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00:00:00Somebody asked me recently, why are you doing the book of Proverbs?
00:00:02The question I want to ask back is, why not do the book of Proverbs?
00:00:08Actually, I don't pick the books that we study. I just want you to know that.
00:00:13So, we were in Romans, and now we're in the book of Proverbs.
00:00:16I like going from the Old Testament to the New Testament, and then back to the Old, like that.
00:00:21I do like that, but I think you pray, and you seek the Lord, and He gives you the book.
00:00:28And, I don't know, but it seems like we all need wisdom.
00:00:31And this is the book of wisdom.
00:00:33So, we're talking about the way of wisdom in this section that will save your life.
00:00:37And so, we'll read it together. It's very well, you're very well acquainted with this.
00:00:42I'll start in chapter 10. We'll go down to the end.
00:00:45And today, we'll finish the entire chapter. We'll finish the closing end part of it today.
00:00:50When wisdom enters your heart, and knowledge is pleasant to your soul.
00:00:56Discretion will preserve you. Understanding will keep you.
00:01:00To deliver you from the way of evil.
00:01:03From the man who speaks perverse things.
00:01:06From those who lead the paths of the rightness to walk in the ways of darkness.
00:01:12Who rejoice in doing evil, and delight in the perversity of the wicked.
00:01:17Whose ways are crooked, and who are devious in their paths.
00:01:21Verse 16.
00:01:22To deliver you from the immoral woman.
00:01:25From the seductress who flatters with her words.
00:01:29Who forsakes the companion of her youth, and forgets the covenant of her God.
00:01:34For her house leads down to death, and her paths to the dead.
00:01:38None who go to her return, nor do they regain the paths of life.
00:01:43And here's what we'll be today.
00:01:44So you may walk in the way of goodness, and keep to the paths of righteousness.
00:01:50For the upright will come in the land, and the blameless will remain in it.
00:01:55But the wicked will be cut off from the earth, and the unfaithful will be uprooted from it.
00:02:02Father, we pray today that you would take your holy, pure, perfect word, the Bible.
00:02:08That you would lift these few verses we'll be looking at in the closing of this chapter.
00:02:13Up off the pages, and have them, Lord, be embossed upon our hearts.
00:02:18We ask you, Father God, that your Holy Spirit would enlighten our hearts and minds to understand what it is
00:02:24that we're learning.
00:02:25And then, Lord, we know your Bible tells us that we're not to be hearers only of the word of
00:02:30God, but doers of the word.
00:02:32We have come to be discipled by the Holy Spirit today.
00:02:37So, Lord, we have expectancy in our heart.
00:02:40We're looking to you to speak to us.
00:02:42And, Father, may we leave this place a transformed people.
00:02:47We thank you, Lord God, for your love, your grace, your mercy.
00:02:50Most of all, your gospel.
00:02:52We praise you in Jesus' name, and all God's people said, Amen.
00:02:56You may be seated, everybody.
00:02:57And it's a fact that wisdom will save your life.
00:03:01And I want to read a few things as we get into this section, which will be the fifth section.
00:03:08And if you have taken, and I hope you do this.
00:03:13Do you guys scan the notes?
00:03:14You can have them.
00:03:16It won't bite you.
00:03:17It won't break your phone.
00:03:19But you can have all the notes, because, honestly, I'm not kidding.
00:03:22I never cover all the notes that I have.
00:03:26And so, if you take the QR code, and you scan that every week or all the time,
00:03:30you'll get another installment into a folder or a file that you can create.
00:03:35And some of you are so savvy that you put it onto your tablet or your iPad,
00:03:43and you can have the notes, but you also personalize them
00:03:46by you adding your own comments along the margins.
00:03:50It's very smart.
00:03:51And I love that.
00:03:53I know, personally, I learn much more if I take notes.
00:03:56And so, we encourage you to do that.
00:03:57That said, I want to go right into what is on the notes in page two.
00:04:02And that is the first quote.
00:04:03So, unlike any other book of the Bible, please listen to this.
00:04:07The book of Proverbs is not what we are accustomed to when it comes to studying the Bible.
00:04:13We're used to a systematic order of things or a chronology to the learning.
00:04:20That is because most often the Bible is structured and arranged in themes
00:04:24or outlined by particular doctrines.
00:04:27But the book of Proverbs is not like that.
00:04:31Rather, it is designed as a personal conversation, so moms and dads, listen up,
00:04:37between a father and a son.
00:04:39It is to equip us in such a way that we might live a practical, godly, and holy life.
00:04:48With every proverb, we are given a takeaway lesson that we can practically live out
00:04:54so as to develop an effective, bold, and faith-filled life in the midst of a sin-filled world.
00:05:03Now, to that, look at this next statement by Pastor Ray Stedman.
00:05:08Dr. Ray Stedman.
00:05:09He's now in heaven.
00:05:10I can't wait to meet him.
00:05:11He was a great expositor of the Bible.
00:05:14No other book of the Old Testament appears to be quite as difficult to outline as the book of Proverbs.
00:05:22Like the dictionary, it seems to change the subject with every verse.
00:05:28That is the problem, and yet therein is the blessing.
00:05:33You could, and I don't encourage you to do this,
00:05:36but if you were going to play Bible roulette, you know what Bible roulette is?
00:05:39Some Christians do that.
00:05:40We shouldn't do that.
00:05:41But if you were to go like this and say, hmm, where should I read today?
00:05:45Oh, I know.
00:05:45I'll read right here.
00:05:47And it says, and Judas went out and hung himself.
00:05:52Not so encouraging.
00:05:54I don't know if I would do that.
00:05:55But in the book of Proverbs, you can do that.
00:05:57You can go to one proverb, because most often, they'll make a statement,
00:06:02and either that verse or the next verse, it will say something like this.
00:06:07Blessed are those who follow in the ways of God.
00:06:10Cursed be the man who seeks his own path.
00:06:14You see the contradiction.
00:06:17One against the other.
00:06:19And that's the book of Proverbs.
00:06:21Very important.
00:06:22But don't be naive about the book of Proverbs.
00:06:26This is still true about this great book.
00:06:282 Timothy chapter 3, verse 16 says,
00:06:43And in Proverbs chapter 4, we know this.
00:06:46We saw this in the introduction of this book.
00:06:49The Bible says, Proverbs 4, verse 23,
00:06:53Listen, for all of us, it's true.
00:06:57But young people today, most importantly, young people,
00:07:00keep or guard, set a watch over your heart.
00:07:04With all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life.
00:07:11Wow.
00:07:12Your life is going to be lived out by the value that you have stored within your heart.
00:07:18If you value the things of God, you are going to live a life that honors God.
00:07:23If you don't, you're going to live a life that honors self.
00:07:25By the way, that word issue, in the Hebrew language, a very powerful word,
00:07:29it means from the center to the vanishing point.
00:07:33I like that.
00:07:34And beyond.
00:07:35To the escapes.
00:07:37That's an interesting statement, the way it puts it.
00:07:39To the escapes.
00:07:41I had to look that up.
00:07:42I didn't know what it meant.
00:07:44To the escapes, in old English, means when you've gone as far as you can go,
00:07:50you've just begun to go as far as you can go.
00:07:55It never stops.
00:07:57It never stops.
00:07:58The furthest point, all-encompassing and in all directions.
00:08:03For out of it, your heart, the issues of life will spring forth.
00:08:06So we want to conduct ourselves in God's wisdom.
00:08:10One more verse before we dive into this, and that is Proverbs 28, verse 1.
