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00:01 These were very practical comments. 00:02 And they all tie in well 00:04 with what the apostle Paul was trying to tell 00:07 those in the Ephesian congregation 00:10 about examining themselves. 00:12 The same way we have to do today 00:14 —examining ourselves so that we please Jehovah. 00:16 If you’d like, please open up to Ephesians chapter 5, 00:20 and we’ll read verse 10, which is our theme scripture. 00:24 Ephesians 5:10, it says: 00:28 “Keep on making sure of what is acceptable to the Lord.” 00:31 And then it goes on in verse 11: 00:34 “And stop sharing in the unfruitful works that belong to the darkness; 00:39 rather, expose them for what they are.” 00:43 So it’s very clear to us, in this chapter of Ephesians chapter 5, 00:48 that there are things that Jehovah views as acceptable 00:52 and things he views as unacceptable. 00:55 Jehovah’s standard of what is unacceptable 00:58 is outlined in quite a few of the verses in chapter 5 here. 01:01 If you would just scan through verses 3, 4, and 5, 01:06 we’ll see that unwholesome talk about sex, 01:09 shameful conduct, obscene jesting 01:13 —and then verse 18, drunkenness— 01:16 well, these are things that will bar us from God’s Kingdom. 01:20 When you think about entertainment today, 01:23 it’s nearly impossible to try to find something 01:25 that is acceptable to Jehovah 01:27 that does not have immoral sex, pornography, 01:31 spiritism, and violence. 01:33 Satan has thoroughly saturated all forms of the media. 01:37 So thoroughly, that it’s in our literature, 01:40 it’s in movies, it’s in electronic games, 01:42 and everything that we can think of Satan has infiltrated. 01:46 Yes, he knows that Jehovah hates these things, 01:50 and he doesn’t mind if part of our heart hates these things 01:54 as long as part of our heart loves these things. 01:57 So we do well to ask ourselves: 02:00 ‘Does the entertainment that I choose help me 02:04 ‘in my being acceptable to Jehovah? 02:06 ‘Does it help me to have the qualities 02:10 ‘that Jehovah endears in me, 02:12 and will he draw closer to me?’ 02:14 Well, the spirit of the world reflects rebellion of the Bible, 02:18 which outlines Jehovah’s qualities and his standards. 02:22 We want to show respect for the Bible, 02:25 which teaches us to love what Jehovah loves 02:28 and hate what he hates. 02:31 And what will help us to do this and resist the spirit of the world 02:35 and draw closer to Jehovah and be acceptable to him? 02:38 Let’s notice verse 17, 02:40 chapter 5 and verse 17, it says: 02:44 “On this account stop being unreasonable, 02:46 but keep perceiving what the will of Jehovah is.” 02:51 We need to constantly think: 02:53 ‘What would Jehovah want me to do?’ 02:56 Well, verse 1 and verse 2 help us to appreciate this, it says: 03:00 “Become imitators of God, as beloved children, 03:03 “and go on walking in love, just as the Christ also loved us 03:07 “and [he] gave himself [up] for us as an offering 03:10 and a sacrifice, a sweet fragrance to God.” 03:14 So, bottom line, we need to imitate Jehovah and Jesus. 03:18 Our sacrifices need to be acceptable to Jehovah 03:22 as was Jesus’. 03:24 What made Jesus so pleasing? 03:27 Well, he did everything the way Jehovah wanted him to do. 03:31 In fact, he said something that we want to say one day: 03:34 “I always do the things pleasing to him.” 03:37 And one day in perfection, we will be able to say that. 03:40 Jesus was pleasing in his word, in his deed, in his actions. 03:44 Well, how can we imitate Jesus and thus imitate Jehovah? 03:48 Well, let’s briefly discuss three ways. 03:51 First: Pray for God’s holy spirit. 03:54 When confronted with trials, what did Jesus do? 03:57 He did not rely on himself; he petitioned Jehovah for help. 04:02 So if we’re struggling with a temptation 04:04 —a certain fleshly weakness— 04:06 it’s vital that we do the same. 04:09 We can also talk to the elders —our loving shepherds— 04:11 who will pray with us, and they will definitely help us 04:15 to remain faithful with words of encouragement. 04:19 Number two: Obey Jehovah completely. 04:23 Jesus always did things that were pleasing to his Father. 04:26 Luke 22:42 says: 04:29 “Let, not my will, but yours take place.” 