WEBVTT NOTE Podcast: Acts 29 Vancouver Episode: Living Stone Publishing Date: 2018-10-14T06:00:44-07:00 Podcast URL: https://acts29.ca Episode URL: https://acts29.ca/living-stone/ 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:08.560 Lord have your way and Lord have your way in me. 00:00:08.560 --> 00:00:12.800 Like a mighty storm, stir within my soul. 00:00:12.800 --> 00:00:17.680 Lord have your way, Lord have your way. 00:00:17.680 --> 00:00:27.600 My like a rushing wind and like a mighty storm, stir within my soul. 00:00:27.600 --> 00:00:32.880 If that is our real prayer, if that's a prayer we are praying in our hearts. 00:00:32.880 --> 00:00:38.560 Lord like a rushing wind and like a mighty storm, stir within my soul. 00:00:38.560 --> 00:00:45.080 If he stirs our soul, if he stirs our soul, within our soul, if he creates a mighty wind 00:00:45.080 --> 00:00:52.240 and mighty storm in our soul, what happens is if a storm catches you, when we go through 00:00:52.240 --> 00:00:56.560 Facebook and now social media because of the storms that's happening even in Andhra, in 00:00:56.560 --> 00:01:02.800 India and also in Indonesia and tsunamis, if there is a storm that happens any place, 00:01:02.800 --> 00:01:09.880 what happens is like the movable things, the things that are not, that have not enough 00:01:09.880 --> 00:01:13.760 root, strong root, they'll be taken away. 00:01:13.760 --> 00:01:19.240 And if this happens in our soul, if a mighty storm and if a rushing wind pass through our 00:01:20.240 --> 00:01:27.160 and if that happens, the things that are not from God, they will be taken away. 00:01:27.160 --> 00:01:32.680 They'll be moved and they'll be taken away from our souls and that's what needed for 00:01:32.680 --> 00:01:33.680 us. 00:01:33.680 --> 00:01:39.440 And the things that are, the things that are from God, the things that are deposited by 00:01:39.440 --> 00:01:46.240 God and the things that have seed, the imperishable seed, the things that are from God, they always, 00:01:46.240 --> 00:01:47.280 they stay with us. 00:01:47.320 --> 00:01:53.160 That's why he said, the fruit I give you will stand forever. 00:01:53.160 --> 00:01:59.680 He has, when we came to Christ, when we were born, when we were born into his family, when 00:01:59.680 --> 00:02:05.160 we were born from our emptiness, from our darkness to the fullness and to the life, 00:02:05.160 --> 00:02:11.360 what happens is like the God gives us, puts us the seed that is imperishable and the enemy 00:02:11.360 --> 00:02:16.440 comes and then deposited, he deposits things that are perishable, he deposits things that 00:02:16.440 --> 00:02:21.560 have no root but attractive, he deposits things that are not from God but are very 00:02:21.560 --> 00:02:24.240 much needed in that moment. 00:02:24.240 --> 00:02:31.320 They just distract us towards them and then if we start to, if we start to hang ourselves 00:02:31.320 --> 00:02:37.240 to those, to such kind of things, then when a hit, when a storm comes, then they will 00:02:37.240 --> 00:02:40.920 be taken away and then we start to shake. 00:02:41.000 --> 00:02:46.600 As the people of God, as the people of, as the sons and daughters of him, we start to 00:02:46.600 --> 00:02:52.080 always cling to that things that are from God which cannot be shaken, which cannot be 00:02:52.080 --> 00:02:59.880 moved and today I was asking the Lord about today's meeting and then God spoke to me 00:02:59.880 --> 00:03:02.840 from 2 Peter chapter 3. 00:03:02.840 --> 00:03:08.360 Let's read 2 Peter chapter 3. 00:03:08.360 --> 00:03:10.360 Verse 1. 00:03:29.240 --> 00:03:34.840 This is what I'm going to do, what I'm going to speak today and then may the Holy Spirit 00:03:34.920 --> 00:03:39.600 minister to our souls as he wills. 00:03:39.600 --> 00:03:45.000 This is how the second letter, this is now the second letter that I am writing to you, 00:03:45.000 --> 00:03:46.720 my beloved. 00:03:46.720 --> 00:03:57.720 In both of them I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder and today, today I 00:03:57.760 --> 00:04:05.040 want to remind you a few things that we already know so that our sincere hearts, so that our 00:04:05.040 --> 00:04:11.880 sincere souls can be stirred up. 00:04:11.880 --> 00:04:20.880 When that happens, may the moveable things be removed from our heart and that's why 00:04:20.880 --> 00:04:24.440 it's always, that's why fellowship is much needed. 00:04:24.440 --> 00:04:30.640 When we come together what happens is like our hearts are stirred up always. 00:04:30.640 --> 00:04:36.920 Our hearts are stirred up by one another, that's why Proverbs says, iron sharpens iron. 00:04:36.920 --> 00:04:41.480 Because when iron meets iron what happens is like one of the other, the sharpness happens 00:04:41.480 --> 00:04:48.040 between them and may the Lord stir our hearts today. 00:04:48.040 --> 00:04:53.520 So few things that I want to remind you, so these are all very common and then very fundamental 00:04:53.520 --> 00:04:59.200 and basic but I feel like this is the Lord wants to do amongst us. 00:04:59.200 --> 00:05:03.920 Few things that I want to remind you today are, they're actually from 1 Peter chapter 00:05:03.920 --> 00:05:06.120 2. 00:05:06.120 --> 00:05:13.120 1 Peter chapter 2 verse 3, if indeed you have tasted the Lord is good. 00:05:13.880 --> 00:05:20.040 If indeed you have tasted the Lord is good. 00:05:20.040 --> 00:05:24.520 The first thing that I want to remind you today is the Lord is good. 00:05:24.520 --> 00:05:25.560 The Lord is good. 00:05:25.560 --> 00:05:26.920 Can we all repeat this one? 00:05:26.920 --> 00:05:28.820 The Lord is good. 00:05:28.820 --> 00:05:32.680 God is good all the time, all the time. 00:05:32.680 --> 00:05:33.900 One more time, one more time. 00:05:33.900 --> 00:05:35.920 The Lord is good. 00:05:35.920 --> 00:05:37.920 Our God is good. 00:05:37.920 --> 00:05:41.640 God is good all the time. 00:05:42.240 --> 00:05:44.240 All the time. 00:05:44.240 --> 00:05:45.240 God is good. 00:05:45.240 --> 00:05:47.320 Amen, amen. 00:05:47.320 --> 00:05:49.640 May this be a reminder for us today. 00:05:49.640 --> 00:05:50.640 God is good. 00:05:50.640 --> 00:05:54.720 Even whatever the situations we are going through, God is good. 00:05:54.720 --> 00:05:55.720 God is good. 00:05:55.720 --> 00:05:56.720 God is good. 00:05:56.720 --> 00:05:57.720 God is good. 00:05:57.720 --> 00:05:58.720 Why he is good? 00:05:58.720 --> 00:06:01.080 Because that's who he is. 00:06:01.080 --> 00:06:02.080 That's who he is. 00:06:02.080 --> 00:06:09.320 I started to look up the verses for God is good and then I cannot stop reading verse 00:06:09.320 --> 00:06:11.480 by verse, verse by verse. 00:06:11.880 --> 00:06:15.800 The Psalmist writes beautifully about how God is good to him. 00:06:15.800 --> 00:06:19.880 And then I started to go and then kneel down and then I started to think how God has been 00:06:19.880 --> 00:06:22.720 good to me in my life and there is endless list. 00:06:22.720 --> 00:06:28.760 And if you, I bet if you start to go and then look your life one by one, how God has been 00:06:28.760 --> 00:06:30.840 good to you, my goodness. 00:06:30.840 --> 00:06:33.320 We might have to write many, many books. 00:06:33.320 --> 00:06:34.720 The Lord is good. 00:06:34.720 --> 00:06:35.960 The Lord is good. 00:06:35.960 --> 00:06:37.160 The Lord is good. 00:06:37.160 --> 00:06:43.480 My favorite was Romans, in Romans it's like the Lord, he loved us so much and he started 00:06:43.480 --> 00:06:49.680 to demonstrate his own love for us, his own goodness for us, his own mercy for me that 00:06:49.680 --> 00:06:56.720 while we are still sinners, he demonstrated his love by giving his son, his son to us 00:06:56.720 --> 00:07:00.800 that Christ died for us while we are still sinners. 00:07:00.800 --> 00:07:02.360 He started from there. 00:07:02.360 --> 00:07:06.960 Even before, he started even before the foundations of the earth, even before the foundations 00:07:06.960 --> 00:07:09.240 of the earth, he started to love us. 00:07:09.240 --> 00:07:10.400 He started to care for us. 00:07:10.400 --> 00:07:12.880 He started to think about us. 00:07:12.880 --> 00:07:13.880 The Lord is good. 00:07:13.880 --> 00:07:16.120 Trust that today the Lord is good. 00:07:16.120 --> 00:07:20.920 Lord is good and he never failed anyone so far. 00:07:20.920 --> 00:07:26.480 He never put anyone to shame so far, whoever has believed in him. 00:07:26.480 --> 00:07:29.520 He never denied anyone who has come to him. 00:07:29.520 --> 00:07:33.800 We even with what doesn't matter what kind of baggage he has. 00:07:33.800 --> 00:07:40.120 But when he stepped one step towards the Lord, the Lord always waiting, the Father 00:07:40.120 --> 00:07:45.040 is waiting and then the Lord is good and he's always there to meet you. 00:07:45.040 --> 00:07:46.920 It doesn't matter. 