Anchors of Truth

The Testimony of a Touch

Three Angels Broadcasting Network

Program transcript

Participants: Alvin Kibble

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Series Code: AOT

Program Code: AOT000127


00:12 Welcome to Anchors Of Truth
00:15 live from the 3ABN Worship Center.
00:23 Hello and welcome again to an Anchors Of Truth meeting.
00:27 My name is Greg Morikone, this is my wife Jill,
00:29 and we're so glad to be here with you this evening.
00:32 We enjoyed Elder Alvin Kibble last night, didn't we.
00:35 - Amen. - What a blessing.
00:36 For those of you at home, what a blessing.
00:37 I know he really spoke to my heart.
00:40 And I know Elder Gilley, last night he mentioned
00:43 that it was a little cool and rainy.
00:45 Well today is still a little cool, but it's actually sunny.
00:48 We had some sun and clouds today,
00:49 so praise the Lord for that.
00:51 And I liked last night too.
00:52 Elder Kibble was talking about basically suffering.
00:56 And he's talking about God and how God's hands are there
00:58 to support us and to guide us.
01:00 I also wanted to mention that in case you're just joining us
01:04 this evening that the title of this series,
01:07 the four part series is,
01:08 A Christian's View of Suffering and Heartache.
01:13 You know, as Christians we're going to all face,
01:19 aren't we, suffering, persecution, heartache.
01:21 And I'm sure as I look at each person here,
01:23 I'm looking here at my good friend,
01:25 Brother Hutchinson and his wife Zita.
01:26 I know you guys have had challenges in your guy's life
01:30 and loss in your life.
01:32 I know all of us, I know, are not immune to it as Christians.
01:34 But the nice thing is and the great thing is,
01:36 is God is our Savior.
01:38 He is there to be with us, and to support us,
01:40 and to give us what we need.
01:43 I just want to introduce Dr. Alvin Kibble in case again
01:46 you are just joining us for the first time this evening.
01:49 He's actually Vice President of the North American Division
01:52 of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.
01:53 And we're really privileged to have him here with us
01:56 for this series.
01:57 He has a wife, Jewel.
01:59 He has two sons, one daughter-in-law,
02:02 and three grandchildren.
02:04 And he was telling us last night how much fun
02:06 it is to be a grandpa.
02:08 He really enjoys that.
02:09 But tell me what you thought about the sermon last night,
02:12 and then of course you'll introduce the music.
02:13 It was an incredible blessing to my own heart,
02:16 the music was last night, and the message;
02:20 A Christians View of Suffering.
02:23 Dr. Kibble took his key note address last night
02:26 from Jeremiah chapter 18,
02:29 "O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as the potter?"
02:32 And he talked about us as the clay.
02:35 And how God wants to mold us and shape us into His image.
02:38 I'm excited to hear what he has to share about
02:43 another look at suffering tonight.
02:45 That's right.
02:46 Tonight will be, The Testimony of a Touch.
02:49 And I know it will minister to our heart here
02:52 and to your heart at home.
02:54 So if you are going through something,
02:56 if you are in the midst of something,
02:58 know that the Lord Jesus Christ is right by your side.
03:02 And sit back and be blessed for this hour as Dr. Kibble shares
03:07 his experience through the Word of God
03:10 and through the suffering that he has gone through.
03:13 But He will bring hope and encouragement to each one of us.
03:16 You know and I also wanted to say too, one of the powerful
03:19 things, I know afterwards we have after we go off the air
03:22 live here we have what we call, the afterglow.
03:25 It's what Elder Gilley says.
03:27 And he shared, Dr. Kibble shared more of his
03:30 experience with cancer.
03:31 You know, this is a man that has gone through an awful lot,
03:35 and the Lord has brought his through cancer.
03:37 But that is where somebody's testimony is powerful, isn't it.
03:40 for someone who has gone through something like that.
03:42 I mean it just spoke to my heart in a powerful way.
03:45 And I know all of us, we may not be going through cancer,
03:48 but all of us suffer with different things.
03:50 You know, each one of us is not immune to that.
03:51 And so what a blessing this message has been,
03:54 and I know the other three messages will be.
03:56 Amen, absolutely.
03:57 Before Dr. Kibble comes and shares the Word of God with us,
04:01 we have a message in song from our very own
04:03 Mike and Celestine Berry.
