The hour is urgent, as darkness
is dispelled by the light of
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God's Word, a new day begins.
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Jesus, the light of
the world is shining.
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Prepare your hearts to
proclaim the final cry.
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This is 3ABN
Summer Camp Meeting.
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So glad you're here joining
us at 3ABN Summer Camp Meeting
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2025.
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announcement, was preparing
to proclaim the final cry.
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I actually said the loud cry.
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I guess it's the
same thing, isn't it?
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The final cry.
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And tonight we have two
messages, and the first message
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is going to come
to us from David Shin.
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David Shin is a Weimar
University professor, but even
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more important than that,
he's a husband and the father of
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two.
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He teaches righteousness by
faith, and he is dedicated to
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God.
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for the Ladder Rain?
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Are we ready
for the ladder rain?
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Now before David comes up,
Dr. David Shin comes up, we're
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going to have special
music with Reggie and Lady Love
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Smith, who have been blessing
us here with praise music in
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these last few minutes.
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And Tim Parton is going to
be joining them, accompanying
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them.
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And the special music they're
going to be sharing with us is,
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It Won't Rain Always.
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That's quite
appropriate, isn't it?
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So the next voice you'll hear
after the special music will be
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Dr. David Shin.
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Ready?
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Someone said that in this life
Some rain is bound to fall And
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each one shares His share of
tears And trouble troubles us
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all But the hurt won't
hurt forever And those tears are
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bound to dry
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always, The
clouds will soon be gone.
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The sun that they've been
hiding has been there always.
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God's promises are true.
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The sun's gonna shine in his
own good time, And he will see
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you through.
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The sun's gonna shine in God's
own good time, And he will see
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you through.
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Amen.
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Thank you so much
for that beautiful song.
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My goal is when I get to
heaven, I'll be able to play
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the piano like
that and sing like that.
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Until then, I can just enjoy.
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Amen.
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So good to be at
3ABN Camp Meeting.
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Praise God.
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And invite you to bow
your heads with me as we pray.
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Our Father in heaven, we thank
you for this camp meeting and
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for this theme.
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We pray tonight that your Holy
Spirit be poured out, that you
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would use this weak and
feeble vessel for your glory.
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We pray that the Holy Spirit
that inspires would also be the
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Spirit that instructs.
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For we ask these things in the
precious name of Jesus Christ.
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Amen.
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Amen.
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Our passage of reflection this
evening is taken from the book
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of Joel, Joel chapter 2
and verse 23 and verse 28.
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Be glad then, you children
of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord
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your God, for he has given you
the former rain faithfully, and
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he will cause the rain to come
down on you, the former rain,
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and the latter
rain in the first month.
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Let's go to verse 28.
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And it shall come to pass
afterward that I will pour out
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my Spirit on all flesh.
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Before we get into the heart of
tonight's study, I want to lay
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the foundation with a
little bit of an introduction by
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making a few observations about
this passage that we've just
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read.
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And the first one is that
the Holy Spirit is like rain.
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That's what the Bible is
indicating, that this is a
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metaphor, it's an
analogy that the Bible uses.
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There's another passage found
in Isaiah chapter 44 verse 3.
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It says, for I will pour
water on him who is thirsty and
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floods on the dry ground,
I will pour my Spirit on your
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descendants and my
blessings on your offspring.
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In Joel chapter 2, God promises
both the early and the latter
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rain, then he says, I
will pour out my Spirit.
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Rain is the metaphor, the
Spirit is the miracle, and when
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heaven rains, the Spirit rains.
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Amen.
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Observation number 2.
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The Christian experience
is like the growth of a plant.
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We find this metaphor in other
places in Christ's teachings.
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In Mark chapter 4 verse
28, Jesus said, for the earth
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yields crops by itself, first
the blade, then the head, after
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that the full grain.
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Jesus brings out that the
Christian life is analogous to
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the growth of a plant.
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First you have the germination
of the seed, you have the
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growth of the seed, and finally
you have the harvest that takes
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place afterwards.
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And when Jesus comes in the
book of Revelation, Revelation
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chapter 14 verse 14, he
comes with something that he's
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holding in his hand.
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He's coming with a sickle, and
he says the harvest was a reap.
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So this is a metaphor that
is throughout scripture that the
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Christian experience is similar
to the growth of a plant, and
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just like there's no plant
growth without rain, there's no
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soul growth without the Spirit.
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We come to observation number 3.
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If we don't receive the
daily rain, we won't receive the
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latter rain.
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The book of Joel brings out the
former rain by implication is
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preparing us
for the latter rain.
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So the early rain
is the daily rain.
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It softens the soil, it
feeds the roots, it sustains the
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growth, and the latter
rain is the final rain.
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It's the rain that comes right
before the harvest that gives
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it that little bit of boost
that ripens the grain, prepares
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it for harvest,
and finishes the work.
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So follow me, no
daily rain, no final rain.
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If there's no
root, there's no fruit.
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So daily surrender is
what prepares us for the final
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saturation.
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We come to observation number 4.
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In gardening, it requires
cooperation between God and
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humans.
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You can see that for
those of you that have garden.
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Now I grew up in the city, but
I have grown to love gardening
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and appreciate that there
is this cooperation that takes
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place.
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Now think about it.
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God provides the seed.
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What do you do with the seed?
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You plant the seed.
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God provides the rain,
and the seed germinates.
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We weed.
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We protect the garden.
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God provides the harvest,
and at the end, we must pick the
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fruit of the harvest.
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Now there's a theologian by the
name of John Peckham, who's at
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Andrews University, and he
wrote a book on the love of
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God.
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And he brings out that
God's love is bilateral.
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This is in contrast to
this notion of unilateral.
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Now you do not want to be in
a marriage that is unilateral.
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Am I correct?
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You do not want to be in a
country that is unilateral.
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That's North Korea.
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I can say that
because I'm Korean.
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All right.
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Kim Jong-un, there
is no democracy there.
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It is unilateral.
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You do not agree.
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Tough.
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It's really a
concentration camp.
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There is no dialogue.
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It is a unilateral decision
that is made from the top.
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But the way that God relates to
us is not a unilateral type of
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love that is not love by
because love involves free will
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and choice.
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But it is bilateral.
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In other words, it takes two.
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It requires cooperation.
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Now here's the thing.
00:12:19.23\00:12:20.60
According to John
Peckham, God has favorites.
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Now when I read
that, I was like, what?
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And he develops it some more
by indicating that there are
00:12:31.41\00:12:34.45
certain people in the
Bible like John the Beloved.
00:12:34.45\00:12:38.15
By the way, he
wrote that about himself.
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And I'm like, didn't God
love all of the disciples?
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When you process it a little
more, you will recognize that
00:12:44.33\00:12:47.30
Jesus had the 70, he had the
12, he had the 3, and then it
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seems like he had the 1.
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Now if you're like me,
I don't like favoritism.
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When I was in elementary
school, there was the teacher's
00:13:03.78\00:13:06.28
pet.
00:13:06.28\00:13:06.68
You know what I'm talking about.
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Always got coddled and pampered
and all of the favorites that
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went to that individual.
00:13:13.09\00:13:14.16
But here you can see that there
were certain individuals that
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were given special privileges
and allowed into a certain
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inner sanctum with God.
