No One Is Beyond the Reach of God | Sharing the Cure to Eternal Death

You are listening to a new beginning with Greg Laurie, a podcast supported by harvest partners for more ways to deepen and challenge your spiritual walk and roll and pastor breaks free online courses sign-up@harvest.org we have on one's ability to share the gospel message there might be some of the Lord is directing you to know about Jesus's neighbor, relative, pastor Greg Laurie says the gospel is a life-and-death message delivered we have is even more than the cure for cancer. We sure Journal separation from God. We got a finally begin delivery anywhere in the country overnight absolutely positively overnight.

It's a little less impressive now is nothing to send a text speed of light.

Today on a new beginning for Greg Laurie points out, we have a message that absolutely positively need no exaggeration to save lives in the balance of our Bibles in the book Daniel were going through it together were calling this series, end of day. The title of my message today is no one is beyond the reach of God is not true. No one is beyond the reach of God so now here's Nebuchadnezzar he's filled with pride. So one night he goes to bed. Yes, a dream, it's a troubling dream and dream. He sees massive tree, a magnificent tree tree that is so big you can see it anywhere in the world. There's a lot of fruit coming from the street and everyone is eating of the fruit of the tree and then suddenly an angel comes down from heaven and cuts the tree down. The angel says cut down the tree strip its branches, but then the angel says let the stump remain leave the stump in the ground. Nebuchadnezzar woke up and don't ever dream you wake up with a feeling that was not good dream and you try to figure out your own dreams while he he calls in the soothsayers and the astrologers and the fortunetellers and who knows why should a call for Daniel. None of them have the answer again Daniels brought in and he gives them the interpretation of the dream and what Daniel says no to the king to me is a case study in evangelism and it's also a case study in how to confront a person about their sin and hope that they will repent of their sin. Let's read together. Daniel chapter 4 starting in verse 19 he hears the dream and upon hearing this, Daniel also noticed both the Shah's are was overcome front time, frightened by the meaning of the dream. Then the king said to about this because I don't be alarmed by the dream. Tell me what it means belted HSR that's Daniel replied. I wish the events foreshadowed in the stream. What happened to your enemies and not this brings me to point number one we share God's truth we should do so boldly, lovingly and clearly. Let me say that again when we share God's truth. We must do so boldly, lovingly and clearly that's exactly what Daniel did. This was not an easy message to deliver. He's going to have to tell him that King you're the tree and the trees cut down because you're going to be cut down as well. Daniel 424 this is what the dream means your Majesty, what the most high is the terrible happened to my lord the king, you will be driven from human society. You will live in the field with wild animals you will eat grass like a cow and you will be drenched with the dew of heaven.

So yes, we need to speak the truth lovingly, boldly and clearly but point number two always point people to the God of second chances always point people to the God of second chances. Despite this ominous warning from Daniel. There is still hope. Look at verse 27, King Nebuchadnezzar, please accept my advice, stop sinning. This is another way to say, repent, stop sinning and do what is right great from your wicked past and be merciful to the poor.

Perhaps then you will continue to prosper considering Daniels perfect track record up to this point you would've thought the king would have listened. Daniel same body. This doesn't have to happen if you repent. But the king was not having it. But here's the thing we tell people the truth, but we always give them all yet sure center judge are separated from God know there is nothing you can do to right this wrong nothing you can do to earn God's approval. That's the bad news I gotta tell them.

As you know it you're not going to appreciate the good news, if you don't first know the bad, and so then I give him the good news.

But the good news. The good news is there's a God in heaven who sent his son to die on the cross for your sin if you will turn from your sin, you can be forgiven look.

This is the thing we have a divine responsibility to share the gospel message.

I will give it this way. It's like if you were a doctor and you ran some tests on the person and that they were again writing on their vacation and you wanted to get good news. But you found something that concern your faculty from cancer know you have a responsibility you've taken the Hippocratic oath to do no harm.

You have to tell them the truth with anything. Tell them that the notification say what you think everything is good everything is clear. Going vacation.

You don't have a problem in the world. Thanks.that is not only wrong, that's immoral to not tell them the truth know you have to deliver that bad news is hard as it is, hopefully, have a course of treatment, something they can do to remove this cancer so I have to deliver this message just as uncomfortable as it can be at times but then tell the person what the solution actually is, and so what we have Christians is even more important than the cure for cancer. We have the cure to eternal death and separation from God. We've got a sheriff we got a Sheridan Daniel did an Nebuchadnezzar blow them all in a full year to come to his senses. This are just filled with more pride.

