3ABN Worship Hour

Three Angels Broadcasting Network

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Series Code: WHO

Program Code: WHO250021S


00:29 Greetings to each of you who are watching the Worship Hour
00:34 here at 3ABN.
00:36 What a joy it is to be able to focus upon God's Word, to
00:40 understand what He has in store for us for the future.
00:45 I have to tell you in my heart, I hope in yours as well, I
00:50 believe Jesus is coming soon.
00:54 Imminently, it is right at the door.
00:58 We are just about at the point where the close of time will be
01:04 upon us.
01:05 Everything around us gives us an understanding that we are
01:10 just before Christ's return.
01:12 That's why it is so important to stay connected with God.
01:18 Don't allow anything to distract you from this amazing
01:23 opportunity of being a mouthpiece for Jesus at the end
01:28 of time.
01:29 God wants to use each one of you.
01:31 And what a privilege it is to have 3ABN in its tremendous
01:38 evangelistic outreach to be able to touch the lives of
01:42 people everywhere, literally around the world.
01:45 We're grateful for 3ABN as a supporting ministry of the
01:51 Seventh -day Adventist Church.
01:53 The Seventh-day Adventist Church is God's remnant church,
01:57 a precious last-day people who are here to proclaim the
02:03 righteousness of Christ, to proclaim His soon coming, to
02:06 proclaim His Three Angels messages of Revelation 14 and
02:12 the Fourth Angel of Revelation 18, calling people out of
02:17 confusion, out of Babylon, and into the true worship of God.
02:23 3ABN is helping in a dynamic way to do just that.
02:29 What a privilege it is to be able to truly understand how
02:34 God wishes for you to be part of this amazing outreach to the
02:41 world.
02:47 God.
02:48 Don't allow distractions and things around you to, in some
02:52 way, draw your attention away from the things that you are
02:56 supposed to be doing for Him.
02:59 The devil knows us better than we know ourselves.
03:04 He knows where he can introduce something that will cloud your
03:09 mind, will bring discouragement and an unhealthy approach to
03:16 what God wants you to do.
03:19 So God is calling on you right now to be part of this last-day
03:26 movement, this last proclamation to the entire
03:29 world.
03:35 against these distractions.
03:39 In the Book of Romans and in verse 2, we read an amazing
03:48 admonition by the apostle Paul.
03:53 Paul is helping us to understand what is really the
03:58 important part of living the Christian life.
04:03 And God inspired Paul to write these words to remind us to
04:09 stay connected with God and don't allow anything to
04:13 distract your attention.
04:17 In the second verse of chapter 12 in Romans, it says, And do
04:23 not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the
04:31 renewing of your mind that you may prove what is that good and
04:37 acceptable and perfect will of God.
04:41 Don't in any way be conformed to the world.
04:45 Don't let the world pressure you into its own understanding.
04:50 There is another version of the Bible, a Phillips translation,
04:55 which says in essence, Don't allow the world to squeeze you
05:01 into its own mold.
05:04 Don't be distracted.
05:06 Don't allow the devil to in some way disconnect you from
05:12 God.
05:13 Stay connected with God.
05:16 You see, as we come to the very end of time, and I believe we
05:20 are living in those very end times, but we're going to need
05:25 every connection to the Word of God and to God himself in order
05:31 for us to get through the challenges that are just ahead.
05:36 In the book of Matthew and chapter 24, we read some of the
05:42 most amazing prophecies that Jesus himself shared about the
05:48 very end of time and how things will be so much in disarray
05:55 that people will betray one another.
05:57 There will be false prophets.
05:59 Lawlessness will abound.
06:01 But the Lord says in verse 13 of Matthew 24, But he who
06:06 endures to the end shall be saved.
06:10 So the Lord wants us not to be conformed to this world, but to
06:14 maintain our connection to him at all times.
06:19 Staying connected with God.
06:22 The only way to do that really is on a daily basis to study
06:27 God's Word, to study the spirit of prophecy, and to pray
06:33 earnestly to the Lord.
06:36 One of the most important ways that you can connect with God
06:42 is to spend time in his Word, allowing him to speak to you in
06:47 a very particular way.
06:50 You see the Word of God when you open it, when you read it,
06:53 when you listen to it.
06:55 In fact, some of you may be so busy you might say, Oh, but,
06:58 Pastor, I just don't have time to spend listening or reading
07:03 the Word of God.
07:04 Well, if you're involved in some business activity and
07:08 you're driving to an appointment, if you are going
07:12 to the store in a car, or if you're just walking, you can
07:18 listen to the Word of God.
07:20 You can listen to the spirit of prophecy.
