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>>Welcome to "Sabbath School,"
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brought to you by It Is Written.
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This week we are
looking at lesson number six,
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"Laying Up Treasures in Heaven."
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We're continuing our
journey, a 12-week journey,
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through the subject of
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"Managing for the
Master Till He Comes,"
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looking at
stewardship, faith, finances,
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and our walk with
Jesus. With us again this week
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is the author of this
quarter's Sabbath school lesson,
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Ed Reid. He is an
ordained minister.
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He is also a licensed attorney
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and has a great
deal of experience
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in the area of stewardship.
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We're gonna be
looking into this lesson on
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"Laying Up Treasures in
Heaven" in just a moment.
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But let's pray before we do.
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Father, we ask that
You'll bless us again this week
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as You have in the past.
And as we continue our journey
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through this
fascinating subject,
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we ask that
You'll bless us today,
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and we thank You,
in Jesus' name, amen.
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Ed, welcome back once again.
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>>Well, thank you. It's a
pleasure to be here again.
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>>So we're looking at
"Laying Up Treasures in Heaven."
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I think this is a verse
that many Christians have heard.
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We're gonna
unpack it a little bit,
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but let me start by
reading our memory text here
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from Mark, chapter 8,
verses 36 and 37. Jesus says,
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"For what will it profit a
man if he gains the whole world,
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"and loses his own
soul? Or what will a man give
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in exchange for his soul?"
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Well, we're talking about
laying up treasures in heaven.
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Why would a person want to
lay up treasures in heaven?
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What's the point?
What's the purpose?
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>>The real interesting thing,
we've read this verse before,
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but when we look at...
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Matthew 6:19 and 20, where
it talks about the storage,
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the investments made on
this earth, they're not safe,
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but if we send them to
heaven, they will be safe.
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Now, the answer to your question
directly, it's this way.
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If you had your money,
a lot of money in a bank
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you knew was failing,
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and you knew of a bank
that was much stronger,
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what would you do?
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>>Move it.
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>>Move it over
there, that's for sure.
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The Bible is very clear. I'm
gonna read this from 2 Peter,
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the third chapter,
verse 10, where it says,
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"But the day of the Lord will
come as a thief in the night,
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"in which the heavens will
pass away with a great noise,
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"and the elements will
melt with fervent heat;
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"both the earth and
the works that are in it
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will be burned up."
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So my home and this studio
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and all your
stuff's gonna get burned up.
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So would you rather
have it in the bank here
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somewhere on the earth?
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Or would you rather
have it in the heavenly bank?
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>>No, not much point
in having it here on earth
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if it's all gonna
be turned to ashes here
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in the near future anyway.
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>>Everything's gonna get
burned up, that's for sure.
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>>All right, so
laying up treasures in heaven
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certainly sounds like it's
a better long-term investment.
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I guess maybe
that's one way to put it.
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And in Sunday's
lesson, you're focusing us
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toward that
long-term investment,
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in looking at
Noah finding grace.
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What type of life
focus is found in those
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who are storing up
treasures in heaven?
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How does their perspective,
how does their worldview differ?
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How is it different from people
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who are storing up
money here, as it were?
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>>Well, this way, we're
gonna look at several instances
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from the Bible where
people made decisions.
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This is amazing, Eric, where
you're talking about decision,
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financial decisions that
have eternal consequences,
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very serious situations.
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For example, I mentioned
earlier that Matthew 19
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and Mark 10 and Luke 18
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all talk about the
story of the rich young ruler.
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Well, frequently
when you talk about
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what God asked people to do,
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it's noteworthy to consider that
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those seeking heavenly treasure
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are frequently
asked to do something
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very drastic in their
life, very, very drastic,
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called upon major
life-altering decisions.
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For example, He
asked the rich young ruler,
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"Sell what you have
and give [it] to the poor,
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"and [then You'll]
have treasure in heaven;
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...come, follow me."
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He offered this man a
place in His inner circle
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if he would just sell and
give his money to the poor.
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Now, this is interesting because
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we'll actually have a chapter
in our lessons this quarter
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about helping the poor.
God doesn't ask everybody
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to give all their
funds to the poor,
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but He knew this man was
sold on his own possessions,
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and he was really
selfish about them.
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So He said that
was what it would take
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to get the man to heaven.
But he went away sorrowful
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because that decision
was an eternal consequence.
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We never hear
from this man again.
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Now, you talk about
the experience of Noah,
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which is kind of interesting.
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Here's a guy who's
just doing his own thing,
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and he's probably
about 450 years old,
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enjoying life like
everyone else around him.
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And God comes to him
and says, "I'm about to--
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"the wickedness on
the earth is so great
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"I'm gonna destroy everything.
But I'm telling you about it
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"because I want you
to build a boat for me.
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"And when you do that, well,
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whoever wants to get
on board will be safe."
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What did it cost
Noah to build a boat?
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>>It cost him everything.
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>>It did. It cost
him everything he had--
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120 years of his life, all his
resources went into the boat.
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People thought he was crazy.
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Well, how did they
ever know he wasn't crazy?
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>>Well, when the rain came.
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>>Well, right before that,
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there was one little final
chance of deliverance and mercy
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that--when the ark was finished
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and Noah was
giving his last sermon.
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And then
something amazing happened.
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Animals and birds came
from all directions in order,
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by sevens and by twos,
into the ark with no one,
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no sheepdogs barking at
their heels or anything,
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coming in automatically.
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Anyone with a lick of
sense would've recognized
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that God was doing this.
But nobody changed their mind
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because you can't just think,
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"Well, I'm gonna live for
the world most of my life,
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and then when I get
through, I'll turn to God."
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That's not gonna happen.
The decisions we make now--
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now is called the day
of salvation, of course.
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So in Noah's case, he had
to change his life completely.
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His life was enduring
the ridicule, the laughter of
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people. They
thought he was crazy,
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but he saved
himself and his family.
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Sometimes I say he only
saved himself and his family.
