Participants:
Series Code: SSP
Program Code: SSP200037S
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00:01 Hello, friends, can you believe
00:02 we have almost arrived to the end of our series 00:05 on "Making Friends for God," 00:07 we have three lessons left. 00:08 And in this week's lesson, lesson number 11, 00:11 we're going to be talking about "Sharing the Story of Jesus." 00:14 That reminds me of the old hymn, you know, 00:16 tell me the story of Jesus, write on my heart every word. 00:22 I love that song. 00:23 I love the words of that song. And you know what? 00:25 Today we're going to be talking all about 00:27 how to share the story of Jesus 00:29 and how to tell the story of Jesus 00:31 and so you may not have a copy of this study. 00:34 So we want to tell you 00:35 how to get a copy of that study. 00:36 You can go online to absg.adventist.org. 00:42 Again that's absg.adventist.org, 00:46 and you can access the study for free or, of course, 00:49 we always encourage you 00:50 to go to your local Seventh-day Adventist Church 00:52 to fellowship and to study together. 00:54 But hey, again as always say grab your pens, your paper, 00:58 your iPads, your Bibles, your friends, enemies, 01:00 everyone around 01:02 and let's study God's Word together 01:03 in just a few moments. 01:37 Hello 3ABN friends and family. 01:38 We want to thank you so much for joining us again 01:40 on another week of 3ABN Sabbath School Panel. 01:43 As always, we appreciate your time, 01:46 taking time to study with us each and every week. 01:49 And this week, we're going to be 01:50 talking about Sharing the Story of Jesus, 01:53 lesson number 11. 01:54 We are fast tracking toward the end of this series 01:57 on Making Friends for God. 02:00 And before we go any further, 02:01 I want to introduce not that they need an introduction, 02:03 but there may be someone new who may not know our panel. 02:06 And so to my left, we have Miss Jill Morikone. 02:08 It's always a blessing to have you. 02:09 Thank you so much. 02:11 Privileged to be here, excited about this lesson. 02:13 Amen. Praise the Lord. 02:14 And as always, Brother Danny, 02:16 you always bring so much insight 02:17 and wisdom and we appreciate you as well. 02:18 Brother Danny Shelton. Thank you for being here. 02:21 The rest of us almost joined 02:22 in with you in saying here in the beginning that was true. 02:25 Praise the Lord. 02:27 And, of course, Pastor John Lomacang, 02:29 it's always a blessing to have you as well, Brother. 02:30 Praise the Lord. 02:31 Any day in God's Word is a blessed day. 02:33 Amen. 02:35 And I know Brother Kenny Shelton down there 02:36 has some wise words of encouragement 02:39 from the Word of God. 02:41 We always appreciate your input, Brother. 02:42 It's always good to study the Word of God together, 02:45 especially in these lessons here 02:46 because everyone has lifted up Jesus. 02:50 Amen. Absolutely. 02:52 And that's what this particular lesson is all about. 02:55 Sharing the story of Jesus, 02:56 putting Jesus into your personal testimony, 02:59 into your Bible study, into your evangelism, 03:02 into your life, into your daily experiences. 03:04 And so, before we go any further 03:07 and dive deep into this powerful lesson, 03:09 Brother Danny, I'm going to ask 03:11 if you don't mind have us a prayer. 03:12 I will. 03:13 Dear Lord once again, we just want to thank You 03:15 for Your many wonderful blessings to us 03:18 for this opportunity to study 03:21 Your Word on Your Sabbath day. 03:22 And we thank You, Lord, 03:24 now for hearing, for answering prayers. 03:26 We pray, especially for everyone watching. 03:28 We pray for the anointing and listening, 03:30 for the anointing of the Holy Spirit 03:32 upon each one that we will receive 03:34 what you would have us to take in today 03:36 and then go share it with those around about us. 03:40 In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. Amen. 03:43 Thank you so much, Brother. 03:44 Our memory text for this week comes from 1 John 5:13. 03:50 And it says, "These things I have written to you 03:53 who believe in the name of the Son of God, 03:57 that you may know that you have eternal life 04:00 and that you may continue 04:02 to believe in the name of the Son of God." 04:05 There is indeed power in the name of God. 04:08 Sabbath afternoon's lesson brings out the fact that 04:12 as we have learned in previous lessons, 04:14 sharing the truth is vitally important. 04:17 And we know that as the series has been 04:19 all about witnessing and sharing your faith, 04:21 sharing Jesus, of course, 04:23 we know that that's vitally important to do 04:25 it in a truthful manner. 04:27 However, sharing the truth 04:28 with the absence of Jesus at the core 04:32 will lead to failure. 04:34 And I can personally say this, 04:35 because early on in my Christian experience, 04:38 I was all about the truth. 04:39 I was all about sharing the truth, 04:41 but Jesus wasn't much in my testimony, 04:43 wasn't much tied into each one of those truths 04:45 as I was sharing, 04:46 and you can share a whole lot of knowledge, 04:48 a whole lot of truth with people 04:49 but if you don't have Jesus in that story, 04:52 you're just sharing information, right? 04:55 It's got to be personal. 04:56 True witnessing is sharing what we know about Jesus 05:00 within the context 05:02 of all of these beautiful truths 05:03 that we know. 05:05 And the lesson brings out clearly 05:06 that if our witness about Jesus comes from a heart 05:09 that has been transformed by His grace, 05:12 charmed by His love and amazed at His truth, 05:16 others will be impressed with how the truth 05:20 we believe has impacted our lives. 05:22 Truth presented in the context of a changed life 05:26 makes all the difference. 05:27 And you might say why? 05:29 Well, because Jesus is the truth. 05:31 And, of course, that truth has made us free indeed. 05:35 And I love the passage, 05:36 I'm going to dive into Sunday's lesson 05:37 which is entitled, 05:39 "Jesus, the Basis of Our Testimony." 05:41 And the passage that it begins with is Ephesians 2:1-10. 05:47 I love this passage. 05:48 This is one of my favorite passages 05:50 because it reminds us that we all have a story, 05:52 that we all have an experience. 05:54 We all have a personal story of how Christ has led us 05:58 from where we once were, 06:00 to where we are now and where He is also taking us. 06:03 And so let's begin reading in Ephesians Chapter 2, 06:05 beginning with verse 1, 06:07 the Bible says here and this is Paul sharing, 06:08 "And you He made alive," speaking of Christ, 06:11 "who were dead in trespasses and sins, 06:14 in which you once walked 06:15 according to the course of this world, 06:18 according to the prince of the power of the air, 06:21 the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, 06:25 among whom also we all once conducted ourselves 06:29 in the lusts of our flesh, 06:31 fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, 06:34 and were by nature children of wrath, 06:37 just as the others." 06:40 And then I love this next, "But God," 06:42 Now you just pause there and take that in, 06:45 but God, when God comes into picture, things change. 06:48 It says here in verse 4, "But God who is rich in mercy, 06:52 because of His great love with which He loved us, 06:56 even when we were dead in trespasses, 07:00 made us alive together with Christ," 07:02 and I love this in parenthesis, 07:04 "(by grace you have been saved)." 07:06 We can't forget that, "And raised us up together, 07:10 and made us sit together 07:12 in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 07:14 that in the ages to come 07:15 He might show the exceeding riches 07:18 of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 07:22 And here comes those famous verses. 