Participants: Chris Holland
Series Code: IIWC
Program Code: IIWC201632A
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00:00 IIW-2016-32 --- Three Strikes But Not Out
00:05 IIW-2016-32 --- Three Strikes But Not Out 00:09 IIW-2016-32 --- Three Strikes But Not Out 00:14 IIW-2016-32 --- Three Strikes But Not Out 00:19 IIW-2016-32 --- Three Strikes But Not Out 00:23 IIW-2016-32 --- Three Strikes But Not Out 00:28 IIW-2016-32 --- Three Strikes But Not Out 00:33 IIW-2016-32 --- Three Strikes But Not Out 00:38 IIW-2016-32 --- Three Strikes But Not Out 00:41 IIW-2016-32 --- Three Strikes But Not Out 00:44 IIW-2016-32 --- Three Strikes But Not Out 00:46 IIW-2016-32 --- Three Strikes But Not Out 01:31 >>Announcer: It has stood the test of time. 01:34 God's book, The Bible 01:38 Still relevant in today's complex world 01:44 It Is Written 01:45 Sharing messages of hope around the world! 01:58 It was the Montana State AA girls high school softball state championship game. Billings West 02:06 was taking on Missoula Big Sky. In the double elimination state championship, Missoula Big Sky 02:15 had defeated Billings West in the first round. However Billings West won 4 straight 02:21 games only to face Missoula Big Sky once again. Big Sky hadn't lost a game yet, so Billings 02:31 West would have to beat them twice. They beat them the first game and now they were tied in 02:41 championship game. Tied 2 to 2 in the bottom of the seventh inning.which is the last inning 02:50 of high school softball, KendylBoltz of Billings West stepped up to the plate with two 03:00 outs. Kendall Rauk, the pitcher of Missoula Big Sky, stared down her target she began the windup 03:09 and the pitch. Four times.two strikes, two balls. KendylBoltz, a 10th grader with all the 03:20 stress that a 10th grader can handle, waited for the next pitch. The pitch came, she swung 03:29 and missed. A strikeout! But wait, the catcher did not catch the ball - so Kendyl bolted, no 03:40 pun intended, to first base. The catcher, retrieved the ball and threw the ball to first base, 03:49 but it sailed over the firstbasemen's head and landed in the right field fence. 03:51 KendylBoltz rounded first started slowing up at second, but her coach waved her on. She 03:57 headed to third, the throw was up and over the third basemen's head and now Kendyl dashed home. 04:05 She was safe. Her team won the state championship on what reporter Ben Rohrbach called a 04:14 comedy of errors. 3 strikes, but not out. 3 strikes and a home run. Could it be that this 04:28 story marvelously illustrates a very important principle in feeling lost, but being found by 04:35 Jesus? Three strikes, but not out. Kendyl thought everything was lost..that there was no 04:44 possibility of success, but somehow, someway not only was she not out.but she scored the 04:52 winning run. 04:56 Today, as we complete the series, Lost and Found,we are going to look at the life story 05:04 of a person whose relationship with Jesus took quite a few twists and turns. I find quite a 05:11 few things in common with him and you might too. The date was somewhere around 27 AD. There he 05:19 was. Working the nets.A fisherman. He was from Bethsaida on the western banks of the Sea 05:28 of Galilee. He was a Jew and though He didn't receive any special training, he no doubt, 05:35 learned at the feet of his family, likely his mother. He knew the Bible stories and 05:42 longed for the Messiah to come. As a Galilean, he would have "had a reputation for an 05:48 independence and energy which often ran out into turbulence."Galileans were more 05:55 frank and had a more transparent disposition than their brethren in the south.1Galileans also had 06:02 difficulty with the guttural sounds of the Hebrew and Aramaic languages, along with some 06:09 others difficulties in speech, and their pronunciation was reckoned as harsh in Judea.2 But 06:20 this Galilean fisherman experienced a sudden change in his life when he was called to 06:25 be an apostle of Jesus Christ. He knew Jesus and he followed Him. In fact, the Bible records 06:32 that when he was called to be an apostle, he immediately left his nets. In every list of the 06:38 apostles, you will find that his is always the first name listed. He was the first apostle to 06:45 identify Jesus as the Christ, as the Messiah. Yes, he walked on water, and he witnessed the 06:55 transfiguration. Yes, this was Simon called Peter. 