Give Me the Bible

Storehouse Of The Church

Three Angels Broadcasting Network

Program transcript

Participants: Pr. Kenneth Cox

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Series Code: GMTB

Program Code: GMTB000054


00:19 Well good evening.
00:20 It's so good to have each one of
00:22 you join us here tonight
00:23 in Thompsonville, Illinois.
00:26 We're at the 3ABN Worship Center
00:30 and the event is Give Me The Bible
00:33 with Pastor Kenneth Cox.
00:36 We've been enjoying this series now this entire year.
00:39 And we are looking forward to tonight's subject.
00:42 The series this weekend is The Apple of God's Eye.
00:48 Of course, that is God's church.
00:51 That's the apple of His eye.
00:53 He loves His church, and
00:56 He loves the church so much that He gave His life
01:00 for the church and those individuals who are part of it.
01:04 And tonight we're going to look at a very special subject
01:08 involving you and me and our personal finances.
01:13 Because you know something, when you become a steward
01:18 and you see finances not as money that you have
01:22 and you give God part of it
01:24 but you see the financial condition of your life
01:28 as something that God owns. He owns everything.
01:32 The Bible says He owns the cattle on a thousand hills...
01:35 but He also owns the hills.
01:37 So He is the One who owns it all.
01:41 We are His stewards.
01:43 And He says: "If you will take care of that which I give you,
01:47 I will definitely take care of you. "
01:51 And so tonight's subject is going to be The Storehouse
01:55 of the Church.
01:57 And you'll want to be sure also to be with us tomorrow night
02:01 because tomorrow night's subject is The Church Victorious.
02:06 God says this church is going to be victorious.
02:11 And we're all looking forward to that day when Jesus
02:14 Christ comes again.
02:16 Breaks forth in the clouds of glory
02:20 and we see Christ coming for His church.
02:24 Right now just before Pastor Kenneth Cox comes
02:28 we're going to enjoy a beautiful old favorite
02:32 of most of us: Just a Closer Walk with Thee.
02:37 And Jim Rhodes and Dona Klein will be favoring us on the piano
02:42 and on the organ.
05:06 Thank you! Jimmy Rhodes and Dona Klein.
05:09 Enjoy that? Yes!
05:11 That's wonderful!
05:13 Enjoyed that! Well, glad that all of you
05:16 are here this evening.
05:17 Appreciate you being back with us.
05:20 Also those of you that are
05:21 joining us now by television
05:23 or over the radio, we welcome
05:26 you and glad that you tuned in.
05:28 And we hope that tonight's subject will
05:30 be a special blessing to you.
05:33 And we're just very happy to be here
05:36 and to share this weekend with you as we're going through
05:41 this series on The Apple of God's Eye...
05:44 or on His church - which is something that God set up.
05:50 He said "This was My church, " something that the Lord set up.
05:53 And that's the reason it becomes so important that you and I
05:57 understand about the church.
06:00 And we talked about that in our first presentation
06:03 called Why A Church?
06:04 What the purpose of the church is.
06:06 And then we took a look at The Front Door of the Church
06:09 which we found out is Jesus Christ.
06:14 He said: "I am the door"
06:15 and that we "come in through Jesus Christ. "
06:19 And then we looked at The Back Door of the Church.
06:22 And we found out the back door of the church is where you go
06:25 out and minister to people.
06:27 That's where you and I go out to serve.
06:30 That's what the back door of the church is for:
06:32 a place of fellowship with the church members.
06:37 So we hope that it will be a blessing to you.
06:40 And then tonight we're taking a look at:
06:46 Where God has things
06:49 and tells us how that we are to support it.
06:52 Then our final presentation is entitled
06:59 The little poem: What says the Bible,
07:03 to you and to me? What says the Bible,
07:05 the blessed Bible? This my only question be.
07:10 Will the church of God be victorious?
07:14 What says the Word of God to me?
07:17 That's what we need to know.
