Participants: Samuel V. Bonello
Series Code: OTR
Program Code: OTR000773
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01:00 Hello, my name is Sam Bonello.
01:02 And here in Michigan where I'm residing, 01:05 I'm what's called a Bible Worker. 01:08 I've only been in the faith for about two years. 01:11 But to my knowledge it's a relatively new term, 01:14 it's a relatively new profession. 01:16 If I'm wrong I've only been here two years once again. 01:18 But something that I found in my door-to-door ministry, 01:23 that's taken place over the last two years is that, 01:26 the sort of people that, I meet can be categorized 01:28 into two main groups, 01:31 there's those that have no affiliation with God, 01:34 they have no relationship to Him, no association. 01:38 And these people will suggest 01:40 the one main reason for that disassociation with God 01:45 and often they say that it's a lack of evidence 01:48 and that's why they don't believe. 01:49 That's why they didn't have a faith 01:51 relationship with a God of any sort. 01:54 Now what strikes me 01:55 as interesting is often these people are -- 01:59 they're not uneducated, 02:00 they're not disabled in anyway. 02:02 They especially, in this part of the world 02:05 here in Sterling Heights, 02:06 they're very educated, sophisticated people 02:10 and when someone like a scientist or a teacher, 02:14 a history teacher tells me 02:16 that there's not enough evidence 02:18 for them to place their faith in a God. 02:21 I have to question 02:22 because they're in a business of extrapolating 02:26 and dealing with information 02:28 pertaining to many different topics. 02:30 And there are these people that might also say, 02:35 well, you know, I don't like to talk about religion. 02:37 I don't like to talk about politics 02:38 because they're personal things. 02:41 And sometimes I've the courage to ask them, 02:43 I say, well, one of them 02:44 the politics affects your life now, 02:46 the other the religious aspect 02:48 that affects your life in the hereafter. 02:51 But you don't seem to have answers 02:53 and you don't want to research 02:54 or you don't want to talk about these things. 02:58 Doesn't that concern you at all? 03:00 And these people that say there's not enough evidence 03:03 and I don't like to talk about these things, 03:07 they bring to my mind a quote 03:08 from a Christian man many years ago. 03:11 He said these words while he was imprisoned 03:14 for the personal faith that he had. 03:16 Now he said that -- 03:18 he said in relationship to Christianity 03:20 that was his personal faith. 03:21 He said that often times 03:23 it's not that Christianity was tried and found wanting. 03:29 It was that -- it was perceived 03:31 to be too difficult for people and left untried. 03:36 I believe personally that that's more the truth 03:39 with these people that have the skills. 03:41 They're in the profession of getting information 03:43 on various topics and making a decision. 03:47 Now these people 03:50 I've noticed when I approached their houses, 03:52 I can see the sorts of cars they have. 03:54 I can look through the door 03:55 before I press the bell 03:56 and I can see the size of their television screen 03:59 and I can see the things 04:00 that they're attiring themselves 04:02 with when they answer the door. 04:04 I can see a garage full of toys 04:07 that the children use to entertain themselves 04:10 or that the parents used to entertain themselves. 04:12 Different sports and hobbies 04:14 and different things that adults 04:16 take into their lives too, 04:18 what I believe is distract themselves 04:20 from the realities that they're going to die 04:24 and they need something past this life. 04:26 If they're going to be as great 04:27 as they personally think they are at that point now. 04:30 There's a cacophony of sound. 04:32 There's a kaleidoscope of colors, 04:34 they surround themselves 04:35 with everything that glitters and shines 04:37 to take their mind off of the realities 04:40 and give them some temporal satisfaction. 04:43 Some temporal distraction from the realities 04:46 that they will indeed have to face. 04:49 And it's that reality that the gloom of death 04:54 that hangs over one's mind 04:55 when they think into the future 04:56 if they take the time to do that. 04:58 That's what initially began to lead into my -- 05:03 as I look back at the hand of providence. 05:05 I can see that there was one time 05:07 I was traveling and I prayed a prayer 05:09 because I was scared about death 05:11 and being all alone when my parents and my uncle, 05:14 who's very close to me, when they passed away, 05:16 I didn't know what was gonna happen. 05:17 How could I face such a big world on my own? 05:20 It was that reality 05:21 when I was alone in a setting. 05:24 I was actually in a cemetery in Stockholm, Sweden. 05:27 When I listened to the voice of God, 05:30 I recognized that now is the voice of God 05:32 but then I just thought there's -- 05:35 I'm just thinking for my own accord 05:37 but I believe that, that the angels were there 05:39 and pressing me that they led me 05:42 to that place in Stockholm. 05:43 Not many tourists go to a cemetery 05:45 but I'd heard it was a very beautiful. 05:47 So I was just recounting this morning 05:48 because I received an email from some people 05:51 that prayed over me, 05:53 which was a strange thing 05:55 for a nonbeliever like myself. 05:56 They prayed over me in one 05:57 of the most public places in Helsinki, Finland. 06:02 I met them. I was -- I saw two girls 06:05 and I thought they were cleaning 06:06 their Kombi van and I thought, 06:07 well, maybe they can give me a ride to the next town. 06:11 When I approached them to ask, 06:12 they said, well, no, we're not going anywhere 06:14 but if you're hungry you can eat lunch with us. 06:16 And I entered into what was a church 06:18 and upstairs they were sleeping on the floor. 06:20 They're a team of ministry students. 06:22 They call themselves the "Jesus Revolution." 06:25 I just looked up their website today. 06:26 They're all across Europe. 06:28 Shortly, after I prayed in a cemetery 06:30 because I was scared of death, 06:33 I meet these people that pray over me 06:35 which is very uncommon to let me -- 06:37 for me to allow myself to be in that situation, 06:42 in that uncomfortable position 06:44 in a very public place in Helsinki. 06:47 And then from then on the events, 06:49 I met different people from different 06:51 faith that made me think, that made me question, 06:54 some people put some books into my hands. 