Participants: Eric Garloff
Series Code: WWJ
Program Code: WWJ000005
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00:15 Welcome!
00:17 I'm Eric Garloff, your host for Walking With Jesus. 00:19 Today we're going to be talking about the consecrated life. 00:22 Just what do we mean when we use that phrase, 00:24 a consecrated life? 00:26 What does it mean to be consecrated? 00:28 When I opened up my dictionary I found a couple of definitions 00:32 which could help us understand this term more completely. 00:35 One of them said "to make or declare sacred," 00:39 but is this really possible? 00:41 Can we really make our lives sacred? 00:44 Here's the problem each of us faces. 00:49 The Bible says we are all sinners. 00:51 Not one of us is righteous. 00:53 This being true, how can we who are defiled by sin 00:57 make ourselves sacred? 00:59 In order for our lives to be made sacred we need the one 01:03 who is sacred to make us sacred, and that one is Jesus. 01:07 The book of James 1:17 says every good gift and every 01:12 perfect gift is from above. 01:13 God is the source of every good gift. 01:16 It's God who justifies us. 01:18 It's God who makes us righteous. 01:20 It's God who gives us victory over sin. 01:23 It's God who forgives us. 01:24 It's God who cleanses us. 01:27 And, likewise, it's God who gives us the power to live a 01:31 sacred, or sanctified, or consecrated life. 01:33 But don't let anyone trick you into believing that there's 01:37 nothing for you to do in the work of consecrating 01:40 your life to God. 01:41 Now here's the other definition I found in the dictionary. 01:44 It said, "to devote solemnly to a purpose. " 01:48 With that thought in mind, when we consecrate ourselves 01:52 to God we would say our life is purposely, and solemnly 01:56 dedicated to God. 01:58 These words describe the decision of a person 02:01 which is not to be taken lightly. 02:03 To paraphrase the Bible, it's the decision of putting your 02:07 hand to the plow and not turning back. 02:11 We all have our part to play in the great war that's going on 02:14 between good and evil. 02:15 That war is being waged over who you're going to 02:18 give your heart to. 02:19 And what you do in life reflects the character of the one 02:23 who has your heart. 02:24 In the book of Jeremiah 29:13 we read these words 02:29 of encouragement, which is God's promise to us. 02:32 It says: 02:39 Let me repeat that last phrase again. 02:41 It says, "when you shall search for me with all your heart. " 02:45 Yes, the whole heart must be yielded and given to God 02:49 where the change we seek can never be worked out within us. 02:52 That change is the process of restoration, or of having our 02:56 characters restored in the likeness of God's character. 02:59 This work of restoration requires a transformation 03:02 of our entire being. 03:04 Therefore we must yield our entire being to God 03:08 who alone can perform this transformation. 03:10 I'd like to share these statements with you 03:13 quoting from the book Steps to Christ page 27. 03:54 He cannot accept an homage that is not willingly 03:57 and intelligently given. 03:59 A mere forced submission would prevent all real development 04:04 of mind and character. 04:05 It would make man a mere automaton. 04:08 Such is not the purpose of the creator. 04:38 So you see my friends, when we consecrate ourselves to God 04:43 and ask Him to renew us, there's going to be a struggle involved; 04:47 a struggle with self. 04:52 Somebody asked, "How can I know for sure that God really 04:55 exists and the Bible is true before I commit to Him?" 05:00 Now that's a good question because you don't want to 05:03 blindly follow Him if there's no real evidence of His 05:06 existence or power, now do you? 05:08 Of course not! 05:09 Now some have said that when you become a Christian 05:14 you check your brains at the door; implying that God doesn't 05:17 exist, or that you're dumb. 05:18 But this is so far from the truth because Christianity 05:22 is for thinking people with an honest heart. 05:25 God has given us so many proofs and evidences 05:29 of His existence, and His love for us. 05:31 In fact, let's talk about a few of these right now 05:35 and see the evidence for God's existence. 05:39 There are three evidences that I'd like to share with you 05:42 very quickly. 05:43 And if you want to look into these areas with an honest heart 05:46 you'll find out that there's an abundance of evidence 05:50 to support God's existence and His love for mankind. 05:53 First we'll briefly talk about the biological chance 05:57 of a single living cell forming all by itself, on its own, 06:00 without God. 06:01 Secondly we'll talk about how archeology has proven the 06:05 historical accuracy of the Bible. 06:07 And thirdly through Bible prophecy we'll see how God 06:11 accurately predicted the future of world empires hundreds 06:15 of years in advance. 06:16 These three areas: biology, archeology, and prophecy 06:20 cover the present, the past, and the future. 06:25 Evidence Number One: We'll start with the present. 06:29 The very fact that life exists today is one of the strongest 06:33 arguments in favor of the God of creation. 06:35 So let's ask ourselves with an honest heart, "Can a living 06:41 cell evolve all by itself?" 06:42 This can best be demonstrated by looking at the mathematical 06:46 possibility of life forming by itself. 06:49 Mathematicians consider the probability of anything greater 06:52 than ten to the fiftieth power as being an impossibility. 