00:13:23.87\00:13:26.00
When the angel Gabriel comes
to Daniel, he says, Daniel, you
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are dearly beloved.
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Angel Gabriel, don't
come to me and tell me that.
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But it seems to indicate and
imply this idea that God gives
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everyone universal opportunity.
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In other words, everyone can
be a favorite, but not everyone
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chooses to respond
to become a favorite.
00:13:58.40\00:14:03.20
That's the implication.
00:14:04.17\00:14:05.34
In other words, God's
relationship with us is
00:14:06.21\00:14:09.41
bilateral.
00:14:09.41\00:14:10.05
He's always initiating.
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He's always stepping out.
00:14:11.88\00:14:13.15
I want you to be
in my inner sanctum.
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I want to walk with you
like Enoch walked with me.
00:14:15.78\00:14:18.72
He takes a step, and he's
waiting for us to take the
00:14:19.82\00:14:23.76
step.
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And when we take a
step, he takes another step.
00:14:25.43\00:14:28.36
Just like in gardening, if
you don't take the step to plant
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the seed, you're
not going to get fruit.
00:14:34.77\00:14:37.61
And you can sit around
all day and say, oh, I'm not a
00:14:38.27\00:14:41.38
favorite.
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What you didn't initiate.
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I should say you didn't respond.
00:14:44.61\00:14:46.45
And this is the
way the dynamic works.
00:14:47.45\00:14:49.68
And that is the implication
that you can find in the book
00:14:49.72\00:14:53.36
of Joel in relationship to the
early rain and the latter rain.
00:14:53.36\00:14:58.63
When you see in Genesis, one
of the shortest verses is that
00:15:00.53\00:15:06.07
Enoch walked with
God for 300 years.
00:15:06.07\00:15:11.11
And when you look at the
Hebrew, the implication is
00:15:12.57\00:15:15.64
this.
00:15:15.64\00:15:16.11
It's in the Hebrew syntax.
00:15:17.15\00:15:18.58
God took a step.
00:15:19.61\00:15:21.08
Enoch took a step.
00:15:22.02\00:15:23.05
God took a step.
00:15:23.89\00:15:25.52
Enoch took a step.
00:15:26.42\00:15:27.62
And this happened for 300 years.
00:15:28.12\00:15:30.49
And he got so close to glory
that God said, just take one
00:15:31.13\00:15:35.10
more.
00:15:35.10\00:15:35.50
And Enoch is in heaven today.
00:15:36.70\00:15:39.23
That is the
bilateral relationship.
00:15:40.07\00:15:43.47
And that's implied in the early
rain and the latter rain and
00:15:44.04\00:15:49.61
preparation for the Holy Spirit.
00:15:49.61\00:15:51.61
God is always initiating.
00:15:51.95\00:15:53.65
The question is,
are we responding?
00:15:53.88\00:15:56.48
Why do we need the daily rain?
00:15:59.82\00:16:01.82
When we look at scripture,
we can see that there is a daily
00:16:04.39\00:16:10.60
struggle that we all experience.
00:16:10.60\00:16:13.54
This struggle is described
in Galatians chapter 5 and verse
00:16:15.37\00:16:20.04
17.
00:16:20.04\00:16:20.94
For the flesh desires what is
contrary to the spirit and the
00:16:22.71\00:16:28.92
spirit what is
contrary to the flesh.
00:16:28.92\00:16:31.55
They are in conflict with
each other so that you do not do
00:16:32.25\00:16:36.93
whatever you want.
00:16:36.93\00:16:38.36
We have this dichotomy
that exists in all of us.
00:16:39.16\00:16:45.00
The Bible says it's the spirit
on one side and the flesh on
00:16:45.97\00:16:51.24
the other side.
00:16:51.24\00:16:55.61
kind of pinpoints what
this dichotomy is like.
00:16:55.61\00:17:00.18
And it points out that on one
side, that you have the spirit.
00:17:01.08\00:17:06.22
This is also
described in Romans chapter 7.
00:17:06.55\00:17:09.72
And we're told that the
spirit is the reason and the
00:17:10.23\00:17:13.73
conscience.
00:17:13.73\00:17:14.30
And then you have the flesh
which are the appetites and
00:17:15.03\00:17:19.10
passions.
00:17:19.10\00:17:19.63
And we've all
experienced this before.
00:17:20.47\00:17:22.74
Thanksgiving dinner.
00:17:23.24\00:17:24.44
You've eaten a
little bit too much.
00:17:26.04\00:17:28.18
And you forgot to
make room for dessert.
00:17:29.61\00:17:31.85
And dessert comes out.
00:17:33.98\00:17:35.52
And your reason, your frontal
lobe, your prefrontal cortex,
00:17:36.75\00:17:40.22
tells you, you shouldn't eat it.
00:17:40.69\00:17:42.62
But then your appetite
tells you, I need this.
00:17:43.36\00:17:47.10
And there is this
conflict that takes place.
00:17:48.50\00:17:51.13
Should I eat it?
00:17:51.17\00:17:51.97
Should I not eat it?
00:17:51.97\00:17:52.97
Should I eat it?
00:17:52.97\00:17:53.00
Should I not eat it?
00:17:53.87\00:17:53.90
And you could project
this struggle onto all types of
00:17:55.17\00:18:00.78
realities.
00:18:00.78\00:18:04.85
But you can point this out
in reference to any addiction,
00:18:04.95\00:18:08.08
whether it be pornography or
lust or drugs or anything like
00:18:08.28\00:18:12.32
that.
00:18:12.32\00:18:12.79
This temptation presents itself.
00:18:13.05\00:18:14.66
And there is this inner
struggle between what we ought
00:18:14.82\00:18:17.79
to do and what
we feel like doing.
00:18:17.79\00:18:20.96
And it's a very
real internal struggle.
00:18:21.73\00:18:25.43
So what do we do?
00:18:26.17\00:18:27.37
Typically, if you look at
the next slide, we go to January
00:18:28.20\00:18:34.04
1st, our New Year's resolution.
00:18:34.04\00:18:37.68
And we say, this year, I'm
going to conquer my appetite.
00:18:38.08\00:18:42.85
This year, this addiction, I'm
never going to do it anymore.
00:18:44.35\00:18:48.22
And statistically, they
say that New Year's resolutions
00:18:48.42\00:18:51.49
don't even last more
than 30 days on average.
00:18:51.49\00:18:56.10
And so we try this
thing about willpower.
00:18:57.33\00:18:59.37
And there's a theology that's
been disseminated all over
00:18:59.47\00:19:02.00
social media the last few years.
00:19:02.00\00:19:05.27
And I sympathize with this
because there's individuals
00:19:05.37\00:19:08.01
that have just
gotten tired of being tired.
00:19:08.01\00:19:10.48
They've gotten tired of
the struggle, tired of battling
00:19:11.75\00:19:15.15
their passions
and their appetites.
00:19:15.15\00:19:17.15
And these people came out
and said, I've been addicted to
00:19:17.15\00:19:17.19
pornography for years and
I can't overcome this thing
00:19:19.49\00:19:22.79
anymore.
00:19:22.79\00:19:23.29
So I just need to
live in a new reality.
