Participants: John Lomacang
Series Code: TCDM
Program Code: TCDM000011
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00:01 Jesus said, "If you love me, keep my commandments
00:05 Now people all over the world are turning back 00:07 to God's eternal moral law, 00:10 claiming His promise to write them 00:12 in our hearts and in our minds. 00:14 Live from New York City 00:16 Three Angels Broadcasting Network presents 00:19 The Ten Commandments Weekend 00:22 Welcome and greetings 00:24 in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. 00:27 And thank you for joining us here 00:29 at the Hensome Place Seventh Day Adventist church 00:32 and here in Brooklyn, New York. 00:33 Where hearts are open and love is alive. 00:37 We trust that once again 00:39 God has a special blessing in store for us. 00:42 This hour we'll continue to delve into the Ten Commandments. 00:48 But before we go forward, we'd like to recognize and welcome 00:52 Dr Alonzo Smith from the Greater New York Conference 00:55 Amen? 00:58 And it now caused me great pleasure to introduce to you 01:01 the Senior pastor of the Hensome Place Seventh Day Adventist 01:05 Church, pastor Melvyn A. Bob Mounter. Amen. 01:10 Thank you very much for your warm welcome. Let's say Amen. 01:13 Amen. 01:14 It is my joy today to welcome pastor John Lomacang, 01:17 a native of New York. Can you say Amen? 01:19 He's been married for 23 years, 01:22 ordained minister of the gospel for 19 years, 01:25 currently he is pastoring in the Illinois Conference, 01:29 as well as working with 3ABN. 01:31 Let's welcome him today as he shares 01:34 a message on the seventh commandment. 01:36 Pastor John Lomacang. 01:38 Amen. Thank you so much pastor. 01:40 Good afternoon, friends, 01:41 that are here in Hensome Place, in New York. 01:43 And welcome to those of you joining us from around the world 01:47 of your satellite, via Internet, via radio, 01:50 whatever the case may be, 01:51 God has invited all of us here today 01:54 to continue partaking of the bread of life. 01:56 And our main focus today is going to be the 7th Commandment, 02:01 one that everyone of us needs to pay particular attention to 02:05 here in these last days. 02:07 Now before we have an opening word of prayer 02:09 I want to just say today that the message is entitled, 02:11 'Guard Your Heart'. 02:12 And the song that prepares the way also has the same title. 02:17 Listen to it! Entitled: 'Guard Your Heart!' 02:34 What a peace to be a harmless glance, concerned to own lands, 02:43 when hearts are divided, 02:48 feelings that should never happen, awaken within, 02:55 tearing the heart into, listen I beg of you, 03:02 guard your heart, guard your heart, 03:10 don't trade it for treasure, don't give it away. 03:16 Guard your heart, guard your heart. 03:23 As a payment for pleasure it's a high price to pay. 03:31 For the soul that remains sincere, with a conscience clear 03:39 Guard your heart! 03:44 The human heart is easily swayed, 03:49 and often betrayed at the hands of emotions. 03:55 We dare not leave the outcome to chance, 04:02 we must choose in advance, or live with the agony. 04:09 Such leave us tragedy! 04:12 Guard your heart! Guard your heart! 04:19 Don't trade it for treasure! Don't give it away! 04:25 Guard your heart! Guard your heart! 04:33 As a payment for pleasure it's a high price to pay! 04:40 So guard your heart! Guard your heart! 04:47 Don't trade it for treasure! Don't give it away! 04:53 Guard your heart! Guard your heart! 05:00 As a payment for pleasure such a high price to pay! 05:08 For the soul that remains sincere, 05:14 with a conscience clear, 05:17 guard your heart! 05:21 For the soul that remains sincere, with a conscience clear 05:30 Guard your heart! 05:39 Amen. 05:43 Let us pray. 05:48 Our heavenly Father, with our hearts before 05:51 the holy and awesome God, who resides on His throne in heaven, 05:59 and in the hearts of all of his children, sons and daughters. 06:05 Father, today, as we consider the importance of this message, 06:10 guard your heart!, we pray your blessing, 06:13 we pray the direction of your Holy Spirit. 06:16 May all things be done to honor and advance the kingdom of God. 06:21 We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen. 06:25 What an interesting day we have had in the Lord. 06:28 Can you say Amen? Amen. 06:30 We're continuing our track through the Word of God, 06:32 as we look to Exodus chapter 20, and we're going to read together 06:36 verse 14, a very short commandment. 06:40 But a most significant commandment 06:42 in the light of where we are today. 06:45 No two commandments in the Word of God 06:49 have been so bombarded with attempts at extinction 06:53 like the Sabbath commandment, 06:56 and the commandment against adultery. 06:59 Could the reason be due to the similarities that they share 07:03 for example, the Sabbath commandment 07:06 points to the seventh day, 07:09 and the commandment against adultery 07:11 is the seventh commandment. 07:13 These are the only two institutions, 07:17 that establish principles and blessings that God put in place 07:22 before sin entered the world. 07:24 God blessed the Sabbath before sin, 07:28 so therefore the Sabbath is still a blessed day today. 07:30 What do you say? Amen. 07:32 God blessed the marriage institution before sin. 07:36 Anything blessed before sin is faultless, therefore 07:40 there is no need to change a faultless institution 07:44 after sin as a matter-of-fact. 07:46 If ever there is a time we need to focus on that 07:50 which is perfect, it is now. 07:52 And the Bible says it very clearly, 07:55 both bear the perfect seal of God. 07:58 And while all Ten Commandments are of equal importance, 08:03 it is clear that in order for the family 08:06 to appreciate the blessing of the Sabbath, 08:09 the seventh commandment will preserve the family institution 08:14 for whom the Sabbath has been established. 08:16 Let me make it even clearer. 08:17 How can we keep the Sabbath holy if the marriage is not holy? 08:23 How can we honor a sanctified relationship, 08:28 if we ignored a sanctified day? 08:32 Even more clearly. 08:34 How can the Sabbath be honored, if the marriage institution 08:39 is dishonored in the sight of God? 08:41 That's why the Bible says so clearly in Exodus 20:14, 08:45 the most controversial commandment in a modern society, 08:50 say it with me: 'Thou shall not commit adultery. ' 08:55 It seems so simple. 