WEBVTT 00:00:05.839 --> 00:00:08.560 2 Corinthians, kind of toward the back of your 00:00:08.560 --> 00:00:14.039 Bible. Chapter 13, we have, over the last year 00:00:14.039 --> 00:00:18.320 or so, we've worked our way through 2 Corinthians. 00:00:18.600 --> 00:00:20.579 We're going to finish it up tonight, Lord willing. 00:00:20.640 --> 00:00:22.640 We're going to read the whole chapter. It's relatively 00:00:22.640 --> 00:00:26.699 short. A lot of kind of the same ideas in these 00:00:26.699 --> 00:00:30.179 last few chapters of 2 Corinthians. Kind of the 00:00:30.179 --> 00:00:32.679 same ideas we kind of see repeating itself. We 00:00:32.679 --> 00:00:36.219 kind of get what's going on. by this point in 00:00:36.219 --> 00:00:40.820 the book. And Paul is closing this letter to 00:00:40.820 --> 00:00:44.500 the Corinthians here in chapter 13. So let's 00:00:44.500 --> 00:00:47.140 pray, and then we'll read through the whole chapter, 00:00:47.179 --> 00:00:50.020 and then we'll talk about it. God, we come to 00:00:50.020 --> 00:00:52.840 you. We thank you for being good to us. We thank 00:00:52.840 --> 00:00:56.179 you for your word, dear Lord, and I pray that 00:00:56.179 --> 00:00:58.219 your Holy Spirit would be with us tonight, that 00:00:58.219 --> 00:01:01.280 you would free us from whatever distractions 00:01:01.280 --> 00:01:04.810 and worries and thoughts and just... stresses 00:01:04.810 --> 00:01:07.489 that we may have brought into this place, dear 00:01:07.489 --> 00:01:11.189 Lord. Life is pretty tough. And so probably there's 00:01:11.189 --> 00:01:13.189 some in here, dear Lord, that had a hard day 00:01:13.189 --> 00:01:15.730 today, or maybe they got a hard day before them 00:01:15.730 --> 00:01:19.230 tomorrow. But I pray that for a few minutes here 00:01:19.230 --> 00:01:21.930 that maybe your word would speak to us, that 00:01:21.930 --> 00:01:25.810 we would grow in you in some way through what 00:01:25.810 --> 00:01:28.150 your word says tonight. So I pray that you would 00:01:28.150 --> 00:01:30.769 help me to preach and teach in a way that brings 00:01:30.769 --> 00:01:33.530 glory and honor to you. And let your Holy Spirit 00:01:33.530 --> 00:01:37.230 be among us tonight. In Jesus' name I ask it. 00:01:37.489 --> 00:01:41.950 Amen. All right, 2 Corinthians chapter 13, verse 00:01:41.950 --> 00:01:48.030 1. We'll read all 13 verses. This is the third 00:01:48.030 --> 00:01:52.349 time I am coming to you. Every fact must be established 00:01:52.349 --> 00:01:56.870 by the testimony of two or three witnesses. I 00:01:56.870 --> 00:01:59.230 gave a warning when I was present the second 00:01:59.230 --> 00:02:03.189 time. And now I give a warning while I am absent 00:02:03.189 --> 00:02:06.769 to those who sinned before and to all the rest. 00:02:07.250 --> 00:02:12.030 If I come again, I will not be lenient, since 00:02:12.030 --> 00:02:15.629 you seek proof of Christ speaking in me. He is 00:02:15.629 --> 00:02:18.310 not weak toward you, but powerful among you. 00:02:18.430 --> 00:02:22.569 In fact, he was crucified in weakness, but he 00:02:22.569 --> 00:02:27.150 lives by God's power. For we also are weak in 00:02:27.150 --> 00:02:30.860 him, yet toward you... We will live with him 00:02:30.860 --> 00:02:36.460 by God's power. Test yourselves to see if you 00:02:36.460 --> 00:02:40.599 are in the faith. Examine yourselves. Or do you 00:02:40.599 --> 00:02:43.900 yourselves not recognize that Jesus Christ is 00:02:43.900 --> 00:02:49.039 in you? Unless you fail the test. And I hope 00:02:49.039 --> 00:02:51.800 you will recognize that we do not fail the test. 00:02:52.560 --> 00:02:55.360 Now we pray to God that you do nothing wrong. 