07:24 We've heard so many times, 07:26 "For by grace you have been saved through faith, 07:29 and that not of yourselves, it is a gift of God, 07:33 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 07:36 For we are His workmanship, 07:39 created in Christ Jesus for good works, 07:41 which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." 07:47 That's powerful just to hear, 07:48 I can imagine that that would have been the way 07:50 Paul would have shared his testimony. 07:53 It was flooded with Christ, 07:54 it was flooded with how Jesus had changed 07:56 and transformed his life 07:58 and I love this particular lesson 07:59 because as I was going through the bulk of the lesson was, 08:03 it basically says in the lesson that you know what, 08:06 you have a testimony. 08:07 And if you were to share your testimony, 08:08 you have a before Christ and an after Christ, right? 08:12 Your life that once occurred, 08:14 you know, before Christ was in your life. 08:16 And, of course, 08:17 when Christ came into your life, 08:18 what happened afterwards. 08:20 You know, I want to give an example of this right now 08:21 and how you can easily share your story, 08:23 and how Christ can be the basis 08:26 and the foundation of your testimony. 08:28 I'm going to share in just a few minutes, 08:30 my personal testimony 08:32 and give you kind of an example of how this is 08:34 when you're sharing with someone 08:35 you can indeed in fact, in fact, 08:37 that would be a good word, in fact, 08:39 affect someone powerfully just by sharing Jesus with them 08:44 because Jesus is a contagion, you know, a good contagion, 08:49 I want to be infected with Jesus Christ. 08:52 So here's my story before Christ, 08:54 okay, this is just really short. 08:55 Okay, this is my gist version of my story. 08:59 I was raised in church, 09:01 but I was one of the biggest hypocrites 09:02 to walk the planet. 09:04 It's the truth. 09:05 I put on my Christian mask 09:06 when around people of certain religious affiliation 09:09 and was quick to indulge 09:11 in non-Christian activities 09:13 and conversations at the first chance I got. 09:15 I was a liar, a schemer 09:18 and a manipulator at times for personal gain. 09:23 I was bullied as a child 09:25 and grew up to become 09:26 an even bigger bully to those I thought deserved it. 09:30 I often used my quick wit, 09:34 loud charisma, trash talking, 09:36 along with vulgar language 09:38 to intimidate and humiliate people 09:40 who would verbally bully and take advantage of others. 09:43 In other words, I used to be a bully's bully. 09:49 I got into fights, public arguments, 09:53 and had a really dangerous temper 09:55 at one time in my life. 09:57 I dishonored my parents, I disrespected, demeaned, hurt, 10:02 and bullied my little brother at times, 10:05 only when he was just looking to me for friendship 10:08 and wanted to hang out with his older brother. 10:11 I partied hard. 10:13 I disc jockeyed on the side for money, 10:16 and entertained thousands 10:18 with horrible satanic music 10:19 and lyrical themes and musical elements 10:22 that would make some demons blush. 10:26 I was a mess. I was lost. 10:28 And I had replaced Paul as the chief of sinners. 10:32 That was my past. 10:33 That was before Christ came into my life, 10:36 all the while wearing the mask 10:37 that I was a Christian. 10:43 But, but then, I had an encounter with Jesus. 10:49 He took my stone-cold heart and transformed it 10:52 into a soft heart of flesh. 10:55 He took away my lying tongue 10:58 and replaced it with the truthful testimony. 11:01 He took hold of my angry spirit 11:05 and transformed it into a humble, caring vessel. 11:09 Instead of bullying bullies, 11:12 He transformed me into a bold soldier 11:14 to combat the despicable, 11:16 manipulative lying ways of the devil. 11:20 Instead of engaging in fights and arguments with my brethren, 11:24 Christ equipped me 11:26 with the gifts to fight the devil's agenda 11:28 through public Bible seminars. 11:31 Christ would give me a love for my parents, 11:34 siblings and friends so much that I committed 11:37 to lovingly bombard them with the truth of Jesus Christ 11:41 until they all converted. 11:44 I watched as the Lord used me in a miraculous way 11:47 to witness to my little brother, 11:49 who had somewhat grown cold hearted, 11:51 probably due to my poor influence growing up, 11:54 and I watched as the Lord used me 11:56 to embrace him, pray for him, teach him and guide him 12:02 to a relationship with his Savior. 12:04 And at the same time this same young man 12:09 is now leading thousands to Jesus Christ. 12:12 The Lord gave me the power to throw away the partying, 12:16 the disc jockey business, 12:17 the paid entertainment gigs, 12:19 and all the other worldly garbage 12:21 that I was buried in. 12:22 He changed me, He transformed me. 12:26 And He ordained me to go out as a sheep among wolves, 12:29 as a beacon of light in a dark world, 12:32 back to the prison that 12:33 I was once bound in to help rescue 12:37 those in need of help. 12:40 All of this was only made possible because of Jesus. 12:45 Amen. Amen. 12:46 Now, just in that little three or four minutes segment 12:49 that I just gave of my story, 12:52 I mentioned and referenced Jesus Christ 17 times, 12:56 and normally I don't count how many times 12:57 but as I was writing it, I thought, you know, 12:59 I just want to see and I went back and I counted. 13:01 I referenced Jesus Christ 17 times 13:03 and the title of this message, title of this lesson is Jesus, 13:06 the Basis of Our Testimony. 13:08 You see, when you have been transformed 13:10 by the grace of Jesus Christ, 13:12 you can't help but tell someone about Him. 13:14 Each and every one of you right now, 13:16 you have a story. 13:18 You have a testimony. 13:20 And the basis of that testimony is Jesus 13:23 and His transforming grace. 13:25 And there's someone out there right now, 13:28 who, if they heard your story, 13:31 it would impact them in a mighty way. 13:33 And you might be sitting at home right now saying, 13:35 well, Ryan, I don't have some big elaborate story. 13:38 You know, I didn't come to Jesus in a cave. 13:40 I didn't come out of the entertainment business. 13:42 I don't have some, you know, 13:44 incredible overwhelming life transformation story. 13:47 But at the same time you do, because at times, 13:52 we look at other people's testimonies 13:54 and we compare, 13:55 and we try to say that this person's testimony 13:57 is greater than this person's testimony. 13:59 But that's not the case. 14:00 In God's eyes, the fact that you are a redeemed person 14:04 in Jesus Christ is the greatest story of all. 14:09 And the fact that Jesus Christ has transformed you, 14:11 there's someone else out there waiting to hear that story. 14:14 And as we have learned in this study, 14:16 a personal testimony is powerful, 14:19 more powerful than any other possible truth 14:21 or story that you could share because it's real, 14:24 it's personal, and it's truthful. 14:26 And so I encourage each and every one of you 14:28 at home watching, 14:29 and those that may be chiming in at this moment, 14:32 tell your story. 14:33 Tell others how Christ has transformed you, 14:37 because as the song says, as I've referenced before, 14:40 Lanny Wolfe song Jesus did it for me. 14:42 You ask me how I know, 14:44 that Jesus blood washes whiter than snow, 14:47 I can say that I know it so because 14:50 Jesus did it for me. 14:52 You can tell them that you can be a beacon of light 14:55 into their dark shadowy place. 14:57 So share your testimony today, uplift Jesus Christ. 15:01 And remember, always make Jesus the basis of your testimony. 15:04 Amen. Thank you so much, Ryan. 15:07 We could go home right now. That was powerful. 15:10 Thank you for sharing your personal testimony. 