Participants: Shelley Quinn (Host), G. Edward Reid
Series Code: IAA
Program Code: IAA000442A
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00:29 Hello, I'm Shelley Quinn.
00:30 And again we welcome you to Issues and Answers. 00:33 Today, the issue 00:34 is the last big Temptation of Satan. 00:38 And we're going to talking 00:40 about preparing for Satan's last big temptation. 00:43 Our guest is no stranger to those of you 00:47 who've been watching 3ABN for many years. 00:49 He has done a couple of series here, 00:51 one was called "It's Your Money Isn't It?" 00:54 And the other was called "By My Spirit." 00:57 And I'm speaking of Ed Reid, 00:59 who has a Master's in Divinity, a Master's in public health, 01:03 he also has a law degree, and he is currently serving 01:07 as the assistant to the President of plan giving 01:10 for Adventist World Radio. 01:11 Formerly he was a stewardship director 01:14 for the North American division 01:16 of Seventh-day Adventists churches. 01:18 And I told him you couldn't have 01:20 a simple title, could you? 01:22 But Ed has done a lot of study on eschatology 01:26 and a lot of study in the area of finance and stewardship 01:30 and he is a certified counselor in stewardship. 01:33 So we're so excited to have him here. 01:36 And, Ed, once again thank you for coming. 01:39 It's a pleasure to be here with you. 01:40 Yes, tell us, you retired 01:43 from the full time church position 01:46 to work part time for the Adventist World Radio. 01:50 Have you slowed down at all? 01:51 It doesn't seem like. 01:53 We're traveling a lot and working a lot 01:54 and we're very active in our local church as well, 01:57 so we're staying busy and we like that. 01:58 Yes, I've heard actually that you may be busier 02:01 than when you were working full time. 02:03 It seems like, yes. 02:04 There is no retirement, is there, from the Lord's work? 02:07 That's why the millennium is a thousand years, 02:09 so we can all rest up a little bit, I think. 02:10 Amen. Amen. 02:12 This is just fascinating, your idea 02:16 and the title of preparation or preparing 02:18 for Satan's last big temptation. 02:20 I know you have a lot to say about this, 02:23 so I'm going to let you just kind of hop in here 02:26 but first explain what is the last big temptation? 02:29 It's very interesting that a number of things 02:34 happen to people as far as temptations. 02:36 You'll be tempted in a ways that I won't be 02:38 and I will be that you won't be. 02:39 Like for, I don't think I'd ever be tempted 02:40 to smoke or drink, I just... 02:42 I might but I don't think I would be. 02:44 But there's one temptation that everyone will face 02:46 and that's that... 02:48 just before Jesus comes the ones who are faithful 02:50 will not be able to buy or sell and everybody goes through it. 02:53 Everyone who leaves this earth alive 02:55 will go through that period of time 02:56 when they can't buy or sell. 02:58 And that's going to a fate almost worse than death. 03:00 In other words, when I came up here 03:01 I had to stop and get gasoline, of course, 03:03 and I just put my credit card in 03:04 and pulled it out and that let me put gas 03:06 but what if it says, "Card declined," 03:09 and then you go inside and you can't fix it 03:11 in the service station either, then you realize 03:14 your phone service is not working 03:16 and, you know, you can't get on the internet 03:18 and your power is turned off and your water is turned off, 03:20 you just can't buy or sell. 03:22 This is one of these things that we're doing to countries 03:24 right now, you know with these embargos and so on. 03:27 Sanctions and so on, 03:28 but what will that be like when it happens to people 03:31 and how can you prepare for that time? 03:32 Yes. 03:34 Now, Jesus had a lot to say about money. 03:37 And I learnt from you that He actually spoke 03:40 more about money than He did about 03:41 faith and prayer combined. 03:43 That's true. 03:44 So money is a topic that He put much emphasis on. 03:50 And when it comes to the end, the end of times, 03:54 when that last temptation comes we're going to understand 03:58 why money is so important. 03:59 Exactly right. 