Participants: Dee Casper
Series Code: TWH
Program Code: TWH000022A
|
00:30 Alright, let's begin with the Scripture Reading, I guess,
00:33 and then we'll begin with a word of prayer. 00:34 I believe it's in Romans 8:26. 00:43 I got the older version of David though. 00:45 It was rather fortunate. 00:46 He's in his forties now and has more grey hair than I knew 00:49 that he could have. 00:50 I can say that because he's not here. 00:53 Romans 8:26, and it says this: 01:16 And I begin with a word of prayer. 01:18 I'm going to kneel. 01:20 I just invite you to bow your heads and then we'll begin 01:21 this morning's message. 01:26 Father, thank You for this privilege to come 01:29 into Your presence. 01:30 God I'm praying that You would condescend to this place. 01:35 That you would first and foremost live in my own heart, 01:38 and that You would speak to the hearts of those who are 01:41 present, and that You would live in their hearts as well. 01:44 Lord, this is an important topic, and I just pray that You 01:48 would keep me from getting in the way of that, 01:50 and that You would do Your word justice today 01:53 through this instrumentality. 01:55 Jesus use me. I'm Yours, is my plea. 01:59 And I ask this in Jesus' name, Amen. 02:07 Turn to Jeremiah, Chapter 31. 02:09 We're going to be discussing the two covenants, 02:12 and the beautiful God of those two covenants. 02:16 And it wasn't just for the Israelites. 02:20 It applies to us, and there's some valuable lessons from the 02:24 old covenant that I fear we still need to learn. 02:27 Jeremiah, Chapter 31, and I'll begin in Verse 31. 02:31 Easy text to remember. 02:59 So God here is saying that there was a problem with this original 03:03 covenant, and He says, I'm making a new one; 03:08 not like the old one whenever I took your fathers out 03:10 of the land of Egypt. 03:11 My covenant, which they broke, though I was a husband to them. 03:15 So what is this covenant that God made with them? 03:17 And what was the problem? 03:18 It seems to me as though there's a problem with 03:20 the people, not the content. 03:22 But let's look here and see. 03:23 Turn with me to Exodus, Chapter 19. 03:26 This is the old covenant defined. 03:28 Exodus, Chapter 19, and I'll begin in Verse 3. 03:33 Exodus, Chapter 19, beginning in Verse 3. It says this: 04:28 God says these are things that we're going to 04:30 be expecting of you. 04:32 The people say, No problem! 04:33 All that You have said, We will do. 04:36 Skip then now to Verse, I believe 21, Verse 21. 04:44 So God tells Moses to go down to the people, warn them, 04:46 don't come onto the mountain. 04:47 Don't even touch the mountain. 04:49 Anyone who does is going to have to die. 04:51 And he can't even touch them when they're killed. 04:53 They had to be shot with an arrow or stoned. 04:55 So He says, Go down and tell them, 04:58 don't come on the mountain. 04:59 He comes back up to God and tells Him the people said, 05:01 All that You have said, we will do. 05:03 God says, Go back down now. 05:05 This is Verse 21. It says: 05:17 Moses is confused by this though, because God literally 05:20 just said that, and he already told the people that. 05:23 And so he says: 05:50 Something about what God is about to do is so important 05:54 that God wants Moses with the people when it happens. 05:57 Now what's the very next thing that happens in Scripture? 06:00 The Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai in Exodus, Chapter 20. 06:04 It's the very next thing that happens. 06:06 So God wants Moses there when it goes down. 06:08 Skip now to Exodus, Chapter 24, beginning in Verse 3. 06:13 Exodus 24:3. Moses is given the Ten Commandments. 06:20 He's also given all the other laws that God would 06:22 have for the people. 06:23 He comes down. He's communicating these things 06:25 to the people. And now Verse 3. 06:41 This is Exodus 24:3. Now read Verse 7. 06:53 Three times in Exodus 19 once, and twice in Exodus 24 06:57 God lays the requirements of God before the people, 06:59 and they say, All that You have said, we will do, 07:02 we will do, we will do. 07:04 We got it. No problem. 07:07 All that the Lord has said, we will do. 07:09 Well, I have a very simple question for you this morning. 07:13 Did they? No. In less than 40 days they were running laps 07:18 around a golden calf in pagan revelry, right? 07:21 Just an absolute madhouse. 07:23 They did not. They said they would. They did not. 07:26 This is why Moses then... 07:28 Hollywood does this. 07:30 Every time I read this passage of Scripture 07:31 I see Charlton Heston. 07:33 Anyone else have that? 07:34 The internal images of Charlton Heston with 07:36 his big gnarly beard? 07:37 And he comes down from the mountain. 07:39 And what does Moses do with these two stone tablets when he 07:41 gets to the base of the mountain and sees this 07:43 debauchery happening in front of him? 07:45 What does he do? He throws them down to the ground and breaks 07:48 them signifying what the people themselves have done. 07:52 Right? Moses just doesn't have like a self-control problem. 07:55 The people have broken the law of God! 07:58 They've transgressed the covenant. 08:00 This is why Jeremiah, whenever God is speaking in 08:03 Jeremiah 31, says what He says. 08:05 My covenant which they broke, and then He uses this endearing 08:09 matrimonial language, Though I was a husband to them. 08:14 I was the love of their lives. 08:16 Now if you go to Deuteronomy, Chapter 4, 08:20 it defines specifically. 08:21 Some people want to contend with this idea of what the 08:24 covenants are and aren't, so I'm just going to read the text to 08:26 make sure that that's clear. 08:28 In Deuteronomy 4 that covenant that we're talking about is 08:31 indeed the Ten Commandments. 08:32 Deuteronomy 4. I'll read Verse 11. 08:35 Deuteronomy 4:11. Moses speaking to the people here recapping 08:39 the history of what's happened right before his death. He says: 09:08 Just in case there's any questions, the terms of that 09:11 covenant was the Ten Commandments, but the real issue 09:14 here is that the people seem to be quite confident of the fact 09:17 that they got this. 09:19 So go back to Jeremiah 31 and let's hear about the terms 09:22 of the new covenant then. 09:23 What is this thing? 09:25 What does God have in mind? 09:27 And what is He going to do in response to the people 09:31 failing in the covenant? 09:33 How does He address the people who have failed in the covenant? 09:38 I'm going to re-read actually, in Verse 31, 09:42 and then I'll read down to Verse 34. 