08:57 Yet it seems so profound in light of all the new standards 09:02 established in society by television, by the media, 09:06 by the trends, by the world around us, 09:09 by an ever changing mindset as to 09:12 what is relevant and what is not. 09:14 For example, in a nation that looks at 09:17 variety as the spice of life, 09:19 this commandment has been labeled as prohibitive. 09:23 In a religious circle that still sees polygamy as a practice, 09:28 this commandment has been labeled, or seen as irrelevant. 09:33 In a world that embraces multiple marriages 09:38 as an every day occurrence, 09:41 this commandment appears to have run its course. 09:46 In a society where immorality and sexuality sells, 09:51 this commandment seems to have become politically incorrect, 09:56 out of date, irrelevant, inconvenient, 09:58 cumbersome and irritable. 10:00 But I say that God's standards are never out-of-date. 10:04 What do you say? Amen. 10:06 For all intents and purposes the seventh commandment seems 10:11 to have called more problems than given solutions. 10:14 But that's why I'm saying, if ever there is a time 10:17 when the commandment of God, the seventh commandment 10:20 needs to be resurrected, brethren, it is in this year, 10:23 in these last days. 10:25 In a society like ours. 10:27 In a world like ours. In a media like ours. 10:31 Years ago I was involved in the music industry, 10:34 In this very city. 10:37 You know, it's amazing how God brings me back to New York City, 10:39 to remind me of where I used to be. 10:41 And to give me an insight of how far God has led. 10:45 So to talk about the commandment that hinges on immorality, 10:50 and promiscuity, and a world that causes us 10:56 to think about these things as I said, irrelevant, inconvenient 10:59 out-of-date, losing touch with society, 11:03 it's good to know that there is no hall that we can sing in, 11:08 that's too deep for God to bring us out of it. 11:11 Looking back on the life in New York City, 11:14 I remember sitting behind those turn-tables 11:16 and the music industry I've discovered has done its job 11:20 on attacking the very foundation of the marriage institution. 11:26 Not only the marriage institution, 11:29 but immorality altogether. 11:31 Whether it's jazz, or rap, or rock, or blues, 11:35 or easy-listening, or opera, the enemy of souls 11:39 is an equal opportunity provider. 11:42 In other words, whatever your desire for music, 11:46 Satan has designed all kinds of styles of music 11:49 to attack the very foundation 11:52 of the commandment 'Thou shalt not commit adultery. ' 11:55 Years ago this song came to my mind and I think about it. 11:58 I won't say the man's name, but he wrote a song that we all sang 12:04 maybe even some Christians. 12:05 'Me and Mrs. Jones, we've got a thing going on. ' 12:11 And then another very popular artist, that is now deceived, 12:15 his father took his wife, he sang with all the intensity 12:18 as the women screamed, 'distinct lover'. 12:21 Another group piled the charts. 12:25 You know, often what is highly esteemed in the eyes of man, 12:28 are a reproach to God. 12:30 I even sang this song by a group that is now out-of-style. 12:33 That's what the devil does to you. 12:35 He uses you and then you're out of style. 12:37 'Secret lover. That's what we are. ' 12:41 Then a very popular vocalist 12:44 that has her struggles till today 12:47 she said, 'I'm saving all my love for you. ' 12:52 A few stolen moments, it's all that we share. 12:57 You've got your family. ' 12:59 Listen to the lyrics. 13:00 'And they need you there, but it's hard to resist 13:05 being last on your list. And no other man's going to do, 13:11 so... come on say it now, those who used to be in the world. 13:15 So I'm saving all my love for you. ' 13:19 Another song, 'If loving you was wrong, I don't want to be right. 13:26 If being right means being without you, 13:29 I'd rather do wrong than right. 13:31 Mommy and Daddy said it's a shame, it's a downright disgrace 13:36 but as long as I've got you by my side, 13:40 I don't care what people say. 13:41 Friends tell me it's no future, in love with a married man, 13:46 and if I can't see you when I want, I'll see you when I can. 13:50 Come on now, you know, how it is, 13:52 the devil keeps those words back there, 13:54 for those days when your mind begins to stray. 13:58 Now I'd like to read the lyrics 14:00 of some of the rap music nowadays, 14:02 but it's so graphic, as a matter-of-fact, it's so graphic, 14:05 if you just mute the videos, 14:07 the video itself tells you what the song is about. 14:10 Bumping and grinding, 14:13 braking down the constitution of Christianity, 14:16 brethren, Satan is now living in the passions of mankind. 14:21 He has possessed as it seems at times 14:25 the organs of the last day generation. 14:28 Satan has possessed the fashion designers. 14:31 Sometimes you come to church and it's hard to keep your mind 14:35 on holy things because sometimes it's so low, and so high, 14:39 that it appears as though you had a belly-dancing convention. 14:43 As all the naval buttons are beginning to glitter. 14:47 And it seems as though the world is affecting the church 14:50 more than the church is affecting the world. 14:53 Satan has rewritten the law on marriage, 14:56 divorce and remarriages. 14:59 You know we trade spouses in like list cars in our days. 15:03 We test-drive them, come on now, we list them, we trade them in, 15:10 we give the keys back and just walk away and get another car. 15:13 And somehow in our minds today, marriage, divorce, 15:20 and remarriage seems to have been rewritten in the church 15:24 is that we're asking to the standards that are lowering us, 15:28 rather than elevating us to where God wants us to be. 15:31 But not only that. 15:33 Satan has redesigned the institution of marriage. 15:36 Now I'm going to say it, though the entire world looking 15:39 and in some countries it is against the law to say 15:42 what I'm about to say but I need to say it while I can say it. 15:45 God did not give Adam to another man. 15:48 And God did not give Eve to another woman. 