06:57 I was traveling alone 06:58 and I had lots of time on trains 07:00 when I was camping in the wilderness in a tent 07:04 for God to come near to me and say, 07:08 "What's gonna happen when you die? 07:10 You're having lots of fun now but what then?" 07:15 It's when we have the glitter and shine of this world 07:18 pulled away from our lives, 07:19 either it be a tragedy 07:21 or just some personal time traveling 07:22 and I fell into that situation 07:24 where God could speak to me that we begin to realize 07:27 that things aren't that bright 07:29 if we don't have some hope for the future. 07:32 So I said that when I meet people at the doors 07:34 there's two groups that they can be polarized into. 07:37 This is one of them 07:38 and the other is the people that have grown up 07:40 in the vicinity of a religion. 07:42 The vicinity that parents had it or the relatives 07:45 had it or a friend has a faith of some sort 07:47 that has influenced them to some degree 07:49 and they now practice methodically, traditionally. 07:55 They have a schedule, a religious schedule, 07:57 a religious way of life attached to their normal life 08:00 that contains many of the same things 08:02 that those that rejected completely have. 08:04 Now, one group is more troubling than the other 08:09 because the ones that, 08:11 I meet that do have this faith of sorts 08:14 and they claim that the Bible is the origin 08:17 of this faith of sorts for them. 08:19 They often now seem to be missing the point. 08:24 From my study in the past two years of this 08:26 and listening to people speak from this book 08:29 that has done so much for me. 08:30 I hear that Christ has given us a job to do, 08:36 a command or several commands 08:40 in relation to those that are polarized 08:42 at the other end of the spectrum, 08:45 where there is no faith at all. 08:46 So you have these two people 08:48 that I meet at the doors often. 08:49 And I get a real insight into their life 08:51 through the short conversations 08:52 we have and the place that they live in 08:54 and the things that they surround themselves with. 08:56 And I see that one group that has no relationship 09:01 to a higher being or a higher power at all, 09:04 remains that way because of another group 09:08 that says they have a faith, that wants to have a faith, 09:12 that practices a religious schedule. 09:16 They're the ones that are supposed to be influencing 09:18 those at the other end of the spectrum. 09:20 And I ask myself what is it that keeps 09:24 these people from sharing their faith. 09:27 The things that they claim 09:29 lead to such an abundant reward in the hereafter. 09:34 Now I'd mentioned a quote from a Christian man 09:37 many years ago who said that, 09:39 "with relation to Christianity 09:40 it's not that people try and find it wanting, 09:43 it's that they perceive it to be too difficult 09:45 and they leave it untried." 09:47 Now, what is it that keeps people from -- 09:51 people that have a religious schedule, 09:53 that keeps them from sharing that with others? 09:57 When no matter which faith you're speaking about 10:00 there's such bountiful rewards in the hereafter. 10:04 In the Christian realm that's Heaven and the Holy City 10:07 and you know no more tears, no more sorrow. 10:10 The child will play with a viper, 10:12 the lamb with a lion, 10:14 that's the Christian reward. 10:17 Now what is it that keeps these people 10:19 at one end of the spectrum from building a bridge 10:23 and bringing the others to not only that spectrum 10:26 but one of a deeper commitment, 10:29 a more living faith with the higher power? 10:33 I personally believe from the conversations 10:37 I've had, from the studies that I've shared with people 10:39 and their reaction to them at some times. 10:42 It comes down to guilt. 10:45 The "Haunting Spectra of Guilt" 10:46 is one Christian apologist 10:48 spoke on the topic he titled it, 10:50 "The Haunting Spectra of Guilt." 10:53 Guilt is the thing that makes a faith, 10:57 a belief surrender to a high power. 10:59 Too hard for those -- 11:00 the atheistic in the spectrum, 11:03 it makes it too hard for them to surrender 11:06 and give up the pleasures 11:07 that come with that or the pleasures 11:11 that create that guilt 11:12 and come to a relationship 11:14 with a higher power in anyway. 11:16 And then those that do have a relationship 11:18 or suggest they have a relationship 11:20 by their words or by their actions, 11:23 they don't share their faith because they don't feel 11:26 they're good enough to share it. 11:28 Now that's commonly referred to as guilt. 11:31 I've felt it. I'm sure you've felt it 11:34 and the world's not gonna change until 11:37 one group of people learns to overcome it 11:42 and reach the other group of people 11:44 with the message that they claim to hold so dear. 11:47 So these were some thoughts, these are some things 11:51 that I had known in my personal experience 11:53 when I came to God and said, "Here I am, I realize that, 11:58 that everything is gonna end one day 11:59 and I need something past that. 12:00 I would like something past that. 12:02 I am not satisfied with just my 70 years 12:05 or twoscore years and ten. 12:09 I want something more." 12:10 There was a lot of guilt 12:11 that came to my mind just like that. 12:13 It's funny how you can be distracted 12:15 from it for so long and then all of a sudden 12:18 you can remember every bad thing 12:20 you've ever did and you realize just 12:22 how bad everything you are doing at the moment 12:24 really is in the eyes of God. 12:27 Many faiths suggest the judgment day 12:29 and that's something that scares 12:31 them to behave themselves. 12:33 But from what I understand at least 12:37 with the God of the Bible, 12:39 He doesn't want us to be sacred 12:40 in a relationship with Him. 12:42 And as a matter of fact in First John, 12:46 we'll open there together. 12:49 First John comes to my mind 12:50 and it's Chapter 3. I stand corrected it. 12:54 It's actually John 4 12:57 and if you look with me in verse 14 13:05 and this is how it reads. 13:09 Actually, verse 17 of John, First John verse 4, 13:15 First John Chapter 4 verse 17. 13:19 Sorry to confuse you. The text reads, 13:21 "Love has been perfected among us 13:24 in this that, we may have boldness 13:27 in the day of judgment." 13:28 So the God of the Bible wants us 13:29 to have boldness in the day of judgment. 13:34 "Because as he is, so are we in this world. 13:38 There is no fear in love, 13:40 but perfect love casts out fear 13:43 because fear involves torment. 13:45 But he who fears not has been made perfect in love." 13:49 So from what I learned here in the Bible 13:52 is we're not supposed to have fear 13:53 when we think about the judgment day. 13:54 It says we should have boldness 13:56 because perfect love casts out fear, 14:00 so that we can have a positive relationship 14:02 with this higher power or God 14:04 whoever you choose to put your faith in, 14:05 today not just in the hereafter. 14:09 There's rewards for today. 