07:22 You can allow the Holy Spirit to speak to you, even with some
07:27 of our modern conveniences like iPhones and that kind of thing,
07:31 so that you too can hear the Word of God.
07:36 So don't ever say you're too busy to stay connected with
07:42 God.
07:43 God wants to speak to you in a precious and personal way.
07:49 He wants to be able to help you to know what he wants you to
07:53 accomplish.
07:54 Now, in the Seventh-day Adventist Church, we have a
07:56 very important motto or slogan.
08:01 And it's called total member involvement.
08:05 And now, in fact, we have now expanded it.
08:07 So we were saying global total member involvement.
08:11 Everybody doing something for Jesus.
08:14 No one is to be left out.
08:16 Everyone is to be allowing the Holy Spirit to use them to
08:22 proclaim this last-day message.
08:25 But you must stay connected to God.
08:30 God is going to use you in a powerful way as you look at his
08:35 word, as you understand in the last part of that chapter of
08:39 Matthew 24, where it says, Watch therefore, for you do not
08:44 know what hour your Lord is coming.
08:46 Verse 42 and then verse 44.
08:50 Therefore, you also be ready for the Son of Man is coming at
08:54 an hour you do not expect.
08:57 You see, God is coming so very soon.
09:01 He's wanting to use you to proclaim that message.
09:06 Don't get distracted.
09:07 Don't let the world around you pressure you and conform you
09:13 into its mold.
09:15 Rather, stay connected with God.
09:20 You see, God is asking us not to be distracted, not to be in
09:27 any way moved by things that are taking us away from the
09:33 word of God and from the mission that he has entrusted
09:36 to us.
09:38 In the spirit of prophecy, and I have to tell you, I am a
09:42 great believer in the writings that God has provided through
09:48 the pen of Ellen G.
09:50 White.
09:56 instruction at the end of time, a fulfillment of Revelation 12,
10:03 17.
10:05 And let me read that verse to you so that you will understand
10:10 it even more clearly.
10:12 It says in verse 17 of Revelation 12, And the dragon
10:16 was enraged with a woman.
10:19 So the devil, the dragon, was angry with the woman or the
10:24 church.
10:25 And he went to make war with the rest or the remnant of her
10:30 offspring.
10:31 And these are the characteristics.
10:34 Those who, number one, keep the commandments of God, and
10:39 secondly, those who have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
10:43 So here we have the marks, the distinguishing characteristics
10:47 of the last day church.
10:51 Those who keep the commandments of God, all the commandments,
10:55 including the fourth commandment, the seventh day
10:58 Sabbath, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
11:03 Now, two chapters later in Revelation 14 and verse 12,
11:09 those words are repeated in almost the same way.
11:13 It says, here is the patience of the saints.
11:17 Here are those who keep the commandments of God and the
11:21 faith of Jesus.
11:23 When we go to Revelation chapter 19 and verse 10, we see
11:30 there that the, and this is quoting directly from the
11:36 Bible, it says there, I am your fellow servant and of your
11:43 brethren, who have the testimony of Jesus, worship
11:47 God, for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.
11:53 So God's last day people are going to have two very marked
11:59 characteristics.
12:02 Those who keep the commandments of God, and those who have the
12:07 testimony or the faith of Jesus, and the testimony is the
12:12 spirit of prophecy.
12:14 And as Seventh-day Adventists, we believe firmly that this was
12:19 manifested in the work and the writings of Ellen G.
12:23 White, a simple, humble young lady who was given instruction
12:29 from God, and God's church has been blessed enormously because
12:36 of it.
12:37 And in this beautiful understanding of the spirit of
12:41 prophecy, the Lord is telling us to work together, to come
12:47 together, not be distracted, not to be in some way drawn
12:53 away in a detour from what God has intended for us to
12:58 accomplish.
13:08 it says here, My brethren, allow nothing to come in that
13:13 will separate you from one another or from God.
13:18 Talk not of differences of opinion, but unite in the love
13:23 of the truth as it is in Jesus.
13:28 God wants us to press together.
13:32 He says, she says earlier there, the members of the
13:36 church need now to confess their backsliding and press
13:42 together.
13:44 My dear friends, I don't know what your situation is, I don't
13:48 know where you are in your walk with the Lord, but I ask you to
13:54 come to the foot of the cross to press together with the
13:58 people of God who are anxious to share the word of God with
14:04 others and to realize that the devil wants to come in and
14:08 divide us, but we must stay connected to God through Bible
14:14 study, through prayer, through an understanding of the Holy
14:18 Spirit's role in our lives to present this word to others.
14:23 Stay connected with God.
14:27 God is asking each of us to be part of this last day
14:32 proclamation.
14:34 In fact, everyone is to be involved.
