Participants:
Series Code: TWH
Program Code: TWH180407A
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00:32 I would like to at this point go to the Lord in prayer.
00:36 I know we have prayed, 00:38 but I think you may remember 00:40 that I like to go to the Lord in prayer once again 00:43 before we present God's message. 00:45 So I'm going to kneel, 00:48 I ask you to pray for me and pray for yourselves 00:50 and we're going to ask the Lord to bless us. 00:57 Our loving, Heavenly Father, 01:00 we thank You for this moment 01:01 that we can come before Your throne of grace, 01:05 and we come in Jesus name. 01:08 And, Lord, You know each and every person here, 01:12 each and every person 01:14 that may listen to this message, 01:16 so we pray that You will speak to them. 01:20 I place myself in Your hands 01:23 so that every word will come from Your throne of grace. 01:27 And, Lord, we ask 01:29 for the outpouring of Your Holy Spirit. 01:32 We pray for Your name to be glorified 01:35 and Your children to be edified. 01:37 In Jesus Holy and blessed name, amen. 01:42 Amen. 01:43 The Bible tells us that Jesus came to seek 01:47 and to save that which was lost. 01:51 He came and lived among us 01:53 and He went from place to place 01:56 doing good. 02:00 As you look at history, 02:01 you find a very interesting story 02:04 of a soldier name Scott O'Grady, 02:07 perhaps you've heard about Scott O'Grady. 02:10 Scott O'Grady was in the military, 02:14 and on June 2nd 1995, 02:18 in the Bosnia Serb area, his plane was shot down. 02:23 He along with another plane were doing a routine mission 02:29 when he was shot down. 02:33 According to the story, 02:35 the Bosnia and Herzegovina, 02:39 they had a mobile launcher 02:42 and these were trying 02:46 to shoot the US 02:50 and other places and the NATO soldiers. 02:53 And as they were flying 02:54 with their jets on a routine mission, 02:57 these people would just activate their radar 03:00 at the least moment of opportunity 03:04 for airplanes to be able to determine where they were. 03:07 And as these planes were passing by, 03:09 they launched the first missile 03:11 and the first missile exploded between the two planes. 03:16 The next one 03:17 hit Scott O'Grady's 03:20 F-16 airplane. 03:26 The airplane broke into 03:30 and the airplane in front of them 03:31 just saw a ball of fire exploding, 03:36 never saw that Scott O'Grady ejected 03:40 from the plane 03:42 and he thought that Scott O'Grady was dead. 03:45 But Scott O'Grady landed in enemy territory 03:50 and as he was in this territory, 03:53 he began a journey to save his life, 03:57 running from place to place 04:00 and using what he had learned to survive, 04:04 he ate leaves, he ate bugs in order to survive only 04:08 activating his radio just at moments when needed 04:13 because he sent a signal for them to say, 04:17 as soon as he landed, he said, "I am alive." 04:23 And they received this signal, 04:26 and from time to time 04:27 he would just activate his radio 04:29 just for a moment, just to send like a beacon, 04:32 letting them know, "I am still alive." 04:36 So for six days he ran from place to place. 04:39 As soon as he was shot down, the enemies tried to find him, 04:43 he covered his face with dirt, 04:45 put his face upside down on the ground, 04:48 didn't move at all, and they shot within a feet. 04:52 Feet of him, very close, several times 04:56 as he was running, he was chased 04:59 and they tried to catch him 05:00 but somehow, miraculously, he survived. 05:06 And on June 8, 1995 05:09 at 6:35 am, right at midnight, 05:14 he sent a message and said to them, 05:16 "I am alive, I'm going to send you 05:19 a signal of my location." 05:22 He was hoping 05:24 that they would come to rescue him. 05:26 And at 6:35 am, 05:28 four helicopters zeroed in on his location 05:32 and went under enemy radar to try to rescue him. 05:37 One helicopter landed, 20 marines ran out, 05:41 trying to secure the perimeter for the other aircrafts 05:44 that would come and land. 05:46 And the other helicopter landed 05:49 and just as the second helicopter landed, 05:51 20 marines started to come out 05:53 and Scott O'Grady was coming, running with a pistol. 05:56 They identified him, pulled him in, 06:00 he was tired and weak from all the running 06:03 and from trying to survive for six days. 06:08 And they took off and they brought him home. 06:12 The rescue took under seven minutes, a miraculous. 06:17 It's one of the greatest survival stories 06:20 and rescues the US military has performed. 06:24 But there is a greater rescue and that is the rescue 06:27 that Jesus Christ came to do for each and every one of us. 06:32 All the forces of heaven are at work for your salvation. 06:38 Angels are commissioned to help you 06:42 each and every single day. 06:45 And you and I are not aware of the fights and struggles 06:50 that take place to keep you safe 06:52 because Satan and all his evil angels 06:56 would love to destroy you at every moment of your life, 07:01 specially, if you are a one that is letting your light 07:06 so shine before men 07:07 that they may see your good works 07:09 and glorify your Heavenly Father. 07:13 And so I say to you, 07:15 you are very special to the Lord. 07:19 Just as the military sent 07:20 all these soldiers to rescue one man... 07:26 God in His supreme love and His love 07:29 that we cannot comprehend wants to save you, 07:34 and I praise the Lord for that. 07:36 I would like to encourage you to consider 07:38 that God loves you more than you can imagine. 07:41 And He wants more than anything that you become His child 07:47 and follow Him all the days of your life 07:50 and receive His protection. 07:53 I praise the Lord that I can look back in life 07:57 and see a few moments 07:58 when I know that the Lord saved me from death. 