The Bible tells us,
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"In the beginning was the word,
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and the word was with
God, and the word was God."
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It says, "To receive with
meekness the implanted word,
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which is able to
save your souls."
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And to "Be diligent to present
yourself approved to God...
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rightly dividing
the word of truth."
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Join us now for the
3ABN Sabbath School Panel.
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Our study today is,
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"Feed My Sheep," I and II Peter.
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Hello, and welcome to our
3ABN Sabbath School Panel.
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My name is John Lomacang.
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We are so glad that
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you've taken the time to join us
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for this thought-provoking,
continual study
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through I and II
epistles of the book of Peter.
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It has been a tremendous walk
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through this
Sabbath school lesson,
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which the overall
theme is "Feed My Sheep."
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And the Lord calls us
to be faithful shepherds
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and leaders to feed the flock
that God has placed us over
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and we are going to
enjoy our time today
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as we talk about the
topic of false teachers.
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June 3 to 9, if you
like a copy of that lesson,
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go to absg.adventist.org
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and download lesson number 11
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and follow along with us.
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But if you don't have one,
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we'll do our best to
keep you on track with us
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and we surely do
appreciate everything you do
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for this network
as we go and grow,
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waiting for the
coming of our Lord.
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So good to have our
panelists with us today, Mollie,
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good to have you here.
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Thank you.
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Pastor Tom Ferguson
of the Marion district,
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good to have you here.
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My fellow colleague in ministry.
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Nice to be here.
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And Jill Morikone,
good to see you, Jill.
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Thank you.
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Jill is a staple here
at 3ABN in a wonderful way
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and, Shelley Quinn, good
to have you here as always.
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Thank you.
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Before we dive into our lesson,
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though we always like to
begin with a word of prayer,
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why speak about
a spiritual topic
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without asking
for spiritual help?
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Pastor Tom, would you
have our prayer for us?
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Heavenly Father, we
count it a privilege
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to once again come together
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and break bread
with one another.
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We thank You for Your word
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and the food to
our souls that it is
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and as we study
this lesson today,
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we invite Your Holy
Spirit to give us understanding,
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be with each one
of us in the panel,
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with our thoughts
and with the things
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that we say.
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And, Lord, may You
indeed feed Your sheep
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through the
discussion that we have.
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In Jesus' name, amen.
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Amen. Amen.
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Now each of us is going
to cover a different day
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in the lesson
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and I have the
privilege of talking about
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not only the overview,
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but false prophets and teachers.
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You know, I'll just
say to my panelists,
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there is never a
time that the truth of God
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is being proclaimed
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that there are
not on the grounds,
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in the audience,
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someone that
opposes what you say.
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Yeah. It's true.
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And so for those of you
that may be in the position
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as teachers, pastors, leaders,
Sabbath school teachers,
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maybe even just
mothers and fathers
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teaching their children,
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we live in a world today
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where every time
the truth is proclaimed,
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there is some
kind of opposition,
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whether it's
evolution versus creation,
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whether it's
atheism versus Christianity,
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whether it's false
doctrines within the church
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that are coming in to challenge
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the true
doctrines in the church,
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whether it is the Godhead
versus the trinitarian views,
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whatever it may be,
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there are always false doctrines
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that will challenge those things
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that are true.
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You know, when I
worked in the bank,
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I worked in four or
five banks in New York City,
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an insurance company,
all in the Wall Street area
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and what I learned
very carefully was,
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it is easier to
spot counterfeit money
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when you spend your time
studying the real currency.
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It's good. That's good.
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Now that we've
had an opportunity
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to travel around the
world, my wife Angela,
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she collects all this
currency from all the countries,
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anywhere from a five
pound note in Great Britain
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to a hundred million
dollar note in Zimbabwe,
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which, in fact, is no
longer even viable currency,
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but the point to the
matter is wherever we go,
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there are
different interpretations
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of what the Bible says
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and the apostle
Peter was concerned
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that the church would be
hampered by false teachings
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coming into the church.
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And so I'd like to
begin with the words of Jesus.
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Let's go to Matthew chapter 24,
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because the apostle
Peter is really functioning
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on what Jesus told
him would already be.
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The apostles and later on,
Paul, and we have Barnabas,
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we have Silas,
we have Mark, John,
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and all of those that
were faithful to the call
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that God placed on their
lives were always exposed
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to an atmosphere that
Jesus said would exist.
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How amazing it is!
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We talk to Matthew, we
talk about Matthew 24 which,
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in fact, we commonly know
it as the signs of the end.
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But look at Matthew 24:4.
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Matthew 24:4,
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a very short
passage but very potent.
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"And Jesus
answered and said to them,
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'Take heed that no
one...'" Does what?
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Deceives. Deceives you.
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"'No one deceives you.'"
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Deception, in fact, is
the stampel of our day,
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the staple of our day.
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Did I say stampel? I
mean, 'cause it's staple.
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The staple of our day
is deception, counterfeits,
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I remember years ago,
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we have rhinestones
instead of diamonds,
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pleather instead of leather,
all these fake materials,
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we have composites
instead of the real thing
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and such has been the case
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when it comes to
the truth of God's word.
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The apostle
Peter pointed out that
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as long as there are sheep,
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there will be wolves.
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As long as there are shepherds,
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there will be
those false shepherds.
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Seeking to
steal away and come in
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and bring about heresies
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that are not
supported by the word of God.
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Sunday, as a
matter of fact brings out,
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I would say in a beautiful way,
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a complete picture of
what the church was like
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and what the
church is like today.
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Look at II Peter
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and we're gonna follow
through, matter of fact,
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what we usually do is
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we often read the
memory text together, don't we?
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It's not too late to do that.
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Let's look at the
memory text for our week.
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It's II Peter 2:19
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and since we have our
Sabbath school lesson,
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we'll all read that
together, can we do that?
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Here we go.
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It says, "They
promise them freedom
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but they themselves
are slaves of corruption,
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for people who are slaves
to whatever masters them."
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Wow! What a powerful text!
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Yes, it is.
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It reminds me of Romans 6,
"Whatever you yield yourself,
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you become servants of
that one whom you obey,
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whether to righteousness
which leads with sin...
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"Obedience."
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"That leads to death or
righteousness that leads..."
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"Obedience." "To life."
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"Obedience that
leads to righteousness."
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"Obedience that
leads to righteousness."
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Whatever you yield yourself
to, you become the slave
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and I like the word slave
for one particular reason,
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it says that when we
think that we are in control,
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we're really not.
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Either the devil is
working out as well through us
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because we have been taken
captive by him to do his will
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or God is residing
in us who both wills
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and does of His good pleasure.
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I said to someone
months ago, not too long ago,
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"There is no yellow
line in Christianity."
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No, we have a two-lane road here
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going in and out
of Thompson Ville
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and there's a yellow line
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and I saw this
ridiculous, years ago,
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when one comedy
was fairly innocent,
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the Honeymooners,
many of you in America
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may know Jackie
Gleason and Art Carney,
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were the two that
really were major focus
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in that particular
program and one day,
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Jackie Gleason asked Art Carney
which was Norton in the show,
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he says, "What's the
purpose of the yellow line?"
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And Norton said, "Everyone knows
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what the purpose of
the yellow line is for.
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Well, the purpose is to separate
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one side of the
traffic from the other."
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And Norton said,
"The yellow line is
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for the motorcycles."
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Well, the fact of the matter is
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no one travels
on the yellow line
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in Christianity.
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You're either going
north or you're going south.
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You're either going
east or you're going west.
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You're going to light or
you're going to darkness.
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You're going to truth
or you're going to error.
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There is no yellow line
when it comes to Christianity.
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The apostle Peter
brings this out carefully.
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Look at II Peter 2:1-3.
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And this is the overview,
in fact, of the atmosphere
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that the church existed
in and is existing in today.
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The controversy and the
context of the false teachings,
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he says, "But there were..."
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Past tense,
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"Also false
prophets among the you,
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among the people,
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even as there will be
false teachers among you..."
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so there's nothing
new, it was, it will be.
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"Who will secretly
bring in destructive heresies,
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even denying the Lord
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who bought them and
bring on themselves..."
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What kind of destruction?
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Swift Swift.
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"Swift destruction."
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But here's the sad reality.
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"And many will follow
their destructive ways
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because of whom the way
of truth will be blasphemed,
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by covetousness,
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they will exploit you
with deceptive words..."
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And this is amazing,
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"For a long time their
judgment has not been idle..."
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In other words,
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they don't cease to be
judging everything you say.
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There are some people.
00:09:28.20\00:09:30.10
Pastor C D Brooks,
he's resting in Jesus now.
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He said, "There are sometimes,
at the end of a sermon,
00:09:34.47\00:09:36.60
somebody will come to
him and say, 'Pastor Brooks,
00:09:36.64\00:09:38.44
that sermon blessed me.'
00:09:38.47\00:09:40.68
Other times people will say,
00:09:40.71\00:09:42.04
'I was so upset with
you about what you preach.'"
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And they would take
him to task on the sermon.
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And he said, "I learned as I
went on not to take offense."
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He said, "Because
just like the sun,
00:09:49.95\00:09:51.79
the sun melts
butter but hardens clay.
00:09:51.82\00:09:54.56
It's not the sun.
00:09:54.59\00:09:55.92
It's not the light of
God's word that's the problem.
00:09:55.96\00:09:57.63
It's the condition
of the human heart.
00:09:57.66\00:09:59.66
It melts butter,
but it hardens clay."
00:09:59.69\00:10:02.83
And it says,
"And so in this sense,
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there are people
that never cease to judge
00:10:05.10\00:10:07.80
everything that is being said."
00:10:07.84\00:10:09.40
I think Pastor Tom
made this observation.
00:10:09.44\00:10:12.91
He says, "To be on
a panel here at 3ABN,
00:10:12.94\00:10:16.08
to be on television, to be..."
00:10:16.11\00:10:17.95
Shelley, you
know this to be a fact
00:10:18.01\00:10:20.05
and I think all of
us have experienced it
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at one point or another,
00:10:21.78\00:10:23.12
there's nothing that's said here
00:10:23.15\00:10:24.49
that's not under
serious scrutiny.
00:10:24.55\00:10:27.72
That's why we have to make sure
00:10:27.76\00:10:29.09
that we stay true to God's word,
00:10:29.12\00:10:30.46
amen for that.
00:10:30.49\00:10:31.83
Amen. Amen.
00:10:31.86\00:10:33.19
But it also says,
00:10:33.23\00:10:34.56
"And their
destruction does not slumber."
00:10:34.56\00:10:36.06
In other words,
somebody is always a victim
00:10:36.10\00:10:39.07
of false teachers,
heresies, deceptive doctrines
00:10:39.10\00:10:43.14
but there are
ways and I want to,
00:10:43.17\00:10:44.64
you know, in the
interest of time,
00:10:44.67\00:10:46.01
I want to bring
out in a nutshell,
00:10:46.04\00:10:48.71
seven particular points
that this passage emphasizes.
00:10:48.74\00:10:53.55
False teachers will contend.
00:10:53.58\00:10:55.68
They will contend with us
00:10:55.72\00:10:57.22
as they contended
with the early church.
00:10:57.25\00:10:59.75
How many movements do we
have within our own church
00:10:59.79\00:11:02.56
that are branched off?
00:11:02.59\00:11:04.59
I don't wanna
mention them to give them
00:11:04.63\00:11:05.99
any kind of popularity
00:11:06.03\00:11:07.36
or any
visibility or any notoriety,
00:11:07.40\00:11:09.23
but in our own church,
00:11:09.26\00:11:11.10
we've got all
these splinter groups
00:11:11.13\00:11:13.77
that start one
teaching or the other
00:11:13.80\00:11:16.97
and pull people
away after themselves
00:11:17.01\00:11:19.37
and I think the
pulling away is easy
00:11:19.41\00:11:22.11
when a person is not
anchored in the truth.
