[0:00] Thank you.
[0:30] Thank you.
[1:00] Thank you.
[1:30] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
[2:02] Thank you. This is the day. This is the day. This is the day. That the Lord has made. That the Lord has made.
[2:14] Let us rejoice. Let us rejoice. And be glad in it. And be glad in it. This is the day that the Lord has made.
[2:30] Let us rejoice and be glad in it. This is the day. This is the day. This is the day that the Lord has made.
[2:46] Shall we pray together? Shall we pray together? Dear God in heaven, we pray that your special blessings will fall down on us. That this morning we might experience the power of the Holy Spirit touching our lives, touching our souls, transforming us forever.
[3:00] For it's in Jesus name we pray. Amen. I'd like to invite you, if you're able to stand us, we're going to sing together. Savior, like a shepherd, lead us. Savior, like a shepherd, lead us.
[3:26] Much we need thy tender care.
[3:37] In thy pleasant pastures feed us. For our use thy folds prepare. Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus.
[3:53] Thou hast brought us thine we are. Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus.
[4:05] Thou hast brought us thine we are. We are thine, thou do not refrain us.
[4:17] Be the guardian of our way. Keep thy flock from sin, defend us.
[4:28] Seek us when we go astray. Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus.
[4:39] Hear, oh, hear us when we pray. Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus.
[4:51] Hear, oh, hear us when we pray. The Lord be with you. And also with you. Please be seated.
[5:02] This morning we do have a mission moment, opportunity for giving. You know, we do these throughout the year to give you an opportunity to give to the mission efforts that you feel the most strongly about.
[5:14] And this one today is back to school. Because we have some children in our community that don't have the wherewithal to get those pencils and those books and pack backs.
[5:25] And in fact, some of them don't even have proper shoes to wear to school. So we try to help them with that effort by your gifts. If you'd like to help some child in their efforts to go back to school, that's what that offering is for today.
[5:38] And I believe you can even bring things in if you want to. If you'd rather like buy them and bring them in, you can do that. Because some families like to do that, especially with their kids. And there's a bin out there to collect them somewhere.
[5:50] Now that's really pretty vague, isn't it? But you can find it. It's out there. Try Mission Alley. That would be my suggestion to you. Is there anybody else, any joys they'd like to share this morning?
[6:01] What's going on in our community that we're celebrating today? Pretty bad week, huh? I have a new granddaughter.
[6:12] You have a new granddaughter. Well, congratulations, Julie. Wonderful. Yes, Tom? Farm and Home Days at Penelton was great. Was great. Farm and Home Days, great. Good celebration of our community.
[6:24] Anything else? Yes. All right. 1.4 million.
[6:36] 1.4 million. Wow. 1.4 million. How would you like to start life as a 1.4 million dollar baby? Yeah, I'm glad not to start with a 1.4 million dollar bill, that's for sure.
[6:51] What else do we have that we'd like to share today? All right. Well, God, yes, go ahead. Okay. So, Bill went to be with the Lord, and some people might say, why are we sharing that in the joys?
[7:10] Because it really is better than the alternative, to go to the alternative than to live here. So, we celebrate with those who die in the Lord. It's a great joy. Wonderful. Anything else we'd like to share?
[7:23] All right. As we are thankful for all the wonderful gifts that God gives to us, let's return our thanksgiving with our morning tithes and our offerings. What apostles?
[7:39] Can I read that? How glorious might go! Sorry.
[8:12] Sorry. Okay. Should I try again? Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay.
[8:23] Okay. Okay.
[8:55] Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay.
[9:06] Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay.
[9:17] Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. your care. Where he stands alone against the world, his heart a stone.
[9:44] Drowning in the wealth of overwhelming shame, reach swells. Lift him up, lift him up, lift him up, up, up to you.
[10:03] Lift him up, Lord. Lift him up, lift him up, up, up to you. Lord, bring him strength to face this fight.
[10:24] Jesus defend through his endless night. Blood is frail, their spirits failing, broken lives abound.
[10:51] Sisters crying, sisters crying, brothers dying, desperation melts. Lift him up, lift him up, lift him up, up, up to you.
[11:09] So lift us up, Lord. Lift us up, lift us up, up, up to you.
[11:21] Lord, show your healing in this world, brought with fear. Jesus take hold, let your glory unfold.
[11:41] Lord, reveal your love that heals. newborn soul, newborn soul, reach out through infant eyes, where hope resides.
[12:04] So lift her up, and lift him up, Lord. Lift them up, up, up, up to you.
[12:16] Lord, reveal your love. Thank you. Thank you.
[12:39] Thank you. Are you your mãud? Please give the hope. Oh, praise Him, all the riches here below. Raise Him above ye heavenly hope.
[12:55] Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen. Dear Lord, you've always been gracious to us.
[13:11] You give us blessings beyond our ability to count. You've cared for us and nurtured us, and so we give these gifts, Lord, back to you, that you might use them to do wonderful things, to share the love of God with others.
