Participants:
Series Code: NP
Program Code: NP210828S
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00:11 Thank you, each one, for being here,
00:13 worshiping together. 00:15 It's a beautiful day outside, 00:17 and we're thankful you're here at Pioneer Memorial. 00:21 We're also thankful for those that are watching online. 00:24 We're grateful for you being part of our service, as well. 00:27 As we're turning our attention to our worship today, 00:31 we're going to read our call to worship. 00:33 It's going to be on the screen, so please read your portion 00:37 when prompted by the words onscreen. 00:40 And it reads, "God created all that is and blessed it. 00:46 Great is God and greatly to be praised! 00:51 God entrusted the care of the world to its creatures. 00:57 Great is God and greatly to be praised! 01:01 Created in God's image, we seek to act with God's wisdom. 01:07 Great is God and greatly to be praised!" 01:12 Let's bow our heads for our prayer. 01:16 God, we praise You because You are good and You are gracious. 01:22 God, You deserve all praise that there is, 01:25 and so we as a church today we praise You. 01:27 We humbly come before You, and we praise You. 01:30 We thank You for being a good and gracious God. 01:34 Today as we worship, we come before You as a congregation 01:37 and we ask that You accept our worship and You change us. 01:41 We're here because we want to connect 01:43 and see a glimpse of You, 01:44 and we know that we'll do that throughout our service, 01:46 our singing, and through our sermon today. 01:49 So each element of our worship, 01:50 we're asking that Your Spirit be divinely, 01:53 intimately connected to. 01:56 We know that You're already here, Lord, 01:57 but come inside us now. 01:59 Fill us and change us 02:01 so that when we leave this building, we're not the same. 02:04 We ask this in Your name. 02:05 Amen. 02:24 There's nothing worth more 02:28 That can ever come close 02:31 No thing can compare 02:34 You're our living hope 02:41 Your presence, Lord 02:51 I've tasted and seen 02:55 Of the sweetest of loves 02:58 Where my heart becomes free 03:01 And my shame is undone 03:07 In Your presence, Lord 03:17 Holy Spirit, 03:19 You are welcome here 03:23 Come flood this place 03:26 And fill the atmosphere 03:30 Your glory, 03:32 God, is what our hearts long for 03:36 To be overcome 03:39 by Your Presence, Lord 03:48 Your presence, Lord 03:58 There's nothing worth more 04:01 That will ever come close 04:05 No thing can compare 04:08 You're our living hope 04:14 Your presence, Lord 04:24 I've tasted and seen 04:27 Of the sweetest of loves 04:31 Where my heart becomes free 04:34 And my shame is undone 04:40 In Your Presence, Lord 04:49 Holy Spirit, 04:51 You are welcome here 04:55 Come flood this place 04:58 And fill the atmosphere 05:02 Your glory, 05:04 God, is what our hearts long for 05:08 To be overcome by Your Presence, Lord 05:19 Your Presence, Lord 05:28 Let us become more aware 05:32 Of Your presence 05:35 Let us experience the glory 05:39 Of Your goodness 05:42 Let us become more aware 05:45 Of Your presence 05:48 Let us experience 05:51 The glory of Your goodness 05:55 Let us become 05:57 More aware of Your presence 06:01 Let us experience 06:04 The glory of Your goodness 06:08 Let us become more aware 06:12 Of Your presence 06:15 Let us experience 06:17 The glory of Your goodness, Lord 06:28 Holy Spirit, You are welcome here 06:33 Come flood this place 06:36 And fill the atmosphere 06:40 Your glory, 06:42 God, is what our hearts long for 06:46 To be overcome 06:49 By Your Presence, Lord 06:58 Your Presence, Lord 07:20 I love Your voice 07:25 Oh Your mercy never fails me 07:29 All my days 07:32 I've been held in Your hands 07:36 From the moment that I wake up 07:40 Until I lay my head 07:44 Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God 07:53 All my life You have been faithful 08:00 All my life You have been so, 08:04 So good 08:07 With every breath that I am able 08:12 Oh, I will sing 08:15 Of the goodness of God 08:23 I love Your voice 08:28 You have led me through the fire 08:32 In darkest night 08:35 You are close like no other 08:40 I've known You as a Father 08:43 I've known You as a Friend 08:47 And I have lived in the goodness of God 08:56 And all my life 08:57 You have been faithful 09:03 And all my life You have been so, 09:07 So good 09:10 With every breath that I am able 09:15 Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God 09:21 Oh, Your goodness 09:24 Your goodness is running after 09:27 It's running after me 09:31 Your goodness is running after 09:34 It's running after me 09:37 With my life laid down 09:39 I'm surrendered now 09:41 I give You everything 09:45 Your goodness is running after 09:48 It's running after me 09:52 Your goodness is running after 09:55 It's running after me 09:59 Your goodness is running after 10:02 It's running after me 10:05 With my life laid down 10:07 I'm surrendered now 10:09 I give You everything 10:13 Your goodness is running after 10:17 It's running after me 10:23 All my life You have been faithful 