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Transcript

It's Your Choice · Bible Tract Echoes Podcast

• 0:00
  [SPEAKER_01]: Hey, Fred.
• 0:01
  [SPEAKER_01]: Welcome back to Bible Track Deco's, I'm Mike McCree, your host.
• 0:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: I want to thank you so much for tuning in once again today.
• 0:09
  [SPEAKER_01]: We are at the middle week of the program for this week, and we are expounding on from scripture a thought.
• 0:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: When the best, specifically God's best, isn't good enough.
• 0:22
  [SPEAKER_01]: You say, of course, God, if he puts his mind to something, if I can humanize him just a little bit, he can do anything he wants.
• 0:30
  [SPEAKER_01]: He's omnipotent.
• 0:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: He's all powerful.
• 0:34
  [SPEAKER_01]: He's omnipresent.
• 0:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: He's everywhere.
• 0:36
  [SPEAKER_01]: He's omniscient.
• 0:37
  [SPEAKER_01]: He knows everything.
• 0:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: And you're exactly right.
• 0:41
  [SPEAKER_01]: But at the same time, God does not force his people us to do anything.
• 0:48
  [SPEAKER_01]: We are not atomic tons.
• 0:50
  [SPEAKER_01]: He offers the best
• 0:52
  [SPEAKER_01]: but he allows us the choice to say no.
• 0:55
  [SPEAKER_01]: I think back to a verse that we shared yesterday, Matthew 7 verse 9, or what man is there of you?
• 1:03
  [SPEAKER_01]: Who, if his son asks bread, will he give him a stone?
• 1:07
  [SPEAKER_01]: Or if he asks a fish, will he give him a serpent?
• 1:10
  [SPEAKER_01]: If ye then being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your father, which is in
• 1:21
  [SPEAKER_01]: God will give us the best.
• 1:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: We may even ask for the best but then when it comes down a crunch time oftentimes we refuse God's best.
• 1:33
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yesterday we spoke about how sometimes we choose sin over God's
• 1:39
  [SPEAKER_01]: best.
• 1:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: Today, we're going to talk about something just a little different.
• 1:42
  [SPEAKER_01]: Matthew chapter 26, verse number 14, then one of the 12, called Judas is scary.
• 1:50
  [SPEAKER_01]: It went under the chief priests and said unto them, what will you give me?
• 1:55
  [SPEAKER_01]: and I will deliver him who is him unto you.
• 1:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's Jesus, of course, and they covenant with him for 30 pieces of silver.
• 2:07
  [SPEAKER_01]: And from that time he sought opportunity to portray him that pronoun him, it's talking about Jesus Christ.
• 2:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: Judas, think about this for just a moment.
• 2:20
  [SPEAKER_01]: He literally was confronted with salvation in human form, and what does he do, Matthew chapter 26 verse 47, Matthew 26 verse 47, the Bible says this.
• 2:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: And while he yet spake low, Judas, one of the twelve, came and with him a great multitude with swords and staves, from the chief priests and elders of the people, now he that betrayed him.
• 2:50
  [SPEAKER_01]: Give him a sign saying, whom, however, I shall kiss, that same as he, hold him fast and forthwith.
• 2:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: He came to Jesus and said, hail, master, and kiss him.
• 3:04
  [SPEAKER_01]: And Jesus said unto him, friend, wherefore out there, wherefore art thou come, then came thee, and laid hands on Jesus and took him.
• 3:15
  [SPEAKER_01]: Judas chose not just sin, of course.
• 3:20
  [SPEAKER_01]: But he went a slightly different direction, instead of the best he chose silver.
• 3:26
  [SPEAKER_01]: He chose the goods of this world.
• 3:28
  [SPEAKER_01]: He chose material riches and wealth.
• 3:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: You say, what a foolish, foolish choice.
• 3:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: Of course, 30 pieces of silver.
• 3:37
  [SPEAKER_01]: I don't know how much silver was worth back then, but it wasn't worth Jesus's life.
• 3:43
  [SPEAKER_01]: Of course we know it was part of God's plan so that he would end up on the cross dying and shedding his blood for you and for me, but even so we can still observe a mistake that Judas makes.
• 3:57
  [SPEAKER_01]: I've heard it said probably much more poetic options than this one I'm paraphrasing, but Judas kissed Heaven's door, and yet still went to hell.
• 4:08
  [SPEAKER_01]: He had access to salvation in human form and still chose his own way.
• 4:15
  [SPEAKER_01]: Luke 22 verse 3, then entered Satan into Judas' surname to scarier being of the number of the 12, and he went his way and communed with the priests and captains how he might but tray him unto them.
• 4:27
  [SPEAKER_01]: 1 Timothy 6 verse 10, this thought about money for the love of money.
• 4:33
  [SPEAKER_01]: We often say, I've heard people say money is the root of all evil, that's not correct.
