Participants:
Series Code: SCM
Program Code: SCM200010S
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00:01 A great controversy rages between good and evil
00:03 and humanity is caught in the crossfire. 00:05 Satan has crafted his most cunning end-time deceptions 00:08 but his plans are doomed to fail. 00:11 Get ready to anchor your minds in truth 00:13 as the Bible exposes his lies 00:15 and prepares us for our soon-coming Savior. 00:18 And now live from the Campus Hill Church of SDA's 00:22 in Loma Linda, California, 00:23 we bring you this presentation of: 00:30 It's my privilege now to intro- duce our speaker of the hour. 00:34 I literally have pages and pages and pages 00:37 so I'm not going to bother to read them. 00:39 Dr. Ben Carson, a famed neurosurgeon, 00:42 that literally has accomplished things that nobody dreamed 00:47 possible... especially him in his early years. 00:51 And getting full scholarship to Yale. 00:54 You know about the conjoined twins, 00:57 and I'm here with family, folks around the world 01:00 and I could go on and on and on about the degrees, 01:03 about his accomplishments, but what I want to talk about 01:07 for just a moment today 01:08 is the fact and the reason that we have invited him here - 01:12 we're so thankful that he came - 01:13 is he's a man who loves Jesus. Amen! 01:16 Dr. Ben Carson has taken a stand: 01:20 "Lord, whatever You want me to do, wherever You want me to go 01:24 that's what I'll do. Whatever You want me to be. " 01:26 He and Candy both are dedicated brothers and sisters 01:30 SDA Christians and they represent around the world 01:35 and have influence on so many people. 01:37 I've been blessed to know this man, so 01:40 today I simply will introduce him as our brother 01:44 Dr. Ben Carson. 01:50 Boy, I tell you: the music here is worth the price of admission 01:54 right there. You don't need to hear me. 01:56 This is wonderful! 01:58 And before I get started I'd just like to have a word 02:00 of prayer. Most kind and gracious Father 02:04 in heaven, thank you so much for 02:08 this place of peace where we can come together 02:11 and worship You. Amen! 02:14 We ask that You would let the words that are spoken 02:17 not be my words but Your words. 02:23 And let our hearts be prepared to hear Your message. 02:28 I ask in the worthy name of Jesus, Amen. Amen! 02:33 So I thought I'd talk a little bit today about 02:37 who are we as Christians 02:42 in the society in which we live today. 02:46 You know, it's becoming a little more difficult these days 02:50 sometimes to live by Christian principles 02:53 without being attacked. 02:57 But didn't Jesus say: "If you follow Me 03:01 you're going to have some trouble? " 03:04 So that really shouldn't be particularly surprising. 03:08 It should be in a way comforting. 03:11 But, you know, for me 03:13 my foundation started right here in the church 03:18 as a youngster listening to the mission story. 03:23 I used to love those mission stories. 03:25 They don't do that so much anymore. 03:27 And it was mostly missionaries and missionary doctors 03:30 going to Africa and India and all these places 03:34 and talking to what they called the "heathen. " 03:37 Now probably missionaries from those places 03:40 come here I suspect. 03:41 But things have changed a little bit. 03:45 But, you know, progress- ing on from kindergarten 03:49 to primary and the Primary Treasure and figuring out all 03:54 those little puzzles they had in there. 03:57 And then the Junior Guides and all those inspirational stories 04:01 and little worksheets that they had. 04:04 But probably the most important thing were 04:07 so many of the sermons. 04:11 And I can remember so many sermons that 04:17 really prepared you and gave you the faith 04:22 that you were going to need no matter what aspect 04:25 of life you pursued. 04:28 But one of the common threads through all of it 04:32 was care of the vulnerable. 04:36 Care of the needy. 04:38 Care of the poor. 04:41 And Jesus Himself spent a lot of time 04:46 with the vulnerable people of our society... 04:50 with the poor people of our society, 04:52 and I think that is a message for us today. 04:58 Not to look our nose down at people who aren't doing well 05:02 and just tell them: "Pull your- self-up by your bootstraps. " 05:07 You know, that may be what you did 05:11 but it may have been a different circumstance. 05:13 Everybody has different circumstances 05:16 and we have to start thinking about "What would Jesus do? " 05:21 Amen. 05:22 How would Jesus treat poor people? The homeless people? 05:26 The people who are strung out on drugs? 05:29 The people who have severe mental illnesses? 05:33 You know, in Proverbs 14:31 05:39 the Bible says: "He that oppresses the poor 05:45 reproaches his Maker, 05:50 but he that honoreth Him has mercy on the poor. " 05:54 Now think about that: 05:56 reproaching your Maker by oppressing the poor. 06:02 And what is oppressing the poor? 06:06 Some people, you know, their minds go back to 06:10 medieval Europe with princes and serfs 06:15 and they were oppressing the poor. 06:17 You don't have to go back that far. 06:21 We have people who oppress the poor right here 06:24 in our own country 06:26 because it is oppressing the poor 06:31 when you keep them poor. 06:34 When you do things that prevent them 06:36 from climbing the ladder of opportunity. 