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But listen carefully: He
saved himself and his family.
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Would that be
enough for most of us?
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That's an incredible story.
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Noah could have
spent time and resources
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building a home for himself
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but instead
decided to do that for God,
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120 years of his life.
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Now, the interesting
thing is we're talking today--
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and I don't wanna
make too much fun of this--
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but we're talking
about following the science
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and many things
in the world today.
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The scientists told
people that it couldn't rain
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and the boat wouldn't
float and all that kinda thing.
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And my question of
those skeptics were,
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how many scientists
got on board the ark?
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How many saved themselves?
How many saved their families?
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We have to understand that
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God's not in the
business of saving multitudes--
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He's--individuals,
saving individuals,
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and that's all of us together.
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As individuals,
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we're looking for
God's guidance in our lives.
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>>So Noah made that
decision to believe God
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and to get on the ark.
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What was it that you
think Noah possessed?
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What did he have? What
did he do that allowed him
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to be able to make that
decision when other people,
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well, the vast majority, didn't?
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What was it that motivated Noah
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to move in the right direction?
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>>A good question
because it's gotta be something,
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doesn't it? Would you like to
save yourself and your family?
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Then this is what the plan
is. That's what God told him,
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so he decided he
wanted to do that,
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and so he chose God by faith.
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He knew it had
never rained before.
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He knew that big
boat wasn't gonna be,
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you know, way up on dry land,
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would never float down
to the river on its own.
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But he had to make a decision.
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Is he gonna follow the voice
of God? This is another thing,
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is when you read the
Bible on a regular basis,
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you hear the voice of God
speaking to you and your family.
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So if you don't read the Bible,
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you don't know God's voice
when He comes to you like that.
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It's hard to know what to
do, but he knew what to do.
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And we'll even find in two
other stories in this lesson
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important
lessons about what to do
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when you hear God's voice.
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>>You know, speaking of stories
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to know what to do
when you hear God's voice,
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Monday's lesson is about Abram,
the father of the faithful.
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Abram knew God's voice,
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and God's voice
told him to do something
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that went against
conventional wisdom--
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I guess we'll put it that way.
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How did Abram--what motivated
him to leave his homeland,
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to move to a foreign country,
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to live in a tent
for the rest of his life?
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Why would he make
such a life-changing,
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life-altering decision?
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>>That's a very
good question as well.
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This man knew the voice of God.
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Who among us or
who of our friends
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would just sell
everything they have
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or pack up what
they could haul away
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and leave their
friends and family
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and their resources behind
and go to a foreign country?
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Well, he did that.
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And I'm gonna give
you the answer right now.
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The reason he did
it, because he knew--
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he looked for a
city whose foundations
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and "[building]...maker is
God," a city with foundations.
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This is an amazing story because
the only city in the Bible
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that has given the
dimensions of its foundations
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and the building materials
is the great New Jerusalem.
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He saw that in his mind.
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And so he was
willing to leave everything,
00:08:37.11\00:08:39.71
sacrifice his life,
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live in a tent
the rest of his life.
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The family also lived in a tent.
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And, Eric, this is
the most amazing thing.
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He did not enjoy
it and didn't get it.
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It wasn't satisfied
to him in his lifetime.
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He just looked in faith
that it would happen sometime.
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>>So, throughout his life,
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he never got to see the
realization of what it was
00:08:54.20\00:08:57.50
that God had promised him.
00:08:57.50\00:08:59.47
But he was willing to
go, not just partway in,
00:08:59.47\00:09:03.51
but really all
in, in this endeavor.
00:09:03.51\00:09:06.94
A lesson there for us maybe?
00:09:06.94\00:09:08.24
>>Yes, indeed.
Something interesting is that
00:09:08.24\00:09:11.18
when we talk about rewards
in the last week of the quarter,
00:09:11.18\00:09:13.42
we'll talk
about eternal rewards,
00:09:13.42\00:09:15.78
but there's rewards
in this life as well.
00:09:15.78\00:09:18.22
Most people don't realize this,
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but in the 18th
chapter of Genesis,
00:09:19.29\00:09:22.19
the Lord Himself and two
angels came down from heaven
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because they were
gonna investigate.
00:09:24.23\00:09:25.76
This is part of the
investigative judgment of Sodom,
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as you may remember.
00:09:27.56\00:09:29.36
And it's interesting
that this man living in a tent
00:09:29.36\00:09:32.90
was able to host Jesus
Christ and two angels for supper
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and wash their feet.
This is amazing to me.
00:09:36.77\00:09:39.61
>>So, part of his blessing,
00:09:39.61\00:09:41.98
he didn't realize the
ultimate end of it in his life,
00:09:41.98\00:09:46.31
but he did get to experience
00:09:46.31\00:09:47.75
some really
incredible experiences
00:09:47.75\00:09:50.82
that he wouldn't
have been able to
00:09:50.82\00:09:52.12
if he hadn't made that decision
to follow God completely.
00:09:52.12\00:09:56.06
Can you think of any other
blessings that Abram experienced
00:09:56.06\00:09:59.09
or saw or had or was
able to benefit from?
00:09:59.09\00:10:03.80
>>Sure. Apparently he
conversed with God regularly.
00:10:03.80\00:10:06.00
And one time God told him to,
00:10:06.00\00:10:07.34
"Step outside tonight
and look up at the stars."
00:10:07.34\00:10:10.01
And, you know,
00:10:10.01\00:10:11.37
most of us around a lot
of ambient light nowadays,
00:10:11.37\00:10:12.74
so we don't see the Milky
Way and all the beautiful stars
00:10:12.74\00:10:14.44
unless we live in
someplace up in the mountains
00:10:14.44\00:10:15.91
or something.
00:10:15.91\00:10:16.98
But he looked up
there, and God said to him,
00:10:16.98\00:10:19.41
"See all these stars?
00:10:19.41\00:10:20.78
Your descendants are
gonna be like these children."
