Participants:
Series Code: PME
Program Code: PME250315S
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00:12 ♪ 00:20 >> Good morning, Pioneer. 00:22 Welcome to 00:23 second service here at church. 00:25 It's a fantastic day, isn't it? 00:27 Turn to the person next to you 00:28 and say it's fantastic. 00:32 We're glad you're here. 00:33 We're glad you're here. 00:34 If you're in the sanctuary, 00:35 we're glad you're here. 00:36 If you're joining us online, 00:37 we're glad you're 00:37 joining us there. 00:38 Radio, however 00:39 you are worshiping with us, 00:40 thanks for worshiping here 00:42 at Pioneer Memorial Church. 00:44 Today, we get to celebrate 00:45 a lot. 00:46 Across campus -- it is 00:47 spring break across 00:48 our campuses, 00:49 so we get to celebrate 00:49 that we get a break 00:50 for a little bit, 00:51 which is a fantastic feeling. 00:53 We also get to celebrate 00:54 that, during this break, 00:55 we have lots of students 00:56 that have gone off 00:57 and they've done amazing things, 00:58 and they're going on 00:59 mission trips to Bolivia, 01:00 to Cuba, to other places. 01:01 And in those moments, 01:03 we tell them life change happens 01:04 in amazing ways, 01:06 and they will go 01:07 and do incredible things, 01:08 and they'll have this 01:09 incredible experience 01:10 where they get to see God 01:11 working in real time in ways 01:12 that they don't 01:13 always get to see that. 01:15 But we also tell them 01:17 that God works in the everyday. 01:19 And so you might have 01:20 those mountaintop experiences, 01:21 but God wants to meet 01:22 you in the everyday. 01:23 He wants to meet you when you 01:25 show up to work in the morning. 01:26 He wants to meet you 01:27 when you have worship around 01:27 the family table. 01:28 He wants to meet you when 01:29 you show up to your small group 01:31 even though you're so exhausted, 01:32 you just want to go home 01:33 and sit down on the couch. 01:34 But God meets you 01:35 in the everyday, 01:36 and He wants to change 01:37 your life there, as well. 01:39 So thank you for showing 01:40 up today 01:41 on this special Sabbath, 01:42 because this everyday, 01:43 God wants to meet you, as well, 01:45 and He wants to change lives 01:46 just like He always does. 01:48 But join me in prayer 01:50 as we invite God once again 01:51 into this space 01:52 and into our hearts. 01:55 God, today, in this everyday, 01:57 we're asking that you be here. 01:59 We're asking 02:00 that you connect with us 02:01 in the ways that we need, God. 02:02 Change us in the ways 02:03 that we need. 02:04 Fill us 02:05 in the ways that we need. 02:06 God, today, we ask for more 02:08 of you, as we have been. 02:10 God, we're asking 02:11 that you please continue 02:12 to be the God that 02:14 reveals more of you to us 02:16 so that we can worship you 02:17 and praise you, and everything 02:18 that we we have today, 02:19 we give back to you. 02:20 Our praise, our worship, 02:21 all of that is straight to you 02:23 and no one else. 02:25 Today, God, be in this place. 02:26 Amen. 02:42 ♪ 02:52 ♪ 02:54 >> ♪ Angels on high now 02:55 ♪ Praising the angel 02:57 ♪ Heavenly host 02:59 bring praise to God ♪ 03:02 ♪ Radiant sunshine 03:04 ♪ Beautiful starlight 03:06 ♪ All in the sky 03:07 ♪ Bring praise to God 03:13 ♪ All in the heavens 03:15 ♪ All on the earth 03:16 ♪ All honor His name 03:21 ♪ All of creation 03:23 ♪ Now and forever 03:25 ♪ Honor His name 03:27 ♪ All praise His name 03:33 ♪ 03:40 ♪ Rivers and oceans 03:42 ♪ Mountains and valleys 03:43 ♪ All of the earth 03:45 bring praise to God ♪ 03:48 ♪ Women and children 03:50 ♪ Men of all nations 03:52 ♪ All He has made, 03:53 bring praise to God ♪ 03:59 ♪ All in the heavens 04:01 ♪ All on the earth 04:02 ♪ All honor His name 04:07 ♪ All of creation, 04:09 now and forever ♪ 04:11 ♪ Honor His name 04:13 ♪ All praise His name 04:19 ♪ 04:27 ♪ Praise the Lord of all 04:33 ♪ Praise the Lord of all 04:37 ♪ 04:46 ♪ By his command, 04:48 all things were created ♪ 04:50 ♪ Heaven and earth 04:51 bring Praise to God ♪ 04:56 ♪ All in the heavens, 04:58 bring praise ♪ 05:00 ♪ All on the earth, 05:02 bring praise ♪ 05:04 ♪ All he has made, 05:05 bring praise to God ♪ 05:14 ♪ 05:19 ♪ Praise to God 05:29 >> Amen. 05:30 ♪ 12:10 ♪ 12:17 >> ♪ Blessed are the poor 12:20 in spirit ♪ 12:24 ♪ For theirs 12:26 is the kingdom of heaven ♪ 12:32 ♪ Blessed are they who mourn 12:39 ♪ For they will be comforted 12:47 ♪ Blessed are the meek 12:54 ♪ For they will inherit 12:58 the earth ♪ 13:02 ♪ And blessed are those 13:05 who thirst for righteousness ♪ 13:13 ♪ For they will be filled 13:21 ♪ 13:29 ♪ Blessed are the merciful 13:35 ♪ For they will have mercy 13:43 ♪ And blessed are the good 13:50 ♪ For they will see God 13:59 ♪ 14:06 ♪ Blessed are the makers 14:09 of peace ♪ 14:10 ♪ Blessed are the makers 14:13 of peace ♪ 14:14 ♪ For they are the children 14:16 of God ♪ 14:18 ♪ For they are the children 14:20 of God ♪ 14:21 ♪ Blessed those who hunger 14:24 for righteousness ♪ 14:25 ♪ Righteousness 14:27 ♪ For theirs 14:29 is the kingdom of heaven ♪ 14:36 ♪ 14:43 ♪ Rejoice and be glad 14:47 those who sow in tears ♪ 14:53 ♪ For they will see God 15:03 ♪ 15:12 >> If you have any association 15:13 with this community, 15:17 then you know 15:18 that, last week, we had 15:20 a little gathering here. 15:22 The More Conference was 15:25 a series of revival meetings 15:27 that elder Don Maclafferty led 15:29 out with us here, right here 15:31 in this sanctuary all last week. 15:34 Our tagline was 15:35 "Seven nights for 70 minutes." 15:37 And, indeed, 15:38 we at least came fairly close 15:40 to that on most nights. 15:41 And I said to myself, 15:42 when these things begin, 15:44 having never done these types 15:45 of meetings here before, I said, 15:46 if we get 200 people, 15:48 I'll be thrilled. 15:51 And then, we had over 500 15:52 on opening night. 15:53 We only dipped below 500 15:55 one time -- 15:55 we had 490 one night. 15:57 And two nights, we had over 15:58 600 people that were here. 16:00 It was phenomenal. 16:02 It was fantastic. 16:04 I mean, 16:05 the blessing is still growing 16:07 here in this community. 16:09 It was a fabulous time. 16:10 Let me share with you 16:12 just a little bit. 16:13 I know that many 16:13 of you were there. 16:14 There are some of you 16:15 that were not. 16:15 Let me just give you 16:16 a brief tour of 16:18 where we went during that week. 16:21 Again, our topic was revival. 16:22 How do we reestablish 16:24 or deepen our relationship 16:25 with Jesus Christ? 16:26 And in order 16:27 for those things to happen, 16:28 there are steps 16:30 that we went through, 16:30 biblical steps, to help see 16:32 that happen. 