06:40 Amen. And we all have spheres of influence. 06:44 We all have the ability to extend a helping hand 06:50 to somebody in our environment, 06:54 to somebody in our orbit, 06:56 to give them that opportunity to be successful. 07:02 And particularly when we talk about our place in society 07:07 as Christians. What does James say 07:11 in the first chapter of James the 27th verse? 07:16 "Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father 07:23 is this: to visit the fatherless and widows 07:29 in their affliction 07:31 and to keep himself unspotted from the world. " 07:35 The fatherless... In other words, he was talking about 07:39 people who don't have a positive support system 07:44 to help themselves. 07:47 The widows... He's talking about people who have fallen 07:50 upon hard times. 07:54 And when he says to visit them he's not just talking about 07:58 going and say: "Hi... I visited you. " 08:01 He's talking about helping them. 08:05 Utilizing the resources that you have 08:08 to actually help them. "And to keep himself unspotted 08:11 from the world. " Don't be like everybody else. 08:15 You should be able to be distinguished 08:17 from there because this is who you are. 08:21 That's how we fit in. 08:23 You know, I can remember poverty so well 08:27 as a youngster. 08:29 And I have to admit I did not like poverty. 08:32 You know, some people don't like rats 08:35 and some people don't like roaches and spiders. 08:39 I hated poverty. 08:41 And I can vividly remember 08:45 when I was in the 5th grade 08:47 and every now and then the teacher would say: "Tomorrow 08:51 there are going to be popcorn balls 08:54 and they're a nickel apiece. So if you want to purchase one, 08:58 bring a nickel. " Some kids would bring a dime or a quarter. 09:01 Some people even brought a whole dollar and bought 09:04 a whole bag of them. 09:06 I never had a popcorn ball. 09:08 We didn't have an extra nickel to spare. 09:13 And they looked so good I've gotta tell you. 09:17 There was nothing better than a popcorn ball. 09:20 But you know what? As life goes on 09:24 and you can afford a popcorn ball 09:26 then they're not that great. 09:33 Isn't that the way it is with "stuff" in general? 09:37 It doesn't matter what it is. Maybe you want a Corvette 09:40 or maybe you want a Mercedes. 09:42 But, you know, when you can afford one 09:44 they're not that great. You know? 09:46 Because it's "stuff, " and that's what Jesus talked about. 09:51 You know, don't make your treasures on this "stuff. " 09:57 Your treasure should be in heaven. AMEN! 10:00 This is what's really important. 10:03 Once you come to realize that, stuff doesn't bother you. 10:07 And you know, the fact of the matter is 10:09 when it comes to poverty 10:11 compared to God 10:16 everybody here lives in poverty. 10:18 The richest man in the world 10:20 is no different than the poorest man in the world 10:23 when you compare them with God 10:24 and His power and His wealth. Amen. 10:27 And we would do good to remember that because 10:30 sometimes people accumulate a little bit of material "stuff" 10:35 and they start thinking that they're better than everybody 10:37 else. And they're not... and what they really should be doing 10:43 is thanking God for the blessings 10:47 and being willing to share those blessings with other people. 10:52 You know, one of the reasons that God instituted a tithe 10:57 is because He wanted us to be used to the idea 11:01 of giving and helping other people. 11:04 Does He need our tithe? Of course He doesn't. 11:07 He owns everything; He controls everything. 11:11 But it gives us an opportunity to start looking at other people 11:16 with love, with real compassion in their hearts. 11:23 But I remember as a youngster 11:26 I had this giant dream 11:30 of becoming middle class. 11:32 It just seemed like so cool to be middle class 11:35 and to be able to just do stuff like regular people. 11:40 It's amazing, you know, what we dream about. 11:43 But my mother had dreams, too. Her dream 11:46 was for me and my brother to be successful. 11:49 My mother was an extremely attractive woman. 11:53 There were no end of male suitors. 11:56 You know, after they got divorced... You know, she was 11:59 born to a very large family in rural Tennessee. 12:03 Got married when she was 13 12:06 trying to escape just horrible circumstances. 12:10 Had less than a 3rd grade education. 12:13 And then years later discovered that her husband, 12:19 my father, was a bigamist. 12:22 Had another family. 12:24 And obviously that resulted in a divorce. 12:29 But she was struggling, trying to keep it all together. 12:34 And she was a very unusual person. 12:36 She did not want to be dependent on the government 12:42 so she worked very hard - 12:45 2 to 3 jobs at a time - as a domestic. 