Is your past dark, is
your present uncertain?
00:00:01.36\00:00:04.33
And maybe you feel that
your future is hopeless.
00:00:04.37\00:00:07.74
If you are feeling
alone and abandoned by family
00:00:07.77\00:00:11.07
and maybe even by God, please
join us on Issues and Answers
00:00:11.11\00:00:15.11
today, because you
will find God has an answer.
00:00:15.14\00:00:18.88
Hello, I'm Shelley
Quinn, welcome again to
00:00:50.38\00:00:53.42
Issues and Answers. I
am so excited about todays
00:00:53.45\00:00:56.79
program because our special
guest is also a special friend,
00:00:56.82\00:01:00.96
a personal friend, and
we are so excited to have
00:01:00.99\00:01:04.16
Dr. Paul Ratsara, who is
a pastor and the president
00:01:04.19\00:01:08.40
of the Southern Africa
Indian Ocean Division of the
00:01:08.43\00:01:12.43
Seventh-day Adventist Church.
00:01:12.47\00:01:14.14
Paul, thank you so
much for joining us.
00:01:14.17\00:01:17.51
I am so happy to be
here. Oh, and I am so glad
00:01:17.54\00:01:22.11
that you've come such a
long distance to share with us.
00:01:22.14\00:01:25.25
Yes, it is long. Let me ask
you just a couple of questions
00:01:25.28\00:01:28.92
because some
people may not know you.
00:01:28.95\00:01:33.02
You've been on 3ABN
quite a lot, but we had so many
00:01:33.05\00:01:35.99
new viewers month
to month. Ok, yeah.
00:01:36.02\00:01:37.63
How many years did you pastor?
00:01:37.66\00:01:40.13
Ok, I started actually to
work for the church in 1980.
00:01:40.16\00:01:47.87
Ah! That would be 36 as a
teacher, and then, and also as a
00:01:47.90\00:01:54.18
Bible Teacher and
pastoring starting in 1984.
00:01:54.21\00:01:59.71
Eight four...And that is
now... will soon to be 32.
00:01:59.75\00:02:04.02
And how many years have
you served as the president
00:02:04.05\00:02:09.49
of the Southern
Africa Indian Ocean Division?
00:02:09.52\00:02:12.29
I started in 2005,
to be 11 years soon.
00:02:12.33\00:02:19.73
Wonderful. How many conferences
are in your division?
00:02:19.77\00:02:26.24
Actually we will start with
the churches and congregations.
00:02:26.27\00:02:30.55
We have 23,000, more
than 23,000 congregations.
00:02:30.58\00:02:38.12
That means organized
churches and organized companies
00:02:38.15\00:02:42.02
and those companies are
groups and many of them are
00:02:42.06\00:02:46.46
big like full fledge churches.
00:02:46.49\00:02:50.80
Amen! Yes, and we have
now more than 40 conferences.
00:02:50.83\00:02:58.14
Four zero, 40. Yes. Yes.
And they knew this is what
00:02:58.17\00:03:01.04
keeps you on the road
all the time. That's true.
00:03:01.08\00:03:03.51
I know that you and
Joanne, your lovely wife,
00:03:03.55\00:03:05.48
my precious friend travel,
just seems like non-stop.
00:03:05.51\00:03:10.39
Yes. But praise the Lord,
He's tapped you on the shoulder
00:03:10.42\00:03:15.62
and called you into service.
And I believe He has done so
00:03:15.66\00:03:18.83
because you are a man of
integrity and a man of prayer.
00:03:18.86\00:03:22.90
You once told me, I
think the first time I met you,
00:03:22.93\00:03:26.17
you shared how, you
learned that if you waited until
00:03:26.20\00:03:30.97
you went into the
office, which is quite early
00:03:31.01\00:03:33.17
each morning, if he is in.
If you waited till then to pray,
00:03:33.21\00:03:37.08
that something would always
interrupt that prayer time.
00:03:37.11\00:03:39.98
Yes! So you started getting
up quite early in the morning
00:03:40.02\00:03:42.85
to pray. What hour
do you arise to pray?
