Pastor Dudley Rutherford seeks to "lift up the name of Jesus across the country and the world through uncompromising biblical teaching."
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| Dudley Rutherford - Skyrocketing Growth (Part 1) | March 4, 2026
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- ♪♪♪
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- Announcer: from the beginning of creation
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- To the fall of man,
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- Through it all, the hope of a savior.
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- This fall, experience the bible like never before.
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- Join dudley rutherford on "a journey of a lifetime."
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- If you've ever wanted to understand the bible
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- From beginning to end, this is your chance.
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- Don't just read the story, live it.
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- Coming up next on "lift up jesus,"
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- "a journey of a lifetime."
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- Pastor dudley rutherford: now for us here today,
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- Our jerusalem is los angeles.
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- And we want to do everything we can do
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- To win this city to jesus christ.
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- And besides los angeles, we want to win the whole state
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- Of california.
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- And besides the state of california, we want to reach
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- The whole united states of america.
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- And besides the united states of america,
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- We want to reach the whole world for jesus.
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- ♪♪♪
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- Kayla francis: hello and welcome to "lift up jesus."
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- My name is kayla francis,
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- And in 2 timothy chapter 3, verses 16 and 17,
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- We read that all scripture "is god-breathed and useful
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- For teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training
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- In righteousness, so that the servant of god
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- May be thoroughly equipped for every good work."
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- Would you like to be trained in righteousness?
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- Would you like to be thoroughly equipped
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- For every good work?
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- Thankfully, god's word is available to us
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- And it builds us up for the wonderful purpose
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- That god has for our lives.
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- That's why here at "lift up jesus"
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- We are so passionate about the transformational power
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- That is available to us in scripture.
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- Week in and week out we hear a message
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- Straight from god's word
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- And are strengthened and encouraged,
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- And that's exactly what we're going to experience
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- In just a few moments.
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- Go ahead and grab your bibles and perhaps something
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- To take notes with.
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- Let's begin.
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- ♪♪♪
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- Pastor dudley: the last 2 weeks, if you've been here,
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- We've looked at this chart.
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- We were in the old testament for most of those 18 weeks
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- And then we jumped into the new testament.
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- A couple of weeks ago we looked at
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- The first four books of the new testament,
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- Matthew, mark, luke, and john.
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- All four are people that were eyewitnesses.
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- They were in jesus's inner circle,
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- And they wrote down
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- Everything they saw and everything that they heard.
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- And that's why we have a record of who jesus christ is,
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- Because they recorded as eyewitnesses.
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- They start with the birth of jesus,
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- Go through his life story,
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- Get to the death, burial, and resurrection,
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- And then he's on earth for about 40 days,
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- And then he ascends into heaven.
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- And then last week, we looked at the fifth book,
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- Which is the book of acts,
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- Which begins after the ascension.
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- And the book of acts records for us the birth
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- Or the beginning of the 1st century church.
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- We looked at that last week, how it began.
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- But the rest of the book of acts talks about what i call
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- The skyrocketing growth of the 1st century church,
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- And that's what i want to talk to you on today, amen?
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- I have four windows.
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- The church grew four different ways.
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- I want you to get all four of these down.
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- Number one, the church in the 1st century
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- Grew numerically.
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- It grew numerically.
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- Now, if you have your bibles, you can turn to acts chapter 1.
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- This is where the church began.
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- It says: "in those days, peter stood up among the believers,
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- A group numbering about," how many people?
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- It's about 120 people.
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- Now, right around the corner.
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- We're in 2025.
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- Right around the corner will be the year 2033.
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- And in the year 2033, the church will be 2000 years old,
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- The church worldwide.
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- But it started, acts 1, with a little group
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- Of about 120 people.
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- How many of you follow me so far?
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- Go over to chapter 2, verse 41, we looked at this last week:
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- "those who accepted his message were baptized,
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- And about three thousand people were added to their number."
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- So it started with a group of about 120.
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- And the very next chapter there's 3000 people.
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- That's pretty significant.
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- Go over to verse 47, chapter 2. just gonna kinda read
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- Through this, and i hope you're following along.
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- The bible says: "the lord added to their number daily
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- Those who were being saved."
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- So the church didn't just grow on sundays,
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- Like one day a week,
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- It grew every single day.
