Participants:
Series Code: NP
Program Code: NP211204S
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05:06 Good morning, Church.
05:08 How was that for an opening song? 05:10 Amen. 05:11 Today we are very excited here at Pioneer Memorial Church 05:15 because we're kicking off the Christmas season. 05:18 So welcome, whether you're attending virtually 05:21 or here in person. 05:23 Today is the beginning of a series 05:24 of very special programs 05:26 as we celebrate the Christmas season 05:29 because it's a reminder of Jesus our Savior. 05:32 So again, thank you for being here. 05:34 And now let's move to our call to worship. 05:37 Our call to worship will be on the screen 05:39 so please read the congregation portion 05:42 as I read the pastor portion. 05:45 "Look Christ comes to us, our eyes will see Him, 05:51 our ears will hear His voice. 05:54 See Christ is the faithful witness. 05:58 He directs us to God, who is the source of our lives 06:03 and the provider of our hopes." 06:06 Let's bow our heads. 06:08 Heavenly Father, thank You for this morning 06:10 where we can worship together. 06:13 Thank You for this morning where we can praise You. 06:16 No matter the cares and concerns 06:18 that are there in the world around us, 06:20 thank You that we can praise You. 06:23 This is a season where we get to remember You, 06:25 and so God right now 06:26 we're asking that You'll be here with us 06:29 as we worship You, Lord. 06:31 Impress upon our minds and fill us with Your Spirit, 06:33 so that you can worship and we can be changed, 06:36 so that we can be more focused on You, 06:39 the provider of our hopes. 06:41 So, Lord, right now we rest those in You. 06:44 Thank You. 08:04 Silent night, 08:08 Holy night 08:12 All is calm, 08:16 All is bright 08:19 Round yon Virgin, 08:24 Mother and Child 08:27 Holy infant so tender and mild 08:34 Sleep in heavenly peace 08:42 Sleep in heavenly peace 08:49 Silent night, 08:54 Holy night 08:57 Wondrous star, 09:01 Lend thy light 09:05 With the angels let us sing 09:12 Alleluia to our King 09:19 Christ the Savior 09:24 Is born 09:28 Christ the Savior is born 16:10 O come, 16:13 O come Emmanuel, 16:15 and ransom 16:17 captive Israel, 16:21 for surely 16:24 it is time. 16:28 Amen. 16:31 There's a line in the New Testament 16:32 that goes like this, 16:33 "But when the set time had fully come, 16:39 God sent His Son, 16:43 born of a woman." 16:47 It makes you wonder, doesn't it? 16:50 Have we come to that fullness of time all over again? 16:56 Young woman named Amber Strong wrote an op-ed piece, 17:00 a blog if you please back in October. 17:02 The title of the blog, 17:03 Finding Peace In The Midst Of The Pandemic. 17:05 And her opening lines capture the emotion, 17:09 the mental turmoil that this pandemic has injected 17:13 into all of our lives up here. 17:16 I want you to take a look at her words, 17:19 "From school board battles, critical race theory..." 17:24 Have you read about it? 17:26 "to restaurant attacks to airplane standoff..." 17:31 I don't know what's happened to do as Americans. 17:33 As we get on a plane we just lose it all. 17:35 Here's the stats by the way. 17:37 "Just of airplane standoffs 17:38 with more than 4000 unruly passenger reports 17:42 and 3000 plus mask-related incidents to be exact." 17:46 I refused to put that mask on. 17:49 I refused. 17:54 "The country," she writes 17:55 "seems a bit like a balloon ready to pop." 18:01 Perhaps more descriptively accurate word 18:03 would be ready to boom, explode. 18:08 What's going on in this nation? 18:10 You and me, we are part of it. 18:14 She goes on, 18:16 "It's hard to know if the world is angrier 18:19 or if it's a matter of perception." 18:21 Well, just between you and me, 18:23 I have a feeling it's got to be both. 18:24 We're ticked-off, we're scared and by the way, 18:27 that's a bad combination. 18:30 And we have no idea what's coming next, 18:34 especially since they've just announced that this COVID-19... 18:37 This is our second Christmas with COVID-19, 18:40 but this COVID-19 expansion now includes 18:45 a new emendation. 18:49 You know that the scientists have been using the letters 18:51 of the Greek alphabet to track every new little, 18:54 what are called variants. 18:56 And there was alpha, 18:57 nobody heard a word about alpha. 18:59 There was beta and nobody heard about beta. 19:00 And by the way, 19:02 the English word for alphabet is alpha-beta. 19:04 It's just the first two letters of the Greek, 19:06 the Greek alphabet. 19:07 So there was alpha, there was beta, 19:09 there was gamma and nobody heard about it. 19:11 And then delta, oh my, 19:13 we're still suffering under delta. 19:14 Isn't that right? And then there's... 19:16 What is next there? 19:18 There is epsilon and zeta and eta 19:20 and 15 letters into the alphabet. 19:23 They just announced Omicron has arrived. 