00:19:23.83\00:19:26.63
I need to live in a new reality.
00:19:28.43\00:19:30.33
Even though I'm in an active
state of sin, I just need to
00:19:30.40\00:19:33.70
accept that I am
sinless even though I'm actively
00:19:33.70\00:19:37.11
participating in this addiction.
00:19:37.11\00:19:39.47
I sympathize with the struggle,
but I disagree with the idea
00:19:41.28\00:19:45.08
because people have just
gotten tired of struggling with
00:19:45.08\00:19:50.12
something and never
getting victory over it.
00:19:50.12\00:19:53.89
So they just say, hey, I'm just
going to be sinning until Jesus
00:19:53.89\00:19:58.09
comes.
00:19:58.09\00:19:58.89
And this addiction is
more powerful than God.
00:20:01.46\00:20:05.37
So what do we do?
00:20:09.04\00:20:10.97
Steps to Christ says this.
00:20:11.54\00:20:12.67
Many are inquiring, how am I to
make the surrender of myself to
00:20:14.44\00:20:20.72
God?
00:20:20.72\00:20:21.08
You desire to give yourself to
him, but you are weak in moral
00:20:21.98\00:20:26.82
power, in slavery to doubt,
and controlled by the habits of
00:20:26.82\00:20:32.89
your life of sin.
00:20:32.89\00:20:33.80
Your promises and resolutions
are like ropes of sand.
00:20:34.60\00:20:38.73
You cannot control your
thoughts, your impulses, and
00:20:39.40\00:20:44.21
your affections.
00:20:44.21\00:20:45.44
How many of you have
felt like this before?
00:20:45.97\00:20:48.21
Make a promise,
it's like a rope of sand.
00:20:48.74\00:20:52.48
And yet we can see that the
Bible brings out that there are
00:20:54.25\00:21:01.02
four distinct phases to
receiving the daily rain, and
00:21:01.02\00:21:07.86
they are cooperative.
00:21:07.86\00:21:09.40
They are bilateral.
00:21:10.40\00:21:12.43
God takes a
step, we take a step.
00:21:13.23\00:21:16.54
And the first phase is found in
Revelation chapter 3 and verse
00:21:17.57\00:21:22.51
20.
00:21:22.51\00:21:22.98
You know it very well.
00:21:23.08\00:21:24.18
It says, behold, I
stand at the door and knock.
00:21:24.81\00:21:29.32
God has taken the first step.
00:21:30.35\00:21:31.75
He comes to your door.
00:21:32.29\00:21:33.62
He comes to your
heart and he knocks.
00:21:34.09\00:21:36.49
He's the initiator.
00:21:36.99\00:21:38.39
Now notice that Jesus doesn't
come down like the FBI or the
00:21:38.73\00:21:41.96
SWAT team with a big old BOOM!
00:21:41.96\00:21:45.83
That's unilateral.
00:21:46.50\00:21:47.40
But the implication of
this passage is that this is a
00:21:48.14\00:21:51.44
bilateral relationship, but
God is always the initiator.
00:21:51.44\00:21:56.44
He's the one that's
going out on a limb.
00:21:56.78\00:21:58.48
He's knocking on the door.
00:21:58.78\00:22:01.18
Now for a number of years, I
canvassed, which is going door
00:22:03.28\00:22:09.49
to door.
00:22:09.49\00:22:10.33
I started in an
academy in the 1990s.
00:22:10.99\00:22:15.26
I was at a school that was
doing work education, which
00:22:15.30\00:22:18.27
meant you went to school in
the morning and worked in the
00:22:18.27\00:22:22.34
afternoon, and my vocational
training was canvassing.
00:22:22.34\00:22:26.51
So I've been all
over the country.
00:22:27.11\00:22:29.08
I would work 20 hours a week
when I was in an academy going
00:22:29.21\00:22:32.91
door to door, and I did this
for two straight years through
00:22:32.91\00:22:36.42
academy.
00:22:36.42\00:22:36.95
I loved it so much that
during the summer I did it too.
00:22:37.75\00:22:40.86
Matter of fact, I
got known for canvassing.
00:22:42.39\00:22:45.03
People thought
David Shin canvasser.
00:22:45.23\00:22:46.80
That's what they thought.
00:22:47.23\00:22:48.06
And there's something that
you learn when you go to these
00:22:49.23\00:22:52.00
doors.
00:22:52.00\00:22:52.57
Ding dong!
00:22:53.60\00:22:54.30
Or you knock on the door.
00:22:55.30\00:22:57.21
They open the door and you
stand there on the threshold.
00:22:57.74\00:23:03.75
And it doesn't matter how nice
they are to me, they can give
00:23:04.65\00:23:08.68
me a thousand dollars.
00:23:08.68\00:23:10.09
They can pay me all types of
compliments until I heard those
00:23:10.79\00:23:16.32
wonderful words, come on in.
00:23:16.32\00:23:20.76
Once they did that, I was like,
all right, I would cross the
00:23:21.76\00:23:26.37
sacred threshold of that door.
00:23:26.37\00:23:29.07
And that is the metaphor that
Jesus uses for how this thing
00:23:30.71\00:23:35.21
works.
00:23:35.21\00:23:35.81
Every day he comes.
00:23:36.78\00:23:38.58
It's bilateral.
00:23:39.41\00:23:40.15
He initiates and he's waiting
for me to take the next step.
00:23:41.25\00:23:45.49
You can see it
there on the screen.
00:23:47.29\00:23:48.66
God takes the first step.
00:23:49.99\00:23:52.26
He gives us the power of choice.
00:23:52.93\00:23:55.46
He knocks on the door.
00:23:56.16\00:23:57.33
He's the initiator.
00:23:57.50\00:23:58.87
He says, hey, I'm here.
00:23:59.10\00:24:01.24
What are you going to do?
00:24:01.54\00:24:02.50
Are you going to respond in
this bilateral relationship?
00:24:02.74\00:24:06.84
Then what do we do?
00:24:07.81\00:24:08.94
Our second step after
that is we say, come on in.
00:24:09.41\00:24:15.45
And consent is the most
powerful thing that you can do
00:24:16.89\00:24:21.19
in your relationship with God.
00:24:21.19\00:24:22.99
I was at a camp meeting a
number of years ago, and in the
00:24:24.33\00:24:30.83
early teen ten, a young
boy walked in, demon possessed.
00:24:30.83\00:24:37.64
Pastors gathered around, prayed.
00:24:39.91\00:24:42.74
The demon went out of him, but
he went into a Bible worker, a
00:24:43.61\00:24:51.59
Bible worker, and the Bible
worker was on the ground under
00:24:51.59\00:24:56.86
demonic oppression.
00:24:56.86\00:24:58.03
Finally, the
pastors gathered around.
00:24:58.23\00:24:59.83
The demon went out of him, and
they went to that Bible worker
00:25:00.20\00:25:04.53
and was like, hey,
did some counseling.
00:25:04.53\00:25:07.84
Whatever reason, the
devil felt like he had an entry.
00:25:08.84\00:25:12.61
And he said, I know
exactly what it was.
00:25:13.51\00:25:16.38
He had given the
devil implicit consent.
