Dr Charles Stanley - A God You Can Count On - Part 2

Access to affordable credit helps me pay my employees, but I don't really need it.

Infliction is killing me!

Who cares?

Big retailers are making record profits!

That's why we support the Durban Martial Credit Card Bill!

See?

Things in credit unions help small businesses make payroll.

This bill would cut the vital resources they need.

While increasing Megastore profits.

They deserve it.

Don't they?

Tell Congress, stop the Durban Martial Money Grab for corporate megastores.

While increasing Megastore profits.

They deserve it.

Don't they?

Tell Congress, stop the Durban Martial Credit Card Bill!

Tell Congress, stop the Durban Martial Credit Card Bill!

Tell Congress, stop the Durban Martial Credit Card Bill!

Let me pay my employees, but I don't really need it.

Infliction is killing me!

What? Who cares?

Big retailers are making record profits!

That's why we support the Durban Martial Credit Card Bill!

See?

Things in credit unions help small businesses make payroll.

Stop the Durbin-Marshall Money Grab for corporate megastores, paid for by the Electronic Payments Coalition.

Whatever he calls upon you to do, he says he will enable you to do it.

So there's a mechanism if you're going to an occupation, a job that's tough,

and you're having to learn, it's a little difficult for you.

You can get up every morning and say, Lord, I want to thank you that I can count on you,

far back and count on you to enable me today to do not just well, but to do my best today.

That is the assurance that you and I have because we can count on him.

The only person to think about this, who can say to you, I will never fail you, is Almighty God.

The Bible tells us that God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

So he's always dependably faithful to all of his promises.

And today's edition of In Touch, the teaching ministry of Dr. Charles Stanley,

identifies 10 of the many reasons that the God of Scripture is a God you can count on.

Let's listen in to Dr. Stanley's message.

He's always the same, that is, he's reliable and trustworthy.

You can put your trust in him, you can rely on him, you can count on him, he's a God you can count on.

And when you think about the idea of a God you can count on, what are we simply saying?

That is that he will always do what he has said and he will always fulfill his promises.

You never have to worry about God saying one thing and then saying and doing something else.

It means that he will do exactly what he says and he'll do the exact thing when he says do it.

Now when I think about all that and I think about how does that apply to my life and the truth is

if what you and I talk about is not applicable to our life, it's sort of meaningless.

So here's what I want to ask and I want you to be sure to write these things down.

Let's think about this for a moment.

On the basis that we say we have a God, the only true God,

Jehovah God Elohim, infinite in power, absolute and faithfulness, Jesus Christ being His Son.

On the basis of who He says He is, what assurances do you and I have every single day of our life?

No matter what the circumstance, no matter how long, how deep you're in, how long,

what you've been in life, where you've been, what's going on, what are the absolute unwavering,

unquestionable doubtless assurances I have and you have as a believer every single day that you and I

get up. So listen to this. Number one, every single morning when you wake up, here's what you have.

You have the loving kindness and the compassion of God to close you.

And I want you to turn, if you're not too familiar maybe, turn Isaiah, Jeremiah and then

delamentations is what He says. You can count on Him for this when you wake up every morning,

here's what you can count on. Verse, chapter three of the lamentations, verse 22,

the Lord's loving kindness is indeed never sees. You know why? Because He doesn't change.

And watch this. For His compassion never failed. You know why? It doesn't change.

They are new every morning. They never run out. And what's that next phrase? Great is your

faithfulness. That's the anchor that you and I can get up with every morning. His loving kindness,

His steadfast, unchangeable, unconditional love is hours for the receiving and the living in

all day long no matter what. You see sometimes we carry our burdens from yesterday to today. He

doesn't. When you confessed your sin before you went to sleep last night and you asked him to

forgive you and to cleanse you and you said to him, draw me to yourself, show me the truth,

give me a clean heart, clear mind, balance schedule, healthy body, right relationships.

Lord give me the courage to take whatever risk and necessary. You know every single morning you

wake up, what? Fresh. You just lot of don't feel very fresh. I didn't say anything about feelings.

I'm talking about who God is in your life and here's what He says. It's new every single morning.

You wake up to the newness of His presence in your life, loving kindness, compassion,

tender mercy, unconditional love. Secondly, that is that whatever He requires of you in any given

day, He says He will be there to help you. Turn back if you will to first desolonians in the fifth

chapter in the 24th verse and listen to what He says. He says, faithful is He who calls you and He will

also bring you to pass. You know what? Here is what you can count on that on Monday morning

and all the other six days of the week. Access to affordable credit helps me pay my employees

that I don't really need it. Infliction is killing me. But who cares? Big retailers

are making record profits. That's why we support the Durban Marshall credit card bill. See?

