Participants:
Series Code: TDYFW
Program Code: TDYFW210027S
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00:02 I want to spend my life
00:08 Mending broken people 00:12 I want to spend my life 00:19 Removing pain Lord, 00:24 Let my words 00:30 Heal a heart that hurts 00:35 I want to spend my life 00:40 Mending broken people 00:46 I want to spend my life 00:51 Mending broken people 01:09 Hello, friends, and welcome to another edition 01:12 of 3ABN Family Worship. 01:14 That's right, it's Friday night. 01:16 We are here in the Sabbath hours 01:18 and we're gathered around His family, 01:19 around this table, and we're ready to worship 01:21 the Lord in spirit and in truth. 01:24 We have a very, very exciting topic tonight. 01:26 This is one of my favorite topics because I believe 01:28 it's so relevant for the time that we're living. 01:31 There's so much confusion surrounding 01:32 different aspects of the gospel, 01:34 and what you should or should not do 01:37 when it comes to your relationship with Jesus, 01:38 and how to simply have salvation in Jesus Christ. 01:42 Well, we're going to clear it up tonight. 01:43 We're going to let the Word of God speak directly. 01:45 And we're just excited that you're joining us. 01:47 If this is your very first time tuning in. 01:50 My name is Ryan Day. 01:51 I work here at the Three Angels 01:53 Broadcasting Network in the pastoral department. 01:55 And it's just a blessing to have you. 01:57 You could be doing anything else right now, 01:59 but you're with us. And we appreciate it. 02:00 I just want to let you know also in advance, 02:03 get your pens, get your pencils, 02:04 your paper, your iPads, 02:06 your pen pads, anything you can use to take notes 02:08 because you're going to want to write down some 02:10 of these texts that we're going to be going through tonight. 02:13 Because more than likely you're going to want to share 02:15 this with a friend or a family member 02:17 or someone that you know, because this is one 02:20 of those topics that just comes up often. 02:21 So many people are confused about the simple aspect 02:25 of works versus grace, what you should or should 02:28 not do when it comes to your relationship with Jesus. 02:30 And so, we're not going to say anymore 02:32 about that because we're going to talk about in just a moment. 02:34 But I want to introduce you all to our family 02:37 here around the table. 02:38 We have some, some familiar faces and some newer faces, 02:42 but nonetheless they are our family. 02:44 And I guess, I'm going to start to my direct right here. 02:46 We have Miss Shelley Quinn and Brother JD Quinn. 02:49 It's a blessing to have you both always. 02:51 And you know what? 02:53 There may be someone watching for the first time 02:54 who doesn't know who you are, what you do. 02:55 Tell us what you do here at 3ABN? 02:57 I'm program develop manager, we do everything at 3ABN. 03:01 That's right. 03:02 We all wear so many hats. 03:04 I appreciate that you didn't say old faces, 03:07 new faces, but familiar faces and new faces. 03:11 All right. All right. And, Brother JD? 03:13 And I work in pastoral department. 03:16 It's an absolute joy to share with people around the world. 03:20 You know, I find out that most, 03:22 everybody puts their pants on the same way 03:24 and at the same time, boy, everybody's got issues, 03:27 they got praise reports, they got prayer requests. 03:31 And so we're... 03:32 We try to be there to encourage them, 03:34 share scripture with them, and just love them. 03:38 Amen. And I appreciate JD's humility. 03:40 He doesn't just work in the pastoral department. 03:43 He happens to be the manager of our pastoral department 03:46 and also my supervisor. 03:47 And I have the privilege and honor of working 03:49 with you on a day-to-day basis. 03:51 And it's a blessing to have you here on the program 03:53 today, Brother. 03:54 I love you much. Amen. Praise the Lord. 03:56 But now we're gonna go across the Red Sea here. 03:59 Across this big table, 04:00 and we're gonna introduce a couple of people 04:02 whom has just become my dear friends. 04:05 You're not necessarily the new guys on the block, 04:08 but you certainly are newer here to the ministry. 04:11 We have Brother Ian and Sister Angela Vandervalk. 04:15 And, Ian, tell us a little bit about yourself 04:17 and what you do here? 04:19 Yeah, sure. So we arrived here at 3ABN about six months ago. 04:22 And Angela and I are part of the production crew. 04:25 I'm one of the floor directors here and it's just... 04:28 I'm just blessed to be here. I'm excited for this study. 04:30 Amen. Amen. 04:32 It's a blessing to have you guys. 04:33 Angela, what do you do here? 04:34 All kinds of things, huh? 04:36 Oh, I usually just run camera and do makeup. 04:39 All right. And you do a fantastic job. 04:41 Fantastic job. 04:43 As you can see, she has always a smiling face. 04:45 It's addictive, right? 04:47 It just kind of just spreads like a virus, 04:48 which is a good thing. 04:50 It's a blessing to have you guys. 04:51 It was easy for me to remember 04:52 your name because you're such an angel. 04:54 And so angel and Angela. That's right. 04:56 I just want to say, we're so blessed 04:59 at 3ABN that you've joined us because you are a perfect fit. 05:04 I mean, you both have a heart for the Lord. 05:07 I want to praise you. Praise God. 05:08 You've been a blessing already. 05:10 I would imagine that the topic 05:12 we're going to be sharing this evening 05:15 probably could fit y'all. 05:16 Oh, absolutely. 05:18 As you're going through life, Lord, what can I do? 05:20 Where do I fit? That's right. 05:21 Do you have a plan for me? 05:23 I love what you put together. 05:26 Amen. Amen. I mean, this is fantastic. 05:28 And I think you mentioned this, 05:29 I would like to emphasize it. 05:32 If I was going to go out and get my first Bible study, 05:35 I might use 05:36 the study that we're going to do this evening. 05:39 I think I'd use this as my guideline, 05:41 please, as Ryan mentioned while ago, 05:44 that, get your pen and pencil, paper out 05:47 and write down these scriptures. 05:49 Put them on a three by five card, look at them. 05:52 And then if someone comes to you and wants to know, 05:55 why they're falling in love with Jesus, 05:57 you can follow this guide and hit a home run. 06:02 Hit a home run for Jesus. 06:04 Absolutely. Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord. 06:06 You know, the title of this, this study, 06:08 if there is such one, I guess, we were gonna give 06:11 a title to this. 06:12 It's very simple, you shouldn't forget it, 06:14 it's just "Do". 06:16 Do. That's it. D-O, Do. 06:19 And I think you're gonna 06:20 see why it's entitled that in just a moment, 06:21 because we're going to be talking about 06:23 basically two phases of different aspects 06:26 of how people's minds work, or maybe sometimes 06:29 even misapply when it comes to different aspects 06:32 of the gospel of works and grace, 06:35 and the conversation of salvation, 06:37 wondering about what we should do and not do. 06:39 But before we get into the meat of this study, 06:42 I want to go ahead and have a prayer. 06:44 And, Brother JD, I'm gonna ask you to have us 06:45 a prayer if you don't mind? 06:47 Amen. Thank you, Brother. 06:48 Father, as we come to You in the name of Jesus. 06:49 We thank you for the Sabbath. 06:51 We thank you for, 06:52 for the opportunity to be able to talk about You and how You, 06:56 how You are there in the center of our lives. 06:59 We want to be in the center of Your will, Lord. 07:01 So, Father, be with us as we go forward. 07:03 Get us out of the way, Lord. 07:05 If someone doesn't understand this, 07:07 maybe they know it better than we do. 07:10 But, Father, that we all shall be touched. 