Participants:
Series Code: NP
Program Code: NP200208S
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00:10 >> Let's bow our heads for prayer. 00:12 Dear heavenly Father, we just want to thank you 00:14 for this Sabbath. As the song says, we are 00:18 gathered here in Your presence, and we just ask that You be with 00:21 us and bless us. In Jesus' name, amen. 00:25 >> Amen. >> Happy Sabbath. 00:28 So, I would just like to invite you to stand with us as we sing. 00:32 We're going to sing a medley of songs that sing praises to 00:35 God, thanking him for this day and for all the things 00:38 that he does for us. 00:42 ♪♪ ♪♪ 01:01 ♪♪ ♪♪ 01:20 ♪♪ ♪♪ 01:39 ♪♪ ♪♪ 01:58 ♪♪ ♪♪ 02:18 ♪♪ ♪♪ 02:37 ♪♪ 02:46 ♪♪ ♪♪ 03:05 ♪♪ ♪♪ 03:23 ♪♪ ♪♪ 03:41 ♪♪ ♪♪ 03:59 ♪♪ ♪♪ 04:17 ♪♪ ♪♪ 04:36 ♪♪ ♪♪ 04:54 ♪♪ ♪♪ 05:12 ♪♪ 05:21 >> Amen. You may be seated. 05:24 You know, it's kind of hard to believe that we're already 05:27 in February with so many things happening all over the world 05:31 since the moment that we entered into 2020. 05:34 There's the Coronavirus. There's riots happening 05:37 everywhere. There are earthquakes, 05:39 volcanoes, the fires, and all that's going on in the world. 05:43 And it just makes us want to, you know, yearn for God 05:46 to draw closer to Him, because He's the only one 05:49 that gives us that peace. So this song may be familiar 05:53 or unfamiliar to you, but I just hope that the words 05:56 bless you or bless your soul. So, as we sing, 06:00 we will be singing the statement and you'll join Joelle 06:05 and Linda in the response. 06:08 ♪♪ ♪♪ 06:23 ♪♪ ♪♪ 06:38 ♪♪ ♪♪ 06:53 ♪♪ ♪♪ 07:08 ♪♪ ♪♪ 07:23 ♪♪ ♪♪ 07:38 ♪♪ ♪♪ 07:54 ♪♪ ♪♪ 08:09 ♪♪ ♪♪ 08:24 ♪♪ ♪♪ 08:39 ♪♪ ♪♪ 08:54 ♪♪ ♪♪ 09:09 ♪♪ ♪♪ 09:24 ♪♪ ♪♪ 09:39 ♪♪ ♪♪ 09:54 ♪♪ ♪♪ 10:09 ♪♪ ♪♪ 10:24 ♪♪ ♪♪ 10:39 ♪♪ ♪♪ 10:54 ♪♪ ♪♪ 11:10 ♪♪ ♪♪ 11:25 ♪♪ ♪♪ 11:40 ♪♪ ♪♪ 11:55 ♪♪ ♪♪ 12:10 ♪♪ ♪♪ 12:25 ♪♪ ♪♪ 12:40 ♪♪ ♪♪ 12:55 ♪♪ ♪♪ 13:10 ♪♪ ♪♪ 13:25 ♪♪ ♪♪ 13:40 ♪♪ ♪♪ 13:55 ♪♪ 14:03 >> And he really, really loves us. 14:06 So as we sing our response to him, I just invite 14:09 you forward at this time. 14:12 ♪♪ ♪♪ 14:32 ♪♪ ♪♪ 14:52 ♪♪ ♪♪ 15:12 ♪♪ ♪♪ 15:32 ♪♪ ♪♪ 15:52 ♪♪ ♪♪ 16:12 ♪♪ ♪♪ 16:32 ♪♪ ♪♪ 16:55 >> Well, good morning, boys and girls. 16:57 It's so nice to see you on this beautiful Sabbath. 17:02 Is that you there? Yes, it is. And is that you? Yep. 17:08 And somewhere in this group, I've got two little 17:10 granddaughters who are visiting. Where -- Where is -- 17:14 Oh, here they are. Girls, come on up here. 17:16 Saved the best seats for you. Ella and Izzy. 17:21 Nice to have them bring Mom and Dad up from Kettering, Ohio. 17:25 And nice to see all of you. Why are you staring at me? 17:30 Is there something wrong? >> You have a mask! 17:33 >> Oh, because of the mask. Do you know that halfway around 17:36 the world, practically everybody is wearing a mask? 17:39 Let's just see. Let's just say people from 17:41 around the world. Oh, let's put it on the big. 17:43 There you go. Boy, everybody's wearing masks. 17:47 Do you know why people wear masks? 17:48 >> I know! >> Why? 17:50 >> Coronavirus. >> Coronavirus. 17:52 Okay, well, you've got that part right. 17:54 [ Laughter ] That's it. 17:56 You're right. Somebody's following the news 17:58 in that home. Yep. 18:00 It's viruses -- germs, viruses. People wear masks in case 18:05 they have germs and viruses that might get out, or they wear 18:08 masks to keep germs and viruses from coming in. 18:12 Now, the doctors don't think that it helps much either way, 18:15 but it feels better to wear it. Yeah. 18:19 So, listen, I wish -- I wish Jesus invented a mask 18:23 that we could put on our face so that no angry words 18:27 would come out. No naughty words. 18:30 Only kind words could come out. Wouldn't that be great 18:32 to have a mask like that? Reminds me the story 18:35 of Sean and Jimmy. They were just the best of 18:38 friends, and they're out on the playground together 18:42 and they're playing hard when all of a sudden, 18:44 as Jimmy is standing there, Sean goes running by and Sean 18:50 stepped right on Jimmy's toe. [ Groans ] 18:54 And Jimmy, bless his heart, before he could think of it, 18:58 a very unkind word came out of his mouth. 19:02 And as soon as that word came out, Sean stopped, and Sean -- 19:07 He didn't know what to say, and his eyes just filled with 19:10 tears. And then the teacher -- 19:13 the teacher heard the whole thing, and teacher looked -- 19:16 The teacher said, "Jimmy, what did you do?" 19:20 And Jimmy looked at the teacher, he said, "Teacher, I'm so sorry. 