WEBVTT 00:00:02.960 --> 00:00:06.259 We're so fortunate in these troubled times to 00:00:06.259 --> 00:00:11.580 have Jesus our best friend. You know, the seminar 00:00:11.580 --> 00:00:14.279 today, and we'll have one presentation after 00:00:14.279 --> 00:00:17.980 the fellowship meal, having to do with the culture 00:00:17.980 --> 00:00:21.579 of Jesus where I was born. I'm familiar with 00:00:21.579 --> 00:00:25.820 the culture. And the book I use in my class, 00:00:26.100 --> 00:00:28.420 Life and Teaching of Jesus at the University, 00:00:28.640 --> 00:00:32.030 is based on this book. God help me to write, 00:00:32.170 --> 00:00:35.530 the Middle East Messiah, cultural insights into 00:00:35.530 --> 00:00:41.149 his life and ministry so that we can deepen and 00:00:41.149 --> 00:00:43.710 enrich our understanding of Jesus. That's what 00:00:43.710 --> 00:00:46.590 we're going to talk about today. And talking 00:00:46.590 --> 00:00:48.929 about friends, what a friend we have in Jesus 00:00:48.929 --> 00:00:56.329 as his special music showed us. You know, it's 00:00:56.329 --> 00:00:59.250 interesting to read that, what a friend we have 00:00:59.250 --> 00:01:03.259 in Jesus. Hear it in music, it's even more effective. 00:01:04.819 --> 00:01:08.359 Think about that song throughout the day. Remind 00:01:08.359 --> 00:01:12.200 yourself, whatever happens to you, Jesus is your 00:01:12.200 --> 00:01:17.299 faithful, everlasting friend. He doesn't gossip. 00:01:18.040 --> 00:01:23.099 He does not stab you in the back. He's the same 00:01:23.099 --> 00:01:26.280 yesterday and today and forever. And I'll tell 00:01:26.280 --> 00:01:35.189 you something about that. written by a poet from 00:01:35.189 --> 00:01:41.310 my part of the world. His name is Gibran, Khalil 00:01:41.310 --> 00:01:46.250 Gibran. His works, his poetry, translated into 00:01:46.250 --> 00:01:50.849 English. And this is what he says about genuine 00:01:50.849 --> 00:01:55.569 friendship, referring to Jesus, our best friend. 00:01:55.950 --> 00:01:59.109 This is what he said. I'm translating from the 00:01:59.109 --> 00:02:04.250 Arabic. Which says literally, a genuine friend 00:02:04.250 --> 00:02:10.689 is someone into whom you can pour out all the 00:02:10.689 --> 00:02:14.969 contents of your heart. Be careful. Don't lose 00:02:14.969 --> 00:02:20.210 everybody. Only to Jesus. Pour out all the contents 00:02:20.210 --> 00:02:27.250 of your heart. Both wheat and chaff together. 00:02:30.250 --> 00:02:33.650 All of us have wheat and chaff, more or less. 00:02:34.650 --> 00:02:39.270 Jesus is the only one who only has wheat. But 00:02:39.270 --> 00:02:41.990 we can pour out all the contents of our hearts. 00:02:44.330 --> 00:02:48.310 Chaff and wheat together. What does he do with 00:02:48.310 --> 00:02:51.669 that? He keeps what's worth keeping, the wheat, 00:02:51.870 --> 00:02:57.870 in one hand. With the other hand, he gently blows 00:02:57.870 --> 00:03:02.030 away all the chaff. Have you ever found anyone 00:03:02.030 --> 00:03:06.909 like that in this world? Be careful. I said, 00:03:06.990 --> 00:03:09.830 be careful. I mean, you can trust your spouse 00:03:09.830 --> 00:03:12.830 to pour out all the conscience of your heart, 00:03:12.930 --> 00:03:17.289 maybe. Sometimes that's not the case. But be 00:03:17.289 --> 00:03:22.770 careful. May Jesus be the best friend you have 00:03:22.770 --> 00:03:26.870 where you can share anything you want to share 00:03:26.870 --> 00:03:30.460 with him. He knows it already, doesn't he? He 00:03:30.460 --> 00:03:35.800 still loves you in spite of that. Most people, 00:03:35.800 --> 00:03:39.120 we're all human. We're all a bunch of sinners. 00:03:39.419 --> 00:03:49.759 Most people throw away all the wheat and hold 00:03:49.759 --> 00:04:00.090 on to the chaff. It's interesting. Jesus Throws 00:04:00.090 --> 00:04:03.310 away our chaff, keeps our wheat. But sometimes 00:04:03.310 --> 00:04:05.629 we do the opposite. Shouldn't we learn from Jesus? 00:04:07.770 --> 00:04:10.770 People come to me and say, Dr. Saman, I've known 00:04:10.770 --> 00:04:16.170 you for 50 years, 60 years. You never gossiped 00:04:16.170 --> 00:04:20.870 against me. I can't trust you. I say, well, it's 00:04:20.870 --> 00:04:23.389 only because of Jesus. Humanly speaking, I cannot 00:04:23.389 --> 00:04:27.009 be trusted. Our trust must always be anchored 00:04:27.009 --> 00:04:30.500 in the trust of Jesus. The title of this message 00:04:30.500 --> 00:04:36.740 is His Best for My Worst. Whose best? Christ's 00:04:36.740 --> 00:04:42.639 best. Whose worst? My worst. What do you read 00:04:42.639 --> 00:04:45.399 in this title? What message do you get from this 00:04:45.399 --> 00:04:50.480 title? His best for my worst. Can you give me 00:04:50.480 --> 00:04:54.899 some examples? What do you think about when you 00:04:54.899 --> 00:04:58.160 think about Jesus' best? What do you think about 00:04:58.160 --> 00:05:01.120 when you think of your worst? Well, first of 00:05:01.120 --> 00:05:07.939 all, Jesus died of a broken heart that was more 00:05:07.939 --> 00:05:14.199 severe than the thrust of the spear and the crown 00:05:14.199 --> 00:05:20.060 of thorns on his head and all the beating, all 00:05:20.060 --> 00:05:26.579 the flogging. He died of a broken heart. He came 00:05:26.579 --> 00:05:31.339 to save his own people, but his own received 00:05:31.339 --> 00:05:38.199 him not. Even his disciples ran for their lives. 00:05:44.459 --> 00:05:52.180 He gave his perfect broken heart for our sinful 00:05:52.180 --> 00:05:58.399 heart. His best. For my worst. In Sabbath school, 00:05:58.480 --> 00:06:04.220 we talked about he gave his robe of righteousness 00:06:04.220 --> 00:06:13.779 to us for our sin. He gave his life above the 00:06:13.779 --> 00:06:19.019 eternal for our death. His best for our worst. 00:06:23.819 --> 00:06:27.139 I mean, I can mention many examples. Look at 00:06:27.139 --> 00:06:30.959 his prayer on the cross of Calvary as the Pharisees 00:06:30.959 --> 00:06:35.279 were relishing all the agony, all the pain he 00:06:35.279 --> 00:06:40.079 was experiencing. He prayed for them. Father, 00:06:40.120 --> 00:06:42.779 forgive them for they don't know what they're 00:06:42.779 --> 00:06:46.439 doing. It's not easy to pray for your enemies. 00:06:49.079 --> 00:06:52.209 We live in a culture. We live in a world. Where 00:06:52.209 --> 00:06:56.029 people want revenge. They want to get back at 00:06:56.029 --> 00:07:03.970 each other. It's everywhere in politics. Don't 00:07:03.970 --> 00:07:10.870 politicians want to get back at each other? Even 00:07:10.870 --> 00:07:13.290 you look at the royal family in the United Kingdom. 