WEBVTT 00:00:06.169 --> 00:00:07.809 Father, I want to thank you so much for your 00:00:07.809 --> 00:00:09.910 goodness and faithfulness. Thank you for your 00:00:09.910 --> 00:00:12.169 word, Lord, as we come before you. We pray that 00:00:12.169 --> 00:00:17.890 you would help us to understand how we are not 00:00:17.890 --> 00:00:23.370 only preserved in the faith as a saint, but how 00:00:23.370 --> 00:00:28.910 we are to maintain our minds and are consistent 00:00:28.910 --> 00:00:32.729 in our walk. as we walk with you, as to avoid 00:00:32.729 --> 00:00:37.630 the deception of deconstructionism. And that 00:00:37.630 --> 00:00:40.289 you, in your wisdom and goodness, have always 00:00:40.289 --> 00:00:45.070 kept your people till the day of your return, 00:00:45.149 --> 00:00:47.210 till that great day. And we praise you and thank 00:00:47.210 --> 00:00:48.929 you for your faithfulness and goodness. To you 00:00:48.929 --> 00:00:52.770 be glory and honor. In Jesus' name, amen. So 00:00:52.770 --> 00:00:57.899 let us start off with 1 John 2, verse 15. Do 00:00:57.899 --> 00:01:01.219 not love the world or the things in the world. 00:01:01.500 --> 00:01:03.740 If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father 00:01:03.740 --> 00:01:06.640 is not in him. For all that is in the world, 00:01:06.700 --> 00:01:08.780 the desires of the flesh, the desires of the 00:01:08.780 --> 00:01:11.000 eyes, and the pride of life is not from the Father, 00:01:11.060 --> 00:01:14.180 but is from the world. And the world is passing 00:01:14.180 --> 00:01:21.500 away along with its desires, but whoever does 00:01:21.500 --> 00:01:25.459 the will of God abides forever. Children, it 00:01:25.459 --> 00:01:28.920 is the last hour. And as you have heard, the 00:01:28.920 --> 00:01:33.060 Antichrist is coming. So now many Antichrists 00:01:33.060 --> 00:01:36.799 have come. Therefore, we know that it is the 00:01:36.799 --> 00:01:42.680 last hour. They went out from us, but they were 00:01:42.680 --> 00:01:46.400 not of us. For if they had been of us, they would 00:01:46.400 --> 00:01:50.079 have continued with us. But they went out that 00:01:50.079 --> 00:01:55.260 it might become plain that they all are not of 00:01:55.260 --> 00:01:58.489 us. but you have been anointed by the Holy One, 00:01:58.569 --> 00:02:03.370 and you all have knowledge. I write to you, not 00:02:03.370 --> 00:02:06.290 because you do not know the truth, but because 00:02:06.290 --> 00:02:11.349 you know it, and because no lie is of the truth. 00:02:11.750 --> 00:02:15.430 Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus 00:02:15.430 --> 00:02:19.849 is the Christ? This is the Antichrist, he who 00:02:19.849 --> 00:02:24.169 denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies 00:02:24.169 --> 00:02:28.770 the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the 00:02:28.770 --> 00:02:34.050 Son has the Father also. Let what you heard from 00:02:34.050 --> 00:02:36.810 the beginning abide in you. If what you heard 00:02:36.810 --> 00:02:39.110 from the beginning abides in you, then you too 00:02:39.110 --> 00:02:42.969 will abide in the Son and in the Father. And 00:02:42.969 --> 00:02:46.680 this is the promise. That he made to us eternal 00:02:46.680 --> 00:02:50.520 life. I write these things to you. About those 00:02:50.520 --> 00:02:55.180 who were trying to deceive you. But the anointing 00:02:55.180 --> 00:02:59.039 that you received from him abides in you. And 00:02:59.039 --> 00:03:03.580 you have no need that any should teach you. But 00:03:03.580 --> 00:03:08.360 as. is but as his anointing teaches you about 00:03:08.360 --> 00:03:12.060 everything and is true and there's no lie just 00:03:12.060 --> 00:03:16.919 as it has taught you abide in him so we read 00:03:16.919 --> 00:03:20.400 this and we go wow it's a lot there is a lot 00:03:20.400 --> 00:03:24.379 but there's a specific continual thread and understanding 00:03:24.379 --> 00:03:28.780 of what he's trying to show you and this is a 00:03:28.780 --> 00:03:34.360 major issue in our day right now So the title 00:03:34.360 --> 00:03:38.080 for this message is The Deconstructed, A Life 00:03:38.080 --> 00:03:41.319 That Never Left the World. The Deconstructed, 00:03:41.319 --> 00:03:46.419 A Life That Never Left the World. So what we 00:03:46.419 --> 00:03:54.000 see in 1 John chapter 2 is 10 times John writes 00:03:54.000 --> 00:03:59.270 the term, I write to you. 10 times. In this entire 00:03:59.270 --> 00:04:01.490 chapter. And this is why it's important. We know 00:04:01.490 --> 00:04:03.949 because I told you guys last week. If John says 00:04:03.949 --> 00:04:06.050 I'm writing to you. Then you have to read it. 00:04:06.469 --> 00:04:09.250 He doesn't write for you not to read. So the 00:04:09.250 --> 00:04:12.889 implication is. If I write to you. If I write 00:04:12.889 --> 00:04:14.590 to you. If I write to you. Then you will read 00:04:14.590 --> 00:04:15.930 it. Then you will read it. Then you will read 00:04:15.930 --> 00:04:20.629 it. And this is significant. This is not a statement 00:04:20.629 --> 00:04:23.149 of suggestion. But an imperative to listen and 00:04:23.149 --> 00:04:26.180 follow. So when God says something over and over 00:04:26.180 --> 00:04:28.519 and over again, it's you listen and you do it. 00:04:29.040 --> 00:04:32.500 And five times he uses the term children in this 00:04:32.500 --> 00:04:36.339 chapter. It's one of the common analogies. If 00:04:36.339 --> 00:04:40.500 you read in this entire book, he uses the term 00:04:40.500 --> 00:04:44.079 children and little children quite often. And 00:04:44.079 --> 00:04:46.639 there's a reason. Because he is writing as a 00:04:46.639 --> 00:04:50.379 father does to his children. We must listen to 00:04:50.379 --> 00:04:53.199 what he is writing in the same way a child should 00:04:53.199 --> 00:04:56.180 listen to their father. In other words, if I'm 00:04:56.180 --> 00:04:59.879 going to talk to you, boy, listen to what I'm 00:04:59.879 --> 00:05:04.199 saying. And so we must listen because he's writing 00:05:04.199 --> 00:05:06.980 in the same way as a father would to a child. 