16:33 On night number one, 16:34 we talked about 16:35 standing before God. 16:36 This is the idea 16:37 of recovering a sense of awe, 16:40 of the awesomeness of God. 16:42 You know, 16:42 He's the creator of all, 16:43 the master of the universe, 16:46 of us, 16:47 of this planet, of all planets. 16:48 He is all-wise, all-knowing, 16:50 all-powerful, and recapturing 16:52 a sense of that awe -- 16:54 Well, this is where 16:56 a conviction of sin comes from. 16:57 This is where a conviction 16:58 of his great love 16:59 and his goodness, 17:00 his righteousness to us. 17:02 Standing before God 17:04 with a renewed sense of awe, 17:05 is one of the first steps 17:06 in personal revival. 17:08 Night number two. 17:09 We looked at living God's Word. 17:12 To live God's Word, 17:14 we talked regularly about 17:15 this phrase -- close the gap. 17:17 Close the gap. 17:18 And you say, "What gap is that?" 17:19 Well, this is the gap 17:20 between what the Word of God 17:21 says and how we live our lives. 17:23 You know, oftentimes, 17:24 we're slow to obey. 17:25 Sometimes we don't obey at all. 17:27 And yet all of God's commands, 17:28 all of his words to us, 17:29 are words 17:30 of goodness and kindness. 17:31 Not a single law 17:32 of God is for our harm. 17:34 All of it is for our good. 17:35 These are paths to freedom. 17:36 And so we talked about 17:37 closing that gap. 17:39 Every true revival includes 17:41 a return to the Word of God. 17:43 Night number three -- 17:44 finding heart healing. 17:47 This is 17:47 a big night for many of us. 17:49 Bitterness can stop the work 17:52 of revival in our hearts. 17:54 If there is discord between us 17:56 and another human being, 17:57 it can slow down 17:58 and sometimes even stop 17:59 completely what God wishes 18:01 to do inside of us. 18:03 Even if we are in -- 18:06 there's a relationship 18:07 that there is discord 18:08 and it's not our fault. 18:09 Maybe somebody did something 18:10 to us that we in no way 18:11 brought upon ourselves. 18:13 Even in those situations, 18:14 we serve a God who can heal. 18:17 God can bring healing even in 18:18 those situations, 18:19 and the bitterness 18:20 can be taken away. 18:23 Night number four -- 18:24 come and worship. 18:26 The More meetings followed 18:28 the life of Elijah, 18:29 the ministry of Elijah. 18:30 Looking at the last portion 18:31 there of the book of 1 Kings. 18:32 And as part of that story, 18:35 Elijah, at one point, 18:36 rebuilds the altar in Israel, 18:38 the altar 18:39 for the worship of God. 18:40 And we talked about 18:41 our need to do that today, 18:43 particularly with regards to 18:45 our personal worship lives. 18:47 If we are in families, 18:49 we said, we need to have regular 18:51 and quality family worship. 18:53 We need to have the Word of God 18:54 and the worship of Him 18:55 be central in our homes. 18:57 Maybe our family is just us. 18:59 You know, our situation in life 19:00 right now, it's just us. 19:01 We also need to make sure 19:03 that we have that altar 19:04 in our lives, 19:05 a regular daily time 19:06 in prayer and Bible study 19:08 that we spend with Jesus. 19:09 Personal revival always includes 19:12 a return to this practice. 19:15 Night number five -- 19:16 a cry for fire. 19:18 This is an important night. 19:20 In Elijah's day, he prayed, 19:21 he called for 19:22 for God to answer from heaven, 19:24 and literal fire descended. 19:25 It burned up the sacrifice 19:27 and the altar and the water 19:28 and the dirt around it, 19:29 and Israel declared the Lord, 19:30 He is God, the Lord, He is God. 19:33 Well, today, we do not need 19:35 physical fire anywhere near 19:36 as much as we need the fire 19:38 of the Holy Spirit. 19:39 We're promised 19:40 that there will come this great 19:41 outpouring at the end of time, 19:42 and we need to seek for it, 19:44 to ask for it. 19:44 We're told 19:45 that every other blessing 19:47 follows in the train 19:48 of this one blessing 19:49 of the Holy Spirit. 19:50 The return to the word. 19:51 The return to the family altar. 19:53 Return to prayer. 19:54 All of these things 19:55 are fueled by the Holy Spirit. 19:57 Ask for it. We must have it. 20:00 Night number six -- 20:01 mentor your Elisha. 20:03 A number of people 20:04 wondered at first 20:05 if this was a premature step, 20:06 because the idea is this -- 20:08 that even in the early stages 20:10 of revival, 20:11 that we find someone else 20:13 to share it with. 20:14 Just as Elijah mantled 20:17 Elisha -- gave literally 20:18 his mantle -- 20:19 symbolizing this transferring 20:21 of authority 20:21 and calling to Elisha. 20:23 We are called 20:24 to do the same thing today. 20:25 It was a powerful moment 20:26 when we looked -- 20:27 we were asked to gather 20:28 around the sanctuary. 20:30 Those of us with more years 20:31 under our belt were behind. 20:33 Those of younger years 20:34 were in front of us, 20:35 and we had the privilege 20:36 of placing our hands 20:37 on the shoulder of 20:38 a young person, 20:39 praying for them, 20:40 mantling them, 20:41 passing the torch to them 20:43 that they would be empowered 20:44 for ministry. 20:45 It was a powerful night. 20:48 Number seven -- this was 20:49 Sabbath -- be an Elijah. 20:52 In the early days, 20:54 before Jesus publicly entered 20:56 his ministry, 20:56 a guy by the name 20:57 of John the Baptist came. 20:58 Many of you know that story. 20:59 And John the Baptist, 21:01 we're told, came in the power 21:02 and spirit of Elijah. 21:04 It was an Elijah message that he 21:06 had, calling the people back to 21:07 God in preparation 21:08 for the first coming of Jesus. 21:10 Today, the Advent Movement 21:11 is called to be 21:12 an Elijah movement. 21:14 Just as John the Baptist 21:15 was the forerunner 21:16 of the first coming of Jesus, 21:17 we are called 21:18 to be the forerunner 21:19 of the Second Coming of Jesus in 21:20 the spirit and power of Elijah. 21:22 We're to be filled 21:23 with the spirit 21:24 and fully dedicate ourselves 21:25 to the mission 21:26 that God has called us to. 21:30 Now, it didn't just happen here, 21:32 these meetings. 21:33 There were other things 21:34 happening during the day 21:35 last week, during the time 21:36 of the More Conference. 21:37 One of them 21:38 was an early morning 21:39 prayer walk, and that 21:40 prayer walk, on one day, 21:42 led over to Andrews Academy, 21:44 and pastor Don Maclafferty, 21:46 in his winsome way, 21:48 managed to get to speak 21:49 to the entire student body. 21:51 And he challenged them. 21:52 He said, "I'm going to give 21:53 you a silver coin." 21:54 Remember that silver coin, 21:55 those of you that were here 21:55 at the More Conference? 