WEBVTT 00:00:04.664 --> 00:00:27.098 Let's open our Bibles one last time to John 15. 00:00:27.098 --> 00:00:31.928 Beginning in verse 1: 00:00:31.928 --> 00:00:35.763 "I am the true vine and My Father is the vine dresser. 00:00:35.763 --> 00:00:38.104 Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, 00:00:38.104 --> 00:00:39.537 He takes away; 00:00:39.537 --> 00:00:41.263 and every branch that bears fruit, 00:00:41.263 --> 00:00:44.656 He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit. 00:00:44.656 --> 00:00:46.689 You are already clean because of the word 00:00:46.689 --> 00:00:48.960 which I have spoken to you. 00:00:48.960 --> 00:00:50.586 Abide in Me, and I in you, 00:00:50.586 --> 00:00:52.893 as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself 00:00:52.893 --> 00:00:55.021 unless it abides in the vine, 00:00:55.021 --> 00:00:58.482 so neither can you unless you abide in Me. 00:00:58.482 --> 00:01:01.728 I am the vine, you are the branches. 00:01:01.728 --> 00:01:04.034 He who abides in Me and I in him, 00:01:04.034 --> 00:01:05.366 he bears much fruit, 00:01:05.366 --> 00:01:08.527 for apart from Me you can do nothing. 00:01:08.527 --> 00:01:10.155 If anyone does not abide in Me, 00:01:10.155 --> 00:01:12.963 he is thrown away as a branch and dries up 00:01:12.963 --> 00:01:14.403 and they gather them 00:01:14.403 --> 00:01:16.092 and cast them into the fire, 00:01:16.092 --> 00:01:17.748 and they are burned. 00:01:17.748 --> 00:01:19.190 If you abide in Me 00:01:19.190 --> 00:01:20.622 and My words abide in you, 00:01:20.622 --> 00:01:21.808 ask whatever you wish 00:01:21.808 --> 00:01:24.024 and it will be done for you. 00:01:24.024 --> 00:01:25.619 My Father is glorified by this, 00:01:25.619 --> 00:01:27.012 that you bear much fruit 00:01:27.012 --> 00:01:30.150 and so prove to be My disciples. 00:01:30.150 --> 00:01:31.994 Just as the Father has loved Me, 00:01:31.994 --> 00:01:35.294 I have also loved you. 00:01:35.294 --> 00:01:36.675 Abide in My love. 00:01:36.675 --> 00:01:38.074 If you keep My commandments, 00:01:38.074 --> 00:01:39.408 you will abide in My love, 00:01:39.408 --> 00:01:41.676 just as I have kept My Father's commandments 00:01:41.676 --> 00:01:43.619 and abide in His love. 00:01:43.619 --> 00:01:45.315 These things I have spoken to you 00:01:45.315 --> 00:01:47.623 so that My joy may be in you, 00:01:47.623 --> 00:01:50.538 and that your joy may be made full. 00:01:50.538 --> 00:01:53.024 This is My commandment, that you love one another 00:01:53.024 --> 00:01:55.371 just as I have loved you. 00:01:55.371 --> 00:01:57.910 Greater love has no one than this, 00:01:57.910 --> 00:02:01.020 that one lay down his life for his friends. 00:02:01.020 --> 00:02:05.417 You are My friends if you do what I command you. NOTE Paragraph 00:02:05.417 --> 00:02:12.378 Let's go to the Lord in prayer. 00:02:12.378 --> 00:02:14.392 Father, we come before You 00:02:14.392 --> 00:02:16.434 in the name of Your Son 00:02:16.434 --> 00:02:22.908 for this last meeting together. 00:02:22.908 --> 00:02:26.472 Lord, we need Your help 00:02:26.472 --> 00:02:29.870 that Your truth may go forward, 00:02:29.870 --> 00:02:33.440 that Your people might be edified. 00:02:33.440 --> 00:02:37.966 Lord, direct everything this last meeting. 00:02:37.966 --> 00:02:40.845 Direct our words, our thoughts, Lord. 00:02:40.845 --> 00:02:45.130 Lead us in the way You would have us go 00:02:45.130 --> 00:02:47.966 that we would not only begin to understand this passage, 00:02:47.966 --> 00:02:50.953 but that it's application to our life would be a reality - 00:02:50.953 --> 00:02:55.469 a growing reality. 00:02:55.469 --> 00:02:57.161 Lord, we know so many things 00:02:57.161 --> 00:03:01.078 and so few of them are applied. 00:03:01.078 --> 00:03:04.135 Lord, help us not to be hearers of the Word, 00:03:04.135 --> 00:03:06.399 but also doers of the Word 00:03:06.399 --> 00:03:08.617 to be truly blessed. 00:03:08.617 --> 00:03:10.220 Lord, for those who are here 00:03:10.220 --> 00:03:11.855 that may not know You, 00:03:11.855 --> 00:03:13.705 that even in this text, 00:03:13.705 --> 00:03:17.919 they might see their great need for a Savior. 00:03:17.919 --> 00:03:20.703 Lord, I ask all of this in Jesus' name, 00:03:20.703 --> 00:03:22.989 Amen. 00:03:26.712 --> 00:03:29.499 In the last sermon before I began to preach 00:03:29.499 --> 00:03:31.335 I gave you a summary of all the things 00:03:31.335 --> 00:03:33.570 that we had been studying. 00:03:33.570 --> 00:03:36.150 I see little need to do that 00:03:36.150 --> 00:03:38.956 in this evening session 00:03:38.956 --> 00:03:41.656 because it should be still warm in your mind, 00:03:41.656 --> 00:03:46.687 the full summary of what we've gone through. 00:03:46.687 --> 00:03:49.347 Actually, the notes that I've been preaching from 00:03:49.347 --> 00:03:52.381 were the first sermon I was supposed to preach on Friday night. 00:03:52.381 --> 00:03:54.802 It's just that it's all kind of been extended. 00:03:54.802 --> 00:03:57.430 I have six more sermons, 00:03:57.430 --> 00:04:01.666 but I don't think that we will get to all of them this evening. 00:04:01.666 --> 00:04:05.331 We've been talking about the impossibility of the Christian life. 00:04:05.331 --> 00:04:07.877 That is not a cliche. It's not a hyperbole. 00:04:07.877 --> 00:04:11.512 The Christian life is an absolute impossibility 00:04:11.512 --> 00:04:15.001 apart from abiding in Christ 00:04:15.001 --> 00:04:20.584 and drawing spiritual life and strength from Him. 00:04:20.584 --> 00:04:25.320 In the Christian life, Christ and the Gospel 00:04:25.320 --> 00:04:27.716 are not one element, 00:04:27.716 --> 00:04:30.242 they are the element. 00:04:30.242 --> 00:04:34.325 Christ is everything. 00:04:34.325 --> 00:04:38.006 When the Christian doctrine and the Gospel 00:04:38.006 --> 00:04:40.388 is truly proclaimed as it ought to be proclaimed 00:04:40.388 --> 00:04:41.472 and men reject it, 00:04:41.472 --> 00:04:42.663 what they need to know is 00:04:42.663 --> 00:04:44.546 that they are not rejecting a religion, 00:04:44.546 --> 00:04:46.589 they are not rejecting certain principles, 00:04:46.589 --> 00:04:49.331 they are rejecting a Person. 00:04:49.331 --> 00:04:52.799 If you're here today and you're apathetic toward Christianity, 00:04:52.799 --> 00:04:55.754 maybe you're here out of coercion, manipulation, 00:04:55.754 --> 00:04:57.608 maybe you have to because your parents 00:04:57.608 --> 00:04:59.404 still have authority over you, 00:04:59.404 --> 00:05:01.280 you're here, you abide by those rules, 00:05:01.280 --> 00:05:04.398 but your heart is not here at all. 00:05:04.398 --> 00:05:05.584 Know this: 00:05:05.584 --> 00:05:09.922 You are not rejecting a religion. 00:05:09.922 --> 00:05:12.889 You are not rejecting a set of principles. 00:05:12.889 --> 00:05:15.125 Now to do that is very, very dangerous 00:05:15.125 --> 00:05:18.423 because ones who set aside the Law of God, 00:05:18.423 --> 00:05:20.421 the Law of Moses, 00:05:20.421 --> 00:05:23.509 were to be put away. 00:05:23.509 --> 00:05:25.950 But I want you to know what you're doing. 00:05:25.950 --> 00:05:29.541 You are apathetic towards the one Person 00:05:29.541 --> 00:05:35.055 that God loves more than all of creation combined - 00:05:35.055 --> 00:05:38.816 His Son. 00:05:38.816 --> 00:05:41.870 When you reject Christianity, 00:05:41.870 --> 00:05:47.877 know this, you are rejecting the One 00:05:47.877 --> 00:05:53.085 for whom the entire world was created. 00:05:53.085 --> 00:05:55.893 Know this also: 00:05:55.893 --> 00:06:00.508 That God will deal harshly with you 00:06:00.508 --> 00:06:05.109 for your arrogance against His Son. 00:06:05.109 --> 00:06:08.154 Know this, that maybe in your humanism, 00:06:08.154 --> 00:06:09.362 maybe in your youth, 00:06:09.362 --> 00:06:10.956 maybe in your foolishness, 00:06:10.956 --> 00:06:13.729 you've set your heart as stone against God 00:06:13.729 --> 00:06:15.123 and none of what I'm saying 00:06:15.123 --> 00:06:17.599 causes you to tremble. 00:06:17.599 --> 00:06:19.165 Like a young man once said: 00:06:19.165 --> 00:06:21.632 "I'm not afraid to stand before God. 00:06:21.632 --> 00:06:24.504 I'll face Him and my fate." 00:06:24.504 --> 00:06:26.039 And the old preacher told him: 00:06:26.039 --> 00:06:27.983 "Young man, you will melt before God 00:06:27.983 --> 00:06:33.467 like a tiny wax figurine before a blast furnace." 00:06:33.467 --> 00:06:36.140 Your proud heart demonstrates nothing more 00:06:36.140 --> 00:06:40.352 than your own stupidity. 00:06:40.352 --> 00:06:43.242 Creation testifies against you. 00:06:43.242 --> 00:06:44.839 And you yourself know 00:06:44.839 --> 00:06:47.127 that the very God you are rejecting 00:06:47.127 --> 00:06:51.934 is the One before Whom you will stand. 00:06:51.934 --> 00:06:53.114 So I want you to know 00:06:53.114 --> 00:06:55.767 that when I deal with these texts, 00:06:55.767 --> 00:06:58.141 there are two groups of people here tonight. 00:06:58.141 --> 00:06:59.937 There are people who are here 00:06:59.937 --> 00:07:02.829 because they love Christ, 00:07:02.829 --> 00:07:03.991 and in loving Christ, 00:07:03.991 --> 00:07:08.046 they are seriously concerned for pleasing Him 00:07:08.046 --> 00:07:10.554 and for growing in holiness. 00:07:10.554 --> 00:07:12.121 There are others here 00:07:12.121 --> 00:07:14.324 who care not for holiness. 00:07:14.324 --> 00:07:16.839 And the reason why they do not care for holiness 00:07:16.839 --> 00:07:20.426 is because the simply do not care for Christ. 00:07:20.426 --> 00:07:26.590 And that is a very, very dangerous place to be. NOTE Paragraph 00:07:26.590 --> 00:07:29.214 Now, we're going to begin. 00:07:29.214 --> 00:07:32.063 We've gone through several pages of notes. 00:07:32.063 --> 00:07:34.271 And we've seen a lot of things, 00:07:34.271 --> 00:07:36.808 but now we're going to turn our attention 00:07:36.808 --> 00:07:39.669 to something that is extremely important. 00:07:39.669 --> 00:07:41.881 As we look at our text, we see something. 00:07:41.881 --> 00:07:44.386 That ten different times in this short text, 00:07:44.386 --> 00:07:45.851 there's a word that appears. 00:07:45.851 --> 00:07:48.279 It's the word "abide." 00:07:48.279 --> 00:07:49.893 And I have said over and over 00:07:49.893 --> 00:07:51.818 that the only way that the Christian 00:07:51.818 --> 00:07:54.120 can be fruitful in the Christian life 00:07:54.120 --> 00:07:58.760 is to abide in Christ. 00:07:58.760 --> 00:08:01.995 Now, if I tell you this, it's very important 00:08:01.995 --> 00:08:03.833 I explain to you what that means. NOTE Paragraph 00:08:03.833 --> 00:08:05.393 You know, preachers are famous 00:08:05.393 --> 00:08:06.836 for telling people what to do 00:08:06.836 --> 00:08:09.033 and then not telling them how to do it. 00:08:09.033 --> 00:08:11.053 I remember one time as a young Christian, 00:08:11.053 --> 00:08:13.863 this man, he preached for something like an hour and a half 00:08:13.863 --> 00:08:17.017 on the necessity to walk in the Spirit. 00:08:17.017 --> 00:08:19.043 And it was a fabulous sermon. 00:08:19.043 --> 00:08:20.794 And it proved to my young heart 00:08:20.794 --> 00:08:22.571 that I needed to walk in the Spirit. 00:08:22.571 --> 00:08:25.357 The only problem is he never told us what that meant. 00:08:25.357 --> 00:08:28.004 So I went up to him after the service, 00:08:28.004 --> 00:08:29.865 not intending to wrangle. 00:08:29.865 --> 00:08:31.916 I was happy with what I heard. 00:08:31.916 --> 00:08:33.433 I thought it was very edifying. 00:08:33.433 --> 00:08:35.615 I just thought I'm a very immature Christian, 00:08:35.615 --> 00:08:38.404 I don't have a clue what it means to walk in the Spirit, 00:08:38.404 --> 00:08:40.299 so I went before him and I said, 00:08:40.299 --> 00:08:43.013 "Sir, wow, that was just wonderful! 00:08:43.013 --> 00:08:44.516 I see that in the Scriptures. 00:08:44.516 --> 00:08:47.342 I need to walk in the Spirit. 00:08:47.342 --> 00:08:50.881 But sir, I don't know what that means." 00:08:50.881 --> 00:08:56.512 That man became very put out with me. 00:08:56.512 --> 00:08:58.011 He said every manner of thing, 00:08:58.011 --> 00:08:59.819 but he never told me what it meant 00:08:59.819 --> 00:09:01.167 to walk in the Spirit. 00:09:01.167 --> 00:09:03.189 And I walked away as the young Christian 00:09:03.189 --> 00:09:05.833 saying that man just told us to do something 00:09:05.833 --> 00:09:08.591 that he himself does not know how to do. 00:09:08.591 --> 00:09:10.941 And therefore, he just told us to do something 00:09:10.941 --> 00:09:13.265 that he himself is not practicing. 00:09:13.265 --> 00:09:14.973 And so we always want to be careful 00:09:14.973 --> 00:09:17.121 whenever we're exhorting people 00:09:17.121 --> 00:09:20.137 to do a certain thing, 00:09:20.137 --> 00:09:23.139 to actually be able to explain to them what it means. 00:09:23.139 --> 00:09:25.162 And so I have told you that the only way 00:09:25.162 --> 00:09:27.264 you can be fruitful in the Christian life 00:09:27.264 --> 00:09:29.364 is to abide in Christ. 00:09:29.364 --> 00:09:30.698 Now what does that mean? NOTE Paragraph 00:09:30.698 --> 00:09:34.129 First of all, the word abide is not that complex in Greek. 00:09:34.129 --> 00:09:34.975 It's "meno." 00:09:34.975 --> 00:09:39.883 It's to remain, to abide, to stay. 00:09:39.883 --> 00:09:42.985 Now when we bring in the metaphor of a branch, 00:09:42.985 --> 00:09:45.861 you can see that a branch must be connected 00:09:45.861 --> 00:09:49.286 vitally to a vine in order for that branch 00:09:49.286 --> 00:09:51.876 to continue with life and even bear fruit. 00:09:51.876 --> 00:09:54.499 So somehow you and I must be 00:09:54.499 --> 00:09:58.074 vitally connected with Christ. NOTE Paragraph 00:09:58.074 --> 00:10:00.597 Now herein lies two sides of a coin, 00:10:00.597 --> 00:10:03.372 and it's often the case in Christianity 00:10:03.372 --> 00:10:04.968 to have two sides of a coin. 00:10:04.968 --> 00:10:07.225 One is positional, 00:10:07.225 --> 00:10:09.945 and the other is our actual experience. 00:10:09.945 --> 00:10:12.886 Now I want to say positionally first of all 00:10:12.886 --> 00:10:15.353 what I was explaining in the last session. 00:10:15.353 --> 00:10:18.822 If you are truly a Christian - 00:10:18.822 --> 00:10:20.225 and I don't say that lightly 00:10:20.225 --> 00:10:21.920 because most people in America 00:10:21.920 --> 00:10:23.684 who call themselves Christian 00:10:23.684 --> 00:10:24.809 are not Christian, 00:10:24.809 --> 00:10:27.068 and some of you who call yourselves Christians 00:10:27.068 --> 00:10:29.057 are possibly not Christians. 00:10:29.057 --> 00:10:30.918 It's very important to understand. 00:10:30.918 --> 00:10:32.333 Let me put it this way, 00:10:32.333 --> 00:10:34.536 if you consider yourself a carnal Christian, 00:10:34.536 --> 00:10:36.498 you're lost. 00:10:36.498 --> 00:10:39.478 You're just lost. 00:10:39.478 --> 00:10:41.407 Do Christians sin? Yes. 00:10:41.407 --> 00:10:44.063 Can Christians fall into grievous sin? Absolutely. 00:10:44.063 --> 00:10:47.211 Can Christians live a continuously carnal lifestyle 00:10:47.211 --> 00:10:51.598 without fruit? Absolutely not. 00:10:51.598 --> 00:10:54.174 And so if you are a true believer, 00:10:54.174 --> 00:10:57.149 you are vitally connected to Christ. 00:10:57.149 --> 00:11:00.682 He is the vine. You are a branch. 00:11:00.682 --> 00:11:04.148 He is the Head. You are the body. 00:11:04.148 --> 00:11:05.780 We have many metaphors like that 00:11:05.780 --> 00:11:07.926 to indicate this unique position 00:11:07.926 --> 00:11:09.711 we now have with Christ. 00:11:09.711 --> 00:11:11.918 Another is the Bible talks oftentimes 00:11:11.918 --> 00:11:14.736 in spheres locatively. 00:11:14.736 --> 00:11:18.130 For example, you're in the sphere of Adam. 00:11:18.130 --> 00:11:21.621 Or you're in the sphere of Christ. 00:11:21.621 --> 00:11:24.645 You're in the sphere of condemnation. 00:11:24.645 --> 00:11:28.910 You're in the sphere of justification. 00:11:28.910 --> 00:11:32.359 You are in the sphere of the flesh. 00:11:32.359 --> 00:11:34.699 You are in the sphere of the Spirit. 00:11:34.699 --> 00:11:36.577 So if you're genuinely a Christian, 00:11:36.577 --> 00:11:38.069 you are a branch 00:11:38.069 --> 00:11:40.238 and you're vitally connected. 00:11:40.238 --> 00:11:42.251 But here's what we need to understand: 00:11:42.251 --> 00:11:44.158 this position that we have 00:11:44.158 --> 00:11:47.016 does not lead us ever in the New Testament 00:11:47.016 --> 00:11:49.694 to being passive. 00:11:49.694 --> 00:11:54.763 But it always promotes a zealous application 00:11:54.763 --> 00:11:56.712 of this truth; 00:11:56.712 --> 00:12:00.216 a desire for this truth to be worked out in our life, 00:12:00.216 --> 00:12:01.586 to become manifest. 00:12:01.586 --> 00:12:04.146 And let me use a word that many people are afraid of: 00:12:04.146 --> 00:12:06.998 to be experienced. 00:12:06.998 --> 00:12:09.479 That it's an actual reality. 00:12:09.479 --> 00:12:12.440 One of the men that was so very key 00:12:12.440 --> 00:12:14.898 in my discipleship until today 00:12:14.898 --> 00:12:17.940 uses a word all the time 00:12:17.940 --> 00:12:20.984 that always brings me back to center. 00:12:20.984 --> 00:12:22.708 And he'll say this: 00:12:22.708 --> 00:12:29.498 Yes, Paul, but is it a reality in your life? 00:12:29.498 --> 00:12:31.147 When he listens to a sermon, 00:12:31.147 --> 00:12:33.740 he'll say: there was reality there. 00:12:33.740 --> 00:12:36.099 And that's kind of what we're talking about. 00:12:36.099 --> 00:12:38.694 Not just a theological supposition 00:12:38.694 --> 00:12:40.984 or a theological or propositional truth, 00:12:40.984 --> 00:12:44.843 but is it a growing reality? 00:12:44.843 --> 00:12:48.836 Is it the experience of your life? 00:12:48.836 --> 00:12:51.857 Do you experience fruit-bearing? 00:12:51.857 --> 00:12:56.196 Do you experience communion with Christ? 00:12:56.196 --> 00:12:58.425 You can quote all my favorite creeds, 00:12:58.425 --> 00:13:00.445 but that does not guarantee 00:13:00.445 --> 00:13:06.499 that you experience the truths that are found there. NOTE Paragraph 00:13:06.499 --> 00:13:09.389 Now, as a Christian, we are united with Christ, 00:13:09.389 --> 00:13:14.395 but in the Christian life, sanctification is progressive. 00:13:14.395 --> 00:13:16.783 I think you all would agree with that. 00:13:16.783 --> 00:13:18.314 It's progressive. 00:13:18.314 --> 00:13:20.948 Well, let me explain what that means. 00:13:20.948 --> 00:13:23.121 When you think of progressive sanctification, 00:13:23.121 --> 00:13:25.998 you probably think that as you grow in your Christian life, 00:13:25.998 --> 00:13:28.417 you become more holy, more holy, more holy - 00:13:28.417 --> 00:13:30.296 that's true. That's true. 00:13:30.296 --> 00:13:32.977 But a lot of times we leave things out of that formula 00:13:32.977 --> 00:13:34.359 that ought to be included. 00:13:34.359 --> 00:13:36.474 For example, repentance. 00:13:36.474 --> 00:13:39.587 Did you know repentance is subject to sanctification? 00:13:39.587 --> 00:13:42.447 There's a sense in which I repented unto salvation, 00:13:42.447 --> 00:13:44.277 but I am growing in repentance - 00:13:44.277 --> 00:13:45.568 did you know that? 00:13:45.568 --> 00:13:47.835 I'm growing in saving repentance. 00:13:47.835 --> 00:13:50.088 I repent more now. 00:13:50.088 --> 00:13:52.321 I see more sin now. 00:13:52.321 --> 00:13:53.970 I'm growing in faith. 