Participants: C. A. Murray
Series Code: AOT
Program Code: AOT000161A
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00:14 Welcome to Anchors Of Truth,
00:17 live from the 3ABN Worship Center. 00:23 Well we welcome you tonight as you were just welcomed 00:27 by our announcer, but we welcome you again. 00:30 And we're happy that you could be with us, 00:32 those of you that are here in the auditorium 00:35 and those of you who are joining us by television tonight. 00:39 I'm really looking forward to this Anchors series. 00:44 We always bring in people from the outside, but occasionally 00:48 one of our own will do one. 00:50 John Lomacang's series is probably our most 00:54 requested series that's been done so far. 00:58 I did a series. 01:00 Actually, my series was filling in for someone who had to 01:03 cancel at the last minute. 01:05 And so that's kind of the way that I ended up 01:10 doing a series here. 01:11 But this is a series that we have been looking forward to 01:15 and planning on for some time. 01:17 Pastor C.A. Murray, who is a man we all love 01:23 here at 3ABN. 01:25 He's God's man. He's a preacher. 01:28 He has an infectious spirit about him. 01:32 And I have grown to, not only appreciate his ministry, 01:37 but to very much appreciate him as a friend. 01:41 I look forward very much to this series. 01:47 The title of this series is, A River Runs Through. 01:50 And tonight's subject is, Cry Me By A River. 01:55 And I'm looking forward to that subject. 01:58 C.A. Murray, I believe, is a brand that was 02:04 plucked from the burning. 02:07 As a young boy, about 7 years old, a neighbor across the 02:12 street was going to Sabbath school. 02:16 And one way or the other, maybe C.A. will share some time 02:20 with us how that happened, he secured an invitation 02:25 to go with them. 02:26 And he's been in Sabbath school ever since. 02:29 He was the first member of his family to become a part 02:35 of the remnant church. 02:37 And later was able to be used by God to lead other members 02:42 of the family into the remnant church. 02:46 So his story is very interesting. 02:49 And I thrill when I think about it, how God used some neighbors 02:56 to witness to him and how he was open to the message 03:01 and ready to listen. 03:04 Before he comes tonight, we are going to enjoy some music. 03:11 And one of those that is participating tonight 03:16 is a grandson of C.A. Murray. 03:20 Marcus Gonzalez. 03:22 And he is being joined by Farrah Barry, 03:26 And I am looking forward to their doing this song 03:32 by Ralph Carmichael, which is a favorite of many. 03:37 And it's entitled, A Quite Place. 03:42 After the music, Pastor Murray will come. 03:46 He will precede his message with a prayer. 03:51 And then he will be presenting the message, 03:55 Cry Me By A River. 08:17 They were at the house Sabbath afternoon practicing. 08:23 And last evening Irma was trying to encourage Marcus 08:30 to practice more. 08:32 And she said, "If you practice, you will get better. 08:36 And don't practice just enough to do the performance, 08:40 but practice to get better." 08:42 And she said, "If you keep on practicing, 08:44 you can be a Yo Ma-Ma." 08:46 And she meant, Yo-Yo Ma, but she said, "Yo Ma-Ma." 08:49 But Marcus is a good student, and we are encouraging him to 08:54 keep on practicing because he does play the cello well. 08:59 And he and Farrah, temperament wise, are a good match. 09:06 And when she's with him, Farrah is a little more driven, 09:09 and she's driven to play the piano, 09:10 and they practice, and practice, and practice, 09:12 and practice, and practice. 09:13 And we said, "You know, you ought to put that practice 09:15 to good use." 09:17 So we asked them to come. 09:18 And they did a fine job. 09:20 And we thank them. 09:23 This week's Anchors deals with water. 09:29 And the idea hit me actually when we were in Israel 09:34 a couple of years ago. 09:36 I didn't know that there was a theology of water 09:44 in the Hebrew economy. 09:46 I know about the ecclesiology, the churchiness of water. 09:49 I knew that synagogues were always built near water, 09:53 and on water, or near access to water. 09:56 I thought it was for basically hygienic reasons. 09:58 And it was. 10:01 But there's so much more in the Hebrew, the Semitic mindset, 10:05 as respects water. 10:07 And I didn't really get a handle on it until we started 10:09 going to Israel and going to ruins of synagogues 10:12 and seeing how they were always built on or near water. 10:16 And there was always the mikvas, the rituals baths, 10:19 that were always there. 10:20 And the cleansing and the washing was an 10:22 integral part of their faith. 10:23 And so the idea of water and the things that happened 10:27 at water or near water kind of intrigued me. 10:30 I wanted to do a series on the micro aspect of water, 10:36 but I found out that I wasn't theologian enough 10:38 to plumb that depth. 10:40 So I went to the macro aspect of water; 10:42 rivers, lakes, streams, ponds. 10:44 Those kinds of things. 10:45 And there was time to do that. 10:48 But just about any topic you pick in the Bible, 10:52 if you study it long enough you will come up with gold, 10:55 because there's so much. 10:56 The more I study of the Bible, the more I realize 10:59 the less I know about the Bible. 11:01 Because there is so much to know about the Word of God. 11:05 And I didn't think there was so much on water 11:10 as respects the gospel until I began this study 11:15 in earnest just a few years ago. 11:18 So I began writing just a few days ago, 11:20 and I was amazed at some of the things that God was showing me. 11:24 So tonight's message is, Cry Me By A River. 