Participants:
Series Code: NP
Program Code: NP210102S
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00:10 [ "When I Survey the Wondrous Cross" begins ] 00:13 ♪♪ ♪♪ 00:26 ♪♪ ♪♪ 00:39 ♪♪ ♪♪ 00:52 ♪♪ ♪♪ 01:05 ♪♪ ♪♪ 01:18 ♪♪ ♪♪ 01:31 ♪♪ ♪♪ 01:44 ♪♪ ♪♪ 01:57 ♪♪ ♪♪ 02:10 ♪♪ ♪♪ 02:23 ♪♪ ♪♪ 02:36 ♪♪ ♪♪ 02:49 ♪♪ ♪♪ 03:02 ♪♪ ♪♪ 03:15 ♪♪ ♪♪ 03:28 ♪♪ ♪♪ 03:41 ♪♪ [ "In the Cross of Christ" 03:51 beings ] ♪♪ 04:00 ♪♪ ♪♪ 04:14 ♪♪ ♪♪ 04:27 ♪♪ ♪♪ 04:40 ♪♪ ♪♪ 04:53 ♪♪ ♪♪ 05:06 ♪♪ ♪♪ 05:21 [ "There is a Fountain Filled with Blood" plays ] 05:26 ♪♪ ♪♪ 05:41 ♪♪ ♪♪ 05:54 ♪♪ ♪♪ 06:07 ♪♪ ♪♪ 06:20 ♪♪ ♪♪ 06:33 ♪♪ ♪♪ 06:46 ♪♪ ♪♪ 07:00 ♪♪ ♪♪ 07:14 ♪♪ ♪♪ 07:28 ♪♪ [ "My Jesus I Love Thee" plays ] 07:39 ♪♪ ♪♪ 07:54 ♪♪ ♪♪ 08:07 ♪♪ ♪♪ 08:20 ♪♪ ♪♪ 08:33 ♪♪ ♪♪ 08:46 ♪♪ ♪♪ 08:59 ♪♪ ♪♪ 09:13 ♪♪ ♪♪ 09:31 >> Hey, everyone. My name is Michelle Odinma, and 09:33 I am a last-year student at the Andrews Theological Seminary, 09:37 doing an MDIV, and this is my Faith Story. 09:40 I was raised Seventh-day Adventist by my Nigerian-immigrant mother. 09:46 I am the last of four children, and something that my mom always instilled in us was faith 09:55 and making sure that Church and spiritual things were a part of our lives. 10:01 So, I did grow up having a strong religious influence, in that respect. 10:06 I think my first commitment didn't last for a couple of reasons. 10:10 One was my understanding of perfection and sanctification and what it means to grow 10:14 in Christ. I was thinking I needed to be perfect and already being 10:19 a goody two-shoes, a felt like I had to turn up the fire on that goody-two-shoes-ness, 10:23 and I could make any mistakes. And so that was really -- It was a works-based mentality, 10:30 and it didn't last. So, that was one reason. Another reason was just the lack 10:35 of consistency I saw in other people who called themselves Christians or committed 10:40 in my home, in Church. There was just too much not meeting the mark. 10:48 Talking the talk and not walking the walk, and so that was disheartening. 10:52 And no mentorship -- no mentorship. There was no one to follow, 10:57 no one to show me what it looked like to live as a Christian and not simply know what 11:02 Christianity was. And that was -- that really led me astray. 11:09 Lastly, I didn't see very many happy people. People weren't happy. 11:15 I wasn't happy. And I was like, "Am I just gonna join another sad club?" 11:19 [ Laughs ] Why? There's -- There's, you know, other fun, 11:25 happy clubs I could join. There was no one actually that I could see living an authentic 11:31 Christian life that I wanted myself. And I did my own thing. 11:35 I got to college, and I was free, and I could try what I wanted to try and do what 11:39 I wanted to do and...live how I wanted to live, and I did that, and God miraculously just pulled 11:49 his hand down and yanked me out of the miry clay. I wound up at a conference that 11:57 changed my life, and from that day forward, my trajectory was just... 12:03 Closer to God is the way that I headed. I started praying about what was 12:08 coming next. "Lord, I don't know. I don't know where to go. 12:11 I know this isn't it, though. Where should I go?" And so as I'm praying, 12:16 this thought comes into my head. What about the Andrews Theological Seminary? 12:21 I'm like, "Pfft!" [ Laughs ] Right. Having a Nigerian background 12:28 and being in Michigan, my understanding of women in ministry, it was controversial, 12:32 right? And so I looked it up. I did, but I kind of just put it 12:37 in the back of my head and left it. Before I came down to actually 12:42 check out the programs, this crazy thing would happen, where I would go to Church 12:48 or if there was a devotional talk at work, at school. Every time someone would 12:52 get up and preach, my heart would get heavy, and I would have the thought, 12:57 "You need to be speaking. You need to be preaching." And at first, I thought it was 13:01 just kind of this -- I don't know -- floof. But because it consistently 13:06 happened for almost six months or so, I was like, "Okay. I need to take this seriously. 13:12 This is, like, not a fluke, right?" After evaluating, I'm like, 13:17 the MDIV fits me like a puzzle. [ Laughs ] I'm the missing piece. 13:23 So I start my first semester at Andrews University, and when I get there, 13:30 the first day in class, I have this piece, and I'm like, "I'm supposed to be here." 13:37 My pursuit of knowing God stopped being this list, this thing that I had to do, 13:46 into this thing that I wanted to do. And that was the transformative 13:52 mark -- wanting to pray, wanting to study my bible, 'cause I wanted to know God, 13:58 and then I could hear him talking to me -- not in an audible voice, 14:04 but my heart would tell me, after spending time in prayer or devotion, there's peace here. 14:12 And so I think at the end of the day, understanding what authentic Christianity is and 14:22 how to live that by knowing God, that's my story. [ Chuckles ] That's what I discovered. 