Participants: Dwayne Lemon, Lance Wilbur
Series Code: TKS
Program Code: TKS000011
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00:30 Hello, my name is Dwayne Lemon. And I'm Lance Wilbur.
00:34 And we'd like to welcome you to another program on TKS, 00:37 a True Knowledge of Self, Where we get to know 00:41 ourselves from a biblical perspective. 00:44 We want to thank you for joining us. 00:45 We've been studying so much 00:47 as we have gone through the word of God. 00:49 And we have watched how the Lord has been leading 00:52 as we were studying history, but at the same time 00:54 we realized that history is not necessarily always history. 00:58 Because we saw that the thing that hath been 01:00 is that which shall be. 01:02 We read that from Ecclesiastes 1:9. 01:05 We saw that history has a tendency to repeat itself 01:08 and as we look at the condition of Israel as a nation. 01:12 And we saw the challenges that they went through 01:14 as a result of not being content with what God had given 01:18 and of course desiring the things that were around them. 01:21 They were not content with the culture 01:23 and the lifestyle that God wanted to give. 01:25 So they started to look at the culture and lifestyle 01:27 of the nations around them. 01:28 This of course created a major problem to the point 01:31 that God's blessings was not able to be 01:33 poured out upon them, and as a result of them 01:36 choosing sin and going deeper into a life of rebellion, 01:39 it brought them to a point where they be-- 01:41 they were now found in bondage, 01:43 and so it is that we look at our own lives. 01:44 We look at our lives today and we know that God has created us 01:48 with purpose but we know that there are elements out there. 01:50 There are distractions and when we are not content 01:53 with God or do not know God, 01:55 we become subject to our surroundings. 01:58 Yeah, we'll even choose our surroundings 02:00 and in our case we're talking about what happens specifically 02:02 in the urban community dealing with 02:04 the hip-hop and R&B culture. 02:05 Not just the music but the culture, 02:07 the whole entire lifestyle package that deals with 02:10 eating, drinking, dressing, the way you talk, 02:12 walking and live and so on. 02:14 And we see that many individuals in urban youth 02:16 today are being plagued by the influences 02:20 that are connected to hip-hop and R&B culture. 02:23 And as a result of that we see a parallel taking place 02:26 in the Bible that God really, really wants to clear up. 02:29 And I'm thankful that God gives counsel 02:31 to help us know how to do this. 02:33 Lance, once again we're here... we're getting ready to go 02:37 deeper into the word of God and to understand 02:39 some things on how, you know, the Bible gives us 02:42 pictures of things that has happened in the past 02:45 and how they play a role in our future today. 02:48 And you know there's one thing that I think 02:49 would be very necessary for us to qualify. 02:52 And I want to know if you are in agreement with this 02:53 that when we talk about Babylon, 02:56 obviously when we look at Israel, 02:57 we're looking at a Babylon, which is an actual location-- 03:01 You know, in the past but today we know 03:02 that there's a spiritual application to Babylon. 03:06 Are we saying that the hip-hop and R&B culture 03:10 is the spiritual application of Babylon? 03:12 No. 03:13 Okay, therefore we are in agreement and so viewers, 03:16 we want to make it very clear that we are not 03:19 by any means saying that the institution known as 03:22 Babylon that we read about in Revelation 14:8 03:25 as well Revelation 18:1-5, we are not saying that 03:30 the hip-hop and R&B culture is Babylon. 03:34 We believe that Babylon is a different institution 03:36 that we would love to talk about in future programs. 03:39 But what we do want to make clear is that 03:41 some of the influences and effects of spiritual Babylon, 03:44 we can see manifested through hip-hop and R&B culture 03:49 and it's very, very important so that we understand 03:51 that's why we wanted to take a moment to make that point. 03:54 Lance, you know there's one thing I was thinking about. 03:57 Sometimes people will think, you know, 04:00 especially if we have-- we have several viewers, 04:02 I'm sure that are looking. 