WEBVTT 00:00:04.099 --> 00:00:06.799 Let's open the Word of God together to Ephesians 00:00:06.799 --> 00:00:11.380 chapter 6 and verse 11 as we continue our theme 00:00:11.380 --> 00:00:16.699 along the lines of spiritual warfare. I'm sorry 00:00:16.699 --> 00:00:18.719 that I can't speak to you this morning with a 00:00:18.719 --> 00:00:22.140 delightful Carolinian accent. As we have heard 00:00:22.140 --> 00:00:25.519 earlier in the service, my Kansas accent will 00:00:25.519 --> 00:00:28.219 have to do, but maybe that's the second best 00:00:28.219 --> 00:00:30.760 kind. Would you agree with that? I thought so. 00:00:33.840 --> 00:00:37.479 Satan is the spiritual enemy of every descendant 00:00:37.479 --> 00:00:43.520 of Adam and Eve. Coming to our many times great 00:00:43.520 --> 00:00:48.380 grandmother in the form of a serpent, he attacked 00:00:48.380 --> 00:00:52.539 God's created order and contrived the fall of 00:00:52.539 --> 00:00:57.380 mankind into disobedience and sin. From that 00:00:57.380 --> 00:01:01.100 day until this, he has controlled, manipulated, 00:01:01.679 --> 00:01:06.959 intimidated, and enslaved fallen mankind to use 00:01:06.959 --> 00:01:11.200 them for his own purpose, that is, to attempt 00:01:11.200 --> 00:01:15.060 to establish himself as God and receive worship. 00:01:16.359 --> 00:01:20.459 Only we who have by the Spirit of the Lord been 00:01:20.459 --> 00:01:24.599 led to trust in Christ for salvation, we who 00:01:24.599 --> 00:01:27.599 have repented of our sin and by faith received 00:01:27.599 --> 00:01:32.819 God's gift of forgiveness and eternal life, have 00:01:32.819 --> 00:01:37.159 been freed from the tyranny of this evil despot 00:01:37.159 --> 00:01:41.719 who rules his kingdom with fear, lies, and death. 00:01:43.060 --> 00:01:48.719 We are involved in spiritual warfare. Satan is 00:01:48.719 --> 00:01:51.859 seeking to destroy our life's potential for good 00:01:51.859 --> 00:01:56.219 and for the glory of God. We are seeking to honor 00:01:56.219 --> 00:02:00.140 our new King of love, our Holy Lord Jesus Christ. 00:02:00.890 --> 00:02:05.909 by realizing His blessed will in our lives. In 00:02:05.909 --> 00:02:10.810 this warfare, Satan employs well -thought -out 00:02:10.810 --> 00:02:16.370 plans and methods to entrap and destroy us. This 00:02:16.370 --> 00:02:19.750 is clearly stated in verse 11 of Ephesians 6, 00:02:19.849 --> 00:02:23.610 where it says, Put on the full armor of God, 00:02:23.810 --> 00:02:28.129 that you may be able to stand firm against the 00:02:28.129 --> 00:02:33.439 schemes. that is, the well -planned methods of 00:02:33.439 --> 00:02:39.620 the devil. And he uses similar schemes and devices 00:02:39.620 --> 00:02:44.180 to keep those who are yet dead in trespasses 00:02:44.180 --> 00:02:49.740 and sins under his mastery. To understand something 00:02:49.740 --> 00:02:53.639 of Satan's schemes, we must go to the Bible, 00:02:53.780 --> 00:02:59.620 our only authority and infallible guide. Satan 00:02:59.620 --> 00:03:04.460 is herein exposed, and we can learn how to successfully 00:03:04.460 --> 00:03:09.319 combat him in our spiritual warfare. Our first 00:03:09.319 --> 00:03:12.099 matter for study is to understand something of 00:03:12.099 --> 00:03:16.240 the works of Satan intended to maintain his hold 00:03:16.240 --> 00:03:20.759 on the lives of those without a personal relationship 00:03:20.759 --> 00:03:25.719 to God through Jesus Christ. I review with you 00:03:25.719 --> 00:03:28.379 our study recently in which we determine from 00:03:28.379 --> 00:03:32.159 the Word of God that in the first place, Satan 00:03:32.159 --> 00:03:36.379 charts a course for human history. Ephesians 00:03:36.379 --> 00:03:41.259 2 and verse 2 makes it clear. Within the God 00:03:41.259 --> 00:03:45.099 -established boundaries that there are, the devil 00:03:45.099 --> 00:03:51.159 is free to plan a course for human events. His 00:03:51.159 --> 00:03:54.659 goal is to bring all of mankind, ultimately, 00:03:54.960 --> 00:03:59.159 to the worship of himself. And as we know from 00:03:59.159 --> 00:04:02.639 the study of prophecy, to some extent he will 00:04:02.639 --> 00:04:07.819 be successful in that in the future. Satan has 00:04:07.819 --> 00:04:15.039 organized his powers to influence nations, governments, 00:04:15.219 --> 00:04:19.720 and leaders to bring about his ends. But opposing 00:04:19.720 --> 00:04:25.060 him are the angels of God, who in the heavenlies 00:04:25.060 --> 00:04:28.800 or in the invisible realm of spiritual things 00:04:28.800 --> 00:04:34.060 are in constant war with satanic powers. The 00:04:34.060 --> 00:04:37.699 outcome of that invisible battle directly affects 00:04:37.699 --> 00:04:43.339 the course of human history. We are able to participate 00:04:43.339 --> 00:04:50.379 in this warfare by prayer. Now let me remind 00:04:50.379 --> 00:04:52.579 you, secondly, that we have previously determined 00:04:52.579 --> 00:04:56.740 in our study that Satan also perverts the message 00:04:56.740 --> 00:05:00.620 of the gospel, seeking to keep his hold on those 00:05:00.620 --> 00:05:04.319 who are outside of faith in Jesus Christ. He 00:05:04.319 --> 00:05:07.339 knows that the gospel of Jesus Christ is the 00:05:07.339 --> 00:05:13.040 only key that will unlock the prison incarcerating 00:05:13.040 --> 00:05:19.019 his captives. So he attempts to compromise to 00:05:19.019 --> 00:05:23.800 confuse or to adulterate the simple message of 00:05:23.800 --> 00:05:30.899 salvation. His most clever scheme, perhaps, is 00:05:30.899 --> 00:05:36.439 to create a counterfeit Christianity, a religious 00:05:36.439 --> 00:05:40.720 system using the words and form of biblical Christianity, 00:05:41.220 --> 00:05:45.970 but which denies its essential teachings. that 00:05:45.970 --> 00:05:49.069 is, the infallibility of the scriptures, the 00:05:49.069 --> 00:05:53.089 deity of Jesus Christ, the sufficiency of his 00:05:53.089 --> 00:05:57.189 blood's sacrifice for our sins, his resurrection 00:05:57.189 --> 00:06:00.629 from the dead, and his personal return in glory. 00:06:01.790 --> 00:06:06.529 This counterfeit Christianity comes with many 00:06:06.529 --> 00:06:09.629 denominational names, but with the same essential 00:06:09.629 --> 00:06:15.370 lie, and that is that man is himself essentially 00:06:15.370 --> 00:06:20.649 good and not sinful and can save himself by good 00:06:20.649 --> 00:06:26.490 works or can become God, perhaps, by recognizing 00:06:26.490 --> 00:06:32.629 the divinity that is within him. We battle this 00:06:32.629 --> 00:06:37.290 tactic of counterfeit Christianity. We battle 00:06:37.290 --> 00:06:42.370 against Satan's perversion of the gospel by proclaiming 00:06:42.370 --> 00:06:46.720 the simple, yet powerful message of salvation 00:06:46.720 --> 00:06:52.060 by grace through faith, apart from any meritorious 00:06:52.060 --> 00:06:56.540 work on our own. And God uses this gospel of 00:06:56.540 --> 00:06:58.800 the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ 00:06:58.800 --> 00:07:04.379 to call others to himself. And now would you 00:07:04.379 --> 00:07:07.519 focus with me this morning on yet another work 00:07:07.519 --> 00:07:12.420 of Satan, which he uses to continue the enslavement 00:07:12.420 --> 00:07:16.220 of those who are outside of faith in Jesus Christ. 