19:24 I didn't mean to say that." "What? Don't tell me. 19:27 Tell Sean." And he did. 19:29 And when the boys came in from playground, teacher sat down 19:32 with the boys and she opened her Bible, Psalm. 39:1. 19:36 "I will put a muzzle on my mouth." 19:41 Oh, what a verse. Do you think we could put a 19:43 muzzle -- Do you think Jesus could put 19:45 a mask so that the words that come out of our mouths 19:50 are words of kindness and love? That's what love on the move is. 19:54 Words of kindness and love come out so that instead 19:57 of that angry, that sassy, that naughty word, 20:02 the word that comes out is a word like Jesus would speak. 20:06 Oh, I wish he'd make them -- I wish he would make a mask 20:08 like that, don't you? Then we'd be okay. 20:12 But guess what? Jesus says, "I can be your mask 20:14 for you." I can put my hand -- 20:16 Shh, shh, shh, shh! Oh, you just about said that, 20:18 girl! Stop! Stop!" 20:20 He can be the mask. He can keep our lips and 20:24 mouths -- Love on the move, as well. 20:28 Aren't you glad for a savior like that? 20:31 Oh, I am. How many want to say, 20:34 "Jesus, put a mask -- Please, just a little mask, 20:36 whatever it looks like. I don't know what it looks like, 20:38 but put a mask on my lips and let only the words of love 20:42 on the move come out." Yeah, me too. 20:46 Who would like to thank Jesus for being willing to do just 20:49 that? Somebody want to thank Jesus? 20:52 Your hand -- You had your hand up. 20:53 Come on down. Can you make it through? 20:55 You're gonna pray. Oh, you're not gonna pray? 20:58 [ Laughter ] Are you not gonna pray? 21:01 Okay. I want to -- I want to. 21:03 Another little boy. Yep. There's a girl. 21:07 Is there another boy? Come on, red bow tie. 21:13 That was a smart move. That's very nice. 21:16 And I'd love to have you pray. Okay, let's -- 21:18 Let's close her eyes and fold our hands and thank Jesus for 21:22 being the protector of our mouths. 21:25 What's your first name? >> Aaron. 21:27 >> Oh, this is -- Aaron's gonna pray, okay? 21:29 >> Dear, Jesus, thank you for today. 21:34 We love you. Amen. >> Amen. Thank you, Aaron. 21:36 Perfect. All right, boys and girls, 21:38 you can go back to your seats. You can say that like Aaron did. 21:41 "Jesus, thank you for today. We love you. Amen." 21:45 And he'll be glad to hear from you. 21:51 ♪♪ ♪♪ 22:09 ♪♪ ♪♪ 22:28 ♪♪ ♪♪ 22:47 ♪♪ ♪♪ 23:05 ♪♪ ♪♪ 23:24 ♪♪ ♪♪ 23:43 ♪♪ ♪♪ 24:01 ♪♪ ♪♪ 24:20 ♪♪ ♪♪ 24:39 ♪♪ ♪♪ 24:57 ♪♪ ♪♪ 25:16 ♪♪ ♪♪ 25:35 ♪♪ ♪♪ 25:53 ♪♪ ♪♪ 26:12 ♪♪ ♪♪ 26:31 ♪♪ ♪♪ 26:53 Oh, God. As Pastor John said a moment 26:58 ago, it is good to be in the House of the Lord together 27:01 today. We're ready to wrap this up. 27:08 Make it clear, cut out the interference. 27:12 Speak this little heart and all these hearts, as well. 27:16 We pray in Jesus' name. Amen. 27:20 Now, look, I understand I may not be the brightest crayon in 27:24 the box. Don't you dare say "Amen." 27:26 [ Laughter ] But this I know -- 27:30 hospitals exist for the sick. True or false? 27:35 Of course, if there were no sick, there'd be no hospitals. 27:38 Right? But of course. I don't know if you're 27:44 tracking -- that young boy was right -- this Coronavirus up in 27:49 China. Do you know that they have -- 27:50 that they have what they now call 10-day hospitals -- 27:53 1,000-bed hospitals being built every 10 days? 27:57 It's unbelievable. Why did they do that? 27:59 Because a number of sick is increasing. 28:02 Hospitals exist for the sick. That's why they were invented. 28:10 And guess what? Churches exist for the sick. 28:14 That's why they were invented. I'm not talking about 28:15 the the physically sick. I'm talking about 28:17 the spiritually sick. Those are the kind of people. 28:22 Oh, by the way, they're called sinners. 28:25 Those are the kind of people that churches 28:27 throw their doors open to. Y'all come in and join 28:31 all the rest of the sinners already here. 28:33 Jesus told a story once upon a time. 28:35 You may have heard it. It's about two worshipers. 28:37 The first worshiper walked into the church. 28:39 Came right up here to the front row because 28:40 he considered himself a saint. And that's no reflection 28:43 on those of you that chose the front row. 28:45 [ Laughter ] The second worshiper came in. 28:48 No, seriously, he -- Jesus said he chose the last row 28:52 in the balcony because he considered himself a sinner. 28:54 And again, that's no reflection on the last row. 28:59 But the one who came to the front prayed to himself, 29:02 though, he addressed God. "Oh, God, I thank you 29:06 that I'm not like all those moral sinners out there. 