[13:23] In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Please be seated. Good morning.
[13:43] Brothers and sisters in Christ, we celebrate the new birth by water and the Spirit through the sacrament of baptism as we become members of Christ's holy church. On behalf of the church, I present Jacob Patrick Kinmartin for baptism.
[13:58] I've known Jacob's parents, his grandparents, his great-grandparents.
[14:17] In fact, I baptized Stuart, so it's been a long, long time that I've known this family. We're glad to have you here. Come on up. These questions are for the parents.
[14:30] Do you reject the evil powers of this world, repent of your sin, and accept the freedom and power God gives you to resist Satan? If so, answer, I do. Do you confess Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior and promise to serve as Christ's representative through faithful participation in his church?
[14:48] If so, answer, I do. Will you nurture this child in Christ's holy church and by teaching an example, lead him to accept Christ as his Lord and Savior? If so, answer, I will.
[14:59] Now, for those who are sponsors, will you who sponsor this child support and encourage him in his Christian faith? If so, answer, I will. And will you as the church of Christ renew your own vows of commitment to Christ and accept your responsibility to assist these parents in fulfilling their vows?
[15:18] If so, answer, we will. We will. Very good. Good morning. How are you doing? I know. This is about you. I get it. I get it. That's okay.
[15:28] We'll get there. Come on over here. Shall we pray?
[15:39] Lord, bless this water as a symbol of your sanctifying and renewing grace. As you have used water to bless the saints of history, let it now bless your child. Pour out your Holy Spirit on this gift of water.
[15:50] To bless this child with your grace, it leads to eternal life. Help us to know that as we die to this world, we become alive to Christ and share in his final victory over sin and death. Amen.
[16:04] Hey, Jacob. How you doing? How we doing? There's mom and dad right there. You guys see him? Jacob, Patrick, and Martin. I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
[16:21] May God bless you and be with you this day and forever. Amen. He's trying to figure out if he could take a bath in there. Brothers and sisters in Christ, shall we greet our newest member into the family of God?
[16:33] Thank you. Very good. Very good. Very good. Yes?
[16:49] Thank you.
[17:19] Thank you.
[17:49] Thank you. I didn't get the training. That's the story of my life. I didn't get the training. Okay. Anybody else have something they'd like to share? Yeah, way over here.
[18:00] Heather's hearing. I would need to ask all of you to pray for her father-in-law, Ray, who's going in for surgery on Friday to remove cancer in his lung. Okay. So it's Ray. Ray.
[18:11] Ray for cancer in his lung. Okay. Anyone else? Yeah. Okay.
[18:26] That's great. Your daughter, Yolanta, working with Youth with a Mission in the Baltics. A couple of weeks. A couple of months. Well, months. Bringing the word to people.
[18:38] We need to pray for that. Yep. Anybody else? Yes. Oh, boy.
[18:58] Okay. Yeah. Okay. Megan is on the prayer chain. Okay.
[19:09] Oh, wow. 36 years old. And they were doing kidney stones and they were checking for kidney stones. Okay.
[19:29] Yeah. Megan Joplin? Joplin. Joplin. Okay, Megan Joplin. Yeah, that's, you know, they found the cancer when they were looking to do some surgery for kidney stones.
[19:43] So, all right. Let's go ahead and pray unless there's another prayer request. Lord, we ask that you just pray. We pray, Father, for these people that have needs. Megan. And we pray, Father, for Jan and Bob.
[19:57] We pray, Father, for Sandy. We pray, Father, for these other requests. We ask, Father, that you'll meet the needs in healing and spiritual healing. Lord, those that don't know you that are soon to go leave this world, we pray that they may come to know you.
[20:11] Those that do, we pray that you continue to comfort them knowing that you're with them in death. And we ask, Lord, that you just bless the rest of the service. In Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.
[20:22] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.
[20:32] Amen. Amen.
[20:50] Amen. Good morning. Our scripture this morning is taken from the book of John, chapter 16, verses 1 through 15. All this I have told you so that you will not fall away.
[21:03] They will put you out of the synagogue. In fact, the time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God. They will do such things because they have not known the Father or me.
[21:16] I have told you this so that when their time comes, you will remember that I warned you about them. I did not tell you this from the beginning because I was with you. But now I am going to him who sent me.
[21:30] None of you asks me, where are you going? Rather, you are filled with grief because I have said these things. But very truly, I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away.
[21:42] Unless I go away, the advocate will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment.
[21:54] About sin, because people do not believe in me. About righteousness, because I am going to the Father where you can see me no longer.
[22:05] And about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned. I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth.
[22:20] He will not speak on his own. He will speak only what he hears. And he will tell you what is yet to come. He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you.
[22:32] All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said, the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you. This is the word of the Lord.
[22:44] Thanks be to God. Thank you, Jan. In the Bible it says, God helps those who help themselves.
