Participants:
Series Code: ASIC
Program Code: ASIC190010S
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00:21 Four years ago, last January
00:24 I met a young man at the door of a Romanian 00:27 Adventist Congregation in Atlanta. 00:30 But he spoke not a word of Romanian. 00:34 And less than a minute into our brief conversation, 00:36 the Spirit nudged me and said, 00:38 "Pray with him right now." 00:42 Well, I'm a Yankee, a New England Yankee. 00:46 And that's not the way we do things where I come from. 00:51 So I brushed the thought aside 00:52 and tried to continue with the conversation, 00:55 but the Spirit persisted, "Pray with him right now." 01:00 Well, I had heard since I was a child 01:03 that resisting the impressions of the Holy Spirit 01:06 was the essence of the unpardonable sin. 01:09 And so finally I drew a deep breath 01:12 and looked at this stranger and said, 01:15 "Could I pray with you right here?" 01:18 He stared at me in amazement. 01:21 But the words that came out of his mouth were, 01:23 "Yes, please." 01:27 So two strangers prayed at the door 01:30 of a Romanian Adventist Congregation. 01:33 That's how I met Jared Thurmon, our speaker tonight. 01:36 And it's really a good indicator 01:38 of the personal 01:39 and the professional relationship 01:40 that's grown up between us over the last four years. 01:44 Meeting in Atlanta was a divine appointment. 01:47 Beginning to work together seven months later 01:50 was the result of dozens of conversations, 01:54 and hours of prayer, and weeks of strategic planning 01:58 about the future of Adventist Review Ministries. 02:01 Our speaker tonight is not, as scripture says, 02:06 a man of like passions to us. 02:09 Let me the first to say it, 02:10 Jared Thurmon is more passionate 02:12 than most of us. 02:14 He wears his faith, as they say, on his sleeve. 02:18 And it's a sleeve that by age 35 02:22 had gotten very busy in earning and giving away 02:25 vast sums to mission in India, 02:28 and the Caribbean, and Downtown Atlanta. 02:32 His creative work 02:33 with developing for profit businesses 02:35 that have a missional focus has made him sought 02:39 after as a consultant by church leaders 02:41 around the globe. 02:43 And his savvy with cultural trends 02:46 and digital marketing and building relationships, 02:49 yes, I can say this, has literally changed 02:51 the face of the oldest brand in Adventism. 02:55 You may actually want to rent out 02:59 the back half of that seat you're sitting in tonight 03:02 because you're not gonna need it. 03:05 After our musical interlude, you'll hear tonight, 03:08 a man of deep commitment to this movement 03:12 and this message, a man I have spent much time 03:15 praying with, a friend, 03:17 a colleague, a brother in Christ. 03:37 How firm a foundation 03:42 Ye saints of the Lord 03:45 Is laid for your faith 03:48 In His excellent word 03:52 What more can He say 03:55 Than to you He hath said 03:59 To you who for refuge 04:02 To Jesus have fled 04:11 Fear not, I am with thee 04:14 Oh, be not dismayed 04:18 For I am thy God 04:20 And will still give thee aid 04:24 I'll strengthen thee, help thee 04:28 And cause thee to stand 04:32 Upheld by My righteous 04:36 Omnipotent hand 04:44 When through the deep waters 04:49 I call thee to go 04:53 The rivers of sorrow 04:57 Shall not overflow 05:01 For I will be with thee 05:05 Thy troubles to bless 05:08 And sanctify to thee 05:12 Thy deepest distress 05:19 When through fiery trials 05:23 Thy pathway shall lie 05:26 My grace, all sufficient 05:29 Shall be thy supply 05:33 The flame shall not hurt thee 05:37 I only design 05:40 Thy dross to consume 05:43 And thy gold to refine 05:49 The soul that on Jesus 05:52 Hath leaned for repose 05:56 I will not 05:57 I will not desert to his foes 06:02 That soul, though all hell 06:05 Should endeavor to shake 06:11 I'll never, no, never 06:17 No, never 06:22 Forsake 06:43 Tonight, 06:44 I don't have smooth words to share with you. 06:50 In fact, it won't be easy to listen to 06:54 and it will be even harder for me to say. 06:59 After realizing the message 07:00 I was feeling impressed to share tonight. 07:03 Like Jonah, I started to think of ways 07:07 in which I could subtly back out of this, 07:10 so as not to disappoint some of you 07:12 and infuriate others. 