Participants:
Series Code: AFNB
Program Code: AFNB002012S
|
00:00 ♪♪♪
00:02 male announcer: This presentation is brought to you 00:03 by the friends of the Amazing Facts Ministry. 00:06 ♪♪♪ 00:14 Doug Batchelor: There's really only two kings in this world. 00:16 You can either serve Jesus, or you serve the enemy. 00:19 People hate to think of it that way, but you've really got 00:21 Christ or Satan, that's all you have. 00:23 Some folks say, "Well, I'm not gonna get involved, 00:25 I'm neutral." 00:26 Jesus said that's not an option. 00:28 He said you're either with me, or against me. 00:34 Doug: You know, I want to share something with you that is 00:37 always fascinating to me. 00:40 It's a passage you find in the book of Isaiah that sort 00:43 of outlines the science of salvation. 00:45 It's the steps in conversion. 00:48 Chapter 6 is where you find Isaiah's conversion experience. 00:52 And it says, "In the year that King Uzziah died," this is 00:55 Isaiah 6:1, "I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and 01:00 lifted up, and the train of his robe filled the temple." 01:04 So, he sees God. 01:06 He sees him on his throne. 01:07 He sees the Lord in the year that his king died. 01:10 I think that's interesting, good King Uzziah. 01:13 And it tells us, "Above his throne stood the seraphim," 01:18 these angelic creatures. 01:19 "Each one had six wings, with two he covered his face, with 01:22 two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. 01:25 And one cried to another and said, 'Holy, holy, holy, is 01:28 the Lord of hosts. 01:30 The whole earth is full of his glory.' 01:32 And the posts of the door were shaken by the voice of him who 01:35 cried out, and the house was filled with smoke." 01:37 Now what would you do if you saw something like that? 01:41 Well, Isaiah saw the glory of God. 01:42 He saw the holiness of God and he was overwhelmed. 01:46 And he said, "Woe is me, I am undone. 01:49 Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst 01:52 of a people of unclean lips. 01:54 For mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts." 01:57 He repents and confesses his sin after he sees the goodness of 02:00 God and the power of God. 02:02 "Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand, coal 02:07 that he had taken with tongs from the altar, and he touched 02:10 my mouth with it, and he said, 'Behold, this has touched 02:14 your lips. 02:15 Your iniquity is taken away, your sin purged.'" 02:18 What a beautiful story. 02:19 As soon as he sees God, he confesses, he repents, his 02:22 iniquity is taken away, his sin is purged. 02:25 And after he's cleansed from his sin, it says, "Then I heard 02:30 the voice of the Lord." 02:31 You know, after you come to the Lord, and you repent of your 02:33 sin, and you're washed from sin, you hear God speaking 02:37 in a new way. 02:38 It's like when Christ came out of the water. 02:40 There was this voice from heaven. 02:41 God speaks to us and guides us through his Spirit in a new way 02:45 when we're converted. 02:46 And that voice says, "Who will I send, and who will go for us?" 02:51 And then it said, "Here am I, send me." 02:52 Isaiah responded, and God said, "Go, tell those people." 02:56 It starts with his seeing the Lord, it ends with his 02:59 going for the Lord. 03:00 Salvation really begins with seeing God. 03:04 The Bible tells us the goodness of God leads us to repentance. 03:08 But it really is all summed up in first he saw the Lord, and 03:11 not only did he see the Lord, the Bible tells us he saw 03:15 the Lord in the year that his king died. 03:18 You know, it's at the cross that we really see the Lord the best. 03:21 And as I mentioned in our opening remarks, this is what 03:24 the world refers to as Good Friday. 03:26 That time when 2,000 years ago, Jesus successfully culminated 03:31 the plan of salvation by living a sinless life and then dying 03:35 on our behalf. 03:36 And when we really see what God has done for us, that has 03:39 a transformational power. 03:41 And you know, that I think is the key to revival. 03:43 I wanna take you to that Friday afternoon, and we're gonna go 03:46 to Luke chapter 23. 03:48 And this is--the message is really the thief on the cross, 03:51 as you've gathered. 03:53 "Then one of the criminals were hanged," crucified, "Blasphemed 03:57 him, saying, 'If you are the Christ, save yourself and us.' 04:02 But the other answered and rebuked him, saying, 'Do you not 04:05 even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation? 