Participants: Pr. James Doggette
Series Code: AOT
Program Code: AOT000078
|
00:11 Welcome to Anchors Of Truth from Oakwood University
00:16 in Huntsville, Alabama. 00:17 Keep On Going, with Dr. James Doggette. 00:23 A prankster thought it might be fun to slip some alcohol 00:28 in the punch at a very swank dinner party. 00:33 After several hours of drinking and revelry, 00:37 the party goers realized that many of them would not 00:40 be able to drive home. 00:42 They would have to surrender their keys and either walk, 00:46 get a ride, or take public transportation. 00:49 One enterprising young man decided that he would 00:53 save time and steps by cutting through the cemetery 00:59 to get home quicker. 01:01 And so in his inebriated state, he decided that he would 01:05 jump the fence and run through the cemetery 01:08 as fast as he could. 01:10 But as luck would have it, he fell into a freshly dug grave. 01:16 He tried as hard as he could to get out. 01:18 He scratched and clawed and bloodied his hands and fingers, 01:21 and screamed for help until he was hoarse and raw. 01:26 He realized he would not get out and so he settled down 01:29 in the corner of that grave until he could get some help 01:32 some time the next day. 01:35 But wouldn't you know, about an hour later 01:37 another fellow ran into the same fate. 01:41 He fell into the hole, clawed and scratched and scraped 01:45 for almost an hour trying to get out. 01:48 And the first fellow watched all of this frenetic 01:52 and frantic commotion. 01:54 And he said, "Hey man, 02:03 you might as well get up and give up. 02:08 Cause you are never going to get out of here." 02:12 But don't you know, ten seconds later he was out. 02:21 You see, the key is inspiration. 02:27 You can be surprised, you would be surprised, 02:30 the things you can do if you've got the right inspiration. 02:36 When we designed Anchors Of Truth, 02:39 it was designed to give the body of Christ inspiration. 02:45 One of the things we found out about our viewing audience... 02:50 And statistics are very difficult and expensive to get. 02:53 But our 3ABN viewing audience, from the anecdotal evidence 02:56 we have, numbers about 1.5 billion people. 03:01 Of that 1.5 billion, a rather small amount, 2 to 3 percent, 03:05 are Seventh-day Adventist. 03:07 But we found that of that Advent community, 03:11 there are large numbers, larger than you would think, 03:13 who are not able to get to an Adventist church on Sabbath. 03:17 Either through chronic illness, disease, temporary illness, 03:21 there are large numbers who can't get to church. 03:25 Now we've always fashioned 3ABN as an evangelistic tool. 03:29 But when we looked at Anchors, the default setting on Anchors 03:33 was to provide inspiration for that large number of Adventists 03:37 who can't get to church, who just because of sickness or 03:41 illness or whatever need some inspiration 03:43 to keep on keeping on. 03:46 And so Anchors was something designed by Jim Gilley and 03:49 co-signed by us all to inspire the Adventist community 03:55 to hold onto Jesus. 03:56 And that is why we are here. 03:57 My name is C.A. Murray, and it is again my privilege 04:00 and pleasure to welcome our house audience and our 04:03 worldwide viewing audience to Oakwood University 04:07 to our Anchors Of Truth. 04:09 We are so very, very pleased to be here. 04:11 And we have been treated so very royally by the pastor 04:15 of this church, Pastor Byrd, by the president of the university. 04:21 Just everyone has been so very, very gracious to us, 04:23 and it has been our pleasure. 04:24 I'm going to talk to you tomorrow a little bit more 04:26 about closet Adventism and what you can do to help us 04:30 reaching closet Adventists. 04:32 But God is so very, very good, and we expect a blessing 04:35 again this night. 04:37 The preaching has been wonderful. 04:38 And we felt very, very close to God these past several nights. 04:41 And we expect no less than that this night as we hear from 04:45 our pastor, our friend, Pastor Jimmy Doggette. 04:47 I've got to tell you a secret about him and you can't 04:49 share this with anybody. 04:50 Twenty years ago, he preached for me at the Ephesus Church 04:54 when I was the senior pastor in Manhattan, New York. 04:57 The Ephesus Church pulpit, if you know it, 04:59 is about this high from the floor. 05:01 And do you know that Jimmy Doggette leaped from my pulpit 05:04 in the middle of my church in one of his sermons? 05:07 I reminded him about that the other day. 05:08 He said he doesn't leap any more, he's gotten 05:10 a little too old for that. 05:13 But I saw that my church kind of liked him leaping. 05:15 So I waited one full year, because I didn't want 05:17 them to think I was a copycat, and then I leaped 05:19 from that pulpit. 05:23 And my Elders said, "You know, you did what 05:24 Doggette did a year ago." 05:25 I said, "Yea, I guess you had the tape." 05:28 But God is good. 05:30 And it's good to be in the house of God on the Sabbath day. 05:34 Pastor Doggette is our friend, a powerful preacher of the Word, 05:37 pastor of the Madison Mission Seventh-day Adventist Church, 05:43 and a professor here in the School of Theology 05:46 here at Oakwood University. 05:47 We're very, very pleased to have him here. 05:50 I'm going to call Corey Johnson to join me now. 05:53 He is the Adventist Youth leader here on campus. 