29:10 You know what I mean? The cheats -- tax collectors -- 29:15 the evil doers, the adulterers. I'm none of that. 29:19 Do you know what I do? I fast twice a week. Wow. I give 1/10 of all I get. 29:25 Wow, wow!" Meantime, in the same worship service, on the back row... 29:34 is a worshiper who can't even lift his eyes up. He's so distraught, 29:38 his eyes are down on his toes, but he, too, prays. It's a very simple prayer. 29:43 "Oh, God," he prays, "be merciful to me, a sinner." And Jesus said, displaying that 29:51 deep Oriental emotion of grief, he is beating his chest as he says that prayer. 29:59 Jesus then tells us both worshipers at the end of the service 30:02 that Sabbath went home, but only one went home saved. It was a man -- 30:07 the worshiper on the back row. Reminds me of a prayer, a very unusual prayer, 30:13 that Martin Luther once prayed. And I'm so glad he prayed it, because we're gonna pray it 30:18 today, too. Found in, of all places, that apocalyptic classic 30:22 called "The Great Controversy." 30:23 Let me put it on the screen for you -- the prayer of 30:26 Martin Luther. You see it there on the screen? 30:29 "May God of His mercy preserve me from a church in which there 30:33 are none but saints. I desire to dwell with the 30:36 humble, the feeble, the sick" -- there you go -- 30:39 "who know and feel their sins and who groan and cry 30:42 continually to God from the bottom of their hearts 30:45 to obtain his consolation and support." 30:47 Oh, my. 30:49 My God, deliver me from a church that is filled with none but saints. 30:54 Put it on the screen. That's the title for this last piece in our 30:57 "Love on the Move" series. "Deliver me from a church with none but saints." 31:02 Why? Because the church was designed and created to be a hospital for whom? 31:09 A hospital for sinners. Let's let Jesus tell us himself. 31:14 Open your Bible to Matthew, chapter 9 -- The Gospel of Matthew, 31:18 chapter 9. This is beautiful. I'm gonna talk while you're 31:20 finding it. Matthew, chapter 9. This is beautiful because this 31:23 is an autobiographical moment where Matthew is going to identify himself to the reader. 31:29 Now, John, John-Boy, when he wrote his gospel, he also identified himself, but 31:36 he did it with great humility. He did it this way. He said, "Well, this is 31:39 the disciple whom Jesus kept on loving," and he keeps saying it, and we finally get it. 31:43 This is John-Boy that he's talking -- He's talking about himself. 31:46 Matthew, also humble, identifies, "This is me," and he gives his name, 31:50 but he does it this way. "I want you to know what -- how terrible a sinner I was 31:56 when Jesus found me." They're both humbled to beat the band. 32:01 Oh, this is beautiful. Here's Matthew. So, Matthew, chapter 9. 32:04 If you didn't bring a Bible, grab the pew Bible in front of you -- page 654. 32:07 You got your device, it's on there. Let's go. 32:09 I'm in the NIV. Matthew 9:9. "As Jesus went on from there, 32:15 he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector's 32:19 booth." 32:20 I imagine the words now are spoken with this broad smile on Jesus' face, 'cause he knows 32:27 that boy is gonna be stunned out of his socks. He looks into that tax 32:33 collector's face, and he says, "Follow me," he told him. And Matthew... 32:41 "'Scuse me? 'Scuse me? 'Scuse me? 'Scuse -- 'Scuse me? 'Scuse me? 32:46 You talkin' 'bout me?" Matthew cannot I believe it! The great teacher and healer 32:51 has just called him to be in his little inner circle. 32:54 "And Matthew got up and followed him." 32:56 And Luke, who wants to make sure that we get all the details -- 32:59 a little postscript Luke throws in. 33:01 "And, oh, by the way, he left all." Now, that is a big deal 33:06 because we're talking about a tax collector here. We're talking about 33:09 these professional cons who milked their fellow Jews out of -- out of every dime 33:19 they could squeeze. Despised, that's what they were -- turncoat collaborators 33:25 called tax collectors, like Zacchaeus, who began our "Love on the Move" series. 33:28 We end with a tax collector with Matthew. Matthew walks away 33:34 from it all -- all that wealth, filthy rich. He walks away from it. 33:38 "I'd rather have Jesus." I love Matthew for that. 33:48 Now, obviously, he didn't give his mansion up because he's throwing a party 33:51 for Jesus. The very next verse, he's throwing a party for Jesus 33:54 in his opulent home. I tell you what -- that little that little country lane 33:58 where Matthew built this beautiful edifice has never seen so many stretch limos 34:05 on that lane in history, 'cause they've all come. He has called his crooked 34:09 cronies, his fellow tax collectors. "Guys, I want to introduce you 34:14 to a man who has changed my life. He has saved me 34:16 as a tax collector." "No." "Yeah! You come!" So it's a black-tie event. 