Steps to Christ in Song

The Sinner's Need Of Christ

Three Angels Broadcasting Network

Program transcript

Participants: Mike Lemmon (Host)

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Series Code: SCS

Program Code: SCS000002


00:33 Chapter 2 The Sinner's Need of Christ.
00:39 Hello and welcome. Today, we are gonna be
00:41 looking at The Sinner's Need of Christ.
00:44 Sometimes it's hard for us to mean that we actually
00:46 have a need, I've even heard people say,
00:49 why would I need a savior. I mean I'm not a bad
00:53 person, I'm pretty good, I haven't murdered anyone,
00:56 but the Bible wants us that unless we are born again,
00:59 unless our hearts are changed that we won't even know
01:02 that we want to go to heaven, but before we get
01:05 too deep into that topic we need to pause for
01:08 word of prayer. And so I'm gonna ask Jeremy to lead
01:10 us in the word of prayer. Let's pray,
01:14 Father in Heaven you know our faults and weaknesses
01:18 and you know that we are trapped in a pit of sin
01:21 and we cannot get out with our own strength.
01:23 You are our only hope for escaping from this pit.
01:27 Please be with us as we learn more about
01:29 our need for you in Jesus' name, amen. Amen.
01:35 When men sinned, selfishness took the place of love.
01:39 The human race had fallen so far that heaven itself
01:43 would be a place of torture and unhappiness to a
01:47 person with a selfish heart. You know,
01:50 we can change our outward behavior, but we can't
01:53 change our heart which is, it's where the sin problem
01:56 really lies, we need a complete makeover before we
02:00 can be fit for heaven. In the Book of Ezekiel,
02:04 God made this promise to his people, "I will sprinkle
02:08 clean water on you and you will be clean,
02:11 your filth will be washed away and I will give you a
02:15 new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you.
02:19 I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give
02:22 you a tender, responsive heart." Let's be like David
02:27 when he cried in Psalm 51:10, "create in me
02:31 a clean heart O God and renew a right spirit in me."
02:42 There is a fountain filled with blood
02:52 Drawn from Immanuel's veins
03:03 And sinners plunged beneath that flood
03:13 Lose all their guilty stains
03:24 Lose all their guilty stains
03:34 Lose all their guilty stains
03:44 And sinners plunged beneath that flood
03:55 Lose all their guilty stains
04:05 The dying thief rejoiced to see
04:15 That fountain in his day
04:26 And there may I, though vile as he
04:36 Wash all my sins away
04:46 Wash all my sins away
04:57 Wash all my sins away
05:07 And there may I, though vile as he
05:17 Wash all my sins away
05:27 E'er since by faith I saw the stream
05:35 I saw the stream
05:40 Thy flowing wounds supply
05:45 wounds supply Redeeming love has been my theme
05:55 has been my theme And shall be till I die
06:12 And shall be till I die And shall be till I die
06:33 Redeeming love has been my theme
06:45 And shall be till I die
07:03 You know, that fountain represents Jesus consume
07:05 bud and in Romans 323, it says, "All have sinned and
07:10 fall short of the glory of God," So, the blood of
07:12 our savior Jesus is the only way that
07:15 all our sins can be washed away.
07:18 You are right Rebecca. In Job 14:4, it tells us that,
07:21 "All of us are unclean and that we can't change
07:24 ourselves. So, we need help and we try through
07:28 things like education or culture or will power or
07:32 human effort and all of these are good things,
07:36 but they make us change on the outward,
07:39 but we actually need an inward change and so we
07:42 are powerless to change our hearts. And if we are
07:45 gonna be changed from sin to holiness,
07:48 we need to come to Christ for that power.
