These are the notes taken live during services as captioning for the deaf and hard of hearing. This is not a word for word transcript. For the exact wording, please consult the audio recording.

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During the German occupation of Poland, Irena Sendler lived in Warsaw (prior to that, she had lived in Otwock and Tarczyn while working for urban Social Welfare departments). As early as 1939, when the Germans invaded Poland, she began aiding Jews. She and her helpers created over 3,000 false documents to help Jewish families, prior to joining the organized Żegota resistance and the children's division. Helping Jews was very risky—in German-occupied Poland, all household members risked death if they were found to be hiding Jews, a more severe punishment than in other occupied European countries. In December 1942 the newly created Żegota (the Council to Aid Jews) nominated her (by her cover name Jolanta) to head its children's section. As an employee of the Social Welfare Department, she had a special permit to enter the Warsaw Ghetto to check for signs of typhus, something the Nazis feared would spread beyond the Ghetto. During these visits, she wore a Star of David as a sign of solidarity with the Jewish people and so as not to call attention to herself. She cooperated with the Children's Section of the Municipal Administration, linked with the RGO (Central Welfare Council), a Polish relief organization that was tolerated under German supervision.

She organized the smuggling of Jewish children out of the Ghetto, carrying them out in boxes, suitcases and trolleys. Under the pretext of conducting inspections of sanitary conditions during a typhoid outbreak, Sendler visited the Ghetto and smuggled out babies and small children in ambulances and trams, sometimes disguising them as packages. She also used the old courthouse at the edge of the Warsaw Ghetto (still standing) as one of the main routes for smuggling out children. The children were placed with Polish families, the Warsaw orphanage of the Sisters of the Family of Mary, or Roman Catholic convents such as the Little Sister Servants of the Blessed Virgin Mary Conceived Immaculate at Turkowice and Chotomów. Some children were smuggled to priests in parish rectories. She hid lists of their names in jars in order to keep track of their original and new identities. Żegota assured the children that, when the war was over, they would be returned to a Jewish relative. In 1943 Sendler was arrested by the Gestapo, severely tortured, and sentenced to death. Żegota saved her by bribing German guards on the way to her execution. She was left in the woods, unconscious and with broken arms and legs. She was listed on public bulletin boards as among those executed. For the remainder of the war, she lived in hiding, but continued her work for the Jewish children. After the war, she dug up the jars containing the children's identities and attempted to find the children and return them to their parents. However, almost all of their parents had been killed at the Treblinka extermination camp or had gone missing otherwise.

Irena Sendler died on May 12, 2008 and is credited, along with some two dozen other Żegota members, saving 2,500 Jewish children by smuggling them out of the Warsaw Ghetto, providing them false documents, and sheltering them in individual and group children's homes outside the Ghetto until the end of the War. Turn with me to Revelation. Revelation 20:1-3 Vs. 3 – Today is the Day of Atonement, the fifth of the seven festivals. We are commanded to observe this day forever in our generations. We can’t decide to quit keeping it. We think of this day as the time when Satan gets locked up. That is part of it. It is interesting that an angel does the dirty work. God and Christ don’t get their hands dirty with this. That is one meaning of this day. This idea of Satan being bound and thrown away is difficult for us to grasp. We can’t see or touch spirit. We can’t know what that will be like. But we are told that this event will occur. Leviticus 23:26-28 Here are the instructions God gave to Moses. We see what God named this day. Vs. 27 – It is a Day of Atonement. Vs. 28 – Atonement breaks down into “at – one – ment”. It is a day that has to do with relationships. Today is a relationship based day. To be at one means you are moving together; you are not at odds. You are unified; you are working in the same direction. Atonement means to be working with God toward a common purpose. So, who is this day for? The first fruits? Us? Is the ultimate fulfillment of this day so we can be at one with God? We should already be at one with God if we are baptized and striving to put on God’s nature. That relationship should be going on every hour of every day. This process is pictured by the spring holy days. Putting off the old man; and putting on God’s nature. Atonement is not primarily for us. We are already atoned to God.

