Participants: Dwight K. Nelson
Series Code: NP
Program Code: NP171014A
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00:10 >> Father God, we just want to thank You so much for giving us breath in our lungs, for giving 00:16 us life and a new day with a new chance to just seek You and get to know You. 00:22 And, Lord, we just -- we want to praise You this morning. So, this morning, Lord, as we 00:26 get into the spirit of praise, just send your Holy Spirit, send your angels to sit next to us, 00:31 to wiggle us out of our comfort zone so that we can just be worshiping You, be in response 00:37 to how great You are. We love You, Father, and your son Jesus' precious, holy, and 00:41 powerful name. We pray. Amen. 00:45 Would you stand with me? This morning, we are going to 00:48 bless the Lord. And sometimes, as things can 00:52 feel dark and uncomfortable, when the week can be rough for 00:57 you, you just got to bless Him. He says, "praise Me in all 00:59 things, both the good and the bad." 01:01 So we are gonna bless His Holy Name this morning. [ "Bless the Lord" plays ] 01:07 This is a new song, so follow us. It's call-and-response. 01:12 You'll learn it. Very easy. Here we go. 01:17 I sing, "I will bless." 01:24 >> "Oh, my soul." 01:41 We're gonna try that again. "I will bless the Lord." 02:09 "He has done great things." Let's sing it. 02:20 ♪ He has done great things for me ♪ 02:43 One more try. Let's try it again. 02:45 "He has done great things." 03:18 Now I'm gonna sing "hallelujah." Here we go. 03:22 This is how it sounds. 03:28 ♪♪ 03:32 ♪♪ 03:36 One more time. 03:40 ♪♪ 03:44 "Lord, You're worthy ♪ 03:53 Your turn. 04:09 Your turn. 04:20 "Oh, my soul." 04:23 "And all." 04:38 Glad You're mine. Praise the Lord, bless Him. 04:47 ♪ Oh, my soul ♪ 04:50 "And all." 05:07 Praise God, praise God. 05:09 [ "Blessed Be the Name" plays ] This is an old one, and I know 05:13 you know it. ♪♪ 05:18 Sing out to your God for all the wonderful things that he's done 05:21 for you. "Blessed Be the Name." 05:24 Here we go. ♪♪ 06:33 "So blessed be the name." 07:24 "And blessed be Your name." 07:41 Everyone sing. 08:14 Again. 08:33 ♪♪ 09:10 "Your name." 09:45 "Blessed be Your name." 10:09 ♪♪ Isn't our God good? 10:17 [ "Breathe" plays ] 10:24 ♪♪ 10:32 ♪♪ 10:46 ♪♪ 10:55 ♪♪ 11:02 ♪♪ 11:15 "And I." 11:22 "I'm desperate." 11:30 "I'm lost." 11:42 ♪ Jesus ♪ "This is the air." 11:54 ♪♪ 12:00 ♪♪ 12:14 And He is our daily bread. 12:22 ♪♪ 12:42 Tell Him, "Lord, we're desperate." 13:09 ♪ Lord ♪ ♪♪ 13:13 This is the time now, as we are in a state of understanding that we need to surrender our all to 13:21 the Lord, to bring your burdens or to bring a petition or to make intercession for 13:28 someone that needs the Lord to come forward and lay those burdens before the throne. 13:34 This week, that's what I had to do. I found myself, like I said, 13:38 on my knees over and over, singing praises and understanding that, outside of 13:44 Christ, I have nothing, I am nothing, I can do nothing. But in Him, the sky is the 13:50 limit. So come forward and trust that, in the Name of Jesus, all things 13:57 are made new, all things are "yea" and "amen." Sing with me, "This is the air." 14:03 ♪♪ 14:17 ♪ Jesus ♪ 14:47 "And I'm desperate." 15:18 [ Music fades ] 15:25 >> Nice to see you. I've missed seeing you, 15:27 actually. I've missed you the last couple 15:29 Sabbaths over in Croatia. I'll talk to your moms and dads. 15:33 I'll show some pictures to your mom and dad in just a moment. 15:35 But nice to see you. And when I came, because I got 15:39 in Tuesday night, when I drove to the office, to the church 15:42 Wednesday morning, I said, "Whoa, whoa! 15:45 Where did all the trees go?" 15:47 [ Chuckles ] I guess if -- I guess we all 15:50 knew they were gonna go, because there's gonna be a beautiful 15:52 building that will fill that space so wonderfully. 15:56 But that just got me by surprise. But no surprise to see you. 16:00 You're looking great today. Say, my friend Merle Poirier, with "Adventist Review," has 16:04 written this little story, and I want to share it with you. A little boy named Martin -- any 16:09 boy here named Martin? Martin, Martin. No, no. 16:12 Are you Martin? Give me a high five. You go. 16:16 We got one Martin in this group. A little boy your name -- Martin -- oh! -- grew up in a 16:21 little village where his daddy was a miner and a metalworker. But they didn't have much of a 16:27 school in the little village of Mansfield. "So you're gonna have to go to 16:31 Eisenbach. Yes, you are, my young man. You're gonna have to go. 16:34 We're gonna miss you. [ Smooching ] They have a school. 16:38 We've talked to the teacher. He'll take you. They have a little room for you. 16:41 Please don't forget us. We love you. [ Smooches ] 16:45 Bye, Martin, bye." Martin went off to another town. It wasn't anything like his 16:49 hometown, and he's terribly lonely, but there was a nice teacher. 16:52 And the nice teacher said, "You may stay in this room right here. 16:56 One little problem -- we don't have food." >> Uh-oh. 17:00 >> "We don't have food. So you're gonna need to sing from door-to-door with the other 17:05 students, and people will give you food, and you'll be just fine." 17:10 Some of us would starve if we had to do that, wouldn't we? Would you sing door-to-door? 17:15 >> Yeah. >> For your food? >> Yeah. 17:17 >> Well, try today for dinner. Come on by. All right? 