14:10 And I think of a verse also in the Book of John. 14:13 Not one of the letters of John 14:15 but the actual Book of John. It's Chapter 10, 14:19 I'll try not to lose you again. 14:20 It's Chapter 10 and this time 14:22 it's verse 10 for your own reference. 14:26 But it says that Christ is speaking here and He says, 14:30 "The thief does not come except to steal 14:33 and to kill and to destroy you, 14:35 but I on the other hand, 14:37 but I have come so that they may have life 14:41 and that they may have it more abundantly." 14:43 Speaking in the present tense. 14:45 So it's not just the hereafter 14:47 we should be worried about. 14:49 It's not just the hereafter 14:50 that is the benefit of the message 14:52 that we as believers should take to others. 14:55 But it's for more abundant life now. 14:57 It's for a life in which we can have boldness 15:00 for the day of judgment in the future. 15:02 Now the lesson that, 15:05 we want to see today in the Bible -- 15:07 the topic that we're gonna study is the Bible's dynamics 15:12 The way it speaks on the dynamics of guilt 15:15 and the solution that it provides for guilt. 15:17 The example that we're gonna see 15:19 some Bible character by the name of Peter. 15:22 We're gonna see the way he reacts to guilt 15:25 and we want to emulate our lives 15:26 after that, so that we can -- 15:28 we can have a confidence 15:30 when we think about the day of judgment. 15:31 So we can have ten thousand charms 15:33 now and in the hereafter. 15:36 So if you bow your heads as I pray 15:39 and ask for God to speak to you 15:42 through the Bible, through me today. 15:45 Bow your heads and pray 15:46 before we enter into a sermon that I've entitled, 15:49 "Observations of a Diligent Man." 15:54 Father in Heaven, we thank You 15:55 for the opportunity to take time 15:59 away from the distractions of life, 16:01 away from the accoutrements 16:03 that distract us from the realities 16:05 that You want us to be confident as we approach. 16:08 Lord, I pray that today, 16:11 You would -- You would bring 16:13 other people to listen 16:14 to this that have been encumbered with guilt, 16:16 their life is compromised now 16:18 and it's fearing in the future because of that guilt. 16:22 I just pray that today 16:23 as we observe the life 16:24 of a diligent man named Peter, 16:26 the disciple of Christ, 16:27 You'd give us the courage to emulate 16:30 his response to the guilt that he felt. 16:34 So, Lord, draw near to us 16:35 through the being of Your Spirit 16:37 that we might hear Your voice 16:39 and feel Your comfort, 16:41 learn of You and learn how to better follow You, 16:44 to reach those that are at the other end of the spectrum 16:47 that are not in the polarization 16:49 of those that have a faith 16:50 but in the polarization of those who need a faith. 16:54 So, Lord, draw near 16:55 and give me a looseness of tongue 16:56 that You might use it. 16:57 I ask this in Jesus name, amen. 17:01 Proverbs 13 Chapter 13 verse 4 says that, 17:05 "The soul of a sluggard desireth 17:09 and hath nothing." 17:11 He desires nothing therefore he gets nothing. 17:15 The second part of the verse says. 17:17 "the soul of a diligent man shall be made fat." 17:22 The soul of a diligent man shall be made fat. 17:25 Notice that I didn't put in the title of this sermon, 17:27 observations of a perfect man. 17:30 And Proverbs Chapter 13 verse 4 doesn't say 17:33 the soul of a perfect man shall be made 17:35 fat it just says diligent. 17:36 "The soul of a diligent man shall be made fat." 17:41 Now we're going to look at, 17:43 at five P's that relate to Peter's life. 17:46 Peter was one of the 12 disciples 17:49 that followed Christ for three and a half years 17:52 of his incarnate ministry here. 17:54 And we're going to look at Peter's proximity to Christ. 17:59 We're gonna look at Peter's probability 18:02 and we'll expand on these as we get to them. 18:04 But the five words are proximity, probability, 18:08 performance, patience, and his power. 18:13 We're gonna look at those 18:14 five P's of Peter's life to learn 18:18 how we should relate to guilt, 18:21 so that we can share the solution 18:23 for guilt that those that -- 18:24 with those that have no solution. 18:27 So open with me now, 18:29 I'm gonna read a Bible text it's found in Matthew 16 18:33 and it's verse 22 and 23. 18:35 Now we're gonna have to put our thinking caps 18:37 on together to see the point that I'm bringing out of this 18:41 and I'll give you a window to see into this text 18:44 and understand why I'm using 18:45 this to show Peter's proximity to Christ. 18:49 It's my conviction that, from my Bible study 18:52 that it's either John or Peter, 18:54 we could flip a coin for who is the closest to Christ. 18:57 Peter was a sticky beak. He was a busy beaver. 18:59 He was always on the scene 19:02 when Christ was involved. He was a faithful -- 19:06 he was a diligent man in following the ministry, 19:08 supporting the ministry, 19:09 being part of the ministry of Christ. 19:11 So it's either John or Peter that was closest in intimate 19:15 spiritual relationship to Christ 19:16 while he was on this earth. 19:18 I'm gonna read this text 19:19 in Matthew 16 verse 22 and 23, 19:24 the two texts we're gonna read. 19:26 Read with me, "Then Peter took Him aside," 19:29 took Christ aside, 19:31 "and began to rebuke Him," Peter rebuking Christ, 19:37 "saying, far be it from you, Lord! 19:39 This should happen to you." 19:41 Christ just told them in no uncertain terms, 19:44 the suffering and the crucifixion that, 19:45 He was about to go through for their sakes. 19:48 And Peter doesn't like this. 19:49 It's not fitting with his concept, 19:51 with his dreams for Christ's future. 19:53 And he says, "Far be it from You 19:55 that you should speak like this Christ. 19:57 It's does not gonna happen. I won't let it happen." 19:59 And Christ turns to him and says, 20:03 "Get ye behind me, Satan." He's speaking to Peter 20:07 who is most intimate in relationship with him 20:09 and he calls him, Satan. 20:11 He says, "Get ye behind me, Satan! 20:15 You are an offense to me, 20:18 for you are not mindful of the things of God 20:20 but the things of men." 20:23 Now, I'm using this text to communicate to you 20:28 so that you can see in the Bible 20:29 how Peter was very close in proximity to Christ. 20:33 Now if you don't see that there yet, 20:34 let me share a story, 20:35 a conversation that, I had with two of my friends. 20:38 One named Matthew and one named Ezekiel. 20:41 I was sitting there 20:42 when I was thinking about these things. 20:44 I'd learned this in my morning devotion at a time 20:46 when I needed it very much. 20:48 In full time ministry 20:49 I had failed to be the best ambassador for Christ 20:51 that I could be and I really needed this message 20:54 and the Lord saw that, 20:55 and he came to me in my hour of need 20:57 and He revealed this to me. 20:59 I was very thankful and I was discussing it 21:01 with my friends Matthew and Ezekiel. 