WEBVTT 00:00.000 --> 00:02.960 We'll raise your hand one of the issues can get one for you. Of course, 00:02.960 --> 00:07.040 we welcome you to come back on Sunday for Sunday morning service at 1030 Sunday 00:07.040 --> 00:08.360 evening at 5pm. 00:08.680 --> 00:12.200 You see the soul winning times and teams listed there in the middle and the list 00:12.200 --> 00:14.720 of expecting mothers. If you can keep them in prayer. 00:15.040 --> 00:18.400 Then we have the stats for salvations and baptisms for the month of May. 00:18.700 --> 00:27.200 On the right hand side is the upcoming church events. We do have the TJ missions trip coming up this Saturday, June 27th, leaving the building at 9 15 a.m. 00:27.200 --> 00:30.200 Make sure you coordinate with Brother Hernandez if you'd like to participate. 00:30.200 --> 00:36.200 And we also have the our ice cream social this Sunday after the p.m. service. 00:36.200 --> 00:40.200 And then our Independence Day picnic will be next Friday, July 3rd. 00:40.200 --> 00:46.200 The details are at the guest center, the location. If you have any questions, you can talk to Brother Hernandez about that. 00:46.200 --> 00:46.700 And then we have. 00:46.700 --> 00:51.240 the watermelon fellowship on Sunday July 5th. All of this is for our just our 00:51.240 --> 00:55.760 summer calendar and so excited to have a filled summer here with a lot of 00:55.760 --> 00:59.680 activities at the church. I just want to ask you to please pray for a couple 00:59.680 --> 01:03.040 people. Of course a lot of people are sick right now. Sickness is going around. 01:03.040 --> 01:06.640 If you can pray for my dad, he has pretty bad infection right now and we're 01:06.640 --> 01:11.360 probably gonna take him in. But also if you can keep your Raya in prayer, he's 01:11.360 --> 01:13.880 He's had a lot of complications unfortunately. 01:13.880 --> 01:14.700 He's going to be having a procedure. 01:14.700 --> 01:18.940 procedure done this coming Tuesday and so please pray for him. 01:18.940 --> 01:24.340 Obviously, Maury and Angela knew that a lot of these things were going to happen, but 01:24.340 --> 01:26.020 it's difficult during this time. 01:26.020 --> 01:27.220 And so please pray for them. 01:27.220 --> 01:32.860 Pray for baby Uriah that the procedure would go well with his breathing. 01:32.860 --> 01:39.300 And they did request just as of now to not visit them as of now until the procedure is 01:39.300 --> 01:40.300 done. 01:40.300 --> 01:42.620 But of course, I'm sure they would appreciate a 01:42.700 --> 01:47.100 text message a phone call just letting them know that you are praying for them and I'm 01:47.100 --> 01:51.340 sure they would appreciate a meal and so just keep them in prayer keep baby Uriah in prayer 01:51.340 --> 01:55.100 that God would strengthen his body and be with the hands of the doctors during the procedure 01:55.100 --> 01:56.100 on Tuesday. 01:56.100 --> 01:59.460 All right and that is it please make sure you silence your phones during the preaching 01:59.460 --> 02:01.620 so as to not be a distraction during the service. 02:01.620 --> 02:05.300 Let's sing our next song song number 120 Jesus Savior Pilot Me. 02:17.100 --> 02:26.400 song Jesus Savior Pilot Me song number 120 all together nice and strong on that 02:26.400 --> 02:27.700 first verse 02:27.900 --> 02:31.900 Jesus, Savior, pilot me 02:31.900 --> 02:35.660 Over life's tempestuous sea 02:35.660 --> 02:39.260 Unknown waves before me roll 02:39.260 --> 02:42.860 Hiding rock and treacherous shoal 02:42.860 --> 02:46.460 Chart and compass come from Thee 02:46.460 --> 02:50.300 Jesus, Savior, pilot me 02:50.300 --> 02:53.900 As a mother stills her child 02:53.900 --> 02:55.900 Thou canst hush Thee 02:55.900 --> 03:05.380 Ocean wild, Boisterous waves obey thy will, When thou say'st to them, Be still, Wondrous 03:05.380 --> 03:16.420 sovereign of the sea, Jesus Savior, Pilot me, When at last I near the shore, And the 03:16.420 --> 03:23.060 The fearful breakers roar, Twicks me and the peaceful rest. 03:23.060 --> 03:23.860 Then while we 03:23.900 --> 03:34.900 leaning on thy breast. May I hear thee say to me, fear not I will pilot thee. 03:34.900 --> 03:38.580 And then great singing. At this time the ushers will collect the offering. 03:38.580 --> 03:41.900 Tonight will be in Genesis chapter number 23. 04:45.700 --> 04:48.500 Good evening, we're in Genesis chapter 23. 04:53.100 --> 04:57.180 Genesis chapter 23. The Bible reads, 04:57.180 --> 05:00.620 And Sarah was 107 and 20 years old. 05:00.620 --> 05:04.020 These were the years of the life of Sarah. And Sarah died 05:04.020 --> 05:07.660 in Kirjath Arba, the same as Hebron in the land of Canaan. 05:07.660 --> 05:10.660 And Abraham came to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her. 05:11.100 --> 05:15.260 And Abraham stood up from before his dead and spake unto the sons of Heth, saying, 05:15.260 --> 05:18.060 I am a stranger and a sojourner with you. 05:18.060 --> 05:22.780 Give me a possession of a burying place with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight. 05:22.780 --> 05:27.540 And the children of Heth answered Abraham, saying unto him, hear us my lord, thou art 05:27.540 --> 05:31.460 a mighty prince among us, and the choice of our sepulchers bury thy dead. 05:31.460 --> 05:35.340 None of us shall withhold from thee his sepulcher, but that thou mayest bury thy dead. 05:36.000 --> 05:40.400 And Abraham stood up and bowed himself to the people of the land, even to the children of Heth. 05:41.040 --> 05:46.240 And he communed with them, saying, If it be your mind that I should bury my dead out of my sight, 05:46.240 --> 05:49.520 hear me, and entreat for me to Ephron the son of Zohar. 05:49.900 --> 05:55.180 that he may give me the cave of Machpelah, which he hath, which is in the end of his field, 05:55.180 --> 05:59.740 for as much money as it is worth he shall give it me for a possession of a bearing place amongst you. 06:00.300 --> 06:04.780 And Nephron dwelt among the children of Heth, and Nephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the 06:04.780 --> 06:09.340 audience of the children of Heth, even of all that went in at the gate of his city, saying, 06:09.340 --> 06:14.460 Nay, my lord, hear me. The field give I thee, and the cave that is therein I give it thee, 06:14.460 --> 06:17.820 in the presence of the sons of my people, give I it thee. 06:17.900 --> 06:22.280 bury thy dead. And Abraham bowed down himself before the people of the land. 06:22.500 --> 06:26.040 And he spake unto Ephron in the audience of the people of the land, saying, 06:26.320 --> 06:30.620 But if thou wilt give it, I pray thee, hear me. I will give thee money for the field. 06:30.760 --> 06:36.660 Take it of me, and I will bury my dead there. And Ephron answered Abraham, saying unto him, My Lord, 06:36.800 --> 06:43.360 hearken unto me. The land is worth four hundred shekels of silver. What is that betwixt me and thee? Bury therefore thy dead. 06:44.200 --> 06:48.520 And Abraham hearkened unto Ephron, and Abraham wade to Ephron the silver, which he had named 06:48.520 --> 06:52.400 in the audience of the sons of Heth, four hundred shekels of silver, current money with 06:52.400 --> 06:52.900 the merchant. 06:53.400 --> 06:59.180 And the field of Ephron, which was in Machpelah, which was before Mamre, the field and the cave which was therein, 06:59.180 --> 07:02.860 and all the trees that were in the field, that were in all the borders round about, 07:02.860 --> 07:06.800 were made sure unto Abraham for a possession in the presence of the children of Heth, 07:06.800 --> 07:09.300 before all that went in at the gate of his city. 07:09.300 --> 07:14.440 And after this Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah before Mamre, 07:14.440 --> 07:16.800 the same as Hebron in the land of Canaan. 07:17.200 --> 07:22.080 In the field, in the cave that is therein, were made sure unto Abraham for a possession of a 07:22.080 --> 07:26.560 burying place by the sons of Heth. Let's pray. Lord, thank you for this opportunity you've given us to 07:26.560 --> 07:30.320 come and congregate at your house. Lord, thank you for this chapter of the Bible. Please fill our 07:30.320 --> 07:34.160 pastor with your Holy Spirit now as he preaches unto us and help us, Lord, to take these truths, 07:34.160 --> 07:37.520 apply them to our lives, and learn from your word. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. 07:39.200 --> 07:44.320 Amen. Okay, we're continuing tonight with our Bible study on the book of Genesis. We are in 07:44.320 --> 07:50.960 chapter 23. And of course, chapter 23 here, we find a major turning point in the life of Abraham, 07:50.960 --> 07:57.680 because he has lost his wife. And these next two chapters are basically closing out the story 07:57.680 --> 08:03.440 of Abraham. He had a very fruitful, exciting life, a life of faith. And then, of course, in 24, 08:04.160 --> 08:06.880 it begins to shift. The narrative begins to shift to his son. 08:07.200 --> 08:11.900 Isaac, but here we have the death of Sarah. 08:11.900 --> 08:15.220 And this is the death of Sarah along with her burial, the mourning of Abraham. 08:15.220 --> 08:19.620 And it's a short story, but we're going to learn some principles here from this particular 08:19.620 --> 08:20.620 death. 08:20.620 --> 08:25.420 And in fact, this is the first time that someone's burial is actually mentioned. 08:25.420 --> 08:26.420 Okay. 08:26.420 --> 08:30.660 Obviously, we know that people died before this, but this is the first time where someone 08:30.660 --> 08:35.180 is actually being buried and that is actually being explicitly talked about in the Bible. 08:35.200 --> 08:38.920 talk about a little bit about that tonight. But the first thing I want to mention here 08:38.920 --> 08:44.320 is the fact that Sarah is a very godly woman. Okay. Looking for someone who says Sarah was 08:44.320 --> 08:50.340 a hundred and seven and twenty years old. These were the years of the life of Sarah. 08:50.340 --> 08:55.960 Now one thing you'll notice here when you read Genesis to Revelation that you know there's 08:55.960 --> 09:02.720 only two women really that are mentioned and are talked about amongst believers that they 09:03.200 --> 09:08.580 to as an example and Sarah is one of them and guess what Mary is not okay 09:08.580 --> 09:14.180 although Mary was the mother of Jesus when he was here on this earth you know 09:14.180 --> 09:19.180 you don't necessarily see any commandment in the Bible that tells us to 09:19.180 --> 09:23.140 look to her as an example of a woman of faith that's not to say that we shouldn't 09:23.140 --> 09:27.620 we obviously know that Mary was a godly woman she was a woman of virtue God 09:27.620 --> 09:31.200 selected her for a particular task let me just say this is that Mary was the 09:31.200 --> 09:35.280 sinner like everyone else. Okay. She was a sinner like everyone else. The Bible says 09:35.280 --> 09:39.200 for all that sin and come short of the glory of God. And yes, that included Mary. She was 09:39.200 --> 09:43.200 not a perfect woman. There's no one who's perfect. There's none that do with good. No, 09:43.200 --> 09:49.400 not one. She needed the salvation of her son. And quite frankly, if she rejected that, she 09:49.400 --> 09:53.480 would not have eternal life. She would go to hell because God has no respecter of people. 