17:20 So, that's what little Martin had to do with his little friends. 17:23 "Yes, we must sing. ♪ La la" ♪ And I tell you what -- the music 17:26 that we were singing this morning, oh, that was so beautiful. 17:29 Martin had a beautiful voice, too, by the way. And one day, they're going 17:32 door-to-door, "Oh, thank you for that. Oh, thank you for that. 17:36 Oh, now we have supper." One day, a lady named Mrs. Cotta, she said, "Martin, 17:44 you have been gifted with a beautiful voice. I hope you'll come back and sing 17:49 for me again." And he did. He came back the next day, and 17:51 he sang. And she said, "Children, come here. 17:54 Listen to Martin. Isn't he -- What a beautiful voice he has. 17:56 Martin, I hope you'll come back again." And he did. 17:59 And finally, one day -- true story. One day, Mrs. Cotta looked at 18:02 Martin, and she says, "You know, Martin...I think you need to move into our little house. 18:09 I think you need to move into our house. And you won't have to go begging 18:16 for food anymore." Martin's eyes were wide-open. We got a picture of it! 18:21 Not a photograph. We have a picture of it right here. 18:24 There he is. There is Mrs. Cotta with her arm on his shoulder, and she's 18:29 saying, "Boys and girls, we're gonna have a new brother here while he's in school. 18:35 And he'll sleep with you." And Martin moved in, never hungry again. 18:41 The warmth of a family that loved him. And you know, I look at that 18:45 picture, boys and girls, and I think to myself, "Mrs. Cotta, thank you for putting your arm 18:49 on Martin's little shoulder. Do you understand that that boy is going to change the whole 18:56 world one day? Do you know he's going to become the most famous person of your 19:02 age? Do you know?" No. All she saw was a little boy 19:06 who could sing beautifully. But I've wondered, as I look at that picture, "What if she had 19:11 not been kind to Martin Luther? What if she said, 'Go sing somewhere else?' 19:15 What if he had had to drop out of school? What if he had had to go back 19:19 home? What if?" But a lady who showed the love 19:24 of Jesus took that little beggar boy in. And the rest of the story is 19:29 what we're gonna celebrate, these few days left in October. Oh, I'm so glad Mrs. Cotta. 19:35 When I meet you one day, I'm gonna say, "Thank you for showing such love and kindness 19:41 to little Martin. Because of little Martin, I'm in the Kingdom now, too." 19:47 Wow! Be kind to strangers. Be kind to boys and girls you 19:53 don't know. You never know. Some have even entertained 19:58 angels, the Bible says. SO, who would like to thank Jesus for working through dear 20:03 Mrs. Cotta and keeping an eye out, just like he's going to keep an eye out on your every 20:08 day of your life? Young man, you come right here, please. 20:11 All right, let me get a microphone for you. What's your name? 20:14 >> Ebisac. >> What? >> [ Whispering ] Ebisac. 20:16 >> What? >> Ebisac. >> Ebisac? 20:20 Here, just say it here. What's your name? >> [ Normal voice ] Ebisac. 20:24 >> Okay, good. [ Light laughter ] It's a beautiful name. 20:27 Okay, boys and girls, close your eyes. Fold your hands with Ebisac, 20:31 'cause he's gonna pray right now, "Thank you, Jesus." >> Dear Jesus, thank you 20:35 for this day. Thank you that we had a nice time. 20:39 Help us to have another day tomorrow. Make sure all of us are safe. 20:46 And pray for those people that are in the hurricane, earthquakes, and the fire. 20:52 Thank you, Jesus. Amen. >> Amen. Ebisac, that was a beautiful 20:55 prayer. All right, now, as you go quietly and reverently back to 20:58 your seats, I got to go up there and talk to your moms and dads. But go quietly, please. 21:02 They're waiting for you. And I'll see you next Sabbath. 21:09 [ Orchestra solemnly plays "Battle Hymn of the Republic" ] ♪♪ 21:24 ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ 21:54 ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ 22:24 ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ 22:54 ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ 23:24 [ Music intensifies ] ♪♪ ♪♪ 23:47 ♪♪ [ Finale plays ] ♪♪ 24:04 >> ♪ Amen ♪ [ Applause ] 24:10 >> God, a mighty fortress You are. But 500 years? 24:17 What's up with that? And here we are, a third millennium, all of us. 24:22 What's up withus? Speak to us, these moments in the Word. 24:26 We humbly pray, in Jesus' Name. Amen. 24:30 It's a sultry afternoon in July 1505. 24:36 A lone traveler trudging up the parks road that leads to 24:41 a little Saxon village called Stutterheim. 24:48 It's obviously a young man, sturdy. He's dressed like a university 24:54 student. And as in Michigan, out of nowhere -- 25:01 pihhh! -- sky dark, heavens open up, deluged. 25:10 The man, with one split of lightning, is thrown into the mud. 25:17 He pushes himself up with a scream, "Saint Ann, help me! I will be a monk!" 25:26 His most popular biographer puts it this way. 25:31 I'll put Roland Bainton's words on the screen for you. 25:35 "The man who thus called upon a saint was later to repudiate the 25:38 cult of the saints. He who vowed to become a monk 25:41 was later to renounce monasticism. 