Participants:
Series Code: SSH
Program Code: SSH021849A
|
00:35 Good morning, friends,
00:36 and welcome again to Sabbath School Study Hour 00:38 here at the Granite Bay Seventh-day Adventist Church. 00:40 I'd like to welcome our online members, 00:42 and our friends who are joining us 00:44 across the country and around the world, 00:46 very warm welcome to all of you 00:48 as well as our regular church members, 00:50 our Sabbath school members, 00:51 and those who are visiting with us 00:53 right here at the Granite Bay Church. 00:55 It's always nice to be able to gather together 00:56 Sabbath morning, open up our lesson, 00:59 and study together. 01:00 Now over the past few weeks we've been studying 01:02 through the theme of unity in the Bible, 01:05 and today we find ourselves on lesson number 10 01:08 which is entitled "Unity and Broken Relationships." 01:12 Of course, in any family relationships, 01:14 sometimes things get broken. 01:16 How do we maintain unity 01:19 even when they are broken relationships? 01:20 So that's going to be our theme, 01:22 our study for today. 01:23 But before we get to the lesson, 01:25 we'd like to lead our friends, who are viewing this program, 01:28 know about a free offer that we have. 01:30 It is a book entitled, "The Surrender of Self," 01:33 very important key to mending broken relationships. 01:37 And this is our free offer today. 01:39 If you'd like to receive it, all you'll have to do 01:41 is call 866-788-3966, 01:45 and ask for offer number 153. 01:48 We'll be happy to send that to anyone who calls and asks. 01:51 If you'd like to receive a digital copy 01:53 of our free offer today, 01:55 the number to text is 40544 01:59 and you want to text the code "SH087." 02:04 If you'll send a text with that code 02:06 to the number I just gave you, 02:08 you'll receive an e-mail, 02:09 and you'll be able to download this free resource, 02:12 a very important book called "The Surrender of Self." 02:16 Well, before we get to our study this morning, 02:19 we like to begin our Sabbath school 02:20 by lifting our voices in song. 02:22 I'd like to invite the song leaders 02:24 to come forward. 05:57 Thank you so much for joining with us, 05:59 and we will sing more favorite Christmas songs 06:02 next time. 06:03 At this time though, 06:04 Pastor Ross is going to have our opening prayer. 06:08 Dear Father in heaven, thank You once again 06:10 for the opportunity for us to gather together 06:12 and open up Your Word 06:13 and study this very important theme of unity, 06:16 especially in the church and in the home. 06:19 Father, we ask for the Holy Spirit 06:20 to come and guide us and help us to understand 06:23 and also to implement these biblical principles 06:25 in our relationships, for we ask this in Jesus' name. 06:28 Amen. 06:30 Our lesson study today is going to be brought to us 06:33 by our family life pastor 06:34 here at Granite Bay, Pastor Shawn Brummund. 06:38 I'd like to invite you to open your Bibles 06:40 to the Gospel of John 13:35. 06:45 And while we're turning to that, 06:47 I would like to do a quick survey for us here 06:51 as we get into our subject in our study, 06:53 which is a very important one 06:56 in regards to our personal relationships. 06:58 Has anybody here ever been hurt by any other church member? 07:02 Any church members here today that have ever been hurt 07:06 by another church member at some point, 07:07 not right now, but at some point in the past. 07:11 All right, put your hand up. 07:12 Raise them high, so I can see it. Okay. 07:14 Everybody look around. 07:16 Okay, everybody look around. Keep your hands up. 07:19 All right, okay. 07:20 For those of you who are looking 07:21 and maybe have a camera on the people 07:23 that are with us here today in Granite Bay, 07:25 there was a number of hands went up, at least half, 07:28 maybe even over half of the hands, 07:29 and I know that that some of the people 07:31 who didn't put their hands up, 07:32 they just didn't want to be bothered, 07:33 I know how that works. 07:34 And some of you that didn't put your hands up 07:36 also have been hurt by other church members. 07:39 Now when I put my hand up, 07:40 I wasn't just putting up as a model this time 07:41 like I did at last study when I asked a question, 07:44 but I've been hurt more than once 07:45 by another church member, 07:47 both before I entered the pastor calling 07:51 that God had given me as well as since. 07:54 And this just is part of the reality 07:57 of bringing a number of people together 07:59 even born again Christians 08:02 that are growing in the grace of Christ, 08:03 that are learning sometimes by our blunders, 08:06 by our mistakes. 08:07 And sometimes we say things that we regret, 08:10 sometimes we make decisions and actions that we regret 08:14 that not only do we have to ask the Lord for forgiveness for, 08:17 but also each other, other people that we have hurt. 08:21 And so this is one of the things 08:23 that we carry through our Christian experience 08:27 and through the church, 08:28 and I am just so thankful that the Bible gives us 08:32 some examples of some of the most prominent, 08:34 most spiritual, most devout Christians 08:37 that we have in all of history, 08:39 some of them Bible prophets 08:41 and apostles that also found themselves 08:44 either being hurt or hurting other fellow Christians 08:48 as they also were growing 08:50 in the understanding of God's love. 08:53 So if you were in your lesson study, 08:56 lesson study number 10, 08:58 you would have already known 08:59 that the text that I pointed as to, 09:01 which is John 13, 09:04 is also found at the bottom of page 80 on the first day, 09:08 and first page of our lesson study 09:09 for this weekend. 09:11 And so let's go ahead and read that. 09:12 You read it silently, I'll read it out loud. 09:14 In John 13:35, 09:16 we have the powerful statement of Christ 09:18 where He says, "By this all will know 09:20 that you are My disciples, 09:22 if you have love for one another." 09:26 Now I know even as we read that, 09:27 for those of you like myself 09:29 that have been in the church 20 plus years, 09:31 you've been in the faith many years, 09:32 you've heard that statement more than once, haven't you? 09:35 In fact, it's one of the most repeated statements 09:39 of the words of Christ. 09:40 And so I've heard it read many times 09:42 by their pastors, and Christians, 09:44 and Bible studies, and sermons and such. 09:46 Why? 09:47 Because it's a very important 09:48 and powerful statement by Jesus. 09:51 Now one of the dangers that takes place though 09:53 is that the more we hear it, 09:55 the more it can kind of just roll off us 09:57 because, oh, I said, "Oh, yeah, I've heard that before." 09:59 I've heard it a million times, and, of course, 10:02 one of the dangers of that happening is that 10:05 we can be in danger of forgetting 10:07 how important it is for us to have love for each other. 10:11 And that's the point that Jesus made, wasn't it? 10:15 Is that Jesus is reminding us 10:17 that one of the most important elements 10:19 that we bring to the church is the love that we bring 10:23 when we walk into the church doors. 10:25 And not only into the church doors, 10:27 when we come together on Sabbath for worship, 10:29 but when we walk into each other's homes, 10:31 and we walk into different events 10:33 or we go on mission trips together. 