Participants:
Series Code: NP
Program Code: NP170107A
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00:08 >> We invite you to join your voices with us as we lift up and 00:12 praise our Lord. We're gonna start with 00:14 "He Is Exalted." [ "He Is Exalted" plays ] 00:28 [ Congregation sings ] 02:17 Amen. [ "Shout to the Lord" plays ] 02:31 [ Congregation sings ] 05:38 >> ♪ Nothing compares to the promise I have ♪ 05:44 ♪ Oh, nothing compares to the promise I have in You ♪ 05:56 >> Amen. And that's the message I think God is trying to give us -- that 06:01 nothing compares to what He gives us. Everything else is counterfeit. 06:07 Everything else is counterfeit. Jesus is the only real thing, and He offers us truth -- truth. 06:15 So, right now I'm gonna invite you to stand with us now as we sing to our amazing God. 06:21 We're going to lift our voice, talking about this great, amazing God. 06:26 And if you have a special prayer request or a special praise for 2017, we invite you to come 06:32 forward as we sing. But please join us and stand now as we sing to our God. 06:38 [ "How Great Is Our God" plays ] 06:47 [ Congregation sings ] 10:08 [ "How Great Thou Art" plays ] [ Congregation sings ] 12:42 >> Well, good morning, boys and girls. A blessed first Sabbath of the 12:49 new year to you. What is this -- 2-0-1-7? Is that it? 12:53 >> Yep. >> 2017, the first Sabbath. You know, when I saw the 12:58 thermometer this morning -- 10 degrees -- I said, "Oh, there won't be a boy or girl in church 13:02 today. I'll be all alone." But thank you for coming out. 13:05 Okay, so, today's story is about Durkee. Durkee received a beautiful pair 13:12 of red shoes from his parents. Anybody here got red shoes on? >> No. 13:19 >> When he opened the -- When he opened the package, here were these red shoes. 13:23 They fit perfectly. And his mother and father said, "Now, Durkee, these are your 13:27 Sabbath red shoes. You only wear these red shoes on Sabbath. 13:34 Do you understand that?" "Well, of course I understand it. 13:37 But, boy, I can hardly wait to go to church with these red shoes." 13:40 And that's what Durkee did that first Sabbath. And then the second Sabbath, 13:44 he wore them again. And then the next week, his little friend Morrie came over. 13:50 "Hey, Morrie, come here. I got to show you something. Take a look at these." 13:52 And Durkee went into the closet, and he said, "Look at those shoes. 13:58 Wow! You want to see them on me?" "Yeah, I do." 14:00 "Okay." He put them on. He put his little red shoes, Sabbath red shoes on. 14:03 He said, "Ta-da! How do you like them? Pretty cool, huh?" 14:08 "Yeah." So, the boys fell into conversation, and about, you 14:11 know, a half-hour later, Morrie said, "You know what? It's great weather. 14:14 Let's go outside and play. Let's do it." And -- boom! -- they're gone. 14:17 They're through the hedge, through the hedge, out to the farm fields. 14:22 Durkee has forgotten all about his red Sabbath shoes. And the farmers had just plowed 14:29 up the field, so as those boys were playing tag -- "You're it!" "No, me!" 14:33 "You, you, you!" As they're racing back and forth, guess what's happening 14:36 to the red shoes. And after an hour or so goes by, Durkee says, "You know what? 14:41 I probably ought to go home, Morrie." And he happened to look down. 14:47 "Uh...uh-oh! Where are my red shoes?! They're all brown and muddy 14:56 and -- Oh, no. Morrie, what am I gonna do? I'll tell you what -- I'm gonna 14:59 sneak through the hedge. I'm gonna sneak through the hedge. 15:01 I'll get back into the house. You go home. Bye-bye. We'll play again." 15:05 And Durkee -- now his heart is just beating. His little palms are turning 15:09 sweaty. He said, "What am I gonna do? I can't let Mother see me. 15:12 I can't let Father see me. So I'll shoot through the hedge. I'll go through the back door." 15:17 So, he came crawling through the hedge, he shot into the yard, and just as he did -- 15:21 "Hey, Durkee, there you are." It was his dad. His dad was out front of the 15:27 house with his camera on a tripod, and he was taking pictures of the house. 15:31 He said, "This is perfect," Daddy did. "Durkee, come here. 15:35 I want you and me to be in this picture together." And Durkee gulped, trying to 15:41 hide his covered, muddy shoes as he came over to his daddy. His daddy just smiled. 