Participants:
Series Code: CR
Program Code: CR001908A
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00:02 I'm John Carter in Moscow.
00:04 In Havana, Cuba. 00:07 Now in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. 00:10 I'm John Carter in Petra. 00:13 Right here in Communist China. 00:16 Reporting from India. 00:18 Hi, I'm John Carter in the Solomon Islands. 00:21 I'm John Carter in Soweto. 00:24 From El Salvador. 00:26 I'm John Carter in Sydney, Australia. 00:29 John Carter tells Stories from Down Under, 00:32 Grace Abounding Where Least Expected. 00:36 Welcome back, my friend, 00:37 we're talking about grace in the most unlikely places. 00:41 We're talking about land down under. 00:43 We're talking about what's going on in Australia. 00:46 There are many challenges today to the Australian dream 00:50 just as there are challenges to the American dream. 00:54 You know, it sounds great, the American dream, 00:56 and it's a wonderful concept. 00:59 But Australia also has a dream. 01:02 These are the challenges. 01:03 See if you can empathize with this, my American friends. 01:06 Drugs. 01:08 Anybody know what I'm talking about? 01:09 Drugs, emptiness, and loss of purpose. 01:14 Last night, Beverley and I are turned on television 01:17 to watch our favorite speaker Ravi Zacharias. 01:21 Ever heard Ravi? 01:23 You know, he talks about the lack of purpose. 01:26 Something's going on in society and society is changing, 01:31 monumental leaps, monumental strides. 01:35 There was a time in Australia as there was in America, 01:38 I believe, 01:40 and you Americans will empathize 01:41 with what I'm saying, 01:42 there was a time when the old American 01:45 was the most honest, hard-working person 01:47 on the face of the earth. 01:50 And we didn't need too many attorneys, did we? 01:53 Because if an American told you something, 01:56 well, you could take it to the bank, 01:57 you could believe this. 01:59 But today, we've got, 02:00 literally, millions of attorneys 02:03 because people don't trust each other anymore. 02:07 I had an amazing experience a number of years ago 02:09 when I was a boy, 02:11 just finishing college, many years ago. 02:14 I got on my Harley Davidson 02:16 and I rode through Western New South Wales. 02:20 A great country it's... 02:22 I had this motorbike. 02:24 A great country, sheep and wheat country. 02:29 I didn't know what I was going to do, 02:31 where would I stay at night? 02:33 I was selling books. 02:34 So I'd travel in the daytime, selling books. 02:36 Then at nighttime, where was I going to stay? 02:41 I had a most amazing experience. 02:43 You know what would happen to me? 02:46 I'd come along to a farm or a station 02:49 as they call them there or a ranch and they say to me, 02:52 "Boy, where you staying tonight?" 02:55 "Well, I got nowhere to stay." 02:56 "Well, you're gonna stay with us." 02:59 And the folks were so generous. 03:02 People didn't rob each other. 03:04 They didn't lock their houses. 03:05 Never locked their homes. 03:08 They were just marvelously generous 03:12 and overwhelmingly sincere people 03:16 were these Aussie farmers. 03:20 And there are still people like that today, 03:23 but they're getting less and less 03:26 because the culture is changing. 03:29 And that's why 03:31 we've got to have a heap of attorneys. 03:35 Somebody said this. 03:37 When the big God goes out, all the little gods come in. 03:42 Ever heard that? 03:43 You get rid of the big God 03:45 and you don't get rid of religion, 03:47 you get lots of other things. 03:49 You get lots of substitutes. 03:52 And many Aussies are replacing the big God 03:54 with lots of little gods like football and cricket. 04:00 And in Australia, the main god is sport. 04:06 I guess, a bit like America. 04:11 Have you folks heard of Dr. Richard Dawkins? 04:14 He's the greatest atheist in the world, 04:18 at least he's the best known atheist. 04:21 He's a great scientist from Great Britain. 04:24 And he's been railing against the Christian church. 04:26 He's been saying, 04:28 "You can't trust the Christian church." 04:30 And the day is going to come, he says, soon, 04:33 and we're going to get rid of the Christian church. 04:37 But recently, he's been saying something else. 04:39 He's been saying, 04:40 let's not get rid of the Christian church 04:42 because as we get rid of the Christian church... 04:45 Now I'm going to whisper this to you. 04:47 He's been saying this, 04:49 he got in a lot of trouble for this, 04:50 he's been saying this. 04:52 If you get rid of the Christian church, 04:54 the Muslims are going to take over England. 04:59 A lot of people are saying, "Well, that's sort of racist." 