00:08:14It says there that the wicked flee when no one pursues.
00:08:17You know what that's called?
00:08:18That's called guilt, shame, and paranoia.
00:08:21The guilty are always, always looking over their shoulder because they've committed some sort of evil.
00:08:29So the wicked flee when no one pursues them.
00:08:33If somebody's guilty and they see a cop car and they haven't even done anything wrong yet,
00:08:36they're all nervous about it because they have been doing things wrong.
00:08:41And then they look in the rearview mirror, even though they're driving under the speed limit,
00:08:44and they keep looking to see if they let it come on.
00:08:48Why do you feel like that?
00:08:50Because you're very aware of the fact that that officer is actually justified in pulling you over
00:08:56for things that you know about yourself, even though you may not be guilty in the moment.
00:09:01Are you hearing me?
00:09:02That's kind of deep if you think about it.
00:09:05The Bible speaks about this.
00:09:07The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are bold as lions.
00:09:14Or a lion.
00:09:15I like that.
00:09:17We should, listen, in Christ Jesus, that's where our righteousness comes from, right?
00:09:20If you're a Christian today, you should be as bold as a lion.
00:09:25Because you know the God of the universe and he's working in your heart.
00:09:27Or he's doing a number in your soul and he won't stop until he sees the image of his son
00:09:33reflected in you.
00:09:34That's the power of the word of God.
00:09:36And then one more before we dive into this is from the great Dr. H.A. Ironside.
00:09:41Boy, were we honored a few weeks ago here at this church where the grandson of Dr. H.A. Ironside
00:09:47was visiting here.
00:09:48And I'm glad I found that out after the service because I would have been horrifically nervous and intimidated just
00:09:56to be in the presence of Dr. Ironside's grandson.
00:10:00Listen to what he says.
00:10:02She is the ensnaring enemy.
00:10:04He's talking about the immoral woman, but he's also talking about the ways of the world.
00:10:08She is the ensnaring enemy of morality and virtue who today, as in Solomon's day, pursues her nefarious traffic in
00:10:19the bodies and souls of the young and unwary.
00:10:23Forsaking the guide of her youth, forgetting the covenant of her God, she gives herself up to impure pleasures.
00:10:30And here's the point.
00:10:32Soul-destroying lust.
00:10:34This is a very powerful statement from where we were at last week.
00:10:38Remember how we talked about the immoral woman and the perverse man and the dangers that that combination provides.
00:10:45And we talked about how temptation can lure us in.
00:10:49We also learned that temptation comes from our flesh, from the world around us, and from Satan.
00:10:55We also learned that a trial is engineered by God himself to make us more like Christ.
00:11:01The two are different, and we want to remember that.
00:11:04So church, I'm going to trust you to go look at all the previous notes, especially for those of you
00:11:09who are visiting for the first time, and you would care to do that.
00:11:12And all that we've studied, we've studied four key components to what is now the fifth and the closing argument.
00:11:20And I've kind of put it this way.
00:11:21I think it's kind of easier to remember.
00:11:25Remember, we saw in our four previous studies, number one, that the way of wisdom requires this of us, that
00:11:31we wise up.
00:11:32That we need to be people that wise up and understand that there's a worldly wisdom and there's a godly
00:11:38wisdom.
00:11:38You know this.
00:11:39Secondly, that we need to show up to the opportunities that God provides us as active believers.
00:11:45Thirdly, we saw that we need to wake up to the fact, and stop hiding and stop playing games about
00:11:50it, but to wake up to the fact that there is a good and that there is an evil.
00:11:54And they're at war with each other.
00:11:56And you have to deal with that every day of your life.
00:11:59Last week, we looked how we need to stand up to the world that is around us.
00:12:03As alluring and as, what's the word, enticing, where the immoral woman flatters with her mouth.
00:12:15We talked about that.
00:12:17We talked about how the perverse man, everything he sees, he could see a bumblebee landing on a flower, and
00:12:28he would think some perverse thought.
00:12:30But everything the perverse man sees is dirty.
00:12:34You ever know people like that?
00:12:35I've known people like that.
00:12:36I used to work with some people like that.
00:12:38For the record, not at church.
00:12:41I used to work for a big global corporation.
00:12:45I was a supervisor in a research lab.
00:12:49And we had people from all over the world working with this.
00:12:52But one of the things, like your job, there's always somebody there that's always cussing and dirty jokes.
00:12:59And all this kind of stuff.
00:13:01And it was no secret that I was a Christian.
00:13:04And the fun thing is, that was my lab.
00:13:06So when they wanted to test their stuff, they had to come into my domain.
00:13:10And it was Christian.
00:13:12I was told not to do that.
00:13:15But it was my lab.
00:13:17And so he came in one day, and I didn't have to say anything.
00:13:20And something was going on.
00:13:21And he starts telling a dirty joke.
00:13:23And I turned around, and I just looked.
00:13:25I just looked at him.
00:13:26And he saw me looking at him.
00:13:28He goes, I'm sorry.
00:13:31And I said, don't tell me you're sorry.
00:13:32I didn't die on the cross for your sins.
00:13:36I mean, just kind of twisted a little bit.
00:13:44But yes, listen, we stand, we love, we hold on to the truth.
00:13:53Because God has done a work in our lives.
00:13:55And he's delivered us from the power of all of that.
00:13:58And yet, the perverse man sees evil in everything.
00:14:01The immoral woman is always looking for the next guy.
00:14:07The next sexual high.
00:14:10And she often uses words.
00:14:12And we talked about it.
00:14:12I'm not going to talk about it again.
00:14:13Somebody told me that they laughed too hard.
00:14:15It wasn't right for me to make people laugh in church.
00:14:17But I talked.
00:14:19I got rebuked.
00:14:20You should not laugh at church.
00:14:22But I told you about Potiphar's wife flirting with Joseph.
00:14:29And how horribly serious that was.
00:14:32And it was.
00:14:34It ended up great for Joseph.
00:14:36Not so great for her, I'm sure.
00:14:38In the long run, of course, God's people will always win out.
00:14:42But the fact of the matter is this.
00:14:43Watch out for things that you think are enticing and maybe even cute.
00:14:48The enemy has loaded a barrel against you.
00:14:52So be very, very careful about that.
00:14:55So we're going to dive into this.
00:14:57And it is number five in our study.
00:14:59And it's verses 20 to 22.
00:15:02And it is this.
00:15:03That we walk up.
00:15:05Walk up.
00:15:06And when I say walk up, I mean this.
00:15:08Walk up.
00:15:09Not to the counter.
00:15:10But walk up to where God is calling you.
00:15:13Think about a roadway.
00:15:15All day today in our study.
00:15:16Think about a roadway that God, his people are on.
00:15:19And we're heading to heaven.
00:15:21And God is inviting us in these closing arguments to step up out of the world and walk up onto
00:15:28the path of righteousness.
00:15:30He's speaking to his son, Solomon is.
00:15:32And he's saying to his son, I want you to live above the fray.
00:15:36I want you to live in a realm and in a level where the presence of God exists in your
00:15:42life as a believer.
00:15:43And whatever you do in life, it's always in the confines of God being your God.
00:15:52And that's how you and I ought to live in the most, I think, dynamic way.
00:15:58And the first thing that we see in verse 20 is, and I just love this.
00:16:01Forgive me if we spend a lot of time on this one.
00:16:03And that is to walk up on the path of goodness.
00:16:08And I'm going to ask you to mark goodness down because we may not often think about it.
00:16:12But get ready to write that down.
