Participants:
Series Code: TDYFW
Program Code: TDYFW018038A
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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 00:18 Removing pain 00:23 Lord, let my words 00:29 Heal a heart that hurts 00:34 I want to spend my life 00:39 Mending broken people 00:45 I want to spend my life 00:50 Mending broken people 01:08 Hello, happy Sabbath 01:10 and welcome to 3ABN's Family Worship. 01:13 I am so excited, 01:14 my name is Chris Shelton and I am here with my husband, 01:17 Pastor Kenny Shelton, 01:18 and we have wonderful 3ABN family here 01:21 around our table to worship with you tonight. 01:24 Pastor, who would you like to introduce first? 01:27 You want to introduce 01:28 those nice looking gentleman to your right? 01:30 Yeah. 01:31 I think I'll start right down the end 01:32 because it's like bookends, holding us together here. 01:34 That's right, yes. 01:36 Are we the bookends? The bookends. 01:38 Bookend, well, you know, Brother JD, 01:40 he really needs no introduction 01:42 and he talks probably more than any of us 01:45 because he's in pastoral, 01:47 so when you call in many times you may get Brother JD. 01:50 In fact both of you on the bookends, 01:52 you may get either one of you that's awesome, 01:54 but we'll start with Brother JD, 01:56 you've been here at least what, a couple months or so or three? 01:59 Couple of months I think, 02:01 couple of months plus 13 times 12 02:05 for you mathematic geniuses, 02:07 it's a long time but then again it's just like a start. 02:11 Yes. Amen. 02:12 I like that. 02:14 We were talking about living 100 years old while ago, 02:18 so at this time I'm still a baby in the Lord. 02:20 I appreciate that high five, 02:22 anytime he gets discouraged about age 02:25 or, you know, da-da-da, I say, 02:26 "Hey, you're not a 100 yet. You're not a 100 yet." 02:31 We'll think about it when we are a 100 here. 02:32 Nine hundred and sixty nine I think... 02:35 Very good, very good. 02:37 I guess what we'll do is, 02:38 we're gonna skip him for a minute. 02:39 We're gonna jump over here because over here to my left 02:42 the other bookend in pastoral is Don. 02:45 Brother Don, you're not a 100 yet. 02:48 I'm marching that way. 02:49 You're marching that way. 02:51 In the Lord's army, right? 02:52 That's right. That's right. 02:54 Yeah, to be a bookend, 02:55 thank you for that, I really don't... 02:56 I just thank you, appreciate that. 02:58 Yeah, but the Lord is good, He's got you in pastoral, 03:01 and you get to talk and pray with so many people, 03:03 you and your wife both do things on the side. 03:05 I know she's in graphic design here but, Janelle, 03:09 I know you work with him going to different churches. 03:11 You both have sang in our church 03:13 which is beautiful and... 03:15 I did a prison ministry last night, 03:16 which was man, shh. 03:18 You talked about... 03:19 It's amazing, you get to go in prison to see these guys, 03:22 it's incredible. 03:23 Yeah, these guys are hungry and thirsting to know Jesus. 03:24 They want to know they're son of God. 03:26 Amen. That's good. 03:27 I love that, I love that. 03:29 Now back over to my right, 03:31 I'm saving you for the last 03:33 because I'm gonna kind of combine you and ET 03:36 'cause we have Sister ET on the piano today 03:39 and you guys are in the music department, 03:41 so tell us about that? 03:43 I know you are loving, and we love having you here. 03:45 Absolutely, so I'm still relatively 03:48 the new guy even though that's kind of fading away. 03:50 I've been here about six months now. 03:52 My name is Ryan Day. 03:53 I work here with the music department 03:55 here in the sound center at 3ABN, and I currently, 03:59 I'm helping to assist Tim Parton in getting prepared 04:03 to launch our new 04:05 Praise Him music network in January, which is... 04:08 It's going to be really exciting 04:09 and, of course, Miss ET across the way, 04:12 she is also, 04:13 she's kind of a sound center manager 04:15 and she does a lot of the editing, 04:17 and she's just a vital important part of our team, 04:19 and it's a blessing to know her. 04:21 It's good to work with her from day to day. 04:23 Absolutely, absolutely. 04:25 I might say, 04:26 she's only being quite 04:28 because she's had a wonderful morning. 04:29 She told me, if she talks she might cry 04:31 'cause you and the Lord have really been working 04:33 on something today, so we love having ET around. 04:36 Love having music, 04:38 music is such a part of ministry. 04:39 Absolutely. 04:41 My mother always said that music can touch a heart 04:42 when nothing else can. 04:44 And today you have brought some music. 04:46 A lot of times we kind of skip over it when we don't have 04:49 you professional people with us, 04:51 but today we brought a beautiful song, 04:54 'Tis So Sweet. 04:55 It's our theme. 04:57 'Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus. 04:58 That's right. 05:00 All right. 05:01 Sing along with us. 05:04 'Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus 05:09 Just to take Him at His Word 05:14 Just to rest upon His promise 05:19 Just to know, 05:21 "Thus saith the Lord!" 05:24 Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him! 05:29 How I've proved Him o'er and o'er 05:34 Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus! 05:39 Oh, for grace to trust Him more! 05:45 Oh, how sweet to trust in Jesus 05:50 Just to trust His cleansing blood 05:55 Just in simple faith to plunge me 06:00 'Neath the healing, cleansing flood! 06:05 Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him! 06:10 How I've proved Him o'er and o'er 06:15 Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus! 06:20 Oh, for grace to trust Him more! 06:26 Yes, 'tis sweet to trust in Jesus 06:31 Just from sin and self to cease 06:36 Just from Jesus simply taking 06:41 Life and rest, and joy and peace 06:47 Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him! 06:52 How I've proved Him o'er and o'er 06:57 Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus! 07:03 Oh, for grace to trust Him more! 07:09 Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him! 07:15 How I've proved Him o'er and o'er 07:21 Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus! 07:27 Oh, for grace 07:30 To trust Him more! 07:35 Amen. 07:36 Beautiful song. Wow, wow. 07:37 Yes, it's good. 07:39 I think we can break this down and make this our study guide. 07:42 There you go. Amen. 07:43 Amen. It's so beautiful. 07:45 Today we are going to talk about "When heaven calls, 07:48 don't hesitate." 07:50 And this is part three because the Holy Spirit 07:52 I believe has been kind of stretching it out. 07:55 By the grace of God, 07:56 it's been such a moving study, I love it. 07:58 And you guys have been here for all three parts. 08:00 We have. 08:02 This is JD's second part and Brother Ryan's first part, 08:04 and I believe he's already come, 08:06 he's already said, this is a good study, 08:09 and he's gonna share what the Holy Spirit's 08:11 given him on this study. 08:13 Just a quick synopsis 08:15 of what we studied in parts one and part two. 08:18 We looked at what it meant to deny Christ in our character 08:23 and our daily lives, 08:24 and how important it is really not to deny Him. 08:27 That's right. 08:29 We also gave examples of what it meant to trifle 08:34 with the light and the privileges 08:36 that God has given us over the years, 08:37 and what it means to trifle, 08:39 and how actually how dangerous it is to trifle with God. 08:44 Let's see, we also looked at... 08:46 Oh, my, a lot of times 08:49 when we choose to not accept the truths, 08:53 we are left in darkness and we really found out 08:56 that is because of how kind Christ really is 08:59 because He's gonna give us what we ask for. 09:00 Amen. Yes. 09:02 And then finally, 09:04 we talked about whose choice it is that 09:07 whether or not we are lost or saved. 