WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.359 Welcome to 563 Church, where with Pastor Daniel 00:00:03.359 --> 00:00:06.360 Rees, we'll be exploring Revelation chapter 2, 00:00:06.540 --> 00:00:09.439 verses 12 through 17 where Jesus addresses the 00:00:09.439 --> 00:00:11.919 Church in Pergamum, a city known for its strong 00:00:11.919 --> 00:00:15.220 pagan worship and the throne of Satan. He commends 00:00:15.220 --> 00:00:17.420 them for remaining faithful to his name despite 00:00:17.420 --> 00:00:19.460 living in a challenging environment where some 00:00:19.460 --> 00:00:22.600 have compromised their faith. This passage warns 00:00:22.600 --> 00:00:24.780 against false teachings and encourages believers 00:00:24.780 --> 00:00:27.260 to hold fast to the truth, promising a hidden 00:00:27.260 --> 00:00:30.839 manna and a new name to those who overcome. will 00:00:30.839 --> 00:00:38.460 be this morning. I think I saw him, but I don't 00:00:38.460 --> 00:00:42.000 see him right now. There he is. Everybody, our 00:00:42.000 --> 00:00:44.119 associate pastor is in the house this morning. 00:00:49.719 --> 00:00:51.759 Schnecklau family, you're officially stuck with 00:00:51.759 --> 00:00:53.859 us and we're so glad you all are here today. 00:00:55.399 --> 00:00:57.140 If you have your Bibles, Revelation 2, we'll 00:00:57.140 --> 00:00:59.780 be looking at the third of the seven churches 00:00:59.780 --> 00:01:02.799 that Jesus addresses in the book of Revelation. 00:01:02.939 --> 00:01:05.939 We've looked at Ephesus, where Jesus commends 00:01:05.939 --> 00:01:07.879 them on several things. They were doing several 00:01:07.879 --> 00:01:11.040 things well, but warns them that if they don't 00:01:11.040 --> 00:01:13.659 get back to what they were doing at first, at 00:01:13.659 --> 00:01:16.040 the beginning, He would come and He would remove 00:01:16.040 --> 00:01:18.700 their lamp stand, which in essence is saying 00:01:18.700 --> 00:01:20.719 that He would not be with them anymore. His spirit 00:01:20.719 --> 00:01:23.939 would not dwell in that place anymore. After 00:01:23.939 --> 00:01:25.780 some study we learned that what they were doing 00:01:25.780 --> 00:01:29.379 at first was living in an honest community where 00:01:29.379 --> 00:01:32.640 repentance and confession were a part of their 00:01:32.640 --> 00:01:35.579 culture. That's what they were doing at first. 00:01:35.939 --> 00:01:38.340 Then last week we looked at the church in Smyrna, 00:01:38.400 --> 00:01:42.780 and Smyrna was known as the persecuted church. 00:01:43.200 --> 00:01:46.299 And Jesus spent some time encouraging them and 00:01:46.299 --> 00:01:49.180 reminding them that if they were to remain faithful, 00:01:49.420 --> 00:01:52.099 they will be victorious over any attack that 00:01:52.099 --> 00:01:55.159 comes their way. This morning we're gonna study 00:01:55.159 --> 00:02:00.340 a church that started off so well. And we're 00:02:00.340 --> 00:02:03.200 gonna study one particular man. that started 00:02:03.200 --> 00:02:06.900 out so strong. And by the time this is over, 00:02:06.900 --> 00:02:12.520 it goes really bad. And I want to talk this morning 00:02:12.520 --> 00:02:16.500 so that we are aware, so that we can make sure 00:02:16.500 --> 00:02:19.240 that this never happens to us. All right, Revelation 00:02:19.240 --> 00:02:21.379 chapter two, we'll start in verse 12. If you're 00:02:21.379 --> 00:02:22.960 willing and able, we'd love for you to stand 00:02:22.960 --> 00:02:30.199 as we honor the Lord's word together. Jesus writes, 00:02:30.490 --> 00:02:33.110 or says, and to the angel of the church in Pergamum, 00:02:33.509 --> 00:02:36.250 write the words of him who has the sharp two 00:02:36.250 --> 00:02:39.629 -edged sword. I know where you dwell, where Satan's 00:02:39.629 --> 00:02:43.009 throne is. Yet you hold fast my name, and you 00:02:43.009 --> 00:02:46.110 did not deny my faith, even in the days of Antipas, 00:02:46.250 --> 00:02:48.569 my faithful witness, who was killed among you, 00:02:48.569 --> 00:02:51.650 where Satan dwells. But I have a few things against 00:02:51.650 --> 00:02:54.729 you. You have some there who hold the teaching 00:02:54.729 --> 00:02:57.689 of Balam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling 00:02:57.689 --> 00:03:00.620 block before the sons of Israel. so that they 00:03:00.620 --> 00:03:03.379 might eat food, sacrifice to idols, and practice 00:03:03.379 --> 00:03:06.439 sexual immorality. So also, you have some who 00:03:06.439 --> 00:03:09.080 hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans. Therefore, 00:03:09.400 --> 00:03:12.500 repent. If not, I will come to you soon and war 00:03:12.500 --> 00:03:15.300 against them with the sword of my mouth. He who 00:03:15.300 --> 00:03:18.139 has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says 00:03:18.139 --> 00:03:20.699 to the churches. To the one who conquers, I will 00:03:20.699 --> 00:03:22.979 give some of the hidden manna and I will give 00:03:22.979 --> 00:03:25.599 him a white stone with a new name written on 00:03:25.599 --> 00:03:28.699 the stone that no one knows except the one who 00:03:28.699 --> 00:03:30.879 receives it. Let's pray. Father, thank you for 00:03:30.879 --> 00:03:37.789 your words to us. Help us see. the stumbling 00:03:37.789 --> 00:03:41.650 blocks that are before us always. Help us open 00:03:41.650 --> 00:03:44.490 our ears and our hearts to understand what you 00:03:44.490 --> 00:03:47.930 were saying to this church in Pergamum. Let this 00:03:47.930 --> 00:03:50.530 not be our story. We ask all these things in 00:03:50.530 --> 00:03:58.710 Jesus' name, amen. So again, we know this is 00:03:58.710 --> 00:04:02.610 Jesus speaking again and we know that this church, 00:04:02.610 --> 00:04:07.849 Pergamum, is in a dark place. The city of Pergamum 00:04:07.849 --> 00:04:11.990 is hostile towards the gospel, and it is a place 00:04:11.990 --> 00:04:15.210 in which having faith in Jesus could get you 00:04:15.210 --> 00:04:18.529 killed. There are temples to all kinds of different 00:04:18.529 --> 00:04:21.430 gods in the city. There's a temple to Zeus. There's 00:04:21.430 --> 00:04:24.810 a temple to Athena. The circumstances in which 00:04:24.810 --> 00:04:28.389 they lived could be compared to what we learned 00:04:28.389 --> 00:04:31.550 last week with what Smyrna was dealing with at 00:04:31.550 --> 00:04:34.550 the same time. But you will notice that once 00:04:34.550 --> 00:04:38.689 we get to verse 14, the story changes because 00:04:38.689 --> 00:04:40.449 he didn't have anything against the church in 00:04:40.449 --> 00:04:44.550 Smyrna. But by the time we get to verse 14, Jesus 00:04:44.550 --> 00:04:47.250 begins to point out some things that they were 00:04:47.250 --> 00:04:51.149 doing wrong. And these things are the difference 00:04:51.149 --> 00:04:55.149 between Smyrna and Pergamum. So the Nicolaitans 00:04:55.149 --> 00:04:59.209 are in Ephesus and they're in Smyrna. These guys 00:04:59.209 --> 00:05:02.250 are everywhere. They're all over the region. 