Look at what happens next. Daniel 428 all these things did happen to King Nebuchadnezzar.

12 months later year to get it together a year to repent. 12 months later he was taken a walk in the flat roof of the Royal Palace and Babylon. He looked out across the city and said look at this giant city of Babylon on my own power I built this beautiful city is my royal residence to display my majestic splendor. All these words are still in the smell of voice called down from heaven told King Nebuchadnezzar.

This message is for you.

You no longer are the ruler of the kingdom you will be driven from human society. You will live in the field with the wild animals you will eat grass like a cow while how the mighty have fallen. You know you see these great powerful individuals striving the world stage.

Two people come to mind Adolf Hitler. Saddam Hussein at one moment Hitler was a real threat as was Germany data mascot, a military machine unlike any other. We didn't even know was happening until Hitler began his invasion and died and things began to escalate in and the only one standing up against him.

At this point was England led by Winston Churchill, and they were being bombarded by Nazi planes day and night. London was under siege and then Churchill was asking the Roosevelt our president for the United States to come and help.

And there was sentiment in America at that time still in the aftermath of World War I. We don't want to get involved in this. This is not conflict, and then the Japanese attacked us in Pearl Harbor. It's all America declared war on the Empire of Japan to declare war on Germany. There were allies and so we begin to build up our military forces, and we came and ultimately defeated to learn. It's a good thing because his mission was to eradicate all of the Jewish people living in Europe what he called the final solution. So Adolf Hitler with this country unraveling around him did not surrender and he built a little concrete bunker there in Berlin and he went down there and ultimately took the gun out and killed himself all how the mighty have fallen Saddam Hussein with all of his threats live dinners, Royal palaces, American forces went in and clean their clock and they found him hiding in a hole you know you can be on top of the world. One day down at the very bottom of the next day.

Don't be so proud that breath you drawn your lungs right now is a gift to you from God Almighty that was Nebuchadnezzar's problem.

Nebuchadnezzar forgot God even worse in some ways he thought he was God. But God didn't give up on him. God gave him another chance. Mr. Greg Moore will have the second half of his message just a moment to everybody. What are you doing this weekend. I like to hang out with you at harvest and home services own.

It is a time of worship and Bible study exclusively designed for people that are viewing in from all over the place so you can be a part of our extended congregation at Harvest at Home.

Join us this weekend Saturday and Sunday for Harvest at Home@harvest.org. Our study today is based in the book of Daniel.

Pastor Greg is focusing today on how God give second chances. Let's continue. Jesus told the story was paraphrase now and I have a lot of stuff and he said that I have so much stuff I've to build bigger buildings that house all my stuff so I can go buy more stuff for little more buildings.

Then one night, the Lord says God spoke and said this night your soul is required of you who gets all your stuff, see that guy died without faith. Without faith in God. Their people they need to hear this message and sometimes were going to initiate the conversation and other times they might initiate the conversation but let's just make sure we have the conversation with them to anyone in the did God love them to do there might be some of the Lord is directing you to talk to right now about Jesus. My mother why always had a difficult relationship with. She married and divorced seven times in was a raging alcoholic and it was a very difficult childhood with her but but I became a Christian. I went to my mom and I wanted her to come to faith and she said I don't want to talk about every time I bring up Jesus. You say I don't want to talk about it and I went on folks for years. It went on for decades and went on so long. I wondered if she was ever going to come around one day the Lord prompted me to go have the conversation about Jesus with my mother. It was very hard to talk to her about this and I just came out of the blue and I said to Kathy get them to go talk to my mom today I feel the Lord to lead me to talk to her.

By the way I looked at one thing at this point she's 70 years old all over drinking and smoking imparting is taken it's toll.

She's on dialysis three times a week.

Her health is not good so I go over to her house. That is a hi mom want to talk to and she's like are you here going on said I want to talk to you today about your soul. She said I don't want to talk about it.

I said today were going to talk about it. We have the conversation she was resisted at first. Then she softened up a bit and it resulted in her committing her life to Jesus Christ.

I'm glad I listened to the leading of the Spirit. I was hoping that we would make up for lost time. Now have that relationship. We never had. I was I didn't know that.

One month later, the Lord would call her to heaven, but I'm thankful I had that conversation. Sometimes we initiate the conversation sometimes a person is not a believer might ask us for the answers. Now I told you my mom was buried in the were seven times. Most of the guys my mom married were very similar. There were guys that hung out in bars. There were guys that had their shirt buttons and button the tooth too many buttons to go home and use it to many just all talk after church outside is just like just don't don't. You know, big drinkers, big smokers, you know, Playboy type guys.

