Participants: Pr. John Lomacang (Host), Pr. John Stanton
Series Code: HCL
Program Code: HCL130009
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00:01 Hello, friends, grab your Bible and a friend and sit back
00:03 as we explore God's word together 00:05 on this edition of "House Calls." 00:22 Welcome to the best Bible program 00:24 on television at this very minute. 00:26 And if--I didn't believe that I wouldn't be here. 00:28 But I'm not here by myself. 00:30 I have my good friend John Stanton. 00:31 Good to see you, John. It's good to be here, John. 00:33 I tell you, we enjoy it every time 00:35 we get together with you to study the word of God. 00:37 So you're going to need some basic equipment. 00:40 You need a Bible, may be you'll need a computer 00:44 if you want to send us a message 00:45 and invite your family and friends together 00:48 to sit down for this next thoughtful hour 00:51 as we walk through the Word of God together. 00:54 John, what do we going to be studying this time around? 00:56 We're going to study the work of the spirit. Okay. 00:59 In the life of each church member 01:01 and how we respond to that. 01:03 Okay. Well, that sounds good to me. 01:05 But, you know friends, before we do anything 01:07 we always like to begin with prayer. 01:09 So John is going to lead us before the Lord in prayer. 01:12 So bow your heads with us 01:13 as we invite God's presence to be with us. 01:16 Dear Father, in heaven, we thank You again 01:18 for an opportunity to open Your word 01:21 and we pray Lord that You'll draw us especially close to You 01:24 that we might hear Your spirit speak to us 01:27 that You might draw us near to Your truth and-- 01:29 and that You would change our hearts. 01:31 We pray in Jesus name, amen. 01:34 Also friends, many of you know that 01:36 our program is made of Bible questions. 01:39 Not just what we talk about in our topics, 01:41 but also Bible questions. 01:43 And many of you have sent Bible questions to us. 01:45 We tried to download them 01:47 and some of you who sent actual physical letters, 01:49 we thank you when you make your questions concise. 01:52 But if you have any questions you like to send to us, 01:54 send those to housecalls@3abn.org, 01:57 that's housecalls@3abn.org, and we'll download those. 02:02 And hopefully give you an answer that will sufficiently 02:06 respond to you as to what the Word of God says 02:08 or as in some cases what the text means. 02:11 But, John, why don't you dive into it today 02:13 and give us our first question. 02:14 Yeah, it's a question, it comes from Kevin. All right. 02:17 And it's a question that 02:18 I've heard many times as a pastor actually. 02:21 And I know that I really identify with those 02:24 whose heart goes out to friends and neighbors and co-workers. 02:28 To be able to witness to them 02:29 and I know there are many struggles in that today. 02:32 But this person Kevin writes in this question, 02:36 "Do you have any words of wisdom on how to witness 02:39 to an 80-year-old man 02:42 who has a distorted understanding 02:43 of the State of the Dead 02:45 and does not believe in the existence of Satan? 02:48 And also someone who denies the crucifixion of Jesus 02:52 and does not believe in sin?" 02:55 You know, the Bible really doesn't give 02:59 a lot of counsel necessarily or specifically in regard to 03:03 how to witness someone when they do not 03:05 necessarily respond to the Word of God. 03:08 And I think that really is the issue, John, here is that 03:12 whenever you're going to study and you're going to look for 03:15 and find God's will it comes through His word. That's right. 03:19 And, you know, His word is how the early church began. 03:23 The Book of Acts is full of the preaching of the word. 03:26 How the word went out? 03:27 And many were converted through the word of God 03:30 and through preaching and teaching. 03:33 In fact Acts 19:20, 03:35 "The Word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed." 03:38 It wasn't the disciples and the apostles who prevailed, 03:41 it was the Word of God that prevailed. That's right. 03:45 And so if someone wants to have their own beliefs 03:51 and they don't want to hear the Word of God, 03:53 there is nothing much you can really do. True. 03:56 So as far as convincing them of what is right 03:59 on the State of the Dead and what's right on 04:02 whether or not Satan exists 04:04 and what is right on the crucifixion of Jesus. 04:07 The real issue here is. 04:09 Are they willing to agree with the Word of God? 04:13 Are they willing to open the Bible 04:15 and trust what is there? 04:17 John, I find that there is a forum-- 04:21 actually a few of them that I've been a part of over the years. 04:25 Bible questions and it's, 04:28 you know, not really a denominational forum. 04:29 It's just any Christian can get on there 04:31 and they ask questions and people answer. 04:33 And there's a lot of dialogue, 04:34 there's lot of back and forth with some people. 04:36 They express an opinion 04:37 and then the next person expresses their opinion 04:40 and what I find on those is a lot of opinions. 04:43 They aren't a lot of text. 04:44 But some do bring in text to play 04:48 and they try to do their best to provide 04:51 an interpretation of those an accurate one. 04:54 But one of the things I find over and over again 04:56 that really I struggle with is, 04:59 a consistency with how to study the Word of God. 05:04 One of the things I'm speaking specifically 05:06 about here today is that sometimes in these forums 05:10 especially lately I'm finding that 05:11 people are interpreting things. 05:14 There they're using the word as an analogy, a nice story. 05:19 And there isn't a lot of literal interpretation 05:22 of the Word of God anymore. I got you. 05:24 So if they're reading something a plain thus says the Lord. 05:27 What Jesus says, "it is written." Right. 05:29 But then they say, Well, but here's what it really means. 05:33 They're doing a lot of their own interpretation. 05:35 They're expanding, 05:37 there's these two terms exegesis and eisegesis. 05:40 Exegesis is pulling exegetically out of the word what it means. 05:44 Eisegesis is reading into it your own opinions. 05:47 And there's a lot of eisegesis going on in there today. 05:50 It has nothing to do with Jesus. 05:51 It's just the way the word is, eisegesis. 05:54 It's using an analogous approach to the Word of God. 05:57 Not a literal reading, 05:59 but then just infusing one's own opinion and beliefs. 06:03 And so often I found in these discussions 06:05 that I just--I share the truth and I bow out, I'm done. 06:09 There's nothing I can do to convince them 06:11 and it's not my job anyway. Right. 06:13 My job is just to share the word 06:15 and share what I believe the word is saying. 06:18 And so here when you're talking to individuals 06:19 and this can go for anybody you're studying with. 06:22 There comes a point in time 06:23 where there's nothing more you can say 06:26 unless you can both agree on the Word of God 06:28 being the arbiter of truth, right? 06:32 That's the basic premise. 06:33 Now there is one thing 06:35 you can do to witness to someone like that. 06:36 And that is to step away, don't argue, pray. 06:41 Pray for the change of heart for that individual. 