19:25 In fact, two days ago, it arrived in San Francisco, 19:28 the city by the bay. 19:29 And guess what? 19:30 It's making its way eastward, you can count on it. 19:34 But the deal is nobody knows. Is it worse? 19:36 Is it better? Who knows? 19:40 Amber Strong goes on, "Here's what we do know: 19:44 Relationships have splintered. 19:46 A recent survey from Onepoll research 19:49 says 16% of Americans 19:51 have let go of a friendship since the pandemic started." 19:55 Keep reading, "The top two reasons, 19:57 number one, political divides 19:59 and number two disagreements over the COVID-19 vaccine." 20:03 Merry Christmas, everybody. 20:05 Welcome to Christmas, 2021. 20:07 You can't believe it. 20:11 It's killing us relationally. 20:15 Mercy. 20:18 A friend of mine has a young friend on this campus, 20:21 he's a student at the university. 20:24 And this young friend said to him, 20:26 "I'm in dark times three, 20:31 dark, dark, dark." 20:35 We'll make it into a little equation. 20:38 I'm in dark. 20:40 I'm in darkness like I've never been before. 20:45 It could be there are bunch of us sitting right here 20:47 with smiles and masks on our faces 20:49 and we're in that dark times 20:50 three, dark, dark, dark. 20:55 What's that line again? 20:57 But when the set time had fully come, 21:01 God sent His Son, born of a woman. 21:03 Maybe we're already there. 21:06 Again, do you suppose? 21:10 Carl Cosaert, 21:12 bright New Testament scholar at Walla Walla University, 21:14 wrote a commentary on the Book of Galatians. 21:16 And I like the way he framed this phrase the set time, 21:19 that's the NIV, the Old King James. 21:22 When the fullness of time had come, 21:24 I put Cosaert on the screen. 21:26 Jesus arrival in our world was not random. 21:32 But I think I'll go now. 21:34 Now stay, come on, come on, 21:35 there's stuff we got to do in the universe. 21:37 It was not random. 21:40 Paul says, "He came in the fullness of time, 21:42 the precise time that God had prepared. 21:45 What time was that?" 21:47 He answers his own question now. 21:50 He says there are a couple factors 21:53 we need to keep in mind. 21:56 Let's talk about an historical application 21:58 to that fullness of time. 22:01 Let's take this... 22:03 And we're going to need to do this kind of mental translation 22:05 going on now as we see what Cosaert has written. 22:08 And we're going to be asking ourselves the question. 22:10 Do these factors that happened 2000 years ago, 22:14 are they reoccurring now? 22:16 That's what we have to ask ourselves. 22:19 All right, so let's go to Cosaert, 22:22 "From an historical perspective..." 22:24 All right. I underline that. 22:25 "From an historical perspective," 22:27 and he says, "There are two perspectives 22:28 we need to think about, 22:29 but from an historical perspective, 22:31 it was known as the Pax Romana, the Roman peace. 22:36 A 200-year period of relative stability 22:39 and peace across the Roman Empire." 22:41 Question: Does this shoe fit for us? 22:44 Yes, I think it does. 22:46 It's not called Pax Romana, it's called Pax Americana, 22:52 a period of history 22:53 during which this nation has taken upon itself 22:55 to enforce a quasi global peace or at least global tolerance. 22:59 We can set up for that, maybe. 23:01 Two other want to be powers, Russia and China, 23:03 not with standing the United States is presently 23:05 the global peace enforcer of sorts. 23:08 We can find exceptions, of course. 23:12 Okay, what were those factors back then? 23:14 "Rome's conquest of the Mediterranean world 23:17 had brought one, peace." 23:18 As he just mentioned, I put the numbers in. 23:21 Two, a common language, 23:22 that would be the language of Greek. 23:24 That was Greek, 23:25 everybody spoke Greek and wrote Greek. 23:28 Three, a favorable means of travel, 23:31 the sea lanes, the shipping lanes are open. 23:33 Rome is enforcing clear highways, aqueducts, 23:36 yes, great. 23:37 And number four, a common culture 23:40 that facilitated the rapid spread of the gospel, 23:42 the Hellenistic culture. 23:44 Everybody read the same philosophers, 23:46 they read the same... 23:47 They went to the same place. 23:49 It just permeated the empire. 23:53 Does the shoe fit? 23:55 Does this fullness of time 23:59 come once more at the end of time? 24:04 Let me run through that list again, 24:06 but I'm going to add some to it if it's okay with you 24:09 because what we'll put Cosaert's first four. 24:11 There was global peace, got that checked, 24:13 got that today sort of. 24:15 There's global common language. 24:16 Yep, it's English, we know that. 24:19 You can go anywhere on the planet 24:20 somebody there would speak English. 24:22 Number three, it's global travel. 24:23 If you got a passport and a plane ticket, 24:25 you can go anywhere on this planet, 24:26 you are there tomorrow. 24:29 It's never been easier. 24:30 Okay, number three, global travel. 24:32 So far global culture. 24:33 You know the global culture is McDonald's, 24:36 Walmart and Coca Cola. 24:39 That's it, everywhere. 