Participants: Dwight K Nelson
Series Code: NP
Program Code: NP170624A
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00:09 [ Organ plays
00:46 >> ♪ What wondrous love is this ♪ ♪ Oh, my soul, oh, my soul ♪ 00:54 ♪ What wondrous love is this ♪ ♪ Oh, my soul ♪ ♪ What wondrous love is this ♪ 01:07 ♪ That caused the Lord of bliss ♪ ♪ To bear the dreadful curse for 01:16 my soul, for my soul ♪ ♪ To bear the dreadful curse for my soul ♪ 01:29 [ Organ plays ] 01:58 ♪ All we, like sheep, have gone astray, gone astray ♪ ♪ Like sheep, have gone astray, 02:10 oh, my soul ♪ ♪ We all have gone astray ♪ ♪ Each one to his own way ♪ 02:22 ♪ And the Lord hath laid on Him, laid on Him, oh, my soul ♪ ♪ The iniquity of our souls ♪ 02:41 [ Organ plays ] 02:51 ♪ What wondrous love is this, oh, my soul ♪ 03:11 >> Well, good morning, boys and girls. Nice to see you on this last 03:14 Sabbath of June, the first Sabbath, official Sabbath, of summer. 03:18 Yep, summer started this week on Wednesday. Nice to have you here from 03:22 wherever you have come. God bless you. I thought, you know, today 03:26 everybody would be at camp meeting, but I'm so glad you're here! 03:29 I've got just the right story for you, because some friends of ours, and Bill Sipes, they went 03:35 to Alaska last month. They sent us a postcard from Alaska. 03:39 And Carlson Sipes, she says, "Pastor, this could be a children's story." 03:44 I believe she's right! I want to show you a little village in Alaska called 03:49 Talkeetna. Let's put the village store on the screen, please. 03:54 There you go. Talkeetna. Hey, do you see the antlers from 03:58 the moose right beneath the sign there? See the moose antler? 04:02 They have all kinds -- Oh, here, deer antlers up here. And there's snowshoes. 04:06 This is kind of the biggest building in town. Inside the building, the mayor 04:13 of the town lives. Now, just let me tell you about this mayor. 04:17 This mayor is so popular that 30 to 40 people every day come and they say, "We want to see you, 04:22 Mayor." How many people come to Berrien Springs and ask to see 04:25 the mayor? Nobody. But they want to see the mayor. This mayor is so popular that he 04:33 has his own Facebook page. Ho! But I've got to tell you, some 04:38 strange things have happened to him. He got attacked by a dog once. 04:42 Ooh, that hurt! Ooh, that hurt! Some teenage boys with a BB gun 04:46 went pow, pow. Oh! Shot the mayor! 04:49 [ Scoffs ] And then once, the mayor got stuck in the garbage truck and 04:53 they took him out of town! [ Children laugh ] And then they realized, the 04:56 mayor's in the truck! Oh, that's not a way to treat a mayor. 05:00 I want to see the Mayor, please, of Talkeetna, Alaska. 05:04 There is the mayor. [ Children exclaim ] 05:06 That's Mr. Stubbs! That's Mr. Stubbs, the mayor. 05:10 He's been mayor for 20 years. Since July 1997, he's been the 05:14 mayor. And they get along very nicely. 05:16 That might be an idea for us. I don't know. 05:19 [ Children exclaim ] But isn't that something? 05:21 That's a cat. [ Laughing ] That's a cat! 05:24 But the cat is their mayor. Apparently, anybody can be a mayor. 05:30 But not anybody can be a savior. There's only one person in the whole universe who could 05:36 possibly be savior for you and me, and what's His name? His name is Jesus. 05:41 He did what for us? He died for us. He loved us unto death. 05:48 He rose, and He says, "I'm gonna to save you, if you want to be." How many here want to be saved 05:54 by the Lord Jesus? Of course! And in a few moments, your 05:57 mother and father are going to hold a little piece of bread and a cup, and they're going to 06:00 celebrate our Savior came, hallelujah. Not anybody can be a savior, 06:05 only One. And is He is our Lord Jesus. Who would like to thank God for 06:11 our Savior? Sissy, you come right here. You got your hand right up 06:15 there. All right. What's your name, Sissy? 06:20 >> Hannah. >> Hannah? Hannah, have you prayed before? 06:24 Good, you pray well. Okay, let's close our eyes. Hannah's going to pray. 06:28 Fold our hands. Please pray, "Thank God for Jesus." 