34:21 They come in their tuxes in black ties, stretch limos. Don't you love stretch limos? 34:24 Ooh, that is so cool. I've never ridden in one in my life. 34:29 They'll take me to the cemetery one day in a stretch limo. That's what they're gonna do. 34:32 That's okay. Just tell me about when I get to Heaven. 34:35 [ Laughter ] All of them there, and everyone comes out with 34:39 a girl on the end of his arm. These guys are all coming because Matthew says, "You're 34:44 gonna meet the man that changed my life." So now they're all gathered 34:46 around the front, like, "Where is the guest of honor?" The guest of honor 34:50 hasn't shown up yet, but then, finally, down the road, here comes a beat-up, 34:54 slightly faded Toyota Prius. And when the door opens... this unassuming man steps 35:03 out, and Matthew, just... ebuillent with his joy, showers Jesus with loving welcome. 35:14 And, of course, all the cronies are pushing in. They're all pushing in. 35:17 They heard about this man. And you know what they're doing? They're saying, "Hey, can can 35:21 we get a selfie right now, just you and me, Jesus?" That's what's happening here. 35:26 Matthew threw a party. Look at verse 10. 35:37 Oh! Oh! Verse 11. 35:48 Mind you, the Pharisees are not inside. "Are you kidding? 35:51 I wouldn't touch this despicably unclean place!" They wouldn't be caught dead 35:59 at this party. But it's a cool evening. The moon is out. 36:03 Silver shadows cast about the house. They're standing in the windows. 36:07 "Psst! Psst! Psst!" They're motioning to the disciples. 36:12 They have a question. We just read their question. But I want to tell you 36:15 something about Jesus. I love this about Him. He's just like your mom was. 36:20 He had eyes and ears on the back of his head. He heard that. He whirls around. 36:25 "I'm gonna answer this one myself, fellas. Shh, shh." 36:28 And Jesus answers it. Look at that verse, verse 12. 36:49 So that we couldn't miss it, Jesus inserts three negatives in a row. 36:53 Watch this. Put them on the screen for us, please. 36:56 "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the" whom? "But the sick." 37:01 Number 2, "It is not sacrifice I desire but" what? "I want mercy." 37:06 Number 3, "It is not the righteous I have come to call 37:09 but" whom? "But sinners." 37:11 Not, not, not because you are wrong, wrong, wrong. 37:15 The church is a hospital for sinners. It's the only reason it exists. 37:25 Common sense tells us that Jesus is right. The Pharisees -- 37:29 what can they say? Nothing. Hospitals are for the sick, 37:31 not the well. Churches are for sinners, not the righteous. 37:34 Religion is for mercy, not for sacrifice. Let's just hang that line 37:40 of Jesus on the screen in front of our eyes for a moment. What did He say? 37:45 He said, "It is not healthy that need a doctor, but the sick." And with those words, 37:53 Jesus powerfully introduces a fresh metaphor for the faith community, 37:57 for a faith community that chooses to define itself as love on the move, 38:00 as we have boldly set out to do. For such a community, the church must be a hospital for sinners, 38:10 which is why Martin Luther prayed the prayer he did. In fact, let's -- let's take it 38:14 one step further. Let's you and me pray Martin Luther's prayer. 38:17 Okay? Let's put Luther on the screen, and we'll pray it out 38:19 loud, all of us together. "May God of His mercy preserve 38:24 me from a church in which there are none but saints. 38:29 I desire to dwell with the humble, the feeble, the sick" -- 38:34 there they are -- "who know and feel their sins, 38:38 and who groan and cry continually to God 38:41 from the bottom of their hearts to obtain his consolation 38:46 and support." 38:48 The church is a hospital for sinners. I mean, can you imagine 38:54 a well-equipped hospital -- when somebody sick shows up at the door, they say to this 39:00 applicant, "We're awfully sorry. You can't come in here 'cause you're sick. 39:08 Go home, get well, and then you can come and join us here." I can't imagine a hospital 39:14 on Earth that would do that. Would a church do that? "You can't come in here 39:19 'cause you got something wrong with you. Go home. Get it fixed. 39:24 Come on back. We'll take you in our little fellowship." 