00:05:07.240 --> 00:05:09.839 And this part of the chapter is vital to John's 00:05:09.839 --> 00:05:13.420 explaining what has happened and what's to come. 00:05:14.259 --> 00:05:19.290 He specifically points out the defectors. These 00:05:19.290 --> 00:05:23.370 Christian deconstructionists, these ex -evangelicals 00:05:23.370 --> 00:05:27.269 is a term that's used today. The CVs or the hashtag 00:05:27.269 --> 00:05:31.430 empty the pews statement. For you young guys, 00:05:31.589 --> 00:05:34.370 and this has got a room full of some younger 00:05:34.370 --> 00:05:36.810 people, you know, you got your little Twitter 00:05:36.810 --> 00:05:40.850 hashtag statements. And this is one of those 00:05:40.850 --> 00:05:44.009 statements. Among what you would assume are the 00:05:44.009 --> 00:05:46.509 learned, but they're really not learned at all. 00:05:48.259 --> 00:05:50.720 At a leaders conference I attended a few years 00:05:50.720 --> 00:05:54.120 ago at Cairn University, the subject was doubt, 00:05:54.259 --> 00:05:57.279 disillusionment, and deconstruction. It's based 00:05:57.279 --> 00:06:01.079 on a book, Surprised by Doubt, How Disillusionment 00:06:01.079 --> 00:06:04.259 Can Invite Us to a Deeper Faith by Dr. Joshua 00:06:04.259 --> 00:06:09.060 Chatrall. It's interesting because I left there, 00:06:09.199 --> 00:06:14.399 I went there curious. I know that deconstruction 00:06:14.399 --> 00:06:17.579 is this thing going on. But really, what is it 00:06:17.579 --> 00:06:21.680 about? But I left with many concerns about that 00:06:21.680 --> 00:06:24.379 particular conference. Other than that, the conferences 00:06:24.379 --> 00:06:26.500 have been absolutely amazing. And I can understand 00:06:26.500 --> 00:06:28.980 why they did the conference because they're trying 00:06:28.980 --> 00:06:31.500 to inform pastors and leaders on how to deal 00:06:31.500 --> 00:06:33.600 with people who are quote -unquote deconstructioning 00:06:33.600 --> 00:06:39.079 or are disillusioned to the faith. And Paul deals 00:06:39.079 --> 00:06:42.060 with that. Don't be so easily shaken, Paul says, 00:06:42.240 --> 00:06:46.860 as if. A letter was written. I'll read that in 00:06:46.860 --> 00:06:49.459 a minute. But that's the problem with deconstruction 00:06:49.459 --> 00:06:53.079 people. These disillusioned people. Their faith 00:06:53.079 --> 00:06:55.540 is easily shaken. And the reason why it's easily 00:06:55.540 --> 00:06:57.819 shaken is because it's not really built on the 00:06:57.819 --> 00:07:01.040 firm foundation. Christ being the chief cornerstone 00:07:01.040 --> 00:07:03.360 and the foundation being the apostles and the 00:07:03.360 --> 00:07:07.240 prophets of the word of God given to the people. 00:07:07.759 --> 00:07:12.910 They build on foundation different. Really try 00:07:12.910 --> 00:07:16.310 to build a foundation that fits them. A house 00:07:16.310 --> 00:07:22.509 that they would like. And I think the important 00:07:22.509 --> 00:07:25.689 thing is when I left that conference, I left 00:07:25.689 --> 00:07:31.389 that conference firmer in my rejection of deconstructionism 00:07:31.389 --> 00:07:33.670 and stronger in the stance of the perseverance 00:07:33.670 --> 00:07:38.470 of the saints. And when we get done this, you're 00:07:38.470 --> 00:07:44.889 going to see why I... State that. Deconstructionism 00:07:44.889 --> 00:07:52.889 is not a new thing. It's an old deception. They 00:07:52.889 --> 00:07:59.129 just relabeled it. Christian deconstructionism 00:07:59.129 --> 00:08:02.670 is the process. This is the definition. And I 00:08:02.670 --> 00:08:04.449 pulled this definition from the internet because 00:08:04.449 --> 00:08:06.310 there's like several different types of definitions. 00:08:06.649 --> 00:08:12.040 And it came from the 1960s from a French I think 00:08:12.040 --> 00:08:13.759 it's a French psychologist. I can't remember 00:08:13.759 --> 00:08:16.199 if he was a psychologist or sociologist. But 00:08:16.199 --> 00:08:18.240 he came up with this term of deconstructionism. 00:08:19.180 --> 00:08:21.339 And as a result, the Christians have adopted 00:08:21.339 --> 00:08:26.339 this term and this way of thinking. So I think 00:08:26.339 --> 00:08:28.680 this definition gives a clear understanding of 00:08:28.680 --> 00:08:33.960 Christian deconstructionism and why it's so prevalent. 00:08:34.059 --> 00:08:37.919 And that is because it is a worldview and a world 00:08:37.919 --> 00:08:42.490 philosophy. applied to biblical truths by which 00:08:42.490 --> 00:08:45.169 they make themselves look foolish because they 00:08:45.169 --> 00:08:48.330 don't know. Or they know, but they really don't 00:08:48.330 --> 00:08:51.690 want to know. Or they just don't know because 00:08:51.690 --> 00:08:56.330 they choose not to know. So Christian deconstructionism 00:08:56.330 --> 00:08:59.909 is the process of critically examining, questioning, 00:09:00.110 --> 00:09:02.809 and dismantling a person's previously held religious 00:09:02.809 --> 00:09:06.610 beliefs, church culture, and foundational doctrines. 00:09:07.049 --> 00:09:09.820 Now think about that. You're critically thinking 00:09:09.820 --> 00:09:14.740 about a doctrine that you alone never believed 00:09:14.740 --> 00:09:20.679 in. You're not really dismantling anything. You're 00:09:20.679 --> 00:09:24.419 not deconstructing anything. You're making excuses 00:09:24.419 --> 00:09:28.720 for what's always been there. So often, starting 00:09:28.720 --> 00:09:32.860 with evangelism, it involves taking apart a lifelong 00:09:32.860 --> 00:09:35.850 belief system to see what is true, harmful. And 00:09:35.850 --> 00:09:40.070 shaped purely by politics and tradition. And 00:09:40.070 --> 00:09:43.529 it's interesting that as we see the rise of the 00:09:43.529 --> 00:09:48.389 religious right. And the religious left. The 00:09:48.389 --> 00:09:55.129 rise of the political religion of America. There 00:09:55.129 --> 00:10:03.850 are two forms. Right? Two forms. We have the. 00:10:05.759 --> 00:10:08.059 Christian nationalists. And then we have the 00:10:08.059 --> 00:10:15.840 Christian socialists. And there's this huge debate 00:10:15.840 --> 00:10:18.860 on who's right. And the reality is, I think many 00:10:18.860 --> 00:10:22.659 of these deconstructionists end up making their 00:10:22.659 --> 00:10:25.019 final decision on what they believe politically. 00:10:26.360 --> 00:10:28.700 Because, after all, it's what's going on in my 00:10:28.700 --> 00:10:31.399 life right now. Because I'm like the most important 00:10:31.399 --> 00:10:35.940 thing right now. And this isn't new. If you turn 00:10:35.940 --> 00:10:41.620 to John chapter 6, Jesus dealt with the same 00:10:41.620 --> 00:10:52.019 issue. The same exact problem. Jesus dealt with 00:10:52.019 --> 00:10:55.519 defectors. Jesus dealt with deconstructionists, 00:10:55.519 --> 00:10:58.440 the apostates, the ones who said they were with 00:10:58.440 --> 00:11:01.240 him, but then they were like, yep, I'm out. So 00:11:01.240 --> 00:11:06.269 Jesus is talking to the people. In John 6. And 00:11:06.269 --> 00:11:08.210 he's talking to them about him being the bread 00:11:08.210 --> 00:11:11.409 of life. And Jesus says, he who eats my flesh 00:11:11.409 --> 00:11:16.350 and drinks my blood, it is he who has life. And 00:11:16.350 --> 00:11:18.950 they're like, you're weird. That's cannibalism. 