Participants:
Series Code: TDYFW
Program Code: TDYFW210005S
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00:02 I want to spend my life
00:08 Mending broken people 00:13 I want to spend my life 00:19 Removing pain 00:24 Lord, let my words 00:30 Heal a heart that hurts 00:35 I want to spend my life 00:40 Mending broken people 00:46 I want to spend my life 00:51 Mending broken people 01:08 Hello and welcome 01:10 to another 3ABN Today Family Worship. 01:13 I'm Jason Bradley. 01:14 And I'm so glad 01:15 that you decided to tune in tonight 01:17 as you do each and every Friday night. 01:19 And if you don't already have a pen and a piece of paper, 01:23 I suggest that you grab one 01:25 because we're going to cover quite a few scriptures. 01:28 We're going to be looking at God's love for mankind, 01:32 and how we can demonstrate our love toward God. 01:36 And here with me to discuss this wonderful topic, 01:39 we'll start with our 3ABN president 01:41 and my office neighbor, Greg Morikone. 01:44 It's great to have you. 01:46 Great being your neighbor, 01:47 our office is kind of adjacent to each other. 01:49 So yeah, happy Sabbath to you, Jason. 01:50 Happy Sabbath to you as well. 01:51 Thank you for the invitation to be here. 01:53 It's a blessing to spend time with family 01:54 and open the Word of God. 01:55 Amen. Amen. 01:57 Amen. 01:58 And then we transition over 02:00 to who we call the Sons of Thunder. 02:02 Oh, I don't know about that. 02:03 We've got Ryan Day, 02:05 who is a part of our 3ABN pastoral team. 02:08 It's always great to have you on. 02:10 It's a blessing to be here. 02:11 And I'm really, really loving this subject. 02:13 And I know that God's going to shed 02:14 a lot of light through us and to us and to all of you. 02:17 So praise the Lord. Amen. 02:19 And then we've got Dakota Day. 02:22 Amazing Facts, 02:23 a full time Amazing Facts ministry evangelist. 02:27 Yeah, thank you guys for the invitation. 02:28 It's a blessing to always be here 02:29 and share God's Word 02:31 and be able to just to dive into scripture. 02:32 Haven't been a part of a program yet 02:34 that I haven't thoroughly enjoyed. 02:36 So thank you guys so much. Yes. 02:37 We thoroughly enjoyed having you, 02:39 so it's great to have you here. 02:42 I want to hear 02:44 how you've experienced God's love in your own life. 02:46 I want to, you know, that's the go there as well. 02:49 And then we've got a bunch of scriptures. 02:50 But before we dive into all of that, 02:53 I'd like for us to have a word of prayer. 02:55 And, Greg, would you pray for us? 02:56 Sure. Yeah, absolutely. 02:58 Father in heaven, 02:59 Lord, it's a blessing to open Your Word. 03:03 And, Lord, we just invite Your Holy Spirit 03:05 to be with us this evening. 03:06 And with those that are joining with us, 03:09 as part of our families, we open Your Word, 03:11 thank You for the Sabbath. 03:13 We thank You, Father, for Your love for us. 03:15 We thank You for sending Your Son to die for us 03:17 that we have the gift of salvation. 03:21 And, Lord, as we talk about this subject of love, 03:24 there's many people, 03:25 maybe listening and watching right now 03:27 that don't feel any love from anybody. 03:30 And, Father, at the end of this program, 03:32 may they be encouraged that You love them. 03:35 We thank You. And in Jesus' name we pray. 03:37 Amen. Amen. 03:39 Amen. 03:41 So, how have you seen God's love 03:45 displayed in your life? 03:46 Let's start with you, Dakota. 03:48 Oh, man, so many ways. 03:51 I mean, just with miracles in general happening, 03:53 you know, things that I never thought 03:54 it would ever happen. 03:56 I remember, specifically growing up, 03:58 being in a home where 04:00 the Lord was a big part of our home. 04:02 But I never knew God personally, 04:04 until I saw really God working through my brother 04:07 and changing my brother. 04:08 And when, you know, 04:10 by beholding you become changed. 04:11 And I never really knew that there was a God, 04:14 I never really believed fully 04:16 that there was a God with all of my heart 04:17 until I saw my brother become changed 04:19 and become more like Jesus. 04:21 And when I saw his love for me start to change, 04:24 that's what really helped me to realize, 04:26 like, wow, I'm experiencing the love of God 04:27 because Ryan, growing up Ryan used to be kind of mean to me. 04:32 You know, we're brothers, we've fight. 04:33 Are you nodding your head, Ryan? 04:36 It's sadly a truth. 04:37 I was the bully at times. 04:38 But he wasn't bad all the time. 04:40 We had our moments where we got along, 04:41 but, you know, 04:43 starting to invite me out to places 04:44 and hang out with me and invite me, 04:46 hey, let's go play ball together 04:47 and stuff like that. 04:49 And then when, like, I would beat him, 04:50 sometimes at different things. 04:52 He would respond with a great attitude 04:53 and things like that. 04:55 So there was lots of different things 04:56 that I've experienced a love of God, 04:58 but I'd say like, for me, the pivotal point in my life 05:00 was seeing God's love change someone else. 05:04 And then that then becoming a part of my life 05:08 where I'm experiencing the love of God 05:09 through someone else. 05:11 So, yeah. 05:12 Yeah, that, you just touched on something that's huge, 05:14 because, you know, when you basically like 05:17 when someone loves God, 05:18 their relationship with other people changes. 05:21 That's right. You experienced that. 05:23 I mean, that's like that genuine conversion 05:25 experience and all that. 05:27 What about you, Ryan? 05:28 Oh, man, where do you start? 05:30 It's like, there's a list in my mind, 05:32 you know, but I'm gonna, 05:34 I'm gonna say one that I think that 05:35 many people probably don't think about 05:37 or don't give enough credit to. 05:38 But, you know, I don't know 05:40 that I'm necessarily categorized as a good man. 05:42 But the Bible says and very much communicates 05:45 in a roundabout way, 05:46 that behind every man, there's a good woman, right? 05:49 And praise the Lord, 05:50 I would not be where I am today 05:52 if God had not gifted me 05:53 and brought my wife Stephanie into my life. 05:55 Just seeing the love of God worked through her, 05:58 and to see that love of God through her bestowed upon me 06:02 has been life changing. 06:03 In ministry, it can be difficult, 06:05 I know, Greg, all of us here who have wives, 06:09 you know, it can be difficult in ministry, 06:11 it can be a challenge, you know, sometimes. 06:13 You would think that it wouldn't be, 06:15 but, you know, the demand upon your life, 06:17 the time in ministry 06:18 and the different aspects of ministry 06:20 can be demanding, 06:22 it can be challenging at times, 06:23 and it really helps to have a good woman there, 06:25 a good helpmeet, someone who's encouraging, 06:27 someone who makes it worth 06:30 getting up and going 06:32 and continuing on through the day 06:33 and through your ministry. 06:34 And that's, you know, 06:36 that kind of gives me an opportunity to segue 06:37 into the blessings and the love of God 06:39 that God has bestowed upon me and showed me through ministry, 06:42 through how he has transformed other lives 06:44 that I've been able to be a part of, 06:46 and been able to, you know, participate in 06:50 and helping bring others to Christ 06:51 and to see God take people who were one way 06:55 and then completely transform them 06:56 through the power of the gospel. 06:58 And so those are just a few ways 06:59 that throughout my life 07:01 the love of God has been evident in my life 07:04 and working through my life. 07:05 And then also being able to be in a position 07:07 where I can view, 07:09 I can experience the love of God 07:11 and the transforming power of God 07:12 in other people's lives as well. 07:14 Absolutely. Well said. 07:16 What about you, Greg? 07:17 Well, like Ryan was saying, 07:19 I mean, the list and where do you start, right? 07:20 So I mean, God just been so good. 07:22 You know, when you think about ways, 07:23 you know, when you look back on your life, 07:24 when you're looking ahead, 07:26 you don't know what's ahead of you. 07:27 You have goals and things in mind. 07:29 But if I look back on my life, I'm like, 07:30 "Wow, thank you, God, for taking care of me." 07:33 You can see instances 07:34 where you know, we could have been killed 07:36 or major injured. 07:38 I think about situations where a decision was made. 07:41 And it's like, well, I'm not sure 07:42 which one I should take, 07:44 but then you pray and God, 07:45 okay, I feel You're leading me this way. 07:46 Looking back, it's like, oh, wow, God, 07:48 I saw Your hand involved all the way through. 