Participants: Pr. C.A. Murray
Series Code: TWH
Program Code: TWH000004A
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00:32 Let us pray.
00:36 Loving Lord we thank You for the goodness 00:39 that we find in Your plan of blessings. 00:44 Today Father, as we walk 00:45 through the message entitled making sense, 00:49 we pray that we can make sense of 00:53 one of the grandest plans ever put together 00:55 for the success of Your people. 00:58 And so Lord guide our hearts and minds today 01:00 that we could be furnished with the knowledge 01:04 that transcends the human understanding, 01:07 sometimes almost to the point of illogical, 01:11 yet when we walk in the path of that plan, 01:15 we find life abundantly. 01:18 And so Holy Spirit come now and make this message clear, 01:23 we pray in Jesus' name, amen. 01:28 I'm going to begin with the scripture readings, 01:32 I know that 01:34 that is the foundation of the sermon making sense. 01:37 You know, if I were to spend the time 01:40 to just give my testimony 01:42 on how God has blessed our lives in God's plan 01:47 we could be here for a long time. 01:51 God blesses us in a way that no one else ever could. 01:57 Can I get an amen to that? 01:59 Amen! 02:00 But God has a plan for blessings 02:03 and today, after we read the scripture reading, 02:06 we're going to see 02:08 how this plan has caused the work 02:11 that is taking place here in Thompsonville 02:15 to have a footprint around the world. 02:17 Let's begin by reading the scripture together. 02:21 Malachi 3 and let's look together at verse 10. 02:25 "'Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, 02:29 That there may be food in My house, 02:33 And try Me now in this,' says the Lord of hosts, 02:37 ''If I will not open for you the windows of heaven 02:42 And pour out for you...'" What? 02:44 "'Such a blessing that there will not be room enough 02:49 to receive it.'" 02:51 I'm going to take you to the screen today 02:54 and introduce you to your church, 02:56 to your world church. 03:00 The Seventh-day Adventist Church 03:02 is larger than many of us even can anticipate. 03:07 My wife and I have had the privilege 03:09 of traveling to more than 60 countries, 03:12 seeing the church in New Guinea and Indonesia 03:15 and Tahiti and Hawaii. 03:17 And the Philippines and in London 03:20 and in the Caribbean and in places around the world 03:23 that we never thought we'd ever go 03:24 to Australia, New Zealand 03:26 and we've seen the church function 03:28 at a cellular level from the roots 03:31 all the way up to the highest location of the church 03:36 in Silver Springs, Maryland the General Conference. 03:39 And God has put a plan in place that I want to re-familiarize 03:45 those of you that may know it already 03:47 but introduce some of you that have not heard about it. 03:50 Look at this, I'd like to begin 03:51 by sharing the scripture with you, 03:53 and this is the proclamation that Jesus put in place 03:58 after His ascension to give us our mission statement 04:02 in Matthew 28:19-20. 04:06 The Lord says in His word, 04:09 "Go therefore and make disciples of..." What? 04:12 "All nations, 04:14 baptizing them in the name of the Father 04:17 and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 04:21 teaching them to observe all things 04:25 that I have commanded you 04:26 and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." 04:32 When the Bible says, "Go therefore 04:34 and make disciples of all nations." 04:36 The intent is God wants His Church to be in 04:38 how many nations? 04:40 All nations, 04:41 and as we sit here today there are roughly about 04:45 276 recognized countries in the world. 04:51 And in many of them 04:52 either in obvious statistics or in undercover work 04:56 God has allowed His church to have His territory. 05:01 In fact our territory 05:02 as a Seventh-day Adventist movement, 05:05 our territory is the world. 05:07 How much church God has called us to be in all the world? 05:11 Pastor C.A. has seen the church function. 05:13 I've gone to places where I've had an interpreter 05:15 when I preach to the people from Poland. 05:18 I've had an interpreter down in I was in New Zealand, 05:21 so I was in Australia at a Polish camp meeting 05:25 and I preached from Friday to Sunday 05:27 and all my sermons were interpreted. 05:32 The only way that they knew what I said was 05:34 through an interpreter, 05:35 God used the gift of tongues to communicate His message 05:39 from English to those who were Polish 05:41 down in the country of Australia. 05:43 I was at Cook... 05:45 I was at a Cook Island at the cam meeting. 05:47 I spoke in the Philippines and in Europe, 05:49 taught the Sabbath school lesson once in Germany 05:52 through an interpreter. 05:53 I was in Africa... 05:57 in Zimbabwe and Zambia, South Africa, Pretoria... 06:02 And as we look at the World Church 06:05 from the way that God intends it to be, 06:08 in order for the church to be around the world, 06:11 we have to have a method and a system 06:14 to get us into all the different components 06:16 of the world. 06:18 Matter of fact, our territory is the world 06:20 but our message is salvation through Christ alone, 06:24 can you say amen? 06:25 Not a unique message, 06:26 it is the message of the Christian church. 06:28 We don't have salvation through our 28 fundamentals, 06:31 we have salvation through Jesus Christ alone. 06:33 The church has been established to preach Christ 06:36 and Him crucified to point people to Christ, 06:39 but our mission also is not just to point people to Christ, 06:41 but our mission is to make disciples of all nations. 06:44 And a disciple is simply somebody who follows Christ, 06:48 somebody whose life is molded after the life of Christ. 06:53 But in our structure as a church through elders 06:56 and deacons and deaconesses and personal ministries, 07:00 through women's and men's ministries, 07:02 through Sabbath school, through our mission fields, 07:06 through our outreach programs 07:07 helping people to build in places 07:10 where a building was not possible 07:12 through their resources, 07:13 God has given us a footprint 07:15 in almost every country of the world, 07:18 what do you say? 07:19 Almost every country, 07:20 you got to get out of Thompsonville sometimes. 07:24 Right, Pastor C.A.? 07:26 You got to get out and spread your wings. 07:28 You got to see the church 'cause you know, 07:30 especially if you've come from a different denomination, 07:32 some people for the most part, 07:34 you go to a church or a local church, 07:35 I'm not going to mention denominations 07:37 but you go to a local church and that's it. 07:40 When the money comes in, 07:42 it goes into the either the pastor's bank account, 07:44 that's not how it happens in the Adventist Church, 07:47 nothing you give this morning goes into my pocket directly, 07:51 can you say amen? 07:52 My salary stays the same 07:54 until the headquarters decides to give me a raise. 