WEBVTT 00:00:02.379 --> 00:00:04.879 All right, take your Bibles, turn with me to 00:00:04.879 --> 00:00:07.960 the book of 1 John chapter number two. 1 John 00:00:07.960 --> 00:00:10.640 chapter two, what a great start to the service, 00:00:10.759 --> 00:00:12.660 and man, it's good to be in the house of God. 00:00:12.740 --> 00:00:15.740 It's good to be among Bible -believing people, 00:00:16.339 --> 00:00:18.679 and the word of God's quick, powerful, and sharper 00:00:18.679 --> 00:00:21.280 than any two -edged sword. You know, we live 00:00:21.280 --> 00:00:25.219 guided by God's holy, precious word, and God's 00:00:25.219 --> 00:00:28.000 word is, it's just an amazing book. It's God's 00:00:28.000 --> 00:00:30.780 word, and you and I, we don't have to walk around 00:00:31.050 --> 00:00:33.270 and not know where we're going. We can see into 00:00:33.270 --> 00:00:35.229 the future with the word of God. It's a light 00:00:35.229 --> 00:00:37.469 into my, a lamp into my feet and a light into 00:00:37.469 --> 00:00:41.310 my path. And this morning, here in First John, 00:00:41.649 --> 00:00:44.409 we're gonna notice something very important that 00:00:44.409 --> 00:00:48.450 God wants His children, His children. Well, look 00:00:48.450 --> 00:00:52.909 with me at the first three words of chapter number 00:00:52.909 --> 00:00:56.950 two. Read those with me. My little children. 00:00:57.070 --> 00:01:01.060 Say it again with me. My little children. Now, 00:01:01.159 --> 00:01:06.180 this is a theme here in the book of 1 John, my 00:01:06.180 --> 00:01:10.000 little children. There is something different 00:01:10.000 --> 00:01:14.840 between older children and little children. When 00:01:14.840 --> 00:01:18.739 we went camping, I had my oldest son, John, he's 00:01:18.739 --> 00:01:21.480 a pastor down in Elizabeth City, he brought my 00:01:21.480 --> 00:01:24.219 grandson David with him, but there's something 00:01:24.219 --> 00:01:26.700 about a 32 year old, there's a difference between 00:01:26.700 --> 00:01:30.750 an older child, my 15 -year -old child, Daniel, 00:01:31.409 --> 00:01:35.209 on Friday morning, I'm sleeping, at five o 'clock 00:01:35.209 --> 00:01:37.890 in the morning. He had been fishing at night, 00:01:37.890 --> 00:01:40.469 about two, three o 'clock. And he comes and wakes 00:01:40.469 --> 00:01:44.349 me up, and he's holding a fish in my face right 00:01:44.349 --> 00:01:47.829 there. Look what I caught, Dad. And I had my 00:01:47.829 --> 00:01:49.430 eyes barely open. I said, that's a great son, 00:01:49.450 --> 00:01:52.030 great son right there. But there's something 00:01:52.030 --> 00:01:57.250 different between an older child and little children. 00:01:57.530 --> 00:02:01.250 My littlest son is Amos. He's right there in 00:02:01.250 --> 00:02:05.189 the blue suit right there. Just turned six years 00:02:05.189 --> 00:02:08.469 of age. And what we did, I'm not saying this 00:02:08.469 --> 00:02:11.710 was good to do at that camping trip, but on Friday 00:02:11.710 --> 00:02:15.569 night we had our church service and then we got 00:02:15.569 --> 00:02:19.770 the little children together to tell them a bear 00:02:19.770 --> 00:02:24.159 story. And a bear story. And looking back, I 00:02:24.159 --> 00:02:26.199 probably wouldn't do it quite like I did it. 00:02:27.039 --> 00:02:30.879 But it got dark. It's past 9 o 'clock. Gathered 00:02:30.879 --> 00:02:34.060 all the children together. And we told them about 00:02:34.060 --> 00:02:38.300 bears in the forest and the dangers of bears. 00:02:39.199 --> 00:02:42.159 And then, taking a long story and making it short, 00:02:42.340 --> 00:02:45.580 Brother Jerome, we gathered them. And we began 00:02:45.580 --> 00:02:50.990 to take them on a bear trail walk. And the kids 00:02:50.990 --> 00:02:53.289 are gathered together. My Amos grabbed ahold 00:02:53.289 --> 00:02:56.710 of me. My Nehemiah grabbed ahold of me. And we're 00:02:56.710 --> 00:02:59.409 walking through. And we had probably 12 or 13 00:02:59.409 --> 00:03:02.490 little children with us. And around every corner, 00:03:02.750 --> 00:03:05.270 the Lord made it a breezy night. There was a 00:03:05.270 --> 00:03:09.289 thunderstorm coming. And it was spooky. We got 00:03:09.289 --> 00:03:12.349 to this area, sat all the kids down, and it is 00:03:12.349 --> 00:03:14.949 pitch dark. And I began to tell them about this 00:03:14.949 --> 00:03:18.639 story, about this family. and this family that 00:03:18.639 --> 00:03:21.620 was surrounded by bears living in this place 00:03:21.620 --> 00:03:25.120 right there. And I said, the dad came out and 00:03:25.120 --> 00:03:27.780 growled like a bear to scare all the bears away. 00:03:28.180 --> 00:03:31.020 And we had Brother Joe Blandino, he got there 00:03:31.020 --> 00:03:34.259 and I said, Brother Joe, show them how he growled. 00:03:34.439 --> 00:03:36.180 And Brother Joe, and right before I said, now, 00:03:36.340 --> 00:03:38.520 they didn't know that rather than scaring the 00:03:38.520 --> 00:03:41.780 bears, they caused the bears to attack. And Brother 00:03:41.780 --> 00:03:46.020 Joe, he went. and next thing you know, we had 00:03:46.020 --> 00:03:49.400 Brother Barry hiding behind them, and he came 00:03:49.400 --> 00:03:55.539 out like a bear, and it wasn't good. I don't 00:03:55.539 --> 00:03:58.360 advise that, I look back, it was a bad bear story. 