07:12 And, Father, that we will 07:14 and truly be ambassadors for the kingdom of God. 07:17 Amen. 07:18 We love You and thank You in the name of Jesus. 07:19 Amen. Amen. 07:21 Amen. Amen. 07:23 Well, I feel like there is plenty of scriptural 07:26 evidence as we're about to dive into this. 07:28 You're going to see that there's plenty 07:30 of scriptural evidence that provides 07:32 very clearly for us an example that each 07:35 and every one of us are the same in the sense that 07:37 when it comes to, 07:39 you know, God reaching the heart. 07:41 If your heart is pricked, and were drawn to Jesus, 07:43 often we end up asking the question. 07:46 What must I do? 07:47 What shall I do? 07:49 To kick us off in this, 07:51 I want to start with Luke 3:4-10. 07:54 I'm going to read through this, and then we'll just kind of go 07:57 through a few of the scriptural examples here. 07:58 Again, this is just to kind of show, 08:00 kind of a cause and effect. 08:02 I'm going to use Ian's words. 08:03 We were discussing that earlier. 08:04 He was sharing with me that I see kind 08:06 of a cause and effect. 08:07 And he's absolutely right, in the sense that in each 08:09 one of these examples, 08:11 someone has been affected in some way, 08:13 whether positive or negative by words that they have heard 08:16 or something they have witnessed and seen. 08:18 And you'll notice that in each one of these cases, 08:21 there's a question to follow. 08:23 We're in Luke 3:4-10. 08:26 Notice what the Bible says. 08:28 It says, "As it is written in the book of the words 08:30 of Isaiah the prophet, saying: 08:32 'The voice of the one crying in the wilderness: 08:35 Prepare the way of the Lord, make His paths straight. 08:39 Every valley shall be filled and every mountain 08:42 and hill brought low, 08:43 and crooked places shall be made straight 08:46 and the rough ways smooth, and all flesh shall see 08:51 the salvation of God.'" 08:52 Of course, this is John the Baptist preaching, 08:55 and he's bringing about the truth. 08:56 And he's preaching to the people, because Jesus 08:59 is going to be soon arriving. 09:00 And he's making the message very clear. 09:02 But we're picking up in verse 7 here. 09:04 It says, "Then he said to the multitudes that came 09:06 out to be baptized by him." 09:08 And these are strong words, but notice what he says. 09:11 He says, "Brood of vipers! 09:13 Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 09:16 Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, 09:20 and do not begin to say to yourselves, 09:23 'We have Abraham as our father.' 09:25 For I say to you that God is able to raise up 09:28 children to Abraham from these stones. 09:32 And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. 09:35 Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit 09:40 is cut down and thrown into the fire. 09:43 So the people asked him, saying," there it is, 09:47 "What shall we do then?'" 09:51 There's this innate natural inclination, 09:54 natural drive in us often, that when we hear a message, 09:57 when we hear the good news, 09:59 if we're affected whether it's positive or negative, 10:02 it's just natural for us to ask or inquire than 10:05 what can I do, right? 10:06 And we see examples of this all the way 10:08 through Scripture, you know, even over and I put this down. 10:11 We may not read the entire passage here. 10:14 But even with the instance of Paul's conversion, right? 10:16 He's on his way to Damascus. 10:18 He's on his way to arrest Christians, 10:20 all the while thinking he's doing the work of God. 10:22 And Jesus, he has an encounter with Jesus, 10:25 a real genuine encounter with Jesus. 10:27 And, of course, he's knocked to the ground, 10:29 he's blinded. 10:30 He has this beautiful moment with Jesus. 10:32 But in verse 6 of Acts Chapter 9, it says, 10:35 "So he, trembling and astonished, said, 'Lord, 10:38 what do You want me to do?'" 10:42 And so, have you guys ever had this experience before, 10:45 where you've reached a point 10:47 maybe in your life, in your relationship 10:49 with the Lord? 10:50 Maybe it was the very first time you've ever heard 10:52 the truth, you've ever experienced, 10:55 you know, the gospel, the true gospel of Jesus? 10:57 Have you ever... 10:58 Have you guys ever had this experience 10:59 where your natural response was, 11:01 you know, what do I do now? 11:03 I know, definitely, at least for me, 11:05 when I first became a Christian, 11:07 which actually wasn't even that long ago, 11:08 was about two years ago. 11:10 Right. 11:11 You know, the very first thing I remember, 11:12 right, when I got baptized, the next day, 11:15 I just wanted to know, what can I do? 11:17 You know, all my life had been doing things my way. 11:19 Right. 11:20 And I was like, you know, here I am, I'm baptized. 11:23 I'm now committed to the Lord. 11:25 This is a different, you know, aspect now. 11:27 This is something I'm not accustomed to. 11:29 But there's something I need to be doing. 11:31 And I was trying to figure it out, 11:33 and just going through it, and it was just, 11:36 it was difficult at first, obviously, but you just, 11:38 you rely on the Lord and, you know, 11:41 you try not to get in the way. 11:43 That's right. 11:45 And you just allow Him to start working on you. 11:46 But definitely for me, 11:47 when I first became a Christian, 11:49 I just felt compelled. 11:50 Okay, now I need to be doing something 11:51 and what is that, Lord? 11:53 What is it that You need from me? 11:54 Absolutely. 11:55 And it has to be put in proper perspective. 11:57 That's what we're working towards in this conversation, 12:00 is that while we have this natural drive, 12:02 this natural response of, okay, Lord, 12:05 you know, what do you want me to do? 12:07 Another example here, just to quote here, 12:10 Acts Chapter 2 on the day of Pentecost, 12:12 Peter's preaching, right? 12:13 He's just delivered this powerful sermon. 12:16 And I love the words, 12:17 you know, as he says there in verse 36, 12:19 "Therefore, let all the house of Israel 12:21 know assuredly that God has made this Jesus 12:24 whom you crucified, both the Lord and Christ." 12:28 Now they heard this. 12:30 So now the people have heard, 12:31 you know, our sins, nailed Jesus to the cross. 12:34 And the Bible says, they were cut to the heart. 12:35 Notice verse 37, "Now when they heard this, 12:38 they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter 12:40 and the rest of the apostles, 'Men and brethren, 12:43 what shall we do?'" 12:46 Shelley, have you ever had this experience, 12:47 a similar experience? 12:49 I know you've preached a lot. 12:50 I've been in evangelistic series, 12:51 you've been in evangelistic settings. 12:53 What's your experiences with a response such as this? 12:57 I think, for me, 12:58 the most difficult thing 13:00 was learning not to do. 13:05 I grew up kind of in a performer mentality 13:10 where I thought, and I know 13:12 we're gonna get there shortly once. 13:13 Sure, no, no, go ahead. 13:14 But for me, I don't know about you. 13:18 But for 50 years, I tried to save myself. 13:22 It was like, oh, Lord, what do I need to do? 13:26 And I had to do mores. 13:27 I mean, it would be like, oh, if only I read my Bible more, 13:31 if only I prayed more, if only I did this more. 13:34 And so the big do was 13:37 when I was, 13:40 I knew that there was something holding me back. 13:42 And I asked the Lord about it. 13:45 And I really was impressed 13:47 with this thought that I will show you 13:52 the wall that you were hitting. 13:54 And it was like, yeah, I'm hitting the wall. 13:56 Well, then, you know, sometimes God will tease. 