10:35 And every time that we're walking 10:37 and meeting each other, 10:38 God has called us for a love, one for another. 10:45 Quick question, what is the opposite of love? 10:50 Okay, somebody said selfishness, 10:52 hate, okay, 10:54 that was the first one that came to my mind, 10:55 probably most of you thought of hate right away. 10:57 With think love and then hate. 10:59 And that's certainly a fitting opposite. 11:02 Selfishness also is very fitting as well. 11:05 Anything else? Okay, what about some others? 11:10 I had some more time to think about, of course, 11:11 as I prepared. 11:13 What about betrayal? 11:15 Betrayal, when you betray somebody 11:17 that has trusted you, betrayed their trust, 11:19 that would be the opposite of what true love is. 11:21 What about violent acts? 11:23 Violent acts, of course, is the opposite of love. 11:27 What about jealousy? 11:29 When you're jealous of someone else, 11:30 what if you're bitter towards someone else? 11:33 What about resentment? 11:35 Of course, there's condemnation or judgment. 11:38 Sometimes we find ourselves acting in the opposite of love 11:41 when we condemn or judge somebody 11:44 in a way that God has called us not to. 11:47 What about being rude to a fellow person, 11:50 a fellow member. 11:52 Is that the opposite of love? 11:54 Sure it is, yeah, Jesus tells us 11:55 that love is kind and is not rude. 11:59 And I think we talked about that 12:00 over the last couple of studies that we've been together. 12:02 And so these are all fitting words 12:06 that can be found on the other side of the track. 12:08 We have love on one side, 12:10 and then we have a number of these other sinful realities 12:15 that we grow out of that. 12:16 We are called to be able to put behind us as Christians. 12:20 And when we fall into one of these things 12:21 that are in the opposite of love. 12:23 Why, of course, then we find ourselves 12:25 threatening in our relationships with each other. 12:28 Because if there's one thing that I've learned by experience 12:30 is that once I hurt somebody because of my non loving act 12:34 towards a fellow Christian church member, 12:38 you know, that relationship becomes strain, doesn't it? 12:41 And sometimes depending, of course, 12:43 on the magnitude of my act or my words, 12:48 will also be directly relational to the strain 12:51 that it brings on to that relationship. 12:53 Maybe we won't talk to each other for a time, 12:55 maybe we'll avoid each other, maybe, you know, well, 12:58 you know, there's all kinds of different reactions 13:00 or, you know, or maybe I'll just be 13:02 strained for an hour, 13:03 and an hour later, we're, you know, 13:05 we're sharing some special memory together 13:08 or something. 13:09 So it depends, it depends on the breach 13:12 and, of course, the magnitude of the offense. 13:16 Well, I had the privilege of teaching lesson number seven 13:19 about, throughout, it would be three lessons ago 13:21 when it was entitled, "When Conflicts Arise." 13:24 And how conflicts 13:26 between groups of church members take place. 13:29 It took place in the early church, 13:31 it takes place today in our church, 13:36 sometimes it's small groups within a local congregation, 13:39 sometimes a local congregation 13:40 will kind of be divided right down the center 13:43 and needs to be able to work that out. 13:46 And so we looked at some healthy ways that we can... 13:50 that God gives to us 13:51 to be able to make our way through that 13:53 and bring ourselves back into unity once again. 13:57 And then last week, as we came together 13:59 in lesson number nine, 14:00 our witness to the unbelieving world 14:01 was looked at, 14:03 and that witness reflects the statement 14:04 that Christ has given to us 14:06 at the beginning of this lesson's, 14:08 this week's lesson study, and that is, 14:10 "The unbelieving world is watching us 14:12 and seeing how we have one love for one another." 14:17 And so having that love for one another 14:19 is a big part of our witness, isn't it? 14:22 It's not only the message of the Bible, 14:24 which is also important and powerful, 14:26 but it's also living out the principles 14:29 that we have found in the Bible 14:30 as transformed spirit filled Christians 14:33 loving each other in a way that the world knows 14:36 that they don't love each other 14:37 outside of the borders of the church. 14:39 And so that's important for us to look at. 14:42 Now today we're going to look at personal relationships 14:44 in the church, and how they're broken. 14:45 We're going to examine some principles, 14:47 some different counsels 14:48 that God gives to us in the Bible 14:50 to give that relationship 14:52 the best chance of being healed, 14:54 the best chance of being restored. 14:57 Sadly, 14:59 sometimes those relationships are never restored, 15:01 but we want to prayerfully look at the scriptures today 15:04 and say, "Lord, how can I preserve 15:07 and maintain or restore all my relationships 15:11 with my fellow church members as best as possible. 15:16 And so my number one favorite day 15:18 of this week's lesson study was found on Sunday. 15:20 And Sunday's points us to two very important individuals. 15:24 And those two important individuals... 15:27 Well, the first one is very famous. 15:30 In fact, the first one is so famous 15:31 that over the last 2,000 years, there's been thousands, 15:34 maybe millions of baby boys 15:36 that have been born to Christian parents, 15:39 and the Christian parents have decided to name their son 15:42 after the Apostle Paul. 15:45 And so we have many Pauls even in our generation 15:49 here in America today because of that. 15:51 And so Paul is one of the most famous individuals by far 15:56 in all of history 15:57 as well as in the Christian church and Bible. 16:00 Now the second individual is just as essential, 16:04 but it's interesting that he's not nearly as famous. 16:07 Has anybody ever ran into a Barnabas lately? 16:12 Okay, all right, no Barnabases. 16:15 I can't recall, maybe I have, 16:17 but if I have I can't recall ever running into a Barnabas. 16:21 And yet how many have known a Paul? 16:23 There might be a Paul in our midst today 16:24 or watching on the program here today. 16:27 Lots of Pauls but no Barnabases, 16:29 why is that? 16:31 Well, that's a whole other discussion. 16:33 Well, Barnabas's name actually... 16:35 His parents didn't name him Barnabas, by the way. 16:38 His actual original name was a Joses or a Joseph 16:42 depended on what manuscript evidence you look at. 16:44 So we know that his birth name 16:47 actually was something totally different. 16:49 You may not have known that Barnabas was the name 16:52 that the apostles gave to him. 16:54 And so his name was changed. 16:57 Saul's name was changed to Paul, 16:58 and so Paul's original name was not Paul, it was Saul, 17:03 and it was changed to Paul. 17:05 And here we have Barnabas's name was changed to... 17:08 Joseph's name was changed to Barnabas as well. 17:12 We also have Simon, one of the apostles, 17:14 his name was changed to Peter, okay? 17:18 So it's interesting how God has moved upon 17:21 some of the early leaders of the church 17:23 and gave them a new name. 17:25 Now what does Barnabas mean? 17:29 It means son of encouragement. Son of encouragement. 17:33 What an honor to have your name changed 17:35 to son of encouragement. 17:36 Now the Bible tells us that one of the spiritual gifts 17:38 is encouragement or edification to minister 17:41 and lift up our fellow Christians. 