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Shawn Brummund: Hello, friends.
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Welcome to
another edition of the
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"Sabbath School Study Hour."
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It is good to be able to be here
in the Granite Bay Seventh-day
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Adventist Church here in
the Greater Sacramento area,
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and it is always a pleasure
to be able to invite our local
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church members,
different visitors,
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friends that have come to
join us here in our sanctuary.
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It is always good to be able
to have those who are joining us
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live as you--many are
watching across the country,
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different places of the world,
and then, of course, for those
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of you who are viewing
this particular program on the
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various television networks.
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It is always a pleasure
to be able to come together,
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to be able to study God's Word,
and to be able to understand the
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truth that God would have
us understand as we continue
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to go through one of
my favorite subjects,
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our quarterly which is
entitled "Rest in Christ."
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And we're going to be
studying lesson number nine.
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As you saw on the screen
and in the intro already,
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this is "Rhythms of Rest."
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And so we continue to
look at that important subject,
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"Rhythms of Rest."
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Now, before we get into
our study and we invite Pastor
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Luccas and our
singers up forward here today,
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I want to invite you to take
advantage of a free-gift offer
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that we have for you.
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In this case, it is entitled
"Is Obedience Legalism?"
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Is obedience legalism?
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Now, you can see the
toll-free number on your screen.
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The free offer is number 706.
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That's--and you just
have to dial 1-866-788-3966.
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That's 1-866-Study-More.
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And that's
available in North America
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and the
different US territories.
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Now, we also have a digital
version of this available
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for free that you can
download to your phone,
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to your tablet, et cetera.
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And in that case, you just
need to text the code "SH041,"
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and you want to dial
that to the number 40544.
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And--so if you've
never studied this lesson,
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this is a great study guide.
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I have studied
through it myself.
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I know many people
that I've studied with it.
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It is a very important question.
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Is obedience legalism?
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And so please take advantage
of that free-gift offer.
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We have some singers and
musicians that are going to be
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blessing us as we continue
to praise the Lord in song.
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¤¤¤
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¤¤¤
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¤ Joy is the time I
feel that I've been caught ¤
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¤ in the mire of self. ¤
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¤ Joy is the time I
feel my mind's been bought ¤
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¤ by worldly wealth. ¤
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¤ That's when the
breeze begins to blow. ¤
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¤ I know the spirit's calm ¤
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¤ and all my worldly
wanderings just melt ¤
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¤ into His love. ¤
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¤ Oh, I want to know You more. ¤
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¤ Deep within my
soul I want to know You. ¤
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¤ Oh, I want to know You. ¤
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¤ To feel Your heart
and know Your mind, ¤
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¤ looking in Your
eyes stirs up within me ¤
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¤ cries that say,
"I want to know You. ¤
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¤ Oh, I want to
know You more." ¤
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¤ And when my daily deeds ¤
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¤ ordinarily
whose life and song, ¤
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¤ my heart begins to bleed, ¤
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¤ sensitivity to Him has gone. ¤
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¤ I'd run the race, but
set my own pace and face, ¤
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¤ a shattered soul. ¤
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¤ Now the gentle arms of Jesus ¤
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¤ warm my hunger to be whole. ¤
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¤ And oh, I want
to know You more. ¤
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¤ Deep within my
soul I want to know You. ¤
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¤ Oh, I want to know You. ¤
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¤ To feel Your heart
and know Your mind, ¤
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¤ looking in Your
eyes stirs within me ¤
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¤ cries that say,
"I want to know You. ¤
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¤ Oh, I want to know You." ¤
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¤ And I would give my
final breath to know You ¤
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¤ in Your death
and resurrection. ¤
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¤ Oh, I want to know You more. ¤
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¤ Oh, I want to know You more. ¤
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¤ Oh, I want to
know You more. ¤¤
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Shawn: Is that the
prayer of your heart,
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to know the Lord more?
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I hope it is as
we continue to study.
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Pastor Luccas is going to
be our teacher here today,
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and we are blessed to
be able to study with him.
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Before we invite him up,
let's invite the Lord to be
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with us in prayer.
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Father in heaven, we are
thankful for the opportunity to
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be able to come
together here this morning.
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God, we thank You for this time
in which we have come together
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to invest into Your
Word, into a knowledge of it;
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that it might
draw us closer to You,
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that it might
increase our faith,
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that You might give us
more understanding of the depths
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of the mysteries of Christ, that
You might help us to be able
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to continue to experience that
new life that is found in You.
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We thank You so much for Your
promise that You give to us when
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we ask for Your
Spirit in sincerity,
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that You will give it to us and
it will guide us and teach us
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all things and
lead us into all truth.
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And so we claim that
promise even right now.
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We pray that You'll
be with our teacher,
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be with our minds.
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In Jesus's name we pray, amen.
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Luccas Rodor: It's good to
see you all here on this blessed
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and beautiful day.
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I love being able to
be here and just come to--
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coming to church
is such a privilege.
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I think that, you know,
after the year that we've had--
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the year and a half that we've
had, I wake up every Sabbath
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just feeling so much joy in
being able to go to church and
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being able to, you know,
see my brothers and sisters.
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It's such a blessing.
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The lesson for today is
a really beautiful lesson.
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It's a very important lesson.
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I feel that, you know, God has
given me this last year--a few
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opportunities to talk
exactly about this subject.
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I don't know if you'll remember,
but in the last quarter I got
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this exact same subject,
which was the Sabbath, right?
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And the Sabbath is such
an important thing for us to
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analyze and study not only so we
have this theoretical knowledge,
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but so that we can have this
day-to-day application of what
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this "rest in Christ" means.
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And today's lesson's
title is "The Rhythms of Rest."
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And so, really, we're going to
dive into the Bible a little bit
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and see the different
rhythms of what resting means
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from God to us.
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So Pastor Shawn just prayed.
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I'd like to
invite you to pray again.
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Bow your heads. Dear
Lord, please lead out.
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Please open this Word and guide
us as we understand a little bit
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more about You,
Father, and a little bit more
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about the Sabbath.
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Use us please, Father. I
ask in Jesus's name, amen.
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You know, friends, a very
interesting thing about the
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Bible is that the Bible doesn't
really spend time or waste any
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time trying to
prove God's existence.
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It doesn't really spend any
time trying to prove that God is
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real, that God exists; and
it doesn't really give or try to
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offer evidence or,
again, empirical proof
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that the creation happened.
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It just assumes it.
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The Bible just assumes it.
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In the very first
verse, we find what?
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In the beginning God created.
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In the beginning God created,
and we find some answers
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to the most foundational--some
of the most basic questions
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of life in this first verse.
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For example, we find when.
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When is this happening?
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Well, in the beginning.
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In the beginning,
this is happening.
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And you know what that suggests?
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It suggests the universe
and matter are not eternal.
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The universe and matter and
history are not cyclical as many
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would like to believe.
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So when. You also have the who.
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Who? God.
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Not chance, not chaos,
not randomness as suggested by
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diverse theories that
are out there on the market.
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No. It was God.
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How? By creation.
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Creation is the method
that's used by the maker.
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Not evolution, not
a big bang somewhere;
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although I do believe
that there was a big bang.
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I feel that when God said,
"Let there be," and then so on,
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that was a big bang.
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When God said, "Let there be
light," can you imagine anything
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other than a big
explosion of light?
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I can't. That was
a sort of a big bang.
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Not what people
traditionally believe,
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but a big bang nonetheless.
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God created from nothing.
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The Latin phrase
ex nihilo, it means
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and it translates exactly that.
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God pulled things into existence
that were not there before.
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You know, here in this world
we have this principle that
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energy--this is a principle
of chemistry and physics.
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Energy is never really
created. It's transformed.
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Things aren't created,
but they're transformed.
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And we, really--humans
abide by that law.
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We don't really
create things from nothing.
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Rather, we transform them.
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But when it comes to God,
God has this uncanny, mysterious
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power of creating
things from nothing.
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He has that ability.
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What did He create?
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The text says the
heavens and the earth.
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Creation, as
mentioned here in Genesis,
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has to do with our system.
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And I'm not talking
about our solar system, okay?
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I'm talking about
our system of existence,
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not the entire universe.
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God didn't create the whole
universe on that fourth day.
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And what I mean is that--
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well, He already
lived somewhere, right?
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So did God create His place of
habitation on that fourth day?
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Did He create the
angels' home on that fourth day?
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No. God was
creating things that pertain
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to our sphere of existence.
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Now, how far out
that goes compared to us,
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I have no idea.
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That very--very well may
be the entire known universe,
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the billions and
trillions of stars.
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Who knows?
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Maybe God just is that big
and that all this enormous space
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that scientists find
more and more every year
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is really just this big.
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We'll find out
when we get there.
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But you know, there's something
rather sinister in the fact
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that it's precisely this book
that provides so many answers,
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that provides so much to us.
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The one that is designated to
provide so many answers to some
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of humanity's
most basic questions:
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origin, purpose,
destination, where we came from,
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what we're doing here, where
we're going is exactly the book
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that has--had its credibility
most ferociously attacked.
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The thing is,
friends, that without Genesis,
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without that
first book of the Bible,
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the rest of the Bible
makes absolutely no sense.
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Makes no sense at all.
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Well, we
can't--now here's the thing.
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We can't, of course, explain
creation in scientific terms.
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I'd like you to try.
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Try to explain
those 6 days of creation
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in scientific empirical terms.
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We can't. You know why?
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Because the Bible
isn't preoccupied with that.
