Participants: John Lomacang (Host), Pr. Dwayne Lemon
Series Code: FDOF
Program Code: FDOF000031A
|
00:20 Hello and welcome to Foundation of Our Faith,
00:22 a production of the Dare to Dream Network 00:24 here at 3ABN. 00:26 My name is John Lomacang. 00:28 I'll be your host for this program. 00:31 Our speaker for this episode is Elder Dwayne Lemon, 00:35 a young man who found deliverance in the Lord 00:37 that found him in the R&B and hip-hop industry. 00:41 The Lord called him out of the world, 00:42 and now he is traveling the world 00:45 and reflecting the glory and beauty of the message 00:48 and the Gospel of Jesus Christ. 00:51 He's gonna bring a message today entitled 00:53 "The Enemies of the Goal." 00:55 What are the enemies? And what is the goal? 00:57 You'll find out about that in this message. 01:00 The Lord has called him to share also in the preaching, 01:03 teaching, and healing ministry, 01:05 and he believes that medical missionary work 01:08 along with the three angels' message 01:10 is a combination that will help people get ready 01:12 for the coming of our Lord. 01:14 We know that we're gonna be blessed today by his message. 01:17 But before he comes, Esther Alonso-Neal 01:19 is going to be blessing us 01:21 with a song entitled "My Life is in Your Hands." 01:24 As you listen to this minister of music, 01:27 one who has traveled the world, 01:28 one who is known internationally, 01:30 one whose desire and goal is to share Jesus 01:32 in multiple languages, 01:34 you'll discover through this minister of music 01:36 that surely our lives are in the hand of the Lord. 01:49 Life can be so good 01:53 Life can be so hard 01:58 Never knowing what each day 02:02 Will bring you where you are 02:07 Sometimes I forget 02:11 Sometimes I can't see 02:16 That whatever comes my way 02:20 You'll be with me 02:24 My life is in Your hands 02:29 My heart is in Your keeping 02:34 I'm never without love 02:37 Not when my future is with You 02:42 My life is in Your hands 02:47 And though I may not see clearly 02:52 I will lift my voice and sing 02:56 'Cause Your love does amazing things 03:02 Lord, I know my life is in Your hands 03:16 Nothing is for sure 03:19 Nothing is for keeps 03:24 All I know is that Your love 03:28 Will live eternally 03:33 So I will find my rest 03:36 Yes 03:37 And I will find my peace 03:42 Knowing that You'll meet my every need 03:50 My life is in Your hands 03:55 My heart is in Your keeping 04:00 I'm never without hope 04:03 Not when my future is with You 04:09 My life is in Your hands 04:13 And though I may not see clearly 04:18 I will lift my voice and sing 04:22 'Cause Your love does amazing things 04:28 Lord, I know my life is in Your hands 04:36 When I'm at my weakest point 04:40 You carry me 04:45 And I'll be at my strongest 04:49 In Your hands 05:12 My life is in Your hands 05:17 Though I may not see clearly 05:22 I will lift my voice and sing 05:26 'Cause Your love does amazing things 05:32 Lord, I know my life is in Your hands 05:40 I trust You Lord 05:43 My life is in Your hands 06:08 We are so grateful and so thankful 06:12 when we can have the assurance, the blessed assurance 06:16 that our lives are in the hands of the Master. 06:21 When our lives are in the hands of the Master, 06:23 we can resonate with those words 06:25 that were said well over 100 years ago 06:28 that we have nothing to fear for the future, 06:32 except as we forget the way the Lord has led us 06:35 and His teachings in our past history. 06:39 I am so grateful that we have the privilege 06:42 to speak the words of God 06:44 and to hear the words of God at such a time as this. 06:47 May God bless each and every one of us 06:49 as we hold to the blessed assurance 06:52 and let it be a true testimony 06:54 that our lives are in His hands. 06:58 By the grace of God today, the Lord is gonna challenge 07:01 each and every one of us and not only challenge us 07:04 but also help us to hold fast and hold fast to the end. 07:09 My son is a pianist and he, 07:13 once the Lord gave him his gift, 07:15 I would always ask him to play before Daddy would speak 07:17 the Word of God to God's people. 07:19 And my favorite song is "Hold Fast till I Come" 07:24 Hymn number 600. 07:26 And I think about that right now, 07:29 you know, we're living in some very serious times, 07:32 some very solemn times, and we need the assurance 07:35 that our lives are in His hands and that we must hold fast 07:39 until He comes 07:41 because today we're gonna talk about 07:43 this principle, this reality 07:48 that there are enemies to the goal 07:50 that God wants to be accomplished. 07:52 And any time we have to talk about 07:54 getting ready to face our enemies, 07:56 you know, that causes different emotions 07:58 to rise up in the heart of people 08:00 but my hope and my prayer 08:02 is that our hearts will not be filled with fear, 08:05 but we will be filled with courage 08:08 that we will be able to know 08:10 that we can do all things through Christ 08:11 who strengthens us 08:12 and that when the rest of the world 08:14 turns into cowards that we must learn 08:18 to gather strength from their weakness, 08:21 we must gather warmth from their coldness, 08:24 and we must gather courage from their fear. 08:28 And my hope and my prayer 08:29 is that each and every one of us 08:31 will take courage in our Lord and our Savior Jesus Christ 08:36 and to stand upon His truth for this time 08:38 as we prepare to meet our God. 08:42 I believe the best way to prepare our hearts 08:43 for this message is through a word of prayer. 08:45 And so again, I'm gonna go to my knees, 08:47 and if you'd like, you can go ahead and join me, 08:49 you can kneel with me as well, 08:50 otherwise, let's just bow together 08:52 and let's pray 08:53 and let's let the Lord speak to our hearts. 08:57 Our loving Father, 08:58 we are grateful for the privilege 09:00 and the opportunity to hear heaven speak. 09:03 Lord, we thank You so much 09:05 that we can study Your words of truth 09:08 and that we might receive it within our heart. 09:11 Lord, I am praying that You will please abide with us 09:14 as You will grant us 09:15 the presence of Your Holy Spirit 09:17 and that He may minister to our hearts 09:19 and open our eyes and help us 09:20 behold wondrous things out of your word. 09:23 Make Your word plain to us today 09:26 for we ask it all in Jesus' name. 09:28 Amen. 09:31 I would like to go ahead 09:33 and begin by simply encouraging us 09:34 to turn to the book of 1 Peter 1. 09:37 We're talking about "Enemies of the Goal", 09:40 and we're gonna define 09:41 the various points of enemies in just a moment, 09:43 but I think we need to understand the goal. 09:45 What is it that God wants to accomplish 09:47 at the end of the day? 09:50 In the book of 1 Peter, we're gonna consider chapter 1, 09:53 and when we look at 1 Peter 1, 09:56 we're gonna consider verses 15 and 16 specifically. 09:59 And you will notice that the Bible says in 1 Peter 1, 10:02 and we're now looking at verses 15 and verse 16. 10:07 And here's the great goal of God. 10:09 The Bible says, 10:10 "But as He which hath called you is holy, 10:14 so be ye holy," and how much? 10:18 "In all manner of conversation. 10:21 Because it is written, Be ye holy, for I am holy." 10:26 Now the reason why I highlight this verse here, 10:30 there's a reason for it. 10:31 Some of us think that the mere goal 10:33 of the church is to preach the Gospel. 10:35 Well, my friends, you can preach the Gospel all you want. 10:38 If it does not produce what God wants, 10:40 then we're gonna continue preaching 10:42 until God gets what He wants 10:43 because I've learned something about 10:45 my Father and your Father in heaven. 10:46 He will not be satisfied till He gets what He wants. 