00:03:42.88\00:03:45.59
Ah, my habit is to actually
asking God to wake me up
00:03:45.62\00:03:50.46
when I go to bed. I
say Lord, I am your child,
00:03:50.49\00:03:55.03
you know how much time I
need so, would you wake me up
00:03:55.06\00:04:00.27
like you did with
Jesus Christ and Isaiah?
00:04:00.30\00:04:03.20
It is said that God woke
him up. So that is my plan,
00:04:03.24\00:04:09.74
I don't use an alarm clock,
I don't condemn alarm clock,
00:04:09.78\00:04:13.88
but that is my decision.
So generally it is between
00:04:13.92\00:04:19.95
three to four
o'clock in the morning.
00:04:19.99\00:04:22.16
And then you spend a
couple of hours in prayer
00:04:22.19\00:04:24.63
before you go into the
office. That's the plan.
00:04:24.66\00:04:28.06
Well, today we are
going to be studying,
00:04:28.10\00:04:31.57
doing a little study in
Genesis and we are going to be
00:04:31.60\00:04:36.60
talking about someone
who felt alone and abandoned
00:04:36.64\00:04:40.68
by family and God.
Paul, would you like to begin?
00:04:40.71\00:04:44.61
Yes, you know I've
been thinking a lot about
00:04:44.65\00:04:49.12
our relationship with
the Lord. Because to me
00:04:49.15\00:04:53.69
that is the most important
thing, that we are in Christ.
00:04:53.72\00:04:58.36
We are in God. So I
studied this in the Bible,
00:04:58.39\00:05:04.87
and I studied the
characters in the Bible.
00:05:04.90\00:05:08.60
And I tried to learn
from them maybe things to be
00:05:08.64\00:05:13.91
avoided and
things to be followed.
00:05:13.94\00:05:16.21
Yes. And today I just
want to learn from the life
00:05:16.24\00:05:21.65
of Jacob...Very
rich experience indeed.
00:05:21.68\00:05:27.72
And we can turn in our Bibles,
and that is in Genesis chapter
00:05:27.76\00:05:33.76
27 and 28, and we are going to
learn from the life of this man.
00:05:33.80\00:05:39.77
The beginning was not
that good, and I believe that
00:05:39.80\00:05:45.11
we can learn from that as well,
and through this we can know
00:05:45.14\00:05:50.91
even better, the character
of God, and we can have hope
00:05:50.95\00:05:55.72
because the life of
Jacob, we can think of his past.
00:05:55.75\00:06:01.69
We can think of his present
and we can think of his future,
00:06:01.72\00:06:05.83
how God dealt with that.
00:06:05.86\00:06:08.23
So right in Genesis chapter 27
and verse 41, it is the summary
00:06:08.26\00:06:17.57
of the problem of Jacob in his
home, the home of his parents.
00:06:17.61\00:06:24.88
That is very serious, can
you imagine having two children,
00:06:47.17\00:06:52.81
two sons, and one
hates the other one.
00:06:52.84\00:06:58.18
Not just a simple hatred,
actually Esau wanted to kill
00:06:58.21\00:07:03.95
Jacob. These were fraternal
twins. Definitely! Definitely!
00:07:03.99\00:07:08.26
Just think of a family,
they just had two children,
00:07:08.29\00:07:13.06
and Jacob and Esau
they... I mean Esau hated him
00:07:13.09\00:07:19.13
and he wanted to kill
because of what has happened.
00:07:19.17\00:07:23.10
Jacob actually cheated
Esau and Esau was not amused
00:07:23.14\00:07:29.04
and he decided to kill him.
00:07:29.08\00:07:31.21
And this is not an empty
threat, because knowing Esau,
00:07:31.25\00:07:34.92
he was used to blood, he
was a hunter and for him to kill
00:07:34.95\00:07:41.52
was not
something very difficult.
00:07:41.56\00:07:44.53
So the parents knew that
this was a serious matter
00:07:44.56\00:07:48.96
and they tried
to find a solution.
00:07:49.00\00:07:51.50
What should be
done to avoid this?
00:07:51.53\00:07:55.00
Shall we reconcile
them? And they found out that
00:07:55.04\00:08:00.11
maybe that would not be
the solution because Esau
00:08:00.14\00:08:03.75
will not knowing himself.
So the only solution found
00:08:03.78\00:08:08.08
is to separate
them, to separate them.