07:06 Fast forward 3 ½ years from the day that Jesus called him by the sea. That night was different 07:16 than any other that he had had with Jesus. The mood was different. It was somber and 07:21 there was a palpabletension in the air. They had gathered in anupper room for, what would be, 07:29 the last supper. Missing from that evening's festivities was the servant to wash the feet of 07:41 the disciples and their Master, as they entered the room. They had been arguing about who would 07:51 be greatest and now each one of them, including Peter, looked around, wondering.who would make 08:02 the first move to do lowly task? Simon, called Peter, nicknamed Cephas.the stone, wasn't going 08:16 to move.But then to his utter dismay.Jesus moved.He picked up the basin and began to wash 08:32 their feet. John 13 verse 6 picks up the story: 09:41 Jesus demonstrated that we need to be cleansed by Him. While baptism symbolically washes away 09:48 our sin, we need an occasional reminder. Communion is that symbolic reminder. Jesus had 09:57 hoped that the foot washing would prepare His disciples for something that was going to be 10:02 devastating for them to hear. He talked to them about His imminent death. Peter didn't 10:15 understand, but responded in his typical aggressive way. John 13records the conversation 10:24 beginning in verse 36: 11:06 That word "deny" that Jesus used, was a strong word, quite literally translated means to 11:12 disown, renounce, despise, or reject. Jesus predicted that this strongly supportivePeter 11:21 would go against the principle taught by Jesus in Matthew 16:24 - of practicing self-denial and 11:29 instead Peter would actually deny Jesus. Can you imagine shocking it must have been for 11:39 the disciple who was known as the rock to hear that? How would that even happen? As Peter's 11:47 mind began to spin, Jesus said something else. Remember that chapter and verse division in 11:54 the Bible introduced much later in history..to allow for easier navigation of the scriptures.it 12:02 was not the way John wrote it nor how it was spoken. And so the very next words of Jesus 12:14 after giving Peter that unbelievable news. Are recorded in John 14:1-4 12:58 Now I wonder if Peter truly grasped the next words out of the mouth of Jesus, at that 13:04 time. 13:06 The Greek word for "be troubled" means to be shaken up, thrown into confusion, to be disturbed 13:14 or unsettled. Jesus was trying to bring hope in a desperate situation. Friend, are you 13:20 living in a state of confusion? Does life just seem to be in an unsettled state? Then these 13:28 words of Jesus are for you and for your hope and assurance Jesus says,"you believe". It is 13:38 interesting to note that the word for faith and belief in the Greek are the same. You have 13:44 faith, you have belief. There is no difference.. Next, Jesus said to Peter and says to you 13:53 today.although you are distressed, do not fear.because I will come again. His coming, 14:00 His returning was not a possibility or plausibility.it was and is a guarantee. 14:13 But what happened next? -You probably know the story well. After leaving the upper room, 14:18 they went to the garden called Gethsemane. And there you'll remember, the mob came for 14:23 Jesus. The Bible records that Peter stood to fight John 18: 14:51 After 3 ½ years, Peter had not grasped that the ministry of Jesus wasn't about destruction, 14:59 but about salvation. John 3:17 says, 15:12 But this great warrior, the rock, Peter still didn't get it. What else happened that fateful 15:21 night? Matthew 26 records beginning in verse 57, 15:57 Literally Peter followed from afar off. He was close enough, yet far enough away as to not be 16:05 seen. He wanted to see but not to be identified as one of His disciples. What a dramatic 16:15 fall.first drawing a sword to fight, now, lurking behind inthe shadows. The Bible then records 16:22 a sad transpiring of events: Matthew 26 beginning with verse 69 tells us: 17:40 The Bible says that Peter denied Jesus.we talked about that word. The Bible also says that Peter 17:47 Cursed and swore: To Curse means that he invoked divine harm upon himself if it is not true And he 17:57 swore which means he made an oath. Here was Peter the first to acknowledge Jesus as the 18:02 Christ, but now the first to deny Him. Just then the rooster crowed. Certainly, the scene 18:13 from the upper room came back to his mind. He hadbeen so sure of himself that he would never deny 18:21 Jesus. The Bible says that he went away and wept bitterly. Imagine the mental agony of 18:25 Peter. Was there any hope for him? Is there any hope for us? Peter may have recalled an 18:36 earlier conversation he had with Jesus during a less uncertain time. It is recorded in Matthew 18:44 18:21,22 19:12 I wonder