Participants:
Series Code: NP
Program Code: NP180901S
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00:11 >> ♪ I want to walk as a child of the light ♪ 00:18 ♪ I want to follow Jesus 00:25 ♪ God set the stars to give light to the world ♪ ♪ The star of my life is Jesus 00:39 ♪ In him there is no darkness at all ♪ ♪ The night and the day 00:49 are both alike ♪ ♪ The Lamb is the light of the city of God ♪ 01:01 ♪ Shine in my heart, Lord Jesus ♪ >> ♪ I want to see 01:13 the brightness of God ♪ 01:17 ♪ I want to look at Jesus 01:25 ♪ Clear Sun of righteousness, shine on my path ♪ ♪ And show me the way to the 01:36 Father ♪ >> ♪ In him there is no darkness at all ♪ 01:46 ♪ The night and the day are both alike ♪ ♪ The Lamb is the light 01:54 of the city of God ♪ ♪ Shine in my heart, Lord Jesus ♪ 02:09 ♪ I'm looking for the coming of Christ ♪ ♪ I want to be with Jesus 02:22 ♪ When we have run with patience the race ♪ ♪ We shall know the joy 02:30 of Jesus ♪ ♪ In him there is no darkness at all ♪ 02:42 ♪ The night and the day are both alike ♪ ♪ The Lamb is the light 02:52 of the city of God ♪ ♪ Shine in my heart, Lord Jesus ♪ 03:19 [ "Your Love Oh Lord" plays ] ♪♪ 04:47 ♪♪ >> God of wonders. 05:39 I want you to take a moment and look around. 05:43 I see so many different people here, so many different cultures 05:47 represented, so many different generations represented. 05:50 We all come from different places, and we have different backgrounds. 05:54 But that also means we hold a lot of different opinions, and we hold a lot of different 05:59 standards, and sometimes, we let that get in the way of everything. 06:04 But we have one thing in common. And that's we were all made in the image of God. 06:12 And God is a God that is ours, and He's never gonna leave us, and He's never gonna forsake us. 06:18 So this next song is a song that's actually originally in Portuguese. 06:24 But even though it's in a different language and it's from a different culture, it speaks 06:28 of the same thing. God is our God. The first verse, I'm gonna sing 06:37 in Portuguese, and if you know it, please join and sing with me. 06:40 But the rest of the song has been translated so that we can all sing it together. 06:44 ♪♪ ♪♪ 07:31 Please join in singing the next few verses. ♪♪ 10:21 ♪♪ Now is a time that I invite you to come before the Lord to bring 10:29 all of your petitions, to bring your burdens, and to bring your praises, as well. 10:35 Please come to the front and join us. ♪♪ 12:47 >> Good morning, boys and girls. Nice to see you out on this -- Is this really the first day of 12:52 September? Yep. Labor Day weekend. 12:55 And on God's great non-Labor Day Sabbath. Thank you, Deacon Jones. 13:03 And nice to see all of you. Have you gotten off to a good start in school? 13:07 Things kind of going okay? Good. 13:10 I got the perfect school -- perfect story, rather, for 13:13 school's beginning from my friend Sherry Davis, who spotted 13:17 this story from Omaha, Nebraska. Hey, guys, have a seat. 13:23 Nice to have you. There you go. So, I want you to see the 13:26 picture. We're gonna start with the picture, 'cause here's the 13:29 picture on the screen. I need you to guess, what are those on the tree? 13:34 What are those? >> Squirrels! >> You can recognize a squirrel? 13:38 Okay, let's count them together. How many squirrels are there? 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. 13:48 Six little baby squirrels, just eight weeks old. And look at them. 13:53 They're just hanging together. They must about -- They must all be brothers and 13:56 sisters. Isn't that brothers and sisters do, just kind of stick together? 14:01 Look at them. Although something very interesting that we can't see in 14:05 this picture -- keep the picture up, please. We can't see this, but their 14:09 tails -- their tails are all knotted with each other's tails. Can you believe that? 14:18 Their tails all got knotted. You know why? Because the tree they're 14:22 playing in has sticky sap on it. And as they were running around on the tree together, they 14:29 dragged their tails in the sap, and when their tails touched, it's just like magnets, just 14:33 chkk, chkk, chkk! Unbelievable. Craig Luttman, in whose yard 14:38 this tree grows, when he saw that, he thought they were just having fun, but then he noticed, 14:43 everyone's pulling a different direction but nobody moves. Isn't that sad? 14:49 So he calls the Nebraska Humane Society, they send some veterinarians out, 14:55 they put a towel over the squirrels, they put the squirrels to sleep, and it took 14:59 about an hour -- snip, snip, snip, cut, cut, cut, ooh, ooh, ooh! 15:03 Just like a ball of rope. They were all stuck. And were they happy when they 15:10 were unstuck? Oh, my. The good news is, they are doing 15:13 just fine. What a way to begin life, stuck together. 