00:08:08.12\00:08:11.59
So they said well
Jacob, you must leave,
00:08:11.62\00:08:17.63
you must leave,
you cannot be here,
00:08:17.66\00:08:19.56
otherwise we will
lose you, or both of you.
00:08:19.79\00:08:22.86
So that is the solution, that
was the condition of the family,
00:08:22.90\00:08:27.70
the situation of the family,
it was quite dysfunctional.
00:08:27.90\00:08:30.74
There are two camps
actually, the camp of Esau,
00:08:30.77\00:08:35.78
of Isaac the father, and
Esau, and the camp of Jacob and
00:08:35.81\00:08:40.98
Rebecca, which is very bad,
it is not good to have two camps
00:08:41.02\00:08:46.05
at home. We must be
united in discipline and love,
00:08:46.09\00:08:51.03
otherwise we may
encounter such a problem.
00:08:51.06\00:08:54.80
If I could just
interject this comment.
00:08:54.83\00:08:56.73
It shows us, when
parents have a favorite,
00:08:56.77\00:09:00.50
as Isaac favored
Esau, Rebecca favored Jacob.
00:09:00.54\00:09:05.01
It puts a strain on the
relationship of the children.
00:09:05.04\00:09:09.81
So this is something that
you know, we know that God
00:09:09.84\00:09:13.45
loves unconditionally,
we need to learn as parents,
00:09:13.48\00:09:18.12
we need to learn not to show
favoritism to their children.
00:09:18.15\00:09:21.92
I think that is the first
lesson that we can learn here.
00:09:21.96\00:09:25.46
As parents, we need to
not to show favoritism,
00:09:25.49\00:09:29.60
it does not help the
children, it does not help us,
00:09:29.63\00:09:33.07
and we need to ask God
to help us to avoid this.
00:09:33.10\00:09:37.94
We need to love
all the children alike.
00:09:37.97\00:09:41.54
Sometimes you know as
human beings, you have some
00:09:41.58\00:09:45.01
inclination toward one, but
we should never yield to that
00:09:45.05\00:09:48.88
temptation. We need to
ask God to be fair and to love
00:09:48.92\00:09:53.12
everybody unconditionally. Amen!
00:09:53.15\00:09:55.36
And because of that mistake
in a way, that actually worsened
00:09:55.39\00:10:01.73
the situation here. Yes.
And the house was divided,
00:10:01.76\00:10:06.33
and because of
that, Jacob had to leave.
00:10:06.37\00:10:10.44
And now they remained
with Esau, and Esau had a plan
00:10:10.47\00:10:16.51
and his plan was not good.
00:10:16.54\00:10:18.45
Going back to verse 41,
he said the days of mourning
00:10:18.48\00:10:22.75
for my father are at hand, then
I will kill my brother Jacob.
00:10:22.78\00:10:29.49
So, that was a
decision for Jacob to leave.
00:10:29.52\00:10:36.40
It was a very difficult
moment for the parents,
00:10:36.43\00:10:40.44
especially for the mother.
00:10:40.47\00:10:42.27
We know that Jacob was
very close to the mother...
00:10:42.30\00:10:45.31
Well, and here she is
loosing her husband in death.
00:10:45.41\00:10:48.11
Isaac, and now she is
going to lose her favorite son,
00:10:48.14\00:10:52.35
and be left with Esau.
Yeah, that was very hard
00:10:52.38\00:10:57.29
but under the circumstance,
they decided that that was
00:10:57.32\00:11:01.42
the only solution. And in
chapter 28, in chapter 28,
00:11:01.46\00:11:08.06
now verse 10 and verse
11, we read this journey.
00:11:08.10\00:11:16.14
Actually the running away of
Jacob from the paternal home.
00:11:16.17\00:11:25.81
And we read this:
00:11:25.85\00:11:27.62
This passage is so rich.
Jacob then started his journey,
00:11:49.87\00:11:56.91
and it was a long journey, it
was a long trip and it was hard
00:11:56.95\00:12:01.58
in the wilderness
and it was dangerous.
