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00:35 Good morning, friends, and welcome again
00:36 to Sabbath School Study Hour, coming to here 00:39 from the Granite Bay Seventh-day Adventist Church 00:41 in Sacramento, California. 00:43 Very warm welcome to our online members 00:45 and those who are joining us across the country 00:46 and around the world, part of our 00:48 Study Sabbath School group this morning. 00:51 Also, I'd like to welcome the regular members 00:53 and visitors right here at the Granite Bay Church. 00:55 Over the past few weeks, we've been studying 00:57 through a lesson courtly on Stewardship. 00:59 It's entitled Stewardship, Motives of the Heart. 01:02 It's been an excellent study so far. 01:04 It's actually been convicting on a number of those topics 01:06 that were brought to view in our study together. 01:08 You can download the lesson at the Amazing Facts website, 01:12 just AmazingFacts.org. 01:15 We also have a free offer that goes along with the subject 01:18 that we're looking at, 01:19 and this is our free offer for this morning. 01:22 If you'd like to receive this anywhere in North America, 01:25 give us a call on our resource phone line, 01:27 that number is 866-788-3966. 01:32 If you're outside of North America, 01:34 you can read the study guide at the Amazing Facts website, 01:37 just AmazingFacts.org. 01:40 But before we get to our study this morning, 01:42 we like to begin by lifting our voices in song. 01:45 I'd like to invite our song leaders 01:47 to come join me. 02:04 O Lord, you're beautiful 02:14 Your face is all I seek 02:23 For when your eyes 02:27 Are on this child 02:32 Your grace abounds to me 02:41 O Lord, please light the fire 02:50 That once burned bright and clear 02:59 Replace the lamp of my first love 03:08 That burns with holy fear 03:17 I surrender all 03:25 I surrender all 03:33 All to Thee, my blessed Savior 03:41 I surrender all 03:49 All to Jesus I surrender 03:57 Make me, Savior, wholly Thine 04:05 Let Thy Holy Spirit feel me 04:13 Truly I know that Thou art mine 04:21 I surrender all 04:29 I surrender all 04:37 All to Thee, my blessed Savior 04:45 I surrender all 04:53 All to Jesus I surrender 05:01 Lord, I give myself to Thee 05:09 Fill me with Thy love and power 05:17 Let Thy blessings fall on me 05:24 I surrender all 05:32 I surrender all 05:40 All to Thee 05:43 My blessed Savior 05:48 I surrender all 05:57 Your grace abounds 06:04 To me 06:16 I want to welcome you who are here at Granite Bay 06:18 I want to welcome our friends 06:19 who are watching via Facebook 06:22 or one of our satellite networks. 06:24 And I want to remind you, 06:26 for those who are watching live, 06:27 we'd invite you to send in any questions you might have 06:31 'cause usually about two-thirds of the way 06:33 through the study today, 06:34 we'll take questions on the subject from you. 06:37 The lesson is Honesty with God, 06:40 talking about Stewardship of course. 06:41 Honesty with God, 06:42 that's lesson seven in our quarterly. 06:45 Now, if you don't have one of these, 06:46 you can go to Sabbath School, it's online, 06:50 and you can download the PDF. 06:52 I usually study and get ready online, 06:54 I just keep my quarterly here for you, it's a prop. 06:57 But I'm doing all my study online now. 07:00 And they'll give one to you 07:02 at your local Seventh-day Adventist Church. 07:03 We have a memory verse, are you ready? 07:06 Memory verse is Luke 8:15, 07:08 and I encourage you to say it with me. 07:10 Luke 8:15, 07:13 "But that on the good ground 07:15 are they which with an honest and good heart, 07:18 having heard the word, keep it, 07:21 and bring forth fruit with patience." 07:23 Now, that verse sort of paves the way for us to understand 07:26 what the theme of our study is today, 07:29 that when it comes to stewardship, 07:30 and faithfulness, and tithes and offerings, 07:33 there is no substitute for dishonesty with God. 07:38 And you ever heard a person use the expression, honest to God? 07:42 Well, every Christian ought to be honest to God. 07:45 And the reason we want to be faithful in our giving 07:47 is not because of what people think 07:50 but because we want to please God. 07:52 It's for His glory. Amen? 07:54 And the verses we're going to consider here 07:57 are sort of all across the Bible. 08:01 Now we're going to have a couple of you 08:03 help me read some verses. 08:04 And, again, I want to remind those who have questions 08:06 on the lesson, 08:07 go to the Facebook page, send them to me. 08:09 I've got a friend in there 08:10 who's going to take them off my account, 08:11 and they're going to put them up on the screen for us, 08:14 and I'll read them back to you. 08:16 If someone's going to read in just a moment, 08:18 Luke 16:10, 08:20 and I'm going to read Colossians 3:9 and 10, 08:24 talking about a matter of simple honesty, 08:28 "Do not lie one to another, since you have put off 08:31 the old man with his deeds. 08:32 And then put on the new man, who is renewed in knowledge 08:35 according to the image of Him who created Him." 08:39 That old man with the dishonesty, 08:42 that's to be put off. 08:45 Now, this subject is very close to my heart. 08:48 Maybe I just should let you know right now. 08:51 I got a cold or something, I feel okay, 08:54 but I got like a frog in my throat, 08:55 so if you hear me sound a little different. 08:57 I don't think it's terminal. 09:00 Those on the front row might want to get a surgical mask, 09:02 but otherwise, I think we're okay. 09:05 So I feel okay, just, I know I sound different. 09:10 I used to be a thief. 09:12 And I didn't understand the principle that... 09:17 First of all, the Ten Commandments, 09:19 I probably knew that it's wrong to steal. 09:22 I did not think there was a God, 09:23 I sort of believed in evolution. 09:24 I figured survival of the fittest 09:26 if you could get away with it. 09:27 Animals steal from each other in the animal kingdom, 09:30 it was okay. 09:31 When I came to believe there was a God 09:32 and that God sees everything, 09:34 my whole attitude about stealing changed. 09:37 It didn't change instantly. 09:40 I mean, I would shoplift, I broke into people's homes, 09:42 and I stole cars. 09:44 I mean, I was a thief. 09:48 But once I realized that everything you do comes back. 09:54 Now, I started noticing a friend, 09:57 he was into Eastern religion, he said, 09:58 "Doug, your karma is going to get you." 10:00 He knew I was stealing. 10:03 And I said, "What's karma?" 10:04 He said, "Well, whatever you do, 10:05 it comes back." 10:06 On the street, they say, 10:07 "What goes around, comes around. 10:09 You're going to get what you give." 10:11 Jesus said something like that, He said, 10:13 "With what measure you mete, 10:14 it'll be measured to you again." 10:17 So the principle, 10:18 I'm not saying that Jesus taught karma, 10:19 but the principle that you often get 10:21 what you give in life, there's some truth to that. 10:25 I said, "Ah, there's no God." 10:27 I stole that television set, and I got rid of it, 10:29 nothing happened. 10:30 He said, "You'll see." 10:32 I don't know if he was praying for me, 10:33 or meditating for me, or what happened, 10:35 but a few days later, 10:36 I woke up in my apartment in Boston 10:38 and my door was ajar 10:40 when I woke up, and I looked in the bureau, 10:42 the TV was gone and my radio, 10:46 and I was really mad, and I called the police. 