May 19, 2025 • 28 mins
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Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to this edition of PowerPoint with Jack Ram. A
little later in the program, we'll tell you how you
can get a copy of a devotional on fifty two
questions every believer should answer. But first, here's the message.
Keep going.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Turned to Hebrews chapter three. We're going to look at
verses seven and eight in this very powerful passage of
scripture found in the Book of Hebrews. This is our
message series these days, going the Distance. The Book of
Hebrews was written primarily for three groups of people. One
Jewish Christians believers, people who had received and given their
(00:44):
hearts to follow Christ, but persecution was setting in and resistance,
and many were struggling to get through and to endure
throughout life. A second group among the Christians in that
era and Jewish believers, some who were on the edge
and ready to turn back, to go away from Christ
(01:06):
and to go back into their old way of life,
back into their old religion. And because they were struggling
personally and they were not experiencing the fullness of the
supremacy and the sufficiency of Christ in their lives, they
were looking to go back. Their heads were being turned
and looking over their shoulders. Maybe it's better back there
(01:27):
rather than going forward. That's another group, and that's why
so often in the Book of Hebrews, as we're seeing,
we see these challenges to go on, to go forward,
to go to maturity, don't turn back, whatever you do.
But there's a third group of people that were in
this church and a part of this body of believers
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who received this letter so long ago, and they're still
in the church today, And that is people who do
not know Christ. People who were guessed the church, are
people who have been invited by other believers. Are people
who may have grown up without a personal relationship with Christ,
but are still in the church. They are unbelievers in
(02:12):
the Church. So there are warning passages throughout the Word
of God, and certainly in Hebrews there are five specific
warning passages. We've already seen one. How shall you escape
if you neglect so great a salvation, What a great
salvation we've been given in Christ? So how will we escape?
What's the answer if we don't have salvation in Christ?
(02:34):
There is no hope, There is no answer apart from
the Lord Jesus Christ. And then comes this second warning
in chapter three, verses seven, eight and a, which says. Therefore,
as the Holy Spirit says today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts. As in the Rebellion. Three
(02:58):
times in Hebrew chapter three, we're told, do not harden
your heart. Because it's possible for you to grow up
in church. It's possible for you to go to church
and yet have a hardened heart. In fact, is probable
if you go to church and you internally reject the gospel,
(03:19):
if you don't know the Lord, you become what I
would call gospel hardened. You've heard it so much that
your heart is closed off and disconnected from the power
of God, as the Bible says, having a form of
Godliness but denying its power. So I'm saying to you
that I'm speaking today to people who really need this message,
(03:40):
because did you know is possible to pass the point
of no return that your heart becomes so hardened, callous
because you've said no, and know, and know, and know
and know to the Gospel. To the grace of God,
God loves you. Jesus died on the cross for you,
(04:03):
he rose again. And even as I say that for
some of you in when right over your heads you've
heard it so many times before, and your heart is hardening.
You don't have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. May
God use his word today to break the hardest hearts
and bring you to faith in Jesus Christ. What do
(04:23):
we want to say? Number one, let's talk about spiritual conviction.
Spiritual conviction. God is speaking. Do you see how it
says in verse seven, as the Holy Spirit says today,
if you hear his voice, do not harden your heart.
God is speaking, and when God speaks, he convicts and
(04:45):
convinces us, convicting us of our sin and convincing us
that Jesus Christ is Lord. We've been learning in the
Book of Hebrews that Jesus is Lord, superior, supreme among
all other gods, not created by God, but God himself,
who created all things. This is who Jesus is. And
it's the Holy Spirit's job, his work, his ministry, to
(05:07):
convict you of your sin, of sin, righteousness and judgment,
as Jesus had said, and to convince you that Jesus
Christ is Lord, because no one can say that Jesus
is Lord apart from the Holy Spirit. And so the
Holy Spirit is speaking to you, and not just in church,
(05:27):
of course, God's been speaking to you all alone. He
may speak to you as you're just driving down the road.
He may speak to you while you're tossing and turning
at night. He may speak to you on a ball field.
I know when I was a teenager, God spoke to
me on a baseball field and call me to ministry.
God speaks in every place. God may speak to you
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at a party. You're out there doing the wrong thing,
and God speaks to you. He impresses us, he influenced.
Of course, He speaks through the Bible, God's world. But
God takes his word and by his spirit he drives
it home into our hearts. God speaks, how number one,
by his spirit. God is speaking by his spirit, his
(06:12):
Holy Spirit, prompting you to respond, prodding you to turn
from your sin and repent and respond to Jesus Christ.
It's the Holy Spirit's work to, like a great physician,
push and prod a little bit, to remind you how
much you desperately need the Lord, that you need to
be saved. And for some of you. Right now, as
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I'm speaking, the Holy Spirit is speaking to you inside.
You say, is it out loud? No? Is louder than
that it's inside, it's internally. God is speaking to your heart.
You say, what's the heart? The inner you? Now, the
physical heart is beating, and you have life and the
blood flow of your heart. But the Bible says, out
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of the heart flow the issues of life, talking about
your spiritual heart, the person of you. If I ask
you to point to yourself in fact, right now, just
point to yourself. I want to see what happens. Point
to yourself. Oh not many people went up here. You
went right here. You point to yourself. That's your heart,
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that's you, that's the inner you, that's the inner life.
