WEBVTT 00:00:01.899 --> 00:00:06.500 Pray together. Heavenly Father, we're thankful 00:00:06.500 --> 00:00:09.820 for your guiding and directing, leading and helping 00:00:09.820 --> 00:00:14.140 in the worship thus far. We come now to confess 00:00:14.140 --> 00:00:17.500 our continuing need of you, our inabilities. 00:00:18.980 --> 00:00:22.859 Ask you to own your word. Make it plain to us. 00:00:23.760 --> 00:00:26.379 Enable me to proclaim all that you've given and 00:00:26.379 --> 00:00:29.079 only all that you've given. Enable us all to 00:00:29.079 --> 00:00:34.710 receive it. to apply it to ourselves, to better 00:00:34.710 --> 00:00:37.810 serve and honor you in the coming days. We ask 00:00:37.810 --> 00:00:40.070 again for the loss that you might have mercy 00:00:40.070 --> 00:00:42.850 on some who regretting their sins. Save them, 00:00:42.869 --> 00:00:47.649 Father. Do that which only you can do. Bring 00:00:47.649 --> 00:00:52.450 them to yourself. We ask it in Christ's name. 00:00:52.570 --> 00:00:59.520 Amen. Okay, we're in 1 Corinthians. Lord willing, 00:00:59.640 --> 00:01:06.519 we'll be here for a while yet. But we come to 00:01:06.519 --> 00:01:08.459 this little section here. It's kind of like in 00:01:08.459 --> 00:01:14.799 the middle of it. And it's going to get real 00:01:14.799 --> 00:01:19.560 personal. The effect that the resurrection has 00:01:19.560 --> 00:01:26.840 on us as people, as Christians. That's what Paul's 00:01:26.840 --> 00:01:34.680 anxious to... convey here. We as Christ's people 00:01:34.680 --> 00:01:40.799 can either confirm the resurrection or deny the 00:01:40.799 --> 00:01:44.500 resurrection just by the way that we're living. 00:01:46.439 --> 00:01:49.659 No real Christian obviously is going to deny 00:01:49.659 --> 00:01:54.640 the resurrection. But that unfortunately is not 00:01:54.640 --> 00:01:58.260 enough. Because we have to live. We have to live 00:01:58.260 --> 00:02:00.900 before a watching world. We have to live before 00:02:00.900 --> 00:02:06.420 our lost family members. So the way that we live 00:02:06.420 --> 00:02:10.340 makes a difference. It says something. It says 00:02:10.340 --> 00:02:12.360 something about what we believe. And that's what 00:02:12.360 --> 00:02:15.840 Paul's trying to convey here in these few verses. 00:02:17.979 --> 00:02:22.680 So the first verse is probably the most, for 00:02:22.680 --> 00:02:25.099 some reason, controversial verse in the whole 00:02:25.099 --> 00:02:30.969 Bible. All kinds of interpretations and understandings 00:02:30.969 --> 00:02:37.550 have been put forth. You can open any commentary. 00:02:37.689 --> 00:02:40.750 If you open two of them, you'll have two different 00:02:40.750 --> 00:02:42.990 explanations. And if you open ten of them, you'll 00:02:42.990 --> 00:02:46.229 probably have ten different explanations. Or, 00:02:46.449 --> 00:02:52.590 you won't have any explanation at all. Amazingly, 00:02:52.590 --> 00:02:55.610 these Bible scholars that have written these, 00:02:55.650 --> 00:02:58.129 they don't even deal with it. It's like it's 00:02:58.129 --> 00:03:02.569 not in the Bible. Or they'll just say, I have 00:03:02.569 --> 00:03:09.090 no idea what this means. So, I'm going to be 00:03:09.090 --> 00:03:11.110 brave, I suppose. I don't know, I'm going to 00:03:11.110 --> 00:03:15.530 give you what I think. Hopefully it's led by 00:03:15.530 --> 00:03:21.449 the Holy Spirit. I studied this years ago, and 00:03:21.449 --> 00:03:26.400 so I didn't have to spend hours. Trying to figure 00:03:26.400 --> 00:03:29.020 it out because I'd already gone and been with 00:03:29.020 --> 00:03:32.300 the Lord and gotten what I think he would have 00:03:32.300 --> 00:03:37.020 me to know. And all I had to do again for this 00:03:37.020 --> 00:03:41.300 is to confirm it. Ask again. Do I really know? 00:03:41.319 --> 00:03:43.360 Do I really understand? What would you have me 00:03:43.360 --> 00:03:49.860 to say? So here's the verse. And it's verse 29. 00:03:53.039 --> 00:04:01.479 15. 1 Corinthians 15, verse 29. Else what shall 00:04:01.479 --> 00:04:04.719 they do which are baptized for the dead, if the 00:04:04.719 --> 00:04:08.500 dead rise not at all? Why are they then baptized 00:04:08.500 --> 00:04:15.379 for the dead? Now, it's obvious. It's obvious 00:04:15.379 --> 00:04:20.060 that this is not any type of an endorsement of 00:04:20.060 --> 00:04:24.060 being baptized for the dead. Paul would not have 00:04:24.060 --> 00:04:27.490 written this. if that was what was going on he 00:04:27.490 --> 00:04:30.930 would have condemned it he would have said this 00:04:30.930 --> 00:04:33.290 you guys are missing it whatever there would 00:04:33.290 --> 00:04:36.490 have been a word of exhortation to cut it out 00:04:36.490 --> 00:04:42.050 stop it but there's nothing there so what does 00:04:42.050 --> 00:04:47.209 it mean then why is it in the bible well because 00:04:47.209 --> 00:04:51.149 as i said these people that he's referring here 00:04:51.149 --> 00:04:55.139 these church members in corinth We're demonstrating 00:04:55.139 --> 00:04:58.019 by their lives the truth of the resurrection. 