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00:12 ♪♪♪ 00:22 ♪♪♪ 00:34 Shawn Brummund: Hello friends, and welcome 00:35 to another edition of the, "Sabbath School Study Hour." 00:37 My name is Pastor Shawn Brummund, 00:39 and I have the privilege of hosting today's lesson study. 00:42 We're gonna continue to look at this quarter's quarterly study 00:45 which is Present Truth In The Book Of Deuteronomy. 00:49 For many of you who have joined us and rejoining us, 00:51 it's nice to have you join us again here this morning. 00:54 For those of you who are watching live online, 00:57 for those of you who are with us here 00:59 in the Granite Bay Church, it is always nice to be able 01:02 to have our church family come together 01:04 on another Sabbath morning, as well as we have a number 01:07 of visitors that have joined us and even coming in 01:10 from out of town as well. 01:12 We also know that there are some joining us and watching this 01:15 in a future broadcast on the various networks. 01:18 Nice to have you come and join us here today as well. 01:23 So, we are, as I said, we are in the Book of Deuteronomy. 01:27 We're looking at lesson number six. 01:29 And so if you have your quarterly, 01:30 make sure that you go ahead and grab that 01:32 so you can follow along with us. 01:33 And, of course, we also want to make sure that we have 01:35 our Bible with us as well. 01:38 Before we invite our musicians forward to help us lead us 01:42 in song, I want to invite you to take advantage 01:45 of a special free-gift offer that we have just for you. 01:49 And this particular free-gift offer is one of my favorite 01:52 study guides, and it's an important question to ask. 01:55 "Is Obedience Legalism?" 01:57 Is obedience legalism? 01:58 This is a question that many Christians 02:00 have asked through the centuries. 02:01 It's one that you may be asking. 02:03 I want to invite you to take advantage of that. 02:04 You just simply have to dial into 1-866-788-3966. 02:10 Again, that's number 866-788-3966 02:15 and ask for free offer number 706. 02:18 That's available for those who are in North America 02:20 or any of the US territories. 02:23 So, please take advantage of that if you've never gone 02:25 through that study guide. 02:26 And if you want to get a digital copy of that, 02:28 that's also available for you in a digital format for your phone. 02:32 You can download it by simply texting the code "SH041." 02:37 And you want to dial that to 40544, 02:42 and that'll give you a connection for a free download. 02:45 You can also see the website address 02:47 that you can also find that at the Amazing Facts website. 02:50 And by the way, if you don't have a copy of the quarterly 02:54 and you'd like a copy, if you haven't visited 02:56 your local Seventh Day Adventist Church. 02:58 Very rarely it's hard to find a Seventh Day Adventist Church 03:01 that doesn't have a free copy offer available for you to be 03:05 able to have in your hands. 03:06 And again, if you want a digital copy of that you just go 03:08 to Amazingfacts.org and in the search bar, 03:13 just go ahead and put in their, 03:15 "Present truth Deuteronomy Sabbath school quarterly." 03:18 Any of those keywords and you'll be able to find 03:20 a free digital download copy for you there as well. 03:24 Well, we're going to go ahead and invite our musicians forward 03:28 as they're going to lead us in worship in song. 03:33 ♪♪♪ 06:21 Shawn: Let's go ahead and pray. 06:22 Father in heaven, we want to thank you so much 06:24 for the opportunity to be able to worship you here this morning 06:27 through study, through song, and want to pray 06:30 that you'll bless Pastor Lucas as he teaches our lesson study 06:33 here again this morning. 06:35 And God, want to pray that you will bless us 06:38 and that your Holy Spirit will be our teacher again. 06:41 We thank you for the promise that you send your Spirit 06:43 to all and sincerely ask that we might understand 06:45 and embrace the truth. 06:48 And so, God, we want to pray it in Jesus's name, amen. 06:53 Lucas Rodor: Our lesson today is a beautiful lesson. 06:56 It's a lesson that kind of recaps a little bit of history. 07:01 You know, the study of this lesson is 07:04 really beautiful lesson. 07:07 The Book of Deuteronomy, I think I remember 07:11 Pastor Doug mentioning this a few weeks ago. 07:14 But one of the things that I really like about 07:16 the Book of Deuteronomy is that you know how 07:18 each different culture has a different way of introducing 07:24 or inaugurating their new leader, right? 07:27 For example, here in the US when the president, he takes power, 07:32 they bring him the Bible, and there is a vow. 07:36 He places his hand on the Bible, and he vows certain things. 07:40 And each culture has something like that. 07:42 In Brazil, they have something similar, in England. 07:45 And they have different ways where 07:47 they inaugurate the leader. 07:48 And in the biblical times, the king was enthroned, 07:52 or the way that the king was enthroned, 07:54 is that they would bring the Book of Deuteronomy 07:56 and he would read it. 07:57 He would open up the scroll, and he would read it, 07:59 and that would qualify him to then take power. 08:03 It's interesting that when you look at Revelation chapter 5 08:06 and you see that John is crying, and there's this whole scene up 08:10 in heaven where John is crying, it's because he sees the scroll, 08:14 and there's no one worthy to read it. 08:17 And so, he cries because the meaning is that the universe 08:19 has no king. 08:22 But then he hears of the Lamb that is coming. 08:25 And when he looks, he sees who? 08:27 The Lion, the Lion of the tribe of Judah. 08:31 And so, that, that being that we know who it is, 08:34 he then opens the scroll and reads it. 08:36 And that means that the universe is not left without a king. 08:39 It's not left to just guide itself in chaos. 08:42 So, there's a lot of, there's a lot of meaning 08:44 behind the Book of Deuteronomy, and it ties into the whole 08:49 culture of the Jewish nation and the Israelite nation 08:52 and to the whole logic, the very fabric of the Bible. 08:55 So, there's a lot for us to learn right here 08:58 and for us to unpack. 08:59 Now, the lesson today is lesson six. 09:02 And the title of this lesson is, 09:04 "For What Nation Is There So Great". 09:07 Now, this is a very important lesson. 09:09 The lesson--the memory verse comes from Deuteronomy 09:12 chapter 4, and we're going to be reading from this chapter. 09:15 The lesson revolves around the chapter 4 of Deuteronomy. 09:19 And we're going to be reading the first few verses 09:21 throughout the lesson. 09:22 But the memory verse is Deuteronomy 4, verse 8 09:25 that says, "And what nation is there, 09:27 that hath statutes and righteous judgments as are-- 09:31 are in all this law, which I set before you this day?" 09:37 That's Deuteronomy chapter 4, verse 8. 09:39 So, in a way, our lesson this week revolves 09:41 around Deuteronomy chapter 4. 09:45 Now, the purpose of the sermon, or the message, 09:48 of this chapter is not to just remind the people 09:52 of their history. 