Participants:
Series Code: SSP
Program Code: SSP210031S
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00:01 Hello, and a great big welcome to you.
00:02 Today, we're so glad you've joined us 00:04 on 3ABN Sabbath School Panel. 00:05 You know what a privilege it is 00:07 to come together to study God's Word. 00:09 So we're glad you're with us. 00:10 Today is an exciting lesson, lesson number five, 00:13 and especial invitation 00:15 that Jesus is giving to each one of us. 00:17 And I think the words are just precious. 00:19 I think you will too. 00:20 If you haven't studied, 00:21 I know you've heard them before. 00:23 It's entitled Come To Me, a special invitation. 00:26 And so that goes out as we study the lesson today. 00:28 Again, we're glad you're joining us today. 00:31 Now, if you don't have the study guides, 00:32 and I know that you need those. 00:34 We want you to have them 00:35 and I know that you'd like to have them. 00:36 You simply go to ABSG.Adventist.org 00:40 Just download them ABSG.Adventist.org 00:45 Get those study guides, you'll be happy you did, 00:47 we'll be happy that you did. 00:49 And we'll be able to study the Word of God together. 00:51 Again, we're happy that you're with us. 00:52 Stay with it. 00:54 Don't go away, we'll be right back. 01:25 Welcome back. 01:26 We're glad you stayed right there and stay tuned. 01:28 Be sure to get the Bible, get pencil, paper, 01:30 get everything you need. 01:32 I believe this is going to be a real eye-opener. 01:35 It sounds simple. 01:36 But the invitation that's getting 01:37 from our Lord and Savior coming to me. 01:40 Oh, that's just exciting. 01:42 Other words, His hand is extended out. 01:43 And He want to welcome you into the fold. 01:45 If you've not there, 01:46 we pray that you'll get there today 01:48 before his program is over. 01:49 Again, a good welcome to each and every one of you. 01:51 I want to be... 01:53 I'm very grateful and thankful for each one 01:55 who sits on the Sabbath School Panel. 01:56 I know, at least in part how much work it is 02:00 and we're not trying to, you know, 02:01 say anything we shouldn't. 02:03 But it's, there's a lot of work to it. 02:04 But I see very positive 02:06 because it's studying God's Word. 02:08 So our panel today Sister Shelley Quinn, 02:10 God bless you, 02:11 you're a workhorse in the cause of Christ. 02:13 I hope it's okay to say that. That's okay to say. 02:15 Yeah, that's, we need Him. 02:17 I'd rather be a workhorse than a show pony. 02:21 You helped me out of that. 02:22 Thank you so much. All right. 02:24 Through your left or right we have Sister Jill Morikone. 02:26 Sister Jill, you know, God's given you 02:28 some wonderful gifts 02:29 and you use them for His honor and His glory, 02:32 and I appreciate and I thank God for that. 02:34 Praise the Lord. 02:36 Privilege to open up God's Word 02:37 and to study with each one you and you at home. 02:39 Yeah. 02:40 Yeah, and that never gets old, does it? 02:41 You know, we can say it 02:43 every time every lesson is good. 02:44 Pastor John Dinzey, praise God for you, my man, 02:46 you are a worker too in the cause of Christ. 02:48 And so I love to sit around a table of workers, 02:51 doers, and not just saying, you know, doers of the Word. 02:54 So we're glad to have you today. 02:56 I am blessed to be here. 02:58 And I'm looking forward to hearing 02:59 what God is going to speak 03:00 through each and every one of you. 03:02 We're praying for the Holy Spirit. 03:03 Amen. 03:05 And to your left, Pastor John Lomacang, 03:06 always a light, always a privilege 03:08 in a lot of different areas of light, life. 03:10 I've come to know him and appreciate him 03:13 and most of all his love for Jesus 03:15 and knowledge of Scripture. 03:16 So, again, glad you're here. Thank you. 03:18 Well, the beauty of it is, 03:20 there's one body, but many members. 03:21 So by God's grace, 03:23 we will all give them the glory today. 03:25 Amen. Praise the Lord. 03:26 You know, how can we study the Bible? 03:28 First thing I learned as a child is, 03:30 but you don't open the pages until you pray. 03:33 And so, Sister Shelley Quinn, how about you? 03:35 You're right here handy. 03:37 I call on you to pray. 03:38 I would love to. Okay, good. 03:40 Our holy and loving Father, 03:43 we pause again today to come before You 03:46 in the name of Jesus to ask for Your anointing, 03:50 to ask for not just on us who are speaking 03:54 but on all who hear our voice, Lord. 03:58 And we ask, oh, Lord, 04:00 that every word from our mouth will bring You glory. 04:03 We ask Father for Your blessing over this program. 04:08 And all who put this word into practice. 04:14 Help us today, Lord, we need Your Holy Spirit. 04:18 In Jesus' name, amen. 04:19 Amen. Thank you very much. 04:21 Let's go right to our memory text. 04:23 Now remember, this is a plus, 04:24 if you have your study guide, right? 04:26 There are going to know already, 04:27 if you don't you need to make sure you get that. 04:29 That's found in Matthew 11:28, probably one of the, 04:33 you know, simple readings in Scripture, 04:35 but oh, how exciting it is, 04:37 because it's a wonderful promise 04:39 that we've been given by Jesus. 04:42 And He says, you know, and really, who among us 04:45 have not come to the point that sometime we feel 04:47 that we're heavy laden, you know heavy laden, 04:50 or it's almost too much 04:52 and we're not sure that we're able to go on 04:54 and we need a special touch. 04:56 So I think maybe this will apply 04:58 to all of us today. 04:59 It simply says, "Come to me all you who labor 05:03 and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." 05:07 Thank you. So Sunday's lesson number five. 05:10 This is so exciting to think about, 05:11 I will give you rest. 05:13 I want rest. Amen. 05:15 I feel like I need rest sometime, 05:17 I don't know about you, 05:18 the older you get the more like you need rest. 05:20 I find myself standing and talking to somebody 05:22 I sit down sometimes, 05:24 you know, it's rest, but that's the physical rest. 05:26 Jesus says what? 05:27 I'm going to give you a spiritual, right? 05:30 A spiritual rest that we need. 05:32 Three points, albeit just little verse right there. 05:35 First of all, it's very clear. 05:36 Jesus says what? Here's an invitation. 05:38 Come to me. 05:39 Number two, He says, Come to me all you who labor. 05:43 That means you something about, right, 05:46 somebody that's workers maybe 05:48 or somebody that feels fatigued possibly. 05:52 And then it says, I'll give you rest 05:54 or I'll refresh you, praise God. 05:57 I need a refreshing. 05:58 Well, in this lesson, 05:59 we'll turn to Sunday's lesson right quick 06:01 because there's a lot to cover, 06:03 and I'm gonna cover as much as we can, 06:04 praise God. 06:06 And you make sure you do your homework too. 06:07 It's very important that we do that. 06:08 Matthew Chapter 11, especially verse 20. 06:11 We won't read all of those 06:12 because there's so much in that. 06:14 But I want to condense it down, in verse 20 there, 06:17 it's talking about the many of the great cities there 06:20 refuse to accept the gospel, right? 06:23 The gospel that Jesus was preaching, 06:25 Jesus was teaching there. 