 Revelation the third chapter, I want to keep a promise 19:29 I made to you early about the sermon. 19:33 I was going to put together 19:37 Revelation the third chapter. 19:41 We're going to begin with verse 14. 19:44 Revelation the third chapter, 19:49 beginning with verse 14. 19:53 There you'll find these words recalling... 20:00 "And unto the angel of the church 20:03 of the Laodiceans write, 20:06 These things saith the Amen, 20:09 the faithful and true witness, 20:12 the beginning of the creation of God." 20:15 What does he say? 20:18 "I know thy works, that thou art neither," what? 20:23 "Cold nor hot: I would that thou was cold or hot. 20:30 So then because thou art lukewarm, 20:32 and neither cold nor hot," what will I do? 20:37 "Spue thee out of my mouth. 20:40 Because thou sayest, I," what? "Rich." 20:43 What else? "Increased with goods." 20:44 And what else? 20:46 "And knowest not that thou art," what? 20:49 What else? "Miserable." 20:50 What else? "Poor." 20:52 What else? "Blind." 20:53 What else? "Naked." 20:54 "I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, 21:00 that thou mayest be rich, and white raiment, 21:05 thou mayest be clothed, 21:06 and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear, 21:11 and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, 21:14 that thou mayest see." 21:18 Think with me on the theme, 21:21 "Lasiks for Laodicea." 21:23 All right. 21:27 In the November issue of Harvard Business Review, 21:33 Kevin Peters, the president of 21:37 Office Depot for North America 21:42 was looking one day at some startling statistics. 21:47 He noticed that their sales were dipping 21:52 but their customer satisfaction scores 21:55 were going through the roof. 21:59 He's restless, kept wondering, what is this all about? 22:02 And in order to get a hand of all the situation, 22:06 he decide to do an undercover boss. 22:12 He went to 17 of his stores in 15 states 22:18 and just acted like one of the casual shoppers. 22:23 He noticed while in his store that there was a problem. 22:28 The problem was this, 22:31 the customer satisfaction survey 22:34 did not ask the right questions. 22:38 The questions that were on the survey said, 22:41 "Were the floors clean?" 22:45 "Were the bathrooms clean?" 22:49 And unless you got an emergency, 22:51 you wouldn't know about the bathrooms, would you? 22:56 He determined that what they were missing 23:01 is what customers really care about. 23:04 They care about the lack of customer-friendly service. 23:10 The inability to find what they needed, 23:13 or being able to solve the problem 23:16 that they came into the store with. 23:18 And so Peters came up with three strategies 23:23 to ameliorate the situation. 23:24 The first strategy was this, 23:26 he reduced the size of the store 23:28 by providing less of the items that people didn't need. 23:34 The second strategy, 23:36 he improved the in store customer service experience, 23:41 which can be a real deal breaker 23:44 in a commodities-driven society. 23:49 And third, he looked beyond office products 23:54 to see what other products he could provide the customers. 23:58 And so he came up with copying and printing and shipping 24:02 and installing software and fixing computers. 24:06 All because Kevin Peters was ready to look at himself 24:12 and ask the right questions. 24:17 I once heard that an unquestioned faith 24:21 isn't worth having 24:24 and an unquestioned life isn't worth living. 24:29 Let me say that again. 24:31 An unquestioned faith isn't worth having 24:36 and an unquestioned life isn't worth living. 24:40 Today we stand on because of what is arguably 24:46 the most introspective holiday of the year, 24:50 New Year's Day. 24:53 Like our quarterly communion services, 24:57 New Year's is a natural time for introspection. 25:02 Introspection is the process of looking honestly 25:07 and openly and objectively at whom? 25:13 Yourself. 25:15 It's being willing to ask the question 25:17 what do I have to do to get better? 25:20 What do I have to change about myself? 25:24 How can I progress in the new year? 25:29 Introspection gives birth to resolutions. 25:35 In the January issue of Time Magazine for this past year, 25:40 Time Magazine listed the top ten resolutions 25:44 that people periodically make and break. 