15:18 What a way to begin a new year, stuck to someone you don't want to be stuck with -- stuck to 15:22 something you don't want to be stuck with. I'm think-- 15:26 Can you spell this word? Can you read this word? S-I-N. 15:32 >> Sin. >> Sin -- you got it. Go to the head of the class. 15:35 I'm thinking about little sins that get stuck to us, like kind of sassing mommy. 15:40 "No, Mommy, I'm not gonna do that! No, I will not!" 15:42 Or borrowing your little friend's toy next door and never returning it. 15:47 That would be stealing. Or telling teacher -- "Did you just do that?" 15:51 "No, I didn't do that, teacher." And that would be lying. Those little sins that stick to 15:57 us -- oh, we don't begin a new year with that. Jesus said, "If the Son sets you 16:02 free, you are free, indeed." And guess who can cut us free from everything that sticks to 16:07 us. Who do you think could cut us free? 16:09 The Lord Jesus himself. Snip, snip -- oh, there goes that. 16:13 Snip, snip. The secret is -- shh, shh, shh! The secret is, you have to pray 16:20 this prayer. Can I teach you a prayer? It goes like this. 16:23 Lord Jesus, I want you to live with me, and I want to live with you. 16:31 Ooh! That's a great prayer. Can you pray it out loud with me? 16:34 Lord Jesus, I want you to live with me... No, I need to hear you now. 16:40 Let's do it again. "I want you to live with me" -- Let me hear you say it. 16:43 >> "I want you to live with me." >> "And I want to live with you." 16:48 Let me hear you say it. >> "And I want to live with you." 16:52 >> Lord Jesus... live with me, and let me live with you. 16:56 Then, we connect with the right person, and all the rest of the stuck is gone. 17:01 Hallelujah. Anybody want to thank Jesus for cutting us free? 17:07 Young man, you come right here. Come on up. Cutting us free. 17:11 Let's thank Jesus for being the one who just cuts us free and is the one we want to stick with 17:16 all this new year. Come on up. Let me grab a microphone. 17:18 What's your name? >> Haseo. >> Haseo. 17:21 Okay, guys, let's -- let's -- let's close our eyes and fold our hands as Haseo thanks Jesus. 17:27 >> Dear Jesus, thank you for this beautiful day, and help us to learn more all about you, and 17:34 we can thank you for doing everything for us and preparing us things. 17:40 Amen. >> Amen. Thank God, Haseo. 17:42 Beautiful prayer. As you go quietly and reverently back to your seats, it's what 17:46 Haseo prayed. Thank you, Jesus, for being my savior and cutting me free. 17:57 ♪♪ ♪ When I am gone 18:03 ♪ Don't you cry for me ♪ Don't you pity my sorry soul 18:23 ♪ What pain there might have been ♪ ♪ Will all be past 18:33 ♪ Soon my spirit will be made whole ♪ ♪ I'll be on my way 18:54 ♪ I'll be on my way ♪ God will lift my feet of clay from off the ground ♪ 19:14 ♪ I will be glory-bound ♪ I'll be on my way ♪♪ 19:32 ♪ When I am gone ♪ Don't you cry for me ♪ Don't you pity my sorry soul 19:41 ♪ What pain there might have been ♪ ♪ Will all be past 19:46 ♪ Soon my spirit will be made whole ♪ ♪ I'll be on my way 19:54 ♪ I'll be on my way ♪ God will lift my feet of clay from off the ground ♪ 20:04 ♪ I will be glory-bound ♪ I'll be on my way ♪♪ 20:13 >> ♪ When I am gone ♪ Please forgive the wrongs ♪ That I might have done to 20:20 you ♪ ♪ There'll be no room for regrets up there ♪ 20:27 ♪ High above, way beyond the blue ♪ >> ♪ I'll be on my way 20:33 >> ♪ I'll be on my way >> ♪ I'll be on my way >> ♪ I'll be on my way 20:41 >> ♪ I'll have laid my frown ♪ And all my burdens down ♪ I'll be puttin' on my crown 20:48 ♪ I'll be on my way >> ♪ When I am gone, don't you look for me ♪ 20:56 ♪ In the places I have been ♪ Oh, someday soon, I'll be alive ♪ 21:06 ♪ I'll be on my way again >> ♪ I'll be on my way >> ♪ I'll be on my way 21:17 >> ♪ I'll be on my way >> ♪ I'll be on my way ♪ I will lift my wings 21:25 ♪ And soar into the air ♪ There'll be glory everywhere ♪ I'll be on my way 21:32 >> ♪ I'll be on my way >> ♪ I'll be on my way >> ♪ I'll be on my way 21:40 >> ♪ I'll be on my way >> ♪ I'll have laid my frown ♪ And all my burdens down 21:47 ♪ I'll be puttin' on my crown ♪ I'll be on my way ♪ God will lift my feet 21:55 of clay from off the ground ♪ ♪ I will be glory-bound ♪ I'll be on my way 22:10 [ Applause ] >> Amen. Oh, thank you, Joshua. 