Participants: Chris Holland
Series Code: IIWC
Program Code: IIWC201618A
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00:01 IIW-2016-18 --- SW #8 A truth seekers journey
00:06 IIW-2016-18 --- SW #8 A truth seekers journey 00:12 IIW-2016-18 --- SW #8 A truth seekers journey 00:17 IIW-2016-18 --- SW #8 A truth seekers journey 00:21 IIW-2016-18 --- SW #8 A truth seekers journey 00:26 IIW-2016-18 --- SW #8 A truth seekers journey 00:32 IIW-2016-18 --- SW #8 A truth seekers journey 00:37 IIW-2016-18 --- SW #8 A truth seekers journey 00:44 IIW-2016-18 --- SW #8 A truth seekers journey 00:49 IIW-2016-18 --- SW #8 A truth seekers journey 00:54 IIW-2016-18 --- SW #8 A truth seekers journey 01:31 It has stood the test of time. 01:35 God's book, The Bible 01:38 Still relevant in today's complex world 01:44 It Is Written 01:46 Sharing messages of hope around the world! 01:59 Bill Moore was a young 20 something year old man serving in the US military during World 02:04 War 2. Bill had left behind his girlfriend Bernadean Gibson. The two were in love, but service to 02:16 his country was essential. While overseas, he would write his dear Bernadean to let her now 02:24 how much he cared. After Bill returned home from years in military service, he married 02:31 Bernadean and they had three children together. For 63 years, they shared their love for one 02:39 another until Bernadean passed away in April of 2010. After she passed away, Bill moved to an 02:47 assisted care facility and sold many of his belongings. Fast forward several years and Ilene 02:57 Ortiz was shopping at a thrift shop. She bought a record and when she got home and slipped 03:05 out her record, a note slipped out with it. She opened the note, where she read these 03:15 words: 03:56 Irene contacted the local news agency thinking it be important to reunite the letter with its 04:03 owner. They ran a news story, they talked about the letter and then Bill Moore's daughter saw 04:11 the letter and knew that it was from her father. The letter was re-united with Bill Moore, and 04:19 what has become a viral video on the internet, Bill weeps as he reads this long lost love note. 04:32 You know in the great star wars battle, between Christ and Satan, God has written each of 04:39 us a love note. That love note is the Bible, where he is wooing and calling us to come and 04:47 return to Him. To accept by faith His sacrifice on our behalf. But today we face a 04:56 great problem in the world. In Matthew 24:12 it predicts that because lawlessness will abound; 05:04 the love of many will grow cold. The devil has attacked the church through the lawlessness 05:15 of the world and the love of many growing cold. But God has an answer, and the answer is 05:25 found just two verses later in Matthew 24:14 05:38 The end of the world will not be brought about by the political manoeuvrings of the president of 05:44 the United States. It will not be because of the fanciful speech-making of the Prime 05:50 Minister of Canada. It will not be because of joint agreements between the Palestinians and 05:57 Israel. Jesus says the answer to the problems of the world today is a very simple answer. This 06:04 gospel, the gospel of Jesus Christ is all that provides any hope, any promise for the 06:11 future. How is this gospel spread throughout the earth? Jesus said these words in 06:18 Matthew 28:18-20 06:39 This is the beautiful promise of Jesus. But He says the way that His message will go forth is 06:47 through disciples. What is it to be a disciple? Literally in the Greek, the word "disciple" 06:54 means "to be a pupil of; to become a learner of; to become a follower." What does it mean to 07:01 be a follower of Jesus? When we become a disciple of Jesus we become a learner of Him, a pupil 07:09 of Jesus, a follower of Jesus. So fundamentally, how do we become a follower of Jesus? What 07:19 does that mean? 07:24 There's a story recorded in the book of Luke that demonstrates to us what it means to be a 07:29 follower of Jesus. You'll remember Jesus' friend Lazarus who He raised from the dead. 07:38 Well, Lazarus had two sisters, Mary and Martha, and they lived in the town of Bethany. And it 07:46 seems to be a place of refuge for Jesus; He would go there. And Luke 10:38 says this: 07:59 Jesus had been travelling with His disciples and they had just performed miracles and they had 08:06 healed people and they went to the town of Bethany. It says He entered a certain village and a 08:13 certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary who 08:20 also sat at Jesus' feet and heard His Word. So, picture the story. The little town of 08:28 Bethany, a home; Jesus has come to this home. Mary and Martha are there and Lazarus. And Jesus 08:39 has come with His disciples. And I want you to imagine for a moment that the Son of God was 08:43 coming to your house. And I want you to imagine for just a moment that the Son