04:09 And we indeed justly, for we receive the 04:12 due rewards for our deeds. 04:14 But this man, Jesus, had done nothing wrong.'" 04:18 Then he turns and he says to Jesus, "Lord, remember me when 04:22 you come into your kingdom.' 04:24 And Jesus said to him, 'Assuredly I say to you, today 04:28 you will be with me in paradise.'" 04:31 What a wonderful promise. 04:33 Now, you don't find this story in Matthew, or Mark, or John, 04:36 it's only here in the Gospel of Luke that he gives that account. 04:39 And I'm so glad that it's there, because this story of an 04:43 11th-hour conversion really gives a lot of people hope. 04:47 Now, I don't recommend that anybody waits till the 11th hour 04:51 before they make their decision to come to the Lord. 04:54 I think it was Matthew Henry that said one time, "There is 04:57 one example of an 11th-hour conversion in the Bible, 05:00 so nobody needs to lose hope." 05:03 But then he added, "Keep in mind there is only one example of 05:07 an 11th-hour conversion, so nobody dare presume." 05:12 I think people that plan on waiting until the final hours 05:15 of their life before they surrender their lives to the 05:18 Lord, it usually doesn't work out that way. 05:19 We don't know whether or not we're gonna die suddenly, so you 05:23 don't want to plan that way. 05:24 You want to give the Lord your life and your best now, 'cause 05:26 it's always better to live the Christian life than to wait and 05:30 live for the devil and offer to the Lord the leftovers just 05:33 before you drop off into the grave. 05:35 Now, there have been some people that, praise the Lord, I was at 05:40 more than one hospital bed when somebody gave their heart to the 05:44 Lord, and I prayed with them in just the final days 05:47 of their life. 05:48 And I believe I'll see them in the kingdom. 05:50 But you don't ever want to plan your life that way, but there 05:54 is hope in that. 05:55 Now, when we're looking at this story, there's so many things we 05:57 can learn from this. 05:59 First of all, the conversion takes place at the cross. 06:02 You know, one of the great passages in the Bible, it talks 06:05 about Galatians chapter 2, verse 20. 06:07 "I have been crucified with Christ. 06:10 It is no longer I who live, but Christ that lives in me. 06:14 And the life that I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith 06:18 of the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me." 06:23 You know, when I read that, it occurred to me one time, there's 06:26 only a couple of people that were actually crucified with 06:28 Christ, literally. 06:30 There were two thieves, and one of them was saved. 06:34 So, I made it a special interest of mine to study what happened 06:37 in this example. 06:39 Something else about these two thieves is it says they were 06:43 guilty of murder. 06:44 Well, Jesus said, "If anyone is angry with his brother without 06:46 a cause, he's guilty of murder." 06:48 We can have homicide in our hearts, it's not just an action, 06:52 it can be an attitude. 06:54 And we also learn from this story they could do nothing 06:56 to save themselves. 06:58 So, here they are, they're under a death sentence, 07:00 like all of us. 07:02 They're guilty of murder, and robbery, blasphemy, it says they 07:06 blasphemed Jesus to begin with. 07:08 You know, Jesus was on the cross for about six hours alive, 07:13 one hour dead, a total of seven hours, very interesting. 07:16 Last hour on the cross, he was resting. 07:18 And during the time of the crucifixion, originally both 07:23 thieves sort of engaged in asking Jesus to use his power 07:26 to save them. 07:29 But as the hours wore on, something began to happen 07:32 in the heart of one of those thieves. 07:34 Now, I'm going to tell you in a series of points 07:36 here what happened. 07:39 And this thief, he went through, it says, I'll just tell you 07:42 real quick. 07:44 He beheld the evidence, he believed, he broadcast, 07:49 he beseeched, he became, and he was blessed. 07:54 And so, this thief goes through a transformation. 07:57 He goes through the steps of conversion on the cross. 07:59 Now, the reason we're looking at this in studying the subject of 08:02 the new heart is because I believe we can apply these 08:06 principles to our lives, and say, "Lord, have I gone 08:08 through these steps?" 