17:42 And so some of us have been endowed like Barnabas 17:45 with a spiritual gift 17:46 that when somebody is discouraged in the church, 17:49 you kind of just are one of the most natural people 17:50 to just kind of run in there and help encourage that person 17:55 through a difficult time that they may be going through 17:57 in their faith 17:58 or perhaps some challenges in their life and such. 18:01 Well, Barnabas lived out, and lived up to his name 18:04 as you look at Barnabas through the Book of Acts, 18:06 at least through the first 15 chapters 18:08 where he's talked about. 18:10 And so we're going to spend some time 18:12 just kind of tracing this beautiful relationship 18:14 between these two very important individuals. 18:17 In Acts Chapter 9, we find that Saul is converted 18:20 as he's making his way up to the north, 18:22 the far north of Israel to Damascus. 18:25 And as he's almost at Damascus, 18:27 of course, he has this encounter with Jesus. 18:29 To make a long story short, 18:30 we find that he eventually is born again 18:33 in the city of Damascus. 18:35 And rather than persecuting, 18:36 and trying to arrest, and imprison, 18:38 and even kill some of the Christians 18:39 as he had planned, 18:40 now he's fellowshipping with them 18:42 and he's praying on his knees with them, 18:44 he's standing up and he's preaching for them, 18:46 and he's just excited on fire for the Lord 18:50 because his eyes have been opened, 18:52 and he's a different person. 18:53 All things have been made new, 18:55 and now he realized that the very message 18:58 in religion that he was fighting against 19:00 is the very message of truth 19:03 that God has for mankind and for Paul. 19:07 Now when he returns back to the city of Jerusalem 19:10 where he had first started and such, 19:13 he naturally wants to find and share with other Christians 19:15 that his eyes have been opened, 19:17 to tell them that he's now full of the Holy Spirit, 19:19 and that he's a converted believer in Christ 19:22 just like they are, 19:23 so you can imagine Paul's excitement 19:24 when he gets back into Jerusalem 19:26 because he just wants to find 19:28 all the Christians he can find now, 19:29 but his motive is completely the opposite now, isn't it? 19:33 And so when he's out looking for the Christians, 19:36 he can't wait to be able to share with them. 19:38 But now we have to put ourselves 19:39 in the shoes of the Christians because when he left Jerusalem, 19:42 it had been many weeks, maybe months now 19:45 that he had been searching out imprisoning, torturing, 19:47 and killing Christians. 19:51 And so the more that the word got out 19:52 that Paul was trying to find them, 19:54 the more they kind of went into the woodwork 19:55 and try to hide from him. 19:57 And when the word got to them that Paul was converted 20:00 that he was now a Christian, 20:02 they had a hard time believing that, 20:03 and the Bible tells us so in that particular chapter. 20:08 And so they were filled with fear, and disbelief, 20:12 and naturally so. 20:15 Now we don't know how long it would be 20:16 before Paul was finally united 20:18 with the Christians in Jerusalem 20:20 if it wasn't for Barnabas. 20:21 But we do know that the Bible tells us 20:23 that Barnabas was the key mediator 20:26 that went and sought out, found Paul, 20:29 heard his story, 20:31 checked out his genuineness and so on, 20:34 and then took him and introduced him 20:36 to the very heart of Christianity. 20:38 He didn't just bring him to Mary's house 20:40 where there was a group of Christians, 20:41 but no, he brought him... 20:42 Maybe it was Mary's house where the apostles were, 20:45 but we find there that the apostles 20:47 is the first people that Barnabas introduces Paul to. 20:51 So he brings them 20:52 to the very heart of the Christian church, 20:54 to the apostles themselves. 20:57 We find that in verse 27. 20:59 It says, "But Barnabas took him, 21:01 and brought him to the apostles." 21:04 And so Barnabas finds himself as a mediator. 21:06 Now this is the spark of the beginning 21:08 of a lifelong relationship between these two men. 21:11 You can imagine how special 21:13 Barnabas immediately became to Paul 21:15 because Barnabas was the key to bringing Paul 21:19 and introducing him to the very heart 21:20 of the Christian Church. 21:23 Well, Paul's still excited for the Lord, 21:25 and so he is standing up before different Christians, 21:27 and synagogues, and on the street corners, 21:29 probably in the open courts of the temple, 21:31 and he's preaching Jesus now, he's preaching the very message 21:35 and the very person, Jesus, that he had been persecuting 21:38 and working against so strongly. 21:40 And so it took the Jews, the Jewish populations a while 21:44 to kind of come to grips with what happened 21:46 with this 180 change. 21:48 And, but it tells us that eventually 21:50 the heat rose to the point 21:51 where word got out to Paul and the Christian church 21:54 that they were going to kill Paul. 21:55 And so the Christian church wisely then kind of took Paul 21:58 probably in the night, 21:59 and brought him over to Caesarea, 22:02 which was a port city nearby 22:04 the main port city that they could find, 22:06 put him on a boat, 22:07 and sent him back to his home city of Tarsus, 22:09 where he can get some refuge and safety 22:11 until he kind of settled down in Jerusalem. 22:17 And so this was the beginning of a lifelong relationship 22:20 between these two men that were instrumental 22:23 in developing a network of churches 22:25 throughout the Roman Empire. 22:27 These are no small individuals in regards to God's plan 22:31 to spread and network His church 22:33 throughout the known world. 22:35 When we come to Acts 11, 22:37 we find that God leads Barnabas again 22:39 to take the lead. 22:40 Well, how does he take the lead this time? 22:43 Well, Barnabas visits the city by the name of Antioch. 22:46 Now Antioch is not in Israel, but it's just north of Israel. 22:50 And if you were to follow the Eastern Mediterranean Sea 22:52 that Israel kind of lines, 22:54 you'll find that almost at the very top 22:56 of that eastern shoreline, 22:57 you'll find another port city by the name of Antioch. 23:00 Now Antioch is a Roman city, 23:03 but because it's close enough to Jerusalem or anti-Israel, 23:06 we find that there's a substantial population 23:09 still of Jewish people there living as well. 23:12 And not only that, but there's a lot of Hellenists 23:14 that are living there. 23:15 And Hellenists are kind of Jews that have adopted the Jewish... 23:19 the Greek language, 23:21 the Greek culture in a large way. 23:22 And some of them had intermarried 23:23 with Greeks as well. 23:25 And so they were referred to as Hellenism. 23:27 And a lot of them weren't recognized 23:30 as complete Jews by the purists down 23:33 in Jerusalem and Judea. 23:35 And so word got out that there was, 23:37 the word was being spread out there, 23:38 and the gospel's being accepted by Hellenists. 23:40 These kind of half Jews, almost like a Samaritan type. 23:43 And so the brethren in Jerusalem had decided 23:49 to send Barnabas up north to Antioch, 23:52 and to give them a report. 