Participants:
Series Code: TWH
Program Code: TWH000041A
|
00:01 Music...
00:31 The message this morning is entitled: The Exchange Rate. 00:35 I'd like to invite you to bow your heads with me 00:36 before we go to our Scripture 00:38 because I want to include that in our message. 00:41 "Father in heaven, this morning as we open your word 00:44 we pray that you'll open our hearts. 00:47 As the song was sung this morning, 00:49 'Lord change us' 00:52 we don't just want to be members 00:55 and workers in your kingdom, 00:57 we don't want to just be good at what we do 01:01 for your kingdom 01:02 not even our gifts do we want to boast 01:05 and put before our relationship with you 01:08 and so this morning, Lord, help us to understand 01:12 the great need for change in our hearts 01:16 and in our walk with you, in Jesus' name, amen. " 01:22 Audience: Amen. 01:23 Acts chapter 3 verse 19 01:26 is where our Scripture is taken from this morning, 01:28 Acts chapter 3 verse 19 01:31 and I'm reading from the New King James Version... 01:34 very short but potent text in the Bible. 01:38 As many of you might know, 01:41 a lot of my sermons come out of my own personal study life, 01:46 and I think it's important that everyone of us has a study life. 01:49 That means on a day-by-day basis 01:52 if you're not getting into the Word of God... 01:54 the Word of God is not getting into you. 01:56 Pause. 01:57 If you're not getting into the Word of God, 01:59 the Word of God is not getting into you. 02:02 The Word of God is the best prepared meal 02:05 but you have to digest it, 02:07 you've got to eat it 02:10 you've got to chew it, 02:12 ingest it... masticate it 02:15 in order for it to be of benefit to you. 02:17 It's this short but very potent scripture in the Bible 02:20 is the pivotal point between where we are 02:24 and where God wants us to be. 02:25 Acts 3 verse 19 communicates as follows, 02:29 "Repent therefore and be converted, 02:33 that your sins may be blotted out, 02:37 so that times of refreshing may come 02:41 from the presence of the Lord. " 02:44 In 2017, Angie and I celebrated our 34th anniversary... 02:50 wedding anniversary... 02:52 praise the Lord we don't look like it... 02:53 but we went to the Cayman Islands. 02:57 Pause. 02:59 We hadn't really been there before 03:02 except in a few hours in a cruise that we had gone on 03:05 a number of years before, 03:06 but the beach was so nice and so pleasant, 03:09 we thought, "Where could we spend our 34th anniversary?" 03:12 So we decided to go to the Cayman Islands. 03:14 We enjoyed our time there but there was one small detail 03:19 that proved not to be so small when we look back on it 03:23 because had we realized 03:26 that the exchange rate was not in our favor, 03:30 we would not have gone there. 03:32 When we went to get our money exchanged, 03:36 we discovered that their money was more powerful than ours 03:40 and that the US dollar 03:42 lost its strength to this little small country 03:46 called the Grand Caymans. 03:48 Hindsight... we would have done things quite differently 03:53 had we understood the exchange rate. 03:56 The issues was not that we didn't... 03:59 the issue is not that we did not enjoy our time there, 04:02 the issue was... we did not understand our impact... 04:06 the impact of our decision to go to the Cayman Islands. 04:10 We did not understand the impact 04:12 until our money was converted. 04:14 In the very same way, 04:17 until we are converted as Christians, 04:20 we don't understand the impact of our decisions. 04:24 Pause. 04:26 Decisions seem often small... 04:28 and as I looked at this very idea, 04:31 the Lord was impressing it upon me, 04:34 you know, one of the ways that you could know 04:37 that God is speaking to you 04:39 is when He brings to your mind 04:41 topics that you don't want to talk about. 04:44 Pause. 04:46 The proof that God's Word is inspired 04:48 is it doesn't consider what you want to hear... 04:51 it just tells you what you need to hear. 04:53 Audience: Amen. 04:54 And as I'm studying the Word of God, 04:56 pause 04:58 He begins to speak to me in ways that I know 05:01 that the Bible was not designed to fit me 05:05 but the Bible was designed to file me... 05:08 to get me to fit to be like Jesus. 05:11 In modern Christendom, 05:13 conversion is not emphasized as it ought to be 05:16 and on the other hand 05:17 conversion is not understood as it should be. 05:22 When Angie and I went to Australia the very first time, 05:25 Angie took her curling iron 05:28 and I took my little electric mustache trimmer... 05:32 I like to keep my mustache trimmed, 05:33 small detail... 05:35 and we looked on the internet 05:38 to find out what kind of plugs they used in Australia 05:41 so that our plugs could fit into the wall, 05:44 we got the right plug... 05:46 it fit on the end of our American plug, 05:48 so that it could fit into the different shape in Australia... 05:53 we plugged it in and in about 10 seconds 05:58 my little trimmer began to smoke 06:01 and Angie's curling iron got so hot, 06:03 it melted the plastic. 06:05 Audience: Laughing. 06:07 Pause. 06:09 And I learned a valuable lesson out of that, Luis, 06:12 our devices were connected but they were not converted. 06:17 Audience: Agreeing. 06:19 Pause. 06:20 In the same way, 06:22 we may have a connection with Christ, 06:26 but if we're not converted, 06:27 the results can be just as disastrous. 06:31 A consumed Christian experience 06:34 pause... 06:38 now if the Lord kept digging me deeper 06:40 into this hole of conversion 06:42 and I say "hole" 06:43 because when the Lord gets you in a "hole" 06:47 He leaves you there so He can talk to you 06:50 and when you get out of the hole that God encased you in, 06:54 you know that you are different afterward 06:57 than you were before. 06:59 Pause. 07:02 We often associate deliverance with conversion 07:05 but deliverance and conversion are not the same thing. 07:09 Deliverance from where we used to be... 07:12 deliverance from what we used to do 07:14 and conversion are not the same thing. 07:17 Go with me to the book of Exodus for a brief moment. 07:20 Consider the Israelites in the example. 