15:49 He said, "Sit down here, son. Sit down here. I'll get right beside you." 15:53 And his daddy had this big smile on his face. How do you think Durkee's smile 15:58 was? Very weak. The camera went -- [ Imitates 16:03 camera shutter clicking ] And that's all the camera took because what happened next 16:09 should not be on any camera. 16:17 Papa looked down. "Durkee, are those your red Sabbath shoes?!" 16:28 [ Imitating crying ] "Yes, Daddy. I didn't mean to do it. 16:30 I don't know what I was doing. I went out with Morrie. We were playing. 16:34 I just ran out. Oh, Daddy." [ Sighs ] 16:42 Do you think Durkee's mother was happy? Was she sad? 16:50 Yeah, but do you think Durkee's mother forgave him? Why did she forgive him? 16:55 Because she loved him with all her heart. You know, that picture was a 17:03 black-and-white picture. I still look at it. I look at it, and I see my daddy 17:08 there with that big grin on his face and I'm looking at my smile and it is pitiful because I knew 17:15 what was gonna happen next. And it happened. Hey, do you have a mother? 17:22 Oh, you have a mother? Does mother want you to obey her -- yes or no? 17:28 >> Yes! >> Oh. Do you obey mother? Of course. 17:31 Why do you obey mother? Because you love your mother. Do you know why you love your 17:35 mother? Because your mother first loved you. 17:38 She loved you first, and now you love her back. And you love her with all your 17:42 heart, and that's what I want you to do today. I want you to go back to the pew 17:45 if your mother's here in church with you and I want you to put your arms around Mommy's neck 17:49 and I want you to just give her a big hug. And then I want you to whisper 17:52 in her ear, "Mother, I love you." Because Jesus is like a mother, 17:58 the Bible says, and He loves us just like a mother loves us. And Jesus -- one day we'll be 18:03 able to put our arms around his neck and say, "Jesus, I love you." 18:08 You forgave me and loved me through it all. [ Chuckles ] 18:13 Who would like to thank Jesus for our mothers today on the first Sabbath of this new year? 18:19 Young man, I'm gonna call on you. Come on here. 18:22 Nice to have you on the front row. What's your first name? 18:26 >> Kudzanai. >> Kudzanai. We're gonna bow our heads with 18:29 Kudzanai as he prays. And he's gonna thank Jesus for our mothers. 18:34 >> Thank you, Jesus, for this wonderful day. And bless us to be good boys and 18:39 girls. In Jesus' -- >> "Thank you for our mothers." 18:42 >> And thank you for our mothers. In Jesus' name. Amen. 18:45 >> Amen. Kudzanai, beautiful prayer. As you go quietly and reverently 18:49 back to your seats, your mother's love is Jesus' love to you. 18:53 You just give her a big hug for me. Will you do that? 18:56 Find your mother right now with a big hug and kiss. 19:05 ♪♪ >> ♪ If with all your hearts 19:14 ye truly seek me ♪ 19:18 ♪ Ye shall ever surely find me ♪ ♪ Thus saith our God ♪ ♪ If with all your hearts 19:35 ye truly seek me ♪ ♪ Ye shall ever surely find me ♪ ♪ Thus saith our God ♪ 19:48 ♪ Thus saith our God ♪ ♪ Oh, that I knew where I might find Him ♪ 20:01 ♪ That I might even come before His presence ♪ ♪ Oh, that I knew where I might 20:12 find Him ♪ ♪ That I might even come before His presence ♪ 20:21 ♪ Come before His presence ♪ ♪ Oh, that I knew where I might find Him ♪ 20:41 ♪ If with all your hearts ye truly seek me ♪ ♪ Ye shall ever surely find me ♪ 20:58 ♪ Thus saith our God ♪ ♪ Ye shall ever surely find me ♪ 21:12 ♪ Thus saith our God ♪ ♪♪ 21:35 [ Song ends ] 21:41 >> Thank you, Ryan. That was what we needed today, this first Sabbath of a new 21:50 year -- "If with all your hearts, you truly seek me." 21:57 There is no easy way to blurt out that the first woman you 22:09 ever loved in your life, the woman who without question had 22:18 the most formative influence in your life, has died. 22:27 We all knew that Mother would die at some point. 