06:27 And all of a sudden, there was some, 06:29 there were problems. 06:31 Lot of people, they decide not to come to Jesus. 06:35 There's a lot of controversy that was going on. 06:37 And now Jesus is coming. 06:39 I never thought of it quite like this before. 06:42 That as my mind begin to, 06:44 I say, turn on some of these things here. 06:47 Jesus was looking at the cities and say, 06:49 Look, I brought the gospel there. 06:51 I was there personally, Myself, I sent My prophets, 06:53 I sent them to these specific cities, 06:56 but the cities spurned them. 06:58 Yeah. They did not listen. 07:01 And God says, basically, 07:02 I'm going to hold you accountable. 07:04 I'm going to hold you accountable. 07:05 And so sometime, as pastors, different ones, evangelists, 07:08 you go to towns, and you evangelize. 07:10 And sometimes the people get lazy, 07:11 they get tired, 07:13 they may don't want to come out, 07:15 or they come out and they hear the gospel, 07:16 and then they just go their way. 07:18 Jesus had something to say about that. 07:20 I thought it was very, very interesting, 07:23 because even the leaders, pastors, teachers 07:25 sometimes have the tendency, 07:26 sometimes get a little bit discouraged. 07:28 If you know, even though you know God is in charge, 07:31 you know that the Holy Spirit is present there. 07:34 But Jesus said something that's very interesting, 07:35 He used the word up, upbraid. 07:39 It's not a familiar word, really to me upbraid. 07:41 As He began to talk about these cities 07:43 that rejected the message, 07:44 He said He's going to upbraid there 07:46 or He reviled them, 07:49 that's kind of an interesting word, 07:51 He reproached upon them, 07:53 because they turned their back on the gospel. 07:56 That's kind of words that you think, 07:58 well, I don't know, Jesus would say that or not. 07:59 But, you know, He did that to the cities 08:01 that rejected His message. 08:03 So as we look at this here, some joy and some hope, 08:06 certainly came, as Jesus said there in Mark 12:37, 08:11 is interesting. 08:13 He said, "The common people heard Him gladly." 08:15 Oh, I like that, 08:17 the common people heard Him gladly. 08:19 Well, I'm a common, right? 08:21 I'm a common person. I want to hear Him gladly. 08:23 And I know you do, too. 08:25 Matthew 11:25, we want to just quickly look at that, 08:28 because that is a misunderstood verse 08:32 some time with many people. 08:34 In this passage, He says this, 08:36 "At that time Jesus answered and said, 08:38 I think thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, 08:41 because thou has hid these things 08:43 from the wise and the prudent," 08:46 oh, notice this, 08:47 "and has revealed them unto babes." 08:49 Well, here, it seems that God is represented 08:53 as hiding truth. 08:56 He can't hide Himself, 08:57 because He's truth, isn't that right? 08:58 But He's talking about hiding truth. 09:00 Is that really what is said here? 09:01 And some others realize, 09:03 "Oh, He's just revealing to some, 09:04 others He's not revealing it to at all." 09:06 Let's look at it. 09:07 Who would be the wise and the prudent 09:10 that Jesus was talking to in His day? 09:12 And maybe He might be talking to us today? 09:14 Well, that was certainly the leaders of Israel, 09:16 was it not? 09:18 He was talking to the wise and the prudent there, 09:20 because they had opportunity 09:22 over and over and over and over to hear 09:25 to understand the Word, Christ's message, 09:29 especially in the early part of His ministry, 09:31 because He worked in Judea, didn't He? 09:32 Yeah. 09:34 So we're saying the leaders, 09:35 if we have an opportunity to hear the Word of God, 09:37 we may need to keep our ears open that we hear it 09:39 because we're going to be accountable. 09:41 And also may I just throw this out. 09:43 I believe we're going to be accountable for those things. 09:45 We had the opportunity, 09:47 the opportunity in which to learn 09:49 and we decided, well, we had other things to do. 09:52 So you know, there was a chance here for those leaders 09:55 that we're talking about here 09:57 to evaluate the works of Christ 09:59 because they seen it, they heard it, 10:01 they listened to it, they, 10:02 in fact, they tore it apart many times. 10:05 They were educated. 10:06 That's kind of interesting to me. 10:07 But notice it, notice it, they could not 10:10 and then I said underline it, they would not. 10:13 Not that they couldn't understand 10:15 because they were wise. 10:16 They chose not to accept the message 10:18 that Jesus gave as many may be choosing 10:21 that route today. 10:22 Romans 1:22, I thought 10:24 was a very interesting passage of scripture. 10:27 Just simply, "Professing to be wise," 10:29 what happened? 10:31 "They became fools." 10:33 And a lot of times we hesitate even using the word fool. 10:36 As Bible said, professing to be wise, 10:39 or notice this, they wanted to be clear, 10:41 but they were also conceded. 10:44 And also they were, 10:45 you could say they were really intelligent 10:47 to a certain extent, but notice, they became fools. 10:50 Now you look up that word 10:52 if you want to look it up in the Greek, 10:53 it's kind of interesting. 10:55 So just hang in there, if you will. 10:56 A Greek says they became blockheads. 10:59 I love it. Is that all right? 11:01 Became blockheads. 11:03 I think I used that term lot of time growing up 11:05 with some guys on the blog, probably shouldn't have. 11:07 Well, anyway, the Jewish leaders, 11:09 they studied prophecy, 11:10 but somehow they just couldn't get 11:11 what they wanted out of it. 11:13 The spiritual insight in 11:15 I find that corresponds with 1 Corinthians 3:14. 11:18 It says, "Neither can he know them 11:19 because they are spiritually discerned," 11:22 just taking part of the Scripture, but notice, 11:23 spiritual things are spiritually discerned. 11:25 Yes. 11:27 The leaders of that time just could not, 11:28 they just, oh, my lands, they just couldn't figure out 11:30 what Christ was all about, what He was teaching. 11:32 And when He said, "Come to Me." 11:34 All that was going on message being preached, 11:37 going, the gospel going, 11:38 and seem like people wasn't accepted. 11:40 Jesus said, He's going to come, 11:41 He's going to rebuke and what did He do? 11:43 He rebuked, He called about the cities, 11:45 He compared the cities 11:46 that rejected the message to Sodom, 11:49 and the punishment that would fall on Sodom. 11:52 Now, you don't want that in your life. 11:53 And I don't want that in my life. 11:56 But you know, in order to find rest, 11:57 that's what this quarter is about. 11:59 This what this lesson is about is finding rest. 12:02 You say how can you find rest? 12:03 When you remember when Jesus came to this point, 12:06 He called sin by its right name. 12:08 I know people don't want to hear that. 12:10 But I believe in that personally. 12:12 Jesus called sin by its right. 12:14 He said what was gonna happen to those cities? 12:16 Because they rejected the gospel. 