of God, the 08:50 Messiah, the promised One, showed up at your house unexpectedly. Have you ever 08:58 had unexpected company before? Jesus showed up at the home. The Bible says that Mary sat at the 09:05 feet of Jesus and listened. And the Bible also says that Martha was distracted with much 09:12 serving. And she approached Him and said, (Luke 10:40) 09:35 Some of you don't see the humour 09:40 in this story. How many of you have siblings? How many of you have younger siblings? Picture 09:49 this scene. Mary's sitting, listening to Jesus. And Martha is scurrying around because the 09:58 Son of God has just come to their house, you see. And they want to feed Him and they want 10:03 to entertain Him and they want to serve Him. The Bible doesn't say what happened, but I 10:08 imagine, in my mind, that out of the corner of her eye, as Martha was scurrying around and wiping 10:18 this off and wiping that off and preparing the flour for this and pouring water and that, out of 10:24 the corner of her eye, she saw, while she was working, she saw her sister, her younger sister, 10:34 while she worked, was sitting. And then Martha came to the Son of God, the Creator of all 10:45 things, the Saviour of the world, the One who came to die for the sins of the world, and 10:49 said to Him. 10:59 And in an irony of ironies, Martha commands the author of the commandments what to do. 11:09 Now before we're too critical of Martha that is what many of us do, isn't it? We spend a lot of 11:18 time telling God what He ought to do. I imagine in my mind that Jesus, without one ounce of 11:26 sarcasm, without one hint of anger in His voice, in a soothing tone says, (Luke 40 41, 11:33 42) 11:52 Mary had chosen the one thing. What was the one thing that she has chosen to do? To sit at the 12:05 feet of Jesus. In a world of confusion, a world of turmoil, a world of pain, a world where the 12:14 love of many is growing cold, Jesus says, "There's one thing. There's one thing that you need. 12:21 There's one thing the world needs, but we can't worry about everybody else. There's one 12:28 thing that you need." And that one thing is to sit at the feet of Jesus. 12:39 What does it mean to sit at the feet of Jesus? First, we need to listen to Jesus. And how do we 12:46 listen to Jesus? By studying the Bible. You know, we can know all about this Book. We can know 12:57 that this Book is fact. We can know that this Book is true. We sit at the feet of Jesus by 13:04 opening His Word and listening to Him speak, because these words on these pages aren't just 13:12 any words. Paul writes that they are God-breathed, that they're inspired words that God spoke, 13:20 that were recorded by the prophets that were recorded by the Bible as God's love letter 13:27 to you. I want to encourage you, friends, to spend time in this Word. Some people say to me, "I 13:37 don't even know where to start." And what I tell people is very simply to start by opening it 13:44 and dedicating your life to spend time in God's Word studying God's word. Every 13:53 morning, spending time in His Word. And people then will tell me, "How much time?" My answer 13:59 to that question is, "Enough." This is what I recommend to people as they begin their 14:06 journey with God, as they begin the truth seeker's journey. Every morning, dedicate, and 14:14 just start small, dedicate ten minutes. Ten minutes where you there is nothing else to 14:22 distract you. So I recommend to people spend ten minutes and start there. And then I 14:30 recommend starting in the stories of the Bible, beginning in Mark or beginning in John. 14:37 And don't worry about reading a whole chapter.just read one section, one story. And you can 14:43 do this however you want to do it. 14:49 I will tell you, several years ago. I had a lull in my spiritual life where I felt like 14:54 I was dying spiritually, because week after week I would get up and speak on these topics and I 15:01 felt like the well was starting to dry up. And I needed a renewal in my experience. So I 15:09 returned to something I used to do early in my walk with Jesus. Every day I would spend my time 15:16 reading the Word and then I would take a notebook and write. Nothing fancy necessarily.I'd 15:23 write the date, I'd write the passage that I read, and then I would ask myself three 15:29 questions. What does the passage say? What is the passage saying to me? And what is Jesus asking 15:43 or inviting me to do? And then I'd write that out. Some say that it is too simple, but it 15:53 works for me. I'll tell you, I have Logos Bible program on my computer. I have access to more 15:59 books than I could ever read in my lifetime. And whenever I began to start doing my studies 16:06 out of that computer, I get distracted because I have these things that pop up and tell me I 16:14 have email and other things. But you see, Jesus call us into a relationship with Him, that we 16:21 