22:23 Thank you, Stephen. Thank you, University singers. We needed that for this opening 22:28 moment. I'll be on my way. That's the good news. 22:34 That's the good news. We're not stuck here. You may look for me. 22:40 I may look for you. Can't find us. One day, we'll be on our way. 22:51 Oh, God. That's the lift of the everlasting gospel. 22:59 It's not over. There's a place... a destination at the end of this 23:07 journey. But here we are at the beginning of a new year. 23:10 We're ready to go. God, do whatever it takes this new year. 23:16 The best year we've ever lived on this planet. That's what we're humbly asking. 23:21 In Jesus' name, amen. 23:24 Like to introduce to you a friend of mine that I have been 23:27 carrying in the wallet of my mind since I was a kid. 23:32 It's a picture. First time I saw this picture, I said, "That's it. 23:37 That is our man, Noah." Look at him. Don't you just love that 23:41 picture? Beard 3 feet long, his hands tense, his fingers curled. 23:50 And notice the reaction he's getting from everybody around him. 23:53 Yeah, everybody's just laughing, just mocking him. You know why? 24:01 Because for 120 years, he's been preaching to everybody that the end of the world is coming. 24:06 "Get up. You see the sunshine? You think we have a hundred 24:11 years of sunshine left? You don't have a hundred years of sunshine left. 24:15 This baby's comin' to an end. Don't be foolish. Don't be a fool. 24:21 God has told me to tell you we're near the end. I'll be on my way one of these 24:27 days, and you must be, too. 24:33 Why would a kid choose Noah to be a childhood hero? 24:37 Well, I suppose, it's just the chutzpah of the moment. 24:40 The guy that has guts. Doesn't care who you are or what 24:45 you stand for, he's gonna tell it like it is. 24:49 Unafraid of a message entrusted to him. "The world's coming to an end. 24:56 Get ready." It's the Noah generation. And I've been thinking, "How 25:03 many Noahs do we have?" I sat behind the President. Boy, did she do a great job 25:07 this last Thursday, opening convocation. And I looked out over this sea 25:12 of young faces -- handsome faces, beautiful faces. And I wondered to myself, "Are 25:18 there any Noahs in this generation?" You know what? 25:26 Please, let's be honest. Countercultural. Hoo, way countercultural. 25:29 Doom and gloom. "Ew! Who wants to be a part of that?" 25:33 And yet somebody -- somebody -- has to tell the world, "I'll be on my way soon." 25:40 And you can be, too. Noah. Ah, we all know the story of 25:46 Noah and how it begins. Few of us know how the story ends, and so here's what we're 25:50 gonna do. We're gonna push -- We're gonna get the bookends of 25:52 his life, we're gonna push them right up smack dab against each other. 25:56 Take one line from the beginning, one line from the ending, there will be a sweet, 26:00 short, but stunning truth that emerges. Check it out for yourself. 26:04 Open your Bible with me, please. Genesis 6. Book of Beginnings, Genesis 6. 26:10 Let's go. Just one line from the beginning. 26:12 We'll pull another line out of the ending. Let's ask the question. 26:16 Then what does this mean? Genesis 6. If you didn't bring a Bible, 26:20 grab the pew Bible in front of you. You know where Genesis is, and 26:22 you can find 6. Now, I'm gonna be in the NIV, so that's what's gonna be on the 26:26 screen. Genesis 6, the beginning. Just one line will do. 26:31 Verse 8. 26:37 The old King James reads, "Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord." 26:41 You ever hear that spiritual? Have you guys sung that spiritual? 26:44 ♪ Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord ♪ ♪ Noah found grace in the eyes 26:47 of the Lord ♪ ♪ Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord ♪ 26:50 ♪ And he landed high and dry You know that one? Good. 26:55 [ Laughter ] No-- No-- Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. 27:00 You know what? It's a good thing that line is at the beginning. 27:04 If there's gonna be any hope for Noah in the ending, it's gonna be that line. 27:07 Put it up one more time on the screen for us, please. 27:14 Now let's go to the ending. Come on. I said two bookends, short and 27:17 sweet and stunning. Here comes the end bookend. Just a line from that. 27:21 Just turn a page. Now you're in Genesis 9. Good. 27:24 Genesis 9:20. 27:38 You say, "Dwight, what's the big deal about that? Is there something wrong with 27:42 planting a vineyard?" No, there's nothing wrong at all. 27:44 God invented vineyards. In fact, if you live here in Southwestern Michigan, as we all 27:51 do right now, there's no more glorious place on Earth than this little swath of rich, 27:57 succulent -- ahh -- vineyards. You know the story. But we need obviously more than 28:05 that one line, so let's add one more line to it. Okay, let me read verse 20 28:08 again. 