07:16 But here I am. 07:19 And here we go. 07:21 I was raised 07:22 in the Seventh-day Adventist Church. 07:25 I experienced 16 years of Adventist education. 07:31 I was active in Pathfinders. 07:34 I'm headed to Oshkosh next weekend. 07:38 For more than four years, 07:40 I've had the honor 07:41 of serving the world church at the General Conference, 07:46 sitting on numerous committees, 07:49 working on many projects, 07:52 and giving my all to the Adventist Review. 07:57 And last but not least, 07:59 I serve as a volunteer lay pastor 08:02 of a wonderful church in Adairsville, Georgia. 08:07 I tell you all of that, 08:09 so that you can see, I'm a lifer. 08:14 And I'm committed to Jesus and this movement. 08:23 But as I look back 08:26 at the individuals, 08:28 many of which I grew up with... 08:33 there's a sad reality. 08:39 Too many of them are missing. 08:43 These are my friends, your classmates, your sons, 08:48 your daughters, your nieces, your nephews, 08:51 your grandchildren, 08:54 large numbers of which don't attend church anymore, 09:00 at least not a Seventh-day Adventist Church. 09:01 And I'm sad to say that I don't think many of them 09:04 want anything to do with it. 09:09 And it's led me to a prayerful conclusion. 09:15 The church I want to belong to is terrible. 09:24 Now that you know 09:25 I've checked my timidity at the door, 09:29 I'm going to practice 09:30 something you'll hear me preach about often candor. 09:35 Max De Pree said the first role of a leader 09:41 is to describe reality. 09:45 And so each of us 09:47 in at least one sense is a leader. 09:51 We lead a home, a ministry, 09:54 an institution, a company, a child. 10:00 As a new dad, I have this huge amount 10:03 of new appreciation for moms. 10:07 And for many of us, 10:08 we lead on multiple levels of life. 10:12 And so as a leader, 10:14 I'd like to describe 10:15 what I see as our reality tonight. 10:21 The world by most accounts, both secular and religious, 10:26 is a ticking time bomb. 10:30 From sermons on Sunday sacredness 10:33 to chance on climate catastrophe, 10:36 Louisville, we have a problem. 10:40 Whether it's the destruction of the family, 10:44 growing intolerance to free speech, 10:47 ever increasing tribalism and racism, 10:51 draconian surveillance, 10:54 the rapidly growing tension between the rich and the poor, 10:59 or the countless attacks 11:01 on the moral code given to us on Sinai. 11:06 We need no more evidence that we are living 11:09 in the last moments of time. 11:12 And Ellen White's words are truer than ever, 11:17 "Thinking men and women of all classes 11:20 have their attention fixed upon the events 11:23 taking place around us. 11:25 They recognize that something great and decisive 11:29 is about to take place, 11:31 that the world is on the verge of a stupendous crisis." 11:37 But the Bible says 11:39 that final events are being held back 11:42 until something dramatic, 11:44 climactic and terribly disruptive happens 11:48 with the remnant of Bible prophecy. 11:53 And in Revelation 7:3, 11:55 we hear a warning through some angels, 11:57 "Hurt not the earth or the sea 11:59 or the trees until we have sealed 12:02 the servants of our God on their foreheads." 12:06 But that ceiling, that settling into the truth, 12:10 both intellectually and spiritually 12:13 so that we cannot be moved, 12:16 has been stalling as of late. 12:20 And the temptation for leaders on every level, 12:24 for whom numbers determine position, personnel, 12:29 power and pay is to use 12:33 whatever number sounds good, so long as it achieves 12:36 the end goal of creating a picture 12:39 that helps and does not hurt me, 12:44 my team, my company, my church, my conference, 12:50 my union, my division, 12:53 my delegates, and my reelection. 12:59 And it's tempting to share 13:00 graphs of the millions of visitors to our websites, 13:06 or the tens of millions of followers 13:09 on our social media accounts, 13:12 or the hundreds of millions of dollars 13:15 in our bank accounts, offerings, 13:18 endowments, and reserve funds, 13:22 or the national news stories 13:24 about how Seventh-day Adventist 13:25 live longer than the rest of the population. 