Spring Camp Meeting

Three Angels Broadcasting Network

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Series Code: SCM

Program Code: SCM180015A


00:49 Welcome back! And thank you for joining us,
00:52 if you're just now joining us around the world.
00:54 God has been blessing abundantly. I don't know about
00:57 you all, but I've been blessed this last hour; haven't you?
01:01 Hearing music that's bringing honor and glory to Jesus's
01:04 present truth - it's literally gonna be heard about the world.
01:08 We're so thankful for what God is doing, and thank YOU, each
01:12 and every one of you - some of you coming not only from America
01:14 but from around the world to be here and enjoy this camp meeting
01:19 with us. The music's been great, the speakers are amazing -
01:24 the subjects all on present truth - all on the three angels'
01:28 messages. We felt like this was a time that it needed to be done
01:33 because we feel like within our own church, sometimes, that we
01:37 take for granted the three angels' messages. We kinda
01:41 caught up in a rut of life, and we forget that God has given us
01:46 this movement, a message, to bring present truth to be a
01:51 light and a beacon on a hill to this world. And it's a great
01:55 responsibility, so, from time to time, I pray, "Lord, give me
01:59 that shot - whatever it is that I need - that spiritual shot to
02:03 wake me up so that I can go be a vessel of honor for You."
02:06 Tonight, it's with great privilege that I get to- I
02:12 shouldn't say introduce; I'm sure most of you know him - but
02:15 PRESENT to you tonight, Pastor Wintley Phipps. Pastor Phipps is
02:19 a pastor of the Palm Bay Seventh-Day Adventist church
02:23 there in Florida, but he's literally known around the
02:26 world; he travels and sings around the world - sang for
02:29 every president, I think, since way back from Jimmy Carter, but
02:33 God has given him a gift, and it's an unusual gift, but not
02:39 just the voice and the singing, but his ability to meet so many
02:43 people in, you might say 'high places,' and influenced them
02:47 with the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. So I'm so thankful
02:51 tonight to introduce- and also, we ask him since he's not here
02:55 very often, instead of having other music,
02:57 normally we do this and we invite someone out to sing. I
03:01 said, "Could we impose on you to maybe be your own singer
03:05 tonight?" So it's my privilege to introduce Pastor Wintley
03:08 Phipps. [crowd applauds]
03:38 No need to fear
03:42 When times of trouble come
03:47 oppression storm
03:52 beats at your door
03:56 No need to fear
04:06 No need to fear
04:10 though evil seems so strong,
04:15 their pride and power
04:20 is not for long
04:24 Be still my soul
04:30 and trust in God;
04:34 and place your life
04:40 into His Hands,
04:43 for He will never,
04:49 never fail you
04:53 And in the morning,
04:58 you'll see His face
05:02 No need to fear
05:07 Don't fear
05:21 No need to fear;
05:25 the envy and the scorn
05:30 of those who boast
05:35 in what they own -
05:40 No need to fear,
05:46 for what remains
05:50 when life's brief day is done,
05:56 their glories are
06:01 a setting sun
06:05 But as for me,
06:11 of this I'm sure,
06:15 God will redeem
06:20 my soul from death;
06:24 and He will never,
06:30 never fail me
06:34 And in the morning
06:39 I'll see His face
06:43 [instrumental break]
07:07 And He will never
07:13 fail you
07:16 No one can tear you
07:21 from His love;
07:25 and He will never
07:31 forsake you
07:35 And in the morning
07:40 you'll see his face
07:48 No need to fear
07:56 Don't fear
08:17 Will you bow your heads with me. Our Father in heaven, as we open
08:25 Your Holy Word, I ask that You would cleanse me of all
08:31 unrighteousness. Fill my life with Your Holy Spirit's presence
08:37 and power. Speak to me, through me, and for me. And I promise
08:47 You, Lord, I'll always give You the honor, the glory, and the
08:52 praise. In Jesus' Name I pray, amen. Amen!
08:59 I don't know about you, but I love coming to 3ABN.
09:03 [audience amens]
09:05 I wanna thank my friend Danny of many years. I think Danny
09:14 knew me when I had hair. [audience laughs]
09:20 And thank Yvonne and all those who give leadership. If you have
09:30 your Bibles with you, I want you to go to the Book of Revelation;
09:34 Chapter 14, verse 13.