00:11:19.350 --> 00:11:23.629 Of course, they didn't get it. But Jesus makes 00:11:23.629 --> 00:11:29.590 this statement on purpose. One, it's true. But 00:11:29.590 --> 00:11:33.480 two, It's to see if they actually believe in 00:11:33.480 --> 00:11:40.080 him. Because what you read in chapter 6 verse 00:11:40.080 --> 00:11:42.879 60 is one of the reasons why I don't like headings. 00:11:43.240 --> 00:11:45.139 Because when you read headings, you think it's 00:11:45.139 --> 00:11:48.899 all one separate conversation to another. In 00:11:48.899 --> 00:11:52.019 reality, it's the same conversation. So in verse 00:11:52.019 --> 00:11:56.279 59 of chapter 6, it says, Jesus said these things 00:11:56.279 --> 00:12:00.519 in a synagogue as he taught in Capernaum. And 00:12:00.519 --> 00:12:02.940 when many of his disciples heard it, they said, 00:12:03.139 --> 00:12:06.360 this is a hard saying. Who can listen to it? 00:12:07.419 --> 00:12:11.220 Who in the world is able to listen to you telling 00:12:11.220 --> 00:12:14.299 everyone to feed on your flesh and drink your 00:12:14.299 --> 00:12:17.320 blood? Like that is, what are you talking about? 00:12:22.279 --> 00:12:26.960 And he was really pointing them to the time that 00:12:26.960 --> 00:12:31.419 the forefathers were in the desert. Eating manna. 00:12:32.559 --> 00:12:35.419 I am your source of life and your sustenance. 00:12:35.840 --> 00:12:38.240 I am the one who keeps you alive. Man does not 00:12:38.240 --> 00:12:40.500 live by bread alone, by every word that comes 00:12:40.500 --> 00:12:42.179 from the mouth of God is what he was implying 00:12:42.179 --> 00:12:51.620 here. But no. So, these disciples that were following 00:12:51.620 --> 00:12:55.559 him, which were numerous, more than 60, I assume. 00:12:57.320 --> 00:12:59.480 They're all like, I can't listen to this. But 00:12:59.480 --> 00:13:03.500 Jesus, knowing in himself that his disciples 00:13:03.500 --> 00:13:07.019 were grumbling about this, he said to them, do 00:13:07.019 --> 00:13:12.980 not take offense at this. Then what if you were 00:13:12.980 --> 00:13:15.679 to see the son of man ascending to where he was 00:13:15.679 --> 00:13:20.539 before? If me telling you to eat my flesh and 00:13:20.539 --> 00:13:24.779 drink my blood is shocking, how about if I left 00:13:24.779 --> 00:13:28.549 right here and you watched me go? Would that 00:13:28.549 --> 00:13:31.610 verify that what I'm saying is true? If the manna 00:13:31.610 --> 00:13:34.509 fell from heaven to feed you, how about if the 00:13:34.509 --> 00:13:37.250 manna ascends to heaven? Will you believe me 00:13:37.250 --> 00:13:44.350 then? That's what he's implying here. Then he 00:13:44.350 --> 00:13:50.610 says, it is the spirit who gives life. The flesh 00:13:50.610 --> 00:13:55.289 has no help at all. Now, that is a massive statement. 00:13:58.519 --> 00:14:00.899 Why? Who's the one that gives life? The Spirit 00:14:00.899 --> 00:14:03.759 of God. What's it say in 2 Corinthians chapter 00:14:03.759 --> 00:14:06.059 2? I'm giving you something that I didn't give 00:14:06.059 --> 00:14:10.559 first service. 1 Corinthians chapter 2, verse 00:14:10.559 --> 00:14:13.779 14. If the Spirit gives life, then it's the Spirit 00:14:13.779 --> 00:14:17.799 who gives knowledge. And it's exactly what Jesus 00:14:17.799 --> 00:14:20.580 says. I'll read it to you. Chapter 2, verse 14. 00:14:22.799 --> 00:14:25.000 The natural person does not accept the things 00:14:25.000 --> 00:14:27.500 of God. of the Spirit of God, for they are folly 00:14:27.500 --> 00:14:30.620 to him, and he is not able to understand them 00:14:30.620 --> 00:14:34.740 because they are spiritually discerned. Spiritual 00:14:34.740 --> 00:14:37.539 truths, unspiritual people cannot understand. 00:14:38.120 --> 00:14:40.679 That means even the gospel. That's why when you 00:14:40.679 --> 00:14:42.519 preach the gospel and you go, how can you walk 00:14:42.519 --> 00:14:44.220 away from that? It's because they don't know 00:14:44.220 --> 00:14:49.820 him. Now, look at what Jesus says here. It is 00:14:49.820 --> 00:14:53.100 the Spirit who gives life. The flesh is no help 00:14:53.100 --> 00:14:58.570 at all. The words that I have spoken to you are 00:14:58.570 --> 00:15:07.330 spirit and life. Do you get the point? But there 00:15:07.330 --> 00:15:12.659 are some of you who do not believe. Jesus did 00:15:12.659 --> 00:15:15.820 all these miracles. He did all this in front 00:15:15.820 --> 00:15:18.580 of them. He then gives them a truth that they 00:15:18.580 --> 00:15:21.679 can have life in him and life everlasting and 00:15:21.679 --> 00:15:23.759 forgiveness by their sins being washed away. 00:15:24.120 --> 00:15:26.139 But what do they do? No, I don't want any part 00:15:26.139 --> 00:15:29.220 of that. Because they don't want any part of 00:15:29.220 --> 00:15:32.919 him. That was the point. If you eat this bread 00:15:32.919 --> 00:15:35.179 and drink this cup, you have a part with me. 00:15:36.600 --> 00:15:40.759 But if you don't, you're not part of me. For 00:15:40.759 --> 00:15:44.299 Jesus knew from the beginning who those were 00:15:44.299 --> 00:15:48.639 who did not believe and who it was who would 00:15:48.639 --> 00:15:52.580 betray him. He knew everyone there that didn't 00:15:52.580 --> 00:15:57.299 believe. They were all disciples. Get it. They 00:15:57.299 --> 00:16:00.570 were all disciples. all following him around, 00:16:00.750 --> 00:16:03.690 watching him do miracles and being excited talking 00:16:03.690 --> 00:16:06.350 about it. Did you see that? Man, he's about to 00:16:06.350 --> 00:16:08.409 take over the Romans. It's all about that, right? 00:16:08.590 --> 00:16:10.529 And then all of a sudden he says, hey, you want 00:16:10.529 --> 00:16:12.090 to be a part of me? You got to do this. And they're 00:16:12.090 --> 00:16:18.710 like, you're crazy. Look what he says here. And 00:16:18.710 --> 00:16:23.309 he said, this is why I told you that no one can 00:16:23.309 --> 00:16:26.190 come to me unless it is granted to him by the 00:16:26.190 --> 00:16:30.159 Father. Do you hear that? Let me make this clear 00:16:30.159 --> 00:16:34.600 again. No one can go to Jesus unless the Father 00:16:34.600 --> 00:16:39.879 has granted that person to go to Jesus. How do 00:16:39.879 --> 00:16:42.100 we deal with that? How do you deal with that? 00:16:42.860 --> 00:16:45.220 Because that wrecks a lot of faith here, right? 