08:00 That may happen once every three years. 08:02 I remember we got one raise after five years 08:05 and it was just for the cost of living, 08:08 and one thing you need to know about an Adventist pastor, 08:10 we are not Adventist pastors for the money. 08:17 As a pastor you can could say amen, 08:19 we are not in this for the money. 08:23 I remember being talked to by a pastor 08:26 from a different denomination 08:27 and he had come and he was given the privilege 08:30 of sharing with some of our pastors 08:32 and after his sermon he said to me, 08:34 he said, "I got more money in my pocket 08:36 than you make in a month." 08:40 And he pulled out his wallet, he had quite a few thousand. 08:47 And I said to him in a very humble way, 08:49 "We don't do this for the money, 08:52 we do this for the glory of God and the validity of His order." 08:57 So that's why we tell the truth as it is in God's word 09:02 'cause we don't sell out, we don't try to have services 09:05 where I tell you what you want to hear 09:08 so that you can give me more money. 09:10 When you write your check and your tithe, 09:13 it goes straight front and I'll show you today, 09:16 it goes straight from that offering 09:17 but I don't even see it. 09:19 I don't know what comes in, 09:21 I don't know whether you give or not 09:23 and I choose to not know that, 09:25 that's between you and the Lord. 09:29 I don't do favors to other church members for money... 09:35 but when the money comes in, 09:38 because we have a worldwide work, 09:41 we have a worldwide headquarters. 09:44 This is an aerial view 09:46 of the General Conference headquarters. 09:49 This is if I could summarize it, 09:52 this is where all the work in all the countries 09:56 in all the cities and all the nations 09:59 and all the languages, 10:01 this is the main headquarters in Silver Springs, Maryland 10:06 where everything that happens in the Adventist Church 10:09 flows right into that one location. 10:12 We've got a video that I'm going to show you right now, 10:15 that will give you an understanding 10:17 of how this functions in the world church. 10:20 Notice the screen, probably from... 10:22 Welcome to the headquarters 10:23 of the Seventh-day Adventist World Church. 10:26 Opened in 1989, 10:28 this building known as the General Conference, 10:30 houses five separate entities. 10:33 Please join us as we take an inside look 10:35 around the building. 10:37 We start up to in the visitor's center, 10:39 here you can view a timeline of our church's history 10:43 and watch videos on initiative 10:44 sponsored by the Seventh-day Adventist Church. 10:48 Next we come to the King is Coming 10:50 by Victor Issa. 10:51 This sculpture has ten figures 10:54 representing different regions of the world. 10:57 Each figure is made from bronze 10:58 and weighs about as much as a person 11:00 of the same size would weigh. 11:03 The angel represents 11:04 the guardian angle of the child it is carrying. 11:07 Each morning employees gather here 11:09 in the auditorium for worship. 11:12 This place seats up to 800 people 11:14 and is used for meetings, conferences 11:17 and video productions. 11:19 We are now entering the atrium 11:21 where many events like concerts are held. 11:24 Also here is a Rebok Memorial Library 11:27 which houses over 14,000 books on a variety of subjects. 11:33 The blessed hope by Nathan Green 11:34 was unveiled during the General Conference session 11:37 in Atlanta in 2010. 11:39 The painting is part of an art gallery called Eden to Eden, 11:43 the church leaders are planning for the headquarters. 11:46 Finally, this globe lights up 11:48 to represent each of the 13 divisions 11:51 and over 130 unions around the world. 11:55 This is the whole of history 11:57 celebrating the 150 years of the church's history. 12:01 Adventist Risk Management 12:03 provides solutions for minimizing risk 12:05 within the Seventh-Day Adventist Church. 12:08 The Adventist Development and Relief agency 12:11 is a humanitarian arm 12:12 of the Seventh-day Adventist church 12:14 providing emergency relief to communities 12:17 all around the world. 12:19 Here we have the North American division 12:21 which represents the church 12:23 in the United States and Canada. 12:26 At noon, each day employees gather here in this chapel 12:30 to pray for each prayer requests they receive. 12:34 Now we come to the Harry Anderson display 12:37 which includes a self portrait and his personal easel. 12:41 Harry Anderson is well known for his illustrations 12:44 in the Bible story series and also secular publications. 12:49 We're now in the office of President Ted N.C. Wilson, 12:53 he was elected during the General Conference session 12:55 in 2010, 12:57 also located here are the offices 12:59 of the nine general vice presidents. 13:03 The building also includes the offices 13:05 of hundreds of General Conference employees 13:08 who work to ensure religious liberty, 13:10 education, healthcare and more 13:12 for millions of Adventists worldwide. 13:16 Hope Channel is the newest extension 13:18 of the General Conference building. 13:19 Hope Channel is the official television network 13:22 of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. 13:25 This is the studio where they record popular shows 13:28 like 'Let's Pray,' 'Cross Connection' 13:30 and 'Hope Sabbath School.' 13:33 Another studio in the building 13:34 is a communication department studio. 13:37 Each week A&N video is recorded here. 13:41 Finally, we come to the widest state, 13:43 here we have the painting of Christ of the Narrow Way 13:46 by Elfred Lee. 13:47 This mural illustrates Ellen White's first vision 13:51 and shows a narrow path in which believes 13:53 in three angels' message of Revelation 14, 13:56 are traveling toward the holy city. 13:58 If you are hungry after your tour, 14:00 you can eat in our completely vegetarian cafeteria. 14:04 The cafeteria serves employees and visitors everyday 14:07 from 11:30-1:00 pm. 14:10 If you would like to visit us in person, 14:12 you can make an appointment by visiting Adventist.org. 14:18 So amen? Amen! 14:20 That's a summary of the General Conference, 14:23 that's the newer buildings, 14:25 they were located at a different location then. 14:27 And as we sit here this morning, this is as of, 14:32 actually the statistics are even more recent 14:34 than that as of October 2016, 14:37 you are one member, let's all raise our hands. 14:40 Come on, let's all raise it. 14:41 You are one person 14:44 among 19,126,438 14:50 and after I just mentioned that number 14:52 it's already changed because the Adventist church 14:55 3,000 plus people a day become members of your church. 15:01 Come on say amen some body. Amen! 15:03 These are not just statistics, these are souls being added, 15:06 people receiving the gospel. 