Things in credit unions help small businesses make payroll. This bill would cut the vital

resources they need while increasing megastore profits. They deserve it. Don't they?

Tell Congress stop the Durban Marshall money grab for corporate megastores paid for by the

Electronic Payments Coalition. Access to affordable credit helps me pay my employees that I don't

really need it. Infliction is killing me. But who cares? Big retailers are making record profits.

That's why we support the Durban Marshall credit card bill. See? Things in credit unions

help small businesses make payroll. This bill would cut the vital resources they need while

increasing megastore profits. They deserve it. Don't they?

Tell Congress stop the Durban Marshall money grab for corporate megastores paid for by the

Electronic Payments Coalition. Access to affordable credit helps me pay my employees that I don't

really need it. Infliction is killing me. But who cares? Big retailers are making record profits.

That's why we support the Durban Marshall credit card bill. See? Things in credit unions help

small businesses make payroll. This bill would cut the vital resources they need while increasing

megastore profits. They deserve it. Don't they? Tell Congress stop the Durban Marshall money grab

for corporate megastores paid for by the Electronic Payments Coalition.

And all the other six afternoons in the night. Whatever he calls upon you to do, he says he will

enable you to do it. So it doesn't make any sense if you're going to an occupation, a job that's

tough and you're having to learn. It's a little difficult for you. You can get up everyone and

say, Lord, I want to thank you that I can count on you. Father, I can count on you to enable me

the day to do not just well, but to do my best today. That is the assurance that you and I have

because we can count on him. A third way we can count on him is this. For example, I can count on

him. You can count on him to limit the pressures and the temptations of the day. All of us face

difficulties. All of us face pressures during the day. And one of the reasons that he

lets us go through situations and circumstances is to prove how great he is. And to pray, listen,

if everything just went your way and it was nice and sweet and oozing and so forth, you never

know how great God is. No, would you ever discover in your life what you can achieve and what you

can do when you can survive in life? Listen, when God's working in your behalf. So look at the 10th

verse, 13th verse, this 10th chapter, 1 Corinthians, no temptation or trial is overtaken you

but such as common demand. We all face him. Listen, and God is what? Faithful. Trust worthy. You can

count on him who will not allow you because he's omnipotent and omniscient knows what you're going

through. He will not allow you to be tempted or tried beyond what you're able but with the

temptation or trial make a way of escape so that you'll be able to endure it. Say, here's what we know.

No matter what you face, who does what to you? What they say? What they say? They stand to you.

How they gossip about you or what the trial of the temptation may be. Here's what you know for

absolute certain. You can rely upon God whose omnipotent hand will control the degree of pressure

you feel. Did you get that? If you did say, man, he will control the degree of pressure and temptation

you face every single day because he's a loving God and for his children, if you've never trusted

Jesus as you say to him and you're living your life on your own, you don't have that promise.

You have no promise of his control of Satan's pressure and temptations and you're like, you don't

have it. It is the work of the Holy Spirit in you who will enable you. It's the work of the Holy

Spirit in you. That's how God operates in the life of the believer. He enables and strengthens and

teaches us and guides us and strengthens us and he says, you know, they that wait upon the Lord,

she'll mount up with wings like eagles. Listen, run and not be weary, walk and not paint and

face the troubles and trials and pressures of life and you know what, we'll be able to survive

them. Why? Because we are rooted and bound by the anchor, our reliable trustworthy God, Jehovah,

Elohim, Jesus. Every single day we have that promise. Well, and then I want you to notice

something else he says here and that is somebody says, well, now I know about this forgiveness of

sin, but you see, one of the things that you and I know about God is that he forgives sin because

he saved us. But isn't it interesting that sometimes personal come to some situation where he'll say,

well, you know, I now he's forgiven me in the past, but listen, most of the time you're talking

about God and you put a button. Access to affordable credit helps me pay my employees that I don't

really need it. Infliction is killing me. But who cares? Big retailers and making record profits.

That's why we support the Durban Marshall credit card bill. See, things in credit unions help

small businesses make payroll. This bill would cut the vital resources they need while increasing

Megastore profits. They deserve it. Don't they? Tell Congress, stop the Durban Marshall money grab for

corporate megastores paid for by the Electronic Payments Coalition. Access to affordable credit helps

me pay my employees that I don't really need it. Infliction is killing me. But who cares?

