Participants: C. A. Murray
Series Code: 15HC
Program Code: 15HC000004A
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00:49 Good morning - good morning - and happy Preparation Day.
00:54 You almost want to say "Happy Sabbath" when you see 00:57 an audience of well-dressed good looking people. 00:59 But it's Preparation Day: it is Friday morning 01:02 and we trust that you had a good night. 01:04 I must admit something to you: I had planned on doing this 01:07 presentation on roller skates. 01:10 No... I'm serious. I've done it before. 01:12 Those of you who have been here several years have seen me 01:14 on roller skates. And I'm... I'm not bad. 01:18 But when I got up this morning I was sort of arguing with 01:21 the Lord whether I should do it on roller skates or not. 01:25 I said: "Yeah, but I have a similar presentation 01:28 where the roller skates are very, very important. " 01:30 On this presentation they're not AS important 01:33 but I just wanted to be on roller skates. 01:37 But I chose... Well, I was sort of arguing with the Lord. 01:40 You know, some times you get in these little discussions 01:42 with the Lord and you've got to determine whether 01:44 it's yourself, it's you or if it's something the Lord is 01:49 calling you to do. And then I put them by the door, 01:52 stepped over them and walked out without them. 01:56 So they are home, so that says to me the Lord just 01:58 didn't want me on roller skates today. 02:01 But I left them home. And I was going to call my wife 02:02 and say: "Bring the skates. " But I said: "No, we're not 02:04 going to go through all of that. " So we'll do this 02:05 on the ground. This is not a sermon per say. 02:08 It's a presentation of some things that I want to sort of 02:12 sense you into that the Lord and I have been sort of working 02:17 on the last little bit. So welcome and good morning 02:20 to our in-house audience and to those of you who are 02:23 watching from around the world. I apologize: no roller skates. 02:27 I told Danny the other day: "I've got my skates ready. " 02:29 And he gave me that look 02:31 like: "Old men shouldn't be on roller skates. " 02:34 But if you're going to do a sermon on roller skates 02:37 you either have to be very good or crazy! 02:42 And I am not crazy. 02:45 But the Lord is good and maybe next year 02:49 if we get permission from the Lord we'll get back up 02:51 on our roller skates. Let's have a word of prayer 02:54 and then we'll launch out. Father God, we just 02:55 praise you and thank you so very much 02:58 for Your Word which is a lamp unto our feet 03:00 and a light that shines on the path before us. 03:05 Father God, we ask You to be the teacher this morning 03:09 because there is much that we know that You have 03:12 for us. And we ask for receptive hearts and ears 03:18 and hands that we may do 03:20 because we need to hear a word from the Lord. 03:24 And we thank you, dear Father, in Jesus' name, Amen. 03:28 I want to do a song very quickly. 03:31 When I was diagnosed with cancer some years ago 03:35 I think the Lord gave me a project to sort of keep my mind 03:38 off of it. And one of the songs that... 03:41 actually one of the first ones that I had the chance to 03:43 actually arrange was an arrangement of I'll Tell The 03:48 World That I'm A Christian. And it tends to be a favorite of 03:52 mine because it walked me through a pretty dark time 03:55 in my life. And by the way, we're cancer free 03:59 so everything is well. Amen! 04:01 But the Lord's had me sort of concentrate on this 04:04 and I sing it kind of a lot. 04:06 When my wife knows I'm going to she says: "You gonna sing that 04:09 song again? " I said: "Yeah, I'm singing it again" 04:12 because it's just something that sort of calms me 04:17 and, well, God is good. So we'll do that and then 04:22 we'll launch out into our message. 04:40 I'll tell the world 04:44 that I'm a Christian; 04:47 I'm not ashamed 04:51 His name to bear. 04:55 I'll tell the world 04:58 that I'm a Christian. 05:02 I'll take Him with me 05:05 everywhere. 05:09 I'll tell the world 05:13 how Jesus saved me 05:16 and how He gave me 05:20 a life brand new. 05:24 And I know 05:27 that if you trust Him 05:30 that all He gave me 05:34 He'll give to you. 05:41 I'll tell the world 05:45 that He's my Savior. 05:48 No other one 05:52 could love me so. 05:55 My life, my all 05:59 is His forever 06:03 and where He leads me 06:06 I will go. 06:14 I'll tell the world 06:17 Jesus is coming 06:20 and it may be near 06:24 or far, far away. 06:28 But we've got to live 06:31 as if that coming 06:35 could be tomorrow 06:39 or today. 06:42 For when He comes 06:45 and life is over 06:49 for those who love Him 06:52 there's more to be. 06:57 Eyes have never seen 07:01 the wonders that He's preparing 07:07 for you and me. 07:14 Go tell the world 07:18 that you're a Christian. 07:21 Don't be ashamed 07:25 His name to bear. 07:28 Just tell the world 07:32 that you are a Christian 07:36 and take Him with you 07:39 everywhere. 07:45 I'll tell the world 07:50 how Jesus saved me 07:54 and how He gave me 07:57 a life brand new. 08:02 And I know 08:04 that if you trust Him 08:08 that all He gave to me 08:11 He'll give to you. 08:19 I'll tell the world 08:22 that I'm a Christian 08:26 and I'm not ashamed 08:29 His name to bear. 08:33 I'll tell the world 08:36 that I'm a Christian. 08:40 I'll take Him with me 08:43 anywhere... 08:48 I'll take Him with me 08:50 anywhere. 