WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.120 As you know, we have changed our Tuesday night, 00:00:02.220 --> 00:00:06.719 mixed it up, and so he was not all that happy 00:00:06.719 --> 00:00:08.519 with us. He's not a member, so he doesn't get 00:00:08.519 --> 00:00:10.880 a vote, but he wasn't very happy with us that 00:00:10.880 --> 00:00:14.339 we changed up our schedule and did less worksheets 00:00:14.339 --> 00:00:17.140 and less lessons that we were broadcasting on 00:00:17.140 --> 00:00:18.620 Tuesday night. So I just thought that was funny 00:00:18.620 --> 00:00:20.100 that you would get kicked out of it. Well, we'll 00:00:20.100 --> 00:00:23.079 be online after this, not on video, live. Yeah. 00:00:24.600 --> 00:00:27.620 Yeah, but it'll be on the podcast. And then when 00:00:27.620 --> 00:00:30.160 I do the podcast, they can actually print the 00:00:30.160 --> 00:00:32.600 worksheet off and then fill in the blanks with 00:00:32.600 --> 00:00:34.920 us as we fill in the blanks. It could be fun. 00:00:34.979 --> 00:00:38.420 I don't know. It's not new to me, so I wouldn't 00:00:38.420 --> 00:00:42.820 do it. Okay, so as you can see on your worksheet, 00:00:42.960 --> 00:00:49.100 we are looking at Revelation 3. Jason, what's 00:00:49.100 --> 00:00:54.020 the last book of the Bible? Say it again. Say 00:00:54.020 --> 00:00:57.899 it again. You're wrong, sir. You're incorrect. 00:00:58.399 --> 00:01:02.100 What is the last book of the Bible? Say it again. 00:01:03.479 --> 00:01:07.819 Can anybody help him? It's Revelation. There's 00:01:07.819 --> 00:01:13.480 no S. You and 80 % of Christians across the world, 00:01:13.540 --> 00:01:16.980 so you're in good company. But the book is Revelation, 00:01:17.040 --> 00:01:23.359 not Revelations. Why? Because it's just one revelation. 00:01:23.439 --> 00:01:26.439 The whole book is the revelation of John, right? 00:01:26.620 --> 00:01:29.239 So it's just one revelation. Now, it seems like 00:01:29.239 --> 00:01:31.459 it has a bunch of revelations in it, but it's 00:01:31.459 --> 00:01:34.480 just one revelation, right? So it's the revelation 00:01:34.480 --> 00:01:38.719 to John and of John. Hey, Tony Tate, where was 00:01:38.719 --> 00:01:40.780 John when he had the vision that was translated 00:01:40.780 --> 00:01:42.260 into the book of Revelation? Do you remember? 00:01:43.519 --> 00:01:48.299 Nope. Yeah, the island of Patmos. That's very 00:01:48.299 --> 00:01:51.939 good. So we've got at least... One trivia that 00:01:51.939 --> 00:01:54.500 we know as a group. Awesome. So there's not a 00:01:54.500 --> 00:01:56.920 ton of blanks here, as you can see. In the book 00:01:56.920 --> 00:01:59.799 of Revelation, we're looking at Revelation chapter 00:01:59.799 --> 00:02:04.260 3. When we get to verse 20, I want you to know 00:02:04.260 --> 00:02:07.680 that it is one of the key verses that I use every 00:02:07.680 --> 00:02:10.460 time I'm witnessing, and either I am successful 00:02:10.460 --> 00:02:12.900 in leading someone to Christ, or if they are 00:02:12.900 --> 00:02:16.400 saying that they already know Christ. So either 00:02:16.400 --> 00:02:19.039 one, if we're confirming whether they've said 00:02:19.039 --> 00:02:21.629 they're already saved, And then I go, that route 00:02:21.629 --> 00:02:24.889 takes me through being born again, and then to 00:02:24.889 --> 00:02:27.550 Revelation 3 .20. And if, on the other hand, 00:02:27.550 --> 00:02:29.610 if I've led them to Christ, then it takes me 00:02:29.610 --> 00:02:34.789 directly to Revelation 3 .20. Okay? I'm sorry, 00:02:34.889 --> 00:02:38.610 what was the book? Revelation 3 .20. Where he 00:02:38.610 --> 00:02:49.150 says, Behold. Yeah, I stand at the, yep. Okay, 00:02:49.189 --> 00:02:51.469 we'll get there. Okay, so Revelation 3, I'm going 00:02:51.469 --> 00:02:53.210 to read verses 1 through 6, and then we're going 00:02:53.210 --> 00:02:54.990 to zoom through the blanks. They won't be too 00:02:54.990 --> 00:02:57.509 tough. I will tell you that there are two blanks 00:02:57.509 --> 00:02:59.530 on your paper that I have no idea what goes in 00:02:59.530 --> 00:03:03.930 them. So we'll do those together. So, in fact, 00:03:03.949 --> 00:03:05.889 I'm pretty sure the letters are wrong, but maybe 00:03:05.889 --> 00:03:07.169 you'll come up with something. I don't know. 00:03:07.189 --> 00:03:08.930 So when we get there, we'll see how that goes. 00:03:09.009 --> 00:03:10.870 Because I had to go back and fill, after I did 00:03:10.870 --> 00:03:11.990 all the blanks, I had to go back and fill in 00:03:11.990 --> 00:03:13.650 the blanks, and I forgot what went in some of 00:03:13.650 --> 00:03:16.169 the blanks. I told you it was very fast. Okay. 00:03:16.719 --> 00:03:20.180 All right, here we go. Revelation 3 .1. I'm going 00:03:20.180 --> 00:03:21.840 to say Revelation a whole bunch of times so we 00:03:21.840 --> 00:03:23.400 all walk out of here remembering there's no S. 00:03:24.479 --> 00:03:30.020 Revelation 3 .1. Here we go. Write to the angel 00:03:30.020 --> 00:03:34.400 of the church in Sardis. The one who has the 00:03:34.400 --> 00:03:37.400 seven spirits of God and the seven stars says, 00:03:37.740 --> 00:03:41.199 I know your works. You have a reputation for 00:03:41.199 --> 00:03:44.819 being alive, but you are dead. Be alert and strengthen 00:03:44.819 --> 00:03:48.310 what remains. which is about to die, for I have 00:03:48.310 --> 00:03:50.849 not found your works complete before my God. 00:03:51.349 --> 00:03:54.229 Remember, therefore, what you have received and 00:03:54.229 --> 00:03:58.469 heard. Keep it and repent. But if you are not 00:03:58.469 --> 00:04:01.330 alert, I will come like a thief, and you have 00:04:01.330 --> 00:04:03.949 no idea at what hour I will come against you. 00:04:04.569 --> 00:04:07.949 But you have a few people in Sardis who have 00:04:07.949 --> 00:04:11.389 not defiled their clothes, and they will walk 00:04:11.389 --> 00:04:14.909 with me in white, because they are worthy. In 00:04:14.909 --> 00:04:18.089 the same way, the victor will be dressed in white 00:04:18.089 --> 00:04:22.069 clothes. And I will never erase his name from 00:04:22.069 --> 00:04:24.889 the book of life, but will acknowledge his name 00:04:24.889 --> 00:04:28.350 before my father and before his angels. Verse 00:04:28.350 --> 00:04:31.449 6. Anyone who has an ear should listen to what 00:04:31.449 --> 00:04:34.389 the Spirit says to the churches. Okay, so here 00:04:34.389 --> 00:04:38.410 we go. Right from the top. I know your deeds. 00:04:38.689 --> 00:04:42.449 You have a reputation of being alive. Very good. 00:04:43.160 --> 00:04:47.779 But you are dead. So before we go any further, 00:04:48.040 --> 00:04:50.300 notice there, with everybody, we already know 00:04:50.300 --> 00:04:52.600 this, don't we? That with everybody, there can 00:04:52.600 --> 00:04:54.800 be a lot of difference between reputation and 00:04:54.800 --> 00:05:00.379 fact. So you hear a lot of things. Sometimes 00:05:00.379 --> 00:05:01.899 you hear something negative about somebody and 00:05:01.899 --> 00:05:03.420 you think that they're doing something negative. 00:05:03.560 --> 00:05:05.279 You should probably try not to hear negative 00:05:05.279 --> 00:05:06.939 things about people if you can do that. But some 00:05:06.939 --> 00:05:08.339 people will tell you before you know it's coming. 00:05:08.540 --> 00:05:11.000 And their reputation may not be the same as fact. 00:05:11.879 --> 00:05:14.779 In the case of the church at Sardis, they had 00:05:14.779 --> 00:05:16.579 a reputation for being alive. So that means that 00:05:16.579 --> 00:05:18.220 in the kingdom of God, in other churches, other 00:05:18.220 --> 00:05:20.699 places, they were known, believed to be alive, 00:05:20.939 --> 00:05:25.120 active, growing, working, doing things. But actually, 00:05:25.240 --> 00:05:30.819 Jesus is saying they're dead. So then the next 00:05:30.819 --> 00:05:34.540 one should be pretty easy. Wake up. It's a P. 00:05:35.120 --> 00:05:38.899 It's a big word. Strengthen what remains. That 00:05:38.899 --> 00:05:43.110 was verse 2. What would it mean to strengthen 00:05:43.110 --> 00:05:51.149 what remains? What is he saying? Within the, 00:05:51.209 --> 00:05:54.550 say the last part. Within your spiritual body, 00:05:54.769 --> 00:05:56.889 okay? So individually, corporately, as a church. 00:05:56.970 --> 00:05:59.529 This is written to the church at Sardis, right? 