WEBVTT 00:00:00.200 --> 00:09:02.389 Thank you. Before we begin, we're going to have 00:09:02.389 --> 00:09:04.629 a little bit of an object lesson today. So it's 00:09:04.629 --> 00:09:06.309 an activity to just kind of see something, I 00:09:06.309 --> 00:09:07.870 think, point at something about the scripture. 00:09:08.409 --> 00:09:11.990 So I need three volunteers. All right, Tom, come 00:09:11.990 --> 00:09:15.490 on. Autumn, come on. Did you put your hand up? 00:09:15.570 --> 00:09:17.090 Because I'm volunteering. All right, come on. 00:09:17.230 --> 00:09:19.169 I thought you should put your hand up. I'm not 00:09:19.169 --> 00:09:23.509 sure. Okay. I'm in. All right. So one person 00:09:23.509 --> 00:09:25.110 is going to be the target, and the other two 00:09:25.110 --> 00:09:26.590 people are going to be the chaser. Any volunteers? 00:09:27.470 --> 00:09:29.860 Anybody want to be the target? You're the odd 00:09:29.860 --> 00:09:31.620 man out. You can be the guard. Stand on the back 00:09:31.620 --> 00:09:32.980 row back there, and I'll come tell you what to 00:09:32.980 --> 00:09:35.519 do in a second. Okay? The two of you are going 00:09:35.519 --> 00:09:38.940 to stand side by side right here. Okay. Now, 00:09:39.000 --> 00:09:40.639 the rest of you are all participating, too, so 00:09:40.639 --> 00:09:44.279 I need a list of five things that people really 00:09:44.279 --> 00:09:47.679 like. Tacos and chocolate. Tacos and chocolate 00:09:47.679 --> 00:09:51.019 are two. Roller coaster. Ice cream. Roller coaster. 00:09:51.279 --> 00:09:53.539 Tacos, chocolate, ice cream, roller coaster is 00:09:53.539 --> 00:09:57.059 one more. Okay, superhero movies. Movies, we'll 00:09:57.059 --> 00:09:58.480 narrow down to superhero movies. All right, so 00:09:58.480 --> 00:10:00.519 we've got tacos, chocolate, ice cream, roller 00:10:00.519 --> 00:10:02.279 coasters, and superhero movies. Oh, my goodness. 00:10:02.940 --> 00:10:04.139 You're giving me a sound a little like a picture 00:10:04.139 --> 00:10:05.940 of heaven here. Okay, so this is pretty good 00:10:05.940 --> 00:10:08.000 stuff, right? Just add in Jesus. How about we 00:10:08.000 --> 00:10:10.519 add in Jesus? Okay, wait, Jesus number six. All 00:10:10.519 --> 00:10:14.899 right? All right, so tacos, chocolate. I've got 00:10:14.899 --> 00:10:16.539 superhero movies, roller coasters, and on this 00:10:16.539 --> 00:10:18.580 one? Ice cream. Ice cream. Oh, can't forget the 00:10:18.580 --> 00:10:20.720 ice cream. We all scream for ice cream. I won't 00:10:20.720 --> 00:10:23.059 forget it again. Okay, so we're going to play 00:10:23.059 --> 00:10:25.080 this little game. I'm going to give you two ladies, 00:10:25.139 --> 00:10:26.919 you're going to stand side by side facing this 00:10:26.919 --> 00:10:29.759 way. I'm going to give each of you one of these 00:10:29.759 --> 00:10:32.159 things. Then I'm going to call off the list. 00:10:32.700 --> 00:10:35.340 When I call off your thing, whatever that thing 00:10:35.340 --> 00:10:37.860 is, then you're going to go this way down the 00:10:37.860 --> 00:10:39.940 aisle and over to Tommy, and Tommy's going to 00:10:39.940 --> 00:10:43.039 hold out two hands, right hand, left hand. So 00:10:43.039 --> 00:10:46.240 your Tommy's his left, which is your right, and 00:10:46.240 --> 00:10:49.220 your Tommy's right, which is your left. Got it? 00:10:49.500 --> 00:10:51.879 So when I say your thing, whatever your thing 00:10:51.879 --> 00:10:53.559 is, you're going to go down this row and over 00:10:53.559 --> 00:10:56.539 there. However, if I say the other person's thing, 00:10:56.779 --> 00:10:59.799 then you're going to try to stop them from going 00:10:59.799 --> 00:11:01.899 down there and touching Tommy's hand. So whoever 00:11:01.899 --> 00:11:05.580 is first gets to go, but the other person has 00:11:05.580 --> 00:11:07.679 to stop them. That's correct. And then we'll 00:11:07.679 --> 00:11:09.480 go back, we'll continue, and when the other person's 00:11:09.480 --> 00:11:12.519 thing comes up, then they'll go and try to touch 00:11:12.519 --> 00:11:14.440 Tommy's hand, and the other person will try to 00:11:14.440 --> 00:11:16.179 stop them. Understand? So the goal is just to 00:11:16.179 --> 00:11:18.730 try to use... Tackle him. No bruising. No scratching. 00:11:19.110 --> 00:11:21.870 No putting eyes out. Nothing like that. No physical 00:11:21.870 --> 00:11:25.169 damage. Don't grab each other's hair. We can 00:11:25.169 --> 00:11:28.009 really get into this now. None of that. But when 00:11:28.009 --> 00:11:30.009 your thing is called, you're going to go straight 00:11:30.009 --> 00:11:32.090 there and touch his hand. If your thing is not 00:11:32.090 --> 00:11:33.330 the thing that was called, you're going to try 00:11:33.330 --> 00:11:39.610 to stop the other person. I'll be the force. 00:11:39.730 --> 00:11:41.149 If you start to come off the force this way, 00:11:41.210 --> 00:11:44.529 I'll shove you that way. So what if she's over 00:11:44.529 --> 00:11:46.230 here trying to block me to where I'm not? That's 00:11:46.230 --> 00:11:49.769 not my problem. That's your problem. Okay? So 00:11:49.769 --> 00:11:51.529 lead a step back here for one second, and I'm 00:11:51.529 --> 00:12:02.029 going to give you your word. Got it? Okay. Are 00:12:02.029 --> 00:12:05.309 you ready? Okay. When I call off the list, and 00:12:05.309 --> 00:12:08.019 when I call off your word, you both... If it's 00:12:08.019 --> 00:12:10.320 your word, you go. And you try to stop her if 00:12:10.320 --> 00:12:13.620 that's her word. And if it's your word, you go. 00:12:13.759 --> 00:12:16.360 And you try to stop her if it's her word. You 00:12:16.360 --> 00:12:18.059 got it? You understand? I'll play the game. Very 00:12:18.059 --> 00:12:21.279 simple. All you got to do is if I say your word, 00:12:21.399 --> 00:12:28.240 like if it's chocolate, roller coasters, Jesus. 00:12:31.279 --> 00:12:39.879 Go. What are you waiting for? We'll explain it 00:12:39.879 --> 00:12:41.700 later. Have a seat. Thank you very much. Okay. 00:12:43.639 --> 00:12:46.039 Wait a minute. Wait a minute. This can't be right. 00:12:46.580 --> 00:12:49.220 See, Autumn was really into the tackling. She 00:12:49.220 --> 00:12:51.399 really wanted to do the tackling part. That was 00:12:51.399 --> 00:12:55.620 the problem. Okay. So, if you would grab your 00:12:55.620 --> 00:12:57.059 Bibles, I hope you bring your Bibles with you. 00:12:57.100 --> 00:12:59.799 It helps if you read along as I read, especially 00:12:59.799 --> 00:13:01.139 if you're reading a translation maybe you're 00:13:01.139 --> 00:13:02.659 a little more familiar with than the one I am. 00:13:02.759 --> 00:13:06.309 We support all. All translations, and if you're 00:13:06.309 --> 00:13:08.049 just studying, a paraphrase isn't a bad thing 00:13:08.049 --> 00:13:09.789 either, but a translation is definitely the way 00:13:09.789 --> 00:13:11.389 to go. That means the original language was brought 00:13:11.389 --> 00:13:14.590 into the English as close as possible, and that 00:13:14.590 --> 00:13:17.889 helps, okay? And so the verses for today, and 00:13:17.889 --> 00:13:20.509 maybe you'll give me a hoot, a holler, or a screech. 00:13:20.509 --> 00:13:22.110 This is your opportunity to screech if you really 00:13:22.110 --> 00:13:24.990 want to. Only now, though, not later. No, whenever, 00:13:25.149 --> 00:13:30.899 I don't care. As we go to Titus 2 .11. Okay, 00:13:30.940 --> 00:13:32.919 pretty good. Some people are still sleeping. 00:13:33.240 --> 00:13:35.340 Titus 2 .11. I'm going to flip there now myself. 00:13:35.799 --> 00:13:38.799 Thank you. If you're in your Bibles and you're 00:13:38.799 --> 00:13:40.620 flipping and you're trying to find Titus, don't 00:13:40.620 --> 00:13:43.379 be ashamed because he's a tiny little guy. Titus 00:13:43.379 --> 00:13:44.940 was. He could be lost in the crowd real easy. 00:13:45.039 --> 00:13:47.909 But he's in the back. If you follow the New Testament 00:13:47.909 --> 00:13:49.970 back past the Gospels, past the book of Acts 00:13:49.970 --> 00:13:51.750 and everything else that has any real size to 00:13:51.750 --> 00:13:54.490 it, you'll run into the T's, the Thessalonians 00:13:54.490 --> 00:13:57.009 and Timothys and Titus is tucked away behind 00:13:57.009 --> 00:14:00.009 the T's before the Philemon, which is also quite 00:14:00.009 --> 00:14:02.870 small. And then Hebrews and there's a couple 00:14:02.870 --> 00:14:04.710 of bigger ones there. So we're looking at Titus. 00:14:05.129 --> 00:14:07.610 And we're beginning in 2 .11. Now as I read this, 00:14:07.690 --> 00:14:09.649 I'm going to break down some of the words because 00:14:09.649 --> 00:14:11.570 it rattles off a whole bunch of kind of holy 00:14:11.570 --> 00:14:14.230 words, if you will, in this passage of Scripture 00:14:14.230 --> 00:14:15.549 that we're going to read. And we're going to 00:14:15.549 --> 00:14:19.190 read from 2 .11 through 3 .11. And it's not really 00:14:19.190 --> 00:14:21.490 as long as it might initially seem. And the whole 00:14:21.490 --> 00:14:23.190 book, if you flip there, you can see the whole 00:14:23.190 --> 00:14:25.129 book fits on a page and a half of the Bible. 00:14:25.370 --> 00:14:29.009 So it's not terribly long. But it is awesome. 00:14:29.090 --> 00:14:31.629 It's packed with power. And it is all of God's 00:14:31.629 --> 00:14:34.690 Word. So here we go. We'll do the best we can. 00:14:35.269 --> 00:14:38.350 For the grace of God that brings salvation has 00:14:38.350 --> 00:14:40.639 appeared to all men. And we could stop right 00:14:40.639 --> 00:14:42.039 there and have a whole sermon in this little 00:14:42.039 --> 00:14:43.779 verse, and lots of guys would do that, but I 00:14:43.779 --> 00:14:45.799 think the Lord has led us to one thing in particular. 