09:40 The Book of Revelation chapter 14, verse 13.
09:46 Thank You, God.
09:51 The Word of God says -
10:27 May God add a blessing to the reading of His Word.
10:33 This Scripture we have read inspired me to look once again
10:38 at the life of one of my favorite writers in the New
10:42 Testament, the apostle Paul.
10:47 His transformation on the road to Damascus was nothing short of
10:52 dramatic and breathtaking. Here was a man who, because of an
10:59 encounter with Jesus, went from fanatical fundamentalist to
11:08 radical believer. Here was a man who went from being a raging
11:15 maniac to a magnanimous preacher of righteousness. Paul was a
11:23 mighty vessel chosen by a sovereign God, who went from
11:30 being a bounty hunter for the Pharisees to patriarch of the
11:36 Christian church. Born of Jewish parents, reared in Tarsus, Paul
11:44 was schooled by the great teacher Galileo. His personality
11:50 was a force of nature. He was a man who could neither be ignored
11:56 nor denied. Paul was a magnificent mix of some of the
12:04 finest leadership qualities a man could have. Of brilliant
12:09 intellect, unflagging zeal and determination, unbridled
12:17 enthusiasm, unquenchable optimism. If you wanted
12:23 something done right the first time, you gave it to Paul. But
12:29 when Paul met Jesus on the road to Damascus, Paul was changed
12:35 forever. He became a new creation - a man with new
12:41 motives. A man driven by one desire: to be like Christ. To
12:49 honor Christ. To live for Christ. To sacrifice any
12:56 advantage and privilege so that he might exalt Christ. I must be
13:02 honest with you - one of my favorite scriptures in all of
13:05 the New Testament is Galations chapter 1 verses 15 and 16-
13:11 written by Paul, where he says,
13:14 But when it pleased God, who separated me from my
13:18 mother's womb (allowed me to live), God called me by His
13:23 grace to reveal His Son in me. Oh, I love that scripture.
13:35 To reveal the character of Jesus in my life and in my character.
13:45 Friends, the preeminent goal and purpose of Paul's life was to
13:50 be like Jesus. And brothers and sisters, this ought to be the
13:57 preeminent purpose of OUR Christian lives - to resemble,
14:03 reflect, and reveal the character of Christ in our own
14:08 lives and our character. And over the span of his 30 years in
14:14 ministry, Paul never wavered from this spiritual trajectory.
14:20 Beaten and stoned, whipped and shipwrecked, hungry and thirsty,
14:25 weary and pained, he languished in prison cells, held in
14:31 dungeons in winter without cloak or coat, batted about on a
14:36 storm-tossed tea, bitten by serpents, chased out of town by
14:42 malicious people (who will chase you out of town)
14:48 [audience laughs]
14:50 Paul - Paul - my brothers and sisters, this was the preeminent
14:56 purpose of his life from which he never wavered to reveal the
15:04 character of Christ in me. Paul was even delivered in a basket
15:12 over a Macedonian wall. But he never wavered. "And it is my
15:16 prayer," said Paul, "that you would let this mind be in you
15:21 that was also in Christ Jesus." Paul traveled to fertile fields
15:27 and barren lands with this gospel. He thundered truth from
15:31 the crowded marketplaces of Asia. He proclaimed the second
15:36 coming on the jagged crest of Mars Hill. He preached
15:41 righteousness by faith on the steps of the temple of Diana.
15:46 His boldness stirred the calloused hearts of men. Until
15:52 one day, the word reached the emperor Nero - something had to
15:57 be done about Paul. Through the preaching of Paul, there were
16:01 many in Nero's inner circle who had converted to Christ. Some of
16:07 Nero's most hardened soldiers were now followers of Jesus.