[22:55] Anybody know where that is located? That is because the Bible does not say that. Ben Franklin said that. It is called fake news, right? But if I say it with authority and I say it from up here, you say it must be true.
[23:09] I do not know why. I did not know that was in the Bible. Because it is not. Sometimes we will read in the Bible where it says the truth will set us free. But which truth?
[23:20] In our culture, we seem to have a whole lot of different truths that we are trying to sort out as a culture, as a people, even as church people. Robert Louis Stevenson, when he was a young boy, was watching out the window.
[23:35] And back in those days, they had gas lights lighting their streets. We had that in the village of Wyoming. And there was a person called the gas lighter who would have to go around every night, get out a little ladder, and take the lighter and light each lamp as he went.
[23:53] And as a little boy, he looked out the window and he said, Mommy, Daddy, come here and look. There is a man punching holes in the darkness. What a wonderful phrase. Punching holes in the darkness.
[24:06] The truth of God will punch holes in the darkness of ignorance. But where do we find that truth? Some people would say, well, we look in the Bible.
[24:17] But the Bible was written thousands of years ago. And so we actually have to interpret it, trying to understand the truth behind it. And people find all sorts of different truths in the Bible.
[24:28] I want to try a little experiment with you. And Adrian and I haven't done this before, so it might work or it might not. Let's see what we got, Adrian. So what I want you to do is I want you to read the colors in order.
[24:42] Okay, ready? Red. Second column. Read the color in order.
[24:57] The color in order. You guys couldn't even do the second column. You see what happens?
[25:12] Did you notice how when you got to that third column, you're like, I can't do that. I can't read a color that's in the wrong. It doesn't work. Because we have preconceived ideas.
[25:24] Preconceived understanding of what we know as truth. And when something doesn't match with what we've heard all along, we just simply reject it.
[25:37] God's truth is what we're seeking. In verse 13 of this chapter, it says to us, When the spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into the truth.
[25:50] He will not speak on his own. He will speak only what he hears. And he will tell you what is yet to come. We have a perfect guide in the spirit of God.
[26:00] But we don't always listen to that perfect guide. Even when he tells us the truth. And we don't always use the truth the way God intended. There was a man in the Old Testament named Joseph.
[26:11] Joseph. And Joseph had an interesting spiritual gift. We're talking about spiritual gifts. And they appear in the Old Testament too. He could interpret dreams. He knew what dreams meant.
[26:24] And so he had seen a dream that he interpreted as saying that his brothers would bow down in front of him. The dream was a true dream. He interpreted it right.
[26:36] But sometimes there's truths that are better shared in one circumstance than in another. Because when he told all his older brothers that they would bow down before him. They tossed him in a pit.
[26:48] And they wouldn't let him out. The problem is, is we don't want to hear the truths that are inconvenient.
[26:59] That don't match our understanding. We don't want to hear the truths even if they come from God. I think at this point in time, in many ways, Christianity is under conviction from God.
[27:12] Because we made the church in some ways about everything but God. Whether it's about our buildings or our finances. Or even some places where they're hurting even little children.
[27:26] About power and about getting our way. And because of that, the church is dying. And people are struggling.
[27:37] And in some ways, the world seems to be getting darker and darker. It isn't really a new idea. In the second verse, Jesus said, People will put you out of the synagogue, which was like their church.
[27:51] In fact, the time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God. They will do such things because they have not known the Father bore me.
[28:06] It's fascinating how many people fight in the name of a God of peace. How many people go to the Bible to find an argument so that they can somehow destroy what someone is sharing with them that they think is truth.
[28:20] In fact, the Bible says a time will come where people will gather, preachers around them that will say what their itching ears want to hear. We'll pick our churches based on whether or not they agree with what we saw in our favorite newscast the night before.
[28:42] And we heard each other. Joseph's brothers not only threw him down in a pit, they actually saw some people coming from Egypt and they sold their brother into slavery.
[28:55] Because they didn't like what they heard. Even though it was true. How many times do we find that we're looking for a way to find victory over our neighbor rather than to find truth in the darkness?
[29:13] Because we're not looking for what God wants. Jesus said he had to leave and they were upset about this. And he says, you're grieving because you don't want change.
[29:26] Nobody likes change but a baby with a wet diaper, right? We don't like change. We want to hold on to the old things. There's even a passage in the Bible where Jesus talks about not putting new wine into old wineskins, but you put new wine into new wineskins so that there's room for it to expand.
[29:44] And it's a wonderful little passage about how we have to put new ways of thinking, a new society, a new culture, even who and what we are, into something that God is revealing as truth today. But it ends by saying, but people prefer the old wine to the new.
[30:01] They like the old ideas. They like the old way of doing things. They like the old songs. They like everything the way it was. Isaiah says to us in chapter 55, My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord, as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
[30:32] The difficulty is, is that all too often people who call them followers of Christ are actually simply creating a world that supports what they already understood.
