Bible Teaching

Calvary Temple Teaching Library

Watch Pt.2

Hallelujah, amen! Let's turn to the epistle of Timothy where we were Wednesday night. We're talking about the day we're living in, the need to be sober, to be on guard that the day doesn't come upon us unawares. "In the last days iniquity is going to abound; the love of many ['Not me, Lord'] shall wax cold" (1 Timothy 3:1). "The love of many ['It will never happen to me, Lord'] shall wax cold." "Though all forsake You, Lord, you can count on Peter." "Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny Me thrice" (Matthew 26:34). In the garden Jesus went to the disciples and He said, "Watch and pray, there's an hour coming that you're not prepared for." I believe that the Spirit of God is speaking to us today and saying, "Watch and pray, there's an hour coming. You think you're ready for it but you're not, really. It's going to go beyond anything you can imagine." The powers of the spirit of antichrist, as the utterance said, cannot be resisted in the flesh. It's not going to be resisted by resolve. You're not going to be able to say, "I've made a decision and I'm just going to stand upon my declaration, my purpose." If you're not living in the spirit, you will fulfill the lust of the flesh. What are you trusting in this morning, your past successes? "...Sufficient to the day," the Scripture says, "is the evil thereof." "Take no thought..." (Matthew 6:34). "...[today] is the day of salvation" (2 Corinthians 6:2). Where are you in your walk today in the spirit? You can't trust in your past accomplishments; that doesn't affect you today. Do you have sufficient? Is the oil in your lamp sufficient? You see, the five foolish had oil at one time, they just didn't have it when they needed it. Do you have sufficient in your lamp today?

"I cast out devils in Your name. I went out and preached the gospel in Africa." What are you doing today? Because if we think we can trust in anything but the momentary presence of God, the momentary faith of relying and trusting in His ability in us right now, then we're candidates for this failure. Watch! There's a spirit of seduction going on around us; false prophets arising, as we saw in Timothy, and what they're teaching is that this narrow, strict standard of the Word of God isn't all there is to Christianity; but there's now a new "Christian consensus" of what is acceptable and what's not. So many people are going around saying, "We're Christians; we believe in Jesus." Where's the fruit; where is the evidence?

So Paul speaks this way in the Timothy passage we were reading on Wednesday. Let's turn back there to 2 Timothy, chapter 4. Now, remember what this second epistle of Timothy is all about: here's the aged Apostle; he knows he's going to die, and on his death bed, if you please, he's writing these words to his son in the faith, and he's telling him what he's learned in all his years of walking in the spirit. How many of you would like for Paul to just sit down personally and write you a note saying, "Here's what I went through, and here's how I was a success"? Would you like that? He did it; it's right here; you're reading it. We forget that. We forget, that's what this is; but it's not just Paul, it's the Holy Ghost: "...holy men of God spake as they were moved by the [Spirit of God]" (2 Peter 1:21). He says in the few verses just preceding this fourth chapter that from a child, Timothy--look at chapter three, verse fifteen, because this is the thing I want to emphasize in our teaching: if we're going to be watchful, it's not just watching and looking at the circumstances that are around us, but it's watching the Word of God, looking into the mirror of the Word of God, and being watchful to find out what condition we're in to deal with the circumstances of the world. Because if we put on the full armor of God continuously, if we're searching the Scriptures and knowing what manner of man we are, and if we are continually adorning ourselves in the armor of God, we will be able to stand; "having done all [what?] stand" (Ephesians 6:13). But are you making preparation to stand, or do you just want to stand? "Boy, I sure want to stand; I sure hope I make it." You're not going to make it. "It's my intent to make it. When that day comes, man, I'm going to really suck it up, and I'm going to really make an effort." It's too late! You don't prepare for the Olympics the week before you get on the plane. You don't start the NFL season on the kickoff; they'll carry you out. All year you're in the weight room, you're running, you're improving your speed, you're improving your strength, you're improving your technique of holding and cheating because everybody else is.

One of the race drivers who's been so successful over the years, Warren Johnson, made a comment. He said, "The space between the lines of the rule book are for me to ride in." What are you doing to prepare yourself for the hour that's on us? Good intentions don't win football games, don't win races. Everybody wants to win! "Boy, I'd sure like to win." What are you doing to prepare to stand in this day?