05:56 And before he gives us the prayer, we all know what 06:00 AYS is, but as I said, much of our audience does not know 06:06 what AYS is, our world audience. 06:08 So give us the Reader's Digest version just a few moments. 06:11 What is AYS and what does it seek to do? 06:13 Well, AYS is the Adventist Youth Society 06:16 of a church, of an Adventist school, or any 06:19 Adventist organization. 06:20 It's really young people coming together of all ages 06:23 and working for the kingdom to present programming, 06:26 ministries, outreach opportunities, 06:28 for you and by you. 06:30 And that's the Adventist Youth Society. 06:32 Amen, thank you so very much. 06:33 Would you now lead us in prayer? 06:34 Let us all stand as we go to God in prayer. 06:42 God, we thank You so much for this day, Father. 06:44 We thank You for life, health, and strength. 06:47 Father, we thank You for Sabbath; a time to commune 06:51 and spend with You, dear Lord. 06:53 We thank You for what You've done so far this week, Father. 06:56 We thank You for the songs that have been sung 06:58 and the words that have been spoken. 07:00 Now tonight, Father, use Your manservant, 07:03 Dr. Doggette, as You've never used him before. 07:05 That somebody may, either by watching online or 07:08 here in the sanctuary, cry out, "What must I do to be saved." 07:12 We are excited for what You will do through 07:14 Your word this evening. 07:15 Now dwell with us, Holy Spirit. 07:17 In Jesus' name we do pray, amen. 07:20 Amen. Thank you so very much. 07:22 Please be seated. 07:23 In talking with Dr. Pollard on yesterday, 07:26 he mentioned and we certainly agree that one of the great 07:29 gifts that God has given to this school is the gift of music. 07:32 When I was here, I sang in four choirs. 07:34 But I don't think all four together were as big as 07:37 the choir that is behind me now. 07:39 The choirs have grown but the music has stayed 07:41 polished and beautiful. 07:43 This group is the, Voices Of Triumph. 07:46 And they will be singing, Great Is Thy Faithfulness. 07:49 After they shall have sung to the honor and glory of God, 07:53 the next voice that you will hear will be that of our 07:55 pastor, our friend, Dr. James Doggette. 08:28 Great is Thy faithfulness, 08:35 O God my Father. 08:43 There is no shadow of 08:48 turning with Thee. 08:57 Great is Thy faithfulness, 09:03 O God my Father. 09:12 Mercies, mercies, mercies I see. 09:19 Mercies, mercies, mercies I see. 09:26 Great is Thy mercy towards me. 09:34 Great is Thy mercy towards me. 09:41 Though I'm yet sinful, 09:48 new mercies I see. 09:52 Great is Thy mercy towards me. 09:59 Great is Thy mercy towards me. 10:07 Great is Thy mercy towards me. 10:16 Though I'm yet sinful, 10:22 new mercies I see. 10:29 Great is Thy mercy towards me. 11:01 Great is Thy faithfulness. 11:06 Great is Thy faithfulness. 11:12 Great is Thy faithfulness. 11:16 Great is Thy faithfulness 11:20 towards me. 11:22 Great is Thy faithfulness. 11:28 Great is Thy faithfulness. 11:33 Great is Thy faithfulness. 11:37 Great is Thy faithfulness. 11:58 For every mountain You brought me over, 12:09 for every trial You've seen me through, 12:20 for every blessing; 12:25 hallelujah, 12:28 for this I give You praise. 12:40 For every mountain 12:45 You brought me over, 12:50 for every trial 12:55 You've seen me through, 13:00 for every blessing; 13:05 hallelujah, 13:09 for this I give You praise. 13:20 For every mountain 13:25 You brought me over, 13:30 for every trial 13:34 You've seen me through, 13:40 for every blessing; 13:45 hallelujah, 13:48 for this I give You praise. 14:00 For every mountain 14:04 You brought me over, 14:09 for every trial 14:14 You've seen me through, 14:19 for every blessing; 14:24 hallelujah, 14:27 for this I give You 14:35 praise. 15:16 We thank Voices Of Triumph for lifting us to heavenly places. 15:20 Did you feel that song? 15:23 We certainly do thank God as well for being the 15:25 Captain of our ship. 15:28 For steering us through the turbulent waters 15:30 of another week. 15:32 For bring us safe into the harbor of another Sabbath. 15:37 We thank Him that He's still the God who heals and delivers 15:41 during the hours of the Sabbath. 15:43 Specially, He's made a promise to come close to us. 15:47 And we don't even waste time asking Him to 15:49 come into this place. 15:51 We've already heard Him, we felt Him, and we know He's here. 15:56 I'm going to ask you now to bow your heads for a word of prayer 15:59 as we prepare to lift up His Word. 16:02 Father in heaven, we thank You so much for giving to us 16:06 permission to come into Your presence on this night. 16:09 We do thank You so much for the experiences of this week 16:13 that remind us that You are still God, 16:16 and You are still sitting on the throne. 16:19 We do thank You, oh Lord, that although the devil 16:23 did his best to steal, kill, and destroy, we're still standing. 16:28 We thank You, oh God, that even the pains of life 16:31 remind us that we're still alive. 16:34 We thank You that You've made a promise to walk with us 16:37 even through the valley of the shadow of death. 16:40 And so tonight, we fear no evil. 16:43 We ask now that You would please honor Your Son 16:46 as we lift up His Word. 16:49 May we this night see Jesus again high and lifted up. 16:54 And may we be drawn to Him in sacrifice and in service. 16:59 Give to us, not just more spiritual information, 17:04 but please give to us the inspiration and power 17:07 that comes when we submit and You fill us with Your Spirit. 