00:05:02.589 --> 00:05:04.709 Now, there's a little bit of wordplay going on 00:05:04.709 --> 00:05:07.089 here in this text. You see in the text, it says 00:05:07.089 --> 00:05:10.089 you tolerate the teachings of Balaam, and you 00:05:10.089 --> 00:05:12.910 tolerate the teachings of the Nicolaitans. And 00:05:12.910 --> 00:05:15.730 it sounds like it's two different, two separate 00:05:15.730 --> 00:05:18.310 things that are happening, except when you get 00:05:18.310 --> 00:05:21.589 into the original language. Because what's happening 00:05:21.589 --> 00:05:25.870 here is Nicolaitian is a Greek word. It comes 00:05:25.870 --> 00:05:29.769 from the name of Nicolus. The Greek for Nicolaitian 00:05:29.800 --> 00:05:34.620 means to conquer the people. And then balam is 00:05:34.620 --> 00:05:39.240 the Hebrew for the exact same thing. Baal means 00:05:39.240 --> 00:05:43.199 to conquer and ha 'am means the people. So both 00:05:43.199 --> 00:05:46.920 of these can be defined as conquer the people. 00:05:47.220 --> 00:05:50.360 And what's going on is that there was this sect. 00:05:50.560 --> 00:05:54.199 within Christianity that had decided is no longer 00:05:54.199 --> 00:05:56.319 going to follow the teachings of the apostles. 00:05:56.540 --> 00:05:58.680 It's no longer going to follow the scripture. 00:05:59.000 --> 00:06:02.839 They're going to give Jesus his name to what 00:06:02.839 --> 00:06:04.620 they're going to be, but they're going to live 00:06:04.620 --> 00:06:07.899 it out in a very different way. And it's all 00:06:07.899 --> 00:06:11.379 built around these trade guilds that they had 00:06:11.379 --> 00:06:13.480 to join in order to do business. Think of it 00:06:13.480 --> 00:06:16.879 like a union, if you will. In the first century, 00:06:17.379 --> 00:06:20.459 You couldn't just do business. You had to join 00:06:20.459 --> 00:06:23.639 a guild. So if you were a silversmith, you would 00:06:23.639 --> 00:06:26.819 have to join the silversmith guild part of town. 00:06:27.040 --> 00:06:29.199 If you were a CPA, which I don't know if they 00:06:29.199 --> 00:06:32.459 had those back then, you would join the CPA guild. 00:06:32.699 --> 00:06:35.459 And what would end up happening is these guilds 00:06:35.459 --> 00:06:38.519 would worship these pagan gods. And what would 00:06:38.519 --> 00:06:41.259 happen is they would go to the temple of Athena, 00:06:41.660 --> 00:06:44.040 who was the goddess of wisdom, and they would 00:06:44.040 --> 00:06:48.160 sacrifice idols or sacrifice foods to this god. 00:06:48.420 --> 00:06:50.980 They would eat those foods. They would then bring 00:06:50.980 --> 00:06:53.680 in temple prostitutes and things like that. And 00:06:53.680 --> 00:06:55.519 because there's kids in the room, let's just 00:06:55.519 --> 00:06:58.579 say it goes badly. All right? It gets rated X. 00:06:58.920 --> 00:07:01.980 And basically what was happening is what was 00:07:01.980 --> 00:07:05.199 the Nicolaitians, the Balaam and the teachings 00:07:05.199 --> 00:07:08.399 of Balak are saying, you can do that, you can 00:07:08.399 --> 00:07:12.160 do those things and still be a believer because 00:07:12.160 --> 00:07:15.439 that's just business. That's good for business. 00:07:16.560 --> 00:07:19.180 Now what makes it so difficult and where we're 00:07:19.180 --> 00:07:21.339 going to spend the majority of our time together 00:07:21.339 --> 00:07:26.269 this morning is this. I was reading a book this 00:07:26.269 --> 00:07:29.029 week by Roland Wirth called The Seven Cities 00:07:29.029 --> 00:07:32.949 of the Apocalypse in Greco -Asian Culture. I'm 00:07:32.949 --> 00:07:35.149 sure you've all read it. I'm sure you know what 00:07:35.149 --> 00:07:39.490 I'm talking about. In that, he begins to cite 00:07:39.490 --> 00:07:42.750 some first century manuscripts and some ancient 00:07:42.750 --> 00:07:46.550 manuscripts that say the founder and main teacher 00:07:46.550 --> 00:07:50.110 of the Nicolaitans was a man by the name of Nicholas 00:07:50.110 --> 00:07:54.060 from Antioch. which means he was a Gentile who 00:07:54.060 --> 00:07:58.180 became a follower of Jesus. Now, let me show 00:07:58.180 --> 00:08:01.600 you why this is hard. Because Nicholas is in 00:08:01.600 --> 00:08:04.699 the scripture already. He's in the scripture, 00:08:04.759 --> 00:08:07.459 but he's not in the scripture as a heretic. He's 00:08:07.459 --> 00:08:11.259 not in the scripture as a evil man. If you have 00:08:11.259 --> 00:08:14.839 your Bibles, turn to Acts chapter six. Now in 00:08:14.839 --> 00:08:18.220 Acts chapter 6, we are following the fastest 00:08:18.220 --> 00:08:21.540 and largest church in the history of the world. 00:08:22.019 --> 00:08:25.920 Basically, they went from 120 to 3 ,000 people 00:08:25.920 --> 00:08:30.839 in an afternoon, which is pretty cool. Some cool 00:08:30.839 --> 00:08:33.039 things have been done since that afternoon, but 00:08:33.039 --> 00:08:37.379 nothing happened that quickly. And so the Church 00:08:37.379 --> 00:08:40.320 of Jerusalem, they had 12 disciples over it. 00:08:40.379 --> 00:08:43.279 And all of a sudden, there's now 3 ,000 of them. 00:08:43.360 --> 00:08:46.120 and they're growing every day. So it was this 00:08:46.120 --> 00:08:49.879 monumental growth. Now, if you are a systems 00:08:49.879 --> 00:08:55.299 guy or lady, if you really like putting things 00:08:55.299 --> 00:08:58.759 in order, this would have been a nightmare situation 00:08:58.759 --> 00:09:02.600 for you. Trying to systemize or trying to put 00:09:02.600 --> 00:09:05.679 into place systems where everybody is cared for 00:09:05.679 --> 00:09:08.809 and loved would have been a nightmare. So that's 00:09:08.809 --> 00:09:10.450 what's going on. Let's read starting in verse 00:09:10.450 --> 00:09:13.909 1 of Acts chapter 6 It says now in these days 00:09:13.909 --> 00:09:16.529 when the disciples were increasing in number 00:09:16.529 --> 00:09:19.309 a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the 00:09:19.309 --> 00:09:21.730 Hebrews because their widows were being neglected 00:09:21.730 --> 00:09:24.490 in the daily distribution and The 12 summoned 00:09:24.490 --> 00:09:26.590 the full number of the disciples and said it 00:09:26.590 --> 00:09:28.730 is not right that we should give a preaching 00:09:28.730 --> 00:09:31.990 the word of God to serve tables So here's what 00:09:31.990 --> 00:09:35.659 they're basically saying We as the leaders, we've 00:09:35.659 --> 00:09:39.240 got to study, we've got to teach, we've got to 00:09:39.240 --> 00:09:41.740 handle the big vision of what this thing looks 00:09:41.740 --> 00:09:44.419 like. We need other people who are gonna be willing 00:09:44.419 --> 00:09:47.279 to step in and serve, because we can't do it 00:09:47.279 --> 00:09:49.879 all. So that's the call that goes out. And then 00:09:49.879 --> 00:09:51.960 pick it up in verse three. It says, therefore, 00:09:52.080 --> 00:09:55.159 brothers, pick out from among you seven men of 00:09:55.159 --> 00:09:58.019 good repute, full of the spirit and of wisdom, 00:09:58.460 --> 00:10:01.480 whom we will appoint to this duty. but we will 00:10:01.480 --> 00:10:04.059 devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry 00:10:04.059 --> 00:10:06.759 of the word. And what they said pleased the whole 00:10:06.759 --> 00:10:09.860 gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full 00:10:09.860 --> 00:10:12.740 of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, 00:10:13.220 --> 00:10:17.259 and Procurus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenius, 00:10:17.519 --> 00:10:22.840 and Nicholas, a proselyte of Antioch. So feeding 00:10:22.840 --> 00:10:26.559 widows in the first century is just service. 