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Could we turn to Matthew's Gospel,

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the last chapter - chapter 28?

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And we'll read verses 18-20.

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Matthew 28:18-20.

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"And Jesus came up and spoke to them,

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saying, 'All authority 
has been given to Me

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in heaven and on earth.

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Go therefore, and make disciples

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of all the nations;

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baptizing them in the name of the Father

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and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit;

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teaching them to observe all 
that I have commanded you.

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And lo, I am with you always,

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even to the end of the age.'"

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We rest on Thee,

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and in Thy name we go.

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That last hymn in 1956,

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five men sang it together

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and went out together to die.

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I want to speak tonight

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on the life and legacy of Jim Elliot,

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the 20th century martyr and missionary

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in Ecuador.

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All that can really be learned about him

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are in these three books,

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and I want you to note them.

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"Shadow of the Almighty,"

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which is the biography -

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the life of Jim Elliot 
by his wife Elisabeth,

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published the first time 
2 years after his death in 1958.

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"The Journals of Jim Elliot,"

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written by him over a period

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of about seven years

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from age 21 to 28.

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And "Through Gates of Splendor,"

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the account written a 
year after their death.

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The account of the mission 
to the Auca Indians

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and the death of those courageous men.

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Elisabeth Elliot once said of her husband,

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"At the age of 21,

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Jim began an adventure that would require

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the ultimate sacrifice.

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That adventure was to follow Christ

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to the mission field of Ecuador.

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And ultimately, face death at the hands

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of an unreached jungle tribe.

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It was a year and a half ago approximately

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that one of our pastors, Philip Neeley,

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shared a summary of Jim Elliot's life

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with the men in our church.

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Philip had gone away for two days

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of reading alone,

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and he always takes a choice book with him

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and it was the life of Jim Elliot.

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And Philip described Jim to our men

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as a man of purity,

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a man of purpose,

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a man of priorities,

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a man of the past -

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meaning he loved history,

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he learned from the past,

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and a man of power.

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And I thought, in thinking of Jim Elliot,

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I thought of Bunyan's character,

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one of his characters in 
"Pilgrim's Progress."

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Mr. Great-Heart.

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That was Jim Elliot.

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But then, here comes 
Mr. Valiant-For-Truth.

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Well, that was Jim Elliot also.

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And I feel sure among his friends

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and his college classmates 
at Wheaton College

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in the suburbs of Chicago,

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and other Plymouth 
Brethren church leaders,

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that he seemed at times larger than life.

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But he was a real guy

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who smiled and laughed and joked

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and cried a lot;

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who loved to cut up and tease others

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too much at times,

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and he would be rebuked for it

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by his pious friends.

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But he was preeminently a young man

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that, from his youth,

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was in a serious pursuit to know Christ.

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So, I want us tonight to look

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at Jim Elliot's life under five headings.

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The making of the man.

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The marriage. The mission.

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The martyrdom.

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And the meaning for us today -

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his legacy.

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So first, the making of the man.

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What did God do;

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what did God use to shape Jim Elliot

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into who he became?

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Now, there's many ingredients often

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in a good recipe.

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And God's recipe for Jim Elliot's life

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included a lot.

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His birth: Philip James Elliot

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was born October 8th, 1927

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in Portland, Oregon.

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He died January 8th, 1956

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in the Curaray River in eastern jungles

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of Ecuador along with his four friends,

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at the age of 28 years 
and 3 months to the day.

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He was born into a godly 
Plymouth Brethren family,

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to Fred and Clara Elliot.

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Four children. Two older 
brothers, Bob and Burt.

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And then Jim, the third,

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and then a younger sister Jane.

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And their home,

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when you read the accounts,

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their home exemplified godliness

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and consistent Christianity

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that was really lived out.

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Daily, without exception, Jim's father

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led the family in Bible 
reading and prayer.

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Always after breakfast.

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Elisabeth Elliot said later that quote,

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"Jim's father was always 
showing his children

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that the Bible was to be obeyed

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and lived out,

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and that the Christian life

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was a happy and rewarding one."

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So, Jim came to Christ in such a context

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around the age of six years old,

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and his future years proved

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it to be a genuine conversion.

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Now, toward the end of his college years,

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he wrote Elisabeth Howard, his friend,

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who was known to him always as "Betty."

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He wrote Betty about his father.

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He says, "I blush to think 
of the things I've said,

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as if I really know something at all."

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By the way, a sentiment I've had often.

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"I blush to think of things I've said

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in the past as if I really know

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something of all the Bible teaches,

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when I think I know nothing.

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But my father... my father's faith

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is a kind I've seen nowhere else.

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It is so real and practical

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that it shatters everything I've seen.

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He knows God.

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We've had some happy times together,

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and I cannot estimate what enrichment

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a few months with dad might do for me

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both practically and spiritually."

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Mr. Elliot said, "I pray regularly

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for my children,

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and I pray regularly with them."

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Every Lord's Day, the family were all

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in church Bible classes 
and corporate worship

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at their Plymouth Brethren assembly

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in Portland.

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And every child was in all the services

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by the time they were six weeks old.

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Mrs. Elliot believed,

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"It doesn't hurt children at all

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to sit quietly through 
the church meetings.

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It's good for their nerves."

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Well, their childhood was 
happy and wholesome

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at their country place 
on the eastern slope

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of Mount Tabor in Portland.

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Their home was one of those homes

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that people loved to be in.

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Have you ever been to one of those

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Christian family's homes

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and you say when you leave,

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man, what a blessing to have been there.

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That's the way it was at the Elliot home.

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What a family!

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How they love and enjoy one another.

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I want to go back there again.

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They were always having visitors -

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missionaries, preachers,

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friends from college.

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And the children - 
the four Elliot children

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love having people in their home.

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Family times were special.

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Sledding yearly near Mt. Hood,

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day long picnics on the Oregon coast,

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or trips to their grandparents' homestead

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where they would work the produce

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or tend the sheep.

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Their local Brethren assembly

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had church life that was real

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and fellowship that 
was vital and wonderful.

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In summary, Jim's life

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was consistently on the path

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to a remarkable Christian life

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even as a young man.

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By the age of 13 or 14,

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he was choosing to discipline 
his life spiritually daily.

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And he began telling his friends

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about Christ and about salvation.

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In 1941, he entered Benson 
Polytechnic High School in Portland,

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and he excelled as a student.

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He would write editorials for

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the student newspaper.

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He starred in several school plays.

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He excelled in public speaking.

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And he was so good at drawing,

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he wanted to be an architect.

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He was planning on being an architect.

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He was so good at drawing,

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that the teacher kept his drawings

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as examples for future classes.

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A classmate said of him,

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"Jim carried a small Bible

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that would sit on top of his textbooks

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on his desk in class.

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It would only take an 
audience of one or two

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for him to open the Bible

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and begin talking and sharing.

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He always prayed before eating his lunch,

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and he never missed a chance

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to talk to me about Jesus Christ."

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In his sophomore year of high school,

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he began to write short letters,

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at times to his brothers and sisters.

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One note to his younger sister Jane.

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Now, he's a 17 year old brother,

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writing to a younger sister some advice.

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"Jane, begin each day with private reading

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of the Word and prayer.

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John Bunyan said, 'sin will 
keep you from this book,

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or this book will keep you from sin.'

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Give out gospel tracts too

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to those you meet on the way to school.

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And make a bold start at the 
beginning of high school.

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It's easier that way than later.

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And memorize Scripture on your rides

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to and from school.

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Redeem the time, Jane.

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Time is costly because it is so fleeting.

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Do your best to present yourself to God

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as one approved."

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Now that's a 17 year old boy

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pastoring his little sister.

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By his senior year, his desire

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for his future in architecture shifted

244
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to the mission field.

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He would set an alarm every night

246
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so he would have plenty of time

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for reading and prayer before school,

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which became the priority 
of the rest of his life.

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In the fall of 1945, he 
entered Wheaton College

250
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in the western suburbs of Chicago,

251
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which was a long way 
from Portland, Oregon.

252
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Now with one goal he went there -

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to prepare himself to take the gospel

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to a foreign mission field.

255
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He didn't know where yet,

256
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but he was determined to prepare himself.

257
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Like Paul, this one thing I do...

258
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that was Jim Elliot.

259
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He had no money for college,

260
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and he didn't know where it 
was going to come from.

261
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But God honored his faith,

262
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and he always had it

263
00:11:33,397 --> 00:11:35,895
through gifts of family friends,

264
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through prayer,

265
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through part-time work.

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And as he got into his college years,

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his activities increased.

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He majored in Greek

269
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for future Bible translation work.

270
00:11:48,906 --> 00:11:51,275
He became president 
of the foreign missions

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fellowship on campus.

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He was a class representative

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on the student council.

274
00:11:55,857 --> 00:11:58,048
He was a writer of poetry.

275
00:11:58,048 --> 00:12:00,071
And he was respected and admired

276
00:12:00,071 --> 00:12:02,446
by faculty and fellow students

277
00:12:02,446 --> 00:12:05,298
as a genuine, serious-minded,

278
00:12:05,298 --> 00:12:07,243
joyful Christian.

279
00:12:07,243 --> 00:12:10,930
All the while, in the busyness of college,

280
00:12:10,930 --> 00:12:13,489
being very consistent with morning

281
00:12:13,489 --> 00:12:16,798
Bible readings and private prayer.

282
00:12:16,798 --> 00:12:19,987
And it became his practice in college

283
00:12:19,987 --> 00:12:23,687
on Saturday's, he liked to do two things.

284
00:12:23,687 --> 00:12:27,555
He liked to go the college 
football game in the afternoon.

285
00:12:27,555 --> 00:12:29,694
But on Saturday night, he wouldn't go out.

286
00:12:29,694 --> 00:12:30,802
He would stay in.

287
00:12:30,802 --> 00:12:32,778
Because he wanted to prepare his heart

288
00:12:32,778 --> 00:12:34,023
for Sunday worship

289
00:12:34,023 --> 00:12:36,005
and the Plymouth Brethren practice

290
00:12:36,005 --> 00:12:37,605
of the breaking of bread -

291
00:12:37,605 --> 00:12:40,171
their weekly Lord's Supper meeting.

292
00:12:40,171 --> 00:12:42,722
It was the highlight of his week.

293
00:12:42,722 --> 00:12:44,976
At Wheaton, he began a personal habit

294
00:12:44,976 --> 00:12:46,377
in his junior year

295
00:12:46,377 --> 00:12:50,643
that continued until 8 
days before he died.

296
00:12:50,643 --> 00:12:52,424
A young British preacher,

297
00:12:52,424 --> 00:12:54,293
Steven Olford,

298
00:12:54,293 --> 00:12:56,855
spoke in the college chapel one day,

299
00:12:56,855 --> 00:12:58,536
and that day suggested to Jim

300
00:12:58,536 --> 00:13:00,588
that he begin a daily journal,

301
00:13:00,588 --> 00:13:02,835
that would improve his private time

302
00:13:02,835 --> 00:13:05,055
in his time with the Lord.

303
00:13:05,055 --> 00:13:10,806
And, he began to do that.

304
00:13:10,806 --> 00:13:15,024
That decision to keep a personal journal -

305
00:13:15,024 --> 00:13:16,474
his thoughts, his prayers,

306
00:13:16,474 --> 00:13:17,729
the events of the day,

307
00:13:17,729 --> 00:13:21,041
what the Lord was teaching him -

308
00:13:21,041 --> 00:13:23,000
would be a great spiritual discipline,

309
00:13:23,000 --> 00:13:24,765
Olford told him.

310
00:13:24,765 --> 00:13:28,037
Well, that decision, 30 years later

311
00:13:28,037 --> 00:13:30,524
provided one of the most stirring books

312
00:13:30,524 --> 00:13:33,680
in modern church history 
and modern missions.

313
00:13:33,680 --> 00:13:36,329
He never probably thought

314
00:13:36,329 --> 00:13:39,064
that it would be published,

315
00:13:39,064 --> 00:13:42,454
proving that small, personal choices

316
00:13:42,454 --> 00:13:44,628
yield huge dividends later

317
00:13:44,628 --> 00:13:48,519
in our own lives and the lives of others.

318
00:13:48,519 --> 00:13:50,716
At the end of his freshman year of college

319
00:13:50,716 --> 00:13:51,811
he wrote his parents:

320
00:13:51,811 --> 00:13:53,752
"It's been a profitable year

321
00:13:53,752 --> 00:13:55,996
drawing close to the Savior,

322
00:13:55,996 --> 00:13:58,255
and discovering gems in His Word.

323
00:13:58,255 --> 00:13:59,571
How wonderful to know

324
00:13:59,571 --> 00:14:01,064
that Christanity is more than

325
00:14:01,064 --> 00:14:02,829
a padded church pew

326
00:14:02,829 --> 00:14:04,720
or a church cathedral,

327
00:14:04,720 --> 00:14:08,308
but that it is a real, 
living and daily experience

328
00:14:08,308 --> 00:14:11,636
that goes from grace to grace."

329
00:14:11,636 --> 00:14:13,974
Those formative maturing years

330
00:14:13,974 --> 00:14:17,494
were essential for his future usefulness.

331
00:14:17,494 --> 00:14:19,335
The tender heart.

332
00:14:19,335 --> 00:14:21,472
A clear conscience.