09:06 Amen! 09:13 We've entitled our little talk this morning, our discussion 09:16 Come, Let Us Go. If you have pen, 09:20 paper, and Bible in hand, 09:22 we trust that you employ them all 09:24 because there is much we want to talk about. 09:26 This is not a sermon... which is why I considered doing it 09:30 on roller skates. One does not do sermons on roller skates 09:33 but one CAN DO a workshop on roller skates. 09:39 We want to go to a reading in Acts of the Apostles. 09:42 It should appear on the screen before you. 09:45 Acts of the Apostles page 515. 09:48 This is Ellen White's digest of 09:53 an interlude between Christ and Peter. 09:56 And Acts of the Apostles page 515 Ellen White says 10:00 in that book: 10:45 Now when she talks about ministers there she's not just 10:48 talking about pastors. Anyone who is called to 10:51 minister for the Lord the first prerequisite 10:55 before you go out to minister 10:57 you need to assess for yourself 11:00 do I love Jesus supremely? 11:06 How strong is my love for Christ? 11:08 Because your love for Christ will be tested 11:14 when you go to serve Christ. How many know that is true? 11:17 Yeah. Whenever you step out for Jesus 11:19 you pick up at least one enemy. 11:22 Amen? And he is a relentless foe. 11:25 Now we know that the Lord never sleeps 11:28 and never slumbers. Amen? 11:31 Now who else never sleeps and never slumbers? 11:33 Um-hmm... Satan. 11:36 Never sleeps... never slumbers. 11:38 So the first thing you need to assess 11:41 is how much I love Jesus 11:44 because you're going to meet some people 11:45 who don't love Jesus. 11:48 Yeah. And you're going to meet some people may not 11:50 particularly love you. Yeah. 11:54 Some of 'em may be sitting next to you right now. 11:58 So you've got to determine: how much do I love the Lord? 12:01 Do I love the Lord enough to love those who don't love me? 12:06 And do I love the Lord enough to love those 12:09 who don't love Him? All right! 12:12 Because sometimes when you go to share the Lord 12:16 the people that you think need the Lord the most 12:19 love Him the least 12:22 and don't love you at all. 12:27 So you've got to ask yourself: 12:28 "How much do I love the Lord? " 12:30 You may be an eloquent speaker; you may be intelligent; 12:33 you may be articulate... you may have all of those gifts 12:36 which are necessary for the upbuilding of the kingdom of God 12:39 but if you don't love Jesus supremely 12:44 you've failed before you have even begun. 12:47 Now this is a book that I found last night. 12:49 And we don't have a graphic for this because I just 12:51 picked this up last night. It's out of print. It's called 12:53 Living God's Love. When I used to pastor 12:55 we did this. In prayer meeting we read this. 12:57 I want to read something to you. Written by Douglas Cooper: 12:59 you can perhaps find one. This is old and dog-eared. 13:03 I bought this in 1991. I date my books. 13:07 I date everything. I date my suits when I buy them. 13:10 I date... I put dates on everything. 13:13 Every suit I have there's a date right here. 13:15 I just date things, and I date every book from the 13:17 time I get it and start reading it. 13:19 So this I bought in 1991. 13:23 And this is the second one I bought. The first one I bought 13:24 in the 80's. "According... " Let's see... yeah... 13:28 "According to the Master Himself 13:30 God's way - the heart of Christianity - 13:34 is loving the Father and loving people 13:38 with all our heart, soul, and body. " 13:40 So it's loving the Father and loving... people! 13:46 "It can only follow that the opposite of Christianity 13:50 and therefore the essence of sin 13:53 is failing to love. 13:57 In plainest terms... in plainest human terms 14:00 sin is failing to love by being primarily interested 14:04 in meeting one's own needs 14:06 while ignoring the needs of other human beings. " 14:09 Pretty strong stuff! 14:12 "This is turning to our own way. 14:15 This is precisely what the clergyman did when he refused 14:18 to go to the hospital. " He tells the story about a 14:19 clergyman who was tired, he had a long day, 14:22 but he had a member who wanted him to come 14:24 and pray with her in the hospital. And he said: 14:25 "I'm just too tired. I can't come right now. " 14:28 "The world and the church are full... " 14:31 The world and the? The world and the? 14:35 Um-hmm. 14:37 "are full of those who are failing God and people this way. 14:43 Most do not even realize their utter sinfulness... 14:47 the utter sinfulness of their self-centered lifestyle. 14:52 A vast majority of even professedly Christian people 14:56 today are so fervently bound up, so passionately conditioned 15:02 to meet their own needs only, 15:05 so totally enveloped in the confining cocoon 15:08 of their own selfishness 15:10 that no one else's needs really matter. 15:14 THIS is the essence of the sin problem. " 15:19 So before you begin to serve the Lord 15:21 the question you have to ask the Lord and ask yourself 15:25 in the light of the presence of the Holy Spirit 15:27 is: "How much do I love Jesus? " 15:31 "Do I love Jesus more than I love myself? " 15:37 It's a very important question 15:39 because heaven is all from in out 15:42 and we are all from out in. You gotta ask Christ 15:46 "Do I love You supremely? Do I love you more 15:49 than I love me? " Amen? Amen! 15:53 And for some of us that is a difficult question to answer. 15:56 That's Living God's Love page 15. 15:59 Great little book. If you can find it, 16:01 it is really something to read. 16:02 Now I want you to go with me in your Bibles to II Kings 16:05 chapter 7 verses 3 through 9. 16:09 II Kings 7:3-9. 