04:05 They're church members here, and just wonderful Christians.
04:09 We love them, we love their ministry of music.
04:12 And tonight they will be sharing with us
04:14 a song entitled, Friendship.
04:16 And just before they sing, we'd like to open with prayer.
04:19 Father in heaven, Lord, what a privilege it is
04:21 to come to You in prayer.
04:23 Father, we're just so blessed that You are there for us,
04:28 You hear our prayers.
04:29 And Lord, all of us go through, I know, sufferings, challenges.
04:32 It may not be physical, it could be emotional,
04:35 but Lord, we know that You are there.
04:38 We just pray that You would bless Elder Kibble
04:40 as he brings us another message this evening.
04:42 That You would anoint his lips.
04:43 Father, thank You that he is Your vessel,
04:45 that You are pouring Your words through him to us.
04:49 Lord, again, bless him in a special way.
04:51 In Jesus' name we pray, amen.
05:20 Friendship is forever,
05:27 it cannot be broken.
05:34 Love is always there, though not a word is spoken.
05:41 They have something special
05:47 that no one else can share.
05:50 They may hear a voice or see a smile
05:55 as someone passes by.
06:00 That's when they'll think of you and breathe a happy sigh.
06:11 What is a friend?
06:17 What is a friend?
06:24 What is a friend?
06:28 Would you like to know?
06:37 Well, he'd go with you anywhere
06:43 when other's have said no.
06:50 When things you said or did went wrong,
06:55 he'd never say, "I told you so."
07:02 He'd just keep on loving you,
07:07 and on his way he'd go.
07:13 He'd be there to cheer you when you were feeling sad.
07:19 He'd know just the right thing say,
07:23 things to make you glad.
07:26 And when life is over and done,
07:32 and the last mile you have trod,
07:39 you'll find you had a friend all that long.
07:44 And he's still here with you.
07:55 What is a friend?
08:02 Who is your friend?
08:09 God is your Friend.
08:33 Good evening.
08:36 Once again, we have the wonderful privilege
08:39 to study God's Word together.
08:42 I trust that you have been blessed and that you've
08:44 had a wonderful day.
08:47 And we have another opportunity to share
08:51 one of the anchor truths that are so extremely
08:56 valuable to us as we continue to navigate our lives
09:03 in accordance with God's will.
09:06 I had a wonderful opportunity today to call a gentleman
09:11 that I have really never met.
09:14 But he had done a favor for me.
09:17 I had left something of a valuable nature
09:23 at the Sligo Seventh-day Adventist Church
09:26 this past Sunday while attending a wedding.
09:30 And this gentleman had found it for me.
09:34 If you've ever left something behind, a cell phone or
09:39 camera, or a purse, or maybe even your computer,
09:43 you know how uncomfortable that is.
09:46 And you can't always remember exactly where it
09:50 was that you left it.
09:51 But this gentleman happened to have found it and he returned it
09:57 to my office in Silver Springs.
10:01 So I called him today and I wanted to
10:04 express my appreciation.
10:06 And when he learned that I was here at 3ABN,
10:10 he was so excited and he said, "Pastor Kibble, preach."
10:17 He said, "Preach, brother."
10:19 He said, "Because I'm ready to go home.
10:24 I'm ready to go home."
10:28 And I believe that sentiment...
10:34 ...is celebrated in the hearts and in the lives of
10:39 so many pilgrims today.
10:43 It's time to go home.
10:47 And I believe that the most important thing in life
10:54 is not so much where you stand as it is in what direction
11:01 you are moving.
11:06 To reach the point of heaven we must all sail
11:13 sometimes with the wind and sometimes against the wind.
11:21 But we all have to sail.
11:26 We can't afford to go adrift.
11:32 And we cannot allow ourselves to lie at anchor.
11:42 If we are intending to make heaven our home,
11:46 we ought to live like we're trying to go there.
11:51 What do you say?
11:53 Our message this evening, as we continue this series
11:59 on a Christian's view of trouble,
12:05 suffering and heartache,
12:11 I want to lift up this evening Mark chapter 5 verses 25 to 34.
12:22 However, our sermonic text is captured in the 28th verse
12:30 of Mark's gospel chapter 5.
12:34 And it says simply and succinctly,
12:39 "If I may but touch His clothes, I shall be made whole."