15:52 And no matter how popular it is, 15:55 no matter how many famous people do it, 15:58 it is still not God's plan. 16:01 Can the church of God say Amen? Amen. 16:04 Just a few weeks ago on a popular entertainment show 16:08 they announced that because so many actors are divorcing 16:12 so frequently that they're just going to have children 16:16 out of wedlock, because they just can't stay married. 16:19 They said, having kids and then getting a divorce is so dramatic 16:23 so now they are showing the bliss of shaking up together. 16:28 They say, we're going to have kids, 16:30 but we're not going to get married. 16:34 We're living in a generation 16:36 that teaches it is ok to have children first, 16:41 and marriage is optional. 16:44 Now, brethren, I'm going to say this, because I was born 16:47 to a mother and a father that wasn't married. 16:49 How you're born may not be God's plan, but that you're born, is. 16:58 And so therefore God can forgive the transgressor, 17:02 but God does not support the immoral standard. 17:05 What do you say? 17:08 When the Bible said, 'Thou shalt not commit adultery', 17:11 this commandment is a multi- dimensional command, 17:15 that needs to be rediscovered. 17:18 It doesn't only cover 'Thou shall not commit adultery', 17:21 it covers fornication, it covers impurity of any kind 17:25 in act, in word, in thought and in deed. 17:29 Listen to the words of Jesus Christ. 17:32 In Matthew 5:27, and verse 28. 17:36 Jesus said in the New Testament, 17:40 "You have heard that it was said to those of old: 17:45 you shall not commit adultery. ' 17:47 'But I say to you now', man, this is hard for all of us, 17:51 but check this out, 17:52 God is getting every one of us ready for the kingdom, 17:54 so hear what the Lord says. 17:55 'But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her 18:03 has already committed adultery in his heart. ' 18:07 Now, is the Word of the Lord clear? 18:13 Nowadays, when you think about it, 18:18 men are not the only ones looking 18:21 at women to lust after women, 18:23 women are now looking at men to lust after men. 18:28 Men were the pursuers in the past 18:32 now men had become the pursues. 18:35 There was a time that you could walk up to a young lady 18:38 and try your best and she will turn away. 18:42 Now you don't have to try at all. 18:43 As a matter of fact, in some circles they come after you 18:48 rather than you having to go after them. 18:50 And we're living in a society where multiplicity and duplicity 18:55 of relationships seems to be the thing. 18:57 And nowadays some young people say 18:59 'Well, I'm still a virgin. ' 19:00 What they mean is they didn't have sexual intercourse 19:03 the way God designed it. 19:05 But they're experimenting another area 19:07 of that they say still maintains their virginity. 19:10 And they say that it's ok. 19:12 I'm still a virgin, what does that translate into? 19:15 I hope that's not Bill Clinton morality. 19:17 'I never had sex with that woman'. 19:22 Within a society that redefines those kinds of immoral standards 19:27 When you look at the entire society which we live in, 19:30 often we hear about the fallen man, 19:32 but very few times do we hear and talk about the fallen woman. 19:40 There was a time, when in societies where men were allowed 19:45 to marry more than one woman, 19:46 then men paid particular attention to women 19:51 and prevented them from doing what men were allowed to do. 19:54 Now I'm saying we're allowed to 19:56 do because there was never a time 19:57 that God sanctioned being married to more than one woman. 20:01 All you've got to do is look at the Bible 20:03 and see all the heartache 20:04 caused by those who married more than one woman. 20:08 I'm still asking myself today: 20:11 What was in Abraham's mind? 20:13 I'm still asking myself today: 20:16 How can a man, Solomon have 700 wives and 300 concubines? 20:25 Now, brother, if you met a woman a day, like one-a-day vitamins, 20:29 it will take you three years before you see that other woman 20:34 all over again. 20:35 Could that be why he is one of the wisest men in Scripture? 20:38 I believe so. 20:41 But you find that the practice of polygamy 20:45 was first talked about in Scripture 20:47 by the son of Methuselah, 20:48 the father of Noah, a man by the name of Lamech. 20:51 The Bible says in Genesis 4:19, read with me: 20:55 'Then Lamech took for himself two wives', 20:59 notice, he took for himself. 21:01 The Bible didn't say, God gave him. 21:04 The Bible said, he took for himself two wives. 21:07 The name of one was Ada, 21:10 and the name of the second one was Tzilla. 21:14 Spelled with a 'z', pronounced as though it had a 'k'. 21:18 Hebrew enunciation. 21:19 Now the seventh commandment like the other nine, 21:22 is first honored in the heart 21:24 before it's lived out in the life 21:28 I'm going to say that again. 21:29 If the seventh commandment is not kept in the heart, 21:35 it cannot be kept in the life. 21:36 But on the same note, the seventh commandment is first 21:42 dishonored within the heart, before the violation 21:46 in the life presumes. 21:48 In other words, the Bible says it well this way. 21:53 'For as a man thinks in his heart' say it with me Christians 21:59 so is he. ' 22:01 It doesn't just happen. 22:04 Phillip Wilson was wrong. 22:06 Those of you who're in a younger generation I'm sorry about that, 22:09 but he often said, 'the devil made me do it'. 22:11 He may dangle the carrot, but you're the one that's biting it. 22:14 He may make the suggestion, but temptation 22:20 while it has a sinful nature, temptation itself 22:24 is not transgression until we yield 22:27 to the suggestion of temptation. 22:30 So the devil doesn't make us do anything. 22:34 But the reason why he comes after some more than others, 22:36 is because he studies our thoughts, 22:39 he studies our eye movements, come on now, 22:42 he studies the way that we scan the room, 22:46 he studies our body language, he studies what we read, 22:50 what we listen to, what we watch. 22:54 Now when the kids say, be careful little eyes, 22:58 what you see, why? For there is a Father up above, 23:01 looking down in tender love. 23:04 So be careful little eyes, what you see. 23:07 A lot of times people say, well, I'm just watching. 