08:02 I remember, as a little boy, 08:06 I was in a house in Dominican Republic 08:09 and a lady said, 08:10 "Go over there and get so and so." 08:14 I was tiny, 08:15 I think I was younger than Benjamin, 08:18 and I was given a mission 08:19 and I ran out to complete this mission. 08:23 I ran out into the street without looking 08:27 and I heard a car stop 08:32 within feet, 08:33 a foot or two of me. 08:36 My heart was beating. 08:38 I had never felt my heart beat so hard before. 08:42 I knew that I could have almost... 08:44 That I could have been killed. 08:46 I was scared and for a long time 08:49 that heart, little heart kept beating. 08:51 That's one of the times that I can look back 08:54 and see that God miraculously saved me. 08:59 Is there anybody here 09:00 that could say God miraculously saved me at some point? 09:03 Praise the Lord. 09:05 And those are the ones that you know 09:08 and God is going to tell you many more times. 09:11 When the enemy wanted to kill you 09:14 but God stopped him, and I praise the Lord. 09:16 God wants to bless you as you live upon this earth, 09:19 and I want to invite you to join me 09:22 in Deuteronomy 30:8-9. 09:27 Deuteronomy 30:8-9. 09:31 Some of you may be able to read this on the screen 09:35 and the Bible says, 09:36 "And you will again obey the voice of the Lord 09:40 and do all His commandments which I command you today. 09:43 The Lord, your God will make you abound 09:46 in all the work of your hand, in the fruit of your body, 09:50 in the increase of your livestock, 09:52 and in the produce of your land for good. 09:55 For the Lord will again rejoice over you for good 10:01 as He rejoiced over your fathers." 10:04 The Lord takes care of us more than we know 10:08 and, you know, He is constantly 10:10 at work to uphold us, help us, and keep us going. 10:14 How many of you 10:15 through the night hire some special doctors 10:18 and things to keep your heart going? 10:20 No, the Lord keeps your heart going, 10:22 the Lord keeps you breathing at night. 10:26 And I've heard through my lifetime, 10:28 "It's a good thing that some things are automatic, 10:30 otherwise some of us would forget to breathe 10:33 or even to keep our hearts moving." 10:36 The Lord has made a wonderful creation 10:39 in the human body. 10:41 I praise the Lord for the things 10:44 that I have learned 10:45 about the marvelous work of how God keeps us alive. 10:50 Blood flowing, heart beating, breathing that takes place, 10:55 digestion is a miraculous process, 10:58 God takes care of us. 11:00 In Jeremiah 29:11, 11:06 we have a message from the Lord 11:07 that I believe, perhaps, 11:09 one individual here has memorized. 11:12 And you may remember it as I begin to read it. 11:15 Jeremiah 29:11, the Bible says, 11:19 "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, 11:23 says the Lord, 11:24 thoughts of peace and not of evil, 11:27 to give you a future and a hope." 11:29 What kind of thoughts does the Lord have for us? 11:33 Thoughts of peace. God wants us to be happy. 11:38 And our greatest happiness is found in loving God 11:43 and doing His will, loving God and doing His will 11:48 and there is as the Bible says, 11:51 "At the presence of the Lord, 11:53 there is fullness of joy." 11:57 The Bible says, "The great peace have 11:59 they which love the Lord 12:01 and love the law and follow Him." 12:05 One of the psalms 12:06 that I like to read is Psalms 103. 12:09 I would like to invite you there 12:11 to read a few verses. 12:12 Psalms 103. 12:16 Psalms 103, if you found it say amen. 12:20 Let's read beginning in verse 1, 12:22 "Bless the Lord, O my soul. 12:25 And all that is within me, bless His holy name! 12:30 Bless the Lord, O my soul, 12:32 and forget not all His benefits." 12:36 Praise the Lord. 12:37 "Who forgives all your iniquities, 12:40 Who heals all your diseases, 12:42 Who redeems your life from destruction, 12:46 Who crowns you with loving kindness 12:48 and tender mercies, 12:49 Who satisfies your mouth with good things 12:52 so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's." 12:57 Praise the Lord. 12:59 Those are wonderful scriptures that help us understand 13:03 the good things 13:05 that the Lord is willing to do for us. 13:09 Wow! 13:10 He satisfies your mouth with good things. 13:13 Praise the Lord. 13:16 And the Lord is watching over us constantly. 13:23 There is a scripture that says, "Some people trust in chariots, 13:26 some in horses but I will trust in the Lord." 13:31 Today you could say, 13:32 "Well, some people trust in their cars, 13:35 in their alarm systems, 13:38 maybe in their guns or weapons they may have." 13:41 Or we could say, "I would trust in the Lord." 13:47 I encourage you to trust in the Lord and remember 13:51 that He loves you. 13:53 "Forget not all His benefits." 13:55 Some of our sufferings come because we forget His benefits, 14:00 we forget 14:02 that God has helped us in the past, 14:04 and we focus on the problem in the moment 14:07 that we are facing it, 14:09 and forget that God carried us 14:11 through worst things than those before. 14:14 We forget His benefits, 14:16 and it is for our good to remember His benefits, 14:21 the goodness that God has done for us. 14:24 It is a good practice from time to time to stop and say, 14:29 "Let's see, what am I thankful for?" 14:32 I said this before but I'm going to say it again 14:33 because, perhaps, 14:35 there is someone here that hasn't heard it. 14:37 A gentleman called 3ABN one time out of the blue, 14:41 took me by surprise, 14:42 "What do I have to be thankful for?" 14:46 That was an interesting question. 14:47 All kinds of Bible question come to 3ABN 14:50 but this one was kind of different. 14:52 What do I have to be thankful for? 14:54 And the Lord was kind to me and said, I asked him, 14:59 "Are you in a prison right now?" 15:01 He said, "No." 15:02 Well, you should be thankful for that. 15:04 "Are you in the hospital right now?" 15:07 "No." 15:08 You should be thankful for that. 15:09 How about this? "Are you in an insane asylum?" 