04:01 I've determined myself that 04:02 the reason you talk so much about it 04:04 is so we would be ready at the end. 04:06 It's not because if we teach more stewardship, 04:08 people be more faithful with their tithes and offerings 04:09 because God does not need the money, 04:11 we all should understand that. 04:13 He's told us in Psalms, you know, that, 04:15 "If I were hungry, I wouldn't tell you 04:17 because the world is mine and everything in it." 04:19 So the big deal is that's for our own benefit 04:21 to learn how to manage money with the faith factor 04:24 and trusting in God. 04:25 Amen. 04:26 So why don't you just tell us, 04:28 just lay the foundation for this. 04:30 Well, the real... 04:31 The thing actually is a greater enigma 04:32 when you think about Jesus actually linked 04:36 money management to salvation, 04:38 and a lot of people don't realize 04:39 that it's not a legalistic perspective, 04:41 but I'll share it with you in this way. 04:43 One of the more interesting and simple stories 04:45 of the Bible is Zacchaeus. 04:47 And I'll just give you the one-minute version 04:48 but Zacchaeus was an attorney or a CPA, 04:51 he worked for the IRS as it were of his day, 04:53 so he'd be dressed in a business suit 04:55 much like I am today, but when he heard 04:56 Jesus was coming to Jericho, 04:57 he decided he wanted to go and see Jesus. 05:00 Well, the interesting thing is so did a lot of other people. 05:02 And when he got out there to the road 05:04 where Jesus would pass through, 05:05 you know, what do we know about him for sure? 05:07 He's a tax collector, he's a rich man, 05:10 but he was also short of stature, 05:11 the Bible indicates that in Luke 19. 05:14 And the interesting thing is he probably said, 05:16 "Well, please get away I'm a short man." 05:17 And they thought, "Well, you should have 05:19 thought about that yesterday 05:20 because we're out here waiting to see Jesus." 05:22 The most amazing thing 05:23 and this is a real touching point to me 05:26 when you want to see Jesus He wants to see you too 05:28 and this is the real incredible thing. 05:30 So Zacchaeus, though he's not a little boy 05:32 in shorts and tennis shoes, he runs ahead in his suit 05:34 and climbs a tree. 05:35 And Jesus moved the crowd right under his tree 05:38 and then looked up and called him by name, 05:39 though they apparently had never met, 05:41 "Zacchaeus, come down." 05:42 And I like to ask people, do you think 05:44 He knows your name too? And of course, He does. 05:46 All the stuff in the Bible is so we can have 05:48 a closer relationship with God. 05:49 And so Jesus did something that I would never do, 05:52 I doubt you would either. 05:53 He invited himself home for lunch. 05:55 "I'm going to your place for lunch today." 05:57 Isn't that interesting? That is. 05:58 And the most amazing thing about it all is that 06:01 Zacchaeus was cheerfully willing to have Him come. 06:05 He must have sent a runner on head to his wife 06:07 because when you get Jesus you get 12 hungry disciples, 06:10 they don't have regular meals. 06:11 So 13 guys are coming for dinner 06:13 and this is a big deal, you know, 06:14 for most people it would be 06:16 but the real bottom line is that 06:17 at the end of this one encounter with Jesus, 06:21 he said, "I'm going to give back 06:23 four times what I took from people 06:25 and half of what I have left them 06:26 I want to give it to the poor." 06:27 Now this is amazing because Jesus didn't say, 06:30 "That's a wonderful idea." 06:32 You know what He said, 06:34 "Today salvation has come to your house." 06:36 Isn't that incredible? 06:37 I mean, we'd all love Him to say that at our house. 06:39 So that one encounter with Jesus 06:41 changed his attitude toward wealth in this world 06:44 and a close relationship with God. 06:46 And I think the way we look at money 06:48 and money can either be something that is 06:50 the object of our affection and it's a very selfish thing 06:54 or we can look at money as being a gift from God 06:58 and a way to spread His gospel, if you will. 07:01 So Zacchaeus had a complete change of heart 07:04 at that moment. 07:05 And the selfishness all of what he had done 07:08 as far as perhaps cheating and lying 07:10 and everything else went out the window. 07:13 Exactly, with one encounter with Jesus. 