23:11 What's the harm in that? Ask Eve. 23:14 It began by Eve just watching. 23:18 I have not partaken of the forbidden fruit, 23:22 I'm just watching. 23:24 The bar does not come to us, we go to the bar. 23:28 The club doesn't come to us, we go to the club. 23:32 And oftentimes we find ourselves where God never intended, 23:36 because we didn't pray the prayer 23:39 'Guide me, oh, Thou great Jehovah!' 23:41 We often end up where we do 23:43 because God does not often guide us there. 23:45 We ask the question, 'Lord, how did I get to where I am today?' 23:50 You see, the devil knows where to begin 23:52 because the heart is the birth place for all human decisions 23:58 and the human emotions. 24:00 That's why people say, don't take it to heart just ignore it, 24:03 don't let it bother you, just ignore it. 24:05 And you know when you're excited what happens to your heart? 24:07 It races. 24:08 I would hate us to say, I would like to be here 24:11 on some Sabbath mornings, 24:12 when somebody who is not properly clad, 24:15 walks by a brother whose eyes just can't stay forward. 24:17 Give him a heart, mother, that may explode in church. 24:21 I mean, you could see the eye movements. 24:23 And so the Lord, He examines the human heart, 24:27 He is not put off by the outward appearance, 24:30 He looks at our movements. 24:33 And you know, the devil keeps a file on us. 24:37 While we're boasting what we overcame, 24:40 the devil will remember, where we used to be. 24:43 And he tries incessantly, while we're marching to Zion, 24:48 he tries to get us to turn around and march back to Egypt. 24:52 Sometimes in our journey to Zion an Egyptian may pass us and say, 24:58 Let's go back to Egypt. 25:00 And while we may go back and say we don't intend to stay there, 25:04 brother, God is not a God, who believes in going back, 25:07 God says in His Word, 'Go forward!' 25:13 But now follow this. Very amazing. 25:14 I'd like us for a brief moment to not begin to see 25:16 how important it is for the heart. 25:18 When the plot for Samson's life was being laid, 25:21 remember what Delilah said to Samson. 25:23 Delilah was looking to see where she could hit Samson the hardest 25:27 And the Bible says in Judges 16:15. 25:32 Listen carefully brethren today, listen carefully 25:35 to the heart of a woman who was designed by Satan 25:39 to bring down a man who God intended to be His servant. 25:43 I'm going to say that again. 25:45 Because if you preach God's message, 25:47 God designs women to bring you down. 25:50 You can say Amen to that. 25:53 If you are a Bible worker, woman, or a pastor man, 25:57 God designs men for women Bible workers, 26:00 sorry, Satan designs men to entice women Bible workers 26:06 and Satan designs women to entice pastors, evangelists, 26:12 any role that God has called you to fulfill 26:16 the devil's got somebody designed for you. 26:20 It's called designer deception. 26:22 That's why Delilah tried to find a way to enter Samson's heart. 26:26 She said, 'Samson', Judges 16:15, 26:29 'how can you say, I love you, 26:32 when your heart is not with me. ' 26:36 That's why the message is entitled, 'Guard your heart!' 26:39 Some folks say, 'I've been married 40 years', 26:42 the devil says, 'So what? I'm not done yet. ' 26:50 You cannot stop praying for God to keep you from temptation 26:55 until the day that you walk through the gates 26:57 into the new Jerusalem. Amen? 27:02 Also in the book of Deuteronomy 15:9, 27:04 the Bible speaks of the heart again, it says, 27:06 'Beware, lest there be a wicked thought in your heart. ' 27:12 It begins in your heart. You know why? 27:14 Nowadays you have those bumper stickers, it says 27:16 'I heart you. ' 27:17 Do you know what it means? Love you. 27:19 Love is formulated and held in great caress 27:24 in the human heart. 27:25 Not just the mind, the mind is the intellectual base. 27:28 But when the heart has accepted someone, the mind comes along. 27:33 When the mind has rejected something, 27:36 the heart responds to it. 27:38 The heart and the mind are interchangeable. 27:41 Mind and heart. 27:42 And so the devil, he uses exter- nal stimuli to control the mind 27:49 to affect the heart. 27:51 But the Lord wants to put something in your heart 27:54 and in your mind. 27:55 He says: ' Use my Word, so that your heart can have a fence 27:59 of protection around it'. 28:00 If ever there was a time that we need a fence of protection 28:04 around our heart, it's in these last days. 28:05 What do you say? Amen. 28:06 In every area. 28:08 Not just at your job, but we need it in our families, 28:11 we need it in our churches, we need it every place that we go. 28:16 The devil knows there is no better place to begin 28:20 than with the human heart. 28:23 That some of you say, How can you judge my heart? 28:27 You don't know my heart. 28:28 Let me tell you something. 28:29 I know your heart and you know my heart. 28:31 You know why? 28:32 Because the Lord reveals the condition of every human heart 28:35 in Jeremiah 17:9, when He says, 28:38 'The heart is deceitful', come on now and say it with me, 28:43 'above all things' and what? I've got to say that. What? 28:48 'desperate'. Do you know what a desperate person is? 28:52 Have you ever seen somebody that is drowning? 28:54 That want to be saved, that's desperate. 28:55 They grab at everything. 28:57 Now the human heart that's unregenerated is like a person 29:01 going down for the third time grabbing at anything 29:05 to satisfy its carnal nature. 29:10 So when people say to me, Well, I have a good heart. 29:13 I say, well, now, where did you come from? 29:14 Are you directly from heaven? 29:18 Even our righteousness is as what? Filthy rags. 29:24 And so I would hate us to say, 29:27 and I've been marriage counseling for 17 years, 29:29 and I've sat down before a lot of couples 29:31 who were fighting divorce, 29:32 in determining whether not to stay with him, or stay with her, 29:34 and I've discovered that if adultery was handled today 29:38 like it was in Old Testament times, let me tell you, 29:42 there would be a whole lot less adultery today. 29:45 Listen to this, Leviticus 28:10, 29:48 listen to what the Bible says. 29:51 'The man who commits adultery with another man's wife, 29:55 who has committed adultery, with his neighbor's wife, 29:59 the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death. ' 30:04 In some parts of the country, they still... 