We've all been hurt.
We all carry scars.
We can all overcome these things and be healed through a relationship with Jesus Christ.
Let's build that relationship together right here.
Welcome to Healing Scars with Pastor Burton.
Hey everybody, welcome to the sanctuary.
So great to have you with us as always.
And if it's your first time joining us, let me just take a moment to say welcome.
So this week I was run down.
I had to go get treated for a respiratory issue and it didn't leave me with much time
to prepare a proper sermon or a Bible study for you all.
So instead what we're going to do, this should actually be a little fun, is we're going to
look at some common questions that get sent to me on a regular basis or that are asked.
You know, when I'm talking with people.
So these are questions that some of you may have as well.
So while this isn't our norm, it does give us a chance to see the Word in action in our
daily lives and quite frankly, how we operate here as the church.
Now some of these questions, the answer is fairly straightforward and easy.
Some of them we had to kind of deep dive into to get to the meat and potatoes.
And that's what we're actually going to do here with this first question.
So the first question is this.
It's so hard to remember all the commandments.
Is there an easy way to memorize them?
So to start, let's actually, I will say yes, there is.
But to start, let's take a look at them real quick here.
Alright, so the easiest way to commit them to memory, we're going to look at next.
So first we're just actually going to look at the 10 commandments and you'll find them
in Exodus chapter 20 verses 1 through 21.
Now depending on the translation of your Bible, this can be really quite wordy, right?
So we're going to break it down just a little bit more.
I want you to know where to find it though so that you can look at it for yourself.
Because I said don't just take my word or anybody else's word.
We all need to be students of the Word.
So I encourage you to look this up as well.
So broken down nice and easy, it's you shall have no other gods before me.
You shall not make or worship idols.
You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.
Gather the Sabbath day and keep it holy.
Honor your father and your mother.
You shall not murder.
You shall not commit adultery.
You shall not steal.
You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
And finally, you shall not covet anything that belongs to your neighbor.
Okay, so there's a lot there.
Some of you probably have your highlighters out and are going through there and marking
up your Bibles right now too.
That's good that you should.
Alright, so you know even breaking it down as simple as you know what I just did, you
know it can still take time to memorize.
And let's face it, sometimes memorizing things is a lot easier for some people than it is
for other things.
You know, for instance, some people are great with remembering names.
I'm horrible.
I typically use word association, quite frankly.
In fact, here's a great example from when I was still working at the hospital.
We had a couple of girls who came in to clean regularly, right?
You know, sweep, take out the trash, all that kind of stuff, right?
And I thought I had both of their names down.
After nearly a year, one of them was out sick one day.
And so I asked the other lady who was there about her, you know, hey, is everything okay?
I noticed she hadn't been around for a little while.
And I said what I thought her name was.
And I thought it was her name because it's what I had been calling her for months.
And she said, who?
Oh, you mean so and so.
They're out sick.
And I found out that I had her name completely wrong.
So the leg on my face there, right?
So when she came back, you know, I apologized for not having her name, right?
And I asked her, you know, it's like, you know, all this time, you know, you've let
me call you by the wrong name.
You know, why is that?
And she said, well, you know, one, she thought it was kind of funny.
And two, she did not want to embarrass me.
So it was sad.
I mean, I was a little, a little embarrassed anyway.
And you know, memorization of certain things isn't always the easiest for us at various
points in our lives.
You know, I say, you know, I'm horrible with names, but you know, when it comes to, you
know, different things in biology or, you know, history and all, I'm pretty good at
calling out that kind of stuff, you know, but we all have our nicks, you know.
You know, my wife, for example, is great at math.
Most people hate math.
Like, no, I got a calculator in my phone.
I'm good.
Right.
Where as you can throw numbers at her and she's like, oh, this is the answer.
And she has it down.
You know, she can explain fractions and decimals and all that kind of stuff.
You know, she, she actually, you know, got her initial degree in accounting long before
she became a teacher.
That's how into numbers she is and how, how, you know, they come to her, you know, that
is definitely in her gifting.