17:12 May we leave this place tonight changed. 17:14 May those who watch by television and internet 17:17 experience Your presence. 17:21 And when we leave, may we be certain and sure that we've 17:25 been with God and we've been changed by that contact. 17:29 It's in the name of Jesus that we pray. 17:32 Amen, amen. 17:36 Tonight, the sermon title, because they require me to 17:39 have a sermon title, is Keep On Going. 17:43 Keep On Going. 17:46 There is, in fact, an article that I read from the 17:51 Chicago Tribune that recounted a story. 17:56 And it was a sad story. 17:58 1993 in the state of Massachusetts, 18:02 the police found a lady dead on the kitchen floor. 18:10 She was an older woman, approximately 77 years of age. 18:14 And what was so sad and unusual about this story 18:18 is that this lady, 77 years of age, had actually been 18:22 lying there on the floor dead for some four years. 18:28 Four years. 18:30 She had been dead, and no one really noticed. 18:33 When they interviewed the family, when they 18:35 interviewed the neighbors to find out exactly what happened, 18:38 they heard the story that, in fact, there were those who 18:43 felt like they somewhat knew her, but no one 18:46 was really connected. 18:49 Her brother said, "I was certain and sure she had 18:52 moved into a rest home. 18:53 I thought she was alright." 18:55 In fact, early on when she first died, apparently the neighbors 19:00 felt like something must be wrong because they hadn't 19:03 seen her for a while. 19:04 And so they called the police. 19:05 And when the police came, he called another family member, 19:09 or they called another family member. 19:11 And though other family members simply said, 19:14 "Oh no, she's fine." 19:18 So they stopped having the mail delivered. 19:21 And in fact when a water main burst during the winter 19:24 that year, they had the water even shut off. 19:28 That's what the neighbors did. 19:29 There was one neighbor who even had her grandson 19:32 to cut the grass because it was growing too high. 19:36 But for four years, no one knocked on the door 19:39 or rang the bell. 19:40 And she lay there dead four solid years. 19:46 Sad as this story is, tomorrow when church is all over 19:49 the globe, there will be persons who go to church, 19:53 and although we think they're alive because they've been 19:57 baptized and they're active and moving, they're really dead. 20:03 Been dead, many of them, for a long, long time. 20:06 And we may have even suspected it early on, 20:09 but we did not have the connection necessary 20:13 to move in close, lay on hands, and walk them back 20:18 to health and life. 20:21 I thank God for this preachment. 20:24 I love the sermons I have heard delivered. 20:28 The powerful preaching of Dr. Carlton Byrd 20:31 when he talked about putting on our war clothes. 20:35 And then last night... 20:37 Oh my goodness, last night. 20:41 When the preacher stood behind the sacred desk and walked 20:44 around on this platform delivering a powerful 20:47 word that came from the book of Daniel, 20:49 I have been fed. 20:50 And in fact, I told somebody who said, 20:53 "We're looking forward to tonight," 20:54 I said, "Well, I'm kind of looking forward to it, 20:57 but not as much as I was looking forward to the other times 21:00 when people were going to preach. 21:01 Because I like to eat, but I'm particularly excited 21:06 about having to cook tonight." 21:12 I'm going to talk about a subject tonight 21:14 that I know a little bit about. 21:16 And let me say, that the reason I think so many persons 21:19 who come to church are really the living dead 21:22 with a lack of real spirit and vitality is because 21:27 they're still at the starting line warming up, 21:31 but they've never gotten into the race. 21:34 Oh, there's activity and there's movement, 21:37 there is the stretching going on. 21:39 In fact, in a lot of churches, what we like to do is 21:42 we like to talk about the power of God, 21:44 and we like to talk about the miracle working of 21:48 God who is up in heaven. 21:49 We want to talk about a God who is able to deliver, 21:52 we like to talk about a God who worked miracles in times of old. 21:57 But we go there and talk about it, and we leave 22:00 without experiencing it. 22:06 Dr. Byrd actually talked about that helmet of salvation. 22:10 And it sparked something in my thinking. 22:12 I do believe that one of the reasons some folks are dead 22:16 is because they may have on some of the other armor, 22:19 but they have not yet figured out about their salvation. 22:25 There's nothing worse than going through the motions 22:28 uncertain that you're even headed to a heavenly place, 22:32 to hear about a great God and not experience His power 22:36 nor have the certainty of salvation. 22:39 And so when you're in the presence of God, 22:42 and those who know God and are experiencing His moving 22:46 in your life, instead of getting excited about a God who has 22:52 delivered, a God who has saved, the question comes in your mind, 22:56 "Can I actually make it? 22:59 Can I be saved, especially given how messed up I am?" 23:06 I just want to deal with that question tonight. 23:08 Can I be certain of my salvation when I look in the mirror 23:13 and see somebody looking back who constantly makes mistakes? 