10:47 I wanted them to track down those terrible thieves 10:50 because of what they had done. 10:53 And I started watching and I saw that 10:55 everything I did seemed to backfire, 10:56 I would steal something, my friends were all thieves, 10:59 they would then steal it from me 11:02 or I would steal something and I was drunk or high 11:05 when I did it. 11:06 And I had to hide it, and I'd forget where I hid it. 11:10 Or I'd like risk my life to steal something 11:12 and then find out that it was broken. 11:15 I stole a broken stereo, you know, and finally, 11:21 I began to realize, this is not working out, 11:23 and it was actually a very small thing, 11:25 but I'll never forget. 11:26 I went to someone's house 11:27 and while they were out of the kitchen, 11:28 I saw in their cupboards, 11:30 I was going through the cupboards, 11:31 I saw they had a brand new box of Krusteaz 11:33 instant pancake mix. 11:36 And I took it, I don't remember 11:38 how I got it out to my backpack, 11:40 and I stole it. 11:42 And I did it 'cause I was very health conscious back then, 11:45 it was whole wheat pancake mix, 11:46 and I wanted the whole wheat variety. 11:47 So I tried to justify and said, 11:49 "It's healthy, Lord, it's for health." 11:51 And I remember the top of the box 11:53 was stamped at $1.19, 11:55 and that's back before the barcode, 11:56 they used to have these blue stamps 11:57 that they put on everything. 12:00 That very same day while I was gone, 12:03 some friends came to my place uninvited, 12:06 and they drank my... 12:08 I had a jar of Tang powdered-orange juice. 12:11 Any of you remember Tang? 12:12 And I had a brand new jar, and they drank the whole thing, 12:15 several of them came to my house, 12:16 they drank the whole thing, and I looked there, 12:18 by the empty jar was the lid and it was stamped $1.19, 12:22 and I looked at the pancake mix I just stole, 12:23 and I thought crime doesn't pay. 12:26 And so from that moment, I began to... 12:28 I didn't quit right away, I tried to taper off. 12:31 I kept shoplifting 'cause I thought 12:33 these evil corporations, they charge too much. 12:36 And so I was sometimes stealing food from the market, 12:38 but eventually I became convinced, 12:39 that was wrong too. 12:41 And, you know, then God began to bless me. 12:44 And I read in the Bible where it said, 12:47 "Let him who stole, steal no more, 12:50 but rather give." 12:52 So instead of taking from people, 12:55 which is what a thief does, a Christian's attitude 12:57 is not just I stopped stealing 12:59 'cause I don't want to get in trouble, 13:00 but I stopped stealing because I want to bless others, 13:04 I want something to give. 13:06 You never get ahead by robbery, you're always in the behind. 13:11 You know, the parable, that rich man, 13:13 and it may have been covered in an earlier lesson. 13:17 The rich fool, his crops did very well, 13:20 and he's wow, crops, I've got these bumper crop, 13:22 I don't know what I'm going to do with it all, 13:24 and instead of thinking, 13:25 "Well, maybe I'll give some to the poor," 13:27 he said, "I know what I'll do, I'll build bigger barns, 13:30 and I'll cram it all in there, and I won't have to eat, 13:32 I don't have to work, and I could say soul, 13:34 you got many goods laid up for many year. 13:36 Eat, drink, be happy, it's all about me, me, me." 13:40 And then the Bible said, God said, 13:42 "You fool, this night is your soul required of you, 13:46 then whose will those things be that you have stored up?" 13:51 And so again, we're just here as stewards of God's things, 13:56 and it's not about just seeing how much we can get. 13:59 All right, a matter of honesty. 14:01 Now, someone's going to read for me, 14:02 please, Luke 16:10. 14:05 "He who is faithful 14:06 and what is least is faithful also in much: 14:10 and he who is unjust 14:12 is what is least is unjust also in much." 14:16 Honesty can be learned with pennies 14:19 as well as dollars. 14:20 You can go to hell for stealing 10 cents 14:23 just like you can go to hell for robbing a bank. 14:26 You're either honest, or you're not honest. 14:29 And if you go out to the market, 14:30 I remember hearing the story when I was a kid, 14:32 I don't know if they made it up, 14:33 but I heard this story that... 14:37 Abraham Lincoln, when he was a young man, 14:39 he got home from the market, and found out that 14:42 they'd given him nickel too much in change, 14:44 and he had to walk 10 miles back to the... 14:46 Five miles each way back to the country store 14:49 to return the change. 14:51 A lot of us would put it in the pocket 14:53 and say, "God blessed me today." 14:55 But you need to be faithful in the little things. 14:58 The reason that God could use Joseph 15:01 to rule the world back in the days 15:04 when he was in Egypt is because as a slave, 15:08 he was faithful in the little things. 15:10 He did not sweep the dirt under the carpet. 15:13 Joseph, because he was faithful in the little things, 15:15 God blessed him and he saw that he could be a good ruler 15:19 because he was a faithful servant for so long. 15:22 Those who are the best managers 15:23 are the one's who have really worked 15:24 the way up through the ranks 'cause they understand 15:27 what the little man is doing, so to speak. 15:29 And they understand what's going on in the factory. 15:34 And so God wants us to be faithful in little things. 15:37 And I quoted you this one in Ephesians 4:28, 15:39 "Let him who stole steal no longer: 15:42 but rather let him labor, 15:43 working with his hands what is good, 15:46 that he might have something to give to him who has need." 15:49 And Colossians 3:9, "Do not lie to one another, 15:53 since you have put off the old man and his deeds." 15:57 And so we're to be honest. 16:00 You know, then there's another parable, 16:02 if you look in Luke 20, 16:04 I'm sorry Luke 12:47 and 48, 16:10 he says, "And that servant, who knew his master's will, 16:14 and did not prepare himself to do according to his will, 16:17 he will be beaten with many stripes. 16:20 But he that did not know, 16:21 yet committed things deserving the stripes, 16:23 he will be beaten with few. 16:25 For everyone to whom much is given, 16:27 from him much will be required: 16:28 and to whom much has been committed, 16:30 of him they will ask the more." 16:32 Some people think, "Oh, you know, 16:33 if I could just win the lottery, 16:35 I'd make a big donation to the church." 16:38 If you're not making donations with your nickels and dollars, 16:41 you're probably not going to make a donation 16:43 if you win the lottery. 16:45 He that is faithful in that 16:46 which is least is faithful also in much. 16:49 Now I know that we always have people 16:50 who either watching on satellite, 16:52 or watching online, or even visitors 16:54 that might wonder what is tithe. 16:57 And I want to just restate the obvious for many of us. 16:59 The word tithe is related to the word tenth. 17:04 And matter of fact, you'll hear where Jacob makes the vow, 17:08 it says, "If you bring me safely back 17:11 from my wanderings, all that you give me, 17:13 I will surely give the tenth to you. 17:17 And did Jacob do that? 17:19 How many of you remember what happened 17:21 when his brother Esau was coming? 