12:50 "If I may but touch His clothes,
12:56 I shall be made whole."
13:02 Before I speak to you, please join me as we talk with God.
13:09 Consecrate me now to Thy service, Lord,
13:15 by the power of grace divine.
13:20 Let my soul look up with a steadfast hope,
13:26 and my will be lost in Thine.
13:30 Through the power of our risen Christ,
13:32 I ask these mercies humbly.
13:37 I beseech Thy throne with confidence.
13:43 In the worthy and precious name of Jesus, amen.
13:50 I've given title to our text.
13:53 I've tagged this message, The Testimony of a Touch.
14:02 Twelve years is a long time to suffer.
14:11 Twelve years is a mighty long time to suffer from
14:16 one single serious ailment.
14:24 Twelve years is a terribly long time to suffer
14:31 without one single ray of hope.
14:38 Think about it.
14:42 Twelve years is a long time for anybody to suffer.
14:52 But that was the condition of this woman in our text.
15:00 For twelve long years, incessantly, perennially,
15:10 without interruption, she experienced
15:14 a continuous discharge.
15:19 For twelve long years she had an issue,
15:26 a flow, a flux, a flood of blood.
15:35 And the Greek word used in our text means, a morbid flow.
15:42 It was debilitating.
15:45 It made her weak.
15:48 It was embarrassing.
15:51 It was impoverishing and it was discouraging.
15:57 When someone is bleeding continuously,
16:01 their heart rate is going to be faster and harder.
16:07 Their electrolytes are going to be out of balance.
16:10 It's going to be very easy for them to go into shock.
16:15 They're going to suffer from high blood pressure,
16:20 and low iron, and low oxygen.
16:23 There are going to be days when you're going to experience
16:28 vertigo because things are not in balance.
16:35 You're going to feel as if you may pass out,
16:39 or you may just fall.
16:43 The red and white blood cells are not going to be sufficient
16:48 to fight off infections.
16:49 So if someone has another illness, you're going to be
16:55 prone to that illness as well.
16:59 The bone marrow is going to be weakened.
17:04 I remember a conversation that I had with
17:08 a fellow colleague who is now deceased.
17:13 Pastor Paul Monk.
17:17 He was fighting cancer and he was in Walter Reed Hospital
17:21 there in the greater Washington area.
17:29 You know, it's one thing to look in the mirror
17:32 and see that you're aging.
17:36 But what he said to me was, "You know, Alvin,
17:39 I had to witness my own demise.
17:45 I saw myself dying."
17:50 She was dying.
17:53 This little lady was dying.
17:55 And it was visible even to her own eyes.
18:02 For twelve long years she suffered a morbid flux of blood.
18:10 And she had tried desperately to find a solution
18:14 for her problem.
18:18 Life was precious for her.
18:23 She loved life.
18:25 She had dreams and aspirations.
18:29 Perhaps at one time she may have even had a lover,
18:38 or a fiancé.
18:41 She may have had career plans.
18:45 Probably she wanted to have children and to raise a family.
18:52 She loves life as much as anyone does.
18:57 And she has tried every suggested remedy,
19:02 but the blood has continued its cursed flow.
19:08 The doctors in the region know her by name.
19:12 And her visits to them have depleted all of her finances.
19:17 Luke states it simply, and you can almost feel the pain
19:21 in doctor Luke's words as he said, "A woman having an
19:26 issue of blood twelve years who had spent all of her living
19:31 on physicians."
19:34 Clearly there was no Obamacare for this woman.
19:40 And ironically, high medical costs is no new thing.
19:45 Some physicians, even back then, would take your money
19:54 whether they helped you or not.
19:58 Think how this woman must have felt
20:03 when time after time after time the physician examining her
20:11 would shake his head and say, "I'm really sorry,
20:21 but there's nothing else I can do."
20:26 For twelve years this little woman with a morbid
20:31 flux of blood went to the doctors and spent all she had,
20:37 and grew worse in the process.
20:41 Are you getting this?
20:44 But one day...
20:47 I said one day.
20:49 ...she got word concerning another doctor.
20:54 A new doctor in the region.
20:57 A new kind of doctor.
20:59 He had no office.
21:02 He had no fixed hours.
21:04 He had no medical tools.
21:06 He had no medical kit.
21:09 He didn't even have the customary medical credentials.