She married guy after guy up together like the same guy she can marry the same guy, but they were different times and then lo and behold to meet some guy named Oscar Lori.

What I mean Oscar Lori. He's not a guy that hangs on bars and Becky work for the Bar Association. He was an attorney and he didn't have too many buttons undone.

He was buttoned up. He was Ivy League he was conservative he was. He didn't drink any. Didn't smoke. I don't know what my mom saw him. She said this is your dad is this guy who this guy was. He was a guy that treated me like a father should treat the son starting with adopting me any love to me any tried to help me and he tried to guide me in one my mom loved him. I was devastated.

This is a long story son was going to put it in fast-forward. So here's a pass I become a Christian. I'm a pastor and I decide that I want to share the gospel with him. I find him in New Jersey. I found out that he had a heart attack only a few weeks before blacked out but the wheel of his car and almost died so I went to his homies remarried. He is a wife named Barbara now very nice lady and so he makes a nice Italian meal for me, Kathy Larson, Christopher Johnson wasn't born yet and up Barbara since Greg tell us how you became a Christian so I'm sharing my story of how he came to faith my dad's on the other end of the table. He says his hands into things like this have a look him in a court and he's the judge and I'm not doing well. He just looks at me doesn't react just looks so after were done we go to bed and uses Greg we walk with me in the morning.

He wanted to walk every day because of this art is that your dad so it wakes me up the next morning walking along since Greg and listen very carefully to what you said last night. Yes, dad and I want to accept Jesus Christ right now.

What if I want to accept Jesus Christ right now. No way. Maybe you don't understand what I said. I went over to get he said yes yes I understand. I want to accept Jesus Christ right now. He says what do I need to do is what we need to pray any drops down in his knees right there so were praying. So here's my point. He made the commitment to Christ.

Guess what, he's in heaven now, my mother's in heaven now my son that was there is in heaven now, I want to get as many people to heaven as I can while I'm alive in this or in. We also want that and I know it's hard sometimes someone asked me recently in an interview with you a hard time talking to strangers. They cited a poll that says some people would rather text than talk.

I said then going to all the world and text of the gospel right going to all the world and Tweet the gospel to people know you're a Christian see Nebuchadnezzar after God forgave him give them his sanity back. Send out a decree saying to all of his kingdom. I am a believer in the Lord God now. He used is what form to get the word out.

Have you used your platform to people know that you're a Christian, I went to your Facebook page were there be any indication of your faith. There not just your political views not just pictures of your cat.

Nebuchadnezzar has truly come to faith now is really committed his life to the Lord, and he tells his entire kingdom. You can read about it and then you'll for 34 leasing one last thing about my father Oscar after he became a believer. He pulled out some papers and told me about the history of the family I was adopted into the Lori clan in Scotland and I found it one cool thing.

William Wallace is in our family tree not know Gibson William Wallace Mel Gibson played William Wallace in the film Braveheart now I've never even heard of William Wallace at this point. This is long before the film came out he told me about William Wallace but then here's what's really interesting to me. We have a family crest as they do in Scotland and I and in our crest. It has a stump of a tree that's been cut down the roots are still there and there's a little bit of growth coming out and there's one word it says whirlpool a lot whirlpool a lot, which means it buds fresh. I'm thinking of Nebuchadnezzar get a dream of a tree, a mighty tree and it was cut down. But remember, the angel said leave the stump on the ground see the chair. The stump of the tree can never go back again. But if you leave the stump in the tree can come back to life. So really what was happening.

As you know, to be cut down but there's hope for the future because the stump still on the ground. That's our family crest. It buds are precious and maybe you feel like I've messed up everything. I'm the worst sinner ever God can forgive you listen Nebuchadnezzar they don't come any more wicked than this guy. And yet God forgave him and God will forgive you because he is the God of second chances whirlpool a lot it buds a friend for everyone that's not just for our family. That's for your family. That's for all of us. There is always hope. God gave Nebuchadnezzar another chance to give you one to maybe there's some of you today who have never asked Jesus Christ to come in your life and forgive you of your sin.

When her to do that today.

I would love to help in the my mother to happen to you when you get right with God.

Maybe you are a person who's been running from God for years and and you just think you can run out the clock and do whatever you want but you have to realize that ultimately you can reap the consequences of your action God might be giving you a warning today. God fired a shot effectively over the bow of Nebuchadnezzar's boat. He said you've got 12 months.

You got time.