09:09 You know, is it our choice or is it really God? 09:11 You know, some people have different opinions 09:13 on that, and we found out that it is our choice. 09:17 God is seeking to save whomever He will, 09:20 He is calling day by day. 09:22 Amen. 09:23 Pastor Kenny Shelton, 09:25 would you please open our study with prayer? 09:26 Absolutely, let's pray. 09:28 You pray at home with us too please. 09:31 Our kind loving heavenly Father, 09:32 what a privilege it is that we've come before 09:34 Thee on this Sabbath day, 09:37 beginning hours we give You praise, 09:38 and give You honor, and give You glory. 09:40 You're the King of the universe. 09:42 We come to Thee, we bare no gifts, 09:44 we just come baring our soul to Thee. 09:46 Lord, we need Your Holy Spirit. 09:48 We realize that without you we can do nothing, 09:51 there's nothing good within us, 09:52 but today we just invite Thy Spirit 09:55 in a very special way. 09:56 Just enlighten these beautiful truths 09:58 that we will be going over. 10:01 Lord, also I pray for those 10:02 who are studying with us right now, 10:04 those at home, those who are viewing, 10:05 or listening, or watching. 10:07 Lord, I know they need a special touch today. 10:09 We need one every moment of every day, 10:12 so we pray Your Holy Spirit will now take possession 10:14 of each and every one of us. 10:16 May we sit at Your feet, may we hear Your voice, 10:18 may You be lifted up 10:20 and would draw all men unto You. 10:22 We here at this table not be seen, 10:25 but we pray that You will be seen and heard 10:27 and the Spirit will work and decisions will be made 10:30 that we need not hesitate 10:32 because heaven is calling and time is running out. 10:34 Amen. 10:35 Thank you for this opportunity. Thank you for Your promise. 10:37 I know You're going to be with us, in Jesus' name, amen. 10:40 Amen. 10:41 When heaven calls, don't hesitate. 10:44 And we're gonna start by looking at some words 10:46 that Christ spoke to disciple John. 10:50 John 17:18 and 19, it says, "As you sent me into the world, 10:57 I also have sent them into the world. 11:00 And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, 11:04 that they also may be sanctified 11:07 by the truth." 11:09 Those are such important words 11:11 because it makes a real difference. 11:14 You know, Christ also says, 11:16 "My people perish for lack of knowledge." 11:18 You know, truth is so vital, 11:20 especially in the time in which we're living in, 11:22 so when heaven calls us to the truth, 11:25 we need not hesitate, 11:26 we need to study to show ourselves approved unto God. 11:31 I'm gonna read on and this is taken 11:32 from the book, to be like Jesus, 11:35 it's a Spirit of Prophecy book. 11:37 Some of these words were written a few years ago 11:40 before even some of the science that we have now, 11:42 I hope we get to it a little bit 11:44 later in this program, 11:45 but they're so applicable for us today. 11:50 In The Parable of the Lost Sheep, 11:52 Christ teaches that salvation 11:54 does not come through our seeking, 11:56 and I found this so interesting, guys, 11:59 through our seeking after God 'cause we're always thinking, 12:02 we need to seek after Him but listen, 12:04 but through God seeking after us. 12:08 Isn't that encouraging? That's right. 12:09 Brother Ryan, he's looking down and He's not waiting on you. 12:12 Absolutely. He is seeking you. 12:15 He sought us. Amen. 12:16 That is so, so important... 12:18 I love that. 12:20 If you remember nothing, you have to remember, 12:21 Christ is seeking you. 12:22 Amen. 12:24 "There is none that understandeth, 12:26 there is none that seeketh after God," 12:27 this is Romans 3:11 and 12. 12:32 They are all gone out of the way, and verse 10, 12:35 they didn't put that in this little synopsis but it says, 12:38 "There is none righteous, no, not one." 12:40 That's right, yes. 12:42 Interesting, we do not repent 12:44 and this is another powerful statement. 12:46 Oh, yes, yeah. 12:48 It helps us to get our thought processes correct 12:51 in the right order. 12:52 Yes. 12:54 We do not repent in order that God may love us, 12:58 that's a powerful statement, 12:59 but He reveals to us His love in order that we may repent. 13:05 Now that sets up our question, 13:07 our first question for this program is, 13:10 most of us realize that in order to be saved, 13:14 we must confess our sins, 13:16 repent of our sins 13:18 and thus turn away from our sins. 13:20 So how is it that God's love 13:23 brings all of this about in our lives. 13:27 And now the floor is open, Ryan is already... 13:30 Oh, Don, I can see it. 13:32 It's interesting because I just got the opportunity 13:34 to share a story with these young children 13:36 the truths told here. 13:37 And it was a story about two men, 13:39 they were in Scotland 13:41 and of all the things this beautiful green lush land, 13:43 and they're going along and hear this really eerie 13:45 sound coming from somewhere, so they're searching, 13:47 they're looking 13:48 and they find this big crack in the ground, 13:50 and in this crack in the ground, 13:51 there's something in there 13:53 and as the guy is pulling apart the grass, 13:55 he looks and there's a lamb inside, 14:00 and he reaches down gently 14:01 and pulled this little lamb out of the ground. 14:04 It's like what Jesus did for us. 14:05 He came to this world to pull us out. 14:08 That's right. 14:09 Out of the darkness, out of our pain, 14:11 all of our hurts, our addiction, 14:12 whatever, He's come to pull us out. 14:14 2 Corinthians 5:21 says, "He was made to be sin for us." 14:18 And you know sin, 14:19 that we might be the righteous of God in Him. 14:22 That's right. Absolutely. 14:23 There's so many applications we can go with that 14:26 'cause we have all fallen in so many cracks. 14:29 And again that's God seeking to save us. 14:32 That's right. Yeah. 14:33 Otherwise we couldn't pull ourselves out, it's impossible. 14:36 Absolutely, that was a beautiful point 14:39 and at any point of time 14:40 you guys can interrupt me to shut me up, 14:43 but I can say so much on this particular point. 14:47 I love this question because to me 14:50 it's one of the most important questions. 14:51 Yeah. 14:53 Okay. 14:54 And the way I kind of see this question 14:55 is I reworded my mind and I ask myself, 14:57 how can we live a life of sin 15:00 with the knowledge of God's love, 15:02 and I wrote a little phrase down here. 15:05 I heard a minister say it one time, 15:07 "Sin is the result of a misunderstanding 15:11 or misrepresentation of God's love and character." 15:13 Wow. 15:16 In our lives when we sin, 15:18 when we are living a life of sin, 15:19 that is simply result 15:21 of the misunderstanding of God's love. 15:22 That is powerful. 15:23 That is the response we get from not understanding 15:26 God's loving character for who He really is 15:29 'cause if we truly can just get a glimpse 15:31 of God's love for who He is, 15:34 then it would be almost impossible, 15:37 you know, as long as there is an enemy, 15:38 it's always possible, 15:40 but it would be almost impossible 15:41 for us to sin 15:42 because with the love of God manifest in our life, 15:45 I guess, the truth we put it up, 15:47 it would be impossible. 15:49 You know, I think of the scripture found 15:50 in 1 John 4:8 which says "God is love." 15:54 Amen. 15:56 Not that God is loving, 15:57 you know, 'cause we can be loving, 15:58 we can have expressions of love, feelings of love, 16:01 but the Bible doesn't describe God as that, 16:03 not as merely just a loving being, 16:04 but the Bible says that God is love 16:07 and what does that mean? 16:09 What does that mean that God is love? 16:11 And asking this question, 16:13 how is it that God's love brings all of this about. 