00:07:46.920 --> 00:07:50.320 He has no strings attached. 00:07:50.320 --> 00:07:51.520 The Lord is good. 00:07:51.520 --> 00:07:52.640 Our God is good. 00:07:52.640 --> 00:07:53.640 Our God is good. 00:07:53.640 --> 00:07:59.800 And out of those verses, my favorite three verses are from, verses are from Psalm 34, 00:08:00.800 --> 00:08:02.800 Psalm 34, 8. 00:08:20.800 --> 00:08:24.800 O taste and see that the Lord is good. 00:08:24.800 --> 00:08:27.800 Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. 00:08:27.800 --> 00:08:33.360 In fact, in Peter, the words the verse we read is we are we are people of God who have 00:08:33.360 --> 00:08:35.160 tasted the goodness of God. 00:08:35.160 --> 00:08:40.620 And Psalm is even some thousands years before he is like, oh, come and taste the goodness 00:08:40.620 --> 00:08:41.620 of God. 00:08:41.620 --> 00:08:44.960 We now we know we already know that the Lord is good. 00:08:44.960 --> 00:08:48.880 And then we have started to taste the goodness of God. 00:08:48.880 --> 00:08:52.480 Is there anyone here who have not tasted the goodness of God? 00:08:52.480 --> 00:08:55.480 No, we all have tasted the goodness of God. 00:08:56.160 --> 00:08:59.160 And we're still doing that every day. 00:08:59.160 --> 00:09:04.240 If you have not tasted the goodness of God yesterday or today, then open your eyes and 00:09:04.240 --> 00:09:09.720 ask the Lord to help you will taste the goodness of the God. 00:09:09.720 --> 00:09:11.800 I have this beautiful story. 00:09:11.800 --> 00:09:16.880 And this is something that I did. 00:09:16.880 --> 00:09:22.680 What I did was I broke my phone, which is given by my company. 00:09:22.880 --> 00:09:25.880 And before that, I lost the SIM card. 00:09:25.880 --> 00:09:27.880 That's even worse. 00:09:27.880 --> 00:09:33.080 So when I went to India, I took out the SIM card and put it in another phone and then 00:09:33.080 --> 00:09:36.000 took this phone to India. 00:09:36.000 --> 00:09:40.480 And then I guess Indian stones are very strong, maybe. 00:09:40.480 --> 00:09:44.880 It slipped from my pocket and then I broke the screen. 00:09:44.880 --> 00:09:46.880 Yeah. 00:09:46.880 --> 00:09:51.200 And then I came home and then I was searching for the phone for the SIM card and I couldn't 00:09:51.200 --> 00:09:52.200 find my phone. 00:09:54.400 --> 00:09:55.760 So I went to work. 00:09:55.760 --> 00:09:57.200 I didn't know what to do. 00:09:57.200 --> 00:10:01.880 So I changed my phone number in all my context to my personal phone number. 00:10:01.880 --> 00:10:06.080 And then after three months, I received an email saying, hey, this office number, it 00:10:06.080 --> 00:10:08.360 did not receive any calls for three months. 00:10:08.360 --> 00:10:11.600 So we are closing this account. 00:10:11.600 --> 00:10:13.920 And then it went to my manager. 00:10:13.920 --> 00:10:15.040 I was like, I didn't know what to do. 00:10:15.040 --> 00:10:21.000 So but the guy who works in telecom office, I've seen him. 00:10:21.120 --> 00:10:22.600 And he's very, very strict. 00:10:22.600 --> 00:10:26.400 He's like a very angry person. 00:10:26.400 --> 00:10:29.080 Because I remember one of my colleagues, he had some issue with the phone. 00:10:29.080 --> 00:10:32.520 And then one day he came to his desk and started to yell at him, you know how many emails I 00:10:32.520 --> 00:10:33.520 received? 00:10:33.520 --> 00:10:34.840 He was yelling at him. 00:10:34.840 --> 00:10:38.960 And then I looked at him and then I thought maybe this might be the last person whom I'm 00:10:38.960 --> 00:10:42.360 going to make friendship with. 00:10:42.360 --> 00:10:44.400 So now I didn't know what to do. 00:10:44.400 --> 00:10:47.760 So I was like, then I applied for a new SIM card. 00:10:47.760 --> 00:10:54.240 And then I received email from him saying, hey, I want you to come to my desk and explain 00:10:54.240 --> 00:11:01.680 me what happened, how you lost the SIM card, because no one loses SIM card alone. 00:11:01.680 --> 00:11:02.960 But your new SIM card is ready. 00:11:02.960 --> 00:11:05.560 So I went to him and then now he wants to see my phone. 00:11:05.560 --> 00:11:07.520 My phone is already broken. 00:11:07.520 --> 00:11:08.520 I texted him. 00:11:08.520 --> 00:11:11.640 I emailed him saying, hey, you know, I'm also from tech department. 00:11:11.640 --> 00:11:13.240 So I know how to insert SIM card. 00:11:13.240 --> 00:11:16.240 So can you just give me my SIM card? 00:11:16.280 --> 00:11:19.840 Because I don't want him to see my broken phone. 00:11:19.840 --> 00:11:21.040 But finally there is no choice. 00:11:21.040 --> 00:11:26.200 So I went to him and then I gave my phone to him and he was like, why did you take out 00:11:26.200 --> 00:11:27.200 your SIM card? 00:11:27.200 --> 00:11:28.200 It's against the policy. 00:11:28.200 --> 00:11:29.720 I said, I'm sorry. 00:11:29.720 --> 00:11:32.480 And then how come you broke the office phone and then you have to pay for it? 00:11:32.480 --> 00:11:34.960 I said, I'm sorry. 00:11:34.960 --> 00:11:37.320 So all I said was like, I'm sorry. 00:11:37.320 --> 00:11:38.320 I kept quiet. 00:11:38.320 --> 00:11:43.400 And then he checked my entire phone and then he set it up and then he gave me my phone. 00:11:43.400 --> 00:11:44.400 And then I'm back. 00:11:44.440 --> 00:11:45.440 Oh, I was so happy. 00:11:46.960 --> 00:11:51.840 And then last Sunday when I was coming to church, I felt like I was driving on 49. 00:11:51.840 --> 00:11:56.560 And I felt like God is asking me to go to Starbucks on 49. 00:11:56.560 --> 00:11:59.560 I wanted to go to Brecker, but I was like, OK, let's go to Starbucks. 00:11:59.560 --> 00:12:02.720 And then I took the coffee and then I was running. 00:12:02.720 --> 00:12:05.640 I was I wanted to come to church around one ish. 00:12:05.640 --> 00:12:09.840 So but but I felt like God asked me to sit down there. 00:12:09.840 --> 00:12:13.800 So the the 49 for Starbucks was almost empty. 00:12:13.800 --> 00:12:19.920 So I sat down for I just sat down and then I took off my my bag and then I was waiting. 00:12:19.920 --> 00:12:21.720 I don't know why God has brought me here. 00:12:21.720 --> 00:12:24.120 And then all of a sudden there comes his name is Josh. 00:12:24.120 --> 00:12:26.320 And then he was like he sat next to me. 00:12:26.320 --> 00:12:28.480 I said, hey, Josh. And he's like, hey, man. 00:12:28.480 --> 00:12:30.360 And then we started to talk. 00:12:30.360 --> 00:12:32.680 He's from here. He started to open his life. 00:12:32.680 --> 00:12:34.240 And then we both started to talk. 00:12:34.240 --> 00:12:36.120 And then I said, I'm going to church. 00:12:36.120 --> 00:12:38.480 Then, oh, do you go to church? Yes, I go to church. 00:12:38.480 --> 00:12:43.040 And then and then he said, I said, I need to go because I'm running late. 00:12:43.040 --> 00:12:46.440 And then while I was taking my bag and then he said, he called me, he said, 00:12:46.440 --> 00:12:50.600 Jeevan, since I know you now, come and see me tomorrow at my desk. 00:12:50.600 --> 00:12:52.600 I have a new phone for you. 00:12:56.080 --> 00:12:58.760 I really want to test him, right? 00:12:58.760 --> 00:13:00.760 I don't want to believe that. 00:13:00.760 --> 00:13:02.440 So I was like, next day, I didn't go. 00:13:02.440 --> 00:13:03.960 I didn't go to his desk. 00:13:03.960 --> 00:13:07.520 And then again, he emailed me, hey, buddy, I was looking for you. 00:13:07.520 --> 00:13:10.880 It's like, oh, my goodness. Now he's serious. 00:13:11.840 --> 00:13:13.400 Oh, yeah. 00:13:13.400 --> 00:13:17.680 So we both met at a meeting and he was like, he immediately he pulled a chair for me. 00:13:17.680 --> 00:13:18.880 He's like, hey, come on. 00:13:18.880 --> 00:13:20.680 And then we started to talk. 00:13:20.680 --> 00:13:23.440 I was like, the Lord is so good. 00:13:23.440 --> 00:13:25.080 The Lord is so good. 00:13:25.080 --> 00:13:26.920 We have to taste God. 00:13:26.920 --> 00:13:30.600 And then God is always waiting for us to enjoy him. 00:13:30.600 --> 00:13:35.680 And that's what as a church together, we learned all of these years that he is so good. 00:13:35.680 --> 00:13:38.520 And and and his goodness is endless goodness. 00:13:38.560 --> 00:13:43.480 It's like story after the story, the life after the life, the instant of the incident, 00:13:43.480 --> 00:13:47.720 day after day and moment by moment and night after night. 