16:13 Nero decided that Paul had to die, and because Paul was a
16:17 Roman citizen, it was not permitted for Paul to be
16:21 crucified. So the sentence was handed down - Paul was to be
16:27 beheaded. And as Paul stood there before the chopping block,
16:32 his face was not grimaced nor twisted by fear. It was not
16:40 gripped by uncertainty; instead, his countenance was filled with
16:46 hope and joy, confidence, and peace. Paul faced his death
16:54 holding onto the promise in Revelation 14 that all who die
16:59 in Christ are not only safe, but Jesus says He will raise them up
17:06 at the last day. As the sort of the executioner was about to
17:13 come down upon the neck of Paul, in words of triumpant joy, Paul
17:19 proclaimed, "For I am now ready- I'm now ready - READY to be
17:25 offered in the time of my departure is at hand; I've
17:29 fought a good fight, I've finished my course, I've kept
17:35 the faith. Henceforth, there is laid up for me a crown of
17:40 righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give
17:43 me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also
17:47 that love His appearing. And just like it says in our
17:53 scripture in the Book of Revelation, blessed are those
17:59 who die in the Lord.
18:03 Paul closed his eyes and died in the Lord.
18:14 And as the Scripture says, he now rests from his labors and
18:22 his works follow Him. His ministry still lives on today.
18:30 Brothers and sisters, this scripture in Revelation is one
18:35 of the most comforting and reassuring scriptures in all of
18:39 the Book of Revelation. Blessed are the dead which die in the
18:46 Lord. In this scripture, God offers to His children 3 things.
18:53 God offers those who are in Christ, what I call a trinity of
18:58 gifts, He offers those who belong to Christ 3 promises.
19:03 The first promise: that those who die in the Lord are blessed.
19:09 Somebody say amen. [audience amens]
19:13 Why? Because they are safe. Like David said, "For thou wilt not
19:19 leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One
19:26 to see corruption." So when you die in the Lord, you're safe.
19:35 Secondly, God promises honor and reward for good works. Your good
19:43 works are seen and noticed by God. And thirdly, God promises
19:50 rest from our labors. Now, I don't know about you, but the
19:56 older I get, the more I see the need for rest.
20:01 [audience amens and laughs]
20:04 And may I say, rest is not a promise sufficiently appreciated
20:11 by the young. The last thing young people look for is rest.
20:20 Oh, but we old folk.
20:22 [laughter]
20:23 The older we get, the more heavenly this promise of rest
20:29 is; the more precious it is. Now notice I said the older WE get.
20:34 Because you see, when I was young(er), I didn't need much
20:43 rest. As a matter of- can I make an awful confession today?
20:47 I have a confession to make. I have done some foolish things in
20:51 my life, but perhaps none more foolish than the day I drove
20:55 non-stop 1,500 miles to see my lovely Linda Diane
21:05 and her beautiful face. There was no Facetime back then.
21:11 [eruption of laughter]
21:16 The only 'face time' I could get I drove 24 hours with no rest,
21:24 just to see the face of my Linda. Now, almost 50 years
21:28 later, I'm older and wiser now and, these days I drive a couple
21:33 of hours and I start lookin' for a hotel. You know?
21:36 [audience laughs]
21:41 But when you're in love, you don't feel the need of rest. Can
21:46 I tell you something I've learned about love and this is
21:48 just on the side, really; to me, love is not emotion. Love is
21:53 much more than emotion. To me, emotion is the booster rocket
21:58 that puts you into orbit. And once you're in orbit, you gotta
22:04 make the best of the trip. [more laughter]
22:12 And the Lord knew we would need a booster rocket, because if
22:17 most of us knew what the trip would be like, we probably
22:20 wouldn't go.
22:26 But God and His mercy left us with enough power to make us
22:31 safely home, amen? And that's just the way I see youth! Youth
22:37 is a booster rocket that launches you into the orbit of
22:41 life. And God knew that we would need that booster rocket
22:45 because if we only knew what growing old was like, we would
22:51 ask God, "Let us start with old age!" [laughter]
22:56 And let's work this thing back, the other way. And as we get
23:01 older, the booster rocket of youth falls off; the flame of
23:06 youth dwindles, and life becomes a struggle; a harsh struggle.
23:15 Moving becomes painful. [more laughter]
23:23 I like the quiet chuckle. [eruption of laughter]
23:26 When you wanna shout, that's the TRUTH, brother!
23:33 Moving becomes painful, walking becomes laborious, we long for
23:39 rest. Rest from pain and suffering; rest from injury and
23:44 ill health; rest from fear and worry; rest from anxiety and
23:49 distress; rest from bills and burdens; somebody say amen.
23:54 [Amen!] Rest from trials and temptations; rest from the
24:00 demands of immorality and sin, and I had to throw this one in-
24:05 rest from thieving, wicked people! [Amen!]