24:41 It's really a youth culture. 24:43 We talk about the culture of the world. 24:44 It's a youth culture. 24:46 I've been all over this planet. 24:47 The young dress alike, they talk alike, 24:51 they act alike, they read alike, 24:54 they watch alike, 24:55 they listen alike, they eat alike. 24:57 It's the young culture 24:58 and everybody who's older than the young 25:00 is going down to join. 25:02 I want to be a part of that culture. 25:03 We can't help it. That is the culture. 25:05 We have a global culture. Oh yes, we do. 25:08 But I'm going to add now a few more, 25:10 global access to Scripture. 25:12 Two hundred years before Jesus came, 25:14 the Old Testament was translated into Greek. 25:16 It's called Septuagint, so that it was everywhere. 25:20 People could check the Bible out. 25:23 Today, are you kidding, 25:24 there isn't a place where the Bible is not known, 25:26 it's the most known 25:28 and available book on the planet bar none. 25:31 So number five is global access to Scripture, 25:34 Number six, global messianic diaspora, 25:36 because the Jews were everywhere 25:38 and because they were, this hope of the Messiah 25:40 is everywhere. 25:41 Everywhere a Jew went, 25:42 there was hope for the coming Messiah. 25:44 Oh, that was perfect. 25:46 That was a perfect time to come. 25:47 Is there a global messianic diaspora now? 25:49 There is. 25:51 Everywhere where Christian goes, 25:52 there goes the hope, 25:54 there lies the hope of the soon coming of Jesus by and large. 25:58 Yeah. 26:00 And then number seven, a global Sabbatarian diaspora. 26:04 And that's why when Paul, 26:05 who's stick and closed to the Sabbath, 26:07 because it wasn't a Jewish, it wasn't a Jewish gift. 26:10 It was for the human race and Paul was a Sabbatarian. 26:13 And when he became a Christian, 26:14 he didn't leave Sabbatarian isn't behind. 26:16 He was still a Sabbatarian but wherever he went, 26:18 the Sabbath immediately took root, 26:20 the entire first century, that's all they knew. 26:24 Oh, are we having that again? 26:26 Oh, we have people all over this planet, 26:28 who are taking the truth that the Creator 26:29 of this universe is alive and well. 26:31 And no matter what naturalism or scientific atheism teaches, 26:36 there is a Creator and we believe 26:39 that He reminds us every Sabbath day 26:41 that He is still Lord of this planet. 26:45 Yeah, global Sabbatarian diaspora. 26:51 "But there's not just a historical perspective," 26:53 Cosaert says. 26:55 Let me tell you about another perspective 26:56 and it's right here too. 26:58 "From a biblical perspective, 27:00 it also marked the fullness of time. 27:02 It also marked the time God had appointed 27:04 for the coming of the Promised Messiah 27:06 according to the prophecies of Daniel." 27:09 Hit the pause button right here. 27:11 Do you know that the first words out of Jesus' 27:13 mouth in the Book of Mark, okay? 27:15 He starts preaching 27:16 and His first words are these literally, 27:19 "The time is fulfilled. 27:23 The kingdom is at hand, repent and believe the gospel." 27:26 That is one sentence summation of everything He preached, 27:30 the time is fulfilled. 27:32 Where did you get that idea? 27:34 He got it from Daniel. 27:36 Daniel gives the exact date of His anointing, 27:39 the baptism and the exact date of His crucifixion. 27:44 It's all in Daniel. 27:46 So when He says, "It's here now," 27:48 the fullness of time, prophecy, 27:50 God's prophetic clock strikes 27:52 and then the Messiah comes the first time. 27:55 Keep reading, "Thus the entrance of Jesus 27:57 into human history was no accident." 28:00 He came right on time. 28:02 Question: Will He do it again? 28:04 Help me out here. Will He do it again? 28:07 If He came the first time according to prophecy, 28:09 will He come the second time according to prophecy? 28:11 But, of course, we are living once again 28:13 in the fullness of time. 28:15 You can get there from here, be reminded fellow human being. 28:21 We live as JB Phillips put it on a visited planet, 28:26 and the visitor is coming back again. 28:29 And that's what keeps me going and it keeps you going too. 28:33 I know you, good for you. 28:37 As Cosaert put it, "The entrance of Jesus 28:40 into human history was no accident." 28:42 And I'm going to add, "And neither will be His, 28:46 the Messiah's second coming would be the accident." 28:51 Wow. 28:55 What's that line again, 28:56 that when the set time had fully come, 28:59 God sent His Son, born of a woman. 29:03 Now, I need to tell you there's one more factor. 29:06 I'm going to add it, it's going to be number eight 29:10 because what we're going through right now. 29:14 Watch this, here's that list, drop down to number eight, 29:17 global existential crisis. 