¤¤
00:00:01.76\00:00:03.70
>> Hi. I'm Shane Anderson
and I'm the new lead pastor here
00:00:13.68\00:00:17.01
at Pioneer Memorial
Church. I'm delighted to take up
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the work left by Pastor
Dwight Nelson at this pulpit.
00:00:20.28\00:00:23.55
He ended his tenure here this
past summer. Pastor Dwight had
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an incredible 40-year journey
here. His ministry touched the
lives of thousands around the
00:00:28.66\00:00:33.63
globe, including my own. I can
remember, as a young seminarian,
00:00:33.63\00:00:38.23
coming here to Pioneer and being
blessed by his spirit-filled
sermons, and it is an honor for
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me to now take up that mantle.
Though mine is a different face,
I can assure you that
00:00:43.44\00:00:48.84
the same passion for sharing the
good news of Jesus Christ with
all who are willing to hear
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will continue at Pioneer.
00:00:53.88\00:00:56.75
To make sure you stay connected
to the work we're doing here
00:00:56.95\00:00:59.09
at Pioneer Media,
please visit pmchurch.org/media
00:00:59.09\00:01:04.36
and follow the links to
subscribe to our social-media
00:01:04.36\00:01:06.90
channels. Thank
you for your continued
00:01:06.90\00:01:09.76
prayers and financial support.
00:01:09.76\00:01:11.87
¤¤
00:01:15.17\00:01:17.04
>> Amen. Our king is exalted.
This next song that we're going
00:04:22.49\00:04:26.59
to sing talks about the
love of God for each of us.
00:04:26.59\00:04:29.83
For some, it may be
unknown, but many of you,
00:04:29.83\00:04:33.00
I know, have heard it before.
We're going to teach it to you,
00:04:33.00\00:04:35.44
you're gonna
sing along with us. ¤¤
00:04:35.44\00:04:43.24
Just listen to the
melody of the violin.
00:04:43.24\00:04:47.28
Let's sing it
together. "Oh, how He loves."
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Let's try it one
more time now, harmonies.
00:06:09.36\00:06:12.53
Only you guys now.
"Oh, how He loves."
00:07:01.05\00:07:04.29
Amen. Praise God.
00:08:06.08\00:08:07.85
¤¤
00:08:12.39\00:08:14.26
>> ¤ In heavenly love abiding ¤
No change my heart shall fear ¤
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¤ And safe is such confiding ¤
For nothing changes here ¤ The
storm may roar around me
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¤ My heart may low be laid ¤ But
God is 'round about me ¤ And can
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I be dismayed? >> ¤ Wherever He
may guide me ¤ No want shall
turn me back ¤ My shepherd is
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beside me ¤ And nothing can I
lack ¤ His wisdom is forever ¤
His sight is never dim
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¤ His will forms each endeavor ¤
And I will walk with Him ¤ All
the way my Savior leads
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me ¤ ¤ What have I to ask
beside? ¤ Can I doubt His tender
00:10:05.27\00:10:15.54
mercy ¤ Who through life
has been my guide? ¤ ¤ Heavenly
00:10:15.54\00:10:22.58
peace, divinest comfort ¤ ¤
Here by faith in Him to dwell ¤
00:10:22.58\00:10:32.53
¤ For I know whatever befall me
¤ ¤ Jesus doeth all things well
00:10:32.53\00:10:42.44
>> ¤ For I know whatever befall
me ¤ ¤ Jesus doeth all things
00:10:42.44\00:10:57.35
well ¤ Green pastures are before
me, ¤ Which yet I have not seen
¤ Bright skies will soon be o'er
00:11:02.49\00:11:15.60
me ¤ ¤ Where
darker clouds have been ¤
00:11:15.60\00:11:20.88
¤ My life I cannot measure ¤ The
path of life is free ¤ My Savior
00:11:20.88\00:11:38.39
has my treasure ¤
And he will walk with me
00:11:38.39\00:11:47.64
¤ My Savior has my treasure
¤ And he will walk with me ¤
00:11:54.11\00:12:18.73
¤¤
00:12:23.97\00:12:25.84
>> Let's try that one
more time. "Show me your ways."
00:13:23.70\00:13:27.14
Amen. Amen.
Praise God. Praise God.
00:15:41.60\00:15:45.11
¤¤
00:15:45.11\00:15:46.98
It goes like
this -- "The Lord..."
00:15:51.65\00:15:54.08
>> Amen. Amen. Praise
God. Hallelujah. Hallelujah.
00:20:28.66\00:20:33.36
>> Before I begin, I want to
call attention to the banner on
00:20:38.00\00:20:42.94
the side of the sanctuary
here. "Together in spirit and in
00:20:42.94\00:20:46.84
truth." Many thanks to Brittany,
our graphic designer, and to
William, our head of
00:20:46.84\00:20:51.25
maintenance here, and their
crews for putting this together.
00:20:51.25\00:20:54.92
Putting these things
together is not a small task,
00:20:55.12\00:20:57.42
and I'm very grateful to
them. I want to encourage you,
00:20:57.42\00:21:00.86
we finish the service
today, if you want to come on by
00:21:00.86\00:21:03.02
and find your
signature. That's why
00:21:03.02\00:21:05.39
we put these on the wall --
to be a reminder of what it is
00:21:05.39\00:21:08.26
that we are committing to
before the Lord this year,
00:21:08.26\00:21:10.40
what we have committed
to with our signatures here.
00:21:10.40\00:21:12.70
"Together in
spirit and in truth,"
00:21:12.70\00:21:14.60
God's Holy Spirit binding
us together in God's truth
00:21:14.60\00:21:19.44
as found in His
Word. Speaking of,
00:21:19.44\00:21:25.21
this is Part 2 of our
very brief series entitled
00:21:25.21\00:21:28.05
"How to Know God's Will."
00:21:28.05\00:21:30.25
In Part 1, if you missed it --
just a very brief overview -- we
said that the number-one way
00:21:30.45\00:21:36.26
that God reveals His will for
our lives is through the Bible.