00:16:46.519 --> 00:16:49.919 That should mess some people up. Mess me up. 00:16:50.500 --> 00:16:53.259 I'm like, what do you mean? I can't go to Jesus 00:16:53.259 --> 00:16:58.820 unless the Father says so? How do I do it? What 00:16:58.820 --> 00:17:02.039 do I do with that? You don't do anything with 00:17:02.039 --> 00:17:06.819 it. The reality is, it's a reality. Okay, God 00:17:06.819 --> 00:17:09.400 said it. I can't argue that. And that's the way 00:17:09.400 --> 00:17:11.680 it is. I will not come unless the Father sends 00:17:11.680 --> 00:17:16.579 me. Or he draws me. That's the point. And he 00:17:16.579 --> 00:17:22.039 comes near to me. Deconstructionists hate that 00:17:22.039 --> 00:17:27.150 idea. Why? Because with deconstructionists, It's 00:17:27.150 --> 00:17:31.250 all about them. It's about me. It's not about 00:17:31.250 --> 00:17:35.109 God. But then look what Jesus says. After this, 00:17:35.130 --> 00:17:38.069 many of his disciples turned back and no longer 00:17:38.069 --> 00:17:41.170 walked with him. Listen, the doctrine of election 00:17:41.170 --> 00:17:46.650 wrecks everybody. Some will stay. Many will go. 00:17:53.210 --> 00:17:57.069 That's what he's saying here. Everybody left. 00:17:59.109 --> 00:18:05.930 Guess who was left? Twelve. And one of the twelve, 00:18:06.069 --> 00:18:08.230 which Jesus says earlier, is the devil. Look 00:18:08.230 --> 00:18:12.190 what it says here. So Jesus said to the twelve, 00:18:12.410 --> 00:18:15.529 do you want to go away as well? You want to leave 00:18:15.529 --> 00:18:21.630 me? Look at the mind of a believer versus a deconstructionist. 00:18:22.049 --> 00:18:25.019 It's an amazing statement. Simon Peter answered, 00:18:25.220 --> 00:18:29.819 Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words 00:18:29.819 --> 00:18:33.240 of eternal life. Do you know how every believer 00:18:33.240 --> 00:18:37.660 perseveres through the reality of doubt and disillusionment? 00:18:37.960 --> 00:18:44.579 The word of God. Doesn't matter. You have the 00:18:44.579 --> 00:18:48.000 words of life and we are in that. I'm all about 00:18:48.000 --> 00:18:53.339 that. So it doesn't matter how... A church grows 00:18:53.339 --> 00:18:57.440 and explodes and then shrinks. The words of life. 00:19:00.420 --> 00:19:05.119 And we've believed and have come to know that 00:19:05.119 --> 00:19:09.019 you are the Holy One of God. Look at his response. 00:19:09.279 --> 00:19:12.059 So not only do you see that the reality of avoiding 00:19:12.059 --> 00:19:15.200 the deconstruction is the word of God which is 00:19:15.200 --> 00:19:20.859 present in them and because he is with them and 00:19:21.929 --> 00:19:30.430 They know him. Personally, I know. Interesting, 00:19:30.490 --> 00:19:35.529 isn't it? But then Jesus says to them, did I 00:19:35.529 --> 00:19:39.609 not choose you, the 12, and yet one of you is 00:19:39.609 --> 00:19:45.089 a devil? And he spoke of Judas, the son of Simon 00:19:45.089 --> 00:19:49.809 Iscariot, for he, one of the 12, was going to 00:19:49.809 --> 00:19:54.730 betray him. So even though Judas stayed, he stayed 00:19:54.730 --> 00:19:58.970 because it was his will to stay. Judas could 00:19:58.970 --> 00:20:03.349 have left. Nah, not going to happen. Because 00:20:03.349 --> 00:20:06.930 God has a plan for Judas, does he not? Oh yes, 00:20:06.970 --> 00:20:13.170 he does. So, turn to 1 John. So even in Jesus' 00:20:13.250 --> 00:20:17.759 day, there are deconstructors or defectors. And 00:20:17.759 --> 00:20:19.680 there are even that in the Old Testament, if 00:20:19.680 --> 00:20:21.519 you go to Isaiah chapter one, verses one through 00:20:21.519 --> 00:20:27.980 four, people have always left the mission because 00:20:27.980 --> 00:20:30.319 they were never part of the mission. And John 00:20:30.319 --> 00:20:33.400 states that. Now look what it says here. It's 00:20:33.400 --> 00:20:37.079 principle number one. No one can serve two masters. 00:20:37.259 --> 00:20:39.299 They will either hate the one and love the other, 00:20:39.380 --> 00:20:41.980 or they will be devoted to the one and despise 00:20:41.980 --> 00:20:44.589 the other. You cannot serve both. You cannot 00:20:44.589 --> 00:20:47.390 serve God and money. And the word there translated 00:20:47.390 --> 00:20:49.950 money is money. But the reality is it's also 00:20:49.950 --> 00:20:54.289 you cannot serve God and the world. Because the 00:20:54.289 --> 00:20:58.990 world operates everything around money. That's 00:20:58.990 --> 00:21:01.289 in Matthew 6, 24. You either love the one or 00:21:01.289 --> 00:21:04.130 hate the other. You're devoted to one and despise 00:21:04.130 --> 00:21:07.150 the other. But you can't have both. And that's 00:21:07.150 --> 00:21:10.109 the uniqueness about God's work through his word. 00:21:11.079 --> 00:21:13.700 And the uniqueness of how God cleans the church 00:21:13.700 --> 00:21:18.980 out by deconstruction. It's not really real true 00:21:18.980 --> 00:21:24.779 faith. In James 4 .4 it says, you adulterous 00:21:24.779 --> 00:21:28.019 people, do you not know that friendship with 00:21:28.019 --> 00:21:32.160 the world is enmity with God? Therefore, whoever 00:21:32.160 --> 00:21:34.960 wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself 00:21:34.960 --> 00:21:42.599 an enemy of God. You cannot be both. And what 00:21:42.599 --> 00:21:46.180 John is building here is he's building the clear 00:21:46.180 --> 00:21:51.880 direction of where these apostates are. They 00:21:51.880 --> 00:21:55.079 have a love. All of us love something. We either 00:21:55.079 --> 00:21:58.380 love God or we love the world. We either love 00:21:58.380 --> 00:22:02.440 God or we love our sin. You can't love both. 00:22:05.140 --> 00:22:07.559 And sometimes that's a deep struggle for believers. 00:22:10.120 --> 00:22:13.779 And look what it says here in 1 John 2, 15 through 00:22:13.779 --> 00:22:17.980 17. Do not love the things of the world. If anyone 00:22:17.980 --> 00:22:19.720 loves the world, the love of the Father is not 00:22:19.720 --> 00:22:24.099 in him. Pretty clear, isn't it? You cannot love 00:22:24.099 --> 00:22:29.319 the world and say that I'm a believer. For all 00:22:29.319 --> 00:22:31.460 that is in the world, the desires of the flesh, 00:22:31.559 --> 00:22:33.440 the desires of the eyes, and the pride of life, 00:22:33.559 --> 00:22:36.059 is not from the Father, but is from the world. 