14:00 I don't want to say tease, but He dropped something in us. 14:03 And then it takes a while to explain it. 14:05 So I'm studying and studying and like, 14:07 Lord, what are You gonna show me? 14:08 What is this wall I'm hitting? 14:11 And what do you want me to do? Right, exactly. 14:14 So one day, He explained it to me that the wall 14:18 I was hitting was a wall of self-resistance. 14:22 And what He wanted me to do was to yield to Him 14:27 and learn to be totally dependent upon Him. 14:31 And, boy, that's tough. It is. 14:34 Because, again, our natural inclination is to want to take 14:39 charge and want to do it ourselves. 14:42 But I love what you said, we have to learn 14:44 what not to do often, 14:46 especially when we begin to comprehend 14:48 what Christ has done for us on the cross. 14:50 Oftentimes we want to try to add to like, 14:53 oh, well, I know Jesus died for me on the cross, 14:55 but I've got to do all this extra stuff, 14:58 you know, to make God more happy about me, 15:01 or to make God love me more too, 15:03 or to please Him, accept me, 15:06 you know, in His love and in His grace. 15:08 But, you know it's interesting there, 15:10 there are interesting aspects of scripture, 15:12 places in scripture 15:13 where we find this same response, what must I do? 15:16 And, you know, Christ's response is quite interesting. 15:20 Let's go... 15:21 Let's first go actually to Acts Chapter 16. 15:23 Well, I'm going to go to John. 15:24 We're going to go to John 6 in just a moment. 15:26 In fact, if you don't mind, 15:28 Ian, I'm going to have you to read 15:29 John 6:26-30 in just a moment so feel prepared for that. 15:34 But, Brother JD, if you don't mind, 15:36 let's go to Acts Chapter 16. 15:38 It's interesting because this is the story 15:40 of the person, the jail caretaker basically, 15:45 and Paul and Silas has been put in jail, 15:47 but then God busts them out. 15:49 There's an earthquake, it shakes, 15:50 this place is shaken, the doors fly open, 15:52 and this guy now thinks, "Oh, no, 15:54 all the prisoners have gone loose. 15:55 I'm going to lose my life, 15:56 I'm going to lose my job and my life." 15:58 He's just, you know, feeling horrible. 16:00 And then Paul has to say, "No, no, no, look, 16:01 we're still here." 16:03 And then he realizes that Paul 16:04 and Silas are not just any old normal, 16:06 you know, guys around here that they have 16:08 a relationship with God. 16:09 And so notice his response, this is Act 16:29-31. 16:13 Go ahead, Brother. 16:14 "And then he called for a light, ran in, 16:17 and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. 16:20 And he brought them out and said, 16:21 'Sir, sir, what must I do to be saved?' 16:26 And so they said, 'Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, 16:30 and you will be saved, 16:32 you and your household.'" 16:37 Is there something missing there? 16:39 I think what... I don't want to take it, but... 16:43 No, go ahead. 16:44 What's missing is people's understand 16:49 of what it means to believe. 16:50 Right. 16:52 We got to believe that Jesus 16:55 is who He said He was. 16:57 You know, in John 20:31. 17:00 John said, he wrote his entire... 17:02 He said, I couldn't fit all of his acts in a book. 17:05 But I've written these things, 17:07 so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, 17:10 the Son of God, and that by believing you 17:14 may have life in His name. 17:15 We've got to believe in what he did in 2, 17:18 1 Corinthians 15:3-4, Paul says, 17:22 "I delivered first of all to you what I received: 17:25 that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 17:29 and that He was buried, 17:31 and that He rose again on the third day 17:34 according to the Scriptures." 17:35 So, you know, there's this idea that some people, 17:39 it's like, oh, yeah, I believe in the Lord, 17:41 but it's a mental assent. 17:44 The devils, the demons believe 17:48 and tremble is what James says. 17:51 But believing in Jesus 17:54 is to be living in Jesus. 17:57 Sure. 17:59 So when he said, "Believe in the Lord, 18:00 and you will be saved." 18:02 Yeah, in Christ. 18:04 I mean, that's really how simple the gospel is. 18:07 And we make it complicated, don't we? Right. 18:09 It really is, right? 18:10 And, Angela, I'm not gonna put 18:12 you on the spot, but yet I am. 18:13 I just gonna to ask you a simple question. 18:16 Let's be real for a moment. 18:17 So you were raised, I think you told me you were 18:19 raised in the Seventh-day Adventist Church. 18:21 Was there ever a moment in your life 18:23 down through there? 18:25 Maybe there was, maybe there wasn't? 18:26 Was there ever a moment in your life down 18:27 through the time 18:29 being raised in the Seventh-day Adventist Church, 18:30 that you felt like you couldn't, 18:32 you weren't good enough? 18:34 Or you couldn't do enough to achieve salvation? 18:36 Was there any type of pressure on you that you 18:38 might have felt like, you know what? 18:40 I feel like I've got to keep the commandments better. 18:42 I've got to, you know, do all this extra stuff. 18:44 I got to keep the right diet. 18:45 So all of this outward do in order for you to please 18:50 God and be accepted as a Christian? 18:51 Did you ever have any experience 18:53 like that growing up? 18:54 And growing up? Well, sure. 18:56 But then I left the church when I was about a teenager. 18:59 Okay. 19:01 So when I left the church, of course, 19:02 I was in the world, so I didn't care. 19:04 But then when I went back to the Lord, 19:06 of course, I was trying to get close to Him and, 19:07 Lord, what can I do to get closer to You? 19:10 And when I got married, and we had marriage problems. 19:15 I always prayed, I want to divorce my husband. 19:18 And I was like, "God, what do You want me to do? 19:21 What can I do? Like I want to leave Him. 19:24 Stop keeping me with him. I just want to leave him." 19:27 But God just kept us together. 19:29 And I just kept praying for my husband 19:32 and doing God's will and not my will. 19:35 And look at him now. 19:37 I'm sitting right here next to him. 19:38 Yeah. Absolutely. 19:40 So, but, you know, in that sense, 19:41 you know, you were 19:44 and I love what you said there, 19:46 I want Your will not my own. 19:47 But oftentimes people think that it's God's 19:50 will for them to do more. 19:52 And I love, there was a presentation that I gave 19:55 a couple of years ago at... 19:57 Actually it was last year, I believe it was it. 19:59 Winter camp meeting in California, 20:01 you were supposed to present it, 20:02 and then you had some surgeries and... 20:04 Grace plus. 20:05 Grace plus, and I love that title because the inspiration 20:07 behind that is the idea that I know 20:09 I'm saved by grace, but... 20:11 Yeah. You know, I got to have... 20:13 I got to have the grace of God plus. 20:15 I had to do this extracurricular 20:17 stuff to please God. 20:19 Talk a little bit about that? 20:20 And anytime we have grace... 20:23 Everything's by grace, even obedience is by grace. 20:27 You know, when you think about it, 20:28 that God works in us to will 20:31 and to do His good pleasure. 20:33 The whole idea of salvation. 20:36 God's plan is total dependence upon Him, 20:39 which requires a whole lot of humility. 20:42 We are so prideful. 20:43 We think, you know, I'm gonna tell you quick story. 20:46 Met this person who was ornery, 20:50 judgmental, unforgiving, 20:55 handful. 20:57 And this person then said to someone else, 20:59 "I'm ready to be translated, because I'm a vegan. 21:03 I tithe, I keep the Sabbath." 21:06 And you're thinking, see, that's grace plus. 21:09 Anytime you think only God can save us, 21:13 only Jesus, it is a gift. 21:15 Right. That's right. 21:17 And you're asking her growing up as an Adventist. 