00:14:46.019 --> 00:14:49.559 The grace of God is God's willingness to save 00:14:49.559 --> 00:14:52.399 us by grace. God's saving us by grace, meaning 00:14:52.399 --> 00:14:54.580 it's a gift that we do not deserve. You don't 00:14:54.580 --> 00:14:56.879 earn it. There are no instructions or rules that 00:14:56.879 --> 00:14:58.940 you follow or steps. It's not like baking a cake. 00:14:59.139 --> 00:15:01.159 You go to God and you say, God, may I have your 00:15:01.159 --> 00:15:03.080 grace? And God, because He is a gracious God, 00:15:03.240 --> 00:15:05.879 willingly gives His grace to all those. And that 00:15:05.879 --> 00:15:08.259 has appeared to everybody. Anybody can see that. 00:15:09.259 --> 00:15:12.980 would just be willing to look earnestly at the 00:15:12.980 --> 00:15:15.659 teachings of God. The grace of God that brings 00:15:15.659 --> 00:15:17.639 salvation has appeared to all men. There is a 00:15:17.639 --> 00:15:20.019 way to get saved. It is by receiving a free gift 00:15:20.019 --> 00:15:22.799 from God, and that has become evident. And this 00:15:22.799 --> 00:15:27.159 teaches us that denying ungodliness and worldly 00:15:27.159 --> 00:15:30.519 lusts So to deny something means to refrain from 00:15:30.519 --> 00:15:33.000 it or to have nothing to do with it. We're supposed 00:15:33.000 --> 00:15:36.200 to deny ungodliness and worldly lust. Well, ungodliness 00:15:36.200 --> 00:15:38.320 would be not to behave the way God wants you 00:15:38.320 --> 00:15:41.059 to behave or not to pursue the things that God 00:15:41.059 --> 00:15:43.399 wants you to pursue and so on. Worldly lust would 00:15:43.399 --> 00:15:45.620 be to follow after things that you want that 00:15:45.620 --> 00:15:47.679 are of the world rather than of the kingdom of 00:15:47.679 --> 00:15:51.139 God or godly things. So it's teaching us that 00:15:51.139 --> 00:15:53.799 denying ungodliness and worldly lust, we should 00:15:53.799 --> 00:15:56.000 live soberly. That doesn't mean you shouldn't. 00:15:56.250 --> 00:15:58.289 get drunk, although that would be included there. 00:15:58.330 --> 00:16:00.710 It means you should watch your way. You should 00:16:00.710 --> 00:16:02.970 be careful about what you do. There are important 00:16:02.970 --> 00:16:06.190 things afoot, if you will. That would mean that 00:16:06.190 --> 00:16:07.429 you shouldn't get drunk, but it means I have 00:16:07.429 --> 00:16:09.690 a lot of other things than that, okay? So we 00:16:09.690 --> 00:16:12.509 should live soberly, righteously, which means 00:16:12.509 --> 00:16:14.870 you do what's right. And sometimes what's right 00:16:14.870 --> 00:16:18.029 is what you think is right, and sometimes you 00:16:18.029 --> 00:16:21.139 think things that are wrong. are right. There 00:16:21.139 --> 00:16:23.860 is a way that we think is right, but it actually 00:16:23.860 --> 00:16:25.399 isn't right. And so sometimes you have to be 00:16:25.399 --> 00:16:27.240 taught, you have to learn. We're supposed to 00:16:27.240 --> 00:16:31.399 live soberly and righteously and godly in this 00:16:31.399 --> 00:16:33.440 present age. And I think maybe the last one is 00:16:33.440 --> 00:16:34.980 the hardest one. The first two are impossible, 00:16:35.200 --> 00:16:37.580 but the last one is even more impossible, if 00:16:37.580 --> 00:16:39.419 that makes any sense. It's almost a contradiction, 00:16:39.659 --> 00:16:43.840 but to be godly, to be like God, okay? To live 00:16:43.840 --> 00:16:46.779 the way God would live if he were you in the 00:16:46.779 --> 00:16:49.600 present age. And that's the qualifier. So it's 00:16:49.600 --> 00:16:51.639 right now while we live. Facing all the things 00:16:51.639 --> 00:16:52.980 that we face, dealing with everything that we 00:16:52.980 --> 00:16:56.899 deal with. Looking for the blessed hope and glorious 00:16:56.899 --> 00:17:00.179 appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus 00:17:00.179 --> 00:17:03.840 Christ. So this is how we live. We live soberly, 00:17:03.840 --> 00:17:06.640 righteously, and godly, all the while looking 00:17:06.640 --> 00:17:09.880 for that blessed hope. That God is doing something. 00:17:09.960 --> 00:17:12.180 He is sending Jesus again. Jesus will come again. 00:17:12.440 --> 00:17:15.609 And God in the flesh. Our Savior Jesus Christ 00:17:15.609 --> 00:17:17.529 will come again. So you could be in the worst 00:17:17.529 --> 00:17:21.809 place you could ever be in and still live soberly 00:17:21.809 --> 00:17:24.349 and righteously and godly in this present age 00:17:24.349 --> 00:17:26.710 looking for the coming of Jesus. It doesn't matter 00:17:26.710 --> 00:17:29.750 how bad the current age is, you could do that. 00:17:31.630 --> 00:17:35.289 14. Who gave himself for us that he might redeem 00:17:35.289 --> 00:17:39.390 us from every lawless deed and purify for himself 00:17:39.390 --> 00:17:43.009 his own special people zealous for good works. 00:17:43.289 --> 00:17:46.130 Okay. So this is what Jesus did. He gave himself 00:17:46.130 --> 00:17:49.150 for us. He died so that we could be bought back, 00:17:49.349 --> 00:17:53.910 to purchase us back. Before we were born, you 00:17:53.910 --> 00:17:56.529 or I were born, but mankind was kind of sold 00:17:56.529 --> 00:17:59.549 over into slavery to Satan or to the world system 00:17:59.549 --> 00:18:04.289 or both. And Jesus bought us back when he died 00:18:04.289 --> 00:18:07.569 on the cross and paid for sin. He redeemed us. 00:18:08.109 --> 00:18:11.269 And he wants to redeem us from every lawless 00:18:11.269 --> 00:18:12.890 deed, from doing the things that we shouldn't 00:18:12.890 --> 00:18:17.009 do or shouldn't have done. And to purify us for 00:18:17.009 --> 00:18:20.690 himself. And then it says, his own special people, 00:18:20.930 --> 00:18:23.609 zealous for good works. I'm going to stop here 00:18:23.609 --> 00:18:25.589 for a second and dwell just a moment. I want 00:18:25.589 --> 00:18:27.329 you to realize this is the way God has always 00:18:27.329 --> 00:18:30.509 worked. From the very beginning of time, God 00:18:30.509 --> 00:18:33.950 has always chosen for himself his own special 00:18:33.950 --> 00:18:38.200 people. He's always marked out a people that 00:18:38.200 --> 00:18:40.440 will listen to him and follow him, be right by 00:18:40.440 --> 00:18:42.619 him the best they know how. He wasn't even looking 00:18:42.619 --> 00:18:44.480 for perfection. So Dave was called a man after 00:18:44.480 --> 00:18:46.759 God's own heart. He was one of God's special 00:18:46.759 --> 00:18:49.640 people. But he drifted into lust. He lied. He 00:18:49.640 --> 00:18:52.180 had a man murdered. He had terrible things that 00:18:52.180 --> 00:18:55.460 he did. And after that was called a man after 00:18:55.460 --> 00:18:56.920 God's own heart. Not because of the terrible 00:18:56.920 --> 00:18:58.859 things that he did, but because after he did 00:18:58.859 --> 00:19:01.559 that, he realized how terrible they were and 00:19:01.559 --> 00:19:03.880 pulled back from them, repented of them, and 00:19:03.880 --> 00:19:06.660 turned to God again. So it's about people who 00:19:06.660 --> 00:19:08.920 will turn back to God no matter what happens. 00:19:08.980 --> 00:19:11.400 They will continue to focus on God and desire 00:19:11.400 --> 00:19:14.220 God. And God has always tried to mark out for 00:19:14.220 --> 00:19:17.920 himself a people like that. First with pre -Israel, 00:19:18.119 --> 00:19:20.059 if you will, and then Jacob, who's called Israel, 00:19:20.180 --> 00:19:21.940 became the father of that nation. And then with 00:19:21.940 --> 00:19:24.740 Israel, and then with people like David, and 00:19:24.740 --> 00:19:27.259 even people like Solomon. And yes, they went 00:19:27.259 --> 00:19:29.220 into sin. And one of the big differences I think 00:19:29.220 --> 00:19:31.119 I see between David and Solomon is David, you 00:19:31.119 --> 00:19:32.859 see him coming back and repenting. Solomon, not 00:19:32.859 --> 00:19:36.630 so much. But God has always marked out a special 00:19:36.630 --> 00:19:39.049 people for himself. And this would be the quality 00:19:39.049 --> 00:19:42.569 of that people. That they would be zealous for 00:19:42.569 --> 00:19:44.650 good work. So let's think just for a moment about 00:19:44.650 --> 00:19:49.190 zealousness. Zeal is energy. It's being pumped. 00:19:49.569 --> 00:19:52.910 It's wanting to push for a goal. It's hearing, 00:19:52.990 --> 00:19:55.210 hey, that's what I'm after. And wanting to go 00:19:55.210 --> 00:19:58.990 for it with all your might. Not being concerned 00:19:58.990 --> 00:20:01.990 or not being held back by someone else who might 00:20:01.990 --> 00:20:04.799 want to stop you from getting there. It's, hey, 00:20:04.900 --> 00:20:06.359 I'm playing left field and the ball's coming 00:20:06.359 --> 00:20:09.700 down in left field. That's my ball. And you give 00:20:09.700 --> 00:20:12.180 it all you've got. And you wind up falling after 00:20:12.180 --> 00:20:14.180 the catch because you put all you had into it 00:20:14.180 --> 00:20:18.559 or dive into the ball. That's my son or my daughter 00:20:18.559 --> 00:20:19.900 that's about to walk out in front of that Mack 00:20:19.900 --> 00:20:21.980 truck and I'm stopping that from happening no 00:20:21.980 --> 00:20:23.839 matter what. If I have to throw myself in the 00:20:23.839 --> 00:20:26.519 way to throw them out of the way. It's that zeal 00:20:26.519 --> 00:20:29.190 or passion. So God has always worked this way. 00:20:29.269 --> 00:20:31.529 He has marked out for Himself a special people 00:20:31.529 --> 00:20:33.690 who have this as their primary characteristic. 00:20:34.069 --> 00:20:36.450 They will be zealous for good works. Now, they 00:20:36.450 --> 00:20:40.369 also would be described as people who are soberly 00:20:40.369 --> 00:20:43.849 living, righteously living, godly living, and 00:20:43.849 --> 00:20:47.109 looking for that blessed hope of Jesus reappearing. 