16:18 In 2 Thessalonians 2:7, 16:20 it talks about the mystery of iniquity. 16:24 Just bring that really quickly, just really quick, 16:26 I'm gonna read that. 16:28 It's an interesting verse, 16:29 speaking actually of the work 16:31 of the antichrist in the last days. 16:33 The 2 Thessalonians 2, 16:38 and it simply references 16:40 the mystery of iniquity Chapter 2 16:44 and specifically verse... 16:47 Which one did I say? 16:49 Okay, verse 7 here, and it says here, it says, 16:54 "For the mystery of lawlessness..." 16:56 This is New King James Version but, of course, 16:57 the King James Version would say, 16:58 "The mystery of iniquity or again, of course, 17:01 lawlessness is already at work, 17:03 only he who now restrains will do 17:06 so until he is taken out of the way." 17:07 So this is talking about the work 17:09 of antichrist in the last days, 17:11 but it refers to him, or them, or the group, 17:14 or just the reality as the mystery of iniquity 17:16 and that's always interesting, the mystery of iniquity. 17:19 To me when I think of that, 17:20 I think of sin being a mystery 'cause sin is a mystery. 17:24 When you can fully contemplate or understand God's love 17:28 which sometime we feel like we can't. 17:31 Sin is a mystery. 17:32 It's a mystery to me. Why is it a mystery? 17:34 Because once you understand who God is 17:36 and what He's done for you, how can anyone sin? 17:42 It's a mystery. 17:43 It is a mystery, 17:44 but it also brings about the thought to me 17:46 because we are so questioning. 17:48 You know, we have a lot of walls 17:50 that have been built up. 17:52 There's been a lot of confusion in religious matters 17:56 and even in interpreting the Bible. 17:59 And I think once we understand more of His love 18:02 that also breaks that wall down. 18:05 And we can trust Him because there's many times, 18:07 you know, the Bible says that's a two-edged sword, 18:09 it's gonna cut, it's gonna separate, 18:11 it's gonna divide. 18:12 And we have to trust God to allow Him to divide us 18:17 from the things that we once love. 18:19 It's a healing. 18:20 It's a dividing to heal, but not dividing to destroy. 18:24 It's a good thing. 18:26 At the same time you said how could we, we couldn't, 18:28 but we have to remember a third of the angels at one time. 18:32 You know, now I think that even brings it even more to light, 18:34 when you think about the rebellion of Lucifer 18:37 and the angels in heaven, they have never known sin. 18:41 They have never even been in contact with it, 18:44 they didn't know what it was. 18:45 So that even more shows like 18:46 how could Lucifer had come to the point 18:49 to make the choice to reject the love of God 18:52 when he had never known sin prior to that. 18:55 The mystery of iniquity, 18:57 it's a mystery 'cause sin is a mystery. 18:59 I have a verse to share that goes along 19:01 with the question that how is that, 19:03 that God's love brings all of this about. 19:05 I like what it says in Romans 2:4, 19:08 and to me this just answers the question perfectly. 19:13 It says "Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness 19:16 and forbearance and longsuffering, 19:19 not knowing that the goodness of God 19:22 leadeth thee to repentance." 19:23 And it also reminds me of the chapter in Steps 19:26 to Christ on repentance. 19:28 And when I first read that, it really just... 19:32 God opened my eyes to what repentance really is, 19:36 and how it's not anything that we have inside of us, 19:39 it's the goodness of God that leases there 19:41 and, you know, that totally reposition things 19:47 in my mind and like my approach to God 19:49 and, you know, 19:51 I don't have to have any goodness 19:52 in me to approach Him, 19:54 I don't have to get it together to have repentance. 19:56 I need Him to work in me to re-repair. 19:59 You know, I think that, you know, 20:01 sometimes we get backwards in our minds thinking, 20:03 I have to have it together before I approach God, 20:06 you know, and so for me that gives me hope 20:09 that He's gonna lead me there and He has led me there so... 20:12 Amen. 20:13 And that's something that's important for people 20:15 that who listen to it, 20:16 because they get caught up on that. 20:17 True. 20:19 You know, they think that they have to do something. 20:20 I know that I had my priorities backward for a long time. 20:24 It says in James 4:8, "Draw close to me, 20:30 and then I will draw close to you." 20:33 And I had it kind of backward, you know, it's kind of like, 20:35 "Lord, You prove yourself to me, 20:38 You bring the smorgasbord to me, 20:42 and then I will partake and then I'll jump on board." 20:46 I mean, that's stinking thinking. 20:50 And I mean, I was honest about it. 20:52 Yeah. 20:53 And you would so, I mean, you can take a naive person, 20:55 a vulnerable person that doesn't 20:57 because they're not really seekers 20:59 that can be misled really inside. 21:03 Well, you know, there... 21:04 In Luke, was it Luke 19:10, he said, 21:06 simply he came to seek and save that which was lost. 21:10 And just simply adding just a couple of points, 21:13 what we're reading, each one was bringing in here. 21:16 It was in the what? 21:17 1 John 4, you were talking about, 21:19 starting with verse 10. 21:20 Verse 10, it says, "We're here in his love, 21:25 not that we love God, but that He what? 21:28 First loved us. 21:29 He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation 21:32 for our sins." 21:34 Verse 13, "Hereby know we that we dwell in him, 21:38 and he in us 21:39 because he hath given us of his spirit." 21:42 Verse 16, 21:43 "And we have known and believed the love 21:46 that God hath to us. 21:47 God is love, he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, 21:52 and God in him." 21:53 Verse 19, 21:54 this is what we've been all saying, "We love Him, 21:57 because He simply first loved us." 22:00 You know, it's like that sheep 22:02 that you were talking about that fell in. 22:03 What happens when the sheep, you talk about the sheep. 22:08 Jesus goes in, He talks about the sheep, 22:10 you know, the 90 and the 9. 22:11 You know as pastors and working in what we work in here, 22:15 it's easy to stay with the 90 and 9 22:17 when things are going good. 22:19 But the one that falls by the wayside is the one 22:23 that's the most helpless. 22:25 It's the one that needs special attention. 22:29 It's the one that needs help. 22:31 It's the one that, 22:33 when you go out as pastor might do 22:36 and visit or pray for whatever, 22:39 and then that person begins as it were to come back. 22:41 The spirit's already working on them 22:43 to bring them back into the fold. 22:44 But you don't bring them back in by saying, 22:47 and people have done this, 22:48 shame on all of us 22:49 that may be have done this one time or the other. 22:51 We spank that individual. 22:53 We give them a good spanking 22:55 because they maybe fell by the wayside. 22:57 Right. 22:59 You see, they don't need a spanking at that point, 23:00 they don't need to say, 23:02 "Well, this wouldn't happen if you didn't." 23:03 That's right. They don't need that. 23:04 Yeah, I was gonna say that. 23:06 They need a special touch, they need a special word, 23:07 don't they in due season? 23:09 And they also, they don't need to be... 23:13 You take a rope and put it around them 23:15 and lead them back in the fold. 23:18 They are so damaged and so hurt that the good shepherd would do 23:23 this as he sees that poor wounded sheep there. 