09:53.480 --> 09:57.280 Okay. It's important to note that. And so obviously we could look throughout the Bible 09:57.280 --> 09:59.200 and see all the virtuous characteristics. 09:59.200 --> 10:02.280 and attributes of various women throughout the Bible. 10:02.280 --> 10:04.960 However, Sarah is one of the only ones 10:04.960 --> 10:06.200 that God actually says, 10:06.200 --> 10:10.160 look to this woman as an example of faith. 10:10.160 --> 10:11.000 And make no mistake about it, 10:11.000 --> 10:14.160 Sarah was a great woman of faith. 10:14.160 --> 10:15.740 Go to 1 Peter, if you would, 10:15.740 --> 10:18.040 hold your place here in Genesis 23. 10:18.040 --> 10:20.040 Go to 1 Peter chapter three, if you would. 10:20.040 --> 10:22.500 I'm gonna reach you from Isaiah chapter 51. 10:22.700 --> 10:27.880 And verse number one, it says, hearken to me, ye that follow after righteousness, ye 10:27.880 --> 10:29.660 that seek the Lord. 10:29.660 --> 10:34.020 Look into the rock whence ye are hewn, and to the hole of the pit whence ye are digged. 10:34.020 --> 10:39.160 Look unto Abraham your father, and listen to this, and unto Sarah that bear you, for 10:39.160 --> 10:42.580 I called him alone and blessed him and increased him. 10:42.580 --> 10:48.060 So here we see in Isaiah chapter 51, the God specifically says, look to Abraham, but also 10:48.060 --> 10:49.740 look to Sarah. 10:49.740 --> 10:50.700 And one of the reasons for this... 10:50.700 --> 10:53.480 because Abraham, though he's a father of faith, guess what? 10:53.480 --> 10:56.400 Sarah is also a great woman of faith as well 10:56.400 --> 10:58.280 because she's married to Abraham. 10:58.280 --> 11:01.060 And so she obviously has to follow him 11:01.060 --> 11:03.480 and trust in his judgment. 11:03.480 --> 11:05.760 Despite the fact that he made mistakes 11:05.760 --> 11:07.780 and he was not a perfect man, 11:07.780 --> 11:11.900 he had a very godly woman to follow his lead and so forth. 11:11.900 --> 11:14.980 Look at 1 Peter 3 and verse number five, it says here, 11:14.980 --> 11:18.700 "'For after this manner, in the old time, the Holy..." 11:18.700 --> 11:24.700 women also who trusted in God adorn themselves being in subjection unto their own husbands. 11:24.700 --> 11:31.040 Now this is in 1 Peter chapter 3 is all in context of submitting to your husband. This 11:31.040 --> 11:35.320 is our favorite topic here at First Works Baptist Church. It's my life chapter here. 11:35.320 --> 11:38.660 I have this posted on the refrigerator because that's where my wife is, you know, in the 11:38.660 --> 11:42.780 kitchen to read over these verses over and over again. Trying to look to see if anybody 11:42.780 --> 11:44.980 has a knee-jerk reaction to that. 11:44.980 --> 11:45.480 you know. 11:45.600 --> 11:50.160 1 Peter chapter 3 is a great chapter to talk about the subjection and obviously we know 11:50.160 --> 11:51.760 that we should be in subject one to another. 11:51.760 --> 11:54.600 That's what the Bible teaches us in Ephesians chapter 5. 11:54.600 --> 11:59.720 But there is a special emphasis in the wife being in subjection to her husband as unto 11:59.720 --> 12:00.720 the Lord. 12:00.720 --> 12:01.720 Okay. 12:01.720 --> 12:06.040 And it specifically says in chapter 3 that, you know, if a woman is to win her husband 12:06.040 --> 12:06.720 to the Lord. 12:07.200 --> 12:10.400 You know, without the word, she needs to do it with her conversation. 12:10.400 --> 12:14.400 And this isn't referring to a conversation like the way we would speak with words. 12:14.400 --> 12:19.000 Conversation in the Bible is often synonymous with conduct, okay? 12:19.000 --> 12:21.000 It's referring to her behavior. 12:21.000 --> 12:27.000 So in other words, the Bible is admonishing women that if they are to win their husbands to salvation, 12:27.000 --> 12:31.000 if they're to win their husbands, if they're already saved, to righteous living. 12:31.200 --> 12:33.200 They don't do it by preaching to their husbands. 12:33.200 --> 12:35.540 They don't do it by nagging their husbands, 12:35.540 --> 12:36.840 preaching to their husbands. 12:36.840 --> 12:39.960 The way they do it is by their godly conduct 12:39.960 --> 12:44.360 and conversation, by adorning themselves with humility, 12:44.360 --> 12:47.800 with a great attitude, with godliness. 12:47.800 --> 12:51.120 This is of great price in the eyes of God. 12:51.120 --> 12:52.500 It's very important to the Lord. 12:52.700 --> 12:55.020 for a woman to behave in that manner. 12:55.020 --> 12:56.800 And obviously this is not a sermon 12:56.800 --> 13:00.380 on a way a woman should behave in her household, 13:00.380 --> 13:03.060 but the Bible is filled with a lot of those instructions. 13:03.060 --> 13:06.180 Not to be a loud mouth, make sure that she's in subjection, 13:06.180 --> 13:07.560 make sure that she's humble, 13:07.560 --> 13:09.300 make sure she's not tearing down her house 13:09.300 --> 13:10.900 with her hands and so forth. 13:10.900 --> 13:13.900 Okay, and first Peter three deals largely with that. 13:13.900 --> 13:16.940 And it specifically says that the pattern 13:16.940 --> 13:20.380 that they should follow is the holy women also. 13:20.700 --> 13:22.700 referring to the Old Testament. 13:22.900 --> 13:28.300 And, you know, when it says holy women, it's basically referring to these women of the 13:28.300 --> 13:30.660 Old Testament who were good wives. 13:30.660 --> 13:33.220 Obviously, it's not referring to Jezebel, okay? 13:33.220 --> 13:36.460 It's not referring to these women who were rebellious. 13:36.460 --> 13:39.020 It's not referring to David's wife or anything like that. 13:39.020 --> 13:42.980 This is, the person we're talking about here is Sarah, okay? 13:42.980 --> 13:45.420 And she was in subjection to her own husband. 13:45.420 --> 13:50.140 Verse 6 says, even as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him Lord, okay? 13:50.140 --> 13:50.200 you 13:50.200 --> 13:54.860 Now, you know, this doesn't mean that, you know, you should, you know, just tell your 13:54.860 --> 13:55.980 wife to call you Lord. 13:55.980 --> 13:59.300 I guess you could ask that and request that. 13:59.300 --> 14:00.540 It's kind of weird, you know what I mean? 14:00.540 --> 14:04.020 I remember being in Bible college, I was like a big thing, like, oh man, when I get married, 14:04.020 --> 14:06.060 I'm going to have my wife call me Lord or whatever. 14:06.060 --> 14:08.100 And it, but you know, it wears off. 14:08.100 --> 14:12.460 And after a while guys are just like, you know, they didn't have that kick that I thought 14:12.460 --> 14:13.460 it would have or whatever. 14:14.700 --> 14:18.920 But the reason it says that Sarah called Abraham Lord is because Lord means boss 14:19.580 --> 14:26.700 Okay, you know and in Spanish you kind of have something like this even today where the wife will call her husband hefe 14:27.180 --> 14:33.900 You know meaning like the boss. Okay. He's the man of the house and the idea here is that Sarah 14:34.700 --> 14:40.820 virtuous as she is, she recognized the importance of following Abraham though 14:40.820 --> 14:45.560 he was an imperfect man. Okay? And you know obviously Abraham is a man of great 14:45.560 --> 14:49.200 faith. We already highlighted much of his successes throughout his life, but we 14:49.200 --> 14:51.300 also saw a lot of his weaknesses, right? 14:51.400 --> 14:57.920 And here's a mistake that people make, especially in marriage, is that they expect for their 14:57.920 --> 15:03.400 wife or their spouse to meet the qualifications of a spouse like 100% of the time. 15:04.000 --> 15:08.200 But that is an unreasonable desire. 15:08.200 --> 15:10.200 It's unrealistic, it's unreasonable, 15:10.200 --> 15:13.360 because we are surrounded by corruptible flesh. 15:13.360 --> 15:14.800 We're going to make mistakes. 15:14.800 --> 15:17.960 And when we get married, when I married my wife, 15:17.960 --> 15:22.120 my wife married me, we made a covenant before the Lord, 15:22.120 --> 15:25.200 but also we are endeavoring. 15:25.700 --> 15:28.960 to meet the qualifications of a husband, 15:28.960 --> 15:31.000 the standards that the Bible has for a husband 15:31.000 --> 15:32.880 and for a wife, but that's not to say 15:32.880 --> 15:36.180 that we're not gonna fall short because we do fall short. 15:36.180 --> 15:38.080 And the idea here is that we should be patient 15:38.080 --> 15:40.780 with one with another, and we both recognize 15:40.780 --> 15:42.220 that it's not about where you're at, 15:42.220 --> 15:44.140 it's about where you're going. 15:44.140 --> 15:47.660 And so, I haven't always been perfect with my wife. 15:48.200 --> 15:53.480 I definitely fall short and you know there's instances where I do hurt my wife's feelings 15:53.480 --> 15:58.240 or you know I'm just not a godly husband but in general I think you could ask my wife 15:58.240 --> 16:02.560 she says you know he's not perfect but he does move in the right direction. 16:03.300 --> 16:05.340 And I think that's what's important to know, 16:05.340 --> 16:09.100 is that, you know, let's not highlight 16:09.100 --> 16:12.000 the shortcomings of our spouse, okay? 16:12.000 --> 16:15.660 Highlight the fact that they are striving to move forward, 16:15.660 --> 16:17.500 okay, to move in the right direction. 16:17.700 --> 16:20.980 And at the end of the day, we often think to ourselves, 16:20.980 --> 16:23.220 well, they need to be a good husband to me. 16:23.220 --> 16:24.860 She needs to be a good wife. 16:24.860 --> 16:26.780 But really, what the Bible commands us to do 16:26.780 --> 16:29.620 is to be a good spouse unto them, right? 16:29.620 --> 16:32.420 To fulfill our end of the bargain, so to speak. 16:32.420 --> 16:33.780 That's a horrible way to put it. 16:33.780 --> 16:36.260 But fulfill our end of the covenant, OK? 16:36.260 --> 16:38.740 And be a godly person. 16:38.740 --> 16:40.540 And you say, well, I've done that, 16:40.540 --> 16:42.300 and it just doesn't seem to work. 16:42.300 --> 16:44.620 Well, the Bible says we should do it, whether it works or not, 16:44.620 --> 16:45.100 though. 16:45.700 --> 16:51.380 Because a lot of times what we do is we obey the Bible and do things that the Bible tells us to do 16:51.380 --> 16:56.900 because we want the result that comes with it. But we need to shift, we need to have a paradigm 16:56.900 --> 16:59.780 shift and recognize we do these things because it's right to do. 17:00.400 --> 17:01.400 And you know what? 17:01.400 --> 17:04.440 I would say 90% of the time it does work out. 17:04.440 --> 17:06.960 90% of the time you do receive the blessings. 17:06.960 --> 17:10.480 I would even say it's higher than that, 99% of the time. 17:10.480 --> 17:12.400 But let's just say it never works out. 17:12.400 --> 17:14.360 It's just right to do anyways. 17:14.360 --> 17:16.640 It's right to improve yourself as a wife. 17:16.640 --> 17:18.920 It's right to improve yourself as a husband. 