07:50 So I think just as care for me, 07:52 because when I think about the universe, 07:54 and all the people that are in the universe, 07:55 and how big we think the world is, 07:57 but it's actually very small 07:59 in comparison to the whole universe. 08:01 And then to think that He would die for me. 08:05 Yeah. That's powerful. 08:06 I think about God's love for me. 08:08 I think that to me is an overwhelming thought. 08:09 So just to think that He has offered me, 08:12 Greg Morikone the gift of salvation, 08:14 that He even cares about me that even knows my name. 08:17 And He knows how many hairs I have on my head 08:18 and all those type of details, why would He even care? 08:21 Because He loves me. 08:22 And I think that's it's a phenomenal thing. 08:24 Amen. Amen. 08:26 Well said, you know, as I just look at my life 08:29 and reflect upon my life, 08:30 as you were just stating, 08:32 I mean, that seeing how God has loved me 08:36 throughout all my crazy mistakes, 08:39 issues and errors, and all of that stuff. 08:42 And even in spite of that, like He's loved me, 08:44 He didn't love me any less at that point. 08:48 He poured out that love for me, 08:50 and continued to listen to my mother's prayers for me 08:54 and drew me closer to Him. 08:56 So as you guys are saying, 08:58 behind every good man is a good woman. 09:00 Well, I guess for me, it's my mom in a different way 09:03 'cause she was praying for me to come back to the Lord. 09:06 Praise the God for praying mom. 09:07 Yeah. 09:08 So that was a huge thing for me 09:10 and just seeing how He spared my life 09:12 in times where I should have been dead 09:14 and could have been dead. 09:16 Being misdiagnosed with my appendix rupturing 09:19 inside of me and all of that and had I died then, 09:23 I would have been in trouble 09:24 because I didn't know the Lord then, 09:26 I wasn't serving Him. 09:27 So, yeah, God's love is incredible 09:30 even when we're in the wilderness. 09:32 That's right. 09:34 His love that He's pouring out on us 09:36 is absolutely amazing. 09:38 So I'm looking forward 09:39 to diving into these scriptures. 09:40 Amen. 09:42 So, Ryan, you've got our first scripture, 09:43 Isaiah 54:10. 09:45 Man, I love this text. 09:46 Isaiah 54:10 says, 09:49 "For the mountains shall depart and the hills be removed, 09:53 but My kindness shall not depart from you, 09:57 nor shall My covenant of peace be removed, 10:00 ' says the Lord, who has mercy on you.'" 10:03 This is beautiful. 10:05 I love it because it's almost, it's just so poetic, right? 10:07 But at the same time, it's not poetry. 10:10 I mean, this is the real word of the Lord 10:12 coming from the Lord's mouth. 10:13 He's basically saying to us, you know what? 10:15 See that mountain over there, 10:16 see, all of this stuff, you know what? 10:18 All of those things can pass away 10:20 this world and everything before you, 10:21 everything tangible that you can see and feel, 10:24 hear, touch, smell, all of that can pass away, 10:26 but My love, My kindness, My compassion 10:29 will never ever pass away. 10:31 And so I love the fact that 10:33 we serve a God whom we can trust 10:35 and we can know based on His promise, 10:37 based on His character, 10:39 that we can trust and know 10:40 that He's never gonna love us 10:42 the way that we love each other. 10:43 Okay? 10:45 In a human sense, in a carnal sense, He's God. 10:48 And I heard someone once say, 10:49 and it's always stuck with me that sin is the, 10:52 is basically the results of a misunderstanding 10:57 and a misrepresentation of God's character. 11:00 So if you think about that, that's exactly what sin is 11:03 when we fully comprehend and understand 11:05 that God is an as a forever loving, 11:07 compassionate kind God 11:09 and He says, I want to bestow My kindness 11:11 upon you at all times. 11:12 I love that, oftentimes we don't think of, 11:14 I mean, we know kindness 11:16 is one of the fruits of the Spirit, right? 11:17 But we don't often say when we talk about God, 11:18 we don't often say, oh, God's so kind, 11:20 you know, but yet He is. 11:22 He is kind. Right? 11:23 I love those words there. 11:24 But My kindness shall not depart from you. 11:27 And so it's just awesome to know 11:29 that no matter where I'm at in life, 11:32 no matter what I'm going through, 11:33 no matter what situation I'm involved in, 11:36 God is always merciful. He's always kind. 11:39 He's always there 11:40 to share and to bestow that love upon you 11:42 that you don't deserve. 11:43 It's powerful. Amen. 11:45 Man, that's great. 11:46 That's great scripture, isn't it? 11:47 Yeah, yeah. It is fantastic. 11:49 Absolutely. 11:50 You know, what jumps out at me, 11:52 is the covenant of peace. 11:55 You know, with all of the things 11:57 that are going on in this world 11:59 with all of the things that we're experiencing, 12:01 to be able to have that peace in the midst of the storm, 12:05 that to me is just incredible. 12:07 And God gives us this peace that passes all understanding. 12:11 Amen. Amen. 12:13 Praise the Lord. Dakota? 12:14 Yeah. 12:16 So, you know, there's a lot 12:18 that can be said about the love of God. 12:19 I know one of the things that I first think of 12:22 when I hear about the love of God, 12:23 you know, I think of the sacrifice 12:25 that was made from Jesus 12:27 and that while we were yet still sinners, 12:29 and we're going to get to that text, 12:30 you know, God died for us. 12:33 And, you know, I think of you know, 12:34 there's lots of things that that I can come to, 12:37 but I think one of the greatest things 12:38 that I come to was the scripture where it says 12:41 no greater love have this 12:42 than a man lay down his life for his friends. 12:45 And in relation to that, 12:47 we see what happened in the Garden of Eden 12:49 with Adam and Eve from the very beginning. 12:51 Mankind totally lost, 12:53 separated from God because of sin. 12:55 We see Jesus steps in there. 12:57 And He serves as the Savior immediately. 13:00 As soon as there was sin, there was a Savior. 13:02 And I love how Jesus dealt with that. 13:05 How, just like a parent, right? 13:07 When you see your child come to you, 13:10 and they've messed up really bad. 13:12 You're not there to try to condemn them. 13:14 You're there to try to teach them 13:16 and save them from that position, 13:18 from that disobedient position, 13:19 disobedient mind that they've been in, 13:21 and to see how Jesus did that for us is so powerful, 13:23 I think of, you know, 13:25 when Jesus was in the Garden of Eden, for instance, 13:27 when He came walking in the Garden of Eden, 13:29 you know, sin was them taking from the tree, 13:32 them taking sin from the tree, 13:34 so to speak, and disobeying God. 13:35 And when they did that, 13:37 the Bible says in 2 Corinthians 5:21 13:39 that Jesus became sin for us, right? 13:42 So He became sin for us. 13:43 So sin was taking from this tree, 13:47 Jesus reverses the curse now, and He says, Listen, 13:49 "I'm going to become sin for you. 13:52 And then I'm going to put sin back on the tree." 13:55 Right? 13:56 So when you see the love that Jesus has for us 13:58 is so amazing. 13:59 It's like, wow, why would He do that? 14:02 Like, what have I done? 14:03 We used to sing a song at church, Ryan, called? 14:06 What? How did it go? 14:08 Is who am I. 14:09 Who am I, remember that song? I do. 14:11 Who am I that the King should bleed and die for? 14:14 Who am I that He should say not my will but thine, Lord. 14:18 I just like wow, it's amazing. 14:20 It is an incredible thought. Oh, it absolutely is. 14:23 Yeah. 14:24 Take us to Psalm 8:15. 14:27 I'm just, I'm still marinating on what you all about, 14:30 what you just said, I'm just taking it all in. 14:32 Just sharing them as they come to me, Brother. 14:34 I think about Psalm 86 actually, verse 15, it says, 14:37 "But You, O Lord, are a God full of compassion, 14:40 and gracious, longsuffering 14:42 and abundant in mercy and truth." 14:44 Amen. 14:46 What a great scripture. 14:47 Absolutely. Praise the Lord. 14:48 There is a thought that I want to share with you 14:53 and it is from the Mount of Blessing, page 22. 14:58 And it says this, 15:00 "God does not ask if we are worthy of His love 15:03 but He pours upon us the riches of His love 15:06 to make us worthy. 15:08 He is not vindictive, 15:10 He seeks not to punish, but to redeem. 15:12 Even the severity 15:14 which He manifests through his providences 15:16 is manifested for the salvation of the wayward. 15:20 It is true that God will by no means 15:22 clear the guilty, 15:24 but He would take away the guilt." 15:26 Wow. God is amazing. 15:28 Amen. 15:29 God is amazing. 15:32 Greg, you've got 1 John 2:1? 