[30:45] They're making a religion rather than seeking a faith. They're looking for rules that will support what they want. And they're hurtful.
[30:59] And they bring judgment instead of joy. And we have to be careful that we don't become those people. I don't want to simply brag on us because I'm here, but the truth is this church is better than many.
[31:13] We have very few fights with each other. We don't go into arguing with each other. We don't condemn the one next door because they don't think the way we do. See, the goal is truth, not victory.
[31:27] And maybe you're right, and maybe I'm right, and maybe neither one of us are right, and we just need to find out what that truth is. But if you have a religion without the Spirit of God, it becomes hurtful like a marriage without love.
[31:45] It might even be effective. It might even be practical, but it's not good, and I guarantee you there'll be a lot of fighting. See, we can know all about God and not know God at all.
[32:01] We need to seek the light. Sometimes Christianity is so focused on God Almighty, God All-Powerful, or even on Jesus, His Son who came to save us, that we find ourselves with a misconception that God is some mean, nasty guy that wants to whack us all, or God is just a loving, nice guy who just came down here to heal us all and bless us all.
[32:26] And we don't find the truth. Because the truth is in the third person of the Trinity. I know the Trinity makes you all crazy. Someone once said that those who ignore the Trinity will lose their soul, and those who try to understand it will lose their mind.
[32:44] How does one plus one plus one equal one? That's just, you're making me nuts, Pastor. But the point is, for us, the on-the-ground truth is that we need that light.
[32:56] We need that ability to see, because we're living in a deeper and deeper and darker and darker world. We're talking about how do you make a house a home.
[33:08] And one of the things we do is we add light. You know, in my house, there's like a gazillion of these little night lights. Do you know what I mean? Those little tiny bulbs.
[33:19] They're everywhere. You know, now, I'll tell you, I've lived in the house next door for almost 30 years. I can walk up the stairs into my bedroom with no lights on. I know where everything is.
[33:31] Okay? I've been there that long. And actually, even out at Silver Lake, I can do the same thing. Because I've had that house even longer. And even though it's not the same house that I bought years ago, I can get out of bed.
[33:44] Once I figure out where I am, I can actually walk down the steps and get to the bathroom and back without a light on. But there's always a light on. Because my wife doesn't trust that people can do that safely.
[33:58] And especially in the part of the house where the guests stay. There's little night lights everywhere. There's a night light in the bathroom. There's a night light in the hallway. There's lights in the bedrooms. There's lights everywhere. Because she doesn't want somebody stumbling in the darkness.
[34:13] And we need that kind of light in our lives, which is the light of the Holy Spirit to teach us, to guide us into what we are to become. God became incarnate, Jesus says.
[34:27] And he was with them. He says, but now I need to go. And why did Jesus need to go? Well, it's very simple. Because Jesus could only talk to a small group of people at one time.
[34:38] Even if you're talking several thousand people, compared to the population of the world, that's hardly anybody. But the Holy Spirit can touch every single soul, every single heart on the face of the earth.
[34:51] And God said, I will pour out my Holy Spirit on everyone. Where we'll learn the truth. If we're willing to listen.
[35:04] We don't listen. Because there's so many other voices talking at us, yelling at us, shouting at us. Have you noticed that's what the news is lately? There is no news. It's just people talking to each other.
[35:18] Convincing each other that they believe what they believe already. And even the people watching. It's the same thing. Nobody's really looking for the truth, but the truth is available.
[35:32] If we just listen. Dreams are interesting things. Joseph had the ability to interpret dreams. And we can have that ability too.
[35:45] I've had two or three parishioners in the last couple weeks come up to me and talk to me about their dreams. How many of you remember all your dreams? Nobody remembers all their dreams, right?
[35:56] Like, maybe one here or one there. And so when you have that one or two that you remember, it's like, oh, I remember a dream. What did that mean, right? And you're kind of like, I don't get it.
[36:08] Well, there's a reason. Because either your mind is trying to teach you something that you're not seeing in your conscious life because there's too much noise, or God himself is trying to speak a truth to you.
[36:21] Somebody was telling me the other day about the afterlife that they dreamed about. God is trying to say that you can trust in that. You can believe in that. I've had dreams, I remember.
[36:34] I remember when I asked God to give me a woman I could spend my life with. And my wife appeared in my dream before she appeared in my life. She's my literal dream girl.
[36:46] Not too many people can actually say that way. And we have those marker dreams, those things that touch our conscience and teach us a lesson. And God will share with us, either consciously or even in our dreams, if we will listen.
[37:04] And some people have the gift to interpret those dreams, but we have to be looking for what God wants. And as Isaiah said, my ways are not your ways. My thoughts are not your thoughts.
[37:16] As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than the ways, your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. We get so caught up with how much we know.
[37:29] And we actually start to believe that if we don't know it, it can't be true. That's because we're so educated. And education's a great thing.
