い い >> It has stood
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the test of time. God's
book, the Bible. Still relevant
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in today's complex world.
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"It Is Written" --
Sharing messages of hope
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around the world. い
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>> Welcome again and
thank you for joining us on
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"It Is Written Canada."
I'm holding this stool here
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because we have been talking
about the three legs of the
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stool. What am I talking about?
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I'm talking
about the ingredients
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or the building
blocks for Christianity.
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And that first leg of the stool
that we've been talking about,
and we are here with
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Lee Venden. He's been teaching
us that that first leg is
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Bible study for the purpose of
connecting with God and having a
real relationship with Him.
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And the second one we talked
about last time, which was
connecting with God
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through prayer and not just a
one-way communication but a
two-way communication.
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Now, this stool is not going to
stand up on two legs. And so it
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means -- >> Let's try. >> We can
try it, sure. And it's going to
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fall over. Don't want to make
a big noise here. So that third
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leg of the stool, which I'm
going to put on there, and you
can see. is sharing, so sharing
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what God has given to us. And
when we share that message that
God has put into our hearts
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through His word and through
connecting with Him and talking
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with Him, then we can stand and
then we have a solid connection
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with Him. Without that we do not
experience joy. Actually, there
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is joy in service. And so God
does not expect us to keep that
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to ourselves, does
he, Lee? >> No, no.
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In fact it puts me
in mind of Matthew 25
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where there is a story
Jesus tells about these three
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stewards that are
given talents to work with.
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And then the master goes off on
a trip and when he comes back,
one of the stewards
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has just buried the talent did
nothing with it. And he returns
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it. The other two had doubled it
and they gave it back to the
master, and the line that
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Jesus uses as each of those two
faithful stewards return their
talents doubled, the line
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Jesus uses is, "Well done." And
then He says, "I'm going to give
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you another job to do. Enter
into the joy of your Lord."
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>> Yeah, yeah. >> And then
he tells the other guy, "Out of
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here," and the guy ends up
losing out on the joy of the
Lord. In fact, they take the
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talent from him that he had done
nothing with, and they give it
to one of the other guys.
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But the concept was he gives
them more work to do and calls
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it joy. >> Yeah, yeah. So either
you use it or you lose it.
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>> It fits perfectly. >>
Yeah. So, I know you have had
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experiences with people who you
have had the opportunity to
guide and lead them to the Lord.
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Can you think of one that
really speaks to this? You know,
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someone who is -- who has had
that connection with Jesus
through His word, through prayer
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and then his greatest joy was in
service. >> The joy in the Lord
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concept. That would have -- The
first one that comes to my mind
is my friend Steve Mackey.
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Steve Mackey -- When I first met
him, Steve Mackey had just taken
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the world heavyweight title in
kickboxing or shoot boxing. He'd
taken in Tokyo, Japan, in
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the Tokyo Dome on international
satellite television. >> I
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remember him. >> You do? >> I
do. I saw him on the Internet.
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A long time ago. >> Yeah, it was
back in the '90s, yeah, when I
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first met him. At the time,
he was, like, the baddest of the
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bad as they would say. I didn't
know anything about kickboxing
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or shoot boxing, but it's a form
of martial arts. It's considered
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the most dangerous, most lethal
form of organized refereed sport
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fighting. So it's not something
I'd glorify, but I'm just
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mentioning that that's what
Steve came out of. And I
happened to meet him in Kansas
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City, which was his hometown,
and I was pastoring there, and
somebody introduced us, and he
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said, "What do you do for a
living?" And I said, "Well, I
try to help people get to become
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better friends with Jesus." And
he said, "Get out of here. You
can't be friends with Jesus.
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He's keeping the universe
running and He's invisible and
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all that. He doesn't have time
for that." I said, "Oh, no, He's
dying to be friends."
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He goes, "How do you get to be
friends with Him?" So I told him
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about the three legs of the
stool. I said, "You know what?
If you would open up a Bible
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to one of the gospels, like
the Gospel of John, say a prayer
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that you want to meet Him there
and you want your heart touched
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and stirred, that you want Him
to take you into a deep
experience that's real and
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tangible." I said, "He'll do
it." And Steve Mackey said,
"I'll go get a Bible.
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I'll buy a Bible and I'll try
that." And I said, "Go for it."
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Well, that just became the
beginning of interactions that I
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had with Steve. And, you know, I
just -- probably -- it's not
meant to be name dropping but
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it'll probably sound like it's
name dropping. But Steve was a
mover and a shaker at that time.
00:05:04.03\00:05:08.07
I mean, he was personal friends
with Chuck Norris, Sylvester
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Stallone, a guy named Mr.
T. Chuck Norris actually -- and
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Sylvester Stallone actually
involves Steve in choreographing
fight scenes in the movies,
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the "Rocky" series that
Sylvester Stallone put together.