13:29 How we're the most diverse, fastest growing denomination 13:33 in the United States, or even the success 13:37 of our health care and educational institutions. 13:40 We could then end this slideshow 13:42 with a few pictures 13:44 of soccer stadiums full of believers 13:46 in line for baptism. 13:52 But I have a duty as you have a duty 13:55 as a leader to describe what I see. 14:00 And here are a few examples 14:02 from the recent global church members survey 14:06 by the General Conference. 14:08 The growing disparity between 14:11 numbers of members on the books 14:13 and those who attend services each week. 14:17 Fewer than half of Adventists feel satisfied 14:20 with the state of the local church. 14:23 The number of people joining and leaving or worse, 14:28 joining and staying, 14:30 who don't understand our message, 14:33 or the growing doubt among Adventists 14:35 about a literal creation week, 14:37 a heavenly judgment, 14:39 or what really happens when we die. 14:44 Recent data showing that as a global body, 14:47 most of us have pushed off our belief 14:50 in the imminent Second Coming 14:52 to a date decades into the future 14:57 or the growing reality that fewer of us 14:59 go out of our way to witness and share our faith. 15:04 Now we could look at this data and say, 15:08 "Well, many other faith groups seem to have it figured out. 15:11 What are the denominations around us doing? 15:13 Can we focus less on our distinctives 15:15 and more on what we have in common?" 15:18 And my personal opinion is no. 15:24 Friends and church family, 15:27 we have a problem. 15:31 We have a crisis of leadership. 15:35 And the crisis is not who is in leadership, 15:40 it's a lack of courage in leadership. 15:44 We have a crisis of courage. 15:46 Where are the men and women 15:48 willing to stand for the right though the heavens fall? 15:53 Where are those who are true 15:55 to duty as the needle to the pole, 15:58 unafraid to call sin by its right name, 16:02 unafraid there to lay their careers 16:05 on the line to do what is right? 16:10 I believe this is still the greatest one of the world. 16:15 But Israel also had a crisis of courage. 16:18 And the tribes finally got what they wanted. 16:21 A king like the nations around them, 16:25 they wanted to blend in and Saul even though 16:27 he was a head taller than everyone else, 16:29 he blended right in because he wasn't a courageous leader. 16:35 So the Lord tells Samuel the Prophet, 16:38 "Go to Bethlehem to Jesse's house 16:41 and find Me a man with some courage 16:43 and conviction." 16:46 And so Samuel the original kingmaker arrives, 16:50 "Who will be the next king?" 16:52 And one by one, 16:53 the sons of Jesse come before him. 16:58 "Ah, this must be the one." 17:02 All the degrees, 17:04 all the right letters after his name, 17:08 the rich all of skin tone, the experience, 17:13 and he looks the part. 17:16 But the Lord says, "No. 17:19 I have refused him. 17:21 I don't see as man sees. 17:23 Man looks at the outward appearance, 17:25 but I look at the heart." 17:30 And we learned here that appearances can be deceiving. 17:35 Humans often look for 17:36 all the wrong qualities in a leader. 17:40 A title does not make a leader. 17:44 A pedigree does not make a leader. 17:47 The color of one's skin should never be 17:51 the differentiating factor. 17:55 Many today follow those with titles 17:57 because they believe they have to, 17:59 not because they want to. 18:03 And we need leaders who fear nothing, 18:05 who crave duty, and pick up responsibility 18:09 for such a time as this. 18:12 So finally Samuel runs out of strapping young men 18:15 to anoint as king. 18:17 "Jesse, anymore?" 18:18 "Well, yeah, one out in the pasture." 18:21 And David is anointed king and told, 18:24 he will one day be the leader of Israel. 18:31 But he goes back to doing what he loves. 18:33 One of the two things Ellen White says, 18:36 are most favorable for character development, 18:40 caring for animals. 18:45 And so he spends his days caring for sheep, composing, 18:48 and playing music, and slinging rocks. 18:53 But Saul meanwhile, Saul's back at the palace, 18:56 and he's miserable. 18:58 And his counselors realized, 19:00 "We got to do something for this guy." 19:02 Well, we know about the power of music on mood, 19:06 and how the right music can conjure 19:08 or conquer demonic spirits. 