1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:03,500 We appreciate so very much those that have come to be with us 2 00:00:03,500 --> 00:00:05,100 today. And I hope that what we have to 3 00:00:05,100 --> 00:00:08,700 consider would be very encouraging to you and edifying 4 00:00:08,700 --> 00:00:12,100 to you because it's a subject that is extremely relevant. 5 00:00:12,100 --> 00:00:16,700 You know we talked about the idea of God's will John said in 6 00:00:16,700 --> 00:00:20,400 first John chapter 5 that we have confidence in him that if 7 00:00:20,400 --> 00:00:26,400 we ask him anything according to his will he hears us and that 8 00:00:26,400 --> 00:00:29,700 word here, they're really presupposes a response in other 9 00:00:30,000 --> 00:00:33,700 That means this if we ask something of God and it's 10 00:00:33,700 --> 00:00:37,500 according to his, will he answers us? 11 00:00:38,200 --> 00:00:40,800 Want to talk about this very idea that really is very 12 00:00:40,800 --> 00:00:42,800 relevant to everybody that lives. 13 00:00:42,900 --> 00:00:45,700 What is God's will, what does it actually mean? 14 00:00:46,000 --> 00:00:48,900 Our text is found in James chapter 4, beginning there in 15 00:00:48,900 --> 00:00:53,900 verse 13 and James wrote this Come. 16 00:00:53,900 --> 00:00:57,800 Now you who say today or tomorrow, we will go to such a 17 00:00:57,800 --> 00:01:01,600 city, spend a year there, buy and sell and make a profit. 18 00:01:02,200 --> 00:01:06,000 Whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow for what is 19 00:01:06,000 --> 00:01:09,100 your life is? Even a vapor that appears for a 20 00:01:09,107 --> 00:01:11,600 little time and then vanishes away. 21 00:01:12,400 --> 00:01:16,800 Instead, you ought to say, if the Lord Wills we shall live and 22 00:01:16,800 --> 00:01:22,500 do this or that, You know, In this passage here, James is 23 00:01:22,500 --> 00:01:25,000 condemning presumptuous planning. 24 00:01:25,300 --> 00:01:28,900 What's that mean presumptuous planning the word? 25 00:01:28,900 --> 00:01:31,800 Presumptuous literally means presuming. 26 00:01:32,000 --> 00:01:35,600 It can also be translated as arrogant or can even be 27 00:01:35,600 --> 00:01:39,600 translated as conceit. What was the problem? 28 00:01:40,000 --> 00:01:42,900 What they were doing is that what he was talking about, is 29 00:01:42,900 --> 00:01:46,400 people that make their plans without the following things. 30 00:01:46,400 --> 00:01:51,000 Two things making your plans in your life. without understanding 31 00:01:51,000 --> 00:01:56,100 the uncertainty of life and taking into consideration God's 32 00:01:56,100 --> 00:02:01,200 Divine Providence, you know, I'll tell you When we take about 33 00:02:01,200 --> 00:02:06,200 the idea of God's will, the question comes up? 34 00:02:07,000 --> 00:02:08,800 Is everything that happens in life? 35 00:02:08,800 --> 00:02:12,300 God's will what about bad things? 36 00:02:13,200 --> 00:02:16,500 What about things that are not happy and things that are not 37 00:02:16,500 --> 00:02:19,000 encouraging in life. What about those things? 38 00:02:19,800 --> 00:02:21,700 What about tragedy that happens in life? 39 00:02:21,700 --> 00:02:24,600 What about all the negative things that happen in life is 40 00:02:24,600 --> 00:02:28,100 everything that happens. Both good and bad God's will. 41 00:02:28,200 --> 00:02:30,900 That's the first thing we want to notice today in just A while. 42 00:02:31,900 --> 00:02:33,900 And number two, we want to look at the idea. 43 00:02:34,100 --> 00:02:36,600 Does everything really happened for a reason? 44 00:02:37,600 --> 00:02:40,300 You know, I've heard people say that my whole life, something 45 00:02:40,300 --> 00:02:43,600 bad happened, something negative happens, whatever it might be. 46 00:02:43,700 --> 00:02:48,300 And sometimes even trivial things like a guy, that is a 47 00:02:48,300 --> 00:02:51,200 starting quarterback and he gets benched for another quarterback. 48 00:02:51,200 --> 00:02:54,100 And he might say these words. Well, everything happens for a 49 00:02:54,100 --> 00:02:57,000 reason. And when I look at the idea or 50 00:02:57,000 --> 00:03:00,600 that statement, this is what people, usually mean, they mean 51 00:03:00,700 --> 00:03:04,600 everything happens for a reason in the greater scheme of things, 52 00:03:04,600 --> 00:03:08,700 in other words, in God's Great, Divine plan, But is that what 53 00:03:08,700 --> 00:03:11,700 that's talking about and does everything actually happen? 54 00:03:12,000 --> 00:03:16,400 For a reason, we want to talk about these things, the idea of 55 00:03:16,400 --> 00:03:19,900 presumptuous planning and we look at our passage found now 56 00:03:20,100 --> 00:03:23,600 going back to James chapter 4. And we'll take a look at verse 57 00:03:23,700 --> 00:03:27,300 13 In this passage. We find that he says come. 58 00:03:27,300 --> 00:03:31,100 Now you who say today or tomorrow, we will go into such a 59 00:03:31,100 --> 00:03:34,400 city will spend a year there and we're going to buy and sell and 60 00:03:34,400 --> 00:03:37,700 we're going to make a profit couple of things about this. 61 00:03:38,100 --> 00:03:41,800 You've heard me over the years preach about godliness, right? 62 00:03:41,800 --> 00:03:44,900 And there's two things, it's godliness or worldliness being 63 00:03:44,900 --> 00:03:48,200 very general but I'm making a division, it's Godly or it's 64 00:03:48,200 --> 00:03:50,700 worldly. And sometimes we look at the 65 00:03:50,700 --> 00:03:55,000 idea because godliness is demonstrated in righteous 66 00:03:55,000 --> 00:03:57,700 living. So, we look at the idea that 67 00:03:57,700 --> 00:04:03,100 worldliness is all the specific things that fall suit or fall 68 00:04:03,100 --> 00:04:05,800 into what a sinful life might be. 69 00:04:07,300 --> 00:04:10,300 But have you ever stopped to consider that world being? 70 00:04:10,300 --> 00:04:14,800 This can also just be leaving God out of your plans. 71 00:04:16,500 --> 00:04:18,899 You know, the word Godly there, sometimes people talk about 72 00:04:18,899 --> 00:04:22,000 being Godly and they say, oh, this person, there's a lot of 73 00:04:22,000 --> 00:04:23,700 great things, they're really Godly. 74 00:04:23,700 --> 00:04:27,600 It's a godly man, right there. A Godly woman right there, but 75 00:04:27,600 --> 00:04:28,600 godliness. You remember? 