[37:40] It's a wonderful thing to learn all that's come before us, rather than repeating all of that and trying to figure it out ourselves. We take what we've received from the past and we put it into our lives to understand what we should be doing.
[37:55] It's another way to understand God is some people have the gift of teaching to share with you the knowledge that other people have thought up or figured out over the years. Years ago, when I wanted to figure out how to do something, like a project or mechanics or anything like that, I'd have to go find somebody who was an expert.
[38:13] Now all I got to do is go, Google! Right? You can find out anything! It's amazing the information available at our fingertips right now.
[38:23] But the problem with teaching is teaching only reveals truth that's already been revealed. Teaching only tells you what we already know. The Holy Spirit can reveal to us a truth we haven't discovered yet.
[38:40] Not only that, He can reveal to us but it's the heart of God itself. And it's the heart of God that calls us to live together and love together regardless of whether we agree together.
[38:52] Do you honestly believe that everybody in this room thinks the same way? Do you honestly believe that everybody is going to vote in the elections in the next month or two the same way? Are you absolutely deluded enough to believe that in a group of people, even in one household, in one family, that you get everybody to agree?
[39:09] Of course you won't. But we sit down at the same table together as a family and remember who we belong to, whose children we are. And we listen to the people even when we have crazy ideas.
[39:23] You know, those are the ones that don't agree with what I think. And maybe somewhere when they share their ideas and we share ours, we find the truth. Or we just realize we're not there yet.
[39:35] It's good to learn things. But it's better to experience things because unfortunately in our culture, when we look on the outside, sometimes we mess up.
[39:48] When we go with preconceived ideas like we did in that chart, sometimes we find it difficult to see the truth. And we are very good at judging the outside, aren't we?
[39:59] I was watching America's Got Talent. Are you surprised? Yeah. And I saw this woman about a month ago. I thought she was worth sharing with you.
[40:11] And what made you decide to come on America's Got Talent? Okay, well, I'm 42 years old. When I was 19, I had a dream of being a singer and I had an opportunity to go and audition.
[40:23] And I got to the very end and right before they chose the final people, they cut me and they told me it was because I wasn't the right size. What? When I was 19 years old, I decided I was going to audition for this big theme park.
[40:35] I got a standing ovation from all the other auditioners. I was like, yes, like this is it. Here we go. And right at the last cut, they cut me and everyone was like, what?
[40:45] So I went and asked. So I was like, you know, why? And they said because I wouldn't fit the clothes that they were already like envisioning, the costumes. And I didn't have the look. Oh my God. Dream.
[40:57] Can I ask you? Can I ask you? Do you think for a living? Do you think professionally? No, I'm a registered nurse. Oh. And I'm a single mom. I have two boys.
[41:07] Wow. Yeah. And why did you decide to come on the show this year? This is an awesome opportunity for me to fulfill my dreams and for me to show my boys that nothing, nothing should prevent you from making your dreams come true.
[41:20] Preach. Yes. Thank you for saying that. God has a dream for each of us. We've talked about that. God has a gift for each of us. But we let the people in our culture define who we are.
[41:35] She was the wrong size for the clothes they already had in mind. Okay. Why would that stop her? She changed the course of her life based on what somebody else said as if some person somewhere has the ability to judge what God wants you to be.
[41:57] You see, the difficulty is we're worried about popularity. We're worried about whether we fit. We're worried about what other people say. We worry about whether people will agree with our opinion. And we're so worried about being right in this world that we can find ourselves on the wrong side of judgment in the next world.
[42:15] And that's the goal is faithfulness. Because we're in a battle. We're in a battle for our very souls and for our eternal life. In Ephesians chapter 6 it says to us our struggle is not against flesh and blood but against the rulers, the authorities, against the powers of this dark world, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realm.
[42:39] Jesus said a battle is coming, a struggle is coming. If you think that everything will be perfect if you just put Jesus in your life, you're missing the point.
[42:54] Jesus said, I've told you this so that when this hard time comes you will remember that I warned you about them. Joseph. Joseph was sold to a man named Potiphar.
[43:09] Potiphar had a big household. He was in charge of the jail in that city. And Potiphar realized that this young boy, Joseph, he had a special touch.
[43:22] He was smart, he was bright, he was a hard worker. So he put him in charge of everything. Well, he put him in charge of the whole household and Mrs. Potiphar took notice. Oh, where'd that handsome young guy come from?
[43:37] And now the story goes PG. So you can just let your mind go as to what Potiphar's wife had in mind. It's in the book, you can read it, it's okay. You know, not everything in this, well, anyways.
[43:48] So Potiphar's wife decided she had an interest in Joseph, and Joseph said, I can't do that, you're a married woman. And so she accused him of things he didn't do, and Potiphar, of course, believed his wife because that's what we're supposed to do.
[44:02] And Joseph ended up in prison. See, even people who are trying to do the right thing, even people who are trying to live the right life can find themselves in darkness, can find themselves in a struggle, can find themselves in difficulties because this world is not necessarily designed in such a way that people who follow God are going to find a welcome reception.