19:10 So David is called in, and it works. 19:15 And Saul is at peace. 19:20 But the future leader of Israel 19:24 is exposed to a toxic culture 19:28 of leadership firsthand, 19:31 at the highest levels of the movement. 19:36 What happens when young aspiring followers of Jesus 19:40 are exposed to self-absorbed, 19:42 self-serving leaders? 19:46 They inevitably get discouraged. 19:51 We're told in Scripture that you will know 19:54 a tree by its fruit. 19:57 And Saul was an unkind impatient coward, 20:00 who made excuses. 20:02 Is it possible that when people come around us 20:04 as leaders in the Advent movement, 20:07 they see these trees producing abundant flowers, 20:11 but instead yielding bitter fruit. 20:16 Ellen White wrote, 20:17 "Men may profess faith in the truth, 20:21 but if it does not make them kind, 20:24 sincere, patient, forbearing, 20:28 heavenly-minded, 20:30 it is a curse to its possessors, 20:33 and through their influence, it is a curse to the world." 20:40 Insincere and timid leadership is a curse, 20:44 was a curse to ancient Israel. 20:46 And insincere, timid leadership is a curse 20:49 to God's people today, 20:51 at every level, and ultimately to the world. 20:56 You know, sometimes God takes us down a path 20:59 that we would not choose for ourselves. 21:03 And so as He did with David in the court of Saul, 21:07 there are many times when we're exposed to leaders 21:10 and organizations from whom we learn. 21:14 Brace yourselves, what not to do 21:17 when our time comes around to lead. 21:22 And that is a bitter experience. 21:27 And we're told after his days in the court, 21:29 David loved to go back home to the pastures 21:32 under the azure of firmament 21:34 to see the stars staring down at him. 21:38 But a day of decision was coming. 21:41 Israel was on the verge of a time of trouble 21:44 such as never was with God's enemies. 21:47 And for nearly 40 days, 21:49 Goliath had been taunting Israel 21:52 and everyone was filled with fear. 21:56 But just then the shepherd and the singer, the fighter, 21:59 and the slinger strolls into the camp of Israel. 22:04 And he hears the taunts of this Philistine. 22:08 And he asks why men 22:10 who were supposed to be warriors, 22:13 the watchman in Israel, 22:16 were standing around 22:18 and letting him say these things. 22:21 "Aren't you gonna do something about this?" 22:26 And there are vibrant spirits among us today, 22:31 those who see a different reality 22:34 than the one often painted by leadership. 22:39 And they have every right to ask, 22:42 "Why are you standing there, 22:44 in that position with that power, 22:47 and doing nothing? 22:49 Why don't you do something?" 22:52 Well, this is the way we've always done it, 22:54 will not work anymore. 22:56 Well, this is in the policy book, 22:58 section 13, paragraph 4, 23:00 is not gonna lead anyone into battle. 23:04 We're told if God abhors, hates one sin 23:09 above another 23:11 of which His people are guilty. 23:14 It is doing nothing, in a case of an emergency. 23:18 Indifference or neutrality in a religious crisis 23:22 is regarded of God as a grievous crime 23:25 and equal to the very worst type 23:28 of hostility against God. 23:33 But David has come to the kingdom for this moment. 23:37 He knows this is the time to speak a word for the Lord 23:41 and to fight back the temptation, 23:44 like many of us face to keep silent. 23:48 This is no time for indifference 23:51 and the status quo. 23:53 It is time for disruption. 23:58 Israel was in a crisis of leadership. 24:01 Saul didn't have the courage to do 24:03 what was needed and right in that moment. 24:07 But God had a leader waiting in the wings 24:10 and those wings were the wings of some mighty angels. 24:15 And Ellen White counsel, 24:16 "To stand in defense of truth and righteousness 24:20 when the majority forsake us, 24:22 to fight the battles of the Lord 24:24 when champions are few, 24:26 this will be our test. 24:32 At this time we must gather warmth 24:34 from the coldness of others, 24:37 courage from their cowardice, 24:40 and loyalty from their treason." 24:43 And when David gains an audience with the king, 24:46 he explains his concerns about the status quo. 24:53 And he shares with the king his awesome resume. 