"...From a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation..." Paul says, "I'm going away, but I'm not the source of wisdom. You look to me, and all I did was reaffirm what you already knew the Word of God said." See, all teachers are individuals who can clarify, reaffirm, or stir up what you already know to be true--the Word of God--to receive further light, illumination, wisdom and application, to stir up what's already in you, the knowledge of the Word of God, the desire to be obedient to the Lord, Jesus. Our teachers help instruct us to do this; they motivate us. Like personal trainers, they want to get that last "rep" out of you. You're trying to get that last "rep" up, on the bench press, and they're yelling, "Don't quit on me now! You owe me one more; come on, you dog!" Right? You're paying them for that. You get that last "rep" out, finally. That's what our instructors are, that's what our teachers are, to prepare us for the day we're in.

"...The holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus." All Scripture--what's he doing? He said "I'm going away," and look what he does. He's pointing him back to the Word of God. "I'm going, but the source of my power is staying, it's the Word of God. I'm not going to be here personally to counsel you anymore, but my Counselor is here." How much time are you spending in the Word of God to find out who you are? How much time are you spending, as James says in his epistle, looking in the mirror to see what condition you're really in? You know, we don't see ourselves--many of us see ourselves one way, but in reality we're like those cartoons. I like that: the little cartoon character flexes his muscle and the little thing falls down underneath. That's where most of us are, and we won't believe it! Brothers and sisters come to encourage us, and we say, "Don't judge me! Who do you think you are; you've got faults." "Yeah I do, but at least my little bump's on the other side." So be followers of those who through faith and patience are inheriting the promises of God, amen? Find somebody who has it working, and get next to them. Say, "I'm going where they're going, praise God."

It always cracks me up: you have these experts and advisors, and especially financial advisors, and they don't have anything. Yeah, right; I'm going to you for advice? I want to find somebody who has this thing working. "All scripture is...profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works." So, Paul is pointing him back to the Scriptures. He's saying, "Stir this thing up in you." He's saying, "Now, here's what I want you to do: 'preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables'" (2 Timothy 4:2-4), fabricated lies of what Christianity is, what is acceptable. "Those people are extremists; they are fanatics. Look at what the majority of Christians believe." Read the Word. There's only one faith, there's only one God, there's only one Lord Jesus Christ, and beloved, there's only one doctrine. Paul says they will turn from the faith and give heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils. They will have ears that say, "Tell us what we want to hear; tell us we are all right." Or, as Schuller said about the Crystal Cathedral, "Let the word 'sin' never once again be spoken in this place." Well, you may not talk about it, but it's filling the place up; and be sure your sins will find you out, amen? Not talking about it doesn't make it go away. It doesn't change the fact that "...all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." It doesn't change the fact that "all unrighteousness is sin." It doesn't change the fact that he "...that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is..." (James 4:17). Now you can not talk about it if you want, but it's something we have to deal with and contend with because it's what separates us from God. Sin: missing the mark. What mark? The mark of reliance upon God's finished work in Jesus Christ, the grace that enables us, now, to live lives that are holy and victorious. Grace doesn't excuse you to live any way you want. Grace does not make you accepted to God while you're still living like the devil. Grace is what enables you to be brought to God not on your own merit, but on the merit of Jesus Christ. It's what enables you to live victorious over the sin that used to dominate you; that's what grace is.