29:21 That's what we have going on right now. 29:24 Did they have it back then? 29:26 Oh, mercy, the Gospel Prophet 29:28 600 years before the Christ Child was born, 29:31 the Gospel Prophet says, 29:32 "Let me tell you about what the planet will be like 29:33 and the culture would be like 29:35 when He comes in the fullness of time." 29:37 Let me show you, the Gospel Prophet says. 29:39 So let's go to Isaiah Chapter 9, 29:41 very familiar words, the verse 2, 29:43 "The people walking in darkness have seen a great light, 29:47 and on those living in the land of deep darkness," 29:50 there it is, 29:51 dark times three equals deep darkness. 29:56 "So people living in the land of deep darkness 29:59 and then a light has dawned." 30:04 Nothing's changed or shall I say, 30:07 we've come back to what it was. 30:14 I was talking with a young co-head on this campus. 30:17 And somehow our conversation got into a depression. 30:22 And I was hardly prepared for her answer. 30:24 When she stopped, she says, "You know what, 30:25 I'm depressed right now." 30:28 I said, "You are?" 30:30 "Yeah, I'm experiencing depression." 30:34 Deep darkness. 30:37 Dark, dark, dark, this young man on this campus 30:43 describes it. 30:45 So I go to... 30:47 I said, "Listen, I got to check this out." 30:49 You're not going to believe what I found 30:50 from Boston University. 30:52 I want you to never forget the words 30:53 you're about to see research done. 30:56 You'll see it, watch. 30:59 "Depression among adults in the United States 31:01 tripled in the early 2020 months 31:04 of the global Coronavirus pandemic." 31:07 Tripled. What are those numbers? 31:09 Let's put them up. 31:11 "Jumping from 8.5% 31:12 before the pandemic to a staggering 27.8%." 31:18 Keep reading, "New research 31:20 from the Boston University School of Public Health reveals 31:23 that the elevated rate of depression 31:26 has persisted into 2021, and even worsened," 31:29 keep reading, "climbing to 32.8% 31:33 and affecting one in every three American adults." 31:37 Let's just figure this out. 31:39 One, two, depression three, one, two, depression three, 31:43 one, two, depression three, one, two, depression three, 31:46 one out of three. 31:49 Mercy, he's right. That's the America. 31:52 You want to talk about an existential crisis. 31:54 We're in it now. 31:56 It was that way 2000 years ago. 31:59 Are we surprised at last in the fullness of time, 32:04 we return to a deep darkness, 32:08 dark, dark, dark. 32:13 So you're not alone, young adult, old adult, 32:15 it doesn't matter. 32:17 One out of three of us. 32:18 One out of three, 32:22 which leads me to pause right here. 32:26 I'm going to express a word of gratitude 32:27 to the faculty staff of this university. 32:31 I'm thinking about the other campus, 32:32 Andrews Academy, I'm thinking about the other campus, 32:34 Ruth Murdoch Elementary School. 32:35 I'm thinking about educators right now. 32:38 I want to express a word of collective gratitude to you 32:42 who teach and I see you sitting out there. 32:46 You know why? 32:47 Because the truth of the matter 32:49 is that you also have gone through a time 32:52 of the immense stress 32:55 that the pandemic has inflicted upon us. 32:56 Something called hybrid teaching, 32:59 where you teach to real people in front of you 33:02 and fake people on a screen. 33:04 No, no, they're real people on the screen as well, 33:06 but you teach to them 33:07 and you teach to them simultaneously. 33:11 And then you make sure that everything is recorded 33:13 and uploaded so that the ones who didn't decide not to come 33:16 to class today can still get the entire lecture tonight. 33:21 Nobody has an idea 33:23 of what you've been going through in this pandemic. 33:27 Isn't that amazing that in an institution 33:30 and a congregation that belongs to this university? 33:33 Isn't that amazing 33:34 that when we concentrate on students 33:36 as we all are doing, 33:37 we forget that there're caregivers 33:39 in our schools on all three campuses 33:42 are experiencing the same darkness, 33:44 the same weary stress related hopelessness? 33:48 What do you think they are? 33:50 Super people, unaffected, it's killing them. 33:54 Some of them are having a hard time 33:57 just showing up to work. 33:59 I know. 34:01 And we take them all for granted. 34:03 Well, yeah, they're supposed to be. 34:04 That's all we pay him to do. 34:06 No, we're all going through this pandemic together. 34:09 And by the way, let me say a shout out 34:11 to our administrators 34:15 because then everybody can say yeah, but them. 34:19 This is the hardest time ever in history to be a leader, 34:23 trust me. 34:25 You're never pleasing anybody sometimes, 34:28 and you can never please everybody ever. 34:31 To be an administrator, it's your fault. 34:34 You're not doing a good enough job. 34:36 Well, if I'm in your place, here's what I do. 34:38 Well, let's trade places for a week or a month. 34:42 You'd be back so fast to where you were. 34:46 Listen, Pioneer Church, community members, 34:49 we owe a huge students, 34:52 we owe a huge debt to this selfless service. 