10:51 And God does not just want a whole bunch of preachers, 10:54 God does not just want a whole bunch of teachers, 10:57 God does not want us to simply carry forth a message 11:00 by which we know nothing 11:01 of its corresponding experience. 11:03 God says that the message 11:06 is to be realized in the lifestyle. 11:10 When you look at that word conversation in 1 Peter 1:15, 11:14 it's not just talking about words, 11:16 it's talking about the way we live. 11:18 "In all manner of conversation, in all manner of lifestyle," 11:22 God says, "I want you to be holy people." 11:26 You see, my friends, God is holy, 11:28 and the only people that God can allow 11:31 in His house are people like Him. 11:34 Nobody is going to get to heaven 11:37 because they're simply good preachers. 11:39 No-one gets to heaven simply because they're good teachers. 11:42 No-one gets into the kingdom 11:44 because we are phenomenal at professing. 11:47 That's one of the reasons for the judgment. 11:49 The judgment is gonna expose the true from the false. 11:52 It's gonna help really show who are the ones 11:55 that really have been justified by faith 11:57 versus those who have been talking a message 12:00 but are void of its experience. 12:02 And so God wants us to have an experience with Him, 12:05 and that experience is holiness 12:07 for when the character of Christ, 12:10 which is holy, you remember in Luke 1:35, 12:13 literally, Jesus was referred to in a very beautiful term. 12:17 And I want you to look at it. Luke 1:35. Think about it. 12:19 In Luke 1, it was right there in the 35th verse, 12:24 here's what the Bible says, 12:25 as it was describing Jesus Himself. 12:27 It says in Luke 1:35. 12:29 "And the angel answered and said unto her, 12:33 'The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, 12:35 and the power of the Highest 12:37 shall overshadow thee, therefore also that..." 12:40 what kind of thing? 12:41 "That holy thing..." Notice that. 12:43 "That holy thing which shall be born of thee 12:46 shall be called the Son of God." 12:48 Jesus, my brothers and my sisters, 12:51 is holy and what God wants 12:53 is He wants us to reflect the lovely image of Jesus 12:57 before we get to the kingdom. 12:58 And so if Jesus is Holy, then we must be Holy, 13:02 and that's the goal. 13:04 God wants all the preaching, all the teaching, 13:06 all the evangelism, all the benevolent work, 13:09 everything must bring us to a place 13:12 that we're not just "good people" 13:15 but we are holy people, just like God. 13:20 And, my brothers and sisters, the reality is this, 13:23 when we seek to become holy as God is Holy, 13:27 when we are willing to accept Christ 13:29 our righteousness, our holiness, 13:31 our sanctification, 13:32 when we are willing to let Jesus 13:35 have full complete dominion over all the choices 13:38 that we make every single day, 13:40 over our words, our thoughts, and our actions, 13:44 when we seek to live this kind of life, 13:47 the Bible makes a very definite statement, 13:49 and it is found in the book of 2 Timothy 3. 13:52 It is our reality, my friends, 13:54 and there is no way to avoid it. 13:56 And I just want to let you know this now 13:58 so we can get it out of our heads, 13:59 to think that if we live the life of Jesus, 14:01 all will be well. 14:03 Well, this is true in one sense, 14:04 but it's not true in another sense. 14:06 And let me prove it. 14:07 In 2 Timothy, I want you to see what the Bible says now, 14:10 as we consider the third chapter, 2 Timothy, 14:13 and we're looking at chapter 3. 14:15 And the Bible says in the book of 2 Timothy 3, 14:19 notice what it says as we consider verse 12. 14:23 The Bible says in 2 Timothy 3, right there in verse 12. 14:27 It says "Yea..." And how many? 14:29 Notice it says "All" all right. 14:31 "Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus 14:37 shall suffer persecution." 14:42 My brothers and my sisters, 14:44 if we are going to reflect that blessed 14:46 and lovely image of Jesus Christ, 14:49 if we say that we believe in Him, 14:52 we must understand that belief in Christ 14:57 is more than a profession. 14:59 You know, I marvel at how so often 15:03 in the religious world today there are people 15:06 who love to say, 15:08 "Oh, if we only would believe in Jesus," 15:10 and "I believe in Jesus," and "We believe in Jesus," 15:12 and there's a lot of profession of Christianity. 15:15 I come from the hip-hop culture. 15:17 And today, if you look into hip-hop, 15:18 you'll see that there are a lot of rappers today 15:21 that will curse, they will swear, 15:23 they will lie, they will cheat, they will fornicate, 15:26 they will do all sorts of things 15:27 that the Bible clearly calls sin 15:30 and separates us from God 15:32 and is not a demonstration of godliness, 15:34 yet they will say they believe in Jesus. 15:37 My brothers and my sisters, 15:38 we need to understand something very important. 15:40 It is true that in Romans 10, it is true that it says, 15:43 if we confess with our mouths and believe in our heart 15:46 the Lord Jesus Christ, we shall be saved. 15:47 But it doesn't stop simply there, 15:50 there's more to the text, 15:51 and that's why you always take the whole of scripture. 15:54 Can I show you what Jesus himself said 15:56 if you really believe in Him? 15:58 Do you know that Jesus made it plain 16:00 who and how we can identify 16:03 who the real believers in Jesus are? 16:05 Did you know that He gave us such plain language 16:08 that we cannot miss it as long as we can read? 16:11 Notice what the Bible says in John 14. 16:13 Consider this, John 14. 16:15 In John 14, watch what the Bible says. 16:18 John, we're looking at chapter 14, 16:21 and I want you to just watch what Jesus said right there. 16:23 It's Him, His self, it's His words. 16:26 And in John 14, 16:27 Jesus is speaking about those who believe in Him. 16:30 I want you to think about every politician 16:32 that you have ever heard say, they believe in Jesus. 16:34 I want you to think about every entertainer 16:36 who has said from their own mouth 16:38 that they believe in Jesus. 16:39 I want you to think about every individual 16:42 who has said at some point or another 16:43 they believe in Jesus. 16:45 I want you to even think about yourself 16:49 when you say and I say, 16:51 "I believe in Jesus," 16:52 because you know what Jesus is about to do? 16:54 He's gonna test us. 16:56 You want to know how He does it? 16:57 Look at what He says in John 14. 16:59 The Bible says in John 14, right there in the 12th verse, 17:02 look at it very carefully, "Verily, verily..." 17:04 In other words, truly, truly, I'm telling you the truth. 17:07 And Jesus does not lie. 17:09 He says, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, 17:13 he that believeth on Me, the works that I do, 17:19 shall he do also. 17:23 And greater works than these shall he do 17:26 because I go unto my Father." 17:29 Jesus makes it clear, if you want to see a man 17:31 and if you want to see a woman that believes in Me, 17:34 then watch their works because Jesus says 17:36 if they really believe on Me, 17:38 the works that I do, they shall do also. 17:41 Now, watch this. 17:42 This is where sometimes we get sidetracked 17:44 or we suffer from something called blind spots. 17:47 You know what a blind spot is, 17:49 when you're driving down the road, 17:50 you know, you've got a blind spot, 17:51 you know, you can see clearly what's in front, 17:53 you typically can see what's behind you, 17:55 but it's those blind spots 17:56 right on the right and to the left 17:57 that if you do not turn your head to look 17:59 and carefully check that blind spot, 18:02 we can perhaps end up into a collision, 18:04 and that collision can cause the death of individuals. 