Hello, friends,
and happy Thanksgiving.
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We are going to be
tuning into Thanksgiving
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as we look into the Word of God.
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You know, the
Thanksgiving is one
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of those special holidays
that's actually biblical.
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And I was raised in England.
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I was born in the States,
but I was raised in England,
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I never really
observed Thanksgiving
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until I came to the States.
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And even as a young man,
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it wasn't really a big deal
to me until I met my now wife.
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We've been married for 32 years.
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And her mom is
one of 16 children.
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And every year they get
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together in a place
called Bakersfield, California.
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And I was invited
to go to that gathering
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when I was
dating, Rise, my wife.
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Now I was invited there
because the brothers that
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is my mother-in-law's brothers,
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the uncles of my wife-to-be
wanted to check me out.
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They wanted to interrogate me.
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They wanted to make sure
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I was going to be quality
guy for their little niece.
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So I didn't realize
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what I was getting
into with those 15 brothers
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and sisters at that
Thanksgiving get-together.
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But it was amazing
because they rented a gym.
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That's how many
people were there.
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They rented a gym,
they had the 16 brothers
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and sisters, then
they had their children
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and their
children had some children.
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And we just, I just got
to meet all these different
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family members,
they had basketball,
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they had volleyball,
and they had lots of food.
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And it was indeed an
opportunity for Thanksgiving.
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Thanksgiving is a holiday
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not only in the country
that I live in, in America,
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but it's also a
holiday in Canada,
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it's a holiday
in Central America,
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it's a holiday in
Germany, in Japan, in Liberia
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and many other countries.
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And the reason for
this is because there
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is power in giving thanks.
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The Bible tells
us that thanksgiving
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carries with it a power
that lifts us out of ourselves
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and gets us
focused on our Creator God
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and that's what we're
going to be focusing on
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as we move
through this study today,
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this Bible study today
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we're going to be
looking at what it is,
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what it means how we
can tune in to thanksgiving.
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Before we get started,
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let's just have
a word of prayer.
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Father in
heaven, thank You so much
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again for Your Word
and for thanksgiving,
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this time when we can
lift our hearts to you.
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And we're living in a
nation in a time in this world
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where we need to focus on
You and we need to have thanks.
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It's difficult,
challenging for us,
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perhaps, to give
those thanks to you
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when we're struggling with
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the various things
that are coming upon us
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right now and the
economic crisis and,
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of course, this pandemic
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and many other things
that are taking place but,
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Father, we're
praying that our hearts
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and minds will
be tuning into You,
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tuning in to Thanksgiving
as we open up Your Word.
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So guide us with Your spirit,
direct our hearts to heaven
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and be with us we
pray, in Jesus' name, amen.
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So we're going to open our
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scriptures to Philippians 4:6-7.
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Philippians 4:6-7.
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This is what it says
in Philippians 4:6-7.
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It says, "Be
careful for nothing,"
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now that's the King James.
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The New King James and
other translations say,
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"Be anxious for nothing."
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Don't be anxious
about everything.
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Well, how can we not be anxious?
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Well, "But in
everything by prayer
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and supplication
with thanksgiving,
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let your requests
be made known to God.
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And the peace of
God," verse 7 says,
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"which passes all understanding,
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shall keep your hearts and
mind through Jesus Christ."
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The peace of God,
keeping your hearts
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and minds through
Jesus Christ is what we find,
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is what we experience
when we take all our anxiety
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and we throw it out the window
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and we give thanksgiving to God,
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when we lift up our
hearts with thanksgiving.
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The thing is that thanksgiving
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is a remarkable
place to be in life.
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Thanksgiving is
something that we don't just
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experience because
everything's coming our way.
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We've got a bountiful
harvest, we've got a good job,
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we've got a great income,
our families all doing good.
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Everything
around us is doing well.
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Thanksgiving is something
that can actually pull us out
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of the darkness, the depression,
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the difficulties,
the trials that we face.
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In fact, as we
move through the Bible,
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we're going to find
that more times than not,
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thanksgiving is
something that God
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calls us to step into by faith.
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He wants us to
exercise this attitude
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of thanksgiving in
order for us to endure
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some trial that
we're going through,
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some difficult situation
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or season that we're
experiencing in our lives.
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So what we're going to
do is we're going to lay
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a foundation for this idea
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of thanksgiving being
a means of lifting us out
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of our circumstances,
our negative circumstances
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and difficulties.
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We're going to lay a foundation
for this idea in Psalm 107.
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Psalm 107 is filled with
this repeated call to give
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thanks and praise to God.
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Thanks and praise to God
in this time of Thanksgiving
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is ultimately an
experience that God
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is calling us into
in order to lift us out
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of our difficulties
and out of our trials.
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So let's start in Psalm 107:1-2
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and we're going to
look at verses 1 and 2,
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verses 8 and 9, verses
15 and 16, verses 21 and 22,
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and verses 31 and 32.
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Because in this
psalm, Psalm 107,
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this phrase is repeated
again and again and again.
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Psalm 102 or 107, and
let's begin verses 1 and 2.
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Here's what it says,
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"Oh, give thanks unto the Lord,
for He is good for His mercy
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endureth forever.
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Let the
redeemed of the Lord say,
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whom He has redeemed
from the hand of the enemy."
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Let the redeemed
of the Lord say so.
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That's what God is calling
us to do is to actually say so.
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And when we look at this,
when we look at these verses
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and we look at our lives
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sometimes it's
hard for us to say so.
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Sometimes we're in
difficult situations
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where it doesn't
feel like we can say so.
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And God is calling us to
step out of that by faith
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and say so.
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Let's just look at
an example of this.
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The first example
I want us to look at
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is the example of Daniel.
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You know, Daniel was a man
who went through some trials.
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We know he is faithful to God.
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He was a young man who
stood before King Nebuchadnezzar
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and refused to eat
the king's food or drink,
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Daniel Chapter 1.
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And yet Daniel was a man
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who was
separated from his family,
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you know, he was an
Israelite that was taken
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captive to Babylon.
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He probably never
saw his family again
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and was separated from
his country for the rest
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of his life.
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So here he is taken a
captive into another country,
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made a eunuch,
that's what Isaiah predicted
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would happen to him.
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And Daniel is in a situation
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where he is
actually given a new name,
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they take away his Hebrew name
and they give him a new name.
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And then they force
him to go to school,
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to be educated in
Babylon, in all of the history
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and the courses in
the science of Babylon.
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But Daniel, through all of this,
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Daniel stays true to God.
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And Daniel goes
through this testing time,
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if you will, in his life.
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You know, there's
times in our lives
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when it seems like
everything is lost,
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everything is gone,
our identity is gone,
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our home is gone,
our culture is gone,
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our place of birth is
gone, everything that we know,
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everything that we hold
dear is been ripped from us.
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That's what
Daniel was going through.
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And not only that,
but Daniel actually
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came to the place
in his experience,
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where he was brought
before a death decree.
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Now, it wasn't really
his situation or fault.
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The king had a dream
that he couldn't remember
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King
Nebuchadnezzar and the wise men
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were brought in before him,
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to give him an
understanding of this dream.
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He was they would tell him the
dream and the interpretation.
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But the wise men of
Babylon were actually fakes.
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They weren't real.
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They weren't genuine wise
men and they couldn't give
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the dream or the
interpretation to the king.
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And the king was furious.
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And he made a decree
that all the wise men
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of Babylon should be destroyed
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and that included
Daniel and his three friends.
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Now they weren't
exactly wise men,
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yet they were still in training.
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This is probably in the
middle of their three year
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training period.
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But the king
included them in the decree.
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We pick up the story
right here in Daniel Chapter 2,
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Daniel Chapter 2,
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and we're going
to look in verse 12,
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"For this cause,
the king was angry
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and very furious and he
commanded to destroy all
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the wise men of Babylon."
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So can you
imagine all the wise men
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of Babylon are
going to be destroyed
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and the decree went
forth, verse 13 says,
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"That the wise
men should be slain
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and they saw Daniel and
his fellows to be slain."
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So you've got all the wise men
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who are going to
be slain and Daniel
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and his fellows
are going to be slain.
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Then verse 14 says,
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"Then Daniel
answered with counsel
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and with wisdom to Arioch
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the captain of the king's guard,
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which was gone forth to
slay the wise men of Babylon:
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And he answered,
He said to Arioch,"
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verse 15," the king's captain,
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'Why is that decree
so hasty from the king?"
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Now I want us
to pause right here
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and just think about
this because what's happening
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right here is that
Daniel is being really wise.
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Daniel is asking a question
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so that he can understand
what's actually going on.
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Instead of trying
to defend himself,
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Daniel is seeking to understand
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what's going on with the king.
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What's concerning him?
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Why is he so upset
at all the wise men?
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Why does he want them
all to be dead including us?
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And then he finds out.
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So Arioch made the
thing known to Daniel.
00:10:02.00\00:10:04.53
Then Daniel, verse 16 says,
00:10:04.57\00:10:07.00
it says, "Daniel went in,
00:10:07.04\00:10:08.44
and desired of the king
that he would give him time,
00:10:08.47\00:10:12.27
and that he would show
the king the interpretation."
00:10:12.31\00:10:14.34
Daniel is
saying, "You know what?
00:10:14.38\00:10:15.71
I think that I can understand.
00:10:15.74\00:10:17.18
I think that I can
get an interpretation
00:10:17.21\00:10:18.78
of this dream, if
you give me some time.
00:10:18.81\00:10:20.72
If you give me some time,
I think I can figure it out."
00:10:20.75\00:10:23.39
"So then Daniel
went to his house,"
00:10:23.42\00:10:26.22
verse 17 of Daniel 2,
00:10:26.25\00:10:28.29
"and he made the
thing known to Hananiah,
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Mishael and
Azariah, his companions."
00:10:30.16\00:10:33.83
So they're hearing about
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what's actually
going on behind the scenes
00:10:35.73\00:10:38.47
"That they would," verse 18,
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"desire mercies of the
God of heaven concerning
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the secret that
Daniel and his fellow
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should not perish with the rest
of the wise men of Babylon."
00:10:45.14\00:10:47.94
Now notice, this
is an important point,
00:10:47.98\00:10:50.01
the motivation for
them going into the king.
00:10:50.05\00:10:52.81
The motivation for
them going into prayer
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is so that they
don't perish with the rest
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of the wise men of Babylon.
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They're going to pray,
these guys are going to die,
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but we don't want
to perish with them.
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That's their prayer
as they go in before
00:11:01.96\00:11:04.09
the Lord to seek an
answer to the king's dream
00:11:04.13\00:11:06.23
and its interpretation.
00:11:06.26\00:11:08.13
Verse 19, "Then
was the secret reveal
00:11:08.16\00:11:11.30
unto Daniel in a night vision
00:11:11.33\00:11:13.54
and Daniel blessed
the God of heaven."
00:11:13.57\00:11:15.64
Praise the Lord,
God answers prayers.
00:11:15.67\00:11:17.74
God will answer
prayers in your life
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and God will
answer prayers in my life.
00:11:19.57\00:11:21.08
He answers prayers.
00:11:21.11\00:11:22.44
He is a prayer
hearing, prayer answering God.
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Now sometimes His
answer may be hold on,
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wait a minute.
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Sometimes his answer may be no,
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that's not the best right now.
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And sometimes the
answer may be yes, absolutely,
00:11:31.82\00:11:33.15
we're going to get this
taken care of right away.
00:11:33.19\00:11:35.46
But He always hears
00:11:35.49\00:11:36.89
and He always
answers our earnest prayers.
00:11:36.93\00:11:40.46
So Daniel blessed
the God of heaven.
00:11:40.50\00:11:42.43
Verse 20 says, "Daniel answered,
00:11:42.46\00:11:44.33
He said, 'Blessed
be the name of God
00:11:44.37\00:11:47.27
forever and ever, for
wisdom and might are His.'"
00:11:47.30\00:11:49.80
"And He changes," verse 21,
00:11:49.84\00:11:51.17
"the times and the
seasons, He removes kings,
00:11:51.21\00:11:53.58
He sets up kings, He
gets wisdom out of the wise,
00:11:53.61\00:11:56.18
knowledge to them
that know understanding,
00:11:56.21\00:11:57.88
He reveals the deep
and the secret things,
00:11:57.91\00:11:59.95
He knows what is in the darkness
00:11:59.98\00:12:01.72
and the light dwells with Him."
00:12:01.75\00:12:03.35
Verse 23, here it is, you ready?
00:12:03.39\00:12:05.69
"I thank thee.
00:12:05.72\00:12:07.32
I thank thee and praise thee,
00:12:07.36\00:12:10.09
O thou god of my
fathers who has given me wisdom
00:12:10.13\00:12:12.19
and might and hast
made known unto me now
00:12:12.23\00:12:14.60
what we desired of thee:
00:12:14.63\00:12:16.00
for thou hast made known
unto us the king's matter."
00:12:16.03\00:12:20.24
I love this.
00:12:20.27\00:12:21.70
Daniel was filled
with thanksgiving,
00:12:21.74\00:12:24.04
Daniel was thankful.
00:12:24.07\00:12:25.41
And it was this thankfulness
that helped transform him,
00:12:25.44\00:12:29.04
it helped
transform his experience.
00:12:29.08\00:12:31.21
Daniel was thankful
and his thankfulness
00:12:31.25\00:12:33.75
caused him to say praise God.
00:12:33.78\00:12:36.45
And check this out.
00:12:36.48\00:12:37.82
Here's the next verse
what it says right here.