07:23 Exodus chapter 3 verse 7 and 8. 07:26 Exodus chapter 3 verse 7 and 8... 07:29 When we face trials and difficulties in our lives, 07:33 and we call out to God... 07:34 you know that we are told by the Apostle 07:37 that whosoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be... 07:41 what? 07:43 Shall be saved... that's a standard... 07:45 God promises to deliver us when we call him, 07:47 I want you to pay attention this morning 07:49 but deliverance from what hell does 07:53 and conversion are not the same thing. 07:56 Look at Exodus chapter 3 verse 7 and 8... 07:59 follow carefully... the Lord wants you to be converted too. 08:02 "And the Lord said: 08:04 'I have surely seen the oppression of My people 08:07 who are in Egypt... '" 08:08 whenever we are not where God wants us to be, 08:11 we will be oppressed 08:13 "... and I've heard their cry because of their taskmasters" 08:17 their slave masters... 08:20 "and I know their sorrows. 08:22 So I have come down to deliver them 08:25 out of the hand of the Egyptians, 08:29 and to bring them up from that land 08:31 to a good and large land, 08:33 to a land flowing with milk and honey. 08:36 To the place of the Canaanites and the Hittites 08:40 and the Amorites and the Perizzites 08:41 and the Hivites and the Jebusites. " 08:43 Whenever God leads us, 08:45 He always takes us to a better place than He finds us 08:49 pause 08:52 but taking us to a better place in location 08:57 and taking us to a different place spiritually 09:01 is not always the same thing. 09:03 The fact of the matter is, 09:04 God saw Israel's slavery under Pharaoh 09:07 and in mercy He delivered them from Egypt 09:10 and Deuteronomy 6:21 says, 09:11 "We were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt 09:14 and the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand, 09:17 did God bring you out with a mighty hand? 09:21 Pause. 09:24 Any time we call on God to deliver us, 09:27 He will deliver us. 09:30 The Psalmist, David, in Psalm 34 verse 17 says it this way, 09:35 the righteous cry out and the Lord hears 09:40 and delivers them out of all their troubles. 09:45 How much of their troubles? 09:46 All their troubles... 09:49 and when you look at your life 09:50 to where you were and where you are today, 09:52 praise God that His promises are true. 09:54 Pause. 09:56 Whenever we call, He delivers us out of all of our troubles 10:00 pause 10:02 but going back to the example of the Israelites 10:04 and even to us sometimes, 10:06 God delivered them from the "where" of their slavery 10:10 but they still needed to be delivered 10:12 from the "what" of their slavery. 10:14 He delivered them from the location of their bondage 10:18 but there was another bondage 10:21 that they yet needed to be delivered from... 10:24 God delivers us from the "where" of our slavery 10:27 but until we are delivered from the "what" of our slavery, 10:32 hear me carefully... we will eventually go back. 10:35 Until we are delivered from what binds us internally, 10:40 pause 10:42 where we were bound 10:44 will eventually appear to be a delightful place to be. 10:48 God did not just want to deliver the Israelites from Egypt 10:53 physically... 10:54 He wanted to deliver them from Egypt spiritually. 10:58 Look at Numbers 14 verse 34. 11:02 Numbers 14 verse 34, 11:05 when you look at the journey of the Israelites 11:08 in Exodus, Leviticus, Deuteronomy, Numbers 11:11 they all cover the story of the journey of the Israelites 11:15 but there was something about 11:17 the internal condition in their lives 11:21 that was far more important 11:24 than the physical location of their lives 11:27 making the point... 11:28 there are some people that are serving time 11:30 in prisons around us... in jails around us 11:33 and some of them are freer than you. 11:35 Pause. 11:39 I've met inmates that said, 11:41 "If I wasn't in here, I would never know Jesus" 11:43 and they come to the Services... 11:46 Luis and all of those of you who are involved in Prison Ministry 11:48 and then... in going to these places, 11:51 they don't really have to go to the Services. 11:54 They're not getting paid to go, but they go 11:57 and they stay awake and they say, "Hallelujah" 12:00 and they say, "Thank you Jesus" 12:03 and they love the Lord and they are... 12:06 they are in the place of their bondage 12:09 but they're not bond... 12:11 but they're not in bondage in the place that they are. 12:13 Audience: Amen. 12:15 They are free in Jesus. 12:16 The Israelites were delivered from Egypt 12:19 and they acknowledged God's deliverance 12:21 but look at Numbers 14 verse 3 and 4. 12:24 Pause. 12:25 They began to complain, 12:27 God brought them from where 12:29 they asked Him to deliver them from, 12:31 but they had not had an internal change yet 12:35 and they began to complain. 12:37 You know, sometimes you have to give God time to change you. 12:42 Look at what they said in verse 3 of Numbers 14. 12:46 They complained, "Why has the Lord... 12:49 Why has the Lord brought us to this land 12:52 to fall by the sword, 12:53 that our wives and children should become victims?" 12:57 Look at the mentality. 13:00 "Would it not be better for us... " 13:04 to do what? 13:05 "return to Egypt. 13:07 So they said to one another, 13:08 'Let us select a leader and return to Egypt. '" 13:14 Four hundred years of generational slavery... 13:19 begging to be delivered... 13:21 pause... 13:25 but when God's deliverance did not match their preference, 13:30 they decided it was better that we go back to where we were 13:36 than where we are now. 13:37 That's why until we turn from how we live, 13:43 we will return to where we lived. 13:46 Pause. 13:48 Until we turn from how we lived, 13:51 pause 13:53 we will eventually return to where we live. 13:56 God took them out of Egypt 13:58 but they didn't give God time to take Egypt out of them. 14:04 Pause. 14:07 And many of us are in the same place. 14:08 This is where the Christian journey comes in. 14:12 You know, if you remember the story, 14:15 it was not a long distance, 14:18 it was maybe less than a month, 14:20 they could have been from Egypt to Canaan 14:22 in a short period of time. 14:24 But the duration of their journey from Egypt to Canaan 14:28 was lengthened because God knew 14:31 that for most of them it would take time to work out 14:35 what Egypt worked in. 14:37 Pause. 