10:30 All my life You have been so, 10:33 So good 10:37 With every breath that I am able 10:42 Oh, I will sing 10:44 Of the goodness of God 10:49 Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God 11:30 Draw me close to You 11:37 Never let me go 11:44 I lay it all down again 11:51 To hear You say that I'm Your friend 11:59 And You are my desire 12:06 And no one else will do 12:13 'Cause nothing else could take 12:16 Your place 12:20 To feel the warmth of Your embrace 12:27 And help me find the way 12:31 And bring me back to You 12:41 You're all I want 12:48 And You're all 12:50 I've ever needed 12:55 You're all I want 13:02 Help me know You are near 13:11 And draw me close to You 13:18 Never let me go 13:25 I lay it all down again 13:32 To hear You say 13:33 That I'm Your friend 13:39 And You are my desire 13:46 No one else will do 13:53 'Cause nothing else could take 13:55 Your place 14:00 To feel the warmth of Your embrace 14:07 And help me find the way 14:11 Bring me back to You 14:16 Bring me back to You 14:20 You're all I want 14:27 You're all 14:29 I've ever needed 14:34 You're all I want 14:40 Help me know You are near 14:47 You're all I want 14:54 You're all 14:56 I've ever needed 15:01 You're all I want 15:07 Help me know You are near 15:14 Help me know You are near 15:43 You took a stone to kill a giant 15:48 Took a staff to part the sea 15:52 And only You could do so much 15:56 With ordinary things 15:59 You took a slave to tame a lion 16:03 Took a rock to make a spring 16:07 And only You would choose a shepherd boy 16:12 To be a king 16:16 So I don't have to be 16:21 The strongest 16:25 'Cause You are perfect 16:28 In my weakness 16:32 If You can move a mountain 16:36 With faith like a grain 16:39 Of mustard seed 16:43 I wonder what You could do with me 16:55 You're the God of all creation 16:59 You're the king above all kings 17:03 And only You would choose a rugged cross 17:08 To rescue me 17:10 You're the healer of the broken 17:14 By faith, I still believe 17:18 You took on flesh 17:20 You conquered death 17:22 Lord, You are my victory 17:25 So I don't have to be 17:29 The strongest 17:33 'Cause You are perfect 17:36 In my weakness 17:41 If You can move a mountain 17:44 With faith like a grain 17:47 Of mustard seed 17:51 I wonder what You could do with me 17:57 Open my eyes 18:04 And show me 18:07 Who I could be 18:10 Lord, help me 18:13 See 18:17 That I, I don't have to be 18:21 The strongest 18:24 'Cause You are perfect 18:27 In my weakness 18:32 Lord, if You can move a mountain 18:36 With faith 18:37 Like a grain of mustard seed 18:43 I wonder what 18:45 You could do with me 19:09 "If someone else thinks they have reasons 19:11 to put confidence in the flesh, I have more. 19:17 I was circumcised on the eighth day, 19:20 I was of the People of Israel, 19:22 I was of the tribe of Benjamin, 19:26 I considered myself a Hebrew of Hebrews. 19:31 In regard to the law, 19:34 I was a Pharisee. 19:38 As for zeal, I Persecuted the Church, 19:43 and as for Righteousness based on the law, I was faultless." 20:03 Oh, God, we didn't come to this place 20:06 to be drawn close to somebody. 20:10 We have come into this sanctuary 20:12 to be drawn close to the God of the universe. 20:16 You called us here. 20:18 We have obeyed. 20:20 Speak to us now through Holy Scripture 20:23 and let it be clear. 20:25 We pray in Jesus' name. 20:27 Amen. 20:30 How to become an influencer? 20:38 Because let's be honest, 20:41 there isn't a one of us in this space right now 20:45 that does not want to be an influencer. 20:47 In fact, we do this secretly. 20:49 We don't tell anybody about it. 20:50 But every time we post 20:54 on our social media platform 20:58 TikTok, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, 21:03 Snapchat, YouTube. 21:08 Every time we post, shh! 21:10 We are hoping that this post 21:14 will be the one that goes viral. 21:17 And overnight, we shall become 21:19 world-renowned influencers. 21:23 Am the only guy that hopes that? 21:28 I'm telling you what when you talk social media today, 21:30 I mean, social media is abuzz with this idea of influencer. 21:33 You know why? 21:35 Because there are people on social media 21:36 that have beaucoup followers. 21:39 That's why. 21:40 In fact, I'm gonna give them to you right now. 21:42 The number one social media followed person 21:48 on the planet right now. 21:51 Do you know who that is? 21:53 Ohh, ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch. 21:55 I'm telling you who it is. 21:58 We're talking about the 36-year-old 22:00 Portuguese superstar footballer 22:02 or soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo. 22:07 Somebody clapped, so somebody knew. 22:10 I'm telling you. 22:12 Listen to this, 516 million human beings follow him 22:17 on every social platform he's on. 22:19 He is number one in Instagram. 22:21 He is number one in Facebook. 22:24 He's number on the planet. 22:27 Influencer. 22:29 Hey, but I don't want to leave the balcony out, 22:31 so I'm talking to all you guys in the balcony. 