333
00:14:21,472 --> 00:14:24,708
A lifestyle of daily repentance.

334
00:14:24,708 --> 00:14:26,431
Godly zeal. Real prayerfulness.

335
00:14:26,431 --> 00:14:27,782
High standards.

336
00:14:27,782 --> 00:14:29,981
Focused spiritual goals

337
00:14:29,981 --> 00:14:32,116
that he let no one or nothing

338
00:14:32,116 --> 00:14:34,673
deter him from.

339
00:14:34,673 --> 00:14:36,390
An active consistent serving

340
00:14:36,390 --> 00:14:38,743
of the Lord and others.

341
00:14:38,743 --> 00:14:41,152
Jim Elliot became in the U.S.

342
00:14:41,152 --> 00:14:43,993
what he was later in Ecuador.

343
00:14:43,993 --> 00:14:47,215
Shaped into a solid, grounded man

344
00:14:47,215 --> 00:14:49,668
of the Holy Spirit by his mid-twenties.

345
00:14:49,668 --> 00:14:53,809
And that's mostly seen in his journals.

346
00:14:53,809 --> 00:14:56,394
What stands out? He was always reading.

347
00:14:56,394 --> 00:15:00,299
Always reading the Bible deeply,

348
00:15:00,299 --> 00:15:02,103
meditating in it.

349
00:15:02,103 --> 00:15:03,531
Taking notes.

350
00:15:03,531 --> 00:15:05,472
Reading John Bunyan, the Puritans,

351
00:15:05,472 --> 00:15:07,109
Plymouth Brethren writers,

352
00:15:07,109 --> 00:15:10,096
Scottish pastors Andrew 
and Horatius Bonar,

353
00:15:10,096 --> 00:15:12,438
and Spurgeon - always reading.

354
00:15:12,438 --> 00:15:14,753
And he learned to draw 
from the deep wells.

355
00:15:14,753 --> 00:15:17,398
He learned to draw deeply

356
00:15:17,398 --> 00:15:20,650
because he wouldn't hurry himself.

357
00:15:20,650 --> 00:15:22,337
This deepened his mind

358
00:15:22,337 --> 00:15:23,714
and his heart devotionally.

359
00:15:23,714 --> 00:15:27,269
David Brainerd who died 
at the same age as Jim,

360
00:15:27,269 --> 00:15:30,045
his journal had great impact on Jim.

361
00:15:30,045 --> 00:15:31,061
And Jim wrote,

362
00:15:31,061 --> 00:15:32,275
"Lord, if I were honest,

363
00:15:32,275 --> 00:15:34,469
my soul would be more in anguish

364
00:15:34,469 --> 00:15:36,571
like Brainerd's.

365
00:15:36,571 --> 00:15:38,636
How cold and careless I've become.

366
00:15:38,636 --> 00:15:40,985
Let not my soul be cast away

367
00:15:40,985 --> 00:15:43,500
from Your nearness."

368
00:15:43,500 --> 00:15:45,462
He soon wrote, "I have enjoyed

369
00:15:45,462 --> 00:15:49,016
much sweetness in 
reading Brainerd's life.

370
00:15:49,016 --> 00:15:50,607
I spent the last two days

371
00:15:50,607 --> 00:15:52,654
with tremendous profit to my soul,

372
00:15:52,654 --> 00:15:57,101
entirely in reading 
6 to 8 hours each day."

373
00:15:57,101 --> 00:15:58,901
Another day, "I just finished

374
00:15:58,901 --> 00:16:01,239
Amy Carmichael's 'Gold Cord.'

375
00:16:01,239 --> 00:16:04,234
How can I express the 
effect it has had on me?

376
00:16:04,234 --> 00:16:08,355
Oh, what a shame and sham I am!

377
00:16:08,355 --> 00:16:10,282
No scars, have you?

378
00:16:10,282 --> 00:16:11,553
No scars.

379
00:16:11,553 --> 00:16:14,086
No tears? No tears.

380
00:16:14,086 --> 00:16:16,055
Oh God of the thorny path,

381
00:16:16,055 --> 00:16:17,362
please in Your mercy,

382
00:16:17,362 --> 00:16:21,581
privilege me to walk in Your path."

383
00:16:21,581 --> 00:16:23,279
In those college years,

384
00:16:23,279 --> 00:16:24,470
in those summers,

385
00:16:24,470 --> 00:16:26,051
he feasted on the lives

386
00:16:26,051 --> 00:16:27,623
of Jonathan Goforth,

387
00:16:27,623 --> 00:16:29,031
Hudson Taylor,

388
00:16:29,031 --> 00:16:30,968
J.G. Paton,

389
00:16:30,968 --> 00:16:33,202
the missionary to the South Seas island

390
00:16:33,202 --> 00:16:35,107
among the cannibals.

391
00:16:35,107 --> 00:16:36,602
And his reading led him

392
00:16:36,602 --> 00:16:38,301
into such meditation

393
00:16:38,301 --> 00:16:41,182
that he began to journal more and more.

394
00:16:41,182 --> 00:16:43,089
An example one morning:

395
00:16:43,089 --> 00:16:44,460
Romans 15.

396
00:16:44,460 --> 00:16:45,599
He's reading.

397
00:16:45,599 --> 00:16:47,857
He comes to verse 13, which says,

398
00:16:47,857 --> 00:16:49,437
"Now may the God of hope

399
00:16:49,437 --> 00:16:52,926
fill you with all joy and 
peace in believing,

400
00:16:52,926 --> 00:16:54,903
that you may abound in hope

401
00:16:54,903 --> 00:16:57,255
by the power of the Holy Spirit."

402
00:16:57,255 --> 00:16:58,699
Jim stopped there and he began

403
00:16:58,699 --> 00:17:01,338
to write and pray.

404
00:17:01,338 --> 00:17:03,564
"Every hour I need Thee.

405
00:17:03,564 --> 00:17:06,051
I claim this verse for these days.

406
00:17:06,051 --> 00:17:07,623
My love is faint.

407
00:17:07,623 --> 00:17:09,855
My warmth practically gone.

408
00:17:09,855 --> 00:17:12,625
Oh, that I were not so empty-handed.

409
00:17:12,625 --> 00:17:14,027
Joy and peace can only come

410
00:17:14,027 --> 00:17:15,852
through believing God.

411
00:17:15,852 --> 00:17:18,747
And that is all can I say to Him tonight.

412
00:17:18,747 --> 00:17:19,769
Lord, I believe You.

413
00:17:19,769 --> 00:17:20,898
I don't feel love.

414
00:17:20,898 --> 00:17:22,046
I don't feel anything,

415
00:17:22,046 --> 00:17:23,447
and I don't understand.

416
00:17:23,447 --> 00:17:25,633
I now can only believe.

417
00:17:25,633 --> 00:17:28,504
So bring my faith to fruition.

418
00:17:28,504 --> 00:17:32,941
Produce in me, I pray."

419
00:17:32,941 --> 00:17:35,079
And suddenly he writes,

420
00:17:35,079 --> 00:17:36,978
"What is this, Lord Jesus,

421
00:17:36,978 --> 00:17:38,507
that Thou should make an end

422
00:17:38,507 --> 00:17:39,958
of all that I possess

423
00:17:39,958 --> 00:17:42,085
and give Yourself to me?

424
00:17:42,085 --> 00:17:43,615
So that there is nothing now

425
00:17:43,615 --> 00:17:45,720
to call my own, save Thee?

426
00:17:45,720 --> 00:17:48,200
Thyself alone, my Treasure.

427
00:17:48,200 --> 00:17:51,011
Strange I say that suffering loss,

428
00:17:51,011 --> 00:17:53,129
I have gained everything 
in getting a Friend

429
00:17:53,129 --> 00:17:55,546
who bore a cross."

430
00:17:55,546 --> 00:17:58,066
He wrote. He meditated.

431
00:17:58,066 --> 00:18:01,253
On 2 Samuel, he meditated one morning

432
00:18:01,253 --> 00:18:02,583
and then he wrote this:

433
00:18:02,583 --> 00:18:04,878
"Uriah, Bathsheba's husband,

434
00:18:04,878 --> 00:18:06,863
declined legitimate ease

435
00:18:06,863 --> 00:18:08,779
because his fellow soldiers

436
00:18:08,779 --> 00:18:11,272
were in tents in the open fields.

437
00:18:11,272 --> 00:18:13,055
David's error.

438
00:18:13,055 --> 00:18:14,970
When kings go out to battle,

439
00:18:14,970 --> 00:18:16,566
he tarried in Jerusalem.

440
00:18:16,566 --> 00:18:19,037
How often..." Jim said,

441
00:18:19,037 --> 00:18:21,323
"is this the history of Christian failure.

442
00:18:21,323 --> 00:18:22,441
It's time to march,

443
00:18:22,441 --> 00:18:24,280
and some Christians are laying on beds

444
00:18:24,280 --> 00:18:25,900
of self-interest.

445
00:18:25,900 --> 00:18:28,829
At such times, Satan sees to it

446
00:18:28,829 --> 00:18:31,909
that a Bathsheba is not far away.

447
00:18:31,909 --> 00:18:34,410
David staying at ease in Jerusalem

448
00:18:34,410 --> 00:18:36,398
meant Uriah's death in battle.

449
00:18:36,398 --> 00:18:39,183
Lord, don't let me be so found

450
00:18:39,183 --> 00:18:43,591
reluctant because of selfishness."

451
00:18:43,591 --> 00:18:45,526
His famous words journaled

452
00:18:45,526 --> 00:18:48,261
in October of 1949:

453
00:18:48,261 --> 00:18:49,777
"He is no fool

454
00:18:49,777 --> 00:18:51,730
who gives what he cannot keep

455
00:18:51,730 --> 00:18:53,711
to gain what he cannot lose,"

456
00:18:53,711 --> 00:18:56,615
actually were not his words originally.

457
00:18:56,615 --> 00:18:58,511
He journaled them after reading them

458
00:18:58,511 --> 00:19:01,147
in the writings of Philip 
and Matthew Henry,

459
00:19:01,147 --> 00:19:02,732
who one of them said it

460
00:19:02,732 --> 00:19:04,960
in the 17th or 18th century.

461
00:19:04,960 --> 00:19:06,061
But he liked it.

462
00:19:06,061 --> 00:19:08,305
He was gleaning, gleaning, gleaning.

463
00:19:08,305 --> 00:19:10,529
Soaking it in. Taking it.

464
00:19:10,529 --> 00:19:11,948
Passing it on to others.

465
00:19:11,948 --> 00:19:13,086
Some other gleanings,

466
00:19:13,086 --> 00:19:14,286
February 1948:

467
00:19:14,286 --> 00:19:16,128
"Lord, show me the difference between

468
00:19:16,128 --> 00:19:17,924
worship and service,

469
00:19:17,924 --> 00:19:19,570
and how to press into Thy hand

470
00:19:19,570 --> 00:19:22,293
the fresh juice of living worship.

471
00:19:22,293 --> 00:19:25,685
Not the dead meat which 
is only in my head."

472
00:19:25,685 --> 00:19:29,724
"Last night I was entirely too talkative,

473
00:19:29,724 --> 00:19:31,613
dogmatic, and even argumentative

474
00:19:31,613 --> 00:19:36,084
with Dave (his future 
brother-in-law at Wheaton).

475
00:19:36,084 --> 00:19:39,572
Argumentative about 
Christians in politics.

476
00:19:39,572 --> 00:19:41,800
I'm seeking peace on this subject, Lord.

477
00:19:41,800 --> 00:19:43,671
I know I've grieved Your Spirit

478
00:19:43,671 --> 00:19:45,429
and my thoughts were not established.

479
00:19:45,429 --> 00:19:49,666
Possess my spirit, Lord, today."

480
00:19:49,666 --> 00:19:51,617
While reading through Genesis one month

481
00:19:51,617 --> 00:19:54,989
he wrote this, "Lord, whatever barriers

482
00:19:54,989 --> 00:19:56,333
there are in my life

483
00:19:56,333 --> 00:19:58,037
that keeps the water of life

484
00:19:58,037 --> 00:20:00,077
from freely flowing,

485
00:20:00,077 --> 00:20:01,520
I ask You to point it out

486
00:20:01,520 --> 00:20:04,757
and give me power to cut it off.

487
00:20:04,757 --> 00:20:06,581
I would not be like Rachel -

488
00:20:06,581 --> 00:20:08,374
beautiful but barren.

489
00:20:08,374 --> 00:20:10,541
Give me Leah's eyes, tender eyes,

490
00:20:10,541 --> 00:20:11,950
that I might be sensitive

491
00:20:11,950 --> 00:20:14,006
to Your light and Your truth."

492
00:20:14,006 --> 00:20:16,190
And his father had written him

493
00:20:16,190 --> 00:20:19,118
not long before along that line.

494
00:20:19,118 --> 00:20:21,161
His father wrote, "Jim, I am jealous

495
00:20:21,161 --> 00:20:22,902
of anything or any person

496
00:20:22,902 --> 00:20:26,194
who would hinder your progress

497
00:20:26,194 --> 00:20:27,523
to everlasting riches

498
00:20:27,523 --> 00:20:29,840
and a life completely devoted

499
00:20:29,840 --> 00:20:32,729
to that supreme and glorious Man

500
00:20:32,729 --> 00:20:35,431
at God's right hand."

