Transcription
[Music] Blessings, good morning, once again, Sunday of Santa Cena. We always regularly speak of judges and counselors. So let's pray before we forget, and as you are, incline your face. Daddy, well, we thank you, we bless your name, Lord, for this new mercy, Lord, with which you have clothed us, Lord. Like every morning, Lord, here we will be seeking, Lord, to please you, seeking to learn. Enable each one of us who are here. Work in us, Lord, every spirit from you, Lord, of intelligence, Lord, spirits of retention. Please, we cry out to you, Lord. Help us, please, not only to hear, Lord beloved, to listen, Lord, but to put your word into practice, Lord. We need it, our families need it, Lord Father. Help us, Lord, to be able to develop, Lord, such a noble task, such a noble labor, Lord, of those who are, Lord, working, Lord, in your work. Father, we thank you, Lord. We ask for those, Lord, who are on their way. Bring them safely, guard them, Lord beloved, please, in the powerful name of Christ Jesus. Amen, Lord, and amen. Look, we are going to talk about this judge, Elon, right? Suddenly, one hears a lot. Which famous judge comes to mind, right? Well, Deborah, Samuel, right? Samson, you might say, I have my doubts, no? But, but, but let's talk about Elon, right? And it's interesting. I told you that we need to go, after, it seems to me, before they put Elon there, there comes a review. We'll give the citation now, but suddenly one starts to look at the profile. I always tell you, let's pay attention to the profiles, and let's also pay attention to the profiles here, because, for example, here there are counselors and there are judges, right? And some have a line, I tell you, that they no longer have time to give appointments, right? But there are some who are so unoccupied, and I think that the one who is unoccupied should pay a little attention. And I hear, for example, with my children who have babies, and suddenly they go to a doctor and they say, "No, I didn't like him, he's too young, right?" This, I didn't like him. To this day, I think neither of them has been able to settle with a good doctor. And in one of those, I asked them, "What are you looking for in a doctor? Do you want a retired one, or do you want one who is 50 or 60 years old, right?" The experience is what they are looking for. And they are young, they are kids, right? And they are looking for... They know, look, they pretend to be crazy, but I realized, only what they say, they know, right? That someone sees someone with experience, of how many years of career, well, of how many years of age, right? Being a doctor, I'm talking about about 50 or 60 years old, right? They say, "This one," I say, "Well, what does he say?" "No, it's that he seems to have just graduated, very inexperienced." "Give him less meat," they say. But I can't give less meat, right? Nor should they give too much meat, but logically, there are certain things. So, it is interesting that we, or it is good, right? That we go and that we look at the judges and look at their profile, and that also, from time to time, we turn to look at those here. It is inevitable, right? To say, "Why, why is this brother unoccupied and that one is very busy? Am I doing something wrong?" Have I done something wrong? Of the things that we don't notice, I excuse myself, right? Of the things that we don't notice, is it my attitude? Is it this face I have that scares people and no one approaches? Ask yourself the questions, and once you ask yourself the questions, if you are a counselor, go to your pastor and tell him, "Look, I bring you a few questions that you have to answer for me." And if you are a son, you will endure. Not even one appointment, pastor, for a year, and you put me as a counselor, and here I bring the sign, "Not one." And I think, that's why I tell you, keep a profile of yourself, right? Because it's good to look at profiles. So, we are going to talk about Elon. It is interesting to note that the figure of judges is not new, right? The Lord himself established it from ancient times, right? And to this day, there are still judges, right? So, one might say, "What is a judge?" What is it that is needed? I think on Friday, the day of the Maranatha event, it seems to me, if I'm not mistaken, they spoke of judges there. A good topic, right? To reinforce. But what is needed? What is the first step to becoming a judge? Is it overnight, or what do we have to do? In the secular world, you have to pursue a career, right? A law career, and from there do certain things, right? So, how are you? What are you studying? How many years are needed to pursue a career, right? Of law, and then what is needed, right? Not just to arrive from time to time, right? I want to be a good judge, and I think you do too, because we need it, and the Lord wants to raise up judges and counselors from among us, right? Because, as I told you at the beginning, right? This is something that is not new, that the Lord, if the Lord himself established it, right? From ancient times. So, yes, I think we have to seek and be and be and get our degree, right? For example, to come regularly and say to the Lord, "What do I need?" I am pursuing this law career, and in the meantime, you, as it were, if you understand that word, you are as it were, tempering yourself, right? As if practicing. I told you, a good exercise, I do believe, is apostolic contact, right? Because you are listening and you are judging, right? Suddenly, a topic is being judged, and you have the possibility there, if you go on YouTube, I think not on Facebook, but if you go on YouTube, you can pause it, and the question comes, right? And then you say, "I will give the answer." You are, in a way, judging a case, right? I think that's valid. That's what I do sometimes, right? I say, "I would do this and this," and the discussion starts, suddenly, with my husband, or my daughter says, "No, look, let's see what he's going to say." Then you unpause it and say, "Hmm," right? Then one receives certain, certain classes there. I, this is