22:32 The number one, listen to this. 22:34 The number one TikTok influencer 22:39 right now is a 17-year-old teenage girl. 22:44 Do you know her name? 22:46 Mm-hmm. 22:47 Charli D'Amelio. 22:50 She has, hold on to your pew, one 17 years old, 22:55 she has 123.2 million people who follow her. 22:59 My, oh, my. 23:01 And lest you think that only the young get followers, 23:04 I am happy to announce that's not true. 23:08 The number one... 23:09 The number one Twitter influencer, 23:13 who has more followers than any other human being on Twitter, 23:18 who is 60 years old 23:21 and who has 129.9 million followers... 23:29 is Barack Obama. 23:32 So what does this word "influencer" mean, okay? 23:35 Let's just find out. 23:36 Influencer, let's put it on the screen right now. 23:38 "An influencer is someone who has the influence, 23:42 the authority over or trust of, a certain group of people." 23:46 Mm-hmm. 23:48 "In marketing parlance," Okay? 23:49 So the head honchos in marketing, 23:52 they're talking this way. 23:54 "An influencer is someone who causes others to make specific 23:58 consumer decisions." 24:01 You ever heard of the Kardashian sisters? 24:05 Oh, boy. 24:07 You ever heard of LeBron James? 24:10 You ever heard of Aaron Rodgers? 24:12 Why they always showing up in commercials? 24:15 Because they have a following. 24:18 Put your money with the influencer. 24:23 Wow! 24:24 Are you an influencer? 24:26 Have you appeared in a single commercial? 24:30 Me neither. 24:32 But I got great news for you. 24:34 Over the next few days, 24:38 you and I are gonna share some secrets 24:40 about how to become an influencer 24:43 that potentially will enable you to have more influence 24:47 than any of the three names I have just mentioned. 24:51 I'm gonna share some secrets. 24:53 And we're starting right now with secret number one. 24:56 Write it down in your mind. 24:58 Secret number one, you must learn 25:01 how to live in the "white space." 25:05 You say, "Yo, Dwight, what's this white space stuff?" 25:07 Well, let me show you. 25:09 In fact, did you bring a Bible? 25:10 'Cause it will really work well 25:11 if you have your Bible with you. 25:13 Open your Bible. 25:14 You got your Bible on your device? 25:15 That's fine. It'll work there. 25:17 I want you to find the Book of Genesis. 25:19 Come on. Everybody knows the first book of the Bible. 25:21 Find the Book of Genesis. 25:22 I'll do the same. Genesis Chapter 16. 25:25 And I want you to drop down 25:26 to the very last verse of Genesis 16, okay? 25:29 Genesis 16. 25:31 You're gonna see 25:32 what in the world is this white space? 25:33 Genesis 16. 25:35 I'll get there. 25:36 Here it is. 25:38 All right, Genesis 16:16, 25:42 16:16, "Abram was 86 years old 25:46 when Hagar bore him Ishmael." 25:51 Now I want you to tell you something. 25:55 Abram was how old? 26:03 How old was Abram? 26:05 Hey, listen, this is the tail end of a sad tale 26:09 because Sarah is unable to con... 26:11 "Sarai at the time was unable to conceive a baby. 26:15 And she goes to her husband, and she says, 26:16 "Look, it is done in this land. 26:19 I have my Egyptian slave girl named Hagar. 26:21 You go to bed with her. 26:22 She'll have a baby. 26:24 I'll call it mine, and we'll call it a done deal." 26:27 Abraham says, "You know what? 26:29 That's not a bad idea." 26:31 And he does it. 26:33 That's what happens. 26:35 That's what happens 26:36 in Genesis 16:16. 26:42 Bad, bad decision. 26:46 God who had been setting him up "No, no, no, no, no, no. 26:49 Your Abram and Sarai, your children will be the faithful 26:54 that I will establish all grow all over the earth." 27:00 Okay? So, here's your Bible. 27:03 Right here is what's called white space 27:05 because the next verse is Genesis 17:1. 27:08 You can check it out in your Bible, Genesis 17:1. 27:11 And how does it read? 27:12 "When Abram was 99 years old, 27:15 the Lord appeared to him and said, "I am Almighty God. 27:19 I am El Shaddai, God Almighty." 27:21 Ladies and gentlemen, here's white space, right? 27:24 We'll just call this the white space. 27:26 How many years from here to here? 27:28 Come on. You're... 27:29 You do numbers well. How many years? 27:31 Thirteen years, 13 years of humdrum, 27:37 everyday life during which God keeps working on their hearts, 27:40 their minds, quietly, persistently. 27:42 He detours His plan because of them to ready them 27:45 for His calendar and His next steps in their life. 27:48 This, my friends, is what's called the white space. 27:52 White space means no superstar status, 27:55 no superstar stuff, no grand accomplishment, 27:59 no grand vision, no stage lights. 28:02 You're in the dark. 28:03 Just white space where life goes on. 28:07 Some of you are in white space right now and you know it. 28:12 White space. 28:14 You may be terribly frustrated with your life. 28:16 All those big dreams that you had what has happened to them? 28:20 Zero, nada, nothing! 28:22 It's called the white space. 28:24 And by the way, it happens over and over in Scripture. 