09:53 It goes beyond this. 09:55 It also emphasizes the power, the grace, the mercy of God 09:59 in the context in which they're going through. 10:01 And God, this God that is being emphasized, 10:04 is the God that never gives up on humans. 10:07 Despite of their weaknesses, despite of their failures, 10:09 and despite of the many times where he has to discipline them 10:12 and even chastise them, this is the God that never gives up. 10:16 The Bible says that God disciplines those who he what? 10:19 Who he loves. 10:21 So, if God loves us, we can expect discipline. 10:23 You can expect that have good parents also. 10:25 If parents love their children, they won't just let them do 10:27 whatever they want. 10:29 That's not a proof of love. 10:30 That kind of freedom is a proof of disinterest. 10:35 You know, the contrary of love is not hate. 10:39 It's just disinterest, not caring. 10:42 That is the true opposite of love. 10:44 And so, the God that we find in the Bible is a God who extends 10:47 His mercy, His love, and yes, His discipline, 10:50 to those who are not perfect, who fall. 10:53 And we see this here in the story of Israel, 10:55 but he doesn't give up on them. 10:57 And so, the text that starts off the week really is 11:00 Deuteronomy chapter 4, verse 1. 11:02 And that's what we're going to read right now. 11:03 Deuteronomy 4, verse 1 that says--now I really want you 11:07 to pay attention to the wording because we're gonna go deep into 11:09 the words that are presented to us here in this lesson. 11:13 "Now," it starts off with "now." 11:15 The whole chapter starts off with the word "now." 11:18 "Now, O Israel, listen to the statutes and the judgments which 11:22 I teach you to observe, that you may live, and go in and possess 11:26 the land which the Lord God of your fathers is giving you." 11:31 So, what's interesting is that the word that starts off 11:34 the chapter is the word "now." 11:36 This is a transitional word in this literature. 11:39 It's a transitional word. 11:42 "Now, O Israel, listen to the," it indicates the continuity, 11:45 right? 11:47 It's tying what is about to be said to what has just been said. 11:50 The first three chapters are really a recap, 11:53 a historical telling, of what had already happened 11:56 to these people. 11:58 And now, Moses gets into the application 12:01 of what that recap was about. 12:03 So, that's why he ties in chapter 1, 2, and 3 12:06 with chapter 4 saying, "And now. Now, Israel." 12:10 So, he's applying it. 12:11 "Now Israel." 12:13 In the previous verses, he offers this historical revision, 12:16 and he draws a portrait of everything that 12:18 had happened to them so far, up to this specific moment. 12:23 Now, the past was a--you see how I used the word "now" there, 12:26 right? 12:27 Now, I'm applying this. 12:29 So, that's what Moses is doing. 12:30 But the past here, up to this point, was a reminder. 12:35 It was a reminder to them. 12:37 There's a saying that says, 12:39 "Whoever doesn't have a past is discardable." 12:41 So, of course, that's not, you know, literally true. 12:43 You're not just gonna discard a person 12:44 because you don't know their past. 12:46 But having a past, having experiences, that's a big thing, 12:50 right? 12:52 My father always told me growing up that experience 12:55 isn't primarily the things that happened to you, 12:58 but the use that you have for the things 13:01 that have happened to you. 13:04 The Bible talks in the Book of Proverbs of old men 13:07 that are foolish and young men that are wise. 13:10 How is that possible? 13:12 Well, that's possible, because it's possible for you 13:13 to do the same thing for 50 years the wrong way. 13:16 Have you ever heard someone say, "I've been doing this 13:18 for 50 years, and I'm not going to stop now"? 13:21 Well, that doesn't mean that much because you might have been 13:23 doing it for 50 years in a bad way, in an inefficient way. 13:27 And so, I really like that saying because growing up, 13:31 I mean, I was a young guy, and I wanted to be wise. 13:33 No doubt there were many moments where I was foolish, 13:35 where I acted foolishly. 13:37 But experiences in only the things that happened to you, 13:42 but they use, the application that you give, or that you use, 13:46 the things that happened to you. 13:48 So, not only do you have to go through life, 13:50 but you have to apply the lessons correctly. 13:52 And that is precisely what Moses is bringing the children 13:55 of Israel to in here in chapter 4. 13:58 Scripture frequently reminds us of the past, 14:00 and this way it becomes our teacher. 14:03 The past becomes our teacher. 14:05 Now, we can learn from what happens to other people. 14:08 Those are the smartest kinds of people, 14:10 those who learn from the mistakes of others. 14:13 And you can also learn from the things that happened to you. 14:16 Now, I'm not saying that that's not smart people because 14:19 a lot of times things happen that's not under your control, 14:21 and you can still use it. 14:23 You can still apply it and learn from it, 14:24 but fools do not learn one way or the other. 14:28 So, you can learn from the things that happen in your life. 14:30 You can learn from the things that happen 14:32 in other people's lives. 14:33 But the point here is that you have to learn 14:35 because fools don't learn either with the things that happen 14:38 with other people, or with the things 14:39 that happen to themselves. 14:42 The first verb here after the word "now" in this verse, 14:46 verse 1, is the transitional word also "shema." 14:50 The word "shema." 14:51 It's a Hebrew rich word, and it normally means here. 14:55 You remember that prayer the Israelite-- 14:57 the most important prayer that was pronounced by any Israelite 15:02 was the Shema prayer. 15:03 [Speaking in Hebrew] 15:07 "Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one." 15:10 Beautiful prayer. 15:12 And that word "shema" is the word that is used here right 15:14 after the transitional word, the transitional word "now." 15:18 But to hear in biblical terms, it doesn't only designate 15:23 literal listening or hearing with your ears the listening 15:26 of sound, but it carries something practical 15:29 in its meaning in the terms of obeying. 15:33 Hear, listen, take note of, pay attention to. 15:38 The Book of Revelation, for example, while written in Greek, 15:41 it does reflect the Hebrew mindset of its human author, 15:44 of John. 15:46 Revelation chapter 1, verse 3, for example, 15:48 Blessed is he who what? 15:50 Who reads and hears. 15:54 Blessed is he who reads and hears. 15:56 Now, what is John saying here? 15:58 Blessed is he who looks at those letters and listens 16:02 to whatever is being said? 16:03 Is that what John is getting to? 16:05 No. 16:06 Blessed is he who listens and hears, or blessed is 16:10 he who pays attention, listens, and puts into practice, applies 16:15 into their very own life, who hear the words 16:18 of this prophecy and keep those things which are written in it. 16:21 So, to read and to hear reflect one solid reality, 16:25 which is to obey. 16:27 To listen and to hear reflect the reality of obeying. 