16:20 I went out at the ASI meeting just a little ago and I bought 16:23 a nice big-print Bible. 16:25 This is a super giant print New King James Bible. 16:31 Really, really big and really, really heavy. 16:36 I'm in II Kings chapter 7 beginning at verse 3. 16:39 The Bible says: 17:20 This is part of a series of stories 17:24 of a siege of the Syrians against God's people. 17:27 And there are some wonderful miracle stories 17:29 in I and II Kings that are really, really powerful. 17:32 So the get there and no one was there. Then verse 6: 17:57 So God caused them to hear a noise of an army 18:00 that was not there. 18:09 Now it occurs to me that if you're trying to get away 18:12 as fast as you can you'd get on your horse. 18:15 Wouldn't you? Doesn't that make sense? 18:17 But the Bible says they left their horses, 18:19 left their donkeys, left their food, 18:22 left their tents intact and simply ran on foot 18:26 for their lives. That shows you this is a "God thing. " 19:27 You've got a very interesting situation. 19:29 We'll just go through it quickly. 19:30 You've got... you've got four lepers. 19:33 Now the fact that they were leper meant in those days 19:36 that they were going to die. 19:37 If they did nothing and just sat there, 19:39 the default setting on doing nothing was? Death. 19:43 They were going to die. 19:45 If they went back into the city, there was a famine in the city. 19:50 The city was being starved. 19:52 So there was nothing to eat there, so if they went back 19:56 to the city they were going to die. 19:59 So if you do nothing you're going to die; 20:01 if you go back you're going to die; 20:03 you've really kind of gotta go forward. 20:05 And I've told people that. 20:07 I told a first day minister - we talked the other day - 20:11 and this was back in New York so several years ago - 20:14 "Have you ever thought about that if you sit and do nothing 20:16 you're going to die? " 20:18 "If you do nothing... you're going to die. " 20:20 "If you go back, you're going to die. " 20:23 "You gotta go forward with Jesus. " 20:26 So they're saying: "If we go to the Syrian army 20:28 they might kill us. That's a chance we take. 20:32 But we are going to die anyway 20:36 so let's trust God and take the only option 20:41 that is open to us. " 20:43 Now here's what's interesting: had they not exercised 20:47 faith and trusted God they would have not known 20:52 that God had already worked. 20:55 You follow me? 20:57 Sometimes we're sitting waiting for God to do something 20:59 and God is saying: "I'm waiting on you! " 21:03 "I can't show you My goodness until you exercise enough faith 21:08 to get on your feet and get moving. " 21:10 "I've got some "stuff" for you that I want to do with you, 21:14 to you, and through you 21:16 but you've got to exercise enough faith 21:19 to get moving. " Amen? And when you get moving 21:23 many times you find that God has already worked. 21:28 So when they got to the Syrian camp, lo and behold 21:31 no one was there 21:34 because God had caused that army - that besieging army - 21:38 to hear the noise of a larger army 21:40 and they fled for their lives and left everything intact. 21:45 Tents, money, clothes, cars... 21:49 everything, intact. 21:52 Now you know that's a God thing when people get so 21:55 out of their minds that they leave their cash around 22:01 and their car... keys still in the ignition... 22:04 and their food and their clothes. 22:08 So these lepers come in and what do they do? They do 22:11 pretty much the same thing many of us would have done: 22:16 they went and they began to grab stuff. 22:20 "Praise the Lord! " 22:25 They began to grab stuff and hide it. 22:28 Couple of new suits. 22:30 $100,000... vegetarian meat. 22:39 And it was there for the taking. 22:42 God had had them to leave it there. 22:44 The problem was they hid it. 22:46 Then they went back and got some more 22:50 and did the same thing: hid it. 22:57 And then the Holy Spirit came into the room 23:00 and somebody said: "You know, this is not right. 23:04 You've got a whole city back there of people that are dying 23:08 and starving 23:11 and if we just keep this way 23:16 something bad is going to happen 23:17 'cause this is not a God thing. We've got good news 23:24 and why are we keeping it to ourselves? 23:28 Come, let us go 23:31 and tell somebody. " 23:36 How many know that Jesus is coming soon? 23:40 Is that good news or bad news? 23:42 Good news! Good news or bad news? 23:45 Good news. Very good news! 23:48 What are you doin' with it? 23:53 A lot of us are hiding it. 23:57 Yeah... we're hiding it. 23:59 And if you hide it, something bad is going to happen. 24:04 Amen. Yeah. 24:07 You know why Christians end up fighting Christians? 24:13 'Cause they've got good news that they're sitting on. 24:19 Come... let us go. 24:23 We have to go and tell. 24:25 It's a Christian mandate. 24:28 There's no way in the world that you can call yourself a 24:32 Christian and be ashamed - Hallelujah! - 24:37 of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Amen! 24:41 It occurs to me: everybody is out of a closet. 24:49 Is anybody hiding anything any more? 24:51 Nobody. Nobody is ashamed of anything any more. 24:55 Amen! You know, they have this website 24:58 where husbands or wives can go and have secret affairs 25:02 with other people. And just what? About a month ago 25:08 somebody decided to just hack that website and put 25:10 everybody's name... every- body's name out in the public. 25:16 Well praise the Lord. 25:20 And do you know that a number of ministers 25:28 had to leave their pulpits? 