12:18 We ministers of the gospel laity, 12:22 people preaching and teaching, 12:24 we have responsibility to call sin by its right name. 12:27 We do have that. 12:28 Remember, Jesus did it, we need to do it. 12:31 We need to learn to respond to that, 12:34 you know, and to deal with sin. 12:36 Other words call sin by its right now. 12:37 Let me read you something quickly. 12:38 Just a couple minutes left, 3T 328 says this, 12:42 "Those who have the fear, 12:43 notice, of God venture out faithfully, 12:47 must meet err and sin." 12:48 If you're venturing out, you're preaching and teaching, 12:50 you're venturing out called meet err and sin. 12:53 Calling sin by its right name 12:55 have discharged a disagreeable duty to them. 12:58 Sometimes we disagree, we don't want to do that, 13:00 but that's our job. 13:02 And if we do not do that, 3T, 265, 13:04 I don't want to miss this point. 13:06 If the sins of the people, some of you are very familiar, 13:08 sins of the people are passed over 13:09 by those in responsible positions. 13:12 Those who have a church, 13:13 those who are dealing with people, 13:15 we all do have responsibility. 13:16 But notice this, responsible position, 13:18 God's frown will be upon them if they let sin go. 13:22 And notice what happened? 13:23 The body, 13:25 the church will suffer consequences 13:28 because of one sin in the church. 13:29 Certainly we can look at Achan, can we not? 13:31 Certainly and I think it's Joshua 7, 13:33 Patriarchs and Prophets, 497. 13:37 One sinner, notice this, may diffuse darkness 13:40 that would exclude the light of God 13:42 from the entire congregation. 13:44 There's no use to argue that, 13:45 there's no use of fight with that. 13:47 We realize that sin separates us. 13:48 Everybody here on this panel have said that, 13:49 we all believe that as Christians. 13:51 And so we need to realize here in the church, 13:54 if we don't try to handle it and deal with it 13:55 the way God says to deal with it, 13:57 you go to Matthew 18, 13:58 then you know, the church is going to suffer for it. 14:01 According to the light that God has given, 14:03 3T, 324, as you wrap it up here, 14:05 notice, according to the light that God has gave me in vision 14:10 spiritual discernment to sin as it exists, 14:14 then to put it out of the camp. 14:17 Maybe that's just real clear. 14:18 Jesus was putting sin out of the camp. 14:21 Gospel was being preached, people didn't want to hear, 14:23 He was dealing with that issue. 14:25 And we need to deal with the issue today 14:27 if you really want to find rest. 14:28 Amen. 14:30 Thank you for that profound lesson. 14:32 Yes. 14:34 And my portion is Take My Yoke You. 14:39 You know, in Matthew 28:18-20, we have the Great Commission, 14:45 where Jesus says, 14:46 "Go and make disciples of all the people in the earth, 14:51 baptizing them 14:52 in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, 14:55 and teaching them to observe all things 14:58 that I've commanded." 14:59 But what we find here 15:01 that's the last three verses of Matthew 28. 15:04 The last three verses of Matthew 11 15:08 is the great invitation. 15:11 There's the Great Commission. 15:13 This is the great invitation. 15:15 Let's read it again. 15:17 He says in Matthew 11:28, 15:21 "Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, 15:26 and I will give you rest." 15:29 How we need to come to Jesus for the rest. 15:33 Then he says, "Take My yoke upon you, 15:37 and learn from Me, 15:39 for I am gentle, and I am lowly in heart," 15:43 I'm humble is what He's saying, 15:45 "and you will find rest for your souls. 15:50 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." 15:54 Do you want to find rest for your souls? 15:57 You know, Jesus wasn't just speaking 15:59 to the multitudes who were present that day, 16:02 He was looking down through generations. 16:05 He's speaking to all of us. 16:08 It excludes no one. 16:11 And when we think 16:14 of how Jesus looked at these people. 16:18 We all have common sorrows. 16:21 Let's just face that. 16:22 Some are inevitable, 16:24 and they're pretty heavy burdens. 16:26 There's death, there's sin, there's sickness, 16:29 they're outside our control. 16:32 But you know what? 16:33 Some burdens are self imposed through our thoughtlessness 16:38 and our recklessness. 16:40 We don't exercise self-discipline 16:43 and we fall into sin. 16:45 We don't exercise faith, 16:48 and we fall into doubt and disillusionment. 16:51 Sometimes, we are so burdened 16:54 with our spiritual bankruptcy. 16:58 But what Christ is primarily addressing here 17:03 is He is addressing the sin problem, 17:06 because sin is the cause of all unrest. 17:11 Sin disturbs us. 17:13 There's kind of this internal shaking, 17:15 we don't have good balance, if you will. 17:19 It stings our conscience, disturbs us. 17:23 So what Christ is offering here is to deal with sin. 17:29 Now, in His day, yoke, 17:33 the word yoke was a common metaphor 17:38 for the, in Judaism, 17:41 for the heavy and burdensome teachings 17:45 of the Pharisees. 17:46 They put... 17:48 The rabbis put an oppressive yoke 17:51 on the people, 17:53 and what the self serving Pharisees did? 17:56 They laid out 17:58 hundreds of religious restrictions 18:02 and duties that made life more difficult. 18:05 It made it a little harder to have a smile, 18:08 because it was the yoke of works oriented salvation. 18:15 As a matter of fact, when Paul spoke about 18:18 salvation by works, 18:20 he called it a yoke of bondage, 18:24 and I believe that's what you're covering today, 18:26 Pastor Dinzey, so I won't go further. 18:29 But Christ offers us rest 18:34 from the endless effort of trying to save ourselves. 18:38 Now I want to look at three imperatives, 18:41 which are basically like commands, 18:44 imperatives that are in this great invitation. 18:48 And they are come, take and learn. 18:52 That's good. 18:54 When Jesus said, "Come," 18:55 He didn't say, come to My teachings, 18:59 but come to Me. 19:01 It's all about covenant relationship. 19:05 When He said, take, He was offering His yoke. 19:11 You know what? Rest is an unearned gift. 19:16 And when we take the yoke of Jesus, 19:19 we take what He offers, He's gonna give us that gift. 19:22 He won't force us to be yoked with Him though. 19:25 And then He said, learn when we are yoked with Jesus. 19:31 He is our compassionate teacher. 19:34 And in the Greek, the word learn is connected. 19:38 It's from the root of disciple. 19:41 So there's a commitment and obedience, 19:45 the characteristics of discipleship, 19:48 a rational obedience that is a relational obedience 19:53 that is motivated by love. 19:56 So only He can alleviate our distress 20:01 trying to save ourselves. 20:02 Now, some people are leery of being yoked. 20:05 Well, you think about what is a yoke, you know, 20:07 it's, we usually think of a wooden cross piece 20:11 that goes across, 20:12 fastened over the neck of two animals, 20:14 and they're pulling a heavy load, right? 20:17 Let me tell you something. 20:19 You're yoked, whether you know it or not. 20:21 You're either yoked to Satan, or yoked to Christ. 20:26 In Romans 6:16, the Bible said, 20:29 Paul writes to the Romans in Romans 6:16, 20:32 "Do you not know 20:33 that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, 20:36 you are that one's slaves whom you obey, 20:40 whether of sin leading to death, 20:42 or of obedience leading to righteousness?" 