00:07:17.980 --> 00:07:22.860 He contends for the souls of unbelievers. He 00:07:22.860 --> 00:07:25.439 charters a course for world history, we have 00:07:25.439 --> 00:07:28.959 determined. He perverts the message of the gospel. 00:07:29.379 --> 00:07:34.100 But thirdly, he contends for the souls of unbelievers. 00:07:34.139 --> 00:07:39.199 How does he do that? Would you turn with me, 00:07:39.220 --> 00:07:41.300 please, to the Gospel of Luke, to one of the 00:07:41.300 --> 00:07:44.839 parables which Jesus told and which, in fact, 00:07:44.839 --> 00:07:47.740 is recorded in the Synoptic Gospels, Matthew, 00:07:47.879 --> 00:07:50.759 Mark, and Luke. We will look at Luke's account 00:07:50.759 --> 00:08:00.600 in the eighth chapter. And I will abbreviate 00:08:00.600 --> 00:08:02.639 the parable by simply pointing out to you in 00:08:02.639 --> 00:08:06.019 the fifth verse the words of Jesus when he said, 00:08:06.439 --> 00:08:10.480 the sower went out to sow his seed. And as he 00:08:10.480 --> 00:08:14.360 sowed, some fell beside the road, and it was 00:08:14.360 --> 00:08:17.519 trampled underfoot, and the birds of the air 00:08:17.519 --> 00:08:21.639 ate it up. Now what did Jesus mean by those words? 00:08:22.600 --> 00:08:25.519 We are not left to have to guess on our own because 00:08:25.519 --> 00:08:29.439 he himself tells us what he meant. Verse 11. 00:08:29.740 --> 00:08:33.919 Now the parable is this. The seed is the word 00:08:33.919 --> 00:08:38.759 of God. And those beside the road are those who 00:08:38.759 --> 00:08:44.080 have heard. Heard what? The word of God. Then 00:08:44.080 --> 00:08:48.080 the devil comes and takes away the word from 00:08:48.080 --> 00:08:52.000 their heart so that they may not believe and 00:08:52.000 --> 00:08:57.080 be saved. The Lord Jesus makes it clear himself 00:08:57.080 --> 00:09:00.590 in his teaching. that Satan contends for the 00:09:00.590 --> 00:09:03.830 souls of unbelievers, and he does it in the first 00:09:03.830 --> 00:09:07.769 place by stealing the word of God from their 00:09:07.769 --> 00:09:12.750 hearts. This parable explains to us what happens 00:09:12.750 --> 00:09:16.470 when the word of God is preached, even preached 00:09:16.470 --> 00:09:20.529 in a congregation like this. The fact is that 00:09:20.529 --> 00:09:26.669 only a fraction of the hearers act upon it. If 00:09:26.669 --> 00:09:29.110 that was true in the ministry of the Lord Jesus, 00:09:29.309 --> 00:09:32.909 how much more true is it in the ministry today 00:09:32.909 --> 00:09:37.750 of his servants? Now why is it that only a fraction 00:09:37.750 --> 00:09:41.330 act upon what they have heard? Well, he gives 00:09:41.330 --> 00:09:44.769 us several reasons in the full parable. But he 00:09:44.769 --> 00:09:47.269 points out clearly that one reason is that the 00:09:47.269 --> 00:09:51.629 devil comes to snatch away the truth before it 00:09:51.629 --> 00:09:55.769 can take root in the heart. He tells us that 00:09:55.769 --> 00:09:58.210 there are many hearts that have been hardened, 00:09:58.309 --> 00:10:03.250 just like the earth beside a well -worn pathway. 00:10:04.370 --> 00:10:07.470 And because of the hardened condition of the 00:10:07.470 --> 00:10:11.490 heart, the seed simply lies on the surface so 00:10:11.490 --> 00:10:14.769 that it can quickly be snatched away by the enemy. 