00:12:37.85\00:12:39.42
Check this out.
00:12:39.45\00:12:40.92
Verse 24,
therefore Daniel therefore,
00:12:40.96\00:12:44.13
because Daniel
was thankful to God,
00:12:44.16\00:12:46.09
because Daniel was praising God,
00:12:46.13\00:12:48.23
even though his
situation was dire,
00:12:48.26\00:12:50.00
even though he's in
a difficult situation,
00:12:50.03\00:12:51.80
he was under a death
decree, he was praising God."
00:12:51.83\00:12:54.34
Therefore Daniel
went in unto Arioch,
00:12:54.37\00:12:57.04
whom the king had
ordained to destroy
00:12:57.07\00:12:58.41
the wise men of Babylon:
00:12:58.44\00:12:59.77
he went and he
said thus unto him,"
00:12:59.81\00:13:01.64
this is verse 24 again,
00:13:01.68\00:13:03.78
"destroy not the
wise men of Babylon:
00:13:03.81\00:13:07.45
bring me in before the king,
00:13:07.48\00:13:09.48
and I will show unto the
king the interpretation."
00:13:09.52\00:13:13.09
Did you hear what Daniel said?
00:13:13.12\00:13:14.46
He said, "Destroy not
the wise men of Babylon."
00:13:14.49\00:13:16.73
One of the things
that thanksgiving does
00:13:16.76\00:13:19.16
is it changes us, it
changes even our motivations.
00:13:19.19\00:13:22.36
Daniel's motivation,
00:13:22.40\00:13:23.73
his friends'
motivation going in to prayer
00:13:23.77\00:13:26.63
was we need to pray
that we're not destroyed
00:13:26.67\00:13:29.30
with the rest of
the wise men of Babylon.
00:13:29.34\00:13:31.51
Daniel's heart as he came
out filled with thanksgiving
00:13:31.54\00:13:34.31
and praise to God was,
00:13:34.34\00:13:35.68
destroy not the
wise men of Babylon.
00:13:35.71\00:13:38.25
Do you think the
wise men of Babylon
00:13:38.28\00:13:39.61
would have been saying
that if they understood
00:13:39.65\00:13:40.98
the king's dream
and its interpretation?
00:13:41.02\00:13:42.72
Oh, don't kill the Hebrews.
00:13:42.75\00:13:44.19
No, they would have been
thinking about themselves.
00:13:44.22\00:13:46.15
But Daniel was
thinking about others.
00:13:46.19\00:13:48.19
He was outfaced.
00:13:48.22\00:13:50.19
He was focused other centeredly.
00:13:50.23\00:13:52.99
In other words, Daniel's heart
was filled with thanksgiving
00:13:53.03\00:13:55.76
and praise to God and
because of that Daniel
00:13:55.80\00:13:58.40
not only thought of
himself and his friends,
00:13:58.43\00:14:00.40
Daniel also
thought of those rascals,
00:14:00.44\00:14:02.80
the wise men of
Babylon, those false prophets,
00:14:02.84\00:14:05.91
those false prognosticators.
00:14:05.94\00:14:08.51
Daniel was interested in
seeing them saved from the death
00:14:08.54\00:14:12.58
decree as well as himself.
00:14:12.61\00:14:15.18
I love that.
00:14:15.22\00:14:16.69
That's what praise
and thanksgiving does.
00:14:16.72\00:14:19.05
It causes us to
be outward facing,
00:14:19.09\00:14:20.66
it causes us to focus on others.
00:14:20.69\00:14:22.89
It causes us to
want to do what God
00:14:22.92\00:14:25.69
would want for
other people around us
00:14:25.73\00:14:27.73
and not just be
focused on ourselves.
00:14:27.76\00:14:30.00
So it's really important
for us to enter into the spirit
00:14:30.03\00:14:32.83
of thanksgiving in
this time of the year.
00:14:32.87\00:14:36.77
Why?
00:14:36.81\00:14:38.14
Because it can
set the stage for us,
00:14:38.17\00:14:39.51
it can set the foundation
for us to be filled with
00:14:39.54\00:14:41.48
thanksgiving all
through the year.
00:14:41.51\00:14:43.81
Thanksgiving
doesn't have to be a holiday
00:14:43.85\00:14:45.35
once a year that we
celebrate with our family
00:14:45.38\00:14:47.25
and friends and
eat a bunch of food.
00:14:47.28\00:14:49.02
Thanksgiving can be a spirit.
00:14:49.05\00:14:51.22
It can be an attitude.
00:14:51.25\00:14:52.59
It can be an
experience that carries us
00:14:52.62\00:14:54.82
throughout the whole year.
00:14:54.86\00:14:57.06
Let's go back to
Psalm 107 because we got
00:14:57.09\00:14:59.53
a couple more verses
here we want to read.
00:14:59.56\00:15:01.13
Psalm 107:8-9,
here's what it says,
00:15:01.16\00:15:05.27
"Oh that men would praise
00:15:05.30\00:15:07.47
the Lord for His
goodness for His wonderful
00:15:07.50\00:15:10.31
works to the children of men.
00:15:10.34\00:15:12.77
For He
satisfies the longing soul
00:15:12.81\00:15:15.21
and fills the
hungry soul with goodness."
00:15:15.24\00:15:18.65
You see that phrase right there
satisfying the longing soul?
00:15:18.68\00:15:22.12
So here we are again in
the same psalm, Psalm 107,
00:15:22.15\00:15:25.75
which I think we should read
00:15:25.79\00:15:27.12
every week at least to
remind us to give thanks
00:15:27.16\00:15:29.69
and praise to God.
00:15:29.72\00:15:31.13
Oh that man would praise
the Lord for His goodness
00:15:31.16\00:15:33.23
and His wonderful
works to the children of men.
00:15:33.26\00:15:35.00
He satisfies the longing soul,
00:15:35.03\00:15:36.90
He fills the
hungry soul with goodness.
00:15:36.93\00:15:39.10
When I think about this,
00:15:39.13\00:15:40.47
I think about
the story of Jonah.
00:15:40.50\00:15:44.31
You know, Jonah was a man
00:15:44.34\00:15:45.91
who God called to
give a message to Nineveh.
00:15:45.94\00:15:49.34
But Jonah turned and
went in a different direction.
00:15:49.38\00:15:52.58
You know, we can do
that in our life sometimes.
00:15:52.61\00:15:54.02
You know, God can call
us to preach and to teach
00:15:54.05\00:15:56.79
and to give a
message to the world.
00:15:56.82\00:15:59.05
For some reason we
feel uneasy about it.
00:15:59.09\00:16:01.26
For some reason
maybe Jonah was just like,
00:16:01.29\00:16:03.36
"Yeah, I don't think
this is kind of work."
00:16:03.39\00:16:05.39
And he gets on a ship to Joppa.
00:16:05.43\00:16:07.20
He goes in a different direction
00:16:07.23\00:16:09.46
and God doesn't let
him off the hook so easy.
00:16:09.50\00:16:11.63
He's on that ship
and a storm comes up.
00:16:11.67\00:16:14.17
And this storm
is a Godsend storm.
00:16:14.20\00:16:16.60
Many times in our lives,
there are storms that come in,
00:16:16.64\00:16:19.31
when we turn away from God
and turn away from God's will.
00:16:19.34\00:16:22.04
We have trials, we have
difficulties that we face.
00:16:22.08\00:16:24.71
But if we're open,
those trials and difficulties
00:16:24.75\00:16:27.48
can actually get us
back in a God direction.
00:16:27.52\00:16:30.59
That's exactly what
was happening with Jonah.
00:16:30.62\00:16:32.52
So he's on this
ship in the storm,
00:16:32.55\00:16:34.36
and that other sailors like man
00:16:34.39\00:16:36.12
we all need to pray to our gods
00:16:36.16\00:16:37.49
and they get
Jonah out of the hull.
00:16:37.53\00:16:39.03
You need to pray to your God.
00:16:39.06\00:16:40.40
And finally, Jonah
says, you know what?
00:16:40.43\00:16:42.16
This is all about my
God, it's all about me,
00:16:42.20\00:16:43.93
just throw me overboard.
00:16:43.97\00:16:45.30
I mean, that's
outward facing right there.
00:16:45.33\00:16:46.70
That's
self-sacrificing right there.
00:16:46.74\00:16:48.37
That's why Jonah, in a
sense, is a type of Christ.
00:16:48.40\00:16:51.87
Jonah was outward
facing and so Jonah says,
00:16:51.91\00:16:54.24
"Throw me overboard."
00:16:54.28\00:16:55.61
And he gets thrown
overboard and all of a sudden
00:16:55.64\00:16:57.51
a huge fish of some
kind swallows him up,
00:16:57.55\00:17:01.02
you know, you think
that's a crazy story.
00:17:01.05\00:17:02.72
I remember when I
first became a Christian,
00:17:02.75\00:17:05.59
a dedicated Christian, I
was working in a hospital
00:17:05.62\00:17:07.42
and I was working with different
00:17:07.46\00:17:08.79
nurses on different floors.
00:17:08.82\00:17:10.16
And I remember
talking to one nurse,
00:17:10.19\00:17:11.53
she was raised a
Christian but she didn't really
00:17:11.56\00:17:12.89
believe in the Bible.
00:17:12.93\00:17:14.26
She only believed
in the words of Jesus.
00:17:14.30\00:17:15.63
We were talking about
the Bible and she was saying,
00:17:15.66\00:17:17.70
"The Bible's just full
of a bunch of fish stories
00:17:17.73\00:17:19.77
and fairy tales."
00:17:19.80\00:17:21.14
And she said, "The
only thing I believe
00:17:21.17\00:17:22.67
is the words of Jesus."
00:17:22.70\00:17:24.04
And I said, "You
mean like the story
00:17:24.07\00:17:25.41
of Jonah in the Old Testament
00:17:25.44\00:17:26.78
being swallowed
by this big fish?"
00:17:26.81\00:17:28.24
And she says,
"Yeah, that's exactly
00:17:28.28\00:17:29.61
what I'm talking about."
00:17:29.64\00:17:30.98
And I said, "Well,
did you know that Jesus
00:17:31.01\00:17:32.35
actually confirms that story.
00:17:32.38\00:17:33.72
He tells the people
there that just like
00:17:33.75\00:17:35.78
Jonah was
swallowed by that fish.
00:17:35.82\00:17:37.39
So I'm going to be in
the earth for three days
00:17:37.42\00:17:39.25
and for three nights."
00:17:39.29\00:17:40.62
And she was like,
00:17:40.66\00:17:41.99
"I love the fact that
the Bible hits the heart,
00:17:42.02\00:17:45.56
speaks to us where we are,
00:17:45.59\00:17:47.43
and the word of
God came to Jonah
00:17:47.46\00:17:49.70
and Jonah rejected that word,
00:17:49.73\00:17:51.17
he found himself in
the belly of this fish
00:17:51.20\00:17:53.64
and then it says
00:17:53.67\00:17:55.97
and we're gonna look
here in Jonah 2:7-10.
00:17:56.00\00:18:00.11
Jonah 2:7-10,
00:18:00.14\00:18:02.61
it says that when
Jonah is down in the belly
00:18:02.64\00:18:05.15
of this fish, and by the way,
00:18:05.18\00:18:06.51
when he's down in
the belly of this fish,
00:18:06.55\00:18:08.28
he does something that all of us
00:18:08.32\00:18:09.85
can do when we find
ourselves in prison.
00:18:09.88\00:18:12.59
He felt like he was in a prison,
00:18:12.62\00:18:15.22
with the bars all around him.
00:18:15.26\00:18:17.99
And in the belly of this fish,
00:18:18.03\00:18:20.30
he did something we
can all do in our times
00:18:20.33\00:18:23.26
when we have even
turned away from God,
00:18:23.30\00:18:25.40
run away from God.
00:18:25.43\00:18:26.77
We feel like our
circumstances have
00:18:26.80\00:18:28.14
imprisoned us in
places that are ugly
00:18:28.17\00:18:30.24
and stinky and
we don't want to be.
00:18:30.27\00:18:31.61
They are terrifying to us.
00:18:31.64\00:18:33.01
We can call out to God.
00:18:33.04\00:18:34.78
And Jonah reminds us
we can call out to God
00:18:34.81\00:18:36.71
wherever we are,
wherever our situation is,
00:18:36.75\00:18:40.08
whoever got us
in that situation,
00:18:40.12\00:18:41.65
our decisions,
decisions of others around us,
00:18:41.68\00:18:44.25
turning from
God, running from God,
00:18:44.29\00:18:45.62
we can call out to God.
00:18:45.65\00:18:46.99
You know what God's going to do?
00:18:47.02\00:18:48.36
Look at it right here.
00:18:48.39\00:18:49.72
Jonah Chapter 2,
beginning with verse 7,
00:18:49.76\00:18:51.26
"When my soul
fainted within me."
00:18:51.29\00:18:53.50
Well, let's start with verse 6.
00:18:53.53\00:18:55.33
Actually, let's
start with verse 5.
00:18:55.36\00:18:57.10
Actually start with verse 4.
00:18:57.13\00:18:58.60
You know, I want
to start with this.
00:18:58.63\00:18:59.97
In the very
beginning of this chapter Jonah
00:19:00.00\00:19:01.44
prayed to the Lord his God out
00:19:01.47\00:19:02.80
of the fish's
belly, that's what he did.
00:19:02.84\00:19:04.17
He prayed to the Lord his
God out of the fish's belly.