07:16 Would have been nice and late it maybe the Lord recorded that 07:19 somewhere so we can watch it in heaven on the super DVDs, 07:22 but what Jesus said to him to bring about that 07:24 response is pretty amazing. 07:26 So the real deal is 07:29 how do you prepare for a time when you can't buy or sell? 07:31 But could you explain to... 07:33 Many of our viewers don't understand the context 07:35 of why you can't buy or sell. 07:37 Okay, Revelation 13:18, verse 17 actually. 07:40 Revelation 13:17. 07:42 It actually says that, "You cannot buy or sell 07:44 unless you are willing to receive 07:45 the mark of the beast." 07:47 This is an end time thing, 07:49 and it's an amazing thing where you understand that... 07:54 most people talk about living near the end of time now 07:57 and the reason that we know that is because 07:59 you have signs of the end which are being fulfilled 08:01 and the great prophetic timeline, 08:03 so the things we see happening now 08:05 have more significance than they would normally have had. 08:07 Isn't that true? 08:09 Oh, I mean, daily we see prophecies being fulfilled, 08:12 we see things that we've been told about for many years 08:14 and it seems like on a daily basis 08:17 the headlines are lining up what the world has to say 08:20 is lining up with what the Bible says. 08:22 Jesus told His disciples that people will make it 08:23 difficult on you and they'll think 08:24 they're doing God a service when they do this. 08:26 So they're not just hateful, they're thinking 08:29 they're doing God a service, that's the thing. 08:30 And then there will be this financial embargo 08:33 to God's faithful people that you cannot buy or sell 08:35 and that's in revelation 13:17, 08:37 so people can read that and see. 08:39 The interesting part about this is how do you prepare 08:41 for such a time? 08:43 And in the research that I've done 08:44 there's three things that would be a hindrance 08:46 to trusting God then. 08:47 If you're not willing to trust God, 08:49 you will leave your faith in God immediately 08:51 when that happens, because, you know, 08:53 if all of your services and supplies 08:55 are cut off in one day, 08:57 you're going to have to decide right then 08:59 or you will have had decide beforehand 09:00 what are you going to do when that happens. 09:02 You see what I'm saying? Sure. 09:03 So I think there's three things that keep people 09:06 or will encourage people to be faithful 09:07 during that time on the positive of that. 09:12 The negative would be debt bondage, being in debt, 09:15 you know, any kind of debt. 09:17 And the other one is you should have your treasure 09:19 stored up on earth 09:20 because if you're leaving here soon 09:22 you are looking toward heaven and not toward 09:24 your own possessions on this earth. 09:28 And the last one is unfaithfulness to God. 09:31 If we haven't learned to trust God with our tithes 09:33 and offerings and management of the way 09:34 He would have us manage. 09:35 That's going to be a very, very difficult time in the future. 09:38 And, you know, the Bible says a lot about debt... 09:41 not being in debt bondage. 09:43 Right. 09:44 And it truly is, I mean, that's a good word for, 09:46 it is bondage, isn't it? 09:47 Well, the Bible calls it that, Proverbs 22:7 says, 09:50 "The rich rule over the poor, 09:52 and the borrower is the slave of the lender." 09:54 So that's really, really bondage. 09:56 We will never be free until we're debt free. 09:59 But I had never really stopped there, you know, 10:00 and praise the Lord, I've reached that point. 10:03 My husband and I have reached that point in our life 10:04 where we're completely debt free. 10:05 Praise the Lord. 10:07 And the beauty of it is that with the money 10:09 you do have you can do more to support 10:11 the work of the Lord, 10:13 but I've never really thought 10:15 about how that would be at the end time. 10:18 I'm so glad you're bringing this topic 10:20 to those of you 10:21 who are watching by television or by radio, 10:23 or listening by radio, 10:25 or maybe watching over the Internet. 