17:18.920 --> 17:20.320 And at the end of the day, God doesn't 17:20.320 --> 17:21.800 expect perfection from you. 17:21.800 --> 17:23.960 He just expects you to just put in the effort. 17:24.600 --> 17:28.760 to make yourself better as the time goes on and so forth. 17:28.760 --> 17:30.480 And so Sarah's a great example of this 17:30.480 --> 17:31.640 because she wasn't perfect either. 17:31.640 --> 17:34.240 She laughed at God. 17:34.240 --> 17:36.560 She'd laugh within herself. 17:36.560 --> 17:39.200 And then she lies about it. 17:39.200 --> 17:40.520 She's just like, I didn't laugh. 17:40.520 --> 17:42.920 And he's like, nay, thou didst laugh. 17:45.800 --> 17:47.280 And obviously, you know. 17:47.800 --> 17:50.900 It's kind of weird that you think you can just be dishonest with God and God would not 17:50.900 --> 17:53.080 know that you're being dishonest. 17:53.080 --> 17:56.120 So it kind of shows that Sarah's not perfect either. 17:56.120 --> 18:01.920 She's a sinner as well, but I believe that Sarah and Abraham are just great examples 18:01.920 --> 18:06.340 that although they're not perfect, they are people of great faith. 18:06.340 --> 18:09.640 Not just great faith in God, but think about this, great faith in each other as well. 18:10.000 --> 18:17.340 Because she's following her husband. She is obeying her husband and she most likely believes like, you know 18:17.340 --> 18:21.080 He's gonna lead us in the right direction and obviously he has faith in his wife as well 18:21.080 --> 18:24.980 And I think that's important. Those are important factors to have within a marriage 18:24.980 --> 18:31.980 You know what I mean is to believe that God can restore a marriage believe that he can improve a marriage 18:32.200 --> 18:38.000 But also just believe in your spouse as well, you know believe that they can improve become better 18:38.000 --> 18:43.920 and so forth. So we see Sarah obeys Abraham. So you know what is it what is 18:43.920 --> 18:47.560 this talking about when it says that she obeys Abraham? When Abraham says hey you 18:47.560 --> 18:52.600 know say you're my sister you know she's obeying him. Now obviously she's not 18:52.600 --> 18:56.000 being a hundred percent honest they're not being a hundred percent honest. There 18:56.000 --> 18:59.900 is truth to it though right like she was his sister okay. 19:00.600 --> 19:03.520 So she's obeying him, and she's obeying him when he's saying, 19:03.520 --> 19:06.840 we're going to go out into this particular city. 19:06.840 --> 19:09.800 We're going to move from here, because God's calling us to go. 19:09.800 --> 19:11.520 She's following him. 19:11.520 --> 19:13.720 Not to say that he's not going to make mistakes along the way, 19:13.720 --> 19:16.000 because obviously he did make mistakes along the way. 19:16.000 --> 19:19.160 But in general, the man did well. 19:19.160 --> 19:21.440 So calling him Lord, he's the boss. 19:22.200 --> 19:27.860 And it says, whose daughters ye are, as long as ye do well, and are not afraid with any 19:27.860 --> 19:28.860 amazement. 19:28.860 --> 19:34.600 Meaning that, you know, if you follow in the footsteps of Sarah, you're also going to treat 19:34.600 --> 19:39.120 your husband as Abraham, as Lord, and as unto the Lord. 19:39.120 --> 19:39.620 Okay? 19:40.300 --> 19:45.580 And so this is great advice here for us to recognize that, you know, Sarah's like, hey, 19:45.580 --> 19:48.380 or God's like, you know, you need to look at Sarah wives. 19:48.380 --> 19:51.820 If you want a great example to go by, look at Sarah. 19:51.820 --> 19:54.940 She didn't have a perfect husband. She obeyed her husband. 19:54.940 --> 19:59.340 And in general, she did come out winning, you know, the promises were given to her. 19:59.340 --> 20:02.540 She still had a very long and blessed life. 20:02.540 --> 20:05.900 And as I'm reading this, I'm getting kind of sad, you know, I was reading chapter 23, 20:05.900 --> 20:07.580 and I'm just like, this is so sad. 20:08.100 --> 20:15.100 You know, like, obviously she's 127 years old, it's about time, you know, you just gotta kick the bucket one time or another, you know. 20:15.100 --> 20:19.100 But, you know, it is a sad thing, you know. I think about my wife, I'm like, man. 20:19.100 --> 20:25.100 And I was thinking about this in my office, I'm like, you know, I hope my wife does die before I do. 20:25.100 --> 20:31.000 You know what I mean? Because at the end of the day, I feel like she would have a hard time without me, you know, if I died first. 20:31.100 --> 20:34.900 And I don't want my wife to feel lonely after, 20:34.900 --> 20:36.540 I'd rather just be lonely. 20:36.540 --> 20:39.140 I'd rather just deal with the grief of losing my wife. 20:39.140 --> 20:41.740 But my ideal situation is just we both 20:41.740 --> 20:44.340 die of a heart attack together. 20:44.340 --> 20:45.820 We're just both old or whatever. 20:45.820 --> 20:46.900 We're laughing our heads off. 20:46.900 --> 20:49.100 And all of a sudden, we're just like, ugh. 20:49.100 --> 20:51.940 And then we go, but obviously, that's not necessarily ideal. 20:51.940 --> 20:53.220 This is the ideal couple. 20:53.220 --> 20:55.540 And they didn't even get to experience that. 20:55.540 --> 20:58.220 Abraham had to know what it's like to suffer loss. 20:59.100 --> 21:05.100 And this also demonstrates to us that, you know, no matter how perfect life can be, 21:05.100 --> 21:07.100 death always messes everything up. 21:07.100 --> 21:10.100 It always intervenes and messes things up, right? 21:10.100 --> 21:15.100 Because Sarah's a godly woman, Abraham's a godly man, and, you know, 21:15.100 --> 21:20.100 they're obeying the Lord, they're serving God, they're doing that which is right on the side of the Lord, 21:20.100 --> 21:21.100 but death intervenes. 21:21.100 --> 21:24.100 And you know what? We all got to prepare for that. 21:24.100 --> 21:26.100 You couples, you need to be ready for that as well. 21:26.300 --> 21:28.400 you will lose your spouse one day. 21:28.400 --> 21:31.400 That is the unsavory reality of life, 21:32.500 --> 21:35.180 is that one day you will lose your spouse. 21:35.180 --> 21:37.600 And you know, I try to think about that often 21:37.600 --> 21:39.680 because of the fact that I want to appreciate my spouse 21:39.680 --> 21:42.980 as much as possible, you know what I mean? 21:42.980 --> 21:43.980 Try not to think about it too much 21:43.980 --> 21:45.980 because I don't want them to cry and stuff like that. 21:45.980 --> 21:48.980 You get all emotional and just like, 21:49.820 --> 21:51.520 just a minute, you know, someone's knocking on my door 21:51.520 --> 21:53.100 or whatever, you know. 21:53.200 --> 21:55.400 But it's good to just think about, 21:55.400 --> 21:56.400 because then it makes me think like, 21:56.400 --> 21:59.680 man, I really need to make sure I appreciate my wife. 21:59.680 --> 22:04.120 I need to make sure that I hug her, I give her kisses, 22:04.120 --> 22:07.760 I'm romantic with her, I say kind things to her, 22:07.760 --> 22:09.960 because, you know, we're not always gonna have each other. 22:09.960 --> 22:10.400 Right? 22:10.500 --> 22:15.540 And so this is a great reminder to us that death is right around the corner for any of us. 22:15.540 --> 22:20.100 Now God did give them a very full life, but at the end of the day we see Abraham 22:20.100 --> 22:22.500 mourning for his wife because he does miss his wife. 22:22.700 --> 22:29.700 The point being here is that Sarah is an incredible example of a woman of faith that women are to look to. 22:29.700 --> 22:35.700 And you know what, she's a great example because of the fact that women do struggle with submitting to their husbands. 22:35.700 --> 22:37.700 That's a thing that women struggle with, you know. 22:37.700 --> 22:41.700 Maybe not all of them, but in general, many women do struggle with that, okay. 22:41.700 --> 22:46.700 Especially if they're married to someone who is unsubmittable. 22:46.700 --> 22:50.700 You know, they're not necessarily the most easiest to submit to or something, you know. 22:50.700 --> 22:54.480 lot of wives struggle with that. And it's for that reason that God puts examples 22:54.480 --> 22:58.800 like this in the Bible, right, of how to do it. Because of the fact that the sin 22:58.800 --> 23:04.880 nature of a woman is to rebel against her husband. Okay? And you know, I think 23:04.880 --> 23:10.360 this is one of the reasons why God says, like, you know, as unto the Lord. Because 23:10.360 --> 23:13.100 he understands that your husband's not perfect. 23:13.300 --> 23:20.060 that he can be a jerk sometimes and he's not godly and you know he falls short and you 23:20.060 --> 23:25.500 know he says this that and the other so then when those when those moments happen God says 23:25.500 --> 23:26.940 okay then just do it as unto me then. 23:27.900 --> 23:31.340 And who doesn't want to submit unto the Lord if he says that, right? 23:31.340 --> 23:32.340 You want to submit to God. 23:32.340 --> 23:36.780 This is what I don't agree with when women say like, oh, you know, I don't agree with 23:36.780 --> 23:37.780 my husband. 23:37.780 --> 23:40.020 You know, I love the Lord and everything like that. 23:40.020 --> 23:43.700 And it's just like you're kind of giving me contrasting ideas here. 23:43.700 --> 23:47.020 Because if you love the Lord and you submit unto your husband as unto the Lord, because 23:47.020 --> 23:50.220 God is putting himself in his stead when he falls short. 23:50.600 --> 23:55.400 So whenever your husband falls short, God's like, well, just kind of think of me when you're doing this, 23:55.400 --> 24:02.200 because even though you might feel that your husband's not worth this, he's not worth the submission, 24:02.200 --> 24:04.400 God is always worth it, right? 24:04.400 --> 24:10.400 And so if you have that spiritual perception to recognize, like, I need to see beyond my husband unto the Lord, 24:10.400 --> 24:13.200 then God will reward you for that, okay? 24:13.200 --> 24:15.000 He'll bless you for it and so forth. 24:15.500 --> 24:17.900 And so important to know we always got to talk about wife's 24:17.900 --> 24:20.100 submitted to her husband's at least once a month. 24:20.100 --> 24:23.020 It's always good to mention. 24:23.020 --> 24:25.500 Look at verse number two of Genesis 23. 24:25.500 --> 24:30.980 Sarah died in Kier Jeth-Tharba, the same as Hebron in the land 24:30.980 --> 24:31.900 of Canaan. 24:31.900 --> 24:35.620 And Abraham came to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her. 24:35.620 --> 24:37.740 Now the next thing I want to mention here 24:37.740 --> 24:41.100 is the fact that mourning includes weeping. 24:41.100 --> 24:41.600 OK. 24:42.300 --> 24:46.540 You know, biblical mourning is when someone is sad, okay? 24:46.540 --> 24:49.100 Biblical mourning is when people weep and they cry. 24:49.100 --> 24:52.540 This is literally how the Bible views mourning. 24:52.540 --> 24:55.020 And you know, we live in a very twisted world. 24:55.400 --> 25:00.400 where people are so desensitized to violence, 25:00.840 --> 25:03.600 desensitized to death and pain, 25:03.600 --> 25:05.880 that they don't mourn for these things, right? 