WEBVTT 00:00:07.629 --> 00:00:10.009 Welcome to the Potter's House Salmon Arm Podcast. 00:00:10.390 --> 00:00:12.810 We are a Bible -believing church located in beautiful 00:00:12.810 --> 00:00:15.390 British Columbia, Canada. We are proudly part 00:00:15.390 --> 00:00:17.489 of the Christian Fellowship Ministries with 3 00:00:17.489 --> 00:00:20.030 ,000 churches around the world. We are a church 00:00:20.030 --> 00:00:22.850 focused on world evangelism, discipleship, and 00:00:22.850 --> 00:00:25.750 church planting. Here we will share recent sermons 00:00:25.750 --> 00:00:28.570 from PHSA Church and other sermons from throughout 00:00:28.570 --> 00:00:31.059 our fellowship. I'm Pastor David Bickford and 00:00:31.059 --> 00:00:33.420 I will be your host for this podcast. I thank 00:00:33.420 --> 00:00:35.579 you for listening today and we hope these messages 00:00:35.579 --> 00:00:38.020 are a blessing to you and bring you closer to 00:00:38.020 --> 00:00:48.340 God. Hello and welcome back to the Salmon Arm 00:00:48.340 --> 00:00:51.159 Potter's House podcast. I'm again Pastor David 00:00:51.159 --> 00:00:54.520 Bickford, the pastor here in town. We're a small 00:00:54.520 --> 00:00:57.840 little work for... Jesus Christ, we're just trying 00:00:57.840 --> 00:01:01.119 to build something here in this outstanding community 00:01:01.119 --> 00:01:03.320 of Salmon Arm. And today's message I have entitled, 00:01:03.640 --> 00:01:08.640 Winners Embrace Hardship, Trading Eternity for 00:01:08.640 --> 00:01:12.959 Comfort. So the idea here is that we oftentimes 00:01:12.959 --> 00:01:17.420 in life are going to be struggling with the hardships 00:01:17.420 --> 00:01:21.079 that we come across. Every single one of us is 00:01:21.079 --> 00:01:24.810 going to deal with these hardships. And we have 00:01:24.810 --> 00:01:27.069 to learn how to overcome those hardships if we're 00:01:27.069 --> 00:01:29.310 ever going to be successful in our lives. But 00:01:29.310 --> 00:01:32.930 also, as believers, we need to embrace the hardships 00:01:32.930 --> 00:01:36.569 we come across for the sake of the gospel. So 00:01:36.569 --> 00:01:40.250 life begins when you're being shaken. Father 00:01:40.250 --> 00:01:42.629 Alfred Delp was a prisoner of the Nazis during 00:01:42.629 --> 00:01:45.129 World War II. He was charged with treason for 00:01:45.129 --> 00:01:47.989 true Christian preaching. From his jail cell, 00:01:48.109 --> 00:01:51.629 he wrote about the meaning of Advent, the coming 00:01:51.629 --> 00:01:54.769 of Christ. And he writes, Advent is a time for 00:01:54.769 --> 00:01:57.409 rousing. Human beings are shaken to the very 00:01:57.409 --> 00:02:00.170 depths so that they may wake up to the truth 00:02:00.170 --> 00:02:03.310 themselves. The primary condition for a fruitful 00:02:03.310 --> 00:02:06.609 and rewarding Advent is renunciation or surrender, 00:02:06.870 --> 00:02:12.030 a shattering awakening that is necessary, preliminary. 00:02:12.830 --> 00:02:17.729 Life begins only when the whole framework is 00:02:17.729 --> 00:02:20.879 shaken. In our society today, we are dealing 00:02:20.879 --> 00:02:23.699 with a shaking that is occurring throughout the 00:02:23.699 --> 00:02:25.280 entire world. At the time of this recording, 00:02:25.500 --> 00:02:30.319 it's being shown that the leading candidate for 00:02:30.319 --> 00:02:37.000 president of France has been tried and charged, 00:02:37.180 --> 00:02:40.199 and now she's looking at facing a two -year prison 00:02:40.199 --> 00:02:45.819 cycle and not being allowed to run in the election. 00:02:46.889 --> 00:02:48.449 And it's interesting because we dealt with something 00:02:48.449 --> 00:02:50.650 like that in the United States fairly recently. 00:02:50.669 --> 00:02:55.409 And we see the machinations of society that are 00:02:55.409 --> 00:02:58.990 trying to take away our viewpoints or make us 00:02:58.990 --> 00:03:02.569 invalidated. And they're using every legal means 00:03:02.569 --> 00:03:06.009 possible. Because this is the problem when your 00:03:06.009 --> 00:03:09.770 countries get too big or too corrupt and they 00:03:09.770 --> 00:03:13.639 start adding laws upon laws upon laws. There's 00:03:13.639 --> 00:03:16.060 a term within the governments that they believe 00:03:16.060 --> 00:03:19.939 that they don't need to make you a criminal because 00:03:19.939 --> 00:03:21.740 they've already done that with all the laws they 00:03:21.740 --> 00:03:25.699 have. They just have to charge you so that they 00:03:25.699 --> 00:03:28.719 can put that stigma upon you. But I want us to 00:03:28.719 --> 00:03:31.939 remember, as we work through this scripture that 00:03:31.939 --> 00:03:34.340 we're going to use, which is Romans 8, 31 -39, 00:03:34.620 --> 00:03:37.259 and we look at this text today about embracing 00:03:37.259 --> 00:03:41.199 hardship, is that if we remember all of the... 00:03:41.550 --> 00:03:46.210 The disciples became criminals in their own time. 00:03:47.189 --> 00:03:52.770 Jesus Christ was tried and executed by the authorities 00:03:52.770 --> 00:03:55.490 at the time. So these are hardships that we all 00:03:55.490 --> 00:04:00.229 have to be willing to endure because society 00:04:00.229 --> 00:04:04.289 is consistently wanted to close the mouths of 00:04:04.289 --> 00:04:06.250 those who preach the gospel of Jesus Christ and 00:04:06.250 --> 00:04:08.110 close the mouths of the preach freedom to the 00:04:08.110 --> 00:04:11.900 people. And we're seeing that in our world today. 00:04:11.939 --> 00:04:14.439 In a lot of Western European countries, you are 00:04:14.439 --> 00:04:16.579 being told that you are no longer allowed your 00:04:16.579 --> 00:04:20.779 voice or even your opinion online because you 00:04:20.779 --> 00:04:25.779 will be not only chastened by society, but you 00:04:25.779 --> 00:04:29.180 will be potentially imprisoned for speaking out 00:04:29.180 --> 00:04:32.860 against what the powers that be deem approved. 00:04:34.389 --> 00:04:36.949 Let's look at our text in Romans 8, 31 through 00:04:36.949 --> 00:04:39.910 39, God's everlasting love. What then shall we 00:04:39.910 --> 00:04:42.089 say to these things? If God is for us, who can 00:04:42.089 --> 00:04:45.350 be against us? He who did not spare his own son, 00:04:45.490 --> 00:04:48.129 but gave him up for all of us, how will he not 00:04:48.129 --> 00:04:51.730 also with him graciously give us all things? 