00:10:20.78\00:10:23.42
Really interesting,
00:10:23.42\00:10:24.79
(laughs) when He came to
him on the 18th chapter--
00:10:24.79\00:10:26.69
first of all, when God
and the two angels came,
00:10:27.79\00:10:30.49
He was disguised at first.
00:10:30.49\00:10:32.43
He was just dressed as a man.
00:10:32.43\00:10:34.20
And so He said, "Well, tell
me a little bit about yourself."
00:10:34.20\00:10:37.07
He did that to Abram.
00:10:37.07\00:10:38.33
"Well, it's just
me and my wife here,
00:10:38.33\00:10:40.24
but God's promised us that
we're gonna have children."
00:10:40.24\00:10:42.20
God said, "Oh really?
How many do you have now?"
00:10:42.20\00:10:44.07
"None." "How old are you?"
00:10:44.07\00:10:45.21
"Well, I'm 99. I'm almost 100."
00:10:45.21\00:10:47.31
Then He said,
00:10:47.31\00:10:48.78
"About this time next
year"--this is Genesis 18--
00:10:48.78\00:10:51.38
"your wife is gonna
have a new baby boy."
00:10:51.38\00:10:53.75
And Sarah wasn't visible,
she was inside the tent,
00:10:53.75\00:10:56.18
but she laughed in her heart.
00:10:56.18\00:10:58.02
That's what the Bible
says. She laughed in her heart.
00:10:58.02\00:10:59.95
And God said,
"Why did Sarah laugh?"
00:10:59.95\00:11:01.99
"But I didn't laugh."
00:11:01.99\00:11:03.09
It's like being at a
funeral or something;
00:11:03.09\00:11:04.49
you don't wanna
laugh right out loud,
00:11:04.49\00:11:05.89
but you laugh in your heart
if you think of something funny.
00:11:05.89\00:11:07.73
So she thought, "This is
never gonna happen to me."
00:11:07.73\00:11:10.40
But God said,
"About this time next year,
00:11:10.40\00:11:11.60
you'll have a
bouncing baby boy."
00:11:11.60\00:11:13.17
So he had the
promise of God for a child,
00:11:13.17\00:11:15.57
only one child--not
star-like, but you remember
00:11:15.57\00:11:17.97
it's incredible what God can do
00:11:17.97\00:11:19.47
with the faith of
individual people.
00:11:19.47\00:11:23.11
>>So he started
with that one child,
00:11:23.11\00:11:25.41
and down through
the years, you know,
00:11:25.41\00:11:28.22
here we are today where
God has His faithful children
00:11:28.22\00:11:31.89
really all around the world.
00:11:31.89\00:11:33.76
>>In the millions.
00:11:33.76\00:11:35.12
>>In the millions, easily in
the millions. It's incredible.
00:11:35.12\00:11:38.13
When God makes a promise,
He will keep His end of it.
00:11:38.13\00:11:41.96
We just have to decide
00:11:41.96\00:11:43.23
whether we want to
keep our end of it.
00:11:43.23\00:11:44.77
And that's something
that we've already looked at
00:11:44.77\00:11:46.63
this quarter. So the story
of Abram is a powerful one.
00:11:46.63\00:11:50.34
The story of Noah
is a powerful one.
00:11:50.34\00:11:53.11
And if you wanna
continue learning more about
00:11:53.11\00:11:56.71
some of these stories,
00:11:56.71\00:11:58.11
there's, of course,
the Bible study lesson
00:11:58.11\00:12:00.72
that we're going through,
00:12:00.72\00:12:01.72
this quarter's
Sabbath school lesson.
00:12:01.72\00:12:03.32
You can get a
great deal from that.
00:12:03.32\00:12:05.19
But if you want
to hear more stories,
00:12:05.19\00:12:07.49
gain more insight into
this particular subject,
00:12:07.49\00:12:12.33
get a better grasp of it,
maybe increase your faith,
00:12:12.33\00:12:16.06
strengthen your
faith in moving forward
00:12:16.06\00:12:18.47
and receiving some of
these blessings of God,
00:12:18.47\00:12:20.50
I wanna encourage you to pick up
00:12:20.50\00:12:21.80
a copy of the companion book
00:12:21.80\00:12:23.14
to this quarter's
Sabbath school lesson.
00:12:23.14\00:12:25.04
It's called
"Managing for the Master."
00:12:25.04\00:12:26.64
Ed Reid, of course,
is the author of this,
00:12:26.64\00:12:29.01
just as he is the author
of the Sabbath school lesson.
00:12:29.01\00:12:32.08
And if you pick
this up and read it,
00:12:32.08\00:12:33.82
study it, and apply what
you find there to your life,
00:12:33.82\00:12:37.59
you're going to find
that in incredible ways,
00:12:37.59\00:12:39.62
God blesses you in ways
00:12:39.62\00:12:40.92
that you have
never experienced before.
00:12:40.92\00:12:43.66
And if you wanna pick this up,
00:12:43.66\00:12:44.59
it's very easy to do so.
00:12:44.59\00:12:46.03
Just go to itiswritten.shop.
00:12:46.03\00:12:48.93
Again, that's itiswritten.shop.
00:12:48.93\00:12:51.40
And you can search for
"Managing for the Master"
00:12:51.40\00:12:54.30
by G. Edward Reid.
00:12:54.30\00:12:56.77
Pick that up and you will
gain some additional insights.
00:12:56.77\00:12:59.57
We aren't done yet, we still
have some more to go this week,
00:12:59.57\00:13:02.48
and I wanna encourage you
00:13:02.48\00:13:03.58
that we still have
about six more weeks to go.
00:13:03.58\00:13:06.25
So if you're just coming
across this program this week,
00:13:06.25\00:13:08.85
it's not a standalone program.