18:07 And so blind spots are what we would call 18:10 very, very dangerous. 18:11 If we are not careful, we can suffer a blind spot 18:14 and end up in a collision 18:16 that can cost the lives of others, even ourselves. 18:18 So it is that there are many today 18:21 that have blind spots. 18:22 In other words, when they study the Bible, 18:24 they look at certain aspects of the life of Jesus. 18:28 They will look at the fact that oh, he healed, 18:30 so then you've got a whole bunch of people 18:31 that love to heal. 18:33 Then they'll say, "Oh, well, I look at this side of Jesus 18:35 and He was very, very giving, going about doing good." 18:37 So they love to go about and do good, 18:39 so they'll do everything from feed the homeless, 18:41 and do all sorts of wonderful what we call benevolent work, 18:43 you know, clothe the naked 18:45 and visit those in prison etcetera, 18:46 and all these things, 18:47 and there are some who are just focused on that. 18:50 There are others who just focus on the preaching of the truth 18:53 but they neglect the practical duties 18:55 like I just mentioned in the benevolent work. 18:58 All of these various groups of believers can do good works 19:02 but still suffer with blind spots. 19:03 In other words, there are certain things 19:05 they did not see about the character of Christ 19:07 that they have not applied in their lives 19:10 that they might give the fullness 19:13 of his character demonstration to the world. 19:15 You see there's no way Jesus is coming back 19:17 until we reflect His image fully. 19:20 That means no blind spots. 19:22 That means that every dynamic 19:24 of the life of Christ must be practiced. 19:26 And I'm gonna show you a dynamic of the life of Jesus 19:29 that I believe that even people in the church today 19:32 are very fearful of demonstrating, 19:35 even though it's a reflection of the character of Christ. 19:38 There are many people who are very fearful of it. 19:41 And notice what the Bible says it is as we go to John 7. 19:45 In John 7, Jesus is having a dialogue 19:48 with His brothers. 19:50 And as He's talking to His brothers, 19:53 His brothers didn't even believe Him either. 19:55 They didn't believe the fullness of who He was, 19:56 and they began to challenge Him. 19:58 And I want you to watch this story now. 20:00 As we go to John 7, and let's start at verse 1, 20:03 and I want you to see what the Bible says. 20:05 The Bible says in John 7:1. 20:07 "After these things Jesus walked in Galilee. 20:09 For he would not walk in Jewry, 20:11 because the Jews sought to kill him. 20:13 Now the Jew's feast of tabernacles was at hand. 20:16 His brethren therefore said unto him, 20:17 depart hence, and go into Judaea, 20:19 that thy disciples also may see the works that thou doest. 20:22 For there is no man that doeth any thing in secret, 20:26 and he himself seeketh to be known openly. 20:28 If thou do these things, show thyself to the world." 20:32 But why did they say that to their brother? 20:33 It says in verse 5, 20:35 "For neither did his brethren believe in him." 20:37 It's amazing how people can challenge you to do good 20:40 but it's based off 20:41 of a speculative suspicious mind. 20:44 And here it is that in verse 6, Jesus now answers them, 20:46 and I want you to watch the answer of Jesus 20:47 very carefully. 20:49 It says, "Then Jesus said unto them, 20:52 My time is not yet come, but your time is always ready. 20:56 The world cannot hate you but Me it hateth." 21:01 Wait a minute. 21:02 The world hates Jesus? 21:05 You know, depending on the picture 21:06 that we have in our minds, all we know of Jesus 21:08 is that He went about doing good, 21:10 and I would say amen to that, 21:11 'cause I believe everything He did do was good. 21:13 But at the same time, 21:14 sometimes our understanding of doing good is simply, 21:18 like I said, sometimes the benevolent work, 21:20 you know, feeding the homeless, clothing the naked, 21:22 and visiting those in prison 21:24 and constantly giving words of encouragement, 21:26 and these type of things. 21:27 And all of that is true but Jesus is about to show us 21:30 something about His character 21:31 that a lot of times we don't consider 21:34 or sometimes we get very fragile 21:36 in letting this aspect of His character 21:39 be lived out within our lives, continuing with the verse. 21:42 It says, "The world cannot hate you, 21:44 but Me it hateth..." 21:45 Why? 21:46 "Because I testify of it 21:48 that the works thereof are evil." 21:52 My brothers and sisters, 21:55 did you know that an absolute part of the ministry, 21:59 the work of Christ on the earth 22:02 was that He would let those in the world know 22:06 that what they are doing is evil, 22:09 what they are doing is wrong, 22:11 what they are doing is sinful, 22:13 and they must turn away from their sins, 22:16 and they must come to God before it is too late, 22:19 and this is a dynamic that in many respects, 22:22 this aspect of ministry is not in the forefront 22:26 as it could be especially to the world. 22:30 My brothers and my sisters, 22:33 we must understand all who live godly 22:35 in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. 22:38 Why? 22:40 Because when we testify of the evil 22:43 that we see taking place, 22:45 you see, if we're calling individuals to holiness, 22:49 then it is going to by default expose what unholiness is. 22:53 If we call people to godliness, then it's gonna, by default, 22:57 show people what ungodliness is. 23:00 And when those two principles are exposed for what they are, 23:05 it is going to bring hatred, 23:09 it's going to bring persecution, 23:11 it is going to bring, 23:13 my brothers and sisters, enemies. 23:16 And so therefore there is a such thing 23:17 as enemies of the goal. 23:19 And the question is this, 23:20 when Jesus was telling the world 23:22 how evil they were 23:23 and the behaviors that they were doing 23:25 and calling out all these sins by their right name, 23:27 was He doing it because He hated them? 23:29 What do you think? 23:31 Well, I would definitely say absolutely not. 23:32 We know that Jesus didn't hate the world. 23:33 The Bible makes it clear that God so loved the world 23:36 that He gave His only begotten Son. 23:37 Jesus was in harmony with His Father, 23:39 He loved the world and the Father loved the world, 23:41 while they were yet enemies, Romans 5 tells us. 23:45 So therefore we know that there is no way 23:48 that Jesus had hatred when He told them of the evil. 23:52 You see, go to the book of Revelation 3, 23:55 many of times when the Ministry of Rebukes 23:57 has to go forward, 23:59 I call it the Ministry of Rebukes 24:00 because rebuking is also a ministry. 24:03 It's a part of it. 24:04 And there are times 24:06 where things have to be called out for what they are 24:08 and it's not gonna make people comfortable, 24:10 but making comfortable 24:12 was never the purpose of the Gospel, 24:15 that was never the focus of the Gospel, 24:16 it wasn't to make people comfortable in sin, 24:19 God forbid. 24:20 It was to make us so uncomfortable in sin 24:23 that we would want to run to Jesus 24:24 and say, "Lord, please take away my sins." 24:28 But the problem is that if we give a message 24:29 that just basically loves everybody to sleep, 24:31 well, that's a problem. 24:33 And so it is that there are times 24:35 where a rebuke has to be given, 24:36 and this is gonna be a reflection 24:38 also of the ministry 24:41 and the character of Jesus Christ 24:42 because love always wants to win people. 