15:08 So when you walk through the doors of this building 15:09 which in by the way 3ABN is the physical owner 15:13 of this building and 3ABN, 15:17 hey, and I'll tell you about their function and the growth 15:19 of the Adventist church. 15:20 When 3ABN came into existence in 1984, 15:23 from 1984 to the present, 15:25 the growth of the church has exploded 15:28 because of the footprint that 3ABN had 15:31 long before Hope Channel. 15:33 Hope channel is the new arm, a new media arm, 15:36 if you ever get a chance to go to the General Conference 15:38 you see Hope Channel, 15:39 Hope Channel would be representing 15:41 maybe this sanctuary, 15:43 not even as larger the sanctuary, 15:45 and 3ABN you've seen the footprint of 3ABN. 15:48 The first worldwide televising of the General Conference 15:51 was done through 3ABN. 15:53 The first large worldwide evangelistic series 15:57 was shown to the world through 3ABN 15:59 which was Mark Finley back in 1995. 16:03 So 3ABN is a part 16:04 of the exploding growth of the church 16:06 although it receives no funding on a monthly basis 16:12 from the Seventh-day Adventist Church. 16:15 And I'll show you how all of these entities are supported. 16:18 Out of the 19 million members, 16:20 it is broken down into 13 divisions. 16:23 Here is a color chart of how the world work is laid out 16:28 and those areas that I just covered 16:30 are seen very quickly in a splash, just in a splash. 16:34 I'm not going to take a whole lot of time on this 16:35 because we also have a video that we're going to show you 16:38 that introduces you to how the church is located 16:42 in different regions of the world 16:44 it's called our connection, look at this video. 16:48 We are people and we love to get connected. 16:53 We connect as families because of birth, 16:56 we connect as friends because we click 16:59 and we connect as communities because we care. 17:03 Seventh-day Adventists are people 17:05 who connect in communities called congregations 17:09 which in turn connect to form conferences, 17:12 who connect together to form unions, divisions 17:16 and the General Conference. 17:18 Why do we connect? 17:20 It starts with a connection to the Creator, 17:23 who invites us on a spiritual journey. 17:26 When we journey together, 17:28 we can help each other along the way. 17:31 This journey is a journey of a lifetime. 17:34 And as we learn, and grow 17:36 life becomes filled with meaning and purpose. 17:41 Our greatest joy 17:43 is in helping others along the way. 17:46 Wherever you are on your journey, 17:48 we believe that we have something to offer, 17:51 that can make your life more whole. 17:55 So the next time you see a Seventh-day Adventist 17:58 remember, you're not looking at someone who stands alone, 18:02 they are connected to a World Church 18:05 that has 18 million members, gathered in 13 divisions, 18:10 comprised of 122 unions, formed by 600 conferences, 18:16 serving in 140,000 congregations 18:20 in 208 countries, 18:22 who worship in 924 languages 18:26 and they all want to connect with you. 18:34 Could somebody say hallelujah somewhere? 18:36 This is a beautiful church, amen? 18:39 And by the way as of the production of this video, 18:42 the numbers have increased. 18:43 When this video was made it was at roughly 18 million 18:46 but every day 3,000 more are being added 18:48 around the world 18:49 and thus, we have a total of 19 million. 18:52 Look at the screen again, 18:53 I'm going to bring this up to you. 18:55 Look at these statistics and this is as of 18:57 and these were put out as of 2015. 19:00 How many churches? 19:01 but then 69,000 companies, 19:06 what's the difference between a church and a company? 19:08 A company is a newly formed body of believers 19:11 that somebody might say, 19:12 "Hey, let's put a church in the town right over here," 19:15 and they maybe meeting in a storefront 19:17 or a newly renovated building 19:20 but they're not yet to the place 19:21 where they have all the pieces in place 19:23 to be an official church, that's considered a company. 19:27 So 81,000 official churches, 69,000 you add it up together. 19:31 Eight and six is 14, 150,000 roughly. 19:36 When Sabbath comes in 151,000 locations in various languages, 19:40 all over the world people are saying 19:42 happy Sabbath, feliz Sabado and wish I had a language 19:45 that I could do that in but I can't. 19:47 Amen! 19:48 Ordained ministers, I'm one of 19,000, 19:52 Pastor C.A. is one of 19,020 but that's ordained, 19:56 that's not pastors in total 19:58 because you have to get to a certain level 20:00 before you are ordained. 20:02 So these are the ones that have gotten to that 20:03 after five years of service or eight years of service, 20:06 they are ordained but pastors that just come 20:08 out of the seminary or out of college. 20:11 So when you add that up together 20:12 not counting laymen and missionaries 20:16 that from week to week are carrying this gospel 20:18 all over the world, more than 19,000. 20:22 Look at the employees, 279,000. 20:25 I'm going to round it up 20:27 because more employees has been added 20:28 since these statistics had been added. 20:31 In the countries where work is established, 20:33 215 countries 20:35 so far we have publicized our presence in 215 countries. 20:40 We don't talk about where we are in countries, 20:43 where Christianity is not allowed 20:46 but I want to say we are there, what do you say? 20:50 I remember being at the General Conference, 20:51 I think it was 2005 or 2010, Pastor C.A. may remember this. 20:55 There was an Asian gentleman that came out on stage, 20:58 he was from China. 21:00 Now all these other countries, a lot of people are coming out 21:03 all their different colors, you know, 21:04 in their beautiful outfits and he came out, 21:07 they say and they mentioned the country 21:10 and he came out by himself 21:11 looking as you may picture a Chinese guy, 21:16 that's a farmer made out way out on the country 21:18 and he came out in this arena where almost 80,000 people 21:23 and he stood in the center of this massive stage 21:26 and he said these two words, "I'm here." 21:32 And he looked at his church family 21:33 that surrounded him in this massive arena. 21:37 Many, many stories in this football stadium 21:40 and I believe 2005, was that in St. Louis? 21:43 Yeah. 21:45 That was St. Louis. 21:46 It was one just, yeah, 21:47 he looked at this massive contingency 21:50 and he said, "I'm here." 21:53 And it slowly caught on and he said, 21:55 "I've been waiting all my life 21:59 to see my church." 22:03 And I tell you there were many, many tears 22:05 but that place erupted 22:07 for the glory of God, breaking into that new field. 22:11 But there are some places we can't publish 22:12 because we cannot let those who don't want us to be there 22:16 know we are already there. 22:19 We have publishing languages 974 languages, 22:23 you saw in the videos there are 940, 22:25 now they've increased that 22:26 because every day in languages and dialects, 22:29 the Bible is being translated 22:31 so that people of other people groups 22:33 can understand this gospel. 