00:03:58.659 --> 00:04:00.879 But there's something different between older 00:04:00.879 --> 00:04:04.280 children and little children, and we're gonna 00:04:04.280 --> 00:04:06.539 look at my little children. You can stand with 00:04:06.539 --> 00:04:09.219 me for the reading of God's word. We're just 00:04:09.219 --> 00:04:12.060 gonna read one verse to begin with. And we're 00:04:12.060 --> 00:04:14.620 gonna read 1 John chapter two, verse number one. 00:04:14.699 --> 00:04:16.579 We'll read it all together in unison. Are you 00:04:16.579 --> 00:04:21.040 ready? My little children, these things write 00:04:21.040 --> 00:04:25.819 I unto you that ye sin not. And if any man sin, 00:04:26.000 --> 00:04:29.819 we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ, 00:04:29.959 --> 00:04:34.019 the righteous. My little children. The first 00:04:34.019 --> 00:04:37.279 three words, say it with me again. My little 00:04:37.279 --> 00:04:39.600 children. That's the title of the message. Before 00:04:39.600 --> 00:04:41.600 we go any further, let's go to the Lord in prayer. 00:04:41.680 --> 00:04:45.980 Dear Father in heaven, we love you. And it's 00:04:45.980 --> 00:04:49.740 an amazing opportunity we have, first of all, 00:04:49.740 --> 00:04:52.680 to have your word, but to be able to open it, 00:04:52.879 --> 00:04:56.139 to read it, to study it. And I pray that you 00:04:56.139 --> 00:05:00.379 help us to be really in unison this morning with 00:05:00.379 --> 00:05:02.939 open hearts and open ears to what your word has 00:05:02.939 --> 00:05:05.779 to tell us. I pray that you help me as the pastor 00:05:05.779 --> 00:05:09.860 to decrease and your word to mightily increase 00:05:09.860 --> 00:05:12.819 this morning. I do pray, if there's a soul here 00:05:12.819 --> 00:05:14.639 this morning that's not saved, I pray that this 00:05:14.639 --> 00:05:17.180 would be the day of salvation for them. But Lord, 00:05:17.180 --> 00:05:20.160 we need you. Lord, we love you. Please help in 00:05:20.160 --> 00:05:23.500 Jesus' name, amen. You may be seated. Now look 00:05:23.500 --> 00:05:26.120 back with me, the first three words of chapter 00:05:26.120 --> 00:05:29.660 number two, it says, read with me, my little 00:05:29.660 --> 00:05:31.860 children. Now look at verse number 12. Look at 00:05:31.860 --> 00:05:35.980 verse 12, chapter two verse, I write unto you, 00:05:35.980 --> 00:05:39.910 what does it say? Now verse 13, look at verse 00:05:39.910 --> 00:05:43.310 13. I write unto you fathers, because you have 00:05:43.310 --> 00:05:45.990 known him that is from the beginning. I write 00:05:45.990 --> 00:05:48.589 unto you young men, because you have overcome 00:05:48.589 --> 00:05:53.430 the wicked one. I write unto you, what? Little 00:05:53.430 --> 00:05:55.730 children. Now go forward a little bit further, 00:05:55.829 --> 00:05:58.769 verse number 18. First two words, it says what? 00:05:59.209 --> 00:06:03.529 Little children. Go to chapter two, verse 28. 00:06:03.910 --> 00:06:08.819 Or verse 28, it says, and now, Now turn to the 00:06:08.819 --> 00:06:10.740 next chapter, chapter number three, first John 00:06:10.740 --> 00:06:13.240 chapter three, verse number seven, first two 00:06:13.240 --> 00:06:17.000 words it says, little children. And then first 00:06:17.000 --> 00:06:19.379 John chapter three, verse 18, go to verse 18, 00:06:19.899 --> 00:06:23.120 my little children. Chapter number four, the 00:06:23.120 --> 00:06:25.579 next chapter, chapter four, verse number four, 00:06:25.939 --> 00:06:29.279 ye are of God, then it says little children. 00:06:29.579 --> 00:06:31.660 Then chapter number five, if you look at verse 00:06:31.660 --> 00:06:35.949 21, the first two words, little children. And 00:06:35.949 --> 00:06:39.649 over and over again, my little children, little 00:06:39.649 --> 00:06:42.370 children, little children, my little children. 00:06:42.389 --> 00:06:45.589 Now, if you go back with me to verse number one, 00:06:45.910 --> 00:06:47.730 it says these, chapter two, verse number one, 00:06:48.069 --> 00:06:52.670 my little children, these things write I unto 00:06:52.670 --> 00:06:57.769 you that ye sin not. And first of all, when we 00:06:57.769 --> 00:07:00.230 get this, my little children, these things write 00:07:00.230 --> 00:07:04.170 unto you, he's writing to the children of God. 00:07:04.300 --> 00:07:07.779 As you begin to study this passage, it's an amazing 00:07:07.779 --> 00:07:10.839 book in the Bible, but remember, John the beloved, 00:07:10.860 --> 00:07:13.699 he wrote the Gospel of John, then God used him 00:07:13.699 --> 00:07:16.600 to write first John, second John, third John, 00:07:16.860 --> 00:07:19.779 and then he wrote the book of Revelation. And 00:07:19.779 --> 00:07:22.680 the Gospel of John was written that ye might 00:07:22.680 --> 00:07:25.899 believe. And you might have life through his 00:07:25.899 --> 00:07:27.439 name, that believing you might have life through 00:07:27.439 --> 00:07:30.839 his name. The Gospel of John was written so that 00:07:30.839 --> 00:07:33.100 you might believe and have everlasting life. 00:07:33.360 --> 00:07:36.079 But the first book of 1 John, John has explained 00:07:36.079 --> 00:07:38.660 not how to become a child of God, but he's explaining 00:07:38.660 --> 00:07:42.660 how a child of God, a little child of God should 00:07:42.660 --> 00:07:45.439 live their lives. And so as we go there, I want 00:07:45.439 --> 00:07:47.540 you to turn over to John chapter one, if you 00:07:47.540 --> 00:07:50.040 will. This is important, there's sort of a homework 00:07:50.040 --> 00:07:53.850 in the middle of our sermon. But John chapter 00:07:53.850 --> 00:07:57.470 one, the gospel of John, chapter number one, 00:07:58.269 --> 00:08:00.870 and we'll read this, verse number 12 together. 