00:04:59.240 --> 00:05:02.620 So we have to first decide what kind of baptism 00:05:02.620 --> 00:05:08.480 this is. Is this water baptism? Or is this a 00:05:08.480 --> 00:05:13.819 baptism of fire? Is it a baptism of suffering? 00:05:16.680 --> 00:05:22.589 What does water baptism symbolize? Well... If 00:05:22.589 --> 00:05:25.750 we understand it correctly, it symbolizes death, 00:05:25.990 --> 00:05:29.750 going under the water, and resurrection, coming 00:05:29.750 --> 00:05:32.009 out of the water. You've all seen a number of 00:05:32.009 --> 00:05:35.509 baptisms. You've all heard it proclaimed over 00:05:35.509 --> 00:05:39.829 you when you were baptized. You're dying to yourself. 00:05:40.089 --> 00:05:45.430 You're rising to Christ. With Christ, in Christ, 00:05:45.509 --> 00:05:50.029 however. Death, burial, resurrection, it's all 00:05:50.029 --> 00:05:53.009 even in water baptism. The elements are there. 00:05:54.329 --> 00:05:59.089 But in Christ's use of the word in Matthew 20, 00:05:59.230 --> 00:06:22.439 we'll begin reading in verse 17. of chapter 20 00:06:22.439 --> 00:06:26.139 in matthew and jesus going up to jerusalem took 00:06:26.139 --> 00:06:29.199 the twelve disciples apart in the way and said 00:06:29.199 --> 00:06:34.180 unto them behold we go up to jerusalem and the 00:06:34.180 --> 00:06:37.519 son of man shall be betrayed unto the chief priests 00:06:37.519 --> 00:06:40.699 and unto the scribes and they shall condemn him 00:06:40.699 --> 00:06:44.519 to death and shall deliver him to the gentiles 00:06:44.519 --> 00:06:49.319 to mock to scourge and to crucify him and the 00:06:49.319 --> 00:06:54.189 third day He shall rise again. Then we have this 00:06:54.189 --> 00:07:00.250 interlude where Zebedee's mother wants Jesus 00:07:00.250 --> 00:07:04.810 to proclaim her sons will sit on the left and 00:07:04.810 --> 00:07:13.730 the right hand of Christ. And so Jesus then answering 00:07:13.730 --> 00:07:19.040 in verse 22 says, But Jesus answered and said, 00:07:19.120 --> 00:07:23.279 You know not what ye ask. Are ye able to drink 00:07:23.279 --> 00:07:26.420 of the cup that I shall drink of, and to be baptized 00:07:26.420 --> 00:07:30.759 with the baptism that I am baptized with? They 00:07:30.759 --> 00:07:35.839 say unto him, We are able. And Jesus saith unto 00:07:35.839 --> 00:07:40.319 them, You shall drink indeed of my cup, and be 00:07:40.319 --> 00:07:43.040 baptized with the baptism that I am baptized 00:07:43.040 --> 00:07:47.199 with. But to sit on my right hand and on my left 00:07:47.199 --> 00:07:50.839 is not mine to give, but it shall be given to 00:07:50.839 --> 00:07:58.199 them for whom it is prepared of my Father. Now, 00:07:58.220 --> 00:08:00.939 you can obviously see there that Christ is talking 00:08:00.939 --> 00:08:06.060 about his own martyrdom, his death, and his resurrection. 00:08:06.139 --> 00:08:09.920 That's the baptism that Christ is referring to. 00:08:09.959 --> 00:08:13.879 That's his baptism. It's a baptism of suffering. 00:08:14.269 --> 00:08:20.750 unto death, martyrdom. And he's telling them 00:08:20.750 --> 00:08:23.670 there that, yeah, you're going to, you said you 00:08:23.670 --> 00:08:26.750 can, and you're going to, you're going to experience 00:08:26.750 --> 00:08:32.309 my baptism. But it's not going to merit you anything. 00:08:33.710 --> 00:08:36.789 It's up to the Father to give it to whom he has 00:08:36.789 --> 00:08:42.940 prepared it for. So the point is, It's a picture 00:08:42.940 --> 00:08:46.659 of martyrdom, the baptism, the word baptism there, 00:08:46.799 --> 00:08:51.100 suffering and death. And Christ is telling us 00:08:51.100 --> 00:08:53.559 that his followers are going to experience that 00:08:53.559 --> 00:08:58.360 baptism. Obviously, not everybody does, but a 00:08:58.360 --> 00:09:02.840 number do. So what have we got here back in 1 00:09:02.840 --> 00:09:06.539 Corinthians 15? Well, we have something very 00:09:06.539 --> 00:09:14.700 similar. Where he says, These folks are being 00:09:14.700 --> 00:09:18.620 baptized for the dead, or perhaps we could say 00:09:18.620 --> 00:09:25.240 because of the dead, or over and above the dead. 00:09:26.059 --> 00:09:28.500 In other words, these folks are willing to follow 00:09:28.500 --> 00:09:32.840 those who have already died for Christ. They're 00:09:32.840 --> 00:09:35.320 familiar with martyrdom. They're familiar with 00:09:35.320 --> 00:09:38.620 people that have been put to death for the belief 00:09:38.620 --> 00:09:43.419 in Jesus Christ. And he's declaring. Why would 00:09:43.419 --> 00:09:48.940 you do that if there be no resurrection? By your 00:09:48.940 --> 00:09:52.419 life, you are confirming your steadfast belief 00:09:52.419 --> 00:09:56.120 that death is only temporary, that there will 00:09:56.120 --> 00:10:01.580 be a resurrection where you will be raised in 00:10:01.580 --> 00:10:05.419 a glorious body. That's what they were doing. 