00:04:52.089 --> 00:04:54.470 Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? 00:04:54.689 --> 00:04:58.649 It is God who justifies, who is to condemn. Christ 00:04:58.649 --> 00:05:00.850 Jesus is the one who died and more than that, 00:05:00.930 --> 00:05:03.850 who was raised. who is the right hand of God, 00:05:03.970 --> 00:05:07.470 who indeed is interceding for us, who shall separate 00:05:07.470 --> 00:05:10.470 us from the love of Christ, shall tribulation 00:05:10.470 --> 00:05:15.269 or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness 00:05:15.269 --> 00:05:21.170 or danger or sword. As it is written, for your 00:05:21.170 --> 00:05:24.970 sake we are being killed all the day long. We 00:05:24.970 --> 00:05:28.449 are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered. No, 00:05:28.589 --> 00:05:30.810 in all these things we are more than conquerors, 00:05:30.810 --> 00:05:34.170 for though... For through him who loved us, for 00:05:34.170 --> 00:05:36.509 I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels 00:05:36.509 --> 00:05:39.829 nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to 00:05:39.829 --> 00:05:42.430 come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor 00:05:42.430 --> 00:05:45.269 anything else in all creation will be able to 00:05:45.269 --> 00:05:47.970 separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus, 00:05:48.189 --> 00:05:52.029 our Lord. Let's pray. Dear Lord God, I pray that 00:05:52.029 --> 00:05:54.790 this message will infect people's hearts with 00:05:54.790 --> 00:05:59.370 your wisdom, with your power, Lord God. You tell 00:05:59.370 --> 00:06:01.589 us in the word of God that your word will never 00:06:01.589 --> 00:06:05.250 go and return void, but it'll always impact people's 00:06:05.250 --> 00:06:08.149 lives. And we need that impact now more than 00:06:08.149 --> 00:06:12.709 ever. As a church, we've cried out for revival, 00:06:13.029 --> 00:06:15.250 revival, but we don't need revival. We need an 00:06:15.250 --> 00:06:18.790 awakening to happen in our societies again. We 00:06:18.790 --> 00:06:21.569 need people to be shaken so that they turn to 00:06:21.569 --> 00:06:25.290 Christ and instead of looking down at their own 00:06:25.290 --> 00:06:27.889 body, they are looking up to you for salvation. 00:06:28.459 --> 00:06:31.819 In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Lou Holtz said, 00:06:31.920 --> 00:06:34.199 winners embrace the hard work. They love the 00:06:34.199 --> 00:06:37.019 discipline of it. The trade -off they're making 00:06:37.019 --> 00:06:39.920 to win. Losers, on the other hand, see it as 00:06:39.920 --> 00:06:43.259 a punishment. And that's the difference. And 00:06:43.259 --> 00:06:46.740 we want to be winners today for Christ's sake. 00:06:47.500 --> 00:06:50.600 And so with that, we have to be able to embrace 00:06:50.600 --> 00:06:54.829 the hardship that comes. I found this article 00:06:54.829 --> 00:06:57.430 from a guy that I follow quite a bit. His name's 00:06:57.430 --> 00:07:01.129 Andy Frisella. I think I probably had to sanitize 00:07:01.129 --> 00:07:03.970 this a bit. He's got a bit of a harshness to 00:07:03.970 --> 00:07:09.430 his approach. But that's what makes him who he 00:07:09.430 --> 00:07:13.610 is in a lot of ways. But he wrote, Winners Embrace 00:07:13.610 --> 00:07:16.959 Hardship. And it says, success is hard. Winning 00:07:16.959 --> 00:07:19.459 is hard. Achieving your biggest goals in life 00:07:19.459 --> 00:07:22.259 is hard. It is not the norm. It is not for everyone. 00:07:22.480 --> 00:07:25.939 You won't accidentally win. It's going to be 00:07:25.939 --> 00:07:28.899 the hardest thing you've ever done in your life. 00:07:29.139 --> 00:07:33.180 And it never ends. Trust me on this. Train yourself 00:07:33.180 --> 00:07:36.420 to love the hard. And doing all the hard stuff 00:07:36.420 --> 00:07:38.879 is exactly what will help you develop the skills 00:07:38.879 --> 00:07:43.459 you need to win in the long term. Grit, resilience, 00:07:43.839 --> 00:07:47.819 persistence, fortitude, mental toughness, that's 00:07:47.819 --> 00:07:50.399 what wins. Let everyone else cheat themselves 00:07:50.399 --> 00:07:53.019 out of their own future. Let everyone else try 00:07:53.019 --> 00:07:55.220 to work their way around the discomfort and the 00:07:55.220 --> 00:07:58.720 struggle. Let everyone else quit. They are trading 00:07:58.720 --> 00:08:02.459 comfort later for comfort now. They just won't 00:08:02.459 --> 00:08:06.279 realize it until it's too late. Don't put yourself 00:08:06.279 --> 00:08:10.079 in the same situation. Train yourself to love 00:08:10.079 --> 00:08:15.379 the hard. All winners do. Our Savior Jesus Christ, 00:08:15.540 --> 00:08:17.959 He loves the hard. He didn't have to come to 00:08:17.959 --> 00:08:22.240 earth. He's God incarnate. He has all power. 00:08:22.879 --> 00:08:25.720 But He chose the hard thing, which was to come 00:08:25.720 --> 00:08:30.920 to earth in human form and to willingly go to 00:08:30.920 --> 00:08:33.360 the cross for our sins so that we would have 00:08:33.360 --> 00:08:37.960 a path back to the Father. And through Him we 00:08:37.960 --> 00:08:43.289 have all victory. But then we also now as servants 00:08:43.289 --> 00:08:46.909 of the all high, we have a choice. Which brings 00:08:46.909 --> 00:08:48.850 me to my first point, which is the mystery of 00:08:48.850 --> 00:08:53.149 hardship. And when I want to look at this is 00:08:53.149 --> 00:08:55.049 I want to think about, you know, you guys probably 00:08:55.049 --> 00:09:00.110 know this person, Tom Brady, a former NFL quarterback. 00:09:01.830 --> 00:09:04.690 But what you might not know is that he was a 00:09:04.690 --> 00:09:09.470 third string college quarterback. How is it that 00:09:09.470 --> 00:09:12.850 he ended up in the Hall of Fame for the NFL? 00:09:14.070 --> 00:09:17.309 He was a sixth -round draft pick, number 199. 