I See You!

Let's have a word of prayer, Heavenly Father, Lord, we just thank

you so much for the opportunity to come today and worship you on your day.

Lord, we just really appreciate all the power that we feel today and

possibility to worship and get to know you more. Lord. As they speak,

let it be your words, not mine. Let it be your emotions

not mine, and let it be you that goes through me and touch the

hearts of those they're listening. Did Jesus name me? Pray? Amen?

All right? John John three one to two says, now there was a

man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man

came to Jesus by night and said to him, Rabbi, we know that

you are a teacher come from God. For no one can do these signs

that you do unless God is with him. The Pharisees were the scholars of

the day. They were looked at as the ultimate scriptural authority, and they

knew it also just ask him. But Nicodemus, knowing that he has all

the answers, decides to be vulnerable and recognize someone that may be greater than

he, a master of Israel showed his acceptance of Jesus, someone without any

formal education. Jesus understands what's happening and immediately starts living in Nicodemus's emotional state.

You see, Jesus knows Nicodemus is educated and proud, but also sees

the humility and the appreciation of knowledge. Jesus answered him in John three three

and says, truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is

born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God. He doesn't praise his

heavenly Father, but instead goes directly into answering what Nicodemus really wants to know.

I always found that really interesting. There's a simple answer to understanding how

Jesus knew what question Nicodemus was going to ask before he asked the question.

Jesus knew Nicodemus, He saw Nicodemus, he knew his character. The Pharisees

thought they understood the Torah better than anyone else at the time. Jesus understood

this, and living in his emotional state, Jesus connected with him in Nicodemus's

way. In order to truly connect with someone, you have to enter their

emotional state. Many argue Nicodemus would have been an I STJ if you know

O Myers Briggs, you know what that means, or a C on thecl

for those who understand what disc is, or if you like the temperaments.

He would say he's a melancholy. But I don't want anyone to get a

hung up on that means, because that's not really the point. The point

is that Nicodemus like to be private. He didn't like to be the center

of attention. He met in a private place with one on one time with

Jesus, not in public with everyone else. He preferred practical application and facts.

We know that because of who he was, he valued justice as a

pharisee would fairness. He made decisions with logical reasoning and preferred to have matters

settled. Noticed that he took the initiative to meet with Jesus privately. He

wanted to settle the matter. Jesus went straight for the facts, no emotions

were involved, but instead provided, as Ellen White calls it, the straight

testimony, the truth. He settled the issue with Nicodemus immediately because that's what

Nicodemus needed. Sister White says that Jesus did not entertain the theoretical discussion Nicodemus

was thinking he would enter into, but instead went straight to the point of

spiritual rejuvenation. This was the facts that Nicodemus needed, He just wanted the

facts. Jesus, living in Nicodemus's emotional state, then relates to Nicodemus even

deeper. The next few verses involve a deep Bible study into what it means

to be born again, until Jesus goes into the heart of everything Nicodemus believes

in. In verse fourteen and fifteen, Jesus says, and as Moses lifted

up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the son of Man be lifted

up to whoever believes in him that may have eternal life. Combined with verse

sixteen, Jesus is giving Nicodemus a view into the future, while also explaining

what it means to be born again, that we must believe in him for

God's love the world, that he gave his only son, that whoever believes

in him should not perish, but have eternal life. This might be the

most important factual truth we have in the Bible. It is in the crucified

and risen Lord that we are able to have eternal life straight stop. That's

it is. It is simplified, factual truth that Nicodemus and many of us

need to hear. He then finishes off the conversation with Nicodemus as the son

of God would with a pharisee. John three seventeen says, for God did

not send his son into the world to condemn the world, but in order

that the world might be saved through him. That's exactly what a pharisee would

have needed to hear at that point. It's just perfect. I mean while,

think about that. The Pharisees were known to focus on condemnation through the

law, but they missed the love in the law and God's grace. Jesus

connected with Nicodemus, a straight laced pharisee, on such a profound level that

it impacted his life for years. Jesus opened the door to his heart by

connecting with him on his level. No, that's not the wrong slide,

that's where Nicodemus's heart was. In John seven, Nicodemus argued against seizing Jesus

unlawfully. Then John nineteen he was even there to help clean Jesus up.

In John chapter four, Jesus was walking their psychar and came upon Jacob's wall.

A Samaritan woman was drawing water from the well. History between Samaritans and

Jewish, as I think most of us know, we're not good. They

didn't like each other. They didn't like each other so much a lot.

They wouldn't even speak to each other. So it was odd when Jesus came

up to the woman and try to have a conversation with her. John four

seven says a woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her,

give me a drink. That right there is enough to be like what.