28:21 Go figure. Uncovered -- euphemism for naked. 28:26 Drunk. Soused. Because that's precisely what's 28:33 going on here. And by the way, yes, this is the great man of God who found grace 28:38 in the eyes of the Lord and was raised up by God to save the human race by preserving just, 28:43 please, a sample of them, because the universal flood will destroy this entire planet, and 28:48 we're gonna begin this whole experiment all over again, and you're my man. 28:52 This is the same Noah. Naked and drunk in a tent. The last line of his life. 29:01 This is it. There's no other story to him. This is it. 29:06 Man. Victim of alcohol consumption. The first victim in the Bible of 29:10 alcoholic inebriation. In other words, the Bible's first drunk. 29:16 And he ends up -- get this -- he ends up in the Bible Hall of Faith, Hall of Fame, 29:20 Walk of Fame, whatever you want to call it. He has a star in it. 29:23 Hebrews, chapter 11. In fact, Hebrews 11, here's the line. 29:26 Put it on the screen here. 29:35 Keep reading. 29:46 This same Noah, the drunk in the tent. Peter comes along and 29:53 immortalizes him with a description there in 2 Peter 2. "Noah, preacher of 29:59 righteousness." Can you believe that? Naked and drunk in his tent. 30:07 Now, listen, before we jump too hastily to conclusions -- and, by the way, that's the only 30:13 exercise some people get, jumping to conclusions. But before we do, we need to go 30:19 deeper into this vineyard, okay? Let's dig a little deeper. Jacques Doukhan, our friend, 30:26 professor, seminary, in his new commentary on the Book of Genesis, makes a point I had 30:30 never seen before. I'm gonna flip it up on the screen for you 'cause I want you 30:34 to see it, as well. Noah's first act -- get this. 30:37 "Noah's first act outside the ark connects him to Adam." 30:41 Well, he had the altar, but after the altar, just a normal 30:43 day of life, he plants a vineyard. 30:45 That's his first act. Now keep reading. 30:47 "For Noah's story of planting a vineyard contains numerous 30:51 parallels with the story of Adam in the Garden of Eden." 30:54 Watch this. I put the little numbers in. 30:55 Here comes parallel number one. "Like Adam, Noah eats of the 30:59 fruit." True or false? 31:00 True. Okay, here comes number two. 31:02 "And as a result of his actions, Noah's nakedness, of which he is 31:06 not aware, is revealed." Was Adam naked and then he found 31:09 out he was naked? Yep, okay. 31:11 Parallel number three. "And a covering is provided." 31:14 Oh, yep. We had that in both stories. 31:16 And, finally, number 4, "Both stories end the same way, with a 31:19 curse and a blessing." Isn't that something? 31:22 Adam and Noah. The point is profound. 31:26 Moses, the writer of Genesis, is carefully constructing Noah's fall into drunkenness to 31:32 parallel Adam's fall into sin. Which is a huge hint how God regards Noah's alcoholic 31:41 consumption. S-I-N -- the kids can spell it -- sin. 31:46 Jacques Doukhan again, on the screen. 32:06 And guess what, so is the second drinking in the Bible, because 32:10 there we had the two daughters of Lot, who get him drunk with 32:13 wine. 32:14 They get him drunk with wine so that the girls can sleep with their daddy one at a time and 32:20 both, through incest, give birth to two little boys. And it all started with 32:27 drinking. That's the second drinking in the Bible. 32:31 Stuff happens when your mind is under the influence. Listen carefully. 32:37 Statistics show that most date rapes happen under the influence. 32:44 And wouldn't you know it, just this week, the famed British medical journal, The Lancet, 32:51 comes out with a study that stuns the world. I'll put the BBC headline for 32:55 this study on the screen. 32:58 BBC headline -- "No alcohol safe to drink, global study 33:02 confirms." And then, here's the subtitle -- 33:05 "Bad news for those who enjoy what they think is a healthy 33:08 glass of wine a day." [ Scoffs ] 33:12 On the screen again, take a look. 33:15 "A large new --" This is BBC now. 33:16 "A large new global study --" It's called the Global Burden of 33:19 Disease Study, "published in the Lancet has confirmed previous 33:22 research which has shown that there is no safe level for 33:27 alcohol consumption. The researchers admit moderate 33:31 drinking may protect against heart disease, but they found 33:34 that the risk of cancer and other diseases outweighs these 33:38 protections. A study author said its findings 33:40 were the most significant to date because of the range of 33:43 factors considered." The Global Burden of Disease 33:47 study. Started in the U.K., the 33:49 United Kingdom. They studied 195 different 33:52 nations between 1990 and 2016. They analyzed data from 33:58 15-year-olds to 95-year-olds, and then the researchers 34:02 compared people who did not drink at all with those who had 34:05 one alcoholic drink a day." Amazing. 