20:47 Let me tell you something, 20:48 when you're yoked to Satan, 20:50 that's a splintery yoke, I'm telling you, 20:53 and he drags you places you don't want to go. 20:55 That's right. That's true. 20:57 But when you're yoked to Christ, 20:59 you'll find that your burden is light. 21:01 And let me share a story with you. 21:05 I grew up 21:06 not in the Seventh-day Adventist Church, 21:09 but in a New Testament Church. 21:11 And I was definitely taught salvation by works. 21:15 I worked, I performed for the Lord 21:18 for many, many years. 21:20 I, you know, I always had a case of the doom wars, 21:23 if I don't like, read more, 21:24 if I don't like pray more 21:26 if I don't do this, or that or the other more. 21:30 And I remember I was like 50 years old. 21:34 And I came before the Lord one day. 21:37 And you know what I didn't understand 21:40 is that how to surrender. 21:43 I didn't understand that the only way to surrender 21:47 is just accept Jesus' invitation and say, 21:50 yes, I'll take your yoke, Lord, 21:53 because when I'm yoked to Christ, 21:56 I'm yielding to His direction. 21:59 And here's what happened. 22:01 I am praying, 22:02 and I'm just crying out to the Lord that day. 22:05 And I said, "Father, help me. 22:07 I want to walk in the footsteps of Jesus. 22:11 I know You're calling me to walk 22:14 in the footsteps of Jesus. 22:16 Help me to walk in the same surrender 22:20 to You that He did." 22:22 Well, all of a sudden, in my mind, 22:25 I saw a gigantic elephant 22:29 in a teensy weensy little sugar ant 22:33 it was kind of like, what is this? 22:37 And then I wrote these words, 22:39 because this is what the Lord said to me. 22:42 And when I said, I don't mean an audible voice, 22:44 but you know, you've been impressed with, 22:47 impressed with a thought that you know wasn't yours. 22:50 Here, I'm seeing an ant in the elephant. 22:54 And he says, 22:55 "Shelley, the greatest strength you can muster 22:57 is like that of the tiny ant, 23:01 where as My power is by comparison 23:05 like that of the elephant. 23:07 Why would you want to walk 23:09 in your limited human strength?" 23:12 Yeah. 23:13 When I make My power available to you, 23:16 when I asked you to surrender child, 23:21 I am asking you to accept My power. 23:26 Well, now, you just think, 23:28 here's, here's the elephant, here's the ant. 23:31 Now the ant gets yoked to the elephant, 23:33 who's carrying the load? 23:34 Well. 23:36 See, that's the beauty of Paul, Paul said to the Galatians. 23:41 He said, "Oh, you foolish Galatians. 23:43 Having begun in the spirit, 23:45 are you now trying to perfect it 23:48 in the flesh?" 23:49 Yep. 23:51 I was so foolish. Well. 23:53 I was that foolish. 23:55 And when I learned 23:58 what God was offering me in this great invitation, 24:01 when I learned 24:04 that if I accepted His invitation, 24:09 He was going to work in me to will and to do 24:11 His good pledge. 24:13 I realize every day that I get up, I have a choice. 24:18 You have that choice as well. 24:20 You can either be a pitiful Christian, 24:22 or a powerful Christian. 24:24 If you are walking in your own set drink, 24:29 you are to be pitied. 24:31 There's no rest in that. 24:34 But if you say yes to Lord Jesus, 24:37 I want Your yoke, I want to learn of You. 24:40 Guess what? 24:41 The power of the Holy Spirit will work in you. 24:45 And you will find rest for yourself. 24:48 Amen. Thank you, Sister, Shelley. 24:50 Awesome job, I appreciate it. 24:52 You know, thinking about I want that yoke. 24:53 I know everybody there does. 24:55 We're gonna take a short break and we'll be right back. 25:03 Ever wish you could watch 25:05 a 3ABN Sabbath School Panel again, 25:07 or share it on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter? 25:10 Well, you can by visiting 3abnsabbathschoolpanel.com 25:15 A clean design makes it easy 25:17 to find the program you're looking for. 25:19 There are also links to the Adult Bible Study Guide 25:23 so you can follow along. 25:25 Sharing is easy. 25:26 Just click share and choose your favorite social media. 25:29 Share a link, save a life for eternity. 25:34 Hello and welcome back to 3ABN Sabbath School Panel. 25:36 I'm going to kick it right over Tuesday's lesson, 25:38 Sister Jill has, I know has a good one. 25:40 I like the title, I am Gentle and Lowly in Heart. 25:43 Thank you so much, 25:44 Pastor Kenny and Sister Shelley. 25:46 What an incredible lesson. I love this passage. 25:48 I love this scripture, the great invitation. 25:52 My passage is entirely what Pastor Kenny read. 25:55 I have one phrase. Let's read it. 25:58 We're in Matthew 11. 26:00 We already read verse 28, verse 29, 26:04 "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me," 26:06 that's what Shelley covered so beautifully, 26:09 "for I am gentle and lowly in heart, 26:13 and you, you will find rest for your souls." 26:16 Now I'm not going to cover the next verse 26:20 because that's Pastor Johnny and Pastor John. 26:22 Let's look at for I am gentle and lowly in heart. 26:27 What does that word gentle mean? 26:28 It actually occurs in the Greek 26:30 only four times this particular word gentle. 26:34 It means by implication humble or meek. 26:37 It's the same word 26:39 used in the Sermon on the Mount. 26:40 Blessed are the meek, 26:41 for they shall inherit the earth. 26:44 But it's difficult to actually translate 26:46 this word from Greek into English, 26:48 because we think meekness might be weakness, 26:52 but that's not how it's conveyed in the Greek. 26:56 Biblical meekness is not weakness. 26:59 Rather, it refers to exercising God's strength 27:03 under His control. 27:05 The English term meek lacks that, 27:08 that balance of the gentleness combined with God's strength. 27:14 Let's look at lowly. 27:16 The word for lowly literally means low lying. 27:20 Figuratively that would be lowly, 27:21 or lowly in spirit, being God reliant, 27:26 rather than being self reliant. 27:29 What do we learn from Jesus? 27:30 We learn His gentleness, we learn His lowliness, 27:34 we learn His humility and meekness. 27:37 And what does knowing that bring us? 27:39 If we know Christ's meekness and His lowliness, 27:42 what changes in us? 27:44 We find rest for our souls, 27:47 a recognition of the easiness of the yoke 27:50 and the lightness of the burden, 27:52 understanding His humility 27:54 and His meekness 27:55 is tied in somehow with easing our burdens, 27:59 and are free in us, 28:01 because its entire dependence on the Lord Jesus Christ. 28:07 So what is humility and meekness? 28:08 We're going to start with that. 28:10 And then we're going to get into how can we walk 28:13 in humility and meekness? 28:15 Because to me, we can understand what it is. 28:18 But that means nothing unless we understand 28:21 how to achieve them. 28:24 There's a couple quotes we're going to start with 28:25 and then we're going to jump into the Word of God. 28:27 Here's a few quotes I liked on humility. 28:30 Humility has a difficult time coexisting with self awareness. 28:35 True humility comes when we are consumed 28:38 with awareness of another, 28:41 that is the Lord Jesus Christ. 