14:36 This total member involvement aspect.
14:39 God wants you to play a major role in helping people prepare
14:45 for Jesus' soon coming.
14:47 I read from Testimonies for the Church, volume 9, page 117.
14:54 Again, written by Ellen White.
14:58 The work of God in this earth can never be finished until the
15:03 men and women comprising our church membership rally to the
15:07 work and unite their efforts with those of ministers and
15:13 church officers.
15:15 Everybody doing something for the Lord, everyone uniting,
15:19 everyone pressing together in one beautiful mission to reach
15:25 the world.
15:28 God has called you to be part of this mission.
15:33 God is asking you to not be in any way distracted, in any way
15:39 going on a detour.
15:43 Listen to individuals who are saying, come out of the Seventh
15:49 -day Adventist Church.
15:50 Be a part of a separate group.
15:53 This was never God's intention.
15:55 God wants all of us to be part of His precious last day
16:01 message.
16:03 What a privilege for us as God's people to be chosen by
16:10 Him.
16:13 To be allowed to be a wonderful voice for God in these last
16:21 days.
16:23 The Lord is asking for us to work with Him in a powerful way
16:27 to bring these truths to people all over the world.
16:33 It says in Testimonies, volume 7, page 138.
16:39 Seventh-day Adventists have been chosen by God as a
16:42 peculiar people, separate from the world, by the great cleaver
16:46 of truth.
16:51 them into connection with Himself.
16:53 He has made them His representatives.
16:55 He has called them to be ambassadors for Him in the last
17:00 work of salvation.
17:01 The greatest wealth of truth ever entrusted to mortals, the
17:05 most solemn and fearful warnings ever sent by God to
17:09 man have been committed to them to be given to the world.
17:15 Don't be distracted.
17:18 Stay connected with God.
17:21 Allow Him to work through you in a most marvelous and
17:26 powerful manner.
17:29 Stay connected with Him.
17:33 In the book of Matthew, we come to an extraordinary experience
17:40 and you have undoubtedly read this before.
17:44 Matthew chapter 14, an amazing opportunity that God allowed
17:50 people to use in order to truly understand what it is that God
17:57 wants us to do in staying connected with Him.
18:01 In the 14th chapter of Matthew, the situation had developed
18:07 where John the Baptist, the cousin of Jesus, had been
18:13 killed by Herod.
18:17 Herod had very inadvisably listened to horrible advice
18:24 that said that this lady wanted to see John the Baptist's head
18:32 brought in on a platter.
18:35 And so here it was that finally the head of John the Baptist
18:43 was brought in and John the Baptist was killed.
18:48 Jesus was distraught about this, of course, and recognized
18:54 that John was the precursor, the forerunner of the wonderful
18:59 Lamb of God, Jesus Christ.
19:03 And Jesus went into a quiet place in order to grieve and to
19:12 think about what was happening.
19:14 Verse 13 indicates when Jesus heard it, this death of His
19:21 cousin.
19:29 But when the multitudes heard it, they followed Him on foot
19:33 from the cities.
19:36 You see, Jesus was 100% divine, 100% human.
19:44 I can't explain how that is.
19:46 It's not 200%, it's 100% divine, 100% human.
19:53 And so he had feelings and remorse and grief regarding
19:59 John's death.
20:02 He went to a deserted place, but people heard about it.
20:08 You see, people follow Jesus.
20:11 Even today, people will go anywhere to follow Jesus.
20:17 And it says here, they followed Him on foot from the cities.
20:23 You see, Jesus draws people wherever He is.
20:27 Jesus says, if I will be lifted up, I will draw all people to
20:32 me.
20:33 He was signifying this, of course, in the way that He died
20:37 on the cross, but also that when we lift up Jesus and His
20:41 righteousness, people will be drawn to Him.
20:45 And God is asking you to be part of this.
20:48 And the only way to do that is to stay connected with God.
20:54 Well, it says in verse 14, and when Jesus went out, He saw a
20:59 great multitude.
21:02 And He was moved with compassion for them and healed
21:06 their sick.
21:07 Jesus knew what they needed.
21:10 They needed healing physically.
21:12 They needed healing mentally.
21:14 They needed healing socially.
21:18 And most of all, they needed healing spiritually.
21:22 So God was reaching out to them.
21:27 Jesus is God.
21:29 In fact, let me say, God is God the Father, God the Son, and
21:34 God the Holy Spirit.
21:36 The Seventh-day Adventist Church believes completely and
21:40 wholeheartedly in three persons in one, the Father, the Son,
21:47 and the Holy Spirit, who have existed from eternity and into
21:52 eternity.
21:54 What a privilege to have this beautiful understanding of God
21:59 Himself.
