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Series Code: BOL
Program Code: BOL000698S
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00:01 (Breath of Life Theme Music)
00:06 Sermon #B698 - Enemy of The State 00:20 Dr. Byrd: I will invite you to take your Bibles and turn with you to the Book of Matthew. 00:23 Matthew chapter two verse number thirteen. Matthew chapter two verse number thirteen. 00:33 Matthew chapter two verse number thirteen. 00:35 The word of God says to us in Matthew chapter two verse thirteen, and when they were departing, 00:42 behold the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream saying, 'Arise and take the young child 00:48 and his mother and flee into Egypt. 00:50 Be thou there until I bring the word. For Herod will seek the young child to destroy him." And he arose. 00:57 He took the young child and his mother by night and parted into Egypt until the death of Herod. 01:04 And was there until the death of Herod that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord 01:07 by the prophets saying, 01:09 'Out of Egypt, have I called my son'. Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, 01:17 was exceeding wroth, 01:19 and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, 01:23 from two years old and under, 01:26 according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise man. 01:30 Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet saying, 01:35 'In Rama, was there a voice heard, and lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, 01:40 Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted because they are not.' But when Herod is dead, 01:48 behold the angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joesph in Egypt saying, 'Arise and take the young child, 01:54 and his mother and go into the land of Israel for they are dead, which sought the young child's life.' 01:59 And he rose and took the young child and his mother. And came to the land of Israel. 02:04 But when he heard that Archelaus did reign in Judaea in the room of his father Herod. 02:10 He was afraid to go thither, notwithstanding being warned of God in a dream, 02:15 he turned aside into the parts of Galilee. And he came and dwelt in the city called Nazareth: 02:24 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets. He shall be called a Nazarene. 02:33 A message today is entitled, Enemy of the State. Enemy of the State. 02:42 Father God bless us now as has been sung, come Lord Jesus. 02:49 We ask now for the power of Your Holy Spirit to come and breathe in this sanctuary. 02:55 And though the sanctuary is empty, the pews are empty, God, 03:00 we need Your Holy Spirit to fill us up right now. And bless those who are watching. 03:07 Bless those who are hearing. And today I pray that they would hear the voice of God. 03:15 at the appeal time because of your voice being spoken to them that they might respond 03:19 and surrender their life to you. So hide it behind your cross. Forgive me of my sins. 03:25 In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen. 03:30 Enemy of the State. Let me begin today by saying, Herod- King Herod was an evil monster. 03:42 His reign was one of hatred, suspicion, jealousy, and insecurity. 03:50 And I believe that somebody watching right now knows that jealousy is an awful thing. 03:57 In fact, some have said that jealousy is a disease. But you should not be jealous of anyone else 04:06 because what God has for you, it is for you. And what God has for me, it is for me. 04:15 Are you hearing what I am saying? I have learned that a flower 04:19 does not come think of competing with the flower next to it. The flower just blooms. 04:26 I have learned over the years that you cannot be friends with someone who wants your life. 04:33 And people are probably not happy with their lives if they are always discussing yours. 04:40 You see haters do not really hate you. Haters hate themselves 04:45 because you are a reflection of what they want to be. Are you hearing what I am saying? 04:51 Herod was suspicious, jealous, and insecure. 04:57 And when you put these three things together you have a dangerous person, a monstrous person. 05:08 During Herod's reign, nobody, no man, no woman, no family member, no one was safe. Herod's god was himself. 05:22 Herod loved Herod. Herod would do anything to keep his job. History says that Herod was so paranoid 05:31 and so fearful about his grip on power that Herod murdered every rival to his throne. 