09:43 Jeremiah 31:31-34. Again: 09:53 This is the definition of the new covenant, 09:56 and it's found in the Old Testament. 09:59 That can't be overlooked or neglected. Verse 32. 10:40 This is amazing! This is absolutely amazing because God 10:44 is speaking to a people who have transgressed His 10:46 covenant perpetually. 10:48 So moving on here, the law no longer is going to 10:52 be outwardly imposed. 10:54 It's going to be inwardly inscribed. 10:57 But it remains a part of the human experience nonetheless. 11:01 So notice, the law does not disappear in the new covenant, 11:04 something else changes. 11:06 The covenant doesn't end. 11:09 What changes is the onus of who is making sure 11:12 that the people keep it. 11:13 God is now promising to empower these people to keep the law 11:18 instead of them promising to keep it in their own strength. 11:21 Are you understanding the difference? 11:22 So it's not a matter of the law is gone, it's that the issue was 11:27 they were self-confident that they could keep the law. 11:31 God says, I have a better idea. 11:33 All that the Lord has said, we will do; God ends up using a 11:37 bunch of I will's in the new covenant to define 11:40 the terms with the people. 11:42 Also, we assume that when we don't keep the law that we're 11:48 cast off and can't be God's people anymore. 11:50 Anyone ever felt that way? 11:51 Maybe you don't want to admit that publicly, 11:52 but I certainly have. 11:54 When you break the covenant, you assume that 11:55 God is done with me. 11:57 And He should be done with me. 11:58 And I don't stand a chance anymore. 12:00 But yet in the very context of the new covenant 12:03 again being given to covenant breakers, God says, 12:06 Your sins, and your lawless deeds I have no 12:09 intention of remembering. 12:10 God has no desire to remember their sins anymore, and He says 12:17 that they will be My people, and I will be their God. 12:19 Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more. 12:22 It sounds a little too good to be true, doesn't it? 12:24 Can God actually forgive me? is the question 12:29 that we wrestle with. 12:30 Well, in Revelation, Chapter 12, the reason why we ask this 12:33 question is because the Devil himself is referred to as 12:36 the accuser of the brethren, who stands before our God accusing 12:40 them day and night. 12:41 But he's not just standing before God accusing us, 12:44 he's found access in here, too, hasn't he? 12:47 And that voice of shame and condemnation that we contend 12:51 with isn't coming from Jesus. 12:53 It's coming from the accuser of the brethren. 12:56 Because if he discourages you from believing the things about 12:59 you that God believes, you'll never be the person that 13:02 God desires you to be. 13:03 It's the belief of God that makes us into children of God 13:07 and the people that we should be. 13:08 But when we don't believe that God believes in us, 13:11 and we take hold of our own unbelief towards ourselves, 13:13 or what we do is we actually project our unbelief upon God, 13:17 that we think that God looks at us in the same way 13:21 that we look at us. 13:23 But according to the new covenant here, that is not the 13:25 way that God looks at us. 13:27 And that should be encouraging to us this morning. 13:28 It's certainly encouraging to me. 13:30 So the question then is, if God has no intention of remembering 13:34 your sins, why is it then that we insist on reminding 13:38 ourselves of our sins? 13:43 If God has no intention of remembering your sins, 13:45 why won't you let it go? 13:49 That's the question. 13:51 So go with me to Hebrews, Chapter 8. 13:53 This gives some more insights into the situation of what 13:58 transpired in the new covenant, and what was wrong 14:00 with the old covenant. 14:01 Hebrews, Chapter 8. 14:04 This chapter is dynamite, by the way. 14:07 Hebrews 8, and Romans 8 are full of good stuff. 14:09 Romans, Chapter 8. I'm going to begin in Verse 6. 14:13 Romans 8, I'm sorry, Hebrews 8:6. 14:30 Now this is awesome because no longer is the covenant based 14:33 upon man's faulty promises to God. 14:36 It's now based upon God's faithful promises to man. 14:40 No longer all the Lord has said, we will do, 14:43 which is doomed for failure. 14:45 Now it's all that I have said, I'm going to do in you, 14:49 through you, and for you. 14:50 It's a better covenant built upon better promises. 14:55 And through the hands of a mediator. 14:57 You're not walking this path alone. 15:00 This is the beautiful encouraging promise from God. 15:03 I didn't finish the verses. Alright, Verse 7. 15:09 Alright, we've got one of those pejorative sayings here 15:12 that if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Right? 15:14 So if there was nothing wrong with the original covenant, 15:17 God would never have made a second one. 15:19 But then He says what the issue was. He says: 15:25 And then He begins to quote Jeremiah 31. 15:28 Paul actually quotes Jeremiah 31 twice; 15:31 the new covenant twice in Hebrews. 15:32 In Hebrews 8, and I believe in Hebrews, Chapter 10. 15:35 He kind of likes that text, too. 15:36 So I feel okay whenever I overuse it; 15:38 in like every one of my sermons. 15:39 Alright, skipping down to Verse 12, He says: 15:47 That's closing out Jeremiah 31 that he's quoting. 15:50 But here it is in Verse 13. 16:04 So it's not the terms of the covenant that's at fault, 16:07 it's the self-confidence, and self-righteousness of the people 16:11 who made the agreement. 16:12 And Ellen White blows this thing up here in a few slides. 16:17 She says this first of all in The Faith That I Live By, 16:20 111.2. She says: 16:40 When you tell God, All that You've said, I will do, 16:44 you don't leave any room for God to do what He does. 16:47 Now this does not mean obedience doesn't happen 16:51 in the human experience. 16:52 There's a fine balance you have to walk in this. 16:54 But too many times we find ourselves in old covenant 16:57 experiences, which, by the way, always end up in, 17:01 you know, failure and stuff. 17:03 And we continue those paths. 17:07 And I don't really understand why we do that. 17:09 But in Exodus 19 and 24, the Israelites did not 17:12 recognize their nothingness. 17:14 And in turn they were not in a place to receive the 17:17 righteousness of Christ, which is a problem. 17:20 Now in From Eternity Past, Chapter 32, 17:23 it's called the Grace of Christ in the New Covenant, 17:25 or in Patriarchs and Prophets, Chapter 32, 17:28 it's called The Law and the Covenants. 17:29 She makes this amazing point. 17:31 It's a really good chapter. 