25:43 A loyal son of the Catholic Church, he was later to 25:46 shatter the structure of medieval Catholicism. 25:48 A devoted servant of the pope, he was later to identify the 25:51 popes with Antichrist. For this young man was 25:54 Martin Luther." 25:56 So, here we are, 500 years later. I mean, please. 26:02 "Protestant Reformation? Who cares? 500 years? 26:07 What difference does it make now? In fact, if we could bring 26:10 somebody back from the dead, if we had two dead men to choose over -- and let's put them on 26:14 the screen -- we know which one we'd bring back just like that. Why? Because we live in a time 26:19 of nanosecond quantum change. There's too much yet to be done. We don't need dusty, old 26:26 long-ago thinking." Hmm. 26:36 And yet, could it be that this boy from Germany, 26:44 who flipped the world upside down, could it be, 26:49 embedded in what he raised up are the seeds of one more Reformation -- 27:00 the new Reformation? 27:02 And not wanting to look back and become nostalgic about the 27:05 past, and wanting, like you, to push forward 27:08 with a dream to dream, I say, "Let's go. Come on. 27:12 The rest of the world is thinking about it. Why shouldn't we?" 27:15 Now, we're gonna do things backwards, because, normally, here's what you do. 27:19 You share the story, you think about it, and you say, "Out of this story, what can we draw? 27:22 Are there any lessons we can draw?" Forget it. 27:24 We're not gonna do that. We're gonna turn it upside down. Let's start with the lessons and 27:27 think about the story later. I want to share them with you -- four takeaways, four legacies 27:33 from that 500-year-old Reformation, that we can take with us into thenewReformation 27:40 that is about to begin. Four of them -- count them. But, first, I want to go 27:45 to a passage that is so Martin Luther-esque that it's worth our contemplating. 27:51 Little book of 1 Corinthians. 1 Corinthians. Open your Bible with me, please. 27:55 1 Corinthians 2. 1 Corinthians 2. 28:02 Verse 1. "And so it was with me, brothers 28:06 and sisters. When I came to you, 28:08 I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to 28:11 you the testimony about God. For I resolved to know nothing 28:15 while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 28:17 I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling. 28:20 My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive 28:22 words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that 28:25 your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God's 28:28 power." 28:30 Four takeaways, all embedded in that passage, as well. Grab your study guide. 28:33 Let's go. It's in your worship bulletin. Pull it out. 28:35 You didn't get a study guide? We've got friendly ushers here. They're gonna jump up right now, 28:40 wherever they're seated, and they're gonna help you. All right? 28:43 And while they're getting ready to be friendly and jump up, I want to talk to those of you who 28:47 are watching online right now. We're glad to have you. Brand-new series beginning 28:51 right now. 28:52 The title of the series -- "Martin Luther and the new 28:54 Reformation." Title of this particular 28:57 teaching, "I, a Poor, Stinking Bag of Dung," quoting 29:01 Luther himself. We're going to get to that. 29:03 But do you see "Study Guide" there with Part 1. 29:06 Click on to "Study Guide." You'll be able to join us 29:09 as we move into this study. 29:12 All right? Let's go. Jot it down. Number 1 -- Four takeaways. 29:16 Takeaway number 1 -- Only Jesus. Only Jesus. Put 1 Corinthians 2 on the 29:22 screen for us again, please. 1 Corinthians 2:2 -- how does it read? 29:25 "But I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified." 29:31 Only Jesus. True to his storm-panicked vow, young Martin, the university 29:36 student, presents himself to the Black Cloister in the little city of Erfurt, to join the 29:40 Augustinian order of monks. Once accepted into the order, he has -- he has his head shaved. 29:46 Do you remember the tonsure? Looks like a bald head with a Hula-Hoop on it -- the tonsure. 29:51 But it was a big deal back then. You had the tonsure, that was a sign of respect. 29:54 It's also protection. "Don't touch the bald-headed man. 29:57 He's a priest." Martin Luther -- young novice, rigorous spiritual discipline. 30:03 Guess what? Now he's being awakened every morning, 2:00. 30:07 Every morning, 2:00. "Out of bed, out of bed, out of bed, down to worship, down to 30:10 worship." That would be the first of seven worship services through the 30:14 day. Prayer, confession, penance, prayer, confession, penance, 30:20 worship, worship, worship. Martin Luther would later write -- put Luther's words on 30:24 the screen -- "I was a good monk, and I kept the rule of my order so strictly that I may say 30:30 that if ever a monk got to Heaven by his monkery, it was I. 30:35 All my brothers in the monastery who knew me will bear me out. 30:39 If I had kept on any longer, I should have killed myself with 30:42 vigils, prayers, reading, and other work." 30:45 Ah, but young Martin. God bless him, young Martin. Such a conscientious young man 30:51 is driven -- driven -- to do more, to do more. "I'm gonna win. 30:56 I'm gonna win this game. I will win the affection of Heaven." 