Big retailers and making record profits. That's why we support the Durban Marshall credit card bill.

See, things in credit unions help small businesses make payroll. This bill would cut the vital

resources they need while increasing Megastore profits. They deserve it. Don't they?

Tell Congress, stop the Durban Marshall money grab for corporate megastores.

Infliction is killing me. But who cares? Big retailers and making record profits.

That's why we support the Durban Marshall credit card bill. See, things in credit unions help

small businesses make payroll. This bill would cut the vital resources they need while increasing

Megastore profits. They deserve it. Don't they? Tell Congress, stop the Durban Marshall money grab for

corporate megastore profits. That's why we support the Durban Marshall credit card bill. See,

things in credit unions help small businesses make payroll. This bill would cut the vital resources they need.

Durban Marshall money grab for corporate megastores paid for by the Electronic Payments Coalition.

It's the wrong thing to do. Now, you know the reason God can forgive you of your sins.

Do you know the reason that he can be holy and righteous and say that if you sin against him,

he shall surely die? Here's the reason he can say that and still be just because when Adam and Eve

sinned against God, God had already planned it. You remember what he did? He covered them with

skins, which means he killed something and shed blood. Every sacrifice from that moment to the

very sacrificial death of Jesus Christ whom John identified as the Lamb of God who came to take

away the sin of the world. All those sacrifices were foreshadowing of the ultimate sacrifice after

which there'd be no need for any other sacrifice because God himself laid down his life and the

life of his son at the Calvary. And listen, the reason he can say to you and me as sinners,

you're forgiven and let us still live is because his son Jesus Christ paid our sin dead in full

forever. Therefore, that makes God a just God who says one thing. Listen, it doesn't just do

something else, but listen, but paid the debt of our sin himself. That's the reason he says,

if you confess your sin, agree with him about it. He's faithful. You can trust him to forgive your

sins and to cleanse him and to cleanse you from all unrighteousness because he's already paid

the debt. In the death of his son, that's what makes the crucifixion of Jesus Christ the central

focus of the entire Bible from the very beginning of it to the end. It is the death of Jesus. It's

that blood-red cord that runs from the beginning of the Bible to the end, which says that everything is

wrapped up in the crucifixion, the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, I want you to turn to

Psalm 119 for a moment. That's the big Psalm. 119, and I want you to turn to a verse. I'm going to

give it to you in just a moment, but I want you to get the Psalm first. So look if you will. Let me

ask you this question. How many of you want God to be absolutely reliable, unfailing, in every

circumstance of life no matter what? You want him to be a God you can count on every single day,

and with every single promise, say amen. Are you sure about that? Say amen. Now let's read this

7th and 5th verse. 7th and 5th verse, listen to this. I know, O Lord, that your judgments are righteous

and that in faithfulness you have afflicted me. Wait a minute, I didn't count on that one. Oh yes.

You know what he's saying? By affliction, he's saying as a believer and David certainly was

that God disciplined him for his sin. Sometimes we can just confess it to him and he for

it. Listen, he always forgives us. Somebody says, well, are there any consequences even after I

confess it to him? There are. You know what it depends upon the nature of the sin.

And so sometimes there are real genuine, very difficult, painful consequences to our sin. But

what does he say? He says he's faithful. He's faithful to do what discipline us. Now why is that?

Because he loves us too much. Listen, he loves us too much to allow us to get away with something

that ultimately will destroy us every single morning. He get we get up and what does he say?

His loving kindness, his tender mercy, all that we need to enable us. He puts limits on the things

that cause us difficult and hardship strengthens us, forgives us, disciplines us, and I want you

to remember one last one. In first Corinthians, look if you will for a moment in the first chapter

what he says. And that's this, that every single morning when you and I wake up, every single believer

wakes up, listen, sealed by the Holy Spirit as a child of God forever and ever and ever. Now,

let's know what he says in first Corinthians chapter one. He says it on a different way.

Verse seven. Sold. Access to affordable credit helps me pay my employees, but I don't really need it.

Infliction is killing me. But who cares? Big retailers are making record profits.

That's why we support the Durban Marshall credit card bill. See, banks and credit unions help

small businesses make payroll. This bill would cut the vital resources they need. While increasing

mega store profits. They deserve it. Don't they? Tell Congress stop the Durban Marshall money grab

for corporate megastores paid for by the Electronic Payments Coalition. Access to affordable credit

helps me pay my employees, but I don't really need it. Infliction is killing me. But who cares?