17:33 You should read all of it. 17:34 It's not that long. 17:35 But she makes the point that you wonder, Well, why did God 17:37 make this covenant with the people if He wanted to make 17:39 this covenant with the people? 17:40 Like, did God make a?... 17:41 She basically says, first of all, that the new covenant and 17:44 the covenant that God made with Abraham were the same thing. 17:47 There's no difference between them. 17:49 And so then you think, Well, wait a minute. 17:51 Why would God make a reasonable covenant with Abraham, 17:54 and then make an unreasonable covenant with the Israelites, 17:57 and then realize His folly, and then go back to making a 17:59 reasonable covenant in Jeremiah 31 and Ezekiel 36? 18:02 The Bible says, I am the Lord, I change not. 18:06 So what is the issue then? 18:08 She says that the reason... 18:09 So the covenant that God made to Abraham was a covenant that 18:13 Jesus would be his righteousness. 18:16 The Bible says that he believed God, and it was accounted 18:19 to him for righteousness. 18:21 Now, that covenant that God made with Abraham at that point 18:24 in time, no blood was shed then. 18:26 The blood that would ratify that covenant was shed at Calvary. 18:30 So from the time He makes this covenant until the covenant 18:33 is ratified in blood, there's a big chunk of real estate, right? 18:37 There's a lot of time that lapses from one to the other. 18:40 Well, in that intervening time the Israelites came out of 400 18:43 years of an appeasement based religion and paganism. 18:48 They completely lost sight of God. 18:51 And she says specifically that because they lost sight of their 18:55 need of a Savior, God had to allow them to make this 18:59 self-confident covenant, so that they would crash and burn, 19:03 and see their need of Jesus. 19:05 That's what she says. 19:07 And so there was blood that was shed right away 19:10 at the old covenants at Mount Sinai, 19:12 because the blood was shed there. 19:14 So why are there these two chronological terms, 19:16 new and old, because the new covenant is really 19:19 the original covenant. 19:20 So why is it not called the old? 19:21 Because the blood at the base of Sinai was shed first, 19:25 which is why it's referred to as the old covenant, 19:28 or the original... Not the original, but the first 19:31 chronological ratified covenant. 19:34 The new covenant is not something different. 19:36 It's going back to the original that He made with Abraham. 19:38 I know it sounds kind of confusing, but here's the point. 19:40 God made a covenant with Abraham. 19:42 That's the new covenant that we're given in 19:44 Jeremiah 31, and Ezekiel 36. 19:46 And the point of both of those covenants is, which is the same 19:49 covenant, Christ is our only hope of righteousness. 19:52 And He had to let the Israelites crash and burn because they 19:56 did not see their need of Jesus. 19:58 And God Himself is allowing a lot of us to crash and burn 20:02 right now because we haven't seen our own need of a Savior. 20:05 We're having the same problem this year, right? 20:08 However many years later we are. 20:11 So God's missional quandary. 20:14 God has an issue. Go to Ezekiel Chapter 36. 20:18 Ezekiel Chapter 36, and we're going to begin at Verse 22. 20:25 Ezekiel 36, beginning at Verse 22. 20:43 Shots fired. God has a problem here. 20:47 God intended for the nation of Israel to be the evangelists' 20:51 who would reach the world. 20:53 His intention was for the Israelites to be the messengers 20:56 to allow the rest of the world to know and to see, 20:58 through their example and teachings, 20:59 Hey, you can be saved, too! 21:02 This is what God intended for the nation of Israel. 21:05 But the Israelites really didn't understand, appreciate, value, 21:10 or succeed in any of that. 21:11 The surrounding nations are blaspheming the name of God 21:15 because of the people of God. 21:18 Paul says something very similar. 21:20 And I believe he's quoting from this verse in Romans 2:24, 21:23 and he's speaking to the church, you all. 21:25 And do you know what he says? 21:27 He says the name of God is blasphemed among the 21:29 Gentiles because of you. 21:35 The name of God is blasphemed among the 21:38 Gentiles because of you; church folk. 21:42 Now this is a problem for God, because He's missional. 21:45 He wants people to be saved. 21:47 And the very people He employed to tell people that they could 21:49 be saved are making them want nothing to do with God. 21:53 Bad religion is keeping people from being saved. 21:59 This is a primary issue that's keeping many of our young people 22:03 from standing for Jesus. 22:04 They're leaving our churches in droves because of bad religion. 22:08 And they're not finding it from televangelists. 22:14 I've had to spend so much time in my experience in ministry 22:19 undoing the harm caused by bad religion. 22:23 And what I love about Ezekiel 36 is that God Himself 22:27 has a beef with it. 22:29 Maybe you've been hurt by bad religion. 22:31 Guess what? so has God! 22:32 And if you've got a beef with it, so does He. 22:35 That's good news for you today. 22:37 That means that Jesus has nothing to do with the harm 22:40 that was done to you by religion. 22:42 That's what it means. 22:43 The way that God fixes this problem of bad religion is by 22:47 infusing good religion into the people of God. 22:50 And when the people of God look like Jesus, 22:52 you'll never believe it. 22:54 Unbelievers kind of find an interest in Jesus. 22:58 Who knew? So that's what God is looking to happen. 23:02 But then the question is, Well, um we've really not been very 23:07 good at that, so how are you going to achieve this? 23:09 Because if that's the case, this crisis is going to remain. 23:12 Well, thankfully He continues in Verse 24. 23:15 Ezekiel 36, beginning in Verse 24. For... 23:17 And I'm going to read through Verse 27. 23:27 And we're a filthy mess at this point. 23:33 All the things that you're running to right now to escape 23:36 from responsibility to God, God says, 23:38 I'll deliver you from that. 23:39 All of the things that you're running to; any idols that 23:41 you may have in your experience. 23:43 I'll cleanse you. I'll deliver you from your idols. 23:45 The He says in Verse 26: 24:00 Amen? That's a promise. 24:02 So God isn't just saying, you know, you get another 24:04 chance, and go get 'em. 24:06 There are ten I will statements in Ezekiel 36, 24:09 starting with Verse 22. 