00:05:59.790 --> 00:06:01.889 But it would be individually, corporately, as 00:06:01.889 --> 00:06:04.329 a church, whatever, to strengthen what is still 00:06:04.329 --> 00:06:08.769 godly in the spiritual body, right? To build 00:06:08.769 --> 00:06:12.350 it up, to make it work together. So let's just 00:06:12.350 --> 00:06:16.189 hypotheticals for a second. Let's say you have 00:06:16.189 --> 00:06:20.129 a church and you've got 40 people coming. And 00:06:20.129 --> 00:06:23.889 of those 40 people, the majority of them, they're 00:06:23.889 --> 00:06:27.129 just coming to be coming. It's more, this is 00:06:27.129 --> 00:06:31.050 just what I do, going through the motions, whatever. 00:06:31.230 --> 00:06:34.449 But maybe there's, say, 8 or 10 who genuinely 00:06:34.449 --> 00:06:37.550 love the Lord. They want to serve God day in, 00:06:37.589 --> 00:06:40.329 day out. Not just one day a week or just Tuesdays 00:06:40.329 --> 00:06:43.529 and Sundays, but every day of the week. What 00:06:43.529 --> 00:06:49.790 does that verse tell us we should do? You got 00:06:49.790 --> 00:06:52.930 32 people out of 40 who are kind of going through 00:06:52.930 --> 00:06:55.029 the motions and eight who love the Lord and truly 00:06:55.029 --> 00:07:13.069 want to serve him. What should we do? Okay. I 00:07:13.069 --> 00:07:15.329 think what you're talking about is very loving, 00:07:15.430 --> 00:07:17.790 but it is not what the verse tells us to do, 00:07:17.829 --> 00:07:20.230 unfortunately. I think that is what we do, what 00:07:20.230 --> 00:07:21.829 you described what we do, because we do love 00:07:21.829 --> 00:07:23.910 people, right? But what is the verse actually 00:07:23.910 --> 00:07:29.189 telling us to do? It says strengthen the eight, 00:07:29.350 --> 00:07:33.610 right? Now, here's an interesting thing. Does 00:07:33.610 --> 00:07:36.329 anybody here go to the gym? Any gym goers? No, 00:07:36.350 --> 00:07:40.250 yeah, me either. So you go to the gym, and you 00:07:40.250 --> 00:07:42.449 see these people at the gym, right? And some 00:07:42.449 --> 00:07:45.389 of them are like, they've been going for years. 00:07:45.589 --> 00:07:47.790 They're eating right. They're pretty ripped. 00:07:47.930 --> 00:07:50.889 They're buff, whatever. Or girls are slim and 00:07:50.889 --> 00:07:53.389 muscular. And you think, well, they can probably 00:07:53.389 --> 00:07:55.629 run a five -minute mile, four -and -a -half -minute 00:07:55.629 --> 00:07:56.970 mile or whatever. There might not be tracks. 00:07:57.069 --> 00:08:00.629 I'm not like them. And I go to the gym, I think, 00:08:00.649 --> 00:08:03.399 well. I don't compare with anybody that's at 00:08:03.399 --> 00:08:05.160 the gym. I'm not like anybody that's at the gym, 00:08:05.300 --> 00:08:09.040 right? So the people at the gym, they're pumping 00:08:09.040 --> 00:08:11.120 iron, they're jogging on the treadmill, whatever. 00:08:11.259 --> 00:08:15.720 And people like us come to the gym and they come 00:08:15.720 --> 00:08:18.740 a few times, a couple times a week for a few 00:08:18.740 --> 00:08:23.680 weeks, right? Maybe two times a week for 10, 00:08:23.740 --> 00:08:26.920 maybe 20 weeks, right? And all the while, the 00:08:26.920 --> 00:08:31.319 people at the gym, what are they doing? They're 00:08:31.319 --> 00:08:34.399 strengthening themselves, right? Now, it's encouraging, 00:08:34.679 --> 00:08:36.379 isn't it, to think that you could be like them 00:08:36.379 --> 00:08:38.799 someday? If you, too, went to the gym and ate 00:08:38.799 --> 00:08:40.799 right and did that, you could get like that, 00:08:40.820 --> 00:08:43.500 too. That's encouraging, right? But they don't 00:08:43.500 --> 00:08:45.399 stop at every new person that comes into the 00:08:45.399 --> 00:08:47.860 gym. They say, hey, if you do 12 reps instead 00:08:47.860 --> 00:08:50.960 of 10, next week you'll have .0004 more muscle. 00:08:51.320 --> 00:08:53.799 They don't do that. They don't say, hey, I see 00:08:53.799 --> 00:08:55.740 you drinking water. You should be drinking Gatorade. 00:08:55.740 --> 00:08:57.139 If you're drinking Gatorade, you'll be strong 00:08:57.139 --> 00:08:59.500 enough. They do their reps. They do their workout. 00:08:59.620 --> 00:09:02.480 They show up. They show up every time. And so 00:09:02.480 --> 00:09:07.360 we have to realize that ultimately, it's very 00:09:07.360 --> 00:09:09.840 loving to be concerned about people who aren't 00:09:09.840 --> 00:09:12.299 with the Lord, who aren't truly walking it, who 00:09:12.299 --> 00:09:13.720 aren't truly living the way Jesus would want 00:09:13.720 --> 00:09:15.059 them to live. That is good. We don't want to 00:09:15.059 --> 00:09:16.440 dismiss them. We're not trying to write them 00:09:16.440 --> 00:09:17.899 off or say, get away from me. I don't like you. 00:09:17.960 --> 00:09:20.820 You stink. We're not trying to do that. But you're 00:09:20.820 --> 00:09:23.549 responsible for you. And if you're truly walking 00:09:23.549 --> 00:09:25.269 with the Lord, you're responsible to strengthen 00:09:25.269 --> 00:09:28.049 that, to work on that, to grow, to learn, to 00:09:28.049 --> 00:09:30.350 do everything you can do. And you can't do it 00:09:30.350 --> 00:09:32.350 for anybody else. You can encourage them, and 00:09:32.350 --> 00:09:34.190 I'm not disagreeing that you should encourage 00:09:34.190 --> 00:09:36.929 them, but ultimately you're responsible for strengthening. 00:09:37.250 --> 00:09:40.250 Now, if you're not walking with the Lord, there 00:09:40.250 --> 00:09:44.789 is no solution, right? You can't not walk with 00:09:44.789 --> 00:09:46.769 the Lord and grow stronger in the Lord. You understand 00:09:46.769 --> 00:09:50.059 that, right? You cannot not walk with the Lord 00:09:50.059 --> 00:09:52.700 and grow strong. There's only one solution that 00:09:52.700 --> 00:09:58.259 actually works, and it is to repent, right? To 00:09:58.259 --> 00:10:01.320 turn back to the Lord in fullness, to dedicate 00:10:01.320 --> 00:10:04.480 yourself to God. Then you can strengthen what 00:10:04.480 --> 00:10:09.190 remains, right? There was our disillustration 00:10:09.190 --> 00:10:11.350 on that point when I was going to the Y very 00:10:11.350 --> 00:10:14.190 consistently in my early part of my health journey 00:10:14.190 --> 00:10:15.610 I was trying to get my health back. I was going 00:10:15.610 --> 00:10:17.950 very like two three times a week and there was 00:10:17.950 --> 00:10:20.370 a couple there I didn't know they were a couple. 00:10:20.429 --> 00:10:21.649 They were married and I didn't know it because 00:10:21.649 --> 00:10:23.009 they never talked to each other while they were 00:10:23.009 --> 00:10:24.690 there or nothing. And they worked their butts 00:10:24.690 --> 00:10:27.230 off. And during the time that I was going, they 00:10:27.230 --> 00:10:30.690 both lost like 60 pounds. And you'd think he 00:10:30.690 --> 00:10:32.549 was like a bodybuilder. He got pretty ripped. 00:10:32.669 --> 00:10:34.070 And I don't know if he was taking chemicals or 00:10:34.070 --> 00:10:36.210 what. But in the six months, he really started 00:10:36.210 --> 00:10:39.769 looking good and did a good job getting healthy. 00:10:39.850 --> 00:10:42.230 And so did she. She was doing a great job. And 00:10:42.230 --> 00:10:44.990 then I didn't go to the Y for about two years. 00:10:45.330 --> 00:10:47.840 For like two years, I didn't go to the Y. And 00:10:47.840 --> 00:10:49.899 I went to the Y and I had gotten, in the two 00:10:49.899 --> 00:10:51.659 years I was not going to the Y, and I'm not saying 00:10:51.659 --> 00:10:53.759 anything negative about the Y, I had gotten way 00:10:53.759 --> 00:10:56.220 healthier. I had lost like almost 20 pounds. 00:10:56.600 --> 00:10:59.440 I was taking my vitamins and supplements and 00:10:59.440 --> 00:11:01.500 drinking a lot of water. I had gotten way healthier 00:11:01.500 --> 00:11:04.120 in the two years. And both of them had gained 00:11:04.120 --> 00:11:07.779 back like 40 pounds. Now they were going to the 00:11:07.779 --> 00:11:10.600 Y when I went, but I had to assume in the two 00:11:10.600 --> 00:11:12.909 years in between. They either were not going 00:11:12.909 --> 00:11:15.610 or they really had not taken care of themselves 00:11:15.610 --> 00:11:18.049 one or the other because they lost all that gain. 00:11:18.149 --> 00:11:20.169 They looked so good and so strong, and they made 00:11:20.169 --> 00:11:23.889 me look like a piece of dirt or whatever. And 00:11:23.889 --> 00:11:25.769 then when I came back in two years, I looked 00:11:25.769 --> 00:11:28.070 pretty good compared to what I was two years 00:11:28.070 --> 00:11:30.549 before, and they had gained back like 40 pounds 00:11:30.549 --> 00:11:33.149 of weight that they had lost. And I'm not saying 00:11:33.149 --> 00:11:35.309 anything about weight. What I'm saying is you're 00:11:35.309 --> 00:11:38.899 responsible for you. And the church at Sardis 00:11:38.899 --> 00:11:41.779 was being reminded to strengthen what remains. 