00:02:55.919 --> 00:03:00.069 Not that we may appear to pass the test. but 00:03:00.069 --> 00:03:03.050 that you may do what is right, even though we 00:03:03.050 --> 00:03:06.770 may appear to fail. For we are not able to do 00:03:06.770 --> 00:03:10.310 anything against the truth, but only for the 00:03:10.310 --> 00:03:14.050 truth. In fact, we rejoice when we are weak and 00:03:14.050 --> 00:03:17.689 you are strong. We also pray that you become 00:03:17.689 --> 00:03:21.849 fully mature. This is why I am writing these 00:03:21.849 --> 00:03:25.370 things while absent, that when I am there, I 00:03:25.370 --> 00:03:28.819 will not use severity. In keeping with the authority 00:03:28.819 --> 00:03:32.240 the Lord gave me for building up and not for 00:03:32.240 --> 00:03:38.020 tearing down. Finally, brothers, rejoice. Become 00:03:38.020 --> 00:03:42.719 mature. Be encouraged. Be of the same mind. Be 00:03:42.719 --> 00:03:46.659 at peace. And the God of love and peace will 00:03:46.659 --> 00:03:50.020 be with you. Greet one another with a holy kiss. 00:03:50.599 --> 00:03:54.840 All the saints greet you. The grace of the Lord 00:03:54.840 --> 00:03:58.280 Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship 00:03:58.280 --> 00:04:04.340 of the Holy Spirit be with all of you. Now, we've 00:04:04.340 --> 00:04:07.240 already seen throughout the book that Paul's 00:04:07.240 --> 00:04:11.520 main concern is really the people of Corinth. 00:04:11.919 --> 00:04:14.639 He really loves them. He does not want to see 00:04:14.639 --> 00:04:20.240 them succumb to sin. trusting in Jesus Christ 00:04:20.240 --> 00:04:23.259 and continuing to walk in faith in Jesus Christ 00:04:23.259 --> 00:04:27.300 and not being led astray by false teaching and 00:04:27.300 --> 00:04:32.000 by sin. And he so desperately wants to be able 00:04:32.000 --> 00:04:35.680 to come and to see that they are doing well. 00:04:35.980 --> 00:04:39.019 He wants to come and he wants to get a good report. 00:04:39.500 --> 00:04:42.319 that he sees brothers and sisters in Christ loving 00:04:42.319 --> 00:04:45.839 one another, helping one another, serving the 00:04:45.839 --> 00:04:48.279 Lord. That's what he wants, and that's why he's 00:04:48.279 --> 00:04:51.120 writing this letter. That's why he's kind of 00:04:51.120 --> 00:04:53.579 harsh toward them. He's kind of strong toward 00:04:53.579 --> 00:04:57.180 some of his words. He says, look, I'm coming, 00:04:57.199 --> 00:04:59.740 and what I want is to see you doing good, but 00:04:59.740 --> 00:05:02.199 if you're not doing good, it's going to have 00:05:02.199 --> 00:05:05.439 to be addressed. And he quotes an Old Testament 00:05:05.439 --> 00:05:07.980 passage, you know, based on the testimony of 00:05:07.980 --> 00:05:10.560 two or three witnesses. If a charge is brought 00:05:10.560 --> 00:05:12.720 against you, if brothers in Christ say, look, 00:05:12.860 --> 00:05:15.259 here's a brother, here's a sister, here's some 00:05:15.259 --> 00:05:17.899 sin that's taking place in our community, in 00:05:17.899 --> 00:05:20.279 our church group, among the Christians who are 00:05:20.279 --> 00:05:23.100 here, Paul says, I'm going to have to address 00:05:23.100 --> 00:05:26.160 that because that's not good and that's not healthy. 00:05:27.019 --> 00:05:30.579 And so he gives them a very simple instruction. 