12:49 She would leave at 5 in the morning, get back after midnight 12:53 day after day. Sometimes we only saw her 12:55 on the weekend because we were in bed when she left 12:58 and we were in bed when she came home. But... 13:02 She would come home; she would fix our lunch; 13:04 she would take care of stuff. 13:06 But we frequently didn't see her. 13:09 But it was really... it was a ploy 13:13 because you see she wasn't really a domestic... 13:17 she was a spy. 13:21 She was spying on those people that she was working for 13:24 'cause she wanted to know why they were so successful 13:27 and why did they live in these beautiful homes. 13:30 And she concluded that it was because they didn't watch 13:34 a lot of TV and they read a lot of books. 13:38 So she came home and she imposed that on me and my 13:41 brother. And we were not "happy campers" 13:46 I've gotta tell you. If it had been today's world, 13:49 we probably would have called social services on her. 13:51 But in those days you had to do what your parents 13:57 told you to do. So... we started reading those books. 14:02 And before that I was a terrible student. 14:07 I was the worst student you could imagine. 14:09 Then I remember one day they were doing eye exams 14:13 and they discovered that I couldn't see 14:15 and I got a pair of glasses. 14:17 You know, I didn't know anybody could see the board. 14:19 This was new to me. 14:23 But suddenly I could see the board 14:26 and I went from a F student to a D student! 14:30 And I was so pleased with myself. 14:35 My mother was not happy at all. 14:38 But I kept reading and reading those books 14:42 and learning more and more. 14:44 And you know, within the space of a year and a half 14:48 I went from the bottom of the class to the top of the class. 14:51 And those same students who were laughing at me 14:54 and calling me dummy were coming to me saying: "Benny, 14:56 Benny, Benny: how do you work this problem? " 14:59 And I would say: "Sit at my feet, youngster, 15:00 while I instruct you. " 15:03 I was... perhaps... a little obnoxious. 15:07 But it sure felt good to say that to those turkeys. 15:09 But, you know, I had a real revolution 15:14 in the way that I thought as I read those books 15:18 because I read about scientists and explorers 15:22 and philosophers and entrepreneurs 15:25 and all kinds of people. 15:26 And I began to see some common threads 15:31 and I began to recognize that the person 15:36 who has the most to do with what happens to you 15:39 in the course of life is you. 15:44 It's not somebody else. People around me were saying 15:49 "It's those people who are keeping you down. " 15:52 "It's this circumstance that's keeping you down. " 15:55 And you know what? Maybe they WERE trying to keep you down. 16:00 But I began to understand what my mother was saying 16:05 when she would say to me: "If you walk into an auditorium 16:09 full of racist, bigoted people... " 16:12 she said... "you don't have a problem... 16:16 they have a problem. 16:18 Because, you see, they're all going to cringe 16:21 and wonder if you're going to sit next to them 16:22 whereas you can go sit anywhere you want. " 16:29 And realize that you DO have control in your life 16:35 even if there are people placing obstacles in your way. 16:39 You know, like a hurdle... every time you jump over one 16:45 you get better. It strengthens you. 16:48 Doesn't mean that we shouldn't make an effort to remove 16:52 those hurdles. And we all have spheres of influence. 16:57 And we can demonstrate in those spheres of influence 17:01 what real love and compassion is. 17:04 You know, I find it sad 17:10 that there are still people in our society 17:14 who look at others and make judgments about them 17:20 based on their external characteristics. 17:24 The color of their skin, 17:26 the texture of their hair, 17:28 their national origin. 17:32 Because as a neurosurgeon when I took someone to the 17:36 operating room and opened their heads 17:38 and started working on their brain 17:41 I couldn't tell what those external characteristics were. 17:47 Their brains were all the same. 17:50 And what makes you who you are? 17:53 Is it your nose? Or is it your brain? 17:56 And you know, only people who think very superficially 18:02 think that they can characterize somebody on the 18:05 basis of their external characteristics. 18:08 Amen! And we should make that very clear 18:11 in the spheres of influence in which we live. 18:16 Well... one of the things 18:20 that I learned is that reading 18:26 works much better when it comes to accumulating knowledge 18:31 than watching television. 18:33 Because, you know, when you read 18:36 you're looking at words all the time 18:39 so you learn how to spell. You can always tell a reader 18:41 'cause they know how to spell. 18:44 And people who don't know how to spell 18:46 they write real sloppy so you can't tell. 18:49 Have you noticed that? 18:52 There's a lot of doctors who can't spell. 19:01 But you know, you have to take those words and you make them 19:05 into sentences so you learn grammar and syntax. 19:10 And you have to take those sentences 19:13 and you have to make those into concepts 19:17 so you learn to use your imagination. 