Participants:
Series Code: TDYFW
Program Code: TDYFW018031A
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00:01 I want to spend my life
00:07 Mending broken people 00:12 I want to spend my life 00:19 Removing pain 00:24 Lord, let my words 00:30 Heal a heart that hurts 00:34 I want to spend my life 00:40 Mending broken people 00:45 I want to spend my life 00:51 Mending broken people 01:11 Hello, I'm Shelley Quinn. And I'm JD Quinn. 01:13 And we welcome you to 3ABN Family Worship. 01:18 It is such a wonderful way to bring in the Sabbath, 01:22 to get together, and with our brothers 01:25 and sisters here, and with you. 01:27 And we hope that you have a Bible, and a pen, and pad 01:31 that you can join in the Bible study with us. 01:34 Let me ask you, how glad are you 01:36 to see Sabbath rolling on? 01:38 Amen. Always. 01:39 Always. Isn't it? 01:41 Isn't it? Amen. 01:43 My favorite scripture... 01:44 I say this frequently, 01:47 is my favorite scripture on the Sabbath 01:49 because in Exodus 31:13 God says 01:53 that the Sabbath is a sign that He is the one 01:57 who sanctifies us. 01:59 And so we're very excited to know that even though 02:02 work of sanctification belongs to the Lord, you know, 02:06 I try to be perfect for God for so many years 02:08 and couldn't, till I learned how to yield 02:10 and surrender to Him. 02:12 Honey? Yes. 02:14 You want to introduce them? 02:15 I would really happy to. Yes. 02:18 I'm such an attentive husband. 02:20 Yes. Yes. 02:22 We'll start over to my left, probably your right 02:25 and everything, we got Jason. 02:27 I'm just going to go by first names 02:28 'cause I'm a first-name-type person. 02:30 Okay, we got Jason. We got Ryan. 02:33 We got Dee and we have Tim. Yes. 02:36 And we're just all just glad to be here 02:38 'cause as mentioned, 3ABN is an absolutely 02:42 fantastic place to share your life with. 02:47 Amen. 02:49 But I must say the 3ABN is indeed workhouse. 02:52 But I think that all independent ministries 02:55 are like that. 02:57 You know, so anyway, go ahead. Everybody wears a lot of hats. 03:00 And everybody does double duty and triple duty 03:03 which is the same thing. 03:05 But we're all friends. 03:06 And I think that's what you said on first name basis, 03:09 we're not really too formal around here, 03:12 but we respect each other 03:13 and we respect the work each other does. 03:15 So it's always nice to be able to come around this table 03:18 and worship together. 03:19 Just like this. There is joy in our work. 03:21 There is, yes, a joy in our work. 03:26 Well said. Yes. 03:27 It has purpose. 03:29 Yeah, purpose. It's lovely. 03:30 Our purpose, we make a difference eternally 03:34 not just on this earth. 03:35 Amen. Amen. 03:37 And we want to thank those of you at home 03:40 for your prayers and your financial support 03:42 of 3ABN because you are the one 03:45 who is helping to make an eternal difference. 03:47 Every time, when you're supporting 3ABN, 03:50 you're investing in eternity for someone else. 03:54 So we're very grateful. 03:56 I'd like us to open with the prayer of praise. 03:59 Jason, can we just start with you, it will go around. 04:02 Sure. Something... 04:03 Just one thing you want to praise the Lord for. 04:06 Okay. 04:08 It's hard to limit it to one thing. 04:09 I know. I know. 04:11 I'll try. 04:13 Dear, heavenly Father, we thank You so much 04:16 that we have the opportunity to worship 04:18 and we thank You so much for Your wonderful Sabbath. 04:22 In Jesus' name we pray, amen. Amen. 04:24 Father, I just want to praise You 04:26 for the religious liberty and freedom 04:28 that we have to do exactly what we're doing right now 04:31 to come together to worship You in spirit and in truth. 04:34 And we praise You God and we thank You 04:36 for your never-ending love and goodness. 04:38 In Jesus' name. Amen. 04:40 And, Father, also, I just want to thank You for our families. 04:43 And, Father, just say this Lord that through the aid 04:47 of the Holy Spirit that each one of us 04:49 would turn our eyes towards You Lord 04:50 and accept You into our heart so that we can indeed be 04:54 the ambassadors that you created us to be 04:56 for Your kingdom. 04:58 Oh, Lord, I just always want to praise You 05:01 for Your three greatest gifts of grace. 05:04 Thank You that You sent Your one and only Son 05:08 to be our Savior. 05:10 Thank You for sending Your Holy Spirit. 05:13 Thank You for giving us Your word. 05:16 Father, I just praise You that You are a personal God 05:19 to each and every one of us that You're involved eminently 05:22 within our lives. 05:24 And I just praise You for that, Father. 05:26 Thank You. 05:28 Yes, Lord, and I just want to say thank You 05:29 for Your provision throughout this week. 05:31 Father, You have been faithful. 05:33 I haven't missed a meal, haven't missed a night's sleep. 05:37 You have just been there. And I thank You for that. 05:39 So I pray that You'll bless this time together. 05:41 And may we draw closer to You, and draw deeper in Your Word, 05:45 and may we be fuller for it. 05:47 We love You. In Jesus' name, amen. 05:49 Amen. 05:51 Well as Tim makes his way to the piano, 05:54 we're going to sing. 05:56 It's a song that we all love. I'll let JD introduce that. 06:00 But why don't we just do that first 06:03 and we'll do the song then we'll come back 06:05 to what we're going to do tonight? 06:07 I think this is a favorite topic of all of us 06:10 and that is Jesus. 06:11 And we're going to be singing 06:12 "What a Friend We Have in Jesus." 06:16 And if you've got your hymnal at home, it's number 499. 06:21 "What a Friend We Have in Jesus." 06:23 And the words should be 06:24 on the bottom of the screen in case you don't. 06:25 Amen. 06:31 What a friend we have in Jesus 06:36 All our sins and grieves to bear 06:41 What a privilege to carry 06:46 Everything to God in prayer 06:51 Oh, what peace we often forfeit 06:57 Oh, what needless pain we bear 07:02 All because we do not carry 07:07 Everything to God in prayer 07:13 Have we trials and temptations? 07:18 Is there trouble anywhere? 07:23 We should never be discouraged 07:28 Take it to the Lord in prayer 07:33 Can we find a friend so faithful 07:38 Who will all our sorrows share? 07:44 Jesus knows our every weakness 07:49 Take it to the Lord in prayer 07:55 Are we weak and heavy-laden 08:00 Cumbered with a load of care? 08:05 Precious Savior, still our refuge 08:10 Take it to the Lord in prayer 08:15 Do your friends despise, forsake you? 08:21 Take it to the Lord in prayer 08:26 In His arms He'll take and shield you 08:31 You will find a solace there 08:38 Amen. Thank you. 08:40 I love that song. Beautiful song. 08:42 I love those words. Thank you for Tim. 08:45 All right, what we're going to talk about tonight 08:48 as we get into the scripture, you know that I love 08:52 to make affirmations, right? 08:54 You know what I mean by affirmations? 