25:05.880 --> 25:09.000 You know, and in fact, the things that they mourn for, 25:09.000 --> 25:11.080 they want to make sure a video is recorded in them 25:11.080 --> 25:13.500 so they can post it online and show that they're mourning. 25:13.600 --> 25:16.760 I mean, how many videos have we seen where someone literally 25:16.760 --> 25:19.160 sets up a camera, they sit on their bed, 25:19.160 --> 25:21.560 and they're just losing their minds, they're crying, 25:21.560 --> 25:22.640 and then the video cuts. 25:22.640 --> 25:28.360 So that means this person set up the camera, hit record, 25:28.360 --> 25:32.880 and then just started losing it, finished up, hit stop, 25:32.880 --> 25:34.640 edited it, and then posted it online. 25:34.640 --> 25:36.080 I mean, this is crazy, right? 25:37.100 --> 25:40.780 And you know what? The love of many are waxing cold because people are becoming 25:40.780 --> 25:47.180 lovers of their own selves and so forth. And I do think it's biblical to mourn and that 25:47.180 --> 25:51.260 mourning should be coupled with weeping and sadness. I mean, this is the natural 25:51.900 --> 25:57.420 state of things when we are suffering great loss, especially the life of someone whom we love, 25:58.140 --> 26:03.820 that we should mourn, right? And this is why I don't even think it's wrong to become depressed 26:03.820 --> 26:04.820 when someone dies. 26:05.900 --> 26:09.600 You know, when someone dies, part of mourning is depression. 26:09.600 --> 26:13.100 Depressed is when you just feel casted down. 26:13.100 --> 26:17.460 You feel a sense of grief and hopelessness. 26:17.460 --> 26:19.860 This is a biblical feeling to have. 26:19.860 --> 26:20.900 You read the book of Psalms. 26:20.900 --> 26:24.300 There's instances where David felt great depression. 26:24.300 --> 26:26.940 Obviously, we shouldn't live in depression, right? 26:26.940 --> 26:28.100 Eventually, we need to come out of it. 26:28.100 --> 26:29.180 But let me just say this. 26:29.180 --> 26:32.860 Mourning in the Bible sometimes took months, OK? 26:33.200 --> 26:36.200 So don't expect for someone to suffer loss, 26:36.200 --> 26:38.700 maybe if it's of their child, 26:38.700 --> 26:42.200 maybe they suffered loss of their baby, 26:42.200 --> 26:44.700 it was a stillborn, or just a family member. 26:44.700 --> 26:48.200 Don't expect for them to just get over it right away. 26:48.200 --> 26:51.200 It's just like, oh, it's already been three months, 26:51.200 --> 26:52.700 you're good to go, right? 26:52.700 --> 26:56.200 No, let people mourn for a couple of months at least, 26:56.200 --> 26:57.500 and there is no cutoff date. 26:57.800 --> 27:00.760 It's not like, hey, it's been four months already. 27:00.760 --> 27:01.720 It's time to get over it. 27:01.720 --> 27:02.840 No. 27:02.840 --> 27:04.560 We have emotions. 27:04.560 --> 27:09.080 And quite frankly, our thoughts just trouble us sometimes. 27:09.080 --> 27:12.120 And our thoughts are attached to people. 27:12.120 --> 27:14.200 And when we suffer loss, it's hard to get over it. 27:14.200 --> 27:17.160 And don't think that if you suffered loss, that somehow you 27:17.160 --> 27:18.080 just need to get over it. 27:18.080 --> 27:19.680 That's not necessarily true. 27:19.680 --> 27:20.720 It's good to mourn. 27:20.720 --> 27:23.920 It's good to be depressed for a time. 27:23.920 --> 27:25.280 But I will say this. 27:25.280 --> 27:25.800 Make sure you're. 27:25.800 --> 27:31.840 seeking the Lord during that particular time. You don't want to become so hopeless that 27:31.840 --> 27:36.740 you lose the will to live, you lose your hope in God. Make sure you're seeking the Lord. 27:36.740 --> 27:41.440 Because keep in mind, the Lord is nine to them who have a contrite heart, the Bible 27:41.440 --> 27:48.020 says. So when we mourn, when we're grieving, when we're feeling a sense of loss and depression, 27:48.020 --> 27:52.020 that's actually when we're closest unto the Lord. That's the fellowship of his suffering. 27:52.600 --> 27:56.800 And so it's normal to feel that way. 27:56.800 --> 27:58.600 And obviously, there's even instances 27:58.600 --> 28:00.600 during a sense of depression where you don't even 28:00.600 --> 28:01.960 want to get out of bed. 28:01.960 --> 28:04.200 You don't want to eat. 28:04.200 --> 28:04.840 And you know what? 28:04.840 --> 28:07.200 That's also biblical. 28:07.200 --> 28:10.360 And in fact, the most common form of fasting in the Bible 28:10.360 --> 28:12.840 is not when someone disciplines themselves to fast. 28:12.840 --> 28:15.560 It's just when they don't want to eat because they're so sad. 28:16.500 --> 28:18.040 They're just so grieved. 28:18.040 --> 28:20.480 And I think all of us, maybe the younger people 28:20.480 --> 28:23.740 haven't experienced this, but us older folks, 28:23.740 --> 28:26.340 we've experienced some sort of grief where we don't even 28:26.340 --> 28:27.060 think of food. 28:27.060 --> 28:29.600 Believe it or not, there has been times in my life. 28:29.700 --> 28:33.820 Most of the time I'm always thinking about food like right now. 28:33.820 --> 28:39.060 But in general though, you know, I've experienced certain griefs in my life where I'm not hungry, 28:39.060 --> 28:40.400 I forget to eat. 28:40.400 --> 28:45.460 And that is a normal response to grief where you just, you fast and you're just, you don't 28:45.460 --> 28:51.380 care about food, you don't care about the affairs of this life, you're just so grieved 28:51.380 --> 28:53.100 about this one particular thing. 28:53.100 --> 28:54.900 If you're like, I've never experienced that. 28:55.100 --> 28:57.100 As the years go by, you will. 28:57.100 --> 28:58.600 You will experience that. 28:58.600 --> 29:00.800 There will come times in your life where you do feel that, 29:00.800 --> 29:04.200 where you can't sleep, where you're so grieved, and so forth. 29:04.200 --> 29:05.900 This is mourning. 29:05.900 --> 29:09.600 Mourning is a natural thing to experience. 29:09.600 --> 29:15.000 And so I'm not for people with this whole Erica Kirk thing, 29:15.000 --> 29:17.300 for example. 29:17.300 --> 29:19.700 People are just like, oh, people mourn in different ways. 29:19.700 --> 29:21.500 That's true, but they mourn. 29:22.200 --> 29:25.480 It's kind of weird, it's like people mourn in different, well mourning includes weeping 29:25.480 --> 29:28.440 and sadness and all these things, okay. 29:28.440 --> 29:34.520 They don't come out looking like a WWE, you know what I mean, rock star or whatever, you 29:34.520 --> 29:37.840 know, that's weird, that's very unnatural, it's not biblical. 29:37.840 --> 29:42.320 And you can disagree with me as much as you want, but I have the Bible's backing here 29:42.320 --> 29:43.720 that mourning does include that. 29:44.200 --> 29:48.240 And so it includes being sad and weeping, 29:48.240 --> 29:50.600 and to a certain degree depression and so forth. 29:50.600 --> 29:53.840 And we have here Abraham mourning for his wife. 29:53.840 --> 29:55.800 He's sad that he lost his wife. 29:55.800 --> 29:59.440 And just understand this folks, as the years go by, 29:59.440 --> 30:01.920 we will lose people in our church. 30:01.920 --> 30:03.080 People will die. 30:03.080 --> 30:06.280 That is just a harsh reality of it. 30:06.280 --> 30:09.920 And the worst thing you can do for someone who loses someone 30:09.920 --> 30:10.880 in their family, 30:11.400 --> 30:13.900 is just try to be extra biblical 30:14.940 --> 30:16.700 and just be like, hey, all things work together 30:16.700 --> 30:18.500 for good though, right? 30:18.500 --> 30:21.580 Or, hey, you'll see him one day, right? 30:21.580 --> 30:23.480 Hey, you'll be all right. 30:23.480 --> 30:25.180 The best thing for you to do is just don't say anything 30:25.180 --> 30:26.180 at all, okay? 30:28.720 --> 30:32.300 You could really cause some damage with that stuff. 30:32.300 --> 30:36.060 And, or even if a woman loses a child, right? 30:37.500 --> 30:40.200 They have a stillbirth. 30:40.200 --> 30:42.200 They have a miscarriage. 30:42.200 --> 30:45.740 You know, you need to be sensitive about things like that. 30:45.740 --> 30:47.000 Okay? 30:47.000 --> 30:49.180 And not just think like, oh, well, 30:49.180 --> 30:50.840 at least you didn't get to see the baby or something. 30:50.840 --> 30:53.320 You know, people say stuff like this. 30:53.320 --> 30:55.220 And it's extremely insensitive. 30:55.220 --> 30:57.380 It's just not wise at all. 30:57.600 --> 31:01.200 You know, you're causing yourself to have a very, 31:01.200 --> 31:04.880 just ugly reputation where you just don't know what, 31:04.880 --> 31:06.900 and if you look, if you don't know what to say, 31:06.900 --> 31:08.720 don't say anything at all. 31:08.720 --> 31:10.340 Now, let me just say this, you know, 31:10.340 --> 31:13.040 if you feel like you just gotta say something, 31:13.040 --> 31:14.360 because you're just so wise 31:14.360 --> 31:16.160 and you just need to expand your wisdom, 31:16.160 --> 31:19.880 just say this, we love you and we're praying for you. 31:19.880 --> 31:21.920 If you need anything, you let us know. 31:21.920 --> 31:22.760 And that's it. 31:23.400 --> 31:25.960 You don't need to give all your knowledge of the Bible, 31:25.960 --> 31:28.320 all, you know, you don't need to give them hope, 31:28.320 --> 31:29.720 you don't need to give them anything. 31:29.720 --> 31:32.240 They don't really need any of that, a lot of the times. 31:32.240 --> 31:36.080 Unless they're specifically asking you for it, okay? 31:36.080 --> 31:39.320 And so, you know, if you hear about people in our church 31:39.320 --> 31:42.240 losing a child, a miscarriage, 31:42.240 --> 31:45.040 they lose someone in their family, you know, 31:45.040 --> 31:48.480 try to actually have empathy. 31:48.480 --> 31:48.600 you 31:48.800 --> 31:55.800 Okay? And feel for them, but not to the point where you feel like you just need to provide a solution to their emotions at that moment. 31:55.800 --> 31:58.800 Like, I got the, I got a verse for you. 31:58.800 --> 32:02.800 Honestly, when people are suffering loss like that, they don't really want a verse. 32:02.800 --> 32:04.800 Let me just be real honest with you. 32:04.800 --> 32:07.800 Some people don't even want to hear anything from the Bible. 32:07.800 --> 32:10.800 It doesn't mean that they're unspiritual, it means that they're mourning. 32:10.800 --> 32:15.700 They have such grief, and you know what? It can bother them a lot. 32:15.800 --> 32:18.040 And it could offend a lot of people 32:18.040 --> 32:20.200 when you try to present something. 32:20.200 --> 32:20.880 And I get it. 32:20.880 --> 32:22.380 Sometimes people want to be helpful. 32:22.380 --> 32:23.320 And I get that. 32:23.320 --> 32:26.160 But I'm trying to help you be helpful. 32:26.160 --> 32:27.640 Let me help you be helpful. 32:27.640 --> 32:29.680 And just tell them you love them. 32:29.680 --> 32:31.060 Let them know you're praying for them. 32:31.060 --> 32:32.400 Slip them a gift card. 32:32.400 --> 32:34.360 And give them their space unless they ask for you 32:34.360 --> 32:35.640 to come into their space. 