Participants: Chris Holland
Series Code: IIWC
Program Code: IIWC201317
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00:11 >>Announcer: It has stood the test of time....
00:15 God's book, The Bible 00:18 Still relevant in today's complex world 00:23 It Is Written 00:24 Sharing messages of hope around the world 00:40 >>Chris: Howard Carter was an English archaeologist who was seeking for a 00:43 seemingly impossible find. He searched in Egypt for the tomb of the young 00:49 king, Tutankhamen. Carter spent years looking for this lost tomb. In 1922 00:56 Carter was on a lead that he thought would bring him success. He in fact had 01:02 found the tomb. He contacted the financier, Lord Carnarvon, of the 01:08 expedition and waited for his arrival. Upon Carnarvon's arrival, he 01:12 and Carter descended the steps of the site in the Valley of the Kings. 01:18 Carter made a small breach in the entryway and peered in. Listen to his words, 01:23 as he described what he saw, "At first I could see nothing, the hot air 01:29 escaping from the chamber causing the candle flame to flicker. But presently 01:35 as my eyes grew accustomed to the lights, details of the room within emerged 01:40 slowly from the midst. Strange animals, statues, and gold.everywhere the 01:47 glitter of gold." Howard Carter was stunned. He was absolutely amazed and then 01:54 listen, as he continues describing what happened next. "For a moment-an 02:01 eternity it must have seemed to others standing by- I was struck dumb with 02:06 amazement. And when Lord Carnarvon inquired anxiously, 'Can you see 02:12 anything?' It was all I could do to get out the words 'Yes, wonderful 02:18 things.'" Wonderful things.gold, statues. Are these things wonderful? 02:25 Can such things bring us any happiness or hope? Do the riches of gold and 02:30 precious stones offer hope for this helpless planet? No, our only hope is found 02:40 in those precious words of Jesus in John 14:1-3, 03:21 The Bible also says in 1 Corinthians 2 verse 9, 03:45 Heaven is more than you could ever imagine. Take a moment; just think back to 03:52 the happiest time in your life. Do you have that image in your mind? Heaven 03:58 will outdo it every time. The Bible tells us what we ought to be looking 04:05 forward to in 2 Peter 3:13, 04:27 Friend, heaven is not some make-believe world. The Bible says God's going to 04:34 create a new heaven and a new earth. So, heaven is a very real place. 04:41 Revelation 21 verse 1, 05:00 It's no make-believe place. It's no fairy tale. It's a real place for real 05:05 people to live forever with Jesus. Sin and suffering will be over 05:11 with. The sorrow of the past, the heartache of the past will be gone. 05:20 Down through the ages there have been men and women of faith who have 05:25 looked forward to the coming of Jesus Christ They looked to that day 05:29 that the sad drama of sin would be over and that heaven would be their 05:34 home. The Bible speaks of Abraham and his hope in Hebrews 11 verse 10, 06:01 There is a real place, heaven whose builder and maker is God. And He's 06:08 made it for you and me. Friends there are many things I do not know. But, 06:14 I know for sure, that there's a better land coming. I know for sure, 06:19 this world is not our home. This world is not our home when terrorists 06:25 board buses and kill innocent men, women, and children. Deep in my heart 06:30 I know, this world is not our home. This world is not our home when a 06:35 teenager goes into his school and stabs 22 people. There must be 06:41 something better. This world is not our home; I have done the funeral of a 06:48 14-year-old girl who died of leukemia. This world is not our home. Doesn't your 06:55 heart cry out for something better? This world is not our home. 07:01 Just a browsing of the news let's us know that this place is not our 07:07 final home. God has a better plan. You were created for something 07:11 better. Heaven is our home, heaven is our hope. Listen to the promise of 07:18 scripture in Revelation 21:2-4 08:02 Our home is with Him. He made us and He wants us to be with Him. He takes this 08:09 earth that is hopeless and helpless and He makes it over again. No more death, 08:15 sorrow or crying one harmonious place. Don't you sense your heart 08:23 longing to be there? The Bible describes the heavenly city of Jerusalem 08:29 where we'll live. In Revelation 21 verse 12 and 13, 08:58 Three gates on the north, east, west and south all symbolizing the Father, 09:04 the Son, and the Holy Spirit. On each side all making an invitation to 09:08 come through the gates, the way has been paved. Come from every corner of 09:12 the earth. The gates are wide open for you. He's not trying to keep anyone 09:17 out. Names of the son's of Jacob, the tribes of Israel are written there. 