That's the part of you that God sees and knows.
That's where God speaks. And so often we've heard God intellectually,
we've heard the Bible stories, we've heard many sermons. But
God speaks to your heart. And I pray that God
takes this message by his spirit and delivers it to
(07:38):
your heart. God is speaking to you, He's calling you.
He brought you to this service today so that you
could hear this message. I beg you, I beg you
to listen to the still small voice of the Holy
Spirit speaking to you. Right now. God speaks to us
by his spirit. God also speaks to us in sickness.
(08:01):
God is speaking to us in sickness. I've seen this
many many times. You go to the doctor and you
get a bad report. Is cancer, or you have heart disease,
or you've got a physical problem of some kind. And
how often does God use sickness to remind us how
(08:21):
frail we are, how weak we are, that we're on
our way to death. You say, well, I'm not really
that sick, I'm in perfect health. No, you're dying. Everyone
is dying. I mean cells are dying in your body constantly. Physically,
you're deteriortory. I mean that backache, you have the fact
that your eyes are dimming. I'm wearing glasses. Some of
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you are as well, because our eyes are sick, our
back is sick, our body is sick, and our soul
is sick. That's what God does when he uses illness
are infirmities to speak to you in some way. It's
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a relentless reality that we're dying. You're on your way
to a life beyond. And when you die, you don't
just die and be buried in the grave and that's it.
You will spend eternity consciously forever and ever, either in
heaven or in hell in eternity. So sometimes when somebody
gets sick, they say God, I need you, I hear you.
(09:29):
And then God speaks through sorrows, through pain, maybe the
pain of loss tears. God uses heartbreak in your life
to speak to your heart. Your heart is breaking, and
because your heart is breaking for some reason, the spirit
is speaking. God is speaking to you right now, even
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some who are facing emotional crisis or problems in your lives.
We've talked today about addressing these issues in our lives,
and they're very real. And sometimes the pain and the
pressure of life and the struggles that we have and
the sorrows that we have in lives can be used
(10:15):
of God as He speaks to us in our sorrows.
It was in the sorrow of Mary and Martha when
their brother Lazarus died, that Jesus came to them and said,
I am the resurrection and the life he who believes
in me, though dead, yet shall he live. It's in
those times of deep sorrow and pain and agony that
(10:37):
God is speaking to you. God is using pain to
get your attention. C. S. Lewis described sorrow and pain
as God's megaphone. He shouts to us in our pleasures,
but he whispers to us in our pain. God speaks.
(10:59):
It may be some financial loss. I've known many people
who have lost everything in life financially. They've lost their job,
they've lost their careers, they've lost their houses. But it
was that loss, they would say, those financial reversals in
their lives that brought them to faith in Jesus. They
were so full of self and success, and it took
a great loss in their lives to bring them down
(11:21):
onto their knees to receive Christ. Yes, God speaks, is
speaking through his spirit. God is speaking through sickness. God
is speaking through sorrow, and God is speaking through special
moments or sweetness. I could say in our lives.
Speaker 1 (11:37):
You're listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and the message
keep going. When you ask big questions of God, you
can trust He'll give you answers that grow your faith
and deepen your intimacy with Him. In his devotional the
Jesus Code, os Hawkins helps you uncover bold truths as
you search for answers to life's biggest questions. We want
(12:00):
to send you a copy of this powerful resource as thanks.
For your gift of ten dollars or more so, request
your copy of the Jesus Code. When you call and
give today, call one eight hundred seven ninety five four
six two seven. That's one eight hundred seven ninety five
four six two seven. You can also text the word
(12:20):
code to five nine seven eight nine. Don't let stress
rob you of peace. It is possible to break the
destructive grip of stress on your life and enjoy the
peace and abundance God desires for you. That's what doctor
Graham helps you do in his booklet Breaking Free from Stress.
We'll send you a digital download of Breaking Free from
(12:41):
Stress when you sign up for email updates from PowerPoint Today.
Just go to PowerPoint dot org slash stress and sign
up today. Now let's get back to today's message. Keep going.
Speaker 2 (12:56):
God has been so good to you. God has blessed
you in so many ways, and in these sweet moments
of life, in these tender moments of life, if you
will listen, God is speaking. It could be the birth
of a baby. I know many people they were living
their own lives, their own way. But the birth of
a child. When God placed a baby in your hands
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and in your hearts, that made all the difference. You
knew that you needed God, that you wanted to be
a godly mom, a godly dad. So you turned to
the Lord. God spoke to you through a child. The
scripture says, a little child will lead them. I'm saying
that these great and gracious moments in our lives, God
uses to speak to us. The scripture says, the goodness
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of God leads to repentance. The goodness of God leads
to repentance. He loves you, He's good. He died on
the cross to save you. He rose again that you
could have eternal life. You can be set free from
your sin, from your habits, from your addictions, by the
power of Jesus. And sometimes God uses a prison to
(14:03):
set us free, a prison of pain, a prison of sorrow.
But these sweet moments, God is speaking to you. It
may be on a beautiful sunlit morning or a sunset.
