1 00:00:03,840 --> 00:00:08,119 This is Living Waters of Grace, the teaching ministry of Clark 2 00:00:08,119 --> 00:00:12,240 Wofford, senior pastor of Calvary Chapel of Westmoreland, 3 00:00:12,240 --> 00:00:16,400 County of Greensburg, PA. Now here's Pastor Clark as he 4 00:00:16,400 --> 00:00:18,720 continues teaching through God's Word. 5 00:00:37,480 --> 00:00:41,960 Jesus is the perfect example of forgiving us, isn't it? 6 00:00:42,840 --> 00:00:47,360 And everything we did to him, he never once said, hey, I'll 7 00:00:47,360 --> 00:00:49,760 forgive these people, but no way am I forgiving them. 8 00:00:49,760 --> 00:00:52,680 They're just like they hurt me too much, they did too much 9 00:00:52,680 --> 00:00:54,680 evil. They just, they're worthless. 10 00:00:54,680 --> 00:00:59,800 No, God sees value and worth in every human being, and He died 11 00:01:01,480 --> 00:01:05,200 for our sins. And so how can I, how can you 12 00:01:05,840 --> 00:01:10,000 not be willing to forgive other people for their offenses? 13 00:01:10,720 --> 00:01:14,640 Forgiveness is one of the single most difficult topics in the 14 00:01:14,640 --> 00:01:17,600 body of Christ. Stop and think about your own 15 00:01:17,600 --> 00:01:20,280 struggles and the struggles of the people you know. 16 00:01:20,720 --> 00:01:25,200 They're almost all deeply rooted in an unwillingness to forgive. 17 00:01:25,800 --> 00:01:29,080 Pastor Clark will remind us today that forgiveness is 18 00:01:29,080 --> 00:01:33,400 central to the life of a follower of Jesus, and Jesus was 19 00:01:33,400 --> 00:01:37,120 our very best example. While we were yet sinners, 20 00:01:37,120 --> 00:01:40,840 Christ died for us. So we need to walk in the 21 00:01:40,840 --> 00:01:43,240 forgiveness that Jesus walked in. 22 00:01:43,760 --> 00:01:45,280 Now. Here's Pastor Clark in 23 00:01:45,280 --> 00:01:49,480 Revelation Chapter 11 with today's edition of Living Waters 24 00:01:49,480 --> 00:01:51,480 of Grace. And you look at the goal of 25 00:01:51,480 --> 00:01:53,920 modern healthcare today, it's it's fascinating. 26 00:01:54,160 --> 00:01:56,480 They want to deny the reality of death. 27 00:01:56,880 --> 00:01:59,160 I mean, the last thing that they want to tell you in the hospital 28 00:01:59,160 --> 00:02:02,240 is like there's no more hope. I mean, an honest doctor will 29 00:02:02,240 --> 00:02:04,800 say that they'll be upfront with you, but most of them say, hey, 30 00:02:04,800 --> 00:02:07,680 we can do this, we can do that. They got all these ideas with 31 00:02:08,160 --> 00:02:10,440 magic tricks they can pull out of their hat and maybe give you 32 00:02:10,440 --> 00:02:12,280 another couple years. They don't tell you like how 33 00:02:12,280 --> 00:02:15,120 miserable you might be or you might you don't have to be 34 00:02:15,120 --> 00:02:17,720 forced to be on artificial life support and that kind of stuff 35 00:02:18,560 --> 00:02:20,680 because it's a point on the man wants to die and after this a 36 00:02:20,680 --> 00:02:23,120 judgement. So my question is at times, when 37 00:02:23,120 --> 00:02:26,520 does medical science become a blessing and when is it becoming 38 00:02:26,520 --> 00:02:28,680 a curse? Because if it gets in the way of 39 00:02:28,680 --> 00:02:33,480 God's preordained plan, right, and begins to try to make life 40 00:02:33,640 --> 00:02:37,720 its own sustainer as opposed to God himself, then these poor 41 00:02:37,720 --> 00:02:41,720 people are are on these tubes unconscious and staying alive 42 00:02:41,720 --> 00:02:46,800 for a sometimes a very long time when they're already pretty much 43 00:02:47,080 --> 00:02:50,040 gone. It's an interesting discussion 44 00:02:50,040 --> 00:02:52,800 and I'm sure all of us might have some different points of 45 00:02:52,800 --> 00:02:59,160 view on that, but it's the medical and the new age gurus 46 00:02:59,160 --> 00:03:03,840 today that have this philosophy that it's just a matter of time 47 00:03:04,120 --> 00:03:07,520 before we conquer aging. Isn't that good news, guys that 48 00:03:07,520 --> 00:03:10,360 make you feel better than any? This a matter of time, brother, 49 00:03:10,520 --> 00:03:13,160 before we conquer aging. You're going to live to be 500? 50 00:03:13,760 --> 00:03:14,560 No, boy. Yeah. 51 00:03:15,440 --> 00:03:18,040 I have a friend. He's a doctor in Charleston and 52 00:03:18,040 --> 00:03:21,800 a fascinating guy who developed a good friendship, good brother 53 00:03:21,800 --> 00:03:23,520 and a Lord. And once in a while I go down 54 00:03:23,520 --> 00:03:24,640 there. He invites me to stay at his 55 00:03:24,640 --> 00:03:26,000 house and I do business down there. 