10:27 The idea that we are in the last times, 10:31 we are approaching this final great temptation 10:35 when we can't buy or sell. 10:37 If you have a mortgage on your home 10:39 and you can no longer pay the mortgage on your home 10:42 you would be much more likely to acquiesce 10:46 and bow down to what Satan's last temptation 10:52 is rather than lose your home 10:54 and have your family out on the on the streets. 10:57 Is that's what you're saying? Yes, it is. 10:59 I want to give you a little quote 11:00 from Scott Christiansen's book, "Planet in Distress." 11:04 He's a Christian author who lives up in New England 11:07 but he for many years served around the world 11:09 in humanitarian causes 11:10 and so on and worked for ADRA for a while 11:12 and he says in his Planet in Distress, 11:14 "The decay of our global food system 11:15 is something to be concerned about, 11:17 decay of our global climate, decay of our oceans," 11:20 a lot of people don't realize 11:22 but there are a whole sections of the ocean 11:23 where nothing lives, it's just dead zones. 11:26 "And the decay of our freshwater systems, 11:27 decay of our financial system, and so on." 11:29 We'll talk a little bit more about the financial system 11:31 but then he ties this, 11:32 Scott does into religious experience 11:36 or what we would call the great controversy. 11:37 And here's just a little quote, he begins by saying, 11:40 "Eliminate debt 11:42 when you're in debt to the world 11:43 you're beholden to the world, 11:44 and must remain engaged in the world 11:46 in order to maintain our debt payments. 11:48 So in order to freely serve the Lord 11:49 whatever and wherever He calls, 11:51 we urgently need to eliminate debt." 11:54 So that's one of the reasons, the big one. 11:56 But you know, it makes me think also what this, 11:59 your second point was that the debt management 12:02 or debt bondage is going to be a hindrance 12:05 to you obeying the Lord. 12:07 But you mentioned that if we "store treasures on earth" 12:10 and that makes me think of the rich young ruler. 12:12 Yes. 12:13 This is an incredible story 12:14 because this will transition us into the second point 12:19 and that's treasure stored up on this earth. 12:20 Right. 12:21 Many financial counselors encourage people 12:23 to have a strategy of savings to have, 12:25 you know, a certain amount of money and so on. 12:28 My personal feeling is the very best thing 12:30 people can do is get out of debt 12:31 because it's cheaper to live out of debt. 12:34 And we don't need a huge amount saved up 12:36 because I tell people whether you're a Christian 12:39 or not when you die you're taking nothing with you. 12:42 So you have to have a plan to be of service to God, 12:44 your family, and to others, and so on. 12:45 And that's why 12:47 we have Christian Estate Planning for example. 12:49 You mentioned the rich and rule, 12:51 and I just tell you that that is such an important story 12:53 that the Holy Spirit 12:55 inspired three of the Bible writers 12:57 Matthew, Mark, and Luke to record that story. 12:59 All of them essentially the same thing 13:02 but this man comes to Jesus and says, 13:04 "What could I do to inherit eternal life?" 13:05 I mean, we all want to know that, don't we? 13:07 Jesus said, "Keep the Commandments." 13:09 And he said, "Well, which one?" 13:10 So Jesus started quoting the 10 Commandments. 13:12 And He honestly said, "You can stop now, 13:15 I've been doing that since I was a little kid. 13:17 What do I lack yet?" 13:18 And then Jesus told him, 13:20 "Go and sell all you have and give it to the poor 13:22 there by you will store up treasures in heaven 13:24 and then come and follow me." 13:25 By the way all three writers say 13:27 you store up treasure in heaven by helping others. 13:29 The interesting part about all of this, 13:31 and the viewer should understand this, 13:33 God does not require all of His followers 13:36 to sell everything they have, give it to the poor, 13:38 and become itinerant preachers that's not God's plan. 13:41 But I once said as a young man I told God in prayer, 13:45 "You have my permission to do whatever it takes to save me," 13:48 and that's what it took for that guy. 13:50 He was so in love with his money 13:51 that God said the only thing 13:52 that's going to save us is get rid of everything. 13:54 And then, you know, and oh, by the way, 13:56 you know what He told him? 13:58 "Then come and follow me." 14:00 Those are the exact words He told in the 12 disciples. 