00:16:13He says in verse 20, so you may walk in the way of goodness.
00:16:19So Christian, listen up.
00:16:21Walk in the way of goodness and keep to the paths of righteousness.
00:16:27And the first thing we want to study and to know, because watch everybody.
00:16:31When you approach the Bible, you say, okay, this is God's word.
00:16:34How do I do the way of goodness?
00:16:36And how do I get onto the paths of righteousness?
00:16:38Well, you go to the word walk.
00:16:40Let's find out what the word walk means.
00:16:43The word walk is this, halach in Hebrew.
00:16:46And it is to go, to get up onto the path.
00:16:50So let's climb the ladder, as it were, or let's take the stairs to a roadway.
00:16:55It means to journey on, to continue on walking in the way.
00:17:01Ooh, sounds like Jesus speaking.
00:17:04To be on your way to a destination and not allowing a delay.
00:17:09This is powerful, not allowing a delay.
00:17:13God is inviting you and I.
00:17:14The number one thing in verse 20 is, I want you to walk on the paths of goodness.
00:17:18And it starts with how you walk.
00:17:20Come up off the path or the roadway.
00:17:23So I want to stop in my life.
00:17:24You want to stop in your life.
00:17:25And I want to look into my life and say, Lord, I've been a Christian for some 50 years now.
00:17:31And I'm asking you, I don't want to take anything for granted.
00:17:35I'm asking you, God, to reveal within me things that are not acceptable to you.
00:17:40Things that are not right with you.
00:17:41Or how about this?
00:17:42All of your life as a Christian, God has been working.
00:17:45Let's be honest.
00:17:46Come on.
00:17:47He peels one layer at a time.
00:17:49He doesn't rip things open.
00:17:51You know, sometimes in our emotional ism that we have, we want God to just rip everything
00:17:56open and get it done in one moment.
00:17:58And he doesn't do that.
00:17:59It's kind of frustrating, don't you think?
00:18:01I want, look, I want to be spiritually mature now.
00:18:06Jesus, I want to have patience now.
00:18:10Exactly.
00:18:11You got how ridiculous that is.
00:18:13It doesn't work that way.
00:18:14He is so methodical.
00:18:17He is so patient.
00:18:19He is so sometimes slow moving, but listen, he goes deep.
00:18:26He goes deep, but listen, he goes deep by going deeper with each layer that he peels
00:18:33from your life.
00:18:34So when you become a new believer, maybe you have a foul mouth and the first layer that
00:18:39goes off, he just stops it immediately is he takes away the power that your mouth has
00:18:45been held captive to when you have these bad words that come out.
00:18:48He fixes that immediately.
00:18:50Or it could be temper, fill in the blank for you.
00:18:53He starts in your life somewhere.
00:18:55And what is he doing?
00:18:56He's inviting you up to that highway, that roadway, that journey.
00:19:01And he's saying, come up here.
00:19:04And to do that, he begins to go to work.
00:19:07And someone, listen, others on that journey, we're all, I hope, right?
00:19:11Man, I know there's a lot of people here right now, but I'm going to assume we're all following
00:19:14Jesus.
00:19:15Maybe that's not true.
00:19:17Maybe today the Holy Spirit will say to you, you need to get on this road.
00:19:21But let me just say it this way.
00:19:23We're on the road.
00:19:25And on that road, we're looking for constant guidance and signage.
00:19:30And the word of God is that signage.
00:19:33And the word of God will show us something.
00:19:35And God will say, well, Jack, you know what?
00:19:38When you came to me, remember this happened immediately.
00:19:41And then six months later, I did this.
00:19:43And then four years later, I did this.
00:19:45And then 10 years later, I did this.
00:19:47I kept peeling back the layers.
00:19:50Until, listen, until God peels back the layers of your life, and there's nothing left.
00:19:57There's nothing left.
00:19:58I personally believe that that last layer is the day that you and I graduate.
00:20:04I think that's graduation day.
00:20:06I really do.
00:20:07I believe that the day that you and I, walking with Jesus, that you and I die is the day
00:20:13that
00:20:14God, in his infinite wisdom, knows, that's it.
00:20:16He's finished his course.
00:20:19I peeled back every layer I wanted to peel back.
00:20:22I'm done with him.
00:20:23It's time for him to come home.
00:20:26You're clothed.
00:20:27The Bible says even now, you and I are clothed in the righteousness of God.
00:20:32Wow.
00:20:33So yes, sanctification, he's peeling back the layers.
00:20:36He's inviting us to come up on that journey, on that road, on that path.
00:20:41But the first thing is, we need to agree with God, we are going to walk it.
00:20:46We are going to walk it.
00:20:47We're not talkers.
00:20:48We are walkers.
00:20:50Right?
00:20:52Everybody, how's that old saying go?
00:20:54He talks the talk, but he doesn't walk the walk.
00:20:57Listen, we want to be both talkers and walkers where there's no hypocrisy.
00:21:01It's the same thing.
00:21:02Are we going to be perfect?
00:21:03Not until all the layers are peeled.
00:21:06So be gentle.
00:21:07You know, it's kind of cute.
00:21:07There's a Christian sticker or shirt that says, be patient with me.
00:21:11I'm under construction.
00:21:13That's true for all of us.
00:21:16That's true for all of us.
00:21:18But what a tremendous, powerful word that is.
00:21:20The path of goodness.
00:21:22Listen to this, for some of you who might remember this.
00:21:25From the book of John Bunyan, Pilgrim's Progress.
00:21:30Wow.
00:21:31Right?
00:21:32I don't want to get off the path, but if you've not read this book, it's now in many versions,
00:21:38modern English.
00:21:40But you should know this to help provoke you to read it.
00:21:46No other book in the history of mankind has been published annually.
00:21:52Secondly, like Pilgrim's Progress, it's published every year from 1678 to this very day.
00:21:59It's the second most sold book in the world to the Bible.
00:22:03The most published book and printed book is the Bible.
00:22:08Bunyan, John, Pilgrim's Progress is the second.
00:22:11It was written in prison.
00:22:13You want to know why he was in prison?
00:22:15Because the Church of England arrested John Bunyan because he was preaching that you must
00:22:20be born again to enter the kingdom of heaven.
00:22:23And the Church of England said, no way.
00:22:26If you're a member and you pay your tithe, then you go to heaven.
00:22:30And Bunyan said, that's heresy.
00:22:33Jesus said, you must be born again.
00:22:35And God gave him this dream.
00:22:38He had a dream.
00:22:40Got up and he wrote it down.
00:22:42And it's one of the greatest books ever written.
00:22:46But in this book, the main character is the man Christian.
00:22:50And Christian says, to go back is nothing but death.
00:22:55Think about it.
00:22:56We're on the road.
00:22:56We're heading to heaven, folks.
00:22:58It's dark and foggy and stormy behind us.
00:23:01We're on the path.
00:23:02And ahead, you can see the glistening gold of the kingdom ahead.
00:23:07Think of this.
00:23:08Christian says, to go back is nothing but death.
00:23:12To go forward is the fear of death.
00:23:15Think of this.
00:23:17That's reality.
00:23:20And life everlasting beyond it.
00:23:23I will yet go forward.
00:23:25Translation, I'm not going back.
00:23:27Going ahead?
00:23:28What if there's death?
00:23:30Death, if there is death and it is out there, is it the end of me?
00:23:36Oh, no.
00:23:37Everlasting life is on the other side of death.
00:23:40For that reason, I'm going to go forward.
00:23:42And I want to challenge you today.
00:23:43What are you living for?