00:08:01.310 --> 00:08:03.970 If you're there, John chapter one, verse number 00:08:03.970 --> 00:08:09.089 12 says this. But as many as received him, to 00:08:09.089 --> 00:08:11.730 them gave he power to become the sons of God. 00:08:11.930 --> 00:08:15.089 even to them that believe on his name. Now, I 00:08:15.089 --> 00:08:17.470 noticed some of you were in 1 John, chapter one. 00:08:17.790 --> 00:08:20.449 We're in the gospel of John, chapter one. Turn 00:08:20.449 --> 00:08:23.250 back over there, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John. Look 00:08:23.250 --> 00:08:25.810 at John, chapter one, verse 12. Try to read it 00:08:25.810 --> 00:08:29.750 loud with me. But as many as received him, to 00:08:29.750 --> 00:08:32.450 them gave he power to become the sons of God, 00:08:32.870 --> 00:08:36.409 even to them that believe on his name. And the 00:08:36.409 --> 00:08:38.769 importance of this, this is very my little children, 00:08:38.970 --> 00:08:41.360 my little children, my little children. He's 00:08:41.360 --> 00:08:45.440 talking about a child of the king. He's talking 00:08:45.440 --> 00:08:49.679 about a child of God. And the Bible clearly tells 00:08:49.679 --> 00:08:54.100 us how that we can become the children of God. 00:08:54.379 --> 00:08:57.899 By the way, a child does not become a child every 00:08:57.899 --> 00:09:01.720 morning. For example, my son Amos, yesterday 00:09:01.720 --> 00:09:05.240 he was my son Amos, and today he wasn't born 00:09:05.240 --> 00:09:08.000 again as far as saying, hey, you're now my son 00:09:08.000 --> 00:09:11.220 Amos. He was my son after he was born. There 00:09:11.220 --> 00:09:14.519 is a physical birth and there is a spiritual 00:09:14.519 --> 00:09:17.600 birth. In other words, in John chapter one, it's 00:09:17.600 --> 00:09:20.419 saying as many as received Jesus Christ, Jesus 00:09:20.419 --> 00:09:23.360 Christ came born of a virgin, lived a perfect 00:09:23.360 --> 00:09:26.059 life, Jesus died on the cross for our sins, and 00:09:26.059 --> 00:09:28.379 then three days later, he rose from the grave 00:09:28.379 --> 00:09:31.720 proving he's God. And when you accept Jesus Christ 00:09:31.720 --> 00:09:35.580 as your savior, you receive him. You, as it says 00:09:35.580 --> 00:09:38.799 in Romans chapter 10, you submit to the righteousness 00:09:38.799 --> 00:09:42.860 of God. When you accept the gift of eternal life, 00:09:43.179 --> 00:09:46.429 you become a child of the King. The only way 00:09:46.429 --> 00:09:50.450 to heaven is Jesus. Jesus is the way. And there 00:09:50.450 --> 00:09:53.629 is a moment when you are passed from death to 00:09:53.629 --> 00:09:56.450 life. There is a moment that you're born of the 00:09:56.450 --> 00:09:59.090 spirit. There is a moment in time when you receive 00:09:59.090 --> 00:10:02.309 that gift of eternal life. And as many as received 00:10:02.309 --> 00:10:04.850 him, to them gave you power to become the sons 00:10:04.850 --> 00:10:06.970 of God, even to them that believe on his name. 00:10:06.990 --> 00:10:08.789 My son Benjamin, I was thinking about this. My 00:10:08.789 --> 00:10:12.309 son Benjamin, he pastors down not too far from 00:10:12.309 --> 00:10:14.990 here, just really a few miles from here in Grassfield. 00:10:15.750 --> 00:10:20.009 Remember, he was a young teenager. We were working 00:10:20.009 --> 00:10:22.210 on a house over in Virginia Beach, our own house. 00:10:23.470 --> 00:10:26.850 And my son, Benjamin, and Jonathan got in a squabble. 00:10:26.870 --> 00:10:28.649 And you could sort of hear him squabbling and 00:10:28.649 --> 00:10:31.250 fighting. And then my son, Jonathan, came into 00:10:31.250 --> 00:10:33.690 the room I was working on. I was on my knees. 00:10:33.929 --> 00:10:36.750 And I tried to open the door where Benjamin was. 00:10:37.070 --> 00:10:40.110 And I halfway opened it. Benjamin slammed the 00:10:40.110 --> 00:10:44.029 door and hit me on the head. And I saw stars. 00:10:44.279 --> 00:10:47.000 And then he opened the doors and he goes, you 00:10:47.000 --> 00:10:50.139 know, that face, I did that to my dad. Uh -oh. 00:10:50.340 --> 00:10:54.820 Now he hit his dad and he did slightly get in 00:10:54.820 --> 00:10:58.500 trouble. I won't go into all of that, but he 00:10:58.500 --> 00:11:02.700 was my son. He did say sorry and saying sorry 00:11:02.700 --> 00:11:06.139 did not return him into my family. He was already 00:11:06.139 --> 00:11:09.360 in my family. But when he hit me, all of a sudden 00:11:09.360 --> 00:11:13.440 it did have a relationship effect. Do you understand 00:11:13.440 --> 00:11:17.259 what I mean? We are God's children because of 00:11:17.259 --> 00:11:21.320 the new birth. We're God's children because Jesus 00:11:21.320 --> 00:11:23.940 died on the cross for our sins. Look at verse 00:11:23.940 --> 00:11:28.200 number two. It says, and he is the propitiation 00:11:28.200 --> 00:11:31.860 for our sins. And not for ours only, but also 00:11:31.860 --> 00:11:34.519 for the sins of the world. In other words, propitiation 00:11:34.519 --> 00:11:38.840 says Jesus paid the debt. our sins created. Jesus 00:11:38.840 --> 00:11:42.019 satisfied the righteous demands of a holy God. 00:11:42.360 --> 00:11:46.940 Jesus took our punishment so we could be forgiven, 00:11:47.000 --> 00:11:49.940 you might say. In other words, Jesus is the way 00:11:49.940 --> 00:11:52.860 to heaven. Jesus is the payment for our sins. 00:11:53.120 --> 00:11:54.679 Hey, if you want to go to heaven when you die, 00:11:55.059 --> 00:11:56.580 the only way you'll ever go to heaven when you 00:11:56.580 --> 00:12:00.639 die is to accept that gift of eternal life. It's 00:12:00.639 --> 00:12:03.700 to receive him. And as soon as you receive him, 00:12:03.820 --> 00:12:06.559 You become a child of God. As soon as you accept 00:12:06.559 --> 00:12:09.139 that gift, you're born into the family of God. 00:12:09.519 --> 00:12:12.440 Ephesians chapter 1, it says, you also have to 00:12:12.440 --> 00:12:14.379 get you trusted. It talks about how you were 00:12:14.379 --> 00:12:18.059 sealed until the day of redemption. Hey, you're 00:12:18.059 --> 00:12:20.720 a child of