16:31 When we think, for example, of atheism, right, 16:34 when we think about atheism and we criticize atheism, 16:37 and as believers, as theists, 16:40 we criticize atheism because we believe 16:42 that there is a God. 16:43 But in atheism, you find two kinds. 16:47 You find abstract or theoretical atheism, 16:51 which is the belief system, 16:52 the philosophical system behind atheism. 16:55 But there is one other part, one portion of atheism, 16:58 one side of it, that we often forget and unfortunately, 17:03 we may very well represent and replicate in our very lives. 17:08 You know what that form of atheism is called? 17:12 Practical atheism. 17:15 Practical atheism translates into we may even know 17:19 what's right, we may even know what's true, we may even hear, 17:23 but we don't listen. 17:27 We don't apply it. 17:29 It's when you know something, but you don't do it. 17:34 That's the famous, "God is saying, but I think." 17:40 Has that ever happened to you? 17:42 "You know, the Bible's saying this, 17:44 but I don't think it's this way." 17:46 That's called practical atheism. 17:49 It's when you're convinced of the gospel, 17:53 but not very much converted to it. 17:55 And that's dangerous. 17:56 And that's what Moses is calling the attention 17:58 of the Israelites to here in chapter 4. 18:01 Sunday's lesson presents this very reality 18:03 where it starts the title is, "Do Not Add Or Take Away". 18:08 Now, Sunday's lesson here, it continues to present the 18:10 lesson that God, through Moses, is striving to communicate. 18:14 He's doing his best to communicate to give 18:16 the context and to tell the children of Israel 18:18 that they cannot add or take away 18:20 from the words that God has given them. 18:22 We see this here in verse 2. 18:24 "You shall not add to the word which I command you, 18:26 nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments 18:29 of the Lord your God which I command you." 18:31 So, here's where we find the logical sequence 18:34 of the narrative. 18:35 It's worthless to be reminded of the lessons from our past 18:38 if we feel free to selectively add or take. 18:42 And we call that cherry-picking, right? 18:44 If we selectively cherry-pick from the lesson, 18:48 "Well, God did this, God did that, 18:50 I learned this, I learned that, but you know what? 18:52 This year I don't really care for it, not because 18:54 it's not important, but because it's uncomfortable." 18:58 A lot of people like to cherry-pick their lessons. 19:02 And God is telling them here, "You cannot do this. 19:05 Do not add and do not remove what I have taught you. 19:08 Do not add or remove from the statutes, the judgments, 19:11 because these things are the entirety of the law, 19:14 and you're not at liberty to just cherry-pick 19:15 whatever you want." 19:17 That's what God is telling them here. 19:19 And we, while this is a very ancient text, this is, you know, 19:23 3500 years old at least, this is a very modern problem. 19:30 And we suffer also from this very same syndrome. 19:34 Here, Israel is not--or is warned not to make history 19:41 a lesson where they forget certain aspects of it, 19:44 and they remember other certain aspects of it, 19:48 choosing whatever is pleasing 19:49 and rejecting whatever else seems to be a bother. 19:53 It's not by chance that the great scientist and philosopher 19:55 Blaise Pascal, very famous, I believe, French scientist 20:02 and philosopher, a great thinker, 20:05 he said that it is not incredulity 20:07 that breeds disobedience or that generates disobedience. 20:11 Rather, it is disobedience that breeds or generates incredulity. 20:17 So, what he's saying is that many times, 20:21 it's not the fact that we don't believe that 20:24 we start disobeying and we start sliding in our spiritual life. 20:27 It's the contrary. 20:28 It's when I start disobeying and not regarding God's judgments 20:31 and statutes that then the doubt starts coming into my mind. 20:35 Do you see the difference? 20:37 Primarily, it's not you not believing that leads 20:40 to you disobeying. 20:42 It's you disobeying that leads to you not believing. 20:45 That's what he's saying. 20:47 A lot of times people ask me, or and I've heard it asked 20:50 to many pastors and elders. 20:51 You know, and they say, in my case people come and say, 20:54 "Pastor, where do I start from? 20:57 How do I start this Christian journey, this walk? 20:59 There's so many things, there's so many different aspects to it, 21:02 right? 21:03 I have to do this and this and this. 21:05 And I have to go here and here and there. 21:06 And there's apparently so many things that we have to do, 21:08 how do I--how do-- where do I start?" 21:11 You know what the best answer is? 21:12 Start with what you know. 21:14 Just start with what you know. 21:16 There's some very simple basics. 21:20 Start by obeying God's Word. 21:23 Start by honoring his personality that way. 21:27 And I'm sure that he will reveal the next steps. 21:30 But he's not going to reveal the far away steps 21:33 if you're having a hard time in your life or you're randomly, 21:36 you know, or not so randomly, 21:38 selectively cherry-picking whatever you want 21:40 and casting aside what is bothersome to you. 21:43 And that's precisely, for example, 21:45 the description that Jesus gives us in John chapter 3, 21:48 verse 19 and 20. 21:49 Look at what he says. 21:51 He says, John 3:19 and 20, "And this is the condemnation, 21:53 that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness 21:56 rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 22:00 For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not 22:03 come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed." 22:07 And so, in the generalized disobedience of humanity, 22:11 we choose exactly what is pleasing. 22:13 I mean, that's just obvious, right? 22:15 You're not gonna choose what is displeasing, not normally. 22:17 Why would you? 22:19 We like choosing things that are pleasing, 22:21 things that don't bother us and that leave us just 22:24 as we are, without any real need of change. 22:29 People usually don't like change. 22:32 I think it was Mark Twain, and I think Pastor Doug 22:36 said this a few weeks ago, but I remember my dad, 22:39 you know, repeating it over and over again as I grew up. 22:41 Maybe he heard it from Pastor Doug. 22:43 But I think it was Mark Twain that said that, 22:46 "It's not the things that Jesus said 22:47 that I don't understand that bother me, 22:49 but the things that Jesus said and I do understand 22:53 and have a difficult time in applying in my life." 22:56 Those are the hard things. 22:58 And so, the disobedience is confirmed by our incredulity 23:00 that is used then to justify being left alone and in peace. 23:05 "you know what? 23:06 I don't want to obey because it's not comfortable to obey. 23:09 And I don't think I even believe in this stuff anyway." 23:12 That's the logical train of thought. 