24:47 We never rebuke to repel, we rebuke to win. 24:51 Rebuking, according to the Bible, 24:54 is actually a demonstration of God's love. 24:57 And some people have a hard time believing that 24:58 but the Bible says so. 25:00 In Revelation 3, God is talking to the last church era, 25:03 which is the church of Laodicea, 25:05 and Laodicea had a major issue, 25:07 they think they're all right when they're all wrong. 25:10 That was the issue at Laodicea, bottom line. 25:12 And God began to give counsel 25:15 and He counseled them in verse 18, 25:17 I want you to bias me, Laodicea, 25:18 you're in a deplorable, disgusting position, 25:20 you make me want to vomit, but God says, 25:22 but at the same time, 25:24 my desire is that I still want you 25:26 in my house with me, 25:27 but I need you to let me in that I can change you 25:31 and make you holy as I am holy. 25:33 So in the midst of God's counsel 25:36 to the Church of Laodicea, 25:37 He says something very powerful in Revelation 3:19. 25:41 He says, "As many as I hate..." 25:45 Is that what the verse says? 25:46 No, that's not what the verse says, is it? 25:48 It says, "As many as I love, I rebuke and I chasten. 25:54 Be zealous therefore and repent." 25:57 God wants us to come home with Him, 25:58 my brothers and sisters. 26:00 God is not satisfied with this idea 26:03 of communicating with us through prayer. 26:05 God looks forward to the day He can get rid of prayer. 26:09 God looks forward of the day 26:10 that there will not have to be this medium activity 26:12 by which we can commune with Him. 26:13 Prayer will no longer be necessary 26:15 once we're face to face with Him again. 26:17 Do you understand that? 26:18 So God appreciates prayer right now. 26:20 It's a necessity right now. 26:21 But He looks forward to the day 26:23 that He has an even closer communion with His bride. 26:26 My brothers and my sisters, we need to understand 26:29 that God says but there was one thing 26:31 that broke up the face to face communion. 26:34 It was in Isaiah 59:2, 26:36 our sins have caused Him to turn his face from us, 26:39 so He wants us to get victory over those things, 26:41 victory over every sin, 26:42 which is possible through the merits of Christ. 26:45 And then, God says, 26:47 I can now have face to face communion with My bride. 26:51 God longs to be with each and every one of us, 26:53 but He can't save us in sin, He can only save us from sin, 26:57 but we have to recognize our sins 26:59 and therefore God raises up preachers 27:02 that will call sin by its right name. 27:05 Why are they doing it? 27:07 Not because they hate the people 27:08 but because they love the people. 27:09 "As many as I love, I rebuke and I chasten. 27:14 Be zealous therefore and repent." 27:15 I read in a little book called Education. 27:18 And in that book Education page 57, it tells us, 27:21 "The greatest want of the world is the want of men, 27:24 men who will not be bought or sold, 27:27 men who in their inmost souls are true and honest, 27:30 men who do not fear to call sin by its right name, 27:35 men whose consciences are as true to duty 27:39 as the needle to the pole, 27:41 men who will stand for the right 27:43 though the heavens fall." 27:47 God needs more men like this. 27:48 God needs more women like this. 27:50 God needs to have more people like this 27:53 that when we see the evil that is so prevalently running 27:56 all throughout our world today that we, by the grace of God, 28:00 will love the people enough to tell them the truth, 28:03 even if it makes them uncomfortable, 28:05 even if it means we might lose our popularity, 28:08 even if it means that certain favors 28:09 that we received today will no longer be received, 28:11 even if it means that the positions 28:13 that we hold right now in the name of occupation 28:15 or otherwise might have to be taken away, 28:18 even if it means that we may one day 28:21 have to even lose our lives. 28:24 Do you have that kind of love? 28:26 My brothers and sisters, this is the kind of love 28:27 I ask God to reproduce in my heart every day, 28:30 to love people enough that when a time comes 28:35 that I see them going on a wrong path 28:37 that I can love them enough to say, 28:38 "My brother and my sister, 28:39 I see us going in the path of danger, 28:41 God wants to save us, 28:42 and that thing you're getting ready to do, 28:43 the Bible calls sin and God cannot accept that. 28:46 Please, please turn away. 28:48 Please come to Jesus. 28:49 Let's let Him give us victory over these things. 28:50 Let's pray together." 28:52 We have to learn how to plead with each other 28:54 that we will cooperate with heaven 28:56 as we get ready to see the final scenes unfold 28:58 that's gonna take the majority of the people 29:00 in this world as an overwhelming surprise. 29:04 And so it is that when I think about this, 29:06 there are gonna be enemies to this goal. 29:08 This goal of holiness that God wants, 29:10 there's gonna be enemies, there's gonna be enemies. 29:12 And those enemies are gonna come, basically, 29:15 from what I'm gonna call in three directions 29:17 or three dimensions, if you will. 29:19 Three types of enemies, three types of persecution, 29:22 and so what I'm gonna do for the remainder of our study 29:24 is I'm just gonna talk a little bit 29:26 about the various places 29:28 that we might expect persecution 29:30 and then God can help us to know how to overcome it 29:32 so we do not get derailed in our Christianity. 29:36 Sometimes, when people give their hearts to Jesus, 29:38 we begin to follow Him and we have a picture, 29:40 and I had, of what church is supposed to be like, 29:42 what life is supposed to be like, and sometimes 29:45 that image we have in our heads is not reality, 29:48 and therefore, we get derailed. 29:49 And so God loves us enough to tell us the truth. 29:52 You know, one time, Jesus, He goes ahead 29:54 and He chooses these 12 disciples, right? 29:57 And I thought this was interesting. 29:59 Jesus chose 12 disciples, and when He chooses them, 30:02 He has to give them all sorts of admonishment 30:05 as they're preparing to do ministry. 30:08 And look at what Jesus taught in class with the disciples 30:11 early in their ministry as He's getting ready 30:14 to launch them out to do service. 30:15 Go to Matthew 10. 30:16 In Matthew 10, you're gonna see now, 30:19 Jesus actually warned His disciples 30:22 of certain realities that some would say, 30:24 "Man, Jesus, wasn't that little early 30:26 to drop that bomb on Him? 30:27 You know, that might discourage them." 30:28 But I believe Jesus is the master teacher 30:30 and He knew exactly what He was doing. 30:32 And so therefore, I believe it was wisdom 30:34 by which Christ demonstrated here in Matthew 10. 30:37 It was in Matthew 10 that verse 1 tells us, 30:40 He brings all these 12 disciples together, 30:42 but then he begins to counsel them. 30:43 He starts to give them all sorts of counsels 30:45 from verse 5 and onward. 30:47 "Go not into the way of the Gentiles, 30:49 or the Samaritans, but go to the lost sheep 30:50 of the house of Israel." 30:52 When you go to a house, 30:53 I want to make sure you do this. 30:55 You know, He's giving them all these instructions, 30:56 but then He gets down to a place in verse 16. 30:59 This is in the beginning of their ministry. 31:01 This is the launch of their discipleship. 31:03 And Jesus says in verse 16, 31:04 "Behold now, I send you forth as sheep 31:08 in the midst of wolves." 31:09 He makes it clear, He says, "I send you forth a sheep 31:11 in the midst of wolves, 31:12 be ye therefore wise as serpents, 31:15 and harmless as doves." 31:16 Now there are so many applications to this verse, 31:18 I wish we had time to go into it. 31:20 "Be wise as serpents and harmless as doves." 