00:13:08.85\00:13:10.72
If you wanna see how God
can bless you in your finances
00:13:10.72\00:13:13.86
and fix some things that
where maybe there are problems
00:13:13.86\00:13:16.69
or you're
wondering how to invest
00:13:16.69\00:13:18.13
or you're wondering
how to get rid of debt
00:13:18.13\00:13:19.76
or you're wondering whatever
it has to do with finances,
00:13:19.76\00:13:23.00
you're in the right place.
00:13:23.00\00:13:24.33
We're gonna come
back in just a few moments
00:13:24.33\00:13:26.23
as we continue
looking at this subject of
00:13:26.23\00:13:28.50
"Laying Up Treasures
in Heaven." Stay with us.
00:13:28.50\00:13:31.87
(theme music swells and ends)
00:13:31.87\00:13:34.94
>>[John Bradshaw]
There's something placed by God
00:13:36.75\00:13:38.75
inside the human
heart: a yearning to be free.
00:13:38.75\00:13:42.62
(pen scratching)
00:13:42.62\00:13:43.92
And the actions of
some went beyond the page
00:13:43.92\00:13:47.19
and the lecture hall
00:13:47.19\00:13:48.96
to the tracks of
something that became known as
00:13:48.96\00:13:52.13
the Underground Railroad.
00:13:52.13\00:13:54.00
[America Wilson
singing] ¤ Steal away ¤
00:13:55.26\00:13:59.30
¤ Steal away, ¤
00:13:59.30\00:14:02.70
¤ steal away ¤
00:14:02.70\00:14:05.24
¤ to Jesus. ¤
00:14:05.24\00:14:10.31
¤ Steal away, ¤
00:14:10.88\00:14:13.25
(crickets chirping)
00:14:13.25\00:14:14.38
¤ steal away home. ¤
00:14:14.38\00:14:19.45
¤ I ain't got long ¤
00:14:20.16\00:14:23.86
¤ to stay here ¤
00:14:23.86\00:14:28.40
>>[Announcer]
Watch "Midnight to Dawn"
00:14:28.40\00:14:30.30
on itiswritten.tv.
00:14:30.30\00:14:33.13
(victorious
orchestral theme music)
00:14:36.71\00:14:41.28
>>Welcome back
to "Sabbath School,"
00:14:41.28\00:14:42.84
brought to you by It Is Written.
00:14:42.84\00:14:44.45
We're continuing here
with lesson number six,
00:14:44.45\00:14:47.05
"Laying Up Treasures in Heaven."
00:14:47.05\00:14:49.55
Wanna jump to
Tuesday's lesson, Ed.
00:14:49.55\00:14:51.69
It talks about
Lot's bad decisions.
00:14:51.69\00:14:54.92
We've looked at some
good decisions that Noah made,
00:14:54.92\00:14:57.49
that Abram made, and
now we come to Lot's--
00:14:57.49\00:15:00.70
or, pardon me, to
Abram's nephew, Lot.
00:15:00.70\00:15:03.57
And typically when
we think about Lot,
00:15:03.57\00:15:05.37
we don't list
him among the people
00:15:05.37\00:15:07.70
who made very wise decisions.
00:15:07.70\00:15:10.91
What can we learn
from the story of Lot?
00:15:10.91\00:15:14.14
>>It's a very interesting story
00:15:14.14\00:15:15.54
because God always
does what He says He'll do.
00:15:15.54\00:15:18.88
In the call of Abraham
in chapter 12 of Genesis,
00:15:18.88\00:15:20.98
He says, "I'm gonna bless
you and make a great nation.
00:15:20.98\00:15:22.72
I'll bless everybody that
associates with you," and so on.
00:15:22.72\00:15:25.15
So Lot--give him
credit for this--
00:15:25.15\00:15:27.66
made a decision
to follow with Abram.
00:15:27.66\00:15:29.62
And God did what
He said He could do,
00:15:29.62\00:15:30.93
'cause in the 13th
chapter of Genesis, it says
00:15:30.93\00:15:34.36
Abraham was very rich
in livestock and silver
00:15:34.36\00:15:36.16
and gold and so on,
00:15:36.16\00:15:37.27
and Lot also had
tents and herds and so on.
00:15:37.27\00:15:39.40
And God blessed him too.
00:15:39.40\00:15:41.14
Finally, they had to go.
00:15:41.14\00:15:42.90
They had so many livestock
00:15:44.84\00:15:46.21
they couldn't
live close together.
00:15:46.21\00:15:47.31
So Abram came to Lot and said,
00:15:47.31\00:15:48.71
"Listen, our
shepherds are arguing.
00:15:48.71\00:15:50.51
We need to move away from each
other. Where do you wanna go?
00:15:50.51\00:15:52.71
You choose first."
00:15:52.71\00:15:53.98
Well, Lot's bad
decision was he chose first.
00:15:53.98\00:15:56.65
He should have said,
00:15:56.65\00:15:57.75
"Well, Abraham,
you're the senior man here.
00:15:57.75\00:15:59.09
You choose first, and
I'll take the other one."
00:15:59.09\00:16:00.99
But instead he said, "There's
a beautiful valley over here,
00:16:00.99\00:16:02.66
and the river runs
through it. I'll go that way."
00:16:02.66\00:16:05.36
So he was a wealthy
man; remember this now.
00:16:05.36\00:16:08.60
The last verse
in the chapter 13 is
00:16:08.60\00:16:11.23
he pitched his
tent--where? Towards Sodom.
00:16:11.23\00:16:14.57
The next chapter
has him living in Sodom.
00:16:14.57\00:16:17.01
People like to go to
cities for being near the mall
00:16:17.01\00:16:19.91
and all the conveniences
of the stores and stuff.
00:16:19.91\00:16:23.01
But he lost his family
as a result, as you know.
00:16:23.01\00:16:25.61
A real
interesting situation. He--
00:16:25.61\00:16:28.65
some good choices that he
made is he had joined Abraham,
00:16:28.65\00:16:31.62
and he also welcomed
the angels to his house
00:16:31.62\00:16:33.56
when he was down in Sodom.