15:12 And I've heard some details of that, 15:15 but never as completely as you shared just now 15:17 and to see where you were, and where you are today. 15:22 And what God's done in your life 15:23 that just really ministered to me. 15:26 And you can share your testimony 15:28 and minister to someone else. 15:30 On Monday's lesson we have 15:32 "The Transformative Power of Personal Testimony." 15:35 We're looking specifically at the apostle 15:38 or disciple John, he was a son of thunder, 15:42 and who he became 15:44 and what God did in his heart and in his life, 15:48 BC Before Christ and AC After Christ. 15:52 I like what you said there, Ryan. 15:54 So let's look at Mark 3rd, Mark Chapter 3. 15:57 We're going to pick it up in verse 14. 15:59 Mark Chapter 3, 16:00 this is where Jesus first names them 16:02 and calls them the Sons of Thunder. 16:04 Mark 3:14,"Then He," 16:06 that's Jesus, "appointed twelve, 16:08 that they might be with Him 16:10 and that He might send them out to preach, 16:12 and to have power to heal sicknesses 16:14 and cast out demons: 16:15 Simon, to whom He gave the name Peter, 16:18 James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James, 16:20 to whom He gave the name Boanerges, 16:23 that is, "Sons of Thunder." 16:27 Boanerges is an Aramaic term interpreted by Mark 16:30 for his non-Jewish audience who were probably Roman 16:33 so he tells them this is what it means, 16:35 Sons of Thunder. 16:37 Now there's an experience in Luke Chapter 9, 16:39 none of the other gospel writers recorded, 16:41 Luke Chapter 9 talks about a time 16:43 when John and James literally lived up 16:45 to their name and they wanted to 16:47 execute vengeance on a certain Samaritan village. 16:50 So let's take a look at that. Luke Chapter 9. 16:54 We want to see a bit of John's past 16:56 before we see the transforming grace of God 16:59 in His Heart and in His life. 17:01 Now, of course, Luke 9 begins 17:03 with the 12 disciples being sent out 17:05 on there, we could say maiden evangelistic voyage. 17:08 They were sent to preach the gospel, 17:11 that the kingdom of God was at hand. 17:13 They were sent to heal the sick and cast out demons. 17:15 It was a successful mission. 17:18 And they came back 17:19 and they witnessed Jesus feeding the 5,000. 17:23 Then Peter, James and John had a special privilege 17:26 to go up on the Mount of Transfiguration, 17:29 and they witnessed Jesus 17:31 being transformed or transfigured 17:33 before their very eyes. 17:35 So what I'm getting at is that John had experienced 17:39 the power of Jesus because God had used him 17:42 to cast out demons and to heal the sick. 17:44 He had seen miracles, Jesus had fed the 5,000, 17:49 he had seen Jesus transfigured, 17:51 and yet we see that he's still very human, 17:54 and a bit unconverted, 17:57 and without the power of the Holy Spirit. 18:00 In the next section here in Luke 9, 18:03 I see the disciples' defeat, their dismay, 18:07 dispute, dilemma and desire. 18:10 So let's look at their defeat. 18:12 Remember Jesus and the three disciples 18:13 come right down 18:14 from the Mount of Transfiguration, 18:16 and they encounter the other nine disciples 18:18 who were unable to cast out the demon from the boy. 18:21 Remember, the father came with a boy? 18:23 And then in Luke 9:41, Jesus answered and said, 18:27 "Oh, faithless and perverse generation, 18:30 how long shall I be with you 18:32 and bear with you bring your son here." 18:35 So who was faithless in this circumstance? 18:38 Clearly, the nine disciples were faithless, 18:40 because in Matthew, 18:41 Jesus told them that they needed more faith, 18:43 and that this kind 18:45 would only come out by prayer and fasting. 18:47 Clearly, the father was faithless, 18:49 because in Mark he said, 18:51 I believe please help my unbelief. 18:53 He acknowledged that. 18:55 Probably the Scribes 18:56 or a good deal of the Scribes and Pharisees 18:58 in the crowd were faithless as well. 19:00 That's the disciples' defeat. 19:02 Then we see the disciples' dismay 19:03 because right after this, 19:05 Jesus tells the disciples about His coming death, 19:09 that the Son of Man is going to be betrayed. 19:12 And the Bible says the disciples 19:13 did not understand this, 19:15 but they were afraid to ask Him about it. 19:19 Then we see the disciples dispute 19:21 the very next thing in Luke is their argument over 19:24 who's going to be the greatest in the kingdom of God. 19:28 Now, it's interesting, Pastor Ryan, 19:30 because the disciples were afraid to ask Jesus 19:32 about His coming death, right? 19:33 Because Luke says that they're afraid to ask, 19:36 but they're surely not afraid to ask about 19:37 who's going to get the top place in the kingdom. 19:40 I just find that very interesting. 19:42 So they're like, I don't even want to ask 19:44 because I'm afraid but here, oh, yeah, I'm not afraid to ask 19:47 and who's going to be the greatest. 19:49 Then we see 19:50 before we get there with this dispute 19:52 and who's going to be the greatest, 19:53 you know, oftentimes, we measure the significance 19:57 of our ministry by the significance 19:59 of our audience. 20:01 If we minister to a significant person, 20:04 we think we have a significant ministry. 20:07 Oh, this person's famous, 20:08 oh, this person's wealthy, 20:10 oh, this person's, whoever. 20:13 But on the contrary, if we ministered to someone 20:16 that society sees as insignificant, 20:19 we think our ministry is insignificant, 20:22 but that is not God's view. 20:25 He said, "Whoever ministers 20:27 to a child is ministering to Jesus." 20:31 Then we see the disciples' dilemma. 20:33 John asked Jesus, 20:35 this is in Luke 9, we're in verse 49. 20:37 We saw someone casting out demons in your name. 20:41 And we told him to stop doing that 20:42 because he does not follow us in the ministry. 20:45 But Jesus rebuked John and the disciples said, 20:49 "Whoever was not against us was on our side." 20:53 And then we see again, 20:54 John emerges again, with the disciples' desire. 20:58 We're in verse 51. 21:00 "Now it came to pass, 21:01 when the time had come for Him to be received up, 21:04 that He steadfastly set His face 21:06 to go to Jerusalem," 21:08 Jesus knows He's going to the cross, 21:10 "and sent messengers before His face. 21:12 And as they went, 21:13 they entered a village of the Samaritans, 21:15 to prepare for Him. 21:16 But they did not receive Him, 21:18 because His face was set for the journey to Jerusalem. 21:21 And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, 21:24 'Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down 21:27 from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?' 21:31 But He turned and rebuked them, and said, 21:34 'You do not know 21:35 what manner of spirit you are of, 21:37 for the Son of Man did not come 21:39 to destroy men's lives but to save them.' 21:41 And they went to another village.'" 21:43 James and John wanted fire to come down from heaven, 21:48 and smoke their enemies, much like the Prophet Jonah 21:53 would rather watch their enemy suffer 21:56 than experience the grace of God. 22:01 They acted out of impulse and misplaced zeal. 22:04 They acted out of irritation for a perceived sly. 22:07 They acted out of anger 22:09 because things did not go their way. 22:11 They acted out of hatred 22:13 towards someone who was not like them. 22:15 Remember the Samaritans and the Jews were enemies. 22:18 They lacked compassion and a spirit of grace. 22:20 They lacked love and a spirit of forgiveness. 22:24 They lacked kindness 22:25 and a spirit desiring salvation of the lost. 22:29 And Jesus rebuked them, 22:30 but we know that John was converted. 22:34 We know that he experienced 22:36 those three and a half years watching Jesus, 22:39 living with Jesus, working with Jesus, 22:41 seeing how he interacted, his heart, 22:45 his life, his spirit, his very nature was transformed 22:50 by the power of God 22:52 and the power of the Holy Spirit. 