05:39 Herod was no respecter of persons. He cares who he was. History says, 05:45 he married a beautiful Maccabean princess and he had two sons by this lady. 05:50 But he was afraid of being replaced by one of his own two sons from this lady. So history says, 05:57 he murdered them both. He also murdered their mother, his wife because he was suspicious of her as well. 06:06 He also murdered his sons, his wife's seventeen-year-old brother because he was popular with Jews. 06:15 Herod even gave orders for many prominent Jews to be killed on the day that he died so that people would 06:22 mourn his death. 06:25 This however was not carried out. But five days before his death, he did murder his own son, 06:32 the heir to his throne. King Herod was a human monster. 06:40 But Herod was the monster of monsters. He was the poster child for evil monsters. 06:49 Somebody may say well if he was so bad, how did he stay in power? 06:53 He stayed in power just like everybody else stays in power, 06:57 the same way modern-day monsters have stayed in power. Herod was a classic politician. 07:05 Herod realized that continuing his rule depended on two things. Number one, 07:12 he needed to keep Rome happy. And number two, he needed to keep the Jews happy. 07:17 Now when we read the book of the Word of God and we read the book of Matthew. 07:22 Matthew chapter one, Jesus was born. In Matthew chapter two, Jesus's birth became known to others. 07:32 The wise men, the Magi heard that Jesus had been born. So they wanted to go and worship baby Jesus. 07:40 So the Bible says, they went to Jerusalem because they assumed that the great King Jesus would have been born 07:47 in a great city. They told Herod about Jesus's birth. 07:52 And let me remind you here about the wise men that we do not really know exactly how many wise men there were. 08:00 A lot of people try to suggest that there were three wise men. 08:05 But the Bible never says that there were three wise men. The Bible says that wise men brought three gifts, 08:14 gold, frankincense, and myrrh. But the Bible never says that there were three wise men. 08:22 I hope you are hearing what I am saying. 08:24 But back to our narrative, the wise men, the Magi wanted to worship Jesus 08:31 and they wanted to know where Jesus was. And when they told King Herod up their desire, 08:38 this got Herod's blood to boiling. His jealousy started to kick in. His insecurity started to kick in. 08:48 His suspicion started to kick in because all Herod could hear was a rival to his throne had been born. 08:58 Herod pretended to be sincerely interested in the birth of the newborn king. 09:04 Herod listened carefully to the wise men, gave him instructions on how to go, 09:11 and then come back and tell him the location of the child in Bethlehem so he too could worship the child. 09:17 But Herod did not want to worship Jesus. Herod wanted to kill Jesus because Jesus was a threat to Herod. 09:26 Jesus was his rival competition, he thought. Jesus was an enemy of the state. 09:35 But Jesus was not an enemy of the state by definition. 09:38 Because by definition an enemy of the state is the person accused of certain crimes against the state, 09:44 against the government. Jesus was a newborn baby. Jesus had not committed any crimes. 09:51 But when an authoritarian regime wants to maintain power, 09:54 some authoritarians refer to an enemy of the state as one who is a social or political dissident of their 10:01 authority which means any time you oppose anyone in autocratic authority you are a problem. 10:09 Then why? Why would Jesus even want to be emperor of the Roman Empire? 10:16 What would Jesus want with Herod's kingdom? Jesus was CEO of the universe, president of all galaxies. 10:27 What does Jesus want with Herod's little kingdom? But then again maybe Jesus was an enemy of Herod's state. 10:37 Herod's state- Herod's government was built on jealousy, built on insecurity, 10:43 built on suspicion. And Jesus was not about that. Jesus was not about jealousy. 10:49 Jesus was not about insecurity. Jesus was not suspicious. Jesus was not a monster. 10:56 Jesus was not a murderer. Jesus did not come to take life but Jesus came to give life 11:02 and to give life more abundantly. Herod was not interested in worshipping Jesus. 11:07 Herod wanted to kill Jesus because Jesus was an enemy of the state. 11:11 But I am so glad today that we serve an on-time God. Yes, He is. 11:17 And God warned the wise men not to return to Herod. And the wise men- they followed the voice of the Lord. 11:28 Now, let us be clear. The wise men could have sold Jesus out. 11:35 The wise men could have traded Jesus for twenty pieces of silver like Joseph's brothers did. 11:41 The wise men could have betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver like Judas did. 11:47 The wise men could have all disobeyed the voice of God. 11:51 The wise men could have also expected something else other than what they found when they found baby Jesus. 