32:35.640 --> 32:36.300 OK? 32:36.700 --> 32:37.700 Because it's hard. 32:37.700 --> 32:39.200 You know, it's hard for moms. 32:39.200 --> 32:44.800 And, you know, we live in a day and age where miscarriages happen and people lose their 32:44.800 --> 32:45.800 children. 32:45.800 --> 32:49.880 And, you know, you may think, well, you know, they seem kind of happy, you know, they seem 32:49.880 --> 32:52.440 fine, and they seem like they're doing well. 32:52.440 --> 32:54.800 So I don't see what the big deal is. 32:54.800 --> 32:59.040 Well, if they seem like they're doing fine, it's because of the fact that they're just 32:59.040 --> 33:03.120 not displaying to you their emotions and they're just trying to keep it together. 33:03.900 --> 33:08.900 But don't take that as just the green light to just, 33:08.900 --> 33:11.900 oh, OK, let me just talk about your loss real quick, 33:11.900 --> 33:13.600 because you seem to be fine with it. 33:13.600 --> 33:16.900 No, tread lightly with people like this. 33:16.900 --> 33:18.400 People are going to lose family members. 33:18.400 --> 33:19.980 We're going to lose church members. 33:19.980 --> 33:23.020 As the years go by, people will lose people. 33:23.020 --> 33:25.940 And it's hard for people, and especially if you're 33:25.940 --> 33:28.980 in a church, because you see the same people every single week. 33:30.100 --> 33:34.660 And sometimes it's hard for people to come to church because they feel like, man, people 33:34.660 --> 33:36.580 are going to ask me about this. 33:36.580 --> 33:38.780 They're going to question me about this. 33:38.780 --> 33:40.460 They want to know what's going on. 33:40.460 --> 33:41.860 They want to know how I'm feeling. 33:41.860 --> 33:46.660 You know, give people their space unless they ask you to come in and talk to them, unless 33:46.660 --> 33:48.580 they want to talk to you about it, you know. 33:48.580 --> 33:51.820 But I'm just telling you right now, the best thing you can do, go give them a hug and say, 33:51.820 --> 33:52.820 I'm praying for you. 33:52.820 --> 33:54.620 And if they change the subject, change the subject with them. 33:55.800 --> 33:59.340 Adapt how it is that they're feeling, you know, 33:59.340 --> 34:02.060 you don't want to just offend someone 34:02.060 --> 34:03.520 because you just want to help them 34:03.520 --> 34:05.220 and you give them words of encouragement. 34:05.220 --> 34:06.340 And you may walk away thinking like, 34:06.340 --> 34:08.140 hey, that was pretty good, you know? 34:08.140 --> 34:09.540 That was the best advice I've ever given. 34:09.540 --> 34:12.060 And the person is just like, I can't believe this person just 34:12.060 --> 34:13.540 said this to me, you know? 34:13.540 --> 34:19.420 And look, you're talking to the expert in offenses here, OK? 34:19.420 --> 34:22.580 In many things, I offend all, OK? 34:23.000 --> 34:29.340 I know that I could be having offensive disposition sometimes and so forth. 34:29.340 --> 34:30.640 And so just take it from me. 34:30.640 --> 34:36.140 I know that this is important to do when people lose a loved one, a family member, or even 34:36.140 --> 34:39.360 if they don't have, it's not a loss of a loved one. 34:39.360 --> 34:43.880 Maybe it's just some sort of loss of finances, of health, whatever it may be. 34:43.880 --> 34:46.000 Make sure you're sensitive with these people. 34:46.000 --> 34:47.540 And so that's important to note there. 34:48.600 --> 34:53.580 Abraham stood up before the dead and spake unto the sons of Heath, and verse number three, 34:53.580 --> 34:57.160 we see him mourning for his wife, and so forth. 34:57.160 --> 35:02.720 Now I do want to mention here that, as I mentioned in the beginning, that this is the first instance, 35:02.720 --> 35:05.320 the first account of someone being buried. 35:05.320 --> 35:06.320 Okay? 35:06.320 --> 35:11.400 And, you know, let me just talk about this briefly, that I do believe, though the Bible 35:11.400 --> 35:13.560 does not explicitly command it... 35:13.560 --> 35:13.800 Thanks for watching! 35:14.100 --> 35:21.020 I do believe the pattern that a person should follow after their loved ones die is to bury 35:21.020 --> 35:23.220 them. 35:23.220 --> 35:26.220 And I think that is a biblical pattern that we see in the Bible. 35:26.220 --> 35:29.540 I think that's intentional in the Bible. 35:29.540 --> 35:34.540 And I think it's also intentional to demonstrate that the Bible also talks about the heathen 35:34.540 --> 35:37.620 burning their dead. 35:37.620 --> 35:40.820 Those are the fact that both of these things picture spiritual truths. 35:41.100 --> 35:44.260 And a lot of times, I've talked about this online, 35:44.260 --> 35:47.460 on my Instagram, and people just don't get it. 35:47.460 --> 35:50.820 Obviously, regardless of how you're buried, 35:50.820 --> 35:51.980 if you're burned or buried, 35:51.980 --> 35:55.300 it doesn't affect your salvation at all. 35:55.300 --> 35:56.900 It doesn't affect your soul, 35:56.900 --> 35:59.100 it doesn't affect anything whatsoever. 35:59.100 --> 36:01.300 Because at the end of the day, you die, 36:01.300 --> 36:04.500 your spirit goes, depending on if you're saved or not, 36:04.500 --> 36:07.380 heaven or hell, and your body remains here. 36:07.380 --> 36:09.100 The purpose of burying the body... 36:09.100 --> 36:16.660 Okay, this is very important is that it pictures a seed being buried into the ground in faith 36:16.700 --> 36:19.220 There's something completely different is going to come out 36:19.900 --> 36:23.060 So I believe Christians should bury their dad 36:24.500 --> 36:27.920 Now I get it sometimes people are like, oh man, but it's just so expensive 36:28.600 --> 36:32.760 You know, I think a lot of times people cremate their dead 36:32.760 --> 36:36.920 is for the sake of, you know, they don't have the money 36:36.920 --> 36:41.320 and a burial can be expensive and all those expenses that come with the plot 36:41.320 --> 36:46.160 and all those things and I get that, okay? But I still hold to the conviction 36:46.160 --> 36:49.480 that I think it's biblical for Christians to bury their dead 36:49.480 --> 36:51.400 and let me just say this like... 36:51.800 --> 36:53.260 This is my preference. 36:53.260 --> 36:54.720 I'm not imposing this on anybody. 36:54.720 --> 36:56.600 The Bible does not impose this. 36:56.600 --> 37:01.360 I'd be willing to go into debt to bury my debt 37:01.360 --> 37:04.160 and just make payments thereafter. 37:04.160 --> 37:06.200 Because I believe that much. 37:06.200 --> 37:09.160 If one of my saved family members died, 37:09.160 --> 37:11.600 I would bury them, and I would cover the cost. 37:11.800 --> 37:12.800 You know what I mean? 37:12.800 --> 37:17.360 I would be willing to pay that debt off for the years to come just because I just believe 37:17.360 --> 37:21.020 in the resurrection and I'm burying this person in faith knowing that they're going to come 37:21.020 --> 37:22.020 out one day. 37:22.800 --> 37:27.260 So, burying the dead isn't just something that's just a tradition. 37:27.260 --> 37:32.000 It is something that believers do in faith because they understand, according to 1 Corinthians 37:32.000 --> 37:37.320 chapter 15, that as a seed is buried into the ground, something completely different 37:37.320 --> 37:43.280 will come out referring to the resurrection, the glorification of all believers. 37:43.280 --> 37:47.480 And obviously, the opposite of that is what? 37:47.480 --> 37:48.000 Burning someone. 37:48.200 --> 37:51.000 which is exactly what pagans do, the heathens do. 37:51.000 --> 37:52.200 And what is that a picture of? 37:52.200 --> 37:54.520 It's a picture of hell. 37:54.520 --> 37:57.840 It's a demonstration that this person is burning in hell. 37:57.840 --> 38:02.200 Doesn't mean that if a saved person is burned or cremated, 38:02.200 --> 38:04.080 something happens to them. 38:04.080 --> 38:07.480 Because I've said this online, and it's just people online, 38:07.480 --> 38:11.440 just the short form content is just destroying people's 38:11.440 --> 38:12.320 attention or something. 38:12.320 --> 38:13.560 They just don't listen. 38:13.900 --> 38:16.140 I make a video, I'm like, doesn't affect your salvation, 38:16.140 --> 38:19.340 doesn't affect, but the Bible says that you should, 38:19.340 --> 38:21.740 or gives the example that you should bury the dead 38:21.740 --> 38:23.700 and so forth, and they're just like, 38:23.700 --> 38:25.860 you're trying to tell me that all these Christians 38:25.860 --> 38:27.940 that were burned at the stake are going to go to hell? 38:27.940 --> 38:28.940 I'm like, ugh! 38:31.060 --> 38:32.300 What in the world? 38:33.860 --> 38:35.900 And it's so crazy, but obviously, 38:35.900 --> 38:37.100 people who are asking these questions 38:37.100 --> 38:38.540 are probably not even saved. 38:38.700 --> 38:40.240 They're unregenerated people. 38:40.240 --> 38:43.300 They don't understand spiritual things. 38:43.300 --> 38:45.800 Obviously, that's not the case, because you've had thousands 38:45.800 --> 38:48.460 of Christians who were burned at the stake. 38:48.460 --> 38:50.140 Doesn't affect them whatsoever. 38:50.140 --> 38:51.740 And then people are superstitious about this, too. 38:51.740 --> 38:53.760 They're just like, oh man, if I get burned, 38:53.760 --> 38:56.700 has God got to find me or something? 38:56.700 --> 38:58.020 If you're saved, yes. 38:58.020 --> 39:01.900 First of all, if a person has been buried over the last 3,000 39:01.900 --> 39:05.420 years, that stuff, the body doesn't exist anymore. 39:06.000 --> 39:09.640 It's already gone into the ground, you know, 39:09.640 --> 39:11.780 plants came out of it, animals ate it, 39:11.780 --> 39:13.840 went back into the ground, you know what I mean? 39:13.840 --> 39:16.240 These people do not exist anymore, okay? 39:16.240 --> 39:18.320 The bones are done, you know, 39:18.320 --> 39:20.220 it's completely into the ground or whatever, 39:20.220 --> 39:21.620 depending on where they're at in this world. 39:21.620 --> 39:23.460 Or just people, how about people who just, 39:23.460 --> 39:27.700 you know, save people who died out in sea, right? 39:27.700 --> 39:30.520 Eaten by whatever, and they're just, 39:30.520 --> 39:31.800 they're completely gone. 39:31.800 --> 39:31.900 you 39:32.300 --> 39:34.300 God can obviously find them. 39:34.300 --> 39:35.300 Okay? 39:35.300 --> 39:44.300 God has no issue, you know, with finding the bodies of both the saved and the unsaved. 39:44.300 --> 39:49.300 Because we have in Revelation 20, the sea giving up their dead. 39:49.300 --> 39:50.300 Okay? 39:50.300 --> 39:54.300 So every wicked person, every pirate, you know? 39:54.300 --> 39:57.300 You know, what are some pirates? 