08:56 When you take the Word of God and you speak it over your life 09:02 or you pray it back to the Lord, 09:04 affirming His truth that, yes, you've accepted this. 09:09 And so let me read you an affirmation, 09:12 then we're going to look at the various scriptures 09:16 that make this affirmation. 09:18 And I know that a lot of you can identify with this. 09:21 There is so much going on in the world right now. 09:25 And sometimes, we don't have a lot of peace 09:27 about the things around us. 09:29 So let me just read this. 09:31 "Help, Lord, I don't understand this situation. 09:34 And I really don't know how I should pray. 09:38 All I can say is please help me. 09:42 Father, help, what a relief it is to know 09:46 that the Holy Spirit 09:47 is interceding for me right now. 09:49 Thank You for hearing His prayer. 09:51 And how glad I am to know that You, Lord Jesus, 09:56 are interceding on my behalf. 09:59 I know you're able to save me completely. 10:02 Thank You, Father, for hearing and answering. 10:04 I will not be fearful for I am confident 10:08 you will provide a solution. 10:10 I count on Your help. 10:12 You will strengthen me and uphold me 10:14 with Your righteous right hand. 10:16 I will keep my mind fixed on You, trusting in You. 10:21 Thank You for perfect peace 10:22 that is above human understanding. 10:24 I will not be anxious about anything 10:27 because Your peace guards my heart and mind. 10:32 In Christ Jesus'..." Amen. 10:34 Amen. 10:35 You know, haven't we all prayed a prayer like this before 10:37 where you just feel like that everything 10:41 is crashing in on you? 10:43 In Psalm 12:1, that's how David starts off his prayer. 10:48 He feels like he is the only good guy left on the earth. 10:52 And he just starts off and he says, "Help, Lord." 10:55 And actually, what that is in the Hebrew is, 10:58 "Save me, Yahweh." 11:00 It reminds me of Mathew 14:33 11:03 where Peter is walking 11:07 on the water and suddenly the waves 11:10 and everything come crashing in, 11:12 he sees the wind, he see the waves, 11:14 and I think a wave got up between he and Jesus. 11:17 And then all of a sudden, he started sinking, 11:21 when he couldn't see Jesus, his faith kind of dropped down 11:25 and he started sinking. 11:27 What did he say? "Save me, Lord." 11:29 But there are times when I'm praying 11:32 that if it weren't for the promises of God, 11:37 I would be so confused, befuddled, hopeless, helpless. 11:43 But when you start praying 11:45 and you just lift up to the Lord, 11:47 it's just amazing. 11:49 The peace that comes back to you 11:51 because you know you've got two prayer partners. 11:56 Even if you are alone, you've got two prayer partners. 11:59 The Holy Spirit is interceding and Jesus is at the right hand 12:04 of the Father, and He is interceding. 12:07 Isn't he, Ryan? Absolutely. Absolutely. 12:10 You know, when I think of this particular subject, 12:12 Help me, Lord, I cry for help, 12:15 I cry for the Lord to bring us relief and peace, 12:19 especially in the times that we're living in. 12:21 We have beautiful promises in the Word of God 12:24 that helps bring this particular topic to light. 12:27 One text that comes to my mind is found 12:29 in Romans 8. 12:32 And I'm going to begin reading in Romans 8:26. 12:34 In fact, I encourage the viewers at home 12:37 to really get a good understanding 12:39 of the context of this particular verse. 12:42 Go back up to about verse 18. 12:44 Again, this is Romans 8 and you go up to Romans 8:18, 12:48 and just read downward. 12:49 But I'm going to, for the sake of time, 12:50 begin in Romans 8:26. 12:52 And this is a rather popular 12:55 and notorious verse for its content. 12:58 And it says here, "Likewise the spirit 13:01 also helps in our weakness." 13:04 So it's kind of like what you were saying, Shelley, 13:06 that we can depend on God's presence 13:10 to be with us at every time of need. 13:14 "Likewise the spirit also helps us 13:17 in our weaknesses for we do not know..." 13:21 excuse me, "for we do not know 13:23 what we should pray for as we ought. 13:26 But the Spirit himself makes intercession for us 13:30 with groanings which cannot be uttered. 13:33 Now he who searches the hearts knows 13:35 what the mind of the Spirit is 13:37 because He makes intercession for the saints 13:40 according to the will of God." 13:43 It is a powerful text because it provides us 13:45 with the promise. 13:46 It provides us with a beautiful promise 13:48 that there are some times we are in need 13:50 of God's intervention, 13:52 we are in need of God's divine guidance and leadership. 13:55 But sometimes, we really don't know what to pray for. 13:58 We can't conjure up the words to say to the Lord. 14:02 But, you know, we have a promise here that says, 14:03 "You know what, God's got our back. 14:05 God knows exactly what we need even before we need it." 14:08 And sometimes... 14:09 You know, in this life time, you know, sometimes, 14:11 we find ourselves sighing and crying, and in this case, 14:14 groaning for relief, for peace. 14:18 And the Bible promises us right here 14:20 that the Holy Spirit, he understands that 14:24 and He will take that link 14:26 which that we know not what to speak. 14:28 And He takes it before the throne of God 14:30 and He presents those petitions before the Lord on our behalf. 14:33 And that's powerful. 14:34 You know, I read the scripture and I couldn't help 14:37 but think immediately 14:38 because many of my Pentecostal friends 14:40 read this and they often, you know, 14:42 take this scripture and kind of turn it into, 14:44 you know, the groaning aspect of, 14:46 kind of the spiritualistic application that, you know, 14:49 the spirit forces you to groan and to, you know, 14:53 make sounds and utterances that is of God. 14:55 But we know that in this case it's just simply the context 14:58 of this passage is teaching us and providing a promise for us 15:02 that you know what, in this lifetime, 15:04 we're subject to this carnal body, 15:06 we're subject to all of the despair, 15:08 and the death, and the sorrow, and the pain, 15:10 and all the things that this life has to bring. 15:13 But we have the wonderful promise of God 15:16 to know that in times when we don't even know 15:19 what to say, God is there for us. 15:21 He hears us, He understands what we need in advance. 15:24 And could I interject something here because... 15:25 Sure. 15:27 I learned this actually from JD. 15:28 I don't think he knew that he taught me this. 15:31 I have always prayed for the Holy Spirit 15:36 before I read, before I get into the Bible 15:40 'cause I know I can't understand scripture 15:43 without the Holy Spirit. 15:45 But when JD began working at 3ABN 15:49 in the Pastoral Department, 15:51 one thing that he did repeatedly 15:54 on the way home from work. 15:55 I asked how did your day go? 15:56 He'd always say, 15:58 "You know, I don't know how to pray so what." 16:00 You know, when people called with horrible things, 16:03 so what he started doing from the very beginning 16:06 is he'd tell people, "Do you mind 16:09 if we ask the Holy Spirit to join us 16:12 and ask the Holy Spirit to guide this prayer?" 