15:35 Yeah, 1 John 3:1, you know, I just want to say, Jason, 15:38 I appreciate this topic on God's love. 15:41 Because you think I know, 15:42 we know there are a lot of people 15:44 that are watching that don't feel 15:46 any love from anybody. 15:47 They feel hopeless. 15:50 And I know that before COVID, 15:51 you did a lot of work in the prisons. 15:52 Yes. 15:54 And there's a lot of people that no one loves me. 15:55 I'm in here, I've done wrong. 15:57 And there's no hope, no one loves me whatsoever. 16:00 But then there's people outside of prison 16:01 that are right now probably watching, viewing, 16:03 and they're hopeless. 16:05 So thank you for this topic. 16:06 Because really, we're talking about God's love. 16:08 But man, that's incredible for someone, 16:10 their mother, their father, they felt no love from them. 16:12 There is massive abuse in their household. 16:14 And they're the only one 16:15 they feel alone that no one cares for them. 16:17 So it's a fantastic topic, 16:20 because they feel that God the Creator, 16:21 the one who formed you loves you. 16:24 That's phenomenal, 16:25 so it's, to me it's encouraging, 16:27 very encouraging. 16:28 So thank you for this. 16:30 It's an encouraging family worship. 16:31 1 John 3:1 says, 16:32 "Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, 16:38 that we should be called the children of God! 16:41 Therefore the world does not know us, 16:42 because it did not know Him." 16:46 First word, behold. 16:48 That's right. 16:49 I don't even know how you can behold that, right? 16:51 Because I don't even understand the fullness of God. 16:53 It is a mystery. Yeah. 16:54 I'm thinking about trying to behold the sun, sunshine, 16:56 I can't behold the sun. 16:57 If I look with the naked eye at the sunshine, 16:59 I'd go blind is what they say. 17:01 I've never tried it. 17:02 And I've been told never to try it. 17:04 I think about trying to behold God, behold His love. 17:07 I mean, it's just incredible. 17:08 We know He loves us. That's right. 17:09 Yeah, but to behold the love of God. 17:12 And then it says, 17:14 "The Father has bestowed on us 17:15 that we should be called the children of God." 17:17 I have here the children of God, 17:19 that is powerful. 17:21 I was blessed with wonderful Christian parents, 17:23 but there's a lot of people 17:25 that their family situation is all messed up. 17:27 It's terrible situation. 17:29 So to be called children, that's awesome, of God. 17:34 I know. 17:35 growing up, it was always such a great thing for me. 17:38 And again, I had great parents, 17:40 and I'm so blessed with that. 17:41 But when I'd be out to say somewhere, 17:43 and my dad would say, 17:44 Oh, hey, that's my son over there. 17:46 Yeah. 17:48 Man, you know, that makes you feel so good, 17:49 like, oh, wow. 17:50 My dad's like, oh, you know, that's, 17:52 I don't know who he is. 17:53 It's like, no, hey, that's my son over there. 17:55 And like, or, you know, hey, this is my children, 17:56 my sister and I. 17:58 Yeah, yeah. 17:59 It's awesome. Yeah. 18:01 That's an earthly parent. That's true. 18:02 But to think of God in heaven 18:03 saying, hey, you're My children and I love you. 18:06 Yeah. Wow. 18:07 That's an incredible thought. Amen. 18:09 You were gonna comment on that or no... 18:11 No, no. 18:12 I was just basking in everything you were saying. 18:13 Oh, yeah. Okay. 18:15 Yeah, to be called the children of God. 18:16 It's just, it's phenomenal. I love the scripture. 18:18 It's very encouraging to me, 1 John. 3:1. 18:21 Yes, absolutely. 18:23 I mean, you know, you look at some things, 18:25 especially in the realm of spirituality 18:28 and just God. 18:30 And some things just aren't quantifiable like, 18:34 like you said, 18:35 how can you quantify God's love? 18:37 Like there's, yeah, there's no words 18:41 in the English language, or any language 18:43 that can really fully convey 18:46 the splendor of God and His love 18:50 like it's, it's, He's incredible. 18:52 So we've got Deuteronomy 7:9, 18:58 "Therefore know that the Lord your God, 19:02 He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy 19:06 for a thousand generations with those who love Him, 19:11 and keep His commandments." 19:13 And then I want us to go 19:15 to 1 Corinthians 1:9. 19:21 1 Corinthians 1:9, and it says, 19:24 "God is faithful, 19:27 by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, 19:31 Jesus Christ, our Lord." 19:34 Then we have John 15:4-5. 19:41 And it's interesting because, you know, 19:44 as we're going to get to that point, 19:46 possibly later on, 19:48 in this program, we'll get there. 19:52 But where we kind of look 19:53 at how we demonstrate our love toward God. 19:57 But in here in John 15:4-5, 20:04 we've got, it says, 20:05 "Abide in Me, and I in you. 20:07 As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, 20:09 unless it abides in the vine, 20:11 neither can you, unless you abide in Me. 20:14 I am the vine, you are the branches. 20:17 He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit, 20:20 for without Me you can do nothing." 20:23 So when we think about loving God, 20:25 and all of that, 20:26 like we can't even love God, 20:29 without Him instilling that in us, 20:31 and you know we are to abide in Him. 20:34 And then in verse 9 and 10, 20:36 "As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you, 20:40 abide in My love." 20:42 He wants us to abide in His love. 20:44 "If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, 20:47 just as I have kept My Father's commandments 20:49 and abide in His love." 20:51 And that kind of goes into our other area 20:54 that's kind of jumping ahead a little bit. 20:57 But yes, I think that's so incredible 21:01 like, you know, when we love something 21:04 we seek after it, we go after it, 21:06 we pursue it, you know. 21:08 You guys are married, right? 21:11 Well, it's something worked out for you. 21:15 Did you? 21:16 Did you pursue your wife? 21:18 Like how did... 21:19 Let's talk about that for a second? 21:21 Absolutely. Yeah, I'd be happy to. 21:26 No, that's great. Absolutely. 21:27 Yeah, you do. I mean, I did pursue my wife. 21:29 Yeah, we communicated 21:31 and that relationship 21:32 was started out as a friendship. 21:34 Then after a while, 21:35 when I moved here as an intern, 21:37 you know, she was somewhere else 21:38 doing her internship. 21:39 And then after we graduated, 21:41 you know, I was here working, 21:42 I'm like, boy, you know what? 21:43 This friendship with my, well, she was a friend, 21:46 I was gonna say, my wife, she wasn't my wife then. 21:48 You know, I want to go to the next level. 21:49 So then the friendship moved to courting or dating 21:51 and then into marriage. 21:53 So yeah, I did pursue relationship with her. 21:55 And it got deeper and deeper. 21:56 Yeah. And that love grew. 21:58 How did you build that relationship? 22:00 Uh-ah. Communication. 22:02 We actually did actually handwritten letters 22:03 back in the day, Jason. 22:05 Wow. 22:06 We've been married that many years. 22:08 But we still had snail mail then. 22:10 I had a little email account too, 22:12 I didn't even have a cell phone then at that point. 22:14 But we did a lot of communicating 22:15 through letters, of course, and cards. 22:17 And I knew things that she liked. 22:19 And so, you know, I get little gifts 22:20 and send her presents. 22:22 And yeah, yeah, we grew that, 22:23 but communication was the key. 22:24 Did it take time? 22:26 It did take time. Oh, yeah. It didn't happen overnight. 22:28 Yeah, 'cause we were great friends in college 22:29 for about four years. 22:31 And then, of course, afterwards for a year or so 22:32 and then got married. 22:34 But yeah, just grew over time. 22:35 Absolutely. Communication, though. 22:37 And you know, the thing is, too, 22:38 is not just one way communication. 22:40 Yeah. 22:42 So I didn't, she didn't just write me all that letters. 22:43 I would write her back. It was back and forth. 22:45 That's right. Yeah. 22:47 That's great comparison, Jason. 22:48 To dialogue among all of that. Thank you. 22:50 That's right. 22:51 I love that, Ryan. You're right. 22:54 And this way is where our relationship 22:55 with God has worked, right? 22:57 It's got to be a dialogue, not necessarily a monologue. 22:59 Amen. 23:00 You know, God wants to speak to us. 23:01 He wants to bestow that love upon us. 23:03 And that's a communicable effort 23:06 in the sense that we have to be able to receive 23:07 as much as we give, 23:09 you know, speaking of that... 23:10 I like that. 23:12 Yeah, me and my wife, 23:13 you know, we were high school sweethearts, 23:14 she was a freshman, I was a junior in high school. 