31:02 Martin again on the screen -- Luther. 31:03 "When I was a monk, I was unwilling to omit any of the 31:06 prayers, but...I often accumulated my appointed 31:09 prayers for a whole week --" it's supposed to be done at a 31:11 certain time, certain day -- "I accumulated them for week or 31:14 even two or three weeks. Then --" here's what I would 31:16 do -- "I would take a Saturday off, or shut myself in for as 31:19 long as three days without food or drink, until I had said all 31:24 the prayers I had missed. This made my head split and as a 31:27 consequence, I couldn't close my eyes for five nights, I lay sick 31:30 unto death, and I went out of my senses. 31:32 Even after I quickly recovered and I tried again to read, 31:35 my head went 'round and 'round." Driven, driven to win 31:40 the affection of an angry God. James Kittelson, one of his 31:47 biographers --"Anfechtung--" Luther coined that word -- 31:51 "Anfechtungwas what Luther later called this grinding sense 31:54 of being utterly lost. By it, he intended the idea of 31:58 swarming attacks of doubt. that could convince people that 32:00 God's love was not for them. Later he considered this sense 32:03 of being irredeemably evil to be the work of Satan, 32:07 who sought to make a Christian's sins, doubts, and anxieties too 32:10 much even for the grace of God. At such moments, just the 32:14 rustling of dried leaves in a forest sounded like the legions 32:17 of hell coming to seize one's soul." 32:21 The guy is struggling. And we might as well be candid 32:24 right here at the beginning. It's not just a spiritual issue. 32:29 Derek Wilson, the English biographer -- put his words 32:31 on the screen. "Certainly Luther went through 32:33 periods of black depression when he retreated into himself and 32:38 spoke to no one. He never fully shrugged off this 32:42 particular demon and to the end of his days would retire into a 32:45 room by himself when problems weighed heavily upon him." 32:49 "Pause" button right there. Come on, come on, guys. 32:52 No clucking of the tongues, please. Let us be reminded that in 32:56 sacred history, some of the greatest, some of the giants, were plagued with depression. 33:02 It's not a sin to be depressed. It's notwrongto be depressed. Elijah -- depressed. 33:08 John the Baptist -- depressed. Jesus in Gethsemane -- depressed. 33:14 Martin Luther -- depressed. Charles Spurgeon, the great prince of preachers in the 33:19 19th century, called depression his black dog that would come to him every now and then. 33:25 It's not a sin. Some of you are struggling with depression right now. 33:28 You're on medication. That's what it's for. That's why you take it. 33:31 It's to help you. It's okay. God is not angry at you. 33:34 Depression is just a part of life, and you got it. Don't you ever feel guilty for 33:40 that depression. That's Luther. It would take 10 years for him 33:45 to finally break through -- just break through somehow. What's bothering him? 33:48 Put it on the screen. 33:50 Luther again -- "I greatly longed to understand Paul's 33:52 Epistles to the Romans, and nothing stood in the way but 33:54 that one expression, 'the justice of God,' 33:57 because I took it to mean that justice whereby God is just 34:00 and deals justly in punishing the unjust -- that would be me. 34:04 My situation was that, although an impeccable monk, 34:08 I stood before God as a sinner troubled in conscience, and I 34:11 had no confidence that my merit would assuage Him --" 34:14 that it would please Him, that it would gratify Him -- 34:16 "Therefore I did not love a just and angry God, but rather hated 34:20 and murmured against Him." 34:28 Days and nights. Daysand nights. Some of you know the meaning of 34:33 this. Some of you know this desperate struggle to somehow get God to 34:38 love you in the end. Days and nights. [ Snaps fingers ] 34:43 And then there's a breakthrough. Oh, it didn't come just with a snap of a finger. 34:47 It's been accumulating slowly. God's timetable is not ours. Slowly God says, "Now, come on, 34:52 Martin. Martin, think, think, think with me." 34:55 Here comes the breakthrough. He writes about it here. 34:57 Luther again on the screen. "Then one day, I grasped 35:00 that the justice of God is that righteousness by which, 35:02 through grace and sheer mercy, God justifiesusthrough faith. 35:08 Thereupon I felt myself to be reborn and to have gone through 35:11 open doors into paradise." It's just like the ceiling over 35:15 us just opens, and there is paradise. 35:17 And up we go. 35:19 That's what happened to him. There was a breakthrough. There's nothing wrong 35:22 with a breakthrough. Don't give up -- that's the point. 35:26 Don't quit. It took years for him. Don't quit. 35:30 The God of this universe is drawing you to that moment when those doors will open 35:34 emotionally, when they will open spiritually, and you will see what you never saw before. 