24:58 "I kill bears and lions, 25:00 and this giant will be like one of them." 25:03 And true to form, Saul surrenders. 25:08 And David is given some armor, some methods for doing things 25:12 as they always have been done. 25:17 And he's tempted to fight in another's armor. 25:22 But then he turns back into the tent. 25:26 And I'm sure he heard some whispers, 25:27 has fear gotten the best of him. 25:31 But for too long God's people have been responsive, 25:37 reactive on the defense. 25:40 And David says, "Oh, no, this is time for offense. 25:45 I don't need shields and armor. 25:48 I need lightness and speed." 25:50 And he walks out of that tent with a stick and a sling. 25:59 There was a reason though that Israel was afraid. 26:03 In order to compete with the world, 26:07 to be players on the world stage, 26:09 to be respectable, 26:12 they actually had to go to the world to the Philistines 26:15 to get their weapons. 26:17 And those weapons were foreign to them, 26:20 and they did not know how to fight. 26:22 But the leaders who had been schooled 26:25 in the west point of fear, 26:27 and in the classroom of cowardice, 26:29 told them, "This is the way the world does it." 26:34 Real leaders have the courage to stand against the crowd, 26:39 even their own crowd. 26:42 They don't need approval, they just need a calling. 26:45 They don't do what's easy, they do what's necessary. 26:50 And David walks into that valley, 26:52 fully confident in his God 26:53 and then the methods God had taught him. 26:57 But I think something else 26:58 was going through David's mind, 27:00 as he walked towards this impending crisis. 27:06 You think David was proud of what Israel 27:08 God's people had become? 27:12 Or is it possible that the demons of doubt 27:15 and discouragement tried to whisper in his ears, 27:20 "What's the point? 27:23 Why risk your life, your career, your reputation? 27:28 Just wait until you're retired to say that, write that." 27:35 But in that moment of destiny, David realized that 27:37 God had been preparing him 27:39 his entire life for this moment. 27:43 He did not like what Israel had become, 27:46 a commune of cowards. 27:49 But what Israel could become. 27:51 This was what illuminated his sanctified imagination. 27:56 The Israel he wanted to belong to. 28:00 That's what drove him forward. 28:02 Faith in what could be not in what was. 28:06 And Ellen White warned us, "Unless the church, 28:10 which is now being leavened with her own backsliding, 28:14 shall repent and be converted, 28:18 she will eat the fruit of her own doing, 28:23 until she shall abhor herself." 28:34 And I just wonder, 28:36 if we are eating the fruit of our own doing. 28:42 Is it just me or is anyone else concerned about 28:46 what we have become? 28:50 Are we that nation in Isaiah 58 28:53 who believes they're doing righteousness, 28:55 wonders why God is not noticing them 28:57 or hearing their prayers? 29:00 Stay with me, allow me 29:02 to describe a little more reality. 29:05 Today we see a movement 29:07 in which so many of our young adults 29:09 go through Adventist schools, 29:11 only to be inoculated 29:13 against our mission and message. 29:18 This is a tragedy that deserves our immediate attention. 29:23 Lucifer has been put on notice. 29:28 If we did some soul searching with the fruit, 29:33 with the results, 29:34 with the reality of our educational system, 29:38 would we be proud of what we see? 29:48 Data from church surveys consistently show us 29:53 that nearly 70% of our young people, 29:57 our best, brightest, 29:59 our future leave us as soon as they are no longer 30:03 under our immediate care. 30:07 And before the crisis broke, 30:09 Saul and Israel thought they were fine. 30:14 All was well. 30:15 After all, they were God's chosen people, 30:20 weren't they? 30:22 But we know that character is revealed in a crisis. 30:27 And the message Ellen White 30:29 shared more than a century ago applies to us today. 30:34 The message to the Laodiceans 30:35 is applicable to Seventh-day Adventist 30:39 who have had great light 30:41 and have not walked in the light. 30:43 It is those who have made great profession, 30:45 but have not kept in step with their Leader 30:48 they will be spewed out of His mouth 30:50 unless they repent." 