00:10:05.480 --> 00:10:08.460 That's what they were saying. You can kill this 00:10:08.460 --> 00:10:10.259 one, but there's going to be another one to take 00:10:10.259 --> 00:10:15.220 his place. We are willing to die. We are willing 00:10:15.220 --> 00:10:18.960 to suffer martyrdom for Christ's sake because 00:10:18.960 --> 00:10:22.159 of those that went before us have already died 00:10:22.159 --> 00:10:27.759 doing exactly that. That's what I believe the 00:10:27.759 --> 00:10:32.279 meaning of the verse is. They are willing to 00:10:32.279 --> 00:10:36.960 demonstrate. They're dying to themselves. They 00:10:36.960 --> 00:10:41.009 count their life nothing. giving all that they 00:10:41.009 --> 00:10:43.389 have for Christ, even the suffering of death, 00:10:43.629 --> 00:10:48.549 in the hope of the resurrection. Now, the rest 00:10:48.549 --> 00:10:50.970 of these verses are going to confirm this understanding. 00:10:53.730 --> 00:10:58.330 So, as we go through, remember that this is what 00:10:58.330 --> 00:11:00.690 Paul is doing here. He wants you to understand 00:11:00.690 --> 00:11:06.740 that your life has a very real meaning. Declaring 00:11:06.740 --> 00:11:09.360 what you believe about the resurrection. What 00:11:09.360 --> 00:11:14.519 you believe about this life. And the next. All 00:11:14.519 --> 00:11:16.799 the remaining verses that we're going to see 00:11:16.799 --> 00:11:22.279 here. So in verse 30 we see. And why stand we 00:11:22.279 --> 00:11:27.879 in jeopardy every hour? I die daily. Some of 00:11:27.879 --> 00:11:31.600 you may have that I die daily in 31. But it's 00:11:31.600 --> 00:11:35.200 undoubtedly part of verse 30. But it's there. 00:11:35.799 --> 00:11:38.080 Regardless of where it is. That's what Paul is 00:11:38.080 --> 00:11:42.259 saying here. And why stand we in jeopardy every 00:11:42.259 --> 00:11:47.419 hour? Why would we do that? Why did Paul continually 00:11:47.419 --> 00:11:52.320 go and put his life on the line? Serving the 00:11:52.320 --> 00:11:55.279 church. Bringing new people into the church. 00:11:55.440 --> 00:11:59.500 Being used by God to expand the kingdom. Why? 00:11:59.779 --> 00:12:03.299 He says. Why would I do this? Because of the 00:12:03.299 --> 00:12:08.029 resurrection. Because this life is not it. This 00:12:08.029 --> 00:12:11.090 life is just the beginning. This is the probationary 00:12:11.090 --> 00:12:16.330 period. It's only a prelude to the life after. 00:12:16.950 --> 00:12:22.269 The resurrection is real. I'm living proof that 00:12:22.269 --> 00:12:26.730 I believe the resurrection to be a reality. I 00:12:26.730 --> 00:12:30.250 die daily, he says. And if you're familiar with 00:12:30.250 --> 00:12:33.129 Acts and other places where Paul discusses his 00:12:33.129 --> 00:12:37.399 life, you know it's true. He continually went 00:12:37.399 --> 00:12:40.340 and put his life on the line. He almost died. 00:12:40.539 --> 00:12:43.000 Some people think that he did die in that stoning, 00:12:43.080 --> 00:12:45.460 but I don't think so, but he was near death. 00:12:48.120 --> 00:12:52.100 Continually. And Paul says, there's no reason 00:12:52.100 --> 00:12:57.000 that I would do that if this life was it. If 00:12:57.000 --> 00:13:00.120 this life was the only life, why would I attempt 00:13:00.120 --> 00:13:07.590 to, or why would I be willing to lose it? Then 00:13:07.590 --> 00:13:12.269 in verse 31, I protest. I should have just put 00:13:12.269 --> 00:13:14.950 this in a different language, in a modern language. 00:13:15.289 --> 00:13:19.250 I protest by your rejoicing, which I have in 00:13:19.250 --> 00:13:24.250 Christ Jesus our Lord. What he's saying there 00:13:24.250 --> 00:13:27.870 is, I'm guaranteeing you that I'm speaking the 00:13:27.870 --> 00:13:32.090 truth here. I'm speaking just as much truth as 00:13:32.090 --> 00:13:35.789 when I proclaim your faith in the Lord Jesus 00:13:35.789 --> 00:13:40.100 Christ. You know, Paul was always commending 00:13:40.100 --> 00:13:43.240 them for their strong faith in the Lord. We're 00:13:43.240 --> 00:13:44.779 not going to look it up, but I'll give you the 00:13:44.779 --> 00:13:47.620 references if you want to look it up for yourself. 00:13:47.679 --> 00:13:55.240 2 Corinthians 7, verses 4 and 14. 2 Corinthians 00:13:55.240 --> 00:14:02.600 8, verse 24. 2 Corinthians 9, verses 3 and 4. 