if Peter asked himself if Jesus could really forgive him?Peter had denied him not 19:17 just once, or twice, but three times. Isn't it three strikes and you're out?Highly favoured, 19:25 he was one of only three disciples who witnessed Jesus bring a girl back from the dead. 19:31 He got to go up to the Mount of Transfiguration, and just that, had been asked by Jesus to pray 19:48 with Him in the garden. Now what? What kind of future did Peter have ahead of him now? 19:55 Peter left that place, weeping bitterly. He found himself back in the garden and poured out His 20:00 heart to God in sincere repentance. God did not give up on Peter and had something 20:12 beyond expectations planed for him. Peter had been the first to acknowledge Jesus as Messiah, he 20:20 was the first to deny Jesus and as the disciples received news that Jesus was no longer in the 20:30 tomb, he was the first disciple to gointo the empty tomb. Luke 24:10-12 records how that 20:37 happened, 21:04 At first, Peter didn't understand what had really happened. But Jesus appeared to 21:10 Peter. and then to the group gathered in the upper room. Imagine the joy of Peter's 21:15 heart. Jesus was alive., not in the tomb, but alive! But, what did that mean for Peter. Could 21:28 he be restored? John 21 records the dramatic story of what happened in Peter's life and 21:40 what can happen in each of ours. Sometime after Jesus resurrection the Bible shares 21:47 this touching story: 22:46 Peter was very saddened by this line of questioning. But the story goes on. 23:44 Peter, who denied his Master in the hour of His death, would witness for him through his own 23:50 death. He would literally fulfill Matthew 16:24, 24:07 Thethree questions Jesus asked, no doubt referred to the three denials of Peter. Three times, 24:15 Peter denied Jesus and now he was given opportunity to three times to affirm Him. There as a 24:19 near-Orient custom of making a declaration three times before witnesses. Peter had been 24:29 restored! The book Desire of Ages, a classic on the life of Christ, says, 25:04 For Peter, and for us, when it comes to being accepted by Jesus, three strikes is not a 25:11 guarantee that you're out! Jesus longs to restore us. Jesus had another purpose in dealing with 25:20 Peter this way, The Desire of Ages goes on to explain, 25:59 God is faithful despite our unfaithfulness! And treats us with such tender love and 26:07 compassion. Even when you are in despair, and your sin is dragging you down in the dust, 26:11 Even when you are striking out, don't ever stop believing.Jesus is looking for you and He wants 26:20 to restore you. He can take that strikeout of yours and turn it in to a homerun. He can 26:26 change and transform you. No matter how far you may have wandered, Jesus is looking for 26:32 you to accept you back as a son or a daughter. The promise of Isaiah 1:18 can be true in your 26:41 life, 26:52 You may have been away from Him and not know it, you might be in a church but feel lost, or might 26:59 have intentionally walked away or maybe you've even denied Him. The promise of Jesus is He will 27:06 take you back. He will restore you. Though you've been lost, He will find you, restore you and 27:14 all of heaven will have a celebration when Jesus ultimately brings us home to be 27:21 with Him and we are forever safe. The Father will be waiting for you with open arms. 27:37 Heavenly Father, though many of us have experienced three strikes in our life; although 27:43 many of us may feel like we are out, the promise of Your Word is not that we are out, but rather, 27:49 You want to restore us, remake us, reshape us. And so today, we come to Your everlasting arms, 27:56 that You would redeem us. We pray in Jesus' name, amen. 28:07 My dear friend, Jesus, with His relentless pursuit of you, wants to find you. Will you make 28:15 yourself available to Him? I'd like to give you the DVD of this series, Lost, that you might 28:23 grow in Jesus, that you might see His everlasting love, and that you might fall into His 28:28 arms and find hope in Him. Here's the information you need to receive today's offer. 29:26 My dear friend, Jesus was able to redeem Peter from his three denials, to restore him fully, 29:33 and have Peter be a leader in the early church. He can restore you as well. Friend, I hope that 29:41 you have found in Jesus a forever friend Who will love you through all things. Please join 29:47 us again next week. Until then, remember, it is written: "Man shall not live by bread alone, 29:54 but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God." |
Revised 2018-11-19