00:11:22.14\00:11:24.48
So what I'm gonna
suggest is four ways
00:11:24.51\00:11:26.82
that we could meet
00:11:26.85\00:11:29.02
and guard against eroding truth.
00:11:29.05\00:11:30.95
Let's first begin
with Romans 16:17.
00:11:31.02\00:11:35.09
And I'm gonna read this
from the King James version,
00:11:35.12\00:11:36.62
a very powerful text.
00:11:36.66\00:11:38.16
Romans what? Romans 16:17.
00:11:38.19\00:11:42.23
I'm gonna read this
from King James version.
00:11:42.26\00:11:43.87
I like the way it uses,
00:11:43.90\00:11:47.97
the word that I wanna emphasize
is emphasized very greatly here
00:11:48.04\00:11:51.77
in the King James version.
00:11:51.81\00:11:53.41
Verse 17, it says,
00:11:53.44\00:11:55.04
"Now I beseech you,
brethren, mark them..."
00:11:55.08\00:11:59.11
What's the word it
uses in New King James?
00:11:59.15\00:12:00.62
Note. Note them.
00:12:00.68\00:12:02.28
Another word is, put a
note, but I would mark them.
00:12:02.32\00:12:05.39
"Which cause divisions
00:12:05.42\00:12:06.79
and offences
contrary to the doctrine
00:12:06.82\00:12:09.99
which you have
learned and do..."
00:12:10.03\00:12:11.59
What else?
00:12:11.66\00:12:12.99
Avoid them. "Avoid them."
00:12:13.03\00:12:14.36
You know, sometimes we
contend more than we should,
00:12:14.36\00:12:16.77
we contend too much.
00:12:16.80\00:12:18.90
When you discover
that a person is not open
00:12:18.93\00:12:21.07
to examining
what God's word says
00:12:21.14\00:12:24.81
and there are many instances,
Mollie, you know that.
00:12:24.84\00:12:27.18
There are many
instances where people will say,
00:12:27.21\00:12:29.41
"I know what
God's word says but..."
00:12:29.44\00:12:32.21
That's how you can
tell the difference
00:12:32.25\00:12:33.58
between a sheep and a goat.
00:12:33.62\00:12:36.32
But.
00:12:36.35\00:12:37.82
I know what God's word says,
00:12:37.89\00:12:39.22
I know what the Bible
says about the Sabbath
00:12:39.25\00:12:40.59
but, and you have even
and among our own church,
00:12:40.62\00:12:43.69
there are people that contend
00:12:43.73\00:12:45.06
with the
validity of the Sabbath.
00:12:45.09\00:12:47.03
There are some that
have walked away from it.
00:12:47.10\00:12:49.50
There are people fighting
over the trinitarian doctrine.
00:12:49.53\00:12:52.03
There are people
that are questioning
00:12:52.07\00:12:53.40
the judgment and unfortunately,
00:12:53.44\00:12:55.47
people that are not grounded
00:12:55.50\00:12:58.07
become victims to
that kind of activity.
00:12:58.11\00:13:01.41
That's why it is up to us,
00:13:01.48\00:13:02.81
Pastor Tom knows
this as an experience.
00:13:02.84\00:13:04.48
He's had some
experiences in his district.
00:13:04.55\00:13:06.51
We've had here in our church.
00:13:06.55\00:13:08.15
You've got to say,
00:13:08.22\00:13:09.55
this individual
has no good approach
00:13:09.58\00:13:13.52
or no good attitude
toward this congregation.
00:13:13.56\00:13:17.53
And sometimes,
you've got to name 'em,
00:13:17.56\00:13:18.96
unfortunately,
00:13:18.99\00:13:20.33
but you give them room
before you go that far,
00:13:20.36\00:13:22.33
but you have to mark
those that cause division.
00:13:22.36\00:13:24.57
The other thing
you have to do is,
00:13:24.63\00:13:26.33
let's go to II
Timothy 2:24 and 26.
00:13:26.37\00:13:30.91
And this is a
little more I would say,
00:13:30.97\00:13:34.68
if I could use the word here,
00:13:34.74\00:13:36.08
this is more along the
lines of how we deal with people
00:13:36.11\00:13:38.98
that are willing to listen.
00:13:39.01\00:13:41.02
What about those that
are willing to listen?
00:13:41.08\00:13:43.39
How should we deal
with those individuals?
00:13:43.42\00:13:45.29
That say, well, I
just don't understand
00:13:45.32\00:13:46.82
because not everyone,
00:13:46.86\00:13:48.42
I believe, has a vicious intent.
00:13:48.46\00:13:50.33
It's just sometimes,
00:13:50.36\00:13:51.69
people don't
understand and sometimes,
00:13:51.73\00:13:53.86
because of that
lack of understanding,
00:13:53.90\00:13:55.26
they create controversy.
00:13:55.30\00:13:56.87
II Timothy 2:24-26,
00:13:56.90\00:13:59.17
would you read
that for us, Jill?
00:13:59.20\00:14:00.84
Verses 24-26.
00:14:00.87\00:14:02.30
"And a servant of
the Lord must not quarrel
00:14:02.34\00:14:04.91
but be gentle to all,
00:14:04.97\00:14:06.41
able to teach,
patient, in humility,
00:14:06.44\00:14:09.18
correcting those
who are in opposition,
00:14:09.21\00:14:11.81
if God perhaps will
grant them repentance,
00:14:11.85\00:14:15.08
so that they may know the truth
00:14:15.12\00:14:16.89
and that they may
come to their senses
00:14:16.92\00:14:18.89
and escape the
snare of the devil
00:14:18.92\00:14:20.86
having been taken
captive by him to do his will."
00:14:20.92\00:14:24.39
Ain't that wonderful?
00:14:24.43\00:14:25.76
It says, when you find
somebody who is willing to talk,
00:14:25.79\00:14:28.26
be patient with
them because sometimes,
00:14:28.33\00:14:31.50
they only know but this much
00:14:31.53\00:14:34.47
and they hold on to
that little bit they know
00:14:34.50\00:14:38.24
and they make an
entire teaching out of it.
00:14:38.27\00:14:40.18
Before we've had experiences
00:14:40.21\00:14:42.88
where people have
come to our church
00:14:42.91\00:14:44.38
and Sabbath after
Sabbath, Sabbath after Sabbath,
00:14:44.41\00:14:49.92
they would make the statement
in my Sabbath school class,
00:14:49.95\00:14:53.09
and then we
would giggle afterwards
00:14:53.12\00:14:55.09
and I say,
"Don't worry about it.
00:14:55.12\00:14:56.49
We're gonna give
you room to grow."
00:14:56.52\00:14:58.19
But this text
has an essence here
00:14:58.26\00:14:59.59
and it's, "Give
people room to grow."
00:14:59.63\00:15:01.26
But in the process,
00:15:01.30\00:15:02.70
don't leave them to grow
among weeds that choke them.
00:15:02.73\00:15:06.67
But, in love, instruct
those who are in opposition,
00:15:06.70\00:15:10.41
I think the King James version
says, who oppose themselves.
00:15:10.44\00:15:14.01
But there's a third thing.
00:15:14.04\00:15:15.41
Look at II Timothy
2:23, we have that, Shelley,
00:15:15.44\00:15:19.91
II Timothy 2:23.
00:15:19.95\00:15:22.32
II Timothy 2? II Timothy 2:23.
00:15:22.35\00:15:25.75
"But avoid foolish
and ignorant disputes,
00:15:25.79\00:15:28.99
knowing that they generally..."
00:15:29.02\00:15:30.99
Or, "That they generate strife."
00:15:31.06\00:15:33.23
How many times have
you gotten to the place
00:15:33.26\00:15:35.40
where you're frustrated?
00:15:35.43\00:15:36.77
Anybody here?
00:15:36.80\00:15:38.90
And it gets to the point
00:15:38.93\00:15:40.27
where you're not
waiting for them to stop
00:15:40.30\00:15:42.30
and you're talking over
them, because what happens is,
00:15:42.34\00:15:44.81
it becomes a
contention, a strife,
00:15:44.84\00:15:48.18
that becomes heated.
00:15:48.21\00:15:49.94
I have in this
age of social media,
00:15:49.98\00:15:53.88
I've had to take
people off of my page
00:15:53.92\00:15:56.18
that have used my page
00:15:56.22\00:15:57.92
and as a platform,
00:15:57.99\00:15:59.32
to just spread
ridiculous teachings
00:15:59.35\00:16:03.09
that are not
supported by God's word.
00:16:03.12\00:16:05.39
And so when you
get to that place,
00:16:05.43\00:16:07.73
try to avoid situations
00:16:07.76\00:16:10.20
that continue to
develop into a strife,
00:16:10.23\00:16:13.17
in a contending back and forth.
00:16:13.20\00:16:15.30
One last one.
00:16:15.34\00:16:17.04
II Timothy 4:2-4.
00:16:17.07\00:16:19.01
Pastor Tom, I'll
have you read this one.
00:16:19.04\00:16:21.88
II Timothy 4...
00:16:21.91\00:16:23.24
II Timothy 4:2-4.
00:16:23.28\00:16:25.78
Oh, wait a minute.
00:16:25.81\00:16:27.15
Mollie, you read this one for us
00:16:27.18\00:16:28.52
because you have the
King James version...
00:16:28.55\00:16:29.88
I have the King James...
00:16:29.92\00:16:31.29
I want it in the
King James version.
00:16:31.32\00:16:32.65
Sorry, Pastor
Tom. It's all right.
00:16:32.69\00:16:34.02
II Timothy 4:2-4.
00:16:34.06\00:16:35.39
"Preach the word, be instant
in season, out of season.
00:16:35.42\00:16:37.09
Reprove, rebuke,
exhort with all long suffering
00:16:37.13\00:16:39.96
and doctrine.
00:16:40.00\00:16:41.30
For the time will come
00:16:41.36\00:16:42.70
when they will not
endure sound doctrine,
00:16:42.73\00:16:44.17
but after their own
lusts shall they heap
00:16:44.20\00:16:46.47
to themselves
teachers, having itching ears.
00:16:46.50\00:16:49.10
And they shall turn away
their ears from the truth,
00:16:49.14\00:16:51.57
and shall be
turned unto fables."
00:16:51.61\00:16:54.94
So that's what's happening.
00:16:54.98\00:16:56.31
We're living in the same thing
that happened in their day,
00:16:56.34\00:16:59.05
that's happening in our day.
00:16:59.08\00:17:00.88
That's why when you have
00:17:00.92\00:17:02.32
false prophets
and false teachers,
00:17:02.35\00:17:04.25
they've got to focus away
from the things that divide,
00:17:04.29\00:17:07.06
to the one that
unites which takes us to you.
00:17:07.09\00:17:08.76
Amen. The freedom
we find in Christ.
00:17:08.79\00:17:10.99
Freedom in Christ.
00:17:11.03\00:17:12.73
We're going to
look at deceptions
00:17:12.76\00:17:15.63
of false teachers
00:17:15.66\00:17:17.00
and that's Peter, II Peter 2:18,
00:17:17.03\00:17:21.80
then we're going
to go to verse 19.
00:17:21.84\00:17:24.57
Let me read this to you.
00:17:24.61\00:17:26.21
II Peter 2:18,
00:17:26.24\00:17:29.11
"For when they speak, beloved,
00:17:29.14\00:17:31.81
great swelling words of
emptiness, they allure..."
