WEBVTT 00:00:09.359 --> 00:00:14.240 Welcome to ECB's weekly sermon podcast. ECB is 00:00:14.240 --> 00:00:16.519 an international church in Bangkok, Thailand, 00:00:16.679 --> 00:00:19.739 with dozens of nationalities worshiping together. 00:00:20.059 --> 00:00:22.940 We invite you to connect with us from wherever 00:00:22.940 --> 00:00:27.140 you are through our website, ecb .asia, or our 00:00:27.140 --> 00:00:30.960 mobile app. And now we pray that you are blessed 00:00:30.960 --> 00:00:35.049 by this week's sermon. Today we will continue 00:00:35.049 --> 00:00:38.810 this study on Advent series, and we have talked 00:00:38.810 --> 00:00:43.630 about hope, peace, joy, and today we're going 00:00:43.630 --> 00:00:47.670 to be talking about love. So will you please 00:00:47.670 --> 00:00:53.409 join me as we pray? Father, as we come to this 00:00:53.409 --> 00:00:57.450 point, we thank you for your word, but thank 00:00:57.450 --> 00:01:02.159 you for giving us truth. That we can understand 00:01:02.159 --> 00:01:05.620 these things that you have told us. We can get 00:01:05.620 --> 00:01:08.159 to know you better, understand your heart better 00:01:08.159 --> 00:01:13.739 so that we can also love you. And as we started 00:01:13.739 --> 00:01:16.560 your word today, Lord, would you encounter us 00:01:16.560 --> 00:01:20.659 in this space? If there's anyone that is not 00:01:20.659 --> 00:01:25.439 experiencing your love, would you break through 00:01:25.439 --> 00:01:29.579 any barrier that is just keeping that from happening? 00:01:32.910 --> 00:01:37.849 Bring transformation. And Lord, I ask too that 00:01:37.849 --> 00:01:40.349 you will use me in the power of your spirit. 00:01:40.549 --> 00:01:45.090 Use me in your grace, in your strength. These 00:01:45.090 --> 00:01:55.049 things I ask in Jesus' name. Amen. Just give 00:01:55.049 --> 00:01:59.569 me one second as we get to the screen already. 00:02:01.040 --> 00:02:08.419 With our media team. You can give me a heads 00:02:08.419 --> 00:02:13.939 up. Okay, good. Thank you. Today we are talking 00:02:13.939 --> 00:02:19.280 about love. And one of the amazing things about 00:02:19.280 --> 00:02:23.960 the Bible and how it describes God is that love 00:02:23.960 --> 00:02:28.520 is at the center of our relationship with God. 00:02:29.389 --> 00:02:32.409 So if you want to have a relationship with God, 00:02:32.469 --> 00:02:34.490 if you want to have a deeper relationship with 00:02:34.490 --> 00:02:39.490 God, you have to start understanding love. Because 00:02:39.490 --> 00:02:42.949 that is the way in which God wants us to experience 00:02:42.949 --> 00:02:46.969 Him. God does not just want you to believe in 00:02:46.969 --> 00:02:51.069 Him. He doesn't just want you to obey Him. He 00:02:51.069 --> 00:02:55.509 actually wants you to love Him. How does this 00:02:55.509 --> 00:03:01.719 work? Let me tell you a story. Many years ago, 00:03:01.780 --> 00:03:06.020 I got to visit a friend that was suffering from 00:03:06.020 --> 00:03:09.939 a very unique health condition that requires 00:03:09.939 --> 00:03:13.719 surgery. And she had been going through treatment 00:03:13.719 --> 00:03:16.439 for many years about these things. The family 00:03:16.439 --> 00:03:19.419 had suffered through that for many years. But 00:03:19.419 --> 00:03:22.300 as she was at the hospital awaiting for surgery, 00:03:22.439 --> 00:03:25.199 I went to talk to her, encourage her, and we 00:03:25.199 --> 00:03:27.849 prayed together. But I will never forget what 00:03:27.849 --> 00:03:30.069 she told me in that conversation. She said, you 00:03:30.069 --> 00:03:34.469 know, my father came to visit me. And even though 00:03:34.469 --> 00:03:37.889 he is not a believer in God, but he loves me 00:03:37.889 --> 00:03:42.509 as his daughter. And he said to me, I wish I 00:03:42.509 --> 00:03:48.750 could do something. I will gladly take this illness 00:03:48.750 --> 00:03:52.229 that you have on me so that you can be healthy 00:03:52.229 --> 00:03:57.120 and I can have this instead. She said, when my 00:03:57.120 --> 00:04:01.719 father told me that, I realized that in his love 00:04:01.719 --> 00:04:05.120 for me, he loved me so much that he was willing 00:04:05.120 --> 00:04:09.300 to take this illness upon himself, but he couldn't. 00:04:10.340 --> 00:04:14.780 But God loved me so much that he was willing 00:04:14.780 --> 00:04:18.939 to take my sin upon him, and he did because he 00:04:18.939 --> 00:04:24.019 could. And at that moment, in that hospital bed, 00:04:24.720 --> 00:04:27.779 My friend, for the first time, got a glimpse 00:04:27.779 --> 00:04:34.420 of what it means that God loved her with the 00:04:34.420 --> 00:04:41.160 heart of a father. And until we understand the 00:04:41.160 --> 00:04:46.399 love of God as a father, we will never be able 00:04:46.399 --> 00:04:50.750 to understand how God loves us. Operate from 00:04:50.750 --> 00:04:53.850 that place of freedom in God's love. And you 00:04:53.850 --> 00:04:56.329 will either be doubting God's love. You will 00:04:56.329 --> 00:04:58.389 be either thinking that it's too good to be true. 00:04:58.610 --> 00:05:01.810 Or you will feel that you are. Not deserving 00:05:01.810 --> 00:05:05.769 of his love. And always walking in shame. And 00:05:05.769 --> 00:05:11.370 guilt. Instead of freedom. This concept of love. 00:05:11.529 --> 00:05:15.509 The Bible defines with an actual word. That is 00:05:15.509 --> 00:05:19.860 found in the. Greek language, which is the language 00:05:19.860 --> 00:05:23.060 in which the New Testament was written, and is 00:05:23.060 --> 00:05:29.160 the word agape. This form of love, agape, is 00:05:29.160 --> 00:05:33.139 a sacrificial love that is given out of the desire 00:05:33.139 --> 00:05:36.879 of the person that is loving, and is not depending 00:05:36.879 --> 00:05:41.399 on the worth of the person who is being loved. 00:05:41.759 --> 00:05:46.720 In other words, it doesn't matter Where you are, 00:05:46.839 --> 00:05:48.779 what you've done, what you have not done, it 00:05:48.779 --> 00:05:50.899 doesn't matter whether you deserve it or not 00:05:50.899 --> 00:05:54.300 deserve it. All of that is irrelevant. Because 00:05:54.300 --> 00:05:58.220 agape love only depends on the one who gives 00:05:58.220 --> 00:06:02.600 it. And the Bible says that the way God loves 00:06:02.600 --> 00:06:06.540 us is with this type of love. He loves us out 00:06:06.540 --> 00:06:10.060 of His love for us, not because we deserve it. 00:06:11.139 --> 00:06:13.839 And not only the Bible says that this is how 00:06:13.839 --> 00:06:19.160 God loves us, But it goes an extra step to tell 00:06:19.160 --> 00:06:27.720 us that actually God is love. God is agape. In 00:06:27.720 --> 00:06:32.399 other words, God cannot not love. It's in his 00:06:32.399 --> 00:06:37.180 nature. And not only he cannot not love, but 00:06:37.180 --> 00:06:40.759 the only way that he can love is through agape 00:06:40.759 --> 00:06:44.240 because that's who he is. It defines his character. 