14:40 More pause. 14:44 I remember... I want to make a reference to this, 14:47 I remember when 'Coming Out' Ministries was here 14:49 and Wayne... 14:53 come on, give me Wayne's last name... 14:55 Wayne Blakely... we did an afternoon seminar 14:58 just to give you an evidence of this. 15:00 Sometimes it takes time to work out 15:03 what Egypt worked in. 15:04 Pause. 15:06 When I first gave my life to the Lord, 15:08 I still wanted to party... 15:10 I'm not going to be there... I still went to parties... 15:14 I even went to church to figure out 15:16 if I could still go to church and still party, 15:18 and I couldn't do that. 15:20 So, I had to eventually give up the partying life 15:23 and the gambling life and the pool hustling life... 15:25 had to give it up... 15:27 because I couldn't find a church where I could do that 15:29 and still serve God. 15:30 Sometimes it takes time to work out 15:34 what the world has worked in. 15:36 We had an afternoon seminar here with 'Coming Out' Ministries 15:39 and they did a wonderful job and people... 15:41 we got to the question-and-answer period, 15:44 and I'll never forget it, 15:45 if you were here you'll remember exactly 15:47 as I make reference to it. 15:48 Somebody asked a question, they said to Wayne, 15:51 because he came out of the Gay Life, 15:53 pause 15:54 and they said, "Are you ever tempted?" 15:59 And he responded, "Are you?" 16:03 Temptation is not sin, come on say, "amen. " 16:08 Audience: Amen. 16:09 It is your response to it, 16:11 but when God is bringing you out, 16:13 he knows how much time is needed 16:16 to get you from where He found you 16:19 to be in the condition to where He's leading you. 16:23 Audience: Amen. 16:24 It takes time to work out what Egypt worked in. 16:27 That is why the Apostle Paul refers to 16:30 the Christian life as "work out" 16:32 go to Philippians 2 and verse 12, 16:33 look at this, it's very... very powerful Scripture. 16:36 Philippians 2 and verse 12. 16:38 I'm not going to read verse 13 because we always default 16:41 "For it is God who works in us 16:43 both to will and to do of His good pleasure. " 16:45 Yes, God works in us 16:47 but there's something that we've got to do 16:49 pause 16:51 to be able to have a different kind of Christian walk. 16:54 For example, your Bible is not going to read you, 16:56 oh, sorry, your Bible will read you... 16:59 if you don't read your Bible, it will read you, 17:02 it's the only book that will tell you about yourself 17:04 when you don't read it. 17:06 But notice this passage. 17:08 Philippians 2 and verse 12, 17:10 "Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, 17:14 not as in my presence only, 17:16 but now much more in my absence... " 17:20 look at what he said, 17:21 "work out your own salvation with fear and trembling... " 17:27 what did he say? 17:29 "work it out... " 17:31 In other words, God put it in but you got to work it out. 17:34 My mother made bread really well... 17:38 the West-Indian mother... not my natural mother... 17:40 the lady who raised me... she knew how to make bread. 17:43 She would say, "Put the... put the... put the flour in... 17:46 okay... put the stick of butter... 17:48 put the yeast... put the vanilla... " 17:50 and I would... I would put it in and she'd work it out 17:54 pause... 17:56 see, God puts ingredients into our lives 17:58 that we've got to knead in there, 18:00 anybody know what I'm taking about? 18:02 Audience: Amen. 18:03 You've got to knead it in there 18:04 because you can't just put all the right ingredients 18:06 together without... without blending them 18:09 with the effort of your daily life, 18:11 we often make the mistake 18:13 to say that Christianity is an effortless life 18:16 but if you are a Christian, 18:18 you know that it's a life that requires effort. 18:20 Audience: Amen. 18:22 You... all you to do to be lost is nothing. 18:24 Pause... 18:26 Just do nothing and you'll be lost. 18:29 Pause. 18:31 As Elder Brooks once said, 18:33 "Some people are just too lazy to be saved. " 18:36 Pause. 18:37 All the opportunities granted to them to grow... 18:39 they don't even show up. 18:40 Pause. 18:42 But this whole "workout thing" I decided to take it further 18:44 because when the word "workout" jumped out at me, 18:47 I thought, "workout... " 18:48 15-minute workout... 18:50 10-minute working... 18:51 5- minute workout... 18:52 and so, I thought, "Well, what about an exercise workout 18:58 can be associated with our spiritual workout... 19:01 and I went to Quora. com 19:05 May 18th 2014 19:07 and I found a very interesting statistic 19:09 that fits into the workout. 19:10 "Americans spend between 40 and 50 billion dollars 19:15 annually on weight loss. 19:17 Pause. 19:18 Many studies suggest that 19:20 between 60 percent and 90 of that... 19:23 90 percent of that... 19:24 is wasted on ineffective dieting 19:28 where the weight comes back within one to two years. 19:30 The average cost of a Gym membership in the United States 19:34 is 55 dollars a month. 19:36 Pause. 19:38 The part that gets appalling is that 19:41 60 percent or more of Gym memberships 19:44 of Gym members never use their membership. " 19:49 They become members and they never use their membership. 19:55 How many of you become members 19:57 and never use your membership? 20:00 Pause. 20:02 "Gym membership sales peak in January every year 20:06 and within 90 days 20:09 a majority of the people who signed up in January 20:13 have stopped attending the Gym altogether. " 20:16 How many people have become members? 20:19 In just a matter of time, their membership is inactive 20:24 for various reasons. 20:26 The reason is, many quit the workout phase 20:33 of their commitment to Christ. 20:34 Many quit the workout phase of their commitment to Christ. 