21:03 And I put it to Matthew. I said, Matthew. 21:07 Matthew was engaged to a girl 21:10 now by the name of Sherise, the fiance. 21:12 They're gonna be married in January. 21:14 And I said to Matthew, 21:15 if there was an idea that I wanted you to adopt, 21:18 if I wanted to influence you in a certain direction 21:21 would it be more profitable for me to get Ezekiel 21:24 to suggest that to you on my behalf or Sherise? 21:28 What do you think Matthew said? 21:30 He said, "Sherise, of course." 21:32 Now why? Because she was closer 21:34 in proximity to Matthew than Ezekiel was. 21:38 No offense to Ezekiel but Sherise was his fiancee. 21:41 And the other reason that, 21:43 I know that this passage is indicating that Christ, 21:49 that Peter was very close in proximity to Christ 21:51 is that Satan used him, 21:54 tried to use him to influence 21:56 Christ in a certain direction. 21:57 Just the same as Matt suggested 21:58 I should use Sherise instead of Ezekiel. 22:01 Now the women here are blushing 22:03 and feeling uncomfortable 22:06 because I've revealed one of the powers 22:08 that they thought was secret that they have over men, 22:10 but people that are close -- 22:13 women that are close to their husbands, 22:15 they know that they can influence them. 22:18 You know it's just a secret power 22:19 that women have and that's fine as long 22:21 as it's respected and not abused. 22:23 But this point is illustrating that, 22:26 that Peter was very close in his proximity to Christ. 22:29 That's why Satan used him to discourage 22:32 Christ from taking your sins 22:33 and my sins upon Him at Calvary. 22:36 Now Peter's proximity 22:39 and Peter's probability are two things 22:43 that compounded when he -- 22:46 when he failed in his performance, 22:49 they compounded to increase the guilt 22:51 that was upon His back, disabling his ministry 22:55 and that's what we're fighting today. 22:56 We don't want Christians to be disabled 22:59 in their ministry by the spectra of guilt. Now. 23:06 In the text of Matthew 26 and 33, 23:10 we're gonna see the response, 23:13 one of Peter's responses in a similar situation 23:17 to that where Christ rebuked him and said, 23:19 "Get behind me, Satan." 23:20 We're gonna look in Matthew 26 and verse 33, 23:25 and this is what we read in Matthew 26 verse 33. 23:30 Christ is, is at the Lord's supper, 23:33 and he says that, 23:34 that someone will deny me and Peter says the following, 23:39 "Even if all are made to stumble because of You, 23:45 I will never be made to stumble." 23:46 Now that's a very emphatic statement. 23:48 That doesn't allow any room for him to be wrong. 23:50 He says, "I will never stumble because of You, 23:54 no matter what happens to You I'll by Your side. 23:57 I'll even risk my life for You." 24:00 That's illustrated when he begins to fight 24:02 when Christ doesn't require 24:03 that of him in the Garden of Gethsemane. 24:05 And Peter's probability of failing to be a good 24:11 witness for Christ was very low. 24:14 His proximity was very close. 24:17 His probability of failing was very low. 24:20 Was also very low because Peter that -- 24:25 when he makes this statement -- 24:27 one Christian commentator suggest 24:29 that the reason he is the first 24:31 one to say I'll never deny You 24:34 is because of a special way 24:36 that he learned of who Christ was. 24:38 We read of that in Matthew 16. 24:41 This isn't a difficult sermon 24:42 for those that are new in the Bible. 24:44 Matthew 16, still in the original chapter. 24:47 And we're just looking back to Matthew 16. 24:49 We're gonna look at verse 13 through 17 together. 24:54 So read along with me it says that, 24:57 "When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea, 25:01 Philippi, He asked His disciples saying, 25:04 "Who do men say that I am?" 25:08 So they said, "Some say John the Baptist; 25:11 some say Elijah, other say Jeremiah 25:14 or one of the prophets." 25:17 Jesus is satisfied with that answer 25:18 as to what men say about Christ but he says, 25:21 "What do you say about me?" 25:24 Picking up in verse 15, 25:27 "But who do you say that I am? 25:29 Simon Peter answered, saying, 25:32 You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." 25:35 Now this is the reason why Peter was so quick 25:38 to confess that Jesus is Christ, 25:40 the Son of the Living God, 25:41 it's the reason why he was so, 25:42 so adamant that He would never 25:45 stumble because of Christ. 25:47 We'd read in verse 17, 25:49 Jesus tells us how Simon was convicted and convinced, 25:53 how he came to the understanding 25:54 of who Christ was? 25:55 And why the Christ claims 25:57 about Himself as the Son of God were true. 26:01 Verse 17 reads, "Blessed are you, 26:03 Simon Barjona, for flesh and blood 26:06 have not revealed this to you, 26:10 but My Father who is in heaven." 26:13 So some of you may have come to a saving relationship 26:17 with God through Christ because of a preacher, 26:19 because of a book that you read, 26:21 because of something that you heard on the radio 26:23 or something that you read in a billboard 26:26 or many different ways. 26:28 But Peter was different, 26:30 this is why he has so much confidence 26:32 that he would never deny Christ 26:33 because he knew emphatically 26:35 who Christ was in relationship to God 26:37 because not flesh or blood 26:39 but God himself revealed to Peter who Christ was. 26:46 The probability of Peter falling, 26:49 stumbling because of Christ 26:51 was very low for the reasons of the fact that -- 26:55 where is the exception to which Peter was present 27:00 when Christ performed miracles 27:01 or when He made a presentation to the public, 27:03 informing them about the Kingdom of Heaven 27:06 or His Father in Heaven 27:08 or how they should live their lives 27:10 in response to the message that He was in His person. 27:15 Rare was the instance where Peter wasn't present? 27:20 Whether it be the rising from the dead, 27:23 the daughter of the ruler of the synagogue. 27:26 Peter was there, he saw someone raised from the dead. 27:29 Whether it be walking on water. 27:31 None of the other disciples had done that. 27:34 But Peter actually walked on water 27:35 because he believed that Christ who he was, 27:38 who he was and when he said something he could -- 27:41 so when Christ beckoned him to walk on the water 27:43 toward Him he had faith in that. 27:45 I mean, God himself revealed to Peter 27:47 that Christ was who he was. 27:51 He saw things like the transfiguration. 