22:05 with compassion for them.
22:08 He healed their sick.
22:10 And when it was evening, verse 15, His disciples came to Him
22:13 saying, This is a deserted place, and the hour is already
22:19 late.
22:20 Send the multitudes away that they may go into the villages
22:23 and buy themselves food.
22:25 So the disciples were worried.
22:28 They were concerned.
22:30 They didn't want to have to take care of this whole
22:32 multitude and all these groups of people.
22:34 They said, Send these people away.
22:37 Let them go ahead and buy some food.
22:39 Well, Jesus kind of pushed the disciples a bit.
22:43 He kind of gave them a challenge.
22:45 And He said, They do not need to go away.
22:49 Verse 16, You give them something to eat.
22:54 Well, the Lord is saying the same thing to each of us.
22:58 Give what God has to others, and you provide that precious
23:06 spiritual food.
23:07 Are you willing to follow through with those
23:10 instructions?
23:11 Well, the disciples were kind of confused.
23:13 They didn't understand what He was meaning.
23:16 And so then He said to them, and they said to Him, We have
23:22 here only five loaves and two fish.
23:25 Verse 17.
23:27 And He said, Bring them here to Me.
23:29 Let me tell you something.
23:32 Little in the hand of God is much.
23:36 God can use your talents.
23:37 He can use your abilities.
23:39 He can help you to be a powerful witness to Him.
23:42 But you must stay connected to Him.
23:47 If in any way you separate yourself from Him, you will not
23:53 succeed.
23:56 God is asking you right now.
23:59 Stay close to Me.
24:01 Allow the Holy Spirit to speak to you.
24:05 Through the Holy Word.
24:08 Use time spent in connection with God to reinforce your
24:14 ability to truly make a difference in the lives of
24:18 people.
24:20 Well, the disciples were still confused.
24:22 They didn't know what was going on.
24:24 Verse 19.
24:25 You know this story well.
24:27 Jesus commands the multitudes to sit on the grass.
24:30 And He took the five loaves and the two fish.
24:33 He looked up to heaven and He blessed and broke it.
24:37 And He gave the loaves to the disciples.
24:40 And the disciples gave to the multitudes.
24:43 Now, here is an amazing miracle that took place because as
24:48 Jesus broke the fish, as He broke the bread, it continued
24:55 to multiply and multiply so that at the end, the Bible
25:02 tells us, everyone ate and they were filled and they took up 12
25:09 baskets full of the fragments that remained.
25:12 Verse 20.
25:15 Now, when you have had a good meal, when you feel relaxed,
25:20 when you really have enjoyed some special time at a meal,
25:30 you feel good.
25:31 You feel happy.
25:32 You feel relaxed.
25:33 You feel satisfied.
25:36 How many people had been satisfied with just these
25:41 little tiny loaves of bread and two fish, five loaves of bread
25:46 and two fish?
25:47 Well, it tells us there in verse 21.
25:50 About 5,000 men besides women and children.
25:55 So probably if we count that every man had a wife there and
26:02 maybe they even had two children that attended, there
26:05 could have been as many as 20 ,000 people there who were all
26:09 fed from this little lunch of five loaves and two fish.
26:17 Well, as I was saying, how do you feel after you have
26:21 finished a good meal?
26:22 You feel relaxed.
26:23 You feel happy.
26:24 You feel good.
26:27 Now, in the spirit of prophecy, we are told that the disciples
26:33 began to put all of this together.
26:36 They were thinking more about themselves than they were about
26:40 God's mission.
26:44 God is asking you.
26:45 Stay connected with him.
26:49 Get your mind off of your own worries, your own situation.
26:54 Take your minds off of yourselves.
26:57 Put them on God because when you are connected with him, you
27:01 will have his thoughts and his objectives.
27:06 But the disciples weren't doing that.
27:08 They were thinking about themselves.
27:11 They were wanting an earthly kingdom to be established.
27:14 They were wanting something of tangible evidence that would
27:18 make them great in the eyes of others.
27:22 They began to think.
27:24 Now is the time for Jesus to proclaim himself an earthly
27:29 king.
27:30 Now is the time for him to truly make of himself king of
27:38 the Jews and to rid the Israelites of the Jewish, of
27:46 the Roman influence and empire.
27:49 And so the disciples began to circulate amongst the people,
27:57 saying now is the time to proclaim Jesus king.
28:01 Because after all, if Jesus were to become the king, who
28:05 would become the generals and the great leaders around Jesus?
28:10 Of course, the disciples.
28:12 Their minds were being taken off of Jesus and being absorbed
28:17 by their own personal ambitions.
28:21 Stay connected with God, not your own personal ambitions.