39:29 My. "May God preserve me from a church in which there are none 39:35 but saints." We must pray that prayer like Luther did because the church 39:40 is a hospital for sinners. "Yeah, but, Dwight, time-out. Time-out, please, please. 39:46 Yeah, but what kind of sinners are you talking about?" Oh, come on. Give me a break. 39:49 You're not gonna ask me to go through this list again, are you? 39:52 We've already been through this. But you want to know? Okay. I'll tell you. 39:57 Here the kind of sinners Jesus must be talking about. There would be male sinners 40:02 and female sinners... young singers, old sinners, rich singers, poor sinners... 40:11 heterosexual sinners, homosexual sinners, alcoholic sinners, 40:15 and non-alcoholic sinners... drug addicts... and ice-cream addicts. 40:22 [ Laughter ] Uh-oh. [ Laughter ] 40:32 Democratic sinners, Republican sinners, and probably a few independent sinners 40:36 thrown in for good measure. Incarcerated sinners, respectable sinners, 40:42 black sinners, white sinners, brown sinners, yellow sinners, Christian sinners, non-Christian 40:46 sinners, Adventist sinners, non-Adventist sinners. I am just thinking 40:50 that when Jesus says, "I've come to call sinners," he pretty much is speaking 40:52 about everybody. That's... the hospital... 41:00 that the church is to become for these very people that we just thought about, 41:04 'cause we left ourselves off that list, didn't we? We said, "Oh, he didn't get me. 41:07 Oh, he didn't get me." Ohh! Yeah. 41:15 Now, listen, I know what some of you are thinking right now. "Is this somehow suggesting, 41:19 Dwight, that we're supposed to be now soft on sin?" [ Chuckles ] 41:23 Not at all. Can you imagine a hospital being soft on disease? 41:28 "We're kind of soft on disease around here." Are you kidding? 41:32 Of course not. What Jesus is suggesting here is not that we become soft on sin 41:37 but that we become big on sinners, and there's a big difference. 41:42 Love on the move must be big on sinners because we are sinners. You see? Now lookit. 41:51 Lookit. Lookit. This is -- You really need to be thinking now. 41:55 There's a world of difference -- Listen. There's a world of difference 41:58 between condemning and condoning, okay? Many people think 42:03 that the opposite of condemning is condoning. So to avoid condemning, 42:07 they condone. To prove that they love the sinner, they erroneously 42:11 conclude they must affirm the sinner's lifestyle. "That's proof I love you." 42:15 They say, "We want to be like Jesus. Neither do I condemn you." 42:18 The problem with that line -- It's a beautiful line, but people only remember 42:21 the first half. There's a second half to it. To that woman 42:24 taken in adultery, He says, "Neither do I condemn you. Now, girl, go and leave that 42:28 lifestyle behind, please. This -- This is really -- This is hurting you." 42:32 Is Jesus being soft on sin? No. 42:43 Let's hold that up there for a moment, please. 42:52 "You've had five husbands, girl, and I want to tell you something. 42:55 The man you're living with now -- he's not even your husband." 42:59 Is Jesus being soft on sin? No. He's being very, very honest. 43:03 But he's trying to love this woman to her savior. "Yo, Simon, wealthy Pharisee 43:08 that you are, you led that little girl into sin, didn't you? 43:12 I know." 43:13 He didn't say that. "Simon, I have a story 43:15 I want to tell you." Is Jesus condoning 43:18 Simon's behavior? Abhorrent behavior. 43:23 But Jesus is trying to love Simon to his savior. 43:27 If the church is a hospital for sinners, it's not soft on 43:29 sin, it's big on sinners, and there's a huge difference. 43:32 Please do not misunderstand our Lord himself. 43:37 And, by the way, may I tell you something? 43:39 It's messy. 43:42 Oh, boy. Love on the move -- when you're not about condoning or condemning 43:47 but loving the sinner to Jesus, it's messy. I mean, emergency rooms -- 43:51 Come on. Let's be honest. They always are. But you don't turn the sick away 43:54 to keep the place clean and tidy. And when I said that in first 43:57 service, the director of a big hospital just across the border in Indiana, of the emergency 44:03 room, was sitting right here. He grabbed me afterwards. He said, "Dwight, I want to 44:07 tell you something. Emergency rooms are not messy places." 44:10 I said, "I know, and I've been in a bunch of them. You're right. You're right." 