The Divided Church

 A Divided Church

 1 Corinthians Chapter 1

 As we begin our look into the First Book to the Corinthians, we also meet the Apostle Paul.

 We know that Paul was the writer that the Holy Spirit used to preserve these words for the Church of today.

 Why was this letter to the Corinthians needed?

 1) To remove divisions in the Church and bring the Church back as "one" Body of Christ.

 Was Jesus Christ ever divided in His teachings? No. And neither should the Church at that time, nor should the Church be divided today!

 2) To deal with immorality that was entering the Church from this immoral world.

 3) To answer any questions the Church might have, because this was a church filled with baby Christians. They needed to grow in Christ.

 Every “New Born” Christian needs to spend time in discipleship.

 The Lord Jesus spent three years with the Apostles and three years with the Apostle Paul in discipleship training.

We all need to be discipled!

 The things that happened in Corinth are things every church has to contend with in this wicked and immoral world.

 This city had a large population of people coming from all parts of the world.

 Most ships traveling from the East or from the West would stop at Corinth.

 Most roads of commerce crossed at the City of Corinth.

 This made the City of Corinth a wicked and corrupt city.

 Corinth became an intellectual and cultural center as well.

 All these things together made the City of Corinth a potential place for worldwide missions.

 If a church could be established in Corinth, the Word of God could spread all around the world.

 This place first needed to meet the Almighty Living God!

 This church at Corinth was established, and like all baby Christians, they needed discipline.

 Paul began as a gentle shepherd over his flock and moved on to greater things.

 1Co 1:4  I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ; 

1Co 1:5  That in every thing ye are enriched by him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge; 

1Co 1:6  Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you: 

1Co 1:7  So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ: 

1Co 1:8  Who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

 *****1Co 1:10  Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. 

 Every Pastor, Preacher or Priest is called to be a brother to all other believers and the Apostle Paul used the word brother when he was addressing this church.

 We all have the same Heavenly Father, and we all are saved by the Lord Jesus Christ, and we all are filled with the same Holy Spirit, and we are all to have the same Word of God, and it is time that the Church to unite around these things, for we are in the last of days.

 We are not better than anyone else in this world, but we can say we are better off only because our names are written down in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

 If your name is written down in the Lamb's Book of Life, you are already a saint of God and set apart for the Lord.

 The true Church belongs to God!

 The false church belongs to the Devil!

 Isa 48:11  For mine own sake, even for mine own sake, will I do it: "for how should my name be polluted"? and I will not give my glory unto another. 

 No one can approach God but through the Lord Jesus Christ, and those who think they can be are still lost.

 If you feel like you have lived your life good enough for Heaven, then you are self-righteous and still lost, no matter who you are.

 Super-spirituality and pride have no place in the House of God!

 We can only be in the Church because of the Grace of God through His Son, Jesus Christ.

 Rom 5:1  Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: 

Rom 5:2  By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 

 God's "Grace" is the free gift of God, and God is extending His "Grace" out to all who will accept it today!

 The Church must be unified behind these truths today; these truths will never change!

 This message must be tender and full of love!

 The word "beseech" means, come let's share these truths together.

 Our faith binds us to the truth of the Lord Jesus Christ and not the things of this world!

 Rev 3:17  Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:

 We must approach each other with the "love of Christ".

 We will never agree on everything in the Church, but we must hold the truth of Jesus Christ in our hearts!

 Php 2:2  Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. 

Php 2:3  Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. 

 We cannot allow the teachings of this world to tear us apart when those teachings go against the truth of God.

 Everyone must repent from the teachings of this world about salvation, which this world knows nothing about.

 We all must be in the same mind, as we will all be judged by the same Word of God!

 *****1Co 1:11  For it hath been declared unto me of you, my brethren, by them which are of the house of Chloe, that there are contentions among you. 

 The word contentions here mean strife, the struggle that had become violent along with quarreling.

 These are works of the flesh.

 There was no peace in this church in Corinth!

 When men divide the Body of Christ, then it is Christ who bleeds; Christ is not divided.