It may be on a cruise and looking at the
magnificent ocean. It might be the love of a child,
or of a godly wife or a devoted husband. But
God is speaking to you in the good times, the
(14:25):
blessed times, the sweet times of life. Don't take that
for granted. Not only does God speak to us by
his spirit and through our sicknesses, through our sorrows, and
through our special moments, but God speaks through his servants.
God may have spoken to you through a song. God
(14:45):
speaks through the testimony of his people today. If you
hear his voice. God may speak to you through a baptism.
God may speak to you through a little gospel track
of book. You know what a gospel track is, a
little booklet that briefly he describes the gospel. We've got
a young pastor over in Raleigh, North Carolina. He grew
(15:07):
up in an unsaved, unchurched home in Detroit, Michigan. Dad
worked in the auto industry. There Dad was lost as
a ball in high weeds. They never went to church.
But one day his father went into the restroom and
found on the floor in the stall a gospel track.
Somebody had just thrown it on the ground there. He
(15:30):
picked it up, He read it. God spoke to him.
The spirit of God converted him. He went home. He
told his family. They all came to Christ, they were
all baptized. They begin to serve the Lord. And now
the Sun is a pastor of a great, young and
growing church. In Raleigh, North Carolina. Don't tell me God
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doesn't speak. God speaks in thousands of ways, and God
is speaking to you right this very moment. God is speaking.
But then there is a stubborn rebellion that we see here,
the very idea that it would say, do not harden
your heart. The spirit of God is speaking today. If
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you hear his voice today, meaning this day of opportunity,
not this just this twenty four hour period, but right
now today, you're not promised the rest of this day,
are you. You're not promised another twenty four hours. You
may not see the sunset. So it's not talking about
(16:33):
sometime today. It's talking about today, in this day of opportunity, today,
in this day of grace, in this day of salvation,
right this very moment, now is the accepted time. Do
not harden your heart. To harden your heart is to resist,
hear me, to resist and rebel against the work of
the Holy Spirit in your life, so that your heart
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becomes increasingly difficult, and that you're no longer as responsive
and responsive to the Gospel. Here's the thing. Whatever we
do a lot, we typically get better at it. Except
for God. I've been thinking I would get better all
these years. But typically what you do again and again
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and again even GoF if you really worked at it,
you could get better. But what we do again and
again and again and again and again, we get better
at doing. And it's true if you say, if you
begin to say no to God, no, and know and
know and know and know and know. When you were younger,
your heart was tender. That's why it so eat much
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easier for a little child to come to Jesus. Let
the little children come to me. You know. The best
time to give your life to Jesus the very first
time you hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Jesus said,
unless you've become like a little child and be converted,
you'll never see the Kingdom of God. But you once
had the heart of a child, and now your heart
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is become callous by time or by decisions that you've made,
or again just saying no and know and know and
resisting so long that you're good at it. So you
can even hear a message like this one, and the
spirit of God giving you this opportunity. You could hear
a message like this when and it just goes right
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over your head or right through it doesn't penetrate your heart.
You know why, because you've allowed your heart to be hardened.
How does that happen One by procrastination, procrastination putting it off.
The Bible says, do not boast up tomorrow, because you
don't know what tomorrow holds. Again, you may not see
another day. That's the urgency of this. This is why
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we always give an invitation when we present the gospel.
We want people to decide now to follow Jesus is
so critical. There was an evangelist by the name of D. O.
Moody of the nineteenth century. When he was preaching on
an occasion. After he was done, he said, I want
everyone to pray, and then I want you to go
home and think about it. And they did, and that
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very evening the great Chicago Fire broke out across that city,
and before the day was done, half his congregation was dead.
And Moody promised God that he would never ever again
preach the gospel without giving people an opportunity to respond
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and to be saved. But you know, when your heart
gets hard, you just put it off. You put it
off again and again. Someone said, the road to hell
is paid with good intentions. You're going to do it someday.
You're thinking about it some way, but now is not
the time. The invitation is going to come and some
of you're going to be thinking, well, I got to
get a few things together in my life. I've got
to get a few things out of my life. I
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got to get myself straightened out. No, a thousand times, No,
you come just as you are. Don't put it off
promised a better time. You're not promised a better day.
This is the day the Lord has made. Another reason
that people harden their hearts is pride. Pride. I can't
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tell you how many people over the years have said
to me things like, well, I don't really need that.
In a moment, when I give that invitation, the Devil's
going to come and say, don't let that guy push you.
Don't let that guy bully you, don't let that guy
manipulate you. Don't let that message get to you. You're
better than that. You don't need that, you don't need
(20:36):
any of that. You're just find the way you are. Pride.
I ay, ay ay, it's all about you, me and mine.
Pride will lead you to hell. It was pride that
caused the devil to become the devil and rebel against God.
And it is that same sin of pride that will
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send you to hell with the devil and his angels. Pride, procrastination,
and then pleasure, selfish pleasure. People who say things like, well,
I don't have time for God. We've got too much
going on in our lives. It might not even be
bad things, you know, it could be you know your
weekend plans. I'm not giving up my weekends for God.
(21:19):
I'm not going to give up my time to serve God.
It's this selfish pleasure. But then there is sinful pleasure.