21:19 I grew up in the Church of Christ. 21:21 You, they measure where our hemlines were. 21:26 We had so many rules 21:28 and regulations that I was taught 21:31 I had to be perfect for God to love me. 21:34 Sure. 21:36 And that, you know, we didn't study Revelation, 21:38 that there was one scripture that I knew from Revelation, 21:41 I heard it over and over. 21:43 If you're lukewarm, 21:45 He's going to spew you from His mouth. 21:47 So all my life, 21:49 I tried to be perfect for my family to love me, 21:52 perfect for God to love me. 21:54 And I couldn't be and I walked away from the Lord as well. 21:57 I mean, I remembered shaking my fist in His head 22:01 and my fist in His face saying, 22:03 "I can't be perfect. 22:04 I give up." You require too much. 22:08 I didn't know about grace. Right. 22:11 I'm glad we have Ian and Angela here, 22:13 because Angela being raised in the church, 22:15 and you're just a couple of years in, 22:17 not that you weren't maybe a believer before, 22:19 but you're relatively 22:21 new Seventh-day Adventist Christian. 22:23 You know, it's interesting, 22:24 I've had more and more people tell me 22:26 who have either been raised in the church 22:27 or have been in the church at least for a while, 22:29 that many times they've gotten discouraged 22:31 and often left the church because they felt 22:35 like it was a works based or works approach to salvation. 22:39 I just mentioned that because have you 22:41 felt that at all since you've been in the faith? 22:44 Or have you experienced that maybe from any outside 22:47 sources or maybe friends, family? 22:50 Have you sensed that, like, oh, man, 22:51 I just can't live up to this, right? 22:53 It feels like I'm having to, you know, really, 22:55 you'll keep a checklist of, oh, I've got to make sure 22:57 I do this and this and this to be a good Christian. 22:59 Give me your thoughts on that? Yeah, absolutely. 23:01 You know, when I was growing up, 23:03 though, I was raised in a Catholic Church. 23:05 Okay. That's right. 23:07 So, you know, my mother was Irish Catholic. 23:09 And basically, you know, you, as you already know, 23:11 when you go to Catholic Church, 23:14 when you sin, you got to go as a priest, 23:16 and then he tells you 23:17 what you need to say this many Hail Marys, 23:19 and this many Our Fathers just, 23:21 you know, so in a sense, that's almost like 23:22 works based because, and, 23:25 you know, but as I came, you know, to the truth, 23:27 and I accepted the Lord, just like you said, 23:30 a few years ago. 23:32 Absolutely, in the very beginning, 23:33 I felt, I have so much I have to do, because the majority 23:38 of my life, I never followed God. 23:39 It was always my ways, and I was always in the world. 23:42 Now I lost all that time, I got to make it up somehow, 23:45 you know, and it was difficult 23:47 because in the beginning, I was so much studying. 23:51 I was so much into the Word just trying to learn everything 23:54 that I could and doing extra Bible studies and, 23:57 you know, calling people, asking questions. 23:59 My entire life and day became consumed 24:02 with trying to make up with all that lost time, 24:05 because I got to do this, I got to do that. 24:07 And I started leaving, you know, my family out of it. 24:10 You know and, you know, and almost pushing some 24:13 of my responsibilities aside, because, again, 24:16 I've got all this work that I have to do to make up 24:19 for the 39 years that I lost, where I wasn't with Christ. 24:23 And it's, it actually makes me think of Exodus, 24:27 I think in Chapter 19, you know, 24:29 when Moses comes down from Mount Sinai, 24:31 and he presents everything that the Lord 24:32 commanded him and, you know, what is it His children say, 24:36 God's children say, you know, everything you have told us, 24:38 this we will do, you know, so you're starting to rely 24:42 so much on yourself. 24:43 Oh, there we go. 24:45 And we all know that, that's never gonna work out, 24:48 you know? 24:49 It's only going to take you so far and you 24:50 mentioned earlier hitting that wall, 24:52 you know, and you're going to hit that same thing 24:54 if you keep trying to do these works on your own. 24:57 That's so beautiful to put, Brother. 24:59 So take us to John 6 here. Let me set this up. 25:01 So John 6:26-30, Jesus has just fed the 5000. 25:06 And, you know, He gets in a boat with His disciples, 25:09 and they go across the Sea of Galilee, 25:11 they're going on the other side now. 25:13 But the people, of course, that saw this happen, 25:15 they saw the miracles, they saw all the, you know, 25:18 the good stuff that Jesus is done. 25:19 Now, they're intrigued. 25:20 And so, a large multitude of them, 25:22 they walked across around the river, 25:24 around the lake or the sea in this case, 25:27 and they thought they meet Him on the other side. 25:30 And so now Jesus is having a run in with some 25:32 of these people who have kind of become spectators, 25:35 fans of Jesus. 25:36 And so, let's start reading there. 25:38 Go ahead, Brother Ian, in John Chapter 6, 25:41 beginning with verse 26 to 30. 25:42 All right. 25:44 Starting with verse 26, "Jesus answered them and said, 25:46 'Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, 25:49 not because you saw the signs, but because you ate 25:52 of the loaves and were filled. 25:54 Do not labor for the food which perishes, 25:57 but for the food which endures to everlasting life, 26:00 which the Son of Man will give you, 26:02 because God the Father has set His seal on Him.' 26:06 Then they said to Him, 26:08 'What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?' 26:11 Jesus answered and said to them, 26:13 'This is the work of God, that you believe in Him 26:17 whom He sent.' 26:18 Therefore they said to Him, 26:20 'What sign will You perform then, that we may see it 26:23 and believe You? 26:25 What work will You do?'" 26:28 So there's kind of a twofold aspect here. 26:30 And it's quite interesting, 26:32 that they're looking for Christ, 26:34 almost as if they need Him to do something. 26:37 Extra grace plus kind of that concept 26:41 of something extra, so they can submit, 26:42 is this really the Messiah? 26:44 Is this really who He says He is? 26:45 But then at the same time, they say, "Oh, 26:47 we want to work these works too." 26:49 So what must we do? 26:51 There's that question, what shall we do? 26:53 And I love Christ's response here, 26:54 it kind of goes back to our point, 26:56 our main point of this section of the study, 26:58 which is they... 26:59 Jesus responds and says, 27:01 "This is the work of God that you believe in Him 27:04 whom He sent." 27:07 Is it that simple? 27:09 Absolutely. Right. 27:11 It is, it really is. 27:13 When it comes down to it, it's just that simple. 27:15 It's that simple. 27:16 It's based on what Shelley was talking about earlier, 27:18 that, you know, oftentimes when people read that, Shelley, 27:21 they think, just this mental acceptance, like oh, 27:24 Jesus died on the cross for my sins. 27:27 I accept that. 27:28 I'm saved, I'm a believer now. 27:30 But yet we know that believing in Him 27:32 is going to require a response, 27:36 not a works approach to gain salvation, 27:39 but a natural response, 27:40 which we're going to get to in just a moment. 27:41 But, Brother JD, there's a quote 27:44 here from Desire of Ages, page 35. 27:47 I want you to read that and then let's discuss 27:49 what she says here. 27:50 This is Desire of Ages, page 35. 27:53 It's going to be at the bottom of the second page there. 27:58 Desire of Ages, page 35, read that for us, 28:00 and then we'll discuss the contents of it. 28:03 "Through heathenism, 28:05 Satan had for ages turned men 28:06 away from God, but he won his great triumph in perverting 28:11 the faith of Israel. 