1 00:00:00,280 --> 00:00:03,440 The Gospel of John the 1st chapter the sixth verse says 2 00:00:03,840 --> 00:00:12,440 that there was a man there came a man sent from God whose name 3 00:00:13,600 --> 00:00:17,720 was John. We've looked at the man, Now 4 00:00:17,720 --> 00:00:24,320 we're looking at how this man was was sent from God many 5 00:00:24,320 --> 00:00:31,360 because how he was sent draws parallels to how you and I are 6 00:00:31,360 --> 00:00:35,600 sent by God. We told you that he was sent 7 00:00:35,840 --> 00:00:42,800 number one personally. Luke chapter 3 verse #2 says 8 00:00:42,960 --> 00:00:46,560 that the word of the Lord came to John. 9 00:00:47,600 --> 00:00:52,600 God actually spoke to John. How long God had been speaking 10 00:00:52,600 --> 00:00:58,400 to John in the wilderness we do not know, but specifically when 11 00:00:58,400 --> 00:01:03,240 the word of the Lord came to John, it moved him into his 12 00:01:03,240 --> 00:01:08,320 ministry. So he was personally called by 13 00:01:08,320 --> 00:01:11,720 God. Everyone in the room who is a 14 00:01:12,640 --> 00:01:17,000 follower of the Lord Jesus Christ was called by God. 15 00:01:18,200 --> 00:01:23,040 We were called through His word. Faith cometh by hearing and 16 00:01:23,040 --> 00:01:25,880 hearing about a word concerning the Christ. 17 00:01:25,880 --> 00:01:31,520 Romans 10, 17 Paul would say to those in Corinth and 1st 18 00:01:31,520 --> 00:01:36,480 Corinthians one verse #2 that they are Saints. 19 00:01:36,720 --> 00:01:44,280 By calling, God calls us into His Kingdom through the power of 20 00:01:44,280 --> 00:01:48,000 the Spirit of God and through the scriptures that are spoken 21 00:01:48,000 --> 00:01:52,560 to us. And God calls us to be his 22 00:01:52,920 --> 00:01:57,240 children. He calls us to be citizens of 23 00:01:57,240 --> 00:02:00,880 His Kingdom and to represent His glory. 24 00:02:02,000 --> 00:02:06,120 So John was sent from God first of all personally because he was 25 00:02:06,400 --> 00:02:11,960 personally called by God. Second, he was sent from God 26 00:02:11,960 --> 00:02:16,480 privately because Luke 3 verse #2 says the word of the Lord 27 00:02:16,480 --> 00:02:24,320 came to John in the wilderness. He was in total obscurity all by 28 00:02:24,320 --> 00:02:28,920 himself, and how long he was there we do not know. 29 00:02:30,040 --> 00:02:33,120 Most assume that he probably went into the wilderness 30 00:02:33,120 --> 00:02:36,440 sometime around the age of 20, because that's when he would 31 00:02:36,440 --> 00:02:39,760 have entered the priesthood anyway, and he was in line for 32 00:02:39,760 --> 00:02:42,200 the priesthood. But we don't know exactly when 33 00:02:43,080 --> 00:02:47,120 that occurred. But even even a year in the 34 00:02:47,120 --> 00:02:50,280 wilderness, if you've ever been to the Judean wilderness, it's a 35 00:02:50,560 --> 00:02:57,920 dry, dead, hot place. But let's say he was there for 36 00:02:57,920 --> 00:03:03,920 10 years and all he did was read the Old Testament manuscripts, 37 00:03:04,680 --> 00:03:09,520 listen to the voice of God. But personally, he was called by 38 00:03:09,520 --> 00:03:14,760 God and privately he communed with God that there was 39 00:03:14,760 --> 00:03:20,680 something about obscurity, total obscurity that breeds, that 40 00:03:20,680 --> 00:03:24,720 breeds, transforming maturity there. 41 00:03:24,720 --> 00:03:29,080 There's something about being alone with God all by yourself, 42 00:03:29,680 --> 00:03:33,440 listening to his voice as he speaks to you through his Word, 43 00:03:34,320 --> 00:03:39,280 and then responding to him. And we told you last week that 44 00:03:39,280 --> 00:03:43,880 that silence and solitude were the were the most practiced 45 00:03:44,360 --> 00:03:46,480 spiritual disciplines by our Lord. 46 00:03:47,720 --> 00:03:50,320 The Bible says these words in the book of Lamentations. 47 00:03:51,080 --> 00:03:56,240 Lamentations chapter chapter 3. Verse 25. 48 00:03:56,240 --> 00:04:00,280 The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the person who 49 00:04:00,280 --> 00:04:04,680 seeks him. It is good that he waits 50 00:04:04,680 --> 00:04:08,520 silently for the salvation of the Lord. 51 00:04:09,680 --> 00:04:15,880 Verse 28. Let him sit alone and be silent 52 00:04:16,519 --> 00:04:22,120 since he has laid it on him. Let him put his mouth in the 53 00:04:22,120 --> 00:04:31,480 dust, for perhaps there is hope. Solitude is a a rest of the life 54 00:04:32,280 --> 00:04:36,680 where silence is a rest for the lips. 55 00:04:37,920 --> 00:04:43,440 And so many times we spend so much time talking that we spend 56 00:04:43,440 --> 00:04:48,280 very little time listening. Well, John's all alone in the 57 00:04:48,280 --> 00:04:52,200 wilderness. There's nobody to talk to except 58 00:04:52,200 --> 00:04:58,600 God, and I'm sure that his communion with God was sweet and 59 00:04:58,600 --> 00:05:01,680 special. And you have to ask the 60 00:05:01,680 --> 00:05:07,320 question, what what is my communion with God like in the 61 00:05:07,320 --> 00:05:14,120 privacy of my my home, in the silence of the early morning or 62 00:05:14,120 --> 00:05:19,560 the late evening? Well, we are so busy, you know, 63 00:05:19,760 --> 00:05:23,400 our, our cell phones keep us occupied. 64 00:05:24,000 --> 00:05:27,360 Every time there's a buzz or every time there's a vibration 65 00:05:27,480 --> 00:05:31,040 or every time there's a sound, we jump to our phone. 