06:57 Now I've read numerous calculations that the 07:00 probability for even the most basic protein to form on its 07:03 own would be around ten to the power of one hundred and 07:06 thirteen or so. 07:07 And the probability of a single living cell forming all 07:11 by itself is in the area of ten to the power of forty thousand. 07:16 And that's just to make one living cell, which is the basic 07:20 building block of life. 07:21 Once you comprehend that number then multiply it by the 07:25 fact that humans have two hundred and ten different 07:28 cell types in their body. 07:31 Evidence Number Two: Looking into the past and seeing that 07:34 archeology has proven the accuracy of the Bible. 07:37 Many critics have attacked the Bible as a document that 07:40 can't be trusted. 07:41 In years gone by they have cited cities and people 07:45 which were found in the Bible and had no proof 07:47 of their existence. 07:48 They pointed to these as errors in the scriptures 07:51 saying the Bible can't be trusted. 07:54 Then as time passed archeological discoveries were 07:57 made which validated and vindicated the accuracy 08:00 of the Bible by finding evidence of these people groups 08:04 and their cities silencing the critics. 08:06 One such example of this was the skeptics claim against 08:11 the existence of the Syrian king named Sargon 08:14 as found in the book of Isaiah 20:1. 08:17 Then many years later Sargon's palace was discovered 08:20 in course about Iraq. 08:21 Its city was built by King Sargon II, who reigned 08:25 from 722 to 705 B.C. 08:28 The capture of Ashdod mentioned in Isaiah was recorded 08:32 on the palace walls. 08:33 One of the inscriptions found there read as follows: 08:36 Sargon king of Assyria who conquered Samaria 08:39 and the entire region of Israel. 08:41 He who made captives of Ashdod. 08:44 Friends, there are many such instances in archeology 08:47 which have vindicated the accuracy of the Bible. 08:50 The Bible is true, and it can be trusted. 08:53 Just because the Bible mentions something that we currently 08:56 have no proof of its existence does not mean that the Bible 09:00 is not true. 09:01 It simply means that we have not found it and dug it up yet. 09:07 Evidence Number Three: The foretelling of the future 09:11 is where the divine inspiration of the Bible is proven 09:14 through the fulfillment of prophecy. 09:16 Only an all knowing God is capable of predicting 09:20 the rise and fall of nations hundreds of years before they 09:24 ever even came into power. 09:26 Perhaps one of the best examples of this is found in the second 09:29 chapter of the book of Daniel. 09:31 I encourage you to pick up your Bible and read Daniel chapter 2 09:35 very, very carefully. 09:37 Then understand that Daniel chapter 2 was written about 09:40 600 years before the birth of Christ. 09:43 With this in mind, crack open your old high school history 09:46 books, or go down to your local library and compare 09:49 the succession of world empires beginning with Babylon. 09:53 You'll soon see that the Bible accurately predicted the Medes 09:56 and the Persians as Babylon's successors. 09:59 Then Greece was to be next, and after that it would be Rome 10:03 with both its eastern and western powers. 10:06 Then Rome would fall and be divided into ten kingdoms. 10:09 We really don't have the time to go through all of these 10:12 things right now, so if you'd like to learn more, and if you'd 10:16 like to understand the symbology of the image in Daniel chapter 2 10:21 than I'd like to encourage you to seek out a Seventh-day 10:24 Adventist church near you, and find someone to give you a 10:27 set of Bible studies which explains in clear language 10:30 the things that you're seeking to understand. 10:34 The bottom line is this, my friend, God does exist, 10:37 and the Bible is true. 10:38 You can give your life to God and consecrate yourself, 10:41 or devote yourself to Him for a purpose. 10:43 Quoting again from Steps to Christ, page 30, 11:37 You cannot change your heart. 11:39 You cannot of yourself give to God its affections, 11:42 but you can choose to serve Him. 11:45 You can give Him your will. 11:47 He will then work in you to will and to do according 11:51 to His good pleasure. 12:28 It's here where "the rubber meets the road". 12:31 No matter what you may have done in the past, 12:34 God will accept you if you consecrate, or dedicate 12:37 yourself to Him. 12:38 Exercising your power of will, and being willing to be made 12:44 willing is the place to begin. 12:47 Surrender yourself to God and ask Him to live out 12:50 His life within you. 12:51 A man once said to Jesus, "Lord I believe, 12:54 but help thou my unbelief. " 12:56 In other words He believed to a certain point, but he wanted 12:59 to strengthen his belief in Jesus. 13:01 It would be well for each of us to have this type of an open 13:05 heart towards God. 13:06 Now in the closing minute I'd like to offer a prayer 13:09 on your behalf. 13:11 If this is your desire, than make it your own 13:13 prayer to God. 13:15 Father, we come to You as we are. 13:19 We ask You to forgive us of our sins and to work within us, 13:23 restoring us to the image of your dear Son Jesus. 13:26 We are willing to do what You ask us to do. 13:28 We desire the power of Your Holy Spirit in our lives 13:31 to bring about the change we need to make. 13:34 So to this end, Lord, please give us Your Holy Spirit. 13:38 In Jesus' name, Amen. 13:40 May God bless you and be with you as are found 13:43 walking with Jesus. 13:46 When we walk with Jesus His love, mercy, and compassion 13:51 guides us along the path of life. 13:54 Our next program explores our faith and acceptance in action. 14:00 Please be sure to join us for this important message. |
Revised 2014-12-17