28:30 Well, Jesus saw exactly what was happening.
28:36 We're told in the book Desire of Ages that as the people were
28:44 becoming so enthusiastic because of what the disciples
28:48 were saying, when we go against the Romans, people get hurt.
28:53 Jesus can heal them.
28:54 When they get discouraged, Jesus can encourage them.
28:57 When they get hungry, Jesus can feed them.
29:00 Let's make Jesus the king.
29:04 And people were literally moving towards Jesus to lift
29:10 him up as the king of the Jews when Jesus saw what was
29:15 happening.
29:17 Jesus knew that this would destroy his ultimate goal and
29:23 his role as the lamb of God who would be slain on the cross.
29:31 And so he ordered the people to go home.
29:37 Now, I don't know if you've been involved in some large
29:41 event, some huge situation where you have thousands of
29:45 people.
29:47 When people have something on their minds, they have a great
29:53 intention to accomplish that.
29:54 And nothing can change it, especially if they become
29:57 agitated and they become forceful.
30:02 But Jesus spoke with such heavenly authority.
30:07 They could do nothing, but stop, turn around, and go home.
30:15 You see, sometimes God frustrates and changes our
30:19 plans because he knows they will lead to that which is
30:24 absolutely detrimental to his Advent movement.
30:31 God wants you to stay connected with him so that your thoughts
30:34 and your actions will not be of your own, but they will be
30:39 motivated by the Holy Spirit.
30:42 So God, in a very special way, wants to speak to you, to help
30:47 you stay connected with him so that your thoughts and your
30:51 actions will be in alignment with the Holy Word and with the
30:57 direction that the Holy Spirit is giving.
31:00 It says in verse 22, immediately Jesus made his
31:09 disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side
31:14 while he sent the multitudes away.
31:18 So as he commanded these folks to return home, immediately
31:23 they stopped.
31:24 The voice of God had spoken.
31:27 They went home and the disciples' plans were
31:29 frustrated because the disciples were focused on
31:32 themselves.
31:33 They were not in connection with Jesus.
31:39 I can just imagine these disciples becoming so
31:42 frustrated.
31:44 They were wondering even in their own minds, is this really
31:47 the Son of God?
31:48 Is this really the Messiah?
31:51 Maybe he's just an imposter.
31:53 He's not somebody who really came to save.
31:57 He has not used good judgment.
32:00 We are the ones who know how best to accomplish God's tasks
32:06 because we want him to become the King.
32:11 But Jesus knew that that was not in the providential plans.
32:17 And so he tells the disciples, go down to the lake.
32:24 As I see them walking towards the Sea of Galilee, you can see
32:29 in your own mind's eye, these disciples are filled with
32:33 skepticism, cynicism, anger.
32:38 God has frustrated their plans.
32:40 And you can see them kicking the dirt and just shaking their
32:44 heads, wondering if this is even truly the Son of God.
32:51 You see, if you're not staying connected to God on a daily
32:56 basis, on a moment-by-moment basis, you too can fall into a
33:03 great trap of thinking your own thoughts and becoming
33:08 distracted from what God wants you to accomplish.
33:15 And so as these disciples descended down the hill to the
33:22 boats, their hearts were full of bitterness and anger.
33:29 I don't know about you today.
33:32 Is something deeply troubling you?
33:35 Is your heart not in tune with the Lord?
33:39 Are you feeling somehow disconnected from God?
33:45 The Lord is calling out to you today, asking during this
33:50 worship hour that you find a reconnection with him, a
33:57 humbling of your heart, allowing the Holy Spirit to
34:02 change you and mold you to bring you into conformity with
34:07 his will.
34:09 He wants you to stay connected with him.
34:15 Well, the disciples got into the boats and then it says they
34:23 got into the boat, they launched out into the sea.
34:27 And in verse 23, it tells us the secret of God's power, of
34:33 Jesus's power.
34:35 And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up on
34:39 the mountain by himself to pray.
34:42 He knew that the power and the energy and the ability to
34:49 accomplish things did not come from thousands of people
34:52 proclaiming him to be a great leader.
34:55 It came from his connection with his heavenly father in
35:00 prayer.
35:01 Stay connected with God.
35:06 I don't know.
35:07 Maybe you have neglected your prayer life.
35:12 Maybe it's been a while since you actually knelt down and
35:15 prayed to God.
35:17 God is asking you right now, take some time, pour out your
35:21 heart to me.
35:24 Allow me to bring encouragement to your heart so that you truly
35:30 can be part of this last day proclamation.
35:34 Proclaiming those three angels messages and the fourth angel,
35:37 bringing people back to the true worship of God, letting
35:42 people understand we are living in urgent times.