28:13 By contemplating and worshiping their own conceptions, 28:16 the heathen had lost a knowledge of God, 28:19 and had become more and more corrupt. 28:21 So it was with Israel. 28:23 The principle that man can save himself by his own works 28:26 lay at the foundation of every heathen religion, 28:30 it had now become the principle of the Jewish religion. 28:34 Satan had implanted this principle. 28:36 Wherever it is held, 28:38 men have no barrier against sin." 28:44 Amen. 28:45 So what do you guys think about that? 28:46 Any thoughts? 28:49 No, I don't know where I'm fitting into this. 28:54 I grew up in our church. Okay. 28:58 Went to our schools. 29:00 Someplace along the line, 29:03 I guess I inhaled 29:06 a dinner that I accepted that because we were 29:10 peculiar people, 29:12 everything was going to be cool. 29:15 Everything you touch turns to gold. 29:18 Okay? Okay. All right. 29:21 You get out in the real world. 29:25 You're touching everything, but nothing's turning to gold. 29:29 You're praying, but I don't know 29:31 if you didn't have the full picture 29:33 when we're talking about faith and works. 29:35 Okay. 29:37 So I don't know whether I had more faith 29:43 and no works because of expectations. 29:45 Okay. Okay? All right. 29:47 So, you go along, and you find out that you 29:51 just keep coming to dead end. 29:53 Okay. Something was missing. 29:56 Maybe I had too much faith. I prayed daily. 30:00 Don't know what kind of expectation 30:02 because I thought it'd just be a gift. 30:03 Right. 30:05 But then, you know, as you start maturing, 30:08 and you start praying, and then I was fortunate 30:10 enough to have a godly woman come into my life. 30:13 Okay. That I began to... 30:16 I began to learn that he takes both. 30:18 Okay. So there is the balance that we're talking about here. 30:21 Okay. There's, I love that word you used, balance. 30:24 There's a balance, too. 30:25 And some people have struggled with that balance, Shelley. 30:28 They struggle with the balance of what does it mean to be... 30:32 We often hear it when, in fact, let's go there. 30:34 Let's go to Ephesians 2. Amen. 30:36 Let's talk about what I would call 30:38 the synopsis of the gospel. 30:39 Amen. 30:41 This is kind of the epicenter of what it means to be saved. 30:44 How are we saved, right? Amen. 30:46 And when you read this text, 30:48 often, you know, we read verses 8 and 9, 30:50 those are the two famous verses of Ephesians Chapter 2. 30:54 And we're going to read those, 30:56 but I want to start up at verse 4. 30:58 And I'm going to read these here. 30:59 So verse of Ephesians Chapter 2, I'm gonna start at verse 4. 31:02 We're gonna make our way down to verses 8 and 9, 31:04 which are kind of the capstone verses, 31:07 but then we're not going to leave out verse 10, 31:09 because verse 10, 31:11 you should have to have it in there, right? 31:12 So those, we're starting with verse 4 of Ephesians Chapter 2, 31:15 based on what JD just said, 31:18 let's kind of make sense of this balance now. 31:22 It says, "But God, who is rich in mercy, 31:25 because of His great love with which He loved us, 31:28 even when we were dead in trespasses, 31:33 made us alive together with Christ, 31:36 by grace you have been saved, 31:39 and raised us up together, and made us sit 31:42 together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 31:47 that in the ages to come He might show 31:49 the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness 31:54 toward us in Christ Jesus." 31:56 I love how this in Christ Jesus, 31:58 in Christ Jesus, but here comes verse 8 and 9, okay? 32:01 You've probably heard it a million times. 32:03 Or maybe you're watching for the first time, 32:04 you've never heard this text. 32:06 Here it is, the synopsis of the gospel right here. 32:09 "For by grace you have been saved through faith," 32:14 okay, "and not of yourselves, 32:18 it is the gift of God, not of works, 32:22 lest anyone should boast." 32:24 Now many people's gonna stop right there. 32:27 You know, I've heard this verse quoted all my life, 32:29 verse 8 and 9, Ephesians Chapter 2, 32:31 "For you've been, you're saved by grace through faith, 32:34 not of yourselves, it's a gift of God, 32:36 not of works, lest anyone should boast." 32:42 What does that saying, Shelley, just those two verses? 32:44 We haven't tacked on verse 10 yet, 32:46 but what is verse 8 and 9 telling us here? 32:48 Salvation is a gift, and there's nothing 32:50 you can do to earn it. 32:52 Okay? It's very difficult for... 32:56 You know, I grew up in very dysfunctional environment. 32:59 I was very independent, 33:01 and I always got patted on the back for being 33:03 very independent. 33:05 And, boy, I'll tell you, it's hard to accept that and, 33:11 you know, in the church today, 33:14 it isn't grace plus vegetarian or vegan diet. 33:20 It isn't grace plus 33:23 anything that we can do. 33:26 But there's more as you said to the story, 33:30 because if you stop here, remember there was 33:34 no punctuation or verse differentiation. 33:38 So we have been saved by grace, it is a gift from God, 33:42 and it took me studying through the covenants 33:46 is when I finally understood what this means. 33:50 And it's so powerful. 33:52 But can I read verse 10? Yeah. No, absolutely. 33:54 So we're saved by grace through faith, it's a gift. 33:59 Nobody can boast about their salvation. 34:02 I know you want to. 34:03 I know you want to say, 34:05 oh, I've never missed Sabbath School. 34:07 I've got the perfect attendance record. 34:09 I've never done this. I've never. 34:11 People want, I'm a third generation Adventist. 34:14 I'm at this, I'm at that. 34:16 Doesn't mean a hill of beans. 34:18 God doesn't have grandchildren, He's only got children. 34:21 That's right. 34:22 He wants us to come to Him in total dependence, 34:27 understanding, He will save us 34:31 but then listen to what he says, 34:33 "We are His workmanship, 34:36 created in Christ Jesus." 34:39 I like to say, recreated in Christ Jesus, for good works. 34:45 So you are recreated in Christ 34:47 when you accept Christ as your Savior. 34:50 The salvation is a gift. 34:51 There's nothing you can do to save yourself. 34:54 But we're created for good works, 34:58 which God prepared beforehand, 35:02 that we should walk in them. 35:05 There's no such thing and a lot of people practices. 35:09 But people have a works based faith. 35:13 It's like, as long as I do this, 35:15 as long as I do that, a works based faith. 35:18 What this says, is there is a faith based work 35:23 when we receive Christ as our Savior, 35:27 when He fills us with the Holy Spirit. 35:30 He promises, Philippians 1:6, 35:33 "I will complete the good work I began in you." 35:36 But He promises in Philippians 2:13, 35:39 "That He will work in us to will 35:44 and to do God's good pleasure." 35:46 So what we have to do is yield and let Him work through us. 35:51 We don't obey to be saved, 35:55 we obey because we are saved, because God is working in us. 35:59 You know, Jesus didn't obey God to become the Son of God, 36:03 the covenant Son of God. 36:05 He obeyed because He was the covenant Son of God. 36:10 So, Brother, JD. I love that. That was a beautiful, Shelley. 36:13 She's setting us up for what we're 36:14 about to dive into, which is really the second part 36:17 of this study, which is, while we are not saved by works, 36:21 and it's not about what we do, it is who we know, 36:25 and who we know changes what we do. 36:28 Let me say that one more time. 36:30 It's not about what we do, it's who we know, 36:33 and who we know changes what we do. 36:36 Brother JD, I just have to, 36:37 just gotta get your thoughts on this. 36:40 We get phone calls all the time. 36:42 I mean, we're in pastoral department, 36:44 and you probably more than myself. 