00:10:27.000 --> 00:10:29.919 It's not this big thing of honor. It was the 00:10:29.919 --> 00:10:33.059 simple act of service that needed to be done. 00:10:33.639 --> 00:10:36.500 And Nicholas, who's this young man who says, 00:10:36.820 --> 00:10:40.059 this is so awesome, right? Maybe I can't teach, 00:10:40.299 --> 00:10:42.740 maybe I can't study the way they do, let me help 00:10:42.740 --> 00:10:45.899 in this way. He rises to the occasion. And so 00:10:45.899 --> 00:10:48.659 then my question becomes, how do we go from Acts 00:10:48.659 --> 00:10:54.240 chapter six to Revelation chapter two? How do 00:10:54.240 --> 00:10:58.039 we get from, let me serve, I believe in this 00:10:58.039 --> 00:11:00.120 mission, I believe what God is doing amongst 00:11:00.120 --> 00:11:04.720 the people, to Revelation chapter two. Now surely 00:11:04.720 --> 00:11:08.159 it's not too hard to believe that this happened, 00:11:08.720 --> 00:11:13.240 right? Doesn't it happen all the time? And here's 00:11:13.240 --> 00:11:16.240 the thing, if we're really honest, all of us 00:11:16.240 --> 00:11:20.200 want to belong to something. We want to belong 00:11:20.200 --> 00:11:23.100 to something. We wanna be a part. Even if we're 00:11:23.100 --> 00:11:27.779 anti -something. We're with that bunch of people 00:11:27.779 --> 00:11:32.100 who are also anti -something, right? That's the 00:11:32.100 --> 00:11:34.220 funny thing about trying to be an individual. 00:11:34.480 --> 00:11:36.500 You tend to pair up with people who are trying 00:11:36.500 --> 00:11:39.120 to be the same individual you are, right? This 00:11:39.120 --> 00:11:40.320 is what it looked like for me in high school. 00:11:41.139 --> 00:11:43.120 It was, the big thing when I was in high school, 00:11:43.159 --> 00:11:44.539 I don't know if it still is, I haven't seen it, 00:11:44.620 --> 00:11:46.779 but the big thing for me in high school was golf. 00:11:47.980 --> 00:11:51.460 It was these fellow students. who wanted to be 00:11:51.460 --> 00:11:54.519 an individual that didn't want to fit into a 00:11:54.519 --> 00:11:56.860 stereotype, so they dyed their hair black, they 00:11:56.860 --> 00:12:00.240 wore dark black makeup, all their clothes were 00:12:00.240 --> 00:12:03.659 dark, they didn't want to be stereotyped like 00:12:03.659 --> 00:12:07.779 a jock or like a whatever, just a normal high 00:12:07.779 --> 00:12:09.919 school student, so they wanted to be individuals. 00:12:11.360 --> 00:12:13.700 But it wasn't like there was just one guy doing 00:12:13.700 --> 00:12:16.539 the goth thing. There was like a hundred of them. 00:12:18.220 --> 00:12:20.700 It's the same thing. We all want to belong. We 00:12:20.700 --> 00:12:23.759 all want friends. We all want to be able to use 00:12:23.759 --> 00:12:28.860 our natural abilities. And so could it be that 00:12:28.860 --> 00:12:33.440 some in the church, they find their niche, but 00:12:33.440 --> 00:12:36.620 they don't find Jesus. They find their niche. 00:12:37.019 --> 00:12:39.559 The church provides this thing for people where 00:12:39.559 --> 00:12:43.200 we can come in and we can join a group and we 00:12:43.200 --> 00:12:45.720 can learn the language and then you can be a 00:12:45.720 --> 00:12:49.750 part of it. We have all these different ministries 00:12:49.750 --> 00:12:51.389 We have all these different groups within our 00:12:51.389 --> 00:12:53.450 church and you can come in you learn the language 00:12:53.450 --> 00:12:55.730 And then you are a part of it all you have to 00:12:55.730 --> 00:12:57.730 do is learn the language right and you're in 00:12:57.730 --> 00:13:03.350 just a timely amen every once in a while or Or 00:13:03.350 --> 00:13:06.250 something like mm -hmm I get it right like you 00:13:06.250 --> 00:13:08.490 learn those things you learn when to raise your 00:13:08.490 --> 00:13:12.090 hands in worship That's all you have to do Could 00:13:12.090 --> 00:13:16.509 it be that Nicholas found his niche? but not 00:13:16.509 --> 00:13:22.149 Jesus. So that when discipleship really begins 00:13:22.149 --> 00:13:25.889 to occur, so does rebellion. Surely this isn't 00:13:25.889 --> 00:13:30.350 hard to believe, right? Not only do we know people, 00:13:30.389 --> 00:13:33.710 but surely all of us have had a dark night of 00:13:33.710 --> 00:13:37.169 the soul, where we wake up at 3 a .m. for no 00:13:37.169 --> 00:13:39.250 reason and we're praying, but it feels like nobody's 00:13:39.250 --> 00:13:43.120 listening. Anybody else? Well, we're reading 00:13:43.120 --> 00:13:46.399 the Bible and we're doing the cognitive act of 00:13:46.399 --> 00:13:50.940 reading, but it's not reading us. There's something 00:13:50.940 --> 00:13:53.080 really powerful that happens when the scripture 00:13:53.080 --> 00:13:57.320 reads us. And surely we've been there ourselves 00:13:57.320 --> 00:14:01.419 where we've seen these mighty things of God and 00:14:01.419 --> 00:14:04.759 all these things that he has done. We had this 00:14:04.759 --> 00:14:07.059 really great beginning when we think back to 00:14:07.059 --> 00:14:09.419 the beginning of our faith, but we wake up at 00:14:09.419 --> 00:14:12.480 3 a .m., right, with all this doubt. and all 00:14:12.480 --> 00:14:14.860 this frustration, and then we begin to question 00:14:14.860 --> 00:14:18.659 if any of this is really real. Paul is gonna 00:14:18.659 --> 00:14:21.460 say to the church and Philippians, he's gonna 00:14:21.460 --> 00:14:25.379 say that we are to work out our salvation with 00:14:25.379 --> 00:14:29.940 fear and trembling. Work out our salvation with 00:14:29.940 --> 00:14:33.159 fear and trembling. I've never seen that verse 00:14:33.159 --> 00:14:37.440 on a coffee cup. I've never seen that verse on 00:14:37.440 --> 00:14:40.350 a T -shirt. I don't think any of you have a bracelet 00:14:40.350 --> 00:14:43.169 that says, work out your salvation with fear 00:14:43.169 --> 00:14:47.529 and trembling. Because the reality is, we like, 00:14:47.529 --> 00:14:52.090 we like fairy Jesus. Who flutters about, just 00:14:52.090 --> 00:14:55.230 sprinkles love on everybody. And when everything 00:14:55.230 --> 00:14:59.289 is going our way, we don't want fear, we don't 00:14:59.289 --> 00:15:02.240 want to work. We don't want those things, but 00:15:02.240 --> 00:15:05.720 Paul's going to say that this journey that we're 00:15:05.720 --> 00:15:09.720 on, this narrow path that we're on, we have to 00:15:09.720 --> 00:15:13.200 work it out with fear and trembling unless we 00:15:13.200 --> 00:15:16.419 start out in this really beautiful place and 00:15:16.419 --> 00:15:19.700 have it in the end go really badly. If you don't 00:15:19.700 --> 00:15:21.580 want it to end badly, Paul's saying you have 00:15:21.580 --> 00:15:24.600 to work out your salvation with fear and trembling. 