04:03 Some of them have Christian backgrounds, 04:05 some of them don't. 04:06 There is an opinion in Christianity 04:08 that many say which is you know what? 04:11 Why do you spend time exposing or under-- 04:15 or talking about the devices of the devil. 04:17 Why is that we're exposing some of these challenges 04:21 and problems that come through hip-hop culture. 04:23 Why can't we just talk about Jesus and only Jesus? Yeah. 04:26 And you know some times people think things like that 04:28 and I just wanted to know, do you have a thought 04:30 just to share in reference to-- 04:33 why do we talk about some of these things? 04:34 What's the point of bringing out some of these negatives, 04:37 these dangers that are out there? 04:39 I think it's our duty to give justice to the truth 04:44 you have to highlight the risk. 04:46 We looked at for example Samuel and we saw 04:49 that God's people asked for a king. Right. 04:52 And Samuel he-- you know it literally 04:56 the Bible says that it upset him. 04:58 But he spent time warning and giving a clear 05:02 practical you know, unadulterated warning of what 05:07 would be the result if God's people 05:10 went through with their inclination. 05:11 So as people of God and God himself would not be God, 05:17 if He didn't give us a clear choice and say, 05:19 if you choose this way, this is what will happen. 05:23 If you choose the other way however, 05:25 this is what will happen. 05:26 And not only saying this is what will happen but saying 05:30 this is why it will happen and this is how it will happen. 05:34 So I think it's not just enough to say, 05:37 well, we're just gonna speak about "Jesus" 05:41 and not talk about any of these things. 05:44 When you're then removing the ability of people 05:49 to deal with the problems practically, 05:52 because if you just talk about an abstract concept of Christ 05:55 and God and truth and righteousness 05:58 and never able to apply it to real everyday practical life 06:03 then how can that individual listening to that 06:06 have any of the tools needed to live successfully-- 06:10 And from a biblical perspective, 06:12 it's virtually impossible. 06:14 Now, it's interesting that the points that you are making, 06:18 I see them come out very forcefully 06:19 in two passages of scripture. 06:21 I want to share those because I believe 06:22 that it's not just to edify you and I. 06:25 But it's also to edify our viewers that you know 06:28 we consider the-- what the Bible says 06:30 even about dealing with the devices of the enemy. 06:33 You know, in the Book of 2 Corinthians 2, Paul, 06:37 he knows that there's a lot of problems 06:38 in the Church of Corinth. 06:39 If anybody studies the first and second Corinthians, 06:42 you can't help but to notice 06:43 that there's lots of problems in the church. 06:45 Well, here it is that Paul is talking about a brother 06:48 who fell into sin and he's counseling the people 06:51 in the Church of Corinth to try to win this person back. 06:54 You know, not to just let him go astray, 06:56 just walking in his guilt and so on. 06:59 And Paul gives specific counsel in verses 10 and 11 07:02 that I believe is very, very key as he's encouraging 07:05 the people in the Church of Corinth to forgive his brother. 07:08 Notice what it says this is in 2 Corinthians 2 07:11 and we're looking at verses 10, 11. 07:12 And it's building on this point. 07:14 It says, "To whom ye forgive any thing, 07:16 I forgive also, for if I forgave any thing, 07:20 to whom I forgave it, for your sakes 07:22 forgave I it in the person of Christ, 07:25 Lest Satan should get an advantage of us, 07:29 for we are not ignorant of his devices." 07:34 Notice that Paul literally is talking about forgiving 07:38 and he encourages them to forgive. 07:40 After he encourages them to forgive, 07:42 he talks about the importance of how he has also done this 07:45 even though he's not present. 07:47 And he talks about what would happen if he didn't do it. 07:50 He says lest, he says lest Satan 07:53 would unfortunately get an advantage over them 07:56 and then he concludes the statement by saying, 07:58 for we are not ignorant of his devices. 08:03 It's interesting that Paul who was a very successful preacher. 