06:44 And then secondly love him. 06:46 Just love on him. Spend time with him. 06:48 Show him you care. 06:50 Show him you really are concerned for them. 06:52 Don't come back to these constant arguments 06:54 about what you disagree on. 06:56 But just minister to them and pray for them. 06:59 And sometimes that's where you just have to go to 07:02 and rely on God to change their heart. 07:05 You know, the challenge that comes when a person says, 07:10 "I don't believe." 07:11 And is it, "I don't believe in the Bible?" 07:13 Is that what you're mentioning? No, no. 07:14 The question was they have a 07:16 confusing view of the State of the Dead. 07:17 They have-- don't believe in Satan 07:19 and they don't believe that Jesus was really crucified. 07:23 So it's-- they're not following 07:24 really what the Bible is clearly saying. Okay. 07:26 But they don't say that they don't believe in the Bible, 07:27 I don't know that, 07:29 I'm reading into that as being the issue. 07:30 Well, where the word confusion exists-- 07:34 I would probably approach it and say, 07:37 "Since you are not convinced that these things did not occur. 07:41 And you're primarily looking at them as 07:43 confused about actually, 07:45 let's say the State of the Dead for example." 07:49 If somebody says "I'm confused." 07:50 And there's a lot of confusion about the State of the Dead. 07:52 People, you know, they believe they die and go to heaven, 07:55 purgatory limbo. 07:56 You know, you name the different things. 08:00 Separation of body from the soul, 08:02 that would be very confusing. 08:04 So I would begin by saying to the person, 08:06 if we--since we have no evidences 08:08 that they don't believe the Bible. 08:10 And I'd say, "Well, would you like to study that?" 08:13 And I think you made a very good point there 08:15 when you said the Bible is the arbiter of truth. 08:18 If they, if they agree on that particular platform 08:21 that the Bible is the arbiter of truth, 08:23 where the Bible is the source of all truth. 08:25 Then you can say, "Well, let's see what the Bible says." 08:29 And if they are willing to accept what the Bible says, 08:31 then you actually have an open door. 08:33 But if you can't get them to accept 08:35 what the Bible says or that the Bible is the source 08:38 or the arbiter as John used that word of all truth, 08:41 then it's just nothing more than 08:43 in my opinion versus your opinion. 08:46 And you can't really get very far on opinions. 08:50 I mean you can't get far at all. 08:52 So and so the counsel will be primarily what? 08:56 Just pray for the person. 08:57 Pray and love him. Right. 08:59 You know, show him you do care, 09:00 but don't comeback to issues that you disagree on. 09:03 Right, the Bible does say avoid unlearned conversations 09:07 knowing that they do generate strife. 09:09 In other words they do cause controversy. 09:11 So if the person is open to study, 09:13 study with them if not say 09:15 "I'll keep you in prayer." 09:17 And I've had some challenging situations. 09:20 I had a professor once and I've--may have shared 09:22 the story in the course of our time of doing "House Calls." 09:26 I may have shared the story where I had a professor 09:28 who used to be a Christian but now was an atheist 09:30 and he would make some grand, far sweeping statements about, 09:35 what if we could recreate the black hole, 09:37 the one mile above earth's atmosphere 09:40 then we could go, you know, light years into the past 09:44 or light years into the future. 09:46 And it sounded great in the class. 09:48 We were taken electronics 09:50 and they sat with their mouths open. 09:52 And it sounded really plausible. 09:55 And I said, Doctor, and I mentioned his name, 10:00 that sounds great but that's just hypothetical at best, 10:03 because we'll never be able to create the black hole 10:06 one mile above earth's atmosphere. 10:08 So why don't we tell about things that really do matter. 10:10 Like why do people die and what happens when they die? 10:13 And why do people get married? 10:14 And I threw him the question, "are you married?" 10:16 And he said, "Well of course I am." 10:18 "But are you an atheist?" "Oh, yeah." 10:20 "Well, then why you marry?" 10:23 And it started a conversation in the class 10:25 and he allowed because our class is 10:27 two hours and fifty minutes long. 10:29 For about 35 or 40 minutes we had this open conversation 10:34 and I was amazed, it went on so long 10:36 but we were able to draw out at least I was able to draw 10:40 and put enough question in the minds of the listeners. 10:43 And afterwards one of the guy said 10:45 "Hey, so what church you belong to?" 10:46 And I said, "Seventh-day Adventist." 10:48 And he said, "What is seven days in advance?" 10:51 He didn't even understand-- 10:53 he didn't understand what's Seventh-day Adventist was. 10:54 I said, "No, Seventh-day Adventist 10:56 not seven days in advance." 10:58 But--but really you can, 11:01 you can create enough question in a person's mind 11:05 who is not clear on the Bible. 11:08 And its veracity or validity to get them to even consider. 11:12 Well, maybe I should look into it. 11:14 So I'd say well, there's a 50-50 chance 11:17 that you maybe right 11:19 and there's a 50-50 chance that I maybe right. 11:22 But here's the challenge. 11:25 If you are wrong that God Jesus was never crucified 11:30 or that there is no God. 11:32 If you're wrong, then you stand to lose 11:35 a whole lot more than if I'm wrong. 11:38 So if I'm, if I'm, wrong and I accept the fact that 11:41 Jesus is the Lord and I accept the fact that-- 11:45 Jesus was crucified or God does exist, 11:48 then I haven't lost anything, but if you're wrong, 11:51 you've lost everything. Yeah. 11:53 So in the laws of averages, its better to be wrong 11:58 and safe than wrong and unsafe. 12:02 So anyway that's kind of something to think about. 12:04 But, yeah, so don't argue with them, pray for them, 12:07 that does make a difference 12:09 because God will soften their heart. 12:10 Here's a person who gave some Bible text here, 12:12 but very interesting. 12:13 Go with--if you have your Bibles 12:15 go with me to the Book of Job 36. 12:18 Job 36. 12:19 Job is a very interesting book, 12:22 in that much of it deals with the trials of Job. 12:25 And Job had friends that contended with him. 12:30 You know, let me before I read a question, 12:32 sometimes a person is going through something 12:34 that's really trying their faith. 12:36 And they have based on all external evidences 12:40 they have a great relationship with the Lord. 12:42 And then all of a sudden this great trial hits 12:46 and somebody would say, 12:48 "Well, how do we know 12:49 they haven't done something to deserve that?" 12:52 How do we know that what they are going through right now 12:54 is not a direct result of some action they took 12:57 maybe a month ago or year ago or a few years ago? 13:01 And I know people in situations like that-- 13:04 that people will say, "Well, I guess, 13:08 I guess if God let that happen, they must deserve it." 13:12 And that was the context of this text. 13:15 And I'm going to read the question 13:16 In the Bible I came across three verses that scare me. 13:21 Could you tell me how to understand their meaning? 13:24 So we'll start first with Job 36 13:27 and we're going to look at verse 18. 13:29 Job 36:18. 13:32 Now Job 36:18, 13:34 if that, if that verse were all by itself then I could say, 13:38 "Well, truly it might scare someone." 