00:10:14.850 --> 00:10:19.309 Now how does Satan snatch it away? I suppose 00:10:19.309 --> 00:10:21.950 that we might talk about any number of ways. 00:10:22.649 --> 00:10:25.029 But let me suggest two or three quickly. One 00:10:25.029 --> 00:10:30.730 is by distraction. In a service like this, there 00:10:30.730 --> 00:10:34.330 are inevitably distractions. Anytime there's 00:10:34.330 --> 00:10:36.850 anyone else between us and the one attempting 00:10:36.850 --> 00:10:40.549 to communicate to us, there is a potential distraction. 00:10:42.590 --> 00:10:45.309 All of us need to be sensitive to the fact that 00:10:45.309 --> 00:10:48.809 around us, there are other people who also want 00:10:48.809 --> 00:10:53.230 to hear the Word of God. And we need to be careful 00:10:53.230 --> 00:10:55.870 that we don't do things or allow things that 00:10:55.870 --> 00:10:59.669 distract them, so that as the word of God is 00:10:59.669 --> 00:11:02.970 being sown into their minds, those distractions 00:11:02.970 --> 00:11:06.149 actually become the tool of Satan to snatch away 00:11:06.149 --> 00:11:12.570 that word. I received a letter from a lady who 00:11:12.570 --> 00:11:14.629 has been attending our church since January. 00:11:16.650 --> 00:11:20.769 She wrote to thank us for the ministry here at 00:11:20.769 --> 00:11:24.870 Grace Church, but she did share one problem, 00:11:25.009 --> 00:11:28.169 and that is that many times she has sat in a 00:11:28.169 --> 00:11:32.549 service here and has been troubled by young couples, 00:11:32.850 --> 00:11:36.649 married, unmarried, I don't know, who have their 00:11:36.649 --> 00:11:38.570 arms around each other and who seem to whisper 00:11:38.570 --> 00:11:42.149 a lot during the services. Now, I rather suspect 00:11:42.149 --> 00:11:44.929 that it's probably the high schoolers, and so 00:11:44.929 --> 00:11:46.830 I'll be talking about this in the next service 00:11:46.830 --> 00:11:50.889 when they're in here. But I simply use that as 00:11:50.889 --> 00:11:52.830 an illustration to point out that all of us have 00:11:52.830 --> 00:11:55.610 to be careful in the service that we don't unwittingly 00:11:55.610 --> 00:11:58.750 become the tool of Satan to distract someone 00:11:58.750 --> 00:12:01.950 else who is trying to hear the word or in whose 00:12:01.950 --> 00:12:05.230 heart the word is being sown, so that Satan then 00:12:05.230 --> 00:12:07.509 is able to steal that word before it can take 00:12:07.509 --> 00:12:11.370 root in their lives. I think also that Satan 00:12:11.370 --> 00:12:16.529 enjoys using interruptions. Any of us who have 00:12:16.529 --> 00:12:20.269 gone calling in homes, seeking to share our faith 00:12:20.269 --> 00:12:23.309 with other people, have experienced interruptions. 00:12:24.129 --> 00:12:27.409 If the telephone has not rung all day, you can 00:12:27.409 --> 00:12:30.629 almost guarantee the fact that when you're sitting 00:12:30.629 --> 00:12:33.370 down to share with someone your faith in Jesus 00:12:33.370 --> 00:12:37.110 Christ, that telephone is going to ring. The 00:12:37.110 --> 00:12:41.100 television. will suddenly come on. The children 00:12:41.100 --> 00:12:43.139 will turn it on perhaps in the next room, and 00:12:43.139 --> 00:12:45.559 it blares. There's an interruption. Now, is that 00:12:45.559 --> 00:12:49.919 accidental? Not at all. You see, Satan uses anything 00:12:49.919 --> 00:12:53.080 that he can to try to interrupt the communication 00:12:53.080 --> 00:12:57.039 of the Word of God. He does it as well through 00:12:57.039 --> 00:12:59.320 inner arguments that come up within the person. 