Paul is speaking here and he says, "Listen, I'm going away. False teachers are going to arise; they are going to draw the masses to themselves. "But watch thou [verse 5] in all things." You see the watchfulness, and we're going to talk about discerning the times we're in; we're going to talk about looking at our own heart; but the first thing I want to emphasize is: look at your doctrine. What do you believe today; what do you believe? What is Christianity to you? You see what people call extreme is just normative Christianity, it's just what a Christian is; because after all the word "Christian" means Christlike. If you call yourself a Christian, then everything in you should be pursuing Christlikeness, to represent His life, the way He walked. What does Christlikeness mean? "I came...not to do Mine own will, but the will of Him that sent me" (John 6:38). That's why Jesus came; He came to do the will of the Father! "I do not speak My own words, but the Words of Him that sent Me." Are you Christlike? Are you doing your will or His will? Are you speaking your words or His words? Are you becoming servant of all, or trying to be lord of all? So we see then that as Paul speaks to Timothy, he says, "Watch thou in all things, endure afflictions..." for your stand. Now the majority of the opposition that came to Paul and to his company was from the religious people, and they are whom we're going to get most of our flack from, the religious people, the people who call themselves Christians. Have you ever noticed, we don't even get quite as much flack from the cults? Do you notice you don't get a lot of flack from the Mormons and the Jehovah's Witnesses? When you're out sharing Jesus, whom do you get the most opposition from, on the job or whatever it is? You happen to be on the job, out in the mall, wherever it is, and you're sharing the Lord, you're talking about the Word of God; you don't get a whole bunch of opposition from the pagans, do you? Do you know what (and I know this is a fact in life), it's amazing to me how many pagans, how many heathen, believe the Bible; have you ever noticed that? Now, they don't know what it says, but you tell them "The Bible says...," and they reply, "Oh really? Okay, well, if the Bible says it...." We've been raised in a nation that used to have the foundation to believe this was the Word of God, this was authoritative; now it's a mockery, it's literature. Tragically, many of our national Christian leaders place it on the same level as the Koran, and want to call Muslims "brothers." We're living in a day when "Christian" political correctness is the seductive power that's going to vex you if you're not careful, because the fact of the matter is most of us--no, all of us--want to be accepted. We don't want to be the outcast, we don't want to be the oddball, we don't want people angry with us, we don't want people misunderstanding us, we don't want to experience rejection and hatred. But Paul says, "...Watch..., [and] endure the afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry. For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing."

Now, Paul is speaking back and he's saying, "Stir this thing up in you, look to the Word of God, prepare for the afflictions that are going to come," and then he says, "Let me give you a little bit of insight that will help you stand when the times are getting tough: Jesus is coming!" Can you say praise God for that? Look around you, beloved, in the hour we're living in! Do you believe Jesus is coming? Doctrinally we say Amen. No! Do you believe Jesus is coming? Do you believe before this day is over, the trump of God could sound, praise God! So then, what are you bummed out about? Why are you worrying about tomorrow? Why is that ambition eating you up? Why is that discontentment dragging you down? Why is it that all of this competitiveness with the world's system and wanting to fit in and wanting to be a success and wanting to be like them--why is it that that compulsion is driving you with greater force than the purifying of yourself for the Bridegroom, than the bride making herself ready, praise God? What are you using your energy for right now, worrying about what you don't have, or rejoicing in what you do have in Heaven? Are you rejoicing in your treasures that have been laid up? Are you rejoicing that your name is written in the Lamb's Book of Life? That's success, beloved; that's something to be rejoicing in. Everything here is going to burn up; everything here is going to be judged by the presence of God and it's going to go up in flames. Your life and my life, and all that we've done is going to be judged by that same consuming fire; our God, the Bible says, is a consuming fire, and everything that's not of Him burns up in His presence. It will absolutely be totally annihilated. Our works are going to burn, wood, hay, and stubble; that that wasn't done for the glory of God, that wasn't done by the power of God is going to be burned up, but there is laid up for us a crown of righteousness for those who love His appearing, praise God!

Where is your treasure? Paul said, "Watch!" Now watch, check your heart, look! That word "watch," the watchfulness, is speaking toward a sentry, someone who is on guard; are you guarding yourself against the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, the lusts of the flesh? Are you on guard, are you watching with sobriety? One of the other Greek words used for watchfulness is "soberness." We're living in a day of revelry. Are you sober, or are you caught up and drunk with the party spirit Luke 21 talks about? Turn over there, for just a second, to Luke's gospel, and let me show you what we're contending with, this party spirit: "It's Miller Time;" "Weekends were made for Michelob." What are some of the other party--everything that's marketed, everybody lives for the weekend. Why? "That's my time," that's selfish time, that's party time. As Christians, every day is alike, every day is an opportunity to be an evangelist, everyday is an opportunity to serve others and not ourselves, every day is a day of thankfulness that God has placed us in the pulpit of our vocation. Most of the world goes to work hating it; they hate their jobs. As Christians, we go to work with thanksgiving that God has placed us among some people on whom we could let our light shine, praise God! That will change your outlook on how you go to work, and then you'll be able to wake up every morning and say, "Good morning, Lord!" Instead of saying, "Good Lord, morning?" How are you viewing life, your job, your family: as a privilege? Are you thankful? Do you understand that God has placed us in the body as it pleases Him? God has placed us in our vocation as it pleases Him? In the neighborhood: we're in the trailer park God wants us in? Not in the world we're living in. Overwhelmed with abundance and wanting more! Dissatisfied, when the Word of God says, "Godliness with contentment is great gain." "Having food and raiment let us therewith be content." Are you?