00:13:47.720 --> 00:13:51.240 Lord is so good. 00:13:51.240 --> 00:13:53.000 The Lord is so good. 00:13:53.000 --> 00:13:56.440 And we got to taste him and we have already tasted him. 00:13:56.440 --> 00:14:01.440 So that's the first one that I want to remind you that. 00:14:01.440 --> 00:14:04.160 We are good tasters. 00:14:08.520 --> 00:14:31.360 I can say that I have tasted the goodness of the Lord. 00:14:31.360 --> 00:14:33.640 Can you say that? 00:14:33.640 --> 00:14:35.080 Can we say that? 00:14:35.080 --> 00:14:36.720 Yes, the Lord is good. 00:14:36.760 --> 00:14:40.320 God is good all the time. 00:14:40.320 --> 00:14:41.000 God is good. 00:14:41.000 --> 00:14:41.520 Very good. 00:14:44.280 --> 00:14:46.720 I want to do one more verse about the goodness of the Lord. 00:14:48.360 --> 00:14:52.480 So we know that the Lord is good and then we got to taste him. 00:14:52.480 --> 00:14:55.280 Psalm hundred and nineteen and sixty sixty eight. 00:14:58.800 --> 00:15:01.760 I want to remind you that the Lord is good and then we got to taste him. 00:15:02.840 --> 00:15:04.040 We are very experts now. 00:15:04.040 --> 00:15:06.920 Psalm hundred and nineteen, verse sixty eight. 00:15:22.720 --> 00:15:24.840 What happens when we taste the goodness of God? 00:15:26.040 --> 00:15:29.760 When we start to taste the goodness of God, we start to open our lives to God. 00:15:29.760 --> 00:15:34.440 I started to taste the goodness of God and I started to open. 00:15:34.440 --> 00:15:36.720 I started to taste the goodness of my friend, Jas. 00:15:36.720 --> 00:15:39.000 And then now slowly we started to open our lives. 00:15:39.000 --> 00:15:44.440 So the goodness of God, when we start to taste the goodness of God, 00:15:44.440 --> 00:15:47.520 the immediate prayer that comes out of our heart is like, 00:15:47.520 --> 00:15:49.440 oh, Lord, you have shown me your goodness. 00:15:49.440 --> 00:15:50.400 Now here I am. 00:15:50.400 --> 00:15:51.320 I'm giving my life. 00:15:51.320 --> 00:15:55.600 And this is what Psalm sixty eight hundred and nineteen and sixty says. 00:15:55.600 --> 00:15:58.200 You are good and you do good, oh, Lord. 00:15:58.920 --> 00:16:01.160 Oh, Lord, you're good and you do good. 00:16:01.560 --> 00:16:06.200 And without any shadow, we have to believe that he is good and he does good to us. 00:16:06.400 --> 00:16:09.800 Everything what he does is to good as the people might think. 00:16:10.040 --> 00:16:15.400 The people might plan something bad for us, but God can bring goodness out of that. 00:16:15.400 --> 00:16:18.280 Bad. So he is good and he does good. 00:16:18.400 --> 00:16:22.680 And teach me your loss and teach me your principles and teach me who you are. 00:16:22.680 --> 00:16:25.600 Oh, God. That's the prayer. 00:16:25.760 --> 00:16:30.080 That the taste of good process moves us, compels us, 00:16:30.080 --> 00:16:35.400 attracts us to this prayer, saying, oh, Lord, now teach me what you want me to do 00:16:35.400 --> 00:16:40.600 for you. Teach me what you want me to do for you. 00:16:40.720 --> 00:16:46.080 Help me guide me. In fact, in fact, when you start to read about the goodness 00:16:46.080 --> 00:16:50.680 of the Lord, you start to read goodness of the father and goodness of Jesus Christ 00:16:50.800 --> 00:16:52.720 and goodness of the Holy Spirit. 00:16:52.720 --> 00:16:55.960 When you start to teach, read about this of the Holy Spirit, 00:16:56.160 --> 00:17:00.400 it's like your good spirit lead me into your way. 00:17:02.680 --> 00:17:09.080 Yes. The tasting of the tasting of his 00:17:09.080 --> 00:17:12.920 goodness always leads us to say, oh, Lord, now I'm ready. 00:17:12.920 --> 00:17:14.440 What do you want me to do? 00:17:14.440 --> 00:17:15.600 What do you want me to do? 00:17:15.600 --> 00:17:17.960 Now, how am I? Let's read this verse. 00:17:18.760 --> 00:17:20.600 Chapter nine, verse 20. 00:17:33.200 --> 00:17:35.440 Can someone read it before I find it? 00:17:35.440 --> 00:17:38.240 Chapter nine, verse 20, I think I found it. 00:17:40.240 --> 00:17:42.240 Chapter nine, verse 20. 00:17:43.080 --> 00:17:46.360 Nehemiah, chapter nine, verse 20. 00:17:54.280 --> 00:17:56.480 Ah, look at that. 00:17:57.040 --> 00:18:00.720 Forty years, you sustained them in the wilderness and they lacked nothing. 00:18:01.800 --> 00:18:03.680 That's his goodness. 00:18:04.000 --> 00:18:08.000 His goodness, he's he gave his good spirit to instruct them. 00:18:08.000 --> 00:18:11.080 His good spirit instructs us. 00:18:11.480 --> 00:18:13.840 And then we lack nothing because he's always good. 00:18:14.280 --> 00:18:16.360 He's always good. He's always good. 00:18:16.840 --> 00:18:18.640 God is good. We know that. 00:18:18.640 --> 00:18:20.280 And we have tasted goodness. 00:18:20.280 --> 00:18:24.400 And then it leads us into the prayer, asking him, asking him, Lord, 00:18:25.400 --> 00:18:27.640 what I'm going to do now, what do you want me to do? 00:18:27.960 --> 00:18:30.720 And that's the prayer it leads us to. 00:18:30.720 --> 00:18:32.280 The second one. 00:18:34.200 --> 00:18:36.640 The second one from chapter first, Peter. 00:18:36.720 --> 00:18:39.480 Chapter one, verse 17. 00:19:00.000 --> 00:19:03.920 Since you call on a father who judges each man impartially, 00:19:03.920 --> 00:19:08.000 live your life as strangers here in reverent fear. 00:19:09.360 --> 00:19:10.480 Yes. 00:19:16.920 --> 00:19:21.040 18, verse 18 to for you know that it was not with perishable things 00:19:21.320 --> 00:19:26.480 such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life, 00:19:26.640 --> 00:19:29.440 handed down to you from your ancestors, 00:19:29.680 --> 00:19:34.440 but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. 00:19:35.880 --> 00:19:38.600 The second point that I want to remind you today 00:19:39.000 --> 00:19:43.400 to stir up your soul is that he we are redeemed to people. 00:19:45.320 --> 00:19:47.880 We are redeemed to people. 00:19:48.480 --> 00:19:52.280 For we know we already know this one, and I'm just reminding you. 00:19:53.680 --> 00:19:56.800 We already know this one, that that we are redeemed. 00:19:57.200 --> 00:20:02.360 We are redeemed from the empty way of life handed down by our ancestors, 00:20:02.680 --> 00:20:06.800 from our ancestors, all the things from our ancestors. 00:20:06.960 --> 00:20:09.600 We are handed down the empty way of life, 00:20:09.800 --> 00:20:14.160 empty life that is being handed over to us from our ancestors. 00:20:14.320 --> 00:20:17.120 But we are redeemed from that empty life, 00:20:17.120 --> 00:20:19.800 empty way of life to the fullness of Christ. 00:20:19.800 --> 00:20:22.000 For we for and we are redeemed. 00:20:22.000 --> 00:20:26.800 It was not with perishable things such as silver or gold, silver or gold. 00:20:26.800 --> 00:20:31.400 They are perishable things, but we are not redeemed by those perishable things. 00:20:31.400 --> 00:20:34.600 But we were redeemed from the empty way of life 00:20:35.600 --> 00:20:42.200 with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. 00:20:42.200 --> 00:20:47.400 Blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. 00:20:50.400 --> 00:20:52.800 I am redeemed. We are redeemed. 00:21:06.520 --> 00:21:08.520 By the blood of Christ. 00:21:13.200 --> 00:21:16.200 We are redeemed by the blood of Christ. 00:21:18.200 --> 00:21:20.200 We are redeemed by the blood of Christ. 00:21:20.800 --> 00:21:29.200 In fact, when we read Ephesians, that word Ephesians, Paul explains to the church in Ephesians, saying that, 00:21:29.200 --> 00:21:35.200 see, you were in the kingdom of the darkness, your kingdom of the emptiness, your kingdom, 00:21:35.200 --> 00:21:37.800 you were far away from peace. 00:21:38.600 --> 00:21:41.800 But by the blood of Christ, you were drawn close to the peace. 00:21:41.800 --> 00:21:45.000 By the blood of Christ, you were drawn towards his kingdom. 00:21:45.000 --> 00:21:49.400 By the blood of Christ, you were adopted into his family. 00:21:49.400 --> 00:21:52.800 We are redeemed to people. Always we have to remember that. 00:21:52.800 --> 00:21:55.600 We have to remind ourselves that we are redeemed to people. 00:21:55.600 --> 00:21:59.400 You know why he has redeemed? Because that's his pleasure. 00:21:59.400 --> 00:22:02.400 For his pleasure, for his goodness, for his mercy, 00:22:02.400 --> 00:22:08.800 he has redeemed us from the way of life, our ancestors. 00:22:10.000 --> 00:22:15.600 It's not only from our saints that he has redeemed, but he has redeemed from the former things. 