24:12 If ever there was a promise from Jesus, tailored for modernity,
24:18 tailored for the frenetic lives of modern man; it is this
24:24 promise of rest. It is a lost discipline - we get up early,
24:30 stay up late, pushing the envelope, burning the candle at
24:34 both ends, and I'm guilty as charged. I'm guilty, eh.
24:40 Last week, today, I was in the Amazon. In the rainforest in
24:46 Manaus, Brazil and, three days ago... Three days ago, brothers
24:53 and sisters, I was in Sao Paulo. Wednesday, I was in Boston.
25:03 Lord Jesus, help me. [audience laughs]
25:06 Yester- I went home, and then yesterday, I was in Washington,
25:10 D.C. And God helped with my wife this morning and flew to St.
25:16 Louis so I could come here. So guess what - I'm goin' home...
25:26 to get some rest! [laughter]
25:31 And don't anybody - don't let anyone - don't let anyone make
25:35 you feel guilty for gettin' your rest. As a matter of fact,
25:41 brothers and sisters, I spoke with a friend of mine, who is a
25:46 wonderful physician, the other day, and he said to me that they
25:52 have found out from research, brothers and sisters, that when
25:57 you get up in the morning, people who lay in bed for
26:02 another 20 minutes - just relax in bed - it recharged the onset
26:09 of all Alzheimer's. Research.
26:20 Ohh, I know what you gonna be doin' from here. [laughter]
26:30 So when the wife says, "Honey, come on!" you say "Leah, I just
26:33 gotta stay here a little bit!" [more laughter]
26:38 Rest is a gift from God. I think it was the philosopher
26:44 Paracelsus who said, - listen to this - "Man is ill because he is
26:51 never still." Jesus said, "Come unto me, all ye that labor and
27:00 are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you;
27:05 learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall
27:09 find-" what? "rest... For my yoke is easy, and my burden is
27:16 light." Now in our scripture, God says we will rest from our
27:22 labors, and what is the labor from which God promises rest?
27:29 Is it laying bricks? Digging trenches? Well, there are at
27:34 least two kinds of labor I know of: temporal labor, or manual
27:39 labor. Manual labor is the kind of labor, you know, from which
27:43 you go to your home exhausted. Now, I must say to you, manual
27:48 labor is good. Amen. I thank God I've never been afraid of manual
27:56 labor. I remember as a student in the seminary, getting ready
28:01 to pastor my first church, we lived in the seminary in a
28:04 furnished apartment. And one day it dawned on me as we were
28:08 preparing to make our first church assignment to take it on,
28:12 we had no furniture...because we were living in a furnished
28:16 apartment since we were married, so I went down to the furniture
28:19 store, and I saw a beautiful sectional...you know? I almost
28:24 fainted, however, when I read the pricetag. At the time, back
28:30 then, was almost $4,000 and I was only making $600 a month.
28:35 Some figures you remember. So I decided I was gonna make my own
28:43 furniture. So I went down... Well, first thing I did, I went
28:50 back to the store with a ruler. With a tape measure. And I
29:00 walked and I said, "I wonder if this will fit in my house."
29:03 [audience laughs]
29:09 And I measured every piece carefully, and then I went- I
29:14 bought the plywood, I bought the foam, and I built an entire
29:21 sectional. It was hard work..but I got it done. All I needed was
29:28 the pattern. In these last days, brothers and sisters, however,
29:33 there is another kind of labor that God requires of his
29:38 children. The servant of God calls it "spiritual labor." Look
29:45 at this. Spiritual labor, toil, and burden bearing," she says-
29:51 what does it say? "SPIRITUAL labor," what does it say?
29:55 "Spiritual labor, toil, and burden bearing, is what will
30:00 give strength to the church of Christ." Now, what is spiritual
30:05 labor? Spiritual labor is when you work for the salvation and
30:12 transformation in the lives and characters of others and also in
30:17 yourself. The servant of the Lord says, "The great work of
30:22 life is," what? "character-building."
30:27 "Character-building. Character-building is the most
30:31 important work ever entrusted to human beings."
30:38 Now, I'm givin' you some new stuff tonight.
30:40 Character-building is spiritual labor.