00:06:45.160 --> 00:06:52.959 God is love. And in the historical context in 00:06:52.959 --> 00:06:55.980 which these things are written, was the time 00:06:55.980 --> 00:06:59.399 of the Roman Empire. Previous to them, the Greeks 00:06:59.399 --> 00:07:03.779 were the main empire. And in both cultures, the 00:07:03.779 --> 00:07:07.199 same was true. You will never think of a God 00:07:07.199 --> 00:07:11.420 as being love. Powerful? Yeah. Strong? Yeah. 00:07:11.560 --> 00:07:15.839 Victorious in war? Yeah. But loving? Why would 00:07:15.839 --> 00:07:19.019 you want a God that loves you? Who cares about 00:07:19.019 --> 00:07:24.759 that? But when Christianity comes in, and Jesus 00:07:24.759 --> 00:07:28.579 comes in, and we start learning what the Bible 00:07:28.579 --> 00:07:34.240 says, it actually says, look, love is at the 00:07:34.240 --> 00:07:39.199 center of who God is and how we experience Him. 00:07:41.199 --> 00:07:43.959 So needless to say, the idea of God being love 00:07:43.959 --> 00:07:48.060 is completely revolutionary. It's almost like 00:07:48.060 --> 00:07:54.319 just confusing because I can think of God as 00:07:54.319 --> 00:08:00.199 a judge, like that. Or God as angry. Okay, God's 00:08:00.199 --> 00:08:02.139 someone that I need to be afraid of. Okay, but 00:08:02.139 --> 00:08:10.290 God loving me? Me? Just because He is love? And 00:08:10.290 --> 00:08:14.870 when people encounter this concept, I've talked 00:08:14.870 --> 00:08:17.410 to some people that say, okay, I get what you're 00:08:17.410 --> 00:08:19.209 saying, but I don't believe it. It's too good 00:08:19.209 --> 00:08:23.470 to be true. And that is the answer. Too good 00:08:23.470 --> 00:08:27.029 to be true because why am I so special that God 00:08:27.029 --> 00:08:33.110 would love me like that? You see, you are trying 00:08:33.110 --> 00:08:35.610 to understand God's love from the perspective 00:08:35.610 --> 00:08:38.330 of whether you deserve to be loved like that. 00:08:38.990 --> 00:08:41.870 And again, God's love is agape. It depends on 00:08:41.870 --> 00:08:45.169 him, not on you. Why does he love us so much? 00:08:45.649 --> 00:08:51.649 It's because he is love. That's it. And this 00:08:51.649 --> 00:08:57.190 concept completely reframes the way we understand 00:08:57.190 --> 00:09:00.789 this time of Christmas. Because during Christmas 00:09:00.789 --> 00:09:04.350 we are celebrating the birth of Jesus. And the 00:09:04.350 --> 00:09:07.129 way that the Bible talks about the birth of Jesus 00:09:07.129 --> 00:09:12.409 is very clear. And there are two moments in which 00:09:12.409 --> 00:09:16.009 the birth of Jesus is announced. One to Mary 00:09:16.009 --> 00:09:20.230 in the Gospel of Luke. And another one to Joseph 00:09:20.230 --> 00:09:23.210 in the Gospel of Matthew. And in both Gospels 00:09:23.210 --> 00:09:25.710 when the announcement of Jesus being born is 00:09:25.710 --> 00:09:30.509 given to the parents. We are told that not only 00:09:30.509 --> 00:09:33.730 the fact that this person was going to be born 00:09:33.730 --> 00:09:36.110 being the Messiah, the promised Messiah from 00:09:36.110 --> 00:09:41.649 all, but that this person had to have a name, 00:09:41.809 --> 00:09:47.210 and the name had to be very specific. Take a 00:09:47.210 --> 00:09:50.889 look with me at how the announcement is given 00:09:50.889 --> 00:09:54.629 to Mary. It says, you will conceive and give 00:09:54.629 --> 00:09:58.690 birth to a son, and you will name him? Jesus. 00:09:59.269 --> 00:10:05.309 You have to name him Jesus. And this child will 00:10:05.309 --> 00:10:09.330 be very great. And will be called the son of 00:10:09.330 --> 00:10:15.649 the most high. The son of God. And the Lord God 00:10:15.649 --> 00:10:19.570 will give him the throne of his ancestor David. 00:10:19.809 --> 00:10:24.169 And he will reign over Israel for how long? Forever. 00:10:24.549 --> 00:10:30.519 And his kingdom will... Never end. This child 00:10:30.519 --> 00:10:33.840 that is going to be born is the fulfillment of 00:10:33.840 --> 00:10:39.200 these promises where this child is going to become 00:10:39.200 --> 00:10:45.080 one who will have a kingdom that will never end. 00:10:46.360 --> 00:10:48.559 And we're going to study this a little bit more 00:10:48.559 --> 00:10:52.440 next week. But you are going to name this child 00:10:52.440 --> 00:11:00.509 Jesus. Why Jesus? Why not? John or Pablo. I mean, 00:11:00.509 --> 00:11:06.129 why Jesus? Well, because Jesus has a specific 00:11:06.129 --> 00:11:12.269 meaning. The word Jesus means God saves. Whether 00:11:12.269 --> 00:11:15.470 it be Hebrew, Yeshua. Whether it be Greek, Yesu. 00:11:15.509 --> 00:11:19.610 Or whether it be English, Jesus. You're going 00:11:19.610 --> 00:11:26.879 to call this child God saves. Why the emphasis 00:11:26.879 --> 00:11:31.779 so much? Look at what Joseph hears when the announcement 00:11:31.779 --> 00:11:37.100 is given to him. Mary will give birth to a son. 00:11:37.360 --> 00:11:42.100 And you are to give him the name? Jesus. Why 00:11:42.100 --> 00:11:47.580 Jesus? Because he will save his people from their 00:11:47.580 --> 00:11:53.159 sins. In these two announcements, we are already 00:11:53.159 --> 00:11:56.220 given the nature of who this Jesus is. He's going 00:11:56.220 --> 00:11:59.200 to be called the Son of God, a King, that is 00:11:59.200 --> 00:12:00.840 going to establish a kingdom that will never 00:12:00.840 --> 00:12:05.799 end. And we are given the purpose for Him to 00:12:05.799 --> 00:12:11.820 come. He is coming in order to save people from 00:12:11.820 --> 00:12:16.700 sins. And that's why He's going to be called 00:12:16.700 --> 00:12:26.039 God Saves. So it turns out that the Bible brings 00:12:26.039 --> 00:12:29.299 Jesus at the center of understanding God's love. 00:12:29.519 --> 00:12:32.860 God demonstrates his love for us in which when 00:12:32.860 --> 00:12:36.460 we were still sinners, Christ, Jesus died for 00:12:36.460 --> 00:12:42.559 us. Jesus is the very expression of God's love, 00:12:42.759 --> 00:12:48.159 is the face of what love looks like. And if I'm 00:12:48.159 --> 00:12:51.490 going to understand, How to relate to God and 00:12:51.490 --> 00:12:54.250 how to experience His love. I have to understand 00:12:54.250 --> 00:12:59.889 who Jesus is and what He came to do. That's why 00:12:59.889 --> 00:13:03.029 when I read this section, even though so short, 00:13:03.309 --> 00:13:06.889 it's so profound. And I circle these things. 00:13:07.600 --> 00:13:10.639 And I noticed that this Jesus is going to save 00:13:10.639 --> 00:13:14.240 us from our sins. But why do we need to be saved 00:13:14.240 --> 00:13:17.620 from sins? And what is sin to start with? And 00:13:17.620 --> 00:13:21.779 why was it even allowed? And why do we need to 00:13:21.779 --> 00:13:25.639 be saved from this thing? And why Jesus has to 00:13:25.639 --> 00:13:29.440 be the one that saves? Can it be something different? 00:13:31.179 --> 00:13:33.639 And understanding the answers to these questions. 00:13:34.669 --> 00:13:37.889 is what brings this picture of what God's love 00:13:37.889 --> 00:13:42.490 is. So I'm going to spend the rest of the study 00:13:42.490 --> 00:13:47.110 looking at these things. First question, what 00:13:47.110 --> 00:13:53.830 is sin? Often we think of sin as doing bad things, 00:13:53.970 --> 00:14:00.850 misbehaving, an action. But it's so much more 00:14:00.850 --> 00:14:05.809 complex than that. Even though there's no Bible 00:14:05.809 --> 00:14:09.250 verse that says, this is the definition of sin. 00:14:09.389 --> 00:14:13.350 A, B, C. The Bible does talk a lot about these 00:14:13.350 --> 00:14:18.389 things. And it can be summarized like this. Sin 00:14:18.389 --> 00:14:23.789 is a condition of your soul. It's like an illness. 00:14:23.950 --> 00:14:27.389 It's like a sickness of your soul. Your soul, 00:14:27.529 --> 00:14:33.139 my soul, is sick. And is sick with this condition 00:14:33.139 --> 00:14:37.919 that has three very specific defining elements. 