22:33 And when the phone rang on Monday morning and I look at the screen and it's my sister's 22:36 name -- and she's in the Dominican Republic -- and I'm thinking, "This is it." 22:46 And when she starts sobbing... I knew. I just spent three days with Mom 22:58 on her 88th birthday, just before Thanksgiving. And it was just -- Oh, I was 23:04 just thanking God again and again for giving me those three days. 23:09 We talked. Mother's weaker now, and she doesn't -- she's not quite the 23:15 conversationalist she used to be. I finally crawled into bed with 23:20 her so that she wouldn't have to, you know, crank her head, her neck, and just laid there 23:25 right beside her, face to face, pillow to pillow. And I said, "Mom, you remember 23:30 this?" and, "Hey, mom, do you remember this and...?" "Oh, yeah. Yeah." 23:38 I wrote a blog a few days ago as a tribute to my mother -- seven of the great life lessons 23:50 that she taught me. Don't read it now, but I hope you will read it sometime. 23:57 I only wish you could have known her the way I did. I sent a picture in for the 24:04 blog, and Rachelle Offenback, our graphic designer -- she said, "Dwight, I got the 24:09 picture." She said, "It's a beautiful picture of your mother. 24:11 Who's that fat baby she's holding?" [ Laughter ] 24:16 Can you put it on the screen? She said, "Seriously. I don't know who that baby is." 24:21 Well, number one, that's not fat. That's pleasantly plump, okay? 24:24 So let's just get that part straight. [ Laughter ] 24:28 And that is me. Look at that woman. I want you to look at her. 24:34 Do you know what? She was 24 when she gave birth to me -- 24. 24:39 I grew up with a girl as mother. Wow. 88. 24:48 Fell asleep in Jesus. The only reason I'm not out there now -- as I just told you, 24:57 Kari, our littlest sibling, the youngest -- she's a pastor, and her husband is a pastor of the 25:04 beautiful Carmichael Church in Sacramento, California. They took 80 of their church 25:09 members down to the D.R., the Dominican Republic, to build a church out in the jungles, and 25:13 they can't get out until tomorrow. And they're gonna get home 25:16 Monday morning early. And she said, "Dwight, I just -- I can't go Tuesday to have a 25:23 service in Calimesa, California. Nah, we'll wait. So, we'll fly out next week. 25:31 We'll have the service and remember Mother's life." I want to thank you for your 25:39 kind expressions. I guess the word has kind of gotten out, and bless you for 25:43 your kind words and your prayers. You know, the last quote I put 25:49 in the blog -- Let me see. If you look at page five of your worship bulletin, the very last 25:53 quote -- 100 years ago, these words were written. Boy, oh, boy, oh, boy. 26:00 One day in heaven, speaking of that reunion, "Many will raise their crowns in sight of the 26:07 assembled universe and, pointing to their mother, say, 'She made me all I am through the grace of 26:15 God. Her instruction, her prayers, have been blessed to my eternal 26:21 salvation.'" And I'm gonna be at the front of that line. 26:26 And I'm gonna lay the crown down at Jesus' feet and point at my mother and say, "That's why I'm 26:36 here. You heard her prayers." 26:44 I know -- I know my mother's coming up in the resurrection. I know my dad -- and we'll put 26:51 her ashes right besides Dad's. I know Dad is coming up in the resurrection. 26:56 And you know what else I know? I know that you and I are coming up. 27:01 We're gonna go up to meet the Lord in the air by His grace. We have this hope. 27:06 Jesus says, "Because I live, you live also." "Look, I am the resurrection and 27:10 the light. She, who believed in me, though she dies, yet shall she live." 27:16 We got hope. Man, I tell you what, singing "How Great Thou Art" -- that was 27:21 a -- that was -- I can hear my mother -- beautiful contralto voice. 27:27 I want to sing that last stanza. I want to sing just that last stanza -- "When Christ shall 27:31 come with shout of acclamation." If you don't know it -- well, you'll know it. 27:36 And you know the chorus. "Then sings my soul." "When Christ shall come." 27:44 Let's do it. [ "How Great Thou Art" plays ] 27:54 [ Congregation sings ] 28:46 >> ♪ Then sings my soul ♪ ♪ My Savior God to Thee ♪ 28:55 ♪ How great Thou art ♪ ♪ How great Thou art ♪ 29:09 [ Song ends ] Oh, God, one day we will -- we will shout out those words to 29:15 you. We can't quite figure out this life. 29:21 Why do people suffer long? What's up with that? We don't know. 29:34 But somehow that confession is a declaration that, no matter what happens, your love triumphs. 