00:22:15.600 --> 00:22:19.000 He has redeemed from the way of the world. 00:22:19.000 --> 00:22:21.600 And that is why we no longer belong to the world. 00:22:21.600 --> 00:22:25.000 Yet we live in this world, but we no longer belong to this world. 00:22:25.000 --> 00:22:28.800 We no longer live to the standard and the way of life of the world. 00:22:28.800 --> 00:22:37.000 But we have a new covenant and we have a new set of set of set of way of life that we are to live. 00:22:37.000 --> 00:22:41.800 We are redeemed from the emptiness. 00:22:41.800 --> 00:22:44.400 Empty way of life. 00:22:44.400 --> 00:22:49.200 That is handed over by our ancestors. 00:22:49.200 --> 00:22:54.600 And anything that is lacking in any area of any area of our life, 00:22:54.600 --> 00:22:57.600 if we are lacking in anything, that means we got to check 00:22:57.600 --> 00:23:02.000 and we have to open our lives because we have tasted the goodness of the Lord. 00:23:02.000 --> 00:23:06.800 And then now we have to open our lives in that area and then saying, Lord, this is what's happening. 00:23:06.800 --> 00:23:08.800 Can you show me your statues? 00:23:08.800 --> 00:23:11.600 Can you show me your way of life? 00:23:11.600 --> 00:23:14.400 Because he is the way. 00:23:14.400 --> 00:23:18.200 If there is any emptiness, if there is any emptiness in our area, 00:23:18.200 --> 00:23:24.600 immediately because he is the Lord, because he is the good, good father. 00:23:24.600 --> 00:23:27.800 Lord, redeem me. 00:23:27.800 --> 00:23:32.600 Redeem me. Redeem me from that Lord. 00:23:32.600 --> 00:23:34.800 Redeem me from that. 00:23:34.800 --> 00:23:37.600 Redeem me from that Lord. 00:23:37.600 --> 00:23:39.800 And I want to remind you, I want to stir up. 00:23:39.800 --> 00:23:44.000 I pray that God stirs up our soul deep down inside. 00:23:44.000 --> 00:23:46.600 May his wind blow through our thoughts. 00:23:46.600 --> 00:23:51.200 May his wind blow through our soul that the things that are not the empty things, 00:23:51.400 --> 00:23:59.200 the shallow things, the things that don't have any root in you because you are a redeemed person. 00:23:59.200 --> 00:24:01.600 You are a redeemed person. 00:24:01.600 --> 00:24:06.600 You no longer have any connection with the world. 00:24:06.600 --> 00:24:11.400 If there are any things that are deposited, and I pray that the Holy Spirit, 00:24:11.400 --> 00:24:20.600 may he speak to you and may he create a wind in our hearts that he plucks all of those things. 00:24:20.600 --> 00:24:23.600 That they are moved from our heart. 00:24:23.600 --> 00:24:26.800 They are moved from our life. 00:24:26.800 --> 00:24:31.600 Every time, every time when there is lack, that's why Psalm 23, 00:24:31.600 --> 00:24:36.200 we know that he is the shepherd and we lack nothing. 00:24:36.200 --> 00:24:39.000 He is the good God and we lack nothing. 00:24:39.000 --> 00:24:41.200 And this is the prayer that we need to go and then say, 00:24:41.200 --> 00:24:43.800 Oh Lord, show me your statutes. 00:24:43.800 --> 00:24:45.400 Show me your way of life. 00:24:45.400 --> 00:24:46.600 Is there a way of life? 00:24:46.600 --> 00:24:50.400 If I'm having trouble with my finances, that's the way of life. 00:24:50.400 --> 00:24:53.200 We need to go to him and then say, Oh Lord, you are so good. 00:24:53.200 --> 00:24:54.800 I know you provided me. 00:24:54.800 --> 00:24:56.200 I know you want to do that. 00:24:56.200 --> 00:24:58.800 I know you have provided 40 years for them. 00:24:58.800 --> 00:25:00.400 I know you're faithful to them. 00:25:00.400 --> 00:25:01.400 You're faithful to me. 00:25:01.400 --> 00:25:05.000 I have tasted your goodness, but there is emptiness in this area. 00:25:05.000 --> 00:25:07.800 And would you please help me to find your way? 00:25:07.800 --> 00:25:10.400 Would you please help me to find your way? 00:25:10.400 --> 00:25:13.400 We are redeemed people and redeemed people. 00:25:13.400 --> 00:25:19.000 They always move from emptiness to the fullness. 00:25:31.800 --> 00:25:34.800 The reason why we always, the reason why, 00:25:34.800 --> 00:25:42.200 why when the Holy Spirit stirs in our hearts as a redeemed person, 00:25:42.200 --> 00:25:48.200 we move from lack, from the area of lack to the area of fullness is because, 00:25:48.200 --> 00:25:52.000 is because that's a seat that God has deposited in us. 00:25:52.000 --> 00:25:55.400 That's why he has redeemed us. 00:25:55.400 --> 00:26:00.800 Because if the Lord is, if the Lord is Lord of our life, 00:26:00.800 --> 00:26:03.200 and if he is the master of our life, 00:26:03.200 --> 00:26:08.000 and if he's, if he's the, if he's the king over my life, 00:26:08.000 --> 00:26:10.000 and if he's ruling my life, 00:26:10.000 --> 00:26:14.400 and if I am under, under his, with him and in his kingdom, 00:26:14.400 --> 00:26:17.600 under the statues of his wonderful kingdom, 00:26:17.600 --> 00:26:19.600 then I lack nothing. 00:26:21.400 --> 00:26:26.000 And if he is my shepherd, and I lack nothing, 00:26:26.000 --> 00:26:27.400 I don't know what you're lacking. 00:26:27.400 --> 00:26:30.200 I don't know what we are lacking. 00:26:30.200 --> 00:26:35.400 Maybe it's peace or maybe it's rest or maybe it's something that you've been praying, 00:26:35.400 --> 00:26:36.600 or maybe it's something. 00:26:36.600 --> 00:26:39.000 But I pray that, 00:26:39.000 --> 00:26:42.500 I pray that we open ourselves to God and then ask him, 00:26:42.500 --> 00:26:46.400 Holy Spirit, what's your way of life in this one? 00:26:46.400 --> 00:26:47.500 What's your way of life? 00:26:47.500 --> 00:26:51.200 What's your statute in this one, oh Lord? 00:27:00.600 --> 00:27:02.900 That's what, that's what verse 23 says. 00:27:02.900 --> 00:27:06.600 It's since you have been born again, not of perishable seed, 00:27:06.600 --> 00:27:10.600 but of imperishable through the living and abiding word of God. 00:27:13.600 --> 00:27:14.800 We have been redeemed. 00:27:14.800 --> 00:27:18.200 We've been born again through the, 00:27:18.200 --> 00:27:22.600 not of the perishable seed, but of imperishable, 00:27:22.600 --> 00:27:24.600 but of imperishable. 00:27:26.400 --> 00:27:31.500 And this seed always grows because it is imperishable. 00:27:31.500 --> 00:27:34.700 This seed always grows because imperishable. 00:27:37.600 --> 00:27:39.000 And the third one, 00:27:44.800 --> 00:27:51.800 the word of God is always living and abiding in our lives. 00:27:53.200 --> 00:27:58.200 In other words, the word of God is always active and alive in our lives, 00:27:58.200 --> 00:28:00.000 alive and active in our lives. 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:05.400 Hebrew chapter four, verse 12. 00:28:18.000 --> 00:28:19.400 Hebrew chapter four, verse 12. 00:28:26.400 --> 00:28:29.400 For the word of God is living and active. 00:28:30.000 --> 00:28:32.600 Sharper than any two-edged sword, 00:28:32.600 --> 00:28:35.600 piercing to the division of the soul of the spirit, 00:28:35.600 --> 00:28:37.600 of joints and of marrow, 00:28:37.600 --> 00:28:40.600 and discerning the thoughts and intention of the heart. 00:28:42.600 --> 00:28:45.400 We are the people in our lives, 00:28:45.400 --> 00:28:49.000 the word of God is active and always living, 00:28:49.000 --> 00:28:51.400 is living and always active. 00:28:51.400 --> 00:28:54.400 And that I want to remind again, 00:28:54.400 --> 00:28:57.600 that the word of the Lord, 00:29:01.000 --> 00:29:16.000 is alive and active in our hearts, in our lives. 00:29:16.000 --> 00:29:19.000 That's the kind of people who we are. 00:29:21.000 --> 00:29:26.000 The word of the Lord is always alive, is alive and active. 00:29:27.000 --> 00:29:31.000 When the word of the Lord is always alive and active, 00:29:31.000 --> 00:29:34.000 it takes us to the place of rest. 00:29:34.000 --> 00:29:36.000 It takes us to the place of rest. 00:29:36.000 --> 00:29:38.000 That's why verse 11 says, 00:29:38.000 --> 00:29:41.000 let us therefore strive to enter that rest, 00:29:41.000 --> 00:29:45.000 so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience, 00:29:45.000 --> 00:29:49.000 for the word of God is alive and active and sharper than two-edged sword. 00:29:49.000 --> 00:29:51.000 When the word of the Lord is alive and active, 00:29:51.000 --> 00:29:53.000 it leads us to the way of life, 00:29:53.000 --> 00:29:56.000 it leads us to live the way of life that God wants us to live. 00:29:56.000 --> 00:30:01.000 It leads us to the righteous way of life that God wants us to live. 00:30:02.000 --> 00:30:05.000 And that helps us to go into his rest. 00:30:06.000 --> 00:30:09.000 That's why Isaiah chapter 32 verse 17. 