28:27 In fact, it is hardly profound to conclude 28:31 that when nearly every single person, 28:33 I'm talking about the superheroes 28:34 in the Bible's hall-of-fame, Hall of Faith chapter, 28:37 there are huge... Every single one of them. 28:39 Huge tracks of white space in their lives. 28:44 How about the young slave Joseph? 28:46 He wasn't born a slave. 28:50 He was sold, 17 years of age, by his stepbrothers, 28:55 jealous as they were, sold to the Ishmaelites. 28:58 Joseph. 29:00 Age of 17, he's sold as a slave. 29:02 He is in a box of white space for 13 years, 29:06 and sometimes you get white space inside of white space 29:10 because along the way, on trumped-up charges, 29:12 by the way, he is thrown in a pit in Egypt, 29:16 Potiphar's command. 29:18 He's in jail. 29:20 When Chapter 40 ends, he's still in jail. 29:23 When Chapter 41 begins, he's still in jail. 29:26 When two full years had passed, Pharaoh has a dream. 29:32 My, oh, my. 29:35 Just when Joseph is absolutely convinced 29:37 that those boyhood dreams that he's gonna be somebody 29:39 that will lead his clan, his tribe have vanished. 29:43 Boom! 29:45 Pharaoh has a dream. 29:46 Because the God, the mysterious God behind the white space, 29:51 is setting life up. 29:54 And in that two-year white space within white space, 29:59 that boy is elevated to prime minister of Egypt. 30:02 Now white space. 30:04 I've come to the conclusion that anybody 30:06 who is a friend of God's 30:09 lives with white space. 30:11 Take the hero... 30:12 No. 30:14 Take the white space of all white space. 30:15 Let's talk about Moses, the prince of Egypt. 30:18 The Book of Exodus, Chapter 2. 30:21 The chapter comes to an end speaking about Moses 30:23 with these words "Zipporah" that's his wife 30:25 "gave birth to a son, and Moses named him Gershom," 30:28 because I'm in a land far away 30:32 from where I was supposed to lead God's people. 30:36 I want to show you something. 30:38 From this verse here to this verse here because here, 30:42 "Now Moses was tending the flock 30:44 of his father-in-law Jethro," and there is a burning bush. 30:49 From here to here, guess what? 30:51 That's white space. 30:53 Do you know how many years are from here to here? 30:55 Forty years, 40 years of white space. 31:00 This boy is in Egypt with the finest universities, 31:05 the hottest culture, 31:06 the greatest religions on the planet. 31:09 For 40 years, it has filled him. 31:11 And God comes along when he decides 31:13 to take his own leadership into his own hands 31:16 and says, "I'll accelerate my leadership." 31:20 And he kills a guy, and it's over. 31:23 Took God 40 years of white space to undo 31:26 all the damage of the 40 years before. 31:29 And when God finally comes to him, by the way, 31:31 he says, "You got the wrong guy. 31:32 I'm not the leader I thought I was." 31:35 White space. 31:37 Ah, mercies. 31:39 Some of you right now, by the way, are in white space. 31:43 You're a brand-new student at this university, 31:46 fine university that it is, 31:48 and we're delighted to have you. 31:50 We enjoyed an evening together last night. 31:53 You may have been king of the hill in your high school 31:55 where you graduated from, you made out of your academy. 31:59 But whatever you were before, 32:01 you are at the bottom of the heap now. 32:04 I'm just telling you, in case you haven't heard. 32:08 And there are gonna be some nights, 32:10 cold, wintry nights as only Michigan can serve up. 32:14 And you're gonna be sitting 32:15 in that upper bunk of the dormitory bed 32:18 and you're gonna be staring at that ceiling 32:19 and you're gonna say, "What were all my plans? 32:21 What were those dreams? 32:22 What was I thinking of? 32:24 Why did I come here?" 32:26 Welcome to the white space. 32:29 Welcome to the white space of God's timing. 32:33 You may be a young woman here. 32:35 You are a young man. 32:36 You are a young professional chomping at the bits 32:38 to kick that dream of yours into high gear, 32:41 but it feels like you're stuck in the job that you are in. 32:44 There is no vertical climbing on this job. 32:48 There is nothing in this career, 32:51 nothing in this town, nothing on this team. 32:55 You were dreaming of earning a salary. 33:00 Yes, you were. 33:02 But guess what? 33:03 You're still punching a time clock. 33:06 Welcome to the white space of God's timing. 33:12 Or you may be a mother here 33:14 who has cheerfully set aside her personal ambitions 33:16 as a wife and a career woman, 33:19 and now you're moving through the doldrums, 33:21 don't misunderstand me using that word, 33:23 but the doldrums of runny noses and skinned-up knees 33:26 and children you love. 33:28 But interruptions and delays are killing your dreams 33:31 when right now you could be in that corporate boardroom 33:34 living out your MBA like you dreamed. 33:39 Welcome to the white space of God's timing. 33:44 You may be a retiree in this space right now 33:48 who had, oh, so many plans. 33:50 Oh, you knew what you were gonna do 33:52 when you could get to those golden years of retirement. 33:54 You scrimped. You saved. 