Participants:
Series Code: IIWC
Program Code: IIWC201013
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00:01 >>BILL: Making decisions in the dark can
00:02 lead to some regrettable consequences. Back in the 00:04 days before electricity, a tightfisted old farmer was 00:08 taking his hired man to task for carrying a 00:09 lighted laern when he went to ca on his gi. 00:18 "Why," he exclaimed, "when I went a-courtin' I never 00:21 carried one of them things. I always went 00:22 in the dark." "Yes," the hired man said wryly," 00:30 and look what you got! 00:35 (MUSIC) 00:45 >>ANNOUNCER: IT HAS STOOD THE TEST OF TIME 00:47 GOD'S BOOK, THE BIBLE. 00:50 STILL RELEVANT IN TODAY'S COMPLEX WORLD 00:54 IT IS WRITTEN. 00:56 SHARING MESSAGES OF HOPE AROUND THE WORLD 01:01 (MUSIC) 01:13 In the early days of the railroad, every main 01:14 railroad crossing had its crossing guard who was to 01:16 signal with a lantern that a train was coming. One 01:21 night, a crossing guard fell asleep in his shack, 01:22 but woke up and ran out with his lantern seconds 01:28 before the train came. 01:29 There was a terrible accident. At 01:34 the investigation he was asked, "Were you present 01:37 at your job? Did you have a lantern?" The crossing 01:38 guard was exonerated of any blame. He later said, 01:43 "No one asked me whether or not the lantern was 01:48 lit." 01:51 Sodium is an extremely active element found 01:52 naturally only in combined form; it always links 01:56 itself to another element. 01:57 Chlorine, on the other hand, is the poisonous 02:01 gas that gives bleach its offensive odor. When 02:08 sodium and chlorine are combined, the result is 02:09 sodium chloride--common table salt--the substance 02:13 we use to preserve meat and bring out its flavor. 02:20 Jesus said: Matthew 5: 14 - 16 03:04 It's not easy to listen to anyone tell us who we 03:05 should be in the world. We are tired of being defined 03:09 and told what our purpose and function in life 03:13 should be. Someone is always giving us a 03:14 description of what our life should be like or 03:19 look like. As children, we were told to be little 03:24 ladies and gentlemen. 03:25 As adults, the culture in which we live tells us to 03:28 work hard because only the fittest survive. It tells 03:29 us get all we can because happiness consists 03:35 of limitless material acquisition. Consume 03:41 because consumption is inherently good. Become 03:42 rich because property, power, and wealth are more 03:50 important than people. 03:51 Be progressive because progress is nothing but 03:55 good. And now, believe it or not, we have Jesus' 04:03 words adding one more description and definition 04:04 to our list of what and who we ought to be. 04:10 His words only add to the long list of expectations 04:16 already carefully recorded in our memory banks. These 04:17 expectations come from our childhood, our youth, our 04:23 culture, and now Jesus. 04:24 "My followers," said Jesus, "are to be like 04:28 salt and light." Now that should be clear enough. 04:35 Everyone knows what the purpose and function of 04:36 salt and light are. The everyday purpose of salt 04:42 is to preserve, flavor, and purify. Jesus was 04:46 saying that his followers should preserve his 04:47 teachings, flavor with love the lives of others, 04:53 and purify that which has gone sour. That's who the 04:59 followers of Jesus are. 05:00 They are people who have a salt-like quality which 05:05 adds to the lives of others. They function in 05:06 a way that enhances or enriches the 05:09 flavor of life. 05:15 The purpose of the disciple is defined by 05:16 what he or she does. Just like the purpose of 05:21 salt is defined by what it does. But, Jesus said 05:26 there is a danger. We, as disciples, might become 05:27 like salt which has lost its savor. Salt can 05:33 lose its taste, and when it does, it is good for 05:38 nothing except to be thrown out the window and 05:39 trodden under the feet of those who pass by. 05:43 But Jesus also said that you are the light of the 05:49 world. Everyone knows the purpose of light. Light 05:50 casts out the