17:24 Jacob took a tenth of everything he owned, 17:27 and he sent it off to his brother Esau, 17:30 because Esau was the patriarch of his tribe, 17:32 he was the priest of his tribe. 17:34 They didn't have the levi or levitical priesthood 17:36 back then, he gave it all to his brother 17:39 who also lived in the land back then, 17:41 so he kept his vow. 17:42 A tithe is a tenth. 17:44 When Abraham came from the slaughter of the kings, 17:50 Chedorlaomer and his forces in the North. 17:52 On his way back through the land of Israel, 17:57 he stopped in the town called Salem, 17:59 later known as Jerusalem, and he gave tithes. 18:02 He gave a tenth of all the bounty of ore, 18:04 all the spoils that they had acquired, 18:06 he gave it to Melchizedek, 18:08 and he didn't keep anything for himself. 18:09 He gave the rest to the soldiers. 18:10 He said, "I am not going to say... 18:12 I'm not going have the king of Sodom saying, 18:14 I made Abraham rich." 18:16 So Abraham had a very honest heart. 18:18 He did not even, not only did he give tithes, 18:21 he then shared, 18:23 and he didn't keep anything for himself 18:24 because he thought, 18:25 "I did not go on this journey as a mercenary to battle, 18:29 I went to fight this battle to save. 18:32 He hated war, but he had to do it 18:34 to save Lot and his family. 18:36 So there is a person of integrity 18:38 right there in Abraham's example. 18:41 You know, there's a quote in your lesson, 18:42 and this is from Testimonies to the Church, volume 4, 18:46 "Dishonesty is practiced all through our ranks, 18:48 and this is the cause of lukewarmness 18:50 on the part of many who profess to believe the truth. 18:53 They are not connected with Christ 18:55 and they're deceiving their own souls." 18:58 You'd think, oh, dishonesty, 19:00 that's a pretty stern accusation, 19:05 but is there sometimes dishonesty in the church? 19:08 You think if there is gonna be a perfectly honest church, 19:10 it would've been Jesus and the 12 apostles, right? 19:13 Did Jesus have some dishonesty in His church? 19:17 Or if not there, then after the Holy Spirit 19:19 was poured out in Acts 2, 19:20 that must have been a perfectly honest church, 19:23 was it? 19:25 Go with me to the Book of Acts 5. 19:30 I want to start if it's okay, go to Acts 4, go to verse 33. 19:35 It's talking about the power 19:37 and the early movings of the Spirit in God's church. 19:41 "And with great power, the apostles gave witness 19:44 to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, 19:45 and great grace was upon them all, 19:47 power and grace. 19:49 Nor was there anyone among them who lacked, 19:52 for all who were possessors of lands or houses sold them 19:56 and they brought the proceeds of those things that were sold 20:00 and laid them at the apostle's feet, 20:02 and they distributed to each one 20:03 as anyone had need." 20:06 There is a great generosity, 20:08 neither was there anyone among them who lacked. 20:13 Are there missionaries in foreign fields who lack? 20:17 Are there some self-supporting pastors 20:19 who have to work all week long 20:20 so that they can try to raise up a church 20:22 in a dark county 20:23 because otherwise they would have lack. 20:27 Church is not perfectly honest today. 20:28 Now, let's read on here. 20:32 "And they'd take the possessions, 20:33 they'd sell them, houses and lands, 20:35 laying them by the apostles' feet: 20:38 and they distributed to each one as they had need. 20:41 And Joses, whose name was also Barnabas, 20:44 by the apostles, that means son of consolation 20:46 or son of encouragement, 20:48 a Levite of the country of Cyprus, 20:50 having sold some land, he brought the money, 20:52 and laid it at the apostles' feet." 20:53 Talks about Barnabas. 20:54 Now, contrast Barnabas with the next chapter. 20:58 Barnabas was a large-hearted, filled with the Spirit, 21:02 ended up, not only did he sell land 21:03 and give it to the work, 21:04 he then went off and became a missionary 21:07 'cause he worked with Paul, remember? 21:09 But, now whenever you hear that three letter word, 21:14 introducing us so it's talking about the Spirit is moving, 21:16 great things are happening, Barnabas sold his land 21:19 and laid it at the apostle's feet, 21:21 but, you know what's coming? 21:25 Saying everybody wasn't the same, 21:28 "A certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, 21:31 sold a possession, 21:33 and they kept back part of the proceeds, 21:35 his wife also being aware of it, 21:37 and brought a certain part, 21:38 and laid it at the apostles' feet." 21:41 Now you might be thinking, what's wrong with that, 21:43 they sold their land, and they said, 21:44 "We're going to give a percentage of it 21:45 to the church," that would have been fine, 21:48 but that's not what they did. 21:49 What they did is they sold it, 21:50 and then they told the church leaders, 21:53 "We're giving all of it to the church." 21:56 They wanted to get lot of the accolades, 21:57 but when they began, 21:58 they got maybe more than they expected, 22:00 they said, "Let's not give it all, 22:01 let's keep some," they're being tested. 22:04 And so they didn't fulfill their vow. 22:05 They had vowed to give it all to the church, and they lied. 22:08 And he told his wife, he said, 22:09 "Let's say that we sold it for $20,000, 22:13 and you and I know that we really got $30,000, 22:15 we'll just keep $10,000 and nobody will know, right? 22:18 Just between us, 22:20 his wife pretty kept back part of it. 22:22 "Peter said, Ananias, why has Satan 22:25 filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit," 22:27 and that ought to give you chills, 22:29 the idea of lying to God. 22:31 Can you lie to the Holy Spirit? 22:33 Where can you flee from His Spirit? 22:34 Is there anything the spirit doesn't know? 22:39 "And keep back part of the price of the land for yourself? 22:42 While it remained, was it not your own?" 22:45 So Peter is saying, you didn't have to sell it. 22:47 "And after it was sold, 22:49 was it not in your own control?" 22:50 He said we didn't tell you to pledge 100%, 22:53 "Why have you conceived this thing in your heart? 22:56 You've not lied to men, but to God." 22:58 By the way, there's another verse 23:00 where you see the Holy Spirit is God 23:03 'cause he said, "You've lied to the Holy Spirit," 23:04 then he said, "You've lied to God," right? 23:10 And after hearing that lied to God, 23:14 you want to be honest with God, don't you? 23:16 "Ananias hearing these words fell down, 23:19 and breathed his last: 23:21 so a great fear came upon all those 23:23 that heard these things." 23:25 Now why did, and then his wife comes later, 23:27 and she continues to lie, she dies also. 23:31 Why was the Lord so harsh with Ananias and Sapphira? 23:35 What would happen to church membership today 23:38 if the Lord should strike dead everybody 23:41 who has been unfaithful in their tithes and offerings? 23:46 You'd have, I think a great reduction of membership. 23:51 Well, it's just true. 23:55 Can I be brutally honest with you? 23:58 Now you realize when I talk about 23:59 tithes and offerings, I think everybody here knows 24:01 and I'm hoping everybody watching listens. 