56 00:03:26,520 --> 00:03:28,520 And one morning I'm getting up, having coffee there and I'm 57 00:03:28,520 --> 00:03:31,520 talking to his son and I see this guy, this picture of this 58 00:03:31,520 --> 00:03:35,000 guy on the wall, physique guys like in his early 70s. 59 00:03:35,000 --> 00:03:37,960 This guy's cut man. I mean, he looks like he's like 60 00:03:37,960 --> 00:03:40,240 a Charles Atlas of like 73 or whatever. 61 00:03:40,560 --> 00:03:44,560 And he, his claim to fame, doctor life is that you can have 62 00:03:44,560 --> 00:03:50,040 perpetual youthful longevity. If you deal with these youth 63 00:03:50,320 --> 00:03:52,600 hormones, you know, you get shot up. 64 00:03:52,600 --> 00:03:57,120 He's the guru doctor of all the Hollywood stars, all the glamour 65 00:03:57,120 --> 00:03:59,320 people, right? And so I'm like, looking at this 66 00:03:59,320 --> 00:04:01,320 picture, I'm thinking, what's the connection here with my 67 00:04:01,320 --> 00:04:02,880 Christian friend? Why would he have the picture of 68 00:04:02,880 --> 00:04:05,360 this guy on the wall? Is he like, is he into this? 69 00:04:05,360 --> 00:04:07,280 Is this what? And so I asked his grand. 70 00:04:07,280 --> 00:04:08,880 I asked his son, who is that guy? 71 00:04:08,880 --> 00:04:11,640 This is my grandfather. So David wakes up. 72 00:04:11,640 --> 00:04:12,960 I said, man, I read about that guy. 73 00:04:12,960 --> 00:04:15,840 I mean, what's he into? He says, Clark, my dad's he's 74 00:04:15,880 --> 00:04:18,839 he's a great guy, but he's like totally out of it because he 75 00:04:18,839 --> 00:04:21,480 thinks that he can conquer death. 76 00:04:21,839 --> 00:04:24,880 And in other words, instead of the body dying, it can be 77 00:04:25,920 --> 00:04:29,560 restored through all these metabolic changes. 78 00:04:29,560 --> 00:04:32,400 You know, And I said to him, I said, what's interesting, maybe, 79 00:04:32,400 --> 00:04:35,080 you know, for a few years, but his does he realize that 80 00:04:35,080 --> 00:04:36,360 eventually this isn't going to work? 81 00:04:36,960 --> 00:04:38,640 I mean, eventually he's going to die. 82 00:04:38,720 --> 00:04:40,840 I mean, it's appointed unto me and wants to die. 83 00:04:40,840 --> 00:04:44,040 And after this is judgment. And so the society is always 84 00:04:44,040 --> 00:04:46,440 trying to like, push away the inevitable. 85 00:04:46,920 --> 00:04:54,160 The church should be the most clear, peaceful place for us to 86 00:04:54,160 --> 00:04:59,520 learn about our destiny, right? What's in store for all of us 87 00:05:00,840 --> 00:05:04,200 now? The idea of Christianity being 88 00:05:04,200 --> 00:05:07,240 reconciled with death. You know God hates death. 89 00:05:07,560 --> 00:05:09,680 It wasn't his intention to have death. 90 00:05:10,000 --> 00:05:13,280 When he created us in the garden, He created us to live 91 00:05:13,280 --> 00:05:16,040 forever. We're the ones that changed the 92 00:05:16,520 --> 00:05:20,000 setup, didn't we? We took it upon ourselves to 93 00:05:20,000 --> 00:05:25,000 take life in our own hands, and sin and the wages of sin is 94 00:05:25,000 --> 00:05:29,200 death. Christ is our life and death, 95 00:05:30,200 --> 00:05:34,480 Christianity proclaiming it to be namely an enemy to be 96 00:05:34,480 --> 00:05:38,160 destroyed and not a mystery to be explained. 97 00:05:39,240 --> 00:05:43,360 The scriptures teach about death as being abnormal. 98 00:05:43,760 --> 00:05:47,600 It's not God's plan, is it? If it was his plan, there would 99 00:05:47,600 --> 00:05:51,080 be no resurrection. God wouldn't have come in the 100 00:05:51,080 --> 00:05:55,520 flesh to die and to go through what He went through for you and 101 00:05:55,520 --> 00:06:01,200 I if death was his plan. He's done everything he could 102 00:06:01,200 --> 00:06:05,560 for you and me to sustain us in eternity. 103 00:06:05,800 --> 00:06:10,000 Turn to John Chapter 11. This is Jesus own experience of 104 00:06:10,000 --> 00:06:13,600 death with Lazarus. See how he feels about it. 105 00:06:14,000 --> 00:06:17,160 He's God in the flesh, fully God, fully man. 106 00:06:17,720 --> 00:06:22,480 John Chapter 11, verse 28. And when she had said these 107 00:06:22,480 --> 00:06:25,680 things, she went her way, and secretly called Mary her sister, 108 00:06:25,680 --> 00:06:27,640 saying, The teacher's come and is calling to you. 109 00:06:28,280 --> 00:06:31,160 As soon as she heard, she quickly arose and came to him. 110 00:06:31,840 --> 00:06:36,440 Now Jesus had not yet come into the town, but was in place where 111 00:06:36,440 --> 00:06:39,240 Martha met him. And then the Jews who were with 112 00:06:39,240 --> 00:06:42,760 her in the house and comforting her, when they saw that Mary 113 00:06:42,760 --> 00:06:45,480 Rose up quickly and went out, followed her, saying, She's 114 00:06:45,480 --> 00:06:49,760 going to the tomb to weep there. And then when Mary came where 115 00:06:49,760 --> 00:06:52,920 Jesus was and saw him, she fell down at his feet, saying to him, 116 00:06:53,160 --> 00:06:56,200 Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. 