00:05:31.560 --> 00:05:34.980 And it's a good instruction. For us to consider 00:05:34.980 --> 00:05:38.740 from time to time in our life. He tells them 00:05:38.740 --> 00:05:45.060 in verse 5. He says test yourselves to see if 00:05:45.060 --> 00:05:50.019 you are in the faith. Examine yourselves he says. 00:05:50.500 --> 00:05:52.839 Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith. 00:05:53.019 --> 00:05:56.740 Now he's not saying doubt whether or not you're 00:05:56.740 --> 00:05:58.759 a Christian. He's not calling into question whether 00:05:58.759 --> 00:06:00.720 they doubt they're really a Christian or not. 00:06:01.779 --> 00:06:05.079 What he's saying is. Do you really trust Jesus? 00:06:05.699 --> 00:06:09.060 I'm not causing you to doubt. Maybe you are really 00:06:09.060 --> 00:06:11.100 a Christian. I'm not trying to bring extra doubt 00:06:11.100 --> 00:06:15.439 into your life. But maybe you really never really 00:06:15.439 --> 00:06:19.120 did trust Jesus. Maybe you know about Jesus. 00:06:19.319 --> 00:06:21.800 Maybe you heard me preach to you Paul saying 00:06:21.800 --> 00:06:25.300 before. Maybe you know about the scripture. And 00:06:25.300 --> 00:06:27.939 maybe you had an emotional response when you 00:06:27.939 --> 00:06:30.899 heard the gospel of Jesus Christ. But you really 00:06:30.899 --> 00:06:34.550 didn't trust him. You really didn't submit your 00:06:34.550 --> 00:06:37.949 life to him. You really haven't been living for 00:06:37.949 --> 00:06:41.149 him. And maybe that's a good thing for us to 00:06:41.149 --> 00:06:45.269 consider. Maybe according to the world, we are 00:06:45.269 --> 00:06:47.629 pretty good people. And maybe we do come to church. 00:06:47.709 --> 00:06:49.850 And maybe we are involved. And maybe we do really 00:06:49.850 --> 00:06:53.250 love people. And maybe we do know about Jesus. 00:06:54.029 --> 00:06:58.699 Maybe we've even been baptized before. And there's 00:06:58.699 --> 00:07:01.079 a lot of people that may fall into some of those 00:07:01.079 --> 00:07:04.860 categories or all of those categories, but they 00:07:04.860 --> 00:07:07.980 really never have trusted Jesus Christ. They've 00:07:07.980 --> 00:07:11.879 been living for themselves, and maybe it's obvious 00:07:11.879 --> 00:07:14.079 to them in their heart. Maybe they know that 00:07:14.079 --> 00:07:17.199 there's a void there. Maybe it's obvious through 00:07:17.199 --> 00:07:20.000 their own actions, through the things that they 00:07:20.000 --> 00:07:22.819 do every day, through the sins that they continue 00:07:22.819 --> 00:07:25.660 to commit, through the heart that they have. 00:07:26.539 --> 00:07:29.720 Maybe there's already some evidence that's there. 00:07:29.920 --> 00:07:32.000 Or maybe it's there and you don't even realize 00:07:32.000 --> 00:07:34.300 it. And maybe we read through the Scripture, 00:07:34.500 --> 00:07:36.720 through 2 Corinthians or through other Scriptures, 00:07:36.879 --> 00:07:39.879 and we see the words that Jesus speaks, and we 00:07:39.879 --> 00:07:43.000 see the words that the Bible speaks, and we say, 00:07:43.100 --> 00:07:47.980 wait a minute. I've gone to church for a long 00:07:47.980 --> 00:07:53.149 time, but maybe I'm not living for Jesus. Maybe 00:07:53.149 --> 00:07:57.649 I've not really ever followed Jesus. And so Paul 00:07:57.649 --> 00:08:01.769 says, look, you need to examine yourselves because 00:08:01.769 --> 00:08:04.189 there are some things that are going on in your 00:08:04.189 --> 00:08:06.170 life that shouldn't be going