27:54 And he saw his own mother-in-law healed 27:56 along with the multitude of other miracles 27:58 and dissertations that Christ 28:01 made to convince him beyond the shadow of a doubt 28:05 that he was who he was claiming to be. 28:08 His proximity to Christ was very close. 28:10 The probability of him stumbling was very low. 28:14 Look what happens at Peter's performance? 28:17 When he doesn't perform the way he wants to. 28:20 This is where guilt comes into it, 28:21 that's what we're talking about today. 28:24 We're gonna look at Peter's performance 28:27 and we're gonna turn to Luke. 28:30 Just two books towards the back of your Bible. 28:32 We're gonna look in Luke 22, 28:37 it's gonna take me a long time to get there 28:38 if I go one page at a time. 28:40 We're gonna get to Luke 22 verses 60 and 62, 28:45 60 through 62 of Chapter 22 28:50 of the third gospel the Gospel of Luke. 28:54 Picking up in verse 22, 28:59 oh, verse 60 is how it reads, 29:03 "But Peter said, 29:04 'Man, I do not know what you are saying,' 29:08 immediately, while he was still speaking, 29:12 a rooster crowed." 29:13 Now for those of you that aren't familiar, 29:16 shortly after Peter said that he'd never stumble 29:19 because of what Christ was about to do. 29:21 Christ said to him, 29:22 "Let me correct you, you will stumble, 29:24 you'll stumble three times in denying me." 29:28 And in this instance he was denying Christ to, 29:32 to, I mean, just normal people like 29:33 they weren't special people. 29:35 They were just people 29:36 that were in the vicinity of the place 29:38 where Christ was being flogged, 29:41 beaten, spat upon, 29:43 beyond recognition for my sins, 29:47 for your personal sins and for the sins 29:50 that Peter was about to commit. 29:53 And the Gospel of John records 29:55 that he denied him with cursing and swearing. 29:58 Sorry, the Gospel of Matthew says that he denied Christ 30:02 with cursing and swearing that's a far cry 30:05 from I'll never stumble. 30:07 Now he stumbles by denying Christ and the cock crows. 30:13 Now thinking about this I've come to the conclusion 30:18 that there's two very guilty men in the Bible. 30:21 The two most guilty men in the Bible 30:24 would be either Adam, because in Genesis 3 and verse 8 30:29 we read that when the Lord entered the garden 30:32 and called Adam and Eve's voice 30:34 after they caused the fall of humanity, 30:38 they hid themselves, they were ashamed 30:41 and they were afraid. 30:45 They were naked but they weren't afraid 30:48 and they weren't ashamed, that's just guilt. 30:51 Those were the manifestations of guilt 30:54 in the lives of Adam and Eve. 30:57 They were ashamed and they were fearful. 31:01 May be you can sympathize with that. 31:03 You're sacred to face the one that you've let down. 31:08 Now put yourselves into a situation, 31:09 take a moment of time to put yourselves into a situation 31:12 where you felt guilty, 31:13 may be you've letdown a wife, a husband. 31:18 Maybe you're just hopeless at keeping the promises 31:21 that you make to your children. 31:23 Maybe your longtime employer trusted you 31:25 with a large investment or a large duty 31:28 that would be for his gain 31:30 and ultimately your gain 'cause you could have kept 31:31 your job but you failed him with that responsibility 31:36 and you felt guilty. 31:37 What's the most guilty that you have ever felt? 31:40 Or maybe it's something. 31:41 Maybe you do have a personal relationship with God 31:44 and you've let him down like I had when He gave me 31:47 this message. 31:48 Maybe you can just put that, that feeling into your mind 31:51 as uncomfortable as it always is. 31:53 Put that into your mind. 31:55 And times, as many times as your imagination wants to 31:59 and maybe you'll come to close to the feeling 32:01 of guilt that Adam and Eve had. 32:03 And the feeling of guilt that, that Peter had here. 32:08 Because the Bible records that, 32:12 "When the rooster crowed the third time, 32:19 the Lord turned and looked at Peter." 32:26 Peter's eyes met crossed eyes when there was blood 32:30 running down the side of the face, 32:33 down the bridge of the nose of this man that Peter said 32:37 he'd would never stumble, he'd never deny, 32:40 he'd fight to the death for this man, 32:42 and here Peter's eyes meet with His eyes 32:45 after he's denied Him, not for the first time, 32:48 not for the second time but for the third time. 32:52 They say if it happens once, you're a fool, 32:57 if it happens once it's a mistake, 32:59 if it happens a second time you need to learn, 33:01 if it happens a third time you're an absolute fool. 33:04 He denied the Savior whom he had amazing evidence. 33:08 The probability of him denying Christ was low 33:12 and his proximity to Christ was very close. 33:15 And there's another man that was in a similar situation. 33:19 His name was Judas and he hung himself. 33:22 Friends, "The Haunting Spectra of Guilt," 33:24 is not just a nice Bible topic 33:27 that we're talking about. 33:29 Many, many people commit suicide on a daily basis 33:35 because of guilt, because they have no answer to guilt. 33:39 Do you have a loved one? Do you have a work associate? 33:42 Do you have someone that you care in any way for, 33:45 a child, a parent that doesn't know God? 33:48 That doesn't have any avenue to offload that guilt, 33:52 and any power to correct his life 33:54 to avoid collecting that again. 33:57 It's not just a theological thing. 33:59 It's practical. 34:00 People commit physical suicide 34:02 because of guilt every day. 34:06 And people commit spiritual suicide very often as well. 34:11 They turn back to the bottle. They turn back to adultery. 34:15 They turn back to a material life. 34:18 They turn back to the glittering shining things, 34:22 the distractions that they left that they overcame, 34:26 the addictions, the bad habits that they overcame 34:30 to live a life for God. 34:32 If they stumble, which we're bound to stumble. 34:36 The Bible says, "A leopard can't change his spots." 34:44 It says that, that we will fail ultimately. 34:46 He doesn't call us to be perfect. 34:48 He calls us to be diligent. 34:50 Remember that please, next time you stumble. 34:54 If you're down because you've just stumbled. 34:56 Remember, He calls us to be diligent 34:58 not perfect, not perfect. 35:01 There is a lot of P's in this sermon. 35:03 There's five of them. 35:04 We're on the third but none of them are perfect. 35:08 He calls us to be diligent. 35:14 Now, how do you respond when you're guilty? 35:21 There was a situation in my life 35:24 and I'll bare my soul with you. 35:25 It was 2002. 35:28 I was graduating from high school in Australia. 35:32 For the last 12 months of my educational time there, 35:35 I went into boarding school. 35:38 I went into the dormitories in the pursuit 35:40 of a higher academic grade. 35:42 Because I wanted to leave schooling year 10. 35:44 I love to farm. 35:46 I'm a farmer of origins. 