11:32 And tomorrow is, Abana and Pharpar. 11:37 Followed by, You Gotta Get Wet. 11:40 And then, A River Within. 11:43 And finally, Then He Showed Me A River. 11:48 And we are hoping and praying that the Spirit of God will 11:50 be here for all of these messages, and that we can 11:53 give you some encouragement as together we take 11:58 one more step along the road that leads to glory. 12:01 I've got to thank Irma, because for the past several nights 12:04 she would go into the room and say, "Are you coming?" 12:06 And I'd say, "No, I've got to stay up a couple of hours." 12:10 And then she'd wake up and come by and say, 12:12 "Are you coming now?" 12:14 "No, I've got to have a couple more hours." 12:17 So she has been very patient with me. 12:20 We don't like to sleep without each other in the bed. 12:23 So if someone is in the house, they ought to be in the bedroom. 12:27 So it kind of disturbs her when I'm in the dining room 12:29 at the table with a stack of books maybe a meter high 12:33 and she's trying to sleep. 12:36 So I need to thank her very much. 12:40 Turn with me, if you will, to Psalm chapter 137. 12:45 The 137th division of the psalms. 12:50 Then we'll pray and watch forth. 12:54 Psalm 137. 12:57 I want to thank Jim for his kind words. 13:04 We have become great friends. 13:05 And I almost apologize for what I'm going to do to him 13:09 on tomorrow evening, I think it is. 13:11 I have a couple of stories to tell you about Jim Gilley. 13:15 And I'll return his kindness with ill will. 13:21 But I love him greatly and appreciate his ministry. 13:27 Shall we pray. 13:28 Father God, we call upon You now to be the honored Guest, 13:33 but also to be the Teacher, because we need to hear 13:37 a word from the Lord. 13:41 The hour is late in the history of this world, 13:43 and Christ is soon to come. 13:46 We would be prepared for that day, 13:51 and we ask You even now to fill us with Your Spirit 13:56 and to teach us those things that You would have us to know. 14:00 And we thank You in Jesus' name, amen. 14:05 I'm reading from Psalm 137. 14:09 And we will read the entire chapter. 14:16 Beginning in verse 1, "By the rivers of Babylon, 14:19 there we sat down; yea, we wept when we remembered Zion. 14:26 We hung our harps upon the willows in the midst of it. 14:32 For there, those who carried us away captive asked of us a song, 14:39 and those who plundered us requested mirth, saying, 14:45 'Sing us one of the songs of Zion.' 14:50 How shall we sing the Lord's song in a foreign land?" 14:55 I reading from the New King James. 14:58 "If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand 15:01 forget its skill. 15:03 If I do not remember you, let my tongue cling to the 15:06 roof of my mouth; if I do not exalt Jerusalem 15:11 above my chief joy. 15:14 Remember, O Lord, against the sons of Edom 15:18 the day of Jerusalem, who said, 'Raze it, raze it...'" 15:22 That means, tear it down. 15:24 "'...to its very foundation.' 15:25 O daughter of Babylon, who are to be destroyed, 15:29 happy the one who repays you as you have served us. 15:36 Happy the one who takes and dashes your little ones 15:41 against the rock." 15:46 Many times in the Word of God you will see the designation 15:50 in your Bible before a given or particular psalm 15:55 the words, "A song of David." 16:00 You will note that this particular designation 16:04 does not appear before this psalm. 16:10 "Why?" you might ask. 16:11 Well the answer is simple. 16:13 David did not write it. 16:16 The incident that is recorded in this song, 16:21 the incident that the writer is describing, 16:25 took place some 200 plus years after the death of David. 16:31 So David could not have written this song. 16:33 The psalms are a collection of verses and tunes 16:39 and worship chants that are gathered together 16:42 most, but not all, written by David. 16:47 The psalms are divided into five books, 16:51 each ending with a short doxology; 16:56 a short hymn of praise to God. 16:58 Each doxology starts with the words, "Praise the Lord." 17:03 That's when you can tell that you're moving from one book 17:05 in the psalms to another. 17:08 "Praise the Lord;" that doxology will be there 17:10 to divide the books. 17:11 So though the psalms is a whole, it is actually a collection 17:15 of five different books, each containing 17:18 a doxology at its end to make that division. 17:22 Now most Jewish scholars say and agree that dividing the psalms 17:27 into five books is no coincidence, 17:30 because it parallels the five books of Moses; 17:34 The five books of the law, the Pentateuch, the Torah. 17:39 But it is this, shall I say, anachronistic psalm, 17:44 this psalm out of place, that may be the one that 17:48 draws the most sympathy by the reader. 17:52 So Psalm 137 is not a Davidic psalm. 17:57 Psalm 74 is not a Davidic psalm. 18:00 They were written by someone else. 18:02 And we don't know precisely who wrote them. 18:05 There is some scholarly debate as to who wrote the psalms, 18:09 but we know that David could not have written them 18:11 because this incident takes place long after David 18:15 was dead and buried. 18:20 And yet there is much to learn from this particular psalm, 18:23 even in its, and I'll use the term, imprecatory, 18:27 or negative aspects. 18:29 This psalm, as you read it, has a little different flavor 18:33 than the other psalms. 18:35 There's some negativity in this psalm. 18:37 There's some backbiting in this psalm. 18:39 There's a little revenge asking in this psalm. 