In our study entitled
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"The Radical
Repentance of Christ."
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We discover that one of
the most profound truths
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that Jesus lived out was
His own baptism of repentance.
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In fact, the first
formal act of His ministry
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was to announce to the world
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the importance of true
repentance for everyone,
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for anyone who
would be righteous.
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And that's where the
problem begins for many people
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who catch a glimpse of
the wonderful love of Jesus,
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Who died for us.
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They choose to live for Jesus
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and then all hell
breaks loose, literally.
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They begin to wonder,
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if following
Christ was a good idea.
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First, let me assure you,
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following
Christ is a great idea.
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And the rough water totally
normal and to be expected.
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The reason that
you get buffered about
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when you start to follow Christ
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is that you're
now swimming upstream
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against the current
of own personal habits,
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against the counter
culture of the world.
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The influence of old friends
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and against the
wiles of the devil
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who has no intension of
giving you up without a fight.
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By contrast there's
a littler turbulence
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or struggle when
you drift downstream.
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Okay, enough with the analogies
for the concrete thinker,
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here it is straight up.
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No one gets to
heaven without saying,
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yes to the Lord with
all their known choices.
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And here's one
doctrine or teaching of Jesus
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that we need to say, yes too.
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"Be ye therefore perfect,"
Jesus said in Matthew 5:48,
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"Even as your Father
which is in heaven is perfect."
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For anyone who's
tried to say yes,
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to be obedient to this command,
you know how impossible that is.
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And that's why Jesus
gift of repentance is causing
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so much thunder because now
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He's given us everything
we need to obey this command.
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He's taken away all our excuses.
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Here's the teaching
of Jesus in Matthew 7:21.
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"Not every one that
saith unto me, Lord, Lord,
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shall enter into
the kingdom of heaven,
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but he that doeth
the will of my Father
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which is in heaven."
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Solomon told us that
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"The upright
shall dwell in the land,
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and the perfect
shall remain in it."
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Only perfect doers get to enter
that new heaven in new earth.
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And since nothing
is going to enter there
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that would defile its bliss,
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how then should we
live as His end time people.
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In this study,
let's take a look at
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some of the real world
places, Jesus and His disciples
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invite us to exercise
the gift of repentance
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that is "Feeling about
things the way God does,
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and acting accordingly."
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The first place is TV.
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Yeah, I got to start there, why?
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Because there's
virtually all fraudulent
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and if you want to be
fed lies then watch TV.
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If you like people training
you to lies and believe lies,
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then watch TV.
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And I'm not just
talking about the shows,
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even the advertises
make the bottom-line
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the more benchmark
for what is promoted.
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The purpose of
Jesus coming to this earth
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was to destroy the
words of the devil.
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Let's let Jesus himself
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tell us what the work of
a devil is from John 8:44.
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"When he speaketh a
lie, he speaketh of his own,
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for he is a liar,
and the father of it."
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Some folks pine for
the good old days of TV,
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with shows like,
"Leave it to Beaver,"
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"Father Knows
Best," "Andy Griffith,"
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and "I Love Lucy."
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Back then it was safe to watch.
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But if you take
the time and compare
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those shows with the Bible,
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you discover that
many of those very programs
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were planting the seeds of
our present day television.
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Lucy was always telling Ricky
some story that wasn't true
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and the industry is
still forcing lies upon us,
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integrity,
honesty and righteousness
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are not the bedrock of our media
and entertainment industry.
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So what should
be our north star,
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the safe guideline
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for those who would
follow Jesus in regards of TV?
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Well, when it comes to what you
watch for your entertainment,
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I believe Psalms
101:3 should be your model.
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"I will set no wicked
thing before mine eyes."
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Because the great
law of the mind states,
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"By beholding
we become changed."
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Most of what is shown on
TV, God will call wicked,
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but that doesn't
stop me for liking it.
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So what do we do
if we still like it?
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That is where
the choice to engage
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true repentance comes into play.
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First, we spent
time focusing our hearts
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and affection on His goodness,
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then we ask Him
for a change of heart
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and those things we
know are harmful for us,
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our friends or our families.
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If you pray that prayer,
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it's important to
keep your eyes open to see
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what He'll do in your life.
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I assure you,
you'll notice a change
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for He keeps His promises.