The Bible talks about those who are lovers of pleasure
rather than lovers of God. And some love their sin
more than they love God. You love your sin more
than the great salvation that God has promised you. You're hooked,
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You're caught, and your heart is becoming hardened. That's what
we're talking about. And sinful behavior again and again and
again and again can become, of course addictive, and your
heart is hardened and you don't want anymore of God.
That's why the Bible calls it here in verse thirteen.
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Hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. The deceitfulness of sin.
Sin will lie to you, It will promise you pleasure
and ultimately bring you great pain. Now there's pleasure in
sin for a season. Don't tell people, well, there's no
pleasure in sin. Of course, there's pleasure in sin. People
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wouldn't do it if it wasn't pleasurable. Whatever sin you
want to name, there's pleasure in sin. It makes you
feel better for a while, for a season, But after
that come the consequences. Sin is deceitful, Sin is damning,
and ultimately our sin settles a destiny in our lives.
(22:42):
And Jesus even spoke of people. Now get this. This
is Jesus who said, people who die in their sins,
there's no worse condition than to die in your sins.
You say, well, what if it's too late for me?
I can tell you that if you sense the spirit
(23:04):
of God dealing with you today, you're listening to this message,
you have a desire in your heart to be saved,
to know Jesus, then your heart is still open, your
heart is still responsive. You can get a callous on
your hand, you know, working playing a racket sport, you
(23:26):
can get a callous there and you can just lose
feeling in that portion of your hand. You can get
a callous on your soul, and you just are beyond feeling.
And when you're beyond feeling, you're beyond hope. But if
you are sensing the work of the Holy Spirit in
your life today God is speaking to you, then today,
(23:49):
if you hear his voice, do not harden your heart.
Come to Jesus.
Speaker 1 (23:55):
You're listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and the message
Keep Going and the devotional to Jesus Code. Os Hawkins
invites you to ask fifty two thought provoking questions found
in the Bible that will help you experience Jesus in deeper,
more authentic ways than ever before. As you dive into
these questions, you'll discover that everything we need can be
(24:17):
found in a deepening relationship with Jesus Christ. We want
to help you uncover bold truths in the search for
answers to life's biggest questions by sending you the Jesus
Code as our thanks for your gift of ten dollars
or more to help proclaim God's unchanging word through PowerPoint.
So call now for a question your copy of the
Jesus Code. Call one eight hundred seven ninety five four
(24:41):
six two seven. That's one eight hundred seven ninety five
four six two seven. You can also text the word
code to five nine seven eight nine. And don't forget
to visit Jack Graham dot org where you can shop
our East store, give a gift online, or sign up
for doctor Graham's free daily email devotional. Our website again
(25:03):
is Jack Graham dot org. And also be sure to
sign up for doctor Graham's podcast Bible in a Year
pastor what is your PowerPoint for today?
Speaker 2 (25:15):
As you've been listening today, the spirit of God has
taken the word of God and you are ready. You
are responsive in receiving Christ as your Lord and as
your savior. I want to give you an opportunity right now.
It's really why we do what we do, and that
is to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ. And
because Jesus lived and died for you and rose again,
(25:38):
you can have eternal life. You can know that your
sins are forgiven, that He paid the price on the
cross to deliver you from your sin and deliver you
from judgment, which is to come without him. And right now,
if you would put your faith and trust in Jesus
by calling on his name. Romans ten, If you confess
with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your
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heart that God has raised him from the dead, you
will be saved. So will you confess Him as your
Lord and savior today? Will you receive Him into your life?
If so, pray a prayer like this, Lord, I know
that I've sinned and I need you to be my savior.
I believe you died on the cross from me and
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rose again to give me eternal life. I turn from
my sin trust in you. Come into my life. Lord Jesus,
take control of my life. Be my Lord, my savior,
my master, and my friend. Amen. If you prayed and
invited Christ into your life, then welcome to the Family
(26:40):
of God. I wish I was there to slap a
big high five or give you a big hug, because
this is life's greatest moment. I really do want you
to connect with us and let us know of your
decision to begin following Christ. We have follow up materials,
materials that will help you grow in your faith as
your new life in Christ becomes a part of your
everyday walk with Him. We want to hear from you.
(27:02):
We want to pray for you, we want to encourage you,
and we want to bless you in Jesus' name. So
take the next step. Right now, have you received Christ
into your life, take the next step by contacting us
here at PowerPoint. There's someone standing by who can't wait
to encourage you in your faith today.
Speaker 1 (27:20):
If you've prayed that prayer with doctor Graham and accepted
Jesus as your Lord and Savior, we'd love to hear
from you so we can help you begin your new
life with Christ. Please call us at one eight hundred
seven ninety five four six two seven. That's one eight
hundred seven ninety five four six two seven, and join
(27:40):
us again next time as Doctor Graham brings a message
about how to give your burdens to Jesus and find rest.
That's next time on PowerPoint with Jack Graham. PowerPoint with
Jack Graham is sponsored by PowerPoint Ministry.
Speaker 2 (27:54):
Say
Welcome to this edition of PowerPoint with Jack Ram. A
little later in the program, we'll tell you how you
can get a copy of a devotional on fifty two
questions every believer should answer. But first, here's the message.