a piece of advice I give you. So, how, what can we do, right? To become judges? Obviously, to pursue the career, right? How, how, how many years do I have to study, right? To be, to be a judge? Being a judge, you cannot improvise. Being a counselor, you cannot improvise. There are many things that years give, experience, right? There are many things that at the age you are now, you walk more slowly, more calmly, and I'm telling you this because a person, for example, of 40 years, already, more or less, from 38 years old, is already calmer to make decisions. They walk more slowly, right? They are no longer rushed. One thinks about it more. A 20-year-old, twenty-something, doesn't see them, they are reckless, right? And they are there with their strange ideas, right? And that's not new. Look, I, we, I grew up. I didn't have the, I call it this way, blessing that my cousins lived with us. So, they were in university, let's say, another was at the polytechnic, another was at the teachers' school, right? But I looked at them, right? Yes, it serves us as experience. They are young, and at that time they were hippies, do you remember? The boom of the... and they arrived like that, and my grandmother would grab them with a broom and chase them away, because my father and my grandmother entrusted their nephews to them. And then, and now I see another boom, right? Of people who are very intellectual, of I don't know what, and of I don't know when, and they come changing ideas. So, those things that one is seeing now, new, new, are not, right? But, but I told you, right? What is needed? What is needed to study to be a judge? How many years, right? At least, I think about 4 years, and then, there, pursue other things, right? For what type of, what law will you study, right? What is needed, right? What will be done? What types, right? What requirements will be needed, or what types of judges exist? And it catches my attention, and I think there should also be here, that within, for example, the judiciary, there are different typologies of judges. There isn't just one, right? And one, and one, and one. If you don't know, you would say, "Well, it's the same, for divorce, for marriage, for this, for that, for immigration," and it's not like that, right? And here either, right? So, there are different situations, right? Positions, and there are different requirements for what is needed. And I think good judges must be raised here, good, first, I think good counselors first, people who know, right? But what is it, for example? It caught my attention a lot, being a justice of the peace. Who is he? How is he appointed? What does he do here? What does a justice of the peace do, right? Because look, sometimes, excuse me, but also the judge, the judge who is here, or who judged what he did, was a revolution, right? And an explosion happened, and then two arrived, and what he did was say, "Well, I will be the mediator between you two. Since you are fighting, you won't talk. So that you work together, I will be here, and in the middle of you two." Was that good or bad? Bad. And then one starts to notice, and one says, "You didn't judge well, because you won't always go to court, or you won't always open a court to say, 'I need to communicate with that person.'" You can't. It's like when the son, the spouses are angry, and tell your father that the food is ready. Tell your father that he doesn't want it. Well, tell your father that he will be there. If he wants, I'll leave it for him. Well, tell your father. An intermediary, no, no, no, it won't be possible. It won't be possible. And look, we have to reach the point where we don't have to go to those institutions, right? That they exist because the word says, what a shame, right? That we should be capable of judging small cases and big cases. And a justice of the peace, what he does is judge, let's say, the small things, right? But he also needs to have, to have a right. And who assumes the simple matters? The one who is not capable of resolving a big situation could be a good justice of the peace who assumes simple matters of civil matters, right? Of faults in marriages, right? Of them suddenly insulting each other, and one suddenly says, "They could come to blows. They are disrespecting each other," right? And then, peace comes. But who has to do that? There are other judges, right? Who have other types of functions. There are career judges, there are magistrates, right? There are other judges of the superior courts. And so, what is needed? What are the functions, right? And what are the, what they should do, their duties, right? So, let's start here. Judges, chapter 12, verse 1. "After him, he judged Israel." After him, because a judge who was there passed away. That's why I told you we won't read it all, but go and read what happened, and then who follows after Elon. Then it says, "After him, Elon of Zebulun judged Israel for ten years." Then a judge dies, and another one comes and is appointed. But it is important, right? To note the figure of judges, right? That obviously, I told you a little while ago, it's not new, but the Lord himself appointed them. But what is, what is a judge? A person who has the authority and has been given the power, or has the power to judge and to sentence, right? So, yes, I think these are delicate situations, first, because someone has been delegated, right? To judge a matter. Here, I think counselors have been raised, but not judges, right? And sometimes, one advises, and if there are situations that you cannot handle, come, right? To see what we can do. Or, like when I, I don't know much about these things, but I also don't raise my hand. But let's say, when someone is going to divorce, they divorce. The first signature. Already, as it were, what I know is that they try to reconcile them, talk. If there are things that are irremediably broken, right? I think it's like they're going to court, yes. So, it's not just like they divorce, they separate, no, but rather to see what is, what is the breeding ground of the problem, the situation. One