04:32 Remember, there is no substitute for obedience. 04:36 We cannot be acceptable without obedience. 04:39 Number three: Know the Scriptures well. 04:42 Jesus used God’s Word as his authority. 04:46 His whole life revolved around knowing 04:49 and obeying and encouraging others about God’s laws. 04:52 We all have busy schedules. 04:54 We have work to do —busy in the congregation. 04:57 It’s more than just trying to find time to dig deep into God’s Word; 05:01 we must make the time. 05:03 So, what do our schedules tell us 05:06 about our love for Jehovah? 05:09 our love for his Word? 05:11 Do we read the Bible daily? 05:14 And if we do, how much time do we take 05:17 to let it sink into our mind and our heart and to meditate? 05:22 Are we content with just looking 05:24 at the basics —the surface— 05:26 or digging deeper and deeper below the surface? 05:31 It’s vital that we train our minds and our hearts, 05:34 but it takes time and it takes effort, 05:37 just as a marathon runner must devote much time and effort 05:40 to his training to run a race. 05:43 In fact, as we know, Christians are likened 05:45 to running a race, and it’s a race for life. 05:47 Let’s see what the apostle Paul had to tell us. 05:49 If we go over to 1 Corinthians, 05:53 1 Corinthians chapter 9, 05:56 a scripture we know very well, and we’ll start in verse 24. 06:01 And there are a few key elements 06:02 that we would like to extract as we’re reading these verses. 06:05 Here Paul said: 06:07 “Do you not know that the runners in a race all run, 06:09 “but only one receives the prize? 06:12 “Run in such a way that you may win it. 06:16 “Now everyone competing in a contest 06:18 “exercises self-control in all things [there’s a key]. 06:22 “Of course, they do it to receive a crown that can perish, 06:25 “but we, one that does not perish. 06:28 “Therefore, the way I am running is not aimlessly; 06:31 “the way I am aiming my blows 06:33 “is so as not to be striking the air; 06:37 “but I pummel my body 06:39 “[and the footnote says, “punish; strictly discipline”] 06:42 “and lead it as a slave, so that after I have preached to others, 06:46 “I myself should not become disapproved 06:50 [or the footnote says, “disqualified”] somehow.” 06:55 So we definitely want to have self-control like a runner. 06:58 We need to say no to Satan’s world 07:00 and yes to things that are acceptable to Jehovah. 07:04 And we definitely want to make sure that we are acceptable 07:07 and never to be disapproved. 07:10 Perhaps we can illustrate this. 07:12 In the 1994 New York City Marathon, 07:15 there was a young man named German Silva, 07:18 and he ran an outstanding race. 07:21 In fact, there was only half a mile to the finish line in Central Park, 07:25 and somehow he got distracted. 07:27 He took the wrong path. 07:29 Did he lose the race? 07:31 Well, the lead runner took over. 07:33 Well, he got redirected; he went back on the path; 07:36 he began to run faster and faster. 07:39 He passed up the lead runner, 07:41 and he won the New York City Marathon by two seconds. 07:44 What does this tell us? 07:46 It tells us that sometimes we can lose our focus, we can be sidetracked, 07:50 or we could get involved in unacceptable conduct. 07:54 But allow God’s Word and loving shepherds to readjust our course. 07:59 Never give up. 08:01 Just a few years later, after that —1997— 08:04 German began running again in a New York City Marathon. 08:07 He thought he had this one all in the bag; 08:10 he thought he was going to win this race. 08:12 But he started to run slower. 08:14 He began to— He dehydrated. 08:17 Instead of taking just a few seconds to hydrate, 08:20 he skipped that. 08:21 He thought he could do it. 08:23 Well, what could this tell us? 08:25 Well, we cannot afford to take shortcuts. 08:27 We need to have a regular intake of spiritual food 08:30 to keep pace with Jehovah’s organization. 08:33 We do this by what the commenters told us today, 08:36 that is, a regular intake of God’s Word and meditation. 08:39 As we run the Christian course —the race for life— 08:42 remember, it’s not the speed, it’s the direction 08:46 —that’s what matters the most. 08:48 And may we always run in such a way that is acceptable to Jehovah.