30:10 sorry, not the country, but some parts of the world 30:13 they still dig a hole, about half the depth 30:16 of the height of the person, cover them with a sheet, 30:20 and they stone them to death in the presence 30:24 of everybody who wants to stand by and watch. 30:28 To let them all know, that the wages of sin is still death. 30:33 Now, brethren, there would be a whole lot homes 30:36 without husbands and wives today. 30:38 If adultery was handled today 30:41 as was handled in Old Testament times. 30:45 Now you ought to say Amen to this. 30:46 Aren't you glad, that we don't handle adultery in this country 30:54 as it used to be handled in Old Testament times? 30:57 Now, you shouldn't even say Amen. 31:00 I set you up and you fell into the trap. 31:04 It should not matter if the penalty in America was 31:10 stoning to death, how many church members 31:14 would still be on the books? 31:18 How many head deacons would still be head deacons? 31:20 How many Sabbath School leaders or Sabbath School teachers 31:24 will still be Sabbath School leaders 31:26 and Sabbath School teachers? 31:28 How many pastors will be back the 31:30 next Sabbath to preach a sermon? 31:32 What happened to Pastor so and so? He got stoned this week. 31:38 Now we're laughing about that, but that's how serious it is 31:40 in God's sight. 31:41 It is a serious matter. 31:42 The wages of sin have never ceased to be death. 31:45 But the gift of God has never ceased to be eternal life, 31:49 can you say Amen to that? 31:50 In a recent article, Newsweek magazine, July 12, 2004, 31:56 it talks about the rise of immorality 31:59 among women now in the workplace, listen what it says, 32:03 with the workplace and the Internet, overscheduled lives 32:07 and inattentive husbands it is no wonder 32:11 more American women are looking for comfort 32:14 in the arms of another man. 32:17 Now, they say, that there was a time, 32:20 this statistic was taken starting in the year 2001. 32:23 When the survey was taken in '01 among those who were polled, 32:27 they said, 22% of the men polled had admitted, 32:33 had admitted to adultery. 32:35 The poll for women were 10%. 32:38 But 2002 it went to 15% among women, 32:41 while it stayed the same among men. 32:44 By the time this poll came out it was 40% for men, 32:49 and almost 50% for women. 32:52 Women are beginning to surpass men in the area of adultery. 32:57 Because they want equal rights just like men have. 33:00 But you know, what? There is equal heaven for men, 33:04 just like there is for women, and there is equal hell for men, 33:07 just like there is for women. 33:09 'Thou shall not commit adultery' applies to both man and to woman 33:15 That's why the wise man in the Book of Proverbs 33:18 if you have your Bibles, turn to Proverbs chapter 5 33:21 and begin with me looking at verse 1. 33:23 We've got to look at this because God is saying, 33:26 if ever there was a generation 33:28 that needs to exercise common sense, 33:31 now let me take that back. 33:33 Divinely led sense. 33:35 As one of my favorite sisters in Philipville, California, said 33:39 sister Travis, she said, 33:40 'If common sense was common, everybody would have it. ' 33:44 But it's not so common. 33:45 We need to pray that God will give us good judgment in areas 33:50 where the slip is not so easy as the get up. 33:53 Proverbs chapter 5 we're given counsel about how we can avoid 34:02 the pitfall of adultery. 34:04 Listen to what the Bible says, 34:05 'My son, verse 1, pay attention to my wisdom'. 34:08 If you have your Bibles, follow carefully. 34:11 'Lend your ear to my understanding 34:15 that you may preserve discretion, 34:17 that means exercise good judgment, 34:20 and your lips may keep knowledge. ' 34:22 Now before I read verse 3 and 4 I'm going to say this. 34:26 What starts out sweet, could end up bitter, 34:29 when the Lord is not in it. 34:32 What starts out tasting sweet, could end up bitter, 34:38 when the Lord is not in it. 34:39 Listen to the words of the very wise man. 34:42 He says, in verse 3, 34:44 'For the lips of a strange woman, King James Version, 34:49 of an immoral woman, New King James Version, 34:51 drip honeycomb, and her mouth is smoother than oil, 34:58 but in the end she is bitter as wormed wood, 35:02 sharp as a two-edged sword. ' 35:06 Now, brethren, most of the time we cannot see the end, 35:10 you know, why? 35:11 Because our desires, hear me carefully! 35:13 Our desires block our eyes. 35:17 And we live in the moment, you know, what they say? 35:20 You only go around once and you get all the gust that you can, 35:22 so now we apply that to get all the women you can. 35:24 Or to get all the men you can. 35:26 Or get all the relationships you can. 35:28 And nowadays some of the things you've got to avoid 35:31 if you're a young person in college, 35:33 you've got to avoid spring break. 35:36 Because it's really not a break. 35:39 It has become undisputedly one of the most immoral, 35:48 demonically controlled gatherings of the year. 35:51 Listen to it. 35:52 Girls gone wild, Daytona Beach, Miami Florida, 36:02 Jamaica, the Bahamas, 36:05 seems like when people get near water they lose their mind. 36:10 And nowadays, you don't buy bathing suits, 36:12 you buy dental floss. 36:16 There was a time, what Elvis Presley did, 36:18 that is, oh, raise the camera! 36:19 Now they spend all their time below the belt. 36:21 Am I telling like it is? 36:23 Focusing it in on, tight, tight-shot, 36:26 sometimes you're watching a wonderfully designed program 36:28 and all of a sudden a commercial comes, Look, turn your head! 36:31 Because the commercials... 36:36 And nowadays, you know when I was growing up in New York, 36:38 I used to like to buy nice suits and I still like to do that, 36:40 and I think that the man of God should look nice, 36:43 and I used to buy the magazine GQ, you know - nice suits, 36:46 tell you how to dress and how to coordinate your clothing. 36:49 Now it's embarrassing to buy GQ, 36:52 because the cover has women on it now. 36:54 And when somebody would see you at a newsstand to pick up GQ, 36:57 they'd think, oh, what's that pastor picking up? 36:59 So, I've got to wait until they put a man on the cover, 37:02 to pick up a gentleman magazine 37:04 that's for men about how to dress. 