30:54 But what is really receiving that message look like? 30:58 What is the metric that we will know 31:01 God's people are starting to receive the message? 31:04 This testimony if received will arouse to action 31:09 and lead to self abasement 31:12 and confession of sins. 31:16 It will lead us to begin to think differently 31:19 and to do differently. 31:21 True repentance and confession 31:24 are more than words, votes, 31:27 documents, and coalitions. 31:31 The great sin in Christ day was the belief 31:35 that a mere assent to the truth 31:37 constituted righteousness, 31:40 that because we think right, we must be right. 31:52 Friends and church family, 31:55 we cannot keep silent any longer. 31:59 We cannot keep touting that we are rich, 32:02 increased in membership, and in need of nothing. 32:08 We can't keep claiming that 32:09 this is great Adventism that we have built. 32:15 Because we all know too well, 32:18 far too well, that's something, 32:20 something isn't right. 32:24 If the winds of prophecy are being held back 32:27 because Jesus loves 32:29 His remnant too much to see them lost, 32:34 then what are we to do? 32:37 I believe when we recognize what we have become. 32:41 When we admit the impossibility 32:44 of putting a good face 32:45 on everything we do. 32:51 And then by God's grace, 32:54 confess it to the world and to the Lord. 32:57 We are miserable, wretched, poor, blind, and naked. 33:03 We have gloried in ourselves 33:05 rather than hidden in His glory. 33:08 That we have heaped up 33:09 the blessings of heaven for ourselves. 33:14 And I'll admit, in my own life, 33:15 I came to a point where I nearly gave up 33:17 on the Advent movement. 33:19 I felt overwhelmed by discouragement 33:23 because I would read the Bible 33:25 and The Spirit of Prophecy, 33:27 and I would look at the reality around me. 33:32 Something doesn't line up here. 33:35 Do I give up on the testimony of Jesus? 33:39 Or do I give up on the movement itself? 33:42 And like Jesus disciples, 33:46 I asked, "Where else would I go?" 33:55 I have friends, you have sons and daughters, classmates, 34:00 nieces, nephews, grandchildren 34:04 who have left this movement. 34:09 Their absence keeps me up at night. 34:13 I tossed and turned in my bed as I think about my friends... 34:21 dozens of classmates that no longer walk with the Lord 34:25 or the remnant, and I asked, 34:27 "Why did they leave and why am I still here?" 34:33 And from that tossing in the middle of the night, 34:36 a thought has emerged. 34:39 I don't think those friends, sons, daughters, classmates, 34:44 nieces, nephews, 34:45 and grandchildren left the remnant church. 34:52 It left them. 34:56 It left them thinking that 34:57 the current state of the church, 35:00 the Church of Laodicea 35:02 is the remnant foretold in prophecy. 35:07 And what they learned to call Adventism. 35:11 Jesus weeps over as Laodicea. 35:17 So why do I stay in this movement declared 35:19 by its prophetic messenger to be enfeebled and defective? 35:27 Because I've read her past. 35:33 I've read the future in those red books 35:35 that sit on my library shelf. 35:39 I've seen glimmers of hope, 35:40 not from what I see, 35:43 but from what I read, 35:45 from conversations I have, 35:47 and from moments like this. 35:49 I proudly call myself a Seventh-day Adventist 35:53 not because of what is 35:57 but because of what can be. 36:04 I fear sometimes that we have done nearly everything 36:09 God warned us not to. 36:16 But I also know He hasn't given up 36:18 on this movement. 36:20 His bride, His church, 36:22 this remnant people is the only object on earth 36:26 upon which He bestows His supreme regard. 36:31 And it is still the theater of His grace. 36:37 Look at God's goodness. 36:39 If it is the goodness of God that leads us to repentance, 36:44 there is a lot of goodness. 36:46 We live longer. 36:48 We know how to prevent disease. 36:50 We know how to reverse disease. 36:51 We pretty much know all the answers 36:53 to the problems this world is facing. 36:57 And yet, I'm afraid that 36:59 we have put those things in a vault, 37:03 locked it, and thrown away the key. 37:06 And we're sitting on this diamond mind of truth. 