Maryland Men of Faith Conference 2022: True to Duty

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Maryland Men of Faith

True to Duty Seminars

Dee Casper

Redeeming Sexual Brokenness

This media has been presented to you by the Maryland Men of Faith, where men are challenged and encouraged to form the character of Christ.

For more information, please visit www.mmof.org.

God thank you for this chance to reflect upon an important topic and 1 that's either under addressed or addressed in ways that have statistically proven to be not that helpful.

So I pray that you would bless us, that you give us wisdom and insight from heaven.

I fully believe that God is in the business of bringing healing and freedom to all struggles.

But sometimes it's hard to believe that when there's something that just keeps plaguing us day after day and year after year.

But I hope and pray that this seminar can actually give us hope.

We're going to cover some pretty raw stuff.

So, but we're going to deal with some pretty heavy stuff.

Some of it may even be potentially triggering.

It's not going to be appropriate for children.

I'm not going to get graphic, but we are going to deal with a pretty, pretty heavy topic.

But I'm going to do my best to be tactful.

So statistically, 77% of Christian men from ages 18 to 30 report using porn monthly.

The age of 11 is the average age of first exposure.

55% of married men and 25% of married women say that they view porn once a month.

And by the way, I'll give these slides to Maryland men of faith, you can have all of them.

Okay, I'll make sure you guys can have those.

87% of Christian women say that they have watched porn?

56% of divorces cite porn use as a causative factor and this is all from the Conquer Series.

I've never seen, I've heard of it, I've not used it, it's just a place where I got some statistics.

So the main thing is, the main point I want to make is what we've been doing is not working.

There are resources that exist but the statistics aren't changing much as it stands right now I think a disruption to our way of thinking regarding what we do and how we've addressed.

This is needed A disruption is required and it's okay to be a disruptor.

Dude rolls in and says, you've heard it was said, but I say to you, right?

He had to go through this process of saying, you've been hearing that this is the way to address and think, but I'm letting you know God's perspective is different than what you've been told.

And I think that within Christianity and Adventism, this is going to be another 1 of those situations for us.

I think avoiding mental health and family of origin dynamics is continuing to keep the church from being an effective and relevant resource in addressing this specific struggle.

If you ignore the topic of mental health and family of origin issues, you will not get to the root.

You may, by God's grace, cease acting out and looking at porn, but the brokenness that led you to porn usage remains unministered to and unaddressed.

And the porn industry actually understands us better than the church does, unfortunately.

This is actually 1 of the reasons why many of the themes within pornography have family dynamics.

The titles, the themes, and so forth have family dynamics within them Why because they understand the psychology behind porn usage that the church doesn't so we don't address those things and the people who are creating?

They know how you think they know what homes are coming from They know what your struggles are and they're creating content to speak into those spaces, and the church is largely ignoring that topic altogether on this struggle.

Right, it doesn't mean that we don't have family of origin, mental health things here and there to some degree, but when we tie that to sexual brokenness and addiction, it's largely not part of the conversation.

But 2 disruptive resources have been produced in the last 4 years that I think are absolute game changers that can address how we as a faith community can talk about this context of sex and sex addiction.

But before I go to those, I want to establish something that I think we haven't fully understood as a movement.

In Isaiah 61, This is something that Jesus quotes.

So in Luke chapter 4, I believe he goes into the synagogue They hand him the scroll of Isaiah and he goes to this and this is Jesus's introduction to his ministry Here's what I'm about.

Here's what I came here for and this is what he quotes in Luke 4 I believe says it's Isaiah 61 verse 1 the Spirit of the Lord God is upon me because the Lord has anointed me to preach good tidings to the poor he sent me to heal the brokenhearted to proclaim liberty to the captives in the opening of the prison to those who are bound.

Now does that sound relevant to people who are struggling and in the throes of sexual addiction?

Jesus came here for this, to heal the brokenhearted, to set the captives free.

And so if that's Jesus's call, and as Christians we're called to be Christ followers, to be Christ-like, then this should be our call as the Seventh-day Adventist Church Not just to prove that our doctrine is better than the other guys Which is what most of our evangelistic series sound like by the way, unfortunately It's a long discourse about we're arguing with an evangelical minister who isn't even in the room When we're speaking to visitors, right?

So we need to make sure that the evangelism we're doing doesn't ignore the Adventist message It's gorgeous, but the Adventist message should be teaching us something about Jesus Not these detached items where Jesus is seemingly and conspicuously absent So this is something that he came to do to heal the brokenhearted So our evangelism should be healing the brokenhearted our public meetings.