34:57 Men and women to God 34:58 who show up everyday 35:00 whether they feel like showing up or not. 35:03 And I for once say, "God bless them." 35:04 What do you say? 35:06 Yeah, absolutely. 35:10 Dark times three equals the darkness. 35:14 Two thousand years ago, that's the way it was 35:16 and guess what? 35:17 Global existential crisis, we're there again. 35:22 That's why we can't end with Isaiah 9:2. 35:26 There's the good news immediately on its heels. 35:28 Come on, let's get to the good news, Dwight. 35:30 Come on, do it fast. 35:31 Okay, Isaiah 9:6, everybody knows these words, 35:33 "For unto us a child is born." 35:37 Is that Handel's Messiah? 35:39 Of course, it is. 35:40 And here's where we got it from. 35:41 He didn't write that. 35:43 "For unto us a child is born, to us a son is given 35:45 and the government will be on His shoulders. 35:48 And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, 35:50 Mighty God, Everlasting Father," 35:52 and guess what? 35:54 "Prince of Peace." 35:57 My, my, my, my, are you talking about the same baby 36:01 that got born in Bethlehem 36:03 and on that starry night that angelic choir... 36:06 Oh, I wish I had a YouTube of that, 36:07 that angelic choir singing their hearts out. 36:10 What was the line of that song? 36:14 Glory to God in the highest and on earth, what? 36:18 We just blow right through it. 36:20 Oh, and to all men within His good will, 36:23 we just blow right through it, and on earth, peace. 36:27 Do you know why? 36:28 Because 2000 years ago 36:30 they were in desperate need of peace. 36:31 And you know why? 36:32 Because 2000 years later in the fullness of time, 36:34 again we are in desperate need of that same peace. 36:38 He's called the Prince of Peace. 36:39 Hallelujah. 36:41 Got to get a hallelujah for the Prince of Peace? 36:43 Come on. 36:47 Wow! 36:49 So no matter how deep the darkness 36:52 that you are experiencing right now, 36:55 I got some great news for you. 36:58 The Prince of Peace has something 37:01 to touch your heart and to heal the pain in your mind. 37:07 And I want to talk about that before I sit down. 37:09 I'm going to give you now three simple steps 37:12 to turn to the Prince of Peace, 37:15 to seek and to experience 37:17 His Peace in darkness times three, deep darkness, right? 37:22 Here they are. 37:24 Three steps, step number one, jot these down in your mind. 37:26 We don't use study guides anymore. 37:28 You might have COVID on them. 37:29 So just jot it down in your mind. 37:31 Step number one, go to the source. 37:36 On the eve of His own death, can you believe this? 37:38 Jesus is about... 37:40 Get this, Jesus is about to enter 37:41 into His own darkness times three, 37:43 times three, times three. 37:45 It's going to be hell that dark in Gethsemane in just hours, 37:49 maybe minutes away. 37:52 He should be thinking about Himself, 37:53 but He's thinking about you and me. 37:57 And He leaves a promise with us. 37:58 I don't want you to ever forget this promise. 38:00 John 14:27, still in the upper room, 38:03 "Peace I leave with you, My Peace I give to you. 38:09 I do not give to you as the world gives. 38:11 No, no, no. 38:12 Do not let your hearts be troubled 38:14 and do not be afraid." 38:17 I was reading these very words to a man near his death, 38:21 I tell you the truth. 38:23 In fact, I was holding his hand 38:25 while I'm reading the words and then offering the prayer 38:30 and he died while I was holding his hand. 38:36 When the nurse came in, she saw the monitor, 38:39 "What's happening?" 38:41 He died 38:43 while those words were read. 38:47 I don't know about you but if, 38:49 when I die, 38:51 I wouldn't mind dying that way. 38:55 Better yet I'd rather leave that way. 38:58 My, my. 39:02 So go to the source, go to Jesus. 39:07 You are not going to find the peace 39:09 you desperately need anywhere else. 39:11 And I'm talking to a very self-confident generation 39:15 that's on this campus right now in both the faculty 39:17 and the student body. 39:18 We're very self-confident. 39:20 "Hey, listen, I get myself on anything. 39:21 Don't you worry about it. 39:22 This dark, dark, dark, deep darkness, 39:25 I'll get myself out." 39:28 No, you won't, you won't find it anywhere else, 39:30 I promise you. 39:36 Amber Strong, young lady that we were consulting 39:39 at the beginning with her blog. 39:42 She sat down with a rabbi. 39:43 The rabbi said something rather significant 39:46 and I want you to overhear what the rabbi said to her. 39:49 She was putting to, how to find peace in the pandemic, 39:52 peace together. 39:53 So here she's quoting the rabbi now, okay? 39:55 In Hebrew, peace and the word is shalom. 39:58 In Hebrew peace comes from the root for wholeness. 40:02 Everything is like whole and complete, 40:05 Rabbi Laurie Green said, 40:07 "So it's not just the absence of conflict." 40:09 Oh, let's have peace on earth, no war. 40:11 That's not what shalom deeply is. 40:13 But there's a kind of internal wholeness with shalom, 40:16 with peace and completion, and that's what brings peace. 