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- The church kept gaining more and more people.
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- Go over to chapter 4, verse 4. it says:
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- "many who heard the message believed,
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- And the number," everybody say number.
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- "the number of men grew to about five thousand."
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- That's just the men.
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- Now you take the men, there's 5000,
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- They were probably married.
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- That's 10,000, had a couple of kids.
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- By the time you get here to the fourth chapter,
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- There might be 20,000 people in that church.
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- Skyrocketing growth.
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- Go to chapter 5, verse 14.
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- Your notes say verse 4, but it's verse 14.
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- Chapter 5, verse 14.
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- "nevertheless, more and more," now there's just
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- Too many people to count.
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- It was 120, then 3000, then 5000 men,
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- Now just "more and more."
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- "men and women," the women are getting in on this thing.
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- Let's hear it from-- let's hear it for the women.
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- Come on, come on.
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- "and the lord added to their number."
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- Go to chapter 6, verse 1: "in those days
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- The number of disciples was increasing."
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- Go to verse 7, acts 6, verse 7: "word of god spread.
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- The number of disciples in jerusalem increased rapidly."
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- And then it says: "a large number of priests."
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- The priests started getting in on this, okay?
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- Now i'm not gonna read the rest of them.
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- You can go through and read those.
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- I just want you to know that in the first century,
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- When the church began, it grew numerically.
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- And there's some people who think, well, too many churches,
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- All you care about is numbers.
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- No, every number represents a soul.
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- Jesus himself told the story about the man, the shepherd,
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- Who had 100 sheep and 99 were safe,
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- And there was one little sheep that went off,
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- And the shepherd left the 99 in the fold and went off
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- To find that one lost sheep because every number matters.
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- Trust me, i'm gonna go get some blood work,
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- The next week or so,
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- And when i get finished with that,
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- The doctor's gonna come back in that room.
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- He's gonna have a sheet full of numbers
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- And every one of those numbers means something to me.
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- And so just know that church in that first century
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- Grew numerically.
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- Number two, write this down.
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- The church in the first century grew geographically.
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- It wasn't just numerically, it grew geographically.
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- You go back to acts, the very first chapter,
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- Right before the ascension,
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- Jesus gathered his disciples together,
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- And he said these words: "you will receive power
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- When the holy spirit comes on you;
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- And you will be--" he didn't ask them.
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- He didn't say, "hey, i'd like you to."
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- He just said, "you will be my witnesses
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- In jerusalem, judea,"
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- That's a region, "samaria," that's a nation,
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- "and to the ends of the earth."
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- These were jesus's marching orders right before he ascended.
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- Start here in jerusalem.
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- These are concentric circles.
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- Start right where you are in jerusalem,
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- And then you're going to go to the region of judea,
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- And then you're going to go to the nation of samaria,
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- And then you're going to go to the ends of the earth.
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- And just so you know, you can write this down in your notes,
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- That's exactly what they did.
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- If you read through the book of acts,
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- The first seven chapters of acts takes place right there
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- In jerusalem.
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- And then you have chapters 8 through 12.
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- You see them leaving jerusalem and going out
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- Into judea and samaria.
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- And then the last half of the book of acts,
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- Starting with chapter 13
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- All the way to chapter 28, they're taking the gospel
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- To the known world at that time, specifically to rome,
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- Which is a long ways away.
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- But perhaps the most-- the largest
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- And most powerful city in the world at that time.
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- Paul wanted to get the gospel there.
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- They were obeying these orders by jesus.
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- Now for us here today, our jerusalem is los angeles.
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- And we want to do everything we can do to win this city
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- To jesus christ.
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- And besides los angeles, we want to win
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- The whole state of california.
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- And besides the state of california,
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- We want to reach the whole united states of america.
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- And besides the united states of america,
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- We want to reach the whole world for jesus.
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- We do that through our missions group.
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- We want to go to india.
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- We want to go to africa.
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- We want to go to asia.
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- We want to go to south america.
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- We want to go to the four corners of this world,
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- Starting though right here
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- In our jerusalem, which is los angeles.
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- The bible says in 2 peter 3:8, that god is patient with you.
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- How many of you are glad that god is patient with you?
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- Oh, you should have clapped a lot louder than that.
