Gaining the Victory

Joe Crews

Amazing Facts

Gaining the Victory Part 1

Judges are sworn to uphold the law and to deal with criminals who violate it.

Can a judge keep his charge and yet acquit a guilty lawbreaker without sharing in the guilt?

I'll be back in a moment with the amazing facts.

Hello, this is Joe Cruz from the Amazing Facts broadcast, facts which affect you.

You know, in general, I believe we're more aware of our spiritual needs than we're able to satisfy them.

Most people know where their individual weakness lies, but the problem is knowing how to reach out and obtain help when we recognize our tremendous spiritual weakness and need.

Now, there are many people who simply ignore those needs.

They're even ashamed to admit to themselves that they're not right with God and that something is lacking.

These people somehow hope that maybe it'll go away if they just ignore it.

But it just doesn't happen that way, friends.

You don't lose spiritual weakness by ignoring it.

We have to take some positive action in gaining a deep spiritual Christian life.

I hope this study today will be extremely practical for you as we study the problem of the discouraged, defeated Christian.

In searching where we might begin today, the experience of Paul came to my mind.

I think there are thousands of Christians who are very much like Saul of Tarsus.

The young man, you know, was brought up in church.

In fact, I suppose he had been a church member as long as he could remember.

Some of the greatest men, some of the wisest men of the Roman Empire had been the teachers of Saul, and from those very earliest years he had been instructed in all the details of his legalistic religion.

Nobody could explain better about Judaism than this man, Saul.

In fact, in Acts 22 and verse 3 he said, I am verily a man which am a Jew, born in Tarsus, a city of Cilicia, yet brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, and taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers, and was zealous toward God, as ye all are this day." And then going on to Philippians 3, verses 5 and 6, we read this, Circumcised the eighth day, the stock of Israel of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews, as touching the law a Pharisee, concerning zeal, persecuting the Church, touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.

I have known these things from the cradle.

I understand all the details of religious requirement and exactions of my religion.

And yet, my friends, I tell you today that Paul was not a happy, satisfied man.

There was something missing, and he knew it, although he didn't understand what it was.

He was groping, searching for something that he didn't have.

I'm sure the lack was clearly felt as he stood by there holding the coats of the men who stoned Stephen to death.

As Paul looked on that shining face of that Christian martyr, he realizes Stephen had something he didn't have.

There was something vitally missing in his own life, and he could see it shining out of the face of this dedicated Christian.

It must have bothered Saul a great deal as he left that place of execution.

But later, the unrest of this man was completely settled as he traveled the road to Damascus and made that tremendous dramatic encounter with Jesus Christ.

Heaven seemed to open up and shine down on him.

This legalistic Pharisee was transformed into a triumphant Christian that day as a piece of God came into his life.

Now friends, I want us to study the counsel of Paul in our broadcast today, and I want us to find out the secret of this happy life that became his through Jesus Christ.

We want to learn what counsel Paul might have for us and how our own life can be transformed into this same kind of experience.

It's not a short story, it's the account, in fact, of a long struggle.

The book of Romans gives us a story very well.

That's really the biography of Paul's religious experience.

I imagine the first step was when he started seeing sin as it really was, when he began to see the transgression with all of its ugliness and terrible consequences.

As it is written, there is none righteous, no not 1.

There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.

They're all gone out of the way, they're all there together become unprofitable.

And then verse 23, for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.

Now Paul, I'm sure, had never admitted this before.

As a self-righteous Pharisee, he would never see himself at all as a transgressor or sinner.

But now he's so ashamed of himself and he says everybody's gone astray.

There's not 1 righteous, all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.

Now friends, when he saw himself in that light, Saul began to abhor his own goodness and his own righteousness.

He realized that he was a lost, a condemned man, and he saw sin as lawlessness which had condemned him to death.

He also began to see sin as a defilement.

As Isaiah spoke further and said, Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.