00:14:40.779 --> 00:14:49.179 The first one is that my soul exists under spiritual 00:14:49.179 --> 00:14:54.879 oppression. There is a spiritual realm of darkness 00:14:54.879 --> 00:14:59.259 that is real, not fantasy. The Bible calls this 00:14:59.259 --> 00:15:03.740 realm of spiritual darkness as a realm that has 00:15:03.740 --> 00:15:09.740 authorities and entities. And the head of all 00:15:09.740 --> 00:15:12.960 this darkness, the Bible calls the devil, calls 00:15:12.960 --> 00:15:17.789 it Satan. This is the realm of spiritual oppression 00:15:17.789 --> 00:15:23.330 in which we exist and we are born. And not only 00:15:23.330 --> 00:15:26.950 that, the second part of being sick with this 00:15:26.950 --> 00:15:31.629 condition means that I have within me this distortion. 00:15:31.830 --> 00:15:35.529 I have distorted desires. I desire things that 00:15:35.529 --> 00:15:38.029 are harmful for me, but I desire them anyway 00:15:38.029 --> 00:15:41.029 and I can help it, but I do them and I pursue 00:15:41.029 --> 00:15:45.669 them. This distortion of desire. As well as this 00:15:45.669 --> 00:15:48.590 distortion of understanding. The way I think 00:15:48.590 --> 00:15:51.590 of myself is distorted. The way I think of others 00:15:51.590 --> 00:15:54.590 is distorted. The way I think of God is distorted. 00:15:55.750 --> 00:15:59.049 And this distortion is an expression of this 00:15:59.049 --> 00:16:04.669 condition. But not only that. The physical manifestation 00:16:04.669 --> 00:16:10.370 of this condition of my soul is that now I am 00:16:10.370 --> 00:16:16.480 mortal. I die. And every time that I get sick, 00:16:16.639 --> 00:16:21.320 every time that someone dies, it's simply a manifestation 00:16:21.320 --> 00:16:26.179 of this condition that the Bible calls sin. My 00:16:26.179 --> 00:16:31.720 soul is sick with it. Imagine, for instance, 00:16:31.840 --> 00:16:35.899 that one day I start sneezing. Achoo! Achoo! 00:16:35.899 --> 00:16:38.580 And I tell you, you know, I have a headache and 00:16:38.580 --> 00:16:41.580 I think I have fever. What would you deduce? 00:16:44.120 --> 00:16:47.419 Ah, you have a cold, Pastor Pablo. What are you 00:16:47.419 --> 00:16:51.019 doing here? Go back home and stay in bed. Because 00:16:51.019 --> 00:16:54.080 you're going to give it to all of us. Right, 00:16:54.120 --> 00:16:58.059 you can read those symptoms. You can hear the 00:16:58.059 --> 00:17:00.320 coughing, the sneezing, the headache. You can 00:17:00.320 --> 00:17:03.799 detect these things and put it together and say 00:17:03.799 --> 00:17:06.960 the problem is not the sneezing or the coughing. 00:17:07.059 --> 00:17:10.579 The problem is the cold. That is the root. These 00:17:10.579 --> 00:17:14.089 things are just symptoms. Well, we go out through 00:17:14.089 --> 00:17:17.769 our life experiencing the symptoms of this condition, 00:17:17.910 --> 00:17:20.650 and we never realize that actually those are 00:17:20.650 --> 00:17:25.750 the symptoms, not the real problem. If you feel 00:17:25.750 --> 00:17:29.430 a sense of emptiness, there's something deeply 00:17:29.430 --> 00:17:34.849 missing within you. If you feel that you are 00:17:34.849 --> 00:17:38.029 walking in shame and guilt and this sense of 00:17:38.029 --> 00:17:41.319 worthlessness, If you feel like you're damaged 00:17:41.319 --> 00:17:45.619 goods and no one will ever love you ever. If 00:17:45.619 --> 00:17:48.200 you have broken relationships where your marriage 00:17:48.200 --> 00:17:51.220 is just not working right. Where your relationship 00:17:51.220 --> 00:17:54.759 with your children is all broken and dysfunctional. 00:17:54.779 --> 00:17:59.160 All of those things are simply manifestations, 00:17:59.420 --> 00:18:04.859 symptoms of the fact that your soul is sick with 00:18:04.859 --> 00:18:08.720 this condition. call sin. And only yours, but 00:18:08.720 --> 00:18:11.240 your spouses and your children and all human 00:18:11.240 --> 00:18:14.960 beings, the Bible says, are born with this condition. 00:18:15.700 --> 00:18:21.140 And these three symptoms are part of it. That's 00:18:21.140 --> 00:18:24.799 why when the Bible describes us, look at what 00:18:24.799 --> 00:18:29.400 it says. The one who does what is sinful is of 00:18:29.400 --> 00:18:37.500 the devil. I don't like that. What? If I'm a 00:18:37.500 --> 00:18:41.859 sinner, I am of the devil. Why? Well, because 00:18:41.859 --> 00:18:44.559 the devil has been sinning from the beginning. 00:18:44.720 --> 00:18:47.440 And the reason the Son of God appeared was to 00:18:47.440 --> 00:18:53.539 destroy the devil's work. Jesus came to save 00:18:53.539 --> 00:18:56.680 us from our sins. And part of that involved that 00:18:56.680 --> 00:19:01.579 he had to overcome the power of Satan in order 00:19:01.579 --> 00:19:07.569 to rescue you from under that. Oh. I'm not sure 00:19:07.569 --> 00:19:13.609 I like that. I'm a good person. I know I'm not 00:19:13.609 --> 00:19:16.950 perfect. Sometimes, you know, I lost my temper 00:19:16.950 --> 00:19:20.549 maybe a few times. Or maybe I lied here and there, 00:19:20.589 --> 00:19:23.809 a little white lie. But just to think that I'm 00:19:23.809 --> 00:19:27.670 of the devil. I mean, I'm not a Satan worshiper. 00:19:29.950 --> 00:19:37.930 Welcome to reality. The Bible says, That the 00:19:37.930 --> 00:19:40.349 condition that Jesus was born to save you from 00:19:40.349 --> 00:19:44.769 is so serious. And one of those things is that 00:19:44.769 --> 00:19:46.890 there's a spiritual reality that you have to 00:19:46.890 --> 00:19:52.250 come to terms with. And this is real. But how 00:19:52.250 --> 00:19:54.890 did we get to this point to start with? When 00:19:54.890 --> 00:19:57.609 did this begin? Well, the Bible also tells us. 00:19:59.589 --> 00:20:03.130 There's a patient zero when it comes to sin. 00:20:04.839 --> 00:20:07.880 The Bible says it this way. When Adam sinned, 00:20:07.880 --> 00:20:15.539 what entered the world? What? Sin. Yeah. There 00:20:15.539 --> 00:20:18.720 was a point in which sin entered the world. And 00:20:18.720 --> 00:20:21.960 it was when Adam sinned. Adam sinned brought 00:20:21.960 --> 00:20:28.200 what? Death. So death spread to everyone for 00:20:28.200 --> 00:20:33.819 everyone sinned. The Bible says that the first 00:20:33.819 --> 00:20:35.920 human beings that were created in God's image 00:20:35.920 --> 00:20:40.920 and likeness were created to be in relationship 00:20:40.920 --> 00:20:43.720 with God. And in that relationship, they made 00:20:43.720 --> 00:20:47.519 a choice. They decided not to love God. And when 00:20:47.519 --> 00:20:51.660 they decided not to love God, it was the first 00:20:51.660 --> 00:20:56.779 time that they acted on this. And when they acted 00:20:56.779 --> 00:21:00.180 on this disobedience to God, on this choice to 00:21:00.180 --> 00:21:03.970 not love Him, they became contaminated with this 00:21:03.970 --> 00:21:08.670 condition called sin. And who had been sinning 00:21:08.670 --> 00:21:11.930 from the beginning, we read? The devil. And the 00:21:11.930 --> 00:21:14.710 Bible says that Satan is the one that deceived 00:21:14.710 --> 00:21:17.250 these first humans so that they would become 00:21:17.250 --> 00:21:20.809 contaminated with this very condition that he 00:21:20.809 --> 00:21:26.710 has. Which reminds me of something. During the 00:21:26.710 --> 00:21:29.049 COVID pandemic, there was this terrible case 00:21:29.049 --> 00:21:32.170 of this woman that went to the clinic to get 00:21:32.170 --> 00:21:35.170 help because she was struggling with COVID symptoms. 