19:20 You watch television, somebody's already done all of that stuff 19:23 already so you're not really exercising your brain 19:27 to the extent that you should be able to. 19:30 It's one of the reasons that my wife and I 19:35 and the Carson Scholars Fund 19:38 put so much emphasis on reading. 19:42 And we open up reading rooms all over the country. 19:45 In fact, Candy was here I think last week 19:48 opening up a few reading rooms here in California. 19:51 There are several here in California. 19:53 These are incredible places that no young person would pass up 19:58 the way that they're decorated. And they get points 20:01 for every book they read. And they can trade those in 20:05 for prizes. And in the beginning they're interested in 20:08 the prizes, but it doesn't take long before that has 20:10 a profound effect on their academic performance. 20:13 Which is what we're really trying to do because 20:16 research has demonstrated 20:19 that if a child is reading at grade level 20:23 by grade 3 it changes the trajectory of their life. 20:27 And their life is: finishing school, not dropping out, 20:30 all of that is impacted significantly. 20:34 And it's also said 20:38 that during those first few years 20:43 you learn to read. 20:45 After that you read to learn. 20:49 Amen. It makes a big difference 20:52 in what happens to you in life. 20:55 And that's what we have to begin to emphasize. 20:58 Instead of going around and making excuses 21:02 and creating all kinds of problems 21:04 let's do things based on what we know. 21:07 We know that if we cultivate a young person's brain 21:13 and we give them what they need 21:16 to become intellectually sufficient 21:20 they're going to do OK. 21:22 They're going to do just fine. 21:25 And that's why we need to do everything we can 21:27 to make sure that we have not only a good educational 21:31 system but good access to people for education. 21:37 It's going to be interesting because, 21:39 you know, we're entering a new phase now of education. 21:46 It's based on the Internet. 21:49 It's based on people being able to get 21:52 information much more rapidly than they could before. 21:55 Have you noticed now that there's no more 21:58 old people with senior moments? 22:07 Because all they have to do is pull out their Smartphone 22:11 and find out what it is that they forgot. 22:14 OK? 22:16 But, you know, with education 22:19 we are not very far away 22:22 from virtual reality. 22:26 People won't even need to go to school. 22:29 They'll put on their headsets... 22:31 You know, I've had an opportunity to use some of those 22:35 virtual reality headsets. 22:37 It's pretty amazing. 22:38 I mean, you can be in Greece; you can be in Rome. 22:42 You can be in Egypt; you can be in your backyard 22:46 and have a tutorial on how you find the energy source 22:52 that's coming into your house and open it up 22:55 and which things you can move without electrocuting yourself. 22:58 All of that stuff is readily available 23:02 and it's getting even better. 23:04 Can you imagine what that's going to do to education? 23:06 Can you imagine what it's going to do for work? 23:10 In a way it's good 23:13 because there won't be so much traffic congestion 23:17 because, you know, people can work from wherever they are. 23:20 But in a way it's terrible 23:26 because people are not develop- ing interpersonal relationships 23:31 with other people the way that they should. 23:35 And it's something that we're going to have to be very careful 23:38 of. Parents, particularly of young children: 23:44 just realize they are being exposed to things 23:49 that would have been unimagin- able when you were a child. 23:54 Constantly they're being bombarded with this stuff. 23:59 And that's why it becomes so vitally important 24:02 to spend time with your children. 24:05 "Train up a child in the way he should go; 24:08 when he is old he will not depart from it. " 24:11 I know some of you are saying: "When are they going to get 24:13 old? " But you know, the fact of the matter is 24:18 it is our responsibility 24:21 to develop the right kind of relationship with them 24:25 so that they get that solid foundation early on. 24:29 Because they are going to be bombarded 24:32 in the society that we live in now 24:35 with a lot of things that are not Biblical. 24:39 And here's where courage comes in. 24:44 It is very very easy 24:49 to just go along with what's politically correct. 24:53 What everybody says is the right thing. 24:59 It takes a lot more courage 25:02 to always do what God says. 25:04 Amen! 25:06 You know, that was in the Sabbath School lesson today 25:08 with Daniel. 25:10 He could easily have closed the doors and not let anybody 25:13 see him praying. 25:16 But he was true to his God. 25:19 And if we are true to God 25:22 and true to His Word and what the Bible says, 25:27 then we are not going to be swayed 25:33 when people come along and say: 25:36 "Yeah, I know it says that in the Bible, but, you know, 25:38 that was thousands of years ago 25:40 and God is different now and, 25:44 you know, this is what it means now. " 25:46 Can I tell you something? 