501
00:20:35,431 --> 00:20:37,865
Jim became so consistent in gleaning

502
00:20:37,865 --> 00:20:41,157
rich gems of truth from the Bible,

503
00:20:41,157 --> 00:20:44,622
over and over,

504
00:20:44,622 --> 00:20:46,794
some major thoughts, major truths

505
00:20:46,794 --> 00:20:48,478
about the gospel - he wrote this:

506
00:20:48,478 --> 00:20:49,914
"Psalm 51.

507
00:20:49,914 --> 00:20:52,389
'I was shapen in iniquity.

508
00:20:52,389 --> 00:20:54,983
In sin did my mother conceive me.'

509
00:20:54,983 --> 00:20:57,348
From the beginning of my life,

510
00:20:57,348 --> 00:21:00,205
my contact has been with the unclean.

511
00:21:00,205 --> 00:21:02,467
How then can a man become pure?

512
00:21:02,467 --> 00:21:04,160
The atonement blood

513
00:21:04,160 --> 00:21:06,073
that cleansed my own mother

514
00:21:06,073 --> 00:21:07,811
must avail for me.

515
00:21:07,811 --> 00:21:09,240
Oh, Lamb of God,

516
00:21:09,240 --> 00:21:11,462
what a sacrifice Thou art.

517
00:21:11,462 --> 00:21:13,396
Whose blood can avail?

518
00:21:13,396 --> 00:21:15,312
Goat's blood cannot cleanse.

519
00:21:15,312 --> 00:21:17,636
My own blood cannot avail,
for I am unclean.

520
00:21:17,636 --> 00:21:20,719
Only Thy blood, O Lord,

521
00:21:20,719 --> 00:21:23,437
could be effectual."

522
00:21:23,437 --> 00:21:27,441
In his daily reading in Genesis,

523
00:21:27,441 --> 00:21:28,437
he said this:

524
00:21:28,437 --> 00:21:30,515
"I cannot fail to see Christ

525
00:21:30,515 --> 00:21:33,310
in Joseph's life today.

526
00:21:33,310 --> 00:21:36,094
He's a young man, 30 years old.

527
00:21:36,094 --> 00:21:39,330
A Hebrew servant.

528
00:21:39,330 --> 00:21:41,711
'Without Me you can do nothing,'

529
00:21:41,711 --> 00:21:43,606
says our Savior.

530
00:21:43,606 --> 00:21:44,931
And Pharaoh said to Joseph,

531
00:21:44,931 --> 00:21:46,303
'without you shall no man

532
00:21:46,303 --> 00:21:48,925
lift a hand or foot in Egypt.'

533
00:21:48,925 --> 00:21:51,286
Only our heavenly Joseph can open

534
00:21:51,286 --> 00:21:54,139
all the storehouse of God's wealth.

535
00:21:54,139 --> 00:21:57,410
All must go to Him for blessing."

536
00:21:57,410 --> 00:22:00,384
I've never gotten anything like that

537
00:22:00,384 --> 00:22:02,423
from Joseph's life,

538
00:22:02,423 --> 00:22:04,310
but he dug.

539
00:22:04,310 --> 00:22:06,232
He meditated. He prayed.

540
00:22:06,232 --> 00:22:09,847
And he wrote out of his mind and heart

541
00:22:09,847 --> 00:22:11,660
what he saw.

542
00:22:11,660 --> 00:22:15,232
John 13 he was reading.

543
00:22:15,232 --> 00:22:18,105
You know, at the beginning it says,

544
00:22:18,105 --> 00:22:21,260
Jesus realizing that the Father had given

545
00:22:21,260 --> 00:22:23,732
all things into His hands -

546
00:22:23,732 --> 00:22:27,247
Jim Elliot wrote this:

547
00:22:27,247 --> 00:22:29,265
"Jesus, seeing that the Father

548
00:22:29,265 --> 00:22:32,952
had given all things into His hands,

549
00:22:32,952 --> 00:22:35,886
He then took those dirty 
feet of His loved men

550
00:22:35,886 --> 00:22:40,690
into those hands and washed them."

551
00:22:40,690 --> 00:22:43,990
Always praying intensly, real,

552
00:22:43,990 --> 00:22:46,345
honest, passionate requests.

553
00:22:46,345 --> 00:22:47,516
He prayed this,

554
00:22:47,516 --> 00:22:51,811
"selfishness, Lord, in our love

555
00:22:51,811 --> 00:22:54,525
for service to You is inexcusable.

556
00:22:54,525 --> 00:22:55,840
I have known this, Lord.

557
00:22:55,840 --> 00:22:57,980
I've been guilty, often, I confess.

558
00:22:57,980 --> 00:23:01,370
I have at times had jealousy

559
00:23:01,370 --> 00:23:04,480
like a jagged tooth that 
spoils my thoughts

560
00:23:04,480 --> 00:23:06,162
when I've seen other young men

561
00:23:06,162 --> 00:23:07,627
get more of Christ

562
00:23:07,627 --> 00:23:09,838
and more of His power than I possess.

563
00:23:09,838 --> 00:23:11,579
Teach me, Lord, to rejoice

564
00:23:11,579 --> 00:23:14,018
in other men's growth."

565
00:23:14,018 --> 00:23:15,736
Praying for true zeal, he said,

566
00:23:15,736 --> 00:23:18,542
"It's a good day for stirring 
and heart-searching.

567
00:23:18,542 --> 00:23:20,885
Oh, may God revive His 
work in our country.

568
00:23:20,885 --> 00:23:23,504
I want to become pleasing to You, Lord.

569
00:23:23,504 --> 00:23:25,490
I pray You would make me a minister

570
00:23:25,490 --> 00:23:28,302
who's a flame of fire.

571
00:23:28,302 --> 00:23:29,922
Oh, that Christ would be to me

572
00:23:29,922 --> 00:23:31,757
as He was to Zinzendorf -

573
00:23:31,757 --> 00:23:33,897
the master passion of life.

574
00:23:33,897 --> 00:23:36,090
My heart pants after Thee,

575
00:23:36,090 --> 00:23:37,823
not for results or power.

576
00:23:37,823 --> 00:23:39,849
From henceforth, I would not seek

577
00:23:39,849 --> 00:23:42,981
an experience or a sign.

578
00:23:42,981 --> 00:23:45,015
For I have Christ as my object.

579
00:23:45,015 --> 00:23:46,742
Occupied not with tongues of fire,

580
00:23:46,742 --> 00:23:48,979
but with the great 
purpose of the Holy Spirit,

581
00:23:48,979 --> 00:23:50,824
to exalt Christ.

582
00:23:50,824 --> 00:23:53,007
Father, make me a crisis man.

583
00:23:53,007 --> 00:23:56,542
Bring those I come into contact with

584
00:23:56,542 --> 00:23:58,519
to a clear decision.

585
00:23:58,519 --> 00:24:00,618
Make me not a signpost on the road,

586
00:24:00,618 --> 00:24:02,668
but rather a fork in the road.

587
00:24:02,668 --> 00:24:06,455
So that men turning one way or the other

588
00:24:06,455 --> 00:24:10,471
when facing Christ in my life.

589
00:24:10,471 --> 00:24:13,064
Motives. He said,

590
00:24:13,064 --> 00:24:16,170
"I sense tonight that 
my desire to be great

591
00:24:16,170 --> 00:24:20,014
will frustrate God's intent for good

592
00:24:20,014 --> 00:24:21,421
to be done through me.

593
00:24:21,421 --> 00:24:24,386
Lord, let me pray

594
00:24:24,386 --> 00:24:25,876
with an honest, earnest heart.

595
00:24:25,876 --> 00:24:28,611
I choose not to be great,

596
00:24:28,611 --> 00:24:30,239
but only that You grant me

597
00:24:30,239 --> 00:24:33,288
Your goodness."

598
00:24:33,288 --> 00:24:35,662
Now, how would you respond

599
00:24:35,662 --> 00:24:38,635
if someone said this to you?

600
00:24:38,635 --> 00:24:40,684
A friend of Jim's - a close brother -

601
00:24:40,684 --> 00:24:47,345
came to him in college and said,

602
00:24:47,345 --> 00:24:50,684
"One of our sisters said to me,

603
00:24:50,684 --> 00:24:51,855
'we know Jim's humble,

604
00:24:51,855 --> 00:24:55,751
but we wish he would act like it more.'"

605
00:24:55,751 --> 00:24:57,273
So the friend came and told him.

606
00:24:57,273 --> 00:25:00,081
He didn't tell him who it was.

607
00:25:00,081 --> 00:25:03,156
And how would you respond?

608
00:25:03,156 --> 00:25:04,607
Jim's response -

609
00:25:04,607 --> 00:25:06,767
her name was Ruth Stams

610
00:25:06,767 --> 00:25:12,465
who later became a missionary to Pakistan.

611
00:25:12,465 --> 00:25:14,526
Jim said, "Well, the first phrase -

612
00:25:14,526 --> 00:25:16,148
'we know he is humble,'

613
00:25:16,148 --> 00:25:19,508
How can they be so certain of that?

614
00:25:19,508 --> 00:25:21,777
I know my proud heart is aware

615
00:25:21,777 --> 00:25:23,072
of its self-exaltation,

616
00:25:23,072 --> 00:25:25,630
but the last clause -

617
00:25:25,630 --> 00:25:29,831
'we wish he would act like it more.'

618
00:25:29,831 --> 00:25:31,573
That speaks to me in powerful tones.

619
00:25:31,573 --> 00:25:34,186
Often this self-exertion comes out

620
00:25:34,186 --> 00:25:35,982
and is most offensive.

621
00:25:35,982 --> 00:25:38,255
This flesh of mine is constantly producing

622
00:25:38,255 --> 00:25:40,517
something of itself.

623
00:25:40,517 --> 00:25:43,069
All uncleanness.

624
00:25:43,069 --> 00:25:46,526
Lord, put an end to my fleshly production.

625
00:25:46,526 --> 00:25:47,918
Stop it, Lord.

626
00:25:47,918 --> 00:25:49,584
Instead, flow though me,

627
00:25:49,584 --> 00:25:51,809
that I'll be clean."

628
00:25:51,809 --> 00:25:55,034
So, these are just examples

629
00:25:55,034 --> 00:25:57,975
that his spiritual reality

630
00:25:57,975 --> 00:26:00,527
and the pursuit for it was always engaged.

631
00:26:00,527 --> 00:26:02,476
It was always exemplary.

632
00:26:02,476 --> 00:26:04,994
He always seemed to be 
out front of others.

633
00:26:04,994 --> 00:26:07,019
He seemed to be in second or third gear

634
00:26:07,019 --> 00:26:09,543
when others were still in first.

635
00:26:09,543 --> 00:26:12,088
He was not only running more consistently,

636
00:26:12,088 --> 00:26:14,833
but he seemed to be 
running at a faster pace.

637
00:26:14,833 --> 00:26:17,197
It was very hard to keep up with him.

638
00:26:17,197 --> 00:26:19,092
He was out front - always a visionary.

639
00:26:19,092 --> 00:26:21,754
Always an initiator.

640
00:26:21,754 --> 00:26:23,195
He said to his brother Burt,

641
00:26:23,195 --> 00:26:25,504
who went to Peru for 30 years

642
00:26:25,504 --> 00:26:27,164
as a missionary,

643
00:26:27,164 --> 00:26:30,103
and Jim had thought of going there first,

644
00:26:30,103 --> 00:26:33,938
he wrote to his brother 
Burt a little note:

645
00:26:33,938 --> 00:26:36,996
"I must get into God's book 
for a little defrosting.

646
00:26:36,996 --> 00:26:42,468
May God make us love like the Tishbite.

647
00:26:42,468 --> 00:26:44,549
John the Baptist bold."

648
00:26:44,549 --> 00:26:49,947
So, whether in high school or college,

649
00:26:49,947 --> 00:26:51,730
he was always out front.

650
00:26:51,730 --> 00:26:53,341
He was a leader.

651
00:26:53,341 --> 00:26:54,862
An example of this was when

652
00:26:54,862 --> 00:26:58,103
President Franklin Roosevelt died in 1945.

653
00:26:58,103 --> 00:27:00,245
Jim was a junior in high school.

654
00:27:00,245 --> 00:27:01,917
And the principal on short notice

655
00:27:01,917 --> 00:27:03,450
thought it would be good to have

656
00:27:03,450 --> 00:27:05,484
a school assembly to address the students

657
00:27:05,484 --> 00:27:07,635
about our president's death.

658
00:27:07,635 --> 00:27:09,901
And so, on short notice,

659
00:27:09,901 --> 00:27:11,755
who could give a suitable speech

660
00:27:11,755 --> 00:27:13,777
to the entire school?

661
00:27:13,777 --> 00:27:16,308
Jim was asked.

662
00:27:16,308 --> 00:27:18,445
His coach said later,

663
00:27:18,445 --> 00:27:20,303
"I've never heard a better speech

664
00:27:20,303 --> 00:27:21,869
all these years."

665
00:27:21,869 --> 00:27:24,364
At Wheaton, he went out 
for the wrestling team

666
00:27:24,364 --> 00:27:26,049
because he thought it would

667
00:27:26,049 --> 00:27:28,011
keep him in shape for the future.

668
00:27:28,011 --> 00:27:30,472
The result was, he not only made the team,

669
00:27:30,472 --> 00:27:34,684
but he became a champion college wrestler.