00:14:04.200 --> 00:14:08.659 That's what is being expressed there by Paul. 00:14:08.820 --> 00:14:13.840 I'm telling the truth. This is truthful now is 00:14:13.840 --> 00:14:16.820 when I declare my love for you and your faith 00:14:16.820 --> 00:14:20.840 in the Lord Jesus Christ. Don't doubt it. Don't 00:14:20.840 --> 00:14:24.379 doubt me in this. Or we could say, if I'm not 00:14:24.379 --> 00:14:26.980 telling the truth here, I'm not telling the truth 00:14:26.980 --> 00:14:30.679 about you guys either. He's linking these two 00:14:30.679 --> 00:14:34.389 declarations together. If one is true, they are 00:14:34.389 --> 00:14:37.710 both true, or the opposite. If he's wrong or 00:14:37.710 --> 00:14:41.129 false in the one, he obviously could be wrong 00:14:41.129 --> 00:14:44.429 or false in the other. That's what Paul's declaring 00:14:44.429 --> 00:14:49.289 here. He wants them to be sure and understand 00:14:49.289 --> 00:14:55.649 the emphasis in what he's writing and what he's 00:14:55.649 --> 00:15:01.049 saying here. It's important. The resurrection, 00:15:01.350 --> 00:15:04.029 it is part of the gospel. It is essential to 00:15:04.029 --> 00:15:06.330 the gospel, as we heard again this morning in 00:15:06.330 --> 00:15:11.409 our communion time. The resurrection proves the 00:15:11.409 --> 00:15:15.889 payment has been accepted. We serve a living 00:15:15.889 --> 00:15:19.850 God. We serve a living Savior. He's no longer 00:15:19.850 --> 00:15:23.909 dead. Death could not hold him. He is alive. 00:15:24.129 --> 00:15:38.019 He is alive. Then he goes on. If, verse 32, if 00:15:38.019 --> 00:15:41.639 after the manner of men I have fought with beasts 00:15:41.639 --> 00:15:46.120 at Ephesus, what advantage did it me if the dead 00:15:46.120 --> 00:15:51.460 not rise? Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow 00:15:51.460 --> 00:15:55.919 we die. Okay, so there he is. He's laying it 00:15:55.919 --> 00:16:03.440 right out. He's not pulling any punches. Again, 00:16:03.919 --> 00:16:06.600 I think this is figurative language when he says 00:16:06.600 --> 00:16:10.659 that he fought with beasts. It's not in the record. 00:16:10.759 --> 00:16:12.580 It's not in the scriptures that he fought with 00:16:12.580 --> 00:16:15.879 any beasts at Ephesus. But he did fight with 00:16:15.879 --> 00:16:19.740 men who were acting as beasts. They were raging 00:16:19.740 --> 00:16:22.879 mad, raging maniacs, wanting to tear him apart. 00:16:23.600 --> 00:16:27.360 Just like a beast. They acted like a beast. But 00:16:27.360 --> 00:16:30.120 regardless of that, maybe he did fight with beasts 00:16:30.120 --> 00:16:31.899 and it's just not recorded in the scriptures. 00:16:32.299 --> 00:16:35.759 Either way, again, he puts his life on the line 00:16:35.759 --> 00:16:40.940 for the church, for you and me, for those contemporary 00:16:40.940 --> 00:16:44.799 folks that he was proclaiming Christ to. He puts 00:16:44.799 --> 00:16:50.360 it all out there. And why? What? If there's no 00:16:50.360 --> 00:16:54.120 resurrection, why would he do this? Why would 00:16:54.120 --> 00:16:57.929 I do this, he says. It doesn't make any sense. 00:16:58.889 --> 00:17:01.830 It doesn't make any sense if there's no resurrection. 00:17:02.629 --> 00:17:05.130 He's already told us. We already looked at it. 00:17:05.170 --> 00:17:07.750 If there is no resurrection, we are of all men 00:17:07.750 --> 00:17:12.309 most miserable, most foolish to be serving this 00:17:12.309 --> 00:17:16.650 dead Savior who's incapable of saving us, incapable 00:17:16.650 --> 00:17:20.829 of bringing us into eternity. It's senseless. 00:17:21.109 --> 00:17:26.210 It makes no sense. But there is a resurrection. 00:17:26.490 --> 00:17:29.890 Christ has arisen from the dead. So he says, 00:17:29.990 --> 00:17:35.609 let us eat and drink. If we were putting it in 00:17:35.609 --> 00:17:37.630 our day, we would say, let us eat and drink and 00:17:37.630 --> 00:17:40.950 be merry. Grab all the gusto that you can. Remember 00:17:40.950 --> 00:17:44.109 all those commercials? It's just exactly what 00:17:44.109 --> 00:17:47.849 they said. I guess they got at least part of 00:17:47.849 --> 00:17:50.250 it from the Bible. Because they don't believe 00:17:50.250 --> 00:17:52.269 in any resurrection. They don't believe in any 00:17:52.269 --> 00:17:55.589 life after death. This is all that they got. 00:17:55.730 --> 00:17:59.269 This is all they believe in. And their sayings 00:17:59.269 --> 00:18:05.690 and their life, what? Prove it. They prove by 00:18:05.690 --> 00:18:08.470 the way that they live that they think this is 00:18:08.470 --> 00:18:10.930 the only life that there is. They don't have 00:18:10.930 --> 00:18:14.329 to tell you a thing. They're grabbing. They're 00:18:14.329 --> 00:18:16.690 clutching. They're going after everything that 00:18:16.690 --> 00:18:20.009 they can get their grubby hands on. They want 00:18:20.009 --> 00:18:25.880 it all. Give me the gusto. I'm going to go out 00:18:25.880 --> 00:18:31.440 rich. Yeah, going out. You got that part right. 