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The Bible,
friends, does not reveal--
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it doesn't provide
absolute revelation.
00:14:05.67\00:14:10.05
The Bible provides
necessary revelation,
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revelation that
we need to be saved.
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So the Bible isn't going
to go into the deepest details
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of physics, chemistry.
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It assumes from the
get-go that God is the one
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that established these laws.
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So at the same time, the
theory such as evolution,
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which remains a theory in
spite of all its pretensions,
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is not science.
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What it really is is a
scientific philosophy that
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demands a lot of faith.
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It does.
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A car, for example, has
approximately 23,000 parts and
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pieces, and maybe someone
here can correct me on that;
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a mechanic, or a car engineer,
or something like that.
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But it's about
23,000 parts and pieces.
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Not one sane person in this
world would defend that even the
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simplest model is a product
of chance or an explosion.
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No one would defend that idea.
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Imagine then the whole
world in its deep complexity,
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its beauty, its
splendor, its purpose,
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its mysteries, its enigmas being
up--being attributed to blind
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luck, to random chance.
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Friends, we find that Scripture
reveals truths inaccessible to
00:15:12.01\00:15:17.38
human logic and reason
and inaccessible to the--
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to humanity's
methods of research.
00:15:21.12\00:15:23.02
It's not, and that doesn't
mean that God is illogical.
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You know what that means?
00:15:26.29\00:15:27.59
That means that
God is super logical.
00:15:27.62\00:15:29.76
He is just beyond our
capacity of logic and reason.
00:15:29.79\00:15:32.86
He is that big,
and here's the thing.
00:15:32.89\00:15:36.30
We have a really hard time
sometimes of understanding how
00:15:36.33\00:15:38.53
big God is and how small we are.
00:15:38.57\00:15:42.60
We're small. We're
very, very, very small.
00:15:42.64\00:15:48.44
Creation just like
the incarnation of Jesus,
00:15:48.48\00:15:50.65
his resurrection, his
ascension, his Second Coming,
00:15:50.68\00:15:53.38
are objects of revelation.
00:15:53.42\00:15:55.58
And having withstood millennia
of all sorts of the most intense
00:15:55.62\00:15:59.19
and dire attacks, the
Bible continues to declare
00:15:59.22\00:16:01.99
its foundational message that
in the beginning God created.
00:16:02.02\00:16:06.63
Now, here's the thing.
00:16:06.66\00:16:07.96
You might be asking, "Well, what
is--what does this have to do
00:16:07.96\00:16:09.86
with this week's
lesson, 'The Rhythms of Rest?'"
00:16:09.90\00:16:11.43
And you know what?
00:16:11.47\00:16:12.77
Sometimes we get
emails where, you know,
00:16:12.80\00:16:14.10
we see that people
are asking exactly that.
00:16:14.14\00:16:15.64
"Well, it seems
like he's just preaching.
00:16:15.67\00:16:16.97
He's not teaching the lesson."
00:16:17.01\00:16:18.51
Friends, I will--I said
this last time in last lesson
00:16:18.54\00:16:20.71
and I will say it again.
00:16:20.74\00:16:22.08
The objective of a
Sabbath-school teacher,
00:16:22.11\00:16:24.95
it's not to repeat the
same thing that you studied
00:16:24.98\00:16:26.28
throughout the week.
00:16:26.31\00:16:27.62
It's to bring new
information, right?
00:16:27.65\00:16:29.42
That's the objective here.
00:16:29.45\00:16:30.89
I'm going from the presumption
that you studied the lesson
00:16:30.92\00:16:33.89
at home and that, here,
you're ready for new information
00:16:33.92\00:16:36.86
about that same subject.
00:16:36.89\00:16:38.36
So keep that in mind as
you hear what is being said.
00:16:38.39\00:16:43.47
But back to the topic, and here
you'll see where I'm going with
00:16:43.50\00:16:46.57
this, all right, in the
sense of rhythms of creation;
00:16:46.60\00:16:49.77
well, we find that when the
Bible says that in the beginning
00:16:49.80\00:16:52.11
God created, it paints
this extraordinary masterpiece
00:16:52.14\00:16:55.31
of this incredible paradise
that now has been lost to sin.
00:16:55.34\00:17:00.28
Scripture illuminates the path
that the planet took and what
00:17:00.32\00:17:03.85
was the cost of this detour.
00:17:03.89\00:17:06.99
However--and here I'd like to
invite you maybe this afternoon,
00:17:07.02\00:17:10.53
maybe tomorrow to sit
down and read Psalm chapter 19.
00:17:10.56\00:17:15.43
I'm going to read a
portion of it right here,
00:17:15.46\00:17:17.27
but I'd like to invite you
to--at home during the hours
00:17:17.30\00:17:19.97
of the Sabbath or throughout the
week read Psalm chapter 19 and
00:17:20.00\00:17:24.27
marvel at the glory of
creation even after the fall.
00:17:24.31\00:17:28.31
Verse 1 through 4 says, "The
heavens declare the glory of the
00:17:28.34\00:17:31.65
Lord, and the
firmament shows His handiwork.
00:17:31.68\00:17:34.48
Day unto day utters speech,
00:17:34.52\00:17:35.95
and night unto
night reveals knowledge.
00:17:35.98\00:17:37.75
There is no speech nor language
where their voice is not heard.
00:17:37.79\00:17:40.82
Their line has gone out
throughout all the earth,
00:17:40.86\00:17:43.63
and their words to the
very end of the world."
00:17:43.66\00:17:46.63
Friends, after all was
created, all this beauty,
00:17:46.66\00:17:50.80
all the splendor, all this
magnificence--after God had
00:17:50.83\00:17:55.17
created all of this, on the
sixth day He reviewed His work.
00:17:55.20\00:17:58.31
What is Genesis 1:31 say?
00:17:58.34\00:18:00.08
It says, "Then God saw that
everything that He had made,
00:18:00.11\00:18:03.38
and indeed it was very good."
00:18:03.41\00:18:06.55
So the evening and the
morning were the sixth day.
00:18:06.58\00:18:11.02
But then after all His creating,
all--of all His work creating,
00:18:11.05\00:18:15.19
God turned His
attention to something else.
00:18:15.22\00:18:17.53
God simply made
what on the seventh day?
00:18:17.56\00:18:21.23
He made a day. He
created another day.
00:18:21.26\00:18:24.90
He included another day on
that cycle, the seventh day.
00:18:24.93\00:18:29.54
Was that day just
like every other the--
00:18:29.57\00:18:32.81
of the previous six days?
00:18:32.84\00:18:35.78
He made it special.
He made it different.
00:18:35.81\00:18:38.25
He made it unique.
He made it singular.
00:18:38.28\00:18:42.08
Even before humanity dashed
off into their self-imposed
00:18:42.12\00:18:46.19
stressful lives, God set a
marker as a living memory aid.
00:18:46.22\00:18:51.79
He wanted this day to
be a time for us to stop,
00:18:51.83\00:18:56.87
stop and
deliberately enjoy life;
00:18:56.90\00:19:02.97
the real enjoyment.
00:19:03.00\00:19:06.11
Sabbath was made for
men, not the other way around.
00:19:06.14\00:19:09.91
It's a day for us
to be and not to do.
00:19:09.94\00:19:11.95
Do you see the difference?
00:19:11.98\00:19:13.28
It was a day for you to be,
for you to exist before your
00:19:13.31\00:19:16.95
creator, not for you to do
as a product of consumerism.
00:19:16.99\00:19:22.66
It's a day for us to
celebrate the gift of grass,
00:19:22.69\00:19:25.36
of air, of
wildlife, of water, of people,
00:19:25.39\00:19:28.93
and most importantly the
creator of every good gift.
00:19:28.96\00:19:31.97
And friends, this invitation
would continue to be in effect
00:19:32.00\00:19:35.10
even after the first
couple was exiled from Eden.
00:19:35.14\00:19:39.24
God wanted to make sure that
this invitation could stand the
00:19:39.27\00:19:42.58
test of time and so right from
the beginning He knit it into
00:19:42.61\00:19:47.12
the very fabric of time.
00:19:47.15\00:19:50.05
That's where the lesson
starts, when it begins on Sunday
00:19:50.09\00:19:52.35
with a prelude of rest.
00:19:52.39\00:19:54.36
We learn here,
friends, that creation moves
00:19:54.39\00:19:56.73
from space to time.
00:19:56.76\00:19:58.86
What did God create first, life
or the environment for life?
00:19:58.89\00:20:04.17
The environment.
He creates light.
00:20:04.20\00:20:05.97
He separates the
land from the water.
00:20:06.00\00:20:09.37
He creates an atmosphere,
00:20:09.40\00:20:11.41
a sky, the
heavens, the firmament.
00:20:11.44\00:20:13.61
God created space
first and then life.
00:20:13.64\00:20:16.85
Creation moves
from space to life.
00:20:16.88\00:20:20.38
What He created is
initially seen as good,
00:20:20.42\00:20:23.12
an expression that appears
five times in Genesis chapter 1.
00:20:23.15\00:20:27.92
And God saw that it was
good; the separation of land
00:20:27.96\00:20:30.73
and water, everything
that I've already mentioned,
00:20:30.76\00:20:32.36
the heavenly bodies.
00:20:32.39\00:20:33.70
However, on the sixth day
after the creation of man,
00:20:33.73\00:20:37.23
this expression, it's changed.
00:20:37.27\00:20:39.33
It changes and it gives way to a
more intense description and it
00:20:39.37\00:20:44.14
involves the
entirety of creation.