37:12 Now we owe it to the world to open it up, 37:17 live it, and share it with everyone 37:20 we can come in contact with. 37:23 I've read about the church, I wanna belong to, a living, 37:27 breathing movement that keeps moving closer and closer 37:30 to the calling that Jesus has for her. 37:35 And as that rock left David sling, 37:37 all heaven rejoiced at the courage of one man. 37:41 In a moment, the fate of Israel, 37:44 the culture of Israel, 37:45 and the trajectory of God's movement forever changed. 37:50 Never forget how one man, one woman, 37:55 one young adult, one leader like you 37:59 can make a difference. 38:01 I still believe this movement can pivot. 38:05 And that its great decisive pivot 38:07 will forever change the course of history. 38:11 I still believe a divine disruption is coming. 38:16 But 38:19 it's going to require us to confess our personal, 38:25 collective, and corporate sin and selfishness. 38:33 And until this happens, 38:34 I question if anything will change. 38:39 By the grace of Jesus, 38:42 we can do this. 38:45 David had the faith of Jesus. 38:47 He saw what could be not just what was. 38:50 He saw possibilities, not just impossibilities. 38:54 And with that in mind, 38:56 I wanna share two things on my heart. 38:59 First, with Jesus, I weep... 39:04 over what we have become. 39:09 And I wanna confess my sin and my selfishness 39:12 in any and every way that has brought us 39:15 to this point. 39:17 And I hope that more leaders, 39:18 leaders like you will do the same. 39:22 Second, there are countless individuals 39:26 in this movement 39:27 who are desperately looking for hope. 39:32 And tonight, I'd like to begin a conversation 39:34 about what can be. 39:38 If what we have been told is true, 39:41 one day we will recognize 39:43 how God qualifies men and women 39:46 by His Spirit and not by our votes, 39:50 and not by our degrees. 39:55 One day, we will see a mighty movement 39:56 such as the world has never witnessed. 39:59 One day, we will stop building programs 40:01 and infrastructure for our reputations. 40:07 And we will go into the cities and do a work 40:11 to relieve the suffering of humanity around us. 40:15 We will do this not for our own glory, 40:18 but for the glory of Him who sits on the throne. 40:23 One day, we will remember 40:26 our first calling to prevention 40:30 and education in health care. 40:35 One day, we will get back to true education, 40:39 teaching young men and women how to think, 40:42 and not be mere reflectors of other men's thoughts. 40:46 One day, more of us will be unashamed to preach 40:49 about the giant of our day, the culture of Babylon, 40:54 and her crumbling system of selfishness. 40:58 One day, those who identity with a remnant movement 41:02 will be the most kind, most patient, 41:05 most unselfish people on the earth. 41:10 And one day, Jesus will stand up, 41:13 and He will say, "Well done. 41:16 My people are ready. 41:18 They've held nothing back. 41:20 They finally invested their treasure in heaven." 41:22 A world has been warned, and many have been won 41:25 to the remnant, the bride of Christ. 41:30 But I realize that day may not be today. 41:36 But it will be one day. 41:39 So I'm going to wait and pray for the patience 41:43 of the saints, 41:45 until the day when the Lord lays 41:48 our glory in the dust 41:52 and does for us what it is not 41:55 in our power to do for ourselves. 42:01 And my prayer is this. 42:04 "Lord, we have gloried in our growth, 42:08 yet, so many we love have walked away. 42:14 We've gloried in our rightness 42:18 and not Your righteousness. 42:20 Lord, help us to glory in this 42:24 that we know You. 42:27 Lord, please forgive us. 42:30 Please bring Your glory back 42:33 to this movement. 42:36 Lord, we wanna look forward to that day 42:38 when we joyfully inhabit not just the church 42:42 I wanna belong to, but the one our friends, 42:45 and families, and classmates, and sons and daughters 42:49 want to belong to as well. 42:52 Lord, we wanna be a part of that movement 42:54 of where Solomon writes, 42:56 "Who is she that looks forth as the morning, 43:01 fair as the moon, clear as the sun, 43:04 and terrible as an army with banners?" 43:08 Lord, the church 43:09 I want to belong to is terrible. 43:13 Amen. |
Revised 2020-01-16