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>> Good morning,
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brothers and sisters.
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[ Audience murmurs ]
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It's not such a good morning?
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Good morning,
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brothers and sisters.
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>> Good morning!
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>> Happy Sabbath.
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>> Happy Sabbath.
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>> Good to see you.
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On behalf of the pastors
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and the leaders
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and all the members of
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Pioneer Memorial Church,
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I extend a very warm welcome
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to you today to worship.
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We are glad that you chose
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to worship with us
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in this house of prayer
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for all of God's people.
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Welcome.
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Our call to worship today
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reminds us of a few reasons
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why we come to worship here
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every week and today.
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And I invite you to join me as
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we read together responsively.
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>> Please stand with me as we
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pray and remain standing
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afterwards for the hymn.
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Loving God of the universe,
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what a joy it is to call you
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Father, friend, savior,
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redeemer.
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What a blessing to be able to be
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in your house of worship
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on this day,
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to give you honor and glory
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and praise.
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As we come, Lord, I invite you
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to arrest our thoughts,
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imprison our minds,
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captivate our entire being,
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fill us with your spirit
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so that we might be healed,
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we might proclaim,
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and we might live Your love
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as You teach us how to worship
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You in spirit and in truth.
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Amen.
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>> Amen.
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[ "Praise, My Soul,
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the King of Heaven" begins ]
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[ Applause ]
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>> Okay. Thank you so much
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for all those offerings.
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Thank you, Mr. Deacon,
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for helping us to spend
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that wisely.
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Good morning, boys and girls.
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>> Good morning.
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>> How are you today?
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>> I'm great.
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>> Ooh, "I'm great."
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That sounds good.
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Who is excited to go back
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to school?
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>> Me.
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>> Oh, boy.
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>> Me.
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>> Me.
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>> Me, me, me.
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Why are you excited?
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>> [ Speaking indistinctly ]
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>> Okay. You're excited
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to go back to school?
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Wonderful.
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Why are you excited to go back?
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>> Because I'm going
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into first grade.
00:14:02.27\00:14:03.41
>> Oh, excellent.
00:14:03.51\00:14:04.71
Congratulations.
00:14:04.81\00:14:06.31
Somebody over here.
00:14:06.41\00:14:07.38
Why are you excited to go back?
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>> Because it's very fun.
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>> It's very fun.
00:14:13.35\00:14:15.22
Okay, one more.
00:14:15.32\00:14:18.05
>> The reason why I'm excited
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to go back to school --
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Well, I'm kind of not.
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I'm kind of in the middle
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because I want the summer
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vacation to last longer.
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But then I also want to go back
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to school
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because it's all exciting
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because you get to meet your new
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teachers, your new classmates.
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>> Okay.
00:14:31.33\00:14:32.03
>> So it's really exciting.
00:14:32.13\00:14:33.00
>> It's exciting.
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Is it A little bit --
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[ Laughs ]
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That's an essay. Okay.
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Is it a little bit scary, too,
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to go back to school?
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Anybody a little bit scared
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to go?
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You are? Okay.
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Anybody else a little bit
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scared, a little bit not sure?
00:14:46.75\00:14:49.25
A little bit -- You are? Okay.
00:14:49.35\00:14:51.55
Well, I am sometimes, too.
00:14:51.65\00:14:55.52
But what would you do if, one
00:14:55.62\00:14:59.03
day, you came upon a giant?
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A giant.
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You're just going to school.
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You're just doing your thing,
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going to your class, talking
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to your teacher, going home.
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And then, one day,
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you meet up on a giant.
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You know what a giant is?
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>> Nine feet tall.
00:15:17.25\00:15:18.78
Maybe about nine feet, yes.
00:15:18.88\00:15:21.08
Yeah. Someone who's about
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9 feet or 10 feet, yeah.
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What do you have to tell me?
00:15:24.69\00:15:27.36
>> I know what a giant is.
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>> Oh, you know what a giant is.
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I'm glad you do.
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[ Laughing ] Okay.
00:15:30.96\00:15:32.53
Okay, so there's a little boy
00:15:32.63\00:15:34.93
who can teach us a lot
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of lessons about what to do
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when we meet upon giants.
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And some of you already know
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the story, but I want you
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to hear my version of it,
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and then you can
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fill in as I ask you.
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Okay? So there's this little
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boy, and he used to wash the
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sheep for his dad.
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And one day -- You know,
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he had seven brothers.
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Anybody here have seven
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brothers?
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No. Well, he had seven brothers,
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and he was the youngest brother.
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And his father
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had him watching the sheep.
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One day, he went, his father
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sent him to do an errand.
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And when he went,
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he found out that there were
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some people in trouble
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and he realized that they had
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been in trouble for some days.
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In fact, for 40 days.
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You know? 40 days.
00:16:23.41\00:16:25.85
This giant had been trying
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to fight them.
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And when the giant came
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and shouted,
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what did the adults do?
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They ran. They were so scared.
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And then, when this little boy
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heard, he said,
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"I'm not scared of the giant.
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I will fight the giant."
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And when he said that, his
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brother said, "Oh, no, you can't
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fight the giant, be quiet."
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And the king said,
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"Oh, are you sure?"
00:16:49.40\00:16:50.31
And he said,
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"Yes, I can fight the giant.
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Why can I fight the giant?
00:16:53.78\00:16:55.74
Because God helped me to fight,
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delivered me from a lion and God
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delivered me from a bear.
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So God will deliver me
00:17:01.92\00:17:03.35
from the giant."
00:17:03.45\00:17:05.15
And guess what?
00:17:05.25\00:17:06.69
He went and he went with God's
00:17:06.79\00:17:09.39
help, and what did he do?
00:17:09.49\00:17:12.06
Anybody knows the story?
00:17:12.16\00:17:13.96
Yeah. What happened?
00:17:14.03\00:17:15.63
>> He got a sling and some
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rocks.
00:17:16.77\00:17:17.47
>> He had a sling and some
00:17:17.57\00:17:18.80
rocks, and what happened?
00:17:18.90\00:17:20.17
He slayed the giant, didn't he?
00:17:20.27\00:17:23.27
A little boy slaying --
00:17:23.37\00:17:25.07
Well, how tall did you say?
00:17:25.17\00:17:26.44
10 feet? Something like that.
00:17:26.54\00:17:28.14
Yeah, a little boy
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slaying a 10-feet giant.
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That's like me and you on top of
00:17:31.48\00:17:32.91
my head and some more.
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And a little --
00:17:34.92\00:17:36.32
How could a little boy slay
00:17:36.42\00:17:37.82
a big giant?
00:17:37.92\00:17:40.79
How could that happen?
00:17:40.89\00:17:42.26
Yeah?
00:17:42.36\00:17:43.76
>> Because he had
00:17:43.86\00:17:44.93
God's help with.
00:17:45.03\00:17:46.53
>> He had God's help with him.
00:17:46.63\00:17:49.20
So I think that little boy
00:17:49.30\00:17:51.37
teaches us a lot of lessons.
00:17:51.47\00:17:53.54
And, you know, after he slayed
00:17:53.64\00:17:55.07
the giant, then the adults were
00:17:55.17\00:17:57.11
more encouraged and they didn't
00:17:57.21\00:17:58.94
run away anymore.
00:17:59.04\00:18:00.18
They were not afraid.
00:18:00.28\00:18:01.74
So the little boy teaches us
00:18:01.84\00:18:02.94
what?
00:18:03.04\00:18:03.75
He teaches us that God
00:18:03.85\00:18:06.21
will help us to slay our giants.
00:18:06.31\00:18:10.35
Isn't that a wonderful thing?
00:18:10.45\00:18:12.82
And that God will help us
00:18:12.92\00:18:14.76
and give us confidence
00:18:14.86\00:18:16.89
so that we can face our giants.
00:18:16.99\00:18:19.36
So if you're a little scared
00:18:19.46\00:18:20.80
for any reason, if you're
00:18:20.90\00:18:22.36
a little anxious for any reason,
00:18:22.46\00:18:24.53
if you're a little nervous,
00:18:24.63\00:18:25.63
or if you're a lot scared,
00:18:25.73\00:18:28.14
if the giant is really,
00:18:28.24\00:18:29.57
really big, if that class
00:18:29.67\00:18:31.54
is really, really hard,
00:18:31.64\00:18:33.24
if that girl is really,
00:18:33.34\00:18:34.74
really unkind, if that boy
00:18:34.84\00:18:37.31
won't let you play with him
00:18:37.41\00:18:39.51
and you see him as a big giant,
00:18:39.61\00:18:41.25
remember, you can pray
00:18:41.35\00:18:43.12
and ask God to help you to deal
00:18:43.22\00:18:45.35
with this giant.
00:18:45.45\00:18:46.99
Who wants to thank God
00:18:47.09\00:18:48.69
that he will help you
00:18:48.79\00:18:50.69
and all of us
00:18:50.79\00:18:52.26
to deal with our giants?
00:18:52.36\00:18:54.20
I actually saw him first,
00:18:54.30\00:18:55.63
so I'll ask him.
00:18:55.73\00:18:56.67
Come and tell us your name,
00:18:56.77\00:18:58.47
and then you can pray for us.
00:18:58.57\00:19:02.64
What's your name?
00:19:02.74\00:19:03.77
>> Adam.
00:19:03.87\00:19:04.94
>> Adam, can you pray for us,
00:19:05.04\00:19:05.67
please?
00:19:05.77\00:19:06.37
And thank God that he helps us
00:19:06.47\00:19:07.68
with our giants.
00:19:07.78\00:19:08.84
>> Dear Jesus,
00:19:08.94\00:19:09.94
thank you for this day.
00:19:10.05\00:19:11.58
Help us with our giants.
00:19:11.68\00:19:13.25
And, Lord, please help it
00:19:13.35\00:19:14.98
to be another wonderful day.