00:20:44.17\00:20:46.44
Because here God
says in chapter 1,
00:20:46.47\00:20:48.21
verse 31, he says, "Then God
saw everything that He had made,
00:20:48.24\00:20:52.15
and indeed it was," what?
00:20:52.18\00:20:53.48
It was good?
00:20:53.52\00:20:55.88
It was very good, very good.
00:20:55.92\00:21:00.86
In the same way that creation
moves from space to life,
00:21:00.89\00:21:04.26
time flows from
ordinary time to special time,
00:21:04.29\00:21:09.90
ordinary time to special time.
00:21:09.93\00:21:13.00
You know, the Sabbath
appears inseparably connected
00:21:13.03\00:21:15.80
to the act of creation.
00:21:15.84\00:21:17.44
In three--you're
going to find this
00:21:17.47\00:21:18.77
in three main biblical verses.
00:21:18.81\00:21:20.11
You'll find it in many places,
but in mainly three verses,
00:21:20.14\00:21:22.94
three texts you'll find this
reality that the Sabbath appears
00:21:22.98\00:21:26.85
inseparably linked--inseparably
linked to the act of creation.
00:21:26.88\00:21:30.69
It's going to be Genesis
chapter 2, verse 1 through 3,
00:21:30.72\00:21:33.25
Exodus 20:8 through 11,
00:21:33.29\00:21:35.12
and then Exodus
31:12 through 17.
00:21:35.16\00:21:37.93
These texts provide the origin
of the Sabbath and the purpose
00:21:37.96\00:21:41.86
of the divine
commandment for its observance.
00:21:41.90\00:21:46.10
Both of these--all right?
00:21:46.13\00:21:47.44
Both of these, the origin of
the Sabbath and the commandment
00:21:47.47\00:21:50.37
of rest, are deeply
rooted in the consequence
00:21:50.41\00:21:53.71
of God's creative activity.
00:21:53.74\00:21:55.68
The commandment to rest
and the origin of the Sabbath.
00:21:55.71\00:21:58.68
So, for example,
Genesis 2:1 through 3,
00:21:58.71\00:22:00.92
as the very text here
concludes the narrative
00:22:00.95\00:22:03.62
of creation--that's
what we find here.
00:22:03.65\00:22:05.99
God is concluding the
whole story of creation.
00:22:06.02\00:22:09.29
It forms this
compact of artistic unity.
00:22:09.32\00:22:13.76
There are basically four
different points of emphasis
00:22:13.80\00:22:16.40
here regarding the Sabbath;
four that I'd like you to--
00:22:16.43\00:22:19.10
I'd like to call
your attention to.
00:22:19.13\00:22:20.57
First of all, on
the seventh day God
00:22:20.60\00:22:22.74
concluded His creative activity.
00:22:22.77\00:22:24.44
Isn't that what we find?
00:22:24.47\00:22:25.77
That's when God ends
His creative activity.
00:22:25.81\00:22:28.04
The idea behind the
verb--the structure here,
00:22:28.08\00:22:31.45
having finished
all of His creation;
00:22:31.48\00:22:35.12
the idea behind
this verbal construct,
00:22:35.15\00:22:37.82
it's not one simply declaring
that God--that His work was
00:22:37.85\00:22:41.66
done, that He
took it to the end.
00:22:41.69\00:22:43.32
The verb here, it explicit--
it expresses the idea of
00:22:43.36\00:22:46.46
completion, of
reaching a desired goal.
00:22:46.49\00:22:49.43
God did what He set out
to do. It wasn't interrupted.
00:22:49.46\00:22:53.84
It wasn't half done.
It wasn't incomplete.
00:22:53.87\00:22:56.24
God concluded what He
had set out to complete,
00:22:56.27\00:23:01.84
and right here we encounter this
established order for humanity
00:23:01.88\00:23:05.95
in which time is separated by
ordinary time and special time.
00:23:05.98\00:23:10.82
I've mentioned this:
ordinary time and special time.
00:23:10.85\00:23:14.59
Now, what's more is that
ordinary time finds its purpose
00:23:14.62\00:23:18.53
where, in what time?
00:23:18.56\00:23:21.73
In special time.
00:23:21.76\00:23:23.63
The ordinary time of our
life, the six days of work,
00:23:23.67\00:23:26.50
they find their
meaning, they find their purpose
00:23:26.53\00:23:29.37
in special time.
00:23:29.40\00:23:31.01
Wasn't it like that with God?
00:23:31.04\00:23:32.81
God created
throughout the six days,
00:23:32.84\00:23:35.08
but on the special
day everything made sense.
00:23:35.11\00:23:39.55
One flows into the other.
And you know what that means?
00:23:39.58\00:23:42.58
That means in our life--since
God is our supreme example,
00:23:42.62\00:23:46.09
in our life if your ordinary
time does not flow into the
00:23:46.12\00:23:50.49
special time, if your ordinary
time is a means in itself
00:23:50.53\00:23:55.26
there's something wrong
with your ordinary time.
00:23:55.30\00:23:59.63
Ordinary time was meant
to flow in to special time.
00:23:59.67\00:24:04.04
God ends His work as a creator,
and from then on the Bible
00:24:04.07\00:24:07.38
reveals work as
a means to an end.
00:24:07.41\00:24:10.11
The end is not the humanization
of man nor its self-creation.
00:24:10.15\00:24:13.92
God didn't work
for Himself, did He?
00:24:13.95\00:24:16.95
Who did God work for? Others.
00:24:16.99\00:24:20.36
The meaning, friends, or the
purpose of work is outside of
00:24:20.39\00:24:23.83
the one who is doing the work.
00:24:23.86\00:24:26.46
You understand
what I'm saying here?
00:24:26.49\00:24:27.93
Even the very purpose of work,
and here you have to rethink
00:24:27.96\00:24:30.57
your understanding of work.
00:24:30.60\00:24:33.03
Is work just this--is the
nature of work just financial,
00:24:33.07\00:24:36.94
just social-economic, or should
it flow into another purpose?
00:24:36.97\00:24:44.61
Its finality is not to introduce
the product of the work into
00:24:44.65\00:24:48.38
the personality of the
one who is executing it,
00:24:48.42\00:24:50.69
but to extend His personality
to those for whom the work
00:24:50.72\00:24:54.86
is being executed for.
00:24:54.89\00:24:57.36
Did you understand that?
00:24:57.39\00:24:59.06
Your work needs to
reflect the character of God.
00:24:59.09\00:25:02.76
So you have to ask yourself,
What are you working for?
00:25:02.80\00:25:05.73
Who are you working for?
00:25:05.77\00:25:09.00
To me this is a very
extraordinary lesson that needs
00:25:09.04\00:25:11.51
to be learned by all the
workaholics in the world that
00:25:11.54\00:25:16.98
simply work for themselves
to accumulate, to retain.
00:25:17.01\00:25:21.55
God rested on the seventh day.
That's the second lesson here.
00:25:21.58\00:25:24.32
This appears in
Genesis 2:1 through 3;
00:25:24.35\00:25:26.19
Exodus 20, verse 11;
and Exodus 31, verse 17.
00:25:26.22\00:25:29.56
And God's rest serves as
an example and a motivation
00:25:29.59\00:25:32.33
for the sabbatical rest.
00:25:32.36\00:25:33.96
For humans that were
created on the sixth day,
00:25:34.00\00:25:36.20
the Sabbath was their
first day of existence.
00:25:36.23\00:25:38.47
It wasn't their seventh
day, it was their first day.
00:25:38.50\00:25:43.94
They hadn't worked yet.
00:25:43.97\00:25:45.34
They weren't tired yet.
00:25:45.37\00:25:46.88
Have you ever
stopped to think about that?
00:25:46.91\00:25:49.21
On the seventh day of creation,
the Sabbath day of rest,
00:25:49.24\00:25:52.55
what day--it was
humanity's first day.
00:25:52.58\00:25:54.75
Were they tired?
00:25:54.78\00:25:56.08
Had they gone
through a week of work?
00:25:56.12\00:25:58.49
No.
00:25:58.52\00:26:01.86
Friends, we don't rest because
of the week that has passed.
00:26:01.89\00:26:04.09
We're resting in preparation
for the week that is ahead.
00:26:04.13\00:26:09.60
They rested because God rested.
00:26:09.63\00:26:12.03
They rested in order to
commune with their creator,
00:26:12.07\00:26:14.80
to enjoy His creation.
00:26:14.84\00:26:16.37
The Sabbath is the
seventh day of said creation,
00:26:16.40\00:26:19.67
but it's humanity's first day.
00:26:19.71\00:26:21.44
It's its first call to
meet its God and to establish
00:26:21.48\00:26:24.55
what the priorities are.
00:26:24.58\00:26:26.68
Before humans ran
off into their schedule,
00:26:26.72\00:26:29.38
they were called by God to
establish their priorities,
00:26:29.42\00:26:32.79
what's important in life.
00:26:32.82\00:26:36.02
Friends, we
still need that today;
00:26:36.06\00:26:38.66
to have our
values, our priorities,
00:26:38.69\00:26:40.43
our spirit, our
vision adjusted by God.
00:26:40.46\00:26:44.70
That's one of the
purposes of Sabbath:
00:26:44.73\00:26:47.17
to establish priorities.
00:26:47.20\00:26:50.17
The third idea that's present
in these texts and--especially
00:26:50.21\00:26:53.17
Genesis 2:1 through 3, it
has to do with God's blessing.