00:18:38.539 --> 00:18:50.839 Okay. Now then, he's going to give some exhortations 00:18:50.839 --> 00:18:56.319 regarding the life. He's showing these two extremes, 00:18:56.500 --> 00:19:00.240 maybe. The extremes of dying for Christ and the 00:19:00.240 --> 00:19:03.180 extremes of living and grabbing for yourself 00:19:03.180 --> 00:19:09.079 all that you can. That's really, that is an apt 00:19:09.079 --> 00:19:11.460 description. Christians and non -Christians, 00:19:11.460 --> 00:19:14.920 believers, non -believers, willing to sacrifice 00:19:14.920 --> 00:19:20.140 themselves, willing to sacrifice nothing. He 00:19:20.140 --> 00:19:22.319 lays it out there, these two groups of people. 00:19:23.690 --> 00:19:25.930 And they show who they are by how they live. 00:19:27.529 --> 00:19:35.390 And what does he say then in verse 33? Be not 00:19:35.390 --> 00:19:39.490 deceived. Evil company or evil communications 00:19:39.490 --> 00:19:48.589 corrupt good manners. Okay. This is it. Obviously, 00:19:48.890 --> 00:19:54.420 this is where the rubber hits the road. This 00:19:54.420 --> 00:19:57.500 is what he's telling us. Don't kid yourself. 00:20:01.240 --> 00:20:03.960 Who you hang around with is going to have an 00:20:03.960 --> 00:20:14.259 effect on you yourself. So I hope, I pray that 00:20:14.259 --> 00:20:20.960 you are wise in your choice of companions. That's 00:20:20.960 --> 00:20:24.500 what he's saying. That's what he's telling. Wake 00:20:24.500 --> 00:20:29.799 up. Come out of your daze. Come out of la -la 00:20:29.799 --> 00:20:32.019 land, thinking that you can just go anywhere, 00:20:32.119 --> 00:20:34.819 do anything, hang around with anybody you want 00:20:34.819 --> 00:20:38.000 to, blah, blah, blah, whatever. Get out of that 00:20:38.000 --> 00:20:42.420 mindset. Who you hang around with is going to 00:20:42.420 --> 00:20:46.799 make a difference on your life. That's what he's 00:20:46.799 --> 00:20:51.640 saying. That's what Paul wants us to know. We've 00:20:51.640 --> 00:20:57.180 got to be careful of who our friends are. We've 00:20:57.180 --> 00:21:04.160 got to be careful, really, about everybody. Some 00:21:04.160 --> 00:21:07.599 of us had good parents. Some of us had better 00:21:07.599 --> 00:21:14.119 parents after they were converted. You have to 00:21:14.119 --> 00:21:20.700 be careful. You can't just assume that your parents 00:21:20.700 --> 00:21:24.440 are going to have no effect upon you. You hanging 00:21:24.440 --> 00:21:27.900 around with your parents? Are they suitable people 00:21:27.900 --> 00:21:30.920 to hang around with? Are they coming between 00:21:30.920 --> 00:21:34.519 you and the church? I'm speaking from personal 00:21:34.519 --> 00:21:37.779 experience. I'm not speaking about anybody in 00:21:37.779 --> 00:21:43.160 particular, except for myself. When I was converted, 00:21:43.279 --> 00:21:46.660 I had to break off with my parents. They were 00:21:46.660 --> 00:21:51.079 a hindrance. They weren't the people that I was 00:21:51.079 --> 00:21:52.900 going to hang around with. I wasn't going to 00:21:52.900 --> 00:21:55.339 make my parents happy at the expense of the church. 00:21:57.079 --> 00:22:00.119 Or at the expense of Jesus Christ. Remember this 00:22:00.119 --> 00:22:03.240 again. There's no separation between Christ and 00:22:03.240 --> 00:22:07.000 his people. You think you're serving Christ? 00:22:07.319 --> 00:22:10.319 Then you've got to be serving his people. You 00:22:10.319 --> 00:22:12.579 have to give Christ's people the same priorities 00:22:12.579 --> 00:22:15.400 as you give to Jesus Christ. They're linked. 00:22:16.140 --> 00:22:18.819 Christ is the head and the church is the body. 00:22:20.640 --> 00:22:24.779 You can't serve one and not serve the other. 00:22:26.299 --> 00:22:34.480 You've got to be careful. It's going to have 00:22:34.480 --> 00:22:47.289 an effect on you. Do you believe? I'm going to 00:22:47.289 --> 00:22:49.589 let it go in just a minute. Do you believe it? 00:22:50.490 --> 00:22:52.990 Do you believe that who you hang around with 00:22:52.990 --> 00:22:56.309 is going to affect the way you act? Do you believe 00:22:56.309 --> 00:23:02.890 it? Well, that's what the Bible says. He doesn't 00:23:02.890 --> 00:23:08.190 say it could happen. Maybe it'll happen. Just 00:23:08.190 --> 00:23:10.849 be careful if you're around these wrong kind 00:23:10.849 --> 00:23:13.289 of folks. No, I didn't say anything like that. 00:23:14.410 --> 00:23:18.710 He says it will corrupt you. It will corrupt 00:23:18.710 --> 00:23:25.430 the way that you live. Hanging around evil companions. 00:23:29.049 --> 00:23:42.730 Okay. Verse 34. Awake to righteousness and sin 00:23:42.730 --> 00:23:47.200 not. For some have not the knowledge of God. 00:23:47.920 --> 00:23:53.059 I speak this to your shame. Okay, here's another 00:23:53.059 --> 00:23:59.119 strong exhortation. Can you receive it? Are we 00:23:59.119 --> 00:24:02.539 willing to take it seriously? Is it going to 00:24:02.539 --> 00:24:05.579 have any effect upon us? When we get out of the 00:24:05.579 --> 00:24:08.400 building, when we go our own way, is this going 00:24:08.400 --> 00:24:14.750 to come into play? Awake! Unto righteousness 00:24:14.750 --> 00:24:21.390 and sin not. What is it? Awake to righteousness. 