15:14 He said, "No, I guess I do have some things 15:17 to be thankful for." 15:20 We have many things to be thankful for 15:23 and it's a good practice to start from time to time 15:26 and look back, what do I have to be thankful for? 15:28 You may remember some great things 15:30 the Lord has done for you recently 15:32 but there are things that God does that sometimes 15:36 they are as unnoticed by us. 15:39 And when the Lord does something 15:41 that you are aware of, thank Him for it. 15:46 And thank Him for those things that you may not even remember 15:49 that He has done, for the Lord has done 15:53 so many wonderful things for us. 15:55 I invite you to continue in Psalms 103:11, 15:59 "For as the heavens are high above the earth, 16:04 so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him." 16:09 Wonderful, verse 12, 16:11 "As far as the east is from the west, 16:14 so far has He removed our transgressions from us. 16:18 As a father pities his children, 16:21 so the Lord pities those who fear Him. 16:24 For He knows our frame, He remembers that we are dust." 16:30 Praise the Lord. 16:33 It's marvelous to consider the blessings of the Lord. 16:38 And as you consider the blessings of the Lord, 16:40 you are drawing close to the Lord 16:44 and you began to be more aware 16:46 of His presence because we have been promised, 16:50 "I will never leave you nor forsake you." 16:54 Praise the Lord. 16:57 I would like to turn now to Matthew 11. 17:01 In Matthew 11, 17:02 you know, we go through many sufferings in life, 17:05 many stresses of life, and unfortunately, as humans, 17:10 we focus on the stress, we focus on the problem, 17:13 we worry about what's going to happen, 17:16 how is this going to turn out, 17:17 how am I going to be able to do this, 17:19 how am I going to be able do that, 17:21 how in the world will I survive this or survive that. 17:25 And I praise the Lord that I can look back and say, 17:27 "Wow, I worried for nothing." 17:31 Because God, in His marvelous ways, 17:34 takes care of us. 17:35 In Matthew 11:28-30, a familiar passage, 17:39 let's consider it again with me 17:42 and ask the Lord to reveal something new to you 17:45 as we read verse 28 and onwards, Jesus says, 17:48 "Come to Me all you who labor and are heavy laden, 17:54 and I will give you rest. 17:57 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, 18:01 for I am gentle and lowly in heart, 18:05 and you will find rest for your souls, 18:07 for My yoke is easy and My burden is light." 18:12 You know, people need rest, 18:18 people need rest. 18:21 Rest from their work, rest from worry, 18:26 rest from anxiety, rest from depression, 18:30 rest from your own thoughts that may torment you, 18:35 we need rest 18:38 and Jesus offers that rest. 18:42 And that's why He says, 18:43 "Come to Me, come to Me 18:46 and I will give you rest." 18:50 And that rest is available to us all the time. 18:55 You know, there are people 18:58 that need to know that God is love. 19:02 You may not remember all the verses in the scripture 19:04 or verses that you would like to remember, 19:06 but remember, God loves you. 19:11 This will carry you through difficult times, 19:14 darkest moments, God loves me. 19:18 And whatever I am going through, 19:20 for some reason, God has allowed this, 19:23 for some reason, for my own good. 19:27 Now we caused ourselves some trouble. 19:29 Is anybody here willing to admit 19:30 that you have caused yourself some trouble? 19:32 Have you caused yourself some trouble? 19:34 I have caused myself some unnecessary trouble. 19:37 And I say, 19:39 "Why in the world did I do that?" 19:41 Unnecessary trouble. 19:42 Sometimes it cost us money, sometimes it cost us time, 19:46 sometimes it cost us pain. 19:51 And I've heard some people say, "You are your own worst enemy." 19:57 Wow. Make friends with yourself. 20:04 Joe O'Brien has in his office, 20:06 "Destroy your enemies, make them your friends." 20:09 That's a good... 20:11 I like that. 20:12 Destroy your enemy, make them your friends 20:15 because when you have enemies, 20:19 it is unpleasant and it's a burden for you. 20:24 There are some enemies 20:25 that choose to become your enemies 20:26 and there is nothing you can do about it. 20:29 There's nothing you can do about it, 20:31 but stay close to the Lord 20:34 and let your light so shine before men 20:37 even those who you think hates you. 20:39 They may see your good works 20:41 and glorify your Heavenly Father. 20:43 You see, only by love is love awakened. 20:47 Doing good to others does you good. 20:53 Doing good to others does you good as well. 20:56 So I encourage you to do good. 20:58 I've heard some people say, "Do random acts of kindness." 21:03 Praise the Lord. 21:05 You know, God is willing to guide you. 21:07 God is willing to bless you with long life and peace. 21:12 There are many things that God is willing to do. 21:14 He is willing to deliver you from the stress and unrest, 21:20 depression and suffering. 21:23 I would like to point you to another scripture 21:25 that is of great blessing. 21:26 Proverbs 3. 21:29 Proverbs 3, and in Proverbs 3, 21:32 we have another message from the Lord 21:34 that deserves our attention. 21:36 Proverbs 3 beginning in verse 1, 21:40 and so we see there a message from the Lord for us, 21:43 if you found this, say amen. 21:45 Amen. 21:46 We read, "My son, do not forget my law, 21:50 but let your heart keep my commands." 21:53 Why? Why? 21:55 "For length of days and long life and peace 22:00 they will add to you." 22:02 Wow, there's a benefit in obeying the Lord. 22:06 Length of days, long life and peace they will add to you. 22:10 Verse 3, "Let not mercy and truth forsake you, 22:13 bind them around your neck, 22:15 write them on the tablet of your heart." 22:18 Commit them to memory. 22:19 "And so find favor and high esteem 22:22 in the sight of God and man." 22:24 Notice verse 5, 22:26 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, 22:29 and lean not on your own understanding. 