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You notice He
does change your heart,
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you start feeling guilt.
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And you notice that He promised
you with new heart impulses.
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When that happens choose to act,
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turning away from
sin and toward God,
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so He can pour His joy
and comfort into your life.
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Yes, Steven, TV
has certainly altered
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the moral fabric of
every society it has touched,
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eroding overtime
all the qualities
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that make our society
good, safe and blessed.
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Purity of thought
and life is another area,
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TV is working to annihilate.
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And there's a young
person who was keeping myself
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for the one man
I'll share my life with,
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I'm deeply
concerned with a medium
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that makes women mere objects.
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In a typical viewing session
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sexual content appears
in 64% of the programming.
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In these programs portrayals
that included sexual risks like
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STDs or becoming pregnant,
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abstinence or the
need for sexual safety
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are depicted
only 15% of the time.
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Consequently, sexual content
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on TV is far more likely
to promote sexual activity
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among adolescence than
it is to discourage it.
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And one other statistic
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from a study of the
year's top 25 films.
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Sexual activity
between married couples
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only appears 15% of the time
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versus 85% of the time
with those who are not married.
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It is no surprise that where
society calls entertainment
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flies in direct opposition
to the culture of heaven.
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Paul told the
folks in Ephesus that,
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"It is a shame even
to speak of those things
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which are done
of them in secret."
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But we not only talk about it,
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we broadcast these perversions,
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casting them in a
light of normalcy.
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God invented sex
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and it's
wonderful to enjoy this gift
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that God has given
in its proper context.
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The Bible teaches this
gift is only to be exercise
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between a husband and a
wife not with every person
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who grabs our
emotional attention.
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We can learn that
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from the teaching of
Jesus in Matthew 5:28.
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"I say to you that everyone
who looks at a woman with lust
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has already committed
adultery with her in his heart."
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The good news is
God's gift of repentance
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can fortify your heart.
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When you say yes to Jesus
with all your known choices,
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His gift can make you
hate what you once loved
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and love what you once hated.
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And let me give you
a personal experience
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of how this mind and
heart altering repentance
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made my life sweater
when I was a litter girl
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and set a tone that helped
to lead me to where I am today.
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My dad loved football, his
heart was definitely engaged
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but the Holy
Spirit spoke to him,
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brought conviction to his
heart just like Jesus' promise.
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And when I was 7-years-old,
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he made the choice to listen
to that still small voice.
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Every time a game came on TV
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that he wanted to
watch instead he went out
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and put his time into
building a play house for me.
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And let me tell
you what that did.
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First, it helped
my father put value
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on the truly important
things of life like family.
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Second, it kept him
from becoming attached
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or even addicted to
the things of this world.
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And last, it
helped in instilling me
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a better place to put my values.
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Yeah, repentance works
great in the real world.
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You know, Andrea,
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when you deliberately choose
to participate in repentance,
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when you spent time each day
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looking at the life of Christ
by holding His love and mercy,
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it starts the process
of change in the heart.
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And the heart or right brain
definitely need some change.
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According to the
Prophet Jeremiah,
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"The heart is
deceitful above all things,
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and desperately wicked."
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Let me illustrate this point
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with something
ubiquitous, tobacco.
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And tobacco is the one
product that when used according
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to the manufacture's
instructions cause death.
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It says right on the package,
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"Smoking kills,"
and that is true.
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Tobacco is the second major
cause of death in the world.
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In fact, tobacco kills up to
one half of its regular users.
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Smoking kills more
people each year than AIDS,
00:10:05.20\00:10:08.46
legal drugs, illegal
drugs, road accidents,
00:10:08.49\00:10:11.69
murder and suicide combined.
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Worldwide smoking related deaths
exceed five million annually,
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that's one death
every eight seconds.
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So why do people keep smoking?
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Because of the war
that's constantly going on
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between their ears.
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The mind tells him the facts.
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Smoking causes lung
cancer. Smoking ages the skin.
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Smoking hurts those around
us. Smoking causes impotence.
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But in spite of these warnings,
the emotional side of us
00:10:41.81\00:10:44.70
that heart
says, "But I want to."
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Smoking to many as a
friend and constant companion.
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So with these two
sides of the brain at war,
00:10:52.72\00:10:55.20
who usually wins, the heart.