00:21:36.26\00:21:40.96
In fact, we put it this way.
If you want to learn how to live
00:21:40.96\00:21:45.63
this life, read the
Manufacturer's instructions.
This book, the Bible, is the
00:21:45.63\00:21:50.94
owner's manual. God created us.
He knows how life works best. He
puts instructions in here
00:21:50.94\00:21:54.81
that we might live life to
its fullest in Him. This is the
00:21:54.81\00:21:59.28
manual. It's the number-one way
that God reveals His will for
our lives. So if you're stuck,
00:21:59.28\00:22:04.92
if you don't know where to go in
life, start here. This is where
00:22:04.92\00:22:09.69
it begins. Now, I also gave, in
that Part 1, seven lines of
evidence that I believe
00:22:09.69\00:22:16.33
establish the Bible as a
different type of book than any
other book on the planet.
00:22:16.33\00:22:20.60
I'm not going to go through all
of those lines of evidence. If
you missed Part 1, I would
00:22:20.60\00:22:24.27
strongly encourage you to watch
it. You can go to pmchurch.org,
00:22:24.27\00:22:27.61
click on the "Sermons" tab, and
you can go to our archive and
you can find Part 1 there.
00:22:27.61\00:22:31.95
Truly, this book is different
and above any other book's claim
00:22:31.95\00:22:38.42
to divinity. There's just
nothing like it. We finished
Part 1 with a question.
00:22:38.42\00:22:45.89
If, after you have read
the specifics of the Bible and
00:22:45.89\00:22:51.43
you've taken also the principles
of the Bible and you've tried to
apply them to whatever part of
00:22:51.43\00:22:57.11
your life you're looking for
God's will in and you still
don't have an answer, what do
00:22:57.11\00:23:06.55
you do? Well, good news. God has
additional ways that he can help
00:23:06.55\00:23:12.95
us to know His will, and this
morning, I want to share with
00:23:12.95\00:23:17.33
you three of them. There are
more, but we only have time for
three this morning. And let's
00:23:17.33\00:23:22.70
begin with this. If you have a
Bible, take a look at James
Chapter 1, please, Verse 5.
00:23:22.70\00:23:26.13
James 1:5. In James 1, we
find some very famous counsels.
00:23:26.13\00:23:35.54
Some of you may have memorized
this text. It is a fairly famous
00:23:35.54\00:23:39.45
one. Martin Luther famously said
that James had a gospel of
straw. He didn't have much love
00:23:39.45\00:23:43.89
for the Book of James. I have
a lot of love for the Book of
00:23:43.89\00:23:46.29
James, and most of Christianity
does, too. That's why it's still
here. It has some excellent
00:23:46.29\00:23:50.19
things to say if you are looking
for God's will, you've read the
00:23:50.19\00:23:53.86
Bible, you've applied its
principles, you're still not
sure, what should you do?
00:23:53.86\00:23:57.23
James 1:5. "If any of you
lacks --" What's the next word?
00:23:57.23\00:24:04.07
Wisdom. Stop right there. Isn't
that what we're looking for
00:24:04.07\00:24:06.84
if we are looking for
God's will in our life? >> Yes.
00:24:06.84\00:24:09.44
>> Yeah, it's wisdom, isn't it?
We want to know, Lord, what are
00:24:09.44\00:24:13.08
the next steps? What should I do
with this decision or that
decision? We want wisdom.
00:24:13.08\00:24:18.45
So we're in the right spot here.
"If any of you," the text says,
"lacks wisdom, he should --"
00:24:18.45\00:24:24.19
What's the next word? Ask.
"He should ask God, who gives
00:24:24.19\00:24:30.57
generously to all without
finding fault, and it will be
given to him." Verse 5 again.
00:24:30.57\00:24:33.74
"If any of you lacks wisdom,
he should ask God, who gives
00:24:33.74\00:24:38.07
generously to all without
finding fault, and it will be
given to him." A second way to
00:24:38.07\00:24:44.08
know God's will for your life is
through prayer. Start with the
Bible and continue with prayer.
00:24:44.08\00:24:51.32
Now, we have talked quite a
bit about prayer in the last few
00:24:51.32\00:24:55.09
weeks, and this is not a topic
that I want to wear out with
you. We're going to revisit it
00:24:55.09\00:24:58.26
later on. Let me just be brief
this morning by saying this.
00:24:58.26\00:25:02.16
No search for God's will is
complete without prayer. Even
00:25:02.16\00:25:09.37
Bible study is not to be done
without prayer, for we are to
study it only as we ask
00:25:09.37\00:25:12.31
for God's Holy Spirit to lead
and to guide us in doing so.
00:25:12.31\00:25:15.54
And when we've read the Bible,
and, yet, we are still uncertain
00:25:15.74\00:25:19.18
as to God's will for us
in a specific situation,
00:25:19.18\00:25:21.78
prayer can and must continue.
For it is in prayer that
00:25:21.78\00:25:25.85
God's spirit can
speak to us. It is in prayer
00:25:25.85\00:25:29.79
that God can whisper the answer
to the problems that plague us.
00:25:29.79\00:25:32.73
It is in prayer that
God can remind us of things
00:25:32.73\00:25:36.06
we once knew but have forgotten,
of resources we once treasured
00:25:36.06\00:25:39.80
but have now fallen into
disuse. Prayer is one of God's
00:25:39.80\00:25:43.41
greatest agencies for
placing the mind of heaven
00:25:43.41\00:25:47.34
into the minds of
humanity here on Earth.
00:25:47.34\00:25:51.78
One of my favorite quotations
on prayer, outside of Scripture,
00:25:51.78\00:25:55.28
was first printed in
a religious publication
00:25:55.28\00:25:57.59
called the Daily
Word. This was back
00:25:57.59\00:25:59.62
in June 18 of 1952.
00:25:59.62\00:26:01.56
It's often mistaken as a
quotation from Ellen White, and,
indeed, portions of it
00:26:01.76\00:26:06.59
kind of sound like Sister White.