 This Chloe was probably a lady in Ephesus, from where Paul wrote this Epistle, because we know Paul would never have mentioned the name of a member of the church in Corinth.

 She is probably a Christian, maybe even the wife of Stephanus and possibly the mother of Fortunatus and Achaicus.

 1Co 16:17  I am glad of the coming of Stephanas and Fortunatus and Achaicus: for that which was lacking on your part they have supplied. 

 Or Paul got this information from one of her slaves, but not from her.

 If we are seeking glory other than the glory of the Lord, we will never find it because it does not exist!

 There will be a perfect union in Heaven for all God's children, and division here on earth could cause some not to get there.

 If we are to live a true Christian life, we must draw upon the Lord Jesus Christ, and it is the same for every Christian.

 The unsearchable riches of Jesus Christ are at our disposal.

 Each and every one of us is called of God, but not to cause divisions or strife inside the Church or outside the Church.

 When news of a divided church reaches another nation, then the testimony of that church will not be good enough to win souls.

 Our one job is to win souls for Jesus Christ. if we have problems, then the first place to seek help is the Lord Jesus Christ.

 Mat_6:33  But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

 Next, we should seek an audience with our Pastor.

 *****1Co 1:12  Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ. 

1Co 1:13  Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul? 

 I think we have the greatest church in our area, and for certain, we have the best Pastor.

 Most of us cannot wait to hear the message God has given him at every service.

 Occasionally, he will take time for rest, or he will preach in some other place of worship or for some other reason, but if the congregation finds out that he will not be here the size of the congregation will shrink because someone else will preach.

 In many ways, this is Pastor worship rather than the worship and praise of the Almighty God.

 We come to Church to praise our Heavenly Father and to worship Him in Spirit and Truth, no matter who is preaching the message of God.

 If we trust the Lord, then we know that person will also preach a message that God has given to them, and those who did not come because our true Pastor was not there, miss out on that message.

 Is this not the same thing that Apostle Paul is saying here in this Scripture.

 Jesus Christ is not divided, and these things must never divide our congregation.

 We are all going to have differences of opinion from time to time, but we all have the same Word of God, and we all strive to get to our true home in Heaven.

 There is only One Heaven!

 We cannot bring the Lord Jesus Christ down to the level of man!

 We all know that we must have a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ to get to the Glory World, and again Our Lord Jesus is not divided in fact, He is very blunt when speaking His own words which we see in Red letters.

 I am certain that we all have our favorite teachers in our church.

 If we say we belong to Jesus Christ, then we had better act like we do!

 We can never place our Lord Jesus at the level of ordinary teachers, even if they are our favorite Preacher or teacher.

 Every believer belongs to the Lord Jesus Christ, if not, then you are not saved!

 We do not know everything about our Savior, we only know what the Holy Spirit decided we needed to know to get us saved.

 John 21:25  And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen.

 The God of the Bible is unlimited in knowledge and power, and I just want to be close as I can to Him in His house.

 The closest I can get here upon this earth is in a Bible believing Church with a Bible believing Pastor!

 These are things we will get to know over the next million years when we join Him in Heaven.

 We need to agree on the salvation plan of Jehovah God, and then, we can discuss those places where we differ from one another without them dividing us.

 Sometimes we just have to agree to disagree while keeping our relationship with our Savior sound!

 It is the work of the Lord Jesus Christ that unifies us, all of us.

 Joh 10:16  And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.

 The Church is a long way from what the Lord says here in this passage today!

 The Lord Jesus Christ is the Head of the Church, and we had better keep that straight in our minds!

 There is only one Head of the Church, and there is only one Church, and this Church is to follow the One Word of God!

 We are to be Christians because we follow the work of the Lord Jesus Christ that He did, so we can be saved.

 Eph 2:5  Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) 

Eph 2:6  And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: 

Eph 2:7  That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. 

Eph 2:8  For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 

Eph 2:9  Not of works, lest any man should boast. 

Eph 2:10  For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, "which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them".