22:35 And publishing houses, we have 62 publishing houses 22:37 which would be something like Review and Herald 22:40 or Pacific Press, 22:41 in London it's the Stanbrook Press 22:42 and there are many other publishing houses 22:44 around the nation. 22:46 What about schools? 22:47 We have teachers, our teachers here today, 22:49 look our teachers stand, come on our teachers stand. 22:52 Come on, come on, standup, come on, Miss Haney. 22:56 Can we give them a hearty amen? 22:58 They are two of the teachers 23:02 in the 7,792 schools, that the church... 23:09 God has allowed the Seventh-day Adventist Church 23:11 to plan around the world. 23:13 And we have seen many of them, 23:15 we've got, we've seen many of them 23:16 but we have not been to 7,000, we haven't even been to a 1000 23:20 but the total enrollment as of these statistics 23:22 were 1.8 million students, 23:24 they're going through our halls, our universities 23:27 from kindergarten to elementary school 23:31 to junior academy, to academy, to college, 23:34 to university, to seminary. 23:40 Then there's 175 hospitals, it's a worldwide work. 23:43 The nursing homes and retirement centers are 140. 23:46 Then clinics and dispensaries, in other words, 23:49 the dispensaries would be somewhat like in South America 23:52 where they would have a medical boat 23:53 that goes from community to community, 23:55 from town to town, from village to village 23:57 and they carry on medical work from a boat 24:00 because they will go into places like the Amazon, 24:02 where there are no hospitals, 24:03 where the people don't come to the cities, 24:05 so they go to the people that are out 24:07 in these remote areas. 24:08 These are called dispensaries, 24:10 385 clinics and dispensaries combined together. 24:14 Then orphanages and children's homes is 29 24:16 and food industries, 24:18 where many of the foods that we eat, 24:20 some of these substitute foods that are temporary 24:23 that we are not taking to heaven, amen somebody? 24:27 The transitional foods, 24:28 these are made in various places around the world 24:31 like Loma Linda in Cedar Lake and places down 24:34 and this is a picture, if you've never been 24:35 to a General Conference session before, 24:37 this was a General Conference session 24:39 on Sabbath morning in San Antonio, Texas in 2015. 24:42 Let me say something, I was there, can't you see me? 24:46 I'm in the crowd, Angie's in the crowd. 24:50 When you walk out on Sabbath morning 24:52 and you hear them singing one song, 24:55 I want to tell you, I stood there with my cellphone 24:58 going like this just videotaping in the circle, 25:01 I downloaded those videos and it didn't lose those, 25:03 my phone had an apocalyptic experience 25:06 as we could just die. 25:08 But I got those videos 25:09 when I was standing there on Sabbath morning 25:11 and I saw so many people with their iPads and their phones 25:13 just spinning around, just crying 25:16 and taking pictures and videos of their World Church 25:19 because once every five years, we get together 25:21 to rub our elbows with a hundreds of displays, 25:25 the thousands of people. 25:27 3ABN had a gigantic display 25:30 at the last General Conference session. 25:31 We had to stay at our booths in ships 25:35 because we needed a break 25:37 with all the handshakes and that hugs and the pictures, 25:39 we were blinded by the many flash bulbs 25:43 but how wonderful it was to touch the lives of people 25:46 all over the world. 25:48 But let me tell you how it works. 25:50 Look at this chart very carefully. 25:51 We're going to follow the blessing. 25:53 So now you have the tithe envelope with you, 25:55 it all begins with you on Sabbath morning. 25:58 Open that tithe envelop till you see the place 26:02 where the name and address goes. 26:03 Now I'm not going to tell you yet what to do it 26:05 but just hold it there because I'm going to walk you through 26:07 how this happens. 26:08 On Sabbath morning this 26:11 and I'm going to use this ten dollar bill as an example. 26:13 This ten dollar bill starts a journey, 26:17 if you were a ten dollar bill, you would be able to, 26:21 if you were a ten dollar bill in the Adventist Church, 26:23 you would be able to travel around the world 26:25 because a portion of this 26:27 touches every one of these entities. 26:31 It begins in Thompsonville and then you have Marion, 26:35 you have Thompsonville, you have West Frankfurt, 26:37 you have Mt.Vernon, you have Metropolis 26:41 and other churches in Southern Illinois. 26:44 When they collect offering on Sabbath morning, 26:47 if it's tithing, it all goes to the next IC 26:50 which is the Illinois Conference, 26:52 100 percent. 26:56 What percent did I say? 26:57 100 percent of your tithing leaves this building 27:02 on a journey to the Illinois Conference, 100 percent. 27:07 So some people may say, 27:08 "Well how is it on the back of the bulletin, 27:10 it seems like we didn't make the budget 27:11 and I gave a large tithe last week 27:13 because they left, 27:16 it began a journey to help the worldwide work 27:19 and portions of it comes back for the pastor's salary, 27:23 for the teacher's salary. 27:26 But then it starts the journey to help the work 27:28 in the Illinois Conference, 27:30 that's why you have the percentage there 27:31 on the right side, 27:33 percentage of your dollars go there. 27:34 Then from the Illinois Conference, 27:35 a percentage of that goes to the North American division. 27:40 There's a work in this conference 27:41 that each of us contributes to. 27:43 Give you an example, 27:44 when we first started back in 2004 in Thompsonville, 27:47 we had that little small church down the way 27:49 before 3ABN build the building, anybody remember that? 27:52 If you drive down 149 today, 27:53 you can see it on the left hand side, 27:55 it's just about a mile and a half to two miles 27:56 from here on 149. 27:58 We were there. 28:01 One of the blessings we have 28:02 and this is by the work of 3ABN, 28:04 by the blessings of 3ABN, very few churches 28:07 get to establish this kind of blessing 28:09 is when Sabbath morning comes 28:11 most of the expenses of this building 28:13 are covered by Three Angels Broadcasting Network. 28:16 Amen, somebody? 28:18 We could not physically afford, 28:20 financially afford a building of this size. 28:24 Because God has people all around the world 28:26 that helps to keep His work going forward. 28:29 Many of our expenses, the majority of the expenses 28:31 to carry this building forward are covered by 3ABN 28:34 and we cannot thank them enough. 28:37 But on a legal level, 28:39 all the churches in all the world, 28:44 there's not a single building owned by any pastor. 28:48 We don't own any churches, we don't own it, 28:51 nothing is in my name in this church 28:53 except the suit I have on, that's it. 28:56 So I could be here for a certain period time 28:57 and go on and another pastor comes, 28:59 that's how the church is designed. 