24:11 I will, I will, I will, I will, I will. 24:15 He replaces the we wills of the people 24:18 with His own, I will's. 24:19 He takes onus of responsibility for what's to come. 24:23 So God didn't want the Ten Commandments to be something 24:26 that we believed, He wanted it to be part of who we are; 24:30 the very essence of who we are. 24:32 Because it's the essence of who He is. 24:35 But we tell people about the validity of the law, 24:38 and we completely divorce that from who God is, 24:42 and who we were meant to be. 24:43 It just sounds like legalism. 24:45 And Ellen White said that the people, the Adventist people, 24:49 the people outside of Adventism say this about Adventism, 24:52 that they preach the law, the law, the law, and not Christ. 24:55 That was the problem. 24:57 We believe in the validity of the law, Amen? 24:59 But the way that that works is something that should be inward. 25:04 I don't care what you have on the walls in your churches. 25:07 I don't care what cross stitches you have in your house. 25:10 If nothing is going on in here, it's not helping God 25:12 in His missional quandary. 25:14 Are you understanding? 25:15 And so the Ten Commandments should be the essence of who 25:17 you are, not ten stuff that you're supposed to do. 25:20 When it's part of who you are, you do it naturally. 25:23 And God Himself is the One that makes that a reality, 25:25 and empowers you not only to do it, but to love it. 25:28 Does that make sense? 25:29 That's what God's intention is with the new covenant. 25:32 So then the wall was not the problem that 25:34 needed to be changed. 25:36 What needed to be changed was the people. 25:39 We were the problem that needed to be changed. 25:41 And the laws relevance remains. 25:43 Now, continuing in Ezekiel 36, picking up in Verse 28, 25:47 and I'll read to Verse 30. 25:59 The provision of God comes with the call of God. 26:10 Sometimes we feel that we can't be the people of God, 26:13 and we've got that Romans 7 quandary, right? 26:17 God's going to deliver us from our uncleanness. 26:20 He's going to do all of this stuff for us, but we just don't 26:22 feel like we deserve that, or could actually have that. 26:26 But God reassures us here in this passage that we can be. 26:29 He's making these promises again to a disobedient, ugly people 26:33 with stone cold hearts. 26:35 Now why would God make a promise to someone that He didn't think 26:39 it was possible? Right? 26:42 He knew it was possible. Now Verse 31. 26:56 The amazing long suffering, and provision of God will lead 26:59 people to repentance. 27:01 Romans 2:4 says, The goodness of God leads to repentance. 27:05 When God treats you this good, in spite of how awful, selfish, 27:09 and evil that you've been, it does something to the 27:12 human psyche, doesn't it? 27:14 It breaks your heart. 27:16 This is what God intended to take place to draw 27:18 us closer to Himself. 27:20 God would do that for me? 27:21 Yeah, but I'm dirty. Right? 27:24 I have idols. I have a stony heart. 27:27 I don't obey. Guess what? 27:31 God's goodness towards us is not based upon what we do. 27:35 It's based upon who He is. Amen! 27:40 The goodness of God is not conditional in the sense of God 27:44 will only show love and acceptance to people 27:46 if they do something. 27:48 God only, ever, always thinks thoughts of love towards you. 27:53 Always! He can change the behavior. 27:56 That's not a problem. 27:57 It is a problem, but He can handle that. 27:59 But what He needs is you. 28:01 And the only way that He's going to receive you is if you 28:03 know who He truly is. 28:04 Does that make sense? 28:09 So some here may be getting a little bit ancy. 28:11 Yeah, but what do we do? Right? 28:14 There's bound to be something that I'm supposed to do. 28:16 Well, there is. The I will's of God are 28:20 dependent upon your I will. 28:23 Here's what I mean by that. 28:26 I will cease trying to appease God by my deeds. 28:30 I will stop avoiding the conviction of the Holy Spirit. 28:34 I will choose to believe the things about 28:36 me that God believes. 28:38 I will yield my will, my power of choice, my desires to the 28:41 One who's given all for me, and who desires my happiness. 28:45 The I will's of God of the new covenant are dependent upon 28:48 your I will's. That is true. 28:50 And that's the hardest thing that we can do, isn't it? 28:52 The I will's of God are, again, dependent upon your I will. 28:56 God is asking us to lay down our old covenant experience of 28:59 I will's into rest in His. 29:02 This is what God is asking of us today. 29:05 Yielding your will, and choosing to receive Christ's spirit of 29:09 surrender is the hardest thing that you can do in human flesh. 29:12 I thought math was hard. 29:15 This is way harder. 29:17 Science was harder than math. 29:19 But anyway, this is way harder. 29:21 For me to actually yield my preference and my choice 29:24 in any given moment of temptation is quite difficult. 29:26 But all I'm really doing is receiving from Jesus His spirit 29:31 of surrender so that I then can surrender. 29:34 Does that make sense? 29:35 But it's what's going to lead to our happiness and our victory. 29:39 And so if you see that this process is actually going to 29:42 lead to success, you're probably a little more prone to 29:44 give it a try, aren't you? 29:47 Again, she says, What is justification by faith? 29:50 It's the work of God to lay the glory of man in the dust, 29:52 and doing for man that which it is not in his 29:55 power to do for himself. 29:57 And when men see their own nothingness, 30:00 then they're prepared to be clothed with the 30:02 righteousness of Christ. 30:03 You have to recognize that you've got 30:06 nothing to offer but you. That's it! 30:09 I think I just stole my thing from the slide, sorry. 30:12 We have nothing to offer God but you. 30:16 The best thing you can offer God is you: ugly, broken, 30:20 hypocritical, whatever. 30:23 If you bring what you have to God, He can do something. 30:26 God can do something with something, but He can't do 30:28 anything with nothing. 30:29 And if you choose to give God permission to do for you 30:33 what you can't do for yourself, which, by the way, 30:35 involves confessing that and repenting of our self-will, 30:40 then He can work with that. 30:42 All the resources of omnipotence are at our disposal, we're told. 30:46 But one of the things I love about Jesus is that your piety 30:49 doesn't impress Him, and your dirt doesn't discourage Him. 30:53 This is what I love about Jesus: that His love for you is at its 30:58 zenith no matter what you do. 30:59 Does that mean that He approves of the bad things that we do? 31:02 No. But does it mean that He is going to stop loving 31:05 us if we do them? No. 31:07 God's love for you is unchanging; 31:08 obedience or disobedience. 