25:48 God says He changes not. 25:52 AMEN! 25:53 And think about this: the Bible says 25:57 to God "a day is like a thousand years 26:02 and a thousand years is like a day. " 26:05 So really when you say: "that was thousands of years ago... " 26:11 Say it was 2,000 years ago... 26:15 What's today? Saturday? It was like Thursday. 26:17 OK? In God's sight. 26:21 So there's not a lot of impetus or time 26:25 for Him to be changing things. 26:28 And why would He need to change things 26:31 because He's perfect. Amen! 26:33 He's God. 26:35 And our challenge is: do we believe that 26:40 or do we believe in man? 26:43 Do we believe what man tells us? 26:46 What people say to us? 26:50 You know, I do not believe in what man says. 26:54 I guess I should be equal: what woman says, too. 27:01 I believe in what God says. 27:05 And I do not believe in any political party. 27:10 You know, when people align themselves 27:16 slavishly to any political ideology 27:22 and they place that over their allegiance to God 27:25 they have done wrong, and they will go in the wrong direction. 27:28 Amen! We must always 27:34 pledge allegiance to God. 27:37 Amen! And you think about it. 27:40 I was talking about compassion a little while ago. 27:44 I mean, what is true compassion? 27:50 Is it finding a poor person 27:53 and just patting them on the head and saying: 27:55 "There, there, you poor little thing: 27:57 I'm going to take care of all your needs. " 27:59 "Got free stuff for you. " 28:02 OR is it providing a mechanism 28:07 for that person to develop their God-given talents 28:11 and develop a life of dignity? 28:15 Which one is compassion? 28:19 And when we think about Jesus... 28:22 and again, I think about Him a lot 28:26 whenever I have a decision to make. 28:29 Think about some of the parables He told in the Bible. 28:34 For those who think that we should say: "There, there, 28:38 you poor little thing. Nobody needs to do something; 28:42 I'll take care of you" think about the parable 28:46 of the talents. 28:49 Who was He very pleased with? 28:53 Those who took what they had and developed it 28:57 and used it and grew it. 29:01 Or those who buried it 29:03 and just said: "I just want to make sure that you're 29:06 happy with me. " 29:09 He wants us to use what He's given us. 29:12 He's given us these amazing brains. 29:15 We're made in God's image. 29:17 Amen! You have a brain that has billions and billions 29:22 of neurons. Hundreds of billions of interconnections 29:27 that remembers everything you've ever seen, 29:29 everything you've ever done, 29:31 everything you've ever heard. 29:34 It's all in there... which is why... 29:38 Remember when you were a little tot 29:40 there's a song: "Be careful little eyes what you see? 29:44 Little ears... " All that stuff goes in there. 29:47 It does not go away. 29:49 It influences how you act 29:54 even at a subconscious level. 29:57 So you need to be careful. 30:00 But if you think about what the brain can do... 30:04 Have you ever heard someone say: 30:06 "Don't learn this... you're going to clog your brain. " 30:09 "You're going to overload your brain. " 30:12 Guess what? You cannot overload the human brain. 30:17 Amen! If you learn one new fact every second, 30:23 and that's very hard to do, 30:27 every second it would take you in excess 30:31 of 3 million years to overload your brain. 30:35 Wow! I don't know anybody who lives that long 30:39 so I don't think you ever need to worry. 30:41 The next time somebody tells you that you're going to 30:43 overload your brain please let them know that. 30:48 But when I think about real compassion 30:54 I think about Jesus. 30:56 What did He do? Here He is 31:02 the Creator of the universe, 31:06 all power and majesty and prestige. 31:12 With all of that He humbled Himself. 31:18 He came here as a man. 31:24 He was humiliated, 31:28 tortured, and killed. 31:34 Why? Because He loves us. Amen! 31:38 Think about that. 31:40 I mean, how are we? 31:43 God gave His only begotten Son for us! 31:49 Who are we? 31:50 I mean, we're slime balls. 31:53 You know, think about it. 31:55 We sin all the time. 31:57 You know, some of us think we don't sin... but we do. 32:01 If you think you don't sin, 32:03 you're sinning... 'cause you're proud. 32:05 OK? So it really doesn't matter... 32:09 we're sinful beings 32:12 and that's why He came to save us. 32:17 And we all know the verse John 3:16-17. 32:22 "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten 32:25 Son that whosoever believeth in Him 32:31 should not perish but have everlasting life. 32:33 For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world 32:36 but that the world through Him might be saved. " 32:41 What does that tell you? 32:44 It tells you that He came to save us! 32:47 He didn't come to condemn us. 32:50 You know, when I was a kid somehow I developed 32:54 this aberrant notion 32:58 that God was always watching you 33:02 and writing down every little thing you did 33:05 so that in the Judgment Day 33:07 He could say: "Remember on April the 17th 33:11 what you did? " But that's not who God is. 33:18 God will do anything that He can possibly do 33:23 to save you. 33:27 If that means sometimes allowing some difficulty in your life 33:32 so that you will re-direct it to Him, 33:34 He will do that. 33:36 But He knows the beginning from the end; 33:38 He knows what's necessary 33:40 and He will do whatever it takes 33:43 and you have to actively resist. 