21:13 He was no general practitioner, knowing a little
21:17 about most maladies.
21:19 And He was no specialist who concentrated
21:22 on one field of medicine.
21:26 Now I suppose that if any label fitted Him at all,
21:30 it was that of total specialist.
21:34 Because the Bible said He healed all manner of diseases.
21:41 This ailing, failing, dying woman heard about a
21:45 new Doctor whose name was Jesus.
21:50 And her heart filled up and her hopes revived.
21:53 Hearing of the cures that He had performed,
21:56 she felt assured that if she could only go to Him
22:01 that she would be healed.
22:05 So in weakness and in suffering, she mustered up
22:10 all the strength that she had and she came to the seaside
22:15 where He was teaching.
22:17 She tried to press through the crowd, but in vain.
22:21 Again, she followed Him to the house of Levi Matthew.
22:25 But she was still unable to reach Him.
22:27 Because as soon as they arrived a man named Jairus,
22:32 a ruler of the synagogue, made his way through the crowd
22:38 and came to see Jesus in great distress.
22:42 He cast himself at Jesus' feet and said, "Master,
22:46 please come to my house.
22:48 I don't have but one daughter.
22:50 She's twelve years of age, and she's dying."
22:55 Well this little lady was no match for Jairus.
23:02 The very fact that she is known by name,
23:07 whereas doctor Jairus was clearly known,
23:13 means that he had easier access.
23:16 In fact, his entourage made a way for him.
23:20 He didn't have to push through the crowd.
23:23 He had position and he had power.
23:26 And so his entourage pushed people out of the way,
23:29 "Get out of the way, move.
23:31 Can't you see that Jairus is trying to get to Jesus?"
23:37 And Jairus saw Jesus.
23:42 He stated his case.
23:45 He made his plea.
23:48 And Jesus, sensitive to every need, set out at once
23:54 for the ruler's home.
23:58 So what does this little unnamed woman do now?
24:03 She has about three options.
24:08 She can turn around and head for home and continue
24:13 to witness her own demise.
24:15 She can stay where she is for a while and let her mind
24:19 fill up with thoughts of self pity,
24:22 and why Jesus would see Jairus and not her.
24:27 You ever been there?
24:29 Or she can press on in pursuit of the Master.
24:35 Now everybody knows that when you lose heart
24:40 and hope, that you're practically done.
24:45 If you think that you're licked, you are.
24:49 If you believe that you have been whipped...
24:53 ...you certainly will be.
24:56 If you've been knocked down flat and convinced yourself
24:59 that you can't get up, you won't get up.
25:03 If you've made up your mind to die, then die you will.
25:11 But nobody...
25:13 Hear me tonight.
25:16 No one is quite beyond the possibility of help,
25:23 until they concede defeat within their own hearts.
25:31 If you can keep up your hope, you can keep up your struggle.
25:36 But when we lose hope, that's when we stop trying.
25:42 Tell yourself that you can't hold onto your job,
25:46 and you're likely to even quit trying to hold onto your job.
25:54 Tell yourself that there's no use between you,
25:59 the relationship that you have between you and your husband,
26:02 or you and your wife, tell yourself that it's not
26:06 going to get any better, and you will cause it to rain
26:09 on your own parade.
26:13 Tell yourself that you will never get well again,
26:20 and you will certainly give up the fight.
26:24 Tell yourself that God expects too much,
26:30 that you'll never make it so why try,
26:35 and you will soon fall by the wayside.
26:40 There are too many who no longer even try to live right.
26:45 Not because living right is no longer appealing to them,
26:49 but because it seems so impossible.
26:54 You can make it if you hold onto your faith.
27:01 Well the woman said, "I'm going through.
27:05 At least I'm going to try.
27:07 If I fail after having done my best, I certainly won't be
27:11 any worse off than I am right now.
27:14 But I will not fail, because if I can just touch
27:20 the hem of His garment, I know I will be made whole."
27:25 Her mind got in motion.
27:27 Her heart got warmed up.
27:29 Her heart and her head became synchronized.
27:32 And she said, "I'm sticking with my plan.
27:34 I heard about Jesus.
27:36 I came here because I want to see Him.
27:39 And I know that He can help me.
27:41 And I know that Jesus is going to see a sick girl
27:47 who have been living for twelve years,
27:49 but I'm a sick woman and I've been dying for twelve years."