00:13:53.970 --> 00:13:56.736 My faith is subject to sanctification. 00:13:56.736 --> 00:14:00.174 There was a time when I believed unto salvation, 00:14:00.174 --> 00:14:03.547 but that faith has become subject to sanctification 00:14:03.547 --> 00:14:05.748 over the last thirty years. It's deeper. 00:14:05.748 --> 00:14:07.244 It's stronger. 00:14:07.244 --> 00:14:08.226 It's the same way - 00:14:08.226 --> 00:14:12.357 a new believer immediately starts bearing fruit. 00:14:12.357 --> 00:14:13.354 Really. 00:14:13.354 --> 00:14:16.100 And many times, the first few months of our life, 00:14:16.100 --> 00:14:20.718 we see abundant amount of fruit. 00:14:20.718 --> 00:14:23.041 But, we ought to be growing 00:14:23.041 --> 00:14:24.964 in our fruit-bearing. 00:14:24.964 --> 00:14:27.080 A believer, the moment that they believe, 00:14:27.080 --> 00:14:28.897 they enter into communion with Christ 00:14:28.897 --> 00:14:30.478 and they experience that. 00:14:30.478 --> 00:14:33.227 The love of God is shed abroad in their heart. 00:14:33.227 --> 00:14:36.672 But as they grow in Christ, 00:14:36.672 --> 00:14:39.597 this initial experience of the love of God, 00:14:39.597 --> 00:14:41.146 of the indwelling of the Spirit, 00:14:41.146 --> 00:14:44.013 it ought to increase. 00:14:44.013 --> 00:14:46.649 It ought to become more mature. 00:14:46.649 --> 00:14:48.423 And that doesn't mean that they go 00:14:48.423 --> 00:14:50.222 from experience to experience, 00:14:50.222 --> 00:14:53.073 or this greater manifestation to greater manifestation. 00:14:53.073 --> 00:14:57.266 But it's referring to reality. 00:14:57.266 --> 00:15:01.407 Every one of these things that happen to us at salvation, 00:15:01.407 --> 00:15:05.593 they become a deeper reality. 00:15:05.593 --> 00:15:07.710 And they begin to manifest themselves 00:15:07.710 --> 00:15:11.926 in a greater way in our life. NOTE Paragraph 00:15:11.926 --> 00:15:15.385 Now, I'm going to take a definition 00:15:15.385 --> 00:15:16.512 from D.A. Carson. 00:15:16.512 --> 00:15:19.284 I'm going to quote him a few different times 00:15:19.284 --> 00:15:22.069 throughout the teaching that we're going to do tonight 00:15:22.069 --> 00:15:24.932 because he says some things that are absolutely marvelous. NOTE Paragraph 00:15:24.932 --> 00:15:27.464 D.A. Carson is a well known New Testament scholar 00:15:27.464 --> 00:15:30.016 and he has been very helpful to almost every minister 00:15:30.016 --> 00:15:31.912 who cares about the Word of God. 00:15:31.912 --> 00:15:35.134 But he defines "abiding" in this way: 00:15:35.134 --> 00:15:37.591 He says, "the imagery of the vine 00:15:37.591 --> 00:15:39.050 is stretched a little 00:15:39.050 --> 00:15:41.322 when the branches are given the responsibility 00:15:41.322 --> 00:15:43.425 to remain in the vine." 00:15:43.425 --> 00:15:44.862 Now if you notice, He says: 00:15:44.862 --> 00:15:47.395 "I am the vine. You are the branches." 00:15:47.395 --> 00:15:49.846 But then He goes outside of this metaphor 00:15:49.846 --> 00:15:52.177 and He tells us that we need to do something 00:15:52.177 --> 00:15:54.373 to continue abiding. 00:15:54.373 --> 00:15:57.654 You know, branches just kind of sit there, don't they. 00:15:57.654 --> 00:16:00.120 But there is something that we must do. 00:16:00.120 --> 00:16:02.260 And basically, it's we must cultivate 00:16:02.260 --> 00:16:04.321 this relationship which we have. 00:16:04.321 --> 00:16:08.005 Now he says this, "The point is clear. 00:16:08.005 --> 00:16:13.265 Continuous dependence upon the vine, 00:16:13.265 --> 00:16:17.416 constant reliance upon Him, 00:16:17.416 --> 00:16:22.184 persistent spiritual imbibing..." 00:16:22.184 --> 00:16:23.780 What does imbibing mean? 00:16:23.780 --> 00:16:28.227 It means to drink, to absorb. 00:16:28.227 --> 00:16:31.256 "...Continuous persistent spiritual 00:16:31.256 --> 00:16:33.701 imbibing of His life - 00:16:33.701 --> 00:16:36.536 this is the indispensable 00:16:36.536 --> 00:16:40.934 and essential action, condition, or ingredient 00:16:40.934 --> 00:16:44.222 of spiritual fruitfulness." NOTE Paragraph 00:16:44.222 --> 00:16:46.963 Now, up to this point, you realize what I've been doing? 00:16:46.963 --> 00:16:48.748 I've been building up to this moment. 00:16:48.748 --> 00:16:50.694 I've been trying to show you 00:16:50.694 --> 00:16:55.101 that you cannot do anything 00:16:55.101 --> 00:16:59.125 apart from the life and power of Christ. 00:16:59.125 --> 00:17:00.606 I've also talked a great deal 00:17:00.606 --> 00:17:02.061 about the providence of God - 00:17:02.061 --> 00:17:04.325 how God in His providence 00:17:04.325 --> 00:17:06.117 will send trials our way, 00:17:06.117 --> 00:17:09.434 difficulties, things we cannot overcome, 00:17:09.434 --> 00:17:13.151 obstacles that we ourselves cannot endure. 00:17:13.151 --> 00:17:14.537 Now why does He do this? 00:17:14.537 --> 00:17:15.913 Is it because He hates us? 00:17:15.913 --> 00:17:16.995 Absolutely not. 00:17:16.995 --> 00:17:20.303 All these strong winds are designed 00:17:20.303 --> 00:17:23.703 to convince you and me 00:17:23.703 --> 00:17:29.222 that we simply cannot. NOTE Paragraph 00:17:29.222 --> 00:17:30.843 In the Christian Manifesto, 00:17:30.843 --> 00:17:33.064 which is of course the Sermon on the Mount, 00:17:33.064 --> 00:17:36.595 the first virtue that is given us is this: 00:17:36.595 --> 00:17:39.603 Blessed are the poor in spirit. 00:17:39.603 --> 00:17:42.098 Blessed are those who live 00:17:42.098 --> 00:17:51.038 in a profound dependence upon God. 00:17:51.038 --> 00:17:55.551 What is the most God-honoring thing that we can do? 00:17:55.551 --> 00:18:00.170 To live in a profound dependence upon God. 00:18:00.170 --> 00:18:01.991 What is the most dishonoring thing 00:18:01.991 --> 00:18:04.904 that Israel ever did? Independence. 00:18:04.904 --> 00:18:06.932 Is that not true? 00:18:06.932 --> 00:18:08.445 The most dishonoring thing 00:18:08.445 --> 00:18:10.314 that Israel did under the old covenant 00:18:10.314 --> 00:18:12.163 was independence. 00:18:12.163 --> 00:18:14.961 "We don't need You. We can do this on our own." 00:18:14.961 --> 00:18:16.816 Do you realize that almost every 00:18:16.816 --> 00:18:18.727 saving activity of God 00:18:18.727 --> 00:18:23.771 does not begin until first He empties men 00:18:23.771 --> 00:18:26.455 of all hope of saving themselves? 00:18:26.455 --> 00:18:29.107 Whether it's Israel in Egypt; 00:18:29.107 --> 00:18:31.673 whether it's Joseph in the prison; 00:18:31.673 --> 00:18:34.051 whether it's Gideon against the Midianites - 00:18:34.051 --> 00:18:35.522 what is He constantly doing? 00:18:35.522 --> 00:18:38.780 He's constantly emptying us 00:18:38.780 --> 00:18:41.521 of ourselves, of self-confidence, 00:18:41.521 --> 00:18:43.364 of self-reliance. 00:18:43.364 --> 00:18:44.275 Why? 00:18:44.275 --> 00:18:46.263 So that we will live in absolute 00:18:46.263 --> 00:18:48.516 or full dependence upon Him. 00:18:48.516 --> 00:18:50.450 Can you see how vital this is? NOTE Paragraph 00:18:50.450 --> 00:18:52.222 Now you may be thinking to yourself, 00:18:52.222 --> 00:18:53.691 "Brother Paul, just go on." 00:18:53.691 --> 00:18:56.686 No, I can't. 00:18:56.686 --> 00:18:59.711 Like I used the example two nights ago, 00:18:59.711 --> 00:19:03.466 it was necessary that Peter fall. 00:19:03.466 --> 00:19:04.513 Why? 00:19:04.513 --> 00:19:08.201 He made that self-reliant, independent, 00:19:08.201 --> 00:19:12.240 John Wayne type of declaration there 00:19:12.240 --> 00:19:14.311 in the supper, in the Passover: 00:19:14.311 --> 00:19:16.960 Though all deny You, I will not. 00:19:16.960 --> 00:19:18.512 He had to fall. 00:19:18.512 --> 00:19:22.106 It was necessary that Satan sift him 00:19:22.106 --> 00:19:23.917 and that he fall. Why? 00:19:23.917 --> 00:19:27.417 To rid him of that. 00:19:27.417 --> 00:19:28.878 (unintelligible) 00:19:28.878 --> 00:19:30.849 Look at this! The great Peter, 00:19:30.849 --> 00:19:32.332 the rock, denies Christ 00:19:32.332 --> 00:19:35.821 before a little servant girl. 00:19:35.821 --> 00:19:39.039 It was necessary. 00:19:39.039 --> 00:19:41.038 Some of the old preachers used to say 00:19:41.038 --> 00:19:43.128 Christ spent three years 00:19:43.128 --> 00:19:45.339 emptying the disciples so that He could 00:19:45.339 --> 00:19:50.139 fill them in a second on the day of Pentecost. 00:19:50.139 --> 00:19:52.964 I mean, God can fill you like that. 00:19:52.964 --> 00:19:56.851 The emptying part is problematic. 00:19:56.851 --> 00:19:58.569 And so He's constantly doing this, 00:19:58.569 --> 00:20:03.164 constantly sending things our way to empty us. 00:20:03.164 --> 00:20:06.687 But to cause us to cling to Him; 00:20:06.687 --> 00:20:07.887 to cling to Him. NOTE Paragraph 00:20:07.887 --> 00:20:12.075 Now, there are three aspects of abiding 00:20:12.075 --> 00:20:13.465 because I've just told you, 00:20:13.465 --> 00:20:14.934 you need to cling to Christ. 00:20:14.934 --> 00:20:18.112 You need to lay aside self- reliance and independence, 00:20:18.112 --> 00:20:19.753 and you need to cling to Christ. 00:20:19.753 --> 00:20:21.206 But now you're probably saying 00:20:21.206 --> 00:20:22.427 if you're a thinker, 00:20:22.427 --> 00:20:25.713 okay, but again, how do you do that? 00:20:25.713 --> 00:20:27.714 Well, there are three aspects to this. 00:20:27.714 --> 00:20:30.675 And I'm going to take part of D.A. Carson's definition 00:20:30.675 --> 00:20:33.384 and use it within these three aspects. 00:20:33.384 --> 00:20:36.081 First of all, 00:20:36.081 --> 00:20:40.427 abiding in Christ is through 00:20:40.427 --> 00:20:45.191 continuous dependence on His Word, 00:20:45.191 --> 00:20:48.606 constant submission to His Word, 00:20:48.606 --> 00:20:55.220 persistent spiritual imbibing of His Word. 00:20:55.220 --> 00:20:58.223 Now look in verse 7. 00:20:58.223 --> 00:21:01.918 Chapter 15:7, "If you abide in Me 00:21:01.918 --> 00:21:07.135 and My words abide in you..." 00:21:07.135 --> 00:21:08.500 Now look at verse 10, 00:21:08.500 --> 00:21:10.455 "If you keep My commandments, 00:21:10.455 --> 00:21:11.933 you will abide in My love, 00:21:11.933 --> 00:21:14.376 just as I have kept My Father's commandments 00:21:14.376 --> 00:21:19.153 and abide in His love." 00:21:19.153 --> 00:21:24.840 Now, you know the old song that says: 00:21:24.840 --> 00:21:27.105 "Trust and obey, for there's no other way, 00:21:27.105 --> 00:21:29.721 to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey"? 00:21:29.721 --> 00:21:31.774 Well, that might sound kind of trite, 00:21:31.774 --> 00:21:35.766 but let me just share with you something. 00:21:35.766 --> 00:21:37.908 Trust and obey. There's no other way 00:21:37.908 --> 00:21:40.186 to be happy in Jesus. I'm sorry. 00:21:40.186 --> 00:21:42.334 I know that you live in a culture 00:21:42.334 --> 00:21:44.787 where you can go into every Christian bookstore 00:21:44.787 --> 00:21:46.302 and find one thousand books 00:21:46.302 --> 00:21:49.603 on ten steps to do this. I'm sorry. 00:21:49.603 --> 00:21:51.167 Quick fixes here and there, 00:21:51.167 --> 00:21:52.861 microwave Christianity, 00:21:52.861 --> 00:21:55.364 instantaneous this and that - no, my friend. 00:21:55.364 --> 00:21:59.181 You have been given a book 00:21:59.181 --> 00:22:05.972 which I dare say most of us despise. 00:22:05.972 --> 00:22:07.506 You say, "I don't despise it." 00:22:07.506 --> 00:22:09.519 Let me share with you something. 00:22:09.519 --> 00:22:11.599 Have you ever been a street preacher? 00:22:11.599 --> 00:22:13.182 You know there's something worse 00:22:13.182 --> 00:22:14.809 than the crowd turning around 00:22:14.809 --> 00:22:17.474 and all of them getting really mad at you? 00:22:17.474 --> 00:22:19.257 You know what's worse than that? 00:22:19.257 --> 00:22:21.663 They neglect you altogether. 00:22:21.663 --> 00:22:23.298 You're standing there preaching 00:22:23.298 --> 00:22:25.825 and they all walk by you for hours 00:22:25.825 --> 00:22:27.553 like you're not even there. 00:22:27.553 --> 00:22:29.442 There was a time in my life 00:22:29.442 --> 00:22:34.786 when I actually thought I was invisible. 00:22:34.786 --> 00:22:36.821 No, the worst thing you can do to me 00:22:36.821 --> 00:22:39.816 to despise me is neglect; 00:22:39.816 --> 00:22:44.864 that I'm not even worth arguing with. 00:22:44.864 --> 00:22:46.308 Now do you see 00:22:46.308 --> 00:22:48.539 the neglect of God's Word? 00:22:48.539 --> 00:22:50.145 You see, we're always wondering, 00:22:50.145 --> 00:22:51.258 where is the power? 00:22:51.258 --> 00:22:52.967 Or you see a man or a woman 00:22:52.967 --> 00:22:54.380 who seems to be fruit bearing 00:22:54.380 --> 00:22:55.778 and full of power and zeal 00:22:55.778 --> 00:22:57.411 and you want to find their secret. 00:22:57.411 --> 00:22:59.057 The problem is there is no secret 00:22:59.057 --> 00:23:00.642 and when they give you the answer 00:23:00.642 --> 00:23:02.862 you're not going to like it. 00:23:02.862 --> 00:23:05.492 What is it? 00:23:05.492 --> 00:23:13.556 I have no wisdom or understanding of my own. 00:23:13.556 --> 00:23:15.854 I do not know how to walk 00:23:15.854 --> 00:23:18.267 from the bedroom to the bathroom 00:23:18.267 --> 00:23:22.615 apart from the Word of God. 00:23:22.615 --> 00:23:28.414 This world is a minefield full of danger. 00:23:28.414 --> 00:23:33.411 I have no telepathic ability to discern 00:23:33.411 --> 00:23:35.593 where all the mines are hidden. 00:23:35.593 --> 00:23:39.813 But I have a map. 00:23:39.813 --> 00:23:42.765 I do not know how to discern the things of God, 00:23:42.765 --> 00:23:47.076 but I have been given truth in Scripture. 00:23:47.076 --> 00:23:48.931 I'm sorry, my dear friend, if you were 00:23:48.931 --> 00:23:50.497 waiting to find out something 00:23:50.497 --> 00:23:53.356 that would really just be brand new to you 00:23:53.356 --> 00:23:55.583 about how to abide in Jesus. 00:23:55.583 --> 00:23:57.993 I'm sorry! 00:23:57.993 --> 00:24:01.724 But it is this first and foremost, 00:24:01.724 --> 00:24:06.444 He has given you His Word. 00:24:06.444 --> 00:24:09.549 And again, I go back to old John Bunyan. 00:24:09.549 --> 00:24:11.664 They said of him if you cut his veins 00:24:11.664 --> 00:24:15.968 he would bleed the Bible. NOTE Paragraph 00:24:15.968 --> 00:24:18.910 The old story that's been told in several different ways 00:24:18.910 --> 00:24:20.286 about Stoneface; 00:24:20.286 --> 00:24:22.930 about supposedly a man who would come 00:24:22.930 --> 00:24:25.401 and visit a town and be a blessing to the town, 00:24:25.401 --> 00:24:26.901 and he would have a face 00:24:26.901 --> 00:24:29.737 like the face that was carved into a natural formation 00:24:29.737 --> 00:24:30.628 on a stone. 00:24:30.628 --> 00:24:32.398 And everyone waited for that person 00:24:32.398 --> 00:24:34.076 and one time a little boy was born 00:24:34.076 --> 00:24:35.532 and he kept hearing the story 00:24:35.532 --> 00:24:38.040 about one day someone would come to save the town, 00:24:38.040 --> 00:24:39.792 and he kept looking at that stone 00:24:39.792 --> 00:24:41.050 and looking at that stone 00:24:41.050 --> 00:24:42.477 and looking at that stone, 00:24:42.477 --> 00:24:44.602 until at the end of his life he realized 00:24:44.602 --> 00:24:46.065 he had become that face 00:24:46.065 --> 00:24:49.546 and he was the one who had helped the town. 00:24:49.546 --> 00:24:52.268 It is just us going into the Word, 00:24:52.268 --> 00:24:53.427 going into the Word, 00:24:53.427 --> 00:24:54.516 going into the Word, 00:24:54.516 --> 00:24:55.648 going into the Word. 00:24:55.648 --> 00:24:58.703 Not even seeking to be transformed by the Word, 00:24:58.703 --> 00:25:01.328 just recognizing the importance of the Word 00:25:01.328 --> 00:25:02.954 and living in the Word. 00:25:02.954 --> 00:25:05.091 And eventually, without us even knowing it, 00:25:05.091 --> 00:25:09.428 we begin to take on its characteristics. 00:25:09.428 --> 00:25:11.585 Do you see that? NOTE Paragraph 00:25:11.585 --> 00:25:13.512 Let me give you an example - 00:25:13.512 --> 00:25:16.615 a rather, vulgar, trite, common example. 00:25:16.615 --> 00:25:18.065 Let's say that you come to me 00:25:18.065 --> 00:25:20.128 and you have a big spot on your forehead 00:25:20.128 --> 00:25:21.390 that's just a bloody mass. 00:25:21.390 --> 00:25:22.924 And you say to me, Brother Paul, 00:25:22.924 --> 00:25:24.831 I've been to every doctor in the world. 00:25:24.831 --> 00:25:26.765 No one can figure out why I have this. 00:25:26.765 --> 00:25:29.189 Could you please try to pray to the Lord 00:25:29.189 --> 00:25:30.624 that He would give you wisdom 00:25:30.624 --> 00:25:33.349 with regard to why I have this on my forehead? 00:25:33.349 --> 00:25:35.283 And I say, well, I'm no doctor, 00:25:35.283 --> 00:25:37.392 but sure, I'll pray about it. 00:25:37.392 --> 00:25:39.970 But I decide one day to be even practical, 00:25:39.970 --> 00:25:42.569 and I decide to follow you around for 24 hours. 00:25:42.569 --> 00:25:46.747 And I notice that at 1:00 in the morning - 00:25:46.747 --> 00:25:48.520 the clock strikes 1, 00:25:48.520 --> 00:25:50.737 and you get up out of bed 00:25:50.737 --> 00:25:53.736 and you hit your forehead against a brick wall one time 00:25:53.736 --> 00:25:54.978 and go back to bed. 00:25:54.978 --> 00:25:57.049 And then I watch, it's 2:00. 00:25:57.049 --> 00:25:59.098 You get up precisely at 2:00 00:25:59.098 --> 00:26:00.380 when the bell strikes, 00:26:00.380 --> 00:26:02.152 and you hit your forehead twice 00:26:02.152 --> 00:26:04.211 on a stone wall and go back to bed. 00:26:04.211 --> 00:26:06.250 Now, I notice as you go through the day, 00:26:06.250 --> 00:26:07.519 every turn of the hour, 00:26:07.519 --> 00:26:10.182 you hit your head against a wall 00:26:10.182 --> 00:26:11.457 that many times. 00:26:11.457 --> 00:26:13.304 At the end of 24 hours, I come to you, 00:26:13.304 --> 00:26:14.300 and I say this: 00:26:14.300 --> 00:26:17.773 Look, I'm no doctor, 00:26:17.773 --> 00:26:21.456 but I think I figured out your problem. 00:26:21.456 --> 00:26:23.390 If you will stop banging your head 00:26:23.390 --> 00:26:24.945 against a brick wall 00:26:24.945 --> 00:26:28.398 every time the clock strikes the hour, 00:26:28.398 --> 00:26:31.021 I think your head will heal. 00:26:31.021 --> 00:26:32.408 You say, that's absurd. 00:26:32.408 --> 00:26:34.582 I say the same thing to you. 00:26:34.582 --> 00:26:36.924 You neglect the Scriptures. 00:26:36.924 --> 00:26:38.354 I'm sorry. 00:26:38.354 --> 00:26:40.897 And then, do you know what evangelicalism 00:26:40.897 --> 00:26:42.772 has done in America? 00:26:42.772 --> 00:26:47.447 It has conformed itself to your flesh. 00:26:47.447 --> 00:26:48.997 If I have heard it one time, 00:26:48.997 --> 00:26:50.611 I've heard it a thousand times, 00:26:50.611 --> 00:26:52.965 people and teacher and pastors 00:26:52.965 --> 00:26:55.450 and supposedly educators in Christianity 00:26:55.450 --> 00:26:57.635 saying: we don't live in a culture anymore 00:26:57.635 --> 00:27:00.302 where people can even pay attention for five minutes, 00:27:00.302 --> 00:27:02.369 so we've got to give them little soundbites 00:27:02.369 --> 00:27:04.416 with regard to Christianity. 00:27:04.416 --> 00:27:05.668 You know what we've done? 00:27:05.668 --> 00:27:07.399 We're the first group of Christians 00:27:07.399 --> 00:27:08.588 who believe the Bible - 00:27:08.588 --> 00:27:09.902 the first group in history 00:27:09.902 --> 00:27:12.251 that no longer believe that our culture 00:27:12.251 --> 00:27:14.420 is to conform itself to the book. 00:27:14.420 --> 00:27:19.330 We're now trying to conform Christianity to the culture. 