21:56 He said, "This is your entry, 21:59 entering wedge into having 22:00 a spiritual conversation 22:02 with another person 22:03 in the next 24 hours. 22:04 He said, 22:05 "I'm gonna come back tomorrow. 22:06 I want to hear what happened." 22:07 He came back the next day 22:09 and what was supposed 22:10 to have been a 20-minute 22:13 chapel service stretched out 22:15 to be an hour and a half of 22:16 personal, powerful testimonies 22:18 of our students 22:19 at Andrews Academy sharing 22:21 how the Lord had used them 22:22 to share His love and His Word 22:24 with other people just in 22:25 the last 24 hours. 22:27 Can someone say Amen to that? 22:28 I mean, that's tremendous. 22:29 That's a tremendous thing, 22:30 seeing our young people 22:31 get inspired and enthusiastic 22:33 about sharing their faith 22:33 with other people. 22:35 You know, on -- 22:36 We also were blessed 22:37 to have dozens and dozens 22:39 of our university students here, 22:40 coming throughout the week. 22:41 The attendance for them built 22:43 throughout the week. 22:44 Towards the end, Pastor Don 22:46 made several specific appeals -- 22:47 you know, "if you're a 22:48 university student, you wish to 22:49 rededicate yourself to God, 22:50 to His ministry, 22:51 please come forward." 22:52 It was astonishing. 22:54 I mean, tears came to my eyes, 22:56 maybe to yours, too, 22:56 as wave after wave 22:58 of our university students 22:59 came forward to say, "Yes, 23:01 I want to follow Jesus 23:02 with all of my heart." 23:03 It was a powerful time. 23:05 We concluded with actually 23:07 an eighth session 23:08 on Sabbath afternoon, 23:10 this last Sabbath afternoon 23:10 at 4:00. 23:12 And we -- at the very end, 23:14 we all circled around the edges 23:15 of the sanctuary here, 23:16 600-plus of us, 23:17 and I looked at that -- 23:21 600-plus people 23:23 from all generations, 23:24 from young to 23:25 not so young anymore, 23:27 to people from all over 23:28 the world represented here, 23:30 area churches -- 23:31 multiple area churches 23:32 represented, as well -- 23:33 standing together, 23:34 holding hands, 23:35 singing praises to God. 23:39 I mean, it's just astonishing. 23:40 It's just astonishing. 23:42 It was a taste of what church 23:44 must have been like 23:45 back in Acts 2. 23:47 And it was a foretaste, 23:49 undoubtedly, of what heaven 23:52 will someday soon be like. 23:56 And of course, the question 23:57 that comes -- right? 23:58 I mean, after this kind of 24:00 powerful experience -- right? -- 24:01 the question comes, what's next? 24:04 I mean, many of you 24:05 have asked me about that. 24:05 Many of you I know 24:06 have been talking to each other, 24:07 "What is it that God wants us 24:08 to do next? 24:09 We've got this great start. 24:09 This great thing 24:10 is happening here. 24:11 What is the next thing 24:12 that God wants us to do?" 24:14 Well, the final session 24:18 of the More Conference 24:19 this last Sabbath afternoon, 24:21 4:00, it was actually entitled 24:22 "Next Steps," okay? 24:24 Because Pastor Don took us 24:26 through four questions 24:27 to try to help us discern, 24:29 "How is the Lord leading us? 24:30 What do we do? 24:32 What do we need to do next 24:33 to capitalize on what 24:34 God is doing in our midst?" 24:37 The four questions. 24:37 Let me remind 24:38 you what they were. 24:39 The questions were, "What is 24:40 the Holy Spirit calling us 24:42 to do in -- four areas -- 24:44 in our personal lives, 24:45 in our families, 24:47 in our local church, 24:48 and in our local community 24:50 and in the world?" 24:51 Excellent questions, right? 24:53 Now, the first question, 24:54 we have no record of what 24:55 the answers were because 24:57 individuals kept those things. 24:58 By the way, 24:59 if you weren't there, 24:59 we put all of the answers 25:01 to all four of these questions 25:02 individually on sticky notes. 25:03 Okay? 25:04 And so the first sticky note 25:06 was a personal one. 25:07 What does God want me 25:08 to do personally? 25:09 These are to be kept 25:10 in our Bibles or, you know, 25:11 bathroom mirror, refrigerator, 25:13 somewhere where we can see it 25:14 and be reminded of what 25:15 God is doing in our lives 25:17 or wants to do in our lives. 25:18 We do, however, have record of 25:21 questions two, three, and four, 25:23 all the answers to that. 25:24 600-plus answers came in. 25:27 Many thanks to Heidi Ha and 25:28 Lailane Legoh on our staff here, 25:30 administrative staff. 25:31 They collated all of those. 25:32 I think it's the first time 25:33 they've been asked to collate 25:34 600 sticky notes. Okay? 25:36 They did a great job. 25:37 And because of their collation, 25:39 we were able to put all of this 25:40 into a spreadsheet, 25:41 and this last Tuesday night, 25:43 the Pioneer elders met 25:45 for their strategic planning 25:47 session, and the main topic 25:49 was digesting the answers 25:50 that you had given 25:52 to those last three questions, 25:53 questions two, three, and four. 25:54 And I want to share with you 25:56 the major themes 25:57 that the elders identified 25:59 from this cluster 26:00 of answers that came back. 26:02 The first question was -- 26:03 that we have records for -- 26:05 what is the Holy Spirit 26:07 asking us to do in our families? 26:09 Five things came up. 26:10 The first was to have 26:12 regular, quality family worship. 26:15 Now, I am so glad. 26:16 This came up over and over. 26:17 There's 250-plus 26:18 answers to this particular 26:20 question, and this was repeated 26:22 many, many times. 26:23 I'm so glad. 26:25 You know, many times, 26:26 I think people 26:27 outside of Pioneer, 26:29 they look at Pioneer 26:30 and they think about 26:32 the public things we do, 26:33 things like this right now, 26:34 the worship service 26:35 or the More Conference or 26:36 other conferences that we host. 26:37 "Well, that's Pioneer." 26:39 It is Pioneer, 26:40 but the heart and soul 26:42 and engine is what happens 26:44 in the homes of our members. 26:45 And to have this many people, 26:47 I mean, hundreds of people 26:48 saying we need to have 26:49 regular, quality family worship, 26:51 amen and amen. 26:52 If I can pour more gas 26:54 on your fire, I would, right? 26:55 This is where the engine drives 26:57 not just for the current 26:58 generation, 26:58 but for future generations. 27:01 People also said this -- start 27:02 or improve our personal prayer 27:03 and devotional life. 27:04 Now, I was a little surprised 27:06 at this because, really, 27:07 this is kind of the answer 27:07 to the first question. 27:09 But many people, I think, 27:10 were recognizing 27:11 that if our families are 27:13 to be healthy, 27:14 it's going to start with me. 27:16 I need to have a personal 27:17 devotional life myself. 