05:01 Oh, well, maybe it is. 05:03 But let me tell you something. 05:05 When you get rid of one religion, 05:07 you're simply going to get another one. 05:11 And in Australia, they're kicking out... 05:15 Many places, 05:16 they're kicking out the big God, 05:19 and lots of little punk puny gods 05:23 are coming in. 05:25 And there's a feeling of restlessness 05:28 and disillusionment and a lack of purpose. 05:33 The greatest sickness of our times, my friend, is... 05:38 You know what it is? 05:39 The greatest sickness of our times, 05:41 it's meaninglessness. 05:44 Our souls were made for God, 05:47 and they cannot rest until they rest in Him. 05:54 It is the truth. 05:55 Let me talk a little bit 05:56 about the Australian-American alliance. 05:59 I'm glad that I'm a citizen of both countries 06:02 and I love both countries. 06:03 I have a great loyalty 06:05 to the United States of America where I live. 06:09 There's the ANZUS Treaty, A-N-Z-U-S. 06:16 It's very old. 06:17 It binds three countries together, 06:20 Australia, New Zealand, and the United States. 06:23 Australia, New Zealand, the United States. 06:27 John McCain, who was one of my heroes, 06:30 made this statement. 06:31 He said, he came out and spoke to the people in Canberra, 06:35 at the Capital, and he said, 06:38 "We have fought and bled together 06:40 like no other two nations on the face of the earth." 06:44 He said, we have fought, we have fought side by side, 06:48 we have been spilling our blood in the defense of freedom 06:53 for more than 100 years. 06:56 Let me tell you a little bit about it. 06:59 We fought together in World War I. 07:03 Bloody fighting. 07:04 We fought together in World War II, 07:07 in the Pacific, in the Middle East, 07:11 in Europe, Americans and Australians. 07:14 We fought together in the Korean War 07:17 as we fought against tyranny and against communism. 07:21 Australia was the only nation that went to the aid 07:24 of the United States of America in the Vietnam War, 07:29 nobody else would do it. 07:31 But Australians went and fought with the Americans, 07:33 and they lost. 07:35 We lost thousands of lives 07:36 because we believe in America and we love America. 07:42 America is popular in Australia. 07:47 In the first Iraq war, 07:49 Australia answered the call and stood with America. 07:53 In the Afghanistan war, 07:55 Australia joined forces with America. 07:58 In the second Iraq war, we were there. 08:01 In the recent war in Syria, 08:03 Australia stood shoulder to shoulder with America. 08:09 Right now, the Americans and the Australians 08:11 are building a mighty military base 08:15 in the north of Australia 08:17 because they believe the threat to security and freedom 08:22 is going to come from the north of Australia. 08:27 And so we still have the ANZUS Treaty. 08:31 And so I'm very much at home in Australia 08:34 'cause I was born there. 08:35 That's the land of my birth. 08:37 It's the land that nurtured me, but I tell you folks something, 08:41 I'm very much at home 08:42 with my American brothers and sisters. 08:45 I love America. 08:48 Let me tell you about an amazing 08:50 and great medical outreach 08:52 by a group of people who call themselves Adventists 08:55 or Seventh-day Adventists in Australia. 08:59 It's the Sydney Adventist Hospital. 09:02 This is the prime minister of Australia at the time 09:07 opening a new wing of the Sydney Adventist Hospital, 09:11 affectionately called the Sydney San. 09:14 San is short for sanitarium, not sanatorium. 09:18 Who are the Adventists? 09:21 They're a small Protestant church, 09:22 not that small. 09:23 Well, there are 65,000 Adventists in Australia. 09:28 What do they believe? 09:29 They believe first and foremost in the Gospel of Christ. 09:33 They do not believe that they say 09:35 by keeping the 10 Commandments. 09:37 They believe in grace abounding. 09:41 They believe in the Second Coming. 09:43 That is why they are called Adventists. 09:45 They believe in the coming of the Lord. 09:48 They also believe in the commandments 09:51 and the fourth commandment, 09:52 which is the keeping of the Holy Sabbath. 09:55 They believe in creation. 09:57 And they believe the body is the temple of God, 10:01 and they believe in caring for people. 10:04 And that is why 10:05 they have established, around the world, 10:07 hundreds and hundreds of hospitals, 10:09 none better than the Sydney Adventist Hospital, 10:13 which is easily one of the great hospitals of Australia 10:17 and not only one of the great hospitals of Australia, 10:19 one of the great medical centers of the world. 10:23 It was established in 1903 on land that had been purchased 10:29 by the American prophet Ellen White. 