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So, you know, he had this
reputation And then
incidentally, just about three
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years ago, Steve was inducted
into the Martial Arts Hall of
Fame, and Chuck Norris
00:05:29.76\00:05:33.19
was the one that gave him the
honors and so on. So, you know,
00:05:33.19\00:05:36.87
he had that reputation. Well,
he started reading the Gospel of
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John, and Jesus said, "If I am
lifted up, I'll draw you to
myself," and oh, man,
00:05:42.04\00:05:45.91
amazing things began happening
and Steve -- sort of long story
00:05:45.91\00:05:50.75
short there, Steve actually
became a member of our
congregation. He became the
00:05:50.75\00:05:54.52
leader of our youth department
and they thought, "How cool is
this to have Steve Mackey
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be our youth director?" And
if Steve needed their attention,
00:05:57.75\00:06:01.06
he'd tell them the Bible talks
about the laying on of hands. [
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Laughter ] They would pay
attention. But such cool things
began happening in Steve's life
00:06:05.16\00:06:10.23
that he had story after story to
tell about God transforming him.
00:06:10.23\00:06:14.34
In fact, I saw him interviewed
on national sports -- nationally
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syndicated sports television
after the fight, and one of --
after he'd become a Christian --
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and one of the things that the
interviewer said was, "So, Mr.
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Mackey, when and where are you
going to defend the world
heavyweight title?"
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Because obviously the title
was meant to be challenged. And
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Steve said, "I won't be
defending it." He said, "I've
become friends with the Lord
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Jesus Christ, and He's taken the
fight out of me." And then he
said, "I work for my boss now."
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And he went like that on
nationally syndicated sport
00:06:40.86\00:06:43.57
television. I thought, "How cool
is that?" >> That is cool. >>
Well, there was a woman named
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Jeanette Johnson. She was
writing a book called "Paint the
00:06:47.44\00:06:50.91
World with Love," and she wanted
to include some of the stories
of what got him doing
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the life of this kickboxer. So
she asked Steve if she could,
and Steve said, "If you think
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it'd be of any value to anybody,
you're welcome to use my story
and what Jesus has done."
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So she did the book, published
it. People began reading the
00:07:03.22\00:07:06.42
story and thinking, "Wow, how
cool, God's doing." And then
Steve started getting
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invitations to go places and
tell people what God was doing
00:07:09.79\00:07:13.63
in his life. >> Yes. >> So,
years go by, and we move off to
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the West Coast. We're living
near Seattle, Washington. And I
00:07:18.43\00:07:21.37
find out that a public high
school in Bellingham,
Washington, which is right at
00:07:21.37\00:07:25.44
the north end of the I-5
corridor out there on the West
Coast, asked Steve to come
00:07:25.44\00:07:29.38
and talk in a public high school
on a Saturday night, tell what
00:07:29.38\00:07:35.28
had been going on in his
life. I thought, "Wow, that's
00:07:35.28\00:07:38.19
something." And I said, "Steve,
that's just a couple-hour drive
00:07:38.19\00:07:41.32
from where I am. So I will come
up, and Margie and I will take
you to the airport on Sunday
00:07:41.32\00:07:44.73
because you got to fly
home again. That will give us a
00:07:44.73\00:07:47.60
chance to spend some time
together." So I drove up and got
there in the evening on
00:07:47.60\00:07:52.20
Saturday. It was a Saturday
thing, and the parking lot was
jam-packed, and the auditorium
00:07:52.20\00:07:56.07
was completely filled because
Steve was well-known. And so I
went around looking for
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him before it started to say
hi. And he was crying over in a
00:08:00.81\00:08:06.41
corner by himself. I said, "Man,
are you okay?" He said, "Oh,
yeah, I'm okay." He said, "I was
00:08:06.41\00:08:11.15
just praying. I was asking that
when this meeting is over and
people go home, instead of
00:08:11.15\00:08:15.02
thinking about Steve Mackey the
kickboxer, they're thinking only
00:08:15.02\00:08:18.66
about the Lord Jesus Christ,
who is the best friend you could
00:08:18.66\00:08:21.90
ever have." He said, "I want
that so badly. I'm just in tears
00:08:21.90\00:08:25.27
praying for it. I said, "I think
that He's going to honor that
request, Steve." Anyway, long
00:08:25.27\00:08:29.87
story shortened, God did honor
that request. And when it was
over, a bunch of people came
00:08:29.87\00:08:33.17
forward and wanted to shake his
hand, talk with him, ask him
questions. But there was a
00:08:33.17\00:08:36.31
little guy about 9 or 10 years
old, and he came forward with a
piece of paper in his hand,
00:08:36.31\00:08:40.52
and he said, "Mr. Mackey, could
I have your autograph?" I was
00:08:40.52\00:08:43.59
off to one side because I'm
going to give Steve a ride home.
And Steve gets down.