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- I'm gonna ask you again, how many of you are glad
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- That god is patient with you?
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- Oh yeah.
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- The bible says that he's not wanting anyone to perish.
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- God doesn't want anyone to perish.
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- That's why if there's one lost person or one lost city
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- Or one lost nation, god cares.
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- He doesn't want anyone to perish,
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- But he wants what?
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- He wants everyone to come to repentance.
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- So the church grew numerically.
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- It grew geographically.
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- Number three, write this down, it grew influentially.
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- It grew numerically, it grew in numbers.
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- It grew geographically: it continued to expand
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- To the known world.
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- But it also grew in its influence.
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- And there's one verse that speaks to this.
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- In acts chapter 17, verse 6,
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- This is the new revised standard version, it says:
- 00:11:50.428 --> 00:11:53.298
- "these people," speaking of the church.
- 00:11:53.298 --> 00:11:55.900
- "these people have turned the world upside down
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- And they've now come here to our town."
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- Now, there's something about the church in the book of acts
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- That disrupted the world system.
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- It influenced people that were locked into a godless society.
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- The early christians went against the status quo.
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- I want you to write this down.
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- We're not called to echo culture.
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- We're called to impact culture.
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- Now if you study this verse in acts 17,
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- It wasn't a compliment.
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- That sounds like a compliment.
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- "these people turned the world upside down."
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- But it wasn't a compliment.
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- Because any time you preach jesus,
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- The world is gonna come against you.
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- In the new international version,
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- The exact same verse says: "these men who have--"
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- Doesn't say turned the world upside down.
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- It says: "these men who have caused trouble
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- All over the world have now come here,"
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- So don't think this "turned the world upside down"
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- Is a compliment.
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- And what were they accused of?
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- This is very important.
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- Look at the next verse, acts 17:7.
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- Here's what the early church was accused of: "these people that
- 00:13:25.190 --> 00:13:29.494
- Have caused trouble all over the world have now come here.
- 00:13:29.494 --> 00:13:32.063
- They are defying caesar's decree, saying that
- 00:13:32.063 --> 00:13:41.906
- There's another king named jesus."
- 00:13:41.906 --> 00:13:46.978
- You see, at that time, rome was conquering the entire world,
- 00:13:46.978 --> 00:13:50.982
- And they had a caesar,
- 00:13:50.982 --> 00:13:52.317
- And they believed and they taught
- 00:13:52.317 --> 00:13:53.918
- That caesar was god.
- 00:13:53.918 --> 00:13:58.756
- And these christians that are now following this messiah
- 00:13:58.756 --> 00:14:02.193
- Who resurrected from the grave, they're saying, "no, no, no,
- 00:14:02.193 --> 00:14:07.332
- Caesar's not god, caesar's not king.
- 00:14:07.332 --> 00:14:10.134
- There's another king. his name is jesus."
- 00:14:10.134 --> 00:14:13.872
- And that's why it says these guys are causing trouble because
- 00:14:13.872 --> 00:14:16.908
- They're not going along with caesar's decree.
- 00:14:16.908 --> 00:14:19.978
- You see, the system of the world is diametrically opposed
- 00:14:19.978 --> 00:14:25.316
- To the church.
- 00:14:25.316 --> 00:14:27.385
- It's not so much we talk about the government,
- 00:14:27.385 --> 00:14:29.787
- They're always trying to change what we believe.
- 00:14:29.787 --> 00:14:34.993
- And times we've got to stand up to that.
- 00:14:34.993 --> 00:14:38.696
- The world will always-- the world will always try to--
- 00:14:38.696 --> 00:14:42.166
- If you're, hey, are you a christian?
- 00:14:42.166 --> 00:14:43.868
- The world doesn't want you to even speak
- 00:14:43.868 --> 00:14:47.839
- Because they don't wanna follow jesus.
- 00:14:47.839 --> 00:14:50.508
- You--some of you know this.
- 00:14:50.508 --> 00:14:51.843
- The governor of this state back during covid declared
- 00:14:51.843 --> 00:14:56.581
- All churches as nonessential
- 00:14:56.581 --> 00:15:01.386
- And literally shut the doors of all the churches
- 00:15:01.386 --> 00:15:04.355
- In this state.
- 00:15:04.355 --> 00:15:06.491
- You say that didn't happen.