25:51 I want to bring it to you, I want to present it to you 25:53 in Debbie Devlin type fashion, is that all right? 25:57 Number ten, drink less. 26:03 Number nine, you all don't have to follow Debbie. 26:12 Number nine, volunteer more. 26:16 Number eight, be less stressed. 26:23 Number seven, travel to new places. 26:27 Number six, spend more time with the family. 26:32 Number five, get out of debt and save some money. 26:40 Number four, eat healthier. 26:44 Number three, learn something new. 26:48 Number two, quit smoking. 26:52 What do you think number one was? 26:56 Lose weight. 27:00 Lose weight. 27:04 I've guys come and tell me 27:06 they were cleaning up their closets, 27:09 get rid of some clothes, 27:13 as if they're gonna lose weight and get back here. 27:17 You've been fat for 10 years. 27:21 Enjoy yourself. 27:24 Be fat, be happy. 27:27 Give it a impulse that body will screw it. 27:30 Listen, listen, I'm told, 27:36 I'm told that resolutions 27:39 rarely get out of the month of January. 27:45 Perhaps it's because researchers say 27:48 that it takes somewhere between 21 and 28 days 27:52 to form a habit. 27:55 The start is good. 27:58 You end up beginning the year by saying, 28:00 "I'll read the Bible through." 28:03 And you wake up on the first and by the Sabbath, 28:07 you'd have missed chapter 3, 4 and 5, 28:16 so you start up with 6 and 7 28:20 but you are too discouraged to go on because you know 28:24 you missed 4, 5 and 6 and so you just give it up and say, 28:28 "I'll start again next year." 28:35 There was a researcher by the name of Ann Graybiel 28:37 of MIT's McGovern Institute, 28:39 whose research shown 28:41 that neurons change their firing patterns 28:45 when habits are learned, and then change them again 28:49 when habits are unlearned. 28:53 The interesting thing about that is 28:55 no habit is ever forgotten. 28:59 Whatever you have formed into a habit, 29:02 it stays there for life. 29:06 You hope that their only neurons 29:08 that are firing are the good ones, 29:10 isn't that right? 29:12 But every now and then, 29:14 something will trigger the old neurons. 29:18 It's like a car that's been sitting up in the driveway 29:21 and you hadn't started it up in a long time. 29:24 In fact, your wife is bugging you 29:27 to get that thing out of the driveway 29:29 'cause it's been sitting up so long. 29:31 And you go out there and stick the key in 29:33 and you just-- 29:36 and all of a sudden it turns over, 29:39 scares you to death and the neighbors. 29:45 You thought it was dead 29:48 but there's still some life left in the engine. 29:52 The same is true with the bad habits that we create. 29:56 You think they're dead 29:58 because you haven't taken a trip in 20 years 30:01 but let something happen in rut and you get stressed. 30:08 And all of a sudden you wondered 30:10 whatever happened to your good buddy Johnny. 30:15 Somebody ought to know what that means, don't you? 30:23 He just got it. 30:27 It's still there. 30:30 It's still there. It hasn't gone anywhere. 30:36 Unfortunately, unfortunately, 30:41 introspection sometimes gives birth to recriminations. 30:48 It gives birth to resolutions 30:50 but sometimes it also gives birth to recriminations. 30:57 Remember now, I said that introspection 30:59 was the process of looking at who? 31:03 Yourself. 31:05 Looking at yourself. 31:07 But because we have powerful subconscious filters, 31:11 our introspection often evolves 31:15 from being an experience of self examination 31:18 toward experience of other examination. 31:24 I want to see what you've got to do to change. 31:27 I want to see what you need to do to improve. 31:32 Somehow along the way the spotlight and the camera 31:35 gets off from us and it goes to somebody else. 31:42 What's interesting about that is, 31:45 that when we move the spotlight off of ourselves, 31:49 we miss a very rich and deep blessing 31:53 that I'm going to pull out in just a moment. 31:56 So stay with me. 31:59 The last time I looked in the dictionary, 32:02 the word introspection began with an I, not Y. 32:09 Therefore, the camera has to stay on me 32:14 if I am ever going to see the blessing 32:19 that God has in store for me. 32:22 Why are we reluctant to keep the spotlight on ourselves? 32:27 Could it be that if we see ourselves too clearly 32:31 that we might depress ourselves? 