Participants:
Series Code: IIW
Program Code: IIW018179S
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00:09 ♪[Theme music]♪
00:19 >>John Bradshaw: This is It Is Written. 00:20 I'm John Bradshaw. Thanks for joining me. 00:22 ♪[Music]♪ 00:24 Melbourne, Australia, is a city of almost 5 million people. 00:29 It's a vibrant city, a diverse city. 00:32 It's sports-mad. 00:34 And it's as cultured as a city can be that was settled 00:37 in just 1835. 00:40 It was initially named Batmania after John Batman, 00:45 one of the first Europeans to settle in the area. 00:48 Every year between 2011 and 2017, 00:52 it was rated as the world's most livable city. 00:56 Visit Melbourne and it isn't hard to see why. 00:59 Its population continues to grow, 01:01 in part because there's plenty of room for Melbourne 01:04 to keep on sprawling. 01:08 In 1968, Melbourne's population was around 2 1/4 million, 01:14 and it was growing rapidly. 01:16 In April of that year, construction began 01:19 on the West Gate Bridge, which would connect Melbourne's CBD 01:24 with the western suburbs. 01:26 It was an absolute necessity, 01:28 and it was strategically located. 01:30 Today, it's one of the busiest stretches of road 01:34 in all of Australia. 01:36 It was designed to rise 190 feet, or 58 meters, 01:41 above the Yarra River, 01:43 close to where the Yarra flows into Port Phillip. 01:46 It's 1 1/2 mile or 2 1/2 kilometers long, 01:50 one of the longest bridges in Australia, 01:53 twice as long as the Sydney Harbor Bridge. 01:56 But a problem appeared during construction, 01:59 and it was significant. 02:00 Two spans right here on the west side of the bridge 02:04 didn't quite line up correctly. 02:07 They were off by about 4 1/2 inches. 02:10 So, eight tons of concrete block was brought in to weigh down 02:15 one of the spans and bring it into alignment with the other. 02:19 But all that weight caused the span to buckle. 02:25 A span on a similar bridge in Wales had collapsed 02:29 that same year. 02:30 Five people had died. 02:33 No one wanted that to happen here in Melbourne. 02:37 They tried to straighten out the buckle, 02:39 but the attempted fix failed-- spectacularly. 02:44 At 10 minutes to mid-day, the steel on span 1011 of the bridge 02:50 changed color under immense pressure, 02:53 and the entire 2,000-ton section of that bridge 02:57 came crashing down into the mud and water of the Yarra River. 03:02 Amazingly, some men managed to survive the fall, 03:04 riding the bridge down to the ground. 03:07 But 35 men did not. 03:10 Many of them were on the ground, and that massive section 03:14 of the bridge came crashing down on top of them. 03:18 Of course, the city of Melbourne was in shock. 03:21 There had been warnings from some of the steel workers 03:23 about the structural integrity of the bridge. 03:27 Unfortunately, those warnings turned out to be prophetic. 03:31 There are still many people in Melbourne 03:33 who vividly remember that day. 03:36 >>Man 1: Well, I went to see what happened 03:37 because I was at about the seventh or eighth floor 03:39 in the [indistinct] building in the city, 03:42 and we had a clear view here-- it was a clear day. 03:45 And, uh, when we heard the, the thing, 03:47 we just located where it was, and we could see the, 03:49 the plume of dust at the time. 03:51 >>Man 2: I heard some commotion at the other end of the room, 03:54 and some rather colorful language was coming out of them, 03:57 and there were tears and crying, and I said, 04:00 "What? What's going on?" 04:01 And they just heard that the West Gate Bridge had collapsed, 04:05 and a lot of people in our factory either knew people 04:08 on the site or had relatives actually working there. 04:12 So it was pretty dramatic at the time. 04:15 >>Woman: It just collapsed onto the workmen's hut. 04:21 I guess that you just don't know what's going to happen, 04:25 the unexpectedness. 