This feast day celebrates redemption for the world. Sendler saved 2500 children from certain death. We are here to celebrate saving of countless billions from certain death. Romans 6:23 Sin separates us from God. It throws up this barrier. God has a magnificent plan to redeem humans to Him. We get to have that relationship now. But for the vast majority of mankind, this day opens the door for them to have that relationship. This day removes the barrier between man and God. Definition of redemption: "Redemption means deliverance from some evil by payment of a price." Why would God ask us to celebrate a holy day that doesn’t directly involve us? Why would we fast for a day that doesn’t apply to us directly? This is a day of giving of ourselves. This is a day of celebration for the world not having Satan around, and redemption for the world. If we don’t make it past Trumpets, today doesn’t mean anything. But we get to be participants in that wedding on Trumpets. We don’t watch Satan bound from a human perspective. We get to watch as God beings. From that perspective, we should celebrate. Why does God need to redeem the world? 1 Timothy 2:3-4 Why redeem us? Why the world at large? Why all the individuals that have died over the years? Why not just let us fall? God desires that all men be saved. He wants a gigantic family. He is not satisfied with a few, or even a few million. For that reason God set forth a magnificent family. God wants not just us but all of mankind to be part of His family. For that reason, we sit here hungry and thirsty. Romans 6:23 Sin is the root problem. We just can’t throw things at the problem hoping it solves it. We must remove the problem itself. 1 John 3:4 Sin is the transgression of God’s law. Our favorite memory scripture.

Matthew 22:37-40 When we violate that law, we throw up this barrier. People need to be redeemed because of sin. Because He wants a family and sin is mucking things up. Romans 3:23-24 Vs. 23 – There is not a single person except Christ that has not sinned. Vs. 24 – This not a wimpy grace. Oh, God’s grace this and God’s grace that. God’s grace is something special. We give up the things we want. We give up our way of thinking and the old man. We submit to God’s way and strive to do the things that are pleasing to Him. We are then redeemed. All mankind has sinned. My brother has a sign “Pobody’s Nerfect.” We have all sinned and need the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Outside this room, society needs it too. But Satan throws up barriers and encourages this distance between man and God. Sin is the product Satan is selling. Man doesn’t realize they are buying it, but they are. People are self seeking. The sin that is the transgression of God’s law causes separation. Isaiah 59:1-4 Vs. 1 – It is not outside of God’s reach. Our sins are not so big that He can’t save. His life is not so busy that He can’t hear our prayers. Vs. 2 – Our sins have caused that separation. It is nothing else. It is not our spouse, or our kids. God can’t stand sin. He can’t stand to be around sin. Vs. 4 – Imagine yourself being a master mason. You work tirelessly to build a certain wall. That wall has been very successful in protecting you from outside influences. It has become a fortress of defense for those around you. It is too tall to see over; too thick to penetrate. What is on the other side can’t be heard or seen. This is not just a fantasy. This is a wall is something we spend most of our lives building. Ephesians 2:14 We build this wall that separates us from God. Inside our wall, we can’t see Him.

Matthew 13:13 This sin that we (society) commit is worthy of death. Romans 6:23 Death is the penalty. If you get a speeding ticket, the officer writes a ticket. You can’t say, thanks for the ticket, I’ll give it back to you. It doesn’t work that way. We broke the law; we have to pay. You are familiar with speed traps. There is that place where I-235 turns onto I-135. The speed limit drops down. There are speed traps around. They hope someone ignores the change. I remember there was a small town near Big Sandy, the speed limit dropped from 60 to 25. The police office would sit on the only side street. He would pick off cars as they blew through town. Satan has done a great job deceiving. We must be careful, with God’s help, that he doesn’t catch us. It is all about choice. There are many things we can pull out from the two trees. Genesis 2:16-17 We can choose to live a sinful life; that is within our power. We can choose to reject God. It is okay, if that is what we choose to do. We can reject the Sabbath and the Holy Days. We can reject God’s laws. God won’t stop us. If we want to speed at the interchange south of Valley Center, don’t be surprised if a penalty is imposed on you. Genesis 3:1-7 Vs. 2 – That was what God said in Genesis 2:16, but with one exception. This beast left out that exception. Vs. 7 – Satan appealed to their emotions, power, status, wisdom, and tastes. Wouldn’t it be nice to taste or drink something right about now? Satan appealed to our emotions. This will continue right through. Satan will try to get us to ignore what God said; twisting God’s words. He is the father of lies. Our ransom is paid in full. For all the wrong things we have been done. That suitcase of hundred dollar bills has been paid.

Titus 2:11-14 Vs. 11 – This is not syrupy grace. This is God’s kindness. Through that He brings us salvation. Vs. 12 – These are things that are very natural to us. It is natural to live an ungodly life and pursue what we lust after. We can do that on autopilot. But it takes effort to do the second half of vs. 12. Those things take choice and effort. We are putting off the old man and transforming into something godly. Vs. 14 – By repenting and being baptized, we have the penalty of our sins removed. That ransom is paid. The same process will go for the rest of mankind. After Christ returns, Satan’s influence will be removed. Definition of redemption: "Redemption means deliverance from some evil by payment of a price." A price has to be paid. We can’t pay that price. If we pay it, we die forever. Christ has stepped in and offered to pay it for us, and for all of mankind. This price is quite severe. 1 Corinthians 6:17, 19-20 At baptism, Christ’s sacrifice goes into full effect for our sins. We are joined and stitched to God. Vs. 20 – This is our spiritual speeding ticket being paid. Vs. 19 – God moves in and takes up residence in our minds. Each of us that have God living in us, when we sin, do you think God cringes? Yes. God absolutely hates sin. The sacrifice of Christ has redeemed us.