28:43 Here's a few quotes from Andrew Murray. 28:45 I don't know if you've ever read 28:46 some of his books, 28:48 but he has an entire book on humility and meekness. 28:51 It says, humility is nothing 28:53 but the disappearance of self in the vision that God is all. 28:58 There's another one. 28:59 In the life of earnest Christians 29:01 of those who pursue and profess holiness, 29:04 that should be you and I, 29:06 humility ought to be 29:08 the chief mark of their uprightness. 29:10 It is often said that it is not so. 29:13 Here's another one, 29:15 the last one from Andrew Murray. 29:16 Humility is not so much grace or virtue along with others, 29:21 it is the root of all 29:23 because it alone takes the right attitude before God 29:27 and allows Him as God to do all. 29:31 Here's a quote from Ellen White in Desire of Ages. 29:34 No one was so exalted as Christ, 29:37 and yet he stooped to the humblest duty, 29:41 that his people might not be misled 29:43 by this selfishness 29:44 which dwells in the natural heart, 29:47 and which strengthens by self serving. 29:50 Christ Himself set the example of humility. 29:54 Amen. Let's look at that example. 29:56 Philippians Chapter 2. 29:58 Turn with me to Philippians Chapter 2. 29:59 We're gonna look at the example of Jesus. 30:01 And then we're gonna go over to John 13 30:04 when we discover how we are supposed to be 30:06 humble and meek. 30:07 But let's start with Philippians 2, 30:08 the example of Jesus. 30:10 Philippians 2:5-6, "Let this mind be in you, 30:14 which was also in Christ Jesus." 30:15 What mind did Christ have? 30:17 What is the mind of Christ? 30:18 Verse 6, "Who being in the form of God 30:21 did not consider it robbery to be equal with God." 30:26 Biblical humility is willing to lower oneself 30:31 below one station in life. 30:33 Jesus humbled Himself. 30:35 He did not consider it robbery to be equal with God. 30:37 He was divine. 30:38 And yet He was willing to lay aside that divinity. 30:43 He was willing to, you could say, 30:44 lower Himself from His station. 30:47 Let's read the next verse. 30:49 Verse 7, 30:50 "But He made Himself of no reputation, 30:52 taking the form of a bondservant, 30:55 and coming in the likeness of men." 30:58 Biblical humility is willing to be treated like a servant. 31:03 Now, it's interesting to me because many of us say 31:05 we are willing to serve others. 31:08 Have you not said that? 31:09 I'm willing to serve you. 31:11 But it's another thing entirely to be treated as a servant. 31:15 You see the difference? 31:17 We say, "Oh, yes, I'm willing to serve." 31:18 Well, that's my decision, my choice to serve you. 31:22 But what if other people treat me as a servant? 31:26 Jesus took the form of a bondservant. 31:29 Biblical humility is willing to be treated like a servant. 31:34 The next verse, Philippians 2:8, 31:36 "And being found in appearance as a man, 31:38 He humbled Himself 31:40 and became obedient to the point of death, 31:44 even the death of the cross." 31:46 Biblical humility is willing to set aside 31:48 personal comforts, 31:50 even life itself for somebody else. 31:54 Are you willing to give up your life, 31:58 your comforts for someone else? 32:00 You know, Greg and I, 32:02 we lost our air conditioning recent week, 32:04 and it was fairly hot. 32:06 Mercy. 32:07 And they're sweating and struggling, 32:10 it was almost 90 degrees in the house, really humid. 32:13 And I thought, Jill, what's wrong with you? 32:16 You can't endure just a little heat. 32:19 You can't endure just a little humidity, 32:23 and dealing with that. 32:25 Years ago I lived 32:26 and there was no air conditioning, 32:27 and I had no issue with that. 32:29 So am I becoming soft? What's wrong with me? 32:31 I just thought how often it is difficult 32:36 for us to give up our comforts. 32:37 It's difficult for us to give up the things we like, 32:41 for the benefit of someone else. 32:44 It's difficult to give up our life for someone else. 32:48 Now it might be easy if it's someone you love, 32:50 but what if it's someone you don't. 32:52 Biblical humility is willing to set aside personal comforts, 32:57 even life itself for someone else. 33:00 The next verse, verse 9. 33:02 Philippians 2:9, 33:03 "Therefore God also has highly exalted Him, 33:07 and given Him the name which is above every name." 33:10 Biblical humility trust God's timing for exaltation. 33:15 You see, Jesus didn't exalt Himself. 33:17 He didn't choose to push Himself up. 33:19 He trusted God. 33:20 God's the one who highly exalted Him 33:22 in His own time. 33:24 1 Peter 5:6, "Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, 33:28 that He may exalt you in due time." 33:31 So how do we walk in humility and meekness? 33:33 Let's look at John 13, 33:35 and we're just going to read one verse, 33:36 John, Chapter 13. 33:38 This is, of course, the foot washing experience, 33:40 Jesus humbling Himself 33:42 and washing the disciples' feet 33:43 right when they were arguing just before 33:46 about who was going to be the greatest. 33:48 John 13. 33:50 Now, this is an interesting twist. 33:51 I've never really seen this in this verse. 33:53 John 13:3, 33:55 "Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things 33:59 into His hands, 34:00 and that He came from God and was going to God." 34:02 What did He do? 34:03 He rose from supper, 34:05 took the towel and girded Himself 34:06 and began to wash their feet. 34:08 So what do I see there? 34:10 How did He walk in humility and meekness? 34:12 How could He do it? 34:13 First, He understood His true identity. 34:16 He knew where He came from. 34:18 Second, He understood His true purpose. 34:20 He knew why He had come. 34:23 And third, He understood His true vision. 34:26 He knew where He was going. 34:28 Identity, purpose and vision, 34:32 that is the key to true humility. 34:35 What is our identity? Who are we? 34:38 1 John 3:1, 34:39 "Behold, what manner of love 34:41 the Father has bestowed upon us, 34:43 that we should be called sons and daughters of God." 34:47 Who are we? We are children of the King. 34:50 When we understand our value, 34:52 we understand who we are in Christ, 34:55 we can truly serve other people. 34:59 What's our identity? 35:00 Second point was purpose. 35:02 Why are we here? 35:04 1 Peter 2:9, 35:05 "You, you are a chosen generation, 35:07 a royal priesthood, 35:08 God's own special people, 35:11 that we should proclaim the praises of Him 35:12 who call us out of darkness into His marvelous light." 35:16 Why are we here? 35:18 We're here to bring glory to God. 35:19 We're here to proclaim His praises. 35:21 We're here to show the character of Jesus. 35:25 That's why we exist. And finally, vision. 35:28 Where are we going? 35:29 1 Corinthians 2:9, 35:31 "Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, 35:34 neither has entered into the heart of man 35:36 the things which God has prepared 35:38 for those who love Him." 35:39 So do you want to be humble? 35:41 Understand who you are in Christ, 35:43 understand your purpose on this earth, 35:46 and understand you're going to heaven. 