23:26 He sees him right there. Pick them up. 23:28 Yeah, he doesn't take a whip 23:29 and gave him a good sound whipping, 23:31 but he picks them up, and does what? 23:33 He puts... 23:35 carries and he puts him on his shoulder, 23:36 and he carries him back in. 23:38 Now that shows just real, real love 23:42 and it just simply boils down what everybody's been saying, 23:44 because He first loved us. 23:47 We can't even repent, right? 23:49 I had a gentleman the other night in prison. 23:52 He came to us, 23:54 he confessed what he went through 23:55 and he was pretty shaken. 23:56 He knew the Holy Spirit was prompting him and saying, 23:58 "Don't do this, don't do this." 23:59 And he went and did anyways, he got himself in trouble, 24:02 but we didn't, we didn't scold him, 24:03 we didn't yell at him, 24:05 we just got around him and prayed over him. 24:07 Galatians 6:2 says something beautiful, 24:09 "Bear you one another's burdens and so fulfill 24:11 the law of Christ." 24:12 Yeah. 24:13 We surround each other and support each other, 24:15 you need that support. 24:16 Yes, you do. It's really important. 24:18 Especially when somebody's being vulnerable and honest, 24:19 you don't want to, you know, you don't want to ruin that, 24:21 you know, because that's a very, 24:23 you know, touchy delicate place for a person. 24:27 It means that the way really that we always do it. 24:29 I find that it's not, 24:31 because if someone makes a mistake, 24:33 someone's weak, someone failed, 24:35 someone disturbed, 24:36 most of us as Christians try to separate ourselves 24:38 from that person, that's dead wrong. 24:40 Yeah. That person needs help. 24:43 They don't need for everybody to separate from them. 24:45 You don't want to talk to them, 24:47 you don't want to have anything to do with him. 24:49 The Bible simply said, 24:50 "All have sinned and come short in the glory of God." 24:51 We've all made a mess of our life, 24:53 only because of Christ we come back. 24:55 So the Lord's always impressed my heart, you don't just, 24:58 you know, separate yourself from that person, 25:01 we need to make an effort to get to that person. 25:03 That's right. 25:04 It's like sometimes, you know, 25:06 but any type of a difficult situation 25:07 we'd rather not get involved. 25:10 And that's the time to really step forward. 25:14 That's true. 25:15 And that separates character right there. 25:17 But could you get in trouble for that? 25:18 You bet. 25:20 Can you be blamed for that? 25:21 In ministry they say, "Well, my, 25:22 if I'm associated with the sinner, 25:24 I'm not going to get any support." 25:25 There's people not going to support this ministry, 25:27 because I'm associating with this or that rather than 25:30 and I understand disassociation, 25:31 but be careful with it, 25:33 but we need to seek like Jesus did to save 25:35 and bring them back in, regardless of the cost. 25:38 Christ will take care of things. 25:39 Does it not say that He ate with sinners 25:42 in public meetings? 25:43 Well, He sure did and He was... 25:45 He was who He says He is, what's He doing there? 25:47 And what happened? 25:48 You know, I tell you, guys, 25:50 that brought tears to my eyes 25:51 because of the love of Christ of just pulling us 25:53 out of all this mire. 25:56 You have it, 25:57 you've just kind of skimmed over, 25:59 I know you've got a real good example of that, 26:01 because years ago there were ministries 26:04 that shunned a pastor that fell, 26:06 and without saying... 26:07 Oh, my land. 26:09 Tell us that story? 26:10 Yeah, there was one, in fact, 26:11 we did a lot of work with this brother 26:14 and loved him dearly 26:16 and, you know, you can't help 26:18 but love when you think alike and you, 26:20 you're doing the same things. 26:22 It's just an automatic love relationship 26:24 that you have with one another 26:26 and especially working with this brother, 26:27 and he had written some books and just... 26:30 I mean, he was a tiger when it comes to the lion, 26:34 when it came to the truth, you know, who just... 26:35 Sure. 26:37 And he made a mistake. 26:38 He made a wrong choice. 26:41 And so everybody decided along that point that knew him well, 26:45 the best thing to do was to separate 26:48 and not have anything to do with him, you see. 26:51 And that was the wrong thing to do, because it was so, 26:54 it wasn't just the sin that got him, 26:57 it was the idea that he had been forsaken by family, 27:01 and by friends, and coworkers, and other ministers. 27:05 Well, what did he do? 27:09 He took a gun and he shot himself, 27:11 he killed and blew his brains out. 27:12 I'll just say it, he killed himself. 27:15 And the whole thing was just because no one showed 27:18 that they really cared. 27:20 He needed help and no one helped him. 27:23 And I'll never forget that, 27:24 because I was impressed to call before that, and I put it off. 27:29 And I'll never get over that. Sure. 27:31 I put it off, not that it may have changed anything, 27:34 but I was impressed, 27:35 I need to call this man and tell him we still love him. 27:39 He's made some choice and deceived but still love you 27:41 and what will it take to get you to, 27:43 you know, let's get things squared away 27:45 and let's get back into work together. 27:46 And I put it off until it was too late 27:49 and I've asked God to forgive me and the family 27:51 and best we can do at that point in time. 27:53 You know... 27:54 What is the title of our...? 27:56 When heaven calls, don't hesitate. 27:59 And that's just a result of hesitation. 28:02 It was. 28:03 You know, possibly a loss of life, 28:04 but you just think about, 28:06 and maybe while you were talking, 28:08 you said everybody wants to separate. 28:09 There are times when there is open sin, 28:13 you know that the Bible does teach 28:14 that we're to separate from them, 28:16 but there are people, 28:18 you know, still in that valley of decision. 28:20 You know, God is in the business 28:23 of restoration. 28:25 Yes, He is. 28:26 Every one of us are like that pastor. 28:27 Every one of us. Absolutely. 28:30 What if heavenly Father had said, 28:32 "Oh, they've done wrong, let's just do... 28:36 Wait, let's leave him in that crack 28:37 as it were in the ground." 28:40 They got issues don't bother with him. 28:41 Don't bother with him. No. 28:42 None of us would be here right now. 28:44 That's right. 28:45 God restores, He wants to rebuild in us, 28:49 as we're going to study a little bit later, 28:52 His character. 28:53 That's right Yeah, 28:54 I had a lady calling to our pastoral department 28:56 and she had backslid and she's trying to get out of. 29:00 And she was very shameful, 29:02 she felt very pressure to go back in 29:04 by one of her close family members. 29:08 And I just shared with her the love of Jesus 29:09 through the scriptures. 29:11 Yeah. 29:12 And one of these ladies, they began weeping profusely 29:13 when I shared Zachariah 3, 29:15 every time I stress Zachariah 3, 29:16 people break down. 29:18 But when I shared on how Jesus covers over you 29:20 with His robe of righteousness 29:21 and puts that golden crown on your head, 29:23 something just hits 29:25 these people and she began crying. 29:26 I said, "Why are you crying, 29:27 and if you don't mind me asking. 29:29 She said, "It's because I realized how unworthy I am, 29:30 but He calls me worthy. 29:32 That's right. I'm worthy. 29:33 Exactly. 29:35 She saw that in that picture and it just spoke to her heart. 29:38 You see, all this ties back to the love of God. 29:42 That's right. 29:43 It is understanding experience just a little bit of His love 29:47 that we begin to see who we really are. 29:49 That's right. 