20:40 I want to tell you, 20:41 it is when you're not working out through a prayer life 20:46 and a study life 20:48 and a life that says, "Lord, show me... me... " 20:52 when you're not doing that, 20:54 when you're not waiting before God, 20:56 when you... when you read your Bible, 20:58 when you... when you slither to your knees 21:01 on the side of your bed 21:02 and you wait there for God to show you... you... 21:06 I want to tell you, it's going to do something to you. 21:08 It's going to bring you to a place that you know 21:12 is not a place you want to be but when you get there 21:15 and God works on you 21:17 you begin to desire more and more to be at that place. 21:20 Pause. 21:23 So many Christians quit the workout phase 21:27 of their commitment to Christ. 21:29 Far too many Christians have the same habits 21:31 as those of health clubs... 21:33 they go no further in signing up for a membership. 21:36 Pause. 21:41 Well, I didn't stop there in the end of the year... 21:43 I decided to go further and click on some other links 21:45 and down at the bottom of the question... 21:47 at the bottom there were some questions 21:49 and one of the questions that was asked 21:52 pause 21:54 I appreciated the answer 21:55 because the answer to the question that was asked 21:57 to the health club Manager all applies to Christians. 21:59 The question was, 22:01 "What is the best way to stay fit?" 22:03 And the answer was one word, "Discipline. " 22:07 What's that word? Discipline 22:10 from which we get the word Disciple. 22:13 Disciples... if you are a disciple of Christ, 22:18 you've got to have a disciplined life. 22:20 I mean, doesn't that fit when it comes to production? 22:23 Doesn't it fit in everything else? 22:25 Don't you have a discipline 22:27 when you are scheduled to pick somebody at the airport? 22:28 Don't we all have disciplines in the work we do? 22:30 Amen. 22:32 But if you don't apply discipline to your life, 22:34 you can never be a disciple of Christ 22:36 because there's no discipline in your life. 22:38 Look at Matthew 16 verse 24, 22:41 in the very same way, 22:43 a fit Christian has to adhere to the same spiritual standard 22:47 discipline. 22:48 Look at this... 22:50 Matthew 16:24, the Bible says, 22:52 "Then Jesus said to His disciples, 22:55 'If anyone desires to come after Me, 22:59 let him deny himself... " 23:01 let him do what? Audience: Deny himself. 23:04 "... deny himself, and take up his cross, 23:06 and follow Me. " 23:07 Luke says, "Daily" and I want to tell you... 23:11 I want to tell you that journey has to be daily, 23:14 that commitment of discipline has to be what? 23:18 Daily. 23:19 The day that you... the day that you omit that discipline, 23:23 you remembered at the end of the day 23:26 that you omitted the very thing that you should have done 23:29 and you see the result 23:31 of a lack of discipline in your spiritual life 23:33 and I'm going to tell you this, 23:35 the world is designed to break our discipline from Christ 23:38 and give us a discipline for the world 23:40 and by-the-way, you know what? 23:42 So many of us have a discipline for the world... 23:44 we remember the time our favorite programs come on 23:47 and we're there. 23:48 I remember once when... 23:50 I forgot what the ridiculous Soap Opera was, 23:54 pause... 23:56 yeah... it was... "Dallas" years ago 23:58 remember that ridiculous movie... 24:00 you young people relax... 24:01 but it was that movie, "Dallas" 24:04 and... and the whole Series was ended, 24:06 they were setting you up for the fall series 24:08 and the big question at the end of the... 24:10 at the end of the spring series was, "Who shot JR? 24:14 It will be revealed on the Season ender" 24:17 and it happened on a Wednesday night 24:19 pause 24:22 and I noticed a dip in Wednesday night 24:24 and I said, "What happened?" 24:25 They said, "It was the last episode of JR" 24:27 I said, "Of who?" 24:29 They said, "JR." 24:32 "Jr... who is Jr?" 24:34 "Well, who shot JR? We want to find out. " 24:37 While we are wondering about who shot JR, 24:39 the devil is shooting us. 24:41 Audience: Yes. 24:43 But my point is, 24:45 we have established a worldly discipline 24:48 that far too many of us are true to the disciplines of earth 24:53 more than we are true to the disciplines of heaven. 24:57 We have no discipline... and that's why we've become lukewarm 25:00 one moment we're hot... one moment we're cold... 25:05 and the Lord doesn't know 25:07 which tea cup we're going to bring to Him 25:08 so He says, "You know, this is lukewarm, 25:10 I'm not even going to drink this stuff... I'm spitting it out" 25:13 and unfortunately He's not spitting it out 25:16 but He's spitting us out. 25:17 Pause. 25:20 This quotation that I read 25:22 pause 25:26 in the book "Evangelism. " 25:29 Listen to the quote. 25:31 "Desire for goodness and true holiness is right 25:36 as far as it goes... " 25:37 pause 25:39 I'll tell you in a moment... 25:41 but to stop here will avail nothing. 25:43 Good purposes are right 25:46 but will prove to no avail 25:49 unless determinedly carried out. 25:53 Many will be lost while hoping and desiring to be Christians 25:59 pause 26:00 but they carry their efforts no further, 26:04 therefore, we'll be weighed in the balance and found wanting 26:10 the will must be exercised... " 26:14 must be what? 26:15 "exercised in the right direction. " 26:18 Pause. 26:20 "The strength of the Christian life 26:22 has everything to do with the direction. " 26:24 Pause. 26:27 The journey of the Israelites 26:29 had to do with the right direction. 26:31 The journey of the Christian 26:32 has to do with the right direction. 26:35 Audience: Amen. 26:36 Everything about our life 26:38 has to do with the right direction 26:39 but the thing that I want to point out here is 26:42 desire is the precursor to direction. 26:46 Desire... what are you thinking? 26:48 what... what... what is your mind focused on 26:52 that's determining which way you lean... 26:54 because it doesn't take a great lean 26:57 to go in the wrong direction. 26:58 I remember when pilots... 27:00 you know, we go to the airport... 27:01 we fly a lot... 27:03 when a plane takes off 27:05 it may take off from the same airport in St. Louis 27:07 but after takeoff... 