00:30:19.000 --> 00:30:22.000 Isaiah 32 verse 17. 00:30:24.000 --> 00:30:27.000 The fruit of righteousness is peace 00:30:27.000 --> 00:30:33.000 and the effect and the result of righteousness is quietness and trust forever. 00:30:35.000 --> 00:30:40.000 The fruit of reinforces peace 00:30:42.000 --> 00:30:48.000 and the effect and the result of righteousness is quietness, and trust forever. 00:30:48.000 --> 00:30:55.000 forever. We got to make sure that the word of God is always alive in our hearts and this 00:30:55.740 --> 00:31:02.740 is the part that we have to be cautious. Is the word of God is active in our life? And 00:31:03.300 --> 00:31:08.700 this is the, these are the things that I want to remind you today, that the word of the 00:31:08.700 --> 00:31:15.140 Lord is always alive and it must be active in our life. And this is active when we show 00:31:15.140 --> 00:31:22.140 obedience to the word that is alive in us, in our hearts. When we show obedience to the 00:31:23.140 --> 00:31:27.740 word that is spoken to us, when we show obedience to the word that is given to us, when we show 00:31:27.740 --> 00:31:34.260 obedience to the word that is preached into our lives, then it is active. When this is 00:31:34.260 --> 00:31:41.260 active, this leads to the right way, right standing with the Lord and that results in 00:31:41.460 --> 00:31:48.460 peace and rest. And I want to remind you today that the word of the Lord wants, it always 00:31:54.780 --> 00:32:00.180 want to be alive and active in my life and in our life. And all we got to do is to show 00:32:00.180 --> 00:32:05.260 obedience, to show obedience to the word that is preached, the word that is you have learned, 00:32:05.260 --> 00:32:09.980 the word that is imparted on your life, the word that is spoken over your life. We got 00:32:09.980 --> 00:32:16.980 to show obedience to it. And the last one, 1 Peter chapter 2 verse 1. This is the people 00:32:16.980 --> 00:32:24.500 of God. This is the kind of people that God, the Peter wants them to be. And the last one 00:32:47.140 --> 00:32:54.140 is, so put away all old stuff and have hunger and long for the pure spiritual milk. And 00:33:04.700 --> 00:33:11.700 the fourth reminder today, the last reminder today is, we are people, we are people who 00:33:17.500 --> 00:33:24.500 called by God. When we put away our old stuff, old style, then we get the hunger for true 00:33:25.500 --> 00:33:32.500 food, for pure milk, for pure spiritual stuff. As long as we have the old stuff, the food 00:33:45.500 --> 00:33:52.500 that we have, the food that we have, the food that we have, the food that we have, the food 00:33:54.500 --> 00:34:01.220 still within us, as long as we have the previous life or previous way of life is hanging around 00:34:01.220 --> 00:34:07.700 us, then it's very hard to have this true hunger for the word of God. If we want to 00:34:07.700 --> 00:34:13.580 get the hunger for the word of God, for the true word of God, we have to put away all 00:34:13.580 --> 00:34:20.580 the old stuff, all the previous stuff, the previous way of life, the paths of life, the 00:34:21.140 --> 00:34:26.900 methods of life that we have learned. When we start to put them aside, then the new hunger 00:34:26.900 --> 00:34:32.060 is created in our hearts for the word of God and that's the pure, for the pure spiritual 00:34:32.060 --> 00:34:39.060 milk and through which we can grow, through which we grow. And the Lord wants to remind 00:34:39.420 --> 00:34:46.420 you today that, can you put away your old stuff? Because we have the seed, it's always 00:34:46.820 --> 00:34:52.540 new, it always creates new things and that's why day by day his mercies are new and we 00:34:52.540 --> 00:34:59.060 always grow from grace to grace. So this new imperishable seed, it compels us, it leads 00:34:59.060 --> 00:35:06.060 us, it helps us to have a new hunger when we can deny our old stuff. When we start to 00:35:06.060 --> 00:35:13.060 put our old stuff, then this new hunger is created in us. Peter was writing to this 00:35:18.260 --> 00:35:23.860 church saying, these are the kind of people God always wants us and you are like that 00:35:23.860 --> 00:35:30.180 and I want to stir up your souls by reminding that you are like this, you have tasted the 00:35:30.180 --> 00:35:35.180 goodness of the Lord because the Lord is good and you are a redeemed people and you are 00:35:35.340 --> 00:35:41.420 redeemed by the blood of Christ and now the word of God is alive and active and now you 00:35:41.420 --> 00:35:47.700 have to put away old stuff and God creates a new hunger in you. And if we are this one, 00:35:47.700 --> 00:35:52.180 if we say yes to all of this and if we say yes Lord you've been doing all of this in 00:35:52.180 --> 00:35:57.820 my life and I'm so thankful to you and I'm so grateful to you because this is the kind 00:35:57.820 --> 00:36:02.700 of people you have been preparing me and if you say yes to this and Peter, what's Peter 00:36:02.780 --> 00:36:09.780 writing in the next verse is he's saying that if you say that and this is who you are. If 00:36:14.060 --> 00:36:21.060 you say yes to those four things and this is who we are, we are living stones. We are 00:36:23.340 --> 00:36:30.340 living stones and that's what Peter is saying, as you come to him, a living stone you are 00:36:31.340 --> 00:36:38.340 rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious you yourself like living stones 00:36:38.340 --> 00:36:45.340 are being built up as a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices 00:36:45.340 --> 00:36:52.340 acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. And if you say yes to Jesus Christ, you are a 00:37:00.540 --> 00:37:06.540 living stone. I was, as I showed the picture, the image from there, I was thinking about 00:37:06.540 --> 00:37:11.620 it and I was praying to God like I was praying to God, I was giving thanks to God saying 00:37:11.620 --> 00:37:17.860 oh Lord thank you so much for being my place of refuge. You are like a place where I can 00:37:17.860 --> 00:37:24.860 go and hide. I'm hiding now and I was thankful to God for who he is as a tower of refuge 00:37:24.860 --> 00:37:28.540 and then all of a sudden, all of a sudden God started to speak to me through this one. 00:37:28.540 --> 00:37:32.980 He started to say that Jeevan that's what, that's what who you are. I've been calling 00:37:32.980 --> 00:37:38.980 you for that. I've been calling you to live a life of like a living stone where people 00:37:38.980 --> 00:37:45.340 can depend on you. Where people, where you are part of this wonderful building, wonderful 00:37:45.340 --> 00:37:50.340 house of God through whom you are connected and then you are a part of this building and 00:37:50.340 --> 00:37:57.340 upon you his kingdom can be built. And if we say yes to those four, those four and we 00:37:59.580 --> 00:38:05.460 are the living stone and that's what God is calling us and that's what you are. And I 00:38:05.460 --> 00:38:11.220 want to remind you that you are a living stone. And I want to remind you that you have seen, 00:38:11.220 --> 00:38:16.420 you have already experienced for who he is and also you have seen people living this 00:38:16.540 --> 00:38:22.540 kind of life and you have, and you might have people in your life. They have seen you as 00:38:22.540 --> 00:38:29.540 this one, as a living stone, as living stone. And Peter was explaining to us, he was writing 00:38:32.820 --> 00:38:39.260 that these living stones in the past, they were rejected by men, but now they're chosen 00:38:39.260 --> 00:38:44.260 and they're precious to God. 00:38:44.260 --> 00:38:51.260 You and I, we have to believe that, we have to believe that this is who we are. We are 00:38:54.500 --> 00:38:59.380 living stone. And in fact, that's what Paul says, that's what Peter is writing. He's writing 00:38:59.380 --> 00:39:06.380 from the, in verse six he says, for it stands in scripture, behold, I am laying in Zion 00:39:07.380 --> 00:39:14.380 a stone, a corner stone, chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put 00:39:14.460 --> 00:39:21.460 to shame. So Peter is saying Jesus Christ is the corner stone. Jesus Christ is the corner 00:39:24.580 --> 00:39:30.580 stone. Corner stone is the reference. It's the first stone that is laid in a building 00:39:30.580 --> 00:39:37.580 and it's a reference for all the other stones. And if we read from Ephesians chapter two, 00:39:37.580 --> 00:39:44.580 verse 19, Ephesians chapter two, verse 19, so then