07:51 It's hard for us though to admit that we have a
07:54 need or to ask someone for help. Have you,
07:58 any of you experience that difficulty asking
08:01 someone to help you. Actually I have,
08:04 one day I was mowing the lawn and I came across
08:07 a hose lying on the lawn and I knew I should have
08:11 moved it, but I felt like I can just mow over
08:15 it and it will be fine I'll just move the grass on top,
08:19 but when I mowed over the hose it got stuck
08:23 in the blades, so I stopped the lawn mower and
08:26 I thought to myself I should call my dad,
08:28 so he can come help me then I thought to
08:30 myself I can do this, I don't need any help.
08:33 So, I tried to untangle the hose from the blades,
08:39 but I can't get it out, so then I had the brilliant
08:41 idea maybe if I back the lawn mower up it will
08:44 untangle the hose from the blades. Unfortunately
08:48 though the hose was connected to a faucet,
08:52 which was in the wall and when I backed up,
08:55 it yanked the faucet out of the wall and water was
08:58 spewing everywhere. So, then I realized I really
09:01 need a help, so I called my dad and he came down and
09:05 he help me and in a while it was done. And he asked
09:08 me why didn't you call me in the beginning and I said,
09:10 well I thought I could do it by myself I didn't really
09:13 want help. Yeah, so asking your dad for help,
09:16 I mean that's hard, you know, it's like I have a
09:18 need, but what about on the spiritual level.
09:20 Has anyone ever had a need on the spiritual level
09:22 as you said yourself? I could ask God, but maybe
09:24 I shouldn't. Yes, a few months ago, we were getting
09:30 ready for this recording project and I had a bunch
09:33 of music, I needed to practice. I need to record it
09:37 the next day. Right, you got his big harp,
09:38 you want to play, yeah. And so I was practicing
09:42 and I just was having really hard time focusing
09:45 because I had lots of English homework to do.
09:48 And the thought came to my mind when I first started
09:52 why don't you pray and you know, like, like it
09:54 almost like God was talking like why don't you
09:56 pray and I'll help you. Yes. And I was like, you know,
09:59 I can do this by myself, I have done this before,
10:01 I can just you know, do it. Yeah. And so, I started
10:04 practicing and just really was not going well.
10:07 And I was getting stressed out and, so I decided
10:10 to quit that and try something else you know,
10:11 tired already. Yeah. So, I sat down to write and
10:16 my writing was not flowing, it was not coming the
10:18 way I wanted too, and I was just getting really
10:21 frustrated and I was like okay, focus.
10:23 I'm gonna have a good attitude about this,
10:25 I'm just gonna do it you know. You are gonna
10:26 figure it out by yourself. I'm just gonna do this,
10:28 yeah. Yeah. And so I tried so hard and I was like
10:34 Oh! So I was just like stopped and I was just like
10:35 ok I'm just not going to do anything. And the thought came
10:38 to my mind again why don't you pray?
10:40 And I was so discouraged in everything I was just
10:43 like Oh! Okay, I'll just pray, I don't have anything to
10:46 lose. So, I prayed and as soon as I finish praying
10:51 just I felt peace and I got so much happier and
10:55 I went back and practiced the harp and played all
10:58 the pieces I needed too. And then went and wrote
11:01 those essays for English and everything worked out
11:04 well. And I just, I thought about that after I was
11:07 like you know, I really tried at the beginning to do
11:09 it on my own. So, I knew I could do it by myself and
11:13 I really tried so hard like controlling my mind,
11:15 trying to think you know positively and everything,
11:18 but it didn't work until I prayed. Yeah,
11:21 so you tried human effort and God changed your
11:23 heart, that's excellent thank you. God has provided
11:28 a way of escape from this sin filled world.
11:31 The Bible pictures Jesus as a ladder between earth
11:34 and heaven. This is how God links himself with man.
11:38 In Acts 4:12 Paul says that, "There is no other name
11:41 under heaven given among men by which we must
11:44 be saved." And in John 14:6 Jesus says to himself,
11:48 "I am the way, the truth, and the life.
11:51 No one can come to the father accept through me."