37:09 And even some of the articles! 37:10 105 ways to spice up your sex life 37:14 and to get her to say yes every time. 37:17 That's not about getting your wife to say yes. 37:21 How to get the man that you want in five easy steps? 37:29 Oh, yes. 37:30 But don't go looking for the magazine. 37:34 Because it's not sold anymore. 37:37 But the reason why we don't see the end 37:39 because our eyes are often blocked by our passions. 37:43 We don't see 20 minutes from now, we see right now. 37:46 We don't see when it becomes public, 37:49 we see when it seems to be private, hush, hush, 37:52 nobody will know. 37:53 But listen to the wise man. 37:56 Proverbs 5:5-6. 37:58 He says it so clearly. 37:59 He says, 'Her feet go down to death, 38:02 her steps lay hold on hell, 38:05 verse 6 lest you ponder her path of life, her ways are unstable, 38:11 you do not know them, 38:14 in other words, you cannot tell where her path is leading. ' 38:18 You know, why? 38:19 Because you're trusting your feeling, 38:21 and you're not trusting what God has already said, 38:23 will lead to death. 38:28 But she smells good. 38:30 And... hmm, she looks good. 38:36 Guys like things with curves. 38:38 All their very expensive cars - curves. 38:41 Expensive guitars-curved. 38:44 A good bottle of wine- curved. 38:46 God designed men to be attracted by what they see. 38:51 Women are attracted by touch. 38:54 That's why guys say, er... 38:59 If they start with your ear, let them stop with your ear. 39:07 That's why, ladies, I need to say this. 39:10 I'm going to give you less of a target, 39:12 I'm standing behind this thing. 39:13 I need to say this. 39:16 We talked about the spice of life. 39:19 You've got to get this. 39:21 Everybody, male or female. 39:23 The spices of life are often the last ingredient 39:29 added just before you get cooked. 39:34 I've got to say that again. You missed that. 39:38 The spices of life are often the last ingredient 39:42 added to the mix just before you get cooked. 39:46 So if you think that the spices of life are safety, 39:51 you're about to get cooked. 39:54 And yet you don't even know it. 40:00 How do we get here? 40:01 They often say, well let's look back, 40:02 let's now take a few minutes and look at 15 steps 40:05 to how adultery occurs. 40:09 Now, I'm going to say this statement. 40:10 People don't just decide one day to get in bed 40:13 and be unfaithful to their spouse. 40:15 Adultery is a combination of a dozen or more 40:19 tiny little steps of unfaithfulness. 40:24 It seems ever so innocent. 40:26 But you know how dangerous a tiny step is, 40:29 when you're standing at the edge of a cliff. 40:32 Or you're standing by the mouth of a volcano. 40:35 You don't take tiny steps. 40:37 You take a step and the moment you feel the heat you get back. 40:40 You don't say, well, can I take another step? 40:43 And sometimes we think, well, I took a step, 40:48 one more step really wouldn't matter. 40:50 Because it's only a tiny step. 40:54 Whether you get there by taking steps down an inch-long, 40:58 a millimeter long, 1/8 of an inch long, 41:01 12 inches is a foot no matter how you cut it. 41:06 The devil makes us think that tiny little steps 41:10 followed by tiny little steps in the wrong direction 41:14 really would not result in our demise. 41:19 Now, in a book, entitled 41:20 'Money, Sex And Spiritual Power' by an author named Keith Jewery, 41:25 1992, Wesley Press. 41:27 He said, the following 15 steps 41:30 which analyze how adultery happens are based on 41:33 scores of interviews, counseling sessions 41:37 and correspondence with church folk, 41:40 now hear me carefully! 41:42 With church folk that fell into unfaithfulness. 41:47 Now these may not be necessarily in the order that they happened, 41:50 they say, but these are the steps that often followed 41:55 leading up to adultery. 41:56 Step number 1. 41:58 Sharing common interest. 42:00 Have you heard that before? 42:02 We have so much in common. 42:05 I mean I like music, she likes music. 42:08 I like shopping, he likes shopping. 42:11 I wish my husband was like him. 42:13 I mean, when I go to work, I can talk to him about anything. 42:16 We have so many ideas that are in common. 42:20 Step number 1. 42:21 You are on your way to the pot filled with spices 42:24 waiting for you. 42:25 Step number 2. 42:27 Mental comparisons with your mate. 42:30 Mentally comparing them with your mate. 42:34 He is not like..., she is not like... 42:37 Mental comparisons. 42:39 My husband just sits home on the couch and look at him, 42:41 he is at work, working hard every day, 42:43 I wish my husband was like him. 42:44 Mental comparison. 42:46 He is so smart and intellectual. 42:50 The devil does not care if you are dumb or intellectual. 42:53 He will get you either way when your mind is not guarded by God. 42:56 Step number 3. 42:59 I've heard this one before as a pastor. 43:01 Meeting emotional needs. 43:07 I cannot get my wife to understand what I'm saying, 43:11 but she understands me. 43:13 When I tell my secretary how difficult life is, 43:18 she understands me. 43:20 So I've got to give the secretary a day gift. 43:24 All of a sudden you're giving your secretary all these gifts, 43:26 let me give you a piece of advice. 43:28 If you treat your secretary half, if you treat your wife, 43:32 half as nice as you treat your secretary, 43:35 maybe she would look as desirable, too. 43:41 She understands me. He understands me. 43:44 I feel so secure when I'm around him. 43:46 Look at him, he is just so strong, look at him. 43:52 Step number 4. 43:54 Looking forward to being together. 43:57 Looking forward to being together... 43:59 Boy, she makes going to church so much fun. 44:02 Sabbath morning I can count on sister so and so being there. 44:07 When pastor stands up to preach, look at that man! 44:11 You think I'm kidding? You think I'm joking? 44:14 you think I'm joking? 44:15 My wife and I, we have a pact. 44:17 There are certain people that I'm not going to tell you 44:19 what church it is, not the present church. 44:20 I'm not worried about that. You are a good church. 