08:10 So, let's look at some of these things together. 08:12 Well, first of all it says he beheld the evidence. 08:15 I just talked to you about the story of Isaiah. 08:18 Isaiah saw the Lord. 08:20 Something happens when we see. 08:22 Jesus said, "If I am lifted up, I will draw all men unto me." 08:26 And as we behold, Christ said, "As Moses lifted up the serpent 08:30 in the wilderness." 08:31 You remember all the Israelites there in the book of Numbers. 08:34 They were bitten by serpents, and they were dying. 08:36 And Moses was instructed to make a bronze serpent, and put it on 08:40 a pole, and he lifted it up in a position of visibility 08:44 for everybody. 08:45 And those that looked in faith were healed of the venom. 08:49 And Jesus said, "As Moses lifted up the serpent, so the Son 08:51 of Man must be lifted up." 08:53 And you know, we sing that song, "Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus." 08:58 And John the Baptist, when he first identified Christ, 09:01 he said, "Behold, the Son of God." 09:03 Something happens when we see. 09:06 Our eyes are opened in a special way. 09:09 The conversion of Isaiah, he saw the Lord. 09:12 Paul on the road to Damascus, he saw the Lord. 09:15 What did Zacchaeus want? 09:17 He wanted to see Jesus. 09:18 These and many others in the Bible, their conversion began 09:21 with getting a picture of God and his goodness. 09:24 And then that led to repentance and the other steps 09:28 in the process. 09:29 So, this man sees Jesus lifted up. 09:32 He saw his king in the year that he died. 09:35 You know, there's real power in the cross. 09:39 Go through your hymnal sometime and look at how many songs 09:41 revolve around the theme of the cross. 09:44 Whether it's "Beneath the Cross of Jesus," or "At the Cross, 09:47 At the Cross," and so many others, there's real power 09:50 in the blood, as they say. 09:52 So, he beholds the evidence. 09:54 He sees the contrast between Barabbas and Jesus. 09:57 See, that man was a witness to the trial of Pilate. 10:01 So, when Pilate, you know, there were three crosses already 10:03 prepared that day, Barabbas was supposed to die on one of them. 10:07 Pilate thought, "I've gotta trick to see if I could get 10:10 Jesus set free." 10:11 Pilate didn't want to have him crucified. 10:14 His wife had warned him, don't do anything against 10:16 that just man. 10:18 So, he said I'll take this hardened criminal, Barabbas, and 10:21 I'll set him next to Jesus who has already been beaten, and 10:24 they'll have empathy, and they'll say let Jesus go. 10:26 But it didn't work that way. 10:28 Well, this thief was watching this all unfold. 10:30 He saw the whole drama of the religious leaders saying, 10:34 "Give us Barabbas." 10:36 And as a result of that, that made an impression on him. 10:40 He saw the sign above Jesus's head. 10:43 He's hanging from the cross, and maybe at an angle where he can 10:45 read it, and it says, "This is the king of the Jews." 10:49 Well, that should tell you something. 10:51 He saw the darkness of the day. 10:53 He overheard Jesus, I'm assuming that the two thieves were 10:56 crucified first, and then the Romans, they crucified 10:59 Jesus last. 11:01 And he heard Jesus say, "Father, forgive them, they don't know 11:04 what they're doing." 11:06 And he realized this is my only hope, so he beholds the 11:11 evidence, and then he believes the evidence. 11:15 It's one thing to know the evidence, it's another thing 11:18 to believe it. 11:20 You know, the devil knows the Bible is true, but he doesn't 11:23 believe it. 11:24 He's not willing to surrender to it, and have faith in it, 11:28 and follow it. 11:29 This man actually acts upon the evidence. 11:32 When he sees that Jesus is the Messiah, the Savior of the 11:35 world, he ends up asking for help. 11:38 And so, this begins to work in his heart, and he realizes this 11:41 is the Messiah. 11:42 He settles the faith in his mind. 11:44 You know, we cannot be saved without faith. 11:46 This man believes. 11:48 Now, what separates this thief from the one on the left? 11:53 You know, both thieves asked to be saved. 11:56 The thief on the left said, "If you're the Savior, and if you're 11:59 the Christ, save yourself and us." 12:02 What did the devil say to Jesus when he came with the 12:05 temptations in the wilderness? 