14:30 I'm Michelle, and this is my Faith Story. 14:33 ♪♪ 14:42 >> Very excited about what we're about to get into. I want to plunge into it, 14:45 but I want to pray with you first. Father, you are the God of all 14:49 the children of the world, Red and Yellow, Black and White. If we get to Heaven and we see 14:54 You exactly like we thought You were, that'll be okay. We'll all grow up in you anyway. 15:01 On this first Sabbath, just hours into 2021. infuse these moments with 15:08 a mighty spirit of Christ. Let our hearts be touched and drawn to him. 15:12 We pray in his name. Amen. 15:16 I hold in my hands... Time magazine cover story. 15:21 Can you see it there? X-ing out 2020. 15:29 Pretty basic graphic. It's actually an essay written 15:33 by Stephanie Zacharek. Titled the essay 15:37 "The Worst Year Ever. Can I get an amen to that? 15:40 [ Chuckles ] Oh, man. The whole world is talking 15:43 about this. X-ing out 2020. 15:46 So, let's just get the line or two of her essay. And by the way, the editors 15:52 wanted to make sure we would not miss the first line, and so look at that giant font. 15:56 I got to kind of peak at it here to read it. "This is the story of a year 16:00 you'll never want to revisit." Okay, I'll buy that. She goes on. 16:05 "There have been worse years in U.S. history and certainly worse years in world history, 16:10 but most us alive today have seen nothing like this one. You would need to be over 100" 16:18 -- We have 4 members who are -- "to remember the devastation of World War I and the 1918 16:24 flu pandemic. You would need to be roughly 90 to have a sense of the economic 16:29 deprivation wrought by the Great Depression, and in your 80s to retain any 16:33 memory of World War II and its horrors. The rest of us have had 16:38 no training wheels for this. I like that. Exactly a year ago right now, 16:43 we were together. There were no training wheels given to us. 16:48 We had no idea what was coming down the pike. You know what we were thinking 16:51 -- we were talking about? 2020 visions for the New Year. Yeah, right. [ Chuckles ] 16:58 But this is what's rather troubling. The truth is nobody's given us 17:03 training wheels for 2021 either. We have no, zero, nada clue about what's coming. 17:12 X-ing out 2020. Ah, she wraps it up here -- "The rest of us have no training 17:17 wheels for this, for the recurrence of natural disasters that confirm just how 17:21 much we have betrayed nature, for a virus that originated possibly with a bat only 17:28 to upend the lives of virtually everyone on the planet and end the lives of roughly 17:34 1.5 million people around the world." Wow! 17:41 We have a phrase in English. Good riddance for bad rubbish. I mean, can you really -- 17:51 can you -- Look. Can you really "X" out an entire year, just wipe it out? 17:57 Actually, it turns out you can. And the secret is right here. I don't think the graphic artist 18:02 knew what she or he was doing when the artist crafted this cover. 18:09 Because if you look at this cover and the X-ing out, if you just let this happen 18:15 to the magazine, that "X" becomes a what? It becomes a cross. 18:22 And that's the truth. The only way to "X" out your past, the only way to "X" 18:27 out 2020 is to cross it out. Wipe it out. "X" it out. 18:36 Only the cross -- Only the cross can do that, which is precisely Peter's 18:41 point. I want you to open your bible, please, to that stunning moment. 18:44 We're talking about Jerusalem, A.D. 31. Jerusalem. 18:50 Acts chapter 2. Everybody know the story -- the day of Pentecost. 18:53 Peter has thousands of people. I don't know 'cause I've been to Jerusalem. 18:57 I don't know how they got thousands of people in that space. 19:00 They were up and down every alley. They were out in every flat 19:03 space probably around the temple. And Peter's preaching. 19:08 Acts chapter 2. We're gonna drop down to verse 12 and pick it up, 19:15 because somewhere in these moments ahead, there will be the secret we're looking for. 19:23 Alright. Let's go to Acts chapter 2. I'm in the NIV. 19:26 "Fellow Israelites" -- You're gonna hear the big fisherman thundering. 19:49 Whoa! Way to speak truth to power. Call a spade a spade. 19:55 Wicked men, Peter? You're awfully gutsy. "And you with the help of wicked 19:59 men," who were alive and perhaps listening, "put him to death by nailing him to the cross." 