44:22 I won't tell you which one it is. 44:24 My wife and I said there is certain folk, 44:27 that I will never visit by myself. 44:37 Because they make it clear. 44:39 You see, some of you have the pastor for dinner 44:42 by talking about how bad he is, 44:44 but other folk when they have him for dinner, another way. 44:48 Am I being plain? 44:50 And they let you know. 44:52 Pastor, when are you going to come and visit me? 44:57 Never. I'm not coming to you house. 44:59 No. I'm not coming. 45:01 I'll send a deaconess. 45:04 No, I want a visit from the pastor, 45:06 not from anybody else. 45:08 Looking forward to being together. 45:10 I can't wait for the choir practice tonight. 45:14 He has such a beautiful voice. 45:16 Then now it gets into tinges of dishonesty with your mate. 45:21 Where were you? 45:22 Er... I had to work late. 45:24 The meeting ran longer than I intended, 45:28 Then lunch hour. 45:30 When are we supposed to meet for lunch? 45:31 Well, you know, something came up. 45:34 Tinges of dishonesty with your mate. 45:37 Number 6. 45:40 Flirting and teasing. 45:42 Hihi... we just seem to be made for each other. 45:51 Comments that you throw out with dual meanings, 45:55 and you're hoping they get the alternative meaning. 46:00 At the water fountain or by the photocopy machine. 46:03 Or little notes that are written. 46:05 I got you know what I'm talking about, 46:07 that's why you are not saying anything. 46:10 Another one, talking about personal matters. 46:15 You know, what, my husband just doesn't pay any attention 46:18 when I speak, but I can tell you about my finances, 46:22 about the problems with my family, 46:24 about how hard it is to make my bills meet, 46:26 talking about personal matters. 46:27 You know what, I was raised in a terrible home. 46:29 Talking about personal matters, you know what? 46:32 Sometimes you've got to keep your conversation 46:34 out of a personal arena, 46:35 when you're living a professional life. 46:38 Because whatever the devil can use to cause a spark 46:42 to leap across from you to her, or you to him, 46:44 he will give you things to find common in the person 46:47 that he wants to bring you down. 46:49 Talking about personal matters. 46:51 Here is another one. 46:52 Minor, yet arousing touches, squeezes, or hugs. 47:00 Such a good sermon, pastor, let me give a hug. 47:06 Sister, that was such a good song, hm... 47:14 And you count, one second, two seconds, 47:17 how long he's going to hug me, three seconds, 47:19 four seconds,... 47:22 And some people like hugging other folk. 47:32 I don't need to say too much about that one at all. 47:35 Special notes and gifts. 47:37 This is very important. 47:39 Because just like an alcoholic finds reasons to always take 47:43 another drink, people that are beginning to build relationships 47:47 people that are beginning to gain interest in somebody else, 47:51 will always find a reason to give you another gift. 47:55 That's just to say thank you for the good report 47:57 you did for me yesterday. 47:58 That's just to say thanks for the song that you sang. 48:01 That's just to say thank you for the bulletin you picked up. 48:03 That's just to say thank you for just saying hi. 48:06 Why do you keep giving that person gifts? 48:08 I just want to show my appreciation. 48:10 No, you're not. 48:11 You're trying to open the door, breaking down a constitution. 48:14 Watch out! 48:15 When notes that don't need to be written, 48:16 and gifts that don't need to be given, 48:18 are given and written. Amen. 48:21 Another one. 48:22 Inventing excuses to call or to meet. 48:25 I've got to call him because you know, it wasn't clear, 48:29 so you're calling somebody now, 48:30 for the fifth time in the last hour. 48:32 Would you say about that song again? 48:34 All of a sudden I'm not clear about the details, 48:36 so let's do lunch. 48:38 Let's do dinner. 48:40 And all of a sudden, your wife is on the phone. 48:43 Who are you on the phone with? 48:45 Oh, I'm talking to my doctor. 48:48 Or, my dentist called me to tell me that my cavities are good now 48:55 Just calling to check and see how the actual is. 48:58 But honey, it's 9.30. 48:59 How many doctors call to house at 9.30 at night? 49:01 Well, he is a special doctor. 49:06 Right. 49:07 Another one. 49:08 Arranging secret meetings. 49:14 Now, let's practice again tomorrow, because the song, 49:17 we've got to be really good in our song on this Sabbath. 49:19 So let's practice. 49:20 Ok, I know, we met at the church, but 49:22 you come to my house tomorrow night, and we'll practice. 49:26 Make sure that if somebody comes by to practice, 49:29 somebody else is there, and somebody else is there, 49:32 and somebody else is there. 49:33 Come on, will you say Amen to that? 49:34 Arranging secret meetings. 49:37 Don't worry about it, nobody would know, 49:38 I mean, like come on over and visit me, 49:40 spend a weekend with me, nobody will know it. 49:42 Yes, somebody will know, you will know, 49:43 and he will know, and God will know. 49:44 Amen. 49:46 That's enough. 49:47 Here's another one. 49:48 Deceit and cover ups. 49:49 I was in the mall, I mean, I was just in the mall, 49:54 I saw her, I didn't plan on meeting her. 49:56 She was in the mall, and I was in the mall. 49:58 So you guys just met like three days in a row 50:00 at Basque and Robbins. 50:02 I don't know how that happened, 50:03 I mean, I was just in the mall, she was in the mall. 50:05 She likes ice cream, I like ice cream. 50:06 Deceit and cover ups. 50:08 Planning to meet and telling your mate 50:12 it was just a coincidence. 50:15 Deceit and cover up. 50:17 Another one. 50:18 This says it all by itself. 50:20 Kissing and embracing. 50:24 The lips of a strange woman or strange man 50:28 often tend to taste better in deception, 50:32 because that's how sin is. 50:35 It's sweet, then bitter. 50:40 That's why candy gives you cavities. 50:42 It's sweet. 50:43 But all the while it's eating away everything you need. 50:47 But it starts out sweet. 50:50 The other one. 50:51 Petting and high indiscretion. 50:54 He makes me feel so young again. 51:01 You see? Am I telling you the truth? 51:03 And the last thing that's left, only one thing left, 51:06 sexual intercourse. 