darkness, enables others to see, and 05:55 makes things visible. The worst thing that we can do 06:00 with light is to hide it. 06:01 If hidden, a light cannot push back the shadows, nor 06:06 can it enable others to see. It's easy to say that 06:07 one should be like salt and light in a general 06:12 sense. No one minds adding that to the list of what 06:16 one should be and what one should do. But, how do we 06:17 as individuals really live if we understand ourselves 06:24 to be salt and light, not in a general sense, but in 06:30 the everyday life? What does it mean to be the 06:31 salt of the earth and the light of the world when 06:36 we are trying to decide on where to educate our 06:40 children? What does it mean to be the salt of the 06:41 earth and the light of the world when we are trying 06:45 to decide how much to give away or how much to keep; 06:49 how to get more and more material things so that 06:50 we can be happier; how to negotiate time for our 06:55 teenagers; how to get ready for a big dinner 07:00 party, clean the house, and get the children where 07:01 they need to be? What does it mean to be the salt of 07:04 the earth and the light of the world when we are in 07:08 the presence of a person who tells an ethnic joke? 07:09 Do we laugh, turn aside, or say nothing? Dr. 07:15 James Stewart - a British preacher once said: 07:50 This is the issue. Think about the crowd to whom 07:51 Jesus was speaking. It wasn't a gathering of the 07:56 United Nations; it wasn't Parliament, or even an 07:58 assembly at City Hall. It was a crowd on a hillside 07:59 in a tiny spot of land called Palestine. It was 08:06 a group of common people living common ordinary 08:12 lives. They were under occupation; they couldn't 08:13 make their own laws; they couldn't plan their own 08:18 futures; they couldn't determine their own 08:22 destinies; yet Jesus said to them, "You are the salt 08:23 of the earth; you are the light of the world." We 08:31 are salt and we are light. 08:32 But just what does this mean? Why does Jesus 08:40 insist that we need to "pass the salt and turn on 08:46 the light?" How are we to do that? 08:55 The worst thing that a Christian could lose is 08:56 not his wealth, nor his job, nor his health, nor 09:05 his family, not even his life; the worst thing a 09:13 Christian can lose is his testimony. Because when 09:14 you lose your testimony your salt loses his 09:15 seasoning; it loses its flavor. When that happens 09:21 Jesus goes on to say, "It is then good for nothing 09:22 but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot 09:26 by men." You see, the one thing that can contaminate 09:32 the salt of our life is the dirt of worldliness. 09:33 Whenever salt that was brought out from the Dead 09:39 Sea would be contaminated with other minerals that 09:43 would make it taste flat or even repulsive, the 09:44 salt became worthless. You couldn't throw it on a 09:49 garden or a field because it would kill what was 09:54 planted. So instead, it would be thrown onto 09:55 the roads where it would gradually be ground into 09:58 the dirt and disappear, and then people could just 10:05 walk over it. Jesus said "you are the salt of the 10:06 earth." Salt is worthless if it never comes in 10:12 contact with food. It may look nice in the shaker, 10:18 but if it stays in the shaker it is worthless. 10:19 You see, the church is the salt shaker and the 10:24 earth is the school, the business, and the 10:28 neighborhood. We need to get the salt out of the 10:29 shaker on to the earth where it can do some good. 10:40 I heard about a man that walked into the little Mom 10:41 and Pop grocery store and said, "Do you sell salt?" 10:47 The man said, "Do we sell salt! Just look!" The man 10:51 showed the customer an entire wall of shelves 10:52 stocked with nothing but salt-Morton salt, iodized 10:56 salt, kosher salt, sea salt, rock salt, garlic 11:00 salt, seasoning salt, Epsom salts-every kind 11:01 of salt imaginable. The customer was amazed. "You 11:04 think that's something. 