31:10 If you had a meter, a love meter of sorts, it's at its zenith 31:15 all the time, regardless of the decisions you make. 31:21 Our actions don't change that for the worse or for the better. 31:25 Now, oh man, go back. 31:27 This is what Ellen White... From the Andrews Study Bible 31:29 actually, on the comments of Ezekiel 36. 31:31 It says that God will move His followers to obedience through 31:35 the power of His Spirit. 31:36 And this is a unique declaration about the obedience as a result 31:40 of God's working in humans through the Holy Spirit. 31:43 Thus obedience is not our achievement or performance, 31:47 but a what? But a consequence of letting God work in us. 31:52 Alone we are not able to follow Him. 31:54 Power to overcome evil, live in harmony with His commandments 31:58 comes from a source outside of us. 32:01 Only the Spirit of God can transform hearts 32:06 and enable people to observe His laws and instructions. 32:09 And I love this one. 32:10 What God requires He also provides. 32:14 Many people in our church are wrestling because we at times 32:20 have uplifted the expectations of God at the expense of how 32:24 God enables us to walk in those expectations. 32:26 We forget the most important part. 32:29 Man, I can't wait to tell people all the stuff that God expects. 32:33 And they walk away. 32:34 And so the person that receives the message thinks, 32:36 Wow, um, oh man, this is bad. 32:43 Right? Like this is going to be the response of hearing what 32:46 God expects without telling people the way in which God 32:50 enables you to do what He expects. 32:52 Are you understanding me this morning? 32:53 Please do not give one instead of the other. 32:56 Because it sets our people up for failure. Right? 32:58 We read John 14:15, If ye love Me keep the commandments. 33:02 Which, by the way, in the Greek is not in the imperative. 33:05 It's not. It's a promise. 33:07 And He explains in the very next verse how it happens. 33:09 And I will pray to the Father, and He will send you another 33:11 helper, the Spirit of Truth, who's going to enable you 33:14 to keep the commandments. Right? 33:16 Make sure you don't tell people what Gold expects without 33:19 telling them how He enables them to do what He expects. 33:21 It causes severe psychological damage. 33:24 I'm serious as a heart attack. 33:26 I was just talking to someone this week. 33:27 It's crippled them. 33:29 Last generation theology has crippled them because 33:31 they're hearing all of what God wants. 33:33 He wants an end time spotless righteousness. 33:35 But they're not being told that, yeah, God does need us to stand 33:38 with spotless righteousness at the end of time, 33:40 but God provides that righteousness. 33:42 And we're actually going to cover that this evening 33:44 on what that looks like. 33:45 That God is day by day making us into the person 33:47 who could stand then. Right? 33:49 It's the day to day decisions you're making you should fear, 33:51 not what you're going to be then. 33:53 What you do now makes you into who you'll be then. 33:56 And so day by day we're surrendering our will to God, 33:59 and being transformed into His likeness. 34:00 And there will be a time when we're not going 34:01 to need a mediator. Right? 34:05 I digress. So, this is from Christ's Object Lessons. 34:10 As the will of man cooperates with the will of God, 34:13 it becomes what? omnipotent, all powerful. 34:17 Whatever is to be done at God's command may be 34:21 accomplished in God's strength. 34:23 And then she says this: All His biddings are enabling. 34:27 Everything that God asks of us, God provides the 34:31 means necessary to do. 34:32 Two good examples of this: John Chapter 5. 34:35 So there's a man at the pool of Bethesda 34:37 who's a helpless case. 34:39 In fact the most helpless case. 34:40 He's been an invalid for 38 years. 34:43 His legs are spaghetti noodles. 34:45 There is no chance for him to support his own body weight. 34:49 And as this man is in this condition, Jesus strolls up to 34:52 this guy and asks him a seemingly obvious question. 34:55 He says, Do you want to be made well? 34:58 And your response could be pfffff... Do I want it? 35:01 Of course I want to be made well! Look at me! Right? 35:06 And then he gives this story of all the reasons for why 35:08 he can't be made well. 35:09 My situation isn't conducive. 35:11 No one cares about me. 35:12 And internally there's a whole lot of shame. 35:14 Because we're told in Desire of Ages, he's in that condition 35:17 because of a lifestyle of sin. 35:19 Not that all people in that situation are because of 35:21 a lifestyle of sin, but he was. 35:24 So he's feeling a whole lot of shame and unworthiness, too, 35:27 that I'm not worthy of being made well. 35:28 I don't deserve to be healed, because look at what 35:31 I've made of my life. 35:32 Jesus doesn't give him the time of day on the pity party. 35:36 Then He tells him one thing. 35:40 Rise, take up your mat and walk. 35:44 Some could view that as taunting or insulting if they didn't know 35:49 who it was that was asking the question 35:50 and giving the command. 35:52 But this is what Jesus knew about this situation, 35:54 and why it wasn't taunting. 35:56 Jesus knew that by giving the command, in the command itself 36:00 was the power to obey the command. 36:04 Remember, the word of God imparts life. 36:06 The word of God has the ability to create. 36:08 So built within the framework of the commands of God 36:12 is power from God to walk in these commands. 36:15 And so Ellen White comments on this in Desire of Ages, 203. 36:18 Well, first of all, the guy does take Jesus at His word. 36:21 And by taking Jesus at His word he's running around the temple 36:25 like a five year old boy; jumping and leaping around, 36:29 because he has been made well. 36:31 She says in Desire of Ages, 203, that he took Christ at His word. 36:37 And that in acting upon His word he received strength. 36:41 And she says our souls are palsied, and of ourselves we are 36:46 no more capable of living a holy life than was the impotent 36:49 man capable of walking. 36:52 But she says that by believing what Christ has said, 36:55 and leaning our wills in the direction of the word of God, 36:59 we receive power from God to do that very thing that seems 37:03 impossible, that seems ridiculous. We can't. 37:06 Through Christ's strength we can do what He commands. 