Full transcript
0:01In silence we may hear the voice of God
0:08speaking to our hearts . Silence , Lord ,
0:22is to dwell . Silence . I will be still
0:33and hear my Jesus speak . Contemplate
0:42now the great God . Let us pray . Kind
1:06Father who art in heaven , we want to
1:08thank You , Lord , for Your grace , for
1:10Your love , for having the certainty of
1:12Your company , because each day , each
1:14moment , we can choose to be in Your
1:16presence . We ask that You accept at
1:23this moment our imperfect , flawed heart
1:26, full of contradictions and
1:27imperfections , but may You look upon us
1:29. not for what we are , but for what You
1:35dream for the life of each one of us .
1:40Therefore , at this moment , we beg for
1:42Your grace , which is an unmerited favor
1:45, a blessing for those who do not
1:47deserve it , but need it . Look at our
1:52existential void , look at our
1:53difficulties . Look at our
1:58dissatisfactions and see how fragile we
2:01are , how vulnerable we are in this
2:03world so perverse and evil . We are
2:08constantly attacked in our hearts , in
2:11our minds , physically . For this reason ,
2:15we need You as our rock , as our shelter
2:18. We need You to have mercy on our
2:21children who are growing up in the
2:23midst of a perverse , difficult
2:25generation . Extend , Lord , please , Your
2:29protection over each one of us . Save us
2:33for eternity . Open our eyes . open our
2:37mental perceptions for the study of
2:39Your word . May it once again be sown
2:43and not return empty . May it produce
2:48fruit for us and for our neighbor . Stay
2:51by our side , Father , please , in the
2:53name of Christ . Amen . Very well , a warm
2:59welcome to everyone here at the Novo
3:01Tempo space in Jacksonville . those of
3:05you physically present here and also
3:07those on social media , thank you for
3:09participating , thank you for already
3:11interacting and getting involved . Each
3:16day you and I need and must seek more
3:18and better our Savior , our Creator . And
3:24everyone is welcome because there is
3:26warmth , there is a special place in the
3:28heart of God for any person . Everyone
3:34is always welcome to the Father's house
3:37, whether in a physical church , whether
3:39in a virtual church , or in your privacy
3:41, in your room , everyone is always
3:43welcomed by the Father . He longs for
3:48intimacy with me and with you . He hopes
3:53that our hearts have space so that He
3:55can dwell , make His home , and bring
3:57transformation . You know that it is
4:03very difficult for a single day to pass
4:05that I live and someone does not ask me
4:07some kind of question that I do not
4:09know the answer to . Eh , speaking in
4:14spiritual terms , why is this happening
4:17to me ? Why did this happen ? When will
4:20God act ? Why is God silent ? Why is God
4:24so distant ? Why can't I go back ? Why
4:27did I have to live through that in my
4:29childhood ? Why is this happening to me
4:32again ? And you know , you can already
4:35imagine that I don't have the answers .
4:39Actually , God chose — it was God's
4:41choice within His sovereignty — not to
4:44explain everything to us . The sooner
4:48you accept this , the less you will
4:50suffer . We don't have , eh , answers for
4:55most of our questions . The Bible gives
5:00us direction , not answers . It gives us
5:05the compass , it tells us , " This way ,
5:07walk this way . " But if you enter that
5:12path , if you go in that direction , it
5:14doesn't mean you will have the answers
5:16you need . It is possible that at some
5:21point you might find some answer . I
5:24remember the story of a pastor who lost
5:29his wife . They were already in their
5:37early senior years , she was a good
5:39person , loved by many , and she
5:41contracted cancer . And in the process ,
5:50eh , thousands of people were praying ,
5:52crying out , asking , interceding , but
5:55she died . And this pastor testified
6:02that when he received the news , his
6:04first prayer was , " Lord , help me to do
6:06this right . " He said , " I have never
6:13gone through such deep grief . Eh , the
6:18chance of me blaspheming or rebelling
6:20is high . So , please , help me to do this
6:24right . " That somehow impacted me , and I
6:31think in very traumatic and difficult
6:33moments in life , maybe what sprouted in
6:35that pastor's heart should sprout in
6:37mine and yours . Lord , teach me to do
6:42this right . Help me to do this right
6:46when we don't have answers , when things
6:48seem confusing . And I want to base this
6:54biblically for you in 1 Corinthians 13 :
6:569 , which says that we know things in
6:59part . So the Bible is already
7:04anticipating your anguish , saying , "
7:06Look , we know things only in part . " We
7:11don't have the fullness of information ;
7:13we don't have all the knowledge we
7:15would like to have . But perhaps this
7:21part we don't know is also a form of
7:22protection . Is it really good to know
7:27the day of one's death ? For example , if
7:32you knew the day of your death , you
7:34would live in anguish your whole life ,
7:36because you would know the day is
7:37coming . So , God hiding that from you
7:43and from me is a blessing . You know the
7:47day you were born , but you don't know
7:49the day you will die . God , He veils
7:53some information ; He doesn't give all
7:56the answers . Deuteronomy 29:29 , for
8:00example , says that there are some
8:02things revealed that belong to us , and
8:05the hidden things belong to God . So ,
8:09the Bible is not a book that sets out
8:11to provide answers . The Bible is a book
8:18that sets out to show a path , and you
8:20can choose to live that path or reject
8:22that path . And that is an individual
8:27choice . That is why the Bible declares
8:31that some people will be saved and
8:32others will be lost . This happens
8:35because of choices . I need to choose
8:38some things . And every time you choose
8:41one thing , you unchoose others . There
8:46is no way for you to choose to be in
8:48two places at the same time , unless
8:49it's in the romanticism of some movie
8:51where someone puts one foot in one
8:53state and another foot in another . But
8:56you know what I'm trying to say . You
9:00can't be here and at the same time be
9:02in Japan climbing Mount Fuji . Right now
9:06, either you are here or you are
9:08somewhere else . Whoever is not where
9:12they should be is going to suffer some
9:14problem . For example , when you are
9:19driving , but you are not driving , the
9:21chance of you crashing is high . Because
9:25sometimes you are physically in a place
9:28, but you are not mentally there . If
9:33you are going to the kitchen , but you
9:38aren't on the path , you are already
9:40doing what you were going to do in the
9:42kitchen , there's a good chance you'll
9:43stub your toe . A good chance of
9:48forgetting something . And it seems we
9:53have this difficulty of being in the
9:55place where we are and recognizing
9:57exactly who we are . And we are just
10:01that : people who don't have all the
10:03answers , who need to walk in the dark .
