 Good morning. Oh, how glad we are that you joined us on this lovely Sabbath morning. From wherever you're watching, whether at home, in your car, whatever time it is that you're watching us, bless your soul for joining us. We are coming live from Nairobi Central, S.D.H.H., which is in Kenya, Nairobi, and we are glad that you are with us. With me this morning is our choristers, and we are ready to join you as we sing together to the Lord this morning. Please wave. I'll ask them to wave. That's Suleyman. That's Bovee. This is Faith and a Melanie. Before we get to it, we would like to start with a word of prayer and Bovee. Bovee, please. Bovee will lead us in prayer. Thank you. Before I start praying, we have a pianist on duty, Mr. Timothy. Hello. Let us pray. Heavenly Father, we are before your presence this wonderful Sabbath morning. Dear Lord, you want to thank you for the gift of the Sabbath, for the gift of life, and even the gift of being in your presence today. Wherever we are worshiping you from today, dear Lord, we humbly come before your holy throne that you may forgive us, that even as we worship you today, even as we dine with you, that Lord, our worship may be acceptable before the throne. And even as we praise you this morning, Lord, may our praise be acceptable. Even as we continue throughout the Sabbath, but I pray that you may lead us through till the end of it, and we shall not forget to glorify the name. This we ask in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. Thank you, Boobie, and sorry, I have forgot to mention Tim, who's our pianist for the day. Thank you so much, Tim. Song number 560. Let all things now living, rejoice with thanksgiving to God, our Creator. 560 from our SDA hymnals. Please join us in song. Sing. Let all things now be shorted and stay just to God. Jesus' name. We will sing it different from the one that we have in our SDA hymnals, and I pray that you will join us as we praise God for his name, all hail the power of Jesus' name. Oh, he was first before, let it his feet may fall. One song number 99, sorry. He's the son of our same ... We serve and welcome to our Sabbath worship. We are so glad to have you with us. Join us again for another day of worship. We pray that you had a beautiful week, and that even as you join us in fellowship that you may truly feel at Jesus' feet, find rest at his feet, even as we get on with our worship. I'll invite us to pray, let's pray. Our dear heavenly master, king of kings and Lord of lords, glory in the highest. Father, thank you for bringing us to your Sabbath rest. And thank you, dear Lord, for seeing us safely through the week. Lord, as we open our hearts and minds to study of you, to learn of you, Lord, I pray that you may feel us with your Holy Spirit, give us understanding, oh Lord, and walk with us. We commit each and every single person who's joining us today to your able hands. And Lord, we pray that wherever they are, they may experience your blessings in a mighty way. Walk with us, oh Lord, and may we abound now and forever more. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen. I am joined today by my sisters. I have Kalondu Ambua. Happy Sabbath. And Bilha Kenya. Happy Sabbath. Now, for our Bible study this quarter, we've been looking at the promise God's everlasting covenant. And we have been learning or just say, let's say we've been relearning about God's consistent character in drawing us close to Himself. We have been looking at the covenant that God has given His people, which also includes us. And today we'll be looking at the covenant in Sinai. We'll be looking at the covenant in Sinai today. And just basically, what does this covenant mean for each and every one of us? Like through the other lessons that we have gone through, we have seen that God is faithful. We have seen that His faithfulness still stands even when mankind, unfortunately, is unfaithful. And this is a characteristic that has been carried down from age to age. And it even still applies to us today. God remains faithful. So today we want to see the covenant in Sinai. And we want to look at this and just discuss it and look at it from the aspect of God's relationship with His people and what it means for us today where we are. Is it still relevant to you and me? Yeah. Maybe even as we start it off, just to open it up, Sister Bielha, when you hear Sinai, what comes to your mind? Promise. Promise. Aha, I like that, I like that. What about you, Sister Calonde? The Ten Commandments, yeah? So we're looking at what is leading up to these Ten Commandments. We're looking at the promise contained herein and how we can claim this for ourselves. Because what was written in the Bible is for you, it's for me, it's for all of us, including the promise and the commandments that were given at Mount Sinai. So our key text for this week is coming from Exodus chapter 19, verse four. Exodus chapter 19, verse four. And it says, you have seen what I did to the Egyptians and how I bore you on Eagle's wings and brought you to myself. Let me just repeat that. You have seen what I did to the Egyptians and how I bore you on Eagle's wings and brought you to myself. Now one thing that is coming out clearly is that God, in as much as he's delivering his people from physical bondage from the Egyptians, he also wants to bring them to himself like he is making an effort to bring them closer to him. And that's what exactly we'll be looking at this week. Now we have here an illustration of a young boy. This young boy grew up in a home that had seven children. Now when this boy was, he had an accident and he was taken to hospital. Now because of the situation at home, he had been used to sharing, like there was not much resources at home. So for them, for the seven children, every time there was something that needed to be eaten, like they were used to a station where they had to share. So like if there was a glass of milk, they had to like share it between say two or more people. And so the first person who would drink it had to ensure that they didn't go deep enough such that they finished for the other person. So they were like, they just measure it out. Like you drink from point A to B, then the next person does from point B to C and so on and so forth. So when he was taken to hospital after his accident and after he had gotten the care he needed, he'd gotten the care he needed, the nurse brings him a glass of milk and he looks at it and it's full and he thinks about the situation that he has been having at home. And so out of habit, he asks the nurse, how far should I drink? And the nurse is so touched by this question because she realizes that this boy is coming from a place where there was never enough. He tells the boy, you can drink all of it. For him, it's the first time and he's feeling, oh my goodness, all this just for me. And I don't know if it was you and your other boy, what would be your reaction? First of all, I'd be so happy. I'd be so moved. In fact, I would drink it slowly. Slowly, yeah. I'm like, hey, this is new. You know, it's not, if you're used to being told, okay, wait. No, that's enough. And you know, I'm just imagining any time someone exceeded the line, it was now a reason for a fight. But now I'm getting to a point where I have it. So I just do it slowly so that this is a chance of a life. So, it's really God revealing that he's moved. He's bigger, you know, and just reminding me that maybe I have been sipping. Maybe I've not been drinking enough of the fountain, but now God is telling me to drink. You know, the same way when God told the woman at the well, I'm going to give you water that you're going to, like, quench your thirst forever, you know. So this, I mean, like, oh my gosh, this is just amazing, you know, and that is just one way of God showing us that he loves us, you know, he cares for us. And he's like, I have given you everything. It's for you to take, you know. So the guy's like, oh, it's mine, you know. So I want to just think that if I was that boy, in fact, I would even cry, you know. I can imagine. I wouldn't wait for the next meal. I'm like, I want now to stay here forever. Yeah, yeah. Thank you for that. Like, God has freely given us this gift of salvation. It's ours to take, it's ours to just enjoy it, minute by minute, every bit of it God has given us. And so this week we'll just be looking at these promises that come with the covenant at Sinai. And these promises have been freely given to us and we need to just freely take them up, own them, and work with them. Yeah. So as God is doing this, as God is bringing us closer to himself, as he's drawing us close to him, there are illustrations that he uses. Bitha, you can read for us, Deuteronomy 32. Deuteronomy 32, verse 10 to 12. While Kallondu, you can read Deuteronomy 129 to 31. Deuteronomy chapter 32, verse one. 32, verse 10 to 12. It says, He found him in a desert land and in the waste howling wilderness. He led him about, he instructed him. He kept him as the apple of his eye. As an eagle stirs up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, bereth them on her wings. So the Lord alone did lead him. And there was no strange God with him. Amen, amen. So we are looking at God, just basically bringing himself closer to the people. Just going the extra mile to ensure that the children of Israel, they are brought closer to him. And the example here used is that of an eagle, Bilhah. How would we relate this to God's relationship with the Israelites? Yeah, so like I said last Sabbath, the love story continues. Yes. God has really been trying to woo, literally woo, the children of Israel back to him. He has done everything it possibly could take for, so to speak, for a man to get a girl, Queen Gearbox. And what challenged me is that Israel had been in bondage for so long, 400 years of bondage, worshiping strange gods. For me, I likened it to like a long distance relationship. You get into a relationship with a man, whether you're married or you have a boyfriend. And then 400 years go by. There's a likelihood the first day he calls you and says, hey, it's Michael. You'll be like, Michael who? There was a certain amnesia that Israel had when God was trying to woo them back. And he was literally trying to reintroduce himself to them. So just like an eagle, the illustration of an eagle, he was kind, he was tender, he was compassionate, and he was supportive in the process of trying to get them back to know who he is all over again. So what we're seeing here is like just as the eagle does, because even when an eagle is teaching its young one to fly, it will carry the young one way up high, drop them, so that they just get them to flap their wings and fly. And when they don't, and when they start falling, the eagle swoops down again, picks them up, and just does the same process all over again. And this is the kind of patience that God had. Even if the children of Israel were falling off, he would still be willing to go, catch them, bring them back up, and help them get back on their feet. Like, I like how you brought it out, because it then brings out the aspect of God being really patient with the children of Israel. 400 years is not a short time. These are successive generations which had been born in slavery. You're born in slavery, your parents are born in slavery, your parents' parents are born in slavery. So you've no other way, yeah? But God is willing to work with them patiently to bring them back to his fold, yeah? Mr. Kalondu, you can read with us Deuteronomy 1, 29, to 31. Deuteronomy 1, 29, to 31, the Bible says, then I said unto you, read not, neither be afraid of them. The Lord your God, which goeth before you, he shall fight for you, according to all that he did for you in Egypt, before your eyes, and in the wilderness, where thou hast seen how the Lord, by God, bear thee as a man doth bear his son, in the way that you went until you came into this place. So first we've seen God just dealing with the Israelites from the aspect of like an eagle, and now we are seeing it from the aspect of a father towards his child. Yes. What does this tell us, the verse that you've just read from the aspect of a father to child, yeah? How does it bring out the nature of God's attitude towards his people? I want to just reread verse 30, the Lord God, which goes before you, he shall fight for you. According to all that he did for you in Egypt, before your eyes, God is telling us, dread not, do not be afraid. See when every child trusts their father, you know that when you're with your father, things are going to be fine and you'll be okay. And then God is manifesting that by saying, the way I saved you when you were in bondage, I will still do it, you know, and it's relentless. You know, he's not saying, I will not save you when you've seen, but God is simply saying, I will fight for you. I will go before you. And if you look through the many promises in the Bible, the Lord says, fear not for I am with you. I have redeemed you, I've called you by name, you are mine, you know, this father who keeps reminding his children the way, you are mine, even if you do things, you know, by the time God was telling them, Israelites to fear not, they had already done a lot of things, you know, they had already seen, come back, done funny stuff, disobeyed, but he still stuck there on his children. And if you read Psalms 1, 3, verse 13 and 14, the Bible says, like a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that, fear him, for he knows our frame that we are dust. See, the Lord knows that if he leaves us, we are nothing. If he does not give us breath, we will die. If he does not guide us, we are going to get lost. And if I make reference to when the Israelites were crossing there, when they were crossing the Red Sea, if he had not patted, they would have actually been, they would have drowned and then, of course, the chariots were behind. So here God is really saying, I am your father and I remain your father, and I shall forever fight for you. So it's really an assurance for us that even when we feel like we have moved away from God, let's remember that he has said, I will fight for you. And you know, God doesn't go back on his promises. He said, like I did for your father, I will do for you. So it's a very beautiful and warm reminder to know that, first of all, God holds us on his wings and secondly, he will fight for us no matter what. Amen, thank you so much. As we get to seeing what the online audience is seeing, Sister Bilham, what is coming out clearly is that God is very much aware of our helplessness as human beings. He's very much aware, whether we're using the example of an eagle or a father's love for a child, he is aware of our helplessness, but he's willing