29:47 Your mercy reigns. And we will bow at your feet with our mothers. 30:01 And we will cry out, "How great is our God." Thank you. 30:08 Now we shift gears and... Speak to us. We got to go home, Father. 30:17 We got to go home. This planet is shot. There's a storm coming. 30:27 Repair us. In Jesus' name, amen. It's one of the great storm and sailing stories in Scripture. 30:36 I love it, and so do you. It's been a long and wearying day, and I tell you the truth -- 30:40 Jesus is dog-tired. I mean, we're talking about weary to the bone. 30:49 In fact, He is so tired -- get this -- it's His idea. He turns to His friends, and He 30:57 says, "Hey, guys, we got to get out of here. I am dead on my feet." 31:05 "Desire of Ages" -- "All day Jesus had been teaching and healing, and as evening came 31:10 on, the crowds still pressed upon Him. Day after day He had ministered 31:13 to them --" get this -- "scarcely pausing for food or rest. 31:17 And now the close of the day found Him so utterly wearied that He determined to seek 31:23 retirement in some solitary place across the lake." "Come on, guys. 31:27 Let's get out of here." Open your Bible to Mark chapter 4, this beloved story. 31:34 While you're finding Mark 4, this is a new series. 31:37 It's called "Storm" -- you see it there on the screen -- 31:39 "Finding Jesus in the Gathering Dark," part 1. 31:44 There will be seven parts to this. 31:47 Hope you don't miss a one of them. 31:52 Mark chapter 4. 31:54 There's a study guide, but it's only quotations today. So, those of you watching, if 31:57 you'd like a copy of all the quotations, you can get the study guide right there on our 32:01 livestream. If you're watching on television, you can do the same 32:03 thing. But Mark chapter 4. 32:07 Here comes the story, verse -- Mark chapter 4 -- I'm in the 32:10 NIV -- verse 35. 32:27 And how was He? It says they took Him along as 32:28 He was. How was He? 32:29 He's tired. That's what. 32:31 In fact, no sooner than do they shove off from that rocky -- because that's all it is, the 32:35 beach in Galilee, trust me. As they shove off from that rocky beach, Jesus finds His way 32:42 to the back bench near... the stern. And before you can say 32:50 "Jack Robinson," His head is on that bench, and He's asleep -- not before one of His boys, 32:58 in a gesture of love, shoves across to Him the helmsman's cushion. 33:04 "Sorry, Peter. You don't need it." And with a weary but grateful 33:10 smile on His face, Jesus lays down His head. In deference to their 33:18 slumbering -- shh -- slumbering master, the decibels fall as the men converse into the night. 33:28 Placid Lake Galilee. Just a little poof in the sail, and the skiff sails on... 33:38 when suddenly -- Oh you know this. Verse 37. Suddenly... 33:51 Have you ever -- Seriously. Have you ever been in a storm in which you are absolutely 33:56 convinced you're going down, hmm? Have you ever been through one 33:59 of those humdingers? I was flying with my friend, Melchizedek Ponniah. 34:02 It was our Sabbath School Superintendent Day. We were flying across India one 34:06 night in a very crowded Indian Air flight, so crowded that we had to carry our 34:11 carry-ons on our laps. Yeah. [ Chuckles ] "Wow. We're crowded." 34:18 At 30,000 feet, sheets of white electricity just off either wing tip. 34:27 And every time the lightning explodes in thunder, that plane, in a bubble of turbulence, 34:34 shoots up and drops down to the place. The man beside me's arm is 34:40 turning white because I'm hanging onto him. [ Laughter ] 34:44 You ever done that in a plane, when a plane suddenly -- You just grab instinctively. 34:48 I don't know what there is about it, but you just don't want to 34:50 go down. I can't imagine the adrenaline, 34:54 fear pumping through those hardy, experienced fishermen who 34:57 have done this a thousand times. They know this is different. 35:01 Water is exploding into the boat. 35:03 You've been to the jetty during a storm in St. Joe. 35:07 And you know that when water hits a stationary, flat surface, it explodes. 