34:10 Conclusion -- no amount of alcohol is a safe amount. 34:24 Lest we make an unwarranted conclusion, this new series would begin right now, "Tales 34:30 from a Vineyard," is hardly advocating that we all make the tragic mistake Noah did of 34:34 drinking fermented grape juice. But, apparently, one of Noah's boys found it rather funny to 34:43 see his daddy there, lying, sprawled, drunk, and naked, and with a sneer, went and found his 34:50 two older brothers -- that would be Ham looking for Shem and Japheth -- and telling them. 34:56 I want you to read that story. Because it's right here -- verse 21. 35:00 We'll read it again. 35:01 "And when he, Noah, drank some of its wine, he became drunk, 35:04 and he lay uncovered inside the tent." 35:06 Now verse 22 -- "Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father naked 35:10 and told his two brothers outside. 35:12 But," verse 23, "Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid 35:15 it across their shoulders. Then they walked in backward and 35:19 covered their father's naked body. 35:21 Their faces turned the other way so that they would not see their 35:24 father naked." Verse 24 -- "But when Noah awoke 35:28 from his wine and found out what his youngest son had done, he 35:31 said, 'Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will he be 35:36 to his brothers!'" We cannot let this moment -- 35:39 This is as close as we'll ever get, and we cannot let it slip without correcting a tragic 35:44 misunderstanding of Noah's curse after he awakens from his stupor. 35:49 Through centuries, Christians have seized this very passage to justify the slave trade in 35:55 Africa, who are descendants of Ham. Most of them will migrate. 35:59 Or the practices of apartheid in South Africa. But there is not a shred of 36:05 biblical support for such racist views. In fact, let me show you what's 36:09 going on here. You'll -- You'll see it in a split second. 36:12 Jacques Doukhan on the screen again. "Our failure to honor the past 36:16 that produced us..." You see, he didn't honor his father. 36:21 He did not honor his father. He mocked his father. Don't you ever mock your mother. 36:27 Don't you ever mock your father. I don't care how they treated you. 36:31 Honor your father and mother. It's one of the eternal Ten. Ham broke the law. 36:42 "Our failure to honor the past that produced us --" oh, this is dynamite -- "affects the future 36:48 that we shall produce." In other words, Ham dishonored his father, and Noah awakens, 36:57 and, prophetically, like all the patriarchs can do, Noah peers into the future, and he sees 37:02 that Ham's son, Canaan, would repeat the sin of his father and would have dishonor until, 37:12 finally, Canaan, in spades, throws the eternal law completely out. 37:20 Some of the worst practices of the then-known world came out of the land of Canaan. 37:27 And the writer of -- the writer of Genesis is wanting the reader to know, "Lookit, this is where 37:32 it starts." But the curse is on Canaan. And he stayed in Palestine. 37:40 Now, Jacques Doukhan, one more line. 38:03 Just read the Book of Genesis beyond Genesis 9. 38:06 You'll see exactly what's up. 38:11 Terrible injustice in the name of a total misunderstanding of a biblical passage. 38:20 That's the life of Noah. We took the bookend from the beginning, we slid it up close 38:25 to the bookend at the end. What's the bookend at the beginning? 38:28 Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. What's the bookend at the end? 38:31 And he became drunk and lay uncovered inside his tent. So, here's the question -- how 38:36 shall we resolve this contradiction? Could it be that the answer is 38:43 found in the vineyard Noah planted? Noah, who loved the feeling -- 38:48 the chalky feeling of dirt beneath his fingernails. You're a city slicker. 38:52 You have absolutely no concept of that. Neither do I. 38:56 Noah, who planted this vineyard and then strolled the aisles. City slickers, as we are, who 39:02 here's walked down an aisle, rolling aisle of a vineyard? I have never been close to a 39:07 vineyard until we moved to this beautiful corner of Southwestern Michigan. 