to meet us at that point where we are helpless and just draw us closer to him. He's willing to carry us up in his loving arms and carry us to his kingdom. So God is totally concerned about our well-being as he was about the Israelites. He's concerned about our salvation as he was about the Israelites. And just like we've said earlier on, this gift of salvation is ours to take. It's ours to own, to actually claim ours. Yeah, Sabilla, do we have anything on the online audience? Just some greetings of happy Sabbath. Oh, thank you so much, thank you so much. So as we're thinking about God's love and care for us as human beings, we want to think about it and just bring it to, what does it mean for our relationship with other people? Yeah, like God is interested in our well-being, is interested in our salvation. What does it mean for us in regards to our relationship with other people, Kalondo? Thank you very much, Brenda. I want to say that God is giving us an example of how we should relate with other humans. He's telling us the same way I'm interested in you. You should be interested in other people. I should care and care and care until, there's nothing like I can't care no more. God is saying care forever. You know, God tells us to forgive and forgive and forgive. That's how we are supposed to do it as human beings. So we need to be so interested in other people and their problems and we need to ensure that we care so that they'll be like, okay, now that's too much care. And I don't think you can ever get to a point of too much care. That is how God wants us to do it. But of course, look at us. We usually have a point of, okay, I'm a choker and we like saying, okay, I'm done. I have given too much love and I'm out. But you know, when you think about it, why would you run out of love? Is it because you're not filling up your cistern or is it because you are drawing from a source that can run dry? So you see, God gives us some love that doesn't dry out. So in the same way, our love shouldn't dry out for human beings because we are drawing from him. But if you're drawing love from a place where it can run out, of course it will run out. You know, if I use an example of cooking oil, you cook and then it gets to the point, it's done. It's finished. But now God, that's not how he does it. He loves us every day. He replenishes for us to transfer. And if you don't transfer, then it's not like if you don't transfer, there will not be another supply. You will not know how much care God can give you because you have not given. So when we look at how God cares and how he is so interested in us, it's a challenge to us. And if you have gotten tired of being interested in people, God is calling you to take back the interest, be interested again. Because as long as you're interested in people, God will still be interested in you and he'll fill up that cup of love and overflow. And I think that's what the whole point about overflowing, it's you give and then he refills. And also now remember, check your sources, you know. Your source of love should be God. So that you're able to get an overabundant supply. Amen, amen. So basically God's light, we should allow God's light to shine through us. Whatever light God has put in us, whatever love he has bestowed upon us, the same, same thing, we should allow it to shine through us. So that other people may also be brought closer to God. You know, for many people, for many people, the greatest someone that we'll ever hear is the lives we lead. And how we treat other people. So we need to ensure that when God has called us, has saved us from whatever situation we are in, and has put this love in us, this same, same love needs to outflow to other people. Other people need to feel God's light shining through us so that they may see God and that they may also glorify God. Yeah? Brenda, can I? Yes, please. And then, you know, you mentioned the word patience, but in Psalms chapter 86 verse 18, the word is long-suffering. And when I think about dealing with others, I realize how impatient and how much long-sufferingness I still need to imbue in my character because a lot of us are very impatient with one another, even within the church context in the Christian body, unfortunately. We're very quick to act and to view and to perceive others in bad light. And yet God, in chapter 86 of Psalms, verse 15 says that the Lord is full of compassion. He's gracious, he's long-suffering, and he's plenty us in mercy and truth. And so may God help us to just be plenty us in mercy because we often don't look at each other in the view of mercy, but instead of judgment and critical accusation. So may God help us to be patient and long-suffering. Amen. Amen. Amen. Let's read from Exodus chapter six, verse six and seven. Exodus six, verse six and seven. And it says, Say therefore to the people of Israel, I am the Lord and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from their bondage, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment. And I will take you for my people and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the Lord, your God who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. Yeah? So here we have God saying many things that he will do. Yeah? Or he is to do. And we are looking at it, and when we are looking at this particular pattern, what pattern comes out over here, Bilhah? That the Lord wants to bring back the children of Israel through such a gentle manner. When the leader was told to release the children of Israel, everything around that situation sounded so violent, you know, God was saying, release my people and smiting him. But the act of God was actually the opposite of that. It was a gentle, the entire thing is encapsulated in gentleness. How he gently, the way we read about the eagle being tossed from the sky, and in case it falls, the father eagle will come and soup it. It's an act of gentleness through the release from bondage. And so in the case of Israel, Israel was a nation that needed to be ransomed of God. And just like in a kidnapping situation, when someone is kidnapped and then they ask for a ransom, what they're asking for usually is the value, even sometimes far more than that which they are, far more than the one they have kidnapped. Not that life can be can be equated to money, but normally in the context, the original context of ransoming, you'd have to pay a price in exchange for the release of this kinsman or relative to be released, a far higher value in order for them to be released. And so in this case, you know, we realize the place of Jesus Christ, why he came to the earth to die for our sins, because only through his descendants from heavenly courts, I would never do this, wearing holiness and righteousness, he had to come. It was the price I needed to be paid that he had to come and be like us and wear humanity in it 100% in order to give his life as unaccepted. And that's only time when God was able to accept a ransom for our freedom from sin. Amen. So we're looking at it and we're looking at people who needed redemption, yeah? There are people who needed redemption and because of that, the ultimate sacrifice had to be made, which was Jesus Christ coming to dwell amongst us. The penalty was death because the wages of sin is death. And so the pattern keeps, the pattern generally, the picture that is being drawn is found in the sanctuary message. So then the sanctuary, the high priest, they had to be a penalty for death. People would normally come in with their different kinds of livestock depending on your economic background and give a sacrifice of death in order for their sins to be forgiven. And so just like in the heavenly sanctuary, just like it was in the earthly sanctuary, so it is also in the heavenly sanctuary now. The penalty of death had to be paid. So having Jesus Christ come down because he was essentially God, yeah? Come and live with us, go through trials and challenges as we did, and even die on the cross for our sins so that we may not be condemned to eternal death. What does this tell us about our worth, yeah? What does it tell us about our worth as human beings? How does God view us? He views us as the most, we are priceless. We don't have a figure on our heads. We are far, we're even far more, that very act actually illustrates to me that we are far more, we are just as important as his very own son, Jesus Christ. Because it was a risk, you know, there's a time there was a skit here about the death of God or something. It sounded so controversial. But literally. The mother of God. It was the mother of God, yeah. It literally was him hanging on that cross. And it was a risk in the sense that Jesus Christ also had petitioned and brought forth the sacrifice, lived a holy and righteous life, but he truly was not guaranteed that his sacrifice would be accepted. And so that risk, that gamble on eternity by God was to show us how much he values us above everything. And that's why it's such a wondrous thing to even wonder why both are, why look upon such tiny little aunts called human beings and sacrifice the entire everything in order to ransom us back to himself. So we are priceless. We are far beyond rubies and gold and everything that we deem to be important and valuable on this earth. Brenda, I want to read Isaiah 49 verse 16. The Bible says, behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands. Thy walls are continually before me. I think that is just an illustration of how God values us. I think to the point I have graven you, you know, to engrave it's not to write where I wash off my hands and then your name disappear, but it has inscribed where. So every time he looks at his hands, he sees us. So that's the whole, that's the value of humanity to God. Yes. And thinking about it and what you've just read, you know when it's engraved, it means every time he's looking at his hand, he sees Brenda, he sees Patricia. Like you know, it's such a comforting feeling to know how important each and every one of us is to God. And that is why he's going out of his way to come down to us. He's going out of his way to reach us and bring us closer to him. That's essentially what God has been doing through the ages and even as seen in what he did for the Israelites. He was just going the extra mile. He was doing everything he could, making every effort possible to reach us. And that just basically tells us that as God is stretching out his hand towards us, we also need to stretch out our hands and take his hand. Because God is making the effort to ensure that we are brought close to him. He's doing everything he can, including coming down in the form of Jesus Christ, to ensure that we are not condemned to eternal death. And we need to claim this promise. We need to live with it. We need to own it because it is ours. And we need to take it and own it and just live as Christ would want us to live so that we may truly inherit eternal life. So we were looking at the Israelites. Now we're seeing God making promises of what he will do. We're seeing God desiring their redemption. And we come up to Sinai, the mountain. And here we're talking about the 10 commandments. Let's just go through them in Exodus chapter 20, verse 1 to 17. Bill, how you can read them for us? Exodus chapter 20. Exodus chapter 20, verse 1 to 17 says, And God speak all these things saying, I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above or that is in the earth beneath or that is in the water under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord thy God, am a jealous God. Visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me. And showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor and do all thy work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God. In eight thou shalt not do any work. Thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, nor thy man servant, nor thy maid servant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea and all that is in them and rested the seventh day. Wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it. Honor thy father and mother, that thy days may be long upon the earth which the Lord thy God giveth thee. Thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not commit adultery, thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his man servant, nor his maid servant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbor's. Amen. Amen. So here we are, we are brought to the most important thing that happens at the mountain, Sinai. And we are seeing God giving these 10 commandments. Kalondu, when we think about these 10 commandments and even reading through them, is it that they didn't exist? Like why was it necessary to have this given to the Israelites? First of all, if you think about the whole 10 commandments, they are covenant. It's like an agreement or, you know, let me say like a marriage certificate. So it's something, it's like a sign to Raba Stam or to represent, like we spoke earlier about representing, to represent our relationship with God. And God was so specific. In fact, I want to move a bit back to the preparation. When they were preparing, the Lord was very categorical. He was saying you have to prepare everybody. You prepare yourself, you prepare your children, you prepare your workers. As in even the person who's cutting grass in your compound, they have to know that something big is about to happen. I want to relate it to, again, marriage, easy. When people are getting married, it's like everyone knows, you know, and everybody is prepared. You know, you go and prepare your grandmother and your... It becomes a huge festivities, a celebration. So in the same way the Lord was telling the Israelites, first of all, you cleanse yourself and cleanse each and everyone there. And let them know that something big is about to happen. You see, that's how important, first of all, this covenant is. It's not just you wake up and then you, you come and listen to the commandments. You have to prepare. So it means that it's a very important thing. It's not just your usual conversation. And if you look at the commandments, some of them talk about our relationship with God and others talk about our relationship with human beings. And it brings me to the fact that God is so specific. You know, God wants to talk about how you deal with him, how you deal with people. You're telling me not to steal, not to kill. I mean, for what? And so what? But he's gone the extra mile and he said, now I'm writing you for you these things and then you'll put them on your walls. And then again, if you think about where the Israelites were coming from, they're coming from a place where it was all about instructions, it was all about... You know, they used to hear a lot of do this, do the