00:19:15.08\00:19:16.65
And thank you. Amen.
00:19:16.75\00:19:18.79
>> Amen.
00:19:18.89\00:19:20.56
Okay. Remember, as you go back
00:19:20.66\00:19:22.46
and as you start school,
00:19:22.56\00:19:24.26
that God is big and stronger --
00:19:24.36\00:19:26.59
bigger and stronger
00:19:26.70\00:19:27.76
than any giant you will face.
00:19:27.86\00:19:31.10
Okay? Thank you.
00:19:31.20\00:19:33.97
You may go back to your seats.
00:19:34.07\00:19:35.64
[ Organ plays ]
00:19:35.74\00:19:39.11
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00:20:22.38\00:20:30.73
>> Today's Scripture reading
00:20:33.60\00:20:34.83
is found in Psalm 89:1.
00:20:34.93\00:20:39.20
"I will sing of the Lord's
00:20:39.30\00:20:40.37
great love forever.
00:20:40.47\00:20:42.90
With my mouth,
00:20:43.00\00:20:44.64
I will make your faithfulness
00:20:44.74\00:20:46.27
known through all generations."
00:20:46.37\00:20:49.28
[ "There Is a Name
00:20:50.88\00:20:53.11
I Love to Hear" begins ]
00:20:53.21\00:20:55.48
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00:21:12.80\00:21:21.11
¤
00:23:20.80\00:23:24.03
>> Number of years ago,
00:23:29.64\00:23:30.54
a friend of mine invited me
00:23:30.64\00:23:31.97
to join his county league coed
00:23:32.07\00:23:35.98
volleyball team.
00:23:36.08\00:23:38.78
Now, for those of you
00:23:38.88\00:23:39.68
that are not familiar
00:23:39.78\00:23:40.62
with county league sports,
00:23:40.72\00:23:42.38
it's just what it sounds like --
00:23:42.48\00:23:43.69
a county in a given area
00:23:43.79\00:23:45.65
will form a sports league.
00:23:45.75\00:23:47.26
Anybody who's willing to pay
00:23:47.36\00:23:48.39
the entry fee can sign up
00:23:48.49\00:23:49.69
and you can play a season
00:23:49.79\00:23:51.29
in the league.
00:23:51.39\00:23:52.76
Well, I like volleyball.
00:23:52.86\00:23:54.20
And, also, for those of you
00:23:54.30\00:23:55.73
who don't know, county league
00:23:55.83\00:23:56.60
is a great way to meet people
00:23:56.70\00:23:58.47
that don't know the Lord.
00:23:58.57\00:23:59.63
If you're looking for ways
00:23:59.73\00:24:00.40
to branch out
00:24:00.50\00:24:01.14
of the Berrien bubble,
00:24:01.24\00:24:02.14
that may be a way to do it.
00:24:02.24\00:24:04.01
So I accepted readily.
00:24:04.11\00:24:05.97
We went to the gymnasium
00:24:06.07\00:24:07.51
for the very first game.
00:24:07.61\00:24:09.71
I had not met
00:24:09.81\00:24:11.15
yet the rest of our team.
00:24:11.25\00:24:12.78
I saw my friend across the gym.
00:24:12.88\00:24:14.08
I went over to meet him,
00:24:14.18\00:24:14.95
and he said,
00:24:15.05\00:24:15.78
"Well, let me introduce you
00:24:15.88\00:24:16.69
to the rest of the team."
00:24:16.79\00:24:18.09
So we went down the line,
00:24:18.19\00:24:20.12
and the athlete in me,
00:24:20.22\00:24:22.22
at first, was impressed.
00:24:22.32\00:24:24.23
There were some athletic-looking
00:24:24.33\00:24:25.56
guys there, tall guys there,
00:24:25.66\00:24:27.93
and then we came to Michelle.
00:24:28.00\00:24:32.57
Now, Michelle is not her real
00:24:32.67\00:24:34.57
name.
00:24:34.67\00:24:35.77
I'm just going to call her
00:24:35.87\00:24:36.84
Michelle for the sake of
00:24:36.94\00:24:37.61
the story.
00:24:37.71\00:24:38.51
Michelle was there and Michelle
00:24:38.61\00:24:40.18
was not terribly awe-inspiring
00:24:40.28\00:24:42.31
from an athletic perspective.
00:24:42.41\00:24:43.68
She was all of 5'9".
00:24:43.78\00:24:47.05
I was told after first service
00:24:47.15\00:24:48.62
that it was insulting
00:24:48.72\00:24:49.72
that I thought 5'9" was short.
00:24:49.82\00:24:51.75
[ Laughter ]
00:24:51.85\00:24:54.46
So let me just assure you
00:24:54.56\00:24:55.72
my sincere apologies.
00:24:55.82\00:24:57.19
I used to be exactly
00:24:57.29\00:24:58.89
your same height if you're 5'9".
00:24:58.99\00:25:02.56
In the third grade.
00:25:02.66\00:25:06.17
She was 5'9", if that.
00:25:06.27\00:25:08.57
She was not super husky.
00:25:08.67\00:25:11.17
No bench press competition
00:25:11.27\00:25:12.54
winners in danger there.
00:25:12.64\00:25:14.48
And I thought to myself,
00:25:14.58\00:25:16.34
if we're going to have to cover
00:25:16.44\00:25:17.61
for somebody, if there's
00:25:17.71\00:25:18.45
a weak link on our team,
00:25:18.55\00:25:20.65
it's going to be Michelle.
00:25:20.75\00:25:23.39
We finished warming up and
00:25:23.49\00:25:24.79
we began to play our first game.
00:25:24.89\00:25:27.36
And within moments,
00:25:27.46\00:25:29.12
it became clear
00:25:29.22\00:25:31.66
that Michelle was not only good,
00:25:31.76\00:25:34.13
she was by far the best player
00:25:34.23\00:25:36.93
on the court.
00:25:37.03\00:25:40.20
And actually, for the rest of
00:25:40.30\00:25:41.40
the season, every team that we
00:25:41.50\00:25:43.30
played, Michelle clearly showed
00:25:43.41\00:25:45.41
that she was the best player
00:25:45.51\00:25:47.21
on the court.
00:25:47.31\00:25:48.61
She could spike from anywhere.
00:25:48.71\00:25:50.18
Sometimes maybe back.
00:25:50.28\00:25:51.51
But it was incredible to watch.
00:25:51.61\00:25:52.55
She would dive and get
00:25:52.65\00:25:53.45
other people's spikes
00:25:53.55\00:25:54.32
and recover them.
00:25:54.42\00:25:55.25
She would serve,
00:25:55.35\00:25:56.55
and there's probably still singe
00:25:56.65\00:25:57.75
marks on the top of nets
00:25:57.85\00:25:59.25
just where she barely crested it
00:25:59.35\00:26:00.96
on a way to another ace
00:26:01.06\00:26:02.36
on the other team.
00:26:02.46\00:26:03.66
She was amazing.
00:26:03.76\00:26:05.23
And, actually, it turns out
00:26:05.33\00:26:07.76
that there's a reason for that.
00:26:07.86\00:26:10.17
You see, some years prior
00:26:10.27\00:26:11.50
to joining our little
00:26:11.60\00:26:12.77
county league volleyball team,
00:26:12.87\00:26:14.50
Michelle had been part
00:26:14.60\00:26:16.44
of a little sports organization
00:26:16.54\00:26:18.11
that perhaps you've heard
00:26:18.21\00:26:18.87
of before.
00:26:18.97\00:26:20.61
It was the US Olympic Women's
00:26:20.71\00:26:22.94
Volleyball Team.
00:26:23.04\00:26:27.32
No joke. And she was
00:26:27.42\00:26:29.72
no joke on the court.
00:26:29.82\00:26:30.69
She was devastating.
00:26:30.79\00:26:32.15
I learned more in just
00:26:32.25\00:26:33.76
a few games watching Michelle
00:26:33.86\00:26:35.19
than I ever did in school
00:26:35.29\00:26:36.22
in volleyball class.
00:26:36.32\00:26:37.19
It was amazing to watch.
00:26:37.29\00:26:39.46
Needless to say,
00:26:39.56\00:26:40.90
we did very well that season.
00:26:40.96\00:26:42.80
Sometimes there is far more
00:26:49.14\00:26:54.04
potential
00:26:54.14\00:26:56.81
in someone than first meets
00:26:56.91\00:26:59.11
the eye.
00:26:59.21\00:27:02.72
If you have a Bible,
00:27:02.82\00:27:03.92
take a look, please,
00:27:04.02\00:27:05.22
at Luke 5:27.
00:27:05.32\00:27:07.62
Luke 5:27.
00:27:07.72\00:27:11.69
Luke, of course,
00:27:11.79\00:27:12.93
is one of the Gospels.
00:27:13.03\00:27:14.30
It's one of the good
00:27:14.40\00:27:15.66
news segments here
00:27:15.76\00:27:17.33
of the New Testament that tells
00:27:17.43\00:27:18.37
the story of the birth,
00:27:18.47\00:27:19.37
the ministry, the death,
00:27:19.47\00:27:20.24
the resurrection of Jesus.
00:27:20.34\00:27:22.00
In Luke 5, we're early.
00:27:22.10\00:27:23.97
This is early in the ministry of
00:27:24.07\00:27:24.91
Jesus.
00:27:25.01\00:27:25.64
He's not yet gathered
00:27:25.74\00:27:26.54
all of his disciples, Peter,
00:27:26.64\00:27:27.84
James, John, et cetera there.
00:27:27.94\00:27:28.78
But the rest of the crew
00:27:28.88\00:27:29.84
is being gathered.
00:27:29.94\00:27:31.95
Where we are going to read now,
00:27:32.05\00:27:33.45
Jesus has just finished
00:27:33.55\00:27:34.98
performing an incredible
00:27:35.08\00:27:35.88
miracle.