00:15:26.039 --> 00:15:28.700 You see what's happening here. You've got Acts 00:15:28.700 --> 00:15:31.779 chapter six. with people looking at Nicholas 00:15:31.779 --> 00:15:35.340 saying, this guy's full of wisdom, he's full 00:15:35.340 --> 00:15:38.340 of the Holy Spirit, and by the time it's all 00:15:38.340 --> 00:15:42.000 said and done, Jesus is going, not only do I 00:15:42.000 --> 00:15:46.139 despise him, but I despise anyone who listens 00:15:46.139 --> 00:15:50.039 to his teachings. I have this against you, that 00:15:50.039 --> 00:15:54.039 you tolerate this, because you've drifted so 00:15:54.039 --> 00:15:57.860 far off. So here's the question we wanna answer. 00:15:58.910 --> 00:16:02.289 Here's the question we have to answer this morning. 00:16:02.669 --> 00:16:06.009 How do we know that we won't have this messy 00:16:06.009 --> 00:16:09.649 end? How do we as individuals know that we won't 00:16:09.649 --> 00:16:12.529 have this messy end of our faith? How do we know 00:16:12.529 --> 00:16:15.309 as a church that we won't have a messy end where 00:16:15.309 --> 00:16:19.299 this just ends badly? Well, I want us to take 00:16:19.299 --> 00:16:21.860 a look at what it actually looks like to work 00:16:21.860 --> 00:16:24.860 out our salvation with fear and trembling We're 00:16:24.860 --> 00:16:26.580 gonna do it quickly and we're gonna do it in 00:16:26.580 --> 00:16:29.460 such a way that you can leave here today You 00:16:29.460 --> 00:16:32.360 can walk out these doors and go. Okay. I've got 00:16:32.360 --> 00:16:35.419 some things that I need to look at I've got some 00:16:35.419 --> 00:16:38.659 things I need to deal with So if you ever Bibles 00:16:38.659 --> 00:16:42.000 head over to Hebrews chapter 3 How do we work 00:16:42.000 --> 00:16:45.379 out our salvation with fear and trembling? How 00:16:45.379 --> 00:16:47.340 do we make sure that we don't have this end? 00:16:47.600 --> 00:16:51.740 in a train wreck of destruction? How do we make 00:16:51.740 --> 00:16:56.120 sure that we stay pure? How do we make sure that 00:16:56.120 --> 00:17:00.340 we don't go badly? How do we work at our salvation? 00:17:00.440 --> 00:17:04.400 Starting in verse 12 of Hebrews chapter three. 00:17:06.079 --> 00:17:09.720 It says, take care, brothers, lest there be any 00:17:09.720 --> 00:17:13.559 of you, an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you 00:17:13.559 --> 00:17:16.920 to fall away from the living God. Now there's 00:17:16.920 --> 00:17:20.839 a collision right here of irreconcilable ideas 00:17:20.839 --> 00:17:23.000 right here. Here's what just happened. The author 00:17:23.000 --> 00:17:25.980 of Hebrews, the writer of Hebrews says, brothers, 00:17:26.240 --> 00:17:29.220 which means those who believe in Jesus, those 00:17:29.220 --> 00:17:32.500 who know Jesus, those who are related to me through 00:17:32.500 --> 00:17:35.940 the blood of Christ. He says, pay attention to 00:17:35.940 --> 00:17:40.019 your heart, lest you find it evil and unbelieving. 00:17:40.519 --> 00:17:43.019 Pay attention to your heart so that you don't 00:17:43.019 --> 00:17:46.099 find it evil and unbelieving So how do we work 00:17:46.099 --> 00:17:48.940 out our salvation with fear and trembling number 00:17:48.940 --> 00:17:52.799 one pay attention to your heart? Pay attention 00:17:52.799 --> 00:17:54.960 to what's going on there the Bible says that 00:17:54.960 --> 00:17:59.720 the heart is the wellspring of life That's the 00:17:59.720 --> 00:18:03.099 life that we talk about here so often this really 00:18:03.099 --> 00:18:07.519 deep life the best possible life the richness 00:18:07.519 --> 00:18:10.819 of life that Jesus brings. That's the wellspring 00:18:10.819 --> 00:18:14.460 of our heart. And the author of Hebrews is saying, 00:18:15.200 --> 00:18:18.119 pay attention to it. Pay attention to your heart. 00:18:19.039 --> 00:18:21.539 Now I want to stress to you how important the 00:18:21.539 --> 00:18:25.599 Sabbath is. Because we can get physically tired, 00:18:25.740 --> 00:18:28.680 yes? Like we can wear ourselves out. But what 00:18:28.680 --> 00:18:33.900 concerns me the most is when we are soul tired. 00:18:34.700 --> 00:18:37.539 When our souls are just exhausted, do you know 00:18:37.539 --> 00:18:41.619 the difference? Soul tired is when we have not 00:18:41.619 --> 00:18:46.599 had time to debrief and we end up bitter and 00:18:46.599 --> 00:18:51.319 angry at our situation We start hating our job. 00:18:51.720 --> 00:18:54.640 We start hating our situations. We hate our community. 00:18:54.640 --> 00:18:57.059 We hate our neighborhood Why did we buy this 00:18:57.059 --> 00:18:59.819 house? Why did we buy this car because we've 00:18:59.819 --> 00:19:04.069 not had time to rest? and see how much God has 00:19:04.069 --> 00:19:07.890 blessed us. We have not gotten quiet where we 00:19:07.890 --> 00:19:12.109 could hear God speak to us and tell us his purpose 00:19:12.109 --> 00:19:16.210 for why we are in those situations. Now I've 00:19:16.210 --> 00:19:17.970 been a part of several churches throughout my 00:19:17.970 --> 00:19:22.690 life, some good, some bad. The bad ones I like 00:19:22.690 --> 00:19:25.730 to call Camelot. Now if you know the story of 00:19:25.730 --> 00:19:28.650 the Knights in the Round Table, Camelot from 00:19:28.650 --> 00:19:34.140 the outside looked perfect. But on the inside, 00:19:35.099 --> 00:19:38.900 on the inside of its walls were murder and betrayal 00:19:38.900 --> 00:19:42.259 and adultery and all this other junk going on 00:19:42.259 --> 00:19:46.500 inside the walls. And in church, if you create 00:19:46.500 --> 00:19:50.079 an environment of perfection, which is an absolute 00:19:50.079 --> 00:19:53.579 joke by the way, then everybody starts acting 00:19:53.579 --> 00:19:58.059 out Camelot. So what happens is married couples 00:19:58.059 --> 00:20:01.160 appear to be perfect when they walk through our 00:20:01.160 --> 00:20:05.509 doors. But the reality is they haven't slept 00:20:05.509 --> 00:20:10.369 in the same room for years. Or students learn 00:20:10.369 --> 00:20:15.190 to pretend that everything is fine when it isn't, 00:20:15.390 --> 00:20:18.789 and we hear about a suicide. Or we hear about 00:20:18.789 --> 00:20:22.089 how they're hurting themselves. Now, I'm not 00:20:22.089 --> 00:20:24.869 trying to be offensive. I'm just telling you 00:20:24.869 --> 00:20:28.869 that you can't create the moral ideal that's 00:20:28.869 --> 00:20:31.930 not real, right? We can't do it. We are sinners. 