you're no longer strangers and aliens, 00:39:44.580 --> 00:39:51.580 but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built 00:40:02.500 --> 00:40:08.500 on the foundation of the apostles and prophets and Christ Jesus himself being the corner 00:40:08.500 --> 00:40:15.500 stone. So if Jesus Christ is the corner stone and the apostles and prophets are foundation 00:40:25.660 --> 00:40:32.660 and you and I are the living stones, built upon them, then you are the living stones 00:40:39.140 --> 00:40:46.140 and we are the living stones. So we are built on the foundations of apostles and prophets, 00:40:46.140 --> 00:40:51.340 Christ Jesus himself being corner stone, in whom the whole structure being joined together 00:40:51.340 --> 00:40:57.300 grows into a holy temple in the land, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling 00:40:57.300 --> 00:41:04.300 place for God by the Spirit. And what is living stone? What does the life of a living stone 00:41:04.740 --> 00:41:10.380 look like? The living stone, this life is always, and you and I are living stones because 00:41:10.380 --> 00:41:17.380 that's what the Bible says. We are living stones, that's why we cannot exist individually 00:41:17.540 --> 00:41:23.060 because we are living stone and then we are the part of his beautiful construction that 00:41:23.060 --> 00:41:28.740 he is building, the house of the Lord. Whereas Jesus Christ is the corner stone and prophets 00:41:28.740 --> 00:41:35.740 and apostles are the foundations and we are built. And the beautiful part about this one 00:41:36.020 --> 00:41:43.020 is if we go through Old Testament, when God ordered Moses to build an altar, the altar 00:41:43.020 --> 00:41:46.900 was built with different kinds of materials. Sometimes it was built with wood, sometimes 00:41:46.900 --> 00:41:52.020 it was built with different stuff that is available there, but when God ordered Moses 00:41:52.020 --> 00:41:59.020 to build an altar with the stones, he said, use uncut stones that no iron or no instrument 00:42:03.260 --> 00:42:08.060 would touch them. It should not touch them because if an iron or instrument touches it, 00:42:08.060 --> 00:42:15.060 then that means it is profane, it is defiled and I don't want that. So, when we are, if 00:42:15.060 --> 00:42:22.060 we are living stone, a living stone is shaped by the Lord. When we are shaped by the world, 00:42:33.900 --> 00:42:40.900 when we are shaped by any other instrument than the Lord himself, because let's say, 00:42:41.580 --> 00:42:46.620 let's say there is a stone and that stone if we are using to build an altar, that means 00:42:46.620 --> 00:42:52.180 that stone is actually designed, that stone is actually shaped by the Lord. That's why 00:42:52.180 --> 00:42:57.700 no man would not break it or no man would not put it. The man has to, supposed to take 00:42:57.700 --> 00:43:04.700 it and then put it into the, in the, plaster it with other stones. That's why, that's why 00:43:04.700 --> 00:43:11.700 we are always, we must be shaped by the Lord, not by the world, not by the standards of 00:43:12.780 --> 00:43:16.500 the world. That's why every time when there is a, when there is a storm or when there 00:43:16.500 --> 00:43:20.740 is a rushing wind that happens in our heart, it would, it would take away, it would take 00:43:20.740 --> 00:43:27.740 away all the attached things to the stone that are not from God. The stirring up, the 00:43:28.420 --> 00:43:35.420 stirring up of the soul is so important that what it does is it removes, it makes us free. 00:43:37.740 --> 00:43:44.740 The word of the Lord, the truth, it sets us free and prepares us to this one. You and 00:43:47.740 --> 00:43:52.800 I are called to be living stones. Why? Because God has chosen us. God has chosen us and then 00:43:52.880 --> 00:43:59.880 He is saying, you're so precious to me. You're so precious to me. And I call you as you are 00:44:00.800 --> 00:44:07.280 because I made you and I've known you. You're so precious to me. And then I'm going to put 00:44:07.280 --> 00:44:13.080 you into this one. That's the beauty of this, the beauty of being a living stone because 00:44:13.080 --> 00:44:18.800 you cannot exist, you cannot function without the body. It's saying, verse 20, built on 00:44:18.800 --> 00:44:22.840 the foundation of the apostles and prophets and Jesus Christ himself being the corner 00:44:22.840 --> 00:44:29.840 stone in whom the whole structure, the whole structure grows and we are joined together, 00:44:31.280 --> 00:44:37.680 being joined together and we grow into a holy temple. We all grow into a holy temple. We 00:44:37.680 --> 00:44:44.680 are joined and built together. When, when we are part of the body, when we are part 00:44:45.640 --> 00:44:51.120 of this wonderful house of the Lord that God is building, then we joined together and then 00:44:51.120 --> 00:44:58.280 we grow together into the temple. It's not like, it's not like you grow outside and then 00:44:58.280 --> 00:45:02.880 you come and then you be apart. No, when we are, this is, this is a living stone. It's 00:45:02.880 --> 00:45:07.240 not a stone that is actually, it's not a stone that cannot be, that is not living. It's a 00:45:07.240 --> 00:45:12.560 living stone. As we start to come together, as we start to plug in with the, with the, 00:45:12.640 --> 00:45:18.400 the house of the Lord, we grow into together and we are being built together into a dwelling 00:45:18.400 --> 00:45:25.400 place for God. And that's what the church has been learning for the past few weeks, 00:45:27.840 --> 00:45:32.800 that we are the church and, and, and, and how we can grow as a church together. We started 00:45:32.800 --> 00:45:36.720 off with the prevailing church and then when Chad came and then, and then in fact, Jacob 00:45:37.160 --> 00:45:42.800 last, last week he started to talk about advanced gods. How can we, how can we live as advanced 00:45:42.800 --> 00:45:49.800 God for this, for this house of the Lord? And when we say that, oh, oh, we are reminded 00:45:51.440 --> 00:45:55.440 of those things and then God is reminding you today that you are a living stone and 00:45:55.440 --> 00:46:02.000 you are a part of this one. You are built, Jesus Christ as your reference and your foundation 00:46:02.000 --> 00:46:09.000 is as apostles and prophets. And then you are joined together and being built together 00:46:09.720 --> 00:46:16.720 as a house of the Lord. Why? What's the reason for this one? What's the reason? Chapter three, 00:46:18.120 --> 00:46:24.720 verse ten, verse ten. So that through the church, the manifold wisdom of God might now 00:46:24.720 --> 00:46:31.400 be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. This was according 00:46:31.400 --> 00:46:38.400 to the eternal purpose that he has realized in Jesus Christ, our God. 00:46:43.080 --> 00:46:50.080 So why we are living stones? Because he chose us and we are precious to him and we know 00:46:52.920 --> 00:46:59.240 how good he is and we are called to be a holy priesthood, a royal priesthood and that's 00:46:59.320 --> 00:47:05.320 what Peter, the favorite verse for many people in Peter about people of who we are. It's 00:47:05.320 --> 00:47:09.360 like verse nine, chapter one, first Peter chapter two, verse nine, he said, but you 00:47:09.360 --> 00:47:15.200 are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own position. We 00:47:15.200 --> 00:47:20.080 are that, we know that, we are excited about that. But you know why he has called us to 00:47:20.080 --> 00:47:24.880 be a chosen race, why he has called us to be a royal priesthood, why he has called us 00:47:25.040 --> 00:47:30.320 as a holy nation, why he has called us as people of his own position, that you and I 00:47:30.320 --> 00:47:37.320 may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 00:47:38.400 --> 00:47:43.440 This is all because you and I can go to the world and then say those four things, say, 00:47:43.440 --> 00:47:49.840 hey, the Lord is good, I have tasted him, now see me, you can understand it. And you 00:47:50.440 --> 00:47:57.440 can also taste it, that we will go into the world and proclaim the excellencies of him. 00:47:59.120 --> 00:48:06.120 The beauty of our life lies in there. And what happens if I don't believe that I am 00:48:06.120 --> 00:48:13.120 a living stone? Peter writes about that, he says, verse seven, so the honor is for you 00:48:24.480 --> 00:48:31.480 who believe that you are a living stone. Verse six, he talked about how Jesus Christ being 00:48:31.720 --> 00:48:37.720 the cornerstone, and verse seven, he's