09:23 You read their stories; they were liar's murderers and cheats. They would be 09:31 convicted in any court of law. Their names are on the gates to testify that 09:38 anyone who is saved and claims the grace of Jesus can walk through those 09:43 gates. They were sinners redeemed by the grace and mercy of God. Revelation 09:52 21 goes on to say in verse 14, 10:04 The twelve apostles were imperfect men. Peter the denier, the sons of 10:08 thunder. These names indicate that they were sinners saved by grace. 10:15 God wants us to know if they can make it, so can we. You can enter in 10:20 through the gates into that city. Because it is your home through the 10:24 grace of God. Maybe you feel unworthy. Whatever you've done, His grace can 10:30 forgive you. Whatever you've failed in, His grace can transform your 10:33 life. He can make you into a new man. He can make you into a new woman. The 10:40 Bible even describes the measurements of the city in Revelation 21:16, 10:55 A furlong is an old measurement of about 185 meters.12,000 furlongs all 11:01 the way around would be just over 550 kilometers on each side A 11:07 mathematician once estimated that the New Jerusalem could house two 11:11 billion people just on the ground floor. If we use magnificent, multi-story 11:17 buildings the possibilities are endless. There is room for you. 11:22 There is room for me. He wants you there. Oh, friend, Philippians 3:20 11:31 says, For our citizenship is in heaven. Friends, our citizenship is not in 11:37 any country of this world. Our citizenship is in heaven. A perfect place 11:43 of perfect peace. The Bible says of heaven in Isaiah 33:24 12:09 Can you imagine? No more caner. No more heart disease. The Bible says we 12:15 will not have sickness anymore. No more pain. Isaiah 35 goes on to 12:24 describe this wonderful place in verses 5-6, 12:41 The eyes of the blind are opened. The deaf will hear. Those with physical 12:46 ailments will leap like dear and the person who cannot talk will speak. 12:50 Can you imagine the excitement? What rejoicing there will be that day! 12:58 Rejoicing, running, leaping. Our bodies are filled with perfect 13:05 vitality. In heaven new life and strength flow through our bodies. It is 13:14 a new body with a new life. Heaven is our hope in this helpless world. 13:24 We read earlier that the Bible says, "And God will wipe away every tear from 13:32 their eyes; there'll be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying." There won't 13:36 be any midnight phone calls telling you that a son or daughter has been 13:40 in a tragic fatal accident. Violence will be no more. War will be no 13:46 more. The weapons of war will be put down. The Bible describes even more 13:53 wonder of this place in Isaiah 65 verses 17, 21, 22 14:33 We will have our city home in the New Jerusalem, which Jesus has built for 14:39 us, but we will build our own homes in the county It will be ours not build 14:46 for someone else. We will grow lush gardens. You can build your dream home in 14:52 the country. All the great minds of the ages who are committed Christians will 14:59 help you design your dream home. And if necessary, the community of love and 15:07 faith will help you to build it. The Bible says, "They shall build houses 15:11 and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit." Another 15:16 amazing thing about heaven is fellowship and friends. Think of the great people 15:21 of faith throughout history that we will be able to spend time with, 15:26 Matthew 8 verse 11, 15:49 Imagine seeing Noah, Moses, John the Baptist, Peter, and John But above 16:01 all other things in all the beauty and perfection of heaven, the one reason 16:07 above all others. There you have the chance to sit down with Jesus face to 16:14 face. There you meet him who died for our sins. There you see Him who has 16:22 the eternal scars that serve of reminders of His great sacrifice. As you 16:30 sit with Jesus, He talks about His love for us. He tells us how much we are 16:37 worth. And He tells us that He died for us. He shares how he's been so 16:41 anxious for us to be with Him in heaven. We sit at His feet and have never 16:48 felt such love, acceptance. The Bible says, Revelation 22 verse 17:01 4, 17:15 They shall see His face. We fall at the feet of Jesus and with the angels 17:24 and the redeemed we sing, 'Worthy, worthy, worthy is the Lamb, who's been 17:32 slain, for ever and ever and ever.' We sing praises to His name. Can you 17:37 imagine the conversations that we have with Jesus that day? He says, 'Do you 17:46 see those flowers? I made them just for you. 17:50 We walk through fields of grain and he picks some of the grain and He says, 17:54 'Taste it. I know your taste buds. I made that grain just for you. It's 17:59 the only variety like it in the world. There is no other. The flowers, the 18:05 trees, the fruit and everything else He shows you with His desire for it 18:12 to be special for you. Can you picture it? I can imagine that we would have 18:17 only one reaction to fall at His feet and cry and say, 'Jesus, all I want is 18:23 You. I don't need the flowers in the field. I don't need the grain. 