35:45 We are living in the end of time.
35:48 Stay connected with God.
35:52 Jesus did that himself.
35:54 That's why he went to the mountaintop to pray, to stay
35:57 connected with heavenly power.
36:02 It says in the last part of verse 23, now, when evening
36:06 came, he was alone there.
36:10 The disciples were out on the sea, in the boat.
36:14 Jesus was on the mountaintop, and he could look down and see
36:19 the disciples in their situation.
36:25 Well, verse 24 gives us the picture now as to what is going
36:30 to develop.
36:31 What happens with these disciples who were stormy in
36:36 their own hearts, and then the Lord really provided a storm
36:40 just for them?
36:42 It says here, the boat was now in the middle of the sea,
36:47 tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary.
36:52 You see, sometimes God will prepare a storm just for you in
36:57 order that you will turn back to him, in order that you will
37:04 reconnect with him.
37:08 This is exactly what happened to these disciples.
37:11 They were out on that sea, and they were experienced
37:14 fishermen, many of them.
37:15 They knew how to handle sails.
37:18 They knew how to handle a boat.
37:21 They were experienced people, but this storm was special.
37:28 Maybe the Lord has brought a storm into your life right now.
37:33 Maybe you're feeling very frustrated.
37:36 Maybe there's a situation that you cannot solve.
37:40 Maybe you are in some way feeling abandoned by God.
37:49 God never abandons any of us.
37:51 We're the ones who disconnect from him.
37:55 And God is calling you to reconnect with him, to truly
38:00 humble yourself and say, Lord, please clean my life up.
38:08 Fill me with joy from heaven.
38:10 Give me an understanding of my role in these last days of
38:13 Earth's history.
38:14 I want to do your will.
38:17 I want to understand your righteousness.
38:20 I want to understand the prophecies in the Word of God.
38:24 I want to truly be part of your last-day church.
38:32 Well, God had a plan for these disciples.
38:37 He wanted to bring them back from their stormy condition to
38:43 focus upon Jesus, the one who could give them truly complete
38:51 fulfillment and a purpose in their work.
38:57 It says in verse 25, Now in the fourth watch of the night,
39:03 Jesus went to them, walking on the sea.
39:08 So Jesus came down from the mountain.
39:10 He saw that his disciples were in real trouble.
39:13 The storm that they were in was one he prepared for them to get
39:17 them to return their thoughts onto spiritual eternal things
39:23 and not on themselves.
39:29 And then he knew it was time to go to them in your situation,
39:35 whatever you're facing.
39:38 Maybe you recognize now God is trying to draw you back to him
39:43 so that you can truly be connected through Bible study,
39:47 through prayer, through the power of the Holy Spirit,
39:50 touching your life in a very special way.
39:56 Jesus went out to them, walking on the sea.
40:00 Now, walking on the sea is not a normal activity.
40:05 In fact, no human being can do that.
40:09 Yes, you can ski on a wooden ski or fiberglass ski being
40:15 drawn behind a boat.
40:16 So in essence, you can be going over water.
40:19 But once that boat stops, you sink.
40:23 There's no such thing as a human being walking on water.
40:28 So when the disciples saw what was happening, they looked up
40:32 in verse 26, says the disciples saw him walking on the sea.
40:38 They were troubled saying, it is a ghost.
40:42 And they cried out for fear.
40:45 They said, this is an omen.
40:47 We are going to die.
40:48 This is a sign from God.
40:50 Now, I grew up in Cairo, Egypt as a young boy, and I love the
40:56 Middle East.
40:57 It's a wonderful people, wonderful area.
41:02 And people in that part of the world believe in omens.
41:07 They believe in signs that will then spell out something that's
41:12 going to happen.
41:16 looked and they saw this apparition walking on the
41:23 water.
41:24 And they said, this is it.
41:26 This is a sign.
41:27 We're going to die.
41:30 Well, Jesus recognized that they were very, very
41:35 frustrated.
41:39 And they needed encouragement.
41:42 They needed hope because they had been fighting all along in
41:47 this terrible storm, adjusting the sails just as much as they
41:52 could, throwing things out of the boat to make it lighter,
41:56 taking the oars and trying to keep the boat balanced.
42:02 Nothing was working.
42:05 Many of them experienced fishermen.
42:07 They had been through storms, but the storm was different.
42:11 And finally, they gave up on saving themselves.
42:17 You see, righteousness by your own works will get you nowhere.
42:23 It is only the righteousness of Jesus Christ and his merits and
42:28 his grace that gives us a ticket to heaven.
42:35 We need to lean completely upon him, completely on his
42:39 righteousness, not our own abilities.
42:44 God can use your abilities.