35:49 And I wanted to leave in 10th grade 35:52 to become a farmer. 35:54 Now there's a lady at this school named Miss Spence. 35:57 A combination of Miss Spence is encouragement, 36:03 her sharing with me the potential that she saw in me 36:05 that I hadn't seen it myself. 36:07 Her encouragement and my father's encouragement 36:10 persuaded me to stay at school until 12th grade. 36:14 Now I went on beyond. 36:17 I reached things 36:19 that were beyond my comprehension in Year 10. 36:22 I hated school. I wanted to leave. 36:23 I wanted to become a farmer. 36:25 And so in 12th grade when I arrived there 36:27 I went into boarding school because I knew 36:30 that if I stayed at home I wouldn't do my school work, 36:32 I would go farming in the afternoons, 36:34 on the weekends, I wouldn't do my homework 36:36 and that wasn't in my best interest 36:38 if I was gonna be at school 36:39 I better do it properly. 36:40 So I went into this boarding dormitory 36:42 for the last 12 months of my time there 36:44 at the college. 36:45 And I got elected as student body president. 36:50 It was a school of 1,300 people. 36:53 There was a 180 classmates of mine in the 12th grade 36:56 graduating that year. 36:57 And a prefect body of 20 people was elected 37:00 from that and then two people, a boy and a girl, 37:04 male and female representative for the whole 37:06 student body was elected. 37:08 And I ended up being that person. 37:12 Miss Spence was the 12th coordinator and I was-- 37:16 I was in the prefect body 37:17 which she coordinated as well. 37:18 I was the head of the prefect body 37:20 and so I had opportunities to make public addresses 37:24 on several occasions to the entire student body. 37:27 Something that daunted me. 37:28 I just wanted to feed cows not talk to 1,300 people. 37:32 There was things that I had to do in the public, 37:34 I am representing the entire school 37:38 for a memorial day or different things. 37:41 These events Miss Spence was there to counsel me, 37:43 to encourage me, she was an English teacher 37:45 so she'd help me script my speeches 37:47 and we spend a lot of time together. 37:50 She invested a lot in me not only time but trust. 37:55 She had invested a lot of time and trust in me 37:57 and I was stupid enough to carry on the tradition 38:01 of being a hooligan the night before graduation. 38:06 It was a tradition in the school and I now say 38:08 that it's not a good tradition at all. 38:11 I thought it would be a fun tradition and all my friends 38:14 made it seem like we'd really enjoy it and you know 38:16 we had to go better than the year before. 38:19 And so what we did the night before school is that about 38:21 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning. 38:22 We snuck out of our dormitories. 38:26 It was summer time in Australia, so we're in shorts. 38:28 We were running around. We were free. 38:29 We're able-bodied. 38:31 We were running over to the agricultural shed 38:33 to steal the tractor because I was, 38:35 since I'm gonna be a farmer 38:36 I drove that, that was my responsibility. 38:38 We drove it on the awning, a raised awning 38:41 at the front of the school library 38:42 that was just newly completed renovations. 38:45 We took a can of pink paint. 38:47 We painted the blue tractor pink. 38:49 We took the battery out we put it on the roof 38:51 so that by the time the students got to school 38:54 a combination of an absent battery 38:55 and flat tires on the tractor 38:57 would mean that everybody in the school got to see 39:00 the shenanigans that we've been up to. 39:02 And we thought that was what we want, 39:03 that was what we wanted. 39:07 But that a combination of setting my math's classroom, 39:11 we set it up entirely. 39:12 Chairs, desks, teachers' cup of pencils, 39:16 textbooks all the rest everything was neat, 39:19 was neatly set up not in the classroom 39:21 but on the roof of the classroom. 39:23 Now to do that I needed to steal Miss Spence's key. 39:26 She was one of the ones that had the very few people 39:30 that had the key, a master key for the school. 39:32 So she had invested so much time, so much trust, 39:35 so much encouragement in me and I steal her keys 39:40 and let her down. 39:42 I mean, compared to Peter that's not too much. 39:45 But it was enough. 39:48 The proximity that I had in relationship to Miss Spence 39:51 and the probability of me 39:52 being the one that let her down 39:53 after she had invested so much was low. 39:55 Those two things compounded my guilt and that's why 39:59 I at the age of 18 was the only one weeping 40:04 like weeping seriously in those dormitories 40:07 while everyone else went through 40:08 the graduation seminar 40:11 I was weeping at the age of 18 40:13 because of the haunting spectra of guilt. 40:16 Now, I can sympathize with, with everyone here 40:21 that it's not easy to apologize. 40:24 It's not easy to accept that you failed someone 40:26 that you love, someone that means a lot to you. 40:29 I'm not saying that it's easy. 40:32 And I certainly don't think it was easy for Adam 40:34 in the Garden of Eden 40:35 and I know it wasn't easy for Peter 40:40 I know it wasn't easy for Peter 40:41 because my experience with guilt, 40:44 but as we look at these texts in the Bible 40:47 where God's revealed to us the solution for guilt, 40:49 the way we should respond to guilt when we become 40:53 subject to it, victims of it, 40:55 when we lose side of the freedom 40:57 that Christ wants to give us, 40:59 when we don't depend on Him and we stumble. 41:04 The Bible is full of promises to help us from stumbling. 41:08 James 4 verse 7, I believe it is, 41:10 is the one that comes to my mind 41:12 and we'll share it together quickly. 41:14 Just in case any of you ask some-- battling 41:17 with the temptation. 41:19 It says, submit to God in James Chapter 4 and verse 7. 41:23 "It says submit to God, resist the devil and he, 41:28 being the devil, will flee from you." 41:31 It's not an optional thing it says, 41:32 "If you submit to God he will flee from you." 41:38 If you resist the devil through God's power he will, 41:41 a definite article flee from you. 41:44 But sometimes we stumble. 41:46 I mean, Peter, who is the one 41:48 we'd least expect to stumble he stumbles. 41:50 He told us he wasn't gonna stumble. 41:52 He stumbled in a big way, three times, not ones, 41:55 not twice but three times. 41:58 Look with me at the way Peter responded. 42:02 It's not the way that I, that I feel like responding, 42:05 it's not the way that I felt like responding 42:07 to Miss Spence, even though I loved her so much 42:11 and she'd done so much for me 42:12 I never wanted to see her again, like never. 42:15 The longer it took for me to run into Miss Spence 42:17 the better. 