00:23:44What is the passion of your life?
00:23:45What's the purpose?
00:23:46What is your end goal?
00:23:49To achieve, to acquire, to what?
00:23:52I pray today, and I hope it's in the hearts of all of us, that our desire is to get
00:23:56to the end of the road to that golden city.
00:24:00That city that God said or Abraham said, I want to go to a city whose builder and maker is
00:24:07God.
00:24:07God, that's the passion of the believer.
00:24:11And what a great message we have to share that truth.
00:24:15But let's look at this word goodness.
00:24:17This is amazing.
00:24:18I was so excited studying this.
00:24:20I called my daughter when she was teaching a class.
00:24:22I called my, or teaching the kids.
00:24:24I called her up.
00:24:25I said, look, I've been calling family members.
00:24:28Nobody answered the phone.
00:24:29They probably saw me calling.
00:24:30I don't want to talk to him.
00:24:32And she picked up the phone.
00:24:34I go, you got to hear this.
00:24:38I told her the Hebrew word tab is for goodness.
00:24:43The word means the good.
00:24:45All that is pleasing, pleasant, agreeable, fulfilling.
00:24:49All that is preferred above all things.
00:24:51Watch this.
00:24:52The I am, the eternal, all becoming one.
00:24:56The one that becomes what you need.
00:24:58All that is wrapped up in the word goodness.
00:25:00You say, what?
00:25:01How can that possibly be?
00:25:03Goodness is wrapped up in the description or points to the great I am?
00:25:07Oh yeah, absolutely.
00:25:10First of all, mark this down.
00:25:12Exodus chapter three.
00:25:14Then Moses said to God, remember, he's at the burning bush.
00:25:18Then Moses said to God, indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them,
00:25:23the God of your fathers has sent me to you.
00:25:26And they say to me, what's his name?
00:25:29Which, by the way, are you guys awake?
00:25:32Which, by the way, please, can you put this in your vocabulary as of today?
00:25:36What is his name?
00:25:38This is key.
00:25:40When people talk about gods, oh, do you believe in God?
00:25:44You ask people, oh, do you believe in God?
00:25:46Do you believe in God?
00:25:48And they'll say, of course, yes.
00:25:49Ask them, what's his name?
00:25:55Ask them, what is the name of your God?
00:25:59They said to Moses, or he's preparing, if they ask me, what do I say?
00:26:04And so, and they said to me, what is his name?
00:26:09What shall I say to them?
00:26:11And God said to Moses, I am who I am.
00:26:14That's the answer.
00:26:15I am who I am.
00:26:17And he said, thus you shall say to the children of Israel, I am has sent me to you.
00:26:24What is this I am?
00:26:25What is this God?
00:26:26This God of the Bible who says, I am who I am.
00:26:31This is what it means.
00:26:32I am the one who is absolutely self-contained, eternally existing.
00:26:40I am outside all things that exist, because I am the origin of what exists.
00:26:47I do not live in time.
00:26:49I am not physical.
00:26:51I'm spirit.
00:26:53And I am the one and only.
00:26:55There's no other.
00:26:57There's not a second I am.
00:27:00I think I saw some lunatic on, I'm not going to say what Christian program, but the guy,
00:27:06I mean, I'm going to tell you, I actually have this on tape, because I thought, I thought
00:27:12I was going to witness somebody frying on television.
00:27:17This guy said, this guy said, I'm telling you right now.
00:27:23Jesus said that he's the I am.
00:27:26Listen, it scares me to say it.
00:27:29He said, I just step back and I look up into heaven and I tell him I am too.
00:27:35Yeah.
00:27:36And with that, I stepped back thinking my TV was going to blow up.
00:27:40I rewound it and I saved that.
00:27:44Ladies and gentlemen, that's not only heresy.
00:27:47I'm trying to think of a word that's greater than that.
00:27:52Absolutely blasphemous, diabolical, satanic.
00:27:55There's only one I am.
00:27:57And you're not it.
00:27:58And I'm not it.
00:28:00It is the Lord God Almighty.
00:28:04And so much so in John chapter eight, verse 58, and you can read John eight to get the
00:28:10whole theater of the matter.
00:28:12This is a absolute mind blowing moment.
00:28:15So Jesus said to them, the scribes and the Pharisees and the teachers of the word of God, Jesus
00:28:20said to them, most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, if somebody ever tells you
00:28:28that Jesus never claimed to be God, know this, they are playing upon your ignorance or they
00:28:33may not know themselves.
00:28:35Know this.
00:28:36Jesus referred to himself as the great singular I am.
00:28:42Jesus was saying to those leaders, the one that Moses was talking to in the burning bush
00:28:47on Mount Sinai is me, known as the Christophanies or Theophanies.
00:28:53One and the same.
00:28:54One God manifested to us.
00:28:58Mark chapter 10, verse, am I, I'm sorry, I'm yelling.
00:29:00I'm so excited about who he is.
00:29:04And when he says, come and get on this path, let's go, let's walk together.
00:29:07It's like, yeah, I'm going to leave the stuff of the world behind.
00:29:10It's not worth it for what?
00:29:11Five minutes, 10 minutes, a mere lifetime of what?
00:29:15What are we promised?
00:29:1770 years.
00:29:19Anything after that, the Bible says, basically, good luck.
00:29:25No, it's not worth it.
00:29:27God is so good, by the way.
00:29:29Have you noticed, if you're not a Christian, you need to check this out.
00:29:32Have you noticed the older you get, the faster time goes?
00:29:35Remember when you were in like ninth grade?
00:29:37School lasted for like three years.
00:29:40And then you notice when you graduated as a senior, maybe you went to college, maybe
00:29:45you went to career, maybe you went to the military, and all of a sudden, one year went
00:29:49by in about six months.
00:29:51And then now, listen, I'm, and at that age, at that age, I, look, what is this?
00:30:01Is this July?
00:30:04This is July?
00:30:05No, no, it's not.
00:30:06It's still, it's still the end of January for me.
00:30:10You know what I'm talking about, time?
00:30:11Are you getting older?
00:30:12Have you noticed time is flying?
00:30:13Man, that's God saying to you, dude, you ain't got much time left.
00:30:16You better come to my son, Jesus, and get saved now, because you're running out of time.
00:30:23Now, as he was going out on the road, one came running, all these beautiful things.
00:30:28This is what every pastor wants to see happen.
00:30:30Somebody running into the church, they kneel down, and they start asking questions.
00:30:35This man running, knelt down before Jesus, and asked him, good teacher, what shall I do
00:30:42that I might inherit eternal life?
00:30:43So Jesus answered and said to him, why do you call me good?
00:30:47No one is good but one, that is God.
00:30:51And right then, there's a big silence.
00:30:54And Jesus is like, look, put the pieces together.
00:31:00This is the rich young ruler, by the way, if you don't know who this is.
00:31:03Come on, dude, you're smart.
00:31:05There's only one good, and that's God.
00:31:07Go ahead.
00:31:08You called me good.
00:31:10God's the only one good.
00:31:11You're almost there.
00:31:13Say it.
00:31:17That man went away.
00:31:18You know how this happened.
00:31:20That man went away, because it's not that he didn't believe in who Jesus was.
00:31:23He went away, because it says he loved his possessions.
00:31:28This is the point.
00:31:29Jesus says, there's only one good, and that's God.
00:31:33And that meaning you saw a moment ago refers to, points to the I am.
00:31:39In fact, when you and I say good morning, the word good means good morning, God's old
00:31:46English, God's morning to you.