23:15 Now, the warning regarding the danger here of adding 23:18 or taking away, it echoes in multiple places of Scripture. 23:22 For example, Revelation chapter 22, verse 18, and 19, 23:25 and I'm sure that many of you here know this by heart. 23:28 It says, "For I testify to everyone who hears the words 23:31 of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, 23:34 God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; 23:38 and if anyone takes away from the words 23:41 of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part 23:43 from the Book of Life, from the holy city, 23:45 and from the things which are written in this book." 23:49 Now, someone could say, "Well, seriously? 23:52 That's how--that's how far God would go here? 23:55 That's how serious this is?" 23:56 Yes, seriously. 23:58 That's how serious this is. 24:02 Matthew describes this reality perfectly. 24:05 I'm gonna jump the text that I was going to read, 24:06 but it's Matthew 15:1 through 9. 24:08 And what we see reflected here is Jesus calling out 24:11 the hypocrisy of the Jewish leaders that did selectively 24:15 choose what they wanted to take heed of 24:18 and what they wanted to discard. 24:20 And unfortunately for them, what they were discarding were 24:22 the commandments of God that they found in the Old Testament, 24:26 and what they were selectively choosing were 24:28 their own traditions. 24:31 You know what that equates to? 24:33 Idolatry. 24:35 You know why? 24:36 Because when I indoctrinate my opinion, I am placing myself 24:39 in the place of God, and I am therefore 24:42 making myself a god unto myself. 24:44 You have to be very careful to not indoctrinate your opinions. 24:50 We are different people. 24:51 There are things that we like and things that we dislike. 24:54 There are ways that I like to comb my hair 24:56 that doesn't work for everyone. 24:58 But if I go around saying that, "this is the way of heaven 25:01 and you gotta comb your hair the same way that I do 25:03 because that's the way that God revealed it in the Bible 25:05 and if you don't, you're going to hell." 25:08 Well, does God really say that? 25:11 Does God imply that? 25:14 You see what I did there? 25:16 I placed myself in the place of God. 25:19 I put words in God's mouth, and I broke, right there, 25:22 a bunch of commandments. 25:25 Be careful not to indoctrinate your opinion. 25:27 Be careful not to add or to withdraw. 25:29 The religious leaders of Jesus's day had become experts 25:31 in adding and taking away God's divine orders. 25:35 Zeal without understanding, zeal but ignorant, 25:40 zealous but ignorant. 25:42 Emil Brunner, he was a Protestant theologian. 25:44 You have to take a lot of what he says with a grain of salt, 25:47 not Adventist, but he did say a few interesting things. 25:51 And he called this human compulsion, 25:54 especially the compulsion of adding, adding to things, 25:58 of exaggerating or blowing things up where they weren't. 26:01 He calls this the sin of devotion. 26:05 And that's precisely what the Israelite leaders 26:07 of Jesus's day did. 26:09 They increased. 26:10 They were so zealous in their own way that they just-- 26:13 about the commandment of the Sabbath. 26:15 I think I've said this before. 26:17 Do you know how many laws there were? 26:19 One thousand two hundred and fifty-one laws 26:23 or whatever 39 times 39 is. 26:25 I might be wrong there with the 1,251. 26:28 But it was around 1200 or 1300 laws just about the Sabbath, 26:32 just about the Sabbath, 1200 laws. 26:37 The sin of devotion, idolatry, making yourself, 26:40 or in this their case, making themselves gods unto themselves. 26:44 Adding or taking away expresses human dissatisfaction 26:49 with God's orders. 26:51 The famous mentality that I've already mentioned, 26:52 "God said, but I think. 26:57 God said, but I think." 26:58 Or even yet the syndrome of, "I think I know better. 27:02 I think it will work better for me if I just go this way." 27:05 And friends, we're all tempted of this. 27:09 And that segues into what happens on Monday's lesson 27:13 because here we see a practical reality of this very situation. 27:16 Monday's lesson is entitled Baal Peor. 27:20 Now, I might be pronouncing that, that latter word, 27:25 incorrectly in English, but Baal Peor, 27:29 which is the name of a false god here. 27:31 What happens here is that Israel is reminded of the incidents 27:34 of Numbers chapter 25, and the chilling consequences 27:37 of God's judgments and the death spiritual 27:41 to that spiritual prostitution and harlotry to Baal Peor. 27:44 Now, this god Baal Peor, or just Baal is how you usually 27:48 will find him, he was the god of the Moabites. 27:51 This was a Moabite god. 27:52 Some interpreters believe that the worship that is described 27:55 in 1 Kings chapter 18 in the scenario with Elijah 27:58 and Mount Carmel, that was the worship of Baal Peor, 28:02 that's what was involved or was one of the elements 28:05 of their worship. 28:07 Now, the idolatry to Baal infected the ten tribes 28:12 of northern Israel, and he became their official god. 28:16 You know how Moses warns the children of Israel. 28:20 Later we're gonna look at this throughout the lesson, 28:22 but he warns them that if they became worse, 28:26 if they did not listen to the statutes and judgments of God, 28:28 if they did not take heed to what he had ordered them, 28:32 they would become worse than the surrounding nations. 28:36 And indeed they did. 28:39 The northern ten tribes, their main god, their official god, 28:43 became Baal, and this infected also Judah in the south. 28:48 And worship to Baal only ended truly with the captivity 28:52 and the exile of Babylon. 28:55 Worship to Baal Peor was tied to fertility. 28:58 And we talked about this a few weeks ago when we were talking 29:01 about the difference between polytheism and monotheism. 29:05 So, it was tied to that concept of fertility, to survival. 29:08 They needed to be fertile so that they could survive. 29:12 And that led to religious harlotry and prostitution, 29:14 and they're in light--it's appealed to these people. 29:17 Baal, among other gods, 29:19 represented and was considered the god of sexual desires. 29:23 To the Israelites, he was described 29:25 as the god of sexual sins. 29:27 Now, while, friends, this is a very ancient issue, 29:30 Baal continues alive and well in modern culture. 29:36 In the Playboy mentality, the culture of pornography 29:38 that corrupts and destroys millions of its worshipers, 29:41 paves the way for the prince of darkness. 29:46 It corrupts and disfigures the beautiful creation of God. 29:49 Pornography, and all that it involves, 29:52 is considered the moral AIDS of the modern age. 29:57 That terminology didn't come from me. 29:59 That was on the cover of "Time Magazine" a few years ago. 30:03 And in that case, our prayer must always be the same 30:07 as David's in his psalm of penitence, 30:09 Psalm chapter 51, verse 10. 