07:18 And so we're going to look at what the scripture says
07:21 about the church. Where God says that it's going
07:27 and how that you and I fit into that as we take a look
07:30 at The Church Victorious.
07:31 So we hope that this series on the church
07:34 has been a help to you and a blessing to you
07:38 in a special way. It's good to be here with you.
07:42 We thank each of you for being part
07:44 of this series that we've had.
07:49 Tonight we're glad to have Jim and Pam Rhodes with us.
07:55 I know that I have been blessed by their music.
07:58 And Pam's going to sing for us All in the Name of Jesus.
08:23 Truth and beauty,
08:26 happiness,
08:31 It's all in the name
08:35 of Jesus;
08:40 Health and Heaven,
08:43 peace and rest,
08:48 It's all in the name
08:52 of Jesus.
08:57 Joy and gladness
09:00 forgiveness too
09:05 Life everlasting
09:09 and free;
09:13 All that I've longed for
09:18 and all I need,
09:22 It's all in the name
09:26 of Jesus.
09:30 Care and comfort,
09:35 healing and grace
09:39 It's all in the name
09:43 of Jesus;
09:47 Welcome, pardon,
09:51 a hiding place,
09:55 It's all in the name
10:00 of Jesus.
10:04 Warmth and sunshine,
10:08 friendship true,
10:13 Fulfillment and blessing untold;
10:21 Hope for tomorrow
10:25 and help for today,
10:29 It's all in the name
10:34 of Jesus.
10:46 It's all in the name
10:51 of Jesus;
11:03 It's all in the name
11:08 of Jesus.
11:29 All my tomorrows
11:33 and help for today,
11:37 It's all in the name
11:41 of Jesus.
11:46 Jesus,
11:50 Jesus,
11:54 He's here
11:56 and He will show you the way;
12:03 Jesus,
12:07 Jesus,
12:12 He's all that you need
12:17 today.
12:26 God bless you.
12:44 Our gracious Lord, tonight
12:48 we come to You asking for Your presence.
12:53 Asking, Lord, that the Holy Spirit
12:56 may enlighten our minds.
13:00 That it may help us to understand
13:05 Your desire for us to learn to have faith in You...
13:11 to depend upon You.
13:12 To know that we are completely safe in Your hands.
13:18 Give us the understanding that we need tonight
13:22 that we might each be blessed,
13:28 drawn into a close relationship with You.
13:30 For this we ask in Christ's name, Amen.
13:41 Tonight's subject
13:44 will not do you any good
13:47 in theory.
13:51 It won't do you any good
13:55 in practice
13:57 if you don't approach it the right way.
14:03 And few people understand that.
14:05 That... they think that maybe if they
14:10 understand it, that that's enough.
14:12 Or if they practice it, that's enough.
14:15 No it's not.
14:16 And to make sure that we understand
14:20 what the Lord has in mind, I'm going to start tonight
14:24 by giving you three different samples
14:29 of what Jesus Christ had to say.
14:33 And when you take a look at these three statements
14:37 by our Lord, I hope it will help us be in the right
14:42 understanding for the subject tonight.
14:46 I'd like to start out with these words by Jesus:
15:09 So Jesus said: "Don't lay up for yourself
15:14 here on this earth treasures. "
15:16 If you do, folks, somebody else is going to enjoy it.
15:24 Sorry, that's just the way it works.
15:26 People spend all their lives
15:32 struggling and saving... and laying up a treasure
15:37 that somebody else enjoys.
15:41 And Christ said: "Don't do that.
15:44 If you're going to lay up treasure,
15:46 lay up treasure in heaven. "
15:49 That's where we need to put our treasure.
15:52 OK. The second thing that He said was this:
16:01 Very, very good indication
16:04 that if I put my treasure in heaven
16:10 that's where my heart will be.
16:11 And by the way, the reverse of that is not true.
16:17 Find some people... where your heart is
16:19 there your treasure will be. No...
16:20 It's where your treasure is that's where your heart will be.
16:24 And so put your treasure in heaven.
16:26 That's where you and I need to put it.