00:27:35.98\00:27:36.79
He's healed a man that had been
00:27:36.89\00:27:38.02
paralyzed for quite some time.
00:27:38.12\00:27:40.16
Coming off of that spiritual
00:27:40.26\00:27:42.46
mountain, Jesus meets someone.
00:27:42.56\00:27:46.03
Let's read about it.
00:27:46.13\00:27:47.40
Luke 5:27.
00:27:47.50\00:27:49.40
Says, "After this, Jesus went
00:27:49.50\00:27:52.17
out and saw a tax collector
00:27:52.27\00:27:54.77
by the name of Levi" --
00:27:54.87\00:27:56.64
This is Levi/Matthew --
00:27:56.74\00:27:58.61
"sitting at his tax booth.
00:27:58.71\00:28:01.68
'Follow me,' Jesus said.
00:28:01.78\00:28:04.75
And Levi got up, left
00:28:04.85\00:28:06.75
everything, and followed Him."
00:28:06.85\00:28:11.12
Pause there for a moment.
00:28:11.22\00:28:13.32
You know, spirit of prophecy
00:28:13.42\00:28:13.99
encourages us to
00:28:14.09\00:28:15.02
inject our imagination
00:28:15.12\00:28:16.79
into the stories of the Bible,
00:28:16.89\00:28:18.33
to imagine what it would be like
00:28:18.43\00:28:20.36
if we were actually present
00:28:20.46\00:28:22.06
in these stories.
00:28:22.16\00:28:23.97
You know, in my mind's eye,
00:28:24.07\00:28:25.30
when I see Jesus walking here
00:28:25.40\00:28:27.04
and he comes to this tax booth
00:28:27.14\00:28:28.20
where Levi/Matthew is,
00:28:28.30\00:28:30.24
this is something that probably
00:28:30.34\00:28:31.87
caused a little bit of stress
00:28:31.97\00:28:33.51
on the part of the disciples.
00:28:33.61\00:28:34.94
I can see
00:28:35.04\00:28:35.81
Peter thinking to himself,
00:28:35.91\00:28:37.01
"Oh, Lord, what are you doing?
00:28:37.11\00:28:38.45
We don't need to go to the tax
00:28:38.55\00:28:39.78
collecting booth.
00:28:39.88\00:28:40.68
It's not tax time for you.
00:28:40.78\00:28:42.38
Why are you going there?"
00:28:42.48\00:28:44.52
And then, maybe
00:28:44.62\00:28:46.29
Peter saw the same look on
00:28:46.39\00:28:48.02
Jesus' face that
00:28:48.12\00:28:50.46
Jesus had when he called Peter
00:28:50.56\00:28:52.53
to be one of his disciples.
00:28:52.63\00:28:55.80
And now the alarm bells are just
00:28:55.90\00:28:57.90
ringing in Peter's brain.
00:28:58.00\00:28:59.63
"No, no, no, no, no, no, no,
00:28:59.73\00:29:00.40
no, no.
00:29:00.50\00:29:01.24
No potential here, Lord.
00:29:01.34\00:29:03.47
In fact, quite the opposite.
00:29:03.57\00:29:04.64
Don't do it, Jesus.
00:29:04.74\00:29:05.77
Don't do it."
00:29:05.87\00:29:07.38
Because as probably
00:29:10.08\00:29:12.78
many of you know, if you've
00:29:12.88\00:29:13.88
spent time in the Bible
00:29:13.98\00:29:15.02
and been around church
00:29:15.12\00:29:15.92
for a while, you know why it was
00:29:16.02\00:29:17.85
that probably the other
00:29:17.95\00:29:19.09
disciples saw no potential in
00:29:19.19\00:29:21.16
Levi/Matthew.
00:29:21.26\00:29:22.66
Levi/Matthew was a tax
00:29:22.76\00:29:24.93
collector -- that's strike one.
00:29:25.03\00:29:27.36
And a tax collector
00:29:27.46\00:29:28.20
meant that he worked
00:29:28.30\00:29:29.43
for the Roman government.
00:29:29.53\00:29:30.47
The Romans were the dominant
00:29:30.57\00:29:32.10
power in the world at that time.
00:29:32.20\00:29:33.44
The Jews were subject to
00:29:33.54\00:29:34.74
Roman law.
00:29:34.84\00:29:36.14
It stuck in their craw.
00:29:36.24\00:29:37.57
It would have mine, as well.
00:29:37.67\00:29:39.27
And the taxes
00:29:39.37\00:29:40.84
that were collected
00:29:40.94\00:29:41.78
were often onerous ones.
00:29:41.88\00:29:43.61
Too much then what should have
00:29:43.71\00:29:44.91
been collected.
00:29:45.01\00:29:46.75
But Matthew had
00:29:46.85\00:29:48.25
another thing wrong with him.
00:29:48.35\00:29:49.12
He was a Jew
00:29:49.22\00:29:51.35
working for the Romans.
00:29:51.45\00:29:53.52
In other words,
00:29:53.62\00:29:54.76
he was essentially taking Jewish
00:29:54.86\00:29:56.22
blood money, extracting taxes.
00:29:56.32\00:29:58.99
And of course, the way that
00:29:59.09\00:30:00.20
tax collectors made their money
00:30:00.30\00:30:01.40
was not just by getting
00:30:01.50\00:30:02.53
some sort of stipend
00:30:02.63\00:30:03.57
from the Roman government.
00:30:03.67\00:30:04.57
It's what you could take extra.
00:30:04.67\00:30:06.07
So if you had 10 shekels worth
00:30:06.17\00:30:07.90
of tax, you would be charged
00:30:08.00\00:30:09.74
20 shekels and the tax collector
00:30:09.84\00:30:11.61
could pocket the remainder
00:30:11.71\00:30:12.84
for himself.
00:30:12.94\00:30:15.28
Three strikes and you're out.
00:30:15.38\00:30:17.55
Matthew represented everything
00:30:17.65\00:30:19.55
that was wrong in Judaism.
00:30:19.65\00:30:22.32
And I would imagine
00:30:22.42\00:30:23.45
the disciples thought
00:30:23.55\00:30:24.59
this was the last person that
00:30:24.69\00:30:26.99
Jesus should make a disciple.
00:30:27.09\00:30:30.99
And yet Jesus comes to Matthew
00:30:31.09\00:30:32.49
and he says, "Follow me."
00:30:32.59\00:30:38.13
Stunning to the disciples
00:30:38.23\00:30:39.70
and not just the disciples.
00:30:39.80\00:30:41.70
Verse 29.
00:30:41.80\00:30:44.01
"Then Levi held a great banquet
00:30:44.11\00:30:45.37
for Jesus at his house,
00:30:45.47\00:30:46.34
and a large crowd
00:30:46.44\00:30:47.31
of tax collectors and others
00:30:47.41\00:30:48.54
were eating with them.
00:30:48.64\00:30:49.84
But the Pharisees
00:30:49.94\00:30:50.81
and the teachers of the law
00:30:50.91\00:30:52.05
who belonged to their sect
00:30:52.15\00:30:53.45
complained to his disciples,
00:30:53.55\00:30:55.28
'Why do you eat and drink with
00:30:55.38\00:30:57.32
tax collectors and sinners?'"
00:30:57.42\00:30:59.79
Now pause again.
00:30:59.89\00:31:01.09
Who invited these guys?
00:31:01.19\00:31:03.93
I have no idea.
00:31:04.03\00:31:04.96
Have you ever wondered?
00:31:05.06\00:31:05.79
They seem to kind of show up.
00:31:05.89\00:31:06.76
They're like flies on the wall
00:31:06.86\00:31:08.00
that every now and then speak,
00:31:08.10\00:31:08.93
right?
00:31:09.03\00:31:09.80
And somehow they are here at
00:31:09.90\00:31:11.03
this feast.
00:31:11.13\00:31:11.93
And again, if I use my
00:31:12.03\00:31:13.27
imagination, and I think about
00:31:13.37\00:31:14.84
this, what was it that caused
00:31:14.94\00:31:16.34
such irritation for for the
00:31:16.44\00:31:17.71
Pharisees that were here?
00:31:17.81\00:31:18.84
Here's my guess -- everywhere
00:31:18.94\00:31:21.58
they looked in that house,
00:31:21.68\00:31:24.95
They saw betrayal.
00:31:25.05\00:31:28.05
"Who paid for this grand table
00:31:28.15\00:31:29.42
that's been set out here?"
00:31:29.52\00:31:30.89
"Oh, I think I did
00:31:30.99\00:31:32.09
with my tax dollars."
00:31:32.19\00:31:33.79
"Who paid for this great feast
00:31:33.89\00:31:35.26
that's been spread out here?"
00:31:35.36\00:31:36.59
There's all of this fruit
00:31:36.69\00:31:38.19
and the new wine that was there.
00:31:38.29\00:31:40.06
"Who paid for all of this?"
00:31:40.16\00:31:40.93
"Well, I think actually,
00:31:41.00\00:31:41.90
I did with my tax dollars."
00:31:42.00\00:31:43.23
"Who paid
00:31:43.33\00:31:44.13
for the silver chandelier and
00:31:44.23\00:31:45.37
these goblets that are here?"
00:31:45.47\00:31:46.53
In all of these people,
00:31:46.63\00:31:49.47
surely there is no potential
00:31:49.57\00:31:52.41
for the kingdom in this room.
00:31:52.51\00:31:54.71
And in a fit of rage and
00:31:54.81\00:31:56.64
frustration, the Pharisees say,
00:31:56.75\00:31:58.21
"What are you doing?
00:31:58.31\00:31:59.85
How can you hang
00:31:59.95\00:32:00.95
with this crowd?"
00:32:01.05\00:32:02.78
Jesus has an answer. Verse 31.