But this is actually not from
00:26:06.59\00:26:09.80
her. People also mistake it for
a quote from Ellen White because
it was printed not once,
00:26:09.80\00:26:13.74
but twice in the Advent Review
and Herald magazine -- 1953 and
00:26:13.74\00:26:20.18
1965. So good was the quote,
they had to print it twice.
Here, in part, is what it says.
00:26:20.18\00:26:25.71
If you want answers to life's
questions, then study your Bible
00:27:11.83\00:27:18.30
and pray. It may be that God
will reveal His will clearly to
00:27:18.30\00:27:23.51
you in that way. That's method
number two. There is a third
method. And while methods one
00:27:23.51\00:27:32.25
and two are at the top of the
list for a very good reason,
this third method also has
00:27:32.25\00:27:37.55
proven to be phenomenally
effective. A story. When I was
00:27:37.55\00:27:47.96
in fifth grade, there was a girl
in my class that picked on me.
Now, she wasn't pulling me out
00:27:47.96\00:27:53.94
behind the school and beating
me up. I was bigger than anyone
00:27:53.94\00:27:56.44
else in the class. I never had
a growth spurt. I just kind of
00:27:56.44\00:27:59.61
kept going. So it wasn't
that kind of a thing. But I'd be
00:27:59.61\00:28:03.78
sitting in class, and she would
get a spit wad in a straw,
and...in the back of my neck.
00:28:03.78\00:28:08.45
"What is that?" She would get
rubber bands and fold over card
00:28:08.45\00:28:12.12
stock like this and go like
that, hit me in the back of the
00:28:12.12\00:28:15.42
head in class. She would find my
softball glove. You know, they
00:28:15.42\00:28:19.79
have cubbies in many classrooms,
right? So in my, cubby I kept my
00:28:19.79\00:28:23.10
softball glove. And she would,
shall we say, reorder things and
then put my glove in some other
00:28:23.10\00:28:29.67
place, and I couldn't find it.
Well, after a couple weeks of
this, I'm getting frustrated,
00:28:29.67\00:28:33.48
like, "Why is this girl doing
this? I come home from school
00:28:33.48\00:28:36.81
and I tell my mom about it. I
say, "Mom, there's this girl in
00:28:36.81\00:28:41.02
my class, and she's spitting
spit wads at me and flicking me
with paper and rubber bands
00:28:41.02\00:28:45.55
and she's stealing my glove.
What am I supposed to do?" And
00:28:45.55\00:28:53.90
she said, "I think she
likes you." [ Laughter ] Now, I
00:28:53.90\00:29:00.74
thought that was the dumbest
thing in the world. What do you
mean she likes me? No, no, she
00:29:00.74\00:29:04.87
hates my guts. That's why she's
doing all this stuff, right? Who
knows what's going to be
00:29:04.87\00:29:07.11
next, you know? I don't remember
exactly how long it was --
00:29:07.11\00:29:12.05
maybe a week or two later. I'm
sitting in class. Little tap on
00:29:12.05\00:29:16.28
my shoulder. It's one of her
female friends that passes me a
note. The note has the one who's
00:29:16.28\00:29:23.56
been picking on me, her name on
it. I open it up, and there are
00:29:23.56\00:29:28.00
three words on it. Any
guesses what they were?
00:29:28.00\00:29:29.63
"I like you." I was astonished!
Not that she liked me.
00:29:33.03\00:29:41.98
I mean, I'm not much to look at
right now, but in fifth grade, I
00:29:41.98\00:29:48.82
was, you know... I mean, ladies
falling at my feet there in the
fifth- and sixth-grade
00:29:48.82\00:29:52.62
classroom, right? So I was not
surprised by that at all. What
00:29:52.62\00:29:56.73
astonished me is, how did my
mother know? I mean, I spent
like 30 seconds telling her
00:29:56.73\00:30:05.20
about this. She had not been in
the classroom ever when this
stuff was happening to me.
00:30:05.20\00:30:09.80
And within 30 seconds, she says,
"I think she likes you." I was
astonished that anyone
00:30:09.80\00:30:16.48
at her extreme age could know
such things. I mean, she was in
00:30:16.48\00:30:21.58
her 30s. She had one foot in the
grave and the other in a pool of
00:30:21.58\00:30:24.99
WD-40, right? I mean, this is --
And, yet, she knew these things.
00:30:24.99\00:30:30.09
It was amazing to
my fifth-grade mind...
00:30:30.09\00:30:32.39
and a very good illustration of
how God reveals His will to us.
00:30:35.50\00:30:44.04
A third method that God uses to
reveal His will for our lives is
the counsel of older,
00:30:44.04\00:30:50.45
wiser Christians. The counsel
of older and wiser Christians.
00:30:50.45\00:30:58.85
Now, this is not just
my opinion. It's actually
00:30:58.85\00:31:01.12
the opinion of the Bible. Let me
put this up here on the screen.
00:31:01.12\00:31:03.26
Job 12:12-13.
00:31:03.26\00:31:05.79
Now, notice carefully what God
is doing here and inspiring
these words to be written.
00:31:17.57\00:31:21.84
The second verse here -- "To God
belong wisdom and power, counsel
and understanding."
00:31:21.84\00:31:25.65
So, who owns wisdom
and understanding? >> God.
00:31:25.65\00:31:28.95
>> Okay, God does, right? He
is the source of our being. You
00:31:28.95\00:31:32.39
know, Paul says, "In Him, we
live and move and have our
being." If something is true,
00:31:32.39\00:31:35.76
it's because God is, right? So
he owns these things. But notice
00:31:35.76\00:31:41.33
who holds them for him. Who
is it who holds on to His wisdom
00:31:41.33\00:31:48.94
and understanding? It's the
aged and those with long life.
00:31:48.94\00:31:57.05
Translation -- if you are paying
attention and the years begin to
add up, God will entrust you
00:31:57.05\00:32:03.22
with His wisdom
and understanding.