00:22:37.119 --> 00:22:40.160 Do you get that? So let me get it clear for you. 00:22:40.599 --> 00:22:45.079 The world is this system of things. Specifically, 00:22:45.119 --> 00:22:50.339 the system of sin, the corruption. And the world 00:22:50.339 --> 00:22:54.180 in its system is completely corrupted and designed 00:22:54.180 --> 00:23:00.779 to destroy, steal, and kill. And the world is 00:23:00.779 --> 00:23:04.039 passing away along with its desires. And whoever 00:23:04.039 --> 00:23:06.279 does the will of God abides forever. And what 00:23:06.279 --> 00:23:09.529 he's saying is, Everything that's corrupted eventually 00:23:09.529 --> 00:23:17.509 decays. The world is dying. Look at the ash trees 00:23:17.509 --> 00:23:22.450 just in this area. That's a small microcosm of 00:23:22.450 --> 00:23:29.509 the slow decay of things. Because of sin. Imagine 00:23:29.509 --> 00:23:32.710 what sin does to the soul. And that's why he 00:23:32.710 --> 00:23:37.839 says we are dead in our trespasses. We are dealing 00:23:37.839 --> 00:23:39.960 with the reality of the corruption of the world 00:23:39.960 --> 00:23:46.380 every single day we wake up and we sleep. And 00:23:46.380 --> 00:23:48.839 the world is passing away with all its desires. 00:23:49.759 --> 00:23:53.259 But the question is, do you abide in God forever? 00:23:56.000 --> 00:23:58.759 Principle number two, those who deconstruct never 00:23:58.759 --> 00:24:01.900 knew Christ nor left the world. And that's my 00:24:01.900 --> 00:24:04.980 argument. There's really no such thing as Christian 00:24:04.980 --> 00:24:10.160 deconstructionism. They just never left the world 00:24:10.160 --> 00:24:13.180 in the first place. You'll hear deconstructionists 00:24:13.180 --> 00:24:15.259 say, well, I grew up in a Christian household. 00:24:15.420 --> 00:24:22.480 I'm a pastor's kid. I just decided over time 00:24:22.480 --> 00:24:27.779 that it's a lie. I was a believer at one time. 00:24:27.799 --> 00:24:29.519 I was a follower of Jesus and I was serious. 00:24:29.680 --> 00:24:31.660 I was preaching the gospel and people got saved. 00:24:34.119 --> 00:24:37.200 That doesn't mean you were a believer just because 00:24:37.200 --> 00:24:43.079 you said a prayer. And what do you see? They 00:24:43.079 --> 00:24:46.980 base their life choices on the experience instead 00:24:46.980 --> 00:24:52.259 of basing choices on truth. And they need someone 00:24:52.259 --> 00:24:54.420 to blame because they don't want to be held responsible 00:24:54.420 --> 00:24:57.720 for their junk. So they say, you know what? It's 00:24:57.720 --> 00:25:01.000 because the church hurt. Let me tell you something. 00:25:01.720 --> 00:25:03.960 No one in this room understands church hurt more 00:25:03.960 --> 00:25:06.279 than I do. And I'm not saying that from boastfulness. 00:25:06.440 --> 00:25:12.839 I am telling you. And my wife is a witness to 00:25:12.839 --> 00:25:17.940 that truth. What we have gone through through 00:25:17.940 --> 00:25:20.980 years of ministry in church. Not our church. 00:25:22.299 --> 00:25:25.940 But just church in general. I know what church 00:25:25.940 --> 00:25:29.779 hurts feels like. Why haven't I defected? Because 00:25:29.779 --> 00:25:31.599 if there's anyone in the room that has an excuse, 00:25:31.940 --> 00:25:35.039 I do. And the elders know because I told them. 00:25:36.000 --> 00:25:40.500 And so does the pulpit committee. I know what 00:25:40.500 --> 00:25:42.819 church feels like. I know what it's like when 00:25:42.819 --> 00:25:45.119 a deacon turns on you and when people lie about 00:25:45.119 --> 00:25:47.400 you and when others are stealing in the church 00:25:47.400 --> 00:25:50.579 and you've got to stand up for truth. I know 00:25:50.579 --> 00:25:56.700 what it's like. Does that mean I'm going to defect 00:25:56.700 --> 00:26:00.519 because things are difficult? No. No, I'm not 00:26:00.519 --> 00:26:04.240 a defector. There are times when you want to 00:26:04.240 --> 00:26:05.759 give up because you're tired, you're exhausted, 00:26:05.839 --> 00:26:07.759 and you're like, I don't know if I can do this 00:26:07.759 --> 00:26:11.000 anymore. But why do you keep going? Because of 00:26:11.000 --> 00:26:14.299 truth and Christ's kingdom. You don't stop because 00:26:14.299 --> 00:26:18.279 it's difficult. But that's what deconstructionists 00:26:18.279 --> 00:26:24.410 do. They make excuses for their disbelief. And 00:26:24.410 --> 00:26:26.150 they blame the church and they blame everyone 00:26:26.150 --> 00:26:28.230 else. Even though they're part of the problem 00:26:28.230 --> 00:26:29.950 because they're in the church as a non -believer. 00:26:30.210 --> 00:26:35.710 They're false Christians. Can you imagine if 00:26:35.710 --> 00:26:44.089 the church was only real true believers? You 00:26:44.089 --> 00:26:46.509 know the scariest part? It'd probably be emptier 00:26:46.509 --> 00:26:52.279 than it is right now. Because I don't know who's 00:26:52.279 --> 00:26:58.079 saved, who's not saved. Only God knows. But if 00:26:58.079 --> 00:27:03.259 they are truly believers, I think we'd be surprised. 00:27:03.440 --> 00:27:05.519 But we'd also be surprised to find out who is. 00:27:06.200 --> 00:27:13.920 I would have never guessed that. Look what he 00:27:13.920 --> 00:27:16.940 says here. So the reality of the deconstructionists 00:27:16.940 --> 00:27:19.730 is they never knew Christ. And they never left 00:27:19.730 --> 00:27:22.269 the world. In Hebrews 4, Hebrews 6, 4 through 00:27:22.269 --> 00:27:25.289 6 says it this way. Hebrews 6, 4 through 6. For 00:27:25.289 --> 00:27:29.809 it is impossible. You hear that? Please. If everyone 00:27:29.809 --> 00:27:31.710 starts talking about this and they're like, see, 00:27:31.890 --> 00:27:36.809 you can lose your salvation. No. I'm telling 00:27:36.809 --> 00:27:38.529 you, it's bad teaching. This is the right teaching 00:27:38.529 --> 00:27:45.069 here. For it is impossible. That's a definitive 00:27:45.069 --> 00:27:47.890 statement. In other words, there's not a way. 00:27:48.559 --> 00:27:52.460 or a possibility, or an iota whatsoever for this 00:27:52.460 --> 00:27:55.259 to happen. So what he's doing, he's giving you 00:27:55.259 --> 00:27:59.779 a scenario that will never happen. For it is 00:27:59.779 --> 00:28:03.500 impossible in the case of those who have once 00:28:03.500 --> 00:28:06.500 been enlightened, in other words, have come to 00:28:06.500 --> 00:28:08.579 know the truth, who have tasted the heavenly 00:28:08.579 --> 00:28:11.720 gift, who have... come to eternity with Jesus, 00:28:11.940 --> 00:28:14.740 have shared in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit 00:28:14.740 --> 00:28:17.380 has indwelled them as a guarantee of their inheritance, 00:28:17.519 --> 00:28:20.039 and have tasted the goodness of the Word of God 00:28:20.039 --> 00:28:24.099 to be completely changed and transformed and 00:28:24.099 --> 00:28:26.640 sanctified by the Word of God, and the powers 00:28:26.640 --> 00:28:29.140 of the age to come with the hope of what we have 00:28:29.140 --> 00:28:33.339 in the future, and then to have fallen away, 00:28:33.559 --> 00:28:39.140 just to totally abandon it. Think about that. 00:28:40.779 --> 00:28:45.000 Do we honestly think that God is that weak? That 00:28:45.000 --> 00:28:51.059 he can't keep his people? And there are denominations 00:28:51.059 --> 00:28:52.660 that teach that you can lose your salvation. 