00:13:00.139 --> 00:13:02.580 So that instead of there being an attitude of 00:13:02.580 --> 00:13:04.820 receiving and appropriating the word, there are 00:13:04.820 --> 00:13:07.259 arguments that are thrust forward in the mind 00:13:07.259 --> 00:13:11.820 against that message. Satan seeks to steal the 00:13:11.820 --> 00:13:15.460 word of God before it can take root in a life. 00:13:16.399 --> 00:13:20.340 The only hope for a hard heart is that it be 00:13:20.340 --> 00:13:25.600 plowed up. And sometimes that's painful. But 00:13:25.600 --> 00:13:28.039 through that plowing that sometimes God allows 00:13:28.039 --> 00:13:30.940 in the hearts of all of us, the hardness there 00:13:30.940 --> 00:13:36.379 is broken up so that our ground is prepared for 00:13:36.379 --> 00:13:40.559 the implanting of the seed of the word of God 00:13:40.559 --> 00:13:45.120 in our lives. He contends for the souls of unbelievers 00:13:45.120 --> 00:13:49.960 in a second way, by blinding their minds. 2 Corinthians 00:13:49.960 --> 00:13:58.059 chapter 4 is my thought, verses 3 and 4. The 00:13:58.059 --> 00:14:01.960 apostle says, and even if our gospel is veiled, 00:14:02.059 --> 00:14:07.980 it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose 00:14:07.980 --> 00:14:12.879 case, notice his language, in whose case the 00:14:12.879 --> 00:14:18.419 God of this world, that's Satan, has blinded 00:14:18.419 --> 00:14:21.399 the minds of the unbelieving that they might 00:14:21.399 --> 00:14:24.679 not see the light of the gospel of the glory 00:14:24.679 --> 00:14:31.330 of Christ. who is the image of God. Satan supernaturally 00:14:31.330 --> 00:14:37.529 blinds the minds of unbelievers. It's not that 00:14:37.529 --> 00:14:42.690 the gospel is obscure. The gospel, in fact, is 00:14:42.690 --> 00:14:47.210 clearly revealed to us. And it's simple. It is 00:14:47.210 --> 00:14:50.549 simply Jesus Christ, the perfect revelation of 00:14:50.549 --> 00:14:54.570 God, the exact representation, the image of God. 00:14:55.279 --> 00:15:01.220 Him crucified, buried, and raised again as our 00:15:01.220 --> 00:15:05.759 sin bearer. That's the gospel. And this simple 00:15:05.759 --> 00:15:09.620 gospel can be simply appropriated as an act of 00:15:09.620 --> 00:15:13.740 personal faith. In fact, it is so simple that 00:15:13.740 --> 00:15:18.940 even a child can understand it and believe it. 00:15:21.320 --> 00:15:24.320 I'm thankful that God has put the cookies, as 00:15:24.320 --> 00:15:27.779 it were, on the lowest shelf, so even a little 00:15:27.779 --> 00:15:34.120 child can come and partake. But Satan, the enemy 00:15:34.120 --> 00:15:38.919 of souls, seeks to supernaturally inhibit the 00:15:38.919 --> 00:15:43.240 minds of unbelievers from perceiving this good 00:15:43.240 --> 00:15:48.200 news from God. He begins to whisper in the ear, 00:15:48.970 --> 00:15:52.649 He is not actually God come in the flesh. He 00:15:52.649 --> 00:15:56.690 is a moral teacher. He is a good example. He 00:15:56.690 --> 00:16:00.309 is a great prophet. He is one who is divine, 00:16:00.429 --> 00:16:05.909 but really nothing more than that. But of course, 00:16:05.909 --> 00:16:10.690 Jesus Christ is not only man. He is God incarnate. 00:16:12.929 --> 00:16:16.090 Satan also comes along to say regarding the sacrifice 00:16:16.090 --> 00:16:20.519 of Christ. Well, it was a meaningful example 00:16:20.519 --> 00:16:24.500 of self -sacrifice and dedication to others. 