39:57.300 --> 39:59.300 I'm forgetting the names of pirates right now. 39:59.700 --> 40:04.560 Blackbeard all these week. I don't know if they died out at sea, but you know these people who've died on see 40:04.640 --> 40:08.760 They're gonna come out of the sea at the great white throne judgment 40:09.520 --> 40:14.620 You know the all of the you know the the sedimentary 40:15.000 --> 40:20.580 You know stuff that's at the bottom that sharks. You know pooped out over. You know that God's gonna find them 40:20.580 --> 40:22.580 He's gonna put the body back together 40:22.920 --> 40:24.920 They're gonna come up out of the sea 40:25.500 --> 40:28.240 They will be judged at the white throne judgment, 40:28.240 --> 40:31.500 reunited with their dead spirit that was hidden hell 40:31.500 --> 40:32.640 during that particular time, 40:32.640 --> 40:34.900 and then they'll be cast into the lake of fire. 40:34.900 --> 40:37.560 God has no issue, there's no issue with finding your body. 40:37.560 --> 40:41.200 And look, we have an example of this in Ezekiel 37, 40:41.200 --> 40:45.080 where you have the entire army, obviously it's a vision, 40:45.080 --> 40:46.640 but this is literally what happens. 40:46.640 --> 40:48.560 It's a valley of dry bones. 40:48.560 --> 40:48.600 you 40:48.700 --> 40:51.400 And God is able to just bring them back together 40:51.400 --> 40:54.960 and have the sinew, the muscles, the skin, the tissue 40:54.960 --> 40:57.340 go back into the body, he's able to do these things. 40:57.340 --> 41:02.080 So, you know, time affects God for nothing, right? 41:02.080 --> 41:03.340 It doesn't matter how long you've been dead. 41:03.340 --> 41:05.300 You know, even Adam. 41:05.300 --> 41:08.800 Adam's body is long gone, right? 41:08.800 --> 41:11.140 You know, Adam's body's long gone, 41:11.140 --> 41:13.940 and Abel's body is long gone, 41:13.940 --> 41:16.640 but they will resurrect one day, though. 41:16.900 --> 41:22.600 God's gonna bring it all together and bring them out and so forth. Okay, and so, you know, obviously 41:23.660 --> 41:28.600 The way you bury a body doesn't affect anything at all, you know put it this way to ten common 41:29.640 --> 41:31.860 His body still here, but bros in hell right now 41:32.640 --> 41:37.000 You know, it doesn't matter how well they preserved his body how well he's mummified 41:37.600 --> 41:42.460 You know what museum he's in at the great white throne judgment that that 41:44.100 --> 41:47.460 mummified bodies are gonna come out of the museum 41:47.460 --> 41:50.620 and go to the White Throne judgment, you know what I mean? 41:50.620 --> 41:53.620 And B. Cassin's the lake of fire, okay? 41:55.460 --> 41:58.620 And so, but obviously we wanna honor the dead. 41:58.620 --> 42:00.900 You know, I don't wanna just be tossed in a dumpster. 42:00.900 --> 42:03.140 I'm not saying that either, you know? 42:03.140 --> 42:05.740 And obviously, it's not gonna matter. 42:05.740 --> 42:08.400 Because once I go to heaven, it's just like whatever, you know? 42:09.400 --> 42:11.060 I've already left the body or whatever. 42:11.060 --> 42:14.320 The body's there for the loved ones, right? 42:14.320 --> 42:18.040 And so, obviously, I'd probably like to be in a suit 42:18.040 --> 42:20.240 or something, because I want to look good at coming out 42:20.240 --> 42:21.560 for the resurrection. 42:21.560 --> 42:23.400 Come out and, you know. 42:23.400 --> 42:26.280 But at the end of the day, I think we should honor the dead. 42:26.280 --> 42:26.800 OK? 42:26.800 --> 42:27.000 you 42:27.100 --> 42:29.800 I think we should honor those who have passed on, 42:29.800 --> 42:32.500 bury them in faith, knowing full well 42:32.500 --> 42:36.100 that they shall return in a glorified state. 42:36.100 --> 42:36.940 Okay? 42:36.940 --> 42:39.600 And you know, just a reminder, 42:39.600 --> 42:43.180 I'm gonna bury some of you guys one day. 42:43.180 --> 42:44.020 You know? 42:44.020 --> 42:45.600 I'm gonna bury you one day. 42:45.600 --> 42:46.440 And you know what? 42:46.440 --> 42:49.280 Some of you might be at my burial too. 42:49.280 --> 42:51.480 This is the reality of death, right? 42:51.480 --> 42:51.500 you 42:51.800 --> 42:56.800 And so, you know, but we're all doing it in faith, knowing full well that we will see each other again. 42:56.800 --> 43:00.800 So we get to be a part of the church here, but then we'll see each other over there as well. 43:00.800 --> 43:05.800 And be like, hey, remember when I used to tell you that I was going to bury you, and then you end up burying me first? 43:05.800 --> 43:11.800 You know, man, you know, all that work we put in and all the souls that we got saved, this is what it accounted for. 43:11.800 --> 43:14.800 You know, we all got to cross that bridge one day. 43:15.300 --> 43:20.300 And so Abraham in faith buries his wife Sarah. 43:20.300 --> 43:23.460 Obviously he knows that the dead shall rise again. 43:23.460 --> 43:27.220 And yes, we believe in a bodily resurrection 43:27.220 --> 43:29.780 and it's synonymous with the rapture. 43:29.780 --> 43:32.660 The rapture is a legitimate doctrine in the Bible. 43:32.660 --> 43:35.260 He's like, oh, the word rapture is not even found in the Bible. 43:35.260 --> 43:37.060 Also, I guess that means it doesn't exist. 43:37.300 --> 43:41.860 It's a weak argument that people propose that just because a word is not found in the Bible, 43:41.860 --> 43:43.460 the concept is there. 43:43.460 --> 43:46.700 We see it highlighted multiple times in the Word of God. 43:46.700 --> 43:49.420 And so that's a servant for another day. 43:49.420 --> 43:55.240 Look at verse four of Genesis 23. 43:55.240 --> 44:00.060 Let me say this one last thing before we move on here, is that Abraham really demonstrates 44:00.060 --> 44:03.780 that a believer should prepare responsibly for death. 44:04.400 --> 44:06.400 You know, his wife dies and he's ready. 44:06.400 --> 44:08.400 You know, he's willing to pay whatever needs to be paid 44:08.400 --> 44:09.900 and make the accommodations. 44:09.900 --> 44:12.900 And I do think that we should also prepare for that as well. 44:12.900 --> 44:15.400 Now we look here, it says in verse 4, 44:15.400 --> 44:17.900 I am a stranger and a sojourner with you, 44:17.900 --> 44:20.900 give me a possession of a burying place with you 44:20.900 --> 44:23.900 that I may bury my dead out of my sight. 44:23.900 --> 44:25.400 Now this is very important here, 44:25.400 --> 44:27.400 what he says in the very beginning of verse 4, 44:27.400 --> 44:29.900 because he's in Canaan land right now. 44:30.400 --> 44:33.240 And keep in mind, Canaan land is promised to him. 44:33.240 --> 44:35.840 He's already there, right? 44:35.840 --> 44:37.520 God promised him Canaan land. 44:37.520 --> 44:39.200 This is the land he was going to show him. 44:39.200 --> 44:44.800 But yet he views himself as a stranger in the land of Canaan. 44:44.800 --> 44:47.200 Now go to Hebrews 11, if you would. 44:47.200 --> 44:48.200 Hebrews 11. 44:50.500 --> 44:53.420 Hebrews chapter 11. 44:53.420 --> 44:57.020 So even though he's there, and by the way, 44:57.020 --> 44:59.620 what's interesting is that he ends up purchasing the sepulcher 44:59.620 --> 45:02.220 for his wife in the land of Canaan. 45:02.220 --> 45:04.580 And think about this, though the land is promised to him, 45:04.580 --> 45:09.180 this is the only thing he owns, is the burial place 45:09.180 --> 45:11.100 of his wife, which is kind of interesting. 45:11.300 --> 45:16.300 Okay, but he proclaims that he's a stranger and a soldier with him. 45:16.300 --> 45:20.300 So he knows that although this land is promised to him, 45:20.300 --> 45:24.300 at the end of the day he's still a foreigner in this particular land. 45:24.300 --> 45:27.300 See, Abraham is spiritually minded. 45:27.300 --> 45:30.300 He understands that he's just traveling through, 45:30.300 --> 45:32.300 even though this is the land promised to him. 45:32.300 --> 45:36.300 Now why is that? Because Abraham is looking for a better city. 45:36.300 --> 45:38.300 A heavenly city, right? 45:39.200 --> 45:46.160 You know, obviously he knows that his physical descendants, specifically Isaac, Jacob, the 45:46.160 --> 45:52.720 12 tribes, will eventually inhabit that physical land, but he himself understands and he has 45:52.720 --> 45:57.320 the knowledge, he has the prudence to see forth and recognize, like at the end of the 45:57.320 --> 45:59.680 day, this land, this world is not my home. 46:00.400 --> 46:01.900 He's just passing through. 46:01.900 --> 46:02.900 He is a pilgrim. 46:02.900 --> 46:03.900 He's a sojourner. 46:03.900 --> 46:04.900 He's just visiting. 46:04.900 --> 46:05.900 And you know what? 46:05.900 --> 46:09.740 This is an important principle for us to remember as well. 46:09.740 --> 46:15.180 We're just strangers and foreigners, sojourners in this world, right? 46:15.180 --> 46:22.300 You know, don't dig your stakes down too deep into this world, into our country, into California, 46:22.300 --> 46:25.940 although I think California is the best state in the United... 46:25.940 --> 46:28.400 if you're gonna be a soldier anywhere. 46:29.000 --> 46:31.160 California is the place to be, okay? 46:31.160 --> 46:33.880 And all these foreigners are recognizing that now. 46:33.880 --> 46:36.160 When they're visiting, they're just, this is the best ever. 46:36.160 --> 46:39.240 You know, yeah, we know, that's why we don't leave. 46:39.240 --> 46:40.080 Okay? 46:40.080 --> 46:41.080 Oh, it's so expensive. 46:41.080 --> 46:43.560 Yeah, because we just have the best weather. 46:43.560 --> 46:46.400 The best food and the best people, okay? 46:46.400 --> 46:50.520 Everywhere else, people are just weird, okay? 46:50.520 --> 46:51.360 Why? 46:51.360 --> 46:53.600 Because the heat gets to ya in other places. 46:53.600 --> 46:55.240 The humidity gets to ya. 46:55.600 --> 46:57.320 and other places, it makes you weird. 47:00.320 --> 47:02.640 And so, you know, but here's the thing, folks. 47:02.640 --> 47:05.800 We're just strangers and foreigners here, too. 47:05.800 --> 47:09.760 And this is something that God wants us to recognize and live 47:09.760 --> 47:10.900 by, OK? 47:11.200 --> 47:13.240 that, you know, we sing the song all the time, 47:13.240 --> 47:16.600 this world is not my home, I'm just a passing through, 47:16.600 --> 47:20.200 my treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue. 47:20.200 --> 47:21.880 You know, he's basically, we're basically singing 47:21.880 --> 47:24.200 about the fact that though we're living here, 47:24.200 --> 47:26.680 we work here, we're raising our families here, 47:26.680 --> 47:29.760 we're serving here, our lives are spent here, 47:29.760 --> 47:31.440 we're not always gonna be here. 47:32.200 --> 47:38.460 Okay, and so the reason God emphasizes that to us over and over again in both old and new testament 47:38.460 --> 47:41.160 It's because he doesn't want possessions to possess us 47:42.200 --> 47:48.780 Right. We need possessions. We need a house. We need vehicles, you know, we like things we need clothing 47:49.060 --> 47:51.500 But don't be so attached to these things 47:52.280 --> 47:56.940 That it makes you so unprofitable for the spiritual things as well 47:57.700 --> 48:01.380 Right? Look, folks, God has given us all things richly to enjoy. 48:01.980 --> 48:04.020 He wants you to enjoy your possessions. 48:04.020 --> 48:05.980 He wants you to enjoy your hobbies. 48:05.980 --> 48:09.780 I mean, the Book of Ecclesiastes, like hammers this over and over again 48:10.140 --> 48:14.420 that this is a gift of God, that you should enjoy the fruits of your labor. 