00:09:18.970 --> 00:09:23.190 And a remark about him in this article I found 00:09:23.190 --> 00:09:26.450 that talks about how he was finally picked to 00:09:26.450 --> 00:09:30.370 be an NFL quarterback, and they said he had a 00:09:30.370 --> 00:09:35.690 poor build, he was skinny, and he lacks a great 00:09:35.690 --> 00:09:39.830 physical stature or strength. His mobility and 00:09:39.830 --> 00:09:43.309 ability to avoid the rush was in question. He 00:09:43.309 --> 00:09:45.789 doesn't really have a strong arm. He can't drive 00:09:45.789 --> 00:09:50.429 the ball downfield. He doesn't really throw a 00:09:50.429 --> 00:09:54.149 super tight spiral. He's a system type player 00:09:54.149 --> 00:09:58.750 who can't get exposed if forced to ad lib and 00:09:58.750 --> 00:10:04.330 he gets knocked down easily. These are not things 00:10:04.330 --> 00:10:07.879 you think of when you think of a... a football 00:10:07.879 --> 00:10:15.100 player who's destined for greatness. In fact, 00:10:15.120 --> 00:10:16.820 this is not what you'd think of anybody who's 00:10:16.820 --> 00:10:18.700 going to make it even into college football, 00:10:19.039 --> 00:10:21.980 let alone the great heights that he achieved. 00:10:23.759 --> 00:10:26.440 But this is the call. This is the challenge that 00:10:26.440 --> 00:10:28.980 we see from Abraham in Genesis 12, one through 00:10:28.980 --> 00:10:31.220 three. It says, now the Lord said to Abraham, 00:10:32.620 --> 00:10:34.799 Go from your country and your kindred and your 00:10:34.799 --> 00:10:36.980 father's house to the land that I will show you. 00:10:37.240 --> 00:10:39.620 And I will make of you a great nation and I will 00:10:39.620 --> 00:10:42.559 bless you and make your name great so that you 00:10:42.559 --> 00:10:45.860 will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless 00:10:45.860 --> 00:10:49.299 you and him who dishonors you, I will curse and 00:10:49.299 --> 00:10:51.740 in you all the families of the earth shall be 00:10:51.740 --> 00:10:57.120 blessed. So by faith, God challenges Abram to 00:10:57.120 --> 00:10:59.580 leave everything he knows and to venture out 00:10:59.580 --> 00:11:03.470 by faith. This is a monumental challenge. Why 00:11:03.470 --> 00:11:06.590 would he be willing to do this? He's called to 00:11:06.590 --> 00:11:10.090 live in hope. Abraham made a decision to live 00:11:10.090 --> 00:11:14.470 by faith and to place his hopes in the Lord. 00:11:14.970 --> 00:11:17.590 This choice is the cornerstone of all the beliefs 00:11:17.590 --> 00:11:20.990 of Christianity. Abraham is the father of our 00:11:20.990 --> 00:11:25.710 faith, and through this, he decides to act. You 00:11:25.710 --> 00:11:28.769 will be blessed and protected, he's told. This 00:11:28.769 --> 00:11:30.690 was not a choice that came from blind faith. 00:11:30.769 --> 00:11:32.450 It was a decision born out of a relationship 00:11:32.450 --> 00:11:35.669 that he cultivated with God. Abram had a relationship 00:11:35.669 --> 00:11:38.970 with God, and through that, there was a foundational 00:11:38.970 --> 00:11:42.750 trust. When God tells Abram that he will be blessed, 00:11:42.870 --> 00:11:44.950 he's also confirming that he will be protected. 00:11:46.629 --> 00:11:52.370 Abram's faith came from his closeness and his 00:11:52.370 --> 00:11:56.919 knowledge of our Heavenly Father. But this didn't 00:11:56.919 --> 00:11:58.740 mean that he'd be without hardship. In Genesis 00:11:58.740 --> 00:12:02.759 12, 10, we see Abram and Sarai entering into 00:12:02.759 --> 00:12:05.580 Egypt. Now there was a famine in the land, so 00:12:05.580 --> 00:12:08.419 Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there, for 00:12:08.419 --> 00:12:13.500 the famine was severe in the land. Just so we're 00:12:13.500 --> 00:12:16.200 not confusing it, this means we've never experienced 00:12:16.200 --> 00:12:19.100 famine in our land the way that they talk about 00:12:19.100 --> 00:12:21.639 in biblical times or the way that some of our 00:12:21.639 --> 00:12:24.679 African believers have to deal with in real life. 00:12:26.259 --> 00:12:31.019 Famines have happened in our lifetime, but not 00:12:31.019 --> 00:12:35.200 to the extent that you read about in the Bible. 00:12:36.100 --> 00:12:38.399 When there is literally no food and your only 00:12:38.399 --> 00:12:42.700 option is to chance a long, arduous journey into 00:12:42.700 --> 00:12:46.519 a foreign country in the hopes that they will 00:12:46.519 --> 00:12:49.500 give you asylum or amnesty to be able to survive 00:12:49.500 --> 00:12:55.419 the famine. This is something very different. 00:12:55.480 --> 00:12:57.240 This is a different kind of hardship than what 00:12:57.240 --> 00:13:00.240 we can really conceptualize in our place and 00:13:00.240 --> 00:13:04.379 time today. But what is hardship? Here's the 00:13:04.379 --> 00:13:06.799 mystery. The famine was grievous in the land. 00:13:07.080 --> 00:13:09.460 Abraham was in the land in which God had called 00:13:09.460 --> 00:13:13.240 him to and where God had promised to bless him. 00:13:15.519 --> 00:13:20.360 But now he's struck with famine. This is the 00:13:20.360 --> 00:13:23.139 mystery that shows how blind we are and how... 00:13:23.470 --> 00:13:26.470 shallow and selfish we are about the thoughts 00:13:26.470 --> 00:13:29.450 of God's holy religion. Hardship, difficulty, 00:13:29.629 --> 00:13:31.990 and even famine are accepted readily enough by 00:13:31.990 --> 00:13:36.029 man whose aims are to be reached by such endurance. 00:13:36.769 --> 00:13:40.250 The difficulty is that there was a purpose to 00:13:40.250 --> 00:13:43.330 the famine. Maybe not one that's explained to 00:13:43.330 --> 00:13:46.669 your understanding or to the extent that you'd 00:13:46.669 --> 00:13:50.190 like to see, but every endeavor worth doing requires 00:13:50.190 --> 00:13:53.669 sacrifice. And we see early on in the Bible that 00:13:53.669 --> 00:13:55.950 this is a reality. It's a part of life and part 00:13:55.950 --> 00:13:59.590 of God's plan. We read about Noah's Ark. We know 00:13:59.590 --> 00:14:01.669 that as a result of the curse, man is called 00:14:01.669 --> 00:14:05.490 to toil in the soil and that women are to endure 00:14:05.490 --> 00:14:09.710 additional hardship and childbearing and motherhood. 00:14:10.909 --> 00:14:13.610 What we do not like to think about is how this 00:14:13.610 --> 00:14:16.690 fits into what God's plan is for our life or 00:14:16.690 --> 00:14:20.639 God's will. Last Sunday, I preached about greed 00:14:20.639 --> 00:14:23.080 and I preached about looking at greed as a picture 00:14:23.080 --> 00:14:28.000 of your will. When you decide to do things according 00:14:28.000 --> 00:14:29.960 to your will outside of the will of God, you 00:14:29.960 --> 00:14:32.379 are making a greedy, self -indulgent choice. 