00:25:17.35\00:25:22.82
There are rules in
the great controversy.
00:25:25.39\00:25:26.76
God will go to a certain line,
and he will not cross it until
00:25:28.29\00:25:36.50
you say, come on in.
00:25:36.50\00:25:38.90
And the most powerful thing
that you can do daily in your
00:25:40.24\00:25:45.91
relationship with God
is to say, Lord, come in.
00:25:45.91\00:25:50.35
Come in.
00:25:52.78\00:25:53.68
And when you do that, all of
the power of heaven is at your
00:25:55.12\00:26:02.82
disposal.
00:26:02.82\00:26:03.29
Amen.
00:26:03.79\00:26:04.09
That's ground zero.
00:26:05.79\00:26:07.00
God initiates, he takes that
step, and he's waiting for you
00:26:07.76\00:26:10.80
to open the door.
00:26:10.80\00:26:12.20
You don't want to open the
door to the other agency because
00:26:12.93\00:26:15.77
he's a squatter.
00:26:15.77\00:26:16.84
Very hard to get him out.
00:26:17.74\00:26:19.27
You open the door to
Jesus every single day in that
00:26:20.68\00:26:23.58
bilateral relationship.
00:26:23.58\00:26:24.58
He knocks, you open.
00:26:24.61\00:26:26.48
And here's the thing.
00:26:27.82\00:26:29.18
When you look at the Bible, the
Bible brings out very clearly
00:26:30.12\00:26:37.03
in 1 John 3 verse 24 that when
the way that Jesus comes into
00:26:37.03\00:26:44.07
our hearts, the Bible says, and
we know that he abides in us,
00:26:44.07\00:26:48.00
and he is Jesus by the
spirit whom he has given us.
00:26:48.50\00:26:52.71
In other words, when the Holy
Spirit comes in, he brings with
00:26:52.74\00:26:58.45
him the presence of Jesus.
00:26:58.45\00:27:00.75
You ever
thought about it before?
00:27:01.75\00:27:03.18
How does Jesus
abide in our hearts?
00:27:03.59\00:27:05.59
Christ in you, the hope
of glory, when he is taken on
00:27:05.69\00:27:08.99
human form and is in the
most holy place in the heavenly
00:27:08.99\00:27:11.29
sanctuary, he does this through
the agency of the Holy Spirit,
00:27:11.29\00:27:15.93
the daily rain.
00:27:16.26\00:27:17.30
So when the Holy Spirit
comes in, Jesus comes in.
00:27:18.00\00:27:22.57
Amen.
00:27:22.57\00:27:22.94
And what he brings with him,
according to Romans chapter 8,
00:27:23.97\00:27:28.24
is resurrection power.
00:27:28.64\00:27:31.28
The same power that raised
Jesus from the dead comes in.
00:27:32.31\00:27:38.82
Amen.
00:27:38.99\00:27:39.65
And that changes everything.
00:27:40.42\00:27:44.29
Amen.
00:27:44.29\00:27:44.89
So here's how it works.
00:27:46.49\00:27:48.30
God initiates,
knocks on the door.
00:27:49.90\00:27:52.97
I respond, come on in.
00:27:53.47\00:27:55.94
Jesus comes in.
00:27:56.20\00:27:57.61
And with that, he
brings resurrection power.
00:27:57.81\00:28:02.11
And that's the daily
baptism of the Holy Spirit.
00:28:07.52\00:28:16.76
Friends, if we're daily
receiving the rain, the latter
00:28:18.13\00:28:24.93
rain will take care of itself.
00:28:24.93\00:28:27.30
God initiates, we respond.
00:28:34.61\00:28:37.28
God responds, then we respond.
00:28:38.21\00:28:40.85
We come to our next slide.
00:28:41.78\00:28:43.08
Amen.
00:28:43.08\00:28:43.12
God gives us power.
00:28:44.59\00:28:47.32
We give our will to God.
00:28:49.26\00:28:50.49
God empowers our will.
00:28:51.89\00:28:53.73
And in Steps to
Christ, page 47, it goes on.
00:28:54.66\00:28:59.83
What you need to understand
is the true force of the will.
00:29:00.27\00:29:04.51
This is the governing power in
the nature of man, the power of
00:29:05.27\00:29:09.14
decision or of choice.
00:29:09.14\00:29:10.75
Everything depends on
the right action of the will.
00:29:11.35\00:29:14.78
The power of choice,
God has given to men.
00:29:15.58\00:29:17.79
It is theirs to exercise.
00:29:18.15\00:29:19.55
You cannot change your heart.
00:29:20.02\00:29:21.76
You cannot of yourself give to
God its affections, but you can
00:29:22.22\00:29:26.16
choose to serve him.
00:29:26.16\00:29:27.86
You can give him your will.
00:29:28.16\00:29:31.87
Thus your whole nature will
be brought under the control of
00:29:32.63\00:29:36.07
the Spirit of Christ.
00:29:36.07\00:29:37.37
You can go to God and
say, Lord, I can't even give my
00:29:38.87\00:29:43.01
heart.
00:29:43.01\00:29:43.51
Take it.
00:29:43.98\00:29:44.85
Help me to be
willing to be made willing.
00:29:45.55\00:29:47.82
That's the prayer of surrender.
00:29:48.15\00:29:49.38
Lord, I love this thing.
00:29:49.78\00:29:51.69
Help me to hate it.
00:29:52.12\00:29:53.19
I can't do this by myself.
00:29:53.62\00:29:55.19
I don't have the willpower,
but you have the power.
00:29:55.69\00:29:58.43
That's the invitation.
00:29:58.86\00:29:59.96
You're saying, Lord, come in.
00:30:00.50\00:30:02.00
And then God says,
I've got the authorization.
00:30:02.00\00:30:04.50
I'm coming.
00:30:04.87\00:30:05.37
I'm coming.
00:30:06.60\00:30:07.14
And then with that, the Bible
indicates according to Romans
00:30:07.87\00:30:11.14
chapter 8, that he gives us
resurrection power to now walk
00:30:11.14\00:30:16.98
in the Spirit
and not in the flesh.
00:30:16.98\00:30:22.25
That's the beauty of the gospel.
00:30:23.92\00:30:25.25
God initiates.
00:30:26.39\00:30:27.49
I respond by letting him in.
00:30:27.66\00:30:29.19
He comes in and with him comes
resurrection power to now walk
00:30:29.26\00:30:34.36
in the Spirit
and not in the flesh.
00:30:34.36\00:30:39.47
And I'm so glad that the
Bible says that this is a walk.
00:30:39.53\00:30:43.94
It's not a leap.
00:30:45.31\00:30:46.44
It's not a sprint.
00:30:47.84\00:30:48.84
I can do a walk.
00:30:49.88\00:30:51.35
And it's one step at a time.
00:30:52.28\00:30:56.79
Following God is like
walking with a flashlight.
00:30:58.85\00:31:02.46
It only goes 10 feet.
00:31:03.89\00:31:06.76
But here's the beauty.
00:31:08.00\00:31:08.80
You want to see
the next 10 feet?
00:31:09.40\00:31:10.90
Take another step.
00:31:12.20\00:31:13.07
Take another step.
00:31:14.20\00:31:15.17
And if you fall, Proverbs
24 verse 16, get back up.