33:56 But now your body is afflicted with affliction 33:59 that nobody seems to know what to do with, 34:01 and all those cruises, all that travel, 34:03 all those days with the grandkids gone! 34:06 Your body's on hold now, and it's possible 34:09 it will have a terminal ending. 34:15 Welcome to the white space 34:19 of God's timing. 34:22 As I say, I'm amazed at how all the greats of Scripture, 34:25 these superheroes, to a man almost, to a woman, 34:29 experience oftentimes confusing, perplexing, 34:32 discouraging, overwhelming white spaces of God's timing. 34:36 "Nothing is happening in my life. 34:38 Nothing!" 34:41 Elijah, my superhero. 34:43 Elijah, 29, I calculated it, 29-year ministry. 34:49 Gets a little bit of razzle-dazzle at the end. 34:52 He's gone. 34:53 White space. 34:55 Whoever would have thought Elijah the Tishbite. 34:59 Elijah, his successor will end up with a 54-year ministry 35:02 with a few events and miracles during the beginning, 35:04 followed by 43 years of silence, 35:08 nothing but white space, until he dies of a disease. 35:12 Adios! 35:13 He's gone. 35:16 John the Baptist, six months older than his cousin Jesus, 35:20 lives in utter obscurity after his birth, 35:23 except for when he baptizes his Messiah cousin, 35:26 and the next thing he knows, he's beheaded. 35:29 Schoo! Gone, 34, 35 years of age. 35:34 I'm telling you what. 35:35 You are not alone. 35:37 So many of God's friends have lived through the white space 35:39 of His timing that I am absolutely convinced 35:42 that it is mandatory. 35:43 You have to go through white space 35:47 to survive God's call in your life. 35:53 Take the greatest influencer in the history of Christianity, 35:58 except for the Lord Jesus Himself. 36:01 If we examine His life, He's a champion of white space. 36:06 If we examine His life, He has white space in the beginning, 36:09 He has white space in the middle, 36:11 He has white space at the end, 36:12 as we're gonna find out in the days to come. 36:17 Yep, we're talking about our man Saul, 36:21 Paul, the champion of white space. 36:26 We know very little about his, 36:27 the white space in the beginning, by the way. 36:30 Let's read the words, in fact, of the movie clip 36:33 that we just watched. 36:34 It was from Philippians 3. 36:36 And if you don't mind turning now to Philippians 3. 36:40 Just a handful of details, Paul 36:43 actually autobiographically shares with us. 36:45 Philippians Chapter 3. 36:46 Oh, you can pick up one or two others, 36:48 and we will as we journey through his life together 36:52 this fall. 36:54 But go to Philippians Chapter 3, 36:56 and let's pick it up in verse 4 because he's now gonna give us, 37:00 he's gonna say, "Hey, listen, guys. 37:01 This is my childhood. 37:03 These are my teen years. 37:04 This is my young adult life. 37:06 This is my family tree." 37:08 Okay, let's find out. 37:10 So this is the second half of verse 4, 37:13 "If someone else thinks they have reasons 37:15 to put confidence in the flesh, I have more." 37:18 Now he's gonna shoot these by us 37:20 so we'll get a little bigger picture of this Saul guy. 37:23 "Circumcised on the eighth day." 37:26 He was a Jewish baby, a male baby, 37:31 and the sign of the covenant is in his flesh. 37:35 "That's who I am." 37:37 That little home in Tarsus, he was born into a Jewish family. 37:42 Number two, "Of the people of Israel." 37:44 "I want to tell you something. 37:46 I'm not just any old religion. 37:47 I'm not just any old denomination. 37:49 I belong to the remnant. 37:50 Do you understand? The chosen ones of God. 37:53 This is the community that will get saved 37:58 and whose mission is to reach the entire world. 38:01 I'm of the people of Israel." 38:02 Number three, "I'm of the tribe of Benjamin." 38:05 "Look at my veins. 38:07 You see blue blood here? 38:09 I am named after the first king of the Israelite monarchy, 38:14 Saul, King Saul. 38:16 That's who I am. 38:18 I grew up with these stories. 38:19 I was told it over and over and over again." 38:23 Number four, "A Hebrew of Hebrews." 38:26 "Number one, I want you to know something, 38:28 nobody can out-orthodox me. 38:30 Mnh-mnh. 38:32 I'm a Hebrew of Hebrews. 38:33 And by the way, there's a second reason 38:34 why I put that there because I am fluent in Greek. 38:38 And I have lived in a culture immersed 38:41 with the Hellenist brand and the Hellenist world view. 38:45 But I am not a Hellenist of Hellenists." 38:47 Although he would become the most influential 38:49 writer of Greek in the history of the human race. 38:51 "I am not a Hellenist of Hellenists. 38:53 I'm a Hebrew of Hebrew. 38:54 I worship the creator God of this universe. 38:57 That's who I am." 38:59 Number five, "Within the law, I'm a Pharisee." 39:04 And by the way, when he's in trials 39:06 we're gonna note he had multiple trials. 39:07 He got in trouble. 39:09 In one of this trials, he cried out, 39:11 "I am a Pharisee of Pharisees. 39:14 My daddy was a Pharisee. 39:15 My granddaddy was a Pharisee. 39:17 My great grandfather was a Pharisee. 39:19 I am a Pharisee, and I'm proud of it." 39:25 All this is happening in the white space 39:28 of his childhood, his teens. 