27:18 I need to be walking with Jesus 27:19 in His word, 27:20 in prayer time with Him. 27:22 A third thing -- 27:23 play more together. 27:25 Not pray more together. 27:26 That's important. 27:26 Play -- P-L-A-Y. 27:30 Oh, good. 27:31 Somebody wants to play 27:32 more in their family. 27:32 Excellent. 27:33 We talked actually specifically 27:35 about this that particular night 27:36 when we were talking about 27:37 rebuilding the family altar. 27:38 It is much easier to have 27:40 your kids pay attention 27:41 in worship if you have been 27:43 playing with them earlier. 27:44 Ask me how I know. 27:47 Practice forgiveness, 27:48 reconciliation, and 27:49 building bridges. 27:50 Bitterness in our families 27:51 can cut off this -- 27:52 the things that 27:53 God wants to do in our families. 27:55 We need to practice forgiveness, 27:56 reconciliation, and building 27:57 bridges. 27:58 And lastly, improve the health 27:59 of our marriages. 28:00 Amen. 28:01 This is a cornerstone for 28:02 any church, not just Pioneer. 28:04 Our marriages need to be 28:05 strong and healthy. 28:07 Now, what about 28:08 in our local church? 28:09 Well, a number 28:10 of answers came through. 28:11 Pray more. 28:13 Over and over and over, 28:15 in a host of different ways, 28:16 people said we need to pray 28:17 more -- individually, 28:18 corporately, at home, 28:20 at church, at school, et cetera. 28:22 You know what? 28:22 Johnny led us in this morning. 28:24 Amen. Exactly. 28:25 We need to be praying together. 28:27 It needs to be clear to all 28:28 and to us 28:29 that Jesus is in control. 28:31 And one of the ways we do that 28:32 is by recognizing him in prayer. 28:34 We also talk about 28:35 building community. 28:37 Now, I was a little surprised 28:39 to see this much -- 28:41 elders were, too, to some 28:42 extent -- to see as many people 28:43 who did turn in this 28:45 in this question. 28:46 You know, we finished the 28:47 More Conference, 28:48 and you might think, 28:48 "Well, it's gonna be something 28:49 that's, you know, we need to 28:50 have more Bible studies 28:51 and whatnot," 28:51 and certainly that was said, 28:53 but, overwhelmingly, one of 28:55 the top answers over and over 28:57 and over is that we don't know 28:58 each other well enough. 29:00 We do not have 29:01 strong enough personal 29:02 relationships in this church. 29:04 Lots of us have lots of friends, 29:06 but there's many that don't. 29:07 And we need to find ways 29:08 to build community. 29:09 Your answers suggested a number 29:11 of ways to do that. 29:12 Increase the number 29:13 and kind of small groups 29:14 or GROW groups, 29:15 including expanding 29:17 Sabbath School class options. 29:19 You know, GROW groups used to be 29:20 stronger than they are now. 29:21 This is my doing, so don't blame 29:24 anybody else but me. 29:25 We're gonna strengthen 29:26 these things up. 29:26 We're going to build 29:27 small groups' muscles again 29:28 because we need to find ways 29:30 to develop genuine 29:31 Christian community afresh 29:32 here at Pioneer. 29:34 Also was mentioned this -- 29:35 create ministries and social 29:37 activities that build 29:38 relationships -- key words here 29:40 next -- across generations. 29:42 Repeatedly, over 29:44 and over in the answers 29:45 that came into this question, 29:46 people said how much 29:48 they were blessed 29:48 and inspired by the 29:50 sheer breadth of ages 29:52 that participated 29:53 in the More Conference. 29:55 I mean, from 3 years old to 29:56 90-plus, we had people 29:58 regularly praying with one 29:59 another, talking 30:01 about Bible texts together, 30:02 these mini Bible studies 30:03 taking place across 30:04 the congregation, and it 30:05 was done cross-general-- 30:06 cross-generationally. 30:08 Many, many, many of you said 30:10 that needs to continue. 30:11 We need to find ways 30:12 to do ministry 30:13 cross-generationally 30:14 and to do social activities 30:15 cross-generationally, as well, 30:16 to which I say amen, 30:18 and the elders say amen. 30:20 And what about 30:21 in our local community 30:22 and in the world? 30:24 Overwhelmingly, 30:26 the top answer coming back 30:27 from -- let's see -- what do we 30:28 we have in answer 30:28 to that question. 30:29 We had 178 responses 30:31 to that question. 30:31 Overwhelmingly, 30:33 this was mentioned. 30:35 Evangelism. Evangelism. 30:37 We want the community 30:39 to hear about Jesus Christ. 30:41 We want the community to be 30:42 ready for his soon return. 30:44 A number of details here. 30:45 This is just a, you know, 30:45 as best summary elders 30:47 we could put together. 30:48 We want evangelism 30:49 that's intentional, creative, 30:50 uses the health message, 30:52 open our homes to those who 30:53 are spiritually seeking, support 30:55 missionaries, both domestic 30:56 and foreign, 30:57 increase participation in 30:58 and the number of short-term 30:59 mission trips, et cetera. 31:00 Those were the kinds of things 31:02 we want to reach people for 31:03 Christ is what 31:04 overwhelmingly came through. 31:05 By the way, 31:07 did you know we have 31:08 an excellent opportunity for 31:10 a next step coming up April 5? 31:11 That's just 31:12 a few weeks from now. 31:13 Mark Finley -- 31:14 anybody ever heard of him? 31:16 All right. Yes, yes, yes. 31:17 Mark Finley, one of the deans of 31:19 Adventist evangelism on 31:20 a global scale, is going to be 31:21 here that weekend. 31:23 The Lake Union is sponsoring 31:25 Pentecost 2025 31:26 training for evangelism. 31:28 Any of you 31:29 that want to learn 31:30 how to share your faith, 31:32 you need to be 31:32 here that weekend. 31:33 Mark Finley's going to 31:35 be speaking on Friday night. 31:36 He's going to be speaking 31:37 a number of times on Sabbath, 31:38 going into Sabbath afternoon. 31:39 If you like the King's Heralds, 31:41 they're going to be here, too. 31:42 They're going to be here singing 31:43 Friday night and Sabbath, 31:44 also Sabbath afternoon late. 31:45 They're going to do 31:45 a concert, as well. 31:46 It's going to be 31:47 a great weekend focused 31:49 on this next step of evangelism, 31:51 so I hope that you'll be 31:52 able to join us for that. 31:54 We also said 31:55 some other things -- discover 31:56 and meet the needs 31:57 of the community as Jesus would, 31:59 whether it's through health 32:00 classes, doing surveys in 32:01 the community to find needs, 32:03 doing felt-needs outreach, 32:04 serve at food banks, 32:05 et cetera, et cetera. 32:06 There was a slew 32:07 of different ideas of 32:08 how we can meet the needs 32:09 in our community as Jesus would. 