00:27:19.330 --> 00:27:22.341 I say if our culture has become too dumb 00:27:22.341 --> 00:27:24.688 to read for half an hour, 00:27:24.688 --> 00:27:27.411 that in the church we do not give in to that, 00:27:27.411 --> 00:27:31.652 but we start teaching people how to think 00:27:31.652 --> 00:27:33.236 and how to read 00:27:33.236 --> 00:27:34.789 and how to meditate, 00:27:34.789 --> 00:27:37.141 to turn off televisions, 00:27:37.141 --> 00:27:39.260 to turn off vain conversations 00:27:39.260 --> 00:27:41.859 and to get into the book. NOTE Paragraph 00:27:41.859 --> 00:27:44.457 Let me share with you something about western culture. 00:27:44.457 --> 00:27:45.978 I want to be very careful here, 00:27:45.978 --> 00:27:48.086 but I just want to make a few observations 00:27:48.086 --> 00:27:49.982 that may help you understand you. 00:27:49.982 --> 00:27:53.280 You know everyone says western culture this, western culture that. 00:27:53.280 --> 00:27:56.599 We shouldn't try to take western culture and apply it to other cultures. 00:27:56.599 --> 00:27:58.825 Let me share with you something about western culture. 00:27:58.825 --> 00:28:00.859 Western culture has to do with the Americas 00:28:00.859 --> 00:28:02.134 and also Western Europe. 00:28:02.134 --> 00:28:04.614 I guess you're all familiar with that - Western culture. 00:28:04.614 --> 00:28:06.446 Prior to the advent of Christianity, 00:28:06.446 --> 00:28:09.095 western culture meant we were a bunch of tribal people 00:28:09.095 --> 00:28:11.461 living in Northern Europe running around naked 00:28:11.461 --> 00:28:14.153 painting ourselves blue and eating one another. 00:28:14.153 --> 00:28:16.191 That's western culture. 00:28:16.191 --> 00:28:18.976 So what changed western culture? 00:28:18.976 --> 00:28:22.132 The advent of Christianity. 00:28:22.132 --> 00:28:23.447 Yeah. 00:28:23.447 --> 00:28:24.988 And because of Christianity, 00:28:24.988 --> 00:28:27.419 we stopped worshiping twigs 00:28:27.419 --> 00:28:30.236 and streams and crickets 00:28:30.236 --> 00:28:33.407 and hatchets and horns. 00:28:33.407 --> 00:28:35.231 We came to understand the living God 00:28:35.231 --> 00:28:37.331 and we came to understand creation 00:28:37.331 --> 00:28:39.247 in light of that living God. 00:28:39.247 --> 00:28:41.988 Our culture began to change. 00:28:41.988 --> 00:28:43.875 The very height of literature and art 00:28:43.875 --> 00:28:45.521 and music and everything in Europe 00:28:45.521 --> 00:28:47.744 owes itself to the advent of Christianity 00:28:47.744 --> 00:28:49.269 coming in and changing a group 00:28:49.269 --> 00:28:53.718 of blue-painted barbarians. 00:28:53.718 --> 00:28:55.966 That's what Christianity did. 00:28:55.966 --> 00:28:58.606 But now, because we have rejected Christianity, 00:28:58.606 --> 00:29:01.227 we have rejected the God of Christianity, 00:29:01.227 --> 00:29:04.708 we're becoming cannibalistic barbarians once again. 00:29:04.708 --> 00:29:06.522 Oh yes, we can do all kinds of things 00:29:06.522 --> 00:29:08.582 with computers and technology. 00:29:08.582 --> 00:29:12.059 We are fabulous in IT, 00:29:12.059 --> 00:29:15.892 but we're becoming immoral beasts. 00:29:15.892 --> 00:29:18.288 Now the point that I'm trying to make is this: 00:29:18.288 --> 00:29:20.588 You want some quick fix. 00:29:20.588 --> 00:29:22.110 The quick fix is this: 00:29:22.110 --> 00:29:25.210 spend your life renewing your mind 00:29:25.210 --> 00:29:26.708 in the Word of God. 00:29:26.708 --> 00:29:28.558 Cling to the Word of God 00:29:28.558 --> 00:29:30.633 as though your very life depends on it 00:29:30.633 --> 00:29:38.845 because, sir, I can assure you, it does! NOTE Paragraph 00:29:38.845 --> 00:29:40.719 I'll put it this way, 00:29:40.719 --> 00:29:43.394 D.A. Carson writes this, 00:29:43.394 --> 00:29:44.808 "'If you remain in Me' 00:29:44.808 --> 00:29:46.346 is equivalent to doing 00:29:46.346 --> 00:29:50.990 all that Jesus commands. 00:29:50.990 --> 00:29:53.409 Such words must so (and I love this) 00:29:53.409 --> 00:29:57.911 such words must so lodge 00:29:57.911 --> 00:30:00.949 in the disciple's mind and heart, 00:30:00.949 --> 00:30:02.953 that conformity to Christ, 00:30:02.953 --> 00:30:04.706 obedience to Christ 00:30:04.706 --> 00:30:07.824 is the most natural thing in the world." 00:30:07.824 --> 00:30:09.909 Now, see, you can't get there 00:30:09.909 --> 00:30:11.835 apart from the Word. 00:30:11.835 --> 00:30:14.445 Let me read that again. 00:30:14.445 --> 00:30:15.501 "Such words..." 00:30:15.501 --> 00:30:18.776 That's the teachings of Christ. 00:30:18.776 --> 00:30:21.897 "...Must so lodge 00:30:21.897 --> 00:30:25.069 in the disciple's mind and heart 00:30:25.069 --> 00:30:26.869 that conformity to Christ, 00:30:26.869 --> 00:30:28.587 obedience to Christ 00:30:28.587 --> 00:30:31.265 is the most natural thing in the world." 00:30:31.265 --> 00:30:33.285 Now how is that going to happen? NOTE Paragraph 00:30:33.285 --> 00:30:36.302 Now, let's go back to something I greatly love - 00:30:36.302 --> 00:30:39.907 the Law of God. 00:30:39.907 --> 00:30:41.867 The books of wisdom. 00:30:41.867 --> 00:30:43.698 And what do we see over and over? 00:30:43.698 --> 00:30:45.841 What should the king do in Deuteronomy? 00:30:45.841 --> 00:30:48.303 He should write out all the words of this Law. 00:30:48.303 --> 00:30:49.178 Why? 00:30:49.178 --> 00:30:51.293 To work on his penmanship? Absolutely not. 00:30:51.293 --> 00:30:54.547 That those words might be firmly lodged 00:30:54.547 --> 00:30:56.637 in his heart and mind. 00:30:56.637 --> 00:30:58.491 It's an interesting thing when you go 00:30:58.491 --> 00:31:01.674 to the Bible and you do this kind of study: 00:31:01.674 --> 00:31:05.110 How do you study the Bible according to the Bible? 00:31:05.110 --> 00:31:07.062 And you know you will actually find 00:31:07.062 --> 00:31:11.573 only a few references to study? 00:31:11.573 --> 00:31:12.760 Did you know that? 00:31:12.760 --> 00:31:15.128 Do you know what the great portion is? 00:31:15.128 --> 00:31:17.582 Memorization and meditation. 00:31:17.582 --> 00:31:19.756 Lodging the Word of God in your heart. 00:31:19.756 --> 00:31:22.307 As one old preacher I know who I dearly love says: 00:31:22.307 --> 00:31:25.815 "Folks, this isn't rocket surgery." 00:31:25.815 --> 00:31:28.093 It means rocket science or brain surgery, 00:31:28.093 --> 00:31:29.788 but he combines the two things. 00:31:29.788 --> 00:31:31.552 He goes, "this isn't rocket surgery." 00:31:31.552 --> 00:31:33.760 It's simple. You take the Word of God 00:31:33.760 --> 00:31:35.348 and you read it and you read it 00:31:35.348 --> 00:31:36.948 and you read it and you read it 00:31:36.948 --> 00:31:37.973 and you study it, 00:31:37.973 --> 00:31:39.457 and if you don't understand it, 00:31:39.457 --> 00:31:41.414 you don't care, you keep working on it 00:31:41.414 --> 00:31:46.250 because your life depends upon it. 00:31:46.250 --> 00:31:47.991 As I said the other night, 00:31:47.991 --> 00:31:49.337 some of you who would say, 00:31:49.337 --> 00:31:51.308 "Well, I'm not a reader." 00:31:51.308 --> 00:31:53.594 Yeah, but if your company offered you a job 00:31:53.594 --> 00:31:56.205 paying twice or three times what you're now making, 00:31:56.205 --> 00:31:58.896 but you have a 600 page manual to memorize, 00:31:58.896 --> 00:32:00.955 I guarantee you'd stay up night and day 00:32:00.955 --> 00:32:02.104 to memorize that. 00:32:02.104 --> 00:32:03.437 Your wife would be with you 00:32:03.437 --> 00:32:05.328 pouring you coffee and encouraging you 00:32:05.328 --> 00:32:08.860 because she wants a new bedroom set. 00:32:08.860 --> 00:32:10.346 Your children would be going 00:32:10.346 --> 00:32:14.624 "hip, hip, hooray dad! Go dad! Go dad!" 00:32:14.624 --> 00:32:16.571 And we would do something like that 00:32:16.571 --> 00:32:21.475 for something as pathetic as money. 00:32:21.475 --> 00:32:22.974 To buy silly clothes 00:32:22.974 --> 00:32:27.642 with important designers' names on them. 00:32:27.642 --> 00:32:30.131 What a pathetic people. 00:32:30.131 --> 00:32:31.898 And yet, we'll let eternity 00:32:31.898 --> 00:32:34.905 escape right through our hands 00:32:34.905 --> 00:32:40.565 and not even move a finger. NOTE Paragraph 00:32:40.565 --> 00:32:45.139 Now, what does this look like? 00:32:45.139 --> 00:32:47.097 I want to read you some texts 00:32:47.097 --> 00:32:48.910 that have been very helpful for me. 00:32:48.910 --> 00:32:51.167 But now, I want you to listen to these texts 00:32:51.167 --> 00:32:53.169 as though you'd never heard them before. 00:32:53.169 --> 00:32:54.465 That's often very helpful. 00:32:54.465 --> 00:32:56.826 I knew of one old pastor that every three years 00:32:56.826 --> 00:32:58.149 he would change his Bible. 00:32:58.149 --> 00:33:00.260 He would spend three years 00:33:00.260 --> 00:33:02.200 going through his entire Bible 00:33:02.200 --> 00:33:03.913 and writing notes, filling the pages 00:33:03.913 --> 00:33:05.344 with notes and notes and notes, 00:33:05.344 --> 00:33:06.853 and then he would take that Bible 00:33:06.853 --> 00:33:08.893 and put it on the shelf and get a new Bible 00:33:08.893 --> 00:33:11.306 because he wanted to hear the Word afresh again 00:33:11.306 --> 00:33:12.334 without his notes. 00:33:12.334 --> 00:33:14.215 He wanted God to speak to him afresh. 00:33:14.215 --> 00:33:16.212 Now, listen to this as though 00:33:16.212 --> 00:33:17.825 you've never heard it before. 00:33:17.825 --> 00:33:19.718 Because right now you probably 00:33:19.718 --> 00:33:21.391 treat it like a cliche - 00:33:21.391 --> 00:33:23.044 a meaningless piece 00:33:23.044 --> 00:33:25.946 of New Testament poetry. 00:33:25.946 --> 00:33:27.442 But I want you to listen to it 00:33:27.442 --> 00:33:30.273 as though you had to take it seriously. 00:33:30.273 --> 00:33:32.355 Now this is the incarnate God speaking - 00:33:32.355 --> 00:33:34.340 Jesus Christ. 00:33:34.340 --> 00:33:36.638 "But He answered and said, 00:33:36.638 --> 00:33:38.266 'It is written, 00:33:38.266 --> 00:33:41.854 Man shall not live on bread alone, 00:33:41.854 --> 00:33:44.638 but on every word that proceeds 00:33:44.638 --> 00:33:46.753 out of the mouth of God.'" 00:33:46.753 --> 00:33:49.281 There's a sense in which I know you believe this. 00:33:49.281 --> 00:33:54.184 There's a sense in which you don't believe this at all. 00:33:54.184 --> 00:33:56.752 He's saying every aspect of your life 00:33:56.752 --> 00:34:00.494 is to be governed, fueled, conformed, 00:34:00.494 --> 00:34:03.023 empowered by the Word of God. 00:34:03.023 --> 00:34:04.388 Let me ask you a question, 00:34:04.388 --> 00:34:05.963 those of you who are married. 00:34:05.963 --> 00:34:07.327 How much time have you spent 00:34:07.327 --> 00:34:08.903 studying marriage in the Scriptures? 00:34:08.903 --> 00:34:10.603 I mean, it's the most important relationship 00:34:10.603 --> 00:34:12.908 you have on this earth. 00:34:12.908 --> 00:34:14.885 Are you doing what it says here? 00:34:14.885 --> 00:34:16.652 That your marriage, you're seeking 00:34:16.652 --> 00:34:18.414 that it be conformed to every word 00:34:18.414 --> 00:34:21.033 that proceeds out of the mouth of God? 00:34:21.033 --> 00:34:23.353 Now marriage is tough enough when you do know 00:34:23.353 --> 00:34:25.428 what God's Word says. 00:34:25.428 --> 00:34:27.067 How much more difficult is it 00:34:27.067 --> 00:34:31.656 when you don't even know what God's Word says? NOTE Paragraph 00:34:31.656 --> 00:34:33.501 Sometimes I'll ask music directors. 00:34:33.501 --> 00:34:34.772 You know, I'll go to a church, 00:34:34.772 --> 00:34:37.018 and it's got a big music program and all this, 00:34:37.018 --> 00:34:38.857 and I'll ask them this one question: 00:34:38.857 --> 00:34:40.779 You're the worship leader? Yes. 00:34:40.779 --> 00:34:42.556 Have you studied worship 00:34:42.556 --> 00:34:44.686 beginning in the book of Genesis 1 00:34:44.686 --> 00:34:47.821 all the way through the book of Revelation? 00:34:47.821 --> 00:34:49.391 Well, no. 00:34:49.391 --> 00:34:50.833 Well, then how do you know 00:34:50.833 --> 00:34:53.065 that what you're doing is pleasing to God? 00:34:53.065 --> 00:34:55.920 How can you know? 00:34:55.920 --> 00:34:57.708 The sad thing is now they say 00:34:57.708 --> 00:34:59.604 well, it doesn't even matter. 00:34:59.604 --> 00:35:02.208 It's just basically left up to what you feel like. 00:35:02.208 --> 00:35:05.096 No, it's not. No, it's not. 00:35:05.096 --> 00:35:06.968 The way you dress - 00:35:06.968 --> 00:35:09.326 I know I sound now like a 1950's 00:35:09.326 --> 00:35:10.954 fundamentalist preacher, don't I? 00:35:10.954 --> 00:35:12.481 But let me ask you a question: 00:35:12.481 --> 00:35:13.564 the way you dress - 00:35:13.564 --> 00:35:16.512 have you gone to Scripture to ask God: 00:35:16.512 --> 00:35:18.133 what am I supposed to do? 00:35:18.133 --> 00:35:19.213 The way you talk, 00:35:19.213 --> 00:35:21.289 your relationships, 00:35:21.289 --> 00:35:23.945 what you participate in and don't participate in? 00:35:23.945 --> 00:35:25.362 Look what He says: 00:35:25.362 --> 00:35:28.589 You do not live on bread alone, 00:35:28.589 --> 00:35:31.317 but you live on every word 00:35:31.317 --> 00:35:34.940 that proceeds out of the mouth of God. 00:35:34.940 --> 00:35:37.077 You know what the Puritan genius was? 00:35:37.077 --> 00:35:38.951 Now, I don't agree with the Puritans 00:35:38.951 --> 00:35:40.198 on absolutely everything. 00:35:40.198 --> 00:35:44.630 They're men, but you know what their genius was? 00:35:44.630 --> 00:35:48.007 They honestly sought to conform 00:35:48.007 --> 00:35:51.371 every aspect of their life to the Word of God. 00:35:51.371 --> 00:35:52.883 Now, like all of us men, 00:35:52.883 --> 00:35:54.292 they failed in some areas. 00:35:54.292 --> 00:35:56.934 They went too far or not far enough in some areas. 00:35:56.934 --> 00:35:58.624 But they are one of the few peoples 00:35:58.624 --> 00:36:00.118 that ever walked on this planet 00:36:00.118 --> 00:36:02.720 that said every aspect of life 00:36:02.720 --> 00:36:05.940 must be conformed to the written Word of God. 00:36:05.940 --> 00:36:08.973 We don't believe that! 00:36:08.973 --> 00:36:11.274 As a matter of fact, we live in a culture now 00:36:11.274 --> 00:36:13.369 where it's just sort of believe 00:36:13.369 --> 00:36:15.020 in an undefined Jesus 00:36:15.020 --> 00:36:18.900 and then do whatever is right in your own eyes. 00:36:18.900 --> 00:36:21.508 No, my dear friend, listen! 00:36:21.508 --> 00:36:25.503 You see, you don't fear. 00:36:25.503 --> 00:36:27.512 And you do trust in yourself. 00:36:27.512 --> 00:36:29.248 You prove it every day 00:36:29.248 --> 00:36:31.348 by just walking according to 00:36:31.348 --> 00:36:35.049 what you think is right. 00:36:35.049 --> 00:36:36.940 Don't do that! 00:36:36.940 --> 00:36:38.735 Abiding in Christ is asking, 00:36:38.735 --> 00:36:42.196 Lord, I am in a fallen world. 00:36:42.196 --> 00:36:44.143 There is a sense in which even though 00:36:44.143 --> 00:36:45.314 I have been regenerated, 00:36:45.314 --> 00:36:47.691 I still have fallen members of my body - 00:36:47.691 --> 00:36:50.176 even a fallen mind. 00:36:50.176 --> 00:36:51.588 I live in a fallen world. 00:36:51.588 --> 00:36:53.912 I'm behind enemy lines. 00:36:53.912 --> 00:36:55.437 Wisdom was not born with me. 00:36:55.437 --> 00:36:57.289 It will not die with me. 00:36:57.289 --> 00:37:00.333 I must take this book. 00:37:00.333 --> 00:37:03.321 Again, I go back to Pilgrim's Progress. 00:37:03.321 --> 00:37:05.573 It's the book. 00:37:05.573 --> 00:37:08.851 The book that guided him. 00:37:08.851 --> 00:37:12.524 The book. NOTE Paragraph 00:37:12.524 --> 00:37:14.636 Listen to this text. 00:37:14.636 --> 00:37:17.291 He tells Joshua, "Only be strong and very courageous. 00:37:17.291 --> 00:37:20.404 Be careful to do according to all the Law 00:37:20.404 --> 00:37:23.080 which Moses My servant commanded you. 00:37:23.080 --> 00:37:24.370 Do not turn from it 00:37:24.370 --> 00:37:27.042 to the right or to the left." 00:37:27.042 --> 00:37:28.725 Do you know the average evangelical 00:37:28.725 --> 00:37:30.752 doesn't know enough of the Law 00:37:30.752 --> 00:37:35.896 to determine whether he's even turned from it or not. 00:37:35.896 --> 00:37:37.627 Really. We talk about obedience, 00:37:37.627 --> 00:37:39.251 but before obedience can come 00:37:39.251 --> 00:37:40.841 there must be knowledge. 00:37:40.841 --> 00:37:42.620 And there's such a neglect of the Word of God 00:37:42.620 --> 00:37:43.606 that we don't even know 00:37:43.606 --> 00:37:45.566 when we're walking in disobedience. 00:37:45.566 --> 00:37:48.370 That's why we can do horrendous things 00:37:48.370 --> 00:37:52.183 within the context of the so-called local church 00:37:52.183 --> 00:37:54.750 and not even be convicted about it. 00:37:54.750 --> 00:37:58.949 We don't even know what the will of God is. 00:37:58.949 --> 00:38:01.858 "So that you may have success wherever you go. 00:38:01.858 --> 00:38:03.651 This book of the Law..." 00:38:03.651 --> 00:38:07.527 Now, let's just take this literally for a moment. 00:38:07.527 --> 00:38:12.150 Not absurdedly, but literally. 00:38:12.150 --> 00:38:16.147 "This book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, 00:38:16.147 --> 00:38:22.202 but you shall meditate on it day and night." 00:38:22.202 --> 00:38:24.811 Okay, let me ask you a question. 00:38:24.811 --> 00:38:27.453 Does your ten minute quiet time 00:38:27.453 --> 00:38:31.405 fulfill this command? 00:38:31.405 --> 00:38:33.350 I mean, people boast because 00:38:33.350 --> 00:38:35.534 "I had my quiet time." 00:38:35.534 --> 00:38:37.156 Well, describe it to me. 00:38:37.156 --> 00:38:40.219 "Well, you know, 15 minutes in the Word." 00:38:40.219 --> 00:38:43.096 "15 minutes in prayer." 00:38:43.096 --> 00:38:46.174 I applaud you for whatever attempt you're making, 00:38:46.174 --> 00:38:51.625 but don't pat yourself on the back. 00:38:51.625 --> 00:38:53.838 He's saying this Word, 00:38:53.838 --> 00:38:55.809 "it shall not depart from your mouth, 00:38:55.809 --> 00:38:58.051 but you shall meditate on it day and night 00:38:58.051 --> 00:39:00.958 so that you may be careful to do 00:39:00.958 --> 00:39:03.484 according to all that is written in it. 00:39:03.484 --> 00:39:06.119 For then you will make your way prosperous 00:39:06.119 --> 00:39:07.616 and then you will succeed." 00:39:07.616 --> 00:39:09.248 Now this is not to be interpreted 00:39:09.248 --> 00:39:11.479 in the context of televangelists. 00:39:11.479 --> 00:39:12.827 It's not talking about: 00:39:12.827 --> 00:39:14.502 then you will prosper financially. 00:39:14.502 --> 00:39:16.171 It means then you will prosper 00:39:16.171 --> 00:39:18.095 in the will of your God 00:39:18.095 --> 00:39:21.503 and be a useful servant to Him. 00:39:21.503 --> 00:39:24.635 That's what being fruitful means. 00:39:24.635 --> 00:39:29.197 So abiding in Christ is to take this gift 00:39:29.197 --> 00:39:31.288 of His teaching 00:39:31.288 --> 00:39:34.197 and learning to follow it. NOTE Paragraph 00:39:34.197 --> 00:39:37.248 Now as we see here in verse 12, 00:39:37.248 --> 00:39:38.401 "This is My commandment 00:39:38.401 --> 00:39:39.624 that you love one another 00:39:39.624 --> 00:39:40.903 just as I have loved you." 00:39:40.903 --> 00:39:42.416 Now let me say a few things, 00:39:42.416 --> 00:39:43.977 I want to draw a balance here. 00:39:43.977 --> 00:39:46.661 I don't want to throw the baby out with the bathwater. 