66 00:05:31,320 --> 00:05:34,920 We're like Pavlov's dog. Every time it goes off, we just, 67 00:05:35,040 --> 00:05:38,600 we just foam at the mouth to see, is there a text? 68 00:05:38,600 --> 00:05:41,520 Is there a notification? Is there something for me? 69 00:05:42,840 --> 00:05:46,360 The the challenge would be to, to go home and, and, and place 70 00:05:46,640 --> 00:05:52,680 your phone in the closet, shut the door and just leave it 71 00:05:52,680 --> 00:05:57,760 there. But see, we can't do that or we 72 00:05:57,760 --> 00:06:03,800 won't do that because we are so occupied or preoccupied with the 73 00:06:03,800 --> 00:06:06,600 busyness of life. We have to know what's going on 74 00:06:06,600 --> 00:06:08,840 in the world. We have to know what's going on 75 00:06:08,960 --> 00:06:10,880 in our community. We have to know what's going on 76 00:06:10,880 --> 00:06:16,360 in, in every area of life. We, we just have to know as if 77 00:06:16,360 --> 00:06:18,880 we're that important, but we think we are. 78 00:06:19,720 --> 00:06:23,720 And so we have to know. We have to know if somebody 79 00:06:23,720 --> 00:06:31,800 calls, if somebody texts, why? When I was growing up, we didn't 80 00:06:31,800 --> 00:06:35,680 have any of that stuff. You had to be home to receive a 81 00:06:35,680 --> 00:06:39,240 phone call. You had to go to mailbox to get 82 00:06:39,240 --> 00:06:43,600 a letter. Those days have long, long gone. 83 00:06:45,240 --> 00:06:48,200 But what I'm trying to say is that we get so preoccupied with 84 00:06:48,200 --> 00:06:51,280 the busyness of life that there's no time for silence and 85 00:06:51,280 --> 00:06:58,800 solitude. And so John, he was forced into 86 00:06:58,800 --> 00:07:03,920 the wilderness. He was there all alone, and 87 00:07:03,920 --> 00:07:08,520 there he grew. Luke 180 tells us that he grew 88 00:07:08,520 --> 00:07:14,840 strong spiritually. Could it be that in today's 89 00:07:15,320 --> 00:07:20,320 society, in today's church, we are as weak as we are 90 00:07:20,320 --> 00:07:26,680 spiritually because we don't spend time alone with God? 91 00:07:28,200 --> 00:07:33,080 John did, and he grew spiritually. 92 00:07:35,800 --> 00:07:42,320 There came a man sent from God, personally called by God, 93 00:07:43,560 --> 00:07:49,480 privately commune with God and #3 that's where we left off last 94 00:07:49,480 --> 00:07:56,600 week, prophetically chosen by God. 95 00:07:57,840 --> 00:08:02,400 You've got your Bible turn. Turn to Luke's Gospel, the 3rd 96 00:08:02,400 --> 00:08:09,680 chapter, the fourth verse, as it is written in the book of the 97 00:08:09,680 --> 00:08:13,680 words of Isaiah the prophet. The voice of one crying in the 98 00:08:13,680 --> 00:08:17,120 wilderness make ready the way of the Lord, make his paths 99 00:08:17,120 --> 00:08:20,280 straight. Every ravine will be filled, and 100 00:08:20,280 --> 00:08:22,320 every mountain and hill will be brought low. 101 00:08:22,920 --> 00:08:25,800 The crooked will become straight, and the rough Rd. 102 00:08:25,800 --> 00:08:32,240 smooth, and all flesh will see the salvation of God. 103 00:08:34,039 --> 00:08:44,560 That's from Isaiah 40 verse #3 Matthew, Luke, and John record 104 00:08:44,560 --> 00:08:53,480 that Mark. Mark quotes Malachi 3 verse #1 105 00:08:54,840 --> 00:09:02,200 which says this, Behold, I am going to send to my messenger, 106 00:09:02,400 --> 00:09:06,440 says the Lord. That's John the Baptist, and he 107 00:09:06,440 --> 00:09:10,920 will clear the way before me, and the Lord whom you seek will 108 00:09:10,920 --> 00:09:14,840 suddenly come to his temple. And the messenger of the 109 00:09:14,840 --> 00:09:18,560 covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming. 110 00:09:19,160 --> 00:09:22,560 The messenger of the covenant in whom you delight is, is Jesus 111 00:09:22,560 --> 00:09:29,880 the Messiah, But it's going to send his messenger, and that 112 00:09:29,880 --> 00:09:34,120 messenger will clear the way for him. 113 00:09:35,640 --> 00:09:41,080 Now think about this. You're John the Baptist, you're 114 00:09:41,080 --> 00:09:47,360 in the wilderness, you have Old Testament and manuscripts, and 115 00:09:47,360 --> 00:09:51,120 you're able to read about yourself. 116 00:09:52,960 --> 00:09:56,760 You're able to read about the messenger that's going to pave 117 00:09:56,760 --> 00:10:00,960 the way for the Messiah. And John knows that. 118 00:10:01,000 --> 00:10:05,000 He's the guy. He reads about it in Isaiah. 119 00:10:05,000 --> 00:10:08,080 He reads about it in Malachi. Can you? 120 00:10:08,640 --> 00:10:13,560 Can you imagine the exhilaration he must have felt reading those 121 00:10:13,560 --> 00:10:19,400 texts, The excitement that must have pervaded his heart and mind 122 00:10:19,400 --> 00:10:22,760 as he would read those things to realize that he was coming to 123 00:10:22,800 --> 00:10:30,000 prepare the way for the Messiah? They were specifically chosen by 124 00:10:30,000 --> 00:10:39,960 God to be that man. Other words, His coming was 125 00:10:39,960 --> 00:10:44,760 expected. His coming was anticipated. 126 00:10:46,440 --> 00:10:51,000 The problem was that it'd been 700 years since Isaiah wrote 127 00:10:51,240 --> 00:10:54,800 chapter 40, verse #3 been a long time. 128 00:10:57,040 --> 00:11:00,760 And John is reading this and realizing this and coming to 129 00:11:00,960 --> 00:11:05,880 understand that it's been 700 years and now, now he here he 130 00:11:05,880 --> 00:11:11,160 is. Malachi was written 400 years 131 00:11:13,120 --> 00:11:18,080 and the Lord hadn't spoken. And the people had waited a long 132 00:11:18,080 --> 00:11:23,800 time for the Messiah to come, ever since the the arrival of of 133 00:11:23,800 --> 00:11:30,120 Abraham in the promised land way back in Genesis chapter 12, that 134 00:11:30,120 --> 00:11:32,520 his seed would bless the nations of the world. 135 00:11:34,840 --> 00:11:37,200 Even reading the book of Genesis, that the the seed of 136 00:11:37,200 --> 00:11:39,040 the woman would crush the serpent's head. 137 00:11:39,960 --> 00:11:44,400 All this prophecy for hundreds of years, thousands of years. 138 00:11:45,560 --> 00:11:48,680 Now John is realizing that the time has come. 139 00:11:49,600 --> 00:11:52,280 He's the guy. He he's the chosen prophet. 140 00:11:54,280 --> 00:11:55,800 God could have chosen anybody else. 141 00:11:57,320 --> 00:12:04,560 John was the guy and prophetically he was chosen by 142 00:12:04,560 --> 00:12:09,560 God and you know, there, there was no preparation for him to, 143 00:12:10,000 --> 00:12:17,640 to to be culturally relevant because he wasn't in the 144 00:12:17,640 --> 00:12:20,000 culture. He was in the wilderness. 