76 00:04:28,600 --> 00:04:32,300 And you've heard me say this before godliness is not about 77 00:04:32,300 --> 00:04:36,400 your own personal goodness godliness is having a practical 78 00:04:36,400 --> 00:04:39,000 awareness of God in every aspect of your life. 79 00:04:39,700 --> 00:04:43,400 So worldliness would be not having a practical awareness of 80 00:04:43,400 --> 00:04:47,200 God in every aspect of your life and all the Is that you make? 81 00:04:48,100 --> 00:04:49,700 So, we need to be careful about that. 82 00:04:50,100 --> 00:04:52,800 This is somebody that leaves God out of his plant. 83 00:04:52,800 --> 00:04:55,800 And the very first, two words in there, when he says come now, 84 00:04:56,100 --> 00:04:59,200 really, he might be saying this, it's an expression that is 85 00:04:59,200 --> 00:05:02,500 gaining attention. In other words, it's saying this 86 00:05:02,500 --> 00:05:06,500 listen to what I'm saying. And then he says this you who 87 00:05:06,500 --> 00:05:09,700 say these three words are in the present tense. 88 00:05:10,300 --> 00:05:13,800 He was talking about a habitual activity, it could literally be 89 00:05:13,800 --> 00:05:17,700 written like this. Come now you who keep on. 90 00:05:17,900 --> 00:05:20,800 Saying. In other words, it was a way of 91 00:05:20,800 --> 00:05:23,500 life. It was a manner of life. 92 00:05:24,700 --> 00:05:27,900 The point of Interest here though you know James is talking 93 00:05:27,900 --> 00:05:32,900 about those referring to a Jewish Merchant. take your mind 94 00:05:32,900 --> 00:05:37,000 back to these days and the time of this writing, perhaps, And 95 00:05:37,400 --> 00:05:42,500 there were brand new cities being built and established all 96 00:05:42,500 --> 00:05:45,900 throughout the Roman world. And what Jewish Merchants would 97 00:05:45,900 --> 00:05:50,600 do is they would go to such cities and the higher-ups of 98 00:05:50,600 --> 00:05:54,000 that City would literally say you could have free citizenship 99 00:05:54,000 --> 00:05:54,900 here. You know why? 100 00:05:55,600 --> 00:05:59,000 Because if you're going to have a city, you got to have 101 00:05:59,100 --> 00:06:02,300 citizens. You got to have people, what 102 00:06:02,300 --> 00:06:05,200 brings people Merchants businesses. 103 00:06:05,400 --> 00:06:08,400 So, what they would do, Is they would actually Grant free 104 00:06:08,400 --> 00:06:12,400 citizenship immediately to any Jewish Merchants that might come 105 00:06:12,400 --> 00:06:14,300 there and establish his business. 106 00:06:14,300 --> 00:06:16,800 Why it was going to be great. It's going to bring the people 107 00:06:17,600 --> 00:06:21,500 and James pictures it like this. You lay a map out, right? 108 00:06:22,200 --> 00:06:25,900 You lay a map out and you decide where you're going to go and you 109 00:06:25,900 --> 00:06:27,400 break down where you going to go. 110 00:06:28,000 --> 00:06:31,000 Here's a problem with this kind of philosophy though, if the 111 00:06:31,000 --> 00:06:34,200 plans are uncertain because of we don't know what's going to 112 00:06:34,207 --> 00:06:36,800 happen tomorrow, the uncertainty of life for the Providence of 113 00:06:36,800 --> 00:06:41,100 God, in fact, in Proverbs chapter 27, verse 1, the wise 114 00:06:41,100 --> 00:06:43,700 man Abode said, do not boast about tomorrow. 115 00:06:43,900 --> 00:06:47,300 For you. Do not know what a day may bring 116 00:06:47,900 --> 00:06:51,600 forth. Notice this though. 117 00:06:52,700 --> 00:06:54,900 What's wrong with the plan? Great plan, right? 118 00:06:55,600 --> 00:06:59,600 And by the way, I'm not saying don't plan every aspect of life 119 00:06:59,600 --> 00:07:00,600 knows. You got a plan. 120 00:07:01,000 --> 00:07:04,000 My dad used to say those things. Those cliches things over and 121 00:07:04,000 --> 00:07:06,800 over and over and I got to tell you a little annoying when I was 122 00:07:06,800 --> 00:07:10,200 growing up, but it's really true, you know, plan your work 123 00:07:10,200 --> 00:07:14,600 and work your plan, you know a person never really plans to 124 00:07:14,600 --> 00:07:18,500 fail, he just fails to plan. You know, we've all heard that, 125 00:07:18,700 --> 00:07:22,400 but it's all really true. So having a plan is necessary. 126 00:07:22,500 --> 00:07:25,400 It's not the problem, but look at what happens, look at what 127 00:07:25,400 --> 00:07:29,000 he's describing, he's describing a Jewish Merchant for example, 128 00:07:29,100 --> 00:07:31,600 which is a picture of any Christian by the way. 129 00:07:31,700 --> 00:07:35,000 So that means that applies to you and me to watch, he said 130 00:07:35,100 --> 00:07:38,700 what we're going to do is today, or tomorrow, we're going to go 131 00:07:38,700 --> 00:07:41,500 into a city. We're going to pick one from the 132 00:07:41,500 --> 00:07:44,100 map as it were. We're going to stay there about 133 00:07:44,100 --> 00:07:47,600 a year. We're going to buy and sell and 134 00:07:47,600 --> 00:07:51,400 we're going to make a profit. You know, this has a modern ring 135 00:07:51,400 --> 00:07:55,900 too and I think it really does. Sometimes we do this, sometimes 136 00:07:55,900 --> 00:07:58,000 we make our plans like this. But do you remember? 137 00:07:59,100 --> 00:08:01,100 When Jesus gave the parable of the rich fool. 138 00:08:01,900 --> 00:08:03,600 You know, there was nothing wrong with the plan. 139 00:08:03,900 --> 00:08:07,500 He had the right business plan, this is what happened. 140 00:08:07,600 --> 00:08:11,600 I'll be very brief about this but Jesus pictures, a man that 141 00:08:11,600 --> 00:08:14,500 was a fool. He was a rich food and he looked 142 00:08:14,500 --> 00:08:16,700 out and he saw all the crops that were coming in. 143 00:08:16,700 --> 00:08:20,500 He had in abundance, but then he looked back to his Barns and he 144 00:08:20,500 --> 00:08:22,300 said, wait a minute, the barns are already full. 145 00:08:22,600 --> 00:08:24,300 I got nowhere to put all my stuff. 146 00:08:25,000 --> 00:08:28,800 I got nowhere to put all of my crops and all of this that I 147 00:08:28,800 --> 00:08:31,300 have. So he says this, I tell you what 148 00:08:31,300 --> 00:08:34,200 I'm going to do. I'm going to pull down my Barns 149 00:08:34,400 --> 00:08:37,500 and I'm going to build greater sounds great, right? 