00:31:49Good afternoon was God's afternoon to you, my friend.
00:31:54Good night is God's night be upon you, my friend.
00:32:00We say good.
00:32:01That's good.
00:32:02That's good bacon.
00:32:03That's good ice cream.
00:32:04That's good.
00:32:07We've washed it away.
00:32:08Only God is good.
00:32:11I want to run through these little observations.
00:32:16So that you may walk in the way of, remember, it's a path, it's a journey.
00:32:20God's saying, come up, walk up, take the stairs.
00:32:24I am the stairs, Jesus would say.
00:32:26Come up here.
00:32:27Get on the path.
00:32:28Let's go.
00:32:29Well, that you may walk in the way of the I am versus self-life.
00:32:34Self-life takes me back to the immoral woman.
00:32:37Self-life takes me back to the perverse man.
00:32:40Self-life is what I want at your expense.
00:32:46Self-life is hedonistic, self-absorbed, self-centered.
00:32:51Isn't there a magazine called Self?
00:32:53Or is that gone?
00:32:54Used to be anyway.
00:32:56What a funny thing.
00:32:56What a funny world we live in.
00:32:58Books, magazines at the store like Self, Me, Us, People.
00:33:09Wouldn't it be great if there's a magazine at the church that said like,
00:33:12I mean, at the store that said, Jesus, Lord, God, and bold print, I am.
00:33:24And then smaller print, you're not.
00:33:28So that you may walk in the way of goodness versus evil.
00:33:32This is the journey.
00:33:34This is the course we're on.
00:33:35So that you and I may walk in the way of pleasantness versus grief.
00:33:41Wow.
00:33:42So that you may walk in the way of love versus hate.
00:33:45That you may walk in the way of joy versus depression.
00:33:49Life versus death.
00:33:51Light versus darkness.
00:33:54Safety versus fear.
00:33:56Wow.
00:33:58Victory versus defeat.
00:34:01Eternity versus today.
00:34:03The world says, today, man, get it.
00:34:05Grab it.
00:34:06Get all the pleasure you can out of today.
00:34:08You don't know.
00:34:09Eat, drink, and be merry.
00:34:10For tomorrow you may die.
00:34:12God says, don't live like that.
00:34:15And the believer that is on that course, on that journey, on that path, is walking a path of goodness.
00:34:25And about that goodness, get ready to write these down if you didn't scan the notes.
00:34:29It's Psalm 6511.
00:34:31Psalm 6511 says, you, that is God, crown the year with your goodness.
00:34:37And your paths drip with abundance.
00:34:39That is awesome.
00:34:41By the way, this is my favorite.
00:34:42When you're going to give somebody a birthday card, always put that in there.
00:34:45That's what I do.
00:34:46That's a great verse.
00:34:47For a birthday card, it's a great verse for December 31st or January 1st.
00:34:53Right?
00:34:55It's a prayer.
00:34:57Next verse.
00:34:59Exodus 34, verse 6.
00:35:01And the Lord passed before him and proclaimed the Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious,
00:35:08long-suffering and abounding in goodness and truth.
00:35:13Next verse.
00:35:14Psalm 23, you know this.
00:35:17Verse 6.
00:35:17Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.
00:35:24These are the things of God.
00:35:25Next verse.
00:35:27Psalm 25, verse 8.
00:35:29Good and upright is the Lord, therefore he teaches sinners in the way.
00:35:36That's exactly what we're talking about.
00:35:37When God invites us up on this path to journey with him, he doesn't tell you to clean up your
00:35:45act and get yourself really, really presentable and then come on up.
00:35:49No, he's simply asking you to repent and come to him.
00:35:53He will restore that relationship and now you walk with him and all along the way, he's working
00:36:00in your life.
00:36:01It's a wonderful way to live.
00:36:05Technically, it's the only way to live.
00:36:06Amen.
00:36:08Next verse.
00:36:10Psalm 34, verse 8.
00:36:11O taste and see that the Lord is what?
00:36:14Good.
00:36:15Blessed is the man who trusts in him.
00:36:17Why should you trust in the Lord?
00:36:19Because he is good.
00:36:20Next verse.
00:36:22Psalm 145, verse 9.
00:36:24The Lord is good to all and his tender mercies are over all his works.
00:36:31That's a great promise to hang on to.
00:36:33Next verse.
00:36:34Final verse.
00:36:35Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above.
00:36:39Love and comes down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow
00:36:45of turning.
00:36:46God gives you good things.
00:36:47God gives us good things.
00:36:49This verse of Jeff Kearns, when our little, one of our little Yorkies, we don't have any
00:36:57dogs anymore, but when we had a little bit of time for dogs, we had these little Yorkies
00:37:01and they're amazing little things.
00:37:06But our Yorkie died and I was here at church.
00:37:09She died that morning.
00:37:11I came to church.
00:37:12He buried her at our house.
00:37:15I came home that day and there's a little cross out in the backyard.
00:37:18Yeah.
00:37:19And Jeff wrote on that cross, James 1, 17.
00:37:22All good and perfect gifts come from the Father of light.
00:37:26Isn't that sweet?
00:37:27And you think about your dog.
00:37:28And don't write me.
00:37:29Don't write me.
00:37:30Everybody writes me on this one.
00:37:31Will my dog be in heaven?
00:37:35The way that dogs conduct themselves, there'll probably be more dogs in heaven than people.
00:37:41In fact, I'm not kidding when I tell you, I actually use that as a witnessing tool.
00:37:47When I see a dog, you know, you always see a dog walking somewhere and the dog, you don't
00:37:51even know the dog.
00:37:52You're walking by like you're exercising down the street and somebody walks by with their
00:37:55dog and the dog's tail's looking.
00:37:57I don't know the dog.
00:37:58I've never given the dog anything.
00:38:00There's no reason why for the dog to even notice me.
00:38:04But he does.
00:38:07And that's a good feeling.
00:38:09Look at that.
00:38:09It's like, oh my goodness.
00:38:11And then that causes me to say, hey, what's your dog's name?
00:38:15What kind of dog is this?
00:38:16How old is this dog?
00:38:17And the dog is just like, oh.
00:38:19It's, but I'm like all happy too.
00:38:23And I don't know who this guy is, but I always say this and you can borrow it.
00:38:28I always say, you know, wouldn't it be amazing if the world, if people were more like dogs in
00:38:35this world and so many people go, uh, yes.
00:38:42Well, that's my job as a pastor is to get you like a dog.
00:38:50Because the moment you come in, listen, the moment, the moment you see the face of Jesus
00:38:56by faith until we see him face to face, your tail wagging, you're all happy about it.
00:39:02Think about it.
00:39:04There's an action.
00:39:05It's beautiful.
00:39:06It's amazing.
00:39:06Why?
00:39:07Because God's good.
00:39:08He is very, very good.
00:39:10And he's the very source of goodness.
00:39:12The second thing is in verse 21.
00:39:14And that is the path of security.
00:39:16And I don't have a time to get into this, but I'd really like to make some people upset
00:39:20right now who thinks that God's salvation is the kind of salvation that he takes back.
00:39:28Well, I'll give you salvation.
00:39:30And, but after 17 years, I'm going to take it back.
00:39:33Ladies and gentlemen, that's insanity.
00:39:34And if you've grown up in a church where that ministry has held you captive by fear saying,
00:39:40well, you know, you stepped out of line and your salvation is in danger.
00:39:44You need to tell them, thank you so much for telling me that.
00:39:49And then run like the wind.
00:39:52Because that is a nuthouse.
00:39:54That's not a church.