08:06 Paul was somebody who was not ignorant of Satan's devices 08:10 and he shows us in this verse that, 08:11 if he was Satan would have had an advantage over him. 08:15 Right. So yeah-- 08:16 And sorry, but if we're in a war and the enemy is Satan 08:19 and he's constantly attacking us and attacking God 08:22 through us if you will, then would it not be an 08:26 advantage or benefit for us to know his strategy, 08:28 his plan of attack. 08:30 You know if you are fighting a literal war, 08:32 you know we spend more money probably on intelligence 08:37 and the gathering of intelligence to avoid war 08:39 or to gain an upper hand in the war than we do 08:43 in the actual fighting of the war. 08:45 So intelligence gathering is the paramount 08:49 and people are willing to, you know, 08:51 put morals and ethics aside in order to gather intelligence 08:54 to avoid a conflict or avoid hazard. 08:56 Now, Brother Lance, I got to let you know something. 09:00 Flesh and blood hath not revealed that unto thee. 09:03 And the reason why I say that, do you know that you just 09:05 literally spoke the words of Jesus in Luke 14. 09:09 Oh, we got to go there-- look at this, 09:10 Luke 14 watch this. 09:12 It's amazing that you used the parallel of warfare 09:14 because look at what Jesus did in Luke 14, 09:17 talking about warfare and look at the words. 09:19 And you're gonna notice that-- like I said, 09:20 flesh and blood have revealed it to you. 09:22 Watch this-- Yes. 09:23 In Luke 14, the Bible shows us an example of Christ 09:27 giving counsel to those who dare to be His disciples 09:31 and He says in Luke 14:31, notice this, 09:36 "Or what king, going to make war against another king, 09:42 sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether 09:46 he be able with ten thousand to meet him 09:49 that cometh against him with twenty thousand?" 09:53 Here it is that Jesus literally is using warfare 09:56 as an example to bring out the same point. 09:58 We would dare not go into a natural war, 10:02 if we don't understand some things about our opponents. 10:06 And Jesus shows that it's not wise to do that 10:08 and so it is that we're in a warfare, 10:10 but this warfare is not against flesh and blood, 10:11 it's against principalities and powers 10:13 and spiritual wickedness in high places. 10:15 So as a result of that crisis, you need to understand 10:17 your enemy, you need to understand him. 10:19 Not that we give him glory but that his methodologies 10:23 and his principles would become expose so that 10:26 when it comes in front of us, 10:28 we'll be able to call the counterfeit. 10:30 And be able to say, this is not the genuine. 10:31 Let me go ahead and follow the truth. 10:33 So this is why we talk about these things. 10:36 This is why there are times we have to, you know, 10:38 highlight specific danger points 10:40 as it relates to the urban issues in the cities 10:44 and hip-hop and R&B culture. 10:46 Right. This is why we're doing. 10:48 Because it has become a force that is literally universal 10:52 that has broken every language barrier 10:53 every race and creed and color. 10:55 I mean, I literally saw a video of individuals 10:58 who are break dancing before the pope. 11:00 I mean, they were literally six feet away 11:02 before Pope John Paul II. 11:04 I mean, to watch a video like that and to see that 11:06 this is how far hip-hop has gone. 11:08 And he is there blessing, giving-- 11:09 Yeah, and Pope John Paul he's literally blessing 11:12 these break dancers. 11:13 I mean, it has broken every barrier. 11:15 So obviously this is why we're talking about these things 11:18 because it is a counterfeit force against the truth of God. 11:22 It is a counterfeit knowledge of self 11:24 in comparison to the true knowledge of self. 11:27 Now here it is that Israel is in bondage. Yeah. 11:30 We're learning some lessons from this whole experience. 11:33 Daniel is there now and we're in Daniel 1, 11:36 we reviewed from our last program that 11:39 Daniel and his fellows, the fellow Israelites 11:42 and the children of Judah. 11:43 They are all captives now and Nebuchadnezzar is trying 11:48 to introduce a three fold means of breakdowns, 11:51 specifically in Daniel 1. 