145 00:12:21,920 --> 00:12:29,200 There was no preparation for him to be socially savvy because he 146 00:12:29,200 --> 00:12:32,480 was in the wilderness. He didn't know the lingo of the 147 00:12:32,480 --> 00:12:36,640 people. He was privately in communion 148 00:12:36,640 --> 00:12:40,800 with his God. He didn't know the the modern 149 00:12:40,800 --> 00:12:44,760 language of the day and the the the cliches that people would 150 00:12:44,760 --> 00:12:46,640 use. Didn't know any of that stuff. 151 00:12:48,280 --> 00:12:55,840 Because when God calls you to represent him, he doesn't call 152 00:12:55,840 --> 00:12:58,640 you to have something in common with your culture. 153 00:13:00,200 --> 00:13:03,960 He calls you to be counterculture. 154 00:13:05,560 --> 00:13:07,800 Why? Because you're a prophet of God. 155 00:13:09,200 --> 00:13:11,760 You're going to speak things that the culture is not used to 156 00:13:11,760 --> 00:13:15,200 hearing. You're going to say things that 157 00:13:15,320 --> 00:13:20,480 the culture doesn't want to necessarily hear because you're 158 00:13:20,480 --> 00:13:23,480 going to preach an undiluted message of the truth. 159 00:13:25,640 --> 00:13:30,520 And here is John recognizing that he is the fulfillment of 160 00:13:30,520 --> 00:13:37,000 prophecy. He was prophetically chosen by 161 00:13:37,000 --> 00:13:40,120 God. Now, I want you to listen very 162 00:13:40,120 --> 00:13:41,400 carefully to what I'm going to tell you. 163 00:13:43,200 --> 00:13:49,440 You were prophetically chosen by God as well. 164 00:13:51,280 --> 00:13:58,320 Think about that, John specifically, and to some degree 165 00:13:58,320 --> 00:14:00,680 you specifically as well, because the Lord knows you by 166 00:14:00,680 --> 00:14:05,360 name, but you have been generally chosen by God. 167 00:14:05,360 --> 00:14:07,280 Why? Notice what it says in verse 6 168 00:14:07,280 --> 00:14:12,600 of Luke 3 that all flesh would see the salvation of the Lord, 169 00:14:13,240 --> 00:14:17,080 not just Jews, but Gentiles as well. 170 00:14:17,280 --> 00:14:20,920 The going that's people like you and me see. 171 00:14:23,240 --> 00:14:26,240 But there, there there is, there was a chosen or choosing. 172 00:14:26,240 --> 00:14:29,880 Excuse me of your life and mine turn with me to First Peter 173 00:14:29,880 --> 00:14:31,760 chapter 2. Let me show you this. 174 00:14:34,040 --> 00:14:37,920 And this is really rich when you begin to understand what Peter 175 00:14:37,920 --> 00:14:42,480 is saying. First Peter 2 verse #9 but you 176 00:14:42,480 --> 00:14:50,280 are a chosen race. Peter is speaking to those those 177 00:14:50,280 --> 00:14:52,480 Jews who've been scattered abroad. 178 00:14:52,800 --> 00:14:56,920 In fact, go back to chapter one verse #1 it says Peter and the 179 00:14:56,920 --> 00:15:01,000 Apostle of Jesus Christ to those who reside as aliens scattered 180 00:15:01,000 --> 00:15:06,640 throughout Pontius, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, Bithynia, who 181 00:15:06,640 --> 00:15:13,320 are chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father 182 00:15:13,680 --> 00:15:19,120 by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and 183 00:15:19,120 --> 00:15:23,320 be sprinkled with His blood. That's who he's writing to. 184 00:15:25,120 --> 00:15:31,320 He tells them that they are a chosen people, a chosen nation. 185 00:15:33,080 --> 00:15:37,080 Look what it says in verse number six of first Peter 186 00:15:37,080 --> 00:15:43,040 chapter 2, for this is contained in Scripture as Peter quotes 187 00:15:43,040 --> 00:15:50,600 from the prophet Isaiah. Behold, I lay in Zion, a choice 188 00:15:52,600 --> 00:15:57,440 stone, a chosen stone. Who's the chosen stone? 189 00:15:58,320 --> 00:16:01,800 The Messiah. He takes that from Isaiah 190 00:16:01,800 --> 00:16:09,080 chapter 42 verse #1 which says, Behold my servant, whom I 191 00:16:09,400 --> 00:16:15,400 uphold, my chosen one, in whom my soul delights. 192 00:16:17,120 --> 00:16:23,320 The Messiah was the chosen. 1 When was the Messiah chosen? 193 00:16:25,760 --> 00:16:31,680 Did God look down the corridors of time and see the man Jesus 194 00:16:32,960 --> 00:16:40,440 and chose him to be the Messiah? No, He was chosen in the 195 00:16:40,440 --> 00:16:44,160 eternity past, just like you were. 196 00:16:45,760 --> 00:16:48,960 In fact, your name was written in the Lamb's Book of Life. 197 00:16:48,960 --> 00:16:53,040 Revelation 13/8, Revelation 17, Eight before the foundation of 198 00:16:53,040 --> 00:16:55,840 the world. So prophetically, you were 199 00:16:55,840 --> 00:16:59,840 chosen by God. Your name might not be in 200 00:16:59,840 --> 00:17:03,720 Scripture, but it's written in the Lamb's Book of Life. 201 00:17:04,400 --> 00:17:10,800 So before time began, those of you who know Christ as Lord and 202 00:17:10,800 --> 00:17:15,079 Savior, your name was written already in the Lamb's book of 203 00:17:15,079 --> 00:17:20,359 life. The Bible says these words John 204 00:17:20,359 --> 00:17:24,880 1516 You did not choose me, but I chose you. 205 00:17:25,160 --> 00:17:27,839 Say wait a minute, I, I chose Jesus. 206 00:17:28,760 --> 00:17:31,960 And yeah, your choice is subject to his sovereign choice. 207 00:17:34,160 --> 00:17:35,920 You did not choose me, I chose you. 208 00:17:37,320 --> 00:17:43,440 Listen to Acts 1348. It says as many who had been 209 00:17:43,440 --> 00:17:50,760 appointed to eternal life believed as many as had been 210 00:17:50,760 --> 00:17:52,520 appointed. When were they appointed? 211 00:17:53,720 --> 00:17:55,400 When they were chosen? In the eternity past. 212 00:17:55,400 --> 00:17:58,480 Eternity past? They believed. 213 00:17:59,600 --> 00:18:01,960 Paul would say in First Thessalonians one verse #4 214 00:18:02,240 --> 00:18:09,440 knowing brethren, his choice of you. 215 00:18:10,240 --> 00:18:20,560 Wow, His choice of you turn to 2nd Thessalonians chapter 2. 216 00:18:21,920 --> 00:18:27,240 Second Thessalonians chapter 2 verse #13 But we should always 217 00:18:27,240 --> 00:18:30,640 give thanks to God for you brethren, beloved by the Lord, 218 00:18:30,640 --> 00:18:38,360 because God has chosen you from the beginning. 219 00:18:40,560 --> 00:18:46,400 God has chosen you from all eternity from before time began. 