18:43 So it has what scholars call, an imprecatory nature. 18:46 You heard about imprecatory prayers? 18:49 That's the latest thing in some places. 18:50 An imprecatory prayer is a prayer where you're praying 18:53 against somebody. 18:54 "Lord, I hope she breaks her neck." 18:56 That's an imprecatory prayer. 18:59 Well this psalm has some imprecatory aspects to it. 19:02 There's some negative things here. 19:04 "Lord, I hope Babylon suffers for what they've done to us. 19:07 I hope their babies get dashed against the stones 19:10 for what they've done to us." 19:11 So there's some negativity in this psalm that is not really 19:14 reminiscent of the overall theme and flavor 19:18 of the rest of the psalms. 19:19 So whoever this writer was, he was an ultra orthodox 19:26 kind of mean spirited guy who believed in 19:29 payback, Pastor John. 19:32 And he puts that into his psalm. 19:35 So the Jews are God's people. 19:39 They are captured, they are enslaved, 19:45 their nation was destroyed, their walls torn down, 19:50 their temple incinerated and left in ruins. 19:55 All of this at the hands of the hated Babylonians, 19:59 these Chaldeans that were viewed almost as the devil. 20:06 And now to make matters worse, these demons in human form 20:12 are asking that we sing a song. 20:17 They want us to be happy after what they've done 20:21 to our kingdom. 20:23 I read some years ago by Elden Chalmers, 20:27 great Adventist psychologist, he said that song singing 20:32 is something a person does when they're happy and content. 20:36 Dr. Chalmers told us in the seminary that 20:38 if you pass by the kitchen and your wife is singing a song, 20:43 you're going to eat good that night. 20:46 Because song singing is something you do 20:49 when you're happy or content, unless you're singing the blues. 20:54 But these Babylonians are saying to their Jewish captives, 20:58 their Jewish slaves, "Sing us one of the songs of Zion. 21:02 Sing us something that you use to sing to your Lord. 21:05 We want to hear some little ditty that use to keep you 21:08 on cold winter nights." 21:14 They certainly didn't feel like singing. 21:19 And so their response was, "How can we sing 21:24 the Lord's song in a strange land? 21:29 How can we sing to our God among you people? 21:36 Why should we waste our breath and our time 21:41 praising God in front of you?" 21:46 It's interesting, the question is almost rhetorical. 21:50 Because the answer is, "How can you not sing?" 21:54 Let's examine the "why" of this situation. 21:59 Why they're in a strange land. 22:01 Why they are in this state of affairs. 22:03 Why are they thus? 22:08 I refer you to, Desire of Ages, page 28. 22:12 Ellen White gives us some insight into the Jewish 22:15 economy and history. 22:16 She says, "The Israelites fixed their hopes 22:20 upon worldly greatness. 22:24 From the time of their entrance into Canaan, 22:28 they departed from the commandments of God 22:30 and followed the ways of the heathen. 22:35 It was in vain..." 22:37 I looked up the word, "vain," just to make sure that 22:38 I knew what she was talking about. 22:40 "Vain," means, ineffectual, unsuccessful, and futile. 22:44 Waste of time. 22:46 "It was in vain that God sent them warnings by His prophets. 22:51 In vain they suffered the chastisement 22:54 of heathen oppression." 22:56 God tried everything that He knew. 22:59 He tried blessings, He tried cursings, 23:04 He tried pats on the back, He tried punishment, 23:08 but nothing ever seemed to work for very long. 23:12 Ellen White says every time they took one step forward, 23:15 they took two steps back. 23:18 And for nearly a thousand years, God suffered with His people. 23:24 Isaiah 1:2, "Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth. 23:30 For the Lord has spoken, 'I have nourished and brought up 23:35 children, and they have rebelled against Me.'" 23:39 You know, there's no book in the Bible... 23:41 If you want to really get a flavor of how God labored 23:46 with His people, read Isaiah and Jeremiah. 23:51 If you really want to know the lengths that God will go through 23:55 to save somebody, just walk through Isaiah and Jeremiah. 23:58 You see, I was telling Jim the other day, we were talking, 24:01 I said, you see a God who is almost schizophrenic 24:05 in His desire to save His people. 24:07 In one breath He says, "Listen Isaiah, tell them, 24:12 'Find another God.' 24:14 Tell them, 'Don't look to Me, don't pray to Me, 24:16 don't talk to Me, don't come to Me. 24:18 When you suffer and fall down and scrape your knee, 24:21 I'm going to laugh at you. 24:22 I'm going to turn My back on you, 24:24 I'm going to walk away from you.' 24:25 Oh by the way, tell them I love them." 24:29 You see an almost schizophrenic God. 24:31 You almost feel kind of sad for God, because He's 24:33 pouring out His soul, His all, for a people that just will not 24:39 listen and will not obey. 24:42 And you see that in Isaiah, and you see that in Jeremiah. 24:46 "The ox knows its owner, the donkey knows its master's crib, 24:52 but Israel does not know; My people do not consider." 24:57 This is God talking. 25:00 If you want to understand the depths that God 25:04 will go to save Israel, technically Judah, 25:08 if you want to see how far they had sunken down, 25:10 just read some of the passages in Isaiah. 25:13 It will literally bring tears to your eyes to see what God 25:18 is doing to save His people, 25:20 and the length to which He will go to try to get them 25:23 to turn from their pernicious wickedness. 25:28 Ladies and gentlemen, the truth is, God tried. 25:34 And God is trying. 