30:49 Soul winning, brothers and sisters, is not just about
30:52 telling people the truth as we know it; it is also about
30:56 helping people to grow, to resemble, to reflect and reveal
31:01 the character of Christ. Spiritual labor is helping
31:06 people to be restored into the image and character of God.
31:13 Allow me to tell you tonight how important character-building
31:18 is. Look at this: "We are daily determining our destiny in the
31:28 future life by the cha-" it's almost hard to say it, isn't it?
31:34 By the what? "By the character we develop..." when!? "in THIS
31:44 life." And then look at this. "When Christ shall come, he will
31:50 not change the character of any individual. Precious,
31:57 probationary time is given to be improved in washing our robes of
32:03 character, and making them white in the blood of the Lamb.
32:08 So yes, brothers and sisters, we have been called to warn the
32:11 world of the beast and its image. Amen. We've been called
32:16 to warn the world that judgment is in session. But we are also
32:23 called to warn the world that, without the character of God
32:27 revealed in our lives, the soul of the Christian is in peril.
32:36 Yes, we have been called to warn the world of the man of sin,
32:40 but we are also called to warn the world that it is the
32:44 character formed in this world that determines our destiny for
32:49 eternity. Look at this. "Christ Himself will decide who are
32:56 worthy to dwell with the family of heaven." Amen! Amen! Amen.
33:03 "He will judge every man according to his words and his
33:07 works. Profession is as NOTHING in the scale." It is what? Who's
33:16 preaching this!? [audience laughs]
33:20 Do you understand what I'm saying? We don't hear this
33:22 enough. [Amen.] Character decides our what? [Destiny.]
33:30 Too often we see laboring for the kingdom as just public
33:33 evangelism. We see laboring for others as proclamation, without
33:38 the call to character transformation and restoration.
33:41 That's why we bring people in, and before you know it, they're
33:46 back out. Proclamation without the call to character
33:53 transformation and restoration is an incomplete gospel.
34:01 Proclamation without transformation is an incomplete
34:06 gospel. Listen, the servant of God says, "We are to be
34:11 justified by faith, and judged by our works." The very essence
34:19 of the gospel, brothers and sisters, is the restoration of
34:23 the image and character of God in man. So what is our spiritual
34:26 labor? It is to study the character of Christ and then
34:30 conform our conduct and our attitudes- yes, I said our
34:35 attitudes. I often jokingly tell people, "You are not gonna be in
34:40 heaven lookin' at angels sideways, saying to them, "Now,
34:43 what did you say to me?" [eruption of laughter]
34:48 That's NOT happening.
34:54 What is our spiritual labor? What is our work? We have- check
34:57 this out - "We have a great work to do-" "We have a great-" what?
35:02 "work! to do," to what? "to remove every defect of character
35:08 and be a constant light to those around us, reflecting" what?
35:15 "the character of Jesus," who is the... "light of the world."
35:20 And look at the next one. "Every soul who is seeking to become a
35:25 joint heir with Jesus Christ-" is that you? [Yes.] I said, is
35:29 that YOU? [YES!] EVERY soul who seeks to become a joint heir
35:33 with Jesus Christ must consider that his," or her, "special work
35:38 during this testing period is to" what? "study the character
35:43 of Christ" and do what? "conform to that character." He cannot do
35:48 this in his own strength. [Amen.] But through the abundant
35:52 grace given of God, what can be made? Daily improvements can be
35:57 made. Now, did you know that without Christlike character
36:01 revealed in us, we cannot even preach with credibility or
36:06 authenticity. Look at what the servant of God says. "A
36:11 Christlike life is the most powerful argument that can be
36:17 advanced in favor of Christianity. Men will believe
36:22 not what the minister preaches, but what the church lives."
36:27 Could that be one of the reasons the world is not hearing us
36:31 today? You know, an old preacher said to me, "Brother, you can't
36:35 talk what you don't know; you can't lead where you don't go."
36:40 In other words, it is really hard to sell people on what
36:44 isn't working for YOU. I'm doin' my best to hold- to be
36:53 diplomatic in my language and in my words. I heard a man say one
36:58 day, "Brother!" he said. "It's hard for a bald man to sell
37:02 hair-growing cream." [laughter]
37:13 If your gospel, that you go week after week listening to in
37:19 church, is not making you more like Jesus...