00:28:52.880 --> 00:28:58.160 It is an impossibility. Because if I can lose 00:28:58.160 --> 00:29:01.299 my salvation by the change of my mind, because 00:29:01.299 --> 00:29:07.339 I choose to, then God's a really weak God. It's 00:29:07.339 --> 00:29:10.480 an impossibility. Look what it says. And then 00:29:10.480 --> 00:29:13.880 to have fallen away. To restore them again to 00:29:13.880 --> 00:29:17.880 repentance. To send the Holy Spirit back so that 00:29:17.880 --> 00:29:21.220 he will dwell back in. To cover them again of 00:29:21.220 --> 00:29:24.599 their sin by the blood of Jesus. To have Jesus 00:29:24.599 --> 00:29:26.880 go through the whole process of being crucified, 00:29:27.319 --> 00:29:32.859 buried, and rising again on the third day. If 00:29:32.859 --> 00:29:35.299 you once received all that and he's done all 00:29:35.299 --> 00:29:38.599 that for you, for you to go back and be restored 00:29:38.599 --> 00:29:45.539 to repentance, this is what I believe it's Paul 00:29:45.539 --> 00:29:48.720 writing this along with Luke. Since they are 00:29:48.720 --> 00:29:51.319 crucifying once again the son of God to their 00:29:51.319 --> 00:29:55.819 own harm and holding him up to contempt. What 00:29:55.819 --> 00:29:58.259 you're saying about Jesus' crucifixion is it's 00:29:58.259 --> 00:30:01.460 never good enough. Because I have to do my part 00:30:01.460 --> 00:30:06.200 to keep it. And that's what deconstructionists 00:30:06.200 --> 00:30:11.119 are saying. I've known Jesus. I've worked for 00:30:11.119 --> 00:30:13.980 Jesus. I've done the ministry with Jesus. I grew 00:30:13.980 --> 00:30:17.619 up with Jesus. I've known Jesus my whole life. 00:30:22.440 --> 00:30:25.160 Look what it says in 1 John 2, 18 through 20. 00:30:25.299 --> 00:30:27.859 And this is how John states it. Children, again, 00:30:28.099 --> 00:30:32.000 it is the last hour. So I want you to hear this. 00:30:32.880 --> 00:30:39.119 Hear that? It is the last hour. Not when the 00:30:39.119 --> 00:30:43.640 seven -year tribulation happens. It's now. That's 00:30:43.640 --> 00:30:46.940 important to understand. We're in it now. It's 00:30:46.940 --> 00:30:49.599 been the last hour since his ascension. It's 00:30:49.599 --> 00:30:52.349 going to be the last hour until his return. We 00:30:52.349 --> 00:30:57.170 are in it now. And it's good because we know 00:30:57.170 --> 00:30:59.670 if we're in it that he could be here any minute. 00:30:59.829 --> 00:31:03.970 And if we're in it, he's coming any minute. The 00:31:03.970 --> 00:31:08.650 question, are you ready to go be with him? Okay. 00:31:09.029 --> 00:31:12.250 Now look what it says. Children, it is the last 00:31:12.250 --> 00:31:16.150 hour as you have heard that Antichrist is coming. 00:31:16.210 --> 00:31:20.470 He's talking about V1. Yes, that Antichrist is 00:31:20.470 --> 00:31:27.039 coming. So now many antichrists have come. And 00:31:27.039 --> 00:31:29.680 we know that because there have been many antichrists. 00:31:29.799 --> 00:31:32.680 And there are many antichrists even among believers. 00:31:33.380 --> 00:31:35.839 Because look what it says. Therefore we know 00:31:35.839 --> 00:31:39.279 that it is the last hour. Why? Because there's 00:31:39.279 --> 00:31:41.720 an antichrist coming and there's a bunch of antichrists 00:31:41.720 --> 00:31:47.660 around us. What do we know about these antichrists? 00:31:47.980 --> 00:31:49.980 I want you to pay attention to what John says 00:31:49.980 --> 00:31:53.109 here. This is what he's saying about the antichrists, 00:31:53.289 --> 00:31:57.470 the deconstructionists, the defectors of the 00:31:57.470 --> 00:32:02.390 faith, the apostates. They went out from us, 00:32:02.450 --> 00:32:06.910 but they were not of us. If they had been of 00:32:06.910 --> 00:32:10.829 us, they would have continued with us. But they 00:32:10.829 --> 00:32:14.710 went out that it might become plain that they 00:32:14.710 --> 00:32:20.049 all are not of us. Isn't that interesting? Where 00:32:20.049 --> 00:32:23.150 do most of the antichrists come from? Churches. 00:32:28.930 --> 00:32:34.309 That's enough to hush a room. What? Yes. They 00:32:34.309 --> 00:32:37.410 were never of us. They came from us, but they 00:32:37.410 --> 00:32:40.369 weren't of us. Because if they had been of us, 00:32:40.430 --> 00:32:43.049 they would have remained with us. But they didn't, 00:32:43.049 --> 00:32:46.769 so they went out. And as a result, it's plain 00:32:46.769 --> 00:32:53.069 that all of them are... Antichrists. What is 00:32:53.069 --> 00:32:56.630 an antichrist? He says that shortly. But you 00:32:56.630 --> 00:32:59.230 have been anointed by the Holy One. You're not 00:32:59.230 --> 00:33:05.029 one of those people. You're not one. Why? Because 00:33:05.029 --> 00:33:07.630 the word anointed, this is a really cool word. 00:33:07.730 --> 00:33:14.029 It literally means to smear. You're smeared by 00:33:14.029 --> 00:33:18.779 the Holy Spirit. Now, you guys know, you guys 00:33:18.779 --> 00:33:21.019 understand what smearing is. You guys got little 00:33:21.019 --> 00:33:25.980 kids? Did your kids ever discover ketchup or 00:33:25.980 --> 00:33:31.700 peanut butter? And what they do with it? They 00:33:31.700 --> 00:33:33.480 put it in places you didn't even know they had. 00:33:33.599 --> 00:33:37.740 Places. It's everywhere. It's all here. It's 00:33:37.740 --> 00:33:39.799 painted on them. You're like, what did you do? 00:33:40.819 --> 00:33:43.880 That's the smearing. And it's hard to take peanut 00:33:43.880 --> 00:33:47.170 butter off. That's just a little easier. Just 00:33:47.170 --> 00:33:48.750 stick them in the shower. Peanut butter sticks. 00:33:50.930 --> 00:33:54.029 That's the smearing. That's what this word smear 00:33:54.029 --> 00:33:56.730 means. This anointed. You have been smeared by 00:33:56.730 --> 00:33:59.490 the Holy Spirit. And you all have knowledge. 00:33:59.589 --> 00:34:04.170 What knowledge? What knowledge? Look what it 00:34:04.170 --> 00:34:08.670 says. The knowledge of God. The knowledge of 00:34:08.670 --> 00:34:13.230 this gospel. That's the knowledge you were given. 