25:36 For a thousand years He tried. 25:38 Just like He's trying today for the last two thousand years 25:41 since the death of Christ. 25:43 Seven thousand years of trying. 25:48 He says, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock." 25:51 You know, I wish sometimes God could just kick the door down. 25:55 I really do. 25:57 Because I see people who are bound for hell 26:00 and they just won't change their way, 26:02 and God is standing at the door rubbing His knuckles raw 26:06 knocking and knocking and knocking and knocking. 26:08 I'm glad I'm not God, I'd kick the door down. 26:15 Seven thousand years knocking. 26:21 Page 28, again in the book, Ellen White says, 26:26 "They were brought into subjection to Babylon, 26:28 and scattered through the lands of the heathen. 26:31 In affliction many renewed their faithfulness to His covenant... 26:36 The heathen systems of sacrifice were a perversion 26:40 of the system that God had appointed; 26:43 and many a sincere observer of heathen rites 26:46 learned from the Hebrews the meaning of the service 26:50 divinely ordained, and in faith grasped the 26:54 promise of a Redeemer." 26:56 You see, when God forced Israel into other lands, 27:00 it wasn't just punishment. 27:02 He was forcing them to do what He had called them to do. 27:06 He said, "If you don't want to go on your own, 27:08 I'm going to make you go." 27:10 And you can see a long line of heathen kings and princes, 27:14 and just plain ole common folk, who, because they rubbed 27:18 shoulders with Hebrew slaves, found out about God, 27:23 gave their hearts to God. 27:24 But God had to do in war what He wanted to do in peace. 27:29 You see, when you read the Bible, the blood 27:32 and guts and gore, this didn't have to be. 27:36 These 39 books of trial and test didn't have to be. 27:40 This was not God's will for His people. 27:44 Could have been written differently 27:46 had they just learned to obey. 27:53 Rahab, Ruth, the Syro-Phoenician; 27:57 these are individuals, they are samples of individuals, 28:01 who through contact with godly people gave their lives to God. 28:07 But why did it have to be in war when God wanted it 28:13 to be in peace? 28:15 God had to force them to do what He had called them to do, 28:18 what they were indeed created to do. 28:23 Ladies and gentlemen, may I submit to you that 28:26 we at the end of time run the same risk. 28:30 As nice as it is in this house, and in churches, 28:37 17,000 to 18,000 in number, all across the world, 28:41 that's not where the work of God is done. 28:44 The work of God is done outside the church. 28:48 We come together just long enough to get encouragement, 28:51 and then we go out and we spread the love of Jesus. 28:56 How can we sing the Lord's song in a strange land? 29:00 Prophets and Kings, "Many of the exile suffered persecution. 29:04 Not a few lost their lives because of their refusal 29:07 to disregard the Sabbath and observe the heathen festivals. 29:11 As idolaters were roused to crush out the truth, 29:15 the Lord brought His servants face to face with kings 29:18 and rulers, that they and their people might receive the light. 29:24 Time after time, the greatest monarchs were led to proclaim 29:28 the supremacy of the God whom their Hebrew 29:31 captives worshiped." 29:34 Nebuchadnezzar, Xerxes, Ben-Hadad, Naaman, 29:42 who we will talk about on tomorrow, I believe. 29:47 They learned from their slaves. 29:50 And the gospel went to these kingdoms 29:53 because of the Hebrew slaves that were faithful to God. 29:57 But it didn't have to be that way. 29:58 It was never suppose to be that way. 30:01 Had they lived for God and obeyed God and followed God, 30:05 God would have made them the head and not the tail. 30:12 We are told, brothers and sisters, this is going to happen 30:16 again before the end of time. 30:19 Some of you sitting here, or some of you watching, 30:21 or some of you listening, may be called before a judge, 30:24 or a prelate, or a king, or a president, or a prime minister, 30:30 who will say to you, "Why do you believe what you believe?" 30:38 And you better be ready to give a reason for the hope 30:42 that is within you. 30:44 Because that's your chance to stand up for Jesus. 30:48 It happened before, it'll happen again. 30:52 So we need to study to show ourselves approved. 30:55 Now get this, "Had Israel been true to God, 30:59 He could have accomplished His purpose through their honor 31:03 and exaltation. 31:05 If they had walked in the ways of obedience, 31:09 He would have made them 'high above all nations 31:14 which He hath made, in praise, and in name, and in honor.'" 31:20 That's why God called them. 31:24 He could have glorified them. 31:26 He could have exalted them. 31:28 He could have had all people of the earth coming to them 31:30 for a knowledge of God. 31:32 But they failed in their mission. 31:35 Said Moses, "All people of the earth shall see 31:41 that thou art called by the name of the Lord; 31:44 and they shall be afraid of thee." 31:47 "But because of their unfaithfulness, 31:50 God's purpose could only be wrought through continued 31:54 adversity and humiliation." 31:56 Did you get that? 31:58 Because of their attitude, God's purpose could only be 32:04 wrought through adversity and humiliation. 32:10 So God, as it were, had to stand over them with a whip 32:13 to get them to do what He called them to do. 32:15 You see, God's purpose is going to get accomplished. 32:19 Amen? 32:20 Going to get done. 32:22 Somebody is going to be warned, the truth is going to get out, 32:25 God's people will be warned. 