00:07:13.930 --> 00:07:19.149 With all the dysfunction there. Hopefully Prince 00:07:19.149 --> 00:07:24.329 William and his wife Kate. try to bring some 00:07:24.329 --> 00:07:28.089 respect and confidence in the royalty. Look at 00:07:28.089 --> 00:07:31.850 the dysfunction. You don't even want to think 00:07:31.850 --> 00:07:36.250 about all that darkness. All I say is this. Our 00:07:36.250 --> 00:07:39.350 royalty is Jesus, the Lord of Lords and Kings 00:07:39.350 --> 00:07:44.149 of Kings. And someday his light will dispel all 00:07:44.149 --> 00:07:47.230 darkness. There is hope for us. If you become 00:07:47.230 --> 00:07:50.069 discouraged in this world, remember Christ Jesus 00:07:50.069 --> 00:07:54.850 is coming. to make everything right. Doesn't 00:07:54.850 --> 00:07:57.290 that inspire to stand up for the right today? 00:07:57.870 --> 00:08:03.589 Very few people stand up for the right. His best 00:08:03.589 --> 00:08:13.009 for my worst. And I'm referring to Judas. In 00:08:13.009 --> 00:08:17.250 the culture of Jesus, you don't betray your friends. 00:08:17.310 --> 00:08:22.120 That's the most shameful thing. Jesus invested 00:08:22.120 --> 00:08:29.060 so much in Judas. He didn't even expose his problems 00:08:29.060 --> 00:08:32.460 to the public. He tried to help him, love him, 00:08:32.559 --> 00:08:38.139 guide him, doing his best for him while Judas 00:08:38.139 --> 00:08:46.299 in his heart was rejecting Jesus. And what did 00:08:46.299 --> 00:08:53.980 Christ's friend Judas What did he do to reciprocate 00:08:53.980 --> 00:08:59.019 how Jesus treated them? He went to the Sanhedrin, 00:08:59.120 --> 00:09:06.740 the Jewish leaders of Israel, and he conspired 00:09:06.740 --> 00:09:10.620 with them to sell his friend. Do you hear what 00:09:10.620 --> 00:09:15.360 I'm saying? To sell his friend. You could sell 00:09:15.360 --> 00:09:18.320 chicken. You could sell vegetables. You could 00:09:18.320 --> 00:09:27.460 sell cars. You could even sell a harp. But do 00:09:27.460 --> 00:09:39.779 you sell people? Well, but not just people. To 00:09:39.779 --> 00:09:45.480 sell Jesus, the most precious friend we can have. 00:09:46.639 --> 00:09:50.399 To sell God. In other words, to sell God. To 00:09:50.399 --> 00:09:58.879 sell the son of God. For how much? 30 lousy pieces 00:09:58.879 --> 00:10:09.799 of silver. Which was the price of a slave? To 00:10:09.799 --> 00:10:15.480 sell him with 30 pieces of silver the price of 00:10:15.480 --> 00:10:24.169 a slave. That was the most shameful thing in 00:10:24.169 --> 00:10:30.990 that culture. Oh my. If you sell your friend 00:10:30.990 --> 00:10:38.690 for lousy money, you are to be detested. To be 00:10:38.690 --> 00:10:41.389 ashamed for the rest of your life. Because in 00:10:41.389 --> 00:10:44.870 that culture you have the shame and honor. People 00:10:44.870 --> 00:10:57.230 do anything to protect their honor. Jesus gave 00:10:57.230 --> 00:11:03.730 Judas his life and his broken heart. And he gave 00:11:03.730 --> 00:11:08.889 him back by selling him a certain piece of silver. 00:11:12.929 --> 00:11:17.610 In Sabbath school, we talk about the Greek word. 00:11:17.830 --> 00:11:21.490 I'm not expecting to be my Greek students. Just 00:11:21.490 --> 00:11:27.159 one word for today. No, two words. One word in 00:11:27.159 --> 00:11:30.820 Greek, one word in Aramaic. What was the word? 00:11:30.940 --> 00:11:34.659 Somebody remember? Describing Jesus in John 3 00:11:34.659 --> 00:11:37.799 .16? For God so loved the world, he gave his 00:11:37.799 --> 00:11:43.059 what? What's the Greek word? One word only. Somebody 00:11:43.059 --> 00:11:46.379 remember? If you don't remember, I want to ask 00:11:46.379 --> 00:11:51.500 Pastor Hudson. He remembers. The word is monogamous. 00:11:52.940 --> 00:11:57.830 That's all. One word. No begotten nothing. You 00:11:57.830 --> 00:11:59.690 say, well, come on. Are you reading from the 00:11:59.690 --> 00:12:02.169 King James Version? No. I'm reading directly 00:12:02.169 --> 00:12:06.169 from the original language, Greek. Is that a 00:12:06.169 --> 00:12:09.809 good translation? It's not a translation. It's 00:12:09.809 --> 00:12:13.129 the original language. That's why at Southern 00:12:13.129 --> 00:12:15.889 Adventist University, our ministerial students 00:12:15.889 --> 00:12:21.649 spend four years studying Greek and Hebrew. Why? 00:12:22.330 --> 00:12:25.789 Because they need to understand the Bible, its 00:12:25.789 --> 00:12:31.029 original language, to get the real meaning. Because 00:12:31.029 --> 00:12:34.909 you have different translations, different wording. 00:12:37.710 --> 00:12:40.110 It used to be the King James Version, and people 00:12:40.110 --> 00:12:43.789 memorized things in that version. But now, how 00:12:43.789 --> 00:12:46.470 do we teach our young people to memorize? What 00:12:46.470 --> 00:12:52.909 translation? You know, like... To me, the King 00:12:52.909 --> 00:12:56.389 James Version, even though it's old English, 00:12:56.590 --> 00:13:00.049 but yet it's poetic. The Lord is my shepherd, 00:13:00.129 --> 00:13:06.330 I shall not want. It's easy to memorize. But 00:13:06.330 --> 00:13:13.950 the Greek tells you the exact meaning. And what's 00:13:13.950 --> 00:13:18.370 the literal meaning? Monogamous, unique. For 00:13:18.370 --> 00:13:21.669 God so loved the world that he gave His unique 00:13:21.669 --> 00:13:26.330 son. Whosoever believes him should not perish 00:13:26.330 --> 00:13:32.690 but have everlasting life. We talk in Sabbath 00:13:32.690 --> 00:13:36.110 school about this term being so meaningful, so 00:13:36.110 --> 00:13:42.009 significant, unique. Because we have unique problems 00:13:42.009 --> 00:13:47.789 in this world that need unique solutions. One 00:13:47.789 --> 00:13:51.309 of you mentioned one unique problem is sin. It 00:13:51.309 --> 00:13:56.169 is. It is a unique problem. And who can solve 00:13:56.169 --> 00:14:01.110 the problem of sin? You can pay a psychologist 00:14:01.110 --> 00:14:07.690 a million dollars. And by the way, psychologists, 00:14:07.990 --> 00:14:12.470 psychiatrists charge a lot of money. Can they 00:14:12.470 --> 00:14:16.169 solve the problem of sin? I'm putting you on 00:14:16.169 --> 00:14:20.539 the spot here. Think about it. Who can solve 00:14:20.539 --> 00:14:24.700 your problem of sin? You go to religious founders, 00:14:25.039 --> 00:14:29.600 Muhammad of Islam, Buddha of Buddhism, Confucius 00:14:29.600 --> 00:14:40.200 of Confucianism. Who can solve the problem of 00:14:40.200 --> 00:14:43.139 sin? It's a unique problem. Nobody can solve 00:14:43.139 --> 00:14:48.059 it. We're stuck with sin. And sin is a killer. 00:14:48.139 --> 00:14:54.200 It's a virus that kills you. And people worry 00:14:54.200 --> 00:14:59.720 about COVID -19. And what's the best vaccine? 00:15:00.139 --> 00:15:02.759 And now there's a great debate, should people 00:15:02.759 --> 00:15:07.899 have taken the vaccine or not? People didn't 00:15:07.899 --> 00:15:11.220 think much about future consequences. You read 00:15:11.220 --> 00:15:16.460 it on websites. My point is this, a greater Virus 00:15:16.460 --> 00:15:21.259 is the virus of sin. We don't have debate about 00:15:21.259 --> 00:15:27.259 what is the best vaccine. It's the shed blood 00:15:27.259 --> 00:15:42.240 of Jesus that can cure the worst of sins. And 00:15:42.240 --> 00:15:46.519 the sequel. To this unique problem of sin is 00:15:46.519 --> 00:15:52.559 death. Sin causes death. Sin separates from God, 00:15:52.639 --> 00:15:58.580 the source of life. Death is our worst. How did 00:15:58.580 --> 00:16:01.899 Jesus solve that problem? By dying in our stead. 