32:11 And lastly, 32:12 this, to me, was fascinating. 32:14 We were collating this 32:15 as a group of elders. 32:16 We read through a bunch 32:17 a bunch of these answers here, 32:18 and we came up 32:19 with this summary. 32:20 Strengthen our church family, 32:22 develop community, and show 32:25 our love for one another -- 32:26 so this is inside 32:28 of our church here, 32:28 inside of our church -- 32:30 so that we might be an example 32:32 of Christ's love 32:34 and draw in new members 32:36 from the community. 32:37 So let that sink in. 32:39 We're saying two things at once. 32:40 We want to to have clear 32:43 pronunciation of the gospel. 32:45 We want to proclaim the gospel 32:46 of Jesus Christ visibly, 32:47 verbally, specifically to 32:48 the community, 32:49 and at the same time, 32:50 we want to be 32:51 the real deal right here. 32:53 We want to have the love 32:55 of Christ sufficiently flowing 32:56 through us that someone on 32:58 "the outside," who's not 32:59 a member of our church, 33:00 comes here and they say, 33:01 "I don't know what they got, 33:02 but I want it. 33:04 I don't know what's going on 33:05 here, but this is different. 33:06 I see something 33:07 here that I want. 33:08 I think that's awesome." 33:10 Now, ladies and gentlemen, 33:12 at the risk 33:13 of gross understatement, 33:14 this is excellent. 33:17 This is fantastic. 33:18 I mean, this -- 33:20 these rich answers 33:22 that you gave back 33:23 on Sabbath afternoon saying, 33:25 "This is where we think 33:26 the Lord is leading," 33:27 amen and amen. 33:28 Praise the Lord. 33:30 And in light of these answers, 33:32 and in light of the experience 33:34 of the More Conference 33:35 last week, and 33:36 in light of what the elders 33:36 have been doing 33:38 in this strategic planning 33:39 process, 33:40 there are three key things 33:44 that I want you to know. 33:46 The first one is 33:48 a very practical one. 33:49 The first one is simply this. 33:51 The strategic plan 33:52 that the elders are working on 33:53 will incorporate nearly all 33:54 of the priorities that 33:56 the More survey identified. 33:58 In other words, your elders, 33:59 you elected some smart people 34:01 because honestly, the draft plan 34:03 that we have been working on, 34:04 the answers 34:05 to these survey questions 34:06 have helped to sharpen it, 34:08 but not radically change it, 34:09 because your elders are already 34:10 saying, "Yep, we probably need 34:11 to be working on this," 34:12 and, "Yep, this is a strength. 34:13 Let's capitalize on it." 34:15 Please continue to pray 34:18 that the Holy Spirit will lead 34:19 in these planning meetings. 34:20 Our hope is still that, 34:22 by the end of the school year, 34:23 we will have a workable draft 34:24 that we'll be able to share 34:25 with you, begin to get your 34:26 feedback on, and be able to go 34:28 into next school year running. 34:31 A second thing 34:33 that I think is very important 34:35 for us to know is found 34:36 in Joshua 24:14. 34:40 Would you turn there with me, 34:40 please? 34:41 Page 166 in the red Bible 34:44 that's in a pew somewhere nearby 34:45 where you're at. 34:46 Page 166, Joshua 24, 34:50 beginning with verse 14. 34:51 And we're just going to read 34:52 two verses here, 14 and 15. 34:54 Let me tell you where we're 34:55 at in this story in Joshua. 34:57 Joshua 24 is the final chapter 34:59 in the book of Joshua, 35:01 and at this time, 35:02 Joshua is an old man. 35:04 He is full of years. 35:05 At the beginning of Joshua, 35:06 that's not the case. 35:08 He is taking Moses' place 35:10 at that time, and he leads 35:11 the children of Israel 35:12 into the Promised Land, 35:13 they conquer 35:14 the nations that are there. 35:15 There's a whole lot of 35:16 successes. 35:17 There's some failures, as well. 35:18 And at the end of this time, 35:21 Israel is established 35:22 in the Promised Land. 35:23 Joshua is old. 35:24 He knows that his time 35:25 is very limited now. 35:27 He calls all of the children 35:29 of Israel together, all of the 35:30 elders, all of the patriarchs, 35:30 et cetera, all the leaders there 35:32 because he wants to renew 35:34 the covenant with them -- 35:36 not the covenant with him 35:37 but their covenant with God. 35:39 And so he goes through 35:40 and he repeats the history of 35:41 how Abraham had been called 35:43 and then Moses was 35:44 God's chosen leader, and they 35:45 went through the wilderness, 35:46 and they came into the 35:46 Promised Land. 35:47 He repeats all these successes. 35:50 They have made a great start. 35:56 But now Joshua tells them 35:58 a next step. 36:00 Verse 14 -- 36:03 "'Now fear the Lord,' 36:04 Joshua says, 'and serve Him 36:06 with all faithfulness. 36:08 Throw away the gods 36:10 your forefathers worshiped 36:12 beyond the river and in Egypt, 36:13 and serve the Lord.'" 36:15 Pause there for just a moment. 36:16 This is -- this is -- 36:18 this is kind of amazing. 36:19 They have made a good start. 36:21 But somehow, these idols 36:24 from way back when, 36:26 when they were, you know, 36:26 surrounded by pagan nations 36:27 and slaves, et cetera, 36:28 are still there. 36:30 These idols are still there. 36:33 And so Joshua says, 36:34 "You made a great start, but..." 36:36 Let me read it one more time. 36:37 "Now fear the Lord and serve Him 36:38 with all faithfulness. 36:39 Throw away the gods 36:40 your forefathers worshiped 36:41 beyond the river and in Egypt, 36:43 and serve the Lord --" 36:44 verse 15 -- 36:45 "but if serving the Lord 36:47 seems undesirable to you, 36:49 then choose for yourselves 36:51 this day whom you will serve, 36:53 whether the gods 36:54 your forefathers served 36:55 beyond the river, 36:56 or the gods of the Amorites, 36:57 in whose land you are living. 36:59 But as for me and my household, 37:02 we will serve the Lord." 37:06 "Choose you this day," he said. 37:12 A second key point 37:15 that we must remember 37:17 as we see things beginning 37:18 to build here by the power 37:19 of God is this -- revival is 37:22 a decision, 37:23 not an event or a feeling. 37:27 Revival is a decision, 37:29 not an event or a feeling. 37:34 Now, ladies and gentlemen, 37:35 the More Conference was 37:36 genuinely awesome. 37:37 It truly was. 37:38 If you missed it, 37:39 you missed a huge blessing. 37:40 Great things 37:42 are happening because of this. 37:43 And let me tell you 37:44 a little secret. 37:46 Having been in pastoral ministry 37:48 for more than 30 years now, 37:49 I've been to more 37:50 than one meeting. Right? 37:53 If you want to know 37:54 how pastors die, it's death 37:55 by committee, all right? 