16:28 And then Jesus said this... He said:
16:41 Don't worry about that.
16:43 What shall I eat? What shall I drink? What shall I wear?
16:47 He said: "Don't worry about that. "
17:00 "All these things... " What does He mean?
17:04 What you eat. What you drink. What you wear.
17:09 All those things will be added to you if you will
17:12 seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.
17:17 Can you do that?
17:20 Because this subject tonight definitely is in relationship
17:25 to that. That you have to come to this experience
17:30 where you're willing by faith to trust the Lord.
17:35 I have to come to the place where I can say:
17:38 "Here, I trust the Lord.
17:40 I believe he will completely care for me.
17:43 Therefore, I don't have to have a treasure here on this earth. "
17:50 You remember what He said to the disciples?
17:53 He said: "I have sent you out...
17:54 I sent you out without sandals and without a knapsack
17:58 and all these things. " And He said:
17:59 "Did you lack anything? "
18:01 They said: "Nothing. "
18:04 Well, you and I must come to that experience where we trust
18:08 God to the place that I don't have to worry about that.
18:15 And Jesus picked out a particular experience
18:19 and He mentioned this to His disciples,
18:22 and He said this to them:
18:29 Now they were passing by
18:33 and they were dropping their gifts into the treasury.
18:36 And they were making a display of it
18:39 so everybody would be sure to know what they had given.
18:53 You know how much that was?
18:58 Huh?
19:00 That was everything.
19:02 You understand that?
19:05 That was everything.
19:07 That was everything she had.
19:10 So when you want to take a look at it, you won't weigh it
19:15 in comparison. That was everything she had!
19:26 He said: "She's given more than anybody else. "
19:38 Out of the abundance of things they have
19:41 they've given their offering to God.
19:52 Everything that she had she put it in.
19:57 So, you can't look at it on the basis of
20:03 what she gave.
20:05 You have to look at it on the basis of what was left over.
20:09 And she put in everything that she had.
20:15 Therefore, when I come to giving, folks...
20:20 when it comes to giving,
20:22 I have to make sure that my giving
20:25 is prompted by faith.
20:30 If you believe in giving
20:33 and it's simply a theory to you,
20:37 it won't do you any good.
20:39 Or if you give and you give as a practice
20:45 and faith is not mixed into it,
20:49 it won't do you any good.
20:53 Therefore, when it comes to giving, you and I must make sure
20:58 that our giving is based on how God wants us to give.
21:04 Says:
21:13 God makes it very clear that He has a storehouse
21:19 and He speaks about food in His house.
21:22 And therefore He says that you and I are to bring the tithe
21:27 into the storehouse.
21:29 And when He's talking about the storehouse
21:33 He's basically talking about the church.
21:36 He said: "Bring all the tithe into the storehouse. "
21:40 That means that we as
21:45 part of God's church - as members of the church -
21:47 that we need to support the church...
21:51 we need to bring the tithe into the storehouse.
21:54 It goes on and says here:
22:02 They brought their tithe; it was put there in the storehouse.
22:07 So tonight I want us to take a look at giving
22:11 and what the scripture has to say about giving,
22:15 and you'll find basically there are three types of offerings.
22:18 The Bible speaks of three different types of offerings.
22:23 And the first type of offering that the scripture speaks of
22:26 is what's called a free will offering.
22:31 That is an offering that you and I can bring to the Lord.
22:36 Listen to what it says here:
22:55 A free will offering is an offering that you and I
23:00 give to the Lord.
23:02 And there's no requirements about it, folks.
23:07 There's no requirements about it at all.
23:10 It's just an offering that I want to give to the Lord.
23:14 It might be an offering I'm giving out of thankfulness.
23:18 It might be an offering I'm giving because I want to
23:23 give a particular offering to the Lord.
23:26 It's a free will offering.
23:28 And if all you're doing is... how should I say this?
23:35 doing exactly what's prescribed,
23:39 then you're missing the blessing
23:41 because God wants you and I to offer to Him
23:47 offerings that we give out of our own choice
23:50 and our own free will.