- 00:15:06.491 --> 00:15:07.825
- Oh yes, it did happen.
- 00:15:07.825 --> 00:15:09.627
- The governor deemed, he deemed, he decreed,
- 00:15:09.627 --> 00:15:17.168
- That marijuana shops were essential
- 00:15:17.168 --> 00:15:19.737
- And left them open during covid.
- 00:15:19.737 --> 00:15:23.408
- He declared that liquor stores were essential.
- 00:15:23.408 --> 00:15:27.979
- On every city in this block, every liquor store was open
- 00:15:27.979 --> 00:15:30.982
- Through covid because the governor
- 00:15:30.982 --> 00:15:32.951
- Said they were essential.
- 00:15:32.951 --> 00:15:34.953
- The governor declared that every abortion clinic
- 00:15:34.953 --> 00:15:37.855
- Was essential,
- 00:15:37.855 --> 00:15:39.190
- So he left all the abortion clinics open.
- 00:15:39.190 --> 00:15:40.792
- He deemed, he declared, that casinos were essential
- 00:15:40.792 --> 00:15:45.630
- For us here in california,
- 00:15:45.630 --> 00:15:47.165
- So he left all the casinos, not one casino closed,
- 00:15:47.165 --> 00:15:50.835
- But he also deemed that every church was non-essential,
- 00:15:50.835 --> 00:15:54.605
- And he literally shut the doors of every church in this state.
- 00:15:54.605 --> 00:16:01.479
- And we decided we're not gonna be shut.
- 00:16:01.479 --> 00:16:07.618
- And we opened up.
- 00:16:07.618 --> 00:16:09.687
- We opened up and we said, "you don't have to come.
- 00:16:09.687 --> 00:16:15.393
- You wanna stay home, stay home.
- 00:16:15.393 --> 00:16:17.962
- But we're gonna meet for people who want to go to church.
- 00:16:17.962 --> 00:16:19.998
- If people can go to the casino and people go to liquor store
- 00:16:19.998 --> 00:16:22.200
- And people go to the coffee shop,
- 00:16:22.200 --> 00:16:23.568
- Starbucks was open.
- 00:16:23.568 --> 00:16:24.902
- If people wanna come to church, they could come."
- 00:16:24.902 --> 00:16:28.239
- And for 1 year, for 1 year, every week,
- 00:16:29.340 --> 00:16:33.144
- The government came to this church,
- 00:16:33.144 --> 00:16:35.813
- Came inside and wrote us a fine, sometimes up to $2000.
- 00:16:35.813 --> 00:16:40.551
- They did this every week for over a year
- 00:16:40.551 --> 00:16:42.687
- While we were just simply meeting.
- 00:16:42.687 --> 00:16:46.190
- And there will come a day, some of you do not believe this,
- 00:16:46.190 --> 00:16:51.329
- But i believe this to be true because
- 00:16:51.329 --> 00:16:54.065
- Of our government in this state.
- 00:16:54.065 --> 00:16:58.870
- There will come a day, we're on the path,
- 00:16:58.870 --> 00:17:02.507
- Where simply reading god's word
- 00:17:02.507 --> 00:17:06.044
- In a public space will be considered a hate crime
- 00:17:06.044 --> 00:17:10.214
- And hate speech.
- 00:17:10.214 --> 00:17:12.183
- It's coming.
- 00:17:12.183 --> 00:17:13.718
- Now you say, "that will never happen."
- 00:17:13.718 --> 00:17:15.753
- Stick around.
- 00:17:15.753 --> 00:17:17.822
- It's one of the reasons why i continue to be bold
- 00:17:17.822 --> 00:17:21.259
- And to push back.
- 00:17:21.259 --> 00:17:23.494
- Just so you know.
- 00:17:23.494 --> 00:17:28.099
- One of the most amazing things in this whole book:
- 00:17:32.170 --> 00:17:36.874
- The church grew numerically,
- 00:17:36.874 --> 00:17:38.409
- It grew geographically, it grew in its influence,
- 00:17:38.409 --> 00:17:40.945
- It literally turned the world upside down.
- 00:17:40.945 --> 00:17:44.549
- The most amazing thing: they did all that without
- 00:17:44.549 --> 00:17:47.085
- Modern transportation.