works, the other doesn't. What will happen, right? So, a judge is a person who has authority, right? And we, as children of God, here, if a judge were to be raised, because we are here, we judge some matters, your pastor, your servant, but the vast majority, well, I told you, advise, advise. And when you see that the situations are difficult and can lead to more, sometimes one says, "They are already disrespecting each other." After disrespecting each other, slaps will come, right? Because things are already difficult. One, already, if a counselor says, "You know what? They are already insulting each other, they are already disrespecting each other." I think one has to go there, with whom? With a justice of the peace, right? To say, "Look, it's a simple case, it's a civil case, it's a case where they need a little advice." So, authority was given to a judge. He has the power to judge and also to sentence, right? When it has happened to me, thank God, brothers come and say, "Look, we are going to separate for a while. We have the responsibility of our children. We don't want to give money to the courts. Better, what we are going to do is that I will take responsibility for my children," without any intermediary. And many times, look, I have done it. I have an elder summoned. Both are in agreement with what we agreed upon, with what we covenanted. Yes. And I stand up, because I do believe it is serious, and I tell them, "Are you in agreement that you will pay a monthly amount while you sort out your situations?" "You will not involve the children in front of a witness." And I am glad, sometimes, when one sees that people continue to do the right thing, right? That they say, "We are fighting, we are in a situation, right? We are in a situation, but we are." And one continues to see them, even if one feels here, and the other there, or the other there, or the other there, one arrives first, and the other later, but they are seeking for the good of the family, because one of them is doing their part, or in that case, both are doing their part, right? So, that is the power to judge, or to issue a sentence. A person has been appointed for that, without a doubt, right? So, the judges who are appointed are tested, tried in the word, right? A judge cannot, right? That's why I told you, the first thing you have to study to be a judge is law. And what do you have to read? I listen when politicians speak, because I like it sometimes. Look, I'm crazy. My father, I think he was to blame, because he made me listen to Ricardo Rocha, "Al Punto," and the old man was so boring. If you look at him, he was so boring, but boring things cost me, I don't know why. So, I suddenly, right? And I start listening to some sensational politicians, and I say, "Wow, what a career, what a good politician, because he says this and this and this and this and this and this and this and this, and he says this and this." And the other one, he demolishes him twice, and all because the other one is a deputy, or whatever you want, and doesn't know anything. And the other one, he demolishes him, and you say, "What a cat in water." And I also listen, right? When the preachers are there, or when I hear from, I have had the opportunity to hear, someone who is judging the word, says, "This and this and this, because the word says this and this." And the other refutes him, because he is also a Christian, he says, "No, but this says this and this." And even, look, excuse me, but even when we are praying, you have to know the word and know the word. If you are going to advise, you have to know the word. If you are going to judge, you have to know the word. That is, you have to be pursuing your law career to become a judge, because otherwise, you will be a bad judge, or a corrupt judge, or a judge who will sell out. Look, a judge, I think, should be, in some way, unmovable in their emotions, impartial. Imagine, just the power to judge a matter. It was live, right? A woman was giving, as it were, the news. She was giving the news, and the car was the one of the accident, and the dead person was her son, live. And she remained as if she continued giving her crime report, because it had already happened to her. But a tear escaped her, and you can see she was moved. And how strange. But imagine if it happens to you, or it happens to us many times, to judge those very close to us, our children, or between spouses, right? To say, "This is wrong because of this and this," and for one of the two, why? Because we give in, right? Because we know the scripture. So, it is interesting, right? That it is the word, that we are tested. A judge must be tested by the word, right? Especially us who say we are waiting for the Lord's coming. So, it is necessary to take into consideration, right? The characteristics or profiles, I told you a little while ago, of these judges that we already know. Amen. So, look, this word, this word Elon, comes from the root, from Hebrew 356, which means strong grove. And this dictionary, Eon, speaks of oak. When you are told about a, about a, about a timber tree, which one comes to mind? An oak, a strong tree, right? And when one comes to look a little, there, since I know you understand, right? And well, I'll look at the profile. The profile of this judge was strong in character, in attitudes, because sometimes one says, "No, be careful, because that brother has a strong character." Why? Because he is blunt, because he is rude, because we put it this way, ruder, because he is a machete-wielder, and right away, no, no, he doesn't listen, he cuts ears, he doesn't attend, right? But it's that, look, we notice some characteristics of this judge. Strength, which is strength for us, right? And look, this other strong one is a robust, corpulent person who has great strength, a firm character. What is a firm character? Which I think is one of the things that, I already told you, that you, at least me, you don't let me touch your character or your attitude. And yes, I see some very marked ones who tell me, "I am like this," and even if