on in your life. 00:08:06.790 --> 00:08:09.269 There are some things that you're doing. There's 00:08:09.269 --> 00:08:12.170 a way that you're acting and this is not how 00:08:12.170 --> 00:08:16.050 Christians act. So don't be fooled. Don't be 00:08:16.050 --> 00:08:19.069 fooled just because you walked an aisle or just 00:08:19.069 --> 00:08:21.389 because you got baptized. Don't be fooled to 00:08:21.389 --> 00:08:23.589 think that that's God. that that's all God wants 00:08:23.589 --> 00:08:25.970 from you, because God, what He really wants from 00:08:25.970 --> 00:08:29.870 you is a heart that is repentant. And maybe you're 00:08:29.870 --> 00:08:33.330 not, you know, you don't have any animosity toward 00:08:33.330 --> 00:08:36.690 God. Maybe you haven't rejected Jesus Christ. 00:08:36.769 --> 00:08:39.409 You're not just outright rejecting Him. You just, 00:08:39.529 --> 00:08:41.929 you never really knew what it was like to follow. 00:08:42.049 --> 00:08:44.740 And maybe somebody told you one day, if you say 00:08:44.740 --> 00:08:47.759 this prayer, if you just walk up front, if you'll 00:08:47.759 --> 00:08:50.399 just get baptized, then you'll be saved. And 00:08:50.399 --> 00:08:52.620 maybe you did those things, but maybe your heart 00:08:52.620 --> 00:08:57.620 did not change. And maybe your actions show that. 00:08:58.820 --> 00:09:01.179 Maybe the way you're living now show that your 00:09:01.179 --> 00:09:06.240 heart really hasn't changed. And Paul looks at 00:09:06.240 --> 00:09:10.139 these Corinthians and he says, look, you were 00:09:10.139 --> 00:09:13.639 doing good at one point. I saw you. You listened 00:09:13.639 --> 00:09:16.600 to what I said. You were glad to hear it. And 00:09:16.600 --> 00:09:18.720 even now it doesn't appear that they're rejecting 00:09:18.720 --> 00:09:21.600 Jesus. It just appears that they've been taught 00:09:21.600 --> 00:09:23.440 some other stuff that's kind of pulling them 00:09:23.440 --> 00:09:25.179 away and they're kind of getting caught up in 00:09:25.179 --> 00:09:28.379 the weeds and they're beginning to fall back 00:09:28.379 --> 00:09:30.519 into some of the same sinfulness that he addressed 00:09:30.519 --> 00:09:33.980 in 1 Corinthians. And he says, look, what I want 00:09:33.980 --> 00:09:36.120 more than anything is for you to know that Jesus 00:09:36.120 --> 00:09:38.960 is real and I want you to trust him and to follow 00:09:38.960 --> 00:09:42.340 him and to be obedient to him. And he says, I'm 00:09:42.340 --> 00:09:45.299 coming, and there's going to be a judgment, and 00:09:45.299 --> 00:09:47.299 I don't know exactly what Paul's talking about. 00:09:47.360 --> 00:09:49.860 He talks about two or three witnesses, so they're 00:09:49.860 --> 00:09:51.740 going to be on trial of sorts. I don't know that 00:09:51.740 --> 00:09:54.019 he's going to set up a bench for them to sit 00:09:54.019 --> 00:09:57.159 in and say, here you are, you're on trial. But 00:09:57.159 --> 00:09:59.559 he said there's going to be some judgment passed. 