00:20:47.519 --> 00:20:50.200 But their primary characteristic is they are 00:20:50.200 --> 00:20:53.480 zealous for good work. They have energy, overbounding 00:20:53.480 --> 00:20:56.559 energy. They are seeking, pushing toward good 00:20:56.559 --> 00:21:01.700 works. But we see the problem, don't we? Because 00:21:01.700 --> 00:21:04.240 if God claims for himself a special people who 00:21:04.240 --> 00:21:07.039 are with this energy pushing for good works. 00:21:07.529 --> 00:21:10.430 There is also another people who are with their 00:21:10.430 --> 00:21:13.230 energy, whatever energy they have, not pushing 00:21:13.230 --> 00:21:15.809 for good works. Because God always claims for 00:21:15.809 --> 00:21:18.150 himself a special people. That word special means 00:21:18.150 --> 00:21:20.710 separate, different. And so there is another 00:21:20.710 --> 00:21:22.650 kind of people that lives in the same. And we 00:21:22.650 --> 00:21:25.329 do this in this present age alongside of the 00:21:25.329 --> 00:21:29.359 same people who are not doing it. Right? And 00:21:29.359 --> 00:21:31.480 so this would be like if you were playing softball 00:21:31.480 --> 00:21:32.759 and you're in left field, the ball comes in left 00:21:32.759 --> 00:21:35.319 field, and there was a rule that said that people 00:21:35.319 --> 00:21:37.460 from the other team could try to stop you from 00:21:37.460 --> 00:21:39.420 catching the ball. And you start running in there 00:21:39.420 --> 00:21:40.339 with all your might, you're going to catch the 00:21:40.339 --> 00:21:41.920 ball, and all of a sudden the third base coach 00:21:41.920 --> 00:21:44.259 runs out there and kicks you in the groin. Or 00:21:44.259 --> 00:21:45.680 he runs out there and trips you while you're 00:21:45.680 --> 00:21:47.759 running, and whatever. And you still have the 00:21:47.759 --> 00:21:50.940 same responsibilities, which is to catch the 00:21:50.940 --> 00:21:53.849 ball. In that case, in that analogy, or to pursue 00:21:53.849 --> 00:21:56.210 Jesus, to wait for His second coming, to live 00:21:56.210 --> 00:21:58.750 soberly, righteously, and godly in this present 00:21:58.750 --> 00:22:00.869 age. It does not matter what other people do. 00:22:00.950 --> 00:22:02.690 This doesn't say, hey, unless somebody bothers 00:22:02.690 --> 00:22:05.180 you. Unless somebody says something about you. 00:22:05.359 --> 00:22:07.940 Unless somebody shortcuts you. Unless somebody 00:22:07.940 --> 00:22:09.980 steals your money or your car or invades your 00:22:09.980 --> 00:22:13.539 house. Unless you get sick. None of that is there. 00:22:13.779 --> 00:22:16.660 In fact, I get this. I get that you can do it 00:22:16.660 --> 00:22:19.579 no matter what your circumstances are. In this 00:22:19.579 --> 00:22:23.380 present age, you can do it. Do the best you can 00:22:23.380 --> 00:22:27.750 to live soberly, godly, and righteously. waiting 00:22:27.750 --> 00:22:29.670 on the second coming. In fact, I think sometimes 00:22:29.670 --> 00:22:31.630 when it's really, really bad, that's when we 00:22:31.630 --> 00:22:33.789 remember to look toward the second coming. And 00:22:33.789 --> 00:22:35.650 the rest of the time, yeah, we'll think a little 00:22:35.650 --> 00:22:37.589 bit about living soberly, righteously, and godly, 00:22:37.650 --> 00:22:39.670 but there's a lot of other things going on too, 00:22:39.849 --> 00:22:42.619 and kind of like... Solomon did, for example. 00:22:42.619 --> 00:22:44.400 We might sort of take a little bit of that in, 00:22:44.460 --> 00:22:45.880 and then the little bit becomes a little too 00:22:45.880 --> 00:22:48.160 much. It's an inroad to the devil. We're not 00:22:48.160 --> 00:22:50.180 supposed to give him a foothold. We get wrapped 00:22:50.180 --> 00:22:52.220 up in bitterness. We allow evil spirits, and 00:22:52.220 --> 00:22:54.480 you see how that goes. All right? Then these 00:22:54.480 --> 00:22:56.680 are the commands, then, that he gives for people 00:22:56.680 --> 00:22:59.059 who are doing that. If that's you, if you qualify, 00:22:59.440 --> 00:23:02.579 then do these things. Speak these things. Exhort 00:23:02.579 --> 00:23:06.599 and rebuke with all authority. Let no one despise 00:23:06.599 --> 00:23:08.180 you. In other words, if this is true and you 00:23:08.180 --> 00:23:10.220 understand that it's plainly obvious that salvation 00:23:10.220 --> 00:23:11.960 has appeared to all men, the grace of God is 00:23:11.960 --> 00:23:14.839 available, and that teaches us that we should 00:23:14.839 --> 00:23:17.720 deny ungodliness and worldly lust, living soberly, 00:23:17.720 --> 00:23:20.579 righteously, and godly in this present age, and 00:23:20.579 --> 00:23:22.539 looking for the blessed coming of Jesus again, 00:23:22.680 --> 00:23:26.940 and I paraphrase that there, then we ought to 00:23:26.940 --> 00:23:29.569 tell everyone about it. We ought to be saying, 00:23:29.650 --> 00:23:31.410 listen, this is the truth. This is the obvious 00:23:31.410 --> 00:23:34.029 truth, right? If no one knew in the world that 00:23:34.029 --> 00:23:35.470 if you stepped off a cliff, you would fall and 00:23:35.470 --> 00:23:38.130 die, wouldn't you be telling everybody? If no 00:23:38.130 --> 00:23:40.349 one knew that if you walk off a cliff or a second 00:23:40.349 --> 00:23:42.109 story building or a five story building, that 00:23:42.109 --> 00:23:44.029 you would fall from the edge and smash on the 00:23:44.029 --> 00:23:46.210 pavement, your brains would roll out into the 00:23:46.210 --> 00:23:48.390 gutter. If nobody knew that truth, wouldn't you 00:23:48.390 --> 00:23:51.440 be going telling everybody that truth? You'd 00:23:51.440 --> 00:23:53.539 be standing at the edge of the building, at least 00:23:53.539 --> 00:23:55.519 keeping your family members away. Look, don't 00:23:55.519 --> 00:23:56.720 jump off the edge of this building. I know that 00:23:56.720 --> 00:23:58.140 there's a lot of freaky people all over the world 00:23:58.140 --> 00:23:59.960 who are doing it. And nobody sees what's happening. 00:24:00.019 --> 00:24:03.339 Nobody understands. Eyes are blinded. But don't 00:24:03.339 --> 00:24:04.819 jump off the edge of this building. I'm telling 00:24:04.819 --> 00:24:07.339 you, you will die. Wouldn't you be telling them 00:24:07.339 --> 00:24:09.420 that? Of course you would. And that's what has 00:24:09.420 --> 00:24:12.140 happened. God has claimed for Himself a special 00:24:12.140 --> 00:24:14.339 people who understand this truth. They have seen 00:24:14.339 --> 00:24:16.700 what is plain and evident and obvious in the 00:24:16.700 --> 00:24:19.279 world. And we are to speak these things. And 00:24:19.279 --> 00:24:21.400 to exhort, which means to encourage, to call 00:24:21.400 --> 00:24:24.339 people to understand. And then to rebuke, which 00:24:24.339 --> 00:24:26.079 means to say, hey, don't do that. Look at what 00:24:26.079 --> 00:24:28.579 you're doing to yourself. Don't despise Jesus. 00:24:28.759 --> 00:24:32.279 Don't look down on God. Don't use the Lord's 00:24:32.279 --> 00:24:35.339 name in vain. Be serious about this God of ours. 00:24:36.599 --> 00:24:39.910 And it says, Rebuke them with all authority. 00:24:40.670 --> 00:24:43.089 There's an interesting episode that takes place 00:24:43.089 --> 00:24:45.130 while the disciples are preaching after Jesus 00:24:45.130 --> 00:24:48.609 is gone and he's not with them. It's during that 00:24:48.609 --> 00:24:50.049 little passage of Scripture we studied a few 00:24:50.049 --> 00:24:52.589 weeks back. It happened at the beautiful gate. 00:24:52.690 --> 00:24:56.390 He healed the man. And then they said they looked 00:24:56.390 --> 00:25:00.269 at those men. And because they were unlearned 00:25:00.269 --> 00:25:02.349 men, they didn't have seminary degrees or whatever. 00:25:03.180 --> 00:25:05.480 Because they hadn't studied under a great teacher 00:25:05.480 --> 00:25:07.420 as far as they knew. They said, these people, 00:25:07.559 --> 00:25:11.220 these men must have been with Jesus. If you're 00:25:11.220 --> 00:25:13.039 a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ, you're supposed 00:25:13.039 --> 00:25:15.799 to be able to speak with authority. You don't 00:25:15.799 --> 00:25:17.759 say to people, I hear what you're saying, I hear 00:25:17.759 --> 00:25:20.799 how you're living, but the Bible says, blah, 00:25:20.880 --> 00:25:23.140 blah, blah, blah, blah. And I think maybe that's 00:25:23.140 --> 00:25:25.839 a better way to go. Don't you think so? No, that's 00:25:25.839 --> 00:25:29.539 not how it's done. You say, I hear what you're 00:25:29.539 --> 00:25:33.069 saying, but let me tell you, where that road 00:25:33.069 --> 00:25:35.950 leads. Let me tell you what I know to be true. 00:25:36.450 --> 00:25:38.849 Let me tell you what I have seen for a fact. 00:25:39.470 --> 00:25:42.190 If you do that, this will be the end result. 00:25:43.410 --> 00:25:45.309 Here's the scripture to prove it. Sure, if you 00:25:45.309 --> 00:25:47.730 want to do that, but don't stop there. You say, 00:25:47.769 --> 00:25:51.730 and I know that's absolutely true. When are we 00:25:51.730 --> 00:25:53.869 going to step up and say, we know the Bible is 00:25:53.869 --> 00:25:55.849 absolutely true. When the Bible says there is 00:25:55.849 --> 00:25:57.470 a way that leads to death, but the guy thinks 00:25:57.470 --> 00:25:59.329 it's right. There's a bunch of people out there 00:25:59.329 --> 00:26:01.240 living ways that they think. Our right would 00:26:01.240 --> 00:26:02.940 lead to death. What are we going to do about 00:26:02.940 --> 00:26:04.880 that? Just going to keep letting them do it, 00:26:04.940 --> 00:26:07.579 right? Because they want to, obviously. What 00:26:07.579 --> 00:26:10.420 if they don't want to? What if they could be 00:26:10.420 --> 00:26:13.880 awakened to realize that that road that leads 00:26:13.880 --> 00:26:15.480 to death is not the actual road that they want 00:26:15.480 --> 00:26:18.380 to be on? Well, then I think we should tell them. 00:26:19.380 --> 00:26:21.940 I think we should provoke them to thought. I 00:26:21.940 --> 00:26:23.319 think we should live lives that would encourage 00:26:23.319 --> 00:26:26.079 them to examine the road that they are on and 00:26:26.079 --> 00:26:28.339 the destination they are headed for. And I wouldn't 00:26:28.339 --> 00:26:31.140 feel bad about it, not one lick. I wouldn't be 00:26:31.140 --> 00:26:33.200 inhibited if I knew that were true, if I really 00:26:33.200 --> 00:26:34.380 believed it were true, I wouldn't be inhibited. 