25:30 I didn't hear about any Adventist ministers, 25:32 praise the Lord. Amen! 25:35 But a large number of ministers 25:37 were on that... their names were on that website. 25:41 Nobody's ashamed of anything any more. 25:45 So what do you have to be ashamed of? 25:51 Everybody's out of the closet. 25:55 So it's time for Adventists 26:00 to come out of the closet. 26:02 Amen! Now... our closets are nice. 26:05 It ain't a bad closet. 26:09 But it's time for us to get out of the closet - 26:12 Amen? Amen! - and let the world know. 26:14 And if you hold on, something bad is going to happen. 26:20 That's why even the Adventist church is going through all of 26:23 these little exercises and folks gettin' on each other's 26:26 case and things are popping up: because we're spending too much 26:29 time in the closet. Amen! 26:32 Get out of the closet 26:34 and get in the street and let people know the good news 26:38 that Christ is coming. 26:40 And when you go out there you will find 26:42 that God is already working. There are people out there 26:44 who need Jesus - Amen! - who want Jesus, 26:48 who are literally dying for Jesus. 26:57 So the lepers did that. 27:00 And they went and told and they found out that God 27:05 had already worked. 27:07 You know one of the most humbling things 27:09 for me? Not in my notes but I'll say this. 27:12 I baptized a woman in the baptismal tank just sitting 27:17 right here just a couple years ago 27:19 who actually heard me laugh 27:23 on... on the radio. 27:26 I never thought of my laugh as evangelistic. 27:32 But a little lady was in a nursing home 27:34 flipping stations 27:36 and she heard this preacher laugh. 27:40 And she said: "Anybody laughs like that 27:42 has gotta love the Lord. 27:44 I've got to find out what that's all about. " 27:46 I never... I don't particularly like my laugh. 27:49 But she heard the Lord in my laugh. 27:52 And so she called here and spoke with somebody 27:56 and they got to me. And my wife Irma and I went 27:59 and visited her. And she said: "Laugh for me. " 28:05 So we stayed there about an hour and we laughed. 28:09 And then, oh, about two Sabbaths later I went and got her 28:12 and I brought her to church. Amen! 28:14 And I brought her to church every Sabbath until I had to go 28:16 away and some other people picked her up for me. 28:18 And that was... I think that was in May 28:22 and in November of that year we baptized her. 28:25 Amen! And then one year ago she died. 28:30 She spent her last year and a half 28:35 in the Adventist church. Amen! 28:39 And she came because of a laugh. 28:43 See, God will use anybody any time anywhere any place. 28:47 Sometimes you'll get used and you don't even know 28:50 you're getting used. 28:52 Amen? Amen! 28:54 Tell you a quick story: I had an elder 28:55 who saw a woman - Adventist lady - 28:58 with two bags of groceries. 29:00 And he hooked a quick U-turn 29:03 against a bunch of cars 'cause it was raining 29:06 and took her home one time. 29:09 He gave her a ride one time. 29:11 You know, when she died she put him in her will 29:13 and left him $19,000. 29:17 Now I said: "That was an expensive cab ride. " 29:22 $19,000 for one ride. 29:24 Now you don't do good 'cause you're hoping to get $19,000. 29:28 You do good because doing good is what good people do. 29:31 That's right. Amen? Amen! 29:33 You do it because you're called to serve the Lord 29:37 and you use every opportunity to serve the Lord. 29:39 And every now and again God gives you a little hug. 29:43 Amen? Amen! Or 19,000 hugs. 29:48 So nobody's ashamed of anything 29:50 and God's people ought not to be ashamed because praise God 29:53 we have nothing to be ashamed of. 30:00 I... Years ago when I went into the conference - 30:04 the northeastern conference and... Let me change this. 30:07 Let me give you a story. Let's do a little test. 30:10 I've got a lot of stuff here. I'm trying to decide what to 30:11 leave out and which not to. I see my time is getting away. 30:13 Do a little test. I was pastoring a very large church 30:17 and a fellow by the name of Michael Jazz came to talk 30:22 with me as the pastor of the church. 30:24 He was the production coordinator 30:29 for a director by the name of Spike Lee. 30:31 He said: "Spike Lee wants to meet you and he'll be here 30:35 tomorrow at a certain time. " So we made this arrangement. 30:37 He came to the church and he said: "I like this church. 30:41 I'm getting ready to shoot a movie called Malcolm X. " 30:44 He said: "We would like to use this church 30:47 as commissary for our actors. We'll have Denzel Washington 30:52 and all of these actors and we'd like to have them 30:55 have their lunch and everything in this church building because 30:58 it's right in the middle of where we want to do 31:00 our shooting. " Now, lights went off in my mind. 31:04 He said: "I've studied Adventist doctrine. I know 31:07 you guys don't eat pork. We wouldn't bring in pork. 31:10 We wouldn't bring in coffee. 31:13 But we'd like to give you a budget of $10,000 31:18 and all the money you need for food and everything else. " 31:22 And so lights went off in my mind and I began to sketch up 31:24 and I said: "You know what? These actors we would never 31:27 have in our church. They would never just walk into our church. 31:30 So we can get them for 6 weeks. We can do cooking classes, 31:34 we can do health things, we can do... " See, my mind 31:36 is working. "We can leave literature around. 31:38 We can do massages. We can do a whole thing. 