God Enough, Part 1 - I

The following message from Pastor Greg Laurie is made possible by some special friends of this ministry. Pastor Greg wanted to see a special word of thanks to the harvest partners who make this ministry possible next time your online check out Pastor Greg's personal blog@blog.greglaurie.com you knew the other one being you. There were three moves water for the way you deal with the show without encourage you will will know that there just as others have influenced you your influence. Another today.

Pastor Greg Laurie has good encouragement for Derek to live a godly life in your life. It's a powerful testimony more powerful than you may realize online dozens of bad reviews what happened in that research other people with your behavior. Making a mistake. How are you influencing other not of the products they buy their life today on a new beginning. Pastor Greg Laurie returns for studies of the life of Moses to consider what kind of an influence. We want to have boy that we knew we could never know this, but let's say we could do. We knew somehow that Jesus was returning tomorrow at 3 o'clock sharp in the afternoon observing you. How will that affect you from now to that I did around 245, you would be the most spiritual version of you that ever existed. You have 20 Bibles open.

You'd be praying you be losing the worship music and sharing the gospel. All of the same time.

Does it I'm ready. Well, in reality, the believers should live every day as though it were their last day because someday it will be the believers should live every day as though that were the day that Christ for coming back again. The great evangelist DL Moody was once asked the question, Moody if you knew the Lord will return tonight.

How would you spend the rest of the day. Moody replied without hesitation." I wouldn't do anything different that I do every day." That's all we all ought to be living on the Bible is very clear in pointing out that Christ is coming back again. So, in light of this, how my supposed to be living. Paul gives us an answer here in first Corinthians 10. It is words to love these believers and it's interesting because at this point of reference, he goes back to Moses and the Israelites, the very thing were looking at together. He talked about how they were delivered from Egypt they were in the wilderness for 40 years how God provided for them. The manna in such how they complained that all the drama that went with it and he uses that as a point of reference to then bring an application to us. So let's read what Paul wrote first Corinthians 10 verse 11 to 13. I'm reading from the new living translation. These things happened as examples to us.

They were written down to warn us who live at the end of the age. That's us. So if you think you're standing strong. Be careful not to fall the temptations in your life are no different from what others experience God is faithful.

He will not allow the temptations to be more than you can stand. And when you are tempted will show you a way out so you can indoor stop there. So here's basically what he say look were living in the last days they would do a whole lot a hard stop and we can learn from their mistakes as well as their victories and we need to are going to face severe trials, some worse than others, but the temptations you are going to are not unique to you. Listen, you're not alone in your struggles in life again. Verse 13. These things happen to them as examples for us were written down to warn us who live at the end of the eight sometimes we might think that suffering is random. There is no reason for there's no purpose in it.

There is no order to it, but it really isn't. God has his purposes as to why he allows certain things to happen in our lives. But here's what we need to consider would you find a measure of comfort to know that by the way you faced your hardships, challenges and trials that it would give hope to others.

Let me say it another way, if you knew that other people were watching you I were being inspired by the way you deal with the challenges of your life without encourage you a little bit.

Well know that they are watching you. We are being watched, as Christians, you know, you people know when you're a believer and then there watching your every step. Quite honestly, they're not always rooting for you.

Frankly, they would like you to mess up here and there so they don't have to feel bad about not believing what you believe. So when you dared to live a godly life and you give glory to God despite difficulties in your life know this. It's a powerful testimony more powerful than you may realize you think of Paul and Silas were thrown into prison for preaching the gospel.

The jailer was especially cruel and harsh. He went from then he put their feet in stocks and put them in the back of a deed dark miserable dungeon. Then at midnight. That jailer heard some he had never heard in all of his year.