14:03 He could have been the 13th disciple 14:04 and this is an incredible thing but even as a young man, 14:07 he had so many possessions, 14:09 he must so attracted to them that he went away sorrowful 14:11 because he had great possessions. 14:13 He knew he was making the wrong decision 14:14 but he couldn't let go. 14:16 And that's when we do, you know, the Bible says, 14:20 "Don't lay up treasures on earth 14:22 rather treasures in heaven 14:23 because what's on earth will rot, decay," 14:25 and like you said, 14:27 you can't take it with us when you go. 14:28 But when our heart, 14:30 his heart wasn't really turned toward heaven, 14:32 he had not looked at the eternal benefit 14:36 when he stored up treasures in heaven toward God. 14:40 So the Lord laid down a challenge 14:42 he didn't expect and it was too much. 14:43 Isn't that true? 14:45 Well, another thing that is very interesting 14:46 is that sometimes decisions have to be made ahead of time. 14:50 When we came onto the grounds of 3ABN last night, 14:52 three deer ran across in front of our car. 14:54 It wasn't dangerous or anything we just saw them hopping along. 14:57 But the interesting part about it is in many places, 15:00 when we lived in Maryland about 1,500 deer were hit 15:03 and killed in our area every year by cars. 15:07 And of course, that can be a big serious accident, 15:08 so we tell our children to keep their steering wheel straight, 15:11 slow down if you can. 15:12 But the average person will think turn out of the way 15:15 and then you could cause something 15:16 very, very dangerous and end up in a bad wreck 15:19 or hurt somebody's property or your own car or whatever. 15:21 Well, the interesting thing 15:23 is you have to make this decision ahead of time 15:25 and that is to remember that no person 15:27 or anything is worth trading for eternal life. 15:30 And that's what Lot's wife didn't figure out. 15:33 That's right. It's true. 15:34 And that kind of, brings me to your third point 15:37 was financial unfaithfulness to God 15:40 is a hindrance to being prepared 15:43 for that last point. 15:44 If we are not faithful in returning 15:47 part of our tithe now, 15:49 if we're not faithful 15:52 with our finances toward God now, 15:55 how on earth will we be in the end times? 15:59 Let me give you a little illustration 16:01 that will help you to see what I'm talking about. 16:02 I believe that every time, 16:04 well, let me illustrate it this way. 16:07 We all understand the tithe is 10%. 16:09 Right. We could also all use a 100%. 16:12 I mean, I've got ways I can figure out 16:13 I could use all 100% for myself 16:15 and almost anybody could easily figure that out. 16:17 But we have to understand, 16:18 when we return our tithe to God, 16:19 we're not doing it 16:21 because we're of gratitude or generosity, 16:22 it's a matter of simple honesty. 16:24 We're being faithful with God 16:26 and we show our gratitude by our offerings, 16:28 and tithe and offerings together 16:29 show our faithfulness to God. 16:31 And this is incredible to understand. 16:32 Remember again, that God does not need the money 16:35 near as much as we need the blessings 16:36 because we need to strengthen our faith. 16:39 So I want to illustrate it this way. 16:41 Think in terms of every time you tithe, 16:43 the strength, the core that binds you 16:45 to God gets bigger, and bigger, and bigger. 16:48 And you see what I'm saying? 16:49 So, near the end 16:51 we're going to have to depend on Him a 100%. 16:53 But if I haven't developed a core that's strong, 16:55 my faith is not strong, it's not going to last. 16:57 You see what I'm saying? Yes. 16:59 Those are really amazing things to be to understand. 17:01 And, you know, it is so difficult too. 17:03 I remember when we were first married, 17:07 J.D. and I had a business partner, 17:10 a little on the shady side, I think. 17:12 And had $15,000 in debt when we're married, 17:15 and we were young and that's a lot, 17:18 that was a heavy load 17:19 but we didn't take bankruptcy and we were paying this back. 17:24 And we weren't tithing because there was no increase, 17:28 I mean, we were still making money 17:29 but it all went out to pay for the... 17:32 We were living on credit cards basically, 17:34 the money was going toward paying these debts. 