[44:28] But in verse 11, it says to us about judgment, the prince of this world now stands condemned. You see, it's already been decided.
[44:42] The victory has already been won. Jesus defeated all evil on the cross. We're just in the mop-up campaign now as we wait the final day.
[44:53] The light has destroyed the darkness. darkness. Christianity isn't just about winning heaven, it's about heaven winning in our life.
[45:09] Jesus said, I am the light of the world. And the more we bring God into our life, we bring God into our world, we bring God into who and what we do, we punch more holes in the darkness.
[45:25] There must be lights burning brighter somewhere. Gotta be birds flying higher in a sky so blue. If I can dream of a brighter land where all my brothers walk hand in hand.
[45:42] Somebody say, I haven't sung Elvis in a while. Why can't we make it true? Why can't we as the people who say that they follow the prince of peace, the God of love?
[45:56] Why can't we be the vanguard of the people that will show the world? They don't have to fight just because we don't always agree. Amen? We can bring light into the darkness.
[46:09] We can punch holes here, there, in your home, in your work, wherever we go. But to do so, we need the Holy Spirit. It's interesting because in verse 7, the Holy Spirit is referred to as the advocate.
[46:23] In other parts of the Bible, it's called the counselor. Now, some people think that means, like last week when I said the paraclete comes alongside us and God will comfort us in our time of need.
[46:33] But the counselor that they mean is the counselor for the defense. You know what I'm saying? The advocate is the one that defends us. They're the ones that help us and they help us by guiding us. And Jesus says, they show us our sin in verse 9.
[46:48] He says that they teach us about righteousness. He'll tell us about what's good or wrong. He will show us where salvation lies if we listen.
[47:05] But the darkness can seem overwhelming. Imagine Joseph in that prison. He's gotten thrown in prison for something he didn't do. and he's down there in prison and he went to work because that's what he did and the jailer kind of put him in charge of a lot of things but he's still stuck in prison.
[47:25] And along come a couple of guys and they said we want you to interpret our dreams. You know what Joseph could have said? I don't do that stuff anymore. That doesn't work for me.
[47:36] I tried that in the past and look where it got me. I don't do that God stuff anymore. Instead he did. He did what God called him to and he interpreted these dreams and you'd think wow everything would work out perfect but it didn't.
[47:51] It didn't. The guy whose dreams he interpreted they forgot about Joseph. And he was left in the darkness. Sometimes we need to recognize that even in the darkness we can turn to God and receive that power.
[48:08] In the book of Psalms it says to us the Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life. Of whom shall I be afraid?
[48:20] Whose opinion? Whose thought? Whose idea? Whose comment should cause us to fear? And to turn away from the dreams that God has set in us.
[48:32] So you want to hear the lady sing? Amen. There's a light in the darkness though the night is black as my skin There's a light burning bright showing me showing me the way But I know where I've been There's a dream In the future there's a struggle We have yet We have yet to end Use that pride in our hearts To lift us to tomorrow
[49:35] Cause just to sit still would be a sin Lord knows I know Where I've been I give thanks to my God Cause I know where I've been Now she had a choice whether to include that last line Did you notice that?
[50:17] She could have ended it right there She could have just walked away at that point and said you know I did a great job singing this song I even mentioned the Lord a little bit in sin you know But she wanted everybody to know that the reason she was able to get back and stand on that stage in spite of what people were saying about her was because of God I give thanks to the Lord cause I know where I've been I was trying to talk to my grandson the other day you know he was talking about things young people do wrong I said boy you have no idea what your grandfather's done wrong in his life I know what the darkness is I know what sin is I know what it means to be tempted I know what it means to do the wrong thing but somehow God made a way for me and so I'm going to keep looking for that light and sharing that light with the rest of the world you know Jesus said
[51:17] I am the light of the world but then elsewhere in Matthew chapter 5 he said you are the light of the world a town built on a hill cannot be hidden neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl instead they put it on its stand and it gives light to everyone in the house in the same way let your light shine before others that you might see your good deeds and glorify your father in heaven you are the light of the world you got your lights you know what I'm talking about don't you kids know it I think you know it too this little light of mine I'm gonna let it shine this little light of mine I'm gonna let it shine this little light of mine I'm gonna let it shine let it shine let it shine let it shine okay let's mess with the people who still aren't singing right hide it under a bushel I'm gonna let it shine hide it under a bushel no I'm gonna let it shine hide it under a bushel no
[52:20] I'm gonna let it shine let it shine let it shine let it shine my ways are not your ways and what God's ways are are higher than anything we can imagine but we have to open up our lives to the real light which is the Holy Spirit we've been talking about this all summer if you don't have the power of the Holy Spirit affecting your life infecting your life changing and transforming your life all this religion we're doing means nothing all of this God talk is just babble all of this morality will not work out and all the truth that you're seeking will be distorted and confused and lead brother fighting brother sister attacking sister and parents attacking children the only thing that matters of anything I ever preached to you in all of these years is for you to understand you need to have