00:39:46.661 --> 00:39:49.687 I want to explain this. 00:39:49.687 --> 00:39:51.947 The end of everything that has to do 00:39:51.947 --> 00:39:55.180 with God's commands is this: 00:39:55.180 --> 00:39:56.418 To love the Lord your God 00:39:56.418 --> 00:39:58.591 with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength 00:39:58.591 --> 00:40:00.502 and to love your neighbor as yourself. 00:40:00.502 --> 00:40:02.619 That's the end of it all. 00:40:02.619 --> 00:40:06.062 As I said awhile back, 00:40:06.062 --> 00:40:08.057 Christianity is not primarily 00:40:08.057 --> 00:40:10.028 an ethical or moralistic religion. 00:40:10.028 --> 00:40:12.316 We're not about just keeping rules. 00:40:12.316 --> 00:40:13.546 We're not. 00:40:13.546 --> 00:40:16.568 We're about an intimate relationship with the living God, 00:40:16.568 --> 00:40:18.212 loving Him with all our heart 00:40:18.212 --> 00:40:21.319 and entering into intimate relationships with people 00:40:21.319 --> 00:40:23.136 and loving them with all our heart 00:40:23.136 --> 00:40:27.093 and showing them the mercy that God shows us. 00:40:27.093 --> 00:40:30.247 That's the fulfillment of the Law. 00:40:30.247 --> 00:40:33.262 But then again, we are a people 00:40:33.262 --> 00:40:36.527 in a very distorted culture. 00:40:36.527 --> 00:40:39.860 And wisdom was not born with you 00:40:39.860 --> 00:40:40.750 at your physical birth, 00:40:40.750 --> 00:40:41.985 and I want to tell you, 00:40:41.985 --> 00:40:43.405 wisdom was not born with you 00:40:43.405 --> 00:40:44.963 in your spiritual birth. 00:40:44.963 --> 00:40:46.946 Wisdom is something that is acquired. 00:40:46.946 --> 00:40:48.781 Now that you have become a Christian, 00:40:48.781 --> 00:40:50.028 you have the capabilities 00:40:50.028 --> 00:40:52.372 of acquiring wisdom. 00:40:52.372 --> 00:40:55.515 But wisdom is necessary. NOTE Paragraph 00:40:55.515 --> 00:40:58.836 Now, every time I talk 00:40:58.836 --> 00:41:00.451 in the last few years 00:41:00.451 --> 00:41:02.638 about the Law of God, 00:41:02.638 --> 00:41:04.206 the commands of God, 00:41:04.206 --> 00:41:05.802 everyone screws up their face 00:41:05.802 --> 00:41:07.593 and gets really mad. 00:41:07.593 --> 00:41:09.974 They go, "We're free from the Law." 00:41:09.974 --> 00:41:12.676 "We're free from the Law." 00:41:12.676 --> 00:41:14.720 And I'm thinking, does anybody even know 00:41:14.720 --> 00:41:16.653 what that means anymore? 00:41:16.653 --> 00:41:18.375 Free from the Law. 00:41:18.375 --> 00:41:21.020 "The Law has nothing to do with us. 00:41:21.020 --> 00:41:24.671 Absolutely nothing! We're free!" 00:41:24.671 --> 00:41:25.983 Free to what? 00:41:25.983 --> 00:41:27.460 "Free to do whatever we want. 00:41:27.460 --> 00:41:28.514 We believe in Jesus. 00:41:28.514 --> 00:41:30.539 We're free to do whatever we want." 00:41:30.539 --> 00:41:32.567 Well, hold on. 00:41:32.567 --> 00:41:35.705 First of all, a person who is unconverted - 00:41:35.705 --> 00:41:38.417 which most people who call themselves Christians are - 00:41:38.417 --> 00:41:40.453 and they have that kind of teaching, 00:41:40.453 --> 00:41:42.164 (I'm free to do whatever I want), 00:41:42.164 --> 00:41:43.848 but their heart's not been changed 00:41:43.848 --> 00:41:46.406 so their heart is filled with worldly, carnal desires. 00:41:46.406 --> 00:41:47.685 So they go to church every Sunday 00:41:47.685 --> 00:41:49.611 and worship God in the praise service 00:41:49.611 --> 00:41:51.525 and then they live like an abomination 00:41:51.525 --> 00:41:53.203 throughout the week. 00:41:53.203 --> 00:41:55.523 Let's figure out what we're saying here. 00:41:55.523 --> 00:41:57.056 Now let me ask you a question, 00:41:57.056 --> 00:41:59.871 when it says that we're free from the Law, 00:41:59.871 --> 00:42:02.786 what do you think that means? 00:42:02.786 --> 00:42:05.993 That we no longer have to obey God? 00:42:05.993 --> 00:42:08.841 Or does it mean we're just supposed to love one another? 00:42:08.841 --> 00:42:10.691 But herein lies a big problem. 00:42:10.691 --> 00:42:15.502 People have some really distorted views on love. 00:42:15.502 --> 00:42:17.991 So what are we talking about? 00:42:17.991 --> 00:42:21.507 If we say that we don't even need the Law, 00:42:21.507 --> 00:42:23.224 we don't need to think about it, 00:42:23.224 --> 00:42:24.983 we don't need to read it or anything, 00:42:24.983 --> 00:42:26.688 then you know what we have to do? 00:42:26.688 --> 00:42:29.096 We have to literally cut out the book of Psalms 00:42:29.096 --> 00:42:30.807 and throw it away. 00:42:30.807 --> 00:42:31.766 Do you realize that? 00:42:31.766 --> 00:42:33.792 Because the book of Psalms - look at it. 00:42:33.792 --> 00:42:35.620 "I delight in Your Law." 00:42:35.620 --> 00:42:37.601 "Your precepts are true." 00:42:37.601 --> 00:42:41.358 What are we going to do? 00:42:41.358 --> 00:42:43.436 Or as one person said one time 00:42:43.436 --> 00:42:45.755 in a meeting I was holding. 00:42:45.755 --> 00:42:47.816 It was a meeting in a conference thing 00:42:47.816 --> 00:42:49.415 and I was talking about the Law, 00:42:49.415 --> 00:42:51.398 and this person raised their hand and said, 00:42:51.398 --> 00:42:52.907 "We're free from the Law 00:42:52.907 --> 00:42:54.640 and you're trying to put us under 00:42:54.640 --> 00:42:56.130 the bondage of the Law 00:42:56.130 --> 00:42:58.343 that oppresses us..." 00:42:58.343 --> 00:43:00.208 And I said, 00:43:00.208 --> 00:43:02.687 "Wow." 00:43:02.687 --> 00:43:07.145 I said, "Okay, let me ask you a question. 00:43:07.145 --> 00:43:09.904 You just told me that the Law of God 00:43:09.904 --> 00:43:13.272 is oppressive, it's restricting, 00:43:13.272 --> 00:43:14.819 restrains you 00:43:14.819 --> 00:43:16.429 and puts you in bondage. 00:43:16.429 --> 00:43:18.453 Okay. 00:43:18.453 --> 00:43:21.230 Let's just go over some of the laws 00:43:21.230 --> 00:43:23.708 and you tell me which one of these 00:43:23.708 --> 00:43:25.253 is restraining you from doing 00:43:25.253 --> 00:43:26.662 what you want to do." 00:43:26.662 --> 00:43:30.373 Let's see: You shall have no other gods before Me. 00:43:30.373 --> 00:43:32.238 Are you mad about that? 00:43:32.238 --> 00:43:36.051 Because that's restraining you from having other gods? 00:43:36.051 --> 00:43:37.620 Let's try another one. 00:43:37.620 --> 00:43:41.141 You're not to steal your neighbor's wife. 00:43:41.141 --> 00:43:43.894 Is that oppressive to you? 00:43:43.894 --> 00:43:47.472 You shall not lie. 00:43:47.472 --> 00:43:50.129 And I just went down through all the laws of God 00:43:50.129 --> 00:43:51.239 that I could remember, 00:43:51.239 --> 00:43:53.062 and in the end I'm sitting there 00:43:53.062 --> 00:43:55.380 and the man starts to kind of slump in his chair 00:43:55.380 --> 00:43:57.744 because he knew what was happening. 00:43:57.744 --> 00:44:01.209 I said if these beautiful laws 00:44:01.209 --> 00:44:02.904 are oppressive to you 00:44:02.904 --> 00:44:05.497 and restraining what you really want to do, 00:44:05.497 --> 00:44:11.451 what kind of evil person are you? 00:44:11.451 --> 00:44:13.044 You see? NOTE Paragraph 00:44:13.044 --> 00:44:15.791 Now when He says we're free from the bondage of the Law, 00:44:15.791 --> 00:44:20.040 what it means is all those detailed laws of sacrifice, 00:44:20.040 --> 00:44:22.576 all those things have been fulfilled in Christ. 00:44:22.576 --> 00:44:25.585 That's part of it, but the big part of it is just this: 00:44:25.585 --> 00:44:29.430 The Law says do this and live. 00:44:29.430 --> 00:44:32.269 Now, I want to tell you something. That's not bad. 00:44:32.269 --> 00:44:35.010 That's not sinful - that statement. 00:44:35.010 --> 00:44:36.559 But you see, we're under bondage 00:44:36.559 --> 00:44:38.980 because we can't do those things. 00:44:38.980 --> 00:44:40.878 And therefore we can't live. 00:44:40.878 --> 00:44:42.629 And therefore, we should die. 00:44:42.629 --> 00:44:45.158 Because we have violated all the Law. 00:44:45.158 --> 00:44:48.366 We're free from that curse of the Law. 00:44:48.366 --> 00:44:50.079 That's not because the Law is bad, 00:44:50.079 --> 00:44:51.395 it's because we were bad. 00:44:51.395 --> 00:44:52.967 We're free from it because Christ 00:44:52.967 --> 00:44:54.237 has fulfilled the Law 00:44:54.237 --> 00:44:56.598 and died in our place. 00:44:56.598 --> 00:44:58.901 So we're not justified by the Law. 00:44:58.901 --> 00:45:02.238 And we shouldn't be legalistic people 00:45:02.238 --> 00:45:03.860 or trying to kill other people 00:45:03.860 --> 00:45:05.101 with all our rules. 00:45:05.101 --> 00:45:06.605 But the fact of the matter is 00:45:06.605 --> 00:45:08.295 I delight in the Law of God. 00:45:08.295 --> 00:45:10.106 I love the book of Proverbs. 00:45:10.106 --> 00:45:12.292 I get excited even about the commandment 00:45:12.292 --> 00:45:14.051 in the Old Testament that says 00:45:14.051 --> 00:45:15.541 you ought to build a fence 00:45:15.541 --> 00:45:17.123 around the roof of your house. 00:45:17.123 --> 00:45:18.694 And someone says, well, do you 00:45:18.694 --> 00:45:20.786 have a fence around the roof of your house? 00:45:20.786 --> 00:45:22.854 No. 00:45:22.854 --> 00:45:25.953 Well, are you disobeying that law? No. 00:45:25.953 --> 00:45:28.458 See, you have to understand what it's saying. 00:45:28.458 --> 00:45:30.750 You build a fence around the roof of your house 00:45:30.750 --> 00:45:32.558 because in that time, most people - 00:45:32.558 --> 00:45:33.896 especially in the summer - 00:45:33.896 --> 00:45:36.501 lived on the roof of their house. 00:45:36.501 --> 00:45:39.577 And you build a fence around the roof of your house 00:45:39.577 --> 00:45:41.045 because you love your neighbor 00:45:41.045 --> 00:45:44.110 and you don't want him to fall off your roof. 00:45:44.110 --> 00:45:45.956 And actually, some of our common laws 00:45:45.956 --> 00:45:48.051 in this country 00:45:48.051 --> 00:45:49.986 with regard to property 00:45:49.986 --> 00:45:51.411 and the welfare of others 00:45:51.411 --> 00:45:54.116 are based upon that law. 00:45:54.116 --> 00:45:56.700 I don't find anything in the law 00:45:56.700 --> 00:45:59.541 that's displeasing. 00:45:59.541 --> 00:46:01.430 I can delight in it. 00:46:01.430 --> 00:46:03.673 The wisdom that's found 00:46:03.673 --> 00:46:06.266 in Proverbs and in the Law itself 00:46:06.266 --> 00:46:09.059 protects my marriage, 00:46:09.059 --> 00:46:11.555 shows me how to raise my children. 00:46:11.555 --> 00:46:12.988 So if you're telling me: 00:46:12.988 --> 00:46:14.386 Washer, don't put me under 00:46:14.386 --> 00:46:15.810 the bondage of the Law, 00:46:15.810 --> 00:46:21.169 I'm going, just exactly what do you want to do? 00:46:21.169 --> 00:46:30.021 Do you see? NOTE Paragraph 00:46:30.021 --> 00:46:33.159 So how do we abide in Christ? 00:46:33.159 --> 00:46:37.515 Abiding in Christ is not completed 00:46:37.515 --> 00:46:39.825 by just our obedience 00:46:39.825 --> 00:46:41.458 to the Word of God. 00:46:41.458 --> 00:46:44.469 Because our relationship is much more than that. 00:46:44.469 --> 00:46:46.918 But abiding in Christ cannot be separated 00:46:46.918 --> 00:46:48.746 from His Word, His commands, 00:46:48.746 --> 00:46:51.870 and obedience to Him. 00:46:51.870 --> 00:46:55.515 What is it? Romans 12:2? 00:46:55.515 --> 00:47:00.395 Renewing our mind in the Word of God. 00:47:00.395 --> 00:47:01.633 Isn't it amazing? 00:47:01.633 --> 00:47:03.646 Some of you came here this week 00:47:03.646 --> 00:47:08.853 and you probably have not been in this church before 00:47:08.853 --> 00:47:10.894 and you're going man, 00:47:10.894 --> 00:47:13.789 they read the Bible too much 00:47:13.789 --> 00:47:15.347 in their services. 00:47:15.347 --> 00:47:17.229 It's kind of boring just sitting there 00:47:17.229 --> 00:47:19.518 listening to them read a whole chapter. 00:47:19.518 --> 00:47:22.460 What does that say about you? 00:47:22.460 --> 00:47:26.455 What does it say about contemporary Christianity? 00:47:26.455 --> 00:47:28.289 That the Scriptures aren't even read 00:47:28.289 --> 00:47:31.335 when exactly in 1 Timothy it says they should be. 00:47:31.335 --> 00:47:33.431 Publicly. 00:47:33.431 --> 00:47:36.484 See? The reason why we're so weak 00:47:36.484 --> 00:47:38.233 in Christianity today 00:47:38.233 --> 00:47:40.229 is because we have a neglect of the Word. NOTE Paragraph 00:47:40.229 --> 00:47:43.853 Now listen to this. Psalm 1:2-3. 00:47:43.853 --> 00:47:46.040 "But his delight - (the righteous man) - 00:47:46.040 --> 00:47:48.294 his delight is in the Law of the Lord, 00:47:48.294 --> 00:47:51.458 and in His Law he meditates day and night. 00:47:51.458 --> 00:47:54.363 He will be like a tree firmly planted 00:47:54.363 --> 00:47:55.842 by streams of water 00:47:55.842 --> 00:47:57.652 which yields its fruit in its season, 00:47:57.652 --> 00:47:59.369 and its leaf does not wither, 00:47:59.369 --> 00:48:02.943 and whatever he does, he prospers." 00:48:02.943 --> 00:48:05.384 Fruit-bearing - do you see this? 00:48:05.384 --> 00:48:09.082 When Jesus is teaching, please understand me, 00:48:09.082 --> 00:48:11.556 it's not plagiarism, okay? 00:48:11.556 --> 00:48:13.399 Because He wrote the Old Testament. 00:48:13.399 --> 00:48:15.315 But most of His Gospel teaching 00:48:15.315 --> 00:48:17.080 is drawn right out of what He said 00:48:17.080 --> 00:48:18.793 in the Old Testament. 00:48:18.793 --> 00:48:20.936 Do you understand that? 00:48:20.936 --> 00:48:22.729 He's been talking about fruit-bearing 00:48:22.729 --> 00:48:24.785 for a long time. 00:48:24.785 --> 00:48:26.461 And every time He talks about it, 00:48:26.461 --> 00:48:29.668 it has something to do with His Word, 00:48:29.668 --> 00:48:31.370 with the Word of God. NOTE Paragraph 00:48:31.370 --> 00:48:32.790 Young people, you come to me, 00:48:32.790 --> 00:48:34.391 and you say, you know, Brother Paul, 00:48:34.391 --> 00:48:35.572 I've been listening to your sermons. 00:48:35.572 --> 00:48:37.124 I want to grow. I want to be used of God. 00:48:37.124 --> 00:48:38.184 What should I do? 00:48:38.184 --> 00:48:41.598 I always tell them Robert Murray McCheyne. 00:48:41.598 --> 00:48:44.342 They go, "Robert Murray McCheyne. Who is that?" 00:48:44.342 --> 00:48:46.332 He's a young man who died when he was 28. 00:48:46.332 --> 00:48:48.508 Probably had progressed more in holiness 00:48:48.508 --> 00:48:51.411 than just about anybody at that age. 00:48:51.411 --> 00:48:52.922 And he has a reading list. 00:48:52.922 --> 00:48:54.880 He read through the New Testament twice a year 00:48:54.880 --> 00:48:58.111 and the Old Testament once a year. 00:48:58.111 --> 00:48:59.288 Do that. 00:48:59.288 --> 00:49:00.609 Get his reading list. Do that. 00:49:00.609 --> 00:49:01.873 Read through the Scriptures 00:49:01.873 --> 00:49:03.148 over and over and over. 00:49:03.148 --> 00:49:05.018 And if you are a brand new believer, 00:49:05.018 --> 00:49:06.773 you know, I'm not going to tell you 00:49:06.773 --> 00:49:08.053 you should read a little. 00:49:08.053 --> 00:49:09.572 Man, if you're a new believer, 00:49:09.572 --> 00:49:11.413 you're probably on fire. 00:49:11.413 --> 00:49:14.035 Read the Bible hours a day. 00:49:14.035 --> 00:49:17.357 Consume it. 00:49:17.357 --> 00:49:19.158 You want to be used of God? 00:49:19.158 --> 00:49:21.111 Prove it. 00:49:21.111 --> 00:49:22.720 You want to be fruitful? 00:49:22.720 --> 00:49:25.314 Prove it. 00:49:25.314 --> 00:49:26.958 Oh, my dear friend, my only regret 00:49:26.958 --> 00:49:28.208 in the last thirty years 00:49:28.208 --> 00:49:30.078 is not that I studied the Bible too much, 00:49:30.078 --> 00:49:31.750 as that I allowed myself to be 00:49:31.750 --> 00:49:37.088 distracted from it so much. 00:49:37.088 --> 00:49:40.187 So abiding in Christ is abiding in His Word. 00:49:40.187 --> 00:49:42.293 Saturating our lives in His Word 00:49:42.293 --> 00:49:43.631 and seeking to obey Him. NOTE Paragraph 00:49:43.631 --> 00:49:46.201 Now, we come to a second thing. 00:49:46.201 --> 00:49:49.745 Abiding in Christ is through continuous - 00:49:49.745 --> 00:49:51.223 now get ready - 00:49:51.223 --> 00:49:55.831 continuous dependence on prayer, 00:49:55.831 --> 00:49:58.895 constant reliance upon prayer, 00:49:58.895 --> 00:50:02.736 persistent spiritual imbibing 00:50:02.736 --> 00:50:06.591 of the life and power of Jesus Christ 00:50:06.591 --> 00:50:08.505 through prayer. 00:50:08.505 --> 00:50:11.296 Now let me quote D.A. Carson. 00:50:11.296 --> 00:50:15.146 "The text suggests (this is unbelievable - 00:50:15.146 --> 00:50:16.841 this is powerful) 00:50:16.841 --> 00:50:18.986 The text suggests 00:50:18.986 --> 00:50:22.093 that the fruit in the vine imagery 00:50:22.093 --> 00:50:25.733 represents everything that is the product 00:50:25.733 --> 00:50:31.582 of effective prayer in Jesus' name." 00:50:31.582 --> 00:50:36.237 Now, I want us to look at verse 7. 00:50:36.237 --> 00:50:37.769 It's very interesting. He says, 00:50:37.769 --> 00:50:39.395 "If you abide in Me, 00:50:39.395 --> 00:50:41.523 and My words abide in you, 00:50:41.523 --> 00:50:44.939 ask whatever you wish 00:50:44.939 --> 00:50:48.563 and it will be done for you." 00:50:48.563 --> 00:50:49.880 Look in verse 16. 00:50:49.880 --> 00:50:51.873 "You did not choose Me, but I chose you 00:50:51.873 --> 00:50:54.314 and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit 00:50:54.314 --> 00:50:56.440 and that your fruit would remain, 00:50:56.440 --> 00:51:01.576 so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name, 00:51:01.576 --> 00:51:07.011 He may give to you." 00:51:07.011 --> 00:51:08.537 Now, let's look at this. 00:51:08.537 --> 00:51:11.027 This is extremely important. 00:51:11.027 --> 00:51:12.971 There's a lot of mystery here 00:51:12.971 --> 00:51:14.425 that I cannot explain to you. 00:51:14.425 --> 00:51:15.313 No one can. 00:51:15.313 --> 00:51:17.647 As a matter of fact, if you meet someone who can, 00:51:17.647 --> 00:51:19.420 run from them. They're a heretic. 00:51:19.420 --> 00:51:23.879 There's some mystery in this passage. 00:51:23.879 --> 00:51:25.817 This is one of those texts 00:51:25.817 --> 00:51:28.551 where you're just going to have to take God at His Word. 00:51:28.551 --> 00:51:30.652 Because if you try to make this fit 00:51:30.652 --> 00:51:33.536 into some system of thought, 00:51:33.536 --> 00:51:35.825 you're going to explain the passage away. 00:51:35.825 --> 00:51:37.678 And you don't want to do that. NOTE Paragraph 00:51:37.678 --> 00:51:43.725 Now, isn't it amazing that in both passages 00:51:43.725 --> 00:51:45.379 He's talking about prayer 00:51:45.379 --> 00:51:48.275 and it's in the context of bearing fruit. 00:51:48.275 --> 00:51:51.678 That to be a fruitful Christian, 00:51:51.678 --> 00:51:55.417 prayer is absolutely essential - 00:51:55.417 --> 00:51:57.702 prayer in the name of Jesus; 00:51:57.702 --> 00:52:01.214 prayer believing that God 00:52:01.214 --> 00:52:03.426 (unintelligible). 00:52:03.426 --> 00:52:06.715 But I also want you to notice something. 00:52:06.715 --> 00:52:09.242 In verse 7, He says, "Abide in Me 00:52:09.242 --> 00:52:12.850 and My words abide in you." 00:52:12.850 --> 00:52:15.458 So what are we seeing here? 00:52:15.458 --> 00:52:18.129 (incomplete thought) 00:52:18.129 --> 00:52:19.650 We're not seeing this - 00:52:19.650 --> 00:52:20.887 we're not seeing a person 00:52:20.887 --> 00:52:23.445 who neglects the Word of God, 00:52:23.445 --> 00:52:26.354 whose mind is not renewed at all. 00:52:26.354 --> 00:52:28.837 We're not talking about a person 00:52:28.837 --> 00:52:33.428 who doesn't have the mind of Christ. 