00:09:59.720 --> 00:10:01.360 There's going to be some discipline that's going 00:10:01.360 --> 00:10:04.639 to take place. And yeah, that was going to happen 00:10:04.639 --> 00:10:07.000 when Paul arrived, but that's going to happen 00:10:07.000 --> 00:10:09.399 one day for us in a much grander sense when we 00:10:09.399 --> 00:10:14.309 stand before the Lord. And one day we're going 00:10:14.309 --> 00:10:17.909 to stand in that judgment. And what's going to 00:10:17.909 --> 00:10:21.809 be the witness against us? Who's going to be 00:10:21.809 --> 00:10:25.649 the one to speak up for us? Because the one to 00:10:25.649 --> 00:10:28.210 speak up for us is Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ 00:10:28.210 --> 00:10:35.350 alone. And if we don't follow Jesus Christ, who 00:10:35.350 --> 00:10:39.629 will we have to cover our sins on that day? We'll 00:10:39.629 --> 00:10:44.639 have a lifetime of sins that are before us. And 00:10:44.639 --> 00:10:46.399 maybe there will be many that day that will say, 00:10:46.580 --> 00:10:52.240 Jesus, I was pretty good. Jesus, I did some good 00:10:52.240 --> 00:10:56.820 stuff. I did go to church a lot. But I'm asking 00:10:56.820 --> 00:11:00.179 you tonight, do you trust him? Do you really 00:11:00.179 --> 00:11:02.720 know him? Sometimes there's people that go their 00:11:02.720 --> 00:11:05.539 whole life and they realize when they're 60, 00:11:05.639 --> 00:11:08.059 70, 80 years old, they say, you know what? I 00:11:08.059 --> 00:11:11.360 never really trusted Jesus. I was still living 00:11:11.360 --> 00:11:14.960 for myself. I didn't hate Jesus. Push Jesus away. 00:11:15.000 --> 00:11:18.519 I didn't realize that I really wasn't serving 00:11:18.519 --> 00:11:21.100 Jesus. That I was serving myself. And Paul says, 00:11:21.440 --> 00:11:25.840 test yourself to see if you're in the face. Examine 00:11:25.840 --> 00:11:30.480 yourself. Or do you yourself not recognize that 00:11:30.480 --> 00:11:34.399 Jesus Christ is in you? Okay, we test ourselves. 00:11:34.620 --> 00:11:37.379 And maybe you test yourself tonight. And maybe 00:11:37.379 --> 00:11:40.220 you realize that Jesus Christ is in you. Praise 00:11:40.220 --> 00:11:43.720 the Lord. Now, that's not to say that Christians 00:11:43.720 --> 00:11:45.940 don't sin. I'm not saying that if you examine 00:11:45.940 --> 00:11:48.399 your life and you see some sin in your life, 00:11:48.460 --> 00:11:50.179 that that just means, man, I must have not ever 00:11:50.179 --> 00:11:53.659 trusted Jesus. Even Christians sin. I believe 00:11:53.659 --> 00:11:56.740 that to be the case for sure. I'm not saying 00:11:56.740 --> 00:11:59.440 that if you sin, that doesn't mean that you're 00:11:59.440 --> 00:12:03.759 really a Christian. But Paul says examine yourself 00:12:03.759 --> 00:12:07.480 and make sure. Make sure that you are following 00:12:07.480 --> 00:12:10.740 Jesus. Make sure that the Holy Spirit is within 00:12:10.740 --> 00:12:14.230 you. Make sure that you're trusting in him. Make 00:12:14.230 --> 00:12:16.429 sure that you're living for him and not for yourself. 00:12:17.169 --> 00:12:19.870 And maybe you test yourself and you say, God, 00:12:19.950 --> 00:12:23.009 I really do trust you. But there is some stuff 00:12:23.009 --> 00:12:26.610 in my life that is not right. God, maybe I've 00:12:26.610 --> 00:12:28.649 been saying the right things and I've been preaching 00:12:28.649 --> 00:12:31.370 the right things and I know your word. But God, 00:12:31.450 --> 00:12:34.330 maybe there's some conviction in our heart tonight 00:12:34.330 --> 00:12:37.509 that we need to say, God, I am yours and I know 00:12:37.509 --> 00:12:40.370 I'm yours. But I cannot live this way because 00:12:40.370 --> 00:12:46.649 I'm not living for you. And Paul says, do you 00:12:46.649 --> 00:12:49.409 yourselves not recognize that Jesus is in you? 00:12:50.090 --> 00:12:56.409 Maybe he is. Unless you fail the test. Unless 00:12:56.409 --> 00:13:02.409 you fail the test. It is a bummer to fail a test. 00:13:02.549 --> 00:13:05.529 Everybody in here took tests in your life. And 00:13:05.529 --> 00:13:08.730 man. Sometimes you study and you study and you 00:13:08.730 --> 00:13:11.029 study and you think you're prepared and you think 00:13:11.029 --> 00:13:12.590 you're ready and you think you're going to do 00:13:12.590 --> 00:13:16.629 so good and you just bomb the test. That is a 00:13:16.629 --> 00:13:21.070 bummer to fail a test. But when we fail a test, 00:13:21.110 --> 00:13:23.649 it helps us to know that maybe we didn't know 00:13:23.649 --> 00:13:26.350 as much as we thought we did. When we fail at 00:13:26.350 --> 00:13:29.210 anything, There are things that sometimes we 00:13:29.210 --> 00:13:31.590 think we got it figured out and we just fail 00:13:31.590 --> 00:13:34.710 miserably. Even when we're trying our best and 00:13:34.710 --> 00:13:37.149 we think we're doing right, we realize that we 00:13:37.149 --> 00:13:42.649 just fail miserably. And maybe if we begin to 00:13:42.649 --> 00:13:46.009 read God's Word, we begin to pray and we begin 00:13:46.009 --> 00:13:49.009 to seek, and we begin to read the words of Jesus 00:13:49.009 --> 00:13:53.330 Christ, and we begin to examine His life, and 00:13:53.330 --> 00:13:56.759 we begin to look at our life. We begin to ask 00:13:56.759 --> 00:13:59.039 God to reveal to us things maybe that are hidden, 00:13:59.080 --> 00:14:01.059 that we don't see, to open our eyes, to open 00:14:01.059 --> 00:14:04.799 our ears, that we may hear. We begin to test 00:14:04.799 --> 00:14:08.620 ourselves against what Scripture says and against 00:14:08.620 --> 00:14:12.639 how we live. And maybe we find that we fail, 00:14:12.820 --> 00:14:17.720 and we fail, and we fail, and we fail, and we 00:14:17.720 --> 00:14:21.559 fail, until when the test is done, we realize 00:14:21.559 --> 00:14:25.539 that Perhaps we don't have faith in Jesus Christ 00:14:25.539 --> 00:14:31.240 at all. And Paul says, I want you to know that 00:14:31.240 --> 00:14:34.299 you know that you know that you trust in Jesus 00:14:34.299 --> 00:14:37.340 Christ. I want you to know that you're not living 00:14:37.340 --> 00:14:40.899 in sin. I want you not to be led astray by false 00:14:40.899 --> 00:14:43.720 teachings. I want you not to give in to sin. 00:14:43.960 --> 00:14:46.919 I want you to know Jesus. I want you to experience 00:14:46.919 --> 00:14:51.870 Jesus. I want you to mature in Jesus. What about 00:14:51.870 --> 00:14:55.850 us? Are we growing? Are we maturing in any way 00:14:55.850 --> 00:14:59.230 whatsoever in the word of God? We should be some 00:14:59.230 --> 00:15:03.870 a little bit. We should be. And Paul goes on 00:15:03.870 --> 00:15:07.019 to say, he says, look. You say we're weak. You 00:15:07.019 --> 00:15:09.000 say we fail. So be it. If that's how you view 00:15:09.000 --> 00:15:11.980 us, if we fail, if you think we fail, then so 00:15:11.980 --> 00:15:14.419 be it. Paul says, I'm not worried about what 00:15:14.419 --> 00:15:17.679 you think of me and how weak I am or how poor 00:15:17.679 --> 00:15:20.779 I speak or if I'm a failure. He says, what I 00:15:20.779 --> 00:15:27.639 care about is you. And so many times, so many 00:15:27.639 --> 00:15:33.500 times people reject Jesus Christ because of what 00:15:33.500 --> 00:15:37.720 they see. from those who profess to be Christians 00:15:37.720 --> 00:15:41.820 and maybe genuinely are. And so many times people 00:15:41.820 --> 00:15:45.200 reject Jesus Christ because they see those of 00:15:45.200 --> 00:15:48.860 us who are Christ's children living like the 00:15:48.860 --> 00:15:53.679 world. Now we need to think about that because 00:15:53.679 --> 00:15:57.009 people are looking to us. If we're going to profess 00:15:57.009 --> 00:15:58.830 the goodness of God, if we're going to profess 00:15:58.830 --> 00:16:00.769 to be Christian, if we're going to confess to 00:16:00.769 --> 00:16:02.909 live by the commands of God, then we need to 00:16:02.909 --> 00:16:07.250 live by the commands of God. Now that's no excuse. 