11:59 The wise men dismissed any disappointments they may have had upon getting to the manger, 12:05 and seeing simplicities surround Jesus's birth, and they acted with adoration 12:11 and compassion through their gifts. But friends of mine, their greatest gift was not gold. 12:18 Their greatest gift was not frankincense. Their greatest gift was not myrrh. 12:24 But their greatest gift was the gift of their fourth offering, the gift of justice 12:31 by refusing to return to King Herod and collaborate in his diabolical scheme to find 12:37 and kill the child whom they believed-- who he believed was his rival and an enemy of the state. 12:45 The wise men refuse to be accomplices of evil and oppression by choosing at great risk not to report the 12:53 child to Herod as Herod had commanded them. Praise God for their moral decency. 12:59 Praise God for their principled ethics. Praise God for their honorable convictions. 13:06 Praise God for their stand to do what was right. Candor makes me comment 13:12 here that we are living in a world where people do not want to take a stand. 13:17 We are living in a world where people do not have convictions. 13:22 and at least the wise men had convictions. At least the wise men were willing to stand 13:24 and follow what the Word of God and God told him to do. Then, Herod, we know the story, 13:31 acted according to the evil character. He sent soldiers to kill every male child in the city, 13:39 two years and under. 13:41 He wanted to make sure that the enemy of the state, 13:45 he wanted to make sure that the rival to his throne was killed. 13:49 And he believed that if a few peasant boys were killed in the process, big deal. 13:55 Because he who killed his own children thought nothing of killing somebody else's children. 14:03 In Matthew two-thirteen, makes it clear and says that after the wise men departed, 14:08 the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream saying, "Arise, and take the young child 14:14 and his mother and flee into Egypt and be thou there until I bring the word: 14:18 for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him." Again, we serve an on-time God. 14:28 And the point I want to drive home to you right now is this, that when you stand for the rights, 14:36 when you shun evil, when you do not tolerate mess, when you are an antagonist of the wrong, 14:44 when you are an enemy of the state that opposes Satan's kingdom, the good news is God will still protect you. 14:54 In this text, God reminds us that He wants to give us the hope of His protection. 15:02 You see friends of mine only when we get to heaven, only when we get to heaven, 15:06 will we realize all the times God protected us from danger. All the time God protected us from car accidents. 15:15 All the time God protected us from people. All the time God protected us from certain jobs. 15:22 All the time God protected us from ourselves. God sends us angels. We do not see angels but all nights, 15:31 all day and night angels are watching over me. 15:35 Sometimes we do not even know where they are. But you better believe that they are there. 15:39 The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear Him. 15:44 Be not forgetful to entertain a stranger, for thereby some of us have entertained angels unaware. 15:52 Even as I preached this sermon right here, I cannot see it. You cannot see it. 15:58 But Jesus has a fence all around about me. And angels are securing me right now. 16:04 Demons are trying to get in, but I thank God for His angels because God protects his people. 16:11 God is always present with us. Somebody said He is a very present help in time of trouble. 16:18 His presence is unseen. But it is more real than life itself. 16:24 And I believe I have got a witness today that knows that God protects His children. 16:30 And the day is going to come when the people of God cannot buy or sell, 16:35 when the people of God are going to be persecuted, 16:38 when the people of God are going to be enemies of the state. 16:41 But just like God protected His son, just like God protected the King Jesus, 16:47 God is going to protect us because, in the time of trouble, God will protect His people. 16:54 The Lord is my light, my salvation; whom shall I fear? 17:00 The Lord is the strength of my life of whom should I be afraid. When the wicked, 17:05 even mine enemies and my foes came to eat upon my flesh, they stumbled and fell. 17:10 Though war should rise up against me, in this will I be confident. 