27:09 it may just take off and go four degrees 27:10 in a different direction than the other plane 27:13 and when they leave the airport, you can see the other plane 27:15 but give them 15 minutes, you won't see it 27:17 because you start out in just a few degrees different, 27:21 the longer you journey, the farther apart you get 27:24 and sometimes all you see is this smoke trail. 27:27 In the very same way, 27:28 in your life on a day-by-day basis 27:30 if your desire to go in the wrong direction 27:33 makes you lean in the wrong direction, 27:35 like the Israelites and like many of the disciples 27:38 that went back and walked with Jesus no more 27:40 desire was the precursor to the direction of their lives. 27:46 However, desire... 27:49 without an action in the right direction, 27:53 will produce the same results 27:55 as no desire to go in the right direction at all. 27:59 You might have the desire but with no actions... 28:03 you might as well give it to the desire, 28:04 in other words, 28:05 where there is no desire to go in the right direction, 28:08 until we acknowledge... 28:10 until we acknowledge that we're lacking the desire, 28:15 we will never have the desire awakened in us 28:18 to go in the right direction. 28:20 That's why I appreciate people when they say, 28:22 "Pastor, I'm having a hard time in my... 28:24 I'm having a hard time in my walk with Christ. " 28:26 I appreciate that... 28:27 because they know they have a need. 28:30 It's those people that you... 28:32 that don't ever express their challenges 28:34 that all of a sudden disappear... 28:36 When they say, "Whatever happened to so and so?" 28:37 "They were quiet... they just left" 28:39 they didn't say anything... 28:41 but it's when somebody says, "I'm having a hard time, 28:44 I'm challenged by something" 28:46 they know that the challenge is there 28:48 because they recognize... 28:50 they recognize that whatever the challenge is... 28:53 is adverse to where they want to be... 28:56 that's why it is a challenge. 28:58 Pause. 29:00 Whenever you are uncomfortable in your Christian experience, 29:02 it makes a difference 29:04 and direction has everything to do 29:07 that's why it's not enough to be in the Christian race, 29:11 you got to run in the right direction. 29:14 Amen. 29:15 I read a story entitled, "The Wrong Direction. " 29:18 On September 4th, 2011, at the Louisiana Downs Racetrack 29:24 at the sounding of the bell, a horse named "Secret Fly" 29:30 shook off the Jockey 29:32 and started running in the wrong direction 29:34 pause 29:36 the horse ran the entire race in the wrong direction 29:40 because it severed its connection 29:43 with the only one that would have guided it 29:46 in the right direction. 29:47 As Christians, sometimes we shake off Jesus 29:51 and we may run the entire race... 29:54 that horse ran the entire race... 29:56 later on I'll give you the link on YouTube... 29:59 it's an amazing thing to see 30:00 because they showed it from different angles 30:01 and they said... they avoided a near head-on collision 30:04 that horse... when it shook off its jockey. 30:07 it turned around... 30:08 and the other seven horses were going that... 30:10 the other nine horses were going that way... 30:12 that other horse took off at full speed 30:14 going in the other direction 30:16 and 2 minutes and 40 seconds into the race, 30:18 they almost had a near head-on collision. 30:21 It got back to where it started to run 30:24 thinking that it had finished its race 30:27 when it ran the entire race in the wrong direction. 30:30 Some of us are in the Christian race 30:33 and today I want to say, 30:35 "Some of us are running in the wrong direction. " 30:37 Pause. 30:39 But you'll never know that 30:40 unless you ask God to convert your mind... 30:44 to convert your life... 30:46 you won't even know that your direction is incorrect 30:51 unless you ask the Lord to convert you. 30:52 Pause. 30:54 More pause. 30:58 That's why Acts 3:19 is so vitally important. 31:00 I'll read it again. 31:03 "Repent therefore, and be converted, 31:06 that your sins may be blotted out, 31:09 so the time of refreshing may come 31:11 from the presence of the Lord. " 31:13 Repentance is a turn from something wrong... 31:18 conversion is a turn to something right. 31:22 Pause. 31:25 You know, God forgives. 31:26 "If you confess your sins, He is faithful and just to... " 31:29 do what? 31:30 "forgive you and cleanse you from all unrighteousness. " 31:33 Being sorrowful... 31:35 being sorrowful for the wrong thing you've done, 31:37 saying Lord, "I've sinned" 31:39 and asking for forgiveness is just the beginning 31:41 but if you have not been converted... 31:44 repentance is saying, 31:46 "I'm going in the wrong direction" 31:47 but conversion says, 31:49 "Now I'm going in the right direction" 31:51 pause 31:52 conversion means a total change in the direction of your life 31:57 both morally and spiritually. 31:59 Pause. 32:04 It means a change from a life 32:06 that didn't take God into account 32:08 to a life that takes God into account in everything. 32:12 I want you to think about that. 32:14 It takes God into account in the shows you watch 32:17 pause 32:19 and the places you go 32:21 and what you listen to... 32:22 pause 32:27 and how you eat... 32:28 how you dress... 32:29 You don't do those things to put the cart before the horse 32:35 but when you are converted, 32:37 the things that seem to be little in the lives of some 32:40 become magnanimous in your life 32:43 because you know that you cannot go in the wrong direction 32:46 not even by a single degree. 32:49 Isn't that right? 32:50 Conversion makes all the difference... 32:53 going in the right direction... 32:54 look at Deuteronomy chapter 4 verse 29 to 31. 32:58 I'll move right along here... 33:01 Deuteronomy 4 verse 29 to 31. 33:04 Pause. 33:07 This commitment to Christ is so vitally important. 33:09 Pause. 33:12 The promise of God is a wonderful thing, 33:17 notice verse 29 of Deuteronomy 4. 33:19 "But from there you will seek the Lord your God, 33:24 and you will find Him if you seek Him... " 33:27 with how much of your heart? 33:28 "... with all your heart and with all your soul. " 33:30 When you are in distress, and all these things come up... 33:35 come upon you in the latter days... " 33:39 look at this... 33:41 "when you... " what's the next word? 33:43 "turn" that's conversion... 