So I digress rabbit trail here.
All right.
So how do we overcome this?
So we don't, you know, sin against God, you know, how do we remember these commandments
and Jesus actually answered this for us.
And you can find that answer in a couple of places.
You can find it in Mark chapter 12 verses 29 through 31.
And you can find the same answer in Matthew 22 verses 37 through 40.
So that's Mark 12 and Matthew 22.
And I'm actually going to quote from Matthew 22 verses 37 through 40.
And Jesus says, love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and
with all your mind.
This is the first and greatest commandment.
And the second is like it.
Love your neighbor as yourself.
All the law and the prophets hang on these two commandments.
Now at face value, it looks like this is just two commandments and you'd be right to
think so.
But let's look at it from a different angle.
Because if you go back and you look at the 10 commandments as we went through earlier,
you're going to notice something.
You know, the first four, they're all about loving God.
You know, having him first in your life is your one and only not to invoke his name wrongfully,
you know, that you give him praise and you give him worship.
And the other six are all about loving others, loving your neighbor, right?
And if you love others as Jesus would have you do, you know, if you love others like
you love yourself, it gets a lot easier not to fall into those traps of, you know, the
devil and not to sin, you know, because, you know, if you love your parents, if you love
others, you know, you're going to listen to them, you know, you're going to hear what
they have to say, you're going to take care of them.
You know, if you love others, you're not going to want to kill them.
You know, you won't even harbor hate in your heart.
And the Bible even tells us in first John three and in Matthew five that to hate someone,
you know, to harbor hate in your heart is, you know, to say is the same as having murdered
them in your heart.
And so you'd still be subject to the same kind of judgment.
So you have to love others and you have to forgive them Jesus just as Jesus did for all
of us when he was on the cross.
All right.
If you love someone, you're not going to cheat on them.
You know, if you love someone and they're already married, you're not going to cause
them to cheat, right?
You're not going to want to steal from people.
You know, you're not lazy, you're not going to lie to others or about them.
You know, you're not going to be jealous.
You're not going to be envious of what they have.
You know, it's like, oh, that's cool.
That's great.
You deserve that.
Absolutely proud of you.
Great.
You know, because what one person has isn't what you have.
And there's a reason for that.
You know, we are needs are all different and the Lord meets those needs.
So simply put, you know, commit what Jesus said to memory.
Love God with all your heart, mind and soul and love others as you love yourself just
as Jesus loved.
Right.
So that's it in a nutshell.
That's the easiest way to remember it.
Because like I said, if you follow what Jesus said, the first, you know, the first commandment,
the first four of the ten are satisfied.
You know, and if you follow the second, then the other six are satisfied.
Easy peasy.
Right.
So the next question, this one, you would actually be amazed how often I get emails
or questions from people, you know, even just in conversation.
And simply put, would you be interested in having a medium or a psychic as a guest?
Yep, that's the question.
This is an actual question.
I had so many requests.
And they've all gotten the same response from me.
As a matter of fact, just recently I've gotten three different emails from one person.
They're a booking agent trying to get a particular person booked with me because they know of
the podcast.
Right.
And I've declined each and every single time.
Needless to say, the answer is a very hard no.
No.
Plain and simple.
Why not?
Well, that's easy.
If you turn to Deuteronomy chapter 18, says Deuteronomy chapter 18, and specifically you're
going to look at verses nine through 13.
And the Bible says, when you enter the land, the Lord your God is giving you, do not learn
to imitate the detestable ways of the nations there.
Let no one be found among you who sacrifices their son or their daughter in the fire, who
practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft or casts spells,
or who is a medium or a spiritist or who consults the dead.
Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord.
Because of the same detestable practices, the Lord your God will drive out those nations
before you.
You must be blameless before the Lord your God.
So the answer is a hard no.
As you see here, the Bible tells us that these practices are evil.
Crystal balls, astrology, talking to the dead, which by the way, those aren't your friends
or relatives that they're talking to.