00:16:25.139 --> 00:16:29.580 Or he says his death was a tragic ending of a 00:16:29.580 --> 00:16:34.879 sincere man whose idealism got out of hand. Or 00:16:34.879 --> 00:16:38.820 he says the death of Christ is an isolated historical 00:16:38.820 --> 00:16:44.960 event that has no contemporary relevance. Or 00:16:44.960 --> 00:16:48.299 he may even allow this. Oh yes, the death of 00:16:48.299 --> 00:16:52.519 Christ is part of God's saving plan, but it certainly 00:16:52.519 --> 00:16:56.960 isn't the soul means. Usually that comes across 00:16:56.960 --> 00:17:00.759 by saying, yes, Christ is a way to God, but there 00:17:00.759 --> 00:17:07.140 are many ways to God. You see, Satan seeks to 00:17:07.140 --> 00:17:10.859 compromise the simplicity of that message and 00:17:10.859 --> 00:17:14.079 to hide the truth of it from the minds of the 00:17:14.079 --> 00:17:18.730 unbelieving. regarding man's responsibility simply 00:17:18.730 --> 00:17:23.230 to receive by faith, Satan says, oh, but you 00:17:23.230 --> 00:17:27.029 must also live a good life. You must also in 00:17:27.029 --> 00:17:29.230 some way contribute toward the betterment of 00:17:29.230 --> 00:17:32.710 society or of mankind. Oh, you must believe, 00:17:32.789 --> 00:17:35.710 but you must also obey the Ten Commandments. 00:17:35.730 --> 00:17:40.309 Or you must also keep the golden rule. You see 00:17:40.309 --> 00:17:45.190 how cleverly He comes along to deny and to hide 00:17:45.190 --> 00:17:48.390 the simplicity of the gospel, which is received 00:17:48.390 --> 00:17:55.029 only as a free gift and an act of faith. Satan 00:17:55.029 --> 00:17:59.990 has experimented for thousands of years to find 00:17:59.990 --> 00:18:03.569 the most effective means to keep men in darkness, 00:18:03.869 --> 00:18:09.380 and often he appeals to human pride. and to man's 00:18:09.380 --> 00:18:15.319 natural religious nature to cover up the simplicity 00:18:15.319 --> 00:18:18.539 and the beauty of the gospel of Jesus Christ. 00:18:19.519 --> 00:18:23.900 He contends for the souls of unbelievers by blinding 00:18:23.900 --> 00:18:26.440 their minds to the truth of it and the simplicity 00:18:26.440 --> 00:18:30.859 of it. But he also contends for the souls of 00:18:30.859 --> 00:18:36.829 unbelievers by providing excuses. In Genesis 00:18:36.829 --> 00:18:41.250 chapter 3, when God confronted man, woman, and 00:18:41.250 --> 00:18:44.890 the serpent with what had happened in the garden, 00:18:45.109 --> 00:18:50.210 what did the man do? He immediately used an excuse 00:18:50.210 --> 00:18:53.529 and said, it was the woman that you gave me. 00:18:55.589 --> 00:18:58.809 And so God spoke to the woman. And what did the 00:18:58.809 --> 00:19:04.839 woman do? She said, it was that serpent. You 00:19:04.839 --> 00:19:09.359 see, the ability to excuse ourselves from responsibility 00:19:09.359 --> 00:19:14.059 goes all the way back to our original mother 00:19:14.059 --> 00:19:19.240 and father after the fall into sin. The sinful 00:19:19.240 --> 00:19:23.220 condition of the human heart allows it to manufacture 00:19:23.220 --> 00:19:28.079 easily all of the excuses needed to prevent a 00:19:28.079 --> 00:19:32.509 proper response to God. Jesus spoke to a number 00:19:32.509 --> 00:19:36.470 of people and said to them, Follow me. But he 00:19:36.470 --> 00:19:39.470 often heard excuses like, Well, first I have 00:19:39.470 --> 00:19:43.710 to go to a funeral. Or first I have to say goodbye 00:19:43.710 --> 00:19:49.369 to my family. Today the excuses go something 00:19:49.369 --> 00:19:54.650 like this so often. Well, I would trust in Jesus 00:19:54.650 --> 00:19:58.420 Christ as my Savior, but really isn't one church 00:19:58.420 --> 00:20:01.039 as good as another? What difference does it make? 00:20:01.920 --> 00:20:05.839 But you see, immediately, that excuse has rolled 00:20:05.839 --> 00:20:09.519 over the whole issue. Salvation has nothing to 00:20:09.519 --> 00:20:14.519 do with church or with denomination, but with 00:20:14.519 --> 00:20:17.539 one's personal relationship to Jesus Christ. 