670
00:27:34,684 --> 00:27:35,956
Always excelling;

671
00:27:35,956 --> 00:27:39,735
pressing on to improve.

672
00:27:39,735 --> 00:27:43,669
Some of the views on important things.

673
00:27:43,669 --> 00:27:45,924
"The pattern of my personal conduct

674
00:27:45,924 --> 00:27:48,756
and behavior..." listen 
to this, young people.

675
00:27:48,756 --> 00:27:51,419
"The pattern of my personal conduct

676
00:27:51,419 --> 00:27:53,744
and behavior is not based on

677
00:27:53,744 --> 00:27:56,837
the activities of those around me.

678
00:27:56,837 --> 00:27:58,686
Don't follow the examples of those

679
00:27:58,686 --> 00:28:00,317
still in the world,

680
00:28:00,317 --> 00:28:02,492
and not necessarily even those

681
00:28:02,492 --> 00:28:03,832
in the church.

682
00:28:03,832 --> 00:28:05,603
Rather, the Word of God

683
00:28:05,603 --> 00:28:07,658
shall be my standard.

684
00:28:07,658 --> 00:28:10,486
And as I see it, there are few examples

685
00:28:10,486 --> 00:28:13,615
of that kind of living anywhere."

686
00:28:13,615 --> 00:28:15,336
That was 1948.

687
00:28:15,336 --> 00:28:17,683
(incomplete thought)

688
00:28:17,683 --> 00:28:20,557
On sanctification

689
00:28:20,557 --> 00:28:22,797
and the work of the Holy Spirit.

690
00:28:22,797 --> 00:28:24,209
He said, "We should remember

691
00:28:24,209 --> 00:28:26,315
that while knowledge may make one

692
00:28:26,315 --> 00:28:29,185
look big, it's only love that makes him

693
00:28:29,185 --> 00:28:30,866
grow into his full stature.

694
00:28:30,866 --> 00:28:32,496
Whatever a man may know,

695
00:28:32,496 --> 00:28:34,174
he still has a lot to learn,

696
00:28:34,174 --> 00:28:36,784
but if he loves God, he is opening

697
00:28:36,784 --> 00:28:41,056
his whole life to the Spirit of God."

698
00:28:41,056 --> 00:28:42,480
He said, "We do not surrender

699
00:28:42,480 --> 00:28:44,417
our entire life in one instant.

700
00:28:44,417 --> 00:28:46,451
That which is lifelong

701
00:28:46,451 --> 00:28:49,626
can only be surrendered in a lifetime.

702
00:28:49,626 --> 00:28:51,349
Neither does surrender to God's will

703
00:28:51,349 --> 00:28:54,949
always equal fullness of power.

704
00:28:54,949 --> 00:28:57,606
Maturity is the accomplishment of years.

705
00:28:57,606 --> 00:28:59,317
And I can only surrender

706
00:28:59,317 --> 00:29:02,541
to the will of God as I know what that is.

707
00:29:02,541 --> 00:29:03,968
So the fullness of the Spirit

708
00:29:03,968 --> 00:29:06,860
is not just instantaneous,

709
00:29:06,860 --> 00:29:08,843
but ultimately is progressive.

710
00:29:08,843 --> 00:29:11,763
If men were truly filled 
with the Holy Spirit,

711
00:29:11,763 --> 00:29:13,953
they would not write books about it,

712
00:29:13,953 --> 00:29:16,808
but they would major on the Person

713
00:29:16,808 --> 00:29:18,724
the Spirit has come to reveal.

714
00:29:18,724 --> 00:29:23,149
Occupation with Christ 
is God's objective."

715
00:29:23,149 --> 00:29:24,858
Later, he said this,

716
00:29:24,858 --> 00:29:26,907
"I was moved last night to think

717
00:29:26,907 --> 00:29:29,224
how very little we know

718
00:29:29,224 --> 00:29:30,889
of trust in the Holy Spirit

719
00:29:30,889 --> 00:29:33,259
and Spirit-directed ministry.

720
00:29:33,259 --> 00:29:35,426
Oh Lord, restore Your people.

721
00:29:35,426 --> 00:29:37,361
Rouse the elect in Portland.

722
00:29:37,361 --> 00:29:40,873
It is time for Thee to work.

723
00:29:40,873 --> 00:29:43,212
The Holy Spirit is the 
only source of power

724
00:29:43,212 --> 00:29:44,569
for the believer's witness.

725
00:29:44,569 --> 00:29:46,704
Even if we know apologetics,

726
00:29:46,704 --> 00:29:48,460
if we lack the power of the Spirit,

727
00:29:48,460 --> 00:29:49,812
we will be ineffective

728
00:29:49,812 --> 00:29:53,834
and even detrimental as witness."

729
00:29:53,834 --> 00:29:56,220
Jim was a pacifist.

730
00:29:56,220 --> 00:29:57,975
(Those who do not believe

731
00:29:57,975 --> 00:30:00,060
that Christians should support

732
00:30:00,060 --> 00:30:01,544
or fight in a war

733
00:30:01,544 --> 00:30:04,101
or actively take part in politics.)

734
00:30:04,101 --> 00:30:06,818
And even in high school,

735
00:30:06,818 --> 00:30:10,571
he was very clear in his belief about it.

736
00:30:10,571 --> 00:30:12,479
In high school, he was a member

737
00:30:12,479 --> 00:30:14,144
of the public speaking club.

738
00:30:14,144 --> 00:30:17,955
In fact, he was the most 
influential one in it.

739
00:30:17,955 --> 00:30:20,115
And one of the assignments

740
00:30:20,115 --> 00:30:22,637
by the leader of the club

741
00:30:22,637 --> 00:30:26,729
was everyone - it was the 
presidential election year -

742
00:30:26,729 --> 00:30:28,354
and the assignment was to give

743
00:30:28,354 --> 00:30:32,760
a political speech about 
the upcoming election

744
00:30:32,760 --> 00:30:36,066
and which candidate you favored

745
00:30:36,066 --> 00:30:37,742
and what your views were.

746
00:30:37,742 --> 00:30:39,170
So the club president assigned

747
00:30:39,170 --> 00:30:40,853
each member a speech

748
00:30:40,853 --> 00:30:43,758
and Jim was called on in class,

749
00:30:43,758 --> 00:30:47,005
and Jim said, "I have no speech."

750
00:30:47,005 --> 00:30:49,405
Well, the president of the 
class began to worry

751
00:30:49,405 --> 00:30:52,148
because Jim was the leader 
of the whole class.

752
00:30:52,148 --> 00:30:53,459
"Jim, you know the rules.

753
00:30:53,459 --> 00:30:56,996
I'll have to expel you if you 
don't give your speech.

754
00:30:56,996 --> 00:30:58,554
(Expel you from the club).

755
00:30:58,554 --> 00:30:59,894
Now, come on up here.

756
00:30:59,894 --> 00:31:01,460
You don't need any preparation.

757
00:31:01,460 --> 00:31:03,930
Just give a brief extemporaneous speech

758
00:31:03,930 --> 00:31:05,957
on your favorite candidate."

759
00:31:05,957 --> 00:31:07,951
Jim, looked right back at him and said,

760
00:31:07,951 --> 00:31:09,926
"I have no favorite candidate

761
00:31:09,926 --> 00:31:12,987
and I have no speech."

762
00:31:12,987 --> 00:31:15,658
Well, in rising from his seat, he said,

763
00:31:15,658 --> 00:31:17,714
"But I'll be happy to take three minutes

764
00:31:17,714 --> 00:31:19,607
to tell you why."

765
00:31:19,607 --> 00:31:20,863
Well, the club president,

766
00:31:20,863 --> 00:31:23,490
suddenly remembering Jim's convictions,

767
00:31:23,490 --> 00:31:26,602
quickly said, "That 
won't be necessary, Jim.

768
00:31:26,602 --> 00:31:28,452
We understand your reasons.

769
00:31:28,452 --> 00:31:30,366
I waive the rule and you're excused

770
00:31:30,366 --> 00:31:31,956
from your speech."

771
00:31:31,956 --> 00:31:36,995
So, he was acting on 
principle courageously

772
00:31:36,995 --> 00:31:40,204
which equipped him year by year

773
00:31:40,204 --> 00:31:41,669
to act on the same principles

774
00:31:41,669 --> 00:31:42,942
about the gospel

775
00:31:42,942 --> 00:31:44,511
and about the mission field

776
00:31:44,511 --> 00:31:46,171
and about missionary principles

777
00:31:46,171 --> 00:31:49,630
and what he could or could not do.

778
00:31:49,630 --> 00:31:53,318
His views of the local church were solid.

779
00:31:53,318 --> 00:31:55,512
The Plymouth Brethren always called

780
00:31:55,512 --> 00:31:58,657
the church meeting "the assembly."

781
00:31:58,657 --> 00:32:00,446
We're going to the assembly today.

782
00:32:00,446 --> 00:32:02,464
And it was a vital part of his upbringing.

783
00:32:02,464 --> 00:32:04,076
And at Wheaton, he quickly found

784
00:32:04,076 --> 00:32:06,854
a Brethren assembly in Lombard, Illinois

785
00:32:06,854 --> 00:32:08,174
near Wheaton.

786
00:32:08,174 --> 00:32:09,561
And in December of that year,

787
00:32:09,561 --> 00:32:11,636
he journaled this: "What a ragged

788
00:32:11,636 --> 00:32:15,118
and shoddy thing organized Christianity

789
00:32:15,118 --> 00:32:17,647
has become in honoring man,

790
00:32:17,647 --> 00:32:19,431
places, and crowds.

791
00:32:19,431 --> 00:32:22,226
How I long to see the simplicity

792
00:32:22,226 --> 00:32:25,414
and powerful beauty of a 
New Testament fellowship

793
00:32:25,414 --> 00:32:28,261
reproduced."

794
00:32:28,261 --> 00:32:30,529
He loved real fellowship

795
00:32:30,529 --> 00:32:31,849
with the brethren.

796
00:32:31,849 --> 00:32:33,819
He said, "the love of Jonathan and David

797
00:32:33,819 --> 00:32:36,244
I felt again today for Bill Cathers,

798
00:32:36,244 --> 00:32:38,592
my friend, upon reading a letter from him

799
00:32:38,592 --> 00:32:40,701
who is en route to China.

800
00:32:40,701 --> 00:32:44,699
It makes me throb to 
read his soul's swagger

801
00:32:44,699 --> 00:32:46,613
and what the Spirit is making Bill

802
00:32:46,613 --> 00:32:47,633
the way He is.

803
00:32:47,633 --> 00:32:49,668
How I long for another like him!

804
00:32:49,668 --> 00:32:53,109
But kindred spirits are so few.

805
00:32:53,109 --> 00:32:55,335
Lord, give me a David that I can know

806
00:32:55,335 --> 00:32:56,946
as David knew Jonathan -

807
00:32:56,946 --> 00:33:00,825
sweeter, swifter, stronger."

808
00:33:00,825 --> 00:33:06,072
Well, he did have some wrong views;

809
00:33:06,072 --> 00:33:07,798
some immature views.

810
00:33:07,798 --> 00:33:09,944
One was marriage and the ministry

811
00:33:09,944 --> 00:33:11,642
and how they would mesh;

812
00:33:11,642 --> 00:33:13,216
how it went together.

813
00:33:13,216 --> 00:33:15,218
When Jim and Elisabeth Elliot both knew

814
00:33:15,218 --> 00:33:17,530
they loved each other

815
00:33:17,530 --> 00:33:19,480
and wanted to be married,

816
00:33:19,480 --> 00:33:21,804
Jim expressed his thoughts.

817
00:33:21,804 --> 00:33:24,399
"I cannot express the 
yearning in my heart.

818
00:33:24,399 --> 00:33:25,764
Oh, what a jumble,

819
00:33:25,764 --> 00:33:28,697
cross-current passion I am in.

820
00:33:28,697 --> 00:33:32,506
May Christ only satisfy my thirst.

821
00:33:32,506 --> 00:33:36,266
But the possibility of seeing Betty,

822
00:33:36,266 --> 00:33:38,731
again, brings wishful thoughts.

823
00:33:38,731 --> 00:33:44,737
How I hate myself for such weakness!

824
00:33:44,737 --> 00:33:47,579
Is not Christ enough, Jim 
(he said to himself)?

825
00:33:47,579 --> 00:33:50,187
What need you more? A woman in His place?

826
00:33:50,187 --> 00:33:51,562
No, God forbid!

827
00:33:51,562 --> 00:33:53,788
I shall have Thee, Lord Jesus."

828
00:33:53,788 --> 00:33:57,752
And all along his Bible 
had been saying to him,

829
00:33:57,752 --> 00:34:01,287
it's not good for man to be alone.

830
00:34:01,287 --> 00:34:04,047
I'll prepare a helpmeet for him.

831
00:34:04,047 --> 00:34:05,737
Someone could have said to Jim,

832
00:34:05,737 --> 00:34:07,379
"you knucklehead."

833
00:34:07,379 --> 00:34:10,401
It's not Christ or her.

834
00:34:10,401 --> 00:34:13,459
It's Christ and her.

835
00:34:13,459 --> 00:34:15,286
Because God had been revealing

836
00:34:15,286 --> 00:34:19,319
to both of them that she was prepared

837
00:34:19,319 --> 00:34:22,844
by the Lord for Jim and him for her,

838
00:34:22,844 --> 00:34:26,991
to complement and complete one another.