00:39:56Jesus doesn't kind of save you.
00:40:00The Bible says he's able to save us who come to him to the uttermost.
00:40:06Wow.
00:40:07So in verse 21, he says, for the upright will dwell in the land.
00:40:14And the blameless will remain in it.
00:40:17Now, technically, for the theologians in here, you can circle that and you can mail this to
00:40:22Candace Owens and Tucker Carlson.
00:40:24That is a verse that guarantees because God is speaking through Solomon, the word of God
00:40:32regarding the nation of Israel.
00:40:34You're going to have to deal with it.
00:40:36It doesn't even mention Israel, but the context, Solomon's a Jew.
00:40:41He's in Israel.
00:40:43And the word of God is, you walk with me and you'll inherit the land.
00:40:47You'll dwell in it.
00:40:49That's what the word, listen, we know that word to mean or to be said as the remnant.
00:40:54Remnant, God has his people, the Jew, who's a remnant.
00:40:59And look, there's even a remnant in what is, watch my fingers, air quotes, the church.
00:41:04Within the church, there's the remnant of real believers.
00:41:08And that matters.
00:41:11The word dwell, this isn't just so great.
00:41:15The word dwell means to settle down into.
00:41:19I like that.
00:41:22But do you have your favorite chair?
00:41:23Do you have a favorite chair?
00:41:25Or what about your bed?
00:41:27Now, Lisa and I have a memory foam bed.
00:41:31Is that what that's the thing?
00:41:32And listen, if I were to lay on her side of the bed, it's like, this is wrong.
00:41:40If I lay on my side of the bed, this is right.
00:41:44I could be blindfolded and I could tell you what side of the bed's mine
00:41:47because it has taken on the shape of my body.
00:41:52To dwell with the Lord is to settle down into.
00:41:55It's to be at home with.
00:41:58It's to abide.
00:42:00John's gospel is a great gospel challenging us to abide in Christ.
00:42:04Live with him.
00:42:06Can you imagine opening the door?
00:42:07Just like you do to your home.
00:42:08You open up the door and invite people in.
00:42:10And if you desire today to say to Jesus, I don't want churchianity.
00:42:16I don't want all this whatever weirdness stuff.
00:42:20But Lord, I'm going to ask you, if you're for real, I'm going to open up the door of my
00:42:25heart and invite you in.
00:42:26Don't be surprised if he comes on in.
00:42:31Don't be surprised if he takes you up on that offer.
00:42:35It's his desire that you abide with him.
00:42:37So come to him to live life, to remain, and to be productive, fruitful.
00:42:43Last word, rested.
00:42:46Rested.
00:42:47Look, you and I, we may suffer in our physical life in this world of finding good sleep.
00:42:53That's not easy to do.
00:42:55And cheer up, you young people.
00:42:56Isn't it sad?
00:42:57Sleep is wasted on young people.
00:43:02We have teenagers now as grandchildren, and they'll sleep 14 hours, man.
00:43:09And it just really, really irks me to see that.
00:43:12It's like, I need that.
00:43:16And, you know, we just skip by, rested.
00:43:22It may be true of your body that you need rest,
00:43:27but one thing is absolutely certain regarding our soul.
00:43:30Our soul, our spirit, rest in Christ.
00:43:35Rest.
00:43:37When you lay your head down at night, do you rest?
00:43:40Can you rest when you lay your head down?
00:43:44The security of God, the goodness of God, and all of these things.
00:43:49It's amazing.
00:43:51And then finally, it's this.
00:43:53To walk up onto the path of life.
00:43:55Life itself.
00:43:57Verse 22.
00:43:59Don't be this.
00:44:00Don't be this.
00:44:01This is the teaching.
00:44:04By comparison, and the opposite.
00:44:06But, you should highlight that word, but.
00:44:11It's a tragic thing.
00:44:14It's a tragic thing if you live in verse 22.
00:44:18I don't live in verse 22.
00:44:20I used to live in verse 22.
00:44:24I live in verse 21.
00:44:27Verse 22 says, but the wicked will be cut off.
00:44:31Karat, Hebrew word.
00:44:32The wicked shall be killed because they commit.
00:44:37One little word means they have been cut off from the earth.
00:44:43One Hebrew word, karat, means you committed a capital offense, and the right and just punishment for this offense is
00:44:52death.
00:44:54You want, hey, this is a side note.
00:44:57See the, oh, well, actually, I'm talking about the word.
00:44:59Can you guys put the word up there?
00:45:01There it is.
00:45:01See that word?
00:45:02It says karat, but it's karat.
00:45:06That said, watch this.
00:45:10To be killed by death.
00:45:12To be dead.
00:45:14To be killed by sin.
00:45:17Death by sin.
00:45:18To be dead by sin.
00:45:20Sin being fatal.
00:45:22A self-inflicted wound.
00:45:25Listen, before I give you the big punchline to this, the use of this word.
00:45:30Lord, if you commit a sin, that's on you.
00:45:34You know that?
00:45:35If I commit a sin, it's on me.
00:45:38By the way, in this day and age, do not get all caught up in when somebody commits a sin,
00:45:42and then you get in on whatever's going on in their life.
00:45:47Why would you embrace their sin?
00:45:49And I mean embrace their sin, not the way that you're thinking.
00:45:52If somebody has sinned, and then you go online and you're gossiping about their sin,
00:45:58they may have committed a horrific sin.
00:46:01But the moment you repeat a matter, God calls that gossip.
00:46:05Now you're sinning.
00:46:07Now I'm sinning.
00:46:09You say, wait a minute, that's the definition of social media.
00:46:12That's the problem.
00:46:15This is the exact same word that the Bible says in Daniel chapter 9,
00:46:21that the Messiah would come into the world and he would be cut off.
00:46:28The Messiah would be cut off.
00:46:32The Messiah of Israel, the anointed one?
00:46:36Daniel chapter 9, verses 24 to 27 says,
00:46:38You want to know how you identify Israel's Messiah?
00:46:41Yes, tell us how.
00:46:43Well, the big deal is he's going to be cut off for committing a capital offense,
00:46:51and for that he dies.
00:46:53What capital offense did Jesus commit?
00:46:56You have to think this through.
00:46:58He's sinless.
00:47:00So how does this apply to him?
00:47:02Ah, why did they kill him?
00:47:06Why did they coerce?
00:47:07Listen, the whole trial, all the trials that went on that night,
00:47:11all of those trials were illegal.
00:47:13The Jews could not hold trial at night.
00:47:16It's against the law.
00:47:18And they are pressuring the Romans to go along with their nefarious plot.
00:47:26Doesn't the Bible say that they hired liars to testify against Jesus?
00:47:33What was going on?
00:47:37They, God is so amazing.
00:47:41Did not the Bible tell us from Old to New Testament that the Messiah would die for our sins?
00:47:46Think of Isaiah 53.
00:47:48So how's the Messiah going to die for our sins?
00:47:50He's going to die for our sins.
00:47:52But what about those who rejected him?
00:47:56Did God make them reject him?
00:47:58Did God condemn them so that they had to reject Jesus?
00:48:04Or was that in their heart to do?
00:48:07It was in their heart to do.
00:48:09But God, who knows all things before they ever happen,
00:48:13we're studying this on Wednesday nights,
00:48:16he knew what they would do with the Son of God when he would show up.
00:48:19They plotted to kill him.
00:48:21And it says they plotted to kill him because of envy.
00:48:24And their indictment against him was this.
00:48:29We're not going to kill you because of your miracles.