00:20:19.420 --> 00:20:22.380 Or the excuse is used, well, there are so many 00:20:22.380 --> 00:20:25.099 different religions, all of them claiming to 00:20:25.099 --> 00:20:28.319 be the truth. How can anyone ever really know 00:20:28.319 --> 00:20:34.400 which is true? You see, that excuse assumes that 00:20:34.400 --> 00:20:37.299 there is no standard for truth which God has 00:20:37.299 --> 00:20:42.599 given. But we do have one in the Bible. We can 00:20:42.599 --> 00:20:48.279 know which is truth. Another excuse goes this 00:20:48.279 --> 00:20:53.259 way. Well, I would trust Jesus Christ, but I'd 00:20:53.259 --> 00:20:57.670 have to give up too much. Now the person is beginning 00:20:57.670 --> 00:21:02.450 to understand the cost of following Christ. My 00:21:02.450 --> 00:21:04.569 friend, if you think that it costs a great deal, 00:21:04.730 --> 00:21:07.150 if you think you're going to have to give up 00:21:07.150 --> 00:21:11.269 too much in following Christ, then just think 00:21:11.269 --> 00:21:14.890 for a moment clearly. Try to grasp what you're 00:21:14.890 --> 00:21:22.269 giving up by not following Jesus Christ. And 00:21:22.269 --> 00:21:25.579 then someone else may have the excuse, I want 00:21:25.579 --> 00:21:29.079 to trust in Jesus Christ as my Savior, but I'll 00:21:29.079 --> 00:21:34.220 wait until I have my life cleaned up. But you 00:21:34.220 --> 00:21:36.819 see, Jesus Christ, my friend, wants you to come 00:21:36.819 --> 00:21:41.240 just as you are. He did not come to save those 00:21:41.240 --> 00:21:45.000 who were self -righteous, but those who are sinners 00:21:45.000 --> 00:21:49.180 and who know it and are willing to acknowledge 00:21:49.180 --> 00:21:54.220 that. And yet another excuse is often put forward. 00:21:54.839 --> 00:21:58.279 I'm afraid of what others may think of me if 00:21:58.279 --> 00:22:04.039 I become a follower of Jesus Christ. My friend, 00:22:04.099 --> 00:22:08.400 never be afraid to identify yourself with Jesus 00:22:08.400 --> 00:22:13.059 Christ, for he was unafraid, unashamed, to be 00:22:13.059 --> 00:22:18.720 identified with you in your sin. The excuses 00:22:18.720 --> 00:22:24.630 go on and on and on. The enemy of souls, will 00:22:24.630 --> 00:22:29.309 use any means at his disposal to keep an individual 00:22:29.309 --> 00:22:34.130 from humbling himself and trusting in Jesus Christ. 00:22:36.329 --> 00:22:43.069 Satan's final doom is the lake of fire. He knows 00:22:43.069 --> 00:22:45.069 that because, you see, he can read the Bible 00:22:45.069 --> 00:22:50.490 as well as you and I can. But he refuses to acknowledge 00:22:50.490 --> 00:22:57.019 that. Nonetheless, he is absolutely determined 00:22:57.019 --> 00:23:02.599 that if he will go there, he will drag with him 00:23:02.599 --> 00:23:10.900 every single person he possibly can. Now, no 00:23:10.900 --> 00:23:13.079 one would knowingly cooperate with the devil. 00:23:15.700 --> 00:23:20.529 No sensible person would ever choose The eternal 00:23:20.529 --> 00:23:23.950 fires of hell for his soul's destiny? Who would 00:23:23.950 --> 00:23:28.849 ever do that? For you see, we are dealing with 00:23:28.849 --> 00:23:31.910 a spiritual enemy who is the master of deceit. 00:23:33.769 --> 00:23:38.029 And it may be that today some friend here has 00:23:38.029 --> 00:23:44.349 unwittingly been led astray by Satan. And he, 00:23:44.410 --> 00:23:46.529 as your master, has deceived you and controlled 00:23:46.529 --> 00:23:50.039 you and enslaved you to this point. And today 00:23:50.039 --> 00:23:52.839 you understand what the gospel is and its simplicity, 00:23:52.940 --> 00:23:55.839 that Jesus Christ is God come in the flesh. He 00:23:55.839 --> 00:24:00.319 died for your sins. He was buried. He rose again. 