35:12 And I've seen those waves go over the lighthouse. The water is hitting this skiff 35:16 from -- from the gunwales, and it's just -- [ Imitates water splashing ] 35:19 And the water's all going in. It's all going in. And I remind you, it is 35:23 pitch-black. Above the shrieking gale, it is pitch-black. 35:28 They are drenched like drowned rats, scrambling over each other, everybody desperately 35:34 trying to bail with whatever hand or mechanism they can. This ship is going down, down, 35:40 down. "We're going down!" somebody announces. 35:47 Flash of lightning. And then somebody -- we're not told who. 35:52 Somebody spots Him sound asleep on the back bench. "Desire of Ages." 36:03 Put it on the screen for you. "Absorbed in their efforts to 36:06 save themselves, the disciples had forgotten --" 36:08 Can you believe this? "They had forgotten that Jesus 36:11 was on board." 36:21 Now, there's a New Year's sermon for you, just that one line -- 36:23 "In Jesus is our only hope. In Jesus was their only hope. 36:29 In their helplessness --" Now, that's a key word. 36:31 You're gonna run into that one again. 36:32 "In their helplessness and despair, they cried, 'Master, 36:36 Master!'" 36:41 That is some line -- "They had forgotten that Jesus was on board." 36:45 Hey, come on. What is there about us Earthling Christians, us Earthling 36:50 Adventists, that we are so prone to forget so easily that the Lord is with us. 36:57 Have you noticed? Man. Bailing furiously to save 37:04 ourselves, to save our marriage, to save our finances, to save our church, bailing furiously, 37:11 and we forget He's on board. Why does it take a storm to finally get our attention? 37:25 I wonder sometimes if this story isn't a penetrating morality tale about our church today. 37:30 Consider this scenario -- the church makes a major decision that divides the church. 37:38 People seek to formulate a policy to cure the church of disagreement. 37:43 But while every attempt is made, it is met by further disagreement and debate. 37:48 And all the while, the very church we're so concerned about is slowly going down. 37:54 When will it occur to us that there is no nifty little human-devised solution to that 38:01 which divides us? You can't vote a solution. When will somebody on board this 38:08 struggling skiff remember Jesus and cry out to Him, "Yo, Master"? 38:15 Calling upon God to deliver us, calling upon God to save us, calling upon God to mend us, 38:19 calling upon God to take charge in the fury of the storm we now enter. 38:27 "Desire of Ages" -- "Would somebody please call Jesus?" 38:33 "Desire of Ages" on the screen again -- "In their 38:35 helplessness --" there's that word... 39:10 Apparently, God doesn't always jump to -- "Yes, sir" -- when we 39:15 call. 39:18 Apparently, like a dear and loving mother, He hears it all, of course, but He waits for our 39:24 need to deepen. He waits for our prayer to deepen. 39:27 He waits for our longing to deepen. 39:31 Oh, don't make a -- Make no mistake, please. 39:35 The moment that prayer is prayed -- "Lord, save me, I'm 39:38 perishing" -- it is heard and responded to. 39:41 In fact, this is a "Desire of Ages" line -- "Never did a soul utter that cry" -- 39:45 'Lord, save us, we perish -- "unheated." 39:51 Verse 38 -- "Jesus got up, rebuked the wind, and said to 39:58 the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" The Greek for "be stilled," by 40:02 the way, is "be muzzled." 40:04 He has said that to demons already in the Gospel of Mark. He now speaks to nature and 40:08 says, "Be muzzled." You ever seen a Doberman pinscher that the owners have 40:12 muzzled because the dog bites everybody? Why do you have a dog like that? 40:15 I just don't understand it, but anyway -- So, he's in -- He's got this muzzle. 40:19 He says, "Be muzzled, storm." And -- boom! -- then the wind died down, and it was completely 40:28 calm. This is like a Hollywood set, and somebody has tripped the 40:33 fuse box and everything -- [ Imitates power fading ] It's gone. 40:40 Placid water, clouds disappear, twinkling stars, and the canopy above just like that. 40:50 [ Exhales sharply ] And Jesus now -- He turns to His closest friends. 