04:27 >>Man 3: The first concern was the people that were inside 04:30 the, the bridge, and they, they died. 04:33 Uh, well, it was a fair few of them died. 04:36 A lot of them didn't die, but, uh, 04:38 the ones that, uh, were underneath it, 04:40 uh, just didn't have any hope at all. 04:43 >>Man 1: Well, it's one of the largest workplace accidents 04:46 that was on record at the time. 04:48 And, uh, it was, uh, quite horrendous to the rest of us 04:52 because we was hoping to see this, this, uh, structure 04:56 improve our infrastructure so much. 04:59 And it just, and it was, uh-- 05:02 when you see the loss of life that was involved, 05:04 it was very traumatic. 05:06 ♪[Ominous music]♪ 05:10 >>John: An enormous section of a bridge came crashing 05:15 to the ground, and disaster was the result. 05:21 Now, let me ask you: What do you do when you crash? 05:25 When you fall? 05:26 What do you do when your life is in free fall? 05:30 You know, the reason that a chunk of this bridge 05:31 fell in the first place was directly because of human error. 05:35 The truth of the matter is-- doesn't feel very good-- 05:38 but the truth of the matter is when we fall, same reason, 05:41 it's on us, human error. 05:44 We're to blame. 05:46 [Birds cawing and twittering] 05:48 The truth is no one has to cave in to temptation. 05:53 The Bible tells us again and again that God is able 05:55 to keep us from temptation. 05:58 First Corinthians chapter 10, verse 13: 06:01 "There hath no temptation taken you 06:03 but such as is common to man: 06:05 but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted 06:09 above that ye are able; 06:11 but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, 06:16 that ye may be able to bear it." 06:18 Wherever there is temptation, God has a way out of temptation. 06:23 Any temptation. Any time. 06:27 And why is that? 06:28 It's because God is powerful. There's power in God's Word. 06:32 There's power in God's presence in your life. 06:36 Wherever there's temptation, 06:38 there's a way, through God, out of temptation. 06:42 Now, remember what Jesus said in the Lord's Prayer: 06:45 "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil." 06:49 That's Matthew 6:13. 06:51 And Jude verse 24, 06:53 "Now unto Him that is able to keep you from falling, 06:56 and to present you faultless before the presence 06:59 of His glory with exceeding joy." 07:03 Now, what can God do? He can keep you from falling. 07:07 But for all that, believers often fall. 07:12 Adam and Eve fell into sin. 07:13 That's how sin entered the universe. 07:16 Aaron, number two in Israel, second only to Moses, 07:20 made a golden calf for Israel to worship while Moses was 07:24 on Mount Sinai receiving the Ten Commandments from God. 07:27 Miriam, the sister of Moses and Aaron, 07:31 she nursed a wicked attitude, 07:33 and as a result she was afflicted with leprosy by God. 07:38 Now, these are significant falls. 07:41 Each individual, highly esteemed of God, 07:45 but in each case, because of the their own choice, 07:48 because they chose to surrender to sin 07:51 rather than surrender to God, 07:54 sin came into their lives and brought disastrous consequences. 08:00 So has that ever happened to you? 08:03 You've been going along through life, 08:04 maybe things have been going pretty well, 08:06 and suddenly, maybe from out of the blue it seems, 08:09 boom, you come crashing down. 08:12 Sin comes and does its work and creates its damage. 08:16 You find yourself in free fall. 08:21 You know, it isn't only devil worshipers 08:22 that carry out road rage. 08:24 It's not only atheists who visit websites they shouldn't go to. 08:28 Sin happens, even to believers. 08:30 Now, that's not to excuse it in any way at all. 08:34 But it's important to understand what you ought to do 08:38 when you find yourself in a spiritual free fall, 08:42 because that thump when you hit the bottom 08:45 can be pretty painful, and it can also be disorienting. 08:49 Now, think about Moses, a fine young man, 08:52 raised in a wonderful home, privileged to be educated 08:56 and then raised in the royal family of Egypt. 09:01 We think about what the Bible says in Exodus 2, verse 11: 09:04 "It came to pass in those days, 09:06 when Moses was grown, that he went out [with] his brethren, 09:10 and looked on their burdens: 09:12 and he spied an Egyptian smiting an Hebrew, one of his brethren. 