150 00:08:37,799 --> 00:08:41,200 And then he said this, and then I put all my stuff in it and I'm 151 00:08:41,208 --> 00:08:44,600 going to sit back and I'm going to take my ease. 152 00:08:46,200 --> 00:08:48,600 At a picture of a guy that says, you know what, I got it all 153 00:08:48,600 --> 00:08:52,300 lined up for my retirement. I got all this money, I got all 154 00:08:52,300 --> 00:08:54,700 this stuff. I've got all these Investments 155 00:08:54,700 --> 00:08:57,300 I've made all this stuff. All of a sudden I'm going to sit 156 00:08:57,300 --> 00:08:59,400 back and I'm going to have my Eve's. 157 00:09:00,300 --> 00:09:01,800 Do you know what Jesus said though? 158 00:09:01,800 --> 00:09:09,100 Jesus said that God said Thou fool this night, your soul will 159 00:09:09,100 --> 00:09:12,900 be required of you. You know, the problem was the 160 00:09:12,908 --> 00:09:17,300 problem wasn't the plan. The problem was God was nowhere 161 00:09:17,300 --> 00:09:22,300 in it. God was nowhere in it again 162 00:09:22,300 --> 00:09:25,100 about godliness. It's having a practical 163 00:09:25,100 --> 00:09:27,500 awareness of God in every aspect of your life. 164 00:09:27,500 --> 00:09:31,900 So I'm saying this to everybody if God is the in the Forefront 165 00:09:31,900 --> 00:09:35,300 of your thinking and you have that practical awareness of God 166 00:09:35,300 --> 00:09:38,300 in every aspect of your life, you're going to make your 167 00:09:38,300 --> 00:09:43,300 decisions every single day, based on that God's number one, 168 00:09:44,900 --> 00:09:49,400 I was looking on YouTube on my Smart TV, my office. 169 00:09:50,000 --> 00:09:52,700 And by the way, I have to have that, I have to have, I have to, 170 00:09:52,800 --> 00:09:55,200 I have to have something in the background with everything. 171 00:09:55,200 --> 00:09:57,600 I do in my office, I just have to some people need music. 172 00:09:57,600 --> 00:09:59,300 I got to have something going in the background. 173 00:10:00,300 --> 00:10:04,900 And I saw this little boy. That was a in junior Rodeo is 174 00:10:04,900 --> 00:10:09,700 riding bulls and on the back of his protective vest it said, 175 00:10:09,700 --> 00:10:13,700 make God first and don't come in second. 176 00:10:14,700 --> 00:10:16,700 And I thought, what an interesting, what an interesting 177 00:10:16,700 --> 00:10:20,100 phrase, what an interesting idea and he wasn't mean, don't come 178 00:10:20,100 --> 00:10:21,400 in. Second in the rodeo is, no, 179 00:10:21,400 --> 00:10:23,300 that's not what he was talking about me. 180 00:10:23,300 --> 00:10:25,700 It don't come in second from a spiritual perspective. 181 00:10:25,700 --> 00:10:27,900 I thought that was pretty neat. That little guy had on his back. 182 00:10:29,000 --> 00:10:32,000 If God is number one in your life, everything falls into 183 00:10:32,000 --> 00:10:35,100 place, but when God is removed from your plans, that's when you 184 00:10:35,108 --> 00:10:38,300 have chaos, That's when you have trouble. 185 00:10:39,400 --> 00:10:42,300 This is a very modern, has a modern ring to it. 186 00:10:42,300 --> 00:10:46,100 So here's a reason, here's a reason, the very next verse, 187 00:10:46,500 --> 00:10:51,300 whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow for what is 188 00:10:51,300 --> 00:10:53,700 your life? It is even a vapor that appears 189 00:10:53,700 --> 00:10:57,900 for a little time and then it vanishes away. 190 00:10:59,600 --> 00:11:01,900 You know, I don't like reading the obituaries, I don't like 191 00:11:01,900 --> 00:11:03,700 that. I know a lot of folks, maybe 192 00:11:03,700 --> 00:11:05,200 some of you. I'm not trying to step on your 193 00:11:05,200 --> 00:11:07,300 toes vet to you. I just always thought it was 194 00:11:07,300 --> 00:11:10,400 kind of odd to get up every morning and read the obituary. 195 00:11:11,500 --> 00:11:14,000 It's kind of a bummer. You start off in a real bad real 196 00:11:14,000 --> 00:11:16,700 - day, right? All the people that died. 197 00:11:17,300 --> 00:11:19,400 I asked a guy one time. You've heard others say this, 198 00:11:19,400 --> 00:11:22,900 too because it wasn't exclusive to him or didn't originate with 199 00:11:22,900 --> 00:11:25,500 him. I asked him, why do you read the 200 00:11:25,500 --> 00:11:28,100 obituaries every day? And he said, I read the 201 00:11:28,100 --> 00:11:30,300 obituaries to make sure I'm not in it. 202 00:11:31,800 --> 00:11:35,800 And then he said and I know this that if I'm not in the obituary, 203 00:11:35,800 --> 00:11:39,700 I'm going to have a good day. Have you ever stopped to 204 00:11:39,700 --> 00:11:42,300 consider with the concept of what is your life? 205 00:11:43,400 --> 00:11:45,400 Have you ever stopped to consider that the people that 206 00:11:45,400 --> 00:11:47,500 were in the obituaries on Friday? 207 00:11:48,400 --> 00:11:51,700 All the people that were listed in the obituaries on Friday? 208 00:11:51,900 --> 00:11:53,900 How many of them thought they'd be living today? 209 00:11:55,500 --> 00:11:57,600 How many people thought they would still be here? 210 00:11:58,800 --> 00:12:01,500 Sometimes people are taking tragically other times. 211 00:12:01,500 --> 00:12:05,200 They're taken after long illnesses but suddenly things in 212 00:12:05,200 --> 00:12:09,700 life we find its here. And then tomorrow, it's not we 213 00:12:09,700 --> 00:12:14,800 have no idea. so, that's the reason why you make plans and 214 00:12:14,800 --> 00:12:17,700 you're not guilty of presumptuous planning because 215 00:12:17,700 --> 00:12:22,500 you have to understand the uncertainty of life and the 216 00:12:22,500 --> 00:12:29,300 Providence of God, James says, what's your life? 217 00:12:30,300 --> 00:12:34,600 It's a vapor that appears for a little time and then it vanishes 218 00:12:34,600 --> 00:12:38,700 away in 1st Samuel 20 and verse 3, David said the Jonathan 219 00:12:38,700 --> 00:12:40,700 there's only a step between me and death. 220 00:12:41,900 --> 00:12:46,000 Life is complete compared as a flower that quickly Withers away 221 00:12:46,000 --> 00:12:50,800 and jump. 14, it's represented as being short as a breath. 222 00:12:50,900 --> 00:12:55,300 And as quickly, Vanishing as a cloud job seven, it's compared 223 00:12:55,300 --> 00:13:00,500 to a short Shadow Psalm 102 And the temporary nature of grass, 224 00:13:00,500 --> 00:13:04,600 Psalm 103 and verse 15. We have no idea what tomorrow is 225 00:13:04,600 --> 00:13:08,100 going to bring, so we have to have God in our plans. 