00:12:01.62\00:12:05.05
So he walked and walked,
and walked and finally the sun
00:12:05.09\00:12:09.82
started to set and I
would suggest that the sun
00:12:09.86\00:12:16.60
that is talked about here
is... yes, it was literal,
00:12:16.63\00:12:19.87
but it kind of sort of present
the life, the darkness that
00:12:19.90\00:12:24.47
start to come...Represents the
darkness in the life of Jacob
00:12:24.51\00:12:31.85
because at that
moment, his life was dark.
00:12:31.88\00:12:36.05
Darkened by discouragement.
His past was so dark,
00:12:36.08\00:12:41.52
thinking of what he did, he
cheated his father, he cheated
00:12:41.56\00:12:48.50
his brother, and he did all
these things so it was so heavy
00:12:49.03\00:12:53.34
on him, his past...So he
was tired physically, yes,
00:12:53.74\00:12:57.84
but he was also tired mentally
and especially spiritually.
00:12:57.87\00:13:02.94
So he felt alone, he
felt tired, he was so down.
00:13:02.98\00:13:07.85
And you know, when you thing
about having to use a stone
00:13:07.88\00:13:11.89
for your pillow, that's
not much rest for your head,
00:13:11.92\00:13:14.76
so that's two, this kind
of compares, he couldn't rest
00:13:14.79\00:13:18.79
in his head because of
all these thoughts that were
00:13:18.83\00:13:21.90
churning and physically he had
to lay on a stone. So definitely
00:13:21.93\00:13:26.10
you see, Jacob was a
son of a millionaire,
00:13:26.13\00:13:32.21
or even billionaire,
Isaac. If you go to chapter 26
00:13:32.24\00:13:36.04
that describes the
wealth of Isaac, and for him,
00:13:36.08\00:13:42.95
the son of a millionaire, just
to use a stone to be a pillow,
00:13:42.98\00:13:47.49
that means he went
really down and down, and down.
00:13:47.52\00:13:51.63
So he was tired, he was
discouraged, he felt lonely,
00:13:51.66\00:13:58.57
alone in the middle of nowhere.
And there as well, we can think
00:13:58.60\00:14:06.31
of him thinking of
being separated with God
00:14:06.37\00:14:12.65
because of his sins,
because of what he did,
00:14:12.68\00:14:18.12
he felt, that well,
there is no hope for me.
00:14:18.15\00:14:22.39
I'm not only far from my
family, the earthly family,
00:14:22.42\00:14:29.20
but also, the heavenly
family. So, in that condition,
00:14:29.23\00:14:34.14
he was tired and then he
fell asleep. Discouraged, tired,
00:14:34.17\00:14:40.01
lonely. For him, the chance was
God, so he went to this place.
00:14:40.04\00:14:47.88
For him, the past was dark
and also definitely his present
00:14:47.92\00:14:53.62
was very uncertain, and his
future was kind of hopeless.
00:14:53.66\00:14:58.09
And let's see, what was
the response of God to this
00:14:58.13\00:15:04.83
loneliness. You know that
you are talking to someone,
00:15:04.87\00:15:08.37
I know that there is someone
who is listening right now...
00:15:08.40\00:15:10.94
I felt this myself, in the past,
where you feel that you are
00:15:10.97\00:15:17.85
separated from God and it's a...
It's bad enough to be separated
00:15:17.88\00:15:21.98
from your family, but if
you feel that there is a barrier
00:15:22.02\00:15:24.29
between you and God, it's such
a hopeless type of feeling so...
00:15:24.32\00:15:28.82
And actually my favorite author,
Ellen White comments on this,
00:15:28.86\00:15:35.36
and said that even he prayed...
He didn't have first the courage
00:15:35.40\00:15:42.04
to pray in the first
place, and then he tried to pray
00:15:42.07\00:15:45.54
but he did not find peace.
Actually he could not forgive
00:15:45.57\00:15:50.88
himself. He was so down,
he thought that it was too far
00:15:50.91\00:15:55.98
and he slept
with that condition.
00:15:56.02\00:16:01.02
And maybe those of us who
are watching this television,
00:16:01.06\00:16:05.53
this program, who may
be in that circumstance,
00:16:05.56\00:16:08.60
that situation now. We
may feel lonely, we may feel
00:16:08.63\00:16:12.83
discouraged, and when you
think of the past, it is dark.