33:45 that's the word "conversion" in the Hebrew, 33:49 "when you turn to the Lord... " 33:52 remember "conversion" is to turn to... 33:54 "when you turn to the Lord your God and obey His voice. 34:01 ...for the Lord your God is a merciful God, 34:04 He will not forsake you nor destroy you, 34:07 nor forget the covenant of your fathers 34:11 which He swore to them. " 34:13 Pause. 34:16 Conversion is not just a realization 34:19 that you are a Christian, 34:21 but a total change in the life 34:23 that accompanies your Christianity. 34:25 What kind of life do you have? 34:27 I can guarantee you that if your life 34:30 doesn't have a daily regiment in it, 34:32 you know, we say, "we are not saved by works" 34:35 oh yes, we are... 34:36 not by your works to save yourself 34:38 but the things you do on a day-by-day basis... 34:41 the works you include in your life... 34:42 will either demolish 34:44 or strengthen your Christian relationship. 34:46 Pause. 34:48 So if you don't think that they're works... 34:49 that's why the Apostle Paul when they argue about 34:51 "faith without works" 34:52 faith without works is dead... 34:54 show me your faith without your works 34:56 and I'll show you my faith by my works. 34:58 You can't have faith and have it devoid of works 35:01 because the baseball player that sits on... 35:04 that sits around in the uniform and a baseball bat and a glove 35:06 that never gets on the field is not a baseball player. 35:08 He's just got a nice uniform. 35:10 You can even buy the uniform... 35:12 I could look like a baseball player. 35:14 I was on the plane once during the time of the Olympics 35:17 about 15 years or 16 years ago, maybe more than that... 35:20 I think I was living in California at the time 35:23 and the American Olympics was... 35:25 you know the World Olympics was going on 35:27 and I was so excited... 35:28 I bought an Olympics jacket... 35:30 I had an Olympic cap... 35:32 I had an Olympic gym bag... 35:35 and I got on United Airlines 35:37 and the Flight Attendants treated me so nicely. 35:40 Audience: Smiling. 35:42 "Come Sir... 35:43 is there anything that you would like to drink before... " 35:44 and I wasn't in First Class 35:47 and the Flight Attendants looked at me and they smiled 35:51 not the... hmmm... different... 35:52 never happened before... 35:55 way before status... 35:57 so, I saw them looking and they were talking together 36:00 and one of the Flight Attendants came and got on her knees 36:03 and she said, "Sir now, 36:04 we had a question that we want to settle the answer to... " 36:07 now I had figured... but I don't know... 36:11 "Are you by any chance on the Olympic team?" 36:14 Audience: Laughter. 36:15 That is one of those moments when you think, 36:17 "Maybe I can lie and get away with it... 36:18 maybe I get a meal out of it... 36:20 I couldn't do that... " 36:23 I said, "Huh... no actually I'm not 36:28 pause 36:30 do I have to get off now?" 36:31 Audience: Laughter... 36:33 they were nice to me 36:35 but I looked the part... 36:37 I just wasn't the part 36:39 and it's not... it's not... 36:41 it's not enough to look the part of a Christian. 36:44 Some of us look at other people that don't look like us 36:47 and we say, "They don't look like Christians" 36:49 but they may be Christians, 36:51 you're judging the book by its cover... 36:54 you can't read its pages, amen, somebody. 36:56 Audience: Amen. 36:57 Conversion is not just a realization 36:59 that you are a Christian 37:01 but a total change in the life 37:02 that accompanies your Christianity. 37:05 You see, repentance is active change... 37:08 conversion is: change in action. 37:11 I read a story about John D. Rockefeller Sr. 37:17 his life is an example of change. 37:19 John D. Rockefeller was a young man 37:21 that early on decided that he was going to be wealthy. 37:24 Pause. 37:26 At 33 years old, he had his first million dollars 37:29 it was way back... 37:31 at 43 years old, 37:33 he was the owner of the biggest company in the world. 37:39 At 53 years old, he was the only billionaire in the world. 37:46 Now we have a whole lot of them, 37:48 it was a long time ago, a billion dollars was a lot. 37:50 When John D. Rockefeller Sr. was a little boy, 37:53 was 53 years old... 37:55 but all of a sudden... with all of his amassed wealth, 37:58 he developed a severe case of something called "Alopecia" 38:02 a severe case... 38:03 he not only lost his hair 38:05 but his body began go shrink to the point 38:08 where he started looking like a "mummy" the doctors said. 38:10 Pause. 38:13 This man made a million dollars a week at least, 38:16 but he got to the place where he could not sleep... 38:18 he stopped smiling... he could not enjoy life 38:21 pause 38:24 and he was so hated by people in Pennsylvania 38:28 that he had to hire a security guard 38:31 to guard him day and night. 38:33 With all that money all he could to eat was 38:36 crackers and drink milk... 38:38 couldn't even sleep... 38:39 one night... 38:44 the Lord spoke to Rockefeller and he said, 38:49 "When I came to the realization that I could not take one dime 38:54 of this money into the next world, 38:56 I had a change of attitude. " 38:58 The next morning, John D. Rockefeller woke up 39:01 with a different attitude... a different mindset... 39:03 he began helping churches... 39:05 he no longer overlooked the poor and the needy, 39:09 he established the Rockefeller Foundation 39:12 whose funding led to the discovery of Penicillin 39:15 and other wonder drugs 39:16 pause 39:19 and he finally was able to sleep and smile again 39:22 and his body stopped shrinking. 39:26 Pause. 39:28 The doctors predicted that when he got Alopecia at 53, 39:33 he would die at 54... 39:34 he died at 98... 39:35 Audience is amazed... 39:37 Audience: Praise God. 39:39 Before he was converted, he was overly wicked. 39:43 The wise man says in Ecclesiastes 7:14, 39:47 "Do not be overly wicked nor foolish, 39:50 why should you die before your time?" 39:52 He was overly wicked 39:55 but he had a conversion experience 39:57 and instead of dying a year later, 40:00 pause 40:01 he has a conversion experience about money and other people 40:05 and what really mattered 40:07 and way back then... to live till 98... 