[53:22] God's Holy Spirit guiding your life you gotta let God take the wheel and change you and that power of God will change our lives Joseph got out of the prison he ended up being the number two in Egypt and actually his brothers came down to get food from him and they knelt down before him surprise surprise we knew that was gonna happen and they were like terrified oh my gosh you're gonna whack us he said no you don't understand you selling me into slavery me working in Potiphar's house me ending up in prison me spending those years in the darkness of prison was so that I could be lifted up to save millions of people from starving including you God worked all this for good can you imagine having such a faith in God that even when the darkness seems overcoming we still trust that there's a light in the midst of that darkness what was it
[54:24] Motel 6 it said we'll leave the light on you ever do that you ever go down the street you're looking for somebody's address and you're trying to see it in the dark and as I get older that's harder and harder to see and then they'll leave the light on well there it is right there you remember going home at night and you're a little like creeped out because you're not sure whether there's somebody weird lurking in the bushes but the light's on right I love that light God leaves the light on for us and wants us to be a light in the darkness for everyone in 1 Peter it says to us you're a chosen people a royal priesthood a holy nation God's special possession that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light God has called each and every one of us not to become part of the problem not to continue the argument not to figure out who can be victorious but to punch holes in the darkness and bring the light of God to this world and that will change everything issuesrick
[55:48] God bless you.
[56:18] God bless you.
[56:48] God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. King of all angels so highly exalted, glorious in heaven above.
[57:10] God bless you. Only you came to the earth you created. All your love's sake became poor.
[57:24] Here I am to worship. Here I am to bow down. Here I am to say that you're my God.
[57:40] You're altogether lovely. Altogether worthy. Altogether wonderful to me.
[57:54] I'll never know how much it cost to see my sin upon that cross.
[58:10] Here I am to worship.
[58:28] Here I am to worship. Here I am to bow down. Here I am to say that you're my God. You're altogether lovely.
[58:42] Altogether worthy. Altogether wonderful to me. Altogether wonderful to me.
[58:54] Here I am to worship. Altogether wonderful to me.
[59:16] There is a candle in every soul Some bright burning, some darkened coal There is a spirit who brings the fire Ignites a candle and makes its home So carry your candle, run to the darkness Seek out the hopeless, darkness and joy Call out your candle for all to see it Take your candle, go light your world Take your candle, go light your world
[60:23] I said, brother, see how he's trying to Light his own candle, some other way See now your sister, she can't rock and light you Still holds her candle without a flame Carry your candle, run to the darkness Seek out the lonely, the tired and warm Hold out your candle for all to see it Take your candle, go light your world Take your candle, go light your world
[61:25] And go light your world We are a family whose hearts are blazing So let's raise our candles Light up the sky Pray to our Father, pray to our Father In the name of Jesus In the name of Jesus In the name of Jesus Make us a beacon In God's eyes Carry your candle, run to the darkness Take your darkness Take out the helpless, take out the helpless Be seen that war Hold out your candle, for all to see it Take your candle, go light your world
[62:27] Take your candle, go light your world Grab your candle, for all to see it Take your candle, go light your world Take your candle Oh, light your world Kate, play the first chord of that song, would you please?
[63:16] Yeah, see, you all thought she made a mistake. Kate doesn't make those kind of mistakes. What? Why would they put a chord like that in there? It's like, what?
[63:28] It's so wrong. But that's what's in the music. But that's so wrong. But that's what the person who wrote the song was. But that's so wrong. Do you see?
[63:38] And we're all going, oh, Kate messed up. Oh, gosh, how embarrassing in front of everybody. Your mom and dad are here. She just totally messed up the song, really. I'm the very first chord. Can you believe it?
[63:49] Right out of the box. But she didn't. See how life works? We think we've got it all figured out. We think we've got all the answers.
[64:00] But believe it or not, God may be revealing a truth to someone else that you just have never seen before. The way we find that out is by admitting we're broken.
[64:11] We have problems. We have difficulties. We make mistakes. And then listening to what God is saying to us from God and even from other people.
[64:22] So let's confess our need to God, shall we? Dear God in heaven. Dear God in heaven. I have sinned. I have sinned. Even I mess up. Even I mess up. Even I mess up.
[64:32] And I make mistakes. Even I make mistakes. Sometimes I'm wrong. Sometimes I'm wrong. And sometimes I know it. Sometimes I know. Forgive me, Lord. Forgive me, Lord.
[64:44] Guide my heart. Change my spirit. Change my spirit. Cause me to repent and turn to you. Start to repent and turn to you. That you can reveal your truth and your love through me.
[65:00] In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. So God gives us a do-over, a mulligan, a fresh start. How many of you young people in school would like that?