00:14:33.779 --> 00:14:36.659 And you're ignoring what the will is or what 00:14:36.659 --> 00:14:39.779 God's will is for your life. Because growth is 00:14:39.779 --> 00:14:42.799 the purpose. The athlete in his training, the 00:14:42.799 --> 00:14:44.899 soldier in his calling, the man of science in 00:14:44.899 --> 00:14:46.879 his search for truth, the student in his work, 00:14:48.689 --> 00:14:52.070 sturdy self -denial as a condition of success. 00:14:52.590 --> 00:14:55.549 What science and art and love of travel can stimulate 00:14:55.549 --> 00:15:00.669 other men to endure cannot this be the same for 00:15:00.669 --> 00:15:05.629 our God. The vision he has called us to requires 00:15:05.629 --> 00:15:09.990 a challenge and endurance, and we have to learn 00:15:09.990 --> 00:15:14.490 to accept it and rejoice in it as well. Hardship 00:15:14.490 --> 00:15:16.429 and discipline are a blessing because of God. 00:15:17.899 --> 00:15:20.139 He said, I will bless you and you shall be a 00:15:20.139 --> 00:15:22.539 blessing. And because here, as everything else, 00:15:22.679 --> 00:15:25.299 hardship and stern discipline have their place 00:15:25.299 --> 00:15:28.519 and their work to do. What was God doing in the 00:15:28.519 --> 00:15:32.019 background to potentially preserve the greater 00:15:32.019 --> 00:15:36.639 nation of Egypt and all the people who he wanted 00:15:36.639 --> 00:15:40.820 to save and salvage in that land because of Abram 00:15:40.820 --> 00:15:45.340 coming to town? God said it and he knows how 00:15:45.340 --> 00:15:49.340 to keep his own promises. But he often uses other 00:15:49.340 --> 00:15:52.080 things or other ways or other people to fulfill 00:15:52.080 --> 00:15:55.220 those promises. And oftentimes we don't like 00:15:55.220 --> 00:15:58.340 his methodology, but that doesn't change his 00:15:58.340 --> 00:16:04.360 will. Think of a boat captain and about his experience. 00:16:05.580 --> 00:16:08.039 You ask him and he's, you know, like, what kind 00:16:08.039 --> 00:16:09.519 of experience do you have? He's, sir, do you 00:16:09.519 --> 00:16:13.950 know what to do in a storm? No, says the captain, 00:16:14.009 --> 00:16:16.529 I do not. I'm thankful to say that I've always 00:16:16.529 --> 00:16:20.090 been kept in the harbor in very smooth waters. 00:16:21.009 --> 00:16:23.269 What about a doctor? Would you go to a doctor? 00:16:23.509 --> 00:16:26.570 Do you know what to do in case of fever or serious 00:16:26.570 --> 00:16:29.610 accident? No, he replies, I do not. I have happily 00:16:29.610 --> 00:16:31.669 never been permitted to deal with anything worse 00:16:31.669 --> 00:16:35.330 than an occasional cold or headache. We would, 00:16:35.350 --> 00:16:37.210 of course, prefer another captain or another 00:16:37.210 --> 00:16:39.710 doctor. We would also wonder how they came about 00:16:39.710 --> 00:16:43.440 their titles. How do you come about the title 00:16:43.440 --> 00:16:46.120 of doctor if you don't know how to mend the broken? 00:16:46.419 --> 00:16:50.840 How do you come to the title of captain if you've 00:16:50.840 --> 00:16:55.399 never fared the seas? If you've never had to 00:16:55.399 --> 00:17:00.179 battle through the storms? Because faith needs 00:17:00.179 --> 00:17:04.440 to be undeterred during hardship. Abraham gained 00:17:04.440 --> 00:17:07.880 wisdom and discernment during his affliction. 00:17:09.549 --> 00:17:12.390 And like all the afflictions he suffered in Egypt 00:17:12.390 --> 00:17:15.109 or throughout his sojourning, from affliction 00:17:15.109 --> 00:17:17.289 to affliction, to trial to trial, God allows 00:17:17.289 --> 00:17:21.630 us to learn and to grow. God is there to protect 00:17:21.630 --> 00:17:25.609 our soul even in the darkest times. Oftentimes 00:17:25.609 --> 00:17:27.789 that's the protection we most need, but the protection 00:17:27.789 --> 00:17:30.369 we least want. Because when you're going through 00:17:30.369 --> 00:17:32.490 hardship, you want to whine, you want to complain. 00:17:32.970 --> 00:17:34.910 Because we see a picture of this in the Bible 00:17:34.910 --> 00:17:38.230 in the book of Job. What a tremendous character 00:17:38.230 --> 00:17:41.829 Job had. But even over time, after all his friends 00:17:41.829 --> 00:17:43.869 were picking on him, even after his wife was 00:17:43.869 --> 00:17:46.630 telling him to curse God and die, it took a lot, 00:17:46.730 --> 00:17:49.130 but eventually he was worn down where he complained. 00:17:52.130 --> 00:17:55.089 And lucky for us and for the story of Job, he 00:17:55.089 --> 00:17:57.829 was able to rebound from that when confronted 00:17:57.829 --> 00:18:02.710 by the power of our God. But that doesn't change 00:18:02.710 --> 00:18:05.690 the fact that during those hard, dark times, 00:18:06.400 --> 00:18:09.359 We can struggle, but we need to maintain our 00:18:09.359 --> 00:18:11.400 faith. As Christians, we have to turn to God 00:18:11.400 --> 00:18:16.000 for our security and our sustenance. The way 00:18:16.000 --> 00:18:18.059 that we can do this, the way we can enable this 00:18:18.059 --> 00:18:20.660 or help this in our lives is we can focus on 00:18:20.660 --> 00:18:23.819 our mental toughness. We can strive to have faith 00:18:23.819 --> 00:18:28.160 like Abraham. But it doesn't get built overnight. 00:18:28.240 --> 00:18:31.059 It's a process that can seem very tiring and 00:18:31.059 --> 00:18:35.400 tedious, but it is critically necessary. Unfortunately, 00:18:35.500 --> 00:18:37.680 some of us, myself included, are slower learners 00:18:37.680 --> 00:18:39.319 than others. So that means you might end up going 00:18:39.319 --> 00:18:43.400 through more trials, more hardship because of 00:18:43.400 --> 00:18:47.019 your own poor choices. Every great MVP like Tom 00:18:47.019 --> 00:18:50.200 Brady had a lot to learning to do. So we jump 00:18:50.200 --> 00:18:53.440 back into his story. We read this excerpt from 00:18:53.440 --> 00:18:55.799 the article. It says, we all have experiences 00:18:55.799 --> 00:18:59.059 that we dream about, that we look forward to. 00:18:59.160 --> 00:19:00.900 And when we get them, they don't always go our 00:19:00.900 --> 00:19:03.660 way. I learned it as a freshman on the football 00:19:03.660 --> 00:19:06.980 field just outside of this gym, and again I learned 00:19:06.980 --> 00:19:09.559 it as a second -year player who finally got a 00:19:09.559 --> 00:19:12.680 chance to play in college. Unfortunately, I learned 00:19:12.680 --> 00:19:15.519 it three weeks ago as I lost to the Giants in 00:19:15.519 --> 00:19:18.200 the Super Bowl XLVI, but I've always