16:16 And, you know what, it took me 16:18 probably a week of hearing him say 16:20 that to where... 16:21 then I thought of Romans 8:26. 16:24 And I thought, 16:25 "Lord, if I really need the Holy Spirit, 16:29 I want to be aware of that like he was." 16:32 I mean, he does this to this day. 16:35 And so now I pray when I first start 16:38 and I just ask the Holy Spirit to help me pray 16:41 because we don't how to pray for somebody the way we should. 16:44 You know, there is a lot of complicated... 16:47 People go through a lot of complicated stuff. 16:50 And nobody's got the same story. 16:54 I want to tell you a humorous story, 16:56 it will take just a second. 16:57 As you were talking about this, I mean this just... 16:59 And this is humorous now that I could look back 50 years. 17:04 And I've laughed a lot since, but, boy, at this time, 17:06 this was serious, serious stuff. 17:10 We grew up with horses. I didn't get along with horses. 17:15 From day one, when I was probably four years old, 17:17 the horse that I got on threw me off. 17:21 Of course, like a strong... 17:23 Dad couldn't wait to put me... 17:25 brought back on him again, the horse threw me off again. 17:28 And since that day, I've been freaked out over horses. 17:33 But now I am probably 18 or 19. 17:38 Oh, I had this tame horse. 17:40 Let me tell you about this tame horse. 17:42 This tame horse, he sensed that I was afraid of horses. 17:47 And so, boy, I got on his back, and I mean he took off, 17:51 he took off, he ran, and he ran. 17:54 And it just seems like the scarier I got, 17:56 the faster he would run. 17:58 Then I know... 17:59 I know that my eyes were this big. 18:02 I didn't know what I was going to do, 18:03 how am I going to get off. 18:05 The Lord heard my prayer. "Lord, save me." 18:09 That fast, there was a lam that was right there 18:12 and just knocked me flat off that horse. 18:15 Oh, my Word. It knocked me off that horse. 18:18 The Lord heard my prayer. 18:20 That's right. That's right. Wow. 18:22 You have a strong hand. I mean it. 18:25 And I just sat there probably cuckoo, you know, 18:27 knocked off that fast horse. 18:30 The horse probably just looked back 18:31 with a big smile on his face. 18:33 But you know, as you were sitting here 18:36 because this is the way that God answers prayers. 18:39 Not always as we think that there should be. 18:41 But He heard my prayer. 18:42 He answered my prayer. 18:47 I think three wheelers might have come on the scene... 18:52 But anyway, thank you, Jesus, for that lamb being there. 18:56 But I did, you know, Jesus helped, and He heard. 19:03 Amen. 19:04 Well, in fact, that's what 26 says, 19:06 "The Holy Spirit comes to our aid 19:08 and bears us up in our weakness." 19:10 It's a personal, our weakness, not in your weakness for me, 19:14 you know, some way you handle things 19:16 whenever you're going through it 19:17 to be the same way he handles it for me. 19:19 It's in our weakness. 19:20 He is a personal savior, and I love that, 19:23 personal Holy Spirit. 19:25 Yes, He is always there. 19:26 One size fits all, 19:27 but it's not always the same fit. 19:29 So that's cool. 19:30 Thank you, Tim. Absolutely. 19:31 Yeah, you know, 19:34 when I was reading this passage, 19:35 this particular passage in Romans 8, 19:37 that if you would read the context close, 19:39 for instance, it's got a heavy emphasis 19:41 on the Spirit. 19:42 And so obviously, "Likewise the spirit 19:43 also helps in our weaknesses." 19:46 And then the next part, "For we do not know 19:48 what we should pray as we ought, 19:50 but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us." 19:54 When I was doing a little bit of research in regards to this, 19:57 it led me over to 2 Corinthians 5. 19:59 Now it's interesting because both of these passages 20:02 tend to be misunderstood a lot 20:08 across the Christian world today. 20:12 Paul is basically reiterating in 2 Corinthians here 20:16 what he has said in Romans 8. 20:19 In Romans 5:1-8 is that famous passage 20:22 where it talks about being absent from the body, 20:25 present with the Lord, okay, 20:26 even though Paul doesn't necessarily say 20:27 those exact words and just leave it at that. 20:30 At the top, notice these words and tell me 20:33 if it sounds familiar to what we just read in Romans 8. 20:36 You mean, 2 Corinthians 5? 20:38 This is 2 Corinthians 5. Okay. 20:39 I'm sorry. 20:40 I might have said something different there. 20:42 Notice what he says here. 20:43 2 Corinthians 5:1 he says, 20:45 "For we know that if our earthly house, 20:46 this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, 20:50 a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens." 20:52 Now we know that Paul often likens our body as a temple or, 20:55 as in this case, he refers to it as a house or a tent. 20:59 Notice what 2 Corinthians 5:2 says, "For in this we..." 21:01 there is that word, "we groan, earnestly desiring 21:05 to be clothed with our habitation 21:07 which is from heaven. 21:08 If indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked." 21:12 And then 2 Corinthians 5:4 says, 21:14 "We who are in this tent," again, this body, 21:17 there it is again "groan because we are," what, 21:20 "we're being burdened." 21:21 How often in life are we burdened? 21:23 We feel the pressures of life, we feel the stresses of life, 21:26 the anxiety. 21:28 And sometimes, it brings us into a depression or despair, 21:31 and so we groan. 21:33 And we often desire for happiness 21:35 or relief or peace. 21:37 And ultimately, what we're saying is 21:38 "Lord, I can't wait for you to come back. 21:40 I can't wait for you to deliver me from this body of death. 21:43 I may have that new heavenly body 21:45 that you have given to us." 21:47 And then, of course, in the latter part, it says, 21:49 "Not because we want to be unclothed, 21:51 but further clothed," and I love this, 21:53 "that mortality may be swallowed up of life." 21:57 See, verse 4 is the key to understanding verse 8 22:00 that many people misunderstand because verse 8 talks about 22:04 "We are confident, yes, and pleased rather to be absent 22:06 from the body and present with the Lord." 22:08 We're waiting for that time, and sometimes, 22:10 we don't know what to pray, sometimes we struggle, 22:12 "Lord, I don't really know the words to say, but, God, 22:14 you know my needs 22:16 and we're burdened in this body." 22:17 We groan, and then we sigh, and we cry for the Lord's help. 22:20 And of course, I love the latter part of verse 5, 22:23 here it says, "Now He who has prepared us 22:25 for this very thing is God who also has," 22:29 and then notice these words, 22:30 "given us the Spirit as a guarantee." 