00:32:06.19\00:32:10.33
"Jesus answered them, quote,
00:32:10.43\00:32:12.59
'It is not the healthy
00:32:12.69\00:32:14.00
who need a doctor but the sick.
00:32:14.10\00:32:18.33
I have not come to call
00:32:18.43\00:32:19.47
the righteous
00:32:19.57\00:32:21.20
but sinners to repentance.'"
00:32:21.30\00:32:23.77
I think there's at least two
00:32:29.11\00:32:30.18
lessons that we can gain here.
00:32:30.28\00:32:33.45
Number one...
00:32:33.55\00:32:34.78
>> Amen.
00:32:38.29\00:32:41.16
>> Those of you that said amen
00:32:41.26\00:32:42.16
here in the front row,
00:32:42.26\00:32:43.19
we're going to have a meeting
00:32:43.29\00:32:43.73
afterwards
00:32:43.83\00:32:44.56
for the rest of the congregation
00:32:44.66\00:32:46.59
that may not have understood
00:32:46.70\00:32:47.66
the gravity of what I said
00:32:47.76\00:32:48.60
previously, okay?
00:32:48.70\00:32:49.66
So hang around, we'll talk.
00:32:49.76\00:32:50.67
We'll see if we can make
00:32:50.77\00:32:51.57
some converts here, right?
00:32:51.67\00:32:53.17
Lesson number one...
00:32:53.27\00:32:56.50
>> Amen.
00:32:56.60\00:32:58.14
>> You know, I don't know what
00:32:58.24\00:32:59.37
your week was like, I don't know
00:32:59.47\00:33:00.71
what your year has been like,
00:33:00.81\00:33:01.71
but maybe it's been
00:33:01.81\00:33:02.91
the kind of week or year
00:33:03.01\00:33:04.85
where you look in the mirror
00:33:04.95\00:33:05.85
and you just don't see much
00:33:05.95\00:33:06.72
potential yourself.
00:33:06.82\00:33:08.92
Maybe you look there
00:33:09.02\00:33:09.92
and you think, "Maybe I'm past
00:33:10.02\00:33:11.95
the reaches of God's grace
00:33:12.05\00:33:13.22
and his mercy and his love."
00:33:13.32\00:33:14.59
If you are tempted to think
00:33:14.69\00:33:15.66
that, think again.
00:33:15.76\00:33:17.96
Because the story of
00:33:18.06\00:33:19.43
Levi/Matthew and the subsequent
00:33:19.53\00:33:21.03
feast shouts at us.
00:33:21.13\00:33:22.30
God cares. God loves.
00:33:22.40\00:33:24.00
He looks. He sees all that
00:33:24.10\00:33:25.37
we are, our faults,
00:33:25.47\00:33:26.40
our sins, all of the mistakes
00:33:26.50\00:33:27.64
that we've made, and he says,
00:33:27.74\00:33:29.20
"You are someone that, if you
00:33:29.30\00:33:31.27
just take my hand, you can still
00:33:31.37\00:33:33.31
come into my kingdom."
00:33:33.41\00:33:34.34
>> Amen.
00:33:34.44\00:33:35.41
>> Jesus sees great potential
00:33:35.51\00:33:37.08
in each one of us.
00:33:37.18\00:33:37.68
And secondly,
00:33:37.78\00:33:38.78
all of this means...
00:33:38.88\00:33:40.92
Now, let that sink in.
00:33:46.55\00:33:48.42
There are some people
00:33:48.52\00:33:49.46
that we put into that category,
00:33:49.56\00:33:51.09
huh, that, well, not so sure
00:33:51.19\00:33:52.46
about that one.
00:33:52.56\00:33:54.00
The person that cuts you off
00:33:54.10\00:33:55.13
on 94 the last time you were
00:33:55.23\00:33:56.46
headed to Chicago, right?
00:33:56.56\00:33:58.43
Yeah. The person that steps in
00:33:58.53\00:33:59.53
front of you at the grocery line
00:33:59.63\00:34:00.94
when you're trying to check out
00:34:01.04\00:34:01.74
and you're already 10
00:34:01.84\00:34:02.47
or 15 minutes late. Okay.
00:34:02.57\00:34:04.47
Or the person that is engaged
00:34:04.57\00:34:06.47
in what, in your mind,
00:34:06.57\00:34:07.71
is the worst of sins?
00:34:07.81\00:34:10.45
Surely they're beyond.
00:34:10.55\00:34:11.88
Maybe Jesus doesn't want them.
00:34:11.98\00:34:13.92
No, actually, he does.
00:34:14.02\00:34:16.72
You have never laid eyes
00:34:16.82\00:34:18.12
on someone that Jesus
00:34:18.22\00:34:19.62
didn't want to save.
00:34:19.72\00:34:22.72
And as we've been talking about,
00:34:22.82\00:34:23.79
Jesus invites us
00:34:23.89\00:34:26.36
who know Him to participate
00:34:26.46\00:34:28.20
in this saving process.
00:34:28.30\00:34:30.77
Now, with that in mind, let's do
00:34:30.87\00:34:33.54
a thought experiment here. Okay?
00:34:33.64\00:34:34.64
Just in our mind's eye here,
00:34:34.74\00:34:37.97
humor me.
00:34:38.07\00:34:38.87
As I go through this, some of
00:34:38.97\00:34:40.18
you are going to say,
00:34:40.28\00:34:41.21
"That's impossible."
00:34:41.31\00:34:42.48
Just hang with me.
00:34:42.58\00:34:43.45
Imagine with me.
00:34:43.55\00:34:44.58
So let's go on this
00:34:44.68\00:34:45.88
little thought experiment.
00:34:45.98\00:34:47.38
I want you to imagine
00:34:47.48\00:34:49.28
that, let's say, me
00:34:49.38\00:34:52.35
and the elders here at Pioneer,
00:34:52.45\00:34:54.89
that we read
00:34:54.99\00:34:55.76
the story of Levi/Matthew
00:34:55.86\00:34:57.09
and we are super inspired.
00:34:57.19\00:34:58.43
The spirit is moving,
00:34:58.53\00:34:59.43
and we all make a covenant
00:34:59.53\00:35:01.53
that we will not rest
00:35:01.63\00:35:03.37
until there are
00:35:03.47\00:35:04.97
500 guests on a Sabbath
00:35:05.07\00:35:08.74
morning here at Pioneer.
00:35:08.84\00:35:10.24
500 guests that either have
00:35:10.34\00:35:13.01
never made a decision for Jesus
00:35:13.11\00:35:14.71
or for some reason are not ready
00:35:14.81\00:35:16.48
for Jesus to come.
00:35:16.58\00:35:18.21
500 people. That's our goal.
00:35:18.31\00:35:20.42
And, so, we powwow, we pray,
00:35:20.52\00:35:22.08
and we break, and off we go.
00:35:22.18\00:35:24.42
And we're knocking on doors and
00:35:24.52\00:35:25.52
we're going to gas stations
00:35:25.62\00:35:26.55
interrupting people while
00:35:26.65\00:35:27.52
they're filling their cars
00:35:27.62\00:35:28.26
with gas.
00:35:28.36\00:35:29.06
We're going to grocery stores.
00:35:29.16\00:35:29.96
We're going to schools
00:35:30.06\00:35:31.13
and our places of work,
00:35:31.23\00:35:31.93
and we are inviting --
00:35:32.03\00:35:33.33
And I want you to imagine
00:35:33.43\00:35:34.66
that, in this situation,
00:35:34.76\00:35:37.13
we could know
00:35:37.23\00:35:39.77
that they were going to come.
00:35:39.87\00:35:42.87
And then, let's imagine
00:35:42.97\00:35:45.11
that we did it.
00:35:45.21\00:35:47.68
500 people guaranteed to be here
00:35:47.78\00:35:51.08
on the first Sabbath of 2024,
00:35:51.18\00:35:54.08
January 2024.
00:35:54.18\00:35:56.38
Now, question.
00:35:56.48\00:36:00.66
Knowing that those people were
00:36:00.76\00:36:02.19
coming, what would we do?
00:36:02.29\00:36:07.56
Hmm.
00:36:07.66\00:36:09.13
In fact, what about
00:36:09.23\00:36:10.47
that particular Sabbath?
00:36:10.57\00:36:11.50
First Sabbath in January,
00:36:11.60\00:36:12.67
500 guests
00:36:12.77\00:36:13.97
not ready for Jesus to come.
00:36:14.07\00:36:15.40
They're all going to be here.
00:36:15.50\00:36:16.64
What would we do
00:36:16.74\00:36:17.71
on that Sabbath?
00:36:17.81\00:36:20.61
Would we do anything different?
00:36:20.71\00:36:24.31
You know, I might vary my sermon
00:36:24.41\00:36:25.45
topic.
00:36:25.55\00:36:26.78
You know, I might particularly
00:36:26.88\00:36:28.28
do something, preach about that
00:36:28.38\00:36:29.48
with them in mind,
00:36:29.58\00:36:30.92
knowing that they would be here.
00:36:31.02\00:36:32.49
We would all be on our best
00:36:32.59\00:36:34.16
behavior, wouldn't we?
00:36:34.26\00:36:36.09
Okay. We're already
00:36:36.19\00:36:37.46
all on our best behavior,
00:36:37.56\00:36:38.53
but this would be the bestest
00:36:38.63\00:36:39.63
of the best, okay?
00:36:39.73\00:36:40.93
Of our behavior. We'd be good.
00:36:41.00\00:36:42.20
We'd be kind that day.
00:36:42.30\00:36:43.73
we would all bring extra food
00:36:43.83\00:36:44.90
because we knew
00:36:45.00\00:36:45.63
the potluck was going to be
00:36:45.73\00:36:46.47
overflowing that day.
00:36:46.57\00:36:47.77
Okay. No shortage of food.