Keep going.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Turned to Hebrews chapter three. We're going to look at
verses seven and eight in this very powerful passage of
scripture found in the Book of Hebrews. This is our
message series these days, going the Distance. The Book of
Hebrews was written primarily for three groups of people. One
Jewish Christians believers, people who had received and given their
(00:44):
hearts to follow Christ, but persecution was setting in and resistance,
and many were struggling to get through and to endure
throughout life. A second group among the Christians in that
era and Jewish believers, some who were on the edge
and ready to turn back, to go away from Christ
(01:06):
and to go back into their old way of life,
back into their old religion. And because they were struggling
personally and they were not experiencing the fullness of the
supremacy and the sufficiency of Christ in their lives, they
were looking to go back. Their heads were being turned
and looking over their shoulders. Maybe it's better back there
(01:27):
rather than going forward. That's another group, and that's why
so often in the Book of Hebrews, as we're seeing,
we see these challenges to go on, to go forward,
to go to maturity, don't turn back, whatever you do.
But there's a third group of people that were in
this church and a part of this body of believers
(01:49):
who received this letter so long ago, and they're still
in the church today, And that is people who do
not know Christ. People who were guessed the church, are
people who have been invited by other believers. Are people
who may have grown up without a personal relationship with Christ,
but are still in the church. They are unbelievers in
(02:12):
the Church. So there are warning passages throughout the Word
of God, and certainly in Hebrews there are five specific
warning passages. We've already seen one. How shall you escape
if you neglect so great a salvation, What a great
salvation we've been given in Christ? So how will we escape?
What's the answer if we don't have salvation in Christ?
(02:34):
There is no hope, There is no answer apart from
the Lord Jesus Christ. And then comes this second warning
in chapter three, verses seven, eight and a, which says. Therefore,
as the Holy Spirit says today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts. As in the Rebellion. Three
(02:58):
times in Hebrew chapter three, we're told, do not harden
your heart. Because it's possible for you to grow up
in church. It's possible for you to go to church
and yet have a hardened heart. In fact, is probable
if you go to church and you internally reject the gospel,
(03:19):
if you don't know the Lord, you become what I
would call gospel hardened. You've heard it so much that
your heart is closed off and disconnected from the power
of God, as the Bible says, having a form of
Godliness but denying its power. So I'm saying to you
that I'm speaking today to people who really need this message,
(03:40):
because did you know is possible to pass the point
of no return that your heart becomes so hardened, callous
because you've said no, and know, and know, and know
and know to the Gospel. To the grace of God,
God loves you. Jesus died on the cross for you,
(04:03):
he rose again. And even as I say that for
some of you in when right over your heads you've
heard it so many times before, and your heart is hardening.
You don't have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. May
God use his word today to break the hardest hearts
and bring you to faith in Jesus Christ. What do
(04:23):
we want to say? Number one, let's talk about spiritual conviction.
Spiritual conviction. God is speaking. Do you see how it
says in verse seven, as the Holy Spirit says today,
if you hear his voice, do not harden your heart.
God is speaking, and when God speaks, he convicts and
(04:45):
convinces us, convicting us of our sin and convincing us
that Jesus Christ is Lord. We've been learning in the
Book of Hebrews that Jesus is Lord, superior, supreme among
all other gods, not created by God, but God himself,
who created all things. This is who Jesus is. And
it's the Holy Spirit's job, his work, his ministry, to
(05:07):
convict you of your sin, of sin, righteousness and judgment,
as Jesus had said, and to convince you that Jesus
Christ is Lord, because no one can say that Jesus
is Lord apart from the Holy Spirit. And so the
Holy Spirit is speaking to you, and not just in church,
(05:27):
of course, God's been speaking to you all alone. He
may speak to you as you're just driving down the road.
He may speak to you while you're tossing and turning
at night. He may speak to you on a ball field.
I know when I was a teenager, God spoke to
me on a baseball field and call me to ministry.
God speaks in every place. God may speak to you
(05:49):
at a party. You're out there doing the wrong thing,
and God speaks to you. He impresses us, he influenced.
Of course, He speaks through the Bible, God's world. But
God takes his word and by his spirit he drives
it home into our hearts. God speaks, how number one,
by his spirit. God is speaking by his spirit, his
(06:12):
Holy Spirit, prompting you to respond, prodding you to turn
from your sin and repent and respond to Jesus Christ.
It's the Holy Spirit's work to, like a great physician,
push and prod a little bit, to remind you how
much you desperately need the Lord, that you need to
be saved. And for some of you. Right now, as
(06:33):
I'm speaking, the Holy Spirit is speaking to you inside.
You say, is it out loud? No? Is louder than
that it's inside, it's internally. God is speaking to your heart.
You say, what's the heart? The inner you? Now, the
physical heart is beating, and you have life and the
blood flow of your heart. But the Bible says, out
(06:55):
of the heart flow the issues of life, talking about
your spiritual heart, the person of you. If I ask
you to point to yourself in fact, right now, just
point to yourself. I want to see what happens. Point
to yourself. Oh not many people went up here. You
went right here. You point to yourself. That's your heart,
(07:16):
that's you, that's the inner you, that's the inner life.