00:16:06.580 --> 00:16:09.620 For the ways of sin is death. But the gift of 00:16:09.620 --> 00:16:17.210 God is eternal life. I like the word eternal 00:16:17.210 --> 00:16:19.889 because everything in this world is temporary. 00:16:21.909 --> 00:16:24.769 I like teaching. Oh my, I love teaching. I miss 00:16:24.769 --> 00:16:29.049 teaching. I'm retired now. Because as a human 00:16:29.049 --> 00:16:32.289 being, I only have a limited life to live. You 00:16:32.289 --> 00:16:34.509 start young before you know it. Decades pass 00:16:34.509 --> 00:16:38.629 by. I've been living in the South 28 years. That's 00:16:38.629 --> 00:16:42.629 a lot of years. And you become old and you retire. 00:16:44.080 --> 00:16:47.980 I mean, I wish I could have been teaching eternally. 00:16:49.220 --> 00:16:54.899 You can't. I mean, doctors retire, spend so much 00:16:54.899 --> 00:16:58.279 money and effort and study to become a surgeon, 00:16:58.360 --> 00:17:05.420 and now they're retired. Jesus never retires 00:17:05.420 --> 00:17:11.099 from taking our sins away and giving us his robe 00:17:11.099 --> 00:17:15.490 of righteousness. He never retires. from taking 00:17:15.490 --> 00:17:18.789 our death away and giving us eternal life. Can 00:17:18.789 --> 00:17:22.569 you imagine someday when Jesus comes he's going 00:17:22.569 --> 00:17:25.809 to give us eternal life. Can you fathom that? 00:17:29.329 --> 00:17:33.529 I mean people look at me and my wife Sharon and 00:17:33.529 --> 00:17:37.369 they think I robbed the cradle. Thanks a lot 00:17:37.369 --> 00:17:39.329 because they think I really look old and she 00:17:39.329 --> 00:17:43.970 looks much younger than me. In heaven will not 00:17:44.279 --> 00:17:47.279 compare each other with each other. We'll all 00:17:47.279 --> 00:17:56.400 look young, vibrant. I met a brother here. He's 00:17:56.400 --> 00:18:02.819 about my age, being a good Samaritan, active, 00:18:03.299 --> 00:18:09.660 growing a garden, working hard physically, and 00:18:09.660 --> 00:18:12.859 he went to the roof of a friend to help him clean 00:18:12.859 --> 00:18:17.380 his roof. And he slipped and fell all the way 00:18:17.380 --> 00:18:21.200 down. He injured himself. Till this day he is 00:18:21.200 --> 00:18:28.839 suffering from this injury. The day will come 00:18:28.839 --> 00:18:33.339 where he will never suffer injury again. No more 00:18:33.339 --> 00:18:37.640 injury. No more suffering. No more sin. No more 00:18:37.640 --> 00:18:43.319 separation. Can you imagine an existence without? 00:18:44.660 --> 00:18:49.619 Satan. And you think about it. No Satan forever. 00:18:53.839 --> 00:18:58.740 And no sin. And no sickness. I call these the 00:18:58.740 --> 00:19:02.220 multiple S's. Even though my last name starts 00:19:02.220 --> 00:19:07.279 with Saman, S. But S is good. It goes also for 00:19:07.279 --> 00:19:12.920 Savior. For salvation, but also it's Satan, no 00:19:12.920 --> 00:19:14.900 more Satan. In this world, there'll be no more 00:19:14.900 --> 00:19:22.900 Satan. Can you imagine a world, a universe, without 00:19:22.900 --> 00:19:25.940 Satan, without sin, without suffering, without 00:19:25.940 --> 00:19:29.819 sickness, without surgery, without separation? 00:19:32.779 --> 00:19:34.779 I mean, that's something we should look forward 00:19:34.779 --> 00:19:39.609 to. And you enjoyed Mary Beth's music? Did you? 00:19:41.509 --> 00:19:44.369 I mean, that's the best we can do in this world. 00:19:44.410 --> 00:19:46.869 But can you imagine being in heaven and hearing 00:19:46.869 --> 00:19:51.170 the angels play golden harps? You think the angels 00:19:51.170 --> 00:19:56.690 are good musicians? Mary Beth, how would you 00:19:56.690 --> 00:20:00.990 feel hearing angels playing harps? Won't that 00:20:00.990 --> 00:20:05.369 be amazing? And not only is it amazing, by the 00:20:05.369 --> 00:20:07.630 grace of God, you're going to learn from them. 00:20:08.460 --> 00:20:14.259 You think you can learn some more? Thank you 00:20:14.259 --> 00:20:17.099 for being my wife's teacher. I appreciate it. 00:20:17.220 --> 00:20:20.160 She thinks you're an amazing teacher. She never 00:20:20.160 --> 00:20:25.779 had a teacher like you. Maybe I'm dwelling on 00:20:25.779 --> 00:20:29.279 this too much. Jesus is eager to give his best 00:20:29.279 --> 00:20:39.130 in exchange for our worst. There was a... a religious 00:20:39.130 --> 00:20:44.869 convention held in the Far East where different 00:20:44.869 --> 00:20:49.410 religions met together, representatives of different 00:20:49.410 --> 00:20:51.630 religions meeting together, Buddhists, Hindus, 00:20:52.009 --> 00:21:02.470 you know, Christians, others. And each delegation 00:21:02.470 --> 00:21:08.779 was to bring a portrait. To represent the essence 00:21:08.779 --> 00:21:16.799 of the religion. The Buddhists brought a portrait 00:21:16.799 --> 00:21:27.960 of Buddha. People worshipping him. And other 00:21:27.960 --> 00:21:31.279 delegates brought other pictures to depict the 00:21:31.279 --> 00:21:33.160 essence of the religion. Christians brought a 00:21:33.160 --> 00:21:37.630 picture. And the sermon is about that. The picture 00:21:37.630 --> 00:21:46.829 of who? The picture of Jesus bending at the feet 00:21:46.829 --> 00:21:51.630 of Judas, his betrayer, the most shameful act, 00:21:51.829 --> 00:22:01.329 and washing his feet. In that culture where I 00:22:01.329 --> 00:22:06.559 grew up, even to this day, people... sit on the 00:22:06.559 --> 00:22:10.500 floor on carpets. Especially during Jesus' time, 00:22:10.660 --> 00:22:18.099 they just sat on the floor, on the carpet. And 00:22:18.099 --> 00:22:23.319 when he washed his feet, his head almost touched 00:22:23.319 --> 00:22:26.900 the feet of Judas. Now, what's the significance 00:22:26.900 --> 00:22:30.339 of that? Well, in that culture, during Jesus' 00:22:30.480 --> 00:22:35.119 time and during our time, The head represents 00:22:35.119 --> 00:22:39.079 the most sacred, the most noble part of the body. 00:22:40.440 --> 00:22:43.319 And the feet represents the opposite, the most 00:22:43.319 --> 00:22:47.599 base, the most filthy part of the body. In America, 00:22:47.720 --> 00:22:52.140 can we relate to that? Is there? I don't know. 00:22:52.160 --> 00:22:55.880 In the Spanish culture, do you? Maybe some people 00:22:55.880 --> 00:22:58.720 are from the Orient. I don't know. But it's a 00:22:58.720 --> 00:23:03.059 real thing. If you want to really give somebody 00:23:03.059 --> 00:23:07.299 a great compliment, you say, you're my head. 00:23:07.759 --> 00:23:09.940 That's the greatest compliment you can give anybody. 00:23:10.160 --> 00:23:13.640 But if you want to curse somebody, you say, you're 00:23:13.640 --> 00:23:23.200 my feet. Let me even tell you more about this. 00:23:23.440 --> 00:23:27.680 When I first came to the United States, in the 00:23:27.680 --> 00:23:35.099 last century, let's say, in 1967. This is 2025. 