41:04 Do you suppose He asked us the same question on this cusp of a 41:06 new year? 41:08 I mean, He stands with you and me and He looks back over 2016 and He -- and He asks of you, He 41:13 asks of me, "Why are you so afraid? Do you not have -- Do you still 41:19 have no faith?" Over the holiday, I read a book by Jim Cymbala, thanks to the 41:25 kindness of some friends. Title of the book -- "Storm: Hearing Jesus for the Times We 41:29 Live In." Jim Cymbala is a pastor, happens to pastor the 41:32 Brooklyn Tabernacle Church in New York City. Listen to him bear his soul now. 41:36 His words on the screen. 42:00 You ever seen that little emoji face that's supposed to display embarrassment? 42:05 It's a full-teeth -- full-teeth smile. [ Laughter ] 42:10 "Were you talking about me?" "Yeah, I was talking about you." Full series on prayer? 42:17 When was the last time? Oh. "If we believed His promises." 42:25 "How else can we explain why prayer isn't paramount in our lives and in our churches?" 42:28 we just read. Cymbala goes on. Keep going. 42:41 I mean, come on, guys. Look, if we really believed in 42:44 the power of prayer -- collective prayer I'm talking 42:46 about now, as it demonstrated in the early church in Acts. 42:50 If we really believe that -- are you serious? We would make no room for 42:54 prayer when we're together? Nothing in the middle of the week for everyone who wishes to, 43:01 to come to? Wow. I think you know the answer. 43:08 Keep reading. 43:27 Thank you. Wow! 43:32 One more line. 43:41 I mean, look. Come on. You got to admit, that's a 43:42 little nervy of Cymbala, isn't it? 43:45 What are you suggesting -- that we love the status quo, that we don't think prayer works? 43:48 "Well," he said, "yeah." "The key to prayer that changes things is deep sense of 43:56 inadequacy and a helplessness among God's people." Reminds me of a strikingly 44:00 similar observation that Paul Miller makes in his powerful book, "A Praying Life: 44:05 Connecting With God In A Distracting World." In this chapter, he's saying, 44:09 "Hey, you know what? You got to admit this -- Children do helplessness well." 44:14 Have you noticed that about kids? "Mommy! 44:19 Would you please help me? Please?! Daddy! Daddy! Yo, Daddy! 44:25 Come here! Come here! I need help! I need help! Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!" 44:28 Children do helplessness beautifully. But once we grow up, as Miller 44:32 suggests, we become allergic to helplessness. [ Chuckling nervously ] "I'm 44:38 not -- I don't need help. I need another seminar. I need -- I need -- I need -- I 44:42 need -- I need a good friend who will listen to me. That's what I need." 44:48 "I have an idea. Hey, yo, I got a plan." Yeah, we're allergic to 44:53 helplessness. 44:55 Miller writes -- Now I'll put him on the screen. 44:56 "However," he says, "Look, look, God wants us to come to Him 45:00 empty-handed --" No solution. 45:12 Don't we? "Let me just get this all under 45:14 control. Then I'll come. 45:15 We'll have a chat. Oh, boy. 45:19 "If we think we can do life on our own --" Boy, is he right 45:23 here -- "we will not take prayer seriously." 45:27 This next line I think is rather prescient. 45:37 "It's not me failing to pray. No, no, no, no. 45:39 You know what the problem is? I don't know how to pray. 45:41 No, no, no, no, no. The problem is, I don't have 45:43 enough time. 45:44 Collective prayer, group prayer -- Psch! I don't have -- Do you know how 45:46 busy my life is? Do you know how important I am?" Yeah, it's always an excuse. 45:54 Excuses, by the way, are a dime a dozen, but let us not patronize God with them. 45:58 There's not an excuse for noncompliance with prayer that moves Him at all because you 46:05 know the answer. You have the time. And you know how. 46:14 [ Exhales sharply ] Cymbala keeps going here. No, no, no, this isn't Cymbala. 46:23 Sorry. Miller keeps going here. 46:34 A little something extra I purchased for the same price. 46:38 "That is why --" Oh, I wish he hadn't written this. 46:54 Come on, let's just admit this to each other. Nothing creates so profound a 47:00 sense of helplessness as suffering -- because what is suffering? 47:04 Suffering is something I desperately long to be rid of, but I can't get rid of it. 47:10 Isn't that it? Of course. But listen -- why wait till you suffer? 47:19 Why will till we suffer? May I talk to you about America for a moment and the world? 