839
00:34:26,991 --> 00:34:29,620
Elisabeth was always ready to marry him.

840
00:34:29,620 --> 00:34:31,182
He was always holding back

841
00:34:31,182 --> 00:34:33,237
because of the mission field.

842
00:34:33,237 --> 00:34:37,350
Singleness - that's the 
best missionary's life.

843
00:34:37,350 --> 00:34:39,579
He said finally, after they were

844
00:34:39,579 --> 00:34:42,608
both in Ecuador and the team

845
00:34:42,608 --> 00:34:44,834
heard of a certain tribe of Indians

846
00:34:44,834 --> 00:34:48,209
that were opening to them,

847
00:34:48,209 --> 00:34:49,872
that a single man couldn't go in

848
00:34:49,872 --> 00:34:51,166
because of the setting.

849
00:34:51,166 --> 00:34:52,171
They need a couple.

850
00:34:52,171 --> 00:34:54,710
There was no couple available to go.

851
00:34:54,710 --> 00:34:56,811
Jim suddenly said to Elisabeth,

852
00:34:56,811 --> 00:35:02,399
"So how soon will you marry me?"

853
00:35:02,399 --> 00:35:05,974
Some wrong views get 
corrected in all of us.

854
00:35:05,974 --> 00:35:07,223
Well, she finally got him

855
00:35:07,223 --> 00:35:08,837
and he may have gotten the better

856
00:35:08,837 --> 00:35:09,939
part of the deal

857
00:35:09,939 --> 00:35:12,421
when you see the life of Elisabeth Elliot.

858
00:35:12,421 --> 00:35:14,034
He was growing and changing.

859
00:35:14,034 --> 00:35:17,380
But more about their marriage in a moment.

860
00:35:17,380 --> 00:35:20,354
So, what I've said are the ingredients

861
00:35:20,354 --> 00:35:23,752
that shaped and made him the man he was.

862
00:35:23,752 --> 00:35:27,328
A life of separation and pursuit of God;

863
00:35:27,328 --> 00:35:30,015
of holiness; a true churchman;

864
00:35:30,015 --> 00:35:32,820
who viewed the centrality 
of the local church properly;

865
00:35:32,820 --> 00:35:36,153
and being a vital member and 
being sent out of the church;

866
00:35:36,153 --> 00:35:38,195
consistent, deep Bible reading;

867
00:35:38,195 --> 00:35:41,159
always reading great 
books - the best authors;

868
00:35:41,159 --> 00:35:43,800
a self-denying real prayer life;

869
00:35:43,800 --> 00:35:46,148
cultivating a lifestyle of repentance

870
00:35:46,148 --> 00:35:47,411
and humility,

871
00:35:47,411 --> 00:35:49,918
and real fellowship with godly brethren

872
00:35:49,918 --> 00:35:53,060
who exhorted and encouraged 
one another daily.

873
00:35:53,060 --> 00:35:56,497
And keeping a journal that matured him

874
00:35:56,497 --> 00:35:57,736
in his faith.

875
00:35:57,736 --> 00:35:59,249
That was the making of the man.

876
00:35:59,249 --> 00:36:01,002
Secondly, the marriage.

877
00:36:01,002 --> 00:36:03,327
Jim and Betty Elliot (or Elisabeth).

878
00:36:03,327 --> 00:36:04,952
She was always called Betty

879
00:36:04,952 --> 00:36:07,708
by family and close friends.

880
00:36:07,708 --> 00:36:11,767
The marriage - he first met Elisabeth

881
00:36:11,767 --> 00:36:12,887
at Wheaton.

882
00:36:12,887 --> 00:36:13,975
Both were students.

883
00:36:13,975 --> 00:36:16,184
She was a year ahead of him.

884
00:36:16,184 --> 00:36:18,539
And then David Howard, her brother,

885
00:36:18,539 --> 00:36:20,225
invited him home at Christmas

886
00:36:20,225 --> 00:36:21,621
to their home,

887
00:36:21,621 --> 00:36:24,519
and he was there for 
more time around Betty.

888
00:36:24,519 --> 00:36:26,053
They studied Greek together

889
00:36:26,053 --> 00:36:28,235
being in the same course at Wheaton.

890
00:36:28,235 --> 00:36:31,172
And he wrote his parents about her.

891
00:36:31,172 --> 00:36:32,466
And a real love developed

892
00:36:32,466 --> 00:36:35,524
and a mutual devotion between them

893
00:36:35,524 --> 00:36:37,821
independently of each other

894
00:36:37,821 --> 00:36:40,409
to God's purpose as friends.

895
00:36:40,409 --> 00:36:42,141
She was his equal spiritually,

896
00:36:42,141 --> 00:36:43,411
intellectually.

897
00:36:43,411 --> 00:36:45,753
And he really saw her

898
00:36:45,753 --> 00:36:48,221
as being further along than him

899
00:36:48,221 --> 00:36:49,429
in a lot of ways.

900
00:36:49,429 --> 00:36:51,328
Her godliness, her maturity,

901
00:36:51,328 --> 00:36:53,459
her refinement, her separation

902
00:36:53,459 --> 00:36:57,092
stirred him, intimidated him,

903
00:36:57,092 --> 00:36:59,037
drew him with cords of love.

904
00:36:59,037 --> 00:37:00,683
They were meant for each other.

905
00:37:00,683 --> 00:37:03,341
She saw it early and he did not.

906
00:37:03,341 --> 00:37:06,946
And it's a wonder that she was so patient.

907
00:37:06,946 --> 00:37:08,707
But she was.

908
00:37:08,707 --> 00:37:10,392
Well, they realized it.

909
00:37:10,392 --> 00:37:12,466
Finally, they took a walk one evening

910
00:37:12,466 --> 00:37:15,956
discussing God's path for them.

911
00:37:15,956 --> 00:37:19,113
They had one date, 
if you want to call it that.

912
00:37:19,113 --> 00:37:22,149
It was to a missionary meeting in Chicago.

913
00:37:22,149 --> 00:37:24,271
They had studied a lot.

914
00:37:24,271 --> 00:37:26,173
They had a lot of conversation.

915
00:37:26,173 --> 00:37:29,593
But neither outwardly 
acknowledged anything

916
00:37:29,593 --> 00:37:31,556
about their feelings for the other

917
00:37:31,556 --> 00:37:32,700
beyond friendship.

918
00:37:32,700 --> 00:37:35,106
But that evening, they took a walk

919
00:37:35,106 --> 00:37:37,452
and when they looked at each other,

920
00:37:37,452 --> 00:37:39,335
they both knew it and acknowledged it

921
00:37:39,335 --> 00:37:42,488
and said it - that they loved each other.

922
00:37:42,488 --> 00:37:45,069
That night, Jim marked in his hymn book

923
00:37:45,069 --> 00:37:48,495
the date and beside it these words:

924
00:37:48,495 --> 00:37:50,602
"If Thou should call me to resign

925
00:37:50,602 --> 00:37:52,398
what most I prize,

926
00:37:52,398 --> 00:37:54,599
it ne'er was mine.

927
00:37:54,599 --> 00:37:57,372
I only yield Thee what was Thine.

928
00:37:57,372 --> 00:37:59,699
Thy will be done."

929
00:37:59,699 --> 00:38:02,312
But she didn't impress Jim's family,

930
00:38:02,312 --> 00:38:04,095
for some reason.

931
00:38:04,095 --> 00:38:05,975
Too quiet, they said. Too distant.

932
00:38:05,975 --> 00:38:07,745
She's kind of awkward.

933
00:38:07,745 --> 00:38:11,429
She didn't seem to fit in 
the lively Elliot home.

934
00:38:11,429 --> 00:38:15,058
But Jim knew, and he stood alone,

935
00:38:15,058 --> 00:38:16,395
but he was also afraid.

936
00:38:16,395 --> 00:38:18,463
What about my calling? The mission field?

937
00:38:18,463 --> 00:38:20,100
How can both be right?

938
00:38:20,100 --> 00:38:29,029
It was a big struggle for him.

939
00:38:29,029 --> 00:38:34,266
He said, besides, I hate 
American weddings.

940
00:38:34,266 --> 00:38:36,298
Now with radical John the Baptist tones

941
00:38:36,298 --> 00:38:38,868
he thunders in his journal about weddings.

942
00:38:38,868 --> 00:38:40,959
Now see if you think he was just

943
00:38:40,959 --> 00:38:42,875
running from his own wedding.

944
00:38:42,875 --> 00:38:43,966
What he said,

945
00:38:43,966 --> 00:38:46,162
"Twentieth century weddings

946
00:38:46,162 --> 00:38:48,807
are the vainest, most meaningless things.

947
00:38:48,807 --> 00:38:52,090
There is no evidence of reality in them.

948
00:38:52,090 --> 00:38:54,003
The wedding party dresses for a show

949
00:38:54,003 --> 00:38:56,061
and the flesh is given first place.

950
00:38:56,061 --> 00:38:59,201
The songs are absurd if 
anyone pays attention

951
00:38:59,201 --> 00:39:00,923
to the words, but no one does.

952
00:39:00,923 --> 00:39:03,079
They simply listen to how it's sung.

953
00:39:03,079 --> 00:39:05,909
Candles are useless, expensive trifles.

954
00:39:05,909 --> 00:39:10,719
Ushers help no one, but 
they appear very official.

955
00:39:10,719 --> 00:39:12,792
And the ceremony is the most meaningless

956
00:39:12,792 --> 00:39:15,324
hodgepodge of obsolete grammar

957
00:39:15,324 --> 00:39:17,163
and phraseology I've ever seen.

958
00:39:17,163 --> 00:39:18,985
And the stupid question of asking

959
00:39:18,985 --> 00:39:20,798
who gives the bride to be married?

960
00:39:20,798 --> 00:39:23,771
Everyone already knows it's her father

961
00:39:23,771 --> 00:39:28,334
uncle, or some sweating 
pawn at the altar."

962
00:39:28,334 --> 00:39:30,528
He said, "I'm sure the minor prophets

963
00:39:30,528 --> 00:39:32,018
would have have found subject

964
00:39:32,018 --> 00:39:35,337
for correction in this affair."

965
00:39:35,337 --> 00:39:37,169
And then he closes the paragraph,

966
00:39:37,169 --> 00:39:40,375
"I must read this to myself 
on my wedding day

967
00:39:40,375 --> 00:39:42,749
if I have one."

968
00:39:42,749 --> 00:39:44,795
Betty said later,

969
00:39:44,795 --> 00:39:49,654
"I do not think he remembered to read it.

970
00:39:49,654 --> 00:39:51,488
If he had, he would have smiled

971
00:39:51,488 --> 00:39:53,571
at his imbalanced zeal,

972
00:39:53,571 --> 00:39:55,593
for he had matured over the years."

973
00:39:55,593 --> 00:39:58,862
But maturity had not given either of them

974
00:39:58,862 --> 00:40:01,630
a heart for an outward show.

975
00:40:01,630 --> 00:40:03,557
Neither of them wanted a conventional

976
00:40:03,557 --> 00:40:05,347
big wedding.

977
00:40:05,347 --> 00:40:08,056
She showed up in Ecuador

978
00:40:08,056 --> 00:40:13,895
shortly after him as a single woman.

979
00:40:13,895 --> 00:40:15,785
When they decided to get married

980
00:40:15,785 --> 00:40:17,677
they didn't return back to the states.

981
00:40:17,677 --> 00:40:20,850
It was a civil ceremony of 10 minutes

982
00:40:20,850 --> 00:40:22,777
at the justice of the peace

983
00:40:22,777 --> 00:40:24,311
in the capital city of Quito.

984
00:40:24,311 --> 00:40:27,050
I'm sure it wasn't called 
the justice of the peace,

985
00:40:27,050 --> 00:40:28,445
but same office.

986
00:40:28,445 --> 00:40:30,846
They were married in a ten minute ceremony

987
00:40:30,846 --> 00:40:33,643
with two couples with them.

988
00:40:33,643 --> 00:40:35,953
After a two week honeymoon in Panama

989
00:40:35,953 --> 00:40:37,084
and Costa Rica,

990
00:40:37,084 --> 00:40:38,757
back to the jungles

991
00:40:38,757 --> 00:40:45,425
to live for five months in a 16 foot tent.

992
00:40:45,425 --> 00:40:50,967
Ladies, you ready for the mission field?

993
00:40:50,967 --> 00:40:54,180
The point is singles who are waiting

994
00:40:54,180 --> 00:40:56,823
on God's person in marriage

995
00:40:56,823 --> 00:40:59,806
should not try to figure out and control

996
00:40:59,806 --> 00:41:01,433
how God will give you a partner.

997
00:41:01,433 --> 00:41:02,967
He is leading you.

998
00:41:02,967 --> 00:41:05,182
He was leading Jim and Betty.

999
00:41:05,182 --> 00:41:08,541
And He caused the time to be right

1000
00:41:08,541 --> 00:41:09,904
in the experience.

1001
00:41:09,904 --> 00:41:11,569
So the making of the man

1002
00:41:11,569 --> 00:41:12,626
and the marriage.

1003
00:41:12,626 --> 00:41:15,066
Thirdly, the mission.