• 4:37
  [SPEAKER_01]: For the love of money is the root of all evil.
• 4:41
  [SPEAKER_01]: Money can do good, can be used for good.
• 4:44
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's the love of money that can be a problem.
• 4:47
  [SPEAKER_01]: For the love of money is the root of all evil, which, while some coveted after they had aired or from the faith and pierced themselves through with many sorrows, I think of that rich young ruler.
• 5:00
  [SPEAKER_01]: He was told by Jesus,
• 5:02
  [SPEAKER_01]: Go and give all that you have.
• 5:04
  [SPEAKER_01]: Jesus was savvy enough, discerning enough, and he was God enough to know that the man would not give up his riches for God.
• 5:14
  [SPEAKER_01]: What you won't give up for God,
• 5:22
  [SPEAKER_01]: Friend, will you give up some things that you hold dear?
• 5:27
  [SPEAKER_01]: What is it?
• 5:28
  [SPEAKER_01]: You say maybe it's not money itself, maybe it's not a large bank account or a big number with many commas or zeroes, but maybe it's something purchased with money.
• 5:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: Can we metal just a little bit?
• 5:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: Maybe it's that boat, maybe it's that motorcycle.
• 5:43
  [SPEAKER_01]: Maybe it's all those guns, maybe it's now all of these things are enjoyable.
• 5:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: Bo's, oh yes, enjoy golf.
• 5:53
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, sure.
• 5:54
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm not great.
• 5:55
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm not even good at it.
• 5:56
  [SPEAKER_01]: I was gonna say, I'm not great.
• 5:57
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm not good at it.
• 5:58
  [SPEAKER_01]: I enjoyed.
• 5:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: I probably go about once a year.
• 6:02
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'd go more if I had the time.
• 6:03
  [SPEAKER_01]: But if any of those things come between me and God, then I'm not choosing God's best
• 6:13
  [SPEAKER_01]: and that's what Judas did.
• 6:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: How about this though?
• 6:18
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's not just sin.
• 6:19
  [SPEAKER_01]: That can be a killer.
• 6:21
  [SPEAKER_01]: I mentioned yesterday how much I understand.
• 6:24
  [SPEAKER_01]: Sin of course it's pleasurable for a time.
• 6:27
  [SPEAKER_01]: It always leaves scars and sin will keep it longer than you want to stay.
• 6:30
  [SPEAKER_01]: Make you pay more than you want to pay.
• 6:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: But how about this, sin, silver, or skepticism?
• 6:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: I think of the children of Israel.
• 6:43
  [SPEAKER_01]: I think about numbers chapter 13 and 14, how they questioned constantly.
• 6:49
  [SPEAKER_01]: That with those aren't the only places, but how they almost constantly questioned God's man.
• 6:54
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'll be back to the book of Exodus, really.
• 6:57
  [SPEAKER_01]: They barely, they had even left Egypt already questioning, then they barely leave and now they're questioning, and then they're on the other side of the Red Sea, they're questioning, they're about to enter into Canaan questioning, seem like they were always skeptical.
• 7:15
  [SPEAKER_01]: of what God wanted them to do.
• 7:18
  [SPEAKER_01]: I think if Hebrews chapter 3 verse 12 take heed, brethren, let there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief into parting from the living God.
• 7:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: All I wonder, how much of an evil heart are on belief do you and I have?
• 7:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: James chapter 1 verse 6 and 7, but let him, meaning Christian, let him ask in faith, nothing wavering.
• 7:46
  [SPEAKER_01]: For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed, for let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord.
• 7:57
  [SPEAKER_01]: When was the last time you trusted God all the way?
• 8:03
  [SPEAKER_01]: Has there been an necessity for that?
• 8:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: There always is an necessity for that, but we often treat God as if he's a genie in a bottle, don't we?
• 8:12
  [SPEAKER_01]: I preached a message many years ago as a young man titled How Big Is Your God Box.
• 8:19
  [SPEAKER_01]: and it was not a very particularly pithy title, but the thought was we all have a break glass in times of emergency type God, and that's how we treat him.
• 8:29
  [SPEAKER_01]: Basically, we just wait till the fire alarm goes off, and then we go looking for God.
• 8:37
  [SPEAKER_01]: And my thought was this.
• 8:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: your box should be so big that the entire world, the entire universe, is inside of it.
• 8:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: Because your box should not be the size of a ring box that you open up to ask a bride to marry you, it should be so large at everything fits inside it along with God.
• 8:56
  [SPEAKER_01]: Really there should be any box at all.
• 8:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: We should have put God in a box because we don't want him to be big.
• 9:04
  [SPEAKER_01]: God is big.
• 9:06
  [SPEAKER_01]: He's more powerful than we could ever imagine, and yet we treat him so small with such skepticism.