47:25 I have no idea -- I have no idea where America is headed this year. 47:29 In talking with you, you don't, either. We have no idea where the world 47:35 is headed in 2017, not a one of us. But I do know this -- Come on. 47:41 Think with me for a moment. I do know this -- that we as a race, that we as a nation are 47:46 teetering on a very precarious edge. There's no political solution. 47:51 There's no economic solution to what we're in. I mean, are you catching this? 47:57 Are you sens-- Are you seeing -- I mean, live on Facetime? Live on Facetime, you did that 48:04 to who? For what reason? Guys, the beginning of 2017 is 48:12 nothing like the beginning of 2016. We're not raising the bar. 48:15 We're lowering the bar. It's getting worse. My job is to simply remind you 48:22 of that. Your job is to already recognize it, as you do. 48:26 You don't need me saying a word up here, but that's what I do for a living. 48:31 It's getting worse. Jim Cymbala -- back to Cymbala now. 48:40 "If we look at society today, if we look at the challenge of a 48:44 country becoming more godless by the week --" 48:47 [ Chuckling ] Wow -- "If we look at laws being passed 48:51 that mock any form of morality, instead of lamenting and 48:56 protesting --" and I add wringing our hands -- "wouldn't 48:59 it be better for us to plead with God to visit His people? 49:02 We need to move toward God, and it begins with --" two words -- 49:06 what are those two words? "Desperate prayer." 49:10 Do you know what a desperate prayer is? 49:13 It's a longing for something that you cannot provide for yourself. 49:17 If God does not provide it, you will not possess it. That's a desperate prayer. 49:21 If God does not provide it, you will not possess it 'cause you can't get it. 49:27 That's a desperate prayer. You ever remember a women named Hannah? 49:31 Mm-hmm? Hannah? Prayed desperately for a child for years, right? 49:41 Nothing. Then one day, she's on the back pew of the church -- no kidding. 49:46 She's on the back pew of the church, and she is pleading with God. 49:49 I want you to see the language that the Bible describes for her prayer. 49:53 1 Samuel 1:10 on the screen. 50:01 She's sobbing. She's rocking. She's swaying. 50:04 Her lips are moving in tandem with her soul's desperate 50:06 prayer, but nothing's coming out of her lips. 50:09 She's just in a state of desperation. And the pastor walks by, sees 50:14 this commotion, and he rebukes her. He says, "You are drunk, lady," 50:20 which is no -- which is a -- which is no reflection on her. It is a measure of a pastor for 50:27 whom this sort of passionate, desperate praying is totally foreign. 50:33 How many of us pastors -- How many of us pastors have no clue what is a desperate prayer? 50:40 Like Eli, we occupy positions of leadership and influence, but we have no clue what does a 50:46 desperate prayer mean. We forget that when God was here himself -- do you know how He 50:51 prayed? Hebrews 5:7-8 -- with loud cries and tears, he pleaded. 50:57 That's called a prayer of desperation because the father had what Jesus did not have. 51:02 And He was begging for it. Wow. 51:10 She replies to the pastor rebuking her -- on the screen... 51:26 My friends, that is desperation prayer. 51:30 That is a desperate prayer. And by the way, it's the kind of 51:36 prayer God hears. Oh, He can't turn an ear. 51:40 Hey, have you ever been a parent? 51:43 Have you ever been a parent, and have you heard your child 51:45 sobbing for something? Do you turn an ear? 51:48 Do you turn an ear? You do not. 51:52 And in answer that desperate prayer, God sends a radical 51:57 paradigm shift, and the boy born to Hannah will forever change 52:03 the course of that nation. 52:06 God says, "You got to me." So, what might we -- what should we, this new year, be desperate 52:17 for from God? A century ago, Ellen White, in her book 52:21 "Ye Shall Receive Power," wrote these words on the screen -- "We are to pray for the 52:26 impartation --" that would be the gift -- "of the Spirit as the remedy for sin-sick souls." 52:32 Well, good night. We ought to pray 'cause these are sin-sick souls. 52:35 You're talking about the dormitories on this campus. I know that's what you mean. 52:38 Oh, might be talking about Benton Harbor. Sin-sick souls -- you got them 52:42 there. "No," God says. Read the next sentence. 