18:26 Lord, all I need is You. Your love is enough for me. I don't need the 18:31 mansion over there on the hill. That's a bonus. I don't need the gardens 18:37 over there, that's a bonus. But, Jesus, all I want to do is You because 18:43 Your love has filled every need in my heart and I know that this is 18:52 eternity.' It is in His presence in heaven that we find peace, joy, happiness 19:04 and most of all . Hope. Hope in the perfect peace that will last forever. 19:16 What is stopping you for giving your heart to Jesus today, why not, in your 19:21 heart say right now, "Jesus by your grace, I will be in heaven for 19:25 eternity. The hope he offers isn't just for the future, but he offers that 19:30 peace and hope today. Do you sense the spirit of God touching your heart? 19:36 Maybe you've drifted away, maybe you just happen to turn on this program 19:40 today, and God is calling you. Don't hesitate; give your heart to him today. 19:46 Maybe you need to take a bigger step than you've taken, maybe you need to 19:52 make a full commitment to be baptized as a public expression of your faith 19:58 in Jesus 'Lord, I want to make a commitment. Maybe you need to say to Jesus 20:07 that you're coming back today to stay with Him forever. Maybe you're 20:16 facing a problem in your life, some habit that keeps you from following 20:19 Jesus all the way. Maybe today, you want to say to him that you are 20:23 surrendering all to him. In the Lord's Presence there is hope. Hope for 20:30 our future. Hope for us who live in this helpless and hopeless world. Jesus 20:36 wants us to be in His presence. Do you want to accept His invitation 20:41 today? During this song, In His Presence, listen to the words and ask Jesus 20:49 into your heart today. He wants to give you hope in this helpless world and 20:57 it's in His presence that we find perfect hope. 21:15 In the quiet of this hour 21:23 As I kneel before You now 21:31 I believe Your promise 21:38 To be faithful 21:46 I don't always understand 21:54 What Your perfect will demands 22:03 But I've learned to trust You more 22:09 In Your presence Lord 22:17 In Your presence 22:25 There is comfort 22:33 In Your presence 22:40 There is peace 22:49 When we seek to know Your heart 22:57 We will find such blessed assurance 23:05 In Your holy presence Lord 23:20 There can be such sweet reward 23:28 When we wait upon the Lord 23:37 As we take the time 23:42 He gives His perfect wisdom 23:52 To be found in Him alone 24:00 All our deepest secrets known 24:09 We're surrounded by His grace 24:14 When we seek His face 24:23 In Your presence 24:33 There is comfort 24:41 In Your presence 24:48 There is peace 24:56 When we seek to know Your heart 25:03 We will find such blessed assurance 25:12 An ever-open door 25:19 To know our Savior more 25:26 In the presence of the Lord 25:43 In the presence of the Lord 26:15 >>Chris: Dear friends, I want to give you a special invitation. On Saturday, 26:19 May 31st, the It Is Written team will be visiting the Henderson 26:24 Highway Seventh Day Adventist Church at 1314 Henderson Highway. There 26:29 at 11 a.m., I'll be giving a special message of encouragement on following 26:34 Jesus in these last days. Why don't you make plans now to come out and visit 26:39 with the entire It Is Written team on May the 31st? But maybe you can't 26:44 make it to Winnipeg on that day. If you can't, you can visit our website, 26:49 itiswrittencanada.ca, and there you can view it through our live stream, 26:56 which you can access through your computer or your mobile device. 27:00 Today's program was the last in a series of eight programs. We're going to 27:05 be putting all eight of those programs into a DVD set that I would like to 27:09 offer to you. Here's the information you need to get that set. 27:51 >>Chris: I want to thank you so much for watching. It's my prayer that Jesus 27:56 has been moving upon your heart and you've been deepening your 27:59 relationship with him. I want to give you some resources where you can 28:03 further that relationship with Jesus. I want to invite you to go to 28:06 itiswrittencanada.ca, or go to y outube.com/iiwcanada. 28:13 There you will find an abundance of resources to help grow your spiritual 28:19 library. I invite you to watch next week. Until then, remember, it is 28:26 written: "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that 28:30 proceeds from the mouth of God." 28:35 $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ 28:58 $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ |
Revised 2015-02-06