writing to the church, he's saying, it's our honor 00:48:37.720 --> 00:48:41.760 to believe that we are living stones and he's the cornerstone and we are part of this and 00:48:41.760 --> 00:48:48.760 growing together. But for those who do not believe, the stone that the builders rejected 00:48:49.880 --> 00:48:55.340 has become the cornerstone and a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense. They stumble 00:48:55.340 --> 00:49:02.340 because they disobey the word as they were destined to do. So we believe that we are 00:49:02.580 --> 00:49:09.580 living stones. We are living stones. So how can we start experiencing, start living out 00:49:13.860 --> 00:49:20.020 this way of life? Because we already, as I said, nothing is new today. It's already explained 00:49:20.020 --> 00:49:27.020 to you. It's already known to you. I'm just reminding you. And this way, being a living 00:49:28.300 --> 00:49:34.340 stone is something, it's like the first point I wrote is like, I have to believe that God 00:49:34.340 --> 00:49:39.420 is calling us, God has chosen us, and we are precious to him and he's calling us to be 00:49:39.420 --> 00:49:46.420 a living stone. He's calling us to be a stone, get grounded in him and live a life of matured 00:49:47.420 --> 00:49:54.420 Christian through which my actions, through my actions, through my words, the kingdom 00:49:55.460 --> 00:50:02.460 of God can be revealed. It's a lifestyle. It's a lifestyle. And I have people in my 00:50:04.280 --> 00:50:09.900 life who are like this. They were not moved. They were not shaken by the things that are 00:50:09.900 --> 00:50:14.100 happening in their lives. And also every time when there is something that I need to, I 00:50:14.140 --> 00:50:18.940 always have this kind of people, I can go to them and then say, hey, because I'm also 00:50:18.940 --> 00:50:24.140 part of this building and I depend on them, I am plastered with them, I am together with 00:50:24.140 --> 00:50:29.100 them, I am growing into his body. And then I go and then, hey, say, say, and go and then 00:50:29.100 --> 00:50:36.100 say, hey, brother, hey, sister, this is what's happening. Can you help me? Can you sharpen 00:50:36.140 --> 00:50:40.100 me? And then the words, they release, they are very sharp and then they help me. They 00:50:40.100 --> 00:50:46.460 cut to the core of my soul. And then you have that kind of people. And now we have 00:50:46.460 --> 00:50:50.980 to believe that God is calling us the living stone. And there are people who are waiting 00:50:50.980 --> 00:50:57.980 for it. And you are a living stone. Second one, because we are living stones that God 00:51:00.780 --> 00:51:05.020 is calling us and then he has called us to be royal priesthood and all of this is to 00:51:05.260 --> 00:51:12.260 proclaim his excellencies. And the third one, we are immovable as we have been learning 00:51:13.180 --> 00:51:19.140 about this. When I start to believe this one, that yes, Lord, you have chosen me and I am 00:51:19.140 --> 00:51:26.140 precious to you. And you have called me, you have chosen me as a living stone to offer 00:51:26.700 --> 00:51:33.700 spiritual sacrifices, to live that kind of life, to proclaim excellencies of you. When 00:51:34.180 --> 00:51:39.260 I start to live, when I start to believe that, then God started to establish the truths in 00:51:39.260 --> 00:51:46.260 me. And he does that in our life. And we are immovable. You know why we are immovable? 00:51:46.580 --> 00:51:51.580 Because of his favor. Because he's always there. He's always there. That's why Psalm 00:51:51.580 --> 00:51:58.580 30, that's what it talks about. Psalm 30, one of the verses says, we are immovable because 00:51:58.580 --> 00:52:05.580 of his favor. We are immovable because of his favor. Psalm 30, verse 6, as for me, I 00:52:07.500 --> 00:52:13.620 said in my prosperity, I said, I shall never be moved by your favor, O Lord. You made my 00:52:13.620 --> 00:52:20.620 mountain stand strong. Jacob taught us about favor last Sunday. He is immovable. He cannot 00:52:20.620 --> 00:52:27.620 be shaken. And we are immovable because he is immovable and we cannot be shaken because 00:52:28.780 --> 00:52:35.780 his favor, because of the truth that is deposited in us. And when we start to have this, when 00:52:38.580 --> 00:52:43.580 we start to remind ourselves that we are a living stone, something that happens, something 00:52:43.580 --> 00:52:50.580 miraculous that happens is we become the killers of hostility. We become the killers of hostility. 00:52:50.620 --> 00:52:57.620 We become the killers of hostility. And Paul explains that beautifully in Ephesians chapter 00:52:58.660 --> 00:53:05.660 2, how Jesus Christ has become the destroyer of the walls of the hostility. How he has 00:53:07.900 --> 00:53:14.900 made Jews and Gentiles together as one family because of his sacrifice in the flesh. 00:53:14.900 --> 00:53:21.900 I was, I end with this story. I went to India last time and I went to India last time. As 00:53:22.820 --> 00:53:28.140 I said, I already explained to you that Jacob asked us to not to, we were in North India 00:53:28.140 --> 00:53:33.780 and then Jacob, and our plan is to go to Nandigam and then train people. And then Jacob said, 00:53:33.780 --> 00:53:38.340 God told, he gathered all of us and he said, hey guys, God clearly spoke to me that we 00:53:38.340 --> 00:53:42.180 are not supposed to go to any other place than another mountain. That is called Little 00:53:42.180 --> 00:53:46.780 Mount Chennai. So we all booked our flights to Chennai and then we all landed. And then 00:53:46.780 --> 00:53:51.260 I asked Jacob, then Jacob, what about the plan to go to Nandigam? If you go to Chennai 00:53:51.260 --> 00:53:55.820 and we kill one day, so we won't be able to go to Nandigam and then minister. Then he 00:53:55.820 --> 00:54:01.460 said, can the boys and the girls, can they come to Chennai? It's very expensive and it's 00:54:01.460 --> 00:54:06.780 like follow a train journey and it's the last moment. And then I told Jacob, I don't know, 00:54:06.780 --> 00:54:11.780 Jacob said, at least if three or four people can come, that is also enough. So then I told 00:54:11.780 --> 00:54:17.700 them and then there were like 24 people, they came, they took train and then they landed. 00:54:17.700 --> 00:54:25.180 And then they came and then I was translating, I was translating Jacob, Jacob was talking 00:54:25.180 --> 00:54:31.300 and then all of a sudden there comes a pastor from Chad's church. He entered and then he 00:54:31.300 --> 00:54:36.380 came to give some envelope to Jacob. So he gave the envelope and then immediately Jacob 00:54:36.380 --> 00:54:41.660 said, hey, why don't you share your testimony? And this guy came and then he stood up there 00:54:41.660 --> 00:54:47.060 and then I was translating him. So he's speaking in English, he's sharing his testimony and 00:54:47.060 --> 00:54:52.260 he comes from the same province, but he moved when he was very young, same province that 00:54:52.260 --> 00:54:56.620 I come from. So he said, okay, I'm from this province and then we said, oh, we're all from 00:54:56.620 --> 00:55:01.380 that province. And then he started to share his testimony and then he comes from the, 00:55:01.380 --> 00:55:07.020 he comes from the Brahman's caste, the highest caste. And then he's standing next to me, 00:55:07.020 --> 00:55:10.460 he's with us and then we were in a small room and then he was sharing testimony and then 00:55:10.460 --> 00:55:15.460 I was translating, but I was in tears because I can see what God is doing in the spirit, 00:55:15.460 --> 00:55:20.900 where God is breaking the walls of the walls, walls of this division, walls of this hostility 00:55:20.900 --> 00:55:26.740 in a room, in a room where God is bringing this. And then this, the highest of the community and 00:55:26.740 --> 00:55:31.700 the lowest of the community together as a body. And then he actually broke the, broke the wall 00:55:31.700 --> 00:55:38.420 of the hostility that is in all of our minds. I was like, when I was reading this one, this one, 00:55:38.420 --> 00:55:44.020 that as we start to live this life of a living stone, the living stone, we become the breakers, 00:55:44.020 --> 00:55:49.700 we become the killers of the hostility. We, we, we destroyed the boundaries. We destroyed the walls 00:55:49.700 --> 00:55:53.900 between the race, walls between the cast wall, but walls between the economical standards, 00:55:53.900 --> 00:56:00.900 walls between the world. And we bring them, we, we be the, we be the, the mirrors of God's image. 