00:08:43.59\00:08:46.79
He puts one hand on each of that
little guy's shoulders and gets
down, looks him in the eye.
00:08:46.79\00:08:50.36
He says, "Buddy, I'll sign that
paper, but I'd like to ask you a
00:08:50.36\00:08:54.00
question first. If there was
one thing I want you to remember
00:08:54.00\00:08:57.07
from tonight's meeting more than
anything else, what do you think
it is?" And the little guy said,
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"That Jesus wants to be my
friend and He'd be the best
friend I could ever have."
00:09:01.34\00:09:06.21
Oh, Steve gave that kid a hug.
"Give me a high-five, buddy. You
00:09:06.21\00:09:11.58
got it." And then he looked over
at me and smiled. Anyway, we
00:09:11.58\00:09:16.05
finally got out to the car to go
home. It was after 11:00 at
night. For Steve, that'd be
00:09:16.05\00:09:20.99
after 1:00 because he was on
Central time, and I said to him,
"It's a couple hour drive."
00:09:20.99\00:09:25.49
So I said, "Tell you what.
That seat reclines. I'll drive.
00:09:25.49\00:09:28.43
You can sleep, and tomorrow
we'll get caught up on stuff and
talk before we take you to the
00:09:28.43\00:09:32.80
airport." I'll never
forget what he said next.
00:09:32.80\00:09:35.27
He looked at me and he said,
"Sleep? Are you kidding me, man?
00:09:35.27\00:09:39.87
Sleep? There is no
way I am going to sleep."
00:09:39.87\00:09:43.41
He said, "That was the greatest
rush I've ever had." Now, think
00:09:43.41\00:09:48.15
about that. This guy was in
the world heavyweight kickboxing
00:09:48.15\00:09:52.25
stadium in Tokyo. This is the
greatest rush. "This is the
greatest rush I have ever had."
00:09:52.25\00:09:57.06
He said, "I'm telling you what.
Did you see that little guy?" He
said, "Did you see that
00:09:57.06\00:09:59.93
little guy that came up
afterwards?" I said, "Yeah."
00:09:59.93\00:10:01.96
He said, "Lee, he got it. He
got it." He says, "When you tell
00:10:01.96\00:10:04.83
people what a friend you have in
Jesus and that they can be
friends with him too, ooh,"
00:10:04.83\00:10:07.67
he said, "It doesn't get any
better than that." He said, "You
00:10:07.67\00:10:12.41
get paid to do this as a pastor?
Whoa!" And then he said these
00:10:12.41\00:10:16.04
words. He said, "This
could be addicting." >> Wow.
00:10:16.04\00:10:19.08
>> That's what he said. This
could be addicting. >> So he was
00:10:19.08\00:10:23.02
talking about serving, about
sharing. >> Yeah, yeah. >> I
00:10:23.02\00:10:27.96
mean, why would anyone not do
that, right? I mean, when you
have that experience, you have
00:10:27.96\00:10:33.66
to tell someone. >> Right.
>> You just got to get it out,
00:10:33.66\00:10:37.37
right? >> You remember
the man that Jesus raised
00:10:37.37\00:10:40.00
his daughter from the dead?
>> Right. >> And He says, "Now,
00:10:40.00\00:10:42.20
don't tell anybody about this."
[ Laughter ] The guy goes,
00:10:42.20\00:10:47.68
"What?" >> Why? >> "Don't
tell anybody? I got to tell
00:10:47.68\00:10:51.98
somebody." >> Yes. It's like
taking, you know, your thumb and
00:10:51.98\00:10:55.92
putting it over the edge of a --
or the end of your Coke bottle
or your root beer and you just
00:10:55.92\00:11:01.22
shake it up. >> Yeah,
it's carbonated. >> It's gonna
00:11:01.22\00:11:04.73
explode. >> Yeah. >> And I guess
that's the result of the first
two legs of the stool.
00:11:04.73\00:11:08.13
>> Yes. >> As you keep hanging
out with Jesus and He keeps
00:11:08.13\00:11:10.77
interacting in your life, you
begin to just really like this
00:11:10.77\00:11:15.34
guy, you know? And you can't
keep quiet about it. And then
here's the cool part.
00:11:15.34\00:11:18.51
As you tell other people how
cool He is and you see them
start to catch on that maybe
00:11:18.51\00:11:22.88
He'd be cool for them too, then
you get excited because you see
they're getting it.
00:11:22.88\00:11:27.12
>> Exactly. >> And so then,
the enthusiasm grows for you.
00:11:27.12\00:11:30.45
It gets even better, which is
why I think that God gave the --
00:11:30.45\00:11:34.49
at the end of every gospel,
there's a commission to go to
work. But Jesus doesn't need our
00:11:34.49\00:11:40.20
help because He can finish
it with angels. He can finish it
00:11:40.20\00:11:42.73
with dreams. He could finish it
with -- rocks could cry out. You
remember all that stuff?