51:08 Now, that's not necessarily in the order of the 14, 51:12 but sexual intercourse is always the last step. 51:16 You know, what they say, well, one thing just led to another, 51:19 and I don't know what happened, we just could not stop ourselves 51:22 You better learn how to stop yourself, can you say Amen? 51:24 Amen? Amen. 51:27 And that same magazine, Secret Lives Of Wives, 51:32 women have suddenly become, women have suddenly begun 51:36 to give themselves the same permission 51:40 to step over the boundary the way that man 51:43 have always given themselves permission. 51:46 Newsweek magazine July 12,2004. 51:49 Under the title 'The Secret Lives Of Wives', 51:52 let me wind it up this way. 51:55 Proverbs 6:23. 51:58 The Bible is clear. 52:00 This is for the man, 52:03 and nowadays it also applies to the woman, 52:07 'Whoever commits adultery with a woman, lacks understanding. ' 52:14 Let me just say it clearly. 52:16 He who does so, destroys his own soul. 52:21 In other words, he buys his own news, builds his own gallows, 52:27 loads the enemy's gun. 52:29 One of my favorite conference officials once said to me, 52:33 the devil is going to throw stones at you, 52:36 but never give him any. 52:39 He's going to find ways of accusing you. 52:43 But never give him any. 52:46 He is going to misjudge your motives, 52:51 he is going to try to malign you, 52:53 but never give him reasons to malign you. 52:56 And brother or sister, if you have heard anything here today 53:00 that you're slipping and going in the wrong direction, 53:02 God allows you turn still. 53:04 What do you say? Amen. 53:05 There is still time to correct it. 53:07 But you cannot do it by trying to figure out a plan. 53:10 You've got to do it in God's strength. 53:13 You cannot resist temptation in your own strength. 53:16 You cannot do it. 53:20 Some folks say, quit talk turkey. 53:22 Now, the only way you could do that 53:23 is by the power of the indwelling Christ, am I right? 53:26 'I can do all things', come on now, 53:28 'through Christ who strengthens me. ' 53:31 The cancer of adultery is destroying 53:33 both men and women today. 53:36 The rich and the poor are not exempt. 53:39 It is the crime of passion for any class. 53:41 It is found among professionals, and non-professionals, 53:44 educated and uneducated, 53:46 non are omitted from this cancerous disease. 53:50 It doesn't care about your race, your financial status, 53:54 your place of origin, nor denominational identity. 54:01 Whether you are in the ministry or not, 54:04 it comes knocking at your door. 54:08 I met a pastor one time, that said I'll give anything, 54:11 I'll give anything to be able to be back in the pulpit, 54:16 preaching, baptizing, if I could take it back, 54:21 if I could do it all over again. 54:24 I'm clear now how to avoid it now. 54:26 If I could just get another chance. 54:31 I'll make sure it doesn't happen again. 54:33 That's why the Bible says, 'Husband, love your wives, 54:38 just as Christ also loved the 54:41 church and gave himself for it. ' 54:45 Ephesians 5:25, 54:46 it says, 'wives', verse 22, Ephesians 5, 54:49 'submit to your own husbands as to the Lord', 54:52 you see, the subject is larger than just marriage 54:55 it covers all areas of sexual impurity. 54:58 Here it is. 54:59 God does not approve, hear me carefully, 55:03 of homosexuality, of gay lifestyle, 55:07 of lesbianism, nor of fornication. 55:11 It is the same, it's in the same class, sexual immorality. 55:15 God does not approve of pornography 55:18 by books, magazines, or movies, or any brand. 55:22 God does not support incest, polygamy, 55:26 or sexual immorality at any level. 55:30 Galatians 5:17 says, 55:33 'For the flesh lusts against the spirit. 55:38 And the spirit against the flesh. 55:40 And these are contrary to one another. ' 55:42 So that you do not do the things that you wish, 55:46 when you're spending all your time reading pornography, 55:50 watching it in the movies, 55:51 listening to the immorality things, 55:52 that are surrounding us. 55:53 There is no way that you can all of a sudden turn that off, 55:55 and turn on Christ. 55:56 By beholding you become changed. 55:59 It does not just happen. 56:00 There are steps to it. 56:02 We ought to take steps to Christ, what do you say? 56:05 Because the other steps are not the steps that go up. 56:08 Every time the Bible speaks about sin, 56:10 people were stepping down. 56:11 Jonah went down into the ship, down into the belly of the whale 56:15 down, down, down. 56:17 But when you are following Christ, 56:18 you're always moving in an upward direction. 56:21 Now, let's see, friends, how does God look at the offender? 56:24 Ask Mary Magdalene. 56:27 There is no sin, that we can commit, that God cannot forgive. 56:31 What do you say? Amen. 56:32 When she was accused, and she was guilty of adultery 56:35 as the day has 24 hours. 56:38 But the Lord was more concerned about her redemption 56:42 than her condemnation. 56:44 But what's the difference? 56:45 The difference is, He sensed that 56:48 her heart was a heart of repentance. 56:51 Not a heart of recalcitrance. 56:53 Not a heart making excuses. 56:55 A repentant heart always finds room for God's forgiveness, 56:59 Amen? 57:00 What about King David? 57:02 The Lord said, 57:03 'I have found that David is a man after my own heart. ' 57:07 Acts 13:22. 57:09 Why? 57:10 David committed adultery, had a man killed, 57:14 had a baby that did not receive the approval of God, 57:17 but God forgave him, because David, 57:19 although a great transgressor, became a greatly forgiven sinner 57:23 because God can still forgive the sin. 57:26 Let's now spend our time on Abraham. 57:33 But a polygamist. 57:35 A man whose mind should have been governed 57:38 by the indwelling Christ, made all the excuses, 57:42 could not wait on God. 57:44 But God forgave that man and said, 57:46 'In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed. ' 57:51 Here it is friends in a nutshell. 57:53 Jesus condemns the offence, but Jesus wants to save 58:01 the offender, can you say Amen? 58:02 Amen. 58:03 I think I'll end on this note. 58:05 1 John 1:9 58:07 You know this Scripture, 58:08 'If we confess our sins', come on now, 58:11 'He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, 58:18 and to cleanse us from - how much? - 58:20 all unrighteousness'. |
Revised 2014-12-17