10:33 It now has a staff of 2,300 people, 10:37 plus 500 volunteers, 10:40 and a service by 1,100 accredited medical offices. 10:46 Annually, the Sydney Adventist Hospital 10:50 has 58,000 in patients 10:55 and 125,000 out patients 11:00 and delivers tens of thousands of little babies. 11:06 Tens and tens and tens, 11:08 possibly, hundreds of thousands of little baby Aussies 11:13 have been brought into the world 11:16 in this hospital. 11:19 It is a teaching hospital of the University of Sydney, 11:24 which is like a hospital in America 11:28 being affiliated with Harvard or Yale. 11:30 It is the gold standard. 11:34 This is the campus of the Sydney Adventist Hospital. 11:39 I'm proud of this hospital 11:41 because I was associated with it 11:44 because I was the senior pastor on a large church 11:48 on the campus of the Sydney Adventist Hospital. 11:53 It is a great hospital. 11:54 I don't want to go into a hospital particularly, 11:59 but if I could have the choice, which I may not have, 12:03 I would choose 12:05 the Adventist Hospital in Sydney. 12:08 In fact, I was talking 12:10 to the prime minister of Australia 12:13 a number of years ago. 12:15 He was a famous charismatic figure. 12:18 His name was Gough Whitlam, 12:21 the prime minister of Australia. 12:22 He had just had a medical procedure done 12:25 in the Sydney Adventist Hospital. 12:28 It's the hospital of choice. 12:31 It is the largest private hospital 12:33 in the largest state, the State of New South Wales. 12:37 The biggest, the wealthiest state. 12:40 And he said to me, 12:42 "I have been in your hospital," he said, 12:45 "what a calling you people have." 12:49 This is the hospital of choice 12:51 for people who want the best treatment. 12:57 You know what it tells me? 12:58 It tells me that people who are small in number 13:02 can do tremendous things for God. 13:07 And even if you're down under, 13:09 it doesn't mean you got to stay down under, 13:12 you can be right on top. 13:14 You can be the head. 13:17 You don't have to be the tail. 13:21 And this hospital in Australia is the head. 13:25 It's not the tail. 13:28 Adventists in Australia punch above their weight. 13:33 And they do this 13:34 because they believe in the power of prayer 13:39 and the power of grace. 13:41 Now let me tell you folks something. 13:47 This whole body's been going for a long time. 13:51 I'm no longer a boy. 13:53 Looking okay, don't you think? 13:57 Folks, the Bible says, 13:59 "Your body is the temple of God." 14:02 I believe this. 14:03 I believe that this body here is the temple of God. 14:07 And this hospital exists 14:10 because Adventist believes the body is the temple of God. 14:15 I don't believe 14:17 in putting garbage into the temple of God. 14:20 A lot of people just laugh about this. 14:23 Nothing to laugh about when you're getting cancer, 14:27 heart disease, and diabetes, 14:30 and dementia, and every other disease. 14:32 If you look through the window here, 14:34 just a moment, down the road, 14:37 there is this large church with the red roof. 14:40 That's the Wahroonga Adventist Church. 14:43 It was my happy privilege 14:44 to be the senior pastor of that church 14:47 and to have hundreds of medical personnel 14:52 as members of my congregation. 14:55 When Beverley and I left to come to the United States, 14:58 the Adventist Hospital took us into a beautiful restaurant 15:03 at the Sydney Opera House to give us a send off 15:07 because of our close relationship. 15:09 We believe that the body is a temple of God. 15:14 Now I don't believe in the nonsense 15:17 that says just eat what you like, 15:21 do what you like and God will bless you. 15:24 Don't believe that. 15:27 Because I believe the body is the temple of God, 15:30 by the grace of God, I don't drink alcohol. 15:35 No. 15:36 Says John the Baptist, 15:38 "He shall be great in the sight of the Lord 15:40 and shall neither drink wine nor strong drink." 15:43 You can read that in the Bible. 15:45 I want to be great in the sight of the Lord, 15:48 you know? 15:49 I don't want to have my mind all confused. 15:54 So I don't drink. 15:56 I don't smoke. 15:57 I don't... 15:58 Of course, I don't use drugs, recreational drugs. 16:02 I don't believe in this stuff. 16:04 I believe in following the diet 16:06 that is outlined in the scriptures. 16:08 And I believe in plenty of exercise. 16:11 Yesterday, I climbed up in the mountains, 16:15 walked for hours. 16:17 I don't get shortness of breath. 16:19 I can run up hills. 16:22 And it's because I try 16:24 to practice the teachings of the Bible. 16:27 This hospital was... 16:28 Here's the Prime Minister Tony Abbott, 16:32 a number of years ago, 16:33 he's opening the new wing of this great hospital. 