22:54 And when the Holy Spirit was poured out at Pentecost, 22:58 we see that these disciples 23:00 did not run and flee like they did 23:02 when Jesus was crucified. 23:03 But they stood boldly for Jesus and they proclaim the gospel. 23:08 Let's turn to 1 John Chapter, we'll pick it up in 1 John 4. 23:12 This is, of course, the Apostle John 23:14 who was the son of thunder, 23:16 his epistle and in this epistle, 23:18 the word love appears nearly 40 times. 23:22 And in its various forms, 23:23 this is from Pastor Mark from the lesson, 23:25 it occurs 50 times, 1 John 4, this is five verses, 23:30 verses 7 through 11. 23:31 "Beloved, let us love one another, 23:34 for love is of God, 23:35 and everyone who loves is born of God 23:37 and knows God. 23:38 He who does not love does not know God, 23:41 for God is love. 23:44 In this the love of God was manifested toward us, 23:47 that God sent His only begotten Son into the world, 23:51 that we might live through Him. 23:53 In this is love, not that we loved God, 23:55 but that He loved us and sent His Son 23:58 to be the propitiation for our sins. 24:01 Beloved, if God so loved us, 24:03 we also ought to love one another." 24:06 In those five verses, 24:07 there are 11 times the word agape 24:10 or agape love is mentioned. 24:12 This is not a sensual love. This is not a friendship love. 24:15 This is the love of God, self-sacrificing love, 24:20 a principle of love for the good of others. 24:23 You see, we learned from this passage, 24:25 that John finally got it, 24:26 that he understood God and His love, 24:30 that he understood that love originates from God, 24:33 we can't conjure it up. 24:35 We can't create it, 24:36 it comes from above when we are born again. 24:40 He understood God's love for him, 24:42 as revealed at the cross. 24:44 And he understood that we receive God's love 24:47 in order to extend it to others. 24:50 You see, John was a son of thunder, 24:54 but he became a disciple of Jesus who exhibited, 24:58 who exulted and shared His love 25:01 and this gospel with those that He came in contact with. 25:05 Praise the Lord. Well, I love that. 25:07 God is love not that He's just mere loving, 25:09 but He is love. 25:11 And as they're the Sons of Thunder, 25:12 I would like to be known as a son of love, amen? 25:14 Praise the Lord. 25:16 We're going to take a short break. 25:17 Don't go anywhere. We'll be right back. 25:24 Ever wish you could watch 25:25 a 3ABN Sabbath School Panel again, 25:27 or share it on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter? 25:31 Well, you can by visiting 3abnsabbathschoolpanel.com. 25:36 A clean design makes it easy 25:38 to find the program you're looking for. 25:40 There are also links to the Adult Bible Study Guide 25:44 so you can follow along. 25:45 Sharing is easy. 25:47 Just click share and choose your favorite social media. 25:50 Share a link, save a life for eternity. 25:54 Hello, friends, welcome back to 3ABN Sabbath School Panel. 25:57 We're going to pass it 25:58 on over to Brother Danny Shelton 26:00 for Tuesday's lesson. 26:01 Thank you so much both of you, Ryan, incredible testimony 26:04 and, Jill, as always, 26:06 the word just seems to jump off the pages 26:08 into you and right out to us. 26:10 Thanks so much. 26:11 Mine is telling the story of Jesus. 26:13 Now, there's nothing 26:14 that I'd rather do than tell the story 26:16 because 3ABN that's what it's all about, 26:19 giving undiluted three angels' messages, 26:21 one that would counteract 26:23 the counterfeit into all the world. 26:25 Now, does God use us because we're worthy? 26:27 No, God, does He use you because you're worthy? 26:30 No, He uses us because He is worthy, 26:33 and that He uses us in spite of us, 26:35 not because of us. 26:36 So once we get that through our heads, 26:38 it's not about us, it's about God. 26:41 A lot of things will change. 26:42 The story here 26:44 that Pastor Mark Finley puts in, 26:45 we're talking today about 26:46 how soon after you accept Christ, 26:49 are you ready to be an evangelist? 26:51 Are you ready to go share 26:53 your testimony and tell people about Jesus? 26:56 Well, he gives us stories, and I won't go into all of it 26:58 but Matthew 8 and Mark 5 27:00 tells the story of the two, one of them is two demoniacs 27:04 and the other is just one. 27:06 I think Mark centers in on one but the point is the same, 27:09 the results were that these men 27:12 when they met Jesus, 27:13 the unclean spirits had to flee. 27:16 And they were cast into pigs 27:18 and you remember what happened to the pigs, 27:19 they all went over whether it's to clear 27:21 for just into the waters, what have you. 27:24 But the result was the beautiful story as we, 27:28 Mark as he tells, it says, 27:30 of when the townspeople came to see, 27:32 they heard the people 27:34 who had been feeding the animals 27:36 and taking care of them ran into town said, 27:38 you wouldn't believe what just happened, what I saw. 27:40 So, of course, you know, 27:42 townspeople have nothing better to do, 27:44 came out and they saw this man 27:47 in his right mind clothed and sitting 27:50 at the feet of Jesus. 27:51 Now this is somebody who had been cutting himself 27:53 running around day and night, 27:55 they could hear him screaming out of the caves. 27:57 Everybody was afraid of him, but Jesus comes in 28:01 and cast out the demon 28:03 and all of a sudden, everything changes. 28:06 So Jesus had restored him physically, mentally, 28:10 emotionally, and spiritually. 28:13 And that my friend 28:14 is the story of Jesus right there, 28:17 that he takes everything that is so final here, 28:21 everything that is just here temporarily. 28:24 You know our bodies in immortality, right? 28:29 And mortal must put on immortality, 28:32 this corruptible put on incorruption, 28:34 only Jesus can do that. 28:36 Only Jesus, we use Lanny Wolfe quite a bit, 28:39 only Jesus can satisfy your soul. 28:42 So here this man 28:43 they saw him clothed in his right mind, 28:46 sitting at the feet of Jesus. 28:47 And I mean, what an incredible story. 28:50 Now, we're no different than this demon filled man 28:55 because we're born in a world that's full of demons. 29:00 And they're running loose. 29:01 And the only thing 29:03 that will free people is the Creator, 29:05 Master Jesus Christ, 29:07 when we come in contact with Him. 29:10 The Bible says that when we meet Jesus, 29:13 every knee shall bow, 29:15 every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. 29:19 And I mean this such an incredible thing. 29:21 In fact, you mentioned, 29:23 we mentioned Lanny Wolfe already, 29:24 but the song says, get all excited. 29:26 Go tell everybody that Jesus Christ is Lord. 29:29 You could almost sing that for us, 29:32 I'm sure you could. 29:33 Mark also recounts as Jesus was leaving, 29:36 as He was entering the boat, 29:38 he had been the he who had been possessed 29:40 with the demons, they saw Jesus and said, 29:43 "Can I go with you?" 29:44 And Jesus, what did He tell him? 29:45 No. 29:47 Just go back into town 29:48 and tell people what I have done for you. 29:50 That's right. 29:52 So how soon does, 29:53 did this man become an evangelist? 29:56 Immediately, just immediately, because what did he do? 29:59 He went and gave his personal testimony. 30:02 And no one could argue with it because everybody 30:04 had seen them probably for years. 30:07 And this naked out, literally hurting people, 30:10 hurting themselves, full of these demons 30:12 and now they see someone sitting at the feet of Jesus. 30:16 Can you imagine that eventually, 30:18 we'll get to sit at the feet of Jesus 30:20 for eternity to learn more 30:22 about the great story of redemption? 30:24 Now I want to center in on something 30:26 that's a little different. 