27:56 And in the face of opposition she kept encouraging herself
28:02 with the thought, "If I may but touch the hem of His garment."
28:11 This pitiful sick dying woman, victim of a morbid flux
28:18 of blood, stayed with the crowd.
28:22 And by sheer determination she twisted her way through
28:28 the crowd until she got in touching position.
28:34 And reaching out the arm of faith, she stretches until
28:39 at last her fingers touch the fringe, the tassel,
28:50 of Jesus' garments.
28:58 And she says, "I know that I've been healed."
29:09 In that one touch was concentrated the faith
29:13 of her entire life.
29:17 Instantly her pain and feebleness disappeared.
29:23 Instantly she felt the thrill as if an electric current had
29:28 passed through every fiber of her being.
29:33 The Bible says the fountain of her blood was dried up
29:37 and she felt in her body that she was healed of the plague.
29:43 "If, if, I may but touch His garment,
29:52 I shall be made whole."
29:56 My God, what a great word.
30:00 What an explanation.
30:02 What a mighty faith.
30:03 "If I may but touch His clothes, I shall be made whole.
30:09 I don't need to talk to Him, I don't need to plead with Him,
30:13 He doesn't have to look at me, He doesn't have to hold my hand.
30:17 If I can just touch the hem of His garment,
30:21 I shall be made whole."
30:25 You know, there's not a greater expression of faith
30:29 anywhere in the gospel.
30:33 Do you hear the testimony before her touch?
30:41 There was a touch before the touch.
30:46 And it's beautiful if you can see it.
30:49 Do you really hear her testimony?
30:53 She knew that Jesus was the embodiment of God.
30:59 What's more, this woman believed that God can manifest Himself
31:05 even in and through inanimate matter.
31:11 So this little woman cut through logic and scientific methods
31:15 and all the gathered wisdom of the ages and touched down
31:20 on an anchor truth.
31:24 And she declared, "If I can but touch the hem of His clothes,
31:30 I shall be made whole."
31:33 And with a leap of faith she plunged forward,
31:38 falling to the ground, and touched the border
31:42 of His garment.
31:45 And then it happened.
31:48 That which she said would happen, happened.
31:54 That which she believed with all her heart would happen,
31:59 happened.
32:01 That which had to happen, happened.
32:04 Immediately the flow of her blood was dried up,
32:10 and her body was healed.
32:14 It had to happen.
32:17 It had to happen because her presence that day itself
32:22 was a prayer.
32:25 And her perseverance was a manifestation
32:28 of her faith.
32:31 And prayer is the key to the kingdom.
32:35 And faith, as you well know, unlocks the door.
32:40 I tell you, it had to happen because it had to happen.
32:46 And with grateful heart, she tries to
32:49 withdraw from the crowd.
32:52 And suddenly Jesus stops.
32:58 And He turns around and He asked, "Who touched My clothes?"
33:07 Now the disciples, always quick to respond regarding matters
33:11 that they didn't really understand, they said,
33:13 "Master, come on Master.
33:16 You see this crowd, this multitude?
33:19 What are You talking about, who touched Your clothes?"
33:25 How could one touch be singled out?
33:30 Glad you asked.
33:33 People are pushing on every side.
33:37 It was a crowd.
33:39 Jesus was often in a crowd.
33:42 Old people and young people.
33:46 Children and perhaps some domestic animals as well.
33:52 And yet, Jesus responded to the shy approach
33:56 of an individual as surely as a mother to her baby's cry.
34:08 I find it so interesting, I have been in a home
34:13 where there are several families sharing a social event
34:23 together at the same time.
34:26 You know how it is.
34:27 You have an invitation or you may have just a
34:31 member of your family that kind of is the one where
34:37 everyone goes to for special events and family activities.
34:45 And if your family is like mine, there are children all around.
34:51 And some may get tired and so they are in another room.
34:57 They may be playing or they may be resting.
34:59 And then a cry breaks out.
35:06 And one mother...
35:09 There's several mothers in the house.
35:11 But one mother gets up and goes to attend to the baby's cry.
35:21 And I've never ever seen or witnessed a situation where
35:26 the mother came back and said, "Well that wasn't my baby."
35:31 How do you single out a single individual touch?