37:28 If your faith isn't making you like Jesus - and I'm talking
37:31 about when it counts - you know, when you're stressed, when
37:36 you're hurt, when you're disappointed; why would somebody
37:42 want to join what isn't working for you? Just 'cause you say
37:48 it's right? How can we testify to the liberating grace of God
37:53 while we're still in the grip of Satan's power? No one will hear
38:00 us. Becoming like Christ, revealing Christ - this is the
38:06 Christian's mission in the world. Look at this - "The
38:10 Christian's mission in the world is to" what? "reveal the
38:14 character of Christ, to represent the Lord to the fallen
38:20 children of men." Too often, churches - and we've been part
38:25 of them - they focus on what I call the '3 B's.' The first B is
38:30 'believing.' Our idea of evangelism is getting people
38:34 to believe what we believe. We focus on the believing. The
38:42 second B we focus on is 'belonging.' We want to get you
38:47 to join. We want to get you in that pool once you get your name
38:51 on the rows. Believing, belonging, and the third B is
38:58 'behaving.' [audience laughs]
39:03 We want you to comport to what our accepted norms of behavior
39:10 are; and we leave out the last B - 'becoming.' We do not focus
39:18 on helping people to grow to become like the character of
39:22 Christ. Because you see, brothers and sisters, too many
39:26 who wanna be WITH Him... don't wanna be LIKE Him.
39:34 And as I prepared for this message and I studied, I found-
39:38 look at this. This blew me away. This blew me away. "As a child
39:42 and youth," check this out, "Jesus worked with His father
39:46 Joseph, and learned" what? "the carpenter's, or builder's,
39:50 trade." This was significant! "His trade was significant."
39:54 Why? Because "He was the character builder, and as such
40:02 all His labors were perfect." Look at the next one. "Into all
40:07 His secular labor He brought the same perfection as into the
40:12 characters He was transforming by his divine power. He is our
40:18 pattern." Brothers and sisters, it was significant that Jesus
40:23 was a builder because He came to build character. [Amen!]
40:30 How awesome is that? - to learn to live like Jesus and help
40:35 others to grow, resemble, reveal His character - that's the
40:39 greatest work you could be doing. And we must learn to live
40:43 like the Lord. To live like the Lord, we must learn to live IN
40:47 the Lord - live in the constant grip of the Lord. So, being an
40:51 Adventist Christian means more than just goin' to Sabbath
40:54 school, and attending church services and potlucks, and...
41:00 and teaching Bible, or giving our testimony... It means
41:05 studying the character of Christ - conforming every day -
41:13 evermore to His character. Scriptures tell us, "Blessed are
41:17 the dead which die in the Lord, that they may rest from their
41:21 labors and their works to follow them." The Bible NEVER said that
41:26 your works earn you a place in heaven. But the Word of God DOES
41:33 say that our works will follow us. Your works do not EARN you
41:43 heaven, but they will follow you. Even after we die, our
41:46 works speak for us; they follow us in our influence. Servant of
41:49 God said it this way, she said, "The blessing of good works will
41:53 follow us into the eternal world." You know, I've been
41:59 blessed for over 20 years to minister to children whose
42:04 parents are in prison. I found it in ministry over 20 years ago
42:11 because almost 70% of the children who go to prison come
42:15 from the children of prisoners. And I said, "We must do
42:20 something to be a blessing," and one of our key efforts in this
42:24 ministry is building character in the lives of these young
42:28 people. Because let me tell you something, brothers, sisters -
42:33 any of you who own businesses, you know we hire for skills but
42:38 fire for character. You know wherever you see crisis,
42:44 wherever you see loss, wherever you see setback, there is a
42:48 direct line to some deficit of character. I've noticed
42:54 something- and I'm gonna ask God for great wisdom as I share this
42:59 with you - I noticed something since I've been doing this
43:03 ministry; I've actually heard people suggest that they're not
43:07 going to invest in ministry here in America because they get more
43:13 baptisms for their money oversees. I've heard that.
43:20 Because, it's a- you know, it's a bigger bang for their buck.