226 00:13:08,300 --> 00:13:11,600 So here it is. What then should we say? 227 00:13:11,800 --> 00:13:15,200 We ought to say this according to verse 15 instead, you ought 228 00:13:15,200 --> 00:13:20,500 to say, if the Lord Wills we shall live and do this or that, 229 00:13:21,600 --> 00:13:23,600 Instead of saying tomorrow, we're going to go and do all 230 00:13:23,600 --> 00:13:26,400 this. We have to bring God in the 231 00:13:26,400 --> 00:13:28,900 future in the planet, here's the problem. 232 00:13:29,700 --> 00:13:32,500 The first guy doesn't have God in his plans. 233 00:13:33,100 --> 00:13:37,800 The second guy has got in his plans and put all of it in his 234 00:13:37,800 --> 00:13:40,800 hands. And by the way let me just say 235 00:13:40,800 --> 00:13:43,700 this. Let me just say this when you 236 00:13:43,700 --> 00:13:47,700 live a Godly life and God is the Forefront of your thinking, you 237 00:13:47,700 --> 00:13:50,600 are also doing this. You are putting your life in the 238 00:13:50,600 --> 00:13:53,800 hands of God in both Time and Eternity. 239 00:13:53,800 --> 00:13:56,700 That's number one, and you know what every aspect of your life 240 00:13:56,700 --> 00:14:00,000 will fall into place. If you get the number one thing 241 00:14:00,000 --> 00:14:02,000 wrong, everything else falls apart. 242 00:14:02,500 --> 00:14:05,600 But if you get the number one thing, right, everything falls 243 00:14:05,600 --> 00:14:08,500 as it should. This is a man that plan for his 244 00:14:08,500 --> 00:14:14,200 future as James points out. Without God because we don't 245 00:14:14,200 --> 00:14:17,700 know what tomorrow will bring. A couple years ago when I share 246 00:14:17,700 --> 00:14:21,600 something with you. A couple years ago, my oldest 247 00:14:22,400 --> 00:14:25,700 friend. Not my best friend. 248 00:14:25,800 --> 00:14:28,500 Good friend but my oldest friend. 249 00:14:29,600 --> 00:14:33,200 I grew up with him. His name is Mark, Spencer. and 250 00:14:33,200 --> 00:14:38,400 we Junior Rodeo together when we were little and all of a sudden 251 00:14:38,700 --> 00:14:40,300 we were separate because he lived at Bakersfield. 252 00:14:40,300 --> 00:14:43,700 I live in Ojai and we're separate for a high-school 253 00:14:43,700 --> 00:14:45,400 years. Didn't see each other. 254 00:14:46,600 --> 00:14:49,100 And then all of a sudden one day I'm a freshman at Cal Poly and I 255 00:14:49,100 --> 00:14:50,300 turned the corner and there. He is. 256 00:14:51,200 --> 00:14:55,000 Living in the same student housing place, we picked up 257 00:14:55,000 --> 00:14:59,000 where we left off, buddies went to the rodeos together on the 258 00:14:59,008 --> 00:15:00,700 rodeo, team at Cal Poly and all that. 259 00:15:01,400 --> 00:15:06,500 Okay, so he's my oldest friend and two years ago at the age of 260 00:15:06,500 --> 00:15:12,200 51. A healthy young man died in his 261 00:15:12,200 --> 00:15:14,100 bed. No reason. 262 00:15:16,200 --> 00:15:23,000 Natural causes. 51. You know, I used to think that 263 00:15:23,000 --> 00:15:26,200 50 was old when I was in my 20s. I used to think man that's 264 00:15:26,200 --> 00:15:28,700 ancient and the guys is old as dirt. 265 00:15:28,700 --> 00:15:34,100 He's 50 I'm 52. I'm telling you 50 is Young. 266 00:15:35,300 --> 00:15:40,400 It's young, really is. Here was a young man that had no 267 00:15:40,400 --> 00:15:44,900 reason to be alarmed and yet his life was taken like that. 268 00:15:46,900 --> 00:15:49,300 Don't you see the importance of? We're God needs to be in your 269 00:15:49,300 --> 00:15:52,600 life. Where God is in your life. 270 00:15:54,000 --> 00:16:01,300 What you should say is this, if the Lord Wills If the Lord 271 00:16:01,300 --> 00:16:05,000 Wills, you know, I like it. When somebody says, hey, what 272 00:16:05,000 --> 00:16:06,700 are you doing next week? Well, Lord willing. 273 00:16:07,100 --> 00:16:10,400 I'm going to do so and so or what about such as that? 274 00:16:10,400 --> 00:16:12,300 Well, yeah, Lord willing, I love that. 275 00:16:12,300 --> 00:16:14,600 But listen please. And please get this point. 276 00:16:15,700 --> 00:16:19,500 Don't say words repetitiously with no meaning at all. 277 00:16:20,400 --> 00:16:23,700 In fact, what some people can do is they can take words that are 278 00:16:23,700 --> 00:16:27,900 great. Like Lord willing words like 279 00:16:27,900 --> 00:16:32,200 that and make them vain because they say them in a shallow for 280 00:16:32,200 --> 00:16:35,600 more shallow way. Holloway with, no meaning at 281 00:16:35,600 --> 00:16:37,300 all. Let me give you an example. 282 00:16:37,500 --> 00:16:39,500 Here's another phrase. That's often times. 283 00:16:39,500 --> 00:16:43,400 Used out there in the world, and it's used almost vain, because 284 00:16:43,400 --> 00:16:45,400 it's just spoken without thought. 285 00:16:48,000 --> 00:16:49,500 It's the words. Praise God. 286 00:16:51,000 --> 00:16:53,500 I'm going to tell you right now. It's wonderful to praise God. 287 00:16:54,400 --> 00:16:56,700 And we praise God, and honor God with our life. 288 00:16:56,700 --> 00:16:59,000 And we also honor him with our lips. 289 00:17:00,000 --> 00:17:03,100 So praising God, with your lips is a wonderful thing. 290 00:17:04,599 --> 00:17:07,900 But when you say praise God, are you really praising God? 291 00:17:07,900 --> 00:17:09,500 Or are you just saying the words? 292 00:17:10,000 --> 00:17:14,900 Give you an example. You give you happy years ago, I 293 00:17:14,908 --> 00:17:18,800 was talking to a guy at a mission here in Bakersfield, and 294 00:17:18,800 --> 00:17:21,599 he was a preacher of some sort, and I'm not kidding you. 295 00:17:21,599 --> 00:17:26,500 Every everything I said to him, he either said, amen, or praise 296 00:17:26,500 --> 00:17:29,100 God. I'd say something. 297 00:17:29,100 --> 00:17:30,900 Praise God. Well, are you really praising 298 00:17:30,900 --> 00:17:32,200 God? You just saying worse? 299 00:17:33,000 --> 00:17:36,400 I said somebody said, amen. Well, this one about 10 minutes. 300 00:17:36,400 --> 00:17:38,200 I kind of had enough. And I said, well, I got to go, 301 00:17:38,500 --> 00:17:40,100 I'm gonna go have lunch. He said, amen. 302 00:17:41,700 --> 00:17:43,300 Now that really amen. Lunch. 303 00:17:44,300 --> 00:17:48,000 Amen, lunch. Words that are spoken with no 304 00:17:48,000 --> 00:17:51,500 meaning become vain. So we praise God with our lives, 305 00:17:51,500 --> 00:17:54,100 but just saying, praise God does not mean, you're actually 306 00:17:54,100 --> 00:17:55,900 praising God. You see my point. 