31:23 Then He says, "But beware of men 31:25 for they will deliver you up to the councils 31:27 and they will scourge you in their synagogues 31:28 and ye shall be brought before governors 31:30 and kings For my sake for a testimony against them 31:32 and the Gentiles. 31:34 But when they deliver you up, 31:35 take no thought how or what ye shall speak 31:36 for it shall be given you in that same hour 31:39 what ye shall speak. 31:40 For it is not ye that speak but the Spirit of your Father 31:42 which speaketh in you. 31:44 And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, 31:49 and the father the child, and the children shall rise up 31:51 against their parents 31:53 and cause them to be put to death. 31:54 And ye shall be hated of..." How many men? 31:57 "Ye shall be hated of all men for My name's sake, 32:00 but he that endureth to the end shall be saved." 32:06 Straight words from Jesus. 32:07 And this is early in ministry. 32:09 This is not after three years of them walking with Jesus. 32:12 This is in the beginning of their walk with Jesus. 32:14 And Jesus says, I'm gonna tell you straight, 32:16 I'm gonna give you straight warnings, 32:17 and I'm going to let you know 32:19 that all these challenges will come 32:20 but be not afraid because He says 32:22 if you endure to the end, you're gonna make it, 32:24 you'll be home with me. 32:26 And then Jesus began to walk with them 32:28 and show them how to embrace their realities. 32:31 Praise God for Jesus. 32:33 Praise God for His wonderful example 32:35 that He sets before us. 32:37 My brothers and my sisters, there's gonna be persecution, 32:41 there's gonna be enemies that are gonna try to hinder us 32:45 from experiencing these goals. 32:46 And so it is that the first enemy 32:49 that we're gonna consider is what we'll call the world. 32:52 Now we have to understand that we are not of the world, 32:56 we're in the world, but we're not of the world. 32:59 When you think of the world, you just look at 1 John 2:15. 33:02 Lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, 33:03 pride of life, well, that's not a part of Christianity, 33:06 at least it ought not be, 33:07 it should not be part of our experience, 33:09 but there are those who are totally 33:10 for the lust of the flesh. 33:12 They promote the lust of the eyes 33:13 and they definitely demonstrate the pride of life. 33:16 And when we begin to see these things 33:19 and call them out by precept and example, 33:23 you're gonna find that the world 33:25 is not only gonna hate Jesus, it's gonna hate us. 33:27 And notice how Jesus said it in John 15. 33:30 In John 15, 33:31 it was Jesus Himself that said it. 33:33 The first form of persecution that many of us will notice 33:36 when we give our hearts to Jesus 33:37 and choose to follow Him, 33:39 that first enemy that is gonna come in our path 33:42 is gonna be the world. 33:44 We're definitely gonna see it. 33:45 We're gonna see the world in a whole different light 33:47 because when you're in darkness, 33:48 you don't see darkness, but when you're in light, 33:50 that's the first time you see darkness. 33:52 And so when we receive Christ, our light, 33:54 we're gonna notice how dark the world was, 33:56 and we're gonna say, "I was in that? 33:58 Man, thank the Lord for deliverance." 34:00 And we're gonna praise God, 34:01 but we still got to be in the world, don't we? 34:03 We still got to go to work, we still have to go ahead 34:06 and perform our businesses, 34:07 we're still going to have to do all those things 34:09 in the name of life, and that's why Jesus said, 34:12 Father, I don't pray that you take them out of the world, 34:14 just keep them from the evil, He said in John 17. 34:18 And so it is that there are times 34:20 that we're gonna see things like that, 34:21 and Jesus says to us in John 15 some very important counsel. 34:25 In John 15, notice what the Bible says 34:27 in verse 18. 34:29 The Bible says, "If the world hate you, 34:32 ye know that it hated me before it hated you. 34:36 If ye were of the world, the world would love his own. 34:40 But because you are not of the world, 34:42 but I have chosen you out of the world, 34:45 therefore the world hateth you. 34:47 Remember the word that I said unto you, 34:49 the servant is not greater than his lord. 34:51 If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you. 34:56 If they have kept my sayings, however, 34:58 they will keep yours also. 35:02 But all these things will they do unto you 35:04 for my name's sake 35:05 because they know not Him that sent me." 35:08 There are gonna be times 35:09 that when we're shooting for the goal 35:11 and we are seeking to cooperate with God 35:13 and let Him demonstrate His holiness, 35:14 and righteousness, and godliness within us, 35:17 the world is gonna come along and say, 35:18 "What's wrong with you? 35:20 Why do you behave like that? 35:22 Why do you eat like that? 35:23 Why do you drink like that? 35:25 Why do you dress like that? 35:26 Why is it that you only listen to these forms of music? 35:28 Why is it that you will not come to certain environments 35:31 and certain places like the rest of us? 35:32 Why is it that you even believe in God?" 35:37 And they will begin to persecute 35:38 and they'll begin to challenge us 35:40 and they'll begin to taunt us. 35:41 And my brothers and sisters, 35:42 you are starting to see right now 35:44 that the church is being squeezed. 35:45 I don't know if you see it. 35:47 I'm thankful for it personally 'cause I think it's high time. 35:50 Wonderful brother, a friend of mine, 35:53 a gentleman that I know and respect as well, 35:55 Pastor Doug Batchelor, 35:57 one time he made a beautiful statement, 35:58 he said, "One of the great reasons 36:00 why the church is not undergoing persecution 36:02 right now is because, in many respects, 36:05 we are not taking up the stand 36:07 as we should against certain evils 36:09 that are happening in our world. 36:10 And once we do, oh, yes, persecution shall come." 36:15 We're living in a time and in an era 36:17 where the church is becoming very timid, 36:19 we're seeing evil running so prevalently in our world, 36:22 but it seems as if we want to think 36:24 that silence is virtuous. 36:26 My brothers and my sisters, 36:27 when we see that the world says 36:29 that that blessed and holy institution 36:32 that God made in the beginning of time, 36:34 marriage, has now reached a place 36:36 that now instead of man with woman, 36:37 it's now man with man. 36:39 Well, my brothers and sisters, 36:40 it's not hard to go through scripture to say, 36:41 "Well, these things are not God's will. 36:44 These things is what the Bible refers to as an abomination." 36:47 But it's a deeper issue when the churches are now going 36:53 before the world and saying, "We agree. 36:57 Jesus is love and therefore Jesus thinks it's okay." 37:01 Now, my brothers and sisters, I'm not wondering... 37:02 I question what Bible are they reading from 37:04 because when I go to Matthew 19, 37:06 I believe Jesus, His words are very clear. 37:08 So notice what the Bible says in Matthew 19. 37:10 In Matthew 19, Jesus was speaking on marriage, 37:13 and this would be my message to all of those. 37:15 It's funny. 37:16 I get the privilege of speaking with individuals 37:18 who choose to live a homosexual lifestyle. 37:20 They don't believe it's a choice, 37:21 but nevertheless, that's a debate 37:23 in and of itself, but nevertheless, 37:24 there are individuals who are living 37:26 a homosexual lifestyle. 37:27 Of course, they endorse gay marriage 37:29 and they'll ask me what do you think, 37:30 why, and so on. 37:32 And I actually have such a communion with them 37:36 that they want to know what I think. 