00:11:42.73\00:11:45.83
So He doesn't need our help. So
why would He give us four gospel
00:11:45.83\00:11:49.70
commissions -- Matthew, Mark,
Luke, and John -- go to work, go
to work, go to work, go to work.
00:11:49.70\00:11:52.77
And it's because He wants us
to have the joy of our Lord. >>
00:11:52.77\00:11:57.35
Yeah. >> He says, "Why should we
hoard it, angels? Let's let them
00:11:57.35\00:12:00.98
in on this thing. Let's let them
taste it." >> So, this morning
we were here, here in Nova
00:12:00.98\00:12:06.15
Scotia, Pugwash, Nova Scotia,
and a man came up to me. His
name is Bob, and he
00:12:06.15\00:12:11.73
introduced himself to me. And
I asked him, "What do you do,
00:12:11.73\00:12:15.13
Bob?" And he said, "Well, all my
life I've been a fisherman." And
00:12:15.13\00:12:21.60
he said, "And that brought me
great joy." He's got two
daughters and a wonderful wife.
00:12:21.60\00:12:26.21
And he says he's found joy
in that. But the greatest joy he
00:12:26.21\00:12:29.48
said, "that I've ever
experienced is sharing my faith
with others." He says, "I just
00:12:29.48\00:12:35.15
can't get enough of it. I share
it." He says, "It's greater than
00:12:35.15\00:12:38.32
anything. So, yes, I
was a fisherman all my life.
00:12:38.32\00:12:41.46
But God has now made me a
fisher of men." And he says
00:12:41.46\00:12:44.33
he enjoys doing that. He really
enjoys it so much so that he
00:12:44.33\00:12:47.96
says this coming weekend, he has
an opportunity to actually go
00:12:47.96\00:12:51.87
into the tank and baptize
someone. And he says this is so
00:12:51.87\00:12:56.00
exciting for him. He doesn't
want to mess it up. So he's
looking forward to it. So the
00:12:56.00\00:13:01.21
joy that God gives to us in the
very act of blessing others, it
reacts in blessing upon
00:13:01.21\00:13:08.98
ourselves. >> Exactly. >> So
who is really getting blessed by
00:13:08.98\00:13:12.45
this? And why would you rob
yourself of that opportunity?"
00:13:12.45\00:13:16.49
>> Yeah, yeah. You're
making me think of Luke 6.
00:13:16.49\00:13:18.93
"Give and you will
receive." This is verse 38.
00:13:18.96\00:13:21.30
>> Yeah, uh-huh. >>
"Your gift will return to you
00:13:21.30\00:13:23.37
in full -- pressed down,
shaken together to make room
00:13:23.37\00:13:26.20
for more, running over,
and poured into your lap.
00:13:26.20\00:13:29.04
The amount you
give will determine
00:13:29.04\00:13:30.41
the amount you get
back." >> Yeah, yeah.
00:13:30.41\00:13:32.67
So, when we witness of our faith
to others, I mean, this is a
tremendous blessing for us.
00:13:32.71\00:13:37.75
And God wants us to experience
that. >> I guess the most
00:13:37.75\00:13:42.02
exciting thing for me is those
first two legs of the stool, you
know, the prayer and the Bible
00:13:42.02\00:13:48.19
study, and when you really do
that and really seek that close
connection with God
00:13:48.19\00:13:54.83
and spend time with Him and make
Him your best friend, then those
00:13:54.83\00:14:00.70
two things, well, you'll be
so excited and so full that the
00:14:00.70\00:14:05.37
product will be that you just
have to share. You have to get
out there. You just can't wait
00:14:05.37\00:14:10.68
to tell people about Jesus. >>
Yeah. >> So those two, like the
00:14:10.68\00:14:15.62
third one is dependent on those
two. If we could grow on those
00:14:15.62\00:14:20.69
first two, and then we just
can't wait to tell people about
Jesus and what He's done for us,
00:14:20.69\00:14:25.59
right? >> It would be a tragedy
to try and get people to witness
00:14:25.59\00:14:29.63
who don't have the first
two going on. >> Absolutely.
00:14:29.63\00:14:32.67
>> Because they don't have that
joy to spill over. And then that
00:14:32.67\00:14:36.64
kind of witness is not really
contagious. >> No, it isn't. >>
But the kind you're talking
00:14:36.64\00:14:40.34
about, Rene, that's contagious.
>> Yeah, yeah, yeah. So, I want
00:14:40.34\00:14:44.95
to go further with this
discussion. It's just so
exciting. But before we do,
00:14:44.95\00:14:48.75
we're just gonna take a little
break, and then we'll be right
back. Friends, we are so
00:14:48.75\00:14:55.12
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>> Welcome back. And we've been
looking at the three legs of the
00:15:49.48\00:15:54.95
stool -- Bible study for the
purpose of connecting with
Jesus, and prayer for the
00:15:54.95\00:15:59.42
purpose of communication with
Him, and then sharing, and these
are all tangible things
00:15:59.42\00:16:03.09
that we can do to have a
practical Christian experience,
making Christianity real.