00:11:42.059 --> 00:11:45.480 If you're dead, you get life from Jesus. If you 00:11:45.480 --> 00:11:48.860 got life from Jesus, you live for Jesus. Does 00:11:48.860 --> 00:11:52.120 that make sense? Okay, now back on task. Jesus 00:11:52.120 --> 00:12:00.019 calls us to be spiritually louder. Okay, it is 00:12:00.019 --> 00:12:03.559 alive. In the text, it's alive. So awareness 00:12:03.559 --> 00:12:06.580 and being alive or aliveness, which is not a 00:12:06.580 --> 00:12:10.179 word, those two things are very similar in the 00:12:10.179 --> 00:12:12.139 Bible. Like you say, alive and aware, they're 00:12:12.139 --> 00:12:15.720 very similar. But being aware can be very worldly. 00:12:17.299 --> 00:12:21.220 Right? It can be very worldly. Like, I woke. 00:12:21.460 --> 00:12:24.379 I awoke. You hear that term, right? So I'm woke. 00:12:25.279 --> 00:12:29.909 So it can be a very worldly thing. Jesus calls 00:12:29.909 --> 00:12:32.009 us to be spiritually alive, not just looking 00:12:32.009 --> 00:12:35.690 alive. The faithful will be dressed in white. 00:12:38.049 --> 00:12:40.970 When I was 16 years old, I was the youngest member 00:12:40.970 --> 00:12:43.789 of a constitutional congress at the University 00:12:43.789 --> 00:12:46.730 of Toledo. We went in and had a proposal to rewrite 00:12:46.730 --> 00:12:48.549 the constitution. All these kids from all over 00:12:48.549 --> 00:12:52.149 the state. And I wore all white. White pants, 00:12:52.370 --> 00:12:54.669 white shirt, white jacket. And it was white. 00:12:54.850 --> 00:12:56.870 Bleach white. It was nice. It was very pretty. 00:12:57.500 --> 00:13:01.500 I liked it. I thought I was cool. And my team 00:13:01.500 --> 00:13:03.279 was discussing our constitutional amendment. 00:13:03.379 --> 00:13:05.120 It was sunny outside, and they were sitting outside 00:13:05.120 --> 00:13:06.940 on the patio. And I came out the door, and I 00:13:06.940 --> 00:13:09.919 walked it, and they all went like this and looked 00:13:09.919 --> 00:13:11.720 away as I came out because the sun was shining 00:13:11.720 --> 00:13:14.200 on me, and I was in all white. And when I walked 00:13:14.200 --> 00:13:16.139 out, I'm like, what? What happened? And she said, 00:13:16.240 --> 00:13:19.179 well, you're in all white. I mean, she said, 00:13:19.240 --> 00:13:20.879 not that it doesn't look good. It's okay. It's 00:13:20.879 --> 00:13:22.879 fine. But just like glaring when you came out 00:13:22.879 --> 00:13:26.990 into the sun. And you have to realize. This is 00:13:26.990 --> 00:13:30.950 that kind of white. Okay. All right. So now this 00:13:30.950 --> 00:13:34.330 is an action point. So this is for you. Not going 00:13:34.330 --> 00:13:36.950 to call on you for an answer, but you should 00:13:36.950 --> 00:13:39.929 have one. Where in your life are you tempted 00:13:39.929 --> 00:13:44.169 to look outwardly or look alive outwardly, but 00:13:44.169 --> 00:13:47.990 actually you are dry inside? What are you doing 00:13:47.990 --> 00:13:50.509 in your life or what part of your life you want 00:13:50.509 --> 00:13:52.690 to look alive? You're tempted to look alive, 00:13:52.750 --> 00:13:55.090 but actually you're kind of dry and not actually 00:13:55.090 --> 00:13:57.980 there. No, don't share it with me. Just write 00:13:57.980 --> 00:13:59.600 something on the paper for yourself. This is 00:13:59.600 --> 00:14:11.240 your paper. I have done it too many times to 00:14:11.240 --> 00:14:16.700 count in my Christian spiritual walk. So if you 00:14:16.700 --> 00:14:18.320 sit there and say, well, there's nowhere in my 00:14:18.320 --> 00:14:20.039 Christian walk that I would want to look alive 00:14:20.039 --> 00:14:22.500 and not actually worry about being truly alive, 00:14:22.659 --> 00:14:26.200 I think you might be kidding yourself. There 00:14:26.200 --> 00:14:28.539 are many places that we can be tempted to do 00:14:28.539 --> 00:14:34.019 that. Okay, section two, the church in Philadelphia. 00:14:36.379 --> 00:14:41.460 Verses seven through 13. Here is what the word 00:14:41.460 --> 00:14:44.019 of God says there, since I find the little number. 00:14:46.200 --> 00:14:48.679 Write to the angel of the church in Philadelphia. 00:14:48.759 --> 00:14:51.240 Oh, side note, what does the word Philadelphia 00:14:51.240 --> 00:14:58.049 mean? Anybody? Anybody got it? Tony Tate might 00:14:58.049 --> 00:15:04.090 have it. Give it to me. It's brotherly love, 00:15:04.169 --> 00:15:08.909 that's right. So, phileo, right, is brotherly 00:15:08.909 --> 00:15:11.769 love, and then the city of Philadelphia would 00:15:11.769 --> 00:15:17.029 be the city of brotherly love. Alright, write 00:15:17.029 --> 00:15:20.070 the angel of the church in Philadelphia, the 00:15:20.070 --> 00:15:23.129 holy one, the true one, and the one who has the 00:15:23.129 --> 00:15:26.419 key of David. who opens and no one will close, 00:15:26.480 --> 00:15:30.580 and who closes and no one says, I know your works 00:15:30.580 --> 00:15:33.960 because you have limited strength, have kept 00:15:33.960 --> 00:15:37.159 my word, and have not denied my name. Look, I 00:15:37.159 --> 00:15:40.019 have placed before you an open door that no one 00:15:40.019 --> 00:15:43.799 is able to close. Take note. I will make those 00:15:43.799 --> 00:15:47.399 from the synagogue of Satan who claim to be Jews 00:15:47.399 --> 00:15:51.240 and are not, but are lying. Note this. I will 00:15:51.240 --> 00:15:55.659 make them. come and bow down at your feet, and 00:15:55.659 --> 00:16:00.879 they will know that I have loved you. Because 00:16:00.879 --> 00:16:04.940 you have kept my commands to endure, I'm sorry, 00:16:04.980 --> 00:16:08.600 my command to endure, I will also keep you from 00:16:08.600 --> 00:16:10.840 the hour of testing that is going to come over 00:16:10.840 --> 00:16:13.179 the whole world to test those who live on the 00:16:13.179 --> 00:16:17.139 earth. I am coming quickly. Hold on to what you 00:16:17.139 --> 00:16:20.919 have so that no one takes your crown. The victor. 00:16:21.769 --> 00:16:24.889 I will make him a pillar in the sanctuary of 00:16:24.889 --> 00:16:28.470 my God, and he will never go out again. I will 00:16:28.470 --> 00:16:30.809 write on him the name of my God and the name 00:16:30.809 --> 00:16:33.289 of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which 00:16:33.289 --> 00:16:37.409 comes down out of heaven from my God and my new 00:16:37.409 --> 00:16:40.929 name. Anyone who has an ear should listen to 00:16:40.929 --> 00:16:45.970 what the Spirit says to the churches. Okay. See, 00:16:46.309 --> 00:16:51.120 I have placed before you an... Open door. Yes, 00:16:51.259 --> 00:16:57.399 indeed. That no one can shut. Since you have 00:16:57.399 --> 00:17:02.259 kept my command to endure patiently, I will keep 00:17:02.259 --> 00:17:08.579 you from the hour of trial or hour of tempting. 00:17:09.480 --> 00:17:11.579 Depending on your translation of the Bible, the 00:17:11.579 --> 00:17:13.420 word there is in the Greek basically means a 00:17:13.420 --> 00:17:15.559 tribulation or a trial that tempts a person. 00:17:17.349 --> 00:17:19.529 All right, here's the one that I couldn't remember 00:17:19.529 --> 00:17:21.150 what goes in the blank and maybe the letter's 00:17:21.150 --> 00:17:26.170 not right. Jesus opened doors for blank and faithfulness. 00:17:26.750 --> 00:17:28.930 I had an M there, but I can't remember what the 00:17:28.930 --> 00:17:32.950 M stood for. Anybody got it? By committee? What? 00:17:36.809 --> 00:17:42.089 Meek? That's not bad. I kind of like it. So meek 00:17:42.089 --> 00:17:49.210 is like being modestly. unassuming or not forcing 00:17:49.210 --> 00:17:52.630 your will on other people. So weak is unable 00:17:52.630 --> 00:17:55.710 to force somebody. Meek is choosing not to force 00:17:55.710 --> 00:18:00.589 somebody out of modesty or restraint. Yeah. And 00:18:00.589 --> 00:18:03.049 by the way, the Bible says what? Does the Bible 00:18:03.049 --> 00:18:06.609 say that the weak shall inherit the earth? No. 00:18:06.670 --> 00:18:09.069 It says that the meek shall inherit the earth. 00:18:10.269 --> 00:18:13.829 Yep. There you go. The meek shall inherit the 00:18:13.829 --> 00:18:18.779 earth. Did you get a worksheet, Alex? Oh, I'm 00:18:18.779 --> 00:18:22.299 sorry. Are you back here too? Okay, well, you 00:18:22.299 --> 00:18:32.160 can get the other answers. Oh, and my page turned. 