24:04 No matter what our church gives, 24:05 no matter what people donate to Amazing Facts, 24:07 it never affects my salary. 24:10 I'm on a flat fee, giving up and down doesn't change it, 24:12 so my motive is never this. 24:14 My motive is the spiritual health of people. 24:17 But being a pastor, you end up knowing 24:20 we just finished a year, 24:22 we have one of the most giving churches 24:23 in Northern California, 24:24 I want to tell you I'm really proud. 24:26 I thank Lord for that, 24:27 but knowing what the membership is, 24:30 and knowing what the final product is, 24:32 and knowing what the average income is, 24:35 it doesn't add up, 24:37 it's still not 100% faithfulness. 24:40 We are among the most faithful, 24:42 but it's not New Testament faithfulness, 24:44 even if you factor in Ananias and Sapphira, 24:47 where people are really being honest to God in their giving. 24:51 Wouldn't it be wonderful 24:52 if missionaries around the world had no lack? 24:56 We've got friends, you probably have them too, 24:58 they're going to foreign mission fields, 24:59 so they're there, and they just have to pray and struggle 25:02 from week to week, they're sending out appeals, 25:04 sending out reports hoping people 25:05 will not forget that they're there 25:07 and stop giving to support the work 25:09 they're doing. 25:11 Do you realize honesty covers, and even stealing, 25:14 virtually all the Ten Commandments 25:16 in one respect or another. 25:18 Think about this. 25:20 Don't have other gods, that's stealing God's worship. 25:23 When you give your worship to another God, 25:25 you're stealing from God. 25:26 Remember the Sabbath, you're stealing God's time, 25:30 when you don't. 25:32 Honor your father and mother, 25:34 you're stealing respect from your parents. 25:37 You shall not murder, you're stealing a life 25:41 when you do that. 25:42 You shall not commit adultery, you're stealing a wife. 25:47 You shall not steal, that's self-explanatory, 25:49 stealing stuff. 25:50 You shall not bear false witness, 25:52 you're stealing the truth. 25:54 You shall not covet your neighbor's house, 25:56 you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, 25:59 you're stealing in your heart 26:01 'cause sin isn't just the action, 26:02 it's the attitude, right? 26:04 And so being honest to God with a subject of property 26:08 really plays itself out 26:10 in every other area of your life. 26:11 And if you're not honest to God in that respect, 26:13 you're probably not honest to God in other ways as well. 26:17 Malachi 3:8, now here's a verse that's pretty clear, 26:22 this is the last book in the Old Testament, 26:25 "Will a man rob God?" 26:28 Now he starts with an outrageous rhetorical question, 26:32 this is the Prophet Malachi. 26:34 Anyone here think you can get away with robbing God? 26:37 Talk about a real foolproof security system, 26:43 and anyone think that you can break into God's house 26:44 and steal from Him and Him not know. 26:47 They say, you know, you get a good enough thief, 26:49 he will find a way to overcome the security system, 26:52 but you cannot overcome God's security system. 26:56 It's all on camera. 26:57 Every idle word you speak, every movement you make, 27:00 every thought you think, you cannot really rob God, 27:04 and so it's sort of an outrageous question 27:06 that he is asking, but he said, 27:07 "Yet you robbed Me! 27:10 But you say, 'In what way have we robbed You? 27:13 In tithes and offerings." 27:16 Now what percent of what we own belongs to God? 27:20 Hundred percent. 27:23 What percent does He ask for back? 27:27 A 100%, 27:30 but He wants you to show 27:31 that you've put it all on the altar by returning 10. 27:36 See if you're a real Christian, you take up your cross, 27:38 you follow Jesus, 27:39 do you still hold back 90% of who you are? 27:42 Or you put everything on the altar? 27:45 But He wants you to show you have faith 27:46 that it all belongs to Him, 27:47 by faithfully returning at least a tenth, 27:51 and then there's offerings beyond that. 27:54 I often get phone calls. 27:55 Yeah, we do a radio program, you know, people call and say, 27:57 "Pastor Doug, you're telling people about tithe, 27:59 that's an Old Testament law." 28:02 And I say, "Well." 28:05 They say, "We don't hear tithe repeated 28:06 in the New Testament." 28:08 Well, tithe actually is repeated 28:09 in the New Testament. 28:10 You can look in Matthew 23:23, 28:13 and Jesus said, "You pay tithe of your mint, 28:15 and your anise, your cummin, 28:17 the herbs in their gardens, they were paying tithe." 28:19 And he said, "And you've omitted 28:22 the weightier matters of the law, 28:23 justice, mercy, and faith," he said, 28:25 "These you ought to have done, justice, mercy, and faith," 28:27 and he says, "And do not leave the other undone." 28:30 Don't forget to be faithful in your tithe, 28:33 but don't neglect the weightier matters. 28:36 And the very fact that another system 28:38 is not established in the New Testament 28:40 means the old system has not been abolished. 28:44 If God gives the law, and you don't see 28:46 where He retracts the law, 28:47 you are to assume it's still there. 28:49 And if not tithe, what is the system? 28:55 It's at least tithe. 28:56 Now, when you get to the New Testament, 28:58 it's actually more. 29:00 And so people who are struggling and saying, 29:01 "A tenth of what I have belongs to God." 29:04 Well, if you want to be a New Testament Christian, 29:06 it says no man said that art that he had was his own. 29:10 But they had everything in common 29:13 and they sold their possessions, 29:14 it's tied as kindergarten. 29:17 You want to be New Testament Christian, 29:19 then it was a lot deeper sacrifice, 29:21 they were really stretching out in faith. 29:24 And, you know, when God pours out His Spirit, 29:26 I think you're going to see the church 29:27 is going to have the same attitude. 29:28 And you know what? 29:32 Maybe instead of us saying yeah, 29:33 when God pours out the Spirit, I'll put it all on the altar, 29:35 maybe when we put it all on the altar, 29:37 God will pour out the Spirit. 29:40 You know, it's kind of like we're waiting for God 29:42 to pour out the Spirit and then we'll start giving 29:43 sacrificially again. 29:45 Maybe when we start putting that all on the altar 29:47 and giving sacrificially again, He'll pour out the Spirit. 29:55 I just wonder... 29:57 All right, Leviticus 27:30, "And all the tithe of the land, 30:02 whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the trees, 30:04 it is the Lord's, it's holy to the Lord." 30:07 Now let me just say something that make it clear. 30:10 Most of time in the Bible, the tithe was, 30:12 it could be money, 30:13 but the tithe was frequently agricultural things. 30:18 A tithe went to the temple 30:21 and they would distribute it among the Levites. 30:23 So the Levites didn't have to... 30:24 You really see the Levites did not get any farmland. 30:30 Hope I won't confuse you, 30:32 but how many tribes of Israel were there? 30:34 Thirteen, really? 30:36 There were 12 sons of Jacob. 