If they're actually talking to anyone, they're demons.
Most of the time they're not even getting that.
Most of the time they're just kind of playing off of cues that you give them with certain
questions because they lead you in a certain way so they can kind of tell you what you
want to hear.
Fortune telling and so on and so forth, lucky rabbit's feet, all that kind of stuff.
These are not the things of God.
These are not part of His character.
They are detestable to Him.
Now if someone wants to go and they want to have a conversation about God on the side,
sure, I'll talk to anyone about God.
Absolutely.
And in these cases, I'm more than happy to rebuke the things that they're practicing
and offer them the corrective guidance as the Bible points out.
Because the things that they're doing, these are the tools of the devil and his attempts
to create doubt in you and others.
And none of us can afford to give him any kind of a foothold in our lives.
I don't care how many books they've written.
I don't care how many awards they've won or how sought after they are as a celebrity.
If you practice these things and you want to put them out in the world, you are wrong.
Now I know some of you might be thinking, hey, some of these things are just fun.
They don't mean anything.
They don't cause any harm.
And I'll tell you, you're wrong.
If they weren't a big deal, if they didn't cause harm, the word wouldn't tell us that
they do and that they are a big deal.
Yes, even reading those horoscopes in the paper, looking up lucky numbers, carrying
those luck charms.
Like I said, the rabbit's foot.
Some people carry the little gems and that kind of stuff.
They want to put the infinity sign on a piece of paper and keep it in their wallet like
that's some kind of little good luck charm that's going to make sure that they always
have money with them.
They're wearing a copper and certain things for aches and pains and all this other stuff.
It's just mumbo jumbo.
Even science has proven, hey, these things don't work for that.
But they make a ton of money off of them late night at TV and all that kind of stuff.
I will say, you're a Christian and you're participating in any of these practices or
doing any of these things, you need to stop.
You need to stop playing it simple.
Do not give the devil a foothold.
Do not give into the ways of the world.
I'd go on at length, but we don't have the time for it.
Matter of fact, if you pull up season one of the podcast and you go back a ways, you
can even look up Deuteronomy and the searches and stuff of the podcast.
There's actually an episode dedicated to this specific subject.
For those who keep asking, the answer is no.
When I do have a guest speaker for anything or anything like that, they're going to be
vetted and there's a reason for that.
That's biblical as well.
But when it comes to having these other people on and everything, no, we're not even going
to risk any kind of poison being put in anybody's ear.
Absolutely not.
The Bible warns us and we're going to do what we're told.
We're going to be obedient Christians.
So moving on.
Our next question, it's a lot easier to answer and a much shorter answer.
Love the podcast.
Love hearing what you have to say.
However, I find the intro kind of dry and the outro kind of dry.
Why don't you include any music in the podcast like you do in services?
And the answer is this.
While I would absolutely love to, copyright actually prevents that.
Now while I could get licensed, because there's CCLI and so many others, to use music here
in the US and a handful of other countries, the goal is for the entire world to have the
ability to listen to the Word, to learn and to grow in their walk with Jesus.
And unfortunately, there are many, many countries that would flag or block us for using music.
So for that reason alone, we don't include it with the podcast.
Now y'all know me, I'm a musician.
I love music.
You know, if you're in the area and you can come to service, hey, great, come and join
us.
You can join us in praise and worship.
But keep in mind there's a reason we don't do it here with the podcast.
Now with that said, while each episode of the podcast is recorded independently, each
episode actually follows the same sermons I've written virtually word for word.
I get out there and if I have something and it starts going down the rabbit hole, guess
what?
It gets included.
It's all added.
I've got dictation here the whole bit so I can actually share everything with you just
as if you were coming into a service.
I've actually contemplated recording it all as one thing, going live and just recording
it and then having the audio to put into the podcast and that sort of stuff and having
like virtual services for people to watch.
Because I know some of you do like the video.
However, being able to filter out the different noises, the clicks, the pops, the background
noises and all that kind of stuff, it actually makes it sound a lot better than it would
be otherwise.