22:32 In all your ways, acknowledge Him, 22:34 and He shall direct your path." 22:38 Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord. 22:44 In the Book of Mark, 22:46 we have a story of the disciples 22:49 and you've heard this story, you've read this story. 22:51 The disciples are in this boat. 22:53 And as this boat is facing a storm 22:58 and they were getting wet 22:59 and the wind is blowing and tossing them here 23:02 and tossing them there 23:03 and the boat is filling up with water. 23:06 This is in Mark 4, 23:08 "They are afraid they're going to die." 23:12 They're trying to get the water out, 23:13 they're trying to keep the boat afloat 23:15 and, interestingly, in this story 23:18 with all the commotion with thunder and lightning 23:22 and all the commotion the disciples are making, 23:26 the Bible says 23:28 that Jesus was sleeping through this thing. 23:32 Now He must have been very tired. 23:34 I know some people 23:35 that sleep really heavy in my family. 23:41 I'm not going to name any of them. 23:46 But I've tried to wake this young man up... 23:51 And it's hard. 23:54 It's amazing. 23:56 Sleeps... 23:57 I mean... 23:59 But Jesus was sleeping in this boat 24:00 through all of this commotion. 24:02 And finally the disciples notice Him, 24:05 perhaps, some lightning showed 24:07 where He was and they remember, "Jesus is with us." 24:12 Maybe He can... 24:13 Maybe He can... 24:15 Maybe He can get us out this situation." 24:19 Maybe He can. 24:21 So they say to Him, 24:22 "Jesus, don't you care that we perish?" 24:24 Now I don't know what was in their mind. 24:26 Did they think Jesus was going to help get the water out? 24:29 I wonder what was in their mind. 24:31 That's a question I would like to ask them. 24:33 "Hey, guy, by the way, remember that day? 24:37 What were you thinking Jesus was going to do?" 24:40 Maybe they thought 24:41 He's going to give them encouragement 24:43 to go through this, 24:44 "Hey, let's face this together, guys. 24:46 Here, lets... 24:47 Maybe we can do this." 24:48 But no, they had no idea. How do I know? 24:51 The surprise at what Jesus did. 24:55 What did Jesus do? 24:57 It's amazing. 24:58 The Bible tells us that He said, 25:01 "Peace, be still." 25:06 And they were amazed that He could command the wind 25:10 and the sea and they would obey Him. 25:13 And if Jesus can calm the storm they were facing, 25:18 He can calm the storm you're facing. 25:22 And that's a fact. 25:25 Praise the Lord. 25:27 So I encourage you to trust 25:29 in the Lord with all your heart, 25:31 and lean not upon your own understanding. 25:33 In all your ways, in sufferings, in difficulties, 25:37 acknowledge Him and He will direct your path." 25:41 Praise the Lord. 25:42 Another wonderful scripture is found in Isaiah 41. 25:45 Isaiah 41. 25:48 Will you join me please in Isaiah 41? 25:52 In Isaiah 41 we have a scripture 25:55 that I heard somebody quote this week 25:58 and I can't remember 25:59 who it was but it's a powerful scripture. 26:02 In Isaiah 41:10, the Bible says, 26:07 "Fear not, for I am with you. 26:10 Be not dismayed, for I am your God. 26:14 I will strengthen you. Yes, I will help you. 26:19 I will uphold you with My righteous right hand." 26:23 Praise God. 26:25 He's trying to give us a message. 26:27 If we understand it and embrace it, 26:30 we're going to eliminate a lot of fear from our lives. 26:37 "Be not dismayed." 26:39 In other words, "Be encouraged, for I am your God." 26:44 And when you remember, when you believe, 26:46 and you understand 26:47 that your God is the almighty God, 26:50 the only true God, 26:52 then you can face life's challenges 26:56 with less stress, less doubt, and fear 27:01 because He will give you strength. 27:04 In fact this verse says, "He will uphold you." 27:07 Praise God. "He will strengthen you." 27:09 Praise the Lord. 27:11 Perhaps you'd need strength some time. 27:14 Perhaps your difficulties you thought were overwhelming, 27:19 and that you could not carry them, and it's true. 27:22 Many of the trials we bear, we cannot carry them alone. 27:27 I have no idea how people survive 27:30 without the Lord. 27:32 How in the world do they go through this life 27:34 and survive without the Lord. 27:36 The Bible says, 27:38 "There's no peace for the wicked." 27:40 How in the world they survive? 27:42 That's why a lot of people spend 27:44 a lot of money 27:45 on psychologists, psychiatrists, 27:47 take pills for different types of things 27:51 that if they would just give those to the Lord, 27:55 all the stress of life, 27:57 they would find rest in the Lord 28:01 and peace in the Lord. 28:04 I want to encourage you to trust Him no matter 28:08 what is happening. 28:11 I would like to bring to you another scripture 28:16 that is found in 28:17 1 Peter 5. 28:23 1 Peter 5. 28:26 In 1 Peter 5, we have our scripture reading 28:30 in verse 6 and 7. 28:35 In 1 Peter 5:6-7. 28:39 If you found it, say amen. 28:42 Notice, "Therefore, humble yourselves 28:45 under the mighty hand of God, 28:48 that He may exalt you in due time, 28:51 casting all your care upon Him, 28:55 for He cares for you." 28:59 Praise the Lord. 29:00 He does what? He cares for you. 29:04 I believe it. 29:08 I encourage you to believe it. He cares for you. 29:12 There is something that Sister Ellen G. White 29:18 wrote that... 29:20 From time to time I try to find this 29:22 because it has been such a blessing to me. 29:26 And I said, "I would like to share this 29:28 with the congregation." 29:30 And the Lord was kind and it's interesting 29:32 because I have looked for this before 29:34 and couldn't find it. 29:35 And the Lord was kind 29:36 just before coming up this morning, I found it. 29:40 And I would like to share this with you. 29:41 It's marvelous. 29:42 This is from a book called Christ's Object Lessons. 29:45 If you haven't read it, I encourage you to read it. 29:48 In Christ's Object Lessons, page 174, 29:53 this is what we find... 30:00 "Never is one repulsed who comes to Him 30:03 with a contrite heart. 