35:39 Don't give up. Pihhh. Martin Luther, who would 35:45 describe himself once with these words, "I, a poor stinking bag of dung," finally found peace 35:51 with his savior, Jesus. Ah. What a grand takeaway 35:56 from thatoldReformation. OnlyJesus. How did Paul put it, 36:01 a moment ago? It was this verse 2 -- "For I determined to know 36:03 nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified." That's all I need to know. 36:08 "I, a poor, stinking bag of dung." Look at this -- 1 Timothy 1:15. 36:13 That was Paul is saying, right here. 36:15 1:15 on the screen. "Here is a trustworthy saying 36:17 that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world 36:19 to save sinners -- of whom I am the worst." 36:22 "A stinking bag of dung." "I'm the worst of the worst." 36:30 ♪ We've heard the joyful sound ♪ ♪ Jesus saves, Jesus saves ♪ ♪ Spread the glad news 36:38 all around ♪ ♪ Jesus saves, Jesus saves ♪ Ladies and gentlemen, it's the 36:46 Gospel. It's the great takeaway -- "Only Jesus." 36:49 Someone came to H.M.S. Richards, the great Bible preacher. Ah. 36:56 When I grow up, I want to be like him. 36:58 He once declared -- jot this down in your study guide, 37:00 'cause it's in your study guide. "I have only one doctrine." 37:04 Okay? "I have only one doctrine. 37:06 I am a great sinner, but I have a great savior." 37:11 And then, when he was asked, "Hey, Pastor Richards, 37:14 what is the Adventist message?" he replied, "Jesus only." 37:18 Jesus only. That's it. 37:22 Jesus only. 37:25 Takeaway number 1. Oh, God, that we would be known as a Jesus people, 37:30 that we would be known in our little village and our little county, our little world 37:36 that we would be known as the Jesus people, where "Jesusonly" is what feeds and drives 37:46 their souls. There are four takeaways. Takeaway number 1 -- Jesus only. 37:49 Takeaway number 2 -- only the Cross. Come on, we just read it. 37:54 Verse 2 again -- "for I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and 37:59 Him crucified." Yep, Calvary, the Cross. On one occasion -- this is 38:05 before the Gospel light broke in -- oh, poor Luther -- he is with his mentor, who 38:09 happens to be the vicar -- the vicar of the Augustinian order, where Luther was monk and 38:14 priest. His name is Johann von Staupitz. He is pouring out his heart. 38:19 Pouring out his heart. By the way, let me tell you about von Staupitz. 38:22 Those were dear friends. Staupitz, when he dies, said of Luther, 38:26 "His love to me was greater than a woman's." There was nothing going between 38:29 them. That's onlythisgeneration that would read that. 38:33 He was like a father to Luther. And while they had to part ways theologically... 38:42 they were one. Pouredout his heart to von Staupitz. 38:46 Finally, he cuts him off, "Martin, God is not angry at you! 38:50 Do you understand this?! You are angry atHim! 38:55 The Cross, Martin, the Cross. Look at the Cross!" 38:59 Hey... not bad from a vicar 39:05 of an Augustinian order of the Roman Catholic faith. 39:10 He saidexactlywhat God's man needed to hear. Exactly. 39:17 It was the Gospel. Ah. One of the great Reformation 39:23 paintings is by a friend of Luther's, who was also a parishioner of his, named 39:26 Lucas Cranach. Now put the -- I've seen this painting. 39:29 I've been to Wittenberg. Oh, my. And it's the Town Church. 39:31 That's the name of the church in Wittenberg. This is there behind the altar 39:35 there in the Lutheran church. There is it. This is the preaching of Paul. 39:39 This is the preaching of Paul. That's the way Lucas wanted to depict it. 39:44 "I determine to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified." 39:49 That's the way Luther preached. It's the way Paul preached. In fact, Luther -- let me put 39:54 Luther's words on the screen for you. 39:57 "The wounds of Jesus --" oh, I love this -- "The wounds 39:59 of Jesus are safe enough for us." 40:02 >> Amen! >> [ Chuckles ] "Safe enough." 40:04 Whatever is going on in your life, get your finger into those wounds like Thomas. 40:08 Let thewoundsheal you. "By his wounds we are healed" -- Isaiah 53. 40:15 Thewoundsof Jesus are safe enough. 40:17 In a letter to a friend of his, "Therefore, my sweet brother --" 40:20 this is beautiful. "Therefore, my sweet brother, 40:23 learn Christ and Him crucified; despairing of yourself, learn to 40:27 pray to Him, saying, 'You, Lord Jesus, are my 40:29 righteousness, but I am your sin; you have taken on yourself 40:32 what you were not and have given me what I was not.'" 40:36 And I went to that little 5'3" American writer and spiritual leader. 40:42 Boy, that was a takeaway she grabbed from the Reformation. Listen to her on the Cross. 40:46 Her words on the screen. By the way, your study guide has all of these in it. 40:49 "The lower --" She's writing. 40:50 "The lower you lie at the foot of the Cross --" this is 40:53 beautiful. "The lower you lie at the foot 40:54 of the Cross, the dearer and more exalted will be your 40:58 conception of your Redeemer." Just lie low at the foot of the 41:02 Cross. Here's one more. 41:03 "The theme that attracts the heart of the sinner is Christ 41:05 and Him crucified. On the Cross of Calvary, Jesus 41:08 stands revealed to the world in unparalleled love." 41:13 It's the pinnacle of all truth. 