12:07 He said, "If you're the Son of God." 12:09 Father came to Christ in Mark chapter 9, he's got his son that 12:12 is tormented by a demon, and he says the demon throws my son in 12:16 the fire, and he throws him in the water, and he says, "But if 12:18 you can do anything," Jesus just stopped when he said that, 12:22 and he said if. 12:23 If you believe, all things are possible. 12:26 And so, it is so important to the Lord to believe. 12:29 And you know, some of us, you might be saying, "Pastor Doug, 12:32 I just don't have enough faith, what I do?" 12:34 Pray the prayer that father prayed in that story. 12:36 He said, "Lord, I believe. 12:39 Help my unbelief." 12:41 So, even if you've got faith like a grain of mustard 12:43 seed, come. 12:45 This thief evidently had some faith there. 12:48 And he turned to Christ then. 12:51 Not only did he believe the evidence, he broadcast 12:55 his convictions. 12:57 He had the courage to actually speak up and say 12:59 something about it. 13:00 In Luke chapter 23:40: "Do you not even fear God, seeing you're 13:05 under the same condemnation? 13:07 And we indeed justly." 13:09 This is him repenting and confessing publicly. 13:13 He says we're getting what we deserve. 13:15 "For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the 13:18 mouth confession is made unto salvation." 13:21 It's one thing to believe the Lord, but you can't always be 13:24 a secret Christian. 13:25 Someone once said that there's really no such thing as a secret 13:28 Christian, because either your Christianity will destroy the 13:32 secrecy, or your secrecy will destroy the Christianity. 13:36 But it's just so hard to keep the good news a secret. 13:40 And if you let that happen, pretty soon the good news 13:43 dies away. 13:44 This man could not keep it to himself in front of everybody. 13:47 You know what? 13:48 Some people are afraid to testify for Jesus in a crowd 13:51 where it's not popular. 13:52 Think about that man that day. 13:54 He is surrounded by the crowd that had condemned Jesus. 13:57 They hate Jesus, they're demon possessed, and he turns 14:00 to Jesus, and says, "Lord." 14:02 Well, that takes courage, but you know what? 14:05 When you're crucified with Christ, you have 14:06 nothing to lose. 14:08 He didn't care what the crowd thought. 14:09 What are they gonna, do crucify him? 14:11 You can't do anything worse than that. 14:12 And so, it's actually very liberating when you take up 14:15 your cross and you follow the Lord. 14:17 This is what this man did. 14:19 He laid everything down, and he was crucified with Christ. 14:22 He wasn't afraid to publicly testify for Jesus. 14:25 Even Christ's own disciples, it says they stood afar off 14:29 beholding these things. 14:31 Just before the end, John and Mary came to the foot of the 14:34 cross, and later, some of the others maybe drew closer. 14:37 But Jesus was definitely not popular that day. 14:41 It's probably some of the same people in the crowd that were 14:44 shouting, "Hosanna to the Son of David," that were also in the 14:47 crowd shouting, "Crucify him, crucify him." 14:49 Don't follow the crowd. 14:50 The crowd's very fickle. 14:53 announcer: Don't forget to request today's life-changing, 14:55 free resource. 14:56 Not only can you receive this free gift in the mail, you can 14:59 download a digital copy straight to your computer or 15:01 mobile device. 15:03 To get your copy of today's free gift, simply call us and ask for 15:06 the offer number shown on your screen, or visit the web address 15:10 and download a digital copy. 15:12 And be sure to select a digital download option on 15:15 the request page. 15:16 It's now easier than ever for you to study God's Word with 15:19 Amazing Facts wherever and whenever you want. 15:22 And most important, to share it with others. 15:27 Doug: So, this man believed, he publicly confessed. 15:30 You know, you read in Revelation 12, verse 11: "The redeemed 15:34 overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the word of 15:38 their testimony." 15:41 That man publicly said, "Lord," and he declared his convictions. 15:45 Something else happens here. 15:47 It says he beseeched the Lord. 15:50 Not only did he declare him to be Lord, he declared him 15:53 to be King. 15:54 Notice, he said, "Lord, remember me when you come into 15:56 your kingdom." 15:57 You must accept Jesus as your Lord and your King. 16:01 He's directing your life. 16:02 He is the king of your life, he rules. 