29:51 And we begin to see what He wants us to be. 29:53 I had a man years ago. 29:56 He was a Sabbath School teacher 29:57 in the Marion Church, a church not far from here. 30:00 And he also was the principal of our church school 30:03 at that time. 30:04 And I always loved it because he didn't see 30:08 who you were at that time. 30:10 He could always see where you could be. 30:15 And as Christ's shepherds, 30:18 you know, as He's calling us to be His disciples, 30:21 we need to be looking at other people, 30:23 not where they are, but where they could be. 30:26 That's right. 30:27 And sometimes, it even means... 30:29 'cause I just had this experience even this week, 30:30 it's not always even how they smell, 30:33 how they dress, you know? 30:36 Think about that little sheep. 30:38 We're not going to get past that little sheep 30:39 in that crevice. 30:41 He probably didn't smell very good anymore, you know? 30:44 But as we come up, God cleans us, 30:45 not only on the inside, but the outside, 30:48 everything with His love and His power. 30:49 You know, as you're talking, 30:51 it's given me a visual of something 30:52 I've seen before of a person, 30:55 you know, with their driver's license, 30:56 and over here's Jesus with, 30:57 you know, what we would think of His driver's license, 31:00 and then the transition of that, 31:02 you know, how your identity is not, 31:05 you know, who you are now 31:06 but who you want to become like. 31:08 Yes. Yes. 31:09 And I think, that's a powerful thought that, 31:12 you know, we're not of this earth, 31:15 you know, we're His, and that's our identity. 31:17 You know, that makes a big difference 31:19 in how we react, 31:21 how we even get dressed in the morning. 31:23 If we stop and think before we put on our clothes 31:26 or fix our hair who we want people to see, 31:30 are we trying to attract them to us 31:32 to think that we're something 31:34 or do we want people to see Jesus? 31:38 It will make a difference in everything we do, 31:41 what we put on, what we do, everything. 31:43 Oh, yeah. Go ahead. 31:45 We were talking before we started this program, 31:48 it was like we were joking around 31:49 about aging. 31:51 And 100-years-old came up, 31:53 and normally you think of 100-years-old, 31:55 should you reach that marker, that you would be mature. 32:00 When we were talking here, 32:02 I was thinking about the teacher 32:03 that you were talking about, Chris. 32:06 He was mature in the Lord and that he was accepting, 32:11 you know, in spite of warts or whatever may be there, 32:15 he was accept... 32:16 And that I think something that we all need to be working on. 32:18 Amen. 32:20 You know? 32:21 And pray for spiritual maturity. 32:23 One thing that I'm really... 32:25 The Lord's really impressing upon my heart, 32:27 and this gets so complex, and that is, 32:31 is that we all have different issues, 32:34 we're all praying. 32:35 That's right. 32:37 And we're so settled in the selfishness 32:38 and what my desires are, 32:41 "Oh, Lord, do You hear me, 32:42 do You hear me, do You hear me," 32:44 whereas person B over here is also praying. 32:48 And so we never quite know 32:53 whose desire is going to be filled at that time 32:56 because God's the one that's orchestrating. 32:58 Amen. And so it may... 33:01 This particular project here may backfire on me, 33:04 or is this person over here, 33:06 they've been praying about this particular project 33:08 for years and it opened up. 33:10 That's right. 33:11 And so as we're looking at the depth of all of this 33:15 and the way that God is working because He's wooing all of us, 33:20 He's not just singling, 33:21 "Oh, Don, he's My project this week." 33:24 I mean, He's got projects every other day. 33:26 Amen, amen, amen. 33:28 And sometimes, 33:29 because of the lack of maturity that we may possess 33:32 is that we don't allow God to really work. 33:35 And so I'm really learning, 33:37 God may Your will be done and get me out of the picture. 33:41 That's right. 33:43 And win, lose, or draw, 33:45 if you are selling into that arena of maturity, 33:49 then you could accept whatever consequences 33:51 are because your... 33:54 He has your eternal interest and mine at all times. 33:57 That's the bottom line. That's good. 33:59 I think we could even substitute 34:00 that word maturity for love. 34:03 Amen. 34:04 Because as we are filled with love... 34:08 Let me just read Romans 5:5, it says, 34:11 "And hope maketh not ashamed 34:13 because the love of God is shed abroad 34:16 in our hearts by the Holy Ghost." 34:18 So as the love of God fills us up, 34:21 these broken vessels, these chipped vessels, 34:25 then we become mature in Christ. 34:27 Amen, Amen. 34:28 Amen. Beautiful. 34:29 And all fits, as you're talking, 34:31 I can see how it fits. 34:32 I mean things that keep us going somewhere 34:34 and may have already... 34:35 I think he was reading Romans 4 a while ago, 34:37 and Romans 5 and 8, 34:39 you know, it always comes back to my mind every time 34:41 and someone may have already said it, 34:42 but, "While we were yet sinners... 34:46 While we were yet sinners," 34:47 you know, again that's showing is such an example 34:50 of what we should be doing and laboring 34:52 for so you can save that which was lost. 34:55 That's what Jesus did while we were yet sinners, 34:56 while we were enemies, 34:58 while we did everything 34:59 we could possibly do against God. 35:03 Actually, I thought they just want to make sure 35:05 that you don't understand they're against God, 35:07 and I have seen them actually raise their fist toward heaven 35:09 and curse God and say, 35:10 "I'll tell you, there is no God." 35:12 God is so merciful and long suffering, 35:15 you know, that He would put up 35:16 with that with someone like we are, and He's saying, 35:19 "I've been seeking you all the time. 35:21 I want you there with me. 35:22 Where I am there, you're going to be all." 35:24 So I think that's just such a wonderful thought. 35:27 And one thing that's helped me, quickly on the agnostic, 35:29 I've said it before on the program, 35:31 that my mother gave me a great illustration. 35:33 You know, our Mums and Dads can do great things for us 35:35 if we would just listen. 35:37 I had a hard time listening while I was at home. 35:40 As you're getting older, you think about these things. 35:44 And it's about the character, 35:45 it's about part of that lesson here, 35:47 about that when they, 35:48 you know, His character's fully reproduced in us 35:51 to have the character of Jesus. 35:53 That's such an awesome stretch for me as I look at it. 35:56 A lot of times, 35:58 I had tendency in years past to judge 35:59 by the outward appearance. 36:01 Oh, yes. You know, because... 36:03 You know, just look and say, "Well, my land, 36:04 this is a mess, it's not going to work. 36:06 He said it wouldn't." 36:07 And she, you know, gave the illustration 36:08 once again because she always did 36:10 the pillowcases back then and did all the... 36:12 I told you about the sewing. 36:14 What do you call that? It's a needle... 36:15 Embroidery? Embroidery? 36:17 Yeah. Pillow slip. 36:18 And you got the beautiful whatever it is on the surface. 36:21 And one day I said, "Well, that's really pretty, mom." 36:23 And she said, "Do you realize what this is underneath?" 36:26 I said, "No, what do you mean underneath?" 36:29 So she turned it wrong side out, 36:31 it was the biggest mess. 36:32 It was like a walk of spaghetti. 36:34 Just going this way and that way and threads 36:37 and colors and I could make out a thing. 36:40 She reminded me, she said, 36:42 "You know, what, that's how we look up. 36:45 And our life is like this. 36:47 It is a mess. 36:48 There is no way that it can be squared away. 36:51 There is no way to straighten out this mess." 36:55 She said, "But just turn this thing over, now look. 36:56 This is God's looking down. 36:58 He sees the finished product." 