11:53 It's talking about change their education, 11:56 change their names, change their diet. 11:59 And I know we're gonna have some programs, 12:01 where we're gonna specifically deal with these things 12:02 because we're gonna see a parallel again of how 12:05 Satan is trying to unfit us for the final conflicts, 12:08 that we're getting ready to face and of course 12:09 how to be prepared to meet Jesus. 12:11 So why don't you build with us and bring us to Daniel 12:13 and help us see some things that come out of this, 12:15 so that we can again look at it 12:16 and know how to apply it practically. 12:18 All right, we're just gonna take a snapshot 12:21 where we're looking at Daniel 1 and to kind of bring us up 12:27 to speed if you want a little background. 12:30 There were three campaigns that Nebuchadnezzar levied 12:36 against the Southern Kingdom of Judah, 12:38 which Israel have been fractured into two kingdoms 12:41 and now the northern kingdom had already been besieged 12:44 by Syria and now fast 40 years later 12:48 the Southern Kingdom of Judah is present and Nebuchadnezzar 12:51 is expanding his territory as a faithful general. 12:55 And as Nebuchadnezzar, the first time as it was 12:58 his common practice, he took the royalty. 13:03 He took the royal seed if you will and he-- 13:05 he took the intelligence of Israel 13:09 that the cream of the crop and brought them back to Egypt. 13:12 This was the first campaign, this is roughly 605, 606 BC. 13:17 Nebuchadnezzar's first campaign 13:19 against the Southern Kingdom of Judah. 13:21 So this royalty and this intelligence now 13:26 that's brought to Babylon, Daniel is a part of that. 13:29 And his three-- as referred to as 13:31 a three Hebrew boys, Shadrach, Hannaniah, 13:34 Mishael, and Azariah, with their Hebrew names 13:37 and so they find themselves in a foreign land 13:41 literally 1,500 miles, perhaps on foot 13:45 but they're trudging though, perhaps they cut through 13:48 the desert or they went around the fertile crescent 13:50 but nevertheless they find themselves coming 13:52 into a foreign land as we looked at Deuteronomy 28 13:56 would be the result if God's people continued in rebellion. 13:59 So in Daniel 1, we're just going to kind of 14:01 look at how the Bible approaches this experience, 14:07 this first experience of Daniel 14:10 and his associates in this foreign land. 14:13 We talked about the changes that were forced against 14:17 the Israelites and we see how Daniel gained the victory. 14:25 He did not compromise although individuals 14:28 were apparently forced, they still had a choice 14:31 and in standing for God, Daniel gained the victory. 14:36 So we're looking at Daniel 1 and we're looking at verse 17 14:40 and we're looking at verses 17 all the way through verse 20. 14:45 So it says in Daniel 1:17, " As for these four children, 14:50 God gave them knowledge and skill 14:54 in all learning and wisdom, and Daniel had 14:57 understanding in all visions and dreams. 15:01 Now at the end of the days that the king had said 15:04 he should bring them in, then the prince of the eunuchs 15:08 brought them in before Nebuchadnezzar. 15:11 And the king communed with them, 15:13 and among them all was found none like Daniel, 15:17 Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, 15:20 therefore stood they before the king. 15:23 And in all matters of wisdom and understanding, 15:26 that the king enquired of them, he found them ten times 15:30 better than all the magicians and astrologers 15:33 that were in all his realm." 15:37 Now it shows us in summary at the very end of the chapter 15:41 that the Israelites were preparing 15:44 for a special examination that was to be done 15:46 by the king himself to see, if they were ready, 15:51 if they were competent enough to serve in his realm. 15:55 Because again the king wanted to take the best of the nations 15:58 that he conquered and he wanted to then trained them 16:00 and employee them in his service. 16:02 So he could have the best of the best from all nations. 16:05 So Nebuchadnezzar was very intelligent man 16:07 and he had a system and a schooling system, 16:10 a university if you will that was designed to do this. 16:13 However he thought that he was giving them an advantage 16:17 by offering them his own food, from his own table, 16:20 his own drink from his own table to them. 16:22 So that they could excel and be prepared 16:26 in the best shape to learn and be educated 16:29 in Babylonian alliance. 