would study His Word because we want to be a disciple, because as a disciple of Jesus, we hear 16:31 His Word, we are a pupil of Jesus, we learn from Him, and He teaches us out of His Word. And 16:39 then as your ten minutes begins to grow, you just take enough time. And sure, you're going to 16:47 hear people tell you these stories, that they get up at three o'clock in the morning and 16:52 they spend three hours in God's Word. But friends, the Bible says that we don't need to look 17:01 at other people. The Bible says that we look unto Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our 17:07 faith. Jesus will demonstrate to us and teach us how much time is enough. Spend time studying His 17:15 Word. Spend time in Bible studies. Spend time listening to His Word. 17:25 Second, how to be a disciple of Jesus is to spend time in prayer. Notice what Jesus did in 17:32 His life. Mark 1:35: 17:45 He went to a place where He could speak to God, where He could speak to His Father, where 17:49 He could talk to Him about things that were happening in His life and He always ended his 17:54 prayer with the simple phrase, "Not My will but Your will be done." Prayer is our opportunity 17:59 to speak to God, to talk to God about what's happening. And I use my little notebook when I 18:07 pray. I'm a very easily distracted person, and so I write out my prayers. I write 18:14 down people that I'm praying for. I write. and by the way, it's such a helpful thing to 18:21 write the things that you're praying about because often in our spiritual life, especially 18:26 in those valleys, we say, "Oh, God never answers my prayers." Write down your prayers and then 18:34 write down when God answers them. And when you are in that valley, you go to your prayer 18:40 journal you go into your little notebook and you see, "Wow, God has answered so many prayers." 18:46 To be a disciple of Jesus, we want to hear His voice, and we hear His voice in His word. But 18:52 then we also want to talk to Him and spend time listening to Him. But then the last thing is, is 18:57 that we join Jesus in His mission. How do we join Jesus in His mission? John 3:17 - one of 19:06 my favourite verses of the bible says: 19:16 The word there "saved" is the Greek word "sozo" which is translated "salvation" in some 19:22 places, but other places, it's translated "to be made well." Jesus had a mission on the earth 19:27 and His mission was very simple: to touch people where they were and to make them well. And He 19:37 calls us to join Him in the mission He had, to preach the gospel to the poor, to heal the 19:44 broken-hearted. To proclaim liberty to the captives in recovery of sight to the blind? 19:50 What would happen if we dedicated time in the prisons to speak to people who are captive? 19:58 But not just people who are captive literally, but to those who are captive in sin. What 20:08 would happen if we dedicated time each and every day to share something hopeful and 20:12 encouraging with people? 20:15 Christianity has gotten a bad name because Christianity makes the news when we condemn people. 20:24 That's not the ministry of Jesus. Jesus didn't come to the world to condemn the world, but 20:29 that the world through Him might be saved. What would happen if we stopped condemning people and 20:34 draw near to people? And, just like Jesus did, we loved people You look at the ministry of 20:44 Jesus, and Jesus calls us into discipleship. He says to us today, "Now go into the world 20:49 and give people the hope that you have found, because that is the answer to the love of many 20:56 growing cold." Paul says that we ought to be the aroma of life leading to life. Have you ever 21:06 had that experience where you walk in the house, and maybe your mom, maybe your grandma, 21:10 maybe your wife, maybe your husband, maybe your son or daughter has baked some fresh 21:19 bread? Maybe they have baked some banana bread. Maybe they've cooked something on the stove 21:26 top. And as you've opened the door the waft of the smell hits you. And before you even put 21:31 that fresh bread into your mouth, you can literally taste it. Jesus says that His 21:41 disciples should be like that when people meet us, that there is wafting from you an aroma of 21:49 life leading to life. 21:55 The truth seeker's journey is to continually live a life of learning at the feet of Jesus, 21:58 talking with Him in prayer, answering the call to change in our life, and joining Him in a 22:05 mission of service to the world, and that starts right in our own home. Philippians 3:20 says: 22:27 Friends, this earth isn't our home. We don't live here. We are citizens of heaven, called to be 22:34 immigration officers for Jesus, helping others find citizenship in heaven. Because there's a 22:41 day coming when the Bible says that Jesus will break through the clouds with the shout, with 22:47 the voice of an archangel and with the trump of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 22:53 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the 22:58 Lord in the air. And then we are going to go to a place where God says there will be no more 23:04 tears, because He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death. 