39:32 "As for zeal, persecuting the church." 39:34 Whatever you do, don't miss next Sabbath. 39:37 Don't miss it. 39:39 Number seven, "Righteousness." Ha! 39:41 "Based on the law, faultless." 39:45 "That's my story. 39:48 Those are my childhood and teen years, my young adulthood. 39:53 White space. 39:57 That's where I lived." 39:58 N.T. Wright, the great British New Testament scholar, 40:03 in his magnificent biography of Paul, 40:06 which I read with great benefit this summer, 40:08 thanks to my Uncle Ralph, who sent me the book, 40:13 "Paul A Biography" 40:14 that's the title of Wright's book. 40:16 N.T. Wright tries to describe what we can surmise 40:19 from reading between the lines of Paul's childhood. 40:21 So let's put N.T. Wright on the screen here. 40:22 "We can safely assume, then, 40:25 that Saul grew up in a cheerfully strict 40:28 observant Jewish home, on the one hand, 40:31 and in a polyglot" that would be multi-tongued 40:35 "multicultural, multiethnic working environment 40:38 on the other. 40:39 Strict adherence to ancestral tradition 40:42 did not mean living a sheltered life, 40:44 unaware of how the rest of the world worked, 40:47 spoke, behaved, and reasoned." 40:51 While Saul's childhood is obviously a huge expanse 40:56 of white space, of which we know almost nothing, 41:00 N.T. Wright says, "Let me imagine 41:02 what kind of a boy he was." 41:03 So I'll put this on the screen, too. 41:05 "Everything we know about him encourages us to think," 41:09 or conclude regarding the young Saul of Tarsus. 41:12 And by the way, I stuck this in here. 41:13 Do you know the Tarsus where Saul was born and grew up 41:16 is one of the three leading centers of education 41:18 in the empire? 41:20 You never knew that, and I didn't either about Tarsus. 41:22 Top three. 41:24 He grew up in that town. 41:26 "Everything we know about the young Saul of Tarsus 41:30 indicates that he was an unusually gifted child." 41:35 Keep reading. 41:36 "He read biblical Hebrew fluently. 41:38 He spoke the Aramaic of the Middle East, 41:40 the mother tongue of Jesus 41:41 and quite possibly Saul's mother tongue as well, 41:44 and in addition to the ubiquitous," 41:46 it's everywhere, "Greek, 41:48 which he spoke and wrote at great speed." 41:53 So why notice this white space of Saul's? 41:58 I'll tell you why. 42:00 Because some of you in this building right now 42:02 and watching on livestream at this moment, 42:06 some of you were born into a Christian home, 42:10 into a Seventh-day Adventist home, 42:12 like Saul's home, as Wright put it, 42:14 "a cheerfully strict observant home," 42:17 orthodox to the core. 42:22 Never wish it otherwise. 42:26 Never say to yourself, 42:27 "Oh, I wish my parents hadn't been so strict on me. 42:30 I wish those rules I lived under hadn't been so strident. 42:34 I wish I could have been like the other guys, 42:36 the other girls. 42:37 But, oh, no." 42:38 Never say that. 42:42 You know why? 42:44 Almighty God, El Shaddai personally chose 42:50 the home you were birthed into. 42:53 That's why. 42:55 He knows your white space like the back of His hand. 42:59 He wrote the story. 43:02 And He needs you to affirm 43:07 that He's still writing. 43:09 That's why. 43:11 You have no idea what God is gonna do in your life. 43:14 You have no idea where God is going in your life. 43:17 Don't you kiss Him off. 43:19 Don't you pass Him by. 43:21 He has spent all these years in your white space, 43:23 and you're gonna walk away now? 43:25 Do you understand what you are doing? 43:34 This much you can know, my friend, my young friend, 43:37 my new young friend. 43:38 The rich heritage of belief and trust in God 43:41 and Holy Scripture that you grew up with, 43:43 the legacy of a Christian Adventist education 43:46 provided by your parents, 43:48 who value the best education they could possibly give you, 43:50 and so they sent you here. 43:54 You will never regret God's choices 43:58 for your childhood 44:00 or for your white space. 44:05 I'll tell you this. 44:07 I do not regret mine. 44:11 I am who I am 44:15 and I am where I am 44:18 because of the home I grew up in. 44:22 Oh, sure, you could have been born like Peter. 44:25 Nothing wrong with that. 44:26 Peter the big fisherman who never could afford 44:28 any education to speak of, 44:30 but happily settled into a life of blue-collar fishing, 44:34 whom Jesus called one day, "Yo, Pete, follow me!" 44:37 Peter, who became the great apostle. 44:39 Peter, though, could only go so far, 44:43 and God took him where he went with the white space he had. 44:48 And God says, "We can do business together." 44:54 But the same Jesus who called simple fishermen to follow Him 44:57 also hand-picked and called a bright young man, no doubt, 45:02 scholars believe, a little younger than Jesus Himself, 45:05 to follow Him. 45:08 The young man whose parents talking about concern 45:12 about orthodoxy and adherence to God's will, 45:16 they take him out of Tarsus. 45:17 They send him to Jerusalem. 