117 00:06:56,600 --> 00:07:00,280 Therefore, when Jesus saw her weeping and the Jews who came 118 00:07:00,280 --> 00:07:03,960 with her weeping, he groaned in the Spirit and he was troubled. 119 00:07:04,760 --> 00:07:06,480 And he said, Where have you laid him? 120 00:07:06,840 --> 00:07:08,840 And they said to him, Lord, come and see. 121 00:07:09,280 --> 00:07:13,680 Verse 35, Jesus wept. Jesus didn't say, don't worry, 122 00:07:14,040 --> 00:07:17,520 he's in a better place, everything's OK. 123 00:07:19,440 --> 00:07:21,680 Death is the final enemy, isn't it? 124 00:07:22,400 --> 00:07:26,520 God hates death, what it does to people, what it does to 125 00:07:26,520 --> 00:07:30,240 families, what it does to human existence. 126 00:07:31,120 --> 00:07:33,760 And the Jews said, see how he loved him. 127 00:07:34,800 --> 00:07:37,880 And some of them said, could not this man who opened the eyes of 128 00:07:37,880 --> 00:07:41,240 the blind also have kept this man from dying? 129 00:07:42,360 --> 00:07:45,680 Then Jesus again, groaning in himself, came to the tomb. 130 00:07:45,680 --> 00:07:50,200 You know the darkness of death, the horror of separation of 131 00:07:50,200 --> 00:07:56,760 family and loved ones, the waiting of the Conqueror who had 132 00:07:56,760 --> 00:07:59,640 not yet gone into Hades to set the captives free. 133 00:07:59,840 --> 00:08:04,160 This is pre death burial and resurrection that is occurring 134 00:08:04,160 --> 00:08:09,480 here and Jesus senses obviously the extreme intenseness of the 135 00:08:09,840 --> 00:08:14,840 demonic spirits and the hatred of the devil and all his demons 136 00:08:14,840 --> 00:08:18,760 and dark powers. And Jesus groans in himself and 137 00:08:18,760 --> 00:08:21,360 he comes to the tomb. It was a cave, a stone lay 138 00:08:21,360 --> 00:08:23,040 against it. And Jesus said, take away the 139 00:08:23,040 --> 00:08:25,480 stone. Martha, the sister of him who 140 00:08:25,480 --> 00:08:28,920 was dead, said to him, Lord, by this time there is a stench, for 141 00:08:28,920 --> 00:08:32,840 he has been dead for days. Jesus said to her, Did I not say 142 00:08:32,840 --> 00:08:35,440 to you that if you would believe, you would see the glory 143 00:08:35,440 --> 00:08:37,480 of God? And then they took away the 144 00:08:37,480 --> 00:08:40,039 stone from the place where the dead man was lying. 145 00:08:40,240 --> 00:08:43,360 And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, Father, I thank you that 146 00:08:43,360 --> 00:08:46,280 you have heard me, and I know that you always hear me. 147 00:08:46,280 --> 00:08:50,040 But because of the people who are standing by, I said this now 148 00:08:50,040 --> 00:08:51,880 that they may believe you sent me. 149 00:08:52,160 --> 00:08:55,840 Now when he said these things, he cried with a loud voice. 150 00:08:56,160 --> 00:09:01,840 Lazarus come forth and he who had died came outbound hand and 151 00:09:01,840 --> 00:09:05,280 foot with grave clothes, and his face was wrapped in a cloth. 152 00:09:05,480 --> 00:09:09,440 And Jesus said to them, lose him and let him go. 153 00:09:11,280 --> 00:09:14,960 Jesus wept. He doesn't again say, hey, 154 00:09:14,960 --> 00:09:18,360 everything's OK, he's in heaven, everything's well. 155 00:09:18,800 --> 00:09:21,480 He's gone from this difficult life, He's in a better place. 156 00:09:21,480 --> 00:09:23,400 Have you ever found yourself saying that kind of stuff? 157 00:09:24,440 --> 00:09:26,400 We have to see death as God sees it. 158 00:09:27,800 --> 00:09:30,640 Now Paul tells us to be absent the bodies, to be present with 159 00:09:30,640 --> 00:09:32,920 the Lord. But keep in mind the final 160 00:09:32,920 --> 00:09:34,640 resurrection has not occurred yet. 161 00:09:35,960 --> 00:09:39,000 You know, we understand today the Lord in some small degree, 162 00:09:39,000 --> 00:09:39,920 don't we? All of us? 163 00:09:40,120 --> 00:09:42,880 We have some insight of His love, His grace, and His mercy. 