06:31 >> Thank you, God. Help us remember this day. Help us to have a good day. 06:37 Amen. >> Amen. Thank you, Hannah. 06:39 And God bless you, boys and girls, shh, as you go quietly and reverently back to your 06:43 seats. You can say it in your heart, "Thank you, God, for the only 06:46 Savior of the universe, our Lord Jesus." Happy Sabbath to you. 06:51 [ Organ plays ] 07:06 >> Let's pray together. Oh, God, what wondrous loveis this, oh, my soul, that caused 07:16 the Lord of bliss to bear the dreadful curse for my soul, for my soul? 07:23 Ah, bring that price back to us. Thrill our hearts with the Good News of our Savior. 07:33 We pray in Jesus' name, amen. 07:38 By the way, my heart always thrills with a beautiful song. 07:47 Mm-hmm. But my heart especially thrills 07:54 when, with the beautiful song, there is a beautiful singer. 07:58 [ Congregation murmurs ] Two weeks ago, we've been married, Karen and I, 43 years. 08:04 Can you believe that? 43 years. We were 12 when we got married. 08:07 That explains why. They're saying, "Dwight, the numbers don't add up. 08:10 They just don't add up." So, no, no, no. [ Congregation applauds ] 08:18 You know, I hate to begin with such bad news, because this is how it begins. 08:21 John the Baptist gets... decapitated at the behest of a very wicked queen and her naive 08:31 accomplice daughter. 08:34 Our story today, "Two Fish and a Cross," begins 08:39 right here, right now. Open your Bible with me, 08:41 please, to the Gospel of Matthew -- Matthew chapter 14. 08:44 Let's go. What a dramatic beginning to so moving a story. 08:49 Matthew chapter 14. I'm in the New International Version. 08:52 Whatever translation you have is fine by me. You didn't bring one, grab the 08:56 pew bible in front of you. You'll see the page number on the screen. 09:00 Let's go. Matthew 14:11. "His head..." that would be 09:04 John the Baptist's head. "His head was brought in on a platter..." I imagine it a 09:11 sliver platter, "...and given to the girl, who carried it to her mother." 09:16 Verse 12: "John's disciples came and took his..." obviously 09:20 headless "...body and buried it. Then they went and told Jesus." 09:29 I've got to tell you, there is something poignant with that line -- "Then they went and told 09:32 Jesus." I mean, they could've gone home and told their parents. 09:35 They could've gone and told their spouses. They could've gone and told 09:38 their friends. They could've told their neighbors or their teachers. 09:41 No, no, no, no. The record reads, "Then they went and told Jesus." 09:48 Oh, it's like that old Gospel song. If I could sing, I'd sing it to 09:51 you right now. ♪ I must tell Jesus ♪ ♪ All of my burdens ♪ 09:58 ♪ I cannot bear these burdens alone ♪ You know what, ladies and 10:02 gentlemen? That's absolutely true. 10:04 Some of you who have come into this space today, sacred space, 10:07 summer space, and you've come with you heart just weighted 10:11 down. I'm looking into your 10:12 well-manicured faces. Doesn't look like there's 10:14 anything wrong with you at all, but there's something down deep 10:16 beneath that smile that is just a weight on your soul. 10:22 And I've already been praying that, in this space where Jesus is right now, that somehow He'll 10:28 draw from your heart what you need to tell Him and take the courage and the hope He wants to 10:33 give you. And, oh, I pray that in a friendly church like this, that 10:38 there be somebody in the next few minutes as we cross paths, will say, "Hey, I'm gonna get to 10:46 know you." We need each other. I want to tell Jesus. 10:52 I must tell Jesus. That's what the disciples did. They go, they pour out their 10:55 broken hearts to Him. And God bless Jesus, He just reaches His strong arms around 11:00 them and draws them to Himself in the inner circle of His own disciples. 