1004
00:41:15,066 --> 00:41:17,321
Current mission statistics staggered

1005
00:41:17,321 --> 00:41:19,311
and haunted Jim.

1006
00:41:19,319 --> 00:41:23,222
1,700 languages have 
not one word of the Bible.

1007
00:41:23,222 --> 00:41:25,138
90% of mission volunteers

1008
00:41:25,138 --> 00:41:28,003
never make it to any foreign country.

1009
00:41:28,003 --> 00:41:30,968
64% of the world's population

1010
00:41:30,968 --> 00:41:32,644
have never heard of Christ.

1011
00:41:32,644 --> 00:41:35,310
5,000 people die every hour.

1012
00:41:35,310 --> 00:41:38,039
The total of India equals North America,

1013
00:41:38,039 --> 00:41:41,858
South America, and Africa combined.

1014
00:41:41,858 --> 00:41:43,455
In India, there's one missionary

1015
00:41:43,455 --> 00:41:45,983
for every 71,000 people.

1016
00:41:45,983 --> 00:41:51,673
One Christian worker for every 
500 people in the U.S.

1017
00:41:51,673 --> 00:41:55,968
Missions were Jim's 
target since high school

1018
00:41:55,968 --> 00:41:57,613
He began to think of India,

1019
00:41:57,613 --> 00:41:59,761
Muslim countries, and Peru

1020
00:41:59,761 --> 00:42:02,613
where Burt was going.

1021
00:42:02,613 --> 00:42:05,499
But by his senior year,

1022
00:42:05,499 --> 00:42:08,944
he was burdened for South America.

1023
00:42:08,944 --> 00:42:11,482
So, after he graduated from college,

1024
00:42:11,482 --> 00:42:14,861
he went off to the University of Oklahoma

1025
00:42:14,861 --> 00:42:19,065
and did their linguistics 
program for 3 months

1026
00:42:19,065 --> 00:42:23,928
to study linguistics for 
language translation.

1027
00:42:23,928 --> 00:42:25,677
And it was while he was there

1028
00:42:25,677 --> 00:42:29,194
that he became clear that he was sure

1029
00:42:29,194 --> 00:42:34,007
he was to go to Ecuador.

1030
00:42:34,007 --> 00:42:37,732
He had been to the 1948 Urbana 
missions conference in Illinois

1031
00:42:37,732 --> 00:42:39,708
before that and he prayed specifically.

1032
00:42:39,708 --> 00:42:41,519
"This came to me as I prayed

1033
00:42:41,519 --> 00:42:42,829
regarding this conference.

1034
00:42:42,829 --> 00:42:44,259
What the Lord has purposed

1035
00:42:44,259 --> 00:42:46,287
for this conference will be accomplished

1036
00:42:46,287 --> 00:42:47,594
but what is His purpose?

1037
00:42:47,594 --> 00:42:51,406
Lord, show me Your intent for me."

1038
00:42:51,406 --> 00:42:53,533
Well, after Oklahoma,

1039
00:42:53,533 --> 00:42:56,256
and that summer, he was clear

1040
00:42:56,256 --> 00:42:58,273
that he was to go to Ecuador.

1041
00:42:58,273 --> 00:43:00,601
He took a first practical step.

1042
00:43:00,601 --> 00:43:05,096
He hitchhiked to Mexico with a buddy.

1043
00:43:05,096 --> 00:43:07,768
Children, don't try that today.

1044
00:43:07,768 --> 00:43:13,999
But in 1950, it was more popular.

1045
00:43:13,999 --> 00:43:16,664
He and Ron Harris hitchhiked there

1046
00:43:16,664 --> 00:43:18,125
to be with the Harris family

1047
00:43:18,125 --> 00:43:19,917
who were missionaries there.

1048
00:43:19,917 --> 00:43:24,303
And Jim journaled, "Mexico 
has stolen my heart.

1049
00:43:24,303 --> 00:43:25,557
We've been here two weeks,

1050
00:43:25,557 --> 00:43:28,003
and I've been invited to 
stay as long as I desire.

1051
00:43:28,003 --> 00:43:31,207
Right now, I wish it were for life."

1052
00:43:31,207 --> 00:43:32,957
Writing from Mexico, he said,

1053
00:43:32,957 --> 00:43:34,356
"The Lord has been good to me

1054
00:43:34,356 --> 00:43:35,448
in bringing me here

1055
00:43:35,448 --> 00:43:37,779
to see the field and hear the language.

1056
00:43:37,779 --> 00:43:40,415
Missionaries are simply 
a bunch of nobodies

1057
00:43:40,415 --> 00:43:44,209
trying to exalt Somebody."

1058
00:43:44,209 --> 00:43:45,805
He was there for six weeks.

1059
00:43:45,805 --> 00:43:47,714
As he hitchhiked back to the states,

1060
00:43:47,714 --> 00:43:50,215
he had no doubt where he was to go.

1061
00:43:50,215 --> 00:43:52,335
As Betty Elliot later wrote,

1062
00:43:52,335 --> 00:43:54,771
"His face was set toward those

1063
00:43:54,771 --> 00:43:57,441
who had never heard."

1064
00:43:57,441 --> 00:43:59,968
His brother Burt was already in Peru,

1065
00:43:59,968 --> 00:44:03,261
and would be there for 30 years.

1066
00:44:03,261 --> 00:44:05,731
Ecuador became the focus.

1067
00:44:05,731 --> 00:44:08,451
And after his home church assembly

1068
00:44:08,451 --> 00:44:11,556
along with other sister Brethren churches

1069
00:44:11,556 --> 00:44:15,130
commissioned him to go;

1070
00:44:15,130 --> 00:44:17,155
after a time at home,

1071
00:44:17,155 --> 00:44:18,937
he and his close friend Pete Fleming

1072
00:44:18,937 --> 00:44:21,444
departed by ship for Ecuador

1073
00:44:21,444 --> 00:44:25,270
in February of 1952.

1074
00:44:25,270 --> 00:44:28,621
Betty Elliot arrived two months later

1075
00:44:28,621 --> 00:44:33,189
than Jim and Pete - still single.

1076
00:44:33,189 --> 00:44:38,081
The work began.

1077
00:44:38,081 --> 00:44:41,247
A team of five couples developed together.

1078
00:44:41,247 --> 00:44:43,479
And the men were there

1079
00:44:43,479 --> 00:44:46,125
only three to four years.

1080
00:44:46,125 --> 00:44:48,751
Jim Elliot was in Ecuador three years

1081
00:44:48,751 --> 00:44:51,065
and 11 months.

1082
00:44:51,065 --> 00:44:52,781
So the work in those years

1083
00:44:52,781 --> 00:44:54,261
consisted of the following:

1084
00:44:54,261 --> 00:44:58,223
teaching the Quechua Indians

1085
00:44:58,223 --> 00:45:00,209
with language charts

1086
00:45:00,209 --> 00:45:01,657
to read their own language.

1087
00:45:01,657 --> 00:45:04,772
Translating the Bible in Quechua.

1088
00:45:04,772 --> 00:45:06,724
Building a mission station

1089
00:45:06,724 --> 00:45:08,026
and their own houses

1090
00:45:08,026 --> 00:45:11,370
at Shell Mara - the operations base

1091
00:45:11,370 --> 00:45:13,818
for Mission Aviation Fellowship.

1092
00:45:13,818 --> 00:45:16,913
Jim and Betty lived there

1093
00:45:16,913 --> 00:45:19,538
after they lived in their honeymoon tent

1094
00:45:19,538 --> 00:45:21,494
for five months.

1095
00:45:21,494 --> 00:45:25,424
Holding services finally

1096
00:45:25,424 --> 00:45:27,410
and preaching the Quechua language,

1097
00:45:27,410 --> 00:45:29,420
building a small airstrip,

1098
00:45:29,420 --> 00:45:33,217
and surveying villages by air

1099
00:45:33,217 --> 00:45:37,617
to see where tribes were;

1100
00:45:37,617 --> 00:45:41,135
Jim and the brothers

1101
00:45:41,135 --> 00:45:44,482
were only there a few short years.

1102
00:45:44,482 --> 00:45:46,200
On sailing away that day

1103
00:45:46,200 --> 00:45:47,723
in February of 1952,

1104
00:45:47,723 --> 00:45:50,742
Jim said, "We left the outer harbor dock

1105
00:45:50,742 --> 00:45:53,827
from San Pedro, California at 2:06 today.

1106
00:45:53,827 --> 00:45:55,331
Mom and dad stood together

1107
00:45:55,331 --> 00:45:56,747
watching on the pier.

1108
00:45:56,747 --> 00:45:59,647
As we slipped away, Psalm 60:12

1109
00:45:59,647 --> 00:46:02,400
came to mind and I called it back to them.

1110
00:46:02,400 --> 00:46:05,795
"Through God, we shall do valiantly."

1111
00:46:05,795 --> 00:46:07,337
They wept some.

1112
00:46:07,337 --> 00:46:09,535
I do not understand how God has made me.

1113
00:46:09,535 --> 00:46:10,979
I didn't feel like crying.

1114
00:46:10,979 --> 00:46:14,835
Only sheer joy and thanksgiving fills me.

1115
00:46:14,835 --> 00:46:17,421
The sheer joy of being in the will of God

1116
00:46:17,421 --> 00:46:19,098
is my general experience now.

1117
00:46:19,098 --> 00:46:20,652
The Lord is in our going now,

1118
00:46:20,652 --> 00:46:22,470
and if life were to end at this point,

1119
00:46:22,470 --> 00:46:24,101
I could say with Simeon,

1120
00:46:24,101 --> 00:46:29,284
'Lord, let Your servant depart in peace.'"

1121
00:46:29,284 --> 00:46:35,301
The first five months 
were language studies

1122
00:46:35,301 --> 00:46:37,393
in Quito, the capital city,

1123
00:46:37,393 --> 00:46:41,263
with a Dr. Tidmarsh, a veteran missionary

1124
00:46:41,263 --> 00:46:43,339
who was leaving the country

1125
00:46:43,339 --> 00:46:45,752
because of his wife's health.

1126
00:46:45,752 --> 00:46:47,995
So along with Jim and Betty Elliot,

1127
00:46:47,995 --> 00:46:50,097
Nate and Marjorie Saint,

1128
00:46:50,097 --> 00:46:52,380
Roger and Barbara Youderian,

1129
00:46:52,380 --> 00:46:53,758
Pete and Olive Fleming,

1130
00:46:53,758 --> 00:46:55,289
and Ed and MaryLou McCully -

1131
00:46:55,289 --> 00:46:57,021
a team of ten.

1132
00:46:57,021 --> 00:46:58,365
Five families.

1133
00:46:58,365 --> 00:47:01,274
Not one individual like David Brainerd.

1134
00:47:01,274 --> 00:47:03,230
That says something about the importance

1135
00:47:03,230 --> 00:47:06,255
of biblical missions.

1136
00:47:06,255 --> 00:47:08,841
Jim Elliot had a proper 
view of the local church

1137
00:47:08,841 --> 00:47:10,060
and being under authority

1138
00:47:10,060 --> 00:47:11,272
to be sent out.

1139
00:47:11,272 --> 00:47:12,437
They were a team.

1140
00:47:12,437 --> 00:47:16,072
They had to live as one another's church;

1141
00:47:16,072 --> 00:47:17,575
one another's body.

1142
00:47:17,575 --> 00:47:19,750
And so did the wives.

1143
00:47:19,750 --> 00:47:22,027
All of these are in their twenties -

1144
00:47:22,027 --> 00:47:24,525
young twenties, middle-aged twenties,

1145
00:47:24,525 --> 00:47:25,912
older twenties.

1146
00:47:25,912 --> 00:47:26,966
Twenty-year olds.

1147
00:47:26,966 --> 00:47:29,341
The mission target once 
they were all in Ecuador

1148
00:47:29,341 --> 00:47:31,696
became the most savage tribe

1149
00:47:31,696 --> 00:47:33,110
in the country.

1150
00:47:33,110 --> 00:47:35,885
The Auca Indians.

1151
00:47:35,885 --> 00:47:39,678
Operation Auca began February 1952.

1152
00:47:39,678 --> 00:47:41,994
The Auca's were the most 
savage group of killers

1153
00:47:41,994 --> 00:47:44,937
in all the eastern jungles of Ecuador.

1154
00:47:44,937 --> 00:47:47,319
The word "Auca" was given to this group

1155
00:47:47,319 --> 00:47:50,756
of Indians by the Quechua Indians,

1156
00:47:50,756 --> 00:47:53,192
and it means "savage."

1157
00:47:53,192 --> 00:47:54,734
Auca. Savage.

1158
00:47:54,734 --> 00:47:56,475
The savage Auca's.

1159
00:47:56,475 --> 00:47:58,975
Unreached by white men.

1160
00:47:58,975 --> 00:48:00,788
Except when business explorers

1161
00:48:00,788 --> 00:48:02,969
in previous decades

1162
00:48:02,969 --> 00:48:06,081
hunting rubber or minerals

1163
00:48:06,081 --> 00:48:07,851
came exploring their territory,

1164
00:48:07,851 --> 00:48:10,640
abusing the Auca's, killing them

1165
00:48:10,640 --> 00:48:13,083
to advance their own business ventures.

1166
00:48:13,083 --> 00:48:15,697
This caused any openness or curiosity

1167
00:48:15,697 --> 00:48:17,898
about the outside world to be destroyed.