20:14 The thousands are cut to the quick. Notice their response. 20:18 Drop down to verse 37. 20:27 And Peter is ready. Here he goes. 20:40 And do you understand that in response to that alter call, over 3,000 people came forward 20:47 and were baptized that very day. Unbelievable! A few days later, 20:55 Peter has another crowd. It's just a few days later because all you have to do is 20:58 just turn the page. Turn the page to chapter 3. He says, "Listen, that sermon -- 21:07 The lord blessed that sermon. He anointed it. I'm gonna preach it all over 21:10 again," and he does. Watch this. This is Acts 3:19. 21:15 There he goes again with that word. 21:42 There it is, that word again -- repent, repent, repent. You suppose that's the key? 21:49 Anybody here know how to repent? I mean, we know it's a big deal. You know why we know it's a big 21:55 deal? Because when John the Baptist comes preaching, the very first 21:58 word out of his ever-preached sermon is the word repent. And subsequently, the Gospels 22:04 say when Jesus comes preaching, the very first word he preaches is repent. 22:08 And subsequently after that, when Peter preaches twice, the first word is repent, 22:12 repent. So, what's happening with this repent? 22:18 I'll tell you what you and I know about repent. What we know about repent is 22:21 what it isn't. We had a wonderful family time. Got to spend some time with 22:27 our two granddaughters. Ella's 7, and Izzy's almost 3, and they fortunately brought 22:32 along their parents, Kirk and Chelsea. And so we're sitting around, 22:37 and as families do, we're reminiscing, talking about life and the kids 22:41 growing up, and have you noticed this -- To me, it's the great wonder 22:45 of children. They can be in the same pod, in the same family, 22:49 but siblings can be so different from each other. I mean, take our two kids. 22:54 We have Kirk, and then we have Krissy. When it comes to Krissy, 23:02 I mean, you could just look sideways at her, and she'd repent in tears. 23:07 But Kirk... I'm telling you what, with Kirk, there has to be some sort 23:12 of incentive for him to repent. I mean, the clearer the consequences of his misdeed, 23:16 the clearer it became, the more passionate and pronounced his sudden repentance on the spot. 23:22 Hey, listen, there isn't a kid that doesn't know the meaning of that. 23:25 You've done that. And you know what? Guess what. We do that as adults, don't we? 23:31 Come on, let's not pick on the kids. How many times has 23:34 our repentance been based more on remorse over the consequences rather than heartfelt sorrow 23:40 over personal sin? Take the two. Take the two exhibits 23:48 we're gonna examine right now. Same night, same town -- Both of them there. 23:55 I want you to watch these two. We're gonna put two word pictures on the screen. 23:58 Just see what you think. Let's start of with the first guy. 24:02 His name is Judas. Now, the moment I say Judas, you have a picture in your mind. 24:06 In my mind, he's tall. He looks like the perfect executive, and I'm telling -- 24:11 I'll tell you what, he is white-collar -- White-collar to the max! 24:14 He's always taking charge, Judas. Everybody know the story of his 24:21 treacherous betrayal. Everybody knows the story of Peter's heinous denial. 24:26 Same town, same night, but look at the two differences in repentance. 24:33 I'm gonna go to the classic on the life of Jesus, "The Desire of Ages." 24:36 Beautiful word pictures. We're not going to Google. You're gonna get a picture in 24:40 your mind as you read these words, and I want you to be watching Jesus. 24:43 Watch Jesus in both of these word pictures, 'cause it's really -- 24:47 the take-home picture is Jesus. Okay. So let's go to "Desire of Ages." 24:51 Now Judas has just walked into the council chamber, stunned everybody as he interrupts 24:57 the proceedings. The prisoner's bound and gagged. Judas walks up to Caiaphas 25:01 and hurling at his feet, 30 pieces of silver tinkle all over the temple's marble floor. 25:08 That's what's just happened. "'I have sinned,' cried Judas, 'in that I have betrayed 25:14 the innocent blood'" -- quoting Matthew 27. "Judas now cast himself 25:18 at the feet of Jesus, acknowledging Him to be the Son of God and entreating him, 25:23 begging him, pleading him to deliver Himself." This was supposed to work! 25:27 I purposely had you arrested so that, like Samson, when they came for you, 25:32 you'd just go... And then you'd become king. Something has gone terribly 25:36 wrong. You're not supposed to be here. He's begging. 25:40 He's entreating Jesus to deliver Himself. Now watch Jesus. 