11:05 Come over here." He led the customer to a back 11:13 room filled with shelves and bins and cartons and 11:17 barrels and boxes of salt. 11:18 The customer said, "This is unreal!" The man said, 11:24 "You hadn't seen anything yet." He led the customer 11:25 down some steps into a huge basement, five times 11:31 as large as the previous room. It was filled 11:35 wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling with 11:36 every imaginable form, size, and shape of salt 11:41 you could imagine. The man looked at him and said, 11:45 "You really do sell salt!" 11:47 The store owner said, "No, we don't, that's just the 11:53 problem! We never sell salt. But that salt 11:54 salesman that comes by every week, boy does 12:00 he sell salt!" Here's the point: Salt that stays on 12:06 the shelf doesn't do anyone any good. It must 12:07 get out and it must be different. 12:16 Jesus goes on to say, "You are the light of the 12:17 world." Now what is the difference between salt 12:24 and light? Salt relates to our character; light 12:27 relates to our conduct. 12:28 Salt deals with what we are; light deals with what 12:34 we do. We know what light does-it dispels darkness, 12:35 and it attracts. If you're in a dark place with just 12:42 one light, all eyes will focus on that light. Light 12:47 is what gives sailors a course to follow across 12:48 the seas. They determine a direction oftentimes 12:51 by the stars that are light-years away. The 12:55 gleam of a lighthouse on the horizon gives 12:56 direction and attracts attention. Now it ought 13:00 to be obvious, but the reason why Jesus commands 13:04 that we shine as light is because this world is in 13:05 total darkness. Several times in the Bible we 13:11 are commanded to shine as light in a dark world. 2 13:17 Corinthians 4: 6 says: 13:42 Now some of you may be thinking: Jesus said, 13:44 'I am the light of the world.' How are we to be 13:47 lights?" Well, it is very simple. You see, Jesus is 13:50 the sun; we are the moon. 13:52 He is the light that reveals God; we are to be 13:55 the light that reflects God. 14:00 Jesus goes on to say, "A city that is set on a hill 14:01 cannot be hidden." Back in Bible days they didn't 14:04 have bulldozers like we have, so cities were built 14:09 one layer over another. 14:10 When a city was invaded and burned down and 14:14 destroyed, they would take all the rubble, knock 14:15 it down, use that as a foundation and build the 14:18 city all over again, layer by layer. A city built on 14:25 a hill cannot be hidden. 14:26 Neither should our light Jesus goes on to say in 14:34 v.15, "Nor do they light a lamp and put it under 14:35 a basket, but on a lamp stand, and it gives 14:39 light to all who are in the house." Too many 14:45 Christians are like a little boy I heard about 14:46 one time who was out playing with a mongrel dog 14:51 in his front yard. A man came walking by one day 14:56 and saw this little boy playing with this dog, and 14:57 he said, "Hey son, what kind of a mutt is that?" 15:00 The little boy indignantly said, "Why he's a police 15:03 dog." The man said, "He doesn't look like a police 15:04 dog." The boy said, "Well, you see, he's 15:10 under cover." 15:14 We don't need any under cover Christians. You 15:15 need to be light in a dark world. Notice Jesus did 15:21 not say "you can be salt, or you should be light." 15:27 He said, "You are." You know what that means? 15:28 Shake the salt on a decaying world, shine the 15:34 light to a darkened world Jesus concludes by saying 15:41 this: "Let your light so shine before men, that 15:42 they may see your good works and glorify your 15:49 Father in heaven." (v.16 How do you know if you're 15:52 being salt and light? 15:53 How do you know if you're shaking the salt, and how 15:58 do you know if you're shining the light? Well, 15:59 here is the test; if "men see your good works and 16:02 glorify your Father in heaven." When we begin to 16:07 live our lives in such a way that people are 16:08 attracted to Jesus Christ, and want to glorify our 16:13 Father in heaven, we will know that our salt is 16:18 tasty and your light is bright. Someone has said, 16:19 "The real mark of a saint is that he makes it 16:23 easier for others to believe in God." 16:31 A Bible teacher was talking to his class one 16:33 time, and he said, "Boys, here's a watch. What is it 16:40 for?" They said, "To tell the time." He said, "Well, 16:42 suppose the watch doesn't keep time. What is it good 16:43 for?" They said, "Good for nothing." 