00:26:53.21\00:26:56.34
God blesses the seventh day just
as He bless the animals and the
00:26:56.38\00:27:00.25
humans one day before.
00:27:00.28\00:27:01.58
You'll find that
in verse 22 and 28.
00:27:01.62\00:27:03.69
The blessing of the Sabbath
referred to in the fourth
00:27:03.72\00:27:06.32
commandment connects
the Sabbath of creation
00:27:06.35\00:27:09.16
to the weekly Sabbath.
00:27:09.19\00:27:10.49
This is the connection.
00:27:10.53\00:27:11.76
To bless means that human beings
are then imbued with this power
00:27:11.79\00:27:16.06
of enrichment and of prosperity
to find contentment in life,
00:27:16.10\00:27:21.10
joy in life, peace in life.
00:27:21.14\00:27:22.97
So in other words, the seventh
day is a gift from God imbued
00:27:23.00\00:27:26.47
with a blessing that
no other day possesses;
00:27:26.51\00:27:30.31
and this effectively destroys
the idea that what matters isn't
00:27:30.35\00:27:33.21
the day that you
rest, it's whatever day.
00:27:33.25\00:27:35.85
If you choose a
Sunday, a Monday,
00:27:35.88\00:27:37.52
a Friday, a Wednesday,
it doesn't matter the day.
00:27:37.55\00:27:40.29
Friends, show me where
else in the Bible in the week of
00:27:40.32\00:27:43.09
creation where God confers
a blessing to a specific date,
00:27:43.12\00:27:47.00
He makes that day a blessing.
00:27:47.03\00:27:49.76
How could I say,
how--who am I as a human?
00:27:49.80\00:27:52.93
Who is anyone to
remove that blessing
00:27:52.97\00:27:56.60
and say it's anywhere?
00:27:56.64\00:27:58.47
it's just a trivial matter.
00:27:58.51\00:27:59.81
It doesn't
matter. You can't do that.
00:27:59.84\00:28:01.71
You're playing
God. That's blasphemy.
00:28:01.74\00:28:05.55
God imbued this
day with a blessing
00:28:05.58\00:28:07.98
and only He could remove it.
00:28:08.02\00:28:09.35
But we know that
God doesn't change, so,
00:28:09.38\00:28:11.89
you know, how are
you going to do that?
00:28:11.92\00:28:14.52
The blessing that God
communicates to this day of rest
00:28:14.56\00:28:17.39
grants power, and this
power makes the Sabbath fruitful
00:28:17.43\00:28:21.26
and vital to our lives.
00:28:21.30\00:28:24.77
Friends, the
Sabbath is a source,
00:28:24.80\00:28:26.94
an uncomparable fountain of
enrichment in the weekly cycle.
00:28:26.97\00:28:31.84
And the fourth lesson that you
learn here in these verses that
00:28:31.87\00:28:34.41
the lesson mentions on
Monday is the holiness,
00:28:34.44\00:28:38.15
the sanctity of the Sabbath.
00:28:38.18\00:28:39.95
The biblical text affirms that
God hallowed the seventh day.
00:28:39.98\00:28:43.12
He made it holy.
He sanctified it.
00:28:43.15\00:28:45.62
What does that mean?
00:28:45.65\00:28:46.96
The basic idea
of sanctification,
00:28:46.99\00:28:49.09
or of making holy,
is the idea of what?
00:28:49.12\00:28:51.36
What is God
doing? Starts with an S.
00:28:51.39\00:28:53.93
He's setting
apart. He's separating it.
00:28:53.96\00:28:59.30
The Sabbath was separated by
God to be a day of weekly rest.
00:28:59.33\00:29:04.11
And it's important
to make clear here,
00:29:04.14\00:29:05.57
friends, and I
can't stress this enough,
00:29:05.61\00:29:07.31
it was God who
separated it, not humans.
00:29:07.34\00:29:12.88
It wasn't
Abraham. It wasn't Moses.
00:29:12.91\00:29:15.32
It wasn't the Israelites.
00:29:15.35\00:29:16.85
No. It was God.
00:29:16.89\00:29:18.35
God separated
it. God made it holy.
00:29:18.39\00:29:20.66
God set it apart. No one else.
00:29:20.69\00:29:25.13
The sanctification of
the Sabbath is an act of God.
00:29:25.16\00:29:29.06
Friends, the
Sabbath is holy time,
00:29:29.10\00:29:31.17
not a holy place.
00:29:31.20\00:29:34.44
It invites us to set
aside the common, everyday work
00:29:34.47\00:29:37.47
and to devote our
minds and bodies and hearts
00:29:37.51\00:29:40.58
to the holy things.
00:29:40.61\00:29:41.94
So while you might go to places
or be excluded from places,
00:29:41.98\00:29:48.22
you can't bring the Sabbath
and you can neither be excluded
00:29:48.25\00:29:54.16
from the Sabbath.
00:29:54.19\00:29:55.82
Everyone has this day.
00:29:55.86\00:29:58.26
Everyone has access
to this special time.
00:29:58.29\00:30:01.53
It comes to everyone,
and in that way Sabbath
00:30:01.56\00:30:03.97
is a temple in time.
00:30:04.00\00:30:07.00
At the beginning of creation
we find the separation between
00:30:07.04\00:30:09.47
light and darkness, and at the
end of creation we find another
00:30:09.50\00:30:12.67
separation again between
ordinary time and holy time.
00:30:12.71\00:30:16.11
The weekly day of rest or
the weekly rest of the Sabbath
00:30:16.14\00:30:19.51
brings us hope.
00:30:19.55\00:30:20.85
It brings us the certainty
that our origin and destination
00:30:20.88\00:30:23.42
are in God.
00:30:23.45\00:30:24.75
It gives us a sense of
continuity from the past
00:30:24.79\00:30:27.32
and a hope for the future.
00:30:27.36\00:30:29.06
It invites us to rest
while we live in this chaotic
00:30:29.09\00:30:32.03
and convoluted
environment in this world.
00:30:32.06\00:30:34.10
We live in a sort
of a detour, friends,
00:30:34.10\00:30:36.97
generated by sin and all
the while we await the rest--
00:30:37.00\00:30:40.90
the final rest and the peace
of God for which He created--
00:30:40.94\00:30:44.14
for which we were created.
00:30:44.17\00:30:45.71
You'll find this in the
book of Hebrews chapter 4.
00:30:45.74\00:30:47.88
So, friends, this is the message
of the Sabbath that reminds
00:30:47.91\00:30:50.55
us weekly of our
origins, of our purpose,
00:30:50.58\00:30:53.35
and our final destination.
00:30:53.38\00:30:55.98
If your experience on
Sabbath has been different,
00:30:56.02\00:30:58.69
it needs to
change, it needs to change.
00:30:58.72\00:31:04.03
Tuesday, new circumstances.
00:31:04.06\00:31:05.49
This is an interesting study.
00:31:05.53\00:31:07.76
And this study here of this day,
it talks about the provision of
00:31:07.83\00:31:10.23
manna and how the provision of
manna is a very strong argument
00:31:10.27\00:31:15.30
for the reality of the Sabbath.
00:31:15.34\00:31:18.54
The provision of the manna was
for Israel in occasion to renew
00:31:18.57\00:31:21.91
their commitment to the
Sabbath, the greater gift.
00:31:21.94\00:31:24.88
And you might say, "Well, you
know, manna, how is that the--
00:31:24.91\00:31:27.22
how is the
Sabbath the greater gift?"
00:31:27.25\00:31:29.42
I mean, they needed
the manna to survive.
00:31:29.45\00:31:31.49
They needed to
live. They needed food.
00:31:31.52\00:31:34.52
Sabbath is the greater
gift because Sabbath celebrates
00:31:34.56\00:31:36.66
the provider of the manna.
00:31:36.69\00:31:38.99
Would there be
manna without a provider?
00:31:39.03\00:31:42.30
God is the provider.
00:31:42.33\00:31:44.47
The substantive
Shabbat, Sabbath,
00:31:44.50\00:31:47.14
appears for the first time
in the Bible in Exodus 16:25.
00:31:47.17\00:31:51.67
That's where the
word appears in that way,
00:31:51.71\00:31:53.78
as a substantive,
inside the narrative
00:31:53.81\00:31:56.11
of the miracle of the manna.
00:31:56.14\00:31:58.68
Notice that it
appears before the Sinai,
00:31:58.71\00:32:01.35
before the law
is given to Moses,
00:32:01.38\00:32:03.49
and this destroys the theory
that the Sabbath is introduced
00:32:03.52\00:32:06.76
by the Mosaic Law.
00:32:06.79\00:32:08.09
It destroys the idea
that the Sabbath is a Jewish,
00:32:08.12\00:32:10.79
an Israelite, institution.
00:32:10.83\00:32:12.63
The implication that I'm giving
you here is that the Sabbath
00:32:12.66\00:32:15.73
rest was observed before being
formally required by the law.
00:32:15.76\00:32:21.07
That's very important.
00:32:21.10\00:32:22.60
The whole narrative of the
manna is full of sabbatical
00:32:22.64\00:32:25.17
terminology, and the most
important notions concerning the
00:32:25.21\00:32:28.34
Sabbath in the
book of Exodus 16--
00:32:28.38\00:32:30.11
or in the chapter 16 of
Exodus can be summarized
00:32:30.15\00:32:33.42
in a few
different points, all right?
00:32:33.45\00:32:34.75
I'm going to give you a rundown
on what this means and the
00:32:34.78\00:32:36.75
implications of this.