30:27 It's not always a problem with people 30:29 when they first get, some people use the term saved, 30:32 they've first come to the knowledge of Christ. 30:35 They're ready to go out and tell the world 30:37 but I hate to say this, 30:38 but I am remiss not to sometimes 30:42 we the ones who've been in church 30:44 the longest are the ones that say stop. 30:46 We're the ones to stop him, 30:48 so they come in to church all excited. 30:50 We want to get a song service, praise the Lord and then wait, 30:53 wait, wait, wait, we don't do that here. 30:55 Somebody the preacher's preaching, 30:56 they're like "Glory, Hallelujah. 30:58 Thank you, Jesus." 30:59 Whoa, whoa, whoa, 31:01 we don't have like that in this church. 31:03 We don't do those things. 31:04 You got to calm down a little bit. 31:07 I'll never forget Elder Aver Combo, 31:09 one of our first board members. 31:11 Kenny, he was president 31:12 of the Illinois Conference for years. 31:13 He told me when I was a young pastor, 31:16 I went to, they sent me to a church 31:18 of about 15 members, had 20 on the best day 31:21 and I was determined that 31:23 church had been there for years. 31:24 They said, "No one ever had any, 31:26 you know, had done anything with that church." 31:28 So he said, I said, "I am going to turn this city 31:31 with God's help upside down this little town." 31:34 I went door-to-door, he said, 31:36 I held evangelist meetings, and church said, 31:38 "Well, we don't do that. 31:39 You can't just, you know, this costs money. 31:41 We can't do this." So he said, "I did it anyway." 31:44 And he said, "We had 50, 75 people 31:47 begin to come into church filled up." 31:50 I said, "Praise the Lord." 31:51 He said, "No, it's not the end of the story." 31:53 Well, by the end of the year, 31:55 every person who had joined had left because I said why? 32:00 He said, because the people in it said, 32:02 well, wait a minute, 32:03 I know this guy is a piano player, 32:04 but I've been the piano player for 20 years, 32:07 you're not going to replace me. 32:08 Well, why is he going to be a deacon? 32:10 I've been here 15 years. You never let me be a deacon. 32:13 So well, I want to get up and tell, 32:16 can we be a part of evangelistic series? 32:18 No, well, no, you're new, you can't do any of this. 32:22 And he said, they got so discouraged, 32:24 they left it, we saw it in our own area 32:27 where same thing happened years later, 32:29 many people baptized and they left. 32:31 So the problem wasn't 32:33 with those who just accepted Jesus, 32:35 but I want to bring it today 32:36 I want to center in on us, 32:38 what are we doing to encourage those, right? 32:41 Those who accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. 32:44 Now many of us, we use all kinds of excuses. 32:47 And to, well, this is a reason 32:51 why and well and a lot of people well, 32:53 I don't talk, I'm not an evangelist. 32:56 I can't say anything. 32:57 I went to a guy's house. 32:59 Had a beautiful for home, 33:00 I'd done church services, went to his house, 33:03 wasn't a mansion but close to it. 33:05 He said, "I love everything he said today. 33:07 But when you said everybody is an evangelist, 33:10 and everybody, every hand should go up, 33:11 when you say go ye, that's not me." 33:13 And I said, "Why?" 33:15 And he said, "I'm not a talker. 33:16 You got to give to gab. I don't have the gift of gab. 33:19 So why don't you, you do it, and I'll give some money. 33:22 I'll help and support that way. But I just, I just can't talk." 33:25 I said, "Really?" 33:27 So few minutes later, I said, Man, 33:29 this is a beautiful home, gorgeous home. 33:31 Then he said, "Oh, yeah, yeah." 33:33 He said, "Now, we didn't, I know what you're thinking, 33:35 we didn't spend nearly as much money." 33:37 I said, "I wasn't thinking that," 33:38 you know, he got real defensive. 33:41 Well, we didn't spend all that money. 33:43 You know, we got a great deal on this house. 33:45 And his wife said, "Oh, you should have seen it. 33:47 They wanted this much and we got it for this amount." 33:50 And I said, "Really?" 33:52 I said, "Who negotiated that for you?" 33:54 Oh, she said, "My husband. 33:55 He's a great negotiator that he got this guy, 33:57 he kept coming back, kept coming back, 34:00 finally got him down to our price." 34:01 And the guy said, "Yeah, he did." 34:03 And I said, "Hmm, 34:04 I thought you just told me you couldn't negotiate, 34:06 you couldn't talk. 34:08 But when it comes to our own stuff, 34:10 the things that we wanted, 34:11 suddenly he was a great negotiator." 34:13 So excuses. 34:14 This song was not written by 34:17 any of the three B's I'm sure, 34:19 but it says: Excuses, excuses, you'll hear them every day. 34:23 And the devil he'll supply them, 34:24 if from church you stay away. 34:26 When people come to know the Lord, 34:28 the devil always loses. 34:29 So to keep those folks away from church, 34:31 he offers them excuses. 34:33 In the summertime, it's too hot. 34:35 And in the winter, it's too cold. 34:36 In the springtime, the weather's just right, 34:39 you find someplace else to go. 34:42 Well, it's up to the mountains or down to the beach 34:44 or to visit some old friend 34:46 or just to stay home and kinda relax and hope that 34:48 some kin folk will kind of be dropping in. 34:52 Well, the church benches are too hard. 34:55 And that old choir sings way too loud. 34:57 Boy, you don't know how nervous you get 34:59 when you're sitting in a great big crowd. 35:01 The doctor told you, 35:03 'Now you better watch some crowds. 35:04 They'll set you back.' 35:06 But you go to that old ballgame because you say, 35:08 'it relaxes you back.' 35:11 Well, you head on Sunday morning, 35:14 Sabbath morning and Sunday night 35:16 it says but you can't go to church, 35:17 but by work time Monday morning 35:19 you're feeling quite all right. 35:21 And even when one of the children 35:22 has the cold, pneumonia, 35:24 do you suppose the whole family 35:25 stays home just to help the kid blow his nose. 35:27 Right? 35:28 Right, excuses, excuses, you'll hear them every day. 35:32 The devil he'll supply them if from church, you stay away. 35:35 So when people come to know the Lord, 35:37 the devil always loses. 35:38 So to keep those folks away from church, 35:41 he offers them excuses.'" 35:43 So, the older I get, the more I understand 35:47 what our dad used to say, people do what they want to do. 35:50 So, folks, it's all about us. 35:52 Today is the day of salvation, 35:54 ask the Lord to come into your heart. 35:57 Say Lord Jesus, give me Your Strength 36:00 and Your power to go tell the world 36:02 what You have done for me. 36:04 Wow. Amen. 36:06 You're going to share that, Paul? 36:08 That was good. That was good. 36:10 That was great. That's true. 36:11 You know, I heard one person would said, what if we were as 36:13 sick as we claim to be, was broke as we claim to be. 36:19 Boy, I tell you, I always tell people 36:20 I even said that here. 36:21 You know, when I said, 36:23 "What happened to you on Sabbath?" 36:24 "Well, I wasn't feeling well." 36:25 I said, "You know what you should do 36:27 on Monday morning, 36:28 call Jill and say I am not come to work. 36:29 I feel horrible. 36:31 I just will not be there." 36:33 I said, "I bet you won't do that." 36:34 You know, it's amazing how we put the Lord last 36:37 on our list when we just get a feeling 36:39 or edge or we think, and Danny 36:43 that was so apropos, appropriate. 36:46 Don't be a Christian with excuses. 36:49 Because what happens now 36:50 it leans over into this aspect of the lesson. 36:53 You don't have any assurance of salvation. 36:56 There are so many people 36:57 that I've met through the years. 36:58 It's amazing. 37:00 I remember story of a lady and my wife would know 37:02 who I'm referring to, I know, right? 