00:16:33.56\00:16:35.96
Bad choices:
00:16:35.96\00:16:37.36
He chose the best land
for himself, kind of selfish,
00:16:37.36\00:16:39.86
moved his family into
Sodom, a city with foundations.
00:16:39.86\00:16:42.43
So his city with
foundations is Sodom,
00:16:42.43\00:16:44.20
not the great New Jerusalem.
He delayed in leaving Sodom,
00:16:44.20\00:16:48.34
and he argued with God
about fleeing to the mountains.
00:16:48.34\00:16:50.64
So we're gonna
look and talk about
00:16:50.64\00:16:51.97
some of these things
that are very interesting.
00:16:51.97\00:16:54.11
However easily Lot could
have justified his decision
00:16:54.11\00:16:56.38
to move into the city,
00:16:56.38\00:16:57.85
it has eternal and life-changing
consequences for him.
00:16:57.85\00:17:00.98
There was a time
when three Elamite kings
00:17:02.08\00:17:04.35
ransacked Sodom and took
Lot and his family captive.
00:17:04.35\00:17:07.46
When Abraham heard
about what happened to Lot,
00:17:07.46\00:17:09.72
what could he have
said? What would we say today?
00:17:09.72\00:17:12.53
>>Is, "Aw, that's too bad."
00:17:12.53\00:17:13.90
>>"Well, sure, too bad.
You chose to live down there."
00:17:13.90\00:17:15.23
We have a expression
here in the South that says,
00:17:15.23\00:17:17.00
"He made his bed;
let him sleep in it."
00:17:17.00\00:17:19.10
But instead, he armed himself.
00:17:19.10\00:17:20.70
By the way, Abraham
was so rich at this time
00:17:20.70\00:17:22.84
that he had his
own trained army,
00:17:22.84\00:17:24.47
318 people in his own household
00:17:24.47\00:17:26.34
that were trained
servants as fighters.
00:17:26.34\00:17:28.68
So he joined a
couple of his friends
00:17:28.68\00:17:30.05
and they went and ransacked;
they rescued the hostages,
00:17:30.05\00:17:33.18
got all the money back
00:17:33.18\00:17:34.28
that they took out
of Sodom and Gomorrah,
00:17:34.28\00:17:35.65
all the hostages back, and
so on, very interesting story.
00:17:35.65\00:17:39.55
But here's the sad
part, another bad decision.
00:17:39.55\00:17:41.89
Guess what Lot did? He
moved right back into Sodom.
00:17:41.89\00:17:46.06
When don't we learn?
These are bad situations.
00:17:46.06\00:17:49.36
Sometimes in
our quest for stuff,
00:17:49.36\00:17:50.63
we don't learn the lessons well.
00:17:50.63\00:17:52.27
God sent messages of
warning to Lot, of course--
00:17:52.27\00:17:54.24
but something
interesting--and his family,
00:17:54.24\00:17:56.57
letting them know about
the pending destruction.
00:17:56.57\00:17:58.94
God and two angels--
00:17:59.71\00:18:01.08
this is, to me, interesting
because remember that
00:18:01.08\00:18:03.88
our small decisions
make up to bigger decisions.
00:18:03.88\00:18:06.15
And if you make decisions
about--some people say,
00:18:06.15\00:18:08.98
"Well, you know, I'm too
busy to go to prayer meeting,
00:18:08.98\00:18:10.82
"but when things get bad I'll
start going to prayer meeting
00:18:10.82\00:18:12.52
and change my
life a little bit."
00:18:12.52\00:18:14.09
But you don't make
decisions like that
00:18:14.09\00:18:15.42
in just the spur of a moment.
00:18:15.42\00:18:17.23
Lot was sitting
at the city gate,
00:18:17.23\00:18:19.56
which means that he was a
man of distinction in Sodom.
00:18:19.56\00:18:22.10
When the two angels came--
00:18:22.10\00:18:23.70
you remember the two
angels had been with God,
00:18:23.70\00:18:26.17
and God sent them on
to warn the city of Sodom.
00:18:26.17\00:18:30.57
It's really sad that...
00:18:30.57\00:18:33.01
Abraham had to
argue with God about--
00:18:33.01\00:18:34.74
or he bargained with God--
00:18:34.74\00:18:35.74
this is another
bargain situation, Eric,
00:18:35.74\00:18:37.71
where he bargained with
God about, "You wouldn't do it.
00:18:37.71\00:18:39.91
"Wouldn't destroy good people
with bad people, would you?
00:18:39.91\00:18:41.62
Would not the God of
all the earth do right?"
00:18:41.62\00:18:43.18
So he says, "What if there
were 50 good guys down there?"
00:18:43.18\00:18:46.12
And God said, "Well, for the
sake of 50 I wouldn't do it."
00:18:46.12\00:18:48.72
And then another
interesting thing happened.
00:18:48.72\00:18:50.13
He said, "Well, maybe
what if there were five less?"
00:18:50.13\00:18:52.79
And so God did the math
in His head, and He said,
00:18:52.79\00:18:54.83
"For 45 I wouldn't do it." Then
Abraham started asking more.
00:18:54.83\00:18:58.63
And finally he said,
"What if there were only 40?
00:18:58.63\00:19:00.87
"What if there were only
30? What if there were only 20?
00:19:00.87\00:19:02.57
What if there were only 10?"
00:19:02.57\00:19:03.94
God said, "For the sake of
10, I wouldn't destroy it."
00:19:03.94\00:19:05.94
Now, here's something amazing.
00:19:05.94\00:19:07.68
God did not stop granting mercy
00:19:07.68\00:19:09.31
until Abraham stopped asking.
00:19:09.31\00:19:10.65
He probably could have
saved it for three people,
00:19:10.65\00:19:12.05
but he didn't. He stopped at 10.
00:19:12.05\00:19:14.38
Meanwhile the angels
arrived down in Sodom,
00:19:14.38\00:19:16.28
and Lot took them to his house.