30:11 "Create in me a clean heart, 30:13 O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me." 30:17 You know, the verb "create" here is a very special verb. 30:21 It's the Hebrew word "bara," and it is a word 30:24 that is exclusive to Hebrew. 30:26 This Hebrew word that translates to "create" is only applied 30:30 to God, to Yahweh, only. 30:33 And what it translates into is an ability to create 30:37 from nothing, to call things into existence. 30:40 So, what David is literally saying, he's saying, 30:42 "God, call into being, call into existence in my life 30:47 a pure heart because, of myself, I can't do this." 30:51 The children of Israel were very explicitly involved 30:54 in what that meant. 30:56 And today, friends, perhaps implicitly in your life, 30:59 you may be involved. 31:03 Pray this prayer, "Create in me, O God, a pure heart." 31:10 Those who desire to overcome the culture of sex must learn to 31:15 pray for the creation, the bara, of a clean and pure spirit. 31:21 Friends, this is something that only God can do, 31:25 only God can do. 31:26 In the context of Baal Peor, Satan's strategy was 31:29 the only possible one, but it was also the most effective one. 31:36 "Patriarchs and Prophets," page 451, is very insightful here. 31:40 It says Balaam, and this is in the context of that story there 31:44 of Numbers 25 and what Balaam did. 31:46 "Balaam knew that the prosperity of Israel depended 31:48 upon their obedience of God, or to God, 31:52 and that there was no way to cause their overthrow 31:56 but by seducing them into sin. 31:58 He now decided to secure Balak's favor by advising the Moabites 32:02 of the course to be pursued to bring a curse upon Israel. 32:06 He immediately returned to the land of Moab--" 32:08 This is where he had already been sent away. 32:10 He had been--God had not allowed him to pronounce curses. 32:13 He had, on the other hand, pronounced blessings. 32:15 Balak, the king there, was angry. 32:17 He sent him away. 32:18 The Spirit of God left Balaam. 32:19 Balaam them starts to devise how he could then 32:22 secure Balak's favor. 32:23 He comes back and presents a satanic strategy. 32:25 "He immediately returned to the land of Moab 32:28 and laid his plans before the king. 32:30 The Moabites themselves were convinced that as long as Israel 32:33 remained true to God--" 32:34 Friends, as long as we remain true to God. 32:37 That's the teaching here. 32:38 As long as we remain true to God, we remain protected. 32:44 "As long as they remained true to God, 32:46 He would be their shield. 32:47 The plan proposed by Balaam was to separate them from God 32:50 by enticing them into idolatry. 32:53 If they could be led to engage in the licentious worship 32:55 of Baal and Ashtaroth, their omnipotent Protector 32:58 would become their enemy, and they would soon fall a prey 33:01 to the fierce, warlike nations around them." 33:04 The prosperity of God's people 33:06 depend on their obedience to him. 33:09 The only way to overthrow them is seduce them into sin. 33:12 Now, someone might be tempted to say, "Well, I mean, 33:15 isn't this taking away our free will?" 33:17 If I have to, if I want to be protected and if I want 33:20 to have a good life, well, then I have to obey God?" 33:22 First of all, that's a fallacy because in the Bible, 33:24 you'll see that those who are obedient to God, 33:26 most of the times, good things don't happen to them, right. 33:30 So, that's already a fallacy in itself. 33:32 That's a fallacy called prosperity theology, 33:35 where you think you can put God in your pocket. 33:38 Gonna give God a bunch of money, give tithes and offering, 33:40 I'm gonna pay my tithes. 33:42 There's a--if I have a pet peeve, it's when people say, 33:45 "pay tithes." 33:46 We do not pay tithe. 33:47 We return to God what's already his. 33:50 But in any case, that is a fallacy 33:54 in and of itself right there. 33:59 The prosperity of God's people 34:00 depend on their obedience of him. 34:04 The reason here, the real reason, 34:05 is because God is the source of life. 34:08 God is that energy socket. 34:10 All right, am I saying that right? 34:12 Is it an energy socket? 34:13 It's the the plug or where you plug it in, 34:15 God is that. 34:17 I can willfully decide to plug my life into that 34:20 or to disconnect my life from that. 34:23 That is where I choose. 34:24 That's where you apply your choice. 34:26 It is your choice to be connected or disconnected, 34:29 but don't think that you can have the benefits 34:31 of being connected while you're disconnected. 34:34 It just doesn't work like that. 34:35 You see, God, more than a personal being, 34:38 God is a force of nature. 34:42 God is a force. 34:44 He's a personal being. 34:46 He is a person, not a human person, 34:48 but He has a personality, but He is, nonetheless, a force. 34:50 He is life. 34:52 He is love. He is all these things. 34:54 And so, when I decidedly disconnect myself, 34:58 how can I continue living? 35:00 What happens if you disconnect your phone from the charger? 35:03 The juice will run out and the phone will, how do we say it? 35:06 The phone is what? 35:08 Dead. 35:10 Imagine if someone, if that happens to someone, 35:12 your phone is dead, and then you start ranting and raving, 35:14 "Well, how could those engineers project this this way? 35:17 They're dictators. They're tyrants. 35:20 How dare they say that my phone, or force my phone to run out 35:23 of juice because I, you know, because I wanted to use it." 35:26 It doesn't work that way. 35:29 And so, God is the same way. 35:32 This prosperity of God's people depend on their obedience to Him 35:34 because obedience means being connected to Him. 35:39 And that's where Tuesday's lesson is so monumental because 35:42 Tuesday's lesson that says, "Cleave to the Lord your God," 35:45 or be close to Him. 35:46 Friends, in the biblical drama, apostasy invariably 35:49 lead to death. 35:51 Numbers 25, verse 9, "And those who died 35:53 in the plague were twenty-four thousand." 35:55 Sin always leads to death. 35:56 The wages of sin is death. 35:59 But many were not corrupted in this story. 36:04 Deuteronomy 4:4, "But you who held fast to the Lord your God 36:07 are alive today, every one of you." 36:10 Life and death, opposites that become ever so evident 36:14 in the experience of the lives of those who serve and the lives 36:18 of those who do not serve God. 36:21 Friends, according to Jesus in Matthew chapter 12, verse 30, 36:24 we are either for Him or against Him. 36:26 There is no possibility of neutrality. 36:28 Something that I said this last week in the midweek Bible study 36:31 is that you cannot--this is the one place in life 36:33 where you cannot opt out. 36:36 You can opt out of many things in life, 36:40 but you cannot opt out of this whole situation. 36:45 Jesus expands and says here in Luke 11:23, he adds, 36:49 "He who is not with Me is against Me, 36:51 and he who does not gather with Me scatters." 36:54 Two glorious promises in this context here 36:57 of Israel in Deuteronomy 4:4. 36:59 Two marvelous promises are provided for them so that 37:04 they can understand that they're not alone in this, 37:06 that God is giving them strength. 