40:20 She says, by the way, 40:22 "That the current absence of personal peace 40:23 comes from the need to be in control." 40:29 She knows us too well. Here we go. 40:32 "We delude ourselves into thinking," quoting her, 40:34 "that we have a lot more control 40:36 over the world than we really do," 40:38 Green said. 40:39 "And I think something like this," 40:41 she's talking about the pandemic, 40:42 "shows us all, especially us, 40:44 you know, smart, wealthy, 40:47 we know how to control everything, 40:48 and we run the world Westerners that actually not so true." 40:53 If the pandemic has revealed anything to this nation 40:56 and to you and me, 40:57 it is that we are not in control. 41:01 We have tried everything to be in control politically, 41:04 economically, medically, we are not in control. 41:09 Mental health-wise, we are not in control. 41:13 Depression is up, up, we are not in control. 41:17 We can't stop it. 41:21 She's right. The rabbi's right. 41:24 We thought we could just kind 41:25 of bandaid our way through this. 41:27 You're not going to. 41:28 If you are in dark times, three deep darkness right now, 41:32 there's only one person that is your hope, 41:36 I promise you. 41:38 Go to the source. 41:39 Let's read these words out loud together. 41:41 Come on, let me hear you, "Peace. 41:43 I leave with you, My peace I give you. 41:48 I do not give to you as the world gives. 41:51 Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid." 41:56 Three simple rules. 41:58 Rule number one, go to the source. 42:00 Step number two, ask for the gift. 42:05 Come on. 42:07 Look, if He's the Prince of Peace, 42:10 and He says, "My Peace I leave with you." 42:12 I can't think of a better place for Him to leave His Peace 42:14 than with you and me, can you? 42:16 He said, "I leave My Peace with you," 42:17 please, then let's go to Him. 42:21 My Lord Jesus, I must have Your peace 42:25 and I must have it now, please. 42:31 We all struggle for that peace. 42:33 I know I do. 42:35 I sometimes wake up in the middle of night 42:36 makes me so mad 42:40 and stuff pops into my mind. 42:43 Issues about my career, 42:45 about some relationships I'm in, 42:51 my health, my family. It just... 42:56 My mind gets all agitated. 42:57 I won't look at my watch. 42:59 I don't want to know what time it is, 43:02 but just keeps festering. 43:06 So I'm going to tell you something that I found. 43:08 It's just quite by accident I'm sure it was the Holy Spirit 43:10 but that has made a difference for me, 43:14 because somehow in the middle of the night, 43:16 I feel so much more vulnerable. 43:20 I don't know what it is. 43:21 It's just like the devil's just sitting there waiting, 43:24 "I was hoping you'd wake up." 43:27 That devil's mean who kicked you 43:30 and I'm suddenly vulnerable. 43:33 And I realize how weak I am 43:36 and the struggles I have and I say, "My God." 43:40 But I found something, I'm gonna share it with you. 43:44 Psalm 127:2, I'm not putting it on the screen. 43:48 There's a single line that reads like this, 43:51 "He gives His beloved sleep." 43:55 Sleep is code word for peace. 43:58 "He gives His beloved sleep." 44:01 And I just start repeating that... 44:02 I don't, I'm not listening to you. 44:05 And I just keep repeating it, "He gives His beloved sleep." 44:09 God, that's You. 44:11 You give Your beloved sleep. 44:14 I'm asking for that peace, I need it right now." 44:18 I don't move my lips. I just pray in my heart. 44:22 Sometimes I'll fall asleep and sometimes I won't. 44:27 I just keep thinking, 44:29 but the way I think has a paradigm shift 44:32 inserted into it and it's not such bad news now. 44:37 I'm telling you, we all struggle for peace, 44:42 but you can ask for the gift. 44:43 Ask for the gift, He'll give it to you. 44:47 Henri Nouwen, the great... 44:49 No, the celebrated writer in a letter to a friend 44:52 made a thoughtful point we need to know, 44:54 and so I'm going to put it now on the screen here. 44:55 I really wish, he's writing to a friend, 44:57 "I really wish you an ever deeper peace." 45:00 What a wish to give to a friend. 45:03 Keep reading, "I know that peace quite often lives" 45:06 he was a psychologist and a priest, 45:08 "that peace often lives underneath the turmoils 45:12 and anxieties of our heart 45:14 and doesn't always mean inner harmony 45:16 or emotional tranquility." 45:18 "Don't worry about that," He says. 45:20 I know that you're going to still stay agitated. 45:21 But keep reading, "That peace that God gives us 45:25 quite often is beyond our thoughts and feelings, 45:29 and we have to really trust that peace is there for us 45:33 to claim even in the midst of our moments of despair." 45:39 Isn't that good? 45:40 He said, "You're not going to feel it necessarily. 45:43 Nothing may change but you have to believe it. 45:47 You have to believe 45:48 that that peace is down underneath that darkness. 