00:19:04.21\00:19:06.98
And he cried, he said,
I cried by reason of mine
00:19:07.01\00:19:09.54
affliction unto the Lord.
00:19:09.58\00:19:11.25
And He heard me out of
the belly of hell cried I,
00:19:11.28\00:19:15.28
and thou heardest my voice.
00:19:15.32\00:19:17.05
For thou hadst
cast me into the deep,
00:19:17.09\00:19:18.52
in the midst of the seas,
00:19:18.55\00:19:19.89
and the floods
compassed me about:
00:19:19.92\00:19:21.56
all thy billows and
thy waves passed over me.
00:19:21.59\00:19:24.56
Then I said, I am
cast out of thy sight,
00:19:24.59\00:19:27.06
yet I will look again
toward thy holy temple."
00:19:27.10\00:19:30.27
We can always look again
toward the temple of God.
00:19:30.30\00:19:32.33
We can always look
again to God's holy temple.
00:19:32.37\00:19:35.64
"The waters," verse 5,
00:19:35.67\00:19:37.01
"compassed me
about, even to the soul:
00:19:37.04\00:19:38.97
the depth closed me round about,
00:19:39.01\00:19:41.14
the weeds were
wrapped around my head."
00:19:41.18\00:19:42.81
So down to the very
soul is very inmost being
00:19:42.84\00:19:45.91
felt completely wrapped up
00:19:45.95\00:19:48.52
and cast down into
the depths of darkness.
00:19:48.55\00:19:51.49
"I went down to the
bottoms of the mountains,
00:19:51.52\00:19:54.19
the earth with her
bars was about me forever."
00:19:54.22\00:19:57.83
You know, when
you're in a bad situation
00:19:57.86\00:19:59.19
about experience
Just a short time,
00:19:59.23\00:20:01.26
three days can
feel like forever.
00:20:01.30\00:20:02.73
The Bible used that
phrase forever to describe
00:20:02.76\00:20:05.33
events that
aren't really forever,
00:20:05.37\00:20:07.24
but they feel like
forever because they're so bad.
00:20:07.27\00:20:10.21
They're so difficult,
they're so challenging.
00:20:10.24\00:20:12.27
And that's what
Jonah was going through.
00:20:12.31\00:20:13.84
"The bars were about me forever,
00:20:13.88\00:20:16.41
yet thou has brought up
my life from corruption,
00:20:16.44\00:20:18.98
O Lord, my God."
00:20:19.01\00:20:20.35
Here it is, verse 7,
00:20:20.38\00:20:21.72
"When my soul fainted within
me I remembered the Lord."
00:20:21.75\00:20:25.22
When your soul
faints within you,
00:20:25.25\00:20:26.99
you can remember the Lord.
00:20:27.02\00:20:29.26
"And my prayer
came up unto thee,
00:20:29.29\00:20:31.63
into thine holy temple."
00:20:31.66\00:20:32.99
You know why our
prayer comes up to God
00:20:33.03\00:20:34.50
and His holy temple
is not because of us.
00:20:34.53\00:20:36.73
We failed Him
over and over again,
00:20:36.77\00:20:38.20
we failed Him miserably.
00:20:38.23\00:20:39.57
It's because of Jesus,
we have an intercessor,
00:20:39.60\00:20:41.34
we have a mediator, Jesus Christ
00:20:41.37\00:20:43.20
and His righteousness,
00:20:43.24\00:20:44.57
His perfect obedience
allows our prayers to come up
00:20:44.61\00:20:47.88
before Him in His holy temple.
00:20:47.91\00:20:49.94
"They that
observe lying vanities
00:20:49.98\00:20:51.38
forsake their own mercy."
00:20:51.41\00:20:52.88
Don't keep following vanities
and lies, just let him go.
00:20:52.91\00:20:55.75
You're forsaking your own mercy.
00:20:55.78\00:20:57.89
And then he goes
on to say in verse 9,
00:20:57.92\00:20:59.52
"But I will sacrifice
unto thee with the voice of,"
00:20:59.55\00:21:02.16
here it is, "thanksgiving,"
00:21:02.19\00:21:04.46
he still in the
belly of this fish.
00:21:04.49\00:21:06.49
He's still at the
bottom of the ocean.
00:21:06.53\00:21:08.06
He still got the bars of
the earth wrapped around him.
00:21:08.10\00:21:09.90
He's still at the
bottom of the mountains.
00:21:09.93\00:21:11.43
And he says, "I'm
going to sacrifice to you
00:21:11.47\00:21:14.27
with the voice of thanksgiving.
00:21:14.30\00:21:15.64
I'm going to pay
that that I have avowed.
00:21:15.67\00:21:17.47
Salvation is of the Lord.
00:21:17.51\00:21:20.01
"Verse 10, "And the
Lord spake unto the fish
00:21:20.04\00:21:23.24
and it vomited out
Jonah upon the dry land."
00:21:23.28\00:21:26.95
That's what we need.
00:21:26.98\00:21:28.32
We need to be
vomited out upon dry land.
00:21:28.35\00:21:30.25
We need a new beginning.
00:21:30.29\00:21:31.62
We need to get rid,
God needs to get rid
00:21:31.65\00:21:33.96
of all of the
wetness of all of the...
00:21:33.99\00:21:36.56
My life, it was alcohol,
00:21:36.59\00:21:37.99
you know, everything
that's in, afflicts us,
00:21:38.03\00:21:40.46
everything that ties us down,
00:21:40.50\00:21:42.03
that imprisons us,
that wraps us around,
00:21:42.06\00:21:44.60
that hinders us
from doing God's will.
00:21:44.63\00:21:46.40
And it all starts with prayer.
00:21:46.43\00:21:47.77
That's how it started with me.
00:21:47.80\00:21:49.14
It all starts
with praying to God,
00:21:49.17\00:21:50.97
praying in the name of
Jesus Christ and letting
00:21:51.01\00:21:52.81
our prayer come up to
Jesus Christ in His holy temple.
00:21:52.84\00:21:56.24
And then we're
freed, we are free,
00:21:56.28\00:21:58.35
we are taken out of that pit,
00:21:58.38\00:22:00.18
we are taken out
of that prison house,
00:22:00.22\00:22:01.95
and God puts us on dry land.
00:22:01.98\00:22:03.42
That means we
start all over again,
00:22:03.45\00:22:05.65
Jonah started all over again.
00:22:05.69\00:22:07.46
He started all over again.
00:22:07.49\00:22:08.82
And God says, "Okay,
let's try this all over again."
00:22:08.86\00:22:11.19
And, of course, now,
Jonah is ready to go to Nineveh.
00:22:11.23\00:22:14.20
And he goes there and
he preaches his heart out,
00:22:14.23\00:22:16.26
you know, this crazy town
that's just filled with evil.
00:22:16.30\00:22:20.00
And God has just said,
you know, this town is so bad.
00:22:20.04\00:22:22.07
This city is so bad,
I'm giving it 40 days,
00:22:22.10\00:22:25.17
and then I'm
going to take it out.
00:22:25.21\00:22:26.81
And you just need to tell
them that, that's what he did.
00:22:26.84\00:22:28.74
He said, hey, 40 days
and you're going down.
00:22:28.78\00:22:30.48
And what did they do
when Jonah who was reportedly
00:22:30.51\00:22:35.45
vomited up by a fish?
00:22:35.48\00:22:36.82
Can you imagine these guys
00:22:36.85\00:22:38.19
were worshiping the fish gods?
00:22:38.22\00:22:39.55
So they're really
impressed with this.
00:22:39.59\00:22:40.92
He comes into town
00:22:40.96\00:22:42.29
and he's probably
got seaweed still wrapped
00:22:42.32\00:22:43.66
around his head, right?
00:22:43.69\00:22:45.03
He comes into town,
he's wearing a seaweed suit.
00:22:45.06\00:22:47.20
He starts preaching, and
these guys are listening,
00:22:47.23\00:22:50.70
and they are
responding and they repent,
00:22:50.73\00:22:52.80
the whole city repents.
00:22:52.83\00:22:54.84
And what does God do?
Does it destroy the city?
00:22:54.87\00:22:56.64
No, He doesn't destroy the city.
00:22:56.67\00:22:58.17
You know, Jonah is an example
of how weak and failing we are.
00:22:58.21\00:23:02.58
And the fact of the matter is,
00:23:02.61\00:23:04.38
is that this work of preaching
00:23:04.41\00:23:06.15
and this work of being
thankful is not about us,
00:23:06.18\00:23:08.75
it's about God.
00:23:08.78\00:23:10.12
It's not about what we can
do. It's about what God can do.
00:23:10.15\00:23:12.15
And if Jonah, if
God can use Jonah,
00:23:12.19\00:23:14.19
God can use you
and He can use me,
00:23:14.22\00:23:15.56
can use anybody
if He can use Jonah.
00:23:15.59\00:23:17.89
We just need to
give thanks to the Lord,
00:23:17.93\00:23:20.00
we need to give thanks to God
for what He does in our lives,
00:23:20.03\00:23:23.33
in the lives of
others in biblical history
00:23:23.37\00:23:26.74
who have preceded us.
00:23:26.77\00:23:28.10
So Jonah preaches to
Nineveh and they repent.
00:23:28.14\00:23:33.64
Praise the Lord.
God wants to use you.
00:23:33.68\00:23:35.04
He wants to use you, just
like Jonah to be outward facing.
00:23:35.08\00:23:37.91
He wants to use you
to look in a different
00:23:37.95\00:23:40.22
direction than yourself to give
00:23:40.25\00:23:41.58
thanks for what
God can do through you,
00:23:41.62\00:23:43.82
in spite of yourself.
00:23:43.85\00:23:45.19
All right, let's
go back to Psalm 107,
00:23:45.22\00:23:46.96
because we're
running out of time now.
00:23:46.99\00:23:48.32
Psalm 107, we've
got three other sections
00:23:48.36\00:23:49.99
here that we want to cover.
00:23:50.03\00:23:51.36
Psalm 107:15-16.
00:23:51.39\00:23:54.10
Here's what it says,
00:23:54.13\00:23:55.46
"Oh that men would praise
the Lord for his goodness,
00:23:55.50\00:23:58.83
and for his wonderful
works to the children of men!
00:23:58.87\00:24:01.14
For he hath broken
the gates of brass."
00:24:01.17\00:24:03.41
We just talked about
that with Jonah, right?
00:24:03.44\00:24:05.34
He hath broken
the gates of brass,
00:24:05.37\00:24:07.28
and cut the bars
of iron in sunder.
00:24:07.31\00:24:09.71
Well, they
weren't gates of brass
00:24:09.74\00:24:11.15
and bars of iron with Jonah,
00:24:11.18\00:24:13.52
but he felt like
he was in prison.
00:24:13.55\00:24:15.28
He felt like he was in jail.
00:24:15.32\00:24:16.85
But there are literal gates
00:24:16.89\00:24:18.79
and bars that God wants to break
00:24:18.82\00:24:21.16
open for us when we praise Him,
00:24:21.19\00:24:23.29
when we give
thanksgiving to Him.
00:24:23.32\00:24:25.13
So we're going to look at the
story now in Acts Chapter 16.
00:24:25.16\00:24:28.66
Acts Chapter 16 is a powerful
story of Paul and Silas.
00:24:28.70\00:24:34.27
Paul and Silas are
New Testament evangelists.
00:24:34.30\00:24:37.27
They're
preachers, they're pastors,
00:24:37.31\00:24:39.14
and they're just
going from place to place
00:24:39.17\00:24:40.51
and they're preaching
the word of the gospel,
00:24:40.54\00:24:42.74
the good news of Jesus Christ
and Him crucified for our sins.
00:24:42.78\00:24:47.85
And as they go
from place to place,
00:24:47.88\00:24:49.72
they end up in this town
00:24:49.75\00:24:51.15
where there's a lot of people
that are worshiping idols,
00:24:51.19\00:24:54.02
a lot of people
that are not open to,
00:24:54.06\00:24:57.76
not following the Lord.
00:24:57.79\00:25:00.06
And it says here
that in this town
00:25:00.10\00:25:02.26
where they are now,
00:25:02.30\00:25:03.63
they're going
from place to place.
00:25:03.67\00:25:05.00
But in this one
area where they come,
00:25:05.03\00:25:07.30
it says that there's a gal
00:25:07.34\00:25:10.24
who's following them
who's basically a soothsayer.
00:25:10.27\00:25:12.64
She's basically possessed
with a spirit of divination.
00:25:12.67\00:25:17.71
And she's following Paul around,
00:25:17.75\00:25:19.21
she's someone who
can predict the future.
00:25:19.25\00:25:20.62
And she makes a lot
00:25:20.65\00:25:21.98
of money for the
people that she works with.
00:25:22.02\00:25:23.35
But she starts following Paul
around in verse 17 of Acts 16,
00:25:23.39\00:25:26.32
"And she cried, saying,
'These men are the servants
00:25:26.35\00:25:28.42
of the Most High
God, which show unto us
00:25:28.46\00:25:30.03
the way of salvation.
00:25:30.06\00:25:31.39
And she did this for many days.
00:25:31.43\00:25:32.93
And as she did
this, Paul was grieved,
00:25:32.96\00:25:35.80
and finally he turns to her.
00:25:35.83\00:25:37.33
And he says to the
spirit that's in her
00:25:37.37\00:25:39.20
and this is an unclean spirit.
00:25:39.23\00:25:40.57
He says to the
spirit that's in her,
00:25:40.60\00:25:41.94
I command thee in the name
of Jesus to come out of her.