40:10 pause 40:12 and today when you read his memoires, 40:14 people have a different attitude about John D. Rockefeller. 40:16 Rockefeller Plaza stands erect in mid-town Manhattan. 40:23 You see, until he was changed, he was of no use, 40:28 he could not be used for good things. 40:30 That's why the Lord said in Luke 22:32 40:33 in the King James Version to Peter, 40:35 "When you are converted... 40:37 when you are converted, strengthen the brethren. " 40:40 We need conversion, come one somebody say, "Amen. " 40:42 Audience: Amen. 40:43 Like so many of us, Rockefeller... 40:45 and the same way we produce... 40:47 and we pursue a life of self-indulgence, 40:49 we never die to the old ways, 40:51 we never choose to submit to the changed life, 40:54 we never experience fulfillment that Jesus offers, 40:57 we never know what it's like 40:59 to be a positive impact on the lives of others, 41:01 we become self-absorbed 41:03 and conversion is the farthest thing away 41:06 because you know, as I read... as I read further, 41:08 conversion is not an easy thing. 41:12 It requires you to every day say to you... "no... 41:18 no, you can't have that... 41:20 no, you're not watching that... 41:21 no, that's not Godly... 41:23 no, don't think that... 41:25 no, that is not what a Christian does" 41:28 that's the convicting work of the presence of the Holy Spirit 41:32 but when you don't... when you're not converted, 41:34 you don't hear those voices. 41:35 Pause. 41:37 John 16 says, "He will convict you of sin 41:39 and of righteousness and of judgment" 41:41 the reason why conviction is missing... 41:43 without conviction, there's no conversion. 41:46 If you turn off the voice of the only One 41:47 that could lead you in the right direction, 41:49 it's like, stopping your ears... 41:51 expecting to hear somebody, it won't happen. 41:53 But what I like about conversion is... 41:57 I begin to wind up the messages, 41:58 conversion comes with temporal benefits 42:00 like as in the case of John D. Rockefeller 42:03 but its best benefit is eternal. 42:06 Look at Matthew 18 and verse 3. 42:08 This shows how widely important conversion is. 42:12 Conversion is powerfully necessary 42:16 if we ought to be Christians with heaven in front of us. 42:24 Matthew 18 verse 3, 42:26 Jesus said, "Assuredly, I say to you, 42:29 unless you are converted and become as... " what? 42:34 "little children, 42:36 you will be no means enter the kingdom of heaven. " 42:41 "If you're not converted and become like little children... " 42:44 and I wondered, "Okay, I accept the conversion part, 42:47 but what's with this 'little children' stuff, Jesus?" 42:50 And I discovered in the Word of God, 42:52 because He's sovereign and always has been, 42:55 He refers to us as "My little children" 42:57 but it's even deeper than that, 43:00 you see, little children are always dependent on somebody 43:04 bigger than them. 43:06 Pause. 43:08 How many of us are dependent on God 43:10 or are we trying to do it ourselves? 43:11 Little children are teachable... 43:14 how many of us are teachable? 43:17 Little children also keep no records of wrongs, 43:21 when two little children have a spat, 43:23 you say, "What happened?" 43:25 "He stole my popsicle... " 43:26 "He broke my car... " 43:28 "Just say you're sorry... " 43:29 "I'm sorry... " 43:31 "Okay, let's go play... " 43:32 that's how kids are. 43:33 But adults... that's why when you read the Bible, 43:35 the Bible didn't say, 43:37 "All we like lambs have gone astray... " 43:39 lambs are a symbol of Christ, 43:41 teachable... subtle... 43:43 "All we like sheep... " 43:45 sheep are grown up and hard-headed. 43:47 Do you know a sheep... 43:49 this is not... this is not normal... 43:51 this is not often... but a sheep will bite you... 43:55 yeah, you get a sheep mad at you... it will bite you. 43:58 Have you ever been bitten by another sheep in church? 44:01 Laughter... 44:06 "All we like sheep have gone astray" 44:09 that's why we have to become like little children... 44:11 we have to be like the lamb... Christ Jesus, 44:14 can you say, "Amen. " 44:15 Audience: Amen. 44:17 Little children... "Testimonies for the Church" 44:19 volume 4 page 534 and 535... 44:22 "Communion with God imparts to the soul 44:26 an intimate knowledge of His will 44:29 but many who profess the faith 44:32 know not what true conversion is. 44:35 They have no experience in communion with the Father 44:39 through Jesus Christ 44:40 and they have never felt the power of divine grace 44:44 to sanctify the heart. 44:45 Praying and sinning... sinning and praying... 44:49 their lives are full of malice, 44:51 deceit, envy, jealousy and self-love. " 44:54 Pause. 44:55 Praying and sinning... sinning and praying... 44:58 and that's the sum total of so many people's lives. 45:02 But what does conversion do? 45:04 Conversion is turning away from sin to righteousness. 45:09 Pause. 45:11 Conversion is turning away from idolatry... 45:14 putting nothing before your relationship with God. 45:18 Audience: Amen. 45:19 Conversion is turning away from unbelief to faith. 45:22 Conversion is turning your life over to Jesus... 45:26 putting Him in-charge of your daily day. 45:30 Putting your phone farther away from your bed 45:34 and your Bible closer. 45:35 Audience: Amen. 45:37 Shutting off the television and turning on Christ. 45:41 Closing your day and beginning your day with Jesus. 45:44 On your knees... asking God to reveal to you who you are. 45:48 Pause. 45:51 My wife and I... I think it was this week 45:53 earlier this week or maybe later last week, 45:55 she said, "I'm going to heaven. " 45:58 I said, "I'm going with you. " 46:01 Amen... anybody want to go to heaven? 46:03 Audience: Amen. 46:04 You can't go unless you're converted... 46:07 conversion produces a transformed life 46:10 and what I love about conversion... 46:13 the one thing that the Lord revealed to me last night, 46:17 "Conversion is the realization that you are no longer 46:21 who you used to be. " 46:23 Pause. 