We're talking about being watchful; we're talking about really being aware in this society of seductiveness, of covetousness, in this society of revelry and hedonism. The number one question to ask yourself this morning: "Am I content? Am I content in Jesus? Am I thankful for where I am today in the Lord?" If you're not, you're a prime candidate for the "roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." Your lack of sobriety will cause your destruction, you are easy pickings for the god of this world who can walk up to you and say, "All of this is mine to give you if you'll just bow down and worship me." Are you content?

Verse 34 of the twenty-first chapter of Luke, "And take heed to yourselves...." That phrase, "take heed:" stop, and check out your own heart; take a moment and examine yourself. "Who am I, really?" Do you ever look in the Word of God and say, "I am messed up, man! In me dwells no good thing. I am vile; there is nothing I'm not guilty of, as a member of the human race, concerning the sin that's in my members." You see we've all exercised, outwardly, different manifestations of sin, but the sin nature makes us all alike. You're a drunk, I'm a murderer; you're an adulterer, I'm a liar; you're full of pride, I'm full of fear; you're covetous, I'm selfish; we're all guilty. There is no acceptable sin. Society has morally acceptable sins and unacceptable, but before God: "guilty of one, guilty of all." We're ugly, we're depraved. There is nothing in us of worth to God, and yet "while we were sinners, Christ[ loved us and] died for us," and was made sin with our sin that we might be made righteous with His righteousness. He has redeemed us and He has reconciled us, and He's put the robe upon us, and He's killed the fatted calf, and He's called us sons, and He's caused us to be raised up and seated with Him in the heavenly places, praise God! You don't merit anything, so let me ask you what you're so unthankful about this morning? Why are you discontented, when that's been given to you freely? What is it you think you deserve? Let me tell you what you deserve: Hell! You deserve hell; you deserve to be poor; you deserve to be sick; you deserve to be rejected; you deserve to be hated; you deserve to be murdered and mutilated. That's what you deserve. Now what is it, again, you think you deserve?

Why are you so discontent, why are you cast down, O my soul, why are your hands hanging down this morning when God has pronounced you His son, heir and beloved? Do you think we ought to take heed? Do you think we've been seduced by the world and religion saying that we have worth and we deserve better? Do you think maybe we ought to go to the Scriptures and rejoice in the gift that's been given to us, our righteousness in Christ? "Take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life..." (Luke 21:33). Surfeiting: that party spirit. Man, you tell me there's not a party spirit. You go to work today; you look around; they celebrate Groundhog Day! Everybody dresses up like groundhogs or whatever, and they are lobbying to get off work half a day; it's Groundhog Day! We've got to get dressed up as Punxsutawney [what is it?] Phil? Shoot that rodent; get it over with. The party spirit: everything's got to be a big celebration. Why? Because people aren't content; somehow we've got to get some excitement going on here, we've got to celebrate! What's wrong with that inner peace and contentment and assurance of our worth in the beloved? The surfeiting, the drunkenness, the cares of this life, "...For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth." That word "dwell," as we've shared in the past, is an interesting word. It really doesn't talk about just those of us who are inhabiting the earth; it's really talking about the phrase "earth-dwellers," or those who are part of the kingdom of this world. The Scripture says we are in the world, but we're not of the world. It's talking about those who are of the world, those who love the world, and "if [you] love the world, the love of the Father is not in [you]," if you are a friend of the world, you are the enemy of God. Luke tells us here, "You've got to be careful. It's a snare; it's a trap; it's not obvious; it's all covered over; it's not like there's this big bear trap and a neon saying, 'TRAP, TRAP!' Don't let it overtake you." This snare I'm talking about has a cross on the building. It has "Best Seller" written on the cover of these Christian principles that deify man and degrade God, that make man holy and indict God for His selfishness as to why we are not fulfilled and whole and living productive lives, which you all deserve. "You deserve better," these books tell us. You don't deserve anything, but you've been given everything that pertains to life and godliness in Christ Jesus. Are you content with that? "Godliness with contentment is great gain" (1 Timothy 6:6). Be watchful! How many of the people you're hanging out with are content? If they are discontent, they're going to breed discontentment.