00:16:08.230 --> 00:16:10.710 Ultimately, people have to make the decision 00:16:10.710 --> 00:16:14.409 for themselves. But if there's somebody here 00:16:14.409 --> 00:16:16.110 tonight or there's somebody that's listening 00:16:16.110 --> 00:16:20.210 online, do not reject Jesus because Jesus' followers 00:16:20.210 --> 00:16:25.720 fail. Because Jesus' followers do fail. Don't 00:16:25.720 --> 00:16:29.299 reject Jesus because of others. Read the words 00:16:29.299 --> 00:16:32.299 of Jesus for yourself. See the life of Jesus. 00:16:34.600 --> 00:16:37.860 And that's what we should all strive to do. And 00:16:37.860 --> 00:16:40.740 that's what Paul wants the Corinthians to do. 00:16:41.860 --> 00:16:44.779 So he says, I'm coming. I'm coming to see you 00:16:44.779 --> 00:16:47.940 and I want to see that you're doing well. But 00:16:47.940 --> 00:16:52.659 before I come, I want you to test yourself. To 00:16:52.659 --> 00:16:54.539 make sure that you know that you're following 00:16:54.539 --> 00:16:59.940 Jesus. To make sure that you have faith in Jesus. 00:17:02.159 --> 00:17:05.759 And that's a good command for us. That's a good 00:17:05.759 --> 00:17:10.119 instruction for us. You read the scriptures, 00:17:10.319 --> 00:17:13.799 you seek the Lord. And maybe you say, God, I 00:17:13.799 --> 00:17:16.940 know I'm yours. But maybe there's some areas 00:17:16.940 --> 00:17:18.700 we need to clean up. Praise the Lord, we repent 00:17:18.700 --> 00:17:22.970 of those things. But maybe you test yourself 00:17:22.970 --> 00:17:28.490 tonight. And maybe you're 12 years old. Or maybe 00:17:28.490 --> 00:17:32.769 you're 102 years old. And maybe you've been to 00:17:32.769 --> 00:17:35.650 church a lot. And maybe you can quote more scripture 00:17:35.650 --> 00:17:39.809 than anybody you know. But maybe the Holy Spirit's 00:17:39.809 --> 00:17:42.750 been convicting you. Maybe the Holy Spirit's 00:17:42.750 --> 00:17:46.670 convicting you now. And maybe you've already 00:17:46.670 --> 00:17:50.019 taken that test in your heart tonight. Or maybe 00:17:50.019 --> 00:17:51.759 you're going to begin to test yourself in the 00:17:51.759 --> 00:17:55.759 days to come. And if you fail the test, I've 00:17:55.759 --> 00:17:58.980 got good news for you. You can take it again 00:17:58.980 --> 00:18:03.039 in Jesus Christ. I'm going to give you the answer 00:18:03.039 --> 00:18:05.559 to the test beforehand. I'm not cheating. The 00:18:05.559 --> 00:18:09.980 answer is Jesus. The answer to the test is Jesus. 