you don't say it, you don't touch it. You are telling me, "Don't mess with my character." One of the things that doesn't let us, the pastors, right? Nor the counselors, nor the judges, is that. They don't let us touch their attitude or their character, because it is different, the attitude and the character. But here it is talking about a firm character. It is talking about a strong person who is cheerful. You are working an 8-hour shift, right? We were working there in Oaxaca. Oh, those dry climates of over 120 degrees. Oh, we already wanted to finish. I, already, I encouraging my father and everyone, and in the end, we couldn't anymore, and we were working, pulling bamboo poles about 12 or 14 meters long. And something you have no idea, we had to resolve there, help my father work there. But I already told him, "Cheer up, daughter, cheer up, cheer up, cheer up. I'll bring you your water and some tacos." A cheerful person, who, in the midst of discouragement, of tiredness, someone injects them. Look, it doesn't pass. I told you, a situation, not a cold. Any little thing. When one is in a serious illness, right? That is, and I went through difficult situations. This accident left me in a complicated situation for 6 years. And I told him, when, when I amputated an arm, when they put the arm on me, and I saw my arm the next day, the first thing I asked the doctor was, "When will I get out of here?" I thought it was like getting a cold, tomorrow they give you your medicine and you're fine. I never imagined, I think never, I said, "Tomorrow I'll move my arm." I said, "No," they already put it on me. "Cheer up," he said, "this is a long journey." "About how long will you be well?" he asked me. "But about how long?" "6 years." "6 years?" And then he started to say a lot of things. "You cut 12 inches of nerve, and the tendon recovers one inch per month. So, there we have a year. In the meantime, you won't be able to move your fingers, and they will stick together. We will put a machine on you to give you shocks day and night so you can start moving your fingers while the nerves and tendons grow." And while he was telling me, I cried and cried and cried, because I said, "6 years, 6 years." Enjoy the process, right? That's why I tell you. And the doctor told me, "And there are many surgeries to come, and the arm will function at 20%." He didn't tell me 80%, 60%. He gave me the lowest percentage so that later I wouldn't sue him, because he told me, "You will never be able to sew a button, you won't be able to use both hands together, you won't be able to clap, you won't be able to carry your son like that." But you can. You have the other hand so you can do it." That is, they give him the worst diagnosis. And I think it was, and in the end, the Lord does the rest. He told me, "But we will do it." And I cried and cried. Well, no, I was a sea of tears. "We will do it, we will do it. I want your encouragement," he told me. "I want your encouragement. If you tell me yes, we will achieve it." I said, "No, well, it's so easy at home, and I, and I will struggle 24 hours." And look, 24 hours for a year, a machine connected, and the arm, the hand was like that all night, day and night. And when desperation and madness set in, and I started ripping out cables, and I would rip them out and kick everything, and I said, "I'm not going to do it anymore. I'm tired." Because you give up many times. One gives up, and there's no other way. You have to get up yourself. No one gives you the towel. You yourself get up and continue. And if you don't do it for one day, the hand will remain stiff. And my mother would arrive, "Daughter, please, no, I haven't even been here for a year." That's why I tell you, look, we have to be strong. Someone strong, who is? Someone strong, cheerful, joyful, in good health. And here I want to stop a bit, because look, brother, and our apostle said this, and I was thinking about it. Last week he mentioned it. How is your mental health? How are you feeling? How is your mental health? Are you anxious? Are you mentally ill? Yes, because that's what it wants, right? If one, if there are very anxious people, look, those who come, for example, from my beautiful Mexico City, they come very crazy and very paranoid, because the very place where they move makes them that way. A cousin of mine came, and they took her to Culiacán. And she said, "My sister, you're not coming." "No, Sunday of Santa Cena." "I said, no, no, no." "And then, what I want is, come on, Clau, come tomorrow." "The cousin leaves." "She only came for two days." "And I said, no, I don't want to. I'm already in my town." "Come on, Clau, we're waiting for you." And I, "My God, where am I? Where are you?" "In such and such a place." "I arrive at a store." I know that if I meet you in a store and say, "Hello," you won't grab your bag or scream twice. But since she came from Mexico City, I arrived and said, "Hello." "Ay, no!" And the bag held tightly. And I said, "What's wrong with you?" "Don't do that to me," she said. "Why?" "Because there they mug you." "I arrive, my father will pick me up at the airport, and he's driving slowly." "Hurry up, run, come on, son, get in." He's talking to the people outside. "No, not with me, with the people outside. Slowly, get in." And it makes me feel bad, because in one of those, just like he's going, they all are. And in one of those, he was arguing and arguing, and the car in front, further ahead, pulled out with a bat, and it scared me, and he threatened the one in front of us, who I think was also like that. And there's no space there. Look, the cars are like this, and you are, "My God." It stressed me so much that I said to my father, "Daddy, are you in a hurry? Do you have an appointment?" "No." "[Music] Calm down." Their eyes are bad, about to explode from the pressure, the stress. People are not well. And you, here, there is a little more. Relax, brother. You have an appointment at 9:30. What time do you have to leave, for the love of God? I saw that on GPS, 30 minutes. But you saw it at 11 PM last