00:18:32.680 --> 00:18:35.960 Okay, all right, so meek is not bad. Meekness 00:18:35.960 --> 00:18:41.619 would be the, if it makes sense, for meekness 00:18:41.619 --> 00:18:44.009 and faithfulness. Anybody else got another one? 00:18:44.049 --> 00:18:45.690 Or even if it doesn't begin with an M, because 00:18:45.690 --> 00:18:47.490 I'm not positive now that the word was supposed 00:18:47.490 --> 00:18:55.950 to begin with an M. Say it again. Mindful? That's 00:18:55.950 --> 00:19:05.589 not bad. I like that. Righteous could be. I'm 00:19:05.589 --> 00:19:17.050 not sure. Righteousness. Righteousness. faithfulness 00:19:17.050 --> 00:19:20.670 okay so we understand the concept the idea here 00:19:20.670 --> 00:19:25.690 is that Jesus is opening a door for those who 00:19:25.690 --> 00:19:29.450 are genuine right those are real so your relationship 00:19:29.450 --> 00:19:32.450 with God is real the door is open and will stay 00:19:32.450 --> 00:19:37.109 open for you your your entrance to heaven is 00:19:37.109 --> 00:19:40.569 the pathway is clear okay but if you're faking 00:19:40.569 --> 00:19:43.569 it Or if you're kind of mean to people, like 00:19:43.569 --> 00:19:45.230 you're standing on people's shoulders to get 00:19:45.230 --> 00:19:46.309 where you're trying to get, you're stepping on 00:19:46.309 --> 00:19:49.829 toes, whatever, you know, kind of harsh, then 00:19:49.829 --> 00:19:55.430 not so much. So have you ever heard the old saying, 00:19:55.690 --> 00:20:00.789 sometimes God closes a door, but he opens a window? 00:20:01.690 --> 00:20:05.819 Not really biblical, right? Have you ever heard 00:20:05.819 --> 00:20:08.380 people say, well, I know God wanted me to do 00:20:08.380 --> 00:20:10.940 this because otherwise he wouldn't have opened 00:20:10.940 --> 00:20:14.640 the door for me to do this? Also, not really 00:20:14.640 --> 00:20:16.660 biblical. There's no standing for that, right? 00:20:17.619 --> 00:20:20.259 You have to be careful because the Bible is very 00:20:20.259 --> 00:20:22.200 clear in the New Testament about us interpreting 00:20:22.200 --> 00:20:25.559 signs. And when an opportunity comes along at 00:20:25.559 --> 00:20:27.799 a suspicious moment in time, people are like, 00:20:27.839 --> 00:20:31.140 oh, this must be it because it's kind of, otherwise 00:20:31.140 --> 00:20:33.059 it wouldn't have come, right? Otherwise I wouldn't 00:20:33.059 --> 00:20:35.940 have had this suspicious opportunity. And that's 00:20:35.940 --> 00:20:37.900 not what God wants you to do. God wants you to 00:20:37.900 --> 00:20:40.200 have a relationship with him. So we don't have 00:20:40.200 --> 00:20:43.980 a set of rules. We don't go by signs. We walk 00:20:43.980 --> 00:20:46.700 with Jesus. And just like I talked about on Sunday, 00:20:46.779 --> 00:20:49.700 you can know the mind of God. You don't have 00:20:49.700 --> 00:20:53.220 to have these tenfold laws and everything like 00:20:53.220 --> 00:20:55.119 that. Through the Holy Spirit, we know the mind 00:20:55.119 --> 00:20:59.839 of him whose Holy Spirit it is. Okay. So he promises 00:20:59.839 --> 00:21:04.259 then to write his name on the faithful. Very 00:21:04.259 --> 00:21:36.680 good. Yeah. That's a good point. So this text 00:21:36.680 --> 00:21:40.759 is definitely not talking about once -in -a -lifetime 00:21:40.759 --> 00:21:45.319 opportunities or fire sales or, well, I know 00:21:45.319 --> 00:21:47.859 I got to. Right now, I'm in a hurry. I got to 00:21:47.859 --> 00:21:49.579 get this in before the deadline or anything like 00:21:49.579 --> 00:21:51.119 that. That's not what this is talking about. 00:21:51.220 --> 00:21:54.279 This is talking about Jesus is opening a way 00:21:54.279 --> 00:21:57.380 that you can go that will never shut. Faithfulness 00:21:57.380 --> 00:22:00.299 is talking about loving other people, which is 00:22:00.299 --> 00:22:02.759 hard. And it's hard to love them even when they... 00:22:03.210 --> 00:22:05.670 kind of suck, and they're not lovable, right? 00:22:05.970 --> 00:22:08.930 But you can, because God has opened a door that 00:22:08.930 --> 00:22:11.130 never can be shut, no matter how much. It's like 00:22:11.130 --> 00:22:13.990 Stephen and Jesus praying, Lord forgive them, 00:22:13.990 --> 00:22:16.190 for they know not what they do. For the people 00:22:16.190 --> 00:22:17.690 that were crucifying them, it's like, I have 00:22:17.690 --> 00:22:19.710 a hard time loving, I'm just being frank, I have 00:22:19.710 --> 00:22:20.890 a hard time loving people who are being mean 00:22:20.890 --> 00:22:22.950 to me when they're not throwing stones or pounding 00:22:22.950 --> 00:22:27.009 nails, but the example has been shown to love 00:22:27.009 --> 00:22:28.750 people even when they're throwing stones or pounding 00:22:28.750 --> 00:22:31.410 nails. So those are the kind of doors that we're 00:22:31.410 --> 00:22:33.809 talking about. All right, so that being said, 00:22:34.029 --> 00:22:36.690 write for yourself. Again, I'm not going to ask 00:22:36.690 --> 00:22:38.710 you to answer this. Write for yourself, what 00:22:38.710 --> 00:22:42.670 open door is God giving you right now to serve 00:22:42.670 --> 00:22:47.450 or witness? So is he opening an opportunity that 00:22:47.450 --> 00:22:49.509 should be an opportunity? It's not just, I can 00:22:49.509 --> 00:22:51.490 do it right now this one second, but it's the 00:22:51.490 --> 00:22:55.869 kind of person you might become. I'll give you 00:22:55.869 --> 00:22:57.730 an example. We have a couple of people in this 00:22:57.730 --> 00:22:59.470 room that are very good at talking to people. 00:23:00.330 --> 00:23:01.950 Like they could just shoot the breeze with anybody. 00:23:02.609 --> 00:23:04.269 And then there's some of us that are kind of 00:23:04.269 --> 00:23:06.670 like, I'd be okay if I went the whole day and 00:23:06.670 --> 00:23:10.490 did other than greetings. No significant conversations 00:23:10.490 --> 00:23:13.250 because I'm not really a social person. So if 00:23:13.250 --> 00:23:14.970 you're a person that can just talk to anybody 00:23:14.970 --> 00:23:17.970 about whatever and you don't mind being in a 00:23:17.970 --> 00:23:20.829 conversation, then that's an open door for you. 00:23:21.390 --> 00:23:23.430 That's an opportunity for you to talk to people 00:23:23.430 --> 00:23:25.390 about Jesus, talk to people about the word, to 00:23:25.390 --> 00:23:27.170 bring them into all kinds of conversations that 00:23:27.170 --> 00:23:29.150 you might have. But if you're the kind of person 00:23:29.150 --> 00:23:31.529 that, that just doesn't talk to people very much 00:23:31.529 --> 00:23:34.750 and not very social, then whenever the opportunity 00:23:34.750 --> 00:23:37.269 presents itself, then you're going to have to 00:23:37.269 --> 00:23:39.930 require yourself to be found faithful. So you're 00:23:39.930 --> 00:23:42.029 going to have to talk to them about whatever 00:23:42.029 --> 00:23:44.190 to get to the conversation of talking about Jesus. 00:23:44.730 --> 00:23:48.299 So your fruit is different. The first person 00:23:48.299 --> 00:23:50.460 is just taking the open door the easy way, if 00:23:50.460 --> 00:23:52.680 you will, that God is providing for them that 00:23:52.680 --> 00:23:54.279 will remain open because they're social and they're 00:23:54.279 --> 00:23:56.400 able to talk to everybody. The other person is 00:23:56.400 --> 00:23:59.140 going to get a completely different growth because 00:23:59.140 --> 00:24:01.059 they're going to be required to do something 00:24:01.059 --> 00:24:03.180 that they would not normally feel comfortable 00:24:03.180 --> 00:24:05.940 doing. So now they might learn in self -discipline. 00:24:06.019 --> 00:24:08.680 They learn in mental and emotional strength, 00:24:08.839 --> 00:24:12.910 for example, that kind of thing. but what is 00:24:12.910 --> 00:24:15.569 your open door that God is giving you right now 00:24:15.569 --> 00:24:18.789 to serve or witness? The commands that we have 00:24:18.789 --> 00:24:20.609 in scripture clearly point to we are supposed 00:24:20.609 --> 00:24:22.950 to serve or witness. So how is God making it 00:24:22.950 --> 00:24:25.670 possible for you to do that is the question. 00:24:25.849 --> 00:24:29.309 Okay, now section three, we're moving right along. 