 If we say we are liberals, or Catholics, or Baptists, or of any other title, then our parting spirit is sin!

 We are all to be Christians!

 There is only One who was crucified for our sin, the sin of us all.

 We all have the same mandate: Matt 28:18  And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. 

Mat 28:19  Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 

Mat 28:20  Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen. 

 *****1Co 1:14  I thank God that I baptized none of you, but Crispus and Gaius; 

1Co 1:15  Lest any should say that I had baptized in mine own name. 

1Co 1:16  And I baptized also the household of Stephanas: besides, I know not whether I baptized any other. 

1Co 1:17  For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect.

 It was for this very reason that Paul did not like to baptize new Christians. He agreed with Biblical Baptism with all his heart, but he did not want to be put on some pedestal for baptizing the most people or have the most converts.

 Paul said if we in any way make the Lord Jesus less than the Head of the Church, we are striving toward the death of the Church.

 We all have a calling of some manner in the Church so. Let’s do what the Lord called us to do!

 1Co 12:13  For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. 

1Co 12:14  For the body is not one member, but many. 

1Co 12:15  If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? 

1Co 12:16  And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? 

1Co 12:17  If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling? 

1Co 12:18  But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him. 

 There is a place to serve for every member of the Church!

 Paul said: he was to preach the Word of God which are the Words of Wisdom and not preach the wisdom of words.

 Divisions in any church cannot be resolved by words of human wisdom. The cross alone is the answer to a divided church!

 *****1Co 1:18  For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.

 There are only two categories of people in this world!

 1) Those doomed to perish.

2) Those who have been saved from perishing.

 As the years pass and we get older, we get closer to the grave and Hell or we are getting closer to Heaven, the Glory World.

 We are never just sitting still! We are perishing or we are saved.

 We cannot say "being saved" because it is a finite event and is eternal.

 Perishing means to be in a lost state in the world that comes after death. Hell is a real place, people!

 1) Salvation is a once-for-all experience meaning once we have been saved it is then in the past and unchangeable and we can live the rest of our lives at peace with God.

 Luk 7:50  And he said to the woman, Thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace.

 2) Salvation is a continuous experience. It occurs right now, in the present.

 The verse we are on right now, verse 18, " For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God".

 3) The redemption experience of our salvation is still in the future.

 Rom 13:11  And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. 

 Those who reject these things are not very wise!

 *****1Co 1:19  For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. 

1Co 1:20  Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? 

1Co 1:21  For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. 

1Co 1:22  For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom:  

 Mankind seeks to conquer evil through science, technology, and the religion of human effort.

Mankind tries to conquer nature, disease, suffering, corruption and death and we never had this power and never will.

 As a people, we want a life that is full and free, but we want to dictate how we want it.

 We always want to stand on the mountain and say, "Look what I did".

 Most of this world is just not willing to live by the Word of God and what Jesus Christ has said.

 Science has not brought love, joy, and peace, but only to a few foolish people.

Technology has not brought love, joy, and peace to anyone.

Good works only make us self-righteous.

 The first thing we begin to understand about Jehovah is that He loves us enough to provide a way to save us.

 He has offered up the perfect sacrifice for us.

 On that cross, the Lord Jesus Christ took all our sins upon Himself, and then He took our punishment for having sinned upon Himself.

 Jehovah sacrificed Himself for us, and through this sacrifice, God saves us!

 Those who want to approach God by some other means will always fail because this is God's plan.

 The leaders of this world have never tried to solve the world's problems of sin and evil because it is just too prosperous for a few rich men who pull the strings on national leaders, and today on local leaders and our government become corrupt and refuse to change.

 Only the cross has the power to change the hearts of these men.

 There are some truly smart people in our world, but they spend their time on things that cannot change our world and make it a better place.

 The cross is the wisdom of God, the way God has chosen to save this world and to save those who have faith that he can do as He promises.

 If this world were to turn to the cross just to see the perfect demonstration of love and sacrifice, then this world would be a much better place.