God. We are children of God. Why? 00:12:20.740 --> 00:12:23.240 Because Jesus paid what we could never pay. You 00:12:23.240 --> 00:12:26.720 do not obey God to become a child of God. You 00:12:26.720 --> 00:12:30.179 obey God because you are already His child. And 00:12:30.179 --> 00:12:32.779 you're important. Remember John chapter 1, but 00:12:32.779 --> 00:12:35.289 as many He has received him. To them gave he 00:12:35.289 --> 00:12:38.529 power to become the sons of God, even to them 00:12:38.529 --> 00:12:40.509 that believe on his name. Now go back to verse 00:12:40.509 --> 00:12:43.450 number one. First John chapter two, verse one. 00:12:44.049 --> 00:12:48.090 My little children, these things write I unto 00:12:48.090 --> 00:12:51.929 you. Now what's that next four words? That ye 00:12:51.929 --> 00:12:56.190 sin not. My little children, these things write 00:12:56.190 --> 00:12:59.840 I unto you. That ye sin not. In other words, 00:12:59.860 --> 00:13:02.220 he's telling the children of God, the children 00:13:02.220 --> 00:13:06.620 of God, he's saying little children don't live 00:13:06.620 --> 00:13:11.480 a life of sin. John's goal is not that believers 00:13:11.480 --> 00:13:14.500 become comfortable with sin. By the way, believers 00:13:14.500 --> 00:13:17.919 should not be comfortable living in sin. But 00:13:17.919 --> 00:13:21.340 John's goal is that the children of God live 00:13:21.340 --> 00:13:26.440 a holy life. Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty. 00:13:26.720 --> 00:13:29.519 God never saved us so we could continue living 00:13:29.519 --> 00:13:32.539 in sin. The book of Romans, shall we continue 00:13:32.539 --> 00:13:35.940 in sin that grace may abound? Then it says two 00:13:35.940 --> 00:13:39.100 words after that, God forbid. God forbid that 00:13:39.100 --> 00:13:41.779 we should continue in sin. Jesus saved us from 00:13:41.779 --> 00:13:44.080 the penalty of sin, but so think about sin for 00:13:44.080 --> 00:13:47.580 a moment. When a child of God lives a life of 00:13:47.580 --> 00:13:50.620 sin, well what does that mean? Sin hinders you 00:13:50.620 --> 00:13:54.019 and I from fellowship with God. Well think about 00:13:54.019 --> 00:13:57.019 my son Benjamin. When he slammed that door on 00:13:57.019 --> 00:14:00.320 my head. We had some fellowship problems at that 00:14:00.320 --> 00:14:03.100 moment right there. And we begin to think about 00:14:03.100 --> 00:14:05.360 our lives right there. When we sin against the 00:14:05.360 --> 00:14:07.919 Holy God, our fellowship is hindered with the 00:14:07.919 --> 00:14:11.779 Almighty God. Sin steals our joy. Sin robs us 00:14:11.779 --> 00:14:15.220 of that peace that passes all understanding. 00:14:15.779 --> 00:14:19.659 Sin weakens our testimony. Sin brings the chastening 00:14:19.659 --> 00:14:22.379 of God. Now, I'll give you an example of that, 00:14:22.399 --> 00:14:26.129 my son Levi. Oh, he's over there in the junior 00:14:26.129 --> 00:14:29.210 church with the bus kid church right now preaching. 00:14:29.230 --> 00:14:31.429 And I'm thankful for my son Levi, but I bought 00:14:31.429 --> 00:14:34.210 a brand new truck back in the day. He was a little 00:14:34.210 --> 00:14:38.350 kid and we had just gotten a trampoline and he 00:14:38.350 --> 00:14:39.970 would love that trampoline. He would jump up 00:14:39.970 --> 00:14:42.049 and down on that trampoline. Brand new truck, 00:14:42.049 --> 00:14:45.350 just a few weeks old. And I go outside and he's 00:14:45.350 --> 00:14:49.110 on the top of my truck jumping up and down and 00:14:49.110 --> 00:14:54.620 dented the whole thing in. And Levi! No, no. 00:14:55.200 --> 00:14:58.000 But when Levi did that, though he did not know 00:14:58.000 --> 00:15:00.480 that was wrong necessarily, you know what he 00:15:00.480 --> 00:15:03.639 did is he said, I'm sorry. And when he said a 00:15:03.639 --> 00:15:06.860 sorry, boy, there was forgiveness. But imagine 00:15:06.860 --> 00:15:08.679 this, he said, Dad, I don't care what you think, 00:15:08.700 --> 00:15:10.860 I'm just gonna continue to jump on what I wanna 00:15:10.860 --> 00:15:13.919 jump on when our relationship would be hindered. 00:15:14.360 --> 00:15:17.019 A bad attitude and pride hinders a relationship. 00:15:17.279 --> 00:15:19.240 Would you like you to turn over to the book of 00:15:19.240 --> 00:15:22.240 Hebrews chapter 12, if you will? Hebrews chapter 00:15:22.240 --> 00:15:25.600 12, this should be a familiar passage of scripture 00:15:25.600 --> 00:15:28.799 for you. If it's not, I would like it to become 00:15:28.799 --> 00:15:31.320 familiar in your heart and your mind. And we're 00:15:31.320 --> 00:15:34.700 talking about a child of God. A child of God 00:15:34.700 --> 00:15:39.679 should not live a life of sin. Amen. You're looking 00:15:39.679 --> 00:15:42.600 for Hebrews. I remember always thinking Hebrews 00:15:42.600 --> 00:15:46.990 was an Old Testament book. But Hebrews is a Old 00:15:46.990 --> 00:15:49.789 Testament sounding name for a book found in the 00:15:49.789 --> 00:15:52.269 New Testament. In Hebrews chapter 12, look it 00:15:52.269 --> 00:15:54.830 with me at verse number five. Look at Hebrews 00:15:54.830 --> 00:15:59.090 chapter 12, verse number five. And ye have forgotten 00:15:59.090 --> 00:16:05.070 the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto 00:16:05.070 --> 00:16:12.509 children. My son, despise not thou the chastening 00:16:12.509 --> 00:16:28.759 of the Lord. Okay, so stop right there for just 00:16:28.759 --> 00:16:33.659 a moment. God's chastening. He scourgeth or he 00:16:33.659 --> 00:16:37.100 chastens every son. He loves his children, he 00:16:37.100 --> 00:16:39.620 loves his children. So when his children sin, 00:16:40.019 --> 00:16:42.740 God chastens them. By the way, we live in a society 00:16:42.740 --> 00:16:47.690 today. that scorns chastisement or punishment 00:16:47.690 --> 00:16:51.769 or spanking, but done properly biblically, chastening 00:16:51.769 --> 00:16:56.570 and spanking is biblical and it's right, and 00:16:56.570 --> 00:17:00.149 a father who loves his child spanks his child, 00:17:00.370 --> 00:17:02.389 and that's saying that God, when we sin against 00:17:02.389 --> 00:17:05.490 God, he chastens us. Look at verse number seven. 