00:20:32.460 --> 00:20:36.779 We are sinners and we are in need of Jesus. And 00:20:36.779 --> 00:20:40.039 listen, if you follow the life of Christ, if 00:20:40.039 --> 00:20:43.539 you study his life, the most consistent accusation 00:20:43.539 --> 00:20:46.500 that's made against him is that he was a friend 00:20:46.500 --> 00:20:51.259 of drunks and whores. So as a church, we had 00:20:51.259 --> 00:20:55.420 better be the friend of drunks and whores because 00:20:55.420 --> 00:20:59.259 that's the business of Jesus. And I'm telling 00:20:59.259 --> 00:21:03.140 you, it's damning. for us to create an environment 00:21:03.140 --> 00:21:06.259 where we have to pretend that we're okay when 00:21:06.259 --> 00:21:09.480 we're not actually okay. The Bible says that 00:21:09.480 --> 00:21:12.940 Jesus walks through Samaria and he gets exhausted 00:21:12.940 --> 00:21:18.500 and so he sits down. So if Jesus gets tired, 00:21:19.579 --> 00:21:25.940 so do you. The Bible tells us that Jesus is in 00:21:25.940 --> 00:21:29.480 the garden. He's overwhelmed to the point of 00:21:29.480 --> 00:21:33.400 death. And if Jesus gets overwhelmed to the point 00:21:33.400 --> 00:21:39.519 of death, so will you. Pay attention to your 00:21:39.519 --> 00:21:42.980 heart. Because if your heart's going, something's 00:21:42.980 --> 00:21:46.720 wrong. Something's wrong and you just stuff it 00:21:46.720 --> 00:21:49.900 and ignore it, it will eventually kill you. It's 00:21:49.900 --> 00:21:54.500 going to eventually implode and cave in. You 00:21:54.500 --> 00:21:57.799 can't ignore the wellspring of your life screaming 00:21:57.799 --> 00:22:00.539 out to you that you're polluted. that something's 00:22:00.539 --> 00:22:03.500 wrong, that something's not right. And this is 00:22:03.500 --> 00:22:06.500 where pride is such an enemy. This is where pride 00:22:06.500 --> 00:22:08.960 will kill you, because we want to think that 00:22:08.960 --> 00:22:12.019 we can fix ourselves. We can overcome the addiction. 00:22:12.299 --> 00:22:14.779 We can overcome the sin. We can overcome our 00:22:14.779 --> 00:22:20.259 marriage issues. And we have no concern, and 00:22:20.259 --> 00:22:24.079 we say, I got it. That's why I always try to 00:22:24.079 --> 00:22:28.259 be open and honest and say, not only am I a proponent, 00:22:28.759 --> 00:22:31.420 of Christian counseling. Not only am I going 00:22:31.420 --> 00:22:34.000 to encourage you to go see a Christian counselor, 00:22:34.220 --> 00:22:36.920 not only am I going to plead with you to talk 00:22:36.920 --> 00:22:41.799 through your issues, but I'm an active participant. 00:22:43.059 --> 00:22:45.180 I'm not going to pretend that I know everything 00:22:45.180 --> 00:22:47.680 going on in my heart because there's things that 00:22:47.680 --> 00:22:49.640 I see in my heart and go, listen, I don't even 00:22:49.640 --> 00:22:52.839 know what that is. I don't even know what's going 00:22:52.839 --> 00:22:55.480 on here and sometimes you need a shepherd to 00:22:55.480 --> 00:22:58.160 help you walk out of your junk. Pay attention 00:22:58.160 --> 00:23:01.500 to your heart. It is a wellspring of life. Look 00:23:01.500 --> 00:23:04.660 what he says next in verse 13. But exhort one 00:23:04.660 --> 00:23:07.619 another every day, as long as it is called today, 00:23:08.140 --> 00:23:11.200 that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness 00:23:11.200 --> 00:23:15.519 of sin. Now this text alone, we could do a sermon 00:23:15.519 --> 00:23:17.440 in and of itself. It's rich with application. 00:23:17.880 --> 00:23:19.559 But let me start with the one that is not so 00:23:19.559 --> 00:23:23.319 obvious. Pay attention to what's going on in 00:23:23.319 --> 00:23:26.819 you. The Bible just says, know your heart and 00:23:26.819 --> 00:23:30.039 walk with others in enough honesty that when 00:23:30.039 --> 00:23:32.700 you're struggling or when the dark night of the 00:23:32.700 --> 00:23:35.200 soul is there and when you're tired and when 00:23:35.200 --> 00:23:38.539 you're overwhelmed, the saints, fellow brothers 00:23:38.539 --> 00:23:42.440 and sisters can come around you and love you 00:23:42.440 --> 00:23:45.660 and invite you into their home and care for you 00:23:45.660 --> 00:23:48.440 and get you through that situation where they're 00:23:48.440 --> 00:23:50.900 holding you accountable. Do life in such a way 00:23:50.900 --> 00:23:54.369 that that's your reality. But how can you ever 00:23:54.369 --> 00:23:59.250 be encouraged if you're lying? How can you ever 00:23:59.250 --> 00:24:02.470 be encouraged in small group this week, or Bible 00:24:02.470 --> 00:24:04.529 study this week, or your accountability group 00:24:04.529 --> 00:24:07.029 this week, when it's your turn to unpack your 00:24:07.029 --> 00:24:10.869 junk, and instead of saying like, this is something 00:24:10.869 --> 00:24:12.910 I'm really struggling with, this is a struggle 00:24:12.910 --> 00:24:15.789 that I have, you kind of throw out a strength, 00:24:16.410 --> 00:24:19.470 like it's a weakness. I was in a Bible study 00:24:19.470 --> 00:24:23.190 one time, this is word for word. He says, listen, 00:24:23.230 --> 00:24:26.529 I've been struggling this week with reading my 00:24:26.529 --> 00:24:32.009 Bible. I'm reading it too much that I'm neglecting 00:24:32.009 --> 00:24:36.170 my children. I think that might be a sin. Can 00:24:36.170 --> 00:24:38.089 you pray with me through that? He's throwing 00:24:38.089 --> 00:24:41.130 out this strength like it's some sort of weakness. 00:24:43.890 --> 00:24:46.470 What if you got really honest this week with 00:24:46.470 --> 00:24:51.250 your people? So what ends up happening is this 00:24:51.250 --> 00:24:52.890 when we are constantly pretending there's all 00:24:52.890 --> 00:24:56.170 this pain and doubt and frustration and maybe 00:24:56.170 --> 00:24:58.630 some anger and maybe we don't even know why or 00:24:58.630 --> 00:25:02.910 who we are angry at. We go into the one place 00:25:02.910 --> 00:25:06.410 that we might be loved and encouraged and helped 00:25:06.410 --> 00:25:14.609 and we lie. We lie. We say, I'm fine. I'm fine. 00:25:16.529 --> 00:25:20.279 Encouragement. It's about taking the risk of 00:25:20.279 --> 00:25:25.079 being known and it's hard. I saw an acronym of 00:25:25.079 --> 00:25:28.460 the word fine the other day. I'm sure you've 00:25:28.460 --> 00:25:36.720 heard of it. Fine is feelings in need of expression. 