42:19 Not because I thought any less of her 42:21 but I certainly thought a lot less of me. 42:25 God doesn't see it that way. 42:28 He promises us in First John 1 verse 9, 42:32 that if, another definite article, 42:35 "If we confess our sins, He is faithful 42:39 and just to forgive us of those sins 42:42 and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 42:45 We can't do that but He can. 42:49 If we submit to God, if we resist the devil through, 42:52 through God's power we can do that. 42:55 I'm not gonna look at what, what Peter did through 42:57 God's power in the ministry when he dealt 43:00 with the haunting spectra of guilt. 43:03 But he had to deal with it, 43:05 otherwise he'd end up like Judas. 43:08 How many of us want to end up like Judas? 43:10 I certainly don't. I certainly don't. 43:14 Don't give up. Do not give up. 43:17 Don't let guilt get you down when God's calling for you, 43:22 calling for me and calling for you. 43:27 I want you to, to go forth from today 43:30 and emulate Peter's patience. 43:34 We're up to our fourth P. 43:35 I want you to emulate Peter's patience 43:40 when he was weighed down with guilt 43:42 more than we can imagine. 43:44 We're gonna turn to Luke Chapter 24, 43:49 the 24th Chapter of Luke back to the third gospel. 43:54 Luke Chapter 24 and we're gonna read 43:57 verses 9 through 12 together. 44:00 So I'll give you a moment of time while you turn 44:01 to Luke Chapter 24 verses 9 through 12. 44:09 Starting in verse 9 of Luke Chapter 24, 44:11 it reads as follows, speaking with relation 44:15 to the women, this is on Sunday 44:18 the first day of the week, 44:20 it records in Luke 24 here. 44:24 Christ was put into the tomb on the, on the Friday, 44:28 the preparation day the Bible calls it. 44:31 And the women ceased to prepare His body for burial 44:35 because they wanted to keep the Sabbath that their Lord 44:38 was Lord of and so they rested on the, 44:41 on the Sabbath day and they came back 44:43 on the first day of the week, the Bible calls it 44:45 to finish the preparations of His body 44:48 for the custom of burial that took place in those days. 44:52 Now this is what they report to these men that they find. 44:57 Starting in verse 9, "Then they returned from the tomb 45:02 and told all of these things to the eleven 45:04 and told all the rest." 45:06 Now all of these things is it they found the tomb 45:08 was empty and two angels presented themselves 45:11 to the women and said "Be happy your Lord is risen." 45:17 I mean, this would have to be probably 45:18 the greatest day in human history, 45:20 the crucifixion is great 45:21 but the resurrection gives us hope. 45:24 Paul speaks in the New Testament of the fact that, 45:26 "If there is no resurrection our faith is in vain." 45:31 So the resurrection is like the pinnacle, 45:35 certainly of these people's lives and when we think 45:38 on the resurrection it should be 45:39 the pinnacle of our daily thoughts. 45:42 It's the hope that we have for that life after. 45:49 Verse 9 continues, that verse 10 sorry, 45:54 "It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, 45:57 Mary the mother of James and the other women with them 46:01 who told these things to the Apostles." 46:05 Remember from verse 9 that there was eleven. 46:08 That's gonna be important for us 46:09 to understand the impact of this. 46:11 There was eleven men that these women returned 46:14 after seeing two angels and they told them 46:17 that their Lord had risen. 46:18 Now the situation that these eleven men find themselves 46:22 in the Bible says there was others, 46:23 but let's focus on the eleven. 46:25 These are eleven men. 46:27 Let's just think with our knowledge of the Bible 46:30 limited or extensive. 46:32 What were these eleven men doing? 46:36 It was twelve but Judas couldn't handle 46:38 the guilt of the betrayal of Christ. 46:39 So now it's down to eleven disciples 46:41 and for three and a half years, friends. 46:46 Like I didn't want to finish school 46:47 and that was just two years 46:48 but these guys do it for three and a half years 46:52 and I didn't have to sacrifice anything to do 46:54 two years of school. 46:55 My parents promised to feed me, to house me, 46:57 to take care of me, to provide with transportation 46:59 when I did my two years of school. 47:00 But these men left everything for Christ 47:05 for three and a half years and they followed Christ 47:09 step by step by step by step for three and a half years. 47:14 When they first came to Him they said, 47:16 "Where do You sleep?" 47:18 They wanted to know what He ate. 47:19 They wanted to know every word 47:20 that He had to say to them. 47:23 He'd speak to the public and then they want more 47:26 in private counsel. 47:27 Jesus told them this. 47:29 When the disciples had come apart Jesus told them this 47:32 and He gave them all of His attention, 47:35 all of His energy for three and a half years 47:37 and these men sacrificed a lot 47:38 to put themselves in that position, 47:40 in that proximity to Christ. 47:44 And so they've got all of their eggs in one basket. 47:48 As we study the Bible we see that the disciples 47:50 had a false conception that's why, 47:53 that's why Peter said, yeah, 47:55 "Far be it from You, Lord, 47:56 that you should suffer these things." 47:58 Because he wanted Christ to become a king 48:00 on a throne and rule forever 48:03 when Christ came to die on a cross, 48:06 before He came back and resurrected us 48:08 and then rule forever. 48:10 But the disciples they didn't want to comprehend that. 48:14 So they've got all of their eggs 48:15 that Christ will become their king. 48:16 They've got them all in one basket 48:18 and when he comes into the city 48:19 they're singing "Hosanna, Hosanna," 48:20 you know, they're thinking He's gonna sit on the throne 48:22 and do what they want Him to do. 48:24 But they're marching along with all of their eggs 48:26 in one basket and they get to the cross of Calvary 48:28 and they trip and drop them. 48:32 Three and a half years of hopes, dreams, expectations, 48:35 investment of time, sacrifice of energy of-- 48:40 Of everything. 48:42 An immense amount of faith was required of these men 48:44 to follow Christ for three and a half years 48:46 and then they trip at the cross because He does 48:48 what they didn't want Him to do. 48:51 And so there's eleven men in a room 48:53 and these women return and they say, 48:55 hey, hey, He's risen. 48:57 The three and a half years that you've just expended 48:59 in following Christ to learn of Him so that you can share 49:03 His message with the world 49:05 and give them a more abundant life, 49:07 He has risen, the tomb is empty. 49:11 And notice with me the ridiculousness, 49:14 the absolute preposterous stupidity of this event. 