Our Bible studies should be ministering to the whole person Jesus continues Well that prophecy about Jesus continues to proclaim the acceptable year the Lord You know many people are wrestling with believing that God could accept them because they're in the throes of sexual addiction many and the day of vengeance of our God to comfort all who mourn to console those who mourn in Zion to give them beauty for ashes the oil Of joy for mourning the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness you ever felt that spirit of heaviness You're trapped and can't get out that they may be called trees of righteousness to planting the Lord that he may be glorified.

I believe our approach to sexual brokenness should lead to this result.

Healing the brokenhearted, setting the captives free, to comfort those who mourn, to give the oil of joy for mourning, and to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.

Did you know that 3ABN's pastoral department is getting an alarming amount of phone calls from Seventh-day Adventist adults and pastors who have 0 assurance of salvation?

So this idea of proclaiming the acceptable year of The Lord is also important because there are many people who believe that God can't accept them because they're too messed up They're too broken.

So Jesus came to address the root issues to reverse the fall of man Okay, he didn't come to shame us or to merely modify Our behavior that's not what he came here for.

He came to heal us of our broken hearts Okay, John 3 17 says that God did not send Jesus into the world to condemn the world But that the world through him might be saved and the word for saved there is the word so Zill and we'll come back to that in a second.

We see that word again in Romans 5 and verse 10 that for if when we Were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of the Son much more having been reconciled We shall be saved Sozo by his life.

Now that word Sozo means to save, to heal, to preserve and to rescue Fascinating, huh?

It isn't just this soteriology term of the plan of salvation, right?

It's meant, it's to deliver out of danger into safety, right?

God rescuing believers from the penalty and power of sin and into his provisions.

To be rescued from destruction and brought into divine safety.

So God never intended for there to be a difference between healing and salvation.

We call the health message the right hand of the gospel and that's right or the right arm of the gospel But health healing and salvation were always meant to be synonymous.

They were both supposed to go hand in hand Some of us really wrestle with this we're forgiven for a sin, but we won't let God heal us from the wounds that that sin caused.

So we find temporary forgiveness but we don't find healing from the wounds that our sins have caused.

So the self-hatred, the self-sabotage, the addictive tendencies and the shame that comes and all the results of it, we don't.

God wants to give you complete and total healing.

He doesn't just say that it didn't happen and that it's covered by the blood of Jesus.

He wants you to be able to live your life as if it doesn't happen and didn't happen.

Many of us are in bondage and God doesn't want that for us.

The word sozo is used interchangeably to address healing and salvation.

He doesn't just want to save you, He wants to heal you completely and to set you free from all these wounds that are hindering your current experience.

That's kind of the the theological component of this presentation now We need to flip some tables The resources that are largely being pushed within Christianity today with the best of intentions written by men and women who have the best of intentions, are actually causing more harm than help.

Akeem James

When the Whole World Becomes Christian

The title of today's message, at least for this segment, is When the Whole World Becomes Christian.

And so we'll see what I mean as we look at that.

Very interesting stuff that I've been looking at for the past few months.

1 of the books that I've been reading, which I recommend, we'll be looking at that, some information from that, to a great degree, is the book entitled The Return of the Latter Rain, Volume 1, covering the history of the Adventist movement from 1844 to 1891.

And so as we go through some of that, we're going to see how That aspect of our history connects with the trajectory of the prophetic events that are going to come to pass, some of which have come to pass and that will come to pass all the way to the end and we'll connect the dots to see how this leads up to the second coming.

Let's have a word of prayer, and I'll mention a few things as we start.

Father in heaven, I pray that you would illuminate our minds, draw our hearts ever closer to you.

Lord, we can do nothing apart from Christ.

And so we pray that He would be uplifted and as a result your name glorified.

I pray that I would be hidden and that my sins, O Lord, that you would forgive them and Lord use me as a conduit to communicate your love and your goodness and your truth.

I pray and I ask these things in Jesus Christ's name let all of God's people say amen.

All right 1 of the things that I wanted to mention Afterward if you wanted to connect more there's a ministry that I have called ultimate cry you guys can check it out on YouTube and I share more about these things online along with trying to reach out to the Christian audience within our world in North America today and around the world through the subject that you're going to see at the very foundation.

So you guys can check it out, Ultimate Cry, and you can check it out on Spotify as well to be able to see what I present there.

So if you have your Bibles with you, I invite you guys to go to the book of Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy chapter 32.

As you go there, I will lay out a story just to illustrate the reason that we're gonna study what we studied today.

So in the state of Georgia there was a woman that She got an insurance policy from square mouth insurance company And so she did this she got the policy in the mail and the lady actually took the policy and read through the whole thing As she read through even the aspects that were in fine print, she noticed that there was a contest going on.

And the contest stated, whoever reads this policy, they will get $10, 000.