00:23:36.279 --> 00:23:41.599 Wow, almost 60 years. I went to an academy in 00:23:41.599 --> 00:23:46.480 Portland, Oregon. I was the only international 00:23:46.480 --> 00:23:53.259 student. So I was a novelty on campus. Everyone 00:23:53.259 --> 00:23:56.720 talked to me like, and by the way, the culture, 00:23:56.859 --> 00:24:00.980 clash of cultures. In my part of the world, if 00:24:00.980 --> 00:24:03.539 somebody invites you to have a meal with them 00:24:03.539 --> 00:24:09.019 on Sabbath, like we do, you don't say yes right 00:24:09.019 --> 00:24:15.279 away. Isn't it interesting? And so I got many 00:24:15.279 --> 00:24:17.420 invitations. I was a novelty. People want to 00:24:17.420 --> 00:24:19.259 invite me home. I said, no, thank you. I don't 00:24:19.259 --> 00:24:22.019 want to bother you. You know what Americans, 00:24:22.200 --> 00:24:26.460 students said? Okay, it's up to you. I'm like, 00:24:26.619 --> 00:24:29.880 please, insist. Don't give up on me so quickly. 00:24:30.940 --> 00:24:33.180 Because in my culture, the culture of Jesus, 00:24:33.619 --> 00:24:36.940 you don't say yes right away because that would 00:24:36.940 --> 00:24:39.740 seem valuable. That means you're desperate. That 00:24:39.740 --> 00:24:43.279 means you're starving to death. You are in such 00:24:43.279 --> 00:24:48.359 trouble. No. Here in America, it's simple. If 00:24:48.359 --> 00:24:54.349 you want to eat, fine. If not, it's okay. In 00:24:54.349 --> 00:24:56.490 my culture, it's not okay. Like in my heart, 00:24:56.549 --> 00:24:59.170 I would say, please ask me again. They never 00:24:59.170 --> 00:25:02.849 asked me again. So I'm missing out on many good 00:25:02.849 --> 00:25:08.569 meals. And finally, I still remember names. Stephen 00:25:08.569 --> 00:25:12.869 Huey, a classmate of mine who was very sympathetic 00:25:12.869 --> 00:25:15.609 and nice, he said, hey, Philip, people think 00:25:15.609 --> 00:25:19.150 you're stuck up. You're proud. Why? I'm not. 00:25:19.230 --> 00:25:22.130 I'm very humble. I'm made to be humble, you know. 00:25:22.920 --> 00:25:25.579 He said, no, when they invite to eat at their 00:25:25.579 --> 00:25:29.240 house, you don't accept the invitation. So they're 00:25:29.240 --> 00:25:32.440 worried about you. What's your problem? I said, 00:25:32.480 --> 00:25:34.400 I don't have a problem. It's not my problem. 00:25:34.500 --> 00:25:35.819 It's their problem. He said, what do you mean? 00:25:35.980 --> 00:25:38.160 They're offering to invite. I said, but they 00:25:38.160 --> 00:25:42.839 don't insist. The key word is insistence. Don't 00:25:42.839 --> 00:25:48.000 give up on me easily. Oh, no, no, no. This is 00:25:48.000 --> 00:25:49.960 a different culture. Your culture in the Middle 00:25:49.960 --> 00:25:53.980 East is not the same as here. So this is what 00:25:53.980 --> 00:25:56.920 you do. Listen to me now. You're learning to 00:25:56.920 --> 00:25:59.799 be Americanized. Listen to me. I want to help 00:25:59.799 --> 00:26:01.819 you. Thank you. I need all the help I can have. 00:26:02.119 --> 00:26:04.720 He said, when they invite you, say yes. Make 00:26:04.720 --> 00:26:07.680 it simple. Would you like to come to a hospital? 00:26:07.940 --> 00:26:12.299 Yes. Don't think. Just say yes. And from that 00:26:12.299 --> 00:26:17.019 time on, I had free lunch. Almost every Sabbath. 00:26:19.980 --> 00:26:24.259 But I had to experience starvation before I experienced 00:26:24.259 --> 00:26:29.640 feasting. Different culture. The culture of Jesus, 00:26:29.980 --> 00:26:33.339 even though you might not agree with me, is not 00:26:33.339 --> 00:26:36.660 an American culture. I don't hear any amen here. 00:26:37.200 --> 00:26:42.900 Why? Why? Because he was born as a Jew in Palestine. 00:26:47.150 --> 00:26:57.190 And so the most sick and noble touching the most 00:26:57.190 --> 00:27:02.950 filthy. We read in the commentary about that 00:27:02.950 --> 00:27:06.289 experience in the book Desire of Ages. I believe 00:27:06.289 --> 00:27:11.109 it's inspired commentary. This is what the author 00:27:11.109 --> 00:27:25.039 said. Said as The hands of Jesus washed the filthy 00:27:25.039 --> 00:27:35.039 feet of Judas. Judas felt within his being, to 00:27:35.039 --> 00:27:38.920 the core of his being, the tremendous love of 00:27:38.920 --> 00:27:43.180 Jesus for him. He felt it through and through. 00:27:45.930 --> 00:27:49.789 He was totally immersed in the genuine agape 00:27:49.789 --> 00:27:52.650 love of Jesus. Now doesn't that tell you something 00:27:52.650 --> 00:27:57.549 about Jesus? Washing the feet of the one, the 00:27:57.549 --> 00:28:02.690 deceiver, the thief, who to make money, he was 00:28:02.690 --> 00:28:05.029 selling him for a third piece of silver. Yet 00:28:05.029 --> 00:28:10.049 Jesus loved him genuinely. Excuse me? I cannot 00:28:10.049 --> 00:28:14.750 love someone like that. Somebody is selling me. 00:28:15.230 --> 00:28:19.710 As a friend to go to the cross. Washing his feet. 00:28:20.289 --> 00:28:25.390 And. The love of Christ. Penetrated his heart. 00:28:25.549 --> 00:28:28.190 Through and through with genuine love. Judas 00:28:28.190 --> 00:28:33.650 felt it. And he almost repented. He almost repented. 00:28:35.710 --> 00:28:40.769 He didn't have to be the one. Selling Jesus. 00:28:42.730 --> 00:28:46.730 He almost repented. Why didn't he repent? What 00:28:46.730 --> 00:28:52.490 was the problem? Why didn't he repent? What was 00:28:52.490 --> 00:28:54.990 his problem? What hindered him from repentance? 00:28:56.170 --> 00:28:58.130 And when the Holy Spirit convicts our hearts 00:28:58.130 --> 00:29:02.509 to repent of sin, why do we choose to repent? 00:29:03.069 --> 00:29:06.309 Do we want to wait until Jesus comes? It's too 00:29:06.309 --> 00:29:10.210 late. Why not now? So why do you think he didn't 00:29:10.210 --> 00:29:11.990 repent? If you don't know the answer, I'm going 00:29:11.990 --> 00:29:18.160 to ask my wife. By the way, they put your name 00:29:18.160 --> 00:29:25.579 as special music. And so I imagined in my head 00:29:25.579 --> 00:29:29.380 that you were playing. That was nice, wasn't 00:29:29.380 --> 00:29:33.240 it? But someday, I promise you, you play in heaven, 00:29:33.299 --> 00:29:38.279 you play as good. So why do you think he did 00:29:38.279 --> 00:29:40.880 not? You know, I'm a professor, so I get the 00:29:40.880 --> 00:29:44.160 audience involved. I'm picking on my wife right 00:29:44.160 --> 00:29:46.559 now. And I have confidence that she'll have the 00:29:46.559 --> 00:29:49.099 answer, otherwise I don't ask the question. Why 00:29:49.099 --> 00:29:53.900 do you think he did not humble himself and repent 00:29:53.900 --> 00:29:59.839 in front of his fellow disciples? By the way, 00:29:59.880 --> 00:30:04.160 he lied to them. They had no idea he was a sinful 00:30:04.160 --> 00:30:07.519 person. They thought he was the best. In fact, 00:30:07.519 --> 00:30:09.759 when Jesus said, one of you is going to betray 00:30:09.759 --> 00:30:12.779 me, and Peter said, is it me, Lord? John said, 00:30:12.839 --> 00:30:16.720 is it me? And Judas never said, is it me? And 00:30:16.720 --> 00:30:20.299 the disciples thought he'll never be the one 00:30:20.299 --> 00:30:23.220 betraying Jesus. It's amazing how people can 00:30:23.220 --> 00:30:26.759 be so deceiving. It's amazing how the outward 00:30:26.759 --> 00:30:30.140 appearance sometimes deceives people. Only God 00:30:30.140 --> 00:30:33.680 knows the heart. So, Shirley, I'll try to make 00:30:33.680 --> 00:30:36.799 the answer simple. So, in front of his four disciples, 00:30:37.019 --> 00:30:43.930 why wouldn't he want to repent? You see, I knew 00:30:43.930 --> 00:30:46.490 you knew the answer. Did you know the answer? 