31:41 We can minister to a group of people 31:44 that ordinarily we wouldn't get in an Adventist church. " 31:49 So I took it to my board. 31:52 'Cause I said: "This is it! This is a God thing. 31:56 This is wonderful! " 31:57 I took it to my board. 31:59 Now before I take it to my board as I presented it to you 32:03 if you're a church board member would you go for that 32:06 or not? Just raise your hand. 32:09 This is a progressive group. 32:12 I took it to my board and my board said: "No! " 32:17 Well, I shouldn't put it that way. 32:18 The board said... half said "yes" 32:22 half said "no. " And I said: 32:25 "We may be missing an opportunity here 32:28 to minister to a group of people that will never 32:32 set foot, I don't think, in an Adventist church en masse 32:34 like this. Think of the kinds of things we could do. " 32:38 So everybody 35 and under 32:42 said" Yes! Let's do it! " 32:44 And everybody 40 and over said: 32:47 "Nah, we're not going to do that. " 32:51 So I didn't think it was important enough to tear 32:54 the church apart over. Some things you plant your feet 32:57 and draw a line... other things you don't. 32:58 And I wasn't going to draw a line for that. 33:01 I said: "I think we're missing an opportunity 33:03 but if the church does not wish to do it 33:05 then we won't do it. " 33:08 So we took a vote. The church was split down the 33:11 middle and I said: "OK, we're not going to do it. " 33:14 So I went back and I told Spike Lee 33:15 "I don't think we can do it at this time. " 33:18 He said: "Well, can you find me a church? " 33:21 So I went right across the street to the Methodist church. 33:23 I knew the pastor; we were friends. 33:25 And before I could finish the presentation he said: 33:27 "Bring 'em! " So they got the $10,000 33:31 and they got the money. But then I found out that 33:34 in getting that church there was a finder's fee. 33:37 So Spike Lee gave me $750 just for walking across the street. 33:46 But Ellen White is saying that in these last days 33:50 sometimes we're going to have to do different things 33:52 to spread the gospel. 33:54 Now that's where the roller skates came in. 33:55 Because when I became a con- ference communication director 33:58 I was working with a local radio station. 34:01 And the local radio station had a Christian skate night. 34:04 And I had a program on there called "This Moment in Time. " 34:06 That's where the C.A. comes from. My name is Clement 34:08 Augustus King Murray. 34:10 That's why it's C.A. 34:11 So we had a call-in radio show, and my producer said 34:17 "Clement Murray... Clement is just... American's don't like... 34:20 It's complicated; it's hard to pronounce. " 34:22 I would say: "This is Clement Murray. " 34:24 He said: "We've got to find something else. Clement's not 34:25 going to fly. " So he said: "What's your middle name? " 34:27 I said: "Augustus. " He said: "No, that's not going to work. " 34:32 So I said: "King. " 34:34 He said: "Clement Augustus King? A little pretentious. " 34:37 So, the default setting was C.A. 34:39 So it's been C.A. ever since then. 34:40 But they were doing Christian skate night 34:43 and they wanted someone to DJ Christian music 34:48 and teach roller skating. 34:51 So I said: "I will do it 34:53 on one condition: that if you allow us for 30 minutes 34:58 to turn off the music and have a little Bible study 35:01 in the roller skating night. " And they said: 35:04 "That sounds pretty good. " 35:06 I said: "Yes! " 35:08 So right in the middle of roller skating we had a Bible study. 35:12 You know, I led more people to the Lord 35:14 and to the Adventist church in the roller skating rink 35:17 than I did in my pulpit. Amen! 35:21 Yeah. See, God is going to use different methodologies 35:25 in these last days to win people to Christ. 35:28 And as long as you carry Christ with you 35:32 that's what evangelism is all about: 35:34 taking Christ to different places and using those kinds of 35:37 methodologies that God gives us to evangelize the world. 35:42 Now here's some quotes from Ellen White 35:43 that I want to go to. Let's put up that Christless Graves, 35:46 guys. Do that for me if you will. 35:47 Ellen White uses this term quite a lot. 35:50 She says: "Thousands go down to Christless graves... " 35:54 I'm going to paraphrase... 35:55 while Adventists sit in the church and sing 35:57 "Oh, How I Love Jesus. " 35:59 Something wrong with that. 36:01 Amen? Yeah. If you just come and sit 36:04 and sing and pray and go home 36:06 you are doing yourself and your God an egregious disservice. 36:11 There's much more to serving the Lord. 36:14 And so people are going down to Christless graves 36:16 while we do it. OK, The Blessing Is on the "GO! " 36:18 Here we go. 36:21 Let me pop this up: "The Blessing Is on the "GO! " 36:23 All right, let's go to We Need Workers. 36:42 That's why we started this whole "Blessing's on the "GO!" thing. 36:46 It's not brand new. 36:48 It's God's movement for the end time. 36:54 All right... let's go to our next one. 37:11 Sometimes God gives a person a new idea. 37:14 You need to test it by the brethren 37:17 and the Word of God because if it's a good thing 37:21 then others will realize that it's a good thing. 37:24 If you think it's a good thing and you're the only one in the 37:26 world that thinks it's a good thing 37:28 then it may not be a good thing. 37:30 Amen? When Danny brought to us The Blessing Is on the "GO! " 37:34 he didn't have to do a heavy sales job. 37:37 We saw it right away. 37:40 He didn't have to push it; he didn't have to arm twist. 37:42 He just laid it out there and we caught the vision. 