16:37 I think it has at least 30 operating theaters. 16:41 It is a light that shines in the darkness. 16:44 I mentioned New South Wales, 16:46 people say, "What on earth is that?" 16:49 Well, Australia was founded by the British. 16:51 And over there in Britain, there was a place called Wales 16:55 and there was a very beautiful place 16:57 that was called Southern Wales, 16:59 and when they came to this part of the world, 17:01 they called it New South Wales. 17:04 So you've got a great state south of New South Wales, 17:08 that is Victoria, it's one of the great states. 17:10 I love it, the great city of Melbourne. 17:13 They say it's the best city in the world. 17:17 But then the biggest state is New South Wales 17:20 and the Adventist Hospital is the biggest and the best. 17:27 People say you can't do these things 17:29 if you don't have a huge group. 17:31 No, it's not so. 17:34 When you have the wind of God under your wings, 17:36 you can rise to unattainable heights. 17:41 Okay, let me move on, going to talk about your genes. 17:46 Your genes are not who you are. 17:49 Would you take your Bible and turn to Galatians 3:26-29. 17:54 Galatians 3:26-29. 17:59 Your genes are not who you are. 18:04 Galatians 3:26 and onwards. 18:09 Have you got it? 18:10 Galatians 3:26-29, 18:13 "For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. 18:17 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ 18:21 have put on Christ. 18:22 There is neither Jew nor Greek, 18:26 there is neither slave nor free, 18:28 there is neither male nor female, 18:32 for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 18:34 And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, 18:41 and heirs according to the promise." 18:43 Look at me. 18:44 It doesn't matter about your genes. 18:47 It doesn't matter where you came from. 18:50 It doesn't matter about the color of your skin. 18:54 Don't talk this racism. 18:57 What matters is the content of your character 19:02 because of your relationship to Christ. 19:07 But having said that, I'm going to show you my genes. 19:11 Some of my friends, to be nice to me, 19:14 decided that they would take a little bit of my saliva. 19:18 I said, "What do you want my saliva for? 19:19 It's my saliva." 19:21 They said, "We want a little..." 19:22 I said, "I don't know 19:23 what you're going to do with it. 19:25 You may put it on something and get me convicted." 19:27 They said, "No, we're going to send it away to 23..." 19:31 I think it's called 23andMe. 19:34 So they sent it away. 19:36 How curious can you get? 19:37 They wanted to know. 19:39 So it came back, John Carter, English and Irish 87%. 19:45 Beverley said, "So what? 19:47 You know, what do you expect? We've known that." 19:51 She said, "I think you're 100% Irish 19:54 because you're a bit impatient." 19:55 Okay, 87%. 19:58 Now this was a stunner, French and German. 20:02 Oh, I said, "I don't like this." 20:04 They're out to get me. 20:06 French and German, 3%, Northwest European. 20:09 The Vikings. 20:12 Okay, don't take me on, don't challenge me, 20:16 the Vikings, 8.8%. 20:19 This was a shock, Spanish and Portuguese. 20:27 I said, "I don't believe it," 1%. 20:30 But it went on even further. 20:33 Western Asian and North African 0.2%. 20:38 That means out of 500 of my ancestors, 20:42 one of them came from the Middle East. 20:44 I said, "Hallelujah! 20:45 That's where Jesus... 20:47 That's where Jesus came from." 20:49 You know how it happened? 20:51 Well, the Moors, who are Muslims, 20:54 from the Middle East, conquered Spain, 21:00 and they married Spanish people. 21:07 And some of those people went across the channel, 21:11 and they went to England. 21:14 And so at least 21:19 a few of my ancestors... 21:22 Have a look at this. This is sort of amazing. 21:27 87% in England, 8.8% Scandinavia, 21:31 3% in Germany, 1% in Spain, 21:34 but then somebody came across here, 21:40 married somebody, and this got up into here. 21:47 And I said, I'm... 21:48 sort of amazed. 21:52 That is what I really expected. 21:53 But let me tell you folks something. 21:56 Remember this. 21:59 It's not your ancestry 22:01 but your relationship to the Messiah. 22:03 We talk too much about race. 22:06 And in the last few years, 22:08 racism has become a real problem in America. 22:11 You know, black people against white people, 22:14 white people against black people, 22:18 Jewish people... 22:22 It's ungodly, it's unchristian, it's satanic. 22:27 We should never be racist. 22:30 The lady who cuts my hair two or three times a year said, 22:36 "Your genes make you the beautiful person you are, 22:39 doesn't matter where you came from." 22:44 I heard him on TV in Australia when I was a boy preacher. 