00:32:03.22\00:32:04.99
And those of you that are
younger right now may not be
00:32:09.19\00:32:13.60
sure that this is such a good
idea. Like me in fifth grade
wondering about how in the world
00:32:13.60\00:32:19.13
would I even pay attention to
the advice of this? Stunned to
find out that it was
00:32:19.13\00:32:22.07
absolutely right. As it
turns out, we need the young
00:32:22.07\00:32:30.65
and we need the old. Because the
experience that those that are
00:32:30.65\00:32:36.75
older can bring to those that
are younger can be
transformative. And let me even
00:32:36.75\00:32:42.76
note this -- history tells
us that if for some reason the
00:32:42.76\00:32:49.30
young disregard the genuine
wisdom of the old, that the
results can be catastrophic.
00:32:49.30\00:32:55.84
Take your Bible, please, and
look at 1 Kings 12. 1 Kings 12,
00:32:55.84\00:33:02.04
beginning with Verse 1. A
little history here. If we were
00:33:02.04\00:33:07.92
to read earlier, in 1 Kings 11,
we would find that King Solomon
00:33:07.92\00:33:14.56
has died. Now, even if you're
not a Christian and you're
listening right now, you
00:33:14.56\00:33:17.43
probably have heard the term
"King Solomon." He was a very
famous king, one of the two most
00:33:17.43\00:33:21.43
famous kings of Israel --
King David, of course, and King
00:33:21.43\00:33:24.60
Solomon, his son. Solomon was
known because of the great,
incredible things that he built
00:33:24.60\00:33:28.37
and other things, the wisest man
who ever lived. He has died now,
00:33:28.37\00:33:33.44
and his son Rehoboam is being
considered for the throne. He's
00:33:33.44\00:33:37.51
next in line for the throne. If
we were to read in Chapter 11,
00:33:37.51\00:33:41.45
we would find that a man by the
name of Jeroboam -- So, Jeroboam
and Rehoboam, no relation.
00:33:41.45\00:33:46.65
Jeroboam receives a message from
God through a Ahijah the Prophet
00:33:46.65\00:33:51.16
that Rehoboam will not inherit
all of Israel, that he will
inherit only a portion of it,
00:33:51.16\00:33:57.20
that the kingdom will be
divided. How and why would that
00:33:57.20\00:34:02.04
come about? 1 Kings 12:1.
"Rehoboam," Solomon's son,
00:34:02.04\00:34:09.44
"went to Shechem, for all
the Israelites had gone there to
00:34:09.44\00:34:13.52
make him king." When Jeroboam,
son of Nebat, heard this, he was
00:34:13.52\00:34:16.58
still in Egypt, where he had
fled from King Solomon. He
returned from Egypt,
00:34:16.58\00:34:19.95
so they sent for Jeroboam, and
he and the whole assembly of
Israel went to Rehoboam
00:34:19.95\00:34:24.19
and said to him, 'Your
father put a heavy yoke on us,
00:34:24.19\00:34:28.70
but now lighten the harsh labor
and the heavy yoke he put on us,
and we will serve you.'"
00:34:28.70\00:34:37.11
Now pause there, please. Some
history here is helpful. King
Solomon, because of all
00:34:37.11\00:34:42.98
the grand public-works projects
that he did, taxed the people
00:34:42.98\00:34:50.15
mercilessly and he forced them
into labor. It was not a
full-blown slavery where
00:34:50.15\00:34:56.12
everybody was just -- they never
went home, they all lived there
on-site, et cetera.
00:34:56.12\00:34:58.76
But, yes, it was forced labor.
They went in rotations. And the
00:34:58.76\00:35:03.67
people were sick and tired of
it. So they make this request.
Verse 5, Rehoboam answered,
00:35:03.67\00:35:11.34
"'Go away for three days and
then come back to me.' So the
00:35:11.34\00:35:17.05
people went away. Then King
Rehoboam consulted the elders."
Who did he consult?
00:35:17.05\00:35:21.52
Okay, the elders. "He consulted
the elders who had served his
00:35:21.52\00:35:26.96
father, Solomon, during his
lifetime. 'How would you advise
me to answer these people?',
00:35:26.96\00:35:31.93
he asked." Ah! This is very
important. Not only is Rehoboam
00:35:31.93\00:35:37.03
hearkening back, trying to show
some continuity with his father,
Solomon, but he is attempting,
00:35:37.03\00:35:42.90
at least for the moment, to
draw on the collective wisdom of
00:35:42.90\00:35:46.61
these elders. Now, the text
doesn't tell us this, so this is
just the Gospel according to
00:35:46.61\00:35:50.15
Shane here. I suspect that these
elders were well aware of the
pain and suffering that Solomon
00:35:50.15\00:35:56.72
had inflicted on his people. You
know, Solomon -- smartest man
00:35:56.72\00:36:01.36
who ever lived, but he
overstepped. And by the end of
his life, he had turned away --
00:36:01.36\00:36:05.79
His heart was not fully God's.
He did not end his reign in a
way that was pleasing to God.
00:36:05.79\00:36:10.47
And somewhere along the line, he
became very insensitive to the
suffering of his people.
00:36:10.47\00:36:13.27
These elders undoubtedly
know this, and so they thought,
00:36:13.27\00:36:16.84
"Okay, great. We can turn the
page now. This is the king's
son. It's not the king.
00:36:16.84\00:36:19.87
Maybe he will listen and
remove this yoke of servitude."
00:36:19.87\00:36:24.65
Verse 8. Excuse me,
Verse 7. "They replied,
00:36:29.25\00:36:36.16
'If today you will be a servant
to these people and serve them
and give them a favorable
00:36:36.16\00:36:43.10
answer, they will always be
your servants.'" Now, ladies and
00:36:43.10\00:36:50.61
gentlemen, that is wisdom that's
actually far ahead of its time.
I say "far ahead of its time."