23:53 Another type of offering that the scripture speaks about
23:56 is that of what is called firstfruits.
23:59 That was another offering that was given.
24:03 And it says this:
24:10 In other words, when they planted their crop
24:15 and they came to the time of the harvest,
24:18 they were to bring the very best part of that
24:22 crop - the firstfruits - and offer that to the Lord.
24:26 That was a firstfruit offering.
24:29 So with you and I.
24:30 You know... Let's say that something happens
24:36 and you have a windfall.
24:39 Then certainly we should bring the firstfruits of that
24:44 and give it to the Lord, folks.
24:46 That's what He's talking about.
24:48 That is a blessing that God has given to you and I.
24:51 We need to take and present that to the Lord.
24:54 It's the firstfruits of it.
24:57 And then, of course, the other is the tithe.
25:00 The tithe that you and I are to bring... and it says:
25:14 So it says that you counted your flock there and
25:18 as they passed under the rod
25:20 every tenth one was the Lord's and that's the tithe.
25:25 And we are to return the tithe to the Lord.
25:29 But again I want to stress
25:33 that if you're doing it as a theory
25:36 or you're doing it just as a practice,
25:40 then you're missing the blessing.
25:43 You're missing the blessing if you don't understand
25:47 the relationship between you and the Lord and by faith.
25:52 It says here: "The tenth one shall be.. " what?
25:58 "holy to the Lord. "
26:00 There are certain things that are holy.
26:02 You understand that?
26:05 Do you know what I mean by holy?
26:08 Do you remember in the scripture about Korah and Dathan
26:15 and Abiram? Remember those three that rebelled against Moses?
26:18 Huh? Remember that?
26:20 And they - through their rebellion - they enlisted
26:25 250 other of the princes of Israel.
26:29 Remember that? And those men... those 250...
26:34 went and made censers.
26:37 And they took those censers and they burned incense in them
26:43 before the Lord.
26:44 And when they burned incense in it before the Lord
26:49 and offering that, it made those censers holy.
26:57 And when they went out there and they rebelled
27:01 and those 250 men were slain,
27:05 God told Moses: "Gather up those censers.
27:10 They are holy and they belong to the Lord. "
27:15 There are certain things that are holy
27:18 that belong to the Lord.
27:20 And you and I, I don't care what you do,
27:24 but I'll guarantee you that them being holy
27:30 does not depend on what we do.
27:33 It depends on what God DID.
27:36 And therefore all I can do is relate to it
27:40 as something that is holy.
27:42 Some of the things are... one:
28:01 The Sabbath is holy.
28:03 It's been made holy by God,
28:07 and therefore I can only relate to it
28:12 as it is HOLY.
28:15 My actions... what I do... doesn't make it holy.
28:21 It's holy.
28:23 That's something that God did to it.
28:26 So the Sabbath is holy.
28:28 And also it says:
28:41 The Bible makes it very clear that your body is holy.
28:47 What you do does not make your body holy.
28:54 God is the One that's responsible for that.
28:57 When you and I accept the Lord,
28:59 it says He gives us the Holy Spirit
29:02 and our bodies become the temple of the Holy Spirit.
29:07 Therefore they are holy, and you and I must relate
29:12 to that as being holy.
29:16 That's why it's important how I treat it
29:20 because it is holy.
29:23 But it also says that the tithe is holy:
29:36 So the tithe is also holy and it belongs to God.
29:43 Therefore I must bring it to Him.
29:47 How I treat it will not change it.
29:52 In other words, what I'm trying to say is
29:55 if you don't return the tithe, that will not make it unholy.
30:00 It's holy, and you and I need to be very careful how we treat it.
30:06 So how is the tithe to be used?
30:09 Well the scripture tells us that a tithe is simply one tenth.
30:13 That's a tithe. What does that mean?
30:17 Well, that means simply that if I make a dollar
30:22 then tithe is 10 cents.
30:25 If I make $10, it's a dollar.
30:30 If I make $100, it's $10.