He heard Paul and Silas, singing two-part harmony side of their work harmonizing but singing Jimmy praises to God and ultimately the resulted in the jailer believing what he came to them and said, what must I do to be safe. So these things happen to them as examples to us. You know, I think the characters in the Bible. Realize that we would be talking about their lives in the hundreds and thousands of years later getting Job thought about that when I'm is going through it. He said I want to say this down this to be a great quote about me. I think he was just in real time experiencing the hardships of his life, but it was recorded for us to be inspired by you in the same is true of the Israelites and there's a lot we can learn from them a lot we can learn from Moses. But one thing that jumps out to me is how God uses ordinary people uses ordinary people to do extraordinary things. Levi Lesko recently spoke attorney told the story of walking on the beach with his little daughter clover they were collecting shelves. Levi was thinking all the nice ones and she was picking up the broken ones and she was carrying as many as she could carry in her little hands and and then she noticed her dad was only picking up the nights are more collectible shells and she reminded her dad and said daddy the broken ones are beautiful to good theological insight. I think when God is looking for people to use. He often finds that the broken ones are beautiful to take it a step further. Sometimes it seems as though he goes out of his way to pick the broken ones to use what we might classify as the unusable to take the ordinary to do something extraordinary so he can get the glory. The Bible tells us that his strength is made perfect in our weakness. Paul reminds us in second Corinthians 47 we had this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jar containing this great treasure and this makes it clear that our great power is not from ourselves but it's from God. If you think of the flawed people. The Lord used in the Bible.

I mean we put these patriarchs in these great men and women of God and pedestals, but these were messed up people just like you.

Trust me. Consider this Abraham, the great father of our faith lied about his wife twice. His son Isaac did the same thing.

Jacob lied and can I know I got drunk.

Samson was very immoral. Gideon was afraid Rahab was a prostitute. Jeremiah in Timothy were deemed too young to be used by God. Stephen had an affair was a murderer.

Elijah was deeply depressed and wanted to die. Jonah ran from God.

The disciples fell asleep when they should have been praying, and Peter openly denied the Lord the Samaritan woman was divorce more than once Timothy had an ulcer, and Lazarus was dead. So what's your excuse. These are ordinary people, flawed people, sinful people just like us. They change their world.

There are many of them are mentioned in Hebrews 11. What I find interesting about Hebrews 11 the hall of faith if you will, is that there is no mention of the sins of these people. When we read about Samson when we read about know what we read about others.

No mention is made of the mistakes they made there.

Just recognize for their contributions. Listen, they didn't always collect metal. Sometimes they collected scars but God didn't just look at them for what they were. He looked at them for what they would become. That's how he sees you look in the mirror to see what you see right and then there are those magnifying mirrors. Those are frightening thing, especially as you get older. Every flaws amplified and magnified. You know it in there.

It is, and so we look in God's mayor we see all of our shortcomings.

God see something different. I see a blank canvas. God sees a finished training I see a broken pot got to the beautiful base or Vos, depending how you want to pronounce it. I see flaws and shortcomings. God sees potential to Greg Laurie will have the second half of this message just a moment, emails, letters and phone calls from listeners are so encouraging to us and they let us know the effectiveness of these studies into your new beginning radio program here in New York and your program will benefit the heart. I am 18 years old walking alarm most my life and going again in the early years of my life. I actually benefit you. I hear Sharon where, thank you for your faithfulness. We appreciate that encouragement were only able to bring the gospel because of partners who make these studies possible.

Would you partner with us, make a donation online@harvest.org like to us at a new beginning. Box 4000, Riverside, CA 92514. What were learning today how God can see our potential and will see how he saw Moses potential as well.

Pastor Greg is presenting a message called God enough, part one it. So here's Moses he's a work in progress when were introduced to in these pretty interesting because he messes up big time in the verses were about to read.

I wrote a book called Johnny Cash a redemption of an American icon of always been fascinated by Johnny Cason and he was a very strong believer but he also had very real struggles. I think sometimes people think he was worse and he actually was. I was being interviewed on a TV show and I was asked the question did Johnny come to Christ when he was in prison. Lexi Johnny never went to prison. He did go to jail or the once, but he's saying in presence, and he famously did a concert and send Quentin in Folsom prison as well.

Any one of his songs he sang these lyrics, I shot a man in Reno just to watch him die and I think some people but that was autobiographical, but – never shot anybody he never killed anybody but Moses did. He actually murdered a man, so we are introduced to him now and will get a get a little more clarity on who he really was no depending on your age, you may sort of think of Moses in different ways. For an older generation. We remember the film the 10 Commandments directed by Cecil B DeMille and starring Charlton Heston. He was a great Moses was sending for a younger generation.

They may think of Christian Bale because there was a film made that was called exit is God's in King bailed and have a lot of respect for Moses, the character he played in an interview he said Moses was a terrorist to the Egyptians, and Kristin Bell also called the mental state of Moses in the question. No wonder exit is God's and kings was such a bad movie right. I think Bill was confusing Moses with Batman. We also play right to ready didn't use the same voice I Moses anyway. Here's how the Bible describes Moses, despite his flaws and shortcomings. Moses, the man of God.