35:48 Amen. Wow, the Lord. 35:50 Maybe I should yield my time to you. 35:53 Wonderful. Well, praise the Lord. 35:55 Well, when we move on to Wednesday's part, 35:57 you will find that the title for the lesson 35:59 is my For My Yoke Is Easy. 36:03 We're talking about the yoke of Jesus. 36:05 And that's Y-O-K-E. 36:08 My yoke is easy. 36:10 Now, I want to read again, Matthew 11:28-30. 36:14 That way, we get the context of what we're talking about. 36:17 Jesus said, "Come to me, 36:19 all you who labor and are heavy laden, 36:24 and I will give you rest. 36:27 Take my yoke upon you and learn from Me, 36:31 for I am gentle and lowly in heart, 36:34 and you will find rest for your souls, 36:37 for My yoke is easy and my burden is light." 36:43 I remember being in a church in, 36:46 in a certain country, 36:47 and they will say young lady in the front, 36:50 and she began as she was talking, 36:52 very smiley, energetic. 36:55 And then she said something, her smile disappeared and said, 37:00 it's hard being a Christian. 37:03 And I sat there, I said, wow, 37:06 you know, I've heard this before, 37:07 people say, it's hard being a Christian. 37:10 Well, you know, it's interesting, 37:12 because when we come to that conclusion, 37:15 there is something wrong 37:16 with our relationship with Jesus. 37:19 Because Jesus offers us rest and He says, 37:22 His yoke is easy. 37:24 So I encourage those that are listening to me 37:28 that believe that it's hard being a Christian. 37:31 Look unto Jesus, because the Bible says, 37:34 that taste and see that the Lord is good. 37:39 And whatever trial and difficulty we may face, 37:43 consider Romans 8:28, he says, 37:46 "And we know that all things work together 37:50 for good to them that love God, 37:53 to them that are called according to His purpose." 37:55 So, yes, you may face trials, 37:58 you may face difficulties, 38:00 but the Lord is with us. 38:02 And facing those trials and difficulties without Jesus, 38:05 they will be hard. 38:10 I remember that I was raking the leaves at home 38:14 and our house is surrounded by many trees, 38:17 many, many leaves. 38:19 So my wife Idalia decided to help me out. 38:23 So she went and got a leaf blower. 38:27 I never had a leaf blower. 38:29 And when she brought this thing I said, 38:30 "Well, thank you, honey," 38:31 but and I'm thinking, you know, 38:33 this may be for lazy people. 38:36 A leaf blower, why do I need a leaf blower, 38:37 I have a rake. 38:39 Yeah. 38:40 But there's a lot, there were a lot of leaves. 38:43 So she said, "Give it a try." 38:45 So I tried it out. 38:46 And you know, when I got the hang of this thing, 38:50 it made the work easier. 38:52 It made my burden lighter. 38:55 And I realized I could get a lot more done. 38:58 And I could get done quicker and move on to other things. 39:01 Now, I'm not comparing Jesus Christ to a leaf blower. 39:05 But the reality is, 39:07 when we try on our own to do things, 39:11 it's going to be hard. 39:14 So allow Jesus to be your strength, 39:19 and face life with Jesus. 39:22 Now, the word easy there. 39:24 Yes, you know, you're going to the Greek, 39:27 I remember Pastor Ricotta saying, 39:28 and you know what the word easy means 39:30 in the Greek. 39:32 It means easy. 39:34 And that's really what it means, easy, pleasant. 39:37 And so I want you to consider that Jesus 39:40 and the invitation of Jesus is to lighten your burden. 39:42 He says, "My yoke is easy." 39:44 Now, let's go 39:46 into Psalms 16:11. 39:52 In Psalm 16:11, we have these wonderful words. 39:57 "You will show me the path of life, 40:01 in your presence is fullness of joy, 40:05 at your right hand are pleasures forevermore." 40:08 And when I compare these scriptures, 40:10 when I compare the invitation of Jesus 40:12 to the experience that, you know, 40:14 perhaps maybe in my life at one point 40:17 I was going through sometimes I say this is hard, 40:19 but you know, when you take your focus away 40:22 from the world and away from the things 40:25 that are making your life difficult, 40:28 and you put them on Jesus, 40:29 you will find just as the beautiful illustration 40:32 that Sister Shelley shared, 40:34 it's like a large elephant compare you to a little ant, 40:38 and Jesus helps you carry the burden. 40:42 Your load is light with Jesus. 40:45 A marvelous, marvelous thing to consider 40:47 in the presence of Jesus. 40:48 And you know, 40:50 when Jesus invites us to take the yoke, 40:53 when Jesus invites us to come unto Him and have rest, 40:56 this is an invitation open to us every single day. 41:00 So every day, 41:02 Jesus invites us to take up our cross daily and follow Him. 41:05 Luke 9:23. 41:07 I want to share this, 41:09 the words of a song that are very special to me, 41:13 but I know that I can look to my left 41:15 and know that Pastor Lomacang sings a lot better than I am, 41:17 and to the right as well, 41:18 I can tell you, but this is the song, 41:20 turn your eyes upon Jesus, 41:23 look full in His wonderful face. 41:26 And the things of earth will grow strangely dim 41:30 in the light of His glory and grace. 41:34 So this is something we should do every single day. 41:38 You know, every single day, Satan is trying to derail us, 41:42 lead us astray, 41:44 and leading us to look to self, 41:48 and it is the love of self that causes unrest. 41:52 And Jesus is offering us to turn our eyes upon Him 41:57 to receive the rest that we need. 41:59 Amen. That's right. 42:01 I would like to read to you from Country Living on page 27. 42:06 How should this be done? 42:08 Take my yoke upon you saith Jesus Christ, 42:10 who had bought you with His own precious blood, 42:14 who, whose servants and property you are 42:18 and learn of me, 42:19 for I am meek and lowly in heart, 42:21 and you will find rest unto your souls, 42:23 for My yoke is easy and my burden is light. 42:28 If everyone will come to Jesus in a teachable spirit, 42:34 with contrition of heart, 42:36 then he is in a condition of mind 42:40 to be instructed and to learn of Jesus 42:43 and obey His orders. 42:45 And as we obey, you know, the wonderful thing is, 42:48 when you say obey, people, no, no, I can't do it. 42:52 But Jesus is our strength. 42:55 Yes. 42:57 Just like Paul, he said, all, 42:58 I can do all things through Christ 43:00 who strengthens me. 43:01 So when you consider that the invitation of Jesus 43:04 is open to every single one, 43:07 you know, He says, it starts, 43:09 come unto Me all ye that labor, 43:11 and you say, well, is that me? 43:13 Is that me? 43:14 Every single one of us needs the rest that God can, 43:19 the only one that can provide the rest that we need. 43:23 People are restless in this age, people need, 43:26 they're stressed. 43:28 They don't know what to do. 43:30 They try this, they try that. 43:32 But the reality is that 43:34 until you give your heart to Jesus, 43:37 you will not have that rest that satisfies. 43:41 I reminded of a man that wanted to talk 43:45 to Pastor Alejandro Bullon. 43:47 He's an evangelist, Spanish evangelist. 43:49 And this man saw him on television. 43:52 And he said, "I want to talk to you. 43:55 I want to meet you in a restaurant, 43:56 I've seen you on TV, 43:58 you have something that I don't have." 44:01 And so they met at a restaurant that time came and he said, 44:04 "I just want to set a few rules on the table. 