23:54 Well after he gets up there, he's just so excited, 23:56 he encourages the church, 23:57 he sees the hand of the Lord there and such, 24:00 and then after a time 24:01 after he's finished his mission, 24:04 we find there is that that Barnabas decides 24:06 and was moved by God, I'm sure, 24:08 to go and get Saul and bring him back to Antioch. 24:11 Now, Barnabas, I'm sure 24:13 was acquainted with the geography of the time. 24:15 And as it turns out, when you look at a map, 24:17 Antioch is just a short boat ride 24:19 across the top eastern corner of the Mediterranean Sea 24:22 to get to the home city of Paul, Tarsus. 24:26 And that's where, of course, 24:27 where the Christian church last sent him. 24:31 And so Barnabas leaves the city of Antioch. 24:34 Now the city of Antioch is a fascinating city 24:36 as we'll continue to see here 24:37 because Antioch was the most fitting port city 24:41 that was as north as you could get from Israel 24:44 without entering into the full blown Gentile world 24:48 of the Western Empire. 24:50 And so we find there that Paul is... 24:54 or not Paul, but Barnabas and Paul 24:56 eventually become sponsored from this, 24:58 and Antioch becomes the kind of bridge city, 25:01 the kind of the missionary outpost 25:04 to the Gentile world that God had intended 25:07 for them to reach. 25:10 Well, after Barnabas goes to Saul, Tarsus, 25:12 he finds Saul, and sure enough, 25:13 again as he did before in Jerusalem, 25:15 he takes Saul back to Antioch, 25:17 introduces him to this key church, 25:19 and God is working through all this, of course, 25:22 to be able to establish this church 25:23 as the missionary outpost, 25:25 but also Paul and Barnabas as the key missionaries. 25:28 And so the Bible tells us 25:30 that they spent a year there together. 25:32 And so Saul and Barnabas are Paul and Barnabas, 25:36 spent a year working hand-in-hand preaching, 25:39 teaching, evangelizing the great city of Antioch. 25:42 It is in the city of Antioch 25:43 that we are first called Christians by the way. 25:47 And so that's an interesting key trivia 25:52 and point there as well. 25:53 And so the people outside of the church 25:55 started to call as Christians, 25:56 those who are followers of Christ. 26:00 Now Antioch now becomes the missionary outpost center. 26:04 And in Acts 12, Paul and Barnabas finish... 26:07 After they finish delivering some food 26:10 to the city of Jerusalem, 26:11 there was a famine that had been prophesied, 26:13 and predicted, and sure enough it came in Jerusalem, 26:15 the land of Judea and such 26:17 and other parts of the known world. 26:19 And so they, Paul and Barnabas, were sent by Antioch 26:21 to bring a number of generous donations 26:24 to be able to feed those particular hungry Christians 26:28 that were back in Jerusalem and in Judea. 26:31 And after they finish their business, 26:33 the Bible tells us in Acts 12 26:34 that they return back to the city of Antioch, 26:36 and when they return, 26:38 they bring with them a young man, 26:40 a promising young man for ministry 26:42 and his name is John, John Mark is his full name. 26:47 Now he is famously known 26:48 as the author of the gospel of... 26:50 Not the Gospel of John, but the Gospel of Mark. 26:55 Now some of you may not know this, 26:56 but Mark is not his first name. 27:00 If you're to address him formally, 27:01 you would call him Mr. Mark, and that is because 27:04 Mark was his last name, it was his surname. 27:07 His first name was John. 27:09 Now why they decided to call him Mark, 27:12 I can't find any Bible verse that tells us for sure, 27:15 but I would put my money on the fact 27:17 that there was a very prominent apostle 27:19 by the name of John already, 27:22 and so in order to avoid confusion, 27:24 they decided to call Mark, Mark, or John Mark, 27:26 Mark by his last name, 27:28 so they could have an easy distinction between the two. 27:34 And so they bring this young man 27:36 by the name of Mark. 27:37 Now Mark was the son of a key figure in Jerusalem. 27:39 And that key figure's name was Mary. 27:43 Now, no, this is not the mother of Jesus, 27:45 not Mary, the mother of Jesus, but rather this is Mary 27:49 who is a prominent figure 27:50 and a prominent Christian in Jerusalem 27:52 that hosted the church quite often in her home. 27:55 And so I'm guessing she was one of more privilege, 27:58 had a larger home, had more room 28:01 to accommodate worship services and so on. 28:04 Many of us are familiar with the story 28:05 when Peter was imprisoned, and he was on death row. 28:08 King Herod was going to kill him the next morning. 28:10 God delivers him with an angel through the night, 28:12 Peter comes and starts to rap on the door of Mary. 28:16 And all the Christians, and all of them, 28:18 but there is certainly a substantial group in there 28:21 that were praying on their knees, 28:23 you know, "Lord, please deliver Peter. 28:25 Don't let him die tomorrow as planned." 28:27 And God answered their prayers, didn't He? 28:30 And so it was Mary's home. 28:32 And so inevitably, John Mark or Mark as we know him 28:36 would have been in that group praying 28:38 for Peter's deliverance. 28:39 And so now we have Paul, and Barnabas, 28:42 and Mark perhaps had approached them, 28:45 perhaps they approached him, we don't know the details 28:47 but somehow there was a sense of the calling 28:49 that God had called Mark to be a minister 28:51 and a missionary for the Lord. 28:55 And then we come to Acts 13. 28:57 In Acts 13, God tells the Antioch Church 29:00 now as He leads through a number of different prophets. 29:03 He says, "I want you to ordain both Paul and Barnabas, 29:08 and I want you to send them out 29:10 as the first sponsored missionaries 29:12 that the Christian church has ever officially sent." 29:15 And so this is an exciting story 29:17 because these are the first 29:18 official sponsored missionaries. 29:21 And so after the ordination, of course, 29:24 they begin to make their plans, and they jump in a boat, 29:26 and they sail out to a substantial island 29:29 towards the Western Mediterranean Sea 29:31 called Cyprus. 29:33 Now I want just to stop for a moment, 29:36 and imagine how close 29:38 these two Christian brothers are at this point. 29:42 They've spent several years together, 29:43 they've traveled, they evangelized together, 29:46 they've sat in people's home giving Bible studies 29:48 with people that are learning 29:50 the truth in the gospel for the first time. 29:53 These are close, close brothers in the Lord. 29:58 All right, chapter 13 in the same chapter verse 5, 30:00 it tells us that John Mark is taken as an assistant. 30:05 And so we find that the first missionary team 30:07 was actually made up of three, we have Paul, we have Barnabas, 30:12 and then we also have Mark 30:14 or John Mark as his full name is. 30:17 And it tells us very clearly 30:19 that he's recognized as an assistant, 30:20 so he's not ordained at this point, 30:22 but he's coming along as kind of as an assistant 30:25 to get his feet wet a little bit in the ministry, 30:27 he doesn't have the experience 30:28 of Paul and the Barnabas both have in preaching, 30:30 and evangelizing, and such, 30:33 and so he comes along as an assistant. 30:37 Let's read that in... 30:39 Read more about that in Acts 13:13. 30:43 Let's go to Acts 13 now. 30:50 Acts 13:13, 30:57 because we find here 30:58 after they had gone through about... 30:59 Now the first missionary tour that took place 31:04 was the shortest one that Paul and Barnabas went on. 31:08 And so the three main tours or missionary trips 31:10 that Paul went on, this was the shortest. 