220 00:18:47,680 --> 00:18:49,520 Paul says. We're giving thanks for God's 221 00:18:49,520 --> 00:18:54,520 choice of you. We look at John the Baptist. 222 00:18:54,520 --> 00:18:57,920 We realize that this man prophetically was chosen by God 223 00:18:58,080 --> 00:18:59,880 to be the forerunner to the Messiah. 224 00:19:02,480 --> 00:19:06,360 But don't forget that you and I were chosen in the eternity past 225 00:19:06,480 --> 00:19:09,240 because our names are written down in the Lamb's book of life. 226 00:19:10,400 --> 00:19:12,720 And when you and I gave our life to Christ, that's when. 227 00:19:12,920 --> 00:19:19,760 That's when that's when eternity intersected with time and we 228 00:19:19,760 --> 00:19:22,040 gave our life to the Lord Jesus Christ. 229 00:19:23,920 --> 00:19:26,320 And there are certain characteristics of that of that 230 00:19:26,320 --> 00:19:31,560 choosing that you need to understand because they were 231 00:19:31,560 --> 00:19:36,040 characteristic of John as well. Knowing that God chose you from 232 00:19:36,040 --> 00:19:44,600 eternity to past pummels all pride, destroys your pride, 233 00:19:45,760 --> 00:19:49,240 because God chose you. You didn't choose him not by 234 00:19:49,240 --> 00:19:52,680 works of righteousness which we have done, but by the washing of 235 00:19:52,680 --> 00:19:54,600 regeneration and renewing of the Spirit of God. 236 00:19:54,840 --> 00:19:57,400 Listen to what Paul says in First Corinthians chapter one 237 00:19:57,400 --> 00:20:01,920 verse #26 for consider your calling, brethren, that there 238 00:20:01,920 --> 00:20:05,360 were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not 239 00:20:05,360 --> 00:20:09,760 many noble. But God has chosen the foolish 240 00:20:09,760 --> 00:20:13,000 things of the world to shame the wise, and God has. 241 00:20:14,040 --> 00:20:18,680 Chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which 242 00:20:18,680 --> 00:20:24,880 are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised. 243 00:20:25,480 --> 00:20:33,480 God has chosen the things that are not, so that he may nullify 244 00:20:33,480 --> 00:20:38,160 the things that are so that no man may boast before God. 245 00:20:38,840 --> 00:20:42,960 But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus who became to us 246 00:20:42,960 --> 00:20:45,720 wisdom from God and righteousness and sanctification 247 00:20:45,880 --> 00:20:50,000 and redemption, so that just as it is written, let him who 248 00:20:50,000 --> 00:20:56,120 boasts boast in the Lord. God has chosen the weak things, 249 00:20:56,120 --> 00:21:00,200 the despised things, the the base things of this world, the 250 00:21:00,200 --> 00:21:04,080 foolish things of this world, so no one will boast in and of 251 00:21:04,080 --> 00:21:07,320 themselves. God says I chose you. 252 00:21:07,320 --> 00:21:12,720 You didn't choose me. Your choice was based on my 253 00:21:12,720 --> 00:21:18,560 predetermined foreknowledge. I chose you, and therefore it 254 00:21:18,560 --> 00:21:21,360 pummels all pride. What did John the Baptist say? 255 00:21:22,360 --> 00:21:28,000 He must increase. I must decrease. 256 00:21:29,800 --> 00:21:32,560 That was John. He could have said, hey, I'm the 257 00:21:32,560 --> 00:21:35,800 forerunner. I'm the guy prophesied. 258 00:21:36,040 --> 00:21:39,640 I'm the chosen one to prepare the way for the Messiah. 259 00:21:41,760 --> 00:21:46,280 But he didn't. He said I'm not even worthy to 260 00:21:46,280 --> 00:21:52,200 loosen the straps on a sandals. Because when you see when you're 261 00:21:52,200 --> 00:22:01,440 chosen by God, you recognize that it pummels all pride #2 it 262 00:22:01,640 --> 00:22:08,080 promotes only God. It promotes only God. 263 00:22:09,840 --> 00:22:18,600 Philippians one verse #29 Paul says these words, for to you it 264 00:22:18,600 --> 00:22:26,600 has been granted for Christ's sake to believe in His name. 265 00:22:29,320 --> 00:22:35,160 You are saved for Christ's sake, for His glory. 266 00:22:35,400 --> 00:22:39,600 Three times in Ephesians 1, Paul says to the praise of his glory, 267 00:22:40,400 --> 00:22:45,160 you were predestined by God, you were regenerated by God, you 268 00:22:45,160 --> 00:22:48,040 were sealed by God to the praise of his glory. 269 00:22:49,880 --> 00:22:53,520 And therefore to recognize that you've been chosen by God not 270 00:22:53,520 --> 00:22:58,800 only pummels your pride, but promotes only God and #3 271 00:22:58,800 --> 00:23:12,160 produces joy, produces joy over in first Peter chapter 1, Peter 272 00:23:12,160 --> 00:23:16,520 says this, blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus 273 00:23:16,520 --> 00:23:18,400 Christ. So, according to His great mercy 274 00:23:18,400 --> 00:23:23,160 has caused us to be born again to a living hope, to the 275 00:23:23,160 --> 00:23:27,120 resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an 276 00:23:27,120 --> 00:23:29,960 inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled, and 277 00:23:29,960 --> 00:23:32,400 will not fade away reserved in heaven. 278 00:23:32,400 --> 00:23:36,160 For you who are protected by the power of God through faith for a 279 00:23:36,160 --> 00:23:38,160 salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 280 00:23:38,320 --> 00:23:43,040 In this you greatly rejoice. You greatly rejoice. 281 00:23:43,640 --> 00:23:46,560 God did that. Remember Luke chapter 10 verse 282 00:23:46,560 --> 00:23:52,400 #20 when the apostles came back and they saw people healed, they 283 00:23:52,400 --> 00:23:54,640 saw people give their life to Christ. 284 00:23:54,640 --> 00:23:57,560 They, they saw all kinds of miracles and they were ecstatic, 285 00:23:57,680 --> 00:24:01,040 ecstatic about the ministry. And, and, and Christ says to 286 00:24:01,040 --> 00:24:06,480 them, listen, I, I don't want you to be so excited about your 287 00:24:06,480 --> 00:24:09,000 ministry that you forget your destiny. 288 00:24:10,360 --> 00:24:13,160 If you want to get excited, get excited about this, that your 289 00:24:13,160 --> 00:24:16,880 names are written down in heaven. 