11:04 And then, they go quietly. Nobody knows. They slip away. 11:08 Look at that, verse 13. "When Jesus heard what had happened..." John the Baptist, 11:12 his cousin, is dead. And by the way, Jesus knows, "I'm next." 11:16 "I'm next," He knows it. "When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat 11:21 privately to a solitary place." "Desire of Ages" tells us, "Just a few hours alone together 11:27 to draw strength from the master..." But the people heard about this. 11:31 "Hearing of this, the crowds followed Him on foot from the 11:35 towns." So they go around the curve of 11:37 Galilee, and when Jesus eventually "landed and saw a 11:41 large crowd, He had compassion on them and He healed their 11:44 sick." 11:46 I spent four days last week in the nation's capital, right on the edge and in it -- 11:51 Washington, D.C. I preached in the iconic church in Takoma Park -- Sligo. 11:57 It only has one name. It's called "Sligo." I preached in that church last 12:01 Sabbath. I was there for a symposium that my friend, Alex Santrack, put 12:06 together -- a symposium on preaching in urban ministry. Alex is Serbian, and so he said, 12:13 "I've got a great Serbian restaurant we've got to go to down in the heart of 12:15 the District of Columbia." So a bunch of us went down there. 12:20 I'm telling you what. Like every urban sprawl, gridlocked traffic everywhere 12:25 you turn, gridlocked crowds as far as the eye can see. Jesus is drawn, He's drawn -- 12:33 He's drawn to the crowds. And He had compassion on them. By the way, I remind you, cities 12:42 are the largest container on Earth of lost human beings. That's why God's so big on 12:49 cities. "There's so many of My children here." 12:54 Jesus had compassion on the crowds. Now, Matthew -- I don't know if 12:58 he intended this, but he juxtaposes the disciples' reaction to the crowd right up 13:04 against Jesus. And here's what we see. So, Jesus has compassion on the 13:07 crowds in verse 14. And now, "As evening approached..." verse 15, "...the 13:11 disciples came to Him." You can put the words on the screen there... 13:24 Jesus has compassion on the crowds, and the disciples say, "Yo, get 'em away. 13:28 We don't need these crowds. Send them away. I mean, what are we supposed to 13:32 do with them? We can't feed them." Listen, you have a hard time 13:36 with cities, I have a hard time with cities, we're probably going to have a hard time going 13:39 to Heaven, because guess what? Heaven is a city -- Zion, City of God. 13:44 We're going to get used to living in cities. 13:51 Jesus surprises them. He says, "No, no. Youdo something." 13:56 "We just told You we can't." "Yes, you can. You feed them." 13:59 "Feed them what?" "Feed them what every crowd wants." 14:01 "What's that?" "Bread of Life. You give it to them." 14:05 It's the Gospel of John. And by the way, this is one of those rare miracles where all 14:12 four Gospel writers say, "We've got to have this as a part of our story." 14:16 It's one of the rare miracles. So, we got details in John because Phillip said, "Oh, Lord. 14:21 You want us to feed them? Yeah, do You know how much money it would take to feed this 14:24 crowd? Just guess." And Brother Andrew pipes up, 14:27 "Yo, but I did find a little lad over here. He's got two shriveled fish and 14:32 some five small, little loaves of bread, but what is that among so huge a crowd?" 14:38 And then, I love what Jesus says in verse 18. Notice what Jesus says in 14:41 verse 18. Jesus says, "Bring that little lunch to Me. 14:45 Bring Me that lunch." Don't you love that about God? Oh, my. 14:51 As a boy, you know, growing up in Japan, I was fascinated with the fish markets, because Japan 14:57 is a seabound nation, so fish is a staple of their diet. I mean, that's what they live 15:01 off of. So, I'd go down as a boy, and I just watch these butchers slice 15:05 and dice, fillet, wrap it all up in newspaper, put it in a scale. Their happy customer pays, walks 15:14 away with fresh, raw fish. The Japanese eat fish raw. I want to assure you that this 15:19 little Hebrew mother who sent her boy with that lunch didn't send raw fish. 15:23 The fish would be stinking by now. It, no doubt, was salted. 