164 00:09:42,880 --> 00:09:45,680 Do we know it all? I mean, my understanding of 165 00:09:45,680 --> 00:09:49,280 God's love and His grace is so small compared to the way it 166 00:09:49,280 --> 00:09:53,320 really is because I can't grasp it in my fallen human condition. 167 00:09:53,600 --> 00:09:56,640 I know God's good. He loves, He's merciful, He's 168 00:09:56,640 --> 00:10:01,160 forgiving, but I don't know him today like I will know him one 169 00:10:01,160 --> 00:10:04,320 day. When Jesus said through Paul, I 170 00:10:04,320 --> 00:10:08,000 hath not seen, nor ear heard, nor entered into the heart of 171 00:10:08,000 --> 00:10:11,880 man the things that God has prepared for those who love him. 172 00:10:12,080 --> 00:10:14,160 None of us can comprehend that yet, can we? 173 00:10:14,920 --> 00:10:17,480 We get, we're looking through a glass darkly, Paul said in First 174 00:10:17,480 --> 00:10:19,920 Corinthians 13. We're seeing a little bit right 175 00:10:19,920 --> 00:10:23,480 now, but one day the Bible said we will see him face to face, 176 00:10:23,880 --> 00:10:28,320 for we shall see him as he is, and we will become like him. 177 00:10:29,400 --> 00:10:34,440 Now when we think of Christ, it tells us in the Word that he was 178 00:10:34,440 --> 00:10:36,640 crucified and he was buried. He suffered. 179 00:10:37,480 --> 00:10:39,760 He's a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief. 180 00:10:39,800 --> 00:10:44,440 Christ lived a life of constant suffering for your sake and 181 00:10:44,440 --> 00:10:48,640 mine. He had joy, He had pleasure, he 182 00:10:48,640 --> 00:10:52,560 loved the children, he obviously loved communing with the Father, 183 00:10:52,560 --> 00:10:55,000 because every chance he got, he was alone with his Heavenly 184 00:10:55,000 --> 00:10:57,720 Father, praying and glorifying, worshiping him. 185 00:10:59,240 --> 00:11:04,680 But he was a man of extreme sorrow and grief, it says. 186 00:11:04,680 --> 00:11:06,440 He looks out over the city of Jerusalem. 187 00:11:06,440 --> 00:11:09,000 He looks out today in the city of southwest Greensburg. 188 00:11:09,200 --> 00:11:11,800 He looks into your homes, your neighborhoods, your families, 189 00:11:11,800 --> 00:11:14,720 this country, this world. And he still is broken. 190 00:11:14,720 --> 00:11:17,800 His heart is grieving because he sees the majority of people on 191 00:11:17,800 --> 00:11:19,560 the earth as sheep without a shepherd. 192 00:11:20,120 --> 00:11:22,840 He sees people trying to live life without him. 193 00:11:24,680 --> 00:11:27,800 And so the suffering and death is interwoven in the human 194 00:11:27,800 --> 00:11:32,000 experience. And the presence of 1 implies 195 00:11:32,000 --> 00:11:37,240 the presence of the other. Suffering and death are entwined 196 00:11:37,240 --> 00:11:40,800 together in Christ. When he died on the cross, his 197 00:11:40,800 --> 00:11:42,440 suffering wasn't removed, was it? 198 00:11:43,080 --> 00:11:47,440 He experienced extreme agony and pain and sorrow. 199 00:11:48,640 --> 00:11:51,480 Everybody abandoned him and forsook him for the most point 200 00:11:51,480 --> 00:11:58,960 except for his mother and John. He died alone, even to the point 201 00:11:58,960 --> 00:12:02,120 that he allowed himself to be separated in the greatest 202 00:12:02,120 --> 00:12:06,200 mystery of all. When he said, My God, my God, 203 00:12:06,200 --> 00:12:12,400 why have you forsaken me? He understood in a brief second 204 00:12:13,440 --> 00:12:16,480 what you and I deal with every day. 205 00:12:16,480 --> 00:12:21,400 If we don't have God in our lives, Can you imagine never, 206 00:12:21,400 --> 00:12:26,200 ever being disconnected from the reality of the Trinity, Father, 207 00:12:26,200 --> 00:12:28,840 Son, and Holy Spirit? But He became one of us, and for 208 00:12:28,840 --> 00:12:32,000 that brief second when He took upon Himself our sin, to atone 209 00:12:32,000 --> 00:12:36,080 and pay the price for all our sin, He knew what sin did. 210 00:12:36,160 --> 00:12:41,960 It cut us off from our Creator. And yet in His suffering He 211 00:12:41,960 --> 00:12:48,640 transformed death into victory, and His death in a cross becomes 212 00:12:48,640 --> 00:12:51,360 our victory. Without His death, there's no 213 00:12:51,360 --> 00:12:55,720 way into the Kingdom, is there? There's no hope for anybody 214 00:12:56,080 --> 00:13:00,560 apart from his death. And so we enter into the Kingdom 215 00:13:00,560 --> 00:13:04,000 because of what Christ has done, and that's where we receive our 216 00:13:04,000 --> 00:13:09,600 true healing. Our final victory is one day, 217 00:13:09,760 --> 00:13:14,040 the resurrection of the dead. And when you think about these 218 00:13:14,040 --> 00:13:17,480 things, you have to put them in the context of us being 219 00:13:17,640 --> 00:13:21,040 reconciled first to God before we can be resurrected in 220 00:13:21,720 --> 00:13:26,440 immortality and incorruption. Every one of us have to come 221 00:13:26,440 --> 00:13:32,440 first to God in repentance. We have to come and confess our 222 00:13:32,440 --> 00:13:35,120 sins to Him. We have to repent. 