What higher complement to be paid. Moses, the man of God. And that's exactly who he was. But the thing is he was a reluctant leader Moses did not want the job of Moses, but he was chosen by God. So the pickup but we last left off the Jewish people are growing in number and they're serving the Egyptians as slaves. The Egyptians want get them out. They wanted to trim their numbers way back so the Pharaoh gives the degrees is that the Hebrew midwives that would deliver the little babies now that baby that's born is a boy, I want you to kill him.

The girls can live but kill the boys apparently saw these boys is up potential threat in the future. Well, these Hebrew midwives feared God.

The Bible says and they refused to obey what the Pharaoh told them to do. You know, a Christian should obey the civil government… Civil government tells us to do something that is contrary to Scripture that we have a higher law that we turn to and that is the love God and the truth of Scripture, and these women were believers. They don't want to kill those baby boys. In fact, the irony of the whole story is the Pharaoh thought the boys with the thread and it was the women who saved the boys and saved Israel and preserved their nation and to women in particular are identified among the Hebrew midwives, Shipra and pula another were others, but these two ladies are identified and it was Jaco Betty Miriam talk about the mother of Moses, Miriam, the sister of Moses. That obviously played a role in saving him. And even then the Egyptian woman that ultimately had compassion on the beautiful baby boy and adopted him into her home and you remember that Moses was put that little basket covered with pitch to make it waterproof and it drifted right down there to where the Pharaoh's daughter. The Princess would spend time and she fell in love little baby Moses took him into the court and Josephus, the Jewish historian believes that Moses would have potentially been the Pharaoh of Egypt and so offering commentary on this Stephen in acts chapter 7 said at that time Moses was born. He was no ordinary child for three months. He was cared for by his family when he was placed outside Pharaoh's daughter took them in and brought him up as her own son.

Moses was educated in the wisdom of the Egyptians was powerful and speech and action. So Moses for the whole package. He was handsome, athletic smarts, and he was charismatic he could sway the masses, and then he was educated in the finest school of the day to be taught in the wisdom of the Egyptians meant he would be taught in Egyptian military tactics are music, painting, and of course their religion. This was done in what was known as the temple of the sun, which was sort of the Oxford of the ancient world, but underneath those royal robes beat the hard of a believer underneath those royal robes was a Jewish man that felt the pain of his fellow Jews who will be to bring treated horribly as slaves to do the work of the Egyptians and the wanted to help them but he didn't know what to do. Now if he had played his cards right and kept a low profile. He could've ultimately ascended to the throne of Egypt become the Pharaoh, and let the people go, but for Moses. This just wasn't right. He knew that's not really what he wanted to do and we already looked at the passage in Hebrews where it says Moses chose to suffer affliction with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season. Moses looked at it this way, God's worst was better than the world what is the worst thing about being a Christian eating bad casseroles or potlucks.

No, no, that's not listening to Greg priest. No, that's not it either. The worst thing about being a Christian is probably the suffering and persecution, we have to go through the fact that if you put your faith in Christ and speak up about it, especially in the culture were in today you will be vilified by some and attacked by others and marginalized by even others send in your face differing forms of persecution for your faith out if you live in a communist country, or if you live in a Muslim country. You may even lose your life to become a follower of Christ, so that's the worst that our faith has to offer. But the worst that our faith has offered is better than anything the world has offer. Now let's turn that around. Let's talk about the best that God has offer all men everything you want in life, purpose, fulfillment, forgiveness, and best of all, the hope of heaven.

Now what is the worst that the world has offer. We talked about the pleasures of the world. What about the worst the repercussions of chasing those pleasures. The consequences of your actions in the ultimate judgment that you will face one day standing before God Almighty. So Moses you know what I don't care I don't I don't want to go this way. I don't want it. Make these compromises. I need to do something.

I think Moses was beginning to understand this destiny. I know God wants me to help the Jewish people.

But how should I do it while you have the right idea, but what about it in the wrong way. Let's look at with Exodus to has to say turn there with me if you would Exodus to drop down to verse 11 that came to pass in those days, a Moses is grown. He went out to his brothers. A look at their burdens.