00:21:35.529 --> 00:21:38.309 But it so happened that there were so many other 00:21:38.309 --> 00:21:41.470 patients waiting that when she got to the clinic, 00:21:41.670 --> 00:21:44.309 she could not be helped and she was asked to 00:21:44.309 --> 00:21:49.660 come back another day. So when the person at 00:21:49.660 --> 00:21:52.420 the counter is helping her and telling her, sorry, 00:21:52.539 --> 00:21:53.960 we cannot help you right now. You have to come 00:21:53.960 --> 00:21:56.720 back another day. The patient became so upset 00:21:56.720 --> 00:22:01.160 that she removed her mask and went like this. 00:22:03.440 --> 00:22:06.579 On the face of this person on the other side 00:22:06.579 --> 00:22:14.170 of the counter. And so it happens. And then that 00:22:14.170 --> 00:22:20.890 person became sick with COVID and died. And this 00:22:20.890 --> 00:22:25.549 became a legal case because that was a premeditated 00:22:25.549 --> 00:22:30.829 act of intentionally spreading a mortal, a deadly 00:22:30.829 --> 00:22:34.630 virus to someone just because I'm upset with 00:22:34.630 --> 00:22:40.230 you. Terrible. Well, that's exactly what Satan 00:22:40.230 --> 00:22:44.049 did at the beginning. He went to Adam and Eve 00:22:44.049 --> 00:22:51.069 and coughed on their face. Deceived them. And 00:22:51.069 --> 00:22:56.369 they became sinners. The same condition that 00:22:56.369 --> 00:23:02.430 Satan had. Now became part of humanity. And every 00:23:02.430 --> 00:23:06.589 human being born descendants of Adam and Eve. 00:23:06.750 --> 00:23:16.299 Which is all of us. Have the same. I picture 00:23:16.299 --> 00:23:18.980 the father going to visit my friend at the hospital. 00:23:19.900 --> 00:23:23.599 He conceived this child. He saw her being born. 00:23:23.920 --> 00:23:29.680 He saw her growing up. He held her in his arms. 00:23:29.720 --> 00:23:36.210 He said, I love you. He never imagined. That 00:23:36.210 --> 00:23:38.269 this child was going to become sick with this 00:23:38.269 --> 00:23:41.069 illness that will require all these things and 00:23:41.069 --> 00:23:43.690 the uncertainty of whether she would ever be 00:23:43.690 --> 00:23:46.450 healed from it. That is not what he desired for 00:23:46.450 --> 00:23:50.289 her. God did not create us so that we would become 00:23:50.289 --> 00:23:56.589 this. Sin, mortality, the power of Satan, all 00:23:56.589 --> 00:24:00.880 of that is not what God desires for us. And that's 00:24:00.880 --> 00:24:03.480 why the Bible says that when Jesus was born, 00:24:03.640 --> 00:24:08.079 he was sent to save us from this condition. God 00:24:08.079 --> 00:24:11.220 loved us so much that he wanted to take this 00:24:11.220 --> 00:24:18.859 condition from us. And he could, so he did. This 00:24:18.859 --> 00:24:24.160 is God's love. So what you have to understand 00:24:24.160 --> 00:24:28.039 is that this condition that you have is real. 00:24:30.029 --> 00:24:31.950 And until you understand that this condition 00:24:31.950 --> 00:24:35.730 is real, you won't be able to reconnect with 00:24:35.730 --> 00:24:43.069 God's love. Okay. That's something, isn't it? 00:24:44.369 --> 00:24:48.369 This is a very complex picture of what it means 00:24:48.369 --> 00:24:51.529 to be a sinner. But I have another question. 00:24:51.930 --> 00:24:55.089 Why do we need to be saved from it? Why not just 00:24:55.089 --> 00:24:59.680 be with God like that? It's just... Why does 00:24:59.680 --> 00:25:02.180 Jesus have to come to do something about it? 00:25:02.880 --> 00:25:05.880 Well, the answer is because this condition has 00:25:05.880 --> 00:25:09.400 two immediate consequences. The first consequence 00:25:09.400 --> 00:25:12.799 is that it corrupts us, and the second one is 00:25:12.799 --> 00:25:18.799 that it separates us. Think of it this way. When 00:25:18.799 --> 00:25:23.660 my mother had cancer in her stomach, the moment 00:25:23.660 --> 00:25:26.799 she was diagnosed with cancer, the doctors immediately 00:25:27.549 --> 00:25:30.309 scheduled surgery they removed the tumor which 00:25:30.309 --> 00:25:33.250 was the size of a tennis ball in her stomach 00:25:33.250 --> 00:25:36.309 and then they decided that they also had to remove 00:25:36.309 --> 00:25:39.650 the stomach altogether so now my mom doesn't 00:25:39.650 --> 00:25:43.910 have a stomach but part of the treatment was 00:25:43.910 --> 00:25:50.390 that she had to undergo this whole chemotherapy 00:25:50.390 --> 00:25:54.049 several rounds for it because the goal of that 00:25:54.049 --> 00:25:57.880 was that They will kill every single cancerous 00:25:57.880 --> 00:26:01.220 cell in her body. And after they finish the treatment, 00:26:01.519 --> 00:26:04.339 they have to go through all these blood tests 00:26:04.339 --> 00:26:07.700 and all these details to confirm, is there even 00:26:07.700 --> 00:26:11.059 a little single cell in her body that is cancerous? 00:26:11.500 --> 00:26:14.339 And when it was confirmed that there was no more 00:26:14.339 --> 00:26:17.180 cancerous cell in her body, then she was declared 00:26:17.180 --> 00:26:23.819 cancer -free. Now imagine that as my mom is going 00:26:23.819 --> 00:26:27.839 through all this pain of all this treatment with 00:26:27.839 --> 00:26:30.920 putting all that poison in her system to kill 00:26:30.920 --> 00:26:34.039 all these cells, I said to my mom, they're ready 00:26:34.039 --> 00:26:36.039 to remove the stomach. They're ready to remove 00:26:36.039 --> 00:26:39.500 the tumor. What can one little cancer cell do 00:26:39.500 --> 00:26:42.819 in your body? Just stop the treatment. It's too 00:26:42.819 --> 00:26:47.980 hard for you. Just leave it there. Would you 00:26:47.980 --> 00:26:51.890 agree with that advice? Just one little cell. 00:26:52.109 --> 00:26:54.890 What would that do? You have trillions of other 00:26:54.890 --> 00:26:57.289 cells that are healthy. You're going to be okay. 00:26:58.930 --> 00:27:03.210 Well, if you're a doctor or a scientist and you 00:27:03.210 --> 00:27:06.029 understand how this works, you say, Pastor Pablo, 00:27:06.289 --> 00:27:08.529 you're the pastor of this church and that's how 00:27:08.529 --> 00:27:11.289 you think? I'm not sure I can trust you with 00:27:11.289 --> 00:27:16.809 my soul. Right? Because you know that one single 00:27:16.809 --> 00:27:19.150 cancerous cell in the body is just a matter of 00:27:19.150 --> 00:27:22.720 time before... It multiplies, spreads, and takes 00:27:22.720 --> 00:27:27.380 over the body. You have to start thinking of 00:27:27.380 --> 00:27:32.420 sin, this condition, like that. It's so serious 00:27:32.420 --> 00:27:38.519 that your soul is sick with it. And as time progresses, 00:27:38.539 --> 00:27:42.500 eventually this sin condition starts growing 00:27:42.500 --> 00:27:45.759 and takes over and becomes more and more and 00:27:45.759 --> 00:27:49.099 more and more corrupt. Right now, you're only 00:27:49.099 --> 00:27:51.460 experiencing some of these symptoms, but you 00:27:51.460 --> 00:27:55.799 wait and see. Because this condition is not just 00:27:55.799 --> 00:27:58.759 your physical body. It continues after you die. 00:27:58.980 --> 00:28:03.180 It's your soul that is sick with it. That's why 00:28:03.180 --> 00:28:07.140 when the Bible talks about this, it says it this 00:28:07.140 --> 00:28:10.859 way. Those who live only to satisfy their own 00:28:10.859 --> 00:28:15.440 sinful nature will harvest two things. Decay 00:28:15.440 --> 00:28:21.849 and death. From that sinful nature. You're going 00:28:21.849 --> 00:28:26.130 to become more and more decayed. And you're going 00:28:26.130 --> 00:28:30.349 to experience death. Not just physical. But spiritual 00:28:30.349 --> 00:28:34.289 death. With the Bible calls the second death. 