33:46 Because I believe that God will save anybody 33:52 who would be happy in heaven. 33:55 Amen! 33:58 But if you wouldn't be happy in heaven, 34:02 wouldn't that be torture to be there forever? 34:06 He loves people enough 34:08 that He's not going to torture you forever 34:11 by having you in a place where you're going to be miserable. 34:15 But we need to get our hearts right and in harmony with Him: 34:19 understanding what in fact true compassion is 34:23 and letting that be the thing that drives us 34:27 and doing what is right. 34:32 When we read John 3:16 34:36 think on those words: "whosoever believeth in Him. " 34:43 It doesn't say: "Whosoever believeth in Him 34:47 and doesn't eat pork. " 34:50 It doesn't say: "Whosoever believeth in Him 34:54 and belongs to this party or belongs to that party. " 35:00 See, we like to add a lot of stuff on. 35:03 We don't need to be adding anything to what He says 35:07 and we don't need to be taking anything away from what He says. 35:10 We need to be believing what He says. 35:12 Amen! It will make all the difference in the world. 35:15 And that will just lead us to do what's right. 35:19 And that has been the case throughout my medical career. 35:25 I would be faced with these challenging situations. 35:29 I remember one time one of the obstetricians 35:32 came to me and he says: "I have this woman 35:35 and she's having twins. 35:38 And one of them has a severe case of hydrocephalus 35:41 and the head is expanding so rapidly 35:44 that she's going to go into premature labor 35:46 and both twins will be lost. 35:49 And can you do an operation on that baby 35:52 while it's still in the womb? " 35:54 Well, that was before intra- uterine surgery was acceptable. 36:00 In fact, there had been an article in the New England 36:01 Journal of Medicine saying: "We're not ready for this. " 36:04 But here was a situation 36:08 where not only the baby with the problem was going to be lost 36:13 but the other baby was going to be lost, too. 36:17 And as I think about 36:21 how God honors life 36:25 even from conception 36:29 I said: "Lord, please guide me; show me what needs to be done 36:34 here. " And He guided me to 36:38 a neurosurgeon in Philadelphia 36:41 who had been doing some experiments on sheep 36:44 with hydrocephalus. 36:47 And he had actually developed a technique for being able to 36:50 to operate in utero in the sheep that was pregnant. 36:55 And I said to him: "Do you think we could modify 36:58 some of what you did so that we could do this 37:00 in a human being and we could do it within the next week? " 37:09 Well, you know, what does it say 37:13 in Philippians 4:13? 37:18 "I can do ALL things 37:21 through Christ who stren... " 37:24 So I put it in His hands. I said: "Lord, can You work this 37:26 out? " He worked it out 37:29 and we were able to do the operation. 37:32 We couldn't do it at Johns Hopkins because 37:35 the ethics committee took too long. 37:38 The babies would have been dead by the time they finished. 37:40 They're sort of like Congress. 37:42 But at any rate... 37:48 But at any rate, you know, we did the operation. 37:53 I could actually see the baby's head 37:55 go down and shrink right on the ultrasound. 37:58 We were able to buy several more weeks. 38:01 And then the babies were born and it was a big national story. 38:05 And then the controversy started. 38:07 Said: "It's unethical to operate on babies in utero. " 38:10 But then when it was discovered 38:12 that not only was the normal baby saved 38:15 but the other baby was doing well, too, 38:17 then all the critics said: "Well I would have done that, 38:19 too. " That's kind of the way it works, 38:24 you know. For the young people out there 38:27 I'll tell you: you know when you push the envelope, 38:31 when you do things sort of outside of the box, 38:35 expect to be criticized. 38:38 OK... that is always going to happen. 38:42 Don't worry about that if, in fact, 38:47 you are seeking wisdom and direction from God. 38:53 That is always the thing that has guided me. 38:57 I remember there was a little girl from California 39:00 here. She had a very complex tumor 39:03 right in the center of her brain. Everybody said it was 39:06 inoperable. And she ended up at Johns Hopkins. 39:11 I must say it was a very intimidating situation. 39:16 But I did operate on her 39:19 and she actually survived the operation. 39:23 She had some deficits. 39:27 She went back to California. I lost track of her 39:32 but last month I was in Las Vegas. 39:37 Not gambling by the way. 39:41 It was business. 39:43 But then I was notified that there was a family 39:47 that wanted to speak to me and I went over. 39:50 It was the girl's aunt and uncle. 