23:17 And, you know, it's interesting, 23:20 because when you have that, 23:23 when you first comprehend 23:26 that someone is interested in you, 23:27 that feels great. 23:29 It does feel great. It feels great. 23:30 And the Bible is flooded with text 23:33 that communicates to us that God is interested in us, 23:36 that He's constantly pursuing us trying to woo us. 23:39 And that's the thing, you know, 23:40 when you first get that first love with your, 23:43 with your, the person that you're trying to, 23:45 you know, be with or create a relationship with. 23:47 You won't, you can't, 23:48 you can't not be enough around them, right? 23:51 You've to spend as much time around them as possible. 23:53 And so I remember, you know, growing up 23:55 and a lot of people would probably call it puppy love, 23:57 you know, is that, you know, it's not anything, 24:00 but yet, you know, 24:01 I grew up in a home 24:03 where my parents taught me 24:04 like, you don't just, 24:06 you don't just play the game, right? 24:07 You don't play the world game of relationships 24:08 where you get together and you break up the next week 24:10 and get together with somebody, 24:11 and break up with them next week. 24:13 My parents bestowed within me 24:14 that if you know, if you're going to have 24:16 a relationship with someone, 24:17 you're going to do it right, 24:18 you're going to treat this girl with respect, 24:20 you're going to pursue it in the right way. 24:21 So that, so the longevity of the relationship exists 24:25 that there's a long lastingness there. 24:26 And the same thing 24:28 that was bestowed upon us in marriage, 24:29 my parents before my mom passed 24:31 was together for 37 years. 24:32 They were actually together longer than that 24:35 they were married for 37 years. 24:36 Wow. 24:38 So in my home, it was, you do everything you can 24:40 to protect and establish 24:42 and continue that relationship on. 24:44 And so, you know, same thing with me and my wife, Stephanie 24:47 is we have always, 24:48 you know, through the ups and the downs and all that, 24:50 you know, as Greg said, communication is key. 24:53 If you're not in open communication 24:55 with that person, 24:56 if you're not willing to take the time to iron out, 25:00 to talk through, to converse, and to have that dialogue, 25:04 that special dialogue, 25:06 that special time that you spend together. 25:07 That's key. 25:09 And the same thing goes with our relationship with God. 25:11 God loves us. That's clear. 25:12 But He also wants us to understand that love. 25:15 And we're gonna get into a text in just a moment, 25:17 I think you might be reading them, 25:18 I'm not sure. 25:19 Where it talks about, you know, God is love. 25:21 And I don't know who's reading that. 25:23 I think it's maybe actually I think you are reading it. 25:25 Yeah, 1 John Chapter 4, where we get in a second. 25:27 So I'll save my comment on this point. 25:29 But the fact that God it's very clear 25:31 that God loves us, 25:33 He's done everything He can to show that love. 25:36 But, you know, there's another scripture 25:37 that says that we love Him 25:39 because He first loved us, right? 25:40 And so we have to understand that it's a, 25:43 it's a kind of a two way street, 25:45 in which you have to pretty much 25:47 be able to be willing to give just as much as you receive. 25:50 And it goes both ways. 25:51 Absolutely. It's powerful. I love that. 25:53 And so you have to initiate that love? 25:55 Yeah. And you want to spend as much time. 25:57 And I remember, I drove my parents crazy. 25:59 Hey, I'm gonna go over to Stephanie, isn't it? 26:02 It came to the point where they're like, 26:03 look, you've been spending too much time with this girl. 26:06 You're about to drive her parents crazy. 26:07 And what are you thinking about? 26:09 You know, you gotta stay home for the weekend. 26:10 And I'm sure her parents did the same thing. 26:12 But yet, that's the thing 26:13 about the beautiful thing about God's love, 26:15 and the relationship you have with God, 26:17 God's not putting you on, 26:18 you know, He's not putting you on the spot 26:21 or He's not pressing the pause button 26:22 and saying, look, whoo, 26:23 you've been spending way too much time 26:25 with me lately. 26:26 You gotta slow this thing down. 26:28 Give me some time to breathe up in here. 26:29 That's not what God's saying, right? 26:30 God, His line of communication, 26:33 His time you want to spend with Him. 26:34 It's open 24/7. 26:36 And He says, the more time you spend with Me, 26:38 the more you're open with Me, 26:39 the more you communicate with Me, 26:41 the more I'm going to be able to replicate 26:43 this loving character in your life. 26:45 Beautiful. That is beautiful. 26:47 You can never wear out your love with God. 26:50 Yes, yes. 26:51 Now, Dakota, how did you woo your wife? 26:55 Well, we were also high school sweethearts. 26:57 Ann and I were and I'll never forget, 26:59 you know, when we first, 27:01 when I first went to the high school, 27:02 I moved to her high school, my junior year. 27:04 And I was kind of the new guy. 27:06 And all the girls were interested 27:07 in the new guy, 27:08 because this was a small school, 27:10 only had like 20 kids in my graduating class, 27:11 so very small school. 27:13 But everybody knew who the new guy was. 27:14 But all the girls had talked to me except my wife 27:17 at the time. 27:18 Again she wasn't my wife then, we were still in high school. 27:20 But I was just like, who is this girl? 27:23 Why is she not talking to me? 27:24 You know, everybody else would come up to me 27:25 and would talk to me. 27:27 And so I was interested 27:28 in having a relationship with her. 27:30 But I didn't know who she was, 27:31 I didn't know anything about her. 27:33 And I found out she had a boyfriend. 27:34 So that's why she wasn't talking to me 27:36 because she was loyal. 27:37 But I was like, I liked that quality. 27:38 I like that. 27:40 I like that characteristic, she's loyal. 27:41 And she's not just talking 27:43 to flirt with all these other guys. 27:44 And all these other girls would have boyfriends, 27:45 but they'd be flirting with other guys too at school. 27:48 And I'm like, I don't wanna do that. 27:50 Now I guess Ryan said 27:51 our parents raised us differently. 27:52 And so, I just remember being respectful. 27:55 And always, you know, trying to do my best to, 27:57 you know, show the love of God when I could. 28:00 And she saw that. 28:01 And then one day 28:02 when her boyfriend her broke up, 28:04 she messaged me on Facebook, and she's like, 28:07 "Hey, I'm sorry that I never, you know, talk to you." 28:09 And she's like, 28:11 "I would like to get to know you a little bit more." 28:12 And I remember like jumping up and doing like this dance. 28:15 Like, I started like dancing. 28:16 I was like, oh, man, 28:18 this girl like wants to have something to do with me. 28:19 Uh-huh. 28:21 And so we started talking and I'll never forget, 28:23 you know, you while I fell in love with her looks 28:26 like I looked at her and I thought, 28:27 you know, this is a beautiful girl. 28:29 I could not give her my heart and my affections. 28:31 Right? 28:33 And so, you know, the Bible says in John 3:16, 28:36 "For God so loved the world, 28:38 that He gave His only begotten Son 28:39 that whosoever believeth in Him 28:41 should not perish but have everlasting life." 28:43 But that word believeth is what a lot of people misunderstand, 28:45 that word believeth means to trust in God. 28:48 We see, that's the thing. 28:49 That's why I couldn't get my affections to Anna 28:51 at the time 28:52 was because I didn't know her well enough. 28:54 There was not a relationship established for me 28:56 to give her my affection. 28:57 So the thing is, listen, 28:59 you can't trust someone you do not know. 29:02 So I had to get to know her. I had to spend time with her. 29:05 I had to create a relationship. 29:06 And I remember is that 29:08 the more time I spent with her, 29:09 the more I fell in love with her. 29:11 And it's still the same today. 29:12 Same situation, the more time I spend with her, 29:14 the more I fall in love with her. 29:15 And I'll never forget, 29:16 going to like 29:18 she would write me notes in the class, right? 29:20 And I would write her notes in class. 29:21 And I never, I couldn't, 29:23 I just, I couldn't help 29:24 but to read the note even in class. 29:26 Now, where these the handwritten notes? 29:28 Yeah, these are the handwritten notes. 29:30 Okay, yeah. 29:31 We still have all the notes too, 29:33 all the notes that we ever wrote each other. 29:34 We kept up with every one of them. 29:36 And I'll never forget. 