00:28:37.170 --> 00:28:40.490 That is the problem with this condition. Is that 00:28:40.490 --> 00:28:43.569 doesn't stop when you die. It continues if your 00:28:43.569 --> 00:28:49.279 soul still has it. And because it has this nature 00:28:49.279 --> 00:28:52.559 to it which we don't really understand why or 00:28:52.559 --> 00:28:57.319 how exactly works this way, God has to do something 00:28:57.319 --> 00:29:02.839 about it to remove it. It's so serious that the 00:29:02.839 --> 00:29:06.420 Bible says that the time is coming when God is 00:29:06.420 --> 00:29:10.539 going to, in the future, destroy this earth as 00:29:10.539 --> 00:29:13.279 we know it because it's contaminated with all 00:29:13.279 --> 00:29:17.450 this stuff. And He's going to create a new earth 00:29:17.450 --> 00:29:23.869 in which sin will no longer be. Because He is 00:29:23.869 --> 00:29:27.890 in the business of eradicating sin from what 00:29:27.890 --> 00:29:31.890 He has created. From us and from the world altogether. 00:29:32.710 --> 00:29:36.609 Sin and death eventually will be completely eradicated. 00:29:38.190 --> 00:29:41.069 And because that is going to happen in the future, 00:29:41.349 --> 00:29:45.470 God... is going to do something that is very 00:29:45.470 --> 00:29:50.470 radical. Before even reading what the Bible says 00:29:50.470 --> 00:29:56.309 about this, I want to show you a picture. Look 00:29:56.309 --> 00:30:01.910 at it. You do not know anything about it, but 00:30:01.910 --> 00:30:04.809 just by looking at it, what is something that 00:30:04.809 --> 00:30:10.849 you can deduct? Deduced. This is the wrong word, 00:30:10.910 --> 00:30:13.480 deduct. Deduced. What is something that you can 00:30:13.480 --> 00:30:20.240 deduce from this? Uh -huh. Yeah, all these people 00:30:20.240 --> 00:30:24.319 are trying to completely eliminate any exposure 00:30:24.319 --> 00:30:29.180 to whatever is there because it's so lethal. 00:30:31.180 --> 00:30:34.880 I happened to visit Liberia a few months before 00:30:34.880 --> 00:30:39.500 the Ebola outbreak happened. And because I just 00:30:39.500 --> 00:30:42.599 had been there, Then I started following all 00:30:42.599 --> 00:30:45.619 the news. And it so happened that later as I 00:30:45.619 --> 00:30:50.480 was living in Dallas, there was one patient that 00:30:50.480 --> 00:30:54.259 had come from Africa, flew into Dallas, and he 00:30:54.259 --> 00:30:57.039 had Ebola. And they immediately took him to this 00:30:57.039 --> 00:30:59.720 hospital and he was completely secluded from 00:30:59.720 --> 00:31:04.019 everything. Because Ebola was a virus that was 00:31:04.019 --> 00:31:07.579 so lethal that what started happening in Liberia 00:31:07.579 --> 00:31:11.119 at that time spread to Ivory Coast and some other 00:31:11.119 --> 00:31:14.240 places in the region, is that the moment someone 00:31:14.240 --> 00:31:19.039 had Ebola, the level of death possibilities were 00:31:19.039 --> 00:31:22.420 so high that the government immediately started 00:31:22.420 --> 00:31:26.740 taking measures that were very drastic to control 00:31:26.740 --> 00:31:28.920 the spread of it and to eradicate it completely. 00:31:29.400 --> 00:31:31.779 Because not eradicating it was irresponsible. 00:31:33.460 --> 00:31:37.180 Not trying to control it was irresponsible. So 00:31:37.180 --> 00:31:41.069 they did like... What any government that is 00:31:41.069 --> 00:31:45.269 responsible would do. And all these people started 00:31:45.269 --> 00:31:46.990 going to the villages where they heard there 00:31:46.990 --> 00:31:49.029 were people with symptoms. And they would walk 00:31:49.029 --> 00:31:51.589 with these places. And if someone tested positive, 00:31:51.809 --> 00:31:55.009 they had to take them out of the village into 00:31:55.009 --> 00:31:57.430 this place that they had created to contain it. 00:31:57.569 --> 00:32:00.089 But because it was so lethal, most of the people 00:32:00.089 --> 00:32:02.730 went to the containment region. They would die 00:32:02.730 --> 00:32:06.740 of it anyway. Because the virus kept... until 00:32:06.740 --> 00:32:11.940 it took over completely. It was tragic. It was 00:32:11.940 --> 00:32:14.619 sad to see the families that were being torn 00:32:14.619 --> 00:32:17.500 apart because somebody had it. But if that person, 00:32:17.539 --> 00:32:20.359 if that mother of that grandfather was not removed, 00:32:20.900 --> 00:32:25.500 it put a risk to everybody else. And even though 00:32:25.500 --> 00:32:27.819 painful separation, it was the right thing to 00:32:27.819 --> 00:32:31.420 do in order to contain the spread of it. And 00:32:31.420 --> 00:32:35.559 the Bible says that sin is more lethal Than Ebola. 00:32:36.519 --> 00:32:39.140 It's actually the reason why we are mortal to 00:32:39.140 --> 00:32:42.400 start with. And God is going to eradicate sin 00:32:42.400 --> 00:32:47.819 completely. Therefore. In this new place that 00:32:47.819 --> 00:32:49.500 God is going to create. That it will be free 00:32:49.500 --> 00:32:54.700 from sin and death. Something is going to be 00:32:54.700 --> 00:32:58.880 true of it. Let me read it for you. The Bible 00:32:58.880 --> 00:33:04.599 says nothing evil will be allowed to enter. Nor 00:33:04.599 --> 00:33:08.819 anyone who practices shameful idolatry and dishonesty. 00:33:08.819 --> 00:33:11.539 But only those whose names are written in the 00:33:11.539 --> 00:33:15.759 Lamb's book of life. And that is another name 00:33:15.759 --> 00:33:21.480 for Jesus. Only those who Jesus has saved. Only 00:33:21.480 --> 00:33:25.640 those who Jesus has healed from this sinfulness. 00:33:26.400 --> 00:33:29.079 Are the ones that will be able to enter this 00:33:29.079 --> 00:33:33.369 place. Everybody else. That had this Ebola of 00:33:33.369 --> 00:33:38.269 the soul. Will have to be removed. Not allowed 00:33:38.269 --> 00:33:44.109 to enter in this place. And it says it like this. 00:33:44.849 --> 00:33:48.690 Cowards and believers. The corrupt. Murderers. 00:33:48.690 --> 00:33:52.130 Immoral. Those who practice witchcraft. Idol. 00:33:52.309 --> 00:33:56.529 Worshippers. And all liars. All liars. Even those 00:33:56.529 --> 00:34:01.339 that lie a little white lie. All liars. Their 00:34:01.339 --> 00:34:05.440 fate is in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. 00:34:05.740 --> 00:34:11.719 This is the second death. Remember how we read 00:34:11.719 --> 00:34:15.500 that sin eventually will cause decay and death? 