15:27 You know how sardines can get salted for preservation? Two shriveled little sardines 15:33 and five small loaves of bread. "Give Me that lunch. Bring that lunch to Me." 15:37 And he probably tussles the boy's hair. "Thank you, son, for sharing 15:40 with Me." Don't you love that about God? Come on, you think about it. 15:45 "Hey, Moses! Yo, what do you have in your hand?" 15:48 "A rod." "Hey, good enough for Me. Bring it to Me. 15:51 Bring Me that rod. We can do business with that. Yo, wedding coordinator. 15:56 What've you got in your hand?" "I've got six empty stone jars." "Bring those stone jars to Me. 16:00 I'll do business with that." "Yo, little widow, little widow. What do you have in your hand?" 16:05 "Well, I have a little oil and a little meal, and this is our last food." 16:09 "Bring Me that. Give Me that. I can do business with that." 16:13 "Gideon, what've you got? "Lord, I'm already down to 300." "Bring the 300 to Me. 16:20 I can take it." Can you believe God's mathematics? 16:24 Because in every one of those instances, and in your life and mine as well, here's how God 16:28 operates... 16:32 Have you noticed that? We add. Humble, little two shriveled-up 16:36 fish -- We add, he multiplies. Mercy! "Bring Me what you have. 16:44 Give Me what you have, and I'll take it from here." God says, "You add, I'll 16:47 multiply, and we'll get along famously." And by the way, the heroes of 16:50 Scripture got along famously, very famously with this God of the universe, because they kept 16:55 adding and He kept multiplying. That's exactly what happens here. 17:01 They didn't have a tithe envelope to bring their little, but they brought their little. 17:07 Okay, verse 18. "Bring them to Me. Come on, bring that bread and 17:12 fish to Me," He said. Verse 19... 17:25 And I was studying this this last week, I said, "Wait a minute. 17:27 There's something missing in this story, because this is Matthew. 17:31 I don't read anything about fish getting handed out." You read the story, the next 17:34 verse, not a word, not a peep about fish. I said, "That's crazy. 17:38 Did He only do the bread?" So I went through all four Gospels, and I found out two 17:43 Gospel writers say not a hint about Him breaking the fish. Two others make it a key, 17:51 integral part of their narrative. "What's going on here?" I said. 17:53 Okay, who are the two that didn't? Well, it's Matthew and of 17:56 course, he's a tax collector. And then there's Dr. Luke, and he's a Gentile physician and a 18:00 historian. And neither one says a word about fish. 18:03 But the other two writers, get this -- the Gospel of Peter. That would be Mark, by the way, 18:10 because Peter told the story to Mark and Mark wrote it down. The Gospel of Peter and the 18:13 Gospel of John -- guess what those two boys were all their lives? 18:16 They were fishermen. And they're saying, "If we're going to tell this story, make 18:19 sure you get the fish in there as well." He broke the fish! 18:23 That's how they made their living. Fish and bread. 18:27 Verse 20... 18:35 Verse 21 -- "And the number of those who ate was about 5,000 men, besides..."besides, 18:42 ..."women and children." We're talking about 15,000, minimum. 18:46 Two stinking little fish and five loaves of bread in the hands of the God who multiplies 18:54 when we add, and 15,000 people get fed. What a God! 19:00 Can you believe it? "You add, I'll multiply." What's wrong with mathematics 19:07 like that? "You add, I'll multiply." "Desire of Ages," right here at 19:12 the top of the page in Matthew 14, I have this quotation written down. 19:16 I'm going to put it on the screen for you. "Desire of Ages," page 371, that 19:20 classic on the life of Jesus. "The means in our possession today may not seem to be 19:25 sufficient for the work." "What kind of work are you talking about, Dwight?" 19:28 Well, I don't know. It's whatever work you do for the glory of God. 19:31 So, what's the work you do? Whatever you do for the glory of God. 19:35 You're a mother? I know the work you're doing 24/7. 19:38 You are raising those little cherubs for the Kingdom of Heaven. 