41:15 And anybody who comes and tells you, "Yeah, but it's not quite," 41:20 don't listen to them. Don't listen to them. 41:23 Itisthe summation of God's revelation. 41:30 For third millennials like you and me, what takeaway is there 41:33 in a story 500 years old -- dusty and moldy? 41:37 Ah, takeaway number 1 -- only Jesus. 41:40 Takeaway number 2 -- only the Cross. 41:43 And, oh, God, would you make us a people who gatherlowat the 41:47 foot of the Cross. We won't be haughty then. 41:50 We won't be judgmental then. We will not tear each other 41:53 down then. We will be what you need us to 41:56 be at the foot of the Cross -- sinners, all of us. 42:00 We pray. Ah, but there's takeaway 42:03 number 3. Jot it down. 42:04 Only the Bible. And Paul talks about that. 42:07 This is verse 1. "And so it was with me, 42:09 brothers and sisters. 42:10 When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human 42:13 wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God." 42:16 When I came walking into town, I had one thing. I had the Word of God, and 42:19 that's what I brought to you. It'sallI brought to you -- onlythe Bible. 42:25 Many historians conclude, by the way, that Martin Luther's greatest contribution, 42:33 the single most influential act that affected human history -- yea, even changed the history 42:41 of the Western world -- was his translation of the Bible into the vernacular of his 42:45 people -- into German. Derek Wilson, the Englishman, again. 42:49 Put it on the screen for you. "Within decades of Luther's death... all Europe was 42:53 awash with Bibles in contemporary languages. 42:56 This was the richest part of Martin Luther's legacy. 42:59 He bequeathed to the peoples of the world a collection of 43:01 religious writings and invested them with 43:03 supreme authority (or, as he would have said, recognized the 43:06 supreme authority they manifestly possessed)." "Sola Scriptura,"as the 43:11 reformers would proclaim -- the Bible only. In fact, Luther himself once 43:16 gloried in the Bible. This is beautiful. On the screen. 43:19 Luther -- "God's Word cannot be without God's people, and 43:23 God's people cannot be without God's Word... 43:26 For it is the Word of God which builds the Church... 43:29 Where that Word is heard, where baptism, the sacrament of 43:33 the altar --" that would be the Lord's Supper -- "where 43:34 the forgiveness of sins are administered, there hold fast 43:37 and conclude most certainly that there --" here -- "is the 43:41 house of God and there --" here -- "is the gate to Heaven." 43:44 The Church exists because of the Word, and only the Word. Onlythe Word -- 43:52 Sola Scriptura. Huge takeaway. Man, they were -- Did they drill 43:58 this into us, as kids? I mean, did they drill it. I'm just gonna find out how 44:01 it got drilled into you. ♪ The B-I-B-L-E ♪ ♪ Yes, that's the book for me ♪ 44:10 ♪ I stand alone on the Word of God ♪ ♪ The B-I-B-L-E ♪ 44:18 You must have had the Sabbath-school teacher I had. [ Laughter ] 44:21 Boy, she was relentless. [ Laughter ] Thank God for our Sabbath-school 44:25 teachers here -- godly men and women. The little kids get it. 44:29 And wemustget it. It's the Bible. The Bible. 44:34 Takeaway number 1 -- only the Savior. Takeaway number 2 -- 44:36 only the Cross. Takeaway number 3 -- only the Bible. 44:39 Oh, God, if the day could come when, like the pioneers for whom this church is a memorial, like 44:44 the pioneers of this little movement, who were immersed and awash in Scripture, if only 44:49 we could become again the people of the Word -- the Bible people. Aw. 44:59 Ellen White. Boy, she -- did she want to have this prayer answered, or what? 45:04 This is "Great Controversy." Let me put it on the screen for you, describing Luther's legacy. 45:08 "But God will have a people upon the earth to maintain 45:12 the Bible, and the Bible only, as the standard of all doctrines 45:16 and the basis of all reforms." Now, listen. 45:19 "The opinions of learned men --" we have a seminary on this 45:21 campus -- "The opinions of learned men, the deductions of 45:23 science --" we have a science building --" the creeds or 45:26 decisions of ecclesiastical councils, as numerous and 45:28 discordant as are the churches which they represent, the voice 45:31 of the majority -- not one nor all of these should be regarded 45:36 as evidence for or against any point of religious faith. 45:39 Before accepting any doctrine or precept, we should demand a 45:43 plain --" and what's that last phrase? -- "we should demand 45:45 a plain --" what's that last phrase? -- 'Thus says 45:48 the Lord.'" 45:50 Right here. You show me here. You show me here, 45:54 I'll accept it. You have to show me here, though. 45:58 You show me here. "Plain 'Thus saith the Lord.'" Ah, only the Savior, 46:04 only the Cross. Only four of these. Only the Bible. 46:07 One more. Only the Holy Spirit. Write that down, please. 