30:38 But because Joseph was sold by his brothers, 30:41 Jacob in his last years, he said, 30:45 "I'm going treat your two sons, Joseph, 30:47 as though they are my sons to compensate 30:50 for you losing out for so long. 30:52 So Ephraim and Manasseh 30:54 will be counted as tribes of Israel 30:58 and they will get an equal inheritance 30:59 in the land." 31:01 You say, "Well, how come you end up with 12?" 31:03 Because the Levites were later denied an inheritance, 31:07 they got the best inheritance, 31:08 they got the spiritual inheritance, 31:09 they were to be the priest for the people, 31:11 the sons of Aaron which were part of Levi. 31:13 So when they entered the Promised Land, 31:15 they divided the land 12 ways. 31:17 The Levities were spread all through the land around 31:20 wherever the cities of Israel were. 31:23 The people were to bring their tithe 31:24 to their local temple or the synagogues 31:26 that then was distributed among the Levities 31:28 'cause they didn't have as much land 31:30 as the people for agriculture, 31:31 and for their pastures and everything. 31:33 And so they depended on a tenth, 31:36 and you can read several times 31:38 when the people were unfaithful in their tithes, 31:40 the Levites had to neglect their ministry 31:42 and go take care of their fields 31:44 so people stopped hearing the word. 31:46 During times of great revival, you'll often see 31:48 they were faithful in their giving 31:50 and the Levites were out teaching the word, 31:52 those things often went together. 31:53 All right, "So all the tithe of the land was for the Lord." 31:57 Now I'm getting a little note from the studio, 32:01 it looks like we do have a couple of questions 32:03 that have come in from some of our viewers, okay. 32:06 So we're just going to take these, 32:07 I don't know what they are, and I'll read it to you. 32:10 "I returned to God about a year ago 32:13 and have been giving back my tithe since then. 32:15 Should I tithe on the money I made prior to that time?" 32:18 What do you do if you backslid for 50 years 32:23 and you stopped paying tithe 32:25 and then you return to the Lord. 32:27 Now do you need to give God 32:30 all the back-tax for all those years? 32:34 Well, I would say in Spirit you ought to do 32:37 your best to compensate, it may not be realistic to say, 32:41 you know, here I made millions of dollars 32:43 and I lost it all, I just don't have it to give 32:46 and I'll nothing to live on if I've got to pay, 32:48 it'll be kind of like God becomes the IRS, right? 32:52 I would say that try and go above and beyond 32:55 what you can, what you normally would do 32:58 and just say, "Lord, if You'll bless me, 33:01 I'll try and do a little more than normal 33:02 for the years I didn't do anything." 33:04 That sound like good advice. 33:07 But the idea of having a figure hanging over your head 33:10 that could be crushing. 33:12 So God will give you wisdom just... 33:14 But He accepts you when you come back just as you are. 33:16 You get a new beginning, you're a new creature, right? 33:19 Start where you're at. 33:20 All right, another question, 33:22 "What if I'm not connected to a church, 33:24 how do I tithe?" 33:26 Get connected to a church would be my answer. 33:30 Everybody should be connected to a church, 33:33 and yeah, with the mail, you can tithe through the mail. 33:37 But you ought to be connected with a Bible teaching church 33:39 because you need accountability. 33:41 Now I know that sometimes we've people that are watching, 33:43 they are shut in, so they have health problems 33:44 and they can't actively participate 33:47 in a regular church service, 33:48 but you still ought to pick out a church 33:50 that you're going to support, 33:52 you believe its teachings are biblical, 33:54 and you can then get engaged that way. 33:57 But everyone ought to be connected. 33:58 If you got a baby lamb and it's not with a flock, 34:01 the wolves tend to get it. 34:03 And so I'd suggest you get... 34:06 You get it that way. Does tithe have to be monetary? 34:09 No, and I'm glad you asked that question. 34:12 Does tithe have to be monetary? 34:13 I just started saying that a lot of time 34:15 when they brought the tithe, it was, 34:17 they would bring their sheep, extra sheep, 34:19 they would bring their grain, 34:22 they would bring their firstfruits, 34:23 you know, they were an agricultural people. 34:26 And I've been in some parts of the world 34:28 where the people are so poor, 34:29 they have no cash and when they come to church, 34:33 they bring their coconuts, and they bring fish, 34:34 and they bring what they have. 34:37 There are some missionaries that use to pass the plate 34:40 and people all put their little few ounces of rice in the plate 34:43 'cause it was a tenth of what they had harvested. 34:46 And so God knows, you know, if you can't do it in cash. 34:49 Cash is a little easier to transport these days 34:52 and work with but by all means. 34:55 Boy, I tell you the pastors here 34:56 do really well in the fall, 34:59 I'm looking at John upfront and seeing some of our members 35:01 here pay the pastor's tithe from their vegetable garden. 35:05 I mean what you can do, send it to the conference? 35:08 So we accept that, that's okay. 35:11 That's not my tithe. 35:13 Oh, that's not your tithe. Oh, we'll talk later, okay. 35:18 All right, do you have anymore questions here? 35:21 "Why do we pay tithe 35:23 when we are currently living under grace 35:25 and not under the law?" 35:27 Well, we're living under grace 35:29 but when you're living under grace, 35:30 does that mean that you neglect the law. 35:33 Do you cheat on your spouse and say, "I'm now under grace, 35:37 I don't need to keep the seventh commandment." 35:39 Try that, no, don't try that, yeah, 35:41 I mean but that argument will not work, 35:43 I can promise you. 35:45 And so the idea that because we're under grace 35:48 that we no longer have an obligation 35:50 to keep the law... 35:53 If not tithe and offerings, what method, 35:56 is there any system to it? 35:58 People get a little bit... 35:59 You can kind of tell people are struggling in their hearts, 36:01 10%, oh, 10%. 36:03 Now keep in mind, it's 10% of your increase. 36:06 If you're in business and you buy t-shirts, 36:10 you're in a t-shirt business and you buy t-shirts for $5 36:16 and then you sell the t-shirts for $10, 36:19 what is your increase on a t-shirt sale? 36:22 It's not $10, it's $5, right? 36:24 So you pay tithe on your increase 36:25 and there might be other, 36:26 you know, expenses connected with that. 36:28 And so it's pretty simple business math. 36:31 I got another question here, "Will God punish us 36:35 for not giving all that we have like Ananias and Sapphira?" 36:39 Well, there is a judgment, 36:40 everyone is going to be standing 36:41 before the judgment seat of God. 36:44 So maybe they are asking about not giving all that we have, 36:48 and keep in mind, you might wonder 36:50 why was He so severe with Ananias and Sapphira? 36:53 Why was He so severe with Hophni and Phinehas, 36:57 and Nadab and Abihu were just these, 37:01 they were punished so severely. 37:03 Ananias and Sapphira were living in the time 37:05 where they saw the Holy Spirit come down in tongues of fire. 37:08 They were seeing miracles. 37:10 They were seeing the power of God, 37:11 and right there in the midst of a revival, 37:15 in the power of God, 37:16 their attitude was the very thing 37:18 that was going to quench that power 37:19 if God did not deal with it severely. 