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And that's why
the Wiseman tells us,
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"Keep thy heart
with all diligence,
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for out of it are
the issues of life."
00:11:03.38\00:11:06.49
How do we keep the heart?
00:11:06.52\00:11:08.05
By doing step one of repentance
00:11:08.08\00:11:10.49
which is
remembering the goodness of God.
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And Jesus made the
same point in Luke 11:34,
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"The light of
the body is the eye,
00:11:17.74\00:11:20.01
therefore when
thine eye is single,
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thy whole body
also was full of light."
00:11:22.86\00:11:26.24
When we're
keeping our focus on God,
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His goodness, His
promises, His grace, His love,
00:11:28.33\00:11:33.30
then our life is
guided by the light of truth
00:11:33.33\00:11:36.43
and our emotions begin
to cooperate with our mind.
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We begin to love what He
loves and hate what He hates.
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Repentance is indeed
the premier tool to use
00:11:45.25\00:11:48.37
if you want to
overcome the addicted
00:11:48.40\00:11:50.01
influence of tobacco, alcohol,
drugs or any other addiction
00:11:50.04\00:11:55.31
that the devil wants
to use to destroy you.
00:11:55.34\00:11:59.17
God's idea for His children
is higher than the highest
00:11:59.20\00:12:03.14
human thought can reach.
00:12:03.17\00:12:05.35
"Be ye therefore
perfect, even as your Father
00:12:05.38\00:12:09.11
which is in heaven is perfect."
00:12:09.14\00:12:11.79
This command is also a promise,
00:12:11.82\00:12:14.34
because God's plan of redemption
00:12:14.37\00:12:16.86
contemplates our
complete recovery
00:12:16.89\00:12:19.16
from the power of Satan.
00:12:19.19\00:12:21.18
Christ always separates
the contrite soul from sin.
00:12:21.21\00:12:25.38
After all He came to
destroy the works of the devil
00:12:25.41\00:12:29.09
and He has made provision
00:12:29.12\00:12:30.49
that the Holy
Spirit should be imparted
00:12:30.52\00:12:33.06
to every repentant soul
to keep Him from sinning.
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This was the message Christ left
00:12:38.13\00:12:40.11
with the
disciples and this message
00:12:40.14\00:12:42.56
they repeated in their
letters to the believers.
00:12:42.59\00:12:46.23
"He is also able to
save to the uttermost
00:12:46.26\00:12:49.69
those who come
to God through Him,
00:12:49.72\00:12:51.98
since He ever lives to
make intercession for them."
00:12:52.01\00:12:56.38
As a pastor, I'm often
called upon for comfort
00:12:56.41\00:12:59.17
when someone is
dying in the hospital.
00:12:59.20\00:13:01.75
I've never met one
dying person who said,
00:13:01.78\00:13:04.16
"I wish I could smoke one
more cigarette before I die,
00:13:04.19\00:13:07.53
I sure miss them."
00:13:07.56\00:13:09.16
I've never met
one person who said,
00:13:09.19\00:13:10.92
"Wow, if I died tonight,
00:13:10.95\00:13:12.32
I'll miss the
next Simpsons program."
00:13:12.35\00:13:15.21
Worldly things lose
their lustering appeal
00:13:15.24\00:13:18.40
in the face of death.
00:13:18.43\00:13:20.39
Paul told the
folks in Corinthians,
00:13:20.42\00:13:22.70
"Godly sorrow worketh repentance
00:13:22.73\00:13:24.94
to salvation not
to be repented of,
00:13:24.97\00:13:28.30
but the sorrow of
the world worketh death."
00:13:28.33\00:13:32.25
What I see in this verse is that
00:13:32.28\00:13:33.91
our emotions are all messed up.
00:13:33.94\00:13:36.79
We're sorry, we
missed the TV show.
00:13:36.82\00:13:39.11
Sorry, we missed the
night out with the girls.
00:13:39.14\00:13:41.81
Sorry, we missed the cake party.
00:13:41.84\00:13:44.05
Sorry, we didn't
score on the first date.
00:13:44.08\00:13:47.19
Sorry, when any constraints
are put on us by family
00:13:47.22\00:13:50.87
or church which
limits our freedom.
00:13:50.90\00:13:54.79
But this sorrow
leads to eternal death.