290 00:24:18,200 --> 00:24:23,160 That's where the joy is, because ministry fluctuates, it comes 291 00:24:23,160 --> 00:24:25,880 and goes. There's positives and negatives, 292 00:24:25,880 --> 00:24:32,640 ups and downs, but heaven, heaven is yours and that's your 293 00:24:32,640 --> 00:24:35,120 destiny. That's your joy. 294 00:24:37,040 --> 00:24:44,360 John the Baptist knew that his joy was in presenting Christ, 295 00:24:45,240 --> 00:24:48,960 knowing that even in chains he was going to heaven. 296 00:24:50,480 --> 00:24:53,680 He knew that he would testify and witness only for the Christ 297 00:24:53,680 --> 00:25:01,200 because he came to promote only his God #4 knowing that you're 298 00:25:01,200 --> 00:25:04,400 chosen only promises, privileges. 299 00:25:05,160 --> 00:25:09,520 Ephesians chapter one verse #3 Blessed be the God and Father of 300 00:25:09,520 --> 00:25:13,480 our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual 301 00:25:13,480 --> 00:25:19,560 blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us 302 00:25:19,560 --> 00:25:24,320 in Him before the foundation of the world. 303 00:25:26,480 --> 00:25:30,280 Knowing that you're chosen by God promises privileges, 304 00:25:30,640 --> 00:25:40,600 produces joy, promotes God, pummels pride, propels holiness. 305 00:25:41,360 --> 00:25:46,000 Colossians 3 verse #12 So as those who have been chosen of 306 00:25:46,000 --> 00:25:50,720 God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, 307 00:25:51,000 --> 00:25:54,240 humility, gentleness and patience, bearing with one 308 00:25:54,240 --> 00:25:55,920 another and forgiving each other. 309 00:25:56,080 --> 00:25:58,320 Whoever has a complaint against anyone. 310 00:25:58,320 --> 00:26:03,520 Just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. 311 00:26:05,040 --> 00:26:09,120 As chosen by God. You are to be holy, you are to 312 00:26:09,120 --> 00:26:13,680 be blameless, and when you recognize that God has chosen 313 00:26:13,680 --> 00:26:18,680 you for his Kingdom, it propels holiness. 314 00:26:19,800 --> 00:26:25,760 John was a a Nazarite or took a Nazarite vow because he wanted 315 00:26:25,760 --> 00:26:27,920 to be separate and holy from the world. 316 00:26:28,880 --> 00:26:32,520 And he recognized that the prophetic choice of God upon his 317 00:26:32,520 --> 00:26:37,000 life propelled him to live a life separate from those all 318 00:26:37,000 --> 00:26:41,440 around him because he wanted to be holy, uniquely distinct from 319 00:26:41,440 --> 00:26:44,520 the world. Knowing that you're chosen by 320 00:26:44,520 --> 00:26:50,520 God provides security. Philippians one verse #6 being 321 00:26:50,520 --> 00:26:53,200 confident of this very thing that he who began a good work in 322 00:26:53,200 --> 00:26:57,600 you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ over in 323 00:26:57,680 --> 00:27:03,400 First Thessalonians 523 and 24 faithfully see you calls you who 324 00:27:03,400 --> 00:27:07,080 also will complete it, knowing that you've been chosen by God 325 00:27:07,360 --> 00:27:12,480 only only provokes or provide security. 326 00:27:13,080 --> 00:27:19,920 And lastly, it provokes evangelism because Peter says 327 00:27:20,640 --> 00:27:24,920 that you're a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, 328 00:27:25,400 --> 00:27:29,600 a people for God's own possession, so that you may 329 00:27:29,600 --> 00:27:34,400 proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness 330 00:27:34,400 --> 00:27:42,680 into his marvelous lights. John was prophetically chosen by 331 00:27:42,680 --> 00:27:47,960 God. Don't think for one moment that 332 00:27:47,960 --> 00:27:51,320 you were not, because so were you. 333 00:27:52,760 --> 00:27:55,120 You were chosen in eternity past. 334 00:27:56,200 --> 00:28:03,680 God's elective love came down upon you and chose you not 335 00:28:03,680 --> 00:28:05,160 because of anything that you did. 336 00:28:06,680 --> 00:28:10,080 Didn't choose you because you were smart, you were wise, or 337 00:28:10,080 --> 00:28:13,280 you were a good athlete and you would just make a good 338 00:28:13,280 --> 00:28:16,680 representative of him. Look at the apostles. 339 00:28:18,160 --> 00:28:22,360 They were a bunch of nobodies, but they turned the world upside 340 00:28:22,360 --> 00:28:27,240 down because they recognized that God had chosen them for 341 00:28:27,240 --> 00:28:30,440 that ministry, chosen them to be a part of His Kingdom. 342 00:28:32,240 --> 00:28:36,280 Same is true for you and me. Those, those of us who know the 343 00:28:36,280 --> 00:28:41,720 Lord, we, we've been chosen by Him from eternity past in the 344 00:28:41,720 --> 00:28:46,240 mind of God. We were prophetically chosen by 345 00:28:46,240 --> 00:28:59,720 God #4 John was providentially cared for by God, personally 346 00:28:59,720 --> 00:29:04,440 called by God, privately communed with his God. 347 00:29:06,480 --> 00:29:12,000 He was the one who prophetically was chosen by God, but was 348 00:29:12,080 --> 00:29:18,800 providentially cared for by God. This is so exciting. 349 00:29:18,800 --> 00:29:25,040 Turn to Luke chapter 1. Luke chapter 1. 350 00:29:27,760 --> 00:29:33,960 Remember in Galatians 4 it said this in the fullness of time. 351 00:29:33,960 --> 00:29:38,400 Verse #4 Connections 4. In the fullness of time, God 352 00:29:38,400 --> 00:29:42,720 sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, that 353 00:29:42,720 --> 00:29:44,840 he might redeem those who were under the law. 354 00:29:46,320 --> 00:29:50,640 In the fullness of time in in the perfect time, in the 355 00:29:50,640 --> 00:29:55,880 Providence of God, there was a perfect time to send his son, 356 00:29:56,080 --> 00:29:59,280 born of a woman. It was a perfect time 357 00:29:59,560 --> 00:30:03,160 economically. It was a perfect time socially. 358 00:30:03,360 --> 00:30:05,880 It was a perfect time spiritually. 359 00:30:06,080 --> 00:30:08,680 It was a perfect time politically. 360 00:30:08,880 --> 00:30:12,160 It was just the perfect time to send his son. 361 00:30:12,160 --> 00:30:16,000 Well, if that's the case, then it would have been the perfect 362 00:30:16,000 --> 00:30:21,240 time to send the forerunner. So in the Providence of God, he 363 00:30:21,240 --> 00:30:28,160 perfectly chose John to come six months before the Messiah. 