307 00:17:56,200 --> 00:18:01,500 So when you say Lord willing, or if the Lord Wills, you've got to 308 00:18:01,500 --> 00:18:04,500 meet it. Say something else about that, 309 00:18:04,500 --> 00:18:11,500 though. when you go to prayer, And you pray that be your will. 310 00:18:12,800 --> 00:18:16,300 Please get this, you pray, Be Your Will. 311 00:18:17,800 --> 00:18:25,000 You have to mean that. Sometimes we might say well if 312 00:18:25,000 --> 00:18:31,100 it Be Your Will, but we really want it to be so another way, so 313 00:18:31,100 --> 00:18:35,100 understand this, when you pray, if it be according to your will 314 00:18:35,100 --> 00:18:38,600 with that provision, you are not bending. 315 00:18:38,600 --> 00:18:41,200 God's will toward you. You are submitting. 316 00:18:41,200 --> 00:18:47,000 Your will toward God. You're telling God, whatever you 317 00:18:47,000 --> 00:18:51,400 decide. I'm okay with We pour our pour 318 00:18:51,400 --> 00:18:52,800 out. Our heart with supplication. 319 00:18:52,800 --> 00:18:54,700 We request things of God. Absolutely. 320 00:18:54,900 --> 00:18:59,700 But then we do like Jesus and say if it Be Your Will In other 321 00:18:59,700 --> 00:19:04,100 words, whatever you decide if it's your will I will accept. 322 00:19:04,100 --> 00:19:06,500 I will submit to that's what it's like to pray. 323 00:19:06,600 --> 00:19:09,100 According to God's will you know, Paul understood this 324 00:19:09,100 --> 00:19:11,700 concept and First Corinthians 16 and seventh. 325 00:19:11,700 --> 00:19:16,200 He said for, I do not wish to see you now on the way but I 326 00:19:16,208 --> 00:19:19,600 hope to stay a while with you and they said if the Lord 327 00:19:20,000 --> 00:19:25,700 permits in Acts 18 and 21 it says but took leave of them 328 00:19:25,700 --> 00:19:28,900 saying I must by all means. Keep this coming feast in 329 00:19:28,900 --> 00:19:29,900 Jerusalem. Jerusalem. 330 00:19:30,400 --> 00:19:35,400 But I will return again to you. God willing in First Corinthians 331 00:19:35,400 --> 00:19:38,300 4 and verse 19. He said, but I will come to you 332 00:19:38,300 --> 00:19:42,600 shortly if the Lord wills. And finally in Hebrews chapter 6 333 00:19:42,600 --> 00:19:48,300 and verse 3 and this, we will know will do if God permits. 334 00:19:48,400 --> 00:19:54,600 So, all that being said, it's hard to know what God's will is. 335 00:19:57,100 --> 00:19:58,600 I like what somebody said, one time. 336 00:20:00,100 --> 00:20:06,000 He said, in all my life, I've come down to two facts. and all 337 00:20:06,000 --> 00:20:08,300 the things that I've studied religiously and all the things 338 00:20:08,300 --> 00:20:10,500 that I have done in that way, I've come down with two facts, 339 00:20:11,800 --> 00:20:16,300 There is a God and I'm not him. And sometimes, we just don't 340 00:20:16,300 --> 00:20:20,900 know what's on the mind of God, his thoughts are greater than 341 00:20:20,900 --> 00:20:22,700 our thoughts. His will is higher than our 342 00:20:22,700 --> 00:20:25,000 will, his ways are higher than our ways. 343 00:20:25,200 --> 00:20:29,800 So, sometimes it's difficult to understand what God's will is. 344 00:20:29,800 --> 00:20:35,000 So here's the question as I laid out in our introduction, Is 345 00:20:35,000 --> 00:20:39,600 everything that happens in life, whether good or bad. 346 00:20:40,000 --> 00:20:45,400 Is it all God's will? What about this? 347 00:20:48,100 --> 00:20:49,700 What about if one person prospers? 348 00:20:49,700 --> 00:20:54,400 Financially does really well, has most stressed financially at 349 00:20:54,400 --> 00:20:58,500 all? And another person doesn't that 350 00:20:58,500 --> 00:21:02,100 God's will? What if somebody goes through a 351 00:21:02,100 --> 00:21:04,600 very tragic thing. That's very hurtful that God's 352 00:21:04,600 --> 00:21:07,900 will. What if people have great losses 353 00:21:07,900 --> 00:21:09,300 in their life, is that God's Will? 354 00:21:10,400 --> 00:21:12,800 And yet over here, somebody really prospers in other ways 355 00:21:12,800 --> 00:21:16,900 too. So here's the question, is 356 00:21:16,900 --> 00:21:19,000 everything that happens. God's will. 357 00:21:19,000 --> 00:21:23,300 Here's my answer. Yes. 358 00:21:26,500 --> 00:21:28,400 Now, I'm going to clarify its you don't think I went off the 359 00:21:28,400 --> 00:21:34,300 reservation. Everything that happens in life. 360 00:21:35,200 --> 00:21:42,700 Is God's will. But not in the same sense. in 361 00:21:42,700 --> 00:21:46,100 fact, God imparts his will or expresses, his will in three 362 00:21:46,100 --> 00:21:51,900 ways stay with me on this number one, there's God's determined 363 00:21:52,100 --> 00:21:56,200 will When you talk about God's determined will you're saying 364 00:21:56,200 --> 00:22:00,200 this God desired it. God caused it and God made it 365 00:22:00,200 --> 00:22:03,700 happen. Okay, God's determined will. 366 00:22:05,100 --> 00:22:08,000 He caught he caused it. He decided he caused it and he 367 00:22:08,000 --> 00:22:10,900 made it happen. Okay, here's some examples. 368 00:22:10,900 --> 00:22:15,200 By the way Creation in Genesis chapter one, in the beginning, 369 00:22:15,200 --> 00:22:17,300 God created the heavens and the earth. 370 00:22:18,100 --> 00:22:22,600 When he created, man, he formed Man Out of the Dust of the earth 371 00:22:22,900 --> 00:22:25,900 and then in all the things that he created, he said let there be 372 00:22:25,900 --> 00:22:28,800 this and there was this let there be that in there was that. 373 00:22:28,800 --> 00:22:32,700 He literally spoke it into existence when he looked down 374 00:22:32,700 --> 00:22:34,800 upon, man, and he said he shouldn't be alone. 375 00:22:35,100 --> 00:22:39,200 I'll make a helper from his rib. He made the woman again. 376 00:22:39,200 --> 00:22:45,100 All of this is God's determined will when man fell in the 377 00:22:45,100 --> 00:22:47,900 garden. By the way, when man fell in the 378 00:22:47,908 --> 00:22:50,400 garden, the plan was already in place. 379 00:22:50,800 --> 00:22:53,400 Oh God wasn't fooled. The Bible says known unto, God 380 00:22:53,400 --> 00:22:56,400 are all his works. Even from the beginning, the 381 00:22:56,400 --> 00:22:59,000 scheme of redemption was already in place. 382 00:22:59,300 --> 00:23:02,700 The Old Law of Moses would be brought in to bring man back to 383 00:23:02,700 --> 00:23:05,500 God as a Schoolmaster or A tutor. 