So she called the insurance company and she said, what do you think she said?

And sure enough, true to what was stated, they gave her $10, 000.

That is the same thing God is calling us to do with His Word.

The reason He wants us to read the Scriptures and to study it is because there are rich benefits that we will gain as a result of reading and studying the Bible.

And so my prayer for us today is as we look at the Bible and we try to look at basically quote unquote the fine print that we will see the blessings that it can bring to us.

All right, so are you with me in the book of Deuteronomy chapter 32?

All right, so there are 3 parts that we're going to cover here.

Second part, the trajectory of the final events.

And the third part, the globalization of a counterfeit Christianity.

When we talk about rain in Scripture, Brother Tony mentioned rain earlier this morning when we talk about rain in scripture What do you think of when you think of rain and what it symbolizes?

So new life actually brought about by the Spirit of God and this is correct.

However, what we're going to see here is something else as well.

The rain in Scripture represents, yes, the Holy Spirit, but also that which the Spirit brings when he comes.

He uplifts us and there's a message through which he uplifts us, right?

Give air, O heavens, and I will speak and hear o'er the words of my mouth.

My speech, that's my word, shall distill as the dew, as the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass, because I will publish the name or the character of the Lord.

Ascribe ye greatness unto our God." So we're seeing here in scripture that according to the Bible, rain is a symbol, yes, of the Holy Spirit, but it's also a symbol of what?

Or the instructions of God that drops as rain.

So now we're going to see that in the text.

So you're turning with me in John chapter 16.

So Jesus is giving pieces of his last discourse to his disciples.

And I want you to notice what Jesus says in John chapter 16 and he himself Christ shows in the end that he himself studies the Bible this way this is really powerful so you guys have heard the text before you're going to John chapter 16 verse 12 verses 12 through 14 you've heard of Christ saying in John 14 just 2 chapters earlier Christ states I am the way the truth and the life So when we're thinking of truth personified, who is it?

Now remember, God says, I, when the Holy Spirit comes, He brings a doctrine.

Now we're going to see what that reign actually is.

It states here in verse 12, I Have yet many things to say unto you, but you cannot bear them now how be it when he the spirit of Truth is come He will guide you into all truth.

For He shall not speak of Himself, but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak, and he will show you things to come.

Now the reason this is so powerful is because you remember in John 14 Christ calls himself the truth.

Now as we're reading this then, how can we read it?

And this is 1 of the reasons that inspiration, speaking of the third person of the Godhead.

She's literally states this, that this Holy Spirit is the Spirit of who?

Now, you remember, Holy Spirit is a separate person, right?

So we're not talking, we're not fucking non-trinitarian here.

But what we're talking about is that the Holy Spirit is a separate individual just like Jesus is just like the Father is but The main goal of the Spirit is to glorify whom?

Hence, when He comes to earth, Christ says in verse 14, He says, He shall glorify Me.

So therefore, let's read it now in that sense.

How be it when He, the Spirit of truth, is come, He will guide you, what?

That means then all things pertaining to Christ.

That means therefore, friends, in every truth that we study, in every doctrine Who must be exalted?

Jesus Christ To study inspiration tells us basically in our history as a movement shows us that to study the truth without seeing Christ is to receive information but not transformation.

It is to receive a mental ascent to the truth but not a spiritual ascent to the truth and so this is why we're gonna look at this in the history of our movement as a church at this moment in 1844 yes the Great Disappointment happened and God began to reveal more and more truth following that concerning the heavenly sanctuary.

But we're also shown in our history that as time went on, even after our church was officially organized in 1863, that the pioneers began to realize that the movement was becoming as dry as the hills of Gilboa in legalism.

So God was trying to show them, hey, something has to be done with this.

You're having the doctrine, you're understanding the truths, but there's a disconnect between the truths that you're studying and the Christ who gave you those truths.

So God says, alright, what am I going to do about this?

And This is why I recommended the book, The Return of the Latter Rain by Ron Duffield.

He lays out the history and 1 of the things that is mentioned is a litany of aspects that God was trying to use to bring his people back.

In the late 1870s, 1 of the major things that began to happen with Ellen White and her husband Was God was beginning to tell them you need to come away from trying to solve every issue within the church to focus more on writing concerning the plan of redemption James White at this time actually began to state we need to preach more of Christ.

Eli Rojas

Leadership that is True to Duty

Our gracious Heavenly Father, we want to thank you for this beautiful Sabbath morning.

We thank you for the weather we're having, Lord, because we're not having worse weather.

It's a reminder of the showers of blessings we need in our lives every day.

And we want to lift before you, Lord, your children that are going through difficult times right now because of the storms in the Caribbean, countries that have been hit by it, and your children there, Father, as well as in Florida.