00:13:54.82\00:13:58.69
God's repentance,
His heart transplant
00:13:58.72\00:14:01.76
actually makes
us feel good about
00:14:01.79\00:14:04.31
walking away from worldly things
00:14:04.34\00:14:06.44
and positive about
doing the right thing.
00:14:06.47\00:14:09.82
This is the
biggest part of the battle.
00:14:09.85\00:14:11.95
If you hate what He
hates and love what He loves,
00:14:11.98\00:14:15.32
doing the right thing
00:14:15.35\00:14:16.72
becomes more than
just the duty of obedience,
00:14:16.75\00:14:20.24
it becomes our own desire.
00:14:20.27\00:14:22.99
God tells us
through the Prophet Ezekiel,
00:14:23.02\00:14:25.10
the reason He
gives us a new heart.
00:14:25.13\00:14:28.52
"That they may
walk in my statutes,
00:14:28.55\00:14:31.36
and keep mine
ordinances, and do them,
00:14:31.39\00:14:35.00
and they shall be my people,
and I will be their God."
00:14:35.03\00:14:40.32
If we want to be His
00:14:40.35\00:14:42.09
then we must follow in absolute
obedience to His laws of love,
00:14:42.12\00:14:48.16
that's why we need repentance.
00:14:48.19\00:14:51.73
It sure is, Charles.
00:14:51.76\00:14:53.34
The Apostle Paul
tells us in Romans 12:2,
00:14:53.37\00:14:56.44
"Be not conformed to this world,
00:14:56.47\00:14:58.56
but be ye transformed by
the renewing of your mind,
00:14:58.59\00:15:01.73
that ye may prove
what is that good,
00:15:01.76\00:15:04.01
and acceptable, and
perfect, will of God."
00:15:04.04\00:15:07.57
To prove something
means to demonstrate the truth
00:15:07.60\00:15:09.93
or existence of by
evidence or argument."
00:15:09.96\00:15:13.27
By not conforming to this world
00:15:13.30\00:15:15.06
but adjusting our
life to God's kingdom,
00:15:15.09\00:15:17.35
we become a living
proof, the evidence
00:15:17.38\00:15:20.01
that there truly is an all
powerful life transforming God.
00:15:20.04\00:15:24.77
That is why I say, he
throws these temptations
00:15:24.80\00:15:26.42
and harassments at you.
00:15:26.45\00:15:27.95
He can't force
you to disobey him,
00:15:27.98\00:15:29.59
but if you can get
you of your own free will
00:15:29.62\00:15:31.63
to turn aside from God,
00:15:31.66\00:15:33.43
then you willingly
come under his control.
00:15:33.46\00:15:36.00
The Prophet Hosea
talks about two other things
00:15:36.03\00:15:38.03
Satan uses to lead us astray.
00:15:38.06\00:15:40.30
"Whoredom and wine,
they take away the heart."
00:15:40.33\00:15:44.95
Satan is still using those two
things very successfully today.
00:15:44.98\00:15:48.21
And thanks to the internet,
00:15:48.24\00:15:49.72
the red light district
is now just a click away.
00:15:49.75\00:15:53.14
And this light sells
well, over 400 billion each year
00:15:53.17\00:15:57.51
but it whops the
moral fabric of the mind.
00:15:57.54\00:16:00.73
Then the devil offers us alcohol
00:16:00.76\00:16:02.47
which clouts the
frontal cortex of the mind,
00:16:02.50\00:16:04.46
thus lowering the inhibitions.
00:16:04.49\00:16:06.19
And suddenly we
have a deadly cocktail
00:16:06.22\00:16:08.37
resulting in debauchery,
depravity and wickedness.
00:16:08.40\00:16:11.97
But walking around among us
are people who are repenting,
00:16:12.00\00:16:15.21
they're asking for
God's will to be their own.
00:16:15.24\00:16:17.87
He's giving them a pure
heart like Joseph of old.
00:16:17.90\00:16:21.17
Joseph certainly has proved that
00:16:21.20\00:16:22.65
human beings can be obedient
00:16:22.68\00:16:24.75
when they allow the divine
nature to become their nature.
00:16:24.78\00:16:27.70
When we ask Jesus
for the same repentance,
00:16:27.73\00:16:29.53
He exercises the repentance
He promises to give us.