00:52:33.428 --> 00:52:35.308 Okay? We're not talking about a person 00:52:35.308 --> 00:52:37.273 who neglects the Word of God 00:52:37.273 --> 00:52:40.032 and then just asks a whole bunch of stuff. 00:52:40.032 --> 00:52:43.441 Because usually the stuff they ask for 00:52:43.441 --> 00:52:47.862 are carnal and outside of God's will. 00:52:47.862 --> 00:52:49.988 But what we're talking about 00:52:49.988 --> 00:52:53.078 is a person who is abiding in Christ 00:52:53.078 --> 00:52:55.324 and he is abiding in the Word of Christ, 00:52:55.324 --> 00:52:57.446 and the Word of Christ is abiding in him. 00:52:57.446 --> 00:53:00.110 What is it? We're talking about a person 00:53:00.110 --> 00:53:02.727 who through their constant imbibing 00:53:02.727 --> 00:53:03.995 upon the Word of God, 00:53:03.995 --> 00:53:06.270 their constant feeding upon the Word of God, 00:53:06.270 --> 00:53:08.958 the Word of God constantly renewing their mind, 00:53:08.958 --> 00:53:12.379 they are beginning to develop what? 00:53:12.379 --> 00:53:18.046 The mind of Christ. 00:53:18.046 --> 00:53:20.088 They are beginning to know, 00:53:20.088 --> 00:53:22.018 as Romans 12:1-2 says, 00:53:22.018 --> 00:53:23.517 they are beginning to know 00:53:23.517 --> 00:53:26.325 what the will of God is. 00:53:26.325 --> 00:53:27.291 Isn't that amazing? 00:53:27.291 --> 00:53:28.799 He says you may renew your mind 00:53:28.799 --> 00:53:33.082 that you may know what the will of God is. 00:53:33.082 --> 00:53:34.379 Okay? NOTE Paragraph 00:53:34.379 --> 00:53:41.762 Now... 00:53:41.762 --> 00:53:43.434 What is prayer? 00:53:43.434 --> 00:53:45.108 John Piper refers to it 00:53:45.108 --> 00:53:47.853 as a warfare walkie-talkie. 00:53:47.853 --> 00:53:49.933 And I agree with him. 00:53:49.933 --> 00:53:51.016 As a matter of fact, 00:53:51.016 --> 00:53:54.837 it's very difficult for me to see prayer at all 00:53:54.837 --> 00:53:59.735 apart from our place in the Kingdom of Heaven. 00:53:59.735 --> 00:54:01.427 Most people see prayer 00:54:01.427 --> 00:54:05.031 in a completely wrong way. 00:54:05.031 --> 00:54:07.051 You see prayer as: 00:54:07.051 --> 00:54:11.832 I think I have a need and I ask God to meet it. 00:54:11.832 --> 00:54:15.303 That's not the context of prayer. 00:54:15.303 --> 00:54:19.741 The context of prayer is set forth for us where? 00:54:19.741 --> 00:54:22.048 In Matthew 6. 00:54:22.048 --> 00:54:24.011 Jesus says: pray this way. 00:54:24.011 --> 00:54:25.669 Now listen very carefully. 00:54:25.669 --> 00:54:27.155 Don't turn it into cliche. 00:54:27.155 --> 00:54:30.402 Our Father, Who art in Heaven... 00:54:30.402 --> 00:54:32.702 Now, let's just take a look at that. 00:54:32.702 --> 00:54:36.506 You talk about the perfect psychology of prayer? 00:54:36.506 --> 00:54:38.397 Look at the way He's addressing God. 00:54:38.397 --> 00:54:40.016 Our Father. 00:54:40.016 --> 00:54:42.858 Wow! 00:54:42.858 --> 00:54:45.929 It demonstrates the intimacy, doesn't it. 00:54:45.929 --> 00:54:48.873 But then He goes: Who art in Heaven. 00:54:48.873 --> 00:54:51.843 Your Father happens to be the God of the universe 00:54:51.843 --> 00:54:54.703 and you ought to treat Him as such. 00:54:54.703 --> 00:54:56.544 Many of you young people were raised 00:54:56.544 --> 00:54:59.341 with no respect whatsoever for age, 00:54:59.341 --> 00:55:01.814 authority, or anything. 00:55:01.814 --> 00:55:06.176 I was out at a school of a very, very famous preacher. 00:55:06.176 --> 00:55:07.381 (Incomplete thought) 00:55:07.381 --> 00:55:08.823 I'm going to mention his name. 00:55:08.823 --> 00:55:10.320 John MacArthur. 00:55:10.320 --> 00:55:12.264 And I was out there and I was teaching 00:55:12.264 --> 00:55:15.237 at Master's College for two days. 00:55:15.237 --> 00:55:18.526 And I was walking around going: 00:55:18.526 --> 00:55:21.819 Wow! John MacArthur's here. 00:55:21.819 --> 00:55:23.575 I wonder if I'll get to see him. 00:55:23.575 --> 00:55:25.590 I'm fifty years old! 00:55:25.590 --> 00:55:28.095 And I'm going I hope I get to see him. 00:55:28.095 --> 00:55:30.462 What a privilege! 00:55:30.462 --> 00:55:32.451 And little 17 year old students 00:55:32.451 --> 00:55:33.730 that walk up to me and go: 00:55:33.730 --> 00:55:37.533 "Hey! Brother Paul! Have you met John?" 00:55:37.533 --> 00:55:40.264 And I'd go, "What?" 00:55:40.264 --> 00:55:41.775 "John!" 00:55:41.775 --> 00:55:43.585 "John who?" 00:55:43.585 --> 00:55:46.244 "Well, John! John MacArthur." 00:55:46.244 --> 00:55:49.097 And I'd look at them and I'd go, 00:55:49.097 --> 00:55:51.737 "I am fifty years old. 00:55:51.737 --> 00:55:57.721 I have walked through hell with Christ. 00:55:57.721 --> 00:56:01.917 I have suffered for the cause of Christ. 00:56:01.917 --> 00:56:05.497 I bear so many wounds from battles, 00:56:05.497 --> 00:56:10.149 and I would never call him by his first name." 00:56:10.149 --> 00:56:18.335 We have no sense of honor anymore. 00:56:18.335 --> 00:56:20.769 And when we go to God, this whole idea 00:56:20.769 --> 00:56:23.047 of Abba, Father meaning "Daddy," 00:56:23.047 --> 00:56:24.160 be very careful. 00:56:24.160 --> 00:56:26.923 That interpretation's not really correct. 00:56:26.923 --> 00:56:29.195 It does demonstrate intimacy, 00:56:29.195 --> 00:56:31.552 but it doesn't demonstrate "daddy." 00:56:31.552 --> 00:56:32.714 It doesn't. I'm sorry. 00:56:32.714 --> 00:56:34.356 In the language, it doesn't work. 00:56:34.356 --> 00:56:37.087 It may be really good for a contemporary Christian song, 00:56:37.087 --> 00:56:38.564 but it doesn't work. 00:56:38.564 --> 00:56:40.008 It's not biblical 00:56:40.008 --> 00:56:41.411 because it does not denote 00:56:41.411 --> 00:56:43.203 the other aspects of that intimacy 00:56:43.203 --> 00:56:46.047 which is reverence. NOTE Paragraph 00:56:46.047 --> 00:56:49.217 Now, He says, "Our Father, Who art in Heaven..." 00:56:49.217 --> 00:56:51.926 So this perfect balance of intimacy and fear. 00:56:51.926 --> 00:56:53.888 And then He says - 00:56:53.888 --> 00:56:56.301 and this is the context of all praying - 00:56:56.301 --> 00:56:58.747 "hallowed be Thy name." 00:56:58.747 --> 00:57:00.114 What He's saying there is: 00:57:00.114 --> 00:57:01.596 special be Your name. 00:57:01.596 --> 00:57:03.389 Unique be Your name. 00:57:03.389 --> 00:57:05.523 It's basically Malachi. 00:57:05.523 --> 00:57:07.658 That His name be great among the nations 00:57:07.658 --> 00:57:09.320 from the rising to the setting of the sun. 00:57:09.320 --> 00:57:10.585 There you go again - Jesus drawing 00:57:10.585 --> 00:57:11.913 from the Old Testament, 00:57:11.913 --> 00:57:14.455 but it's okay, He wrote it. 00:57:14.455 --> 00:57:16.008 And the whole idea is: 00:57:16.008 --> 00:57:17.479 my whole prayer, 00:57:17.479 --> 00:57:18.705 my whole prayer life, 00:57:18.705 --> 00:57:20.384 everything I'm ever going to ask You 00:57:20.384 --> 00:57:22.149 is going to be in the context 00:57:22.149 --> 00:57:23.677 that my greatest desire 00:57:23.677 --> 00:57:25.705 is that Your name be set apart 00:57:25.705 --> 00:57:27.887 as supreme above all things; 00:57:27.887 --> 00:57:30.535 that Your Kingdom come 00:57:30.535 --> 00:57:31.991 and that Your will be done. 00:57:31.991 --> 00:57:33.667 That's the context of all praying. 00:57:33.667 --> 00:57:35.205 And if you don't have that context, 00:57:35.205 --> 00:57:36.962 you're not praying. NOTE Paragraph 00:57:36.962 --> 00:57:40.997 So, when we talk about asking the Father for things - 00:57:40.997 --> 00:57:42.817 for many, many years, as some of you know, 00:57:42.817 --> 00:57:43.946 I've had my hips replaced, 00:57:43.946 --> 00:57:45.310 my wrist is made of metal, 00:57:45.310 --> 00:57:47.470 I've lived in great deals of pain 00:57:47.470 --> 00:57:48.495 and everything else 00:57:48.495 --> 00:57:49.701 and I want to be honest with you. 00:57:49.701 --> 00:57:51.202 I have prayed for God to heal me. 00:57:51.202 --> 00:57:52.642 And to some degree, He has. 00:57:52.642 --> 00:57:55.781 He has really helped me in this last year. 00:57:55.781 --> 00:57:57.145 But here's what I want you to see. 00:57:57.145 --> 00:57:59.794 The context of that praying: God heal me. 00:57:59.794 --> 00:58:01.363 I hurt so bad. 00:58:01.363 --> 00:58:04.122 Was this: 00:58:04.122 --> 00:58:07.820 If through my healing 00:58:07.820 --> 00:58:10.744 Your name will be held supreme 00:58:10.744 --> 00:58:13.164 and Your kingdom will come 00:58:13.164 --> 00:58:14.597 to a greater degree, 00:58:14.597 --> 00:58:16.917 and the will of God will be advanced 00:58:16.917 --> 00:58:18.165 and submitted to, 00:58:18.165 --> 00:58:20.207 then heal my body. 00:58:20.207 --> 00:58:23.960 But if not, then let me die in this pain 00:58:23.960 --> 00:58:27.415 so long as Your kingdom come. 00:58:27.415 --> 00:58:30.163 So all our asking from God 00:58:30.163 --> 00:58:33.120 is in the context of our greatest desire 00:58:33.120 --> 00:58:34.986 which is His glory 00:58:34.986 --> 00:58:38.275 and the advancement of His kingdom. 00:58:38.275 --> 00:58:42.245 Now you're praying. 00:58:42.245 --> 00:58:44.339 It's not just: I have a want. 00:58:44.339 --> 00:58:45.337 I have a need. 00:58:45.337 --> 00:58:47.169 I have a desire. 00:58:47.169 --> 00:58:53.065 But it's: whatever will bring You glory. 00:58:53.065 --> 00:58:55.219 And it's in that context 00:58:55.219 --> 00:58:57.414 with that mind of Christ 00:58:57.414 --> 00:59:01.787 that we begin to pray. 00:59:01.787 --> 00:59:04.606 And notice, this praying: "Ask in My name." 00:59:04.606 --> 00:59:05.875 What are you asking for? 00:59:05.875 --> 00:59:07.574 You're asking to bear fruit. 00:59:07.574 --> 00:59:09.242 You're asking for things 00:59:09.242 --> 00:59:11.455 that are genuine fruit. 00:59:11.455 --> 00:59:13.106 And what begins to happen 00:59:13.106 --> 00:59:14.791 is you sort of start disappearing 00:59:14.791 --> 00:59:17.330 in the whole equation. 00:59:17.330 --> 00:59:19.119 Lord, I'm an instrument. 00:59:19.119 --> 00:59:20.658 This is not about me. 00:59:20.658 --> 00:59:23.136 This is about You. 00:59:23.136 --> 00:59:26.282 Lord, if through this trial 00:59:26.282 --> 00:59:27.690 Your kingdom will advance, 00:59:27.690 --> 00:59:29.685 allow me to continue in it. 00:59:29.685 --> 00:59:32.190 Take it away only until the work is done. 00:59:32.190 --> 00:59:35.512 Lord, everything in my life is about one thing: 00:59:35.512 --> 00:59:38.937 the advancement of Your kingdom. 00:59:38.937 --> 00:59:42.938 And so in that context, we pray. NOTE Paragraph 00:59:42.938 --> 00:59:46.484 You know, I've gone to prayer meetings in churches, 00:59:46.484 --> 00:59:49.683 and I'll be honest with you, 00:59:49.683 --> 00:59:52.876 it's enough to break your heart. 00:59:52.876 --> 00:59:56.472 It's enough to break your heart. 00:59:56.472 --> 01:00:00.434 It sounds literally like a medical convention. 01:00:00.434 --> 01:00:02.206 It literally does. 01:00:02.206 --> 01:00:04.600 Now, I know that we need to pray for the sick. 01:00:04.600 --> 01:00:06.681 I know that, but I have sat in prayer meetings 01:00:06.681 --> 01:00:08.068 in the United States of America 01:00:08.068 --> 01:00:10.653 and watched while 45 minutes, they didn't even pray. 01:00:10.653 --> 01:00:13.784 Just people stood up and shared 01:00:13.784 --> 01:00:15.860 about people who were sick. 01:00:15.860 --> 01:00:17.716 And a big part of it was just gossip. 01:00:17.716 --> 01:00:20.795 People wanted to talk about stuff. 01:00:20.795 --> 01:00:24.031 And then I think, four billion people 01:00:24.031 --> 01:00:26.816 have not heard a clear Gospel. 01:00:26.816 --> 01:00:30.155 We have believers who are being massacred in Iran. 01:00:30.155 --> 01:00:33.686 We have all these things going on in the kingdom. 01:00:33.686 --> 01:00:37.878 And the only thing that we can pray about are gallbladders. 01:00:37.878 --> 01:00:41.824 I mean, there's something terribly wrong. 01:00:41.824 --> 01:00:44.850 And we wonder why doesn't God visit us in our prayer meetings? 01:00:44.850 --> 01:00:48.204 You're not kingdom-praying. 01:00:48.204 --> 01:00:49.873 If you'll seek first the kingdom, 01:00:49.873 --> 01:00:52.324 He'll take care of all these other little things 01:00:52.324 --> 01:00:56.430 you're so preoccupied about. 01:00:56.430 --> 01:00:58.694 And so if you're going to be fruitful, 01:00:58.694 --> 01:01:00.703 you must pray. 01:01:00.703 --> 01:01:02.498 You must read the Word and pray, 01:01:02.498 --> 01:01:04.807 God, make me fruitful, make me fruitful. 01:01:04.807 --> 01:01:06.756 And as you begin to understand 01:01:06.756 --> 01:01:08.396 the will of God - 01:01:08.396 --> 01:01:11.125 for example, it is God's will 01:01:11.125 --> 01:01:14.032 that every creature under heaven 01:01:14.032 --> 01:01:16.474 hear the Word of God, 01:01:16.474 --> 01:01:18.131 hear the Gospel. 01:01:18.131 --> 01:01:20.654 So you pray and you fast, 01:01:20.654 --> 01:01:22.387 and one day you get a phone call 01:01:22.387 --> 01:01:24.214 and you find that an entire country 01:01:24.214 --> 01:01:27.924 has just opened unto you to support their missionaries. 01:01:27.924 --> 01:01:31.862 That's praying. 01:01:31.862 --> 01:01:34.888 You pray for your family who's hardened to the Gospel. 01:01:34.888 --> 01:01:37.295 You pray and you fast and then one day 01:01:37.295 --> 01:01:39.717 according to Colossians 4:1-4, 01:01:39.717 --> 01:01:44.571 a magnificent door's been opened unto you. 01:01:44.571 --> 01:01:47.197 The church has a need. It can't go. 01:01:47.197 --> 01:01:48.526 It's got a problem. 01:01:48.526 --> 01:01:50.267 Something has some kind of need. 01:01:50.267 --> 01:01:52.579 You hit your face on the floor. 01:01:52.579 --> 01:01:54.071 You cry out to God 01:01:54.071 --> 01:01:56.821 and you look for a magnificent deliverance. 01:01:56.821 --> 01:01:58.281 You've got a sin in your life 01:01:58.281 --> 01:01:59.847 that is a besetting sin 01:01:59.847 --> 01:02:01.534 and you can't be set free from it. 01:02:01.534 --> 01:02:04.398 You attack it head on with prayer, 01:02:04.398 --> 01:02:06.571 with fasting, with reading the Word, 01:02:06.571 --> 01:02:09.901 and you see victory come. 01:02:09.901 --> 01:02:13.534 This is the kind of praying that we're talking about. 01:02:13.534 --> 01:02:16.837 Never diminishing needs, 01:02:16.837 --> 01:02:19.668 but when you go in to hear people pray today 01:02:19.668 --> 01:02:21.910 it's all about them. 01:02:21.910 --> 01:02:23.751 It's all about their needs. 01:02:23.751 --> 01:02:28.979 It's like one old saint, Ravenhill, used to say, 01:02:28.979 --> 01:02:32.540 we spend more time praying saints out of heaven 01:02:32.540 --> 01:02:37.343 than praying sinners into heaven. NOTE Paragraph 01:02:37.343 --> 01:02:41.042 Now, I said that God answers our prayers 01:02:41.042 --> 01:02:43.533 when we're praying in the context of the kingdom 01:02:43.533 --> 01:02:46.648 and when our mind is being renewed 01:02:46.648 --> 01:02:48.571 so that we know what the will of God is, 01:02:48.571 --> 01:02:51.775 but I want to be very cautious here 01:02:51.775 --> 01:02:55.839 because you could misunderstand me. 01:02:55.839 --> 01:02:57.345 There's a basic idea out there 01:02:57.345 --> 01:03:00.551 especially among reformed guys that's this: 01:03:00.551 --> 01:03:06.050 God answers every prayer according to His will, 01:03:06.050 --> 01:03:08.364 but it's not the will of God to do anything. 01:03:08.364 --> 01:03:09.708 Now they wouldn't say that, 01:03:09.708 --> 01:03:11.911 but that's basically what's practiced. 01:03:11.911 --> 01:03:14.253 Everything is written off to the providence of God. 01:03:14.253 --> 01:03:16.268 It's the providence of God, providence of God. 01:03:16.268 --> 01:03:18.128 Oh, that nation is entirely without Christ? 01:03:18.128 --> 01:03:20.098 Providence of God, because if God wanted something to happen, 01:03:20.098 --> 01:03:21.391 He'd have done something. 01:03:21.391 --> 01:03:23.923 That's not the language of the New Testament. 01:03:23.923 --> 01:03:27.401 Now that might be language of a very precise camp 01:03:27.401 --> 01:03:28.778 and system of theology, 01:03:28.778 --> 01:03:31.324 but it is not the language of the New Testament 01:03:31.324 --> 01:03:34.949 nor is it the language of our forefathers 01:03:34.949 --> 01:03:37.592 that we claim to be a part of. 01:03:37.592 --> 01:03:39.034 That's not the language of Edwards. 01:03:39.034 --> 01:03:40.344 That's not the language of Whitefield. 01:03:40.344 --> 01:03:41.392 That's not the language of Spurgeon. 01:03:41.392 --> 01:03:42.753 That's not the language of William Carey. 01:03:42.753 --> 01:03:45.573 That's not the language of the Puritans. 01:03:45.573 --> 01:03:46.973 I want to tell you something, 01:03:46.973 --> 01:03:50.425 there is a mystery in prayer 01:03:50.425 --> 01:03:52.221 and I don't care if by saying this 01:03:52.221 --> 01:03:54.303 this becomes the last reformed meeting 01:03:54.303 --> 01:03:56.444 I ever have in my life, 01:03:56.444 --> 01:03:58.282 because if you reject this, 01:03:58.282 --> 01:04:02.141 you're not reformed - you're deformed. 01:04:02.141 --> 01:04:04.236 And it's this: 01:04:04.236 --> 01:04:06.044 God has decreed everything 01:04:06.044 --> 01:04:08.400 before the foundation of the world. 01:04:08.400 --> 01:04:10.279 He knows the end of all things 01:04:10.279 --> 01:04:12.043 and not because He looked 01:04:12.043 --> 01:04:13.723 through the corridors of time 01:04:13.723 --> 01:04:15.556 and saw how it was going to turn out. 01:04:15.556 --> 01:04:16.834 I don't know who invented that - 01:04:16.834 --> 01:04:18.562 I would like to see his corridors of time 01:04:18.562 --> 01:04:21.246 because it's not in the Bible. 01:04:21.246 --> 01:04:23.891 God knows the end of all things 01:04:23.891 --> 01:04:26.337 exactly how everything is going to come out 01:04:26.337 --> 01:04:28.039 and it's not because He looked through 01:04:28.039 --> 01:04:29.193 the corridors of time. 01:04:29.193 --> 01:04:31.611 It's because He's the Author 01:04:31.611 --> 01:04:33.237 of history. 01:04:33.237 --> 01:04:35.481 It's going to come out just like He decreed it. 01:04:35.481 --> 01:04:38.165 Okay? 01:04:38.165 --> 01:04:40.394 You say, wow, that's a pretty strong statement. 01:04:40.394 --> 01:04:44.602 Yes, it is, and I believe it's biblical. 01:04:44.602 --> 01:04:47.446 But I also believe that what James says is true. 01:04:47.446 --> 01:04:51.941 "You have not because you ask not." 01:04:51.941 --> 01:04:53.728 That king was given a set of arrows 01:04:53.728 --> 01:04:55.924 to smash against the floor. 01:04:55.924 --> 01:04:58.194 And if he had smashed them against that floor 01:04:58.194 --> 01:05:01.014 and shown some zeal for Yahweh, 01:05:01.014 --> 01:05:04.159 something better would have happened than what happened. 01:05:04.159 --> 01:05:06.198 And I can't put those two things together 01:05:06.198 --> 01:05:08.408 and guess what, it's not my job. 01:05:08.408 --> 01:05:09.818 Nor is it yours. 01:05:09.818 --> 01:05:11.625 I am called upon to live 01:05:11.625 --> 01:05:13.514 whatever truth is given to me 01:05:13.514 --> 01:05:16.551 realizing that if there is a God out there 01:05:16.551 --> 01:05:17.977 and there is 01:05:17.977 --> 01:05:21.124 and He is infinitely above me in His way of thinking, 01:05:21.124 --> 01:05:22.196 and He is, 01:05:22.196 --> 01:05:24.342 then why should I think I should be able 01:05:24.342 --> 01:05:27.300 to figure out everything He's told me? 01:05:27.300 --> 01:05:29.147 I know this, 01:05:29.147 --> 01:05:31.519 He is sovereign over all things. 