30:05 Not one sincere prayer is lost." 30:09 Not one sincere prayer is lost. Now notice this. 30:12 This is the part. 30:13 "Amid the anthems of the celestial choirs," 30:18 now imagine the scene. 30:19 You would listen... 30:21 God is listening to the celestial choirs 30:22 and those beautiful voices sounding, 30:25 beautiful instrument, and He's listening to all 30:28 of this spectacular marvelous praise. 30:32 I start again. 30:34 "Amid the anthems of the celestial choir, 30:36 God hears the cries 30:39 of the weakest human being." 30:43 Wow! 30:46 God is listening 30:47 to the marvelous music of heaven, 30:49 and He hears the cry of the weakest human being. 30:54 He has compassion on us. 30:56 He sends His angels to minister to us, 30:59 to help us look to Jesus. 31:02 You're facing this trial, look to Jesus. 31:04 He is here. 31:06 He will strengthen you, He will help you. 31:08 Let me read a little bit more of this. 31:12 "We pour out our heart's desire in our closets, 31:15 we breathe a prayer as we walk by the way, 31:18 and our words reach the throne of the Monarch of the universe. 31:23 They may be inaudible to any human ear, 31:26 but they cannot die away into silence, 31:29 nor can they be lost 31:30 through the activities of business 31:32 that are going on. 31:33 Nothing can drown the soul's desire. 31:37 It rises above the din of the street, 31:39 above the confusion of the multitude, 31:42 to the heavenly courts. 31:44 It is God to whom we are speaking, 31:47 and our prayer is heard." 31:50 Praise God. Take courage. 31:54 God loves you. 31:55 He hears every prayer, 31:58 every thought, every sad note in your heart. 32:02 He hears, draws near to you. 32:05 He tries to lift you up, and try to help us understand, 32:09 "Don't look at the problem, look to Jesus, look to Jesus." 32:14 He is your strength 32:17 in darkness, in light, 32:20 in happiness, and sadness, Jesus is with us. 32:26 And He said, He will never leave us nor forsake us. 32:30 And to that I praise the Lord. 32:34 We have an enemy that is against us 32:37 and that is the devils and Satan. 32:39 I have said before that he wants to destroy us, 32:44 he wants to take our peace from us, 32:46 that's why he tries to distract us 32:48 every day from coming to Jesus, 32:51 from coming to Jesus in prayer, 32:53 from coming to Jesus in study of His Word, 32:56 something encouraging. 32:58 He tries to draw our attention to other things. 33:02 I thank the Lord that 33:04 I see people sharing scriptures 33:08 and stories that draw people to the Lord 33:11 in these many things of the social media. 33:13 Some are just sharing funny things, 33:16 but the Lord is using people to also share good things. 33:21 And I encourage you to share good things 33:23 to encourage other people. 33:24 In Job 1 the Lord is trying to teach us something. 33:29 Job 1, I would like to invite you 33:30 to turn there to Job 1. 33:33 And we're going to read a few verses 33:35 just to get a glimpse of what takes place 33:39 as we face life. 33:41 Job 1:6-10. If you found that, say amen. 33:46 Notice, "Now there was a day when the sons of God came 33:50 to present themselves before the Lord, 33:52 and Satan also came among them. 33:55 And the Lord said to Satan, 'From where do you come?' 34:00 So Satan answered the Lord and said, 34:01 'From going to and fro on the earth, 34:04 and from walking back and forth on it.' 34:07 Then the Lord said to Satan, 34:09 'Have you considered My servant Job, 34:11 that there is none like him on the earth, 34:14 a blameless and upright man, 34:16 one who fears God and shuns evil?' 34:19 So Satan answered the Lord and said, 34:21 'Does Job fear God for nothing? 34:24 Have You not made a hedge around him, 34:27 around his household, 34:29 and around all that he has on every side? 34:32 You have blessed the work of his hands, 34:35 and his possessions have increased in the land.'" 34:39 Praise the Lord. 34:40 The devil knew Job. 34:42 He noticed that God blessed the work of his hands, 34:45 the work of his house. 34:47 He knew. Why? 34:49 We read before what God promises to do. 34:52 If we obey Him, serve Him, and follow Him, 34:54 He will bless the work of our hands, 34:56 He will bless the fruit of our body, 34:58 He will bless our household, 35:00 He will bless and put food upon our tables, 35:02 that's what the Lord does. 35:06 The devil knew it, he saw it. 35:07 He was an eye witness of God's goodness upon Job, 35:12 and He's an eye witness of God's goodness in your life. 35:18 But notice something interesting 35:20 that the devil also said. 35:23 I point you again to the scripture that says, 35:26 "Have you not made a hedge around him?" 35:30 Praise the Lord. What does that mean? 35:32 That the devil tried to get in, the devil tried to harass Job, 35:38 and Job continued faithful to the Lord, 35:41 didn't get distracted by the devil's activities 35:44 and fiery darts, kept trusting, following the Lord. 35:50 Have you not made a hedge of protection about him? 35:54 Question. 35:56 Was there just a hedge of protection 35:58 just around Job that God single him out 36:01 from among the millions and say, 36:03 "I'm only going to protect Job. 36:05 No, God protects His children today 36:09 just as He did in Job's time." 36:12 And I will say to you if you're serving the Lord, 36:15 God has a hedge of protection around you 36:21 and Satan cannot get through. 36:23 Praise God. 36:25 I would like to read to you, yes, Psalms 34:7. 36:28 I will just quote it because you may remember it. 36:31 "The angel of the Lord encamps round 36:33 about them that fear him, and delivers them." 36:39 The angel of the Lord encamps. What does that mean He encamps? 36:44 That means He's there, and He's watching, 36:47 and He has taken residence around you, 36:50 the angel of the Lord encamps. 36:54 It doesn't say the angel of the Lord stops by briefly. 