29:38 I would go, she would write me a note 29:40 and I would be so excited to read it, 29:41 because it was like 29:43 her love letter to me, you know. 29:44 I'd be so excited to read it. 29:45 I would go to the boys' restroom. 29:47 You know, if you get caught reading in the class, 29:49 you know, the teacher make you read 29:50 in front of everybody. 29:51 And so that would be embarrassing. 29:54 So we would, we would go, 29:56 I would go to the boys' restroom, right? 29:58 And I put the note in my pocket and I would say sit there, 30:00 and I will just endure the smell 30:02 and all the stinks of the boys' restroom. 30:04 And I would sit there and just read the note 30:05 and hold on to every word, you know, that she wrote me. 30:08 Because you fall in love with someone, 30:10 the more time you spend with them. 30:11 It's the same way with Jesus. 30:12 Jesus has already loved us immeasurably, right? 30:17 We can't even measure God's love for us. 30:19 But the question is do we love Him? 30:22 And how we fall in love with Him 30:23 and spending time with Him? 30:24 Absolutely. So yeah. 30:26 Amen. Amen. 30:27 Excellent illustrations. 30:28 Were you going to pick up? 30:30 Well, I was, there's some interesting points brought up 30:31 and I think it's, it's something good 30:32 and important for people to remember 30:34 that you're talking about the ups and the downs, right? 30:35 The save relationship, but the love doesn't change. 30:38 Amen. 30:39 You know, so when we go back, 30:41 I'm thinking of the 1 John 3, behold what manner of love, 30:43 you know, talking about being the children of God, 30:45 it's not like you're only my children 30:46 if you're only good or do certain things. 30:49 We're God's children, 30:50 you know, so like, we're talking about to say 30:52 someone that feels like they've done so much wrong. 30:53 Yeah. 30:55 There's no way God could love me. 30:56 You know what? You're still God's child. 30:58 He wants to do better 30:59 and you know, learn and then grow. 31:00 Yeah. But still, that's powerful. 31:02 Because, okay, just to say the ups and downs relationship 31:03 doesn't mean okay, 31:05 yeah, we're done, there's no love there. 31:06 No, it's just the ups and downs, 31:07 but we're still, you know, like, 31:09 husband and wife, we're still a couple. 31:10 Absolutely. 31:11 You know, as we're talking about all this, 31:13 you know, kind of making the analogy 31:14 of our own relationships with our spouses, 31:16 in connection, 31:18 you know, in correlation with our relationship with God. 31:20 When you're in that special relationship, 31:22 you can't, you can't give them enough 31:25 as far as you can't... 31:26 I love giving gifts to my wife, 31:29 I love, you know, 31:30 one of the ways that I show that love 31:31 is not just by spending time but on occasion, 31:34 I will go out and I will, 31:36 you know, buy a special gift for her 31:37 and bring it to her and give it to her 31:39 when she's not expecting it. 31:40 And those are the little moments 31:41 that says it that you're now showing, 31:43 you're showing that love. 31:45 Well, God, you know, He's the best gift giver, 31:48 you can't outgive God, right? 31:49 There's not a best better gift giver in the world. 31:52 But God bestowed the greatest gift of all, 31:54 by giving what most of us would never be able to get, 31:58 and that's His own Son. 31:59 Notice, 1 John 4:9-10. 32:02 It says here, 32:03 "In this the love of God was manifested toward us, 32:06 that God has sent 32:07 His only begotten Son into the world." 32:09 So this is going along 32:10 with what Dakota referenced John 316, 32:12 that famous chapter, for God so loved, right? 32:14 That He gave His only Son. 32:16 But notice it goes on to say, 32:17 His only begotten Son into the world 32:19 that we might live through Him. 32:20 Verse 10, this is 1 John 4:10, 32:23 "In this is love, not that we loved God, 32:27 but that He loved us and sent His Son 32:30 to be the propitiation for our sins." 32:32 So not only is God giving His perfect, sinless Son, 32:37 but yet He's saying, I'm giving them to you 32:39 so that you might be saved, 32:41 so that you might have an opportunity 32:43 and a redemption from sin, 32:45 to be able to have eternal life. 32:47 That's the greatest gift 32:48 that you can bestow upon anyone. 32:49 And I have to say, you know, 32:51 a lot of people kind of play off the idea that, 32:53 well, you know, the Father knew 32:55 He was going to resurrect Jesus, 32:56 you know, it wasn't going to be, 32:58 but yet, in Christ, human state, 33:00 when all the sin of the world 33:01 had been brought upon Him at that moment, 33:03 Jesus made, still made the conscious decision to say, 33:05 "Not My will, but Yours Father be done." 33:08 At that moment, when the sin of the world 33:10 was bearing upon Him, 33:11 He lost that connection with His Father, 33:14 that connection was severed, 33:16 and the full wrath of God was poured out upon Him, 33:18 to the point that 33:19 now He's hanging up on that tree, 33:21 but fully believing that 33:22 this was an eternal death. 33:23 You wanna talk about a love, 33:25 a love beyond that anyone could possibly... 33:27 In my mind, I'm sitting here thinking about it. 33:29 And I can't begin to even fathom that love. 33:32 The love was so deep and so strong, 33:34 that Christ was willing to put upon, 33:36 He was willing to lay down and say, 33:37 there's a chance, there's a possibility 33:40 that I'll forever be severed 33:41 and disconnected from My Father. 33:44 Wow! 33:45 But He was willing to do that for us. 33:46 He was willing to do that for us. 33:48 What great gift, right? Yeah, that's incredible. 33:49 You said something that's really powerful, too, 33:51 that really goes along with everything we're studying 33:53 is that you talked about how, you know, 33:55 people think they're not good enough. 33:56 You know, and sometimes they feel like, 33:58 I'm not good enough for God's love. 33:59 Yeah, a lot of people. 34:01 You know, the devil would love us to believe 34:02 that we're greater of a sinner than Jesus is a savior. 34:03 Right. 34:05 He really would love us to believe that. 34:06 And one of the things that, 34:07 one of the things I've noticed in my own relationship to God, 34:10 in my own walk is that, 34:12 you know, when you sin and you commit sin, 34:14 just like Adam and Eve did in the Garden of Eden, 34:16 the devil wants you to think the way you feel about yourself 34:19 is the way God feels about you. 34:21 Right? That's really good. 34:22 Yeah, it really is, what he wants you to think 34:23 and so that you don't run to God, 34:25 but you hide from God just like Adam and Eve did, 34:27 you know, you hide from Him, you don't want to, 34:28 you know, run to Him. 34:30 And, you know, this made me think about 34:32 what all of this in lines that made me think about quote, 34:35 that I heard it years ago, 34:36 I don't even know who said this quote. 34:37 But it says that there's nothing you can do 34:39 to cause God to love you more. 34:42 And there's nothing you can do to cause God to love you less. 34:44 Yes. 34:46 God's love for you never changes. 34:47 Amen. Right? 34:48 And I think that's so profound. 34:50 And this scripture is where I thought of, 34:51 Ryan, you were talking about what you're saying, 34:53 is that in Matthew 13:44-46, 34:56 it's the parable of the hidden treasure, 34:59 and the pearl of great price. 35:01 And listen to what it says here, it says, 35:02 "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like 35:04 unto treasure hid in a field, 35:06 the which when a man hath found, 35:07 he hideth, and for joy thereof go and sells all that he hath, 35:10 and buyeth that field. 35:11 And again, the kingdom of heaven 35:13 is like unto a merchant man, 35:14 seeking goodly pearls: 35:16 Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, 35:17 went and sold all that he had, and bought it." 35:20 Now, a lot of the times we read passages like this, 35:22 we tend to kind of internalize them 35:23 and we make them about ourself. 35:25 But God's love, it's not about us. 35:29 It's about Him, right? 35:30 It's His love that we're talking about. 35:32 So let's, when we read this text, 35:33 like it's so powerful, 35:35 because notice that the man 35:37 who finds the treasure in the field 35:39 and the pearl of great price, 35:41 the man who finds it he sells all that he have 35:44 that he might obtain it. 35:45 Yes. 35:47 Do we really give up 35:48 all that we have that we might... 35:50 Can you buy Jesus? 35:52 You're dropping some spirits... 35:53 No, can you buy the treasure in the field? 35:56 Right, or can you buy it? Can you buy Jesus so to speak? 35:58 Can you buy the salvation? 36:00 You can't buy it and so, 36:01 you can't buy Jesus and you can't buy salvation. 