00:16:29.56\00:16:33.22
He'll do a miracle
in our hearts as well.
00:16:33.25\00:16:35.70
And just like Joseph and Jesus,
00:16:35.73\00:16:37.68
we can turn away
from sin in heart and life
00:16:37.71\00:16:40.81
before we stumble into sin.
00:16:40.84\00:16:44.17
People who follow
Christ as the true messiah
00:16:44.20\00:16:46.91
live different
than others around them.
00:16:46.94\00:16:49.42
And there's a reason for this,
00:16:49.45\00:16:51.49
they had chosen Christ as
their example in all things
00:16:51.52\00:16:55.31
just as he
directed in John 13:15,
00:16:55.34\00:16:58.86
"For I have
given you an example,
00:16:58.89\00:17:00.85
that ye should do
as I have done to you."
00:17:00.88\00:17:04.35
If you look carefully at
the context of this verse,
00:17:04.38\00:17:07.53
the example Jesus left
was an example in humility
00:17:07.56\00:17:11.06
of humbling self
for the good of others,
00:17:11.09\00:17:13.84
no matter the
cause to self and pride.
00:17:13.87\00:17:16.88
This lesson was not
lost on His disciples
00:17:16.91\00:17:19.30
for their letters
teach the same lesson.
00:17:19.33\00:17:22.34
"For even hereunto were
ye called, Peter tells us,
00:17:22.37\00:17:25.80
because Christ
also suffered for us,
00:17:25.83\00:17:29.03
leaving us an example,
00:17:29.06\00:17:30.50
that ye should
follow his steps."
00:17:30.53\00:17:33.51
As the young lady
growing up in a modern society,
00:17:33.54\00:17:36.39
I have followed the
culture of the world
00:17:36.42\00:17:38.29
around me in
dress and adornment.
00:17:38.32\00:17:41.04
But since
choosing to follow Christ,
00:17:41.07\00:17:43.20
I've had to look at
what example He left me
00:17:43.23\00:17:46.15
and this look open my
eyes to an area of my life
00:17:46.18\00:17:49.64
that needed His
gift of repentance.
00:17:49.67\00:17:52.58
Dress and adornment are
big issues for us girls,
00:17:52.61\00:17:55.45
as well as for many guys.
00:17:55.48\00:17:57.57
One of the lines
bantered about is,
00:17:57.60\00:17:59.63
"if you've got it, flaunt it."
00:17:59.66\00:18:02.03
And I guess as a model I
qualified for that axiom,
00:18:02.06\00:18:05.74
but as a Christian, as
a true follower of Christ,
00:18:05.77\00:18:09.63
His goodness
compelled me to go back
00:18:09.66\00:18:12.23
and to take another
look at His example.
00:18:12.26\00:18:15.38
Jesus created everything,
including the gold, pearls,
00:18:15.41\00:18:19.51
diamonds and other
precious stones and metals,
00:18:19.54\00:18:22.47
those things are not sin.
00:18:22.50\00:18:25.84
But when Jesus left heaven,
00:18:25.87\00:18:27.78
He didn't bring any
of that gold with Him,
00:18:27.81\00:18:30.32
He didn't come
wearing a golden crown,
00:18:30.35\00:18:32.71
He wore no rings,
not a promise ring
00:18:32.74\00:18:35.16
or school ring or
even a signet ring.
00:18:35.19\00:18:38.05
Careful investigation
and prayerful study
00:18:38.08\00:18:40.59
opened to me the reason why.
00:18:40.62\00:18:43.02
Blink is not what's important.
00:18:43.05\00:18:45.42
Oh, it's nice and I'm
sure that God has a lot of it.
00:18:45.45\00:18:49.11
But what makes heaven,
heaven is not the stuff.
00:18:49.14\00:18:53.33
What makes heaven a place
that you'd want to live in
00:18:53.36\00:18:55.95
forever is care shown to others,
00:18:55.98\00:18:59.40
death to self and love for God.
00:18:59.43\00:19:03.69
Since sin enter this world,
00:19:03.72\00:19:05.25
self is
considered most important.
00:19:05.28\00:19:07.97
Self-esteem, a code
name for pride is protected
00:19:08.00\00:19:11.84
and encouraged as a right.