So while I am looking for a way to start doing video to satisfy that, like I said, I might
just start recording stuff anyway but the audio, let's just face it, the audio isn't
going to be quite as nice as it is with the podcast.
I do do my best to speak the same here as I do in the pulpit or anywhere else.
Those of you who know me, those of you who have been to services that I've had and stuff
or have heard me preach in various places, if you know these people they can vouch for
it as well.
We'd be more than happy to introduce you.
With that said, we have time for one more question.
And this also has a shorter, well not quite as short but an easier answer.
It is kind of short.
If I'm saved by Jesus and nothing and no one else, then why do I need to be concerned about
works or good deeds?
So for this, to answer this, I'd actually say turn to James chapter 2 verses 14 through
26.
Alright, so James chapter 2 verses 14 through 26, which many of us have heard summarized
as faith without works is debt.
Right?
Plain and simple.
You know, but I do recommend you read through that whole section there.
Now yes, Jesus is our Lord and Savior.
Jesus is who saves us.
What this is referring to though is it's not enough to talk the talk.
You have to walk the walk.
People need to see the Holy Spirit at work in your life.
And we have to remember that.
We are all that many will ever see or know of God.
So how you treat others, how you talk to people, how you respond to things, all this stuff,
it says a lot about who you truly are and what you truly believe.
Right?
It speaks to your character as well, you know, and if you're doing things the right way,
then God's character comes through.
You know, we can't all just be talk.
When it comes time to take action, we have to act.
We can't just be like, you know what, hey, this is it.
I'm a Christian.
This is what the Bible says.
But then it comes time to do stuff like, oh no, not me.
I'm backing away.
We have to take action.
Alright, I've said it before and I'll say it again.
You can cause just as much harm through action as you can through your inaction.
So you have to be involved.
In Matthew 5, Jesus calls us to salt and the light.
We have to go out into the world.
We have to go out and we have to let the Lord shine through you.
People need to see the Holy Spirit in you.
And that's how we reach the world.
You see, when you're kind and you're caring and you're helpful, it shows and it makes
people curious.
They start to think, you know, when they see this and they see that this is part of your
character, they start thinking, you know what, maybe there's something to this whole Jesus
thing, right?
Because love, and to love like Jesus, it's not just words, it's action.
It's not just talking the talk, it's walking the walk.
And when you're all talking, you don't get involved, especially when you're needed.
Well, what do people think?
Oh, great, it's just another hypocrite.
I'm one of those Christians, they're all hypocrites, right?
Go figure.
So while your good deeds and your works won't get you into heaven, they have the ability
to show God through you.
They may very well be, your words and your actions may very well be what shines God's
light in someone's darkest hour.
And that in itself may be the spark that they need to come to know Jesus.
Plain and simple.
While Jesus saves us, we can't just talk the talk, we have to walk the walk, we have to
show what we believe in.
We have to show what our conviction is.
And what we believe in, and what our conviction is, is Jesus.
And following Him in His way, well then there's something different in you, and people see
that.
And they respond to that.
Alright, so that's our time for this week.
Keep those questions coming in, keep those prayer requests coming in.
If I don't answer them in a service, maybe in the future we'll do another Q&A type thing
like this.
But yeah, keep it all coming in.
Of course you can find out how to reach me there on our website or on the social media.
Just look up, if you're on Facebook or the internet, just look up Be the Light Sanctuary
and you'll find all that information there.
So again, that's our time.
Remember you are loved, you are a blessing.
Now go and be the church.
Thank you all for joining us here today at Healing Scars with Pastor Burton.
Please like, subscribe, and share our podcast on any platform it is that you tune into us
on.
If you do have any questions, any prayer requests, or would like to know more about our ministry,
you can find us on our website at BeTheLightSanctuary.org or on Facebook at BeTheLightSanctuary.
You can also find how to contact us there, whether it's direct message or email.
We look forward to hearing from you all.
God bless.