39:12 And then, I had the joy of walking up and down these aisles, and I'm telling you 39:15 what, guys, we're just days away from rolling down your car window and smelling it all over 39:19 Berrien County. It will be the smell of Concord grapes who have hit their peak. 39:24 There's nothing like it in the world. We took our cameras and our crew 39:28 to one of the vineyards here in Berrien County. 88 acres of vineyard, I might 39:34 add. And there, we met my friends Robin and Maryann, who live 39:38 nearby, and here's a portion of our conversation with Jose, the master gardener of the vineyard, 39:46 and Robin. We'll roll it on the screen for you right now. 39:52 you right now. ♪♪ ♪♪ 40:04 We are standing in what has to be one of the most beautiful spots here in Southwestern 40:08 Michigan. I'm standing here with my friends Robin and Jose. 40:12 And, gentlemen, we are in the midst of a vineyard. This is a real, live vineyard. 40:17 >> That's right. >> Most of us have never lived near a vineyard. 40:20 and every year, the university harvests this. >> Right. 40:23 >> And who picks up the grapes? >> Well, the university harvests, and all the grapes go 40:28 to Welch's, so... >> You're talking about Welch's, the juice company. 40:32 >> The juice company that was actually started by a pastor to create juice for communion. 40:37 >> So, Welch's gets all of this. >> Mm-hmm. >> Andrews University's 40:42 vineyard. Really, this is God's vineyard, right? 40:44 >> It is, it is. >> This is God's vineyard, because the produce all goes for 40:47 God's mission. >> Amen. >> Now, we're standing by a 40:49 vine, Jose. >> Right here, yeah. >> Yeah. And you just told me 40:52 the age. I couldn't believe it. How old is that vine? 40:55 >> This portion is like 60 years old. >> We have a gnarly old vine. 40:59 This is not really an attractive picture. >> No, no, it's not. 41:02 >> Show us where the branches come out of the vine. >> Like, right here. 41:05 >> That's a branch. >> Yeah, it's a branch, you know? 41:07 >> Oh, this is a branch up here, as well. Okay. 41:09 And what are these? >> Well, this is a runner. So, we look for the good runner 41:13 just to leave with the unit for next year. Prune it, and produces good 41:18 fruit. >> So, in this juncture, we've got branches coming together. 41:23 But the vine -- how essential is that vine? >> It's very essential. 41:27 >> A branch can survive on its own? >> No, if we cut it open the 41:31 ground, this, for sure, is gonna die. Needs to be connected with the 41:36 plant just to survive. >> That's amazing to me that God takes this -- this plant, and He 41:44 makes the points all the way through scripture. Vine, branch, vineyard, and 41:53 fruit. >> There's also we have to stay connected with that. 41:56 >> Ooh, I like that. >> Otherwise, we cannot make it. Spiritual things, you know? 42:00 Needs to be connected with that. Otherwise, we cannot make it here. 42:03 >> Yeah, amen. Thank you, Jose. >> Yeah. 42:06 >> You're not only a gardener. You're a good preacher. >> Oh, man. 42:10 ♪♪ 42:18 >> I want you to show -- I want to show you what he's referring to. 42:21 We'll go to the New Testament now. I want you to find John 15, 42:24 'cause he's gone straight to John 15. John 15, red letters in my 42:29 red-letter Bible. In less than 24 hours -- When Jesus speaks these words 42:33 found in John 15, when he speaks these words, in less than 24 hours, he's dead and gone. 42:37 "I'll be on my way." He's gone, he's dead. He slipped out of Jerusalem with 42:42 11 disciples that are left, and it's always full moon at Passover, so in the light of 42:47 that silver moon, he stops by a trellis, and he says, "Hey, guys, look at this." 42:51 And his hand reaches over, and in the light of the full moon, they get it. 42:56 So, this is John 15. John 15:1. 43:08 Lookit, guys. I'm this. That gnarly vine, that's me, and 43:12 my father is Jose. "Yeah, but where are we in this story?" 43:15 I'll drop down to verse 5. 43:27 "I am the vine." Put that on the screen, please. "I am the vine, and you are the 43:33 branches." And that was the point Jose the gardener was making. 43:38 The only way for a branch to fulfill its destiny is to stay connected to the vine. 43:42 The only way for a branch to produce this luscious, juicy fruit is to remain connected 43:48 with the vine. I'm the vine. You're the branches. 43:52 If you abide in me and I in you, guess what -- we got it, man. We got it, girl. 43:56 We got fruit. And that's the whole purpose of a vineyard. 44:00 You got to have fruit. "I promise you," Jesus says to us. 44:07 "Yo, Dwight, question, okay?" What? "Well, Noah. 44:11 Was Noah connected to the vine?" Answer. Of course. 44:16 Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. "Yeah, but question. 