36:03 So I would like to submit 36:05 that while there is a obviously a connection 36:08 and I believe this is a dual application for 36:11 we, yes, have to give up, you know, 36:12 things that are precious to us to have heaven. 36:15 I think that we need to focus on 36:17 not what we give up but what God gave up. 36:19 Yeah. That's right. 36:20 And so when we read this, 36:22 "The kingdom of heaven is likened 36:23 to a treasure hidden field, 36:25 the which when a man, right, have found, he hideth, 36:28 and for the joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, 36:30 and buyeth that field." 36:32 And the same thing with a pearl, 36:33 he finds that pearl of great price, 36:34 and for the joy thereof he sells all that he has 36:36 and he buys that field. 36:37 In other words, notice it's a treasure hid in a field. 36:40 Matthew 13 is the passage this is in. 36:43 The field symbolizes the world. 36:46 So he finds a treasure in the world. 36:48 Yes. 36:49 Right? Yeah. 36:51 And he gives away all that he has. 36:52 So this is talking about Jesus' sacrifice, 36:54 you know, in heaven. 36:55 He gave up all that He had, all His, you know, omniscience, 36:59 His omnipresence, His omnipotence, 37:02 He gave up all of His attributes 37:03 that the Son of God might become the Son of Man, 37:05 and literally make the greatest sacrifice of all. 37:09 And when we think about it that way, 37:10 it's like, well, and it's a goodly pearl. 37:12 Right? It is. 37:13 It's a pearl of great price, right? 37:16 There's no greater price than Jesus. 37:18 No, that's right. It's beautiful. 37:19 Amen. That's deep. 37:20 The love of God. 37:22 That is really deep. 37:23 Yeah, like, you know, and I think another thing is 37:26 don't necessarily think about just what we're giving up. 37:30 But what are we gaining? That's right. 37:32 What are we gaining by accepting Christ? 37:35 Okay, so I got to put these cigarettes down, right? 37:38 So basically, I'm trying not to get cancer now. 37:41 So you know, I'm caring for my health. 37:43 Oh, so I got to put this bottle of alcohol down. 37:46 Oh, so my liver is going to be healthy. 37:49 You know, so I'm getting healthy liver. 37:52 You know, all of these different things. 37:54 Like God is not a God 37:56 that wants to take away a bunch of things from us. 38:00 He came to give us life 38:02 and give it to them more abundantly. 38:04 That's right. And so that's, that is huge. 38:07 I love that point. 38:08 I can't imagine, 38:09 I know this illustration may be silly, 38:11 but I can't imagine, 38:12 you know, salvation, 38:14 eternal life is similar to this. 38:16 It's like God's saying, 38:17 "Give me your dollar, and I'll give you a million." 38:22 You know, I know it maybe a silly illustration, 38:24 but certainly if you think about it. 38:26 I like that. Yeah. 38:27 And yet, but yeah, we white-knuckle 38:28 and hold on to that to that dollar. 38:30 And we're just like, you know, 38:31 we don't want to give up that one dollar 38:33 when God is saying, like, look up, but I have a million. 38:34 I've so much more than I want to give you. 38:36 You know, of course, we know that, you know, 38:38 God's gift is eternal. Right? 38:40 You can't just equate it to a million dollars. 38:41 That's a great illustration. 38:43 But nonetheless, I think I loved what you said there. 38:45 We have, we look up, you know, just consider the fact 38:48 that what we're giving up 38:49 in connection what we're gaining. 38:51 What we're gaining is so much far 38:53 beyond what the human mind can comprehend 38:55 in connection with what we're sacrificing 38:57 in these moments 38:59 for this one little blink of a life 39:00 that we're going to be living 39:01 in connection to eternal eternity. 39:05 Yeah. Okay. 39:06 They say that the average man lives, 39:07 what, 70, 75 years, something like that. 39:10 I don't know what it is now, maybe 75 for the average man. 39:12 Okay, what's 75 years to eternity? 39:16 Oh, it's nothing. 39:18 It's like I can imagine when we get into heaven, 39:21 and we're there all because of the love of God, 39:23 we're talking about the love of God, 39:24 that you can look back 39:26 on this little blink of a memory that you had 39:30 your 75 or 80 years here on this planet, 39:33 or whatever it may be. 39:34 And you could probably say to yourself in 39:36 when I'm considering the eternal time, 39:39 that I have to just be 39:41 in the very loving presence of God, 39:43 I would go through that a thousand more times 39:46 if it meant, you know, 39:47 having these moments with the Lord 39:49 and so, but all of that, 39:51 I say all of that within the context, 39:52 that it's all about God's love. 39:54 If it wasn't for God's love, 39:55 we wouldn't even be having the conversation. 39:57 But it's all, the epicenter of this whole conversation 40:00 of eternity and sacrifice 40:03 is God's love makes the difference. 40:05 It's kind of the common denominator 40:07 for the whole conversation. 40:09 Yeah. Absolutely. 40:10 And that's the motivating factor 40:12 is why He does what He does is out of His love. 40:15 You know, I heard somebody say this, 40:16 this came from a police officer. 40:18 He said, 40:19 "We don't treat, you know, these people as professionals, 40:25 because they're professional, 40:27 we treat them professional 40:28 because professionally because we're professionals." 40:33 And so when you think about that, 40:36 it's really deep, 40:37 like how do we treat people as Christians? 40:39 Yeah. 40:41 You know, what is our response as you pointed out earlier, 40:43 like you really saw the love of Christ, 40:46 when you saw how the love of Christ 40:48 changed your brother. 40:49 That's right. Yeah. 40:50 And that spoke to you. 40:52 And he treated you, 40:53 maybe you treated him bad when you were younger, right? 40:56 But he didn't. 40:58 But he didn't respond in once he got Christ. 41:02 He didn't respond, you know, 41:03 in a way that was contrary, you know. 41:06 So I think that's, that's huge. 41:09 Like, once we have that relationship with Christ, 41:11 and we're Christians, 41:13 we need to treat people the way that Christ loves us, 41:18 treats us, speaks to us, deals with us. 41:21 We need to treat them in that manner. 41:23 Amen. 41:25 One of the things I was thinking about too 41:26 with the love of God, you know, 41:27 I was, I really just learned this recently, 41:29 not too long ago. 41:30 And I thought this was so cool. 41:31 I was like, man, this is the coolest thing ever. 41:33 And it's in 1 Timothy 2:14. 41:34 This is a powerful scripture 41:36 that if I was to summarize the gospel, 41:38 I would really summarize it in this one scripture, 41:41 and it's the most bizarre scripture. 41:43 If you read it, when you read it, 41:44 and we're gonna read it in just a bit 41:45 wait would you guys to turn there. 41:47 What was it again? 41:48 It's 1 Timothy 2:14, 41:50 and notice what it says here? says, 41:52 "And Adam was not deceived, 41:54 but the woman being deceived, was in the transgression." 41:58 And you might be thinking, 41:59 well, how is that the gospel, Dakota? 42:01 Like, why do you get good news out of that? 42:03 It's that we have to understand 42:05 the types and antitypes of Scripture, right? 42:08 What Christ represents 42:09 and who He represents in the scripture. 42:11 And the Bible says here that 1 Timothy 2:14, 42:13 that Adam was not deceived. 42:15 Well, if Adam was not deceived. 42:18 It says, but the woman being deceived. 42:19 In other words, Eve was deceived 42:20 in eating the fruit. 42:22 If Adam was not deceived in eating the fruit, 42:24 and what does that therefore tell us? 42:25 He partook of the fruit willingly. 42:28 Right? 42:30 And so, the Bible says in Romans 514, 42:31 that Jesus is the second Adam. 42:33 Yeah. 42:34 So then it begs the question, 42:36 why did Adam partake of the fruit willingly? 42:39 It's because of the love that he had for his bride. 42:41 Yes. 42:43 So like his love for Eve, 42:44 check this out, his love for Eve 42:47 far exceeded his own existence. 42:49 Wow. 42:50 He said, 42:51 "If I can't have her, I don't want to live myself. 42:55 And so he ate. 42:56 And so Jesus, likewise, 42:58 He saw His bride Adam and Eve in the garden, 43:00 foolishly making decisions. 43:01 And He said, you know what Father. 43:03 Jesus said, 43:04 "If I can't have My bride, 43:06 then I don't even want to live." 43:08 Right? 43:09 And it's so beautiful to think about it that way 43:11 that God was willing to give up His very own life to redeem us, 43:15 so that we can be redeemed from that fallen position, 43:19 and have life again, it's really powerful. 