Paul realized that he needed to be cleansed, that he needed to be washed.

He was dirty, filthy, defiled by his own sins.

And then apparently Paul could see that sin was a ruling power that had made a slave out of him, because in Romans 6, 14 he says, Sin shall not have dominion over you.

He knew it, and he wanted to be free of that bondage.

And so the great struggle began in the life of Paul.

He began to see what he should be, what he ought to be, but he had no power to do it.

In the face of good desires and good intentions, he said, The things I want to do I can't possibly make myself do.

In fact, let's read that now in Romans 7, and verse 18 and onward.

For to will is present with me, but how to perform that which is good I find not.

For the good that I would, I do not, but the evil which I would not, that I do.

Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.

I find then a law, that when I would do good, evil is present with me.

For I delight in the law of God, after the inward man, but I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.

O wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from the body of this death?

I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord." All right, friends, listen.

I hate these things that defile me and bind me, but I can't break.

He said there's a law of sin operating in my life, in my body, in my mind, and it binds me like steel.

And then suddenly as Paul mourned over his captivity to sin, As he talked about the cruel nature of sin, there burst into his mind the 1 means of deliverance.

And so in triumph he utters that last sentence, I thank God through Jesus Christ there is escape.

And yes, there is, friend, Only 1 hope for Paul and only 1 hope for you.

And that's to get out of this mess through the grace of our Lord.

How does Jesus break those bonds and cut us free from the awful thraldom of sin?

Please notice that the law demands payment of debt, doesn't it?

Let's imagine a poor man being dragged in before the judge because he owes money and he can't pay his debts.

There's the law smiting him in the face and condemning him.

The poor man might have all kinds of good explanations.

He might give reasons for his condition and why he's not able to pay.

But the law says, no, you must pay, and so judgment is rendered against that man, no matter what his excuses or his reasons might be.

But listen, suppose some friend comes along and pays the man's debts, takes care of his obligation.

Well, friends, that takes care of everything, doesn't it?

The debt is paid, the man is free, he's acquitted, the law is upheld, and The judge has done his duty.

Everything is satisfied when the debt's been paid, even though it might be paid by some friend instead of the accused man himself.

Now listen, when sin enters the life, the sentence of death by the divine law is immediately applied.

GYC Conference 2024: Wherever He Goes

Plenary Sessions

Andrew Park

Generation. Youth. Christ. (GYC)

One Life

Father in heaven, I was reminded of a Bible text, Isaiah 55, backstage.

So shall my word be which goeth forth out of my mouth.

It shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

Father, I pray that your holy infinite word may come into our hearts and bear fruit for the glory of God this Sabbath day we pray in Jesus name.

A couple of years ago a friend of mine came up to me and he told me that there was this sermon that I needed to listen to.

It's called War Stories by Pastor Henry Wright.

My friend said, if you're in ministry, you need to listen to this sermon.

He told me that before I went into full-time ministry, so I told him I'd check it out.

But as certain commitments sometimes go, I never ended up listening to the sermon.

Now 1 day this year, as I was working on my house, my wife and I are currently renovating our home, I decided, this is the day I'm going to listen to war stories.

Because it had been so long, I forgot who the preacher was who preached the sermon.

And as the search results came up, all I saw was Pastor Henry Wright.

Now, after I was scrolling for a few minutes, unable to find the preacher that clearly wasn't showing up, I decided to click on the video that seemed right, and I started listening.

In this sermon, Pastor Wright began talking about the 12 disciples, the 12 ministers that Jesus had called to follow Him.

By the way, if you're not a pastor, all of us are ministers of the gospel in your home, at your work, in your school, at your church.

He turned to Matthew chapter 10 and he began reading.

He read that when Jesus had called onto him his 12 disciples, he gave them power.

He gave them power to cast out unclean spirits and also to heal all manner of diseases.

And then the Bible began proceeding to name each of the disciples by name.