44:20 Question, question, question. Can there be grace when you have fallen in a drunken stupor like 44:26 Noah did?" Answer -- yes. "Question -- can you prove it?" 44:30 Answer -- yes, I can. Put it on the screen for you, Romans 5. 44:34 Look at this, verse 20. Oh, that's a great line. In fact, I wish we'd read this 44:39 out loud together. Come on, Romans 5:20. "But where sin increased, grace 44:45 increased all the more." Where there's sin, there's grace. 44:49 Now lookit in the King James. "Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound." 44:55 "Oh, good, Dwight. Question. Then we can just -- we can just 44:59 go on drinking and sinning all we want, can't we?" Answer -- no. 45:03 Look at the very next line, Romans 6:1. 45:13 "Yeah, but, Dwight, question again, please. Then why did Noah fall if he's 45:18 connected to the vine?" Answer -- because he allowed himself to become disconnected 45:24 to the vine. That's the only way you fall. You see, Noah, in you and I, we 45:34 have a mutual enemy. His name is Satan, and he is 24/7, with all his hellish fury, 45:41 trying to find a way -- severe, cut, cut, cut, cut, cut, dis-, dis-, dis-, disconnect, 45:46 disconnect, disconnect. That's all he wants. He spends his whole life trying 45:50 to disconnect a friend of Jesus from the vine. Pfft. 45:56 That's why Paul, in fact, admits as much -- you can never go on vacation from Jesus, even for a 46:01 night, even for a weekend. You can say, "Okay, Jesus, I'm disconnecting." 46:06 You can't disconnect and live. Listen to Paul. That's his point right here. 46:13 1 Corinthians 9:26-27. He takes the sports metaphor. "Therefore," he says, "I do not 46:19 run like somebody running aimlessly," in the Olympics. "I do not fight. 46:24 I do not box like a man beating the air. No, I discipline my body and I 46:29 make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified 46:36 for the prize." Isn't that amazing? The greatest Christian who ever 46:39 lived says, "No, man, it's full-court press the whole way. I can never back out. 46:44 I can never let down." You're never on vacation from Jesus. 46:49 Disconnect is death. Connect is life. Now I'm gonna make a point. 46:56 Some of you are a little bit older in this room, and I want you to get it, please. 47:02 Noah, near the end of his life, down. Moses, right near the end of his 47:08 life, down. Elijah, near the end of his ministry, down. 47:14 John the Baptist, near his beheading, down. What's going on? 47:19 Somebody, 24/7, is waiting for you to step out with nothing on, just naked you, pssh! 47:27 "Gotcha!" And Noah, that day, was naked, spiritually. 47:34 No armor. No protection. I want to say to those of you 47:40 who have earned the right to have white hair or a bald head, just because you followed Jesus 47:47 all these years doesn't mean now you could become careless in your pursuit of holiness, now 47:54 you can become careless in your connection with Jesus. Are you kidding? 47:57 The closer you get to what Joshua just sang a moment ago -- Josh, didn't you sing it? 48:01 "Well, I'm on my way"? I'll be on my way. The closer you get to being on 48:05 your way, the tighter you need to be. I'm telling you the truth. 48:08 The tighter you have to be with Jesus. He's not gonna force you into 48:13 some kind of half-nelson lock. It'll be free choice. You'll choose to stay connected 48:20 with him. You can never take a vacation. "Oh, Dwight, this is such -- 48:27 this is such rotten news." It's not rotten. It's the facts of life, guys. 48:34 You just can't take a vacation. You got a problem with that? Actually, it's the very best 48:39 news you can imagine. The very goodest news that Jesus could give us is found right 48:43 here. Put the word on -- Put the line on the screen again 48:46 from Noah's beginning. 48:52 One blotch, one blotch, one letting your guard down, and that stays with your story. 48:59 I understand that. Noah's ending. Nobody papered over it. 49:04 And, by the way, if you want to know the authenticity of the word of God, it's because it 49:08 does that. No whitewashing in this book. It always exposes the reality. 49:15 But the very good news, in spite of that blotch, Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. 49:19 You know why? Because if you look at the vine -- 49:21 Did you notice that a moment ago? We were looking at the vine. 49:23 I always thought these vines -- Seriously, I thought they were just these nice little 49:27 rolling... You know, you weave it into a little bit of tapestry, and the 49:30 grapes grow. No, no, no. Did you notice how gnarly, how 49:34 ugly that wood was? It's dry. 60 years that vine has been 49:38 growing. 