Big retailers are making record profits. That's why we support the Durban Marshall credit card bill.

See, banks and credit unions help small businesses make payroll. This bill would cut the vital

resources they need. While increasing mega store profits. They deserve it. Don't they?

Tell Congress stop the Durban Marshall money grab for corporate megastores paid for by the Electronic

Payments Coalition. Listen, you are not lacking in any gift awaiting eagerly the revelation of the

Lord Jesus Christ, who will also listen, confirm you to the end, blameless, in the day of our Lord Jesus

Christ. Confirm you to the end. Confirm you to one of His children. Listen, God is faithful through

whom you were called in the fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ, their Lord. Called seal

confirmed to the end. Another may ask your question. What is it that I've missed when you wake up

every morning? What is it that you need that we've not covered? The truth is, if you'll read

those verses, it's all covered. That is, every single solitary need you and I have, he says,

he will be there. Faithful because he's omniscient, knows it. I'm nip it. He has the power to do it.

I'm the present. You're in His presence. Truthful, listen, because He only tells the truth.

And when you wake up, and people often times wake up, and if it's cloud injury and they think,

oh, you need to think about who you are. You're a child of the living God who is absolutely

eternal and who, listen, by His very nature cannot fail you. Now, here's another question.

What can I be assured of in the distant future? If you're a child of God, you can be assured

that you're going to live after you die. We can count on this. When our heart stops beating for

whatever the reason, that's not the end. You know what that is? We just get me to get catapulted

into the place that we talked about, to be with the God we've been believing in all these years.

And don't you know that's going to be an exciting moment when everything you and I have believed

becomes an awesome, eternal living reality. So that's what we can count on God in the future.

A second thing we can count on, I want you to turn back to John chapter 6 for a moment.

One thing we can count on is this. We can count on Him raising us from the dead,

just like He said, He did for Lazarus. Now, Lazarus ultimately died. But listen to the promise

that you and I have beginning in verse 39. What I want you to notice here is how many times

Jesus makes the same statement in the same conversation, verse 39. He says, this is the will of

Him who sent me, that of all that He's given me, I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day.

You and I have the distant promise of a resurrection. Now watch this at 40th verse, next verse.

But this is the will of my Father, that everyone who holds the Son and believes in Him will have

eternal life. And I myself will raise Him up on the last day. Why do you say twice? Then look

in verse 44, same conversation. No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws Him and

I will raise Him up on the last day, three times. Look in verse 54. He who eats my flesh and drinks

my blood, has eternal life, talking about receiving Him, told His Savior, I'll raise Him up on the last

day. If there's one thing I'm going to be able to count on, and that's this, that when you and I

come to the end of the way, when you and I breathe that last breath, absent from the body,

present with the Lord. Not only that, we're going to leave these bodies now. And when I think

about how much money people spend on putting away our bodies and these awesome, beautiful,

expensive caskets and bolts and all these things like we're going to be there for eternity,

He says, I'm going to raise you up. First of all, you're not there. That's just the body.

The wonderful thing about God is He's going to resurrect our physical bodies. He says it's going to

be change in the twinkling of an eye when He returns. We're going to be caught up together with

the clouds with Him in the air who have gone on before us. So one of the promises we have is this,

no matter what condition these bodies are in, and no matter what they may look like, one thing

for certain, there's going to be a moment in time when He says He's going to resurrect us,

and He says we're going to be in the likeness of the Son of God. Does it mean we're going to look

like Him? But here's what it does mean. We're going to look the best God can make us look, listen for

all eternity. Is that encouraging to you? We're going to look the best we can look for all eternity.

So what are we assured of in the distant future? We're going to have life eternal. He says we're

going to be resurrected. And thirdly, he says, listen, we're going to have a home in heaven.

John 14, you remember that passage? You'd probably know it by heart. You remember what he said

the night before? He was crucified? He is what he said to his disciples. He says in my father's

house, there are many dwelling places. If it were not so, I'd tell you the truth. I would have

told you, for I go to prepare a place for you, and if I go to prepare a place for you, I'm coming

again to receive you unto myself, that where I am, there you may be also. What are we assured of?