43:24 But please know we must contribute to the work of God
43:27 around the world. But never should we neglect ministry in
43:33 our own backyard. And so, you know, God- as I study, God comes
43:39 up with these beautiful things- I mean, shows it to me. Look at
43:42 this. I came across this statement from the servant of
43:44 God. Here's why. "The youth in this country require more
43:51 earnest spiritual labor than in any other country." Did you see
43:58 that?! The youth in America - in THIS country - require more
44:04 earnest spiritual labor than in any other country we've ever yet
44:08 visited. Why? She said because "the temptations for young
44:12 people in this country are strong and numerous." So, yes,
44:22 one of the reasons we baptize more abroad, says Ellen White,
44:25 is that the temptations for young people in this country are
44:28 strong and numerous. Did you know that people 70 years and
44:31 older read an average of an hour a day? But people in America
44:37 today between the ages of 15 and 45 read an average of 7-10
44:42 minutes a day. We are looking at the demise of long-form paper
44:47 reading. Everything is being Twitter-ized. But I say we
44:54 should never neglect ministry at home amongst our young
44:58 people! [Amen.] I have never met a true disciple of Christ that
45:03 said, "Let me invest in ministry where it is easier to reach
45:07 people." That kind of thinking is not acceptable to God. God is
45:15 not counting heads; He is weighing hearts. This is not a
45:19 business where you go only where you get the best return. If
45:24 Jesus had that kind of thinking, He would've told Noah, "Don't
45:28 waste your time." Preaching for over 100 years... Nobody is
45:33 gonna listen to you. If Jesus had that kind of thinking, He
45:36 would've never gone looking for Paul! Or for me, for that
45:42 matter. Or for you. Aren't you glad Jesus went looking for you
45:49 precisely because He knew the devil had you? [Amen.] He
45:53 precised it because He knew it would be hard to reach you. I
45:56 believe God will hold us accountable if we abandon the
45:59 future of our young people in this country because it's "too
46:02 hard to work for them." The Book of James says, "Pure religion
46:08 and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit the
46:14 fatherless and widows in their affliction and to keep himself
46:18 unspotted from the world." I believe the children we serve
46:21 with fathers in prison are fatherless, and their mothers
46:26 are modern-day widows. And neither should we neglect the
46:30 upper class. Listen to this: "If our efforts are so conducted as
46:34 to include the upper classes, we shall be more successful in
46:40 reaching the lower also." Amen. But before I leave you, I want
46:46 to share with you two perspectives...that have
46:50 helped me to keep living close to the Lord. Jesus said, "Love
46:58 God with all your heart." The Word of God says, "Don't lose
47:04 your first love." I want you to know my life changed when I
47:09 started to understand that it is important not just to love God,
47:14 but to be in love with God. I've come to the point in my life
47:22 where I can unabashedly say that loving God is my greatest
47:28 romance. [Amen.] So much so, I can tell you honestly, when I
47:36 bow my head to pray, and I close my eyes, there in the darkness
47:40 I feel like a blind woman waiting on the arrival of her
47:45 lover. I can't see His face, but I can sense His presence. And I
47:53 can hear His voice. And loving God...is my life's greatest
48:02 romance. [Amen.] I want you to know that helps me stay close.
48:13 "Blessed are those who die in the Lord." You gotta stay IN the
48:17 Lord. [Amen.] But to stay in the Lord, you got to live IN the
48:21 Lord. You gotta learn to live LIKE the Lord. You gotta live
48:25 close to the Lord. You gotta love the Lord with all your
48:29 heart. And then, finally, the second thing that has helped me
48:37 stay close to the Lord - I was a teenager working with a great
48:42 evangelist by the name of Dr. E.E. Cleveland. And one day, in
48:49 the middle of one of his campaigns, he said to me, "Son,"
48:53 Oh, I tell you, he said, "SON," he said. He said "I've learned
48:57 how to pray every hour on the hour." That moved me and I
49:05 started trying to learn how to do that, and I found it
49:08 difficult to remember every time the hour was coming around. And
49:12 when people would buy these expensive watches, I bought
49:15 these cheap digital watches that would vibrate every hour, and it
49:19 would remind me to pray. And after 3 or 4 years of the
49:23 vibration, I didn't realize it, but I didn't need the watch
49:26 anymore 'cause I was praying on the hour and IN the hour, and
49:30 before the hour. That man changed my life because he
49:35 taught me the power of living in constant, unbroken communion
49:43 with God. Tell you the truth, I even went out and built an app
49:51 for myself. It's called "Divine Alerts." Yeah, you can get it.