49:39 Nothing pretty about that wood. But that wood produces a red 49:46 liquid, and the red liquid is what everybody wants. 49:53 Jesus stops in that silver light, and he says, "Hey, guys, 49:57 I'm the vine. You're the branches. 50:01 You'll see the red tomorrow. She who abides in me, he who 50:06 abides in me -- I don't care what your life has been -- I 50:11 promise you fresh, new beginning. 50:16 Scars forever." 50:20 It's the gospel. It's Calvary. That's this vine. 50:24 Jose the gardener is absolutely right. We must remain -- 50:28 His last words -- "We must remain connected to Jesus." We must remain connected to the 50:33 vine. And so that the Savior, your Savior right now, with nail 50:37 scars in his hands, stands in front of you -- Pretend like there's nobody 50:41 sitting in front of you. It's just the Savior standing there. 50:43 He stands with his nail-scarred hands outstretched in front of you, and you know what he's 50:47 saying? He's speaking the truth of the vine -- "I am the vine. 50:52 You are the branch. You abide in me, and I abide in you. 50:58 And you will bring forth much fruit." So, the question to be asked on 51:06 this launching of the new year is this. Are you connected? 51:11 Are you connected to the vine? Are you connected to Jesus? Some of you have never been 51:16 connected to him, not in any sort of official, "I'm telling myself I'm connected to Jesus" 51:20 sort of way. Some of you, it's been an up-and-down, up-and-down, 51:24 in-and-out, off-again, on-again... Would you like to just stay? 51:31 Would you just -- Would you like to just stay connected? 51:35 I'm gonna give you a way, and then I'll sit down. It's a simple way. 51:40 You'll first brush it off as, "Ah, too simple." No, it's not too simple. 51:44 Here's the -- Here's the way. Every day, every morning, when you start the day, every 51:49 morning, a simple prayer. I'm gonna put the prayer on the screen for you. 52:05 Isn't that simple? I'm gonna invite you to say it out loud with me, will you, 52:08 please? Let's do it out loud. Lord Jesus, I want you to abide 52:13 in my, and I want to abide in you." It's such a simple prayer. 52:19 You pray in the morning, pray it at noon -- when you're at the cafeteria, pray it at noon, 52:22 eating at a restaurant, eating at home, not eating at all, at noon, pray the same prayer. 52:27 Lord Jesus, I want you to abide in me, and I want to abide in you, please. 52:34 Three times a day -- morning, noon, and then, at night, before going to bed, no matter how the 52:38 day has gone -- Lord Jesus, you abide in me, and I abide in you. That's what I want. 52:47 Every day. Do you know what? When you pray that prayer -- 52:51 Listen, when you pray that prayer, you are asking for the baptism of the Holy Spirit on 52:57 the spot. Because that's the baptism of the Holy Spirit. 53:00 When he shows up, do you think he talks about himself? Are you kidding? 53:03 When he shows up in your heart and your mind, the immediate sense you have is that Jesus is 53:08 connected. "Jesus has just connected with me. 53:11 I am connected to Jesus right now." Holy Spirit never says, "Look at 53:14 me." He always says, "Keep your eyes on Jesus. 53:18 Just keep your eyes on Jesus." Lord Jesus, I want you to abide in me, and I want to abide in 53:27 you. You pray that prayer daily, you will experience the daily 53:30 baptism of the Holy Spirit. Daily. It's that simple. 53:35 It's the gospel truth. It's this simple. So, this new year, why not pray 53:45 that prayer? ♪♪ 55:06 ♪♪ ♪♪ 56:52 ♪♪ 57:08 >> Think of the last time someone said, "I'm praying for 57:11 you." Didn't it give you a sense of 57:13 peace and reassurance that, "Somebody cares for me"? 57:16 I know how I feel when I get an e-mail from one of our viewers saying, "Yo, Dwight, I've been 57:20 praying for you lately." There's nothing like knowing someone is praying for you, so I 57:24 want to offer you an opportunity to partner -- let me, let us, partner with you in prayer. 57:28 If you have a special prayer request or a praise of 57:31 thanksgiving you'd like to share with us, I'm inviting you to 57:34 contact one of our friendly chaplains. 57:36 It's simple to do. You can call our toll-free 57:38 number -- 877-- the two words -- HIS-WILL. 57:40 877-HIS-WILL. That friendly voice that 57:44 answers, you tell him, you tell her what your prayer need is, 57:47 and we'll join with you in that petition. 57:49 And may the God who answers prayer journey with you these 57:52 next few days until we're right back here together again next 57:55 time. 58:01 ♪♪ ♪♪ 58:18 ♪♪ |
Revised 2020-02-04