25:44 "The Saviour did not reproach His betrayer." "I knew you. 25:49 I knew you were a -- I knew who you were from the beginning." 25:53 Not a word. He did not reproach his betrayer. 25:57 Jesus knew that Judas didn't repent. His confession was forced 26:01 from his guilty soul by an awful sense of condemnation and a looking for of judgement. 26:08 But Judas felt no deep, heartbreaking grief that he had betrayed the spotless 26:12 Son of God and the he had denied the Holy One of Israel. Yet, Jesus spoke no word 26:19 of condemnation. He looked pityingly upon Judas and he says -- and just draws 26:26 the veil aside to insert a line of conversation. And he said to Judas, 26:32 "For this hour came I into the world." 26:39 So ridden with despair, Judas goes out... and takes his own life. 26:46 Peter probably should have gone out and taken his own life, as well. 26:51 But we're gonna watch the same Jesus with a man who -- There's no white collar. 26:58 Peter doesn't even wear collars. If he had any collar at all, it would've been a blue collar. 27:02 Just brash, bold Peter. He -- He always is confident of being in control. 27:09 Watch this moment. Keep looking for Jesus but watch this. 27:12 Same book -- "Desire of Ages." "While the degrading oaths were fresh upon Peter's lips" -- 27:19 "I never knew that blankity-blank blank man in all my life," 27:22 turning the air blue with fisherman obscenities. "While the degrading oaths were 27:27 fresh upon Peter's lips and shrill crowing of the cock was still ringing in his ears, 27:31 the Saviour turned from the frowning judges and looked full upon his poor disciple. 27:38 At the same time, Peter's eyes were drawn to his Master." 27:41 You ever have somebody looking at you, and you kind of -- it feels like somebody's looking 27:46 at you? And so Peter turns his eyes and are drawn to his Master. 27:51 "In that gentle countenance, he read deep pity and sorrow, but there was no anger there. 27:58 The sight of that pale, suffering face, those quivering lips, 28:04 that look of compassion and forgiveness, pierced his heart like an arrow. 28:10 Conscience was aroused. Memory was active. The Saviour's tender mercy, 28:16 his kindness and long-suffering, his gentleness and patience towards his erring disciples -- 28:22 all was remembered. Peter reflected with horror upon his own ingratitude, 28:28 his falsehood, his perjury. Once more he looked at the Master and saw a sacrilegious 28:34 hand raised to smite Him in the face. Unable longer to endure 28:39 the scene, the rushed, heartbroken, from the hall. And on the very spot where Jesus 28:45 had poured out his soul in agony to His Father in Gethsemane. Peter fell upon his face 28:53 and wished that he might die. 29:00 Exhibit A. Exhibit B. 29:02 Two classic examples of repentance. 29:05 One forced with this sense of remorse and fear of consequences, the other, 29:10 a genuine sorrow. It breaks his heart. Repent -- What does it mean? 29:18 This word, this human word, this personal word, this intellectual experience, 29:24 this existential word we call repentance. What does that mean? 29:29 For you and me? When you and I repent -- 29:33 isn't this true? -- we're responding to some sort 29:36 of cognitive awareness that something is out of sorts 29:39 inside of me right now. I know something's wrong. 29:41 It may be a memory that triggers it. 29:43 It may be a word or a rash of words that triggers it, 29:46 some action I take triggers it, and always, I have this sense 29:51 that I should not have done what I did. 29:54 I should not have spoken what I spoke. 29:57 I should not have reacted the way I know I did. Now, remember, we're going 30:05 to this word "repent" because Peter has spoken it. Let me put that line again 30:11 on the screen for us. "Repent, then" -- We got it -- "and turn to God so that 30:16 your sins may be wiped out." There it is. How to "X" out, how to wipe out, 30:26 how to cross out 2020. Repent. Repentance isn't about -- 30:35 Look, folks, it's not about wiping out future sins. How can you wipe out sins that 30:38 haven't even been committed? But repentance can be for sins 30 seconds ago, 30:41 three minutes ago, 30 days ago, 30 years ago! That conscious under the 30:46 direction of the Holy Spirit suddenly begins to flash red, and you recall what you had 30:51 hoped you would never remember. Repent. And Peter calls us to repent 31:01 and then turn to God. That one line is a reminder that every sin, 31:11 no matter how venial, how mortal, is a turning away from God, which means sin is 31:19 a hugely relational word, isn't it? To the one who has loved me more 31:25 than anyone in the universe, I have sinned. I have turned away. 31:35 Now, I need to say when I'm talking about that flashing red light, sometimes that 31:41 red light flashes by mistake. It's not the Holy Spirit flashing the red light. 