22:48 He was a black man. 22:52 He said this, 22:53 "We do not learn to live together as friends, 22:55 we will die apart as fools." 22:58 "I have a dream today! 22:59 I have a dream that one day 23:01 little black boys and black girls 23:02 will be able to join hands with little white boys 23:06 and white girls as sisters and brothers. 23:10 I have a dream today! 23:12 I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, 23:15 the sons of former slaves 23:16 and the sons of former slave owners 23:18 will be able to sit down together 23:20 at the table of brotherhood. 23:22 I have a dream that my four little children 23:24 will one day live in a nation 23:26 where they will not be judged by the color of their skin 23:29 but by the content of their character. 23:32 I look forward confidently to the day 23:34 when all who work for a living 23:36 will be one with no thought to their separateness 23:39 as Negros, Jews, Italians, or any other distinctions. 23:44 This will be a day 23:46 when we will bring into full realization 23:47 the American dream, a dream not yet realized." 23:52 April 3, 1968, the day before he was murdered. 23:59 "I don't know what will happen now," 24:01 said Martin Luther King, 24:02 "we've got some difficulty days..." 24:04 A Baptist minister, 24:06 "We've got some difficult days ahead. 24:07 But it doesn't matter with me now 24:09 because I've been to the mountaintop. 24:13 And I don't mind. 24:15 Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. 24:17 Longevity has its place. 24:19 But I'm not concerned about that now. 24:22 I just want to do God's will. 24:25 And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. 24:29 And I've looked over. 24:30 And I've seen the promised land. 24:33 I may not get there with you. 24:34 But I want you to know tonight 24:36 that we, as a people, will get to the promised land. 24:40 And I'm happy tonight. 24:42 I'm not worried about anything. 24:45 I'm not fearing any man. 24:47 Mine eyes have seen the glory 24:50 of the coming of the Lord." 24:54 So he was a black man, and I'm a white man. 25:00 But in the sight of God, 25:01 He doesn't see white people or black people, 25:03 He sees souls made in the image of God. 25:08 I heard this preacher when I was down under, 25:14 and it taught me this. 25:16 It doesn't matter the circumstances, 25:19 doesn't matter 25:21 whether you're rich or you're poor, 25:22 whether you're white or you're black, 25:26 with Christ in your heart, 25:30 you're gonna soaron wings like eagles, 25:34 and by the grace of God, by his abounding grace, 25:39 you will be on top, even when you're down under. 25:45 This is the Word of the Lord. 25:53 There's only one thing 25:54 that really counts in this lifetime, 25:57 your relationship to Christ. 26:00 And then if you have 26:01 a right relationship with Christ, 26:04 you'll want to tell people about Christ. 26:06 That's why Jesus said, "Go into all the world 26:09 and preach the gospel to every creature." 26:13 By the grace of God, we're going to do that, 26:16 we are doing that. 26:18 That is why we're going back to Cuba, 26:20 to this communist land, to preach Christ. 26:25 We're accepting an invitation 26:26 to go to the vast, huge city of Manila, 26:31 the capital of the Philippines. 26:33 Been there before, 26:35 but, by the grace of God, we're going back. 26:38 Please support us. 26:40 And please stand with us 26:42 in the preaching of the everlasting gospel. 26:45 You say, "How do you do it? 26:46 Who pays the bills?" 26:48 We do. 26:50 "Do you get any help, 26:51 financial help from the church?" 26:52 No, my friend. We don't. 26:54 But we get a lot of help from God and from His children. 26:59 Please support us 27:00 in the preaching of the everlasting gospel. 27:03 It's the most important work in all the world. 27:06 Everything else is almost trivia. 27:10 So would you please write to me? 27:13 John Carter, P.O. Box 1900, 27:17 Thousand Oaks, California 91358. 27:22 Do your best for Jesus. 27:24 Do your best for the gospel. 27:26 And in Australia, write to me at Terrigal. 27:30 And we promise you this, 27:33 every dime, every dollar is going to be used 27:36 to win souls to our Lord Jesus Christ. 27:40 Please write to me today. 27:44 Thank you and God bless you. 27:55 For a copy of today's program, 27:57 please contact us at P.O. Box 1900, 28:01 Thousand Oaks, California 91358. 28:05 Or in Australia, 28:07 contact us at P.O. Box 861, 28:10 Terrigal, New South Wales 2260. 28:14 This program is made possible 28:16 through the generous support of viewers like you. 28:19 We thank you for your continued support. 28:22 May God richly bless you. |
Revised 2019-04-25