00:16:12.87\00:16:17.01
Things that we
have done in the past,
00:16:17.04\00:16:20.58
we think of the present, we
have a lot of uncertainties,
00:16:20.61\00:16:25.01
of the future,
we don't see light,
00:16:25.05\00:16:28.95
and that was the
situation of Jacob.
00:16:28.98\00:16:33.22
But I have good
news for us. Amen!
00:16:33.25\00:16:35.69
And the good news is that
God reacted, actually acted,
00:16:35.72\00:16:40.93
to address the condition,
the condition of Jacob.
00:16:40.96\00:16:46.60
So we read in verse
12, the response of God,
00:16:46.63\00:16:57.61
and it is amazing
Shelley, this is verse 12.
00:16:57.65\00:17:02.02
"Then he dreamt and behold, a
ladder was set up on the earth
00:17:02.05\00:17:10.73
and it's top reached to heaven,
and there the angels of God
00:17:10.76\00:17:17.07
were ascending
and descending on it."
00:17:17.10\00:17:20.64
Let's analyze this verse.
00:17:20.67\00:17:23.07
This is so
encouraging, "Then he dreamt".
00:17:23.10\00:17:27.28
So in his dream, he
looked and he saw a ladder,
00:17:27.31\00:17:34.62
a ladder, probably the longest
ladder ever existed because
00:17:34.65\00:17:41.49
the length of this is the
distance between the earth
00:17:41.52\00:17:46.49
and heaven. What was
the problem of Jacob?
00:17:46.53\00:17:52.23
In his mind, he
was separated from God.
00:17:52.27\00:17:56.77
Yes. So the first thing
God showed him is a ladder.
00:17:56.81\00:18:01.41
Just to link him with heaven.
And this ladder, Jesus Christ
00:18:01.44\00:18:08.52
said, that is himself.
00:18:08.55\00:18:10.79
This is Jesus Christ
the mediator who came here
00:18:10.82\00:18:15.69
on earth and
committed just to be the ladder.
00:18:15.72\00:18:21.63
Just to be the
bridge between God and us.
00:18:21.66\00:18:27.27
So God showed him Jesus
Christ. That is the solution,
00:18:27.30\00:18:34.61
our solution is Jesus Christ.
00:18:34.64\00:18:37.65
So Jacob look at the
ladder, you are not alone.
00:18:37.68\00:18:43.05
You are not separated.
Yes, you have done this,
00:18:43.08\00:18:46.09
you have done this
but I'm still here.
00:18:46.12\00:18:48.79
I would like to
give you another chance.
00:18:48.82\00:18:51.46
So the ladder represented
Jesus Christ in the book of
00:18:51.49\00:18:56.13
John, the gospel of John.
Jesus Christ talked about this
00:18:56.16\00:19:01.10
when He talked to Nathaniel.
He said, you will see,
00:19:01.14\00:19:04.71
this is ladder, Jesus
Christ. So Jacob looked at this
00:19:04.74\00:19:11.31
important ladder, and
the ladder was not empty.
00:19:11.35\00:19:16.69
Yes! It was not empty.
You see a ladder would be
00:19:16.72\00:19:21.62
enough just to show that
he is linked now to heaven.
00:19:21.66\00:19:27.10
But on top of that, you know
when God wants to talk to us,
00:19:27.13\00:19:31.67
sometimes he even over
does it to make a point.
00:19:31.70\00:19:36.24
He said, you are not
alone. So we read this...
00:19:36.27\00:19:40.88
The company of Angels.
Yes! He said, and it's top
00:19:40.91\00:19:43.58
reached to heaven and
there the angels, not one angel.
00:19:43.61\00:19:50.02
Angels of God, not just
standing there, but ascending
00:19:50.05\00:19:56.19
and descending on it. So a
lot of movement up and down,
00:19:56.22\00:20:02.33
and up and down on this ladder
just to show that the angels
00:20:02.36\00:20:09.70
were present. He was not alone,
he thought that he was alone,
00:20:09.74\00:20:15.31
but God said no, you are
not alone. The angels are here.
00:20:15.34\00:20:21.32
That's wonderful. Sometimes
when we feel discouraged,
00:20:21.35\00:20:25.29
when we feel that we are
alone, we should never forget
00:20:25.32\00:20:29.36
that we are not alone. Amen!