00:34:16.960 --> 00:34:21.659 Here it is. The Bible says that at one point, 00:34:21.659 --> 00:34:27.500 those who died with their soul not healed from 00:34:27.500 --> 00:34:31.429 this condition. Not only won't be able to enter 00:34:31.429 --> 00:34:35.289 this place that God has created. But these people 00:34:35.289 --> 00:34:38.530 will have to actually be sent to this place that 00:34:38.530 --> 00:34:44.150 had been created for Satan. And his angels. And 00:34:44.150 --> 00:34:48.190 this place of complete destruction. So sin can 00:34:48.190 --> 00:34:53.690 be completely eradicated. Even one single cell 00:34:53.690 --> 00:34:59.079 left. Gone. And that complete eradication has 00:34:59.079 --> 00:35:03.960 to happen because of God's love for everybody 00:35:03.960 --> 00:35:13.960 else. A tragic picture, but a real one. And this 00:35:13.960 --> 00:35:16.760 picture reminds me of something that happened 00:35:16.760 --> 00:35:20.239 with the Ebola patients. When these doctors would 00:35:20.239 --> 00:35:23.960 go into somebody else's house that they had to 00:35:23.960 --> 00:35:26.739 remove. You know what they did with their clothing 00:35:26.739 --> 00:35:31.260 and their belongings? You guessed it right. They 00:35:31.260 --> 00:35:34.159 had to burn it. You know why they had to burn 00:35:34.159 --> 00:35:37.760 it? Because they had to eliminate any possibility 00:35:37.760 --> 00:35:42.380 of the virus contaminating somebody else. And 00:35:42.380 --> 00:35:45.159 when you see that happening, you think, wow, 00:35:45.239 --> 00:35:51.039 how sad, how tragic. You don't think, oh, that's 00:35:51.039 --> 00:35:54.610 unfair. Who allowed that to happen? We don't 00:35:54.610 --> 00:36:00.469 think that way. It's a tragedy. Sin is a tragedy. 00:36:01.210 --> 00:36:07.090 The most significant tragedy in human history. 00:36:09.269 --> 00:36:12.710 And today you and I are still suffering the consequences 00:36:12.710 --> 00:36:18.769 of it. Because you and I, if Jesus has not healed 00:36:18.769 --> 00:36:22.090 us from it, still have that condition in our 00:36:22.090 --> 00:36:27.880 soul. And we carry it with us every single day. 00:36:34.019 --> 00:36:38.500 This is kind of heavy. I thought we were going 00:36:38.500 --> 00:36:41.579 to be talking about love, you know, and nice. 00:36:41.760 --> 00:36:45.460 It's like, Pastor Paulo, I think I like Jesus 00:36:45.460 --> 00:36:49.019 better, you know. Love, Jesus, it's all about 00:36:49.019 --> 00:36:54.139 love and accepting everyone and love. But actually, 00:36:54.179 --> 00:36:59.960 you know, that Jesus told us about this. Jesus 00:36:59.960 --> 00:37:02.300 warned us because he came to save us from this. 00:37:04.699 --> 00:37:09.440 And this is what he said. Do not be afraid of 00:37:09.440 --> 00:37:11.559 those who kill the body and cannot kill the soul, 00:37:11.639 --> 00:37:14.219 but rather be afraid of the one who can destroy 00:37:14.219 --> 00:37:24.039 both soul and body in hell. I know this topic 00:37:24.039 --> 00:37:28.219 is not popular. I'm not here to try to make you 00:37:28.219 --> 00:37:31.940 feel good. I'm here to tell you the truth of 00:37:31.940 --> 00:37:37.199 what God says about love. And you cannot understand 00:37:37.199 --> 00:37:41.340 the depth of his love until you understand the 00:37:41.340 --> 00:37:48.539 depth of your condition. Your condition is so 00:37:48.539 --> 00:37:58.849 serious. That God's strategy to solve it is so 00:37:58.849 --> 00:38:06.369 amazing. This is why we have to be healed from 00:38:06.369 --> 00:38:12.389 it. It's because sin will corrupt and sin will 00:38:12.389 --> 00:38:15.750 separate you from ever from the God who loves 00:38:15.750 --> 00:38:25.469 you. Wow. That's something else. But you know, 00:38:25.469 --> 00:38:33.190 I have a question. If this is so bad, why didn't 00:38:33.190 --> 00:38:36.449 God create us unable to sin? That would have 00:38:36.449 --> 00:38:40.929 been much smarter. I mean, no offense, God. But 00:38:40.929 --> 00:38:43.849 couldn't you have come up with a way of creating 00:38:43.849 --> 00:38:49.530 us that we were not able to sin? Why did He create 00:38:49.530 --> 00:38:53.619 us this way? That's why it leads me to the next 00:38:53.619 --> 00:38:56.239 question. Why didn't God make us unable to sin? 00:38:59.579 --> 00:39:03.300 The Bible does not tell us a specific verse to 00:39:03.300 --> 00:39:07.139 give us the answer to this, but it gives us enough 00:39:07.139 --> 00:39:13.099 information where we can connect the dots. When 00:39:13.099 --> 00:39:17.820 Jesus was asked, Jesus, God saves, right? That's 00:39:17.820 --> 00:39:21.750 his meaning. God saves. What is the most important 00:39:21.750 --> 00:39:29.389 command of all time? Jesus could have said, well, 00:39:29.550 --> 00:39:34.250 behave, or otherwise you go to hell. He could 00:39:34.250 --> 00:39:37.289 have said, well, you know, you need to be good. 00:39:39.510 --> 00:39:43.110 But that's not what he said. The most important 00:39:43.110 --> 00:39:46.309 thing of all, you know what he said it is? It's 00:39:46.309 --> 00:39:51.800 this. You must love the Lord your God with what? 00:39:52.219 --> 00:39:56.559 With all your heart and all your soul and all 00:39:56.559 --> 00:40:01.940 your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. 00:40:01.940 --> 00:40:06.320 But also, a second is equally important. Love 00:40:06.320 --> 00:40:13.559 your neighbor as yourself. God created us not 00:40:13.559 --> 00:40:16.929 only because he loves us. But he recreated us 00:40:16.929 --> 00:40:22.269 so that we can love him and love others. And 00:40:22.269 --> 00:40:25.050 you want to guess what is the Greek word for 00:40:25.050 --> 00:40:29.349 love in this verse? You've been paying attention. 00:40:29.449 --> 00:40:36.690 Good. Right. God created us so that we will agape 00:40:36.690 --> 00:40:40.590 him as he agape us and that we will agape each 00:40:40.590 --> 00:40:45.369 other. But the problem is that we can't because 00:40:45.369 --> 00:40:51.190 our soul is sick. And there's something that 00:40:51.190 --> 00:40:54.949 suddenly comes to the surface. Because God who 00:40:54.949 --> 00:40:59.590 created me just to be someone that will be programmed 00:40:59.590 --> 00:41:02.530 only to say, yes, sir, whatever you want, sir, 00:41:02.650 --> 00:41:05.809 anytime, sir. That would be great. I wish we 00:41:05.809 --> 00:41:07.849 could program our children to be like that. But 00:41:07.849 --> 00:41:14.840 it just doesn't work that way. Because God did 00:41:14.840 --> 00:41:17.059 not create you so that you would believe in him, 00:41:17.139 --> 00:41:22.400 so that you would obey him. He created you so 00:41:22.400 --> 00:41:27.440 that you will love him. And in order for you 00:41:27.440 --> 00:41:32.739 to love him, he created you with freedom. Because 00:41:32.739 --> 00:41:40.500 love can only be given, but not demanded. Can 00:41:40.500 --> 00:41:44.829 you imagine? That when I proposed to my wife, 00:41:44.909 --> 00:41:48.070 would you marry me? She says, but Pablo, I don't 00:41:48.070 --> 00:41:49.989 love you. I cannot marry you. And I said, well, 00:41:50.070 --> 00:41:54.269 you have to love me. So you're going to marry 00:41:54.269 --> 00:41:56.769 me because you have to love me. Would that work? 00:41:57.710 --> 00:42:00.309 No, that won't work. You cannot force someone 00:42:00.309 --> 00:42:09.750 to love you. Love has to be chosen in order to 00:42:09.750 --> 00:42:13.489 be loved. And that's what God creates us with, 00:42:13.550 --> 00:42:16.789 freedom. And it so happens that the first humans 00:42:16.789 --> 00:42:24.289 chose not to love God. But thank for Jesus, because 00:42:24.289 --> 00:42:28.530 that is not the end of our story. He is giving 00:42:28.530 --> 00:42:31.769 us the opportunity to be healed from this so 00:42:31.769 --> 00:42:35.929 that we can agape Him as He agape us. And that 00:42:35.929 --> 00:42:38.750 transformation that happens from the soul, from 00:42:38.750 --> 00:42:47.059 inside out, It's what Jesus is able to do. Wow, 00:42:47.199 --> 00:42:51.139 but why Jesus? I mean, can I save myself from 00:42:51.139 --> 00:42:56.360 it? Maybe with diet or something? Okay, can I 00:42:56.360 --> 00:42:59.179 be saved from it maybe just by worshiping my 00:42:59.179 --> 00:43:01.400 parents' religion? Because, you know, it's very 00:43:01.400 --> 00:43:05.059 nice. They're very nice people. Maybe that can 00:43:05.059 --> 00:43:15.440 save me. The answer is no. Any religion can teach 00:43:15.440 --> 00:43:19.780 you how to do nice things. But only one person 00:43:19.780 --> 00:43:23.260 can touch your soul. And that is your maker. 