32:27 Either you're in it or you're not. 32:30 Either you're part of the building committee 32:32 or the wrecking crew. 32:34 Either you're on God's side or the devil. 32:36 But God's ship is going to go through. 32:39 The question is, will you? 32:43 And for nearly a thousand years, God labored with His people. 32:47 And the truth is, they never really got it right. 32:55 God wants to use you, us, to lift up His name. 33:03 The question is, will you, us, do it? 33:09 Sadly, the only thing that will move you, us, is humiliation. 33:18 God has got to, Jim, cattle prod us sometimes. 33:26 As I said before, God had literally to stand over 33:28 God's people with a whip to get them to move. 33:34 God called Israel, ladies and gentlemen, 33:36 brothers and sisters, for one reason only. 33:39 That's to spread the news and warn the world 33:43 of the coming of the Lord. 33:45 Now what is the difference in how and what and why 33:49 He called them, and how and what and why He calls us? 33:52 What's the difference? 33:55 Amen. 33:56 Forgive my pejorative English. 33:58 Ain't none. 34:00 There's no difference. 34:02 We are called like they were called. 34:04 For the same mission that they were called. 34:06 God called them to spread, to live, to share. 34:09 God calls us to spread, to live, to share. 34:12 No difference. 34:14 Now the question we need to ask ourselves is, 34:15 how we doin? 34:23 Either we is or we ain't. 34:28 Amen. 34:30 Or, ouch. 34:36 Let me beg my point. 34:38 Let me give you a little flavor and tenor of the relationship 34:41 between God and Israel, His chosen people, at this time. 34:45 I'm in Jeremiah 15:1. 34:47 The book of Jeremiah 15:1. 34:52 "Then the Lord said to me, 'Even if Moses and Samuel 34:57 stand before Me, My mind will not be favorable 35:01 toward this people.'" 35:04 That's pretty strong language, isn't it? 35:06 "If Moses and Samuel came and begged for Israel, 35:10 I'm not going to change My mind." 35:12 "Cast them out of My sight, and let them go forth. 35:16 And it shall be, if they say to you, 'Where shall we go...'" 35:21 Jeremiah 15:2, "...tell them, 'Thus says the Lord, 35:24 "Such as for death, to death; 35:27 such as for the sword, to the sword; 35:32 such as for famine, to famine; 35:35 such as for captivity, to captivity."'" 35:38 So God explained to them what's going to happen. 35:42 "Some of you are going to be killed, 35:43 some of you are going to starve to death, 35:45 some of you are going to become slaves, 35:46 some of you are going to die of pestilence and disease." 35:52 You see, they had forgotten God. 35:54 The leaders had turned their backs on God. 35:58 And now God was giving them the recompense of their... 36:02 And I need to say this. 36:03 You know, I was listening the other day to 36:06 someone on 3ABN. 36:07 And they were saying, "We have a Christian school here. 36:11 And some of the students, by the way they act, 36:16 say to us they don't want to be in this school. 36:18 We've never kicked anybody out of school. 36:21 We don't send anybody home. 36:24 Your conduct tells us if you want to be here." 36:29 That make sense? "We don't throw people out." 36:32 He said, "We have a set of rules. 36:34 If you obey those rules, you stay. 36:39 But if you flaunt those rules and work against those rules, 36:43 you are saying to us, you don't want to be here. 36:46 So what we do is give you what you want." 36:51 Amen. 36:54 That's what God is saying. 36:57 "I've got a set of rules. 36:59 I've got a way that is the best way. 37:04 And your response to Me determines 37:10 how I can respond to you." 37:12 It's like, you have two children and you love all your children. 37:16 But you know that if one child obeys and does everything 37:22 mommy says and pretty much follows you, 37:25 you can do more for that child than you can for the one 37:30 that simply doesn't want any part of 37:33 anything you have to say. 37:34 It doesn't many you love one more than the other. 37:36 It means you can help one more than the other, 37:38 because the one who cooperates gets the goodies. 37:41 There's no way to get around it. 37:43 If you say, "Go to bed at nine so you can get up at five, 37:46 so you can do your work," and the child goes to bed at nine, 37:48 gets up at five, and one says, "I'm not going to bed 37:49 until midnight," and then you try to get them up at five, 37:53 and they don't want to hear it, and they don't want to 37:55 be bothered, because they didn't get enough sleep. 37:59 So you can help that one child more than the other 38:03 simply because they listen and obey. 38:06 Well it's the same way in heaven. 38:09 If God says, "This is the way, walk ye in it," 38:13 and you walk in that way, there are a series of blessings 38:17 that come from walking in that way. 38:19 Amen. 38:21 But if you say, "I'm going to make my own way. 38:23 I'm going this way," well there's a series of steps 38:26 that come from walking that way. 38:28 If this way is paved and smooth and well worn 38:33 because God has smoothed it out for you, 38:34 and this is stony and rocky and you've got briers and bristles 38:38 and everything over here, and you want to hack your way 38:40 through the jungle, well... 38:44 You're making your own way. 38:46 And there are things that come from going that way. 38:50 And God may or may not help you there. 38:57 But if He leaves you on your own, God cannot be blamed. 39:01 Now I'm going to come back to that in just a little bit 39:04 and you'll see what I'm talking about. 39:06 So it boils down to this. 39:08 Let's go to Jeremiah 16 and I'll pick it up in verse 10. 