After he read the passage in Matthew chapter 10, he said, there's something wrong with this text.

And then Pastor Wright began to describe the 12 disciples in a way that I have personally never heard before.

He said, first of all, there was a terrorist in here named Simon the Canaanite.

You got 2 gangbangers, James and John, the sons of Zebedee, the sons of thunder.

There's a white-collar crook named Matthew the Publican, and he proceeds to go and name each of the 12 disciples and give them modern-day comparisons to show just how messed up each of these men were and what Jesus was working with.

Jesus called these messed up men and he gave them power.

He gave them power to not only use them in ministry but he gave them power to save them.

Then he said Jesus called for you into ministry is because he knew that ministry was the only way to save your soul.

So when you have a call to ministry, it's an announcement to the world that you have some serious issues.

I thought, okay, Pastor Wright, I'm not a gangbanger, but I won't disagree with your statement." He continued on, he said, "'Ministry situations are designed to carve out and prune you and make you everything God has designed you to be.'" And then 1 line stuck out to me.

He said, "'So make up your mind that if no 1 shows up to prayer meeting, you'll be there.

And a couple weeks later, I went to the church for prayer meeting.

I had lost my keys that day so I was locked out of the church so I waited at the parking lot for a church member to show up whenever they would come and we would go into the church together and as I waited, guess what?

Now I'll confess, I began to feel kind of happy.

I thought of all the things that I could do in the hour that I've now gained.

I can work on my sermon, I can do this, I can do that.

And as I was getting happy in my heart, Elder Wright's words recalled into my mind, make up your mind that if no 1 shows up to prayer meeting, you'll be there.

Didn't go in the church because I'm locked out.

30 to 40 minutes I was interceding for the church.

After that time I decided let me go downtown to prayer walk the city.

And as I drove towards the downtown area I ended up seeing a cemetery that was nearby the church and for some reason I pulled into the cemetery to finish my prayer meeting there.

Here I am, prayer walking, looking at the tombstones, and as I was walking 1 tombstone caught my eye.

I thought there was a mistake in the engraving because the year of birth and the year of death seemed too close to each other so I walked up to the tombstone.

I continued my prayer walk but now I couldn't stop thinking about Chester.

He wasn't too far off from my age, so I thought I had a connection to this young man.

And as I continued to think, a final thought stuck out in my mind.

In his 25 short years of life, what did Chester live for?

Did he have a purpose that drove his life?

If he didn't, What a sad end to a short life.

The same question I had about Chester, I asked tonight about you.

If you died today, what would the people around you say that you live for?

John chapter 4 this evening as we open up the Word of God.

As we open up the word of God to John chapter 4, Jesus is in Samaria and he's talking with the woman at the well.

Jesus had taken a long journey and stopped by a well to rest and a Samaritan woman came by and he asked for her to draw him some water.

But while asking for physical water, he used his request to inspire within her a thirst for something greater in her life.

Let's take a look at the end of their conversation in John chapter 4, verse 23.

Jesus tells her, but an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth.

For such people the Father seeks to be his worshippers.

God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.

The woman said to him, I know that Messiah is coming, he who is called Christ.

When that 1 comes, he will declare all things to us.

As Jesus is speaking to this woman, she speaks to the Messiah, the Christ, who will come and declare all things plainly to them.

And in verse 26, let's look at the response of Jesus to this woman.

Verse 26, Jesus said to her, I who speak to you am He." Jesus knew who He was.

He was the Messiah, and his identity directed his life.

Because of his understanding of the prophetic scriptures like Isaiah chapter 53 and Daniel 9 and the Psalms and the prophets, Jesus lived his life as a man of sorrows.

And as a sheep led to the slaughter, 33 years young, he lived and he died by his prophetic identity.

Turn back a few pages with me to John 1, verse 19.

John 1, verse 19, we're looking at John the Baptist.