364 00:30:30,000 --> 00:30:35,520 Listen to what it says in Luke one verse #5 in the days of 365 00:30:35,520 --> 00:30:38,240 Herod the King, that you might want to stop right there, 366 00:30:39,880 --> 00:30:42,360 because in those days it was a dark day. 367 00:30:43,120 --> 00:30:45,960 It was a depressing day. Herod was a murderer. 368 00:30:46,880 --> 00:30:51,880 He murdered his sons. He murdered his wife. 369 00:30:54,200 --> 00:30:58,040 He murdered all the babies 2 years and younger. 370 00:30:58,040 --> 00:31:03,360 When he realized that there was another king born in Israel, he 371 00:31:03,360 --> 00:31:08,520 was a murderous man. And so it was a very dark time 372 00:31:08,520 --> 00:31:13,440 in Israel and God had not spoken in over 400 years. 373 00:31:14,960 --> 00:31:21,400 A prophet had not come and it was quiet in the land of Israel, 374 00:31:24,440 --> 00:31:27,320 so it says. In the days of Herod, king of 375 00:31:27,320 --> 00:31:33,160 Judea, there was a priest named Zacharias. 376 00:31:33,840 --> 00:31:36,240 Oh, by the way, his name means God remembers. 377 00:31:36,240 --> 00:31:43,360 You might not want to forget that of the division of Abijah, 378 00:31:43,880 --> 00:31:46,160 which of course is very important to the narrative. 379 00:31:46,160 --> 00:31:51,920 As you will see, he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron. 380 00:31:52,360 --> 00:31:54,640 In other words, his wife was in the land of the priesthood as 381 00:31:54,640 --> 00:31:59,680 well. Her name was Elizabeth. 382 00:32:00,880 --> 00:32:05,200 Her name means God is faithful. You're not going to want to 383 00:32:05,200 --> 00:32:09,920 forget that either because it plays a huge part in the 384 00:32:09,920 --> 00:32:15,960 narrative in Luke chapter 1 says in verse 6 they were both 385 00:32:15,960 --> 00:32:22,360 righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the 386 00:32:22,360 --> 00:32:30,880 commandments and requirements of the Lord, but they had no child 387 00:32:32,480 --> 00:32:41,000 because Elizabeth was barren and they were both advanced in 388 00:32:41,000 --> 00:32:47,560 years. Now those verses say so much 389 00:32:49,000 --> 00:32:54,120 about Zacharias Elizabeth, but more so about God in His 390 00:32:54,120 --> 00:33:00,280 Providence because providentially, providentially, 391 00:33:01,160 --> 00:33:11,040 John was cared for, John was protected, John was under the 392 00:33:11,040 --> 00:33:20,080 sovereign hand of the living God to come at just the right time. 393 00:33:21,960 --> 00:33:29,320 They had been waiting for the sunrise from on high to shine, 394 00:33:31,160 --> 00:33:35,120 but nothing had happened for years, hundreds of years. 395 00:33:37,120 --> 00:33:39,680 But in the fullness of time, God would send forth His Son, 396 00:33:40,600 --> 00:33:44,520 meaning that He would make sure that in the same fullness of 397 00:33:44,520 --> 00:33:48,720 time, John the Baptist would be born. 398 00:33:51,920 --> 00:33:56,440 So you have a very important principle here. 399 00:33:56,800 --> 00:34:00,240 Remember, it says that they had no child. 400 00:34:02,760 --> 00:34:10,719 Why is that important? Well, because of the 613 401 00:34:10,880 --> 00:34:14,440 commandments that the Jews had adopted, number one, was this, 402 00:34:15,320 --> 00:34:18,639 that as a Jew you must be married. 403 00:34:18,639 --> 00:34:29,440 That was #1 #2 was this you must have more than one child? 404 00:34:31,239 --> 00:34:37,440 That was the command in the days of John the Baptist, the days of 405 00:34:37,440 --> 00:34:40,520 Zacharias and Elizabeth. Why did you have to have more 406 00:34:40,520 --> 00:34:41,800 than one? Genesis chapter 2. 407 00:34:42,400 --> 00:34:48,080 Be fruitful and multiply. So they adopt the commandment 408 00:34:48,080 --> 00:34:52,040 that you must have more than just one child, you must have 409 00:34:52,320 --> 00:34:58,720 two. In fact, the rabbis taught that 410 00:34:58,720 --> 00:35:04,880 certain people should be excommunicated from from God, a 411 00:35:04,880 --> 00:35:14,960 Jew who had no wife and a Jew whose wife had no child. 412 00:35:16,960 --> 00:35:22,200 So here is Zacharias, a priest, Elizabeth, who's in the land of 413 00:35:22,200 --> 00:35:26,200 the priesthood and marries the guy who's a priest. 414 00:35:27,960 --> 00:35:31,560 They have no children. They're barren. 415 00:35:33,600 --> 00:35:39,960 That was a, a tremendous curse upon a Jewish family. 416 00:35:41,160 --> 00:35:46,280 We, we can't really relate to that today, but in those days it 417 00:35:46,280 --> 00:35:49,000 was huge. Why? 418 00:35:50,200 --> 00:35:58,120 Because they really took to heart Psalm 127, which says that 419 00:35:58,120 --> 00:36:03,000 children are a gift from the Lord. 420 00:36:05,400 --> 00:36:10,240 Children are gifts. I wonder if you recognize that 421 00:36:10,240 --> 00:36:12,360 your child is a gift from the Lord. 422 00:36:13,720 --> 00:36:17,680 They are. They're gifts. 423 00:36:19,320 --> 00:36:24,040 Oh, oh, by the way, when when God gives you a gift, how do you 424 00:36:24,040 --> 00:36:32,080 respond with the gift? Some people respond by not going 425 00:36:32,080 --> 00:36:40,960 to church for weeks because of the gift God gave them for 426 00:36:40,960 --> 00:36:44,480 whatever reason, which for the life of me I'll never 427 00:36:44,480 --> 00:36:49,680 understand. But if God gives you a gift, why 428 00:36:49,680 --> 00:36:52,320 would you not honor him with the gift? 429 00:36:54,120 --> 00:36:58,960 But there's all kinds of excuses as to why why we don't go to 430 00:36:58,960 --> 00:37:02,560 church. It's almost as if we have 431 00:37:03,720 --> 00:37:10,280 maternity leave from church. Just food for thought. 