00:36:47.87\00:36:48.90
There's going to be tables
00:36:49.00\00:36:50.34
overflowing with this cornucopia
00:36:50.44\00:36:51.84
of nourishment, et cetera.
00:36:51.94\00:36:53.41
Some of you might volunteer
00:36:53.51\00:36:55.38
for greeter duty.
00:36:55.48\00:36:56.24
You know,
00:36:56.34\00:36:57.31
we have good greeters here.
00:36:57.41\00:36:57.91
They do a great job
00:36:58.01\00:36:58.68
at what they're doing.
00:36:58.78\00:36:59.45
But with 500 guests coming,
00:36:59.55\00:37:00.85
they've never been here, maybe
00:37:00.95\00:37:01.78
somebody is going to try to
00:37:01.88\00:37:02.62
sneak in the back door or
00:37:02.72\00:37:03.12
whatnot.
00:37:03.22\00:37:03.82
We want them to be greeted and
00:37:03.92\00:37:04.79
their hands shook.
00:37:04.89\00:37:05.59
Welcome hug.
00:37:05.69\00:37:06.62
We're so glad that you're here.
00:37:06.72\00:37:08.92
Some of you might be
00:37:09.02\00:37:10.86
extra careful to look for people
00:37:10.96\00:37:12.19
needing to sit down
00:37:12.29\00:37:14.00
because it can be challenging
00:37:14.10\00:37:14.83
to find a seat in a place
00:37:14.93\00:37:15.96
that you've never been before.
00:37:16.06\00:37:17.43
And you know what?
00:37:17.53\00:37:19.27
We would need to greet everyone,
00:37:19.37\00:37:20.64
wouldn't we?
00:37:20.74\00:37:21.84
Because Pioneer is so big,
00:37:21.94\00:37:23.41
we already don't know
00:37:23.51\00:37:24.27
who is a member
00:37:24.37\00:37:25.11
and who is a guest, right?
00:37:25.21\00:37:26.74
So you'd have to be nice to
00:37:26.84\00:37:28.04
everyone on a Sabbath morning.
00:37:28.14\00:37:29.68
You'd have to say, "Welcome.
00:37:29.78\00:37:31.18
I'm so glad that you're here.
00:37:31.28\00:37:32.21
Welcome to Pioneer."
00:37:32.31\00:37:33.38
And they'll say back to you.
00:37:33.48\00:37:34.28
"Well, I've been a member for 50
00:37:34.38\00:37:35.38
years here," and you can say,
00:37:35.48\00:37:36.08
"Well, so have I, and then
00:37:36.18\00:37:37.15
go find somebody else to greet.
00:37:37.25\00:37:38.35
Okay? So we would all do that.
00:37:38.45\00:37:40.76
We'd reach out to everybody
00:37:40.86\00:37:41.49
that comes.
00:37:41.59\00:37:43.59
And if your seat was taken by
00:37:43.69\00:37:48.36
a guest.
00:37:48.46\00:37:50.63
Your geography
00:37:50.73\00:37:52.40
in the Pioneer Sanctuary.
00:37:52.50\00:37:53.64
You know what I'm talking about,
00:37:53.74\00:37:54.30
right? Okay.
00:37:54.40\00:37:56.27
If your area had been
00:37:56.37\00:37:58.41
infiltrated by these guests,
00:37:58.51\00:38:00.14
you would rejoice that
00:38:00.24\00:38:01.38
they had found a place to sit
00:38:01.48\00:38:02.58
and would graciously
00:38:02.68\00:38:03.28
find another spot.
00:38:03.38\00:38:04.71
Or maybe you'd even be proactive
00:38:04.81\00:38:06.31
and you would scan the horizon
00:38:06.41\00:38:07.32
looking for a guest
00:38:07.42\00:38:08.25
and invite them to come
00:38:08.35\00:38:08.98
and sit in your spot.
00:38:09.08\00:38:10.79
And all of us,
00:38:10.89\00:38:12.32
all of us would be praying,
00:38:12.42\00:38:14.42
praying mightily
00:38:14.52\00:38:15.32
for the outpouring
00:38:15.42\00:38:16.26
of the Holy Spirit of God
00:38:16.36\00:38:17.39
on us and, yes,
00:38:17.49\00:38:18.39
on all of our guests,
00:38:18.49\00:38:19.76
that they, too, might come
00:38:19.86\00:38:21.00
to know Jesus as we do.
00:38:21.10\00:38:23.70
Oh, the things we would do
00:38:23.80\00:38:26.33
if we knew that, on the first
00:38:26.43\00:38:27.67
Sabbath of January 2024,
00:38:27.77\00:38:29.60
we'd have so many,
00:38:29.70\00:38:30.97
many important people here
00:38:31.07\00:38:32.81
in our sanctuary.
00:38:32.91\00:38:35.08
Come back to Earth now. Okay?
00:38:41.48\00:38:44.99
That was our thought experiment.
00:38:45.09\00:38:48.62
And back here on Earth,
00:38:48.72\00:38:49.56
I have good news.
00:38:49.66\00:38:52.73
Because we have done it.
00:38:52.83\00:38:56.40
We have invited them and they
00:38:56.50\00:38:59.37
have accepted our invitation
00:38:59.47\00:39:02.64
and they are going to be here
00:39:02.74\00:39:05.01
not in the first Sabbath
00:39:05.11\00:39:06.88
of January 2024.
00:39:06.98\00:39:09.68
They are instead going to be
00:39:09.78\00:39:11.11
here in two Sabbaths from now.
00:39:11.21\00:39:14.68
You see, many students
00:39:18.99\00:39:21.69
who will be at Ruth Murdoch,
00:39:21.79\00:39:24.56
many students
00:39:24.66\00:39:25.63
who will be at Andrews Academy,
00:39:25.73\00:39:26.90
many students who will be at
00:39:27.00\00:39:28.00
Andrews University
00:39:28.10\00:39:29.33
will be in one of two camps.
00:39:29.43\00:39:30.70
Either they will have not yet
00:39:30.80\00:39:31.70
made a decision for Christ,
00:39:31.80\00:39:33.07
or perhaps
00:39:33.17\00:39:33.87
they made a decision for Christ
00:39:33.97\00:39:34.97
at some time in the past,
00:39:35.07\00:39:36.04
but if Jesus came back this
00:39:36.14\00:39:37.34
afternoon, for whatever reason,
00:39:37.44\00:39:38.84
they would not be ready.
00:39:38.94\00:39:40.81
This school year, in these three
00:39:40.91\00:39:42.01
institutions we have the
00:39:42.11\00:39:43.81
privilege of serving with,
00:39:43.91\00:39:44.98
there will be literally
00:39:45.08\00:39:46.75
hundreds of students
00:39:46.85\00:39:48.15
that fit this description,
00:39:48.25\00:39:49.72
and they are coming here
00:39:49.82\00:39:51.02
in two weeks.
00:39:51.12\00:39:53.49
You know,
00:39:53.59\00:39:54.69
I said this a few weeks ago
00:39:54.79\00:39:55.79
and I want to reiterate it now.
00:39:55.89\00:39:57.03
There are very few churches
00:39:57.13\00:39:58.39
in the world, SDA or otherwise,
00:39:58.49\00:40:00.30
that have this privilege.
00:40:00.40\00:40:02.20
I mean, nearly every Sabbath
00:40:02.30\00:40:03.30
of the school year,
00:40:03.40\00:40:04.00
we have hundreds of people
00:40:04.10\00:40:05.37
that either aren't yet baptized
00:40:05.47\00:40:06.63
or are not yet currently ready
00:40:06.74\00:40:07.57
for Jesus to return,
00:40:07.67\00:40:08.94
and they attend this church,
00:40:09.04\00:40:10.01
they come on this campus,
00:40:10.11\00:40:11.74
and they're here throughout
00:40:11.84\00:40:12.64
the entire school year.
00:40:12.74\00:40:14.28
Do you know what some churches
00:40:14.38\00:40:15.01
would do
00:40:15.11\00:40:15.84
to get that kind of crowd?
00:40:15.94\00:40:18.45
And yet here we are.
00:40:18.55\00:40:19.85
We are in this place.
00:40:19.95\00:40:20.88
This is our reality.
00:40:20.98\00:40:22.88
They will be here in two weeks.
00:40:22.98\00:40:25.72
So...
00:40:28.79\00:40:31.86
knowing that these very
00:40:31.96\00:40:34.73
important people are coming here
00:40:34.83\00:40:36.56
in two weeks,
00:40:36.67\00:40:39.00
knowing that this highly unusual
00:40:39.10\00:40:40.50
and very blessed situation
00:40:40.60\00:40:41.84
is almost upon us,
00:40:41.94\00:40:43.64
what should we do?
00:40:43.74\00:40:47.78
Hmm.
00:40:47.88\00:40:50.18
What should we do to help them
00:40:50.28\00:40:52.71
all, to the best of our ability,
00:40:52.81\00:40:54.05
to be ready for Christ's
00:40:54.15\00:40:55.58
soon return?
00:40:55.68\00:40:59.95
Well, I'm going to tell you,
00:41:00.12\00:41:01.92
to the best of my knowledge,
00:41:02.02\00:41:03.02
what it is
00:41:03.12\00:41:03.79
I think we ought to do.
00:41:03.89\00:41:04.93
In fact, there are a number of
00:41:05.03\00:41:06.06
things, very specific,
00:41:06.16\00:41:07.13
very practical things.
00:41:07.23\00:41:08.36
And there are
00:41:08.46\00:41:09.00
many of these things.
00:41:09.10\00:41:10.13
In fact, there are sufficient
00:41:10.23\00:41:10.97
numbers of these
00:41:11.07\00:41:11.97
that every one of you
00:41:12.07\00:41:12.90
that can hear my voice
00:41:13.00\00:41:13.87
right now, no exceptions,
00:41:13.97\00:41:15.57
can and need to do these things
00:41:15.67\00:41:17.71
to best reach our students that
00:41:17.81\00:41:19.24
are coming two weeks from now.