384 00:23:06,300 --> 00:23:10,300 But Colossians says, in Chapter 2, that Jesus would nail the Old 385 00:23:10,300 --> 00:23:13,500 Law to his cross when he died for the sins of the world. 386 00:23:13,500 --> 00:23:15,700 Guess what? All that was in the Redemptive 387 00:23:15,700 --> 00:23:21,000 plan of God, that was God's determined will and in that, he 388 00:23:21,000 --> 00:23:28,000 desired it, he caused it, he made it happen. you know, we 389 00:23:28,000 --> 00:23:34,600 look at the Lord's mission. Jesus spoke of his mission as 390 00:23:34,600 --> 00:23:38,600 being the will of God in John 4:34, Jesus said to them. 391 00:23:38,600 --> 00:23:42,100 My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his 392 00:23:42,100 --> 00:23:45,000 work in John, chapter 5 and verse 30. 393 00:23:45,200 --> 00:23:49,800 I can do of myself, nothing, as I hear I judge and my judgment 394 00:23:49,800 --> 00:23:53,800 is righteous because I do not seek my own but the will of the 395 00:23:53,800 --> 00:23:58,100 father who sent me. So, this was God's determined 396 00:23:58,100 --> 00:24:01,300 will and one final thing and I love this because it's great 397 00:24:01,700 --> 00:24:03,300 benefits. It to us. 398 00:24:05,000 --> 00:24:07,800 I don't know if anybody here under the sound of my voice. 399 00:24:09,000 --> 00:24:11,400 Is of Jewish descent. I have no idea. 400 00:24:12,700 --> 00:24:17,000 Maybe there is, I don't know. But there was a time when the, 401 00:24:17,100 --> 00:24:20,800 when the Jews were God's people and God dealt with the nation. 402 00:24:21,900 --> 00:24:25,500 Do you know what God's plan was God's will was God determined 403 00:24:25,500 --> 00:24:28,600 will that when Jesus would die on the cross. 404 00:24:28,600 --> 00:24:33,200 According to Ephesians 3, that Jew and Gentile, that's me, I'm 405 00:24:33,200 --> 00:24:37,400 a gentile. Probably you to Jew and Gentile 406 00:24:37,400 --> 00:24:40,700 alike would be together in one body and that's the church. 407 00:24:42,700 --> 00:24:45,700 God's determined will. He desired it. 408 00:24:45,700 --> 00:24:48,600 He caused it and he made it happen. 409 00:24:49,700 --> 00:24:53,200 But then there's this one, though. there is, it's always 410 00:24:53,200 --> 00:24:56,900 accomplish, there's God's desired or preferred will, and 411 00:24:56,900 --> 00:25:03,500 this is when God desires it, but he does not cause it He does not 412 00:25:03,500 --> 00:25:06,800 cause it. And the reason for that, is he 413 00:25:06,800 --> 00:25:10,400 leaves it up to, man. Did determine whether or not 414 00:25:10,400 --> 00:25:12,100 it's going to happen. I'm going to get to that example 415 00:25:12,100 --> 00:25:13,100 in just a minute. Okay. 416 00:25:13,600 --> 00:25:15,400 But I want to get back to the idea. 417 00:25:15,800 --> 00:25:18,500 I want to get back to the question is everything. 418 00:25:18,500 --> 00:25:20,700 God is everything that happens for a reason. 419 00:25:20,800 --> 00:25:26,900 Okay, several years ago, a as a as a high-school JV High School 420 00:25:26,900 --> 00:25:30,200 head football coach, I had an offensive line coach that was 421 00:25:30,200 --> 00:25:34,000 coaching on my staff. This man was six foot four about 422 00:25:34,000 --> 00:25:37,800 280 pounds. I gave him a specific task to do 423 00:25:37,800 --> 00:25:40,800 to coach his line. And do his job, I am rule. 424 00:25:40,800 --> 00:25:44,400 Number two, and I was a huge stickler about this. 425 00:25:44,600 --> 00:25:50,100 Okay, huge Don't ever as an assistant coach talk to her 426 00:25:50,100 --> 00:25:54,600 referee ever referees would come up to me and say, hey, tell all 427 00:25:54,600 --> 00:25:57,000 your assistants. They're better seen and not 428 00:25:57,000 --> 00:25:59,300 heard. Tell your assistance have them, 429 00:25:59,300 --> 00:26:04,300 hold a clipboard and keep their mouths shut I never yelled at 430 00:26:04,300 --> 00:26:07,800 Rest by the way ever doesn't help yelling a ref for bad call. 431 00:26:07,800 --> 00:26:09,400 You know what's going to happen? He's human, you probably get 432 00:26:09,400 --> 00:26:12,900 another bad call, okay? So I was a real stickler about 433 00:26:12,900 --> 00:26:14,600 that. This guy would lose his mind and 434 00:26:14,600 --> 00:26:17,700 scream at the refs. And finally, the ref one time 435 00:26:17,700 --> 00:26:20,300 said in one game a home game, he said I'm going to tell you right 436 00:26:20,300 --> 00:26:22,300 now. If you open your mouth, one more 437 00:26:22,300 --> 00:26:25,100 time, I'm throwing your head coach out of the gate. 438 00:26:26,100 --> 00:26:30,600 So we had to have a little sit-down me, and this guy, so we 439 00:26:30,600 --> 00:26:33,800 did. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. 440 00:26:34,600 --> 00:26:38,500 I won't do it again. But a week later happen again 441 00:26:39,700 --> 00:26:42,500 and so I'm grinding through the season with this guy and 442 00:26:42,500 --> 00:26:45,300 finally, we get down to the last game and I don't even want to 443 00:26:45,300 --> 00:26:50,500 talk to him, and we got through the game and season was over and 444 00:26:50,500 --> 00:26:52,700 on Monday morning, I called him up on the phone, you know, he 445 00:26:52,700 --> 00:26:57,000 thought it had delusional. He was he thought I got a 446 00:26:57,000 --> 00:27:01,500 promotion to the varsity as a head coach and he thought that I 447 00:27:01,500 --> 00:27:04,100 wanted to meet with him because I was taking him with me to the 448 00:27:04,100 --> 00:27:06,800 varsity, coach, the line. Oh no, we had a different 449 00:27:07,000 --> 00:27:09,700 Meeting, he's sitting there and I said, I got to tell you. 450 00:27:10,800 --> 00:27:14,000 I got to tell you, thank you for your service here. 451 00:27:14,000 --> 00:27:16,800 But we are going in another Direction, you don't happen. 452 00:27:16,800 --> 00:27:21,800 He started crying, seriously crying and he said this, oh, I 453 00:27:21,800 --> 00:27:24,000 guess just everything happens for a reason. 