been blessed 00:19:18.200 --> 00:19:20.980 with the support of my family and friends, and 00:19:20.980 --> 00:19:23.079 also with coaches who committed their best to 00:19:23.079 --> 00:19:26.079 me with each opportunity, came an understanding 00:19:26.079 --> 00:19:28.940 of the things that it takes to be successful, 00:19:29.119 --> 00:19:32.059 and often this happens. through trial and error, 00:19:32.200 --> 00:19:35.160 and sometimes through outright failure because 00:19:35.160 --> 00:19:38.900 Lord knows I made plenty of mistakes. So whether 00:19:38.900 --> 00:19:40.960 I was learning through the watching as I did 00:19:40.960 --> 00:19:44.099 my freshman year at Sarah or playing and making 00:19:44.099 --> 00:19:46.359 mistakes over the course of my career, I continued 00:19:46.359 --> 00:19:49.680 to learn to embrace every hardship and to seize 00:19:49.680 --> 00:19:53.299 every opportunity on and off the field. The owner 00:19:53.299 --> 00:19:55.480 of my current team, Robert Kraft, has told me 00:19:55.480 --> 00:19:57.599 time and time again, every bump is a bounce. 00:19:58.269 --> 00:20:00.430 So what I've learned very quickly as a professional 00:20:00.430 --> 00:20:03.970 was that your job is always on the line. I am 00:20:03.970 --> 00:20:08.109 in what you've done for me lately type of business, 00:20:08.190 --> 00:20:10.990 because in all business, there are disclosures. 00:20:11.130 --> 00:20:13.970 And investments, it says, past performance doesn't 00:20:13.970 --> 00:20:16.349 guarantee future result. And that pretty much 00:20:16.349 --> 00:20:19.869 sums up the NFL. What I really like about this 00:20:19.869 --> 00:20:22.730 excerpt from Tom Brady himself is it's the recognition 00:20:22.730 --> 00:20:28.430 that the work never ends. The challenges will 00:20:28.430 --> 00:20:31.009 never stop coming. There will always be new challenges, 00:20:31.049 --> 00:20:35.490 and you have to be mentally tough enough to continue 00:20:35.490 --> 00:20:39.410 to run the race. In Romans 5, 1 through 5, it 00:20:39.410 --> 00:20:41.750 says, Therefore, since we have been justified 00:20:41.750 --> 00:20:45.089 by faith, we have peace with God through our 00:20:45.089 --> 00:20:47.670 Lord Jesus Christ. Through him, we also obtained 00:20:47.670 --> 00:20:51.089 access by faith into this grace in which we stand, 00:20:51.230 --> 00:20:55.329 and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not 00:20:55.329 --> 00:20:57.869 only that, but we rejoice in our suffering, knowing 00:20:57.869 --> 00:21:00.130 that suffering produces endurance and endurance 00:21:00.130 --> 00:21:02.569 produces character and character produces hope. 00:21:03.549 --> 00:21:06.890 And hope does not put us to shame because God 00:21:06.890 --> 00:21:10.990 loves or God's love has been poured out into 00:21:10.990 --> 00:21:13.589 our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been 00:21:13.589 --> 00:21:17.130 given to us. So part of mental toughness is your 00:21:17.130 --> 00:21:20.349 ability to be resilient. The ability of a person 00:21:20.349 --> 00:21:22.410 to adjust to recover readily from illness and 00:21:22.410 --> 00:21:26.269 adversity or major life changes is a critical 00:21:26.269 --> 00:21:30.369 component of your mental toughness. In 2 Samuel 00:21:30.369 --> 00:21:33.930 24, 10 -14, we read about the Lord's judgment 00:21:33.930 --> 00:21:36.630 of David's sin. But David's heart struck him 00:21:36.630 --> 00:21:38.589 after he had numbered the people, and David said 00:21:38.589 --> 00:21:40.869 to the Lord, I have sinned greatly in what I 00:21:40.869 --> 00:21:43.130 have done, but now, O Lord, please take away 00:21:43.130 --> 00:21:46.069 the iniquity of your servant, for I have done 00:21:46.069 --> 00:21:49.960 very foolishly. And when David arose in the morning 00:21:49.960 --> 00:21:51.779 and the word of the Lord came to the prophet 00:21:51.779 --> 00:21:54.619 Gad, David's seer saying, go and say to David, 00:21:54.660 --> 00:21:56.859 thus says the Lord, three things I offer you. 00:21:57.099 --> 00:22:00.440 Choose one of them that I may do it. So Gad came 00:22:00.440 --> 00:22:02.980 to David and told him and said to him, shall 00:22:02.980 --> 00:22:05.680 three years of famine come to you in your land? 00:22:06.000 --> 00:22:08.640 Or will you flee three months before your foes 00:22:08.640 --> 00:22:12.039 while they pursue you? Or shall there be three 00:22:12.039 --> 00:22:14.319 days of pestilence in your land? Now consider 00:22:14.319 --> 00:22:18.559 and decide. What answer I shall return to him 00:22:18.559 --> 00:22:21.640 who sent me. Then David said to Gad, I am in 00:22:21.640 --> 00:22:23.579 great distress. Let us fall into the hand of 00:22:23.579 --> 00:22:26.559 the Lord for his mercy is great. But let me not 00:22:26.559 --> 00:22:30.759 fall into the hand of man. So King David had 00:22:30.759 --> 00:22:33.519 succumbed to sin of the census in this picture 00:22:33.519 --> 00:22:36.299 of scripture or portion of scripture. He had 00:22:36.299 --> 00:22:39.480 failed and now he sat in judgment. He had to 00:22:39.480 --> 00:22:45.140 acknowledge that it was appropriate for him to 00:22:45.140 --> 00:22:48.730 be called out. He had to cry out and ask for 00:22:48.730 --> 00:22:54.029 God in repentance. And because he did so, and 00:22:54.029 --> 00:22:57.410 because of the righteousness of God, he was given 00:22:57.410 --> 00:23:00.470 a choice. So there had to be discipline done 00:23:00.470 --> 00:23:02.650 for what he had done was outside of the will 00:23:02.650 --> 00:23:05.210 of God. And as a leader, there was going to be 00:23:05.210 --> 00:23:08.549 repercussions for that onto the people. Just 00:23:08.549 --> 00:23:11.490 like any government that we elect or any government 00:23:11.490 --> 00:23:14.519 you sit under today. there is a punishment that 00:23:14.519 --> 00:23:17.500 does tend to fall on the people for the choices 00:23:17.500 --> 00:23:23.440 that our leaders make. And this is just the way 00:23:23.440 --> 00:23:26.460 things end up going in our society and our lives. 