30:34 In other words, the Lord says that I am to return
30:39 the tithe to Him
30:42 because it's His; it's holy.
30:46 I need to give it to Him.
31:00 God chose the Levites
31:04 as His priests, as His ministers,
31:09 and He said the tithe is to be set apart
31:12 to care for the Levites.
31:14 That's what it was set aside for.
31:17 And it was to take care of them and provide for them
31:20 because they had no inheritance
31:24 among the children of Israel.
31:26 The only inheritance they had was the tithe.
31:30 That was given to them to care for them.
31:33 OK? I... I grew up in a home
31:38 where my father had a very, very strange idea about this.
31:44 My father had been raised in a home where he was taught
31:49 that the minister was not to be paid.
31:54 That the minister was to care for the church.
31:57 He was to have a job and he was to work at a job
32:01 but he was not to be paid.
32:04 It was to be totally on a volunteer basis.
32:07 And that's the way my father was raised...
32:10 that's what he believed and all.
32:12 That is NOT what the scripture teaches.
32:15 It says that that was given to the Levites
32:19 to care for them... to provide for them.
32:22 Now, we don't have a Levitical priesthood today.
32:26 That Levitical priesthood came to an end
32:31 and therefore we don't have it.
32:32 And so you have to read very carefully now
32:35 what Paul has to say,
32:38 because he begins to see how the transition...
32:41 transition is to be made.
32:43 Listen to what he says here in the book of Hebrews:
32:54 Now you remember, Abraham gave a tenth
32:58 of what he had gotten. Gave it to Melchizedeck.
33:02 Remember that?
33:04 OK. Look at the point that it's making here, and it says:
33:20 OK. Just like we read, he says the Levites
33:23 have the commandment... they were to receive the tithe.
33:32 Now, watch the transition:
33:43 Now understand what he's saying...
33:45 He's saying now Melchizedeck was not a Levite.
33:50 He was not of their genealogy.
34:03 He said he wasn't a Levite
34:06 but Abraham paid him tithe.
34:10 Now you've got to understand the background here
34:14 because we're in the process here, folks,
34:17 of going from the Jewish nation
34:21 into the Christian church.
34:25 Are you following me?
34:27 So these people were used to taking their tithe
34:31 and giving it at the temple.
34:35 But now all of a sudden
34:37 the gospel is going out to the world.
34:40 And so Paul is trying to help them understand
34:42 that they needed to give, but they needed to give
34:46 so the gospel could be expanded
34:49 and not necessarily at the temple.
35:04 Paul is asking: "If we have helped you spiritually,
35:07 if we have helped you grow spiritually,
35:10 then is it wrong for you to help materially? "
35:15 That's the point he's asking.
35:47 This is what happened at the temple.
35:50 They brought their sacrifices and they ate of that.
35:56 Paul is making the point here, and he says:
36:07 So he says that this is how the church of God
36:11 is to be supported.
36:15 The tithe is to be given
36:20 for the proclamation of the gospel.
36:24 I want to make that clear.
36:26 The tithe is to be given for the proclamation of the gospel:
36:30 for the preaching of God's Word.
36:33 That... that is not all, folks.
36:37 That's the tithe.. that's what you and I return to the Lord.
36:42 But then we are free
36:46 to give free will offerings or to give of the firstfruits.
36:51 Those are things that we can give that God wants us to give.
37:06 So it says bring the tithe.
37:09 I need to be faithful in it.
37:11 I picked up and read a story the other day about this
37:15 town - not a large town
37:19 but a country community... a town.
37:23 And the church there in the town
37:26 where all the people went to
37:27 the treasurer that had been the
37:29 treasurer for years retired.
37:33 And so the church was trying to get somebody to be
37:37 the treasurer of the church.
37:38 And they finally asked the fellow who owned and operated
37:43 the grain elevator in the town.
37:45 They asked him if he would be the treasurer of the church.
37:49 They knew him to be honest.
37:51 They knew him to be a man of integrity.