37:08 He provides power so that they can overcome, 37:10 so that they can live by His side. 37:12 The first one is found in Jude 24. 37:18 Beautiful text. 37:19 It says, "Now to Him," talking about God, "Now to Him who is 37:23 able to keep you from stumbling and to present you faultless." 37:27 Is this something that you do yourself, keep from stumbling 37:30 and present yourself faultless? 37:32 Can you do this by yourself? 37:34 We can't, we absolutely cannot. 37:37 That's why we depend on Him, Jesus Christ the Righteous. 37:41 "Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling 37:44 And to present you faultless Before the presence 37:47 of His glory with exceeding joy. 37:49 To God our Savior Who alone is wise Be glory and majesty 37:52 Dominion and power Both now and forever. 37:54 Amen." 37:56 And the second promise is found in 1 Corinthians 10:13, 37:58 equally magnificent. 37:59 It says, "No temptation has overtaken you except such as 38:03 is common to man; but God is faithful, God is faithful, 38:08 who will not allow you to be tempted 38:10 beyond what you are able, but with the temptation 38:12 will also make the way of escape, 38:15 that you may be able to bear it." 38:17 There's this terminology in the legal, 38:20 judicial world which is "equality of arms." 38:23 And basically what "equality of arms" represents is the equality 38:27 of opportunity of might and of resources of both sides 38:31 in any given case. 38:33 God does not allow the devil to use attacks that cannot be 38:38 resisted in Him who is powerful to keep us and to lead us 38:41 from victory to victory. 38:44 We all have equality of arms. 38:47 Sometimes you might be tempted to think, "Well, our enemy, this 38:50 enemy of mine, he's organized, he's very well motivated. 38:53 He's powerful and strong. 38:55 It's personal to him. 38:57 How can I withstand?" 38:59 You can't. 39:02 And I don't want to surprise you here, you can't. 39:03 There's no way. 39:06 There's absolutely no way. 39:08 He's been around for at least 6,000 years here tempting us, 39:12 learning, growing his reserves of strategy and methodologies. 39:17 By ourselves, we cannot withstand him, 39:22 but God doesn't abandon us here. 39:25 And contrary to the theory of deism that believes 39:27 in this absent landlord, that he just created this world 39:30 and then walked away, we have a God that is so present 39:33 that He didn't just confine Himself to staying up there, 39:37 He rolled up His sleeves and He got into the nitty gritty 39:39 dirtiness of our world, and He came down 39:42 and lived with us. 39:43 And not only this, He provides a whole battle armor for us. 39:45 Just read Ephesians chapter 6 where we have the belt of truth, 39:48 the breastplate of righteousness, 39:50 the sandals of peace, the shield of faith, 39:52 the helmet of salvation, the sword of truth. 39:55 No one can claim that they haven't been provided all they 39:59 need to resist, to overcome, and to be faithful to God. 40:02 In the entirety of Scripture, we find almost 60 different titles 40:06 that are attributed to Jesus Christ in the context 40:09 of his defense for fallen humanity. 40:14 He will never let us fight our battles alone and unaided. 40:18 He is the door. 40:19 He is the way. 40:21 He is the lily of the valley. 40:22 He is the water, the shepherd. 40:24 He is the morning star. 40:25 He is the true and the faithful witness. 40:27 He is the one who loves us. 40:28 He is the undefeatable advocate. 40:30 Friends, we are not fighting for victory. 40:33 What Moses is telling the children of Israel in this whole 40:36 context here is that they're not really fighting for victory. 40:39 We already begin the journey with victory guaranteed in Him. 40:46 He is our fortress, our shield, and all we need is 40:48 to accept and to obey. 40:54 And so, we find the streamline here of Wednesday, 40:57 God's dream for Israel. 41:00 For what nation is there so great, as the lesson puts it. 41:03 What follows next in the few verses after Deuteronomy 4:4 41:07 are some of the most profound and beautiful texts of 41:09 in all of Scripture. 41:11 And here we have Deuteronomy 4, verse 5 41:14 through 9 that says, 41:16 "Surely I have taught you the statutes and judgments, 41:18 just as the Lord my God commanded me, 41:20 that you should act according to them in the land 41:22 which you go to possess. 41:23 Therefore be careful to observe them; for this is your wisdom 41:26 and your understanding in the sight of the peoples 41:28 who will hear all these statutes, and say, 41:30 'Surely this great nation 41:32 is a wise and understanding people.' 41:34 For what great nation is there that God-- 41:36 that has God so near to it, as the Lord our God is to us, 41:40 for whatever reason we may call upon Him? 41:42 And what great nation is there that has such statutes 41:45 and righteous judgments as are in all this law 41:48 which I set before you this day? 41:50 Only take heed to yourself, and diligently keep yourself, 41:53 lest you forget the things your eyes have seen, 41:56 and lest they depart from your heart 41:58 all the days of your life." 41:59 Friends, we see that God's dream for Israel, 42:01 that they would live the statutes, 42:03 they would exemplify these judgments, 42:06 and that the nations around them would see that that nation 42:09 was different, that they were special, not because of anything 42:15 from themselves, but because they were so close to their God. 42:18 Isn't it what the text says here? 42:20 Because it literally says here, 42:21 "For what great nation is there that has God so near it?" 42:27 God's people were meant to be known because God was near them, 42:33 because God was close to them. 42:35 That was God's dream. 42:38 It did not have to go down the way it went. 42:41 Jesus didn't have to suffer the way He did. 42:43 He didn't have to be tortured and tormented the way He was. 42:47 That was not God's dream. 42:49 That wasn't the ideal. 42:53 God's dream was for Israel to be faithful. 42:57 I don't know what it would have been then. 42:58 I don't know how it could have been. 43:00 Perhaps, the Messiah would have come down, 43:03 and perhaps the same hand that stayed the hand of Abraham, 43:06 he would then bring down the knife. 43:07 I don't know. 43:10 But this was God's dream. 43:14 They would be brought to God. 43:16 The nation surrounding Israel would be brought to God 43:19 because He was the true secret of success. 43:23 But in this, friends, there is also a warning. 43:25 The warning is only take heed to yourself and diligently 43:28 keep yourself, lest you forget the things your eyes have seen 43:32 and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. 43:35 You see, there was a danger in arrogance and pride. 43:40 They're called not to forget the things that they had witnessed 43:43 in their history. 43:44 You know, in the book "Patriarchs And Prophets," 43:46 Ellen White observes that a full cup, the full cup that runs is 43:51 the one that runs the risk of arrogance and of spilling over. 43:56 Attributing your success to your own power, to your own strength, 43:59 to your own virtues and performance, 44:01 that is the danger there. 