29:00 So I have no personal motivation 29:03 to try to swindle you out of your money 29:06 but it goes from here, 29:07 it goes to the Illinois Conference 29:08 and portions of it comes back, 29:10 then a portion from the Illinois Conference 29:12 goes to the NAD, the North American division, 29:15 to the union, got the Lake Union. 29:17 I cut out one step, it goes to the Lake Union, 29:21 I have one step I missed here. 29:22 Then from the Lake Union to the North American division, 29:25 from the North American division 29:26 to the General Conference. 29:28 I had one step, I forgot there. 29:29 So we have a five, that dollar, church, conference, union, 29:36 division, General Conference. 29:39 And then, the projects that are suggested 29:42 on a three month basis and many of you 29:45 who have Sabbath school lessons 29:47 on the back of your Sabbath school lesson, 29:48 you see that mission project, 29:50 anybody know what I'm talking about? 29:51 They said, we're going to build a church in 29:53 and they mention where it's going to be 29:55 and once every 13 weeks, 29:57 it's called 13 Sabbath offering, 30:00 on a Sabbath to Sabbath basis in your class, 30:02 the teachers pass around a little envelope says 30:04 this is for the mission offering, 30:06 this is for Sabbath school expense. 30:08 Meaning, all the stuff that happens here, 30:11 you participate in making that happen 30:13 and the work that happens in places around the world 30:15 that can never afford it, 30:18 happens by your willing, 30:22 your willingness to give to God's cause. 30:25 But now let's look at that, let's go on and see this. 30:27 So the point of the matter is when everyone gives together, 30:31 every need is met. 30:33 Let's look at this very carefully. 30:35 Here's the tithing envelope. 30:37 On the tithing envelope, if you open it up... 30:45 You're going to see 30:46 on this front cover right here, you see your name and address. 30:50 I'm going to break down to four sections 30:52 because you have, let's look at that is in blue, 30:54 it says tithe, then what else 30:56 is the next blue section is a local church, 30:58 you see that? 31:00 The next one is what? 31:01 Conference Ministry and the next one is what? 31:05 World Church. 31:06 That's how the money takes a journey. 31:09 Now it happens one of two ways, today in the bulletin, 31:13 open your bulletins, let's look at this together. 31:15 Show you how the World Church, so there are people 31:17 that are under certain regions of the world 31:21 waiting for us collectively 31:23 as a people to help them build a church 31:25 where they have none. 31:28 Watch this, North American division, 31:31 today it's going to the North American division. 31:34 Remember that right there, look at that. 31:35 Let's go back real quickly. 31:37 The North American, NAD, today the offering 31:40 is going to the North American division 31:42 which means they have a project that they've established, 31:45 that these funds that we give today 31:48 and what happens when the deacons come by, 31:50 if you don't write anything down 31:53 and you just drop this into the plate, 31:56 it goes to the North American division. 32:00 If you put it in the envelope 32:02 and you don't say anything am I right, 32:05 it goes to the North American division 32:09 because that's what the offering for that day 32:12 was designated for the North American division. 32:15 On the Sabbath when we say it's the local church budget, 32:18 turn your bulletins around, let's look at this. 32:22 I'm going to go through that very quickly here. 32:25 On the Sabbath when we say it's the local church budget, 32:28 you've seen this from week to week 32:29 and you wonder what on earth is that? 32:34 Whenever we say local church budget, 32:36 now this was earlier in January, 32:38 I think the first week but now you look at it today 32:40 on the back of the bulletin, hey and it's higher. 32:43 Amen, somebody? 32:45 That means we get four or five weeks 32:48 to cover our local expenses, 32:50 and by the way for people that say, 32:52 why is he talking about money on Sabbath morning. 32:55 Jesus talked about money more than He talked about hell. 32:59 Because He says, where your treasure is, 33:03 there will your heart be also. 33:06 So when you see this and the offering, 33:08 if the offering today is not for local church budget, 33:11 the question is how can we give? 33:12 Let's go back a few slides here 33:14 and I'll break this down for you. 33:15 It starts that way 33:17 and on the back of the tithe envelop, 33:18 that's simply what you see. 33:20 You see that, but it starts this way, look at that. 33:22 This is where it shows, a local church budget 33:24 and these percentages by the way 33:26 are suggested on the tithe envelop, 33:27 look that again, you see that? 33:30 How much of your income belongs to God, 33:32 somebody tell me? 33:35 I know that always hangs you, people say ten percent, 33:40 that's not what I asked you. 33:41 I said how much of your income belongs to God, how much of it? 33:44 All, that's right. 33:46 Everything you have comes from God. 33:49 But now the next question is how much of your income 33:52 is holy to the Lord? 33:55 Here it is, the tithe ten percent of your income 33:59 that belongs to the Lord. 34:01 We are giving to the Lord what is His. 34:05 Here's the text, Leviticus 27:30, 34:07 this is one of the text, notice what it says, 34:09 "All the..." What? 34:12 "Tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land 34:16 or of the fruit of the tree, 34:19 is the Lord's together it is..." What? 34:21 "Holy to the Lord." 34:25 So the question is how do we make that happen? 34:27 Let's look at this, how do we make that happen? 34:29 Let's go ahead and look at the tithe envelope 34:30 and how you fill that out. 34:32 So now I put their John Doe Smith Wesson. 34:36 So when this tithe envelop shows up in dean's office 34:40 and she doesn't know who it is, 34:42 she only has a couple of options. 34:44 Well, the money is in here, 34:45 will go to the offering of the day 34:47 that's usually the first choice 34:48 because you didn't tell us where you wanted to go? 34:51 So sometimes she goes to the pastor, 34:53 "What do we do?" 34:54 "Well, is there any name?" "No." 34:56 "Well, put into the offering of the day." 34:57 But if you want you might to go specifically, 34:59 let's look at the breakdown of this. 35:01 The first area you see is tithe, 35:02 what do you see there? 35:04 And I'm suggesting that maybe the person's income 35:08 is if the income was a $1000 then one tenth of that is what? 35:12 $100. 