36:47 You get a lot of different phone calls from a lot 36:49 of different people. 36:50 And I know that you of all people probably 36:51 get to experience and hear professed 36:55 Christian ideologies and thoughts 36:57 and ideas pertaining to this very subject. 37:00 And you have these, you seems like 37:01 you have these multiple camps of thought, 37:04 different people on, you know, 37:07 opposite sides of the spectrum here. 37:09 And it's like, how do you counsel someone 37:12 who comes to you with this works 37:14 approach mentality that, you know, you won't, 37:16 you know, they're not doing this, 37:18 and they're not doing that, 37:19 and they're not keeping this right. 37:20 And, you know, they're not, you know, 37:22 they're not eating this appropriately, 37:23 and they got to remove this and they got, 37:25 you know, how do you counsel someone 37:27 who has that works approach or works 37:30 based approach mentality, to having a relationship 37:35 or salvation through Christ? 37:36 Well, we basically touched 37:37 on a little bit while ago, is... 37:40 As I've mentioned before, most people want to be heard. 37:44 So if you will give them the... 37:47 Say if you're fishing, you know, 37:49 and you're throwing your bait out there, 37:51 sometimes they bite, but if you pull back real quick, 37:54 you've pulled the lower out of their mouth. 37:58 Okay. 38:00 But if you'll wait a little bit, 38:01 you know, they'll take it, they'll run. 38:02 Then so, if you let people talk it out and everything, 38:05 you begin to get a direction. 38:06 And then I'm a big proponent of balance. 38:10 And so I think that, what I really got into looking 38:14 at what you were saying, to the side whether 38:17 it's mostly works or whether it's mostly faith, 38:19 bring the balance into it, and then just see, 38:22 are you just talking to be heard? 38:24 Do you really do anything? 38:28 So there're the doers, and there're the hearers. 38:33 Okay. 38:34 Now, let's bring that back in together now. 38:38 Right. 38:39 So are you a doer or you just listen, 38:41 and you just talk to be talking? 38:44 Here's your faith, here's your works, 38:45 who are you? 38:47 And then I just kind of go from there. 38:49 But what I'm looking for is just the balance. 38:50 That's right. 38:52 Because once you find out that they're balanced, 38:53 and they're really hungry, 38:55 and they're looking for direction. 38:56 That's right. 38:58 Well, then, you know, you perhaps getting. 38:59 Because it goes in like a hand in a glove, they fit together. 39:01 You can't separate one from the other. 39:03 You got something you wanna say? 39:04 Yeah, actually. So we have a story. 39:08 You know, and this is... 39:09 I think this, this will definitely relate when... 39:13 Right when I decided to give my heart to the Lord. 39:16 And I mean within, I think it was two days, 39:19 and I was serving in the army at the time. 39:21 Within two days of me dedicating my life to God, 39:24 I received orders to go to Texas, 39:26 and they asked me to be there within 90 days, 39:29 which isn't necessarily unheard of, but it was uncommon 39:31 with what I've dealt with. 39:33 And so here we are, and, you know, thinking, okay, 39:37 we're starting to get everything planned out. 39:39 And all of a sudden, now, I get these orders, 39:42 and we're thinking now, you know, what are we... 39:45 What is it that we do now? 39:48 Am I supposed to stay in the army? 39:49 Am I supposed to, you know, what is it that God wants? 39:53 In that whole journey of trying to figure out 39:55 if I'm supposed to stay in the army, 39:57 and or we're supposed to get out because this was, 40:00 being in the military is definitely it's, 40:02 it's a package deal, you know? 40:04 She has to be invested just as much 40:07 as I do because of the amount of time I have to spend away, 40:10 and the difficulties that come with it. 40:12 And I mean, I'm sure you can, 40:14 you know, if you want to talk about more on that, but... 40:17 Look, you're like no, no. 40:20 You really fond with each other. 40:22 We had to rely so much on Christ in that moment, 40:26 because... A lot of prayer. 40:28 It was a lot of prayer and a lot of sleepless nights. 40:30 And she can even attest that. 40:33 I was not sleeping much because this was, 40:34 we were giving up everything in that moment. 40:37 It was the comfort of, 40:39 you know, I'm going to get a steady paycheck, 40:42 you know, the comfort that all my family's taken care 40:45 of medically, you know? 40:46 They could go to the emergency room, and we're covered, 40:49 you know, we don't have to worry about it. 40:51 And now it's, what's going on. 40:53 But, Angela, I would imagine that you were really torn, 40:58 because it's like, you don't want your husband away. 41:01 There's things you didn't like about the military. 41:04 How did you... 41:05 I mean, how did you pray to receive God's will on this? 41:09 Well, the military was very comfortable, 41:12 so we were happy to be in the military. 41:14 And that's what we got used to for almost 12 years. 41:17 So to do something different 41:19 was really stepping out in faith. 41:22 And then I have this husband that I'm like, 41:24 always praying for, for over 11 years. 41:27 And I'm like, "Oh, this is what I want." 41:29 But then he's like, "I want to serve the Lord. 41:30 I don't know what to do." 41:32 And I'm like, "What do you mean, 41:33 you won't go to military, 41:35 and why we're not going to Texas?" 41:36 And he's like, "Well, I want to do what the Lord wants to do." 41:39 So I was like, "I have faith, you know, I got this, 41:42 you know, God's gonna lead us." 41:44 But when you're really in the storm, 41:46 and you really have to depend on God, 100%, 41:49 that's when your faith and your love for God is real. 41:53 And that's when you have to really cling to Him. 41:55 And we're on our hands and knees a lot. 41:58 It's just praying and praying for God's will 42:01 and not our will. 42:02 And God really seen our spirit, He really did. Absolutely. 42:06 I mean, we could have gotten away so many times with that. 42:10 But here's, here's what I think is really good advice, 42:14 not just for us, but for anybody. 42:16 The reason why I came to the decision of getting out 42:19 of the military wasn't being, you know, necessarily, 42:22 I wanted to do something for the Lord. 42:25 In that moment, it was, how am I going to grow in Christ. 42:28 And I think the Lord 42:30 left me to make that decision to get out, 42:34 because it was I had, 42:37 I had this church family that I had developed, 42:40 they were, you know, they've started to guide me 42:42 and lead me in this journey. 42:44 And all of a sudden, now I have to go somewhere else. 42:47 So am I going to take those, 42:49 you know, stay with those saving 42:50 comforts that came with the military? 42:53 Or am I going to rely on my God to get me 42:57 through the rest of the way. 42:58 So I made, I made a decision through Christ, 43:01 I know He impressed me to do it was 43:04 if you really want to have that experience with Me, 43:07 if you really want to have that trust, 43:09 and that belief in Me, you need to make that decision to get 43:14 out of everything that you're comfortable with. 43:16 Right. 43:18 And you need to step out in faith with me. 43:19 And I said, "Okay." 43:21 You know, and I remember looking at Angela, 43:22 we were at church, and we saw our church family around, 43:26 I think it was during Christmas time. 43:28 And they were you know, we're just doing 43:29 gingerbread houses and things like that as a church family. 