44:04 God wanted His people to know that they had been called 44:06 and chosen for a special purpose, 44:08 that they would indeed become a great nation, 44:11 as had been promised to Abraham. 44:13 However, here there was this danger of pride. 44:17 Be careful, lest you forget, lest you forget. 44:23 And finally, in Thursday's lesson, 44:25 which is the conclusion of all of this, 44:27 your wisdom and your understanding. 44:29 Verse 6, Deuteronomy 4, verse 6, "Therefore be careful 44:34 to observe them, the statutes and judgments, 44:36 for this is your wisdom and your understanding 44:38 in the sight of the peoples who will hear 44:40 all these statutes, and say, 'Surely this great nation 44:42 is a wise and understanding people.'" 44:44 Now, friends, this text here can be very easily misunderstood 44:48 because true wisdom and understanding 44:50 will not be seen primarily from the statutes and judgments, 44:53 but from the life of obedience 44:55 and fidelity of the children of God. 44:58 So, just having the statutes and judgments, 45:00 that's not when guaranteed their wisdom, their understanding. 45:04 Their wisdom and understanding would be guaranteed would be 45:07 seen in them keeping these statutes and these judgments. 45:10 Do you see the difference? 45:12 There's a big, big, big danger here, and this massive danger 45:17 is when truth does not convert, it fossilizes. 45:26 When truth does not convert your heart, 45:29 when it doesn't convict you, when it doesn't bring change, 45:35 it then petrifies and fossilizes your heart, 45:39 making it so much harder for the Spirit to touch you. 45:43 Friends, we live in a time and an age where people believe-- 45:48 in this portion, correctly, they say, 45:50 "God will accept you and take you just as you are." 45:51 And yes, He will, but He loves you too much to leave you 45:55 just the way you are. 45:57 He wants to give you a better life. 45:59 You see, God doesn't see you primarily for what you are 46:01 right now but for what you can be. 46:05 He has a dream for you. 46:08 And the children of Israel, they would live this dream, 46:11 not because of only what God gave them, 46:13 but because of their answer to what God gave them. 46:16 God is giving them the statutes and judgments and He's saying, 46:18 "Live by it, and they will see your wisdom 46:21 and your understanding." 46:26 That's why the children of Israel were frequently called 46:29 to obedience because obedience to these statutes and judgments 46:33 was what mattered. 46:36 In the book, "Christ's Object Lessons," 46:37 beautiful book on page 288 we read, 46:41 "Their obedience to the law of God would make them 46:44 marvels of prosperity before the nations of the world. 46:47 He who could give them wisdom and skill in all cunning work 46:51 would continue to be their teacher, and would ennoble 46:54 and elevate them through obedience to His laws. 46:57 If obedient, they would be preserved from the diseases 47:00 that afflicted the other nations, 47:01 and would be blessed with vigor and intellect. 47:04 The glory of God, His majesty and power, 47:06 were to be revealed in all their prosperity. 47:08 They were to be a kingdom of priests and princes. 47:10 God furnished them with every facility for becoming 47:14 the greatest nation on earth." 47:15 Friends, that dream that unfortunately did not find 47:18 its fulfillment in ancient Israel, can very well find 47:23 its fulfillment in modern-- in the modern Israel 47:27 that is the church. 47:30 This is God's dream. 47:32 We know that we are a holy nation, a holy priesthood. 47:36 And we can fulfill God's dream, not by our might or strength, 47:40 but by His might and His strength. 47:43 Allow God to fulfill His dream in your life. 47:46 And allow the world to look at us, the nations, the peoples, 47:51 and say, "For what great people is this that have got so close 47:56 to them?" 47:58 May God bless you in your studies of the Bible 48:00 and in your application of it in your life. 48:02 May God bless you in, not only applying and understanding 48:07 and obeying, but in sharing this reality, sharing this truth that 48:11 is such a great, joyful truth when lived out the correct way. 48:17 I would like to invite you to remember that we do have 48:19 a free offer for those that are watching online, 48:22 and those that are here also if you're new. 48:24 You can get, "Is Obedience Legalism?" 48:27 You can get this beautiful study if you call 866-788-3966 48:32 and text or ask for the offer number 706. 48:36 If you're in the continental North America, 48:38 you can text SH041 to 40544. 48:42 And outside of North America, you can go to 48:44 study.aftv.org/SH041 and you can get this 48:49 very important study that has a lot to do 48:52 with what we talked about here today. 48:53 I would like to finish this moment with you 48:55 with a word of prayer. 48:56 Dear Lord God, thank You so much for Your love. 48:58 Thank you so much for Your blessings. 49:00 Father, I ask You to always be close to us, Lord. 49:03 We want to be known as a great people, 49:05 not because we are great or numerous or intelligent 49:08 or whatever, but because we have You close to us. 49:11 Allow this church to be seen as a church 49:13 that has God close to them. 49:15 Allow us to study and understand and apply these judgments that 49:19 You have provided in Your Word and be seen then and be known as 49:22 a wise and understanding people, not for our own benefit, 49:25 but for the benefit of this dark world around us. 49:29 I ask You these things, Lord, and I ask 49:30 for the rest of this day. 49:31 In Jesus's name I pray, amen. 49:33 May God bless you. 49:37 male announcer: Don't forget to request 49:39 today's life-changing, free resource. 49:41 Not only can you receive this free gift in the mail, 49:43 you can download a digital copy straight to your computer 49:45 or mobile device. 49:47 To get your digital copy of today's free gift, 49:50 simply text the keyword on your screen to 40544 49:54 or visit the web address shown on your screen. 49:57 And be sure to select the digital download option 49:59 on the request page. 50:01 It's now easier than ever for you to study God's Word 50:03 with Amazing Facts wherever and whenever you want, 50:07 and most important, to share it with others. 50:13 male: I grew up in a church-going family. 50:16 I mean, we were at every meeting. 50:17 I sang in four of the choirs there, I directed three. 50:22 Very involved, very active. 50:25 It almost seemed like busy work sometimes, you know? 50:28 I went to Sunday school, I knew about God, 50:32 I knew about Jesus. 50:34 But I didn't have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. 50:38 My senior year in high school I got the news 50:43 that my father had been murdered. 50:47 Now, I played it off well. 50:49 No one really saw that I was struggling with it. 50:55 It just really felt like there was a hole that 50:58 needed to be filled and I tried to fill it with 51:01 drugs, with alcohol, with partying. 