00:25:41.97\00:25:44.54
And he came out
of her the same hour.
00:25:44.57\00:25:46.57
And when her
master saw that their hope
00:25:46.61\00:25:48.71
of gains was gone,
00:25:48.74\00:25:50.35
they caught Paul
and Silas, and they drew
00:25:50.38\00:25:52.51
them to the
marketplace to the rulers,
00:25:52.55\00:25:54.72
and they brought
them to the magistrates.
00:25:54.75\00:25:56.25
And they said, these man
being Jews to exceedingly
00:25:56.28\00:25:58.72
trouble our city.
00:25:58.75\00:26:00.29
And they teach customs
00:26:00.32\00:26:01.66
which is not
lawful for us to receive,
00:26:01.69\00:26:03.09
neither to
observe, being Romans.
00:26:03.12\00:26:05.09
And the multitude rose up
together and against them:
00:26:05.13\00:26:07.96
and the magistrates
rent off their clothes,
00:26:08.00\00:26:09.50
and they
commanded to beat them."
00:26:09.53\00:26:10.87
So you know, the gospel
isn't being accepted here
00:26:10.90\00:26:13.64
as readily as Paul and
Silas were hoping, right?
00:26:13.67\00:26:16.54
These people were upset that
they're preaching the gospel.
00:26:16.57\00:26:18.91
These people are not happy about
00:26:18.94\00:26:21.04
what's happened
with this young lady
00:26:21.08\00:26:22.98
that used to bring them
all this money by predicting
00:26:23.01\00:26:24.85
the future, right?
00:26:24.88\00:26:26.21
And so they beat them.
00:26:26.25\00:26:27.58
And it says, verse 23,
00:26:27.62\00:26:28.95
"When they had laid
many stripes upon them,
00:26:28.98\00:26:32.02
they cast them into prison,
00:26:32.05\00:26:33.52
charging the jailer
to keep them safely."
00:26:33.56\00:26:35.16
So here's the situation, right?
00:26:35.19\00:26:36.62
I don't know if
you've ever been to jail.
00:26:36.66\00:26:37.99
I spent one night
in jail. It was the...
00:26:38.03\00:26:39.86
It was the time in my life
00:26:39.89\00:26:41.36
when I wasted more
time than any other
00:26:41.40\00:26:42.86
time in my entire life,
00:26:42.90\00:26:44.23
just sitting there
doing nothing for 24 hours.
00:26:44.27\00:26:47.34
I hated it. And it
taught me a lesson.
00:26:47.37\00:26:49.50
I never wanted to go back again.
00:26:49.54\00:26:51.84
Paul is thrown in jail,
not for what I was doing,
00:26:51.87\00:26:54.14
which was illegal drugs,
but for preaching the gospel,
00:26:54.18\00:26:58.41
for preaching
about Jesus Christ.
00:26:58.45\00:27:00.12
And I can imagine
like him that I would never
00:27:00.15\00:27:02.88
want to go back
into that situation.
00:27:02.92\00:27:04.25
I've never wanted
thrown in jail again.
00:27:04.29\00:27:05.62
But he doesn't have an option
because he's not going to stop
00:27:05.65\00:27:08.19
preaching the
gospel of Jesus Christ.
00:27:08.22\00:27:09.86
So Paul's preaching
the gospel of Jesus Christ.
00:27:09.89\00:27:12.09
And he's thrown into
jail after he has been beat
00:27:12.13\00:27:14.33
with many stripes him and Silas,
00:27:14.36\00:27:15.90
and they're told to
be kept safely to jailer,
00:27:15.93\00:27:17.87
they're told, tell the
jailer keep him safely.
00:27:17.90\00:27:20.24
And then it says in verse 24,
00:27:20.27\00:27:21.60
"Who the jailer having
received such a charge,
00:27:21.64\00:27:24.64
thrust them into
the inner prison."
00:27:24.67\00:27:26.34
So it's like he
put them in solitary,
00:27:26.37\00:27:27.88
you know, he's put them
way back in the inner prison
00:27:27.91\00:27:31.01
and made their
feet fast in the stock.
00:27:31.05\00:27:33.05
So not only did he put
them in solitary back in the,
00:27:33.08\00:27:35.85
in the inner prison,
00:27:35.88\00:27:37.22
but they put
stocks around their feet
00:27:37.25\00:27:38.89
and around
their hands, you know,
00:27:38.92\00:27:40.26
so that they couldn't
even move in their jail cell,
00:27:40.29\00:27:42.86
if you can imagine that.
00:27:42.89\00:27:44.23
And so what are you going to do,
00:27:44.26\00:27:45.59
you know, what are
you going to do when life
00:27:45.63\00:27:46.96
treats you like this?
00:27:47.00\00:27:48.33
What are you going to
do when you get beaten?
00:27:48.36\00:27:49.70
What are you going to
do when you get whipped?
00:27:49.73\00:27:51.07
What are you going to
do when you're doing good
00:27:51.10\00:27:52.43
and bad comes to you?
00:27:52.47\00:27:54.34
When you're doing good,
and people mistreats you.
00:27:54.37\00:27:56.44
When you're doing good,
00:27:56.47\00:27:57.81
and they put you
in the inner prison.
00:27:57.84\00:27:59.27
When you're doing good,
00:27:59.31\00:28:00.64
and they put stocks on
your hands and your feet.
00:28:00.68\00:28:02.28
When you're doing
good, when you're preaching
00:28:02.31\00:28:03.65
the gospel, and
you're hated for it.
00:28:03.68\00:28:05.45
What are you going to do?
00:28:05.48\00:28:06.82
Well, what did
Paul and Silas do?
00:28:06.85\00:28:08.18
Here's what Paul and Silas did.
00:28:08.22\00:28:09.82
It says right here in verse 25,
00:28:09.85\00:28:11.95
and at midnight,
00:28:11.99\00:28:13.32
and now let's just
pause there for just a second.
00:28:13.36\00:28:15.09
And that midnight,
that is the darkest hour.
00:28:15.12\00:28:18.33
You know, many of us
face our darkest hours,
00:28:18.36\00:28:21.00
when we're
facing our darkest hours
00:28:21.03\00:28:22.90
when things look the very worst.
00:28:22.93\00:28:25.17
When it's, when it seems
like everything is against us,
00:28:25.20\00:28:27.80
what are we going to do?
00:28:27.84\00:28:29.17
What are we going to do?
00:28:29.20\00:28:30.54
"In that at midnight at
the darkest hour," verse 25,
00:28:30.57\00:28:33.51
"Paul and Silas prayed
00:28:33.54\00:28:36.24
and sing praises unto God."
00:28:36.28\00:28:40.42
And they were
just, you know, kind of,
00:28:40.45\00:28:42.05
they weren't just kind
of mumbling to themselves,
00:28:42.08\00:28:43.82
you know, kind of like,
oh, you know, he's a God.
00:28:43.85\00:28:46.92
They were singing
praises unto God so loudly,
00:28:46.96\00:28:49.56
it says, in the
context of verse 25
00:28:49.59\00:28:51.76
of Acts Chapter
16, they were singing
00:28:51.79\00:28:55.20
so loudly that the
prisoners heard them,
00:28:55.23\00:28:57.47
the other prisoners heard them.
00:28:57.50\00:28:58.83
You ever been in a situation,
00:28:58.87\00:29:00.20
you know, you kind of feel
00:29:00.24\00:29:01.57
embarrassed that
you're a Christian.
00:29:01.60\00:29:02.94
Can you imagine being
in jail, you kind of like,
00:29:02.97\00:29:04.31
you know, you got
all these rough people,
00:29:04.34\00:29:05.67
men, these rough characters,
and they're all around you.
00:29:05.71\00:29:07.84
And you think, Well,
I got to be, you know,
00:29:07.88\00:29:09.21
I gotta, I gotta act.
00:29:09.24\00:29:10.58
I got to be a little,
like, tough looking myself,
00:29:10.61\00:29:12.71
and you start
singing gospel songs.
00:29:12.75\00:29:15.78
That's what Paul and
Silas were doing in prison.
00:29:15.82\00:29:17.45
They were singing
gospel songs, right?
00:29:17.49\00:29:19.62
Because they knew
where the power lie,
00:29:19.65\00:29:21.66
they knew where they needed
to have their minds and hearts.
00:29:21.69\00:29:23.86
They need to be focused on God.
00:29:23.89\00:29:25.39
They need to give Him praise.
00:29:25.43\00:29:26.76
They need to
give Him thanksgiving.
00:29:26.80\00:29:28.13
They needed His power.
00:29:28.16\00:29:29.50
His power was the
only power that could
00:29:29.53\00:29:31.00
help them in this situation.
00:29:31.03\00:29:32.93
And indeed, God's
power helped them.
00:29:32.97\00:29:35.37
Notice what happens.
00:29:35.40\00:29:36.91
They're singing praises to God.
00:29:36.94\00:29:38.87
They're praying
and singing praises.
00:29:38.91\00:29:40.28
And it says,
verse 26, "And suddenly,
00:29:40.31\00:29:42.58
there was a great earthquake.
00:29:42.61\00:29:44.31
So the foundations of
the prison were shaken,
00:29:44.35\00:29:47.55
and immediately all
the doors were open.
00:29:47.58\00:29:50.29
Can you imagine that?
00:29:50.32\00:29:51.65
Immediately, all
the doors were open,
00:29:51.69\00:29:53.02
and everyone's
bands were loosed.
00:29:53.05\00:29:54.56
In other words,
it wasn't just Paul
00:29:54.59\00:29:56.09
and Silas that were
freed from this prison house.
00:29:56.12\00:29:58.89
Everyone was free.
00:29:58.93\00:30:00.30
All the doors were
open and everyone was free.
00:30:00.33\00:30:02.33
That's the power of praise.
00:30:02.36\00:30:04.13
That's the
power of thanksgiving.
00:30:04.17\00:30:05.53
That's the power of
prayer. Everyone is freed,
00:30:05.57\00:30:08.64
all the doors are
opened and loosed.
00:30:08.67\00:30:11.34
And then it says in verse 27,
00:30:11.37\00:30:13.54
"And the keeper of the
prison awaking out his asleep,
00:30:13.58\00:30:16.95
and seeing the
prison doors open,
00:30:16.98\00:30:19.31
he drew out his sword," right?
00:30:19.35\00:30:21.22
What's he going to
do with that sword?
00:30:21.25\00:30:22.68
He drew out his sword.
00:30:22.72\00:30:24.19
He's going to kill those
prisoners before they escaped.
00:30:24.22\00:30:25.92
No, he drew out his sword,
00:30:25.95\00:30:27.42
and would have killed himself
00:30:27.46\00:30:29.09
supposing that the
prisoners had fled.
00:30:29.12\00:30:32.59
See, that's what happens
when you're a prison guard
00:30:32.63\00:30:34.26
back in the day, and you
let your prisoners escape.
00:30:34.30\00:30:36.90
Your life is taken,
you're done, you're finished.
00:30:36.93\00:30:39.23
You are kaput.
00:30:39.27\00:30:40.60
And so right here
at this situation,
00:30:40.64\00:30:43.00
this prisoner needs help.
00:30:43.04\00:30:44.54
This prisoner needs
someone who is outward facing.
00:30:44.57\00:30:47.08
This prisoner needs someone
00:30:47.11\00:30:48.44
who's going to try
to reach out to him.
00:30:48.48\00:30:50.78
And that's
exactly what Paul does.
00:30:50.81\00:30:52.45
Even though he's
been beaten, even though
00:30:52.48\00:30:53.82
he's been put in
the inner prison,
00:30:53.85\00:30:55.18
even though he's
been shackled up.
00:30:55.22\00:30:56.55
When he is free, the first thing
00:30:56.58\00:30:58.15
he thinks of is this other...
00:30:58.19\00:31:00.79
Well, is this prison guard.
00:31:00.82\00:31:02.16
The first thing he
thinks of is this other person
00:31:02.19\00:31:03.73
who doesn't know Jesus.
00:31:03.76\00:31:05.09
And it says here,
verse 28, here it is.
00:31:05.13\00:31:08.03
"And Paul cried
out with a loud voice."
00:31:08.06\00:31:12.63
You know that, that there's
a parallel there somewhere,
00:31:12.67\00:31:15.27
when we go from Acts 16
to Revelation Chapter 14,
00:31:15.30\00:31:19.37
and Revelation Chapter
18, we have loud voices.
00:31:19.41\00:31:21.64
It's the loud
voice of the gospel.
00:31:21.68\00:31:23.55
We're told that an
angel comes down from heaven,
00:31:23.58\00:31:25.35
Revelation 14:6.
00:31:25.38\00:31:26.95
And this angel
has the everlasting
00:31:26.98\00:31:28.35
gospel to preach unto all
00:31:28.38\00:31:29.75
of them that dwell on
the earth, every nation,
00:31:29.78\00:31:31.12
kindred, tongue, and people.
00:31:31.15\00:31:32.49
And it preaches
with a loud voice.
00:31:32.52\00:31:34.16
There's a loud voice
that declares the gospel.
00:31:34.19\00:31:37.13
And that's what
Paul is doing right here.
00:31:37.16\00:31:38.79
He says, with a loud voice,
00:31:38.83\00:31:40.16
because he doesn't
want this person to miss.
00:31:40.20\00:31:41.53
He doesn't want
this jailer to miss this.
00:31:41.56\00:31:42.90
He doesn't want
him to take his life.
00:31:42.93\00:31:44.53
He doesn't want
him to be harmed.