That's the part of you that God sees and knows.
That's where God speaks. And so often we've heard God intellectually,
we've heard the Bible stories, we've heard many sermons. But
God speaks to your heart. And I pray that God
takes this message by his spirit and delivers it to
(07:38):
your heart. God is speaking to you, He's calling you.
He brought you to this service today so that you
could hear this message. I beg you, I beg you
to listen to the still small voice of the Holy
Spirit speaking to you. Right now. God speaks to us
by his spirit. God also speaks to us in sickness.
(08:01):
God is speaking to us in sickness. I've seen this
many many times. You go to the doctor and you
get a bad report. Is cancer, or you have heart disease,
or you've got a physical problem of some kind. And
how often does God use sickness to remind us how
(08:21):
frail we are, how weak we are, that we're on
our way to death. You say, well, I'm not really
that sick, I'm in perfect health. No, you're dying. Everyone
is dying. I mean cells are dying in your body constantly. Physically,
you're deteriortory. I mean that backache, you have the fact
that your eyes are dimming. I'm wearing glasses. Some of
(08:44):
you are as well, because our eyes are sick, our
back is sick, our body is sick, and our soul
is sick. That's what God does when he uses illness
are infirmities to speak to you in some way. It's
(09:05):
a relentless reality that we're dying. You're on your way
to a life beyond. And when you die, you don't
just die and be buried in the grave and that's it.
You will spend eternity consciously forever and ever, either in
heaven or in hell in eternity. So sometimes when somebody
gets sick, they say God, I need you, I hear you.
(09:29):
And then God speaks through sorrows, through pain, maybe the
pain of loss tears. God uses heartbreak in your life
to speak to your heart. Your heart is breaking, and
because your heart is breaking for some reason, the spirit
is speaking. God is speaking to you right now, even
(09:53):
some who are facing emotional crisis or problems in your lives.
We've talked today about addressing these issues in our lives,
and they're very real. And sometimes the pain and the
pressure of life and the struggles that we have and
the sorrows that we have in lives can be used
(10:15):
of God as He speaks to us in our sorrows.
It was in the sorrow of Mary and Martha when
their brother Lazarus died, that Jesus came to them and said,
I am the resurrection and the life he who believes
in me, though dead, yet shall he live. It's in
those times of deep sorrow and pain and agony that
(10:37):
God is speaking to you. God is using pain to
get your attention. C. S. Lewis described sorrow and pain
as God's megaphone. He shouts to us in our pleasures,
but he whispers to us in our pain. God speaks.
(10:59):
It may be some financial loss. I've known many people
who have lost everything in life financially. They've lost their job,
they've lost their careers, they've lost their houses. But it
was that loss, they would say, those financial reversals in
their lives that brought them to faith in Jesus. They
were so full of self and success, and it took
a great loss in their lives to bring them down
(11:21):
onto their knees to receive Christ. Yes, God speaks, is
speaking through his spirit. God is speaking through sickness. God
is speaking through sorrow, and God is speaking through special
moments or sweetness. I could say in our lives.
Speaker 1 (11:37):
You're listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and the message
keep going. When you ask big questions of God, you
can trust He'll give you answers that grow your faith
and deepen your intimacy with Him. In his devotional the
Jesus Code, os Hawkins helps you uncover bold truths as
you search for answers to life's biggest questions. We want
(12:00):
to send you a copy of this powerful resource as thanks.
For your gift of ten dollars or more so, request
your copy of the Jesus Code. When you call and
give today, call one eight hundred seven ninety five four
six two seven. That's one eight hundred seven ninety five
four six two seven. You can also text the word
(12:20):
code to five nine seven eight nine. Don't let stress
rob you of peace. It is possible to break the
destructive grip of stress on your life and enjoy the
peace and abundance God desires for you. That's what doctor
Graham helps you do in his booklet Breaking Free from Stress.
We'll send you a digital download of Breaking Free from
(12:41):
Stress when you sign up for email updates from PowerPoint Today.
Just go to PowerPoint dot org slash stress and sign
up today. Now let's get back to today's message. Keep going.
Speaker 2 (12:56):
God has been so good to you. God has blessed
you in so many ways, and in these sweet moments
of life, in these tender moments of life, if you
will listen, God is speaking. It could be the birth
of a baby. I know many people they were living
their own lives, their own way. But the birth of
a child. When God placed a baby in your hands
(13:17):
and in your hearts, that made all the difference. You
knew that you needed God, that you wanted to be
a godly mom, a godly dad. So you turned to
the Lord. God spoke to you through a child. The
scripture says, a little child will lead them. I'm saying
that these great and gracious moments in our lives, God
uses to speak to us. The scripture says, the goodness
(13:40):
of God leads to repentance. The goodness of God leads
to repentance. He loves you, He's good. He died on
the cross to save you. He rose again that you
could have eternal life. You can be set free from
your sin, from your habits, from your addictions, by the
power of Jesus. And sometimes God uses a prison to
(14:03):
set us free, a prison of pain, a prison of sorrow.
But these sweet moments, God is speaking to you. It
may be on a beautiful sunlit morning or a sunset.