00:30:46.910 --> 00:30:49.210 You see, you're learning something from her. 00:30:49.349 --> 00:30:52.190 You teach her how. She teaches you how. It's 00:30:52.190 --> 00:30:55.509 good. It's all reciprocal. Aha, that's the exact 00:30:55.509 --> 00:30:59.569 answer. And of course, my wife heard the sermon 00:30:59.569 --> 00:31:02.349 before, so she read my book also. She reads my 00:31:02.349 --> 00:31:06.130 books. Anyway, it was a matter of losing faith. 00:31:08.450 --> 00:31:13.640 Oh my, losing faith. What does that mean to lose 00:31:13.640 --> 00:31:19.759 faith? To be embarrassed, to be shamed. If I 00:31:19.759 --> 00:31:22.980 repent of my sin, my fellow disciple will lose 00:31:22.980 --> 00:31:28.779 respect for me. I lose faith. I can't have this 00:31:28.779 --> 00:31:34.579 cover up anymore. They know my real self. And 00:31:34.579 --> 00:31:37.720 today there are many people who are willing to 00:31:37.720 --> 00:31:42.049 be lost and not to lose faith. Not to be embarrassed. 00:31:42.450 --> 00:31:45.869 Can you imagine when Jesus comes and you're lost? 00:31:46.009 --> 00:31:47.789 You say, Lord, but I didn't want to lose faith. 00:31:47.849 --> 00:31:53.470 I'd rather die than lose salvation. It's so spiritually 00:31:53.470 --> 00:31:58.430 stupid to say I'm willing to pay the price of 00:31:58.430 --> 00:32:01.390 losing salvation instead of being embarrassed. 00:32:03.890 --> 00:32:10.089 That's what happens to many people. And then, 00:32:10.599 --> 00:32:16.180 Judas decided not to lose faith, not to be embarrassed. 00:32:16.519 --> 00:32:18.980 And he decided to turn his heart against the 00:32:18.980 --> 00:32:24.819 love of Jesus. Wicked heart. Deceptive heart. 00:32:26.359 --> 00:32:31.019 Turning against the loving heart of Jesus. Jesus 00:32:31.019 --> 00:32:36.500 gave him his best. And Judas, to help with his 00:32:36.500 --> 00:32:39.400 words, he needed help. At that point, he decided. 00:32:40.400 --> 00:32:43.960 To betray him. To go through with the plan. To 00:32:43.960 --> 00:32:51.519 save face. And he walked away. To receive the 00:32:51.519 --> 00:32:58.140 money. That very evening. It's interesting. The 00:32:58.140 --> 00:33:00.920 reactions of people. You know. People react differently 00:33:00.920 --> 00:33:06.940 on Jesus. What did the disciples think? Oh. Jesus 00:33:06.940 --> 00:33:10.740 whispered in his ear. He needed to go and get 00:33:10.740 --> 00:33:18.339 more supplies for the Lord's Supper. And Jesus 00:33:18.339 --> 00:33:28.000 said, there goes a devil. Almost saved. The love 00:33:28.000 --> 00:33:31.440 of Christ can conquer any obstacle. Almost saved, 00:33:31.460 --> 00:33:38.099 but not saved. He turned out to be a devil. How 00:33:38.099 --> 00:33:42.920 close salvation is to being lost. Just remember, 00:33:43.200 --> 00:33:47.960 unless we're vigilant, the devil can work on 00:33:47.960 --> 00:33:52.440 us too. Didn't he work on Peter? Peter was saved. 00:33:52.500 --> 00:33:58.579 He was humble. He had problems. And when Jesus 00:33:58.579 --> 00:34:01.180 asked the question, who do you think I am? He 00:34:01.180 --> 00:34:03.460 said, you, the Christ, the son of the living 00:34:03.460 --> 00:34:06.480 God. He said, Flesh and blood didn't reveal this 00:34:06.480 --> 00:34:08.960 to you. It's my Father in heaven who revealed 00:34:08.960 --> 00:34:11.820 this to you. Peter was used by God the Father 00:34:11.820 --> 00:34:18.920 to make that statement. A few verses later, Jesus 00:34:18.920 --> 00:34:22.519 was telling him about, I'm going to suffer, to 00:34:22.519 --> 00:34:25.119 die for the human race. Without my death, there'd 00:34:25.119 --> 00:34:27.019 be no salvation. I mean, this is the greatest 00:34:27.019 --> 00:34:29.880 accomplishment of Jesus. He came to die. Why? 00:34:30.059 --> 00:34:33.210 Only in his death we could have life. And Peter 00:34:33.210 --> 00:34:35.309 began to rebuke him. No, you'll never do that. 00:34:35.809 --> 00:34:45.409 You'll never die. I don't accept that. And what 00:34:45.409 --> 00:34:48.610 did Christ say to the same person, Peter, a few 00:34:48.610 --> 00:34:50.929 minutes later? The opposite of what he said before. 00:34:51.010 --> 00:34:58.070 What did he say to him? Huh? Get behind me, Satan. 00:35:00.050 --> 00:35:04.269 Mary Beth, he said, God revealed this to you. 00:35:04.789 --> 00:35:09.550 Now, he said, get behind me, Satan. Excuse me? 00:35:11.369 --> 00:35:18.590 Salvation is so close to being lost. Our minds, 00:35:18.610 --> 00:35:26.610 our hearts, they are the battlefield for the 00:35:26.610 --> 00:35:28.909 great controversy between good and evil, between 00:35:28.909 --> 00:35:32.849 Christ and Satan. Be careful. That's why I said 00:35:32.849 --> 00:35:39.030 be vigilant. Satan's specialty is deception. 00:35:40.050 --> 00:35:42.269 Deceives people who don't even know what's happening 00:35:42.269 --> 00:35:48.409 to them. Remember? Lucifer. His name in heaven 00:35:48.409 --> 00:35:53.130 before he sinned. Lucifer was the greatest of 00:35:53.130 --> 00:36:01.679 angels. The closest to God in glory. Brightness, 00:36:01.699 --> 00:36:09.679 love, goodness. But when he decided to be jealous, 00:36:09.920 --> 00:36:16.699 became deceptive, and what happened? He deceived 00:36:16.699 --> 00:36:22.920 a third of the angels. Perfect angels in a perfect 00:36:22.920 --> 00:36:29.340 heaven. A perfect existence. He was able to deceive. 00:36:29.849 --> 00:36:31.750 Perfect angels. A third, I don't know how many. 00:36:32.570 --> 00:36:34.789 Thousands? Hundreds of thousands? I don't know. 00:36:34.929 --> 00:36:38.230 Many. A third of them. The Bible talks about 00:36:38.230 --> 00:36:41.610 thousands of thousands of thousands. Can you 00:36:41.610 --> 00:36:48.730 imagine? To deceive a third of the angels in 00:36:48.730 --> 00:36:55.909 a perfect environment. Now then, I just want 00:36:55.909 --> 00:36:58.230 to enmasse Satan so we can be careful in these 00:36:58.230 --> 00:37:01.480 last days. I just want to make it applicable 00:37:01.480 --> 00:37:09.440 to us. Are we perfect angels? Are you a perfect 00:37:09.440 --> 00:37:12.659 angel, sir? Your wife is a perfect angel, right? 