00:36:50.61\00:36:56.08
How many times does that
phrase get repeated in political
00:36:56.08\00:37:00.25
circles today? Probably not very
often, okay? And, really, we
don't have it too many times in
00:37:00.25\00:37:03.59
the Old Testament. But these
elders were showing
extraordinary wisdom, because
00:37:03.59\00:37:07.72
they were actually foreshadowing
what Jesus would say hundreds of
00:37:07.72\00:37:11.36
years later in Matthew 20:25-28.
Jesus said, "'You know that the
00:37:11.36\00:37:15.13
rulers of the Gentiles lord it
over them, and their high
officials exercise authority
00:37:15.13\00:37:19.77
over them. Not so with you.
Instead, whoever wants to become
00:37:19.77\00:37:24.81
great among you must be your
servant, and whoever wants to be
first must be your slave,
00:37:24.81\00:37:28.74
just as the son of man did not
come to be served, but to serve
00:37:28.74\00:37:34.12
and to give his life as a ransom
for many.'" These elders
hundreds of years prior to
00:37:34.12\00:37:40.39
Christ saying this. I mean,
the wisdom that is being offered
00:37:40.39\00:37:43.89
here. What does Rehoboam, the
young, do with the wisdom of the
00:37:48.46\00:38:02.98
old? Verse 8. "But Rehoboam
rejected the advice the elders
gave him and consulted the young
00:38:02.98\00:38:11.52
men who had grown up with him
and were serving him. He asked
00:38:11.52\00:38:14.96
them, 'What is your advice? How
should we answer these people
00:38:14.96\00:38:18.46
who say to me, "Lighten the yoke
your father put on us?'" The
young men who had grown up
00:38:18.46\00:38:22.86
with him replied, 'Tell these
people who have said to you,
00:38:22.86\00:38:26.43
"Your father put a heavy yoke on
us, but make our yoke lighter"
-- tell them, "My little finger
00:38:26.43\00:38:31.04
is thicker than my father's
waist. My father laid on you a
00:38:31.04\00:38:35.51
heavy yoke. I will make it even
heavier. My father scourged you
00:38:35.51\00:38:40.08
with whips. I will scourge you
with scorpions.'"" And the
result -- Verse 16.
00:38:40.08\00:38:48.19
"When all Israel saw that the
king refused to listen to them,
00:38:48.19\00:38:50.89
they answered the king, 'What
share do we have in David? What
00:38:50.89\00:38:57.67
part Jesse's son? To your tents,
O Israel. Look after your own
00:38:57.67\00:39:02.07
house, O David.' So the
Israelites went home." And they
not only went home, this,
00:39:02.07\00:39:10.21
instead, was the official
beginning of the divided
kingdom. Israel was no longer
00:39:10.21\00:39:15.15
one. It separated officially
that day. The seeds of it
00:39:15.15\00:39:17.55
had been brewing, but this was
the final straw. Israel became
00:39:17.55\00:39:22.06
the northern kingdom. Judah
became the southern kingdom.
00:39:22.06\00:39:24.76
And both kingdoms eventually
fell deeper and deeper into
00:39:24.76\00:39:29.33
idolatry. Generations of evil
came that day, in part spurred
00:39:29.33\00:39:36.07
on by Rehoboam's fateful
decision to ignore the
experience of the older in favor
00:39:36.07\00:39:43.14
of the devastating
counsel of the younger.
00:39:43.14\00:39:46.88
Now, I want to be clear
about something. The point of
00:39:50.92\00:39:56.66
Scripture here and elsewhere is
not that all of those that are
younger have no wisdom,
00:39:56.66\00:40:01.90
nor that all of those who are
older are necessarily wise. I
00:40:01.90\00:40:07.10
have met a number of
80-year-olds who did not make
very good use of their eight
00:40:07.10\00:40:12.94
decades, right? Nor is the Bible
saying that just because someone
is older than we are
00:40:12.94\00:40:16.34
that we should take their
advice. But for those of you
00:40:16.34\00:40:19.71
that are younger, don't
let those admissions fool you.
00:40:19.71\00:40:23.45
When you engage with older
people and they bring you godly
00:40:23.45\00:40:28.16
wisdom, take it, take it, apply
it to your life. You would be
00:40:28.16\00:40:33.19
foolish to ignore it. You know,
so much of life's wisdom from
00:40:33.19\00:40:36.23
God comes through our mistakes.
Why try to make all the mistakes
yourselves when you can learn
00:40:36.23\00:40:40.94
from the manifold
mistakes of others? >> Amen.
00:40:40.94\00:40:43.47
>> Those of you that are
younger, not as many amens from
the older folk, but they know
00:40:43.47\00:40:48.21
exactly what I'm talking about,
alright? Because, often, it's in
00:40:48.21\00:40:51.91
those contexts when we mess up,
when we make mistakes, that we
00:40:51.91\00:40:55.28
learn the wisdom from God,
right? You don't have to make
all those mistakes yourself.
00:40:55.28\00:40:58.99
Learn from those who have gone
before you. You see, here's the
00:40:58.99\00:41:04.63
thing. When the Bible speaks
about spiritual gifts, it says
00:41:04.63\00:41:08.46
that God gives spiritual gifts
to the church just as He sees
fit. I tend to think that when
00:41:08.46\00:41:12.23
God looks at the age range of
a church, He often does the same
00:41:12.23\00:41:16.84
thing. In other words, younger
people -- and I'll let you
decide where the cutoff
00:41:16.84\00:41:19.64
is between younger and older,
alright? I'm not going to get
00:41:19.64\00:41:22.84
into that. If you are younger
and you're sitting right here in
this congregation right now,
00:41:22.84\00:41:26.72
I want you to know you are
surrounded by some very wise
00:41:26.72\00:41:31.89
people. There are older people
here that care about you. They
00:41:31.89\00:41:35.36
long for you to be in the
kingdom. They are so glad that
you are here this morning.
00:41:35.36\00:41:38.96
And God has put you within their
sphere of influence. You may not
00:41:38.96\00:41:42.40
have even met them formally yet,
but they're sitting nearby to
00:41:42.40\00:41:46.13
you, and God has put them here
to be of help and assistance to
you. They love you.