37:56 That's how we roll. 37:58 It's the Adventist way -- 37:59 committee, committee, committee. 37:59 Right? Right? 38:00 There's a great strength to 38:01 that, right? 38:01 And it's true, 38:03 some of the meetings 38:04 I've been to in those 30 years 38:05 were not worth my time. 38:07 They'll be hour, half hour, 38:08 whatever, that I'll never 38:09 get back, right? Okay. 38:10 But many of 38:11 those meetings were excellent. 38:14 Fantastic. 38:16 In fact, I mean, 38:17 I've been to retreats and 38:18 conferences and training 38:19 sessions and in-service 38:20 days and summits 38:21 and special weekends and good 38:21 old-fashioned pep talks, 38:22 and I've even been 38:23 to some revival meetings. 38:25 And again, 38:26 many of them were excellent. 38:27 Fantastic. 38:28 But after having attended 38:32 all of those, 38:33 I have come to a hard 38:34 and fast conclusion that 38:35 you cannot dissuade me from, 38:37 and here it is. 38:38 As exciting and inspiring 38:40 and powerful as events can be, 38:42 they are not 38:43 the key to long-term 38:45 spiritual success in Christ. 38:47 Instead, long-term 38:50 spiritual success with Christ 38:51 utterly depends on what 38:53 I personally do or don't do 38:56 after the event is over. 38:59 That's where the gold is found. 39:02 Now, again, 39:03 this is not to diminish 39:04 what we experienced last week. 39:05 What happened last week was 39:07 and remains truly awesome. 39:08 And now is the time 39:11 where the rubber meets the road. 39:13 Let me put it another way. 39:15 The programming enhancements, 39:18 the suggestions, the changes, 39:20 the multiplication that the 39:22 elders are working on right now, 39:24 the things that they're going to 39:24 offer to us, 39:26 they're going to be good. 39:27 They're going to make the best 39:28 recommendations and changes 39:29 that they know how to make. 39:30 But none of those programming 39:33 changes by themselves 39:34 will save any of us. 39:37 You cannot make your way 39:38 to heaven by programs. 39:40 It's not going to happen. 39:42 Much less, by themselves, 39:43 are they going to lead 39:44 to long-term success for God, 39:45 much, much less single-handedly 39:47 cause the finishing of the work 39:48 of spreading the gospel. 39:49 Because that will only happen 39:51 if you and I 39:52 choose a revived life. 39:58 The mountaintop 39:59 experience of last week, 40:00 praise the Lord for it. 40:02 Praise the Lord. 40:02 It was awesome. 40:05 But our task going 40:06 forward is not to sustain 40:08 the same level of feeling. 40:10 Did you hear me? 40:11 Not to sustain 40:12 the same level of feeling. 40:13 Listen, feeling -- 40:14 feelings are the spice of life. 40:16 But if you have a plate full 40:18 of spice for every meal, 40:19 you will get sick. 40:20 Okay? 40:22 We are instead called here 40:23 to be steady in good times 40:25 and in bad, in high feelings 40:26 and in low 40:27 and everything in between, 40:28 to choose daily 40:29 to follow Christ. 40:31 That's where the gold is found. 40:33 Choosing to follow Jesus Christ. 40:35 Because, ultimately, revival 40:36 is a choice, 40:37 not an event or a feeling. 40:43 Which brings us 40:44 to crucial point number three. 40:47 Turn in your Bibles, please, to 40:49 Jeremiah 12:1. 40:51 Jeremiah 12:1. 40:53 Page 516. 40:56 516 in your red pew Bible. 40:58 Jeremiah 12, 40:59 beginning with verse 1. 41:01 Let me get you up to speed on 41:03 where we're at in this book. 41:04 Jeremiah was one 41:05 of the major prophets of Israel. 41:07 He had one 41:08 of the hardest jobs of prophets, 41:09 I think. 41:10 They sometimes refer to as 41:12 the weeping prophet because he 41:13 had an awful lot to cry over. 41:14 It was a terrible time, 41:16 spiritually speaking, 41:17 in Israel's history -- 41:18 militarily, for 41:19 that matter, as well. 41:20 I mean, it was a mess. 41:22 Jeremiah's ministry spanned some 41:24 of the worst times 41:25 in the history of God's people. 41:27 Now, even in the first 41:29 four chapters of Jeremiah, 41:30 he's already had 41:31 a rough ride of it. 41:33 In fact, just prior to this, 41:34 if we were to read at the end 41:35 of chapter 4, 41:36 an attempt has been made 41:36 on his life, and so we might, 41:39 from a human perspective, 41:40 kind of understand the complaint 41:43 that he is going to bring next. 41:46 Let's see what he says. 41:47 Jeremiah 5 beginning -- 41:48 or, 12, beginning with verse 1. 41:51 "Jeremiah says to God, 41:52 'You are always righteous, 41:54 O Lord, 41:55 when I bring a case before you. 41:57 Yet I would speak with you 41:59 about your justice. 42:01 Why does the way 42:03 of the wicked prosper? 42:04 And why do 42:06 all the faithless live at ease? 42:07 You have planted them, 42:08 and they have taken root. 42:09 They grow and bear fruit. 42:10 You are always on their lips 42:12 but far from their hearts. 42:14 Yet you know me, O Lord. 42:16 You see me 42:17 and test my thoughts about you. 42:19 Drag them off 42:21 like sheep to be butchered.'" 42:22 Jeremiah is not very happy 42:23 right now, okay? 42:24 "'Set them apart 42:26 for the day of slaughter. 42:27 How long will the land lie 42:28 parched in the grass 42:29 and every field be withered 42:30 because those 42:31 who live in it are wicked? 42:32 The animals and birds 42:33 have perished. 42:34 Moreover, the people are saying, 42:36 "He will not see 42:37 what happens to us."'" 42:40 Pause there, please. 42:44 Now, we might be tempted 42:48 to think 42:50 that because Jeremiah has 42:51 such a hard job, 42:53 and there was just an attempt 42:53 made on his life, 42:55 that he has kind of grounds 42:57 to be grumpy, right? 42:58 And that God's answer to him 43:00 would kind of be soft and warm 43:02 and fuzzy and smiley face 43:03 and ice-cream cone 43:04 and "Hope you feel better, 43:06 Jeremiah," kind of thing. 43:09 But Jeremiah has had 43:12 a good start with God. 43:16 It's been rough, 43:17 but he has seen 43:19 the hand of God move. 43:23 And in essence, 43:24 God is about to say, 43:27 "Get ready, because something 43:29 better is coming." 43:30 Notice what 43:31 he says in verse 5. 43:35 "God says to Jeremiah, 43:38 'If you have raced with men 43:40 on foot 43:42 and they have worn you out, 43:44 how can you compete with horses? 43:49 If you stumble in safe country, 43:50 how will you manage 43:52 in the thickets by the Jordan?'" 43:56 Hmm. 43:59 A third point 44:01 that we must remember 44:03 at this phase 44:04 in what God is doing 44:05 in our midst is this -- 44:07 revival is not an end, 44:09 but a glorious, 44:10 promise-filled beginning. 44:13 Revival is not an end, 44:15 but a glorious, 44:17 promise-filled beginning. 