37:09 And it just makes sense really, because when we do this thing 37:12 of lifting up what God expects, at the expense of how enables us 37:15 to do it it leads to two responses: 1. I'm a loser, 37:18 or 2. God is unreasonable. 37:22 Neither one of those is going to lead to people sticking it out. 37:25 I'm a loser. I tried in my own strength; I failed. 37:29 There must be something wrong with me. 37:31 I'm a defective model. 37:34 I might as well throw in the towel. 37:35 Or, God is just mocking me. 37:38 He's telling me to do stuff that He knows that I can't do. 37:42 And if that's the way that He's going to roll, 37:43 I want nothing to do with Him. 37:44 This is the picture that we paint in the eyes of our young 37:50 people, and our members when we do not share the power of the 37:54 gospel to transform the life. 37:55 When we do not communicate the ministry of the Holy Spirit, 37:59 and how He makes us what we were into what God 38:01 intended for us to be. 38:03 That's actually what we're going to cover this evening. 38:04 Now, there's this amazing section of 38:08 The Great Controversy. 38:09 It's in pages 72 to 75. 38:11 I'm not going to read all of it. 38:13 But this is talking about the Waldenses when they were 38:15 Bible workers preaching the message of righteousness by 38:18 faith in individual homes. Okay? 38:20 And I hope you've got your listening ears with you. 38:22 This is again, 72 to 75. 38:24 But I'm just going to kind of skip through different areas. 38:27 They, the Waldenses, saw that under the guidance of pope and 38:30 priest multitudes were vainly endeavoring to obtain pardon 38:35 by afflicting their bodies for the sin of their souls. 38:40 We still wrestle with penance in our own movement, don't we? 38:43 In different fashions. 38:45 Have you ever had those moments when you disappoint God, 38:47 and your immediate instinct is to go do something in service 38:50 for God just to kind of get yourself out of jail? Right? 38:55 We still have this penance system in our minds, 38:58 because we feel so unworthy of the love of God; that He would 39:01 never just take me back because He loves me nonetheless. 39:04 Like I need to do something to show God that I'm worthy 39:07 of being taken back. 39:09 And our motives are okay in that sense, but the method 39:13 certainly isn't going to work. 39:14 That love is already ours. 39:16 God didn't send Jesus to convince Him that 39:20 He needed to love us. 39:21 God sent Jesus because He loves us, period. 39:25 That's all of us. Taught to trust their good works to save 39:29 them, they were ever looking to themselves, 39:32 their minds drawing upon their sinful condition. 39:35 Seeing themselves exposed to the wrath of God, 39:38 afflicting soul and body, yet finding no relief. 39:43 Thus conscientious souls were bound by the doctrines of Rome. 39:47 Thousands abandoned friends and kindred and spent their 39:50 lives in convent cells. 39:51 By oft repeated fasts, and cruel scourging, by midnight vigils, 39:56 by prostration for weary hours upon the cold damp stones of 39:59 their dreary abode, by long pilgrimages, by humiliating 40:03 penance and fearful torture thousands vainly sought to 40:07 obtain peace of conscience. 40:09 Oppressed with the sense of sin, and haunted with the fear 40:12 of God's avenging wrath, many suffered on until exhausted 40:16 nature gave way, and without one ray or light of hope they 40:20 sank into the tomb. 40:24 These people died without hope, and without Jesus. 40:27 And they worked their guts out in religion 40:30 from stem to stern. 40:33 They're in our churches; same situation. 40:37 People in this room are wrestling with the very 40:39 same thing right now. 40:41 Look what she says in response to that. 40:44 Jesus died as a sacrifice for man because the fallen race 40:49 can do nothing to recommend themselves to God. 40:52 The merits of a crucified and risen Savior are the foundation 40:56 of the Christian's faith. 40:58 The dependence of the soul upon Christ is as real, 41:00 and his connection with Him must be as close as that of a 41:03 limb to the body, or of a branch to the vine. 41:06 It was his, the Waldensian's greatest joy, to give hope to 41:10 the conscientious sin stricken souls who could only see a God 41:14 of vengeance waiting to execute justice. 41:18 And again, that belief structure is happening here too, isn't it? 41:25 It's just a human nature thing. 41:26 I'm not bagging on the Adventist church. 41:28 Don't misunderstand me. 41:29 This is my church! I'm not going anywhere. 41:31 But this is the type of stuff that we all 41:33 wrestle with, isn't it? 41:35 We're still wrestling with the full concept of Protestantism. 41:38 And with quivering lip, and tearful eye did He often on 41:42 bended knees open to His brethren the precious promises 41:45 that revealed the sinners only hope. 41:47 Thus the light of truth penetrated many a darkened 41:50 mind rolling back the cloud of gloom until the Son of 41:53 Righteousness shown into the heart with healing in His beams. 41:56 It was often that the case of some portion of Scripture was 42:00 read again and again, the hearer desiring it to be repeated as if 42:05 he would assure himself that he'd heard aright. 42:08 Is that, is that really what God thinks of me? 42:13 Read that again, please. 42:18 It especially was repetition of these words eagerly desired. 42:22 The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin. 42:26 1 John 1:7. As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, 42:30 even so must the son of man be lifted up, that whosoever 42:33 believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. 42:36 John 3:14, 15. The assurance of a Savior's love seemed 42:41 too much for some of these poor, 42:43 tempest tossed souls to realize. 42:45 So great was the relief that it brought, such a flood of light 42:50 was shed upon them that they seemed transported to heaven. 42:54 Their hands were laid confidently in the hand of 42:57 Christ, and their feet were planted upon the rock of ages. 43:01 All fear of death was banished, and they could now covet the 43:04 prison and the burning stake if they might thereby honor 43:08 the name of their Redeemer. 43:10 So what prepares people to stand in the time of trouble? 43:12 An encounter with the undying love, and acceptance of God 43:17 in spite of your brokenness, in spite of your 43:20 weakness and otherwise. 43:21 And when someone's willing to love you at your ugliest, 43:24 you're willing to give all for them. 43:27 In the secret place as the word of God was thus brought forth 43:30 and read, sometimes to a single soul, sometimes to a little 43:33 company who were longing for light and truth. 