01:05:31.519 --> 01:05:33.049 And I know this, 01:05:33.049 --> 01:05:36.408 we have not because we ask not. 01:05:36.408 --> 01:05:38.885 And I can honestly tell you this 01:05:38.885 --> 01:05:40.683 in good conscience, 01:05:40.683 --> 01:05:42.484 there are many times when I'm dealing 01:05:42.484 --> 01:05:44.531 with a country or a people group 01:05:44.531 --> 01:05:46.172 that has no Gospel, 01:05:46.172 --> 01:05:48.193 and I'm crying out to God: 01:05:48.193 --> 01:05:50.872 God, what do You want to do? 01:05:50.872 --> 01:05:52.011 What do You want to do? 01:05:52.011 --> 01:05:54.530 What do You want me to do? 01:05:54.530 --> 01:05:59.634 I'll do anything, just tell me what You want me to do. 01:05:59.634 --> 01:06:01.969 The thing that's most impressed upon my heart 01:06:01.969 --> 01:06:04.004 and more so as I grow older - 01:06:04.004 --> 01:06:06.557 so I'm not talking about youthful zeal - 01:06:06.557 --> 01:06:09.591 when I go: Lord, what do You want me to do? 01:06:09.591 --> 01:06:12.010 It seems like the answer is this: 01:06:12.010 --> 01:06:14.373 Well, what can you believe Me for? 01:06:14.373 --> 01:06:16.504 What do you want to do? 01:06:16.504 --> 01:06:21.549 How far do you want to take this thing? 01:06:21.549 --> 01:06:23.571 I told you, I'm a wild man. 01:06:23.571 --> 01:06:24.905 It's almost like God says: 01:06:24.905 --> 01:06:26.110 You want to get nuts? 01:06:26.110 --> 01:06:28.916 You want to take this as far as it can go? 01:06:28.916 --> 01:06:31.153 I'm with you. Let's go. 01:06:31.153 --> 01:06:33.881 I think that a lot of reformed people are thinking 01:06:33.881 --> 01:06:35.430 God doesn't want to do anything 01:06:35.430 --> 01:06:36.937 and if we get Him to do anything, 01:06:36.937 --> 01:06:38.361 we've got to pull Him into it. 01:06:38.361 --> 01:06:39.929 I'm going to tell you something, my friend, 01:06:39.929 --> 01:06:43.300 God is running so much faster than the church. 01:06:43.300 --> 01:06:45.634 It's not trying to get Him to catch up to you, 01:06:45.634 --> 01:06:48.654 it's trying to get you to catch up to Him. 01:06:48.654 --> 01:06:52.435 But see, there's a sense of faith. 01:06:52.435 --> 01:06:55.655 There's a sense of faith that comes 01:06:55.655 --> 01:06:57.297 with reading the Scriptures. 01:06:57.297 --> 01:06:58.490 There's a sense of faith 01:06:58.490 --> 01:07:00.900 that comes with studying the old men 01:07:00.900 --> 01:07:02.128 and their ways. NOTE Paragraph 01:07:02.128 --> 01:07:03.847 I remember one time I was a young missionary. 01:07:03.847 --> 01:07:05.518 I came back off the field. I was very tired. 01:07:05.518 --> 01:07:07.667 I was invited to a church. They wanted me to speak. 01:07:07.667 --> 01:07:08.913 They did a question and answer. 01:07:08.913 --> 01:07:11.133 They had a microphone in the different aisles of the church. 01:07:11.133 --> 01:07:12.886 And I was answering questions. 01:07:12.886 --> 01:07:15.603 A young red-headed boy - I'll never forget this - 01:07:15.603 --> 01:07:18.901 he couldn't have been more than 10, 12, whatever. 01:07:18.901 --> 01:07:20.581 He comes up to the microphone. 01:07:20.581 --> 01:07:22.530 He'd been standing in line all night 01:07:22.530 --> 01:07:24.183 and this is the question he asked. 01:07:24.183 --> 01:07:25.414 He said, "Mr. Washer?" 01:07:25.414 --> 01:07:27.314 I said, "Yes?" 01:07:27.314 --> 01:07:30.879 He said, "After you win everybody in Peru to Jesus, 01:07:30.879 --> 01:07:33.812 then what are you going to do?" 01:07:33.812 --> 01:07:37.222 And everybody laughed except me and him. 01:07:37.222 --> 01:07:38.822 And I said, "Well, son, I suppose 01:07:38.822 --> 01:07:40.810 when I win everybody to Christ in Peru 01:07:40.810 --> 01:07:45.225 I'll just have to go find me another country, won't I?" 01:07:45.225 --> 01:07:46.891 I don't see anywhere in the Bible 01:07:46.891 --> 01:07:48.826 where there can't be a worldwide revival. 01:07:48.826 --> 01:07:50.222 Sorry, I don't. 01:07:50.222 --> 01:07:51.706 I don't see anywhere in the Bible 01:07:51.706 --> 01:07:53.443 where an entire people group 01:07:53.443 --> 01:07:55.884 can't come to Jesus. 01:07:55.884 --> 01:07:58.255 I don't see anywhere in the Bible 01:07:58.255 --> 01:08:01.981 where I have to die without seeing everybody 01:08:01.981 --> 01:08:06.811 at least hear the Gospel one time. 01:08:06.811 --> 01:08:10.385 Everything I have contrived - 01:08:10.385 --> 01:08:12.639 and I know that behind that contriving 01:08:12.639 --> 01:08:14.862 was the sovereignty of God; 01:08:14.862 --> 01:08:19.231 I know the 1689 and the Westminster - 01:08:19.231 --> 01:08:22.757 there is nothing I have ever contrived 01:08:22.757 --> 01:08:24.430 and prayed for 01:08:24.430 --> 01:08:26.046 that was turned down by God 01:08:26.046 --> 01:08:32.156 because it was too big. 01:08:32.156 --> 01:08:35.197 You can believe Him for anything 01:08:35.197 --> 01:08:37.546 when in the context you're looking 01:08:37.546 --> 01:08:39.493 at the advancement of the kingdom 01:08:39.493 --> 01:08:40.967 and you're renewing your mind, 01:08:40.967 --> 01:08:44.623 you can believe Him for anything. NOTE Paragraph 01:08:44.623 --> 01:08:46.492 Let me give you an example: HeartCry. 01:08:46.492 --> 01:08:49.010 People ask me to give presentations on HeartCry. 01:08:49.010 --> 01:08:50.256 I want to make this real, 01:08:50.256 --> 01:08:51.960 that this isn't some antiquated guy 01:08:51.960 --> 01:08:53.923 who used to do these things in the past. 01:08:53.923 --> 01:08:57.285 I can't tell you how many times He's delivered us. 01:08:57.285 --> 01:08:59.344 At HeartCry, our financial principles 01:08:59.344 --> 01:09:01.600 are based upon George Mueller's princples 01:09:01.600 --> 01:09:02.917 of his orphanage. 01:09:02.917 --> 01:09:05.094 We do not raise funds. 01:09:05.094 --> 01:09:06.651 We do not ask for money. 01:09:06.651 --> 01:09:08.153 We do not make our needs known. 01:09:08.153 --> 01:09:10.042 If a church asks us to come explain 01:09:10.042 --> 01:09:11.341 what we do in the mission, 01:09:11.341 --> 01:09:14.466 we will come and explain what we are currently doing, 01:09:14.466 --> 01:09:19.703 not what we would do if we had more money. 01:09:19.703 --> 01:09:22.621 Not this Christmas, but last Christmas, 01:09:22.621 --> 01:09:25.194 nobody knew it except me, 01:09:25.194 --> 01:09:27.227 the financial guy, 01:09:27.227 --> 01:09:30.101 and one board member. 01:09:30.101 --> 01:09:32.676 It was December 31st. 01:09:32.676 --> 01:09:35.299 We had a $150,000 deficit. 01:09:35.299 --> 01:09:36.917 Now that doesn't mean 01:09:36.917 --> 01:09:40.701 that we owed somebody $150,000. 01:09:40.701 --> 01:09:43.491 It just meant we had spent 01:09:43.491 --> 01:09:44.955 that much beyond our budget 01:09:44.955 --> 01:09:48.583 and basically almost had nothing. 01:09:48.583 --> 01:09:52.726 Okay? Nobody knew. Nobody knew. 01:09:52.726 --> 01:09:54.091 But God had told us 01:09:54.091 --> 01:09:56.040 just a few days before we felt 01:09:56.040 --> 01:09:57.847 that we were supposed to do something 01:09:57.847 --> 01:10:00.442 really wild in Asia, and we did it. 01:10:00.442 --> 01:10:01.863 We took on something like, 01:10:01.863 --> 01:10:03.181 I don't know what it was, 01:10:03.181 --> 01:10:05.473 45 more missionaries 01:10:05.473 --> 01:10:09.233 knowing this was the case. 01:10:09.233 --> 01:10:12.365 But we knew, God wants to reach Asia. 01:10:12.365 --> 01:10:15.133 God desires that everybody in Asia hears the Gospel. 01:10:15.133 --> 01:10:16.886 This has opened up. It's biblical. 01:10:16.886 --> 01:10:17.968 These men are sound. 01:10:17.968 --> 01:10:19.884 We're going to do it. 01:10:19.884 --> 01:10:22.174 Nobody knew. 01:10:22.174 --> 01:10:25.120 I'm in my study. 01:10:25.120 --> 01:10:26.842 It's December 31st. 01:10:26.842 --> 01:10:28.716 That's the last day of the year. 01:10:28.716 --> 01:10:30.120 It's 10:00 in the morning. 01:10:30.120 --> 01:10:31.557 I'm studying the Word of God 01:10:31.557 --> 01:10:36.479 and lifting up my worries in prayer. 01:10:36.479 --> 01:10:38.206 Kevin comes in (our financial guy). 01:10:38.206 --> 01:10:39.999 He's kind of teary-eyed. 01:10:39.999 --> 01:10:42.296 I said, "Kevin, what's wrong?" 01:10:42.296 --> 01:10:46.128 He said, "Um, somebody just sent - 01:10:46.128 --> 01:10:53.195 I don't know who this is - $60,000." 01:10:53.195 --> 01:10:55.201 I said, "Really?" He said, "Yes." 01:10:55.201 --> 01:10:58.235 He said, "One check. It's $60,000." 01:10:58.235 --> 01:10:59.705 So we got down on our knees. 01:10:59.705 --> 01:11:00.831 We thanked God. 01:11:00.831 --> 01:11:02.303 I went back to my Bible study. 01:11:02.303 --> 01:11:04.653 He went back to his computer. 01:11:04.653 --> 01:11:07.895 Twelve o'clock he comes in. 01:11:07.895 --> 01:11:09.755 I don't have the figures exactly right, 01:11:09.755 --> 01:11:12.648 but (unintelligible) it's been awhile. 01:11:12.648 --> 01:11:14.562 He comes in. 01:11:14.562 --> 01:11:16.605 He's teary-eyed. 01:11:16.605 --> 01:11:21.126 I said, "Kevin, what's wrong?" 01:11:21.126 --> 01:11:26.005 Someone just sent $100,000. 01:11:26.005 --> 01:11:27.536 I said, "You're kidding." 01:11:27.536 --> 01:11:29.268 He said, "No, someone just sent..." 01:11:29.268 --> 01:11:30.833 I said, "You mean, 60 and 40." 01:11:30.833 --> 01:11:33.250 He goes, "No. 60 and 100 thousand. 01:11:33.250 --> 01:11:34.934 Somebody just sent $100,000." 01:11:34.934 --> 01:11:37.293 I said, "Who?" He goes, "I don't know." 01:11:37.293 --> 01:11:38.404 Alright. 01:11:38.404 --> 01:11:41.776 We go back. Two o'clock he comes in. 01:11:41.776 --> 01:11:43.535 He's really looking pale. 01:11:43.535 --> 01:11:45.499 I said, "Kevin, what's going on?" 01:11:45.499 --> 01:11:48.759 He said, "Well, we got a check for $60,000." 01:11:48.759 --> 01:11:51.832 "I know." "No, we got another check for $60,000." 01:11:51.832 --> 01:11:53.448 I said, "You're kidding." "No." 01:11:53.448 --> 01:11:55.195 At the end of the day, 01:11:55.195 --> 01:11:57.568 $326,000 came in. 01:11:57.568 --> 01:12:01.368 Nobody knew at all what was going on. 01:12:01.368 --> 01:12:02.657 Now, I can tell you that 01:12:02.657 --> 01:12:05.867 over and over and over. 01:12:05.867 --> 01:12:07.816 This last year, a similar thing happened. 01:12:07.816 --> 01:12:09.293 It didn't happen in one day, 01:12:09.293 --> 01:12:11.306 but it happened in one month. 01:12:11.306 --> 01:12:13.270 Now I want you to think about something. 01:12:13.270 --> 01:12:19.598 God chose the last day of the year. 01:12:19.598 --> 01:12:21.636 Why? Because He wanted to show everybody 01:12:21.636 --> 01:12:23.662 He doesn't need 365 days. 01:12:23.662 --> 01:12:26.629 He doesn't even need 24 hours. 01:12:26.629 --> 01:12:28.571 What I'm saying is the more you 01:12:28.571 --> 01:12:31.303 cut yourself off from the arm of the flesh, 01:12:31.303 --> 01:12:34.001 the more you desire the advancement of His kingdom, 01:12:34.001 --> 01:12:37.142 and the more you live dependent on Him in prayer, 01:12:37.142 --> 01:12:38.594 you will see more miracles 01:12:38.594 --> 01:12:43.469 than you could ever imagine! 01:12:43.469 --> 01:12:48.792 This is Caleb. There's just all kinds of mountains to conquer. 01:12:48.792 --> 01:12:52.006 Pick one out! 01:12:52.006 --> 01:12:53.747 And go for it! 01:12:53.747 --> 01:12:55.376 Knock down some walls. 01:12:55.376 --> 01:12:56.610 Climb a mountain, 01:12:56.610 --> 01:12:59.412 but don't do it in the arm of the flesh. 01:12:59.412 --> 01:13:01.152 The more you cut yourself off 01:13:01.152 --> 01:13:02.925 from the help of men, 01:13:02.925 --> 01:13:05.794 the more you will have the help of God. 01:13:05.794 --> 01:13:08.292 The more you make pronouncements to men 01:13:08.292 --> 01:13:10.915 so that you may gather their strength for you, 01:13:10.915 --> 01:13:15.575 the less you will seek God. 01:13:15.575 --> 01:13:18.772 Oh my dear friend, there's no end 01:13:18.772 --> 01:13:22.963 to what God will do. 01:13:22.963 --> 01:13:24.919 As a dear man says, 01:13:24.919 --> 01:13:26.702 God delights in vindicating 01:13:26.702 --> 01:13:29.796 the confidence of His children. 01:13:29.796 --> 01:13:32.948 (incomplete thought) Prayer. NOTE Paragraph 01:13:32.948 --> 01:13:33.881 Prayer. 01:13:33.881 --> 01:13:35.468 But not just prayer for ministry, 01:13:35.468 --> 01:13:36.694 prayer for your own life. 01:13:36.694 --> 01:13:38.489 You've got besetting sin. 01:13:38.489 --> 01:13:39.376 You wallow in it. 01:13:39.376 --> 01:13:41.047 You go get all kinds of counsel. 01:13:41.047 --> 01:13:42.612 You can never get any release. 01:13:42.612 --> 01:13:44.315 But do you go to Him? 01:13:44.315 --> 01:13:46.166 Have you spent all night tarrying 01:13:46.166 --> 01:13:47.268 before Him in prayer? 01:13:47.268 --> 01:13:49.452 Have you cried out to Him? Have you fasted? 01:13:49.452 --> 01:13:50.406 Have you sought Him? 01:13:50.406 --> 01:13:55.456 Have you grabbed a hold of the horns of the altar 01:13:55.456 --> 01:13:57.581 saying I will not let You go 01:13:57.581 --> 01:13:59.065 until you bless me? 01:13:59.065 --> 01:14:02.331 How many of you have wrestled 01:14:02.331 --> 01:14:07.893 with the Nazarene all night? 01:14:07.893 --> 01:14:10.840 Saying I will not let You go 01:14:10.840 --> 01:14:14.673 unless You bless me. 01:14:14.673 --> 01:14:17.023 I always tell people, 01:14:17.023 --> 01:14:19.441 Jacob was a better fighter than me. 01:14:19.441 --> 01:14:20.394 They say why? 01:14:20.394 --> 01:14:21.931 He only got touched in one hip. 01:14:21.931 --> 01:14:32.316 I got both of mine replaced. 01:14:32.316 --> 01:14:34.972 I'm no scholar. 01:14:34.972 --> 01:14:36.844 I'm not up here telling you things 01:14:36.844 --> 01:14:40.435 I read in a book. 01:14:40.435 --> 01:14:42.705 But to kneel before your God, like I said, 01:14:42.705 --> 01:14:47.624 kneeling before an F5 tornado three feet away. 01:14:47.624 --> 01:14:52.584 That's what will leave an imprint on a man. 01:14:52.584 --> 01:14:57.025 To wrestle with the Nazarene - 01:14:57.025 --> 01:14:59.309 just find out how strong that Carpenter's arm 01:14:59.309 --> 01:15:04.220 happens to be. 01:15:04.220 --> 01:15:05.727 When He grabs you with it 01:15:05.727 --> 01:15:07.125 and throws you to the ground, 01:15:07.125 --> 01:15:09.119 you'll know His strength. 01:15:09.119 --> 01:15:11.303 But in His blessing, He turns that arm around 01:15:11.303 --> 01:15:13.546 and fights for you. 01:15:13.546 --> 01:15:17.054 You'll know His strength to a greater degree. 01:15:17.054 --> 01:15:19.228 I'm talking about experience, 01:15:19.228 --> 01:15:22.594 not just reading the Puritans - 01:15:22.594 --> 01:15:28.933 following them in their life. NOTE Paragraph 01:15:28.933 --> 01:15:31.695 So we must pray. We must pray. 01:15:31.695 --> 01:15:34.662 We must pray. 01:15:34.662 --> 01:15:36.034 What does it look like? 01:15:36.034 --> 01:15:38.685 1 Thessalonians: Pray without ceasing. 01:15:38.685 --> 01:15:40.007 Ephesians 6:18, 01:15:40.007 --> 01:15:41.623 "With all prayers and petitions, 01:15:41.623 --> 01:15:43.586 pray at all times in the Spirit," 01:15:43.586 --> 01:15:44.966 in the power of the Spirit. 01:15:44.966 --> 01:15:46.656 That's not referring to tongues. 01:15:46.656 --> 01:15:49.385 It's referring to being empowered 01:15:49.385 --> 01:15:51.803 by the Spirit of God to pray. 01:15:51.803 --> 01:15:53.872 "With this in view, be on the alert 01:15:53.872 --> 01:15:56.940 with all perseverance and petition for the saints." 01:15:56.940 --> 01:15:58.311 Psalm 105:4, 01:15:58.311 --> 01:16:00.037 "Seek the Lord in His strength; 01:16:00.037 --> 01:16:03.404 seek His face continually." 01:16:03.404 --> 01:16:05.531 I hear people today and I say do you pray? 01:16:05.531 --> 01:16:07.372 They go, well, I kind of pray as I go. 01:16:07.372 --> 01:16:09.713 I say, no, you don't. 01:16:09.713 --> 01:16:11.844 No, you don't. 01:16:11.844 --> 01:16:13.571 There's a lot of wisdom handed down 01:16:13.571 --> 01:16:15.404 from the Tozers and the Ravenhills, 01:16:15.404 --> 01:16:17.983 and here's what one of them is: 01:16:17.983 --> 01:16:19.819 You learn to pray continuously 01:16:19.819 --> 01:16:24.957 only by praying with Him alone. 01:16:24.957 --> 01:16:26.858 The practicing of the presence of God 01:16:26.858 --> 01:16:28.644 does not come by just walking around 01:16:28.644 --> 01:16:29.926 thinking you're doing it. 01:16:29.926 --> 01:16:31.840 I have found out that the men and women 01:16:31.840 --> 01:16:33.346 who can most dwell with God 01:16:33.346 --> 01:16:34.545 throughout their day 01:16:34.545 --> 01:16:36.216 no matter how mundane it is 01:16:36.216 --> 01:16:38.503 are people who spend copious amount of time 01:16:38.503 --> 01:16:42.646 alone with God in their prayer closet. 01:16:42.646 --> 01:16:44.877 And from that, you begin to develop 01:16:44.877 --> 01:16:47.041 a sense of the presence of God 01:16:47.041 --> 01:16:48.798 and praying. 01:16:48.798 --> 01:16:50.204 So that as you're walking 01:16:50.204 --> 01:16:51.947 through the church after you preach 01:16:51.947 --> 01:16:53.940 and you see a face that turns toward you 01:16:53.940 --> 01:16:56.362 and you know that person is seeking your counsel, 01:16:56.362 --> 01:16:58.403 immediately you head towards them 01:16:58.403 --> 01:16:59.970 lifting up prayers to God: 01:16:59.970 --> 01:17:02.284 Give me wisdom to discern this need 01:17:02.284 --> 01:17:05.361 and give an answer from Your Scriptures. 01:17:05.361 --> 01:17:06.764 You wake up in the morning 01:17:06.764 --> 01:17:09.600 and you know that your wife is a bit distraught: 01:17:09.600 --> 01:17:11.194 Lord, how to deal with this? 01:17:11.194 --> 01:17:13.558 Or a wife to a husband. 01:17:13.558 --> 01:17:17.263 Constantly crying out to Him, this communion. NOTE Paragraph 01:17:17.263 --> 01:17:23.471 Frank Laubach. Frank Laubach. 01:17:23.471 --> 01:17:25.764 Do you know who I'm talking about? 01:17:25.764 --> 01:17:27.435 Have you ever heard the statement: 01:17:27.435 --> 01:17:30.845 He's so heavenly minded, he's no earthy good? 01:17:30.845 --> 01:17:32.926 Well, most people are so earthly-minded, 01:17:32.926 --> 01:17:34.821 they're no heavenly good. 01:17:34.821 --> 01:17:39.316 Frank Laubach is a very unique individual. 01:17:39.316 --> 01:17:41.336 You know what his goal was in his journal? 01:17:41.336 --> 01:17:42.651 It comes out very clear. 01:17:42.651 --> 01:17:44.474 His one goal in life was to spend 01:17:44.474 --> 01:17:46.540 one entire day 01:17:46.540 --> 01:17:49.432 with uninterrupted thoughts of Christ. 01:17:49.432 --> 01:17:52.003 That was the great goal of his life. 01:17:52.003 --> 01:17:54.712 You say, yeah, one of those spiritual kooks 01:17:54.712 --> 01:17:55.971 that's so heavenly-minded 01:17:55.971 --> 01:17:57.236 that he's no earthly good. 01:17:57.236 --> 01:18:02.495 Frank Laubach taught the entire Philippines to read 01:18:02.495 --> 01:18:04.260 so that they could read the Bible. 01:18:04.260 --> 01:18:06.160 You can go to the Philippines right now 01:18:06.160 --> 01:18:08.002 and talk to people about Frank Laubach. 01:18:08.002 --> 01:18:09.946 They'll say, "Frank Laubach, yeah, I know about him. 01:18:09.946 --> 01:18:11.426 I studied about him in history." 01:18:11.426 --> 01:18:13.143 He's a Christian man 01:18:13.143 --> 01:18:15.647 who taught all the islands of the Philippines to read 01:18:15.647 --> 01:18:17.865 so that they could read the Bible. 