32:35 Why does it seem easier to focus on the foibles 32:39 of others to the discard of our own? 32:45 Could it be, could it be that introspection exposes 32:50 the low self esteem I've had about myself? 32:53 So in order to feel good about myself, 32:55 I got to find something wrong with somebody else, 32:58 so that I could feel good about myself. 33:01 Why is it? 33:04 Why is it that when it comes to introspection, 33:09 our visual acuity is sometimes diminished 33:13 but all of a sudden, 33:14 our visual acuity is increased exponentially 33:18 when I see something in somebody else. 33:24 No matter how we shift the spotlight or the camera, 33:31 God really knows what's happening with us 33:36 and so He shifts the spotlight and the camera back to us. 33:43 Here it is, Revelation, the third chapter. 33:45 He puts it back on us. 33:47 Revelation, the third chapter. 33:50 In Revelation the third chapter, 33:51 we are introduced to a group of people called who? 33:54 The Laodiceans. The Laodiceans. 33:58 They are a steady in contrast. 34:00 Look at verse 17 so you can see here. 34:02 Look at the contrast. 34:03 "Because thou sayest," what? 34:05 "I am rich, increased with goods, 34:08 have need of nothing and knowest not 34:11 that thou art wretched and miserable 34:15 and poor and blind," and what else? 34:19 "And naked." 34:20 Notice that when they look at themselves, 34:25 they see themselves as being what? 34:28 Rich, increased with goods and in need of nothing 34:34 but when God puts the spotlight on them, 34:37 God sees something different. 34:40 He says what I see is somebody who is wretched, 34:44 who's miserable, who's poor, who's blind, who's naked. 34:51 Isn't it funny how when we look at ourselves, 34:54 we can always see the good in us, 34:56 so, but when God looks at us, 34:58 He sees far more than we see of our own selves. 35:05 The Laodiceans prided themselves 35:11 on their material prosperity. 35:15 Back in chapter 2 of Revelation 2, 35:18 there was a church mentioned there called Smyrna. 35:22 And Smyrna, Smyrna has commendation from God 35:26 because they are in fact, 35:28 that's the church of persecution, 35:30 they are in fact, materially bereft. 35:35 However, they are spiritually rich. 35:40 What a contrast, to Laodicea 35:42 who is materially rich 35:45 but God says, you are spiritually poor. 35:50 God will always straighten us out 35:52 if we can't see ourselves the way we really are. 35:56 Look at verse 18, look at verse 18. 35:58 "I counsel thee to buy of me," what? 36:02 "Gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be," what? 36:07 "Rich and white raiment, thou mayest be clothed, 36:10 and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear 36:17 and anoint thine eyes with, "what? 36:19 "Eyesalve, that thou mayest see." 36:24 God's solution for their problem is, 36:29 you got to look again. 36:33 You got to take another look. 36:35 According to the ancient Greek geographer Strabo, 36:40 residing within the city of Laodicea, 36:44 was a renown ophthalmologist who was known 36:49 for his eye lotions that were made 36:52 out of the Phrygian powder. He had a way. 36:59 Somehow he had built a reputation of helping people 37:03 to see clearer through this powder. 37:08 No doubt if he were around today, 37:11 he would not be using Phrygian powder, 37:15 but in fact, he would be using 37:17 another method to improve sight. 37:19 That method would be called what? Lasiks. 37:26 If he were correct, technically correct 37:28 in his profession, then he would stay abreast 37:31 with the most modern conveniences and prescription. 37:36 He would be using Lasiks surgery. 37:41 Now Lasiks, I am told is a surgery 37:45 where a laser is used, 37:47 a laser beam is used to reshape the tissue of the cornea. 37:54 And by reshaping the tissue of the cornea, 37:58 it is supposed to render the individual 38:01 with the ability to see clearer up 38:04 than when they first gave here to the doctor. 38:08 In other words, 38:09 they can take their glasses off and throw them down. 38:13 I'm not going to do that this morning 38:15 or somebody else will have to finish the message. 38:21 You can take, you take, what's those little things? 38:26 Contact lenses. 38:27 Contact lenses. 38:29 And just flick them out the window 38:33 after you have Lasiks surgery supposedly. 