00:25:38.819 --> 00:25:42.180 When you say you're fine, you have feelings in 00:25:42.180 --> 00:25:44.920 need of expression. I've been learning that truth 00:25:44.920 --> 00:25:48.589 lately. Then it's got the other part of it there 00:25:48.589 --> 00:25:51.829 too. And here's something that some of us need 00:25:51.829 --> 00:25:56.609 to learn and hear real well too. Not only is 00:25:56.609 --> 00:26:00.089 this part of the text and working out our salvation 00:26:00.089 --> 00:26:03.269 with fear and trembling, it's us taking the risk 00:26:03.269 --> 00:26:07.170 of being known, but it's also us not being so 00:26:07.170 --> 00:26:09.910 self -absorbed that we don't see anything but 00:26:09.910 --> 00:26:14.279 us. To pay attention to those around you so that 00:26:14.279 --> 00:26:16.599 you are able to notice when they are running 00:26:16.599 --> 00:26:21.259 on fumes Listen you can you can see when people 00:26:21.259 --> 00:26:26.140 are on fumes and Words are powerful aren't they? 00:26:26.940 --> 00:26:29.220 Words are powerful that I bet I bet if you thought 00:26:29.220 --> 00:26:32.279 about it long enough You could think back ten 00:26:32.279 --> 00:26:35.700 years ago to some moment where somebody insulted 00:26:35.700 --> 00:26:40.470 you somebody wounded you You still to this day 00:26:40.470 --> 00:26:43.450 replay that in your head and wish you could go 00:26:43.450 --> 00:26:46.990 back in time to handle it differently, right? 00:26:48.309 --> 00:26:50.630 If I gave you if I gave the opportunity to come 00:26:50.630 --> 00:26:55.210 up I Guarantee there would be story after story 00:26:55.210 --> 00:26:58.450 of those who would say life was going so well 00:26:58.450 --> 00:27:01.089 Everything was going smoothly and there was all 00:27:01.089 --> 00:27:04.450 this energy that day was going some so well And 00:27:04.450 --> 00:27:06.490 then somebody said this sentence to me and it 00:27:06.490 --> 00:27:10.579 destroyed me Now I'm not talking about people 00:27:10.579 --> 00:27:16.440 who weren't trained well by their mothers, that 00:27:16.440 --> 00:27:20.000 are just rude individuals. It's like the people 00:27:20.000 --> 00:27:23.480 who say, you look tired today. Anybody ever told 00:27:23.480 --> 00:27:26.240 you that? You look tired today. I mean, what 00:27:26.240 --> 00:27:30.640 are you supposed to do with that? I never quite 00:27:30.640 --> 00:27:31.980 understood what you're supposed to do with that. 00:27:32.160 --> 00:27:33.960 Like, I would go take a nap if I could, Brenda. 00:27:36.319 --> 00:27:40.579 You know what I mean? So obviously I can't, so 00:27:40.579 --> 00:27:42.740 thank you for telling me that I look like trash 00:27:42.740 --> 00:27:44.980 today. That means a lot to me, right? Don't tell 00:27:44.980 --> 00:27:48.259 people they look tired. I'm not talking about 00:27:48.259 --> 00:27:50.299 those kinds of things. I'm talking about mean, 00:27:50.720 --> 00:27:55.599 hurtful things that have crushed us. People who 00:27:55.599 --> 00:28:01.380 have betrayed us. Words are powerful. Have you 00:28:01.380 --> 00:28:03.880 ever had that person that said that thing to 00:28:03.880 --> 00:28:08.359 you that gave you all this energy? that completely 00:28:08.359 --> 00:28:11.420 changed your day. I don't know if you've ever 00:28:11.420 --> 00:28:12.700 been in that place where you're just running 00:28:12.700 --> 00:28:16.359 on fumes and somebody that really loves you gives 00:28:16.359 --> 00:28:19.640 you that extended hug. You know what I'm talking 00:28:19.640 --> 00:28:23.019 about? The extended hug that makes you fight 00:28:23.019 --> 00:28:26.599 back tears. Like if they would have just given 00:28:26.599 --> 00:28:29.240 you the normal hug and the normal pat on the 00:28:29.240 --> 00:28:32.660 back, you would have been all right, but a little 00:28:32.660 --> 00:28:34.519 encouraged, but they just kept hugging you and 00:28:34.519 --> 00:28:38.690 it kind of got awkward. And it was kind of weird 00:28:38.690 --> 00:28:42.269 in that little squeeze, then you have to fight 00:28:42.269 --> 00:28:45.809 back those tears. It's like, why'd you hold on 00:28:45.809 --> 00:28:47.730 for that extra second, man? Right? It's like, 00:28:47.730 --> 00:28:49.769 why'd you do that? I would have been all right. 00:28:49.950 --> 00:28:52.890 Words are powerful. Encouragement is powerful. 00:28:55.710 --> 00:28:57.369 And there's something else going on in this text. 00:28:58.490 --> 00:29:03.809 There's the fact that sin hardens. Sin hardens 00:29:03.809 --> 00:29:09.420 your heart. You want to know how it doesn't? 00:29:09.680 --> 00:29:11.119 Let me try and explain how it does, specifically 00:29:11.119 --> 00:29:13.779 for those of you who know Jesus and are trying 00:29:13.779 --> 00:29:17.299 to walk with Him. I'll use the example of what 00:29:17.299 --> 00:29:20.099 probably 90 % of our counseling resources go 00:29:20.099 --> 00:29:23.259 through. Probably because of our age and what's 00:29:23.259 --> 00:29:25.480 happening in our culture, but we have, I haven't 00:29:25.480 --> 00:29:28.279 been shy about it, we have a real porn problem. 00:29:30.140 --> 00:29:33.220 Probably 90 % of all counseling has to do with 00:29:33.220 --> 00:29:37.980 some form of pornography. And listen, 35 % of 00:29:37.980 --> 00:29:40.819 it, it's been women. So this is not just a male 00:29:40.819 --> 00:29:44.539 problem. Everything from relationships to chat 00:29:44.539 --> 00:29:49.039 rooms to texting to social media, all those things, 00:29:49.059 --> 00:29:52.380 it's just dark. I'm worried about our boys. I'm 00:29:52.380 --> 00:29:55.599 worried about our teenagers who don't see that 00:29:55.599 --> 00:30:00.839 women have a soul. They just see them as bodies. 00:30:01.940 --> 00:30:05.269 It's an estimated... It's even estimated in a 00:30:05.269 --> 00:30:06.930 survey that's done by Christianity today that 00:30:06.930 --> 00:30:11.049 37 % of pastors are stuck in that cycle. So let 00:30:11.049 --> 00:30:14.609 me unpack for you how sin hardens. You have a 00:30:14.609 --> 00:30:18.359 man or a woman who wants to love Jesus. and they're 00:30:18.359 --> 00:30:20.819 starting to grow in their relationship with Christ. 00:30:21.119 --> 00:30:23.119 And so they're praying, and they're seeking the 00:30:23.119 --> 00:30:25.019 scriptures, and they're hanging out with people 00:30:25.019 --> 00:30:27.380 who are doing the same thing, and they're being 00:30:27.380 --> 00:30:29.579 known, and they're being honest, and there's 00:30:29.579 --> 00:30:32.099 this kind of secret, right? There's this junk 00:30:32.099 --> 00:30:35.279 in our lives. They're being honest enough, but 00:30:35.279 --> 00:30:39.519 not completely honest. So what ends up happening 00:30:39.519 --> 00:30:43.299 is all that energy, and all that vitality of 00:30:43.299 --> 00:30:47.559 life. that was given to them to pursue Jesus 00:30:47.559 --> 00:30:52.859 gets shifted into managing shame. And so what 00:30:52.859 --> 00:30:57.059 was vibrant and passionate and a full -on pursuit 00:30:57.059 --> 00:31:00.660 of Jesus, all that energy goes now into shame 00:31:00.660 --> 00:31:03.720 management, trying to manage the shame of our 00:31:03.720 --> 00:31:07.799 wickedness, trying to manage the shame of our 00:31:07.799 --> 00:31:10.740 sin and our prayers, instead of being used to 00:31:10.740 --> 00:31:13.920 grow us in Christ, They just become confessions 00:31:13.920 --> 00:31:17.759 of, I'm sorry, please forgive me. So what ends 00:31:17.759 --> 00:31:20.619 up happening is that a chasm begins to grow in 00:31:20.619 --> 00:31:23.359 our relationship, in