00:34:15.400 --> 00:34:18.599 Paul states the same thing in this way. Everything 00:34:18.599 --> 00:34:22.539 we just read, notice what he says in 2 Thessalonians 00:34:22.539 --> 00:34:28.179 2, verse 3. Interesting. Let no one deceive you 00:34:28.179 --> 00:34:33.539 in any way. For that day will not come. That 00:34:33.539 --> 00:34:38.860 day will not come unless the rebellion comes 00:34:38.860 --> 00:34:42.940 first and the man of lawlessness is revealed, 00:34:43.159 --> 00:34:47.369 the son of destruction. What? The rebellion comes 00:34:47.369 --> 00:34:50.929 first? Yes, called the days of deconstructionism. 00:34:52.329 --> 00:34:59.210 You know what the fastest church that is, the 00:34:59.210 --> 00:35:01.030 slowest growing church, we'll say it that way, 00:35:01.090 --> 00:35:04.349 but it's the fastest depleting, biblical Christianity. 00:35:07.269 --> 00:35:10.690 Because listen to me, people that attend Stephen 00:35:10.690 --> 00:35:12.590 Furtick Church and all those other false churches, 00:35:12.670 --> 00:35:20.889 those aren't churches. So we live in the days 00:35:20.889 --> 00:35:23.570 of the rebellion. We live in the days of deconstructionism. 00:35:23.610 --> 00:35:26.690 We live in the days of those who have jumped 00:35:26.690 --> 00:35:31.969 ship. Look what it says, the next principle. 00:35:32.150 --> 00:35:34.469 You cannot deconstruct from something you never 00:35:34.469 --> 00:35:38.929 had. You cannot deconstruct from something you 00:35:38.929 --> 00:35:41.730 never had. Jesus said, and this is the will of 00:35:41.730 --> 00:35:45.969 him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of 00:35:45.969 --> 00:35:54.889 all that he has given me. Who gave you to Jesus? 00:35:55.170 --> 00:35:59.230 The Father. And what's Jesus say? Those whom 00:35:59.230 --> 00:36:03.710 the Father has given me, I will not lose. But 00:36:03.710 --> 00:36:09.889 I will raise it up on the last day. John 17, 00:36:09.889 --> 00:36:18.269 39. John 17, 3. This is what he says. And this 00:36:18.269 --> 00:36:21.190 is eternal life that you. That they know you, 00:36:21.309 --> 00:36:24.690 the only true God in Jesus Christ to whom you 00:36:24.690 --> 00:36:26.550 have sent. And what's interesting is this term 00:36:26.550 --> 00:36:32.010 supports verse 20. But you have been anointed 00:36:32.010 --> 00:36:35.369 by the Holy One and you all have knowledge. Knowledge 00:36:35.369 --> 00:36:39.210 of what? Knowledge of eternal life. To know the 00:36:39.210 --> 00:36:44.230 Father and to know the Son is eternal life. Because 00:36:44.230 --> 00:36:48.070 if we are in Christ, then Christ is in God. then 00:36:48.070 --> 00:36:55.309 we are in him and he is in us. In 1 John 2, 21 00:36:55.309 --> 00:36:58.170 through 25, I write to you, not because you do 00:36:58.170 --> 00:37:01.230 not know the truth, but because you know it. 00:37:02.150 --> 00:37:06.230 Who? He is the truth. Christ is the truth. The 00:37:06.230 --> 00:37:08.849 spirit of Christ is the truth. And because no 00:37:08.849 --> 00:37:12.889 one lie, because no lie is of the truth. We know 00:37:12.889 --> 00:37:16.469 that because he lives in you. He's not a liar 00:37:16.469 --> 00:37:22.130 as those who do lie. Who is the liar? The one 00:37:22.130 --> 00:37:25.670 who denies that Jesus is the Christ. This is 00:37:25.670 --> 00:37:28.230 the Antichrist. Now what's interesting in the 00:37:28.230 --> 00:37:30.650 Hebrew, I mean in the Greek, sorry. I'm in the 00:37:30.650 --> 00:37:33.630 Hebrew month. In the Greek, this term the isn't 00:37:33.630 --> 00:37:38.429 present. This is Antichrist is what he says. 00:37:39.619 --> 00:37:41.840 The is not there. I don't know why we put it 00:37:41.840 --> 00:37:43.480 in there because there is no definitive article 00:37:43.480 --> 00:37:46.920 in the original language that I could find. What 00:37:46.920 --> 00:37:48.980 he's saying is that the one who denies that Jesus 00:37:48.980 --> 00:37:53.860 is the Christ is Antichrist. He who denies the 00:37:53.860 --> 00:37:58.880 Father and the Son. That is an Antichrist. How 00:37:58.880 --> 00:38:03.159 can those who deconstruct state that they believed 00:38:03.159 --> 00:38:05.880 in Jesus and were a follower of Jesus to then 00:38:05.880 --> 00:38:10.030 turn around and deny Jesus is the Christ. That 00:38:10.030 --> 00:38:14.110 means you never knew he was Christ. You're an 00:38:14.110 --> 00:38:20.909 antichrist. False Christianity and false Christians, 00:38:21.090 --> 00:38:23.550 false Christians are antichrists and false Christianity 00:38:23.550 --> 00:38:27.809 is the message of the antichrist. It's a false 00:38:27.809 --> 00:38:32.969 religion. It's a fake faith. Notice what it says 00:38:32.969 --> 00:38:35.050 here. No one who denies the Son has the Father. 00:38:36.779 --> 00:38:39.500 What's eternal life? To know you, the only true 00:38:39.500 --> 00:38:44.039 God and his son whom you have sent. Whoever confesses 00:38:44.039 --> 00:38:47.119 the son has the father also. Which makes sense 00:38:47.119 --> 00:38:49.440 because if the Holy Spirit lives in you and he 00:38:49.440 --> 00:38:52.420 is the exact representation of the son and the 00:38:52.420 --> 00:38:54.539 son is the exact representation of the father 00:38:54.539 --> 00:38:57.440 and that they are three in one, the triune God, 00:38:57.739 --> 00:39:01.360 then God, the father and God, the son live in 00:39:01.360 --> 00:39:08.019 you through the spirit of God. Let what you heard 00:39:08.019 --> 00:39:09.659 from the beginning abide in you. What did you 00:39:09.659 --> 00:39:11.619 hear from the beginning? What was the thing you 00:39:11.619 --> 00:39:17.079 heard from the very beginning? The gospel. The 00:39:17.079 --> 00:39:19.659 very first thing that you heard is the gospel. 00:39:20.880 --> 00:39:23.280 Do you know one of the reasons why I never defected 00:39:23.280 --> 00:39:28.059 is because the gospel keeps me. The word of the 00:39:28.059 --> 00:39:35.079 living God keeps me. If you heard from the beginning, 00:39:35.199 --> 00:39:37.280 if what you heard from the beginning abides in 00:39:37.280 --> 00:39:41.079 you, then you too will abide in the Son and in 00:39:41.079 --> 00:39:44.420 the Father. And what did I hear from the beginning? 00:39:44.719 --> 00:39:49.679 His gospel. And how do we receive the gospel? 