23:19 "If I could figure that out, I think I would be in the race. 23:22 I believe I could run on if I actually knew where 23:25 my destination was." 23:26 I think I could get going. 23:28 And so tonight, I'm going to talk... 23:30 I'm not going to talk, I'm going to celebrate 23:33 what we know as righteousness by faith. 23:39 And I'm going to do it in an unusual way. 23:41 At least it's an unusual way for me. 23:43 I often find myself, when I'm going to talk about 23:45 righteousness by faith, starting my presentation with 23:49 a lot of disclaimers. 23:51 Saying things like, "Well you know, I'm not saying that 23:54 although He's saving you, that you don't have to 23:57 work real hard. 23:58 There are things we have to..." 24:00 I'm not going to say those types of things tonight. 24:03 I'm going to celebrate righteousness by faith. 24:11 The battle is not ours. It's the Lord's. 24:16 But what we think is, "The battle might be the Lord's 24:19 but I sure better help Him." 24:24 Tonight, I want to stand right on top of the topic 24:29 of the theme and declare, the battle is not ours. 24:34 It is the Lord's. 24:38 And standing on top of that gives me the confidence 24:41 to say to anybody who wants to point out my thoughts, 24:45 you are absolutely right. 24:47 But you are watching the development of a saved 24:50 child of God who's celebrating salvation already received 24:54 while he's working on working it out. 25:01 There is a text of Scripture that I want to go to. 25:03 In fact, tonight I'm going to go to two texts of Scripture. 25:07 And I want to go first to Isaiah 53. 25:13 This particular text of Scripture is one that has 25:16 a lot of meaning for Adventist history. 25:18 In fact, William Miller got to Isaiah 53 and he 25:22 experienced an epiphany. 25:23 He learned to love the wounded and sacrificed Savior. 25:28 And it's important that you get to the Savior 25:31 even before you get to prophecy. 25:34 You might want to stop by Mount Calvary before you 25:37 get to Mount Sinai. 25:41 The root to fanaticism is to go straight to Sinai 25:44 and then make a left turn over to the prophecies, 25:47 and then somewhere along the line hope you 25:49 run into Jesus in your journey. 25:53 I read somewhere that Jesus is the door. 25:56 I'm not even in the house until I get to the Jesus event. 26:00 I want to stop by Calvary first. 26:03 And while William Miller was known for his prophetic 26:05 interpretations, William Miller himself declared that, 26:09 "I got saved, I got converted, when I tripped over Jesus 26:13 in the book of Isaiah." 26:17 And I want us to trip over Him tonight too. 26:20 Isaiah 53, beginning with verse 1. 26:23 This is the Holman translation. 26:26 "Who has believed what we have heard? 26:28 And who has the arm of the Lord been revealed to? 26:32 He grew up before Him like a young plant and like a 26:35 root out of dry ground. 26:37 He didn't have an impressive form or majesty that we should 26:41 look at Him, and no appearance that we should desire Him. 26:46 He was despised and rejected by men, a Man of sorrows 26:52 who knew what sickness was. 26:56 He was like someone people turned away from; 27:00 He was despised, and we did not value Him. 27:04 Yet He Himself bore our sicknesses, and He carried 27:10 our pains; but we in turn regarded Him stricken, 27:14 struck down by God, and afflicted. 27:17 But..." 27:19 And I'm going to go back into the King James now on this part. 27:22 "But He was wounded for our transgressions, 27:29 He was despised for our iniquities. 27:34 The chastisement of our peace was upon Him; 27:37 and with His stripes we are healed." 27:41 Verse 6, "We all went astray like sheep; 27:45 we all have turned to our own way; and the Lord has 27:48 punished Him for the iniquity of us all. 27:53 He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth. 27:57 But like a lamb led to the slaughter and like a sheep 28:00 silent before her shearers, He did not open His mouth. 28:04 He was taken away because of oppression and judgment; 28:08 and who considered His fate? 28:10 For He was cut off from the land of the living; 28:14 He was struck because of my people's rebellion. 28:18 They made His grave with the wicked and with a rich man 28:22 at His death, although He had done no violence and had 28:25 not spoken deceitfully. 28:28 Yet the Lord was pleased to crush Him severely. 28:32 When You make Him a restitution offering, He will see His seed, 28:37 He will prolong His days, and by His hand, 28:39 the Lord's pleasure will be accomplished. 28:43 He will see it out of His anguish, and He will be 28:47 satisfied with His knowledge. 28:49 My righteous Servant will justify many, and He will 28:56 carry their iniquities." 28:59 This is righteousness by faith. 29:02 Look at the words in the text. 29:04 Look at what relates to Him and what relates to us. 29:08 He was despised, He was rejected, 29:12 He suffered, He endured sickness, 29:14 He was despised, He was stricken, 29:17 He was struck down, He was afflicted, 29:20 He was pierced, He was crushed, 29:23 He was oppressed, He was slaughtered, 29:25 He was cut off, He died. 29:28 And what we get is, we are healed, we are saved, 29:34 and we have peace. 29:36 That's the deal. 29:39 For our sins, He died. 29:42 And we get the benefit of being righteous 29:46 because He justifies us. 29:50 Which is to say, Christ was treated as we deserve 29:54 so that we might be treated as He deserved. 29:58 He suffered for sins in which He had no share. 