00:37:13.880 --> 00:37:16.860 Are you a perfect angel? Raise your hand if you're 00:37:16.860 --> 00:37:20.860 a perfect angel forever hold your peace. You 00:37:20.860 --> 00:37:23.679 want to raise your hand? Excuse me, how about 00:37:23.679 --> 00:37:27.590 you? You graduate from Southern. Didn't they 00:37:27.590 --> 00:37:33.730 make you a perfect angel? No. Even parents who 00:37:33.730 --> 00:37:36.250 look at their child, look at their baby, she's 00:37:36.250 --> 00:37:41.170 an angel. No, we're all born in sin. What point 00:37:41.170 --> 00:37:43.809 am I trying to make here? What's this whole fuss 00:37:43.809 --> 00:37:48.309 about? If Satan in heaven, in a perfect heaven, 00:37:48.409 --> 00:37:52.610 deceived perfect angels, how much more he is 00:37:52.610 --> 00:37:55.969 capable of deceiving us today in this sinful 00:37:55.969 --> 00:38:06.880 world. Plus, he refined his skill of deception 00:38:06.880 --> 00:38:16.039 for thousands of years. Just think of what I 00:38:16.039 --> 00:38:25.900 call his tactics, psychological games. You know, 00:38:25.980 --> 00:38:28.900 people come to university, UTC, and study psychology 00:38:28.900 --> 00:38:31.440 for years. Then they want to finish their master's 00:38:31.440 --> 00:38:33.480 in psychology two more years, get their master's, 00:38:33.519 --> 00:38:37.219 PhD, maybe four more years. About ten years to 00:38:37.219 --> 00:38:44.340 become PhD in psychology. Excuse me? Satan got 00:38:44.340 --> 00:38:50.420 a major. His major is psychological games. It's 00:38:50.420 --> 00:38:53.559 not four years. It's not six years. It's not 00:38:53.559 --> 00:39:02.559 ten years. thousands of years to refine his specialty 00:39:02.559 --> 00:39:08.440 in deception. I'm just telling you the reality. 00:39:09.840 --> 00:39:13.500 He worked on Peter. He worked on Judas. He can 00:39:13.500 --> 00:39:17.780 work on all of us. So what's the only answer? 00:39:18.460 --> 00:39:24.909 What's our only hope? Our only hope? To cling 00:39:24.909 --> 00:39:33.889 to Jesus for dear life. Every moment. That's 00:39:33.889 --> 00:39:37.070 the only safety. Look what James said. What did 00:39:37.070 --> 00:39:39.690 James say in James 4, 7? He said, therefore, 00:39:39.809 --> 00:39:42.550 submit yourselves to Christ. That's the first 00:39:42.550 --> 00:39:45.510 thing we do. Resist the devil and the devil will 00:39:45.510 --> 00:39:48.710 flee from you. It's interesting how Satan loves 00:39:48.710 --> 00:39:52.929 that verse by twisting it. He specializes in 00:39:52.929 --> 00:39:57.489 twisting. You know what he says? The first you 00:39:57.489 --> 00:40:03.349 do in the spiritual warfare is resist me. After 00:40:03.349 --> 00:40:06.489 you resist me, then you can submit yourself. 00:40:06.630 --> 00:40:10.190 Oh no, it's wrong. Like getting a kit, trying 00:40:10.190 --> 00:40:12.010 to put together, you don't follow the right order. 00:40:12.269 --> 00:40:14.929 You got things mixed up. You have to undo everything. 00:40:15.190 --> 00:40:18.969 No, the first thing is we submit ourselves to 00:40:18.969 --> 00:40:22.190 Christ. That's the first thing. If you start 00:40:22.190 --> 00:40:30.670 resisting, you're going to be defeated. Your 00:40:30.670 --> 00:40:33.289 wife works for a Tazutin, right? Do you work 00:40:33.289 --> 00:40:37.469 for them too? Okay, that's okay. Let me ask you. 00:40:38.190 --> 00:40:43.489 I mean, if Satan comes to attack you with his 00:40:43.489 --> 00:40:46.250 skill of deception for thousands of years, and 00:40:46.250 --> 00:40:48.250 if he was able to deceive perfect angels, and 00:40:48.250 --> 00:40:51.489 you're not a perfect angel, sir, do you think 00:40:51.489 --> 00:40:54.630 you're going to succeed by resisting him by yourself? 00:40:55.570 --> 00:41:00.280 Absolutely not. Absolutely not. So the secret 00:41:00.280 --> 00:41:03.619 here for victory is start by submitting yourself 00:41:03.619 --> 00:41:08.860 to Christ. And you and Christ become one united 00:41:08.860 --> 00:41:16.440 formidable front. And what happens when you become 00:41:16.440 --> 00:41:19.539 united with Christ? Oh, the second step is resist 00:41:19.539 --> 00:41:23.219 Satan. Who resists Satan now after you submit 00:41:23.219 --> 00:41:27.480 to Christ? It's you and Christ united. Does that 00:41:27.480 --> 00:41:31.719 make sense? Do you think Christ is strong enough 00:41:31.719 --> 00:41:37.320 to defeat Satan? You think so? He's God. He defeats 00:41:37.320 --> 00:41:43.519 Satan in heaven. He defeats him every way. So 00:41:43.519 --> 00:41:46.679 if you want to be victorious, hang on to Jesus. 00:41:47.280 --> 00:41:50.699 You say, well, how much do I resist? Ah, proportion 00:41:50.699 --> 00:41:53.760 to your strength. That's only logical. Is Christ 00:41:53.760 --> 00:41:58.720 stronger than you? By exceedingly stronger. Therefore, 00:41:58.720 --> 00:42:03.199 you go along for the ride. But Jesus does most 00:42:03.199 --> 00:42:09.780 of the resisting. And what does James say at 00:42:09.780 --> 00:42:14.340 the end of that? He says, then Satan will flee 00:42:14.340 --> 00:42:19.179 from you. As I counsel a lot of Christians, many 00:42:19.179 --> 00:42:22.639 of them are fleeing from Satan. Afraid and fleeing 00:42:22.639 --> 00:42:26.190 from Satan. It's high time for Satan. To flee. 00:42:27.590 --> 00:42:32.329 For a change. There's a statement in the book, 00:42:32.369 --> 00:42:36.650 Desire of Ages, commenting on this, that says, 00:42:36.829 --> 00:42:47.750 Satan trembles. Not just flees, he trembles. 00:42:48.409 --> 00:42:52.110 What does it mean to tremble? To shake in your 00:42:52.110 --> 00:42:58.280 boots, right? Satan not only flees, he trembles 00:42:58.280 --> 00:43:06.159 and flees before the weakest soul who finds refuge 00:43:06.159 --> 00:43:11.960 in the mighty name of Jesus. The weakest soul. 00:43:12.219 --> 00:43:15.039 Do you feel you're the weakest soul? Does this 00:43:15.039 --> 00:43:18.800 apply to you? Compared to Jesus' strength, you 00:43:18.800 --> 00:43:23.179 are the weakest soul. But Jesus rejoices. In 00:43:23.179 --> 00:43:29.239 helping the weakest. Like Paul said. We are strong. 00:43:30.099 --> 00:43:34.159 In Christ. When we realize our weakness. Our 00:43:34.159 --> 00:43:38.460 weakness becomes strength in Jesus. I'm trying 00:43:38.460 --> 00:43:41.440 to really make sense to you. Does that make sense? 00:43:41.519 --> 00:43:48.000 Do you resonate with me? I mean. I grew up on 00:43:48.000 --> 00:43:52.889 a farm. Orchards. Olive trees. pomegranates and 00:43:52.889 --> 00:43:58.369 figs and grapes. My dad was building a wall to 00:43:58.369 --> 00:44:02.030 divide the land to terraces. And I was just like 00:44:02.030 --> 00:44:07.230 four years old. Four. Much younger than now, 00:44:07.309 --> 00:44:09.449 but I never forget that experience. Some things 00:44:09.449 --> 00:44:11.670 should be learned. They remember all their lives. 