454 00:27:24,600 --> 00:27:27,700 I guess God has a plan. Maybe someday he'll revealed to 455 00:27:27,708 --> 00:27:30,200 me what his plan is and I said, wait a minute, you don't have to 456 00:27:30,200 --> 00:27:31,700 worry about God. You don't have to wait for God. 457 00:27:31,700 --> 00:27:34,500 I got the answer right here. I got it right here. 458 00:27:36,500 --> 00:27:40,200 Sometimes things. Oh there's a reason but it's not 459 00:27:40,200 --> 00:27:44,000 a Divine reason. It's not God's big plan. 460 00:27:44,400 --> 00:27:47,300 Sometimes it's just the ramifications of our own 461 00:27:47,300 --> 00:27:50,600 choices. Talk about God's preferred will. 462 00:27:51,800 --> 00:27:55,700 Examples are man salvation there stopped to consider that God 463 00:27:55,700 --> 00:28:01,900 wants everybody to go to heaven. Everybody think of all the bad 464 00:28:01,900 --> 00:28:06,700 people that have lived in life? God wanted them to repent to God 465 00:28:06,700 --> 00:28:09,900 sent Jesus Christ to die for the sins of the world because he 466 00:28:09,900 --> 00:28:16,100 wants everybody to go to heaven. In fact, in 1st Peter, chapter 3 467 00:28:16,200 --> 00:28:19,900 and verse 9, it says the Lord is not slack concerning his promise 468 00:28:19,900 --> 00:28:24,500 as some men count slackness but is long-suffering to us-ward not 469 00:28:24,500 --> 00:28:27,100 willing that any should perish but that all should come to 470 00:28:27,100 --> 00:28:29,400 repentance. So what does God desire? 471 00:28:29,400 --> 00:28:33,100 What does he prefer? He prefers that everybody would 472 00:28:33,100 --> 00:28:38,100 repent and come to Jesus. But not everybody does. 473 00:28:38,100 --> 00:28:43,300 Do they Matthew 7 and 21 hears, the words of the master hears, 474 00:28:43,300 --> 00:28:47,400 the words of Jesus. And Jesus says, not everyone who 475 00:28:47,400 --> 00:28:49,600 says to me, Lord, Lord will enter the kingdom of heaven, but 476 00:28:49,600 --> 00:28:52,800 he, that does, the will of My Father, which is in heaven. 477 00:28:53,600 --> 00:28:56,200 What does God want? He wants everybody to go to 478 00:28:56,200 --> 00:28:57,700 heaven. He desires it. 479 00:28:57,700 --> 00:29:00,400 But he does not cause it because he leaves it up to you and me to 480 00:29:00,400 --> 00:29:02,100 decide. Got to do our part. 481 00:29:02,800 --> 00:29:08,800 That's God's permissive will. And by the way, when this 482 00:29:08,800 --> 00:29:11,600 happens, it's not always accomplished. 483 00:29:12,100 --> 00:29:14,100 The first one is always accomplished. 484 00:29:15,300 --> 00:29:19,000 Okay, first one's always accomplished thirdly though. 485 00:29:19,000 --> 00:29:22,500 There's God's permissive will and this is things that God 486 00:29:22,500 --> 00:29:27,000 allows or permits. He doesn't desire it, he doesn't 487 00:29:27,000 --> 00:29:30,500 purpose it. He neither desires our purposes 488 00:29:30,500 --> 00:29:33,600 it but he allows man in his freedom to bring it to pass. 489 00:29:34,400 --> 00:29:37,400 God's permissive. Will we just talked about some 490 00:29:37,400 --> 00:29:38,900 things that fall into this category? 491 00:29:40,000 --> 00:29:44,600 Sicknesses also fall into the category, disasters, economic 492 00:29:44,600 --> 00:29:47,700 setbacks it's the same thing. By the way, as what James is 493 00:29:47,700 --> 00:29:49,600 talking about, when you say if the Lord Wills, when you say 494 00:29:49,600 --> 00:29:53,200 that, you're saying, if the Lord permits, in other words, here's 495 00:29:53,200 --> 00:30:00,100 my plan, I'm going to do this if the Lord permits things that he 496 00:30:01,500 --> 00:30:05,300 permits are a louse. But I got to tell you, sometimes 497 00:30:05,300 --> 00:30:07,000 things happen folks that God does not. 498 00:30:08,400 --> 00:30:11,500 Plan for that. God does not do. 499 00:30:12,700 --> 00:30:16,900 But it happens. and as long as we live in the flesh and as long 500 00:30:16,900 --> 00:30:20,600 as we live in a place where their sin, There's going to be 501 00:30:20,600 --> 00:30:22,700 things that happen that are very unpleasant. 502 00:30:23,900 --> 00:30:26,200 There's going to be things that often times happen in life that 503 00:30:26,200 --> 00:30:29,900 are unpleasant. And God imparts his will, in 504 00:30:29,900 --> 00:30:31,800 three ways. His determined will. 505 00:30:31,800 --> 00:30:33,200 It always happens. His preferred. 506 00:30:33,200 --> 00:30:35,900 Will, he wants it, but leaves it up to, man, to decide and God's 507 00:30:35,900 --> 00:30:40,300 permissive will things. He allows Somebody might say 508 00:30:40,300 --> 00:30:44,700 well why did God allow it? Let's not do that let's not do 509 00:30:44,700 --> 00:30:47,700 that. Let's not ask the question. 510 00:30:47,700 --> 00:30:51,600 Why it is the off ask theological debate of why don't 511 00:30:51,600 --> 00:30:55,700 do that. Let me tell you what a person of 512 00:30:55,700 --> 00:30:59,600 Faith really will do. A person of faith. 513 00:31:00,700 --> 00:31:05,600 Okay, I won't ask why. Let me say it again. 514 00:31:05,900 --> 00:31:12,100 A person of Faith won't ask why a person of faith will say, I 515 00:31:12,108 --> 00:31:16,600 don't understand. But a person of faith will 516 00:31:16,600 --> 00:31:21,600 submit everything about his will to God, and be okay with what? 517 00:31:21,600 --> 00:31:24,000 He can't know. That's a person of faith. 518 00:31:26,600 --> 00:31:28,100 You got to be okay with what you can't know. 519 00:31:32,000 --> 00:31:34,100 One scholar said one time, one of the greatest proofs of 520 00:31:34,100 --> 00:31:37,000 worldliness in a man's life is when he fails to include God in 521 00:31:37,000 --> 00:31:39,800 his daily activities, that's really the whole point. 522 00:31:40,400 --> 00:31:44,000 Where is God in your life? Here's my last and final point 523 00:31:44,400 --> 00:31:46,900 and it's a question that I know has gone through your mind, 524 00:31:47,000 --> 00:31:48,600 everybody. This goes to everybody's mind 525 00:31:48,700 --> 00:31:54,400 last question last point. Why do bad things happen to us? 526 00:31:56,900 --> 00:31:59,000 Why do bad things happen to good people? 527 00:32:01,100 --> 00:32:03,900 This is not about me, it's not my, I'm just going to use an 528 00:32:03,900 --> 00:32:08,900 example. when I went to the doctor and I was diagnosed with 529 00:32:08,900 --> 00:32:13,100 stage 3 throat, cancer, I remember that the doctor said 530 00:32:13,100 --> 00:32:15,200 Tina and I were sitting there and the doctor said what's a 531 00:32:15,200 --> 00:32:17,600 nice guy like you doing in a place like this? 532 00:32:19,400 --> 00:32:22,500 And in his way in his mind, he was meaning this, that's unfair. 533 00:32:24,300 --> 00:32:27,200 But it really has nothing to do with me in that regard, why do 534 00:32:27,200 --> 00:32:28,900 bad things happen? Bad things. 