00:16:03.09\00:16:10.00
And Lee's been sharing those
with us. So, we've been talking
00:16:10.00\00:16:13.20
about sharing our faith, about
witnessing for our faith, and
you've given a good example
00:16:13.20\00:16:18.14
with Steve Mackey and his
experience and how he just felt
00:16:18.14\00:16:23.24
great joy when he shared his
faith. Now, let's be more
tangible. What was he sharing?
00:16:23.24\00:16:28.85
What was the content of what
we are to share when we share as
00:16:28.85\00:16:35.22
Christians? >> Well, I think
that Rene was kind of alluding
to that a few moments ago when
00:16:35.22\00:16:43.16
she talked about bubbling over
with your own personal testimony
and how that's a byproduct
00:16:43.16\00:16:50.01
of the first two, and it
puts me in mind of Mark 5:19.
00:16:50.01\00:17:00.85
Maybe you could read it for
us. Jesus is talking, right, to
00:17:00.85\00:17:06.82
those demoniacs? >> Mm-hmm. >>
Remember that He cast the demons
00:17:06.82\00:17:10.13
out, and the pigs go into the
water and so on, then they want
to keep hanging out with Jesus
00:17:10.13\00:17:15.70
and He says no. >> It says,
"However, Jesus did not permit
him, but said to him,
00:17:15.73\00:17:21.47
'Go home to your friends,
and tell them what great things
00:17:21.47\00:17:26.01
the Lord has done for
you, and how He has had
00:17:26.01\00:17:31.11
compassion on you.'"
00:17:31.11\00:17:33.48
So I guess all of us
have our own story. >> Yeah.
00:17:33.52\00:17:37.12
>> Right? And so, that's
the content. That's important
00:17:37.12\00:17:43.46
because I can't share what Mark
has experienced nor what you've
00:17:43.46\00:17:48.93
experienced, Lee, but I can only
share what God has given to me,
right? And share that -- I can't
00:17:48.93\00:17:55.80
even because that's my story.
That is my story. >> Have you
00:17:55.80\00:18:00.54
ever noticed that sometimes
people, their idea of a Bible
study, is giving somebody a
00:18:00.54\00:18:04.75
convincing argument about some
theological truth in scripture?
00:18:04.75\00:18:08.02
>> I've done that. >> Have you
noticed that? >> Absolutely. >>
And how do people generally
00:18:08.02\00:18:11.32
respond to that kind of thing?
>> It turns into a nice
intellectual discussion.
00:18:11.32\00:18:15.52
>> Or a debate. >> Or a debate,
yeah. >> But like you're talking
00:18:15.52\00:18:18.86
what you just described, Rene,
when you share something that's
going on in your life
00:18:18.86\00:18:23.50
that Jesus has done in your
life, do you ever have people
try to argue with that?
00:18:23.50\00:18:27.27
>> No. >> No, not at all.
>> So it's a huge difference in
00:18:27.27\00:18:30.27
the way you're received.
>> Yes, absolutely. >> Yeah.
00:18:30.27\00:18:33.14
>> Yeah. And I think
it's much more attractive.
00:18:33.14\00:18:35.71
I mean, I can see this man.
He was demon possessed. >> Yeah.
00:18:35.71\00:18:39.65
>> And, you know, and he's -- he
wants to be with Jesus naturally
because He just healed him.
00:18:39.65\00:18:45.09
And he says, "Please, let me get
in the boat with you. Let me go
00:18:45.09\00:18:47.96
with you." And Jesus says, "No,
I want you to go and tell your
family what I did for you."
00:18:47.96\00:18:53.86
>> And your friends. Go and tell
people. >> And your friends,
00:18:53.86\00:18:59.30
yeah, yeah, yeah. So, that puts
me in mind of a story of a guy.
00:18:59.30\00:19:02.87
I pastored a church. When I
first came to that church, there
00:19:02.87\00:19:06.94
was this guy named Larry
Claridge. And he came to me. At
the time, he was in his mid
00:19:06.94\00:19:11.18
to late 70s. Almost
80 or so. And he said,
00:19:11.18\00:19:13.42
"Pastor, I want to tell
you about a prayer I've started
00:19:13.42\00:19:16.58
praying." He said, "Every
morning, because I don't know
how many more, you know, weeks
00:19:16.58\00:19:19.82
or months I have left to live
at this age. So every morning I
00:19:19.82\00:19:24.19
pray, 'Lord Jesus, when it comes
my time to go, could you just
orchestrate it so that I'm in
00:19:24.19\00:19:28.10
the middle of doing one more
thing for you when I die?'" Oh,
I think that's such a cool
00:19:28.10\00:19:32.97
thing, you know? And
he meant it. >> Yeah.