00:31:15.87\00:31:20.51
First John 1 9,
ask for forgiveness.
00:31:21.41\00:31:23.41
It's okay.
00:31:23.51\00:31:24.21
It's not about the track record.
00:31:24.21\00:31:25.95
It's about the trajectory.
00:31:26.01\00:31:27.08
So get back up.
00:31:27.08\00:31:27.12
When my baby fell when he was
learning how to walk, I didn't
00:31:29.02\00:31:31.35
go, what's wrong with you?
00:31:31.35\00:31:33.49
No way.
00:31:34.29\00:31:35.26
Me being a sinful human being,
I was like, that's all right.
00:31:35.76\00:31:38.29
Get up.
00:31:38.36\00:31:39.23
Get up.
00:31:40.00\00:31:40.76
And sometimes we think
that God is worse than us.
00:31:41.00\00:31:44.10
Just keep on walking.
00:31:44.80\00:31:46.20
That's the beauty of
the Christian experience.
00:31:47.24\00:31:50.61
When Jesus comes in, he helps
you to walk in the spirit and
00:31:52.27\00:31:56.14
not in the flesh.
00:31:56.14\00:31:57.08
But he also helps us
to do something else.
00:31:58.01\00:32:00.25
In 1 Corinthians chapter 9
verse 27, Paul, who is walking
00:32:01.15\00:32:05.89
with God, says, I keep
under my body and bring it into
00:32:05.89\00:32:12.76
subjection.
00:32:12.76\00:32:13.66
The implication is that in the
Christian experience, every day
00:32:16.23\00:32:22.54
we invite Jesus in, he gives
us resurrection power to walk in
00:32:22.54\00:32:26.31
the spirit and not in the
flesh, but he also gives us
00:32:26.31\00:32:28.68
resurrection power to manage
our sinful nature, to hold it
00:32:28.68\00:32:35.52
in check.
00:32:35.52\00:32:36.22
Now, notice this is the
last phase of this bilateral
00:32:37.05\00:32:39.69
relationship with God.
00:32:39.69\00:32:40.96
First, you got to let him in.
00:32:41.62\00:32:43.19
It gives you resurrection
power, but we have this thing
00:32:43.46\00:32:46.33
called the appetite and
passions that I'm so thankful
00:32:46.33\00:32:50.87
that at the second coming, at
translation, that sinful nature
00:32:50.87\00:32:56.24
will be gone.
00:32:56.24\00:32:57.14
Praise the Lord and hallelujah.
00:32:57.37\00:32:58.91
But the implication of
what Paul's saying here is that
00:32:59.44\00:33:02.74
until the resurrection, we're
going to have to manage this
00:33:02.74\00:33:06.78
thing called the carnal nature.
00:33:06.78\00:33:08.48
You ever have your carnal
nature rise up within you?
00:33:10.99\00:33:15.79
I was at a camp meeting one
time and I don't know why this
00:33:18.19\00:33:23.10
always happens to me.
00:33:23.10\00:33:24.70
I spoke, preached my heart out,
and some dear lady walked up to
00:33:26.37\00:33:32.77
me in a crowd.
00:33:32.77\00:33:33.61
I didn't know her from anybody.
00:33:34.44\00:33:36.31
She tapped me on the shoulder
and she said, David, you look
00:33:36.68\00:33:41.48
like you're 12.
00:33:41.48\00:33:42.72
And then she just walked off
and I was like, what was that?
00:33:45.79\00:33:49.76
I didn't say that.
00:33:50.16\00:33:51.39
I said, oh, thank
you, thank you, thank you.
00:33:51.66\00:33:53.50
But it's one of those
things that just sits in you and
00:33:53.70\00:34:01.00
you're more bothered
that you're bothered.
00:34:01.00\00:34:03.77
And I gave my heart to God
that day, bilateral relationship
00:34:05.07\00:34:08.74
with God, but there was this
thing that was rising up within
00:34:08.74\00:34:11.55
me.
00:34:11.55\00:34:11.81
I wanted to give her a piece
of my, you look like you're
00:34:14.08\00:34:17.42
90.
00:34:23.09\00:34:23.56
So you comment on my age, does
that give me a right to comment
00:34:28.70\00:34:31.90
on?
00:34:31.90\00:34:37.77
carnal nature and we need to,
by the grace of God, be able to
00:34:37.77\00:34:41.28
manage that thing.
00:34:41.28\00:34:42.68
And that's why Paul says, I
keep under my body the flesh
00:34:42.91\00:34:47.28
and bring it into subjection,
lest after having preached to
00:34:47.28\00:34:52.29
others, I myself am a castaway.
00:34:52.29\00:34:55.12
In other words, if we
don't, by the grace of God, use
00:34:55.19\00:34:59.59
resurrection power to manage
this carnal nature and it gets
00:34:59.59\00:35:03.60
out of control, we can be lost.
00:35:03.60\00:35:06.20
You feed the line
enough, it will take over.
00:35:09.34\00:35:12.54
So he says, I need to hold
it in check by the grace of God,
00:35:13.48\00:35:16.28
not in my power, not in
willpower, but in God's power
00:35:16.28\00:35:19.81
in this bilateral
relationship with him.
00:35:19.81\00:35:23.69
Back in 2015, when I was still
pastoring, I got the call to
00:35:27.96\00:35:36.87
pastor in Alaska and I thought,
Lord, what have I done wrong?
00:35:36.87\00:35:47.04
You're putting me
in the wilderness,
00:35:50.58\00:35:54.28
on ice, out of commission,
and I prayed hard about it.
00:35:57.59\00:36:04.46
And I said, Lord, I'll go
wherever you want me to go.
00:36:04.46\00:36:06.80
I was in Michigan, the economy
was awful, houses weren't
00:36:07.46\00:36:10.67
selling.
00:36:10.67\00:36:13.34
want to go all the way up
there and not be your will.
00:36:13.34\00:36:16.14
So you just need to
reveal a sign to me.
00:36:16.17\00:36:18.41
Now here's the
thing about signs.
00:36:18.67\00:36:20.41
When the Bible says something
very clearly, you don't need to
00:36:20.78\00:36:23.11
ask for a sign.
00:36:23.11\00:36:24.08
When the Bible says, thou shall
not kill, you don't need to
00:36:24.31\00:36:26.15
say, Lord,
please show me a sign.
00:36:26.15\00:36:27.52
You just need to...
00:36:27.58\00:36:29.12
But I don't see anywhere in
the Bible where it says, go to
00:36:29.12\00:36:32.05
Alaska.
00:36:32.05\00:36:34.96
And I said, Lord, if my
home sells this week, I'll go to
00:36:34.99\00:36:40.86
Alaska.
00:36:40.86\00:36:41.36
The home sold that week.
00:36:46.57\00:36:48.17
Next thing I knew, packing
up everything on the Alaska
00:36:50.84\00:36:55.31
Highway, going up there.
00:36:55.31\00:36:56.44
And I said, Oh, this is crazy.
00:36:56.44\00:36:58.21
I can't believe it.
00:36:58.25\00:36:59.45
So I decided that in order to
make my time there as enjoyable
00:36:59.45\00:36:59.48
as possible to
get into photography.