09:16 And he looked this way and that way, 09:18 and when he saw that there was no man, 09:21 he slew the Egyptian, and hid him in the sand." 09:26 You can't get much lower than that-- 09:29 premeditated murder. 09:31 As a child, Moses' life was spared by a miracle of God, 09:35 and yet, here he is, some years later, 09:39 committing an act of outright violence. 09:42 How do you come back from that? 09:44 Well, let me ask you: 09:46 How do you come back from that? 09:47 How do you come back from a prison sentence? 09:50 How do you come back from some kind of costly mistake? 09:53 How do you come back from a sin that you know wasn't necessary, 09:57 but caused you or others a whole lot of grief? 10:00 How do you come back from that? 10:02 Sometimes it can seem as though life is in free fall. 10:08 What do you do then? 10:10 Just five years after the tragic collapse of the West Gate Bridge 10:15 and only a few hundred miles from here, 10:17 there was another shocking collapse, 10:20 again the result of human error. 10:24 More in just a moment. 10:26 ♪[Music]♪ 10:35 >>John: There are hundreds, even thousands of promises 10:38 in the Bible, all made by God to be a blessing 10:41 and an encouragement for you. 10:43 Receive today's free offer; 10:45 it's "Promises of Peace." 10:47 Be blessed by the promises of God. 10:50 To receive "Promises of Peace," 10:51 call us at 800-253-3000 10:54 or visit us online at iiwoffer.com 10:59 and receive our free offer, "Promises of Peace." 11:05 ♪[Upbeat music]♪ 11:08 >>Announcer: Planning for your financial future 11:09 is a vital aspect of Christian stewardship. 11:13 For this reason, It Is Written is pleased to offer 11:16 free planned giving and estate services. 11:19 For information on how we can help you, 11:21 please call 800-992-2219. 11:25 Call today 11:27 or visit our website, hislegacy.com. 11:30 Call 800-992-2219. 11:36 >>John Bradshaw: Thanks for joining me today 11:37 on It Is Written. 11:39 I'm John Bradshaw. 11:41 When part of the West Gate Bridge collapsed 11:43 in Melbourne, Australia, in 1970, 35 people were killed, 11:47 and an inquiry found that the cause of the disaster was... 11:52 human error. 11:54 Let's think together about some infamous human errors. 11:58 We go back to the original human error, Adam and Eve. 12:02 What about Samson? Human error. 12:04 Judas--oh, Judas!-- human error. 12:08 And then think about David, King David. 12:13 David's life story is filled with heroism and triumph. 12:18 It was David who, when he was still a boy, killed Goliath, 12:21 the giant that had struck fear into the heart of Israel's army. 12:26 Even Israel's king wouldn't fight Goliath. 12:30 But then along came David, who went out to fight without armor, 12:35 bearing just a sling and a few small stones. 12:38 David the giant slayer. 12:42 David, who killed a lion and a bear. 12:45 David, who led his armies in victory after victory. 12:51 David, who one night took a walk along the rooftops in Jerusalem 12:56 and saw a woman, "very beautiful to look upon," 12:59 according to 2 Samuel 11, verse 2. 13:02 He found out who she was. 13:04 She was Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, 13:07 the wife of Uriah the Hittite. 13:11 The wife...of Uriah the Hittite. 13:15 Verse 4 says very succinctly, 13:18 "David sent messengers, and took her." 13:23 David was now in free fall. 13:27 Sin followed sin. And it wasn't pretty. 13:32 When he discovered Bathsheba was expecting a child, 13:35 David tried to send Uriah home to spend time with her, 13:39 but Uriah wouldn't do it. 13:42 So David wrote a letter to Joab saying, 13:45 "Set Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle 13:49 and retreat from him, that he may be struck down and die." 13:54 Second Samuel 11:15. 13:56 Which is precisely what happened. 13:59 David, who had been called "a man after God's own heart," 14:03 down he went. 14:05 Crash. 14:07 Free fall. 14:09 On January the 5th, 1975, here in Hobart, Tasmania, 14:14 Australia's island state, a shocking accident occurred 14:18 that resulted in the loss of 12 lives. 