00:48:32We are going to kill you because you are a man and you have declared yourself to be God.
00:48:39And to that, Jesus, when he was being crucified, he was silent.
00:48:48Why?
00:48:49Because there's nothing to say to that.
00:48:51It's true.
00:48:55Pilate said, are you a king?
00:48:59And Jesus said, are those your own words or did somebody put that in you?
00:49:06He says, I am a king, but my kingdom is not of this world.
00:49:12Wow.
00:49:15The king, who's the Messiah, who's the anointed one, you want to know who Jesus is?
00:49:21He's different than all of the Jesuses of all of the cults.
00:49:25And by the way, they all have them.
00:49:26Have you noticed that about cults?
00:49:28They're all goofy, weird, messed up, lost and crazy.
00:49:31But somehow they've got to wiggle in Jesus into their team to make it somewhat legit.
00:49:37So they make him a prophet or they make him some enlightened one or some sage or some guru.
00:49:44He is not a prophet, sage or guru.
00:49:47He's the eternal God.
00:49:50And listen, he's nothing less.
00:49:53And he's everything perfect beyond what we'll ever know.
00:49:57It'll take us eternity to get to know him.
00:50:00But friends, listen.
00:50:02All this brings us into the place of decision.
00:50:07Notice that word uprooted.
00:50:09Very serious.
00:50:10The second part of that verse is the unfaithful will be uprooted.
00:50:16That word uprooted, this is terrifying.
00:50:18To be pulled up or to pull away from life.
00:50:22To be seized upon by death.
00:50:24To be suddenly torn away from the living.
00:50:27The Bible says those that are wicked will be suddenly pulled away from the earth with no hope.
00:50:34Well, who's wicked?
00:50:35The Bible says all of us have sinned and come short of the glory of God.
00:50:39Don't anybody in the sanctuary point at somebody else in this room and say,
00:50:43I recognize that guy.
00:50:44He's a murderer.
00:50:46That murderer can turn right back at you and say,
00:50:48I recognize you.
00:50:49You're an adulterer.
00:50:50I've never committed adultery in my life.
00:50:54Jesus said, if you've looked at a man or a woman and had lust in your heart for them, you're
00:50:58guilty of adultery already.
00:51:00You say, well, that's not fair.
00:51:02Well, it all depends on who's doing the grading.
00:51:05If we, notice when we do the grading, if it's our standards, we grade on a curve.
00:51:10And the curve always starts with me.
00:51:13And the curve always starts with you.
00:51:15God doesn't grade on a curve.
00:51:17There's one standard and it's Jesus.
00:51:19He's the standard.
00:51:20That's why God showed us his righteousness in Christ.
00:51:23There's no curve.
00:51:25There's a straight line.
00:51:27And the Bible says all of us have sinned.
00:51:29Every single one of us.
00:51:31And we're all condemned.
00:51:33You know, the Bible says we're condemned without Jesus.
00:51:36You're not dumb.
00:51:37You can figure that out.
00:51:38If God came into this world and took upon himself human skin to die on the cross for us,
00:51:43that by his sacrifice, we might inherit eternal life because it's a free gift given,
00:51:49then any human effort on my part is an affront to God.
00:51:55My attempt to be a good person to get into heaven,
00:51:58then my morality is a curse.
00:52:03Because I'm suggesting, yeah, Jesus is great,
00:52:07but he needed my help to finish me off.
00:52:12So I've been really moral ever since I started going to church now.
00:52:16I don't smoke or chew or go with girls who do.
00:52:20I heard that from J. Vernon McGee.
00:52:22Don't tell, don't blame me for that.
00:52:24That's what J. Vernon McGee said.
00:52:26And if he said it, then it's amazing.
00:52:30Don't judge like that.
00:52:31Listen, I am condemned.
00:52:32Do you understand?
00:52:33Without Jesus, I'm condemned to hell.
00:52:35That's what the Bible announces.
00:52:38I'm going to read you this, and I'm going to ask you today.
00:52:43Ushers, lock the doors.
00:52:44You have to lock the doors.
00:52:45I'm going to ask you today to stop goofing off and to make a decision for Jesus Christ today.
00:52:50Listen, you need to do that.
00:52:51If God, listen, I'm telling you up front for you to be aware,
00:52:55if God starts speaking to you, here's what you're going to feel like.
00:52:57You're going to feel like leaving.
00:53:00And you've been here for 52 minutes.
00:53:03Why would you leave?
00:53:04You're almost done.
00:53:06I got to go.
00:53:07I just have to go.
00:53:08Watch out for that.
00:53:09Because in a moment, somebody's going to feel like that.
00:53:12It's like, uh, uh.
00:53:15You know what's happening?
00:53:16There's a big finger, so to speak, coming down through the ceiling,
00:53:20and he's poking you right on the heart.
00:53:22And he's saying, I'm talking to you.
00:53:30Verse 22 puts us in the valley of decision.
00:53:33I want to give you this quote.
00:53:34In the valley of decision, you and you alone are making decisions that will matter for all time and eternity.
00:53:43Every day of every hour of every minute, we are defining our lives by the decisions we make.
00:53:50You ever think of that?
00:53:52We don't think of that.
00:53:53We're too busy to think of that.
00:53:55So you're in the valley of decision right now.
00:53:57Now, Matthew chapter 25, verse 41, listen to what Jesus says.
00:54:03Jesus said,
00:54:04Then he will also say to those on his left hand,
00:54:07Depart from me, you cursed,
00:54:08into everlasting fire for the devil and his angels.
00:54:13Prepared for the devil and his angels.
00:54:15Verse 46.
00:54:16And these will go away.
00:54:17That's that word.
00:54:18Taken away, grabbed, swept away,
00:54:21into everlasting punishment.
00:54:23That's what Jesus said.
00:54:25Without Christ, we're in trouble.
00:54:30John chapter 6, verse 35 and 7.
00:54:35And Jesus said to them,
00:54:36I am the bread of life.
00:54:37He who comes to me shall never hunger.
00:54:39And he who believes in me shall never thirst.
00:54:43All that the Father gives me will come to me.
00:54:47That's active, friend.
00:54:49And the one who comes to me,
00:54:51I will by no means cast out.
00:54:54Valley of decision.
00:54:57Ephesians chapter 2.
00:55:00And you, speaking to the Christian,
00:55:02he made alive,
00:55:03who were dead in trespasses and sins.
00:55:07It means we lived to sin.
00:55:09We lived to satisfy ourselves.
00:55:12In which you once walked according to the course of this world,
00:55:15according to the prince of the power of the air,
00:55:18the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience,
00:55:21among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lust of the flesh,
00:55:26fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind,
00:55:28and were by nature children of wrath,
00:55:32just as others.
00:55:33But God,
00:55:35who is rich in mercy because of his great love,
00:55:38wherewith he loved us,
00:55:39even while we were dead in trespasses,
00:55:42made us alive together with Christ.
00:55:44By grace,
00:55:45you have been saved.
00:55:48And so, friends, listen.
00:55:51I'm going to ask you,
00:55:52no, I'm going to,
00:55:53what am I going to do?
00:55:56I'm going to ask you to remain seated.
00:55:58I'm going to ask you to prepare your heart.
00:56:00I'm going to ask you to not move.
00:56:03Not to disrupt.
00:56:06In Matthew chapter 10,
00:56:08verse 32,
00:56:10Jesus said,
00:56:11therefore,
00:56:11whoever confesses me before men,
00:56:17people,
00:56:19him,
00:56:20her,
00:56:21I will also confess before my Father who is in heaven.