42:45 God can help you to maximize the talents that he's given to
42:50 you, but never think you can earn your way to heaven.
42:57 We are completely dependent on the righteousness of Jesus
43:01 Christ.
43:02 And so the disciples had given up.
43:05 We're going to die.
43:06 There's the sign.
43:08 Look at that.
43:09 It's a ghost.
43:13 Jesus spoke to them, just as he's speaking to you right now,
43:18 bringing you some words of encouragement, whatever it is
43:21 that you're facing.
43:23 Maybe it's a health problem.
43:24 Maybe it's a problem in your work.
43:26 Maybe it's a problem at home between family members.
43:31 Maybe you're depressed or discouraged because of some
43:34 situation.
43:36 God is speaking to you right now with these words that he
43:44 uttered to the disciples.
43:47 It says, but immediately Jesus spoke to them saying, and here
43:52 are the words for you right now, as well as those
43:55 disciples.
43:56 Be of good cheer.
44:00 It is I.
44:02 Do not be afraid.
44:06 You see, whatever you're facing, God will help to carry
44:10 you through.
44:12 God knows your needs.
44:15 He says, Here I am.
44:19 Look to me.
44:20 I will give you encouragement.
44:22 Be of good cheer.
44:25 Now, Peter, who was one of the impetuous ones, he spoke before
44:33 he thought.
44:35 He speaks out, and I suppose Peter, as well as the rest of
44:39 the disciples, felt, Well, we're in this terrible storm.
44:44 What do I have to lose?
44:45 I might as well just speak to this apparition out here.
44:51 Jesus apparently is out there, but we don't know who that is.
44:55 We're not sure what's going to happen to us.
44:58 I'm going to die anyway.
44:59 So, Peter says, Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you
45:08 on the water.
45:09 Now, can you imagine Peter's surprise when he hears the
45:14 voice coming back and Jesus says, Come.
45:21 What would you do?
45:25 I suppose, again, Peter thought, I'm going to die
45:28 anyway.
45:29 What's the point?
45:30 Let me just try it.
45:33 So, Peter, it says, when he had come down out of the boat, he
45:43 walked on the water to go to Jesus.
45:49 Now, I suppose that Peter looked out at this terrible
45:53 storm hanging on to the side of the boat, and he probably put
45:57 one foot out and tested the water, and sure enough, he
46:03 didn't sink.
46:04 Then he put the other foot out of the boat, and I'm standing
46:09 on the water.
46:11 He let go of the boat, and he began to walk towards Jesus.
46:19 You see, when you're connected to Jesus, when you're connected
46:24 to God, you are going to have a relationship that will surpass
46:30 anything, and you will have unusual abilities.
46:36 Now, I'm not saying that you can go out and walk on the
46:39 water, but I am telling you, when God says, when Jesus says,
46:44 Come, you obey, and he will provide a miracle.
46:50 Well, Peter, you know, is walking on the water, and I
46:53 suppose he thought, wow, this is really something.
46:59 This is an amazing thing.
47:02 Who walks on the water?
47:05 And he turned around just for a moment to make sure that John
47:14 and Andrew and all the rest of them were watching what he was
47:19 doing.
47:20 You see, when you disconnect your relationship with the
47:26 source of all power, you will do exactly what Peter did and
47:33 what the scripture say.
47:36 But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, verse 30, he
47:41 was afraid, and beginning to sink, he cried out saying,
47:47 Lord, save me.
47:51 When you disconnect yourself from God, you will sink.
47:59 Now, you know, Jesus could have said, you know, Peter, you just
48:02 never learn your lesson.
48:04 You're always thinking of yourself, a very self-focused
48:09 approach.
48:11 If you don't, if you take your eyes off of me, you're going to
48:14 sink.
48:15 So I'm going to let you learn a lesson.
48:17 You know, I'm going to let you go down the water once and
48:20 disappear twice.
48:22 And then maybe I will try and help you out and save you.
48:25 But that's not the way Jesus is.
48:29 What does that next verse say?
48:33 Verse 31.
48:35 And immediately, Jesus stretched out his hand and
48:40 caught him and said to him, Oh, you of little faith, why did
48:47 you doubt?
48:49 You see, Jesus recognizing Peter's cry, just as perhaps
48:54 you are crying out to God, Jesus immediately reaches down,
49:02 grabs Peter's hand and pulls him up out of the water.
49:09 Now, I suppose as Jesus and Peter progressed to the boat,
49:14 Peter wasn't just walking as if he was in command of
49:18 everything.
49:24 to be connected with God.
49:27 And as they got into the boat, a miracle took place.
49:34 It says when they got into the boat, the wind ceased because
49:38 the creator of this storm, Jesus himself, was now in the
49:46 boat.