19:42 Whatever work you do. You're a plumber? God says whatever work you do -- 19:48 What did we just read? If... 19:56 "What could I do with this?" It doesn't matter what you do. Keep reading. 20:10 You add, He multiplies. What's wrong with that? 20:14 You add, He multiplies. "I will take care of you," which 20:20 is why I will put my trust in Him. 20:24 We spent six months coming back to that line over and over 20:26 again, that seven-word credo of the Lord Jesus. 20:28 Hebrews 2:13, "I will put my trust in Him." 20:33 "Give Me what you have. Just bring it to Me. You add, I'll multiply." 20:39 And by the way, did you catch that line? What was that line? 20:42 "If we will move forward in faith..." It reminds of the Israelites. 20:48 Hot dragon breath of Pharaoh and his armies on their tail, the cold waters of the Red Sea right 20:55 in front of them, and God says, "Hey, quit talking to Me. Go forward! 20:59 Move it! I'll take care of you. You add, I'll multiply. 21:06 You watch what I do for you." Takes a little bit of faith to live like that because you're 21:12 not sure how the story ends. Jesus says, "You just stay with Me, girl. 21:15 You stay with Me. I'll show you how this story ends. 21:18 You'll be all right." Wow. Some of you struggling right 21:23 now, are you afraid? Are you anxious? Are you worried about the 21:29 future? Don't worry. "I will put my trust in Him." 21:34 "You add," He says, "I'll multiply." Oh, that quotation goes on. 21:39 Here's another line. "If the work be of God..." Oh, I love this... 21:48 Young father, listen. Listen, young father. Young mother, are you here? 21:53 You need to know that your anxious concerns over providing for the physical necessities of 21:59 your tiny little family have been heard by the Provider of the universe. 22:04 He has heard this. He said, "You add, I'll multiply. 22:08 If the work be of God and your work is of God, I will multiply when you give what you have. 22:19 Give me those kids." He knows, struggling heart, your desperate need for money. 22:24 He knows, lonely soul, your longing for a life companion. He knows. 22:30 "Give Me what you have. I'll multiply for you." Wow. "Desire of Ages" goes on. 22:36 You add, You multiply, you add, You multiply, here it goes. Here's the next line. 22:40 "He will..." God will "...reward honest, simple reliance upon Him. 22:46 The little that is wisely and economically used in the service 22:50 of the Lord of Heaven..." Whatever you do is for the 22:53 service of the Lord of Heaven. Whatever you do. 22:55 So if you use the little you have wisely in the service of 23:00 the Lord of Heaven, it will -- what's the next word? 23:02 It will what? It will "increase in the very 23:05 act" of your giving, "your imparting. 23:08 In the hand of Christ, the small supply of food remained 23:11 undiminished..." It didn't get used up. 23:12 It just kept lasting "...until the famished multitude were 23:16 satisfied." 23:17 Two little fish and 15,000 minimum people got fed. "Give Me what you have. 23:24 You add, I multiply. You can trust Me. You can take that to the bank! 23:33 You add, I multiply." What a God! Ah, "You add, I'll multiply." 23:43 One last line, this is written on my page here. "If we go..." final line, "If we 23:47 go to the Source of all strength..." Isn't this beautiful? 23:51 "...with our hands of faith outstretched to receive..." People say, "Don't go begging, 23:54 begging, begging God." [ Laughing ] No, no. Beg, beg, beg God. 23:57 God says, "Come to Me. Come on, put your hands out. Put your hands out and believe 24:00 that I can fill your hand." "Open wide your mouth," the Psalmist says, "and I will fill 24:03 it." Just put your hands out. Put your hands out. 24:07 "If we will go to the Source of all strength, with our hands of faith outstretched to receive, 24:13 we shall be sustained in our work..." whatever your work is, "...even under the most 24:18 forbidding circumstances..." and we "...shall be enabled to give to others the bread of life." 24:25 "You add, I multiply." God says, "These are My mathematics. 