51:04 After college, I just stopped going to church altogether. 51:11 One day, on a Sunday, 'cause I didn't feel 51:14 like going to church with my mom. 51:16 I thought, you know, "I should get a little bit of Word." 51:21 She had the satellite system hooked up and 51:22 I'm flipping through channels. 51:24 And then the logo pops across, "Amazing Facts Presents." 51:28 I've listened to a lot of different ministers 51:31 but this was the first time that he's actually saying 51:33 something where I had to grab my Bible and actually 51:36 pick it up and I've never heard this before. 51:39 Let me look through and find this. 51:41 I went through all the storacles, 51:43 I went through all the study guides and I just 51:45 couldn't get enough. 51:46 And then the Sabbath came up and he's going 51:49 through the appeal and I'm just going, "Lord, I hear You. 51:52 I have to go to church." 51:54 So I show up. 51:56 It was funny, I didn't feel like I was going 51:58 to be judged, anything judgmental, anything. 52:01 And I walked in the door, and I just felt at home. 52:05 But there's still a problem. 52:07 I'm still partying. 52:10 I was still going out to the bars. 52:12 At this time, I was selling cocaine to pay my rent. 52:17 Sixteen days later, I find myself in a life 52:19 or death situation. 52:21 I had just came back from a liquor store and 52:24 I grabbed a bottle of vodka. 52:27 And there I am, high off cocaine, with my Bible 52:31 in hand, trying to do a Bible study. 52:35 And I heard an audible voice, "Just look at yourself." 52:41 And I did, and I was, like, "What am I doing?" 52:47 And I got on my knees and I said, "Lord, if You do 52:50 not take this away from me now, I'm going to kill myself." 52:55 I was going to continue this lifestyle and 52:58 I was going to end up overdosing, having a 53:01 heart attack, whatever it was. 53:04 "You have to take this away, all of it." 53:10 And that day, He lift it all up and away from me. 53:14 It was all gone. 53:16 When God does something in your life, He does it complete. 53:21 ♪♪♪ 53:29 ♪♪♪ 53:43 announcer: Amazing Facts, changed lives. 53:50 Josh: Our family was Christian to begin with. 53:53 Mom and Dad were involved at the church at times. 53:56 On the inside our, family wasn't really Christian, I guess. 53:59 It was just, it was a front that we put on. 54:02 My dad suffered from bipolar disorder. 54:05 Instead of taking his medication, 54:06 he turned to alcohol. 54:08 He could be mad one second and the next second, he'd be happy. 54:11 And it was so confusing for us. 54:13 Most of the time, we'd be upstairs to try to avoid him. 54:18 I made good grades all the way up until high school. 54:20 High school, I started struggling because my mom 54:23 was a single parent at the time, and I had to get a job. 54:26 I was working every day after school. 54:29 I didn't have many friends to talk to, 54:30 so I was getting depressed. 54:32 I was always tired. 54:34 I started failing my assignments because I would fall asleep 54:36 during class, and I couldn't listen to the teachers. 54:38 I couldn't comprehend what they were saying. 54:41 By my 11th-grade year, I dropped out and I tried homeschooling. 54:46 I just ended up working full time. 54:49 I had lots of girlfriends growing up, but I was always 54:51 terrified of talking to guys. 54:52 Like, my hands would start to sweat. 54:54 I would tense up. I just I couldn't talk. 54:57 I guess that's when I started developing an attraction. 55:00 Gay guys weren't scary to talk to, 55:02 so I started talking to them. 55:04 And then I started meeting them. 55:05 And then it just went from there. 55:06 And then I started having relationships with them. 55:09 I just wanted to find someone who would care. 55:13 After high school, most of my friends were gone, 55:15 but there were a few left home. 55:18 We all started getting into drugs and smoking weed 55:20 and drinking. 55:21 I was able to leave my depression behind 55:23 and I wasn't shy anymore. 55:25 I was able to talk to anyone I wanted to. 55:27 It wasn't real, but it felt real at the time. 55:31 During this time, I felt like God had left me. 55:34 I'd hear conversations at church talking about gays 55:37 and people on drugs and stuff. 55:39 And, you know, they talked so bad about them, 55:41 it drove me to leave church. 55:42 I eventually just left church, I left God. 55:44 I just didn't care anymore. 55:46 I didn't, I didn't care what God thought because 55:48 I didn't think he cared about me. 55:50 At the beginning of this year, I've moved in with my boyfriend. 55:54 I still felt empty. I still wasn't happy. 55:56 I thought I had what I wanted. 55:57 I had a guy that I could love, and I thought he loved me, 55:59 but I was still empty. 56:01 I still felt like if I died today, 56:02 I wasn't sure where I was gonna go. 56:04 And I wasn't sure if I'd be a disappointment to everyone. 56:10 My grandma texted me. 56:12 She told me that an Amazing Facts evangelists was coming 56:14 to our church to do a prophecy seminar. 56:17 I didn't really want to go 'cause I've been 56:19 to those before, and they were normally pretty boring 56:21 and I'd fall asleep. 56:22 I was planning on making excuses for every night, 56:24 but she was dedicated. 56:25 She really wanted me to go and so did my mom. 56:27 So, I ended up going to church and the evangelist that was 56:30 speaking, he was speaking on the sanctuary that morning. 56:34 It made sense to me that there was someone up in heaven 56:36 pleading my cause. 56:38 I've never heard Jesus this way before. 56:40 I went back all the nights that I could, 56:42 except the nights that I worked. 56:43 At the end of it, I ended up getting rebaptized. 56:46 I made a decision to leave this life behind. 56:48 I was still attracted to men, but I wanted to leave 56:51 the lifestyle. 56:52 I didn't want to live in it anymore, any longer, 56:55 because I knew it was wrong. 56:56 The evangelist that was at our church, that did the prophecy 56:58 seminar, became my mentor. 57:00 He told me about this school called AFCOE, 57:02 and it stands for Amazing Facts Center Of Evangelism. 57:05 And I was like, well, I want that 'cause I want 57:07 to learn how to share Jesus. 57:08 I want to learn how to be able to help others. 57:11 I prayed about it. I applied online. 57:13 They accepted my application, but I still had 57:15 the money problem left. 57:16 That night right before I left, He provided over $3,000 57:20 and He's been providing for me ever since. 57:23 The tools that I've learned here are tools that will stick 57:25 with me forever. 57:27 And it was life changing to be able to come here to AFCOE. 57:30 I would love to help other people in my situation because 57:33 a lot of people have prayed that God would take this stuff away, 57:37 and then they get discouraged when He--when He doesn't. 57:39 But what they don't know is that Jesus is there. 57:41 He will help you through it. 57:44 My name is Josh, and Amazing Facts has helped change my life. 57:47 ♪♪♪ |
Revised 2021-10-28