432 00:37:10,680 --> 00:37:15,040 Don't mean to meddle, but sometimes that's what I do. 433 00:37:16,640 --> 00:37:20,640 But we need to think about things biblically more so than 434 00:37:20,640 --> 00:37:27,120 anything else, right? But here was Zacharias and 435 00:37:27,120 --> 00:37:32,920 Elizabeth. They had no children, but 436 00:37:32,920 --> 00:37:36,440 providentially they were cared for. 437 00:37:38,520 --> 00:37:47,440 Note this there is no situation that God does not have a 438 00:37:47,440 --> 00:37:54,040 solution for. There is no situation that God 439 00:37:54,040 --> 00:38:03,440 does not have a solution for. What situation are you in today 440 00:38:03,600 --> 00:38:05,640 that you wonder whether or not there's a solution? 441 00:38:07,680 --> 00:38:09,000 Let me be right up front with you. 442 00:38:09,080 --> 00:38:17,880 The solution is always Christ. Christ that in John 14 one, let 443 00:38:17,880 --> 00:38:22,680 not your hearts be troubled. If you believe in God, believe 444 00:38:22,680 --> 00:38:27,000 also in me. Don't be afraid, don't be 445 00:38:27,000 --> 00:38:31,200 anxious, don't be scared. Why? 446 00:38:32,080 --> 00:38:35,600 Because of me. You believe in God, believe also 447 00:38:35,640 --> 00:38:41,880 in me because He was the solution to their situation of 448 00:38:41,880 --> 00:38:47,120 fear and anxiety. And you have to ask yourself, 449 00:38:47,520 --> 00:38:50,880 what situation are you in whereby you are looking for a 450 00:38:50,880 --> 00:38:57,920 solution? Christ is that solution. 451 00:38:59,240 --> 00:39:06,840 Oh, by the way, there is no affliction that does not have 452 00:39:06,840 --> 00:39:13,120 God's undivided attention. There is no affliction that does 453 00:39:13,120 --> 00:39:17,960 not have God's attention. God knew exactly what He was 454 00:39:17,960 --> 00:39:25,040 doing. He had planned her barrenness. 455 00:39:26,960 --> 00:39:32,840 Providentially. He wasn't going to give them a 456 00:39:32,840 --> 00:39:38,800 child until the right time. Providentially, God was in 457 00:39:38,800 --> 00:39:43,480 charge of her womb. The Bible says that the Lord 458 00:39:43,480 --> 00:39:47,840 opens and closes the womb. No one has ever gotten pregnant 459 00:39:47,840 --> 00:39:52,840 by accident. If you get pregnant, it's by 460 00:39:52,840 --> 00:39:58,400 divine appointment. Twice in the Old Testament, God 461 00:39:58,400 --> 00:40:02,240 says I'm the one who opens and closes the womb. 462 00:40:03,800 --> 00:40:09,440 God's in charge of all that. And God closed her womb. 463 00:40:11,360 --> 00:40:12,920 Did you not think she was in pain? 464 00:40:15,160 --> 00:40:19,960 Do you not think she was lonely and sad, broken hearted? 465 00:40:19,960 --> 00:40:26,040 Of course she was. And yet God in his Providence 466 00:40:26,040 --> 00:40:30,920 was doing something because He didn't want to give them just 467 00:40:31,800 --> 00:40:36,400 any child. He had to give them a specific 468 00:40:36,400 --> 00:40:40,120 child, a forerunner to the Messiah. 469 00:40:42,440 --> 00:40:45,640 He was preparing them. Notice that in a world of 470 00:40:45,640 --> 00:40:49,080 hypocrisy, in a world of rebellion, which Israel was in, 471 00:40:49,320 --> 00:40:53,320 in a world where they had defected from their God, there 472 00:40:53,320 --> 00:40:58,440 were two people, Zacharias and Elizabeth, who the Bible says of 473 00:40:58,440 --> 00:41:06,640 Luke one were devoutly blameless and righteous before God. 474 00:41:09,080 --> 00:41:16,040 In their obedience, in their commitment to God, God took them 475 00:41:16,040 --> 00:41:20,800 through a trial of barrenness. It wasn't like they had sinned. 476 00:41:22,240 --> 00:41:23,920 They had turned their back on the Lord. 477 00:41:24,960 --> 00:41:28,480 Not at all. Luke makes it very clear. 478 00:41:28,480 --> 00:41:31,600 They were true to their God. They were righteous with God. 479 00:41:32,720 --> 00:41:36,600 They had looked forward to the coming sacrifice. 480 00:41:38,000 --> 00:41:42,520 But, but even more so than that, there were 18,000 priests in 481 00:41:42,520 --> 00:41:47,320 Israel during the time of Christ and they were divided up into 24 482 00:41:47,320 --> 00:41:52,320 different orders. They had to be and that those 24 483 00:41:52,320 --> 00:41:58,720 orders, Abijah was the 8th order and they would function 2 weeks 484 00:41:58,720 --> 00:42:05,760 a year, 2 weeks a year. And so it happens, ironically, 485 00:42:06,080 --> 00:42:13,440 coincidentally or providentially, that Zacharias, 486 00:42:14,680 --> 00:42:18,760 during that two week interval, was in the temple performing his 487 00:42:18,760 --> 00:42:23,840 priestly duties when the Angel Gabriel came to him and 488 00:42:23,840 --> 00:42:27,560 announced that his wife would be pregnant with a child. 489 00:42:28,800 --> 00:42:32,720 The Providence of God, Zacharias said. 490 00:42:32,720 --> 00:42:34,080 You know what? I'm done with the priesthood 491 00:42:34,080 --> 00:42:36,280 thing. I'm done serving the Lord. 492 00:42:36,280 --> 00:42:37,880 I'm not going to serve the Lord anymore. 493 00:42:38,080 --> 00:42:40,240 I'm done. I'm out. 494 00:42:41,640 --> 00:42:44,120 I've been serving the Lord, and I got nothing in return. 495 00:42:46,000 --> 00:42:49,960 But notice his steadfastness and his commitment, his faithfulness 496 00:42:49,960 --> 00:42:52,040 to the Lord. He was serving the Lord. 497 00:42:52,160 --> 00:42:55,200 He didn't stay home. He went to work knowing that 498 00:42:55,200 --> 00:42:57,240 this was God's call upon his life. 499 00:42:57,560 --> 00:43:02,520 And in that moment God did something great. 500 00:43:04,960 --> 00:43:10,720 Because there is no affliction that does not have God's 501 00:43:10,720 --> 00:43:18,520 undivided attention, and there is no situation that does not 502 00:43:18,520 --> 00:43:26,280 have God as a solution. And sure enough, God did 503 00:43:26,280 --> 00:43:38,040 something unique and special. Ecclesiastes 3 verse #1 Solomon 504 00:43:38,040 --> 00:43:44,360 says this. There is an appointed time for 505 00:43:44,360 --> 00:43:51,240 everything under the sun. Everything, everything is by 506 00:43:51,240 --> 00:43:57,960 divine appointment. And then he says in verse 11, he 507 00:43:57,960 --> 00:44:04,480 has made everything beautiful in its time, within the realm of 508 00:44:04,480 --> 00:44:08,720 everything being appointed in its time, a time to be born, a 509 00:44:08,720 --> 00:44:10,640 time to die. And he gives some illustrations 510 00:44:10,760 --> 00:44:14,280 about that down through verse #10 there's all kinds of time 511 00:44:14,280 --> 00:44:16,800 for this and for that. Time to cry, time to laugh, time 512 00:44:16,800 --> 00:44:19,040 to be happy, a time to mourn, yadda yadda yadda. 