00:26:34.480 --> 00:26:36.720 I wouldn't hold back. I wouldn't want to not 00:26:36.720 --> 00:26:38.859 tell them whatever it is that they need to hear. 00:26:38.960 --> 00:26:42.160 I wouldn't lie. I wouldn't slip into unrighteousness. 00:26:42.880 --> 00:26:45.779 I wouldn't be stupid about it. But wouldn't you 00:26:45.779 --> 00:26:47.019 want to tell them whatever it is that they need 00:26:47.019 --> 00:26:48.420 to hear so that they can understand, even if 00:26:48.420 --> 00:26:51.960 it made you look a little goofy? Wouldn't you 00:26:51.960 --> 00:26:54.630 want to preach the gospel? In season and out 00:26:54.630 --> 00:26:56.250 of season, if you realize that there could be 00:26:56.250 --> 00:26:57.970 people who would turn to the Lord and they would 00:26:57.970 --> 00:27:00.410 be awake and realize that the grace of God that 00:27:00.410 --> 00:27:03.029 brings salvation has appeared to all men, well, 00:27:03.230 --> 00:27:07.549 duh, of course we would. And therefore, there 00:27:07.549 --> 00:27:09.730 is no reason that anyone should despise us. And 00:27:09.730 --> 00:27:11.670 if anyone does despise us, if they do look down 00:27:11.670 --> 00:27:14.549 on us, it's really just evidence of their problem. 00:27:15.930 --> 00:27:17.769 It isn't evidence of our problem because we're 00:27:17.769 --> 00:27:19.410 doing what it is that we're called to do. So 00:27:19.410 --> 00:27:21.069 let no one despise you. Don't worry about it. 00:27:21.390 --> 00:27:23.069 Let them think what they want to think. Let them 00:27:23.069 --> 00:27:24.529 feel what they want to feel. When you walk up 00:27:24.529 --> 00:27:25.549 to them and try to talk to them about Jesus, 00:27:25.609 --> 00:27:27.950 then they get angry or they get down on the dumps 00:27:27.950 --> 00:27:30.609 or they talk about how bad they are as a person 00:27:30.609 --> 00:27:31.809 or whatever. You don't have to worry about that. 00:27:32.509 --> 00:27:35.410 Just keep talking about Jesus. Don't let them 00:27:35.410 --> 00:27:38.710 despise you. Remind them to be subject to rulers 00:27:38.710 --> 00:27:40.650 and authorities. And so we ought to listen to 00:27:40.650 --> 00:27:42.589 the law. And I know the law isn't always right. 00:27:43.019 --> 00:27:45.359 but we listen to the law even when we think it's 00:27:45.359 --> 00:27:48.039 wrong unless the law is contrary to God. So you 00:27:48.039 --> 00:27:50.359 follow the law and the rules even when you think 00:27:50.359 --> 00:27:53.119 they're wrong unless those laws and rules are 00:27:53.119 --> 00:27:54.980 contrary to God, in which case then you break 00:27:54.980 --> 00:27:58.640 them. I'm here to tell you, standing before you 00:27:58.640 --> 00:28:02.220 today, could be at any moment in time, if God 00:28:02.220 --> 00:28:04.680 so said so, one of the worst rebels you've ever 00:28:04.680 --> 00:28:08.980 met. I will commit a felony in a minute if I 00:28:08.980 --> 00:28:12.250 knew it was what God wanted me to do. I've been 00:28:12.250 --> 00:28:14.930 nearly arrested for sharing the gospel. The police 00:28:14.930 --> 00:28:18.549 were on their way. You do what it is you know 00:28:18.549 --> 00:28:21.789 you're supposed to do. And then if it's contrary 00:28:21.789 --> 00:28:23.470 to what the law says, then break it. But in any 00:28:23.470 --> 00:28:26.809 other case, you follow the rules and the authorities, 00:28:26.869 --> 00:28:29.230 even when it seems the stupidest thing. I can 00:28:29.230 --> 00:28:31.190 list three or four laws that are in the United 00:28:31.190 --> 00:28:33.049 States right now, that are in Toledo right now, 00:28:33.130 --> 00:28:35.609 that I totally disagree with. Totally disagree 00:28:35.609 --> 00:28:38.630 with them. But I'm not here to totally disagree 00:28:38.630 --> 00:28:41.670 with the law. I'm here to encourage people to 00:28:41.670 --> 00:28:44.069 recognize the grace of God has been made obvious 00:28:44.069 --> 00:28:46.849 and salvation is available. That's what I'm about. 00:28:47.069 --> 00:28:49.069 If you're busy preaching against some law you 00:28:49.069 --> 00:28:50.849 don't like, you're wasting your breath doing 00:28:50.849 --> 00:28:52.789 what you shouldn't be doing. Because you should 00:28:52.789 --> 00:28:55.390 be talking about Jesus and the availability of 00:28:55.390 --> 00:28:58.049 salvation by His grace. Remind them to be subject 00:28:58.049 --> 00:29:00.849 to rulers and authorities, sure. To obey, to 00:29:00.849 --> 00:29:02.849 be ready for every good work. Notice that being 00:29:02.849 --> 00:29:04.690 subject to rulers and authorities could be lumped 00:29:04.690 --> 00:29:07.509 in as a good work. To be ready for every good 00:29:07.509 --> 00:29:10.440 work. You've got to go. When the opportunity 00:29:10.440 --> 00:29:13.640 arises, you've got to be ready to speak evil 00:29:13.640 --> 00:29:15.619 of no one. I want to be clear about this. You 00:29:15.619 --> 00:29:17.500 speak evil of no one. I want to be super clear 00:29:17.500 --> 00:29:19.839 about this. You speak evil of no one, even those 00:29:19.839 --> 00:29:24.480 who are evil. Be careful. You know, it's really 00:29:24.480 --> 00:29:27.420 easy to judge people like Adolf Hitler, Mussolini, 00:29:27.440 --> 00:29:28.980 people from history who did horrible, horrible 00:29:28.980 --> 00:29:31.240 things, soldiers who claimed they were just following 00:29:31.240 --> 00:29:34.160 orders. It's really easy to do that. But I submit 00:29:34.160 --> 00:29:37.200 to you, that if you were born in their bodies 00:29:37.200 --> 00:29:39.519 and lived their lives to the day that you did 00:29:39.519 --> 00:29:41.079 it, to the day that they did that, you would 00:29:41.079 --> 00:29:43.779 have done the exact same thing. Parented the 00:29:43.779 --> 00:29:46.859 same way, raised under the same laws, under threat 00:29:46.859 --> 00:29:48.779 of violence, that you would be killed if you 00:29:48.779 --> 00:29:50.660 didn't follow orders, you would have done the 00:29:50.660 --> 00:29:52.319 exact same thing. You say, no, no, I wouldn't. 00:29:52.380 --> 00:29:53.700 Well, if you were a follower of the Lord Jesus 00:29:53.700 --> 00:29:56.160 Christ and you were born into that body as a 00:29:56.160 --> 00:29:57.660 follower of the Lord Jesus Christ and had the 00:29:57.660 --> 00:30:00.279 Holy Spirit to help you, if you knew what was 00:30:00.279 --> 00:30:03.130 happening was wrong, if you weren't... brainwashed, 00:30:03.250 --> 00:30:05.029 if you weren't threatened with violence that 00:30:05.029 --> 00:30:07.329 you were afraid you would be killed, maybe, maybe, 00:30:07.470 --> 00:30:11.730 just maybe, you wouldn't have. And that's a pretty 00:30:11.730 --> 00:30:16.109 big set of parameters to excuse yourself for 00:30:16.109 --> 00:30:18.410 judging their behavior. Now is their behavior 00:30:18.410 --> 00:30:22.470 wrong? Absolutely. But we don't speak evil of 00:30:22.470 --> 00:30:27.049 anyone. So your pastor lied and stole money from 00:30:27.049 --> 00:30:29.609 the church and had an affair with his secretary 00:30:29.609 --> 00:30:32.839 and he ran into ruin. And then became a homosexual 00:30:32.839 --> 00:30:34.960 and killed his neighbor and went to jail. You 00:30:34.960 --> 00:30:37.559 don't speak evil of him. You hear me? It says 00:30:37.559 --> 00:30:41.400 speak evil of no one. You speak evil of the devil, 00:30:41.500 --> 00:30:43.160 that's not a human being. That's a little different. 00:30:44.460 --> 00:30:46.720 But even then, when you speak evil, be careful 00:30:46.720 --> 00:30:49.180 how you do it. You say things like, he's in complete 00:30:49.180 --> 00:30:53.660 rebellion against God. Not he's using cuss words 00:30:53.660 --> 00:30:58.279 or he's a jerk. Right? Not that kind of evil. 00:30:58.500 --> 00:31:03.000 We don't just despise. But rather, he's in opposition 00:31:03.000 --> 00:31:05.380 to the Lord. And when you see a human being that's 00:31:05.380 --> 00:31:07.359 in opposition to the Lord, you don't speak evil 00:31:07.359 --> 00:31:10.579 of them. You say, those activities are not appropriate. 00:31:11.420 --> 00:31:16.079 Lying is wrong. Telling the truth is right. Well, 00:31:16.160 --> 00:31:18.779 he's a liar, so I'm not going to call him a liar. 00:31:18.839 --> 00:31:23.180 That's not my job. If that person is saved and 00:31:23.180 --> 00:31:25.140 lying, they're not a liar. You call him a liar, 00:31:25.200 --> 00:31:28.579 you're a liar. What just happened there? If that 00:31:28.579 --> 00:31:30.220 person is saved to follow the Lord Jesus Christ, 00:31:30.299 --> 00:31:31.819 even though they tell a lie, that doesn't make 00:31:31.819 --> 00:31:35.480 them a liar. It puts them in sin. It makes them 00:31:35.480 --> 00:31:37.180 wrong, but it doesn't change their identity. 00:31:37.599 --> 00:31:40.339 Right? So then you call them a liar, which nails 00:31:40.339 --> 00:31:41.900 down their identity, and you say they have an 00:31:41.900 --> 00:31:43.819 identity as a liar, but Christ knows they actually 00:31:43.819 --> 00:31:46.200 belong to Him, and they will later repent and 00:31:46.200 --> 00:31:48.059 be cleansed of it, and now you have lied saying 00:31:48.059 --> 00:31:49.680 they're a liar. You don't speak evil of anybody. 