It may be on a cruise and looking at the
magnificent ocean. It might be the love of a child,
or of a godly wife or a devoted husband. But
God is speaking to you in the good times, the
(14:25):
blessed times, the sweet times of life. Don't take that
for granted. Not only does God speak to us by
his spirit and through our sicknesses, through our sorrows, and
through our special moments, but God speaks through his servants.
God may have spoken to you through a song. God
(14:45):
speaks through the testimony of his people today. If you
hear his voice. God may speak to you through a baptism.
God may speak to you through a little gospel track
of book. You know what a gospel track is, a
little booklet that briefly he describes the gospel. We've got
a young pastor over in Raleigh, North Carolina. He grew
(15:07):
up in an unsaved, unchurched home in Detroit, Michigan. Dad
worked in the auto industry. There Dad was lost as
a ball in high weeds. They never went to church.
But one day his father went into the restroom and
found on the floor in the stall a gospel track.
Somebody had just thrown it on the ground there. He
(15:30):
picked it up, He read it. God spoke to him.
The spirit of God converted him. He went home. He
told his family. They all came to Christ, they were
all baptized. They begin to serve the Lord. And now
the Sun is a pastor of a great, young and
growing church. In Raleigh, North Carolina. Don't tell me God
(15:50):
doesn't speak. God speaks in thousands of ways, and God
is speaking to you right this very moment. God is speaking.
But then there is a stubborn rebellion that we see here,
the very idea that it would say, do not harden
your heart. The spirit of God is speaking today. If
(16:13):
you hear his voice today, meaning this day of opportunity,
not this just this twenty four hour period, but right
now today, you're not promised the rest of this day,
are you. You're not promised another twenty four hours. You
may not see the sunset. So it's not talking about
(16:33):
sometime today. It's talking about today, in this day of opportunity, today,
in this day of grace, in this day of salvation,
right this very moment, now is the accepted time. Do
not harden your heart. To harden your heart is to resist,
hear me, to resist and rebel against the work of
the Holy Spirit in your life, so that your heart
(16:57):
becomes increasingly difficult, and that you're no longer as responsive
and responsive to the Gospel. Here's the thing. Whatever we
do a lot, we typically get better at it. Except
for God. I've been thinking I would get better all
these years. But typically what you do again and again
(17:21):
and again even GoF if you really worked at it,
you could get better. But what we do again and
again and again and again and again, we get better
at doing. And it's true if you say, if you
begin to say no to God, no, and know and
know and know and know and know. When you were younger,
your heart was tender. That's why it so eat much
(17:42):
easier for a little child to come to Jesus. Let
the little children come to me. You know. The best
time to give your life to Jesus the very first
time you hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Jesus said,
unless you've become like a little child and be converted,
you'll never see the Kingdom of God. But you once
had the heart of a child, and now your heart
(18:04):
is become callous by time or by decisions that you've made,
or again just saying no and know and know and
resisting so long that you're good at it. So you
can even hear a message like this one, and the
spirit of God giving you this opportunity. You could hear
a message like this when and it just goes right
(18:27):
over your head or right through it doesn't penetrate your heart.
You know why, because you've allowed your heart to be hardened.
How does that happen One by procrastination, procrastination putting it off.
The Bible says, do not boast up tomorrow, because you
don't know what tomorrow holds. Again, you may not see
another day. That's the urgency of this. This is why
(18:48):
we always give an invitation when we present the gospel.
We want people to decide now to follow Jesus is
so critical. There was an evangelist by the name of D. O.
Moody of the nineteenth century. When he was preaching on
an occasion. After he was done, he said, I want
everyone to pray, and then I want you to go
home and think about it. And they did, and that
(19:11):
very evening the great Chicago Fire broke out across that city,
and before the day was done, half his congregation was dead.
And Moody promised God that he would never ever again
preach the gospel without giving people an opportunity to respond
(19:32):
and to be saved. But you know, when your heart
gets hard, you just put it off. You put it
off again and again. Someone said, the road to hell
is paid with good intentions. You're going to do it someday.
You're thinking about it some way, but now is not
the time. The invitation is going to come and some
of you're going to be thinking, well, I got to
get a few things together in my life. I've got
to get a few things out of my life. I
(19:53):
got to get myself straightened out. No, a thousand times, No,
you come just as you are. Don't put it off
promised a better time. You're not promised a better day.
This is the day the Lord has made. Another reason
that people harden their hearts is pride. Pride. I can't
(20:15):
tell you how many people over the years have said
to me things like, well, I don't really need that.
In a moment, when I give that invitation, the Devil's
going to come and say, don't let that guy push you.
Don't let that guy bully you, don't let that guy
manipulate you. Don't let that message get to you. You're
better than that. You don't need that, you don't need
(20:36):
any of that. You're just find the way you are. Pride.
I ay, ay ay, it's all about you, me and mine.
Pride will lead you to hell. It was pride that
caused the devil to become the devil and rebel against God.
And it is that same sin of pride that will
(20:57):
send you to hell with the devil and his angels. Pride, procrastination,
and then pleasure, selfish pleasure. People who say things like, well,
I don't have time for God. We've got too much
going on in our lives. It might not even be
bad things, you know, it could be you know your
weekend plans. I'm not giving up my weekends for God.