00:56:25My goodness,
00:56:26talk about the valley of decision.
00:56:27Verse 32 is going to happen someday regarding you,
00:56:32regarding me.
00:56:33Listen,
00:56:33you could be here today
00:56:34and be not a believer at all.
00:56:39He'll answer that in another place.
00:56:41If you do not confess me before men,
00:56:43I will not confess you before my Father which is in heaven.
00:56:49This is serious.
00:56:50You're in the valley of decision right now.
00:56:52Can you literally say from the heart
00:56:55that I believe that Jesus Christ is Lord,
00:56:58that he died on the cross for my sins,
00:57:00he rose again from the dead,
00:57:02I come to him because he forgives my sins
00:57:04and I give him my life
00:57:06because he and he alone is worthy.
00:57:09Therefore,
00:57:10whoever confesses me before men,
00:57:12him,
00:57:12I will also confess before my Father who is in heaven.
00:57:15But whoever denies me before men,
00:57:17him,
00:57:18I will also deny before my Father who is in heaven.
00:57:21What's your decision?
00:57:23You see this?
00:57:24What's the choice?
00:57:25What are you going to do with this?
00:57:26These are eternal words.
00:57:28These words Jesus spoke.
00:57:31Recorded in the Bible.
00:57:32Eyewitness accounts.
00:57:34Not a joke.
00:57:36Father, we come before you and now I pray almighty God
00:57:40that the reality of who you are,
00:57:42what you are,
00:57:46that we in the totality of your person,
00:57:49we have this collision right now
00:57:51and we stand only to fall before you
00:57:56and say,
00:57:57Lord,
00:57:57be merciful to me,
00:57:59a sinner.
00:58:00We would say today,
00:58:02Lord,
00:58:02put me on the stairway.
00:58:05Put me on the ladder,
00:58:08the elevator up to that path
00:58:12to walk and to journey
00:58:15from the world behind
00:58:17to your kingdom before.
00:58:22As we're in an attitude of prayer,
00:58:24nobody moves,
00:58:25please be reverent.
00:58:28If today God is speaking to you
00:58:30and if you were to die today,
00:58:31you're not sure you'd go to heaven.
00:58:33You hope.
00:58:34Listen,
00:58:35you're in trouble if you're hoping.
00:58:37The Bible says,
00:58:39these things have been written
00:58:39that you might know
00:58:40that you have eternal life.
00:58:42If you were to die today,
00:58:44would you go to heaven?
00:58:44Do you know that for sure?
00:58:45If with all that's going on in the world,
00:58:47but all of a sudden,
00:58:49your moment comes,
00:58:50your heart skips a beat,
00:58:52your vision begins to stroke out,
00:58:56you begin to see
00:58:58that you are in an imminent danger.
00:59:00If you died,
00:59:01would you go to heaven?
00:59:04The Bible says you're to know it.
00:59:07And that can be
00:59:08completely decided upon
00:59:10right here,
00:59:10right now.
00:59:11As heads are bowed
00:59:12and eyes are closed,
00:59:13I'm going to ask you right now
00:59:14to put your hand up
00:59:16wherever you're at today
00:59:17in this place
00:59:19and you're saying,
00:59:20Pastor Jack,
00:59:21I am giving my heart to Jesus.
00:59:22This makes total sense to me.
00:59:24And I sense the power of God
00:59:25poking upon my heart
00:59:27saying,
00:59:27I want you with me.
00:59:28I want you in heaven.
00:59:30God bless you to my right.
00:59:31Anyone else?
00:59:31God bless you to the left on the aisle
00:59:33over here again.
00:59:35Anyone else?
00:59:35High.
00:59:36Put your hand up high
00:59:37because it's hard for me to,
00:59:38God bless you, sir.
00:59:40Over here on the aisle,
00:59:43several of you to my left
00:59:45in the back.
00:59:47You can put your hands down
00:59:48if you've not yet raised your hand.
00:59:49How about this?
00:59:51You haven't liked this invitation
00:59:53since it started coming out.
00:59:54You just,
00:59:55you don't want to hear this.
00:59:57Really?
00:59:57I want to ask you why.
00:59:59Think about it.
01:00:00Ask yourself why.
01:00:01I don't need to know.
01:00:03Why does this bother you?
01:00:04You feel like you're in the hot seat?
01:00:06How's that possible?
01:00:07I'm just a mere little tiny mortal man.
01:00:10See,
01:00:11the truth of the matter is
01:00:12you've heard the word of God.
01:00:13You may or may not recognize it.
01:00:14But God's word is speaking to you.
01:00:19And Jesus is saying,
01:00:21time is running out for you.
01:00:23And you can only confess me
01:00:26in the here and now.
01:00:27You'll never be given the chance
01:00:29after life.
01:00:30There is no chance after life.
01:00:32The Bible says,
01:00:33to that,
01:00:34no.
01:00:37And you know that you should
01:00:38make this decision today.
01:00:39You haven't done it yet,
01:00:40but you know you should.
01:00:41And you're fighting God right now.
01:00:44Isn't it amazing?
01:00:44You're fighting Him.
01:00:48Yes,
01:00:49it's true.
01:00:49I heard that,
01:00:50so to speak.
01:00:51You can't wait for this to be over.
01:00:54Little do you know
01:00:55that God is speaking to you
01:00:56and you're uncomfortable
01:00:57because
01:00:58He wants you to be born again.
01:01:02You were born into this world
01:01:03and here you are.
01:01:05Will you right now
01:01:06allow yourself to be born
01:01:09again into His world?
01:01:11Anyone,
01:01:12you agree with that,
01:01:13put your hand up.
01:01:15You didn't raise your hand before,
01:01:17but you're doing it now.
01:01:18God bless you.
01:01:19Anyone else?
01:01:20Awesome.
01:01:20That was for you.
01:01:22And obviously for you too.
01:01:24And for you in the aisle.
01:01:27God bless you in the back.
01:01:29Church,
01:01:30all of us,
01:01:30let's stand together.
01:01:31Let's pray this prayer.
01:01:32Those of you who
01:01:33lifted your hand,
01:01:35we're going to pray
01:01:36this prayer together,
01:01:38even though we're all praying it.
01:01:41It only works
01:01:42if you mean it.
01:01:46And Christians,
01:01:48can you pray it with them?
01:01:49It just sounds awesome.
01:01:50In fact,
01:01:50listen,
01:01:51Christian,
01:01:52let's rededicate our lives
01:01:54to the Lord today.
01:01:56I'm big on rededicating my life
01:01:58to the Lord tomorrow too.
01:02:00And then the day after that
01:02:01and the day after that,
01:02:04just be dedicated to Him.
01:02:06Are you ready?
01:02:07Those of you who lifted your hands,
01:02:10most certainly,
01:02:11let's do this.
01:02:12Heavenly Father,
01:02:14in Jesus' name,
01:02:16I come to you.
01:02:19The Christ,
01:02:21the Son of God,
01:02:23the Savior of the world,
01:02:26in His name,
01:02:28I ask you to forgive me.
01:02:31to wash away my guilt,
01:02:34wash away my shame,
01:02:38cause me now
01:02:40to be born again.
01:02:43You are my Lord and Savior,
01:02:46and I confess that truth
01:02:49that Jesus Christ is Lord,
01:02:53crucified,
01:02:54crucified,
01:02:56resurrected,
01:02:59my Savior.
01:03:01In Jesus' name we pray.
01:03:04Amen.
01:03:06Amen.
01:03:07Praise God.
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