00:31:44.57\00:31:45.90
He says with a loud
voice, do thy self no harm,
00:31:45.93\00:31:50.37
for we are all here.
00:31:50.41\00:31:51.74
We're all here.
Don't hurt yourself.
00:31:51.77\00:31:53.48
We're all here.
00:31:53.51\00:31:54.84
Can you imagine how
powerful thanksgiving is?
00:31:54.88\00:31:58.78
Thanksgiving is so powerful
that it takes our minds off
00:31:58.81\00:32:01.25
ourselves and it
gets our minds on others.
00:32:01.28\00:32:04.09
Others who have hurt us,
others who have imprisoned us,
00:32:04.12\00:32:06.22
others who have mistreated us.
00:32:06.25\00:32:07.59
Yes, it gets
our minds on others.
00:32:07.62\00:32:09.92
We start thinking about other
people and not about ourselves,
00:32:09.96\00:32:12.93
even though we're in misery,
even though we're afflicted,
00:32:12.96\00:32:14.76
even though we've gone
through physical affliction,
00:32:14.80\00:32:16.70
even though we've gone
through mental torment.
00:32:16.73\00:32:18.43
When we lift up
our voice in praise
00:32:18.47\00:32:20.34
and thanksgiving to God,
we become outward facing.
00:32:20.37\00:32:23.30
And Paul basically
says, with a loud voice,
00:32:23.34\00:32:25.57
that's the
gospel, Revelation 14:6-7,
00:32:25.61\00:32:28.91
"Do yourself no harm."
00:32:28.94\00:32:31.21
Right?
00:32:31.25\00:32:32.58
And then he called for
a light, verse 29 says,
00:32:32.61\00:32:35.12
"And he sprang in,
and he came trembling,
00:32:35.15\00:32:37.32
and he fell down
before Paul and Silas.
00:32:37.35\00:32:39.69
And he brought
them out and said,
00:32:39.72\00:32:41.22
'Sirs, what must
I do to be saved?'"
00:32:41.26\00:32:44.69
Oh, this is so
powerful. He didn't.
00:32:44.73\00:32:46.63
He didn't say,
00:32:46.66\00:32:48.00
"What must I do
to join your church
00:32:48.03\00:32:50.50
and to believe
your fundamentals?"
00:32:50.53\00:32:51.87
He said, "What must I
do to have an experience
00:32:51.90\00:32:53.27
like you just had?
00:32:53.30\00:32:54.64
What must I do
to be able to live
00:32:54.67\00:32:56.00
a life that you're living,
00:32:56.04\00:32:57.37
to be able to relate to life
00:32:57.41\00:32:58.74
the way that
you're relating to life?"
00:32:58.77\00:33:00.11
See, salvation is not
just signing the book,
00:33:00.14\00:33:02.78
you know, and not just
having our names on a book
00:33:02.81\00:33:04.51
and not just join in church.
00:33:04.55\00:33:05.98
Salvation is an experience.
00:33:06.01\00:33:07.82
And Paul and Silas
had that experience.
00:33:07.85\00:33:09.92
They had the
experience of the gospel,
00:33:09.95\00:33:12.49
the experience
that caused them to pray
00:33:12.52\00:33:15.22
and to praise and thank
God in their worst situation,
00:33:15.26\00:33:18.73
their worst hit and stance,
and to watch God work or not,
00:33:18.76\00:33:22.33
to trust in God no
matter what their situation was.
00:33:22.36\00:33:24.97
And that was the
experience this jailor want.
00:33:25.00\00:33:26.84
He said, "What
can I do to be saved?"
00:33:26.87\00:33:28.47
What he was actually saying was,
00:33:28.50\00:33:30.01
what can I do to have
the experience that you
00:33:30.04\00:33:31.94
have because what I
just saw is supernatural,
00:33:31.97\00:33:34.21
is superhuman.
00:33:34.24\00:33:35.58
I've never seen
anything like this before.
00:33:35.61\00:33:37.51
I would like to
have that experience.
00:33:37.55\00:33:39.71
And that's what
praising God does.
00:33:39.75\00:33:41.65
Oh that men would praise
the Lord for His goodness,
00:33:41.68\00:33:43.75
His wonderful works
to the children men!
00:33:43.79\00:33:45.25
For he's broken the
gates of brass and cut the bars
00:33:45.29\00:33:47.36
of iron in sunder."
00:33:47.39\00:33:48.72
That's what God does.
00:33:48.76\00:33:50.09
And I imagine Paul was
thinking about these verses
00:33:50.13\00:33:52.23
there in Acts Chapter 16.
00:33:52.26\00:33:53.93
He was thinking about these
verses when he started praying,
00:33:53.96\00:33:56.70
and when he
started praising God,
00:33:56.73\00:33:58.10
and when he and
Silas were there,
00:33:58.13\00:33:59.63
they were praying and
praising God with a loud voice.
00:33:59.67\00:34:02.50
And the other
prisoners were listening.
00:34:02.54\00:34:03.87
He was thinking
about these verses,
00:34:03.91\00:34:05.24
and he was thinking, I
wonder what God's going to do.
00:34:05.27\00:34:06.71
I wonder how
God's gonna deliver us.
00:34:06.74\00:34:08.74
And indeed, God came in and God
00:34:08.78\00:34:10.38
delivered them in such a
way that the prison guard
00:34:10.41\00:34:14.22
was converted, the prison guard
00:34:14.25\00:34:15.78
and all his house
going on with the story
00:34:15.82\00:34:17.99
says that they were all
converted, they were baptized,
00:34:18.02\00:34:20.89
and they accepted Jesus
Christ as their personal Savior.
00:34:20.92\00:34:23.43
See, that's what
it's all about, friends.
00:34:23.46\00:34:25.03
All the trials we go
00:34:25.06\00:34:26.39
through are opportunities
for somebody to realize
00:34:26.43\00:34:30.37
there's a God in heaven.
00:34:30.40\00:34:31.93
Somebody is going
to see that through you
00:34:31.97\00:34:34.24
and your
circumstance and your situation
00:34:34.27\00:34:36.07
when you're down.
00:34:36.10\00:34:37.44
I mean, when you are
down and you feel overwhelmed,
00:34:37.47\00:34:39.77
you just want to give
up, that's the time to reach
00:34:39.81\00:34:42.08
out to God with a
prayer, that's the time to reach
00:34:42.11\00:34:44.35
out to God with the praise.
00:34:44.38\00:34:45.75
That's the time to
reach out to God with a giving
00:34:45.78\00:34:48.15
of thanks and watch
him work, not just for you,
00:34:48.18\00:34:51.72
but for others,
00:34:51.75\00:34:53.09
that you are influencing
for others that are around you,
00:34:53.12\00:34:55.99
for others that
are in your life,
00:34:56.02\00:34:57.36
for others that
are in your vicinity,
00:34:57.39\00:34:58.73
there're others
that you work with,
00:34:58.76\00:35:00.10
others in your
community, whoever they are,
00:35:00.13\00:35:02.06
for other people to see
00:35:02.10\00:35:03.80
something that
they've never seen before,
00:35:03.83\00:35:05.67
this prison guard had never
seen anything like this before.
00:35:05.70\00:35:09.50
All right, let's
go back to Psalm 107.
00:35:09.54\00:35:12.31
Psalm 107:21-22.
00:35:12.34\00:35:14.08
Here's what it
says, Psalm107:21-22,
00:35:14.11\00:35:16.61
"Oh that men would praise
the Lord for his goodness,
00:35:16.64\00:35:19.98
and for his wonderful
works to the children of men!
00:35:20.02\00:35:22.48
And let them sacrifice the
sacrifices of thanksgiving,
00:35:22.52\00:35:28.22
and declare his
works with rejoicing."
00:35:28.26\00:35:31.49
See, that's what Paul
did. That's what Silas did.
00:35:31.53\00:35:32.99
They sacrifice the
sacrifices of thanksgiving,
00:35:33.03\00:35:37.00
because sometimes thanksgiving
requires a sacrifice.
00:35:37.03\00:35:40.40
Thanksgiving is not just easy.
00:35:40.44\00:35:42.14
I mean, it's
easy to be thankful,
00:35:42.17\00:35:44.31
you know, when your
bank account is full,
00:35:44.34\00:35:46.21
when your belly is full,
00:35:46.24\00:35:47.58
or when you got
your everything in a row,
00:35:47.61\00:35:49.11
you know all
your ducks in a row.
00:35:49.14\00:35:50.48
It's easy to be thankful then.
00:35:50.51\00:35:51.91
But what about the
sacrifice of thanksgiving?
00:35:51.95\00:35:54.82
What about when it's a
sacrifice to give thanks.
00:35:54.85\00:35:57.59
That's what Psalm
107:21-22 are talking about.
00:35:57.62\00:36:00.72
They're talking about the
sacrifice of thanksgiving.
00:36:00.76\00:36:03.53
And that reminds me
00:36:03.56\00:36:05.16
of a little story in the
Book of Daniel Chapter 6.
00:36:05.19\00:36:09.00
Now, just to give a
little bit of background, again,
00:36:09.03\00:36:11.20
we've looked at
Daniel Chapter 2,
00:36:11.23\00:36:13.90
Daniel is much older now.
00:36:13.94\00:36:15.44
In fact, he is no longer
00:36:15.47\00:36:17.51
a eunuch under
the power of Babylon.
00:36:17.54\00:36:20.44
He is now a president,
like a prime minister,
00:36:20.48\00:36:24.15
like a vice
president next to Darius.
00:36:24.18\00:36:27.18
He is second in command,
at least that's what Darius
00:36:27.22\00:36:29.52
is thinking of
putting him in position,
00:36:29.55\00:36:32.39
second in command under
the Medo-Persian Empire,
00:36:32.42\00:36:36.29
and the rest of the cabinet
aren't too excited about that.
00:36:36.32\00:36:40.70
In fact, they're
pretty jealous of Daniel.
00:36:40.73\00:36:42.63
Let's pick up the
story in Daniel Chapter 6.
00:36:42.66\00:36:45.57
The rest of the cabinet members
are all politically envious.
00:36:45.60\00:36:51.11
They are the elite of
the kingdom of Medo-Persia.
00:36:51.14\00:36:56.24
They have been
working for position
00:36:56.28\00:36:58.85
and prestige for
all of their lives.
00:36:58.88\00:37:00.95
And Daniel just kind
of slips in ahead of them.
00:37:00.98\00:37:02.88
Why? Well, he had such a
good spirit, he was so honest.
00:37:02.92\00:37:05.72
And that's what the
king was looking for.
00:37:05.75\00:37:07.09
He was looking for
honesty and accountability.
00:37:07.12\00:37:08.76
I mean, that's what we
need in all our leaders
00:37:08.79\00:37:10.13
and politicians.
00:37:10.16\00:37:11.49
I wish we could
get more of that today.
00:37:11.53\00:37:12.96
You see it in a
few, a few areas,
00:37:12.99\00:37:14.76
but most of
them are just willing
00:37:14.80\00:37:17.47
to, well, just
to go with the flow,
00:37:17.50\00:37:19.17
to receive the
bribes, or the money
00:37:19.20\00:37:21.67
or whatever it is to try
to get to the top politically,
00:37:21.70\00:37:25.54
and basically sacrifice truth.
00:37:25.57\00:37:28.44
Daniel was not
willing to do that.
00:37:28.48\00:37:30.35
Daniel was a man of integrity.
00:37:30.38\00:37:31.95
He was man who was true
as a needle to the pole.
00:37:31.98\00:37:34.68
And this man could
not be bought or bribed.
00:37:34.72\00:37:37.59
He was seeking to do
what God wanted him to do.
00:37:37.62\00:37:40.36
And he was going to
serve the Medo-Persians,
00:37:40.39\00:37:42.12
just like he was going
to serve the Babylonians,
00:37:42.16\00:37:43.53
just like he was going to
serve any other government.
00:37:43.56\00:37:45.06
He was going to serve
with integrity, with honesty.
00:37:45.09\00:37:48.70
And these other men
knew that and they knew
00:37:48.73\00:37:50.37
the king was impressed with him.
00:37:50.40\00:37:51.73
And so they came
up with this plan.
00:37:51.77\00:37:53.47
They came up with this plan
to basically destroy Daniel.
00:37:53.50\00:37:57.27
Now they look
for dirt on Daniel,
00:37:57.31\00:37:58.97
but they couldn't find it.
00:37:59.01\00:38:00.34
You can imagine not
being able to find any
00:38:00.38\00:38:01.71
dirt on someone
who's in politics.
00:38:01.74\00:38:03.24
They couldn't find
any dirt on Daniel.
00:38:03.28\00:38:04.61
He was just a good
guy. He was just a good guy.
00:38:04.65\00:38:06.95
And so they decided that
they were going to come up,
00:38:06.98\00:38:09.15
they were going to
frame a law that they knew
00:38:09.18\00:38:11.55
Daniel would violate.
00:38:11.59\00:38:12.92
See, this man
was a man of prayer
00:38:12.95\00:38:15.19
and a man of thanksgiving.
00:38:15.22\00:38:16.99
And they knew,
they looked at him,
00:38:17.03\00:38:18.53
they've been watching,
they've been trying to find
00:38:18.56\00:38:19.89
dirt and they couldn't find any.
00:38:19.93\00:38:21.26
But they knew that every day,
Daniel would go to his house,
00:38:21.30\00:38:23.97
actually three times a day
he would kneel on his knees
00:38:24.00\00:38:25.70
and he would
pray with his windows
00:38:25.73\00:38:27.14
open because he was
praying to the God of heaven.