49:19 We're gonna read, we're gonna continue reading here. 49:23 It's in verse 11, where these men respond this way, 49:27 "Their words, the women's words seem to them 49:31 like idle tales, and they didn't believe them." 49:36 Eleven men, three and a half years of their lives, 49:41 their expectations, their hopes are dashed 49:43 because Christ is dead. 49:44 I mean, no one puts a dead king on a throne, 49:47 or a dead man on the throne of a king. 49:50 And then, they look, they look at the door 49:53 and it swings open and these women come in 49:55 and they have a, a glisten of hope, 49:57 a ray of light to revive their hopes, 50:00 their expectations, maybe it's possible. 50:02 Maybe we misunderstood something and Jesus is back 50:05 and maybe He didn't really die or whatever 50:08 they might have thought but it had to be 50:11 some glimmer of hope, 50:12 some light at the end of the tunnel. 50:14 And they say, "They're idle words we don't believe." 50:21 Now there's eleven there. 50:23 Notice with me verse 12, 50:26 "But Peter arose and ran to the tomb." 50:33 "But Peter arose and ran to the tomb, stooping down, 50:37 he saw the linen cloths lying by themselves 50:41 and he departed marveling to himself 50:44 of what had happened." 50:47 Hold on. 50:49 The Bible just told us that several women 50:51 went to the tomb to finish preparing 50:53 Jesus' body for burial. 50:55 They returned because he wasn't there 50:56 and two angels told them that He had risen. 51:00 And these eleven men sitting there, 51:02 that have all believed the same thing 51:03 and they all wanted the same thing 51:04 and this is the hope of that thing 51:06 becoming a reality possibly. 51:10 And this book here says but Peter, 51:13 it doesn't mention anyone else 51:14 but in the Gospel of John written by John. 51:16 John humorously suggests or informs us 51:19 that he ran to the tomb as well and it's probably 51:24 an essential part of the story but I just haven't understood 51:27 the effects of it but he beat Peter 51:29 maybe that's important, I'll understand that later 51:31 maybe but John tells us 51:33 that he ran to the tomb as well 51:35 and he beat Peter there. 51:37 Now let's forget about John 51:39 because John didn't deny Christ that way. 51:41 He was very close to Christ but he didn't deny Christ 51:43 that same way. 51:46 But verse 12 says, "But Peter ran to the tomb 51:53 and stooped down to see 51:55 if what the women said was true." 51:59 I know that on graduation morning 52:02 I did not run to Miss Spence. 52:05 I did not run to Miss Spence I'd mentioned before that, 52:09 no offense to her but I didn't wanna see her again. 52:11 I didn't wanna see my father again when both of them 52:14 walked into my presence when I eventually 52:16 had to face them, become a man and face them, 52:19 I wept in front of them. I was not a man at all. 52:21 I wept bitterly. 52:24 And no apology could, could, could rectify the things 52:27 that I'd done. 52:29 I'd abused their trust. I'd blown it. 52:30 I'd done it. 52:31 Just the same as Peter here in the Bible 52:33 had blown it. He'd done it. 52:34 There was nothing he could do to reverse the time, 52:39 but he runs to Christ. 52:42 Now turn with me quickly, we'll see it again here. 52:46 John 21, the last of the four gospels John 21 52:53 and I wanna look at verse 9. 52:58 Verse, I'll read verse 4 through 9, 53:00 and we'll read them together quickly. 53:02 John 21 verse 4 through 9. 53:06 It says, "But when the morning had now come, 53:10 Jesus stood on the shore, yet the disciples 53:13 did not know that it was Jesus. 53:16 And he said to them, Children, have you any food? 53:21 And they answered Him, No." 53:23 They didn't know who it was 53:25 but they answered his question. 53:26 "He says, Cast the net on the right side of the boat." 53:30 The side that was closest to him. 53:32 It's suggested by Bible commentators that, 53:34 that's the side of faith. 53:36 "Cast it on the right side of the boat, 53:39 and you will find some. 53:42 So they cast and now they were not able 53:45 to draw it in because of the multitude of fish." 53:49 Verse 7, "Therefore the disciple whom Jesus loved 53:54 said to Peter," So John said to Peter, "It is the Lord. 54:01 And now when Simon Peter had heard that it was the Lord 54:04 he put on his outer garment for he had removed it 54:07 and plunged into the sea. 54:11 But the other disciples came in the little boat 54:16 for they were not far out from the land 54:18 but about 200 cubits, 54:22 dragging the net with the fish." 54:24 Now in both of those passages we see this 54:26 but that separates Peter from the other disciples 54:31 and Peter's patience is not patience at all. 54:34 He was completely impatient to return to his Savior 54:38 even though he had botched it. 54:40 He blew it. He let him down. 54:44 And Peter runs to Christ. 54:47 He dives in the boat, dives out of the boat 54:49 into the water fully clothed and swims to Christ. 54:54 Friends, that's not what I've done in the past 54:58 when I'm guilty but Christ is different. 55:03 He never holds a feeling, a grudge. 55:06 He doesn't hold it against us. 55:08 He says, "Come unto me, confess your sins, 55:12 I will forgive them." 55:15 Turn with me to Hebrews Chapter 7, 55:19 to a book that divides the Apostles and the letters. 55:23 We're gonna look in Hebrew's Chapter 7 and verse 25 55:28 and this is what it says. 55:30 Hebrews Chapter 7 verse 25, 55:39 "Therefore He is also able to save 55:44 under the uttermost 55:47 for those who come to God through Him." 55:51 For those who come to God through Christ. 55:53 He is able to save without a shadow of a doubt. Why? 55:58 Verse 25 "Since He always lives 56:03 to make intercession for them." 56:06 Friends, if you're guilty, if you've let Christ down. 56:10 He lives to make intercession for you. 56:12 You're not waking Him up out of bed 56:14 and being a disturbance to him. 56:15 You're not distracting Him from any important business 56:17 that He has to do. 56:19 That's what He lives for, friends. 56:21 He lives to make intersession for you. 56:26 run to Him. 56:27 Don't let His ministry be in vain 56:30 because He has a ministry for us. 56:33 Isaiah 49 says that, "A direct purpose, 56:36 our only purpose is to bring people back to God, 56:39 to be the light that saves men." 56:43 Friends, there's a verse in Acts Chapter 4, 56:47 I'm gonna read it quickly in closing here to show you 56:50 the power that Peter had in his ministry 56:54 because he had the guts to overcome guilt. 56:59 Friends, I could share text after text after text 57:02 with you from the Book of Acts 57:03 to communicate to you the power of Peter's ministry 57:06 not because he was perfect 57:08 but because he was diligent 57:09 and he ran to Christ and overcame guilt. 57:12 Friends, remember one thing he was not perfect. 57:15 He was diligent. |
Revised 2014-12-17