223 00:13:36,320 --> 00:13:40,360 The Bible tells us if we confess our sins, He's faithful and just 224 00:13:40,360 --> 00:13:42,760 to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us from all 225 00:13:42,760 --> 00:13:46,960 unrighteousness. So we ask God to forgive us, and 226 00:13:46,960 --> 00:13:49,280 he's faithful, isn't He to forgive us? 227 00:13:50,160 --> 00:13:54,040 And then we need to be reconciled with one another as 228 00:13:54,040 --> 00:13:59,560 human beings where there's strife and where there's angst 229 00:13:59,560 --> 00:14:02,160 and where there's unforgiveness and bitterness for all the 230 00:14:02,160 --> 00:14:05,160 things we've been through in our lives that other people maybe 231 00:14:05,160 --> 00:14:07,000 have caused us or we've caused them. 232 00:14:07,600 --> 00:14:11,800 Jesus tells us in the Lord's Prayer when we pray, forgive us 233 00:14:11,800 --> 00:14:15,120 our trespasses as we forgive one another, right? 234 00:14:15,760 --> 00:14:18,920 Later on, Jesus says if you don't forgive others their 235 00:14:18,920 --> 00:14:22,880 trespasses, neither will your heavenly Father forgive you of 236 00:14:22,880 --> 00:14:27,880 yours. So all this reconciliation, all 237 00:14:27,880 --> 00:14:33,080 this truth of resurrection comes out of our lives being 238 00:14:33,080 --> 00:14:35,920 sacrificed for the sake of others. 239 00:14:37,320 --> 00:14:41,600 Jesus is the perfect example of forgiving us, isn't he? 240 00:14:42,440 --> 00:14:46,800 And everything we did to him, he never once said, hey, I'll 241 00:14:46,800 --> 00:14:49,080 forgive these people, but no way am I forgiving them. 242 00:14:49,080 --> 00:14:51,120 They're just like, they hurt me too much. 243 00:14:51,120 --> 00:14:53,800 They did too much evil. They just, they're worthless. 244 00:14:53,800 --> 00:14:57,280 No, God sees value and worth in every human being. 245 00:14:57,640 --> 00:15:04,040 And he died for our sins. And so how can I, how can you 246 00:15:04,400 --> 00:15:08,480 not be willing to forgive other people for their offenses? 247 00:15:08,840 --> 00:15:11,360 When someone's on their deathbed and you have a chance to 248 00:15:11,360 --> 00:15:14,920 minister to them, you want to lead them in the Lord's Prayer 249 00:15:15,040 --> 00:15:18,440 and remind them of God's mercy, right, and his forgiveness. 250 00:15:19,120 --> 00:15:24,040 And you also want to ask that person to forgive you and you to 251 00:15:24,040 --> 00:15:28,880 forgive them and thank them for their lives and tell them you 252 00:15:28,880 --> 00:15:31,360 love them and then tell them goodbye. 253 00:15:32,400 --> 00:15:37,360 Jesus says to the guy down by the pool, Besazia Besavia. 254 00:15:38,080 --> 00:15:40,360 He was lame. And Jesus asked him, do you want 255 00:15:40,360 --> 00:15:43,600 to be made well? That's the ultimate plan of God, 256 00:15:43,600 --> 00:15:49,560 Wellness for every one of us, spiritual, physical, emotional, 257 00:15:49,600 --> 00:15:52,600 psychological wholeness throughout all eternity. 258 00:15:52,600 --> 00:15:54,160 And one day it will come to pass. 259 00:15:55,160 --> 00:15:59,520 He's restoring us right now to the likeness we had before the 260 00:15:59,520 --> 00:16:01,560 fall. I'm becoming a little bit more 261 00:16:01,560 --> 00:16:03,800 like Jesus every day. And you are too, if you're a 262 00:16:03,800 --> 00:16:06,560 Christian. We still got a lot of flaws, a 263 00:16:06,560 --> 00:16:08,760 lot of things. None of us are perfect, but 264 00:16:08,760 --> 00:16:10,720 we're being conformed to the image of His Son. 265 00:16:10,720 --> 00:16:13,720 That's what thrills me when I can look back and think about 266 00:16:13,720 --> 00:16:15,600 the way I used to be. And I'm certainly not what I 267 00:16:15,600 --> 00:16:18,520 want to be yet, but I can look back and say, thank God, I'm not 268 00:16:18,520 --> 00:16:20,920 like that anymore. And I can't take any credit for 269 00:16:20,920 --> 00:16:23,560 it, and you can't either. All you can say is God's grace, 270 00:16:23,560 --> 00:16:25,480 right? His mercy, the power of his Holy 271 00:16:25,480 --> 00:16:28,160 Spirit. There's a testimony of this guy 272 00:16:28,160 --> 00:16:32,520 back in the 11th century. He was a very sick man from his 273 00:16:32,520 --> 00:16:35,680 youth, but he had this heart. He just wanted to love God and 274 00:16:35,680 --> 00:16:39,360 to serve him at a young age and radically be a disciple of Jesus 275 00:16:39,360 --> 00:16:41,880 Christ. So they took him to this place. 