17:14 And one thing that I have desired of the Lord now, what I seek after, 17:17 that I will draw on the house of the Lord all the days of my life. 17:21 But not only does God want to give us the hope, of His protection. 17:26 But God also wants to give us from this text, the hope of His purpose. 17:32 What am I talking about? Obeying the angel of the Lord 17:36 Verse number fourteen says that Joseph took the young child and took his mother by night, 17:44 and departed for Egypt. Now you need to understand, Joseph did not have to do that. 17:52 Danger was coming. And Joseph could have bailed on Mary and Jesus. 18:00 After all, Joseph was not Jesus's birth father, had Mary really been impregnated by the Holy Spirit. 18:11 Joseph could have left. But Joseph was faithful. He was faithful to his family and faithful to his God. 18:22 But Joseph also knew God's purpose in his life. 18:27 God, what is the purpose you have for my life? If it is to be the best pastor, be the best pastor. 18:34 If it is to be the best doctor, be the best doctor. If it is to be the best attorney, be the best attorney. 18:41 If it is to be the best educator, be the best educator. Be what God has called you to be. 18:46 Everybody always asked me, "Carlson Byrd, what is it you want to be?" 18:49 I want to be what God would have me to be because what God has for me, it is for me. 18:56 And when you know your purpose, you will become a target. Dogs do not bark at parked cars. 19:02 Dogs bark at moving cars. People shoot at the deer they see, not the one in the bushes. 19:08 And whenever you are doing something for the Lord, whenever you are fulfilling God's purpose for your life, 19:13 there will always be an element that envies what you have, and probably against you 19:17 and undermine your efforts and reputation at every turn. You will become an enemy of the states, 19:25 an enemy of some people. You have not done anything. You have not said anything. 19:32 But this element is a part of the process. 19:36 But I encourage you today, keep your eyes on Jesus, and know your purpose. 19:44 God has given us the hope of His purpose for our lives. Joseph knew God's purpose for his life. 19:52 And because Joseph knew God's purpose for his life, Joseph did not bail on his family. 19:58 But Joseph fulfilled God's purpose for his life and obey. Think about it. 20:01 Number one, having a child early in one's marriage can bring about a lot of stress. 20:08 Number two, traveling by donkey for eighty-five miles from Nazareth to Bethlehem with a new wife, 20:14 who was due to give birth at any moment, could also bring about a lot of stress. 20:19 When you fulfill God's purpose, number three, I have learned you have to learn how to be flexible. 20:25 On several occasions, Mary and Joseph had to stop what they were doing 20:31 and move to an entirely different country. The Bible says in verse number thirteen, 20:35 they had to leave Bethlehem and go to Egypt. The Bible did not say in verse nineteen after Herod died, 20:40 they had to leave Egypt and go to Israel. Then the Bible says in verse twenty-two, 20:44 when they were in Israel, they heard that Archelaus, Herod's son, had succeeded his father Herod as King. 20:50 So, Joseph was afraid, and Joseph did not want to go there. So, in a dream, 20:54 Joseph was told to go to Galilee. So, Joseph packed up his family again, and he moved them again, 21:01 and they settled in Nazareth because they had to fulfill the promise that Jesus should be called a Nazarene. 21:09 Joseph obeyed God and fulfill God's purpose for his life. 21:14 But I am so glad today that not only did Joseph fulfill God's purpose for his life, 21:20 but Jesus fulfilled God's purpose for his life. Now, unless you understand someone's purpose, 21:32 you will never really appreciate them. Let me say that again. Unless you really understand someone's purpose, 21:41 you will never appreciate them. A husband will never appreciate his wife until he understands her 21:49 purpose in his life. He will always take her for granted. He will never know 21:54 because he will never understand that this woman is praying for him. This woman is nurturing him. 21:58 She is taking care of him. And until he understands her purpose, he will never appreciate her. 22:06 A wife will never appreciate her husband until she understands his purpose, that he is covering her, 22:11 that he is protecting her. That is purpose. 22:15 A child will never appreciate a parent until that child understands purpose. 