00:17:06.309 --> 00:17:10.809 If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you 00:17:10.809 --> 00:17:15.509 as with sons. For what son is he whom the father 00:17:15.509 --> 00:17:19.470 chasteneth not? It's insane. You can't imagine 00:17:19.470 --> 00:17:23.269 that a father would never chasten a son. It just 00:17:23.269 --> 00:17:25.750 doesn't make sense because chastening is good 00:17:25.750 --> 00:17:28.190 for this child. In other words, when I was a 00:17:28.190 --> 00:17:31.990 kid, my dad told me to take out the trash. And 00:17:31.990 --> 00:17:34.569 I looked at my dad and said, I didn't say it 00:17:34.569 --> 00:17:36.630 out loud. I said in my heart, I ain't taking 00:17:36.630 --> 00:17:40.109 out the trash. My dad went to work. I disobeyed 00:17:40.109 --> 00:17:43.230 my dad. My dad came home, I hadn't taken out 00:17:43.230 --> 00:17:46.170 the trash. Do you think my disobedience made 00:17:46.170 --> 00:17:49.670 my relationship with my dad great? No, my dad 00:17:49.670 --> 00:17:51.849 still loved me. He didn't kick me out of the 00:17:51.849 --> 00:17:54.990 family. But my dad did give me a spanking. And 00:17:54.990 --> 00:17:57.609 he spanked me because he loved me. And by the 00:17:57.609 --> 00:17:59.049 way, at the end of the spanking I said, dad. 00:17:59.150 --> 00:18:01.950 forgive me, dad, I'm sorry for what I did. And 00:18:01.950 --> 00:18:04.289 I went from headbutting with my dad because of 00:18:04.289 --> 00:18:06.490 my sin right there, and all of a sudden we and 00:18:06.490 --> 00:18:09.150 I said, I'm sorry, dad. I went back to my dad's 00:18:09.150 --> 00:18:10.849 blessing right there. Look at the next verse 00:18:10.849 --> 00:18:13.849 right there. And verse number eight. But if ye 00:18:13.849 --> 00:18:16.970 be without chastisement wherewith all are partakers, 00:18:17.049 --> 00:18:22.809 then are ye bastards and not sons? A child of 00:18:22.809 --> 00:18:27.930 God who sins, God chastens them. God corrects 00:18:27.930 --> 00:18:31.009 them. And if you're not chastened by God, it's 00:18:31.009 --> 00:18:32.849 saying, hey, you need to become a child of God. 00:18:33.369 --> 00:18:35.769 And the way to be a child of God is to receive 00:18:35.769 --> 00:18:38.849 him. And oh, what a blessing. The relationship 00:18:38.849 --> 00:18:41.609 with God is established by grace. For by grace 00:18:41.609 --> 00:18:44.069 you save through faith. But fellowship with God 00:18:44.069 --> 00:18:46.849 is maintained by walking with God. And he's saying, 00:18:46.910 --> 00:18:49.089 hey, if you wanna have a relationship with God, 00:18:49.170 --> 00:18:51.519 you wanna have. fellowship with God. My little 00:18:51.519 --> 00:18:54.259 children, don't live a life of sin. My little 00:18:54.259 --> 00:18:57.019 children, don't live a life displeasing God. 00:18:57.259 --> 00:19:00.559 Hey, my little children, it is saying, live a 00:19:00.559 --> 00:19:02.180 life of obeying his commands. I'm not trying 00:19:02.180 --> 00:19:03.859 to get ahead of myself, but little children, 00:19:04.079 --> 00:19:06.660 when you live a life of sin, doing your own thing, 00:19:07.180 --> 00:19:09.359 and sinning, you create a relationship with God 00:19:09.359 --> 00:19:11.380 where you're gonna spend life headbutting with 00:19:11.380 --> 00:19:13.740 God. The most miserable people in this side of 00:19:13.740 --> 00:19:16.099 eternity are Christians who've been saved by 00:19:16.099 --> 00:19:18.000 the blood of the crucified one who lived their 00:19:18.000 --> 00:19:20.039 life headbutting with God. and then saying no 00:19:20.039 --> 00:19:22.380 to God, and they don't get forgiveness with God. 00:19:22.539 --> 00:19:25.779 And it's important, my little children, don't 00:19:25.779 --> 00:19:27.759 live a life of sin. Now look at verse number 00:19:27.759 --> 00:19:30.140 one again. Chapter number two, verse number one. 00:19:30.200 --> 00:19:33.640 My little children, these things write I unto 00:19:33.640 --> 00:19:40.400 you that ye sin not. And if any man, what? We 00:19:40.400 --> 00:19:47.480 have an advocate. Advocate. Advocate. Say that 00:19:47.480 --> 00:19:50.740 word with me. Advocate, say it one more time. 00:19:51.420 --> 00:19:54.380 Advocate, with the Father, Jesus Christ, the 00:19:54.380 --> 00:19:57.819 righteous. Now that word advocate, advocate, 00:19:58.420 --> 00:20:02.839 I stopped, I parked, I planted, trying to figure 00:20:02.839 --> 00:20:05.420 out this word. It's hard to preach something 00:20:05.420 --> 00:20:07.700 if you don't understand it yourself. So I was 00:20:07.700 --> 00:20:10.700 trying to figure out what is advocate, what Jesus 00:20:10.700 --> 00:20:13.720 Christ, the righteous, is my advocate. But what 00:20:13.720 --> 00:20:17.579 is an advocate? Advocate. By the way, as we begin 00:20:17.579 --> 00:20:19.839 to look at the little children, remember you 00:20:19.839 --> 00:20:22.819 have an advocate. When you sin, it says if any 00:20:22.819 --> 00:20:26.380 man sin, we have an advocate. So think about 00:20:26.380 --> 00:20:31.460 it this way. When you sin, don't give up. When 00:20:31.460 --> 00:20:36.019 you sin, your life is not over. When you sin, 00:20:36.200 --> 00:20:39.339 you have an advocate. An advocate is someone 00:20:39.339 --> 00:20:42.640 who