other, don't do this, don't do the other. And then they had a lot of symbols around them. If you look at the Egyptian history, you'll find that there was so many symbols. So you see God also in the same, you know, just because he knows where they had come from. He put it specifically for them. He said, these are the commandments. I have written them. It's just one set of rules. Put them there, look at them. And every time you see them, remember our relationship. So in the same way when people strike deals, they do a pinky, they, you know, how do Paul sign covenants? There are very many ways. Some are very interesting, but God decided that first of all, you will prepare. And he'll help them prepare. And then on top of it, he'll write them on tablets so that they are visible. Because he knows they come from a place where they used to sing things. And again, God is very specific. He will come to you in the best way you understand. You know, he came to the Israelites in the way they understood. They understood, they used to be given rules. So even if God knows you're in this kind of path, he will give you a message that will hit home faster. He'll not start telling you about things which don't even relate. So for me, this covenant is special. Why? Because God took time to prepare and he gave instructions on how to prepare. And secondly, he ensured that he's brought it as close a home as possible. So that we know that God is not up there. He's not far. Because remember, they were used to seeing people and idols and their gods were in their pockets and they were visible. So God came near. Not to say he put them as an idol, but just to say mine is, it's a script, it's written, it's engraved somewhere, but it's a reminder of what we are supposed to be. So that's what I would say about the covenant. Yeah. Okay, so here's God, he's brought his people from bondage. He's brought them into, they're now here in this place and God has brought them to the mountain and he gives them these rules. Yeah? And these rules are basically governing two things. One, their relationship with him. Yes. And also their relationship with each other. Yes. They're just looking at them from an all-round perspective. Once your relationship with God is made right, your relationship with others will automatically fall into place. Yes. Kalondu, there's someone who's probably watching us today and wondering, so what does this mean for me? Like, this was given thousands of years ago to people that don't even exist anymore. Like, is it relevant to us today? I want to say that first of all, God is the same. He's the same yesterday, today and forever. So first of all, God's word still stands and those commandments are still relevant to us. And if you look at the commandments, there's nothing really strange that doesn't relate to our lives. First of all, people still kill, people still steal, people still covert their neighbor's property. What has changed is the variations with which they do sin, you know? People still break the Sabbath, you know? People still, I mean, if you read through, you'll see. First of all, guys still use God's name in vain. People still forget the Sabbath, people still don't honor their parents. So I would not say that the commandments are irrelevant simply because they were given them. Again, God had to write it somewhere so that it can be handed down as tablets. If it wasn't written, then these relates would have been passing down spoken word and we know spoken word gets distorted. So the reason why the commandments are relevant is if you look at the instructions, they still make sense today. So if anyone is out there feeling like the commandments don't make sense, just ask yourself, are people killing? Are people stealing? Yes, they are. But what does God want us to do? He wants us to not to do it because that is His covenant. And the reason why they were written, I say again, it's so that they can be given to us in their original form so that it doesn't become a hearsay. I mean, if you look back at the African history, we used to get stories. My grandfather told me this story about this legend and the legend. But if that had been written down in our books of history, then we would not have anything. We will find that the American history is richer in terms of what is written down because it was written. Our African culture, it's rich, but we didn't write much. So if you're comparing, you'd say maybe it's not rich because there's nothing that was written. So God knew for her that there'd be someone out there who would be wondering how to do it. And he ensured that it was written so that the tablets were carried. And you'll realize when the Israelites were moving, it was a specific tribe that was carrying the tablets so that you don't wake up and say the tablets were stolen, you know. So I would say that if anyone is wondering whether they're relevant, yes, they are. And God can still be trusted. Amen. Thanks for that. Bill has, we are trying to build up from what Kalundu just said. So they are still relevant to us today. What then should be our attitude? Cause you know, many times we look at God as the do not. Like we think of God and we immediately think of the what we shouldn't. So then, so what does it mean? Like what should be our attitude towards the thing? God's instructions have been, God's word and his laws have been put in the Bible as sources of instruction for daily life. It's not some abstract rules that are pulled out of the air, but they were there for us to do and to act upon, to make us just happier and more content as human beings. For example, even who are not believers, they don't believe that God exists, but they do not steal, they do not kill, they do not covet their neighbor's property. There's a certain moral code that I think intrinsically has been placed in each one of our hearts, whether or not we are believers. And so it helps to govern the behavior of humanity as a whole. We're just better people when we follow God's word in general. And so I think we should remind it that it also comes from a place of love. We've talked about how this is a continuous love story that started with Israel and it's continuing with us, the spiritual Israel. God loves us and that's why he gave us these, this moral code for us to be able to follow. So we're able to just get along with each other better and so we're able to build a better world. And so it comes from, for me, it's logical as well as spiritual, ultimately. And if you're wondering, like Alondo has beautifully put it, what the relevance is today, then just look around you and you'll realize that there's still a very big need to have rules that govern humanity. Not from a place of strictness and wanting to kill you, but he comes, he does not, the Bible says somewhere that it does, he desires not that any one of us should perish. It breaks his heart when this moral code is broken and someone is stealing from the other or murdering the other person. And so it comes from a place of love and if we view it in the same manner, we shall reciprocate also with love to God by treating our neighbors as ourselves and loving God with all our hearts. Amen, amen, amen. So when God is giving these commandments, it's not from a place of restriction. He's not giving it to say, by and due to, he's giving it because he loves you, one. And he wants to be drawn closer to you. He wants to be drawn closer to me. And even as he does that, he wants to mend also our relationship with each other. Cause we hold each other's hands, we build each other together heaven one day. So God is essentially just building the relationship with him and also building the relationship with other people. So when God is giving these rules as with any other rule that he will give, it's not because he wants to restrict us. God gives us because he loves us. And when we abide by God from a place of love, then they will not feel like bondage. They will not feel like they are such a heavy load on us that we just need to, we need to follow or else. It wouldn't be that. Cause that is not the kind of attitude that we are going to get to heaven with. That we're going to get to heaven freely wanting to dwell with Jesus Christ. Not feeling like, hey, if I don't, then this will happen. It wouldn't be because of fear of the consequences of the opposite. So he is God. He's given his children the 10 commandments, which as we discussed, they are still relevant to each and every one of us today. Our attitude towards the same should be coming from a place of loving God and wanting to just dwell in his presence, to be made right with him. Now let's read Exodus 19, verse five and six. Exodus 19, verse five and six. And it says, now therefore, if you will obey my voice indeed and keep my covenant, then it shall be a peculiar treasure and to me above all the people, for all the earth is mine, and it shall be unto me a kingdom of priests and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shall speak unto the children of Israel. Now, God here, as he's talking to Moses and sending him to the children of Israel, he says, if you will obey my voice indeed and keep my covenant, if, this word, if, Sister Bilhah, thinking about that word, is it a must or is it a choice to obey, to keep God's covenant? You know, we touched on this last sabbath. We talked about the cause and effect about the commandment, because a lot of the times we, because we're human, we have finite understanding of God's law. We often see it like, if you don't do this, then I will punish you. Like God is waiting to whip us with consequence. But ultimately, it's cause and effect. For me, I understand this verse from a cause and effect perspective. If you will obey my voice, then this is what will happen. But if you don't, this is what will happen. It's a natural process of cause and effect. It's not that God is waiting to punish us. Okay, so we're looking at, it's a choice. It's a choice. It's a choice. That ultimately sits with us. And which is a huge responsibility placed upon us. The fact that God allows for us to think through his commands and to think through whether we want to follow him or not, I think is the greatest act of love. Because in Satan's kingdom, there is no choice. But God, in God's kingdom, God gives you the power and the right to think through and to reason through what he's telling you and then make a very decided choice. Mm-hmm, mm-hmm. Okay. Kalundi, you can read with us Romans 319 to 24. Romans 319 to 24. As a bill, I can check for us what's happening online. Romans 319 to 24. The Bible says, now we know that what things whatsoever the law says, it says to them who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore, by the deeds of the law, there shall no flesh be justified in his sight. For by the law is the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested. Being witnessed by the law and the prophets. Okay. So we are looking at this relationship after the covenant and we are establishing that it is a choice that we make here. So what is the place of the law in these choices that we are making? What is the place of the law? If I make reference again to the Ten Commandments, it's a guide. And we earlier read that if you obey, so the law is to show us what we need to do. So it's not really that it is the thing that will make us be saved, but it is what God wants us to do against what we are not supposed to do or what we will to do. You know, like I said earlier, people maybe want to commit adultery, but then God has said, don't do it. So the law is to show you what not to do. Then you're able to discern whether something is sin or is not a sin. Because if there's no law, then there will be really no point of working for righteousness. Then you would not know sin if you did not know the law. So the law is the blueprint of our relationship with God and what He would like us to do for us to be able to prosper and rightly put in even in Tronomy 28. If you do this, you'll get blessings. Then if you do this, you'll get curses. Yeah. So the law exists, this same same law that was given at Mount Sinai, it exists to just help us keep in check. Yes. For us to be able to know where we are, like when without the law, we would not be able to know that we have transgressed. Yes. But this law exists to help us realize our transgression, to bring us closer to Jesus Christ. Yeah. Do we have any comments online? Pam Glovo from Zimbabwe says that the law is a mirror. It's like a mirror to show us when we deviate from that which God wants us to do in obedience to Him, our salvation hinges on keeping them. So it's just a mirror that helps us to know how far we have gone. Whenever you look into a mirror, you're obviously expecting what you are and what it is to be matched. It would be strange if you looked in the mirror and you saw a white man. But many times on a spiritual level, we do see a white man because it's so far from what we think that we are. So it helps us to know how far we've deviated as a mirror, an illustration of the mirror. Elijah Manzo says that by following the commandments of God, we avoid just getting into trouble. And I find that so simple and logical. All of God's blessings are conditional to obedience to His voice. So we're looking at this and establishing that the law really, it's just keeping us in check, keeping us in line. Now the Israelites, when they were given this law, they had a response to God. They said, we will do all that. You have commanded us. And is this what they achieved, Kalondo? No. Why not? Because I think they just, you know, if you, they were told that this was supposed, when they agreed, like they were just doing quick agreements, there's something called malicious compliance. Maybe as in where you just complains, it's our, I'll do because you have said. So I don't think they had gotten to the point of grasping what the law means. What is this relationship God is trying to form? And again, based on where they had come from, from slavery, it used to be, ayah, you've said, we will do, we will just do and do and do. If you remember, if anybody has been under some authority, let's refer to when we're in school or even at work, attend you're like, okay, we'll just do so that we get over and done with this. So I would say they had not gotten to the point that Moses had gotten to with God. Of course they were working progress and God was just showing them what to do. So I think they just said, okay, fine, we will do so that we move on. Or they had looked at it from a point of, looks like nice things to do. Actually, they are nice. In fact, you're going to bless me, I'll do it. But then when they got to realize that it's not as easy and it's not something you will do by your own strength. But I