00:23:27.680 --> 00:23:29.900 But that doesn't mean that God isn't acting without 00:23:29.900 --> 00:23:33.079 grace in this situation. For the wages of sin 00:23:33.079 --> 00:23:36.240 are death, but God is a God of mercy. And so 00:23:36.240 --> 00:23:40.920 he gave David the choice. So then we get to persistence, 00:23:41.059 --> 00:23:44.259 the act of persisting. is to continue steadfastly 00:23:44.259 --> 00:23:46.720 or firmly in some state, purpose, course of action, 00:23:46.900 --> 00:23:51.339 especially in spite of opposition. It's very 00:23:51.339 --> 00:23:54.859 similar to the word perseverance. In James 1 00:23:54.859 --> 00:23:57.680 .25, but the one who looks into the perfect law, 00:23:57.720 --> 00:24:00.700 the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no 00:24:00.700 --> 00:24:03.720 hearer who forgets, but a doer who acts, he will 00:24:03.720 --> 00:24:06.619 be blessed in his doing. So we see this with 00:24:06.619 --> 00:24:08.339 the continuation of the story with King David. 00:24:08.480 --> 00:24:12.579 He had to persevere through the discipline. Eventually 00:24:12.579 --> 00:24:16.480 that discipline was shortened on the people of 00:24:16.480 --> 00:24:20.099 Israel because of the consistent prayers of King 00:24:20.099 --> 00:24:24.980 David. But we have to persist in our faith if 00:24:24.980 --> 00:24:27.680 we're going to be able to cultivate that mental 00:24:27.680 --> 00:24:30.900 toughness that we need to serve rightly before 00:24:30.900 --> 00:24:35.039 God. Israel waited for generations for the fulfillment 00:24:35.039 --> 00:24:38.039 of the promises that many believers never lived 00:24:38.039 --> 00:24:40.549 to see. The book of Hebrews in the New Testament 00:24:40.549 --> 00:24:43.210 touches on this quite a bit, that they had to 00:24:43.210 --> 00:24:45.849 believe before Christ came. The promise to Abraham 00:24:45.849 --> 00:24:48.730 sustained hope for centuries before Canaan was 00:24:48.730 --> 00:24:52.150 possessed. The lessons of the wilderness journey, 00:24:52.329 --> 00:24:55.130 when the waning of the initial zeal prevented 00:24:55.130 --> 00:24:58.349 the people from entering the promised land. These 00:24:58.349 --> 00:25:00.329 are things that can't be forgotten. They had 00:25:00.329 --> 00:25:02.410 to persist even when it was no longer comfortable 00:25:02.410 --> 00:25:06.789 to persist. Prophets in the Old Testament constantly 00:25:06.789 --> 00:25:10.170 looked beyond failure and tragedy, off to the 00:25:10.170 --> 00:25:13.430 distant horizon, and they nourished the people 00:25:13.430 --> 00:25:17.369 of Israel and Judea with faith of the coming 00:25:17.369 --> 00:25:21.769 Messiah. In the New Testament, everything is 00:25:21.769 --> 00:25:25.569 urging us to similar perseverance. Among several 00:25:25.569 --> 00:25:29.589 Greek expressions, the usual word is proskaterio, 00:25:29.670 --> 00:25:33.500 has a root meaning to attend continually. It 00:25:33.500 --> 00:25:36.539 hears steadfastly and is variously translated 00:25:36.539 --> 00:25:41.380 devoted, continued, constant, or to be steadfast. 00:25:42.319 --> 00:25:45.660 These ideas are throughout the Old Testament 00:25:45.660 --> 00:25:48.299 and the New Testament about the importance of 00:25:48.299 --> 00:25:50.480 putting your head down and continuing forward 00:25:50.480 --> 00:25:57.660 in the path that God has chosen for you. This 00:25:57.660 --> 00:26:00.500 persistent patience is called for in prayer in 00:26:00.500 --> 00:26:05.990 Luke. 18 and Colossians 4. Later on, it's talked 00:26:05.990 --> 00:26:09.450 about in well -doing in Romans 2, 7 and Galatians 00:26:09.450 --> 00:26:13.990 6, 9. It goes throughout the entire thread of 00:26:13.990 --> 00:26:18.390 the New Testament. In being zealous to confirm 00:26:18.390 --> 00:26:21.650 our call and election in 2 Peter 1, 10 is an 00:26:21.650 --> 00:26:23.289 interesting piece of scripture that highlights. 00:26:24.329 --> 00:26:27.210 That if you're to be called to the will of God 00:26:27.210 --> 00:26:28.990 for your life, you need to be zealously moving 00:26:28.990 --> 00:26:34.470 forward, even during the difficult times. You 00:26:34.470 --> 00:26:37.269 have to preserve, even in the face of failure. 00:26:38.650 --> 00:26:41.849 And you have to keep in mind that there are possibilities 00:26:41.849 --> 00:26:48.410 of discomfort. There are possibilities of even 00:26:48.410 --> 00:26:51.690 being killed for your beliefs, but you have to 00:26:51.690 --> 00:26:54.390 be able to persevere. persevere and persist in 00:26:54.390 --> 00:26:58.809 that. Because as Jesus said, he who endures to 00:26:58.809 --> 00:27:02.150 the end will be saved in Matthew 10, 22. Such 00:27:02.150 --> 00:27:04.309 extraordinary emphasis cannot be accidental. 00:27:04.990 --> 00:27:07.710 The pressures of the pagan society we live in, 00:27:07.750 --> 00:27:10.829 the dangers of persecution, the emotional reaction 00:27:10.829 --> 00:27:13.450 after the wonderful initial experience, the apparent 00:27:13.450 --> 00:27:16.789 implication of instant salvation, made it an 00:27:16.789 --> 00:27:19.369 imperative for Christians to understand that 00:27:19.369 --> 00:27:21.509 by their endurance they would inherit salvation. 00:27:23.150 --> 00:27:27.930 This idea that you're going to give your life 00:27:27.930 --> 00:27:29.910 to Jesus, which is great, it's going to save 00:27:29.910 --> 00:27:31.670 your soul, but that doesn't mean that you're 00:27:31.670 --> 00:27:36.690 going to be without struggles and trials, tribulation, 00:27:36.789 --> 00:27:39.349 persecution, all of these things that Jesus himself 00:27:39.349 --> 00:27:41.910 had to go through, you will likely have to go 00:27:41.910 --> 00:27:45.609 through as well. And that's why you need to foster 00:27:45.609 --> 00:27:49.730 mental toughness and fortitude. mental and emotional 00:27:49.730 --> 00:27:52.470 strength, and facing difficulty, adversity, danger, 00:27:52.569 --> 00:27:55.829 or temptation, and you need to do it courageously. 00:27:56.809 --> 00:27:59.190 The scripture never implies that perseverance 00:27:59.190 --> 00:28:02.849 depends entirely upon our effort, though. This 00:28:02.849 --> 00:28:05.410 is what sets us apart from what I read from Andy 00:28:05.410 --> 00:28:08.210 Frisella, is the fact that we do not reside only 00:28:08.210 --> 00:28:10.430 on our own strength, for if we did, we would 00:28:10.430 --> 00:28:14.970 fail. In the Old Testament, the redeeming purpose 00:28:14.970 --> 00:28:18.859 of God is unswerving. God's covenant stands, 00:28:19.119 --> 00:28:21.940 though it needs to be renewed, as it says in 00:28:21.940 --> 00:28:28.099 Jeremiah 31. But we need to reside. We need to 00:28:28.099 --> 00:28:30.440 abide and we need to cling to our Savior, Jesus 00:28:30.440 --> 00:28:33.900 Christ. The scripture makes it very clear that 00:28:33.900 --> 00:28:36.859 we will see trials in our life. These are not 00:28:36.859 --> 00:28:38.579 meant to discourage us, but rather to enable 00:28:38.579 --> 00:28:41.400 us for greater purpose. When Joseph was sold 00:28:41.400 --> 00:28:43.759 into slavery by his brothers, that was a pretty 00:28:43.759 --> 00:28:45.960 big trial in his life, a pretty hard reality. 