00:44:11.789 --> 00:44:14.389 Makes an impression on them. Let's make good 00:44:14.389 --> 00:44:18.510 impressions on our children at last. Here, my 00:44:18.510 --> 00:44:21.389 dad was... putting these stones on top of each 00:44:21.389 --> 00:44:26.329 other. He came to the end of building this wall. 00:44:29.250 --> 00:44:33.690 And there's a big stone left. And he said, I 00:44:33.690 --> 00:44:40.469 want to put this big stone on top. Maybe the 00:44:40.469 --> 00:44:42.769 big stone was bigger than me. I don't know. It 00:44:42.769 --> 00:44:46.190 was big to me. He said, my son, I need you to 00:44:46.190 --> 00:44:50.820 help me. You got to have confidence in people. 00:44:50.920 --> 00:44:54.539 I need you to help me. What can I do, Daddy? 00:44:55.039 --> 00:44:58.239 He said, see, I'm putting my hands under that 00:44:58.239 --> 00:45:03.320 rock. Can you please come down and put your hands 00:45:03.320 --> 00:45:05.420 under the rock? Because I want you to help me 00:45:05.420 --> 00:45:09.639 lift it to the top. I'm using illustrations that 00:45:09.639 --> 00:45:13.739 should make logic to you. And that is what? Oh, 00:45:14.039 --> 00:45:18.760 this rock kept lifting up and up. And I said, 00:45:18.800 --> 00:45:23.309 wow. Am I that strong? He came to the top of 00:45:23.309 --> 00:45:27.449 the wall. He said, thank you, son, for helping 00:45:27.449 --> 00:45:34.349 me lift that rock. I come back to you, sir. I 00:45:34.349 --> 00:45:39.690 come back to you. To what extent I lifted that 00:45:39.690 --> 00:45:45.289 heavy rock? Maybe a pound. Maybe less. You're 00:45:45.289 --> 00:45:49.929 a little child, maybe. It weighed at least 50 00:45:49.929 --> 00:45:53.530 pounds. Who did most of the lifting? My dad. 00:45:53.610 --> 00:45:57.789 Why? Because my dad was stronger than me. And 00:45:57.789 --> 00:46:00.610 Jesus is stronger than you or me or anybody. 00:46:01.269 --> 00:46:04.489 So it's logical. He lifts the heavy weights. 00:46:04.530 --> 00:46:07.309 That's why he's described as the burden bearer. 00:46:07.929 --> 00:46:10.730 So many people I meet in council, they allow 00:46:10.730 --> 00:46:14.449 these burdens to crush them. I say, why don't 00:46:14.449 --> 00:46:18.530 we go to the burden bearer? He is disappointed 00:46:18.530 --> 00:46:21.070 when we don't listen to his invitation. Come 00:46:21.070 --> 00:46:24.710 unto me, O that labor. I'll give you rest. I 00:46:24.710 --> 00:46:27.530 can lift these burdens off your shoulders. I 00:46:27.530 --> 00:46:31.750 have big enough shoulders to deal with all these 00:46:31.750 --> 00:46:37.710 burdens. Satan, when we trust Jesus, when we 00:46:37.710 --> 00:46:47.949 submit to Christ, he is... It's almost two. It's 00:46:47.949 --> 00:46:51.409 so true, but people have to believe and practice. 00:46:52.510 --> 00:47:03.289 Satan will tremble and flee before. Before who? 00:47:03.789 --> 00:47:07.269 Jesus? Of course he does. No, no. Before the 00:47:07.269 --> 00:47:13.309 weakest soul who is united with Jesus. We share 00:47:13.309 --> 00:47:20.409 in Christ's destiny, life. And strength. Who 00:47:20.409 --> 00:47:23.989 finds refuge in the mighty name of Jesus? Refuge. 00:47:24.610 --> 00:47:27.289 We live in a world where we need to have refuge. 00:47:30.250 --> 00:47:36.389 What's your refuge today? Is it friends? Or is 00:47:36.389 --> 00:47:39.849 it your best friend Jesus? I'm telling you, in 00:47:39.849 --> 00:47:42.309 these last days, we must have Jesus as our best 00:47:42.309 --> 00:47:47.260 refuge. You know, people can share. can show 00:47:47.260 --> 00:47:51.219 they care about you. Care, quote, unquote. But 00:47:51.219 --> 00:47:53.960 Jesus not only cares, he can do something about 00:47:53.960 --> 00:47:57.719 the situation. Jesus, our best friend, what a 00:47:57.719 --> 00:48:01.099 friend we have in Jesus, he cares and he can. 00:48:20.809 --> 00:48:25.010 Going back to the, I'm not using my notes. I'm 00:48:25.010 --> 00:48:27.889 speaking from my heart. Going back, I just remembered, 00:48:28.070 --> 00:48:30.730 I said something coming to this country in 1967. 00:48:31.590 --> 00:48:35.949 I attended an Adventist academy in Portland, 00:48:36.050 --> 00:48:44.510 Oregon. My first day in school. New culture, 00:48:44.570 --> 00:48:50.719 new language, new friends. I remember my U .S. 00:48:50.739 --> 00:48:57.099 history professor. I still remember him. I remember 00:48:57.099 --> 00:49:05.480 his name. Mr. Jack Heisler. Jack Heisler. He 00:49:05.480 --> 00:49:08.340 passed away already. He was my U .S. history 00:49:08.340 --> 00:49:18.980 professor. And I sat on the second pew. The second 00:49:18.980 --> 00:49:23.340 row of chairs. In front of me, the first set 00:49:23.340 --> 00:49:30.059 of chairs, there was a senior like me, fellow 00:49:30.059 --> 00:49:39.139 student, big guy. You know, in my part of the 00:49:39.139 --> 00:49:44.219 world, I was kind of okay, kind of average. I 00:49:44.219 --> 00:49:47.679 was average in my head. In America, I'm short. 00:49:50.380 --> 00:49:54.239 It really humbles you. And so that's why when 00:49:54.239 --> 00:49:56.239 I have students, especially young ladies who 00:49:56.239 --> 00:50:00.579 are like 5 feet or 4, 11, I spend time talking 00:50:00.579 --> 00:50:05.619 to them. I said, no, I appreciate talking to 00:50:05.619 --> 00:50:07.880 you. Why? I said, because that's the only time 00:50:07.880 --> 00:50:14.400 I feel tall. In heaven, we'll be made perfect, 00:50:14.579 --> 00:50:25.619 okay? But my point is, here you have an experience 00:50:25.619 --> 00:50:29.179 that lasts forever. Always remember that. Why? 00:50:29.320 --> 00:50:32.860 Because this student here, about six foot six, 00:50:33.079 --> 00:50:41.559 football player, with big boots. He sat here, 00:50:41.760 --> 00:50:44.809 and I don't know, this teacher. He never really 00:50:44.809 --> 00:50:47.030 walked around like, I cannot sit behind my desk 00:50:47.030 --> 00:50:51.130 to teach. Come on, you have to move around. And 00:50:51.130 --> 00:50:54.309 so what did this student do? So the teacher, 00:50:54.409 --> 00:50:58.929 Mr. Heiss, was sitting right there in his chair 00:50:58.929 --> 00:51:04.630 behind his desk. And this student put his boots, 00:51:05.349 --> 00:51:10.710 wrapped them up on that desk. And to be honest 00:51:10.710 --> 00:51:13.989 with you, sitting behind him, The face of the 00:51:13.989 --> 00:51:17.070 teacher is blocked. His boots block the face 00:51:17.070 --> 00:51:20.929 of the teacher. I don't know. Do you think it's 00:51:20.929 --> 00:51:24.530 a good idea to do that? To me, it wasn't. To 00:51:24.530 --> 00:51:27.210 me, it wasn't a good idea. Because to me, in 00:51:27.210 --> 00:51:29.429 my culture, the culture of Jesus, what he was 00:51:29.429 --> 00:51:35.650 saying to his teacher, your face, the most noble 00:51:35.650 --> 00:51:38.190 thing about you, the most sacred thing about 00:51:38.190 --> 00:51:42.989 you, is not worthy of my... Filthy feet, the 00:51:42.989 --> 00:51:46.610 worst thing about me. I know, it didn't mean 00:51:46.610 --> 00:51:49.429 it that way. No, it didn't mean it that way. 00:51:49.510 --> 00:51:52.190 I still don't think it's a good idea. I mean, 00:51:52.309 --> 00:51:56.449 but it was all