14:21 A ship carrying 10,000 tons of zinc concentrate 14:25 up the Derwent River struck a pylon on the Tasman Bridge, 14:30 which connects one side of Hobart with the other. 14:33 And when the Lake Illawarra hit the bridge, 14:36 it caused a section of the bridge to crash 150 feet 14:41 into the water below. 14:43 Seven people on board the ship perished. 14:46 Four cars carrying five people plunged off the bridge. 14:51 No survivors. 14:53 It was 9:00 in the evening when the accident occurred. 14:56 A man named Murray Ling was driving on the bridge 15:00 at the time with his wife and two small children. 15:02 He noticed that something appeared to be wrong up ahead 15:05 of him, so he braked and did so just in time to skid to a halt 15:10 only inches from the gap in the bridge. 15:13 As he sat in his car, a vehicle traveling behind him rammed 15:16 into the back of Ling's car. 15:18 The front wheels of the car were pushed over the edge 15:21 of the bridge, 15:22 and those inside were teetering on the edge of disaster. 15:26 Mr. Ling got his family to safety. 15:29 He ran up the bridge to warn other vehicles to stop, 15:32 and some of them drove around him and sped off-- 15:35 and off the bridge and into the water below. 15:41 It's hard to imagine something like that. 15:44 Probably something you don't really want to imagine. 15:48 But really, it's a metaphor for what so often happens 15:51 in a person's life, even in the life of a believer in Jesus. 15:57 Certainly, the life of a believer ought to be 16:00 a life of faith. 16:02 It may be a life of faith. 16:05 But because people are people-- inconsistent, weak, distracted, 16:12 so many other things-- 16:14 rather than living a life of constant faith, 16:17 unfaithfulness or faithlessness often and easily creeps in. 16:24 One moment Peter is walking on water; 16:27 the next, he's sinking into the Sea of Galilee. 16:31 James and John actually petition Jesus for permission 16:35 to call fire down from heaven and incinerate 16:39 an entire Samaritan village. 16:41 What in the world? 16:44 Temptation comes just as surely as night follows day, 16:47 and because we're learning and because we're growing, 16:51 we don't always deal with temptation 16:53 in the best possible way. 16:55 Sometimes that's not entirely calamitous, 16:58 but other times...it is. 17:01 ♪[Somber music]♪ 17:02 We can learn something from these bridges. 17:05 Part of one of them collapsed in 1970. 17:08 It was awful. 17:10 The other collapsed in 1975. 17:14 But look at them today. 17:16 In fact, to prove my thesis, I thought I'd take a drive 17:20 across the Tasman Bridge from one side of Hobart to the other. 17:24 And when I did, what do you think I discovered? 17:28 I'll tell you in just a moment. 17:32 ♪[Music]♪ 17:40 >>John: Thank you for remembering 17:42 that It Is Written exists 17:43 because of the kindness of people just like you. 17:46 To support this international life-changing ministry, 17:49 please call us now at 800-253-3000. 17:53 You can send your tax-deductible gift 17:55 to the address on your screen 17:56 or you can visit us online at itiswritten.com. 18:00 Thank you for your prayers and for your financial support. 18:03 Our number again is 800-253-3000, 18:07 or you can visit us online at itiswritten.com. 18:11 >>John: You can't easily live without it, 18:14 yet having it and having too much of it can not only 18:16 make life complicated, 18:18 but it can jeopardize your spiritual well-being. 18:21 Money--such a major part of life and yet so potentially dangerous 18:25 that the Bible says more about money 18:27 than almost any other subject. 18:29 What do you do with your money? 18:31 And how can you make sure that what is meant to be a blessing 18:34 doesn't end up being a curse? 18:36 Join our conversation with financial expert Julian Archer 18:40 and learn how to avoid many common financial pitfalls. 18:43 Learn from someone who knows 18:45 and find out what the Bible has to say about finance, 18:48 about handling your money in a way that is both 18:51 good for you and glorifies God. 18:53 Don't miss "Money, Money, Money" from It Is Written, 18:57 featuring financial expert Julian Archer. 