35:14 Now just for your own information, 35:16 people often pay off of their net. 35:19 Some people pay off their gross that's between you and Lord 35:21 but at least pay off of your net 35:24 'cause some people have insurance 35:25 and all that comes out of their tithing 35:26 and they pay that when they get their taxes later on. 35:30 Then you have church budget, combined budget, 35:33 that local amount $50, 35:36 when you don't put anything there, 35:39 this decides this languishes. 35:43 When we don't put anything for the local church, 35:46 you'll hear the elders saying, 35:47 "Well, we didn't make our budget this month." 35:50 "Well, we didn't." You know what happens? 35:52 That means personal ministries can buy more books, 35:55 Don and Janelle always passing out materials, 35:58 they don't have the money to do it this month 35:59 because that percentage 36:01 that comes from our local budget 36:02 couldn't go in there. 36:04 And you'll find out about that tonight 36:06 in our business meeting, you need to be there to see 36:08 how your church works, it's powerful. 36:10 And I'll say this also, every church member 36:13 has the right to ask for a financial report 36:19 to know where their moneys are going. 36:21 Praise the Lord? 36:23 The Lord wants us to be people 36:24 that are not slothful in business. 36:26 Very important, but we go down the list again. 36:29 So let's just to say we put $50 toward our local church, 36:32 that is a suggested amount but whatever 36:35 and tithing is a set amount ten percent, 36:37 offering is whatever you feel, 36:39 God is impressed you to be able to afford to give. 36:42 Then others put church expense and what is church expense? 36:46 Well, when the insurance gets due, 36:48 that comes out of church expense. 36:51 We have other needs at the local level, 36:53 that are covered by church expense. 36:54 Come tonight and you'll find out 36:56 what they are in specific. 36:57 Then Sabbath school expense. 36:59 When you get a Sabbath school lesson, 37:00 guess what? 37:02 They ain't free 37:04 but that's how we study around the world, 37:05 can you say amen to that? 37:07 All the, in other words 37:08 we are part of the family of God. 37:11 Do you know of any family 37:14 that lets you live in that house 37:16 without contributing anything? 37:18 You got to be really young to say yes. 37:21 So I remember my dad, when I was growing up, 37:23 the moment I got a job, 37:24 stacking shelves in the local grocery store, 37:28 I came to visit, 37:29 "Well, how much you going to give me?" 37:31 I said, "Am I paying rent now?" 37:32 He said, "No but you're not living here for free." 37:36 And you know, the sad statistic is this is true, 37:39 the sad statistic is 37:41 that in most cases 30% of the church 37:45 is carrying the other 70% that for the most part 37:49 don't give anything. 37:52 Because they don't understand 37:54 that this is their committed to God. 37:55 You see tithing is not the most you can do, 37:58 tithing is the least you can do. 38:01 It your commitment that God is your God 38:04 and when you don't give the church 38:06 begins to die out slowly, 38:08 all the things we showed you that happens 38:10 and people are getting the gospel in all the world, 38:12 it starts to fade away and before you know it, 38:15 when Thompsonville is not faithful, 38:17 then it makes the conference smaller, 38:20 then the union, then the division, 38:22 then the GC and then all these projects 38:24 that are designated people remain in darkness 38:26 because there's nothing going out there. 38:28 It all begins with us, you do that section. 38:30 The building fund, if we have a building project. 38:34 Then you have evangelism, local evangelism 38:36 and then at the bottom, I put in red 38:38 because I mentioned to you 3ABN 38:40 does not get any monthly funding 38:41 from anything we send to the General Conference. 38:43 How do they exist? 38:45 By us including them in our giving. 38:47 So at the bottom I put there for my example 38:49 Three Angels Broadcasting Network, 38:52 that's how you and so 3ABN 38:54 can continue carrying the gospel, 38:55 they can continue thriving, amen, church? 38:58 And guess what? When they thrive, we exist. 39:02 If we say, "We don't care whether 3ABN makes it or not, 39:04 I'll tell you what? 39:06 They don't make it, this church is gone. 39:10 It's a month by month 39:11 and we're all stewards of God's work. 39:13 Then it goes to the one, next one, 39:14 the conference ministries 39:16 which you see on your tithing envelope. 39:18 Very quickly, evangelism 39:20 and we've explained those in details 39:21 and then finally, you get the bottom 39:23 where you put the total on your tithe envelop 39:24 and you send it in, and that's how that happens. 39:27 So today, that's what we are doing 39:29 the tithing to the very end. 39:31 You might want to try that now if you brought your tithing 39:34 and your offering today, look at this envelope 39:35 and use it for the first time. 39:37 So we can know who you are, so we can help you grow 39:41 in your spiritual walk with Christ 39:42 but now let's look at this in reverse. 39:44 This is kind of scary. 39:46 I gave it a different title 39:48 instead of following the blessing, 39:49 look what I wrote, follow the curse. 39:53 If Illinois, if Thompsonville disappears, 39:56 we're no longer giving. 39:58 Then eventually, the Lake Union disappears 40:04 and the North American division has no work 40:07 and then what happens? 40:09 The whole world is impacted 40:10 and they ask the question what happened? 40:13 While the folk at Thompsonville decide 40:14 that they don't want to give any more, really? 40:18 So what about all this, what about all this evangelism? 40:20 What about the schools 40:22 that we need to build and the hospital? 40:23 I haven't even told you about our hospitals 40:26 and our schools and our universities. 40:31 And so when we look at that, if Thompsonville participates, 40:37 the entire world is blessed, what do you say? 40:41 If Thompsonville, if it begins with you, 40:44 it all starts with us. 40:47 The blessing starts with us. 40:49 Let's say this, the blessing starts with me. 40:54 Let's try that. The blessing starts with me. 40:58 And let me tell you, 40:59 when you put this in the envelope today, 41:02 it's gone past Pastor John, he's not going to see it 41:06 but people around the world will say, "Thank you." 41:09 Like that song, "Thank you, for giving to the Lord, 41:15 high in the life that was change." 41:20 That's what happens, 41:21 people are being baptized in this church, 41:23 all the children now can go to an orphanage 41:26 and have their food and clothing provided 41:28 because of you. 41:30 You decided that one soul is important 41:34 for the Kingdom of God 41:35 and finally, let's look at this text. 41:38 Matthew says it so wonderfully, let's read this together. 41:41 Why does God have a world mission? 41:43 Why does He have a World Church? 41:44 Here it is. 41:46 "And this gospel of the kingdom together will be preached..." 41:49 Where? 