37:00 He is saying, "Oh, yes." 37:02 How wonderful that is because I looked at it 37:04 and said it is a complete mess. 37:05 I mean, I've taken a ball of string 37:07 and got it messed up to where I just threw it away. 37:10 It's just a little ball of string, 37:12 you know, sometimes, 37:13 there are so many knots and you're taking it 37:14 and you're cutting it... 37:16 God doesn't throw away anything. 37:17 He sees something good in each one of us. 37:19 He sees something good in you. He's not gonna throw it away. 37:22 He's going to bring it to oblation. 37:23 I like it that while we were yet sinners, 37:25 He came to seek and save us. 37:27 Oh, it's beautiful. 37:28 Matthew 19, Matthew 19... 37:32 Excuse me, Matthew 9:13. 37:35 It says... Matthew, what now? 37:37 Matthew 9:13, 37:40 "But go ye and learn what that meaneth, 37:42 I will have mercy, 37:43 and not sacrifice for I am not come 37:47 to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." 37:51 I think this is so important because we may have people 37:54 studying with us at home. 37:56 They may be thinking right now, "I've just gone too far. 38:01 There is no hope." 38:03 And I think if nothing else that bits and pieces 38:06 that the Holy Spirit is bringing out in this study 38:08 is there is hope. 38:10 Amen. 38:12 You can you can kneel, you can ask God for His love 38:15 to fill your heart and your mind. 38:17 There is hope. 38:19 That's why He's calling you. 38:21 That's why He called each and every one of us. 38:23 I think we should segue into our next question 38:26 because this all fits together. 38:28 I'm going to read a little bit more from the book 38:31 to be like Jesus, it reads, 38:33 "The rabbi's had a saying that there is rejoicing 38:36 in heaven when one who has sinned against God 38:39 is destroyed." 38:40 When I read that again, I thought of a story. 38:43 It's a true story of a lady up in Northern England. 38:47 And it was a time when, you know, 38:51 I mean everybody was very critical 38:54 and they might have thought you were a witch 38:56 when you really weren't, they would, 38:57 you know, hang you or whatever. 38:59 It was just that type of atmosphere. 39:01 And this young girl had to be... 39:03 They were a very poor family. 39:05 And she was sold by her parents to go work somewhere else 39:09 to send money back. 39:11 While she was gone, someone took advantage of her, 39:15 and at the age of 12, she had a baby. 39:18 And then she came back... 39:20 Before she came back, 39:22 they gave the baby to someone else. 39:24 So she never told her family what happened. 39:26 Later on in years, the sad thing was that, 39:29 I don't know how much of the story I should tell, 39:31 but she was like 62, and this man came to town, 39:35 and she had no idea who he was. 39:37 They fell in love, and they got married. 39:39 And then when his family came, 39:42 they found out that she had married her son. 39:46 Everyone disannulled... 39:48 They disannulled the marriage. 39:51 They took her, I mean, they just let her, 39:54 basically she starved to death in her home. 39:59 It was so, 40:00 so sad because the people who claim to be Christians... 40:05 And at her funeral, her sister... 40:07 It remind me of these rabbis here 40:08 because her sister put her hand on the cactus and said, 40:12 "She's finally got what she deserved." 40:14 Oh, mercy. Wow! 40:17 Who are we to be that judge? 40:20 Yeah. And the little girls that... 40:22 One family that lived close, 40:23 they would send her food every now and then. 40:25 Again, the women couldn't go see her, but the kids could. 40:28 And one little girl, of course, she's an older lady. 40:31 At this time, she gave her testimony, 40:32 she said, "That was the sweetest, 40:34 kindest, loving old lady you could ever meet." 40:39 You know, but they shunned her. 40:41 And that's what the rabbis were doing. 40:43 Jesus taught that, "To God, 40:46 the work of destruction is a strange work, 40:49 strange work, 40:51 that in which all of heaven delights is," 40:54 and this is what we just talked about, 40:55 "the restoration of God's own image in the souls 40:59 whom He has made." 41:01 Question number six. 41:03 Restoration is the process by which something 41:06 and or someone is restored to their former 41:09 or original beauty and or self. 41:12 Well. 41:13 So restoration, and in the beginning, 41:14 we were created in the image of whom? 41:17 Christ. 41:19 So we denote here that man needs to be restored 41:22 in the God's own image. 41:23 So let's all explain what... Yeah. 41:26 I was going to go into Ezekiel 16. 41:29 Ezekiel 16. 41:30 Very good scripture. 41:32 Ezekiel 16:4-12. 41:34 I'll read this, 41:35 this really came strong to my mind. 41:36 It says like, maybe a fewness prepared for this, 41:38 but God is good, 41:40 He brings things to remembrance. 41:41 Yes. Amen. 41:43 And Ezekiel 16 is a beautiful picture 41:45 of what God is doing for each and every one of us, 41:47 it says in Ezekiel 16:4. 41:49 "And as for thy nativity, 41:51 in the day thou wast born thy navel was not cut, 41:54 neither wast thou washed in water to supple thee, 41:56 thou wast not salted at all, nor swaddled at all. 41:59 None eye pitied thee, to do any of these unto thee, 42:03 to have compassion upon thee, 42:04 but thou wast cast out in the open field 42:07 to the lothing of thy person, 42:08 in the day that thou wast born." 42:10 Ezekiel 16:6 says, "And when I passed by thee, 42:12 and saw thee polluted in thine own blood, 42:15 I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, 'Live yea,' 42:18 I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, 'Live. 42:22 I have caused thee to multiply as the bud of the field, 42:24 and thou hast increased and waxen great, 42:26 and thou art come to excellent ornaments. 42:29 Thy breasts are fashioned, and thine hair is grown, 42:32 whereas thou wast naked and bare. 42:34 Now when I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, behold, 42:36 thy time was the time of love, 42:39 and I spread my skirt over thee, 42:40 and covered thy nakedness. 42:42 Yea, I sware unto thee, 42:44 and entered into a covenant with thee, 42:45 saith the Lord God, 'And thou becamest mine. 42:48 Then washed I thee with water. 42:50 Yea, I thoroughly washed away thy blood from thee, 42:53 and I anointed thee with oil. 42:54 I clothed thee also with broidered work, 42:56 and shod thee with badgers' skin, 42:58 and I girded thee about with fine linen, 43:00 and I covered thee with silk. 43:02 I decked thee also with ornaments, 43:03 and I put bracelets upon thy hands, 43:05 and a chain on thy neck. 43:06 And I put a jewel on thy forehead, 43:08 and earrings in thine ears, 43:09 and a beautiful crown upon thine head.'" 43:12 Praise God. 43:14 Good. Restoration. 43:15 Restoration. Restoration. 43:17 Of course, it mentioned about creation. 43:20 Absolutely. 43:22 In beginning, Genesis 1:26 and so on to 27, 43:25 it talks about that we made in the image of God. 43:28 And to me, when you think about that, 43:29 it means in the form of, 43:31 this is how personal that it gets, the form of God, 43:34 the features of God physically, 43:36 spiritually, all these things, character. 43:39 I mean that really puts it down to the... 43:41 You can talk about to the nitty-gritty 43:43 right there. 43:44 And I found something in Sabbath-School Worker, 43:46 just real quick, you know, 43:47 everybody's got a lot to share on that. 43:49 Page 112, it says, 43:50 notice this because we're talking about 43:52 the image of Christ, this is the importance 43:53 of gaining victory in our life and the image of Christ. 43:55 It says, and it's just real simple, 43:57 "All who enter heaven must have a perfect character." 44:01 I know people fight that all the time 44:02 and they try to make excuses for it. 44:04 That's what it says. 44:05 Number two, page 762 says, "Christ enables man," 44:10 notice that, "to be," what? 44:12 "To develop." Right. 