00:19:16.28\00:19:19.02
Sodom was such a wicked city
it reminds us some of today.
00:19:19.02\00:19:22.16
But anyway, he entertained
these people in his house.
00:19:22.16\00:19:24.36
And back in those days, of
course, they didn't have CNN
00:19:24.36\00:19:26.93
and television and Fox
News and all that stuff,
00:19:26.93\00:19:29.23
so when strangers came to town,
00:19:29.23\00:19:31.57
you used them for
their information source,
00:19:31.57\00:19:34.24
for your news
information and stuff.
00:19:34.24\00:19:36.54
So they were talking after
supper when all of a sudden,
00:19:36.54\00:19:38.91
some men gathered on
the front porch of his house
00:19:38.91\00:19:41.44
and started banging on the door,
00:19:41.44\00:19:43.18
"Send those men out to us
that we may sodomize them."
00:19:43.18\00:19:46.18
I'll never understand why
00:19:46.18\00:19:47.48
Lot offered his
daughters to these crazy guys,
00:19:47.48\00:19:49.72
but anyway, the angels
smote them with blindness
00:19:49.72\00:19:52.69
so they couldn't
see the door anymore.
00:19:52.69\00:19:54.29
And then they brought back
Lot into the house and said,
00:19:54.29\00:19:56.16
"Listen, we're not
down there as salesman
00:19:56.16\00:19:58.29
"selling Melaleuca or something.
00:19:58.29\00:19:59.59
"We're out here sent
from God telling you that
00:19:59.59\00:20:01.76
tonight's gonna be the last
night on earth for this city."
00:20:01.76\00:20:04.33
Now, what should he do?
00:20:04.33\00:20:05.70
"Do you have anybody
else here?" they said.
00:20:05.70\00:20:07.07
"Go and tell them." So
he went to his sons-in-law
00:20:07.07\00:20:09.57
since some of his
daughters had married off,
00:20:09.57\00:20:11.04
and he went to their
homes, and they said,
00:20:11.04\00:20:12.41
"Dad, what are you
doing here this time of night?
00:20:12.41\00:20:13.74
It's past your bedtime."
00:20:13.74\00:20:15.04
They're up watching
late show, of course.
00:20:15.04\00:20:16.98
But he said to them, "You
guys are not gonna believe this,
00:20:16.98\00:20:20.22
"but there's two
angels at our house right now.
00:20:20.22\00:20:21.75
"And they said if we
leave tonight, we'll be saved.
00:20:21.75\00:20:23.49
Otherwise, we're
gonna get burned up."
00:20:23.49\00:20:25.49
And they laughed at him
and thought he was drunk.
00:20:25.49\00:20:27.46
So he went home and told
the angels, "I'm not leaving.
00:20:27.46\00:20:30.63
The kids won't leave.
I won't leave either."
00:20:30.63\00:20:32.59
The Bible is
very clear about this
00:20:32.59\00:20:33.86
in the 14th chapter of Genesis
00:20:33.86\00:20:35.43
that they'd argued with God
all night with the two angels
00:20:35.43\00:20:37.97
as why they should not leave.
00:20:37.97\00:20:39.20
And finally when
the morning dawned,
00:20:39.20\00:20:40.90
they grabbed ahold of
his hand and his wife's hand
00:20:40.90\00:20:42.54
and his two daughters and
left them down outside the city.
00:20:42.54\00:20:45.17
So they levitated
right over the city wall.
00:20:45.17\00:20:47.38
And it was God who said on
the outside--the Bible says,
00:20:47.38\00:20:49.64
then He said to
them, "Do not look back.
00:20:49.64\00:20:52.65
Flee for your lives."
00:20:52.65\00:20:54.18
Well, then Lot started arguing
with God Himself, who said,
00:20:54.18\00:20:57.95
"Flee to the mountains."
00:20:57.95\00:20:59.72
And, see, God's
standing right beside him,
00:20:59.72\00:21:01.59
the Creator of the universe.
00:21:01.59\00:21:02.96
He said, "If I go up
there, some animal will get me."
00:21:02.96\00:21:04.89
But He said, "Flee to
the mountains. Don't argue."
00:21:04.89\00:21:06.49
And finally he said, "Well,"
00:21:06.49\00:21:09.00
Lot said, "there's this
little city called Zoar;
00:21:09.00\00:21:10.40
let me go over there." So
God let him go over there.
00:21:10.40\00:21:13.87
But his wife looked back
while he was arguing with God
00:21:13.87\00:21:15.54
and became a
pillar of salt forever,
00:21:15.54\00:21:17.64
really a sad situation.
00:21:17.64\00:21:18.97
So Lot made a bad
decision of moving into a city.
00:21:18.97\00:21:22.38
A wealthy man, how much
did he have when he came out?
00:21:22.38\00:21:25.25
>>He had nothing but--
00:21:26.11\00:21:27.75
>>Clothes on his back.
>>Some of his children,
00:21:27.75\00:21:29.12
that's it. >>Two children
00:21:29.12\00:21:30.22
and the clothes on his
back. That's all he had.
00:21:30.22\00:21:32.05
And then, of course,
they became the Moabites
00:21:32.05\00:21:33.56
and the Ammonites
as well, sad situation.
00:21:33.56\00:21:36.89
>>So he made the
decision to move toward the city
00:21:36.89\00:21:40.03
and eventually into the city,
00:21:40.03\00:21:41.96
and that had an impact on
the worldview of his family,
00:21:41.96\00:21:46.94
his wife, most certainly.
00:21:46.94\00:21:48.44
She looked back, and evidently
she had some things there.
00:21:48.44\00:21:52.04
She had a home
there; she had possessions;
00:21:52.04\00:21:53.58
she had things
on earth-- >>Right.
00:21:53.58\00:21:56.28
>>...that were drawing her back.
00:21:56.28\00:21:57.98
And God tells us to lay
up our treasures in heaven.