00:17:31.85\00:17:35.12
What does the word allure mean?
00:17:35.18\00:17:37.09
Draw you...
00:17:37.12\00:17:38.45
They attract or they charm you,
00:17:38.49\00:17:40.69
"Through the lust of
the flesh, through lewdness,
00:17:40.72\00:17:43.99
the ones who
have actually escaped
00:17:44.03\00:17:46.66
from those who live in error."
00:17:46.70\00:17:48.33
The NIV says,
00:17:48.36\00:17:49.83
"They entice people
who are just escaping."
00:17:49.86\00:17:53.07
You know who those are?
00:17:53.10\00:17:54.47
Those are the young Christians.
00:17:54.50\00:17:56.47
The young ones, the
ones that aren't yet settled
00:17:56.50\00:17:59.71
and founded in the
faith and so they prey on,
00:17:59.74\00:18:03.98
I can use that word.
00:18:04.01\00:18:05.35
They prey on the young.
00:18:05.41\00:18:07.78
Now how do these false
teachers deceive believers?
00:18:07.82\00:18:11.12
It's with great
swelling words, they allure,
00:18:11.15\00:18:14.29
they attract or they charm
through the lusts of the flesh.
00:18:14.32\00:18:19.09
Now Mark 14:38 tells us,
00:18:19.13\00:18:22.46
"Watch and pray lest
you enter into temptation,
00:18:22.50\00:18:27.10
the Spirit indeed is..."
00:18:27.14\00:18:28.60
Willing.
00:18:28.67\00:18:30.01
"Willing but the flesh is weak."
00:18:30.04\00:18:33.71
You see, these
false teachers use
00:18:33.74\00:18:36.78
the very same tactics
that Satan used to deceive Eve.
00:18:36.81\00:18:41.88
Then I want you
to go to Genesis 3,
00:18:41.95\00:18:44.52
we're going to
look at verses 4-6.
00:18:44.55\00:18:48.72
What Satan did was he
appealed to Eve's lust
00:18:48.79\00:18:53.50
and the point I want to make,
00:18:53.53\00:18:55.43
we're going to go
to another portion
00:18:55.46\00:18:57.77
of scripture is,
00:18:57.80\00:18:59.13
that Satan has no new tricks,
00:18:59.17\00:19:01.74
he has one way of going
after you, to deceive you,
00:19:01.80\00:19:07.01
and we're going to see
this, again, Genesis 3:4-6.
00:19:07.04\00:19:12.48
Jill, if you're
there, will you read that?
00:19:12.51\00:19:14.95
"Then the serpent
said to the woman,
00:19:14.98\00:19:16.52
'You shall not surely die.
00:19:16.55\00:19:18.42
For God knows that in
the day you eat of it,
00:19:18.45\00:19:20.39
your eyes will be opened
and you will be like God,
00:19:20.42\00:19:23.43
knowing good and evil.'
00:19:23.46\00:19:25.56
So when the woman saw,
that the tree was good for food
00:19:25.59\00:19:28.93
that it was pleasant to the eyes
00:19:28.96\00:19:30.53
and a tree
desirable to make one wise,
00:19:30.57\00:19:33.44
she took of its fruit and ate.
00:19:33.47\00:19:35.64
She also gave to her
husband with her and he ate."
00:19:35.67\00:19:39.44
Okay, let's look in verse six.
00:19:39.47\00:19:43.28
Remember the way
00:19:43.31\00:19:45.51
the false teachers
appeal to those that are young,
00:19:45.55\00:19:48.82
not yet got a solid
foundation under them,
00:19:48.85\00:19:54.32
is they appeal to
the lusts of their flesh.
00:19:54.36\00:20:00.06
Now the three areas
00:20:00.10\00:20:02.20
that Satan appealed
to Eve in the garden,
00:20:02.23\00:20:08.00
verse six, "And when she saw..."
00:20:08.04\00:20:10.47
What would that be appealing to?
00:20:10.51\00:20:12.21
Her eye. The lust of the eyes.
00:20:12.24\00:20:14.48
"That the tree
was good for food,
00:20:14.54\00:20:16.54
and that it was
pleasant to the eyes,
00:20:16.58\00:20:18.51
and a tree to be desired."
00:20:18.55\00:20:21.18
Lust of the flesh.
00:20:21.22\00:20:22.95
"And to make one
wise." The pride of life.
00:20:22.98\00:20:27.42
That's good.
00:20:27.46\00:20:28.82
It says she took
the fruit thereof,
00:20:28.86\00:20:30.73
so Satan appealed to Eve
00:20:30.76\00:20:33.40
the same way
these false teachers
00:20:33.43\00:20:35.93
appeal to those
00:20:35.96\00:20:38.23
that they are
attempting to deceive.
00:20:38.30\00:20:40.84
Now we have...
00:20:40.87\00:20:42.50
Let's go to Luke 4:1.
00:20:42.54\00:20:50.08
Because Satan
tempted someone else,
00:20:50.11\00:20:53.75
and now,
00:20:53.78\00:20:57.35
when he came
with his temptations
00:20:57.39\00:21:00.52
in the garden, to Eve,
00:21:00.56\00:21:02.22
did she succumb
to those temptations?
00:21:02.26\00:21:04.36
Yeah. Yes, she did.
00:21:04.39\00:21:05.73
Okay, now, in the wilderness,
00:21:05.76\00:21:09.00
through...
00:21:15.47\00:21:17.81
I think I'm gonna go through 4.
00:21:17.84\00:21:20.24
Let's start there.
00:21:20.28\00:21:21.61
"And Jesus being
full of the Holy Ghost
00:21:21.64\00:21:24.91
returned from Jordan
00:21:24.98\00:21:26.48
and was led by the
Spirit into the wilderness.
00:21:26.51\00:21:29.18
Being forty days
tempted of the..."
00:21:29.22\00:21:32.25
What? Of the devil.
00:21:32.29\00:21:33.62
"Tempted of the devil.
00:21:33.66\00:21:34.99
And in those days
He did eat nothing,
00:21:35.02\00:21:37.59
and when they were
ended, He afterwards was hungry.
00:21:37.63\00:21:41.03
And the devil said unto
Him, 'If thou be the Son of God,
00:21:41.06\00:21:45.47
command these
stones to be made..."
00:21:45.50\00:21:47.00
What? Bread.
00:21:47.04\00:21:48.37
"To be made bread."
What was he appealing to?
00:21:48.44\00:21:50.67
His appetite. His appetite.
00:21:50.71\00:21:52.24
That's right.
00:21:52.27\00:21:53.61
And he goes on then, in verse 5,
00:21:53.64\00:21:56.58
"And the devil took
Him up on a high mountain
00:21:56.61\00:21:59.35
and showed unto Him the
kingdoms of this world."
00:21:59.38\00:22:01.98
And he offered
Him those kingdoms,
00:22:02.02\00:22:04.49
he showed them to Him,
00:22:04.52\00:22:06.29
that would be
the lust of the eyes.
00:22:06.32\00:22:08.29
Then he takes Him
over Jerusalem and he says,
00:22:08.32\00:22:12.16
to a high pinnacle and he
says, "If You be the Son of God,
00:22:12.19\00:22:16.13
cast Yourself down,
because the Bible says,
00:22:16.16\00:22:20.10
the scripture says
00:22:20.14\00:22:21.47
that He will give His
angels charge over thee."
00:22:21.54\00:22:24.34
What would that be?
00:22:24.37\00:22:25.71
The pride of
life. Pride of life.
00:22:25.74\00:22:27.08
See, he enticed Jesus
with the various three areas,
00:22:27.11\00:22:31.45
lust of the
flesh, lust of the eyes,
00:22:31.48\00:22:33.18
pride of life.
00:22:33.21\00:22:34.55
Those three areas
that our early parents
00:22:34.58\00:22:37.79
in the garden failed in,
00:22:37.82\00:22:40.52
Jesus overcame
in all three areas.
00:22:40.56\00:22:43.19
Amen. That's right.
00:22:43.22\00:22:44.56
So we can
overcome as well. Amen.
00:22:44.59\00:22:46.86
So let's go on now
and look at II Peter 2:19.
00:22:46.90\00:22:52.70
We just read II Peter 2:18.
00:22:52.73\00:22:55.50
Now let's look at II Peter 2:19.
00:22:55.54\00:22:58.71
"While they
promise them liberty..."
00:22:58.77\00:23:01.41
What are the false teachers
00:23:01.44\00:23:03.41
promising these young Christians
00:23:03.45\00:23:06.25
that they are deceiving?
00:23:06.28\00:23:07.68
What is the enemy of these
false teachers promising them?
00:23:07.72\00:23:11.39
Liberty. Promising them liberty.
00:23:11.42\00:23:13.76
The title of my portion
today is Freedom in Christ.
00:23:13.79\00:23:18.63
So these false teachers
are promising them freedom
00:23:18.66\00:23:22.80
but it goes on to say,
00:23:22.83\00:23:24.43
"They themselves are
slaves of corruption."
00:23:24.47\00:23:27.57
Let me ask you this.
00:23:27.60\00:23:29.37
This freedom that
they're promising,
00:23:29.40\00:23:31.47
the enemy in the garden,
did what he promised Eve,
00:23:31.51\00:23:36.38
did it bring her freedom?
00:23:36.41\00:23:38.31
No. No.
00:23:38.35\00:23:39.68
What did it bring her? Bondage.
00:23:39.71\00:23:41.05
Bondage. It brought her bondage.
00:23:41.08\00:23:43.05
Who did that
bondage effect? Every one.
00:23:43.08\00:23:46.12
It affected every one of us,
00:23:46.15\00:23:48.46
we were all
brought into that bondage.
00:23:48.52\00:23:51.16
Now when the enemy came
to Satan in the wilderness,
00:23:51.19\00:23:55.63
did he bring Jesus into bondage?
00:23:55.66\00:23:58.60
No. Why not?
00:23:58.63\00:24:00.14
Because Jesus
overcame in every area.
00:24:00.17\00:24:03.30
Amen. How did He overcome?
00:24:03.34\00:24:04.67
The word of God.
00:24:04.71\00:24:06.04
It is written,
with the word of God.
00:24:06.07\00:24:07.54
And then at Calvary,
00:24:07.58\00:24:09.41
I'll take this one step further,
00:24:09.44\00:24:11.21
at Calvary, that bondage
that Eve brought us into,
00:24:11.25\00:24:15.48
that fall in the garden,
what happened to that bondage?
00:24:15.52\00:24:18.09
Was broken. It was overcome.
00:24:18.15\00:24:20.09
Amen. It was accomplished.
00:24:20.12\00:24:21.46
It was broken, but let's go on.
00:24:21.52\00:24:24.06
"While they
promised them liberty,
00:24:24.09\00:24:25.86
they themselves are
slaves of corruption,
00:24:25.89\00:24:28.53
for by whom a
person is overcome,
00:24:28.56\00:24:30.83
by him also he is
brought into bondage."
00:24:30.87\00:24:34.17
You see, these false
teachers and anybody,
00:24:34.20\00:24:37.97
they can only give
others what they have.
00:24:38.01\00:24:41.08
That's right.
00:24:41.11\00:24:42.44
They can only give
others what they have.
00:24:42.48\00:24:43.85
What do these
false teachers have?
00:24:43.88\00:24:45.91
They have corruption.
00:24:45.95\00:24:48.28
The only thing they can give you
00:24:48.35\00:24:50.39
is what they have.
00:24:50.42\00:24:51.75
With great swelling words,
00:24:51.82\00:24:53.86
they are promising something
they don't even have to give,
00:24:53.89\00:24:57.46
and that's freedom.