17:36 But we decided that even though 17:38 we didn't have anything to tithe 17:40 because there was no increase 17:43 we decided that we would make an offering 17:47 and I cannot tell you when you're living in Dallas, 17:50 Texas and your grocery budget is a $100 a month, 17:54 we decided we're going to give a $100 a month, 17:56 and that was I mean, that 100 was basically it. 18:00 And, you know something, I don't know how, 18:03 I mean, I kept the books and I cannot tell you 18:06 how God blessed that 90%. 18:08 And how easy He made things for us 18:11 when we just started giving it off 18:12 and pretty soon we were able to pay tithe 18:14 because we started seeing an increase 18:16 and that's the money to pay the debts 18:18 and then holds money out for us 18:20 for something other than our business expense. 18:22 It was amazing to me that sometimes I'd look 18:26 and I think, "What's happened here? 18:27 How come we've got so much more?" 18:30 And we're living on 90%. 18:31 Well, that 90% God said belonged to me, 18:33 but the 10% belong to Him. 18:35 It's really, really interesting 18:36 and in my work and teaching stewardship 18:38 and money management, 18:40 I've heard literally hundreds 18:41 of similar testimonies of people. 18:43 So amazing that it brings tears to your eyes, 18:46 you know, and that develops our trust in God. 18:49 So I'll just mention it this way, 18:52 Psalms 33 talks about, 18:55 I'm going to get the exact verse for you 18:56 so you can see what it is. 18:58 But the most amazing thing about it is that there's, 19:04 you know... 19:07 This factor is I think, its 33:17, 19:11 where it says that, 19:12 "You may learn to trust the Lord always." 19:15 And then 33, this is Deuteronomy. 19:17 I'll just point it out to you. 19:19 Deuteronomy 14:22-23, states, 19:22 you know, "That you should tithe everything 19:24 that the Lord blesses you 19:25 with so you may learn to fear the Lord always." 19:27 And then Psalms 33 says, 19:28 "The fear of the Lord is trusting Him." 19:31 So you learn to trust God by being faithful 19:33 with your stewardship, it's a biblical concept; 19:35 it's not just something I came up with. 19:37 It's a biblical concept so that we can follow that. 19:39 So when we're faithful 19:41 we begin to develop our trust in God. 19:43 So in an ideal world when, I cannot buy or sell, 19:46 that wouldn't be ideal but here's my ideal response, 19:49 if I've learned to trust God I can just tell the devil 19:51 to take a hike 19:52 because I can just say, "Listen, 19:54 I've learned to trust in God, 19:55 and He's going to take care of me 19:57 no matter what." 19:58 Amen. This is a miraculous thing. 19:59 And it's interesting 20:01 that sometimes people scoff at people 20:03 who believe in miracles, 20:04 but I believe in miracles and I believe 20:05 that we've seen them in our own lives. 20:07 Absolutely. 20:08 And the amazing thing is when you learn to trust God, 20:10 you see miraculous things happen on your behalf. 20:13 You can just understand that God exists 20:16 and I tell people that you can't see God 20:19 and no one has seen His face, 20:20 and that's the most amazing thing, 20:22 but you can learn that to know that He exists 20:24 because He answers your prayers, 20:25 fulfills His promises, 20:27 you see prophecy being fulfilled 20:28 and it's Providence leading in your life 20:30 and those are amazing things then you learn to do 20:32 that through proper money management. 20:34 And you can be prepared for difficult times in the end 20:36 when that happens as well. 20:37 And it's like what the Bible says in Matthew, 20:40 I don't remember the verse but where He says that, 20:42 "Where your treasure is there your heart is also." 20:46 That's Matthew 6:21. 20:47 So as we put our treasures in heaven 20:53 and trust in the Lord, 20:55 that's where our heart will be... 20:56 Exactly. 20:58 That's when you were talking about Lot's wife looking back, 21:01 her treasure was back there, 21:04 that big beautiful home 21:05 or whatever she was leaving back there, 21:08 that's what caused her to look back 21:10 and be lost, isn't it? 21:11 As a matter of fact, in Luke 17:32, 21:14 Jesus says, "Remember Lot's wife." 21:17 Yes. 21:19 And this is not just an abstract 21:20 recollection saying like, 21:22 well, "Oh yeah, I remember that woman. 