24:30 Come on, get this. You add, I multiply." In fact, that is the sign of the 24:36 Cross -- add and multiply. Watch this. The cross is a sign of add. 24:41 You add, and then what does He say? "I'll multiply." 24:47 You got multiplication right there, don't you? And it's been a long time since 24:51 I was in grade school, but I know this. 24:53 "You add, you add, I multiply. You add, I multiply." 25:03 That's Calvary! 25:05 "Give me two little fish, and I will feed 15,000 people through you." 25:10 Don't sell yourself short. Don't dream small, dream big. "I will feed 15,000 people 25:17 through you. Just give Me what you have. Two fish? I'll take it. 25:21 Let's go! Move on! We've got cities to reach. 25:26 We have a world to save. And you've got to believe that when you add, I multiply. 25:32 You have to believe that." 25:36 Wow. So, a few nights earlier this week, Karen and I are having 25:46 pillow talk. Do you ever have pillow talk? That's a good thing to have, by 25:50 the way. If you're married, that is. [ Congregation laughs ] 25:55 A little caveat just to keep this very clear. So, this week, Karen and I were 26:02 having a little pillow talk in the dark, a great concern on our hearts. 26:07 So we're talking about it to each other, just talking back and forth, back and forth. 26:12 Finally, we had prayer together. I prayed, she prayed, in bed. And then, we fell asleep. 26:19 I woke up early that morning, earlier than my alarm. It was dark. 26:23 I tiptoed downstairs to my study where I have my time in the early morning. 26:30 And I want to bless the name of God, because He cut a slack. He said, "Okay, get it off, get 26:37 it off," because my mind is still on what was last night. And so, God let me just kind of 26:44 pour it out again. And God said, "Lookit, Dwight, are you through yet? 26:49 Are you through? 'Cause I'd like to say something now." 26:54 And God said, "Let's just clear the deck of all this." I didn't hear an audible voice, 26:58 you understand that, but God brought His word to my mind, and words came to mind and I'm 27:03 thinking on those words. And I'm realizing those words are speaking to my very need at 27:07 this moment, and I finally turn on the light. I've got to read these words 27:10 myself, and here's what I read. I'll put it on the screen for you -- Romans 8:31. 27:26 Get this, "...how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things?" 27:31 "I'll give you everything. Lookit, have I emptied the treasury of Heaven for you? 27:36 Have I already emptied the treasury of Heaven for you in the gift of Jesus? 27:39 Is Calvary about you add and I multiply? Is that still true? 27:42 You add, I multiply? Have I done all that for you?" Yes, You have. 27:46 "Then what are you worried about?" What are you worried about? 27:52 I will put my trust in Him. Wow. I mean, you keep reading, it 27:59 gets even better. "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? 28:02 Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?" 28:06 Some of you are going through that right now. "No!" Paul cries out.... 28:27 Amen! And just like that, that burden on my heart, it just lifted into 28:33 the dark and just disappeared. How do You do that, God? "You add, I multiply. 28:42 It's My mathematics. It's how you'll survive this life. 28:45 Bring Me what you have. You got heartache? Bring it to Me. 28:48 You got concerns and worries? Bring it to me. You got empty cupboards and a 28:53 bank account that's about zero right now? Bring it to Me. 28:57 You bring Me what you have. Your marriage run out of high-octane fuel? 29:02 You bring it to Me. You add, I multiply. Come to the cross, I'll 29:11 multiply. Wow. Today, when we pick up the bread 29:17 and the cup, that's what we're going to do. We're going to confess to God, 29:21 "I will put my trust in Him." Seven words, that's what the Lord's Supper's about. 