50:00 But I built it for me. Every hour, it sends me a message from
50:06 the scriptures. Every hour, it sends me a message from the
50:09 servant of God. It's more than just a morning devotional. It's
50:16 learning hourly to commune with God. And I've strengthened my
50:23 relationship with the Lord so much because of hourly
50:29 communion. Before I leave here, I'm gonna show with you some
50:31 things, the servant of God, it says about hourly communion
50:34 with God; listen to this - she says, "You may be in hourly
50:38 communion with heaven." Look at this - "Christ wants us to
50:44 learn..." Thank you, God, "the power of hourly, constant,
50:51 unbroken prayer. Christ..." look at this, "has
50:58 provided means whereby our whole life-" our whole life, "may be
51:07 an unbroken communion with Himself." And so, I tell people,
51:19 "Everything else in life is a distraction." When the
51:27 distraction is over, go back to the most important thing in your
51:33 life, the most important thing in my life, is communion with
51:37 God. Look at this: "It is only by personal union with Christ,
51:41 by communion with Him daily, hourly, that we can" do what?
51:47 "bear the fruits of the Holy Spirit. It is by communion with
51:53 Him, daily, hourly - by abiding in Him - that we are to grow in
52:02 grace." Hallelujah. "If you keep Christ before you day by day,
52:07 and hour by hour, and moment by moment, you will be trying to
52:14 exemplify His character." Hourly communion with God prepares you
52:20 to join those who are covered by that promise: "Blessed are those
52:25 who die in the Lord," because if the enemy takes your life at an
52:33 inopportune moment, he may be taking your life while you are
52:38 having communion with God.
52:49 And I give you one more. "The true object of education is
52:55 to restore the image of God in the
52:57 soul. In the beginning, God created man in His own likeness.
53:00 He endowed Him with noble qualities. His mind was
53:04 well-balanced; all the powers of his being were harmonious. But
53:07 the fall and its effects have perverted these gifts. Sin has
53:10 marred and well-nigh obliterated the image of God in man. It was
53:15 to restore this that the plan of salvation was devised;" did you
53:20 know that? "and a life of probation was granted to man. To
53:24 bring him back to the perfection in which he was first created;
53:31 this is the great object of life - the object that underlies
53:36 every other." Before I leave you, a young man- I read the
53:45 story of a young man who was in a terrible car accident. He lost
53:49 his left arm. His family, to encourage him, signed him up for
53:54 Judo class. They didn't think he was going to do well, but the
54:01 Judo teacher said, "I will teach him, and only teach him, one
54:04 Judo move, month after month. One Judo move." They entered him
54:08 into the tournament. He won his first matches. Everyone was
54:12 amazed. He went off, kept going up, till he went to the
54:15 championship. And lo and behold, he won the championship. On the
54:21 way home, he said to his teacher, "How is it that I won
54:26 the championship and you only taught me one move?" The teacher
54:31 said, "Well, you see, you have mastered- almost mastered one of
54:36 the most difficult moves in all of Judo, but more importantly,
54:42 the only known defense for that move is that your opponent has
54:49 to grab your left wrist." [audience laughs]
54:55 "And you don't have a left wrist." I want you to know, the
54:59 enemy has many moves; he has many strategies and tactics, but
55:06 we have our winning move. We have a winning move. Be like
55:13 Jesus in character. Resemble, reflect, reveal the character of
55:23 Christ. Let this be your focus until you see Him face to face.
55:37 And should you die in the Lord, He will raise you up in that
55:45 last day. Blessed are those who die in the Lord. They shall rest
55:54 from their labors, and their works follow them. Will you pray
56:03 with me?
56:08 My Father in heaven, I thank you so much for this blessing. I
56:15 know the enemy did not want this message preached, but in Your
56:19 power and in Your grace, I tried to deliver it. Someone listening
56:25 today - this may be the most important word they've ever
56:30 heard. Give them the commitment and the desire to live in
56:38 Christ; to live for Christ. Till the return of Jesus, may this be
56:49 our mission to become more like Christ - to resemble, to reflect
56:55 and reveal the character of Jesus. This is my prayer
57:02 tonight. Amen. [Amen.] Amen. [audience applauds]


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Revised 2018-07-12