43:31 And I just said, "This is it. 43:33 This is where we're gonna grow, 43:35 where I'm going to grow in Christ." 43:37 So this actually sets us up 43:39 perfect for the next section of this. 43:42 I'm glad you're told that. 43:43 So what's interesting though is, this is the aftermath 43:47 of you accepting Christ. 43:50 When you came to Christ, in your mind, 43:53 you're not thinking necessarily about 43:54 what you can do, but rather what Christ has done for you. 43:58 And that's the point we're getting it in this previous 44:01 section we just came out of is that again, 44:03 it's not about when coming to Christ, 44:05 you're being saved by grace through faith. 44:08 It's not what you have done, but what Christ has done, 44:11 and salvation doesn't come because, 44:13 you know, you did all of these extracurricular things 44:16 that somehow God was like, 44:17 oh, let me count it all up, 1, 2, 3. 44:18 Oh, he meets the criteria, saved. 44:21 You come to Christ in based on the faith that you had in Him, 44:25 because of what He's done for you. 44:27 But because of His grace, 44:29 because of the love that He's bestowed upon you. 44:32 Notice, again, 44:33 you said this was just a few days after... 44:35 It was. 44:37 Okay, so now a few days after, what was his question? 44:39 Now, what can I do? 44:41 It wasn't what can I do to be saved? 44:43 But it was now that I'm saved, Lord, what can I do for You. 44:47 There was a hungering and thirsting in your heart 44:49 and mind that was based on love and compassion from Christ. 44:53 Now God has saved me. 44:54 God has poured out His grace upon me. 44:56 Now comes the works. Okay. 45:00 So now let's go to James Chapter 2. 45:01 This is where, so we know that based on Ephesians 2:8-9, 45:05 we are saved by grace through faith. 45:07 You know, Christ stamps his beautiful stamp 45:10 of justification upon our life when we come to Him by faith. 45:14 We surrender to Him. 45:15 We've confessed our sins. We've repented of our sins. 45:18 Now we've come to Him. 45:19 And we've accepted Him genuinely by the... 45:22 By His shed blood and the sacrifice He has done, 45:26 He's completed the work. 45:28 Forgiveness has now paved the avenue for us to now have 45:32 a follow up experience with Him, 45:34 since He has saved us. 45:36 But a lot of people's gospel experience stops there. 45:38 It's, oh, I'm saved. 45:40 You know, back here in 19, whatever, as you know, 45:42 and I'm not again trying, not trying to be judgmental 45:44 or critical, but just, you know, as the music 45:45 is playing in the background, 45:46 and you may be in the big stadium or in the big church, 45:48 wherever you're at, and you walk down, 45:50 and you repeat the words of the pastor, 45:51 you know, I'm a sinner, you know, I accept your grace, 45:54 blah, blah, blah, now you're saved forevermore. 45:57 And a lot of people's experience stops there. 45:59 But your experience wasn't like that. 46:01 There was a hungering and thirsting, 46:03 there was a drive now based on the experience 46:06 you've had with Jesus, then now Lord, 46:08 I'm not satisfied to just sit on the sidelines 46:11 and cherish You on from the sidelines. 46:13 I'm not, I don't want to be a spectator. 46:14 I want to be in the game. 46:16 And now here comes the works aspect. 46:18 And that's what James is talking about in James 46:20 Chapter 2, when he's putting into proper perspective, 46:23 as JD said earlier, the balance, the balance. 46:26 Brother JD, why don't you read for us, 46:28 James 2:14-18? 46:32 And then I'm going to have you to tack on verse 26 as well. 46:35 So 14 through 18, and then verse 26? 46:38 Okay. 46:39 "What does it profit, my brethren, 46:41 if someone says he has faith but does not have works? 46:45 Can faith save him? 46:47 If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, 46:51 and one of you say to them, 'Depart in peace, 46:53 be warmed and filled,' but do you not give them 46:56 the things which are needed for the body, 46:58 what does it profit? 47:00 Thus also faith by itself, 47:02 if it does not have works, is dead. 47:06 But someone will say, 47:07 'You have faith, and I have works.' 47:09 Show me your faith without your works, 47:11 and I will show you my faith by my works." 47:13 Verse 26 now. 47:15 "For as the body without the spirit is dead, 47:18 so faith without works is dead also." 47:22 Okay, so what is it saying to us? 47:24 It's saying that got to connect those two. 47:27 That's right. 47:28 In this particular situation right here, 47:30 what you, you, you're right here, 47:34 you got the faith aspect down. 47:36 Now you need to take a step of action. 47:38 Okay. All right. 47:39 And that step of action is the beginning 47:41 of another chapter in your life. 47:44 And, boy, does God show up. Oh, man. 47:47 My goodness, because He always had a plan for you. 47:53 So we didn't know that. 47:54 We've been praying for that our whole life. 47:56 Lord, I know You have a plan for me. 47:58 Right. 47:59 But all of a sudden, how does the faith come in? 48:03 Right. Now we've got a question mark. 48:05 So I mean, boy, this is a... 48:06 This is really kind of interesting, 48:08 you know, in the scales of our eternal life. 48:11 That's true. But, boy, put them together. 48:14 This thought, I don't know if I can articulate it, 48:16 but it just hit me when you were talking 48:17 about somebody at a stadium and they accept Christ 48:20 and they think that's it. 48:22 They think they're born again. 48:24 But they're still born. Right. 48:28 It's, it's... Nice. 48:31 That's deep. 48:32 Yeah, it's something that if we are born 48:35 again a child, 48:37 and we have the nature of Christ, 48:40 we've been given His nature or to walk in His footsteps. 48:45 He's going to raise, rear us up as you would raise up 48:49 the child in the way they should go. 48:52 And He puts His Spirit in us 48:56 and asks us to come and follow Him 49:00 and we walk in obedience, we want to do. 49:04 So that really equated, I didn't know if I were to say. 49:08 No, that's beautiful. 49:09 No, I mean, that fits perfectly, 49:11 because if you're truly born again in Christ, 49:15 then you've experienced, and I don't know 49:17 why this is popping into my mind right now, 49:19 but you're going to have that experience that the two 49:22 disciples had on the road to Emmaus, 49:24 when they had that experience with Christ. 49:25 He said their heartburn within them. 49:27 You can experience heartburn. 49:29 And when you experience heartburn, 49:30 you can't help but, it's not, you know, 49:32 you're not in a comfortable just let me sit 49:35 and be still, you know, mentality or, 49:37 you know, presence. 49:39 You want to get up and do something, right? 49:40 In this case, we're talking spiritually. 49:42 If you have truly and genuinely 49:44 and that's the key that you're speaking of your, 49:46 I believe, Shelley, is that there's some who, 49:49 in the moment when the firework shows 49:51 is happening, 49:52 you know, they're amazed by the fireworks, 49:54 they're amazed by the show. 49:55 But then the question, what's going to happen 49:57 when the fireworks go out? 49:58 You know, we hope that the fireworks 50:00 don't go out within us. 50:02 But if, how do you check that? 50:03 How is, how do you know if your faith, 50:05 if that, that salvation by grace 50:07 through your faith in Christ is genuine. 50:10 You test it by the fruit that's going to appear on the tree. 50:13 Amen. Amen. 50:15 I love this, John 17:3, Jesus says, 50:18 some of the most powerful words as He's there in the Garden 50:21 of Gethsemane. 