43:21 That is powerful. Amen. 43:23 You know, Jason, I was thinking about your thought about, 43:25 you know, far as how much love God's given to us. 43:28 And then it's sad to see the world 43:30 because we've all been extended this love, 43:32 but then you talk about loving each other, 43:34 that you're referring to. 43:36 And, I know, unfortunately, 43:38 I haven't loved everyone like I should. 43:40 How God has loved me, 43:41 I'm surely not extending that to other people. 43:43 Judgmental, I'll say, you know what? 43:45 I got a little issue about this. 43:46 Well, okay. 43:48 So God may, could say, 43:49 well, I have a little issue with you to Greg. 43:51 But He still loves me, right? 43:52 But I'm not extending that love to other people, 43:54 I could... 43:56 Yeah, unfortunately, 43:57 I haven't always been Christ-like. 43:59 Yeah, and that's a daily struggle. 44:00 It is a daily struggle. 44:02 And so, you know, when you think about 44:03 all the strife and the chaos in the world, 44:05 there's definitely not love being extended 44:07 as Christ extends His love. 44:09 So it's really, it's sad. 44:10 It really is a sad state that we're in for sure. 44:14 Amen. 44:15 Ryan, you've got Ephesians? 44:17 Ephesians, yes. 44:19 So we are going to Ephesians 3:17-19. 44:23 And the Bible says, 44:24 "That Christ may dwell in your hearts 44:26 through faith, 44:28 that you, being rooted and grounded in love," 44:30 I love that, 44:32 "may be able to comprehend with all the saints 44:35 what is the width, the length, the depth and height, 44:39 to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge, " 44:42 I love that, 44:43 "that you may be filled with all the fullness of God." 44:47 Man, what a mouthful. 44:49 There's a lot there in those two or three verses. 44:52 You know, this kind of actually goes back 44:53 to what we were talking about earlier, Greg, 44:55 when you were talking about the beholding aspect. 44:56 Oh, yeah. 44:58 Behold what manner of love 44:59 the Father has bestowed upon us. 45:01 Is that even possible? 45:02 Not for me. 45:03 Is it really possible to fully comprehend 45:05 the width, the length, the depth, 45:06 the height of God's love, right? 45:07 I can't. 45:09 I'm an analytical thinker. I like to think deep. 45:11 And sometimes I'll just daydream 45:12 and go into pondering about things. 45:14 And I've often thought about this very simple 45:16 but to me profound. 45:19 I think the fact that God created other beings, 45:25 in and of them in and of that whole situation 45:28 and of itself, 45:29 to me says something about God's love. 45:32 Because you know, there, I mean, God has always been, 45:36 but there had to have been a time 45:38 when there was no one else. 45:39 We don't know how long that was. 45:41 We don't know when that, 45:42 but God made the conscious decision, 45:44 go with me on, this is powerful. 45:45 God made the conscious decision to say 45:47 I'm going to create others. 45:50 In this case, we would have been the angels, 45:52 the people from the unfallen worlds, 45:55 however long that may have been. 45:56 But nonetheless, 45:58 at the very moment that He decided 45:59 He was going to create those other beings, 46:02 He immediately subjected Himself 46:04 to certain conditions 46:05 that was irreversible in the sense that 46:08 if He was going to be who He is, 46:10 God is love. 46:11 In fact, Brother, can we read that text real quick? 46:13 I've been trying to gravitate to this. 46:15 So 1 John Chapter 4. 46:16 Oh, yeah, go for it. Yeah. 46:18 Well, it was your text. 46:19 Go ahead and read it 1 John 4:7-8, 46:20 read those texts there, and then I'll make a point. 46:22 Sure. Yeah. 46:23 "Beloved, let us love one another, 46:25 for love is of God, 46:27 and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God." 46:29 Verse 8 says, 46:31 "He who does not love does not know God, 46:33 for God is love." 46:35 Okay. God is love. 46:36 Not that God is just mere loving, 46:37 but He is love that is, that's His character, 46:42 that's His nature, that's who He is, right? 46:44 So the moment that God created these beings, 46:48 for Him to be love, for true God enough to exist, 46:52 He immediately created them, 46:54 where He placed Himself in a situation 46:57 where He's limited, 46:58 He's limited to a certain extent. 46:59 This is powerful, 47:01 because at the moment He created them, 47:03 He created them with the freedom, 47:05 and I think it's a... 47:06 I heard a minister bring this out one time that 47:08 I think it was CS Lewis, 47:10 who said and one of the greatest mysteries of all 47:12 is that God... 47:14 And you can help me out if I'm misquoting this. 47:16 CS Lewis basically said that 47:17 one of the greatest mysteries of all 47:19 then that a loving perfect God 47:21 would create the created, His creation 47:26 with the full ability to reject the Creator. 47:30 Yeah. That's profound. 47:31 That is profound. Wow! 47:33 That God would, you know, 47:35 He's omniscient, He knows everything, 47:37 before He even thought... 47:39 I mean, at the moment the thought came to His mind, 47:40 I'm gonna create some angels, I'm gonna create these people. 47:44 But at that very moment, 47:46 the moment He does that, He's now 47:48 He is subjecting Himself 47:49 to fully at all times be on display, 47:52 because He's created them with the freedom 47:55 and the ability to choose 47:56 to either accept Him or reject Him. 47:57 Wow. 47:59 In other words, at the moment that one, just one of them. 48:01 In this case, Lucifer was the first who rejected Him, 48:04 now it launches us, 48:06 it launches God and us into this never, 48:09 it seems like never ending battle of sin, 48:11 this great controversy battle of sin. 48:13 God knew all of that, 48:14 but was willing to take the risk, 48:17 because of what? 48:18 What was the foundation? 48:20 Because of love. Because of love. 48:21 He went into this full thing saying, 48:23 you know what? 48:24 Even if it does happen, 48:25 even if one of them does reject Me, 48:28 and now the whole universe 48:29 is going to be looking at Me and saying, 48:31 "Okay, how is He going to respond to this?" 48:33 You know, we look at all of the results of sin, 48:34 and it's horrible, 48:36 I think of how horrible sin, 48:37 but really, it's all about 48:39 a misrepresentation of God's character. 48:40 God is now put on the stands before all of the universe, 48:44 because this one angel, fallen angel, 48:47 Lucifer now launches us into this thing called sin, 48:50 where God is now being put on the stands in the world, 48:53 the universe is looking and saying, 48:55 "Is He who He says He is? Is He really a God of love?" 48:58 Because think about it, 48:59 God immediately when that would have happened, 49:01 God could have said, 49:02 with a snap of a finger with the word, 49:04 and He could have just completely 49:05 wiped the slate clean and go 49:07 every creation just started over, 49:09 because He wouldn't want to continue on. 49:10 But He's subjected Himself to that. 49:12 To me, that's love. God is love. 49:14 It requires freedom. 49:15 And that freedom involves risk, risk of what? 49:18 Risk of losing those people that you love so much. 49:21 That's godly love, 49:22 that's powerful when you really just, 49:24 and there's so much more 49:25 you can think of and talk about, 49:27 but that goes deep, that rabbit hole goes deep 49:28 to bestow, to really behold the love of God, 49:32 the width, the depth, the height, the... 49:37 You know, it's like mind-blowing, right? 49:38 How do you really comprehend the love of God? 49:40 It's a mystery. It's powerful though. 49:42 Amen. Amen. 49:44 You know, as we've been talking about the love of God, 49:46 and how God loves us, 49:48 and just how huge 49:50 and magnificent His love for us is. 49:53 What can we do 49:55 to demonstrate our love toward God? 49:58 I'm just gonna throw that one out there. 50:00 And anybody who wants to jump in there 50:03 can answer that. 50:04 Now go back to the text that Ryan was talking about 50:06 that I just read is 1 John 4:7, says, 50:09 "Beloved, let us love one another." 50:13 So I think that kind of answers that, 50:14 you know, Jason, for us to demonstrate that 50:16 we need to love others. 50:18 And that's unfortunately we don't see. 50:20 We can look at everyone and say, 50:21 "Man, people don't love each other." 50:22 You know what, it can start with us. 50:24 Okay, then all right, I can look out there and say, 50:25 "Man, people aren't loving each other." Right? 50:26 You know, why don't you, Greg, just start yourself then." 50:28 That's right. So it starts with us. 50:30 It starts with you, you know, to love others, 50:32 that be encouraging others, you know, people need, 50:35 whatever you see, that's loving others. 