22:32 Amen. 22:33 In other words, you know what, we may be burdened now 22:34 but God has given us a relief. 22:36 He has provided us with the Holy Spirit 22:38 to intercede for us until that time comes 22:42 when He provides us with that beautiful heavenly body. 22:44 Amen. Amen. It's powerful. 22:46 And, you know, there are three states 22:47 since you brought this in. 22:49 There are three states of being clothed, 22:51 that's being in our heavenly tent. 22:54 Unclothed being, you're in the grave. 22:56 You've lost this tent, but then being further clothed. 23:00 So there are three states of being. 23:02 Excellent. Excellent. All right. 23:04 So we know that the Holy Spirit helps us 23:08 when we're calling, but let's turn to Hebrews. 23:11 And I'd like to look at 23:13 Hebrews 7. 23:19 I can get to Hebrews7. 23:24 And I'm going to begin with Hebrews 7:22. 23:30 He's talking about Jesus being... 23:35 I'll just read it. 23:37 It says, "By so much more Jesus has become 23:40 a surety of a better covenant." 23:44 First of all, you know, 23:46 we talk about Jesus as our Lord, 23:50 but He is our surety. 23:52 Absolutely. 23:53 He is our guarantee of the covenant. 23:56 Isn't that exciting? I know. 23:57 He guarantees that He's going to complete the good work 24:01 He's begun in us. 24:03 He guarantees that He's going to save you 24:05 by His righteous right hand. 24:08 And then it goes on saying... 24:11 Well, now let me go ahead. 24:13 So Jesus has become a surety of a better covenant. 24:16 And in Hebrew 7:23, "There were many priests 24:21 because they were prevented by death from continuing. 24:24 But He, because He continues forever, 24:28 has an unchanged priesthood. 24:32 Therefore, He is also able 24:37 to say to the uttermost." 24:41 There is nothing He can't save us from. 24:44 There is nothing He can't finish. 24:47 "For those who come to God through Him 24:51 since He always lives to make intercession for us." 24:55 Amen. How exciting is that. 24:57 Yeah, it's powerful. 24:58 How exciting is it to know that two persons of God, 25:03 the Holy Spirit, God's paracletos here on earth 25:08 is praying and interceding. 25:12 But then Jesus is... 25:13 1 John 2:1 says, 25:14 "We've got an advocate with the Father." 25:16 That's right. 25:18 A paracletos is what that word means. 25:20 So Christ is interceding on your behalf. 25:25 And He is able to save to the uttermost. 25:31 Nothing He can't save us from. 25:32 Amen. Amen. 25:35 Praise God because if he can't save you 25:38 to the uttermost, we're all lost. 25:41 That's correct. Yeah. 25:44 I know. 25:46 In Isaiah 41:13, he is talking about... 25:53 I love this. 25:54 After David died, someone gave me 25:57 some different scriptures. 25:58 Who is David? My husband, David. 26:00 He passed away and I became a widow. 26:02 And a couple of more in Isaiah because He lifts you up so much 26:06 and says so many things about saving you. 26:09 And Isaiah 41:13 says, "For I, the Lord your God, 26:15 will hold your right hand saying to you, 26:18 'Fear not, I will help you.'" 26:21 And to me, that has so many layers of meaning. 26:26 I can't even begin to unwrap them. 26:29 When I was a non-Christian, many times, 26:34 I was in situations where God held my right hand 26:37 and I wasn't paying any attention to Him. 26:40 He saved me. 26:42 There were a couple of times 26:43 where I felt physically threatened. 26:47 And even though I wasn't a Christian, 26:49 I knew God existed. 26:51 One very specific time, I was like, "Help me, God." 26:55 I knew that if He did not do something, 26:58 something bad was really going to happen. 27:00 And I just... 27:02 in my heart, in my being, it was like, "Help me, God." 27:07 And that's all I could say. 27:08 And later on, I looked back and I know God intervened 27:13 and made a difference. 27:15 He saved my life because He knows the end 27:17 from the beginning. 27:19 And of course, you make promises 27:21 that you don't keep at the time. 27:24 But life went on. 27:25 He did row me over the years and I did end up with Him. 27:30 When I lost David... 27:31 See, before I had that relationship with the Lord, 27:36 David was my all. 27:38 He was who I depended on, who I leaned on. 27:41 And I am so grateful that God brought me to Him 27:44 before I lost David 'cause I don't think... 27:47 I'm not sure how I would have survived that without Him. 27:50 But when I lost David, my complete leaning, 27:55 everything was on the Lord. 27:57 There was no one else. 27:59 And I remember, so vividly after David died, 28:02 sitting in front of the fireplace going, 28:04 "I'm yours, Lord. 28:06 There is no place else to go. There is nothing else to do. 28:09 I'm yours completely and totally. 28:12 Whatever You want, whatever You say." 28:14 That's saving to the utmost. 28:16 But I was admitting to that, I was committing to that, 28:20 and being willing to ask Him. 28:22 I came unto Him and asked Him for that help. 28:26 And now so much of my life before the Lord, 28:30 I remember being in darkness, or in pain, or being in fear, 28:34 or being mostly just in pain. 28:37 Emotional pain. 28:39 Emotional pain, not physical. Emotional, mental. 28:42 But after you come to the Lord, after you have Him there, 28:47 after He saves you to the utmost, 28:49 and when you're living in sin, that song, 28:54 you know, "Deep in sin. 28:57 Sinking to rise no more. And love lifted me." 29:00 He lifts you out of that. 29:03 He lifts you into the light. 29:05 And now... 29:08 I feel like I fail Him too often now. 29:12 So then Satan will come in and try to discourage you 29:16 because I disappoint my Lord too many times, I let him down. 29:21 And it just breaks my heart because He gave more than 29:26 I can even imagine to save me. 29:29 I know He went to the cross. 29:31 But what He sacrificed for me was so far beyond that 29:34 I can't even comprehend it. 29:36 And here I let Him down. 29:38 So it's these verses that you can turn to 29:43 to knock Satan down, where He says to you, 29:46 "I am the Lord your God. I will hold your hand." 29:50 He never lets go of my hand even when I fail Him, 29:54 when I let Him go. 29:56 He is faithful and true to the utmost. 29:59 And so when Satan attacks us, there are so many levels, 30:04 "Fear not, I will help you." 30:06 Whether I need physical help because of bad choices 30:10 and put myself in physical danger, 30:13 whether it's emotional, mental, 30:15 the world hurts us, it bounces us around. 30:19 As CA says, "If you haven't been there yet, 30:21 wait it's coming. 30:23 Everybody gets there. 30:24 Okay?" 30:25 Satan is going to attack. 30:27 He is going to send you pain and danger. 30:29 But these verses are the ones that will lift you up, 30:35 and take you into the light, and give you peace. 30:38 See, Satan can't take my peace very long 30:42 now because the scripture that I fed in 30:46 and I have it on my walls, 30:47 I have it here, I have it there. 