00:31:50.059 --> 00:31:52.059 Get your mouth under control for crying out loud. 00:31:53.200 --> 00:31:55.319 That's not a good work. We're supposed to be 00:31:55.319 --> 00:31:56.619 ready for every good work. While you're speaking 00:31:56.619 --> 00:31:57.920 evil of somebody else, how can you be ready for 00:31:57.920 --> 00:32:02.319 a good work? We speak evil of no one. To be peaceable. 00:32:02.460 --> 00:32:05.759 Our job is to be peaceable. Now, I said I am 00:32:05.759 --> 00:32:08.099 ready to be a felon if it comes to that. And 00:32:08.099 --> 00:32:10.220 I'm not kidding when I say that. But at the same 00:32:10.220 --> 00:32:12.559 time, I'm doing everything in my power to ensure 00:32:12.559 --> 00:32:15.640 that that never happens. That's why you vote. 00:32:16.240 --> 00:32:17.660 That's why you show up and become politically 00:32:17.660 --> 00:32:21.320 active. Not because politics is something. Don't 00:32:21.320 --> 00:32:24.000 get wrapped up in that. Don't let that be a big 00:32:24.000 --> 00:32:26.279 thing. But you do that because we have an opportunity 00:32:26.279 --> 00:32:28.519 to govern in a way we're governed by the people. 00:32:28.599 --> 00:32:30.539 And if you don't govern, then when the laws are 00:32:30.539 --> 00:32:32.240 made that require you to do things that are against 00:32:32.240 --> 00:32:34.619 God, you're going to have to do those things 00:32:34.619 --> 00:32:38.619 against God or you're going to have to stick 00:32:38.619 --> 00:32:42.180 with God and be against the law. So we participate 00:32:42.180 --> 00:32:44.539 in government in an effort in our country that 00:32:44.539 --> 00:32:47.339 gives us the opportunity to have no law made 00:32:47.339 --> 00:32:52.410 without representation. And we're to be peaceable, 00:32:52.509 --> 00:32:57.109 gentle. Come on. You don't have to be mean. You 00:32:57.109 --> 00:32:58.829 don't have to be rough. You don't have to be 00:32:58.829 --> 00:33:02.549 bitter. You don't have to be tongue -biting people, 00:33:02.769 --> 00:33:05.769 lashing somebody down with your tongue. You don't 00:33:05.769 --> 00:33:07.309 have to do any of that kind of stuff. Just tell 00:33:07.309 --> 00:33:10.450 them that the grace of God has become apparent 00:33:10.450 --> 00:33:13.029 and salvation is available and we should do these 00:33:13.029 --> 00:33:15.230 things. And when they don't like it, you just 00:33:15.230 --> 00:33:17.750 gently tell them again. And when they still don't 00:33:17.750 --> 00:33:19.920 like it, you just gently tell them again. And 00:33:19.920 --> 00:33:22.519 you remain gentle. Never striking out. Never 00:33:22.519 --> 00:33:26.240 striking back. Never exacting revenge. Be gentle. 00:33:26.759 --> 00:33:29.599 Show all humility to all men. That's what we're 00:33:29.599 --> 00:33:31.259 supposed to do. You were not saved by you. You 00:33:31.259 --> 00:33:34.000 were saved by Jesus. For we ourselves were also 00:33:34.000 --> 00:33:37.279 once foolish. And we heard about that. I felt 00:33:37.279 --> 00:33:40.079 that coming from the Holy Spirit during the inspirational 00:33:40.079 --> 00:33:42.900 reading today. We were once all foolish. We were 00:33:42.900 --> 00:33:45.680 once all disobedient. We were once all deceived. 00:33:46.349 --> 00:33:49.009 We were once all serving various lusts and pleasures, 00:33:49.109 --> 00:33:53.170 living in malice, which means you hated people 00:33:53.170 --> 00:33:55.710 and the things that they do, and envy. You wanted 00:33:55.710 --> 00:33:58.230 things that they had and you don't. You were 00:33:58.230 --> 00:34:01.329 hateful, hating one another. And you can say, 00:34:01.329 --> 00:34:03.109 well, no, I never hated anybody, but there's 00:34:03.109 --> 00:34:05.069 two opposites. There's love and hate. People 00:34:05.069 --> 00:34:07.569 talk about, I don't like that. If you don't like 00:34:07.569 --> 00:34:09.369 it and you would do something against it, that's 00:34:09.369 --> 00:34:13.090 probably actually hate. If you don't like it, 00:34:13.090 --> 00:34:14.630 but you would still do something for it, even 00:34:14.630 --> 00:34:16.190 though you don't like it, that's actually probably 00:34:16.190 --> 00:34:20.510 love. Right? So there's very little middle ground. 00:34:21.349 --> 00:34:22.969 We like to think that there's a lot, but there's 00:34:22.969 --> 00:34:24.429 very little middle ground between hate and love. 00:34:24.489 --> 00:34:27.610 Letting somebody go to hell is hate. Loving them, 00:34:27.610 --> 00:34:29.030 trying to get them to go to heaven, even though 00:34:29.030 --> 00:34:31.710 they don't want to hear it, that's love. People 00:34:31.710 --> 00:34:35.489 say that being against certain life choices and 00:34:35.489 --> 00:34:36.829 behaviors that are out there in the world right 00:34:36.829 --> 00:34:39.130 now, that that's hateful. It's not. It's actually 00:34:39.130 --> 00:34:40.690 loving if you're trying to teach what's right. 00:34:41.880 --> 00:34:45.780 When my child wouldn't potty train, she just 00:34:45.780 --> 00:34:49.300 wouldn't, just would not potty train, almost 00:34:49.300 --> 00:34:52.440 four years old, clearly new, sit around the toilet, 00:34:52.500 --> 00:34:53.760 she wouldn't go to the bathroom, whatever, and 00:34:53.760 --> 00:34:55.500 I eventually spanked her butt for peeing on the 00:34:55.500 --> 00:34:57.139 floor in the hallway and she never went anywhere 00:34:57.139 --> 00:34:59.079 but in the potty again after that. Somebody could 00:34:59.079 --> 00:35:01.940 say, you spanked her butt because she wouldn't 00:35:01.940 --> 00:35:04.119 go to the bathroom and the toilet? I'd say, yes, 00:35:04.119 --> 00:35:06.639 I did. You're hateful. What a hateful thing to 00:35:06.639 --> 00:35:10.809 do to your child. But guess what? She's pretty 00:35:10.809 --> 00:35:13.650 glad that she learned to go potty in the potty 00:35:13.650 --> 00:35:16.570 and not on the floor in the hallway. You teach 00:35:16.570 --> 00:35:19.389 people what's right. You do it gently with humility. 00:35:19.590 --> 00:35:22.250 I'm not perfect. You can even say, look, I can 00:35:22.250 --> 00:35:24.389 even be wrong about this or the way I'm approaching 00:35:24.389 --> 00:35:26.389 you about this today, but listen to me, this 00:35:26.389 --> 00:35:32.389 is what is the truth. This is what it says. We 00:35:32.389 --> 00:35:34.369 were just like that doing all of those kinds 00:35:34.369 --> 00:35:37.400 of things. Hateful to people. living in malice. 00:35:37.400 --> 00:35:39.340 We were all of that. But when the kindness and 00:35:39.340 --> 00:35:42.119 love of God our Savior toward men appeared, so 00:35:42.119 --> 00:35:43.719 in other words, when we began to realize that 00:35:43.719 --> 00:35:45.860 God really does love us and He's kind toward 00:35:45.860 --> 00:35:48.719 us and He really is good toward us, not by works 00:35:48.719 --> 00:35:51.039 of righteousness, which we have done. We didn't 00:35:51.039 --> 00:35:52.880 suddenly start doing everything right so that 00:35:52.880 --> 00:35:55.039 God would love us. We didn't start doing everything 00:35:55.039 --> 00:35:56.800 right so that we'd come into the kingdom. It 00:35:56.800 --> 00:35:58.960 wasn't accomplished by that. But according to 00:35:58.960 --> 00:36:02.079 His mercy, because God wanted to, He took away 00:36:02.079 --> 00:36:05.159 the punishment. He saved us. Through the washing 00:36:05.159 --> 00:36:07.159 of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit. 00:36:07.199 --> 00:36:10.679 So God washed us, regenerated us. I mean, He 00:36:10.679 --> 00:36:13.059 brought us back to life. He renewed us by His 00:36:13.059 --> 00:36:16.139 Holy Spirit. Whom, because the Holy Spirit is 00:36:16.139 --> 00:36:18.239 a person, not a thing. He is the third person 00:36:18.239 --> 00:36:21.199 of the Trinity. He is God. He poured out, God 00:36:21.199 --> 00:36:25.880 the Father poured out on us abundantly, plenty 00:36:25.880 --> 00:36:29.119 of Him, through Jesus Christ our Savior. that 00:36:29.119 --> 00:36:31.639 having been justified, in other words, declared 00:36:31.639 --> 00:36:34.699 not guilty for our sins, justified just as if 00:36:34.699 --> 00:36:37.940 you'd never sinned, by his grace, because it 00:36:37.940 --> 00:36:39.539 was a free gift, we didn't deserve it, but he 00:36:39.539 --> 00:36:42.320 gave it to us, that we should become, wait for 00:36:42.320 --> 00:36:45.760 it, heirs according to the hope of eternal life. 00:36:45.840 --> 00:36:49.760 Heirs to what? Heirs to everything. Ultimately, 00:36:49.760 --> 00:36:51.440 there's the new heaven and the new earth, and 00:36:51.440 --> 00:36:54.900 we with Jesus are heirs to all of it. We will 00:36:54.900 --> 00:36:59.210 own it all. This is a faithful saying. And these 00:36:59.210 --> 00:37:01.230 things I want you to affirm, that means speak 00:37:01.230 --> 00:37:04.710 up for them constantly, that those who have believed 00:37:04.710 --> 00:37:08.730 in God should be careful to maintain, big word, 00:37:08.789 --> 00:37:10.530 important word in everything we're talking about 00:37:10.530 --> 00:37:13.110 right there, should be careful to maintain good 00:37:13.110 --> 00:37:17.250 works. These things, the good works, are good 00:37:17.250 --> 00:37:23.750 and profitable to men. But, avoid foolish disputes, 00:37:24.150 --> 00:37:25.710 in other words, you shouldn't be arguing over 00:37:25.710 --> 00:37:28.510 dumb things that don't matter. You say, well, 00:37:28.570 --> 00:37:32.050 we don't do that, but we do. We argue over things 00:37:32.050 --> 00:37:37.230 that don't matter. Genealogies, like who you 00:37:37.230 --> 00:37:39.150 belong to, who your parents were