00:38:27.17\00:38:28.80
He was praying
toward Jerusalem, his city.
00:38:28.84\00:38:30.77
And say, they
said, "You know what,
00:38:30.81\00:38:32.24
we could actually
use this against him."
00:38:32.27\00:38:34.11
So the presidents," verse 4,
00:38:34.14\00:38:35.48
"and the princes
sought to find occasion
00:38:35.51\00:38:37.38
against Daniel
concerning the kingdom,
00:38:37.41\00:38:38.78
but they could not find,
00:38:38.81\00:38:40.15
they could find
none occasion nor fault,
00:38:40.18\00:38:41.52
forasmuch as he was faithful,
00:38:41.55\00:38:42.88
neither was there any
error or fault found in him.
00:38:42.92\00:38:45.35
"Then said these
men, we shall not find
00:38:45.39\00:38:47.09
any occasion
against this Daniel,"
00:38:47.12\00:38:48.66
verse 5 of Daniel 6,
"except we find it concerning
00:38:48.69\00:38:51.46
the law of his God.
00:38:51.49\00:38:52.99
And these presidents
and these kings assembled
00:38:53.03\00:38:54.96
together to the king,
and they said unto the king,
00:38:55.00\00:38:57.93
unto him, King
Darius, live forever.
00:38:57.97\00:39:00.04
All the
presidents of the kingdom
00:39:00.07\00:39:02.10
and the governors,
and all the princes,
00:39:02.14\00:39:03.74
and the
counselors, and the captains
00:39:03.77\00:39:05.11
have consulted together."
00:39:05.14\00:39:06.47
See they lied
right there, didn't they?
00:39:06.51\00:39:07.84
See it, politics
is all about lies.
00:39:07.88\00:39:10.11
It's all about deception.
00:39:10.15\00:39:11.48
And that's and it
hasn't changed even since
00:39:11.51\00:39:13.68
the days of King Darius.
00:39:13.72\00:39:16.55
They said, all but
Daniel was excluded.
00:39:16.58\00:39:19.65
Daniel was left
out, Daniel wasn't there.
00:39:19.69\00:39:21.66
If Daniel had been there,
00:39:21.69\00:39:23.02
they wouldn't be
able to do what they were
00:39:23.06\00:39:24.39
going to do because
Daniel said, "You know what,
00:39:24.43\00:39:25.76
if you pass this law,
I'm going to be in trouble."
00:39:25.79\00:39:28.26
Right? So they excluded Daniel.
00:39:28.30\00:39:30.77
"And they told the king
that all of the governors,
00:39:30.80\00:39:33.30
and all of the presidents,
and all of the princes,
00:39:33.34\00:39:35.74
and all of the counselors,
00:39:35.77\00:39:37.24
and all the captains have
consulted together to establish
00:39:37.27\00:39:39.94
the royal decree, a
statute to make a firm
00:39:39.97\00:39:42.34
decree that
whosoever shall ask a petition
00:39:42.38\00:39:44.48
of any god or man, save of thee,
00:39:44.51\00:39:47.68
O king, for 30 days
00:39:47.72\00:39:50.09
shall be thrown
into a den of lions."
00:39:50.12\00:39:53.69
Oh, the king was so flattered
00:39:53.72\00:39:55.09
that he signed that
to establish that decree.
00:39:55.12\00:39:57.33
Verse 8, "He signed it with
00:39:57.36\00:39:58.69
the writing that it
couldn't be changed.
00:39:58.73\00:40:00.20
That was the law
of the Medo-Persians,
00:40:00.23\00:40:01.56
what they signed in
law could not be changed."
00:40:01.60\00:40:03.50
It was infallible and so they,
00:40:03.53\00:40:06.17
he signed it and
it was put into law.
00:40:06.20\00:40:09.07
The law of the
Medo-Persians which alters not.
00:40:09.10\00:40:11.07
Verse 9,
"Wherefore King Darius signed
00:40:11.11\00:40:13.54
the writing and the decree.
00:40:13.58\00:40:14.91
Now when Daniel,"
here's the key verse,
00:40:14.94\00:40:16.28
when Daniel, verse 10,
00:40:16.31\00:40:18.08
"When he knew that
the writing was signed,
00:40:18.11\00:40:20.78
he went to his house
and his windows being open,"
00:40:20.82\00:40:24.62
he closed them.
00:40:24.65\00:40:25.99
You know, so one would
see him praying, right?
00:40:26.02\00:40:27.96
No, "His windows
being open in the chamber
00:40:27.99\00:40:30.66
toward Jerusalem,
he kneeled down upon
00:40:30.69\00:40:32.56
his knees three
times a day and prayed,"
00:40:32.59\00:40:36.67
just like he had before.
00:40:36.70\00:40:38.03
Nothing changed with Daniel.
00:40:38.07\00:40:39.60
See, he was a man of integrity.
00:40:39.63\00:40:41.07
Nothing changed with
Daniel and he knew it all
00:40:41.10\00:40:44.87
of all the
times to stop praying,
00:40:44.91\00:40:46.78
this is not the
time to stop praying.
00:40:46.81\00:40:48.31
When our life is on the line,
00:40:48.34\00:40:49.68
when the laws are
written against us,
00:40:49.71\00:40:51.25
when we are going to come under
00:40:51.28\00:40:53.95
the violation
of the laws of man,
00:40:53.98\00:40:55.75
that is not the
time to give up on God,
00:40:55.78\00:40:57.52
that is not the time
to stop praying to God,
00:40:57.55\00:40:59.25
that is not the
time to hide our faith.
00:40:59.29\00:41:00.96
That is not the time
to close the windows,
00:41:00.99\00:41:02.79
that is not the
time to compromise.
00:41:02.82\00:41:04.89
Of all times that's the time
00:41:04.93\00:41:06.53
when we need to stand up
for Jesus by kneeling down
00:41:06.56\00:41:09.36
before the throne of God.
00:41:09.40\00:41:10.73
And that's what he did.
But this is what he did.
00:41:10.77\00:41:12.47
Just check out
what else he did though.
00:41:12.50\00:41:13.84
This is amazing.
00:41:13.87\00:41:15.20
When you think
about this is amazing.
00:41:15.24\00:41:16.57
It says that he opened up
his windows towards Jerusalem,
00:41:16.60\00:41:19.84
he kneeled upon his
knees three times a day
00:41:19.87\00:41:21.78
and pray just like he had before
00:41:21.81\00:41:23.28
and gave thanks before
his God as he did aforetime.
00:41:23.31\00:41:27.48
You know, there are times
when we can give thanks to God,
00:41:27.52\00:41:29.68
because things are going well.
00:41:29.72\00:41:31.05
There are times when
we can give thanks to God
00:41:31.09\00:41:32.42
because you know, everything's
going the way we want it to go.
00:41:32.45\00:41:35.16
But then there's times
00:41:35.19\00:41:36.52
when things are going
in a different direction.
00:41:36.56\00:41:38.46
There's times when
things aren't going
00:41:38.49\00:41:40.06
as well as we want.
00:41:40.10\00:41:41.43
There are times when
we're meeting troubles
00:41:41.46\00:41:43.00
and difficulties in our life.
00:41:43.03\00:41:44.77
There are times
when it's hard for us.
00:41:44.80\00:41:47.27
What are we going to do then?
00:41:47.30\00:41:48.80
What did Daniel do?
00:41:48.84\00:41:50.24
Daniel thanked
God in these times,
00:41:50.27\00:41:52.97
just like he had before,
00:41:53.01\00:41:54.91
just like he had
when Darius said,
00:41:54.94\00:41:57.25
"Hey, you know
what, Daniel, I'm thinking
00:41:57.28\00:41:58.88
about putting you in
the number one spot."
00:41:58.91\00:42:01.38
Daniel said, "Who? Me?
Wow, oh, that's really cool.
00:42:01.42\00:42:04.25
I've been praying,
thank God for that.
00:42:04.29\00:42:05.89
That's really
cool. I mean, you know."
00:42:05.92\00:42:07.36
And then a law is passed
that's going to completely
00:42:07.39\00:42:10.96
ruin his political career.
00:42:10.99\00:42:12.79
He's not only
going to be vacating
00:42:12.83\00:42:15.10
his political spot,
which was going to be number
00:42:15.13\00:42:17.03
one next to the king.
00:42:17.07\00:42:18.40
He's going to be
thrown into the lions' den.
00:42:18.43\00:42:19.77
He's going to be
thrown in prison.
00:42:19.80\00:42:21.14
He's going to be thrown.
00:42:21.17\00:42:22.50
He's going be put on
death row, he's dying.
00:42:22.54\00:42:24.41
Daniel goes into his
room with his windows open,
00:42:24.44\00:42:26.71
could have shut them
so no one could see him.
00:42:26.74\00:42:28.08
With his windows open,
00:42:28.11\00:42:29.44
openly confesses
his faith in God,
00:42:29.48\00:42:31.41
openly prays to God
00:42:31.45\00:42:32.78
and also gives thanks to God.
00:42:32.81\00:42:37.55
Why is that?
00:42:37.59\00:42:38.92
Because God
knows all circumstances
00:42:38.95\00:42:40.36
and all situations.
00:42:40.39\00:42:42.02
You know, the
Lord told us to pray,
00:42:42.06\00:42:45.09
our Father which art in heaven,
00:42:45.13\00:42:46.46
hallowed be Thy
name, Thy kingdom come,
00:42:46.49\00:42:48.06
Thy will be done on
earth as it is in heaven.
00:42:48.10\00:42:49.83
And you know He
told us to pray that way.
00:42:49.86\00:42:51.43
Because God's will
isn't always done on earth
00:42:51.47\00:42:53.64
as it is in heaven.
00:42:53.67\00:42:55.00
And we need to pray that
it would be done on earth
00:42:55.04\00:42:56.97
as it is in heaven.
00:42:57.01\00:42:58.34
And we need to pray that we
would be delivered from evil.
00:42:58.37\00:43:01.04
Because there's a lot of
evil going on in this planet
00:43:01.08\00:43:03.18
that is not part of God's will.
00:43:03.21\00:43:05.75
If it was, we wouldn't
be prayed to be delivered
00:43:05.78\00:43:07.35
from it because we just say,
"Well, all evil is God's will.
00:43:07.38\00:43:09.22
Everything that
happens is God's will.
00:43:09.25\00:43:10.59
We can just go along with it
because God will do something."
00:43:10.62\00:43:12.49
No, some
00:43:12.52\00:43:13.86
of the things that
happen in this world are not
00:43:13.89\00:43:16.22
God's will.
00:43:16.26\00:43:17.59
They are evil
00:43:17.63\00:43:18.96
and we're to be praying to
be delivered from that evil.
00:43:18.99\00:43:21.26
We would be praising God that we
00:43:21.30\00:43:22.63
will be
delivered from that evil.
00:43:22.66\00:43:24.17
You know, in the New Testament,
00:43:24.20\00:43:25.53
the Bible tells us
that the devil goes around
00:43:25.57\00:43:27.07
like a roaring lion
seeking whom he may devour.
00:43:27.10\00:43:29.67
And so in type we have Daniel
being delivered into the hands,
00:43:29.70\00:43:32.47
the clutches of the
devil of the dragon, right?
00:43:32.51\00:43:34.84
We see all of that
taking place in Revelation 13,
00:43:34.88\00:43:37.15
with the mark of
the beast, you know,
00:43:37.18\00:43:38.51
and the dragon and
the image of the beast.
00:43:38.55\00:43:40.85
All of that, the
mark and the enforcement,
00:43:40.88\00:43:43.02
all of that God's people
gonna be delivered into that.
00:43:43.05\00:43:46.55
Our prayers should never change.
00:43:46.59\00:43:49.06
Our attitude should not change.
00:43:49.09\00:43:51.06
We at that time just like
00:43:51.09\00:43:52.59
we do at this time
are to give thanks to God
00:43:52.63\00:43:54.73
because He's
going to do something.
00:43:54.76\00:43:56.56
God is up to the occasion.
00:43:56.60\00:43:58.47
We may be overwhelmed
with change in circumstances.
00:43:58.50\00:44:01.00
We may be
overwhelmed with the mountains
00:44:01.04\00:44:02.90
of evil that are
coming against us.
00:44:02.94\00:44:04.37
We may be
overwhelmed with the darkness.
00:44:04.41\00:44:06.84
We may be overwhelmed with the
deception that's taking place.
00:44:06.88\00:44:09.34
But God is not overwhelmed.
00:44:09.38\00:44:10.91
And this isn't about us.
00:44:10.95\00:44:12.28
This isn't about what we can do.
00:44:12.31\00:44:13.65
It's always been
about what God can do.
00:44:13.68\00:44:15.85
That's what the
whole Bible teaches us.
00:44:15.88\00:44:17.52
It's always been
about what God can do.
00:44:17.55\00:44:19.52
And when we give up
on ourselves that when,
00:44:19.55\00:44:21.26
that is when God can
move in and work to the utmost
00:44:21.29\00:44:24.69
of His power and ability.
00:44:24.73\00:44:26.06
It's when we trust
partly in ourselves,
00:44:26.09\00:44:27.43
like Abraham did with
Hagar, that we get it wrong.
00:44:27.46\00:44:30.17
But once we give up
on ourselves completely,
00:44:30.20\00:44:32.20
it took Abraham
25 years to do that.
00:44:32.23\00:44:34.20
Once we give up ourselves
completely, God can step in.