35:40 So the Bible teaches of a God who so individualizes,
35:48 to whom each one of His billion of children
35:52 is infinitely and eternally precious.
35:57 It has seemed so ridiculous to many.
36:00 They have criticized the idea of God's concern for
36:04 the individual as beyond belief, and have done it almost in the
36:10 very words of the disciples.
36:14 And yet, the reproach reveals the glory of the gospel.
36:20 "Behold," the Bible says, "what manner of love
36:25 that we should be called the sons of God."
36:31 Looking toward the woman, Jesus insisted on knowing
36:35 who touched Him.
36:38 After healing the woman, Jesus wanted her to acknowledge
36:42 the blessing that she had received.
36:46 Now get this, the gifts which the gospel offers
36:52 are not to be enjoyed in secret.
36:55 You may be in your home, or you may be in your office,
37:01 or wherever you are, and you are enjoying this broadcast,
37:06 but the gifts that the gospel offers are not to be
37:11 enjoyed in secret.
37:16 So long as we take our candle and put it under a bushel
37:25 it can never brighten the world.
37:28 When I was a little boy we use to sing,
37:31 "Brighten the corner where you are."
37:38 "Shine for Jesus."
37:41 "I'm going to let it shine."
37:45 So our Lord calls upon all of us to give confession
37:50 of His goodness.
37:52 "You are My witnesses," saith the Lord.
37:56 Our confession of His faithfulness
37:59 is heaven's chosen agency for revealing
38:04 our risen Christ to the world.
38:07 Finding concealment vain, she came forward trembling
38:13 and fell down before the Master.
38:15 And with grateful tears she pours out her story.
38:19 And Jesus gently says to her,
38:23 "Daughter, your faith has made you whole.
38:32 Go now in peace and be cured of your diseases."
38:39 Now to the curious crowd who is pressing about Jesus,
38:42 there was no power imparted.
38:45 But the suffering woman who touched Him in faith
38:49 had received healing.
38:51 So in spiritual things, the carnal contact differs
38:58 from the touch of faith.
39:00 "To talk of religion in some casual academic way,
39:06 to pray without soul hunger and living faith,
39:11 avails nothing."
39:16 Desire of Ages, page 347.
39:20 "To believe in Christ merely as the Savior of the world
39:25 can never bring healing to the soul."
39:31 Ministry of Healing, page 62.
39:35 "It is not enough to believe Christ;
39:40 we must believe in Christ."
39:44 Desire of Ages, page 347.
39:49 The only faith that will benefit us is that which embraces Him
39:54 as a personal Savior, which appropriates His merits
39:59 to ourselves.
40:04 I must be led to believe for a fact that God so loved the world
40:13 that He gave His only begotten Son
40:17 that Alvin Maurice Kibble believing in Him
40:25 should not perish but have everlasting live.
40:31 When Alvin Kibble comes to Christ, according to His word
40:38 he is to believe that he has received
40:44 the saving grace of God.
40:49 And the life I now live, I live by faith in the Son of God
40:58 who loved me.
41:01 Me.
41:03 God loves you.
41:06 He loves everybody, but He loves you.
41:11 Galatians chapter 2 and verse 20.
41:15 Now many of us hold faith as an opinion.
41:20 "Do you believe there's a heaven?"
41:21 "Yeah, I guess I believe that there's a heaven."
41:23 "Do you believe that there's a God?"
41:25 "Yeah, I kind of... I believe.
41:26 I know that I didn't get here by myself."
41:30 But genuine faith is not an opinion.
41:35 It is life.
41:38 It is life.
41:41 "Somebody touched Me...
41:47 ...for virtue went out of Me."
41:50 Now virtue is a good word, but virtue is not the right word.
41:56 The word in the Greek is, "dunamis,"
41:59 which means, "power."
42:01 That's the word we get "dynamite" from.
42:03 Jesus literally said, "Somebody touched Me,
42:06 because dynamite just went out of Me."
42:11 And brothers and sisters, that is what prayer and faith
42:14 are all about.
42:15 Prayer and faith pull from God, who is the Son of God,
42:21 pull power through Jesus Christ from the throne room of heaven.
42:29 Don't you know that Jesus can cure by contact?
42:34 Don't you know that He can heal by virtue of a touch?
42:40 Jesus is sensitive to every case of need.
42:43 He can feel you in the crowd.