44:19 And this message is 44:20 clear in this text. 44:23 In other words, 44:24 revival is not a destination 44:25 but a launching point. 44:27 Revival is not the goal, 44:29 but simply the precondition 44:30 necessary to reach the goal 44:32 that God has set for us. 44:34 And, again, we can see this 44:35 clearly in this text. 44:36 Verse 5 again, please. 44:37 Jeremiah 12:5. 44:38 "God says to Jeremiah," 44:40 and I think, by extension, 44:41 to us, "If you have raced 44:43 with men on foot 44:44 and they have worn you out, 44:46 how can you compete with horses? 44:48 If you stumble in safe country, 44:49 how will you manage 44:51 in the thickets by the Jordan?" 44:53 Do you see what 44:54 God is saying here? 44:57 God has not merely called us 45:00 to achieve average things. 45:06 Every elementary-school student 45:07 has been in a foot race 45:09 against other human beings. 45:10 I think I can safely say that. 45:11 Doesn't matter where you went to 45:12 elementary school, 45:13 if you were in the U.S. system, 45:15 at some point, you had to go out 45:16 in P.E. class, right? 45:17 And you had to race. 45:18 You know, so we've 45:20 all done this. 45:21 It's an average thing. 45:22 But God, spiritually speaking, 45:24 is calling us in these last days 45:26 to race against horses, 45:28 to race against 45:29 much stronger opponents. 45:31 And by His grace and 45:32 for His glory, 45:33 He intends for us to win. 45:36 Any man or woman today can 45:38 stumble when they're walking, 45:40 even if they're walking in open, 45:41 peaceful country. 45:42 But God, spiritually speaking, 45:45 is calling us in these last days 45:47 to race in thicket-filled, 45:48 thorny, risky territory, 45:50 and by His grace and 45:51 for His glory, 45:52 He intends for us to win. 45:55 In other words, 45:56 in God's kingdom, 45:58 being spiritually revived, 46:01 being alive in Him, 46:02 is just average. 46:06 It's just average. 46:09 Revival, as good and as exciting 46:11 and as joyful as it is, 46:13 is a baseline, not a pinnacle. 46:15 There is still something more 46:18 that God wants to give us. 46:22 Which reminds me of a story. 46:26 Last summer, I had the privilege 46:28 of attending my very first ever 46:29 in my entire life 46:31 Michigan Conference 46:32 Camp Meeting. 46:33 Now, if you haven't made 46:34 your reservations to 46:35 to go to Michigan Conference 46:36 Camp Meeting, meets up at 46:37 Great Lakes Academy, just a hop, 46:38 skip, and a jump from here. 46:40 We need to overflow the camp 46:41 with Pioneer people. 46:42 We need to get to the place 46:43 where we have to have 46:44 a couple potlucks so all the 46:45 Pioneer people can do it. 46:45 You need to be there. 46:47 It's a great blessing, 46:48 tremendous blessing. 46:49 By the way, Don Maclafferty is 46:50 going to be one of the speakers 46:51 at Camp Meeting this year, 46:52 so hopefully you can 46:53 join us for that. 46:54 Last year was my first time. 46:55 My schedule was such 46:56 when I wasn't busy 46:57 at the gate guarding against all 46:59 of the evil elements 47:01 that might be able to come in, 47:02 I had an hour and 15 minutes 47:04 or so every day that I could 47:05 do with as I wanted to, 47:06 and I chose almost every 47:07 day to go 47:09 and exercise, to ride my bike. 47:11 I have a mountain bike. 47:14 I love to go mountain-biking. 47:14 Not many mountains 47:16 in that part of the world, 47:17 but you can at least go riding. 47:19 And there happens to be a 47:21 Rails to Trails project 47:23 that's not far from the academy. 47:25 In other words, 47:25 there used to be a railroad 47:26 track that went 47:27 behind the academy there. 47:28 They paved it. 47:29 They've turned it all 47:30 into these level, 47:31 mostly, paved paths. 47:33 And you can ride for miles. 47:34 You can walk for miles. 47:35 You're out in nature. 47:36 It's beautiful. 47:37 I got at the end, 47:39 towards the end of the week, 47:40 out onto the trails. 47:41 I'm on my bike, 47:42 having a great time, 47:43 and I turned around 47:45 one of the curves. 47:47 Remember, these are old train 47:48 tracks, so not many 47:49 sharp turns out there. 47:50 And I turned in there, 47:51 and what was in front of me 47:52 was this very long, 47:54 straight stretch. 47:55 I don't know how -- 47:56 I think it was miles. 47:57 I mean, I didn't measure 47:59 that particular section, but, 48:00 I mean, you could see 48:01 a long ways. 48:03 And, after, I don't know, 48:05 maybe a mile 48:06 into this straight stretch -- 48:08 And I have this rearview mirror 48:09 on my helmet, and I look 48:11 in the rearview mirror, 48:12 had hardly seen a soul all day. 48:14 And lo and behold, 48:16 there is another cyclist 48:18 just coming around the bend 48:20 and falling in a mile behind me. 48:24 I think, "Oh, okay. Good. 48:26 Somebody else 48:27 is getting exercise." 48:28 Don't think a thing of it. 48:30 Many hundred more feet riding. 48:31 I look again 48:32 in the rearview mirror, 48:33 and the bike is noticeably 48:35 bigger in my mirror. 48:38 Hmm. 48:40 Now, I'm not the world's 48:41 best cyclist, but I move along 48:43 at a decent pace. 48:44 All right? 48:46 And I'm thinking to myself, 48:47 "Wow. That's -- 48:48 That's impressive," right? 48:50 Don't think anything more 48:51 about it for another several, 48:52 many hundred feet. 48:53 Look in my mirror. 48:54 It's bigger. 48:56 And I thought to myself, 48:57 "Ah, okay. This person's 48:59 on a road bike, right? 49:00 I'm on my mountain bike -- 49:01 big, heavy, lumbering thing, 49:01 right? 49:02 They're obviously on a road 49:03 bike, right? 49:04 It weighs 2 pounds, 49:05 carbon fiber, 49:06 this kind of thing, right?" 49:08 And then they get closer still, 49:10 and I can see the handlebars 49:11 sticking out like this. 49:13 "Oh, no. 49:16 That's a mountain bike." 49:19 Any guesses what I did next? 49:23 I sped up. 49:24 [ Laughter ] 49:26 I thought, "Okay, yeah, I -- 49:29 I was not doing my best. 49:30 I could -- I can put on 49:31 a little more here. 49:31 And so I step up the pace, 49:32 right? 49:33 And, you know, 49:34 a quarter-mile or so later, 49:35 I'm looking in my mirror, 49:36 and this guy is looming 49:38 large now behind me. 49:40 "Oh, my goodness!" you know? 49:42 And my ego could not take it 49:43 any longer. 49:44 It was clear he was 49:45 going to overtake me. 49:46 And so instead of continuing on 49:47 as I had intended, 49:48 we came to a crossroad. 49:49 I slowed down, did a U-turn, 49:51 just like I had supposedly 49:53 planned to do that all along, 49:54 right? 49:54 [ Laughter ] 49:56 And of course, 49:57 now I'm facing this guy, right? 49:59 And sure enough, 50:00 he comes barreling towards me, 50:02 big smile on his face. 50:04 Do you know what he was riding? 