44:15 But when a sick person is brought in, everybody drops everything 44:18 and everything's flying. Doesn't matter how it looks right now. 44:20 "We got to save this life. That's what matters." That's what I mean. 44:26 It's messy. Oh, boy. When the church is a hospital -- 44:31 Whew! -- it can be messy, very messy. You know why? 44:36 Because listen to this. You will not -- This is really important now. 44:39 You will not always be sure where to draw the line. You say, "What kind of line 44:46 are you talking about, Dwight?" The line between group think and conscience. 44:54 "What will they say if I stand up for this person?" The line between policy 45:01 and compassion. "What will happen to this sinner if I don't stand up... 45:07 for him or her?" The line between creed and need. "Do I have the courage 45:13 to elevate need above creed, as Jesus so often did?" It's messy. 45:22 People won't understand, maybe. It will not always be clear where to draw that line. 45:28 You may even be condemned for it by your friends or your -- your family, your colleagues, 45:31 even other churches. Jesus certainly was. Listen, it's messy. 45:35 But that's the price to pay to become a hospital for sinners. Like Jesus, we make 45:41 our decisions tilted -- tilted -- toward love... no matter how messy 45:47 it turns out to be... because in order for a church to be a hospital -- 45:52 I repeat, messy. Maybe the price we have to pay to be a people -- 45:57 love-on-the-move kind of people. Does any of this make sense? Are you following any of this? 46:08 No, I'm serious. Does this -- Am I being clear enough? >> Yes. 46:15 >> I think so. >> Love on the move. Let me put a line written 46:24 a century ago. This is love on the move for you. 46:27 Put it on the screen, please. Ellen White. Isn't this something? 46:37 Isn't that something? There's nothing more powerful, there's nothing stronger 46:42 to convince people that what you believe is really the truth than by loving them. 46:46 Everything we stand for depends on how we love people. We think everything 46:51 we stand for -- Can we get the brightest minds on Earth to defend our beliefs? 46:54 No. That will never do. Nobody's won by argument. They're won by a loving 47:01 and lovable Christian. Love on the move is God's strategic end game. 47:08 "By this, all people will know that you are my disciples if you have love for one another." 47:16 "Well, who are you talking about?" "Anybody that's in the hospital 47:19 and everybody outside of the hospital." Love on the move. 47:24 "Can you really live it like -- like that around here?" "Yep." 47:28 "How do you know, Dwight?" Because you kept sending stories in this week. 47:32 I'm gonna read some right now before I sit down. Thank you for sending these 47:35 stories in. Don't quit sending them. I'll tell you something about 47:39 the website in just a moment, but first, let me put the website up for you, for those of 47:44 you that are saying, "I didn't know I could share a story." You're gonna hear from a college 47:48 kid in just a moment. Pmchurch.org/loveonthemove, okay? 47:52 You go to that. And it's a beautiful website. Our guys in the media team 47:56 have really designed something nice, and there'll be a little 47:59 surprise for you at the bottom, and I'll talk about it later, okay? 48:02 So, let's go. These came in in the last week. Here we go. 48:08 Here's one from online. We have people all over the planet who join us live, 48:12 Eastern Standard Time, at 11:45 every Saturday, and so we're glad to have 48:16 all of you, wherever you are. So, this is from one of those, because it's a community, 48:21 and love on the move is how that community is supposed to live, too. 48:24 So, here's one of the worshipers there. "I watch Pioneer online 48:27 each week. One Sabbath, I felt moved to reach out 48:29 and tried to connect with a person who, for several weeks shared a prayer request online 48:33 that touched me. We have become pen pals. We have shared about trials, 48:36 family, pasts, likes, dislikes, hobbies, and such. I look forward 48:39 to checking e-mail and getting a 'happy Sabbath' and maybe 'How was your week?' 48:43 kind of e-mail, just knowing that there's somebody out there, someone who cares. 48:47 I am so glad I was able to connect. God gave me a new friend, 48:50 and I have been so blessed." Love on the move can be done electronically, folks. 48:56 You don't know how many people are out there who feel like they can't go 48:59 to their church any longer -- any longer. But there's this little church 49:04 in southwestern Michigan that they dial into week after week after week. 49:11 This is important. Don't you think Jesus would think it's important? 