and so on, they 00:37:39.150 --> 00:37:41.329 had that problem because it had to do with how 00:37:41.329 --> 00:37:42.809 far back you could trace your lineage, whether 00:37:42.809 --> 00:37:44.309 you were a faithful Jew or not. You could go 00:37:44.309 --> 00:37:45.849 all the way back to Abraham if you were a faithful 00:37:45.849 --> 00:37:49.909 Jew. Contentions. You say this, but I say this, 00:37:49.909 --> 00:37:54.190 and we just can't seem to agree. Strivings about 00:37:54.190 --> 00:37:58.789 the law. But should it be that way? Are we not 00:37:58.789 --> 00:38:01.289 allowed to have tattoos? Can we not have two 00:38:01.289 --> 00:38:05.130 types of clothing in our garments? But if we 00:38:05.130 --> 00:38:07.010 can have two types of clothing in our garments 00:38:07.010 --> 00:38:09.170 and we can have tattoos, then why do we have 00:38:09.170 --> 00:38:12.170 to tithe? What are you doing? Just do what God 00:38:12.170 --> 00:38:15.769 told you to do for crying out loud. It's pretty 00:38:15.769 --> 00:38:18.170 simple. The grace of God has appeared to all 00:38:18.170 --> 00:38:19.949 men before we got saved. And when we noticed 00:38:19.949 --> 00:38:22.409 that, we gave our lives over to Christ and God 00:38:22.409 --> 00:38:25.690 in His mercy cleansed us. And now, here is a 00:38:25.690 --> 00:38:29.030 faithful saying, maintain good works, for these 00:38:29.030 --> 00:38:31.230 things are good and profitable to us. But avoid 00:38:31.230 --> 00:38:33.489 these things, foolishness, disputes, genealogies, 00:38:33.489 --> 00:38:35.730 contentions, and strivings about the law, for 00:38:35.730 --> 00:38:42.869 they are unprofitable and useless. Reject, that 00:38:42.869 --> 00:38:45.510 means have nothing to do with. Reject a divisive 00:38:45.510 --> 00:38:49.809 man, that means someone that divides, after the 00:38:49.809 --> 00:38:52.150 first and second admonition. So in other words, 00:38:52.150 --> 00:38:54.929 someone's trying to divide, God's people, someone's 00:38:54.929 --> 00:38:57.070 trying to cause strife in the body, strife in 00:38:57.070 --> 00:38:58.630 your family, strife in your marriage, whatever. 00:38:58.710 --> 00:39:00.269 You say, I just can't have anything to do with 00:39:00.269 --> 00:39:02.710 you. So your best friend comes over to your house 00:39:02.710 --> 00:39:03.989 and he's got a problem with your wife. You say, 00:39:04.050 --> 00:39:07.710 goodbye. So I'm going to warn you once. Okay, 00:39:07.730 --> 00:39:08.989 now out of grace, I'm going to warn you twice. 00:39:09.170 --> 00:39:10.929 I'm really being kind here. I'm going to give 00:39:10.929 --> 00:39:13.349 you a second warning. God warned you. You can't 00:39:13.349 --> 00:39:15.690 bad mouth my wife. Go away. Don't come back again. 00:39:16.389 --> 00:39:19.389 Simple. You reject the device of man after a 00:39:19.389 --> 00:39:21.610 second admonition, knowing that such a person 00:39:21.610 --> 00:39:25.489 is warped and sinning, being self -condemned. 00:39:25.949 --> 00:39:27.989 Oh, wait a minute, what were they doing? Speaking 00:39:27.989 --> 00:39:32.230 evil about someone else? Being wrapped up in 00:39:32.230 --> 00:39:35.349 contentious behavior, disputes, etc.? Well, they 00:39:35.349 --> 00:39:36.869 were doing the exact things that we were supposed 00:39:36.869 --> 00:39:38.510 to be avoiding, and therefore they have shown 00:39:38.510 --> 00:39:40.050 by their own choices, their own words, their 00:39:40.050 --> 00:39:42.409 own actions, they have self -condemned. We don't 00:39:42.409 --> 00:39:44.909 do that. They did it themselves. Okay, that's 00:39:44.909 --> 00:39:47.030 the whole passage of Scripture from Titus 2 .11 00:39:47.030 --> 00:39:50.110 to 3 .11. And I want to dial it down to just 00:39:50.110 --> 00:39:52.369 a couple of things. I do want you to see clearly 00:39:52.369 --> 00:39:56.030 that he says, the grace of God appears to all 00:39:56.030 --> 00:39:57.730 men. That means if you're here today and you're 00:39:57.730 --> 00:39:59.150 not a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ, that 00:39:59.150 --> 00:40:01.750 is by your choice. It is not that it is not evident. 00:40:02.309 --> 00:40:04.250 You're making the same foolish choice that a 00:40:04.250 --> 00:40:06.170 man makes when he decides to jump off a cliff 00:40:06.170 --> 00:40:08.510 thinking he can fly. You say, well, nobody ever 00:40:08.510 --> 00:40:10.449 did that. There are lots of crazy people that 00:40:10.449 --> 00:40:11.849 did that. They shouldn't have, but they did. 00:40:12.400 --> 00:40:14.059 And that's what people are doing when they will 00:40:14.059 --> 00:40:15.840 not accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior because 00:40:15.840 --> 00:40:18.019 the grace of God has appeared to all men. He 00:40:18.019 --> 00:40:20.840 died on a cross. He rose again on the third day. 00:40:20.980 --> 00:40:23.280 He walked with His disciples for 40 days and 00:40:23.280 --> 00:40:25.300 hundreds or thousands of people heard Him preach 00:40:25.300 --> 00:40:28.000 and teach after that. He did miracles while He 00:40:28.000 --> 00:40:30.320 was alive. There's never been anybody like Him. 00:40:30.800 --> 00:40:32.800 And He said clearly this is what you need to 00:40:32.800 --> 00:40:35.199 do. Accept this free gift from God that sins 00:40:35.199 --> 00:40:39.179 will be washed away. It's been obvious since 00:40:39.179 --> 00:40:41.360 then. I submit to you it's been obvious since 00:40:41.360 --> 00:40:43.119 before then, because all creation testifies, 00:40:43.179 --> 00:40:45.699 but it's been really obvious then, put in human 00:40:45.699 --> 00:40:49.619 words, put in events that no one can deny. And 00:40:49.619 --> 00:40:52.639 so now, if you've not accepted him, then you're 00:40:52.639 --> 00:40:54.139 making the same kind of decision that a foolish 00:40:54.139 --> 00:40:55.900 man makes when he sees it plainly before his 00:40:55.900 --> 00:40:57.760 face and still sticks his hand in a meat grinder. 00:41:00.739 --> 00:41:03.389 Don't do it. Denying ungodliness and worldly 00:41:03.389 --> 00:41:05.510 lusts, then we should live soberly, righteously, 00:41:05.590 --> 00:41:07.710 and godly in this present age, looking for the 00:41:07.710 --> 00:41:09.989 blessed hope, the glorious appearing of our great 00:41:09.989 --> 00:41:13.650 God and Savior, Jesus Christ. That's what we 00:41:13.650 --> 00:41:18.670 are to be. And that's put in a negative and a 00:41:18.670 --> 00:41:19.789 positive. Some people got to have the negative. 00:41:20.050 --> 00:41:22.590 I got to chase out some things. And then some 00:41:22.590 --> 00:41:23.969 people got to have the positive. I got to have 00:41:23.969 --> 00:41:25.789 some things to chase them out with. And both 00:41:25.789 --> 00:41:28.389 are there. And He redeemed us that He might purify 00:41:28.389 --> 00:41:30.829 us from every lawless deed. That means that you 00:41:30.829 --> 00:41:35.130 can be moved away from what you used to do. It 00:41:35.130 --> 00:41:36.769 may be a process, take you a little while to 00:41:36.769 --> 00:41:39.269 get there, but that you can be moved away. And 00:41:39.269 --> 00:41:42.250 He can make us zealous for good works. The fact 00:41:42.250 --> 00:41:45.809 is you can't shut up a true believer. We're supposed 00:41:45.809 --> 00:41:48.829 to affirm constantly. A true believer has always 00:41:48.829 --> 00:41:52.309 something to say. But their words, which are 00:41:52.309 --> 00:41:56.610 biblical, and their lives, which are godly. Be 00:41:56.610 --> 00:42:00.829 heard. A believer is like an uncorkable bottle. 00:42:01.010 --> 00:42:03.610 A believer is like a gaping wound in the fabric 00:42:03.610 --> 00:42:06.269 of a veil that covers the universe with sin. 00:42:08.829 --> 00:42:11.769 We have been set free. The sin barrier has been 00:42:11.769 --> 00:42:14.429 pierced. There is a way to God. Now come with 00:42:14.429 --> 00:42:17.050 me through the way to God. Come with me to receive 00:42:17.050 --> 00:42:19.670 God into your life. Come with me. Stand under 00:42:19.670 --> 00:42:23.170 the opening and receive the rain, R -A -N -I, 00:42:23.429 --> 00:42:28.289 of Jesus' love. As it falls down on you. And 00:42:28.289 --> 00:42:29.409 for those of you who have not accepted Jesus 00:42:29.409 --> 00:42:31.090 Christ as Lord and Savior, I get it. You've never 00:42:31.090 --> 00:42:34.110 felt it. I'm here to tell you I have. If I said 00:42:34.110 --> 00:42:37.989 to you that chocolate cake tasted good, and you 00:42:37.989 --> 00:42:40.590 had never tasted chocolate cake, after you smelled 00:42:40.590 --> 00:42:43.570 it, you'd go, smells pretty good. Looks like 00:42:43.570 --> 00:42:46.550 food. Probably a dessert. I think I'll try it. 00:42:46.590 --> 00:42:51.789 I'm asking the same of you about Jesus. Nothing 00:42:51.789 --> 00:42:56.510 less. Nothing more. Give him a try. Billy Graham 00:42:56.510 --> 00:42:59.210 had the opportunity to go on the Late Late Show 00:42:59.210 --> 00:43:03.369 one night, and I forget which host they had at 00:43:03.369 --> 00:43:04.889 that time, but he was talking about how he had 00:43:04.889 --> 00:43:07.250 tried every drug under the sun. The host was. 00:43:07.389 --> 00:43:09.429 He was telling Billy Graham, he's tried every 00:43:09.429 --> 00:43:13.630 drug under the sun. And he said, well, have you 00:43:13.630 --> 00:43:16.269 tried Jesus? He said, I'll tell you right now, 00:43:16.369 --> 00:43:19.530 Jesus is a bigger high than any of those drugs 00:43:19.530 --> 00:43:22.030 you've ever tried. See, you can put it in any 00:43:22.030 --> 00:43:24.170 context you want. But the bottom line is the 00:43:24.170 --> 00:43:26.250 grace of God has appeared to all men and people 00:43:26.250 --> 00:43:28.750 need to experience it and we better open our 00:43:28.750 --> 00:43:32.150 mouths. A believer is like a mighty wind that 00:43:32.150 --> 00:43:34.949 blows the temptation from his own life and the 00:43:34.949 --> 00:43:38.530 lives of others. Step up. Do something. Don't 00:43:38.530 --> 00:43:40.949 just stand there and wait while people say, hey, 00:43:40.969 --> 00:43:43.230 come do this with me. Hey, come do that with 00:43:43.230 --> 00:43:46.309 me. And there are things you shouldn't do. Block 00:43:46.309 --> 00:43:48.869 the websites on your computer. Get rid of your 00:43:48.869 --> 00:43:50.670 computer if you're struggling with that. Make 00:43:50.670 --> 00:43:53.530 choices. Don't be alone with a man or a woman 00:43:53.530 --> 00:43:55.130 to be tempted to do things that you shouldn't 00:43:55.130 --> 00:43:59.449 do. Right? Plan out in advance where your money's 00:43:59.449 --> 00:44:02.769 going to go. Include the godly choices of what 00:44:02.769 --> 00:44:03.969 you have to do with your money before you do 00:44:03.969 --> 00:44:06.010 anything else. Take it out first. It's supposed 00:44:06.010 --> 00:44:08.610 to come out first anyway. Do that so that you 00:44:08.610 --> 00:44:11.090 won't be tempted to do the wrong things. When 00:44:11.090 --> 00:44:12.610 somebody walks up and they speak to you and they're 00:44:12.610 --> 00:44:14.130 talking evil about somebody else, you say, look, 00:44:14.230 --> 00:44:17.210 you can say, I'm going to stop you right there. 