00:32:36.79\00:32:38.09
First of all, the sixth
day, it's mentioned here in--
00:32:38.12\00:32:41.32
three times in
chapter 16, verse 5, 22,
00:32:41.36\00:32:44.73
and 29, is a day of
preparation for the Sabbath.
00:32:44.76\00:32:49.00
You know the day of preparation.
You've heard of it, right?
00:32:49.03\00:32:52.13
Adventists have
the day of preparation.
00:32:52.17\00:32:54.10
When I was a child, my mom
made me do my chores on Friday.
00:32:54.14\00:32:57.04
That's when I'd clean the room.
00:32:57.07\00:32:58.44
I didn't really have a
problem with cleaning the room,
00:32:58.47\00:33:00.31
but then I have to go pick up
after the dog in the backyard.
00:33:00.34\00:33:02.38
That's where things
started getting bad.
00:33:02.41\00:33:05.18
And then I had to
clean the bathroom.
00:33:05.21\00:33:06.51
I did not like that chore.
That was a horrible chore.
00:33:06.55\00:33:09.88
So day of preparation.
00:33:09.92\00:33:11.22
You know, I couldn't
wait until the Sabbath started
00:33:11.25\00:33:14.49
for many reasons.
00:33:14.52\00:33:16.86
But on this day, the
sixth day of preparation,
00:33:16.89\00:33:20.73
a double portion
of manna was provided,
00:33:20.76\00:33:23.53
and it was collected.
00:33:23.57\00:33:24.87
There was no need to go
out and work on the Sabbath.
00:33:24.90\00:33:28.14
The second thing here in
the rundown is that the Sabbath
00:33:28.17\00:33:30.51
obviously was the
following day, the seventh day,
00:33:30.54\00:33:33.27
after the day of preparation.
00:33:33.31\00:33:35.34
It is the
seventh day of the week,
00:33:35.38\00:33:37.28
not the first or
the fifth or the fourth.
00:33:37.31\00:33:39.18
It's the
seventh day of the week,
00:33:39.21\00:33:41.18
and this, again,
effectively debunks the idea
00:33:41.22\00:33:43.92
of any rest in seven days.
00:33:43.95\00:33:46.39
Whatever day is okay.
00:33:46.42\00:33:48.36
Friends, the rest that is
indicated here by God is by
00:33:48.39\00:33:50.99
necessity on the seventh day.
00:33:51.03\00:33:53.46
That followed what
day? The day of preparation.
00:33:53.50\00:33:57.40
It's very intuitive.
There's no mystery here.
00:33:57.43\00:33:59.83
No one's trying to, you know,
sneak in some weird details
00:33:59.87\00:34:03.44
into this whole narrative.
00:34:03.47\00:34:04.77
It's very
obvious, very intuitive.
00:34:04.81\00:34:07.28
Thirdly, it's a divine
commandment that is mentioned
00:34:07.31\00:34:09.61
here in relation to
the observance of Sabbath.
00:34:09.64\00:34:12.78
It's a commandment
that God gives again before
00:34:12.81\00:34:15.02
the Ten Commandments.
00:34:15.05\00:34:17.35
Fourth, the Sabbath is holy.
00:34:17.39\00:34:19.65
The Hebrew
terminology here is very,
00:34:19.69\00:34:25.89
very technical, very precise.
00:34:25.93\00:34:27.50
It's Shabbat
Kodesh. It's a holy day.
00:34:27.56\00:34:31.47
It's a day that's set
apart. You can't confuse this.
00:34:31.50\00:34:36.24
It's holy.
00:34:36.27\00:34:37.87
Also, fifth, the
Sabbath is a day of rest.
00:34:37.91\00:34:41.21
Rest in part has to do
with the abstinence of work.
00:34:41.24\00:34:44.21
In this case, it means to
abstain from the collection of
00:34:44.25\00:34:47.25
food, of engaging in
the work of survival.
00:34:47.28\00:34:50.45
Do you see that?
00:34:50.49\00:34:51.85
Here they were stopped--
00:34:51.89\00:34:53.19
they would stop trying to
survive in recognition of what?
00:34:53.22\00:34:59.29
That God is the provider.
00:34:59.33\00:35:02.33
God was the provider.
00:35:02.36\00:35:04.10
When we stop today, when
we close down everything,
00:35:04.13\00:35:08.30
we're recognizing
that God is the provider.
00:35:08.34\00:35:11.71
It's an act of faith.
00:35:11.74\00:35:13.68
Six, the Sabbath is
a day of celebration.
00:35:13.71\00:35:15.88
Sabbaton is the Greek word,
used multiple times in the New
00:35:15.91\00:35:20.88
Testament as a day of--
00:35:20.92\00:35:22.35
it's not a day of
taboo, of lamentation.
00:35:22.38\00:35:25.42
It's not a day of
fasting either, friends.
00:35:25.45\00:35:27.69
I'm not saying that
you can't fast on Sabbath,
00:35:27.72\00:35:29.46
but Sabbath is not
intended or meant for fasting.
00:35:29.49\00:35:31.43
You know why?
00:35:31.46\00:35:32.76
Because they collected
a double portion of food.
00:35:32.79\00:35:35.33
If God wanted them to
fast, what would He have done?
00:35:35.36\00:35:39.23
"Don't go out, and don't eat."
00:35:39.27\00:35:41.90
The Sabbath is a party.
00:35:41.94\00:35:44.74
God is a God of parties.
00:35:44.77\00:35:46.51
Look at the God
of the Old Testament.
00:35:46.54\00:35:47.94
Look at the amount of parties
that the children of Israel had.
00:35:47.98\00:35:50.58
Look at the percentage of
how much time that consumed.
00:35:50.61\00:35:54.08
What do you think we're
going to be doing in heaven?
00:35:54.12\00:35:56.85
It's going to be one big
party for the rest of eternity;
00:35:56.89\00:36:00.16
the right kind of
party, the good party,
00:36:00.19\00:36:02.42
partying and celebrating God
and our relationship with him.
00:36:02.46\00:36:06.73
The people had to eat, for
verse 24 and chapter 16 says,
00:36:06.76\00:36:09.53
"Today is the
Sabbath of the Lord."
00:36:09.56\00:36:11.53
It was a special
day with purpose--
00:36:11.57\00:36:14.60
with the purpose of
bringing joy, happiness,
00:36:14.64\00:36:16.07
satisfaction to
those observing it.
00:36:16.10\00:36:19.07
And finally, the Sabbath is a
test of fidelity for men to God.
00:36:19.11\00:36:24.28
You know, some people in their
unbelief and in their curiosity,
00:36:24.31\00:36:29.08
they went out and they
tried to find food, didn't they?
00:36:29.12\00:36:33.42
And God's disapproval was made
very clear when that happened.
00:36:33.46\00:36:37.13
Exodus 16:28 says, "How
long will you refuse to keep My
00:36:37.16\00:36:40.50
commandments and My laws?
00:36:40.53\00:36:42.40
How long will
you be rebellious?"
00:36:42.43\00:36:45.67
Refusing to keep the
Sabbath equals refusing
00:36:45.70\00:36:47.80
to obey God's will.
00:36:47.84\00:36:52.34
Faith walks hand in
hand with obedience.
00:36:52.37\00:36:56.75
This is going to be
a good study for those
00:36:56.78\00:36:58.15
that accept it, okay?
00:36:58.18\00:37:01.25
"Is Obedience Legalism?"
00:37:01.28\00:37:03.62
The Bible teaches
that no, obedience is love.
00:37:03.65\00:37:06.96
Obedience is love.
00:37:06.99\00:37:09.29
Exodus 16 contains the central
notion regarding the origin
00:37:09.32\00:37:12.63
of the Sabbath as it
comes from before the Sinai.
00:37:12.66\00:37:15.83
That means that the Sabbath is
an institution that was already
00:37:15.86\00:37:19.07
in effect from the creation of
the world and will be in effect
00:37:19.10\00:37:22.94
throughout the
endless times of eternity.
00:37:22.97\00:37:26.61
Another reason for
rest, Wednesday's lesson,
00:37:26.64\00:37:30.15
Moses was the great
leader of the Israelites;
00:37:30.18\00:37:32.45
and when he knew that he was
about to die and they were about
00:37:32.48\00:37:35.25
to go into the
Promised Land, he reminded them
00:37:35.28\00:37:37.82
of some very important ideals.
00:37:37.85\00:37:40.02
That's what the whole
book of Deuteronomy is about.
00:37:40.06\00:37:41.96
The whole book of Deuteronomy
is Moses coming back--you know,
00:37:41.99\00:37:44.43
when you're--you know, I lived
in Germany for a year and a half
00:37:44.46\00:37:50.97
when I was in
college, and my dad took me.
00:37:51.00\00:37:53.80
He went with me the first week
to take me and leave me there,
00:37:53.84\00:37:56.87
and before he left he gave
me this long letter full of
00:37:56.91\00:38:00.11
instructions, full of advice.
00:38:00.14\00:38:03.58
Deuteronomy is that.
00:38:03.61\00:38:05.61
It's dad, Moses, leaving the
children of Israel that he knew
00:38:05.65\00:38:10.79
were rebellious and
stiff-necked people,
00:38:10.82\00:38:13.12
giving them advice,
reminding them of some points.
00:38:13.15\00:38:17.66
You know, life seems
to impose two great tests
00:38:17.69\00:38:20.66
that are contradictory.