stands for you when you cannot stand for 00:20:42.640 --> 00:20:45.759 yourself. An advocate is someone who takes up 00:20:45.759 --> 00:20:48.539 your cause. An advocate is someone who steps 00:20:48.539 --> 00:20:51.119 in when you have failed. I thought about it like 00:20:51.119 --> 00:20:54.039 this. An advocate is someone who stands beside 00:20:54.039 --> 00:20:57.279 you when you've done wrong and helps you to make 00:20:57.279 --> 00:21:00.960 things right. So Jesus is your advocate. You 00:21:00.960 --> 00:21:03.140 sinned. And by the way, he doesn't want you to 00:21:03.140 --> 00:21:06.839 continue in sin. But Jesus doesn't give up on 00:21:06.839 --> 00:21:09.240 you. He doesn't kick you off the curb and say, 00:21:09.539 --> 00:21:12.619 your life's over. He wants to restore you. He 00:21:12.619 --> 00:21:15.279 wants to help you get back up. He wants to help 00:21:15.279 --> 00:21:17.500 make a life. And by the way, people sin, and 00:21:17.500 --> 00:21:19.700 sometimes they shoot themselves in the foot with 00:21:19.700 --> 00:21:22.680 sin, and they messed up. And by the way, it hurts 00:21:22.680 --> 00:21:24.740 when you mess up. It hurts when you shoot yourself. 00:21:24.859 --> 00:21:26.720 But shooting yourself in the other foot doesn't 00:21:26.720 --> 00:21:30.559 make you feel better. So sometimes people sin. 00:21:30.779 --> 00:21:32.700 and rather than restoring the relationship with 00:21:32.700 --> 00:21:36.400 God, they jump off a cliff into deeper sin and 00:21:36.400 --> 00:21:38.740 think life's gonna get better. And no, it's saying 00:21:38.740 --> 00:21:42.180 no, when you sin, you have an advocate. You have 00:21:42.180 --> 00:21:44.880 Jesus. You have someone who'll stand beside you. 00:21:45.140 --> 00:21:47.640 Somebody who, when you sin, will help you to 00:21:47.640 --> 00:21:49.859 make things right. An advocate is someone who 00:21:49.859 --> 00:21:51.779 doesn't leave you when you failed. An advocate 00:21:51.779 --> 00:21:54.180 is someone who stands beside you when it's seeming 00:21:54.180 --> 00:21:56.779 like everybody else would walk away. When God's 00:21:56.779 --> 00:21:59.720 children sin against the Heavenly Father, Jesus 00:21:59.720 --> 00:22:02.509 doesn't throw them away. He stands up for them. 00:22:02.710 --> 00:22:05.289 And by the way, Jesus has not given up on you. 00:22:05.589 --> 00:22:08.390 Jesus has not given up on you. I thought about 00:22:08.390 --> 00:22:10.450 this. There's probably somebody in here today. 00:22:10.450 --> 00:22:13.509 You're here, but inside, you're struggling with 00:22:13.509 --> 00:22:16.690 a sin or an area or something in your thoughts 00:22:16.690 --> 00:22:18.450 or something you've done or maybe even something 00:22:18.450 --> 00:22:20.869 in your path. And me in life, you think your 00:22:20.869 --> 00:22:23.769 life is over. You have an advocate. You have 00:22:23.769 --> 00:22:25.609 somebody who loves you and cares for you. When 00:22:25.609 --> 00:22:28.589 I got saved, I got gloriously saved in 1994. 00:22:29.049 --> 00:22:32.049 I was in the Navy, and man, I got on fire for 00:22:32.049 --> 00:22:33.829 God, seven months. You've heard my testimony. 00:22:34.109 --> 00:22:36.670 But then the Navy transferred me to San Diego, 00:22:37.250 --> 00:22:40.509 and it's amazing how quickly you can go from 00:22:40.509 --> 00:22:43.809 excited about the things of God into the whole 00:22:43.809 --> 00:22:47.549 of sin. And in San Diego were five dark months, 00:22:47.910 --> 00:22:49.630 and boy, I was hurting on the inside, shooting 00:22:49.630 --> 00:22:52.009 myself in the foot with sin, and shooting myself 00:22:52.009 --> 00:22:54.230 in the other foot, and my life was spiraling 00:22:54.230 --> 00:22:56.609 out of control. The Navy shipped me over here 00:22:56.609 --> 00:23:00.319 to Newport News, the shipyard. And I had an advocate. 00:23:00.740 --> 00:23:02.859 There was a man named Billy who had originally 00:23:02.859 --> 00:23:05.480 invited me to church. He came over and he said, 00:23:05.500 --> 00:23:08.519 listen, God's not through with you. Hey, there's 00:23:08.519 --> 00:23:11.319 hope for you. And he stood there and he encouraged 00:23:11.319 --> 00:23:14.420 me. He stood beside me when I'd sinned and helped 00:23:14.420 --> 00:23:16.960 me to make things right. I had an advocate. Now 00:23:16.960 --> 00:23:20.400 we all have an advocate. His name is Jesus. And 00:23:20.400 --> 00:23:24.099 Jesus has not given up on you. In other words, 00:23:24.200 --> 00:23:27.720 some of you are harder on yourselves than Jesus 00:23:27.720 --> 00:23:30.660 is on you. And that's important to remember. 00:23:30.920 --> 00:23:33.000 You have an advocate named Jesus. Do you remember 00:23:33.000 --> 00:23:36.980 the Bible, the man named Peter? Do you remember 00:23:36.980 --> 00:23:41.960 Peter? Peter says to Jesus, I'll follow you even 00:23:41.960 --> 00:23:44.779 unto death, John chapter 13. And next thing you 00:23:44.779 --> 00:23:47.240 know, shortly after that, he denies Jesus not 00:23:47.240 --> 00:23:49.839 just once, but three times. Do you remember that? 00:23:50.180 --> 00:23:53.079 And then Jesus dies on the cross. He rises from 00:23:53.079 --> 00:23:57.099 the grave. And Peter, Peter had really done wrong. 00:23:57.339 --> 00:23:59.839 But then Jesus said those words, go tell the 00:23:59.839 --> 00:24:03.539 disciples and then end Peter. Hey, I've forgotten 00:24:03.539 --> 00:24:05.619 about you, Peter. I got a plan for you, Peter. 