00:21:57.98\00:22:01.45
So, an incredible
story of Lot's life.
00:22:01.45\00:22:03.22
What about Jacob? Wednesday
talks about Jacob's story.
00:22:03.22\00:22:07.56
What do we learn from his story?
00:22:07.56\00:22:09.19
>>Well, in this particular case,
00:22:09.19\00:22:09.99
we're gonna look just mainly at
00:22:09.99\00:22:10.79
the first part of Jacob's life.
00:22:10.79\00:22:11.89
But...God had told
Rebecca, his mother,
00:22:11.89\00:22:15.73
that she would--
00:22:15.73\00:22:17.33
that Jacob, the younger
one, would be the leader,
00:22:18.70\00:22:20.90
and the older one would
serve the younger, and so on.
00:22:20.90\00:22:22.54
But she wanted to do it her way.
00:22:22.54\00:22:23.81
So she deceived the
father, and he had to flee--
00:22:23.81\00:22:27.54
Jacob had to flee from home.
00:22:27.54\00:22:29.28
Now, here's
something interesting;
00:22:29.28\00:22:30.35
a lot of people
don't realize this.
00:22:30.35\00:22:32.05
But when he fled from
his homeland to Laban,
00:22:32.05\00:22:36.38
his mother said,
"Tarry with him a few days
00:22:36.38\00:22:38.32
"until thy
brother's fury is turned away;
00:22:38.32\00:22:39.69
then I'll send for
you and fetch thee."
00:22:39.69\00:22:42.09
So she thought he
was gonna cool down,
00:22:42.09\00:22:43.43
and he'll be back
shortly. How long was he gone?
00:22:43.43\00:22:46.26
Twenty years. His mother
died before he came back.
00:22:46.26\00:22:49.00
He never saw her face again.
00:22:49.00\00:22:50.83
By the way, interesting
stuff you read in the Bible,
00:22:50.83\00:22:53.27
Abraham and Sarah, Isaac
and Rebecca, and Jacob and Leah
00:22:53.27\00:22:57.41
are all buried in the same
grave, the Cave of Machpelah.
00:22:57.41\00:23:00.51
You remember Rachel
was buried along the way,
00:23:00.51\00:23:02.48
but this is a kind of
an interesting situation.
00:23:02.48\00:23:05.25
Twenty years he had to give
up, never saw his face again.
00:23:05.25\00:23:08.32
But something amazing happened.
00:23:08.32\00:23:10.85
When he was
leaving--God is so gracious.
00:23:10.85\00:23:14.66
When he was running the second
day away from home at night,
00:23:16.02\00:23:18.79
he stopped just
all outta breath.
00:23:18.79\00:23:20.20
He was running as hard as
he could go without, you know,
00:23:20.20\00:23:22.46
drinking as much water
as he could and all that.
00:23:22.46\00:23:24.37
He set this big stone
up to hide behind, and...
00:23:24.37\00:23:27.70
when he fell down to sleep,
00:23:27.70\00:23:28.80
I believe he had a
prayer, and he said,
00:23:28.80\00:23:30.17
"God, please let me come
back to my homeland again
00:23:30.17\00:23:32.67
and don't let my
brother find me sleeping."
00:23:32.67\00:23:35.44
And God appeared to him,
00:23:35.44\00:23:36.54
and that's what we
call Jacob's Ladder.
00:23:36.54\00:23:38.61
The Lord appeared to him,
00:23:38.61\00:23:39.71
and the angels
were going up and down
00:23:39.71\00:23:40.82
on this staircase
that led to heaven,
00:23:40.82\00:23:43.05
and God above
was there and says,
00:23:43.05\00:23:44.69
"I am the God of Abraham and
the God of Isaac, your father,
00:23:44.69\00:23:47.89
"and here's what's gonna happen.
00:23:47.89\00:23:49.02
I'll bring you back
to this land again."
00:23:49.02\00:23:51.03
The way this ends, Eric,
00:23:51.03\00:23:52.29
is what I wanna tell
you about this story.
00:23:52.29\00:23:53.66
It's an amazing story.
00:23:53.66\00:23:54.83
Jacob said, "This is
the very house of God.
00:23:56.03\00:23:57.77
I didn't know it."
So he set up the stone
00:23:57.77\00:23:59.63
and made a pillar there and
called it the "House of God."
00:23:59.63\00:24:01.60
But then he said, "Since
You're gonna do all this for me,
00:24:01.60\00:24:04.44
of all You give me, I will
surely give a tenth to You."
00:24:04.44\00:24:06.68
And he said,
00:24:06.68\00:24:08.01
"The Lord will be my God
just like He was Abraham's God
00:24:08.01\00:24:09.84
and Isaac's God." So as a
young man, he made a decision,
00:24:09.84\00:24:12.51
as you had said
earlier, to go all in for God.
00:24:12.51\00:24:15.15
This is very, very interesting.
00:24:15.15\00:24:17.29
Later on when
God was talking about
00:24:17.29\00:24:19.12
our next character, Moses,
00:24:19.12\00:24:20.76
He appeared to him
in the burning bush.
00:24:20.76\00:24:22.09
And you remember that bush
was burning out in the desert,
00:24:22.09\00:24:24.49
and he said--Moses
probably seen bushes burn
00:24:24.49\00:24:26.96
on caught lightning
fires before, but he said,
00:24:26.96\00:24:29.46
"I think I'll turn aside
and see this great sight."
00:24:29.46\00:24:31.43
And a voice came out
of the bush and said,
00:24:31.43\00:24:33.44
"Moses, Moses!" "Here I am."
00:24:33.44\00:24:35.40
"Take your shoes off.
You're on holy ground."
00:24:35.40\00:24:37.64
This is, to me... And
Moses said, "Who are You?"
00:24:37.64\00:24:40.88
"I am the God of
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob."
00:24:40.88\00:24:45.35
From then on, God
always referred to Himself
00:24:45.35\00:24:47.52
as the God of those three
patriarchs, incredible story.