My understanding is that it's around South Carolina now.

So we pray for your protection, your guidance, that the Holy Spirit will be with them and that you will provide the help they need, Lord, through us as we find ways to serve you.

We also want to pray for all the different seminars that are going on this morning.

And we pray that you will be with us as we open your word, as we study about Truth to Duty, Lord, that in all we say and do, we'll bring honor and glory to your name.

So we pray and we thank you in the wonderful name of Jesus Christ.

So, following the theme of Truth to Duty, I thought it was a great expression to talk about leadership.

Because leadership is 1 of those things that we like the most.

It goes from all the way to the home, to the church, to the places where we work and it's important that we find ways to learn about leadership and today we're going to talk about True to Duty which is the theme for this morning.

It comes from our Sister White and it says Men are wanted now who are as true to duty as a needle to the pole.

Just because this is a men's seminar, I took the liberty of editing a little bit out because Sister White says men and women are wanted.

So I just put the women out, focusing on us guys, because in reality we need to step up in leadership.

When you look at the church in North America, when you look at your church in Latin America, those are the 2 places I'm familiar with.

Many women are stepping up in ministry, not so much because they necessarily want to, but it's because of the lack of male involvement in the church.

And we need to pick up the duty that God has given us and take leadership.

So here she says, men are wanted now who are as true to duty as the needle to the ball.

Men who will work without having their way smooth and every obstacle removed.

You know, we like to find excuses and reasons why we don't do things and we don't get involved in this and this and that.

In reality, the challenge for us is that, no, we don't need that.

We need to be stepping up and serving and taking those leadership roles without the concern of having the way smooth before we get there.

It's the challenge that God puts before us and we need to be facing it and taking courage and doing what God is asking us to do without trying to find excuses for what God is calling us.

When I was looking for truth to duty, I found this, and I thought it was interesting.

So it turns out that in 1910, so we're going back a few years, right?

There was an English film that was called Truth to His Duty.

And I thought, I'll just mention it because it's interesting so the movie plot was a doctor is forced and I put the doctors, it's actually 1 doctor a medical doctor is forced to operate on his wife's lover to save his life.

So the idea here is, yes, this guy had to do it, you know, he was true to his calling, to his duty.

True to conveys the idea of faithful to something, fulfilling a duty or responsibility.

The idea that we need to be doing what we need to be doing because he has called us to do it.

And I want to propose to you that it has a lot to do with making decisions based on character, based on this call that God has given us, on this desire that we have that we need to be true to duty.

I like this comparison that I make and I brought it up because I think it's so important.

What is the difference of someone that is doing something out of character, out of this call for duty that God has given us, in opposition to what is going on today in the world and with us guys, that we want to do things because of emotional reasons.

We say that guys don't deal well with their emotions.

Well, we don't deal well with decisions that are based on emotion, so we need to be careful about what we do, and you're gonna see that there's a big difference between the 2.

So emotions are based on, I'm sorry, decisions that are based on emotion, and decisions that are made because we're true to duty.

And I hope that this comparison will help you also make decisions in your own life that helps you deal with things the way God wants us to deal with them.

So the first list is based on emotions and because of that, that is the basis for the decisions we make.

The other ones are made on character basis.

I do this because it's my duty and not necessarily because of how I feel that morning.

Sometimes we make that decision based on how we feel when we get up but that's not what God wants us to do.

So there's a few questions we will ask and 1 of them is if it is based on emotions we'll say what is the easiest?

When you're doing it because you're based on character, because you're true to duty, you will say, what is right?

The opposite is when I say when I get it done then I'll feel good.

You know, you can get up and say, well, I don't feel like doing that today.

Well, you realize it's a deadline, you've got to get it done, and then you do it, and then you feel really good about what you've done, right?

And this my friends is 1 that causes especially at home, because not every day we feel like loving our wives, right?

Not every day we feel like loving our own kids.

You know, they messed up, they get into trouble, and you're like, oh man, these are my kids, right?

But if it is controlled by feelings, you'll be failing in the things that God wants us to do.

So don't go by the emotions, don't go by the feelings.

I usually bring this up when we're talking about love in marriage and the fact that love in marriage should never be based on your feelings for the day.

Your love for your wife is based on that decision that you made.

And I'm telling you as a husband, on those dark days when you've been fighting, right?

It is more important to make that decision based on character and decisions you made on God before the Lord than just on how you feel for the day.

The other 1 that fights in this area and it has to do with emotions is that selfish mindset that we all have.

And Friends, this is the 1 that we all deal with.

Series

True to Duty Seminars

When the Whole World Becomes Christian

Transcript

Parent Series

Parent Conference

Sponsor

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