00:20:29.39\00:20:32.76
Jesus Christ is
there, the angels are there.
00:20:32.79\00:20:37.43
And Jacob continued to look,
and not only he saw the angels,
00:20:37.47\00:20:45.71
there in verse 13.
"And behold, the Lord stood
00:20:45.74\00:20:53.28
above it and said, the Lord."
00:20:53.31\00:20:56.79
You see, a ladder would
be good enough, the angels,
00:20:56.82\00:21:02.62
that is even better.
but God did not stop there,
00:21:02.66\00:21:08.76
God himself showed
up and He was there,
00:21:08.80\00:21:13.77
on top of the ladder, and
He was not quiet, He was not
00:21:13.80\00:21:19.17
silent. Our God talked
and He introduced Himself.
00:21:19.21\00:21:26.68
He introduced Himself.
You know God has many names...
00:21:26.72\00:21:30.85
Yes He has. And it is just like
Him...I am thinking of God as a
00:21:30.89\00:21:36.42
business person,
business woman or business man
00:21:36.46\00:21:40.13
who has more than
one business Card.
00:21:40.16\00:21:42.60
And I have seen them, they
choose which one to give to
00:21:42.63\00:21:49.37
a typical individual according
to the message that they
00:21:49.40\00:21:54.81
want to convey, and the
same thing with the name of God.
00:21:54.84\00:21:58.41
God has many names, and
He decides to choose a name
00:21:58.45\00:22:04.19
according to the circumstance,
and according to the message
00:22:04.22\00:22:07.56
that He wants to
convey. So here God decided to
00:22:07.59\00:22:13.60
introduce Himself. He said
I am the Lord God of Abraham
00:22:13.63\00:22:19.53
your father, and
the God of Isaac.
00:22:19.57\00:22:23.61
What is the
meaning of this name?
00:22:23.64\00:22:27.28
When you go to Exodus chapter
3:15, the meaning of this name
00:22:27.31\00:22:35.02
is clear, that this means
God is the God of history.
00:22:35.05\00:22:41.49
God controls history.
That means God of the past,
00:22:41.52\00:22:48.66
God of the present,
and God of the future.
00:22:48.70\00:22:51.63
So He's telling Jacob,
Jacob, I know your past,
00:22:51.67\00:22:57.84
I know your present,
and even your future.
00:22:57.87\00:23:01.94
I'm the God of the past,
I'm the God of the present,
00:23:01.98\00:23:07.15
I'm the God of the
future, if you just come to me
00:23:07.18\00:23:12.42
I know how to
deal with the past,
00:23:12.45\00:23:14.92
I can delete the past
if you just come to me.
00:23:14.96\00:23:20.33
I know how to deal with the
present and even the future.
00:23:20.36\00:23:25.83
As long as you are with
me you should not be afraid.
00:23:25.87\00:23:30.11
Because not only I
can control the future,
00:23:30.14\00:23:34.64
but I can make the
future, I am a future maker.
00:23:34.68\00:23:39.31
Amen! Halleluiah!
I am a future maker!
00:23:39.35\00:23:42.78
That's right! So Jacob
understood that through the name
00:23:42.88\00:23:51.09
of God. So God said, I
am the Lord God of Abraham
00:23:51.13\00:23:57.57
you father, and the God of
Isaac, that means I am the God
00:23:57.60\00:24:02.97
of the past, I'm
the God of the present,
00:24:03.00\00:24:06.01
I'm the God of the future.
Let's pause for a moment here
00:24:06.04\00:24:10.15
and apply this into our lives.
00:24:10.18\00:24:15.12
You see, our God is the
God of the past, God, with God,
00:24:15.15\00:24:23.32
it's beyond time, it's not
limited by time, but many times
00:24:23.36\00:24:27.73
we see God
through our human eyes.
00:24:27.76\00:24:31.37
Since we are limited by
time, we think that God is also
00:24:31.40\00:24:36.27
limited by time, but
He's beyond time even though
00:24:36.30\00:24:40.48
through Jesus Christ
we decided to be in time
00:24:40.51\00:24:44.18
for incarnation,
but it's beyond time.