19:00 "Money, Money, Money." 19:01 Watch now on It Is Written TV. 19:04 Go to www.itiswritten.tv. 19:07 That's itiswritten.tv. 19:12 >>John Bradshaw: Thanks for joining me on It Is Written. 19:15 You know, one of the easiest things in the world for a person 19:17 to do is to fall into sin. 19:20 Now, it's not that you have to; 19:21 it isn't that God isn't doing everything He can to try 19:24 to keep you from falling. 19:26 It's just that you... 19:27 you get inconsistent in your devotional life. 19:30 You take your eyes off Jesus. 19:32 You get tired. 19:34 You choose not to surrender when the heat of temptation 19:37 comes pressing in on you. 19:39 How many times do you hear people say, 19:41 "I didn't mean to"; "I didn't even want to"; 19:44 I couldn't help myself"? 19:45 You hear that all the time. 19:47 And it's not that you intend to. 19:49 A man living just a couple of hours outside of the city 19:52 of Melbourne, just two or three years ago, 19:56 committed a truly horrible crime. 19:59 After a night of smoking marijuana and drinking, he said, 20:04 "Once the urge to commit the crime set in, I couldn't stop." 20:09 The woman who appeared before the judge having shoplifted, 20:13 she said to the judge, 20:14 "Once I began, I couldn't stop myself." 20:17 That young teenager who got into a fight at a party, 20:20 he said to everybody concerned, "I just couldn't stop." 20:26 Free fall. 20:27 So what do you do, then? 20:30 Well, the wrong thing to do is to stay stuck in your sin. 20:33 That's the wrong thing to do. 20:35 The wrong thing to do is to think that God won't forgive you 20:38 or that God won't have your back. 20:40 That's wrong. 20:42 And this is where we learn something from the collapse 20:45 of these bridges. 20:45 ♪[Soft music]♪ 20:47 Look at the West Gate Bridge in Melbourne today 20:49 and you notice that it's standing, all of it, 20:54 and it works perfectly. 20:57 After the devastating collapse, the bridge was rebuilt-- 21:01 or more to the point, built. 21:04 They went back and did it right the next time. 21:08 The Tasman Bridge over the Derwent River? 21:10 Well, check it out. 21:12 Now, when it fell, 21:14 it created absolute chaos for the people of Hobart, 21:16 particularly the 30 percent of the population that lived 21:19 on that side, the east side of the river. 21:22 What used to be a 3-minute commute across the bridge 21:25 turned into a 30-mile-or-so journey that took 21:29 the better part of an hour. 21:31 But today? 21:34 Well, here it is. 21:35 It stands. It's rock-solid. 21:40 It isn't about to fall any place. 21:42 [Thumps steering wheel] 21:44 Today, this bridge works just fine. 21:49 And that's the beauty of faith in God. 21:51 God is able to restore somebody who falls. 21:54 You're able to start all over again and put the broken pieces 21:58 back together. 22:00 God's in the business of restoration. 22:03 He's in the business of re-creation. 22:06 Now, think of Moses, Moses the murderer. 22:08 Moses the murderer became Moses the man of God 22:12 who led the children of Israel on the Exodus. 22:15 In fact, if you read the little book of Jude, 22:17 you discover Moses was raised from the dead, 22:20 and Moses was taken to heaven. 22:23 And then there's David. 22:25 David, whose fall was spectacular. 22:27 David, whose fall was 100 percent his own fault. 22:31 God restored David like He restored Moses, 22:34 and why was He able to do that? 22:36 Because David was truly sorry for what he had done. 22:39 David repented, and he repented from the bottom of his heart. 22:42 Take a look at David's prayer of repentance in Psalm 51. 22:47 Starting in verse 1, "Have mercy upon me, O God, 22:51 according to Your lovingkindness; 22:53 according to the multitude of Your tender mercies, 22:56 blot out my transgressions." 22:59 Now, notice, he realizes God is merciful and loving, 23:03 and he owns up to the fact that he has done wrong. 