night, and the appointment is at 9:30 AM. For obvious reasons, add half an hour more. Or no, no, no. The people are not to blame. We are to blame because we, others, no, no. That's why I tell you, how is your mental health? Do you have good health? How are you mentally? Do you explode from everything? The kid throws a glass of water at you, and you already got very angry. And the kid is left with you. You get sick. The kid. I changed the little one, and there's her water for the dog. It's always there, and I change it. She turns around and steps on the water, throws the water. And all, "You, calm down, I'll change it again for you." "Thank you, Grandma." But if I start yelling at her because she made a mess of water there, right? I'm going to scare her. I'm going to scare her. Imagine a judge who scares one of you who is judging a matter and has already seen your bad side. What will they say? The same thing my son said, "Won't there be a more experienced judge? Can't they change him?" What a shame. So, look, firm character. Here it catches my attention. I think we should underline it. Good health. How is my mental health? How am I emotionally? How are my spirits? Am I only a Christian in church? One would have to ask the judge's husband, or the future judge, or the wife, or the children. I'm ashamed to ask my children, "What do you think of me?" And if there's a bad report, they are my children. They live with me. Oh, it's that my... That day I arrived at someone's house, and I said, "I'm not going to tell you if I tell you, why are you here? Who invited you?" She wouldn't let me in. But one day I threatened, I said, "The day I come to your house and there's a big mess, you will never, ever again..." "What did you come for?" "You know?" But it's striking, right? Good health and a firm character. What is a firm character? That you are impartial, that you are always well, right? That you don't mix. I know that, look, many things from here we don't take them home. I personally take many things. Look, I'm developing a topic. You know, I was just, those times when I say, "Oh, how do we do it?" Will I put it badly or not? I'm developing a topic for servers. And then, in one of those, I told my husband, "Really, do we need to go through these situations?" Talking about the fact that the little one fought with the older one, the other one with the... I'm talking about you, not my children. My children are already grown. If two skates fight, that's it. The old man is already, how old? 29, and the other just turned, how old? 26, and already. But you, I can't. Sometimes I tell my husband, "Oh, more or less, when do you retire?" Like those times when I say, "More or less." And I was praying to the Lord. You know, not that, but I told him, I told him, "Oh Lord, help us to judge well, to be able to, Lord, prepare your church. You are coming soon." If the pastor returns, how many will he go to? If he returns, there's no other way. If the Lord comes, they will have to return. Don't go, Lord. To all of you here, Father, help. Help us, please. Only because we don't correct. Because I already told you here, that our, that our bad attitude. What does it cost to be loving? What does it cost not to be hypocritical? But to arrive and say, from the moment you leave your house, "My God, give me patience. The words are your body, it is the body of Christ, to whom we serve. Don't be intransigent. It's that you don't have it. You can't. It's that we can't fire any of them because you didn't hire them. You didn't die for any of them. You can't be intransigent with them, because the Lord is not like that with us. You can't yell at them. You can't give them a... We can't give them a bad attitude, because it is the body of Christ. If the meekest man did not enter, why? By hitting the rock. And you, look, I see you serving, and truly, how do I say it? Thank you, brother. Thank you, thank you. The first privileged one is the one who serves, because it is a privilege to serve the Lord. But let's change that attitude. If you come in badly, right? That your, that your little head no longer works, right? Due to so much stress, due to so many pressures out there. If you don't have a firm character, today you do, and tomorrow you don't. If you realize that the brothers, the little ones, right? And they no longer want to approach you. Come praying all the time. And in one of those, I told him, "Lord, Lord, but how? Look, they have different characters. Look how they sometimes get angry. Look how they fight. Everyone, everyone says, 'Look, pastor, if you tell me, if you send me like this, but if the other one doesn't...' My God, how do we say we are going to leave if we are not going up?" I say, "How, Lord? Give me the way to tell my husband. How can we get out of this? When did we get here, Lord? When did we get here?" And there are times when he says, "I can't go back." And there are times when I understand, right? That it's like the mafia. You can't. Where are you going? What are you going to tell them? "Hey brothers, you know what? We resign. The church closes." Bye. You can't. It's that, look, you resign from your family. No matter how bad the scoundrel is, the one of your children, not your husband. You can't. There's no turning back. And you know what the Lord told me? "Would you do it? Would you leave your loved ones? Would you stop exhorting them? Would you stop helping them? What would you do? Would you abandon them?" And I said, "I understand, Lord." And I open my heart to him, because sometimes it keeps me awake, because it is a great responsibility. It is a great responsibility. When you are a son, you endure. But when you are not a son, you leave. And one looks at them and says, "My God, don't let him leave. Don't let him leave. Don't let him leave." But you know why I sometimes don't want him to leave? Because he starts going from church to church to church to church, and he won't change. We discipline them, and we say, "Lord, please, let him understand. He is excellent, and anyone will take him, because he is helpful and