37:44 That's the way it is with the Spirit of God. 37:46 If something is of God, many people will see it 37:52 and understand it. Amen? 37:54 Rarely does God give one person something 37:58 nobody else can see it, nobody else can understand it... 38:01 you're the only one in the world that has it. 38:03 If it's of God, when you share it 38:07 others will know that it's from God. 38:10 Amen? And if they're not picking up on it 38:13 maybe you ought to question where is this coming from. 38:17 Because if it's of the Spirit of God 38:19 then those who also love the Lord will know 38:22 that it's of the Spirit of God. That's why 38:23 God puts us in a church community so that we can have 38:26 checks and balances on each other so that every little idea 38:29 that pops up and bubbles to the surface 38:31 doesn't become the church policy. 38:33 But a lot of people... Have to be confirmed in the mouth 38:35 and the mind of many people. 38:37 But if everybody's picking up on it, then you ought to look 38:39 at it very closely and see that it's from the Spirit of God. 38:42 Our next one here: "There are some minds... " 39:06 Just because we've never done it that way before 39:09 doesn't mean we shouldn't do it now. 39:12 Amen. And just because it's your idea 39:17 doesn't necessarily mean that it's God's idea. 39:21 I'm trying to give you some balance here because 39:24 sometimes people come up with things that are just nuts. 39:31 OR God may give you something that is just for you 39:38 and not necessarily for me. That's right. 39:41 Amen? Amen. So you need to pray 39:44 and ask God "Where is this coming from 39:47 and what do You want me to do with this? " 39:51 Now I think my next one is Do Not Depend on Miracles. 39:54 This is important. Let's put that up. 40:18 So you're sitting praying that your neighbor 40:23 finds Christ. Well, if you're praying and not going 40:29 you're only doing half of the work. 40:31 God's not going to work a miracle. 40:34 He's not going to do that for you. 40:37 He wants to do it through you. 40:41 Amen? Amen. God wants to use you 40:45 to save someone. Amen. 40:48 And God will use any method. 40:51 You know something? I've got to tell you a quick story. 40:53 Forgive me... lookin' at my time. 40:55 When I got to the Freeport SDA church 40:57 in Freeport, Long Island, Sr. Roberta Carter 41:00 was the head deaconess of the church. 41:01 Which is rather unusual because everybody knew that 41:03 Sr. Roberta Carter hated Seventh-day Adventists. 41:07 So how does a famous Seventh-day Adventist hater 41:09 become a Seventh-day Adventist? 41:12 The treasurer, a little lady from Panama by the name of 41:14 Josephina Ashers. Sr. Roberta Carter's 41:17 husband was a deacon in the church, and she never 41:20 attended church but he was there every Sabbath. 41:21 He got quick with cancer and died very quickly. 41:25 And, you know, our attention span is so short. 41:29 For the first week or so there were a lot of people around 41:31 comforting her, but Sr. Josephina Ashers realized 41:36 that Roberta Carter needed some long-term support. 41:39 So every Friday evening she made and brought to her 41:43 escovitch fish. Now if you're from the West Indies 41:46 or the Caribbean you know what escovitch fish is. 41:48 It's kind of long to explain. It's fish in this kind of sauce 41:50 and it's... it ain't bad. 41:53 In any event, not only did she bring fish. She brought 41:55 rice and she brought vegetables and she brought salad 41:58 and she brought cups and she brought plates 42:00 and she brought forks and she brought everything 42:02 every Friday and made for Roberta Carter 42:05 a fish dinner. No Spirit of Prophecy. 42:09 No 2,300 days. 42:12 No 144,000. 42:14 Just fish! 42:18 Every Friday. 42:20 Now you may say: "Well Adventists don't eat fish. " 42:26 And that doesn't matter. 42:28 Roberta Carter at that point did. 42:32 So she used a bait that... You follow me? 42:37 OK. Now Roberta Carter had two big sons. 42:40 Big strapping boys. The little one was 6'3" 42:44 about 200 pounds. The big one was 6'6" 42:46 about 240 pounds. Big boys. 42:48 Eat like locusts. 42:51 So she made this food. Six weeks just made the food, 42:55 prayed, and left. 42:57 On the 7th Friday, Roberta Carter said to Josephina Ashers 43:03 "Hey, tomorrow when you're going to church 43:06 pick me up. 43:10 Pick me up. " 43:12 So when I get there a year and a half later 43:14 she's the head deaconess in the church. 43:18 Because deeds of kindness tear down walls of separation 43:21 and build bridges to salvation. 43:23 Amen! 43:24 So you've got to use the methodology that 43:28 Christ puts before you. 43:29 You may go with the Bible or you may go with fish! 43:35 Or salad... or vegetarian meat. 43:41 Amen; amen. But whatever God puts before you 43:45 you've got to use that to the glory of God. 43:48 And the thing is ladies and gentlemen: 43:50 success is guaranteed. 43:51 You're not fishing in uncharted waters. 43:53 Christ has said: "If I be lifted up 43:56 I will draw all men unto... " "Unto Me. " 44:00 Ellen White said we would win 100 where now 44:05 we only win 1 if we would show love 44:08 and compassion and caring. 44:12 See, folk don't come to the church just because you 44:15 say: "We are the remnant. " 44:17 First of all, they don't know what that word means. 44:20 That's "Advent speak. " 44:22 Folk want to know this about your church... 44:24 here's what they want to know: 44:25 Do you love each other? 44:26 Do you have the truth? 44:29 Do you practice what you preach? 