00:41:46.13\00:41:50.94
They care about you. They're
paying for this place. Some of
them are even paying
00:41:50.94\00:41:54.04
for your tuition. They long for
you to know Jesus Christ as your
00:41:54.04\00:41:57.68
personal friend and savior. And
if you have a need, if you are
00:41:57.68\00:42:02.35
not understanding what God's
will is for your life, ask them.
00:42:02.35\00:42:11.56
Ask them. You know, I'm very
glad that we have individual
ministries for certain ages.
00:42:11.56\00:42:16.06
I'm glad we have a class for our
5-year-olds and a class for the
00:42:16.06\00:42:19.93
early teen and Sabbath School
class for collegiates and
adults. All of these now,
00:42:19.93\00:42:23.30
I'm glad for that. And it is
so important that we never, ever
00:42:23.30\00:42:28.91
forget that one of God's dreams
for His church is that we do
cross-generational ministry
00:42:28.91\00:42:33.48
as much as we possibly can. The
old need the young, the young
00:42:33.48\00:42:37.89
need the old, everybody in
between. We need each other.
This is one of the reasons
00:42:37.89\00:42:42.02
I'm so excited about Belong
Ministry, our new outreach
00:42:42.02\00:42:45.39
ministry to our university
students. It's a golden
opportunity for those of you
00:42:45.39\00:42:48.83
that are older to become engaged
with our university students, to
build relationships,
00:42:48.83\00:42:52.43
to give them good food, to send
them cash and loaves of bread,
00:42:52.43\00:42:56.00
and, along the way, to build
relationships where someday,
00:42:56.00\00:43:00.18
they may ask you, "Help me
understand about this," and you
can share the wisdom and the
00:43:00.18\00:43:04.85
knowledge and the understanding
that God has given to you with
00:43:04.85\00:43:09.85
your years. So, God reveals His
will to us for our lives through
his word, the Bible, number one,
00:43:13.79\00:43:21.36
through prayer, through
the wisdom of older and wiser
00:43:21.36\00:43:27.60
Christians, and a fourth method.
If you have your Bible, please
again look at Acts 16:6.
00:43:27.60\00:43:34.78
Acts, the 16th chapter, Verse 6.
You know, Acts is, of course,
short for Acts of the Apostles.
00:43:34.78\00:43:43.69
Probably should be called the
Acts of the Holy Spirit. That
may be more accurate.
00:43:43.69\00:43:46.79
It's the story of the Holy
Spirit filling the Apostles and
the early believers
00:43:46.79\00:43:50.93
in the Christian church and how
the beginnings of the Christian
00:43:50.93\00:43:55.53
church came to be. The
church-planting movement that
Christianity would become in the
00:43:55.53\00:43:59.37
1st century A.D. -- it starts
here in the Book of Acts. It
blossoms out there.
00:43:59.37\00:44:02.27
The Apostle Paul was kind of at
the head of that church-planting
00:44:02.27\00:44:07.31
ministry train. The Apostle Paul
-- he wrote more than half of
the 27 books in the New
00:44:07.31\00:44:10.81
Testament. And here, we're going
to read a short, little snippet
of how Paul discerned the will
00:44:10.81\00:44:18.19
of God. Acts 16, beginning with
verse 6. It says, "Paul and his
companions traveled throughout
00:44:18.19\00:44:23.09
the region of Phrygia and
Galatia, having been kept by the
00:44:23.09\00:44:28.66
Holy Spirit from preaching the
word in the province of Asia."
Now, time-out for just a moment.
00:44:28.66\00:44:34.17
Don't we normally talk about the
Holy Spirit empowering people to
preach in certain places?
00:44:34.17\00:44:39.37
I mean, we -- As a Christian
church in general, we often --
00:44:39.37\00:44:44.05
we don't often suffer from
preaching the gospel too much.
We have the opposite problem.
00:44:44.05\00:44:50.59
And, yet, here, the Spirit is
explicitly stopping the
preaching of the Gospel.
00:44:50.59\00:44:55.66
What is that about?
Verse 7. "When they came
00:44:55.66\00:44:58.16
to the border of Mysia, they
tried to enter Bithynia, but the
00:44:58.16\00:45:03.20
spirit of Jesus would not allow
them to." Strike 2. Verse 8.
00:45:03.20\00:45:06.43
"So they passed by Mysia and
went down to Troas. During the
00:45:06.43\00:45:10.97
night, Paul had a vision of a
man of Macedonia standing and
begging him, 'Come over to
00:45:10.97\00:45:16.01
Macedonia and help us.' After
Paul had seen the vision, we got
ready at once to leave
00:45:16.01\00:45:21.12
for Macedonia, concluding that
God had called us to preach the
00:45:21.12\00:45:26.52
gospel to them." That is one of
the more bizarre passages in the
00:45:26.52\00:45:34.50
Book of Acts, and I find it to
be fascinating. Follow me
carefully here. Had God asked
00:45:34.50\00:45:40.50
Paul to preach, for instance,
in Bithynia? Yes or no?
00:45:40.50\00:45:43.30
[ Laughter ] Do I need
to read the text again?
00:45:47.81\00:45:52.31
Okay, the answer is "no." The
answer is "no." We're gonna do
00:45:52.31\00:45:56.42
CliffsNotes here, right? There
was a story. He went, "No."
00:45:56.42\00:45:58.39
Okay, got it. God had not asked
Paul to preach in Bithynia.
00:45:58.39\00:46:02.16
But notice carefully, there's
also no record that, at first,
00:46:02.16\00:46:07.86
God forbade going to Bithynia
either. In other words, Paul and
00:46:07.86\00:46:11.97
his group -- they start going to
Bithynia. In other words, Paul
00:46:11.97\00:46:19.31
did not have specific
instructions from God as to
where to preach next. But that
00:46:19.31\00:46:26.65
did not stop Paul from trying to
go there, because God had
already given the general
00:46:26.65\00:46:31.52
instruction -- Matthew 28 -- "Go
therefore and make disciples of
all nations." So Paul,
00:46:31.52\00:46:38.19
not knowing God's specific will,
used the best wisdom he had and
chose a place to go,
00:46:38.19\00:46:47.54
and on that journey, God
revealed His specific will to
00:46:47.54\00:46:55.34
Paul. Hmm. A fourth method that
God uses to reveal His will for
00:46:55.34\00:47:02.85
our lives to us is this. Do what
you know to do, and God will
reveal His specific
00:47:02.85\00:47:10.36
will along the journey.