37:37 And they say, "Brother, I know you're gonna tell the truth 37:39 so tell me what does God say about it." 37:42 And I always love to take them back to Matthew 19, 37:44 I said, "Listen, 37:46 I must respect a man's decision or a woman's decision 37:49 even if it is not a godly decision. 37:52 And at no point do you merit my disrespect or my rudeness 37:57 or ungodly attitude or behavior 37:59 because you are living a lifestyle 38:01 that as a Christian I don't believe in. 38:03 That does not merit me to treat you that way 38:05 because God loved us even while we were His enemies. 38:09 And therefore, you deserve my love no matter what, 38:11 but you need to understand that I need to love you 38:13 enough to tell you the truth, 38:14 even if that truth contradicts 38:16 the very lifestyle you're living. 38:17 So I'm gonna tell you the truth." 38:18 And then we go to Matthew 19. 38:20 And here's what it says. 38:21 In Matthew 19:1, it says, "And it came to pass 38:24 that when Jesus had finished these sayings, 38:27 he departed from Galilee, 38:29 and came into the coasts of Judaea beyond Jordan. 38:32 And great multitudes followed him, 38:34 and he healed them there. 38:35 The Pharisees also came unto him, 38:36 tempting him, and saying unto him, 38:38 "Is it lawful for a man 38:40 to put away his wife for every cause?'" 38:41 In other words, is it all right 38:43 to divorce his wife for any reason? 38:44 Then it says in verse 4. 38:46 "And he answered and said unto them, 38:48 Have ye not read..." 38:50 I like how Jesus started. That's beautiful, isn't it? 38:53 He took that thing right back to Scripture. 38:55 Jesus says, listen, I'm not just gonna tell you 38:56 what I think, I'm going to take you back 38:58 to the very scriptures that you say you live by. 39:00 And so he said he says, "Have you not read? 39:01 Did you read?" 39:03 That's one of the great problems 39:04 we have in our world today. 39:05 Too many things are being called righteous and holy 39:07 and people aren't reading. 39:09 They're quoting God 39:10 but they're not reading God's words. 39:12 And so, here it is that Jesus says, 39:14 "Have you not read?" 39:15 And then he goes on, "Have you not read 39:17 that he which made them at the beginning made them..." 39:21 What? "Male and female." 39:24 Now, stop right there. 39:27 In biblical hermeneutics, when you're gonna 39:29 through like how to study the Bible, 39:31 there are many principles of how we study scripture 39:36 one of which is a principle called parallelism. 39:39 And when you think about parallelism, 39:41 you're basically making one point, 39:43 but you're expressing it in different ways. 39:45 There are lots of examples in the Bible of parallelism. 39:49 An example is when David says, "Purge me with hyssop, 39:51 and I shall be clean. 39:53 Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow." 39:55 He's making the same point. 39:56 "I just want to be clean. Lord, clean me up." 39:59 That's all he was saying. 40:00 "Purge me with hyssop, I shall be clean. 40:02 Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow." 40:04 That wasn't two thoughts. That was one thought. 40:06 He just expressed it in two different ways. 40:08 That's an example of parallelism. 40:09 Jesus is about to do parallelism, 40:11 He just started in that verse, He says, "Have you not read 40:15 that He which made them at the beginning made them..." 40:17 What? "Male and female." Very good. 40:21 Now watch the next verse, "And said..." 40:23 So he's continuing with the thought. 40:25 He says, "And said, For this cause shall a man..." 40:29 Now what was the first one mentioned in verse 4, 40:32 it was male, so male and man go together. 40:36 So it says, "He made them man, the man shall leave his father 40:40 and his mother and shall cleave to his wife." 40:44 The wife constitutes the female. 40:48 "The wife and they twain shall be one flesh." 40:52 So Jesus Himself endorsed the original program 40:57 through the example of parallelism 40:59 that male equals man and female equals wife. 41:04 Jesus Himself has endorsed 41:06 that marriage is to be between a man and a woman 41:10 and He has never repealed such a position. 41:13 So I question how did the church get to this place 41:16 except it be that we fear persecution? 41:19 But, my brothers and sisters, we have nothing to fear. 41:21 You see we must let love knock out our fears. 41:24 1 John 4:18 says, "There is no fear in love, 41:29 but perfect love casts out fear." 41:32 I want God to perfect His love in me. 41:34 I can only imagine 41:35 what John the Baptist went through 41:36 when he would go to Herod and he would have to say, 41:39 "Herod, the marriage that you are in right now 41:41 is an unjust marriage, 41:43 it is an act of adultery and murder combined, 41:45 and you have sinned against heaven, 41:47 and except you turn your heart back to God 41:49 and do that which is right, you will not be saved." 41:53 Do you understand for John to say that to Herod, 41:56 John had to know, 41:58 "I am more than likely going to die, 42:02 I'm gonna die for telling Herod this." 42:04 So what is it that compelled him to do that? 42:06 "Greater love hath no man than this 42:08 than when a man is willing to lay down his life 42:09 for his friends." 42:10 Herod and John knew each other. 42:12 John knew, "Herod, I love you too much to lie to you. 42:15 I got to let you know, 42:16 even though it's going to cost me my life." 42:20 That's the question, is do we have enough love 42:22 that when we see the world going in the path of sin 42:24 that we can say to the world, "You are in sin. 42:28 This is error. 42:30 And if you do not change, you must turn to God 42:33 before it is too late." 42:35 My brothers and my sisters, there's very few people 42:37 that have this kind of love, 42:39 and therefore, they don't have that courage. 42:41 And therefore, when the enemy of the world 42:42 begins to come to us 42:44 and tries to dictate to the people of God, 42:46 dictate to the church, "Stay silent or punishment," 42:49 it seems like a lot of people are bowing 42:52 rather than standing. 42:53 My hope and my prayer is that we will never surrender 42:55 to the enemy, that we must understand 42:57 that we are going to receive persecution from the world. 43:01 The world is gonna make it known that, 43:03 "Hey, we do not agree with what you stand for. 43:06 We do not agree for what you are 43:08 teaching and preaching. 43:09 We do not agree with these things 43:11 and it's getting to the place that if you're not careful 43:13 that we will go ahead and execute A, B, C punishment, 43:16 and we must understand that we do everything possible 43:18 to live peaceably with men. 43:20 But if you put my back against a wall, 43:23 I ought to obey God rather than men." 43:25 We have to have that position. 43:28 And, my friends, we're gonna receive persecution 43:30 but Jesus says, "Listen, the world hated Me 43:32 before it hated you." 43:34 But was Jesus's attitude towards the world? 43:36 Don't render evil for evil. 43:39 Jesus says in Matthew 5, he says, "Love your enemies, 43:43 pray for them that persecute you." 43:45 You see when the world wants to demonstrate us as evil 43:48 and even persecute us, we must be willing to say 43:51 "Lord, no, I will not render evil 43:55 for evil by Your grace. 43:56 For every lash of hatred they give me, 43:59 I will let that be strength to demonstrate greater love." 44:02 And the more that we learn 44:04 how to make this a principle that I will not do 44:07 what the world has called me to do 44:08 and I will live as God has called me to live, 44:10 and even though it will invite persecution, 44:13 I will bear it in Jesus' name, 44:15 but I will not be moved. 44:18 We must have this kind of attitude 44:20 because, again, there are enemies to the goal 44:23 and the enemies are gonna come from various forms. 