37:22 We read, "To whom much is given, 37:23 much is required." 37:25 They had been given the ability to live in the church 37:28 where the Holy Spirit was being poured out 37:30 and they sinned in the face of that, 37:31 so God was more severe. 37:35 "Can you give your time as a tithe?" 37:40 Well, let's just be more specific. 37:43 Let's suppose that you're an expert at something 37:46 and you're normally paid for it. 37:48 And somebody needs, 37:49 may be you're an expert accountant, 37:51 you normally charge $10 an hour, 37:54 you might donate some accounting time 37:56 and, you know, there might be a way 37:58 where that could happen 37:59 where you're actually giving money by giving time 38:01 that you would otherwise be paid for. 38:02 You see what I am saying? 38:04 Well, that could kind of get loose, 38:05 so you want to be careful and not neglect giving 38:07 off your own increase. 38:09 But I've seen people give 38:10 a tithe of their time to a project. 38:12 All right, well that covers 38:13 some of the questions that came in. 38:14 If there is more then you can just pop it up on the screen. 38:16 We know, these questions are coming active right now 38:19 while I'm teaching. 38:20 All right, the life of faith, someone's going to read for me 38:23 Hebrews 12:2 in just a moment, 38:26 and I'm going to read Genesis 22:1. 38:29 "Now, it came to pass after these things, 38:32 that God tested Abraham, and He said to him, 38:35 "Abraham," he said, "Here I am." 38:37 He said, "Take now your son, your only son, Isaac, 38:40 who you love, and go to the land of Moriah 38:43 and offer him there as a burnt offering 38:44 on the mountains of which I shall tell you."' 38:48 You know, one reason Abraham was called 38:50 the Father of the Faithful, 38:51 is because does anyone here doubt 38:55 that Abraham gave 100% when he gave his son? 38:58 Did Abraham put everything on the altar? 39:01 I mean how may of you would be willing 39:03 to give everything you have 39:04 if it meant doing that to save your children? 39:07 And Abraham, when God said, "Do you really love Me 39:10 with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength 39:11 or I've a test for you. Prove it. 39:14 I'm not going to ask for all your gold 39:16 and your silver. But take your son..." 39:19 And, of course, what happened with Abraham and Isaac 39:22 is an illustration of what the father did for us 39:25 in his love for us. 39:27 So Abraham did that because he had faith. 39:31 Now go ahead and read Hebrews 12 for us, verse 2? 39:35 "Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith, 39:39 who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, 39:45 despising the shame, 39:46 and has set down at the right hand of God, 39:49 at the throne of God." 39:50 All right, here it tells us that 39:52 Jesus is the author and the finisher. 39:55 And the word finisher here is used 39:57 in this only one instance in the New Testament. 39:59 It's translated the perfecter of our faith. 40:02 It means Jesus is intent on bringing our faith to maturity. 40:06 Faith is something that grows, 40:07 it's something that cures so to speak. 40:11 And Jesus, your faith will start 40:12 but He wants to finish it. 40:14 Sanctification is a process. 40:17 And I think if we're honest, 40:19 we'll all admit there's times we struggle to believe. 40:23 And that can be demonstrated in living the Christian life 40:26 in the number of areas of obedience, 40:28 and even in areas of giving. 40:31 But I can tell you, I was young and I'm now old 40:34 and I've found whenever I was tested, 40:37 whenever I was tested 40:39 on the area of faithfulness and stewardship, 40:42 when I stepped out on faith, and I trusted God, 40:45 and I gave, He always compensated, 40:49 and He blessed. 40:51 It's like Jacob, Jacob said, 40:54 I went out when he left his parents, 40:57 he had a staff in his hand. 41:00 You know, remember when he slept, 41:01 he had a rock for a pillow and the dream of the ladder, 41:03 he had nothing. 41:05 And when he came back he said, 41:07 "Lord, I've now become two companies, 41:09 our substance is so great." 41:11 He had four wives and 11 children 41:13 I think at the point, 41:14 I don't know Benjamin wasn't born yet. 41:16 No, Joseph wasn't born yet 41:17 'cause Rachel died in Bethlehem. 41:19 So he had 10 boys and all this substance. 41:23 But he had made a covenant to pay tithe went he left. 41:27 You remember when he had the dream there? 41:29 He made a covenant. 41:30 When he comes back, look at how God had blessed him. 41:32 And so God, He always blesses if we have that faith. 41:37 Author and the finisher of our faith. 41:39 Hebrews 6:1, 41:42 "Therefore leaving the discussion 41:44 of the elementary principles of Christ, 41:46 let us go on to perfection, 41:48 not laying again the foundation of repentance 41:50 from dead works, and faith towards God." 41:52 There is growth, the elementary things. 41:55 Tithe and offering is really an elementary thing. 41:59 You know, before we baptize a person, 42:01 I go through some of the fundamentals 42:03 and we in our church have... 42:06 I mean we don't define every doctrine, 42:09 you can't define and do a commentary 42:11 on every verse 'cause there is some things 42:12 that we freely admit that are difficult. 42:15 But we have 27 or 28 fundamental beliefs... 42:21 and they're well supported by scripture. 42:24 Things like the Bible, and the Trinity, and... 42:29 You know, the nature of Christ, and number of other issues. 42:35 And one of the doctrines is on stewardship. 42:40 Then we melt those down 42:41 when we review the baptismal vows 42:43 with the person. 42:46 We melt them down to 12 or 13 of the most important things 42:49 a person needs to be clear on. 42:51 You know, one of the things 42:52 that is included in the baptismal vows 42:55 is that we believe that God owns everything 42:58 and because of our love for Christ, 42:59 we want to be faithful stewards 43:01 and we agree to return tithes and offerings to God. 43:06 Now, there are some churches that police their members, 43:09 did you know that? 43:10 They review their members, they look at their statements, 43:14 they say, "Oh, hey, the tithe hasn't been paid." 43:16 They police their members to make sure they pay tithe. 43:19 We don't do that. 43:21 We say it's between you and God. 43:23 That's why this lesson is called Honest to God. 43:26 When we have communion, the Bible says, 43:29 "Let every man examine himself." 43:31 We practice open communion. 43:32 You decide if you're serious about your commitment. 43:35 We don't police people and say, "You should do it, 43:37 you shouldn't, you should." 43:39 Did Jesus let Judas participate in communion? 43:43 Yes. He let him judge himself. 43:46 We believe that the Holy Spirit has to talk to people. 43:49 And do you want to give 43:51 because you got elders and deacons 43:53 that are policing you. 43:56 Well, nobody really wants the church officials 43:58 snooping around in their bank account. 44:04 I remember, I was doing an evangelistic meeting 44:07 in Paradise, California with Pastor Lonnie Melashenko. 44:11 And during the worship service, 44:14 he wanted everybody to greet each other 44:17 and they often had visitors. 