30:01 And we got an opportunity to experience the righteousness 30:04 in which we had no share. 30:06 He suffered the death that was ours, that we might 30:10 have the life that was His. 30:12 And with His stripes, we are healed. 30:16 We don't earn it, we receive it. 30:21 It's righteousness by faith. 30:25 Paul goes to great lengths to make the case 30:28 that it is not of works. 30:30 Your righteousness is not something that is to be 30:34 purchased by the works of man. 30:36 It has already been bought, it has already been purchased. 30:41 And we receive it. 30:43 The text says we were justified when He bore our iniquities. 30:48 Now we have peace. 30:50 And because of what He did, we are healed. 30:54 But here's the question again. 30:56 "I hear what you're saying. 30:59 Theologically, I guess I can't argue with you 31:03 because, in fact, the Bible does say that. 31:06 But why is it I'm so messed up? 31:10 And why is it I don't feel saved? 31:14 Why is it I act like I'm suppose to act, 31:17 I shout when I'm suppose to shout, 31:20 I say "amen" when I'm suppose to say it, 31:23 I come to church when I'm scheduled to, 31:26 I don't live a bad life, but I know I'm just not right. 31:31 And I don't feel saved. 31:33 I don't have the assurance that if He broke through the clouds 31:36 tonight I would go to glory. 31:38 I think I'm coming up short on something. 31:41 Do I need to read a little more Bible? 31:43 Do I need to add 10 minutes to my prayer time? 31:46 Do I need to go and knock on some doors? 31:49 What else can I do so that I can start feeling saved? 31:52 I know the battle is the Lord's, but aren't I suppose to fight?" 32:10 If you let me do some work right now, I want to talk 32:12 about what is not just theologically true, 32:15 but what is absolutely real. 32:18 May I do it? 32:20 In this particular passage, the theory is laid out. 32:25 But when I want to know how theory translates into practice, 32:30 I walk over to the New Testament and I stop in the gospels, 32:35 and I watch how Jesus plays it all out. 32:40 The gold standard, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, 32:42 in John the 8th chapter, illustrates how 32:46 this thing works. 32:48 How a messed up person can declare with certainty, 32:52 "I am saved." 32:58 I'm fighting to hold back the disclaimers now. 33:02 I am saved. 33:06 "You can't be saved. I heard that word you said." 33:08 No, I am saved. 33:17 John, the 8th chapter. 33:23 Verse 10 and 11, "When Jesus stood up, He said to her, 33:31 'Woman, where are they?'" 33:35 Speaking of the accusers. 33:38 "'Has no one condemned you?' 33:41 'No one, Lord,' she answered. 33:44 'Neither do I condemn you,' said Jesus. 33:49 'Go, and from now on do not sin anymore.'" 33:56 "Go and sin no more." 34:02 Tonight, I'm talking about, keep on going. 34:06 First, let's give context to this passage and then see 34:10 what it says about righteousness by faith. 34:14 This passage is easy to interpret. 34:16 There's not need to embellish anything about it. 34:18 We can see it, we can feel it. 34:21 It's a set-up, it's a sting. 34:23 It's a devious plot hatched by the enemies of Jesus, 34:26 who are so diabolical, devilish, and downright dirty, 34:30 that they actually had a meeting with only one agenda item. 34:34 And that item was killing Jesus. 34:38 Any meeting with that agenda item certainly has to be 34:40 shared by the devil himself. 34:43 But there were religious people sitting around the table. 34:46 And they were working out a way to make it theologically 34:50 and civilly correct to kill the Son of God. 34:54 Don't give Scripture to somebody who wants to use it 34:57 to kill other people, because it's a sharp weapon. 35:02 "Well, what we can do," said somebody, "is utilize the 35:06 law of Moses and the law of the land. 35:10 We will come up with a scenario." 35:12 In fact, Deuteronomy says that if a woman is betrothed 35:16 or married and she's caught in the act of adultery, 35:19 she is to be killed. 35:22 Deuteronomy 22 makes it clear that when a woman is betrothed, 35:26 she would be killed by stoning. 35:29 If a woman was married, she might be killed by 35:31 strangulation or by stoning. 35:33 The woman, obviously who ends up being the patsy 35:37 in the story, had made a prior commitment 35:40 that she did not keep. 35:49 Talking now about some people who have made 35:52 a prior commitment. 35:54 In fact, sin isn't sin until that commitment 35:57 has been made and violated. 35:59 Until, in fact, we know what's right and make a decision 36:02 to do what's wrong. 36:04 God said, "I'll wink at it when you don't know any better." 36:06 But not only is our name suppose to be written in the 36:10 Lamb's Book of Life as individuals who have 36:13 made a commitment to Him, we have made a decision 36:16 to allow Him to be the Lord of our lives. 36:19 And when we sin, we have wondered away from Him, 36:22 and we are being unfaithful. 36:28 They found a woman to fit into their scheme. 36:32 The scheme was simply, "When we pull her out of the 36:35 bed of adultery, we'll drop her at Jesus' feet. 36:37 And we'll say, 'What should happen?' 36:39 The Bible says that she should be stoned. 36:42 That's the law of Moses. 36:43 And if He says, 'Okay, let's go with the Bible,' 36:46 then He'll be violating the law of the land. 36:49 Because only Caesar can give the capital punishment sentence. 36:55 Either way, He's going to be breaking somebody's law. 37:01 Okay, we've got to find somebody who can 37:04 help us with this scheme." 