44:14 We look to our self, it's a total loss. 44:15 Number three, it says in Steps to Christ, 44:17 126, 44:19 "Perfect character here is developed," notice this, 44:22 "is by divine grace." 44:24 Praise God for that. 44:25 Sons and Daughters, 138, 44:27 "God can accept nothing short of perfect character." 44:31 He doesn't accept it. 44:33 And if you say, "How to obtain?" 44:34 It's pretty simple. 44:36 We're going that may people have 44:37 because I want to know, 44:38 you said, "Well, how do we obtain this?" 44:40 Others, you know, 44:41 get high-standard true education, 44:43 and it's certainly by beholding, 44:44 we become changed, but there's a lot more to it. 44:46 If we have time, I'll read that at the moment. 44:47 I think it's possible. 44:50 But a lot of people in the movement say 44:52 that's not possible. 44:53 We must have His character 44:55 if heaven is going to be our home. 44:57 Amen. 44:58 Image of Christ must be in the soul, 45:00 and it's attainable by who? 45:02 By God, by divinity living inside of us. 45:06 Christ does the work, we just need to submit. 45:09 You just got right in on my body. 45:12 No, no, it's fine. 45:13 Got to watch so I couldn't get off. 45:16 You were just setting up the stage 45:17 for what I was going to say here. 45:19 You know, there's two scriptures 45:20 that come into my mind when we're thinking of a man 45:22 being made in the image of God. 45:24 Now, obviously, most people think 45:25 in a physical likeness, 45:27 and we know that we were made in the physical, 45:28 literal likeness of God. 45:30 When I go to heaven, 45:31 I expect to see Christ and the Father with a face 45:33 and hands and arms, you know, I expect to see that. 45:36 But as you pointed out, you know, God is not only, 45:39 as we know, interested in the outward man, 45:42 but more than anything, the inward man, 45:45 and that is the character. 45:47 And so there's two scriptures that come into my mind here. 45:49 And I think they kind of feed one into another. 45:52 Romans 12:1-2. 45:54 "I beseech you therefore, brethren, 45:56 by the mercies of God, 45:57 that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, 46:00 holy, acceptable to God, 46:01 which is your reasonable service." 46:03 And Romans 12:2, I love this, it says, 46:05 "And do not be conformed to this world, 46:06 but be transformed by the renewing of your mind 46:10 that you may prove that which is good, 46:12 and acceptable, and perfect, will of God." 46:14 So we are to be transformed by the renewing of our mind. 46:18 Really, that is the avenue 46:21 in which the Holy Spirit communicates with us. 46:23 Yeah. 46:24 Once the mind is transformed, the rest of the body follows. 46:27 The question is, what mind? 46:29 What mind should I have? 46:30 Philippians 2:5. Amen. 46:32 Amen. Now you can't leave it out. 46:34 Notice what it says here. 46:35 "Let this mind be in you, which is also in... 46:38 "In Christ Jesus." There is that image. 46:39 We're in the image of God physically, yes, 46:42 but spiritually, 46:44 God desires us to adopt His mind, 46:47 His character, mind His character. 46:50 I love what the rest of the verses says, 46:51 "who being in the form of God, 46:52 did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, 46:55 but made himself of no reputation, 46:57 taking the form of a bondservant..." 46:59 Yeah. We are bondservants. 47:00 We should want and desire to be bondservants of Christ. 47:03 Amen. 47:04 "And coming in the likeness of men." 47:06 And I love Philippians 2:8, 47:07 "And being found in appearance as a man, 47:08 he humbled himself, 47:10 and became obedient to the point of death, 47:12 even the death of the cross." 47:14 What did Jesus say in Luke 9:23? 47:16 "If you desire to follow Me, deny yourself..." 47:19 Pick up the cross. "Take up your cross daily. 47:21 Deny yourself, take up your cross daily." 47:24 You know, that is a process. 47:25 It is a lifelong process. 47:27 Lots of sanctification involved, 47:29 constantly in surrender to Holy Spirit. 47:33 And I know I'm going to ramble on about this. 47:34 But I'm getting kind of to the point 47:35 that you are making. 47:38 I think when we're considering this subject, 47:40 people are going to respond differently 47:42 to this subject based on 47:43 their understanding of a gospel. 47:45 That's true. Yeah. 47:47 And you, all of us here, even our viewers at home, 47:48 there are... 47:50 It's a reality. 47:52 It's an inevitable situation 47:54 that there are two different gospels 47:58 floating around in the Christian world today. 48:02 It seems like within 48:04 these two different forms of gospel, 48:05 there's three different camps of people that respond 48:09 to these particular gospels in a particular way. 48:11 You usually have your ultra conservatives, 48:13 which seem to be a little bit more legalistic in mindset, 48:16 which is kind of 48:18 what we were talking about earlier, 48:19 which is the people who, you know, the rules, the rules, 48:20 the rules, the rules, but where's the ruler? 48:22 The ruler is not in the equation. 48:24 And you have the opposite end of the spectrum, 48:26 which are those people who kind of 48:29 the once-saved-always-saved mindset. 48:30 "There's nothing that I could do 48:31 that can pluck me from the hands of God." 48:33 And we know that that is true in the sense that no one, 48:38 nothing can pluck us from the hands of God 48:39 when we are in His will, we are following in His plans. 48:41 Right. Right. 48:43 What I want, what I desire to be, 48:44 and I'm not saying that I'm there, 48:46 I'm striving in that perfection, 48:48 I'm striving to be more like Christ, 48:50 which is to take a balanced approach 48:51 which is to fully surrender myself to Christ 48:55 and understand that Christ did come as we read earlier, 48:59 the while we were sinners, He did, 49:01 He was there for us. 49:03 He paid the price. Amen. 49:04 But many people would read that text and say, 49:06 "Praise the Lord. 49:07 In my sin... 49:09 In my sin, 49:11 Christ loves me and accepts me 49:12 and writes my name in the Book of Life." 49:14 We have to understand, there's a balanced, biblical, 49:17 kind of like, to consider it the full pictorial perspective, 49:21 full scriptural perspective, that's a mouthful. 49:24 And that is that Christ did come and save us 49:27 while we were yet sinners. 49:29 Yes. 49:30 But He doesn't want to leave us the way that we are. 49:32 Exactly. And, you know, a perfect... 49:33 Yes, good. 49:34 A perfect thing that really helped me, 49:36 I mentioned earlier, 49:37 and it's always going to be important for me 49:39 is that book Steps to Christ. 49:40 I think you quoted it too, Kenney. 49:42 I think that takes us back 49:43 to the foundation and the basics, 49:45 and what God wants to do to restore us, you know, 49:49 the confession, repentance, consecration, 49:51 all of those steps, 49:53 it's always going to be relevant. 49:54 And, you know, in my walk, and I... 49:56 You know, I read that book probably once or twice a month, 49:59 just, you know, either quotes or just anything out of there, 50:02 it's just like those. 50:04 If we ever forget those basic steps, 50:06 we're in trouble. 50:07 Absolutely. You know... 50:09 And I'm probably not going to say anything after this. 50:10 Give my spot in there 50:12 'cause I'm trying not to hog other's time. 50:13 But just kind of in response to what we've said so far, 50:17 the whole gospel perspective, the true biblical gospel, 50:20 Christ did come to save us. 50:22 He came to save us from our sin. 50:24 Yeah. 50:25 Not in our sin but from our sins. 50:27 Does He have mercy? Yes. 50:28 Yes. Is He forgiving? 