44:07 And that is, I don't want you to talk to me about the Bible. 44:11 I don't want you to talk to me about Jesus Christ. 44:15 And if you can follow those rules, we will be okay. 44:19 I am a rich man. 44:20 I can buy anything I want whenever I want. 44:24 I can go to, I can get in a jet tonight 44:27 and be in such and such a place. 44:29 And, but all these things that I have, 44:33 I don't seem to have what you have, 44:34 you have this, this peace, 44:36 this happiness and satisfaction 44:39 that I just don't have it." 44:42 And he said, "Well, 44:44 if we follow the rules that you say, 44:47 you will never find what I have." 44:49 You see what I have, I have it because of Jesus. 44:53 I can talk to you about the stocks and the bonds. 44:56 I can talk to you about that, how the dollar is going. 45:01 I can talk to you about soccer. 45:03 This was a man from Brazil, 45:04 but that is not going to change anything. 45:07 You talk to many people of this. 45:10 What I can give you is Jesus. 45:14 He invites you to have what I have. 45:17 And this is the only way you can get it. 45:19 The man dropped his head, 45:21 understood that everything he had tried, 45:24 all the possessions he had could not give him 45:28 what he was missing. 45:29 And, my friend, I can tell you, 45:32 that until you give your heart to Jesus, 45:34 you will not have the satisfaction, 45:36 you will not have the rest you need, 45:38 you will not have the peace you need. 45:39 So I invite you, listen to the words of Jesus, 45:42 come unto me, and I will give you rest. 45:46 My yoke is easy. 45:48 Amen. 45:50 And my burden is light. 45:52 Which is where I pick up. 45:55 My burden is light. 45:57 I've just been given four words, 45:59 My Burden Is Light. 46:02 But how potent those words are on the foundation 46:06 of what has been built so far. 46:08 Each presenter bringing out the great invitation, 46:12 I love that, Shelley, the great invitation 46:14 as compared to the Great Commission. 46:16 Mine takes us to Exodus 18. 46:19 And we are going to look at leadership, 46:22 that leadership in the context of how God wants leaders 46:26 to be able to also enjoy rest. 46:29 We find Moses was a chosen leader of God. 46:35 But being chosen as a leader doesn't mean doing everything. 46:39 And I can tell you as a leader, 46:41 I'm thankful that I have a wonderful set 46:46 of organizational leaders in our church 46:49 that are burden bearers, 46:51 and we hear at 3ABN if you've ever come down here. 46:54 A lot of times people think, 46:56 wow, you guys are living out there in the country, 46:58 life must be simple for you. 47:00 It's only simple when we leave the building. 47:03 But between one location and the other, 47:05 we don't know what had to shift from and to shift to. 47:09 But God had a plan. 47:10 And Moses was not implementing leadership 47:13 the way that God had intended for him to do it. 47:17 Let's go to Exodus 18:13-22. 47:20 And then we're going to find out 47:22 how we can deduce from this 47:24 the kind of leadership 47:25 that will bring rest to the leader. 47:28 And so it was Exodus 18:13, 47:30 "And so it was, on the next day, 47:32 that Moses sat to judge the people, 47:35 and the people stood before Moses 47:37 from morning until evening." 47:38 Mercy. 47:40 So when Moses' father-in-law saw 47:42 all that he did for the people. 47:44 He said, "what is this thing 47:46 that you're doing for the people? 47:48 Why do you alone sit, 47:51 and all the people stand before you 47:53 from morning until evening? 47:55 Believe me, Jethro, where are you and I need you." 47:59 And sometimes we feel that way. 48:01 "And Moses said to his father-in-law," 48:03 verse 15, "because the people come to me 48:05 to inquire of God. 48:07 When they have a difficulty, they come to me, 48:09 and I judge between one and another, 48:11 and I make known the statutes of God and His laws. 48:15 So Moses' father-in-law said to him, 48:19 'This thing that you do is," what? 48:22 "Not good.'" 48:24 Meaning, when you look at the word not good 48:26 there he means this is not healthy. 48:27 Yeah. 48:28 This is not what God called you to do. 48:30 This is not good. 48:32 And he continues in verse 18, 48:35 "Both you and these people who are with you 48:38 will surely wear yourselves out. 48:41 For this thing is too much for you, 48:44 you are not able to perform it by yourself. 48:47 Listen now to my voice, I will give you counsel, 48:49 and God will be with you: 48:51 Stand before God for the people, 48:54 so that you may bring the difficulties to God. 48:57 And you shall teach them the statutes and the laws, 49:00 and show them the way in which they must walk 49:03 and the work they must do. 49:05 Moreover, verse 21, 49:07 you shall select from all the people able men, 49:09 such as fear God," 49:11 look at the qualifications, 49:13 "men of truth, hating covetousness, 49:16 and place such over them to be rulers of thousands, 49:19 rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, 49:21 and rulers of tens. 49:23 And let them judge the people at all times. 49:26 Then it will be that every great matter 49:30 they shall bring to you, 49:31 but every small matter they themselves shall judge. 49:34 So it will be easier for you, 49:37 for they will bear the burden with you." 49:42 That's the key, the burden with you. 49:44 God never intended for the leader 49:46 to be the burden bearer. 49:47 In America, the pastor has been exalted to position 49:51 that is not the same around the world. 49:53 And Pastor Dinzey, you know this 49:55 being aware of the West Indian cultures 49:57 and the Spanish cultures. 49:58 You might have one pastor for 15 churches, 50:01 you'll see that church maybe once every three months, 50:04 but the churches are thriving, 50:05 because the leaders are doing the work. 50:07 The elders, the deacons, the deaconess, 50:08 the personal ministries, they are priming, 50:10 they will call the pastor and says, you know, 50:12 we have 35, baptisms. 50:13 Come and do the baptisms for us, 50:15 and then you go back in to the other churches, 50:17 but in America, there's been this, 50:20 we have this celebrity status 50:23 that has been added to the leadership roles 50:24 in many churches. 50:26 So you have, we remember, 50:27 we don't remember the worship center, 50:29 we remember Joel Osteen, 50:31 or TD Jakes, or Billy Graham, or Mark Finley, 50:36 or Doug Batchelor, or Dwight Nelson, 50:38 or Pastor Lomacang. 50:40 And we will say, wow, what a great work you're doing. 50:43 But we know personally 50:45 that if we don't have the supporting cast, 50:47 praise the Lord, I have people 50:49 that are great in supportive roles, 50:52 because as, as been the case, 50:54 they have the pressures of the hours and the work 50:57 that we all share here down at 3ABN. 51:00 Church members of 3ABN, I mean employees at 3ABN, 51:05 many of them are church members here at our church. 51:07 Then we have a lot of local people 51:09 that are members of our church working together. 51:11 So let's look at some principles 51:13 that the Lord has established in His Word 51:15 that can bring rest to leadership. 