00:44:34.24\00:44:37.21
And He does step
in and in stepping in
00:44:37.24\00:44:39.87
when we have
nothing to offer Him,
00:44:39.91\00:44:41.38
but ourselves
surrendered to Him,
00:44:41.41\00:44:44.15
God gets all the
glory, all of it goes to God.
00:44:44.18\00:44:47.82
That's what it
means to give God glory,
00:44:47.85\00:44:49.42
to fear God and give
Him glory, to trust in Him,
00:44:49.45\00:44:51.55
to look to Him in
these times of difficulty,
00:44:51.59\00:44:53.86
in these times of trial,
in these times of duress.
00:44:53.89\00:44:56.66
And that's what Daniel did.
00:44:56.69\00:44:58.03
It's powerful when
you think about it.
00:44:58.06\00:44:59.39
He kneeled upon his
knees and he gave thanks to God
00:44:59.43\00:45:01.96
as he did
beforehand, before time.
00:45:02.00\00:45:05.90
Nothing changed with Daniel.
00:45:05.93\00:45:07.44
Nothing was
different with Daniel.
00:45:07.47\00:45:09.07
God was more important
to him than men's decrees,
00:45:09.10\00:45:11.74
than life itself.
00:45:11.77\00:45:13.11
Daniel was outward
facing and God delivered him.
00:45:13.14\00:45:16.71
Powerful, powerful story.
00:45:16.75\00:45:18.71
Back to our Psalm 107.
00:45:18.75\00:45:20.55
Because we've got another
phrase here in Psalm 107:31-32.
00:45:20.58\00:45:24.32
This is our last phrase.
00:45:24.35\00:45:26.05
So we're going to
be able to close out
00:45:26.09\00:45:27.42
with this and a
few more thoughts.
00:45:27.46\00:45:28.79
Psalm 107:31-32,
00:45:28.82\00:45:31.26
"Oh that men would praise
the Lord for his goodness,
00:45:31.29\00:45:34.53
and for his wonderful
works to the children of men!
00:45:34.56\00:45:37.47
Let them exalt him
also in the congregation
00:45:37.50\00:45:41.80
of the people, and praise him
in the assembly of the elders."
00:45:41.84\00:45:47.48
Exalt Him in the congregation,
00:45:47.51\00:45:48.84
praise Him in the
assembly of the elders.
00:45:48.88\00:45:50.75
This is directing us to worship,
00:45:50.78\00:45:53.42
this is
directing us to the church,
00:45:53.45\00:45:55.15
this is directing us to
stepping into the presence
00:45:55.18\00:45:57.95
of God.
00:45:57.99\00:45:59.32
And this is
something that is so powerful,
00:45:59.35\00:46:02.56
that it is
repeated over and over
00:46:02.59\00:46:05.23
and over again in the
last book of the New Testament.
00:46:05.26\00:46:09.96
The last book of
the New Testament
00:46:10.00\00:46:11.33
is the Book of Revelation.
00:46:11.37\00:46:12.70
A lot of us
think that Revelation,
00:46:12.73\00:46:14.07
the Book of Revelation
is all about the beast.
00:46:14.10\00:46:16.87
The Book of Revelation
is all about judgments.
00:46:16.91\00:46:18.97
The Book of Revelation
is all about the terrible
00:46:19.01\00:46:21.28
things that are
coming on the earth.
00:46:21.31\00:46:22.81
But actually, the
Book of Revelation
00:46:22.84\00:46:24.21
is all about Jesus.
00:46:24.25\00:46:25.85
It's the
revelation of Jesus Christ.
00:46:25.88\00:46:28.55
The Book of
Revelation is also about
00:46:28.58\00:46:30.62
delivering us from
the beast and the dragon,
00:46:30.65\00:46:32.89
delivering us from the mark,
delivering us from the plagues,
00:46:32.92\00:46:35.99
delivering us from all
the evil on planet earth.
00:46:36.02\00:46:38.56
That's why Revelation
closes in Chapters 21 and 22
00:46:38.59\00:46:41.76
with this picture of the
new heaven and the new earth,
00:46:41.80\00:46:43.70
no more pain, no more sorrow,
00:46:43.73\00:46:45.17
no more evil, no more tears.
00:46:45.20\00:46:47.80
God is directing us
00:46:47.84\00:46:49.70
as to how we
can move through all
00:46:49.74\00:46:51.87
of the events that we
see happening in the Book
00:46:51.91\00:46:54.94
of Revelation, not
just us in this final
00:46:54.98\00:46:57.18
generation because
the Book of Revelation
00:46:57.21\00:46:58.98
is all about historicism.
00:46:59.01\00:47:01.08
It's all about how God
has worked in ages past
00:47:01.12\00:47:03.99
and is working now
00:47:04.02\00:47:05.35
and will continue to
work for His people up until
00:47:05.39\00:47:07.52
the very end of time,
the Second Coming of Jesus
00:47:07.56\00:47:09.99
and in the time when
we're ushered into the new
00:47:10.03\00:47:11.69
heavens and a new
earth after the 1000 years.
00:47:11.73\00:47:14.46
And so Revelation Chapter 4
00:47:14.50\00:47:16.73
begins this epic
journey of praise,
00:47:16.77\00:47:20.34
not fear but praise.
00:47:20.37\00:47:22.50
In Revelation Chapter 4
and we'll start with verse 8,
00:47:22.54\00:47:25.61
we see the same
picture that we've seen
00:47:25.64\00:47:27.28
all through the Bible.
00:47:27.31\00:47:28.64
The same picture that
we've seen in Psalm 107.
00:47:28.68\00:47:31.81
In fact, why shouldn't
we see it there in the Book
00:47:31.85\00:47:34.02
of Revelation because
the Book of Revelation
00:47:34.05\00:47:36.35
is the beginning and
the end of the entire Bible.
00:47:36.38\00:47:39.75
In the Book of Revelation,
the entire Bible meets and ends.
00:47:39.79\00:47:43.09
And so we should see
in the Book of Revelation,
00:47:43.12\00:47:45.16
a summation, if you will,
00:47:45.19\00:47:46.76
of everything else that
we see in the Word of God.
00:47:46.80\00:47:49.30
And that's what we see there.
00:47:49.33\00:47:50.67
You know, a lot of people
have told me that they're scared
00:47:50.70\00:47:53.00
of the Book of Revelation.
00:47:53.03\00:47:54.37
I love the Book of Revelation.
00:47:54.40\00:47:55.74
It's my favorite
book of the Bible. Why?
00:47:55.77\00:47:57.11
Because it is
basically a distillation,
00:47:57.14\00:47:59.07
a summary of the entire Bible.
00:47:59.11\00:48:01.14
It's all there.
00:48:01.18\00:48:02.51
And when you go to the
Book of Revelation, you're like,
00:48:02.54\00:48:03.88
"Yes, that's in
the Old Testament.
00:48:03.91\00:48:05.25
That's in the New
Testament, that's in that story,
00:48:05.28\00:48:06.75
that's in this story."
00:48:06.78\00:48:08.12
All of it is
uncovered in the symbolism
00:48:08.15\00:48:11.29
of the Book of Revelation.
00:48:11.32\00:48:12.65
You discover all
these portions and stories
00:48:12.69\00:48:15.22
of the Bible in
the Book of Revelation.
00:48:15.26\00:48:17.63
And so in Revelation Chapter 4,
00:48:17.66\00:48:18.99
you have this powerful picture
of God's throne in heaven.
00:48:19.03\00:48:23.26
In verse 8, it talks
about "The four beasts,
00:48:23.30\00:48:25.27
each of them
having six wings about him
00:48:25.30\00:48:26.84
and were full of eyes within:
00:48:26.87\00:48:28.20
and they rest not day and
night, saying, Holy, holy,
00:48:28.24\00:48:31.14
holy, Lord God
Almighty, which was,
00:48:31.17\00:48:33.94
and is, and is to come."
00:48:33.98\00:48:35.74
I wish we had time
to talk about that.
00:48:35.78\00:48:37.11
But basically, that's a
foundation for historicism,
00:48:37.15\00:48:40.32
understanding that God
that was with His people,
00:48:40.35\00:48:42.82
is with His people, and
will always be with His people.
00:48:42.85\00:48:45.42
That's what the Book of
Revelation is all about.
00:48:45.45\00:48:47.06
It's a picture of God's present
00:48:47.09\00:48:48.79
with His presence
with His people throughout
00:48:48.82\00:48:50.96
all ages to the very end.
00:48:50.99\00:48:53.16
"And when those
beasts," verse 9, "give glory
00:48:53.19\00:48:54.93
and honor and thanks to
Him that sits on the throne,
00:48:54.96\00:48:57.53
who lives forever and ever.
00:48:57.57\00:48:58.90
The four and twenty elders fall
00:48:58.93\00:49:00.27
down before him
that sat on the throne,
00:49:00.30\00:49:01.64
and worship him that
lives forever and ever,
00:49:01.67\00:49:03.00
and they cast their
crowns before the throne,
00:49:03.04\00:49:04.37
and they say, Thou art worthy,
00:49:04.41\00:49:05.74
O Lord, to receive
glory and honor and power:
00:49:05.77\00:49:08.31
for thou hast
created all things,
00:49:08.34\00:49:09.98
and for thy pleasure
they are and were created."
00:49:10.01\00:49:13.05
This is what it
looks like in heaven.
00:49:13.08\00:49:15.32
It looks like praise
and thanksgiving in heaven.
00:49:15.35\00:49:17.89
And this is where we're going.
This is where we're destined.
00:49:17.92\00:49:20.09
This is where
God wants us to be.
00:49:20.12\00:49:22.12
And He doesn't want us to
be there at some future time.
00:49:22.16\00:49:25.19
He wants us to be
there now, right now.
00:49:25.23\00:49:28.43
That's why we've read all these
stories in the Old Testament
00:49:28.46\00:49:31.13
and the New
Testament about God's people
00:49:31.17\00:49:32.70
who went through
trials and difficulties,
00:49:32.73\00:49:34.24
and death
decrees, and imprisonments,
00:49:34.27\00:49:35.60
and beatings, and yet
kept their focus on praising
00:49:35.64\00:49:38.94
and thanking God.
00:49:38.97\00:49:40.31
That's what
thanksgiving is all about.
00:49:40.34\00:49:42.11
It's a time for us
to give thanks to God,
00:49:42.14\00:49:44.41
not just for what He has
done, not just what He is doing,
00:49:44.45\00:49:46.95
but for what He will do.
00:49:46.98\00:49:48.62
The Book of Revelation
tells us what's coming.
00:49:48.65\00:49:50.69
But that's not to be our focus.
00:49:50.72\00:49:52.35
Not that at least the doom
and gloom of what's coming,
00:49:52.39\00:49:54.62
but the praise and
glory of what's coming.
00:49:54.66\00:49:57.29
We need to keep
our focus on the good
00:49:57.33\00:49:59.33
that God has in store for us.
00:49:59.36\00:50:00.70
And that's what
Revelation, it reminds us to do.
00:50:00.73\00:50:02.63
In fact, move over here
to Revelation Chapter 5,
00:50:02.66\00:50:05.60
just a few verses.
00:50:05.63\00:50:07.14
Revelation Chapter 5, and
let's read Revelation 5:9-14.
00:50:07.17\00:50:11.81
Here it says, "And they sung it,
00:50:11.84\00:50:13.51
as it were a new song,
saying, Thou are worthy to take
00:50:13.54\00:50:17.65
the book to open the seals,
therefore, for thou was to,
00:50:17.68\00:50:21.32
was slain and has redeemed
us to God by Thy blood out
00:50:21.35\00:50:24.35
of every kindred, and
tongue, and people, and nation,
00:50:24.39\00:50:26.65
and has made us unto
our God kings and priests:
00:50:26.69\00:50:29.12
and we shall reign on the earth.
00:50:29.16\00:50:30.63
And behold, I heard the
voice of many angels round about
00:50:30.66\00:50:33.29
the throne, and of the
beast and of the elders:
00:50:33.33\00:50:35.26
and number of them
was ten thousand times
00:50:35.30\00:50:37.13
ten thousands and
thousands of thousands.
00:50:37.17\00:50:40.00
And they were
saying with a loud voice,"
00:50:40.04\00:50:41.94
remember Paul,
"with a loud voice.
00:50:41.97\00:50:44.87
Worthy is the Lamb that
was slain to receive power,
00:50:44.91\00:50:47.64
and riches, and wisdom,
00:50:47.68\00:50:49.11
and strength, and honor,
and glory, and blessing."
00:50:49.14\00:50:51.05
They're thanking God,
they're praising God."
00:50:51.08\00:50:53.62
And every creature
which was in heaven,
00:50:53.65\00:50:55.52
and on the earth,
and under the earth,
00:50:55.55\00:50:57.59
and such as are in the
sea, and all that are in them,
00:50:57.62\00:50:59.99
I heard saying,
Blessing, and honor, and glory,
00:51:00.02\00:51:02.19
and power, be unto him
that sits upon the throne,
00:51:02.22\00:51:04.79
and unto the Lamb
forever and ever."
00:51:04.83\00:51:07.56
This is the
picture of our future
00:51:07.60\00:51:10.63
and we might as
well make it our present.
00:51:10.67\00:51:12.30
You know, I used to
read the Book of Revelation,
00:51:12.33\00:51:14.14
I used to get so upset with all
of these praise interruptions,
00:51:14.17\00:51:17.94
all of these
thanksgiving interruptions,
00:51:17.97\00:51:19.97
you know, because I
was really into prophecy.