50:37 And I think that's a demonstration of God's love. 50:39 That's an excellent point. 50:40 So it starts with us? Should. 50:41 Yes. Yeah, absolutely. 50:43 It's always easy to blame someone else 50:44 but, man, I need to look at myself. 50:45 Absolutely. 50:47 3ABN wouldn't be started 50:48 if we just said why don't they have this 50:50 and then don't do anything. 50:51 That's a good point. Yeah. 50:52 So that's great. 50:55 What about you, Dakota, 50:56 you look like you had spinning up there? 50:58 John 14:15. 50:59 Man, that's, that's where the, 51:01 I think how we demonstrate our love to God. 51:02 The Bible says, if you love Me, Jesus Himself said this, 51:05 If you love Me, keep My commandments. 51:07 And so, we don't keep 51:09 God's commandments for salvation, 51:11 but we keep God's commandments because we're in love with Him. 51:13 Right? 51:14 I mean, that's the thing, 51:16 I think a lot of people get confused 51:17 when they start talking about obedience 51:18 versus legalism and all of these other things, 51:20 is that we understand that, 51:22 you know, like, for I'll give an example, 51:23 perfect example. 51:25 We talked about relationships, right? 51:26 Our wives and our, the people we've fallen in love with even. 51:30 And I remember that, you know, 51:33 when we first... 51:34 When Ann and I first got married, 51:35 she would ask me, you know, 51:37 it really late times in the night 51:39 when I would be so exhausted and so tired, 51:41 she would say, you know, 51:42 Dakota, will you please rub my back? 51:44 It's hurting, you know, 51:45 and I'm like, yeah, I'll rub for you. 51:48 You know, I'm, I'm kind of tired, 51:50 you know, but I'll rub it for you know, and I do it. 51:51 And it's kind of like a, yeah, I'll do it, 51:54 but I really don't want to right now. 51:55 You know what I mean? 51:56 I'm just being honest, I'm vulnerable. 51:58 Sometimes that happens. 51:59 I'm sure many people in the program can relate. 52:01 But nevertheless, I noticed as I spent more time with Anna, 52:06 even in our marriage, 52:08 and she'll tell you this is true, 52:10 I'm not lying here. 52:11 It's gonna sound like a lie, but it's not. 52:13 Now on her, on my own, 52:16 after falling in love with her more and more and more, 52:18 I've gotten to where I'll come to her and say, 52:20 you know, Ann, I'm going to rub your back 52:22 tonight for you. 52:23 Because I know you've been, you know, struggling 52:24 and had not having good night's rest. 52:26 I'm going to do that for you. 52:27 And now it's like, she doesn't even have to ask me 52:29 because I want to do it for her. 52:30 And it's when you fall in love with someone. 52:32 That's how it is when God says, listen, 52:34 this is what I'm like, 52:36 this is what I want you to be like, 52:38 it's just like, oh, well, God, I love you. 52:39 So, of course, I'm going to do that. 52:41 You know, it's not something you feel like you have to do 52:43 in order to have salvation. 52:44 And it's very important 52:46 we understand the difference between the two. 52:48 I really like that. 52:50 You become proactive instead of reactive. 52:52 That's right. That's right. 52:53 Amen. That's good. 52:55 That is good. 52:56 You know, I think about Galatians 2:20, 53:00 "I have been crucified with Christ, 53:02 it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me, 53:06 and the life which I now live in the flesh 53:08 I live by faith in the Son of God, 53:11 who loved me and gave Himself for me." 53:13 So when we love God, we live for Him. 53:16 That's right. Amen. That's right. 53:18 It's really Him, He's doing the heavy lifting. 53:20 Amen. That's right. 53:21 You know, He does the heavy lifting for us, so. 53:23 His burden is light, right? Yeah, absolutely, absolutely. 53:27 So, yeah. 53:28 You know, on the same note, Luke 10:27, 53:32 really kind of ties it all together. 53:33 It's kind of a summation, it says, 53:35 "So he answered and said, 53:36 ' You shall love the Lord your God 53:38 with all your heart, 53:39 with all your soul, with all your strength, 53:40 and with all your mind, ' 53:42 and 'your neighbor as yourself.'" 53:43 And I love that 53:45 we're bringing up this fact 53:46 that in order to have the love of God, 53:48 we can't just be a recipient of God's love, 53:50 and think that we're in full relationship with Him 53:52 that somehow that just makes everything right. 53:55 In other words, many of us were so focused 53:57 on the vertical. 53:58 We've got this vertical thing going on 54:00 which is just me and God, me and God, me and the Lord, 54:02 just me in my relationship with Jesus, 54:04 which is fantastic, right? 54:05 It all starts there. 54:06 And we got to have a love for God 54:08 because again, we love Him because He first loved us. 54:11 But in receiving 54:12 and being a recipient of the love of God, 54:14 that vertical relationship, if that's right, 54:17 then now there's going to be a horizontal recipient 54:21 and reciprocation of that love, 54:23 in which now we give the love to our brethren 54:27 as God has given to us. 54:28 And so I love that text, 54:30 because it kind of ties everything together. 54:31 It's me, God and my brother, right? 54:33 Just as when God created Adam and Eve, 54:36 you know, He created him in His image, right? 54:38 And, you know, we know that 54:39 the Godhead consists of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 54:41 Notice, it's not just two, it's three, 54:43 because two kind of, 54:45 you kind of can get a selfish love, 54:46 I think of I think of a husband and wife love, 54:48 you know this, you guys don't have children, 54:50 me and Stephanie don't have children. 54:52 Sometimes that love can kind of be a little selfish in nature. 54:55 This is like, just me and Stephanie. 54:58 But yet, you know, when God did give that command 55:00 to go make another, 55:02 that that was the completion of the family of God, right? 55:04 And that's the same thing with. 55:06 And I'm not, certainly not saying that it has to be 55:08 that way if you do or don't have kids. 55:09 I'm saying just in general, 55:10 God wants us to have that all inclusive love, 55:14 where it's not just about ourselves and God, 55:16 it's about God's love to us. 55:18 And when we receive that now 55:20 we're giving out to everyone around us, 55:22 because that's who God is, 55:24 He has given to the whole world 55:25 and we should also give it as well. 55:27 Yeah, I love that. 55:29 You know, and I really want to bring out to this point. 55:32 In Revelation 3:19, it says, 55:35 "As many as I love, this is Jesus speaking, 55:38 as many as I love, I rebuke and chaste. 55:40 Therefore be zealous and repent." 55:42 You know, I think we're living in a day and age 55:44 and where people believe that 55:47 if you love them, 55:49 then you gotta you have to condone their bad behavior. 55:51 If you love them, 55:52 then you have to become their enabler. 55:54 And that is not the case because God loves Us. 55:58 And he doesn't want to see us hurt ourselves, 56:00 you know, you're not going to let 56:02 your little toddler go over there 56:04 and touch the hot stove, 56:05 you're going to say, don't, you know, don't touch that, 56:07 don't do that. 56:09 You're going to try and protect them 56:10 from that danger. 56:11 And so God tries to protect us from danger, and He loves us. 56:15 And so when we love people, 56:17 and we see them walking down 56:19 and heading down the wrong path, 56:21 we have a duty to say something. 56:22 Now, it needs to be done and motivated by love. 56:27 Yes, yes. 56:28 Love is the motivating factor. 56:30 That's right. Amen. 56:31 Praise the Lord. Time is flying. 56:33 I know it, man. Yeah, yeah. 56:34 Now, you quoted Revelation 3:19, 56:36 "As many as I love I rebuke and chasten. 56:38 Therefore be zealous and" what? 56:40 "Repent." Yes. 56:41 Romans 2:4 it tell us, 56:43 what our study is about God's love. 56:45 The goodness of God leads us to repentance. 56:48 We cannot change 56:49 unless we look and behold God's goodness. 56:52 It's only then that we can become like Him. 56:55 Amen. Yeah, that's huge. 56:56 Thank you guys so much 56:58 for your wonderful contributions. 57:01 You've all dropped some serious spiritual nuggets, 57:05 serious spiritual nuggets. 57:06 Glory to God. Praise the Lord. 57:08 We've seen just how much God loves 57:11 each and every one of us. 57:13 And hopefully you've seen it tonight as well 57:15 on how much God loves you 57:17 and even if it were just you on this earth, 57:21 Jesus would have come down 57:22 and He would have died for your sins. 57:25 No matter what you've done, repent, repent. 57:28 God wants you to come to Him. 57:31 He loves you. We love you. 57:33 God bless you. |
Revised 2021-03-22