fun. It's okay. I'm just relaxing, 00:51:56.590 --> 00:51:59.170 stretching. The teacher didn't seem to mind. 00:52:02.670 --> 00:52:06.070 And that's the point I want to make here. And 00:52:06.070 --> 00:52:10.659 that is... When you come to Jesus with the worst 00:52:10.659 --> 00:52:17.820 thing about you. The worst thing about you. What's 00:52:17.820 --> 00:52:20.639 the worst thing about you? Don't tell me. Tell 00:52:20.639 --> 00:52:23.699 God. Right now, think about it. What's the worst 00:52:23.699 --> 00:52:26.500 thing about your life? What's the worst sin? 00:52:26.679 --> 00:52:28.400 What's the thing you're ashamed of the most? 00:52:30.460 --> 00:52:32.179 Maybe your wife doesn't know about it. Maybe 00:52:32.179 --> 00:52:34.800 your husband doesn't know about it. Nobody knows 00:52:34.800 --> 00:52:43.059 about it. And it's making you so, it makes you 00:52:43.059 --> 00:52:45.960 feel so bad. You're ashamed to even tell God 00:52:45.960 --> 00:52:51.519 about it. I mean, how long have you been feeling 00:52:51.519 --> 00:52:54.900 this way? Are you planning to die with that feeling? 00:52:55.559 --> 00:53:00.000 There's relief. Jesus, if he did that to Judas, 00:53:00.079 --> 00:53:03.460 and I know none of you here want to sell Jesus 00:53:03.460 --> 00:53:07.480 for a third piece of silver. What's the worst 00:53:07.480 --> 00:53:15.079 thing about you? And Jesus would have washed 00:53:15.079 --> 00:53:20.880 your feet. Can you imagine? Jesus would have 00:53:20.880 --> 00:53:27.019 washed your feet. Like at the academy, we had 00:53:27.019 --> 00:53:29.619 a week of prayer. I didn't have many friends 00:53:29.619 --> 00:53:35.230 yet, so somebody came to wash my feet. Of course, 00:53:35.230 --> 00:53:38.110 I was sitting in the chair. I wasn't on the rug. 00:53:39.130 --> 00:53:43.869 And here I am washing my feet. I don't like when 00:53:43.869 --> 00:53:47.070 we have the ordinance of humility and people 00:53:47.070 --> 00:53:50.150 joke around. No, focus on something sacred. So 00:53:50.150 --> 00:53:52.489 here I was sitting down and he came to wash my 00:53:52.489 --> 00:53:58.349 feet. And the thought that crossed my mind. Still 00:53:58.349 --> 00:54:01.130 remember that. If our living during the time 00:54:01.130 --> 00:54:04.489 of Jesus. And even if I were Judas, as bad as 00:54:04.489 --> 00:54:10.110 Judas, I would look down and see the head of 00:54:10.110 --> 00:54:15.329 a man washing my feet and his tremendous love 00:54:15.329 --> 00:54:17.489 penetrating my heart through and through, willing 00:54:17.489 --> 00:54:21.590 to forgive any sin to cleanse me from all unrighteousness. 00:54:22.650 --> 00:54:26.030 And I ask the question, would somebody please 00:54:26.030 --> 00:54:29.190 tell me, who is this person washing my feet? 00:54:29.250 --> 00:54:33.190 He is your God. He is the Son of God. He is Jesus 00:54:33.190 --> 00:54:39.610 Christ. Wow. And I assure you, as he was willing 00:54:39.610 --> 00:54:41.429 to do this for Judas, he was willing to do it 00:54:41.429 --> 00:54:43.369 for you. So what's the worst thing about you? 00:54:45.329 --> 00:54:48.369 I want to give you a moment right now to simply 00:54:48.369 --> 00:54:58.949 think about it. It's coming to our thinking now. 00:55:03.329 --> 00:55:11.289 It's sacred. It's a sacred thing that only God 00:55:11.289 --> 00:55:17.530 maybe should know about. If you focus on it too 00:55:17.530 --> 00:55:19.570 much, it might be depressing, but there's great 00:55:19.570 --> 00:55:22.309 help on the way. And Jesus is telling you right 00:55:22.309 --> 00:55:26.650 now, give that to me. I want my best. And Christ's 00:55:26.650 --> 00:55:32.699 best is a lot, a lot, the most. The best, Christ's 00:55:32.699 --> 00:55:37.119 best is a lot. I want to use my best to help 00:55:37.119 --> 00:55:39.440 you at your worst. Do you believe with all your 00:55:39.440 --> 00:55:42.019 heart that Christ's best can help every one of 00:55:42.019 --> 00:55:47.340 us at our worst? Yes or no? Let me ask the question 00:55:47.340 --> 00:55:51.179 again. Do you think Jesus' best can help you 00:55:51.179 --> 00:56:02.900 at your worst? Amen. Let's bow our heads. how 00:56:02.900 --> 00:56:10.840 fortunate we are to be associated with you. Perfect 00:56:10.840 --> 00:56:17.960 love, perfect forgiveness. Right now as our hearts 00:56:17.960 --> 00:56:30.079 are moved by that love. Judah's heart was moved 00:56:30.079 --> 00:56:35.559 by that love. He almost repented. Dear Lord, 00:56:35.599 --> 00:56:40.539 we don't want to be like that. Almost saved but 00:56:40.539 --> 00:56:45.760 not saved. Even now, we offer you the worst about 00:56:45.760 --> 00:56:50.840 us. You can read that from afar. You read our 00:56:50.840 --> 00:57:02.059 hearts. Please, Lord, we submit our worst. To 00:57:02.059 --> 00:57:12.480 your best. Forgive us. And help us. Never to 00:57:12.480 --> 00:57:18.179 have any excuse. Saving face. Not being embarrassed. 00:57:18.760 --> 00:57:25.059 This is nothing. Compared to being lost. Like 00:57:25.059 --> 00:57:30.179 Paul said. All I have to go through is like. 00:57:30.440 --> 00:57:36.199 trash, like rubbish. All the suffering of this 00:57:36.199 --> 00:57:40.400 life is rubbish compared to salvation, to eternal 00:57:40.400 --> 00:57:46.599 life. Help us to be spiritually smart. Make the 00:57:46.599 --> 00:57:53.219 right decisions. May we submit ourselves to united 00:57:53.219 --> 00:57:59.300 with you. And may Satan As we witnessed him together, 00:57:59.460 --> 00:58:04.260 may Satan tremble and flee before the weakest 00:58:04.260 --> 00:58:07.800 soul. That includes everybody here. Because we 00:58:07.800 --> 00:58:10.320 choose to put our trust in that mighty name of 00:58:10.320 --> 00:58:20.820 Jesus. Lord, Peter had problems. In some ways 00:58:20.820 --> 00:58:23.460 more than Judas. Judas was more polished, more 00:58:23.460 --> 00:58:27.500 educated, more refined, more classy. But the 00:58:27.500 --> 00:58:30.980 secret about Peter, because the devil used him 00:58:30.980 --> 00:58:35.320 too, was to keep trusting you, humble himself. 00:58:37.460 --> 00:58:42.820 Hmm. And he taught us a lesson. Peter did. That 00:58:42.820 --> 00:58:47.260 the greatest good work we can do is what? To 00:58:47.260 --> 00:58:51.860 keep coming to Jesus regardless. Whatever it 00:58:51.860 --> 00:58:56.789 is. I'm walking on water. Now I'm drowning. Lord, 00:58:56.909 --> 00:59:02.909 save me. Peter, learn to come to you, no matter 00:59:02.909 --> 00:59:07.070 what. And because I stuck it out with you, he 00:59:07.070 --> 00:59:12.989 made it. May we stick it out with you. Not about 00:59:12.989 --> 00:59:17.849 our perfection. No. Holding on to you for dear 00:59:17.849 --> 00:59:21.469 life, saying, I won't let you go until you bless 00:59:21.469 --> 00:59:25.380 me. Lord, I believe. Help me on my unbelief. 00:59:26.360 --> 00:59:28.719 We can never perish. While we do this, we can 00:59:28.719 --> 00:59:32.500 never perish. Thank you, Lord. In Jesus' name, 00:59:32.659 --> 00:59:33.300 amen.