Galatians 4:4-5 Vs. 4 – This should read, under the penalty of law. Christ could have sinned. If He had, He would have had to pay for that sin. Vs. 5 – Christ’s sacrifice pays that redemption. It is the breaking down of that wall that we as master masons have erected. At Trumpets, we talked about Roman adoption. That is the goal for of God for us and all of mankind. We tend to think it is for us and us only. But God’s ultimate goal is for all mankind. Without law, there is no sin. If there is no speed limit posted, is there a penalty for driving too fast? Without law, there is no sin. Without speed limits, there is no penalty for driving 90 MPH. For mankind at large, this is a very special day. This is the day when Satan is removed and a relationship between God and man can begin to be built. There are two reasons we fast on this Day of Atonement. It is a reminder of the discomfort of this world. Society is starving, spiritually. Satan has them busy building their walls thicker and higher to provide more separation from God. This day pictures a time when they will have a change to know God and follow God’s way. We fast this day to remove ourselves as far as we can from Satan. That is a relationship that needs walls and Grand Canyons galore. Our relationship with God must be strong so He can build His character and mindset. James has an interesting perspective on fasting. From fasting comes humility. We can’t do it on our own. We can’t live without food and water. We like to be self sufficient, but we rely of food and water. We can’t go it alone.

James 4:7-8 This is a great formula. Fasting puts us in this humble mindset that is willing to submit to God. That is followed up by actions. That is what submitting is about. It is about turning off our engine and submitting to God’s. It is about realizing that God’s plan is far superior. No matter how great your neighbors are – good Sunday keepers and giving great Christmas presents – but without that calling from God, we can’t resist Satan. Satan’s influence is all around them. They can’t see straight. Once we submit to God we can recognize that pressure. We must recognize wrong thought and put them out, with God’s help. The final part of the formula is to draw close to God. We are literally stitched with God. It is like the fabric we are all wearing. It is difficult to pull it apart. The Bible describes Satan as a roaring lion; we are sheep. Today, lions jump on sheep. As we pull closer to God, He as the Master Shepherd will keep Satan away. It is interesting that Satan himself flees. We draw close to God and he flees. He won’t flee because of anything we do. Because of any spiritual strength we have. The scriptures we have memorized. The years we have been in the Church. We have to fast and be in a humble mindset. We have to submit to God and realize the importance of Him in our life. Then, Satan will pull back. Here is a great chapter to review this afternoon. Isaiah writes about what kind of fasts we should have.

Isaiah 58:6-11 If we are properly fasting, these are the results. Going without food and water does nothing for God. Vs. 7 – It is interesting that these are all outward things we should be doing. We should be giving and helping and serving – which is God’s mindset. Vs. 11 – Fasting should never be put forth in various appeals to God for physical things. Redemption is a wonderful thing. It allows us not to have to pay for our sins. The time is coming when Satan is going to be locked up and the world will be redeemed and welcomed into the family of God. The world will have the opportunity to not have to pay for their sins. Sendler saved a lot of children. It was a great plan. You and I are involved in a magnificent plan. That plan will save everyone in the world who desires to be saved. That plan is far greater than Sendler’s plan. This plan will save all mankind from certain death, just like those Jewish kids. Revelation 20:1-3 Satan will be cast out. That wall will be broken down. For the first time, people will have a relationship with God. We are here fasting; our stomachs are hungry; we are thirsty. Are you hungry and thirsty? Here is a great spiritual realization of the importance of fasting on this day. As Satan continues to work, we need to remember where our source of strength comes from.

John 6:32-33, 35 As we fast today, we must realize we can’t go this journey alone. We can’t redeem ourselves. If we are kidnapped, we can’t pay our own ransom. We can pay for our sins. The One who redeemed us offered us the bread and waters of life. We will never hunger again. Let’s celebrate our hunger today. Look forward to those stomach cramps that will come on in a few hours. Let your hunger and thirst be satisfied by diving back into the Bible. Realize that our relationship has been stitched together with God. Let’s celebrate for the world not having Satan around. Let’s celebrate a day of redemption for the world.