276 00:16:41,880 --> 00:16:46,000 It was known for healing and he stayed there until his death 277 00:16:46,000 --> 00:16:49,200 actually. But what he prayed for when he 278 00:16:49,200 --> 00:16:52,320 was there, he prayed more to be content in his sickness and for 279 00:16:52,320 --> 00:16:53,560 health. Isn't that an interesting 280 00:16:53,920 --> 00:16:57,080 perspective? Sort of like Jesus. 281 00:16:57,080 --> 00:16:58,880 Not my will, but your will be done. 282 00:16:59,200 --> 00:17:01,040 One night angels appeared to him. 283 00:17:01,040 --> 00:17:03,640 You ever believe angels can appear all through the 284 00:17:03,640 --> 00:17:06,359 scripture? I remember when my uncle died. 285 00:17:06,560 --> 00:17:10,599 He was in Torrance Mental Hospital and he spent most of 286 00:17:10,599 --> 00:17:12,240 his life there with schizophrenia. 287 00:17:12,960 --> 00:17:15,800 He had a simple faith in Jesus and he'd always tell us. 288 00:17:15,800 --> 00:17:19,240 Every time we left his presence, he'd say tell Melanie and 289 00:17:19,240 --> 00:17:21,720 Jessica. He'd tell me my kids tell them I 290 00:17:21,720 --> 00:17:27,400 love them with my heart, soul and conscience and I would I was 291 00:17:27,400 --> 00:17:29,920 with him when he was dying of Melanoma. 292 00:17:30,600 --> 00:17:34,240 My mom and dad went out to take a break for a few moments and he 293 00:17:34,240 --> 00:17:36,840 was laying there belabored breathing very difficult. 294 00:17:36,840 --> 00:17:41,160 And he's he's getting ready to pass and he had no strength to 295 00:17:41,160 --> 00:17:43,280 so weak. And he's laying there I'll never 296 00:17:43,280 --> 00:17:47,720 forget on the bed and all of a sudden I see him get up like sit 297 00:17:47,720 --> 00:17:50,000 straight up in the bed. And first of all, it's a miracle 298 00:17:50,000 --> 00:17:51,400 because the guy had like no strength. 299 00:17:51,920 --> 00:17:55,160 He put his arms out and he had to smile on his face. 300 00:17:55,160 --> 00:17:59,520 And I believe that he saw the angels coming for him and he 301 00:17:59,520 --> 00:18:02,440 just laid back down, stop breathing. 302 00:18:02,440 --> 00:18:05,680 And that was it. So one night the angels appear 303 00:18:05,680 --> 00:18:11,160 to this man telling him he would be sick until his death, but 304 00:18:11,160 --> 00:18:13,680 would be healed at that very moment of his death. 305 00:18:14,600 --> 00:18:18,960 So he lay sick for 20 years. And yet this man worked many 306 00:18:18,960 --> 00:18:21,560 wonders in his life for others. During his life of suffering, 307 00:18:21,560 --> 00:18:24,200 people would come to him because he was a very deep Christian. 308 00:18:24,200 --> 00:18:25,840 He would pray, give them counsel. 309 00:18:25,840 --> 00:18:28,840 People would get healed. I mean, that's a wonderful, true 310 00:18:29,200 --> 00:18:32,720 servant of God. And I think about the testimony 311 00:18:32,720 --> 00:18:36,080 of this man again, reminds me of Jesus, a man of sorrows, 312 00:18:36,080 --> 00:18:38,960 acquainted with grief. And just at the time of his 313 00:18:38,960 --> 00:18:43,320 death, he got up from his bed completely healed. 314 00:18:44,080 --> 00:18:48,120 He prepared his grave and he entered into his rest in the 315 00:18:48,120 --> 00:18:51,840 Lord. To be healed of God of our sins, 316 00:18:51,840 --> 00:18:55,960 we must first acknowledge that we have sins before we can made 317 00:18:56,080 --> 00:18:59,120 be made whole. You got three groups of people 318 00:18:59,120 --> 00:19:01,520 here today. You have believers, unbelievers 319 00:19:01,520 --> 00:19:04,440 and pretenders and only God knows our hearts. 320 00:19:05,040 --> 00:19:07,600 But for all of us today, no matter for believers, 321 00:19:07,600 --> 00:19:11,360 unbelievers, or pretenders, we need to always go back to the 322 00:19:11,360 --> 00:19:16,720 basics of what God asked us to do, and that's to repent. 323 00:19:17,720 --> 00:19:20,360 I don't repent anymore to get saved. 