37:53 And so they asked him if he would be the treasurer
37:56 of the church. And so after some consideration
37:59 he said that he would.
38:01 That he would be the treasurer...
38:04 but he said under one condition.
38:06 And they said: "What's that? "
38:08 And he said: "Nobody...
38:10 nobody will ask me any questions about the finances of the church
38:15 for one year.
38:17 Nobody will look at the church books
38:22 for one year. "
38:27 And the people said: "What do you mean? "
38:30 He said: "If you want me to be the treasurer,
38:32 nobody asks me any questions about it
38:34 and nobody will look at the church books for one year. "
38:37 And they respected him. He was an honest man and all.
38:42 And so they said: "OK. "
38:44 And he became the treasurer.
38:47 And everything seemed to go fine.
38:50 And at the end of the year
38:52 everybody wanted to know how things were and how they...
38:57 And so they had the treasurer give them a report.
39:03 They found out that they had
39:09 that they owned on the church... owed on the church building.
39:13 They found out that they had $50,000 in a fund
39:18 for spreading the gospel.
39:21 They found out several other funds that they had an excess
39:25 of money in. They said: "How have you done this?
39:30 How has this happened
39:32 that all this money is here in the treasury
39:34 and everything's been paid for, we don't have any debts?
39:38 How did this happen? "
39:42 He said: "Ah, it's very simple. "
39:44 He said just simply: "When you brought your grain
39:48 to the elevator and had it weighed and paid, "
39:51 he said, "I just took your tithe out of it
39:53 and turned it in to the church. "
39:56 And he said: "None of you have missed it. "
39:59 You see, just simply works that way, dear friends.
40:05 God just simply says that if you and I return the tithe
40:09 to Him that He will bless us.
40:13 And the blessing God pours out upon us
40:17 is beyond anything that you and I can imagine.
40:21 Does this for us.
40:23 And so I'm... the thing that I'm trying to get across tonight
40:27 dear friends... It has a whole lot more to do
40:32 with your heart and your relationship with the Lord
40:37 than it has to do with what your head says.
40:41 You need to come to the place where you say:
40:44 "Yes, I trust Him.
40:47 I trust Him completely. I put my life in His hands. "
40:51 And He says: "If you do, I'll bless you. "
40:54 Jesus here is talking about practicing it...
40:58 practicing it, when it won't do you any good.
41:02 Listen:
41:24 You see, just to practice it and not have faith
41:29 or mercy or justice won't do you any good at all.
41:35 But to have faith and say "I trust You, Lord, "
41:40 and to put your life in His hands...
41:42 Oh, yes, that makes a great, great difference.
41:48 See this is also what Christ was trying to get across
41:53 when He told this story.
42:20 OK?
42:29 Was he practicing it?
42:33 Oh, yes. "I give tithe of everything I have. "
43:07 You see, I need to give, folks.
43:13 And I need to give to see the gospel proclaimed.
43:19 I have that right to give...
43:24 to give back to God what He has given me.
43:28 And I have some people say: "Well, how... you know...
43:33 how can you give 10%? "
43:36 Well, let me tell you, that's not hard.
43:40 That's not hard if your heart is right.
43:45 If your heart is right... no.
43:47 That's not hard at all.
43:50 And by the way, let me just tell you right now
43:53 the minister is not exempt.
43:59 OK? Ministers are human beings.
44:04 They have the same problems.
44:08 They face the same temptations.
44:11 Selfishness is not something that ministers don't have.
44:19 That is part of the things that they face.
44:22 So you need to listen to this very carefully:
44:29 Do you understand that?
44:31 Aaron was what? He was a Levite.
44:35 So what does it mean when it says:
44:36 "The priests, the descendants of Aaron,
44:38 shall be with the Levites? "
44:41 It simply means this:
44:43 that Aaron and his sons were set aside to be the priests,
44:48 and the Levites were to help them... minister to them.
44:53 So he's saying, these that were the priests and the Levites
44:57 they were to be with them
44:59 when the Levites receive the tithes.
45:04 OK?
45:07 Listen... who?