44:32 Amen. And: If I make a mistake, 44:36 do you practice healing ministry 44:39 or do you shoot your wounded? 44:43 That's what they want to know. 44:44 That's what brings people to the gospel. 44:47 First of all, you've gotta have the truth. 44:49 The whole truth... nothing but the truth. 44:51 Then you've got to practice what you preach. 44:53 Then you've got to do it in love 44:56 and then when people make mistakes 44:59 do you put your arms around them 45:02 or do you kick them out the door? 45:04 That's why people join the church. 45:06 And if you don't have all four of those facets 45:09 you may get some but you're going to lose as many 45:11 as you get. And even those who stay 45:14 are gonna be miserable! 45:18 So let's show them love and they will come. 45:23 Evangelism page 17. 45:26 Evangelism page 17. 45:29 Let's put that up. 45:30 Evangelism page 17. 45:38 Let's see... yeah... here's the one I want. 45:56 So in these last days we're not to do less of the work of God. 46:00 We've gotta do more. 46:02 You've gotta do more. And if you go 46:06 and you ask them if they want a Bible study 46:08 and they don't want a Bible study, find some other way 46:11 to minister to them. Find another way. 46:14 And they will show you how they want you to minister. 46:18 Find another way because there IS another way. 46:21 You can't always lead directly with the Bible. 46:23 You can get there, but some- times you can't start there. 46:26 But find a way to minister and they will love you for it. 46:31 Now I'm in Evangelism page 30. 46:33 Page 30 of the same book. 46:35 Evangelism page 30. 46:39 Here's what Ellen White says: "We have no time to lose. " 46:41 We have what? No time to lose. 47:11 It's getting tougher! 47:14 It's getting tougher to spread the gospel. 47:17 There are some people who will attack you for 47:20 spreading the gospel. There are some places where even 3ABN 47:23 is we've got to be very careful with the kinds of things you say 47:27 because if you mention a certain group 47:30 you can get in trouble and get your license pulled. 47:33 We were talking with some people just the other day 47:36 from another continent and they were saying that 47:39 the Adventist pastors there have to be very, very careful 47:43 and almost speak in the kind of cryptic parables 47:45 that Christ used because they are afraid of bringing 47:49 the wrath of the government down upon them. 47:52 The truth is it's getting tougher 47:55 to spread the gospel. But God has called us 48:00 to spread the gospel. And when God calls you to do something 48:04 He gives you the ability to do that 48:07 and the guarantee that you will have success. Amen? 48:10 You can't get away from it. 48:12 So we can do it. Now, I'm in Evangelism page 34. 48:15 And this one I wanted to get to really quickly 48:18 before our time gets away. Evangelism page 34. 48:31 That's what Ellen White says. 48:33 We need to make plans to support those. Even when 48:36 you can't go, you ought to support those who are going. 48:39 And if you can't go where they go, 48:41 you can go next door or go to your family 48:43 or go to your friends and lift up the name of Jesus. 49:04 God is saying: "When you see a plan 49:07 that is designed to lift up the name of Jesus 49:10 you need to assist those who are doing just that. " 49:13 Go where you can; do what you can; 49:15 but when you see others going and doing 49:17 you have to assist them in going and doing. 49:20 Amen? Because that's what God wants us particularly 49:23 to go and to do 49:26 because Christ, as I said, is coming so very, very soon. 49:31 And He's coming again. I want to read just a couple things 49:36 and then we'll be done. 49:41 Ellen White tells us... This is a sheet on public presence. 49:43 I just pulled this out last night. 49:46 She says: "Anywhere large groups of people are gathering 49:52 Adventists ought to be there. " 49:55 State fairs, large gatherings... 49:59 anywhere they are we ought to be. 50:02 In fact, she names specifically: 50:04 "At large gatherings like the St. Louis Fair... " 50:07 That's the one I think was in 1888 or so... 50:10 "I was given instruction that as we approach the end 50:13 there will be large gatherings in our cities 50:15 as there recently has been in St. Louis 50:19 and that preparation must be made to present the truth 50:22 at these gatherings. When Christ was upon the earth 50:26 He took advantage of such opportunities. 50:28 Whenever a large number of people were gathered 50:31 for any purpose His voice was heard 50:35 clear and distinct giving His message. 50:39 As a result, after His crucifixion and ascension 50:42 thousands were converted in a day. 50:45 The seed sown by Christ sank deep into hearts 50:50 and germinated, and when the disciples received the gift of 50:53 the Holy Spirit the harvest was gathered in. " 50:56 That's again from the book Evangelism. 50:59 "We should improve every such opportunity as that presented 51:04 by the St. Louis Fair and at all such gatherings 51:10 there should be present men whom God can use. " 51:13 That's men and women. "Leaflets containing the light 51:16 of present truth should be scattered among the people 51:18 like the leaves of autumn. 51:22 To many who attend these gatherings these leaflets 51:25 would be as the leaves of the Tree of Life 51:28 for the healing of the nations. " 51:30 So she's saying again our job as Christians is 51:32 to get out and go where the people are 51:35 and lift up the mighty and matchless name of Jesus. 51:37 And I want to say this is something that I had to learn. 