324 00:19:20,640 --> 00:19:23,240 I repent now to stay close to the Lord. 325 00:19:24,240 --> 00:19:26,760 But if you're lost today and you've never come to Christ, 326 00:19:27,000 --> 00:19:32,000 your first act of repentance would be to admit your need of 327 00:19:32,000 --> 00:19:34,600 Christ and that you're a Sinner and that you want him to make 328 00:19:34,600 --> 00:19:38,040 you whole. For Jesus is the healer. 329 00:19:38,440 --> 00:19:41,680 He said, you will know the truth and the truth shall make you 330 00:19:41,680 --> 00:19:44,480 free. And we can't receive God's 331 00:19:44,480 --> 00:19:50,080 forgiveness until we realize our utter helplessness to change our 332 00:19:50,080 --> 00:19:52,240 hearts apart from God's mercy and grace. 333 00:19:52,560 --> 00:19:55,800 Sometimes Cindy and I'll sit and talk and maybe we're working 334 00:19:55,800 --> 00:19:58,600 through something on our marriage and, and one of us will 335 00:19:59,000 --> 00:20:01,800 will say something like, well, I'm trying, but I'm having a 336 00:20:01,800 --> 00:20:04,760 hard time letting this go. You ever say that to each other? 337 00:20:06,520 --> 00:20:09,240 And we look at each other and she'll remind me or I'll remind 338 00:20:09,240 --> 00:20:10,080 her. I'll say well. 339 00:20:11,120 --> 00:20:15,720 We can try until doomsday. We can't change our hearts, only 340 00:20:15,720 --> 00:20:18,120 God can. We have a willingness to change 341 00:20:19,000 --> 00:20:21,960 and then we ask God to do and us what we can't do for ourselves, 342 00:20:21,960 --> 00:20:25,360 right? And God's faithful to do that. 343 00:20:27,080 --> 00:20:30,200 So as we conclude here today, just some practical things that 344 00:20:30,200 --> 00:20:34,080 give some thought to the essential element of healing our 345 00:20:34,080 --> 00:20:37,160 own lives today. First of all, we're to give 346 00:20:37,160 --> 00:20:39,600 glory and worship to God on all things. 347 00:20:39,880 --> 00:20:42,240 Maybe today there's something in your life you're not happy 348 00:20:42,240 --> 00:20:45,680 about, you're not thankful for, you're bitter, you're upset, 349 00:20:45,680 --> 00:20:48,560 you're like angry, you're just, maybe it's something you've 350 00:20:48,560 --> 00:20:50,400 carried around for years in your life. 351 00:20:51,360 --> 00:20:54,280 But I can't think of a better place to give glory and worship 352 00:20:54,280 --> 00:20:58,800 to God. Our relationships with God and 353 00:20:58,800 --> 00:21:00,560 our neighbors have to be made right. 354 00:21:01,080 --> 00:21:03,760 You know, whatever's going on in your hearts with people, 355 00:21:03,760 --> 00:21:07,880 situations, make it right, guys. Go to the people and let them 356 00:21:07,880 --> 00:21:10,480 know you forgive them. You're not going to hold any 357 00:21:10,480 --> 00:21:12,160 grudge. You're not going to be bitter. 358 00:21:12,560 --> 00:21:16,240 This, this, let it go. And as Jesus said, love one 359 00:21:16,240 --> 00:21:20,400 another as I've loved you. And this is a powerful thought. 360 00:21:21,160 --> 00:21:28,320 When Jesus became one of us, God Incarnate in the incarnation, it 361 00:21:28,320 --> 00:21:33,120 is only because Christ assumed our entire nature except for our 362 00:21:33,120 --> 00:21:37,240 sin nature and he entered into death itself that we can be 363 00:21:37,240 --> 00:21:40,080 healed. Because he died and resurrected, 364 00:21:40,080 --> 00:21:44,480 He overcame death. The acceptance of our own death 365 00:21:44,480 --> 00:21:49,840 and repentance can be our cure and our own healing cause. 366 00:21:49,840 --> 00:21:52,000 Life comes out of death, death to self. 367 00:21:52,840 --> 00:21:56,160 And Jesus says, if anyone of you will follow me, let him deny 368 00:21:56,160 --> 00:22:01,160 himself and take up his cross daily and follow me every 369 00:22:01,160 --> 00:22:03,080 Sunday. We celebrate the Lord's death, 370 00:22:03,080 --> 00:22:05,520 don't we? Maybe you come here and you 371 00:22:05,520 --> 00:22:07,400 think that's sort of odd. I go to some churches, they 372 00:22:07,400 --> 00:22:10,920 might do it once a month or once a quarter, or, you know, why do 373 00:22:10,920 --> 00:22:13,440 we do this every week? The early church did it every 374 00:22:13,440 --> 00:22:14,640 week. Every time they gathered 375 00:22:14,640 --> 00:22:19,160 together, they broke bread. The signal signifying the 376 00:22:19,160 --> 00:22:21,880 remembrance of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus 377 00:22:21,880 --> 00:22:23,800 Christ. And I can't think of a greater 378 00:22:23,800 --> 00:22:27,200 thing to do to honor our Lord when he says, as often as you do 379 00:22:27,200 --> 00:22:30,520 this right, eat the bread and drink the cup, you do