38:39 Today, today, today God has asked us 38:44 to come to Him and rather than to use 38:49 the ancient methods of their day, 38:51 God wants to use a Lasiks on our eyesight today. 38:58 I want you to see. 38:59 It was in the scripture reading that Morgan today 39:02 in Romans 5:8. 39:04 It's my favorite passage. 39:06 It says, "But God hath commendeth His love toward us, 39:10 in that, while we were," what? 39:12 "Yet sinners." "Yet sinners." 39:14 What did Christ do? 39:16 "Christ died for us." 39:18 Introspection is birth to redemption. 39:22 The only way you will be able to see 39:26 God's love in its full clarity is to remove the mask, 39:33 remove the blinders, remove the buffers, 39:39 remove the filters that we place on ourselves, 39:43 so that we can really see ourselves. 39:46 The only way you can appreciate God's love 39:49 in all of its fullness and ferity 39:52 is to see it juxtaposed against -- 39:56 when I know how bad I smell. 40:00 When I know how bad I look, 40:03 when I know how messed up I really am, 40:07 when I know that I'm no better than a roach 40:11 and yet my passage tells me that God sees me 40:16 in a totally different way. 40:18 He knows I'm a sinner. 40:20 He knows I'm messed up and yet, 40:22 the Bible says God loves me so much 40:25 while I am still messed up. 40:27 That He gave His Son to die for me. 40:31 What He wants us to do is to submit to a Lasiks, 40:36 a Lasiks treatment 40:37 and He wants to use His cross as the laser machine. 40:42 He wants to use His grace as laser beam 40:46 so that every time we look at the cross 40:49 our eyesight will be clearer, our focus will be clearer, 40:54 our understanding of ourselves will be clearer 40:57 if we can somehow get that grace beam into our eyes 41:02 and allow the Lord to do with us 41:04 what He wants to do. 41:05 Amen. 41:07 Everything that God does, listen to this, listen to this. 41:12 Everything that God does communicates to us two things. 41:19 Number one, He loves us 41:24 and secondly, He misses us. 41:29 He loves us and secondly He misses us. 41:35 Can you imagine a being who lives in environment 41:42 where there are thousands upon thousands 41:44 and ten thousands of angels that just stay 41:49 around praising His name? 41:52 Well, there are four beasts 41:56 and their whole job is to sing praise Him, holy, 42:03 halleluiah and yet according to my Bible, 42:09 he loves me and misses me even when I'm not praising Him, 42:16 even when I'm not thinking about Him, 42:19 even when my life is wandered away from Him, 42:22 and yet, He can somehow look through 42:25 all the celebration and the cacophonies of heaven 42:30 and still place His focus on me 42:33 and said I love you so much 42:37 I can't wait till we're back together again. 42:41 Just a few days ago we just finished 42:43 celebrating a holiday. 42:44 When was it? 42:46 Christmas. Christmas. 42:48 And the angel said, 42:49 "You shall call His name Immanuel, 42:53 which being interpreted," as what? 42:56 "God with us." I love you and I miss you. 43:01 When man sinned and the Father and the Son 43:05 and the Holy Ghost went into the counsel of peace, 43:08 Jesus volunteered to step forward and to become 43:12 my substitute and sacrifice in my instead. 43:16 He said, I'll go down, Father. 43:19 I'll become the great go well, the bridge builder, 43:22 the one who go between 43:24 because I love them and I miss them. 43:28 When He came here as a baby 43:32 and he went up Golgotha slopes, 43:36 He allowed Himself to be hung on that ignominious cross. 43:40 He hung there when He could have come down. 43:42 He stayed up there 43:44 because what He wanted us to know was that I love you, 43:48 and I miss you. 43:50 In fact, He miss us so much that after they took him down 43:54 and put Him in a pothole grave, 43:56 He was only in there over the weekend, you know. 43:58 But He got up early one Sunday morning 44:01 because He wanted to say, I can't stay in there sleeping 44:05 because I love and I miss you 44:08 and just before He went back into heaven in AD 31, 44:14 He stopped long enough to say, 44:16 "Let not your heart be troubled. 44:18 Ye believe in God, believe also in me. 44:21 In my Father's house are many mansions. 44:23 If it were not so, I would have told you. 44:25 I am going to prepare a place for you 44:27 and if I go to prepare a place for you," 44:30 what I'm gonna do? 44:31 "I will come again." 