13:41 But Job 36:18 is one of the verses 13:44 in a long series of verses that Elihu or Elihu, 13:50 however you would like to pronounce his name-- 13:53 used as a rebuttal to Job's-- 13:57 to Job's concerned about the justice of God. 14:02 Not that Job's concern about the justice of God, 14:05 but Job was lamenting his circumstances. 14:09 And Elihu was saying in a long sense, 14:12 because this goes on for many chapters 14:14 if I like to just give you an idea. 14:17 This rebuttal starts in chapter 32. 14:20 And so we're going all the way to chapter 36. 14:23 In this continuing rebuttal by Elihu 14:27 about Job lamenting his circumstances. 14:30 First of all Job remembers his happy times in chapter 29. 14:35 And then Job describes his present humiliation 14:38 starting in chapter 30. 14:40 And so Job is continuing 14:42 and then chapter 32 Elihu starts to rebuttal. 14:46 He intervenes in this debate about whether or not 14:50 God is treating Job the way he should be treated 14:54 or if God is being unjust with Job 14:57 or if God is disciplining Job. 15:00 And so he comes to the conclusion that 15:02 God is disciplining Job in this verse he uses-- 15:06 and this is the verse that kind of brings 15:08 some of the concern to you and here it is. 15:11 But I like to include a couple of verses prior to that. 15:15 Let me give you an example. 15:16 For example, Elihu who says to Job, now, 15:20 this is who I believe God is. 15:22 If a person was wicked and judgment was going to come 15:26 because of his wickedness and then he repents, 15:28 then God is nice to him. 15:31 But why is God not nice to you? 15:35 Because maybe you didn't repent 15:37 or maybe you didn't admit that you did this. 15:40 So let's go and start a little earlier. 15:42 We're on verse 11 15:44 and he is talking about the wicked by the way. 15:46 He says in verse 11 of Job 36. 15:49 "If they obey and serve Him, 15:51 they spend their days in prosperity, 15:54 and their years in pleasures. 15:57 But if they do not obey, they shall perish by the sword, 16:00 and they shall die without knowledge." 16:02 So he's in essence saying 16:03 their decision will activate a specific response from God. 16:07 But he goes on to verse 13, 16:11 "But the hypocrites in heart store up wrath, 16:15 they do not cry for help when He binds them. 16:19 They die in youth, 16:20 and their life ends among the perverted persons. 16:25 He delivers the poor in their affliction." 16:26 Verse 15, "And opens their ears in oppression. 16:30 Indeed He would have brought you out of dire distress 16:35 into a broad place where there is no restraint." 16:38 In other words God would have 16:39 changed the circumstances by now. 16:41 Then he says, 16:43 "And what is set on your table would be full of riches." 16:46 In other words God would have blessed you abundantly. 16:48 "But you are filled with the judgment due to, 16:51 due the wicked." 16:53 Notice what he's saying. 16:54 See what you're getting is what you deserve. 16:57 You are filled with the judgment due the wicked, 16:59 Judgment and justice take hold of you. 17:01 Because there is wrath." 17:03 And this is the verse you're talking about. 17:05 "Because there is wrath, beware lest He take you away 17:11 with one blow for a large ransom would not help you avoid it." 17:18 In other words he's saying, no matter what you pay God, 17:21 you are going to get what you deserve 17:23 because if you are who you--if you're 17:26 receiving what you are receiving because of what you did, 17:29 no matter what you pay, 17:31 you're not going to be able to avoid God's judgment. 17:33 So that's why it seems scary. 17:35 It almost seems like no matter what we do, 17:37 God is going to get us anyway. 17:39 That's where the fear comes in. 17:40 But what Elihu is saying to Job is, 17:42 you're going through what you're going through 17:43 because of what you did and because of what you did, 17:46 no matter how much you pay Him, it's coming. 17:48 And keep in mind here, Elihu is not telling the truth. 17:51 No, he's not telling the truth. 17:53 So that's why it sounds scary. 17:55 He's trying to make it appears though, 17:58 he's trying to make it appears though 17:59 God is just like He's getting you. 18:01 He's got you. He finally got you. 18:04 But, but God is not that way. 18:08 God is not a beat you up kind of person. 18:10 And if He is good to those who repent, 18:14 why would He not even pay attention to Job 18:17 when he began by saying, Job was a just and upright man. 18:21 One that fear God and one that shunned evil. 18:25 So in other words this rebuttal that Elihu is giving 18:29 is not indicative of God 18:31 and does not vindicate the character of God. 18:33 That's right. And he gave two more. 18:36 And I think Psalms 50:2, let's look at that one. 18:39 This person is not a he by the way it's a she. 18:42 I thank you for these questions, Linda. 18:44 Psalms 50:22. 18:47 Now I'll just read it in the verse very carefully there. 18:49 It says, "Now consider this, you who forget God, 18:52 lest I tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver." 18:57 Well, that verse shouldn't frighten you, 18:59 but it really should bring out the reality that, 19:01 hey, if we forget God 19:03 that's the only thing that could happen to us. 19:05 In other words it's not so much, "Oh, I forgot God, 19:08 but its I don't want to remember God. 19:10 I don't have anything to do with God. 19:12 Well, if you don't want to have anything to do with God, 19:14 there's only this fearful judgment to look forward to. 19:17 And as the text says, 19:19 "Yes, you will be torn in pieces and that-- 19:22 who is there to deliver you from God." 19:24 There is none to deliver. 19:26 And keep in mind here this word, tearing in pieces. Right. 19:29 Is not descriptive of God's character, 19:32 is not He desire to do that. Not shredding you know. 19:34 But the language God's using 19:36 is the language of the cultures of that day. 19:38 I mean, what they did to their-- 19:40 in warfare to those that they oppose 19:43 and those that they fought against was very violent. 19:48 Yeah, very violent. 19:49 And so God speaks their language here 19:51 and He is speaking their language in this verse really. 19:54 And so in the end what He's saying is, 19:56 in the end judgment will come unless we repent 19:59 and praise and give glory and honor to Him. 20:01 So that's the essence of what God is saying here. 20:06 And also chapter 52 and verse 5 there's another one there. 20:10 And what I want you to pay 20:12 close attention to is the word likewise. 20:14 Because this verse is comparing 20:16 what has happened to what could happen to you. 20:19 So in other words, say for example 20:20 a lion tore man apart, shredded him, devoured him. 20:25 And then God now goes to the wicked 20:28 and says or we say in the place of God. 20:32 God shall likewise destroy you forever, 20:35 in verse 5 of chapter 52. 20:38 "He shall take you away, and pluck you, 20:40 and pluck you out of your dwelling place. 20:43 And uproot you from the land of the living." 20:45 God can do that. 20:47 So for those who choose to forget God, 20:49 those who choose to live in rebellion to God, 20:52 those who choose to just ignore the requirements of God? 20:55 There's no fleeing the judgment of God. 20:58 So whatever judgment you can come up with, 21:01 whatever wrath you can even sum up 21:03 or whatever terrible horrible situation you can even surmise 21:08 or try to create in a scenario you can say to the person 21:12 that is wicked and just chooses to ignore God. 21:14 God will likewise destroy you. 21:16 That's what gonna happen to you, you see. 21:18 But it's gonna be even worse. 