00:51:20.01\00:51:21.58
I mean, I wanted to
know what the symbols were.
00:51:21.61\00:51:22.94
I want to know what was coming.
00:51:22.98\00:51:24.31
I want to know
what the history was.
00:51:24.35\00:51:25.68
I want to know
all of the events.
00:51:25.71\00:51:27.08
I wanted to know the details.
00:51:27.12\00:51:28.52
I didn't want to be
stuck in this praise chorus.
00:51:28.55\00:51:30.72
You know, this is just kind
00:51:30.75\00:51:32.09
of what are we
doing in this thing.
00:51:32.12\00:51:33.46
We're just kind
of, it seems like
00:51:33.49\00:51:34.82
we're wasting our time here.
00:51:34.86\00:51:36.19
And then I realized,
00:51:36.22\00:51:37.56
this is why the book is written.
00:51:37.59\00:51:38.93
The book is written to
show us that in the midst of all
00:51:38.96\00:51:42.13
of our troubles, in the
midst of all of our trials,
00:51:42.16\00:51:43.87
in the midst of all
things that are coming,
00:51:43.90\00:51:45.23
all things that are
past, God is giving us praise
00:51:45.27\00:51:48.37
and thanksgiving as a way out.
00:51:48.40\00:51:50.27
He's giving us
praise and thanksgiving
00:51:50.31\00:51:51.81
as the power that
causes us to be able to move
00:51:51.84\00:51:54.54
beyond these things.
00:51:54.58\00:51:55.91
And that's why He
puts them in so often,
00:51:55.94\00:51:57.28
you know, I used to think,
00:51:57.31\00:51:58.65
well, we
already did this, right?
00:51:58.68\00:52:00.02
We did this
once in Revelation 4,
00:52:00.05\00:52:01.38
we did it again in Revelation 5.
00:52:01.42\00:52:02.75
Will we're going to do
it again in Revelation 7.
00:52:02.78\00:52:04.12
Yeah, Revelation
Chapter 7. Check this out.
00:52:04.15\00:52:06.35
Revelation Chapter 7
00:52:06.39\00:52:08.12
is where we pick it
up again in verse 9.
00:52:08.16\00:52:10.63
God here is
showing John a picture,
00:52:10.66\00:52:14.00
showing us a picture
00:52:14.03\00:52:15.36
of who's going to
be saved in heaven.
00:52:15.40\00:52:16.73
And sometimes
when I do evangelism,
00:52:16.77\00:52:18.10
I tell people, you
know, tomorrow night,
00:52:18.13\00:52:19.47
we're going to study about
00:52:19.50\00:52:20.84
how many people are
going to be saved in heaven.
00:52:20.87\00:52:22.20
Don't miss it.
00:52:22.24\00:52:23.57
We'll come here tomorrow
night, we're going to...
00:52:23.61\00:52:24.94
God actually tells us
00:52:24.97\00:52:26.31
how many people
are going to be there.
00:52:26.34\00:52:27.68
He gives us a number.
00:52:27.71\00:52:29.04
In Revelation Chapter 7,
He gives us a number, right?
00:52:29.08\00:52:30.65
I am like really?
00:52:30.68\00:52:32.01
We know how many people.
00:52:32.05\00:52:33.38
I said, "Yeah, He
gives us an exact number."
00:52:33.42\00:52:34.75
So they come the next night.
00:52:34.78\00:52:36.69
We open up to Revelation 7:9,
00:52:36.72\00:52:39.15
where it says, Revelation 7:9,
00:52:39.19\00:52:42.26
"And after this I beheld,
and lo, a great multitude,
00:52:42.29\00:52:44.76
which no man
could number of every...
00:52:44.79\00:52:48.23
And, lo, a great multitude,
which no man could number,
00:52:48.26\00:52:49.73
of all nations, and
kindreds, and people,
00:52:49.76\00:52:51.63
and tongues,
stood before the throne,
00:52:51.67\00:52:53.60
and before the Lamb,
clothed with white robes,
00:52:53.64\00:52:55.54
and palms in their hands.
00:52:55.57\00:52:56.91
And they cried
with a loud voice."
00:52:56.94\00:52:58.27
There it is, again,
just the same thing.
00:52:58.31\00:52:59.64
Paul did the same thing
that everlasting gospel does,
00:52:59.67\00:53:02.21
a loud voice saying,
"Salvation to our God,
00:53:02.24\00:53:05.85
who sits upon the
throne and unto the Lamb."
00:53:05.88\00:53:08.45
Salvation to our God.
00:53:08.48\00:53:09.95
How many people are there?
00:53:09.98\00:53:11.49
So many people,
you can't count them.
00:53:11.52\00:53:13.46
So many people,
you can't number them.
00:53:13.49\00:53:14.89
So why are we trying to number?
00:53:14.92\00:53:16.26
Why we trying to tell
people there's not enough
00:53:16.29\00:53:17.63
room for this one or that one?
00:53:17.66\00:53:18.99
There's plenty of
room in heaven for everyone
00:53:19.03\00:53:20.80
who wants to be there.
00:53:20.83\00:53:22.16
And God isn't talking about
a specific race or culture,
00:53:22.20\00:53:24.47
every nation,
kindred, tongue and people.
00:53:24.50\00:53:26.53
So God is not racist.
God is not prejudiced.
00:53:26.57\00:53:28.87
And God wants everyone to
be there who wants to be there.
00:53:28.90\00:53:31.47
There's room enough
in heaven for everyone.
00:53:31.51\00:53:34.01
There's going to be so many
00:53:34.04\00:53:35.38
people there that we
won't be able to count them all.
00:53:35.41\00:53:37.05
That's what God is telling us.
00:53:37.08\00:53:38.41
Now what are they doing?
00:53:38.45\00:53:39.78
We see this picture and
it continues on in verse 11.
00:53:39.81\00:53:42.78
It says, "That
all the angels stood
00:53:42.82\00:53:45.45
about the throne and the elders
00:53:45.49\00:53:46.92
and the four
beasts that fell before
00:53:46.96\00:53:48.36
the throne on their
faces, and they worshiped God,
00:53:48.39\00:53:50.49
saying, Amen:
00:53:50.53\00:53:51.86
Blessing, and
glory, and wisdom,"
00:53:51.89\00:53:53.56
and here it is, "thanksgiving."
00:53:53.60\00:53:55.80
Yeah, we're going to be
keeping thanksgiving in heaven,
00:53:55.83\00:53:57.70
not just on this
earth but in heaven
00:53:57.73\00:53:59.17
we're going to be
keeping thanksgiving.
00:53:59.20\00:54:01.50
"Thanksgiving,
and honor, and power,
00:54:01.54\00:54:03.47
and might be unto
our God forever and ever.
00:54:03.51\00:54:07.54
Amen." All right.
00:54:07.58\00:54:09.14
We're going to move on
here because we just got
00:54:09.18\00:54:10.51
a couple minutes left.
00:54:10.55\00:54:11.88
Revelation 11:15-17.
00:54:11.91\00:54:15.32
Revelation 11:15-17.
00:54:15.35\00:54:17.89
Notice what it says here.
00:54:17.92\00:54:19.25
"Jesus Christ comes, He
reigns and seventh angel sounds,
00:54:19.29\00:54:22.16
great voices in
heaven, saying, the kingdoms
00:54:22.19\00:54:23.73
of this world have
become the kingdoms of our Lord
00:54:23.76\00:54:25.29
and of his Christ, and He
shall reign forever and ever."
00:54:25.33\00:54:27.40
And the four and twenty elders
00:54:27.43\00:54:28.76
who sat before God
on their seats fell
00:54:28.80\00:54:30.53
before their
faces and worshiped God,
00:54:30.57\00:54:32.23
saying, We give thee thanks."
00:54:32.27\00:54:33.90
We do what? We
give the thanks, right?
00:54:33.94\00:54:36.44
"We give thee
thanks, O God Almighty,
00:54:36.47\00:54:39.74
which art and wast and
art to come because thou
00:54:39.77\00:54:41.74
hast taken to thee thy
great power and has reigned."
00:54:41.78\00:54:44.11
Let's move on now to
Revelation Chapter 14.
00:54:44.15\00:54:47.22
Revelation 14:2-3
00:54:47.25\00:54:49.45
talks about the great multitude,
00:54:49.48\00:54:50.82
not the great multitude.
00:54:50.85\00:54:52.19
The 144,000
standing on the mount Sion
00:54:52.22\00:54:55.02
with the lamb and it
says, they're singing the song,
00:54:55.06\00:54:58.19
the song that is new to them."
00:54:58.23\00:55:00.63
Verse 3, "They sang as
it were a new song before
00:55:00.66\00:55:02.93
the throne and before the
beast that no man could know,
00:55:02.96\00:55:04.87
but the 144,000 that
were redeemed from the earth."
00:55:04.90\00:55:08.00
And then we go to
Revelation Chapter 15:2-3,
00:55:08.04\00:55:10.07
and we learn
more about the song.
00:55:10.11\00:55:11.57
It's a song of
Moses and the Lamb.
00:55:11.61\00:55:14.41
Moses, the servant
of God and the lamb,
00:55:14.44\00:55:16.34
verse 3 says, and
it's a song it says,
00:55:16.38\00:55:18.71
great and
marvelous are thy works,
00:55:18.75\00:55:20.12
Lord God Almighty,
just and true are thy ways,
00:55:20.15\00:55:22.35
O King of saints.
00:55:22.38\00:55:23.72
Who shall not fear thee, O
Lord, and glorify thy name?
00:55:23.75\00:55:26.89
For thou only art holy:
00:55:26.92\00:55:28.89
for all nations shall
come and worship before thee,
00:55:28.92\00:55:31.83
for thy judgments
are made manifest."
00:55:31.86\00:55:35.23
And then we go to Psalm,
excuse me to Revelation 18:20,
00:55:35.26\00:55:38.17
where they're rejoicing
because of the fall of Babylon.
00:55:38.20\00:55:40.70
Revelation 18:20,
00:55:40.74\00:55:42.74
a loud cry has wrung out
throughout all the earth,
00:55:42.77\00:55:45.21
lightening the earth
with the glory of God,
00:55:45.24\00:55:47.38
and Babylon has fallen.
00:55:47.41\00:55:49.44
And all of the
merchants and all of the men
00:55:49.48\00:55:51.81
of this world are mourning
and weeping over this fall
00:55:51.85\00:55:54.75
of Babylon, this
fall of agnostic system,
00:55:54.78\00:55:56.95
but God's people
are called to rejoice.
00:55:56.99\00:55:59.02
Verse 20, says,
"Rejoice over her thou heavens,
00:55:59.05\00:56:01.79
and you holy prophets
00:56:01.82\00:56:03.22
and for God has
avenged you on her."
00:56:03.26\00:56:05.79
We ought to rejoice,
we're to give thanksgiving,
00:56:05.83\00:56:07.66
Revelation 19:1-7.
00:56:07.70\00:56:09.33
Thanks, thanking God
for His righteous judgments,
00:56:09.36\00:56:12.47
for His rulership, for
the marriage of the Lamb.
00:56:12.50\00:56:15.17
The Book of Revelation
00:56:15.20\00:56:16.54
is not the
scariest book in the Bible.
00:56:16.57\00:56:18.21
The Book of Revelation
00:56:18.24\00:56:19.57
is the
revelation of Jesus Christ
00:56:19.61\00:56:21.31
and for this book,
for the Book of Revelation
00:56:21.34\00:56:24.15
and for the Bible itself.
00:56:24.18\00:56:26.35
We ought to give thanks
to God because He has done
00:56:26.38\00:56:29.72
something for
us through His Son,
00:56:29.75\00:56:31.19
Jesus Christ that we
could not do for ourselves.
00:56:31.22\00:56:34.09
He has redeemed us.
00:56:34.12\00:56:35.76
He's lived a perfect life
00:56:35.79\00:56:37.89
that stands in our
place in the judgment
00:56:37.93\00:56:40.30
and He's died our death
00:56:40.33\00:56:42.16
as our substitute
to atone for our sins,
00:56:42.20\00:56:45.43
taking our penalty upon Himself
00:56:45.47\00:56:47.70
and He has been
resurrected from the grave.
00:56:47.74\00:56:49.97
The life, the death
and the resurrection
00:56:50.01\00:56:52.51
of Jesus is gifted to us.
00:56:52.54\00:56:54.58
It's called the
plan of salvation,
00:56:54.61\00:56:56.58
that is the everlasting gospel
00:56:56.61\00:56:59.08
and it calls from
us and appreciation,
00:56:59.11\00:57:01.52
a thanksgiving to God,
00:57:01.55\00:57:03.02
not just on Thursday
or the fourth Thursday
00:57:03.05\00:57:06.35
of the month of November,
00:57:06.39\00:57:07.86
but every single
day of our lives,
00:57:07.89\00:57:11.13
a cry of thanksgiving
00:57:11.16\00:57:12.96
and praise to God who's
redeemed us by the blood
00:57:12.99\00:57:15.70
of Jesus Christ.
00:57:15.73\00:57:17.07
That's what the
Bible is all about.
00:57:17.10\00:57:18.43
That's what the Book of
Revelation is all about.
00:57:18.47\00:57:19.93
And that's what your
life can be all about.
00:57:19.97\00:57:21.97
As you surrender
it to Jesus Christ
00:57:22.00\00:57:23.87
and I pray that
that will be your prayer.
00:57:23.91\00:57:27.31
In Jesus' name, amen.
00:57:27.34\00:57:29.04