So Luke speaks here and he says, "Watch ye therefore [verse 36], and [what? Say it again:] pray always, [watch and pray] that ye may be accounted worthy to escape...." Interesting, it doesn't just say if you watch and pray you will receive the ability to escape, it says if you watch and pray you will be what? You see, it's a character thing. God will get you out of the mess; He's not going to give you the ability. Your worth, your contentment, your godliness, will cause God to war for you. See, I don't want the ability to fight, I want God to fight for me. I've done enough fighting in my life. I don't have any fight left in me; the only thing I can fight is the good fight of faith, praise God! I fight me to fight no more. I'm not going to fight. People have wanted to fight me over the years; I'm not fighting anybody. Moses just got on his face and said, "Lord, whatever you want to do, you want Korah and Dathan to take this thing over? Let them have it." Moses wasn't going to fight. God stepped in, opened the ground up, and swallowed them all up. He does a good job, doesn't He? I don't know whom to fight. You see, if it was me I would kill them all, but God wants to spare some of them. So, I don't know whom to fight, so why should I fight. I don't know whom to fight; I don't know who my enemy is, except Satan, so I choose to let God fight.

As he speaks to us here, he says, "I want you to be watchful and I want you to pray that you might be a candidate for escape, that you might be worthy." Now, what is that worthiness, in self-worth? No, no, no. What makes us worthy, what makes us acceptable, is our abiding in the beloved. Do you want to know what makes us worthy? I'm not talking about feigned; you're not going to con God, so forget about it, but do you want to know what makes you worthy? When you finally realize you're not. I mean heart revelation, true conviction and belief, and so thankful for what you have, and that God didn't give you what you deserve.

So, as we're looking at his admonition for us to be watchful, Luke says, "Be careful! Watch and pray, that that day doesn't come on you unawares." Do you understand what's going on around you? How much time are you spending in the Word of God to where worldly wisdom doesn't even affect you, you don't even think, you don't even have a thought come into your mind, to deal with things from the natural perspective. Have you come to that place? Are you safe yet from the seduction of the world? Watch and pray, that you're not seduced, that these things do not come upon you unawares. The Scripture says it in 1 Thessalonians another way. Turn over to 1 Thessalonians, chapter five, and look what Paul says about this. What are you doing to constantly be illuminated of your condition and the world's condition? You see, the moment you begin to move in the world's wisdom--now remember: the wisdom of this world is natural, it is sense motivated, emotions, the passions, the lusts. You see, there's a wisdom that will let you justify every lust you have and let you know you deserve to fulfill that. Natural wisdom is earthly, sensual, and demonic, the Scripture says. Natural, sensual, demonic: through those three avenues you're being fed. It's either demonic, it's either your lust, your senses, the lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, pride of life, John says, that's feeding you, and telling you: "This is the right thing," and "Here's what you should do," and "Here's what you deserve," and "Everybody else has this, so you should have it," and "That's not right," and "That's not fair." The world stands up today with its secular humanism, and it's earthly, and it begins to tell us what is socially acceptable, and what's politically acceptable, and what's not. Every one of those lie against the truth of God's Word! We all, the majority of us here, read this every day. Some of us study it, and are in greater danger of deception and seduction than those who never pick it up, because if you are a hearer of the Word and not a doer, you are deceiving yourself. Are you taking heed to yourself? How would you grade yourself today in the obedience factor, if you had to give yourself a grade? How often do you know what the Word of God requires you to do, and you dilute it. You do part of it, but you do it your way; you dilute it with your own self-will; you compromise it to make life easier on you, or on your children, or on your family, or on the situation; you imply things instead of declare them; you walk away instead of stand. How much of the world has robbed you of the power of your witness that "I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation." His Word is true, and anything that is in disagreement with it is a lie; not just misinformed, a lie! Bred in the heart of the father of lies.