37:03 She'll think this lady was in her early 80s. 37:06 And very sad. We said, "Why are you sad?" 37:09 She said, "I don't know, 37:10 if I have enough time to get right 37:13 before the Lord comes. 37:15 I've been trying all my Christian life." 37:17 She'd been Adventist for 40-50 years. 37:19 "I just, I need more time to get right with the Lord, 37:23 because I'm not sure that I have salvation." 37:26 Nothing could be more miserable 37:29 than a person going to church singing songs, 37:32 returning tithes and offerings, 37:34 whatever they participate in as far as activities, 37:37 but never coming to the place 37:38 where they have that blessed assurance that Jesus is mine. 37:42 So what I want to do is share with you 37:43 some scriptures to let you know that 37:45 the assurance is not on what you do, 37:48 the assurance is on what Jesus does. 37:51 Let's go to 1 John 5:11-13. 37:53 You know, you can't give anybody 37:55 what you don't have. 37:56 That's right. 37:58 And I think that one of the main reasons 37:59 why people don't witness is 38:00 because they don't know Christ, they don't have that assurance. 38:02 As you once said, 38:03 and I think it has been brought out in, 38:05 I think many of our lessons 38:06 that if you're not excited about 38:08 what you have is because you don't have it. 38:12 In other words, you can't tell about 38:14 a basketball game you never attended, 38:16 you can't brag about your team if they never win. 38:20 And you can't even know what to brag about 38:22 if you don't even choose a team. 38:24 So we have to understand that when we are on the right team, 38:27 who do you know, who do you know, I like a name. 38:33 Send me that name. 38:34 Pastor@tvsdac.org 38:37 PastorLomacang@tvsdac.org. 38:40 And what you're going to do is send me a name of a person 38:42 who defeated Jesus. 38:45 I'm not going to get an email. 38:47 There's no one that defeated Jesus. 38:49 So here's why, 1 John 5:11-13. 38:53 And this is the testimony testifying with assurance 38:57 that God has given us eternal life. 39:00 How do we get it? 39:01 "He gave it to Him and this life is in His Son." 39:05 Verse 12, "He who has the Son has life." 39:08 How basic can I get? 39:11 "He who does not have the Son does not have life." 39:15 There's no science there. 39:16 "These things I have written to you 39:19 who believe in the name of the Son of God, 39:21 that you may," what's the next word? 39:24 "That you may know that you have eternal life." 39:27 How many of you know you have eternal life. 39:29 Now we're not saying you started living eternally, 39:31 but eternal life doesn't start 39:34 when Jesus comes, that eternal life experience 39:37 is something you have now, like going on vacation. 39:40 When we think about going someplace, 39:41 Danny, on vacation, 39:43 we're ready, we're packed, we can't wait to get there. 39:45 Our minds are just going nuts 39:47 about what we gonna do when we get there. 39:48 Some people don't have enough heaven in them 39:51 because they have too much earth in them. 39:53 And they don't see beyond the present. 39:55 He who has the Son has life, 39:57 that you may know that you have eternal life. 39:59 And that you may continue to believe 40:02 in the name of the Son of God. 40:04 If we have the Son, 40:06 we have life, if we don't, we don't have a life. 40:08 So look, let's go and start with the uncertainty. 40:11 Isaiah 45:22, 40:13 the uncertainty of your salvation 40:16 will be replaced with certainty 40:18 if you stop looking at yourself. 40:20 So here's my first text, stop looking at yourself. 40:22 Let's change our focus. 40:24 Isaiah 45:22. Do you have it, Jill? 40:26 What should we do? 40:27 "Look to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth 40:30 for I am God and there is no other." 40:33 Stop looking in the mirror 40:35 because you gonna depress yourself. 40:37 Look in your Bible. 40:38 Stop looking through the window of prayer, 40:40 start looking through the window of blessings. 40:42 You know, sometimes, Danny, and team here. 40:44 Sometimes God blesses people, but they miss it. 40:47 And then they say, I want to thank you, Lord, 40:48 for blessing me yesterday. 40:50 And if we could hear him say yesterday, is that it? 40:53 What about Monday and Tuesday? 40:54 Did you wake up this morning? 40:56 If you think your alarm clock woke you up, 40:58 take that alarm clock to the cemetery. 41:00 See what happens. 41:02 The Lord gives us the breath every day 41:03 and every morning His mercies are what? 41:05 New and His faithfulness is what? 41:08 Great. Every day. 41:10 Let's go to another one. Let's go to another one. 41:12 Let's go to 1 John 3:1-2. 41:15 Here's some more assurance. This is beautiful. 41:18 Matter of fact, 41:19 these are my two favorite scriptures. 41:22 I've adopted them over the last five years. 41:24 Notice what it says, "Behold, 41:27 what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us," 41:31 watch this, "that we should be called children of God. 41:35 Therefore, the world does not know us 41:38 because it did not know Him." 41:40 I rather remain relatively unknown in the world 41:43 and known in the kingdom of heaven. 41:44 Ain't that wonderful? 41:45 And verse 2, "Beloved now," what's that word? 41:49 "Now we are children of God. 41:52 We're not going to become that. 41:53 And it has not yet been revealed what we shall be." 41:57 Don't be anxious, 41:58 God is still working on your frame. 42:00 But we know 42:01 there's a three word of confidence, 42:03 three words of confidence, 42:04 then when He is revealed, we shall be what? 42:07 Like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. 42:09 You're going to be able to recognize Christ, 42:12 because you're going to be 42:13 reflecting the very person 42:14 that you're standing in front of. 42:16 We will be like him. 42:17 What more assurance can you have? 42:20 He says, "It has not yet been revealed." 42:22 Don't worry about it, Danny. 42:23 But I know this, when I'm done, you gonna look just like me. 42:26 What builder, come on, what builder can say that? 42:30 Can't, you really can't. 42:32 The Lord is saying, "When I'm done, 42:34 you're going to look just like me." 42:35 That's the assurance you need. 42:37 Let's go to another one. Philippians 1:6. 42:40 Let God give you the confidence. 42:41 Let the Lord give you the confidence. 42:43 Here is what Paul says, 42:45 "Being confident," what two words did I just say? 42:48 "Being confident of this very thing 42:52 that he who has begun a good work in you will," what? 42:56 "Complete it until the day of Jesus Christ." 42:59 Amen. 43:00 I think the only reason why you don't have assurance 43:02 is you're not reading these scriptures. 43:05 Don't delete the stuff in your Bible 43:06 that will give you the assurance. 43:07 Here's another one, 43:09 Job 19:25, confidence in Christ. 43:13 It's all Old Testament, it's New Testament. 43:15 If you look in the right places, 43:17 you'll find that there is no reason 43:18 why you cannot testify with assurance. 43:21 Look at Job 19:25. 43:23 "For I know," look at these words, 43:25 "for I know that," whose redeemer? 43:28 "My Redeemer lives, 43:30 and He shall stand at last on the earth." 43:32 Amen. I know, whose Redeemer, Kenny? 43:36 My Redeemer. Let's go to another one. 43:39 1 John 2:28. 43:41 Not only do we know He lives 43:42 and He's going to make us look just like Him. 43:44 He's going to complete the work He started, 43:46 and we are His children now, 43:48 but notice what else He does for us. 43:49 What a blessing. 43:51 1 John 2:28. Look what it says. 43:54 "And now, little children, abide in Me, 43:57 that when He appears, we may have," what? 44:00 "Confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming." 44:06 I keep going back to this point somebody once said, 44:08 they said, "The reason I want to be saved 44:10 is I don't want anyone to know what I've ever done." 44:15 You know, when we stand before the Lord, 44:17 there are only going to be two groups, 44:18 those running to the rocks and the mountains, 44:20 and those running out of the rocks 44:21 and the mountains. 