39:15 I got a brand new Bible when I was at ASI a couple weeks ago. 39:19 Super huge print. I love it. 39:22 But you know what happens with new Bibles? 39:24 The pages stick together. 39:29 "And it shall be, when you show this people all these words, 39:34 and they say to you, 'Why has the Lord pronounced 39:36 all this great disaster upon us? 39:39 Or what is our iniquity? 39:41 Or what is our sin that we have committed against 39:44 the Lord our God?' 39:46 then you shall say to them, 'Because your fathers 39:49 have forsaken Me,' says the Lord, 'they have walked 39:53 after other gods and have served them and worshiped them, 39:57 and have forsaken Me and not kept My law. 40:00 And you have done worse than your fathers, 40:03 for behold, each one follows the dictates of his own evil heart, 40:09 so that no one listens to Me.'" 40:11 You know, you almost feel bad for God. 40:14 You know, if you're dating somebody... 40:18 Jim, you're dating Camille. 40:20 And I know you broke up for a little while 40:21 and got back together. 40:22 John and Angie, I know your history. 40:24 Because I was there for that. 40:26 But if you date a girl and you're constantly loving 40:30 and showing love, and buying presents, 40:32 and giving all you can, and she thumbs her nose at you, 40:38 you've got two choices. 40:40 You can stay there and become a door mat, 40:42 or you can go someplace else. 40:46 You know, you can try it for a while. 40:48 And after a while, it gets kind of old. 40:51 "I love you, I love you. 40:53 Here's some candy, here's some flowers. 40:54 Here's the keys to my car." 40:58 So you go someplace else where you're loved. 41:01 Amen. 41:04 That's just common sense... 41:06 ...to everybody but God. 41:10 Ever thought of that? 41:12 He has no place else to go. 41:15 He can't do anything but love. 41:17 He cannot change. 41:20 Always makes you feel a little sad for God, doesn't it? 41:24 Whether you accept Him or reject Him, 41:26 He's still there knocking at that door. 41:30 And He knocked on the door of Israel's heart 41:33 for almost a thousand years. 41:39 They never got it right. 41:42 And He says here, "You've done worse than your fathers. 41:46 And I've tried." 41:51 When you boil it down, two particular sins: 41:56 Sabbath breaking and idolatry. 42:00 Same sins of today. 42:02 Not giving God His time, and putting everybody 42:06 and everything before God. 42:09 Those things were written aforetime; 42:12 written for our admonition. 42:15 Same sins of today. 42:18 Not giving God His time, and then putting everything 42:22 we can before God. 42:24 The sins of the former are now the sins of the latter. 42:28 You know, I wish I knew who wrote Psalm 137. 42:32 Because as I said before, it seems almost a little 42:34 out of bounds. 42:37 They're crying over Jerusalem. 42:40 But ladies and gentlemen, brothers and sisters, 42:41 Jerusalem wasn't their salvation. 42:45 Neither was the temple. 42:47 Jehovah God was. 42:50 They're crying when we fought about Jerusalem. 42:52 Well what about God? 42:57 We're crying when we think about the temple. 42:59 What about the God of the temple? 43:01 The reason you're in Babylon is because when you were 43:05 in Jerusalem, you forgot about God. 43:09 Your salvation is not in Jerusalem. 43:11 Your salvation is in Jehovah God. 43:15 And those of us who call ourselves Seventh-day Adventists 43:17 need to remember the same thing. 43:19 You don't get saved because you're a Seventh-day Adventist. 43:27 You get saved because you're in Jesus. 43:30 I said it before, I'll say it again. 43:32 Every Christian ain't a Seventh-day Adventist. 43:36 Um-hmm. 43:38 And every Seventh-day Adventist... 43:42 Uh-hmm. 43:46 They're crying over Jerusalem. 43:49 Well what about God? 43:52 So number one, you sing because even in good times 43:58 and in bad times, God is worthy to be praised. 44:04 That's why you sing. 44:05 Amen? 44:08 While probation still lingers, every calamity, 44:11 every catastrophe, is still mingled with the mercy of God. 44:14 In short, even though it's bad, it could have been worse. 44:20 That's a reason to sing. 44:24 I've been to car accidents where the car has been mangled 44:28 and flattened, and people walked away. 44:32 That's a reason to sing. 44:34 My roommate in college, I'm going to talk about him 44:36 again tomorrow night, my roommate in college 44:39 had a lime green Volkswagen. 44:43 Took Susan Truste up on Monte Sano, 44:46 and lost his mind and his brakes, and flattened that car. 44:50 And when I came back to the room, he's laying bed 44:53 sore but still in one piece. 44:56 Crying over that Volkswagen. 44:58 And the dean came in, Dean Butler came in, 45:01 and said, "Man, you okay?" 45:03 He said, "Yeah, but my car." 45:05 He said, "What are you crying about? 45:08 You're in one piece. 45:10 You can buy another cheap Volkswagen." 45:14 Every catastrophe, every calamity, 45:17 mingled with the mercy of God. 45:18 So as bad as it is, it could have been worse. 45:23 That's a reason to sing. 45:26 That's a reason to sing. 45:28 Two, you sing because God can find you 45:32 as easily in Babylon as He can in Jerusalem. 45:37 Amen. 45:39 You may lose sight of Him, He will not lose sight of you. 45:43 So though you're in Babylon, there's something for you to do 45:46 in Babylon. 45:48 Amen. 45:49 God can find you in Babylon just like He can in Jerusalem. 45:54 So you ought to sing even in Babylon. 45:58 Time is running, let me go to Jeremiah 24 real fast. 46:01 Jeremiah 24. 46:03 I knew this was going to happen. 46:05 Jeremiah 24. 