our heart, and it grows 00:31:23.359 --> 00:31:26.019 harder and harder. And then you wake up one day 00:31:26.019 --> 00:31:29.759 and you're like, is any of this real? Because 00:31:29.759 --> 00:31:31.859 we were never fully honest with what was going 00:31:31.859 --> 00:31:34.980 on in our hearts. That is how sin hardens our 00:31:34.980 --> 00:31:39.980 heart. It doesn't happen overnight. It's a slow, 00:31:40.680 --> 00:31:46.279 steady, habit of living an unconfessed life. 00:31:47.500 --> 00:31:50.279 Now here's what's so amazing. The Bible just 00:31:50.279 --> 00:31:54.660 said simply by taking a risk of being known and 00:31:54.660 --> 00:31:57.940 having the saints come alongside of us, we might 00:31:57.940 --> 00:32:01.099 be healed and our hearts may be kept from being 00:32:01.099 --> 00:32:05.119 hardened. Simply by the encouragement and the 00:32:05.119 --> 00:32:10.480 love and the support of the saints. But they 00:32:10.480 --> 00:32:15.359 can't give it if they don't know One more thing 00:32:15.359 --> 00:32:18.960 look at Hebrews 3 15 So if we're gonna work out 00:32:18.960 --> 00:32:21.339 our salvation with fear and trembling it takes 00:32:21.339 --> 00:32:23.640 paying attention to our heart It takes running 00:32:23.640 --> 00:32:26.619 the risk of being really known and not being 00:32:26.619 --> 00:32:28.500 so self -absorbed that we don't see the needs 00:32:28.500 --> 00:32:32.519 of others in verse 15 Today if you hear his voice 00:32:32.519 --> 00:32:36.640 now, let me stop right there So if at some point 00:32:36.640 --> 00:32:41.880 today whether it's it's A story I told or a worship 00:32:41.880 --> 00:32:45.880 song we sang, if at some point today that I've 00:32:45.880 --> 00:32:48.559 said something and you felt something begin to 00:32:48.559 --> 00:32:52.380 stir in you, begin to stir in your soul, if I 00:32:52.380 --> 00:32:55.940 gave that story and you thought, oh crap, he's 00:32:55.940 --> 00:32:59.039 reading my mail, like he's talking about me, 00:32:59.079 --> 00:33:02.990 he's talking to me. If God's spoken to you while 00:33:02.990 --> 00:33:06.069 you're in here, if that wellspring of life, your 00:33:06.069 --> 00:33:08.990 heart, your soul has begun to press you while 00:33:08.990 --> 00:33:12.509 you're in here, it's begun to stir while you're 00:33:12.509 --> 00:33:16.349 in here. Like he's speaking to you, that's God 00:33:16.349 --> 00:33:20.410 speaking to your soul. And so today if you've 00:33:20.410 --> 00:33:23.950 heard his voice, do not harden your hearts as 00:33:23.950 --> 00:33:26.890 in the rebellion. Now here's a general rule of 00:33:26.890 --> 00:33:29.150 scripture, this one's free if you ever studied 00:33:29.150 --> 00:33:35.630 the scripture. We always want to be we and us. 00:33:36.430 --> 00:33:39.910 We never want to be they. We never want to be 00:33:39.910 --> 00:33:44.670 they. General of scripture, they not happy. We 00:33:44.670 --> 00:33:49.029 and us happy. We wanna follow that girl. So we 00:33:49.029 --> 00:33:51.890 don't want to be they and they just got thrown 00:33:51.890 --> 00:33:55.049 out here. So we don't want to harden our hearts 00:33:55.049 --> 00:34:01.460 like they did. Who's they? Verse 16. For who 00:34:01.460 --> 00:34:04.460 were those who heard and yet rebelled? Was it 00:34:04.460 --> 00:34:07.539 not all those who left Egypt led by Moses, and 00:34:07.539 --> 00:34:10.820 with whom he was provoked for 40 years? Was it 00:34:10.820 --> 00:34:13.820 not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell 00:34:13.820 --> 00:34:16.619 in the wilderness, and to whom did he swear that 00:34:16.619 --> 00:34:19.619 they would not enter his rest, but to those who 00:34:19.619 --> 00:34:23.780 were disobedient? Okay, real quick. He's going, 00:34:23.880 --> 00:34:28.280 okay, if God speaks to you, if God speaks to 00:34:28.280 --> 00:34:33.960 you, follow him. Because if you don't, you're 00:34:33.960 --> 00:34:35.860 going to harden your heart like the Israelites 00:34:35.860 --> 00:34:41.480 did. If he speaks to you, follow him. And basically, 00:34:41.519 --> 00:34:44.820 he begins to reference the story where God brought 00:34:44.820 --> 00:34:47.659 the nation of Israel out of Egypt. He destroyed 00:34:47.659 --> 00:34:50.980 the entire army of Egypt, the largest army in 00:34:50.980 --> 00:34:53.760 the world at that time. He brings them up to 00:34:53.760 --> 00:34:56.719 the promised land. And he goes, I've got this 00:34:56.719 --> 00:34:59.119 land for you. Go and take it. And what do they 00:34:59.119 --> 00:35:04.840 do? They send in spies. And spies come back in 00:35:04.840 --> 00:35:08.119 and they say what? No way. No way. They're too 00:35:08.119 --> 00:35:11.880 big, they're too tall over there. No way. So 00:35:11.880 --> 00:35:14.760 God goes, do you not remember, right? Do you 00:35:14.760 --> 00:35:17.860 not remember that I killed that entire army, 00:35:18.039 --> 00:35:22.019 that big one, the biggest on earth? Remember 00:35:22.019 --> 00:35:26.079 when I did that like three weeks ago? Do you 00:35:26.079 --> 00:35:28.000 think maybe that I could handle tall people? 00:35:30.030 --> 00:35:32.489 Do you think maybe I could handle this group? 00:35:34.110 --> 00:35:35.909 And they're like, yeah, I guess you could, but 00:35:35.909 --> 00:35:38.489 we don't really wanna do it. We don't really 00:35:38.489 --> 00:35:41.170 wanna do it. And God goes, you remember that 00:35:41.170 --> 00:35:45.489 frog thing? Remember when I turned water into 00:35:45.489 --> 00:35:50.690 blood? Remember when all the first born of the 00:35:50.690 --> 00:35:53.570 nation were killed? That was easy for me. That 00:35:53.570 --> 00:35:59.739 was easy for me. Why don't we do this? And the 00:35:59.739 --> 00:36:03.699 Israelites said no. And God's response was, I'm 00:36:03.699 --> 00:36:08.360 gonna make you wander the desert. And when all 00:36:08.360 --> 00:36:11.599 of you are dead, when all of you are gone, I'm 00:36:11.599 --> 00:36:14.360 going to take your kids in to get the glory. 00:36:15.800 --> 00:36:22.280 Look at me now. If Jesus is wooing you towards 00:36:22.280 --> 00:36:25.900 healing, it's going to happen one way or another. 00:36:27.530 --> 00:36:31.550 If he's stirring in you, it's going to happen 00:36:31.550 --> 00:36:35.269 one way or another. Your sin will find you out. 00:36:37.869 --> 00:36:42.769 My kids will tell you, one of the most common 00:36:42.769 --> 00:36:46.050 prayers we pray for our children is that they 00:36:46.050 --> 00:36:52.869 will get busted in their sin. If it's porn, it 00:36:52.869 --> 00:36:56.659 might end your marriage. If it's laziness, it 00:36:56.659 --> 00:37:00.219 might get you fired. If it's pride, God has a 00:37:00.219 --> 00:37:03.519 way of humbling us. Here's the thing, the Bible 00:37:03.519 --> 00:37:11.679 says your sin will find you out. So if you've 00:37:11.679 --> 00:37:15.159 got junk in you, and you're hiding secrets right 00:37:15.159 --> 00:37:21.219 now, you're on the clock. You're on the clock. 