45:20 And he will sit at the feet 45:21 of some of the brightest scholars of the time. 45:23 The great Gamaliel will be his personal mentor. 45:27 That is how desperate his parents were to make sure 45:31 our boy is kept in the white space of our values. 45:39 And Christ was able... 45:41 Listen carefully now. 45:43 Christ was able to do with Paul 45:46 what he simply could not do with Peter 45:51 because of Peter's limitation 45:56 with the white space that he had. 46:00 Now listen. Listen. 46:02 Hold on. Hold on. 46:03 This is hardly to suggest that Paul the scholar 46:05 was greater than Peter the fisherman, 46:07 better than Peter, smarter, closer to Jesus and the Father. 46:10 Nonsense! Rubbish! 46:11 Paul's words would be, "God forbid!" 46:14 It's not that. 46:16 But this is to suggest... 46:17 Listen carefully now. 46:20 It is to suggest to you students 46:22 who have come to Andrews University 46:26 that God is giving you, 46:28 in the season of your white space, 46:30 where you are unknown to the church 46:32 and you are unknown to the world. 46:34 He is giving you some precious time 46:38 to shape your life 46:40 into His calling for you 46:45 one day that starts 46:48 right now. 46:52 Don't worry about what happens after the white space 46:55 because guess what? 46:56 You'll never know when the white space is over 46:58 and the destiny has begun. 47:00 You'll never know. 47:01 So quite looking at yourself. 47:02 Quit self-calculating. 47:05 Trust. 47:07 Trust Him. 47:08 When you're ready, God will be ready. 47:10 So in the meantime, embrace your white space. 47:13 That's it. 47:14 Embrace your white space. 47:15 Stay in your white space. 47:17 Do not get out of it so that God can shape you 47:22 into your personal destiny 47:23 and your high calling in Christ Jesus. 47:26 Because the good news is I want you to take this home. 47:29 The good news is Jesus is Lord of your white space. 47:34 Take it home. 47:35 Brood over it. 47:38 He's the one who has set you up for where you are right now. 47:44 Stay with Him. 47:46 No friend of His is ever assigned to spend a life 47:49 in front of the stage lights. 47:51 The limelight is not necessary. 47:54 The limelight is not healthy. 47:57 The limelight is not good. 48:04 Be content to live in the white space, 48:08 where the Lord of your white space lives with you now. 48:11 Embrace your white space. 48:13 Go for all you have. 48:16 Go for the gold 48:19 while you're in white space. 48:24 And when He's ready for your moment, 48:26 I promise you, you too will be ready. 48:30 Stay in the white space. 48:32 Stay in that white space. 48:35 Because remember even Jesus, our beloved, 48:40 our blessed Lord and Savior, lived His life, 48:45 the bulk of His life in white space. 48:49 You think about Jesus. 48:51 Oh, yeah, you're right. 48:53 There was a little bit of drama there at the birth. 48:55 His parents flee to Egypt. Yep. 48:57 A few years later, they move to Nazareth. 48:59 You got that right. 49:00 Somewhere along the way, they make a trip to Jerusalem. 49:02 Jesus is 12. He goes. 49:03 That's it. 49:05 That's all we know, 30-plus years of white space. 49:08 We know nothing. 49:11 Nothing. 49:13 So He knows all about white space. 49:18 And by the way, don't you think He was an influencer 49:20 during the time in the white space? 49:22 Are you kidding? 49:24 Can't you be an influencer right now? 49:26 Do you have to wait till you're outside the white space? 49:28 Never, never, never. 49:29 You start touching lives. 49:31 You start loving people the way Jesus loved people. 49:33 You just love on them. 49:34 You will be surprised how dramatic and influential 49:39 that compassion you show turns out to be. 49:42 You're gonna be an influencer. 49:44 You can't just sit here 49:45 and wait for influencing to be dumped in your lap. 49:48 You'll never get it, ever, ever, ever. 49:53 Live now. 49:54 Live in your white space. 49:56 Live it out. 49:57 And by the way Jesus remained in His white space 50:03 until the day when He heard these words from heaven. 50:09 I want you to think about this. 50:11 The words He hears from heaven 50:13 are, "This is my beloved Son, 50:19 in whom I am well pleased." 50:23 "Wait a minute! Time out! 50:24 Hey, Father, excuse me. 50:25 I don't want to be sacrilegious, but time out. 50:28 How could this be Your beloved Son 50:30 in whom you are well pleased 50:31 when He hasn't done anything yet?" 50:33 He's been in the white space the whole time. 50:36 Could it be that it is pleasing to God 50:39 for you to occupy your white space 50:42 until you hear the voice that says, 50:45 "Go, boy. 50:46 Girl, now." 50:50 He's pleased with your white space. 50:52 If He's pleased with Jesus' white space, 50:54 why wouldn't He be pleased with your white space? 50:58 Wow. 50:59 Dripping out of the Jordan He comes, 51:03 onto the pathway selected for Him 51:06 that will eventually drip crimson, 51:08 His blood, as He climbs Calvary. 51:14 Don't look for a glamorous ending. 51:18 Just look for God's win. 51:22 My, oh, my, oh, my. 51:24 I ask you, who better to entrust your life 51:27 to right now, to entrust your white space to right now 51:31 than the Lord of your white space? 