48:14.980 --> 48:17.060 Enjoy the money that you make. 48:17.260 --> 48:19.620 Enjoy the possessions that you have. 48:19.620 --> 48:22.220 But let me just say this, just know they're all going to burn up, though. 48:23.300 --> 48:26.580 And look, one of the reasons why he tells us to enjoy it 48:26.580 --> 48:29.380 is because you're going to lose it one day. 48:29.380 --> 48:30.420 Right? 48:30.420 --> 48:32.740 He's not just saying just to enjoy it because, you know, 48:32.740 --> 48:34.540 he's given it to you, but also because you're not always 48:34.540 --> 48:36.260 going to have it. 48:36.260 --> 48:37.980 Enjoy your youth. 48:37.980 --> 48:38.260 Why? 48:38.260 --> 48:40.300 Because you're not always going to have it. 48:40.300 --> 48:40.860 Right? 48:40.860 --> 48:41.700 But let me say this. 48:41.700 --> 48:45.060 Remember your creator in the days of your youth, too. 48:45.060 --> 48:45.940 You know? 48:45.940 --> 48:48.300 Some of us will age like milk. 48:48.300 --> 48:48.780 OK? 48:49.800 --> 48:56.840 And you know what? That's okay. So you better use your youth. You better use your strength to serve God. 48:57.400 --> 49:05.640 You better use it to go sowning, to go on mission strips, to use your body to serve the Lord, 49:05.640 --> 49:12.360 use the members of your body to serve God. Not in frivolous living, drinking and smoking and 49:12.360 --> 49:17.960 running with those that do and fornicating and destroying the temple of God. This is not an 49:17.960 --> 49:20.000 honorable thing for Christians. 49:21.000 --> 49:26.000 You know, doing drugs and fornicating and, you know, 49:26.000 --> 49:29.200 just wasting your life away, wasting your youth away, 49:29.200 --> 49:30.400 and then just, well, when I'm 30, 49:30.400 --> 49:31.860 I'm just gonna get serious about the things I've got. 49:31.860 --> 49:34.000 Get serious now! 49:34.000 --> 49:34.840 And you know what? 49:34.840 --> 49:37.440 I got saved when I was 21 years old, 49:37.440 --> 49:40.440 and I spent my 20s not clubbing. 49:41.500 --> 49:44.000 I don't even know if people still do that anymore. 49:44.000 --> 49:47.960 I didn't spend my 20s fornicating, clubbing, 49:47.960 --> 49:51.360 doing drugs, drinking, running with those that do. 49:51.360 --> 49:52.280 You say, what'd you do? 49:52.280 --> 49:55.840 I literally served God the entire time. 49:55.840 --> 49:58.400 I relinquished all the pleasures of this world. 49:58.400 --> 49:59.200 And you know what? 49:59.200 --> 50:01.840 I don't regret it one minute. 50:01.840 --> 50:03.840 Yeah, but weren't you in an old, happy church? 50:03.840 --> 50:06.640 I'd rather be serving God at an old, happy church 50:06.640 --> 50:07.500 than be in the world. 50:08.300 --> 50:12.300 Because I'd rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than to dwell in the tents 50:12.300 --> 50:13.300 of wickedness. 50:13.300 --> 50:14.300 You know? 50:14.300 --> 50:18.340 And you know, we have far too many young people just wasting their life away, thinking that 50:18.340 --> 50:21.580 they're going to get serious about the things of God in their 30s. 50:21.580 --> 50:23.700 Well, sorry folks, but you know what? 50:23.700 --> 50:25.300 Tomorrow's not promised to you. 50:25.300 --> 50:28.260 Your 30s are not promised to you. 50:28.260 --> 50:31.300 Boast not thyself of tomorrow for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth. 50:31.300 --> 50:32.380 That's what the Bible says. 50:33.000 --> 50:33.920 So you know what? 50:33.920 --> 50:36.280 You need to make sure you recognize that life is 50:36.280 --> 50:38.680 but a vapor, you're a stranger in a pilgrim, 50:38.680 --> 50:39.740 and you know what? 50:39.740 --> 50:44.600 Ice, you know, death, ice is gonna come get you one day, 50:44.600 --> 50:48.840 is gonna deport you to heaven, okay? 50:48.840 --> 50:51.680 It's gonna come get you because you're an illegal, 50:51.680 --> 50:54.360 you're a foreigner, they're gonna find you, 50:54.360 --> 50:56.900 death is gonna seize upon you one day. 50:57.200 --> 50:58.200 You know what I mean? 50:58.200 --> 50:59.960 And it's going to take you straight to heaven. 50:59.960 --> 51:00.760 So you know what? 51:00.760 --> 51:06.800 You better enjoy and serve God now and use your life here now 51:06.800 --> 51:09.760 to account for eternity. 51:09.760 --> 51:11.360 I served God in my 20s. 51:11.360 --> 51:16.760 And when I talk about serve God, I like, that's all I did. 51:16.760 --> 51:17.280 OK? 51:17.280 --> 51:17.300 you 51:17.400 --> 51:18.680 You know, all my friends were at church. 51:18.680 --> 51:20.640 I literally had all my friends in church. 51:20.640 --> 51:22.160 My life was church. 51:22.160 --> 51:23.960 My life was my bus ministry. 51:23.960 --> 51:26.160 My life was my Sunday school class. 51:26.160 --> 51:29.280 My life was teaching others and winning people to Christ. 51:29.280 --> 51:30.320 That's all I did. 51:30.320 --> 51:32.600 You're like, man, that sounds kind of boring. 51:32.600 --> 51:35.840 Yeah, you know, yeah, it's really boring to serve God, 51:35.840 --> 51:38.400 get married, have kids, 51:38.400 --> 51:41.800 and be just established in my 40s of having a family 51:41.800 --> 51:43.400 and just serving God and being a pastor of a church. 51:43.400 --> 51:44.300 Yeah, real boring. 51:44.400 --> 51:47.860 Guess it's more exciting to just vomit your guts out every Saturday. I 51:48.620 --> 51:52.280 Guess it's just more exciting to get gonorrhea and all types of diseases 51:52.380 --> 52:00.260 I guess it's just more exciting to just you know have bastard children and just waste your life away. That's not exciting 52:01.340 --> 52:03.100 You're gonna regret it 52:03.100 --> 52:06.380 Okay, and you know what God gave us youth? 52:07.140 --> 52:10.380 So that we can give it our all in our youth 52:11.200 --> 52:13.640 The Bible says to bear the burden in our youth, 52:13.640 --> 52:17.040 bear the yoke in our youth. 52:17.040 --> 52:20.280 If you're going to waste away, waste away serving God. 52:20.280 --> 52:22.160 Do it serving God. 52:22.160 --> 52:22.960 Do it soul winning. 52:22.960 --> 52:24.080 Do it serving in your church. 52:24.080 --> 52:25.280 Do it be a blessing to others. 52:25.280 --> 52:26.760 Win people to Christ. 52:26.760 --> 52:34.000 Do it in preparing for that visitation from ice. 52:34.000 --> 52:37.000 Spiritual ice that's going to take you to heaven one day. 52:38.100 --> 52:39.860 I love Abraham's attitude here. 52:39.860 --> 52:41.860 He's like, I'm a stranger in a pilgrim. 52:41.860 --> 52:42.500 And you know what? 52:42.500 --> 52:45.060 You know what burdens me sometimes is that, 52:45.060 --> 52:47.220 and luckily we don't necessarily have this issue here 52:47.220 --> 52:48.900 because I feel like we have a lot of young people 52:48.900 --> 52:50.260 that serve God here. 52:50.260 --> 52:51.860 And the reason I say young people is because now 52:51.860 --> 52:55.380 I'm not young anymore and anything below my age is young now. 52:55.380 --> 52:57.460 But it's great to see young people serving God. 52:57.460 --> 52:58.420 I think that's great. 52:59.100 --> 53:05.660 Young people winning people to Christ and going on missions trips and just serving God and getting serious about the things of God 53:05.660 --> 53:10.700 listening to preaching, reading the Bible, praying, just doing it, right? 53:10.700 --> 53:15.180 But I also think it's great when old people do it too in our church, okay? 53:15.180 --> 53:19.260 And I'm not going to look at anybody right now. I'll just look at Sheve, okay? He don't care if I look at him. 53:19.260 --> 53:24.540 You know, it's great to see older people serving God too. And I love to see the fervor... 53:24.900 --> 53:28.480 of a young person in the fervor in an older person 53:28.480 --> 53:30.360 that like is almost equal to the fervor 53:30.360 --> 53:32.440 of a young person as well. 53:32.440 --> 53:34.660 You know, there's some people in our church that, man, 53:34.660 --> 53:36.440 they're older and you know what? 53:36.440 --> 53:39.000 They're cranking it out when it comes to serving God. 53:39.000 --> 53:40.920 They go on missions trips. 53:40.920 --> 53:42.660 They're going soul winning. 53:42.660 --> 53:45.840 They're like using their lives, you know, 53:45.840 --> 53:48.300 in their latter years to serve the Lord. 53:48.300 --> 53:51.520 They're not retiring, they're refiring, right? 53:51.520 --> 53:52.800 And that's how it should be. 53:53.000 --> 53:55.320 You know, I want the old people in our church, 53:55.320 --> 53:59.560 and don't ask me who I think is old, you know who you are. 53:59.560 --> 54:02.640 Anything above me is old. 54:02.640 --> 54:07.000 I want the older people in our church to serve God. 54:07.000 --> 54:07.640 And you know what? 54:07.640 --> 54:10.240 Be zealous about the things of God, too. 54:10.240 --> 54:13.400 I know you can't move as fast. 54:13.400 --> 54:14.680 I get it. 54:14.680 --> 54:17.040 I get you got pains and all this stuff or whatever. 54:17.040 --> 54:17.720 But you know what? 54:17.720 --> 54:19.600 You can still serve God zealously, though. 54:20.200 --> 54:23.600 You can serve God zealously, you can be zealous about the things of God, you can be zealous 54:23.600 --> 54:26.500 about doctrine, zealous about souls. 54:26.500 --> 54:30.360 Let the fire of the young people in our church fire you up to do so. 54:30.360 --> 54:31.960 Because there's a lot of fire here for sure. 54:31.960 --> 54:36.080 There's a lot of young people who have a lot of fire. 54:36.080 --> 54:38.120 It's flame in here. 54:38.120 --> 54:40.720 It's very exciting to see people zealous for the Lord. 54:40.720 --> 54:45.520 So there should be no old people in our church just apathetic towards the things of God. 54:46.100 --> 54:48.420 There's no place in First Works Baptist Church 54:48.420 --> 54:49.780 for apathetic old people. 54:53.460 --> 54:55.900 You want me to esteem you as an older person, 54:55.900 --> 54:57.380 you better get serving God. 54:57.380 --> 54:59.260 You better start serving the Lord, 54:59.260 --> 55:01.940 winning people to Christ. 55:01.940 --> 55:02.940 I like that. 55:02.940 --> 55:04.140 I think it's exciting. 55:04.140 --> 55:04.820 Oh, I'm Asian. 55:04.820 --> 55:06.620 I shouldn't talk about old people like that. 55:06.620 --> 55:07.420 Why not? 55:07.420 --> 55:08.940 Should I be a respecter of people? 55:08.940 --> 55:11.180 Oh, you're old now, so you don't have to serve God? 55:11.500 --> 55:14.820 Oh, you're old now, so go ahead and sit this one out. 55:14.820 --> 55:17.020 Oh, you're old now, just go to bed or something like that? 55:17.020 --> 55:19.660 Nonsense. 55:19.660 --> 55:22.220 Caleb was like, I want that mountain. 55:22.220 --> 55:24.380 He's like 80 years old. 55:24.380 --> 55:26.580 And he's like, give me this mountain. 55:26.580 --> 55:27.220 Right? 55:27.220 --> 55:29.980 You know, Moses, his strength was not abated. 