37:07 Somebody volunteered and decided that they would be the paramour. 37:13 The one who would then go and talk the smooth lines. 37:18 The smooth operator goes and begins to talk to her. 37:21 Gets her into a compromising position. 37:24 I don't know if it was in the back seat of a chariot 37:27 in a dark alley of Jerusalem, 37:32 a Motel 6 on the outskirts of the city, 37:38 or if it was in a high class place. 37:41 But whatever they decided, they ended up in that position. 37:48 That position. 37:50 Remember now, when they say to Jesus, "We caught her 37:52 in the act," they did not say, "We caught her 37:55 when she was leaving the hotel." 38:00 Caught her in the... 38:02 How do you catch somebody in the act? 38:10 The law required that the ones who stoned first 38:15 are the ones who were witnesses. 38:17 There were multiple witnesses because they were 38:20 co-conspirators in the demise of a child of God. 38:24 And God doesn't like that. 38:32 Go with us now into the room. 38:36 Right in the middle of the act, all of a sudden, 38:39 deacons come from behind the curtains and 38:41 elders roll from underneath the bed. 38:43 They snatch back the sheets. 38:45 They grab her as she tries to roll herself as best she can. 38:49 They begin to drag her down main street of Jerusalem 38:52 all the way to the temple. 38:54 They come in down the center aisle. 38:56 There's One preaching. 38:57 Jesus, the Son of Man, is preaching with great authority. 39:00 But He stops and He looks as though He had been waiting 39:03 for His illustration to arrive. 39:12 He rolls up the scroll and He steps from behind the podium. 39:16 And He looks at them as though He's ready with an answer. 39:19 And they say, as they drop this woman in a heap 39:23 at the feet of Jesus... 39:24 She still has the look of sin all around her. 39:28 She's full of shame and guilt. 39:30 She's in a balled up heap at the feet of Jesus 39:33 on the dusty floor of the church. 39:35 And they say, "This woman is a sinner. 39:37 We caught her in the very act. 39:39 The Bible says she's to be killed. 39:42 What do You say?" 39:50 Jesus, unphased, not surprised, 39:59 simply stoops down. 40:05 And He slowly begins to write. 40:10 We find others on other occasions writing for Him, 40:14 but this time He said, "I'm going to do it Myself. 40:19 I don't even want to involve other people in what I'm 40:22 writing about right now." 40:25 Oh, we love to write people's sins in the sand. 40:30 We volunteer to help the Lord with that task. 40:34 But Jesus says, "Everybody, mind your business. 40:37 I'm going to mind this. 40:38 As it relates to this that I'm writing in the sand 40:42 right now, I'll handle it. 40:43 In fact, you all have no idea." 40:45 And He just starts writing. 40:48 They keep pressing the Master. 40:50 Their agenda is foremost in their minds. 40:52 They don't like what Jesus is doing. 40:54 He seems to be ignoring them. 40:56 Ellen White says that what Jesus was writing in the sand 41:00 were the sins of co-conspirators. 41:02 Those sins that were in the closet and they thought 41:05 were covered by darkness. 41:07 Jesus was exposing holy people who were publically good 41:12 but privately bad. 41:14 He was writing the sins in the sand. 41:20 And when they kept pressing Him, He got up and said, 41:23 "Okay... 41:28 Whoever of you is without sin, 41:34 go ahead, cast the first stone." 41:39 And then He starts writing again. 41:43 They wonder up to the scene and they get close 41:46 to see His writing. 41:49 Then they remember that they had some things they needed to do. 41:59 And one by one, they disappeared for fear that they 42:02 would be publically exposed. 42:04 When you're wrong, sometimes you just can't hide it. 42:07 And they were so embarrassed as He was writing their sins. 42:10 I don't know if He put their names on top of their sins 42:13 or not, but they felt like everybody was going to know 42:16 that, "This one is me." 42:17 And they started leaving. 42:21 Watch this. 42:23 I love the fact that when Jesus starts writing down our sins, 42:29 He doesn't write them on tablets of stone like He wrote the law. 42:34 But He writes them in dust. 42:36 And really, with just a good Palestinian wind, 42:39 they can be blown away. 42:49 Our assessments tend to be eternal. 42:54 But He judges with another standard. 43:00 He looks now at this woman. 43:02 And I can see the pity as it comes from the Master. 43:05 She's all balled up, afraid that she is worthless 43:09 and about to lose her life. 43:11 Jesus comes and says something to her that 43:14 has a world full of theology in it. 43:17 He says, "Woman, where are your accusers? 43:23 Is there anyone here who can condemn you?" 43:29 Look at the words. 43:31 Those guys successfully accused, 43:35 but they weren't so successful in condemning. 43:40 For she rises and says, "No one, Lord." 43:45 No one. 43:46 Jesus then says, "Neither do I condemn you." 43:52 In other words, Elder Jones, Jesus was saying, 43:56 "I could accuse you just like they did, 44:00 because you're wrong. 44:03 But I don't condemn you. 44:06 And they couldn't condemn you either." 44:09 To be accused is one thing, but to be condemned 44:11 is another thing. 44:13 A building that is condemned is no longer inhabitable. 44:16 It has to be boarded up and then taken down. 44:20 It is to suggest that it cannot be used. 44:23 It is to suggest that, in fact, it is good for nothing. 