36:58 The angel of the Lord comes 37:00 and visit you from time to time, 37:01 the angel of the Lord encamps round about you, 37:06 puts a hedge of protection 37:08 all around you and protects you. 37:12 I tell you, unseen battles 37:15 are fought for you. 37:18 So every day be thankful to the Lord 37:21 that when you're going to bed you can say, 37:24 "Lord, I am going to bed and I lay my head in peace 37:30 because You protected me today, 37:33 because the angel of the Lord, 37:34 and even as you sleep, God watches over you. 37:39 Praise be to His name. 37:42 And now I would like to also quote to you 37:45 from a book called 37:47 "The Great Controversy" page 517. 37:50 There we have another window, another curtain laid aside 37:55 about the devil's work and God's protection. 37:59 Page 517, the book Great Controversy, 38:02 another book if you haven't read it, 38:03 find it, it's free. 38:06 On the internet it's free. 38:09 You can read this for yourself. 38:11 And it says, "The power and malice of Satan 38:14 and his host might justly alarm us were it not 38:19 that we may find shelter 38:21 and deliverance in the superior power 38:24 of our Redeemer." 38:26 Praise God. 38:27 "We carefully secure our houses with bolts and locks 38:30 to protect our property and our lives from evil men, 38:35 but we seldom think of the evil angels 38:37 who are constantly seeking access to us, 38:41 and against whose attacks we have, in our own strength, 38:44 no method of defense. 38:46 If permitted, they can distract our minds, 38:50 disorder and torment our bodies, 38:52 destroy our possessions and our lives," 38:55 as they did with Job. 38:57 "Their only delight is in misery 39:00 and destruction. 39:02 Fearful is the condition of those 39:05 who resist the divine claims and yield 39:09 to Satan's temptations," notice this part, 39:13 "until God give them up to the control of evil spirits. 39:17 But those who follow Christ 39:20 are ever safe under His watchcare. 39:23 Angels that excel in strength 39:26 are sent from heaven to protect them. 39:29 Now the wicked one cannot break through the guard 39:33 which God has stationed about His people." 39:38 Praise God. He cannot get through. 39:41 Praise the Lord. He cannot get through. 39:45 Praise the Lord. 39:47 Now you did notice, 39:49 I hope that there's a danger for people 39:54 who yield to temptation, and it says that, 39:57 eventually, God gives them up to the control of the devil. 40:01 This is a process 40:03 that the person continues to yield to temptation 40:06 over and over again, over and over again, 40:09 no one knows when God says, 40:13 "You have chosen to follow the devil 40:17 and I leave you to His control." 40:22 No one can tell you when, 40:24 but there is a danger in going to sin over and over again. 40:29 Our only safety is to follow Jesus 40:32 with all of our hearts, and then God places 40:36 an impregnable fortress around us 40:41 that the devil cannot penetrate. 40:43 Praise be to God. 40:45 A force field if you might, if you understand that better. 40:50 So 40:53 God stations 40:57 a guard around us 40:59 and we have His help. 41:01 God is willing to do many things for us 41:04 that we are not even aware of. 41:05 I now turn to Galatians 6, please join me there. 41:08 Galatians 6. 41:10 In Galatians 6, we have a message 41:13 from the Lord and a warning from the Lord 41:17 that we need to take heed, 41:19 and that is Galatians 6:7. 41:21 If you found it, say amen. Amen. 41:25 Notice, "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked, 41:29 whatever a man sows, that he will also reap." 41:35 So if you turn your life over to sin and evil, 41:40 you will reap the results of that evil. 41:43 You understand some of this already 41:46 even through health issues. 41:50 People eat a certain way and they get sick. 41:52 I heard of a man that decided, 41:55 I think it was for a year to eat 41:57 at a certain fast food restaurant, 42:00 every single day breakfast, lunch, and dinner, 42:02 he was going to eat there every day 42:04 and that was his goal. 42:06 One year I'm just going to eat at this place. 42:08 I don't know how many months he lasted 42:10 that he was getting diabetes, he was getting heart problems 42:13 and all kinds of health problems 42:14 that he says, "I better stop this project. 42:17 It's not working out." 42:20 So if we violate the laws of health, 42:21 we may find ourselves reaping bad results 42:26 and God places before us His dietary laws to help us 42:32 and protect ourselves from unnecessary suffering. 42:36 And so, I would encourage you to follow the Lord. 42:41 Notice in Luke 23, 42:44 there is a person there in Luke 23 42:46 that understood that whatsoever you sow, 42:51 that is what you will reap. 42:53 We're just going to read one verse. 42:55 Luke 23:41. 42:57 This is one of the two thieves 43:00 and the thief 43:04 that is talking is responding 43:06 to the reaction of the other thief, 43:08 they're saying to Jesus, 43:09 "If you are really the Son of God, 43:11 deliver us and Yourself from this suffering." 43:14 And he said to Him, Luke 23:41, 43:17 "And we indeed justly, 43:21 for we receive the due reward of our deeds, 43:24 but this Man has done nothing wrong." 43:28 So this thief understood, 43:29 I'm on this cross because of my bad deeds. 43:34 It's a message of warning for us. 43:36 If we follow a course of evil, we will reap bad results, 43:42 and God wants to deliver us from those things. 43:45 And that's why I turn to you in Lamentations 3:22, 43:50 Lamentations 3:22, many scriptures worthy 43:55 for further study and meditation. 43:57 Lamentations 3, I hear no pages turning. 44:01 I hear maybe one or two, 44:02 maybe you have an electronic device. 44:05 Lamentations 3:22-23, the Bible says, 44:09 "Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed, 44:13 because His compassions fail not." 44:17 Praise the Lord. 44:18 "They are new every morning, 44:21 great is Your faithfulness." 