00:28:46.680 --> 00:28:49.559 for him to face. He was imprisoned and he suffered 00:28:49.559 --> 00:28:51.839 permanent damage due to the chains that he was 00:28:51.839 --> 00:28:55.880 shackled in. The trial was God's way of hardening 00:28:55.880 --> 00:29:00.160 Joseph for greater use. As we know, Joseph would 00:29:00.160 --> 00:29:04.180 go on to be the savior for his family as he had 00:29:04.180 --> 00:29:07.279 rose to the second highest ruler of Egypt under 00:29:07.279 --> 00:29:09.980 the Pharaoh. But he would not have been able 00:29:09.980 --> 00:29:12.180 to achieve such great heights had he not been 00:29:12.180 --> 00:29:14.579 for the hardship that he went through and the 00:29:14.579 --> 00:29:16.819 faith that he maintained prior to that. Moses 00:29:16.819 --> 00:29:19.640 spent decades in the desert so that he would 00:29:19.640 --> 00:29:23.160 become the leader he needed to be. And then we 00:29:23.160 --> 00:29:25.339 get upset when we don't get a promotion within 00:29:25.339 --> 00:29:27.960 a year or two years of our current vocation. 00:29:28.000 --> 00:29:29.500 And if we don't get what we want, we're out of 00:29:29.500 --> 00:29:33.140 here. Or if you're in a marriage and you're not 00:29:33.140 --> 00:29:36.849 fighting. To keep that and protect it, you'll 00:29:36.849 --> 00:29:38.869 say, oh, well, we just, we fell out of love or 00:29:38.869 --> 00:29:41.529 whatever kind of craziness you want to attest 00:29:41.529 --> 00:29:45.690 to. There are challenges in life that need to 00:29:45.690 --> 00:29:48.509 be fought through because in regards to the marriage 00:29:48.509 --> 00:29:51.670 one, not to overemphasize it, but I saw a really 00:29:51.670 --> 00:29:56.450 simple illustration. A Christian marriage is 00:29:56.450 --> 00:29:59.170 like a triangle with Christ at the top and the 00:29:59.170 --> 00:30:02.839 husband and wife on either side. The closer you 00:30:02.839 --> 00:30:05.099 get to Christ, the closer you get together in 00:30:05.099 --> 00:30:08.339 your marriage. The farther away from Christ, 00:30:08.420 --> 00:30:11.720 the farther away you are in your marriage. It's 00:30:11.720 --> 00:30:13.640 just an interesting picture. It's not in my notes, 00:30:13.759 --> 00:30:16.579 but it's something to think about if you're struggling 00:30:16.579 --> 00:30:19.759 in that area. Finally, we see our Lord and Savior, 00:30:19.880 --> 00:30:22.019 Jesus Christ, suffer the greatest of trials in 00:30:22.019 --> 00:30:25.839 order to redeem us back to the Father. And this 00:30:25.839 --> 00:30:27.420 is where I come to my third and my final point. 00:30:27.519 --> 00:30:32.000 God is for us. In Tom Brady's story, he continues 00:30:32.000 --> 00:30:34.299 on and says, there are always going to be younger 00:30:34.299 --> 00:30:37.400 and hungrier athletes competing to take your 00:30:37.400 --> 00:30:40.359 spot. I got my opportunity when it came. Our 00:30:40.359 --> 00:30:42.579 starter, Drew Bledsoe, got injured on my second 00:30:42.579 --> 00:30:45.279 year. All the practice meetings and time spent 00:30:45.279 --> 00:30:48.119 on the field and in this gym and in the classroom 00:30:48.119 --> 00:30:50.420 prepared me to take advantage of the opportunity. 00:30:51.299 --> 00:30:55.220 So Romans 5, 6, it says, for while we were still 00:30:55.220 --> 00:30:57.980 weak at the right time, Christ died for the ungodly. 00:30:58.670 --> 00:31:02.529 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person, 00:31:02.769 --> 00:31:05.210 though perhaps for a good person one would dare 00:31:05.210 --> 00:31:08.390 even to die. But God shows his love for us in 00:31:08.390 --> 00:31:13.150 that while we were still sinners, Christ died 00:31:13.150 --> 00:31:15.829 for us. Since therefore we have not been justified 00:31:15.829 --> 00:31:19.950 by his blood, much more shall we be saved by 00:31:19.950 --> 00:31:24.289 him from the wrath of God. I want to touch on 00:31:24.289 --> 00:31:26.329 this real quick. Again, this is not in the notes 00:31:26.329 --> 00:31:29.140 either. It's a podcast. If you do what I do, 00:31:29.200 --> 00:31:32.500 you can listen to this at 1 .75 speed to kind 00:31:32.500 --> 00:31:36.160 of speed up the process. My family doesn't know 00:31:36.160 --> 00:31:38.700 how I can do that. It sounds really crazy, but 00:31:38.700 --> 00:31:41.559 I do. I listen to all of the podcasts and everything 00:31:41.559 --> 00:31:44.759 I listen to at 1 .75 speed. But what I was going 00:31:44.759 --> 00:31:47.140 to say with this is that, and this is going to 00:31:47.140 --> 00:31:49.960 be quite inflammatory to some of you, but the 00:31:49.960 --> 00:31:52.440 picture of Christ dying for those who are sinners 00:31:52.440 --> 00:31:55.920 is the picture of Christ dying for someone like 00:31:55.920 --> 00:31:58.759 Putin. The picture of Christ dying for someone 00:31:58.759 --> 00:32:01.500 like Trump. The picture of Christ dying for someone 00:32:01.500 --> 00:32:04.539 like Trudeau. The picture of Christ dying for 00:32:04.539 --> 00:32:08.759 whoever it is you hate. Whoever it is you hate 00:32:08.759 --> 00:32:11.400 is who Jesus Christ died for so that they might 00:32:11.400 --> 00:32:14.859 be saved. I'm not saying they are, not saying 00:32:14.859 --> 00:32:18.259 they will be, but so they might be saved if they 00:32:18.259 --> 00:32:21.480 turn to him. So let that sink in because I know 00:32:21.480 --> 00:32:24.789 that'll affect a lot of people. But Jesus Christ 00:32:24.789 --> 00:32:27.950 died for the exact person that you say you hate. 00:32:29.529 --> 00:32:32.950 And he died for you as well. So that you might 00:32:32.950 --> 00:32:35.789 be saved. Because our God is a God incarnate. 00:32:35.890 --> 00:32:39.490 Luke 1, 31 -33 says, And behold, you will conceive 00:32:39.490 --> 00:32:41.990 in your womb and bear a son. You shall call his 00:32:41.990 --> 00:32:44.950 name Jesus. He will be great and will be called 00:32:44.950 --> 00:32:47.569 the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will 00:32:47.569 --> 00:32:50.759 give him. the throne of his father David, and 00:32:50.759 --> 00:32:52.819 he will reign over the house of Jacob forever. 