00:19:32.97\00:19:36.57
>> It wasn't just words. Larry
was, like, nonstop working for
00:19:36.57\00:19:42.88
Jesus. And another thing about
Larry is that Larry was not what
you call an upfront guy.
00:19:42.88\00:19:47.02
He was not a charismatic guy.
He wasn't a speaker. He wasn't a
00:19:47.02\00:19:50.39
presenter. He was a
behind-the-scenes guy. Kind of
shy, but he had major skills
00:19:50.39\00:19:55.29
in terms of handyman skills and
stuff. He could make anything
00:19:55.29\00:19:58.69
out a coat hanger and duct tape.
I mean, he is an incredible guy.
And he would use those gifts
00:19:58.69\00:20:05.40
to make differences for people
just because he loved Jesus and
he wanted to make a difference
00:20:05.40\00:20:09.67
for somebody else. So, one day,
Larry's driving in our little
00:20:09.67\00:20:13.07
town, Walla Walla, Washington,
and he sees a man on a hot
summer day in the ditch --
00:20:13.07\00:20:19.45
I mean, in the gutter trying
to climb up onto the sidewalk,
00:20:19.45\00:20:22.85
and Larry thinks the guy's
tripped and fallen, he's hurt.
So Larry parks his car, runs up
00:20:22.85\00:20:26.65
to see if he can help the guy,
and the guy is stone drunk.
That's why he can't get up.
00:20:26.65\00:20:30.03
He's fallen down. He's drunk.
So Larry says, "Man, there's no
00:20:30.03\00:20:32.79
place for you in this hot sun.
If you tell me where you live,
I'll take you home."
00:20:32.79\00:20:37.17
Well, the guy happens to be able
to be coherent enough to give
00:20:37.17\00:20:40.80
Larry instructions to get to
where he needs to get. It turns
out the guy doesn't live in a
00:20:40.80\00:20:44.67
home. You know, these campers
that they put in the back of
pickup trucks that have, like, a
00:20:44.67\00:20:48.01
little hangover thing, and then,
you know, the rest in the back.
This guy's living in a cab
00:20:48.01\00:20:51.25
over a camper without a truck.
It's just sitting in the dirt in
00:20:51.25\00:20:55.65
a vacant lot. Has no hookups,
nothing. And he's, like,
basically homeless.
00:20:55.65\00:21:01.09
And Larry gets the guy there,
helps him up under the overhead
00:21:01.09\00:21:06.09
bed thing, and then he writes on
a piece of paper, "Here's my
name -- Larry Claridge.
00:21:06.09\00:21:08.70
Here's my phone number. If I can
ever be of any kind of help to
00:21:08.70\00:21:12.20
you anytime, anywhere, don't
hesitate to call. Doesn't matter
00:21:12.20\00:21:15.87
what time." Then Larry tells me
that's the beginning of phone
calls. "I started getting calls,
00:21:15.87\00:21:20.48
and they almost always come late
at night after I'd been in bed
for hours, and they're always a
00:21:20.48\00:21:25.61
bartender at the other end, and
he'd say, 'I got a guy here who
is so drunk, he can't walk
00:21:25.61\00:21:29.58
out of the bar on his own, but
he said if I call, you'll come
00:21:29.58\00:21:32.52
and get him.'" And Larry, who is
a longstanding member of our
congregation, wouldn't
00:21:32.52\00:21:36.62
think twice about people seeing
him coming out of a bar late at
00:21:36.62\00:21:40.16
night. He would get up. This is
80-year-old-something Larry,
gets up, goes down,
00:21:40.16\00:21:45.03
and gets that guy. Takes him to
his camper. And Larry told me,
00:21:45.03\00:21:48.90
"There were times I took him to
his camper. He was so drunk that
I was worried if I left him
00:21:48.90\00:21:53.38
unattended he might throw up and
then aspirate his own vomit and
die." And Larry said, "I
00:21:53.38\00:21:57.65
couldn't -- I couldn't bear to
think of the guy dying or
choking on his own vomit."
00:21:57.65\00:22:00.72
So he said, "Many a night I
would sit in the little dinette
00:22:00.72\00:22:05.12
beside the bed and I would watch
him all night and turn his head
if he started to throw up
00:22:05.12\00:22:08.49
so that he wouldn't choke
on his vomit. And one morning,
00:22:08.49\00:22:12.06
I was still there and the
guy wakes up. And he says to me,
00:22:12.06\00:22:15.50
'Why do you keep coming to
my rescue?'" And Larry said, "I
00:22:15.50\00:22:19.73
said because somebody keeps
coming to my rescue and I'm just
trying to pass it forward."
00:22:19.73\00:22:24.31
And the guy says, "You need
rescue?" And Larry said, "All
00:22:24.31\00:22:30.68
the time." And the guy says,
"This fella who rescues you,
00:22:30.68\00:22:35.85
What's his name? Do I know him?