44:25 Now continuing with this, we must understand that 44:28 the enemies or the persecution 44:29 doesn't just come from without, but it also comes from within. 44:33 And there are two dynamics of which we're going to look at 44:35 as far as persecution coming from within, 44:37 the enemies within. 44:38 The first one is in Matthew 10. 44:40 Go back to Matthew 10. 44:42 What is the other form of the enemy 44:44 that we are going to see 44:46 in different times in different places? 44:47 Matthew, we're looking at chapter 10, 44:50 and now we're going to consider verses 34-36. 44:53 And the Bible says in Matthew 10:34-36, 44:57 Jesus says, 44:58 "Think not that I am come to send peace on earth, 45:01 I came not to send peace but a sword. 45:03 For I am come to set a man at variance against his father 45:07 and the daughter against her mother 45:09 and the daughter in law against her mother in law 45:11 and a man's foe shall be they of his own household." 45:14 My brothers and sisters, 45:16 the reality is that sometimes we're gonna realize 45:19 that our enemies are not just from without, 45:21 but our enemies are going to be within. 45:25 And sometimes, it's going to be so closely within 45:28 that it's going to be within our own homes. 45:30 You know, it's a sad thing. 45:31 You know, a home was supposed 45:33 to be an example of heaven on earth. 45:34 Did you know that? 45:36 Home was supposed to be a place 45:37 where husbands looked forward to seeing their wives, 45:39 wives would look forward to seeing their husbands, 45:41 parents would look forward 45:43 to communing with their children, 45:44 children would look forward to communing with parents. 45:46 Today, we live in a very different world, 45:48 even in the churches today, 45:49 you see children sitting on the left 45:51 and you see parents sitting on the right. 45:52 It seems like people don't even know 45:53 how to sit together as a family even in church service. 45:57 It seems like there's a massive line of separation 45:59 that's happening not just in the world 46:01 but it's also happening in the home. 46:03 And so it is that sometimes, as Jesus says, 46:05 we're going to see 46:07 that there are going to be enemies 46:08 that are going to be in our midst 46:10 and it's going to be right 46:11 from within our own house borders. 46:14 This was not God's plan and enemy hath done this, 46:18 but it is a reality. 46:20 And this is why, my brothers and sisters, 46:22 what does Jesus say in verse 37 of Matthew 10? 46:25 He says, "He that loveth father or mother 46:28 more than me is not worthy of me 46:31 and he that loveth son or daughter 46:33 more than me is not worthy of me 46:35 and he that taketh up not his cross 46:38 and follow after me is not worthy of me." 46:40 Jesus was making it clear 46:42 that, "Look, our world got into the trouble 46:45 that it's in right now 46:46 because a man loved his wife more than he loved God." 46:51 His name was Adam. 46:53 When Eve fell into sin, Adam did not have to join her, 46:57 but the problem was that Adam's adoration 47:00 and love was stronger for Eve in that moment 47:04 than it was for his Creator. 47:06 And hence we now live in a world 47:08 with all these thousands of years of sin. 47:10 God wants us to understand 47:12 we ought to love our fathers and our mothers, 47:13 we ought to love our husbands and our wives, 47:16 we ought to do everything possible 47:17 to cooperate with heaven that we can allow our homes 47:21 to be a little heaven on earth." 47:25 But, my brothers and sisters, 47:26 what we cannot do is choose son or daughter, 47:29 husband or wife, mother or father, 47:31 we cannot choose them over God for God has already laid out 47:35 through holy writ the reality 47:37 of what happens when we do that, 47:39 it brings sin and it brings destruction. 47:42 Sometimes the enemy will be from within, 47:45 and that times is going to be the enemy from within 47:48 that's going to be right there in our homes. 47:51 And this is why we must learn, 47:53 this is why the words of Jesus are so powerful. 47:55 He says, "Love your enemies. 47:56 Pray for them that persecute you." 47:58 If you believe your husband or your wife is your enemy, 48:00 first we need to understand the true enemy is Satan. 48:03 And what he's doing 48:04 is he's trying to use husband or wife 48:06 to play against each other, 48:07 and so we ought not to even really look at our husband 48:10 and our wives and our children our brothers and sisters, 48:12 we are not to really look at them as our enemy, 48:15 the devil is our enemy, but what he's doing 48:17 is he's trying to use the ones that we love. 48:20 And when we understand it from this perspective, 48:22 instead of hating your wife, 48:24 you're gonna pray for your wife, 48:25 instead of hating your husband, 48:26 you're gonna pray for your husband, 48:28 you're going to do everything possible to win them back 48:31 into the arms of God because that's what you do 48:33 with people you love. 48:36 And we have to understand that 48:37 this is what God has called us to do. 48:39 So even when we see that sometimes the home 48:42 which was supposed to be a little heaven on earth, 48:44 sometimes there will be enemies in the home, 48:46 but when we identify the enemies, 48:47 don't render evil for evil but give good for evil. 48:51 There's a wonderful chapter in the book Adventist Home, 48:54 and I find myself doing a lot of counseling, 48:56 I mean a lot, more than preaching and teaching, 48:58 I do counseling. 48:59 And I do a lot of counseling with husbands and wives. 49:02 And many a times, the husband, "My wife is my enemy." 49:04 Many a times, the wife, "My husband is the enemy." 49:07 And they go through all these things 49:08 and we start going through the Word of God. 49:10 When we start going through the Word of God 49:12 and God's books of inspiration, 49:13 it's amazing how quickly people will start seeing 49:16 that there are some problems more so with them 49:18 than even with their spouses. 49:20 And God begins to fix and move and do beautiful things. 49:24 And in the book Adventist Home, I believe it's chapter 57, 49:27 it actually has a wonderful chapter there 49:30 on how to deal with an unbelieving spouse. 49:33 I have to refer that chapter so many times to God's people. 49:35 And many a times when they read that, 49:37 I'll always say, "If you don't get it 49:39 and if you're still confused, call me back." 49:41 And do you know, 90% of the time, 49:42 I get no callback? 49:44 In other words, it's filled with so much counsel 49:47 that God shows us how those who we understand 49:49 and deem enemies even in our own home, 49:52 that by the grace of God, 49:54 we can actually overcome, by the grace of God, 49:56 we can actually overcome. 49:58 And God, I've seen, turned many homes 50:00 that reflected hell and God has turned them 50:03 into little heavens on earth. 50:05 Is that not what we want? 50:06 And so, yes, we're gonna sometimes see enemies 50:08 within the home border, 50:10 but God has given us instruction on how to overcome. 50:12 What about the book of Acts 20? 50:14 Well, that's a different persecution from within, 50:16 so let us quickly turn there. 50:17 In the book of Acts 20, the Bible again talks to us 50:21 about persecution from within 50:25 because persecution doesn't just come from without, 50:27 it also comes from within. 50:28 And now I want you to see what the Bible says 50:30 in the book of Acts 20. 50:31 The Apostle Paul is getting ready to go 50:33 on his journey to Rome, 50:34 and as he's getting ready to go, 50:36 he is giving some final instruction to the elders. 