44:24 Praise God. 44:25 How many have found God to be faithful? 44:27 Would you raise your hand? 44:28 God is faithful. 44:30 What He promises, He will fulfill. 44:33 I invite you to follow me on to this next scripture 44:37 that is very powerful. 44:39 Actually, I will just quote it to you. 44:41 Revelation 3:20 44:42 and it may appear on the screen. 44:44 The Bible says in Revelation 3:20, 44:46 Jesus says, "Behold, I stand 44:50 at the door and knock. 44:53 If any man hears My voice and opens the door, 44:58 I will come in to him and sup with him, 45:01 and he with Me." 45:04 Praise the Lord. 45:05 This is a message of Jesus knocking 45:08 at the door of our hearts. 45:10 And the promise is that if we hear His voice 45:13 and open the door, He will come in. 45:17 You see, God is a gentleman. 45:20 He's not going to force Himself in anybody's life. 45:23 He makes invitations, He speaks to us, 45:27 knocks at the door of our heart, 45:28 but we must respond and serve Him and follow Him 45:33 that we may receive more of His blessings. 45:36 And I will say to you, 45:37 God is willing to bless you abundantly 45:40 more than you have been blessed already. 45:44 Continue following Him, continue serving Him, 45:46 and Jesus said, "Ask, and you shall receive." 45:50 Continue bringing your needs before the Lord. 45:53 Continue to bring your needs 45:55 before the Lord and He will deliver you. 45:58 He will be your help. 46:00 Now I bring this text to you 46:01 Revelation 3:20 to encourage you 46:04 to everyday when you open your eyes in the morning. 46:09 Respond to this call of Jesus. 46:11 Open the door of your heart, let Him in, 46:15 make Him a part of your life everyday, 46:18 and tell Him, 46:20 "Jesus, come in, come in, 46:23 go with me where I go, 46:25 I commit my ways on to you and I acknowledge you. 46:30 Please direct my path, please bless my home, 46:34 please bless my family," 46:36 and present your knees before the Lord, 46:38 continue in your communion with the Lord 46:40 throughout the day. 46:42 God is willing to do more than He has done for you. 46:47 In Ephesians, Ephesians 3... 46:50 No, chapter 1. Ephesians 1. 46:54 In Ephesians 1 46:56 we have a message from the Lord. 46:58 Ephesians 1... 47:03 Great is the goodness of God toward us. 47:07 Ephesians 1 beginning with verse 3, 47:09 "Blessed be the God 47:10 and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 47:13 who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing 47:16 in the heavenly places in Christ, 47:19 just as He chose us in Him 47:21 before the foundation of the world," 47:24 He chose you 47:25 before the foundation of the world," 47:26 "that we should be holy and without blame 47:29 before Him in love, having predestined us 47:33 to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, 47:38 according to the good pleasure of His will, 47:41 to the praise of the glory of His grace, 47:44 by which He made us accepted in the Beloved." 47:48 He has made us accepted in the beloved, 47:51 He is going to present us blameless 47:55 before the universe 47:57 through the blessing of the blood of Christ. 48:00 I'm grateful 48:01 to Brother Tim Parton for the song. 48:03 It goes along well 48:04 with that scripture we just read. 48:08 We are going to ask you now 48:13 to join me here in... 48:16 I'm going to go now to Luke 12, 48:20 Luke 12:32, Luke 12:32. 48:26 In Luke 12:32 48:28 God has good news for us. 48:33 If you found that, say amen. Amen. 48:35 It says, "Do not fear, little flock, 48:38 for it is your Father's good pleasure 48:41 to give you the kingdom." 48:44 God wants to give us the kingdom. 48:47 Some people think God is trying to keep them out, 48:51 but it is God's good pleasure to give us the kingdom, 48:55 that's why Jesus came. 48:57 He came to seek and to save that which was lost. 49:02 And I would like to 49:04 jump a little bit here in this message 49:06 and go to a scripture that is powerful. 49:10 Ezekiel 18, Ezekiel 18. 49:15 In Ezekiel 18, 49:16 we're going to read verse 21 and 22. 49:19 Ezekiel 18:21-22. 49:22 Notice, "But if a wicked man turns 49:27 from all his sins which he has committed, 49:30 keeps all My statutes, 49:31 and does what is lawful and right, 49:34 he shall surely live, He shall not die." 49:38 Wonderful! 49:40 Verse 22 also, "None of the transgressions 49:43 which he has committed 49:44 shall be remembered against him, 49:46 because of the righteousness 49:48 which he has done, he shall live." 49:52 Praise the Lord. 49:53 What a marvelous declaration from the Lord. 49:56 If we turn from our wicked ways, 49:59 none of the evil we have done will come against us, 50:03 they will not be remembered, and I praise the Lord for that. 50:07 We can stand before the universe, blameless, 50:11 because of the precious blood of Jesus Christ. 50:16 And so I tell you, 50:18 we're going to the last two scriptures 50:21 and that is 1 John 3, 50:25 1 John 3. 50:29 In 1 John 3, 50:32 not only does God wants to... 50:39 Forgive us, 50:40 He wants to make us His children. 50:42 1 John 3:1, Bible says, 50:44 "Behold what manner of love the Father 50:50 has bestowed on us, 50:51 that we should be called children of God! 50:55 Therefore the world does not know us, 50:57 because it did not know Him. 51:00 Beloved, now we are the children of God, 51:03 and it has not yet been revealed 51:05 what we shall be, 51:07 but we know that when He is revealed, 51:10 we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. 51:15 And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, 51:20 just as He is pure." 51:23 Praise the Lord. 51:24 I invite you to consider the love of God 51:27 that He is willing to take us from whatever corruption 51:32 and evil we have done, 51:34 what ever wicked life we have lived, 51:36 and He's willing to forgive all those things, 51:39 not mention them to us, but forgive us, 51:43 put them in the past and eliminate them completely 51:47 from the records of heaven 51:50 and make us His children 51:54 and also give us a place to live 51:58 throughout eternity. 