21:20 Because when you think about it 21:21 whatever happens to man in this life 21:23 at least there is a chance that he 21:25 or she can be saved in the resurrection, 21:28 because Christians were torn apart by lions, 21:32 Christians were tortured and dismembered 21:35 during the Dark Ages and some horrific 21:37 examples of people who just hated 21:40 the advancement of God's truth 21:41 and hated those who were proponents 21:43 that upheld God's truth. 21:45 So we can't even use that as an example. 21:49 But they will have an opportunity in the resurrection 21:52 because the resurrection of the just, 21:54 no matter how they die will be a resurrection 21:57 that will give them joy forever more. 21:59 But if a wicked person in the arenas of Rome when they died, 22:03 on their tombstones were inscribed the word, 22:06 good bye, good bye forever 22:08 as compared to the Christian, good bye until the morning. 22:11 You see, they knew there was a better day coming. 22:13 So being torn apart as Hebrews 11 22:15 said to the Christian, wasn't an horrible thing. 22:18 And God at that moment shielded them from the horror 22:21 and the terrible pain that would come 22:26 to the wicked in the second death. 22:28 So don't let this things fear you. 22:31 If you have a relationship with the Lord, 22:33 this does not apply to you. 22:35 But verse 18 of Job Chapter 36, 22:38 it's a context to a response from Elihu to Job 22:41 who didn't really understand the character of God, all right. 22:44 You have one more for us? I do. 22:46 This one is from Laura. 22:48 What is the meaning of the word Jew? 22:51 See here, "Remember Israel came out of Egypt." 22:55 And then it says, "The Jews were destroyed" 22:58 I presume she might be referring 22:59 to the judgment of Rome in 1870. 23:07 So anyway there's some confusion 23:08 is to the difference between the word Israel and Jew. 23:11 Very interesting. 23:12 You just go to something I--anybody can do. 23:14 You can go to a dictionary. 23:18 I pulled the one-up online and put in the word Jew 23:21 and it answers very correctly. 23:23 It says, "The member of the tribe of Judah." 23:26 So Judah anyone that was from the tribe of Judah is a Jew. 23:31 And it was the tribe of Judah. 23:32 The southern kingdom that was taking captive 23:34 by Nebuchadnezzar and Babylon. 23:36 And they were there in captivity until of course 23:41 they were released through the three decrees. 23:43 The last one was from Artaxerxes, 23:45 rebuilt the city of Jerusalem and the temple 23:48 and then that's the situation 23:49 you find them in during the gospels period. 23:53 It says here, part B is a member of a nation 23:57 existing in Palestine from the 6th century BC 24:00 to the 1st century AD. 24:02 So those were, were descendants of Judah 24:06 shortened to be Jew and continue to exist unto this day. 24:10 Remember the northern kingdom of Israel 24:13 were overcome by the Assyrians 24:14 and Samaria when it was sacked. 24:16 And they dispersed and there is no real 24:20 clear revelation as to where they are. 24:25 Except spiritually we know that God is going to bring back all 24:28 and He explains how His church is spiritual Israel. 24:32 I'm talking about His worldwide church, 24:34 His spiritual Israel who He will bring back 24:36 and will save in the last days. 24:40 By the way the word Israel, 24:42 it means one who perseveres, 24:48 who strives with God and perseveres. 24:50 In other words, is saved and redeemed by God. 24:52 That's the meaning of the word Israel. 24:54 So it's a very spiritual word which very well 24:56 applies in a spiritual sense to His church. 24:59 So that's why the term Israel is used in prophecy 25:02 even into the New Testament era down to today. 25:06 And people that were of Israel, Jews that were of Israel 25:10 boasted that they were Jews of Israel. 25:13 But the Lord through the writings of the Apostle Paul 25:17 let people know that you're national origin 25:19 has nothing to do with your final destiny. 25:22 And that was the most important thing about this. 25:24 When Jesus talked to the woman at the well 25:27 and she was arguing over different methods of worship. 25:31 And He said, "Well, isn't salvation of the Jews." 25:33 And so you see clearly there, she even said to Him, 25:37 "You being a Jew have no dealing with the Samaritan." 25:40 There was always this, there was always a separation 25:43 between the Jews and the Samaritans 25:46 so much so that the Samaritans were often referred to as dogs. 25:52 So when you find that phrase in Revelation for outside 25:54 are the dogs and sorcerers, and whoremongers. 25:57 It was in essence those who were the outcast, 26:00 those who were those who had rejected the true Messiah 26:04 and didn't have a connection with Him, 26:06 because they were not really of the lineage 26:08 of Israel or a Jew by a natural birth. 26:13 But I want to share with you two texts, 26:15 so that you can see that whether 26:17 Jew or of the nation of Israel synonymous by the way. 26:21 There is no advantage because in Romans 2:29, 26:28 let me just go and go to the verse 26:30 right before that verse 20 looking up in context. 26:33 Romans 2:28, it says, "For he is not a Jew, 26:39 who was one outwardly, nor is circumcision, 26:43 that which is outward in the flesh. 26:46 But he is a Jew, who is one inwardly, 26:49 and circumcision is that of the heart, 26:51 in the spirit, not in the letter, 26:54 whose praise is not from men, but from God." 26:57 So the question is in verse 1 26:59 of the very next chapter, chapter 3. 27:01 "What advantage then has the Jew? 27:05 Or what is the profit of circumcision?" 27:08 So when it comes to Christ-- He's the God of the Jew, 27:12 of the Gentile, of the-- 27:14 He doesn't discriminate as far as nationality. 27:18 And lastly Romans 9:6, 27:22 "But it is not that the word of God 27:24 has taken no effect, 27:26 for they are not all Israel, who are of Israel." 27:30 Once again there was this perception 27:33 that since we're of this nation, 27:35 we definitely have an advantage. 27:37 And you know, there is a part advantage there 27:40 but not in the sense of nationality, 27:42 but in the sense of responsibility 27:44 or in the sense of receiving the oracles of God. 27:46 Because in Acts 13, Paul and Barnabas said, 27:49 you know, "It was necessary 27:51 that the Word of God be given to you first." 27:53 See, so they were the first ones to receive it, but hey, 27:56 that means they are more responsible 27:57 not preeminent about anybody else. 28:01 So great, great nice answer. 28:03 Jews of Jerusalem or Israelites of Israel. 28:08 There is no, there is no disadvantage 28:11 to being a Gentile when Christ in the picture. 28:14 There is no disadvantage to being 28:16 from a different nation when Christ is our God. 28:19 He is the Lord of every one of us. 28:22 Well, John, why don't you-- 28:23 let me before we actually segue. 28:25 I know that we've talked about lot of things here today 28:27 that may engender some questions further in your mind. 28:30 So if you have any Bible questions 28:32 you want to send to us you can send those questions 28:34 to housecalls@3abn.org. 28:38 That's housecalls@3abn.org and we promise 28:42 to be able to answer those from the Bible. 28:44 Hopefully that will be satisfactory 28:46 and the answers will bring you closer to the Lord. 28:50 John, what do we have for us today? 