16:31 Because they thought themselves to be 16:32 at the height of civilization, the leaders of existence. 16:36 Daniel and his Hebrew friend saw that the food 16:40 offered by the king, the drink offered by the king 16:44 was not according to the will of God. 16:47 It was not in line with God's instruction 16:50 and as we talk about this. 16:53 It was very interesting is that they chose to honor God 16:58 and obey their conscience rather than eat the meat 17:02 and eat the food from the king's table. 17:04 It seems simple and it seems trivial but this very act, 17:08 the proposal that Daniel then made. 17:10 Said, listen, we're going to eat just pulse and water. 17:14 And they were considering this in the light of risking 17:18 their very lives, if they were doing something 17:21 outside of the authorization of the king not only were 17:24 Daniel and his friends at risk but the administrators at risk, 17:27 the overseers, the supervisors, the instructors, 17:29 everybody is at risk, if this doesn't work out. 17:32 If they are willing to sacrifice these 17:35 Hebrew prospects for the sake of their own, you know, 17:41 their won preference if you will in their eyes. 17:44 Yeah. So they took a stand. 17:47 They obeyed their conscience, they chose to serve God 17:50 over the offerings of a foreign king 17:54 and at the end of this process. 17:57 After the 10 days they were examined, 17:58 they were found on a healthier condition 18:00 than all of their peers. 18:01 At the end of their training, they were examined 18:04 by the king himself and he found them to be 18:05 10 times wiser than the entire university and he exalted them 18:10 to the highest offices if you will 18:13 especially for a foreign group and we're talking about 18:16 Daniel and his friends under 25, 18:19 maybe under 21 at this time. 18:22 Young people taking stands for God 18:24 in the midst of overwhelming circumstances. 18:27 Now you see that's the very point 18:29 that I wanted to build on. 18:30 Because I'm looking at again these parallels, 18:33 here goes a group of youth that were slaves. 18:37 They were in captivity, what we know that 18:39 hip-hop culture teaches many people that 18:42 they are slaves and that we're in a world 18:44 that's not our own and this where they get into 18:46 the whole planets and this is where we're gonna 18:48 supposedly ascend to and have control 18:50 and have our own government, but nevertheless we see 18:53 that Daniel, he's a young person and his comrades. 18:57 They're young but they're captives but nevertheless, 19:00 they didn't allow the captivity to become an excuse to blend 19:04 with what was around them. 19:06 Another thing, Daniel and his friends 19:08 saw the majority of their people. 19:12 There's a reason why the Bible says, 19:13 there was none but Daniel and the other friends 19:17 who were the ones that were faithful. 19:18 So that indicates that the rest were not. 19:21 So here it is that we find young men, 19:24 who were men of principle and standard 19:26 that were not influenced even by the crowd 19:29 and everybody else that was around them. 19:31 Daniel had every reason to compromise based on 19:34 the " peer pressures" of society. 19:36 Yet Daniel did not give in to that. Right. 19:38 That's a lesson to our urban youth to let them notice, 19:40 say listen, just because you are surrounded 19:43 by certain influences, things that tempt you 19:47 and pull at you, does not mean that 19:49 you have to be part of it. 19:50 Right. It doesn't mean that you-- 19:51 you can still stand for God and you can still lift up 19:54 standard and truth, and you can definitely 19:57 not violate your conscience even as a young person. 20:00 Daniel had temperance, Daniel had self control. 20:03 I mean, come on, now you know to watch a bunch of the kings 20:06 meet and I guarantee you this was not 20:08 the worst of the distributions of food. 20:11 This was the best, this was the highest quality 20:14 of the meat, of the highest quality of the wines. 20:16 The highest quality of all sorts of food items 20:18 and yet Daniel could look at that attractive 20:20 thought it may have been. 20:21 And say give me a simple diet 20:23 because Daniel had a higher standard. 