00:19:11.87\00:19:14.78
In the present
culture of this world
00:19:14.81\00:19:16.75
adornment is really
worn for just one reason,
00:19:16.78\00:19:20.67
pride or look at me.
00:19:20.70\00:19:23.43
So Jesus didn't
bring any of that with Him
00:19:23.46\00:19:25.71
and He never wore any
of that while He was here.
00:19:25.74\00:19:28.63
He wanted to make absolutely
sure that nothing would distract
00:19:28.66\00:19:32.65
from His message of death
to self and living for others.
00:19:32.68\00:19:37.22
"If any man will come after me,
00:19:37.25\00:19:39.10
Jesus said, let
him deny himself,
00:19:39.13\00:19:42.82
and take up his
cross, and follow me."
00:19:42.85\00:19:46.60
My study revealed that
Jesus' true followers will look
00:19:46.63\00:19:49.72
different than the
world in dress and deportment.
00:19:49.75\00:19:53.33
And that was the
teaching of Peter as well
00:19:53.36\00:19:55.49
in 1 Peter 3:3 and 4, "Do
not let your beauty be that
00:19:55.52\00:20:00.19
of outward adorning
of arranging the hair,
00:20:00.22\00:20:02.82
of wearing gold, or of
putting on fine apparel,
00:20:02.85\00:20:06.29
but let it be the
hidden person of the heart,
00:20:06.32\00:20:09.31
with the incorruptible ornament
of a gentle and quiet spirit,
00:20:09.34\00:20:13.70
which is very
precious in the sight of God."
00:20:13.73\00:20:17.24
The jewelry Jesus wants us to
00:20:17.27\00:20:19.08
put on is that of a
sweet and gentle spirit,
00:20:19.11\00:20:22.82
a kindness that
compels others to notice Him.
00:20:22.85\00:20:27.03
This is His teaching from right
here on the Mount of Beatitudes.
00:20:27.06\00:20:31.81
"Let your light
so shine before men,
00:20:31.84\00:20:34.53
that they may
see your good works,
00:20:34.56\00:20:36.79
and glorify your
Father which is in heaven."
00:20:36.82\00:20:40.63
What I learned was
that when I distract people
00:20:40.66\00:20:42.93
from seeing Jesus by
my outward adornment,
00:20:42.96\00:20:46.04
I'm not following His example
00:20:46.07\00:20:48.10
or the
teachings of His apostles.
00:20:48.13\00:20:50.46
Paul tells us in
1st Timothy 2:9, and 10,
00:20:50.49\00:20:54.59
"I also want
women to dress modestly,
00:20:54.62\00:20:57.21
with decency and propriety,
00:20:57.24\00:20:59.62
not with braided hair or gold
or pearls or expensive clothes,
00:20:59.65\00:21:03.79
but with good deeds,
appropriate for women
00:21:03.82\00:21:06.85
who profess to worship God."
00:21:06.88\00:21:09.48
The problem really
isn't the gold or pearls.
00:21:09.51\00:21:12.93
These are the
things that God made
00:21:12.96\00:21:15.48
but because of sin
these things tempt us to pride
00:21:15.51\00:21:19.58
and there are few
who escape that lure.
00:21:19.61\00:21:22.55
For every truly humble, godly
and Christ like manner woman
00:21:22.58\00:21:26.53
who wears jewelry now,
I'm sure there are thousand
00:21:26.56\00:21:29.83
who can't avoid the temptation
00:21:29.86\00:21:31.50
to self and pride
that adornment brings.
00:21:31.53\00:21:34.93
And even if I can't
avoid the temptation,
00:21:34.96\00:21:37.51
what influence am
I having on others.
00:21:37.54\00:21:40.12
So I chose to take off
the outward adornment for now.
00:21:40.15\00:21:43.81
I don't want
anything that I chose to wear
00:21:43.84\00:21:46.18
to distract people from His
message lived through my life.
00:21:46.21\00:21:50.86
I've chosen to
wear modest clothes
00:21:50.89\00:21:52.89
that won't cause a brother
to stumble to lust in his heart,
00:21:52.92\00:21:56.54
leading him away from
God's plan for real men.
00:21:56.57\00:22:00.57
But that choice
doesn't change my heart.
00:22:00.60\00:22:03.56
For that I need repentance,
00:22:03.59\00:22:06.17
I need the gift of feeling
about things the way God does.