44:18 He'd say, let's all stand up and turn to the person, 44:20 turn to the person, your right, your left, 44:21 and tell him how much money you've got in the bank. 44:24 And everybody laughed nervously... 44:28 I've used it several times 44:29 since I thought it was funny way to break the ice 44:31 because that's the last thing in the world 44:33 people are going to tell, isn't it? 44:35 Those are private affairs, and so whether or not 44:37 you're giving faithfully, church doesn't police that, 44:40 it's between you and God. 44:43 And you want to be faithful. Amen. 44:47 Because you're blessed if you're, 44:50 it's a life of faith. 44:52 Romans 12:3, "For I say, through the grace 44:55 that is given me, to every one who is among you, 44:57 not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, 45:00 but to think soberly, 45:01 as God has dealt each one a measure of faith." 45:04 You might say, Pastor Doug, I just don't have enough faith, 45:06 is that true? 45:08 I don't think I can do this tithe thing, 45:09 I don't have enough faith. 45:11 Do you not have enough faith? 45:13 I read here, God gives to every one 45:15 a measure of faith. 45:16 Everybody has got some faith. 45:19 It's just whether or not you want to use it or not. 45:22 You can believe if you want to, you can test God. 45:24 Matter of fact, in Malachi, He says, "Prove me now." 45:27 Have faith, test me, 45:28 see if I don't open for you the windows of heaven 45:30 and pour out a blessing 45:31 you don't have room enough to receive it. 45:34 All right, moving along here. 45:37 One of the most accurate indicators of a person 45:41 or a congregation's spiritual condition 45:44 is the giving thermometer. 45:47 That's true. 45:50 And it also could be an indicator 45:52 of the faithfulness of the leadership 45:54 because if the people are confident 45:56 that those in the church that are in leadership 46:00 are faithfully administrating the money, 46:04 you know, other church friends since we got a board 46:05 and in our board we have a finance committee, 46:07 and we've got a treasurer and the board meets, 46:09 and we evaluate the finances, 46:11 and we make sure that the expenses stayed down, 46:13 or we make sure that the money is being allocated biblically 46:17 to worthy causes and there is accountability. 46:19 And then we have a business meeting, 46:21 we're having one next month. 46:22 All the churches invited together, 46:24 the treasurer will show everybody, 46:26 what's going on financially, everybody gets to look. 46:28 Matter of fact, they are open books. 46:29 Anyone could ask anytime 46:31 and we'd be happy to report this, 46:32 nothing to hide. 46:34 So if there is faithfulness that way, 46:35 people are supportive, 46:37 but then if there is faithfulness in your home, 46:40 you're going to see there's regularity in giving. 46:44 That's usually the indicator of spiritual health. 46:46 If a person is not giving off their substance 46:49 to the work of God, you have to ask, 46:51 "Do they really love the Lord? 46:53 Do they want to get the message of salvation out? 46:55 Do they care about their fellowmen 46:57 that are perishing in ignorance?" 47:00 And if you're hoarding everything 47:04 and you know people are being lost 47:05 for lack of the gospel, 47:07 there is something wrong spiritually, 47:09 does that make sense? 47:11 And so giving is sometimes an interesting indicator of that. 47:15 All right, honest tithe, honest to the Lord. 47:20 And if you look in Matthew 6:3-4, 47:23 "But when you do a charitable deed, 47:25 do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. 47:29 That your charitable deed may be in secret, 47:31 and your Father who sees in secret 47:33 will reward you openly." 47:35 So we're not supposed to grandstand, 47:36 Jesus said it's the hypocrites who go to church 47:38 and they blow the trumpet, they make a big deal, 47:40 and say, I'm going to make this donation, 47:42 and they want to get a lot of human accolades, 47:45 and Jesus said this all. 47:46 But if you give faithfully and it's between you and God, 47:50 and you don't tell everybody about it, 47:52 the Lord is going to bless you. 47:55 If you see a person in need, a beggar, 47:58 and you do something for them, 48:00 you don't need to advertise it all to your Christian friends 48:02 and try to prove to them that you're spiritual, 48:05 it's, God saw it, right? 48:07 That's what's most important. 48:11 All right, I'm going to jump along here. 48:12 Someone is going to read for me I think, 48:14 Ecclesiastes 5:4 and 5. 48:17 Okay, Mangie, I'll have you do that in just a moment. 48:20 Here is a quote from the book Counsels on Stewardship, 48:23 page 66, 48:25 "In like manner, tithe of our income 48:27 is holy to the Lord. 48:29 The New Testament does not re-enact the law of tithe, 48:33 as it does not that of the Sabbath, 48:35 for the validity of both is assumed, 48:38 and their deep spiritual import explained. 48:41 While we as a people are seeking faithfully 48:43 to give to God, 48:44 the time which He has reserved as His Home, 48:46 shall we not also render to Him the portion of our means 48:49 that He claims." 48:51 And basically the author here is just saying, 48:53 you're not going to hear a lot about tithe 48:54 in the New Testament because it was just understood, 48:57 it was assumed, it was sort of common knowledge. 49:02 Everyday we go to and fro from church. 49:04 We drive about 55 or 60 miles an hour. 49:07 We almost never mentioned it in church, you know that? 49:10 'Cause I'm assuming that you know that. 49:14 It's a common knowledge. Right, go ahead, Mangie? 49:17 "When you make a vow to God, do not delay to pay it, 49:21 for he has no pleasure in fools, 49:25 pay what you have vowed. 49:27 Better not to vow than to vow and not pay." 49:32 That's talking exactly about what happened 49:34 with Ananias and Sapphira. 49:35 If you make a vow to God, pay what you vowed. 49:38 Better not to make a vow than make one and not pay it 49:42 because we need to be honest before God. 49:44 And something else in closing 49:46 that I thought was very important is, 49:47 you look through the Bible 49:49 at the times of great revival, there is great giving. 49:53 Have you ever noticed that? 49:55 In the time of David, 49:57 when they had had victory over their enemies, 49:59 the Philistines, and David said, 50:01 you know, "Whoever is large hearted, 50:02 if you want to give to build a temple to the glory of God." 50:06 What happened? 50:07 Incredible gifts were given from the poorest people 50:11 right up on through the leadership. 50:13 When they were going through the Tabernacle, 50:14 and God was in there going through the wilderness, 50:16 and God was in their midst, 50:18 and they were building the Tabernacle. 50:21 They gave so much, they had to be told not to give. 50:23 Let me read this to you, Exodus 36:2, 50:27 "And Moses called Bezalel and Aholiab, 50:29 and every gifted artisan, 50:30 in whose heart the Lord had put wisdom, 50:32 every one from whose heart was stirred to come 50:34 and to do the work. 50:35 And they received from Moses all the offering 50:38 that the children of Israel had brought 50:40 for the work of the service of making the sanctuary. 50:42 So they continued bringing to him 50:44 freewill offerings every morning." 