39:54 And they just said: "We want to thank you 39:57 for operating on our little niece 40:01 that everybody said was impossible 40:04 thirty years ago and we just want you to know 40:07 she's 35 years old and doin' fine. " 40:10 But, you know, listening... 40:17 But some people said: "Carson's a hot dog. 40:20 He does all this stuff. " It's not about being a hot dog 40:23 by any stretch of the imagination. 40:26 It's about listening to the Lord and listening to His guidance. 40:32 You know, I go back now that I've retired 40:34 and I look at some of the operative notes 40:37 and I said: "What? " 40:42 "You did what? " But you know, it really wasn't me. 40:46 It was Him. And it doesn't matter whether you're 40:51 a neurosurgeon or an auto mechanic. 40:53 It doesn't matter what you are: 40:55 if you allow God's guidance, He will bless whatever it is 41:01 that you're doing. Amen! 41:03 And that's what we need to make sure that all of our 41:06 children know and understand. 41:10 Proverbs 3:5-6 41:13 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart; 41:17 lean not to your own understanding. " 41:20 Your own understanding will always lead you away. 41:24 And you always acknowledge Him in everything you do. 41:30 You know, when I first got into public life 41:34 someone said to me: 41:36 "Congratulations! This is all great and well 41:41 but you're going to have to stop with all this God stuff 41:44 because separation of church and state and all this stuff. " 41:49 And I said: "It's not going to happen. " 41:53 Amen! I said: "I will gladly give up anything in government 41:57 but I will never give up God. " 41:58 Amen! And that is absolutely... 42:03 Please tell me: what is there in government, 42:06 what is there in Hollywood, 42:10 what is there in the world of finance 42:14 that even begins to compare with a relationship with God? 42:18 Amen! And how long are we here? 42:22 You know, even if you get to be 100 years old 42:26 what is that against the backdrop of eternity? AMEN! 42:31 You know, we have to put all of these things in perspective. 42:35 And that also removes fear. 42:39 Because even if you're going to be persecuted 42:42 how long are you going to be persecuted? 42:45 Compared to the backdrop of eternity 42:48 it really doesn't matter. 42:50 That's what Paul was talking about when he said all this 42:53 stuff: "I count it as dung. " You know, this is nothing 42:56 because he could see what the big picture was. 43:00 That's what we need to do: focus on Jesus 43:03 not focus on ourselves. 43:06 You know what happens when you focus on yourself? 43:09 You get depressed. OK? 43:13 Because you're always messin' up! 43:15 OK... but He never messes up. 43:18 And therefore, just focus on Him because He said 43:21 "I'm your righteousness; 43:25 it is Me and not you. " 43:28 And that's what it means when it says 43:32 "whosoever believeth in Him. " 43:34 We believe in Him... If we worry all the time about ourselves, 43:39 it means that we don't think that what He did was good enough 43:43 to save us. 43:44 And He said: "All you have to do is come to Me... 43:49 believe in Me, accept Me. " 43:52 Now some people say: "So if I believe in God 43:56 it just means I can be any kind of person I want to be? " 43:59 Well, you know what? I'll give you a good example. 44:06 When you get married you take wedding vows. 44:11 And often times they're flowery; they're beautiful, 44:15 wonderful. But do you have to consult them 44:21 all the time? "Let's see: what did it say? " 44:25 Not if you love your spouse! 44:28 You don't have to consult the wedding vows 44:31 because your actions demonstrate that you love your spouse. 44:38 And when you believe in Him and accept Him 44:43 the very same thing happens. 44:46 He becomes your center. 44:50 All of your orientation is toward Him. 44:55 Your orientation is not toward another human being 45:03 or some human ideology. 45:07 It is only about Him... and that's the only thing 45:10 that keeps us moving in the right direction. 45:15 But we all have a sphere of influence, 45:18 and I want that to be the "take-away" message. 45:21 You can influence people around you 45:27 by the way that you live... 45:30 by the way that you treat other people. 45:35 I always tell the people around me: "When it comes 45:37 to difficult decisions just do the right thing. " 45:42 Don't worry about the political implications of this or that 45:47 or the other, do what is right. 45:51 Amen! And when you do what is right 45:54 there's an added advantage. 45:58 People may accuse you of all kinds of stuff 46:02 but they will never find any- thing 'cause there's nothin' 46:05 to find. Amen! And you know, that really alleviates 46:09 a lot of tension in your life. 46:12 You know, God gave us command- ments; He gave us directions. 46:15 Why? Because He loves us! 46:18 He made us... He knows how we work. 46:23 And, think about it: if He didn't love us, 46:26 He would just: "Go ahead and do whatever you want. 46:29 Doesn't matter. " 46:31 He wants us to get the most out of life. 46:34 He actually wants us to be happy. Some people think 46:37 He wants us to be acidic. No... not at all! 46:40 He wants us to be happy. A person who loves God 46:44 can be happy under any circumstances. Amen! 46:48 You should be able to tell them because they treat other people 46:52 right. You'll never see them "badmouthing" 46:55 other people and saying horrible things. 