45:51 It's already there with you." 45:53 It has to be true folks, 45:54 because when Jesus makes the promise about John 14:27, 45:57 "My Peace I leave with you, not as a world give it," 45:59 that promise. 46:00 He's minutes away from deep darkness times three, 46:05 times 30 times... 46:09 and He knows it. 46:12 He's promising peace knowing 46:15 that He's going into that darkness. 46:16 But you know in the darkness when He sobbing, 46:19 "Abba, Father, I beg of You take this darkness away, 46:21 take the cup away from me." 46:25 Through it all, 46:27 He still has peace. 46:30 His peace is believing 46:32 that God will work it all out in the end 46:35 and you have to believe that, my friend. 46:37 You just have to believe God will work it out. 46:40 You can't, but Jesus can. 46:45 Peace I leave with you, 46:49 My peace I give to you. 46:50 I do not give to you as the world gives. 46:53 Now, you can't find it. 46:55 The world doesn't have it for you, give it up. 46:57 Do not let your hearts be troubled 47:00 and do not be afraid. 47:04 Three simple steps, 47:05 go to the source, ask for the gift and finally, 47:10 trust in the Master. 47:12 When He says, "Let not your heart be troubled," 47:14 He means that. 47:15 When He says, "Let not your heart be afraid," 47:17 as it is in the Old King James, He means it. 47:19 Don't be afraid. 47:21 How do we know He means that? 47:24 Because once upon a time in the middle of the night 47:26 when every star in the heavens has been blotted out 47:30 and this raging gale has descended upon 47:32 the Sea of Galilee, 47:34 He is asleep in that fishing skiff. 47:37 The drenched to the bone disciples are certain 47:42 they're going down now, 47:44 "Master save us, we perish." 47:49 And Jesus who could sleep through His storm 47:53 that tells you the kind of piece He can give you, 47:56 stands up, 47:58 grabs the mast, 48:03 raises a hand that will be nail marked 48:07 before days have gone by. 48:10 And He speaks two words. 48:12 "Peace be still." 48:16 And it was like you were in a Hollywood studio 48:18 and somebody hit the switch. 48:23 No wind stars in Jesus. 48:27 He turns to his panicked, 48:29 drenched young friends 48:35 and He asked them, "Why were you afraid? 48:40 Don't you trust Me?" 48:43 That's it. 48:45 Trust Me. 48:47 "I'm in the storm with you. 48:50 Darkness times three is added for you. 48:52 I'm in that darkness with you. 48:55 I am your friend. 48:58 I am your God. 48:59 I am the Prince of Peace. 49:01 Trust me, please, 49:06 and we'll go through this together." 49:09 Oh wow, what a savior. 49:14 Desire of Ages tells the truth, my soul needs to learn, 49:17 I'll end with this." 49:19 Sin has destroyed our peace." 49:21 Oh how true that is. 49:25 I want to thank 49:30 Professor Puha in that lab here at Andrews University 49:35 for that beautiful children's story on sin. 49:38 She was spot on. 49:39 Sin is what destroys our peace, come on while self, 49:42 this is my problem right here. 49:44 While self is unsubdued, 49:45 we can find no rest, no peace. 49:50 "We are as helpless as here as were the disciples 49:53 to quiet the raging storm. 49:54 But he who spoke peace 49:56 to the billows of Galilee has spoken," 49:59 notice this, 50:00 "has already spoken 50:02 the word of peace for every soul on this planet." 50:04 Jesus has already spoken your peace. 50:07 It's yours now to claim in your trust of the Master. 50:11 He's already spoken it, "You have peace." 50:14 Sir, you want peace? 50:17 You have it? 50:18 I died for it. 50:21 You have it. 50:26 "However fierce the tempest, however deep the darkness, 50:31 those who turn to Jesus with the cry, 50:33 'Lord save me' will find deliverance." 50:36 Oh, this the last slide, but I love this. 50:38 "His grace that reconciles the soul to God, 50:41 quiets the strife of human passion, 50:42 and in His love, the heart is at rest." 50:46 In His love, the heart is at peace. 50:49 That's where it comes from. 50:51 The unrelenting love of Christ Jesus for you 50:56 and me right now. 50:59 That's where the peace is. 51:01 Nail scarred love, that's where His peace is. 51:07 So, go to the source, 51:10 ask for the gift, trust the Master. 51:13 And what will be the outcome when you trust the Master? 51:15 I quote the Bible now, 51:17 "And the peace of God 51:18 which passes all understanding 51:20 will guard your heart and your mind 51:24 in Christ Jesus this Christmas." 51:28 Can I get an amen from this congregation? 51:31 Amen. This Christmas, oh God. 51:35 Please, Prince of Peace 51:39 enter into our darkness. 51:42 Breath Your promise, 51:46 grant us Your peace 51:49 and walk with us till this darkness 51:52 one day shall pass 51:55 and we shall stand in Your house 52:00 forever and ever. 52:02 Amen. 52:04 I'm going to send you that Desire of Ages quote. 52:07 I'm going to give you a way to get it. 52:09 If you'll text to this number 269-281-2345, 52:13 I wanna send you that quote. 