16:05 You know, I like the way Paul puts it. 16:08 He said, "Let not sin reign." 16:10 A king usually reigns in a kingdom. 16:12 And when you surrender your heart to the Lord, sin will not 16:14 reign in your heart anymore. 16:17 Paul says, "Sin shall not have dominion over you." 16:19 Again, he's speaking in kingly language. 16:22 And how often did Jesus share parables of the kingdom? 16:25 There's really only two kings in this world, you can either serve 16:28 Jesus, or you serve the enemy. 16:31 People hate to think of it that way, but you've really got 16:33 Christ or Satan, that's all you have. 16:35 Some folks say, "Well I'm not gonna get involved, 16:37 I'm neutral." 16:38 Jesus said that's not an option. 16:40 He said you're either with me or against me. 16:43 Now, have you asked yourself lately, am I really 100% 16:46 with the Lord? 16:47 You can't serve two masters, Jesus said. 16:50 So, he then beseeches is the Lord. 16:53 He issues a prayer, and he says, "Lord, remember me when you come 16:59 into your kingdom." 17:00 You know, that's such a beautiful statement, 17:02 when you think about it. 17:06 So often, we forget about God, but we want God to remember us. 17:11 That man, that thief, that day, he could've said, "Lord, can you 17:15 make the nails hurt a little less? 17:17 Lord, I'm thirsty, can you get me a drink?" 17:19 Of course, Jesus was thirsty, too. 17:21 He didn't ask for any relief from his present circumstances. 17:26 You know, so many people, they have sort of 17:28 a foxhole conversion. 17:30 Even Christians that aren't in a foxhole sometimes have foxhole 17:32 conversions, where they'll go through a crisis, and while 17:36 they're going through the crisis, they're scared. 17:38 They get a bad report from the doctor, or they've got a crisis 17:41 in their family, or they have a near-death experience with a car 17:43 accident, or something, a financial reversal. 17:46 A lot of people have had big financial reverse. 17:49 And they come to the Lord out of fear, but all of a sudden, when 17:51 the finances are okay, they forget about the Lord, 17:55 or when they survive the medical problem. 17:58 You know, this man was not asking that God change his 18:01 earthly circumstances, he was asking that he changed 18:04 his eternal circumstances. 18:08 You can come to the Lord, and God can change 18:11 your circumstances. 18:12 He can save you from all kinds of problems, I've seen it 18:14 many, many times. 18:16 I've seen people, I know people who are in prison with a life 18:20 sentence, and they gave their hearts to the Lord, and through 18:23 a miracle, they never expected to get out, they got out 18:27 and continued serving the Lord. 18:29 Because while they were in prison, they said even if 18:31 I never get out, I'm giving myself to the Lord. 18:33 So, it wasn't based on, "Lord, what are you 18:36 going to do for me?" 18:37 So, this thief, he's really not asking for earthly relief. 18:40 So often, our prayers are like that man who's in prison. 18:44 And he says, "Lord, this prison is so cold. 18:47 Will you help them fix the air conditioner or the heater?" 18:51 Or they say, "Lord, the food in this prison is terrible. 18:54 Can you do something about the cook, do something 18:57 about the food?" 18:59 Or they say, "Lord, my bed is so hard. 19:00 Can you give me a better bed?" 19:01 "Or, The concrete floor is so rough. 19:03 Can I have a little foot carpet?" 19:04 Or, Lord--and it's like they keep praying that God will make 19:07 them more comfortable in their prison, and the Lord says to 19:10 them, "Why don't you pray that I get you out of jail?" 19:13 See, Jesus is not just wanting to make us comfortable while 19:16 we continue living a selfish life. 19:18 And so often, our prayers are filled with things that are 19:20 basically saying, "Lord, help me to be prosperous and comfortable 19:24 on my way to destruction." 19:26 Well, hope the Lord never answers that prayer for you. 19:29 You don't wanna be comfortable on your way to destruction, 19:31 you want to be convicted on your way to destruction. 19:35 And this man was not praying for temporary comfort, 19:39 he was praying for eternity. 19:41 And what is more important than that, your temporary welfare, 19:45 or your eternal welfare? 19:46 That should be the primary prayer of our hearts. 19:50 Point number five, he becomes a new creature. 19:54 He may not have looked much different on the outside, 19:58 but something actually happened. 