46:57 It will never happen. 46:59 That's one of the ways that you can tell somebody 47:04 who is constrained by the love of Christ. 47:09 But I just want to end with this one last story 47:13 that helped me so much. 47:15 That is as a young attending neurosurgeon 47:18 I had a young man who came to me from Georgia. 47:23 He was four years old. 47:25 He had been diagnosed with a malignant brain stem tumor. 47:29 Had seen multiple specialists. Everybody told the family 47:31 "Just take him home and let him die. Keep him comfortable. " 47:35 And they ended up at Hopkins. 47:38 When I saw him the first time he was barely moving, barely 47:41 breathing, eyes crossed, foaming at the mouth. 47:45 I said: "What am I supposed to do here? " 47:48 And I looked at the CAT scan. There was a big, ugly 47:50 brain stem tumor. 47:52 And the parents said: "Doctor, we were directed here by the 47:55 Lord because we would find a neurosurgeon - a Christian 47:58 neurosurgeon - who could help our son. 48:00 And the Lord is going to heal our son 48:02 and He's going to use you to do it. " 48:06 And I said: 48:09 "That's nice. " 48:12 I said: "But this is a malignant brain stem tumor. 48:15 This is an inoperable tumor. 48:17 There's nothing I or anybody can do about this. " 48:20 And they said: "But doctor, 48:22 the Lord is going to heal our son. " 48:27 I said: "Look... MRI's are brand new. " 48:30 I said: "Let's get a MRI. Maybe it will show something 48:32 the CAT scan doesn't show. " 48:34 Did the MRI. Had all the radiologists look at it. 48:36 They said: "Malignant brain stem tumor... nothing you can do. " 48:39 I told the parents. They said: "But doctor, 48:44 THE LORD... " I said: "Well, 1 in 1,000 times 48:49 the scans are wrong so maybe it's something else. 48:51 I'll biopsy it. " I opened it up; got a piece. 48:54 Sent it to the pathologist and it came back high grade glioma. 48:58 Very malignant tumor. 48:59 I took out as much as I dared. Closed him up. 49:02 Went out and spoke to them and I said: "I'm sorry... 49:04 it looks like it's what we thought. 49:06 And only the Lord knows how long a person should be here. 49:10 Maybe he's already served his purpose 49:12 and we'll understand it better by and by. " 49:14 All things we always tell people. 49:16 And they said: "Thank you, doctor, 49:19 but THE LORD... " And as I walked away I said: 49:25 "I've never seen people with this kind of faith. " 49:28 But I expected him to deteriorate and die... 49:32 but instead he got better! The next day 49:35 he was no longer foaming at the mouth 49:37 and his eyes were starting to look in the same direction. 49:40 And I said: "What? " 49:42 And I said: "Let's do another MRI. " 49:44 There was still an ugly tumor but there was a little rim 49:47 of tissue and I said: "Is it possible that maybe 49:51 this is outside the brain stem and it's compressing the brain 49:54 stem and maybe I should go back in? " 49:57 And they said: "By all mean! " 49:58 And I went back in and the whole nature of the thing 50:01 had changed. And I pulled it away layer by layer 50:03 under the microscope. Got to the last layer 50:06 there was a glistening white brain stem intact. 50:10 Long story short, that boy walked out of the hospital 50:13 and today is a minister. 50:20 But you know, one of the oncologists said to me: 50:24 "Ben, I've always been an athe- ist but I'm a believer now. " 50:27 But it was really for me, because I thought I was doing 50:30 all this stuff. And after that I realized 50:34 it wasn't me... it was God. 50:38 And this is what we must teach our young people. 50:42 Let God be the One who is in charge. 50:46 Because... I'll allude to it again... 50:50 Philippians 4:13. 50:52 What does it say? "I can do ALL things... " 50:56 Or does it say: "I can do SOME things? " 50:59 All! Does it say: "I can do MANY things? " 51:01 All! "MOST things? " 51:03 "ALL things" because we serve a mighty God. 51:08 God bless. 51:30 Days are filled 51:33 with sorrows and cares. 51:38 Hearts are lonely 51:42 and drear; 51:46 But burdens 51:49 are lifted 51:52 at Calvary... 51:57 Jesus is very near. 52:06 Burdens are lifted at 52:11 Calvary, 52:16 Calvary, 52:21 Calvary... 52:26 Burdens are lifted 52:30 at Calvary... 52:35 for Jesus 52:37 is very near. 52:45 Cast your care 52:49 on Jesus today; 52:55 leave your worry 52:59 and fear; 53:03 Burdens are lifted 53:07 at Calvary 53:12 for Jesus is very 53:18 near. 53:22 Burdens are lifted 53:27 at Calvary, 53:32 Calvary, 53:37 Calvary... 53:41 Burdens are lifted 53:46 at Calvary 53:50 for Jesus is very 53:56 near. 54:01 Troubled soul: 54:06 the Savior can feel 54:12 every heartache 54:16 and tear; 54:20 for burdens are lifted 54:26 at Calvary... 54:32 Jesus is very 54:37 near. Join us on the chorus, together: 54:41 Burdens are lifted 54:46 at Calvary, 54:51 Calvary, 54:56 Calvary... 55:01 Burdens are lifted 55:05 at Calvary... 55:11 Jesus is very 55:17 near. |
Revised 2020-05-21