51:33 What do you say? 51:36 That's pretty weak. What do you say? 51:37 Amen! 51:39 Come on. 51:41 White space, you're in it. 51:43 Stay in it. 51:44 He's in it. 51:46 Oh, I want to sing this song, "In the Morning When I Rise" 51:50 "In the morning when I rise, give me Jesus." 51:53 I want to sing that song. 51:54 But before we do, 51:56 it's time for you to make a decision right here. 51:58 And if you've got your cellphone, 52:00 we're ready to make decisions right now. 52:02 Let's go. 52:03 Put it on the screen. I will. 52:05 I want you to text the word "Paul" to this number. 52:10 You watch what happens. 52:12 In a split second, you'll feel the vibration. 52:14 Text the word "Paul" to 269... 52:17 That's our wonderful, 52:19 memorizable number 269-281-2345. 52:22 All right? 52:24 Get that in your speed dial. 52:26 269-281-2345. 52:29 You text the word "Paul," the name "Paul," 52:32 and in a moment, you'll feel it vibrate. 52:34 Now hold on. Hold on. 52:36 No. Go ahead and text. 52:39 But I want to show you what's gonna come to you. 52:41 Let's put the connect card here. 52:43 "My next step today is..." 52:46 All right, three boxes. 52:48 Box number one. 52:49 "I accept Jesus as Lord of my 'white space,' 52:51 and I want to be an 'influencer' for Him." 52:54 Anybody here not want to be an influencer for Jesus? 52:57 Put a checkmark right there. 52:59 See what comes because you'll get a response. 53:00 Yes, you will. 53:02 Put a checkmark right there. I want to be. 53:03 I put a checkmark there. 53:05 Box number two. 53:06 "Please send me some practical steps 53:08 to deepen my walk with Jesus." 53:10 You put a checkmark right there and then you hit "Send," 53:13 you will get something in return to your text number. 53:18 And I hope it will bless you. 53:20 For some of you, it will change your life, 53:22 if you put a text, if you check box number two. 53:24 There's one more box. 53:26 "I would like to follow Jesus and be baptized." 53:28 I can't think of a better way to begin 53:30 a new year at Andrews University, 53:32 maybe your first year. 53:33 You're not baptized yet? That's okay. 53:35 You just put a check... 53:37 You put a checkmark there in box number three, 53:39 we'll get the word. 53:40 We'll be in touch with you electronically, 53:42 and we'll explore, 53:44 "Okay, what can we do to help you with that decision? 53:47 You've never been baptized? 53:49 Come on. What are you waiting for? 53:50 Next year? 53:51 Do it this year. 53:53 Your life is ready. 53:54 The Lord of your white space is ready 53:56 for your decision today. 53:58 Just put a checkmark there. 54:00 It'll come to you. 54:01 You just... 54:03 You see what comes to you, and then you decide. 54:07 Oh, we got to sing this song, "In the Morning When I Rise." 54:12 Come on, singers. Let's go. 54:14 Where are you? Let's sing. 54:15 That's such a beautiful, beautiful prayer. 54:19 And we're gonna pray it together. 54:21 Can't think of a better way to end this moment 54:23 than to cry out, "Give me Jesus." 54:36 In the morning, when I rise 54:41 In the morning, when I rise 54:45 In the morning, when I rise 54:49 Give me Jesus 54:54 Give me Jesus 54:59 Give me Jesus 55:03 You can have all this world 55:08 Give me Jesus 55:17 Dark midnight was my cry 55:21 Dark midnight was my cry 55:25 Dark midnight was my cry 55:30 Give me Jesus 55:34 Give me Jesus 55:39 Give me Jesus 55:43 You can have all this world 55:48 Give me Jesus 55:54 Oh, when I come to die 55:59 Oh, when I come to die 56:03 Oh, when I come to die 56:08 Give me Jesus 56:12 Give me Jesus 56:17 Give me Jesus 56:21 You can have all this world 56:26 Give me Jesus 56:30 Give me Jesus 56:35 Give me Jesus 56:39 You can have all this world 56:44 Give me Jesus 56:58 Before you go, let me take an extra moment 57:00 to share with you an opportunity 57:01 to get into the Bible in a fresh, new way. 57:04 All across the world, more and more people 57:05 are hearing the call to examine Scriptures for themselves. 57:09 If you've felt drawn to learn more about God's Word, 57:11 but you don't know where to start 57:12 or you're just looking for a more in-depth 57:14 examination of Bible truths, 57:16 then I have something right here 57:18 that I believe you're gonna enjoy. 57:19 I want to send a series of guides to get you started. 57:22 This one's entitled "Why Does God Allow Suffering?" 57:25 Each guide begins with a story, an introduction of the subject. 57:28 Then, through a series of focus questions, 57:30 you'll be learning portions of the Bible 57:32 you may never have known before. 57:33 And when you're through, you'll be able to share with others 57:35 some of these inspiring Bible truths. 57:38 So just call our toll-free number. 57:39 It's on the screen 877, the two words HIS-WILL." 57:43 Our friendly operators are standing 57:44 by to send these study guides to you. 57:46 Once again, that's 877-HIS-WILL. 57:49 Call that number, and then again join me 57:53 next week right here at this same time, 57:55 New Perceptions. |
Revised 2021-09-24