[65:12] If you mess up the exam, you get to take it over again. Wouldn't that be cool? Because the whole idea is that you learn, right? Not that you're bad. Oh, I'm sorry. I'm on a different subject there.
[65:24] God gives us the ability to do it over again. It's a wonderful thing. It's a blessing that God gives to us. In the name of Jesus Christ, your sins are forgiven. In the name of Jesus Christ, your sins are forgiven.
[65:37] Glory to God. Amen. And now, as forgiven children of God, let's share the peace of the Spirit with one another. Peace be with you. Thank you.
[65:50] Peace. Foan. Are we doing dealing with again? No?
[66:00] I think it's at the end, right? It's after the communion, I think, right?
[66:14] Give me a smile. Have you ever begun? Do I do not계? Do I? Do I do not film? Do I do not film? Do I do not film? Do I do not film? Thank you. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
[66:32] It's going to be a long wait. Be not dismayed, what am I betide?
[67:12] God will take care of you. Beneath his wings of love abide, God will take care of you.
[67:28] God will take care of you. Through every day or all the way, he will take care of you.
[67:44] God will take care of you. All you may need, he will provide.
[67:55] God will take care of you. Nothing you ask will be denied.
[68:06] God will take care of you. God will take care of you.
[68:17] God will take care of you. He will take care of you.
[68:31] God will take care of you. We have an interesting custom in our house. Whoever happened to be in the house could sit down and eat dinner with us when it was dinner time.
[68:44] Didn't matter if they grew up in our house. Didn't matter if they belonged to our family or they were just somebody who happened to be stopping by for the day. And we'll never see them again. But we have that same custom in our house.
[68:55] This is God's dinner table and your heavenly father invites you to come to it. Doesn't matter whether you've been to this church before. Doesn't even matter if you're coming back. It doesn't matter if you grew up here or if you're someone who's been away a long time.
[69:10] Doesn't matter who you are. If you seek Jesus Christ in your heart, God invites you to his table. The Lord be with you. Lift up your hearts.
[69:22] Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. It is right and a good and joyful thing always and everywhere to give thanks to God. We often think to thank God in the good times.
[69:34] But even in the darkness, even in the struggles, even in the difficulty, God is there. And he will make all things work for good for those who love the Lord. So with all the people on earth and all the angels in heaven, we praise his name and we join their unending hymn saying, Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might.
[69:55] Heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest. Holy are you.
[70:06] Blessed is your son who came to share with us and be with us and live with us and show us what the love of God is. Even on the night when he was betrayed by those he loved the most.
[70:17] He gave this meal of grace to them. He took the bread and he gave thanks to God and then he broke the bread. He gave it to his disciples and he said, take and eat. This is my body which is broken for you for the forgiveness of sin.
[70:31] Eat of this remembering me. And when the supper was over, he took the cup. He gave thanks to God and he gave it to his disciples and he said, drink from this all of you. This is my blood of the new covenant.
[70:43] It's poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sin. Drink of this remembering me. And so in remembrance of these mighty acts in Jesus Christ, we offer ourselves in praise and in thanksgiving as a holy and living sacrifice in union with Christ offering for us as we proclaim the mystery of faith.
[71:05] Christ has died. Christ has risen. Christ will come again. Pour out your Holy Spirit on us, Lord. Pour it into our hearts. Touch our very being, Lord. Bless us in such a way that we know and experience the living God guiding our hearts, guiding our words, guiding all that we might be, that we might bring the love of God to this world and punch holes in the darkness.
[71:27] Bringing the grace, the truth, the love, the wonder of God. Bless us to be a blessing, Lord, as we pray in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
[71:38] Amen. And now as Jesus taught his disciples to pray, let us join together in saying, Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
[71:54] Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
[72:07] For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen. Will those who are assisting at the table come forward at this time, please? Because the kingdom and the house knew God to MORE.
[72:38] On earth as rooted in Lord of Heaven, what remains did you?
[72:51] Let us thank God and God in the middle hour and die. I may Yan'yink, God before you introduz. Put the entireってADs from your house La-SIA already rose to step survivor. If it takes outras terms of SA-��老師 we witness the motive. There was a wonderful family persecution put in spirit and nurture them. If there were hidden in desert days that were created still Thank you.
[73:33] Thank you.
[74:03] Thank you.
[74:33] Thank you. Thank you.
[75:33] Thank you. Thank you.
[76:33] Thank you. Thank you.
[77:33] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
[77:48] Thank you. Thank you. And now if you're able, I'm going to invite you to stand as we're going to sing together, Be Not Afraid.
[78:06] Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid
[79:08] Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid I go before you always, come follow me, and I will hear you rest.
[79:28] Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid
[80:32] Follow me, and I will hear you rest. Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid Be Not Afraid
[81:34] Be Not Afraid Spirit. May God descend upon you in power that you might go out with courage and conviction and may God give you the truth, the real truth and the ability to allow other people to have a different truth and live in peace.
[81:51] Amen.