20:00 Now, he goes through the steps of conversion. 20:02 You remember we started with the story of Isaiah. 20:05 We see the Lord, then by contrast, we see ourselves. 20:09 That man saw Jesus as the Son of God, he saw him lifted up in the 20:15 year that his king died, and then he sees himself. 20:19 He knows that he's wasted his life, he confesses publicly. 20:22 This man did nothing wrong. 20:24 We are getting what we deserve. 20:25 We've been criminals, we've wasted our lives, and then he 20:29 repents, he's sorry. 20:31 He publicly confesses, he receives the promise, 20:36 he beseeches, he asks the Lord, he receives and believes the 20:39 word of Jesus, and then what happens? 20:42 He embraces the cross. 20:43 He is crucified with Christ. 20:45 He didn't ask to get down. 20:46 Now, I want to ask you a question though, 20:48 just hypothetically. 20:50 If this man could've gotten off the cross, would he have lived 20:54 a different life? 20:55 I think so. 20:57 You know, a lot of people, when they're converted, you know 21:02 they're converted because they're just transformed by it. 21:06 Some people say, "Well, I just want to be forgiven," 21:09 but they don't really want to be changed. 21:10 But what really happens when you're converted is that 21:13 your behavior changes. 21:15 The interesting thing this story reminds us is this man 21:17 is definitely not saved by his works. 21:19 Well, there is one work he does. 21:21 Jesus said this is the work, that you believe on the one 21:24 the Father sent. 21:25 This man did that work. 21:26 He believed on Jesus, but this man was not saved because he 21:28 paid a lot of tithe, he is not saved because he was at church 21:32 every week, he's not saved because he had the perfect 21:36 health habits, he's not saved for a lot of the good works 21:40 and good deeds that we would normally think. 21:41 There's absolutely no record of any good deeds that he did 21:45 after he came to Jesus. 21:46 So, he saved based on his turning to Christ and his faith. 21:50 Now, this is something I hope that everybody catches 21:53 in this story. 21:56 Jesus looks like he is at his most helpless point in his life. 22:00 He suspended between heaven and earth, he cannot move, he's 22:03 imprisoned on the cross, and the devil thinks, "I've finally got 22:06 'em where I want him." 22:08 See, every other time in Jesus's life, when the crowd tried to 22:11 stone Jesus, as they did once or twice, or when they tried to 22:15 toss him off the cliff there in Nazareth, the Father 22:18 protected Jesus. 22:20 But now, God has withdrawn his protection. 22:23 There in the Garden of Gethsemane, when Christ prayed 22:25 that Thursday evening, and he said, "Father, not my will, 22:29 thy will be done," the Father withdrew his protection 22:32 from Christ. 22:33 Demons came in and just did everything they could to extract 22:36 as much suffering as they could from the Son of God to get them 22:39 to sin, to deny the Father. 22:41 And finally, now Jesus is being crucified. 22:44 He doesn't look like the King of the universe or the Creator, and 22:47 the devil thought, "I've stopped him, he's helpless," and yet, 22:53 Jesus said, "I've come to seek and to save the lost." 22:56 And that thief, when he called out and said, "Lord, remember 22:59 me," the devil could not keep the Savior from saving. 23:04 Even though his hands were nailed to the cross, and 23:06 his feet were spiked to the tree, when that man asked for 23:10 help, Jesus, I think his face began to shine. 23:13 He forgot about all of his physical suffering, because the 23:15 main purpose of Christ's life was to save the lost. 23:20 You know, it's so interesting that Christ's delights in 23:23 reaching the people that normally you would think 23:25 are the most hopeless. 23:26 Who's the first one there at the tomb for the resurrection? 23:29 A prostitute converted by grace. 23:32 Who is the one that is beside Christ that's converted 23:35 at the crucifixion? 23:36 A thief, a robber, and someone who is at least 23:38 an accomplice in murder. 23:40 These are the people who are surrounding the greatest events. 23:43 What is Jesus trying to tell us by all of this? 23:46 That there's hope for every sinner. 23:48 Doesn't matter what your sins are. 23:51 "Pastor Doug, I'm guilty of adultery." 23:53 Oh, Jesus saved adulterers. 23:56 "I'm guilty of murder." 