00:24:47.52\00:24:50.69
So, God forgave him
00:24:50.69\00:24:52.39
and brought him back
to his homeland again.
00:24:52.39\00:24:55.02
>>You know, Ed, you
just mentioned Moses
00:24:55.02\00:24:57.23
as the next
individual we're looking at.
00:24:57.23\00:24:58.59
Of course, that's Thursday's
lesson, "Moses in Egypt."
00:24:58.59\00:25:02.00
What was it that set
Moses apart for his greatness?
00:25:02.00\00:25:05.07
Why did God use him
in such an incredible way
00:25:05.07\00:25:08.77
when He didn't choose others?
00:25:08.77\00:25:11.17
>>It's very interesting that
00:25:11.17\00:25:13.11
Moses had such a distinguished
career as a lawgiver
00:25:13.11\00:25:15.54
and so on, Mount Sinai,
receiving the law from God.
00:25:15.54\00:25:18.58
A lot of people
don't realize this,
00:25:18.58\00:25:19.68
but on the gable end
of the U.S. Supreme Court
00:25:19.68\00:25:22.62
on the west--on the east
side of the U.S. Supreme Court,
00:25:22.62\00:25:25.29
in the center,
00:25:25.29\00:25:26.59
right under the high
point of the gable there,
00:25:26.59\00:25:27.69
is Moses sitting
with the Ten Commandments
00:25:27.69\00:25:29.09
on his knees. This is at
the U.S. Supreme Court building
00:25:29.09\00:25:31.96
in the United States.
00:25:31.96\00:25:33.29
So he's recognized worldwide
as something really incredible.
00:25:33.29\00:25:37.50
Moses could have been,
00:25:37.50\00:25:38.77
we understand from the
circumstances and the timing,
00:25:38.77\00:25:41.37
a pharaoh of Egypt
00:25:41.37\00:25:42.47
and all the
treasures of sin for a season.
00:25:42.47\00:25:44.87
Really
interesting, had he chosen that,
00:25:44.87\00:25:46.78
he would probably be a
mummy in the Cairo Museum today.
00:25:46.78\00:25:50.88
Instead he chose to go
suffer with God's people.
00:25:50.88\00:25:53.38
And though this is called
delayed gratification, Eric,
00:25:53.38\00:25:55.72
where you put off what
you could, would like to get
00:25:55.72\00:25:59.05
for a period of time,
00:25:59.05\00:26:01.66
anyway, we know
he's been taken to heaven
00:26:01.66\00:26:04.16
because he was with God on
the Mount of Transfiguration,
00:26:04.16\00:26:07.30
a very interesting story.
00:26:07.30\00:26:08.63
In Stephen's sermon in
Acts 7, verse 22, it says,
00:26:08.63\00:26:13.20
"Moses was learned in...the
wisdom of the Egyptians,
00:26:13.20\00:26:15.10
...[he] was mighty
in words and deeds."
00:26:15.10\00:26:16.44
So he was a scholar of Egyptian
leadership and all of that,
00:26:16.44\00:26:19.41
but he chose to
suffer with God's people.
00:26:19.41\00:26:21.38
And then
because he had his faith
00:26:21.38\00:26:22.68
on the reward that's coming.
00:26:22.68\00:26:24.88
>>So he was raised with
a phenomenal upbringing,
00:26:24.88\00:26:29.58
opportunities,
experience, education,
00:26:29.58\00:26:32.45
but ultimately he
turned his back on all that
00:26:32.45\00:26:34.36
for something eternal. It's
an incredible picture, isn't it?
00:26:34.36\00:26:37.73
>>He must have developed some
kind of relationship with God
00:26:37.73\00:26:39.79
because it's interesting
00:26:39.79\00:26:41.13
that he spent only 12
years with his mother--
00:26:41.13\00:26:43.06
praise the Lord for
that--but he never forgot that
00:26:43.06\00:26:46.67
and still thought
of them as his people.
00:26:46.67\00:26:49.07
>>So it made an
incredible impact on his life,
00:26:49.07\00:26:51.31
one that we are still
benefiting from today.
00:26:51.31\00:26:54.91
So this week we've looked at
laying up treasures in heaven.
00:26:54.91\00:26:58.78
Ultimately that's
what God wants us to do.
00:26:58.78\00:27:00.72
The world around
you is geared toward,
00:27:00.72\00:27:04.52
well, trying to encourage
you to get everything outta life
00:27:04.52\00:27:06.76
that you can right now.
00:27:06.76\00:27:08.39
And while there are
certainly some things
00:27:08.39\00:27:10.53
that we can enjoy
in life right now,
00:27:10.53\00:27:12.03
ultimately the bigger prize,
00:27:12.03\00:27:14.20
if we wanna call
it that, is eternity.
00:27:14.20\00:27:16.90
And if we can focus our
sights less horizontally
00:27:16.90\00:27:20.27
and more vertically, we are
much more likely to experience
00:27:20.27\00:27:24.64
all the blessings
that God has for us.
00:27:24.64\00:27:27.34
We're going to
continue next week
00:27:27.34\00:27:28.71
on our journey
through this quarter's study,
00:27:28.71\00:27:31.35
"Managing for the
Master Till He Comes."
00:27:31.35\00:27:34.45
Until that time, pick
up the companion book,
00:27:34.45\00:27:37.05
if you haven't done already,
00:27:37.05\00:27:38.15
invite others to watch
these programs as well,
00:27:38.15\00:27:40.72
and we will look
forward to seeing you next week
00:27:40.72\00:27:43.06
here on "Sabbath School,"
00:27:43.06\00:27:44.29
brought to you by It Is Written.
00:27:44.29\00:27:46.13
God bless you.
See you next time.
00:27:46.13\00:27:47.93
(relaxing
orchestral theme music)
00:27:47.93\00:27:51.47
(music ends)
00:28:27.27\00:28:29.44