20:25 I don't want to defile my body. 20:26 I don't want to do anything that's gonna debilitate my mind 20:29 from clearly understanding God and His will for me. 20:31 That's another lesson that we can see that we can 20:34 pass on to our youth in, you know, the urban cities 20:37 and to let them know you don't have 20:40 to give into your surroundings. 20:42 If hip-hop culture pulls at you and says come on man, 20:44 you got to do this, everybody else is doing it. 20:46 We have a lesson from Daniel that says, 20:48 I don't have to do it. Right. 20:49 When hip-hop culture begins to impress upon 20:51 the hearts and minds of our youth to say, 20:53 it's all right after all it contains wisdom. 20:56 Nebuchadnezzar's educational system contained wisdom, 20:59 but the wisdom was designed to steal away God's truth. 21:02 The same way that so called wisdom that is given 21:05 in hip-hop culture is designed to steal away God's truth. 21:08 The youth can say no, as Daniel said no. 21:11 And when they were under the pressures of life, 21:14 Daniel and his fellows understood 21:16 that I can go to God. 21:18 I can go to somebody outside of me that has power 21:22 and that has resources to give me so that I can stand against 21:26 this incredible world power like Babylon. 21:29 So it is with our youth today that they can access God, 21:31 when the temptation come, when the weaknesses come, 21:34 they can go to God and say Lord, 21:36 I want to come to you and access in 21:38 and step into your power source of your spirit 21:41 to give me power to resist that which is evil 21:44 and to embrace that which is good. 21:46 Right and God rewarded their efforts. 21:48 And God rewarded. 21:49 That's another thing, serving God has practical benefits. 21:53 It's not just future benefits. 21:55 They are real life, real time benefits 21:58 that we obtain from serving God. 22:00 So God honor-- they honored God, 22:02 God honored them and exalted them 22:04 above their brethren that were compromisers. 22:07 Exactly. So we're looking now to see that Daniel, 22:11 you know, he access the wisdom of Go7d 22:13 and as a result of this God rewarded him. 22:16 God blessed him, and God did amazing things 22:18 in him and through him that not only, 22:21 you know the practical benefits, you know, 22:22 we can look at how Daniel was strong and Daniel was powerful. 22:27 And you know his physical stature was good 22:30 but in addition to that, God also demonstrated 22:33 his favor to him through his influence for God's glory. 22:37 And that's what God wants to do with all of our youth. 22:38 That's what God wants to do with us even as adult. 22:41 He wants to demonstrate His power and His character, 22:44 so that we can have a holy influence 22:47 on those we come in contact with. 22:48 That's right. So when we're talking about wisdom, 22:51 whether we're talking about in regards to the word wisdom. 22:54 You know, what do we mean, when we say 22:55 what's the difference between knowledge and wisdom? 22:58 Okay, now in a previous program, 22:59 remember we talked about knowledge and the difference 23:02 is Nebuchadnezzar was willing to teach Daniel 23:04 all sorts of amazing things, you know. 23:06 Learning great things about history, 23:08 learning great things, even perhaps about 23:10 spirituality to a very large degree. 23:12 But we learned that the chief knowledge that God 23:15 wants to give is a knowledge of Himself and Jesus Christ, 23:19 whom He has sent in John 17:3 we saw that. 23:22 So the first aspect of this wonderful blessing of God 23:26 is that we're to gain knowledge but that true knowledge 23:30 to understand who God is and Jesus Christ whom he has sent. 23:35 This is where you get the quotation in Jude verse 24. 23:37 Jude only has one book so therefore it's just Jude. 23:40 And verse 24 and it says, "Now unto him that is able 23:43 to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless 23:45 before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy." 23:48 Verse 25, "To the only wise God." 23:54 In other words this is the one that we want access to. 23:57 We want the one who only is wise 23:59 and then what we do is we go to him 24:01 and say give me this wisdom Lord. 24:03 I don't have any in and of myself. 24:05 The wisdom of the world is foolishness 24:07 but the wisdom of God is almighty indeed. 