00:39:49.840 --> 00:39:52.119 For it is by grace you have been saved through 00:39:52.119 --> 00:39:56.699 faith, right? And we receive the gospel because 00:39:56.699 --> 00:40:08.349 the word of Christ is given to us by faith. And 00:40:08.349 --> 00:40:11.210 this is the true promise that he made to us, 00:40:11.210 --> 00:40:14.469 eternal life, which is exactly what we read in 00:40:14.469 --> 00:40:22.949 John 17, 3. That's the promise. The gospel. Do 00:40:22.949 --> 00:40:25.309 you know why people defect? Because they don't 00:40:25.309 --> 00:40:27.550 believe the gospel. Why don't they believe the 00:40:27.550 --> 00:40:29.510 gospel? Because they have not the spirit of God 00:40:29.510 --> 00:40:32.150 to believe the gospel. They can't believe a spiritual 00:40:32.150 --> 00:40:34.329 truth because they're spiritually discerned because 00:40:34.329 --> 00:40:36.769 they don't have God. And the only way to come 00:40:36.769 --> 00:40:40.670 to know God is God has to give you to the Son. 00:40:42.210 --> 00:40:45.989 By which he draws near to you. By which he saves 00:40:45.989 --> 00:40:48.670 you. And gives you the knowledge of faith and 00:40:48.670 --> 00:40:51.989 the gift of faith for you. And the knowledge 00:40:51.989 --> 00:40:53.929 of the truth because the Spirit of God dwells 00:40:53.929 --> 00:41:00.369 in you. You cannot have life without the Spirit, 00:41:00.550 --> 00:41:05.570 he said. 1 John 2, 26 -29. I write these things 00:41:05.570 --> 00:41:08.989 to you about those who are trying to deceive 00:41:08.989 --> 00:41:15.349 you. These deconstructionists. But the anointing 00:41:15.349 --> 00:41:20.610 that you received from him abides in you. Who 00:41:20.610 --> 00:41:23.389 is the smear? Who is the one who has anointed 00:41:23.389 --> 00:41:26.969 you? The spirit of God abides in you. He is the 00:41:26.969 --> 00:41:31.909 anointing which you received. You And you have 00:41:31.909 --> 00:41:35.829 no need that anyone should teach you. So why 00:41:35.829 --> 00:41:38.150 do you come to church? If I don't need someone 00:41:38.150 --> 00:41:39.929 to teach me, what's the point of coming to Wednesday 00:41:39.929 --> 00:41:45.449 night? It's to verify and affirm that what you're 00:41:45.449 --> 00:41:49.250 learning is true. Or that you learn something 00:41:49.250 --> 00:41:51.429 new so that you can go home and verify through 00:41:51.429 --> 00:41:53.929 the Spirit of God that what's being taught is 00:41:53.929 --> 00:41:59.369 true. Either way, it's a receive and it's a give. 00:41:59.530 --> 00:42:01.989 It's a receive and it's a give. All the time. 00:42:02.289 --> 00:42:06.530 You get something, you test it. You learn something, 00:42:06.710 --> 00:42:11.710 you give it. And the Spirit of God is the one 00:42:11.710 --> 00:42:14.030 who will guide you on all truth. He will verify 00:42:14.030 --> 00:42:15.909 if what I'm teaching you is biblically true. 00:42:16.530 --> 00:42:20.530 By you going home and studying it. Listen, you 00:42:20.530 --> 00:42:24.710 should be in the Word every single day. Listening 00:42:24.710 --> 00:42:28.650 to it. reading it, do something with it every 00:42:28.650 --> 00:42:34.070 day. Every day you should be in it somehow or 00:42:34.070 --> 00:42:37.590 another. You should get something every day. 00:42:41.769 --> 00:42:44.690 But the anointing you have received from him 00:42:44.690 --> 00:42:46.869 abides in you. And if you have, and you have 00:42:46.869 --> 00:42:48.909 no need for anyone to teach you, then he should 00:42:48.909 --> 00:42:53.369 teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about 00:42:53.369 --> 00:42:57.619 everything and is true, and is no lie, just as 00:42:57.619 --> 00:43:00.219 it has taught you, abide in him. In other words, 00:43:00.239 --> 00:43:02.320 this is what he's saying. The Holy Spirit, when 00:43:02.320 --> 00:43:04.519 the Holy Spirit verifies and teaches you truth, 00:43:04.820 --> 00:43:09.880 you should be doing it. If you love me, you obey 00:43:09.880 --> 00:43:14.420 my commandments. You're like, why does Jesus 00:43:14.420 --> 00:43:16.059 keep saying this over and over and over again 00:43:16.059 --> 00:43:19.780 through his word? Why does Pastor Joe keep preaching 00:43:19.780 --> 00:43:21.300 and teaching this over and over and over again? 00:43:21.780 --> 00:43:25.800 Because the sin is worse. You can't avoid it. 00:43:29.039 --> 00:43:31.320 It's like I want something practical for my life. 00:43:31.679 --> 00:43:33.659 I want you to speak about what's going on in 00:43:33.659 --> 00:43:37.300 my life because that's what matters for me. That's 00:43:37.300 --> 00:43:40.619 the answer. It literally is do what he tells 00:43:40.619 --> 00:43:43.380 you to do. It's not like you're not going to 00:43:43.380 --> 00:43:45.519 have trouble, but it's going to be a lot better 00:43:45.519 --> 00:43:50.539 for you to get out of the situation. And then 00:43:50.539 --> 00:43:53.099 look what he says. And now little children abide 00:43:53.099 --> 00:43:56.889 in him. So that when he appears, we may have 00:43:56.889 --> 00:44:00.389 confidence and not shrink from him in shame at 00:44:00.389 --> 00:44:05.510 his coming. How can we know that we are his and 00:44:05.510 --> 00:44:08.630 we belong to him when he returns? We're not going 00:44:08.630 --> 00:44:12.750 to cower in fear and in shame because he is there. 00:44:13.269 --> 00:44:17.710 We are going to run like a child runs to their 00:44:17.710 --> 00:44:24.500 father. That's how you'll know. that you are 00:44:24.500 --> 00:44:29.480 not deconstructed. Because you won't shrink in 00:44:29.480 --> 00:44:31.679 shame. You have the confidence that you know 00:44:31.679 --> 00:44:33.780 that the gospel is true and the word of God is 00:44:33.780 --> 00:44:36.820 effective in your life. Verse 29, and we close. 00:44:39.900 --> 00:44:43.719 If you know that he is righteous, you may be 00:44:43.719 --> 00:44:46.960 sure that everyone who practices righteousness 00:44:46.960 --> 00:44:50.159 has been born of him. You're like, there it goes 00:44:50.159 --> 00:44:56.610 again. John's wrote it, and if John wrote it, 00:44:56.670 --> 00:44:58.829 he wants you to read it. If he wants you to read 00:44:58.829 --> 00:45:02.329 it, he wants you to do it. It's there for a reason. 00:45:05.949 --> 00:45:08.150 So what do we learn about deconstructionism? 00:45:11.989 --> 00:45:15.949 It's an old idea. So they can come up with a 00:45:15.949 --> 00:45:17.690 new term all they want. They can wrap it up in 00:45:17.690 --> 00:45:20.889 a bow and make it all pretty. So they can... 00:45:21.099 --> 00:45:26.559 empty the pews and be ex -evangelicals. It really 00:45:26.559 --> 00:45:28.980 doesn't matter. Because they were never of us 00:45:28.980 --> 00:45:34.300 in the first place. So you could say you're deconstructing, 00:45:34.300 --> 00:45:35.940 but you never really deconstructed for something 00:45:35.940 --> 00:45:44.019 you never had. Thank God, God perseveres his 00:45:44.019 --> 00:45:48.760 people. Father, I want to praise you and thank 00:45:48.760 --> 00:45:50.500 you for your faithfulness. Thank you for your 00:45:50.500 --> 00:45:53.980 word. To you be honor and glory forever and ever. 00:45:54.400 --> 00:45:55.300 In Jesus' name.