think they had taken it from a point of, yeah, I'll do, I can. Same way, because they came from a point of, I've told you to make a thousand bricks. You realize when they were about to leave bondage, the work was harder. But then they still do it. Did it and they were told, okay, you're doing. Because they are from a point of, say, do, but not really understand what this person wants you to do. So the reason why they actually defaulted in, they defaulted big time, it's because their acceptance was superficial. Then when they got to practicing it, they're also doing it by themselves. They're not asking for God's help, overcome. So in the same way, when we try to do things, and we fall off because we try by ourselves. The Bible says that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Why? Because we are doing things on our own, on our own righteousness, on our own strength. But if we invoke God, we are able to overcome. So if you look at how moving on, the Israelites won their battles. Anytime they let God do, it worked. But anytime they desiated and they're like, maybe I can, let me go and strike a deal with Bilha because I want to take over her land. Why are you striking a deal with the enemy? God has told you, I'll give you deliverance. But then they're like, let's go and talk to them. Maybe let's not loot so much. But God wanted them to rely on him, but they didn't. That's why as soon as they said, yes, we will do, that as soon as they didn't do it, yes. Like they'd come from a situation where they'd been slaves for so long. So I just used to taking orders. They're not really thinking about the relationship aspect with God. Like what does God want to achieve from giving me all this, yes? Bilha, is it possible that we find ourselves in similar situations as mankind today? Yes, absolutely. We are, it's just a mirror of who we are now. It's a representation of who we are now. Like Kandundu has said that they had come from a background of working, working, working all the time. And we often find ourselves also working for our salvation. If we keep the Sabbath holy, if we do this, we do that. Which are great things which God gave us again to guide how we generally live, act, speak, eat, drink everything. However, it is not salvation in itself. And when someone takes a microscope today and looks through the little tiny details to decide as to whether they shall be saved because it's good to look at yourself. But God was calling them to a higher, a higher place of faith, a higher walk with Him. At the time Jesus, when He was on earth, said that if your righteousness does not exceed that of the Pharisees, then you can't be saved. In other words, you were saying come up higher. It's good that you keep the Sabbath by keeping spit in your mouth and not spitting it the whole day because you're keeping, even your tongue needs to rest. However, we need to come to a higher place and that higher place is a place of faith. And God was calling the Israelites to have more faith, to actually believe and have a personal relationship with Him just like He's calling us to do. Instead of walking through our salvation, the reason why we are saved is because we have faith. It's not because we are, we don't get saved. Yeah, we don't get saved out of our work. Yet it's important to work our salvation, fear and trembling, it is true. However, it is not the actual act of dressing up well and making sure that, I don't know, not spitting on the Sabbath, that actually saves us. So I think God is calling us to a very basic and simple way of relating with Him. And also, like Kalundu rightly highlighted, also reminding us on how we relate with one another from a place of love. Just be kind, because it's good to be kind as opposed to doing it because, eh, today I have to be kind to Kalundu because otherwise I won't get to heaven because we normally look at it like that. We're keeping God's law in order too. And so war unto us, if that does not happen, you know, the reward does not happen, especially here on earth, you'll be like, I kept the Sabbath holy, I did the ceaseless, then why am I not getting a job? But it's not conditional in that sense. You're doing it purely because God loved me. So I love Kalundu, simple and straightforward. So really our attitude is not the what's in it for me. Yes. Yeah, yeah. Ellen White says in Steps to Christ, we do not unsalvation by our obedience, for salvation is the free gift of God to be received by faith, yeah? But obedience is the fruit of faith. Now, looking at these two things, faith works, faith works, how does it balance out Bilha? Someone called it like the two, and that thing that when you're in a boat, the, that thing. When you're rowing a boat. Yeah, it's like the row. Like in a, when you're in a boat, you cannot, if you row like this, you obviously go to the right. And if you row to the right, you go to the left. That's generally how the waters and the boat interact with one another. So it's the two oars that need to be used hand in hand in order to get us to, to salvation. Get to salvation. Not to earn a salvation, but for us to be saved. I like what you've said. It's not to earn the salvation. Yes, not to earn it. But, but in order for us to, to inherit the kingdom of God, it's the two oars that need to be walked on together. So left, right, left, right. You cannot or sometimes it's left, left, right. But the point is that it's the two oars that get us to, to the kingdom of heaven. So in other words, you cannot neglect works and you cannot neglect faith. They need to be walking hand in hand. Which is a result of the other, of the two, when we look at faith and works? Works is a result of faith. Of the faith. So we need to have faith first, a genuine trust and belief in God. And then the works will come naturally. Then the works will come naturally. Yeah, because when we do it the opposite way, we always get into trouble. And that's why I was saying, we end up having a microscope on others and also a microscope on ourselves to pick out the little tiny details for years. You have, we're giving each other score sheets and ourselves as well, constantly. Like you've gotten two out of 10 today, you've gotten 10 out of 10, you've gotten, because we're using our eyes. But when it comes from a point of faith, then the works will follow naturally. And works of faith are usually very different from works of works. But I won't get into that. Yeah, London. Read with us, Romans 10 verse three. Romans 10, three. The Bible says, for they being ignorant of God's righteousness and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves onto the righteousness of God. So it's talking about not submitting to the righteousness of God. And I want us to talk about that as we're coming to the end of our lesson, yeah? What is the point that Paul is making in regards to this, seeking self-righteousness and seeking the righteousness of God? Because we are looking at Israelites and at the onset, they are used to being a receivers of instruction. Yes, so they've been told, do this, they do. But you see, at some point it was failing them because they were lacking some component, yeah? So how does that relate to what we've read and even just bringing it to us as human beings today? I want to add on what rather build up or not build up has given an illustration of works for works and works from faith. See, when you're doing your own, your own righteousness, it's like you dictate, I'm right to this point, this is my righteousness, this is how I've interpreted the word of God according to me, but not according to what God says. You know, there's a way you can take a verse and make it suitable for you. Then you say, okay, fine, I've done it. But you have not actually done what God wants. And if I refer to the Pharisees, they were so bent on fulfilling that law such that they thought it's a problem when Jesus healed on the Sabbath. Why is it a problem for me to do good? Why is it a problem for me to save someone on the Sabbath? Yet Christ was about saving, extending love and doing what God requires him to do. So you know, they were so bent on that kind of righteousness for checklists, you don't even care who you'll kill along the way. All you want to do is say, I've done this. But then Christ's method was different. He was for letters. You know, meet the people, talk to them, feel their need, and then ask them to follow. So the Pharisees were more of a checklist, my own righteousness. So I've done this, the law said you do this, do the other, so you have like 30 things. Like Bill is saying, it's following. You don't swallow on Sabbath. Just so it's not said of you that you swallowed. But as you're going to church and you find someone has just been knocked down, before to their good Samaritan story, you don't even care that they've been knocked down. You're like, hey, me, I'm on my way to church. So that would be your own righteousness where you're so into yourself. It is not into pleasing God. And I think that's a time maybe we miss it. And actually many times we miss it. We are focusing so much on the works and the things that people will see we did and we will see we have done. But we don't ask ourselves what has God seen that I have done. And when we have our own righteousness, we have our own scripts and if you read 10-4 in Romans, the Bible says for Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believe it. So it needs to end with Christ and also start with Christ. But as long as we are doing our Christianity in a way that it doesn't feature God anywhere and no one sees God, then that's your own righteousness. And just to conclude, if you see, there are some people who you've met and then they call themselves Christians, they are marching to Zion, you know, staunch adventists, you know, I like making a joke about marching to Zion, to the SDS and Christians. Well, they are so into, I have to, you know, I have to look like this, I have to do the other. But if you meet them in their homes, they are the harshest. If you meet them at their places of work, they are just abrasive. If you meet them at their businesses, they don't even care to even give a discount, you know, like to a person who honestly has begged and pleaded, you know, if maybe a poor man has come and said, maybe I would like to buy this and I don't really have enough, give me some grace, I'll bring you the money tomorrow, something of the sort. Like there's no Christianity seen and yet we call ourselves Christians marching to Zion. That is now, this guy has their own righteousness. According to them, they've done their thing, they are the best. But in God's eyes, it's really nothing. And I think that's also what most of us suffer as Christians and we need to pray that God will open our eyes, that we may just see. And if I talk about Joseph, just time eating with work, when Joseph was tempted by Portie's wife, he had so much faith. And what he said was, how can I do such a thing and sin against God? He didn't say, I know me, I have a clean name, what I'll do? I'll just do this with my damn and then no one will know. So I'll still continue with my righteousness and I will not be in prison. But that was so much faith. He didn't care whether God was going to, whatever was going to happen to him, but he followed God because faith led him to do what he was doing. So sometimes maybe faith doesn't lead us or God doesn't, but we need to think about it from a point of, let's not have our own righteousness. Yes. Thank you so much for that. We'll be taking our closing remarks as we wrap this up. I don't know if there are any remarks from online audience. Yes, there are a few. Kevin Wangi says, let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God's kindness. Kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile. Amen, amen, amen. Any other? Yes, Clifford Anthony says, God's promises are all made upon conditions and if we do His will, if we walk in truth, then we may ask what we will and it shall be done, what we will and it shall be done unto us while we honestly endeavor to be obedient. Also, I'd seen another comment from a Chiang Arerosa which said, we don't obey in order to be saved. We obey because we have been saved as a result of our love for our Creator and our belief in His death for our salvation. Amen. And thank you all so much for those remarks. Let's take closing remarks. We'll start with you, Bilha. Just half a minute. Let's, like the long and short, take home for today. So like I said, the love story continues. The love story continues and God is still trying to woo us. That's the word actually, the lesson used. Woo us to get to a place where we accept and say, fine, maybe, perhaps if we reason, He is actually the one who loves us more than anyone else. But God is not just calling us to use faith alone or works alone. He's calling us to use the two oars in the boat of salvation to give us a whole 360 approach, a wholesome life that is not just beneficial to other human beings but beneficial to ourselves because it comes from a place of love. So may God help us to use the two concurrently at the same time and give us the Holy Spirit who will guide us to speak, to act, to smile, to be kind to others and to just live a life that reflects the character of Jesus Christ. Amen. Amen. For me, I would say God is so interested in you. He's so interested in you that He prepares before He tells you what He needs to tell you. And based on that, just go back and check your relationship with God. Ask yourself, what covenant did I sign with God? And then go back and check the terms. Remember that God doesn't give you the rules that it's a must, but wants you to choose and accept the righteousness that He's giving you. And if you have been doing your own righteousness, God is still waiting for you. He's going to show you how to do it because the Lord says, ask and shall receive, he can shall find, knock and the door will be opened to you. Amen. Amen. So this covenant at the mountain basically just highlights our relationship with God, our relationship with each other and it's ours to take, it's ours to live by and it's ours to just ensure that it guides our lives. It's still relevant to us today. In closing, I'll read something from our study. It says, our relationship with Him must be founded upon faith. Faith provides the basis upon which works follow. Works in and of themselves no matter how purely motivated, no matter how sincere, no matter how numerous can't make us acceptable in the sight of a holy God. They could not do it either in Israel's time and they cannot do it in our time as well. So this relationship with God, it's founded on faith and God is calling upon you to just receive this salvation that comes through faith in Him. Sister Bidha, please pray with us as we finish. All right, let's pray. Father, we thank you for reminding us very loudly that we need to have faith in order to acquire works. Lord, we ask that it may be a natural progression and that we may not work so hard to inherit the kingdom of God without remembering that we need a personal relationship with you. But even Lord, as we gain that personal relationship, we ask that you may grant us your Holy Spirit to help us also to extend it to our brothers and sisters. Father, we cannot make it to heaven on our own. It is not an exclusive club for those who have worked really hard. But Lord, we ask that you may help us to be kind, to take us back to primitive godliness, oh God, that we may learn how to relate to one another in a way that reflects who you are to us. We with us even as we close this lesson and help us to put it into practice. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Amen, we thank God for that wonderful study. He, God calls us to take of the salvation through faith because, you know, faith is the basis on which works is founded on. Oh, let me work with thee, my God, as Enoch. Work with thee days of old. We'll close this session in song number 554 or let me work with thee. Let me work with thee as Enoch works in days of old. Place thou my trail and sweet court see. Yet see a tempest rages in the sky. A thousand snails be there. Our desire is to work with you. Work with us, we pray. It's time for our special thought and this special thought and for the next couple of few sabbaths that are to come, you're talking about stewardship. And I'm imagining already when I mentioned the word stewardship. You could be like, did you just say stewardship? Yes, I exactly said stewardship and I'm thinking, oh no, it's again about money and money and I'm here to say, hold on to be about stewardship for a couple of sabbaths before we do so, let us pray. Heavenly Father, thank you for allowing us to have this beautiful sabbath in your presence. Our desire is to hear you speak to our hearts, speak to us even now. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. I've entitled today's special thought, God Fast, God Fast. What is stewardship and what does it mean to you? How do we understand stewardship? And what does stewardship look in this day we are living in our lives today? Unfortunately, most of us, when we hear the word stewardship, we think about the money. We think about the samos that have been on many pulpit about how we can give and give and give, about church budgets, about programs, about tithes, about offering, about money, money, money and more money. However, stewardship is much more than just money. For me, I keep saying stewardship is where the rubber hits the road on matters your relationship with Jesus, on matters relationship with your God. It's all about your faith. It's all about knowing whom you are and whom you serve. I have four principles that I want us to think about this morning. Principle number one is principle of ownership. Psalms 24 verse one, my Bible says, the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof. The world and they that dwell therein. Now that verse is very rich, meaning we who are on this earth, we are God's property. And anything else that is in this world, the earth is the Lord's. In the book of Genesis, in the beginning of it all, God told Adam and Eve in Genesis 1.15, and the Lord God took man and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and keep it. Now the book of Psalms I've said anything in this world is God's. Ask me and you and everything else. Then God continued to tell Adam and Eve, whatever I have put in this garden of Eden, it's for you to dress it and keep it. And there we find a principle number one of stewardship. That a steward is supposed to take care of God's creation. Because that is what God did to Adam and Eve. And this is the fundamental principle of stewardship. Knowing God owns everything, and we are simply managers. We are simply taking care of that God has given us. Therefore, stewardship expresses our obedience regarding the administration God has put, the things God has put under our control. Principle number two, it is found in the book of Psalms 104 verses 24, my Bible says, oh Lord, how many are your works? In wisdom you have made them all. The earth is full of your possession. Principle of responsibility is number two, where the whole earth is full of God's possession. And because God is the rightful owner of all these possessions, then we can say he has the right. But a steward, we do not have the right. However, a steward, we have responsibility. So principle number two, it is principle of responsibility, responsibility of what? Of God's possessions. Because you have said everything in the earth is full of God's possession. Therefore, we are called as God's stewards to manage that which belongs to God. Psalms 115 verse 16 says, the heavens are the heavens of the Lord. But the earth he has given to the sons of men. Me and you have been given the earth. You are told to subdue it. Be responsible in how you are taking care of God's property and how we are managing. Principle number three, it is found in the parable of the talent. In the book of Matthew chapter 25, it is a principle of accountability. A steward is one who manages the possessions. Because when Jesus is given this parable, he gives different talents to three different groups of people. And some will multiply and others will hide it. But at the end of it all, Jesus comes back to find out how accountable you have been. So principle number three is principle of accountability. Like the servants in the parable of the talent, we will be called to give an account of how we have administered everything we have been given, including our time, money, our abilities, our influences, information, wisdom, relationships, and authority. And you can continue with the list. So anything that God has put under you, you're supposed to be accountable. And you're supposed to give a report. The Book of Christ Object Lessons, page 342 paragraph 1 says, Ellen White says, our time belongs to God. Every moment is His. And we are under the most solemn obligation to improve it to His glory. Of no talent He has given, will He require a more strict account than over our time? And why time? Because time is the only thing that He has given to all of us equally. And therefore, what you do, God is waiting for you to be accountable. I'm saying He is more strict with what you do with our time. Principle number four is a principle of reward. In the Book of Colossians 3, 23, 24, which is so familiar with us, whatever you do, with all your heart, as if you're working for the Lord, not for men, it continues to say, since you know that we will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. It reminds us we are supposed to work as stewards. Principle of reward, we are supposed to work as stewards. But after we have worked and we have labored, there is a reward waiting all of us. Again, I go back to the talent parable in the Book of Matthew 25, 14 to 30. And you look at the stewards. The faithful stewards, who do the master's work? We might not get fully the reward in this world we are living in. But brethren, there is a full reward that awaits all of us who remain faithful and become good stewards in the glorious kingdom. And finally, when we want to hear these other beautiful words, all of us are looking for as good stewards. Well done, good and faithful servants. You have been faithful with a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness. Brethren, we need to embrace stewardship, which goes beyond charge budgets, which goes beyond building projects. All these are important. But everything we do in stewardship, it is about the God you are serving. We need to be faithful. No wonder in the Book of Matthew 6.33, it tells us, but seek ye first the kingdom of God and its righteousness. Then there is a promise, then all these things shall be added unto us. Putting God first is an acknowledgement of the position of God. When you want to complete a puzzle game, you know, like the children, we really like the puzzles. Each piece has to be in the right place because it has to fit in. And the same is true of the puzzle of our life. Unless God is in the right place of our life, it remains incomplete. It is only when we put God first in his rightful place that then you can be good stewards. Let me remind you that we do not take God only when we need him to get bailers out of the situations. No, no, no. It is about putting him first. I want us to close by saying, let us remember a few words. God is our creator, and therefore we are his creatures, and therefore we worship him with all our resources. Number two, let's remember God is the model, the master model, because he says, I have created you in my own image, and therefore we reflect love to him when we use our resources for his kingdom. Number three, God is the provider, and therefore we are his dependents because he owns all the possessions, and therefore we return tithe and we give offering in acknowledgement of his ownership. Brathran, I remind you, God is the master. We are his servants, and we use all our resources to witness for him, and God is our companion, and therefore he is our friend, and we make a relationship to him and to others a priority in all that we do. So what is stewardship? Stewardship is putting God first in all things, acknowledging he is the owner of all things. As I close, please consider the words of him, 572. It says, give of your best to the master. Him, 572, I'll add you consider those words. Give your best to the master, and therefore invite you to reinstall God to the rightful place, being number one, and then everything else shall be put into place. Once we put God first, we can take care of all He puts under our care as good stewards, let us pray. Heaven, if Father, thank you because you have called us to be your stewards. All the heavens are yours, and you have given the sons of men to take care of this world. We know your presence wants to abide with us. Therefore abide with us, even as you teach us how to take care of that which you have given us. Allow us to put you first in all these things, such that you can enjoy that which you have put for us and preparing for us when you come the second time. It is our desire to see the glorious kingdom. Keep us faithful. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Happy Sabbath, church. And good morning. Nice to see you. Those who are in the sanctuary of the Lord. And we praise God for having given us such an opportunity again to gather together. At this particular time, we want to communicate to you what we have in terms of church programs and church announcements because God is a God of order. Let's pause for a word of prayer. Heavenly Father, what in heaven? Once again, we want to communicate to your church within and without, because the world has become a small village. We pray that the communication will be clear to your own unglory. It's my prayer in Jesus' name. Thank you, Sister Angelale, for that exposition. And in that regard, I just want to wish to announce that the church would like to announce and to invite you all to the forthcoming Stewardship Week or prayer. Scheduled to run from 23rd to 29th of May. That is in a week's time. Our speaker will be Pastor William Pagambi. Please pray for the program and plan to attend and invite others to attend with you. Post baptismal class, the church runs a virtual baptismal class every Sabbath morning. From 7 to 8 a.m. Those who have not yet accepted Jesus Christ as their personal savior and want to know more of God's love and fellowship of the Holy Spirit are all invited to attend and get prepared for the sacred covenant with our loving God through baptism by immersion in water. The baptismal class is facilitated by our elders, Robert Arunga, telephone number 07002-789-160. And they'll attend, Benson attend, 0707-344-154 by teaching from the Holy Scriptures. The link to the virtual meeting will be provided. Those who are outside Nairobi and have been following the church worship from YouTube and Facebook and want to be part of baptismal class, please reach out and indicate on the chat box or contact or contact the pastorate for guidance. Post baptismal class, the church runs a post baptismal class for every Sabbath from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. The post baptismal class prepares newly baptized candidates to join adult Sabbath school lesson classes. Newly baptized members are encouraged to join this class through Brother Brian Ajuan on telephone number 0728-912-852. Camp meeting 2021. The pastorate, the church, the camp meeting committee, together with the entire leadership of Nairobi Central SDA church, would like to invite all members and non-members to the year 2021 camp meeting to run from 17th to 24th July 2021. On the theme, I will go. Our guest speaker will be Pastor Jimane Jigete. And the guest choir will be the Brean ministers. Our camp meeting expense budget is Kenya Shillings 2.4 million while the camp meeting offering target is two million Kenya Shillings. You are all invited, and you are all asked to keep praying for a blessed and spiritually uplifting 2021 camp meeting and create time to attend the week's program. Please plan to take your leave from work during this time. Tights and offerings in recognition of the biblical plan and the solemn privilege stroke responsibility that rests upon us, the children of God, we are all required to faithfully return a tithe to God and also to support the local church by generously giving towards its budget for programs and general operations. Faithfuls can fulfill this requirement through the following channels. Saffarico Mobile Money, a church pay bill 320-100. Airtel Money, SDA 01. Or, thirdly, by bank transfer and payments. The account details is bank standard chartered, Branch Kenyatta Avenue, account name Narobi Central SDA Church, account number 01-02-02-4184600. The same contacts can also be read through our church website. Weddings, we would like to advise members who plan to get married in this church to notify the pastorate and register with the church, the church clerk, at least two months before the wedding. So that they may be appropriately guided. This is also to accord the church board adequate time to consider the request and to ensure that they adhere to all requirements and timelines relating to such events. Kindly take note. Wedding bands, there will be a wedding ceremony between brother Barnabas Gisairo of New Life SDA Church, Nairobi, and sister Marilyn Akinio Gonda of Nairobi Central SDA Church on 17th May, 2021, from 11 a.m. at Nairobi Central SDA Church. This is a third and final reading. Consents, death has occurred on Mr. James Amayogwang of Kital Village Karachuanyo in Umabe County on 5th May, 2021. He was husband of the late Mama Rizba Mayo, father of the late Grace Obelo, Sarah Wanyande, Professor Elder Erastas Amayog, Elizabeth Amayog, Nelim Badi, Wallace Amayog and Margaret Amayog. Father-in-law to Joseph Obelo, Professor Peter Wanyande, Professor Angela Mayo, Badi Iyadi and Daisy Amayog. Bariol was held yesterday, Friday, the 14th of May, 2021. Let us remember the family in prayer and visitation. That comes the end of the announcements. May the Lord bless you during these Sabbath hours. Thank you. Good morning. Good morning, church. Thank you for the congregation that is here. Good morning again. Happy Sabbath. And happy day. Happy Sabbath indeed, those of us who are joining us from our online platform and even from KVC. Welcome, Karibuni Sana. And thank you so much for joining Nairobi Central SDA Church. We are coming live from Kenya, Nairobi. And we want to get on with our worship session this morning in song. With me are our choristers. We have Faith, Faith Wave, please. We have Mbubi. Hello. And we have Sullivan. On the piano is brother Tim. And I am Melanie. Before we get on with it, let's do a service to God and ask Him to lead us as we sing praises to Him. Sister Faith will lead us in that prayer, please. Let's pray. Dear Lord, we thank you so much for this wonderful Sabbath morning. But you've given us Lord, we've gathered here and everywhere in different parts of the world so that you can worship you further. We ask that your Holy Spirit may come and be with us Lord so that you may worship you in truth and in spirit. With us this Sabbath, in Jesus' name, I pray and believe. Amen. Thank you, Faith. 