46:08 Maybe I'll just summarize it for you. 46:10 No, I've got to read it. 46:11 "The Lord showed me, and there were two baskets of figs 46:16 set before the temple of the Lord, after Nebuchadnezzar 46:20 king of Babylon had carried away captive Jeconiah 46:24 and his son Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and the princes of Judah 46:30 with the craftsmen, and smiths, from Jerusalem..." 46:32 Now I want to jump down to verse 5, 46:36 and I want to read it in three different versions real quick. 46:39 The NIV, the Clear Word, and the New King James. 46:44 "This is what the Lord God says, 46:48 'Like these good figs, I regard as good the exiles from Judah, 46:54 whom I sent away from this place to the land 46:57 of the Babylonians. 46:59 My eyes shall watch over them for their good, 47:02 and I will bring them back to this land.'" 47:04 That's NIV. 47:06 Clear Word, "Some of the people who were taken captive 47:09 to Babylon are like these good figs. 47:12 I will watch over them and treat them gently. 47:16 I will bring them back to their land." 47:19 Now here's the New King James. 47:21 "Thus says the Lord God of Israel..." 47:23 Now when you see, "Lord God," like that, that's the formal 47:26 entrance into the King. 47:27 That's Yahweh, Elohim. 47:29 That's as good as it gets. 47:31 That's, take it to the bank, guaranteed. 47:34 "I call..." 47:35 Ummm, let me jump over that. 47:37 Ummm, let's see. 47:39 "Like these good figs, so I will acknowledge those 47:43 who are carried away captive from Judah, whom I have 47:46 sent out of this place for their own good, 47:49 into the land of the Chaldeans. 47:52 For I will set My eyes on them for good." 47:56 You see, when you serve the Lord, 48:00 can I say it, even bad stuff turns out good. 48:05 Amen? 48:07 Everybody had to go to Babylon. 48:11 But God said, "I know those that are Mine. 48:15 And I'm going to take care of mine even in Babylon. 48:19 I know the good from the bad. 48:22 And the good, I've set My eyes upon them. 48:25 I will watch out for them even in Babylon." 48:28 So my point is again, God can find you in Babylon 48:32 just like He can in Jerusalem. 48:33 And just because you're in a hard place 48:36 doesn't mean that God has lost you or forgotten about you. 48:39 God can take care of you in Jerusalem, 48:41 and God can take care of you in Babylon. 48:43 Amen? 48:45 So you ought to sing because the same God who is there 48:47 in Jerusalem is right by your side in Babylon. 48:50 That's something to sing about. 48:55 So even bad stuff turns out good when God is by your side. 49:00 They ought to sing, because even if everybody is singing 49:05 rock, or rap, or reggae, or rhythm and blues, 49:08 and you're the only one singing for Jesus, 49:10 God hears it. 49:13 And sometimes God puts you in a strange place 49:16 just so you can sing. 49:19 You ought to sing because you never know who's listening 49:23 for your song. 49:24 I'll tell you a true story. 49:26 I went to a funeral when I was pastoring the Ephesus church. 49:29 One of our wealthy, well to do, snowbirds... 49:33 That's a person who goes north in the summer 49:36 and south in the winter. 49:37 It was in Miami, a repast. 49:38 And he flew me down, along with a bunch of individuals, 49:42 on a plane to do his funeral. 49:44 I preached the funeral. 49:45 He flew this choir down. 49:47 And we had a wonderful big, huge, five hour 49:51 funeral down there in Miami. 49:53 Well, they had rented this very swank restaurant 49:56 for the repast after. 49:59 So we all, with our Bibles and our black suits, 50:01 piled into this really swank restaurant. 50:03 And we were kind of over by ourselves, 50:05 and I noticed there was this guy kind of hanging around us. 50:09 And he was kind of irritating us a little bit. 50:11 Because first of all, everybody was suit and ties, 50:12 a suit and tie restaurant; maître d', he had the thing. 50:15 You know, you've got to check for your name, 50:16 and then they call your name and you walk to your seat. 50:19 And there's this guy in a shirt and he had a jacket on, 50:22 but kind of rumpled. 50:24 He just kept hanging around us. 50:25 And someone said, "Why is that guy hanging 50:28 around us like that?" 50:30 And I said, "I don't know, he's not bothering anybody." 50:31 Just kept hanging around. 50:33 And we were talking about the Lord and all kinds of things, 50:34 and he just kept listening in and hanging around us. 50:37 But he was disheveled. 50:39 He wasn't dirty, but he wasn't... 50:41 This was a pressed restaurant. You know, folk... 50:43 The maître d' has a little white cloth over his arm, you know, 50:46 and walks like this, and stripe on the pants, and what not. 50:48 This is a very high-class, swanky restaurant. 50:50 Here's this disheveled guy kind of hanging around us, 50:53 like, "Why is he hanging around us?" 50:55 So it was time, the food came, and someone said, 51:02 "Well, pastor, why don't you pray for the food." 51:04 And so I said, "Okay, let's bow our heads." 51:06 And we all grabbed pinky fingers. 51:07 If you know Erma and I, we do the pinky finger thing. 51:09 I picked that pinky finger thing up years ago. 51:13 So we all grabbed our pinky fingers. 51:14 And as I was about to pray, this guy in his disheveled suit said, 51:18 "Alright, let's be quiet. 51:20 The pastor is going to pray." 51:25 This is a high-class restaurant, pastor. 51:28 This is, you know, 21. This is a big deal. 51:30 And this disheveled guy is screaming. 51:32 So I figured I got the floor, because the place got quiet. 51:34 You know, everybody got quiet. 