44:23 I want to be in the second group. 44:24 There are only two seats at the end. 44:26 There are only two seats at the end of this journey, 44:29 smoking and non-smoking. 44:31 I want to be in the non-smoking seat, amen? 44:34 Got to have that assurance. 44:36 And don't wake up tomorrow and say, 44:37 "Oh, I hope I'm going to be in a non-smoking seat. 44:40 Jesus will say, "Are you My child? 44:42 Yes. 44:43 I've already paid for your seat." 44:45 And by the way, Danny, 44:46 I've never been in first class on Delta. 44:48 But I'll be in first class on my way to heaven, 44:51 because we are going to go 44:52 with the one who is always first class. 44:54 Let's look at another one. 44:56 Another one, Hebrews 10:19-22, 44:59 scripture after scripture after scripture letting us know 45:02 that we could have confidence. 45:03 Here's 19, verse 19 of Hebrews 10, 45:07 "Therefore, brethren, having boldness 45:11 to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, 45:15 by a new and living way which He consecrated for us." 45:19 He's opened the way for us to come in. 45:21 How did He do it? 45:23 Through the veil, that is His flesh. 45:25 "And having a High Priest over the house of God." 45:28 Look at verse 22. 45:29 "Let us draw near with a," what kind of heart? 45:33 "True heart in," what? 45:34 "Full assurance of faith, 45:37 having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience 45:41 and our bodies washed with pure water." 45:44 Amen. 45:45 He says, "I've already opened the door for you. 45:47 You can come in, 45:48 you don't have to worry about it. 45:50 I've cleaned you up. Your conscience is clear. 45:51 I've made a new way. 45:52 Just draw near to Me 45:54 and you won't have to worry about anything." 45:55 And the last one, Romans 5:1, 45:58 "Therefore, having been justified by faith, 46:02 we have peace with God through 46:05 our Lord Jesus Christ." 46:07 What else do you need to, to testify with assurance? 46:11 Amen. I like it. 46:12 Praise the Lord. 46:13 Is this supposed to be a Sabbath School Panel, right? 46:15 This is like having church. 46:16 Like we're having church, everyone, of mercies, 46:19 praise God for that. 46:20 I got Thursday's lesson, 46:22 I've been blessed already, says, 46:23 "Something Worth Testifying About." 46:24 So we're covering some of the same things. 46:26 But it always points back to Jesus, doesn't it? 46:29 You know, again, you have to say 46:31 I think on every lesson I think we've been so far, 46:33 we have to say 46:34 what is the most powerful testimony 46:36 that we can give? 46:38 If people didn't know us before, 46:39 they're going to know it now 46:41 because we're repeating it over and over. 46:42 It's a personal what? 46:43 A personal testimony you can give, 46:45 what God has done personally in your heart 46:48 and in your life. 46:49 I like that song talking about victory in Jesus. 46:54 It says He sought me. Sing it. 46:56 I can't do that. 46:57 But he said he stopped me 46:58 and he bought me by His redeeming blood, 47:02 think about that, He sought us, right? 47:05 He bought us, right? 47:06 Purchased by His own life. 47:09 And He said He loved me ere, 47:10 I knew Him and all my love is due Him, why? 47:14 You know, He plunged me to victory, what? 47:18 Beneath that crimson blood. 47:21 All right, may not know the words, 47:22 but I'm telling you, that is good. 47:24 There's victory in Jesus. 47:25 And that's what we've been talking about right here. 47:27 And it's not so much we talk about, 47:29 you know, powerful testimonies. 47:31 They can change lives. 47:33 But you know, a lot of people talk about, 47:35 all I had to give up. 47:36 I had to give up a lot of these things, 47:38 you know, so it's not about, you know, 47:40 it's about what Christ has done for us 47:43 is what we need to be concentrating on, 47:45 not what we've given up for Him. 47:46 Why? 47:48 Because He never asked us 47:49 to give up anything that is what, 47:52 that's good for us. 47:53 He never asked us, 47:55 He always wants us to have things 47:56 that are good for us. 47:57 I love this passage of scripture. 48:00 In fact, I like to think of it as maybe could be your prayer. 48:04 It could be my prayer. 48:06 It's found in Galatians 2:20. 48:09 And Paul is speaking here, 48:11 but man, the words are so powerful. 48:14 It says, Galatians 2:20, Paul starts down, He says, 48:17 "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live." 48:22 I still don't understand all this, 48:24 but I know when I read it as a younger person, 48:26 I really didn't get it, 48:28 I think was our brother Ronnie one time said, 48:29 "Why didn't Paul just say it simple." 48:33 But, you know, we got to study. 48:34 But he said, he said, "I'm crucified with Christ: 48:36 nevertheless I live, yet not I, 48:39 but Christ liveth in me, 48:41 the life which I now live in the flesh," 48:44 what does he do? 48:45 "I live by faith in the Son of God, 48:48 who loved me and gave Himself for me." 48:51 That's right. 48:52 I mean, so many powerful things 48:54 and you'd like to spend hours, right? 48:55 Probably talking about these and looking at. 48:57 Paul simply said this. 48:59 I am crucified with Christ. 49:02 He says simply, 49:03 "I've accepted Christ as my personal Savior, 49:06 the Atonement of Christ. 49:07 I've accepted Calvary." 49:08 You know, that's good. 49:10 So we need to be doing that, his atonement on the cross, 49:12 but I want you to consider Romans Chapter 6, 49:14 just a couple of verses quickly. 49:15 Romans 6:6-8. 49:18 The Bible says, Romans 6:6-8, 49:21 "Knowing this that our old man is crucified with Him," 49:25 something has to go when you meet Jesus, 49:28 before you've been born again, something's got to go. 49:30 And it says here, 49:31 "The old man is crucified with Him, 49:33 that the body of sin might be destroyed, 49:37 that henceforth we should not serve sin." 49:40 That's pretty powerful. 49:41 It's talking about victory, right? 49:43 In Jesus, victory over sin in our life. 49:45 Because verse 7 says, 49:47 "For he that is dead," 49:49 notice this, "is free from sin." 49:52 That's right. 49:53 You know, if we're really dead, right? 49:55 We're free from sin, 49:56 if we're dead to things in the world, 49:58 dead to the old enemy. 49:59 Now if we're dead with Christ, 50:01 we believe that we shall also live with Him. 50:04 So Paul considers himself 50:05 and I think I'd like to consider myself, 50:07 you'd like to consider yourself 50:08 as a born again Christian, you know, 50:10 still striving, still, you know, 50:11 still learning still, you know, 50:13 he's still working on me that 50:15 Paul considers himself dead to sin, 50:18 that means dead to the world, dead to, you know, 50:23 attain righteousness by works. 50:26 You know he was dead, one of the oldest is gone, 50:28 I don't want to do that anymore. 50:30 He said, I am dead, but nevertheless I live. 50:34 You know, Paul was almost a rambunctious, 50:36 I mean he went for the goal, did he not? 50:39 You know, and so but he said here 50:41 that he died, you know, 50:43 the things that he did before his conversion, 50:47 you know, he was active, 50:49 but it's just a matter of the things changed 50:51 for the better. 50:53 He left off the old, and he put on the new. 50:55 Praise God for that. 50:57 Just better things, the changes. 50:59 He has a more abundant life. 51:01 John 10:10 says 51:02 the last part of it right there, 51:03 he said, "I am come that they might have life." 51:06 I love that, I come that they might have life. 51:09 Jesus said, "I've come for you." 51:11 Didn't come from self. 51:13 He said "I came for you 51:14 so that you would have an abundant life." 51:16 And that means better. 