51:19 Let's start with Galatians 6:2, a very short passage, 51:23 but a very potent one, if we implement what it says. 51:27 Bear one another's burdens, 51:30 and so fulfill the law of Christ. 51:33 Notice it didn't say keep the Sabbath, 51:35 or honor your father and your mother. 51:36 It says, bear one another's burdens. 51:39 When we become people 51:41 that are as concerned about his burden, 51:44 as he is about your burden, 51:47 then we begin to be those who fulfill 51:49 the law of Christ. 51:50 And what fulfillment is he saying here? 51:52 Love your neighbor as yourself. 51:55 When we look at the burden of the leaders, 51:57 and we start bearing the burdens with them, 51:59 and they start bearing our burdens, 52:01 we start fulfilling that law of loving one another, 52:04 bearing the burdens 52:06 that God sees that is imperative 52:08 for your leadership, 52:09 and for the leadership of your church. 52:11 The other thing is, 52:13 take responsibility for the health 52:15 of the congregation. 52:17 1 Corinthians 12:17. 52:19 Each of us needs to take responsibility. 52:22 And this is not just the pastor, 52:23 but each of us, each of the leaders. 52:26 1 Corinthians 12:17, 52:28 "But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each, 52:32 to each one for the profit of all." 52:35 When each leader takes the responsibility 52:38 for the health of the congregation, 52:39 we are pulling in the same direction. 52:41 Yes. How do we know that? 52:42 Ephesians 4:11, and 16. 52:44 "And he himself gave some to be apostles, 52:47 some prophets, some evangelists, 52:49 some pastors and teachers, 52:50 for the edifying of the saints, 52:53 for the work of the ministry, 52:54 work for the congregation 52:56 to teach the congregation how to work for others. 53:00 For the edifying of the body of Christ, 53:02 till we all come to the unity of the faith 53:05 and of the knowledge of the Son of God, 53:07 to a perfect, that is a mature, growing man, 53:10 to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ." 53:13 And look at the benefit of when we are unified 53:15 and working together. 53:16 "That we should no longer be children, 53:19 we will mature, 53:20 tossed to and fro and carried about 53:22 with every wind of doctrine by the trickery of men, 53:25 in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 53:28 but speaking the truth in love," 53:29 that's how we disseminate the truth, 53:31 "may grow up in all things into him who is the head," 53:34 that is Christ, 53:35 "from whom the whole body joined and knit together 53:38 by every joints, 53:40 by what every joint supplies, 53:42 deacons, deaconess, elders, person ministries, sound, 53:46 treasurer, everybody supplies something different, 53:49 according to the effective working 53:51 by which every part does its share 53:55 causes growth of the body, 53:57 for the edifying of itself in love." 54:00 So the Lord is saying, 54:01 when we all do what we are called to do, 54:03 then the church grows together, 54:05 and no one single person is carrying the burden. 54:08 I have a lot more to share, 54:09 but I want to go to 1 Corinthians 12:12 to... 54:13 Well, actually, I'm gonna go down 54:15 to 2 Corinthians 8:12-14 in the interest of time, 54:20 because I have a quote that I must share. 54:22 What kind of mindset should all leaders have? 54:25 2 Corinthians 8:12-14, 54:28 "For if there is first a willing mind," 54:33 that's what leadership calls for, 54:35 "it is accepted according to what one has, 54:37 and not according to what he does not have." 54:40 Look at the burden bearing here. 54:42 "For I do not mean that others should be eased 54:46 and you burdened, but by an equality, 54:50 that now at this time your abundance 54:52 may supply their lack, 54:54 that their abundance also may supply your lack, 54:58 that there may be equality." 54:59 Notice the burden picture there. 55:01 But listen to this quote from Child Guidance, page 397, 55:05 in paragraph three. 55:07 Those who make great exertion to accomplish 55:10 just so much work in a given time 55:13 and continue to labor when their judgment tells them 55:16 that they should rest are never gainers. 55:20 They are living on borrowed capital. 55:24 They are expending the vital force, 55:27 which they will need at a future time. 55:30 And when the energy they have so recklessly used is demanded, 55:34 they fail for want of it. 55:36 The physical strength is gone, the mental powers fail, 55:40 they realize that they have met with a loss, 55:44 but do not know what it is. 55:47 Their time of need has come 55:48 but their physical resources are exhausted. 55:51 Everyone who violates the laws of health 55:55 must sometimes be a sufferer 55:58 to a greater or lesser degree and here's how it ends. 56:01 God has provided us with constitutional force, 56:06 which will be needed 56:08 at different periods of our lives. 56:10 If we recklessly exhaust this force 56:13 by continual over taxation, we shall sometimes be... 56:19 We shall sometime be the loser. 56:22 So don't overtax yourself. 56:24 God never intended that to be the case. 56:26 Let's bear one another's burden 56:28 that there will be equality. 56:30 Praise the Lord. 56:32 I don't know about those of you at home, 56:33 but here's been a mountain of information. 56:35 Thank each one of you. 56:37 You know, my heart's been enlightened 56:39 by what we've heard. 56:40 So let's just get, we got a few seconds left, 56:41 so give just something 56:43 that maybe jumped out and got you. 56:45 Great invitation, three imperatives, 56:47 come, take and learn. 56:49 Take God's yoke upon you, Christ's yoke, 56:52 and you'll find that He will exchange His power 56:56 for your weakness. 56:57 Amen. 56:58 Matthew 11:28, "I am gentle and lowly in heart." 57:01 Do you want to find true humility, 57:04 discover your identity, discover your purpose, 57:07 and discover your vision? 57:09 Amen. Amen. 57:11 You know, you may have heard many offers out there about, 57:15 you get this and you get this discount, 57:17 and this and then all these types of things. 57:20 And then there's this fine print 57:21 that the world offers. 57:22 And then they do a switcheroo on you. 57:24 You know, it's a dollar today, 57:26 but then it's, you know, 500 tomorrow. 57:28 God does not change, everything is nice and clear. 57:32 He said, His yoke is easy, 57:34 and will continue to be easy as you allow Jesus, 57:37 as you come to Jesus, 57:38 your burden will be light as well. 57:40 That's right. 57:41 It's simply, bear one another's burdens. 57:44 Amen. Amen. 57:46 You know, we've been learning here 57:47 that we find out what meek and lowly really is all about, 57:51 but it's at the foot of the cross. 57:53 So we're thankful for that, God says, to find peace. 57:56 Now, wants you make sure that you make sure 57:58 you set whatever you need, mark on your calendar, 58:00 next week, lesson number six, 58:02 we're going to be looking at finding rest in family ties. 58:05 You talk about interesting, 58:07 I know you don't want to miss that. 58:08 Thank you for joining us today. 58:09 God bless you, and we'll see you next time. 58:11 Amen. |
Revised 2021-07-29