55:29.980 --> 55:31.140 His eyes were not dim. 55:31.140 --> 55:33.780 He served God to the very end. 55:33.780 --> 55:36.700 We need old people to serve God too. 55:36.700 --> 55:37.200 OK? 55:37.600 --> 55:41.600 And don't feel offended because I'm saying old. 55:41.600 --> 55:44.600 You'd say the same thing. 55:44.600 --> 55:45.600 And you know what? 55:45.600 --> 55:47.600 Just to make you feel comfortable, 55:47.600 --> 55:49.600 we're all going to get old one day. 55:49.600 --> 55:52.600 Some of us already look it. 55:52.600 --> 55:54.600 Okay? 55:54.600 --> 55:56.600 You know, luckily millennials age better than Gen Zers, 55:56.600 --> 56:00.600 but you know, some of them. 56:00.600 --> 56:03.600 But no matter what, you guys are all going to look old. 56:04.700 --> 56:05.340 And you know what? 56:05.340 --> 56:07.500 We get to grow old together. 56:07.500 --> 56:09.900 I'm going to see you get wrinkly and gray headed. 56:09.900 --> 56:11.740 Some of you all won't even see gray headed, 56:11.740 --> 56:14.220 because you won't have any hair to gray. 56:14.220 --> 56:15.140 OK? 56:15.140 --> 56:15.940 It's going to happen. 56:15.940 --> 56:16.820 But you know what? 56:16.820 --> 56:17.340 Serve God. 56:17.340 --> 56:19.580 Waste away serving God. 56:19.580 --> 56:21.300 Lose your hair serving God. 56:23.900 --> 56:25.700 Stress out serving God! 56:29.200 --> 56:32.200 You'll thank me in the millennial reign. 56:32.200 --> 56:34.700 You'll thank me in the millennial reign. 56:34.700 --> 56:37.360 Right now you're just like, oh, he's just, she's just, you know. 56:37.360 --> 56:38.700 Yeah, but when we're in the millennial reign, 56:38.700 --> 56:43.820 you're going to be like, Hannah, I'm glad I listened to that. 56:43.820 --> 56:47.460 Because, you know, we will be forever young in the millennial 56:47.460 --> 56:47.960 reign. 56:47.960 --> 56:50.920 I want to be forever young. 56:50.920 --> 56:53.300 Well, first of all, get saved and get serving God, amen. 56:54.800 --> 56:58.040 Instead of worrying about looking young here, 56:58.040 --> 57:00.520 why don't you worry about serving God here 57:00.520 --> 57:05.240 so that you just get glorified in the millennial reign? 57:05.240 --> 57:08.360 Sarah died at 120, but you know what? 57:08.360 --> 57:11.720 I bet you she looks really young in the millennial reign. 57:11.720 --> 57:13.880 She probably looks glorified in the millennial reign. 57:13.880 --> 57:16.200 She doesn't care that she died at 120 or whatever. 57:16.600 --> 57:22.840 And so waste the way serving God Abraham viewed himself here as a stranger and 57:22.840 --> 57:27.280 look at Hebrews chapter 11 and verse 8 by faith Abraham when he was called to go 57:27.280 --> 57:30.760 out into a place which he should after after receive for an inheritance obeyed 57:30.760 --> 57:35.960 and he went out not knowing whether he went by faith he sojourned in the land 57:35.960 --> 57:40.840 of promise as in a strange country dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and 57:40.840 --> 57:44.200 Jacob the heirs with him of the same promise 57:44.300 --> 57:46.620 for he looked for a city which hath foundations, 57:46.620 --> 57:48.460 whose builder and maker is God." 57:48.460 --> 57:51.420 So while these Zionists are constantly worried about 57:51.420 --> 57:53.420 the people gaining the physical land, 57:53.420 --> 57:54.700 and they want the land, 57:54.700 --> 57:56.300 and the land is promised to us, 57:56.300 --> 57:59.580 bro, the guy whose promise was given to the land, 57:59.580 --> 58:01.100 he didn't even care about the physical land. 58:01.660 --> 58:04.380 It says here he's looking for a city 58:04.380 --> 58:05.980 whose builder and maker is God. 58:07.820 --> 58:10.060 Verse 11, through faith also Sarah herself 58:10.060 --> 58:11.500 received strength to conceive seed. 58:12.000 --> 58:16.480 and was delivered of a child when she was past age because she judged him faithful who had promised 58:17.120 --> 58:22.880 skip down to verse number 13 these all died in faith not having received the promises 58:23.920 --> 58:26.960 you know the the land that was promised to them they didn't get it 58:28.400 --> 58:35.240 Having seen them afar off and were persuaded of them and embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth 58:35.360 --> 58:40.740 for they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country and 58:41.080 --> 58:45.480 Truly if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out they might have had an opportunity to return 58:45.600 --> 58:50.740 This is but now they desire a better country that is and heavenly 58:51.200 --> 58:53.500 Wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, 58:53.500 --> 58:54.880 for he hath prepared for them a city. 58:54.880 --> 58:57.480 So Abraham understood, you know, I'm a stranger here, 58:57.480 --> 58:59.320 and although this land is promised to me, 58:59.320 --> 59:00.560 I'm not going to see it. 59:00.560 --> 59:03.080 My physical descendants will see it in the near future. 59:03.080 --> 59:05.040 But at the end of the day, we're all strangers and pilgrims 59:05.040 --> 59:06.080 here. 59:06.080 --> 59:06.840 And you know what? 59:06.840 --> 59:08.000 The same goes for us. 59:08.000 --> 59:09.720 We're strangers and pilgrims here. 59:09.720 --> 59:12.360 You know, oh, I got my citizenship. 59:12.360 --> 59:13.960 You know, I'm an American now. 59:13.960 --> 59:15.200 You're still a stranger and pilgrim here, 59:15.200 --> 59:16.400 according to the biblical standards. 59:16.400 --> 59:16.600 you 59:17.300 --> 59:23.860 Don't get so caught up in that where you forget the importance of using where we're at 59:24.500 --> 59:28.820 as a springboard to serve the Lord, to promote the kingdom of God, right? 59:29.600 --> 59:32.640 And so those are the main points I want to go over this evening. 59:32.640 --> 59:39.920 We have here, he purchases a sepulcher for Sarah in faith, of course, in a strange land. 59:39.920 --> 59:46.480 He recognizes he's burying his wife in faith, but he makes this profound statement that he knows 59:46.480 --> 59:50.000 at the end of the day, though the land has promised him, he's still a stranger here. 59:50.000 --> 59:52.320 You know, we need to remember that, okay? 59:52.320 --> 59:56.080 And don't get too comfortable, amen? 59:56.080 --> 59:57.280 Don't get too comfortable. 59:58.300 --> 01:00:00.800 I'll be honest, I was comfortable in Los Angeles. 01:00:00.800 --> 01:00:03.000 And look where we're at now. 01:00:03.000 --> 01:00:04.760 You just never know what might happen. 01:00:04.760 --> 01:00:06.400 People are like, oh man, are you thinking about moving 01:00:06.400 --> 01:00:07.920 anywhere, the church anywhere? 01:00:07.920 --> 01:00:11.480 I mean, not that I know of, but you just never know. 01:00:11.480 --> 01:00:13.880 What if we get blown up again? 01:00:13.880 --> 01:00:16.160 You just never know. 01:00:16.160 --> 01:00:17.120 What if they nuke us? 01:00:17.120 --> 01:00:18.360 I don't know. 01:00:18.360 --> 01:00:19.720 You know? 01:00:19.720 --> 01:00:22.480 You just never know. 01:00:22.480 --> 01:00:23.720 Just anything could happen. 01:00:24.800 --> 01:00:28.800 So I'd like to stay here, but my theme back in Los Angeles 01:00:28.800 --> 01:00:30.520 is to live and die in LA. 01:00:30.520 --> 01:00:33.440 But that didn't happen now, did it? 01:00:33.440 --> 01:00:35.040 Now we're here. 01:00:35.040 --> 01:00:39.000 So it's just teaching me that I can't necessarily, 01:00:39.000 --> 01:00:43.720 I can't have this presumptuous attitude about the future. 01:00:43.720 --> 01:00:46.000 Surely I can plan. 01:00:46.000 --> 01:00:48.240 I would hope that I can keep serving God. 01:00:48.240 --> 01:00:51.520 I hope that I just die pastoring at a very old age. 01:00:52.200 --> 01:00:54.560 That would be my honest goal. 01:00:54.560 --> 01:00:57.960 That I'd be like 90 years old, just walking up to the pulpit, 01:00:57.960 --> 01:01:01.360 preaching on homos, and still kicking trannies out, 01:01:01.360 --> 01:01:05.960 and preaching against Jews and stuff, and kicking Jews out, 01:01:05.960 --> 01:01:07.920 and just being crazy at an old age. 01:01:07.920 --> 01:01:10.960 I mean, it would just be so boss to have like a 90-year-old 01:01:10.960 --> 01:01:12.360 still kicking like that. 01:01:12.700 --> 01:01:13.540 You know what I mean? 01:01:13.540 --> 01:01:14.380 I would love to do that. 01:01:14.380 --> 01:01:17.940 I would love for my last sermon to be me kicking out 01:01:17.940 --> 01:01:20.580 some reprobate and just preach so hard that I just have 01:01:20.580 --> 01:01:22.140 a heart attack and I just die. 01:01:22.140 --> 01:01:26.020 Just like, ah, just fall over and just die. 01:01:26.020 --> 01:01:28.140 And I get to heaven and I'm like, that was awesome. 01:01:28.140 --> 01:01:30.140 That was my last sermon. 01:01:30.140 --> 01:01:31.940 I think that'd be great. 01:01:31.940 --> 01:01:33.780 I hope so, but you know what? 01:01:33.780 --> 01:01:37.500 Who knows if I'll even live for the next 10 years? 01:01:37.500 --> 01:01:38.740 You just never know. 01:01:39.700 --> 01:01:43.800 So, you know, at the end of the day, just recognize you should live here. 01:01:43.800 --> 01:01:47.320 Each day, obviously it's very difficult to do, each day you should live here, recognizing 01:01:47.320 --> 01:01:49.040 like this could be my last day. 01:01:49.040 --> 01:01:54.600 I need to make sure that I love my kids, that I love my spouse, that I serve my God to the 01:01:54.600 --> 01:01:58.120 best of my ability, and I give it all I got. 01:01:58.120 --> 01:01:59.120 Because you know what? 01:01:59.120 --> 01:02:02.200 The Lord did not give me a deadline from when I'm going home. 01:02:03.000 --> 01:02:06.840 I'm a stranger, I'm a pilgrim here, I can't put my stakes down too deep. 01:02:06.840 --> 01:02:09.480 I need to live like as though I live in a tabernacle. 01:02:10.120 --> 01:02:12.680 Why did he say a tabernacle? Because a tabernacle is movable. 01:02:13.640 --> 01:02:16.440 You tear it down and build it back up again, right? 01:02:16.440 --> 01:02:17.640 Tear it down, build it back up. 01:02:17.640 --> 01:02:21.160 And you know what? That's the attitude we need to have here in this world. 01:02:21.160 --> 01:02:21.400 Let's pray. 01:02:21.400 --> 01:02:23.160 Father, we thank you so much for your word. 01:02:23.160 --> 01:02:26.760 Thank you for Abraham's example, Lord, and for his wife's example. 01:02:26.760 --> 01:02:29.960 What a godly woman that we see here, a woman of great faith. 01:02:30.600 --> 01:02:37.400 Demonstrating that though she's not perfect Lord you still esteemed her as being a woman who was very godly a 01:02:37.640 --> 01:02:42.940 woman of great faith and a woman that other women should look to as an example of faith and I pray that you'd help us as 01:02:42.940 --> 01:02:47.280 your people Lord to learn from them and recognize the importance of 01:02:48.240 --> 01:02:55.380 Having the perspective that we are just strangers and pilgrims on this world and we're just passing through and in light of that 01:02:55.380 --> 01:02:58.000 May we give it our all while we're here in Jesus name. We pray. Amen 01:03:07.000 --> 01:03:09.920 We have one last song this evening. 01:03:09.920 --> 01:03:14.280 Song number 41, Sweet Bye and Bye.