00:18:11.140 --> 00:18:14.200 That's the only answer. If you don't know that 00:18:14.200 --> 00:18:16.799 answer and you don't live by that answer, if 00:18:16.799 --> 00:18:21.240 you don't trust in that answer, Then you fail 00:18:21.240 --> 00:18:25.039 the test. But if you trust in Jesus tonight, 00:18:25.099 --> 00:18:28.319 if you'd call out to him tonight, if you'd repent 00:18:28.319 --> 00:18:30.440 of your sins, he'll wash you as white as snow 00:18:30.440 --> 00:18:36.279 and you'll get an A+. Not because you have done 00:18:36.279 --> 00:18:40.359 anything right, but because Jesus died on a cross 00:18:40.359 --> 00:18:45.440 so that you could be forgiven. Let's pray. God, 00:18:45.539 --> 00:18:48.369 we thank you for these good words. We thank you 00:18:48.369 --> 00:18:51.349 for people like Paul for showing his love and 00:18:51.349 --> 00:18:56.029 his care for these people, dear Lord. For his 00:18:56.029 --> 00:19:00.069 desire for them to just seek you and to live 00:19:00.069 --> 00:19:04.109 right and to mature in you, dear Lord. And maybe 00:19:04.109 --> 00:19:06.150 we need to listen to the things that he said, 00:19:06.250 --> 00:19:09.769 God. Because maybe we're spiritually immature. 00:19:10.970 --> 00:19:14.390 Maybe we're led astray sometimes. Maybe we find 00:19:14.390 --> 00:19:17.450 ourselves giving back into sin. We've got no 00:19:17.450 --> 00:19:21.470 business, no business getting involved back in, 00:19:21.569 --> 00:19:23.329 dear Lord. And we know it and we feel it and 00:19:23.329 --> 00:19:25.289 we're convicted of it and we're just weak, dear 00:19:25.289 --> 00:19:28.430 Lord. And sometimes we just, we fall into it 00:19:28.430 --> 00:19:31.509 again and again. And I pray that you help us 00:19:31.509 --> 00:19:34.170 tonight, dear Lord, for those that just struggle 00:19:34.170 --> 00:19:36.410 with sin, that you would give them strength and 00:19:36.410 --> 00:19:40.029 comfort. Just help them to know that there is 00:19:40.029 --> 00:19:42.190 power to overcome that through Jesus Christ. 00:19:43.509 --> 00:19:45.569 I pray, God, that we would seek to be a people 00:19:45.569 --> 00:19:50.299 who, would mature, that we would seek your word, 00:19:50.519 --> 00:19:53.599 that we'd seek to live by it. And maybe we know 00:19:53.599 --> 00:19:56.299 it, but maybe we just, maybe we hadn't been living 00:19:56.299 --> 00:19:58.480 by it. Maybe parts of it we have and parts of 00:19:58.480 --> 00:20:02.559 it we haven't. God, I pray that you just open 00:20:02.559 --> 00:20:07.400 our eyes to see where maybe we say the right 00:20:07.400 --> 00:20:10.200 words, but our actions don't match up with what 00:20:10.200 --> 00:20:14.819 we say. God, maybe there are some tonight that... 00:20:16.639 --> 00:20:18.880 They're testing themselves even in this moment, 00:20:18.960 --> 00:20:20.880 God, through this word. Maybe they just heard 00:20:20.880 --> 00:20:25.039 these words of Paul. And maybe they're just testing 00:20:25.039 --> 00:20:26.920 themselves. And maybe there's some even in this 00:20:26.920 --> 00:20:29.420 room, dear Lord, or some listening online. And 00:20:29.420 --> 00:20:31.940 maybe they've been to church a lot even, dear 00:20:31.940 --> 00:20:35.740 Lord. But maybe they just realized that they 00:20:35.740 --> 00:20:39.559 know about Jesus, but they've never really trusted 00:20:39.559 --> 00:20:42.700 Him. God, if there are any who fail the test, 00:20:44.020 --> 00:20:46.099 Help them to realize that tonight or in the days 00:20:46.099 --> 00:20:48.619 to come, dear Lord, that they would repent and 00:20:48.619 --> 00:20:52.319 trust in Jesus Christ, that they would know without 00:20:52.319 --> 00:20:54.079 a shadow of a doubt, dear Lord, that they have 00:20:54.079 --> 00:20:57.579 been forgiven. I pray, God, that you would help 00:20:57.579 --> 00:21:02.460 us to mature in you, to grow in you, and to know 00:21:02.460 --> 00:21:07.500 your words, God, and to know Jesus Christ. And 00:21:07.500 --> 00:21:10.140 it's in Jesus' name I pray it. Amen.