49:15 Wow. Here's another one. Anonymous. This is a college student 49:22 that was here just last Sabbath. So, this college student loves the Bible, so the college 49:26 student quotes Isaiah 52:7, from The Message. It goes like this. 49:31 How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of the messenger bringing good news, breaking the 49:35 news that all's well, proclaiming good times, announcing salvation, telling 49:39 Zion, 'Your God reigns!'" Now, this writer writes, "How beautiful are the feet of the 49:44 one who shows love on the move?" Well, what's the person talking about? 49:48 Here it comes. "Such were the feet of 'D.'" Okay? So, she gives an -- 49:51 She gives a-a-a letter, initial. I don't know who "D" is. "Such were the feet of 'D' as 49:58 she literally ran to love me last Sabbath, shortly after the passionate sermon about loving 50:02 our neighbor. 'D' knows about my current situation. 50:05 She made a decision to love me right now in a practical and selfless way. 50:09 For me, 'D' not only cared about my basic needs, but she allowed God to use her to convey to me 50:15 how much He cares about the mundane details in my life. Thank you, Pastor, 50:20 for challenging and inspiring us to love on the move, and thank you, 'D,' 50:25 for not hesitating to show me love on the move. Thank you for remembering 50:29 what the wise man said. Never walk away from someone who deserves help if you can 50:32 help them now." You go, girl. Whoever "D," you were 50:38 love on the move on the spot. Somebody said, "Well, I got to go 10 miles away, at least, in 50:42 order to be love on the move." You can turn over and do love on the movie own family. 50:49 Oh, boy, here's somebody that was at Andrews in the mid-'80s. "My family spent three years 50:54 in Berrien Springs while my husband completed his doctorate at Andrews University. 50:57 With two children in church school" -- so this was a graduate student -- "my husband 51:01 a full-time student, and me working in the library right across campus 51:05 to help support our family, they were the hardest years of my life. 51:08 One night, as I knelt to pray before going to bed, I said, 'God, what in the world 51:13 were we thinking, giving up everything to come here and live in near poverty?'" 51:17 And there are people sitting by you right now who are thinking those same thoughts. 51:22 Might be easy for you, for the people all around you. 51:31 "We gave up everything to come here and live in poverty, and then I made 51:34 a very brave, for me, request. 'Okay, Lord, if You really want us here, please show me 51:39 in a way that's so obvious I can't possibly miss it.'" Okay. "So, the next morning 51:44 when I went to work, I stopped, as I always did, to pick up the mail for my department. 51:47 Included in the mail was a plain white envelope with my name printed on it." 51:51 Hmm. "Inside the envelope was a brief note printed on plain paper that 51:55 said, 'Thought you might be able to use this.' That's all -- no signature, 52:00 no name. But folded up in the note were four $20 bills." 52:06 Wow. "There it was -- the answer to my prayer, and it was so obvious, I couldn't possibly 52:10 have missed it. Now, look, that $80 didn't pay the husband's tuition 52:14 or the children's tuition. Maybe it didn't even pay for our groceries for a week. 52:17 But I do know that God impressed upon someone's heart that I desperately needed 52:22 a spiritual hug, and that person followed through. I never found out 52:25 who the anonymous donor was. Could be sitting right here right now. 52:29 But it was truly a love-on-the-move moment 52:32 those years ago that I have never forgotten." 52:36 I want to say a word about anonymous givers. 52:38 They're like God. They don't need credit. 52:44 God does so much stuff for us anonymously, 52:46 and He never gets credit. He doesn't even tell us 52:48 He did it. God bless. Love on the move. 52:52 Last one. Oh, this is something. 52:56 "Her name kept nagging me -- Jennifer." Okay? "Jennifer" is a pseudonym, 53:00 is what I'm reading. It's not her name. "She was a girl 53:03 who had attended boarding school with my daughter. They were not close friends, and 53:06 I'm not sure I ever met her, yet I had a sense that I should send Jennifer a check. 53:09 But where? She had graduated. I didn't know how I could locate her. 53:12 Nevertheless, her name came to mind nearly every day. While chatting with my daughter 53:16 one evening, I requested that she get Jennifer's address for me. 53:20 I became a nagging mother, regularly asking my busy college student to make inquiries to 53:24 locate a girl she barely knew. Weeks passed, and still I didn't know where to send a check. 