00:38:20.70\00:38:22.03
They're apparently
cognitive dissonances.
00:38:22.06\00:38:24.67
The first, the test that
is forged by the difficulties,
00:38:24.70\00:38:27.47
the poverty, the
trials, the perplexities,
00:38:27.50\00:38:29.67
the misfortunes of life.
00:38:29.70\00:38:31.14
And in an attempt of making
sense of the evils that knock
00:38:31.17\00:38:34.18
at our door, we easily become
frustrated and lose our faith
00:38:34.21\00:38:38.01
and are led down the path
of cynicism and of unbelief.
00:38:38.05\00:38:41.55
That's one of these
trials, one of these tests.
00:38:41.58\00:38:44.12
But on the other hand,
people are many times met
00:38:44.15\00:38:46.62
with the test of
abundance, of success, of ease,
00:38:46.65\00:38:50.73
of riches, and all the evils
of life seem to be just distant,
00:38:50.76\00:38:55.46
far-off imaginations.
00:38:55.50\00:38:57.37
And the danger of this test,
of this case, is forgetfulness,
00:38:57.40\00:39:01.57
ingratitude, presumption,
and the risk of attributing
00:39:01.60\00:39:04.87
the blessings of God to
chance and to coincidence.
00:39:04.91\00:39:08.71
Israel was at that
moment running that risk.
00:39:08.74\00:39:12.51
Entering the Promised Land
provided the risk of taking for
00:39:12.55\00:39:15.08
granted what could only
be understood as blessings
00:39:15.12\00:39:19.22
from the true leader
that had led them to--
00:39:19.25\00:39:21.66
through that journey so far.
00:39:21.69\00:39:23.99
And so Moses calls the people's
attention to the things that
00:39:24.03\00:39:26.66
they had been through:
the years in the desert,
00:39:26.70\00:39:29.06
the things that they were about
to experience beyond the Jordan.
00:39:29.10\00:39:32.63
The fourth commandment
in the Decalogue, the--
00:39:32.67\00:39:35.57
Exodus 20:8 through 11, it
consists of 55 Hebrew words
00:39:35.60\00:39:40.08
and it's the longest of the 10.
00:39:40.11\00:39:44.21
In Exodus, it begins
with the word "remember",
00:39:44.25\00:39:47.02
the Hebrew word zakar.
00:39:47.05\00:39:48.98
It involves two main aspects.
00:39:49.02\00:39:50.32
It's a very rich word.
00:39:50.35\00:39:51.85
It involves two main aspects.
00:39:51.89\00:39:53.49
First of all, a retrospective
aspect where remembering
00:39:53.52\00:39:58.89
emphasizes the past.
00:39:58.93\00:40:00.73
This indicates that the
Sabbath is not something new.
00:40:00.76\00:40:03.03
It's not something that
was introduced at Mount Sinai.
00:40:03.06\00:40:05.67
The commandment possesses
a very clear link between
00:40:05.70\00:40:08.50
the Sabbath and creation.
00:40:08.54\00:40:10.21
Why are they remembering?
00:40:10.24\00:40:12.24
Because in six days
God created the heavens,
00:40:12.27\00:40:13.58
earth, and sea and
the--all that's in them;
00:40:13.61\00:40:15.28
and He rested
on the seventh day.
00:40:15.31\00:40:16.68
Do you see the
link, the connection?
00:40:16.71\00:40:19.48
The second aspect
of this very rich word,
00:40:19.51\00:40:21.52
"remember," here, it has also a
prospective aspect that relates
00:40:21.55\00:40:26.42
to the future.
00:40:26.45\00:40:28.12
The immediate purpose here
is--of remembering--is directed
00:40:28.16\00:40:31.39
towards this definite action to
abstain from work on this day,
00:40:31.43\00:40:35.93
to hallow, and to observe it.
00:40:35.96\00:40:37.67
And so this way, the remembrance
of the past brings to mind the
00:40:37.70\00:40:40.94
correct action in the
present and in the future.
00:40:40.97\00:40:44.51
Do you see? One
thing flows into the other.
00:40:44.54\00:40:47.14
It had as a retrospective
aspect and a prospective aspect.
00:40:47.18\00:40:50.58
The past leads into the future.
00:40:50.61\00:40:52.31
The imperative "remember" zeroes
in into the special separation
00:40:52.35\00:40:56.35
of the Sabbath from the
other days of common work.
00:40:56.38\00:40:59.09
That's what Moses is telling the
people here--God through Moses.
00:40:59.12\00:41:04.36
"Remember" in biblical Hebrew
doesn't imply in a mere action
00:41:04.39\00:41:08.16
of memory, but in
the involvement of life.
00:41:08.20\00:41:12.73
Remember the transition
from the slavery of Egypt to the
00:41:12.77\00:41:17.24
condition of freedom.
00:41:17.27\00:41:19.11
Israel went from oppression and
slavery imposed by the Egyptian
00:41:19.14\00:41:24.31
taskmasters to
freedom and to liberty.
00:41:24.35\00:41:26.92
You know, friends,
freedom isn't primarily--
00:41:26.95\00:41:28.48
it's not primarily defined by
a lot of work or imposed work.
00:41:28.52\00:41:32.69
Slavery is primarily defined
as work without significance,
00:41:32.72\00:41:37.86
work without meaning.
00:41:37.89\00:41:40.40
That's slavery.
00:41:40.43\00:41:42.73
And it's sad to say
that millions fall under that
00:41:42.76\00:41:45.77
category today: work without
significance, without meaning.
00:41:45.80\00:41:53.17
Slavery in this case had all
but destroyed in them the human
00:41:53.21\00:41:56.95
dimension of
spiritual freedom--the abuse,
00:41:56.98\00:41:59.11
the harassment, the violence--
but the Sabbath was set as a
00:41:59.15\00:42:02.95
gate to life, a different
dimension of time itself,
00:42:02.98\00:42:07.39
no more slaves,
no more instruments--
00:42:07.42\00:42:09.92
mere instruments of work
serving the dreams of other,
00:42:09.96\00:42:12.53
mere units of profit
margins to other people.
00:42:12.56\00:42:18.63
The true purpose of Israel was
not a mere geographic location.
00:42:18.67\00:42:22.80
That's why Exodus
19, verse 4, says,
00:42:22.84\00:42:24.64
"I bore you on eagles' wings
and brought you to myself."
00:42:24.67\00:42:29.38
That's God saying, "I
brought you to myself."
00:42:29.41\00:42:33.25
Up to this day,
the Sabbath frees us,
00:42:33.28\00:42:35.45
friends, from the idolatry
of our dreams of granger,
00:42:35.48\00:42:39.69
of our pettiness and
empty materialistic service.
00:42:39.72\00:42:43.09
Correctly understood--and I've
said this here before in another
00:42:43.12\00:42:46.06
lesson regarding the Sabbath.
00:42:46.09\00:42:47.60
Correctly understood, it is
not us who keeps the Sabbath.
00:42:47.60\00:42:52.60
It's not really you
who keeps the Sabbath.
00:42:52.63\00:42:55.60
It's the Sabbath that keeps you.
00:42:55.64\00:42:58.51
It's the Sabbath
that protects you,
00:42:58.54\00:43:00.24
that envelops you in
meaning, in purpose, in truth.
00:43:00.28\00:43:07.18
The commandment of the Sabbath
is a symbol of dependence.
00:43:07.22\00:43:10.05
It's a symbol of
freedom from the yoke of work,
00:43:10.09\00:43:12.29
of exploitation.
00:43:12.32\00:43:13.62
It's a symbol of
our own personal exodus.
00:43:13.66\00:43:16.39
Every single human being on this
planet has gone through his own
00:43:16.42\00:43:19.96
or her own exodus
from one point to another.
00:43:20.00\00:43:25.23
Friends, the goodness, the
justice of God overflows from
00:43:25.27\00:43:29.40
such an ideal of freedom.
00:43:29.44\00:43:33.07
In Deuteronomy 5 where
we find the repetition--
00:43:33.11\00:43:35.58
you know you find the Ten
Commandments twice in the Bible
00:43:35.61\00:43:38.11
in the Old
Testament: in Exodus chapter 20
00:43:38.15\00:43:40.12
and in Deuteronomy chapter 5.
00:43:40.15\00:43:41.88
We find the repetition,
but it's slightly changed.
00:43:41.92\00:43:44.62
Have you ever noticed that?
00:43:44.65\00:43:45.95
It's changed. It's different.
00:43:45.99\00:43:47.59
The structure remains
the same as Exodus 20.
00:43:47.62\00:43:50.69
We have the same motivation for
the observance of the Sabbath.
00:43:50.73\00:43:53.33
However, in the repetition here,
00:43:53.36\00:43:55.60
the commandment
gains this new aspect.
00:43:55.63\00:43:57.93
It's--in
theology, this is called
00:43:57.97\00:43:59.53
the soteriological aspect.
00:43:59.57\00:44:01.37
Soteriological, or soteriology,
is a fancy word for salvation.
00:44:01.40\00:44:07.31
It gains a new salvational
dimension that's introduced.
00:44:07.34\00:44:11.01
In Exodus 20, the
Sabbath is linked to what?
00:44:11.05\00:44:13.95
To creation.
00:44:13.98\00:44:15.85
But in Deuteronomy
chapter 5, verse 15,
00:44:15.88\00:44:18.02
the clause
"remember" unites the Sabbath
00:44:18.05\00:44:20.36
to the redemption of Egypt.