45:16 In other words, they were supported by the tithes.
45:19 The minister is supported by the tithe,
45:24 but he in turn is to return a tithe.
45:29 That is scripture.
45:33 See, you and I have to make sure
45:39 that we are not being covetous or selfish.
45:45 That can't be part of a Christian life.
45:51 I have to be willing to give... to share.
46:02 This they were to bring as He says.
46:14 OK... Said: "Would you rob God? "
46:24 Robbed Him of tithes and offerings.
46:29 Free will offerings I am to bring.
46:33 That God wants me to bring.
46:51 That was his charge.
47:06 So this was the tithe that was to be brought.
47:09 I don't know how many of you have been in the situation...
47:15 but if you've been like a student in school
47:21 or something like some of us were where you didn't know
47:26 where the next nickel was coming from, I mean
47:29 you talk about being poor...
47:32 we were so poor when we were in school...
47:35 I can remember my birthday came around.
47:39 And... and we just didn't have any money period, you know.
47:43 And by the way, this - to me - is still the nicest gift
47:48 I have ever received in my life.
47:51 My wife didn't have any money.
47:54 I mean, we were just broke.
47:57 We didn't have any money, so I didn't expect any birthday gift,
48:02 you know... no money for one.
48:04 Anyhow, we were sitting there in the apartment
48:08 eating a little meal, and there beside my plate was a gift
48:14 that she had gotten me.
48:17 Wrapped up... put it beside the plate.
48:19 And I opened it up...
48:21 and here inside a little box was a lollipop she had gotten me.
48:26 And like I say, still - to me - probably the nicest gift
48:32 I ever got.
48:35 So if you've been in that situation where you're poor,
48:38 you know you don't know where the next thing is coming...
48:41 Jim Gilley and I were sharing these things, and I asked him
48:46 about it. And he said that when they were in school
48:48 that he and Camille had, you know,
48:54 just taken every penny they had to be at school.
48:58 And he had gotten a little check
49:02 from a little business they were trying to operate.
49:06 And the tithe on that for what he had earned and stuff
49:12 was $62.50.
49:15 But he said... if he paid the $62.50
49:21 that was it, they didn't have anything left.
49:24 That was... that took everything that they had to pay that.
49:27 And he said that he struggled with that...
49:32 I mean, because it was giving everything they had.
49:37 He struggled with that all the way to the post office.
49:40 Finally... was sending the tithe...
49:43 he was sending the tithe back to the church where they
49:45 were members... and they were in school.
49:48 And he said he finally mailed it.
49:51 And he said he walked over to the mail box
49:54 and opened up the mail box.
49:58 And he said here was a letter in it.
50:01 He took it out, and in that letter
50:03 was a check for $62.50.
50:08 The exact penny.
50:10 You see, God does not fail.
50:14 Never. He'll care for us if you and I are just faithful.
50:19 So the offerings are something that you and I
50:23 are to bring to the Lord.
50:35 Now if you want to make sure that you're OK,
50:39 this is how:
50:56 So you and I are to give.
50:58 The blessing of God will rest with you and I
51:02 if we give to the Lord.
51:20 This God wants to give to you and to me
51:23 if we return the tithe to Him.
51:30 All you may need
51:34 He will provide,
51:38 God will take care
51:42 of you.
51:47 Nothing you ask
51:50 will be denied...
51:54 God will take care
51:57 of you.
52:02 God will take care
52:07 of you.
52:10 Through every day,
52:14 or all the way.
52:19 He will take care
52:24 of you.
52:27 God will take care
52:33 of you.
52:40 Let us pray.
52:41 Father in Heaven,
52:44 we thank you... thank you for providing for us.
52:50 For giving... for making a way.
52:55 Help us, Lord, that we will learn...
52:58 learn to walk with You by faith.
53:02 To learn to take the things that You give us
53:06 and to lay up a treasure in heaven
53:11 that we can enjoy the blessing of God
53:15 in our lives. Bless each one here tonight
53:19 that they might find in Christ
53:24 their security, their guidance, their direction in their lives.