00:24:29.869 --> 00:24:32.750 Section three is Laodicea. And that's where we 00:24:32.750 --> 00:24:35.869 run into that verse that we mentioned and somebody 00:24:35.869 --> 00:24:39.130 quoted most of it. Revelation 3, beginning in 00:24:39.130 --> 00:24:41.750 verse 14. Write to the angel of the church in 00:24:41.750 --> 00:24:45.250 Laodicea, the Amen, the faithful and true witness, 00:24:45.470 --> 00:24:49.789 the originator of God's creation says, I know 00:24:49.789 --> 00:24:52.349 your works that you are neither hot nor cold. 00:24:53.029 --> 00:24:56.349 I wish that you were hot or cold. So because 00:24:56.349 --> 00:24:59.789 you are lukewarm and neither hot nor cold, I'm 00:24:59.789 --> 00:25:03.630 going to vomit you out of my mouth. Not spit. 00:25:04.259 --> 00:25:06.900 Spit would not be a strong enough word to reflect 00:25:06.900 --> 00:25:09.859 the Greek word used there. Not talking about 00:25:09.859 --> 00:25:15.519 spit. 17. Because you say, I'm rich, I have become 00:25:15.519 --> 00:25:18.019 wealthy and need nothing, and you don't know 00:25:18.019 --> 00:25:21.559 that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, 00:25:21.740 --> 00:25:26.140 and naked. I advise you to buy from me gold refined 00:25:26.140 --> 00:25:29.660 in the fire so that you may be rich, white clothes 00:25:29.660 --> 00:25:32.170 so that you may be dressed. and your shameful 00:25:32.170 --> 00:25:36.950 nakedness not be exposed, and ointment to spread 00:25:36.950 --> 00:25:41.089 on your eyes so that you may see. As many as 00:25:41.089 --> 00:25:43.890 I love, I rebuke and discipline, so be committed 00:25:43.890 --> 00:25:49.750 and repent. Here's 20. Listen or behold, I stand 00:25:49.750 --> 00:25:54.150 at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice 00:25:54.150 --> 00:25:57.230 and opens the door, I will come into him and 00:25:57.230 --> 00:26:01.480 have dinner with him and he with me. Verse 21, 00:26:01.779 --> 00:26:04.680 the victor, I will give him the right to sit 00:26:04.680 --> 00:26:08.240 with me on my throne, just as I also won the 00:26:08.240 --> 00:26:10.799 victory and sat down with my father on his throne. 00:26:12.880 --> 00:26:15.920 Anyone who has an ear should listen to what the 00:26:15.920 --> 00:26:23.000 Spirit says to the churches. Top line under the 00:26:23.000 --> 00:26:27.880 church in Laodicea, you are neither hot nor cold. 00:26:28.019 --> 00:26:32.519 Very good. Notice he says, I wish you were one 00:26:32.519 --> 00:26:34.599 or the other. Isn't that an interesting thing? 00:26:35.319 --> 00:26:38.180 Hot would mean like passionate, running for the 00:26:38.180 --> 00:26:42.039 Lord, serving, doing stuff all the time, whatever. 00:26:42.119 --> 00:26:44.539 That would be hot. Cold would be like, I never 00:26:44.539 --> 00:26:48.460 watch TV. I need a snack. I'm going to hang back. 00:26:48.680 --> 00:26:52.480 I'm not real committed, right? Hear me when I 00:26:52.480 --> 00:26:58.319 say this. Jesus just said he'd rather have you. 00:26:58.959 --> 00:27:04.559 Either hot or cold than lukewarm. Is that not 00:27:04.559 --> 00:27:06.920 crazy? Jesus would rather have you either running 00:27:06.920 --> 00:27:08.599 all out for him, which would really be good. 00:27:08.660 --> 00:27:10.940 That is a good thing. Or lagging back and not 00:27:10.940 --> 00:27:14.039 really doing nothing. He'd rather have you lagging 00:27:14.039 --> 00:27:19.680 back and not really doing anything than lukewarm. 00:27:27.529 --> 00:27:29.769 I absolutely agree with that. That's part of 00:27:29.769 --> 00:27:33.690 the reason why, for sure. And that's the accusation. 00:27:33.730 --> 00:27:37.029 They think they're okay. So this is people that 00:27:37.029 --> 00:27:39.569 were going to church, to use modern context, 00:27:39.630 --> 00:27:41.390 going to church every Sunday, every Tuesday. 00:27:41.509 --> 00:27:44.049 They were tithing and more. They were serving 00:27:44.049 --> 00:27:46.750 in ministry. They're doing all these kinds of 00:27:46.750 --> 00:27:50.049 things. They're actively involved. They'd be 00:27:50.049 --> 00:27:54.089 considered pillars in their church. Yet, their 00:27:54.089 --> 00:27:56.630 hearts were not really for him. They weren't 00:27:56.630 --> 00:27:59.150 doing it for those reasons. They weren't passionate 00:27:59.150 --> 00:28:02.849 about it. They were doing it because they were 00:28:02.849 --> 00:28:06.589 okay. And this is a big portion of Christianity 00:28:06.589 --> 00:28:09.690 that's out there in the world. It's a big portion 00:28:09.690 --> 00:28:11.150 of people that would say they're followers of 00:28:11.150 --> 00:28:17.200 Jesus. And eventually what happens is... a chink 00:28:17.200 --> 00:28:21.500 in your armor comes up. So you'd be good if you 00:28:21.500 --> 00:28:23.559 were upper middle class, you had income, all 00:28:23.559 --> 00:28:25.299 your bills are paid, money's accumulating, not 00:28:25.299 --> 00:28:27.039 real fast, but accumulating in your bank account. 00:28:27.079 --> 00:28:28.900 You're taking a vacation once a year. You get 00:28:28.900 --> 00:28:31.700 to have recreation. You go out to dinner, whatever, 00:28:31.960 --> 00:28:33.859 a few times a month, everything, and everything 00:28:33.859 --> 00:28:37.480 is fine. And as far as you're concerned, you 00:28:37.480 --> 00:28:40.259 can stay like that until you die. 50 years, 70 00:28:40.259 --> 00:28:45.680 years, right? Except that's not how life works, 00:28:45.680 --> 00:28:49.099 is it? People get sick. People lose jobs. People 00:28:49.099 --> 00:28:51.819 have broken relationships. How many men have 00:28:51.819 --> 00:28:54.900 come home and thought everything was fine? Not 00:28:54.900 --> 00:28:57.339 necessarily fine, but good enough. And then they 00:28:57.339 --> 00:28:59.359 found out their wife was leaving them or cheating 00:28:59.359 --> 00:29:02.259 on them or divorcing them or whatever. How many 00:29:02.259 --> 00:29:05.279 women, same situation. How many women have come 00:29:05.279 --> 00:29:09.000 home and found out that their dad, brother -in 00:29:09.000 --> 00:29:10.940 -law, or husband were abusing their children? 00:29:11.519 --> 00:29:14.480 And they were like, no, that can never happen. 00:29:14.839 --> 00:29:16.900 right or in the middle of COVID how many people 00:29:16.900 --> 00:29:19.059 were diagnosed with COVID and I know a woman 00:29:19.059 --> 00:29:24.559 who was 38 years old and her son was 18 living 00:29:24.559 --> 00:29:27.019 in his own place in the apartment complex that 00:29:27.019 --> 00:29:28.500 she was working at and she went to his house 00:29:28.500 --> 00:29:30.579 to check on him and he had had COVID and was 00:29:30.579 --> 00:29:33.099 down in bed for four days and she sat on the 00:29:33.099 --> 00:29:35.140 floor of his living room and held his head in 00:29:35.140 --> 00:29:37.079 his her lap while they waited for the ambulance 00:29:37.079 --> 00:29:41.509 and he died died with his head in her lap while 00:29:41.509 --> 00:29:43.670 they waited for the ambulance because he refused 00:29:43.670 --> 00:29:45.950 to go to the doctor, didn't want to get any help, 00:29:46.069 --> 00:29:49.250 and his COVID had gotten so bad that by the time 00:29:49.250 --> 00:29:50.589 the ambulance got there, he was already dead. 00:29:51.329 --> 00:29:55.609 This is life. Life is sometimes like this. So 00:29:55.609 --> 00:30:00.210 if it gets to be like that and all that okayness 00:30:00.210 --> 00:30:02.089 was good by you, then when it gets to be like 00:30:02.089 --> 00:30:05.650 that, you're not going to be with Jesus. You're 00:30:05.650 --> 00:30:08.319 going to be... looking scraping trying to figure 00:30:08.319 --> 00:30:11.079 anything out to fix the problems right because 00:30:11.079 --> 00:30:12.420 you got it you're trying and then people say 00:30:12.420 --> 00:30:14.180 well i get i want to get back to where i was 00:30:14.180 --> 00:30:16.220 when all my bills were paid and everything was 00:30:16.220 --> 00:30:19.759 fine i was making progress right but that won't 00:30:19.759 --> 00:30:23.220 get you more faith with jesus it would just make 00:30:23.220 --> 00:30:25.240 you okay in the meantime so i think you're absolutely 00:30:25.240 --> 00:30:33.839 right it breeds a false faith yes sir being content 00:30:39.849 --> 00:30:42.569 Yeah, so people are constantly groping for another 00:30:42.569 --> 00:30:45.150 experience, that kind of thing. Yeah, there's 00:30:45.150 --> 00:30:47.289 two sides to contentment. It's almost like a 00:30:47.289 --> 00:30:50.089 whole sermon series. So the Bible teaches we 00:30:50.089 --> 00:30:53.029 should be content with our circumstances, but 00:30:53.029 --> 00:30:57.069 not content in our spiritual growth to say we're 00:30:57.069 --> 00:31:00.470 good enough, far enough, forgiven enough. Yeah. 00:31:01.589 --> 00:31:04.670 Contentness breeds laziness, but we're also supposed 00:31:04.670 --> 00:31:06.750 to be content with whatever our circumstances 00:31:06.750 --> 00:31:12.450 are. pushing, striving toward the goal that Christ 00:31:12.450 --> 00:31:54.759 has set for us. Go ahead. Yep. Right. Yeah, and 00:31:54.759 --> 00:32:02.920 I think that is most likely going to happen in 00:32:02.920 --> 00:32:05.039 that middle range where they're in contentment. 