00:22:06.20\00:22:10.85
That's why this repentance
model is so important,
00:22:10.88\00:22:13.96
it really does work.
00:22:13.99\00:22:15.77
The more I spend
time looking at Him,
00:22:15.80\00:22:18.27
His love and His goodness,
00:22:18.30\00:22:20.84
the more I ask for His will
00:22:20.87\00:22:22.37
and His impulses and
His desires to be mine,
00:22:22.40\00:22:26.29
the more He changes my heart.
00:22:26.32\00:22:28.99
In heaven I will be
wearing gold once again.
00:22:29.02\00:22:32.19
Jesus Himself would put
a golden crown on my head.
00:22:32.22\00:22:36.39
But it still won't
be for me, for my glory.
00:22:36.42\00:22:40.52
And I'm pretty sure
just like the 24 elders,
00:22:40.55\00:22:43.28
I will be casting my
crown at His feet saying,
00:22:43.31\00:22:46.44
"You are worthy, O Lord,
00:22:46.47\00:22:48.04
to receive glory
and honor and power,
00:22:48.07\00:22:51.65
for You created all things,
00:22:51.68\00:22:53.70
and by Your will they
exist and were created."
00:22:53.73\00:22:57.82
Then He'll picked it up
00:22:57.85\00:22:59.44
and place it back
on my head saying,
00:22:59.47\00:23:02.14
"But I want you to wear this.
00:23:02.17\00:23:04.39
You wearing this crown
will bring glory to Me."
00:23:04.42\00:23:08.06
Thanks, Andrea, for
being sensitive towards guys
00:23:08.09\00:23:10.63
who really do want to follow God
00:23:10.66\00:23:12.71
and because the devil really
does use women to get at us.
00:23:12.74\00:23:15.59
I don't know why they call
them the weaker sex though,
00:23:15.62\00:23:17.65
considering the
power they have over men.
00:23:17.68\00:23:20.63
And come to think
of it that scenario
00:23:20.66\00:23:22.36
we men could use repentance in.
00:23:22.39\00:23:25.18
If we'd allow God to give us
the heart and mind of Christ,
00:23:25.21\00:23:28.56
we could put women,
00:23:28.59\00:23:29.96
well, everything in its
proper God appointed place.
00:23:29.99\00:23:34.42
Of course, for some things
that's harder than others.
00:23:34.45\00:23:37.41
Our hormones are harder
because they more easily bypass
00:23:37.44\00:23:40.56
the reasoning
centers of the mind.
00:23:40.59\00:23:43.16
Music is like that
too and PET scans revealed
00:23:43.19\00:23:45.53
that music involves just
about every part of the brain
00:23:45.56\00:23:49.48
and but it only involves
the frontal lobe and cognitive
00:23:49.51\00:23:52.16
or moral center of thought
if you choose to go there.
00:23:52.19\00:23:55.94
And music is probably
one of the most powerful
00:23:55.97\00:23:58.32
avenues to the soul as it can
make you feel in certain ways
00:23:58.35\00:24:02.47
without even choosing too.
00:24:02.50\00:24:04.66
The movie industry
knows this very well.
00:24:04.69\00:24:06.92
They can have you scared
00:24:06.95\00:24:08.32
before anything bad
even happens in the movie.
00:24:08.35\00:24:11.03
As a musician myself,
00:24:11.06\00:24:12.43
I'm very much
aware of the controversy
00:24:12.46\00:24:14.68
that's caused every time
00:24:14.71\00:24:16.10
standards are
discussed about music.
00:24:16.13\00:24:18.39
So let me bypass all
that by just asking you
00:24:18.42\00:24:20.51
a few inspired questions.
00:24:20.54\00:24:23.34
And first, "Do you think
God has a preference in music?"
00:24:23.37\00:24:27.29
My answer is, He's a
being with thoughts and feelings
00:24:27.32\00:24:30.18
so I'd imagine He does.
00:24:30.21\00:24:32.36
And my second question is
00:24:32.39\00:24:33.84
"Do you think Satan
has a preference in music?"
00:24:33.87\00:24:37.15
As a creative being
with thoughts and feelings,
00:24:37.18\00:24:39.65
I'm sure He does as well.