 All our leaders know how to do is inquire and argue. We see it played out every day in our Senate and in our Congress and nothing gets done because they love corruption too much.

 It is the same in most of every nation.

 Even the Jews want to see some great sign from God after they have already seen and read about all the great things God has shown them.

 Even as they have just had their fiftieth birthday as a nation, they refuse to believe that it was Jehovah who caused this to happen.

 Isa_66:8  Who hath heard such a thing? who hath seen such things? Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day? or shall a nation be born at once? for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children.

 The next sign this world will see is the sound of the trumpet and the Church leaving this world.

 The Jews still stumble over the truth of Jehovah!

 *****1Co 1:23  But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; 

1Co 1:24  But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. 

1Co 1:25  Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

 We should understand that what we teach about the Lord Jesus Christ is the reverse of what the Jews and the world demand.

 Instead of a Messiah as ruler of all the earth, triumphant over all His enemies, we teach how a condemned criminal is our Savior and soon coming King and LORD.

 Christians teach that our one argument is the death and then the life of the Messiah.

 Isa 8:13  Sanctify the LORD of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread. 

Isa 8:14  And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

 Jesus Christ is the power of God!

 The Jews and many in the world feel like they are the chosen seed of God, and they reach God because they have a godly heritage.

They still believe that they can be good enough to be acceptable to God.

 They believe that if they work hard enough, they can bring the Kingdom of God to this earth.

 They believe that the Golden Age of Earth is still in the future.

 The truth is, we can never be good enough to be acceptable to God.

The penalty for our sin had to be paid for by the perfect sacrifice of God's Son.

That we trust in that sacrifice.

That true belief in God's Son gave all He had to save this world for eternity.

 When religion looks upon the ugliness of the cross, the ugliness of sin, and suffering instead of glory, they are repulsed.

 Who are the blessed of God? Mat 11:6  And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me. 

 The world continues to stumble over the simplicity of the cross, but the world is missing the message of the Cross.

 2Co_11:3  But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.

 It is the Cross of Jesus Christ that God's way is wiser and stronger than the way of religion and the way of man!

 This is why Christianity is by faith and not by religion.

 Rom 1:16  For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. 

Rom 1:17  For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith. 

 ***** 1Co 1:26  For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: 

1Co 1:27  But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; 

1Co 1:28  And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: 

 Which group of people does God save?

 Act 2:38  Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. 

Act 2:39  For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.

 Our faith must lie in the fact that our life must be governed by a will that is far above this earth, and we receive the help of the Holy Spirit to guide us.

 My Pastor has said many times that we receive the Holy Spirit for our employment and not for our enjoyment.

 It is the Holy Spirit of God who does the calling.

 Act 7:51  Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye. 

 It is the Holy Spirit who remains with us throughout eternity

 Eph 4:30  And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. 

 It is the Holy Spirit who will make our old bodies live again in glory.

 Rom 8:11  But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.

 We are called according to God's purpose for us.

 Rom 8:28  And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. 

 God does not call many who are dependent upon themselves, we would say self-righteous.

 God calls simple and humble people.

 Those who believe they can save themselves may not be called, or at least God will not waste much time on them when He already knows what they will do.

 God's calling is not arbitrary and not without reason.

 God knows who will accept Him and who will not.

 God has a reason and a purpose for everything He teaches us!

 God smiles every time one of His nothings nullifies the somethings of this world.

 God has given each one of us the free will to decide or reject Him.

 If we are arrogant enough to think we do not need God, then He will not help us.

 God sent the Lord Jesus Christ to save those who know they cannot save themselves.

 God saves all those who want to spend eternity with Him in His House.

 Joh 14:2  In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 

Joh 14:3  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

 *****1Co 1:29  That no flesh should glory in his presence. 

1Co 1:30  But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: 

1Co 1:31  That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord. 

Not many simple and humble people will boast about anything.

The truth: 

1) Man will never be able to control sin and evil in this world.

2) Man will never be able to bring peace, assurance, and control to the human heart.

3) Man will never bring eternal life beyond our few short years upon this earth.