So Paul says in Thessalonians, verse 4, look at it, 1 Thessalonians, chapter 5, "But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness." Now let me ask you a question, first of all: are you a child of light, is your life in the light? How many of you are afraid to let people in this room know what you really are, who you really are? Now when I make that comment, I'm not talking about divulging every sinful thought that's ever gone through your mind; I'm talking about what you are habitually, consistently. I'm talking about the acknowledging of the fruit everybody else is aware of; you're the only one that thinks it's hidden. We all see it, and you pretend like it's not there. It's like the person who walks up to you and they have this large growth on their nose, right on the end. You know what would be a good way for that person to conduct their life, the first thing they ought to do is walk up and say, "Hi, my name is Bob, and I have a big growth right on the end of my nose." Now you can talk to the guy; because see when they just come up and say, "Hi," you're kind of going..., and he's going.... It's obvious, let's deal with it! "Did you ever think about having that thing cut off?" Now people don't always need the explanation, but you say, "Actually, it's attached to a nerve in my brain, and if it were to be cut off, both my eyes would close." And you say, "Oh, okay, that makes sense, I was just wondering, I thought you were just stupid; if it were I, I would have had that thing cut off. But now there's a reason. I understand, you're not stupid; let's talk." Otherwise, you're trying to talk; the guy's trying to talk to you; you're thinking, "If that were I, I'd have that thing cut off. I wonder if he knows it's there." We live our lives pretending, thinking of ourselves more highly than we ought to think, thinking that, somehow, we're fooling people. Let's deal with it; let's be children of light. Do you live your life in the open? Are you ready to receive reproof and rebuke and instruction into righteousness?

You see, the child of light--you don't just live your life out in front of people and say, "This is who I am; take it or leave it." Those are not the options. "This is who I am; help me change." Amen? That's how life in the body of Christ operates. The world says, "This is who I am, take it or leave it." Most of the time people will leave it. But in the body of Christ we say, "Here's where I am at this time in my life; help me change. I want to be like Jesus. Can you help me become a person who is panting after God?" Well, how is that done? How do you help? You become followers of those who through faith and patience--you get alongside people who are setting the course and running, and you think, "Well, if they can do it, I can do it, because God is no respecter of persons."

I want to tell you something, beloved: deliverance is a choice. You choose to be free. "I'm not doing that anymore." "Oh, I wish God would come and just deliver me." He has, He's given us everything that pertains to life and godliness; it's a choice. "I wish I weren't so moody." Choose to not be moody anymore. "Well I can't choose, because when I feel like--" Who says you have to run your mouth because you feel a certain way? Have you ever heard of putting it under? Have you ever heard of choosing to prefer others over venting your emotions, of death to self? You know happiness is a choice, I'm going to choose to be happy. Now, I'm not saying there's not a whole bunch of opportunities not to be; it's just, when the opportunity comes, you say, "No, I'm not going to do that. I'm going to choose to just rejoice in the Lord and be happy." Now you can try it in the natural and it won't work. When I'm talking about a choice, I'm talking about a choice to die to self; I'm not talking about a choice to just say [through gritted teeth], "I'm going to be happy." I'm talking about what you do; you say, "You know what? God's in charge. The steps of the good man are ordered of the Lord. I choose to believe that God is good." And if you believe that God is good, you're going to be happy. I choose to believe that God's smarter than I; man, I'm glad of that. It will make you be happy. But most of us don't realize that, most of us think we're just about as sharp as God. That's scary; you need to come to grips with that. You see, discontentment, unhappiness, is an indictment against God. It's a choice to say, "God is not good; God doesn't do right; God's not fair. I deserve more than I have. Gloom, despair, agony on me." (For all of those of you who remember "Hee Haw." A very educational program, for those of you who don't remember. Buck Owens and a bunch of other guys whose IQs added up to about twelve.)

Look what he says, and we'll end with this for this morning. "Therefore let us not sleep, as do others;" What he's saying is, there's an effort to stay in the light, there's an effort to being on guard. It used to be, when you were on watch in the military, and people's lives were in harm's way, and you failed on your watch and you went to sleep, your life could be in jeopardy. Things have changed; we don't even execute traitors anymore. Deserters used to be shot; now they are just successful in Canada. Things have changed, but they haven't in the Kingdom. I want to tell you something: if you are a traitor to this Kingdom, you are branded an enemy. "Friendship of the world is enmity with God" (James 4:4). It has not changed based upon secular humanism, so don't sleep, but "...watch and be sober." That word "sober" means to have your life under control. See, that's the problem; people don't have discipline in their lives anymore, and when you begin to try to bring that to people, it's foreign. Even people around here who have so long been with us as a fellowship, even here, when a child is being disciplined or taken beyond the comfort zone, and we require them to be able to do three push-ups, "Oh! My son woke up and he was sore! Quick, everybody rush for the satin pillow." We're to extend ourselves beyond our ability, Paul says: "I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 3:14). When he says, "Don't sleep," here, he's not talking about, "Well, okay, I'm not asleep; I'm just hanging out in the hammock;" he's talking about preparing for war, he's talking about extending yourselves, and making yourselves strong, and being alert, and aware of the hour we're in, and the condition of our own hearts. But so many of us are just motivated by selfishness. Many people that have different habits they can't break, "I can't break it, I can't break it, I can't break it." Finally, some medical doctor says, "If you keep doing it, you're going to die," and they stop doing it. Interesting. What they're saying is, "There's nothing beyond myself that could motivate me." The glory of God, the fact that it was good, the fact that it was right, the fact that it was true, can't change it. "But, you mean I might die! I'll change." So you see, it wasn't that you couldn't, it's that you chose self over the Word of God, the glory of God, the purpose of God. I wonder if those things you're saying right now, "I just can't do anything about it. I can't do anything about my moodiness. I can't do anything about my lateness; I'm always late; I can't do anything about...." I'm just talking about some of these things we kind of blow off and say, "That's just who I am." I wonder what happened if they said, "If you don't change that tomorrow, you're going to die." That dude is going to be on time, and they're going to show up going, "Hi, how's everybody doing? Can I help; anybody need help?" That's the moody guy. You're just selfish, and undisciplined, and lack sobriety, and worship your flesh, and we're living in a society that says, "That's normal; that's acceptable; and if you can't do anything about it, it's a disease." I'm here to tell you, God expects you to change, and to discipline yourself, and to be watchful, and to stop believing all these lies, and prepare yourself as a chaste virgin, for the Bridegroom is coming back for a bride that's without spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing.