31:50 Sometimes we flash the red light ourselves in order to punish ourselves, in order to somehow 31:58 pay back or pay off the conviction that we've spent our lives wrestling over. 32:07 I don't know why that line is coming to me right now, but some of you perhaps have 32:12 and overactive red light, the conscience just is so trigger sensitive 32:18 that it's always going off. I need to tell you that the conscious is the instrument 32:30 of the Holy Spirit that speaks to our souls, but the conscious must be surrendered to Jesus 32:34 himself. You got to say, "Jesus, just take my conscious. 32:37 I don't know if this is really a blinking light or if this is something I'm doing to myself. 32:43 I need you to take this moment." Otherwise... You know, I was talking to 32:49 a young man not too long ago, who had been burdened and plagued by this flashing 32:55 red light. You don't have to be. You don't have to be a victim 32:58 of that red light. You can find the peace. You just ask Jesus. 33:04 Is this you flashing the light? Or is this me? You'll know quick. 33:08 You'll know quickly. The fact of the matter is, every sin we commit is 33:16 a personal sin that turns us away from the one who loves us most. 33:22 So, when Nathan comes into the throne room -- another throne room -- 33:27 with a startling announcement. "Oh, King, the gig is up. God is aware of what you 33:34 and Bathsheba have been doing." When David bursts into tears, as Peter burst into tears, 33:42 when David begins to sob his contrition in repentance, he expresses what Peter felt 33:48 in the Garden of Gethsemane that night. What David, who composes this 33:52 moving prayer of repentance. Read it again. If you haven't read Psalm 51 33:56 in a while, just take it home this afternoon and read it. Let your soul bask in its good 34:01 news, but in that prayer, David has this word. "Against You" -- 34:05 talking about sin being a relational proposition. "Against you and You only, 34:10 O God, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight." All sin is an affront, 34:20 is an attack on the one who loves us most. "Against You and You alone." 34:25 And by the way, he didn't say, against Bathsheba and Bathsheba alone, I have sinned. 34:28 Against Uriah and Uriah alone, I have sinned. No, no, no. 34:32 Not even against me and me alone. Against you and you alone. 34:36 That's why I carry in my wallet a picture of Karen. It is a very lovely picture 34:41 of Karen, I will be happy to inform you. I don't carry that picture 34:46 in my wallet so that I don't forget what she looks like. I say, "What was that again?" 34:50 No. Do you know why I carry that picture in my wallet? 34:54 So that I will always be reminded of the girl who's 24/7 love I live for and reciprocate 35:01 most of all. I carry that picture in my wallet because we're like this. 35:06 We're like this. And that picture is a reminder. A reminder. 35:15 David knew that he and God had been like this. And now he did that. 35:23 And his heart is broken. "Against You and You alone, have I sinned." 35:30 Sin is a violation of my covenant relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. 35:33 Guess what. Every sin. And if some of us are thinking, "Well, you know what? Whew! 35:36 I'm looking back over 2020. There was not really a big sin in my life. 35:40 The book "Steps to Christ" said, "Wake up, buddy. Yo, girl, wake up! 35:45 Worse than a drunkard, worse than alcoholism is the sin of human pride. 35:51 And if you're looking back over 2020 and you can't see anything, then that's the sin you've got, 35:56 and it's the worst of all. Repent! John the Baptist begins -- 36:02 Jesus begins, "Repent!" Peter comes along in their path, "Repent! Repent!" 36:09 What is it -- What is up with this thing? "Repent!" 36:13 You want to "X" out... you want to wipe out... you want to cross out 2020 36:19 and the record of your sins? Repent. Just repent. 36:25 I scribbled this down here in the margin. Repentance describes a radical 36:31 turning from sin to a new way of life oriented towards God. "Against You and You only 36:42 have I sinned." There comes a moment when you realize that this line could be 36:48 true about you, too. Hebrews 6:6 describes people who, "To their loss, they are 36:54 crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting Him to public disgrace. 37:03 I realize that that sin... has done that. Re-crucified my Lord Jesus. 