00:32:53.019 --> 00:32:56.000 Of his kingdom, there will be no end. He was 00:32:56.000 --> 00:33:00.059 born in lowly stature, our Lord. In Luke 2, we 00:33:00.059 --> 00:33:03.079 read the story of him being born in the manger. 00:33:04.799 --> 00:33:08.640 And eventually, though, our Savior, Jesus Christ, 00:33:08.759 --> 00:33:13.480 died on the cross in Luke 23, verse 33 -34. And 00:33:13.480 --> 00:33:15.200 when they came to the place that is called the 00:33:15.200 --> 00:33:19.049 skull, There they crucified him and the criminals 00:33:19.049 --> 00:33:23.089 on his right and on his left. And Jesus said, 00:33:23.190 --> 00:33:25.650 Father, forgive them, for they know not what 00:33:25.650 --> 00:33:28.529 they do. And they cast lots and divided his garment. 00:33:29.369 --> 00:33:34.210 So again, with a point or a purpose to be inflammatory, 00:33:34.630 --> 00:33:39.329 Jesus Christ didn't just die for you, but he 00:33:39.329 --> 00:33:42.089 died for all the people you hate. And that's 00:33:42.089 --> 00:33:44.490 something you have to remedy in your own soul. 00:33:45.200 --> 00:33:47.720 When you're saying, I hate this leader, I hate 00:33:47.720 --> 00:33:50.880 that leader, that person's beyond salvation. 00:33:51.059 --> 00:33:53.440 Just remember, that's exactly who Jesus came 00:33:53.440 --> 00:33:58.259 to die for. When he was eating meals with the 00:33:58.259 --> 00:34:00.660 unclean Jewish people, the tax collectors, the 00:34:00.660 --> 00:34:04.900 harlots, all this kind of stuff. That is literally 00:34:04.900 --> 00:34:09.860 who he came to save. Just as he came to save 00:34:09.860 --> 00:34:16.210 you. In Luke 24, 6 -7. He is not here, but he 00:34:16.210 --> 00:34:19.389 is risen. Remember how he told you while he was 00:34:19.389 --> 00:34:22.309 still in Galilee that the Son of Man must deliver 00:34:22.309 --> 00:34:25.469 into the hands of the sinful men and be crucified 00:34:25.469 --> 00:34:29.170 and on the third day rise. So C .S. Lewis wrote, 00:34:29.449 --> 00:34:40.590 So today, let us embrace hardship just as Jesus 00:34:40.590 --> 00:34:46.960 did. And certainly, we can embrace hardship for 00:34:46.960 --> 00:34:49.900 him. If I could have every head bowed, every 00:34:49.900 --> 00:34:51.800 eye closed, wherever you're listening to this 00:34:51.800 --> 00:34:56.340 message, as long as it's safe to do so, I just 00:34:56.340 --> 00:35:01.579 want you to take a second to reflect on the message. 00:35:02.679 --> 00:35:07.119 Winners embrace hardship. We are victors in Christ 00:35:07.119 --> 00:35:10.159 Jesus, but maybe you're not right with Jesus 00:35:10.159 --> 00:35:11.820 right now. Maybe you've never given your life 00:35:11.820 --> 00:35:15.130 to him. Maybe it sounds crazy. Maybe you're full 00:35:15.130 --> 00:35:17.789 of that hate that I touched on where you think, 00:35:17.809 --> 00:35:19.269 well, I'm a good person, but all these other 00:35:19.269 --> 00:35:23.210 people are so horrible they should die. There's 00:35:23.210 --> 00:35:26.269 a lot of that's in our society today. I disagree 00:35:26.269 --> 00:35:30.510 with this person. They should die. But Jesus 00:35:30.510 --> 00:35:33.190 Christ came for that person you disagree with. 00:35:34.010 --> 00:35:38.130 He came to set you free just as much as he came 00:35:38.130 --> 00:35:41.239 to set them free. So if you're not right today 00:35:41.239 --> 00:35:42.599 and you want to get your heart right, you can 00:35:42.599 --> 00:35:45.539 signify that uplifted hand. Wherever you are, 00:35:45.619 --> 00:35:51.599 God can see that. If you did raise your hand, 00:35:51.679 --> 00:35:55.079 I want you to, and you meant it, God can see 00:35:55.079 --> 00:35:58.860 your heart, even though I can't. You can repeat 00:35:58.860 --> 00:36:01.900 after me, dear Lord God, I know that I'm a sinner, 00:36:02.039 --> 00:36:04.739 but I know that you sent your son, Jesus Christ, 00:36:04.860 --> 00:36:07.780 and that he died for my sins. I repent of my 00:36:07.780 --> 00:36:10.489 sins. I turn away from them and I accept you 00:36:10.489 --> 00:36:13.630 as my Lord and my Savior. In Jesus' name, amen. 00:36:14.210 --> 00:36:16.909 That simple prayer is what we colloquially call 00:36:16.909 --> 00:36:21.449 a sinner's prayer. And it's just the simple reflection 00:36:21.449 --> 00:36:27.170 that you know you need a Savior. So I want to 00:36:27.170 --> 00:36:28.610 thank you if you prayed that prayer. Reach out 00:36:28.610 --> 00:36:31.389 to me if you did. I'd like to pray for you. I'd 00:36:31.389 --> 00:36:33.530 like to thank you for listening. I'd like you 00:36:33.530 --> 00:36:37.769 guys to save, share, subscribe to this podcast. 00:36:38.860 --> 00:36:41.019 So we can get this message out to more people 00:36:41.019 --> 00:36:42.619 because the reality is we are living in a very 00:36:42.619 --> 00:36:45.760 hateful world today. That simple disagreements 00:36:45.760 --> 00:36:50.380 are causing people to wish death on even their 00:36:50.380 --> 00:36:55.019 closest relatives. We need Jesus, but we also 00:36:55.019 --> 00:36:59.699 need to ourselves be mentally tough. And we need 00:36:59.699 --> 00:37:02.659 to be winners that embrace hardship for our Savior's 00:37:02.659 --> 00:37:05.000 sake. So with that, thank you for listening again. 00:37:05.079 --> 00:37:06.739 I'll let you guys go. I'm just going to close 00:37:06.739 --> 00:37:09.460 in quick prayer. Dear Lord God, I thank you for 00:37:09.460 --> 00:37:12.679 your word, your message, and everything that 00:37:12.679 --> 00:37:14.480 you do for us. And I pray that you'd help us 00:37:14.480 --> 00:37:18.019 to persevere through the hardship, but to embrace 00:37:18.019 --> 00:37:22.420 that hardship as a joy because of what you did 00:37:22.420 --> 00:37:25.539 for us on Calvary. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. 00:37:26.059 --> 00:37:32.039 Thank you. you for listening to the phsa potter's 00:37:32.039 --> 00:37:34.460 house salmon arm podcast be sure to follow us 00:37:34.460 --> 00:37:37.019 on instagram at potter's house underscore salmon 00:37:37.019 --> 00:37:39.420 arm to keep up to date on what we are doing join 00:37:39.420 --> 00:37:41.639 the conversation and discover how jesus christ 00:37:41.639 --> 00:37:43.659 can revolutionize your life