535 00:32:28,900 --> 00:32:31,300 Happen in life for three reasons. 536 00:32:32,800 --> 00:32:38,300 Personal choice. Somebody else's choice and that 537 00:32:38,300 --> 00:32:40,600 which just falls under natural law. 538 00:32:41,300 --> 00:32:44,100 And by the way, this is because sin is in the world. 539 00:32:45,500 --> 00:32:51,700 Okay, here it is very briefly. Personal choice, my choice, my 540 00:32:51,700 --> 00:32:54,300 Act. My fault. 541 00:32:55,600 --> 00:32:58,600 Okay, I don't care what the world says, I don't care what 542 00:32:58,600 --> 00:33:00,800 the world says. I don't care when somebody says, 543 00:33:00,800 --> 00:33:02,100 it's not your fault. Listen. 544 00:33:02,300 --> 00:33:05,400 If it's my choice, my ACT, it's my fault. 545 00:33:05,500 --> 00:33:06,700 So we don't have a problem with that, right? 546 00:33:06,700 --> 00:33:08,400 We get that. What about this? 547 00:33:09,500 --> 00:33:11,300 What about somebody else's Choice? 548 00:33:12,000 --> 00:33:16,500 Somebody else's Act. Somebody else's fault. 549 00:33:19,100 --> 00:33:22,100 Over 10 years ago is holding a meeting in Kentucky. 550 00:33:22,100 --> 00:33:27,000 Walnut Grove, Kentucky. And there was a young there was 551 00:33:27,000 --> 00:33:30,100 a young mother And she worked at the bank. 552 00:33:30,100 --> 00:33:33,000 Everybody loved her. I remember that because it was 553 00:33:33,000 --> 00:33:35,400 all in the papers is what people talk about when I got there. 554 00:33:36,700 --> 00:33:39,000 And one day she left the bank and she was just driving home to 555 00:33:39,000 --> 00:33:43,600 her husband and kids. She driving right along and 556 00:33:43,600 --> 00:33:46,100 there was a drunk driver coming, the opposite direction crossed 557 00:33:46,100 --> 00:33:48,700 over. The road went head-on and she 558 00:33:48,700 --> 00:33:54,500 died instantly at the scene. And he walked away without a 559 00:33:54,508 --> 00:33:57,800 scratch. Was it her fault? 560 00:33:58,500 --> 00:34:01,800 Nope. It was somebody else's Choice. 561 00:34:01,900 --> 00:34:04,900 It was somebody else's act. It was somebody else's sin. 562 00:34:04,900 --> 00:34:09,400 It was somebody else's fault. But sometimes we have the 563 00:34:09,400 --> 00:34:15,300 ramifications of others choices to third reason, things that are 564 00:34:15,300 --> 00:34:18,900 governed by natural law. And this includes all free will 565 00:34:18,900 --> 00:34:22,199 acts of man. That includes all the Freewill 566 00:34:22,199 --> 00:34:24,800 acts. God does not take away free 567 00:34:24,800 --> 00:34:27,900 will. God could have done anything 568 00:34:27,900 --> 00:34:30,300 that he wanted to do. God could have made me do 569 00:34:30,300 --> 00:34:31,800 anything. He wanted me to do. 570 00:34:33,000 --> 00:34:36,199 That's not what he did. He put everything into place and 571 00:34:36,199 --> 00:34:39,699 he gave me free, will, he gave you free will, that's what he 572 00:34:39,707 --> 00:34:40,900 wants. Don't you see? 573 00:34:40,900 --> 00:34:42,600 That's what this whole thing is about. 574 00:34:42,699 --> 00:34:46,199 He gave you free will, but he wants you to submit to God's 575 00:34:46,199 --> 00:34:48,800 will. So here's really the question. 576 00:34:49,400 --> 00:34:50,800 I don't know what's going on in your life. 577 00:34:50,800 --> 00:34:52,600 I have no idea what your plans are. 578 00:34:52,600 --> 00:34:56,600 I have no idea what you're doing later on today or next week. 579 00:34:56,600 --> 00:34:59,200 Or next month or next year. Whatever your plans are let me 580 00:34:59,200 --> 00:35:02,900 ask you a question. In all of your plans. 581 00:35:05,100 --> 00:35:09,700 Where's God? Is God number one in your life. 582 00:35:11,700 --> 00:35:13,300 Cuz you know what's going to happen one day? 583 00:35:14,800 --> 00:35:17,300 Just like my 51 year-old healthy friend. 584 00:35:19,000 --> 00:35:23,600 You won't be here. Or the Lord just comes back. 585 00:35:25,100 --> 00:35:28,300 So the only thing that matters is the condition of your soul 586 00:35:29,200 --> 00:35:32,200 while you live in this life and nothing else will matter. 587 00:35:33,700 --> 00:35:36,200 If you're not a child of God, you need to be one today. 588 00:35:37,600 --> 00:35:40,500 The Bible says, so then faith comes by hearing and hearing by 589 00:35:40,500 --> 00:35:44,100 the word of God. After you hear the word of God. 590 00:35:44,100 --> 00:35:47,300 Jesus said, you have a choice. Mark 16:16. 591 00:35:47,300 --> 00:35:50,600 He, that believeth and is baptized shall be saved. 592 00:35:50,600 --> 00:35:52,400 He that believeth not shall be damned. 593 00:35:53,700 --> 00:35:56,800 In Luke 13 and 3. Jesus also said, I tell you, no, 594 00:35:57,400 --> 00:36:00,900 but except you repent, you will all likewise perish. 595 00:36:01,000 --> 00:36:05,100 Got to change your life. Jesus said in Matthew, 10:32, if 596 00:36:05,100 --> 00:36:08,200 you'll confess me before men, I will confess you before my 597 00:36:08,200 --> 00:36:11,300 Father, which is in heaven. Acts chapter 8, says, what the 598 00:36:11,300 --> 00:36:15,800 confession is. I believe that Jesus Christ is 599 00:36:15,900 --> 00:36:19,700 the Son of God, but all of those things are pointing toward the 600 00:36:19,700 --> 00:36:22,400 point of Salvation. It's, when you go down to the 601 00:36:22,400 --> 00:36:26,400 watery grave of baptism that you contact the blood of Jesus and 602 00:36:26,400 --> 00:36:29,000 rise to walk in newness of Life 1st. 603 00:36:29,000 --> 00:36:34,100 Peter 3:21 says the like figure whereunto even baptism Doth also 604 00:36:34,100 --> 00:36:39,500 now save us. We thank you for listening to 605 00:36:39,500 --> 00:36:44,300 our podcast, put on by the Church of Christ at 22:15 plans. 606 00:36:44,300 --> 00:36:47,800 Road in Bakersfield, if you would like any additional 607 00:36:47,800 --> 00:36:51,200 information, or you would like to receive a free Bible 608 00:36:51,200 --> 00:36:56,600 correspondence, course by mail. Please email us at info at her 609 00:36:56,600 --> 00:36:59,000 Church of Christ Bakersfield.com. 610 00:36:59,700 --> 00:37:04,900 Our service times are on Sundays at 10:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. and 611 00:37:04,900 --> 00:37:09,400 Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m. Please make plans to join us. 612 00:37:09,900 --> 00:37:12,100 We would love for you to be our honored guest.