23:08 There will be no more sorrow, there will be no more crying. There will be no more pain, for 23:12 the former things have now passed away. You see, to be a disciple of Jesus Christ is to 23:17 go and tell people about that in both word and action. Today as we close out this series Star 23:28 Wars, my simple appeal to you is this: don't let this be the end. The end for the truth seeker, 23:38 the end of the journey for the truth seeker, is to go into that mansion that Jesus has prepared 23:44 for you. The end for the truth seeker is to be prepared for Jesus when He comes again and 23:50 hear those words, "Well done, good and faithful servant." We live in a world that changes 23:57 every day, but God's Word and God Himself never change. He came to this world to save the 24:03 world, and today, the same God Who came to save the world is letting you know, He came to 24:12 save you. Heavenly Father, our desire is that we would be Your disciples. Mold us and make us 24:20 to be Your disciples and be ready when Jesus comes again, we pray in Jesus' name, amen. 24:49 Bev: Hi Everyone. Do you realize that the average 9 year old consumes approximately 123 24:56 pounds of sugar every year? That's 25 of those 5 pound bags of sugar. That's 35 teaspoons or 25:03 3/4 cup of sugar every day! We've all heard that sugar is bad for us, and yet most of us 25:10 find it hard not to love it. Chocolates, pies, ice-cream, and the list goes on. What's so bad 25:17 about sugar? First of all, it provides us with empty calories Typically, there are no 25:24 minerals, vitamins, or fibre. As well, too much sugar causes tooth decay, it sabotages our 25:31 immune system making it easy for us to catch colds, for example, and too much sugar can cause you 25:37 to pack on the pounds. What we don't realize is the large amount of sugar that is hidden 25:43 in the processed foods we purchase. When we do the calculations, it's amazing to 25:49 see how easy it is to consume 35+ teaspoons of sugar per day Now, before you say, "That's 25:55 impossible! I don't eat that much sugar", consider how much sugar there is in certain of our 26:01 favourite junk food items. For example: 10 teaspoons in one can of soda pop 8-12 teaspoons in 26:10 one glazed donut 6 teaspoons in one average-sized candy bar 6 teaspoons in one scoop of ice 26:18 cream 12 teaspoons in one average sized milk shake So, if like many people you like having 26:26 a glazed donut and a can of soda for breakfast, already you've consumed 22 teaspoons right 26:32 there! See how easily it adds up? When it comes to satisfying cravings for sweet things, 26:39 remember, be a wise consumer! Read your labels. In particular, be aware that sugar can be 26:46 listed under different names including: sugar, liquid sugar, corn syrup, dextrose, 26:53 glucose/fructose. in fact, anything that ends in "ose" is a sugar. Instead of buying a lot 27:01 of processed foods - you know, the ones in the crinkly bags and the enticing-looking boxes - 27:07 satisfy your sugar cravings the natural way. Grab a crisp apple, or a juicy orange, or how about 27:15 a luscious mango? These are foods that are packaged perfectly with vitamins, 27:21 minerals, fibre and a healthy amount of natural sugar. When you're grocery shopping this 27:26 week, be sure to stock up on the naturally sweet stuff fashioned by the Creator Himself. See you 27:33 next time! 27:42 Today I want to offer to you the Discover Bible guides. Those guides will help you develop 27:47 that relationship with Jesus and become a true disciple. Additionally, as a free gift to 27:54 you, if you would like the DVD series Star Wars, you just need to let our attendants know, 28:01 because I want you to have that DVD, use that DVD in your own journey, and share it with a 28:08 friend. Here's the information you need to receive today's offers. 29:01 The great cosmic battle between Christ and Satan. The real story of Star Wars. It's all about the 29:10 throne, the throne of your heart. Who will be seated there? Will Jesus sit there, or will 29:19 Satan sit there? Will you make a choice to be on the truth seeker's journey, or will you 29:25 simply ignore the love letter that He's written to you? Today I want to encourage you, friend; 29:31 get on the truth seeker's journey. You will not regret it. Jesus wants to spend eternity 29:38 with you. I hope that you've found encouragement in today's program. I invite you to join us 29:45 again next week. Until then, remember, it is written: "Man shall not live by bread alone, 29:53 but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God." |
Revised 2017-03-08