00:24:44.21\00:24:47.68
And time for Him, He can
control time, He is everlasting
00:24:47.72\00:24:53.62
God, the past, the present,
the future, it is our human
00:24:53.66\00:24:58.96
language. But for Him,
He is an everlasting God,
00:24:58.99\00:25:04.60
He is an eternal God.
00:25:04.63\00:25:06.33
On top of that, through Jesus
Christ, God has given us the
00:25:06.37\00:25:14.61
remedy of the past.
Amen! Full Forgiveness.
00:25:14.64\00:25:18.65
You see, if you feel that
you have done something wrong
00:25:18.68\00:25:24.29
and in your mind, you
said no that is too bad,
00:25:24.32\00:25:28.96
there is no way
that God can accept me,
00:25:28.99\00:25:32.13
maybe you have done
too much things in my life,
00:25:32.16\00:25:36.73
there's no hope for me.
00:25:36.77\00:25:38.53
Let me tell you, with
God there's no such thing
00:25:38.57\00:25:46.11
that He cannot repair,
and actually God is specialist
00:25:46.14\00:25:53.55
in mending broken things. Amen!
00:25:53.58\00:25:57.72
Broken things. He has done
that many times and even He can
00:25:57.75\00:26:03.49
create out of nothing.
So broken things He knows
00:26:03.53\00:26:09.10
how to mend. So if
we have a broken life,
00:26:09.13\00:26:12.23
that is the time to come
to God, to hand ourselves
00:26:12.27\00:26:17.04
in the hands of a specialist.
He's expert in mending
00:26:17.07\00:26:21.34
broken things. How we
are you going to do this?
00:26:21.38\00:26:23.68
It is through repentance,
asking God for forgiveness.
00:26:23.71\00:26:29.18
You know God can push
the delete button when we
00:26:29.22\00:26:35.02
confess our sins. Ha,
ha, push the delete button.
00:26:35.06\00:26:37.43
I love it. He can push that
one and He is going to erase
00:26:37.59\00:26:42.56
and He said He is going to drop
that in the deep of the sea.
00:26:42.60\00:26:47.24
Yes. Yes. So, we don't
need to be discouraged,
00:26:47.30\00:26:53.24
we need to come to
God, ask for forgiveness
00:26:53.27\00:26:56.95
and through the blood of
Jesus, we will be washed,
00:26:56.98\00:27:01.55
we will be forgiven and
we will be given the strength
00:27:01.58\00:27:10.03
to carry on, to carry
on. So that is the past,
00:27:10.06\00:27:15.00
and the present, we can
elaborate more on that but
00:27:15.03\00:27:19.43
let me just summarize on this.
As long as we are with God,
00:27:19.47\00:27:24.04
our present is sure.
Not that we will not have
00:27:24.07\00:27:27.71
troubles, but He is
bigger than all the troubles.
00:27:27.74\00:27:31.05
Absolutely. And put together,
in the future, we have no worry
00:27:31.08\00:27:35.05
because God is with us.
00:27:35.08\00:27:36.62
Paul, thank you so
much, this is gone by too fast
00:27:36.65\00:27:39.39
but we are going to ask you
to come back again next week
00:27:39.42\00:27:41.82
and we just so
appreciate you being here.
00:27:41.86\00:27:44.76
For those of you
at home, remember,
00:27:44.79\00:27:47.43
He is the God of past,
the God of the present,
00:27:47.46\00:27:51.00
the God of the future.
00:27:51.03\00:27:52.37
Nothing that you have ever
done, that you could confess
00:27:52.40\00:27:55.97
to the Lord is going
to catch Him by surprise.
00:27:56.00\00:27:58.34
He knows the end
from the beginning,
00:27:58.37\00:28:00.14
He know what you've done
but He wants to shine His light
00:28:00.18\00:28:04.38
into your darkness.
00:28:04.41\00:28:05.75
Join us next time so
that you can see how He took
00:28:05.78\00:28:07.12
a broken man Jacob, who
felt alone and abandoned
00:28:07.15\00:28:15.42
and He gave him a rich life.
00:28:15.46\00:28:18.76
God has a plan
for your life as well.
00:28:18.79\00:28:21.03
We'll see you next time.
00:28:21.06\00:28:22.76