11:54 Christ has become a lifeline and if you put our
11:57 confidence in him, he will lead us out of this
11:59 crazy world and into his glorious kingdom.
12:18 There's a line that been drawn thru the ages
12:27 on that line stands an old rugged cross
12:35 on that cross a battle is raging
12:43 for the gain of mans soul or it's loss
12:52 on one side march the forces of evil
12:59 all the demons all the devils of hell
13:07 on the other the angels of glory
13:15 and they meet on Golgotha's hill
13:23 the earth shakes with the force of the conflict
13:30 and the sun refuses to shine
13:37 for there hangs God's son in the balance
13:44 and then thru the darkness He cries
13:52 It is finished, the battle is over
13:59 It is finished there'll be no more war
14:07 It is finished the end of the conflict
14:14 It is finished and Jesus is Lord
14:22 I have heard that the king of the ages
14:30 Had fought all the battles for me
14:38 And victory is mine for the claiming
14:45 And now praise His name I am free
14:53 It is finished, the battle is over
15:00 It is finished there'll be no more war
15:08 It is finished the end of the conflict
15:15 It is finished and Jesus is Lord
15:23 It is finished and Jesus is Lord
15:40 You know that song reminds me that the battle for our
15:43 salvation was fought on Golgotha's Hill
15:46 when Jesus was on the cross He stretched out His arms
15:49 and as He was dying, He said "It is finished",
15:51 and that right there was our guarantee of salvation.
15:55 You are exactly right David.
15:57 When Jesus died on the cross, he took away
15:59 our sorrows, our pain, and our suffering and that's
16:03 encouraging our sorrows and pain and suffering
16:06 aren't you encouraged by that Rebecca that Jesus
16:08 took away our sorrows and our pain and our suffering.
16:11 Yes I am, actually just a couple of weeks ago,
16:15 I was getting ready to go on tour and all of a
16:17 sudden my body just started to become itchy.
16:20 And then from there it turned severe muscle
16:23 and joint pain, it was hard for me to walk,
16:25 to lift my arms just to do everyday things.
16:28 And I was praying and asking God you know please
16:30 heal me and so I was at school, so I could stay
16:33 on tour, but as things started to get progressively
16:36 worse. My parents decided that I should come
16:39 home, so I could get proper care. And so I was
16:42 went home and I went to some doctors appointments
16:46 and I went got my blood tested too because they
16:49 were afraid that I had some lupus like symptoms and
16:51 that you know, if that could lead to that and so
16:54 once they took them though they come out negative,
16:57 which was a really big blessing, but it showed that
17:00 I had had a very severe reaction to a medication that
17:03 I was on and so it would just take time to
17:06 get all out of my system. And the doctor
17:08 said that it can be up to 6 months.
17:10 Wow! That's a long time. Yeah. And so I was
17:13 starting to get little bit down depressed because
17:16 I could be on tour and here I was at home
17:18 almost bedridden, I couldn't really do anything
17:21 and hobble around the house and that was really
17:23 hard for me because I'm a very independent person
17:26 and I like to do things and, and my mom had to
17:30 do things for me like shower and get dressed,
17:33 the simple everyday things you know. And so during
17:37 that time though at night, my dad would be reading
17:40 Bible promises to me. And I started to really take
17:43 them and make them my own. And as I did that
17:45 it just seemed like the groom just started to lift.