53:30 We thank you, Lord, for being with us.
53:33 For this we ask in Your name, Amen.
53:39 Well, our next presentation brings us down to the
53:44 end of this series on The Apple of God's Eye.
53:47 And our next one is on The Church Victorious.
53:51 The Church Victorious.
53:53 You see, God speaks of the church as His bride,
53:58 and He describes what's going to take place.
54:02 And we're going to take a look at what the scripture tells us
54:04 about God's church down through the ages
54:07 and how it will be victorious.
54:10 So we hope that all of you will be sure and be back with us
54:14 again for our next presentation.
54:16 And we hope that you have a good evening.
54:19 And may God continue to be with you and bless you
54:22 in a very, very special way.
54:24 Thank you and good night to each one of you.
54:29 There's a popular movie that depicts the complete
54:33 annihilation of the world through earthquakes,
54:36 fires, tsunamis, and floods
54:39 in the year 2012 AD.
54:41 Jesus warns us against setting dates in Matthew 24:36.
54:46 "But of that day and hour, no one knows...
54:49 not even the angels of heaven
54:51 but My Father only. "
54:53 While this film may be entertaining,
54:55 it has done nothing but heighten the fear
54:58 of the people of this world.
55:00 For many years now, we have seen the signs of a world
55:04 in a state of collapse.
55:05 And even unbelievers are increasingly uncomfortable
55:09 with the way things are going.
55:11 Truly we stand on the very edge
55:14 of earth's history. And believe me,
55:17 the $250,000,000 spent on special effects for this film
55:21 don't even come close
55:23 to what is about to be unleashed upon mankind.
55:27 The Bible warns of wars,
55:29 famines, pestilence, and earthquakes
55:32 culminating in the most spectacular upheaval
55:36 this world has ever seen.
55:38 Just listen to this description
55:40 found in Revelation the sixth chapter.
55:43 "And behold, there was a great earthquake
55:45 and the sun became black as the sackcloth of hair
55:48 and the moon became like blood.
55:51 And the stars of the heaven fell to the earth
55:53 as a fig tree drops its late figs
55:56 when it is shaken by a mighty wind.
55:59 Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up
56:02 and every mountain and island were moved out of its place. "
56:07 Friends, this will not be a Hollywood movie.
56:11 These events will surely take place,
56:13 and we must warn the world as quickly as possible.
56:17 You see, there will be no secret rapture.
56:22 Every human being alive at the time will be affected
56:25 whether they are wicked or righteous.
56:28 But while the fear that has gripped the hearts of the wicked
56:31 will cause them to beg for rocks to fall on them,
56:35 those who are righteous will welcome these events
56:38 as signs of Christ's coming.
56:40 They will say: "Behold! This is our God.
56:43 We have waited for Him, and He will save us. "
56:47 Listen to these glorious words
56:49 from I Thessalonians 4:
56:51 "For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout
56:55 with the voice of the archangel
56:58 and with the trumpet of God,
57:00 and the dead in Christ will rise first.
57:02 Then we who are alive and remain
57:04 shall be caught up together with them in the clouds
57:07 to meet the Lord in the air.
57:09 And thus we shall always be with the Lord.
57:12 Wherefore, comfort one another with these words. "
57:16 Oh friends, our burden is to share this good news.
57:20 To bring comfort to those who are living in fear.
57:23 That's why we continue to preach the gospel of salvation
57:26 through Jesus Christ to anyone who will listen.
57:30 To see a soul come to Jesus and be saved is worth any cost
57:34 and all efforts. That's why this ministry exists.
57:38 Won't you help us?
57:39 Please consider what you can do
57:41 for those who still don't know about Jesus.
57:44 As the Holy Spirit impresses,
57:46 please send your tax-deductible gifts to:
58:00 Thank you for helping us spread the light of God's Word
58:03 through television and radio.
58:04 Your gifts help bring the blessed hope of salvation
58:07 to millions around the world.


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Revised 2014-12-17