00:24:57.49\00:24:58.96
The only place
we're gonna get freedom
00:24:58.99\00:25:01.56
is from the Son of God
00:25:01.60\00:25:03.43
and I've got to
hurry, they are in bondage
00:25:03.47\00:25:06.37
and the only thing they can give
00:25:06.40\00:25:07.87
is what they have,
00:25:07.90\00:25:09.24
and that is corruption.
00:25:09.27\00:25:10.61
What does Peter say?
00:25:10.64\00:25:12.57
Whoever overcomes you, you
are in bondage or enslaved,
00:25:12.61\00:25:17.45
and they are
overcome with corruption.
00:25:17.48\00:25:21.02
Now Romans 6:16,
"Do you not know..."
00:25:21.05\00:25:24.25
I think you just...
00:25:24.29\00:25:25.65
I alluded to that.
You just alluded to this.
00:25:25.72\00:25:27.32
Romans 6:16, "Do you not know,
00:25:27.36\00:25:29.62
that to whom you
present yourself slaved to obey,
00:25:29.66\00:25:32.29
you are the ones,
slaves to whom you obey,
00:25:32.36\00:25:35.20
whether of sin leading to death,
00:25:35.23\00:25:37.03
or obedience
leading to righteousness."
00:25:37.07\00:25:39.17
If in Christ we
have been set free
00:25:39.20\00:25:41.94
from all bondage, why?
00:25:41.97\00:25:43.44
Because Christ has
freedom to give us.
00:25:43.47\00:25:45.84
That's right.
00:25:45.87\00:25:47.21
Because we are sons
and daughters of God,
00:25:47.24\00:25:49.88
through faith in Jesus Christ.
00:25:49.91\00:25:51.95
I John 3:2, I'm hurrying
now, tells us, "Beloved,
00:25:51.98\00:25:56.72
now are we the sons of God..."
00:25:56.75\00:25:58.09
When are we the
sons of God, Pastor Tom?
00:25:58.12\00:25:59.45
Now. Now.
00:25:59.49\00:26:00.89
Right now, we
are the sons of God.
00:26:00.92\00:26:02.32
Galatians 3:26,
00:26:02.39\00:26:04.23
"For you are all sons of God
through faith in Jesus Christ."
00:26:04.26\00:26:09.83
Okay.
00:26:09.86\00:26:11.20
John 8:34-36 and
I'll end with this.
00:26:11.23\00:26:14.00
"Jesus answered them,
'Most assuredly I say to you,
00:26:14.04\00:26:18.54
whoever commits
sin is a slave to sin
00:26:18.61\00:26:21.68
and a slave does not abide
00:26:21.71\00:26:23.51
in the house forever but a son.'
00:26:23.55\00:26:25.91
" You're a son, beloved,
00:26:25.95\00:26:27.45
now you are the
sons of God, but a son...
00:26:27.48\00:26:29.88
A son abides how long?
00:26:29.92\00:26:32.62
Forever. Forever.
00:26:32.65\00:26:33.99
Therefore, if the
Son makes you free,
00:26:34.02\00:26:38.06
you are free indeed.
00:26:38.09\00:26:39.43
Amen.
00:26:39.46\00:26:40.80
And so freedom in
the Lord Jesus Christ.
00:26:40.83\00:26:42.46
Amen. Amen.
00:26:42.50\00:26:44.03
Okay. Mollie, you're fired up.
00:26:44.07\00:26:45.43
We're gonna just cool you
down. She's preaching again.
00:26:45.47\00:26:47.74
She's preaching.
00:26:47.77\00:26:50.34
Pastor Tom, we are
patching the "wow!"
00:26:50.37\00:26:52.71
We're passing the
flaming torch to you.
00:26:52.74\00:26:54.61
Yeah, I'll see if I
can keep it going here.
00:26:54.64\00:26:56.58
But what a topic! A
dog returns to its vomit.
00:26:56.61\00:26:59.21
Yeah, you know,
and I had several ways
00:26:59.25\00:27:00.82
I could have gone with this,
00:27:00.85\00:27:02.18
but I have been
praying a lot about this
00:27:02.25\00:27:03.69
but one of the first
things I think about,
00:27:03.72\00:27:05.49
and it hit me real hard
when you were speaking, Pastor,
00:27:05.52\00:27:08.86
is the seven churches,
00:27:08.89\00:27:10.86
the original context
was the seven conditions
00:27:10.89\00:27:14.83
that the church was in
00:27:14.86\00:27:16.20
after an onslaught by the enemy.
00:27:16.23\00:27:18.43
Yeah. That's right.
00:27:18.47\00:27:19.80
The original context.
00:27:19.83\00:27:21.17
So you can see, if you
look at the seven churches,
00:27:21.20\00:27:23.74
just see how much of
your own congregation
00:27:23.77\00:27:26.21
you're looking at,
00:27:26.24\00:27:27.68
and the condition
that your church is in.
00:27:27.71\00:27:29.48
We think of, in a corporate,
00:27:29.51\00:27:30.85
we think in the
seven stages of the church,
00:27:30.88\00:27:32.51
we think of us being
laid to see in church
00:27:32.55\00:27:34.45
but look at the seven conditions
00:27:34.48\00:27:36.45
after a generation
of hits from the enemy
00:27:36.48\00:27:39.59
because it's either of God
or it's of the Nicolaitans,
00:27:39.62\00:27:42.62
that's another
thing to keep in mind
00:27:42.66\00:27:43.99
'cause a Nicolaitan mentality
00:27:44.03\00:27:45.36
is constantly
bombarding the church
00:27:45.39\00:27:47.60
and it's really
by the same enemy
00:27:47.66\00:27:49.86
that has already
been brought out,
00:27:49.90\00:27:52.10
that is behind all of this.
00:27:52.13\00:27:53.90
I also thought about,
what about cancer as an,
00:27:53.94\00:27:57.01
an analogy of what's going on?
00:27:57.04\00:27:59.24
All of us have
either experienced
00:27:59.27\00:28:01.88
or know someone
that has had cancer
00:28:01.91\00:28:05.55
and it is this, I know
I'm not a medical person,
00:28:05.61\00:28:09.18
but I know that this
cell just kind of goes rogue,
00:28:09.22\00:28:11.89
the cells go rogue
00:28:11.95\00:28:13.29
and they start to
take over the body.
00:28:13.32\00:28:14.86
So the surgeon goes in and
tries to remove that cancer
00:28:14.89\00:28:19.43
and a lot of times,
people feel very confident
00:28:19.46\00:28:22.13
that it is
eradicated, it is gone,
00:28:22.16\00:28:24.37
but the immune system is weak
00:28:24.40\00:28:26.13
because really all of us
have, as I understand it,
00:28:26.17\00:28:28.57
pre-cancerous cells, we have,
00:28:28.60\00:28:30.01
our immune system's
constantly keeping that,
00:28:30.04\00:28:32.17
that disease in check.
00:28:32.24\00:28:33.91
But their immune system
is weak and, eventually,
00:28:33.94\00:28:38.31
that cancer comes back in
a more aggressive fashion.
00:28:38.35\00:28:42.08
And I remember one
soul, precious soul,
00:28:42.15\00:28:45.42
that she had
cancer the first time,
00:28:45.45\00:28:47.92
and they removed it.
00:28:47.96\00:28:49.29
She had cancer the second time,
00:28:49.32\00:28:50.66
and I was the pastor of
the district at the time,
00:28:50.69\00:28:52.56
that it was gone
for several years.
00:28:52.59\00:28:54.30
They were active in the church.
00:28:54.30\00:28:55.73
The third time
that cancer came back,
00:28:55.80\00:28:57.83
it was...
00:28:57.87\00:28:59.57
They could not cure
it, there was nothing,
00:28:59.60\00:29:01.07
it was rapid, and it was
a sad thing to experience.
00:29:01.10\00:29:04.44
But oftentimes,
that's the way it is
00:29:04.47\00:29:06.47
for the journey
of a new Christian
00:29:06.51\00:29:09.24
and the topic is A Dog
Returning to Its Vomit.
00:29:09.31\00:29:13.48
So what I wanna
do is I want to shift
00:29:13.52\00:29:15.25
into a little different focus
00:29:15.28\00:29:19.02
'cause we've been
focusing on false teachers
00:29:19.05\00:29:20.72
and how they're
having an effect,
00:29:20.76\00:29:22.19
but I wanna look at
the journey of a Christian,
00:29:22.22\00:29:25.86
that is in an
environment where that,
00:29:25.89\00:29:28.43
is either in the church or
in their own personal life,
00:29:28.50\00:29:31.73
that is tearing, trying,
attempting to tear them away
00:29:31.77\00:29:35.00
from the hole that
God has in their heart.
00:29:35.04\00:29:37.24
Let's go to Matthew 12.
00:29:37.27\00:29:42.28
Matthew 12.
00:29:42.31\00:29:44.38
Now we're gonna
look at verses 43
00:29:50.69\00:29:52.85
and onward and it says here,
00:29:52.89\00:29:54.22
Matthew 12, we're
gonna read verse 43.
00:29:54.26\00:29:56.12
"When an unclean
spirit goes out of a man,
00:29:56.16\00:29:58.83
he goes through dry places
seeking rest and finds none."
00:29:58.86\00:30:02.30
You know, when I
look at that verse,
00:30:02.36\00:30:03.93
you're talking
about demonic force
00:30:03.97\00:30:06.53
that has actually had a
control in this person's life,
00:30:06.57\00:30:08.60
it's gone.
00:30:08.64\00:30:09.97
We have an
infatuation in society today,
00:30:10.01\00:30:12.07
we think that
it's being entertained,
00:30:12.11\00:30:15.74
the idea that places are
where demons wanna possess
00:30:15.78\00:30:19.15
but, no, they
wanna possess people.
00:30:19.21\00:30:20.65
That's true.
00:30:20.68\00:30:22.02
And when that is eradicated,
"Then he comes and says,
00:30:22.08\00:30:25.69
'I will return to my house
from which I came," verse 44
00:30:25.75\00:30:29.06
"And when he
comes, he finds it empty,
00:30:29.12\00:30:31.29
swept and put in order."
00:30:31.33\00:30:34.10
And in other words, yeah,
00:30:34.10\00:30:36.83
there hasn't been the
influence of this spirit
00:30:36.87\00:30:39.30
but at the same time,
00:30:39.33\00:30:40.67
there hasn't been an
influence of the Holy Spirit.
00:30:40.70\00:30:43.00
The Holy Spirit is
not flooding the heart,
00:30:43.04\00:30:44.84
it's an empty house.
00:30:44.87\00:30:46.44
And when that happens,
00:30:46.47\00:30:48.08
then we find what the
next verse brings out,
00:30:48.11\00:30:50.61
"Then he goes,
and takes with him
00:30:50.65\00:30:52.28
seven other spirits
more wicked than himself,
00:30:52.31\00:30:55.08
and they enter and dwell there,
00:30:55.15\00:30:56.89
and the last state of the
man is worse than the first.
00:30:56.92\00:31:00.22
So shall it also be
with this wicked generation."
00:31:00.26\00:31:02.46
Wow!
00:31:02.52\00:31:03.86
And I think about that
00:31:03.89\00:31:05.23
and because we have our
own personal experiences
00:31:05.26\00:31:08.43
that we go through,
00:31:08.46\00:31:10.83
one of the things I
want us to think about,
00:31:10.87\00:31:12.80
it really disturbs
me when a new Christian,
00:31:12.83\00:31:15.47
after several months of
being on fire for the Lord,
00:31:15.50\00:31:18.74
all of a sudden,
they're not there,
00:31:18.77\00:31:21.81
but what disturbs me even more
00:31:21.84\00:31:23.31
is sometimes people don't notice
00:31:23.35\00:31:25.11
that they're not there.