41:50 "In all the world as a witness to..." 41:53 How many? "All nations and..." What? 41:57 "Then the end will come." Do you want Jesus to come? 42:02 How many of you want Jesus to come? 42:03 It all begins with you, don't be fearful. 42:06 If you have any questions about what happens 42:09 when you write your tithing envelope 42:11 and you put that money in, 42:13 you can see Dee Hilderbrand or me, 42:15 you can even come on a monthly basis 42:17 to the church board meeting and sit down 42:19 and listen to us discuss the business of your church. 42:23 You see here it is, some people don't, 42:25 I've heard somebody said, 42:26 "Well, I don't believe in church." 42:28 Or "I don't believe in the organized church." 42:29 What you believe in the disorganized church? 42:33 Come on now, really. 42:35 I don't believe in organized WalMart, 42:36 I want to go to the disorganized WalMart. 42:39 I want to walk in and out where nowhere anything is, 42:41 really that doesn't even work. 42:43 The devil uses those phrases to frighten you 42:46 but God has a church 42:48 that is organized, can you say amen? 42:51 God is a God of order, 42:52 let all things be done decently and in order. 42:56 Lift up Jesus as our message, lift up Jesus as our only hope, 43:00 lift up Christ as our only means of salvation. 43:05 But it was Jesus that said that when the disciples wondered 43:10 how they're going to help out the Roman government, 43:12 Jesus says go down to the ocean 43:14 and you're going to see a fish open his mouth 43:18 and he found a coin in the fish's mouth 43:19 and he says give to Caesar 43:21 what's his and to God what's His. 43:24 Tithing is not something separate from Jesus 43:27 but let me tell you this, 43:30 you can't pay your way into heaven. 43:33 You can't buy your way into heaven, 43:35 if you don't have a relationship with Jesus, 43:37 you can have as much as you can 43:38 but you will never make the kingdom. 43:41 But giving is a result of a blessing 43:46 that you want to be 43:47 when the Lord has done something to you. 43:49 I remember the story of a man that was about to get baptized 43:52 and he was all dressed, 43:53 he had on his baptismal robe and heap, 43:55 he had on jeans but he forgot his wallet 43:58 in his back pocket he said to the pastor, 43:59 "Wait, wait, don't baptize, my wallet is no..." 44:02 Pastor said, "No leave it, 44:03 I want to baptize your wallet too." 44:07 Some people get baptized but they don't want their money 44:09 to do anything with it. 44:11 If you really believe that Jesus is coming soon, 44:16 Ford, Mercury, GMC, Toyota, 44:20 Honda, Apple Computers, Microsoft 44:23 they all organize 44:25 and so with this beautiful background, 44:27 man, I feel like going to get me a nickel. 44:30 With this view we are making cents, dollars and cents. 44:35 I could tell you some stories. 44:38 David the psalmist said "I am, I've been young 44:44 and now I'm old 44:46 and I've never seen the righteous forsaken 44:51 or a seed begging for bread." 44:53 My wife and I wouldn't be where we are today, 44:56 had it not been for God's faithfulness to us. 44:58 Now notice what I said, had it not been 45:01 for God's faithfulness to us, we were in instances, 45:05 in situations where I remember as a young man 45:07 and I've had so many, 45:08 I can't tell you the more recent stories 45:11 because I'll have to change 45:12 the name to protect those who contribute. 45:15 But God has provided for my wife 45:17 and I in so many wonderful ways. 45:19 Somebody once asked us, he said, "What do you guys do 45:22 that people just feel moved to help you out periodically?" 45:25 And it's not all the time but periodical, 45:27 sometimes you don't know how this is going to be 45:28 and somebody shows up and blesses us with something. 45:32 But I can tell you the stories that are in the past. 45:35 One Sunday morning I was sitting down at our home 45:39 and we were on our way to the airport 45:41 to pick up my wife's brother 45:43 and his wife and their new daughter. 45:46 And I said, "Honey if I only even make $500 dollars a month 45:51 and $349 was for our car payment, 45:53 that's before they put us up in the mountains 45:55 of northern California and cut our salary in half 45:58 to see if I was going to survive. 46:02 I said, "Honey we don't even have food for us 46:04 let alone three more people for a week, 46:08 what are we going to do?" 46:12 So I went to the living room and sat down on my couch 46:14 and I sat there and I... 46:16 You don't always have to kneel down, 46:17 you just sometimes, sometimes you've just got to talk to God. 46:21 And I sat on that couch, I said, "Lord..." 46:22 And my hands, I had a prayer like the church 46:26 I was praying for, I said, "Lord, we have a need. 46:33 I don't know how this need is going to be supplied 46:34 but we have a need." 46:35 I'm sitting on the couch and somebody's at the door. 46:38 I say, "Hold on, I'm almost done... 46:43 hold on, I'm praying, don't interrupt my prayer." 46:51 Cut the prayer short, okay, "Who is it? 46:55 What are you doing here? 46:57 You live like almost 40 miles away 46:59 on the other side of the mountain?" 47:02 And our church member said, you know, this morning 47:03 when I was having my devotions 47:05 the Lord said pastor and his wife has a need 47:09 and she opened her hand 47:11 and put five $20 bills in my hand 47:15 and I stood there and I just began to cry. 47:18 I said "Lord..." 47:20 I wonder you leave your house, she said, well, you know 47:23 it's 40 something miles away, 47:25 I left and she told me how long, 47:26 before you call... 47:28 Yes, amen. 47:30 I will answer, come on, am I telling the truth? 47:32 Anybody got those stories? 47:33 Before you call I will answer. 47:36 And while you are yet speaking, I will hear. 47:40 Now I said I wasn't doing anymore text, 47:43 but I have to read Malachi 3, I've got to do that. 47:46 Open your Bibles. 47:47 We're gonna do Malachi 3:8-11 47:49 and we're going to call this a day. 47:53 Well you know whether we call it a day or not, 47:54 it's a day. 47:57 We're going to go to Malachi 3, 47:59 and I'm gonna give you God's plan in a nutshell, 48:02 verse 8 down to verse 12, 48:06 because this is a serious question. 48:10 This is a serious question. 48:14 I don't know if it was this church or not 48:17 but I remember one Sabbath saying, 48:18 you know, the police are on their way here 48:22 to arrest some of you for robbing God. 48:25 Remember saying that. 48:26 So the police are waiting outside 48:28 for those of you who rob God today. 48:31 Look at the text, Malachi 3:8, this is amazing. 48:35 "Will a man rob God? 48:40 Yet you have robbed Me! 48:42 But you say, 'Okay Lord 48:44 in what way have we robbed You?' 48:47 In tithes and offering." 48:50 See God don't need any money, amen, somebody? 48:55 He owns the cattle on a thousand hills, 48:57 the gold and silver is His, if He was hungry, 49:00 He said I won't even tell you... 49:06 But giving is a test of your heart 49:10 and somebody once said, "I can't afford to give, 49:12 you know, what I said to them, you can't afford not to give. 49:15 Look at what He promises. 