1168
00:48:17,898 --> 00:48:20,225
They were totally closed off

1169
00:48:20,225 --> 00:48:23,367
from anyone but themselves.

1170
00:48:23,367 --> 00:48:25,830
Now, time doesn't allow the story here.

1171
00:48:25,830 --> 00:48:28,018
It's in the journals; it's in the books.

1172
00:48:28,018 --> 00:48:30,681
Especially "Through Gates of Splendor."

1173
00:48:30,681 --> 00:48:32,175
But those ten missionaries -

1174
00:48:32,175 --> 00:48:33,269
those five couples -

1175
00:48:33,269 --> 00:48:35,916
courageous, focused, sacrificial,

1176
00:48:35,916 --> 00:48:38,017
loving and big-hearted,

1177
00:48:38,017 --> 00:48:41,535
said, "In Thy name, we go."

1178
00:48:41,535 --> 00:48:43,115
It was the Auca's they targeted

1179
00:48:43,115 --> 00:48:44,315
and began their prayers

1180
00:48:44,315 --> 00:48:45,483
and the planned approach

1181
00:48:45,483 --> 00:48:47,890
to be the first ever white men

1182
00:48:47,890 --> 00:48:52,589
to become friends with the Auca's.

1183
00:48:52,589 --> 00:48:55,169
They made a first friendly contact.

1184
00:48:55,169 --> 00:48:56,865
Five white men

1185
00:48:56,865 --> 00:49:02,277
with three naked Auca Indians.

1186
00:49:02,277 --> 00:49:05,237
So the mission was clear

1187
00:49:05,237 --> 00:49:08,017
and was in gear.

1188
00:49:08,017 --> 00:49:10,818
Then, the martyrdom.

1189
00:49:10,818 --> 00:49:13,207
It was five men. Not just Jim Elliot.

1190
00:49:13,207 --> 00:49:15,075
As a young man through his twenties,

1191
00:49:15,075 --> 00:49:17,123
Jim was always for some reason

1192
00:49:17,123 --> 00:49:21,208
speaking, writing, and 
praying about death.

1193
00:49:21,208 --> 00:49:22,834
It's coming.

1194
00:49:22,834 --> 00:49:24,674
I want to be ready.

1195
00:49:24,674 --> 00:49:26,804
He was facing and thinking about it.

1196
00:49:26,804 --> 00:49:29,119
Prior to arriving in Ecuador,

1197
00:49:29,119 --> 00:49:31,192
we see his mind and his perspective

1198
00:49:31,192 --> 00:49:32,156
in his own words.

1199
00:49:32,156 --> 00:49:34,254
Age 20; 9 years before his death.

1200
00:49:34,254 --> 00:49:36,188
"If I would spare my life blood

1201
00:49:36,188 --> 00:49:39,031
and resist pouring it out as a sacrifice,

1202
00:49:39,031 --> 00:49:40,352
Father, take my life -

1203
00:49:40,352 --> 00:49:41,954
even my blood if You will

1204
00:49:41,954 --> 00:49:43,438
and consume it.

1205
00:49:43,438 --> 00:49:44,971
I would not save it,

1206
00:49:44,971 --> 00:49:46,743
for it is not mine to save.

1207
00:49:46,743 --> 00:49:48,179
Have it, Lord. Have it all.

1208
00:49:48,179 --> 00:49:50,251
Pour out my life as an offering

1209
00:49:50,251 --> 00:49:51,837
for the world."

1210
00:49:51,837 --> 00:49:54,070
A year later - age 21.

1211
00:49:54,070 --> 00:49:57,955
"Lord, light the idle sticks of my life.

1212
00:49:57,955 --> 00:50:00,237
Let me burn up for Thee.

1213
00:50:00,237 --> 00:50:02,489
Consume my life, O God, for it is Yours.

1214
00:50:02,489 --> 00:50:06,414
I seek not a long life, 
but a full one, like Yours,

1215
00:50:06,414 --> 00:50:08,268
Lord Jesus."

1216
00:50:08,268 --> 00:50:10,949
Age 21, "Father, if You will let me go

1217
00:50:10,949 --> 00:50:12,933
to South America to labor for You

1218
00:50:12,933 --> 00:50:14,404
and to die,

1219
00:50:14,404 --> 00:50:17,165
I pray You will let me go soon.

1220
00:50:17,165 --> 00:50:20,057
Nevertheless, not my will."

1221
00:50:20,057 --> 00:50:21,303
Next year, age 22.

1222
00:50:21,303 --> 00:50:23,522
"I must not think it strange

1223
00:50:23,522 --> 00:50:25,171
if God takes in youth,

1224
00:50:25,171 --> 00:50:27,669
those I would have kept on earth

1225
00:50:27,669 --> 00:50:29,852
till they were older."

1226
00:50:29,852 --> 00:50:32,721
"God is peopling eternity,

1227
00:50:32,721 --> 00:50:34,454
and I must not restrict Him

1228
00:50:34,454 --> 00:50:37,454
to older men and women."

1229
00:50:37,454 --> 00:50:40,110
He said, "I saw in reading 
David Brainerd's life,

1230
00:50:40,110 --> 00:50:41,942
was much encouraged to think of a life

1231
00:50:41,942 --> 00:50:46,007
of godliness in the 
light of an early death."

1232
00:50:46,007 --> 00:50:48,784
"Had thoughts of eternity today.

1233
00:50:48,784 --> 00:50:50,649
It will be a great eye-opener

1234
00:50:50,649 --> 00:50:53,361
and a great mouth-shutter,

1235
00:50:53,361 --> 00:50:56,188
and it will confirm the martyr's blood.

1236
00:50:56,188 --> 00:50:59,426
How few, how short the 
hours my heart beats.

1237
00:50:59,426 --> 00:51:01,365
Then on into the real world

1238
00:51:01,365 --> 00:51:03,098
where the unseen is important."

1239
00:51:03,098 --> 00:51:04,937
He described a coffin

1240
00:51:04,937 --> 00:51:07,311
as a swallowing up of life.

1241
00:51:07,311 --> 00:51:10,552
He said, "for this I am most anxious."

1242
00:51:10,552 --> 00:51:12,894
Now, he had closely read

1243
00:51:12,894 --> 00:51:15,033
the autobiography of John G. Paton,

1244
00:51:15,033 --> 00:51:17,337
missionary to the cannibals

1245
00:51:17,337 --> 00:51:19,515
in the South Seas in the 19th century.

1246
00:51:19,515 --> 00:51:23,843
He, like Paton, was opposed and criticized

1247
00:51:23,843 --> 00:51:25,855
by others about going to the remote

1248
00:51:25,855 --> 00:51:28,288
unreached tribes and the dangers.

1249
00:51:28,288 --> 00:51:30,765
Friends and church leaders

1250
00:51:30,765 --> 00:51:32,838
told Paton and Jim

1251
00:51:32,838 --> 00:51:35,124
they should stay at home.

1252
00:51:35,124 --> 00:51:37,403
They could do much good at home.

1253
00:51:37,403 --> 00:51:40,883
Influence your church here.

1254
00:51:40,883 --> 00:51:44,233
When John Paton was decided and firm,

1255
00:51:44,233 --> 00:51:47,722
one of his own church members said,

1256
00:51:47,722 --> 00:51:51,180
"The cannibals! You'll be 
eaten by cannibals!"

1257
00:51:51,180 --> 00:51:53,639
The memory of John Williams

1258
00:51:53,639 --> 00:51:55,117
who had gone from Scotland

1259
00:51:55,117 --> 00:51:57,388
only 19 years earlier

1260
00:51:57,388 --> 00:52:00,735
had been eaten by cannibals.

1261
00:52:00,735 --> 00:52:02,709
But to this Paton responded,

1262
00:52:02,709 --> 00:52:06,769
"Mr. Dixon, you are advanced in years now,

1263
00:52:06,769 --> 00:52:09,155
and you will be soon in the grave,

1264
00:52:09,155 --> 00:52:11,483
there to be eaten by worms.

1265
00:52:11,483 --> 00:52:14,006
So it will make no difference to me

1266
00:52:14,006 --> 00:52:16,422
whether I'm eaten by cannibals or worms.

1267
00:52:16,422 --> 00:52:18,611
In the great day, my resurrection body

1268
00:52:18,611 --> 00:52:20,837
will rise as fair as yours

1269
00:52:20,837 --> 00:52:23,354
in the likeness of Jesus."

1270
00:52:23,354 --> 00:52:26,086
This was Jim Elliot's perspective

1271
00:52:26,086 --> 00:52:29,397
on death and eternity.

1272
00:52:29,397 --> 00:52:34,395
So, they focus on the Auca's.

1273
00:52:34,395 --> 00:52:38,210
They had friendly fly-by's,

1274
00:52:38,210 --> 00:52:39,313
dropping gifts.

1275
00:52:39,313 --> 00:52:41,171
They landed on the beach.

1276
00:52:41,171 --> 00:52:46,649
They built little houses 
35 feet up in the trees.

1277
00:52:46,649 --> 00:52:49,037
And they waited. They would 
go and they would come

1278
00:52:49,037 --> 00:52:50,694
and they would wait and come back.

1279
00:52:50,694 --> 00:52:53,046
And they finally had friendly contact.

1280
00:52:53,046 --> 00:52:54,522
First, a young woman

1281
00:52:54,522 --> 00:52:57,874
and then a few others.

1282
00:52:57,874 --> 00:53:01,280
And they then began to plan

1283
00:53:01,280 --> 00:53:05,245
a fresh fuller contact

1284
00:53:05,245 --> 00:53:11,308
and they left their wives 
for the last time

1285
00:53:11,308 --> 00:53:14,133
and were gone five days.

1286
00:53:14,133 --> 00:53:17,174
On the fifth day, the men were surprised

1287
00:53:17,174 --> 00:53:19,457
on the beach by killers

1288
00:53:19,457 --> 00:53:23,188
that they had hoped would be friendly.

1289
00:53:23,188 --> 00:53:27,383
They left for the beach 
five days before dying.

1290
00:53:27,383 --> 00:53:38,741
And Elisabeth Elliot tells it best.

1291
00:53:38,741 --> 00:53:43,795
Finally, the meaning for us here.

1292
00:53:43,795 --> 00:53:45,126
What does this mean to us?

1293
00:53:45,126 --> 00:53:47,619
His legacy to us?

1294
00:53:47,619 --> 00:53:50,223
What shall we say of this man's life

1295
00:53:50,223 --> 00:53:51,421
and his example to us?

1296
00:53:51,421 --> 00:53:54,279
We can't go back 68 years

1297
00:53:54,279 --> 00:53:56,533
to hear him preach or pray

1298
00:53:56,533 --> 00:53:57,731
or to talk to him.

1299
00:53:57,731 --> 00:53:59,168
We have the record.

1300
00:53:59,168 --> 00:54:00,522
We have the legacy.

1301
00:54:00,522 --> 00:54:01,792
What's our takeaway?

1302
00:54:01,792 --> 00:54:06,284
What's applicable to you and I this week?

1303
00:54:06,284 --> 00:54:09,396
This spring in 2018?

1304
00:54:09,396 --> 00:54:12,018
What are the lessons 
and the message for us?

1305
00:54:12,018 --> 00:54:12,970
A few things.

1306
00:54:12,970 --> 00:54:14,640
First of all,

1307
00:54:14,640 --> 00:54:17,576
we must have realistic and 
not romantic views

1308
00:54:17,576 --> 00:54:19,502
of our spiritual heroes.

1309
00:54:19,502 --> 00:54:22,092
Those who have inspired us,

1310
00:54:22,092 --> 00:54:24,547
have fed us and taught us,

1311
00:54:24,547 --> 00:54:26,815
have ministered the most to us

1312
00:54:26,815 --> 00:54:28,772
for the greatest help and blessing,

1313
00:54:28,772 --> 00:54:32,231
are never perfect Christians.

1314
00:54:32,231 --> 00:54:34,325
They're flawed; they have blind spots.

1315
00:54:34,325 --> 00:54:35,883
They have prejudices.

1316
00:54:35,883 --> 00:54:37,863
They have needs. They have struggles.

1317
00:54:37,863 --> 00:54:38,871
They have sins.

1318
00:54:38,871 --> 00:54:41,617
They're wrong in some areas.

1319
00:54:41,617 --> 00:54:43,859
They can fail you.

1320
00:54:43,859 --> 00:54:45,757
They will, at times, disappoint you.

1321
00:54:45,757 --> 00:54:48,051
And they don't have all the answers.

1322
00:54:48,051 --> 00:54:51,613
So, like Jim Elliot in his day,

1323
00:54:51,613 --> 00:54:54,097
he viewed his spiritual leaders

1324
00:54:54,097 --> 00:54:55,392
with realism.

1325
00:54:55,392 --> 00:54:56,675
He didn't idolize them.

1326
00:54:56,675 --> 00:54:57,906
We shouldn't idolize them

1327
00:54:57,906 --> 00:54:59,316
or romanticize them

1328
00:54:59,316 --> 00:55:01,376
or praise them wrongly.

1329
00:55:01,376 --> 00:55:08,170
Scripture says whose faith follow.

1330
00:55:08,170 --> 00:55:14,702
And so, we should have a realistic view

1331
00:55:14,702 --> 00:55:16,766
of those in history

1332
00:55:16,766 --> 00:55:19,644
and of those we follow today.