00:32:05.599 --> 00:32:07.619 It's not that hard to raise the temperature to 00:32:07.619 --> 00:32:10.380 destroy them. Yeah, that's a good illustration. 00:32:10.880 --> 00:32:13.859 Different use of it, but pretty good. Okay, so 00:32:13.859 --> 00:32:17.640 he says, here I am. This is verse 20. I stand 00:32:17.640 --> 00:32:22.720 at the door and knock. Okay, it's the door of 00:32:22.720 --> 00:32:25.460 your heart, right? But I want you to realize 00:32:25.460 --> 00:32:30.259 that this verse is written to the church, right? 00:32:30.500 --> 00:32:34.000 So when we use it for an individual, even though 00:32:34.000 --> 00:32:35.660 it was written to the church, is that wrong? 00:32:40.359 --> 00:32:43.480 It's not for two reasons. First one, what is 00:32:43.480 --> 00:32:47.720 the church? It's the people. The people are the 00:32:47.720 --> 00:32:49.259 church and it becomes the body of Christ. That's 00:32:49.259 --> 00:32:50.799 where you're going, right? It's the temple of 00:32:50.799 --> 00:32:53.559 Christ, essentially. We are the temple of Christ. 00:32:53.720 --> 00:32:56.099 Christ lives in us, body of Christ, right? So 00:32:56.099 --> 00:32:58.400 if it's written to the church, it applies to 00:32:58.400 --> 00:33:00.740 us because we are the church. Okay, so that's 00:33:00.740 --> 00:33:03.279 the first one. The second one reason it works 00:33:03.279 --> 00:33:08.660 is because in every one of these passages, it 00:33:08.660 --> 00:33:14.220 says, him who has an ear, let him hear, let him 00:33:14.220 --> 00:33:16.440 pay attention to what is written to the churches. 00:33:16.740 --> 00:33:20.279 So that's a formula saying that these things, 00:33:20.339 --> 00:33:22.079 yes, written to the churches. Yeah, they are. 00:33:22.160 --> 00:33:24.160 We accept they're written to the churches, but 00:33:24.160 --> 00:33:27.710 we need to pay attention to what it says. So 00:33:27.710 --> 00:33:30.410 then it's easy enough for us to apply this first 00:33:30.410 --> 00:33:32.170 and say, okay, behold, I stand at your heart's 00:33:32.170 --> 00:33:34.450 door and knock. He who opens the door, I will 00:33:34.450 --> 00:33:36.930 come in and sup with him and he with me. So if 00:33:36.930 --> 00:33:40.230 you got saved, where is Jesus now? If you opened 00:33:40.230 --> 00:33:42.049 the door, and I'll say to people, did you open 00:33:42.049 --> 00:33:43.470 the door of your heart today? And I never give 00:33:43.470 --> 00:33:44.890 them the answers. I'll just say, did you open 00:33:44.890 --> 00:33:45.990 the door of your heart today? And they'll say, 00:33:46.109 --> 00:33:47.849 yes, I did. And I'll say, okay, so then where 00:33:47.849 --> 00:33:51.230 is Jesus now? And they'll say, in my heart, right? 00:33:51.470 --> 00:33:54.680 Now, it's not literal. Because he's in your whole 00:33:54.680 --> 00:33:57.039 being, right? But he's at your core. That's the 00:33:57.039 --> 00:34:11.559 part that is locked away from him. Yeah. The 00:34:11.559 --> 00:34:31.500 door. Yeah. That's good. That's good. The door. 00:34:31.659 --> 00:34:34.079 The one that matters, I guess, in this case. 00:34:34.500 --> 00:34:37.820 Spiritual starts with an L and barely fits in 00:34:37.820 --> 00:34:44.139 a blank. Say that again. Okay, so spiritual loneliness 00:34:44.139 --> 00:34:46.559 is a problem, but it's not what is in the text. 00:34:46.940 --> 00:34:50.900 Okay, so spiritual lukewarmness was what I was 00:34:50.900 --> 00:34:54.599 going for. Josh, is that a word with a dash in 00:34:54.599 --> 00:34:56.340 the middle? Is it a hyphenated word, lukewarmness? 00:34:59.099 --> 00:35:03.760 Lukewarmness? Yeah, I mean, it's a description 00:35:03.760 --> 00:35:06.119 of something that's lukewarm. There's a state 00:35:06.119 --> 00:35:09.000 of being lukewarmness. We're going to verify. 00:35:09.059 --> 00:35:11.739 I think it's luke -warmness. But I'm not positive 00:35:11.739 --> 00:35:15.000 about that. Okay. Anyway. Notice what it does. 00:35:15.099 --> 00:35:23.960 It makes the Lord sick. Okay. Two words. Or one 00:35:23.960 --> 00:35:27.099 word. One word. Lukewarmness. One word. No dash. 00:35:27.519 --> 00:35:32.719 Very good. Okay. Two S's on the end. Alright. 00:35:32.840 --> 00:35:36.659 So spiritual lukewarmness makes the Lord sick. 00:35:36.699 --> 00:35:39.659 Now because of that. That takes it one step further 00:35:39.659 --> 00:35:41.400 than what we were talking about. Why he hates 00:35:41.400 --> 00:35:43.340 it so much is because it's really bad for us. 00:35:43.400 --> 00:35:47.360 But it also apparently is bad for him. Does Jesus 00:35:47.360 --> 00:35:50.659 want to vomit anyone out of his mouth? Is that 00:35:50.659 --> 00:35:53.440 something he wants to do? No. He loves everybody. 00:35:53.519 --> 00:35:56.639 He wants everybody to be part and parcel of what 00:35:56.639 --> 00:35:59.019 he's doing. That's his desire. So he doesn't 00:35:59.019 --> 00:36:01.300 want to do that. So it's like taking the control 00:36:01.300 --> 00:36:03.900 away from him in a sense. But he's going to do 00:36:03.900 --> 00:36:07.050 it. It's in his character to do that if people 00:36:07.050 --> 00:36:11.329 have nothing, if they really don't have a relationship 00:36:11.329 --> 00:36:13.630 with him, so they're in that middle group, or 00:36:13.630 --> 00:36:15.190 they're in that middle group with a relationship, 00:36:15.269 --> 00:36:16.929 I guess you'd say with a relationship with him, 00:36:17.010 --> 00:36:19.769 but still inappropriately in that middle group, 00:36:19.969 --> 00:36:24.650 the lukewarm group. Jesus offers, we're coming 00:36:24.650 --> 00:36:27.070 on the next one, the other letter I told you, 00:36:27.090 --> 00:36:30.230 I'm not sure what it is. So first he offers G, 00:36:30.530 --> 00:36:33.809 yes, gold. That's what I was thinking anyway. 00:36:34.010 --> 00:36:40.710 And W, white or white clothing, right? And then 00:36:40.710 --> 00:36:44.530 the last one is and C. Okay, that's what I was 00:36:44.530 --> 00:36:47.150 thinking too. But if you look at the text, go 00:36:47.150 --> 00:36:52.429 ahead. I, Sav, okay, you're saying it differently 00:36:52.429 --> 00:36:54.769 than I say it, but it's the same word. I, Sav, 00:36:54.849 --> 00:36:57.070 right? So if you look at the text, it looks like 00:36:57.070 --> 00:36:59.110 he's talking, it should have been I, Sav, verse 00:36:59.110 --> 00:37:04.139 18. I'll find it one second here. It says, because 00:37:04.139 --> 00:37:05.980 you say I'm rich, I've become wealthy, need nothing, 00:37:06.059 --> 00:37:07.900 you don't know that you are wretched, pitiful, 00:37:08.000 --> 00:37:11.480 poor, blind, and naked. So if we're wretched, 00:37:11.559 --> 00:37:14.179 pitiful, poor, blind, and naked, and think about 00:37:14.179 --> 00:37:16.300 the things that we need, I advise you to buy 00:37:16.300 --> 00:37:18.760 from me gold refined in the fire so that you 00:37:18.760 --> 00:37:21.159 may be rich, white clothes so that you may be 00:37:21.159 --> 00:37:24.360 dressed, and your shameful nakedness not be exposed, 00:37:24.500 --> 00:37:28.820 and ointment to spread on your eyes so that you 00:37:28.820 --> 00:37:32.400 may see. Is there a word for ointment that begins 00:37:32.400 --> 00:37:34.500 with a C? I can't think of one. I don't know 00:37:34.500 --> 00:37:38.800 where I got the C from. Say it again. Cleaner. 00:37:39.280 --> 00:37:43.679 Cream. Could be cream. Yeah. Say it again. Could 00:37:43.679 --> 00:37:46.679 be. Although the goal here is to make it so they 00:37:46.679 --> 00:37:51.400 can see. Yeah. All right. So anyway, put what 00:37:51.400 --> 00:37:53.079 there which you want to, but realize that verse 00:37:53.079 --> 00:37:56.159 18 is talking about our state, poor, wretched, 00:37:56.360 --> 00:38:01.210 unclothed, naked, blind. And then the reward 00:38:01.210 --> 00:38:05.329 is to sit with him on his throne. Very good. 00:38:05.710 --> 00:38:08.690 Write, in what areas of your life do you need 00:38:08.690 --> 00:38:11.550 to invite Jesus to come in and take the throne? 00:38:12.909 --> 00:38:15.050 Not tell us, but write it down. Write a few. 00:38:15.110 --> 00:38:17.170 You can do more of that later if there's multiple. 