00:24:21.430 --> 00:24:26.650 In other words, live righteously. Have it on 00:24:26.650 --> 00:24:30.130 your mind. Keep it before your face. We talk 00:24:30.130 --> 00:24:32.410 about keeping the Lord before, and that's a good 00:24:32.410 --> 00:24:34.670 thing. We should, but we can't separate these 00:24:34.670 --> 00:24:39.289 things. Having our eyes and our mind fixed on 00:24:39.289 --> 00:24:42.650 Jesus is the same as saying, I'm determined to 00:24:42.650 --> 00:24:47.849 live righteously. I'm determined to live in the 00:24:47.849 --> 00:24:52.690 presence of God. Do we think that way? Do we? 00:24:54.369 --> 00:24:57.650 We do live in the presence of God. That's the 00:24:57.650 --> 00:25:02.609 truth. But do we think about it? Does it have 00:25:02.609 --> 00:25:07.569 any effect upon us? Do we want to act righteously 00:25:07.569 --> 00:25:11.809 because we're actually living right there with 00:25:11.809 --> 00:25:16.970 God? He's right there in our presence. The Holy 00:25:16.970 --> 00:25:21.349 Spirit indwells us. What do these things do to 00:25:21.349 --> 00:25:26.230 us? That's what Paul's asking. That's what he's 00:25:26.230 --> 00:25:31.289 saying. Awaken to righteousness and sin not. 00:25:32.589 --> 00:25:35.890 Remember, he went through Adam. All sinned. Adam 00:25:35.890 --> 00:25:38.430 brought sin into the world. Adam wrecked the 00:25:38.430 --> 00:25:40.849 world. Remember, we saw it back in verse 21. 00:25:41.430 --> 00:25:44.450 And just as sure as Adam wrecked the world, Christ 00:25:44.450 --> 00:25:48.650 redeemed it. You're either in Adam or you're 00:25:48.650 --> 00:25:53.390 in Christ. Those are, again, the two choices. 00:25:53.470 --> 00:25:57.250 You can't be in any other place. If you're still 00:25:57.250 --> 00:26:00.190 in Adam, you're lost. If you're in Christ, you're 00:26:00.190 --> 00:26:04.750 saved. And you're going to go on being saved. 00:26:06.250 --> 00:26:10.970 Remember? Too much past tense saved in Christians 00:26:10.970 --> 00:26:15.190 today. It's true that it had a beginning. It 00:26:15.190 --> 00:26:19.730 did have a beginning in the past. But we can 00:26:19.730 --> 00:26:21.950 only know for sure that it did have a beginning 00:26:21.950 --> 00:26:26.049 is because it has a middle. We're being saved. 00:26:27.529 --> 00:26:31.900 We're being saved. And we will be saved. In other 00:26:31.900 --> 00:26:34.500 words, we will make it to heaven. We will receive 00:26:34.500 --> 00:26:40.359 the resurrection of our bodies. That's salvation 00:26:40.359 --> 00:26:45.200 in a biblical sense. It's not I got saved 25 00:26:45.200 --> 00:26:48.259 years ago and I can live however I want to for 00:26:48.259 --> 00:26:52.380 the next 25 years because I'm saved. That guy's 00:26:52.380 --> 00:27:00.390 never been saved. He's as lost as anything. Okay, 00:27:00.410 --> 00:27:08.170 so awaken, sin not, do righteousness. And then 00:27:08.170 --> 00:27:11.069 he pauses and he says, some have not the knowledge 00:27:11.069 --> 00:27:20.950 of God. What does that have to do with anything? 00:27:23.430 --> 00:27:28.369 Why do you say that? Some have not the knowledge 00:27:28.369 --> 00:27:32.589 of God. Everybody that he's writing to had a 00:27:32.589 --> 00:27:38.410 knowledge of God. So that can't be what he means. 00:27:39.869 --> 00:27:44.789 They heard the gospel. They heard about sin and 00:27:44.789 --> 00:27:47.970 righteousness. They heard about God and creation. 00:27:48.410 --> 00:27:51.569 He could freely quote Genesis with Adam and Romans 00:27:51.569 --> 00:28:01.259 5. They knew about God. They knew God. Just like 00:28:01.259 --> 00:28:06.680 I can say here, everybody here knows God. You 00:28:06.680 --> 00:28:11.779 all do. But that's not all that he's talking 00:28:11.779 --> 00:28:17.460 about. Knowledge to know something goes much 00:28:17.460 --> 00:28:23.539 deeper than this nagging. That's only where it 00:28:23.539 --> 00:28:28.599 starts. And again, I... I'm sure you've heard 00:28:28.599 --> 00:28:31.160 this a thousand times. It all does start right 00:28:31.160 --> 00:28:35.940 here. You've got to have received the knowledge 00:28:35.940 --> 00:28:40.700 of God into our minds. And it has to go from 00:28:40.700 --> 00:28:45.119 our minds into our whole being. Or the Bible 00:28:45.119 --> 00:28:49.720 calls it the heart. If it just stops in the mind, 00:28:49.799 --> 00:28:53.319 that's just intellectualism. That's not saving 00:28:53.319 --> 00:29:00.099 faith. Saving faith is a knowledge of God. That's 00:29:00.099 --> 00:29:03.599 what the scripture says. So what does he mean 00:29:03.599 --> 00:29:06.099 by this knowledge of God? He means a personal 00:29:06.099 --> 00:29:11.140 ongoing relationship with the Lord. Some of you 00:29:11.140 --> 00:29:16.480 have no idea what that is. Some of you have no 00:29:16.480 --> 00:29:20.099 idea what it is to have a personal walk with 00:29:20.099 --> 00:29:25.089 the Lord. It's just head knowledge. And that's 00:29:25.089 --> 00:29:29.289 what you're relying on. Or there was a time when 00:29:29.289 --> 00:29:33.470 you did have such a relationship. But now you've 00:29:33.470 --> 00:29:37.089 left your first love. You're no longer in love 00:29:37.089 --> 00:29:40.349 like you were in the beginning. That's from Revelation. 