42:45 He can find you in the crowd.
42:47 Wherever you are, whatever your need,
42:50 Jesus is in touching distance.
42:53 We have a High Priest who is touched with the
42:57 feelings of our infirmities.
43:00 I can touch Him...
43:03 ...and He can touch me.
43:05 This woman makes a striking picture of one who came to Jesus
43:09 as a last resort.
43:11 In her case, of course, it could not have been hardly otherwise.
43:15 She had been afflicted for twelve years.
43:17 Jesus had only been engaged in His public ministry
43:20 for a few years.
43:21 She had never heard of Him until she had tried
43:24 every other prospect for help.
43:26 Nevertheless, she stands as a symbol of a multitude of people
43:32 who have never heard of Jesus,
43:34 and to whom His resources for healing and wholeness
43:39 have been unavailable.
43:42 But there are those who have grown up in Christ,
43:48 grown up in the church.
43:51 The church has always been available to them.
43:57 But they have simply chosen not to employ
44:03 the treasures of its grace.
44:07 They're the ones who in spite of everything
44:11 come to Jesus as a last resort.
44:15 For them, the Christian religion and the whole revelation of God
44:18 and Christ is only something that you turn to in direst need.
44:27 As in the book entitled, The Tempest,
44:30 many would never think of turning to God
44:32 until all was lost.
44:35 Are you getting this?
44:39 For many people prayer is not something to live with,
44:42 but something to die with.
44:44 It's only when the person is dying do they
44:47 call for the preacher.
44:49 All of their lives they spend foolishly and wistfully
44:53 upon themselves and the things of this world.
44:56 But as they begin to die, "Well somebody find a preacher,
45:01 would you please."
45:03 God for them is not a pilot for the navigation of life.
45:06 He is the final desperate resort when shipwrecked.
45:15 How many there have been who are seeking life,
45:19 well being, joy, happiness, and have spent all that they have
45:25 on positions instead of coming first to Him who is the way,
45:32 the truth, and the life.
45:36 So many who go to Reno or to Las Vegas
45:40 or the other places of the world trying to find pleasure and
45:49 wealth and fame, or just comfort and ease.
45:54 And like this woman, are no better off but only worse.
46:00 And if they come to Jesus at all, they come at last.
46:06 Often having nothing more to offer Him but the tattered
46:11 and battered remnants of their life.
46:14 The scant remains of time and strength
46:18 instead of the vim and vigor and possibility of a full and
46:21 profitable life.
46:24 And this description of this suffering dying woman
46:29 making her futile rounds of healers who could do
46:32 nothing for her also fits so closely the sick and diseased
46:37 world that we live in.
46:41 So long afflicted with the cancer of sin,
46:44 it has made the rounds of all of the crack healers;
46:48 militarism, nationalism, imperialism, fascism
46:52 Nazism, communism, socialism, secularism.
46:59 Our world has spent it's substance on all of these
47:02 and is no better, but has grown worse.
47:07 If it is to be saved, it must come to Christ
47:12 as its last resort.
47:16 For among all the nations, there is none other name
47:21 under heaven given among men whereby we can be saved.
47:28 It is no wonder that Lucy Campbell wrote,
47:30 "Touch me, Lord Jesus, with Thy hand of mercy;
47:35 make each throbbing heartbeat feel Thy power divine.
47:39 Take my will forever, I will doubt Thee never;
47:43 cleanse me, dear Savior, and make me wholly Thine."
47:50 And God be praised that many of us can sing,
47:55 "He touched me, yes He touched me;
48:00 and oh the joy that floods my soul.
48:04 Something, something happened and now I know;
48:09 He touched me and made me whole."
48:14 I've got a testimony. How about you?
48:18 Have you ever touched Him?
48:21 Has He touched you?
48:24 Do you know what it is to be delivered
48:28 by His power divine?
48:31 The God I serve is able.
48:36 He's able to heal broken hearts.
48:39 He can cause the blind to see.
48:42 He made the lame to walk again.
48:45 Thank God He cares for me.
48:50 He's able to heal and to deliver.
48:56 Faith...
48:58 Faith...
49:01 Faith will move yonder mountain.
49:04 Faith will cut a path through the jungle of despair.
49:09 I'm looking at some of you tonight.
49:12 And you've been down some rough roads.
49:17 You may be between a rock and a hard place.