50:29 Yes. Yes. 50:31 While we were sinners, has He come? 50:32 Yes. 50:33 But many people, 50:35 I think and I've even experienced 50:36 this in my life, 50:38 we tend to respond to the gospel in the sense 50:39 that we're in a prison cell. 50:40 When you're in sin, you're in a prison cell. 50:42 Oh, yeah. 50:43 Not only are you in a prison cell, 50:44 you're inside that prison cell, you're chained to the wall. 50:46 That's right. 50:47 And you're sitting there just wallowing in your sin, 50:49 you know, completely helpless. 50:51 Christ comes into that prison cell, 50:54 and He takes those chains off. 50:55 Praise God. Amen. 50:56 But here's where the difference in gospel mentality 50:59 has changed for some people. 51:01 Once Christ comes in and He takes those chains off, 51:05 He walks out of that prison cell 51:06 and hopes that we're going to follow Him. 51:08 But many people, 51:09 they're inside the prison cell rejoicing, 51:10 saying, "Praise the Lord, 51:12 I'm not chained anymore to that wall," 51:14 but they're still inside the prison. 51:16 And Jesus say, "Hey, check the door." 51:19 Yes, yes. "Check the door. 51:20 Walk out. 51:22 Take in my goodness. 51:23 Partake in the divine character 51:24 that I want to bestow upon you." 51:26 And that's the true biblical gospel. 51:28 You know, I am seeing something 51:30 woven here through scripture today 51:32 because everything, 51:33 even the understanding of biblical perfection, 51:37 goes back to understanding the love of God 51:40 that He is love. 51:41 All these things begin to change in us to remake us, 51:45 to regenerate our minds, our bodies, our heart, 51:48 everything, by the love of God. 51:51 And I think, so much of that is summed up, 51:54 everything is summed up, 51:55 even biblical perfection is summed up in Psalms 51. 52:01 And there are so many, Psalms 51. 52:03 I don't even know if we have time, 52:04 I doubt we have time to read all of them. 52:06 We may have to... 52:07 We definitely have to come back for a part four. 52:10 Yeah. 52:12 This is too good, God is too good. 52:16 But Psalms 51, look at this, "Have mercy upon me, O God, 52:21 according to thy loving kindness, 52:24 according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies, 52:28 blot out my transgressions." 52:30 Isn't that saving us in our sins? 52:32 You just so applicably, you know, gave us an example, 52:36 it's blotting them out. 52:39 This is why we... 52:40 God says we perish for a lack of knowledge, 52:42 we're not picking up these Bibles, 52:44 we're not reading them. 52:46 Number two, Psalms 51:2, "Wash me." 52:49 What did it say? 52:51 Wash me. Wash. 52:52 "It's inside and outside, 52:54 thoroughly from my iniquity 52:55 and cleanse me from my..." what, group? 52:58 Sin. That's right. 52:59 Sin. 53:00 Three, "For I acknowledge my transgressions," God says, 53:04 come to me, but He doesn't leave us in our transgressions. 53:07 "And my sin is ever before me," oh, listen to this, 53:10 "purge me," with what? 53:12 Hyssop. Hyssop. 53:13 That's something that Jewish people used 53:15 to use to help purge the iniquities out 53:17 and the contamination. 53:20 "And I shall be clean, wash me. 53:24 And I shall be whiter than snow." 53:26 It's all God doing this. 53:28 We can't do it. 53:29 We can't make ourselves like Him. 53:32 We just invite Him in and ask Him 53:34 to make us like him. 53:36 In John 14:8, quickly, just says in there. 53:38 Was it Phillip that said, "Show us the Father?" 53:42 This is what we need to write, show us... 53:44 Show me the Father. 53:45 And what is it? 53:47 Jesus came to show 53:48 what it was all about right there, 53:49 God was... Christ was in... 53:52 What was it? Yeah. 53:53 "God was in Christ reconciling the world unto Himself." 53:56 That's right. 53:57 Because of the lack of time... Yes. 53:59 Well, maybe we could get some more here, let me... 54:02 Psalms 51:8, let's look at Psalms 51:8. 54:05 "Make me to hear joy and gladness 54:07 that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice." 54:10 See, He comes and He breaks, 54:12 He changes our heart and He begins to break us down. 54:16 "Hide thy face from My sins." 54:18 Remember David crying out? That's right. 54:20 "And blot out all mine iniquities." 54:22 Oh, Psalms 51:10. 54:24 Oh, here it is. 54:25 Everybody can read it if you want. 54:27 "Create in me a clean heart, O God, 54:31 and renew a right spirit within me." 54:34 Amen. 54:35 "Cast me not away from thy presence, 54:37 and take not Thy Holy Spirit from me." 54:40 Amen. 54:41 "Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation, 54:45 and uphold me with Thy free spirit." 54:48 That is biblical... 54:49 It's pretty heavy. Then Psalms 51:13. 54:52 Perfection. I don't know. 54:53 Psalms 51:13. 54:54 What would He do after we're cleansed? 54:56 Oh yes. 54:57 Oh, read it for me. I don't have that one. 54:59 "Then will I teach transgressors, Thy ways, 55:02 and sinners shall be converted unto you." 55:04 Not unto us, unto Christ. Yes, yes, yes. 55:06 Keep it going. 55:08 Because we want to give it away when you're so filled up 55:10 with the love of God, you want to give it away. 55:13 That's right. You know? 55:15 And there's many times... 55:16 Brother JD, I know you've got something 55:18 in your heart but there's many times 55:19 that we meet somebody and we want to give them 55:22 what God has given us but there's a wall 55:24 because they're not ready yet. 55:26 Jesus says, "I have so many things 55:27 to tell you but you're not ready." 55:29 Tell us what's on your heart. 55:30 Well, to me, this is one of those little nuggets. 55:33 There used to be an inward transformation, 55:37 the results of which are revealed 55:39 in the outward life. 55:40 Amen. 55:42 So you know, it's just... 55:44 It's all hand-in-glove. 55:46 So if He is living within, right, 55:47 He's gonna show with that 55:49 in whatever you do, yes, bearing fruit. 55:51 Well, yeah, and you want to be a demonstration of His love. 55:53 Amen. 55:55 Praise God. Praise God. 55:57 We just have to have the right perspective. 55:59 And that is that 56:00 we are striving for perfection, 56:02 not a perfected work that we will complete 56:04 but that He will complete. 56:05 My favorite verse, Philippians 1:6, 56:08 "We are confident of this thing that He who began a good work 56:11 in you will complete it." 56:13 Okay. 56:14 I've just got to throw one more scripture in. 56:18 Galatians 2:20, Galatians 2:20, 56:22 he just set me up again. 56:24 And it goes along 56:26 with what we're talking about here. 56:27 Help me with it. It says, "I am..." what? 56:29 "Crucified. 56:31 I am crucified." 56:32 We are crucified with Christ. 56:34 We need to do away with the old man. 56:37 "Nevertheless I live, 56:39 yet not I, but Christ liveth in me, 56:43 and the life which I now live in the flesh, 56:46 I live by faith of the Son of God, 56:49 who loved me, and gave Himself for me." 56:53 So as we're filled up with that love, 56:55 we're gonna do the good work. 56:57 Amen. That's right. 56:58 We got to reflect Jesus Christ. 57:00 We're going to come into that that perfection 57:03 that Christ pray, "Father, I pray that they'd be perfect, 57:05 they'd be one, as You and I are one." 57:08 It's all His love that draws us. 57:12 It is beautiful. 57:13 Now, Don, we just have a couple of seconds, 57:14 and closing quick prayer would be good 57:16 'cause somebody has made decisions today. 57:17 No doubt. Sure. 57:19 Let's pray. 57:20 Heavenly Father, you know that lost lamb 57:21 that's in the crack, Lord, that needs to be cleaned up. 57:24 And reaching out for You, Lord, 57:26 I just ask that You will guide them 57:27 and strengthen them and help them, Lord, 57:29 to respond to the voice of Your Holy Spirit. 57:31 We ask that You will guide and strengthen us 57:33 all while we're on this journey home. 57:35 We pray this in Jesus' name. 57:37 Amen. |
Revised 2019-01-21