00:29:42.750 --> 00:29:49.009 One or the other, there's a problem. Are we experiencing 00:29:49.009 --> 00:29:53.519 God in our daily lives? Do we have a knowledge 00:29:53.519 --> 00:30:02.980 of God? Is He real in us? Has He expressed His 00:30:02.980 --> 00:30:05.519 love for you on a personal level through the 00:30:05.519 --> 00:30:09.279 power of the Holy Spirit? Have you experienced 00:30:09.279 --> 00:30:15.039 any of those things? Have you ever been burdened 00:30:15.039 --> 00:30:18.420 in prayer? Have you ever received a burden that 00:30:18.420 --> 00:30:21.140 you couldn't put down, that you have to pray 00:30:21.140 --> 00:30:24.420 for? That God has so burdened your heart that 00:30:24.420 --> 00:30:28.799 you cannot not pray for whatever it is. Have 00:30:28.799 --> 00:30:32.160 you experienced that? That's a knowledge of God. 00:30:32.220 --> 00:30:37.539 That's a personal relationship with God. He's 00:30:37.539 --> 00:30:40.839 trusted you with this burden. That's what I'm 00:30:40.839 --> 00:30:44.140 saying. That's what is being implied. I'm just 00:30:44.140 --> 00:30:47.589 saying it. He has given you a burden. He's entrusted 00:30:47.589 --> 00:30:51.250 you with this burden, expecting you to do something 00:30:51.250 --> 00:31:00.069 with it. To pray over this. If it's a lost person, 00:31:00.170 --> 00:31:05.069 to make an opportunity to share the gospel. Whatever. 00:31:05.210 --> 00:31:12.809 A burden. You can liken it to a lot of things. 00:31:13.789 --> 00:31:16.630 We give each other burdens. We shouldn't, but 00:31:16.630 --> 00:31:21.069 we do. Our wife gives us burdens. We give burdens 00:31:21.069 --> 00:31:25.329 to our wife. If you're in a relationship, there 00:31:25.329 --> 00:31:31.569 are burdens involved. That's the knowledge of 00:31:31.569 --> 00:31:37.250 God. Some of them didn't have it. And I speak 00:31:37.250 --> 00:31:44.680 to your shame. It's a shame. Not to have the 00:31:44.680 --> 00:31:47.640 knowledge of God. Not to have a living relationship 00:31:47.640 --> 00:31:53.039 with the Lord. Just have a bunch of head knowledge. 00:31:57.880 --> 00:32:02.319 I mean, I haven't touched on, that's just one 00:32:02.319 --> 00:32:05.440 aspect of our relationship with the Lord. You've 00:32:05.440 --> 00:32:09.799 never received the full joy of your salvation 00:32:09.799 --> 00:32:16.190 if you have no relationship. If it's just all 00:32:16.190 --> 00:32:19.430 in your head, you're missing it. You're missing 00:32:19.430 --> 00:32:25.369 the joy of God's salvation in your life. We could 00:32:25.369 --> 00:32:29.309 go on. I mean, it's all dependent upon this very 00:32:29.309 --> 00:32:37.569 thing. How is it that this is the last admonition 00:32:37.569 --> 00:32:52.680 that he gives? Again, from me, this is an exhortation 00:32:52.680 --> 00:32:58.059 and a question. Are you expecting the resurrection? 00:32:59.579 --> 00:33:03.579 Do you expect to be raised from the dead? Do 00:33:03.579 --> 00:33:07.039 you expect to have a lifelong, eternity -long 00:33:07.039 --> 00:33:10.819 relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ? Or not? 00:33:13.079 --> 00:33:18.279 You just slough off? Oh, I read a few verses 00:33:18.279 --> 00:33:22.940 once or twice or four times a week. I pray occasionally. 00:33:23.660 --> 00:33:27.259 That's enough for me. I got it covered. Well, 00:33:27.299 --> 00:33:30.599 that's not a relationship. Try telling that to 00:33:30.599 --> 00:33:36.119 your wife. I talked to you yesterday. That doesn't 00:33:36.119 --> 00:33:42.200 get it. That's why. They're denying the resurrection. 00:33:42.279 --> 00:33:45.799 They're denying. That they're longing after the 00:33:45.799 --> 00:33:48.359 resurrection. They're denying that they're living 00:33:48.359 --> 00:33:51.440 expectantly in the hope of the resurrection. 