- 00:17:47.085 --> 00:17:49.420
- No internet, no phones, no means of communication
- 00:17:49.420 --> 00:17:55.226
- Except by word of mouth,
- 00:17:55.226 --> 00:17:57.695
- Maybe a few words written on a parchment, no wifi,
- 00:17:57.695 --> 00:18:01.999
- No automobiles, no airplanes, no ai, no texts, no emails,
- 00:18:01.999 --> 00:18:07.672
- No websites, no electricity, no running water, no motel 6,
- 00:18:07.672 --> 00:18:13.010
- No in-n-out burger.
- 00:18:13.010 --> 00:18:17.348
- You know what all they had?
- 00:18:17.348 --> 00:18:18.683
- They had some sandals and a few donkeys,
- 00:18:18.683 --> 00:18:25.723
- And they took the gospel to the entire world.
- 00:18:25.723 --> 00:18:28.292
- You say, "how could they do that?"
- 00:18:28.292 --> 00:18:29.660
- Because they had a conviction that jesus was in fact
- 00:18:29.660 --> 00:18:32.163
- The messiah, and everybody needs to hear that.
- 00:18:32.163 --> 00:18:36.400
- I want you to write this down.
- 00:18:39.170 --> 00:18:40.505
- Their desire was not to make a dent.
- 00:18:40.505 --> 00:18:42.273
- Their desire was to make a difference.
- 00:18:42.273 --> 00:18:45.776
- And some of you are going to disagree with this too,
- 00:18:45.776 --> 00:18:47.345
- And that's okay.
- 00:18:47.345 --> 00:18:49.714
- But i pray that shepherd gets a reputation that says:
- 00:18:49.714 --> 00:18:59.257
- "those people are a bunch of troublemakers.
- 00:18:59.257 --> 00:19:03.728
- They really truly believe that out of everything in this world,
- 00:19:03.728 --> 00:19:07.932
- That there's a king named jesus,
- 00:19:07.932 --> 00:19:10.234
- And that we all ought to be living for him."
- 00:19:10.234 --> 00:19:12.336
- I hope we get that reputation.
- 00:19:12.336 --> 00:19:15.473
- May our love, listen to this carefully,
- 00:19:15.473 --> 00:19:18.409
- May our love disturb hate.
- 00:19:18.409 --> 00:19:24.949
- May our holiness disrupt sin.
- 00:19:24.949 --> 00:19:31.656
- May our hope defy despair.
- 00:19:31.656 --> 00:19:37.662
- May our unity defeat division.
- 00:19:37.662 --> 00:19:42.867
- May our gratitude silence entitlement.
- 00:19:42.867 --> 00:19:46.704
- May our generosity dismantle selfishness.
- 00:19:46.704 --> 00:19:50.808
- May our humility overthrow pride.
- 00:19:50.808 --> 00:19:54.512
- May our courage confront fear.
- 00:19:54.512 --> 00:19:57.281
- May our faith erase doubt.
- 00:19:57.281 --> 00:19:59.750
- May our compassion stand against apathy.
- 00:19:59.750 --> 00:20:02.787
- May our forgiveness shatter revenge.
- 00:20:02.787 --> 00:20:05.990
- May our light chase away the darkness.
- 00:20:05.990 --> 00:20:08.960
- May our empathy interrupt isolation.
- 00:20:08.960 --> 00:20:12.296
- May our integrity expose hypocrisy.
- 00:20:12.296 --> 00:20:15.499
- May our grace outshine judgment.
- 00:20:15.499 --> 00:20:18.035
- And may our truth expose deception.
- 00:20:18.035 --> 00:20:23.407
- I pray that our church will go into a world
- 00:20:25.243 --> 00:20:29.847
- That is already upside down
- 00:20:29.847 --> 00:20:31.549
- And help it turn it right side up.
- 00:20:31.549 --> 00:20:33.351
- That's my prayer for us.
- 00:20:33.351 --> 00:20:35.553
- ♪♪♪
- 00:20:36.187 --> 00:20:39.890
- Kayla: what a blessing to be trained and equipped
- 00:20:39.890 --> 00:20:42.326
- In god's word.
- 00:20:42.326 --> 00:20:43.995
- Was this program an encouragement to you?