• 9:13
  [SPEAKER_01]: I pray that that is not the case for you.
• 9:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: What is it that you're choosing over God's best?
• 9:19
  [SPEAKER_01]: We're going to talk about a few more items over the close of this week, but maybe just maybe it's sin.
• 9:26
  [SPEAKER_01]: Maybe you've already been convicted about that.
• 9:28
  [SPEAKER_01]: Maybe it's silver.
• 9:30
  [SPEAKER_01]: Maybe your job is causing you to trust more and money than in God.
• 9:34
  [SPEAKER_01]: Maybe it's just skepticism.
• 9:37
  [SPEAKER_01]: You just don't trust him in general.
• 9:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: Let's get that right today and we'll talk about more tomorrow.
• 9:44
  [SPEAKER_01]: Now, before we go anywhere, I want to tell you about a gospel tract.
• 9:48
  [SPEAKER_01]: I've got one of my hands right now.
• 9:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: We print and produce millions of gospel tracts every year.
• 9:55
  [SPEAKER_01]: And this is one of them.
• 9:57
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's called Where Are The Dead.
• 10:00
  [SPEAKER_01]: This gospel tract has seen great inroads in Spanish-speaking countries.
• 10:04
  [SPEAKER_01]: Of course, how do you say it?
• 10:06
  [SPEAKER_01]: Dia Delas-Mutas, something like that.
• 10:09
  [SPEAKER_01]: If you speak Spanish, please forgive me for abuturing your beautiful language.
• 10:12
  [SPEAKER_01]: but they celebrate a day of the dead, and so this particular tract, we've seen great effect there, but it also works in English speaking nations because many wonder, where are the dead?
• 10:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: Well, that depends on how they died.
• 10:28
  [SPEAKER_01]: Revelation 14, 13 says you can die in the Lord, or John 821 says you can die in your sins.
• 10:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: We know Romans 323 for all have sinned and come
• 10:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: We know we're born with a sinful nature that we're not a sinner because we sin, we're we sin because we are a sinner if the wages of sin is death That means eternal separation from God and this gospel track continues to go on them.
• 10:55
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm just counting alone one two three
• 10:57
  [SPEAKER_01]: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 plus Bible verses or references just on the first half page here there about this gospel track is chock-full of God's Word and maybe just maybe it would be a blessing to you and your evangelism efforts.
• 11:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: You may ask, 21st century evangelism, does it include gospel tracks?
• 11:22
  [SPEAKER_01]: They do a few use them?
• 11:24
  [SPEAKER_01]: We had more people let us know they got saved last year than just about any year on a record.
• 11:29
  [SPEAKER_01]: It wasn't quite the high watermark, but it was well over one per day on average.
• 11:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: People let us know they accepted Christ.
• 11:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: Were any of them a result of you?
• 11:41
  [SPEAKER_01]: If we print many gospel tracks, we need many people to hand them out.
• 11:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: They do no one any good sitting on the shelves of our warehouse, so maybe you want to go to Bible tracks incorporated in order some of this gospel track today.
• 11:54
  [SPEAKER_01]: You can pick up where are the dead at bibletracksink.org that's bibletracksink.org.
• 12:01
  [SPEAKER_01]: I would love nothing would make me happier than the opportunity to send you some of these
• 12:11
  [SPEAKER_01]: Now, as always, if you have a question, a comment, a critique, a concern, or anything else that starts with a C or a Q, then you can reach out to me, I'd love to hear from you.
• 12:22
  [SPEAKER_01]: I often tell you this text number and just right every day, we have some folks text in.
• 12:27
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'd love to hear from you.
• 12:28
  [SPEAKER_01]: Maybe you have a thought about this week of broadcasting.
• 12:30
  [SPEAKER_01]: Maybe you have an idea for future broadcasting or maybe you just might tell me it testimony but how God has used gospel tracks for you or through you.
• 12:39
  [SPEAKER_01]: You can text me at 3-0-9.
• 12:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: 3-1-6-7-2-4-0 again that's 3-0-9-3-1-6-7-2-4-0.
• 12:52
  [SPEAKER_01]: Thank you so much for listening today as always my prayer.
• 12:55
  [SPEAKER_01]: is it you have a great day for his glory and we will plan on talking to you soon.
• 13:01
  [SPEAKER_01]: God bless.
• 13:16
  [SPEAKER_00]: Thank you for tuning in to Bible Tract Echoes, the radio ministry of Bible Tracts Incorporated.
• 13:23
  [SPEAKER_00]: Want to see our gospel tracks and other resources?
• 13:26
  [SPEAKER_00]: Visit us online at BibleTracksInk.org that's BibleTracksInk.org or follow us on social media to learn how you can partner with this ministry.
• 13:40
  [SPEAKER_00]: Thanks again for listening.
• 13:42
  [SPEAKER_00]: May the Lord richly bless you as you live for Him.