49:48 And he commanded essentially that the storm cease.
49:54 When you are connected with Jesus, you may be going through
49:58 the worst storm, you may be going through whatever it is,
50:01 but when you are with Jesus, you are safe and you can be
50:06 calm.
50:08 Well, these disciples who had been filled with doubt, who had
50:14 been filled with criticism, filled with anger, maybe some
50:22 of you are in that boat right now, a boat of criticism.
50:28 Nobody can do anything right.
50:30 The pastor doesn't know what he's doing.
50:32 Church members are all against you.
50:34 You speak about everything in a negative way.
50:41 I hope your heart will be renewed in the Lord, that you
50:44 will be connected to him, that truly you will understand you
50:49 need to stay connected with God because then your heart will be
50:54 full of happiness.
50:56 Regardless of what you're going through, regardless of the
50:59 storms, regardless of the difficulties, God will take you
51:03 through in a powerful, powerful way.
51:07 He will encourage you.
51:09 He will bring in a new vision, a new light.
51:13 I don't care what you're going through.
51:17 I heard a marvelous story just very recently about one of our
51:23 dear elders in the country of Ukraine.
51:28 This elder had been drafted into the army.
51:35 He was being threatened with all kinds of angry words
51:41 because he would not carry a gun.
51:47 He indicated, basically, I don't take life.
51:51 I want to help people.
51:52 That was the basic premise of his understanding, not killing,
51:57 but helping.
51:59 The commander was so angry at this elder that he berated him.
52:10 He castigated him.
52:13 He spoke all kinds of evil against this church leader.
52:20 And then he brought this church leader, an elder, a local
52:26 elder, into the group of soldiers.
52:31 And he decided to teach this elder a lesson.
52:38 He indicated to this elder, since you will not fight for
52:48 your country, you will die.
52:51 The commander then took a hand grenade released the pin and
52:57 threw it at our elder.
53:05 In just a few split seconds, the elder connected with God
53:11 and the power of the Holy Spirit came upon him.
53:15 And in an effort to protect all the other soldiers, he jumped
53:20 onto this grenade so that the blast would kill him, but not
53:27 the rest of the soldiers.
53:31 But nothing happened, because this hand grenade was a
53:37 training hand grenade and would not explode.
53:40 He didn't know that.
53:41 The other soldiers didn't know that.
53:44 But his act of selflessness, because he was connected with
53:49 God and God said, jump on this hand grenade, that act of
53:55 selflessness brought tears to the eyes of the soldiers.
54:02 Now they pray with him.
54:06 They ask him to pray for them.
54:08 They ask him to give them encouragement.
54:12 And the commander allows him to worship on the Holy Sabbath day
54:16 because he showed himself to be one who loved other people, to
54:24 be connected with God and to serve others.
54:30 What a powerful witness for each of us.
54:33 What an understanding that we need to stay connected with
54:37 God.
54:39 Well, what happened to those disciples?
54:42 It says in verse 33, Then those who were in the boat came and
54:50 worshiped him, Jesus, saying, truly, you are the Son of God.
54:57 So those disciples who had been filled with self, who had been
55:00 distracted by their own pride, now turn to the one who truly
55:06 is the Messiah.
55:09 And they give a wonderful testimony of that.
55:14 Of those who truly are connected with God.
55:21 God is calling you to be connected with him.
55:24 As we enter the last days of Earth's history, listen to this
55:28 amazing quotation from Desire of Ages, page 382.
55:33 Those who fail to realize their constant dependence upon God
55:37 will be overcome by temptation.
55:40 We may now suppose that our feet stand secure and that we
55:44 shall never be moved.
55:46 We may say with confidence, I know in whom I have believed.
55:50 Nothing can shake my faith in God and in his word.
55:54 But Satan is planning to take advantage of our hereditary and
55:59 cultivated traits of character and to blind our eyes to our
56:05 own necessities and defects.
56:08 And listen to this beautiful ending sentence.
56:13 Only through realizing our own weakness and looking
56:20 steadfastly unto Jesus can we walk securely.
56:28 Stay connected to God.
56:32 Stay in his instruction.
56:36 Stay in his precious word.
56:40 Stay connected with God as we head into the end of time.
56:47 Let me pray with you.
56:50 Father in heaven, we come to you in a special way asking
56:53 that you will guide everyone who has been listening and
56:57 watching that they may reconnect with you on a moment
57:02 by moment basis and that you will carry them through helping
57:06 them to walk securely because they are in connection with
57:11 you.
57:12 Thank you for hearing us.
57:14 In Jesus' name we ask it.
57:16 Amen.


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Revised 2025-05-15