44:27 That its usage is over. 44:28 That it has no future. 44:30 A condemned building must come down. 44:33 No one can use it for anything functional. 44:36 Jesus says, "I don't condemn you." 44:45 Listen to the theology of Jesus when He then goes on to say, 44:49 "Now go and sin no more." 44:53 There are two things happening here. 44:55 Number one, Jesus, when He said, "Neither do I condemn you," 44:59 that was a declaration of justification. 45:04 You are not condemned. 45:07 But then when He said, "Go and sin no more," 45:10 that was a command for sanctification. 45:15 "I start out by declaring you just." 45:18 Justification is a declaration by an authoritative voice 45:22 that you are declared to be right. 45:26 Now sanctification is saying with your right self, 45:29 it's time for you to go... 45:34 ...get up from where you are... 45:37 ...go. 45:39 That Greek word "go" there suggests that you are to get up 45:43 and begin a journey. 45:45 Start your way on a traveling destination 45:48 to some place where you need to be. 45:51 "You're not there yet, that's why I'm telling you go." 45:59 Jesus did not pick her up and drop her back 46:02 into a better place. 46:03 He told her, "Where you are, get up and go." 46:09 Start the process. 46:12 Get in motion. 46:14 Listen, if I ask one of my son's to please go to the store... 46:20 The closest store to my house is down... 46:23 What is it? Old Railroad Bend? 46:25 A good little ways. 46:27 So if he's being obedient, my child probably would not walk. 46:30 They would get in a car and begin driving. 46:33 On the way there, they might have to stop and get some gas. 46:36 And if you see them at the gas station, they'll say, 46:38 "Your son was over at the gas station." 46:43 There are a couple of lights, you know. 46:44 And they may have to stop at the light. 46:46 And while they're at the light, they may be listening to music 46:48 bobbing their head. 46:50 And you might say, "Your son was just having a good time 46:52 just stopped over there at the light." 46:58 If they get to the store, like they often do, they forget 47:01 what they've been asked to get. 47:02 They might sit there in the car and pull out their phone 47:05 and call me and say, "Dad, what am I suppose to be getting?" 47:09 And if you see them in that position, you'll say, 47:11 "Your son was just sitting in the parking lot 47:13 talking on the phone." 47:23 But from my perspective, 47:28 my son is about his father's business. 47:31 And I happen to know that there's a gas station 47:34 on the way to where I sent him. 47:36 And there's a red light on the way to where I sent him. 47:40 And when he was on the phone, he was just trying to get 47:42 reoriented and get his instructions restated. 47:46 I know that my son was about his father's business. 47:49 Remember in Isaiah 53, it said they considered Him 47:52 smitten by God, rejected by God. 47:56 That's what it looked like to them. 47:58 But ask God the Father, He'd say, 47:59 "My Son was about My business." 48:05 That's why I'm not so quick any more to call people unsaved. 48:10 Because they might be sitting at the light. 48:20 At the point of the declaration, "Neither do I condemn you." 48:24 Ellen White says that what made this woman so special 48:27 is, she made no excuses. 48:29 She was full of guilt and took responsibility for her wrong. 48:32 She never once opened her mouth and said, "It was those guys 48:35 over there who tricked me into doing it." 48:38 And because of her penitent spirit, God was able to 48:41 rightly declare, "I don't condemn you." 48:46 At that point, one is saved. 48:50 Stretched out on a cross next to the Master, 48:52 cussing just a few minutes earlier. 48:54 At the point where one takes responsibility, 48:57 they too can hear, "You will be with Me in Paradise." 49:06 Let me illustrate it this way. 49:09 Some of you know that God blessed me 49:12 with two transplants in the last couple of years. 49:15 And I thank Him. 49:21 Mr. and Mrs. Roddy's son-in-law, Dr. Graham, 49:27 was a surgeon who was involved in both surgeries. 49:31 He took good care and he warned me about 49:33 things on the front side. 49:35 But what I wanted to hear is what he had to say 49:37 on the back side of the surgery. 49:40 Uncertain when I first went in for the kidney surgery 49:43 of exactly what to expect, it was a scary event. 49:48 But when it was over with, the doctor came in and said, 49:50 "The surgery was successful." 49:53 I then went through a process of healing. 49:57 Earlier this year when I had a transplant, 50:01 I knew a little bit more what to expect, but I didn't know that 50:04 this one would be tougher than the first one. 50:07 And when I came around, what I was looking to hear from 50:10 the doctor is, "The surgery was successful." 50:13 And I heard it again. 50:16 Now when the doctor said the surgery was successful, 50:20 I would love to tell you that I jumped up out of the bed, 50:23 threw on my clothes, and ran out of that place. 50:28 But although he declared it successful, Dr. Pollard, 50:36 I didn't feel real good. 50:42 We're too dependent on feelings. 50:47 When we accept what God has declared, we ought to give Him 50:51 credit for telling the truth. 50:57 "But I don't feel saved." 51:00 So what. 51:02 It might be as simple as the last bad meal you ate 51:07 making you feel unsaved. 51:10 And you think when you feel real good and the right chemicals 51:15 are flowing in your system, "Now I'm saved again." 