Any in the Nebuchadnezzar. Just like love that often didn't think about it did become more prideful. Don't miss this opportunity. You may never have another one like it again. Pray father, thank you for your word to us. Thank you for your offer of forgiveness to us now. I pray for every person here every person watching, listening, were ever they are verbal just because our hearts and help them to see their need for Jesus to come to you and believing you and falling you this day important word of prayer. And if you like to make that kind of change today in your relationship with the Lord. Pastor Greg would like to help you with that and will do so before today's addition of a new beginning. Concludes, and then we want to mention the new book were making available if Pastor Greg's new book called Lenin, Dylan, Alice, and Jesus is revealing look at the rise and fall of so many rock icons and the reasons for their self-destruction. Pastor Greg a lot of the ground you cover in this new book is centered around the 60s and 70s show that unique era in American history which you also address in your upcoming movie Jesus revolution to how does this book fit in with the larger projects you been working on while I've always been a fan of music I like movies I like music I like television hello I like all of these things I'm interested in them.

But I also want to bring Christ to people in these worlds.

That's why we make movies. We've done films like a rush of hope, which reached millions of people were making the new movie right now. There were actually calling fame and that fill my interview Alice Cooper Darrell strawberry and others. People who have had the great success in life and it found that's not the answer, but Christ is the answer to all of these projects I work on from a rush of hope for this upcoming feature film Jesus revolution our bridges bridges to walk over and tell stories you know it's interesting, I think the time were living in right now really parallels 1970 the late 60s early 70s we have turmoil in the world. We have the threat of war. We've had race riots in our street.

We've had the effects of drug use. We've had the rise of crime. All things we were experiencing in the late 60s and early 70s. It's even funny to me as I see young people today who every discovered vinyl and they're playing these old records. We used to listen to the first time you see kids hanging out, you know, in the hipster coffee shop touring Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd a designs in their insured are talking about the Beatles as though there are in current bandits hilarious so there was a cultural connection and I think when we make this film Jesus revolution, which is basically set in 1970 and 71 it will speak to a generation alive today. It will connect to them because we were dealing with a lot of the same issues they're dealing with right now so I'm looking to build bridges. That's why I write books like Lenin, Dylan, Allison, Jesus, or I make movies like a rush of open fame and Jesus revolution and we have our events in stadiums and arenas because we want to reach people that don't know the Lord Jesus did not say the whole world should go to church but he did say the church to go to the whole world. I want to go to where people are in reach unexpected people in unexpected places in unexpected ways with the gospel that can change your life. Now it's right and listen if you'd like to partner with us and help us reach further than we ever have before. I hope you let us know.

Consider how you might invest to keep these daily studies coming your way and also help us reach out with the hope of the gospel or is our mission statement puts it, knowing him and making him known and with your generous donation right now would like to send you Pastor Grace new book called Lenin, Dylan, Alice and Jesus, and will only be able to mention this resource. A short time longer, so get in touch today. Call 1-800-821-3300.

We are here to take your call around the clock that's 1-800-821-3300 or go online to harvest.org Pastor Greg you spoke today about having a relationship with the Lord by someone can enter into that kind of relationship with the Lord. Right now yeah they really can.

That's the amazing thing. I think people are surprised that it doesn't take years to become a Christian.

It doesn't take months.

It doesn't take weeks.

It doesn't take days, it doesn't even take ours you can believe on the spot and I would like to lead you in a prayer where you can ask for his forgiveness. A prayer we you can receive Jesus Christ into your life as your Savior and Lord. So if you want Christ to come in your life if you want him to forgive you of your sin if you want a second chance in life. If you want to go to heaven when you die, stop what you're doing and pray after me these words Lord Jesus, I know I am a sinner and I'm sorry for my sin and I turn from it now and I choose to follow you from this moment forward as Savior and Lord is God and friend. Thank you for loving me and calling me ever giving me in Jesus name I pray, amen and listen. If you have just prayed those words with pastor Greg. The Lord is heard you and forgiven you of your sin. The Bible says Jesus is faithful and just to forgive us of our sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness and would like to send you some materials to help you begin to live this new life we call it our new believers growth packet just ask for it and will send it to you free of charge if you prayed for the first time today with pastor Greg call us at 1-800-821-3300. We can take your call anytime. That's 1-800-821-3300 or go to harvest.org and click on know God's time as pastor. Greg continues his series called end of days. We encounter a king named Belshazzar was a prideful arrogance � in a most unusual and terrifying message that's next time. Join us here on a new beginning. Pastor and Bible feature regulatory and everybody thinks or listening to an beginning this is a podcast made possible by harvest partners. So for more content can help you know God and equip you to make him known to others or to learn more about how you can become a harvest partner. Just go to harvest.org