00:37:05.69\00:37:08.02
And you don't have to be a
good photographer in Alaska.
00:37:10.49\00:37:14.73
You just have
to point and click.
00:37:14.83\00:37:16.56
It was just like incredible.
00:37:16.56\00:37:16.60
So I took pictures all the
way up there and we started this
00:37:20.10\00:37:23.94
blog called Shins in Alaska.
00:37:23.94\00:37:29.68
And it was basically
highlighting our trip.
00:37:34.35\00:37:38.09
We'd have photos up there
and then I started posting these
00:37:38.19\00:37:42.96
photos on social
media, Instagram and Facebook.
00:37:42.96\00:37:46.70
And my engagement for what I
had been doing before went off
00:37:48.23\00:37:56.00
the charts.
00:37:56.00\00:37:56.67
It's like I post these photos,
do a little bit of editing,
00:37:57.67\00:38:02.41
color matching and so forth
and just make sure it was just
00:38:02.68\00:38:06.01
right.
00:38:06.01\00:38:06.38
And people were just like,
like, like, like, like, like,
00:38:07.32\00:38:09.78
like, like, like.
00:38:09.78\00:38:10.39
And with every like,
it was a dopamine hit.
00:38:11.52\00:38:18.09
It was like, Oh, every comment
just gave me just a a little
00:38:18.26\00:38:24.33
bit of buzz.
00:38:24.33\00:38:25.30
And then I started getting
into photography even more.
00:38:25.80\00:38:31.71
I started buying
lenses and, and cameras.
00:38:32.31\00:38:35.91
And my wife is a saint because
I'd go to her every single time
00:38:35.98\00:38:42.25
and I say, honey, I promise
you, if I buy this camera, I
00:38:42.25\00:38:48.22
will never buy
another one until Jesus comes.
00:38:48.22\00:38:52.36
And my wife would believe
me and we buy the camera.
00:38:54.60\00:38:57.00
A few months later, I'd be
like, there's another camera
00:38:57.23\00:38:59.13
that came out and we did
this over and over again.
00:38:59.13\00:39:01.84
And I'm ashamed to say this,
but over the course of time, I
00:39:01.84\00:39:05.24
had 30 lenses and 10 cameras.
00:39:05.24\00:39:13.31
Not all at once.
00:39:16.05\00:39:17.45
I would buy and
sell them on eBay.
00:39:17.79\00:39:19.65
I got a very good rating,
by the way, 100% quite proud of
00:39:19.75\00:39:22.42
that.
00:39:22.42\00:39:22.89
And I began to realize
that I had developed a dopamine
00:39:25.99\00:39:33.97
addiction.
00:39:33.97\00:39:34.60
Now, just to be clear, I
believe that social media can
00:39:36.71\00:39:41.14
be used for the gospel.
00:39:41.14\00:39:42.41
What a wonderful thing to
keep in touch with family and
00:39:44.28\00:39:47.25
friends, but it's a
double -edged sword.
00:39:47.25\00:39:50.89
And this is from a
former Facebook exec.
00:39:53.36\00:39:56.62
He said in one article that he
feels tremendous guilt for what
00:39:56.76\00:40:00.90
he helped make.
00:40:00.90\00:40:04.70
emergency meeting because their
user base had plateaued at a
00:40:04.70\00:40:11.44
mere 90 million users.
00:40:11.44\00:40:14.41
And it was this crisis.
00:40:14.68\00:40:16.08
And so they decided to exploit
these dopamine feedback loops.
00:40:16.11\00:40:22.72
And he says this, and I quote,
the short-term dopamine driven
00:40:22.75\00:40:27.92
feedback loops that we
have created are destroying how
00:40:27.92\00:40:33.23
society works.
00:40:33.23\00:40:34.83
From his own mouth, I believe
that the greatest threat to
00:40:36.16\00:40:44.14
daily rain today is the
glowing screen in your pocket.
00:40:44.14\00:40:48.94
Digital noise drowns out the
gentle rain of the spirit, and
00:40:53.38\00:40:59.75
your phone might be why
your soul's running dry.
00:40:59.75\00:41:05.33
And after a time, the
Holy Spirit began to convict me
00:41:10.60\00:41:15.97
because when I got up in
the morning, I was no longer
00:41:15.97\00:41:19.87
reaching for my Bible.
00:41:19.87\00:41:21.01
I was reaching for my dopamine
hit for that morning to see how
00:41:22.74\00:41:27.98
many likes had
come on Instagram.
00:41:27.98\00:41:30.65
And what they have found, and
they spent millions of dollars
00:41:34.92\00:41:39.49
on this, is that the way
they tried to do it was this
00:41:39.49\00:41:45.27
unexpected
reward learning circuit.
00:41:45.27\00:41:49.14
It's the slot machine effect.
00:41:49.37\00:41:51.01
And so it's the
unexpected reward.
00:41:51.51\00:41:54.31
And so what they have found is
that there is this article that
00:41:54.38\00:41:59.21
was published, and I
quote, Instagram's notification
00:41:59.21\00:42:03.28
algorithms will sometimes
withhold likes on your photos
00:42:03.28\00:42:07.76
to deliver them
in larger bursts.
00:42:07.76\00:42:10.76
So when you make your post,
you may be disappointed to find
00:42:11.66\00:42:15.20
less responses than you
expected, only to receive them
00:42:15.20\00:42:19.73
in a larger bunch later.
00:42:19.73\00:42:21.87
Your dopamine centers have
been primed by those initial
00:42:21.87\00:42:25.21
negative outcomes to respond
robustly to the sudden influx
00:42:25.21\00:42:31.55
of social appraisal.
00:42:31.55\00:42:34.22
So here's the thing,
and this is unregulated.
00:42:34.92\00:42:38.22
I post a photo of
my two dogs in Alaska.
00:42:41.52\00:42:46.76
I climb up to
this beautiful view.
00:42:48.03\00:42:52.57
The lighting is perfect.
00:42:53.40\00:42:54.57
I take my photo with my
23 millimeter 1.4 aperture.
00:42:54.87\00:42:59.31
Just click.
00:43:00.41\00:43:01.34
Beautiful.
00:43:02.98\00:43:03.55
Perfect.
00:43:04.01\00:43:08.28
gets engagement.
00:43:08.28\00:43:09.52
It's dogs and babies.
00:43:10.42\00:43:12.05
Works every time.
00:43:12.25\00:43:13.36
And I post it up there, and I'm
checking, and I'm checking, and
00:43:13.86\00:43:17.26
I'm checking, and I'm checking,
and Instagram's algorithms
00:43:17.26\00:43:20.16
wants to get me addicted,
so they'll hold it back.
00:43:20.16\00:43:22.76
And suddenly at 1 a.m., because
I'm still on there and they
00:43:22.76\00:43:22.80
know it, they will 150 likes
and comments, 20 comments, and
00:43:25.83\00:43:30.97
I'm like, and
00:43:30.97\00:43:33.01
I'm hooked.
00:43:39.75\00:43:40.98
Another article says if you've
ever misplaced your phone, you
00:43:45.15\00:43:48.86
may have experienced a mild
state of panic until it's been
00:43:48.86\00:43:55.23
found.