22:20 A church will never appreciate its pastors, it will never appreciate its church, 22:26 it will never appreciate its ministries until you understand that pastor's purpose, 22:31 that church's purpose, that ministry's purpose. And when you get the purpose, then you understand. 22:39 And that is why a lot of people do not get Christmas 22:43 because they do not understand Christ's purpose. We think that the Christmas story is just some cute 22:49 little story: baby born in a manger, wrapped in swaddling clothes, gifts brought to him. 22:57 But when you do not appreciate it, you take it for granted. You know what Jesus' purpose was? 23:05 We were messed up in sin. We were handcuffed by hell, 23:12 walking across the cobwebs of carnality over a fiery pit. And God, thank you Jesus, 23:19 sent prophet after prophet, tried to bring us back to Him but we kept on missing it. 23:27 So it was through Jesus, the Son of God, who said, "Send me Father, I will go." 23:35 So, God wrapped himself up in human flesh. Jesus was born. But Jesus was born to die 23:44 because even though baby Jesus escaped death in Bethlehem at the hands of Herod, 23:51 Jesus did not escape death totally. The death He would suffer was far greater than a swift blow of the sword. 23:59 This Jesus who fled with His parents to Egypt, which is Africa, would return. 24:05 And after three and a half years of ministry, in which he preached repentance, 24:10 preach the kingdom of God, healed people, performed miracles, he would be rejected 24:15 and condemned to suffer the coolest of all deaths on the cross. 24:19 The Bible says He would rise on the third day, and He was sent back to His father. 24:30 John tells us that right now He is preparing a place for us and He will return. 24:39 And we will be gathered together with Him to live forever. So, Jesus's purpose, 24:47 the purpose God had for Jesus was to be born to die, so that we might live. So, 24:58 because Satan cannot stop God's purposes, Herod could not stop God's purposes, 25:06 Jesus was born, he had to die but he did not die in Bethlehem but he died on a cruel cross. 25:15 Somebody is not getting it. Let me help you understand, and I am going to sit down. 25:19 Let me try to help you understand God's purpose in the life of Jesus. 25:23 Jesus was born in Bethlehem to identify with all babies. 25:29 He was laid in a manger to touch the depths of human needs. He was smuggled into Egypt to rescue all exiles. 25:40 He was reared in Nazareth to under guard the existence of children. 25:45 He was baptized in the muddy Jordan to plunge Himself into our plight. 25:51 He was put out of the organized church to emphasize people over policy. 25:57 He was arrested in Gethsemane to make common cause with common criminals. 26:02 He was condemned by Pilate to embrace conventional convicts. 26:07 He was crucified on Calvary to challenge death on its own grounds. 26:12 He was buried in a tomb to conquer the boundaries of helplessness. 26:18 But on the third appointed day, He rolls with all power in his hands to be our help in ages past, 26:26 and our hope for years to come. 26:28 Today, I understand Jesus's purpose. And because I understand His purpose, 26:34 I have an appreciation for what Jesus has done. Today, we are not worshiping a dead Jesus. 26:41 We do not live in the hope that Christ is alive. Christ is alive. I serve a risen savior. 26:48 He is in the world today. I know that He is living whatever man may say. I see His hand and mercy. 26:54 I hear His voice of cheer in just the time I need Him. He is always near. 27:01 Jesus, you may have been the enemy of Herod's state. But He is the savior of mass' state. He was born. 27:17 He lived. He died. He rose. He ascended back to heaven. And one day soon, He is coming back. 27:33 He died that we might live. And all He asks is that we live for Him. He is the enemy of Satan's state, 27:48 the Redeemer of my state. 27:54 Thank you very much for tuning in to this week's Breath of Life broadcast. 27:58 We hope and pray that you've been blessed by Dr. Byrd's inspirational message. 28:03 If you would like to hear this sermon in its entirety, 28:05 please feel free to visit us at www.breathoflife.tv. 28:11 Or, call us at (256) 929-6460. 28:23 GONE BOOK PROMO 28:24 Dr. Byrd: Pain, loss, trama, 28:33 in life we experience these things. 28:36 My wife and I have a story, 28:39 we have a testimony of how we lost 28:44 our first born daughter in a horrific car accident. 28:50 We have this new sharing book, its en-titled “Gone.” 28:55 And, in it I want to share with you 28:59 how God has helped me, 29:02 how God has helped my wife, how God has helped us, 29:06 as we had to endure the fact that our first born daughter is gone. 29:18 www.breathoflife.tv 29:23 [END] |
Revised 2020-12-16