340 from our SD Himmels. Let's all turn to 340. SD Himmels, Jesus saves. 340, Jesus saves. Let's sing church. We have heard a joyful sound. Jesus says, Jesus says, spread the gladness all around. Jesus says, Jesus says, spread the new and the steeps and cross the waves. On a tree, Jesus saves. But He told the role well to see, as far and wide is seen. Wondrous story. The story of Jesus is wondrous indeed. Song number 180 in our SD Himmels. Wondrous story. And in the chorus, the ladies, you know what to do in asking who saved us from eternal loss. 180. Let's join together, please. Sing. All listen to a wondrous story. Counted once almost, yet one came down. What goes on upon the cross forsaken? What goes on upon the cross forsaken? Go to the Savior, shall come to know. To second earth, to save us. 255. We will sing stanza 1 and stanza 4. I cannot tell why. 255. Let's go. I cannot tell. Set it to seek though. N'yimboza Christo. Mi amozza eshirinina. Je umesumbuka ayu. No, sorry. Yes, 124. N'yimboza Christo. Je umesoka, je umesumbuka. In the other hymn, Swahili hymnol, it is 262. In the other Swahili hymnol, it is 262. In our N'yimboza Christo, ni mi amozza eshirinina. Sing. Umesoka je umesumbuka. Mwapita yo. Mwambi e'e supeke. Sumbuka lako. Yurafiki. Je mocho. He'd tell it to Jesus alone. He is our Savior, a friend who sticks so close to us. Your friends can leave you alone, but Jesus will never leave you alone. Welcome once again to this blessed Sabbath worship. I stand here to appreciate all of you for joining us in this worship, this Sabbath, from all parts of the world. I also appreciate the fact that this program is being viewed by people from different continents in this world, and I may not have time to mention where you are viewing us from, but I wanted to be very sure that we have noticed that you are with us in this worship. We value you, we care for you, and we pray for you. Those of you who are right here in the sanctuary, I can see that we have a few here, and I want to thank you also for making your way to the sanctuary this morning as we fellowship together. May the grace of God be with you. I will be making announcements here, and I will ask you to pay attention to these announcements as we proceed with our fellowship at this Sabbath morning. I'll speak into you one of the pastors of the church, Pastor Peter Nyaga, and my two other colleagues are not in today. They are following us from their homes, and we are together with them in spirit. For our members, those who usually come and fellowship with us right in the sanctuary, I know that we are aware that the government was able to remove the restriction for in-person worship, and I want to believe that's why some of you are here, but we want to appeal to you as we remind you once again that as you come in, that we are required to continue of serving the protocol as given by the ministry of hell. So please make sure that you come with your mask and place it at the right place. Also keep the social distance. We have marked our pews. Make sure you sit anywhere it is written sit here so that you can help us to keep you safe and keep others safe. Number two, where else we know the church has been reopened, we also appreciate that it has not been reopened for everyone. I want to call the attention to the protocol as given by the government that they are age limits and we appeal to you that you may observe the requirements by the government. As a church, it will facilitate what the government has given us and want to request you those cut off by the age limits we will continue ask you to continue worshipping from home. And even those within the age limits, if it's possible for you to continue at home, we still encourage that you may continue being at home. But if you are within the age limits and you want to come to worship here, we highly welcome you to come and fellowship with us. Number two, to let us know that as has been mentioned, that indeed our come meeting is right here with us. Usually our come meeting comes the month of August, but again, because of the inconveniences that have been caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and because of the interruption of the school calendar, we hand no option than to send you our come meeting this year in the month of July 17th to 24th. That is when the schools are having vacation because one tend to take care of our children, who are school-going children. And for this reason, I want to join my elder who spoke about the importance of come meeting and from us as pastorate, we are fast thanking the church so very much for your dedication. Every come meeting, every year, we have seen you coming so bodily and strongly supporting the come meetings, both in the camp offering and the camp expense. I received a report from our treasury that even the other offerings of the church, the tithes and the normal church offering for the church, that indeed, we have greatly improved since the time of this year. And as pastors of your church, we representing the rest of my colleagues, I'm standing here to thank you so much church members for serving and supporting the mission of the church in this very difficult time. We are not able to reach out to your homes and pray with you, but I want you to know, as pastors, we are grateful and praying for you, that the Lord may bless you and continue supporting Gonswag. Now, this come meeting requires your support, both in camp offering and in camp expense. There is not any other person to do this, it is you. And your giving will be a blessing to you. We will keep reminding you that we need this offering as you've heard, we are having speakers from different part of this country and even out of this country. And we depend on your goodwill offering to support that camp expense. But more importantly, the thanksgiving offering, which is a camp offering. Let me mention here and say the camp offering is your thanksgiving to the Lord. You look back and see how God has guided you since the last camp meeting, he has been with you. And again, all of us, we have every reason than the Lord, having kept us this far, even through the difficult times of COVID-19. And many of us have been sick, we have family members who are sick, we have witness of family members and friends are sleeping through this COVID, yet God has given us a privilege to be alive today. And so we can come to him and say thank you God as you seek him to guide us even in the next coming here. I want to appeal to us all church members, don't wait. Start right away, talk into the Lord and see what you can give back to him as a thanksgiving. Lastly, I want to let you know that our speaker is right with us, who is going to share with us this divine hour. Our sister, Pastor Hatter von Stegel. Von Stegel, face is not a new person to us. We know her as Dr. Hatter. She has been used of the Lord to speak to us before. She was one of our guest speakers last camp meeting and she took us through powerful lessons on leadership. This morning, the Lord had chosen her to speak to us and I pray that you may mention her before the Lord and silently as you're seated wherever you are, the time when she stands to speak to us, the Lord may fill her with spirit and she will meet everyone of us at our very point of needs. May the Lord bless you and bless us all as we worship him this Saturday morning. God be with you. Happy Saturday, church. Happy Saturday, viewers wherever you are. It's now time for our pastoral prayer and I welcome all of you wherever you are. But before you pray, let me read from the book of second chronicles chapter seven and verses 14 says, if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. Let us pray. Kind and everlasting Father, we come before you, Lord God in heaven this Saturday. We thank you Lord for who you are and we thank you heavenly Father for giving us an opportunity to come and worship you today. Lord in heaven, we know we have sinned before you and we have fallen short of your glory. Lord forgive our sins and accept us heavenly Father in thy house. Lord in heaven your children have come even despite this COVID-19, the challenges that we are facing at the moment heavenly Father is enormous. We are praying heavenly Father that you may support each and every family. All the challenges that we are faced because of this pandemic heavenly Father has affected the families so much. It has also affected our church heavenly Father and we are really praying that you may come and rescue thy world. Lord God, many families have lost their livelihoods because of this pandemic. Some have lost their jobs. We pray for them heavenly Father. With financial challenges, Lord remember these families wherever they are. Lord God in heaven, we pray for the sick in hospitals. We pray for those who are recuperating in their homes heavenly Father wherever they are. We remember them this morning. We know Lord, doctors will give medicine but the healing will come from you. Lord in heaven, support these families. Lord heavenly Father, we pray for our church. Even our church members heavenly Father. Some are going through difficult challenges. We pray for them. Some have lost their loved ones including even elder Amaya heavenly Father who lost his father some weeks ago. Lord in heaven, we pray for these families. Visit unto them and comfort them. Lord Father, we pray for our nation. Be with the leader heavenly Father and guide them so that they can take this country in the right direction. For our church also, we put it unto your hand heavenly Father. From the general conference level to the local church, Lord God in heaven guide us and help us heavenly Father take thy word to all corners of this world. We really thank KBC and even our communication team heavenly Father for enabling us to even reach our people heavenly Father across the world virtually. Lord in heaven, be with the man servant who will come and break thy bread heavenly Father. Speak through her heavenly Father so that thy word can reach everyone. Lord in heaven, be with each and everyone of us and touch our hearts and help us heavenly Father, accept you. Lord in heaven, be with us now and forevermore because you are praying, believing and trusting in the holy name of your son Jesus Christ. Amen, amen. Happy Sabbath. It is another opportunity God has given us to come to him in tithes and offerings. So it's time that we prepare our tithes and offerings. And before we begin, the word of God tells us in the book of Psalm 24 verse one that the earth is the Lord's and all its fullness. The world and those who dwell therein. The book of Psalm also 50 verse 10, 11 and 12 tells us that every beast of the field is mine. That is what God is saying. And the kettle on a thousand hills. I know all the birds of the mountains and the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell you for the world is mine and the fullness thereof. The last verse is from second Corinthians chapter nine verse seven. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart not grudgingly or of necessity for God loves a cheerful giver. So brothers and sisters, wherever we are, let us give our tithes and offerings faithfully to God today. For those who can access SafariCom, you can use SafariCom M-Pesa pay bill number 320, that is account number 100, that is pay bill number. The account number, you can just write tithe if you're giving tithe or write offering if you're giving offering or come meeting offering if you're giving a come meeting offering or any other. For those using Airtel, SDA 01 and the account will be the kind of offering you're giving. You can also give using the bank account number standard chartered. I believe you will see it on the screen. Standard chartered, Kenyatta Avenue. The account name is Nairobi Central Church and the account number is there, 010202 again, 4184600 and the other details are there. So for those in the church, welcome the decons and the deconesses to go around collecting the offering envelopes and those who are away can send virtually. May God bless you. As I finish, I want us to pray for the offerings. Let us pray. Our kind loving Father who are in heaven, you've reminded us not once, not twice, but all the time that you own everything. Even us as human beings, we came from you. Whatever we have, Lord, it's you who has blessed us with it. And Lord, you've told us to come, not empty handed when we're coming to worship, but come with an offering which is a 10th of what you've given us and an offering which is a 10th or even more of what you've given us. And Lord, as we come to you, we pray that you may forgive us, receive our hearts, cleanse us so that whatever we give today and the days ahead may be acceptable before you because I'm praying, trusting and believing in Jesus name, amen. I will just like to remind us that next Sabbath, the 22nd of May will be a music Sabbath. It will be filled with so much joy. And even as we give 439, how far from home? How far from home? Four, three, nine. Join us in some, please. Sing. How far from home has gone? I bent my steps, the watchman's pick. The long dark night is almost gone. The morning soon will break no more. But sweet night flies with homes bright, shining ray till thou shalt reach the rims in everlasting days as though this was his soul, inspiring song with courage born, the soul is assured when victory is won. Matthew, my name is Joseph. My name is Margaret. And my name is Brian, and we are from Children's Garden Home. Our children, amazing children, some. And our theme for this month is the new faith. And our topic for today is seeking for truth. And our verse for today is Acts chapter 11 verse 18. And it says, and when they had this, they had no further objection and praise God saying. So then even to the gentiles, God has granted repender that leads to life. Let's pray. Our dear kind and everlasting father, we do come before you this moment appreciating for the gift of life. As we are going to listen to your sermon, please help us and may you help your children understand. And for it is in Jesus' name, we do pray and believe. Amen. Boys and girls, we begin with a story, a story of kindness. Listen to this. At Joppa, which was near Lida, there lived a woman called Dorcas, whose name was also Tabitha. She was a tailor and she made clothes for the poor. She was loved by the church in Joppa because of her kindness. She knew who needed comfortable clothing and who needed sympathy. She freely ministered to the poor and those in sorrow. My father said that her skillful fingers were more active than her tongue. Sadly, one day she became sick and died. Oh no, everybody was very sad because Dorcas was a very kind person. When they had disciple Peter was in Lida, which was near Joppa, messengers were sent to him, asking him not to delay to come to them. Immediately Peter arrived and went with them to Joppa. Vision was revealing to Peter that he has to go and preach to the Gentiles. Today, God is seeking for souls among the high as well as the lowly. They are many like Cornelius, whom the Lord desires to know his word. God calls for honest, humble workers who will carry the gospel to the high class like Cornelius. As we hear, Masi, would you like to tell us what you've learned from this lesson? First, I have learned that prayer is very powerful. In the King, I must tell all the world worship him. In all the names, me, yes, I will go. Let's pray. Dear God, dear Father, come with me with this particular moment. I appreciate for the children's sermon. I hope they have understood it well. They will keep it in their mind. And it is in Jesus' name, I do pray and believe. Amen. Children, thank you for coming and listening to the children's sermon today. Please join us the next sabbath as we learn about Delivered from prison. Bye for now. Bye. Happy sabbath. Happy day. Yes, I shall be reading the scripture reading for today. It comes from Ephesians chapter three verse 20 and 21. I'll be reading from the KJV version, kindly follow from your own. Chapter verse 20, it says, now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that walketh in us, unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end, amen. I'll read it again. Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that walketh in us, unto him be glory in the church Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end, amen. May God add a blessing to his reading. Good morning and welcome everyone to Nairobi central church. It is such a privilege to see so many of you here in the sanctuary and it is an absolute blessing to be able to welcome people from all over the world who are watching us this morning. Welcome to worship. We are told where two or three are gathered together in his name, Jesus is on midst, God is in on midst. So welcome, welcome to worship. I'm Dr. Hertha von Stegel. It is a privilege to be able to speak with you this morning. I would like to thank the pastors of the Nairobi central church for inviting me to speak. It is an awesome responsibility to open God's word and I am just delighted to be here with you this morning. When Pastor Ogeda asked me for purposes of the flyer from KBC to indicate the organization I represent, I had to smile for a moment because in my professional life I have the privilege of representing some amazing organizations, some really truly life changing organizations. But this morning that is not important. This morning I am representing the most remarkable, the most wonderful organization of all. This morning as a fellow believer it is my privilege to represent the billions of people of faith, the body of Christ. And so I speak with that authority. As the children said, God asked us to go and teach and teach all nations. So before we delve into this sermon this morning, the rewards of ditch diggers, I would like to uphold each one of you who is listening this morning. I would like to uphold you before God's throne and I'd like to do it with the prayer that Paul prayed for the Ephesian church. God of our Lord Jesus the Anointed, Father of glory, I call out to you on behalf of your people. Give their minds ready to receive wisdom and revelation so they will truly know you. Open the eyes of their hearts and let the light of your truth flood in. Shine your light on the hope you are calling them to embrace. Reveal to them the glorious riches you are preparing as their inheritance. Let them see the full extent of your power that is at work in those of us who believe and may it be done according to your might and power. Heavenly Father, it's me again. May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, my Lord, my strength and my redeemer. Amen. The rewards of ditch diggers. Those of you who saw the title of the sermon were probably wondering, what is that lady going to speak about? Is that right for you wondering what is she going to speak about? Well, I am a student of the Bible and I'm also a student of history and I love obscure passages in the Bible. And this morning I'm going to take you to the second book of Kings, chapter three. It is one of these obscure passages in the Bible that I have to admit very few people are preaching on. Has anybody ever read second Kings, chapter three? You don't need to raise your hand it is a rhetorical question. But it is one of these amazing, amazing chapters that starts with Israel is at war with Moab. So I'm going to take you to the Old Testament during the time of Israel where we had the divided kingdom. It's war, Jorab, just to set the scene for a moment. Jorab is the son of Ahab and Jezebel. Everybody has heard of Ahab and Jezebel, right? Ahab and Jezebel. And the Bible tells us that Jorab is an evil king. Now note that, Jorab is an evil king. But he's not quite as evil as his parents. So the bar is very low, right? When we are talking about Ahab and Jezebel the bar is very low. So Jorab and their son is just a little bit better. But the chapter here in second Kings three it is war with Moab because Ahab has died, Jorab has taken, he's now king of Israel and the Moabites who had been conquered before are now rebelling because this young king is on the throne and the Moabites are saying we are no longer going to pay tribute. We are no longer going to bow down to the Israelites. We are rebelling. And Jorab, being the young upstart he's basically saying I'm having none of this. I am going to fight the Moabites because we can't have this. This obedience we can't have this rebellion. So we are picking up the scripture in verse nine. So the king of Israel, Jorab, son of Ahab went with the king of Judah and the king of Edom and they made a circuit of seven days journey and there was no water for the army or for the cattle that followed them. Then, so they're in trouble, they're in big trouble. They've already traveled for seven days. Then the king of Israel said, alas for the Lord has called these three kings to give them into the hand of Moab. But Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat is the good king of Judah. He said, is there not a prophet of the Lord here that we may inquire of the Lord by him? And one of the king of Israel's servants answered Elijah, the son of Shaphat is here who used to pour water on the hands of Elijah. Jehoshaphat said, the word of the Lord is with him. So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to see him. They go down to see Elijah. So let me set the scene for those of you who are at home or are watching online, you will be able to see some of these power points and you will see the map. So this is during the time of, as I said, the divided kingdom, Israel is in the north, Judah is in the south and Edom is underneath. So these three kings have come all the way around and Moab is to the east. So they have come all the way around and they are in big, big trouble. So, and I'm reading from the New American Standard Bible verse 13, 2 Kings 3, 13. They have arrived, the kings have arrived at Elijah's house. Notice the kings go to Elisha. They are not saying, Elisha, you have to come to us. I just want you to know that. Now Elisha said to the king of Israel, what do I have to do with you? Go to the prophets of your father and to the prophets of your mother. And the king of Israel said to him, no, for the Lord has called these three kings together to give them into the hands of Moab. Elisha said, as the Lord of hosts lives, before whom I stand, would it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah? I would not look at you nor see you. Now that is speaking truth to power. Elisha says to Joram, he's the king of Israel, mind you. He says, I wouldn't even look at you if it weren't for your friend here, Jehoshaphat. Elisha is angry. The scripture is very clear about this. Elisha is angry. So let me ask you, is it a sin to be angry? Is it a sin to be angry? The Bible says very clearly, in your anger, do not sin. Augustine of Hippo had a beautiful saying. He said, hope has two beautiful daughters, anger and courage. Anger at the way things are, and courage to make sure they do not stay as they are. I was sharing this quote with a friend of mine and she said, you know, Herta, we have a lot of anger in this world, but where is the courage? Where is the courage? Let me ask you, what makes you angry? Are you angry because you don't get your way? Are you angry because people don't do what you want them to do? What are you angry about? I would like to submit to all of you this morning. We should be angry about certain things. One thing that makes me angry is the fact that there is so much domestic violence in this world and it is everywhere, not just in Kenya, not just in Rwanda, it is everywhere. Globally, the statistics show that one in three women is domestically violated, physically, emotionally, mentally. One in three, that makes me angry. It makes me angry that so many children right now are being abused, it makes me angry. It makes me angry that so many people are unnecessarily in poverty, that makes me angry. It makes me angry that we cannot get the COVID vaccines here in time to start vaccinating our people. It makes me angry that less than two people, two per hundred people in Kenya at the moment are vaccinated and in other countries we have 90, a hundred and over a hundred. That makes me angry. Social injustice makes me angry and abuse of power makes me angry. What makes you angry? What makes you angry? Elisha is angry at Joram, he's angry at Joram. And he's angry at a king who is in a leadership position but cannot lead. He's angry at someone who is in this position of power and is not doing his job. And Elisha is not afraid to speak truth to power. But look at the next verse, look at verse 15. Elisha is angry but then in verse 15 he says, but now bring me a minstrel. What is a minstrel? I would like to thank these beautiful musicians for singing so beautifully this morning. You blessed my soul. As a speaker, when you are preceded by such skilled musicians, I can get up here and I think even if I don't say anything that makes sense, people will still be blessed. Don't you think? People will still be blessed. And so thank you for being our minstrels this morning. So minstrels are musicians. And Elisha is basically saying, I need a minstrel. I need a musician here. Because Elisha is a prophet of God and he knows as well as you and I do that in our anger, we cannot do anything. We need to calm down. We need to calm down. We need to allow God to come into our hearts, to come into our minds and to speak to us. And for Elisha it was the music. And the word of God said and it came about when the minstrel played, and thank you piano player for playing so beautifully, when the minstrel played, that the hand of the Lord came upon him. And he said, thus says the Lord, make this valley full of trenches. The King James version and the beautiful scripture reading this morning was from King James. The King James says, make this valley full of ditches. And that's where the title of the sermon comes from. The rewards of the ditch diggers. Make this valley full of trenches. Make this valley full of ditches. For thus says the Lord, you shall not see wind, nor shall you see rain. Yet that valley shall be filled with water so that you shall drink, both you and your cattle and your beasts. This is but a slight thing in the sight of the Lord. He will also give the Moabites in Yurhe. So let me stop here and analyze what is going on here. Each of these characters are having a reaction to adversity. Are they in trouble? Are these kings in trouble? They're in trouble, right? There is no question. Is there army in trouble? Absolutely. They have been marching for seven days. They have no water. They have probably limited food at this point. They're in the scorching heat. They are in trouble. So this is an adversity. They are in trouble. So let's analyze a bit how these different characters are reacting to adversity. Joram, what is Joram doing? He's completely in despair. He's throwing his hands up and he's basically saying the Lord God is here. Now let's stop here for a moment. Does Joram have a meaningful relationship with the living God? No, right? He has no relationship with the living God but his immediate reaction is basically to do what? Blame God. You know, I am so tired of people who have no relationship with the living God to blame God for their troubles. Aren't you tired of that? Why don't they blame the devil? If they have no relationship with the living God but this is Joram's reaction and this but this is natural because when you don't have a relationship with God you are without hope. And so Joram is basically saying God, God has into this mess. We are in trouble. So that is Joram's reaction. And like Elisha, I want to say Joram, you