31:12 But half way through that particular missionary tour, 31:18 we find here that John Mark kind of falls short. 31:22 Let's find that, Acts 13:13, and we have a volunteer 31:27 that's going to read that for us. 31:28 Go ahead kindly. 31:31 "Now when Paul and his party set sail from Paphos, 31:34 they came to Perga in Pamphylia, 31:37 and John, departing from them, returned to Jerusalem." 31:41 Okay, so here we find 31:44 that the party is going in one direction, 31:46 that's Paul and Barnabas, and Mark kind of bails out. 31:50 And we don't know all the details, 31:52 but we can only guess, you know, being a missionary, 31:55 my hat goes off to missionaries, 31:56 can you say amen to that? 31:58 My hat goes off to missionaries. 31:59 I have done some short mission trips 32:02 to some of the Caribbean Islands, and so on. 32:05 And when you've been brought up in the standard of living 32:07 that you have in America, 32:08 and my years that I grew up in Canada, 32:11 and you go to some of these developing countries, 32:13 you realize how blessed you really are. 32:16 And so the rigors of missionary work 32:20 is a great sacrifice. 32:23 And God calls very special people 32:26 to be able to make that sacrifice 32:27 and continue to bring the gospel 32:29 to all points of the planet. 32:33 And so... 32:34 But it's a very rigorous. 32:36 And in the travels back then, of course, 32:38 were very primitive compared to today, 32:39 they didn't have nice seats, 32:41 we complain about the little seats 32:43 that are shrinking in our planes, 32:44 well, they would love to have those seats, 32:46 you know, compared to being on a ship 32:47 and throwing up over the edge of the sea, 32:50 and it didn't smell too good all the time, 32:53 they didn't have the sanitation 32:54 and sewer systems that we have on our ships today. 32:57 And so it was rough. 32:59 And, of course, their lives were in danger all the time. 33:01 And we read about Paul, and Barnabas, and Silas, 33:04 I mean they had a lot of scars on their back 33:06 because of some of the different whippings, 33:08 and beatings, and stonings that they had been exposed to. 33:13 And so Mark goes home, and he gets on the ship, 33:17 and he says, "Sorry, I just can't take this anymore, 33:19 I've got to go home and kind of regroup." 33:21 And so he goes home, and Paul and Barnabas goes on, 33:24 and they continue and finish their tour. 33:29 Well, Paul was not happy about this. 33:32 Barnabas was a little bit more discerning, 33:34 he was a little bit more sensitive. 33:36 Paul was a go-getter, he was a real accomplisher, 33:39 and God needed an individual like that 33:42 to be able to accomplish the very vigorous plan 33:45 that God had for him. 33:46 And... 33:47 But one of the shortcomings 33:48 sometimes with that kind of personality is that 33:50 you don't have very much tolerance for those of you, 33:52 for those who aren't quite as rigorous as you are, 33:55 and quite as thick skinned as you are perhaps and such. 33:58 And so Paul apparently writes off Mark, 34:01 and he just writes him off, and says, 34:03 "Well, obviously he's not cut out 34:04 for the rigors of missionary life." 34:07 And so that's the end of Paul, 34:09 I mean the end of Mark in Paul's mind. 34:13 Well, how do we know this? 34:14 Well, we find it in Acts 15:36. 34:17 Let's go to Acts Chapter 15. Acts Chapter 15. 34:26 In Acts 15:36, 34:28 we'll read right to the end of the chapter there. 34:30 It says "Then after some days Paul said to Barnabas, 34:33 'Let us now go back and visit our brethren in every city 34:37 where we have preached the word of the Lord, 34:39 and see how they are doing.' 34:41 Now Barnabas was determined to take with them 34:43 John called Mark." 34:45 Well, there it goes. 34:46 Okay, "But Paul insisted 34:48 that they should not take with them the one 34:50 who had departed from them in Pamphylia, 34:52 and had not gone with them to the work." 34:55 And so Paul completely opposed and is not interested 34:59 in cooperating with Mark coming along. 35:02 Verse 39 says, 35:03 "Then the contention became so sharp 35:06 that they parted from one another. 35:07 And so Barnabas took Mark and sailed to Cyprus," 35:10 which was retracing the same route 35:13 that they did on their last tour, 35:15 the first tour. 35:16 "But Paul chose Silas and departed, 35:19 being commended by the brethren to the grace of God. 35:21 And he went through Syria and Cilicia, 35:24 strengthening the churches." 35:27 And so it turns out that Paul chose another partner. 35:29 He said, "Listen, Barnabas, 35:30 if you're going to take along Mark, 35:31 I'm not going." 35:33 And Barnabas said, "Listen, 35:34 if you're not going to let me take along Mark, 35:35 I'm not going." 35:37 And so they both had... 35:38 There's two key words in that one key verse there, 35:40 around verse 40, what was that? 35:41 Contention and sharp. 35:44 Does that sound like a good conversation? 35:47 Okay, all right. 35:49 So this is more of an argument, isn't it? 35:51 Okay, and so they're butting heads, 35:53 and they're not moving, 35:55 they're both putting their heels in, 35:56 and they're saying we're not moving, 35:57 and so finally Paul says, "Well, that's it, 35:59 I'm dropping you and Mark. I'm going to take Silas. 36:02 And I'm going to take Silas and we're going to go up 36:04 and we're going to do a different missionary trip." 36:05 And so they took the land route 36:07 around the top of the Mediterranean Sea 36:09 to get into the West, and as we just read, 36:11 we find that Barnabas took Mark 36:13 and went back to their original tour, 36:16 the first tour at Cyprus. 36:20 I want to read something here from lesson, 36:22 from the lesson we're looking out on page 81. 36:26 And so if you have your lesson books, 36:27 you can turn there with me if you wish. 36:30 And I'm going to read a quote from one of my favorite books, 36:33 it comes from the Acts of the Apostles, page 170. 36:36 The Acts of the Apostles written by Ellen White. 36:38 And it says this, it says, "This desertion caused Paul 36:42 to judge Mark unfavorably, and even severely, for a time. 36:46 Barnabas, on the other hand, 36:48 was inclined to excuse him because of his inexperience. 36:51 He felt anxious that Mark 36:52 should not abandon the ministry, 36:54 for he saw in him qualifications 36:56 that would fit him to be a useful worker for Christ." 37:00 And so thank God for Barnabas in this case, right? 37:04 Then it goes on as the lesson study reflects on that. 37:06 It says, "Although God used all these men," 37:08 and I like that. 37:09 God is still using each of these men, isn't He? 37:11 Even as they departed 37:12 with different partners in mission, 37:15 God is still working through them in spite of them, 37:18 and I take encouragement in that 37:21 that God can work through me in spite of me. 37:24 "Although God used all these men, 37:26 the issues between them needed resolution." 37:29 That was not to be ignored. 37:30 "The apostle who preached grace needed to extend grace 37:34 to a young preacher who had disappointed him. 37:36 The apostle forgiveness needed to forgive. 37:39 John Mark grew 37:41 in the affirming mentorship of Barnabas," 37:44 Acts 15:39, "and eventually 37:47 Paul's heart was apparently touched by the changes. 37:54 And so this broke, two key relationships. 37:56 Paul now has two broken relationships. 