We can rest assured that we can count on God, not only to have promised us a place in heaven,

but also we can count on the fact that we have a place prepared for us. Then I'll

want you to think about something else. And that is that one of these days Jesus gets

going to return, Matthew 25, 31. But when the Son of man comes in his glory and all the angels

with him, then he'll sit on the glorious throne and all the nations will be gathered before him,

and he'll separate them from one another's the shepherd, separates the sheep from the goats,

and he'll put his sheep on this right hand, goats on the left. Then the king will say to those on

his right, come you who are blessed of my father, inherit the kingdom, prepare for you from the

foundation of the world. We know he's coming back. What do I know also? Not only is he coming back,

but I know that as he says here, he says he's going to separate the evil from the righteous,

and he says in this 41st verse of this 25th chapter, then he will say all those on his left,

apart from the accursed ones, into eternal fire, which has been prepared for the devil and his

angels. He says in verse 46, these will go away in eternal punishment, but the righteous

and eternal life. Here's what I know. The God of this Bible, you can count on him. How do I know

that? Because of his very nature. How do I know that? Past promises. How do I know that?

Because of every single promise that is yet to be fulfilled. A God, the God of the Scripture,

the only true God. There are thousands of years of proof that he never failed a single promise.

On what basis would you have to believe that now, after all these years, all the promises and

all of his, listen, absolute unfailing faithfulness upon what basis do you have to doubt a single

promise of God? Not one.

Thanks for joining us on In Touch, the teaching ministry of Dr. Charles Stanley.

God's Word gives believers confidence and assurance that he is faithful and he will comfort us

and help us and strengthen us through every difficulty. Read the truth and trust what it says.

You can listen to this message again at today on radio when you visit intouch.org and look

around there to help you find many other resources to help you get to know Jesus and follow him

faithfully. Head over to our bookstore page and you can order a copy of today's complete message,

a God you can count on. Again, that's intouch.org or call or text us 1-800-intouch.

Try to us address your letter to Intouch P.O. Box 7900 at Lana, Georgia 303-57.

God intends that we hear what he's saying to us through his Word and make personal application.

Today's moment with Charles Stanley is coming up. The peace of God is tranquillity and quietness

of the soul. It is the assurance that no matter what's going on around us, everything is secure.

Peace is not determined by circumstances. Neither is it a matter of chance,

it is a matter of choice. In a world filled with noise and uncertainty,

you can discover peace that cannot be shaken. Get your new free booklet,

Peaceful and Still, a guide to experience God's rest in an anxious age. Visit intouch.org

Peaceful. We're not the first to seek a life of purpose. The Bible tells of many who followed

a specific path, step by step, with courage, with surrender, for a deeper purpose, a stronger

passion, a lasting peace. Introducing your path to purpose, passion and peace. A new 90-day

devotional inspired by the timeless teaching of Dr. Charles Stanley. Abelable now at intouch.org

Slash Store. From the pastor's heart is an in-depth teaching letter

inspired by the teachings of Dr. Charles Stanley to receive intouches from the pastor's heart

letter called 1-800-intouch or visit intouch.org slash pastor's heart.

You're listening to Intouch. The amount of time a Christian spends communicating with God

impacts their effectiveness. Here's a moment with Charles Stanley.

Communication is absolutely vital to all of us and everything we do. Not only in our relationship

with each other, but it is also vital in our relationship to God, that we need to know how to

communicate with God. Now, communicating with the Lord involves both speaking and listening,

and most of us are much, much better at talking to God than we are to listening to Him,

and probably the same with each other. But God is still speaking, and if He's still speaking,

He intends for us to still listen. He speaks today like He's spoken the olden days,

but primarily today in three fashions, through His Word, through circumstances and through other

people, and His goals for speaking to us today are the same as they always have been.

And that is that you and I could comprehend the truth about Himself, that we would be conformed

to that truth, and that we would be able to communicate that truth to other people.

And all of us need to know how to listen to God. Now, I want you to think about this.

The sovereign omnipotent omniscient omnipresent loving just righteous merciful God,

who is the source of everything good in this world, who is the source of your very life has

said in His Word, that He will indeed speak to you personally. And because He will, all for

the Scriptures, hundreds of times, we hear God saying, listen, listen, listen. God would never say

listen if He did not intend to speak. You can learn more about hearing and obeying what God

says at intouch.org. How were you challenged to live for God by what you heard today? We'd love

to hear about that. Tomorrow on Intouch, have you ever been ready to take a huge step of faith

but suddenly found yourself paralyzed with doubt? Well, next time we'll learn what to do when our

faith wavers. That's next time on Intouch, the teaching ministry of Dr. Charles Stanley.

This program is a presentation of Intouch Ministries at Lanna, Georgia,

and remains on the station through the grace of God and your faithful prayers and gifts.