00:41:19.34\00:41:20.91
Listen carefully, please.
00:41:21.01\00:41:22.61
What we need to do...
00:41:22.71\00:41:24.41
...is what I'm going to tell you
00:41:31.29\00:41:32.32
about in part two of this series
00:41:32.42\00:41:33.76
next Sabbath.
00:41:33.86\00:41:35.49
[ Laughter ]
00:41:35.59\00:41:37.16
That's awful, isn't it?
00:41:40.03\00:41:41.06
That's a terrible thing to do.
00:41:41.16\00:41:44.10
So you need to be here, right?
00:41:44.20\00:41:46.57
If somebody is not here today,
00:41:46.67\00:41:47.67
if they're on vacation,
00:41:47.77\00:41:48.37
call and say,
00:41:48.47\00:41:49.17
"Pastor Shane said your vacation
00:41:49.27\00:41:50.37
is over, please come back.
00:41:50.47\00:41:51.27
We need you to be here
00:41:51.37\00:41:51.84
on Sabbath."
00:41:51.94\00:41:52.54
It's going to be some very
00:41:52.64\00:41:53.74
important and practical things.
00:41:53.84\00:41:54.84
You'll have the chance
00:41:54.94\00:41:55.81
to be able to begin
00:41:55.91\00:41:56.61
to participate in these things.
00:41:56.71\00:41:58.11
I hope that you can make it.
00:41:58.21\00:42:02.78
But I will tell you one thing.
00:42:02.88\00:42:04.19
I won't leave you completely
00:42:04.29\00:42:05.05
stranded until next week.
00:42:05.15\00:42:06.59
There is one thing that
00:42:06.69\00:42:08.96
I will point out that I
00:42:09.06\00:42:10.86
believe -- and I think the Bible
00:42:10.96\00:42:13.16
supports it -- that we must do
00:42:13.26\00:42:17.60
if we are to succeed in reaching
00:42:17.70\00:42:18.93
as many of our students
00:42:19.03\00:42:20.10
as possible for Christ.
00:42:20.20\00:42:25.07
A story.
00:42:25.17\00:42:28.38
Many years ago, when I was
00:42:28.48\00:42:29.84
a young adult,
00:42:29.94\00:42:31.78
I was out and about
00:42:31.88\00:42:33.68
and I was visiting a church
00:42:33.78\00:42:35.22
within 10,000 miles of here.
00:42:35.32\00:42:38.42
And it was not my home church.
00:42:38.52\00:42:40.36
I had two friends that I was
00:42:40.46\00:42:41.89
meeting there at the church.
00:42:41.99\00:42:43.36
I arrived there.
00:42:43.46\00:42:45.33
Sabbath school had finished.
00:42:45.43\00:42:46.33
In fact, the worship service
00:42:46.43\00:42:47.20
had just begun.
00:42:47.30\00:42:48.33
There was music that was playing
00:42:48.43\00:42:49.16
and people were beginning
00:42:49.26\00:42:49.93
to sing as they started
00:42:50.03\00:42:51.13
the worship service.
00:42:51.23\00:42:52.43
The church was large.
00:42:52.53\00:42:53.97
We were in the foyer there,
00:42:54.07\00:42:55.70
the lobby, and I saw my two
00:42:55.80\00:42:57.14
friends.
00:42:57.24\00:42:58.04
I went across from the front
00:42:58.14\00:42:59.47
doors and greeted them.
00:42:59.57\00:43:00.78
"Hey, how are you doing?
00:43:00.88\00:43:01.54
Good to see you," et cetera.
00:43:01.64\00:43:03.04
We're talking with one another.
00:43:03.14\00:43:04.11
We're probably 10, 15 feet from
00:43:04.21\00:43:06.21
the back double doors in the
00:43:06.31\00:43:07.35
sanctuary.
00:43:07.45\00:43:09.28
And as we're chatting,
00:43:09.38\00:43:10.89
I look over my friend's shoulder
00:43:10.99\00:43:14.19
and I see motion.
00:43:14.29\00:43:15.46
I see someone, I look up,
00:43:15.56\00:43:17.16
and there is a dear saint
00:43:17.26\00:43:20.86
that is making a beeline for us.
00:43:20.96\00:43:25.20
And she has a smile on her face.
00:43:25.30\00:43:29.54
But there was something that was
00:43:29.64\00:43:30.84
not quite right with the smile.
00:43:30.94\00:43:32.87
The smile was not one that said,
00:43:32.97\00:43:35.21
"Oh, welcome to our church.
00:43:35.31\00:43:36.48
We're so glad you're here."
00:43:36.58\00:43:38.58
The smile was instead
00:43:38.68\00:43:39.88
what I imagine the smile
00:43:39.98\00:43:42.35
on a hawk's face looks like
00:43:42.45\00:43:44.79
as it's about to grab a bunny.
00:43:44.89\00:43:46.89
Okay? And she came over
00:43:46.99\00:43:50.79
and she put one hand
00:43:50.89\00:43:52.99
on one shoulder and another hand
00:43:53.09\00:43:54.73
on another shoulder.
00:43:54.83\00:43:55.36
So my shoulder and
00:43:55.46\00:43:56.13
my friend's shoulder.
00:43:56.23\00:43:58.23
And she says, "We have a rule
00:43:58.33\00:44:01.17
at this church that there is no
00:44:01.27\00:44:03.34
talking in the lobby once the
00:44:03.44\00:44:05.57
worship service has started.
00:44:05.67\00:44:08.18
And you need" --
00:44:08.28\00:44:09.14
Now, keep in mind,
00:44:09.24\00:44:10.35
the whole time she's talking,
00:44:10.45\00:44:11.31
she is pushing us towards
00:44:11.41\00:44:13.15
the back sanctuary doors.
00:44:13.25\00:44:14.98
And my third friend
00:44:15.08\00:44:16.02
is kind of caught in the wave.
00:44:16.12\00:44:17.02
Okay? So he's
00:44:17.12\00:44:17.82
getting pushed forward, too.
00:44:17.92\00:44:18.65
Right? And we get
00:44:18.75\00:44:20.12
to the doors of the sanctuary,
00:44:20.22\00:44:21.36
and I kid you not,
00:44:21.46\00:44:22.36
as she says the words,
00:44:22.46\00:44:24.36
"And you need to find a seat,"
00:44:24.46\00:44:27.13
she shoves us
00:44:27.23\00:44:28.56
into the sanctuary.
00:44:28.66\00:44:30.17
You know, I can still see
00:44:39.14\00:44:40.84
that incident in my mind
00:44:40.94\00:44:42.58
as though it happened yesterday.
00:44:42.68\00:44:44.65
I can see the open doors
00:44:44.75\00:44:45.71
in the back of the church.
00:44:45.81\00:44:46.58
I can hear the music playing,
00:44:46.68\00:44:47.68
I can see the pews inside.
00:44:47.78\00:44:49.15
I can feel the push in my back
00:44:49.25\00:44:51.65
as this woman shoved us
00:44:51.75\00:44:52.75
into the sanctuary.
00:44:52.85\00:44:56.26
Some things you don't forget
00:44:56.36\00:44:57.29
very easily.
00:44:57.39\00:45:01.20
Now, take that example...
00:45:01.30\00:45:07.37
and contrast it...
00:45:07.47\00:45:10.01
with this.
00:45:10.11\00:45:12.57
I invite you to keep your Bibles
00:45:12.67\00:45:14.31
closed and to open your mind as
00:45:14.41\00:45:16.58
I read.
00:45:16.68\00:45:20.22
"And now I will show you
00:45:20.32\00:45:22.92
the most excellent way.
00:45:23.02\00:45:26.49
If I speak in the tongues of men
00:45:26.59\00:45:27.99
and of angels,
00:45:28.09\00:45:29.69
but have not love,
00:45:29.79\00:45:33.06
I am only a resounding gong
00:45:33.16\00:45:34.46
or a clanging symbol.
00:45:34.56\00:45:36.80
If I have the gift of prophecy
00:45:36.90\00:45:38.23
and can fathom all mysteries
00:45:38.33\00:45:39.30
and all knowledge,
00:45:39.40\00:45:40.24
and if I have a faith that can
00:45:40.34\00:45:41.34
move mountains
00:45:41.44\00:45:42.87
but have not love, I am nothing.
00:45:42.97\00:45:47.18
If I give all I possess
00:45:47.28\00:45:48.54
to the poor and surrender
00:45:48.64\00:45:49.68
my body to the flames
00:45:49.78\00:45:50.85
but have not love,
00:45:50.95\00:45:52.15
I gain nothing.
00:45:52.25\00:45:54.98
Love is patient.
00:45:55.08\00:45:58.82
Love is kind. It does not envy.
00:45:58.92\00:46:01.36
It does not boast.
00:46:01.46\00:46:02.69
It is not proud. It is not rude.
00:46:02.79\00:46:04.49
It is not self-seeking.
00:46:04.59\00:46:06.19
It is not easily angered.
00:46:06.29\00:46:07.96
It keeps no record of wrongs.
00:46:08.03\00:46:10.07
Love does not delight in evil,
00:46:10.17\00:46:11.77
but rejoices in the truth.
00:46:11.87\00:46:14.80
It always protects,
00:46:14.90\00:46:16.04
always trusts,
00:46:16.14\00:46:17.57
always hopes, always perseveres.
00:46:17.67\00:46:20.61
Love never fails.
00:46:20.71\00:46:24.31
But where there are prophecies,
00:46:24.41\00:46:26.01
they will cease.
00:46:26.11\00:46:28.18
Where there are tongues,
00:46:28.28\00:46:29.22
they will be stilled.