29:26 We say seven words, "I will put my trust in You. I'm adding to You, and now You 29:33 are multiplying for me." We add, He multiplies forever and ever. 29:45 Amen. I want you to lock those words in your heart right now. 29:49 We add, He multiplies. Let's pray. Oh, God, wow. That's the news for us today. 29:58 That's it, from the foot of the Cross. You're saying this? 30:01 "I am." Oh, Father, we will put our trust, we will keep our trust in 30:06 You no matter what is happening, no matter what isnothappening, we will put our trust in You. 30:13 We add, You multiply. And how could it be any better than that right now? 30:19 So, lift our spirits up, and knowing we sit at the table with Jesus, oh, just lock this deep 30:26 in our hearts for the next chapter before us. We pray in Jesus' name, amen. 30:35 [ "Worthy Is The Lamb" plays ] 30:47 [ Performers sing ] 34:47 [ "Crown Him With Many Crowns" plays ] 34:49 [ Performers sing ] 35:36 >> Sing "Worthy." [ "Worthy Is The Lamb" plays ] 35:38 [ Performers sing ] 36:52 [ "Revelation Song" plays ] 36:58 [ Instrumental music plays ] 37:08 [ Performers sing ] 37:34 >> Holy, holy, holy. [ Performers sing ] 39:12 [ Instrumental music plays ] 39:23 [ Performers sing ] 40:19 [ "Holy, Holy, Holy" plays ] 40:24 [ Instrumental music plays ] 40:30 [ Performers sing ] 42:34 [ Organ plays ] 42:46 [ Organ continues ] 42:58 [ Organ continues ] 43:05 [ Organ stops ] >> It's very interesting in John's account of the feeding of 43:12 the 5,000, after we capture that mathematics -- We add and He multiplies -- John immediately 43:23 plunges into "Jesus, Bread of Life" discourse. 43:29 And those who know John's Gospel the best are quite convinced that, in fact, these words in 43:39 the discourse are John's "Lord's Supper" talk because there is no Lord's Supper in the 43:44 Gospel of John. Washes the feet, and nothing. No word from Jesus, because the 43:50 other three had already written about it. John writes much later in the 43:53 First Century, says, "I don't need to put that, but I am gonna embed it right here." 43:58 So, now when we read these words, we can say, "Oh, thisis Lord's Supper." 44:02 So, this is John 6 where he tells the story, Jesus now speaking, red letters. 44:07 "I am the living bread that came down from Heaven. Whoever eats this bread will 44:12 live forever. This bread is My flesh which I will give for the life of the 44:18 world. Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and 44:25 I will raise them up at the last day." And then he repeats it. 44:29 "Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood remains in Me and I in them." 44:35 And the old King James says, "...abides in Me, and I in them." 44:39 So, what you and I are about to do as we ingest the bread and the wine, Jesus says, "That's 44:45 Me. It's a symbol of Me coming in. And then, I do My mathematics 44:49 from the inside out. You add, I multiply." That's why we have His gift of 44:57 this supper. Genie Patterson Smith is going to read the sacred account of 45:03 this -- that Thursday night. And then her husband, Harold, will lead us in prayer. 45:13 >> From Luke 22, this marvelous scene. "When the hour came, Jesus and 45:20 his apostles reclined at the table. And he said to them, 'I have 45:25 eagerly waited and desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.' 45:31 And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them saying, 'This is my body 45:41 given for you. Do this remembrance of me.' In the same way, after the 45:50 supper he took the cup saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in my blood which is poured out for 45:58 you.'" Please kneel with us as my husband, Harold, prays. 