52:14 I want you to print it off and put it in your Bible, 52:17 put it by where your study desk is, 52:19 just keep that quote. 52:20 I'm going to send it to you, 52:21 but you're going to need to dial 52:23 or text Peace 1 to 269-281-2345. 52:27 You already have it speed dial 52:28 so just hit Pioneer text and there you are. 52:31 You're going to read a line that says, 52:32 "My next step today is..." 52:34 You click on that line. 52:36 And the first box, 52:38 "I will memorize Jesus promise of daily peace in John 14:27." 52:42 You may be holding somebody's hand 52:43 who is dying one day, 52:45 maybe not dying physically but dying emotionally 52:47 or spiritually. 52:49 Have this text ready to go, memorize it, 52:51 you will never regret that text, 52:53 being locked, locked in your heart. 52:55 Box number two, 52:57 I will take the three simple steps to receive Jesus' peace, 52:59 the Prince of Peace in the midst of this pandemic. 53:02 I will go to the source, I will ask for the gift 53:04 and I will trust in the Master. 53:06 Amen. 53:07 Here's box number three, if you check this box, 53:10 "Please send me that Desire of Ages page 336 quotation. 53:14 I'd like to keep it near." 53:15 So I will text it to you. 53:16 You'll have it. 53:18 Cut and paste and print, do whatever you want, 53:21 but you'll have it. 53:23 Box number four, I want to follow Jesus in baptism. 53:25 Some of you are wondering 53:26 why there's just been darkness, darkness. 53:30 You thought about it, "Someday, someday." 53:33 No, don't put it off another day. 53:35 The peace comes from the Prince of Peace. 53:38 And when you're baptized into the Prince of Peace, 53:40 that's how you get His peace. 53:42 So put a checkmark there. 53:44 We'll be in touch with anywhere on the planet right now. 53:46 We'll be in touch with you electronically 53:48 and we'll work out a way for your wish to be baptized 53:52 to come true. 53:54 Right now I want to sing a beautiful song. 53:56 We're not going to bring any singers up here, 53:57 but I want you to catch it because you're going to sing 53:59 this beautiful carol, 54:00 "It came upon the midnight clear." 54:02 And here's the last stanza, 54:04 this is all about the deep darkness of the pandemic. 54:06 Listen to this, here's the last stanza, 54:08 "And ye beneath life's crushing load." 54:10 You're going to see the words on the screen. 54:12 "Whose forms are bending low, 54:14 who toil along the climbing way with painful steps and slow. 54:18 Look now for glad and golden hours come swiftly on the wing. 54:22 Oh, rest beside..." 54:24 There's your promise of peace. 54:26 "Oh rest beside the weary road 54:28 and hear the angels sing." 54:32 Come on, we got to sing that one together. 54:54 It came upon the midnight clear 54:59 That glorious song of old 55:04 From angels bending near the earth 55:09 To touch their harps of gold 55:14 Peace on earth, goodwill to men 55:19 From heaven's all gracious King 55:25 The world in solemn stillness lay 55:30 To hear the angels sing 55:45 Is it about the holiday season that has given you 55:47 the greatest joy? 55:49 Is it the time spent cutting down the family Christmas tree 55:51 at the local farm 55:53 or maybe a special ornament placed on that lighted bow? 55:56 Or do you find joy in contemplating 55:58 the profound meaning of the carols we sing? 56:01 Maybe Christmas joy is found in the memories 56:03 you make together with friends and family, 56:05 and the spirit of giving that surrounds this season. 56:09 As we reflect on these joys, 56:11 let's always remember the great light that guides us. 56:14 The one who brings joy and meaning to life, 56:16 a loving Father who was at the heart 56:17 of all treasured relationships and the wonderful God 56:21 who gave the ultimate gift in a newborn Child. 56:25 Some of my joy this season comes in part 56:27 from your letters, your prayers 56:29 and your faithful giving of support to this ministry, 56:31 which reaches literally around the world. 56:34 If you've been blessed this year, 56:36 I'd like to ask you to join the many people 56:38 who financially support 56:39 this global New Perceptions ministry. 56:42 It's simple to do. 56:43 Just call our toll free number 877 56:46 two words HIS WILL. 56:48 Our friendly operators will be happy to help you. 56:51 You can also click the donate link 56:52 at the top of our website. 56:54 Trust me, no gift is too small for God to use 56:57 to spread the good news of His love, 56:59 His sacrifice and His future plans for our happiness. 57:03 Every gift, by the way, 57:05 is entirely invested in our mission 57:07 to communicate God's good news to a generation 57:10 who needs the hope found in Jesus, 57:12 which will bring them to joy in life. 57:14 So once again, 57:16 the number to call is 8777-HIS WILL. 57:19 This season, my wish for you is that the mighty God, 57:22 the Everlasting Father, 57:24 the Prince of Peace will be at the heart 57:26 of the very best memories made together 57:29 with your family and friends. |
Revised 2021-12-30