00:43:23.599 --> 00:43:27.699 And that is Jesus. That's why the Bible says 00:43:27.699 --> 00:43:32.980 it this way. You know that Jesus appeared so 00:43:32.980 --> 00:43:36.619 that he might take away our sins. And in him 00:43:36.619 --> 00:43:40.760 is no sin. Because he's not contaminated with 00:43:40.760 --> 00:43:45.260 this condition, he can heal. But even better, 00:43:45.400 --> 00:43:50.460 the Bible says who Jesus is, is not just one 00:43:50.460 --> 00:43:55.119 of us. He is more than just one of us. The Bible 00:43:55.119 --> 00:43:57.119 says this, would you read this aloud with me? 00:43:57.780 --> 00:44:02.659 No one has ever seen God, but the one and only 00:44:02.659 --> 00:44:07.599 Son, who is Himself God, and is in closest relationship 00:44:07.599 --> 00:44:12.000 with the Father, has made Him known. How do you 00:44:12.000 --> 00:44:16.210 know God? By knowing Jesus. Why? Because Jesus 00:44:16.210 --> 00:44:27.469 is himself. Who? What? Jesus is God? Yes. That's 00:44:27.469 --> 00:44:32.630 why he was conceived by the Holy Spirit. And 00:44:32.630 --> 00:44:37.070 that's why he is sinless. Human like us, but 00:44:37.070 --> 00:44:41.650 not sinner like us. Because his soul, his spiritual 00:44:41.650 --> 00:44:48.670 dimension of it, he is God. And I love this. 00:44:49.769 --> 00:44:52.789 Because if there's one section that tells us 00:44:52.789 --> 00:44:55.250 exactly as it is, it's in the book of Hebrews. 00:44:57.369 --> 00:45:02.369 Since we humans, since we the children have flesh 00:45:02.369 --> 00:45:06.710 and blood, Jesus too shared in our humanity. 00:45:08.460 --> 00:45:12.619 He had to become one like us. He had to be born 00:45:12.619 --> 00:45:19.280 so that by his death he might break the power 00:45:19.280 --> 00:45:23.380 of him who holds the power of death. And who 00:45:23.380 --> 00:45:29.940 is that? The devil. And free those who all their 00:45:29.940 --> 00:45:34.019 lives were held in slavery by the fear of death. 00:45:35.920 --> 00:45:39.739 Jesus, the Son of God, the sinless one, was born 00:45:39.739 --> 00:45:43.139 so that by becoming a human like us, he could 00:45:43.139 --> 00:45:46.280 enter the realm of death and overcome the power 00:45:46.280 --> 00:45:49.340 of Satan, overcome the power of death, and now 00:45:49.340 --> 00:45:52.300 touch our souls so that we can be transformed 00:45:52.300 --> 00:45:55.960 from within. The soul that is touched by Jesus, 00:45:56.139 --> 00:45:59.480 the soul that is healed by the power of the Son 00:45:59.480 --> 00:46:04.099 of God, will experience the healing of the soul. 00:46:04.880 --> 00:46:08.739 While sin corrupts, Jesus transforms us from 00:46:08.739 --> 00:46:13.039 within. While sin separates, Jesus reconciles 00:46:13.039 --> 00:46:18.059 us to the Father. That is the power of Jesus. 00:46:18.199 --> 00:46:22.820 And that's why Jesus is named God saves. There's 00:46:22.820 --> 00:46:26.539 no other name under heaven that can save. Because 00:46:26.539 --> 00:46:29.460 there's no other God saves but only one. And 00:46:29.460 --> 00:46:33.599 that is Jesus. The very expression of God's love. 00:46:35.719 --> 00:46:40.000 So you can go and try to heal your soul. Go and 00:46:40.000 --> 00:46:45.619 meditate. Go and worship this and that. But I'm 00:46:45.619 --> 00:46:50.460 here to tell you, it's not going to work. Only 00:46:50.460 --> 00:46:56.219 Jesus was the one sent by God to be able to become 00:46:56.219 --> 00:47:05.650 the Savior from our sins. And this, It's what 00:47:05.650 --> 00:47:11.989 it looks like. Anyone that wants to be healed 00:47:11.989 --> 00:47:16.550 at the soul level by Jesus, anyone that wants 00:47:16.550 --> 00:47:19.789 to experience this transformation from within, 00:47:19.949 --> 00:47:31.269 has to only do it by this way. What do I need 00:47:31.269 --> 00:47:35.619 to do? Tell me, tell me. There's only one? you 00:47:35.619 --> 00:47:42.099 have to be forgiven. That is the only way in 00:47:42.099 --> 00:47:48.059 which this becomes part of your life and your 00:47:48.059 --> 00:47:50.679 inner being, your soul, and suddenly your soul 00:47:50.679 --> 00:47:54.300 becomes healed is by receiving the forgiveness 00:47:54.300 --> 00:48:01.139 that Jesus already paid for. Because when Jesus 00:48:01.139 --> 00:48:05.179 died, And when he resurrected, he was able now 00:48:05.179 --> 00:48:09.400 to overcome the devil, to overcome death, to 00:48:09.400 --> 00:48:12.559 overcome sin. And now he can touch your soul. 00:48:14.900 --> 00:48:19.719 And the only way to be forgiven is by repenting. 00:48:20.420 --> 00:48:25.360 Not by trying hard, but by repenting. It's by 00:48:25.360 --> 00:48:28.500 coming to God and say, God, I am a sinner. I 00:48:28.500 --> 00:48:35.190 realize my soul is sick. And I'm asking you, 00:48:35.349 --> 00:48:40.289 save me. I'm going to turn from what I've been 00:48:40.289 --> 00:48:45.329 pursuing to you. Save me. That's why the very 00:48:45.329 --> 00:48:48.849 first time in the entire history of humanity, 00:48:49.070 --> 00:48:52.570 when this message of good news about Jesus coming 00:48:52.570 --> 00:48:56.070 to save us was proclaimed, was proclaimed with 00:48:56.070 --> 00:49:02.309 these words. Now, repent of your sin and turn 00:49:02.309 --> 00:49:07.179 to whom? To God. So what will happen? So that 00:49:07.179 --> 00:49:12.719 your sins may be wiped away. Then times of refreshment 00:49:12.719 --> 00:49:16.639 will come from the presence of the Lord in you. 00:49:18.400 --> 00:49:25.219 If you want your soul to be healed. You will 00:49:25.219 --> 00:49:29.039 have to repent of your sins and turn to God. 00:49:30.480 --> 00:49:35.159 So that the very presence of Jesus can now reach 00:49:35.159 --> 00:49:38.079 that place and begin this treatment that only 00:49:38.079 --> 00:49:43.980 he can give you. So I have to ask you a question. 00:49:47.179 --> 00:49:53.039 Have you repented? I'm not asking you, do you 00:49:53.039 --> 00:50:00.679 believe in Jesus? Demons believe that Jesus is 00:50:00.679 --> 00:50:06.960 the son of God. But they are not cured. From 00:50:06.960 --> 00:50:15.199 their condition. Have you ever. Repented. Because 00:50:15.199 --> 00:50:19.239 unless you repent. Your soul will not be transformed. 00:50:19.420 --> 00:50:27.280 And you will never be able to agape God. This. 00:50:28.519 --> 00:50:32.599 It's how this works. This is what God's love 00:50:32.599 --> 00:50:38.619 looks like. He saw us in the hospital clinic 00:50:38.619 --> 00:50:42.739 bed and said to us, I love you so much that I 00:50:42.739 --> 00:50:45.440 wish I could take your illness upon me so that 00:50:45.440 --> 00:50:48.920 you could go and be healed. And he could, so 00:50:48.920 --> 00:50:54.860 he did. So I would like to conclude this study. 