51:18 And then it goes on, it says, it's enough to spare. 51:22 You've got more than you need. 51:23 And then it goes on to say it's a super, super abound. 51:28 He's got so much, it's super, it's superior. 51:30 You'll never use it all. 51:31 I like that. It's quality and quantity. 51:35 Everything that you will ever need He said, 51:37 I'm going to give it to you. 51:39 We need to be claiming that. Why? 51:42 Because Jesus, the Bible says in 1 John 3:8. 51:44 1 John 3:8, said Jesus, he's a quickening spirit. 51:49 I like what been spreading on, 51:51 sitting on this panel is we need a quickening spirit, 51:53 we need it in the church, 51:54 we needed in our own personal hearts in our own life. 51:57 Our spirits need to be quickened, right, 51:59 with the word of God, quickened to go out 52:01 and tell others that Jesus is coming, you know, 52:03 because John 1:4, "In him was life," 52:06 I think was been read here, "and the life was in the, what? 52:09 "The light of men." 52:10 You know, now he still, now notice this, 52:13 he still has the same life-giving power, who does? 52:16 Jesus, same life-giving power as He had 52:18 when He walked this earth. 52:19 He could touch, He could heal, He could make whole. 52:22 In the Bible it said, 52:23 "He forgives all thine iniquities, 52:25 He healeth all of thy diseases." 52:27 That's in Psalms 103:3. 52:30 Paul said, "Christ lives in me." 52:33 Keep this in your mind, Christ lives in me. 52:36 Here, to me is the secret of a victorious Christian life. 52:42 Christ in me, the hope of glory. 52:45 This is what we need, without it, 52:46 it's not going to be victorious, 52:48 it's going to be disastrous, isn't it? 52:50 Christ living inside of me, 52:53 and then Christ being revealed through. 52:56 The world needs that. 52:58 You know, this is something 52:59 to testify about or listen what he's saying. 53:01 And I almost skipped down here because Paul, Paul, 53:05 it began with he called, he's talking about righteous. 53:07 Paul says, well, he was righteous, 53:09 but now he sees Jesus. 53:10 Now, he said, "I was unrighteous." 53:12 Things had to change right here. 53:14 Philippians 3:8-10. 53:16 Don't have time to read all of that. 53:17 But it'd be nice to be able to read it here 53:19 because there's some thoughts 53:21 that just popped out in my head, 53:22 I'm sure it popped out in your head 53:23 as you read these beautiful verses. 53:26 And this should be a prayer for us too, 53:28 this should be a longing of our heart. 53:30 In Philippians 3, again, I think 8-10 there 53:33 because I'll just read the verse 8, he said, 53:35 "Yet indeed I also count all things," but what? 53:38 "Loss for the excellence of the knowledge 53:40 of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have said, what? 53:43 "I have suffered the loss of all things, 53:45 and do count them but dumb, that I may win Christ." 53:48 Let's get down to it. That's what he said. 53:51 So if you read the rest of the verse, 53:52 you're going to see Paul simply said, 53:54 "I want a better knowledge of Christ. 53:58 None of us are ever going to figure it all out. 53:59 Not here and not into all eternity about Christ, 54:02 of all He gave up and what all He's done 54:05 and what He's doing, what He continues to do for us. 54:07 Paul is reaching and crying out 54:08 and I pray that you do it today, 54:10 I want to do it today. 54:11 I want a better knowledge of Christ. 54:13 Number two, he said, so that I might win Christ, 54:16 a better knowledge of Christ, 54:18 to know Christ is to love Him and want to follow Him. 54:21 He says, "I that I may be found in Him, 54:25 that I may be found in Him." 54:27 Number four, that I may know Him better. 54:31 Boy, what a testimony that I may know Him better. 54:33 Number five, 54:34 that I may experience His power. 54:37 That's right. 54:38 You know, don't we want to experience 54:39 the power of Jesus Christ, He offers it to us like Paul, 54:42 you're something worthy to testify about. 54:45 We should be very much dead to sin, 54:48 but certainly alive in Jesus Christ, 54:50 which means we should as a Christian, 54:53 it should be an active life. 54:55 Again, it's not to sit back do nothing. 54:56 We ever lived in that portion of earths' history 54:59 that we need to be active 55:00 in the cause of Christ is right now. 55:02 If we've ever lived in a point of history 55:03 we live in now, 55:05 we see what's happening in the world. 55:06 It's no time to stay home from church. 55:08 It's time to get down on our knees, 55:09 it's time to praise, 55:11 it's time to attend places where prayers want to be made, 55:14 it's place where the Holy Spirit 55:16 can be poured out in great abundance. 55:18 It's a time to be praying for the latter rain experience, 55:22 the love of Christ constraineth us. 55:24 The love of Christ holds us together, 55:26 the love of Christ bonds us together. 55:29 The love of Christ keeps us together. 55:32 Man, how we need that today. 55:34 As I'm drawing from each one of you, 55:36 and everyone that comes on here, 55:37 I'm drawing, I'm drawing, and I'm putting it in my heart, 55:39 in my mind, so that I can become 55:41 more and more like Jesus. 55:43 And that's my challenge. 55:45 Maybe that goes out to you today 55:46 when we're thinking about something worth testifying. 55:49 I can say from my own heart, my own life, my own experience. 55:53 And He's still working on me, I mentioned that. 55:56 I'm still trying to grow in the grace 55:57 and the knowledge of Jesus Christ that He, 56:00 Jesus Christ is worth testifying about. 56:04 He's worth talking about. 56:05 Nothing else in the world is, 56:07 but He's worth testifying and talking about. 56:09 Why not today, give your heart, 56:11 give your life to Him 56:12 because He is worth testifying about. 56:14 Amen. Praise the Lord, I love that. 56:16 Love that. 56:18 Well, we have about a minute and a half left, 56:19 go back through 56:20 and get some final thoughts for the lesson. 56:22 Hebrews 3:15, the Word of God says, 56:24 "Today if you will hear His voice, 56:26 do not harden your heart." 56:28 Just want to appeal to you to make that choice 56:30 to accept Jesus, He will transform your life. 56:33 Amen. 56:35 Tell me the story of Jesus right on my heart every word. 56:39 Once we receive that, then it's our responsibility 56:42 and privilege to go share it with the world. 56:45 That's right. 56:47 John 10:11, "I am the good shepherd. 56:51 The good shepherd gives his life for his sheep." 56:55 What blessed assurance can that bring? 56:57 Amen, that's good. 56:58 Evangelism 188:9, 57:00 I'm just gonna do a couple of words on, 57:01 it says, "teach the simple lessons 57:03 given by Christ. 57:05 Tell the story, lift up Christ as the sinners' only hope." 57:11 Praise the Lord. 57:12 I like to appreciate what each and every one of you 57:14 brought to the lesson 57:15 this morning has blessed me abundantly. 57:17 I just want to share a couple of verses 57:20 we've already read this morning, 57:22 but I want to share them again. 57:24 This is 1 John 4:7 and 8. 57:27 "Beloved, let us love one another, 57:28 for love is of God 57:30 and everyone who loves is born of God. 57:33 He who does not love does not know God, 57:35 for God is love." 57:38 You have a testimony, my friends, 57:39 you can share Jesus and God can transform you. 57:42 How do I know? 57:43 Because He's done it for me. 57:45 And so He can do it for you. 57:47 Thank you so much for joining us today 57:49 for this beautiful Sabbath School lesson. 57:51 And we're going to see you again next week, 57:54 I believe in faith because we're going to continue 57:56 on to lesson number 12. 57:58 See you next week. 58:00 God bless. Amen. |
Revised 2020-09-11