28:52 Just kind of take us into our topic. 28:54 You know, we-- when one becomes a Christian 29:01 and they profess faith and belief in Jesus, 29:05 we say in one sense that the work of salvation is complete. 29:11 And that work of salvation is complete in Christ 29:13 because of His finished worked work, amen. 29:15 Right. 29:17 But then the process of sanctification begins. 29:20 We're set apart for God to use us 29:23 and to fit us for heaven. 29:26 And so He begins to change us and He begins to use us 29:29 in ways to expand His kingdom. 29:31 He does all these things through the Holy Spirit. 29:35 And that's why Jesus said to the disciples 29:37 make sure that you pray for the Holy Spirit. 29:41 Because if you ask for Him, I promise you 29:43 I'm more willing to give the Holy Spirit 29:45 to you than you are to give gifts to your children. 29:49 And so the big thing, the main thing the disciples 29:52 did when they got together in the upper room 29:55 was they unified in purpose. 29:58 They were one in Christ, but they sort out 30:01 the power of the Holy Spirit to receive the strength 30:05 they needed to go forward and to do the work 30:07 associated with God's kingdom. 30:10 God gave with the church a clear charge. 30:14 Go therefore and make disciples 30:16 of all nations preaching, teaching, baptizing. 30:20 He said, "Oh, I've given you all authority to go do that." 30:23 And then He empowered them through the Holy Spirit. 30:26 But I think to some degree, 30:29 it's good to circle back to this topic 30:31 because there are two things 30:33 the Holy Spirit seeks to do in the life of every Christian. 30:37 And so first of all we accept Christ as our Savior 30:40 and we identify ourselves with His church, the body. 30:45 And the Holy Spirit-- as we pray for the Holy Spirit 30:47 comes in to our life and He changes us. 30:49 And He changes us in two ways 30:51 and these are very important because I believe 30:55 the Bible is clear on two things predominate things 30:59 that the Holy Spirit brings into the life. 31:00 Number one, he brings the fruit of the spirit. 31:05 And number two, he brings the gifts of the spirit. 31:10 Both fruit and gifts are things 31:13 the Holy Spirit brings into our life. 31:16 One of the things I see though 31:18 within churches in a practical way 31:20 is that we tend to emphasize the fruit. 31:24 And we don't emphasize or deemphasize, 31:28 I don't believe intentionally, 31:29 but we aren't spending a lot of time 31:31 on the gifts of the spirit. 31:33 Now some church members might say, well, no, 31:35 I know what my gift is, we have gift test 31:38 and we do all the gifts, so I know what my gifts are. 31:42 And that's fine, that's to one level, okay, 31:44 it's okay to acknowledge that we have gifts. 31:46 I mean, there is a teaching from the word, 31:48 but we're accountable as God's children 31:51 to use those gifts for His glory. That's right. 31:56 And just basking in the fruit of being changed individually, 32:01 personally and living with that transformation 32:04 without using the gifts God has given us 32:06 to save somebody else is only half the picture. 32:11 In fact I can find it's a very selfish picture sometimes. 32:15 So as a pastor one of the key things 32:16 that I'm to do coming into a church 32:19 is to help members find their gifts, 32:23 but then also encourage them and find ways to help them 32:26 put those gifts into practice. Right. 32:30 In fact I would say in all respects, 32:32 this is the will of God for our life as a Christian, 32:35 is to become an active worker for Him in His kingdom. 32:39 Christianity is not a spectator sport. 32:42 Never has been. 32:43 We don't accept Jesus and just bask 32:45 in the fact that we're saved 32:46 and we sit there and we cheer the pastor on, 32:48 we cheer church leaders on 32:49 for the wonderful work they are doing 32:51 and we go home and we say, I'm so glad I'm saved. 32:54 That's not the life of a Christian. 32:56 The life of the Christian is I've been saved by Jesus, 32:59 I've been transformed by His spirit, 33:01 now He has given me a work to do for Him for His kingdom. 33:05 I love people, I love lost people, 33:07 I want to reach them for Jesus. 33:10 And we have a natural desire that's put within us 33:13 by the spirit to save other people. 33:15 John, we've all heard this statement, 33:18 well, we can't take anything with us to heaven 33:20 except our character. 33:23 I disagree with that statement 33:25 because I believe we can take somebody else. 33:27 Oh, someone else? Yes. 33:30 They say you can't take something with you. 33:32 You can't take your car, you can't take your house, 33:33 you can't take you know, whatever, you can't take 33:36 yes, your character but you can take someone else. 33:40 And this is the part 33:41 I think that we need to return to in aspect of ministry, 33:44 we need to return to as a church. 33:47 In Ephesians 4:11, you go through 11 and 12. 33:52 This the leadership it's identified, 33:54 there're apostles and pastors and evangelists and prophets. 34:00 It says, "They are there to equip 34:02 and train the members for ministry." Right. 34:07 Who is doing the work of ministry 34:08 according to that passage? The members are. 34:11 And so yes we acknowledge that leaders 34:13 including pastors and evangelist, 34:15 various leaders are given there to help 34:18 lead the church and instruct the church 34:19 as under-shepherds under Christ. Right. 34:21 But the ones doing the ministry is everybody. 34:26 And if we step back and aren't doing ministry, 34:28 John, honestly that the sad truth is 34:31 we may be lost. True. 34:34 And to say that I have no concern 34:36 for those around me and I right them off 34:39 well, you know, they're just lost in their own sin 34:43 or I've no desire 34:44 or aren't feeling compelled out of love 34:46 to reach them for Christ and do something. 34:49 Even to pray for Him. How is our prayer life? 34:51 How is our intercessory prayer life for people? 34:53 We have none of that. 34:55 That means our heart is not transformed. 34:56 So anyway I thought we'd spend some time 34:59 just in one program here to look at 35:02 the difference between fruit and gifts. Okay. 35:05 To maybe outline or to show they're real, 35:07 God's real plan for His church. 35:10 And that He has given through His spirit 35:11 both of these things to finish the work. All right. 35:14 Well, one of the things I would like to, 35:16 you know, begin with is-- there's a text in Matthew 7:20, 35:23 very succinct and very to the point. 35:28 "Therefore by their fruits you will know them." 35:33 Now reason why I want to begin with that is 35:35 because while we emphasize the importance of gifts, 35:40 the fruit come before the gifts. 35:43 The gifts are not in lieu of the fruit. Right. 35:46 You see, there are many and the reason I mention this is 35:48 because Matthew, this very same chapter 35:50 when you go to verse 21, 35:53 it starts talking about activities 35:56 that can be very well associated 35:59 with great skills and gifts 36:00 that a person has and look at those. 36:03 See this verse 20 is a-- if I can use a word, 36:08 a preparation for what's going to happen in verse 21 to 23. 36:12 It says, be careful that you're not just prophesied 36:19 because one of the gifts is prophecy. 36:21 Be careful that you just not get involved 36:23 with casting out demons, 36:24 delivering people from demon possession 36:26 by the gifts you have to make that occur. 