hardworking and tithes. But he is bad, he is inexperienced, he will do harm." And you will find someone out there who will take him as a servant. And a son, how can he be a son? He should serve the Lord, right? No, you, you stay here. They don't understand you there. They don't comprehend you. There is no one who will take him. But it's that, look, that's why I tell you, please, first, I think, look, today, it's our turn to judge ourselves, right? When you leave a service, judge your work. Judge your work. "Lord, did I do it well? Do I need to go ask for forgiveness? Do I need to go and say, 'Brother, please, forgive my attitude. How are you coming?' Don't come burdened. Don't come burdened. Always, look, let your prayer be, if it's difficult for you, like it is for me, 'Give me a spirit, Lord, of power and self-control. Help me, Lord, please, help me, help me. It is your people. They are your children.' So, what is strong? Being strong. Romans chapter 5, verse 4 to 5. And patience. And we would have to put them from the beginning. Proven character. And proven character. Hope. Let's put it. Romans chapter 5, verse 3. Yes, let's read it all together. Yes, because I do like it all together, and I think it will serve us. 5:3. "And not only that, but we also rejoice in our afflictions, knowing that affliction produces patience." For years, the sister Carmen and I were convinced that I don't want patience. I don't want patience. We were just talking to her. I don't want patience. The rest was missing. They failed to explain to us how long. I said, "I don't want patience. I don't want patience." Because someone had taught us wrong, that if we asked for patience, problems and troubles would come. And then, on one occasion, reading, I said, "There it is," I told my husband. It took me years, about 15 years, to read the text and the context. "And not only that, but we also rejoice in our [Music] afflictions, knowing that affliction produces patience." He is impatient. Lower it, lower it, lower it. Here, look. I know that when I go, look, yesterday was my daughter-in-law's birthday, and we went to eat. And then, 45 minutes of waiting. I know that when I go, I'm going to ruin it, because I know that when I go to fix a nail or do something, something will be done to me. So, I arrive, and once they poured pure acetone on my phone. And so now I arrive, and I put everything away, I take out what is necessary, I put it on, because I know something will happen to me, because I am impatient. I already know that it's me. And when something happens to them, I already know. Look, poor my daughter-in-law. She used to sit in the corner. I here. No, first she sat in front. She had just married Brian. She sat in front and put ketchup on her fries, and the ketchup would jump on me, right here, or here in the eye. If I squeezed the lemon, it would fall in my eye. And then I saw her telling Brian, "Here, in the corner, so you don't bother my mom." But why me? My husband says, "Why you? Why always you?" I know why. Because I'm impatient. "And not only that, but we also rejoice in afflictions, knowing that affliction produces patience." Those situations, those turbulences, will produce something in us. And patience, proven character. So, do you want to be a good judge? Of a strong character, not a screamer, of a strong character. There you have it. We are being worked on.
Agreed, and patience, tested character, and tested character, hope, and hope does not disappoint because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us. Ah, but is it that you do not, you are not filled, you do not ask, you do not say to the Holy Spirit, "Lord, here I am, fill me, please, fill me with yourself"? You want the Lord to fill you with himself, and do you know why he doesn't fill you? Because you don't empty yourself. The first thing you have to do is empty ourselves, empty, empty, let's empty ourselves. And once emptied, say, "Lord, fill me with yourself. Look how I am, look, I explode every moment, I seem like a bomb. Help me, please, because that is going to get bigger and bigger, and one day you won't be able to control it. One day no one will tolerate you, no one will put up with you, you will be left in your, in your sad loneliness. Who puts up with you? Who puts up with us with those attitudes? We read it again because it serves you and me too. And not only this, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces patience, and patience, tested character, and tested character, hope, and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us. Amen. So, there we are lacking. So, let's look here. So, what does patience produce? It is a product of tribulations. Patience is a product of tribulations. I sometimes say to my husband, that, that bad phrase, "Today you have molasses in your veins, calm down, calm down." And when he has told you certain things about his life, right? What tribulations he went through, what those situations caused him. Thank God that it did not cause him harm and that he was able to restore many things in the Lord. But patience is a product of the tribulations or battles that we can go through in our lives. So, in that virtue, there is no disproportion to the situations or the tribulations we are going through. Why? Because those situations make us men and women, prosperous and strong like strong oaks. Those situations must leave us something. Stop fighting, let's stop fighting. Overlook offenses, understand that you are bigger, the other is smaller. Yes, yes, my children have been 3 years, and the little one always provoked the older one, and always, and always, until one day, I think the same thing, right? She told the other, "Look, it's not my fault, it's you. I am a child, you are 6 years older than me, and besides, you are married." And he was quiet. He said, "Why do you listen to her?" And he also adjusted the other one, right? Because he said, "You are a bothersome person." Yes, but it even looks bad. He said, "She picks on me, the little girl, she picks on the 23-year-old." And the other one says, "Why