46:15 >> Father, we pray in thanks for Your son's blood and for his body which is, was, and will be 46:26 the key to our meeting You face to face in glory. Bless us this Sabbath day as we 46:34 take these symbols of what Your son did for us. May they become life in each of 46:41 us, we pray. Amen. [ Organ plays ] 47:15 [ "There Is A Fountain" plays ] 47:30 >> ♪ There is a fountain filled with blood ♪ ♪ Drawn from Emmanuel's veins ♪ 47:44 ♪ And sinners plunged beneath that flood ♪ ♪ Lose all their guilty stains ♪ 48:00 ♪ Lose all their guilty stains ♪ ♪ Lose all their guilty stains ♪ ♪ And sinners plunged beneath 48:22 that flood ♪ ♪ Lose all their guilty stains ♪ [ Organ plays ] 48:40 ♪ E'er since by faith I saw the stream ♪ ♪ Thy flowing wounds supply ♪ 48:55 ♪ Redeeming love has been my theme ♪ ♪ And shall be till I die ♪ 49:11 ♪ And shall be till I die ♪ ♪ And shall be till I die ♪ ♪ Redeeming love has been my 49:33 theme ♪ ♪ And shall be till I die ♪ ♪ Wash all my sins away ♪ 49:51 ♪ Wash all my sins away ♪ ♪ Redeeming love has been my theme ♪ 50:08 ♪ Wash all my sins away ♪ 50:34 [ Organ plays ] 51:15 >> That's quite a promise -- redeeming love shall be my theme, wash all my sins away. 51:22 You know, this multiplication/addition formula, it really works for sin. 51:30 Because there's some sins I can't even think of that are embedded so deep in me, I've 51:35 become accustomed to them. So I bring the one I know about or the two or the three, and God 51:41 says, "That's okay. You add, I multiply. I have you covered to the very 51:49 depths." That's why we'll sing "redeeming love" forever and ever. 51:55 So that we would never forget, Jesus turns to us like he turned to his closest friends. 52:01 He said, "This is my body. Take, eat this. Do this in remembrance of me." 52:11 [ Organ plays ] 52:33 And then he turns to us. He says, "This is my blood shed for you, all of you. 52:41 Drink in remembrance of me." 52:48 [ Organ plays ] 53:06 And that's what he does, and that's why we came. And that's why we leave with the 53:11 joy that we will. It's no wonder they sang. Bible says they sang a hymn, 53:17 and then they went out to Gethsemane. We've got a hymn we love to sing 53:20 here. It's 407, "Sent Forth with God's Blessings." 53:27 We're gonna sing that. But they had another custom, and we do it right here. 53:31 And so let me just tip you off, because there's gonna be ushers standing at every one of these 53:35 doors. If God has blessed you over these last three months 53:40 unusually, and you know how blessed you are, and out of that largess you would like to give 53:47 to someone in need, we have an emergency fund. We service the inner city of 53:52 Benton Harbor as well as Berrien Springs, and so freely you've received, freely give. 53:58 There'll be ushers standing here. Just be generous with them. 54:02 You're going to be helping somebody that you'll never meet in this life, but thank you in 54:06 advance for your love for them. Now, let's sing 407, "Sent Forth With God's Blessings." 54:12 [ Organ plays ] 54:37 [ Congregation sings ] 56:27 And now may the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back 56:31 from the dead, our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, may He 56:36 equip you with everything good for doing His will and may He work in us what is pleasing to 56:41 Him through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. 56:50 [ Organ plays ] 57:01 We've been really blessed by the financial support that comes 57:04 from our viewers. And we've made a conscious 57:07 decision not to continually appeal to you for that support. 57:10 Which I hope doesn't convey to you that this national and 57:13 international telecast has no needs. 57:15 The fact is, is anyone in the industry will tell you, we are 57:17 needing to make constant upgrades to the technology that 57:20 brings "New Perceptions" to you every week. 57:23 So if God has blessed you and you're in a position to share 57:26 some of that blessing with this ministry, I'd be very grateful. 57:29 I don't receive a dime from our listeners' support, but there's 57:32 a world that gets blessed by the teachings of this program. 57:35 So thank you in advance. You can go to our website and 57:38 give there -- www.newperceptions.tv. 57:42 Or you can call our operators and make a donation. 57:45 877 -- Toll-free for you. 877-HIS-WILL. 57:49 And here's my prayer, that the God who has blessed you, may He 57:53 continue to pour into your life His gifts of joy and hope. 57:58 Thank you. I'll see you here next time. 58:04 ♪♪ |
Revised 2017-06-29