00:33:52.140 --> 00:33:55.240 Because they have no knowledge of God. It doesn't 00:33:55.240 --> 00:34:08.940 mean anything to them. So anyway, I'm here to 00:34:08.940 --> 00:34:14.889 encourage everyone. to take these verses seriously, 00:34:14.929 --> 00:34:18.710 to come to grips with the fact, what are you 00:34:18.710 --> 00:34:22.750 telling the world about Jesus Christ? What opportunities 00:34:22.750 --> 00:34:26.969 have you missed? What golden opportunities of 00:34:26.969 --> 00:34:30.210 service have you missed because it never occurred 00:34:30.210 --> 00:34:33.530 to you? You never thought that the way that you 00:34:33.530 --> 00:34:36.130 were witnessing or living was going to be able 00:34:36.130 --> 00:34:38.809 to be used by God or would ever be used by God 00:34:38.809 --> 00:34:44.079 or whatever it is. You see, that's the relationship 00:34:44.079 --> 00:34:48.920 between a saved man and his Lord is one of a 00:34:48.920 --> 00:34:53.880 romantic relationship. That's what it should 00:34:53.880 --> 00:34:58.559 be. You should be so in love with the Lord that 00:34:58.559 --> 00:35:01.420 you at least in some manner mirror his love for 00:35:01.420 --> 00:35:05.739 you. There's no doubt about his love for us. 00:35:06.719 --> 00:35:10.360 We all testify to that. But how about our love 00:35:10.360 --> 00:35:16.380 for him? That's what Paul's talking about. Are 00:35:16.380 --> 00:35:22.199 you reciprocating the love of God to him? That's 00:35:22.199 --> 00:35:25.119 what he wants to know. Do you really believe 00:35:25.119 --> 00:35:27.500 in the resurrection? Are you willing to die for 00:35:27.500 --> 00:35:32.119 it? Are you willing to, and it's really silly 00:35:32.119 --> 00:35:36.559 in our case, are we willing to be shunned a little 00:35:36.559 --> 00:35:40.980 bit? Are we willing to be Talked bad about. Nobody's 00:35:40.980 --> 00:35:44.659 going to take a knife to us. And kill us. Nobody's 00:35:44.659 --> 00:35:48.940 going to execute us. I mean. That's just the 00:35:48.940 --> 00:35:54.440 slightest thing. What are we afraid of? I don't 00:35:54.440 --> 00:35:56.980 know if I can talk like that. What are they going 00:35:56.980 --> 00:35:58.880 to think? Blah blah blah. I don't know anything 00:35:58.880 --> 00:36:01.340 about. I'm not saying that anybody here is doing 00:36:01.340 --> 00:36:07.320 this. It's just an example. Trying to get. The 00:36:07.320 --> 00:36:10.739 idea that we are so blessed. We've experienced 00:36:10.739 --> 00:36:13.840 so much goodness from God. That we don't face 00:36:13.840 --> 00:36:17.559 this kind of stuff. We're here in this great 00:36:17.559 --> 00:36:22.420 country. Where we have absolute freedoms. Where 00:36:22.420 --> 00:36:26.940 we have the protection of law. We should be the 00:36:26.940 --> 00:36:31.760 most vigorous people on earth. But we're not. 00:36:37.480 --> 00:36:41.559 So I'm asking. I'm encouraging. I'm wanting us 00:36:41.559 --> 00:36:44.800 to serve the Lord with real conviction, vigor. 00:36:45.199 --> 00:36:49.940 I want us to experience God as we've never experienced 00:36:49.940 --> 00:36:56.360 Him before. I want us to be growing more and 00:36:56.360 --> 00:36:59.880 more in love with Him. More and more in love 00:36:59.880 --> 00:37:03.519 with each other. More and more as this Sunday 00:37:03.519 --> 00:37:06.019 morning meeting is the highlight of the week. 00:37:07.469 --> 00:37:11.889 More and more. Bringing things to the meeting. 00:37:13.530 --> 00:37:16.309 Remember, we always say that there's no reason 00:37:16.309 --> 00:37:20.510 that this meeting should ever be boring. Remember? 00:37:22.489 --> 00:37:25.250 That's because we're all alive here. We've all 00:37:25.250 --> 00:37:28.769 got the Spirit. God speaks to us all week long. 00:37:29.670 --> 00:37:32.070 We can all bring something if we're willing. 00:37:33.070 --> 00:37:36.050 We can all be used of God in one another's lives. 00:37:37.840 --> 00:37:42.659 We were all given opportunities to pray. A lot 00:37:42.659 --> 00:37:44.880 more people are taking advantage of that now. 00:37:45.099 --> 00:37:49.400 Some are still not. Some just refuse to pray. 00:37:52.920 --> 00:37:56.199 That's up to you. You stand before your Lord. 00:37:56.559 --> 00:38:00.619 He's your master. Not me. But you know what he 00:38:00.619 --> 00:38:07.670 thinks. Experience God. Experience the love. 00:38:09.269 --> 00:38:15.710 Experience the assurance that he gives in a relationship. 00:38:17.469 --> 00:38:22.590 Be open. Be reciprocal. Pour yourself out an 00:38:22.590 --> 00:38:27.150 offering. Even though you're probably never going 00:38:27.150 --> 00:38:32.570 to have to face death, be willing to die for 00:38:32.570 --> 00:38:37.039 our Lord Jesus Christ. Be willing. and demonstrate 00:38:37.039 --> 00:38:41.820 in our lives. Pour out yourself for somebody 00:38:41.820 --> 00:38:46.900 else. Be an encourager. Be a comforter. Be a 00:38:46.900 --> 00:38:52.739 helper. Experience God. Conrad used to say, if 00:38:52.739 --> 00:38:55.199 you want to worship on Sunday, you've got to 00:38:55.199 --> 00:38:59.260 wash somebody's car on Saturday. In other words, 00:38:59.280 --> 00:39:04.679 you've got to serve. If you went through the 00:39:04.679 --> 00:39:07.500 whole week and you never served, why do you think 00:39:07.500 --> 00:39:09.599 you're going to be able to experience God and 00:39:09.599 --> 00:39:16.099 worship him on Sunday? Just saying. The resurrection 00:39:16.099 --> 00:39:20.139 is real. And the way that we live confirms or 00:39:20.139 --> 00:39:24.039 denies the reality of the resurrection. Amen.