17:47 And I told God you know God even if it takes up
17:52 to 6 months for me to get better. I'm gonna trust
17:55 your will and just understand and just trust
17:59 you. And when I made that decision that's when
18:02 I started to get better. And the real significance
18:06 of the verse Second Corinthians 12:9 really spoke
18:10 to me and it really saw my need it says, "My grace is
18:12 sufficient for you, for my strength is made perfect
18:15 in weakness. Therefore I rather glory in mine
18:18 infirmities; the power of Christ may rest upon
18:20 me." When I realize that not only was I weak
18:23 physically, but spiritually too. That's when I could
18:27 go to God and ask for his help because I realize
18:29 on myself I can't do anything. Right! And so
18:32 during this time I had extra time to read my Bible
18:35 and to pray and really develop a friendship with
18:38 God one-on-one, and so when I had frustrations or
18:41 when things aren't going in the way, I thought
18:43 they should I could go and talk to them with God
18:45 and tell them how I was feeling. And it was just really
18:49 amazing how, when I just surrendered my life to
18:52 him and just said God it's in your hands and
18:54 I'm gonna just trust that you know, what's best
18:56 for me. That things got so much better and I'm here
19:00 today and so living proof that God does answer
19:03 prayers. Amen. And we live our lives in his hands
19:07 totally, completely, he can do amazing things.
19:10 Amen, amen. Hi, I'm David. And being out here
19:16 has got me thinking that while this place is
19:17 beautiful and all, it doesn't reflect the
19:19 environment that most people live in. You see
19:22 our world has another side and there is lot of pain and
19:24 suffering, but I don't blame God for it because
19:27 the Bible says, the wages of sin is death and that
19:30 sin is a transgression of God's law. God's law is
19:33 love and when we transgress that law there
19:36 are inevitable consequences, but even amid
19:39 the confusion that exists; God can still bring about
19:42 good. In nature, there are flowers on every
19:45 thistle and thrones are covered with roses.
19:47 God still cares', he showers his love and blessings
19:51 on us even when we don't deserve it.
19:52 And if we turn from him, all he
19:55 wants is for us to comeback to him.
20:09 Why me Lord? what have I ever done,
20:17 to deserve even one, of the pleasures I've known,
20:29 tell me Lord, what did I ever do,
20:39 that was worth lovin' you,
20:44 for the kindness you've shown,
20:52 Lord help me Jesus,
20:57 I've wasted it so help me Jesus,
21:05 I know what I am, now that I know,
21:16 that I needed you so help me Jesus,
21:24 my souls in your hand,
21:37 Try me Lord, if you think there's a way,
21:43 I could ever repay, what I've takin' from you,
21:55 maybe Lord, I can show someone else,
22:03 what I've been through myself,
22:07 on my way back to you,
22:15 Lord help me Jesus,
22:20 I've wasted it so help me Jesus,
22:27 I know what I am, now that I know,
22:38 that I needed you so help me Jesus,
22:47 my souls in your hand, Oh now that I know,
22:58 that I needed you so help me Jesus,
23:07 my souls in your hand.
23:29 You know, David when I listen to that
23:30 song "Why Me Lord." Sometimes we think of
23:34 those words Why Me, as though this guy is
23:37 complaining like the song is about some guy
23:38 complaining why did these bad things happen to
23:40 me, but actually the song is about someone saying,
23:44 why are so good to me Lord. And you are singing
23:48 the song, so I'm thinking has God been good to David
23:51 you know, have you seen that God has been,
23:55 has blessed you in a great way. Yeah, actually a
23:57 couple of years ago, my brother and I decided
24:00 that we want to go to, we want to go to this Christian
24:02 Youth Conference that was happening in Minnesota.
24:04 So, we decided since we couldn't fly out, we decided
24:09 to drive out. So, to split the cost of gas,
24:11 we got another friend to come and we all chipped
24:14 in for gas and we headed out. And you know,
24:18 before this trip and everything I had you
24:20 know been doing things I shouldn't have been doing
24:22 it and I was feeling really convicted about this and
24:24 you know every time it was so hard to give up,
24:28 I just kept pushing the voice away, and,
24:29 I thought I can handle my life. So, you are looking
24:32 at things, you shouldn't look at. Yeah, music and
24:35 movies. Distractions, all these things that were
24:36 distracting me from my relationship with God.