513 00:44:19,240 --> 00:44:24,080 And then he says he has made everything beautiful in its 514 00:44:24,080 --> 00:44:27,480 time. So wait a minute, my affliction 515 00:44:27,480 --> 00:44:32,360 is not beautiful. My situation is not beautiful. 516 00:44:34,880 --> 00:44:37,240 Zacharias and Elizabeth say, well, our barrenness is not 517 00:44:37,240 --> 00:44:43,080 beautiful, but read on. He has also said eternity in 518 00:44:43,080 --> 00:44:47,960 their heart yet so that man will not find out the work which God 519 00:44:47,960 --> 00:44:51,640 has done from the beginning even to the end. 520 00:44:51,840 --> 00:44:56,480 In other words, that man might learn to trust God. 521 00:44:56,480 --> 00:45:01,320 You see, you're trusting God in that moment of appointed time, 522 00:45:01,520 --> 00:45:05,760 and that's what makes the time beautiful, not because of the 523 00:45:05,760 --> 00:45:10,880 time itself, but because of you trusting God in that appointed 524 00:45:11,480 --> 00:45:17,760 time. So Isaiah would say it this way. 525 00:45:19,640 --> 00:45:25,160 Isaiah 49 verse #14 But Zion said Zion is a people. 526 00:45:25,160 --> 00:45:27,040 Here you can read through the Old Testament. 527 00:45:27,040 --> 00:45:29,560 Zion can be a property. Zion could be a place. 528 00:45:29,840 --> 00:45:31,920 Zion could be a proclamation of the gospel. 529 00:45:32,080 --> 00:45:34,640 Zion is a people. It all depends on the context. 530 00:45:34,720 --> 00:45:40,360 Here it's Israel, he says, but Zion said the Lord has forsaken 531 00:45:40,360 --> 00:45:43,920 me and the Lord has forgotten me. 532 00:45:43,960 --> 00:45:47,160 This is Israel. You ever said that? 533 00:45:49,240 --> 00:45:58,160 Oh by the way, Zacharias name means God remembers and the 534 00:45:58,160 --> 00:46:01,200 Bible then tell us that Zacharias Elizabeth got angry or 535 00:46:01,200 --> 00:46:05,080 bitter to the Lord at all. Not at all. 536 00:46:06,920 --> 00:46:16,960 No, because they remembered what Elizabeth's name God is 537 00:46:17,320 --> 00:46:20,080 faithful. They remembered that. 538 00:46:22,960 --> 00:46:27,880 So it says Zion, my, my people say the Lord has forsaken me, 539 00:46:27,880 --> 00:46:31,080 the Lord has forgotten. So the Lord says can a woman 540 00:46:31,080 --> 00:46:34,840 forget a nursing child and have no compassion on the son of her 541 00:46:34,960 --> 00:46:38,200 womb? Even these may forget, but I 542 00:46:38,200 --> 00:46:42,920 will not forget. You notice it didn't say a 543 00:46:42,920 --> 00:46:47,120 father would forget because we do all the time. 544 00:46:48,480 --> 00:46:51,400 I can't even remember my kids names half the time, let alone 545 00:46:51,400 --> 00:46:54,520 my grandkids names. My wife does though. 546 00:46:56,000 --> 00:46:59,800 She knows the birthdays, when they were born, how much they 547 00:46:59,800 --> 00:47:04,960 weighed, how long they were. I don't know any of that stuff. 548 00:47:06,080 --> 00:47:08,880 But a woman? Can a woman forget a nursing 549 00:47:08,880 --> 00:47:12,320 child? Even God says they do. 550 00:47:13,800 --> 00:47:15,520 They might not forget them when they're young, but as they get 551 00:47:15,520 --> 00:47:21,520 older, things happen, he says. Beyond. 552 00:47:21,520 --> 00:47:24,600 I have inscribed you on on the palms of my hands. 553 00:47:24,960 --> 00:47:28,880 Your walls are continually before me. 554 00:47:30,520 --> 00:47:39,000 Your calamity, your heartache, your situation, as impossible as 555 00:47:39,000 --> 00:47:48,720 it may be, your dead ends, your turmoil, it's all on the palm of 556 00:47:48,720 --> 00:47:56,720 my hand because there is no situation that does not have God 557 00:47:56,720 --> 00:48:02,800 as a solution and there is no affliction that does not have 558 00:48:02,800 --> 00:48:10,200 God's undivided attention. Here is Zacharias and Elizabeth 559 00:48:11,760 --> 00:48:17,400 and God was going to give them the perfect son in his time. 560 00:48:19,840 --> 00:48:23,800 They just had to wait and trust and believe that God would act 561 00:48:25,160 --> 00:48:30,760 and God did. And God rewarded the fact that 562 00:48:30,760 --> 00:48:36,040 they remembered Zacharias that God is faithful. 563 00:48:37,200 --> 00:48:44,920 Elizabeth and God answered because God prophetically, 564 00:48:45,960 --> 00:48:54,720 prophetically chose John and providentially cared for all 565 00:48:54,720 --> 00:48:58,160 that would happen concerning the birth of John. 566 00:48:59,680 --> 00:49:05,560 By the way, providentially He cares for you as well because He 567 00:49:05,560 --> 00:49:08,560 knows everything you've been ascribed in the palms of His 568 00:49:08,560 --> 00:49:13,520 hand and He never forgets, He never forsakes. 569 00:49:14,800 --> 00:49:16,800 He is your God. Let's pray. 570 00:49:18,040 --> 00:49:21,000 Lord, God, we thank you for today and all that you've done. 571 00:49:21,800 --> 00:49:26,800 We realized, Lord, that time is so very, very short that you're 572 00:49:26,800 --> 00:49:29,200 at work. You're at work in all of our 573 00:49:29,200 --> 00:49:32,320 lives. And our prayer, Father, is that 574 00:49:32,320 --> 00:49:36,560 each of us would see Your handiwork in our lives, that we 575 00:49:36,560 --> 00:49:40,800 trust you and believe in you. If there be 1 here today who 576 00:49:40,800 --> 00:49:44,120 does not know you, may they, may they come to saving faith in 577 00:49:44,160 --> 00:49:48,000 Jesus Christ our Lord. May they give their life to the 578 00:49:48,000 --> 00:49:51,200 living God. For those of us who do, Lord, 579 00:49:51,200 --> 00:49:56,120 may we trust and believe knowing that you have a solution for our 580 00:49:56,120 --> 00:50:01,360 situation, that you're completely attentive to our 581 00:50:01,360 --> 00:50:05,480 affliction in ways we have no idea, but yet you are there. 582 00:50:06,400 --> 00:50:09,720 For that we are grateful. In Jesus name, Amen.