24:09 So therefore the first aspect is I must recognize who God is, 24:14 and Jesus Christ whom he has sent. 24:16 And then the wisdom connected to it is that 24:19 whatever God instructs me to do, I will do. 24:24 Yes, so it's the application of the knowledge. 24:26 It's the application of the knowledge 24:28 but watch this regardless of how you feel. 24:31 I mean, how many times have we been told 24:32 to do certain things but we don't feel to do it. 24:34 So therefore feelings is not in the equation. 24:37 When we know something is right, 24:38 God calls us to do it because think about it. 24:40 When I was pulled out of hip-hop and R&B culture, 24:42 I'm gonna tell you right now, 24:44 my feelings were not in harmony with it. 24:45 Yeah. I knew what God said. 24:47 God said, this music does not draw you keep your mind on me. 24:50 This culture does not make you reflect my image. 24:54 It makes you reflect the image 24:55 of the rebellious one Lucifer, Satan. 24:57 So therefore God had to pull me out of these things 25:01 but in my feelings quite honestly, 25:04 I didn't want to do it. 25:06 And this is a powerful lesson because we are told 25:08 to walk by faith and not by sight, 25:11 and faith is demonstrated through works. 25:13 It's something that I do because I understand 25:16 this is what God has called me to do 25:18 even though I don't feel it. 25:20 And there's a wonderful book that I read sometime ago 25:23 but it's powerful, it's written by Ellen White 25:25 and the book is called Early Writings. 25:28 It is in page 72 under the chapter called 25:30 Prayer and Faith and what it says 25:32 in that chapter is it says, Faith is ours to exercise 25:38 but joyful feeling and the blessing is Gods to give to us. 25:44 Now that's powerful-- Yeah. 25:45 Faith is mine to exercise. 25:47 I don't-- I may not feel it but God says do it. 25:49 When I do it, God says very good, 25:52 I will now reward you by giving you joyful feeling 25:56 and the blessing for the choice you made. 25:59 And I believe that Daniel may have been tempted. 26:02 Daniel may very much he said, man that food looks good. 26:04 You know the majority of my people 26:05 are bowing and giving in, why can't I do it 26:07 for the purpose of safety. 26:08 I believe that temptation hidden. 26:10 But Daniel was a man of principle 26:12 and he did not allow his surroundings to take him over. 26:16 So it is with God. 26:17 God expects us regardless of the influences 26:20 of the urban lifestyle, 26:21 the influences of hip-hop culture. 26:23 When we know this thing is not leading me towards God 26:26 and towards His word, it's taken me away from it. 26:28 And when we can understand that this is bad and not good, 26:31 it is at that time that God says, 26:33 choose this day whom you will serve. 26:34 He didn't say feel this day whom you will serve. 26:36 He says chose it and then when we choose it 26:40 then God says, very good 26:41 and he rewards us with joyful feeling 26:45 and the blessings for the choice we made. 26:47 That's absolutely amazing and when we think 26:52 of the blessings that God wants to provide us with, 26:56 when we think of the relationship 26:58 and the right way that God wants to restore to us 27:04 in the sense that we're fallen away but 27:05 God wants to bring us back and reinstate us 27:07 as His children, as His sons and daughters. 27:10 We have to consider these things and way them out. 27:12 Despite the fact that I might have disadvantages, 27:15 I might have been reared in poverty. 27:17 I might have-- or had a single parent home. 27:20 I might have had this happened or that happened 27:22 of these bad things happened. 27:24 Nothing is an excuse to go against God. 27:27 He gives us every possible opportunity and the power 27:33 to choose him no matter what happens around us 27:36 and no matter what anybody does, 27:38 so we want to continue to encourage you 27:41 to follow along with us in this series 27:43 and we thank you for watching TKS, 27:45 a True Knowledge of Self. 27:47 We ask that you come again, join us again, 27:50 invite a friend and remember in Proverbs 2:6 27:54 "It is the Lord that gives wisdom, 27:56 out of his mouth comes knowledge and understanding." 28:00 God bless you. |
Revised 2015-05-28