00:38:17.269 --> 00:38:19.309 I hope there's not too many. You might be more 00:38:19.309 --> 00:38:21.030 general. If you've got a big long list, maybe 00:38:21.030 --> 00:38:24.349 be more general. What areas of your life do you 00:38:24.349 --> 00:38:26.610 need to invite Jesus to come in and take the 00:38:26.610 --> 00:38:29.590 throne? Okay, and then we're in the bottom. Life 00:38:29.590 --> 00:38:33.610 application. I put Southern Baptist emphasis 00:38:33.610 --> 00:38:39.010 on this, so this comes from who we are as a church. 00:38:39.190 --> 00:38:42.090 A true believer must live with the visible fruit 00:38:42.090 --> 00:38:45.409 of salvation, not just outward religion. Do we 00:38:45.409 --> 00:38:48.050 all believe that? Let me say it again. A true 00:38:48.050 --> 00:38:53.250 believer must live with visible fruit of salvation. 00:38:53.489 --> 00:38:57.050 You're saved, and it makes you look... different. 00:38:57.090 --> 00:38:59.570 You're producing things because you're saved. 00:38:59.789 --> 00:39:10.130 Not just outward religion. Yeah, but outward 00:39:10.130 --> 00:39:15.070 religion would be works. Not actual faith works, 00:39:15.190 --> 00:39:18.630 but it would be works. So outward religion would 00:39:18.630 --> 00:39:22.929 be I'm always at church on time. Where people 00:39:22.929 --> 00:39:27.019 dress real nice every Sunday. Always bring a 00:39:27.019 --> 00:39:32.360 Bible. Always give my tithes. But if it's outward 00:39:32.360 --> 00:39:35.139 religion, it's not affecting you inwardly at 00:39:35.139 --> 00:39:38.119 all, really, right? There's only one thing that 00:39:38.119 --> 00:39:49.840 can affect you inwardly. Well, that brings it 00:39:49.840 --> 00:39:53.360 back to the first, that is a visible fruit of 00:39:53.360 --> 00:39:55.559 your salvation. That you present that you work 00:39:55.559 --> 00:39:59.019 with teenagers. But there should be other visible 00:39:59.019 --> 00:40:02.320 fruit as well. Right? Anybody understand the 00:40:02.320 --> 00:40:04.920 concept? Can we go to the next one? Endurance 00:40:04.920 --> 00:40:10.039 and faithfulness. Endurance. Energy to keep moving. 00:40:10.039 --> 00:40:12.900 I'm enduring. I'm continuing. And faithfulness. 00:40:12.900 --> 00:40:14.480 I'm found doing what I'm supposed to be doing. 00:40:14.519 --> 00:40:20.500 Are proof of salvation. They are an outward fruit. 00:40:21.130 --> 00:40:23.030 of your salvation. They are proof of salvation, 00:40:23.269 --> 00:40:30.429 not the way of earning it. Right? So we do not 00:40:30.429 --> 00:40:34.230 earn our salvation ever. Couldn't. It's not possible. 00:40:35.650 --> 00:40:38.070 But endurance and faithfulness, doing what you're 00:40:38.070 --> 00:40:39.949 supposed to do and continuing to do it even after 00:40:39.949 --> 00:40:41.590 trials and difficulty and all that kind of thing, 00:40:41.670 --> 00:40:46.170 are proof of salvation. We know this, don't we? 00:40:46.590 --> 00:40:49.030 There was a guy in the Middle East. I can't remember. 00:40:49.110 --> 00:40:51.389 It was John. It starts with an S, I'm pretty 00:40:51.389 --> 00:40:54.590 sure. And he got saved. Somebody shared Christ 00:40:54.590 --> 00:40:56.269 with him. And the day he got saved, he started 00:40:56.269 --> 00:40:59.969 telling people in his family about it. And that 00:40:59.969 --> 00:41:03.150 night, they picked him up. They tortured him 00:41:03.150 --> 00:41:06.269 all night long to get him to give up the name 00:41:06.269 --> 00:41:09.030 of the person who shared Jesus with him. They 00:41:09.030 --> 00:41:12.170 tortured him. A couple hours before dawn, they 00:41:12.170 --> 00:41:15.429 pulled all of his fingernails out. one by one 00:41:15.429 --> 00:41:17.690 with a pair of pliers to get him to tell them 00:41:17.690 --> 00:41:21.829 who shared Jesus with him. He would not tell. 00:41:21.969 --> 00:41:25.110 He did not tell. At dawn, they dropped him on 00:41:25.110 --> 00:41:27.849 the street outside the emergency room, but he 00:41:27.849 --> 00:41:29.369 was dead before they could get him in the building. 00:41:30.969 --> 00:41:33.250 Now why didn't he tell who shared Jesus with 00:41:33.250 --> 00:41:42.789 him? That person was next. That's what they're 00:41:42.789 --> 00:41:44.289 really trying to do. They're trying to shut down 00:41:44.289 --> 00:41:49.670 the gospel. So you can see in his suffering all 00:41:49.670 --> 00:41:53.530 the way to death, outward fruit, endurance and 00:41:53.530 --> 00:41:56.269 faithfulness, outward fruit of his salvation. 00:41:57.110 --> 00:42:02.789 But no religiousness, really. I mean, he didn't 00:42:02.789 --> 00:42:05.710 go to church that night. He didn't do Bible study 00:42:05.710 --> 00:42:08.119 that night. I'm sure he prayed a lot, but I doubt 00:42:08.119 --> 00:42:10.820 they knew what he was doing necessarily. He probably 00:42:10.820 --> 00:42:12.739 didn't sing hymns because they beat him pretty 00:42:12.739 --> 00:42:16.280 bad. But who knows? Some people have been known 00:42:16.280 --> 00:42:21.239 to do that. So what I'm saying is nothing we 00:42:21.239 --> 00:42:23.219 do can earn this great gift that we have received 00:42:23.219 --> 00:42:25.900 from the Lord, but our endurance and our faithfulness 00:42:25.900 --> 00:42:29.300 are proof that we have received it. And that 00:42:29.300 --> 00:42:32.320 man was saved. I know a lot of people say they're 00:42:32.320 --> 00:42:34.480 saved, and I don't judge very many people. But 00:42:34.480 --> 00:42:36.599 if you can go through that and not tell who led 00:42:36.599 --> 00:42:39.599 you to Jesus, I just don't think it's humanly 00:42:39.599 --> 00:42:45.059 possible. It's beyond pain. It's beyond our understanding. 00:42:45.280 --> 00:42:49.900 I stub my toe and I think life's over. And it's 00:42:49.900 --> 00:42:56.039 not true. Yeah, so now imagine 10 of that with 00:42:56.039 --> 00:42:58.280 a pair of pliers intentionally and probably not 00:42:58.280 --> 00:43:01.519 nearly as quickly. I can't believe it. I can't 00:43:01.519 --> 00:43:07.269 imagine it. Christ offers fellowship now and 00:43:07.269 --> 00:43:11.550 eternal reign with him later. That's what we 00:43:11.550 --> 00:43:13.449 get. That's what he's actually offering. He's 00:43:13.449 --> 00:43:16.210 offering fellowship now and eternal reign with 00:43:16.210 --> 00:43:21.449 him later. So respond to that offer today. Okay, 00:43:21.449 --> 00:43:25.239 don't wait. Don't walk out of the room. effect 00:43:25.239 --> 00:43:26.940 in your heart right now and say, hey, I want 00:43:26.940 --> 00:43:29.119 you to be mine, then you are, then you be his. 00:43:29.420 --> 00:43:31.880 And if I get it wrong and say 20 years from now, 00:43:31.940 --> 00:43:33.880 I'm not walking with the Lord in this life, God 00:43:33.880 --> 00:43:37.619 forbid. I don't want that to ever happen. But 00:43:37.619 --> 00:43:39.079 if that ever happened, you better stick with 00:43:39.079 --> 00:43:44.420 Jesus. Right? Okay. So I'm going to ask a few 00:43:44.420 --> 00:43:46.360 questions and throw candy and then we're going 00:43:46.360 --> 00:43:48.099 to be through. Does anybody have any questions 00:43:48.099 --> 00:43:54.449 before I ask questions? Candy. I have meat chunks 00:43:54.449 --> 00:43:58.730 as well. I get rid of some spicy meat chunks. 00:44:01.409 --> 00:44:06.210 All right. So the first, I'll give you a question, 00:44:06.409 --> 00:44:10.170 and then you get to pick a giant meat chunk thrown 00:44:10.170 --> 00:44:14.090 at you or a handful of candy. Okay? Teenagers 00:44:14.090 --> 00:44:19.730 only to start with, including 18. 18 is still 00:44:19.730 --> 00:44:23.230 a teenager. You're an adult teenager, but you're 00:44:23.230 --> 00:44:33.730 still a teenager. What? Who's 19? 19 is a teenager 00:44:33.730 --> 00:44:39.849 as well. If you're less than 20 years old, you 00:44:39.849 --> 00:44:47.849 may participate in this. Okay. What? Give me... 00:44:47.849 --> 00:44:50.409 I hope you were paying attention. This is a tough 00:44:50.409 --> 00:44:52.440 one. Give me, and we'll go teenagers only first, 00:44:52.500 --> 00:44:53.679 but some of you might have to help. What are 00:44:53.679 --> 00:44:57.579 the three things, not one thing, the three things 00:44:57.579 --> 00:45:01.119 that Jesus said that he would write upon the 00:45:01.119 --> 00:45:04.420 faithful? Three things. One of them is on your 00:45:04.420 --> 00:45:13.440 page. But you need the three things. Going once. 00:45:21.130 --> 00:45:23.710 Are you looking it up in the Bible? The verse 00:45:23.710 --> 00:45:27.309 is on the page. The verse is on the page. So 00:45:27.309 --> 00:45:30.150 he's smart. When you don't know something, go 00:45:30.150 --> 00:45:33.510 to your Bible. We're in church. That's what you 00:45:33.510 --> 00:45:42.289 do. That's pretty good. Revelation 3 .12. Eight 00:45:42.289 --> 00:45:49.449 seconds. Seven. Six. I was in the Holman Christian 00:45:49.449 --> 00:45:57.949 Standard, but that... I bet it does. I think 00:45:57.949 --> 00:46:05.610 so. I definitely read it when I read it. Okay, 00:46:05.630 --> 00:46:18.260 I'm looking. Ah, okay, it's there. Yep, I see 00:46:18.260 --> 00:46:20.920 it. I've got two. Because you're not all the 00:46:20.920 --> 00:46:22.079 way to the end of the verse yet. All right, go, 00:46:22.179 --> 00:46:26.800 Caleb. I shall write on him the name of my God, 00:46:26.900 --> 00:46:31.760 the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem. 00:46:32.960 --> 00:46:36.400 No, the city is the new Jerusalem. There should 00:46:36.400 --> 00:46:42.780 be an and. Go just a little further. Oh, and 00:46:42.780 --> 00:46:46.400 write on him my name. All right, that's the three 00:46:46.400 --> 00:46:51.559 things. Which one do you want? It was pretty 00:46:51.559 --> 00:46:54.280 low, pretty lousy. I'll try to hit the next person. 