37:15 Which is why it's so critical that the record get expunged. In fact, this Peter. 37:25 David Bentley Hart comes along in his acclaimed translation of the New Testament, 37:32 and he renders it this way. 37:38 Obliterate, wiped away, wiped out -- Just said they may be expunged. 37:45 Which is why David prays. Exactly how he prays in that beautiful Psalm 51 prayer. 37:50 "Hide your face, O God. Hide your face from my sins, blot out all my iniquity." 37:56 There it is -- just blot it out. "Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast 38:03 spirit within me." Blot out all my 2020 sins. 2021 has begun, Dear God. 38:10 I take one more look back, blot them all out right now and right here. 38:21 David again. "Cleanse me, and I'll be clean." Speaking of the fresh snow 38:27 we got over night. "Wash me, and I will be whiter than snow." 38:31 It's the Gospel. It's the good news of the Gospel. 38:35 "Steps to Christ" -- It has was a beautiful chapter on repentance. 38:39 Read it sometime. Just the whole chapter is a masterpiece. 38:43 It's closing words will be our closing words right now. I want you to read this. 38:48 Again, look for the picture of Jesus tucked away in these sentences. 38:52 "For if we confess our sins -- This is 1 John 1:9, by the way. In fact, you know what. 38:58 We're gonna get to "Steps to Christ," but... I don't want to miss this. 39:01 Let's read this out loud together. It's a beautiful, beautiful 39:04 New Testament promise. "For if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to 39:09 forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 39:15 I mean, that's a promise. We confess. That's what repentance is. 39:18 Turn around! Turn back! I confess that to you. He not only forgives us, 39:22 but the cleansing is embedded. Here's "Steps to Christ" now. "We have been great sinners, 39:32 but Christ died that we might be forgiven." I put the brackets in here. 39:37 What we've gathered to celebrate today at the Lord's Supper. Jesus' death and his promise 39:42 of forgiveness. The merits of His sacrifice are sufficient to present 39:48 to the Father in our behalf. Those to whom He has forgiven most will love Him most." 39:54 I want to leave that line right there. 39:57 Some of you are embarrassed that you've had to keep going 40:01 to Jesus again and again for the same sin. 40:04 Over and over. It's almost as if he knows why 40:08 I'm coming. This little line here has put 40:13 a whole new twist to that human reality that I struggle 40:17 with. Why do I never seem to get 40:22 the point? 40:23 Why do I keep repeating... what I know is cutting to his heart. 40:30 Now watch this. "Those to whom he has forgiven most." 40:34 Forgiven most because you've been going to him the most. You've been going back again 40:37 and again and again and again. "Those to whom he has forgiven most will love him most" -- 40:41 Now, keep reading -- "and will stand nearest to Him, nearest to His throne to praise 40:47 Him for His great love and infinite sacrifice." Why don't you let that percolate 40:53 in your mind for a moment? "You know, Dwight... man, I've seen you so many times 41:00 here. Always asking to be forgiven. Repeat, repeat, repeat. 41:07 Don't ever regret that you keep going back. There is never a sin God does 41:14 not forgive -- ever, ever, ever. And the more times you go back, the closer it draws you to 41:22 the one you keep turning to. Is that bad news? No, you just keep going back 41:30 to Jesus. You keep repenting. You keep confessing. 41:33 You keep receiving his forgiveness. Those who have gone to Him again 41:38 and again will stand nearest to His throne to praise Him for His great love and infinite 41:42 sacrifice. Lookit, I may be at the very end of that crowd, but there's some 41:47 of you here right now that are gonna be standing right beside the throne. 41:52 You'll be there. He said, "Listen, you might as well come up here. 41:56 You've been here so many times, girl. Boy, you have been here so many 41:59 times. Stand right here by me." Isn't that beautiful? 42:04 That's little steps to Christ for you. The last paragraph in 42:07 the chapter on repentance -- "It is when we most fully comprehend the love of God 42:11 that we best realize the sinfullness of sin." You want sin to -- to keep -- 42:15 to remain sinfullness in y-- to remain sinful in your mind? Then just keep brooding. 42:20 Keep contemplating. The love of God poured out as Ryan just sang on Calvary. 42:27 "Brood on the love of God" -- I add these words in brackets -- "and you will heighten your 42:31 sense of sin's sinfulness." Yep, yep, yep, yep, yep. Last line -- "And when we see 42:35 the length of the chain that was let down" for us in this pandemic pit where we live 42:41 on this Earth. "When we understand something of the infinite sacrifice that 42:46 Christ has made in our behalf, the heart is melted with tenderness and contrition." 