10:06The name the Bible gives to this is
10:08faith . We walk by faith and not by
10:11sight . If we only look at the things
10:15that are around us , there is no way for
10:17a single human being to exist without
10:19depression , because all we see around
10:21us are problems , are difficulties . I
10:25wanted , for example , to remind you that
10:28we always criticize the people of
10:30Israel . I don't know if in your church ,
10:35in the church you attend , the preachers
10:37also bash the people of Israel , but in
10:39the church I attend , people really let
10:41them have it . One of the things I
10:50remember myself criticizing , and seeing
10:52so many others criticize , about the
10:54people of Israel , is back in the desert
10:56after they left Egypt . I'm going to say
11:01something here , and you will relate to
11:03it . It’s when it usually happens like
11:07this , people say : " They are a
11:09complaining people , a stiff-necked
11:11people , a people with hardened hearts . "
11:14Imagine , God gave them food every day ,
11:20manna , which tasted like honey cake .
11:26How could they doubt the God of Israel ?
11:29Since their clothes wouldn't wear out .
11:34I was meditating on this this week and
11:36I thought , ladies here , can you imagine
11:39wearing a single dress for 40 years ?
11:45That's the only one you have . It
11:48doesn't wear out at all . It's easy for
11:57us to talk about the people of Israel .
12:02The other day I was looking at some
12:04articles , and sometimes some articles
12:06catch my attention , I read them for
12:08mere trivia . One of them was about the
12:14dietary monotony of animals . You always
12:19give the same feed to that animal . Can
12:23you imagine what it's like to eat the
12:25same feed your whole life ? And people
12:30say : " No , but it was manna , guys . " One
12:33day the manna was wonderful . The second
12:37day it was also extraordinary , the
12:39third day was lovely , the fourth day ,
12:41but 40 years eating honey cake . As good
12:48as the honey cake might be , it could be
12:50a honey cake made by whoever you want .
12:56But if you eat honey cake every day ,
12:58there will come a time when you will
12:59hate honey cake . And it's no use
13:05cooking it , baking it , frying it ,
13:07eating it raw , eating the edges , eating
13:10just the center . But there comes a time
13:14when you say : " I don't want manna
13:15anymore . " It was 40 years eating manna
13:19with the same clothes , waiting for a
13:24promise that didn't arrive . And then we
13:33discover that we do exactly the same
13:35thing , that we identify deeply with the
13:37people of Israel , because we complain
13:39much more than we give thanks . Our
13:46structure is one of complaint . Our
13:50structure , after sin , is one of
13:52discontentment . It is much easier to be
13:56discontent than it is to be content .
14:02You know that the first time I saw the
14:04ad on the Discovery Channel for a show ,
14:06I was horrified . I said : " But who was
14:13the genius who had an idea like this ? "
14:16The show , you know it , is Naked and
14:18Afraid . Those of you hearing this for
14:24the first time , don't worry . They put
14:27those things on so nobody sees anything
14:29. But here's the thing , it's extreme
14:33vulnerability , because the person is
14:35left out there for 21 days . It's
14:39usually a man and a woman who have
14:41never seen each other in their lives .
14:43The first time they meet , they meet
14:45like that . And they are left out there .
14:50It could be in the desert , in Alaska ,
14:53in the Amazon , in the Pantanal , in
14:55Zambia , in the Nordic forests , it could
14:57be anywhere in the world , naked and
15:00afraid . And as I was driving here to
15:04church , I told Luciana , I said : " Look ,
15:07the first time that this show aired was
15:126,000 years ago , when Adam and Eve
15:14sinned , naked and afraid . until God
15:21goes there to rescue the two of them .
15:24But that is exactly what happened . Sin
15:27threw us into extreme vulnerability .
15:33And today the sermon is about the
15:35vulnerability of your mind and mine ,
15:37obviously . The title of the message is
15:41how to have the mind of Christ . If you
15:50missed this series I’ve been doing
15:52here regarding human behavior and the
15:54mind , go back a few sermons , because
15:56one of the texts I presented was this
15:58one , declaring that we must have the
16:00mind of Christ and that we must take
16:01all our thoughts captive to Christ .
16:15Because the greatest , one of the big
16:17problems of our generation is our
16:19accelerated thinking , our highly
16:21frenetic thinking , and because it is
16:23very fast , it is not deep . And since we
16:34no longer have depth of thought and the
16:37speed is so high , the variety of
16:38thoughts increases , there is no depth ,
16:41and the chance of us getting stuck on
16:43some bad point is very high . You need
16:52to understand that your thoughts need
16:54to be controlled . If you don't master
17:01your thoughts , the devil's initiatives
17:03over you will prevail . And Satan , he is
17:10very cunning , isn't he ? Because he
17:13throws many thoughts into our minds .
17:16For example , " That’s unfair . " " You
17:22don't deserve this treatment . " " Look
17:25at the way he treated you . " " Look at
17:28the way he didn't greet you . " Did you
17:31notice that