24:38 And so I thought I was handling my life pretty good,
24:40 but when we went to this conference I was really
24:45 convicted that I should give these things up,
24:48 but you know, it was so hard for me because I was
24:50 so used to doing these things. And on the way home
24:54 there was this guy that came along with us
24:56 because he lives in West Virginia, which is where
24:58 we were coming from and so he just wanted to ride
25:01 home. So, we given him the lift, and on the way
25:03 home we are driving through Wisconsin and there
25:05 was snow everywhere and you know they
25:07 plowed the freeway, but it was all piled up
25:09 from the sides. And we came along a tow truck
25:12 that was, there was a car that had gone off the road
25:15 into the ditch or something and it was pulling it
25:16 out. And we came along my brother saw that it was parked
25:19 in a lane, so he went to switch lanes, but when he
25:24 looked over to switch there was already another car
25:26 there. Yeah. So, he tried to go in between the two
25:29 and right as he turned the wheel, we hit a
25:32 patch of ice or something like that and the back
25:35 just slid and we collided with the tow truck and
25:39 went spinning down the freeway and I don't
25:42 remember the next thing I remember, we come to
25:44 a stop and you know, the first thing we could
25:48 smell was the gasoline, it had ripped from the gas
25:50 tank off and that in and of itself was a miracle because
25:53 you know, car should have exploded or rolled
25:56 or something you know, so already I
25:58 could see that God was working and the thing that
26:02 impacted me the most was afterwards I realized
26:06 you know, my brother and my one friend we are
26:10 all scraped up from the glass and you know,
26:12 they had seat belt rash everything, my other friend
26:14 had been killed sitting in the back. And I was
26:18 completely unscaved, you know, I didn't have a
26:21 mark on me. And you know, we went back to
26:24 the car later and this glass everywhere all over my
26:26 seat, and floor, and dashboard and I had none on me
26:30 and my brother you know, they we are picking the
26:33 glass out of the ears the next day and everything
26:35 and it just was overwhelming to me see how God
26:39 had spared my life, even though I didn't deserve
26:42 it because, yeah, you know I was doing so many
26:44 things and just turning my back on him
26:45 every time, but yet he spared me.
26:48 Yeah, he was so kind to you, yeah, and spared
26:50 your life, praise Lord. You know often we find
26:54 ourselves running away from God, but he is
26:56 actually faster then we are and he catches up
26:59 with us. His desire is to save us from ourselves.
27:03 And sometimes he speaks to us and we put
27:05 our fingers in our ears and we can't hear him,
27:07 but he even speaks louder. There is a story in
27:11 the Old Testament about Jacob who was running
27:13 away, he was a fugitive and outcast and he was
27:16 lonely, sitting there in the dessert and the only
27:19 thing he could find was a rock for a pillow.
27:20 He had lied to his father to try and get the
27:22 birthright away from his brother Esau and now
27:26 he felt like he was abandoned from his own
27:28 family, from God, and he was alone, but God met
27:32 him in his need, in his darkest need, he sent a
27:36 dream of a ladder. And that ladder represents
27:39 Jesus, and when we are in our darkest need
27:42 he sends Jesus to communicate with us and to
27:46 lead us to Heaven. So, let's pray right now that God
27:50 will do the same thing for us. Heavenly father,
27:53 it is a fatal deception for us to think that we can
27:56 just cultivate the good that lies within us in
27:59 our natural heart, but our natural heart does not
28:03 seek the things of the spirit and so we ask you to
28:07 transform our hearts and make us born again.
28:10 We pray this in Jesus name Amen, Amen.
28:15 Steps to Christ in Song is a 13 part series
28:23 from Fountainview Productions
28:24 designed to be an easy non-threatening way to
28:27 share the good news about Jesus Christ with friends,
28:31 relatives, and co-workers.
28:32 Order your copies now by calling
28:34 1-877-490-4141 or visit us
28:40 online at www.fountainviewproductions.com.
28:44 Steps to Christ in Song is also available at your local
28:49 ABC Christian Book Store.


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Revised 2014-12-17