16:47 He then took out a pencil and said, "What is this 16:48 pencil for?" They said, "It's to write with." He 16:50 said, "Suppose the pencil won't make a mark. What is 16:55 it good for?" They said, "Good for nothing." Then 16:57 he took out a knife, and he said, "Boys, what is 17:02 this for?" They said, "To cut things with." He said, 17:05 "But suppose it won't cut anything. What is it good 17:06 for?" They said, "Good for nothing." The teacher then 17:12 looked at the class and said, "Boys, whatever else 17:15 you do, if you do not glorify God by the way you 17:16 live, and bring others to glorify God, then what are 17:22 you good for?" They all said, "Good for nothing." 17:31 God has called us to shake out the salt of a godly 17:32 life and shine out the light of the truth of 17:38 Jesus Christ, and thus bring as many men as we 17:43 can to glorify our Father in heaven. 17:51 (MUSIC) 17:53 All I have is right now 17:56 To be faithful, to be holy 18:00 And to shine, Lighting up the darkness 18:04 Right now, I really have no choice 18:11 But to voice the truth to the nations 18:16 A generation looking for God 18:19 For such a time as this 18:23 I was placed upon this earth 18:27 To hear the voice of God 18:31 And do His will, whatever it is 18:35 For such a time as this 18:39 For now and all the days He gives 18:43 I am here, I am here, and I am His 18:49 For such a time as this. 19:01 Do you ever say do you ever wonder why 19:08 It seems like the grass is always greener 19:10 Under everybody else's sky 19:14 But right here, right here for this time and place 19:20 You can live a mirror of His mercy 19:26 A forgiven image of His grace 19:30 For such a time as this 19:34 I was p,aced upon this earth 19:38 To hear the voice of my God 19:41 And do His will, whatever it is 19:46 For such a time as this 19:49 For now and all the days He gives 19:53 I am here, I am here, and I am His 20:00 For such a time as this. 20:06 We can't change what's happened till now 20:10 But we can change what will be 20:14 By living in holiness 20:17 That the world will see Jesus 20:22 For such a time as this 20:25 I was placed upon this earth 20:29 To hear the voice of my God 20:33 And do His will, whatever it is 20:37 For such a time as this 20:40 For now and all the days He gives 20:45 I am here, I am here, and I am His 20:51 For such a time as this 21:01 To hear the voice of God 21:04 And do His will, whatever it is 21:08 For such a time as this 21:12 For now and all the days He gives 21:16 I am here; you are here, and we are His 21:23 For such a time. as this 21:41 >>Bill: Let us pray. Father in Heaven we 21:42 thank you for the awesome privilege we have to be 21:44 called salt and light Enable each and every 21:50 person within the reach of my voice to shake out 21:51 the salt of a character refined by you holy spirit 21:57 and to shine the light of a godly life so you may be 22:04 glorified. We pray in Jesus name, Amen. (music) 22:33 >>BEV: Hi, everyone! 22:34 Today, let's take a look at the 206 bones that make 22:36 up your skeleton. It's interesting that at birth 22:37 we have 300 bones that, over time, are fused into 22:42 the 206 bones you have as an adult. Your bones give 22:48 your body structure and God has assembled them in 22:49 such a fashion that you are able to move in a 22:53 variety of different ways Your bones are constantly 22:56 being built up and broken down. Maintaining healthy, 22:58 strong bones throughout our childhood and 23:02 adulthood will help to make our senior years 23:06 truly golden. To do this, both food and physical 23:07 activity are important. 23:10 Now, I want you to take special note of something 23:11 that you may not have realized before. 