50:46 And the offerings were in gold, 50:48 and wood, and skins, and silver, 50:50 and whatever they needed for the temple, 50:51 that wasn't money necessarily. 50:54 "Then all the craftsmen, who were doing the work 50:56 of the sanctuary, came each one from the work he was doing." 50:59 They just dropped the tools and came to Moses. 51:01 "And they spoke to Moses and said, 51:02 'The people bring much more 51:04 than enough for the service of the work, 51:06 which the Lord has commanded us to do.' 51:08 So Moses gave a command, and they caused it 51:10 to be proclaimed throughout the camp, saying, 51:12 'Let neither man nor woman do any more work 51:14 for the offering of the sanctuary.'" 51:18 The people were restrained from bringing, 51:20 for the material they had was sufficient. 51:23 Indeed it was too much." 51:24 Oh, friends wouldn't God, I had to make an announcement. 51:27 Please stop giving, right, we don't know 51:30 what to do with all that you're giving. 51:33 and when was the last time you were in a church 51:36 and you heard that proclamation. 51:38 But this is a time the people had a mind 51:40 and they had a heart to build and to do the work, 51:42 and you can read also in 2 Chronicles 31 51:45 during the time of King Hezekiah. 51:47 It says, "There was a great revival, 51:50 they returned to the Lord, they had a Passover." 51:52 It says, "They brought in abundantly 51:55 the tithe of everything and they had big heaps 51:57 and they had so much, 51:58 they had to build storerooms to store it. 52:01 And the Lord blessed His people Israel." 52:03 So this was also during the time of revival, 52:06 so God will bless you that way too. 52:08 All right, we're out of time. 52:09 And we want to tell you one more time 52:10 about the free offer that we have available. 52:13 And if anybody would like to get a copy of this book, 52:15 it's Determining the Will of God. 52:17 Its offer number 778. 52:19 Just call the resource line on your screen 866-788-3966, 52:24 they will be happy to send that to you for free. 52:27 Or you can go to amazingfacts.org, 52:30 and I think you'll find the book there 52:31 and you can read it for free online 52:33 and then share with your friend. 52:34 God bless you until we study His word together 52:36 again next week. 52:48 Today smartphones are a virtual universe of information 52:51 that fits in the palm of your hand. 52:53 It's a good thing we have a plausible thumbs. 52:55 With it you can buy your groceries, 52:58 take care of your exercise regime, 53:01 watch a video, listen to music, 53:03 you can surf the international World Wide Web 53:05 which may not always be a good thing. 53:08 And, you know, there is more computer processing technology 53:11 and power in a little smartphone today 53:13 than was used by NASA to put a man on the moon. 53:17 And I almost forgot, you can also use these 53:19 to make a phone call. 53:20 But who does that anymore. 53:22 Today communication is not in complete sentences, 53:25 it's all about Short Message Servicing 53:27 or SMS texting. 53:30 That's right. 53:31 There are about 2.5 billion people in the world today 53:34 that are communicating with their fellow humans 53:36 in short bytes called texting. 53:39 That's more data that is being used 53:41 than those who're surfing the web 53:42 or even playing videogames. 53:44 And, friends, nowhere is this more true 53:46 than right here in the Philippines. 53:48 Even though the Philippines has about a 100 million people, 53:51 they are responsible for the largest number 53:53 of text messages of anywhere in the world. 53:56 They are the 12th largest country 53:57 but they send 400 million text messages everyday. 54:03 Wow, that's a lot of finger fatigue. 54:06 Even though the greatest number of texters 54:08 is here in the Philippines, 54:09 the record for the fastest texter 54:11 in the world is from Brazil. 54:12 A young man by the name of Marcel Frenandes Filho, 54:15 he was able to text 25 very complicated words 54:18 in a little more than 18 seconds. 54:20 Wow, it takes me longer than that 54:22 to just say I love you to my wife 54:24 and press send, all thumbs. 54:28 One of the neat things about texting 54:29 is you can text just about anywhere. 54:31 If you're surrounded with people, 54:32 you want to send a personal message, you text. 54:35 You're in a crowded subway or an airport, you can text. 54:38 If you're surrounded by noise or nosy people, you can text. 54:42 Just don't text while you're driving. 54:44 That's what's so wonderful friends, 54:46 you can always text God a message of prayer 54:48 from your heart. 54:49 When you're wondering what school do I go to, 54:52 what job do I take, who am I supposed to date 54:54 that may be a future life partner. 54:56 Your prayers don't have to be long. 54:58 The shortest prayer in the Bible is three words, 55:00 when Peter prayed, "Lord, save me." 55:03 And Jesus answered his prayer. 55:04 And it doesn't matter how fast you can text 55:06 when you're talking to God. 55:08 He'll know what you're asking for 55:09 and hear your prayer before you have a chance 55:11 to say amen and press the send button. 55:13 In fact, friends, you'll bring joy to God 55:16 when you send Him regular messages 55:17 from your heart to His. 55:19 So why don't you talk to Him right now. 55:36 Amazing Facts, changed lives. 55:45 By the time I got to high school, 55:48 abuse was just a way of life for me, 55:50 I just felt that, that was the way it was 55:52 and that many people were going through that. 55:54 And I found out that a lot of the girls 55:57 were not going through the abuse 55:58 that I was going through. 56:00 I started acting out, and playing out, 56:03 and misbehaving in school. 56:07 I felt when I spoke to mom, she was too busy worrying about 56:12 where dad was, what dad was doing. 56:14 When I spoke to the older siblings, 56:16 they couldn't be bothered, I had stupid questions. 56:19 I seemed to feel very lonely all the time 56:22 and I just forgot at that point where God was. 56:26 And felt that I didn't need Him, 56:29 because anyway when I did need Him, 56:31 He was never around for me. 56:34 I was living a very, very busy life, 56:38 working till 2, 3 o'clock in the morning 56:41 and then drinking alcohol till 5 o'clock, 56:44 so that I could get to sleep for few hours, wake up 56:47 and then get back to work at 8 o'clock at night. 56:50 So my life continued and spiraled 56:52 until I decided I needed to do something different. 56:54 So I pack my bags 56:56 and spent 11 months crossing Africa 56:59 from Zimbabwe all the way through Switzerland. 57:02 Met a lady in a missionary who spoke to me about God 57:05 and gave me a Bible, 57:07 and that was when I started thinking again that 57:11 God, may be You led me on this trip. 57:14 And that was the start of me really re-thinking 57:17 what am I doing with my life. 57:21 I had made a decision that, 57:22 God, this time I'm never going to let you go. 57:25 I know You've never let me go, it was always me who let go. 57:30 My return to Jesus was the most amazing feeling 57:35 that I had ever experienced. 57:37 I felt as if this time 57:39 I had made a connection with God. 57:54 Together we've spread the gospel much farther 57:57 than ever before. 57:59 Thank you for your support. |
Revised 2018-02-12