30:50 I really want it in my heart. 30:53 I wish I knew more by memory, 30:55 but God brings things to you when you need it. 30:57 Absolutely. 30:59 So you throw Satan out and say, "No, 31:01 this is what I'm holding on to. 31:02 God is holding my right hand. 31:04 He is my God, my Lord. 31:07 And He will help me. 31:08 And I have nothing to fear." 31:10 You know, how many times I stumble and fall, 31:12 as long as I keep coming back to Him and saying, 31:16 "Help me" committing, submitting, 31:18 He will raise you up and save you to the utmost. 31:21 You know, I was just thinking while you were talking. 31:23 Tim, you have two gorgeous sons, 31:26 Grae and Eli. 31:27 Right. 31:28 I am sure there have been times when they've disappointed you. 31:32 I mean, kids are kids. 31:33 Sure. 31:34 But did you ever, when they disappointed you, 31:37 think like, 31:39 "I don't have anything more to do with you 31:40 or I don't love you?" 31:42 What is a father's heart like when you see your son 31:47 floundering, you see something going on? 31:50 It just makes your heart explode 31:53 with love and want to rescue. 31:54 Right. Exactly. 31:56 Well, I know that. 31:57 Recently, as they've become teenagers, 32:00 they have called me with situations 32:02 that they've found themselves in. 32:04 And my younger one gave me a situation 32:09 that he knew I would be disappointed, 32:11 he just called me and said, "Dad, 32:13 I know that you'll probably never even look at me the same 32:15 after I tell you what I've done." 32:17 I said, "Son, are you kidding me?" 32:20 I said, "I was never put in that position that you..." 32:24 Example that he gave me. 32:26 But I said, "I appreciate, first of all, 32:28 you telling me about it." 32:31 And I mean, there's just... 32:33 A Father's love is just... 32:35 You can't turn on that. 32:38 I do hear of fathers who turn on their children 32:41 because of things that they've done that, 32:44 you know, was disgraceful. 32:46 Really? 32:47 When I think of what God has done for me, 32:51 Lord I've got nothing but mercy to the extent. 32:55 Absolutely. 32:56 And you know, that's how God looks at us. 32:59 I love what you said. 33:00 There was someone local here who worked at 3ABN for a while. 33:04 And he had gone through a very traumatic event, 33:09 turned to drugs, his father was in law enforcement. 33:12 And his father loved him, loved him, 33:14 loved him no matter 33:16 what he was doing, he accepted him, 33:18 he loved him. 33:19 And of course, he wanted him to change. 33:22 But you know, that boy... 33:24 I mean the Dad took a lot of criticism 33:26 because he was so supportive. 33:29 But guess what, it was that love 33:31 that brought him around. 33:32 And that's why the Lord is. 33:35 God just will keep on loving you till He wooze you. 33:39 And then we have God's love in us. 33:42 That enables us. 33:44 You are filled with God's love, 33:45 and that's why you let God's love flow 33:48 through you and into your sons, 33:49 and you continue loving them. 33:50 That's right. Praise the Lord. You're right. 33:52 If you let go of your child... 33:54 God doesn't let go of us. 33:56 But if you let go your child, 33:57 then God's love is not flowing through you. 33:59 Right. 34:01 How many of you guys have been scared before? 34:03 Have you ever had a moment or a situation 34:07 where you were fear of something? 34:08 Yeah, sure. 34:09 Well, let's take a look at Isaiah 41:10. 34:13 Yes. 34:15 And we should already be right there. 34:17 Let's take a look at that. 34:18 "Fear not for I am with you. 34:21 Be not dismayed for I am your God. 34:24 I will strengthen you. 34:25 Yes, I will uphold you. 34:27 I will help you." 34:29 Excuse me. 34:30 "I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." 34:33 Now let's take a look at that fear not. 34:36 Okay, "So don't be afraid 34:39 because that trial that you're going through, 34:41 I'm with you. 34:43 Be not dismayed." 34:44 And dismayed, according to the dictionary, 34:48 means to cause someone to feel consternation and distress. 34:53 So the Lord is saying, "Be not dismayed 34:55 for I am your God. 34:57 You serve me, I can do anything." 35:01 You know, God can do anything. 35:03 So don't stress about it. 35:05 Don't worry about it. 35:06 "I will strengthen you. 35:08 You know, where you're weak, Christ is strong. 35:11 And you know, His strength is made perfect 35:13 in our weakness. 35:15 "Yes, I will help you. 35:16 You're not alone." 35:18 You know, "I've got this. 35:19 I'm going to help you through it. 35:21 I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." 35:24 You know, I don't know about you guys but I'm right handed. 35:28 So naturally, my right hand is stronger than my left hand. 35:33 You know, God is saying, Jesus is saying like... 35:36 He's right handed too, right? 35:37 Yes. 35:40 He is upholding us with His right hand, right? 35:42 He's holding us with His righteous right hand. 35:45 And during the Hebrews, I mean, that was... 35:49 You're right. 35:50 It was a figurative language to mean His strength. 35:53 He's talking about Jesus Christ right here. 35:58 It is His strength. 36:00 And you think about the right... 36:01 like you think, "Right path. 36:03 You're going in the right direction. 36:05 You're going down the right way, 36:07 you know, not the wrong way." 36:09 So it speaks to the moral... 36:13 The thing with the right hand, like this is just, 36:17 this is righteous, this is morally sound. 36:21 So you know, sometimes, we get in those moments 36:23 where we get scared. 36:25 The definition of "courage" is the ability to do something 36:28 that frightens one or strength in the face of pain or grief. 36:33 But where does that strength come from? 36:35 God. 36:37 Yeah. Absolutely. 36:38 So I mean, I absolutely love this. 36:40 I have moments where I get scared, 36:41 I have moments where I fear, 36:43 and then I've got to remember like, 36:46 "Oh, God's got me." 36:47 You know, when I was out in the world, 36:48 and my appendix ruptured inside of me, 36:51 and I was lying in that hospital bed. 36:54 I remember laying there and my mom was there with me, 36:57 my dad was there too. 37:00 But my mom... 37:01 Like I couldn't do certain things, 37:03 you know, things that I used to be able to do with ease. 37:06 I couldn't walk myself to the sink to brush my teeth. 37:09 So my mom helped me get to the sink 37:11 so that I could brush my teeth. 37:13 And when she felt like... 37:15 She was walking me over there, 37:16 she felt that I was skin and bones 37:18 like I was whether in a way dying in that hospital. 37:21 And I remember lying in that bed and I was saying, 37:23 you know, "Lord, if you help me. 37:25 If you just... Please help me. 37:27 And if you get me out of this situation, 37:29 I'll change." 37:30 You know, I was doing a lot of wrong things prior to that, 37:33 drugs and all that stuff. 