00:46:29.32\00:46:31.09
Where there is knowledge,
00:46:31.19\00:46:32.75
it will pass away.
00:46:32.85\00:46:34.89
For we know in part
00:46:34.99\00:46:35.82
and we prophesy in part.
00:46:35.92\00:46:37.13
But when perfection comes,
00:46:37.23\00:46:38.23
the imperfect disappears.
00:46:38.33\00:46:40.20
When I was a child,
00:46:40.30\00:46:41.40
I talked like a child,
00:46:41.50\00:46:42.90
I thought like a child,
00:46:43.00\00:46:43.97
I reasoned like a child.
00:46:44.07\00:46:45.97
But when I became a man,
00:46:46.07\00:46:47.90
I put childish ways behind me.
00:46:48.00\00:46:50.67
Now we see but a poor
00:46:50.77\00:46:51.77
reflection, as in a mirror.
00:46:51.87\00:46:53.54
Then we shall see face to face.
00:46:53.64\00:46:56.85
Now I know in part.
00:46:56.95\00:46:58.95
Then I shall know fully,
00:46:59.05\00:47:00.95
even as I am fully known.
00:47:01.05\00:47:04.09
And now these three remain --
00:47:04.19\00:47:07.96
faith, hope, and love.
00:47:08.06\00:47:12.76
But the greatest of these
00:47:12.86\00:47:15.03
is love."
00:47:15.13\00:47:16.06
>> Amen.
00:47:16.16\00:47:20.37
>> What a contrast. Hmm?
00:47:20.47\00:47:23.71
Between Madam Hawk
00:47:23.81\00:47:26.47
and 1 Corinthians 13.
00:47:26.57\00:47:30.11
And it's from this contrast
00:47:30.21\00:47:31.35
that I think we can draw
00:47:31.45\00:47:33.48
at least two things.
00:47:33.58\00:47:35.48
Number one...
00:47:35.58\00:47:37.52
>> Amen.
00:47:44.29\00:47:46.03
>> It's not just what we do
00:47:46.13\00:47:47.20
that matters, but how we do it.
00:47:47.30\00:47:49.26
You know, we could debate about
00:47:49.36\00:47:50.47
whether or not that rule
00:47:50.57\00:47:52.17
in the lobby -- no speaking in
00:47:52.27\00:47:53.60
the lobby after the worship
00:47:53.70\00:47:54.84
service has begun --
00:47:54.94\00:47:55.74
we could debate whether that
00:47:55.84\00:47:56.67
was a good rule or not.
00:47:56.77\00:47:58.01
But let's just assume that
00:47:58.11\00:47:59.04
it was in place in this church.
00:47:59.14\00:48:01.41
How different it would have been
00:48:01.51\00:48:04.05
if Madam Hawk
00:48:04.15\00:48:05.41
had instead approached us
00:48:05.51\00:48:06.82
something like this.
00:48:06.92\00:48:08.85
"Good morning, gentlemen.
00:48:08.95\00:48:09.88
How are you?
00:48:09.98\00:48:10.95
I'm Mrs. So-and-so.
00:48:11.05\00:48:12.29
Tell me your names.
00:48:12.39\00:48:13.36
We're so glad
00:48:13.46\00:48:14.26
that you're here today.
00:48:14.36\00:48:15.39
You know, we've been trying here
00:48:15.49\00:48:16.49
at our church to bless
00:48:16.59\00:48:17.39
as many people as possible
00:48:17.49\00:48:18.69
through our worship services.
00:48:18.79\00:48:19.76
Our song leaders and our
00:48:19.86\00:48:20.73
pastors, they work so hard to
00:48:20.83\00:48:22.20
prepare good things for us each
00:48:22.30\00:48:23.67
week, so we've made a rule
00:48:23.77\00:48:25.07
that, once the service starts,
00:48:25.17\00:48:26.37
we'd like the lobby here
00:48:26.47\00:48:27.47
to be quiet so as not to disturb
00:48:27.57\00:48:29.04
the people worshiping inside.
00:48:29.14\00:48:30.61
You're welcome to continue your
00:48:30.71\00:48:31.97
conversations down the hall.
00:48:32.07\00:48:33.51
Or perhaps you'd like to come
00:48:33.61\00:48:34.71
and sit with me and my husband?
00:48:34.81\00:48:36.38
He would love to meet you,
00:48:36.48\00:48:37.55
and I'm headed there right now."
00:48:37.65\00:48:41.98
Oh, what a difference that would
00:48:42.08\00:48:43.92
have made if Madam Hawk
00:48:44.02\00:48:47.29
had spoken that way.
00:48:47.39\00:48:48.72
I just want
00:48:51.79\00:48:52.69
to be clear about something.
00:48:52.79\00:48:54.66
I have not been inundated
00:48:54.76\00:48:56.06
with stories of how people
00:48:56.16\00:48:57.27
have been mistreating
00:48:57.37\00:48:58.17
our students here at Pioneer.
00:48:58.27\00:48:59.53
In fact,
00:48:59.63\00:49:00.64
I haven't heard a single one.
00:49:00.74\00:49:01.67
This is part of the glory,
00:49:01.77\00:49:02.77
again, of being new.
00:49:02.87\00:49:03.94
There's a lot of things
00:49:04.04\00:49:04.64
I don't know, okay?
00:49:04.74\00:49:05.47
I have not heard
00:49:05.57\00:49:06.61
any stories about that.
00:49:06.71\00:49:07.84
So I do not tell you this story
00:49:07.94\00:49:09.51
of Madam Hawk as a rebuke,
00:49:09.61\00:49:11.45
but rather to encourage you
00:49:11.55\00:49:12.81
to keep doing what you're doing,
00:49:12.91\00:49:14.72
to keep extending
00:49:14.82\00:49:15.75
that hand of fellowship,
00:49:15.85\00:49:17.22
to keep seeing our students
00:49:17.32\00:49:18.79
as God sees them,
00:49:18.89\00:49:20.12
whatever their faults might be.
00:49:20.22\00:49:22.09
May Madam Hawk never invade
00:49:22.19\00:49:24.09
our lobby,
00:49:24.19\00:49:26.73
but may instead the love of
00:49:26.83\00:49:27.86
Christ invade it regularly.
00:49:27.96\00:49:29.86
>> Amen.
00:49:29.96\00:49:31.27
>> That's the first thing
00:49:31.37\00:49:32.07
we can learn.
00:49:32.17\00:49:33.84
There is a second.
00:49:33.94\00:49:35.40
You know, when we think
00:49:41.61\00:49:42.94
of the word teacher or teachers,
00:49:43.04\00:49:44.41
we automatically think
00:49:44.51\00:49:45.61
of those maybe on this campus
00:49:45.71\00:49:46.88
or over at the Academy
00:49:46.98\00:49:48.12
or Ruth Murdoch that receive
00:49:48.22\00:49:49.48
a paycheck for their work.
00:49:49.58\00:49:50.62
They're professional educators,
00:49:50.72\00:49:51.59
highly trained, they're
00:49:51.69\00:49:52.52
doing great at their jobs.
00:49:52.62\00:49:54.09
That's what we usually think of.
00:49:54.19\00:49:55.22
And that's that's fine, that
00:49:55.32\00:49:56.32
is indeed what teachers are.
00:49:56.42\00:49:58.63
And the truth also is that
00:49:58.73\00:50:01.40
every member of this church,
00:50:01.50\00:50:03.26
every body that calls this
00:50:03.37\00:50:04.67
space their spiritual home,
00:50:04.77\00:50:06.50
is also a teacher.
00:50:06.60\00:50:10.47
We are teaching whether we wish
00:50:10.57\00:50:11.67
to or not.
00:50:11.77\00:50:13.88
And teachers -- all of us now --
00:50:13.98\00:50:15.48
teachers, what you teach here in
00:50:15.58\00:50:17.58
and through this place
00:50:17.68\00:50:18.71
is one of the most important
00:50:18.81\00:50:20.18
"classes" that any of our
00:50:20.28\00:50:21.38
students will ever take.
00:50:21.48\00:50:23.25
You say, "How come?"
00:50:23.35\00:50:24.39
Well, the teachers,
00:50:24.49\00:50:25.85
for instance, on this campus,
00:50:25.95\00:50:26.69
Andrews University,
00:50:26.79\00:50:27.79
they can indeed,
00:50:27.89\00:50:28.92
and they do, teach our students
00:50:29.02\00:50:30.69
what the church ought to be
00:50:30.79\00:50:32.39
or what the church should be.
00:50:32.49\00:50:34.36
But only we collectively,
00:50:34.46\00:50:36.87
professional educators,
00:50:36.97\00:50:38.07
those of us that are not
00:50:38.17\00:50:38.93
professional educators,
00:50:39.03\00:50:39.97
that call this place home,
00:50:40.07\00:50:41.54
only we can teach our students
00:50:41.64\00:50:44.34
what the church is now.
00:50:44.44\00:50:47.61
This is us.
00:50:47.71\00:50:49.11
We are living examples.
00:50:49.21\00:50:50.45
We are the campus church.
00:50:50.55\00:50:51.91
This is the living laboratory
00:50:52.01\00:50:53.21
of the body of Christ,
00:50:53.31\00:50:54.82
and therefore, we cannot help
00:50:54.92\00:50:56.42
but teach what the church
00:50:56.52\00:50:57.55
currently is to all
00:50:57.65\00:50:59.39
who enter here.
00:50:59.49\00:51:01.62
Sometimes we teach
00:51:01.72\00:51:02.72
by what we say.
00:51:02.82\00:51:04.66
Sometimes we teach by what
00:51:04.76\00:51:05.73
we don't say.
00:51:05.83\00:51:07.30
Sometimes we teach by what we do
00:51:07.40\00:51:08.73
or don't do.