46:10 Only the Holy Spirit, because that's what Paul is talking about, right here. 46:14 Look at verse 3. "I came to you in weakness with great fear and 46:19 trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise 46:22 and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, 46:27 so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God's power." 46:33 Holy Spirit. The truth is -- and you know this -- 46:38 ideas infused by the Holy Spirit change the world. I mean, we got a generation now 46:46 that's into change. "Let's change this world." Guess what, guys? 46:50 You want to change this world? You won't be able to do it without Him, not if you're gonna 46:54 change it forever. And that's the only kind of change I want is forever change. 46:58 I'm not into one lifetime or one generation or two months' change. 47:02 Forever change. And the only way that forever change comes is through the 47:06 mighty third person of the Godhead. He is the fire. 47:08 He is the catalyst. He is the ignition of every movement that God sends to this 47:13 planet. It always comes through Him. And I love the way King Solomon 47:16 describes what is the truth about our Reformation that we inherit today as we start a 47:23 new Reformation going that way. But look at Proverbs 4:18. Can you believe this? 47:29 This is -- This is it. "The path of the righteous is like the morning sun, shining 47:35 ever brighter and brighter and brighter and brighter and brighter till the full 47:40 light of day." You ever go walking before -- You ever go walking before the 47:44 sun is up, go running, like I do before the sun is up? 47:46 And you're just walking along or running along, jogging along, 47:49 and you watch -- the watching the eastern arise, 47:51 and you get those little shafts of orange, and then yellow. 47:53 They just shooh, shooh, shooh. And you just keep your eye 47:56 on it. Just keep your eye. 47:57 Doesn't seem like there's any change, but there just seems to 47:59 be more of these things coming up, little by little by 48:00 little. 48:01 And eventually, if you're still out walking, that old -- that glorious old, golden face rises 48:10 above the foothills. That's Reformation. It doesn't stop here. 48:17 It gets brighter and brighter and brighter. The closer we get, the brighter 48:20 it gets. The closer we get, the brighter it gets. 48:23 It'ssupposedto get brighter. I need you to get that. It's supposed to get brighter. 48:28 The trouble with modern Protestantism -- we build a fence around our favorite 48:33 reformer, and we haven'tbudged since. The problem with modern 48:38 evangelists... even within our faith community? We build a fence around -- 48:49 what was her name, again? We build a fence around her, say, "That's it." 48:54 We don't go any further. Ohh. That can't be right. 49:03 Put Ellen White on the screen, please. "Great Controversy" again. 49:05 "The Reformation did not, as many suppose, end with Luther." 49:08 No, no, no, no, no, no, no. "It is to be continued to the 49:11 close --" C-L-O-S-E -- "to the close of this world's history. 49:15 Luther had a great work to do in reflecting to others the light 49:18 which God permitted to shine upon him; yet he did not receive 49:21 all the light which was to be given to the world. 49:23 From that time to this,new light has been continually 49:26 shining upon the Scriptures, andnewtruths have been 49:29 constantly unfolding." 49:31 Guess what? Martin Luther did not receive all the light. 49:35 Step a few years closer. John Calvin did not receive all the light. 49:39 Step a few years closer. Ellen White did not receive all the light. 49:43 It's humanly impossible, ladies and gentlemen, for one human being to be the receptacle 49:48 of all truth. If you were the receptacle of all truth, you'd be 49:53 Almighty God, and you can't be, 'cause I know you. It keeps shining 50:02 brighter and brighter. The closer and closer we get, the brighter and brighter 50:06 itgets. It keeps shining, until one day that whole planet will be 50:09 lighted with the glory of Revelation 18:1, and the sun will rise in the sky one last 50:14 time for the salvation of the human race. Brighter and brighter. 50:19 Only the Holy Spirit. Ideas infused by the Holy Spirit, that's what changes 50:24 the world. Do you want to change the world? Then maybe what we were onto, 50:28 the last time we were together, in September, maybe what we were onto is what we need to stay 50:33 onto -- the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Remember that? 50:36 The baptism of the Holy Spirit? Maybe we ought to keep asking and not a hint with, "Okay, 50:42 what's the new soup du jour? What's the new flavor today?" No. 50:47 What did Jesus say -- Luke 11:13? 50:49 "If you who are evil know how to give good gifts to your 50:52 children, how much more will your Father in Heaven give the 50:54 Holy Spirit to those who --" as the Greek adds -- "those who 50:56 continually, day after day after day, plea for the Holy Spirit." 51:02 Pleafor the Holy Spirit. You know what I'm praying 51:04 around here? Because you thought we'd just 51:06 forget it, after September. "Dwight will come back, and 51:08 we'll be into Martin Luther, and just won't be into this." 51:09 No, wrong. You know what I'm praying for? 51:12 99 other pleaders. 