44:33 Why? Because I love you and I miss you. 44:38 We miss every celebration. 44:42 He says, "As often as ye eat this bread 44:47 and drink this cup," you do what? 44:51 "You show Lord's death till he comes." 44:55 Every time we sin at the table, 44:59 we ought to be reminded of what He said, 45:01 "I'm not gonna eat anymore bread or drink anymore wine 45:06 until I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom." 45:10 Why? Because I love you and I miss you. 45:15 Every time the Sabbath comes around, 45:19 once a week, sun down Friday to sundown Saturday, 45:23 the reason that He asks us to remember 45:26 the Sabbath day to keep it holy. 45:28 "Six days shall thou labor and do all thy work 45:31 but the seventh day 45:32 is the Sabbath to the Lord thy God. 45:35 In it thou shalt not do any work." 45:37 Why? 45:38 Because I love you and I miss you 45:42 and I want you to spend time with me. 45:45 The reason He is coming back a second time 45:48 is because He loves us and He misses us. 45:55 And that's what behind the introspection. 46:02 Introspection gives birth to resolutions, 46:05 introspection gives birth to recrimination, 46:07 introspection gives birth to revelations, 46:11 introspection gives birth to revelations. 46:15 I want to close by telling you about Keasha 46:21 Her given name was Lakeasha Monique Rutledge. 46:28 She was 38 years old, 46:33 38, unmarried. 46:37 But the day came when a man proposed her 46:41 and asked, "Will you marry me?" 46:45 And she said, "Yes." 46:50 She was married this past November 27 46:54 in a well decorated church in Atlanta, Georgia. 46:59 Like many women, 47:01 she couldn't wait to put on her wedding gown, 47:05 couldn't wait to have her maids of honor around her, 47:10 couldn't wait to come down the midway 47:15 and so the wedding guests showed up 47:17 and they waited and they stood, 47:19 when they heard the chorus played, 47:22 "Here comes the bride, here comes the bride." 47:25 And they stood up as Keasha came down aisle 47:29 But there was something about Keasha. 47:33 Keasha was coming down the aisle in a wheel chair. 47:37 Not just a wheel chair, 47:39 but she was also tethered to an oxygen tank. 47:44 She came all the way to the front. 47:47 And before she got to her husband to be, 47:51 she stood up and made the last three steps 47:57 to the side of her husband. 48:00 What I didn't tell you was 48:03 that Keasha was dying of terminal lung cancer. 48:10 When they got to the front, 48:12 they had provided two chairs for them to sit down 48:16 because just to stand up required too much air. 48:21 And so they sat down, 48:25 "Do you take this man to be your husband?" 48:29 "Do you take this woman to be your wife." 48:33 "I now pronounce you man and wife." 48:36 And they bent over in the chair and kissed each other. 48:41 Like any other bride, she wanted a reception 48:44 and so they wheeled her to the reception room. 48:46 She had enough strength to do have a dance with her daddy 48:51 and a dance with her new husband. 48:55 You should've seen the joy on her face. 49:00 After 38 years of singleness, 49:06 her single life had now become a shared life. 49:10 That was on November 27th. 49:13 This past Tuesday of this week, December 27th, Keasha died. 49:22 Just one month later, 49:26 she passed away. 49:30 Someone asked her husband, 49:34 "Why did you marry her 49:38 when you knew she was going to die?" 49:43 It wasn't like he couldn't get anyone. 49:44 He was an ex-NFL football player. 49:49 He had played for five different teams 49:52 over 12 year period. 49:53 His name was Chris Draft. 49:58 Chris tried to sum it up at her funeral. 50:02 This is what he said at her funeral 50:03 as to why he did it. 50:06 Chris said about his wife, 50:08 "She courageously faced lung cancer showing us all 50:13 with every breath that we all need to hold on to life 50:18 and love with both hands for as long as we can. 50:22 Not just an inspiration, 50:25 but a light and a force that led the way 50:27 with the beautiful sweet smile and bright shining eyes 50:31 that both belied the pure steel 50:34 of her strength and determination. 50:37 Strong is too pale, too shallow 50:40 and too small of a word to describe Keasha's vibrancy. 50:44 Quite simply she was ferocious, 50:46 she fiercely held on to life and loved with a forcefulness 50:51 that was absolutely all inspiring 50:54 and completely breathtaking. 