23:58 Well, Moses was guilty of murder, as was David and others, 24:01 and Manasseh, and he saved them. 24:04 And the Bible tells us the arms of the Lord are not shortened 24:08 that he cannot save. 24:09 He can save you, friends. 24:11 So, then he receives the blessing of Christ. 24:14 He beseeched the Lord and he receives the blessing. 24:17 The words of Christ come like music from heaven. 24:20 "Assuredly I say to you, today you will be with me 24:24 in paradise." 24:25 What a promise. 24:27 You know, you can go through almost anything if you know 24:29 it's gonna be better on the other side. 24:31 And when that thief realized that he was promised everlasting 24:36 life, I think he embraced that promise with his faith. 24:39 He couldn't do anything with his hands, but by faith he embraced 24:42 that promise, and peace entered his heart. 24:44 And I think there was a dramatic transformation that came over 24:47 his face that the whole crowd went silent and they listened to 24:51 this conversation between the thief in Jesus. 24:55 And in the final hours of Jesus's--final moments of 24:59 Jesus's life in the world, he saved one of the most hopeless 25:03 people who could not save himself. 25:06 Jesus is offering us eternal life. 25:08 He says follow me and you will have a place in my kingdom. 25:11 There were three crosses on the hill that day. 25:15 One of those crosses died in sin, one died to sin, and then 25:21 Jesus died for sin. 25:23 Everybody is in that picture somewhere, friends. 25:26 I hope that you'll come to Christ right now and say, 25:28 "Lord, I want to accept you and I want to die to sin. 25:31 I want to have that new birth, that new heart." 25:38 announcer: Don't forget to request today's life-changing 25:40 free resource. 25:41 Not only can you receive this free gift in the mail, you can 25:44 download a digital copy straight to your computer or 25:46 mobile device. 25:48 To get your digital copy of today's free gift, simply text 25:51 the keyword on your screen to 40544 or visit the web address 25:55 shown on your screen, and be sure to select a digital 25:58 download option on the request page. 26:01 It's now easier than ever for you to study God's Word with 26:04 Amazing Facts wherever and whenever you want. 26:07 And most important, to share it with others. 26:11 announcer: Do you feel as though your world is spiraling 26:13 out of control, or perhaps new life challenges are frightening 26:17 you more than they should? 26:18 Are you sinking while you're thinking? 26:21 Excessive worry can consume you, eating you from the inside out, 26:25 resulting in sickness, insomnia, and paralyzing fear. 26:29 It can also damage relationships, ruin 26:31 opportunities, and yes, diminish your witness for the gospel. 26:35 Doug: Worry affects everybody differently, 26:38 but it's all driven by fear. 26:40 So how can you overcome a world full of reasons to be anxious? 26:44 I'd like to recommend for you my new book, "Finding Peace 26:48 in a World of Worry." 26:50 You'll discover a lifeline to victory, a place where you can 26:53 cast your cares upon christ and experience a serenity that isn't 26:58 subject to your circumstances. 27:00 announcer: Send a gift of any amount to receive your copy of 27:02 Pastor Doug's new book, "Finding Peace in a World of Worry." 27:06 Call 877-232-2871 today. 27:12 announcer: Would you like to know God's plan for our broken 27:15 world as revealed in Bible prophecy? 27:18 Want practical, trusted solutions for your 27:20 biggest challenges? 27:22 Freshly updated and redesigned, Amazing Facts Bible study guides 27:26 provide 27 Bible-based topical lessons with beautiful graphics 27:30 and straightforward answers that are enlightening, encouraging, 27:34 and easy to understand, giving you real, relevant Bible answers 27:38 to questions like how can I have healthier relationships? 27:41 When will Jesus come? 27:42 And much more. 27:43 Order yours today by visiting AFBookstore.com 27:47 or by calling 800-538-7275. 27:51 ♪♪♪ 27:56 announcer: Don't forget to request today's free offer. 27:58 It's sure to be a blessing. 27:59 And thank you for your continued support as we take the gospel 28:03 of Jesus Christ to the world. 28:05 We hope you'll join us next week as we delve deep into the 28:08 Word of God to explore more amazing facts. 28:15 ♪♪♪ 28:24 announcer: This presentation was brought to you by the friends of 28:26 the Amazing Facts Ministry. |
Revised 2023-03-21