- 00:20:43.995 --> 00:20:46.897
- I ask because we'd love to hear from you.
- 00:20:46.897 --> 00:20:49.900
- Just dial the number on the screen or visit
- 00:20:49.900 --> 00:20:52.436
- Www.liftupjesus.com and let us know how you were touched
- 00:20:52.436 --> 00:20:58.242
- By today's message.
- 00:20:58.242 --> 00:21:00.011
- If you believe in the power of scripture
- 00:21:00.011 --> 00:21:02.613
- At work in our lives,
- 00:21:02.613 --> 00:21:04.415
- Would you consider coming alongside "lift up jesus"
- 00:21:04.415 --> 00:21:06.817
- By making a donation or better yet,
- 00:21:06.817 --> 00:21:09.820
- Committing to a recurring gift?
- 00:21:09.820 --> 00:21:12.089
- Our program allows us to reach people around the globe
- 00:21:12.089 --> 00:21:15.993
- With the word of god, and it is made possible
- 00:21:15.993 --> 00:21:18.529
- Through the generosity of viewers like you.
- 00:21:18.529 --> 00:21:21.766
- Giving is easy, just visit the website displayed
- 00:21:21.766 --> 00:21:24.535
- On the screen and click the "give" button.
- 00:21:24.535 --> 00:21:26.470
- Thank you, your support goes a long way.
- 00:21:26.470 --> 00:21:29.473
- We look forward to seeing you again
- 00:21:29.473 --> 00:21:30.875
- At the same time next week.
- 00:21:30.875 --> 00:21:33.110
- Until then, whatever you're doing
- 00:21:33.110 --> 00:21:34.979
- And wherever you're going,
- 00:21:34.979 --> 00:21:36.447
- Don't forget to always lift up jesus.
- 00:21:36.447 --> 00:21:39.317
- Jeremy hoff: so my name is jeremy hoff.
- 00:21:41.686 --> 00:21:43.521
- Leslie and i have been married a little over 20 years--
- 00:21:43.521 --> 00:21:45.990
- 21 years actually-- and we have four children,
- 00:21:45.990 --> 00:21:50.528
- Three biological children
- 00:21:50.528 --> 00:21:52.163
- And one adopted out of foster care.
- 00:21:52.163 --> 00:21:54.598
- Leslie hoff: we-- after three biological children,
- 00:21:54.598 --> 00:21:56.634
- We were pretty sure we were done,
- 00:21:56.634 --> 00:21:58.169
- But the seed of adoption had been planted in our hearts
- 00:21:58.169 --> 00:22:00.905
- And so we just listened to god, and he kept prodding.
- 00:22:00.905 --> 00:22:04.275
- Especially, i think it was, like, the end of 2011
- 00:22:04.275 --> 00:22:07.244
- We just kept hearing story after story of adoption
- 00:22:07.244 --> 00:22:10.648
- And we just were like, "why is this keep coming up to us?"
- 00:22:10.648 --> 00:22:14.251
- And it became really clear to us that god--
- 00:22:14.251 --> 00:22:17.188
- This was the direction we were supposed to take,
- 00:22:17.188 --> 00:22:18.589
- And we didn't know what that look like,
- 00:22:18.589 --> 00:22:20.224
- So we just began to pursue it step by step really
- 00:22:20.224 --> 00:22:23.928
- With great fear, not knowing what that looked like,
- 00:22:23.928 --> 00:22:26.831
- Not knowing what that meant for our home,
- 00:22:26.831 --> 00:22:28.699
- But really feeling like that's what our steps of our obedience
- 00:22:28.699 --> 00:22:31.635
- Were supposed to be.
- 00:22:31.635 --> 00:22:32.970
- God made that really clear.
- 00:22:32.970 --> 00:22:34.338
- So we just took one step at a time
- 00:22:34.338 --> 00:22:35.806
- And ended up adopting our son in december of 2013,
- 00:22:35.806 --> 00:22:41.178
- And he's been a part of our family ever since,
- 00:22:41.178 --> 00:22:43.647
- An awesome part of our family.
- 00:22:43.647 --> 00:22:45.383
- Jeremy: but i think it's important to know that
- 00:22:45.383 --> 00:22:48.619
- We believe the church is the solution
- 00:22:48.619 --> 00:22:51.021
- To the foster care crisis.