are in a position of leadership. Lead, follow or get out of the way. That's Joram for you. Jehoshaphat. I think probably most of us can relate with Jehoshaphat somehow. I certainly can relate with Jehoshaphat. He is the godly king. He's the king of Judah. He's trying to do the right thing. Now notice for a second, this was not his war. Have you wondered why did Jehoshaphat get into this situation in the first place? He said right away, Joram, if you need my help, I'm your brother, everything I have is yours. And I can identify with this because my impulse is to help. My impulse is to go and help. So this is what Jehoshaphat is doing. It's also politically expedient for him because you don't want people rebelling all over the place. So he's basically throwing his lad in with Joram. Probably knowing full well that this is not a good alliance. Joram is not a reliable friend. This is not a good, this is not a good alliance. So the temptation for Jehoshaphat would have been to say, why I'm a smart guy? Why did I get myself into this mess in the first place? Why didn't I ask God before I started marching with Joram? Have you been in situations like this where you find yourself in a real mess and you think, oh God, help me now. But why didn't I ask God before I got myself into the situation? And this is where Jehoshaphat is. He has allied himself with Joram and they are in this war situation. They have marched for seven days. They have no water. And Jehoshaphat could easily say, why did I get together with this amateur? Napoleon, who was probably one of the greatest generals of all time, used to say, good generals focus on strategy. Great generals focus on logistics. And great generals focus on logistics. And Jehoshaphat could have said, I've been following blindly. I've been following Joram blindly. Why didn't I ask some questions before we got ourselves into the situation? But the text doesn't indicate that Jehoshaphat is blaming himself, that he's beating himself up, which would be my tendency to do. The text does not indicate that. The text indicates that Jehoshaphat sees the situation for what it is. They are in serious trouble. He doesn't blame Joram. He doesn't blame God. No, instead he pivots. And he turns toward God and says, we need Godly counsel. And the message that we are getting from Jehoshaphat is even if you got into a situation of adversity because of your own fault, you should have been smarter than this. God does not forsake you. If you pivot and you basically say, God, I need your help right now, you are faithful and you will strengthen me and you will protect me from the evil one. God is faithful. So that's what Jehoshaphat is teaching us, that when we turn toward God in a situation of adversity, God is there. God is faithful. And that is the source of Jehoshaphat's hope. So Joram is completely in despair. Jehoshaphat is a man of hope, a man of faith. And Elisha is teaching us how God can use people who are willing to be angry at the right things, people who are willing to clear their mind and say, God, what is it that you want me to do? What is it that you want me to say? And Elisha is able to provide, to be the channel for God, to provide the counsel and the comfort that these three kings so desperately need. So Joram is in complete despair. Jehoshaphat has complete hope and trust. Elisha is providing counsel. And God, God has a rescue plan. You know, there are times I wonder whether we think even this COVID pandemic that has affected all of us, that God is helpless, that God is wringing his hands up there somewhere. You know, God always has a plan. But God's rescue plan has two parts. It has two parts. And what is God saying to the three kings? He's saying, fill this valley full of what? Fill this valley full of ditches so I can provide the multi-purpose miracle. So this is God's rescue plan. There's a human part which is digging ditches and there is the divine part which is the multi-purpose miracle. So let's focus on the human part for a moment. The human part digging ditches. This is not glamorous, is it? Digging ditches. But the text tells us very clearly that we need to recognize the link between digging and receiving. What do you think would have happened if, if when the direction came, fill this valley full of ditches? If people had said, we're not doing that. What would have happened? I remember when I was in law school in New York, I was in a prayer group with this wonderful friend of mine and she kept saying how impressed she was that I seemed to know exactly what I was doing, that I was accepted at the law school that I wanted to go to and so forth. She was completely disoriented. And so she said, would you mind that we pray about the school? She wanted to go to graduate school and she said, do you mind that we pray about the school that I go to? And so we pray and we pray. And I kept asking her, I said, have you received any feedback from the schools and so forth? She said, no. And we keep praying. I'm not kidding, a year and a half later, we prayed for a year and a half. A year and a half later, I finally said, you know, and this really, really surprises me. You are such a smart girl. How come you are not accepted in school? You should have had many acceptances by now. So she looks at me so sheepishly and she says, well, I haven't applied yet. You know, there is a link between digging and receiving. You know, sometimes we pray for things, we pray for God to do his part, but we haven't done ours, right? There is a link, so we need to recognize that. The second thing is trusting God when he gives so-called irrational directions. Can you imagine what those soldiers felt like when these kings come back from Elisha and they are basically told, now you dig ditches. Dig ditches. They are thirsty. They are tired. They haven't been comfortable. They've been marching in their gear, in their army gear and everything. They don't feel like digging ditches. And yet the scripture tells us that's exactly what happened. They filled the valley full of ditches. And so trusting God's irrational directions. And the third, that is the human part, the digging ditches, is nowhere to dig your ditches. You know, sometimes as human beings, we are very good at digging a hole for ourselves. And we're not actually digging ditches and digging trenches where the water can flow and heal us and give us what we need. So I'd like to ask you, where are you digging your ditches? What is your valley? What is your desert? These times are very tough. There is no doubt about it. Unemployment is high. I have heard many students who are saying we cannot take our exams. We cannot find jobs that are commensurate with our education. Well, I would like to submit to you, don't wait. Find something to do. A few weeks ago in the nation, there was a wonderful article. This was on April 12th about a young man named James. And the article is entitled From Washing Dishes to Owning a Restaurant. And it's such an inspiring story because this young man is basically 28 years old. He and the article says he tilled people's lands and did other odd jobs to make a living after completing school. And now on any given day, he makes sales between 7,000 to 10,000 shillings, which is a lot for an outfit like this. And he says, I was offered a job to wash dishes within the restaurant, but bereft of options. I gladly took it. I would like to ask you, where are your dishes? You may feel discouraged right now. You may feel like nothing is turning out and my heart goes out to all those students who should be taking exams, who should be preparing for their profession, who should be able to get out there and be lawyers and engineers and mechanics and whatever, and they are blocked. My heart goes out to you, but I would like to encourage you, keep digging. Don't stop right now. It may not be the desired course and the optimal course, but keep washing dishes. Keep doing something. Don't wait for the ideal situation. Do something. In my case, I was born in a communist country at the height of communism. No God, no church, no nothing. So if you were a Christian, you were persecuted. If you did not join the communist party, you were persecuted. And by the time I got to high school, I had been at the top of my class. By the time I got to high school, I was not able to go to school on Saturday, which was my belief, and I was expelled from this prestigious school. And I will never forget the feeling of just there is no future for me. That is just no future for me. And there was this sagging feeling in my stomach, but somehow I felt I was doing what God was calling me to do and I needed to follow his leading, even though the consequences were so dire. So for four years, I basically, I ended up, as I said, I was expelled from this prestigious school. For four years, I studied by myself. I went to a different high school where I didn't need to attend classes. So I studied chemistry, I studied physics, I studied Latin, you name it, a very, very heavy curriculum by myself for four years. And every Christmas, because this was a communist country, every Christmas and every Easter, we had three weeks of very, very heavy exams. And we had to obviously pass those exams to progress. So I was studying my socks off, and there were times when I thought, why am I doing this? But I kept studying. And I also made Persian rugs. Thanks to my sister who had started this shop, this little factory, we made the most beautiful Persian rugs. And if the Apostle Paul could make tents, I could make Persian rugs. And so can you. If you need to do something with your hands, do something with your hands, because it is a blessing. So that's what I did for four years. And then through an amazing chain of events, my sister was really instrumental in this. We were able to emigrate to the United States. So digging ditches in the face of adversity. So that is the human part, digging ditches. Recognize the link between digging and receiving. Trust God's irrational directions and know where to dig your ditches. And then God, God is doing his multi-purpose miracle. The scripture tells us that God gave water and God didn't just give water, he gave victory. And that's what we are reading in 2 Kings verses 20 and 21. It happened. I love the way the Bible does these things. It just happened. It happened in the morning about the time of offering the sacrifice. That behold, by the way, offering the sacrifice is worship. So don't miss that. At the time of the offering of the sacrifice, that behold, water came by the way of Edom and the country was filled with water. Now the Moabites, they thought the kings were fighting amongst themselves and they rose early in the morning and the Moabites were completely defeated. And you can read that in detail in 2 Kings 3 20 to 24. The Moabites were completely defeated. So the human part is digging ditches. The divine part is what? The divine part is the multi-purpose miracle. It is the water and it is the victory. So let me summarize this. This Kings, 2 Kings 3, this chapter teaches us some amazing, amazing things. First of all, how you react to adversity is your choice. It is your personal choice. You can throw your hands up in the air or you can actually do something. Secondly, I would like to speak to the leaders. If you are in a leadership position, then lead. Lead with courage and lead with conviction. Otherwise, otherwise follow or please get out of the way. There is nothing more damaging than leaders who don't know how to lead. That's what the scripture tells us. And thirdly, God is with, God is still, God is still in the miracle working business. But he does not perform miracles in a vacuum. There is the human part. So I would like to encourage each one of us. Do your part. You can do something. Do your part. And I can assure you, and I know it from my own experience, God will do His. So do your part. God will do His in His time. And so I want to close with the beautiful verse that you read so beautifully. Thank you from Ephesians chapter three, verse 20 and 21. And I'm again reading from the New American Standard Bible. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine. Stop there for a moment. I have an incredibly vivid imagination. Look at this. God to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us. To him, to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen. Amen, we bless the Lord. Thank you so much for that, the word from the Lord. And I love that when Elisha was angry, he called for musicians and the spirit of the Lord came upon him. What a blessing. I've never seen that passage. So thank you so much. Thank you so much for that. And indeed next Sabbath is a Sabbath of music. And we know that God is going to be upon each and every one of us. We are going to do our closing song, song number 517, 517. You know, Esther Himmels, I will ask those who are in the congregation to be upstanding please. As you join us in this song, 517. My faith looks up to thee. Please join us in song even from online. Let us sing together 517. My faith looks up to thee. Thank you so much with us this morning. Thank you for being a miracle working God. Thank you for showing us how to live. And I would like to commit the soul congregation, the one that is here, each family represented here. Everyone who is watching on YouTube or KBC or wherever they are watching. Lord, shower them with your blessings, with your goodness and your grace. And may we all go into this new week filled with hope, filled with courage, not because of who we are, but because of who you are. The God we can trust, the God who is a miracle working God and who is using each one of us to make a difference for the kingdom. So may your kingdom come, may your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Amen. Amen. We may be seated. We will continue with the song services to crown up the Word of God. And as we had said before, next Sabbath is music Sabbath. The 22nd of May, be sure to join us as we'll be coming live from Nairobi Central Church. And we will be glad to have you with us. The song number 612, Onward Christian Soldiers. Let's join together in song, Onward Christian Soldiers. Six, one, 12. Sing. Christian Soldiers sing as to all the church of God. Soldiers. Like a mighty army of 138, great Jehovah. Five, three, eight. This is sing. We will sing it in Swahili. N'yimuza Christo. Miyamoja Thalathini Nathisa, 139. Himnos, this is 286. Wonderful words of life. Unimbie Tenna, 139. Nola Uzi, be sure to join us. On session, it will be a, have a beautiful week. Christus, let's wave. I'll be upstanding for the grace. Let's all be upstanding. Those are in the congregation in Yeter. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit believe us now and forevermore in the end.