43:35 And often the entire night was spent in this manner. 43:38 So great would be the wonder and admiration of the listeners 43:42 that the messenger of mercy was not infrequently compelled to 43:45 cease his reading until the understanding could grasp 43:48 the tidings of salvation. 43:50 Because it seems so far from being accomplished, 43:52 they just needed a moment. 43:54 I just, I just need a moment. 43:56 I need some time to process this. 44:00 Often words like these would be uttered: Will God indeed 44:07 accept my offering? 44:10 Will He smile upon me? 44:12 Will He pardon me? And the answer was read, 44:17 Come unto Me all ye that labor and are heavy laden, 44:21 and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28. 44:26 Faith grasped the promise, and the glad response was heard. 44:31 No more long pilgrimages to make. 44:33 No more painful journeys to holy shrines. 44:36 I may come to Jesus just as I am, sinful and unholy, 44:41 and He will not spurn the penitential prayer. 44:43 Thy sins be forgiven thee. 44:46 Mine, even mine, may be forgiven. 44:49 A tide of sacred joy would fill the heart, and the name of Jesus 44:53 would be magnified by praise and thanksgiving. 44:55 These happy souls returned to their homes to diffuse light, 44:59 to repeat to others as well as they could their new experience. 45:03 They had found the true and living way, and there was a 45:06 strange and solemn power in the words of Scripture that spoke 45:09 directly to the hearts of those who were longing for truth. 45:13 It was the voice of God, and it carried conviction to the hearts 45:17 of those who heard. 45:20 This is what the gospel should do. 45:24 This is the type of response that you should see when the 45:27 gospel is preached. 45:28 Because we have people in our own ranks that are in bondage. 45:34 We've got to help these folks. 45:37 We're not getting to heaven alone folks. 45:41 We need each other. 45:42 We need to know the gospel for ourselves so that other people 45:45 can know the hope that we have. 45:47 A Bible study friend of mine's experience; a woman we pulled 45:51 out of the Adventist Reform Movement, she was in the life 45:53 of bondage and miserable. 45:55 Because what they do is bag on the Adventist church for not 45:59 following all of thus saith the Lord's. 46:00 For not following the Spirit of Prophecy as they should. 46:03 But then they themselves are not following the Spirit of Prophecy 46:06 as they should in the way in which they share. 46:08 They're tyrants! And this woman with... That was her first 46:12 exposure to Adventism. 46:13 And she's had years of misery, years of tyrannical misery, 46:19 because she's never going to be good enough for God. 46:21 All they keep talking about is the fact that you'd 46:23 better get it right. 46:25 You'd better get it right because the day is coming 46:26 when, no Jesus for you! 46:28 You've got to fight in your own strength. 46:29 You've got to fight in your own armor. 46:31 And you'd better be good enough to make it. 46:32 Which is not the way that Ellen White describes this process. 46:36 Us being without a mediator; the role of a mediator was to 46:39 transfer sin from outside the Sanctuary into the Sanctuary. 46:43 That's all! Jesus says He'll never leave you nor forsake you. 46:46 He doesn't stop loving you. 46:47 The difference is there's no need for sin to be transferred 46:50 into the Sanctuary for the beloved of God. 46:52 They're sealed, they're ready, and the work has to be finished. 46:56 Do you understand me? 46:57 Jesus is cleansing the Sanctuary that can't be continually 47:00 dirtied while He's cleansing. 47:02 But God is preparing His people to stand in that day. 47:05 It's not a crap shoot. 47:06 I just don't know, I just hope that then I'll 47:08 be someone different. 47:09 You're going to be then who you are today. 47:11 So take advantage of those decisions you have today. 47:14 Receive from God the grace of God for today, 47:17 and ask Him to make you who you need to be today. 47:20 And if you're doing this every day you'll be who 47:23 you need to be then. Amen? 47:25 Ah, it just frustrates me! 47:27 Anyway, so this lady when I explained to her the stuff 47:30 I'm telling you right now, she literally stopped. 47:32 She put her head on her kitchen table and she cried. 47:37 And she cried, and cried, and cried because for the first 47:42 time in her life she saw that she could actually be saved. 47:50 We can't do this to people! 47:52 It's torture. It's abuse. 47:54 If it was done in any other form than spiritual, you should go to 47:58 jail for something like that. 48:04 What she came to see is that she could find rest in Jesus, 48:08 but rest is not inactivity. 48:10 Don't get freaked out by the word rest. 48:12 That's why a lot of us are so anxious. 48:14 We hate that word because it sounds like 48:16 I don't get to do anything. 48:19 I don't get the ownership of what happens. 48:21 You shouldn't have any ownership. 48:22 If you did you'd be in the same old covenant 48:24 problem you had before. 48:25 Resting in Jesus is choosing to receive His faithfulness, 48:30 His surrender, His peace, and His rest. 48:34 We need rest, you all. 48:36 We're Seventh-day Adventists. 48:38 We believe in rest. 48:40 Some of us keep two days. 48:41 We sleep on Sunday, too, don't we? Right? 48:44 We believe in rest. 48:46 My friend calls it the Adventist day of rest because then you can 48:49 like sleep in, because you have to come to church on Sabbath. 48:51 But rest is not inactivity. 48:54 You actually do more when God is working through you. 48:57 The people who have rest in God are the people who do 49:00 the most work for God. 49:03 So don't be afraid of the word rest. 49:05 It's not inactivity. 49:06 Now Romans, Chapter 8... Oh my! 49:10 Romans, Chapter 8... I want to be a good boy. 49:13 I want to be under sixty minutes. 49:14 Pray for me, would you? 49:15 Romans, Chapter 8, beginning in Verse 3. 49:17 We're almost there. 49:19 Why only three slides? 49:20 I've got plenty of time. 49:21 Romans, Chapter 8. I love this text now. 49:25 After giving this background, this is the beauty 49:27 of Romans, Chapter 8. 49:29 I'm actually beginning at Verse 1. 49:55 Jesus had a nature like ours. 49:57 It could have fallen. 49:58 And He overcame sin in the flesh. 50:01 And you know how? By continually abiding in God. 50:05 By continually yielding His power of choice and decision 50:08 to God, and by continually receiving from God power 50:11 to do the right thing. 