49:20 You may feel that you are at your weakest moment
49:27 where doctors have shook their heads
49:30 and relatives and friends begin to shed tears.
49:34 And I want to ask you this evening,
49:37 who has brought you through?
49:40 Who is it, do you think, has delivered you?
49:43 Who made a way out of no way.
49:47 Jehovah Nissi; the Lord my ensign, my banner, my war flag.
49:53 El Shaddai; the God who, like a woman's breast,
49:57 has nourished me.
49:59 Elohim; the strong and faithful God.
50:04 Yahweh; the great and mighty God.
50:07 Our God is able.
50:11 He's able.
50:14 And if you can just but touch the hem of His garment,
50:20 ah, you can be made whole.
50:27 Someone here this evening needs to reach out the hand of faith
50:36 and touch the garment of the living God.
50:43 Somebody here listening to me through the television media
50:52 wants to exercise their faith by saying,
51:00 "Father, I stretch my hand to Thee.
51:06 No other help I know.
51:10 If I reject myself from Thee,
51:16 where else can I go?"
51:22 Your heads are bowed.
51:27 Pray that prayer silently or audibly right now.
51:37 Let Jesus Christ come into your heart.
51:43 You've tried everything else.
51:46 Why not give God a try.
51:57 Holy God, our heavenly Father, on behalf of this vast multitude
52:03 and those on the air waves and throughout the television media,
52:15 I extend to You
52:24 this solemn plea;
52:29 demonstrate Your power to someone tonight.
52:37 Help them to know that their case has reached the attention
52:42 of the everlasting God.
52:47 May they know that they are not forgotten.
52:53 That the very hairs of their head are numbered.
53:00 That You know their down sitting and their up rising,
53:03 their going out and their coming in.
53:05 And even from their mother's womb, that You knew them.
53:15 Share with them the promise that You have made;
53:22 "Can a mother forget her suckling child?
53:26 That she would not have compassion upon the very
53:30 child of her womb?
53:32 Yea, she may forget.
53:33 I will not forget thee."
53:43 Some, Lord, have done some terrible things
53:47 that they would wish to forget.
53:53 And they need to know that You are willing to forgive
53:58 and bury their mistakes in the depths of the sea.
54:04 In fact, You said in Your Word You would put our sins
54:08 behind Your back
54:11 and remember them no more.
54:16 Speak hope to the heart of somebody tonight.
54:23 Help them to know that if they will take just one look,
54:30 that one look can do it all.
54:36 One look, just one look.
54:43 And if they would but see You
54:50 as You are, that they might live.
54:56 You said in Your Word, "I have come that they might have life,
55:00 and they might have it abundantly."
55:04 But Lord, they don't know that You weren't
55:06 talking about biology.
55:11 The word there is not "bio," it's "zoe."
55:14 You came that we might have life as God knows it.
55:22 May no one accept less
55:28 than the precious gift that You have provided.
55:33 You are the way, the truth, and the life.
55:40 Help them to receive You by faith tonight.
55:46 And in that translation, may they experience the power
55:55 that will transform their lives, not only tonight, but forever.
56:03 In the worthy and precious name of Jesus we pray,
56:08 amen, amen.
56:14 Praise the Lord for the message this evening.
56:16 Amen.
56:18 You know, this was a last minute change.
56:20 This was not the sermon he was planning on speaking tonight.
56:22 So praise the Lord, what a powerful sermon.
56:24 Praise the Lord for the love that Jesus has
56:27 for each one of us.
56:29 You know, I think of the love of Jesus Christ,
56:31 and I think about the care that He has for us.
56:33 You were talking last night about the hands
56:35 and how He formed us.
56:36 He breathed into us the breath of life.
56:39 The tremendous care that He has for you and for me.
56:43 Do you have any closing thoughts in our last 45 seconds here
56:46 for what God can do and has done for each one of us?
56:50 We again were so blessed with your message this evening.
56:53 I am so grateful for the opportunity of sharing
56:58 this message, not only with the many of you who are
57:03 here tonight, but with people all throughout this country
57:09 and in many parts of the world.
57:13 And I want to assure you that the name of Jesus
57:17 is still a strong tower
57:22 where the righteous may run to and be at peace.
57:27 Amen.
57:28 Join us next time for another Anchors Of Truth.


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Revised 2014-12-17