00:24:05.640 --> 00:24:08.539 I got a purpose for you, Peter. They had an advocate, 00:24:08.660 --> 00:24:11.460 Peter had an advocate named Jesus. Now go with 00:24:11.460 --> 00:24:13.539 me to verse number three. Go to verse number 00:24:13.539 --> 00:24:18.180 three. Oh, little children, little children, 00:24:18.400 --> 00:24:20.539 little children. Remember whose child you are. 00:24:20.579 --> 00:24:22.079 If you've been born again, if you're not born 00:24:22.079 --> 00:24:24.440 again, get born again. And then little children, 00:24:24.779 --> 00:24:27.079 don't live a life of sin. Don't live a life of 00:24:27.079 --> 00:24:28.400 sin. They're little children. Remember, you have 00:24:28.400 --> 00:24:30.960 an advocate. Then verse three, look at this. 00:24:31.259 --> 00:24:35.480 And hereby we do know that we know him. I like 00:24:35.480 --> 00:24:38.579 that phrase. We do know that we know him. Say 00:24:38.579 --> 00:24:42.099 that with me. We do know that we know him. And 00:24:42.099 --> 00:24:45.380 this is interesting. You pay attention. The book 00:24:45.380 --> 00:24:49.259 of 1 John is written to help believers live for 00:24:49.259 --> 00:24:51.940 God. The book of 1 John's purpose is to help 00:24:51.940 --> 00:24:55.119 believers like you and me to live for God. And 00:24:55.119 --> 00:24:59.410 hereby, we do know that we know him if we keep 00:24:59.410 --> 00:25:04.690 his what? He that saith I know him and keepeth 00:25:04.690 --> 00:25:07.970 not his commandments is a liar and the truth 00:25:07.970 --> 00:25:11.710 is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word in 00:25:11.710 --> 00:25:15.269 him verily is the love of God perfected. Hereby 00:25:15.269 --> 00:25:18.269 know we that we are in him. Now look at verse 00:25:18.269 --> 00:25:24.990 number six. He that saith he abideth in him ought. 00:25:25.730 --> 00:25:29.170 Ought, use this word ought. Ought, say it with 00:25:29.170 --> 00:25:33.369 me. Ought himself also so to walk even as he 00:25:33.369 --> 00:25:36.150 walked. We begin to think about that word ought. 00:25:36.289 --> 00:25:38.529 It's important. He's saying you have an obligation. 00:25:38.829 --> 00:25:41.349 If you're a child of God, you ought to live for 00:25:41.349 --> 00:25:44.450 him. If you're a child of God, you ought to also 00:25:44.450 --> 00:25:46.250 to walk even as he walked. You ought to keep 00:25:46.250 --> 00:25:49.210 his commandments right there. I saw Mom, and 00:25:49.210 --> 00:25:50.849 I've seen the same story happen many times. It 00:25:50.849 --> 00:25:53.410 was in the grocery store, and the kid's going 00:25:53.410 --> 00:25:56.410 for Mom. Mom, can I have that candy bar? No, 00:25:56.549 --> 00:26:01.369 son. And so the kid, obviously mom, mom says 00:26:01.369 --> 00:26:05.230 no, and he grabs the candy bar. And then next 00:26:05.230 --> 00:26:06.829 thing you know, mom's saying, hey, put that down, 00:26:06.890 --> 00:26:09.210 put that down. And a fight breaks out and mom's 00:26:09.210 --> 00:26:11.410 chasing around a little bit. And then finally 00:26:11.410 --> 00:26:13.230 she says, just put it in the cart. And puts it 00:26:13.230 --> 00:26:16.410 in the cart and buys it for the kid. But that 00:26:16.410 --> 00:26:19.390 kid ought to treat his mama better than that. 00:26:20.029 --> 00:26:23.539 That kid ought to obey mama. And that's why they 00:26:23.539 --> 00:26:25.880 say you're a child of God, little children. You 00:26:25.880 --> 00:26:28.799 ought to keep his commandments. And that's literally 00:26:28.799 --> 00:26:31.299 the heart of this verse right here. When we study 00:26:31.299 --> 00:26:33.960 chapter one and now going to two, my little children, 00:26:34.000 --> 00:26:35.980 he's talking to believers. He's talking about 00:26:35.980 --> 00:26:38.799 fellowship, your joy, walking light, confession. 00:26:39.059 --> 00:26:41.640 He's talking about an advocate. These are family 00:26:41.640 --> 00:26:43.799 truths. These are for believers. And when we 00:26:43.799 --> 00:26:46.819 come to these verses right there, it's not how 00:26:46.819 --> 00:26:50.039 to determine whether a person is saved. He's 00:26:50.039 --> 00:26:52.900 saying children of God ought to live like children 00:26:52.900 --> 00:26:57.240 of God. So it's not a stamp of is a person saved. 00:26:57.500 --> 00:27:00.880 It's saying children, we ought to live for God. 00:27:01.160 --> 00:27:04.279 It makes no sense. If I see an unbeliever or 00:27:04.279 --> 00:27:07.900 a believer, somebody who professes Christ, living 00:27:07.900 --> 00:27:11.099 differently, it makes no sense. I'll give you 00:27:11.099 --> 00:27:14.259 an example of that. I was with an older man. 00:27:14.480 --> 00:27:18.069 He was in his 80s. and not a member of this church, 00:27:18.190 --> 00:27:20.750 not a part of this congregation. And we went 00:27:20.750 --> 00:27:24.309 to lunch together years ago off of Indian River 00:27:24.309 --> 00:27:26.549 Road and Kempsville Road. There was a Mexican 00:27:26.549 --> 00:27:29.509 restaurant over there and a Christian man in 00:27:29.509 --> 00:27:32.029 his 80s and invited me to lunch. I went to lunch 00:27:32.029 --> 00:27:35.269 with him and I sat there and part of the conversation, 00:27:35.450 --> 00:27:39.210 good, but then all of a sudden his conversation 00:27:39.210 --> 00:27:42.970 led to some subjects and some things that shocked 00:27:42.970 --> 00:27:46.740 me. And there were some things he said, some 00:27:46.740 --> 00:27:48.900 places he went, that I couldn't believe that 00:27:48.900 --> 00:27:52.099 he said that was very awkward. And as a child 00:27:52.099 --> 00:27:55.119 of God, there's some things you shouldn't say. 00:27:55.680 --> 00:27:58.539 As a child of God, and what I'm saying is things 00:27:58.539 --> 00:28:00.650 you shouldn't say. the sinful things you should 00:28:00.650 --> 00:28:03.349 say, shouldn't say. There's some places you ought 00:28:03.349 --> 00:28:06.950 not go. And we as children of God, we ought to 00:28:06.950 --> 00:28:09.829 keep God's commandment. And you saw in verse 