46:25 1st Peter 2 verse 9 and 10 says it this way, 46:29 "To the person that's converted... " 46:30 this text is not referred to church membership, 46:34 this text refers to conversion. 46:37 "But you are a chosen generation, 46:41 a royal priesthood, a holy nation, 46:45 His own special people, 46:47 that you may proclaim the praises of Him 46:52 who called you out of... " what? 46:54 "... darkness into His marvelous light... " 46:57 and look at the conversion part... 47:00 "who once were not a people 47:03 but are now the people of God" 47:06 what turned in their lives... 47:08 "who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy. " 47:13 Amen... somebody... 47:15 Audience: Amen. 47:16 We find a quotation... it's a beautiful one... 47:19 Manuscript 75... 47:20 in the year 1897, 47:21 the servant of the Lord wrote these words in paragraph 5. 47:25 "The converting power of God must come into the church 47:30 to bless the members before they can be made a blessing... 47:33 The converting power of God must come into the church 47:37 to bless the members before they can be made a blessing. 47:41 Individual... daily conversion... 47:45 accomplishes everything for the members of Christ's body 47:51 for it brings us daily into divine relationship with Himself 47:57 and the methods and plans, tact and ability 48:02 and the very highest qualifications 48:04 are brought into the Kingdom of God. " 48:07 The point is this, until you are converted, 48:09 you are not bringing the best to the Master. 48:11 You're bringing something to the table 48:14 but it's of low grade. 48:16 When conversion comes in, 48:18 in that daily relationship with Christ, 48:21 your methods and plans... your tact and your ability... 48:25 are of the highest qualifications 48:28 and it gets you ready for the Kingdom of God. 48:34 Pause. 48:37 True conversion increases your value 48:41 because the exchange rate 48:44 from the person who you used to be 48:46 to the person who we are... 48:47 the exchange rate is the blood and the righteousness of Jesus. 48:53 Audience: Amen... praise the Lord. 48:56 So I'm not longer afraid that my value is going to go down, 48:59 if I'm letting the Lord convert me on a day-by-day basis, 49:02 my value is going up, come on somebody... 49:04 Audience: Amen. 49:05 You want your value to increase, don't be fearful... 49:08 just simply say, "Lord, come into my life, 49:13 come into my heart, 49:15 come into my thoughts, 49:17 break me down from this recalcitrant stubborn 49:21 self-centered... egotistical... maniacal... self-absorbed... " 49:26 tell me went to stop... 49:28 person that I want to be 49:30 to the child... the little child who says, 49:33 "Father, feed me this morning, 49:36 Father, clothe me with your righteousness today, 49:39 Father, show me what it means to be loving and kind 49:43 and compassionate, and forgiving and patient 49:46 and dedicated... and honest... and forthright... 49:50 awaken within me a desire to absorb your Word... 49:53 not just to skim through it. 49:55 Bring me to that place with my experience... 49:59 that will turn me into a light in my Community... 50:02 into a candle that will always burn... 50:04 into a life that somebody might say, 50:07 'I need to have what she has.'" 50:09 "I need to have what you have, what is it?" 50:13 Pause. 50:15 The Lord is waiting for you to submit yourself 50:19 to the exchange rate of the kingdom of heaven. 50:24 My question today is simple as I close, 50:27 "How many of you want to be converted?" 50:30 Pause. 50:33 If you want Jesus to come in and convert your life, 50:36 could you stand with me today 50:38 as we may pray this prayer of conversion 50:42 that we may ask for Jesus to come in 50:46 and transform our hearts and lives 50:50 pause 50:53 that we will be like Jesus. 50:54 I want us to sing that song before we have our prayer. 50:58 "All that thrills my soul is Jesus" 51:00 bring that up, my Brother, 51:01 I want us to sing that song together, 51:04 "All that thrills my soul is Jesus. " 51:06 What thrills your soul? 51:08 Pause. 51:09 I pray that it is Christ. 51:12 All that thrills my soul is Jesus... 51:16 let's sing that song together. 51:17 Piano... 51:23 Who can cheer the heart like Jesus 51:30 By His presence all divine 51:36 listen... 51:37 True and tender, pure and precious 51:44 O, how blest to call Him mine. 51:49 Say it... 51:51 All that thrills my soul is Jesus 51:58 He is more than life to me 52:03 And the fairest of ten thousand 52:12 In my blessed Lord I see 52:18 Love of Christ so freely given 52:25 Grace of God beyond degree 52:32 Mercy higher than the heavens 52:39 Deeper than the deepest sea. 52:46 Is that your testimony? 52:47 All that thrills my soul is Jesus 52:54 He is more than life to me 53:01 And the fairest of ten thousand 53:09 In my blessed Lord I see. 53:17 Loving Father in heaven, what thrills our soul? 53:21 Is it spending time in your presence? 53:24 Lord, what thrills our imagination... our desire... 53:29 what drives us... what motivates us... 53:33 is it the study of your Word to live a life 53:37 that produces fruit worthy of repentance... 53:41 Father, what thrills my soul when Monday morning comes, 53:45 just spending time in your presence 53:48 that I might go forth to show forth your praises, 53:52 what thrills my soul? 53:55 Lord, may we answer the question today 53:58 that all that thrills my soul is Jesus 54:02 and we are marching step-by-step to Zion 54:05 and I pray that as we leave here today in our fellowship, 54:07 may this Sabbath blessing 54:10 continue to permeate us like seasoning 54:13 pause 54:15 may the Spirit of God come into the pores of our lives 54:19 into the places of our thoughts, 54:22 into the muscles of our actions... 54:25 into the steps of our journey 54:27 may everything not only deliver us from the wrong 54:32 but start leading us to the right, 54:35 and when this church is converted, Lord, 54:37 when we are converted individually, 54:39 help us not to pray for somebody else to be converted... 54:41 but may it be our own independent individual prayer 54:44 and may through it all, 54:47 you'll be praised, honored and glorified, 54:51 in Jesus' name... 54:53 and all of God's people said, amen and amen. " |
Revised 2018-10-09