21:24 Isn't she the one that turned 21:25 to a pillar of salt or something?" 21:26 But when you remember in the biblical sense, 21:29 you do something, 21:30 like, when you remember the Sabbath 21:32 you keep it holy, 21:33 and, you know, that kind of thing. 21:35 Put something into practice. Sure. 21:37 And when God remembered Hannah, she had a baby named Samuel. 21:42 I mean, that's just the kind of thing you see 21:44 when you remember. 21:45 So when you remember Lot's wife, 21:47 you remember that whole story was kind of interesting. 21:49 God in His great mercy sent two angels 21:53 and He came down personally as well 21:55 to deliver Lot from Sodom. 21:57 And then it was God who said to them, 21:59 "Do not look back." 22:01 But of course, Lot argued with God 22:03 and said, "You know, 22:04 I don't want to go to the mountains, 22:06 there's this little city over here called Zoar 22:07 let me go over there. 22:08 And while he was arguing with God, his wife looked back. 22:10 Well, we understand now why she did, 22:12 and you've mentioned one of them 22:14 and that is that her stuff was still back there. 22:16 But her kids were still back there. 22:18 And all her family members were still back there. 22:20 I mean, it's just incredible. 22:21 And that's why I said earlier 22:23 that every person who leaves this earth alive 22:25 will have to have the same experience 22:27 when Jesus says, "It's time to leave," 22:29 what will you say? 22:30 Do you understand what I'm saying? 22:31 Yes. 22:33 Believe it or not it's... 22:34 The children would be the most... 22:35 It's hard. 22:37 It's really hard to understand it. 22:38 There's probably not a person alive 22:40 who doesn't have a loved one 22:41 who has left the Lord or has never come to the Lord. 22:42 But we pray for those people regularly 22:44 and do our best to win them to the Lord 22:45 but some day we're going to have to walk off 22:47 and leave them. 22:48 That's pretty sad, isn't that? 22:49 But we have to make the decision ahead of time. 22:52 When we talk about our love for God in tithing, 22:56 I loved what you said about how you're developing that cord 22:58 so that you've got that. 23:00 But there is something that chains us 23:03 to the devil too, isn't there? 23:04 That's our loving buddy. Yes. 23:06 Ellen book, 'Steps to Christ' I think it's page 44, 23:08 we're told that, 23:09 "The love of money, the desire for wealth 23:10 is the golden chain that binds people to Satan." 23:13 That's very, very interesting when you think about it. 23:16 So from a Christian perspective 23:17 our goal is not to become millionaires 23:19 but it's to have our needs met and to have funds 23:21 that we can advance the cause of God 23:23 and help other people 23:24 which both of those store up treasures in heaven. 23:26 Absolutely. Absolutely. 23:28 So when you think about these three things... 23:35 God has a plan for our money, let's put it that way. 23:38 Yes. 23:39 And He's laid it out 23:41 and He wants us to have nice things, 23:43 I mean, He wants us to prosper... 23:44 Yes. 23:46 And, you know, one thing that I always tell people 23:48 is that something that I try to do 23:49 is I make certain that I buy the best I can, 23:52 but I always get it on sale. 23:54 So I'm buying good quality 23:56 because something that's going to last. 23:58 But Satan has a plan 24:00 for our money as well as, doesn't he? 24:01 Well, here's the interesting thing, 24:02 and since you brought that up I can use this illustration. 24:05 A lot of people, I think mistakenly, 24:07 believe that the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil 24:09 is only in the Garden of Eden, 24:10 and Adam and Eve only had that temptation. 24:13 Believe it or not, for us tithe and offerings 24:16 is our Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. 