23:16 Dairy products are not necessarily the best way 23:20 to go when it comes to bone health. For some 23:21 of you, that might be contrary to what you've 23:25 been taught before. I know, we hear all the time 23:28 that we need to consume more dairy products 23:29 in order to get enough calcium to keep our bones 23:33 strong. But, consider this, a number of 23:37 reputable studies are showing us that the 23:38 countries that consume the most dairy products also 23:41 have the highest incidence of osteoporosis. For 23:46 example the Nurses' Health Study examined the 23:48 milk-drinking habits of 72,000 women. What they 23:52 found was that drinking cow's milk daily did not 23:58 decrease the women's risk of bone fractures. In 23:59 fact, the women who drank milk twice a day were just 24:03 as likely to experience a bone fracture as women who 24:07 drank milk only once a week! I would tend to 24:08 agree with many respected doctors and researchers 24:14 who believe that getting your calcium from plant 24:18 sources is a better way to go. Depending on calcium 24:19 from dairy and other animal sources will also 24:24 provide you with saturated fat and cholesterol and 24:29 too much protein, three things your body doesn't 24:30 need in abundance. Don't get me wrong, protein is 24:35 essential for good health, but most of us consume way 24:41 too much, which is actually detrimental to 24:42 our bodies. So, when it comes to keeping your 24:46 bones strong and healthy, remember these tips: 24:50 Excellent plant-food sources of calcium 24:51 include: collard greens, broccoli, spinach, kale, 24:55 soybeans, and sesame seeds. If you love milk, 24:58 there's a huge assortment of soy, nut, rice, and 24:59 grain milks for you to explore. Next, avoid 25:04 caffeine, soft drinks and, as I mentioned before, 25:06 animal protein, which all leach calcium from your 25:07 bones. Cut way down on salt and sugar too. 25:16 Finally, get your body moving. Have you heard the 25:19 phrase "use it, or lose it"? Health Canada is 25:20 recommending an hour each day of focused physical 25:26 activity, and you can break the hour up into 25:31 smaller segments over the course of your day. So, 25:32 walking, biking, swimming, even gardening counts. 25:38 Being physically active every day strengthens your 25:42 bones and will keep you strong well into your 25:43 golden years. I'll see you next time. 25:54 >>MATTHEW: IF YOU ARE ENJOYING THIS SERIES ON 25:55 THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT AND WOULD LIKE TO DEEPEN 25:58 YOUR UNDERSTANDING OF SCRIPTURE, THEN WHY NOT 26:00 ENROLL TODAY IN IT IS WRITTEN CANADA'S DISCOVER 26:02 BIBLE SCHOOL. THE LESSONS ARE SENT BY MAIL, THEY 26:06 ARRIVE POSTAGE PAID AND YOU CAN STUDY THEM IN THE 26:09 COMFORT OF YOUR OWN HOME. 26:10 THOUSANDS HAVE CHOSEN THE DISCOVER BIBLE SCHOOL AS 26:14 THEIR PREFERRED METHOD OF STUDY. IF THIS SOUNDS LIKE 26:15 SOMETHING THAT WOULD HELP YOU THEN ENROLL TODAY. 26:18 HERE IS THE INFORMATION YOU NEED TO GET YOUR FIRST 26:21 LESSON. 27:23 >>BILL:I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR JOINING US THIS WEEK, 27:25 WE APPRECIATE YOU TAKING THE TIME TO BE HERE WEEK 27:27 AFTER WEEK. YOU CAN CHECK US OUT ON OUR WEB-SITE 27:29 WWW.ITISWRITTENCANADA.CA OUR FACEBOOK PAGE, YOU CAN 27:30 FOLLOW US ON TWITTER. LET ME APPEAL TO YOU . . 27:38 . THOSE OF YOU THAT WANT TO GET TO KNOW THE BIBLE 27:41 BETTER, WHY NOT ENROLL IN OUR CORRESSPONDENCE BIBLE 27:42 SCHOOL. YOU CAN DO THAT OVER THE WEB-SITE, THERE 27:47 IS NO OBLIGATION ON YOUR PART, NO COST AND IT'S A 27:50 GREAT WAY TO GET TO KNOW THE SCRIPTURES BETTER 27:51 WELL OUR PRAYER IS THAT THE LORD WILL GIVE US THE 27:55 PRIVILEGE OF BEING BACK HERE AGAIN NEXT WEEK AND 27:57 WE HOPE YOU WILL JOIN US. 27:58 UNTIL THEN REMEMBER, IT IS WRITTEN MAN SHALL NOT LIVE 28:03 BY BREAD ALONE, BUT BY EVERY WORD THAT PROCEEDS 28:04 FROM THE MOUTH OF GOD. 28:30 WHAT IF THIS YEAR YOU SENT MORE THAN JUST A PLEASANT 28:32 GREETING FOR CHRISTMAS? 28:33 WOULD YOU LIKE TO PRESENT THE GREATEST CHRISTMAS 28:34 GIFT OF ALL, JESUS CHRIST, TO YOUR FRIENDS AND 28:37 ASSOCIATES? 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Revised 2014-12-17