51:36 So I prayed, "Lord, bless the food. 51:39 Bless all of these people here. 51:41 May they receive..." And I milked it. 51:43 "May they receive strength from their food, may they eat." 51:45 And announced that one day Jesus is going to ask 51:47 for an account of their lives. 51:49 And Christ is coming soon. 51:50 I figured, I've got the floor. 51:52 This is my time to preach a sermon. 51:53 And you know, I preached a long time. 51:55 "In the name of Jesus, amen." 51:59 And the guy walked away. 52:03 And I found out later that he was a co-owner 52:08 of the restaurant. 52:10 Dressed like a bum, but he's co-owner of the restaurant. 52:13 And he knew that a party of Adventists was coming in there, 52:18 and he was just hanging around, just trying to get something. 52:22 And I found out from another Adventist in town 52:27 that about two weeks before, his daughter died 52:31 in a boating accident. 52:32 And his son was driving the boat, 52:35 and she hit something in the water. 52:37 And so now his son is in the hospital. 52:39 He's going through some mental stuff because he feels 52:42 responsible for his sister's death. 52:46 And this fellow was asking the Lord on that day, 52:54 "Lord, I just ain't got it. 52:56 Can you do something for me?" 52:58 And then in comes this party of Adventists. 53:01 And he makes the whole restaurant shut up 53:03 so they can hear me pray. 53:05 See, you sing the Lord's song because you never know 53:09 who's out there who needs to hear that song. 53:12 You never know who's there, who, on that very day, 53:15 needs to hear something from you. 53:17 Because maybe they're in a strange land. 53:19 Maybe they're in a strange place. 53:21 I've got a good friend I baptized. 53:22 An ambassador, I better not say the country, 53:24 from the United Nations. 53:29 And when I was Bible studying with him, he told me, 53:32 "You know, the Lord is so good. 53:37 When I was an ambassador for the UN, I didn't care about 53:41 the Lord, I didn't care about anything. 53:43 But the Lord took my job, and I was in a strange land. 53:48 I was in the unemployment line for six months. 53:52 No job. Can't pay my bills. 53:54 Wife looking at me funny. Two kids, you know. 53:58 And it was during that time that I found Jesus." 54:02 He said, "I cherish the time that I was out of a job, 54:07 because that's when we found Jesus." 54:11 He got a job with Metropolitan Life, 54:13 became the northeast regional director of Metropolitan Life. 54:17 Move to Atlanta and became the southeast regional director 54:22 of Metropolitan Life. 54:24 He was in a strange land, but he sang the song and he found God. 54:27 And now God is allowing him to rise on high places. 54:31 So you sing, because sometimes God puts you there 54:35 because there's somebody there who needs to hear your song, 54:39 who needs to hear what you have to say, 54:40 who needs to hear of the goodness of the Lord 54:43 even in bad times. 54:47 David said, "I've been young; now I am old. 54:52 Never, never, seen the righteous forsaken, 55:00 or His seed begging bread." 55:03 That's something to sing about. 55:06 So when you go to the cupboard and the cupboard is low, 55:12 sing for Jesus. 55:16 Because He's got something for you, 55:18 and someone needs to hear your song. 55:22 Let me close quickly with a story. 55:25 Sister Ina Lee Kitchen. 55:26 I'm pastor of the Springfield Gardens 55:27 Seventh-day Adventist Church. 55:31 When I pastored her, she was 102 years old. 55:33 She told me about the years when she joined the church. 55:37 She said, and I've got to hurry up with this, 55:38 she said, "One day my husband lost his job 55:43 because of the Sabbath. 55:44 We had no food in the house what so ever. 55:47 And he was pacing up and down. 55:49 I went to the window, opened up the window, 55:51 pulled my rocking chair to the window, and just sat 55:53 in the chair and rocked and sang." 55:55 She said, "I knew God was going to do something. 55:57 I just rocked and sang." 56:01 She said, "In about 40 minutes..." 56:04 This is sister Ina Lee Kitchen, 101 years old. 56:07 Don't need to lie when you're 101 years old. 56:10 She said, "There floated through my window, 56:12 just as pretty as you please, a one dollar bill. 56:18 It landed right there in front of my rocking chair." 56:20 She said this was back in the 1930's. 56:23 She was 101 years old. 56:26 She said, "A dollar could go a long way. 56:27 You could get bread and milk and eggs, 56:30 and have a couple of pennies left over." 56:32 She said, "My husband went up on the roof to see 56:34 who lost a dollar. 56:36 While he's on the roof, I was making a beeline 56:38 for the grocery store." 56:42 She said, "I remember that to this day; 56:45 that God will never forsake His own." 56:49 See, that's why you can sing. 56:51 Because even when you are not at your best, 56:55 God is. 56:58 He's faithful. He cannot deny Himself. 57:01 So you can sing in the sunshine, 57:04 and you can sing in the rain. 57:06 And you can sing in the good times, 57:08 and you can sing in the bad. 57:10 You can sing when you've got friends, 57:13 and you can sing when your friends are few. 57:15 Because even if you have no friend, 57:19 you've got one Friend. 57:22 And that Friend sticks closer than a brother. 57:25 And wherever you go, and whatever you do, 57:28 that Friend is with you. 57:31 That's something, ladies and gentlemen, to sing about. 57:36 Father God, we praise You and thank You for Jesus; 57:40 the Author and Finisher of our faith. 57:44 Help us, Lord, to put a song on our lips 57:48 and the love of Christ in our hearts, 57:51 and to sing the Lord's song wherever we are. |
Revised 2016-01-28