52:47 "The church needs to be converted." 52:50 And that would be you, and that would be me. 52:53 We need to be converted. 53:00 I understand not everybody shows up when collective prayer takes 53:03 place. Then we'll show up as 53:04 representatives of the church. 53:18 That, my friends, is what you call a prayer of desperation. 53:21 That's it right there -- with broken heart, contrite soul, 53:24 earnest supplication. How does Cymbala put it? 53:28 "We need to move toward God, and it begins with desperate 53:31 prayer." Ellen White finishes the 53:32 sentence. 53:47 What would happen if this new year together we banded and we 53:52 said, "We're gonna pray for this gift"? 53:55 There's a storm coming the likes of which this planet has never seen in its history. 54:00 It will not be survived by the casual. It will not be survived by the 54:04 nonchalant. It will not be survived by the sleeping. 54:07 It will not be survived by the lethargic. It can only be survived by 54:11 people who are desperately praying, "God, give me what you have for the storm." 54:18 What would happen if we said, "Dear Jesus, the gift of the Holy Spirit, please, like never 54:25 before." So, I open my quarterly, and I'm so delightfully surprised that 54:29 we're gonna be studying the Holy Spirit these next three months together. 54:32 What a gift. I wonder. God must have some little timing thing going on here 'cause I'm 54:37 looking at 2017, and I'm saying, "If there's no divine intervention here, look out." 54:43 Fort Lauderdale yesterday. Just look out. There's insanity that now is 54:47 sweeping across the land. I mean, what gift could we possibly need more this new 54:56 year? What gift could God possibly want more to give us this year 55:00 than the gift of His spirit? Jesus said, "If you ask for the spirit --" you evil parents, you 55:04 give good gifts to your kids. What do you think your father's gonna do? 55:08 You're gonna get it in abundance. And with this gift, every other 55:11 gift comes with it. Every other gift comes with this gift. 55:14 Ask for this gift, you get all the rest. I mean, it's the one supreme 55:17 gift to give. Then shall we not collectively, earnest ask Him this year. 55:24 Let's ask Him. Come on. You and me. Oh, God, the storm is coming. 55:30 ♪♪ Will we just wait and wait? We hear the call of the Spirit. 55:39 Come to me. Ask me. I'm on the skiff with you right now. 55:47 It's dark. But you're not alone. I have brought Jesus to you. 55:54 Take hope. And so, Father, our hearts long. We got to get home. 56:04 We just got to get home. So, take this longing. Harness it and shape it. 56:13 And well up within us a collective cry for the Holy Spirit this new year. 56:19 It's your gift, but it's our prayers. Receive them now. 56:26 "And now to Him, who is able to do immeasurably more than all that we ask or imagine, 56:31 according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in 56:37 Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever." Let all of God's people on this 56:43 first Sabbath of the New Year say, "Amen. Amen." ♪♪ 57:02 >> I want to take an extra moment to thank you for joining us in worship today. 57:05 It's by the continued support from viewers like you that we're able to bring this telecast. 57:10 Today, I want to invite you, though, to share with us how this ministry has blessed you. 57:14 Truth is, I get inspiring notes, e-mails, letters from viewers literally all over the world, 57:19 sharing with us how God has blessed them through this program, and I'd love to hear 57:23 from you, as well. 57:25 It's not that hard -- simple, really. 57:27 Just visit our website, newperceptions.tv. 57:30 That's one word -- newperceptions.tv. 57:33 And click on the contact link at the top of the page. 57:35 Shoot me that e-mail. Once again, thank you for 57:38 being with us. 57:39 Thank you, by the way, for your own support. That support is what keeps this 57:43 telecast week after week reaching America, reaching North America, and reaching the 57:48 planet. That kind of generosity that you share is a huge boost and 57:54 blessing to us. And I hope you'll join us right here next time 'cause we'll be 57:58 here. In the meantime, God be with you and bless you real good. 58:05 ♪♪ |
Revised 2017-01-12