Maybe I know him." Larry said,
"His name is Jesus."
00:22:35.85\00:22:39.12
The guy says, "I
don't know Him." Larry says,
00:22:39.12\00:22:41.52
"Would you like to know Him?"
And the guy says, "If He's your
friend, I'd love to know Him."
00:22:41.52\00:22:46.56
So then Larry says, "I meet Him
every day in a Bible. Have you
ever read a Bible?"
00:22:46.56\00:22:51.57
The guy says, "I've never even
owned one." Larry says, "If I
00:22:51.57\00:22:54.77
bought you a Bible, would you
like to meet my friend Jesus?"
The guy says, "You bet."
00:22:54.77\00:22:58.51
So Larry goes and gets a Bible
for this guy. And then Larry
00:22:58.51\00:23:04.18
tells me -- now, I'm the pastor
-- Larry tells me, "I decided
00:23:04.18\00:23:08.58
I'm not going to give him a
Bible study on theological
truths or Bible doctrines.
00:23:08.58\00:23:14.26
He didn't ask for that. He asked
how could I meet your friend.
00:23:14.26\00:23:18.13
I'm just going to open the
Gospel of John with a prayer
that the Lord Jesus will reveal
00:23:18.13\00:23:22.83
Himself to us and pull us to
Himself as He promised He would
if we lift Him up."
00:23:22.83\00:23:27.30
I thought, "That's a good way
to witness." So, they're reading
00:23:27.30\00:23:32.37
the Gospel of John together. No
hook in it. That's another thing
00:23:32.37\00:23:35.14
I think is cool -- no hook.
Sometimes we say, "We'll give
00:23:35.14\00:23:38.21
you some soup if you listen to
our sermon." You know? >> Right.
00:23:38.21\00:23:40.25
>> "We'll help you out with
this if you do this. Here's some
00:23:40.25\00:23:42.88
literature we'd like you to read
and then we do this for you."
No, no, no, no, no.
00:23:42.88\00:23:46.76
No hook involved. And so
time goes by. And Larry keeps
00:23:46.76\00:23:51.56
meeting this guy. >> And so
he would meet with him and they
00:23:51.56\00:23:54.66
would read the Bible together?
>> Yeah, yeah. Read the Gospel
00:23:54.66\00:23:58.17
of John together.
Yeah. And time goes by.
00:23:58.17\00:24:00.50
And then one day the guy says
to Larry, "Do you go to church
00:24:00.50\00:24:04.91
somewhere?" And Larry said,
"Absolutely. I go to the village
church just above Walmart."
00:24:04.91\00:24:09.24
And the guy says, "Could I go
with you?" And Larry said, "It'd
00:24:09.24\00:24:12.85
be an honor to take you." So
then the guy said, "Well, what
00:24:12.85\00:24:15.95
should I wear?" And Larry said,
"Well, what do you have?" He
goes, "Well, you know what I
00:24:15.95\00:24:19.22
have. All I have is blue jeans,
a T-shirt, baseball cap, and
00:24:19.22\00:24:22.02
tennis shoes." And Larry said,
"Perfect." Now, I just need
00:24:22.02\00:24:25.23
to interject right here that the
village church that Larry was
00:24:25.23\00:24:28.70
referring to is a congregation
of about 1,800 people who are
very into looking good
00:24:28.70\00:24:33.57
because they're on television
every weekend. The broadcast has
00:24:33.57\00:24:37.41
gone out, all around place. And
they actually have people who
00:24:37.41\00:24:42.38
tell other people they're not
dressed right, that they need to
go change. Now, I'm not saying
00:24:42.38\00:24:45.95
that's a good thing. I'm
saying when I was pastor of that
00:24:45.95\00:24:48.48
church, I tried to change that
paradigm and get them to say,
"Hey, anybody's welcome here."
00:24:48.48\00:24:52.12
But anyway, I just need to make
sure you understand that at the
00:24:52.12\00:24:55.09
time that this guy said what he
said, that wasn't the way it
was, a village church.
00:24:55.09\00:24:59.46
So Larry -- the guy says,
"That's all I --" Larry says,
00:24:59.46\00:25:03.26
"Perfect. I'll come and get
you next weekend." And Larry
00:25:03.26\00:25:07.50
Claridge went to pick that guy
up wearing blue jeans, a
T-shirt, a baseball cap, and
00:25:07.50\00:25:12.67
tennis shoes. They come in and
sit on the third row from the
00:25:12.67\00:25:15.84
front. Keeps his hat on in
church, the whole bit, you know?
00:25:15.84\00:25:19.05
>> Wow. >> And he didn't turn
around and say to people, "I'm
just leading this guy, the Lord,
00:25:19.05\00:25:23.32
so cut us some slack. Don't give
us trouble about our clothes."