36:30 Be careful that you're not just become inanimate by preaching, 36:34 declaring the name of Christ 36:36 which is a gift without having the fruit, you see. 36:41 Because that's the, that's the, that's the lead. 36:44 And Matthew is saying, yes there are many 36:46 that are going to be actively involved 36:48 in winning souls for Christ, 36:50 but they're going to be missing the fruit. 36:52 Now conversely there will be many 36:55 who will be actively involved, will have the fruit, 37:00 but won't emphasize anything about the work. 37:02 And that's what you're talking about. 37:04 So what we're not saying here is 37:05 that you have one or the other. 37:07 We're saying, you can have one without the other. 37:10 So don't emphasize the word part of it. 37:13 And let me just give you an example. 37:14 You have been a pastor. 37:16 I mean, you are a pastor, I am a pastor. 37:18 You see people, some people I remember 37:20 and example of one of the churches I pastored. 37:22 There is a person who is very, very gifted. 37:24 You remember there in one of churches in California, 37:27 very gifted person we had in leadership. 37:29 But the fruit were missing and I had to ask 37:31 that person to get to leave office. 37:34 I had to say, you cannot be in this position in this church, 37:38 because you don't have the fruit. 37:41 And the response was, "Well, who's going to do the work?" 37:46 I said, "We'll train somebody to do that." That's right. 37:48 But you can't say, "The work is more important than the fruit." 37:51 Because the Lord says, "By their fruits you will know them." 37:53 In fact many, I think many of our-- 37:57 the disservice we do. 37:59 The hurting we do of people is 38:01 because we've got some that work 38:03 but have no fruit. 38:05 And now they are hurting peoples feeling 38:07 and doing all kinds of stuff that are not Christ like. 38:09 Offending people, doing things 38:11 that are just blatant non Christian. 38:13 They say, "What do you want me to do, 38:15 I'm getting the work done? What you want me to do?" 38:17 It's not what I want you to do. 38:18 I want you to allow Christ to shine through you. 38:21 He says, "By their fruit you'll know them." 38:23 This is how we'll know that we're His disciples 38:25 by our--how they will know that we're His disciples 38:28 by our love for one another. 38:30 And people think that love is cheap, 38:32 but that love does something. 38:33 It activates the heart to be a person 38:35 who does need-- let me just rephrase that. 38:38 It activates the heart to say, 38:40 Lord, put to--put into action the gifts you've given to me. 38:46 And that's what I hear you're saying here. 38:48 Yeah. Yeah. 38:49 Well, very much and I, and I-- there's a lot we can cover 38:53 and may run from one program into a second program. Sure. 38:56 I don't know here, but there's a lot to cover here 38:58 but I do want to make sure 38:59 that we have a balanced Christianity here. 39:03 And, John, what you said is so important 39:06 and I think it can bring so much more success 39:09 in the Christian life "success" because it's all God's success. 39:11 But if we can make sure 39:14 that we're operating as Christ word 39:17 in a Christ like spirit the fruit. Right. 39:20 As we then are motivated to serve using our gifts 39:24 and its both together, 39:26 then we can say that we're a sanctified Christian 39:30 that is helping to expand God's kingdom 39:33 and finish the work that He's given us to do. 39:36 Right, because if you have somebody working with you 39:37 and you're working in a conference office 39:39 there in Upper Columbia Conference. 39:41 If there's somebody in the conference office 39:43 that has a great skill, 39:45 but they are a bare to work with. 39:48 There may be some consideration. 39:50 You know what? 39:52 Every time I come to work here, 39:54 I just dread the thought of having 39:56 to work with so and so, 39:57 because they are just so unchristian. 40:01 But they are so good at what they do. 40:03 So what do we do? 40:04 Let's have a talk with them. Let's find out. 40:06 Brothers and sisters there's something we can do. 40:09 Is there some challenge in your life 40:11 and here's the reaction. What's the problem? 40:14 Am I not doing the work? Is that the issue? Yeah. 40:18 Or they don't even see that they are unchrist like. 40:20 They may say, "I don't know what the problem is, 40:21 I am Christ like." 40:23 You know, and they don't see there the issues. 40:26 But what I like about what you're saying here today is 40:30 that the success of the church, the work will go forward 40:33 more effectively and more consistently 40:37 and with greater success rate if people realize that 40:41 God is not just calling them to be a fruit. 40:46 But to be a person through which the gifts 40:48 that God has entrusted to us now begin to be actively 40:53 used to win somebody else to Christ. 40:55 And there are two parts 40:57 of the process of sanctification here. 40:59 Let's just talk about the-- lay some more ground work here. 41:03 The change to our characters often comes, 41:06 our growth in our strength in our faith, 41:09 often comes through trials and struggles. 41:12 They're God's workmen. 41:15 Trials, struggles, the battles we have in life 41:16 are God's workmen to transform our character. 41:19 I call them God sandpaper. It's perfect. 41:22 God sandpaper to help us see who we really are 41:26 and our need of Christ and His character. 41:30 And God changes us and He works on us and He grinds. 41:33 And He lets us go through challenges 41:34 and trials and experiences. 41:35 Well, Lord, take me out of this 41:37 and in the end we find that we're stronger 41:40 in our faith because of that. 41:42 And we know those that have any-- 41:44 done any study on this process of sanctification 41:47 know that that's kind of, 41:48 that's a part of spiritual growth, trials. 41:51 But let's talk about spiritual gifts. 41:54 The use of our spiritual gifts can only become effective 42:00 when we also and God can only strengthen us in those gifts 42:03 when we go through trials in using them. 42:07 So it's not just trials that prepare us 42:09 for character transformation, the fruit, 42:12 He allows us to go through trials 42:14 that help to build our efficiency, 42:15 our effectiveness in the use of the gifts 42:17 that He has given to us. Right. 42:19 So someone might say, I just-- 42:22 I'm not great with connecting with people. 42:24 I can't talk to anybody 42:25 so I-- here's another one. I can't give a Bible study. 42:28 I don't know the Bible like you do. 42:30 Or I don't know I'm just afraid to sharing my testimony. 42:33 I don't know what to say to people. Right. 42:35 These are challenges 42:37 but let's recognize them as challenges to overcome. Right. 42:41 Challenges that when we throw ourselves into the work 42:44 that God will also grow us in the area of gifts. 42:49 So don't just stop and don't say, 42:51 I can't use my gifts, because I'm just afraid to 42:55 or it's a little hard or difficult for me. 42:57 It goes against my nature. 43:00 Because God wants you to rise above that. 43:03 He want's you to go through experience 43:05 of discomfort of knocking at a door 43:08 and saying to somebody, 43:10 hey, I'm here to share a track with you 43:11 or something. Right. 43:13 Just don't diverge yourself from responsibility of using gifts 43:17 because of a discomfort, 43:18 because its part of the discomfort 43:20 that comes with sanctification. 