00:44:20.39\00:44:22.32
"For remember that you
were slaves in the land of Egypt
00:44:22.36\00:44:24.79
and the Lord your God freed you,
00:44:24.83\00:44:26.23
redeemed you
with a powerful hand."
00:44:26.26\00:44:30.17
On every Sabbath, Israel was
called to remember that their
00:44:30.20\00:44:33.87
God was their redeemer.
00:44:33.90\00:44:35.54
This is the theme of the
redemption that constitutes
00:44:35.57\00:44:38.11
an additional to the
theme of creation given
00:44:38.14\00:44:40.78
in Exodus chapter 20.
00:44:40.81\00:44:42.18
And here they are called vividly
to remember the gift that they
00:44:42.21\00:44:45.68
received from God,
His work of deliverance.
00:44:45.71\00:44:48.35
Remembering the Lord as a
creator means to recognize Him
00:44:48.38\00:44:51.35
as the
foundation of our existence.
00:44:51.39\00:44:53.62
He created us, and He freed us.
00:44:53.66\00:44:56.02
He made us, and He redeemed us.
00:44:56.06\00:45:02.63
In a way, the redemption from
the bondage of Egypt is a story
00:45:02.66\00:45:08.87
that is included in the life
of every single human being.
00:45:08.90\00:45:12.14
All of us have our
Egypts where we live in bondage.
00:45:12.17\00:45:18.25
The last day,
Thursday, keeping the Sabbath.
00:45:18.28\00:45:21.95
Each one of the Ten
Commandments of God's law
00:45:21.98\00:45:24.22
can be summed up in one word.
00:45:24.25\00:45:25.55
Did you know this?
00:45:25.59\00:45:26.89
Because these laws
reflect His character,
00:45:26.92\00:45:29.16
each one of them can be summed
up in an attribute of who He is.
00:45:29.19\00:45:33.36
The first commandment,
"Have no other gods before Me,"
00:45:33.40\00:45:35.56
it has to do with fidelity.
00:45:35.60\00:45:37.17
The second that has to do
with the craven images has to do
00:45:37.20\00:45:39.27
with worship, the
nature of worship.
00:45:39.30\00:45:41.70
The third, "Don't say
the Lord's name in vain,"
00:45:41.74\00:45:43.74
has to do with reverence.
00:45:43.77\00:45:45.07
The fourth, the
commandment of Sabbath,
00:45:45.11\00:45:46.47
has to do with
dependence, with obedience.
00:45:46.51\00:45:48.48
The fifth about the
parents has to do with honor.
00:45:48.51\00:45:51.08
The sixth, "Do not kill,"
has to do with respect of life.
00:45:51.11\00:45:54.15
The seventh, "Don't
commit adultery," has to do with
00:45:54.18\00:45:57.42
purity, faithfulness.
00:45:57.45\00:45:58.82
The eighth, "Don't steal,"
has to do with honesty--sorry.
00:45:58.85\00:46:04.63
Honesty. Integrity.
00:46:04.66\00:46:05.96
The ninth that
has to do with lies
00:46:05.99\00:46:08.63
has to do with
truth--truthfulness.
00:46:08.66\00:46:10.27
And the tenth, "Don't covet,"
has to do with contentment.
00:46:10.30\00:46:14.87
But the
commandment of the Sabbath,
00:46:14.90\00:46:16.27
it appears in the midst
of the moral commandments.
00:46:16.30\00:46:19.57
It has to do with
our dependence on God.
00:46:19.61\00:46:22.24
When the sun sets on
Friday, I interrupt my ordinary
00:46:22.28\00:46:25.35
activities, I close my business,
I shut off the computer,
00:46:25.38\00:46:27.95
I close the books.
00:46:27.98\00:46:29.28
And in doing so, I'm declaring
that my life does not depend on
00:46:29.32\00:46:32.99
my business, on my
studies, on my work,
00:46:33.02\00:46:35.62
on my bank
account, on secular success,
00:46:35.66\00:46:37.83
on anything else
that I can buy or consume.
00:46:37.86\00:46:42.06
By resting in the
presence of the creator,
00:46:42.10\00:46:44.07
I am essentially affirming that
my life depends totally on God.
00:46:44.10\00:46:52.24
Resting from the preoccupations
and the worries that usually
00:46:52.27\00:46:55.38
crush and consume me,
that raise my heartbeat,
00:46:55.41\00:46:58.01
that intensify my blood pressure
is a sign of rest in Jesus,
00:46:58.05\00:47:02.22
of trust because we can only
truly rest when we feel safe
00:47:02.25\00:47:06.69
enough to disconnect.
00:47:06.72\00:47:10.09
The biblical Sabbath, friends,
can only begin when I shut
00:47:10.13\00:47:12.39
everything else down.
00:47:12.43\00:47:14.83
In Scripture, as a
symbol of both redemption, the--
00:47:14.86\00:47:17.50
and creation, the
Sabbath is a weekly reminder
00:47:17.53\00:47:20.84
that God is the
creator and that ultimately
00:47:20.87\00:47:23.20
He is
responsible for His creation.
00:47:23.24\00:47:25.17
We are not astray. We
are not in uncharted waters.
00:47:25.21\00:47:28.08
We are not
victims of blind fake.
00:47:28.11\00:47:30.01
We are the sons and daughters
00:47:30.05\00:47:31.45
of a God that has
everything under control.
00:47:31.48\00:47:35.02
The Sabbath tells us
that we are creatures of God,
00:47:35.05\00:47:37.92
singular beings
of infinite worth;
00:47:37.95\00:47:40.32
and this way the Sabbath
restores in us the identity
00:47:40.36\00:47:43.19
that has been marred by
the consumerist mentality
00:47:43.22\00:47:45.83
of this planet.
00:47:45.86\00:47:48.30
It reminds us who we are.
00:47:48.33\00:47:49.96
The disposition of
stopping for this weekly rest,
00:47:50.00\00:47:53.57
this pause, is a
solemn recognition that we are
00:47:53.60\00:47:56.81
creatures of God,
not creatures of things.
00:47:56.84\00:48:01.48
Our identity isn't based
upon the things that we have,
00:48:01.51\00:48:04.78
the things that we can
buy, the car that we drive,
00:48:04.81\00:48:06.51
the house that we live in.
00:48:06.55\00:48:07.85
Our identity is based solely
on God's perspective of us,
00:48:07.88\00:48:13.12
the value that He
attributes to human beings.
00:48:13.15\00:48:18.43
Our true sense of
worth and identity is only,
00:48:18.46\00:48:21.06
friends, achieved in the
presence of He who invites
00:48:21.10\00:48:23.67
us to rest and to celebrate with
Him the true purpose of life.
00:48:23.70\00:48:29.44
I'd like to finish
with a very beautiful text.
00:48:29.47\00:48:31.71
It comes from the book called
"Christ's Object Lessons,"
00:48:31.74\00:48:34.38
and you'll find
this in page 25 and 26.
00:48:34.41\00:48:36.01
It says, "God gave to men the
memorial of His creative power,
00:48:36.04\00:48:40.45
that they might discern
Him in the works of His hand.
00:48:40.48\00:48:43.22
The Sabbath bids us,
'Behold, in His created works
00:48:43.25\00:48:46.59
the glory of the creator.'
00:48:46.62\00:48:48.46
On the holy rest
day, above all other days,
00:48:48.49\00:48:51.19
we should study the
messages that God has written
00:48:51.23\00:48:53.29
for us in nature.
00:48:53.33\00:48:54.60
As we come close to
the heart of nature,
00:48:54.63\00:48:57.17
Christ makes His presence real
to us and speaks to our hearts
00:48:57.20\00:49:01.40
of His peace and love."
00:49:01.44\00:49:03.37
My friends, I invite you to take
advantage of the day of rest.
00:49:03.41\00:49:07.78
Rest on this day, allow
peace to inundate your heart,
00:49:07.81\00:49:13.25
and understand who you truly
are through the eyes of Him
00:49:13.28\00:49:16.08
who sees you for
what you truly are.
00:49:16.12\00:49:19.59
May God bless you.
00:49:19.62\00:49:20.92
I'd like to invite you
again to take advantage
00:49:20.96\00:49:22.92
of this free offer.
00:49:22.96\00:49:24.43
It'll help you a lot on
this comprehension of obedience,
00:49:24.46\00:49:27.30
and faith, and legalism.
00:49:27.36\00:49:30.53
So if you would like
this, please call 866-788-3966,
00:49:30.57\00:49:35.27
ask for the offer 706.
00:49:35.30\00:49:38.34
If you're in the US
or Northern America--
00:49:38.37\00:49:40.68
North America, you can text
"SH041" to the number 40544.
00:49:40.71\00:49:45.21
And if you're
outside of North America,
00:49:45.25\00:49:46.61
you can go to
study.aftv.org/SH041.
00:49:46.65\00:49:51.45
I'm sure that this will help you
to understand a little bit more
00:49:51.49\00:49:54.02
even of this subject.
00:49:54.06\00:49:55.36
May God bless you, and may be--
00:49:55.39\00:49:56.69
may He be with you, amen.
00:49:56.73\00:49:58.99
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¤¤¤
00:50:38.47\00:50:46.71
Ashley: I grew up
in northern New Jersey,
00:50:46.74\00:50:48.94
just about 35
minutes out of New York City,
00:50:48.98\00:50:52.38
and I grew up
in a famous family.
00:50:52.41\00:50:54.88
And so my father played for the
New York Giants for nine years.
00:50:54.92\00:50:59.22
That's how we
ended up where we were.