37:34 And then that moment where I was like, 37:37 "Lord, you know, if you would help me get out of this thing, 37:39 you know, I'll change." 37:40 And I just remember, I felt a comfort, 37:46 a peace come over me. 37:47 But it was like, I still didn't give my heart 37:50 to the Lord at the moment. 37:51 And you see, Satan wanted to take me out at that moment 37:53 because I wasn't going, 37:57 I wasn't going to go to heaven at the resurrection, 37:59 put it that way. 38:00 And so, you know, it was just one of those things 38:05 where I was scared. 38:08 Got out of the hospital, 38:09 ended up having a case of blessing amnesia 38:12 where you forget what God brought you through 38:15 like the Israelites often did. 38:17 And anyway, long story short, 38:20 it took me years to come back to the Lord. 38:25 But once I did, I mean, it was the best decision. 38:26 But He honored your promise. 38:28 You said, "I will come back." 38:30 And He held you to it. 38:31 Well, you know, isn't that funny 38:33 because when you said 38:34 'cause it's saying here that I will strengthen you. 38:37 Here you are saying, "Lord, 38:39 if you'll help me, I will change." 38:41 And He is sitting there going, 38:43 "Son, you don't have the power to change you, 38:46 but I will help you. 38:47 I will work in you 38:48 until you're willing to do my good pleasure. 38:51 I, My grace is sufficient for you 38:54 because My strength will be made 38:56 perfect in your weakness." 38:58 He just had to wait till you got to that point 39:02 where you said, "Oh, Lord, I get it. 39:04 I can't change myself." 39:07 Or you even really wanted to change. 39:10 But didn't He... 39:11 I know He wooed me at different times 39:13 when I was still running away. 39:15 He tapped me on my shoulder and was like, "I'm still here. 39:19 I'm still waiting for those promises 39:21 you gave yourself to Me 39:23 at one time, I'm here to collect." 39:26 And He keeps wooing and lifting and drawing you. 39:31 Yeah. 39:32 And at the same time, that He is wooing and drawing, 39:34 you've got Satan in your ear saying, 39:36 "Oh yeah, you can't go to Him like this. 39:38 You're not good enough to go to Him like this. 39:40 He doesn't want you." 39:41 God is right there waiting for you. 39:44 He loves you so much. 39:45 He wants to spend eternity. 39:47 Do you know how long that is? 39:49 That's forever. 39:50 That's a long time. 39:52 I ran until I saw... 39:54 until God was able to show me His love 39:58 because I wasn't worthy. 40:00 And I didn't think He could ever accept me. 40:03 But He just put His love... 40:05 When you see His love, it's when it breaks you. 40:09 Yes. 40:10 It's like the prodigal son being off in the far country 40:13 and just going. 40:14 "Hey, you know, everything's better 40:16 at my father's house." 40:17 And he is practicing his speech all the way, "I'm unworthy. 40:20 Let me just be one of your hired hands." 40:23 And the father all along was just sitting there, 40:26 watching down the road, waiting for him. 40:28 And he sees him and what does he do? 40:31 Here he comes with the robe, with the ring, 40:33 with the sandals. 40:34 He kills the fatted calf. 40:36 I mean... 40:37 See, we've got such a crazy picture of God, don't we? 40:41 Yes. We do. 40:42 Now we just finished up a series, 40:44 I was talking about dominion. 40:47 And, man, it really touched my heart. 40:49 I was able to see with much more clear eyes. 40:51 There is a battle continually over dominion. 40:55 And at this particular time, 40:56 there was a battle over dominion over who you are. 40:58 It is. Amen. 41:00 I mean each one of us. 41:03 And you can see that battle... 41:05 If you're standing back, 41:07 you can kind of get a better idea 41:08 of what everybody else is going through. 41:09 Yeah. 41:11 And if you'd found a mirror and see 41:12 what you're going through, probably, you know, scarier. 41:15 Every heart is a battlefield. 41:18 But doesn't that bring you peace to think about, 41:21 you know, when you know that God's got your back... 41:24 He is your forward guard, your rear guard. 41:26 I mean, He is going before you, He is your rear guard. 41:29 He has got your back. 41:30 And that's what most people 41:32 are missing today in this peace. 41:35 And Isaiah 26:3, go ahead and turn to that. 41:40 And I want to remember back... 41:42 Just a few years ago, that I was out in California, 41:47 I've told this testimony a few times. 41:50 And I will always remember it just like it was yesterday 41:53 and not many do. 41:57 But I just got an email from... 42:04 he used to be a friend. 42:05 And so I read the email 42:09 and it was just nothing but bad news 42:11 and was not... 42:13 It was intended to harm me. 42:15 And so I got into my hotel room, 42:19 and truly, I felt so helpless. 42:22 I have not felt that way... 42:24 Man, there are most things that I have learned to cope, 42:27 you know, you figure out how things are 42:29 and God gives you strength gradually to handle. 42:31 But right there, it was like, 42:34 the bottom was just falling out from underneath me. 42:37 So I had left my Bible back on the bus 42:41 that I was traveling in. 42:43 And so there was a Gideon Bible in the hotel. 42:47 So I opened that, and I don't recommend just, 42:50 you know, letting the Bible fall open 42:51 to some random scripture, but this time, it worked. 42:55 And so I just said, "God, I got nothing." 43:00 And the Bible fell opened, Isaiah 26:3. 43:05 It opened to 26 and my eyes fell on 3. 43:09 And it said, "Thou will guard him, 43:12 keep him in perfect peace, 43:13 whose mind is stayed on thee because he trusts in thee." 43:19 Right? Amen. 43:20 So in the amplified version it says, 43:22 "You will guard him and keep him in perfect 43:24 and constant peace whose mind is stayed on You 43:27 because he commits himself to You, 43:29 leans on You, hopes confidently in You, 43:33 trusts in You." 43:34 So then I was strengthened by that. 43:39 That evening, we were loading in. 43:41 I was singing with a group 43:42 and we were loading into the church. 43:44 And in several places throughout the church 43:45 on the walls, they had big scripture. 43:48 And what do you know? 43:50 That scripture was laying right there... 43:53 hanging right there on the wall. 43:54 Praise God. Isaiah 26:3. 43:56 "Thou will keep him in perfect peace 43:58 whose mind is stayed on thee." 43:59 If you keep your mind on the Lord, 44:05 that is just a huge source of peace. 44:09 Now I'm intrigued by the fact that it says perfect peace 44:14 because I think of peace as being perfect peace. 44:17 I mean, you know, peace is peace. 44:19 It's like how much more peaceful can you get than 44:22 peaceful, peaceful? 44:24 And so it's peace, peace. 44:26 Wonderful peace, peace, peace. 44:28 But it says, "It's perfect peace." 44:30 And you know, in the world though... 