00:31:25.18\00:31:26.51
That's good.
00:31:26.55\00:31:27.88
You know, one of the
things we get accused of
00:31:27.92\00:31:29.25
is trying to bring in
sheep and then forget about it
00:31:29.28\00:31:30.85
once they're there.
00:31:30.89\00:31:32.62
Maybe that does
happen more than it should,
00:31:32.65\00:31:34.76
but what I realize
is when that's the case,
00:31:34.79\00:31:37.69
what should the church do?
00:31:37.73\00:31:40.10
There's
obviously something wrong.
00:31:40.13\00:31:42.83
And as a result, the
church needs to be praying for
00:31:42.86\00:31:45.57
and reaching out too.
00:31:45.60\00:31:47.00
They need to have a network,
a community of church family
00:31:47.04\00:31:49.87
which is new family
for them to hang on to
00:31:49.90\00:31:52.44
because the enemy is attempting
to take an empty house
00:31:52.51\00:31:56.88
and fill it up with
seven times what he had before,
00:31:56.91\00:31:59.88
to wipe away everything
00:31:59.91\00:32:01.82
that God has
accomplished in their life.
00:32:01.88\00:32:04.15
You know, I preached
a sermon a while back
00:32:04.19\00:32:05.75
and it was entitled
00:32:05.82\00:32:07.16
"Feed the Lamb,
Starve the Wolf."
00:32:07.19\00:32:10.13
Amen.
00:32:10.16\00:32:11.49
And that is something
that all of us need to be doing
00:32:11.53\00:32:13.96
but a new Christian has
a hard time maintaining,
00:32:14.00\00:32:17.07
feeding the lamb,
and starving the wolf.
00:32:17.10\00:32:19.30
Now if you have a lamb
and a wolf in the same area,
00:32:19.37\00:32:22.04
who's gonna win that battle?
00:32:22.07\00:32:23.87
Wolf.
00:32:23.91\00:32:25.24
Okay, you think about
the lamb as the passive one,
00:32:25.31\00:32:27.81
the prey versus the predator.
00:32:27.84\00:32:30.55
So the predator
needs to be so weak
00:32:30.58\00:32:33.42
that it has no
effect on the lamb,
00:32:33.45\00:32:36.52
it's not a perfect
analogy but at least we see
00:32:36.55\00:32:38.82
that Jesus needs to be
the present one in our hearts.
00:32:38.89\00:32:41.02
Right.
00:32:41.06\00:32:43.29
Also, I like us
to turn to Luke 15.
00:32:43.32\00:32:47.66
We're gonna look at a story,
00:32:47.73\00:32:49.53
I just wanna take a couple
of quick snapshots of a story
00:32:49.56\00:32:52.47
that we all know
very well, most of us do.
00:32:52.53\00:32:55.34
And we're talking
about the prodigal son,
00:32:55.40\00:32:59.54
because in verses 15 and 16,
00:32:59.57\00:33:02.51
I want us to take a
look at the fact that he had,
00:33:02.54\00:33:04.51
he had that, we'll call
it a born-again experience.
00:33:04.55\00:33:07.68
He had that journey
00:33:07.72\00:33:09.12
but then in verse 15 of Luke 15,
00:33:09.15\00:33:12.19
"Then he went and joined himself
00:33:12.22\00:33:13.82
to a citizen of that country
00:33:13.86\00:33:15.76
and he sent him into
his fields to feed swine."
00:33:15.79\00:33:20.36
When he took off,
00:33:20.40\00:33:21.86
he took his
inheritance, he left,
00:33:21.90\00:33:23.53
but this is the
point I wanted to bring up,
00:33:23.57\00:33:25.33
is that he joined himself
with a citizen of that country.
00:33:25.37\00:33:29.20
It is so important to
guard your heart from a citizen
00:33:29.24\00:33:33.98
from another country,
00:33:34.01\00:33:35.34
someone who does
not know the Lord,
00:33:35.38\00:33:37.01
don't let them have
the influence in your life.
00:33:37.05\00:33:39.15
Amen.
00:33:39.21\00:33:40.55
Then this could be
someone that is in your family,
00:33:40.58\00:33:43.35
it could be someone that
is in the church family even.
00:33:43.39\00:33:47.09
We need to guard our hearts
because all they have to do,
00:33:47.12\00:33:50.26
all they have to
give us is what they know,
00:33:50.29\00:33:53.33
as it was mentioned
earlier, and what they know is,
00:33:53.36\00:33:56.63
has to do with feeding swine.
00:33:56.67\00:33:58.47
And when you think about
00:33:58.50\00:33:59.83
the original
context of the story,
00:33:59.87\00:34:02.47
a Jew would not
touch an unclean thing.
00:34:02.54\00:34:07.01
That's right.
00:34:07.04\00:34:08.38
But now he's living
with and having to feed them
00:34:08.41\00:34:10.88
because that's all
there is around him.
00:34:10.91\00:34:12.61
As a matter of fact in verse 16,
00:34:12.65\00:34:13.98
"He would gladly have
filled his stomach with the pods
00:34:14.02\00:34:16.02
that the swine ate."
00:34:16.08\00:34:17.42
In other words,
that's a little closer
00:34:17.45\00:34:18.79
to the spiritual
food I was used to,
00:34:18.82\00:34:21.56
but no one gave him anything.
00:34:21.59\00:34:23.79
There was no way
they could do it.
00:34:23.83\00:34:26.49
So they found
themselves in this condition,
00:34:26.53\00:34:28.56
this lost condition.
00:34:28.60\00:34:30.23
So what does that person say,
00:34:30.27\00:34:31.77
that is maybe been
overcome by some of the things
00:34:31.80\00:34:35.57
that happen in and outside
of the church in their lives?
00:34:35.60\00:34:37.74
Verse 18, "I will
arise and go to my father."
00:34:37.77\00:34:40.18
They wanna come
home. Amen, amen.
00:34:40.21\00:34:42.51
And also in
verse 19, it says that,
00:34:42.54\00:34:44.75
"I am no longer worthy
to be called your son."
00:34:44.78\00:34:46.88
They feel
unworthy to come to God
00:34:46.92\00:34:48.45
and oftentimes they
need us reaching out to them,
00:34:48.48\00:34:50.75
otherwise, there's
no way to come home.
00:34:50.79\00:34:53.86
And, you know, we know
the rest of the story, right?
00:34:53.89\00:34:56.76
"As his father sees him
afar off, he runs to him.
00:34:56.79\00:35:02.46
And he just embraces him."
00:35:02.50\00:35:04.27
That's right.
00:35:04.30\00:35:05.63
And that's what
the church family
00:35:05.70\00:35:07.04
needs to be for those
that are in that condition.
00:35:07.07\00:35:09.84
As a matter of
fact, some of us here
00:35:09.87\00:35:11.61
that are watching or listening
00:35:11.64\00:35:12.97
might actually have a son
or a daughter or a loved one
00:35:13.04\00:35:16.14
that you've raised in
the faith and now they're,
00:35:16.21\00:35:19.71
they're astray.
00:35:19.78\00:35:21.12
And, you know, this is
the condition they're in,
00:35:21.15\00:35:24.25
they're feeding the
swine, that's all they've got,
00:35:24.29\00:35:26.12
nobody has anything to give them
00:35:26.15\00:35:27.49
that they're needing,
00:35:27.52\00:35:28.89
and we need to continue
to lift them up in prayer
00:35:28.92\00:35:32.36
because Proverbs 22:6 is true.
00:35:32.39\00:35:34.93
"Train them up in
the way they should go,
00:35:34.93\00:35:37.40
and when they're old,
they will not depart from it,
00:35:37.43\00:35:39.70
they'll come home."
00:35:39.73\00:35:42.54
We need to be
praying for two things
00:35:42.57\00:35:44.24
that the enemy has ensnared.
00:35:44.27\00:35:46.11
Number one, that
God will make them
00:35:46.14\00:35:47.94
miserable away from Him,
00:35:47.98\00:35:51.08
miserable away from Him.
00:35:51.11\00:35:52.65
That's right.
00:35:52.68\00:35:54.02
And the other thing is
that the Lord will bring someone
00:35:54.05\00:35:56.02
into their lives
to bring them home.
00:35:56.05\00:35:58.45
Amen. Amen.
00:35:58.49\00:35:59.82
And the prodigal
situation, now verse 18-24,
00:35:59.85\00:36:05.59
I shared the
returning prodigal's experience,
00:36:05.66\00:36:07.73
this is what we
need for all of those
00:36:07.76\00:36:10.27
that have drifted away.
00:36:10.30\00:36:13.30
"A Christian who
has a heart devoid
00:36:13.34\00:36:15.74
of the Spirit of God
00:36:15.77\00:36:17.31
is easy prey for
the enemy of souls.
00:36:17.34\00:36:20.78
And without
Christ in your heart,
00:36:20.81\00:36:22.71
your hope of glory,
00:36:22.78\00:36:24.11
all we can do is
return to our vomit."
00:36:24.15\00:36:26.65
Yeah. That's right.
00:36:26.68\00:36:28.08
And so we need to be
sensitive, as church leaders,
00:36:28.12\00:36:33.62
you need to be
sensitive to what's happening
00:36:33.66\00:36:35.89
with the parishioners,
00:36:35.96\00:36:37.29
and I just had
this recently happened,
00:36:37.33\00:36:38.79
and I said, "Who
has their number?"
00:36:38.83\00:36:40.36
And we were in a meeting.
00:36:40.40\00:36:41.70
I said, "Who has
their phone number?"
00:36:41.73\00:36:43.06
And people started
sharing the cell number
00:36:43.10\00:36:45.13
and they're reaching out.
00:36:45.17\00:36:46.50
Amen. Praise the Lord.
00:36:46.53\00:36:47.87
And they're loving the fold.
00:36:47.90\00:36:49.80
They are sensitive to the fact
00:36:49.84\00:36:51.54
that they're under
the attack of the enemy,
00:36:51.57\00:36:53.81
that maybe someone
got a hold of them,
00:36:53.84\00:36:55.94
and they're listening
00:36:55.98\00:36:57.31
to someone that
is drawing them away.
00:36:57.35\00:36:58.68
Amen.
00:36:58.71\00:37:00.12
So that is what I
had to share today.
00:37:00.15\00:37:01.48
Amen.
00:37:01.52\00:37:02.85
Thank you, Pastor
Tom, that is beautiful.
00:37:02.88\00:37:04.29
And God wants to bring us,
all of us back to the fold.
00:37:04.32\00:37:07.36
And as brothers and sisters
in Jesus, who are in Jesus,
00:37:07.39\00:37:10.99
He calls us to reach out
to our brothers and sisters,
00:37:11.03\00:37:12.96
and then bring them back.
00:37:13.03\00:37:14.36
That's right.
00:37:14.36\00:37:15.70
I have Wednesday
which is Peter and Jude.
00:37:15.73\00:37:17.90
So let's turn back to II Peter
00:37:17.93\00:37:20.14
and we are also
going to be bouncing
00:37:20.17\00:37:22.84
between Peter and Jude.
00:37:22.90\00:37:24.24
So we'll also go to Jude
00:37:24.27\00:37:25.71
and keep our finger in II Peter.
00:37:25.77\00:37:28.38
And there is, II
Peter and the book of Jude
00:37:28.41\00:37:31.31
address many similar concerns.
00:37:31.35\00:37:34.95
They both address God's judgment
00:37:34.98\00:37:37.92
and that He is in control
of the destiny of the wicked.