49:17 Let's go past verse 9, go to verse 10. 49:20 "Bring all that tithes into the storehouse, 49:23 the place where you worship, the place where you fellowship, 49:26 the place where all your needs are being supplied spiritually, 49:30 that there maybe..." What? 49:32 "Food in My house or meat in My house." 49:35 And the Lord says, "And try Me now..." 49:37 And I love the Hebrew that says, 49:38 if you don't believe Me, test Me. 49:41 Try Me out and I could tell you, 49:44 we could tell you that throughout our marriage 49:48 from year to year, 49:49 from one situation to the other, 49:52 we have tried our best to lose stuff 49:56 that God wouldn't even let us lose. 50:05 Then He says, "And try me now and this," 50:08 Says the Lord of hosts, "If I will not open for you, 50:11 the windows of heaven and do..." 50:12 What? 50:13 "Pour out for you such a blessing 50:16 that there will not be room enough to receive it." 50:20 If you want to know how rich God is tonight 50:22 as the little boy said tonight. 50:26 Tell you Ellen described with a little boy 50:28 and I'm going to have the deacons in place 50:30 because we're going to have the offering now 50:32 and the tithing. 50:34 Little boy was sitting next to another little kid, 50:36 you may have heard the story before me so bear with me. 50:41 And the little rich kid told the little poor kid, 50:46 he said, "You see that hill? 50:52 You see that house on that hill, 50:54 that's my daddy's house." 50:59 Little boy had nothing to say. 51:02 He said, "Hey, come here with me." 51:03 Took him down to the, "You see that boat? 51:06 That's my daddy's boat. 51:12 Beautifully laid out, beautifully laid out." 51:15 Then he heard this, 51:19 "See that plane that just flew over, 51:21 that's my daddy's plane." 51:23 And that little boy who had just appeared in tattered jeans 51:26 didn't know what to say. 51:29 He just sat there 51:30 and feeling crushed in his spirit 51:32 and God gave the little boy something to say. 51:37 He said, "Hey, wait a minute, wait a minute. 51:41 You see the house on that hill, my daddy owns that hill." 51:53 He said, "You see that boat floating on the water? 51:55 My daddy owns the water." 51:59 He said, "You see that plane flying in the air? 52:02 My daddy owns the air. 52:06 My father is rich in houses and land, 52:09 he owns the cattle on a thousand hills 52:12 but you'll never know it unless you try him. 52:16 You ain't trying him to bless me... 52:18 'Cause as I said and brother, all your treasures know that 52:22 and nothing you put today 52:23 is coming directly to my account. 52:25 If my check fail to show up, I ain't calling you, 52:27 I'm going to call the conference. 52:31 Because there are other people in other churches 52:32 that are all contributing to the welfare of this church. 52:37 The God has called us as a people, 52:39 if you really believe God, If you believe He is God, 52:43 then you will also believe there is nothing hard for God. 52:47 God ain't your homie, God ain't your boy, 52:52 He is your savior. 52:54 He wants to bless you but you got to try him 52:57 and when we do and when we are faithful, 52:59 not only will we never have to stand up here on any Sabbath 53:03 and say, "We did make our budget." 53:06 But we'll say, "Oh, you are so faithful, 53:10 we are now able to add another program 53:12 to the local church." 53:14 You don't think that personal ministries 53:15 wants the funds to give out more tracts 53:17 for men's ministries, that pavilion that's outside, 53:20 that pavilion that JR and his team worked on. 53:24 You know that happen 53:25 because of you're faithful giving. 53:28 He came up with a vision, 53:30 we could put a pavilion out there, 53:32 put it before the church. 53:33 You know, how some of you make it 53:34 from month to month when your check doesn't show up 53:36 you know, it's private you come to the church to say, 53:41 "You know I'm not making it in this month." 53:42 We save to the church, 53:44 they write a check to help you out, 53:45 that's benevolence. 53:46 Tonight you'll find out how much money goes 53:49 through this little tiny body of believers 53:52 and you'll understand it only happens 53:54 because you trust God. 53:56 When we're going to Africa, show you how to work works. 54:00 When we were going to Africa few years ago 54:03 my wife stood up here and put that before the church. 54:07 It was a number of years ago, 54:08 Abby was a lot younger than she is now. 54:10 I never forgot what she did. 54:13 She was saving up money for a laptop, 54:17 it's a $100 she had, she was saving up 54:21 and she said I want to give you this Sister Angie 54:24 because they need it more in Africa than I needed here. 54:28 She gave that $100 54:31 and then it moved everybody else to start giving 54:34 and she gave some shoes, nice red dress. 54:38 Everybody else started giving 54:39 'cause that young girl decided to do that. 54:41 She said their needs are more important than mine. 54:43 We went down to Africa and we were able to put about 54:46 seven or eight children in school 54:49 with the giving that people have, 54:51 not a penny went in our pocket. 54:53 We have video of the little girl 54:54 wearing the dress that Abby sent 54:55 and somebody else wearing the shoes that she sent, 54:58 that's what giving is all about. 55:00 Systematic, disinterested benevolence, 55:03 you know that means? 55:04 Give expecting nothing in return 55:07 and when you expect nothing, 55:09 God can trust you with everything. 55:11 Loving Father in heaven, we are praying right now 55:14 for the tithe and offering because today our church 55:16 has learned about your benevolent system. 55:19 This is a massive church, 55:22 yet every person every, every grain 55:24 of wheat is needed 55:27 for the whole harvest to be plentiful. 55:29 Every apple on the tree is needed 55:31 for the bushels to be filled. 55:35 Every member is needed 55:36 for another soul to be added to the kingdom. 55:39 So Father help us to understand 55:41 that all we've got to do is try you, 55:43 just put you to the test and we will understand 55:48 that our God is always faithful. 55:51 As the deacons come forward Lord today, 55:52 we pray that You bless the offering, 55:54 that You'll blessed it to the overflowing 55:57 and then when these moneys come from unselfish hearts 56:02 for You love a cheerful giver. 56:05 That those who give cheerfully, those who give abundantly 56:09 and not just out of necessity, you'll pour back into them 56:13 as you said in Your word it will be pressed down, 56:15 it will be shaken together, it will be running over. 56:17 That's Your blessing, that's Your promise, 56:19 You've said that. 56:20 Bless Your children 56:22 for the furtherance of the gospel, 56:24 for the preparation of the soon coming of Jesus 56:26 this we pray in your precious name amen. |
Revised 2017-03-02