43:22 Yeah, I remember that. 43:23 Both, faith-- both fruit and gifts. 43:26 And your point is well taken in that-- 43:29 there has to be a point of inception 43:32 where you begin to use the gift that you've been given. 43:35 I remember when I was growing up 43:37 my first use of a hammer, my thumb remembers that. 43:41 And some of you may have had some new gadget 43:43 or some new tool or may be the first time you rode a bike, 43:46 you may remember that experience 43:48 because you fell, or you couldn't stop, 43:50 you couldn't find the breaks, 43:51 you press the front breaks and went forward. 43:54 You know, you may remember that 43:55 but as you get efficient people that are runners 43:58 now, people that are Olympians or at least aim at the Olympiad, 44:02 people that are professionals in their field 44:05 didn't begin that way 44:06 and what we're in essence saying is 44:07 if you put forth that kind of effort in your profession, 44:11 then you should at least 44:13 put forth equal that effort in your Christianity. 44:18 And if you don't fear making mistake, 44:21 I like the way that somebody wants to describe 44:23 Benjamin Franklin's discovery. 44:25 Well, what did he discover? 44:26 Was it light bulb, again created a light bulb or electricity? 44:28 No, no, no, electricity. 44:30 He found it with the key on the end of a kite there. 44:32 And so they said he never failed 44:35 because everything he did was an experiment. 44:37 Oh, you're telling about Thomas Edison 44:39 and the light bulb? 44:40 Thomas Edison and the light bulb. So he never failed. 44:42 Everything he did was an experiment 44:43 until he finally got his creation to work. 44:44 Yes, don't you get discouraged about how many failures, 44:47 a thousand failures? Something he said, "No. 44:50 Each one of them was a step towards success." 44:53 And so on the same sense there are people, 44:55 I've spoken to people that say 44:57 well, you know, we're getting together now 44:58 there's a ministry team 44:59 and we're going to knock on the doors passing our tracks 45:01 and somebody said to me, "Oh, I'll never do that. 45:05 Are you kidding me?" 45:07 And I thought to myself 45:08 what if you were on the other end. 45:10 What if you were the person behind that door saying, 45:12 "Heavenly father, I don't even know if You exist." 45:17 And he is saying, "I got some folks down here 45:19 I am working on, so they can come to your house, 45:22 so that you'll know I exist." 45:25 Right now they are like in the 45:26 'I will never do that' category. Yeah. 45:29 Not realizing that I didn't call them to just come to work, 45:34 I call them to come to work to get prepared to go to work. 45:38 The charge-- the commission God gave us is to go. Right. 45:43 And think about when we say evangelism today in the church, 45:46 specifically the Adventist church today. 45:48 Most people think about the public meeting, 45:50 the reaping meeting. 45:51 When we say evangelism, well, who we're getting 45:53 to come in as an evangelist 45:54 and then we'll send out a bunch of fliers 45:56 and we'll hopefully get-- 45:58 what is it? 0.7% of response from those fliers. 46:03 And we'll preach them and hopefully they are convinced 46:05 of what we were sharing is true and they will accept the truth. 46:08 That is intellectual, but let me tell you 46:10 God's mission in more cases was to connect with people 46:15 on a one to one level than it was preaching upfront. 46:19 Yes, he had his times, his moments, his reaping series, 46:23 but how much was one to one service. 46:25 And if we disconnect, divorce ourselves 46:28 from connecting with people one to one, 46:29 whether it will be door to door or whether it be our neighbors, 46:31 whether it be our co-worker, 46:33 the gospel will never be finished. That's right. 46:38 In fact, there's a statement from Gospel Workers 46:41 and it says, "The work of God on this earth 46:44 can never be finished unless our members unite their efforts 46:50 with our pastors and leaders, church officers." 46:53 Okay, Page 351, 46:55 "The work of this earth can never be finished 46:57 until the men and women comprising our church 47:00 rally to the work to get unite their efforts 47:02 with those of ministers 47:03 and church officers. "That's right. 47:05 And so when you hear this phrase, 47:06 well, the layman going to finish the work 47:07 or the clergy is gong to finish the work. 47:10 In God's sight there're no layman and clergy, 47:13 they're all workers. 47:14 Each of those categorizations 47:17 is the gift that God has entrusted you with. 47:20 Gift of administration, 47:22 some thing that John is strong in. 47:24 The gift of leadership, 47:26 the gift of, you know, organization, 47:29 all these are gifts, the gift of preaching. 47:31 And some of those are more obvious gifts, 47:33 but let's go to down the list now. 47:34 There is hospitality, 47:37 the gift of encouragement. That's right. 47:38 The gift of giving. 47:40 These gifts that seem to be 47:43 kind of lost sight of sometimes 47:46 are sometimes more important on a relational level 47:50 for reaching the hearts of our community 47:52 and the people around us. Right. 47:54 And we are not using them, we are not feeling accountable. 47:56 Well, the preacher, 47:57 he's just such a good preacher or the teacher. 47:59 Boy, he can give a Bible study. 48:00 Let's leave the saving up to them. 48:02 No, God is calling you to step forward 48:05 and use your gift for the salvation 48:06 of your neighbors, your friends, co-workers, 48:09 whatever, whoever it may be. 48:10 Yes, its like in any company 48:12 you never have the CEO doing all the work, 48:16 he actually have the staff. 48:18 I was giving a-- I've been preaching 48:20 a lot about this topic here recently 48:22 in going around from church to church. 48:24 It's really the model 48:26 that Upper Colombia is adopting with its pastors 48:28 and its churches to really get empower everyone 48:32 in the church for ministry. 48:34 And one of the things I mentioned in that message is, 48:39 Rochelle usually plays a special music before I preach. 48:42 And you know, she is good with the keys 48:43 and she's talented as a musician, the pianist. 48:47 And I said, how many of you would believe me 48:51 if I told you that Rochelle 48:53 just started playing the piano last week. 48:55 Oh, it's good. 48:57 And everybody says, no way. There's not a chance. 49:01 Well, for that Bible worker or for that preacher 49:05 or the one that, you know, is really ministered to you, 49:08 how long ago do you think 49:09 they started using their gift? Right. 49:12 Even the gift of hospitality and other things, 49:14 you've got to just jump in sometimes 49:16 and it may be uncomfortable 49:18 and it may have few failures along the way, 49:20 but you get good at it once you do it. 49:23 Bible workers, we have a network 49:24 of 37 Bible workers right now in Upper Colombia 49:27 and they're placed around at various churches. 49:30 Every one of them, to the last one say that 49:32 when they go out knocking on doors, 49:34 the first few are the most difficult 49:36 but after that they are on the roll. Right. 49:39 Because the discomfort goes away. 49:41 It all of the sudden they feel like, 49:43 you know, I am God's worker. 