00:50:59.25\00:51:01.46
He also played for
the San Francisco 49ers,
00:51:01.49\00:51:04.26
and he was in the Pro Bowl.
00:51:04.29\00:51:06.80
He won two Super Bowls.
00:51:06.83\00:51:09.30
And I also had an older brother
00:51:09.33\00:51:11.37
who played
professional baseball.
00:51:11.40\00:51:14.84
So I had a lot to live up to.
00:51:14.87\00:51:16.57
Everything we did
was based around sports.
00:51:16.60\00:51:19.17
That was my life and I loved it,
but inside I was--I struggled
00:51:19.21\00:51:23.35
daily with
insecurity, lacking confidence.
00:51:23.38\00:51:27.35
You know, I would look at
myself in the mirror and not--
00:51:27.38\00:51:31.55
and would not see
good things about myself.
00:51:31.59\00:51:33.46
I started to put all my
energy into soccer and I decided
00:51:33.49\00:51:41.90
that I was going
to go far with that.
00:51:41.93\00:51:44.57
So I ended up
getting a scholarship to play
00:51:44.60\00:51:49.00
in the University of Miami.
00:51:49.04\00:51:50.74
I was being
pulled in these, like,
00:51:50.77\00:51:52.17
two directions of, you
know, wanting to live this party
00:51:52.21\00:51:55.84
lifestyle with my teammates and
I was so engulfed in soccer and
00:51:55.88\00:52:02.22
school, but I
also had this, like,
00:52:02.25\00:52:05.32
strong yearning,
desire, to serve God.
00:52:05.35\00:52:09.29
And I was just struggling
to figure out the balance
00:52:09.32\00:52:11.49
in how to do that.
00:52:11.53\00:52:12.76
I was in sin city in Miami and I
couldn't--I felt like I could--
00:52:12.79\00:52:17.80
I was swimming upstream
00:52:17.83\00:52:19.17
and I just felt
like I couldn't breathe.
00:52:19.20\00:52:21.24
I had everything
everyone would have wanted.
00:52:21.27\00:52:23.27
I had everything.
00:52:23.30\00:52:24.61
I had a
scholarship to pay for school.
00:52:24.64\00:52:26.54
I was playing a sport. I
was the captain of my team.
00:52:26.57\00:52:29.68
I was in Miami.
00:52:29.71\00:52:31.15
I was--I had a great
family, I had a lot of friends,
00:52:31.18\00:52:36.99
but where was God?
00:52:37.02\00:52:38.35
There was--all of that is
meaningless unless I had Him.
00:52:38.39\00:52:43.43
And the lifeline that He
gave me was this soft whisper
00:52:43.46\00:52:48.73
in my ear saying, "Go."
00:52:48.76\00:52:51.60
I just remember, "Go."
00:52:51.63\00:52:52.93
So I decided to go, and I
spent two months in Kenya and
00:52:52.97\00:52:56.87
two months in Uganda and God was
saving me by sending me there.
00:52:56.91\00:53:01.38
It was God's
prescription for my life,
00:53:01.41\00:53:03.45
for my existence.
00:53:03.48\00:53:04.81
When I returned from
Africa, I went back to school.
00:53:04.85\00:53:08.25
I finished
school, finished soccer.
00:53:08.28\00:53:12.15
I went to the University of
Tennessee to get my masters when
00:53:12.19\00:53:17.36
I met my husband.
00:53:17.39\00:53:18.86
Our motto in life was we wanted
to live in reckless abandon for
00:53:18.89\00:53:21.93
our creator and--
whatever that was,
00:53:21.96\00:53:25.17
whatever that looked like.
00:53:25.20\00:53:26.50
And you know, we've traveled
and we've done mission work,
00:53:26.53\00:53:30.64
but we've mostly
been in Tennessee.
00:53:30.67\00:53:32.71
And when we were--we spent the
summer apart a year after that
00:53:32.74\00:53:37.91
we were married, and
it was the summer of 2015.
00:53:37.95\00:53:41.42
When we came back
together, he's like,
00:53:41.45\00:53:44.19
"I have some things I
want to share with you.
00:53:44.22\00:53:47.56
I want you to listen to this."
00:53:47.59\00:53:49.46
And we were on a 14-hour car
ride and he just started playing
00:53:49.49\00:53:54.73
this prophecy code all
the way back from 2005,
00:53:54.73\00:53:57.90
and it was so clear and I just
was comprehending it so well.
00:53:57.93\00:54:03.04
You know, after a couple,
like, three or four, I was like,
00:54:03.07\00:54:05.01
"I need a break.
00:54:05.04\00:54:06.34
My mind is going to,
like, explode from all this,
00:54:06.37\00:54:09.14
like, information overload."
00:54:09.18\00:54:10.95
And everything that I thought
I had known about the Bible and
00:54:10.98\00:54:15.78
about Scripture is
just completely different.
00:54:15.82\00:54:20.69
I was in shock.
00:54:20.72\00:54:22.46
Everything that I was hearing
it was, like, Scripture is
00:54:22.49\00:54:24.93
proving Scripture
is proving Scripture.
00:54:24.96\00:54:27.03
My heart was, like, changing
in that car ride because I was
00:54:27.03\00:54:31.70
learning more about God
than I ever have before.
00:54:31.73\00:54:34.90
After that car ride and after
listening to the whole prophecy
00:54:34.94\00:54:37.44
code, my life was
completely changed.
00:54:37.47\00:54:41.01
He's become more real to us
than He ever has been before,
00:54:41.04\00:54:44.21
and that has pushed us to
disciple and to minister to
00:54:44.25\00:54:49.12
others and share
with them what we know.
00:54:49.15\00:54:53.32
My name is Ashley, and I want to
thank you for changing my life.
00:54:53.36\00:54:58.29
¤¤¤
00:54:58.33\00:55:05.63
announcer: Amazing
facts change lives.
00:55:10.27\00:55:18.45
male: I come from
a Hindu background.
00:55:18.48\00:55:20.55
My mom is a preacher for
Shiva, who's a Hindu god.
00:55:20.58\00:55:23.72
My father is agnostic kind.
00:55:23.75\00:55:25.22
So me myself I
grew, like, as an atheist.
00:55:25.25\00:55:29.46
In the year 2007 I had an
experience of being in South
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India, and that was the first
time I experienced Christian
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people, you know?
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The majorities
were Christians there.
00:55:38.07\00:55:40.90
There were some Adventist youth
who invited me to be a part of
00:55:40.94\00:55:45.41
one of their mid-week service.
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They were presenting a
video of Pastor Doug Batchelor,
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"The Richest Caveman."
00:55:52.78\00:55:54.38
I was moved, you know?
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I do understand good and bad,
and I pictured myself into the
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bad category than the good one.
00:55:59.42\00:56:02.09
I started experiencing
several dreams and--
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which started troubling me.
00:56:06.06\00:56:07.36
And you know, I kept
the website in my mind.
00:56:07.40\00:56:10.10
I went to the internet cafe and
started browsing the website of
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Amazing Facts, and then I
saw the Bible study guide there.
00:56:15.54\00:56:19.91
Every day I started
taking one of the lesson,
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and I was baptized 2007.
00:56:22.88\00:56:25.85
After my conversion, I strictly
came to Spicer to do my studies.
00:56:25.88\00:56:30.72
During the summer vacation,
I decided to go back home
00:56:30.75\00:56:32.85
and give my mom and
my father the visit.
00:56:32.89\00:56:35.22
By that time, they knew that I
have converted to Christianity.
00:56:35.26\00:56:38.26
I was thrown out of the house.
00:56:38.29\00:56:40.53
We are not in
good terms even today,
00:56:40.56\00:56:42.93
but sad part for
them, not for me.
00:56:42.96\00:56:47.77
During 2015, I was
diagnosed with leukemia.
00:56:47.80\00:56:52.64
I had only one professor and one
friend who was coming along with
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me to the hospital every day.
00:56:56.51\00:56:59.31
When I asked
this assistant doctor,
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"What do you think is the
lifespan of a person like me?"
00:57:02.48\00:57:05.25
Then she said, "You'll be losing
weight and you'll get sick
00:57:05.29\00:57:08.39
slowly, slowly if you
don't go for a treatment."
00:57:08.42\00:57:10.73
So a year plus, one night I
decided--it was January 2015.
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I said, "I am not going
for any treatment anymore."
00:57:17.23\00:57:20.70
I said, "Lord,
You gave me one year.
00:57:20.74\00:57:22.80
So what I'll do is
I'll just do Your ministry,
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and that's okay."
00:57:26.57\00:57:28.58
And I never went for
any treatment after that.
00:57:28.61\00:57:31.48
I just left
everything right away there.
00:57:31.51\00:57:33.88
I didn't take even
one tablet, one medicine.
00:57:33.92\00:57:37.22
I'm standing in front
of you strong in 2018.
00:57:37.25\00:57:41.32
Nothing happened. I
don't know what happened.
00:57:41.36\00:57:42.99
I don't know if still
there in my body or what.
00:57:43.02\00:57:45.96
I don't know.
00:57:45.99\00:57:47.40
I'm not dead yet.
00:57:47.46\00:57:50.23
I want to serve in India.
00:57:50.27\00:57:53.13
Amazing Facts team,
especially Pastor Doug,
00:57:53.17\00:57:56.00
has really played a
very important element
00:57:56.04\00:57:58.54
in my life to
give me an identity.
00:57:58.57\00:58:02.04
¤¤¤
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