51:40 It is not your job or mine to convert people. 51:44 Amen. 51:46 When I was young in the ministry I thought I had to 51:48 fry, fillet, and fricassee them. 51:51 You know, wash them, clean them up, 51:53 baptize them, and put them in the kingdom. 51:55 That's not your job. 51:57 Our job is to lift up the name of Jesus... 52:00 period... and the Holy Spirit does the rest. 52:04 So if you don't get an immediate conversion 52:09 or an immediate "Yes, I'll follow You" 52:12 don't get discouraged because that's God's job. 52:16 You know, I've had Bible studies where you talk to somebody 52:19 and they say: "I just don't see it. " 52:21 "What? Are you blind? You don't see it? 52:23 Let's go over it again. " 52:25 "Well I just don't see it. " 52:28 That's not a slight against you. 52:32 That's a wrestling with the Holy Spirit. 52:35 So you leave them in the power and presence 52:38 of the Holy Spirit. 52:40 And you never know but when the time comes 52:44 God will bring it back and He'll ripen that seed. 52:47 I've seen it over and over and over and over 52:51 and over again. We had a neighbor... 52:54 We had a neighbor... Well, let me tell this last story 52:56 and I'll be done. Pastor William Scales... he was the 53:03 I think it was the Health Ministries Director of the 53:05 North American Division. He moved into a neighborhood 53:07 bless his heart. They were the first... How can I say this 53:11 diplomatically? They were the first family of 53:13 eurotrichus hair and austillic complexion. 53:18 Um, first black family in the neighborhood. 53:21 And the lady that lived next door to them was so incensed 53:26 that this black family had moved there that she actually tried to 53:28 run Elder Scales - General Conference worker - 53:31 over with her car. 53:32 But instead of returning evil for evil 53:36 they began to fast and pray for that lady and that family. 53:39 Amen. And they looked for an opportunity to serve. 53:42 True story. 53:43 And one day Sr. Scales was sitting in her kitchen 53:48 and she saw the neighbor. They had like adjoining driveways. 53:51 And she saw the lady get out of her car with a bag of groceries. 53:54 She reached into the back of the car and got a second bag 53:57 of groceries and tried to close the door with her hip. 54:00 You know you kind of just try to hit the car door closed. 54:02 Well when she did so, the top of the car door just 54:05 unzipped this bag of groceries 54:07 and of course all the groceries fell. 54:09 Now when you lose a bag of groceries with this arm 54:10 what do you instinctively try to do? 54:12 Yeah, you instinctively try to grab it. 54:14 And then what happens to this bag? 54:16 Yeah, you lose this bag too. 54:17 So both bags tumbled to the ground 54:20 and out popped a large jar of Maxwell House coffee. 54:25 Spilled it on the ground. 54:26 So Sr. Scales ran, got a broom and dustpan 54:31 and came out and began to sweep and help her clean up. 54:33 And she didn't even let the lady talk. 54:35 She just began to serve her. 54:36 And she could feel the vibes. You know, she knew that her 54:40 service wasn't being that well received. 54:43 But she didn't let that bother her because she was on a mission 54:45 for God. Amen. So she grabbed the woman. 54:47 She said: "You know, this coffee is not good for you. " 54:49 And she gave her a list of things that... "This is not 54:51 good for you. I've got something in my house that is better. 54:54 Tastes like this coffee and it's better for you... 54:57 it's healthy. " And I don't remember if it was Roma 54:59 or Breakfast Cup or Cafix. We've got a bunch of them. 55:01 You know... Postum, whatever. She grabbed the woman 55:03 and drug her into the kitchen. 55:06 She just drug her into the kitchen. 55:08 And she said: "Try this. " And she brought out some 55:11 cinnamon buns and they spent almost the whole afternoon 55:14 together. So by the time her husband, Elder Wm. Scales, 55:18 comes home from the General Conference 55:20 this woman is in the kitchen 55:22 laughing and talking with his wife. 55:26 Now shortly thereafter 55:29 Elder Scales died of cancer. 55:31 And within maybe 2 years or so 55:35 his wife also passed of cancer. 55:37 They did not live long enough 55:40 to know that that family is Seventh-day Adventist today. 55:44 Amen! They'll meet them in the kingdom. 55:47 What a grand and glorious reunion that will be! 55:51 Because deeds of kindness tear down walls of separation 55:55 and open up doors for salvation. 55:57 There is a way to touch every heart. 56:01 And if you love Jesus enough 56:04 you will love those for whom Christ died. 56:08 And it doesn't always mean leading with the 2,300 days 56:13 or even the Sabbath. That's right! 56:15 Sometimes it's just a cup of water. Amen! 56:18 Sometimes it's just a kind word. 56:21 Just a smile... just a tip for healthy living. 56:25 Just a "God bless you. " 56:27 Just a little card at Christmas time. 56:29 Now you may not keep Christmas. 56:31 You may not even like Christmas... but they do. 56:35 All right. So use something that will attract them. 56:40 Amen? Amen. 56:43 Amen; amen. And let Christ shine out through you. 56:49 Ellen White said: "if you love Jesus, 56:54 then you will love those for whom Christ died. " 56:58 And I say again: the very first question 57:03 that each of us must ask ourselves 57:06 and I dare say we need to ask it every single day 57:10 is: "How much do I love Jesus? " 57:16 And if you love Him enough 57:18 then no sacrifice is too great 57:22 to lift up the mighty and matchless name of the Lord. |
Revised 2024-09-11