24:18 And the Bible is very clear about, 24:20 you know, that we learn to trust, 24:21 and I can just give you the illustration of this. 24:24 I'm not the only one that's come up with this, 24:25 I mean, I've heard Larry Birkhead 24:27 and Howard Dayton 24:28 and many others talk about this as well. 24:30 But what I can just share with you 24:31 is when God created Adam and Eve 24:33 and put them in the Garden of Eden, 24:34 He said, "Of all that you see you may freely eat. 24:38 I only reserve this one tree." 24:40 And that was the one for, 24:41 you know, that they were not to part take of. 24:43 And then in the same manner God has placed us 24:45 in all the abundance of the earth today 24:47 and He says, "This is for you, enjoy. 24:49 And I only ask you to return the tithe to me." 24:52 You see what I'm saying? It's pretty simple. 24:54 And so when I return the tithe to God 24:56 I show that I trust Him, I believe His word 24:58 and I'm willing to follow His counsel. 25:00 Those are the kinds of things that people need to recognize 25:03 that it's a relationship with Christ. 25:06 So let me ask this question. 25:08 If I'm understanding you correctly, 25:11 if I were to paraphrase, 25:12 if somebody asked me what we talked about today, 25:14 I would say, "Well, I think one of his main points 25:16 is that paying a faithful tithe 25:19 is very definitely preparing us 25:22 for the final great temptation of Satan. 25:27 And if we don't pay a faithful tithe, 25:29 if we're not faithful in our finances to the Lord, 25:32 or if we store treasures up on heaven and if we are not... 25:35 if we are in financial bondage 25:38 then you're not going to be ready to meet this temptation." 25:40 Exactly. 25:42 That's pretty, very close to it. 25:43 And I can tell you that 25:45 when you look at the money management situation thing, 25:48 we always have to remember two things. 25:49 One is God does not need the money 25:51 and He's only interested in our faithfulness. 25:53 And He even asked the question, "When the Son of Man returns 25:55 will he find faith on the earth?" 25:57 So that's the kind of thing that I think about. 25:59 And I'm looking for the idea 26:02 that selfishness is the primary thing 26:05 that keeps us away from a relationship with God. 26:07 People think that sometimes that a relationship with God 26:09 is just love, love, love all the time 26:11 and the God loves us and I love Him 26:12 and that's all that matters. 26:14 But we demonstrate our love by being faithful to God. 26:17 And that's... I think the real secret to it. 26:20 Okay, we have about one minute left. 26:22 What would you tell people who are watching 26:24 how to encourage them to be how to prepare. 26:29 Well, even though for some families 26:31 who living in difficult times now, 26:33 I mean, in the last five years 26:35 more than 12 million American families 26:36 have lost their homes to foreclosure. 26:38 So I don't need to tell people we're living in good times, 26:40 we're in a stressful time. 26:41 But the bottom line is if you put God first in your life 26:44 and you're faithful with Him, 26:45 He will take care of your family 26:46 and that's the most important thing. 26:48 And another thing is, this to me is very important. 26:51 Put God first in your life 26:52 and recognize that God has said, 26:54 "Prove me on this and see if I want pour out, 26:56 open for you the windows of heaven and pour 26:58 out such a blessing. 26:59 You don't have room enough to receive it. 27:00 And if you don't have room enough 27:02 you have a surplus you can help even other people." 27:04 We don't have to become millionaires on this road 27:05 because someday we're going to walk off and leave everything. 27:08 So the idea is let's be faithful with God 27:11 and God will be faithful to us. 27:12 Thank you so much for your message today. 27:14 And I would just add one thing with that 27:16 and that is learn to be content in all circumstances 27:19 because a lot of reasons people are losing their homes 27:22 is because they're out spending the money that they're making. 27:26 We need to start a little bit smaller 27:28 and then work our way up. 27:29 But thank you so much for joining 27:31 and I hope today has been something 27:33 that will really make you pause and think. 27:37 Our prayer for you is that you will be ready 27:40 for this final great temptation. 27:43 And the only way you can do that is to trust in the Lord 27:46 with all your heart. 27:47 Good bye. |
Revised 2017-09-11