37:58 He has a broken relationship 38:00 with a longtime companion and friend 38:01 by the name of Barnabas, 38:03 and he also has a broken relationship 38:05 with a new found relationship and friendship 38:08 that he had with another upstart 38:10 by the name of Mark. 38:12 And so Barnabas is not mentioned again 38:16 for the rest of Acts. 38:17 You know, I started to look at the Concordance and I said, 38:19 "Well, Barnabas must come up later, 38:20 there must be some kind of reconciliation, something." 38:22 Well, but there's nothing. 38:23 Barnabas just disappears 38:24 off the map for the rest of the book. 38:27 And so then I thought to myself, 38:28 "Well, maybe God just wants to leave it open-ended. 38:30 He just doesn't tell us 38:31 that they reconciled one with another." 38:34 But as I looked at the Concordance, 38:35 I found that there was one more time 38:37 that Barnabas is mentioned, 38:39 and it's mentioned by Paul himself 38:40 as Paul is writing back to a church 38:42 that he had planted in Corinth on his second tour. 38:46 And come with me to 1 Corinthians 9:5-6. 38:51 So let's read it together. 38:52 It's the last mention of Barnabas. 38:54 Okay, we're going to 1 Corinthians 9... 39:03 and 5-6. 39:04 And we have a volunteer here. 39:05 Seth is going to read for us, thank you. 39:08 1 Corinthians 9:5-6, 39:12 "Do we not have a right to take along a believing wife, 39:15 even as rest of the apostles 39:17 and the brothers of the Lord and Cephas? 39:20 Or do only Barnabas and I 39:22 not have a right to refrain from working?" 39:25 Okay, thank you. 39:26 So here we have poor Paul as he is so often, 39:28 he's defending himself by false accusers 39:31 and false accusations that are taking place 39:32 while he's out of town. 39:35 And how often that happens, say they're taking advantage, 39:38 that the accusers are waiting till Paul's out of town, 39:41 and then they start running him down. 39:43 And, so Paul here is defending himself, 39:46 and he says, "Do we not have the right 39:48 to bring along a believing wife as also the other apostles." 39:51 And so here we find some interesting evidence 39:54 that reveals that most of the apostles 39:56 traveled with their wife. 39:58 And it's interesting that the only apostle 40:00 that is mentioned by name is Cephus. 40:02 Now, Cephus is another name for Peter. 40:06 And so Peter is on record of traveling with his wife. 40:10 Now this doesn't work very well with a Roman Church tradition 40:14 that tells its people that, that Peter is the first pope, 40:19 and that both the pope 40:20 and its army of cardinals, and priests, 40:24 and so on are forbidden to marry and have a wife. 40:27 And yet we have Peter, 40:28 who's claimed to be the first pope 40:30 is sleeping with his wife every night. 40:34 Isn't that interesting? 40:35 It's almost like God put that there on purpose, 40:37 I'm not sure. 40:38 But anyway that's a sideline. Okay, so 1 Corinthians. 40:43 Now, what we need to pick up here is that 40:45 on the first tour that Paul and Barnabas went on, 40:49 they never made it to the city of Corinth, 40:51 they never made it to the city of Corinth. 40:57 So when Paul is writing back and mentioning Barnabas, 41:00 that gives us very clear evidence 41:03 that Barnabas had reckoned, 41:04 not only reconciled back with Paul, 41:06 but had joined hands with Paul and his crew, 41:09 and on the third missionary trip, 41:11 inevitably traveled with Paul 41:13 as well as individuals, now we have Mark, 41:15 who is also with them now as well, 41:17 and then we also have Luke, 41:20 who is with them and named as well, 41:22 as well as some other individuals. 41:23 And so the crew has built itself up a little bit bigger 41:26 by the time they get to the third missionary tour, 41:28 and we find that Barnabas is part of it again. 41:31 Isn't that good news? Why? 41:33 Because it tells us that Barnabas and Paul 41:35 worked out their differences and their hurts, 41:38 and they restored their relationship, 41:40 and a working relationship, 41:42 and friendship one back with another. 41:44 And so I found that very encouraging 41:47 as I continued to do some investigation there 41:50 and work that out. 41:52 Okay, let's go to 2 Timothy Chapter 4. 41:55 We're going to go to 2 Timothy. 42:00 And when we go to 2 Timothy, every time I go there, 42:02 I go there kind of solemnly because 2 Timothy 42:05 is kind of the last words that Paul is writing 42:10 to his fellow worker by the name of Timothy 42:13 and fellow missionary. 42:15 But it's just kind of his last words 42:16 if we could say it. 42:18 He's about to lose his life, 42:20 he's about to be executed by the Roman authorities. 42:22 And so God inspires him to write this last word, 42:25 this last letter. 42:28 And we would come to the last chapter, 42:31 we come to verse 11, 42:32 and we're going to ask our last volunteer, Dianna, 42:34 to kindly read that for us. 42:36 2 Timothy 4:11, "Only Luke is with me. 42:41 Get Mark and bring him with you, 42:43 for he is useful to me for ministry." 42:46 Can you say amen? 42:48 All right, so he's saying, listen only Luke is with me. 42:50 And Paul is writing from his prison 42:52 at home and such in the city of Rome, 42:55 and he's saying, "Oh, make sure you bring Mark 42:56 because Mark is useful to me." 42:58 Do you see a restored relationship there, friends? 43:02 There's a beautiful restored relationship 43:03 that is found there in that powerful verse. 43:05 Thank God for that verse. 43:08 And so Mark is very obviously on record 43:09 of becoming a very valued missionary 43:11 and accomplished minister of the Lord. 43:14 And Paul recognizes that, 43:15 and already has some very good experiences on the road 43:18 and in the field with him in the years passed. 43:21 In fact, God saw Mark is so powerful and so important 43:24 that He actually gave Mark 43:26 the privilege of writing one of the four gospels 43:28 on the life teachings, death, and resurrection of Jesus. 43:32 And so Mark becomes a very prominent 43:34 important individual in the early Christian Church. 43:38 Well, you see that we have a few minutes left, 43:39 and I want to spend the last few minutes 43:41 just running through a very important subject 43:43 that is found in the later days studying our lesson, 43:47 and that is the subject of forgiveness. 43:50 Forgiveness is a huge subject, 43:52 and I wish we had a whole session 43:53 just to look at that, 43:54 maybe we will in the future some day. 43:58 Did Barnabas need to forgive Paul 44:00 for Paul's overly harsh judgment of Mark, 44:03 and also not trusting at Barnabas' discernment? 44:05 You know, Barnabas said, 44:07 "Listen, this is my take on Mark. 44:08 I really think there's a lot of potential. 44:10 Yes, he kind of had a bump in the road there, 44:13 but we all do. 44:14 So let's just take him under a wing 44:16 and give him another shot." 44:17 And Paul said, "Absolutely not, you know. 44:20 I'll go a different way, 44:22 and I'll pick somebody else if it takes it. 44:24 Did Paul need to... 44:25 I mean did Barnabas need to forgive Paul? 44:28 Yeah, he did. 44:29 Sure there were some hurtful words, 44:31 and some hurtful stands that Paul had made. 44:34 Did Paul need to forgive Mark 44:35 for bailing on them in the first mission trip? 44:38 Sure he did. 44:39 Now we don't know if he forgave him 44:41 before he went on that second mission trip 44:43 and refused to bring Mark with him. 44:46 He might have forgave him but still judged him and said, 44:48 "Listen, I don't think 44:49 that you're cut out for the mission field." 