In John 1, verse 19, as John the Baptist began his public ministry at the young age of 30 years old, calling everywhere for people to repent because the kingdom of heaven was at hand, John the disciple later writes a testimony of John the Baptist in John chapter 1 verse 19, and it says, This is the testimony of John.

When the Jews sent to him priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, What's that question?

Talking Points Sabbath School 1st Quarter 2025: God's Love and Justice

Kameron DeVasher

Mark Howard

Michigan Conference of Seventh-day Adventists

03 To Be Pleasing to God

I'm Cameron DeBasia and I'm Mark Howard and this is Talking Points.

On our third lesson now of our God's Love and Justice Study series.

This one's titled, To Be Pleasing to God, which I know there might be some people who are like, how in the world could I ever be pleasing to God?

Like, God pleases me, but can I please God in return?

So you put our talking points together this way.

Well, especially in light of that we've talked about the love of God, how God loves everybody.

So what if he already loves everybody, then what is it?

Well, you, like I said, you put these talking points together.

You're going to give us kind of an overview of this lesson and break it down point by point.

So let me have an opening word of prayer and then you can lead us through the study.

Dear Holy Father, thank you so much for your love and your mercy and your justice and all of the aspects of who you are that we're going to be studying this week and all the weeks to come.

Please bless us now as we discuss the lesson, as we study your Word, and bless all of the Sabbath school teachers and participants as they prepare for this week's study.

Please let every local church be a blessing, not only to its members, but through them the community, And we can share this love of God with the world for pray it in Jesus name.

Well as you had touched on the title to be pleasing to God the the my Summary of this week's lesson is that it explores how we as fallen beings, and this is in the language of Sabbath Afternoon, fallen beings corrupted by sin and prone to evil.

This lesson is looking at that very thing.

As you would imagine with a title that says to be pleasing to God All right talking points are 3 this week Talking point number 1 god loves us because of who he is not who we are made that statement last week in our study, but that is a talking point this week from Sunday and Monday's lesson.

Talking point number 2, God is pleased when we are genuinely happy.

And that I've drawn primarily from Tuesday.

And then, Yeah, I mean, God wants me to do whatever I want to do.

Well, I don't know exactly what that means, but we'll dive in.

And then talking point number 3, we can only please God by faith.

And that's drawn primarily from Wednesday and Thursday's lessons.

So I noticed also we go Monday, Tuesday, Sunday, Monday, then Tuesday, then Wednesday, Thursday.

I was commenting on the writing of this lesson.

It's very nice and it does have a logical progression of thought, so I appreciate that.

And I'm looking forward to you leading us through this.

Well, it's like last quarter was themes of John, and so that may necessitate going around.

These are themes but it's kind of following a more of a like a logical flow.

Yeah, well let's look at that logical flow here that God loves us because of who he is.

Okay, well the quarterly starts out with the lesson, the parable of the prodigal son, and before it gets into the idea, and I'm supposing we're going to talk about how we can be pleasing to God, it's wanting to reiterate that this is not in order to earn the favor of God or the love of God.

That's already expressed very clearly in Scripture.

We've talked about it already in previous lessons, but the parable of the prodigal son is a very powerful...

Of course it's the Luke 15 and the lost parables.

You have the lost son, you have the lost coin, you have the lost sheep, but the parable of the prodigal son is There's a lot of interesting things I could do this whole lesson on the parable of the prodigal son.

Back to Menu

All Teachings

Gaining the Victory Part 1

13m

One Life

1h 21m

03 To Be Pleasing to God

30m

03 To Be Pleasing to God

28m

39 The Time of Trouble

5m

May I Help You

1h 1m

The Future of the SDA Church

1h 7m

Overview of DBT: Dialectical Behavior Therapy

36m

03 Revelation’s Last Warning to Humanity

1h 13m

02 Facing False Prophets

56m

I Sat Alone

43m

02 If God is Love, Why So Much Pain and Suffering?

1h 4m

Sound Doctrine