00:37:37.95\00:37:41.76
Many times we focus
on God's grace and mercy
00:37:41.79\00:37:45.49
and that is powerful.
00:37:45.53\00:37:47.20
The Lord is not
willing that any should perish
00:37:47.23\00:37:49.36
but that all
should come to repentance.
00:37:49.43\00:37:52.43
God is a God of love,
and of grace, and mercy,
00:37:52.50\00:37:55.67
and He's extending
that door of probation
00:37:55.70\00:37:58.67
for each one of us.
00:37:58.71\00:38:00.11
However, there is a
time when judgment will come.
00:38:00.14\00:38:04.08
Amen.
00:38:04.11\00:38:05.45
And II Peter
specifically addresses
00:38:05.48\00:38:07.45
many of the false teachings
that had crept into the church
00:38:07.48\00:38:12.45
and there was
the false teaching,
00:38:12.49\00:38:13.82
and II Peter 1 talks about
the second coming as a myth
00:38:13.86\00:38:16.66
and Peter addresses
that false teaching.
00:38:16.69\00:38:18.79
The false teaching that prophecy
00:38:18.83\00:38:21.60
is of human interpretation
00:38:21.63\00:38:23.50
instead of
divine interpretation,
00:38:23.53\00:38:26.00
and now on this day,
00:38:26.03\00:38:27.37
we're looking at
the false teaching
00:38:27.40\00:38:29.87
that there is
no coming judgment,
00:38:29.90\00:38:31.94
and Peter and Jude,
00:38:31.97\00:38:33.41
both address the false teaching.
00:38:33.44\00:38:35.28
And so we're
looking at II Peter 2,
00:38:35.31\00:38:39.58
and Peter takes three examples,
00:38:39.61\00:38:42.65
three Biblical
examples of judgment of God.
00:38:42.68\00:38:46.12
Judgments that have
taken place in the past.
00:38:46.15\00:38:49.79
And we're gonna read II Peter 2.
00:38:49.82\00:38:51.79
Shelley, you wanna read verse 4.
00:38:51.83\00:38:55.23
"For if God did not
spare the angels who sinned,
00:38:55.26\00:38:57.43
but cast them down to hell,
00:38:57.47\00:38:58.80
and delivered them
into chains of darkness,
00:38:58.83\00:39:00.77
to be reserved for judgment."
00:39:00.80\00:39:03.00
Thank you.
00:39:03.07\00:39:04.41
We're gonna go to
Noah next, in the flood.
00:39:04.44\00:39:05.77
So right now,
00:39:05.81\00:39:07.14
we're just looking
at the first judgment
00:39:07.18\00:39:08.51
that Peter talks about.
00:39:08.54\00:39:09.88
He asserts the
certainty of coming judgment
00:39:09.91\00:39:12.15
by looking at the
examples of judgment in the past
00:39:12.18\00:39:15.32
and this example
00:39:15.35\00:39:16.69
is the banishment of
the evil angels from heaven.
00:39:16.75\00:39:20.42
They did not keep
their proper domain,
00:39:20.46\00:39:22.59
you see it says that
there, and delivered them.
00:39:22.62\00:39:26.56
No, that's in Jude, it says,
00:39:26.59\00:39:27.93
"They did not keep
their proper domain."
00:39:27.96\00:39:29.30
So we'll go to
Jude, but here it says,
00:39:29.33\00:39:31.30
"He cast them down to hell."
00:39:31.33\00:39:32.97
Meaning, He cast them
down here to this earth,
00:39:33.00\00:39:36.14
to be reserved for
the coming judgment
00:39:36.17\00:39:38.61
which will come at the
end of the thousand years.
00:39:38.64\00:39:41.34
That's right.
00:39:41.38\00:39:42.71
Let's go to Jude
and we will look at,
00:39:42.78\00:39:44.11
did not keep
their proper domain.
00:39:44.15\00:39:45.61
Keep your finger in II Peter,
we'll be coming back to that.
00:39:45.65\00:39:49.02
Verse 6, I must say chapter
00:39:49.05\00:39:50.99
but there's only one
chapter in the book of Jude.
00:39:51.02\00:39:52.79
So Jude verse 6.
00:39:52.82\00:39:55.12
And, Pastor Tom,
do you have that?
00:39:55.16\00:39:56.93
Yes, "And the angels
00:39:56.96\00:39:58.29
who did not keep
their proper domain,
00:39:58.33\00:40:00.10
but left their own abode,
00:40:00.13\00:40:01.53
He has reserved
in everlasting chains
00:40:01.56\00:40:03.50
under darkness for the
judgment of that great day."
00:40:03.53\00:40:05.93
It's very similar to
what we see in II Peter 2.
00:40:05.97\00:40:09.40
"They did not keep
their proper domain."
00:40:09.44\00:40:11.37
They were not
satisfied with their status.
00:40:11.41\00:40:13.64
It reminds me of Isaiah 14,
00:40:13.68\00:40:16.34
and Satan there
was saying, what?
00:40:16.38\00:40:18.68
"I will ascend to
the sides of the North,
00:40:18.71\00:40:20.82
I will be like the Most High."
00:40:20.85\00:40:23.18
Not keeping his
proper domain and instead,
00:40:23.22\00:40:26.25
God cast judgment over them,
00:40:26.29\00:40:28.12
they were cast
down to the earth.
00:40:28.16\00:40:30.36
Revelation 12 tells us
00:40:30.39\00:40:31.76
how they were
cast down to the earth
00:40:31.79\00:40:33.19
and then
Revelation 20 talks about
00:40:33.23\00:40:35.50
how they were
locked up on the earth
00:40:35.53\00:40:38.03
until the final judgment.
00:40:38.07\00:40:39.93
Let's look at number two,
we'll go back to II Peter 2.
00:40:39.97\00:40:42.87
So the first judgment
00:40:42.90\00:40:44.24
Peter talks
about is the banishment
00:40:44.27\00:40:45.61
of the evil angels from heaven.
00:40:45.64\00:40:46.98
The second judgment is
the judgment of the flood.
00:40:47.01\00:40:49.41
And, Mollie, do you have
that? We're in verse 4 I think.
00:40:49.44\00:40:52.05
II Peter 2:5.
00:40:52.08\00:40:53.92
"And spared not the old world,
00:40:53.95\00:40:56.38
but saved Noah,
the eighth person,
00:40:56.45\00:40:58.45
a preacher of righteousness,
00:40:58.49\00:41:00.82
bringing in the flood
upon the world of the ungodly."
00:41:00.86\00:41:03.86
Yes, so here we see
God's justice and mercy.
00:41:03.89\00:41:08.43
He opened up
the ark for everyone
00:41:08.46\00:41:10.57
and whoever wanted to be,
there were only eight people
00:41:10.60\00:41:14.30
who chose to
listen to the warning,
00:41:14.34\00:41:15.97
and chose to accept God's mercy,
00:41:16.00\00:41:18.27
and be saved in the
ark, but we see the judgment
00:41:18.31\00:41:20.91
that came upon that wicked world
00:41:20.94\00:41:22.71
and Jude does not
talk about the flood,
00:41:22.74\00:41:24.48
so we'll go on to the third
00:41:24.51\00:41:25.88
which is the destruction
of Sodom and Gomorrah,
00:41:25.91\00:41:28.05
and we're in verse 6.
00:41:28.08\00:41:30.09
Pastor John, do you have that?
00:41:30.12\00:41:31.45
Sure, verses? II Peter 2:6.
00:41:31.49\00:41:34.72
And it says, "And
turning the cities
00:41:34.76\00:41:36.59
of Sodom and
Gomorrah into ashes,
00:41:36.62\00:41:39.49
condemning them to destruction,
00:41:39.56\00:41:41.90
and making them
an example to those
00:41:41.93\00:41:44.33
who after would live ungodly."
00:41:44.37\00:41:48.70
Yes, turning the cities
00:41:48.74\00:41:50.07
of Sodom and
Gomorrah into ashes,
00:41:50.11\00:41:51.71
seeing the judgment
that came on that city
00:41:51.74\00:41:53.88
and at the same time,
00:41:53.91\00:41:55.24
we won't look at
it but if you go back,
00:41:55.28\00:41:56.91
you see the mercy of God too
00:41:56.95\00:41:58.81
because He gave, remember,
00:41:58.85\00:42:01.15
Abraham pleaded
with God and said,
00:42:01.18\00:42:03.72
"If there are so
many righteous people,
00:42:03.75\00:42:05.49
will You spare this city?"
00:42:05.52\00:42:07.59
And He said, "I will."
00:42:07.62\00:42:09.06
And then the
number came down a bit,
00:42:09.09\00:42:10.53
"If there is so
many righteous people,
00:42:10.56\00:42:12.13
will You spare the city?"
00:42:12.16\00:42:13.66
And He said, "I
will." That's right.
00:42:13.70\00:42:16.33
So we see that and
then in Jude, Jude 7,
00:42:16.40\00:42:21.00
he talks, Jude
as well talks about
00:42:21.04\00:42:23.24
the destruction of
Sodom and Gomorrah.
00:42:23.27\00:42:24.87
"As Sodom and Gomorrah
and the cities around them
00:42:24.91\00:42:26.74
in a similar manner to these,
00:42:26.81\00:42:28.64
having given themselves
over to sexual immorality
00:42:28.68\00:42:32.11
and gone after strange flesh,
00:42:32.15\00:42:34.32
are set forth as an example,
00:42:34.35\00:42:36.52
suffering the
vengeance of eternal fire."
00:42:36.55\00:42:39.32
Now in this case, it
does not mean eternal fire
00:42:39.39\00:42:41.76
that burns forever and ever.
00:42:41.79\00:42:43.29
It's showing that the judgment
is irreversible and complete.
00:42:43.36\00:42:47.40
That's right.
Showing these effects.
00:42:47.46\00:42:48.76
If you go over there,
you know, that's right,
00:42:48.80\00:42:50.13
showing the effects.
00:42:50.17\00:42:51.50
So let's look at
what are the sins
00:42:51.53\00:42:53.57
that brought these
severe punishments?
00:42:53.60\00:42:55.24
We're gonna look at
the false teachers here,
00:42:55.27\00:42:58.77
and there are
five different ones,
00:42:58.81\00:43:01.18
hopefully, we'll
get through all this.
00:43:01.21\00:43:02.81
And we're going
back to II Peter 2:1.
00:43:02.84\00:43:06.25
And, Pastor, you
talked about this.
00:43:06.28\00:43:07.85
Those who bring in
destructive heresies...
00:43:07.88\00:43:09.22
That's right.
00:43:09.25\00:43:10.59
"There were also false
prophets among the people
00:43:10.62\00:43:12.29
even as there will be
false teachers among you,
00:43:12.32\00:43:15.16
who will secretly bring
in destructive heresies..."
00:43:15.19\00:43:18.59
And then it goes on
what those heresies are.
00:43:18.63\00:43:21.00
One of those is
destructive heresies.
00:43:21.03\00:43:22.96
In the Greek,
the word for heresies
00:43:23.00\00:43:24.50
is a self-chosen opinion.
00:43:24.53\00:43:29.30
Holding on to my own opinion
00:43:29.34\00:43:31.27
or what I think is my own corner
00:43:31.31\00:43:33.48
of the word of God versus
00:43:33.51\00:43:36.08
what God's word really says.
00:43:36.14\00:43:38.58
Another thing, those
who despise authority.
00:43:38.61\00:43:42.08
We see that in II Peter
2:10, it says, especially,
00:43:42.12\00:43:45.99
well, verse 9, it talks about,
00:43:46.05\00:43:48.19
"He's reserving the
unjust for punishment
00:43:48.22\00:43:51.09
at the day of judgment."