Jesus didn't offer to fill her cup to complete the task she was looking

to fulfill, but asked her for her drink. I would propose that Jesus

knew he would receive the response he was looking for by asking the question and

not merely providing the solutions she was looking for. The Samaritan woman responds in

John four nine with how is it that you, a Jew, asked for

a drink from me, a woman of Samaria. She's a very curious woman.

She's trying to feel it out a little bit would have been really easy

for her just to leave, but Jesus knew she wouldn't. See. What

Jesus has done is he's masterfully recognized the woman for who she really is and

use that to enter into a meaningful conversation with her. Based on the short

conversation we have between her and Jesus, for all those myers Briggs fan I

would suggest that she is an EESFP or an S in the disk scale,

or a phlegmatic in the temperaments. Now, don't get hung up on the

letters and the you know, the emotions. I know some people don't like

drawing into a box. That's not the point. The point here is that

she's from the Nicodemus. She's a different person, and Jesus recognized that her

response to Jesus was an outgoing response where she was working things through with an

inquisitive nature. Instead of recoiling at the idea of a Jew speaking to her,

she became interested in why he would do that. Her responses seemed to

be tactful as well as playful based on the end results. She seemed to

want to please others, and she seemed to like to keep her options open.

Some may argue that she might be a thinker and not a feeler.

I can understand that line of thinking. I get that, But my question

is, do you see a woman as having five husbands because she cheated on

them or because they died or left her and she needed companionship. You know,

I was raised in the Avenues Church that the woman at the well was

a cheater, a serial cheater, and that's why she had five husbands,

because she would cheat on them and they would leave her because that was room's

grounds for divorce. But what if they cheated on her? What if she

needed emotional empathy so much that she's strived to build a relationship with somebody after

they left her. See, we don't know that, But a lot of

times what we do sometimes since we make our assumptions and then we go into

a conversation with that assumption. Jesus never made assumptions. I cannot find anywhere

in the Bible, in fact or Sister White's writings that suggests that the woman

was unfaithful. But my point is this, when we make assumptions, we

are not living in their emotions, but we're living for ourselves. Jesus said

to the woman at the well in John four thirteen to fourteen. Everyone who

drinks of this water will be thirsty again. But whoever drinks of the water

that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I

will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal

life. Notice something's interested. This is the exact same thing Jesus had just

told Nicodemus in the previous chapter, but he did it in a different way.

He did it for her how she needed to hear it. The great

commission in Matthew twenty eight is to go and make disciples of all nations,

baptizing them and teaching them to obey everything Jesus commands of us. So how

do we make disciples? Do we pass out flyers and books? Do we

host seminars? Make social media posts? Is that enough? You see?

All? That's good? Don't get me wrong. I really appreciate our great

controversy ministry. I love that we do that. I think it gets us

involved and there's a spiritual blessing that we receive as well as the people that

we're providing the books. It's a great ministry. But I think Jesus would

do more. You see, he would intently try to connect with as many

people as he could on a personal intimate. We also don't make disciples by

quick one liners of truth. I know that could be hard to hear for

some of us, and we have truth. Don't get me wrong, I

fully believe in the avenous mission and the remnant Church. But when we're providing

truth and not on their level, no one hears it. The truth Jesus

wanted to get to know whomever he was talking to. He made that person

feel as they were the most important person in the world in every conversation.

Imagine the Savior of the universe talking to you and making you feel like you're

the most important person in the world in the universe. Jesus was answering a

question from the Pharisees on the greatest commandment when he said in Matthew twenty two

thirty seven to thirty nine, you should love the Lord your God with all

your heart and with all your soul, with all your mind. This is

the great and first commandment, and a second is like it. You shall

love your neighbor as yourself. You see, I found that while many of

us spend so much time trying to understand God's character. We don't spend enough

time trying to understand each other. What I hear in Sabbath school often is

give yourself into God's will, get rid of self, and focus on what

God wants for your life. But there's two parts to this greatest commandment.

There's God and there's others. Why would we treat God differently than others when

it comes to giving ourselves. We provide truth, but we don't know,

but we do it how we would like it to be presented to us,

and not how others need it to be presented to them. And guys,

I'm humbly coming to tell you this because I do the same thing. Jesus

would not have just asked out flyers and left it at that. He would

have stopped to help a car broken down and use that active service to get

to know where that person was emotionally at and witnessed to them at their level

he was. When he was touched by a woman on his way through a

crowd, he stopped his mission that he was focused on and invested emotional capital

with that woman that touched him. He made her feel like she was the

most important person in the world. Jesus listened to their concerns and then use

that to connect with them on a whole other level. Oftentimes we concentrate on

the world or in the word love, but we forget that there are two

different There are multiple ways to love each other. How Jesus love was through

connection. He spent time with them, He listened to their stories, lived

in their emotional state, and then use the opportunity to witness to them.