- 00:22:51.021 --> 00:22:53.791
- We heard a stat that really helped our trajectory,
- 00:22:53.791 --> 00:22:57.061
- Which was that if one family from every church
- 00:22:57.061 --> 00:23:01.065
- Stepped up to adopt or foster, there would be no more crisis,
- 00:23:01.065 --> 00:23:05.770
- And we felt that we could be that family for shepherd.
- 00:23:05.770 --> 00:23:10.541
- Leslie: it can be very hard for foster families adjusting
- 00:23:10.541 --> 00:23:12.877
- To a child in their home that maybe has come
- 00:23:12.877 --> 00:23:15.045
- From a pretty traumatic background.
- 00:23:15.045 --> 00:23:17.181
- And so we want to just as a church surround that family
- 00:23:17.181 --> 00:23:20.317
- As much as possible and show them
- 00:23:20.317 --> 00:23:22.119
- That we're there to support them,
- 00:23:22.119 --> 00:23:23.554
- To babysit, to provide meals, to do all the things
- 00:23:23.554 --> 00:23:25.423
- That will make that transition easier for the foster parents
- 00:23:25.423 --> 00:23:28.159
- So that it ultimately is easier for the child.
- 00:23:28.159 --> 00:23:30.861
- Jeremy: and we just know that if the church stepped up the way
- 00:23:30.861 --> 00:23:34.698
- The church can, this wouldn't be a problem anymore, at all.
- 00:23:34.698 --> 00:23:37.968
- Leslie: we now know, too, that the l.a. foster care system
- 00:23:37.968 --> 00:23:41.005
- Is in crisis because they have so many children coming in
- 00:23:41.005 --> 00:23:44.141
- And not enough social workers, not enough people
- 00:23:44.141 --> 00:23:46.043
- To care for them well,
- 00:23:46.043 --> 00:23:47.912
- And so they're just having a hard time keeping up
- 00:23:47.912 --> 00:23:49.713
- With doing what's best for these kids.
- 00:23:49.713 --> 00:23:51.348
- And the more families we get from church that can come
- 00:23:51.348 --> 00:23:53.684
- Alongside these kids and love them and ultimately show them
- 00:23:53.684 --> 00:23:56.520
- Jesus, i think we can really help solve the crisis
- 00:23:56.520 --> 00:23:58.689
- In l.a. county.
- 00:23:58.689 --> 00:24:00.424
- The journey of obedience was so much greater
- 00:24:00.424 --> 00:24:02.893
- And so much more than we could have imagined
- 00:24:02.893 --> 00:24:04.662
- Than the easy route which we wanted to take,
- 00:24:04.662 --> 00:24:08.332
- But i think the steps of faith--
- 00:24:08.332 --> 00:24:10.501
- The small steps of faith that led us to where we are now,
- 00:24:10.501 --> 00:24:14.071
- I can't imagine not taking that journey
- 00:24:14.071 --> 00:24:15.973
- And knowing jesus at a level that i just didn't realize
- 00:24:15.973 --> 00:24:19.243
- I didn't know him before.
- 00:24:19.243 --> 00:24:20.945
- I'm understanding his love for the vulnerable,
- 00:24:20.945 --> 00:24:23.214
- His love for people in need
- 00:24:23.214 --> 00:24:25.549
- On a level that i just didn't comprehend before,
- 00:24:25.549 --> 00:24:28.486
- And i'm so grateful for that journey.
- 00:24:28.486 --> 00:24:30.921
- ♪♪♪
- 00:24:30.921 --> 00:24:44.235
- Pastor dudley: hey, it's pastor dudley rutherford
- 00:24:48.205 --> 00:24:49.707
- Here at "lift up jesus" radio and television ministry,
- 00:24:49.707 --> 00:24:53.277
- And i want to thank you for being a part
- 00:24:53.277 --> 00:24:55.212
- Of this ministry, listening here today.
- 00:24:55.212 --> 00:24:57.615
- Our desire is to take the gospel to the entire world;
- 00:24:57.615 --> 00:25:01.452
- Not just to your city and not just to your house
- 00:25:01.452 --> 00:25:04.555
- But to every city and to every house,
- 00:25:04.555 --> 00:25:07.558
- And in order to do that we need people like you
- 00:25:07.558 --> 00:25:10.294
- Who believe in this ministry to come alongside us
- 00:25:10.294 --> 00:25:14.498
- And to support us faithfully with their prayers,
- 00:25:14.498 --> 00:25:17.768
- With their finances, with the word of mouth.