50:13 He said, Of Myself I can do how much? nothing. 50:17 Jesus was totally dependent upon God. 50:19 So when you get yourself in trouble, it's when you say, 50:22 I got it. I need to. I ought. 50:25 That's what leads to our ineptitudes. 50:27 We need to recognize that I know that God wants me to 50:30 obey, and expects me obedience of me, but I also have to be 50:33 humble enough to acknowledge the fact that I'm 50:35 not capable of that. 50:36 And I'm going to have to come to God to receive it. 50:38 That's the difference. 50:40 Are you understanding? 50:41 We're not downplaying obedience. 50:42 We're actually uplifting obedience, 50:44 because this one is actually possible. 50:45 This is the only gospel in which obedience is possible. 50:51 We're lifting up the law. 50:52 We're lifting up the God of the law. 50:54 We're not downplaying obedience. 50:55 We're explaining the process. 50:57 And by not giving practical education to our people, 51:01 by theorizing them to death we're killing them. 51:04 We, we're killing our church members by not giving practical, 51:10 line by line instruction on how to live holy lives. 51:12 Don't downplay the expectations of God. 51:18 Uplift how God enables you to do the expectations of God, 51:22 and uplift the loveliness of Jesus who made that possible, 51:27 and this process will be successful. 51:30 Continuing... So Jesus overcame sin in the flesh. 51:33 He condemned it in the flesh. 51:35 And here's why in Verse 4. So... 51:44 God wants you to walk in obedience to the commandments. 51:46 But the only way that's possible is by acknowledging your 51:49 ineptitude, and by recognizing that Jesus alone is sufficient. 51:53 Jesus succeeds so that you could keep the law. 51:56 So obedience is something God wants. 51:58 But this is how it works. Verse 6. 52:17 Now, some of you may be thinking, that, yeh that's all 52:20 well and good, but that can't be talking about me. 52:23 Because you don't know my story. 52:25 I've done some really dastardly things. 52:28 I'm an awful person. 52:30 This cannot apply to me. 52:31 The promises of God apply to everyone else, but not me. 52:34 And there are people in our own church that feel this way. 52:37 And they are not bad people for feeling this way. 52:39 They need to be loved, and encouraged, and overwhelmed 52:42 with the loveliness of Jesus, and the acceptance 52:46 as listed in the gospel. 52:47 But God anticipates this type of response. 52:51 And do you know what the very next thing is 52:53 that's in Scripture? 52:54 It's Ezekiel 37 and the dry bones. 52:57 Some of you may be thinking that has 52:59 nothing to do with this. 53:00 I beg to differ. Oh, contraire mon frere, I would say. 53:05 Read with me, would you? Ezekiel 37. 53:13 Valleys were always places of discouragement. 53:53 Very similar to Ezekiel 36. 54:10 This is what many false revivals look like. 54:13 A whole lot of noise, a whole lot of action, 54:16 but it's lacking the power of God. 54:19 And so he continues. Verse 9. 54:44 I venture to say that what the Seventh-day Adventist church, 54:47 the remnant church of God needs right now is this very breath; 54:51 the outpouring of God to give us strength to be an exceedingly 54:55 strong and big army to finish the work that 54:58 He's asked us to do. 55:44 When God gets a hold of people and transforms them 55:47 everybody takes notice. 55:48 This is why God said, And then all the world will know Me 55:52 when I'm hallowed in you before their eyes. 55:54 That's what it looks like. 55:55 This is what God wants to give to everyone in this room today. 55:59 If you've been wrestling with the expectations of God, 56:03 but haven't gotten where you wanted to go, 56:04 there's good news for you today. 56:06 It's called the new covenant. 56:08 It's the covenant He made with Abraham. 56:10 It's the covenant He longs to make with you. 56:13 Remember, He's your husband. 56:15 Maybe you've been a perpetual breaker of that covenant. 56:20 Maybe you feel as dead as the bones in the 56:24 middle of the valley. 56:26 There's good news for you today. 56:28 There's a God in heaven who's creative powers know no bounds, 56:33 and who loves you more than His own eternal existence, 56:36 who has what's necessary to make you what you need to be. 56:40 But the big variable today is what will you do with 56:44 the promises of God? 56:47 What will you do when He asks you to rise, 56:50 take up your matt and walk? 56:52 Will you believe Him? 56:55 Will you act upon His word and receive strength? 56:59 His encouragement and His appeal to you today is, 57:02 Please take Me up on My offer. 57:05 I will also let the house of Israel inquire of Me to do 57:10 this for them, He says. 57:12 That's available to you. 57:14 If this is something that you would like to partake of, I just 57:17 want to invite you to stand with me as we close in prayer. 57:28 Oh Father, I thank You that the love of Jesus, 57:31 that the love of the Father know no bounds. 57:34 That You're willing to do all that is necessary to transform 57:38 our lives, but You need access, You need permission. 57:41 You need permission from us at the heart wound, 57:49 and at the will level. 57:50 And I just pray that we would take that seriously today. 57:54 That we would recognize that responding to the promptings 57:57 of the Holy Spirit, that responding to the conviction 58:00 of the Holy Spirit is not something to be afraid of. 58:03 And that if God is asking something of us, with the asking 58:07 is the power to do, both to will and to do according to 58:12 Your good pleasure. 58:13 God our wills need help. 58:15 We are not like Jesus. 58:17 We are so independent. 58:18 We are so self-sufficient that we do not realize how 58:22 desperately dependent upon You we are for any good thing. 58:26 I pray that that would change today; 58:28 that we would see our own nothingness so that we can be 58:31 clothed with the righteousness of Christ. 58:34 Forgive our sin of independence. 58:36 Forgive our sin of unbelief, which is what the Spirit 58:40 came to convict us of. 58:41 Of not believing the things about us that God believes. 58:44 Save us, Oh God, I pray. 58:47 Cover those sins with the blood of Jesus. 58:50 And I prophesy to the breath today. 58:53 I'm praying that You would send that breath to revive us, 58:56 to awaken us, and that there would be an exceedingly great 59:00 army ready to finish the work that You've 59:02 laid out for us to do. 59:03 And I ask this in Jesus' name, Amen. |
Revised 2017-10-24