In other words, experiment.
00:47:10.36\00:47:17.50
Well, not a single amen on that,
and I'm not surprised, alright?
Because experiment -- that
00:47:19.93\00:47:24.11
makes us nervous, doesn't it? I
mean, surely -- Hold on, Pastor
00:47:24.11\00:47:26.94
Shane. That sounds a little
dangerous there. Are you sure
00:47:26.94\00:47:29.28
you want to say that? Yes.
Yes, I am. Yes, I am. Follow me
00:47:29.28\00:47:33.65
carefully here. Too often, many
well-intended, committed
Christians say, in essence, when
00:47:33.65\00:47:39.72
faced with a decision in their
life -- They're searching for
00:47:39.72\00:47:41.92
God's will. They say, in
essence, "I'm not moving a
muscle until God appears in a
00:47:41.92\00:47:47.86
vision and tells me
specifically what I should do."
00:47:47.86\00:47:50.93
And you know what? Sometimes,
that's the right thing to do.
00:47:57.01\00:48:05.95
You know, in my decades of
pastoral ministry, I've sat on a
00:48:05.95\00:48:10.52
lot of committees. You know,
conference committees, executive
committees, school boards,
00:48:10.52\00:48:16.42
academy board. And there have
been some of those meetings
where, given the gravity of the
00:48:16.42\00:48:20.96
decision that we needed to make
and given the consequences if we
00:48:20.96\00:48:25.93
got it wrong, indeed, we
essentially said, "We will not
make a decision until we have a
00:48:25.93\00:48:30.61
clear 'thus sayeth the Lord.'"
Sometimes, there are situations
that calls for that response.
00:48:30.61\00:48:40.15
For the other 99.5% of times
in life, for the vast majority
00:48:40.15\00:48:48.06
of life's questions -- "How
do I schedule my time this week,
00:48:48.06\00:48:52.09
should we make this purchase or
not, should I attend that
seminar or class next semester
00:48:52.09\00:48:56.13
or not?", et cetera, et cetera
-- these are questions that,
more often than not,
00:48:56.13\00:49:00.30
God longs for us to know His
Word sufficiently and to be
people of prayer sufficiently
00:49:00.30\00:49:08.01
and to have learned the counsel
of generations before us
sufficiently that we
00:49:08.01\00:49:12.35
become -- key word here --
mature, wise, that we become
00:49:12.35\00:49:19.72
trusted, mature, wise, free
moral agents in the world,
faithfully knowing and doing
00:49:19.72\00:49:23.79
God's will to the best of our
ability. C.S. Lewis, in a book
called "The World's Last Night,"
00:49:23.79\00:49:30.73
at the end of a chapter called
"The Efficacy of Prayer," he
00:49:30.73\00:49:34.77
wrote this. He said...
00:49:34.77\00:49:36.07
In other words, thinking we
are somehow God's favorites.
00:50:09.00\00:50:12.07
In other words, sometimes God's
silence is a vote in your favor.
And could it be that one of
00:50:28.12\00:50:35.20
the reasons that we're still on
this planet right now is because
00:50:35.20\00:50:39.60
there are too many of us that
wanted to be treated by God as
though we were 3 years
00:50:39.60\00:50:43.57
old rather than 30? God is
looking for people to take these
00:50:43.57\00:50:49.01
posts of great danger and great
impact. But he will not send
someone who is not sufficiently
00:50:49.01\00:50:55.18
mature to take it. Let us be
clear. God is not looking for us
00:50:55.18\00:51:02.16
to become disconnected from Him.
That is not the definition of
00:51:02.16\00:51:06.13
maturity. A thousand times, no,
no, no. But He most certainly is
looking for us to become more
00:51:06.13\00:51:13.13
like Him, to have His image
restored in us in mature,
biblical fashion. You know,
00:51:13.13\00:51:19.11
Sister White is explicit about
this. January 27 of 1890, in an
article from Signs of the Times
00:51:19.11\00:51:24.01
entitled "The Most Effective
Agent for God." I'd like to know
00:51:24.01\00:51:27.65
what that is, the most effective
agent for God. Here's what she
00:51:27.65\00:51:31.02
says, in part. "Let the people
go to work --" This is people in
a church, in a congregation.
00:51:31.02\00:51:35.36
"We must all be educated to
be --" What's that next word? >>
00:51:48.04\00:51:51.81
Independent. >>
Ah! Look at that.
00:51:51.81\00:51:53.17
Now, those of you that have had
experience with the spirit of
00:52:10.99\00:52:13.23
prophecy, you recognize that
last phrase, don't you? You
know, when the character of
00:52:13.23\00:52:16.90
Christ is perfectly reproduced
in His people, then you know the
00:52:16.90\00:52:20.74
end will come. Jesus will
return. We see this repeatedly
00:52:20.74\00:52:24.84
in various forms in Sister
White's writings. And I think,
too often, when we have read
00:52:24.84\00:52:31.41
this phrase, we have seen it as
-- how could I put it? --
character sitting still.
00:52:31.41\00:52:37.45
"I'll just sit here and be
good," right? That's what she
00:52:37.45\00:52:42.29
means by this phrase. I would
gently suggest to you that this
00:52:42.29\00:52:45.86
call to have Christ's image
reflected in His followers, that
we need to cease thinking
00:52:45.86\00:52:50.83
of it in stagnant terms and,
instead, realize that what she's
00:52:50.83\00:52:55.00
pointing out here is totally
biblically solid, that character
and action are intimately
00:52:55.00\00:53:00.54
intertwined. In fact, you cannot
separate them. God is looking
00:53:00.54\00:53:04.41
for mature followers that are
mature and able to both know His
will and carry it out,
00:53:04.41\00:53:10.52
even in the absence of new,
specific revelation from God.