51:59 But it says here, 52:01 "Everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself 52:05 as He is pure." 52:07 This is the part that remains with us to choose 52:10 by God's grace. 52:14 To purify ourselves through Jesus Christ, 52:16 put the evil away and follow Jesus. 52:20 Put the evil away and understand 52:22 that He wants to purify us and cleanse us. 52:26 Now we read in Ezekiel 18, 52:28 and somebody can carry away 52:30 the thought that is because of your good deeds 52:31 that you can go to heaven. 52:33 That's not what God is trying to say. 52:35 God is trying to say if you are saved by His grace, 52:40 you should stop doing the evil that you were doing 52:43 and live a life of following the Lord, 52:47 loving the Lord with all your heart, 52:49 and your neighbor as yourself. 52:51 You're not living according to evil deeds anymore, 52:54 you're living according to good deeds 52:56 as the Lord points you, and the Lord directs you, 52:59 as you face trial and temptation, 53:01 you choose to do the good and not the evil 53:04 because it is by grace 53:06 that we are saved and it is not ourselves, 53:09 it is the gift of God. 53:13 So we go to our last scripture which is found in Isaiah 55. 53:18 In Isaiah 55, 53:22 we find another benefit from the Lord. 53:26 Isaiah 55. 53:29 In Isaiah 55 we're going to read verse 6 and 7. 53:32 A familiar scripture, but please consider it. 53:35 "Seek the Lord while He may be found, 53:39 call upon Him while He is near. 53:43 Let the wicked forsake his way, 53:45 and the unrighteous man his thoughts. 53:48 And let him return to the Lord, and He will have mercy on him, 53:52 and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon." 53:58 We have such good news 54:02 to share with people. 54:05 Good news that will bring great joy 54:07 and peace to people's hearts. 54:10 But we are not sharing this enough, 54:12 so I encourage you to open the door to the Lord to say, 54:16 "Lord, here I am, help me 54:20 reach other, others for Jesus." 54:24 There is something that you can do, 54:27 may be small in somebody's eyes, 54:29 but it's a step to helping 54:31 someone else come to Jesus. 54:36 It may just begin with a thank you to somebody 54:39 that you have never said thank you to. 54:43 Bringing something to somebody that they need, 54:46 I don't know what it may be but I read in the scriptures 54:49 that sometimes God just tells people, 54:51 "Go over there and do this." 54:53 They do it. 54:56 I remember the eunuch, 54:58 I don't know what Philip was doing, 54:59 what his plan was for that day, 55:01 but the Holy Spirit said to him, 55:03 "Go, join yourself to that eunuch." 55:07 And he did. 55:09 And he shared the gospel with the eunuch. 55:14 And Philip was able to rejoice that day 55:18 because he saw someone come to Jesus. 55:22 So I encourage you to pray, 55:24 Lord, make me aware of Your leading of something 55:30 You want me to do 55:32 to help someone else follow You. 55:35 I encourage you to pray. 55:37 There are people that are here 55:38 doing wonderful ministry in the prisons. 55:40 I praise the Lord 55:41 for the prison ministry of this church. 55:43 Would you say amen? 55:44 Pray for them as they go to prison 55:47 that those people in there, 55:50 that if the Lord delivers them from there, 55:55 they will no longer do anything to go back in there. 55:59 But will let their light shine to help others avoid 56:03 where they have been and what they have done. 56:08 So please, as you open your heart to the Lord, 56:12 give Him an opportunity to use you 56:16 to help someone else 56:18 because it is high time 56:20 that this place is filled with more people, 56:25 and there are people out there that are desperate. 56:29 They don't have a future, 56:32 they don't have hope the hope that you have. 56:38 Their life is headed for destruction 56:42 and God wants to use you to bring them to salvation. 56:47 Let's go to the Lord in prayer. 56:48 If it is possible for you, I encourage you to kneel. 56:58 Our loving Heavenly Father, 57:01 We come before You in Jesus name. 57:05 Lord, we have looked at some of the things 57:07 You are willing to do, 57:09 some of the things You are doing in our behalf, 57:14 protecting us from the devil that would like to destroy us, 57:19 delivering us from things 57:20 that we have not even dreamed of 57:23 that you have delivered us from. 57:25 We thank You, Lord, 57:27 for those wonderful deliverances. 57:31 We thank You for supplying the needs of our homes. 57:34 We thank You 57:36 for the forgiveness of our sins. 57:38 We pray for the cleansing that we all need. 57:43 And Lord, again, we ask 57:45 that if Your children here are confessing sins 57:48 they have committed, 57:49 desiring to be forgiven and cleanse, 57:51 we pray that Your promise again 57:53 will be fulfilled and cleanse them, 57:56 purify them, and help us that by Your grace, 58:02 we will walk again in newness of life. 58:06 We thank You, Heavenly Father, 58:09 for the opportunity also to be used by you. 58:13 Among us, 58:16 there are many that could still do more. 58:20 We may not be able to preach sermons 58:25 but we can share scripture, 58:27 we can pass out a pamphlet, 58:29 we can pray with people, we can thank people, 58:32 we can show people kindness that will point them to Jesus. 58:37 Help us to cooperate with You 58:40 that we may bring others to Jesus. 58:43 And thank You for hearing our prayers, 58:45 our concerns and our wants. 58:48 We pray that if anyone here is in sorrow 58:51 that You will lift them up. 58:53 If anyone here is facing depression and confusion, 58:57 that You will deliver them and place their feet 59:00 on the rock that is Jesus. 59:03 Thank You, Heavenly Father, 59:05 once again and help us to follow You 59:09 with all of our hearts. 59:11 In Jesus' holy and blessed name, amen, amen. |
Revised 2018-07-03