00:25:23.32\00:25:26.65
He didn't say that. He
just sat there with that guy.
00:25:26.65\00:25:29.39
And then Larry started crying.
He's telling me the story. He
00:25:29.39\00:25:33.29
starts crying. He goes, "Pastor,
I got to stand at the top of the
stairs of the baptistery
00:25:33.29\00:25:38.50
and watch this guy come out of
the water when he gave his heart
00:25:38.50\00:25:42.40
to the Lord Jesus Christ in
baptism." And then Larry said to
me, "It doesn't get
00:25:42.40\00:25:46.54
any better than that." >> That's
right. That's right. >> There it
is again -- the joy
00:25:46.54\00:25:50.35
of your life. And what was
he telling him? "About my friend
00:25:50.35\00:25:54.95
Jesus who rescues me." >>
Wow. >> So God pours it in.
00:25:54.95\00:26:00.22
And we just drink it in, and
He stirs it up. >> And then we
00:26:00.22\00:26:05.66
spill it over. >> And we spill
it over. We just got to tell
someone. And, you know, it's an
00:26:05.66\00:26:11.37
amazing story. And a
relative of Larry Claridge --
00:26:11.37\00:26:15.07
We actually taught him. He
-- she was one of our students.
00:26:15.07\00:26:18.11
>> Her. >> Her, sorry.
She was one of our students.
00:26:18.11\00:26:20.98
>> That's a small world. >>
Yeah, it is a small world. She
was on fire for the Lord
00:26:20.98\00:26:26.01
as well. She was
just a wonderful student.
00:26:26.01\00:26:28.22
>> And she was also quiet.
>> Yeah. >> Like her granddaddy.
00:26:28.22\00:26:32.32
She wasn't outgoing or anything.
>> You know, when you said stir
00:26:32.32\00:26:37.76
just a moment ago, you said He
pours it in and He stirs it up.
He's not real careful
00:26:37.76\00:26:41.63
with his stirring. It slops
over, you know? And then as it
00:26:41.63\00:26:45.57
slops over, the cool thing is it
makes room for more of Him, more
of the water of life.
00:26:45.57\00:26:51.04
And this is a key because it
keeps us from growing stagnant.
00:26:51.04\00:26:54.88
>> That's right. That's right.
>> Trying to live the Christian
life without spilling over, we
00:26:54.88\00:26:58.15
grow stagnant, and then actually
if you think about that original
parable in Matthew 25
00:26:58.15\00:27:02.38
we were just talking about, we
don't just grow stagnant. We die
because he says take from
00:27:02.38\00:27:07.96
him what he did have. So you end
up with nothing. So it's kind
00:27:07.96\00:27:12.19
like you said earlier -- use
it or lose it. >> Yeah. >> Yeah,
00:27:12.19\00:27:15.20
it's for real. >> It's for real,
yeah. So our job as Christians
is to get involved, to dive in,
00:27:15.20\00:27:20.04
not wait for the pastor.
Sometimes we're kind of like the
00:27:20.04\00:27:24.41
Greyhound bus. The pastor takes
control. You know, "Leave the
driving to us," right?
00:27:24.41\00:27:28.81
You just sit back. >> Shame
on us, the pastors that do that.
00:27:28.81\00:27:32.18
>> Yeah, we need to really let
everyone else -- >> In on the
00:27:32.18\00:27:36.35
joy. >> In on the joy and drive
that bus yourself, and you'll
get a lot of people
00:27:36.35\00:27:42.69
following along that path. So,
thank you very much for sharing
00:27:42.69\00:27:48.26
that with us, Lee. Rene, can you
close with a quick word of
prayer for us? >> Yeah.
00:27:48.26\00:27:51.97
>> Okay. >> Dear God and
Heavenly Father, thank you so
00:27:51.97\00:27:56.24
much that You fill us with Your
love and the precious
relationship that we have with
00:27:56.24\00:28:02.74
You as friends. A friend that
loves us and cares about us.
00:28:02.74\00:28:07.08
And, Lord, when we communicate
with You and we listen to You
00:28:07.08\00:28:12.65
and we talk to You and You talk
back to us, we just can't help
but share Your love
00:28:12.65\00:28:17.43
and Your joy with others, and
that brings joy to us, and we
00:28:17.43\00:28:22.33
thank you so much that You are
our savior and our friend. I
pray this in your precious
00:28:22.33\00:28:27.00
name. Amen. >> Amen.
00:28:27.00\00:28:28.87
So, friends, thank you
for joining us again on "It Is
00:28:28.87\00:28:33.41
Written Canada." And remember
the words of Jesus when he said,
"It is written: 'Man shall not
00:28:33.41\00:28:38.78
live by bread alone but by every
word that proceeds out of the
00:28:38.78\00:28:43.82
mouth of God.'" い い
00:28:43.85\00:28:59.17