00:43:51.13\00:43:52.53
And what are
these unjust people,
00:43:52.59\00:43:53.93
what did they do?
00:43:53.96\00:43:55.26
Verse 10, "Especially those
who walk according to the flesh,
00:43:55.30\00:43:59.40
and the lust of uncleanness,
and despise authority,
00:43:59.43\00:44:04.81
they are
presumptuous and self-willed,
00:44:04.84\00:44:06.57
they are not afraid to
speak evil of dignitaries."
00:44:06.61\00:44:09.84
Those who despise authority.
00:44:09.88\00:44:11.38
We also see in that same verse,
00:44:11.41\00:44:13.75
those who walk
according to the flesh,
00:44:13.78\00:44:16.79
instead of walking
according to the Spirit.
00:44:16.82\00:44:18.59
So first, those
who bring in heresies.
00:44:18.62\00:44:20.89
Those who despise
authority is number two.
00:44:20.92\00:44:23.26
Number three, those who
walk according to the flesh.
00:44:23.32\00:44:26.29
Number four, we're
still in II Peter 2,
00:44:26.33\00:44:28.53
we'll jump over to verse 18.
00:44:28.56\00:44:32.13
And I know we've
talked about this one before,
00:44:32.17\00:44:34.20
"When they speak great
swelling words of emptiness,
00:44:34.24\00:44:36.47
they allure through
the lusts of the flesh,
00:44:36.50\00:44:39.34
through lewdness, the
ones who have actually escaped
00:44:39.37\00:44:42.11
from those who live in error."
00:44:42.14\00:44:44.85
They pull other people
into sexual immorality,
00:44:44.88\00:44:48.78
into sexual sin.
00:44:48.82\00:44:51.05
And then verse 19,
00:44:51.09\00:44:52.92
they become
slaves of corruption.
00:44:52.95\00:44:55.42
"While they
promise them liberty,
00:44:55.46\00:44:57.53
they themselves are
slaves of corruption,
00:44:57.56\00:45:01.03
for by whom a
person is overcome,
00:45:01.06\00:45:03.06
by him also he is
brought into bondage."
00:45:03.10\00:45:05.50
And the lesson brought,
00:45:05.53\00:45:06.90
I thought this
was a fabulous point.
00:45:06.94\00:45:08.64
Many times we would think
those who are being judged,
00:45:08.67\00:45:11.21
it's for some great sin,
00:45:11.24\00:45:13.34
for going out
and pulling a trigger
00:45:13.38\00:45:15.21
and killing someone.
00:45:15.24\00:45:16.61
Or robbing a bank or
doing something serious.
00:45:16.64\00:45:19.38
But you know what?
00:45:19.41\00:45:20.75
These sins, you could
find them in the church.
00:45:20.78\00:45:23.65
What? Do you see that?
00:45:23.69\00:45:25.02
Bringing in heresies.
00:45:25.05\00:45:27.86
Pastor John, you talked
about the different heresies
00:45:27.89\00:45:30.79
that are coming into the church,
00:45:30.83\00:45:32.29
despising the authority
that God has placed us under,
00:45:32.33\00:45:35.93
whether it's in the church,
00:45:35.96\00:45:37.30
whether it's in
civil government,
00:45:37.33\00:45:39.23
whether it's in your workplace.
00:45:39.27\00:45:41.07
Walking according to the flesh,
00:45:41.10\00:45:44.27
becoming the
slave of corruption.
00:45:44.31\00:45:45.97
So what does God want us to do?
I know I'm almost out of time.
00:45:46.01\00:45:49.01
How do we experience
revival and reformation?
00:45:49.04\00:45:52.31
In our own lives
and in the church,
00:45:52.35\00:45:55.08
reformation follows true revival
00:45:55.12\00:45:57.82
and revival comes from God.
00:45:57.85\00:45:59.69
So I'm gonna give
you an A, B, and C.
00:45:59.72\00:46:02.19
A, allow God to
change you, surrender.
00:46:02.22\00:46:05.96
Romans 12:2, "Do not be
conformed to this world,
00:46:05.99\00:46:09.00
but be transformed by
the renewing of your mind."
00:46:09.03\00:46:12.57
That word in the Greek is,
metamorphose like a butterfly.
00:46:12.60\00:46:17.17
The caterpillar crawls,
00:46:17.21\00:46:18.87
and then the cocoon
and chrysalis is formed,
00:46:18.91\00:46:20.88
and then the butterfly emerges
a complete transformation.
00:46:20.91\00:46:24.65
A, allow God to change us.
00:46:24.68\00:46:26.65
B, behold Jesus.
00:46:26.68\00:46:28.65
II Corinthians
3:18, "But we all,
00:46:28.68\00:46:30.59
with open face
beholding as in a glass
00:46:30.62\00:46:32.45
the glory of the Lord,
00:46:32.49\00:46:33.92
are changed into the same
image from glory to glory."
00:46:33.96\00:46:36.99
That word for
change is the same word
00:46:37.06\00:46:38.99
as it is in the
Romans 12:2, metamorphosed,
00:46:39.03\00:46:41.76
we are completely
transformed by beholding Jesus.
00:46:41.80\00:46:44.80
A, allow God to
change us. B, behold Jesus.
00:46:44.83\00:46:47.47
C, choose His way.
00:46:47.50\00:46:50.21
Romans 13:14, it says,
"Put on the Lord Jesus Christ,
00:46:50.24\00:46:54.58
and make no
provision for the lust,
00:46:54.61\00:46:56.44
to fulfill its flesh."
00:46:56.48\00:46:58.48
They're right. Amen, amen.
00:46:58.51\00:47:00.75
Ours overlap so much
that I don't need to talk.
00:47:00.78\00:47:04.15
Oh, I'm sorry.
No, no, no, no, no.
00:47:04.19\00:47:07.22
I think it's wonderful,
I wanna just go back in,
00:47:07.26\00:47:09.66
there'd be a few little points
00:47:09.69\00:47:11.16
that you may
not have brought out
00:47:11.19\00:47:13.33
that I can go through,
00:47:13.36\00:47:14.66
the Thursday's lesson is
the more Old Testament lesson,
00:47:14.73\00:47:18.80
more Old Testament lessons is
what it's supposed to be about.
00:47:18.83\00:47:23.20
And he said to
read II Peter 2: 6-16,
00:47:23.24\00:47:26.57
but I also went
back to 4, because what,
00:47:26.61\00:47:30.51
what he's doing here is
as Jill has pointed out,
00:47:30.55\00:47:34.32
he is showing that
00:47:34.35\00:47:36.32
there is the
inescapable judgment of the Lord
00:47:36.38\00:47:41.36
is going to come on the evil.
00:47:41.39\00:47:43.66
And, but he's also,
it's the juxtaposition,
00:47:43.73\00:47:46.43
of how God judged the angels,
00:47:46.49\00:47:49.83
how He, how He judged
the antediluvian world,
00:47:49.86\00:47:52.60
but He saved Noah and
seven of his family members.
00:47:52.63\00:47:55.37
So you see how God deals
with those who reject Him,
00:47:55.40\00:47:59.94
how God deals with
those who accept Him.
00:48:00.04\00:48:03.65
Same with Sodom and Gomorrah.
00:48:03.68\00:48:05.75
But I do wanna
point out in verse 4,
00:48:05.78\00:48:08.28
when it talks about,
00:48:08.32\00:48:11.59
that the angels
were cast down to hell
00:48:11.62\00:48:13.56
because there are so many people
00:48:13.59\00:48:15.12
who try to use this
00:48:15.16\00:48:17.06
to talk about
eternal burning fire.
00:48:17.13\00:48:19.93
The word "hell" here is a word
00:48:20.00\00:48:23.57
that was used
in Greek mythology,
00:48:23.63\00:48:25.67
it was tartarus.
00:48:25.70\00:48:27.14
Am I saying that
right "tartarus"?
00:48:27.20\00:48:29.27
And this was a deep abyss,
00:48:29.30\00:48:33.78
a place where
00:48:33.84\00:48:35.18
they were supposed to
be tortured and burned.
00:48:35.21\00:48:37.98
It is only used one time in
the Bible and what I believe,
00:48:38.01\00:48:41.82
it's right here.
00:48:41.85\00:48:43.18
I think that Peter is
speaking figuratively.
00:48:43.25\00:48:45.59
We know he is, if you look
at the rest of the teaching
00:48:45.62\00:48:48.22
of the Bible on what hell is.
00:48:48.26\00:48:51.33
But when he said that,
00:48:51.36\00:48:54.56
when he's talking
about Sodom and Gomorrah,
00:48:54.60\00:48:57.00
and how God destroyed
them with eternal fire,
00:48:57.03\00:49:02.30
now that's another thing that
people get so confused over.
00:49:02.34\00:49:06.78
In the Greek, the word
for eternal is "aionios".
00:49:06.84\00:49:11.78
And it is relative
to, it's a relative term,
00:49:11.81\00:49:18.29
it's relative to the
object that it's modifying.
00:49:18.32\00:49:22.66
The Bible tells us that
only God has immortality.
00:49:22.69\00:49:27.40
So if you use
aionios, everlasting,
00:49:27.46\00:49:31.30
modifying something about God,
that means, it's without end.
00:49:31.33\00:49:36.97
But if you use
that word to modify,
00:49:37.04\00:49:42.84
a mortal human being,
or a place, or a thing,
00:49:42.88\00:49:47.08
then the eternal
means that it only lasts
00:49:47.15\00:49:52.25
as long as that thing lasts.
00:49:52.29\00:49:54.59
So there's a destruction there.
00:49:54.62\00:49:56.36
God will destroy, in the end,
the people in the eternal fire.
00:49:56.39\00:50:00.26
They're destroyed,
00:50:00.33\00:50:01.63
so the fire only lasts as long
as it takes to destroy them,
00:50:01.66\00:50:04.43
just like you
just read in Jude 7,
00:50:04.47\00:50:06.53
that Sodom and Gomorrah are,
00:50:06.57\00:50:08.57
are an example to us
of eternal burning fire.
00:50:08.60\00:50:13.17
Well, Sodom and
Gomorrah aren't still on fire.
00:50:13.21\00:50:16.48
So now let's jump down here.
00:50:16.54\00:50:19.45
And I want to,
I'll skip to verse 6
00:50:19.48\00:50:24.99
which is where
I'm supposed to begin,
00:50:25.02\00:50:26.96
"Turning the cities of
Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes,
00:50:26.99\00:50:29.42
He condemned them to
destruction, making..."
00:50:29.46\00:50:32.06
This is II Peter 2:6.
00:50:32.09\00:50:35.46
"Making them an example of those
00:50:35.50\00:50:37.23
who afterward
would live ungodly."
00:50:37.27\00:50:40.40
When, when you think
of Sodom and Gomorrah,
00:50:40.44\00:50:42.97
it's introduced in
this first significant way
00:50:43.00\00:50:45.51
in Genesis 13.
00:50:45.54\00:50:47.74
And how we're introduced to this
00:50:47.78\00:50:49.48
is Abraham and his nephew,
Lot, were working together.
00:50:49.51\00:50:54.35
I mean, they were,
00:50:54.38\00:50:55.72
they had all of their
herdsmen working together.
00:50:55.75\00:50:58.45
And they multiplied,
they became so successful
00:50:58.49\00:51:02.12
that they had to divide
00:51:02.16\00:51:03.93
because their
herds were too large,
00:51:03.96\00:51:06.90
their herdsmen were
arguing, so what happened?