99 other pleaders who, every 51:18 day, before they go out into the world, will be on their knees, 51:22 supplicating the God of this universe, "You got to baptize me 51:25 all over again today. 51:27 I need what Jesus had. Morning by morning, Jesus asked You for this baptism. 51:30 Morning by morning, I'm asking you." Give me 99 others. 51:36 99 others, and this world willneverbe the same again. 51:41 99...plus one. 51:45 Why not? No wonder Jesus, on the eve of his death, having His eye on the 51:52 new Reformation to come -- we're gonna, please, turn to this. Don't read it on the screen. 51:56 John -- This is our last text -- John 16. No wonder. 52:00 John 16. No wonder Jesus made this promise. 52:03 Beginning of verse 12, because we got to get verse 12 in order to know verse 13 -- 52:07 the value of verse 13. So, here's verse 12. Red letters in my Bible. 52:11 John 16:12 -- "'I have much --'" this is on the eve -- he'll be dead in 24 hours -- dead -- 52:15 "'I have much more to say to you, more than you can bear now.'" 52:20 Because it's humanly impossible for any mind to absorb all the truth of the universe. 52:24 "I have more to say. I'll be back to you." How are you gonna come back, 52:29 Lord? How are you gonna come back? 52:31 He ways -- verse 13 -- Ah. "But when he, the Spirit of 52:35 truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth. 52:37 He will not speak on His own; He will speak only what He hears, 52:40 and He will tell you what is yet to come." 52:42 Jot it down in your mind, not your study guide. 52:45 There are two missions for the Holy Spirit -- He will guide us into all truth -- that means 52:48 brighter and brighter, the closer and closer we get -- and He will show us what is yet 52:52 to come. Next Sabbath -- whoa, it's gonna be touchy, next Sabbath. 52:55 If you can't be here, that would be okay, 'cause that will be rather controversial next 52:59 Sabbath, so just maybe stay at home and do something. [ Light laughter ] 53:04 It's gonna be touchy. But we have to deal with it. We only have three Sabbaths. 53:08 You got to deal with everything in three Sabbaths. >> Yeah. 53:13 >> That's the mission of the Holy Spirit. He will not only guide us into 53:15 all truth, he's gonna say, "Heads up. Something's about to break. 53:19 Listen to me, listen to me. Something is about to break. Watch... 53:24 listen... and pray. Do we get it a day in advance, 53:29 a year in advance, a month in advance, an hour in advance? 53:32 I have no idea. Hewill tell you what is yet to come. 53:38 Hmm. 53:44 Of course, it means -- I repeat, at the risk of repeating myself -- that the 53:50 closer we get to the return of Jesus, the brighter and brighter the light will be. 53:56 Brighter and brighter as we go get closer and closer. Ellen White's declaration -- 54:03 now, listen to me carefully. I need you to really hear this. Ellen White's declaration that 54:07 the Reformation must go on means that new light -- those are her words, those are her 54:11 words -- new light must be continually shining upon the Scriptures, and new truths -- 54:15 her words again -- must const-- must -- must -- is it "constantly"? -- yeah, 54:20 "constantly" -- the word is "constantly" -- and new truths must constantly be unfolding. 54:25 Could it be... that the discussions this last week at the Annual Council of 54:32 the General Conference cannot be just about the unity of the Church. 54:37 Could it be they are also about the unity of truth? Could it be that someday 54:44 Joel 2's end-time prophecy that "your sons and your daughters will prophesy," for, "Even on my 54:51 servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days," could it be that 54:56 new light and new truths heretofore unrecognized or accepted by this faith community 55:02 could break through with light yet to come, tothisfaith community? 55:08 Could it be? Could it be? Didn't Jesus promise, when He 55:14 comes, the Spirit of truth, He will guide you into all truth? He will guide you. 55:20 Stay close to Him. He's the best gift you have. 55:24 Baptize us, God. Baptize us with the Holy Spirit, 55:28 I pray. 55:30 Four legacies from the Reformation that we must embrace and take with us. 55:33 The old is gone. We're gonna start a new Reformation. 55:37 It starts right now, but we must not throw the old away. There are four precious 55:41 legacies. Only Jesus, only the Cross, only the Bible, and 55:45 only the Holy Spirit. Perhaps all four are summarized by a note they found in 55:51 Martin Luther's coat after he died. He died at the age of 62. 56:05 Those who were dearest on earth to him were undressing the body. And as they pulled the coat off, 56:11 they found folded a little piece of paper stuck in a pocket. 56:16 They pulled it out, they unfolded it, and they read. It's written in both German and 56:20 Latin. Here it is. It simply read, 56:26 "Hoc est verum" -- "This is true" -- "Wir sind alle Bettler" -- 56:32 "We are all beggars." Because, ladies and gentlemen, it is true about you and me. 56:39 We have nothing. Zero. Nada,nothing. 56:46 Only Jesus. We are all beggars... just like Luther. 56:54 Beggars. But we have Jesus. But we have Jesus. 56:59 >> Amen. >> We have Jesus. Amen. 57:03 >> Amen. >> Amen. 58:02 ♪♪ ♪♪ |
Revised 2017-10-19