When you truly connect with others, you built trust, and trust open stores

that will fly wide open. But you also need to yourself. Paul talks

about purging self and giving holy into God in Galatians to twenty He says,

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who lived,

but it is Christ who lives in me, and the life I now live

in the flesh. I live by faith in the Son of God, who

loved me and gave himself for me. God wants us to remove any form

of selfishness from our lives. Galatians five twenty four says, and those who

belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Some

versions talk about they use the word lust, but you know what's interesting,

As I grew up thinking that lust was always a sexual thing, but it's

actually not if you actually look at the definition, lust is anything that promotes

self over God or others. Lust is simply being consumed with a desire for

something. It's selfish in nature. In the past, I was a very

bad husband. In fact, I was so selfish I left my wife to

handle the kids all on her own and still expected she was a good wife

to me. I'm going to admit to you guys today, I was coercive

and abusive, and it was through many years. We had three kids at

one point between the ages of zero to five years of age, and my

superhuman wife did everything on her own. I hurt my wife tremendously. I

was not a good husband. I wasn't a good person. But as I

grew closer to God, I realized that if I wanted to be more like

Christ, I needed to live for others and remove any selfish nature. It

took far too long, but eventually, through God's grace, I figured out

this important truth. And if I'm being completely honest, my wife and I

are still from what happened multiple years ago. But even with the traumay accost

her. We have been the happiest we have throughout our twenty two years of

marriage. In two weeks. In factually, we're going to celebrate our twenty

third anniversary, and I praise God every day she's stuck with me that long.

This is what God wants for all of us. He wants us all

to purge our selfish and lustful ways. He wants us to disconnect from the

idea that it's our way and you need to hear it. How we want

you to hear it. I want to show you the truth how you need

to hear it. This is how we need to be. He wants us

to dedicate our lives, to follow His will and truly connect with others.

This is what it means to crucify with Christ, to crucify our old celves

and live in Christ. I should not be married today, There's I should

be a statistic, But through God's grace and my wife's treiving nature, we

have found new life in our marriage. As such, when we live our

life for others understand who they really are, we can have an amazing marriage

to our Lord and savior. Jesus was the ultimate example of giving up self

for others. Everything he did has done is for us, is for his

friends, his brothers and sisters, even if we didn't choose him, and

like Jesus, we must be servants for each other. I'm not talking about

vacuum in the forum picking up trash. Let's be clear. I'm talking about

seeing others for who they are, for knowing them, for seeing them,

understanding who they are intimately, and then connecting with them on their level,

not ours. Philip ran into the field to find his old friends sitting under

his favorite tree. Philip wanted to introduce his new friend to his old friend

Nathaniel. On the way, Philip mentions that his friend is from Nazareth,

to which Nathaniel replies with a smirk on his play face. Can anything good

come out of Nazareth? Jesus saw Nathaniel coming towards him and said to him,

behold, and is your light? Indeed, and whom there is no

deceit. Nathaniel said to him, how do you know me? Jesus answered

him, before Philip called you when you were under the fig tree, I

saw you by the way. The Greek used for saw here can also be

used to mean perceived. I find it so much more meaningful that Jesus perceived

Nathaniel to who he was. Nathaniel just insulted Jesus, and Jesus says,

I saw you, and I want you to follow me. Isaiah six talks

about the Jewish people seeing the Savior but not perceiving whom he is. Jesus

saw Nathaniel for who he was, and in turn, Nathaniel saw Jesus for

who he was. He built that strong connection with Nathaniel as he did for

everyone with for everyone, and he spoke with John fifteen twelve says, this

is my commandment that you love one another as I have loved you. You

see, this is how Jesus loved us and loves us today. Jesus loved

others through the connections that he made with them. He still loves us to

the connection connections he builds with us. When we see others for who they

truly are, we can connect with them deeply. Then they can see Jesus

Christ for who he is through us. Then we can be the witness he

desires for us to be. So in the spirit of connection, I was

inspired by Mervin and Pastor Mike, a couple of weeks ago. If you

want to go to the next side, please write this number down. This

is my cell phone number and this is my wife's cell phone number. We

want to connect with you, guys. If you want to talk at any

point, give us a call text me. I think the hip thing now

is what's at what's at me? Is that a thing? Maybe I my

daughter's cringing over there. We want to connect with you. We want to

make meaningful relationships here. This is not something where you see me once a

week, guys. I want to really get to know you, and I

hope you can get to know me. Heavenly Father, thank you so much,

Lord for meeting us where we're at. Thank you for seeing us for

who we are. Thank you for working with us and continue to mold us

like Clay. Lord, we just asked you be with us throughout this week.

Help us to see others, and help us to get to know others.

Intimately, help us to create lasting friendships and family, and help us

to share you with others. And Jesus name you pray Amen