00:51:06.93\00:51:10.83
Abraham
graciously gave Sodom to,
00:51:10.87\00:51:13.70
I mean, gave Lot
the choice and said,
00:51:13.74\00:51:16.17
"You choose which
way you wanna go."
00:51:16.20\00:51:18.21
And he chose the Jordan Valley.
00:51:18.24\00:51:20.04
And the Bible says
00:51:20.08\00:51:21.41
that he pitched
his tent towards Sodom.
00:51:21.44\00:51:24.51
So what happens though
is that we see in Jude 1:7,
00:51:24.55\00:51:28.48
it talks about how they
went after strange flesh,
00:51:28.52\00:51:32.35
the word sodomy comes from
the acts of the men of Sodom.
00:51:32.39\00:51:37.96
And I wanna be
careful how I say this,
00:51:37.99\00:51:41.30
acting out on unnatural lusts
00:51:41.33\00:51:46.20
is going against the order,
00:51:46.23\00:51:50.67
it's a consequence of going
00:51:50.71\00:51:52.54
or rejecting
God's created order,
00:51:52.57\00:51:55.01
I'll just put it that way.
00:51:55.04\00:51:56.78
So, but Sodom's, that
wasn't Sodom's only sin.
00:51:56.81\00:52:00.52
In Ezekiel 16, we
see that they had pride,
00:52:00.55\00:52:03.28
abundance, abundance,
abundance of idleness.
00:52:03.32\00:52:08.06
They neglected the
poor and the needy.
00:52:08.09\00:52:09.89
They were haughty.
00:52:09.92\00:52:11.26
They committed
abomination before Me,
00:52:11.29\00:52:13.56
He says in Ezekiel 16:50.
00:52:13.60\00:52:17.73
"They were haughty.
00:52:17.77\00:52:19.10
They committed
abomination before Me,
00:52:19.13\00:52:21.37
therefore I took
them away as I saw fit."
00:52:21.40\00:52:25.17
The city was
destroyed and only Lot
00:52:25.21\00:52:27.71
and his two daughters
escaped this destruction,
00:52:27.74\00:52:30.88
but once again,
00:52:30.91\00:52:32.25
you see the juxtaposition
of God judging the evil,
00:52:32.28\00:52:36.52
and taking away and preserving,
00:52:36.55\00:52:40.62
preserving the
righteous if you will.
00:52:40.69\00:52:42.76
Because it says, "Righteous Lot,
00:52:42.79\00:52:44.76
he was utterly
disgusted with what was going on
00:52:44.79\00:52:47.56
and he just tormented at
so over what was going on."
00:52:47.60\00:52:50.67
So it said, "He
delivered righteous Lot,
00:52:50.70\00:52:53.07
who was oppressed
by the filthy conduct
00:52:53.13\00:52:55.50
of the wicked."
00:52:55.54\00:52:57.47
So this demonstrates
00:52:57.51\00:52:58.84
how God can rescue
the righteous from trials.
00:52:58.87\00:53:03.11
And it, I'm
gonna jump down to...
00:53:03.14\00:53:05.65
Well, I'll read verse
8, "For that righteous man,
00:53:05.68\00:53:08.22
dwelling among them,
tormented his righteous soul
00:53:08.25\00:53:10.42
from day to day,
00:53:10.45\00:53:11.79
by seeing and
hearing their lawless deeds."
00:53:11.82\00:53:15.19
And then it says,
"But then the Lord knows
00:53:15.22\00:53:18.23
how to deliver the
godly out of temptations
00:53:18.26\00:53:20.96
and to reserve the unjust
00:53:20.96\00:53:23.40
under punishment for
the day of judgment."
00:53:23.47\00:53:26.40
So we're gonna
go down to verse 10.
00:53:26.43\00:53:28.34
"Especially those who
walk according to the flesh
00:53:28.37\00:53:30.84
in the lust of uncleanness
and despise authority.
00:53:30.87\00:53:33.58
They are
presumptuous, self-willed.
00:53:33.61\00:53:35.61
They are not afraid to
speak evil of dignitaries."
00:53:35.64\00:53:40.25
In their uncleanness,
in these defiling acts,
00:53:40.32\00:53:43.39
they, they
polluted moral purity.
00:53:43.42\00:53:46.65
They despised the
authority of Christ Lordship.
00:53:46.69\00:53:51.16
And they were denying that,
that Christ had bought them
00:53:51.19\00:53:55.60
with the precious
blood, His own precious blood.
00:53:55.63\00:53:59.70
And they were
recklessly arrogant and defiant.
00:53:59.73\00:54:03.37
And they were
slanding spiritual realities
00:54:03.44\00:54:06.17
that they did not understand.
00:54:06.21\00:54:08.34
Now there's different
interpretations on this
00:54:08.38\00:54:10.91
but it's quite
possible that it's meaning
00:54:10.95\00:54:12.95
that they took the
devil's power lightly
00:54:12.98\00:54:16.28
because it
says, "Whereas angels,
00:54:16.32\00:54:17.99
who are greater
in power and might,
00:54:18.02\00:54:19.72
do not bring a
reviling blasphemous accusation
00:54:19.75\00:54:24.03
against them before the Lord."
00:54:24.06\00:54:25.96
The angels are more powerful
than these false teachers,
00:54:25.99\00:54:31.37
but they were
maintaining discreet silence.
00:54:31.40\00:54:34.50
It reminds me of
Jude again, verse 1 and 8,
00:54:34.54\00:54:38.11
or verse 8 and 9.
00:54:38.14\00:54:40.04
It says, "Likewise also
these dreamers defile the flesh,
00:54:40.08\00:54:43.35
reject authority,
00:54:43.41\00:54:44.75
and they speak
evil of dignitaries."
00:54:44.78\00:54:46.92
Yet Michael, the archangel,
in contending with the devil,
00:54:46.98\00:54:50.45
and we know that Michael
is a name for Jesus Christ.
00:54:50.49\00:54:54.32
In contending with the devil,
00:54:54.36\00:54:55.96
when he disputed
about the body of Moses,
00:54:55.99\00:54:58.36
when he was
wanting to resurrect Moses,
00:54:58.39\00:55:01.16
dared not bring
against him a reviling action,
00:55:01.20\00:55:04.67
accusation but said,
"The Lord rebuke you."
00:55:04.70\00:55:08.04
That's right.
00:55:08.07\00:55:10.11
You know, one thing
that we have to be careful
00:55:10.17\00:55:12.01
in spiritual warfare,
00:55:12.04\00:55:13.38
one time I was taught to say,
00:55:13.44\00:55:15.04
"I rebuke you, Satan,
in the name of Jesus."
00:55:15.08\00:55:18.55
I don't do that.
00:55:18.58\00:55:20.48
I say, "The Lord rebuke you."
00:55:20.52\00:55:22.65
Because if the
archangel Michael wouldn't say,
00:55:22.68\00:55:26.55
"I rebuke you."
00:55:26.59\00:55:27.92
He says, "The Lord rebuke you."
00:55:27.96\00:55:29.29
Then I'm not gonna slander this,
00:55:29.32\00:55:32.89
to take this upon myself.
00:55:32.93\00:55:34.93
Verse 12, it
says, "But these..."
00:55:34.93\00:55:37.60
I'm looking at my time here,
"Like natural brute beasts,
00:55:37.63\00:55:42.20
made to be caught and destroyed,
00:55:42.24\00:55:43.74
speak evil things of the things
that they do not understand."
00:55:43.77\00:55:47.44
They were ignorant of the facts
00:55:47.51\00:55:48.84
and they chose
to remain ignorant.
00:55:48.88\00:55:50.48
I'm back in II Peter by the way.
00:55:50.51\00:55:51.88
Thank you, okay, okay.
I'm sorry, Chapter 2:6.
00:55:51.91\00:55:55.02
"And will receive the
wages of unrighteousness..."
00:55:55.05\00:55:58.19
They will suffer for
their intentional wrongdoing.
00:55:58.22\00:56:00.16
Verse 13. Thirteen.
00:56:00.19\00:56:02.89
Thank you, verse 13,
00:56:02.92\00:56:05.13
"As those who count it pleasure
to carouse in the day time.
00:56:05.16\00:56:09.13
They are spots and blemishes,
00:56:09.16\00:56:11.13
carousing in
their own deceptions
00:56:11.17\00:56:13.67
while they feast with you."
00:56:13.70\00:56:15.10
Well, this goes on
to talk about the things
00:56:15.14\00:56:18.11
that you pointed
out, what were their sins?
00:56:18.14\00:56:20.61
But then the
scripture goes as you go down
00:56:20.64\00:56:23.38
through verse 16,
00:56:23.41\00:56:24.75
it's talking about Balaam
00:56:24.78\00:56:27.65
and how he was
rebuked for his iniquity,
00:56:27.68\00:56:31.59
but the whole point of
this passage is that for people
00:56:31.62\00:56:36.76
who are wearied by persecution
00:56:36.79\00:56:40.13
and you've got all of
this going on in the church,
00:56:40.16\00:56:42.90
don't worry, judgment's coming
to those who defy the Lord,
00:56:42.93\00:56:49.07
but the righteous will be saved.
00:56:49.10\00:56:51.21
Wow! Wow!
00:56:51.24\00:56:52.61
This is, this is such
a concentrated lesson.
00:56:52.64\00:56:55.08
Oh, yes.
00:56:55.11\00:56:56.44
I mean, it'll take a, actually
a couple of weeks to deal
00:56:56.48\00:56:59.45
with this lesson.
00:56:59.48\00:57:00.88
One of the
things we try to do here
00:57:00.92\00:57:02.25
at our Sabbath school
panel is to awaken your thirst
00:57:02.28\00:57:06.35
to really dive in to God's word,
00:57:06.39\00:57:09.46
summarizing the
lesson of the week.
00:57:09.49\00:57:11.66
We are given the
commission as leaders
00:57:11.69\00:57:13.29
to protect
against false teachings
00:57:13.33\00:57:15.36
and to, and to protect
against false teachers,
00:57:15.40\00:57:18.93
also, thank you, Mollie,
00:57:18.97\00:57:20.34
freedom is only found in Christ.
00:57:20.37\00:57:21.87
No matter what anyone
else tries to offer you,
00:57:21.90\00:57:24.21
if it's not from
Jesus, it's not liberty.
00:57:24.24\00:57:26.34
Amen. Amen.
00:57:26.37\00:57:27.71
Pastor Tom did
that so wonderful.
00:57:27.78\00:57:29.14
And I summarized what you said,
00:57:29.18\00:57:30.65
new food removes
the desire for old food.
00:57:30.68\00:57:34.65
You won't really go
back if you get the new food
00:57:34.68\00:57:36.58
that's really
nourishing, God's word.
00:57:36.62\00:57:39.19
Jill, the need for
revival and reformation,
00:57:39.22\00:57:42.79
how important that
is in our church today.
00:57:42.82\00:57:45.03
And, Shelley, I could summarize,
00:57:45.06\00:57:46.59
learn from the past,
00:57:46.63\00:57:48.70
the Old
Testament is not old stuff.
00:57:48.73\00:57:51.83
It is solid food that
will keep us and nurture us
00:57:51.87\00:57:55.04
and strengthen us.
00:57:55.07\00:57:56.40
If you learn from what
they should not have done,
00:57:56.44\00:57:58.91
you learn what
we can do in Christ.
00:57:58.94\00:58:00.41
Until we see you again,
00:58:00.44\00:58:02.11
may Jesus be
your constant example
00:58:02.14\00:58:04.35
and your guide.
00:58:04.38\00:58:05.71
Amen. God bless you.
00:58:05.75\00:58:07.12
Amen. Amen.
00:58:07.15\00:58:08.48