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Advent HOPE Sabbath School

Randy Skeete

God is Looking

Father in heaven, I thank you so much, dear God, for the undeserving honor of speaking for you.

Father, nothing I can do can qualify me or can make me deserve this privilege.

It is my desire, dear God, to speak, thus saith the Lord.

And I ask you, dear God, as I undertake this task, and it is a task, help me, Father, by granting me liberally of your Holy Spirit, who is the Spirit of Truth.

Let me simply be in his hands an unresisting instrument.

Bless every man, boy, woman, and girl in this building.

A double blessing on all our guests who've come to worship with us, Father.

Bless not only us, dear God, but wherever your people are worshipping now, wherever they are, Father, draw close to them, dear God.

And if there are those listening via the internet, whether to the live presentation or the recorded version, bless them equally, I pray.

In Jesus' name, let God's people say, amen and amen.

Our subject, God is looking, John 5, reading from verse 1.

And I read from the King James Version of the Bible.

It looks suspiciously like 18 minutes to 11 and I am supposed to stop when?

After this, there was a feast of the Jews and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda having 5 porches.

In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk of blind halt withered waiting for the moving of the water for an angel went down at a certain season into the pool and trouble the water whosoever then first after the troubling of the water step in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had And a certain man was there which had an infirmity 30 and 8 years.

When Jesus saw him lie and knew he had been now a long time in that case, He saith unto him, Will thou be made, what's the word?

Christ came to the temple, the pool of Bethesda, 5 porches, a large group of people needing deliverance, healing, the blessings of God.

A man was there, he had an infirmity 30 and 80 years, almost 4 decades.

This morning, Christ has come to Chan Auditorium, having 5 porches, and a great multitude has gathered, and with all respect, of the Blind, halt, withered, lame, sick, frustrated, depressed, oppressed, waiting for the moving of the water.

And a certain man or woman in Chan auditorium with an infirmity 30 and 8 years, spousal abuse, can't find a job, suffering the ill effects of a catastrophic upbringing, in deep debt for decades, Someone has come to this place with an infirmity, 30 and 80 years, cannot pay off school loan, can't find a husband, have tried, can't have a child.

And Jesus says to that man or to that woman as verily as he said to the man by the pool of Bethesda who is dead and so the words no longer apply to him will thou be made whole every Sabbath people come to church sick and leave finish my words sick no I'm not referring primarily to physical ailments, I'm referring to spiritual diseases.

We come sick and we leave sick And so our God looks weak.

Verse 7 of John 5, as we continue God is looking, the impotent man answered him, Sir, I have no man when the water is troubled to put me into the pool but while I'm coming another step is down before me I have no man.

Sometimes you and I come to the place where there is no human help.

No father, no mother, no cousin, no friend, no acquaintance, no colleague on the job, no classmate can help us.

I have no man, no earthly help to put me into the pool, but while I'm coming another step is down before me." 2 of us applied for the job, he got it.

Same thing on the next job, same thing on the next job, everyone gets an edge ahead of me.

While I am coming, someone step it down before me.

Jesus saith unto him, what did Jesus say?

How many things did Christ tell that man?

Question for you, if he had done 2 of the 3, 66%?

Would he have walked out Would he have walked out of that place, yes or no?

And he ran before and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him for he was to pass that way.

You know Zacchaeus was a little man, he wanted to see Christ.

Everyone in the crowd was taller than he was.

When Jesus came to the place he looked up and saw him and said unto him, Zacchaeus make haste and come down for today I must abide at thy house.

Jesus said make haste, come down I'm coming to your house.

The Bible says and he made haste And came down and received him joyfully.

Verse 9 says, this day is salvation come to this house.

When Jesus said to that man, rise, take up thy bed, and walk.

Christ now looked at him to see if he would do what?

The Bible says, and immediately the man was made whole and took up his bed and walked.

He rose, he took up his bed, and he walked.

Will thou be made, give me the word, whole.

Now I realize Obedience is a word that is largely unpopular, but remove obedience and no 1 can be saved.

I'll say it by giving you a Bible verse, because the carnal mind is enmity against God.

For it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.

The Bible says it is impossible to obey God.

Now it is possible to comply with the words of the 10 Commandments.

All prisoners in prisons, they comply, but the heart is not in it.

Obedience has to do with your attitude and your relationship to the person who gives the command.

Obedience without relationship is impossible, all you have is compliance.

Most Christians, based on my unscientific survey, comply.

Christ's object lessons, page 97, paragraph 3.

The man who attempts to keep the commandments of God from a sense of obligation merely because he's required to do so will never enter into the joy of obedience.

When the requirements of God are accounted a burden because they cut across human inclination, we may know that the life is not a Christlike life.

True obedience is the outworking of a principle within.

It springs from the love of righteousness, the love of the law of God.

The essence of righteousness is loyalty to our Redeemer.

This will lead us to do right Because it is right, because right doing is pleasing to God.

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God is Looking

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