50:07 It was an e-bike. 50:09 [ Laughter ] 50:13 In other words, 50:13 it had a battery and 50:15 an electric motor on his bike. 50:18 And he's all smiles. 50:20 And let me tell you, 50:21 this guy was not in shape, okay? 50:23 I mean, 50:24 he was definitely a passenger, 50:25 not a participant, right? 50:27 And I'm not going to go into 50:28 all the details, 50:28 but if you saw him like, "No, 50:30 no, no, no, no, no, no. 50:31 No triathlete here, right?" 50:32 Okay. 50:33 I mean, the only exercises 50:34 he's doing is this, right? 50:35 And so I'm thinking, "This is 50:36 not going to -- this is not 50:37 going to be pretty, right? 50:39 But he's all smiles 50:41 because he knows he caught me. 50:43 [ Laughter ] 50:47 Now, undoubtedly, in my 50:49 ego-stricken mind, 50:52 this man felt the thrill 50:54 of victory as he went past me. 50:56 Right? 50:58 And I suppose, to some people's 51:00 reckoning, indeed, his "win" 51:02 on the e-bike was legitimate. 51:04 I mean, if it's whoever gets to 51:05 the finish line first, yeah. 51:06 If we'd kept going, 51:07 he would have beaten me. 51:08 That is true. 51:09 But even if his victory was 51:12 real, it was not based 51:14 on attributes that he had. 51:18 He did not own them. 51:20 He instead was dependent 51:22 on something which, 51:23 in a very real sense, 51:24 was not part of him -- 51:26 in this case, a battery 51:28 and an electric motor. 51:28 In fact, 51:30 physically it appeared clear 51:32 to my eyes 51:33 that no real work had been done 51:35 inside of that man. 51:38 In fact, 51:39 he appeared to be the same 51:40 out-of-shape, unhealthy man 51:42 after that race was over 51:43 as he was before it started. 51:48 He had gotten outdoors. 51:50 He had made a good start. 51:52 But the core of who he was 51:56 had not yet been changed. 52:03 Ladies and gentlemen, 52:05 the More Conference was 52:07 fantastic. 52:10 God gave us a deep and inspiring 52:13 start, a marvelous taste 52:15 of what he has in store for us. 52:17 And make no mistake, praise God, 52:19 it is just the beginning. 52:22 It's just the beginning. 52:24 The best is yet to come, 52:26 for there is still something 52:28 even more than what 52:29 the More Conference 52:30 has already brought to us, 52:31 that God has in store for us. 52:34 You know, it's tempting 52:35 to do a real cliffhanger here. 52:36 I can tell you, "What is 52:37 this great next step 52:38 that God has in store?", 52:39 and then I won't tell you there. 52:40 I'm just gonna tell you I'm not 52:41 gonna tell you today, all right? 52:42 But if you come two weeks from 52:44 now, if you come two weeks 52:45 from now, after spring break, 52:46 everybody's gonna be back. 52:47 Two weeks from now, 52:48 I'm going to share with you 52:49 about a particular next step, 52:52 a next step that I can say, 52:54 without fear of contradiction, 52:55 that if you take it, 52:57 it will make 52:58 the More Conference look small 53:00 in its effect by comparison. 53:01 I do not say that lightly, 53:02 but I mean it. 53:03 Absolutely mean it. 53:04 It is a step 53:06 that can take all of the gains 53:07 made this last week at More 53:09 and solidify them, 53:10 multiply them, 53:12 and bring us to a place 53:13 where all of the normal 53:15 things that I described 53:16 at my beginning of my sermon 53:18 two weeks ago will take place. 53:19 Do you remember those things? 53:20 Thousands baptized in a day, 53:22 church planting, 53:23 missionaries going all over 53:24 the place, people -- 53:25 miracles being wrought, 53:27 the work ultimately being 53:28 finished. 53:29 In two weeks, 53:30 I'm going to share with you 53:31 what that next step is that, 53:33 by God's grace, 53:34 will bring those things about. 53:35 So I hope 53:36 you can be there with us. 53:39 Until then, keep on going. 53:44 Consider the lessons each day 53:47 that you learned last week. 53:48 Pray, study, by yourself, 53:50 with others, at church, 53:51 at home, at school. 53:53 Continue to grow in the 53:54 fellowship with each other 53:55 that you started last week, 53:56 deepening those sweet ties. 53:58 Make the ministry plans 53:59 that so many of you 54:00 have been telling me about. 54:01 Go for it. Don't wait. 54:03 Start now. 54:04 Go where God is leading you. 54:05 If you need help, 54:05 come and see me. 54:06 If you don't need help, start. 54:07 Get going. 54:08 Do these things 54:09 that God has called you to do. 54:10 Don't wait. 54:11 The finest hour of the church 54:13 lies just before us, 54:15 and may the revival 54:16 that has begun 54:17 continue unbroken 54:19 until that glorious day. 54:29 ♪ 56:10 >> Oh, the love that the Father 56:11 has lavished upon us. 56:12 Thank you, Jesus, 56:13 for only continuing 56:15 and enlarging on that love. 56:16 We pray, Lord, 56:18 that, indeed, we would become 56:19 accurate reflectors of 56:21 that great love that you have. 56:23 Please, Lord, send the former 56:24 and the latter rains 56:25 of your Holy Spirit. 56:25 We long for it. 56:26 We have had a taste, Lord. 56:28 We want more. We crave more. 56:30 Please prepare us, grow us, 56:32 give us your holy boldness 56:34 to do whatever it is, Lord, 56:35 that you're calling us to do. 56:37 And may Your kingdom be a bigger 56:38 and a better place because of 56:40 what You have begun here now. 56:43 We pray this in Your name. 56:44 Amen. 56:48 Thank you for joining us today. 56:49 You know, 56:50 our goal with every worship 56:52 service at Pioneer Memorial 56:53 is that our listeners will come 56:55 to know Jesus Christ as their 56:56 personal friend and savior. 56:58 Have you taken this step 56:59 in your life, 57:00 or would you like to know more 57:02 about what this step looks like? 57:03 If so, I have a special gift 57:05 that I would love 57:06 to put in your hands. 57:07 It's this little book, 57:09 called "Steps to Christ." 57:11 Now, it's not a very long book. 57:13 As you can see, 57:13 it's only this thick. 57:15 But don't let the size fool you. 57:17 This is one powerful book. 57:19 In fact, 57:20 this book is so powerful, 57:21 so life-transforming 57:23 that it's become a favorite 57:24 for millions all over the world, 57:26 making it one of the most 57:27 translated and most published 57:28 books in history. 57:29 It can be yours for free 57:31 by calling the number 57:32 on your screen 877-HIS-WILL. 57:35 That's 877, 57:36 the two words "his will." 57:38 Call today. 57:39 You can also download 57:40 a free copy at 57:42 pmchurch.org/stepstochrist. 57:44 That's 57:45 pmchurch.org/stepstochrist. 57:48 Don't wait. Get your copy today. 57:51 A forever friendship with Jesus 57:52 is waiting for you. 57:54 ♪ 58:00 ♪ 58:10 ♪ 58:20 ♪ |
Revised 2025-04-07