53:28 At last, my daughter pulled through with just enough information. 53:31 She had learned which Adventist university Jennifer attended, but no address. 53:37 So, praying, I phoned the girls' dorm at that university, 53:39 requested Jennifer's mailing address -- bingo. I whipped out my checkbook 53:43 and began to write a check for the amount I originally had in mind. 53:45 But, no, I had a clear impression that I should send a different amount, an amount 53:48 that was very specific, not just a round number. Huh. 53:56 "Since I didn't know Jennifer, I included a little note explaining that I'd felt 53:59 impressed to send a check. If she needed it, wonderful. If not, perhaps a shopping trip 54:03 was in her future. I dropped it in the mail with a great sense of relief. 54:07 About a week later" -- listen to this -- "I received the most amazing 54:11 letter from that sweet girl. She had drawn tears of joy on it. 54:15 Jennifer had been facing a financial crisis that was going to require her 54:18 to drop out of college. Just before she went to the administration building 54:21 to withdraw, she felt impressed to pick up her mail at the dorm, 54:24 and there it was -- my note with exactly the amount of money required at that very moment 54:29 she needed it." Wow. "God had been working on this 54:36 for two months." Then she scribbles down Isaiah 65 -- "Before they call, 54:41 I will answer." Hey, guys, is this like, uh, something hard. 54:48 No. It's love on the move. You got stories. You got stories. 54:53 You're not bragging when you share them. We're gonna keep putting one up 54:56 every week on the website, so keep them coming in. What was that line 55:01 that we read a moment ago? 55:11 Love on the move, just like Jesus. Hey, listen, 55:15 I need to invite you. I need to make an appeal. Would you be willing, with me, 55:18 at the end of this little miniseries, to say, "Okay, Dwight, I got it, I got it. 55:24 It's gonna be risky. It's gonna be messy. But you know what? 55:28 That's the way God has loved me. And I'm willing to offer up my life to Jesus, 55:33 to be His love on the move." Would you be willing to? It's just a quiet thing. 55:41 You don't have stand. Please just do it in your heart. "I want to be that kind of -- 55:46 I want to be that -- I want to be love on the move that way." 55:50 You know what? If we make a little covenant here, just quiet and private, 55:54 only Jesus knows, but if we make that covenant and I see the little nod in your head -- 55:59 If we make that covenant here, I promise you -- I promise you -- 56:04 you won't be able to keep sinners away. 56:13 You think that's hyperbole, don't you -- a little bit of hyperbole? 56:16 Let me put this on the screen and then I'll sit down. On the screen, 100 years ago -- 56:20 "If we would humble ourselves before God and be kind and courteous 56:23 and tenderhearted and pitiful" -- in other words, full of pity and love -- 56:26 "there would be 100 conversions to the truth where there is now only one." 56:31 You won't be able to keep the sinners away. Why? 56:36 Because love on the move... met 'em and led' em to Jesus. You're His agent. 56:47 You're His agent, and I'm proud of you. For Jesus.... 56:53 this year... let's be live on the move. What do you say? 56:58 >> Amen. >> Oh, no. Come on. Give me another one. 57:02 How do you really feel? >> Amen! >> Amen. Amen. 57:06 Yeah. 57:08 >> Thank you for taking the time to join us in worship today, 57:11 I'd like to spend another moment with you here 57:13 at the end of our program to share a word of hope. 57:15 In fact, that's what this little book is all about. 57:17 In these uncertain times -- and let's face it, they're uncertain 57:20 all over this planet -- this book entitled "The Great Hope" 57:23 will help you understand not just what God has planned 57:25 for your future but for the future of the entire 57:28 human race. Light keeps shining 57:30 on this dark old world, and new truths long forgotten 57:33 are being constantly rediscovered. 57:35 If you need a fresh dose of hope for your life these days 57:38 or you know somebody else who could sure use 57:40 that gift of hope, then I'd like to invite you 57:42 to grab your phone. Dial our toll-free number, 57:44 877, the two words "His will" -- 877-HIS-WILL -- 57:49 And at no charge to you, We'll get a copy in the mail 57:51 to you right away. Till the next time we meet, 57:54 may the peace and hope of the Lord Jesus 57:57 be with you 24/7. 58:01 ♪♪ ♪♪ 58:20 ♪♪ |
Revised 2020-02-13