00:44:17.309 --> 00:44:20.170 I'm not trying to be rude. But I don't talk about 00:44:20.170 --> 00:44:22.989 people that way. And I don't hear talk about 00:44:22.989 --> 00:44:26.329 people that way. And so if you need my help with 00:44:26.329 --> 00:44:28.590 something, if you want to ask me for something, 00:44:28.730 --> 00:44:31.349 that's fine. But this conversation can't go any 00:44:31.349 --> 00:44:34.210 further this way. Now, pointing out a mistake 00:44:34.210 --> 00:44:36.389 that someone made, it's not the same as talking 00:44:36.389 --> 00:44:41.039 evil about them. Let's be clear about that. Being 00:44:41.039 --> 00:44:43.019 concerned, talking to God, praying about it, 00:44:43.039 --> 00:44:44.760 or bringing it up as a prayer request with the 00:44:44.760 --> 00:44:47.599 right heart would not be talking evil about them. 00:44:47.840 --> 00:44:49.559 But when you start to talk about that person, 00:44:49.599 --> 00:44:52.599 your tone changes, your thought process changes, 00:44:52.719 --> 00:44:54.619 and you're thinking negatively of them. You think, 00:44:54.659 --> 00:44:56.280 well, but they'll never hear me. That's why I'm 00:44:56.280 --> 00:44:58.300 telling so -and -so instead of them, which the 00:44:58.300 --> 00:45:00.019 Bible calls slander, by the way. Even if you're 00:45:00.019 --> 00:45:01.239 right, if you're telling the truth, it's still 00:45:01.239 --> 00:45:05.360 slander. So when it becomes that, it's evil. 00:45:05.539 --> 00:45:07.159 And we're not allowed to do that. And so you 00:45:07.159 --> 00:45:09.920 shut off people that do that to you, with you. 00:45:10.019 --> 00:45:11.719 Even if it's your spouse. If it's your spouse, 00:45:11.840 --> 00:45:13.519 by the way, that's when it's the hardest. Because 00:45:13.519 --> 00:45:15.440 they're inside your armor. They talk evil about 00:45:15.440 --> 00:45:17.559 somebody, and basically you just did it. And 00:45:17.559 --> 00:45:19.800 then you say, look, honey, we can't talk about 00:45:19.800 --> 00:45:22.619 people that way. We just can't do that. But he 00:45:22.619 --> 00:45:24.840 actually did it. I saw him do it. It doesn't 00:45:24.840 --> 00:45:27.920 matter. That doesn't make him bad. It means he 00:45:27.920 --> 00:45:30.920 did a bad thing. And so now our job is, how do 00:45:30.920 --> 00:45:33.380 we help that person move from, Where they are, 00:45:33.460 --> 00:45:35.119 where they would be willing and able to do that 00:45:35.119 --> 00:45:38.179 to somewhere where they would not. Twist it, 00:45:38.239 --> 00:45:40.380 change it, morph it into something that's godly. 00:45:40.840 --> 00:45:42.800 Make it about moving in the right direction. 00:45:43.519 --> 00:45:47.239 Don't shut your mouth. A true believer will overcome 00:45:47.239 --> 00:45:51.579 with their mouths. Now a true believer also overcomes 00:45:51.579 --> 00:45:55.099 with their life. The truth is, you can say more 00:45:55.099 --> 00:45:56.500 with your actions than you can ever say with 00:45:56.500 --> 00:46:00.530 your words. And your actions will speak. A long 00:46:00.530 --> 00:46:02.110 time after you're dead, and people like to say 00:46:02.110 --> 00:46:03.530 that your words won't, but that really isn't 00:46:03.530 --> 00:46:06.010 true. Because sometimes you say the right thing 00:46:06.010 --> 00:46:07.449 at the right moment, and people will remember 00:46:07.449 --> 00:46:12.070 it for their whole lives. I had teachers who 00:46:12.070 --> 00:46:15.269 spoke a word of encouragement to me. Mr. Martin 00:46:15.269 --> 00:46:17.050 in the fifth grade, he said, you know, I see 00:46:17.050 --> 00:46:19.869 how you're not really trying hard academically, 00:46:19.989 --> 00:46:21.769 you're not really doing that much, but you're 00:46:21.769 --> 00:46:23.130 doing pretty well, you're still getting good 00:46:23.130 --> 00:46:24.449 grades. He said, I want you to understand, when 00:46:24.449 --> 00:46:27.050 you get in high school, that may not be enough. 00:46:27.510 --> 00:46:29.050 Then when you get in college, it surely won't 00:46:29.050 --> 00:46:31.329 be enough. So you'll be blowing up your life 00:46:31.329 --> 00:46:33.849 because you really need to apply what you're 00:46:33.849 --> 00:46:35.409 learning now. You really need to put it to work. 00:46:35.889 --> 00:46:37.869 And he pulled me aside in a corner in the hallway 00:46:37.869 --> 00:46:43.789 and shared that with me. And that was 35 years 00:46:43.789 --> 00:46:46.909 ago. And I can see him today. He passed away 00:46:46.909 --> 00:46:48.949 about 15 years ago. And I can see him in my mind's 00:46:48.949 --> 00:46:52.550 eye doing that and saying that. Words and deeds, 00:46:52.650 --> 00:46:55.570 they last. A true believer will speak up, be 00:46:55.570 --> 00:46:57.570 heard, and a true believer will overcome with 00:46:57.570 --> 00:47:01.420 their life. You think you cannot? God disagrees. 00:47:03.739 --> 00:47:06.480 But if they are right, when you're talking with 00:47:06.480 --> 00:47:10.039 someone, if the other person's right, and you 00:47:10.039 --> 00:47:12.820 don't listen to them, you'll pay a dear price 00:47:12.820 --> 00:47:15.480 for ignoring them. So when believers speak, believers 00:47:15.480 --> 00:47:18.219 listen. It doesn't even matter if they do it 00:47:18.219 --> 00:47:21.659 wrong. My wife corrected me in front of other 00:47:21.659 --> 00:47:25.219 people. I'm so mad at her. She's a bad wife. 00:47:25.820 --> 00:47:29.909 What? So, clearly, She doesn't need to correct 00:47:29.909 --> 00:47:32.130 you while you speak evil about her. I wish she 00:47:32.130 --> 00:47:33.670 was here now so she could correct you so I don't 00:47:33.670 --> 00:47:38.650 have to do it. You see? So she corrected you 00:47:38.650 --> 00:47:40.010 publicly in front of other people and you didn't 00:47:40.010 --> 00:47:42.510 like it. You go privately and talk with her and 00:47:42.510 --> 00:47:44.449 say in the future, I appreciate you pulling me 00:47:44.449 --> 00:47:46.750 out of the room. Talk about how it can be done. 00:47:46.889 --> 00:47:49.469 Talk about how it can change. Exhort, encourage, 00:47:49.750 --> 00:47:51.130 push in the right direction. That's what people 00:47:51.130 --> 00:47:54.989 do. Why are some who claim the name of Jesus 00:47:54.989 --> 00:47:59.800 cowed like domesticated dogs? We sit quietly, 00:47:59.920 --> 00:48:03.219 doing nothing against the world's evil, not stepping 00:48:03.219 --> 00:48:05.119 out, not getting out of our comfort zone, not 00:48:05.119 --> 00:48:07.320 making a difference. Why are some of us like 00:48:07.320 --> 00:48:12.440 shut down and tied up? We're like a dog and our 00:48:12.440 --> 00:48:15.440 last master used to beat us. And so now our new 00:48:15.440 --> 00:48:17.699 master, well, we don't want to do anything wrong 00:48:17.699 --> 00:48:20.739 or anything too right for fear we'll get beaten 00:48:20.739 --> 00:48:23.380 again. Well, yeah, sure, Satan beats his people. 00:48:24.619 --> 00:48:26.960 That's how he keeps them motivated. That's how 00:48:26.960 --> 00:48:28.989 he keeps them. trying to scramble for the top 00:48:28.989 --> 00:48:31.190 of the heap and so on. But Jesus doesn't do that. 00:48:31.590 --> 00:48:33.789 Jesus is a constant encourager and comforter. 00:48:33.809 --> 00:48:35.409 He will lift you up. He will encourage you to 00:48:35.409 --> 00:48:37.469 do what's right. God doesn't even use guilt as 00:48:37.469 --> 00:48:40.190 a motivator. He uses conviction. He says, don't 00:48:40.190 --> 00:48:43.690 feel guilty. Fix it. Let me show you how. And 00:48:43.690 --> 00:48:44.789 that's the kind of people that we're supposed 00:48:44.789 --> 00:48:47.329 to be. We have misused resources all over the 00:48:47.329 --> 00:48:49.389 place. Our malls are misused. Their power folks 00:48:49.389 --> 00:48:51.630 are great. And we're often using them to destroy. 