01:18:17.865 --> 01:18:19.918 So I guess being heavenly minded 01:18:19.918 --> 01:18:22.162 is pretty earthly good, isn't it? 01:18:22.162 --> 01:18:23.898 Just think of it, this man taught 01:18:23.898 --> 01:18:26.544 all these islands to read, 01:18:26.544 --> 01:18:27.758 and yet his greatest goal 01:18:27.758 --> 01:18:30.671 was to have uninterrupted thoughts of Christ 01:18:30.671 --> 01:18:35.459 and communion with Christ. 01:18:35.459 --> 01:18:38.002 You see, we're not a meditative people. 01:18:38.002 --> 01:18:40.106 We're not a contemplative people. 01:18:40.106 --> 01:18:42.495 We're not a people who sit quietly. 01:18:42.495 --> 01:18:44.032 We are a people of noise. 01:18:44.032 --> 01:18:46.170 We are a people that every 20 minutes 01:18:46.170 --> 01:18:47.673 we have to have a commercial 01:18:47.673 --> 01:18:52.444 or we can't even watch a TV program. 01:18:52.444 --> 01:18:56.127 But in Christ, we can regain what's been lost. NOTE Paragraph 01:18:56.127 --> 01:18:58.516 I had a professor, and I know it sounds really funny, 01:18:58.516 --> 01:18:59.754 but he told me one time, he said, 01:18:59.754 --> 01:19:01.883 "Washer, I want to bring you to a point 01:19:01.883 --> 01:19:04.974 where you can sit in the middle of a hundred acre field 01:19:04.974 --> 01:19:06.558 and be so quiet before God, 01:19:06.558 --> 01:19:09.724 you can hear a caterpillar crawling across a leaf. 01:19:09.724 --> 01:19:12.508 Now, I know that sounds a little mystic to you. 01:19:12.508 --> 01:19:14.943 The fact of the matter is how many times 01:19:14.943 --> 01:19:20.193 do you sit before the Lord in silence? 01:19:20.193 --> 01:19:22.930 Just quiet. 01:19:22.930 --> 01:19:24.803 People say, "I never hear from God." 01:19:24.803 --> 01:19:26.164 Do you listen? 01:19:26.164 --> 01:19:29.214 You know, you wouldn't walk in front of the president talking. 01:19:29.214 --> 01:19:31.795 You would keep your mouth shut until he addressed you. 01:19:31.795 --> 01:19:33.810 But you go before God, before you even hit your knees, 01:19:33.810 --> 01:19:35.588 you're already telling Him stuff. 01:19:35.588 --> 01:19:38.894 Do you ever think about listening? 01:19:38.894 --> 01:19:40.601 Meditating on the Word of God? 01:19:40.601 --> 01:19:45.286 Listening? NOTE Paragraph 01:19:45.286 --> 01:19:49.043 An illustration I heard a long time ago: 01:19:49.043 --> 01:19:51.249 A man worked in this big, noisy factory - 01:19:51.249 --> 01:19:53.432 just wheels grinding and everything else - 01:19:53.432 --> 01:19:55.198 and he lost his watch. 01:19:55.198 --> 01:19:56.699 It was a very important watch 01:19:56.699 --> 01:19:57.953 that his father gave him. 01:19:57.953 --> 01:19:59.634 He lost it while he was working there 01:19:59.634 --> 01:20:01.422 in the factory during the day. 01:20:01.422 --> 01:20:03.398 I mean, how are you going to find this thing? 01:20:03.398 --> 01:20:04.566 The factory's full of men, 01:20:04.566 --> 01:20:05.677 wheels are grinding, 01:20:05.677 --> 01:20:08.287 everything's going on, noise, smoke, steam - 01:20:08.287 --> 01:20:10.964 there's no way to recover that watch. 01:20:10.964 --> 01:20:13.316 The next day though he showed the workman 01:20:13.316 --> 01:20:15.710 his watch - he had found it. 01:20:15.710 --> 01:20:19.220 And they said how did you find the watch? 01:20:19.220 --> 01:20:24.484 He said I waited till the factory was shut down 01:20:24.484 --> 01:20:27.095 and all the wheels stopped 01:20:27.095 --> 01:20:29.853 and all the men were gone, 01:20:29.853 --> 01:20:32.962 and I laid quietly on the floor 01:20:32.962 --> 01:20:36.537 and I listened... 01:20:36.537 --> 01:20:39.900 tick... tick... tick... tick... 01:20:39.900 --> 01:20:43.955 and I found my watch. 01:20:43.955 --> 01:20:46.099 Think about it. We're not a people like that. 01:20:46.099 --> 01:20:48.347 If you walked into a church 01:20:48.347 --> 01:20:50.654 in which for 5 minutes, everyone was silent, 01:20:50.654 --> 01:20:53.674 you'd probably call it a cult. 01:20:53.674 --> 01:20:55.091 You walk in a church 01:20:55.091 --> 01:20:57.513 there's media blaring at you. 01:20:57.513 --> 01:20:59.393 There's pictures on screens. 01:20:59.393 --> 01:21:01.618 People talking, everything going on. 01:21:01.618 --> 01:21:04.228 Think about it. 01:21:04.228 --> 01:21:10.329 All the noise? 01:21:10.329 --> 01:21:13.019 I don't know if I correctly remember the poem. 01:21:13.019 --> 01:21:14.980 What was it? 01:21:14.980 --> 01:21:16.408 Weak from the journey, 01:21:16.408 --> 01:21:17.818 the long passing days, 01:21:17.818 --> 01:21:21.135 hungry to worship, to join in the praise. 01:21:21.135 --> 01:21:22.989 Christ coming in from the wilderness 01:21:22.989 --> 01:21:26.130 and He goes into the temple. 01:21:26.130 --> 01:21:31.414 And instead of finding silence in the temple, 01:21:31.414 --> 01:21:33.347 it says, shock met with anger 01:21:33.347 --> 01:21:34.794 that burned on His face 01:21:34.794 --> 01:21:36.454 as He entered the wasteland 01:21:36.454 --> 01:21:38.027 of that barren place. 01:21:38.027 --> 01:21:39.380 That the temple had become 01:21:39.380 --> 01:21:40.653 more like a wilderness 01:21:40.653 --> 01:21:43.069 than the wilderness itself. 01:21:43.069 --> 01:21:45.638 Then it talks about how He makes a cord, 01:21:45.638 --> 01:21:48.412 a whip. 01:21:48.412 --> 01:21:50.421 It says they'll flee from the harm 01:21:50.421 --> 01:21:53.370 of the Carpenter's strong arm. 01:21:53.370 --> 01:21:54.706 And then the poem says, 01:21:54.706 --> 01:21:57.257 at last the noise and confusion 01:21:57.257 --> 01:21:59.416 gave way to His Word, 01:21:59.416 --> 01:22:02.418 at last sacred silence 01:22:02.418 --> 01:22:05.710 so God could be heard. 01:22:05.710 --> 01:22:10.180 Do you know anything of a night watch? 01:22:10.180 --> 01:22:12.840 Do you know about a night watch? 01:22:12.840 --> 01:22:15.221 Do you ever wake in the night 01:22:15.221 --> 01:22:18.262 just to watch and pray? 01:22:18.262 --> 01:22:22.491 Just to sit alone with God in the night? 01:22:22.491 --> 01:22:29.072 In the dark? 01:22:29.072 --> 01:22:33.939 We are not a very spiritual people, are we. 01:22:33.939 --> 01:22:35.073 We need to pray. NOTE Paragraph 01:22:35.073 --> 01:22:38.197 Now, the last thing that I want to say 01:22:38.197 --> 01:22:40.797 and we'll quit here. 01:22:40.797 --> 01:22:42.266 We must abide in His Word. 01:22:42.266 --> 01:22:44.056 We must abide in prayer. 01:22:44.056 --> 01:22:49.060 And this is one that is most beautiful to me. 01:22:49.060 --> 01:22:51.388 Abiding in Christ is synonymous 01:22:51.388 --> 01:22:55.069 with abiding in Christ's love. 01:22:55.069 --> 01:22:56.387 D.A. Carson writes, 01:22:56.387 --> 01:22:58.485 "The imagery is now changed 01:22:58.485 --> 01:23:00.732 because the agricultural metaphor 01:23:00.732 --> 01:23:02.707 has its limitations. 01:23:02.707 --> 01:23:05.307 It does not depict the unfathomable love 01:23:05.307 --> 01:23:06.911 that sets the disciples 01:23:06.911 --> 01:23:11.190 in this new intimacy." 01:23:11.190 --> 01:23:14.935 You must abide in the love of Christ. 01:23:14.935 --> 01:23:17.275 Now, I want us to look at this in two ways: 01:23:17.275 --> 01:23:20.498 positionally and actively. 01:23:20.498 --> 01:23:22.474 The language here's really important. 01:23:22.474 --> 01:23:24.467 It really is. I want you to listen. 01:23:24.467 --> 01:23:27.603 He says, "Just as the Father has loved Me," 01:23:27.603 --> 01:23:28.891 in verses 9 and 10, 01:23:28.891 --> 01:23:30.829 "I have also loved you." 01:23:30.829 --> 01:23:32.341 Now, Greek scholars tell us 01:23:32.341 --> 01:23:33.894 that the aorist tense here 01:23:33.894 --> 01:23:35.981 probably suggests completeness 01:23:35.981 --> 01:23:38.476 or perfection. 01:23:38.476 --> 01:23:39.591 So what He's saying is 01:23:39.591 --> 01:23:41.796 as the Father has completely 01:23:41.796 --> 01:23:44.130 and perfectly loved Me, 01:23:44.130 --> 01:23:50.009 so I perfectly and completely love you. 01:23:50.009 --> 01:23:51.305 Now, I've written here, 01:23:51.305 --> 01:23:53.047 this is the first side of the coin 01:23:53.047 --> 01:23:54.725 or the foundation of the building. 01:23:54.725 --> 01:23:57.633 To be fruitful, we must be utterly convinced 01:23:57.633 --> 01:24:00.161 or persuaded of Christ's love for us. 01:24:00.161 --> 01:24:03.303 Then we must live in continuous dependence 01:24:03.303 --> 01:24:05.223 upon Christ's love, 01:24:05.223 --> 01:24:07.838 constant reliance upon Christ's love, 01:24:07.838 --> 01:24:10.879 constant, persistent imbibing 01:24:10.879 --> 01:24:13.810 of Christ's love. NOTE Paragraph 01:24:13.810 --> 01:24:21.267 Now, what do I mean by all that? 01:24:21.267 --> 01:24:23.004 Jude says this: 01:24:23.004 --> 01:24:26.865 "Keep yourself in the love of God." 01:24:26.865 --> 01:24:29.721 Now, Paul says this: 01:24:29.721 --> 01:24:32.202 That he is constrained 01:24:32.202 --> 01:24:34.669 by the love of Christ. 01:24:34.669 --> 01:24:36.269 Keep yourself in the love of God. 01:24:36.269 --> 01:24:38.306 Paul is constrained by the love of Christ. 01:24:38.306 --> 01:24:41.256 Now many people think wrongly about this. 01:24:41.256 --> 01:24:44.157 When Paul says that he is constrained by the love of Christ, 01:24:44.157 --> 01:24:45.869 many think that Paul is saying 01:24:45.869 --> 01:24:47.849 I'm constrained by the great love 01:24:47.849 --> 01:24:51.085 that I have for Christ. 01:24:51.085 --> 01:24:53.031 Let me share with you something. 01:24:53.031 --> 01:24:55.122 You know the song - just any song 01:24:55.122 --> 01:24:59.877 that says, "Oh, how I love Jesus..." 01:24:59.877 --> 01:25:01.318 When everyone's singing that - 01:25:01.318 --> 01:25:03.913 and it's true to sing that; that's a good song - 01:25:03.913 --> 01:25:06.014 but I kind of change the words 01:25:06.014 --> 01:25:08.205 because I'm a terrible singer anyway. 01:25:08.205 --> 01:25:10.549 I go: Oh, how Jesus loves me. 01:25:10.549 --> 01:25:13.006 The reason why is I look at my love for Christ 01:25:13.006 --> 01:25:16.106 and I really don't see anything worth singing about. 01:25:16.106 --> 01:25:18.903 But I look at the love of Christ for me, 01:25:18.903 --> 01:25:21.967 I see a whole lot worth singing about. 01:25:21.967 --> 01:25:23.885 Now don't say it's unbiblical to sing 01:25:23.885 --> 01:25:25.221 "Oh, How I Love Jesus." 01:25:25.221 --> 01:25:27.923 The psalmist says that he loves the Lord, okay? 01:25:27.923 --> 01:25:29.308 We should love the Lord. 01:25:29.308 --> 01:25:30.906 The point I'm trying to make is 01:25:30.906 --> 01:25:35.309 the strength of Paul Washer's life 01:25:35.309 --> 01:25:41.196 is not how much he loves Jesus; 01:25:41.196 --> 01:25:44.305 it's how much Jesus loves him. 01:25:44.305 --> 01:25:49.831 That little change there will change everything. NOTE Paragraph 01:25:49.831 --> 01:25:51.632 Let me share with you something that happened. 01:25:51.632 --> 01:25:53.371 As I said in my testimony this morning, 01:25:53.371 --> 01:25:56.034 I had a father that was very demanding. 01:25:56.034 --> 01:25:58.062 If you scored a 98, why didn't you score 100? 01:25:58.062 --> 01:26:00.340 If you scored 20 points in the basketball game, 01:26:00.340 --> 01:26:01.600 you could have scored 30. 01:26:01.600 --> 01:26:03.132 On and on... 01:26:03.132 --> 01:26:06.161 I was kind of never in the inner circle of anything. 01:26:06.161 --> 01:26:08.287 You know, I wasn't one of the cool guys when I was young. 01:26:08.287 --> 01:26:10.051 I wasn't this. I wasn't that. 01:26:10.051 --> 01:26:11.212 Here's what happened. 01:26:11.212 --> 01:26:12.751 When I got saved, I thought 01:26:12.751 --> 01:26:15.696 this is going to be my one chance. 01:26:15.696 --> 01:26:18.750 I want to be in God's inner circle. 01:26:18.750 --> 01:26:20.511 I want God to love me 01:26:20.511 --> 01:26:22.770 like He loves His favorites. 01:26:22.770 --> 01:26:25.016 I know that's wrong, but that was my mentality. 01:26:25.016 --> 01:26:27.071 And I know it was fleshly and full of pride, 01:26:27.071 --> 01:26:30.197 but I'm just telling you the facts. 01:26:30.197 --> 01:26:32.344 And I decided this is the one place 01:26:32.344 --> 01:26:34.342 where you can really go all out 01:26:34.342 --> 01:26:35.902 even if you're not the smartest 01:26:35.902 --> 01:26:37.683 and even if you're not the prettiest 01:26:37.683 --> 01:26:40.342 and even if you don't have the most muscles. 01:26:40.342 --> 01:26:41.957 I mean, there's nothing to hinder you 01:26:41.957 --> 01:26:44.281 in this endeavor except your own passion. 01:26:44.281 --> 01:26:47.072 If you want to be one of the top guys in this 01:26:47.072 --> 01:26:49.519 and really be loved by God and appreciated, 01:26:49.519 --> 01:26:50.644 this is it. 01:26:50.644 --> 01:26:52.493 All you have to do is have passion. 01:26:52.493 --> 01:26:55.356 And buddy, I had it. I went to Peru. 01:26:55.356 --> 01:26:57.816 Worked 18 hours a day. 01:26:57.816 --> 01:26:59.011 Lived on nothing. 01:26:59.011 --> 01:27:03.588 Just wild. 01:27:03.588 --> 01:27:07.199 And every day became more of a grind. 01:27:07.199 --> 01:27:09.291 Every day I would see more failure, 01:27:09.291 --> 01:27:11.471 more failure, year after year, 01:27:11.471 --> 01:27:13.940 until finally one day as a young man - 01:27:13.940 --> 01:27:15.055 I'll never forget it - 01:27:15.055 --> 01:27:16.630 it was in the town of Mia Flores 01:27:16.630 --> 01:27:18.559 up on the third floor of this old building 01:27:18.559 --> 01:27:20.135 that we were renting during the war 01:27:20.135 --> 01:27:21.418 because we were using it for a church 01:27:21.418 --> 01:27:22.773 and to help street kids. 01:27:22.773 --> 01:27:24.175 I was on the third floor. 01:27:24.175 --> 01:27:26.301 There was a few steps from the third floor 01:27:26.301 --> 01:27:30.223 to the half other part of the third floor where I slept. 01:27:30.223 --> 01:27:32.867 And right there, I crashed. 01:27:32.867 --> 01:27:36.304 Totally exhausted every possible way 01:27:36.304 --> 01:27:39.847 after years of just full bore, 01:27:39.847 --> 01:27:42.618 out of my mind serving Christ. 01:27:42.618 --> 01:27:43.963 And I crashed. 01:27:43.963 --> 01:27:45.710 And I crashed in all my failure 01:27:45.710 --> 01:27:46.676 right on those steps 01:27:46.676 --> 01:27:47.685 and I laid down there 01:27:47.685 --> 01:27:51.310 and I cried and I cried and I cried. 01:27:51.310 --> 01:27:55.802 I said I don't want to go to hell 01:27:55.802 --> 01:27:59.000 because I know something of what is there. 01:27:59.000 --> 01:28:00.419 I don't want to go to hell, 01:28:00.419 --> 01:28:04.404 but I don't want to go to heaven. 01:28:04.404 --> 01:28:08.689 I am so ashamed of my performance. 01:28:08.689 --> 01:28:12.258 I've not been able to do any of this right. 01:28:12.258 --> 01:28:14.020 I know You have servants. 01:28:14.020 --> 01:28:15.669 I know You have your Spurgeons. 01:28:15.669 --> 01:28:17.769 I know You have all these kind of people 01:28:17.769 --> 01:28:19.321 and they pleased You, 01:28:19.321 --> 01:28:21.303 and I know when You look at my life, 01:28:21.303 --> 01:28:22.970 it just must be a joke. 01:28:22.970 --> 01:28:25.759 I just want to go somewhere when I die 01:28:25.759 --> 01:28:27.312 where I don't have to suffer, 01:28:27.312 --> 01:28:29.210 but I don't have to look at You 01:28:29.210 --> 01:28:31.102 and be so disappointed 01:28:31.102 --> 01:28:34.342 and see the disappointment in Your face. 01:28:34.342 --> 01:28:35.814 I know that's insane. 01:28:35.814 --> 01:28:37.565 I know theologically it's incorrect. 01:28:37.565 --> 01:28:40.044 But it's where I was. 01:28:40.044 --> 01:28:43.051 And it was there 01:28:43.051 --> 01:28:45.405 that in one moment 01:28:45.405 --> 01:28:48.050 the sin and vileness of everything I was saying 01:28:48.050 --> 01:28:49.442 was made known to me. 01:28:49.442 --> 01:28:51.548 And you would think that that would grind me 01:28:51.548 --> 01:28:53.215 even more to powder. No. 01:28:53.215 --> 01:28:54.913 God should have struck me down 01:28:54.913 --> 01:28:57.704 for those kinds of attitudes. 01:28:57.704 --> 01:29:00.050 But it was there, empty, 01:29:00.050 --> 01:29:05.626 empty of any hope of ever pleasing God - 01:29:05.626 --> 01:29:07.124 because not only had I failed 01:29:07.124 --> 01:29:08.671 in what I intended to do, 01:29:08.671 --> 01:29:15.061 what I intended to do was actually evil. 01:29:15.061 --> 01:29:18.770 That in one moment, I began to understand 01:29:18.770 --> 01:29:22.940 I am loved. 01:29:22.940 --> 01:29:25.433 I do not have to move a quarter of an inch this way, 01:29:25.433 --> 01:29:26.995 a quarter of an inch that way. 01:29:26.995 --> 01:29:28.473 I do not have to perform. 01:29:28.473 --> 01:29:32.056 I do not have to do it. I am loved in Christ. 01:29:32.056 --> 01:29:34.548 The very moment when God should have most judged me, 01:29:34.548 --> 01:29:36.532 He most showed me His love. 01:29:36.532 --> 01:29:39.830 What a God! NOTE Paragraph 01:29:39.830 --> 01:29:42.947 Brothers, you are so wrong 01:29:42.947 --> 01:29:45.576 in what you think about men of God. 01:29:45.576 --> 01:29:47.113 Now, hopefully, they are sincere 01:29:47.113 --> 01:29:48.169 in that we do pray 01:29:48.169 --> 01:29:50.563 and we do want to be following 01:29:50.563 --> 01:29:51.920 hard after Christ, 01:29:51.920 --> 01:29:54.114 but men of God in their best moment 01:29:54.114 --> 01:29:58.833 are only worthy of hell. 01:29:58.833 --> 01:30:00.366 And what you need to see 01:30:00.366 --> 01:30:03.482 is the thing that can really make you strong 01:30:03.482 --> 01:30:05.939 is not that you look at your life 01:30:05.939 --> 01:30:07.216 and you're able to see 01:30:07.216 --> 01:30:09.411 all the things you're doing right. 01:30:09.411 --> 01:30:12.022 No, you give up looking at your life 01:30:12.022 --> 01:30:14.154 to find something that you're doing right 01:30:14.154 --> 01:30:16.194 and worthy of being loved for, 01:30:16.194 --> 01:30:19.564 and you look at the finished work of Christ. 01:30:19.564 --> 01:30:21.152 And you look at Christ. 01:30:21.152 --> 01:30:24.222 Just Christ and all that He's done. 01:30:24.222 --> 01:30:26.483 And you understand He loves you. 01:30:26.483 --> 01:30:27.989 And you don't have to perform. 01:30:27.989 --> 01:30:30.833 And no, you were not saved to serve. 01:30:30.833 --> 01:30:32.545 You weren't even saved to love God. 01:30:32.545 --> 01:30:35.721 You were saved so God could love you. 01:30:35.721 --> 01:30:37.934 And then out of that great love for you 01:30:37.934 --> 01:30:39.605 and His empowering Spirit, 01:30:39.605 --> 01:30:43.604 you would be able to give some return on that. 01:30:43.604 --> 01:30:45.753 But that you are loved! 01:30:45.753 --> 01:30:47.182 It's a magnificent thing! 01:30:47.182 --> 01:30:50.332 Do you realize all that you can attempt 01:30:50.332 --> 01:30:53.980 when you no longer fear failure? 01:30:53.980 --> 01:30:57.230 When you no longer fear disappointment? NOTE Paragraph 01:30:57.230 --> 01:30:59.490 So many believers, after talking to them, 01:30:59.490 --> 01:31:02.326 this is what I'll tell them: 01:31:02.326 --> 01:31:04.066 So many believers - I'll go, 01:31:04.066 --> 01:31:06.309 I have discerned your problem. 01:31:06.309 --> 01:31:08.323 You honestly think that the first time 01:31:08.323 --> 01:31:09.914 you look into the face of Christ, 01:31:09.914 --> 01:31:13.221 you're going to see a scowl. 01:31:13.221 --> 01:31:14.683 Think about it. 01:31:14.683 --> 01:31:17.175 Yes, I know there's a judgment throne for believers. 01:31:17.175 --> 01:31:18.611 I know all these doctrines. 