doesn't she respect me?" Because she sees her as a kid, she sees her as a kid, and the same kid. No, it's not that she doesn't respect her, but she knows what a kid is, just like her. She knows. Children know. Don't get on an equal footing with someone. Be mature, be mature, be mature. Don't humor them either, but the other one will react. First Chronicles chapter 12, verse 8. Also, from the Gadites, strong and valiant men, skilled for war, with shields and spears, whose faces were like the faces of lions, and they were as swift as gazelles on the mountains. Imagine how the Gadites were too. They joined David in the stronghold in the wilderness. We are walking in the deserts, yes, with provision, yes, with guidance, yes. Let's be strong. I, I, I told you that quote where it says that those who come in the rear guard, how they come exhausted and tired, and they grab them and tear them to pieces. But you, no. You are a strong, valiant man. You come to training. The word makes you strong. The word makes you valiant. The word makes you skilled with the shield. Why? Because of the word. Amen. When the word speaks to us of strong men, it refers to this. The men here are called "gibbor." Yes. So, but, but what is this? How can it be translated? Virtue, valor, strength, illustrious, opulent, power, prowess, bravery, manfully, virtue. And it refers to a "gibbor." That word "gibbor" even knows what it gives when you mention it, because it is talking about a, one, an accomplished warrior, strong, giant, of great vigor, powerful man, brave, valiant. I sometimes say, "Lord, if you let us live in these, in these times, oh, if we are capable, well, I think so. But one sees those who preceded us as more capable." But no, the Lord, I think, does not make mistakes. You are capable, only that you are not accomplished. You don't make the effort. Why? Because we don't want to. Oh, it's too cold. Oh, it's too hot. It's too much rain. It's in Washington. What was expected? That's Washington. You have the, look, you are privileged because there are four seasons. You have four seasons of clothes. Don't tell me you don't. Four. So, why, why do you put yourself in a dignified position, right? But you have to be valiant, brave. If you made a mistake, be brave enough to go back and acknowledge it and say, "Look, the brave one recognizes. The brave one, in a way, humbles himself too." Mighty war men, vigorous, strong, valiant men. Those are the characteristics of a man, of a strong man, of a worked character, who is trained for war. What is war? What is war now that there are wars and you spend your time watching the news? I hope that, that there is less Netflix, right? And more, and more, what is happening around? Unstoppable, tireless, they are there fighting for a cause, not your cause. What does the word say about a good judge? On whose side will you be? Strong men, yes, valiant, trained for war, skilled. This word "trained" speaks to us of men who had to prepare themselves, to train themselves, that is, to disciple, to incline their ear, to humble themselves, to surrender their will. To whom? To the one who called us. Who called you? Christ Jesus. The pastor didn't call you, nor the leader, nor the servant. We have to mature in our service. Do you want to be a good judge? Know your, know the law, know your constitution, know your Bible, right? That you are praying and you know how you are praying, that you are exhorting someone, right? One hears dreams, one hears exhortations. You are going to exhort someone, but with the word, not with your, not with your, not with your hoarse chest. So, learn wisdom to reach the desired stature. Notice that this word "milchama" can be translated as battle, man of battle, man of combat, who wasn't in the fray but didn't engage, who is, is, is eager to say, "Retreat, retreat, retreat, I'm not from here." Doesn't it happen to you sometimes that you say, "What am I doing here?" Yes, it's, it's, it's that you have to be a warrior, someone who fights, but not with brothers. So, it shows us, right, that judges must be trained for war, equipped, and organized. Are you organized? No, look at the disorganization here, everyone disorganized. To give an example, I haven't seen those videos where suddenly they jump, which usually doesn't happen here, but the drummers go crazy, right? And they don't care, they don't care. But if we are all united, if we are organized, if we let ourselves be equipped, it's that, look, to come to play, to come to serve, to come to the cameras, to come wherever you come, you have to, you have to, you have to let yourself be equipped. And this is part of your equipment. This is part of your equipment that you finish listening to your service here. Perhaps it connects to the others. How many are there? Seven services now, right? Yesterday, four, four in Guatemala, and now the second one is starting. He's doing a retreat, another retreat. I'm not telling you to sit and watch all the retreats, but what are you occupied with? What is all this? This is part of your equipment. To get up to date with the apostle, I'm not telling you to listen to 15 services, but what is our apostle talking about? That we are on the same, on the same thread. What is my pastor talking about? But you listen to this one, that one, that one, that one, that one. No, you're going to buffets, far away, right? So, we have to, we have to organize ourselves, be organized. Numbers chapter 31, verse 21. Then Eleazar the priest said to the men of war, to whom? To the men of war who had gone to battle, "This is the statute of the law that the Lord has commanded Moses." So, you have to know the law of the Lord. One of the ways that strong and valiant men, right, can be equipped is through the word. There's no other way. What does the word say when the enemy comes and wants to put ideas in your head? You speak to the Lord. What do you say? What did the Lord say? "It is written, it is written, it is written." It is in the writing. We are going to use it for everything. That is your law. Joshua chapter 4, verse 