42:53 Oh, my friends, I'm telling you what. I'm telling you, here it is. 42:58 There is a way. There is a way to "X" out 2020, and that is to let the cross 43:07 be what crosses out, what wipes out, what blots out, what expunges the record behind 43:14 us. That's why the cross is here. Isn't that beautiful? 43:23 You know what? If this is true -- and I believe with all of my heart it is -- 43:28 then at the foot of the cross, we could not be in a more perfect place this second day, 43:34 in 2021 than right here... at the foot of Jesus, at the table of the Lord's 43:41 supper. Oh, Jesus. 43:49 What can we say? Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. You went to that tree, 43:57 you went to that cross... so that billions, one day, would find in you the X-ing out 44:11 that we desperately long for deep within our hearts, our minds, our lives. 44:18 We're at the right place. This is the perfect place. And so in these few moments 44:24 we have left, as we take the emblems that you've give us so that we might 44:28 never forget, O Jesus, do that divine work, wash over our souls, our minds, 44:36 our families, wash over our marriages, wash over our lives. 44:43 Right now, please. Right here in your name. Amen. 44:54 >> Jesus is in that upper room. 12 closest friends he has 45:02 are gathered about him. 45:04 It's a large upper room. The torches are lit. The shadows dance on the walls, 45:09 and the ceiling, and the floor. Jesus has on his mind and heart very much the universal pandemic 45:16 of sin. And he knows that tomorrow -- because it's Thursday night -- 45:20 he knows that tomorrow, as he sacrifices his life unto death, tomorrow will be 45:33 the unleashing of the answers to a billion prayers for repentance. 45:40 Prayers we prayed before. Prayers you and I pray right now. 45:46 To help us remember that moment, Jasmine Fraser is going to read for us the sacred account there 45:52 in the Gospel of Matthew. And then Nashonie Chang is gonna actually put words to this 46:01 prayer for God to have mercy on us. Listen to both words now. 46:09 >> "As they were eating, Jesus took some bread and blessed it. 46:16 Then he broke it in pieces and gave it to the disciples, 46:20 saying, 'Take this and eat it, for this is my body.' 46:28 Then he took a cup of wine and gave thanks to God for it. He gave it to them and said, 46:36 'Each of you drink from it, for this is my blood, which confirms the covenant 46:43 between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice to forgive the sins of many. 46:52 Mark my words -- I will not drink the wine again until the day I drink it new 47:01 with you in my Father's Kingdom.'" 47:07 >> Heavenly Father, with a broken and contrite 47:11 heart, we stand at the foot of the cross today, crying out. 47:18 Against You and against You only we have sinned, O Lord God. 47:24 But we know that Your Word says that You are able and You are willing to forgive us. 47:32 So, Father, we come now asking you to wash us in the bloodshed on Calvary's 47:39 cross. We're coming to you because we are sorry, sorrowful, 47:45 repentant, O Lord God, of the sin, knowing that every sin has nailed Christ to 47:52 the cross one more time afresh. And, Father, we desire to change that. 47:58 We desire to be forgiven. Lord, we know Jesus is by your side and waiting for us, 48:09 never to partake of the wine until that day when he does anew with us. 48:17 And today, Lord God, as we've come to partake of the emblems, the bread representing his body, 48:26 the wine representing his shed blood, we're asking, O God, that even as you've 48:32 forgive us that you will bless the emblems, O Lord God, which has no powers except 48:39 by Jesus Christ, and, Father, as we partake today, we're renewing our covenant, 48:46 with you. "X" out our sins and take us in this new covenant today. 48:57 Lord God, this is our prayer. In Jesus' name. Amen. >> Amen. 49:03 Thank you, elders, for that scripture reading and that prayer. 49:10 Take your little kit. I'm gonna make sure that everybody on the platform 49:13 has a kit, as well. Take that kit and begin working on the cellophane. 49:18 There's a thin cellophane layer on top that separates the wafer from the cup of grape juice. 