1333
00:55:19,644 --> 00:55:24,406
Secondly, a lesson we should 
learn from this is this:

1334
00:55:24,406 --> 00:55:26,522
A consistent and faithful life.

1335
00:55:26,522 --> 00:55:29,830
A consistent and faithful life

1336
00:55:29,830 --> 00:55:32,775
without martyrdom is as herioc

1337
00:55:32,775 --> 00:55:35,516
as a martyr's death.

1338
00:55:35,516 --> 00:55:36,793
Think about it.

1339
00:55:36,793 --> 00:55:39,040
Five men on that beach

1340
00:55:39,040 --> 00:55:41,452
surprised suddenly.

1341
00:55:41,452 --> 00:55:44,724
A spear attacks and it takes 2 minutes,

1342
00:55:44,724 --> 00:55:45,877
maybe, to die.

1343
00:55:45,877 --> 00:55:47,126
And it's over.

1344
00:55:47,126 --> 00:55:50,980
Does that somehow take superhuman power

1345
00:55:50,980 --> 00:55:54,156
more than living daily for Christ

1346
00:55:54,156 --> 00:55:57,530
for 70 years and running well to the end?

1347
00:55:57,530 --> 00:56:01,494
Both are heroic.

1348
00:56:01,494 --> 00:56:03,729
We know about David Brainerd only because

1349
00:56:03,729 --> 00:56:07,794
Jonathan Edwards 
published his private diary.

1350
00:56:07,794 --> 00:56:10,739
But do you know anything 
about John Brainerd?

1351
00:56:10,739 --> 00:56:13,188
David's younger brother.

1352
00:56:13,188 --> 00:56:15,732
No journal. No hero.

1353
00:56:15,732 --> 00:56:17,326
But he went and replaced David

1354
00:56:17,326 --> 00:56:18,422
among the Indians

1355
00:56:18,422 --> 00:56:20,576
and stayed 30 years.

1356
00:56:20,576 --> 00:56:22,295
Same caliber of man.

1357
00:56:22,295 --> 00:56:23,495
Same godliness.

1358
00:56:23,495 --> 00:56:27,766
He just never wrote about it.

1359
00:56:27,766 --> 00:56:31,001
Do you know anything about Burt Elliot,

1360
00:56:31,001 --> 00:56:34,190
Jim's brother?

1361
00:56:34,190 --> 00:56:37,129
Jim's there less than four years.

1362
00:56:37,129 --> 00:56:40,635
Burt's in Peru 30 years.

1363
00:56:40,635 --> 00:56:43,630
Of the four, Jim Elliot, Burt Elliot,

1364
00:56:43,630 --> 00:56:50,048
John Brainerd, who's more the hero?

1365
00:56:50,048 --> 00:56:51,649
We would know nothing about

1366
00:56:51,649 --> 00:56:54,314
the famous Brainerd or the famous Elliot

1367
00:56:54,314 --> 00:56:56,914
if four books had not been written.

1368
00:56:56,914 --> 00:57:00,045
No books - no heroism.

1369
00:57:00,045 --> 00:57:05,526
But it's heroic to faithfully live 
for Christ where you are,

1370
00:57:05,526 --> 00:57:07,411
keep serving,

1371
00:57:07,411 --> 00:57:09,402
obeying God's will for you,

1372
00:57:09,402 --> 00:57:11,706
year in and year out,

1373
00:57:11,706 --> 00:57:18,597
doing what God's called you to do.

1374
00:57:18,597 --> 00:57:20,831
Dying for Christ suddenly

1375
00:57:20,831 --> 00:57:22,526
is not more glorious

1376
00:57:22,526 --> 00:57:25,846
than living for Him for 50 years.

1377
00:57:25,846 --> 00:57:28,407
Living long term in faithful service

1378
00:57:28,407 --> 00:57:30,551
is what we're called to do.

1379
00:57:30,551 --> 00:57:32,499
God determines the names

1380
00:57:32,499 --> 00:57:35,549
and the numbers of the martyrs.

1381
00:57:35,549 --> 00:57:39,555
And He determines who is not one.

1382
00:57:39,555 --> 00:57:42,283
So, the McCheyne's, the William Borden's,

1383
00:57:42,283 --> 00:57:44,523
the Keith Green's, the Jim Elliot's

1384
00:57:44,523 --> 00:57:46,816
are few in number who die early.

1385
00:57:46,816 --> 00:57:48,580
They are so few.

1386
00:57:48,580 --> 00:57:51,318
The majority of Christians 
get the privilege

1387
00:57:51,318 --> 00:57:55,467
and heroism of living 30, 40, 50,

1388
00:57:55,467 --> 00:57:58,303
70 years walking with God.

1389
00:57:58,303 --> 00:58:01,185
The George Muller's... he was 90.

1390
00:58:01,185 --> 00:58:03,786
Leonard Ravenhill - he was 87.

1391
00:58:03,786 --> 00:58:06,237
Keith McCloud - late 70's.

1392
00:58:06,237 --> 00:58:07,394
Bill McCloud - 80.

1393
00:58:07,394 --> 00:58:09,324
Bob Jennings - in his sixties.

1394
00:58:09,324 --> 00:58:11,175
Conrad Murrell - 89.

1395
00:58:11,175 --> 00:58:13,200
It's the little things done

1396
00:58:13,200 --> 00:58:15,136
in persevering faithfulness

1397
00:58:15,136 --> 00:58:18,431
that are worthy of praise and notice.

1398
00:58:18,431 --> 00:58:20,675
A Belfast detective

1399
00:58:20,675 --> 00:58:22,283
in Belfast, Northern Ireland,

1400
00:58:22,283 --> 00:58:25,955
during the days of the bombings of the IRA

1401
00:58:25,955 --> 00:58:28,018
and the protestant conflict,

1402
00:58:28,018 --> 00:58:30,983
a Belfast detective read

1403
00:58:30,983 --> 00:58:33,261
Jim Elliot's life.

1404
00:58:33,261 --> 00:58:35,829
And he said I was afraid every day

1405
00:58:35,829 --> 00:58:38,276
to go into that battle zone.

1406
00:58:38,276 --> 00:58:39,976
I had fear every day.

1407
00:58:39,976 --> 00:58:41,605
Fear for my family.

1408
00:58:41,605 --> 00:58:45,141
But I read Jim Elliot's life,

1409
00:58:45,141 --> 00:58:46,855
and it transformed me.

1410
00:58:46,855 --> 00:58:50,256
He said if Jim Elliot can go in there

1411
00:58:50,256 --> 00:58:55,933
with courage for Christ, so can I.

1412
00:58:55,933 --> 00:58:57,465
That's a takeaway.

1413
00:58:57,465 --> 00:58:59,336
Faithfulness to Christ

1414
00:58:59,336 --> 00:59:02,319
in the small things is as great

1415
00:59:02,319 --> 00:59:05,341
of heroism as dying a martyr's death.

1416
00:59:05,341 --> 00:59:11,773
Thirdly, what does this mean for us?

1417
00:59:11,773 --> 00:59:14,413
More than ever, arise and go.

1418
00:59:14,413 --> 00:59:16,697
Go into all the world 
and preach the gospel

1419
00:59:16,697 --> 00:59:17,845
to every creature.

1420
00:59:17,845 --> 00:59:21,609
What are you pursuing?

1421
00:59:21,609 --> 00:59:25,937
You young men, are you as focused

1422
00:59:25,937 --> 00:59:28,164
in any degree as Jim Elliot was?

1423
00:59:28,164 --> 00:59:29,567
Are you wandering?

1424
00:59:29,567 --> 00:59:32,206
Are you just aimless?

1425
00:59:32,206 --> 00:59:34,806
Or what are you focusing on?

1426
00:59:34,806 --> 00:59:37,224
What is God's purpose for your life

1427
00:59:37,224 --> 00:59:40,882
in light of kingdom purposes?

1428
00:59:40,882 --> 00:59:42,178
Are you settling in?

1429
00:59:42,178 --> 00:59:43,687
You young couples,

1430
00:59:43,687 --> 00:59:44,971
middle-aged couples,

1431
00:59:44,971 --> 00:59:46,418
are we settling in?

1432
00:59:46,418 --> 00:59:49,826
Are you settling in for a 
good old U.S.A. lifestyle

1433
00:59:49,826 --> 00:59:53,994
of ease, fun, and comfort?

1434
00:59:53,994 --> 00:59:57,558
Have you ever been willing to go?

1435
00:59:57,558 --> 00:59:59,343
And have you truly surrendered

1436
00:59:59,343 --> 01:00:02,577
only wanting God's will?

1437
01:00:02,577 --> 01:00:06,090
If not, you need to start all over again

1438
01:00:06,090 --> 01:00:10,108
on your kingdom-first seeking

1439
01:00:10,108 --> 01:00:13,236
and deal with this.

1440
01:00:13,236 --> 01:00:15,843
You think about places right now.

1441
01:00:15,843 --> 01:00:17,538
Lebanon.

1442
01:00:17,538 --> 01:00:19,488
We have brethren there right now,

1443
01:00:19,488 --> 01:00:21,630
for the most part -

1444
01:00:21,630 --> 01:00:24,111
as far as long term - laboring alone.

1445
01:00:24,111 --> 01:00:25,655
Couples are needed.

1446
01:00:25,655 --> 01:00:28,088
Mature, godly, self-denying

1447
01:00:28,088 --> 01:00:31,924
single men are needed there right now.

1448
01:00:31,924 --> 01:00:33,839
Mexico.

1449
01:00:33,839 --> 01:00:38,122
Tim and Diego are going soon to Ecuador.

1450
01:00:38,122 --> 01:00:40,494
Many places God is opening doors

1451
01:00:40,494 --> 01:00:42,393
and working.

1452
01:00:42,393 --> 01:00:46,071
So where do you fit in the scheme

1453
01:00:46,071 --> 01:00:51,065
of God's purpose of serving Him?

1454
01:00:51,065 --> 01:00:55,394
If not you, who?

1455
01:00:55,394 --> 01:00:57,814
If not now, when?

1456
01:00:57,814 --> 01:01:01,447
If not you, why?

1457
01:01:01,447 --> 01:01:04,293
What are you holding on to?

1458
01:01:04,293 --> 01:01:06,936
What can or what will you

1459
01:01:06,936 --> 01:01:08,877
give your life to

1460
01:01:08,877 --> 01:01:11,490
that's more glorious or eternal

1461
01:01:11,490 --> 01:01:18,863
than what Jim Elliot lived for?

1462
01:01:18,863 --> 01:01:21,588
For the five young 
wives in their twenties,

1463
01:01:21,588 --> 01:01:23,426
MarLou McCully,

1464
01:01:23,426 --> 01:01:24,778
Olive Fleming,

1465
01:01:24,778 --> 01:01:27,741
Barbara Youderian,

1466
01:01:27,741 --> 01:01:29,384
Rachel Saint, and Betty Elliot -

1467
01:01:29,384 --> 01:01:33,850
the longing of their numb and mute hearts

1468
01:01:33,850 --> 01:01:35,708
after their husbands died

1469
01:01:35,708 --> 01:01:37,265
was echoed by words found

1470
01:01:37,265 --> 01:01:40,738
in Jim's diary written before he died

1471
01:01:40,738 --> 01:01:42,451
in Ecuador.

1472
01:01:42,451 --> 01:01:46,562
He wrote, "I walked out 
to the hill just now.

1473
01:01:46,562 --> 01:01:49,578
It is exalting and delicious

1474
01:01:49,578 --> 01:01:53,410
to stand embraced by the shadows

1475
01:01:53,410 --> 01:01:55,251
of a friendly tree with the wind

1476
01:01:55,251 --> 01:01:57,097
tugging at my coat.

1477
01:01:57,097 --> 01:01:59,934
And the heavens calling for my heart

1478
01:01:59,934 --> 01:02:02,421
to gaze in glory and give oneself

1479
01:02:02,421 --> 01:02:03,910
to God again.

1480
01:02:03,910 --> 01:02:06,342
What more could a man ask?

1481
01:02:06,342 --> 01:02:08,427
Oh, the fullness! The pleasure!

1482
01:02:08,427 --> 01:02:12,100
The sheer excitement of 
knowing God on earth!

1483
01:02:12,100 --> 01:02:15,514
I care not if I never raise 
my voice again for Him,

1484
01:02:15,514 --> 01:02:18,316
if only I may love and please Him.

1485
01:02:18,316 --> 01:02:21,174
Perhaps, in mercy, He may give me

1486
01:02:21,174 --> 01:02:24,067
a host of children that I may lead them

1487
01:02:24,067 --> 01:02:26,114
to explore His delicacies.

1488
01:02:26,114 --> 01:02:28,799
But if not,

1489
01:02:28,799 --> 01:02:31,241
if I may but see Him

1490
01:02:31,241 --> 01:02:33,007
and smile into His eyes,

1491
01:02:33,007 --> 01:02:37,138
oh, then... then, nothing will matter.

1492
01:02:37,138 --> 01:02:42,443
Only Him."

1493
01:02:42,443 --> 01:02:45,288
O church, arise.

1494
01:02:45,288 --> 01:02:47,437
Let's sing it together.

1495
01:02:47,437 --> 01:02:49,817
O church, arise.