It's dangerous being a committed
00:53:10.52\00:53:20.23
Christian, isn't it? God never
intended it to be 100% safe, did
00:53:20.23\00:53:27.57
he? You see, we're always safe
in His arms, He will always take
00:53:27.57\00:53:30.74
care of us, but when it comes to
ministry, God asks us to take
risks. He asks us to do the best
00:53:30.74\00:53:35.84
with what we have. Let me just
sum this up here. If you have
00:53:35.84\00:53:40.02
studied the Bible, if you have
spent extensive time in prayer,
if you have consulted older,
00:53:40.02\00:53:43.59
wiser Christians, and, yet, you
still do not have the answers
00:53:43.59\00:53:46.99
that you need, then I think the
Bible is clear. Do what you know
to do. In full harmony
00:53:46.99\00:53:53.23
with biblical principles, not
being reckless or random, but in
keeping with the best
00:53:53.23\00:53:56.46
you know of God's general will,
do what you know. In essence,
00:53:56.46\00:54:00.60
experiment. Use divine
experimentation, take some risks
if necessary, and along the
00:54:00.60\00:54:06.24
journey, if we are listening,
God will reveal His will. He
00:54:06.24\00:54:10.75
will stop us if we need
stopping, He will redirect us if
we need redirecting, and we can
00:54:10.75\00:54:14.55
go forward in full confidence
that God will guide and bless us
when and how He wishes.
00:54:14.55\00:54:19.39
His providence will open
the way. All of which brings us
00:54:19.39\00:54:26.36
to a very important point.
What if we do all four of these
00:54:26.36\00:54:34.47
methods and we still don't know
what God's will is in a specific
00:54:34.47\00:54:37.64
situation that we need to have
-- we feel we need to have an
00:54:37.64\00:54:42.58
answer to? What if we go on not
just for weeks or months, but
years without hearing the answer
00:54:42.58\00:54:48.85
that we're looking for? What
about the stories that we've
heard of some people
00:54:48.85\00:54:53.66
who went to the grave not
getting the answers to their
00:54:53.66\00:55:01.50
questions? What then?
00:55:01.50\00:55:03.03
You're not going to like
my answer. The answer is,
00:55:06.37\00:55:12.24
that's another sermon. [
Laughter ] Yeah. That is too
00:55:12.24\00:55:18.15
important of a question to try
to answer in the brief moments
that we have left here now.
00:55:18.15\00:55:21.58
So we will get to that. Sometime
in the future, we will get to
00:55:21.58\00:55:24.99
that. So keep coming back. We'll
get to that good question, good
00:55:24.99\00:55:30.06
answers. But for now, I will say
this. Generally speaking, God
does want to answer our requests
00:55:30.06\00:55:37.27
for a knowledge of His will for
us. By far, He does. And, again,
00:55:37.27\00:55:41.40
by far, the cause for us not
knowing God's will just
generally does not lie in God.
00:55:41.40\00:55:46.91
It lies in us. How often have
we wished to know God's will for
00:55:46.91\00:55:51.65
thus and such, but because we
have not accessed these simple
methods for gaining that
00:55:51.65\00:55:55.05
knowledge, we do not know what
God wants? So my appeal to all
of us is this -- take full
00:55:55.05\00:56:02.19
advantage of the journey that
God has provided for us. Let's
use these simple tools
00:56:02.19\00:56:07.23
that God generally utilizes
to make His will known in our
00:56:07.23\00:56:11.33
lives. Study your Bible, learn
and live what it says, pray
00:56:11.33\00:56:15.54
daily, both speaking to God's
ear and listening for God's
voice, seek the counsel of
00:56:15.54\00:56:20.11
older, wiser Christians -- there
is a treasure trove of wisdom
00:56:20.11\00:56:23.55
waiting for you there -- and
seek always to grow, to grow in
Christ, to learn His ways,
00:56:23.55\00:56:28.35
to become mature, and to
act as He would act. Even in the
00:56:28.35\00:56:32.62
absence of a fresh revelation,
we can know God's will. May we
00:56:32.62\00:56:40.63
be satisfied with nothing
less. >> Amen! [ Applause ]
00:56:40.63\00:56:45.87
>> Hi. I'm Shane
Anderson, lead pastor at
00:56:54.34\00:56:56.64
Pioneer Memorial Church.
It's no news flash to say
00:56:56.64\00:57:00.15
that social media has
become an integral part
00:57:00.15\00:57:02.42
of our daily lives,
and here at Pioneer,
00:57:02.42\00:57:05.39
we want to use it
to enrich our lives.
00:57:05.39\00:57:08.59
I invite you to connect with
us online by visiting the links
00:57:08.59\00:57:11.29
that are shown on the screen.
We are constantly sharing
00:57:11.29\00:57:14.60
inspiring content that
we believe can make a real
00:57:14.60\00:57:18.03
and positive
difference in your life.
00:57:18.03\00:57:20.94
So if you haven't already,
I encourage you to follow
00:57:20.94\00:57:23.44
and subscribe to our
social-media platforms.
00:57:23.44\00:57:26.37
Not only will
you stay up to date
00:57:26.37\00:57:27.78
with our latest news and events,
but you will also be able to
00:57:27.78\00:57:30.75
engage with an online community
that shares a common belief,
00:57:30.75\00:57:34.38
experience, and
care for your well-being.
00:57:34.38\00:57:37.72
And by sharing our
content, you can help us reach
00:57:37.72\00:57:40.86
even more people
with our message of hope
00:57:40.86\00:57:43.19
and love in Jesus. Join
us by creating a positive
00:57:43.19\00:57:46.43
impact online and making
a difference in the world.
00:57:46.43\00:57:50.63
Thank you, and we look forward
to connecting with you online.
00:57:50.63\00:57:54.30
¤¤
00:57:59.11\00:58:01.04