00:01 These were very practical comments. 00:02 And they all tie in well 00:04 with what the apostle Paul was trying to tell 00:07 those in the Ephesian congregation 00:10 about examining themselves. 00:12 The same way we have to do today 00:14 —examining ourselves so that we please Jehovah. 00:16 If you’d like, please open up to Ephesians chapter 5, 00:20 and we’ll read verse 10, which is our theme scripture. 00:24 Ephesians 5:10, it says: 00:28 “Keep on making sure of what is acceptable to the Lord.” 00:31 And then it goes on in verse 11: 00:34 “And stop sharing in the unfruitful works that belong to the darkness; 00:39 rather, expose them for what they are.” 00:43 So it’s very clear to us, in this chapter of Ephesians chapter 5, 00:48 that there are things that Jehovah views as acceptable 00:52 and things he views as unacceptable. 00:55 Jehovah’s standard of what is unacceptable 00:58 is outlined in quite a few of the verses in chapter 5 here. 01:01 If you would just scan through verses 3, 4, and 5, 01:06 we’ll see that unwholesome talk about sex, 01:09 shameful conduct, obscene jesting 01:13 —and then verse 18, drunkenness— 01:16 well, these are things that will bar us from God’s Kingdom. 01:20 When you think about entertainment today, 01:23 it’s nearly impossible to try to find something 01:25 that is acceptable to Jehovah 01:27 that does not have immoral sex, pornography, 01:31 spiritism, and violence. 01:33 Satan has thoroughly saturated all forms of the media. 01:37 So thoroughly, that it’s in our literature, 01:40 it’s in movies, it’s in electronic games, 01:42 and everything that we can think of Satan has infiltrated. 01:46 Yes, he knows that Jehovah hates these things, 01:50 and he doesn’t mind if part of our heart hates these things 01:54 as long as part of our heart loves these things. 01:57 So we do well to ask ourselves: 02:00 ‘Does the entertainment that I choose help me 02:04 ‘in my being acceptable to Jehovah? 02:06 ‘Does it help me to have the qualities 02:10 ‘that Jehovah endears in me, 02:12 and will he draw closer to me?’ 02:14 Well, the spirit of the world reflects rebellion of the Bible, 02:18 which outlines Jehovah’s qualities and his standards. 02:22 We want to show respect for the Bible, 02:25 which teaches us to love what Jehovah loves 02:28 and hate what he hates. 02:31 And what will help us to do this and resist the spirit of the world 02:35 and draw closer to Jehovah and be acceptable to him? 02:38 Let’s notice verse 17, 02:40 chapter 5 and verse 17, it says: 02:44 “On this account stop being unreasonable, 02:46 but keep perceiving what the will of Jehovah is.” 02:51 We need to constantly think: 02:53 ‘What would Jehovah want me to do?’ 02:56 Well, verse 1 and verse 2 help us to appreciate this, it says: 03:00 “Become imitators of God, as beloved children, 03:03 “and go on walking in love, just as the Christ also loved us 03:07 “and [he] gave himself [up] for us as an offering 03:10 and a sacrifice, a sweet fragrance to God.” 03:14 So, bottom line, we need to imitate Jehovah and Jesus. 03:18 Our sacrifices need to be acceptable to Jehovah 03:22 as was Jesus’. 03:24 What made Jesus so pleasing? 03:27 Well, he did everything the way Jehovah wanted him to do. 03:31 In fact, he said something that we want to say one day: 03:34 “I always do the things pleasing to him.” 03:37 And one day in perfection, we will be able to say that. 03:40 Jesus was pleasing in his word, in his deed, in his actions. 03:44 Well, how can we imitate Jesus and thus imitate Jehovah? 03:48 Well, let’s briefly discuss three ways. 03:51 First: Pray for God’s holy spirit. 03:54 When confronted with trials, what did Jesus do? 03:57 He did not rely on himself; he petitioned Jehovah for help. 04:02 So if we’re struggling with a temptation 04:04 —a certain fleshly weakness— 04:06 it’s vital that we do the same. 04:09 We can also talk to the elders —our loving shepherds— 04:11 who will pray with us, and they will definitely help us 04:15 to remain faithful with words of encouragement. 04:19 Number two: Obey Jehovah completely. 04:23 Jesus always did things that were pleasing to his Father. 04:26 Luke 22:42 says: 04:29 “Let, not my will, but yours take place.” 