- 00:25:17.768 --> 00:25:20.404
- You can share this on social media,
- 00:25:20.404 --> 00:25:22.873
- But we need people like you
- 00:25:22.873 --> 00:25:24.208
- Who would seriously consider becoming a partner with us.
- 00:25:24.208 --> 00:25:28.245
- Go to our website liftupjesus.com.
- 00:25:28.245 --> 00:25:30.915
- There's a button there that says "partner with us."
- 00:25:30.915 --> 00:25:34.118
- We ask that you could do anything you possibly can
- 00:25:34.118 --> 00:25:37.688
- To help this ministry reach the four corners of this world.
- 00:25:37.688 --> 00:25:41.959
- God bless each and every one
- 00:25:41.959 --> 00:25:43.827
- Of you here today.
- 00:25:43.827 --> 00:25:45.930
- Kayla francis: "godly goosebumps"
- 00:25:49.366 --> 00:25:50.701
- Is a podcast hosted by pastor dudley rutherford.
- 00:25:50.701 --> 00:25:53.804
- Each week we study a story from history, the bible,
- 00:25:53.804 --> 00:25:56.807
- And even in our own community at shepherd church.
- 00:25:56.807 --> 00:25:59.510
- These stories reveal god doing the extraordinary,
- 00:25:59.510 --> 00:26:02.212
- Doing what only he could do.
- 00:26:02.212 --> 00:26:04.114
- We hope you're encouraged and excited
- 00:26:04.114 --> 00:26:06.383
- To share with others god's providence,
- 00:26:06.383 --> 00:26:08.686
- Protection, and provision.
- 00:26:08.686 --> 00:26:10.354
- Visit godlygoosebumps.com, youtube, or find us
- 00:26:10.354 --> 00:26:14.091
- Wherever you listen to podcasts.
- 00:26:14.091 --> 00:26:16.527
- Announcer: research proves that it's the regular hearing
- 00:26:19.997 --> 00:26:22.433
- And teaching of the word of god that takes our christian life
- 00:26:22.433 --> 00:26:25.636
- To a new level.
- 00:26:25.636 --> 00:26:27.004
- That's why we invite you to meet dudley rutherford every week
- 00:26:27.004 --> 00:26:29.840
- On this station for another powerful message
- 00:26:29.840 --> 00:26:32.710
- Straight from the bible.
- 00:26:32.710 --> 00:26:34.244
- You can also visit liftupjesus.com to sign up
- 00:26:34.244 --> 00:26:37.281
- For our monthly email devotional,
- 00:26:37.281 --> 00:26:39.516
- Discover pastor dudley's books and other resources,
- 00:26:39.516 --> 00:26:42.853
- And see our national tv and radio schedule.
- 00:26:42.853 --> 00:26:45.990
- And don't hesitate to reach out on the phone or online.
- 00:26:45.990 --> 00:26:49.727
- Pastor dudley has a passion and vision
- 00:26:49.727 --> 00:26:52.129
- To reach more people with a message of hope
- 00:26:52.129 --> 00:26:55.232
- And if you'd like to partner with us to touch the world,
- 00:26:55.232 --> 00:26:57.935
- We'd love to hear from you.
- 00:26:57.935 --> 00:26:59.436
- Your financial gift will do so much to help us
- 00:26:59.436 --> 00:27:02.239
- Impact the nations for christ.
- 00:27:02.239 --> 00:27:04.642
- And if you're ever in the southern california area,
- 00:27:04.642 --> 00:27:07.111
- We invite you to visit us at shepherd church
- 00:27:07.111 --> 00:27:09.346
- Here in los angeles.
- 00:27:09.346 --> 00:27:10.714
- It's an amazing experience you'll never forget.
- 00:27:10.714 --> 00:27:13.717
- Until next time, remember to always lift up jesus.
- 00:27:13.717 --> 00:27:17.554
- ♪♪♪
- 00:27:18.656 --> 00:27:22.760
- ...
- 00:27:24.395 --> 00:27:28.766