00:24:39.68\00:24:41.72
One final question,
00:24:41.75\00:24:43.12
we've been told
that in the end time
00:24:43.15\00:24:44.90
Satan will appear on
earth and personating Christ.
00:24:44.93\00:24:48.44
As the masses
prostrate themselves to
00:24:48.47\00:24:50.41
who they think is Christ.
00:24:50.44\00:24:52.67
I'm sure they'll sing
songs of praise to him.
00:24:52.70\00:24:55.14
"And what music
will Lucifer prefer
00:24:55.17\00:24:57.24
that people use
to sing his praises?"
00:24:57.27\00:25:00.31
The real purpose
for music is to lead
00:25:00.34\00:25:02.78
people to true worship
and away from an adulatory
00:25:02.81\00:25:06.86
So if you think that
choice we make in music
00:25:06.89\00:25:09.26
doesn't really matter,
00:25:09.29\00:25:10.72
if you choose to believe
00:25:10.75\00:25:12.56
that the highway to
heaven is broad enough
00:25:12.59\00:25:14.63
to allow for all music
to be included, think again.
00:25:14.66\00:25:19.63
This is an area in
which we desperately need
00:25:19.66\00:25:22.51
the gift of repentance.
00:25:22.54\00:25:24.70
So let me finish by simply
asking you to do what I'm doing,
00:25:24.73\00:25:28.68
I'm seeking to
put all of my focus
00:25:28.71\00:25:31.50
on the goodness
of our Sovereign God.
00:25:31.53\00:25:34.22
Then I'm asking Him to make me
00:25:34.25\00:25:35.97
feel about
things the way He does.
00:25:36.00\00:25:38.80
Next I'm watching to
see through His providence
00:25:38.83\00:25:41.36
through added knowledge
00:25:41.39\00:25:43.07
and through the
Holy Spirit's promptings
00:25:43.10\00:25:45.55
what music God would prefer.
00:25:45.58\00:25:47.99
Then I'm choosing
to embrace that music.
00:25:48.02\00:25:50.26
And so I like Him change
my heart and my preferences.
00:25:50.29\00:25:54.64
If we let the Lord of all
be Lord of our music choices,
00:25:54.67\00:25:58.75
I believe you'll
find what I'm finding.
00:25:58.78\00:26:01.07
Music when not
abused is a great blessing
00:26:01.10\00:26:05.29
because the music of heaven
imparts strength and courage
00:26:05.32\00:26:10.51
which the Christian can find
only at the throne of grace.
00:26:10.54\00:26:15.09
Thanks, Levi.
God knows everything.
00:26:15.12\00:26:18.99
As the creator, He
knows what is good for us.
00:26:19.02\00:26:22.64
He also knows what will harm us
bringing sadness, pain and loss.
00:26:22.67\00:26:26.85
And that's why
God gives us council,
00:26:26.88\00:26:28.98
warnings and commandments.
00:26:29.01\00:26:31.61
But what if we
don't like what He likes
00:26:31.64\00:26:33.84
or what if we
love what He hates.
00:26:33.87\00:26:37.65
I'm happy to report that
God can change our hearts,
00:26:37.68\00:26:41.49
our right brains so that we love
00:26:41.52\00:26:43.78
what He loves and
hate what He hates.
00:26:43.81\00:26:46.78
And because He is the creator,
00:26:46.81\00:26:48.60
we know that He can
also recreate our hearts.
00:26:48.63\00:26:52.10
So we pray with confidence,
00:26:52.13\00:26:53.95
the same prayer as
the Psalm as David.
00:26:53.98\00:26:57.69
"Create in me a
clean hear, O God,
00:26:57.72\00:27:00.44
and renew a right
spirit within me."
00:27:00.47\00:27:04.39
Our part is to take the
time to remember His goodness.
00:27:04.42\00:27:08.50
It is His goodness
that leads us to repentance.
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It is our part to ask
Him to bring our emotions
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into conformity
to His stated will,
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for us to choose
His will for our lives.
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Then He does the hard part.
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The heart part by
giving us a new hearts
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that we feel about
things the way He does
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and then from this
new heart paradigm,
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we turn away from
sin not just outwardly,
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we turn away in heart as well.
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So my friend what
are you going to do
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with Jesus and His
gift of repentance.
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