23:07 Verse 2: "Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, 23:10 and cleanse me from my sin." 23:13 Verse 3: "For I acknowledge my transgressions, 23:17 and my sin is always before me." 23:21 Verse 4: "Against You, You only, have I sinned, 23:26 and done this evil in Your sight." 23:29 Now down to verse 7: 23:31 "Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; 23:36 wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow." 23:40 And now verse 10: "Create in me a clean heart, 23:45 O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me." 23:52 David comes clean with God. God forgives him. 23:57 And what happens when God forgives you? 24:00 Let me tell you about the bridges. 24:03 As a result of the Tasman Bridge collapse in Tasmania, 24:07 bridges are now often designed differently so that if a pier 24:11 is knocked out, the bridge won't collapse. 24:14 That's revolutionary. 24:16 And in Australia, shipping regulations were changed 24:20 so that shipping has become safer. 24:23 In other words, as a result of the collapse, 24:27 things have actually improved. 24:30 The West Gate Bridge collapse brought about big changes 24:33 in workplace safety. 24:35 Construction is safer because of the lessons learned. 24:41 In the same way, should you fall, you can be better 24:45 than you were before. 24:47 Of course it's best not to fall at all, 24:49 but should you do so, you can learn from your mistakes. 24:53 Just look up, and God will pick you up. 24:57 Now, what did Isaiah write? 24:59 Isaiah 1, verse 18: 25:03 "Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; 25:08 though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool." 25:12 First John 2, verse 1: "My little children, 25:15 these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. 25:19 And if any man sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, 25:25 Jesus Christ the righteous." 25:28 That's outstanding, isn't it? 25:30 You can survive a fall and actually end up stronger 25:35 than you were, closer to God than you've ever been. 25:39 Have you ever found yourself crashing down, falling? 25:44 You know, if you trust in the forgiving grace of God, 25:47 God will cleanse you, He will restore you, 25:51 and He will remake you, 25:52 and He will place in you the assurance 25:55 that you are blessed and forgiven. 25:58 ♪[Music]♪ 25:59 Remember 2 Corinthians 5, verse 17: 26:03 "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: 26:09 old things are passed away; 26:12 behold, all things are become new." 26:16 Let God make you new and give you hope and a future right now. 26:22 You can have it right now. 26:25 God wants you to have that, 26:27 through faith in Jesus and the goodness of God. 26:33 >>John: There are hundreds, even thousands of promises 26:35 in the Bible, all made by God to be a blessing 26:38 and an encouragement for you. 26:41 Receive today's free offer; 26:42 it's "Promises of Peace." 26:45 Be blessed by the promises of God. 26:48 To receive "Promises of Peace," 26:49 call us at 800-253-3000 26:52 or visit us online at iiwoffer.com 26:57 and receive our free offer, "Promises of Peace." 27:03 >>John Bradshaw: Let's pray together now. 27:05 Our Father in heaven, today we must be grateful 27:07 that you are in the business of restoration and re-creation. 27:12 And as much as it pains us and as much as it pains You 27:15 that we fall, we thank You that You can pick us up, 27:18 put us back together, restore us, 27:20 and then fill us with Your Spirit, and as Jude wrote, 27:23 "Keep us from falling." 27:25 Do that, Lord, and when our weakness overtakes us, 27:30 when we fail to surrender, when we fall rather than stand, 27:34 remind us that You are God, You are forgiving, 27:36 You are good, and You are gracious. 27:39 Keep us, we pray. 27:41 We thank You. 27:42 We celebrate Your goodness and Your forgiveness. 27:48 In Jesus' name. 27:49 Amen. 27:51 Thanks so much for joining me. 27:52 I'm looking forward to seeing you again next time. 27:54 Until then, remember: 27:56 "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, 28:01 but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'" 28:06 ♪[Theme music]♪ 28:16 ♪[Theme music]♪ |
Revised 2021-01-19