00:37:21.760 --> 00:37:24.199 Now some of these guys that I've walked with, 00:37:25.929 --> 00:37:28.650 Some of these guys you've walked with for years 00:37:28.650 --> 00:37:32.969 at a time, 10, 15, 20 years. And Jesus has been 00:37:32.969 --> 00:37:36.670 calling them to come. Let's walk away from this. 00:37:36.829 --> 00:37:39.090 Let's find healing from this. Let's get counseling 00:37:39.090 --> 00:37:41.750 for this. Let's discuss this. Let's overcome 00:37:41.750 --> 00:37:44.429 this sin that you've been dealing with for decades. 00:37:45.230 --> 00:37:48.610 And they keep ignoring it or they just get right 00:37:48.610 --> 00:37:51.190 to the edge where they don't have to be honest 00:37:51.190 --> 00:37:55.130 anymore. When they know in their heart that it 00:37:55.130 --> 00:37:57.429 doesn't satisfy, they know in their heart there's 00:37:57.429 --> 00:38:02.230 going to be devastation. They see how distant 00:38:02.230 --> 00:38:05.170 they are from their spouse. They see how distant 00:38:05.170 --> 00:38:07.869 they are from when they first started walking 00:38:07.869 --> 00:38:12.329 with the Lord. Maybe the Lord's stirring in your 00:38:12.329 --> 00:38:15.110 heart this morning. Look at all the shame that 00:38:15.110 --> 00:38:18.809 you have in your heart. Look at how dirty you 00:38:18.809 --> 00:38:26.340 feel. The call this morning from the Church of 00:38:26.340 --> 00:38:34.059 Pergamum is to work out your salvation with fear 00:38:34.059 --> 00:38:40.179 and trembling. And if there's anything in you 00:38:40.179 --> 00:38:44.500 like no way, no way I'm gonna confess that, no 00:38:44.500 --> 00:38:47.699 way I'm gonna bring that to light, no way I can 00:38:47.699 --> 00:38:50.739 tell my spouse that, no way I can tell my parents 00:38:50.739 --> 00:38:53.829 that. No way I can do anything with that. I just 00:38:53.829 --> 00:38:58.889 have to deal with it on my own. Look right at 00:38:58.889 --> 00:39:04.010 me and then we'll have time to respond. We need 00:39:04.010 --> 00:39:09.730 each other to be fully engaged in walking and 00:39:09.730 --> 00:39:14.070 healing. We need each other. Your faith is not 00:39:14.070 --> 00:39:19.369 meant to be lived out alone. If there is some 00:39:19.369 --> 00:39:24.480 fear in you right now, Some fear in you right 00:39:24.480 --> 00:39:30.559 now. Lean into it. Lean into it. Don't ignore 00:39:30.559 --> 00:39:34.360 it. Work at your salvation with fear and trembling. 00:39:37.679 --> 00:39:41.099 So when everything comes against us, when all 00:39:41.099 --> 00:39:46.019 this pain comes against us, we can look across 00:39:46.019 --> 00:39:48.920 the room, we can look on our phones and find 00:39:48.920 --> 00:39:55.190 people that, they're sinners too. Your testimony 00:39:55.190 --> 00:39:59.469 is a powerful tool in the hands of the Lord. 00:40:00.690 --> 00:40:07.710 What has he helped you overcome? If there's anybody 00:40:07.710 --> 00:40:16.670 in this room that is walking in perfection, I 00:40:16.670 --> 00:40:21.550 will gladly hand over my mic to you so you can 00:40:21.550 --> 00:40:25.440 teach all of us. But that's not reality, is it? 00:40:26.480 --> 00:40:31.480 Instead, you got a messed up center like me trying 00:40:31.480 --> 00:40:35.940 to point you to the abundant life. And it's not 00:40:35.940 --> 00:40:39.380 easy. Sometimes there's fear and sometimes there's 00:40:39.380 --> 00:40:43.099 trembling. So if you feel the Lord speaking to 00:40:43.099 --> 00:40:46.940 you, something's stirring in your soul. Don't 00:40:46.940 --> 00:40:51.219 ignore it. Pursue healing. So I'm going to pray 00:40:51.219 --> 00:40:54.300 for us. have time to worship, we'll have time 00:40:54.300 --> 00:41:31.070 to respond. And then, man, my hope. My hope is 00:41:31.070 --> 00:41:38.710 that you'll stop pretending. Maybe for once in 00:41:38.710 --> 00:41:47.269 your Christian walk, just stop pretending. Find 00:41:47.269 --> 00:41:55.250 healing. I think anybody that's ever come to 00:41:55.250 --> 00:41:57.789 me and asked for some counseling or some guidance 00:41:57.789 --> 00:42:00.610 thinks that they're going to surprise me. with 00:42:00.610 --> 00:42:07.409 what they've done, with what they've thought. 00:42:12.650 --> 00:42:16.710 The reality is I'm not surprised anymore. I've 00:42:16.710 --> 00:42:25.949 heard it all. And it's so good for my soul when 00:42:25.949 --> 00:42:30.030 I see them lay themselves bare. and walk into 00:42:30.030 --> 00:42:31.849 freedom they've never experienced before in the 00:42:31.849 --> 00:42:33.909 Christian walk. That's my hope and prayer for 00:42:33.909 --> 00:42:36.989 you. So Father, as we close out our service this 00:42:36.989 --> 00:42:48.570 morning, I pray for a little bit of fear. I pray 00:42:48.570 --> 00:42:52.110 for a little bit of fear to come into our hearts. 00:42:54.150 --> 00:42:59.829 Pray that as you stir things in us, that you 00:42:59.829 --> 00:43:06.429 will humble us. I pray for those that just have 00:43:06.429 --> 00:43:08.929 no community. I pray, Father, that they will 00:43:08.929 --> 00:43:16.570 find community here, a church made up of sinful 00:43:16.570 --> 00:43:23.809 people, pursuing the righteousness that you offer 00:43:23.809 --> 00:43:35.909 us. So God, I pray you move as we sing. Move 00:43:35.909 --> 00:43:41.769 us towards obedience. Help us lean into the fear 00:43:41.769 --> 00:43:49.489 and help us trust you with it. So Father, we 00:43:49.489 --> 00:43:52.510 give you this time. It's your name we pray, amen. 00:43:55.250 --> 00:43:58.730 We're gonna sing, altar's open. There's something 00:43:58.730 --> 00:44:01.699 that happens when you bring. your things and 00:44:01.699 --> 00:44:03.320 lay it at the altar. There's nothing special 00:44:03.320 --> 00:44:04.719 about it, but there's something in our hearts 00:44:04.719 --> 00:44:10.780 that changes. So I would encourage you, if that's 00:44:10.780 --> 00:44:12.500 you today, if you feel like the Lord is moving 00:44:12.500 --> 00:44:16.780 in you, then come lay it at the altar. If you 00:44:16.780 --> 00:44:22.179 need prayer, then I'm gonna be up here. I'm gonna 00:44:22.179 --> 00:44:23.980 invite the elders to be up here. I'm gonna invite 00:44:23.980 --> 00:44:28.550 anybody that's ready to... to just minister in 00:44:28.550 --> 00:44:30.710 that way, whether you're an elder or a deacon 00:44:30.710 --> 00:44:33.070 or just anybody else, I'm gonna invite you to 00:44:33.070 --> 00:44:37.070 come minister as people come. If he's stirring 00:44:37.070 --> 00:44:40.489 in your heart, may you be healed this morning. 00:44:41.849 --> 00:44:46.150 Thank you for listening today to 563 Church, 00:44:46.289 --> 00:44:48.489 a production of Cornerstone Church, Eldridge, 00:44:48.550 --> 00:44:51.090 Iowa. For more information about our church or 00:44:51.090 --> 00:44:53.369 just getting right with God, please visit us 00:44:53.369 --> 00:44:57.159 at 563church .com. You can also find us on Facebook 00:44:57.159 --> 00:44:59.320 and Instagram. Have a great week!