49:27 And so... just work that piece of plastic. Should come off without too much 49:37 difficulty. Don't do it quickly or you'll lose the wafer under it. 49:41 It's not a huge wafer, as you will find out. But you know what. 49:45 We don't need a big piece. We just need to feel that on our tongue, and when that goes 49:50 down, we know that we are partaking of the life and death and the body of our very best 49:57 friend. Our Saviour. Alright. 50:03 There it is. Jesus turned to the 12 in that torch-lighted upper room, 50:10 and he said to them what he says to us. I've called you friends. 50:15 You are my friends. I want you to take this, eat it, remember the gift 50:26 of my forgiveness on Calvary. 50:34 [ Organ plays ] 50:49 And while the bread was still in their mouths, Jesus takes the cup. 50:54 This was pre-pandemic time, and he just passed the cup around. 50:58 And everybody drank out of it without a worry. We're gonna get to our cup. 51:05 Turn the point away from you, just in case it's pressurized, and you only need to open it 51:11 about halfway. It's just wide enough for you to be able to drink that 51:15 grape juice. And in drinking that, consuming it, you bring not 51:20 just the body but the blood, as it were, of Jesus, answer to a billion, billion 51:26 prayers for forgiveness. The prayers of repentance. And Jesus says to us, 51:33 as he said to them, "Listen, all of you drink from it. This is my blood shed for you. 51:39 Do this, too, in remembrance of me." 51:46 [ Organ plays ] 52:01 Ben, thank you for putting the lid back on that cup. As you leave today, you'll see 52:08 receptacles that will receive these. They had two customs at the time 52:13 of Jesus when the Passover was celebrated. Number one, they took up 52:16 an offering for the poor, for those in need. We're gonna do that today. 52:21 The ushers are actually gonna come by you, and they're gonna receive, if you would like, 52:26 out of the largesse that God has given to your heart and life these last three months. 52:33 You want to give to those who will be in need, and 2021 is going to be as 52:36 demanding as 2020 was for those in need, for sure. Thank you for what you place 52:42 in that offering plate. And then they also sang a hymn. They sang the great Passover 52:47 Hallel. But we're not gonna sing that. But there was a hymn that was 52:50 sung for the first time in history just down here on Pokagon Road. 52:55 It's the beautiful hymn -- first time sung publicly -- "The Old Rugged Cross." 53:00 Karen's gonna sing. And if she sings, hum. If the words are familiar 53:05 to you, go ahead and just mouth those words, as we bring to an end this moment with Jesus 53:13 at his table. 53:15 ♪♪ 53:31 >> ♪ On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross ♪ ♪ The emblem of suffering 53:43 and shame ♪ ♪ And I love that old cross where the dearest and best ♪ 53:55 ♪ For a world of lost sinners was slain ♪ ♪ So I'll cherish the old 54:08 rugged cross ♪ ♪ Till my trophies at last I lay down ♪ 54:21 ♪ I will cling to the old rugged cross ♪ ♪ And exchange it some day 54:33 for a crown ♪ ♪ Oh, that old rugged cross, so despised by the world ♪ 54:48 ♪ Has a wondrous attraction for me ♪ ♪ For the dear Lamb of God 55:02 left His glory above ♪ ♪ To bear it to dark Calvary ♪ So I'll cherish the old 55:20 rugged cross ♪ ♪ Till my trophies at last I lay down ♪ 55:33 ♪ I will cling to the old rugged cross ♪ ♪ And exchange it some day 55:46 for a crown ♪ To the old rugged cross, I will ever be true ♪ 56:01 ♪ Its shame and reproach gladly bear ♪ ♪ Then He'll call me some day 56:14 to my home far away ♪ ♪ Where His glory forever I'll share ♪ 56:28 ♪ So I'll cherish the old rugged cross ♪ ♪ Till my trophies at last 56:42 I lay down ♪ ♪ I will cling to the old rugged cross ♪ 56:56 ♪ And exchange it some day for a crown ♪ 57:11 >> Think of the last time someone said, "I'm praying 57:14 for you." Didn't it give you a sense of 57:16 peace and reassurance that somebody cares for me? 57:19 I know how I feel when I get an e-mail from one of our viewers saying, "Yo, Dwight. 57:22 I've been praying for you lately." There's nothing like knowing 57:25 someone is praying for you. So I want to offer you an opportunity to partner -- 57:29 let me, let us partner with you in prayer. 57:32 If you have a special prayer request or a praise of 57:34 thanksgiving you'd like to share with us, I'm inviting you 57:36 to contact one of our friendly chaplains. 57:38 It's simple to do. You can call our toll-free 57:41 number -- 877 -- the two words "HIS WILL," 877-HIS-WILL. 57:45 That friendly voice that answers, you tell him, you tell 57:49 her what your prayer need is, we'll join with you in that 57:52 petition. 57:53 May the God who answers prayer journey with you these next few days until we're right back 57:57 here together again next time. 58:01 ♪♪ ♪♪ 58:15 ♪♪ ♪♪ |
Revised 2021-01-14