00:43:55.23\00:43:55.73
About 73% of people claim to
have experienced this flavor of
00:43:56.43\00:44:01.10
anxiety, which makes sense when
you consider that adults in the
00:44:01.10\00:44:05.47
U.S.
00:44:05.47\00:44:09.28
typing and
swiping their devices.
00:44:09.28\00:44:10.98
That adds up to over
2,600 daily touches per day.
00:44:11.31\00:44:16.82
And they have found that our
phones are more dirty in terms
00:44:18.29\00:44:24.63
of germs than the toilet,
00:44:24.63\00:44:27.03
because people are like, I
need to go to the bathroom.
00:44:31.90\00:44:35.10
Where's my phone?
00:44:35.20\00:44:35.90
And the thing is, you wash
your hands after you go to the
00:44:39.44\00:44:42.51
bathroom, but do
you wash your phone?
00:44:42.51\00:44:44.45
Another Facebook executive says
this, what it's leading to is a
00:44:46.72\00:44:50.35
product that is just
fundamentally addictive for
00:44:50.35\00:44:53.99
people, and it's causing all
kinds of mental health issues.
00:44:53.99\00:44:59.09
I work at Weimar University,
and every month we have a
00:45:03.03\00:45:07.20
depression and anxiety program
that's conducted by Dr. Nedley,
00:45:07.20\00:45:11.07
and people come from all over
the country to do this program
00:45:11.81\00:45:16.08
because they're suffering from
extreme depression and anxiety.
00:45:16.08\00:45:20.18
I'm one of the chaplains,
and in the interviews of people
00:45:20.18\00:45:25.55
that come in, these people,
masochistic, suicidal, on the
00:45:25.55\00:45:30.23
end of the rope, all types of
anxiety, and they pay $1,000 a
00:45:30.23\00:45:36.06
day for 10 days, and
this program is almost always
00:45:36.06\00:45:42.67
packed.
00:45:42.67\00:45:48.84
experiment in the history of
mankind with these devices, and
00:45:49.81\00:45:54.88
there are people that are going
to be eternally lost because
00:45:54.88\00:45:58.49
they are visiting the portals
of hell through their phones.
00:45:58.49\00:46:01.46
That's where we're at.
00:46:04.03\00:46:05.69
Day one of this program, where
they pay $1,000 a day, they
00:46:07.23\00:46:11.87
voluntarily give up all of
their devices, and after that,
00:46:11.87\00:46:18.14
during supper, for about a
little window, they're able to
00:46:18.27\00:46:21.68
call their loved ones, but
outside of that, no screams.
00:46:21.68\00:46:24.88
When you look at the
statistics, when a nation has a
00:46:26.92\00:46:31.52
user base of over 50% of the
having smartphones, depression
00:46:31.52\00:46:37.29
and anxiety goes
through the roof.
00:46:37.29\00:46:39.69
There are several reasons why.
00:46:43.00\00:46:44.43
One of them has to do with
dopamine, but here's the other
00:46:45.77\00:46:49.17
one.
00:46:49.17\00:46:49.60
In 2014, three Nobel laureates
received the Nobel Prize in
00:46:50.41\00:46:57.58
Science for the invention of
efficient blue light-emitting
00:46:57.58\00:47:03.99
diodes, known as LEDs.
00:47:05.19\00:47:07.42
Now, here's the thing.
00:47:07.96\00:47:08.89
There's this part in your
brain called the suprachiasmatic
00:47:09.12\00:47:12.26
nucleus that's connected to
your optic nerve, and what it
00:47:12.26\00:47:16.13
does among many things is
it regulates your internal
00:47:16.13\00:47:19.63
biological clock, and the blue
light that enters your eye sets
00:47:19.63\00:47:29.78
that internal clock, and when
you look at the screen before
00:47:29.78\00:47:35.22
you go to bed, it tricks your
brain into thinking that it's
00:47:35.22\00:47:40.56
still daylight, and what they
found is that reading your iPad
00:47:40.56\00:47:46.06
or being on your phone just
before you go to bed suppresses
00:47:46.06\00:47:52.63
melatonin secretion by 50%.
00:47:52.63\00:47:55.37
50%.
00:48:02.11\00:48:10.59
in a crisis of
sleep deprivation.
00:48:10.59\00:48:13.25
I've counseled with young
people, not at the university
00:48:16.62\00:48:19.53
I'm at, but another college
where a young person came in,
00:48:19.53\00:48:24.13
bloodshot eyes, failing in her
grades, mental health issues,
00:48:24.40\00:48:28.67
depression, anxiety.
00:48:28.67\00:48:30.74
Counseling her, and I
say, hey, what's going on?
00:48:32.91\00:48:35.04
Tell me about your sleeping,
and she says, I haven't slept
00:48:35.24\00:48:40.15
well in six months.
00:48:40.15\00:48:41.42
I said, what
have you been doing?
00:48:42.45\00:48:43.55
She says, I've been binging
on Netflix and YouTube and these
00:48:44.12\00:48:50.46
other things till 4 a.m.
00:48:50.46\00:48:52.63
every single morning
for the past six months.
00:48:52.89\00:48:55.50
When we look at the sleep
crisis in America, there are
00:48:59.73\00:49:07.88
several things that it impacts.
00:49:07.88\00:49:09.91
One of the things is that
there's a part of your brain
00:49:11.41\00:49:14.72
called the amygdala.
00:49:14.72\00:49:16.89
The amygdala is responsible for
your emotions, and there is a
00:49:18.05\00:49:24.13
connection between your
prefrontal cortex and your
00:49:24.13\00:49:28.30
amygdala.
00:49:28.30\00:49:28.93
When you get a good night of
sleep, that connection is very
00:49:30.47\00:49:33.67
strong.
00:49:33.67\00:49:37.81
coming up and you feel like
giving someone a piece of your
00:49:37.81\00:49:40.91
mind that's just told you that
you look like you're 12 years
00:49:40.91\00:49:43.91
old.
00:49:43.91\00:49:44.55
Your prefrontal cortex is
saying, David, David, don't say
00:49:46.48\00:49:49.52
anything, hold your tongue,
pray, quote scripture, do not
00:49:49.52\00:49:52.39
be overcome by evil,
but overcome evil with good.
00:49:52.39\00:49:55.26
That's the prefrontal
cortex telling you, ah, but what
00:49:55.82\00:50:00.06
happens is, according
to Matthew Walker out of UC
00:50:00.06\00:50:03.30
Berkeley, a sleep specialist,
he's indicated that in all of
00:50:03.30\00:50:08.60
his studies, that when someone
is sleep deprived, that the
00:50:08.60\00:50:12.74
connection between the
prefrontal cortex and the
00:50:12.74\00:50:16.24
amygdala is severed.
00:50:16.24\00:50:19.31
He's found that people tend to
get more angry, upset, and then
00:50:21.32\00:50:25.75
he says something else.
00:50:25.75\00:50:26.86
They are more likely to cave
into their hedonic desires, i
00:50:28.59\00:50:37.90
.e.
00:50:37.90\00:50:38.17
appetite and passions.
00:50:38.47\00:50:40.34
You're more likely to eat junk
food if you're sleep deprived.
00:50:41.40\00:50:45.77
And here's the thing.