04:32 Remember, there is no substitute for obedience. 04:36 We cannot be acceptable without obedience. 04:39 Number three: Know the Scriptures well. 04:42 Jesus used God’s Word as his authority. 04:46 His whole life revolved around knowing 04:49 and obeying and encouraging others about God’s laws. 04:52 We all have busy schedules. 04:54 We have work to do —busy in the congregation. 04:57 It’s more than just trying to find time to dig deep into God’s Word; 05:01 we must make the time. 05:03 So, what do our schedules tell us 05:06 about our love for Jehovah? 05:09 our love for his Word? 05:11 Do we read the Bible daily? 05:14 And if we do, how much time do we take 05:17 to let it sink into our mind and our heart and to meditate? 05:22 Are we content with just looking 05:24 at the basics —the surface— 05:26 or digging deeper and deeper below the surface? 05:31 It’s vital that we train our minds and our hearts, 05:34 but it takes time and it takes effort, 05:37 just as a marathon runner must devote much time and effort 05:40 to his training to run a race. 05:43 In fact, as we know, Christians are likened 05:45 to running a race, and it’s a race for life. 05:47 Let’s see what the apostle Paul had to tell us. 05:49 If we go over to 1 Corinthians, 05:53 1 Corinthians chapter 9, 05:56 a scripture we know very well, and we’ll start in verse 24. 06:01 And there are a few key elements 06:02 that we would like to extract as we’re reading these verses. 06:05 Here Paul said: 06:07 “Do you not know that the runners in a race all run, 06:09 “but only one receives the prize? 06:12 “Run in such a way that you may win it. 06:16 “Now everyone competing in a contest 06:18 “exercises self-control in all things [there’s a key]. 06:22 “Of course, they do it to receive a crown that can perish, 06:25 “but we, one that does not perish. 06:28 “Therefore, the way I am running is not aimlessly; 06:31 “the way I am aiming my blows 06:33 “is so as not to be striking the air; 06:37 “but I pummel my body 06:39 “[and the footnote says, “punish; strictly discipline”] 06:42 “and lead it as a slave, so that after I have preached to others, 06:46 “I myself should not become disapproved 06:50 [or the footnote says, “disqualified”] somehow.” 06:55 So we definitely want to have self-control like a runner. 06:58 We need to say no to Satan’s world 07:00 and yes to things that are acceptable to Jehovah. 07:04 And we definitely want to make sure that we are acceptable 07:07 and never to be disapproved. 07:10 Perhaps we can illustrate this. 07:12 In the 1994 New York City Marathon, 07:15 there was a young man named German Silva, 07:18 and he ran an outstanding race. 07:21 In fact, there was only half a mile to the finish line in Central Park, 07:25 and somehow he got distracted. 07:27 He took the wrong path. 07:29 Did he lose the race? 07:31 Well, the lead runner took over. 07:33 Well, he got redirected; he went back on the path; 07:36 he began to run faster and faster. 07:39 He passed up the lead runner, 07:41 and he won the New York City Marathon by two seconds. 07:44 What does this tell us? 07:46 It tells us that sometimes we can lose our focus, we can be sidetracked, 07:50 or we could get involved in unacceptable conduct. 07:54 But allow God’s Word and loving shepherds to readjust our course. 07:59 Never give up. 08:01 Just a few years later, after that —1997— 08:04 German began running again in a New York City Marathon. 08:07 He thought he had this one all in the bag; 08:10 he thought he was going to win this race. 08:12 But he started to run slower. 08:14 He began to— He dehydrated. 08:17 Instead of taking just a few seconds to hydrate, 08:20 he skipped that. 08:21 He thought he could do it. 08:23 Well, what could this tell us? 08:25 Well, we cannot afford to take shortcuts. 08:27 We need to have a regular intake of spiritual food 08:30 to keep pace with Jehovah’s organization. 08:33 We do this by what the commenters told us today, 08:36 that is, a regular intake of God’s Word and meditation. 08:39 As we run the Christian course —the race for life— 08:42 remember, it’s not the speed, it’s the direction 08:46 —that’s what matters the most. 08:48 And may we always run in such a way that is acceptable to Jehovah.