00:46:54.420 --> 00:47:10.940 Okay. All right. Okay. Jesus is standing at this 00:47:10.940 --> 00:47:15.820 place all over the world, and it is what? No. 00:47:22.549 --> 00:47:25.670 Kind of. I don't know if I want to give you another 00:47:25.670 --> 00:47:27.150 chance. You blew the first one. All right, go 00:47:27.150 --> 00:47:28.329 ahead. No one else raise their hand. Go ahead. 00:47:29.829 --> 00:47:32.449 Okay, I'll give it to you. It's at Hart's Doors. 00:47:35.050 --> 00:47:37.530 You hit someone. Got to go back to softball season. 00:47:38.110 --> 00:47:45.590 Get some practice up. Okay. All right. All right. 00:47:50.510 --> 00:47:53.630 Of the three things that Jesus said that he will 00:47:53.630 --> 00:47:57.829 give to restore his people, which one of them 00:47:57.829 --> 00:48:06.389 is a commodity? Is a commodity. It's a treasure 00:48:06.389 --> 00:48:12.429 to men in general. Nope, not white. Yeah, it's 00:48:12.429 --> 00:48:15.969 on the paper, but you'd have to figure it out. 00:48:16.010 --> 00:48:19.539 Josh? Gold. Yeah. Okay. So you guys are too slow. 00:48:19.639 --> 00:48:21.460 If the adults are jumping in, you're too slow. 00:48:21.760 --> 00:48:28.000 Okay. All right. Here we go. When Jesus was speaking 00:48:28.000 --> 00:48:31.780 to the church in Sardis, he said that the faithful 00:48:31.780 --> 00:48:39.539 would be dressed in... Pick one. Meat or candy. 00:48:48.380 --> 00:48:52.380 A doctor out of the chair was awesome. Okay. 00:48:52.480 --> 00:48:54.699 That's all Haley's candy. Don't nobody steal 00:48:54.699 --> 00:49:00.519 Haley's candy. All right. The last one for now. 00:49:00.659 --> 00:49:02.619 And then we're going to go have cake and sing 00:49:02.619 --> 00:49:16.070 happy birthday. Okay. Based on Revelation 3, 00:49:16.250 --> 00:49:22.949 verse 10, how long will the trial or temptation 00:49:22.949 --> 00:49:32.090 be? Hannah. Yes. Okay, now tell me. Hold on. 00:49:32.289 --> 00:49:36.369 You're on the spot now. Tell me in this, how 00:49:36.369 --> 00:49:41.110 long is an hour? No, that's how long it is to 00:49:41.110 --> 00:49:51.789 us. Use your brain. Everybody else be quiet. 00:49:51.849 --> 00:49:53.650 She's super smart. She knows. She'll figure it 00:49:53.650 --> 00:49:59.969 out. Finish this sentence. It's long enough for... 00:49:59.969 --> 00:50:09.670 Okay, for the decision of eternity, right? It's 00:50:09.670 --> 00:50:11.369 long enough for trials or temptation, right? 00:50:11.449 --> 00:50:13.849 It's not 60 minutes, literally. I'll give you 00:50:13.849 --> 00:50:16.829 an example. We talk about, we go to church and 00:50:16.829 --> 00:50:20.539 we say... During that hour on Sunday. But is 00:50:20.539 --> 00:50:23.059 it an hour? It's usually an hour and a half, 00:50:23.119 --> 00:50:26.900 hour and 45 minutes, right? You say, I needed 00:50:26.900 --> 00:50:33.079 to be there. I need to go to the doctor. In the 00:50:33.079 --> 00:50:35.659 hour that I went to the doctor. But were you 00:50:35.659 --> 00:50:38.559 at the doctor for an hour? So it's not a literal 00:50:38.559 --> 00:50:40.599 hour at my point. Do you want meat or candy? 00:50:43.400 --> 00:50:51.969 Oh, look at that. Okay, so I have a bag of chocolate. 00:50:52.130 --> 00:51:19.599 Are there any adults who want chocolate? All 00:51:19.599 --> 00:51:20.880 right, we're going to pray and we're going to 00:51:20.880 --> 00:51:24.440 go. Remember the things that you wrote down. 00:51:25.139 --> 00:51:28.440 Let Jesus be on the throne of that area of your 00:51:28.440 --> 00:51:32.400 life, whatever it might be. Whatever open door 00:51:32.400 --> 00:51:34.880 God is giving you to be a servant, to be a witness, 00:51:35.019 --> 00:51:41.019 do that. Don't fake it. Remember, this is the 00:51:41.019 --> 00:51:42.920 bottom line. Jesus would rather you just not 00:51:42.920 --> 00:51:47.860 fake it. Come to him for real. Stop playing games. 00:51:48.280 --> 00:51:51.199 Be genuine in your faith. And just don't fake 00:51:51.199 --> 00:51:54.880 it. Think of it like this. If you fake it, you 00:51:54.880 --> 00:52:00.980 make him sick. So I'm saying, you know, I hate 00:52:00.980 --> 00:52:03.340 to say this, but here's the reality of it. If 00:52:03.340 --> 00:52:04.739 you're going to fake it, you may as well just 00:52:04.739 --> 00:52:09.360 quit and go do something else. Because it's going 00:52:09.360 --> 00:52:13.159 to make him sick. But if you're willing, boy, 00:52:13.219 --> 00:52:17.139 the offer is pretty darn good. The offer is pretty 00:52:17.139 --> 00:52:19.619 darn good. All right. Father in heaven, we praise 00:52:19.619 --> 00:52:22.440 you. We thank you for the high price that has 00:52:22.440 --> 00:52:28.440 been paid. The cost is unbelievable, unimaginable, 00:52:28.440 --> 00:52:31.619 so far beyond anything that we could do. And 00:52:31.619 --> 00:52:34.360 we're grateful. Thank you for our little bit 00:52:34.360 --> 00:52:36.199 of time here together. We're stealing it from 00:52:36.199 --> 00:52:39.139 jobs and chores and whatever, and it's just the 00:52:39.139 --> 00:52:41.139 right thing. We're right where we want to be, 00:52:41.179 --> 00:52:44.159 right where you can teach. We get some things 00:52:44.159 --> 00:52:46.519 maybe exactly the way you want them to be, exactly 00:52:46.519 --> 00:52:48.500 the way your Holy Spirit wants to speak to us. 00:52:48.559 --> 00:52:50.619 And we just walk away with one thing, whereas 00:52:50.619 --> 00:52:53.619 Tim only is fond of saying, if I'm just learning 00:52:53.619 --> 00:52:56.019 and going, I know it's right. I know it's right. 00:52:56.059 --> 00:52:57.840 I'm just moving forward and doing what Jesus 00:52:57.840 --> 00:53:00.159 wants me to do. And that's how I feel, too. Thank 00:53:00.159 --> 00:53:03.380 you, Lord, for that. I ask you to go with us. 00:53:03.500 --> 00:53:05.159 Heal our sick and hurting. We've got some that 00:53:05.159 --> 00:53:06.800 are, even some that are here that are overcoming. 00:53:09.630 --> 00:53:12.130 considerable doctor attention. We pray that they'll 00:53:12.130 --> 00:53:14.769 get back. Thank you, Lord, for blessing us. Thank 00:53:14.769 --> 00:53:16.269 you for the groceries that were brought into 00:53:16.269 --> 00:53:18.170 the life station today and the hard work was 00:53:18.170 --> 00:53:20.429 done and all the running of emergency deliveries 00:53:20.429 --> 00:53:22.269 that took place and all the people that Holly 00:53:22.269 --> 00:53:24.090 and Devin got off our front door with emergency 00:53:24.090 --> 00:53:28.809 food. Whatever it took to get where we are, we're 00:53:28.809 --> 00:53:31.010 allowed to serve. We're allowed to walk with 00:53:31.010 --> 00:53:34.070 you and stand with you faithful and enduring 00:53:34.070 --> 00:53:37.289 in this day when there are other alternatives 00:53:37.289 --> 00:53:42.360 that All lead to hell. All lead to smallness 00:53:42.360 --> 00:53:46.480 and loneliness and emptiness and giving and temptation. 00:53:47.280 --> 00:53:52.239 Lord, please be with us and help us to burn hot. 00:53:53.199 --> 00:53:56.019 Help us to work hard. Help us to endure and be 00:53:56.019 --> 00:53:58.440 found faithful. So we pray this in Jesus' name. 00:53:58.659 --> 00:54:01.599 Amen. Thank you very much. So no one's having 00:54:01.599 --> 00:54:05.260 any cake yet because Natalie gets the very first 00:54:05.260 --> 00:54:12.059 piece of cake. She'll stand at the cafeteria 00:54:12.059 --> 00:54:17.519 door and you can spank her on the way in. You're 00:54:17.519 --> 00:54:18.840 going to stand at the door so we can spank you 00:54:18.840 --> 00:54:19.420 on the way in, right?