44:32 In fact, Jesus said, "Not peace is that world gives, 44:35 give I unto you." 44:36 Yeah. 44:38 Because the world gives you peace like... 44:39 When you're ignorant about something, 44:41 you're kind of in peace about it 44:43 'cause you don't know, you're just kind of ignorant. 44:46 Then there is the stagnant peace like, 44:48 you know, which they were on the... 44:50 What vaulter do we live in? 44:53 San Andreas or whatever that is... 44:57 Underneath us, there is some stuff going on 45:00 and like in a volcano. 45:01 You know, but above us, it's peace. 45:03 But we don't know if friction would help, 45:04 or friction would break loose, you know? 45:06 But we ignore that. 45:07 Right. 45:08 And so that's a kind of peace. 45:10 But that's not perfect peace 45:11 'cause it's going to explode one day. 45:12 And then there is a dependence, 45:15 a peace that is dependent as long as... 45:17 like we've got programs and aid that provide us surface peace, 45:21 but one day, those pieces are all going to dry up 45:25 and then what are we going to do? 45:26 You know, when government aid stops being the form of peace 45:30 that's... 45:32 God provides perfect peace. 45:33 Yes. 45:35 But it's because that very last part of the verse... 45:37 If you have to turn your bible almost upside down 45:39 and start with it because "I trust in Him, 45:43 He provides that perfect peace because my mind stayed on Him." 45:47 So it's not just a mindfulness, you know? 45:50 Today, we live in a world where we study mindfulness 45:53 and in certain religions and even... 45:57 I like to just get by myself 45:59 and, you know, just clear my mind. 46:01 But it's not even all about what you put your mind on 46:06 which I do want the mind of Christ 46:08 and I do want my mind on Jesus 46:09 but it's because I put my trust in Christ. 46:14 And I put my trust in God. 46:16 That is where the whole keeping everything... 46:21 where He guards me is because I have trusted in Him 46:24 because I can put my mind on Him. 46:26 And I'll get distracted, you know, that... 46:29 My mind will wander, 46:31 or situations will overwhelm me, 46:34 and my mind will get distracted. 46:36 But if I trust in Him, no matter what... 46:40 And He says, "Thou will keep him 46:41 in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee, 46:44 because he trusts in thee." 46:47 This is part of the song if you read the whole chapter, 46:50 chapter 26. 46:51 In fact, I would just recommend reading the whole Bible. 46:53 It's a chockfull of goodness that, 46:59 you know, why pick a certain place? 47:01 Just read it all. 47:02 But truly... 47:05 And so we think with our head, but we trust with our heart. 47:08 So that's why... 47:10 Another thing about just being mindful isn't quite... 47:13 But that perfect peace 47:14 does not depend on any circumstances. 47:18 That's what makes it perfect. 47:20 It doesn't matter what's happening. 47:23 And that's why your point's well taken about the trust. 47:26 I have to just tell you quickly. 47:27 When God was teaching me to do affirmations, 47:30 I remember one morning, 47:31 I got up and I was praying His promises back to Him. 47:33 And this was one of them. 47:35 And I said, "Oh, Father, 47:37 I thank You that you keep me in perfect peace 47:40 because You're helping me keep my mind focused on You, 47:42 trusting in You, leaning not on my own understanding, 47:46 but leaning on what Your promises say, 47:48 what Your words say." 47:49 And so here I am praying that. 47:52 And it really does do something in your mind. 47:54 Well, JD was out of town 47:56 and it was just a couple hours later 47:58 that I got this phone call. 48:00 And this phone call was a horrible phone call. 48:02 And I couldn't get a hold of him. 48:04 And I mean I'm just pacing back and forth, and back and forth. 48:08 And it was just wringing my hands. 48:10 "And Oh, Lord, what are we gonna do? 48:12 What are we gonna do?" 48:14 And all of a sudden, the Lord just so clearly, audible voice, 48:20 but He just said, "Where are your eyes focused? 48:23 On Me or on the problem?" 48:26 And so my eyes were so full... 48:29 And when I returned my eyes to Him and could say, "Father, 48:33 thank You that You are going to uplift. 48:38 I will not fear. 48:39 You're going to lift me up by Your righteous right hand. 48:41 Thank you that Jesus is able to save to the uttermost. 48:44 Thank You, Father, that you know... 48:46 from the beginning, You can do this." 48:47 And I just started praying scripture 48:49 and the peace just flow through my body. 48:54 And guess what, within 24 hours, 48:57 the whole problem was solved. 48:58 Wow. Wow. 49:00 Let's see. And that's what I love about. 49:02 What you said a while ago, courage and your verse... 49:05 What was your verse again? 49:06 Isaiah 41:10. 49:10 So read it. 49:11 So, "Fear not for I am with you. 49:13 Be not dismayed for I am your God. 49:16 I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you. 49:18 I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." 49:20 So it was the courage... 49:22 He made a comment about courage. 49:24 You made a comment about courage. 49:25 It was the definition. 49:27 When you do something that you're afraid to do. 49:29 Right. 49:30 And it's not about not having fear 49:32 because fear is natural, 49:34 but having courage through that fear... 49:37 And the verse says, "I will strengthen you." 49:38 The amplified version says something about I will... 49:42 What was the verse again 10? 49:44 "I will harden you to difficulties." 49:46 So it's like you will build a callous but we've got to go 49:50 through some of those things. 49:51 You know, how are you going to get biceps like me 49:54 if you don't work out? 49:56 Yeah. 49:57 Exercise. Yeah. 49:59 And one quick thought. 50:00 I know JD's got something he wants to share, 50:01 but courage is nothing more than were we bathed in prayer. 50:07 There you go. There you go. 50:09 That's true. 50:10 I want to go back to this first of all 50:12 because we're just sitting here dancing around this 50:14 and that's how we first started here. 50:16 In Romans 8:26, we keep going back there. 50:20 We don't really know how we should pray 50:22 or what we should pray for. 50:24 But every one of us has given an example 50:26 that in our time of "Help me, Jesus," 50:30 I like to say that Calvary was there, 50:32 God was there to assist us to get us over that speed bump. 50:37 And we do find speed bumps all the time. 50:39 And, boy, I love Philippians 4: 6-7. 50:43 Philippians 4:6-7. 50:47 This is one that I will suggest that you mark in your Bible 50:51 because He is saying here... 50:53 This is a promise. 50:55 And there are so many of us out there that are combating 50:58 the enemy today with anxiety and panic attacks. 51:02 And he said, in clear sense, 51:04 this is Paul speaking to the Philippians. 