00:50:56.809 --> 00:51:00.889 By reminding you the very words of Jesus. And 00:51:00.889 --> 00:51:04.710 ask you these few things. The very words that 00:51:04.710 --> 00:51:09.210 Jesus told us. Is this affirmation. Of the assurance 00:51:09.210 --> 00:51:13.730 of his love for us. I have loved you. Even as 00:51:13.730 --> 00:51:16.590 the father has loved me. I have loved you with 00:51:16.590 --> 00:51:19.929 his agape love. It is not because you deserve 00:51:19.929 --> 00:51:22.409 it. You will never deserve it. So stop worrying 00:51:22.409 --> 00:51:27.440 about that. I love you. But you will have to 00:51:27.440 --> 00:51:33.639 learn to remain in my love. Are you remaining 00:51:33.639 --> 00:51:42.340 in my love? So if you are someone who has never 00:51:42.340 --> 00:51:49.219 asked Jesus to save you, I have a request for 00:51:49.219 --> 00:51:54.519 you to consider today. This is real. And this 00:51:54.519 --> 00:51:58.909 is serious. If you have never asked Jesus to 00:51:58.909 --> 00:52:05.010 save you, ask him to save you today. Here and 00:52:05.010 --> 00:52:09.690 now. Don't wait another second. What you carry 00:52:09.690 --> 00:52:13.989 within you is too serious to ignore. Ask Jesus 00:52:13.989 --> 00:52:16.489 to save you. You don't have to understand how 00:52:16.489 --> 00:52:19.550 this whole thing works. You will learn as God 00:52:19.550 --> 00:52:22.969 works in your life. But simply come to the Lord 00:52:22.969 --> 00:52:26.949 today and say, Jesus. You came to save me from 00:52:26.949 --> 00:52:32.789 my sins. Would you save me today? I repent. I 00:52:32.789 --> 00:52:35.829 want to turn to you. I do not know how this works 00:52:35.829 --> 00:52:38.710 or anything, but I'm inviting you today. Touch 00:52:38.710 --> 00:52:47.429 my very soul. That is what you need to do. And 00:52:47.429 --> 00:52:49.650 if you don't do it today, now you know what you 00:52:49.650 --> 00:52:53.949 need to do when your heart is ready. But remember, 00:52:54.090 --> 00:53:02.550 if you die with your soul, not healed, you know 00:53:02.550 --> 00:53:04.909 what Jesus told you will happen. Not because 00:53:04.909 --> 00:53:07.849 he doesn't love you, but because you refuse to 00:53:07.849 --> 00:53:16.389 love the truth. Secondly, if you are a follower 00:53:16.389 --> 00:53:21.190 of Jesus, perhaps you have stopped remaining 00:53:21.190 --> 00:53:25.659 in his love. And you're in that place in which 00:53:25.659 --> 00:53:29.579 you've been feeling like damaged goods. You've 00:53:29.579 --> 00:53:31.699 been struggling with shame because you've been 00:53:31.699 --> 00:53:34.460 doing things you know do not please God, but 00:53:34.460 --> 00:53:39.019 you've been a hypocrite. And you are wondering, 00:53:39.219 --> 00:53:43.159 does God really love me? Is he going to give 00:53:43.159 --> 00:53:48.300 up on me? Is he tired of me? Remember, God loves 00:53:48.300 --> 00:53:51.460 you with agape love. It does not depend on your 00:53:51.460 --> 00:53:55.969 performance. So you will have to learn to trust 00:53:55.969 --> 00:53:59.210 in his grace and let that place of trusting in 00:53:59.210 --> 00:54:03.289 his grace be the empowerment to give you a breakthrough, 00:54:03.550 --> 00:54:08.349 the addictions that are holding you back. But 00:54:08.349 --> 00:54:11.210 don't entertain that voice for even another second. 00:54:11.750 --> 00:54:16.190 Does God really love me? Look at the cross and 00:54:16.190 --> 00:54:21.840 you will know the answer. And finally, If you 00:54:21.840 --> 00:54:24.960 are following Jesus, if you are a believer in 00:54:24.960 --> 00:54:29.300 God, but you're in this place in which you are 00:54:29.300 --> 00:54:33.420 doubting because things have happened in your 00:54:33.420 --> 00:54:36.300 life that have been hard and you are wondering, 00:54:36.360 --> 00:54:40.239 God, if you really love me, why did you let this 00:54:40.239 --> 00:54:43.480 happen to me to start with? How can you say you 00:54:43.480 --> 00:54:45.539 love me and let this happen at the same time? 00:54:46.599 --> 00:54:50.550 If that is the place of crisis you are in, I'm 00:54:50.550 --> 00:54:53.329 here to encourage you. You will have to learn 00:54:53.329 --> 00:54:58.949 to trust God's heart. Remember, God is love. 00:54:59.389 --> 00:55:04.050 He cannot act otherwise. He is love. That's His 00:55:04.050 --> 00:55:09.349 essence. So what you may be experiencing is that 00:55:09.349 --> 00:55:12.289 you do not understand why these things are happening, 00:55:12.389 --> 00:55:15.150 but you have to understand that no circumstances 00:55:15.150 --> 00:55:19.750 have the power to define who God is. Only God 00:55:19.750 --> 00:55:22.949 can tell you who he is and he has told you in 00:55:22.949 --> 00:55:28.050 his word that he loves you. So rather than using 00:55:28.050 --> 00:55:30.789 these circumstances that are waiting for you 00:55:30.789 --> 00:55:35.250 to use them as an excuse to say, well, God, you 00:55:35.250 --> 00:55:38.929 don't love me. You will have to change the paradigm 00:55:38.929 --> 00:55:42.789 completely. You will have to realize, God, you 00:55:42.789 --> 00:55:46.070 love me. Let me find in your love the strength 00:55:46.070 --> 00:55:50.170 I need to go through this hardship because you 00:55:50.170 --> 00:55:55.050 are with me. You see the difference? May you 00:55:55.050 --> 00:55:58.349 find the strength in God's love to go through 00:55:58.349 --> 00:56:02.030 this passage. So as you go through it, you may 00:56:02.030 --> 00:56:05.849 come out of it stronger and with a love for God 00:56:05.849 --> 00:56:13.710 that is deeper than ever before. God loves you. 00:56:16.070 --> 00:56:22.829 That is a fact. So that is not even the question. 00:56:24.150 --> 00:56:28.949 The question is, would you love God? That's what 00:56:28.949 --> 00:56:34.969 he created you for. So I'm going to invite you 00:56:34.969 --> 00:56:37.789 today, as we conclude this time together, if 00:56:37.789 --> 00:56:42.719 you have never asked Jesus to save you, Let this 00:56:42.719 --> 00:56:45.500 be the beginning of experiencing God's love. 00:56:46.099 --> 00:56:48.659 But if there is any other distortion that is 00:56:48.659 --> 00:56:51.460 holding you from experiencing God's love, let 00:56:51.460 --> 00:56:56.019 this moment sink in and let the love of God touch 00:56:56.019 --> 00:57:07.820 your soul. Lord, as we come to this time, thank 00:57:07.820 --> 00:57:13.840 you for this powerful reminder. That your love 00:57:13.840 --> 00:57:19.639 is so deep. And we can only understand how deep 00:57:19.639 --> 00:57:24.119 it is until we understand how deep our mess is. 00:57:26.980 --> 00:57:31.239 Thank you for loving us enough to get into our 00:57:31.239 --> 00:57:38.400 mess, to rescue us from it. If there's anyone 00:57:38.400 --> 00:57:41.280 here, Lord, that has not encountered your love, 00:57:42.349 --> 00:57:46.010 or struggling to remain in your love, use this 00:57:46.010 --> 00:57:51.269 time to touch our very hearts with your presence. 00:57:52.030 --> 00:58:01.829 In Jesus' name, amen. Thank you for tuning in 00:58:01.829 --> 00:58:05.969 to the ECB Sermon Podcast. Whether near or far, 00:58:06.190 --> 00:58:09.449 if you are looking for community or are in need 00:58:09.449 --> 00:58:12.820 of prayer, we welcome you to engage by sending 00:58:12.820 --> 00:58:18.380 us an email to office at ecb .asia. If God is 00:58:18.380 --> 00:58:21.019 calling you to support our ministries, you will 00:58:21.019 --> 00:58:24.780 find giving options on our website. And remember 00:58:24.780 --> 00:58:27.559 to join us next week. God bless you.