13. About 40,000 equipped for war passed before the Lord toward the plains of Jericho, ready for battle. Look, there are some now that, that, that the situations in Ukraine and beyond, there are some called mercenaries. They are not, they are not ready for war or for battles. It's like they are summoned and they arrive, but they are bad. They can come from any country. But there is also the risk that they will rebel because they are not part of an army. They are very bad people. They are people who, if, if they had the opportunity, right, for each country to have a, in a way, an army of mercenaries, those are bad people and they can be treacherous. Why? Because they are used as if they go, "Do, do all the damage you want." So, so, no, I think we have the word of God. It is interesting that we note, right, that it provides us with benefits so that you can be a good judge, a good counselor, right? The Lord will give us the tools. What does it say there? Equipped. 40,000 went, it says in Joshua chapter 4, verse 13, equipped for war. They passed before the Lord toward the plains of Jericho. That you pass, right, and that the Lord knows you. This is part of, those are equipped for war, they are part of my army. But if not, I don't know if you are a mercenary. First John chapter 2, verse 14. I have written to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you. Does it, does it, does it abide in us, or do we forget it? Are we worshipers, and that's just for show, and when the situation comes, we throw in the towel? Then, because the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one. So, how are we going to overcome it? How are we going to overcome situations within which we find that it brings us closer to the Lord, it makes us know him, and if the word, and if the word abides in us, this makes us strong, and we will have the capacity to resist and overcome in the name of Jesus the evil one. The men of war are given the statutes. So, we need, look, while you are apart in the word, you won't be able to. It shows, it shows from the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. If you practice profanity out there, if you practice your, your, your things, it will show. It shows. We can camouflage it, but it will come out because you practice it. If we practice the word, if we know the word, right, we will have that capacity to resist. Oh, no, brother, you've thrown in the towel. Why? Why don't you resist? Because maybe you read for the sake of reading. But why do I read? If I go to services, why do I read? If I go Tuesday, Friday, and Sunday, why do I read? Because it is necessary. Because it is necessary for us, from logos to rhema, from logos to rhema, they have revelation. The Lord reveals it to you. He reveals it to us, yes, the Lord reveals to us those, those bad attitudes of ours, and the Lord reveals them to us. Let yourself be worked on. Let yourself be worked on. There is no better place, look, than being at home. I already told you that you are very coveted. More than one of you who lives in other places, other churches approach them, they ask for you too. My son is also coveted. On one occasion, they asked for him, and I sent him to San Diego for a few months. But I am his, we are his parents, and you are very coveted. Look, and I think they are, forgive me, but pastors are looking at the photo and saying, "That pastor, I haven't seen little brother Brian. You know, I haven't seen little brother so-and-so. Can I go visit him?" That so-and-so is annoying because it's not like that. I consider that it's not like that. It's not like that. And you, so coveted, and you know that you have, and I have great potential, I have the capacity, but you don't have the capacity to resist and overcome in the name of Jesus. And you will start a journey, a journey, and I'll tell you 10 works later why? Because you didn't let yourself be worked on. A well-formed son, where is he formed? At home. At home. I am grateful for all the works my father gave me. He saved me from many, even though the poor thing, ah, now that he's coming, that he's already old, daughter, sorry, sorry, thank you. I think I even fell short, right? But, but what? At home. Where are children formed? At home. I know it's difficult, look, to recognize fatherhood, very difficult. If it's difficult for us to recognize our parents, difficult to submit to our parents, difficult to obey them, difficult for you to recognize here, a, a, a, well, he is your father. Those Catholics aren't so bad. The blessing, little father. Well, they are better, and you are not. They don't change churches. The Catholic doesn't change churches so easily, you know. That one doesn't. And they go far. There in Merced, there is a very large Hispanic church, a lot of them. Those don't leave. And you, who know the truth, who know that the tools are given, it doesn't remain. Then, and if the word abides in us, that makes us strong. Let the word abide, and we will have the capacity to resist and overcome in the name of Jesus the evil one. So, the men of war are given statutes. You have statutes. We will leave it there. Let's see, we'll complete it on Tuesday. Do you like it? Remind me. Speaking of judges, we need, we need. Amen. Stand up. Let's thank the Lord. You know I love you very much. Truly, you got a nagging pastor's wife, but I love you very much. I love you all very much. Daddy. Well, I give you thanks in the name of Jesus. Lord, help us, Lord, to be able to train, Lord, to equip, Lord, that we ourselves can understand your word, Lord, that those words don't just hang in the air, Lord beloved, but that we consider what our condition is. The condition we have, Lord, it's not the best, Lord. What we think of ourselves is not the best, Lord. What do you think of us, my God? And we thank you because I know that, Lord, you are speaking, preparing, Lord, already out of time, Lord, we are late, Lord beloved, but you have the power to help us, Lord. We thank you, dear Father, in the powerful name of Christ Jesus. Amen, Lord, and amen. See you at 10. [Music]