00:28:09.829 --> 00:28:12.890 number six there, or verse number three, it talked 00:28:12.890 --> 00:28:15.069 about God's commandments. Hereby do we know that 00:28:15.069 --> 00:28:17.829 we know them if we keep his commandments. And 00:28:17.829 --> 00:28:20.349 John is not emphasizing whether we can say we're 00:28:20.349 --> 00:28:22.549 saved, he's emphasizing and saying you ought 00:28:22.549 --> 00:28:25.930 to obey him. The issue isn't just a profession 00:28:25.930 --> 00:28:29.299 of faith, it's obedience to Christ. Little children, 00:28:29.660 --> 00:28:32.460 don't live a life of sin. Don't live a life of 00:28:32.460 --> 00:28:35.299 sin. Don't live a life of sin. Don't live a life 00:28:35.299 --> 00:28:38.240 of sin. Now, we're getting very close to the 00:28:38.240 --> 00:28:42.700 end of the sermon. Okay, amen. Amen. My little 00:28:42.700 --> 00:28:45.279 children, first of all, I pray to God there's 00:28:45.279 --> 00:28:47.099 been a time in your life you become a child of 00:28:47.099 --> 00:28:49.779 God. You've been born again. And if you don't 00:28:49.779 --> 00:28:52.079 know what that means, what are you waiting for? 00:28:52.279 --> 00:28:54.619 You can know for sure that when you die, you 00:28:54.619 --> 00:28:56.900 go to heaven. You can have eternal life. and 00:28:56.900 --> 00:29:00.599 the way is to receive Christ, to accept him as 00:29:00.599 --> 00:29:03.700 your savior. The way to heaven is very, very 00:29:03.700 --> 00:29:08.240 simple. It's Jesus and Jesus alone. But little 00:29:08.240 --> 00:29:10.380 children, if you're saved, you ought not live 00:29:10.380 --> 00:29:13.779 a life of sin. And think about in our church 00:29:13.779 --> 00:29:15.660 here today, you're here today, you go into church 00:29:15.660 --> 00:29:18.259 on Sunday, but what about tomorrow? How are you 00:29:18.259 --> 00:29:21.519 living? Boy, is there sin in your life? Is there 00:29:21.519 --> 00:29:23.700 something in your life that does not please your 00:29:23.700 --> 00:29:26.500 heavenly father? And your heavenly father looks 00:29:26.500 --> 00:29:28.599 and he just shakes his head. And by the way, 00:29:28.660 --> 00:29:31.059 if you're a child of God living in sin, boy, 00:29:31.259 --> 00:29:33.180 it's a rough life. The least happy people in 00:29:33.180 --> 00:29:35.400 the world are children of God who are being chased 00:29:35.400 --> 00:29:37.779 by God. It's a terrible way to live. Come back 00:29:37.779 --> 00:29:40.119 to the father. You have an advocate. He's cheering 00:29:40.119 --> 00:29:42.539 you on. He's not wanting you to shoot the other 00:29:42.539 --> 00:29:44.920 foot with sin. He wants you to live for him. 00:29:45.099 --> 00:29:47.680 He wants to pick you up. He wants to help you 00:29:47.680 --> 00:29:50.480 get along right there. And then keep his commandments. 00:29:50.559 --> 00:29:53.019 You have the word of God. Read the word of God. 00:29:53.180 --> 00:29:55.759 Study the word of God. Make the word of God a 00:29:55.759 --> 00:30:00.279 part of your life. Little children, let's pray. 00:30:00.420 --> 00:30:03.400 Dear Father in heaven, we love you. We thank 00:30:03.400 --> 00:30:07.240 you, Lord, for your goodness. First of all, Lord, 00:30:07.240 --> 00:30:10.710 thinking that we can be your children adopted 00:30:10.710 --> 00:30:15.329 into your family, and that's just a great day 00:30:15.329 --> 00:30:18.130 in my life when I was born again. And Lord, if 00:30:18.130 --> 00:30:20.109 there's somebody here today who's never been 00:30:20.109 --> 00:30:21.670 born again, I pray that this would be the day 00:30:21.670 --> 00:30:25.230 of salvation for them, helping to realize that 00:30:25.230 --> 00:30:28.490 it's not their goodness or their works, it's 00:30:28.490 --> 00:30:32.210 you, Jesus. Then I pray for somebody here who's 00:30:32.210 --> 00:30:34.910 struggling, living in sin, and they're unhappy, 00:30:35.230 --> 00:30:38.230 they're... They're really headbutting with you, 00:30:38.289 --> 00:30:40.049 you might say, Lord. Help them to understand 00:30:40.049 --> 00:30:42.769 they have you as an advocate, one that wants 00:30:42.769 --> 00:30:45.269 to help them up. And God, I pray that you help 00:30:45.269 --> 00:30:48.009 them to be restored, get in that place where 00:30:48.009 --> 00:30:50.690 they can be used of you. Then Lord, I pray that 00:30:50.690 --> 00:30:53.230 you help us as Christians to hold tight to your 00:30:53.230 --> 00:30:56.529 commandments and your word. Help us to study 00:30:56.529 --> 00:30:58.950 the Bible, read the Bible, then live by the Bible, 00:30:58.950 --> 00:31:01.910 Lord. We sure do love you. We pray that you bless 00:31:01.910 --> 00:31:04.390 the invitation. In Jesus' name, amen. Stand with 00:31:04.390 --> 00:31:07.119 me, if you will. We're gonna have an invitation 00:31:07.119 --> 00:31:10.480 and wow, piano organ are gonna play in a moment. 00:31:11.059 --> 00:31:13.259 I'm gonna come down there to the front. If you're 00:31:13.259 --> 00:31:16.400 here and you're not sure that if you were to 00:31:16.400 --> 00:31:18.460 die today, you'd go to heaven, come tell me that 00:31:18.460 --> 00:31:20.779 and I can have somebody from God's word help 00:31:20.779 --> 00:31:24.460 you make that decision right there. Then if you 00:31:24.460 --> 00:31:27.859 just. some decision, whether it's living in sin 00:31:27.859 --> 00:31:30.359 or you need an advocate, go to God and deal with 00:31:30.359 --> 00:31:32.640 him in prayer and ask God if we confess our sins, 00:31:32.680 --> 00:31:35.099 he is faithful and just to forgive our sins and 00:31:35.099 --> 00:31:36.880 cleanse us from all unrighteousness, but have 00:31:36.880 --> 00:31:38.519 a relationship with God. It's a piano and the 00:31:38.519 --> 00:31:38.880 organ play.