this in 380 00:22:30,520 --> 00:22:34,360 remembrance of me. Then I, John, saw the holy city, 381 00:22:34,360 --> 00:22:37,320 New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as 382 00:22:37,320 --> 00:22:40,920 a bride adorn for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from 383 00:22:41,080 --> 00:22:44,440 heaven saying, Behold, the Tabernacle of God is with men, 384 00:22:44,880 --> 00:22:48,480 and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and 385 00:22:48,480 --> 00:22:52,360 God himself will be with them and be their God, and God will 386 00:22:52,360 --> 00:22:55,120 wipe away every tear from their eyes. 387 00:22:55,600 --> 00:22:59,600 Are you looking forward to that? There shall be no more death, 388 00:23:00,760 --> 00:23:06,080 nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for 389 00:23:06,080 --> 00:23:08,720 the former things have passed away. 390 00:23:09,480 --> 00:23:12,800 Then he who sat on the throne said, Behold, I make all things 391 00:23:12,800 --> 00:23:15,120 new. And he said to me, write, for 392 00:23:15,120 --> 00:23:16,920 these words are true and faithful. 393 00:23:17,320 --> 00:23:20,400 And he said to me, It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, 394 00:23:20,400 --> 00:23:23,480 the beginning and the end. I will give of the fountain of 395 00:23:23,480 --> 00:23:27,040 the water of life freely to him who thirst. 396 00:23:27,480 --> 00:23:31,360 He who overcome shall inherit all things, and I will be his 397 00:23:31,360 --> 00:23:35,240 God, and he shall be my son. But the cowardly, the 398 00:23:35,280 --> 00:23:39,120 unbelieving, the abominable murderers, sexually immoral, 399 00:23:39,120 --> 00:23:42,920 sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in 400 00:23:42,920 --> 00:23:46,440 the lake, which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the 401 00:23:46,440 --> 00:23:51,040 second death. We are digging into the Book of 402 00:23:51,040 --> 00:23:53,480 Revelation here on Living Waters of Grace. 403 00:23:53,920 --> 00:23:57,440 Pastor Clark is tackling this challenging book as we try to 404 00:23:57,440 --> 00:24:00,800 discern the messages that are within its pages. 405 00:24:01,200 --> 00:24:05,360 There's so much imagery, and at times you're not always sure 406 00:24:05,360 --> 00:24:07,520 what's literal and what's metaphorical. 407 00:24:07,920 --> 00:24:11,160 At one point, there's a reference to an adulterous woman 408 00:24:11,240 --> 00:24:14,360 riding on a beast. And as someone else mentioned, 409 00:24:14,360 --> 00:24:17,840 at one point, it almost sounds like a rodeo from hell. 410 00:24:18,320 --> 00:24:23,120 And in actuality, it kind of is. You learn about the downfall and 411 00:24:23,120 --> 00:24:27,120 demise of a sinful and rebellious world, falling down 412 00:24:27,120 --> 00:24:32,600 in worship to someone who is the anti hero, the enemy, Satan 413 00:24:33,040 --> 00:24:37,920 working his insidious ways into the minds of fallen people. 414 00:24:38,440 --> 00:24:43,600 It's sad and it's heartbreaking, but it's a classic story of good 415 00:24:43,600 --> 00:24:46,920 versus evil. Thankfully, we know how this 416 00:24:46,920 --> 00:24:52,680 story ends. Jesus wins, Jesus reigns, and 417 00:24:52,680 --> 00:24:55,680 evil is conquered once and for all. 418 00:24:56,160 --> 00:25:00,480 We pray and trust you've received Jesus as your Savior. 419 00:25:01,000 --> 00:25:04,480 But if you haven't, don't wait until the events and revelation 420 00:25:04,640 --> 00:25:06,920 become what's happening on the streets. 421 00:25:07,400 --> 00:25:10,520 None of us wants you to be there at that time. 422 00:25:11,080 --> 00:25:15,440 Instead, we'd love for you to be with us in heaven as we 423 00:25:15,440 --> 00:25:20,960 celebrate the marriage supper with Jesus as his bridegroom. 424 00:25:21,680 --> 00:25:24,480 To get a better understanding of where we are in the Book of 425 00:25:24,480 --> 00:25:28,840 Revelation, to listen to any messages before or after this 426 00:25:28,840 --> 00:25:31,840 one, you can find them at our website, 427 00:25:31,960 --> 00:25:37,000 calvarychapelonline.com. That's it for today's edition, 428 00:25:37,000 --> 00:25:40,880 but we hope you'll want to hear Pastor Clark teach more from the 429 00:25:40,880 --> 00:25:44,480 Book of Revelation. It can be exciting to think 430 00:25:44,480 --> 00:25:48,160 about the future for believers, but it can feel a bit harrowing 431 00:25:48,160 --> 00:25:51,720 for those who don't believe. Come here more next time on 432 00:25:51,720 --> 00:25:53,480 Living Waters of Grace.