44:52 Did Mark need to forgive Paul for writing him off so quickly? 44:58 Sure, you think Mark was hurt by that? 45:00 Of course, he was, yeah, 45:01 maybe even overheard some of those conversations 45:03 between Paul and Barnabas, 45:05 and poor Mark's maybe in the room, 45:06 and he's heard them argue over 45:08 whether Mark's going to come or not, 45:09 and Paul says, "No way, that guy's not cut out for it, 45:11 I don't think he has it. 45:12 I don't believe in him." 45:14 And so was Mark hurt? Sure he was. 45:17 And so Mark had to forgive Paul for writing him off so quickly. 45:21 You see, friends, 45:22 forgiveness is at the very heart of the gospel. 45:24 It is a permanent attitude of God's heart, 45:27 and that's why when we see the Son of God, 45:29 and we have to remember when we see Jesus on the cross, 45:32 Jesus had said just hours before that, 45:34 He said, "When you see Me, you have seen the Father." 45:39 And so when Jesus cried out to his opposers, 45:41 to those who were spitting on Him, 45:43 and mocking Him, 45:44 and cheering on His death and His suffering, 45:46 He said, "Forgive them, 45:49 for they know not what they do." 45:51 Is that the heart of the Father? 45:53 Sure it is. 45:54 You have seen Me, you have seen the Father. 45:57 And so we find that 45:58 at the very heart of God's existence, 46:00 in the very heart of God's heart, 46:02 there is an attitude 46:03 that is a permanent attitude of forgiveness. 46:06 God desires and wants to forgive us. 46:10 And so because of this, because we're called 46:12 to reflect the heart of God as Christians, 46:14 our personal spiritual and emotional well-being 46:17 depends largely on having that same attitude, 46:21 the same attitude that God had as well. 46:25 What is forgiveness? 46:29 What is forgiveness? 46:31 That's important for us to stop and just pause for a moment. 46:33 Forgiveness is letting go. 46:37 It's letting go of a wrong that is against you. 46:39 Somebody has offended you, and you have chosen 46:42 not to hold that against that person, in case, 46:45 it's very important for us to understand 46:46 what forgiveness even is. 46:48 Now this is the most common question 46:50 that is asked by many people. 46:52 Many people that have sat down with us Christians 46:54 have asked this question. 46:55 Does forgiveness tell the offender 46:57 that what they did was okay? 47:00 If I choose to forgive somebody that has offended me, 47:03 am I telling that person, it's okay? 47:05 There's a certain part of us, 47:06 and I've heard this over and over 47:08 that have a hard time separating the two, 47:11 and they say, "Well, if I forgive that person 47:13 who has done such a serious offense against me 47:16 or a loved one that I know or friend, if I forgive them, 47:19 then it's like condoning what they did, 47:21 it's like approving what they did." 47:24 And that's not just true. 47:25 For those of you who may be watching on program here today 47:28 or in the future, those of you here today, 47:30 I want to put it in a way 47:32 that might help you to understand. 47:34 Have you ever... 47:35 Has anybody here ever forgiven somebody 47:36 for doing something good to them? 47:40 Anybody ever came up to somebody and said, 47:43 "You know, John, you know, the other day 47:45 you just did such a kind act to me, 47:47 you know, when you help me into the car there, 47:48 when I couldn't get in, I broke my leg, 47:50 I just want to forgive you for that." 47:54 Okay, all right, some of you are chuckling. 47:56 We don't forgive people for doing good, do we? 47:58 The very act of forgiving is actually confirming that 48:03 what that person did was wrong, okay? 48:07 So I hope that helps a little bit 48:10 'cause sometimes we hesitate to do 48:12 what God has asked us to do, which is forgive. 48:15 By the way, the Lord's Prayer says, 48:18 "Forgive us our sins, 48:20 even as we forgive those who sin against us." 48:25 And so God has called us 48:26 to have a continual attitude of forgiveness 48:28 toward our fellow man, 48:30 and toward our fellow members, and so that's important. 48:35 And so to forgive somebody is actually the opposite. 48:37 You're confirming that what they did was wrong, 48:39 you're saying to that person, 48:40 "Even though you did what was wrong, 48:42 I choose to let it go, 48:44 I choose not to hold it against you, 48:46 and it both frees my heart and my spirit, 48:50 and it also frees your heart and your spirit," 48:53 and gives the offender a much better opportunity 48:55 to be able to change 48:57 and do what's right in the future. 48:59 And so not only are you liberating yourself, 49:01 but you're also giving opportunity 49:02 to liberate the offender as well. 49:04 And so that's very important for us 49:07 to be able to understand in regards to forgiveness. 49:13 And I see here that we're on the very last minutes 49:16 of our program here, 49:18 and I just want to ask you a question. 49:20 Did everyone at Christ's crucifixion repent? 49:25 No. Okay. 49:27 Did Jesus ask for the forgiveness 49:29 of all that were in the crowd? 49:31 Yes. Okay. 49:32 As Christians we are called 49:33 to have an attitude of forgiveness 49:35 even if the person chooses not to repent 49:37 because that's another question some people ask me as a pastor. 49:39 "Pastor, if that person hasn't repented, 49:41 if they haven't given any indication or demonstration 49:43 that they are changing their offending ways, 49:47 should I forgive them?" 49:48 And the answer is yes. Okay. Why? 49:52 Again, because you're liberating your own spirit 49:54 and your own attitude in your heart, 49:56 but you're also giving them a bigger opportunity 49:59 to liberate their spirit as well 50:00 because now they're not rocked with guilt 50:02 every time they see you, 50:03 and they know that you're holding something against them. 50:06 And so that's important as well. 50:09 And so love, forgiveness, this is all part of healing 50:13 and maintaining our broken relationships. 50:18 I hope for those of you who are watching, 50:19 I know that some of you have tuned in 50:21 after we already offered our free offer. 50:23 We'd like to offer that just one more time 50:25 before we say goodbye today. 50:26 And today's offer is "The Surrender of Self." 50:30 Now that may sound a little bit confusing, 50:32 you're wondering, "Do I want to surrender myself?" 50:34 And the answer is, 50:35 if you want to be liberated, yes. 50:37 And so, you just have to call into 1-866-788-3966 50:42 and ask for offer number 153, 50:44 and we'll be happy to send that out to you 50:46 if you're in America or North America 50:48 I should say in American territories. 50:50 If you'd like a digital download, 50:51 you can text on your phone to 40544 50:56 and you just text the code "SH087," 50:59 we'll be happy to send you a digital download for free 51:03 and help you to study, continue to grow. 51:05 So until next week, don't forget, 51:07 we're praying for you, we love you, 51:08 we look forward to seeing you again. 51:10 God bless. 51:12 Don't forget to request 51:13 today's life changing free resource. 51:15 Not only can you receive this free gift in the mail, 51:18 you can download a digital copy straight to your computer 51:20 or mobile device. 