00:48:51.809 --> 00:48:54.289 And a lot of times we're using them to do little 00:48:54.289 --> 00:48:58.199 but open the door for evil spirits. Our muscles, 00:48:58.440 --> 00:49:02.400 they're mighty, but often misused. We're supposed 00:49:02.400 --> 00:49:04.340 to be serving others. The greatest amongst you 00:49:04.340 --> 00:49:06.280 shall be your servant. Jesus got up at the last 00:49:06.280 --> 00:49:08.760 supper he would ever eat on the face of the earth 00:49:08.760 --> 00:49:11.760 and donned a towel, stripped off his outer garments 00:49:11.760 --> 00:49:13.780 and put on a towel and got down and washed their 00:49:13.780 --> 00:49:18.320 feet. And he got up from that and said, have 00:49:18.320 --> 00:49:21.780 you known what I've done to you? If I've washed 00:49:21.780 --> 00:49:23.820 your feet, how much more should you wash each 00:49:23.820 --> 00:49:27.929 other's feet? Our muscles, our bodies, our strength, 00:49:27.989 --> 00:49:30.730 we're to use that to serve others. That's what 00:49:30.730 --> 00:49:33.650 it's for. And it's being misused. And so our 00:49:33.650 --> 00:49:36.449 actions are not showing up on the radar of God 00:49:36.449 --> 00:49:39.010 as good works because we're busy using our bodies 00:49:39.010 --> 00:49:42.090 for things that don't glorify God. It's not that 00:49:42.090 --> 00:49:44.289 they're evil even necessarily, but they're sure 00:49:44.289 --> 00:49:47.389 missing the mark. Our minds are capable but unused. 00:49:47.510 --> 00:49:49.130 We're supposed to be tearing down everything 00:49:49.130 --> 00:49:51.469 that sets itself up as a stronghold against God. 00:49:52.090 --> 00:49:56.789 And instead, We're enjoying lots of things produced 00:49:56.789 --> 00:49:58.769 by the world that are not necessarily sinful, 00:49:58.969 --> 00:50:01.269 but they're also not tearing down the strongholds 00:50:01.269 --> 00:50:04.590 that are set up against God. Our money. Money 00:50:04.590 --> 00:50:07.489 makes things convenient. It makes it easy. But 00:50:07.489 --> 00:50:10.789 it's misused. Money can be used as a motivator. 00:50:10.809 --> 00:50:12.670 But be careful it doesn't become your master. 00:50:13.070 --> 00:50:16.349 Because a man can't have two masters. Jesus said, 00:50:16.429 --> 00:50:19.190 go ahead, be motivated by money, but don't let 00:50:19.190 --> 00:50:23.070 it rule you. Paul said all things... are permissible, 00:50:23.150 --> 00:50:25.949 but not all things are profitable. There you 00:50:25.949 --> 00:50:28.170 go. Can you believe that there are even people 00:50:28.170 --> 00:50:29.929 in the world who actually think at this moment 00:50:29.929 --> 00:50:32.070 in time that they don't have anything to use 00:50:32.070 --> 00:50:35.170 correctly? They think they're bereft. They think 00:50:35.170 --> 00:50:37.329 they're absolutely wiped out. God gave them nothing. 00:50:37.710 --> 00:50:40.369 They've got their mind, their muscles, but because 00:50:40.369 --> 00:50:41.650 they don't have any money, they think they have 00:50:41.650 --> 00:50:45.050 nothing. Mind, muscles, and time, but they think 00:50:45.050 --> 00:50:48.360 they have nothing? That's ridiculous. So why 00:50:48.360 --> 00:50:51.860 don't people just get unleashed? Why not be excited? 00:50:51.960 --> 00:50:55.360 Why not be full of energy? Why not run hard and 00:50:55.360 --> 00:50:59.300 do amazingly for God? I submit to you that maybe 00:50:59.300 --> 00:51:04.579 people are afraid. Well, it's been a battle for 00:51:04.579 --> 00:51:06.480 forever amongst the people that God claimed for 00:51:06.480 --> 00:51:09.280 Himself. Paul wrote to Timothy, For the Spirit 00:51:09.280 --> 00:51:13.900 of God gave us does not make us timid. You feel 00:51:13.900 --> 00:51:17.579 timid? Better get rid of that. But it gives us 00:51:17.579 --> 00:51:24.380 power, love, and self -discipline. Moses recorded 00:51:24.380 --> 00:51:27.420 in one of his final speeches, Be strong and courageous. 00:51:27.539 --> 00:51:29.440 Do not be afraid or terrified because of them. 00:51:29.480 --> 00:51:31.559 For the Lord your God goes with you. He will 00:51:31.559 --> 00:51:33.340 never leave you nor forsake you. He was talking 00:51:33.340 --> 00:51:35.440 about the nine foot tall men that were occupying 00:51:35.440 --> 00:51:38.039 the land that God said they could have. Physical 00:51:38.039 --> 00:51:40.460 guys with swords and shields that no one warrior 00:51:40.460 --> 00:51:42.980 would ever want to face. You or I wouldn't want 00:51:42.980 --> 00:51:45.369 to face. Anybody here feel capable enough to 00:51:45.369 --> 00:51:46.789 take on a sword and a shield and face a nine 00:51:46.789 --> 00:51:49.989 foot guy that's fought his entire life? I'm out. 00:51:51.389 --> 00:51:55.550 Maybe with a gun. Otherwise, no way. I want no 00:51:55.550 --> 00:52:00.510 part of it. If that's true, what about the things 00:52:00.510 --> 00:52:03.909 you deal with on a daily basis? They're no bigger. 00:52:04.650 --> 00:52:08.210 What are you afraid of? David wrote, even though 00:52:08.210 --> 00:52:10.389 I walk through the... darkest valley, I will 00:52:10.389 --> 00:52:12.650 fear no evil, for you are with me. Your rod and 00:52:12.650 --> 00:52:14.369 your staff, they comfort me. How many evils did 00:52:14.369 --> 00:52:18.230 David fear? Or would he fear? None. What if they 00:52:18.230 --> 00:52:19.730 despise me? What if they laugh at me? What if 00:52:19.730 --> 00:52:21.289 they mock me? What if they don't pay me? What 00:52:21.289 --> 00:52:24.449 if they take my job away? What if they attack 00:52:24.449 --> 00:52:26.369 me or attack my family? What if they try to burn 00:52:26.369 --> 00:52:29.030 my house down? What if they do any of those things? 00:52:29.110 --> 00:52:31.849 Are you afraid? You can walk through the darkest 00:52:31.849 --> 00:52:33.289 valley. Some of us have already been through 00:52:33.289 --> 00:52:35.570 what probably seems like the darkest valley. 00:52:35.630 --> 00:52:37.949 We've been near to death, the bottom of an addiction. 00:52:38.750 --> 00:52:42.710 lost our house, lost everything we had. I know 00:52:42.710 --> 00:52:44.909 the stories of the people in this room enough 00:52:44.909 --> 00:52:47.030 to know that we can collect all of those things. 00:52:47.070 --> 00:52:49.309 And some of us have had all of those things in 00:52:49.309 --> 00:52:52.809 one. And yet in the midst of that, you can fear 00:52:52.809 --> 00:52:56.570 no evil. David was very familiar with dangerous 00:52:56.570 --> 00:52:59.789 things. Being a boy when he fought his first 00:52:59.789 --> 00:53:04.730 bear and his first lion. A boy required to protect 00:53:04.730 --> 00:53:10.079 the sheep. Who of you by worrying can add a single 00:53:10.079 --> 00:53:11.739 hour to your life? What are you going to fear 00:53:11.739 --> 00:53:13.739 the future for? What might happen? What's holding 00:53:13.739 --> 00:53:17.079 you back? Jesus was speaking that one by the 00:53:17.079 --> 00:53:20.380 way. Paul wrote, I am convinced that neither 00:53:20.380 --> 00:53:22.760 death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither 00:53:22.760 --> 00:53:25.780 the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither 00:53:25.780 --> 00:53:28.739 height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation 00:53:28.739 --> 00:53:30.199 will be able to separate us from the love of 00:53:30.199 --> 00:53:31.820 God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. What are 00:53:31.820 --> 00:53:36.429 you afraid of? If there are situations that can 00:53:36.429 --> 00:53:38.070 separate you from the love of God, if you think 00:53:38.070 --> 00:53:41.449 that's true, no wonder you're not speaking out 00:53:41.449 --> 00:53:46.369 and acting out for the Lord. From the Psalms 00:53:46.369 --> 00:53:49.449 27, the Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom 00:53:49.449 --> 00:53:51.289 shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my 00:53:51.289 --> 00:53:53.070 life and whom shall I be afraid? Those aren't 00:53:53.070 --> 00:53:56.289 just words. Those are rhetorical questions that 00:53:56.289 --> 00:54:00.849 you're supposed to answer with nothing, nobody. 00:54:02.369 --> 00:54:13.949 I have nothing to fear. And then, Paul writes 00:54:13.949 --> 00:54:15.809 in one of the darkest moments of his life, that's 00:54:15.809 --> 00:54:19.070 why I am suffering as I am. Yet this is no cause 00:54:19.070 --> 00:54:22.230 for shame, because I know whom I have believed, 00:54:22.449 --> 00:54:24.969 and I am convinced that he is able to guard what 00:54:24.969 --> 00:54:29.469 I have entrusted to him unto that day. And again, 00:54:29.650 --> 00:54:31.949 and the peace of God which surpasses all understanding 00:54:31.949 --> 00:54:34.949 will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ 00:54:34.949 --> 00:54:38.989 Jesus. What kind of people was it again? It's 00:54:38.989 --> 00:54:41.090 the people who have recognized that the grace 00:54:41.090 --> 00:54:43.869 of God is plainly and obviously presented to 00:54:43.869 --> 00:54:47.469 all men, that salvation is available, that when 00:54:47.469 --> 00:54:50.170 we recognize that we received mercy from God 00:54:50.170 --> 00:54:54.510 and be claimed as His special people, and very 00:54:54.510 --> 00:54:57.329 simply put, since then, we have done our best 00:54:57.329 --> 00:55:03.489 to maintain good works. Is it fear that stops 00:55:03.489 --> 00:55:06.630 true believers from being heard or showing up? 00:55:07.849 --> 00:55:10.050 Or have you invented some other larger beast? 00:55:10.289 --> 00:55:14.769 Some other more dangerous possibility? That you 00:55:14.769 --> 00:55:18.050 really could die for your faith? Or you really 00:55:18.050 --> 00:55:22.010 could run out of money? Or you really could suffer 00:55:22.010 --> 00:55:28.949 something that you just can't stand? Well, this 00:55:28.949 --> 00:55:32.309 is what I see. New Heights Fellowship will be 00:55:32.309 --> 00:55:36.030 a church of true believers. We will not be silent. 00:55:37.769 --> 00:55:40.690 We will get the gospel out by word and by deed. 00:55:41.750 --> 00:55:44.929 And we will not be stopped. The fact is that 00:55:44.929 --> 00:55:46.789 even death cannot keep us from our destination. 00:55:47.289 --> 00:55:52.030 And we will live like we know where we are going. 00:55:53.329 --> 00:55:56.730 The question is, will you join us?