49:45 And they are knocking on doors and they are talking to people 49:47 and that uncomfortableness wares off 49:51 and they become good at it. 49:53 Now let me also add another component here 49:54 that seems strange, 49:56 it's kind of like adding some pepper, 49:58 adding some seasoning to the conservation here. 50:02 If the worker of Christ is not a worker for Christ 50:09 then the work doesn't go forward. 50:12 When Jesus talks about this in Matthew 24, 50:16 Matthew 20, Matthew 7. 50:19 I want to read this in the King James Version 50:21 because I want you to see something 50:24 that really-- the Lord just-- 50:27 I mean, really I don't often say statements like this, 50:29 but He just impressed me to share this text 50:32 from the perspective of the worker. 50:37 He says in Matthew 7:21 then--verse 23, 50:45 "And then I will profess unto them, 50:49 I never knew you depart from me, 50:52 ye that work iniquity." 50:57 They work but what is their work? Iniquity. 51:01 And if you think about the world today, 51:03 I remember going to Las Vegas with 3ABN. 51:08 We went there to do a rally 51:09 at one of the churches few years ago. 51:12 And one of the things that we were 51:14 so encouraged by is that 51:18 the baptism rate is so high in Las Vegas 51:24 because 3ABN's network is going out 51:27 throughout the community. 51:28 And people are walking into churches, 51:30 prepared for baptism. People then go out, 51:33 those persons that are baptized 51:35 then go out into the community 51:37 and bring other individuals. 51:38 And I thought to myself as we were walking down these, 51:41 you know, you cannot go to Las Vegas 51:43 without going down the major strip there 51:45 and seeing the lights but you can't move 51:48 but a few inches, but a few feet 51:52 before there somebody always trying to give you something. 51:55 They're workers of iniquity out there 51:58 that work 24 hours a day, seven days a week on their back, 52:02 some of them have backpacks, 52:04 some of them have a box on the side of the road. 52:06 They go and get a handful 52:08 of whatever handbills they are passing out, 52:10 they are flipping and giving it-- 52:12 take another one out there. 52:14 Here's another one, here's one for you, 52:15 here's one for you. 52:17 They're making sure that these workers of iniquity 52:19 get their message out. 52:22 And you know what the-- 52:23 and when you look at these ads in a newspaper, 52:27 this is the ad, no experience required on the job training. 52:35 So we come to Christianity we'll say, 52:37 I say to somebody, you say you will never 52:40 oh, you'll never get me to do that and I said, 52:42 "So how hard is it to go like this?" 52:46 Knock, knock. Does your arm work? 52:52 Can you say, how hard is it to just go down the block 52:57 and hang on somebody's door knob, 53:01 a nice clear plastic bag 53:02 with the number of different types of literature 53:04 that can preach a message to them 53:06 that they would never otherwise receive. 53:09 That's what you're talking about. 53:10 These are the gifts. 53:12 God has called us to be workers not of iniquity 53:15 but workers of righteousness. So we cannot miss. 53:19 You want to read something there? 53:21 Well, in looking at verse you just read. Yeah. 53:24 From the King James Version, the New King James Version, 53:28 I think it's also good, it say, "You who practice lawlessness." 53:31 And that word practice jumps out at me 53:33 because John in his epistle, 53:37 1 John 3 says this, 1 John 3:7, 53:42 "Little children, let no one deceive you. 53:45 He who practices righteousness 53:47 is righteous, just as he is righteous." 53:51 Practice makes perfect and here's what I mean by that. 53:56 Not in the sense that you 53:58 finally have arrive at the highest 100% level. 54:01 But the fact that you practice your faith. 54:04 Any point along the time where you are practicing, 54:07 using your gifts, 54:09 allowing the fruits of God's spirit 54:11 to shine through you. 54:12 Remember a balance gospel here now. 54:14 Anytime you practicing that, Jesus makes you perfect. 54:18 He doesn't call for you to be great and perfect 54:21 in all that you do just that you practice it. Right. 54:24 Practicing righteousness makes us righteous. 54:28 And to say I become-- I've been saved by Jesus, 54:33 I've been transformed, I am prepared for heaven 54:36 without actually being involved in His work 54:39 and using His gifts is self deception. 54:42 That's why John says, "Let no one deceive you, 54:45 practice righteousness." Get out there and perform it. 54:49 Do the work that God has given you to do. 54:51 Don't you sit there and say, I am saved. 54:55 And that's one of the reasons 54:57 why we have this debate within even Adventism. 55:00 And I know a lot of Christian face have this 55:02 is should we say that, I am saved. 55:05 Well, yes we should have confidence that we're saved, 55:07 but our confidence is in the doing of the work 55:10 God has given us to do. Right. 55:11 Now in the fact that I am attained 55:13 or reached a point in time 55:15 where I am arrived, I finally have arrived. 55:18 It's the work of God in doing 55:20 and being involved in the work of God. 55:21 This is what we're trying to get members to be involved with. 55:25 So when people say I am saved, 55:27 a good question nowadays to follow that up with will be, 55:30 what are you saved for? 55:34 Not when where you saved, 55:35 but what do you saved for? Yeah. 55:38 What does the Lord saved you for? 55:40 Ephesians 2:10, "For we are his workmanship, 55:45 created in Christ Jesus for good works, 55:48 which God prepared beforehand, that you should walk there in." 55:53 Just recently we have a prison ministry here that 55:57 3ABN treasurer which is also one of our elders 56:01 is heavily involved with a beautiful ministry. 56:03 He and a number of people here, 56:05 go to different institutions 56:07 whether large prisons or small detention centers, 56:13 but every now and then they get these 56:14 massive loads of boxes of goods 56:17 and plastic bags of all these things 56:19 that they take over there. 56:21 And Sabbath afternoon he say, 56:23 okay, for the next three hours we need lots of hands, 56:26 we got to get all of these bags together 56:28 to carry them out to give to somebody 56:32 and you realize okay. 56:34 He had these things prepared beforehand 56:37 that we should go ahead and involve ourselves 56:40 in getting involved in that. You know what happens? 56:42 When all the church members after we have lunch, 56:43 get together and go over to the school 56:45 and work for hours on there 56:46 they feel a sense of accomplishment in partnership 56:49 and those bags finally make it to that inmate. 56:52 Whether male or female they realize 56:53 they did something today 56:55 to make a difference in somebody's life. 56:57 We're going to spend more time in our part two. Yes. 56:59 Talking about good works, 57:02 because that is part of the Christian experience. 57:05 We can't be so afraid of good works 57:07 not to talk about it. 57:08 So we'll talk about that, 57:10 but God wants workers for Him to help finish the work today. 57:13 That's right and so friends here at "House Calls" 57:15 we do believe that the Lord has made a call already. 57:19 Not just to come to Him, 57:21 but He wants to prepare you to do something 57:23 that you never thought you will able to do, 57:25 give you an ability that will always glorifies His name. 57:28 So get ready because the call is coming 57:30 and when it does, we pray that you will answer it. 57:33 God bless you. |
Revised 2014-12-17