51:20 What a fickle religion. 51:22 I'll tell you now I'm saved, because I have surrendered 51:27 my life to Christ, I have confessed my sins. 51:30 He has cleaned me up. 51:31 And I sometimes still feel a little bad, 51:34 but feeling bad doesn't mean I'm not saved. 51:37 He has declared me justified by faith. 51:44 I could not eat, my second surgery. 51:46 I ate on Friday and I didn't eat again until, I believe it was 51:50 the next Friday. 51:52 And I wasn't fasting either. 51:55 Couldn't take anything by mouth. 51:56 They would not even give me any ice 51:58 for that long period of time. 52:00 I was angry about that thing. 52:01 If the surgery was successful, certainly I can eat. 52:04 I've got a pancreas that works now. 52:05 It's ready to kick in gear. 52:07 Let's give it some food to work on. 52:08 But no, "You can't eat or drink anything until 52:12 we tell you that you're ready for it." 52:14 "Why is that?" 52:15 "Because your system has not fully awakened yet." 52:24 "You can't handle food and water right now. 52:32 I've got to put it through your veins right now. 52:34 I've got to do it intravenously for you now. 52:36 Your system is not developed enough and awake enough 52:40 to handle it yet." 52:41 When you hear from Him that you are not condemned, 52:44 you better get up and leave some situations that 52:46 you're not ready to handle yet. 52:52 You're still hanging with your weed smoking partners 52:55 talking about, "I'm going to save them." 52:57 No, no, no. You're not ready for it yet. 52:59 Leave until your system is more fully developed. 53:06 And then to this very day, I will sometimes go on 53:12 some coughing spells. 53:15 It's so frustrating, Elder Jones. 53:16 Sometimes when I start preaching a little bit hard, 53:18 I'll try to get into about second or third gear, 53:21 coughing will break out. 53:22 And I'm so tired of that. 53:23 And I asked the doctor about that and he's been trying to 53:26 figure it all out. 53:27 And he hasn't worked it out yet. 53:28 Trying to adjust medications and do various things, 53:31 trying to get it right. 53:33 And I'll tell you, I'm better today than I was 53:35 a few weeks ago, but every now and then I still cough. 53:39 And you think you're unsaved because every now and then 53:41 you still cough. 53:47 Part of your healing takes you through an episode 53:51 where what's wrong with you becomes revealed 53:53 in frustrating ways. 53:55 But if you hang in there and do what the doctor said do, 53:58 you're going to get well because you're in process. 54:03 Keep on going. 54:05 Keep on going. Don't stop. 54:07 At the point of justification, you begin the process 54:11 of sanctification. 54:12 And while I'm in process, I'm still saved. 54:15 Now, if I ignore what the doctor says, 54:19 and I decide to do things my own way, 54:22 there is what they call, rejection. 54:27 The doctor said, "Take your medications at eight 54:29 in the morning and eight in the evening. 54:31 Take them in these combinations. 54:33 Avoid these kinds of settings. 54:35 Make sure you do this and do that." 54:38 And if I get frustrated with it and decide I'm not 54:41 going to do it, then everything that happened for my heath 54:44 can reverse on me. 54:49 You wonder why I pray? 54:52 Why I study my Word? 54:55 Not because the surgery wasn't successful, 55:00 but I don't want that rejection to set in. 55:08 We look at the acts and we don't have the context. 55:12 That's why we don't judge each other. 55:16 But the doctor who has done this surgery many times before, 55:21 when he says the surgery is successful, 55:25 you see the symptoms of a person who's been ill. 55:29 But he sees the progress of a person who's been healed. 55:38 Jesus doesn't need a long time to accomplish this with you. 55:45 My surgery took hours, but He can do it in a moment, 55:48 at the point where you surrender and say, "Father, 55:52 I'm guilty." 55:55 He is the one Judge who will give you an innocent verdict 55:59 when you plead guilty. 56:04 And in one sentence, He can call you a sinner and a saint. 56:11 "Neither do I condemn you." Saved. 56:14 "Sin no more." Sinner. 56:23 I'm going to end with this. 56:25 There's a gentleman in town right now. 56:26 His name is M.L. Carr. 56:29 M.L. Carr use to play for the Boston Celtics. 56:31 Do you remember him? 56:34 He's a really good man, but he was a Boston Celtic. 56:42 Earlier this week, talking with him and he was recalling, 56:47 he was rehearsing some of the things that happened 56:49 during his career. 56:51 And he went back to that scene that took place 56:53 when the Los Angeles Lakers... 56:55 You knew I was going to use one of those illustrations. 56:56 Los Angeles Lakers were playing against the Boston Celtics. 57:01 And the last play of the game is when Magic Johnson 57:05 came dribbling across the lane. 57:08 And he rolls up with a Kareem-like baby hook. 57:11 And M.L. Carr said that he was sitting over on the bench 57:14 when that hook shot went up. 57:15 Sitting next to Cornbread Maxwell. 57:17 And he said it looked like Cornbread Maxwell has a shot. 57:20 It went through the net, and he said, "Oh Lord. 57:25 My career in Boston is over." 57:28 The two of them knew that they would be taken on out. 57:32 Knew that they were done. 57:34 But what was going on in the radio 57:36 isn't the same thing he said. 57:37 He said, "My career is over..." |
Revised 2014-12-17