50:22 He's hours away, moments away, 50:23 actually, from being arrested and taken through trial, 50:27 taken and being nailed to a cross for our sins. 50:29 John 17:3 says, "And this is eternal life, 50:32 that they may know You, the only true God, 50:37 and Jesus Christ whom You have sent." 50:40 So we need to know God. 50:43 Our faith needs to be genuine enough that we have 50:45 a relationship with Him like no other. 50:48 But when you couple that with what He says in Matthew 7. 50:52 This is quite interesting. 50:54 Matthew 7:21-23. 50:56 This is the Sermon on the Mount. 50:58 And He's speaking prophetically about the last days. 51:01 And notice whom He's describing. 51:02 You know, He's describing professed Christians here, 51:05 because of the accolades 51:07 and the attributes that's listed here. 51:09 Notice here, it says, Jesus is speaking. 51:11 Again, this is Matthew 7:21-23. 51:13 He says, "Not everyone who says to Me, 51:15 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of God 51:18 or the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will 51:20 of My Father which is in heaven." 51:22 And then He says in verse 22. 51:24 "Many will say to Me in that day, 51:27 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name.'" 51:30 Who's gonna prophesy in the name of God? 51:33 Professed Christians. 51:35 "Lord, we cast out demons in Your name." 51:37 Who's gonna do that? Professed Christians. 51:39 "And done many wonders in Your name?" 51:42 Again, professed Christians. 51:43 But then verse 23 really caps it off here. 51:45 "And then I will declare to them." 51:48 All those people who said, "Lord, look what I've done. 51:50 I pay my tithe. I do this, I'm a deacon, I've done this. 51:52 I've done that, I've done this. 51:54 And He says, "I will declare to them, 51:56 I never knew you." What did Jesus say? 52:00 This is eternal life that they may know you. 52:02 Now Jesus is saying to this group, I'm sorry, 52:05 I never knew you. 52:06 Depart from me, you who practice lawlessness. 52:11 Now, here's the point I'm making, 52:12 and then I'm going to give it up somebody 52:13 else to talk you. 52:15 We are not saved by our works. 52:19 But the Bible says we're judged by our works. 52:21 Yes. 52:23 We're not saved by our works, 52:25 but we're judged by our works. 52:26 What does Jesus say to all 52:28 of the seven churches of Asia Minor? 52:29 I know your faith. 52:31 Is that what He says? Faith? 52:33 No, no, no. I know your works. 52:36 Why is He mentioning the works? 52:39 Because the works tell the story 52:41 and the truth of the faith. 52:43 Amen. That's powerful. 52:46 That's powerful. 52:48 I never knew you, 52:51 depart from Me you who practice what? 52:54 Lawlessness. Lawlessness. 52:56 There's something about knowing God 52:59 and the law. 53:00 And we find the answer in 1 John 2:3-6. 53:03 You got that, Ian, 1 John Chapter 2. 53:06 Let me say something right quick. 53:07 Yeah, go ahead. That's fine. 53:08 You know, as I was looking at this, 53:11 where it says, I never knew you. 53:14 In the Greek it was interpreted, 53:16 I never even recognized you. 53:19 It also says that we never were acquainted. 53:23 So we could have been out there in the as a spectator, 53:28 but we never got, He never got, 53:31 we never got close the balance, 53:33 never got close enough together. 53:35 Wow. I know Ryan. 53:38 And, boy, you know right quick. 53:40 We have people call in quite often says, 53:42 "Oh yes, I know JD. 53:46 And now what's your wife's name? 53:47 Let me see, what's her name now? 53:48 Is it Shirley? 53:52 So, you know, do they watch 3ABN all the time? 53:55 Not really, they got a friend that do. 53:57 So, you know, that's kind of one of those things, 53:59 you know. 54:00 Oh yeah, Ryan. 54:02 Sure, we know Ryan real well, you know. 54:03 Where's Ryan been? I haven't seen him lately. 54:05 Man, so you know that they really 54:07 aren't watching you. 54:09 Right. But that's to me, it grabbed me. 54:11 I never really never recognized it, 54:13 might have been there but I never recognized. 54:15 The seed was planted but there was no root produce. 54:17 Yes, that's exactly right. You bet. 54:20 Stillborn. Oh, man, Shelley. 54:22 Shelley's dropping these truth bombs on again. 54:25 Wow! 54:26 Man, okay, so, Ian, go with 1 John 2:3-6, 54:30 read that, powerful. 54:32 All right. 54:33 "Now by this we know that we know Him, 54:35 if we keep His commandments. 54:37 He who says, 'I know Him,' 54:39 and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, 54:41 and the truth is not in him. 54:43 But whoever keeps His word, 54:45 truly the love of God is perfected in him. 54:48 By this we know that we are in Him. 54:51 He who says he abides in Him 54:53 ought himself also to walk just as He walked." 54:58 I love this. 54:59 Talk about that fruit We have about two and a half minutes 55:01 left in here. 55:03 We got to make this final point. 55:04 To know God means to be able to show forth 55:09 the fruit that you know Him. 55:11 Somebody takes me out to, you know, 55:13 a field and points at a tree and says, 55:15 look at my apple tree 55:16 and it doesn't have apples on it. 55:18 I'm going to question 55:19 whether or not that's real apple tree, right? 55:21 Essentially what, that's what's happening here, 55:23 God's saying, I know that you're My true 55:25 genuine son or daughter. 55:28 If you're producing the fruit, from the genuine 55:31 faith that you have in Me. 55:33 If your faith is genuine, then that genuine faith 55:35 is going to produce fruit. 55:37 Angela, I have to imagine this is what you 55:38 teach your kids, right? 55:40 That you do teach your kids to not just be hearers 55:42 of the parents, but also doers of the parents, right? 55:46 If you tell little Liam, you know, Liam, 55:48 go pick up your toys or go pick up your, 55:50 clean up your room, 55:51 and you come back a few moments later, 55:53 you can test whether or not 55:54 he was genuine in his response to you. 55:58 You know, how does that go? Right? How does that go? 55:59 Do you teach your kids to be doers of the Word, right? 56:02 Absolutely. Yeah, absolutely. 56:04 By being an example as well. 56:05 Oh, I love that, being an example. 56:08 Yeah. 56:09 Being if he sees his mom and dad. 56:11 And Christ was our exhibit. 56:13 You know, all of God's 56:15 covenants are conditional. 56:20 There is, God gives His gift, but there is a condition of us 56:25 showing our love and loyalty to Him. 56:28 There's a covenant love and loyalty. 56:30 If you love Me, keep My commandments. 56:33 And so, it's conditioned on that. 56:35 We don't have time to go further right now. 56:38 No, that's good. It's good stuff. 56:40 I'm glad that you quoted that was where I was going next. 56:42 If you love Me, what did Jesus say? 56:44 It's really all about love. 56:45 This whole conversation is all about love. 56:47 You may be watching right now and say, 56:49 "Man, I'm struggling with, 56:50 you know, do I do more in my relationship with God? 56:53 Or, you know, am I saved by grace through faith?" 56:55 Maybe you're struggling with that. 56:56 You don't have to struggle. 56:58 You just simply turn to Jesus and Jesus says, 57:00 He will save you by His grace. 57:01 But how do you test if that faith is genuine? 57:04 You, your heart will burn, 57:05 you'll have a desire to live for Him, to work for Him 57:09 not because it saves you, but because He has saved you. 57:13 And it's always foundation in love. 57:15 If you love Me, Jesus says, then you'll keep 57:18 My commandments. 57:19 It's been such a blessing to have you with us today. 57:21 Thank you, guys, so much for joining us. 57:23 Thank you, Ian and Angela. 57:24 JD, Shelley, it's been such a blessing. 57:26 And until next time, my friends, 57:28 we always just love that you're in with us. 57:31 We hope that you join us next time 57:32 for another edition of 3ABN Today. 57:35 God bless. |
Revised 2021-10-21