He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his father's so we let this way the look that way when he saw no one. He killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand when he went out the second day behold to Hebrew member fighting and he said to the wanted of the wrong wire you striking your companion. He said who made you a prince and judge over us you intend to kill me as you killed the Egyptian Moses said surely this thing is know when Pharaoh heard of the matter.

He sought to kill Moses, but Moses fled from the face of Pharaoh that dwelt in the land of Midian cannot stop there. Verse 12 it says he looked this way any look that way you know if you ever looked at a surveillance camera in the store you one of by the shoplifter that usually with the do they walk up to the item, the candidate coming rabbit right when you're about to do something you shouldn't do look around.

Is anybody watching me delete this way. He looked that way to Betty didn't look up because if we would've looked up the Lord whatever is saying no no no no no, don't do what you're about to do. Joseph Moses is showing us what happens when impulsiveness Greg Laurie is just getting started in our studies of the life of Moses were learning from his strengths and his weaknesses and there's more to come from today's study called God enough, part one, did you hear all of today's message here on a new beginning. If you missed any part you can get caught up by listening to today's podcast stream it free of charge by going to harvest.org. You can even download MP3 for later, or ask us for a CD copy when you call 1-800-821-3300. That's 1-800-821-3300 and again the title is God enough, part one yesterday were making available a wonderful movie on DVD right now called, I still believe yes and we're offering it because of the strength of the movie. Of course, and not just because your voice makes a cameo appearance in the film okay will. Let's listen to that right now they do pretty good. You know that Willie sounded like usually with me. As you know I that was my first initial voiceover. I actually went to Sony Studios and it was a cool it was very cool actually because you have a great voice and you do voiceover but for some reason they wanted my lame voice but anyway they had this giant, it was a good theater like a full-size screen that I had a microphone. The mixing board right there. I recorded about five or six times. He mixed it.

Then he mixed in the sound of a crowd around it and then I was able to see it on the screen as it would be seen in the film. It was an enjoyable process as well in the studios there and we saw the original Ghostbusters car. We saw the motorhome from the Breaking Bad TV series and other things but you know it's a film that that is really done so well, and this is what I appreciate about the urban brothers they produce and direct first rate Hollywood films and that's why they have found a home at Lions gate Studios, which is a major Hollywood studio and they have their own production company called kingdom productions, and in fact is people know the next film that they'll be shooting is Jesus revolution, which is based on the story of Kathy in my life our love story and in the last great spiritual awakening in America: the Jesus movement of the Jesus revolution, but that this film is so well done. This is a great film with amazing performances, but it is a film with the gospel message, and that I mean it doesn't get any better than that.

When you have a well-crafted film that has a very strong message. Sometimes it seems we get one of the other. Maybe we'll have a Christian film.

We can call it that. That's a powerful story, but it isn't direct that all that well in the performances are not that strong.

We might have a powerful film that's kind of a fee film but it can the waters down any references to God or Jesus Christ or the Bible with this film is the exception. A great film expertly directed with a powerful message. I would say it fires in every cylinder and that is why I am offering it to you because I know you're going to love it and I think this can also be a great evangelistic tool in your toolbox to use to start a great gospel conversation to invite a neighbor over our friends over to watch it in your firm room or the loan the DVD to someone to take Watson's let's talk about it later though.

Watch it and trust me, they'll be pulled into the story immediately. My life: site is assessed to hear America.

I still believe is the title of the film just don't know on DVD. I know you got in Google it. You're going to find it's inexpensive film, but were offering it to you for your gift of any size whatever you send will be used to continue to bring this broadcast that you listen to hopefully every day called a new beginning to people around the world. So get your own copy of I still believe from us at a new beginning and help us to continue to proclaim the gospel and teach the word of God. Thanks. What a great opportunity to own a copy of this film on DVD played for family or friends has such a strong gospel message and your donation right now helps us good pastor Greg strong gospel message out to more people through a new beginning. So again, ask for the DVD. I still believe as you write today a new beginning. Box 4000, Riverside, CA 92514 or call 1-800-821-3300. That's 1-800-821-3300 or go online to harvest down or next time ask yesterday continues her serious water Firestone. He focuses on the danger of being impulsive shows us how Moses impulsiveness led to murder his own exile to the next time you begin and possible by harvest partners, helping people everywhere know God sign up for pastor grades free daily email, devotions at harvest time to work