01:31:18.611 --> 01:31:20.318 Don't think I don't. I do. 01:31:20.318 --> 01:31:22.181 But I want to tell you, believer, 01:31:22.181 --> 01:31:25.257 He didn't shed His own blood on that tree 01:31:25.257 --> 01:31:27.314 so that the first time He sees you 01:31:27.314 --> 01:31:36.006 He would be able to show you His disappointment. 01:31:36.006 --> 01:31:38.807 You see that? 01:31:38.807 --> 01:31:42.247 I mean, it's the love of God. 01:31:42.247 --> 01:31:46.420 It's what God did for us in Christ 01:31:46.420 --> 01:31:50.457 that sets us free and empowers us 01:31:50.457 --> 01:31:52.116 to know that you're loved, 01:31:52.116 --> 01:31:56.859 to know that you're loved. NOTE Paragraph 01:31:56.859 --> 01:31:59.045 I remember when my son Ian, 01:31:59.045 --> 01:32:00.474 he was just a little boy 01:32:00.474 --> 01:32:03.238 and he's always been very confident. 01:32:03.238 --> 01:32:04.562 He's always been like: 01:32:04.562 --> 01:32:06.807 Okay, I'm here. The party can begin. 01:32:06.807 --> 01:32:09.087 You know, he's just always been very confident. 01:32:09.087 --> 01:32:11.363 And I remember when he was a little boy 01:32:11.363 --> 01:32:13.720 that he was laying on my bed asleep 01:32:13.720 --> 01:32:15.199 and I walked in, 01:32:15.199 --> 01:32:17.558 and he woke up when I walked in. 01:32:17.558 --> 01:32:19.053 And this is what he did: 01:32:19.053 --> 01:32:20.686 He woke up - 01:32:20.686 --> 01:32:23.555 and I was always afraid of my father. 01:32:23.555 --> 01:32:26.003 He woke up. He turned around 01:32:26.003 --> 01:32:28.429 and he went: 01:32:28.429 --> 01:32:30.472 There wasn't a doubt in his mind 01:32:30.472 --> 01:32:32.782 what should happen here. 01:32:32.782 --> 01:32:35.497 He is loved 01:32:35.497 --> 01:32:37.396 and his dad's going to run over there 01:32:37.396 --> 01:32:41.705 and give him the biggest hug in the world. 01:32:41.705 --> 01:32:45.333 What a joy! NOTE Paragraph 01:32:45.333 --> 01:32:46.923 To know that you are loved. 01:32:46.923 --> 01:32:48.197 You say, oh, but I failed. 01:32:48.197 --> 01:32:51.806 Why do you think He died? 01:32:51.806 --> 01:32:53.837 What is this death all about? 01:32:53.837 --> 01:32:56.487 Just so He can say that He forgave you 01:32:56.487 --> 01:32:58.086 and then show you constantly 01:32:58.086 --> 01:33:02.058 all the reasons why He shouldn't? 01:33:02.058 --> 01:33:04.559 He saved you to put that all away 01:33:04.559 --> 01:33:06.083 so that He could have brothers 01:33:06.083 --> 01:33:07.523 that He would not be ashamed 01:33:07.523 --> 01:33:09.490 to announce them to the congregation; 01:33:09.490 --> 01:33:11.189 to say that they are His brothers. 01:33:11.189 --> 01:33:14.875 He has set you free to be loved. 01:33:14.875 --> 01:33:17.428 It doesn't matter how big your ministry is or isn't. 01:33:17.428 --> 01:33:19.355 It doesn't matter what you do or don't. 01:33:19.355 --> 01:33:21.867 You are loved if you are in Christ. 01:33:21.867 --> 01:33:24.329 Now the unconverted church person hears that 01:33:24.329 --> 01:33:26.965 and goes, well, great, I'll just keep sinning. 01:33:26.965 --> 01:33:29.416 It doesn't matter what I do. I'll just keep sinning. 01:33:29.416 --> 01:33:31.705 But the person who's been truly regenerated 01:33:31.705 --> 01:33:33.058 by the Spirit of God, 01:33:33.058 --> 01:33:34.144 what does he do? 01:33:34.144 --> 01:33:35.821 If God loves me this way, 01:33:35.821 --> 01:33:41.373 I so desire much more to be holy. 01:33:41.373 --> 01:33:42.854 One of the most pathetic things 01:33:42.854 --> 01:33:44.063 that a preacher has to do 01:33:44.063 --> 01:33:47.754 is tell believers that they're loved of God 01:33:47.754 --> 01:33:49.946 because there's no way for us to describe 01:33:49.946 --> 01:33:53.152 the greatness of that love for His people. 01:33:53.152 --> 01:33:58.429 Sometimes when I'm preaching pastorally, 01:33:58.429 --> 01:34:00.686 when I was a pastor 01:34:00.686 --> 01:34:03.018 or when a few times I've taken over a church 01:34:03.018 --> 01:34:06.267 for a few months in order to help it 01:34:06.267 --> 01:34:09.009 because it was struggling, 01:34:09.009 --> 01:34:13.404 everybody hears me preaching on YouTube. 01:34:13.404 --> 01:34:16.519 The meanest man in the world. 01:34:16.519 --> 01:34:18.400 And I've had those same people show up 01:34:18.400 --> 01:34:20.007 because I've come into their area 01:34:20.007 --> 01:34:21.090 to help a church. 01:34:21.090 --> 01:34:22.565 And I've had young men show up 01:34:22.565 --> 01:34:24.529 and listen to me preach to that church 01:34:24.529 --> 01:34:26.146 and it be a very backward church - 01:34:26.146 --> 01:34:27.693 a church with a lot of problems, 01:34:27.693 --> 01:34:29.104 a lot of sin. 01:34:29.104 --> 01:34:31.294 And some young men kept showing up and coming, 01:34:31.294 --> 01:34:34.407 and finally they went to one of my friends 01:34:34.407 --> 01:34:36.726 after hearing me preach for several weeks, 01:34:36.726 --> 01:34:38.195 they came to one of my friends 01:34:38.195 --> 01:34:39.526 and they said this: 01:34:39.526 --> 01:34:41.408 "We've got a question." 01:34:41.408 --> 01:34:42.878 He said, "Yeah?" 01:34:42.878 --> 01:34:45.618 They said, "We respect Brother Paul a lot, 01:34:45.618 --> 01:34:49.360 but has he compromised?" 01:34:49.360 --> 01:34:51.315 The guy says, "Well, what do you mean?" 01:34:51.315 --> 01:34:52.791 He goes, "Well, everybody knows 01:34:52.791 --> 01:34:55.778 this church has a lot of problems 01:34:55.778 --> 01:34:58.035 and all he's done for weeks is taught 01:34:58.035 --> 01:35:01.893 on the love of God. 01:35:01.893 --> 01:35:04.565 We expected to get some YouTube stuff, you know? 01:35:04.565 --> 01:35:05.895 Sermon jam? 01:35:05.895 --> 01:35:08.143 Having smoke coming out of his ears 01:35:08.143 --> 01:35:10.618 preaching really hard? 01:35:10.618 --> 01:35:16.362 You see, here's what you need to understand. 01:35:16.362 --> 01:35:19.088 If someone has been truly converted - 01:35:19.088 --> 01:35:21.231 truly converted - 01:35:21.231 --> 01:35:24.721 you do not have to manipulate them with fear. 01:35:24.721 --> 01:35:28.442 You do not have to coerce them. 01:35:28.442 --> 01:35:30.489 If they've truly been regenerated 01:35:30.489 --> 01:35:32.019 by the Holy Spirit. 01:35:32.019 --> 01:35:34.062 the more they come to understand 01:35:34.062 --> 01:35:36.469 the glories of God in the face of Christ, 01:35:36.469 --> 01:35:38.001 the more they come to understand 01:35:38.001 --> 01:35:39.670 the love of God on their behalf, 01:35:39.670 --> 01:35:41.868 the more they'll be driven to holiness. 01:35:41.868 --> 01:35:44.625 And if they're not, it's because they're not sheep. 01:35:44.625 --> 01:35:46.005 They're goats. 01:35:46.005 --> 01:35:47.950 When I come to Christians - 01:35:47.950 --> 01:35:49.468 and yes, sometimes Christians 01:35:49.468 --> 01:35:50.922 need to be rebuked and warned 01:35:50.922 --> 01:35:52.086 and all kinds of things, 01:35:52.086 --> 01:35:54.679 but basically, when I'm dealing with the Christian, 01:35:54.679 --> 01:35:57.191 my greatest desire is to explain to them 01:35:57.191 --> 01:36:00.795 how much they are loved by God in Christ. 01:36:00.795 --> 01:36:02.341 And I find that when people 01:36:02.341 --> 01:36:04.618 come to understand - truly regenerate people - 01:36:04.618 --> 01:36:08.405 how much they are loved, 01:36:08.405 --> 01:36:10.052 they seem to blossom. 01:36:10.052 --> 01:36:12.856 Keep yourselves, Jude said, in the love of God. 01:36:12.856 --> 01:36:13.953 That doesn't mean: 01:36:13.953 --> 01:36:16.580 live in such a way so that God will love you. 01:36:16.580 --> 01:36:18.156 It means this: 01:36:18.156 --> 01:36:20.947 Keep yourself basking in His love. NOTE Paragraph 01:36:20.947 --> 01:36:22.532 If you tell me to come to your house 01:36:22.532 --> 01:36:25.084 because you've got a plant that isn't growing, 01:36:25.084 --> 01:36:26.762 and it's wilting and dying, 01:36:26.762 --> 01:36:28.164 you say, Brother Paul, 01:36:28.164 --> 01:36:29.689 what do you think the problem is? 01:36:29.689 --> 01:36:30.848 I say, well, show me the plant. 01:36:30.848 --> 01:36:32.382 You take me into a closet 01:36:32.382 --> 01:36:35.074 where you've kept the plant for six months. 01:36:35.074 --> 01:36:36.216 Again, I'm going to go, 01:36:36.216 --> 01:36:38.147 well, I'm not really an expert 01:36:38.147 --> 01:36:39.912 at growing plants, 01:36:39.912 --> 01:36:41.671 but I think if you put this thing 01:36:41.671 --> 01:36:44.198 out in the sun, 01:36:44.198 --> 01:36:46.889 it might do better. 01:36:46.889 --> 01:36:48.643 The devil is constantly trying 01:36:48.643 --> 01:36:50.356 to convince the believer 01:36:50.356 --> 01:36:55.227 that God's love isn't as the Bible says. 01:36:55.227 --> 01:36:57.019 And when we begin to believe that 01:36:57.019 --> 01:36:59.682 we wilt, we die. 01:36:59.682 --> 01:37:03.143 Keep yourself believing the truth 01:37:03.143 --> 01:37:05.199 about the love of God 01:37:05.199 --> 01:37:08.985 and it will cause you to prosper. 01:37:08.985 --> 01:37:11.214 It will cause you to grow. 01:37:11.214 --> 01:37:14.216 It will cause you to bear fruit. 01:37:14.216 --> 01:37:21.501 The sunshine of God's love upon you. 01:37:21.501 --> 01:37:24.486 Last night, a young man came to me 01:37:24.486 --> 01:37:26.535 and was talking about I feel bad sometimes. 01:37:26.535 --> 01:37:29.515 You are so passionate 01:37:29.515 --> 01:37:32.066 talking about Christ the way that you did 01:37:32.066 --> 01:37:34.949 and sometimes my heart is dead. 01:37:34.949 --> 01:37:36.369 And I said, "Young man, 01:37:36.369 --> 01:37:40.952 sometimes my heart is dead." 01:37:40.952 --> 01:37:43.212 Sometimes my zeal wanes. 01:37:43.212 --> 01:37:45.397 Even last night, the tears I shed 01:37:45.397 --> 01:37:48.247 were not: Oh, this man loves Jesus so much. 01:37:48.247 --> 01:37:51.805 The tears were: God, how can You love me so much 01:37:51.805 --> 01:37:54.993 and yet my heart be so cold? 01:37:54.993 --> 01:37:57.954 You see, it's not our love for God 01:37:57.954 --> 01:38:01.612 that keeps us on an even keel. 01:38:01.612 --> 01:38:05.615 It is God's constant love for us. NOTE Paragraph 01:38:05.615 --> 01:38:07.397 I had a young man come to me one time 01:38:07.397 --> 01:38:09.671 and he was a very godly man - young man - 01:38:09.671 --> 01:38:11.703 pursuing Christ. 01:38:11.703 --> 01:38:14.189 And he actually wrote me an email 01:38:14.189 --> 01:38:15.901 and he said this. 01:38:15.901 --> 01:38:17.157 He said, "Brother Paul, 01:38:17.157 --> 01:38:19.176 I am so unrighteous 01:38:19.176 --> 01:38:21.242 and so ungodly 01:38:21.242 --> 01:38:23.451 and so ignorant of God." 01:38:23.451 --> 01:38:24.906 So I wrote him back, I said, 01:38:24.906 --> 01:38:27.250 "Dear brother, you are much more ungodly 01:38:27.250 --> 01:38:28.934 and much more unrighteous 01:38:28.934 --> 01:38:31.042 than you now know. Signed, Paul." 01:38:31.042 --> 01:38:33.012 I have the gift of encouragement. 01:38:33.012 --> 01:38:36.416 And he called me back up and he was like, 01:38:36.416 --> 01:38:38.437 "Thank you?" 01:38:38.437 --> 01:38:41.507 "Why did you write that?" 01:38:41.507 --> 01:38:44.405 I said, "Because I want to prove to you something, son." 01:38:44.405 --> 01:38:46.010 I've watched your life. 01:38:46.010 --> 01:38:48.578 You're following hard after Christ. 01:38:48.578 --> 01:38:50.148 In many ways, when I look at you, 01:38:50.148 --> 01:38:51.605 I seem to think of myself 01:38:51.605 --> 01:38:54.004 that I lost my first love. 01:38:54.004 --> 01:38:56.135 I said you're following harder after Christ 01:38:56.135 --> 01:38:57.540 than I appear to be, 01:38:57.540 --> 01:39:00.098 but I'm much happier than you. 01:39:00.098 --> 01:39:01.670 And he said how can that be? 01:39:01.670 --> 01:39:04.505 I said, son, I've given up 01:39:04.505 --> 01:39:06.992 on trying to earn my own keep 01:39:06.992 --> 01:39:09.103 in the kingdom of heaven. 01:39:09.103 --> 01:39:12.648 I said, son, when you get up in the morning 01:39:12.648 --> 01:39:16.330 and you have a five hour time of prayer 01:39:16.330 --> 01:39:19.097 and you read the Word for 25 hours 01:39:19.097 --> 01:39:21.110 just in that morning, 01:39:21.110 --> 01:39:23.380 and you go out, you witness to everybody, 01:39:23.380 --> 01:39:25.104 you're even nice to cats. 01:39:25.104 --> 01:39:26.614 You're a testimony to Christ. 01:39:26.614 --> 01:39:28.744 You're just walking in the Spirit. 01:39:28.744 --> 01:39:30.430 I said, and you come home at night, 01:39:30.430 --> 01:39:31.543 how do you feel? 01:39:31.543 --> 01:39:34.131 He says I feel good. 01:39:34.131 --> 01:39:35.986 I said what about the next morning 01:39:35.986 --> 01:39:37.288 when you get up, 01:39:37.288 --> 01:39:38.454 you slept in too late, 01:39:38.454 --> 01:39:41.372 you missed your time with the Lord, 01:39:41.372 --> 01:39:43.006 you kicked the cat, 01:39:43.006 --> 01:39:44.786 you had an opportunity to witness, 01:39:44.786 --> 01:39:47.052 you didn't do that, and so on and so forth, 01:39:47.052 --> 01:39:48.278 how do you feel? 01:39:48.278 --> 01:39:52.663 He said horrible. 01:39:52.663 --> 01:39:53.906 Now there's a sense, 01:39:53.906 --> 01:39:55.409 and I want to be very careful 01:39:55.409 --> 01:39:58.069 so someone doesn't pick me apart on this sermon - 01:39:58.069 --> 01:40:00.232 there's a sense in which yes, there was sin, 01:40:00.232 --> 01:40:01.951 (unintelligible). 01:40:01.951 --> 01:40:04.937 But I rebuked him of idolatry. 01:40:04.937 --> 01:40:07.599 And he said why idolatry? 01:40:07.599 --> 01:40:09.684 I said your performance 01:40:09.684 --> 01:40:12.261 is the source of your joy. 01:40:12.261 --> 01:40:14.149 I said son, even when you got up 01:40:14.149 --> 01:40:16.247 and had the 25 hour quiet time 01:40:16.247 --> 01:40:18.096 and you did all the stuff you did, 01:40:18.096 --> 01:40:20.467 you still only earned enough 01:40:20.467 --> 01:40:24.095 to find maybe a cooler spot in hell. 01:40:24.095 --> 01:40:26.807 I said a man at his best 01:40:26.807 --> 01:40:29.974 does not deserve the love of God. 01:40:29.974 --> 01:40:33.053 I said I've come to realize that over the years. 01:40:33.053 --> 01:40:37.144 I said your joy is based on your performance. 01:40:37.144 --> 01:40:39.503 I said son, my joy is based on 01:40:39.503 --> 01:40:41.289 the finished work of Jesus Christ 01:40:41.289 --> 01:40:44.198 and that's the difference between me and you. 01:40:44.198 --> 01:40:47.283 Do you see that? NOTE Paragraph 01:40:47.283 --> 01:40:48.963 What is the Christian life like? 01:40:48.963 --> 01:40:51.103 It is like this: 01:40:51.103 --> 01:40:53.297 It has to do with revelation, 01:40:53.297 --> 01:40:55.337 brokenness, and joy. 01:40:55.337 --> 01:40:57.337 You say, well, what do you mean? 01:40:57.337 --> 01:40:59.334 A man is walking - he doesn't know Christ, 01:40:59.334 --> 01:41:00.311 he's unconverted. 01:41:00.311 --> 01:41:02.016 He hears a Gospel preacher one day 01:41:02.016 --> 01:41:03.904 and the Spirit of God renews his heart. 01:41:03.904 --> 01:41:05.458 For the first time in his life, 01:41:05.458 --> 01:41:10.324 he sees a glimpse of how God truly is. 01:41:10.324 --> 01:41:12.472 And in seeing that, 01:41:12.472 --> 01:41:14.869 he sees a glimpse of how he truly is, 01:41:14.869 --> 01:41:17.017 something of his sin. 01:41:17.017 --> 01:41:21.914 And it breaks him and he repents, 01:41:21.914 --> 01:41:24.673 but he's not left to despair. Why? 01:41:24.673 --> 01:41:27.210 Because he also sees in that revelation 01:41:27.210 --> 01:41:29.339 the grace of God in the face of Christ 01:41:29.339 --> 01:41:32.274 and he's filled with joy as he believes. 01:41:32.274 --> 01:41:33.890 You see that? 01:41:33.890 --> 01:41:35.669 Then he gets up the next day, 01:41:35.669 --> 01:41:36.944 and what happens? 01:41:36.944 --> 01:41:38.811 As he's walking through his Christian life 01:41:38.811 --> 01:41:41.917 he sees a greater revelation of who God is, 01:41:41.917 --> 01:41:43.889 a greater revelation of God's holiness. 01:41:43.889 --> 01:41:44.874 And what does it do? 01:41:44.874 --> 01:41:47.741 It breaks him deeper than the day before. 01:41:47.741 --> 01:41:49.724 It causes his repentance to be deeper 01:41:49.724 --> 01:41:51.042 because he sees himself 01:41:51.042 --> 01:41:52.927 even in a greater light now, 01:41:52.927 --> 01:41:55.270 and sees the need for brokenness and repentance. 01:41:55.270 --> 01:41:57.173 But he's not left to despair. 01:41:57.173 --> 01:42:00.124 But he looks at the grace of God in the face of Christ 01:42:00.124 --> 01:42:02.973 and his joy is greater than the joy he had the day before. 01:42:02.973 --> 01:42:06.065 And you walk through your entire Christian life that way 01:42:06.065 --> 01:42:08.237 until you're 90 years old 01:42:08.237 --> 01:42:09.596 and at 90 years old 01:42:09.596 --> 01:42:11.559 you see more of the holiness of God 01:42:11.559 --> 01:42:13.251 than you ever could have imagined. 01:42:13.251 --> 01:42:15.970 You see more of the darkness of your own soul 01:42:15.970 --> 01:42:17.597 than you ever could have imagined. 01:42:17.597 --> 01:42:18.955 You're more broken 01:42:18.955 --> 01:42:20.634 than you could have ever imagined, 01:42:20.634 --> 01:42:22.679 and yet your joy is greater 01:42:22.679 --> 01:42:24.384 than you could have ever imagined. 01:42:24.384 --> 01:42:25.766 But what happens is 01:42:25.766 --> 01:42:28.287 there's been a holy transaction. 01:42:28.287 --> 01:42:30.438 When you started, your joy was coming 01:42:30.438 --> 01:42:32.650 from who you were and what you could do. 01:42:32.650 --> 01:42:34.908 Now at 90, you're empty of that, 01:42:34.908 --> 01:42:37.681 and your joy only comes from Christ. 01:42:37.681 --> 01:42:39.872 And that's the way it's supposed to be. 01:42:39.872 --> 01:42:41.920 All our joy, all our hope - 01:42:41.920 --> 01:42:45.886 everything in Christ. NOTE Paragraph 01:42:45.886 --> 01:42:48.827 Well, now that I've summed up the entire Christian life, 01:42:48.827 --> 01:42:54.471 I guess we can close the conference. 01:42:54.471 --> 01:42:58.050 Be blessed in what God has done for you in Christ. 01:42:58.050 --> 01:42:59.882 Be blessed. 01:42:59.882 --> 01:43:02.256 Rejoice! Look unto Him! 01:43:02.256 --> 01:43:05.489 Look unto Him. 01:43:05.489 --> 01:43:07.356 Inward looks are necessary, 01:43:07.356 --> 01:43:09.735 but to hold your gaze inwardly 01:43:09.735 --> 01:43:11.760 only leads to death. 01:43:11.760 --> 01:43:14.471 Look to Christ. 01:43:14.471 --> 01:43:16.637 Because He is greater 01:43:16.637 --> 01:43:19.620 than every one of your failures 01:43:19.620 --> 01:43:23.324 and your weaknesses and your sins. 01:43:23.324 --> 01:43:26.751 I sing because I'm happy. 01:43:26.751 --> 01:43:32.181 I sing because I'm free. 01:43:32.181 --> 01:43:34.644 It was all finished at Calvary. 01:43:34.644 --> 01:43:36.846 It was all finished at Calvary. NOTE Paragraph 01:43:36.846 --> 01:43:39.772 Let's pray. 01:43:39.772 --> 01:43:42.882 Father, thank You for Your Word. 01:43:42.882 --> 01:43:45.628 I pray, Lord, that out of this, 01:43:45.628 --> 01:43:50.304 that Your people will be helped, 01:43:50.304 --> 01:43:54.211 in Jesus' name, Amen. 01:43:59.641 --> 01:44:01.352 Please visit our website at 01:44:01.352 --> 01:44:04.176 heartcrymissionnary.com. 01:44:04.176 --> 01:44:05.682 There you will find information 01:44:05.682 --> 01:44:07.520 about the ministry - our purpose, 01:44:07.520 --> 01:44:09.234 beliefs, and methodologies, 01:44:09.234 --> 01:44:11.007 and extensive information 01:44:11.007 --> 01:44:14.892 about the missionaries we are privileged to serve.