50:56 Rest in peace, Mrs. Draft." 51:10 Do you know that God loves you? 51:17 Do you know that God misses you? 51:22 I'm not talking about the person 51:24 over there in the back up here. 51:29 God loves you 51:33 and God misses you. 51:39 If you can't see that, 51:43 then stand before cross. 51:48 Let Him perform His Lasik surgery on you. 51:51 Let His grace penetrate the dark coffins of your pupil. 51:55 Let the light of His love come down and permeate 51:59 the one million or more optical receptors 52:02 of your spiritual retina and have the windows of light, 52:07 we call sight open before you 52:10 so that you can see, so that you can see. 52:17 The way I know that God loves me 52:22 is not by all the good I do, it's by the bad I do. 52:29 And when I know that God loves me, 52:32 wretched Laodicea, is because I'm still here. 52:38 I haven't gone anywhere. 52:42 It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed. 52:46 Great is His faithfulness. 52:50 Don't you realize that the moment you sin, 52:54 the moment you sin, 52:58 that there is a process in place that says, 53:01 "You should die in the moment." 53:03 And the day you touch it, you should die and yet, 53:09 God keeps forgiving you over and over 53:14 and over and over again. 53:17 How many times have you asked God 53:20 to forgive you of the same sin and He keeps doing it 53:25 over and over and over again 53:29 because I've discovered that He's a God of second, 53:36 third, fourth, fifth, twenty, 53:41 twenty-five, thirty, a hundred chances. 53:46 God will give you as many chances as you need 53:49 in order for Him to save you. 53:53 That's what it's all about. 53:55 The Lasiks is to open your eye so that you can see His love 54:00 and understand through His leading in your life 54:04 how much He cares about you 54:10 and how much He misses you. 54:12 And so I'm going to be just be very plain today. 54:17 There maybe someone who's here today in City Temple. 54:22 You've gone all the way through 2011, 54:25 I don't know what your age is, 54:28 but God has brought you through life 54:31 and today you're sitting here and you recognize, 54:35 I've got to do something really interesting text. 54:38 I'll have to do something different. 54:41 There is absolutely no reason for me to be totally 54:44 lost 'cause He loves me and He misses me. 54:49 I've just been too blind to see that. 54:52 But today, something, something, 54:54 I've caught a flash 54:57 in my spiritual view and today, 55:00 you want to call me to the altar and say, 55:02 "Pastor, I want to accept Jesus Christ 55:07 as my personal Savior, my personal Savior 55:11 for the first time or all over again, 55:16 because I messed up and I need another chance." 55:21 So I want to do that today. 55:23 Stand on your feet so that somebody can move by, 55:24 you just stand where you are. 55:26 Stand up. 55:28 Stand so people can move by 55:30 and if you need to come, just stand. 55:33 All the congregation to stand. 55:36 Let somebody by who needs to come, you need to come today 55:40 and get something straight with God. 55:42 Let's sing. 55:45 All to Jesus 55:53 I surrender 55:55 All to Him I freely give 56:00 Don't let this year end, 56:03 don't let this Sabbath end, 56:05 don't let this day end until you come 56:10 and make your calling in relationship, 56:12 why don't you accept the God? 56:14 He loves you so much and misses you so much 56:20 that He will leave the glories of heaven to come down here 56:24 in this dark and murky world just to make sure 56:28 you will have an opportunity to live with Him eternally. 56:32 Do you need to come here, do you need to come. 56:38 This is your last Sabbath. 56:41 I don't know what God has planned for you, 56:45 you think you'll be here 56:46 tomorrow to see the new year, will you? 56:51 Or do you hear the Spirit's voice 56:53 speaking to you first to tell 56:54 you need to come to the altar today. 56:57 Where are you at? 56:59 You need to come to me. 57:00 Where are you at? You need to come. 57:02 You need to come forward. 57:03 First time, you need to come all over here. 57:06 I don't know who you are. 57:09 I don't know who you are. 57:11 I just know that you-- 57:12 There's someone here that God 57:14 is trying to call before the end of 2011. 57:17 Where are you at? 57:20 Where are you? |
Revised 2016-02-25