00:56:00.900 --> 00:56:07.460 And we show them this is what God is. This is how good he was. We start to proclaim the 00:56:07.500 --> 00:56:15.380 excellences of him who called us, who, and we, we be the killers of that hostility. And as I was 00:56:15.380 --> 00:56:21.020 translating there, God started to speak to me and I was in tears, like, how can this be possible? 00:56:21.020 --> 00:56:30.340 Because I was thinking, oh, what if I had not listened to Jacob and then say, Jacob, this cannot 00:56:30.340 --> 00:56:35.500 be possible. You should come to Nandigam at least for one hour or two hours. This wouldn't be 00:56:35.500 --> 00:56:42.020 happen. I was like, oh Lord, thank you so much for this young people who showed obedience to you 00:56:42.020 --> 00:56:48.780 and then took the, took the risk of traveling that many hours. And on that day, Chad came and then I 00:56:48.780 --> 00:56:54.620 asked Chad just to spend 120 seconds. That's it. But he spent 40 minutes and then gave solid, 00:56:54.620 --> 00:57:01.700 powerful the, the prophecy, the word that God is going to do amongst our lives. And that's set for 00:57:01.700 --> 00:57:10.100 a new direction, for a new, new, uh, new standards and new way of life that God has called. And this 00:57:10.100 --> 00:57:15.340 is the, this is what the Lord wants us to do through us. We all know this. I'm just reminding 00:57:15.340 --> 00:57:21.660 this, as I said, to stir up your heart, to stir up your heart. These people are immobile. They're 00:57:21.660 --> 00:57:28.740 not tossed by, by, by the waves. And that's what Peter asked them. He asked them, he said, he said, 00:57:28.740 --> 00:57:37.820 abstain from every temptation, every passion that creates a war in your heart. That's the, 00:57:37.820 --> 00:57:43.380 that's the beauty of living this one. God strengthens us. God keeps on reminding us to 00:57:43.380 --> 00:57:49.980 abstain every passion, every passion that creates war inside of us because we are living stones. 00:57:49.980 --> 00:57:55.100 We are immobile and there are people who want to depend on us because we are part of this one. 00:57:55.100 --> 00:58:05.140 There are, there are stones that are attached, that are plastered to us. And this is the, this is 00:58:05.140 --> 00:58:10.180 the, this is, this is what the, what the Lord wants to remind us today, that you are a living 00:58:10.180 --> 00:58:16.220 stone. You are a living stone. As I said, if you said yes to all of these four, that means you are 00:58:16.220 --> 00:58:26.620 a living stone. There is no other category. The Lord is good all the time and we are redeemed 00:58:26.620 --> 00:58:32.540 people. We have experienced the blood of Christ forgiving our sins and also, and also we started 00:58:32.540 --> 00:58:40.340 to, we started to move from the life of empty. And the word of, the word of the Lord is always 00:58:41.100 --> 00:58:47.100 alive and active. We do everything in our power, everything in our, in our obedience to, to ask him 00:58:47.100 --> 00:58:54.460 to, to show obedience for the word of God to be alive. And we are people called to put our 00:58:54.460 --> 00:58:58.460 well, that's why we always, that's why every time when, when I see you, every time when we come 00:58:58.460 --> 00:59:03.940 together, we always want to, want to give something to him and then take something from him. We always 00:59:03.940 --> 00:59:10.300 want to get rid of the stuff that is, that is not needed. You are people like this. That's what God 00:59:10.300 --> 00:59:17.540 is saying. You have lived this life. That means Peter is saying, Hey guys, if you have lived this 00:59:17.540 --> 00:59:23.660 life, that means you are a living stone. You are a living stone built together, joined together, 00:59:23.660 --> 00:59:31.740 built together, joined together and being built and being shaped to be the house of God, to be 00:59:31.740 --> 00:59:41.620 the house of God. We cannot exist by our own. We grow together in whom the whole structure being 00:59:41.620 --> 00:59:50.820 joined together grows into a Holy temple in the Lord. In him, you also are being built together 00:59:51.340 --> 00:59:59.380 into a dwelling place for God by the Holy Spirit. This is all done by the Holy Spirit. This is all 00:59:59.380 --> 01:00:07.140 done by the Holy Spirit. As you come to him today, you are a living stone rejected by men, 01:00:07.140 --> 01:00:17.260 but in the sight of God, you are chosen, precious. You yourself, like living stones are being built 01:00:17.260 --> 01:00:25.980 up as a spiritual house to be a Holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices. We are built 01:00:25.980 --> 01:00:33.100 together as a living stones. We are built together to offer spiritual sacrifices. And I was reading 01:00:33.100 --> 01:00:39.300 about spiritual sacrifices. I was asking the Lord, I was reading from Romans, the spiritual sacrifices 01:00:39.300 --> 01:00:48.100 are Paul says, giving your body as sacrifice to him is a spiritual sacrifice. And he said, opening 01:00:48.100 --> 01:00:55.380 your mouth and praising him as a spiritual sacrifice. Sacrifice is something you really want to 01:00:55.380 --> 01:01:00.700 hold on to, but you give it with the heart. That's what we do with the body. We think this is our 01:01:00.700 --> 01:01:05.420 body. We think this is our own. We think we try to make it this is our own. Yes, this is our own. 01:01:05.420 --> 01:01:09.260 But at the same time, we are to give it to the Lord because this is the temple of the Lord. And 01:01:09.260 --> 01:01:17.100 words, that is the most powerful thing. That is the most powerful thing because if as you give your 01:01:17.100 --> 01:01:25.020 words as sacrifice, your praise as sacrifice, when you're praising, that means you're no longer are 01:01:25.020 --> 01:01:30.180 the boss of your words. You're saying, Lord, you are the God. And this is you have given me and then 01:01:30.180 --> 01:01:40.740 I give it back to you. I disconnect myself from the owner of this one. That's a sacrifice. That's a 01:01:40.740 --> 01:01:45.380 sacrifice. It's a life that is seen. And the and the Peter and the last point Peter says, Peter, 01:01:45.380 --> 01:01:51.060 Peter talks about this one. He says, he says, Hey, I urge you, I urge you. And he said, he says, 01:01:51.060 --> 01:01:57.700 keep your conduct among all the people, Gentiles, and everyone among all people, 01:01:57.700 --> 01:02:03.300 honorable, so that when they speak against you as evil doers, they may see your good deeds and 01:02:03.300 --> 01:02:10.780 glorify the Lord. And they may see when they start to talk bad about you, let them see your good deeds 01:02:10.780 --> 01:02:20.300 and they glorify God when God visits them. I pray these are all not new to us, but I'm reminding you 01:02:20.300 --> 01:02:30.860 in an order how Peter wrote to the church. He's immovable and we know. And now God wants us to be 01:02:30.860 --> 01:02:38.020 movable. And that's what who you are. It's in us. And may the Holy Spirit stir up, may the Holy Spirit 01:02:38.020 --> 01:02:46.500 blow his wind and take away all the things that are not from him and make you as who you are as 01:02:46.620 --> 01:03:00.780 he entered as he intended about you. Let's pray. This is the beauty of of Holy Spirit's leading. 01:03:00.780 --> 01:03:05.780 The moment Jane started to lead the worship and people started to worship and she was like, 01:03:05.780 --> 01:03:12.440 Oh, all the points is like, Oh, still be still. And we are immobile. It's like, Oh, Lord, this is 01:03:12.440 --> 01:03:27.560 the word of the Lord for us today. He cannot be changed. He cannot be shaken. And God wants us 01:03:27.560 --> 01:03:43.580 to be a people of him that cannot be shaken too. Let's pray. For me, I said in my prosperity, 01:03:43.580 --> 01:03:51.780 I shall never be moved by your favor. Oh Lord, you made my mountain stand strong. By your favor, 01:03:51.840 --> 01:04:00.200 Oh Lord, make our lives stand strong by your favor. Oh Lord, help us to taste more of your 01:04:00.200 --> 01:04:09.960 goodness. And this is this is all have to be done by the Spirit, right? It's all must be happened 01:04:09.960 --> 01:04:21.940 by the Spirit and then Spirit is willing that the one who has ears, let him hear. Thank you, 01:04:21.940 --> 01:04:32.420 Father. It's a beautiful time, Father. We praise you. We praise you. I give myself because I have 01:04:32.420 --> 01:04:37.320 tasted your goodness. Pray to him. Pray to him and then say. 01:05:32.420 --> 01:05:49.840 Let's just sing the verse of this song.