00:51:08.83\00:51:09.80
But all of the time, rest
00:51:09.90\00:51:11.40
assured, ladies and gentlemen,
00:51:11.50\00:51:12.43
teachers, we are teaching.
00:51:12.53\00:51:15.74
Every moment that we are
00:51:15.84\00:51:17.67
in this place.
00:51:17.77\00:51:19.64
What a privilege.
00:51:19.74\00:51:21.34
What a joy.
00:51:21.44\00:51:23.58
What a responsibility.
00:51:23.68\00:51:27.48
Recently I was talking to a
00:51:27.58\00:51:29.18
colleague on another campus,
00:51:29.28\00:51:30.79
one of our universities here in
00:51:30.89\00:51:32.39
the NAD, and he shared with me
00:51:32.49\00:51:33.99
recent research that said --
00:51:34.09\00:51:35.52
research that had been done on
00:51:35.62\00:51:37.03
Seventh-Day Adventists,
00:51:37.13\00:51:38.39
in particular, young adults.
00:51:38.49\00:51:39.89
There are similar stats
00:51:40.00\00:51:40.66
for other churches,
00:51:40.76\00:51:41.66
but this specifically
00:51:41.76\00:51:42.60
for Seventh-Day Adventist
00:51:42.70\00:51:43.53
young adults.
00:51:43.63\00:51:44.87
It said that, in some places,
00:51:44.97\00:51:46.03
up to 70% -- 7-0 --
00:51:46.13\00:51:48.57
up to 70% leave the church.
00:51:48.67\00:51:51.81
Yeah.
00:51:51.91\00:51:53.21
70%.
00:51:53.31\00:51:56.14
I find that to be unacceptable.
00:51:56.24\00:52:00.18
And I think we need
00:52:00.28\00:52:01.48
to change that.
00:52:01.58\00:52:04.09
And I say we start right now.
00:52:04.19\00:52:05.55
>> Amen.
00:52:05.65\00:52:07.56
>> So, ladies and gentlemen,
00:52:07.66\00:52:08.66
in light of that mandate that
00:52:08.76\00:52:10.06
the Lord has given to us,
00:52:10.16\00:52:12.13
in light of the joy
00:52:12.23\00:52:13.19
and the importance of what
00:52:13.29\00:52:14.30
we are on the cusp of doing
00:52:14.40\00:52:15.80
two weeks from now, I plead
00:52:15.90\00:52:17.63
with you to consider carefully,
00:52:17.73\00:52:19.50
in just two Sabbaths,
00:52:19.60\00:52:21.90
hundreds of students
00:52:22.00\00:52:22.90
who have not yet made a decision
00:52:23.00\00:52:24.24
for Christ or who are, for some
00:52:24.34\00:52:25.31
reason, not ready for him to
00:52:25.41\00:52:26.34
return, they will be here.
00:52:26.44\00:52:27.64
My question to you --
00:52:27.74\00:52:28.98
what kind of teacher
00:52:29.08\00:52:30.35
for them will you be?
00:52:30.45\00:52:33.48
What kind of teacher
00:52:33.58\00:52:34.58
will you be?
00:52:34.68\00:52:36.55
My prayer for each of us is that
00:52:36.65\00:52:37.92
we will not make the mistake
00:52:38.02\00:52:39.22
that I did with Michelle,
00:52:39.32\00:52:40.66
the volleyball player,
00:52:40.76\00:52:42.06
and see them all as 5'9"
00:52:42.16\00:52:43.56
insignificant people that
00:52:43.66\00:52:44.96
couldn't make a contribution
00:52:45.06\00:52:46.59
and underestimate
00:52:46.70\00:52:48.06
the great potential that each of
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our students has for Christ.
00:52:49.60\00:52:51.97
You see, instead,
00:52:52.07\00:52:53.84
may each of us be so filled
00:52:53.94\00:52:55.20
with the Holy Spirit
00:52:55.30\00:52:56.04
that, in two weeks,
00:52:56.14\00:52:56.84
when our students arrive
00:52:56.94\00:52:58.04
in full force, as they make
00:52:58.14\00:52:59.81
their way from across campus,
00:52:59.91\00:53:01.08
coming from the dormitories
00:53:01.18\00:53:02.21
or campus housing or driving
00:53:02.31\00:53:04.25
in here to our parking lot,
00:53:04.35\00:53:05.51
as they make their way here
00:53:05.61\00:53:07.02
and they come in those doors
00:53:07.12\00:53:08.92
and they finally walk into this
00:53:09.02\00:53:10.15
building and your eyes
00:53:10.25\00:53:11.79
meet with theirs,
00:53:11.89\00:53:13.46
may it truly be a case of love
00:53:13.56\00:53:16.62
at first sight.
00:53:16.73\00:53:19.66
Not the cheap, flimsy kind
00:53:19.76\00:53:21.26
of love that the world offers,
00:53:21.36\00:53:22.43
but the love of Jesus.
00:53:22.53\00:53:23.73
1 Corinthians 13 kind of love
00:53:23.83\00:53:26.03
shining through us into their
00:53:26.13\00:53:27.34
hearts that they might know Him.
00:53:27.44\00:53:30.01
I'm going to share with you
00:53:30.11\00:53:31.11
a number of very practical
00:53:31.21\00:53:32.24
things in part two.
00:53:32.34\00:53:33.91
But, ladies and gentlemen,
00:53:34.01\00:53:35.01
no matter how good we get
00:53:35.11\00:53:36.24
at those practical things,
00:53:36.34\00:53:37.65
if we do not have the love
00:53:37.75\00:53:39.15
of Jesus in our hearts,
00:53:39.25\00:53:40.78
those things will fail.
00:53:40.88\00:53:42.68
But with the love of Jesus,
00:53:42.78\00:53:45.59
we and Jesus cannot help
00:53:45.69\00:53:48.26
but succeed.
00:53:48.36\00:53:49.49
>> Amen.
00:53:49.59\00:53:50.49
>> Let us love our students.
00:53:50.59\00:53:52.26
Great teachers
00:53:52.36\00:53:54.50
and the Great Teacher
00:53:54.60\00:53:56.53
wouldn't have it any other way.
00:53:56.63\00:53:58.87
>> Amen.
00:53:58.97\00:54:01.07
[ Applause ]
00:54:01.17\00:54:02.87
[ "Christ for the World We Sing"
00:54:10.05\00:54:12.41
begins ]
00:54:12.51\00:54:14.62
¤
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¤
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¤
00:54:28.86\00:54:35.64
>> Lord Jesus,
00:56:18.61\00:56:19.81
you have been so gracious to us.
00:56:19.91\00:56:21.81
You have showered your love on
00:56:21.91\00:56:23.48
us in a thousand different ways.
00:56:23.58\00:56:26.11
Lord, in just two weeks,
00:56:26.21\00:56:27.32
this campus
00:56:27.42\00:56:28.15
will be a different place.
00:56:28.25\00:56:30.15
There will be very blessed
00:56:30.25\00:56:31.72
people that are here.
00:56:31.82\00:56:33.36
I pray that we would be ready,
00:56:33.46\00:56:35.82
that indeed this would be a
00:56:35.92\00:56:37.59
clear path to the Kingdom, Lord,
00:56:37.69\00:56:39.79
that all that we do and say
00:56:39.89\00:56:41.56
and be in this place
00:56:41.66\00:56:43.63
would bring glory to you
00:56:43.73\00:56:45.03
by bringing people to you.
00:56:45.13\00:56:47.30
This is our prayer
00:56:47.40\00:56:48.47
and we pray it in your name.
00:56:48.57\00:56:49.64
Amen.
00:56:49.74\00:56:50.37
>> I'm Shane Anderson,
00:56:53.68\00:56:54.64
the lead pastor here
00:56:54.74\00:56:55.91
at Pioneer Memorial Church.
00:56:56.01\00:56:58.28
At Pioneer Media, we have been
00:56:58.38\00:56:59.91
blessed by the financial support
00:57:00.08\00:57:01.82
that comes from our viewers
00:57:01.92\00:57:03.02
like you that enable us
00:57:03.12\00:57:04.82
to continue this ministry.
00:57:04.92\00:57:07.22
We've made a conscious decision
00:57:07.32\00:57:08.66
not to continually appeal to you
00:57:08.76\00:57:10.09
for that support.
00:57:10.19\00:57:11.83
However, keeping this ministry
00:57:11.93\00:57:13.03
going takes money to support
00:57:13.13\00:57:14.83
our staff and technology needs.
00:57:14.93\00:57:17.47
If God has blessed you
00:57:17.57\00:57:19.10
and you would like to further
00:57:19.20\00:57:19.97
the work of this ministry,
00:57:20.07\00:57:21.60
we invite you to partner
00:57:21.70\00:57:22.60
with us.
00:57:22.70\00:57:24.31
You can donate on our website --
00:57:24.41\00:57:25.67
pmchurch.org.
00:57:25.77\00:57:28.08
Then click "giving" at the top,
00:57:28.18\00:57:30.38
then select "media ministry."
00:57:30.48\00:57:33.35
Or call the number 877-HIS-WILL.
00:57:33.45\00:57:37.19
Again, that number is 877 --
00:57:37.29\00:57:39.42
the two words, "HIS WILL."
00:57:39.52\00:57:42.19
My prayer is that the God
00:57:42.29\00:57:43.93
who has blessed you will
00:57:44.03\00:57:45.59
continue to pour into your life
00:57:45.69\00:57:46.93
the gifts of his joy
00:57:47.03\00:57:48.30
and his hope.
00:57:48.40\00:57:49.53
Thank you.
00:57:49.63\00:57:51.13
And I'm looking forward
00:57:51.23\00:57:51.80
to seeing you right here
00:57:51.90\00:57:52.90
again next time.
00:57:53.00\00:57:54.17
¤
00:58:00.54\00:58:09.78
¤
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¤
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