(21:19):
I'm not going to give up my time to serve God.
It's this selfish pleasure. But then there is sinful pleasure.
The Bible talks about those who are lovers of pleasure
rather than lovers of God. And some love their sin
more than they love God. You love your sin more
than the great salvation that God has promised you. You're hooked,
(21:41):
You're caught, and your heart is becoming hardened. That's what
we're talking about. And sinful behavior again and again and
again and again can become, of course addictive, and your
heart is hardened and you don't want anymore of God.
That's why the Bible calls it here in verse thirteen.
(22:01):
Hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. The deceitfulness of sin.
Sin will lie to you, It will promise you pleasure
and ultimately bring you great pain. Now there's pleasure in
sin for a season. Don't tell people, well, there's no
pleasure in sin. Of course, there's pleasure in sin. People
(22:22):
wouldn't do it if it wasn't pleasurable. Whatever sin you
want to name, there's pleasure in sin. It makes you
feel better for a while, for a season, But after
that come the consequences. Sin is deceitful, Sin is damning,
and ultimately our sin settles a destiny in our lives.
(22:42):
And Jesus even spoke of people. Now get this. This
is Jesus who said, people who die in their sins,
there's no worse condition than to die in your sins.
You say, well, what if it's too late for me?
I can tell you that if you sense the spirit
(23:04):
of God dealing with you today, you're listening to this message,
you have a desire in your heart to be saved,
to know Jesus, then your heart is still open, your
heart is still responsive. You can get a callous on
your hand, you know, working playing a racket sport, you
(23:26):
can get a callous there and you can just lose
feeling in that portion of your hand. You can get
a callous on your soul, and you just are beyond feeling.
And when you're beyond feeling, you're beyond hope. But if
you are sensing the work of the Holy Spirit in
your life today God is speaking to you, then today,
(23:49):
if you hear his voice, do not harden your heart.
Come to Jesus.
Speaker 1 (23:55):
You're listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and the message
Keep Going and the devotional to Jesus Code. Os Hawkins
invites you to ask fifty two thought provoking questions found
in the Bible that will help you experience Jesus in deeper,
more authentic ways than ever before. As you dive into
these questions, you'll discover that everything we need can be
(24:17):
found in a deepening relationship with Jesus Christ. We want
to help you uncover bold truths in the search for
answers to life's biggest questions by sending you the Jesus
Code as our thanks for your gift of ten dollars
or more to help proclaim God's unchanging word through PowerPoint.
So call now for a question your copy of the
Jesus Code. Call one eight hundred seven ninety five four
(24:41):
six two seven. That's one eight hundred seven ninety five
four six two seven. You can also text the word
code to five nine seven eight nine. And don't forget
to visit Jack Graham dot org where you can shop
our East store, give a gift online, or sign up
for doctor Graham's free daily email devotional. Our website again
(25:03):
is Jack Graham dot org. And also be sure to
sign up for doctor Graham's podcast Bible in a Year
pastor what is your PowerPoint for today?
Speaker 2 (25:15):
As you've been listening today, the spirit of God has
taken the word of God and you are ready. You
are responsive in receiving Christ as your Lord and as
your savior. I want to give you an opportunity right now.
It's really why we do what we do, and that
is to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ. And
because Jesus lived and died for you and rose again,
(25:38):
you can have eternal life. You can know that your
sins are forgiven, that He paid the price on the
cross to deliver you from your sin and deliver you
from judgment, which is to come without him. And right now,
if you would put your faith and trust in Jesus
by calling on his name. Romans ten, If you confess
with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your
(25:59):
heart that God has raised him from the dead, you
will be saved. So will you confess Him as your
Lord and savior today? Will you receive Him into your life?
If so, pray a prayer like this, Lord, I know
that I've sinned and I need you to be my savior.
I believe you died on the cross from me and
(26:19):
rose again to give me eternal life. I turn from
my sin trust in you. Come into my life. Lord Jesus,
take control of my life. Be my Lord, my savior,
my master, and my friend. Amen. If you prayed and
invited Christ into your life, then welcome to the Family
(26:40):
of God. I wish I was there to slap a
big high five or give you a big hug, because
this is life's greatest moment. I really do want you
to connect with us and let us know of your
decision to begin following Christ. We have follow up materials,
materials that will help you grow in your faith as
your new life in Christ becomes a part of your
everyday walk with Him. We want to hear from you.
(27:02):
We want to pray for you, we want to encourage you,
and we want to bless you in Jesus' name. So
take the next step. Right now, have you received Christ
into your life, take the next step by contacting us
here at PowerPoint. There's someone standing by who can't wait
to encourage you in your faith today.
Speaker 1 (27:20):
If you've prayed that prayer with doctor Graham and accepted
Jesus as your Lord and Savior, we'd love to hear
from you so we can help you begin your new
life with Christ. Please call us at one eight hundred
seven ninety five four six two seven. That's one eight
hundred seven ninety five four six two seven, and join
(27:40):
us again next time as Doctor Graham brings a message
about how to give your burdens to Jesus and find rest.
That's next time on PowerPoint with Jack Graham. PowerPoint with
Jack Graham is sponsored by PowerPoint Ministry.
Speaker 2 (27:54):
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