51:21 To get your digital copy of today's free gift, 51:24 simply text the key word on your screen to 40544 51:28 or visit the web address shown on your screen, 51:31 and be sure to select that digital download option 51:33 on the request page. 51:35 It's more easier than ever for you to study God's Word 51:38 with Amazing Facts wherever and whenever you want, 51:41 and most important to share it with others. 51:46 Can't get enough Amazing Facts Bible Study? 51:49 You don't have to wait until next week 51:51 to enjoy more truth-filled programming. 51:54 Visit the Amazing Facts Media Library at aftv.org. 51:59 At aftv.org, you can enjoy video 52:02 and audio presentations 52:04 as well as printed material all free of charge, 52:07 24 hours a day, 7 days a week 52:10 right from your computer or mobile device. 52:12 Visit aftv.org. 52:20 Amazing Facts Changed Lives. 52:27 Early 1980, 52:28 all the baby boomers were turning 21. 52:31 The night club scenes were exploding 52:33 and I started an entertainment lighting company. 52:35 I was the president, and there were six divisions 52:38 doing the raves in the '80s and '90s, 52:40 you know, in some warehouse, 52:42 where you're setting up lighting, 52:43 and fog, and, you know, 52:44 who knows what's going on in there, 52:46 and nightclub, nightclub installations, 52:49 I loved it, and it was who I was. 52:52 Bought a new house out of town, 52:53 and we moved about two, three times, 52:56 but we were always going to different churches. 52:58 We're in a Lutheran church, 52:59 then we are in the Methodist church, 53:01 and then we went to three different Baptist churches. 53:04 My wife was raised Catholic, I was raised Methodist. 53:06 Currently, I've been out 53:07 reading all the Helen Zille books, 53:09 and watching all the Left Behind movies. 53:11 So I really wanted to understand 53:13 what the Book of Revelation was all about, 53:14 but nothing really ever made sense to me. 53:17 One day Pastor Lloyd Logan came knocking, 53:20 and he had that net 99 flyer. 53:23 We were preparing for an evangelistic series. 53:27 And different people were going different directions 53:29 with those handbills 53:31 to invite people to the meetings. 53:34 I saw that coming at me, you know, all the colors, 53:36 and I thought, "Oh, no, 53:37 this is some kind of cult thing." 53:39 And she said, "Thank you very much, 53:40 I'm not much interested myself, 53:43 but my husband like that kind of thing." 53:45 Then Lloyd said, "Would you give it to him please?" 53:48 And I said, "Okay, I will." 53:51 So I took the pamphlet and I put in on the counter. 53:54 Gary came home and he walked by it. 53:56 Ran to the kitchen to quickly eat, 53:58 and take a shower, and go back out, 54:00 and work a show. 54:01 Two, three days went by like this, 54:03 and I moved that brochure from the counter, 54:06 put it on the dining table, put it back on the counter, 54:10 in fact I actually threw in the garbage. 54:12 As I threw it in that garbage can, 54:14 I could hear him, and see his face saying, 54:17 "Would you give it to him, please?" 54:19 And I actually took the garbage out, 54:21 and that night lying in bed, I kept seeing his face 54:24 and hearing his voice and thinking, "Oh, boy, 54:26 I got to get that brochure out of the garbage." 54:30 And I took that, and I put it 54:31 right underneath remote control, 54:34 bright colors, he'll see it. 54:36 I finally sat down in my living room, 54:38 and I picked up the remote, 54:39 I saw that angel holding up that scroll. 54:41 Wow, cool, what is this? 54:44 And I was in the kitchen cooking, I thought, "Oh, no." 54:48 And I looked at it, and I turned it over, 54:49 and then I saw a little building, 54:51 little church building, and it wasn't too far away, 54:54 it was about six houses down. 54:56 And it said, "Friday night." 54:57 And I certainly wasn't going. 55:00 I mean, it wasn't my intention to go. 55:01 I didn't have any shows going on that night. 55:03 And so I thought it was a one night deal, 55:06 and I went, and as I heard about the Millennium Man, 55:09 I was just blown away. 55:11 I didn't want it to end, I knew what I was hearing 55:13 was all from the Scripture, 55:15 and it wasn't based on Hollywood movies 55:16 or other books that were written. 55:18 They said, "Come again tomorrow night." 55:20 And I thought, "Wow, great! Two nights. 55:22 So I tried to tell my wife about it, 55:24 and she still wasn't interested, 55:26 and then she decided to come. 55:27 I started to hear the truth, you know, I started to get fed. 55:31 Every night after the seminar, 55:33 he would hand us an Amazing Facts study guide. 55:36 I couldn't do those fast enough. 55:37 The business kept us going seven days a week, 55:40 and it was night and day. 55:42 Crew working all around the clock, 55:44 and so when we finally heard the Sabbath message, you know, 55:47 so far everything has been true, 55:48 that's from the Bible. 55:49 Church on Saturday, no work, anyway it all clicked. 55:53 Both our heads turned at each other, 55:55 our jaws dropped open. 55:57 I said, "We can't do that." 56:00 And the first thing that came out of my mouth was, 56:02 "We have to." 56:03 I knew that it would be a sacrifice, 56:06 and I was in fear about it. 56:08 We didn't know how we're going to do it, 56:10 but we talked to the pastor about it, 56:13 and the pastor said, 56:14 "We'll just pray about it, and God will open door. 56:16 I didn't want to give up all the connections I made, 56:19 all the networking, 56:20 all the money, all the investment. 56:22 We went to the board and asked them 56:24 if they would consider closing on Saturday, 56:27 and they agreed to. 56:28 So we closed the store front on Saturday, 56:30 but we were still doing productions, 56:32 and that kind of bothered us. 56:33 So a couple of months later, God opened a door for my wife, 56:37 she exited the company, I prayed about it, 56:39 and God opened a door for me too. 56:41 Gary, shortly after, was offered a job 56:44 being paid more money 56:46 than he made as an owner of the company. 56:49 He said, "I will give you a $1,000 raise, 56:52 and you will never work another weekend." 56:54 And we were able to keep the Sabbath 56:56 and enjoy the wonderful blessings 56:59 that God had for us on the Sabbath day. 57:02 And my kids never again had to say, 57:03 "Quit talking about work." 57:05 After the seminar, we'd go over, my wife and I, 57:07 and my children were all baptized 57:09 into the Seventh-day Adventist Church. 57:11 Even if I gave up everything, 57:12 I knew that God would have something better. 57:15 I have much more understanding, and there's much more depth 57:19 in my Christian walk with the Lord. 57:22 We started an Amazing Facts Bible school at a church 57:25 that allows anybody to understand the Scripture, 57:27 to understand the end times. 57:29 Church changed my life dramatically, 57:31 and I'm very happy and excited to be a part of it. 57:43 Did you know that Noah was present 57:44 at the birth of Abraham? 57:46 Okay, maybe he wasn't in the room, 57:48 but he was alive and probably telling stories 57:51 about his floating zoo. 57:53 From the creation of the world 57:55 to the last day events of Revelation, 57:57 biblehistory.com is a free resource 58:00 where you can explore 58:01 major Bible events and characters. 58:03 Enhance your knowledge of the Bible 58:05 and draw closer to God's Word. 58:08 Go deeper. 58:09 Visit the amazing Bible Timeline 58:11 at biblehistory.com. |
Revised 2018-12-03