51:06 Now you have to remember that Philippians 51:07 were the good guys. 51:09 These were one of the churches that really accepted him. 51:11 And so he was really bragging on them, at the same time, 51:15 he was loving them 51:16 and he still was encouraging them. 51:21 "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything..." 51:27 Wow, we're going in two different directions there. 51:29 He says, "Hey, stop here, don't be anxious. 51:31 But in everything by prayer and supplication," 51:35 supplication being that particular person need. 51:40 Yes. 51:42 "And supplication with thanksgiving." 51:45 Oh, boy, that's a tough one. 51:49 You know, you've got anxiety, 51:50 you've got, "Hey, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus." 51:53 And "Thank you. Thank you. Okay." 51:56 But it also tells us 51:58 that we're supposed to thank Jesus 52:01 and in situations. 52:03 Absolutely. In all situations. 52:05 Unnecessarily for everything 52:07 because I didn't want that horse. 52:11 And the horse was there, you know? 52:13 But after the fact, thank you, Jesus... 52:16 that lam was there. 52:17 Yes. 52:19 "So do not be anxious about anything 52:20 but in everything by prayer and supplication, 52:23 with thanksgiving... 52:24 Present your request to God. 52:25 Thank You, Jesus, I will call upon You." 52:27 Amen. 52:28 "And the peace of God." 52:30 Wow. 52:31 Now we were talking about peace a while ago. 52:33 Boy, what comes to my mind 52:34 when we talk about peace is quietness, 52:39 confidence. 52:43 Unity. 52:44 Unity. I thought unity. 52:45 Yes, with one. 52:48 "But prayer and supplication with thanksgiving 52:50 present your requests to God 52:52 and the peace of God which transcends," 52:55 in other words, excels, 52:57 "transcends all understanding will guard your heart 53:00 and your mind in Christ Jesus." 53:02 Amen. 53:03 You know, I thought about too. 53:05 When you said that do not be anxious about anything 53:08 is the fact that God has the big picture. 53:11 He is thinking of things eternally. 53:13 You know, sometimes, we get caught up on this thing 53:15 or that thing. 53:16 And we don't think with an eternal mindset, 53:20 but God does. 53:22 And so that's why it's important 53:23 not to be anxious and anything 53:24 because, look, He wants to save us. 53:26 He wants to spend eternity with us. 53:29 So you know, we may be going through different situations 53:32 and certain circumstances to help to refine our character 53:35 and prepare us for that. 53:37 So we got to be thankful in everything. 53:39 You know, I was thinking 53:41 as we were talking about this whole, 53:44 you know, "Help me, Lord," 53:45 you have to see your need 53:48 before you can ask for help. 53:50 It's true. 53:51 In other words, you have to see your need of Jesus 53:54 before you can really plead for Christ's help. 53:58 And this brings me back to the story. 54:02 We mentioned it earlier, the prodigal son. 54:04 So we know how the story goes. 54:05 He goes to the father and he tells the father, 54:07 you know, "I basically ask 54:08 for the inheritance in advance." 54:10 But if you look at this from a Middle Eastern perspective 54:13 because Christ is telling the story to Middle Easterners, 54:16 and in that particular culture, 54:19 for someone like a young man to come 54:22 to his father before he has died 54:25 and ask for the inheritance was the most shameful act 54:28 that you could possibly bring upon yourself 54:30 and your family. 54:31 In fact, there have been true stories, 54:33 real incidents where young men had went to their father 54:37 before they had died and said, "You know, hey, father, 54:39 can I have my inheritance?" 54:41 And this is literally happened. 54:43 In fact, if you did this today in a Middle Eastern country, 54:45 like a Palestinian country, 54:47 they would literally take you out into the quarters 54:49 and they would stone 54:51 or, you know, kill that young man for that 54:54 because he would bring 54:55 a supreme amount of shame upon his family. 54:58 When you think of the concept of the prodigal son 55:02 how eventually he decides, 55:03 "You know what, I don't need this. 55:05 I don't need you, father. 55:06 I'll go out and do my own thing, 55:08 I'll make my own way." 55:09 Eventually, he came to that point 55:10 where he saw his need. 55:12 He had become separated from his father. 55:14 And he reached the point 55:16 where he saw his need "You know what, 55:17 things were so much better back home then they are now." 55:22 He comes back home. 55:23 And of course, this is where I think all of us... 55:26 Sometimes, we feel so shameful, and perhaps, 55:28 maybe how we have responded to God. 55:31 And so the devil comes to us and says, "Oh, you know what, 55:34 why go back and even ask for help? 55:35 You know, you've brought shame to yourself, 55:37 and God's ashamed of you, 55:38 and you constantly done this and this and this. 55:41 But nonetheless, this young man came back. 55:43 And look, here's the powerful part of the story 55:44 'cause I know we're about to run out of time. 55:46 And I know Shelley has something to say. 55:48 The Bible says that, "The father ran to the son." 55:53 It reminds me of the song by Phillips, Craig, and Dean 55:54 "When God Ran." 55:56 A lot of times, we see that 55:57 from a Western cultural mindset. 56:00 And we see this happy father just like, "My son's home. 56:03 Oh yay!" 56:04 And I do believe that is the case, 56:06 but from a Middle Eastern perspective, 56:08 the father was running to the son 56:10 because the son brought shame before he left, 56:13 he was subject to death. 56:14 So he casts himself up on the son 56:18 to keep others from killing him, 56:20 in other words, placing himself as the sacrifice on the son. 56:25 But it all started because this young man... 56:28 And last in this story, 56:29 we have to see our need before we can come 56:32 to that point and say, "Lord, I need help. 56:34 Help me, Lord." 56:36 Amen. 56:37 Honey, did you have... 56:39 You know, I just want... 56:40 As we're winding down everything, 56:41 we can just simplify this, "Seek first the Kingdom of God, 56:46 and then all these other things will be given to you." 56:50 And that is the quietness, the confidence, 56:52 the harmony that we're looking for. 56:55 But I'd certainly agree, 56:57 without knowing that there is a need, 56:59 why would we even call upon Jesus. 57:02 So if you don't know Jesus, invite Him into your heart. 57:07 God will take us to a point where we see our need. 57:09 Amen. 57:11 I just want to thank each and every one of you 57:13 for being here, for your input. 57:16 And it's just so amazing to me how fast time flies 57:20 when you get into the Bible study. 57:22 But our prayer for those of you at home 57:25 is to have a happy Sabbath 57:27 and that the Grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, 57:29 the love of the Father, 57:31 and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit 57:33 is with you always. 57:34 Amen. 57:36 God bless you. |
Revised 2018-11-05