50:38 And as he does it, he says in verse 28, 50:41 he says, in fact, verse 27, and then we'll take it down. 50:44 He says in Acts 20:27, "For I have not shunned 50:47 to declare unto you all the counsel of God. 50:50 Take heed therefore unto yourselves 50:52 and to all the flock, 50:54 over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, 50:57 to feed the church of God which he hath purchased 51:00 with His own blood. 51:01 For I know this, that after my departing 51:04 shall grievous wolves enter in among you, 51:08 not sparing the flock. 51:10 Also of your own selves shall men arise, 51:12 speaking perverse things, 51:13 to draw away disciples after them. 51:16 Therefore watch, and remember, 51:17 that by the space of three years 51:18 I ceased not to warn every one night 51:21 and day with tears." 51:24 We must understand that the enemy sometimes 51:26 will be realized not just in the home 51:28 but also within the church. 51:30 They are gonna be individuals, 51:31 and it can come from pastor to the pew, 51:34 individuals who are not cooperating with God. 51:37 And as a result of them not cooperating with God, 51:40 they can now cooperate with the devil. 51:42 Always remember, at one time, 51:44 Jesus had to look Peter in the eyes and say, 51:47 "Get thee behind me, Satan." 51:50 And it's amazing because the same Peter 51:52 that he said, "Get thee behind me, Satan," 51:53 is the same Peter that was used 51:55 under the early reign power 51:56 in the establishment of the church. 51:58 It is possible at one time 52:00 to be an instrument of the devil, 52:02 but thank God it's possible 52:03 that we can be an instrument of God in the close. 52:07 But the reality is that sometimes 52:09 we're gonna see great persecutions 52:11 and challenges, enemies 52:12 that will be within even the church. 52:16 This is why God has always made it clear, 52:19 respect elders, respect preachers and teachers, 52:22 respect evangelists and pastors, 52:25 but never put your trust in them. 52:27 I don't read anything in the scripture 52:28 that tells us that because what a man is today, 52:31 he could be different tomorrow, 52:32 and we have to be willing to embrace the reality 52:35 that sometimes those who call themselves brethren, 52:39 if they are not careful, 52:41 that they can begin to become instruments 52:44 even in the devil's hands 52:46 and they can become enemies to the faithful people of God. 52:50 This is why, my brothers and sisters, 52:52 Jesus sometimes He had to give these strong rebukes, 52:54 He had to give very strong rebukes 52:56 even to those who were "Pharisees," 52:58 they were those who would really truly seek to honor God 53:03 and do all things according to the Word 53:04 but sometimes they got disengaged. 53:07 And as a result of them getting disengaged, 53:09 they would start advocating things, 53:10 preaching things, teaching things, 53:12 and doing things that was contrary to the will of God 53:14 and they became a persecuting power to the people. 53:17 One day Jesus had to go ahead 53:19 and begin to give rebukes to them 53:20 and you'd definitely read this in Matthew 23, 53:23 you can't miss it there. 53:25 But I thought of this point. 53:27 Even when Jesus had to rebuke these men, 53:29 look at what it says, in Steps to Christ page 12. 53:32 "Jesus did not suppress one word of truth, 53:35 but He uttered it always in love. 53:38 He exercised the greatest tact and thoughtful, kind attention 53:41 in His intercourse with the people. 53:44 He was never rude, 53:46 never needlessly spoke a severe word, 53:50 never gave needless pain to a sensitive soul. 53:54 He did not censure human weakness. 53:56 He spoke the truth, but always in love. 54:00 He denounced hypocrisy, unbelief, and iniquity, 54:03 but tears were in His voice 54:06 as He uttered His scathing rebukes. 54:08 He wept over Jerusalem, the city He loved, 54:10 which refused to receive Him, 54:12 the way, the truth, and the life. 54:13 They had rejected Him, the Savior, 54:15 but He regarded them with pitying tenderness. 54:18 His life was one of self-denial and thoughtful care for others. 54:20 Every soul was precious in His eyes. 54:22 Every soul was precious in His eyes. 54:25 While He ever bore Himself with divine dignity, 54:28 He bowed with the tenderest regard 54:30 to every member of the family of God. 54:32 In all men He saw fallen souls 54:37 whom it was His mission to save." 54:40 You see there are times we're gonna see persecution 54:42 from without, 54:44 there are times we're going to see persecution from within, 54:47 we're gonna see challenges 54:48 that are gonna happen in the world, 54:49 we're gonna see challenges that are happening in the home, 54:52 we're going to see challenges 54:53 that are happening in the church, 54:54 brothers and sisters, we're even going to receive 54:56 persecution deep within from our own hearts. 54:57 You know, we are our worst enemy? 54:59 Do you know that self is the greatest of all enemies 55:02 that we have to battle with? 55:04 James tells us that these sins that we perform in our lives, 55:08 they come because of lusts that are deeply desired 55:10 within our hearts, James 1:12-14. 55:13 We go through these things 55:14 and sometimes we are our worst enemies. 55:17 It's not just persecution from within, 55:19 it's not just persecution from without, 55:21 there's also persecution deep within our own hearts. 55:25 Sometimes we are best at condemning ourselves 55:28 more than others. 55:29 But, my brothers and sisters, you must remember Romans 5. 55:32 In Romans 5:1, it says, 55:34 "Therefore being justified by faith, 55:35 we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." 55:38 Do not listen to the suggestions of the devil 55:40 even when he suggests in your own mind 55:42 that you are not worthy of salvation. 55:44 Yes, it is true that I'm a mess, 55:46 but thank God Jesus came to save a mess. 55:50 We must learn not to entertain the wicked thoughts 55:52 that go even in our own minds 55:54 where we sometimes are our best persecutors. 55:59 It is true. 56:01 A well-rounded noble character, to be holy as God is holy, 56:06 my brothers and sisters, that won't come easy. 56:09 There are people who say that, you know, 56:11 "Living a righteous life 56:12 even by the faith of Jesus Christ is easy." 56:14 Well, I don't, I respectfully disagree. 56:16 In Christ's Object Lessons page 331, it says, 56:18 "But Christ has given us no assurance 56:21 that to attain perfection of character is an easy matter. 56:25 A noble, all-round character is not inherited. 56:28 It does not come to us by accident. 56:30 A noble character is earned by individual effort 56:33 through the merits and grace of Christ. 56:35 God gives the talents, the powers of the mind, 56:37 we form the character." 56:38 And then it says, "It is formed by hard, 56:42 stern battles with self. 56:45 My friends, we're gonna battle with ourselves, 56:48 we are going to see things that's unlike God, 56:50 we're gonna see things 56:52 that are demonstrating traits of character 56:54 that will often disappoint us, 56:56 but this is not when we look to ourselves 56:58 because Hebrews 12 says, looking unto Jesus. 57:01 Why? 57:02 Because He's not only the author, 57:03 but He's also the finisher of our faith. 57:07 My friends, yes, you're going to face persecution without, 57:10 yes, we're gonna face persecution within, 57:12 and we're even going to face persecution deep within, 57:15 but John 16:33, Jesus says, 57:16 "Be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." 57:20 Will you let Him overcome in your heart today? 57:22 Yes, we have enemies, but through Christ, 57:24 we'll have victory. 57:25 Father in heaven, please help us 57:28 always to remember, through Jesus, 57:29 we can overcome and even love our enemies. 57:32 In Jesus' name. Amen. |
Revised 2017-04-06