00:50:49.28\00:50:50.31
I went over to Europe for
a speaking appointment a few
00:50:51.21\00:50:54.42
years ago.
00:50:54.42\00:50:55.12
I left on Friday, got in Friday
night at midnight to England,
00:50:57.25\00:51:02.79
spoke the next day on
afternoon, spoke again on
00:51:04.09\00:51:10.37
Sunday, flew back.
00:51:10.37\00:51:12.30
I was back in the
classroom on Monday.
00:51:12.33\00:51:14.37
I was so sleep deprived.
00:51:16.34\00:51:17.67
And then I was in
administration at the time, I
00:51:18.71\00:51:21.34
had to handle a
very sensitive issue.
00:51:21.34\00:51:23.04
And I got with this brother
on the phone and I just lit into
00:51:24.48\00:51:28.65
him.
00:51:28.65\00:51:29.25
Later on, a week later, my
frontal lobe was connected.
00:51:31.59\00:51:35.82
I had to call that
brother back and apologize.
00:51:38.13\00:51:40.90
And now, when I'm
sleep deprived, I write in my
00:51:43.06\00:51:46.33
journal, no big decisions today.
00:51:46.33\00:51:50.21
Because whatever it is,
it's going to be a bad one.
00:51:52.27\00:51:55.54
Matthew Walker says, with a
full night of plentiful sleep,
00:51:59.61\00:52:02.05
we have a balanced mix between
our emotional gas pedal, our
00:52:02.12\00:52:06.25
amygdala, and our
break, our prefrontal cortex.
00:52:06.25\00:52:08.82
Without sleep, however, the
strong coupling between these
00:52:09.36\00:52:13.26
two brain regions is lost.
00:52:13.26\00:52:15.96
So this is about cooperation.
00:52:17.40\00:52:18.87
We invite God into our hearts.
00:52:20.50\00:52:22.24
He comes in with Holy Spirit
power, resurrection power, to
00:52:22.67\00:52:27.01
manage this part of our
nature, our carnal nature.
00:52:27.01\00:52:32.45
And this device, these devices,
which I praise God for, we need
00:52:33.15\00:52:41.39
to manage them
by the grace of God.
00:52:41.39\00:52:43.36
And if this thing is keeping us
from the gates of heaven, Jesus
00:52:45.16\00:52:51.87
says, take drastic measures.
00:52:51.87\00:52:55.60
Amen.
00:52:55.60\00:52:56.20
And it's so drastic that he
uses the analogy of amputation.
00:52:57.71\00:53:04.18
If your arm is causing you
to stumble, he says, cut it off.
00:53:06.01\00:53:10.15
If your eye is causing
you to stumble, pluck it out.
00:53:10.39\00:53:13.29
And I know individuals that
can't manage these devices so
00:53:13.56\00:53:17.93
much that they've
gone to dumb phones.
00:53:17.93\00:53:20.83
Remember those flip
phones from back in the day?
00:53:22.70\00:53:24.90
They've gone to
those drastic measures.
00:53:26.84\00:53:30.74
This is where we are, friends,
and this is the epidemic that
00:53:32.54\00:53:37.15
we are facing.
00:53:37.15\00:53:38.65
LeBron James, back in
2011, lost in the NBA finals to
00:53:43.05\00:53:50.56
Dallas Mavericks.
00:53:50.56\00:53:51.73
He said it was one of the most
painful losses that he's ever
00:53:53.56\00:53:56.56
experienced.
00:53:56.56\00:53:57.17
As you remember, he
had never won the big one.
00:53:57.80\00:54:01.47
And everyone was saying
he's just a stat machine.
00:54:01.80\00:54:03.91
So the next year, when he went
into the playoffs, he put on
00:54:05.01\00:54:08.58
his Twitter account,
zero, dark, 30, 23, activated.
00:54:08.58\00:54:16.95
Which meant that he went
on a total media fast for the
00:54:18.85\00:54:24.39
entirety of the playoffs.
00:54:24.39\00:54:25.93
And he said this, and I
quote, this is from the Bleacher
00:54:27.76\00:54:30.87
Report, there's too
much nonsense out there.
00:54:30.87\00:54:33.90
This is when I lock in right
now and I don't need nothing
00:54:34.37\00:54:38.57
creeping into my mind
that don't need to be there.
00:54:38.57\00:54:41.91
He says, stay off the TV
and stay off social media.
00:54:44.08\00:54:47.45
You win a game and everybody's
the greatest player in the
00:54:47.78\00:54:50.62
world.
00:54:50.62\00:54:55.66
LeBron has said he has changed
his sleep patterns this season
00:54:56.73\00:54:59.56
and that it's been
a boon to his success.
00:54:59.56\00:55:01.93
Once the playoffs roll through,
he's not just well rested, he's
00:55:02.33\00:55:06.60
laser focused.
00:55:06.60\00:55:08.14
And since then, he's won four.
00:55:09.10\00:55:12.27
Now, if LeBron James would do
this to put a ball in a basket,
00:55:14.48\00:55:20.38
this is what Paul says in 1
Corinthians chapter 9 verse 24
00:55:21.92\00:55:26.15
through 27 from the
New Living Translation.
00:55:26.15\00:55:29.32
All athletes are
disciplined in their training.
00:55:29.99\00:55:33.60
They do it to win a prize that
fades away, but we do it for an
00:55:34.20\00:55:38.87
eternal prize.
00:55:38.87\00:55:39.77
So I run with
purpose in every step.
00:55:40.27\00:55:42.40
I'm not just shadow boxing.
00:55:42.87\00:55:44.64
I discipline my body like an
athlete, training it to do what
00:55:45.24\00:55:49.51
it should.
00:55:49.51\00:55:55.18
may be disqualified.
00:55:55.18\00:55:57.29
Paul is making the analogy that
if LeBron James is doing this
00:55:59.15\00:56:03.22
for basketball, how much more
should we as Christians manage
00:56:03.22\00:56:10.37
this area of our lives
to win an eternal prize?
00:56:10.37\00:56:16.50
The daily rain helps us to
control our devices before they
00:56:21.04\00:56:26.15
control us.
00:56:26.15\00:56:27.02
Without the Spirit's
rain, the screens rain.
00:56:28.82\00:56:32.72
It takes more than willpower
to manage your screen time.
00:56:33.66\00:56:37.56
It takes Spirit power.
00:56:38.39\00:56:41.06
I believe that we're living in
an unprecedented age, friends.
00:56:42.66\00:56:46.23
Jesus is coming soon.
00:56:47.80\00:56:50.11
The latter rain is about to
be poured out, but we need the
00:56:51.41\00:56:57.05
daily rain first.
00:56:57.05\00:56:58.55
So I want to
encourage you every day.
00:56:59.25\00:57:01.52
Be in that bilateral
relationship with God.
00:57:01.75\00:57:04.05
Allow the Spirit in so that
he can give you power to manage
00:57:05.19\00:57:11.49
the carnal nature.
00:57:11.49\00:57:12.66
Is that your
desire today by his grace?
00:57:13.09\00:57:14.93
Amen.
00:57:15.43\00:57:15.73
Praise the Lord.
00:57:16.06\00:57:16.83