00:24:01.920 --> 00:24:06.799 And he lives today as Lord of lords, able to 00:24:06.799 --> 00:24:10.440 save anyone who comes to the Father through him. 00:24:12.259 --> 00:24:15.500 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the 00:24:15.500 --> 00:24:21.839 Lord shall be saved. Do not allow your spiritual 00:24:21.839 --> 00:24:27.720 enemy to deceive you any longer, to enslave you 00:24:27.720 --> 00:24:31.680 any longer. But today, place your faith in Jesus 00:24:31.680 --> 00:24:36.460 Christ alone. Be delivered from the dominion 00:24:36.460 --> 00:24:40.539 of Satan and brought into the kingdom of God's 00:24:40.539 --> 00:24:47.910 dear Son. Let's bow together in prayer. With 00:24:47.910 --> 00:24:55.069 our heads bowed and our eyes closed, O may the 00:24:55.069 --> 00:24:58.569 word of God which has been proclaimed today and 00:24:58.569 --> 00:25:04.029 sown in our hearts bear fruit. But there are 00:25:04.029 --> 00:25:08.009 some in whom Satan at this moment is seeking 00:25:08.009 --> 00:25:13.150 to even now steal the word to keep it from coming 00:25:13.150 --> 00:25:15.450 to fruition and bearing fruit to eternal life. 00:25:19.150 --> 00:25:22.750 I wonder you, my friend, here, without Jesus 00:25:22.750 --> 00:25:26.450 Christ as your Savior, if you are aware of that 00:25:26.450 --> 00:25:28.930 fact this morning, if you sense your need of 00:25:28.930 --> 00:25:33.589 him and your lostness in sin. Don't allow any 00:25:33.589 --> 00:25:39.009 excuses. Don't allow any deceit to keep you today 00:25:39.009 --> 00:25:43.829 from coming to the Son of God. With outstretched 00:25:43.829 --> 00:25:48.400 arms, he invites you to come to him. Will you 00:25:48.400 --> 00:25:50.779 in your heart at this moment say, Lord Jesus 00:25:50.779 --> 00:25:55.900 Christ, I turn from all that I have trusted before. 00:25:56.779 --> 00:26:02.500 I turn from my own empty pursuits, my own sinful 00:26:02.500 --> 00:26:09.279 ways, and I come to you and receive you as my 00:26:09.279 --> 00:26:14.700 Savior, my Lord. Will you do that right now? 00:26:22.890 --> 00:26:25.329 With our heads bowed, let's sing softly that 00:26:25.329 --> 00:26:33.250 chorus that goes like this. Come every soul by 00:26:33.250 --> 00:26:45.809 sin oppressed There's mercy with the Lord And 00:26:45.809 --> 00:26:58.779 He will surely give you rest by trusting in his 00:26:58.779 --> 00:27:15.680 word only trust him only trust him only trust 00:27:15.680 --> 00:27:45.150 him now Father, I thank you today for the glorious 00:27:45.150 --> 00:27:48.569 gospel of Jesus Christ and for its liberating 00:27:48.569 --> 00:27:53.619 power and its ability to give life. eternal life. 00:27:56.279 --> 00:27:58.740 And I thank you for the victory that we have 00:27:58.740 --> 00:28:01.619 over the enemy of souls in the proclamation of 00:28:01.619 --> 00:28:06.039 the word. And I thank you for the deliverance 00:28:06.039 --> 00:28:10.180 that some have found in this morning we trust. 00:28:12.140 --> 00:28:15.579 And now I pray that we will be faithful proclaimers 00:28:15.579 --> 00:28:19.559 and sharers of the gospel and that we will enter 00:28:19.559 --> 00:28:26.529 into the spiritual warfare. armored by the Spirit 00:28:26.529 --> 00:28:31.369 of God, enabled by him, so that we may be effective 00:28:31.369 --> 00:28:37.210 and good soldiers of Jesus Christ. And this I 00:28:37.210 --> 00:28:39.369 pray in Jesus' name. Amen.