Father, we thank You for Your Word, and we ask that You would strengthen us in this hour and cause us to look at our own hearts and to be watchful, to be sober, to be children of light.

Is there anything that if we called you up here in tonight's service and asked you and said, "Here is your opportunity; tell us something about yourself that nobody here knows." Is there anything there? Who are you? Are you a child of light? Are you living free, in that you are living in the truth? "Here's who I am, and that's what I want to be. Can you help me get there?" That day will have no effect on you; but those who are living in the shadows are constantly being deceived and destroyed, for Satan prefers darkness; and if you prefer it, it's because your deeds are evil. It's because you are fascinated by it, and want to continue to keep the avenues open for the times you want to partake of sin, of the world, of the flesh. You prefer to keep this dark little stash hidden over here. "I don't want anybody to know about this; it might be something I'd have to give up, and I just want to keep it here in reserve." You are already a child of death and of darkness, and the enemy of God. So why not go get more, and eat, drink, and be merry; or make the decision to be rich and free, and at peace, and experience the inheritance of the beloved. Why would you remain lukewarm, receiving the best of no kingdom, and still be spewed out of the Master's mouth? Today is your day of salvation; choose whom you are going to serve. Let's stand before the Lord this morning. As Gary plays for us, we'll take a moment and rejoice in the Lord's goodness. Jesus is coming back; are you ready, are you watching? Like the wise, are your lamps filled? Oh, you know where to get the oil, but is your lamp full? The watchful ones are the ones who are prepared, momentarily prepared. The five foolish knew how, knew where, but missed the when; today is the when. Why not choose to be free today? Why not choose to be happy today? Why not choose life? It's a choice; I choose to be free. I know it's going to cost me some things but I choose the liberty of light. Let's sing it together and rejoice in His goodness this morning: "Jesus I Am Thirsty."

Father, we've tasted of Your goodness, and nothing else satisfies. We've tasted Your goodness and, some of us in action, some of us in thought, have gone to other wells and nothing satisfies us, Lord. Some have gone back to Egypt, having believed a lie, and then came back home and reaffirmed the heart of Moses: "No, here is where the riches are, in the presence of God. I'd rather eat manna in the presence of God than the king's dainties. Your presence is greater treasure than that of Egypt." Father, there are some here this morning who have never really tasted You. They've hung around religion for years, but they've never tasted what it means to be free, to know the love of God, to be accepted for who we are; and I ask You, Lord, help them this morning to abandon themselves, to deny themselves, and to throw themselves upon the altar of God, and say, "Father, thank You for loving me. I can never become good enough to be accepted; I finally recognize that. There's nothing worth holding on to. I lay it all at Your feet, and I asked to be crucified with You, that I might be raised with You in Your likeness. Forgive me for my haughtiness, my pride, and my selfishness. Become Lord of my life; make me know You; wash me in Your blood; forgive my sins; let me be Your child. I ask it, Father, in Jesus' name. Amen, amen.

Before you go, turn to somebody and say, "It's good to walk in the light, praise God." Go in peace, God's love go with you.

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