We have nothing to brag about and no right to glory in the things we do!

God's wisdom is in the Lord Jesus Christ.

We are nothing to God unless we are "Born Again" in Jesus Christ.

By the fact that the Lord Jesus arose from that grave to show us the power of God it becomes wisdom to follow in His ways.

It is by God pouring His Spirit into us that we can know the truth.

He is the Spirit of Righteousness, which means He knows no evil and by His power we can be sanctified which is working our way toward Holiness.

The Lord Jesus paid the price that God required for our sin, and if we believe in this, we are reconciled to God.

The entire work for our salvation is of God.

Our only work is to accept this great gift of God, so if we glory, let us glory in the Lord!

Amen

Loving Because God Loves

Loving As We Live

1 Peter Chapter 1:13-25

We should understand as Peter wrote these things that persecution of the New Church was very great. Those that were Jews had lost their property, possessions, money, and even family members and friends.

They had been forced to flee for their lives and this kind of thing spreads into other countries as people feel like they are doing some good when they are violating basic human rights!

And just like today many others were excited about the Church with its salvation and hope and eternal life but they did not want to hear about repentance.

Somethings never change!

People just do not want to hear about righteousness and godliness!

These of the New Covenant Church needed to be encouraged.

One of the greatest missions we can have is to be an encourager!

It is the "Gospel" of the Lord Jesus Christ that changes lives!

It is the promises of God that can be used to encourage others!

When we keep our eyes focused on the "Grace" of God, we find that we can endure the things of this world knowing that we are only strangers here and the New Heaven will be our home!

We must prepare our minds for success. We are on "the winning side"!

*****1 Peter 1:13 Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;

To gird means: To surround; to encircle; to enclose; to encompass.

The loins are: The loins are the space on each side of the vertebrae, between the lowest of the false ribs and the upper portion of the osilium or haunch bone, or the lateral portions of the lumbar region; called also the reins.

Then these words of Peter mean, because we have such promises from the Lord Jesus Christ we can now be of use to the glory of God!

Isa 11:5 And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins.

Jesus said it like this:

Luk 12:34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

Luk 12:35 Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning;

Luk 12:36 And ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately.

The Apostle Paul said like this:

Eph 6:14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;

Eph 6:15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

Eph 6:16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

Eph 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:

Eph 6:18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

Eph 6:19 And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel,

Eph 6:20 For which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.

We can see that we are to be prepared to be a disciple of the Lord!

Our salvation is such a great thing it should be of interest to others as it was to the angels!

You see that true salvation can come only buy the "Grace" of God.

Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

Eph 2:9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

We must be courageous Christians in this wicked world!

We must be genuine Christians in this wicked world!

We must be sincere Christians in this wicked world!

As true Christians we are to make an impact on those around us!

Again the Apostle Paul said it like this:

Php 4:7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Php 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Php 4:9 Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.

You see these things can come only by Jesus Christ!

We must be obedient children to our Father who art in Heaven!!!!!

We must never fear the coming of the Lord because He comes to take us home!

*****1Pe 1:14 As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance:

Whether we like it or not we were servants of the Devil until we gave our life to Jesus Christ.

We obeyed the thoughts in our head without question. We just did the evil things of this world without questioning our own morality.

well in this same sense we must now be obedient to the Lord and honor our Father in Heaven.

Being obedient to the Word of God without questioning our God who wrote His Words by the Holy Spirit, using the hands of some man who dearly loved Him!

We were ignorant to the truth of God. I know I was but not ever again!

If we think Satan will leave us alone, we have become fools. This is why the Scriptures are so very important to us!

We belong to God after we are washed in the blood of Jesus and we need to act like it!

We are not God's mercenaries nor are we God's slaves, we are God's children!

Those that reject this truth need to visit Gethsemane and Calvary and learn of the Nazarene.

Psa 119:6 Then shall I not be ashamed, when I have respect unto all thy commandments.

Psa 119:7 I will praise thee with uprightness of heart, when I shall have learned thy righteous judgments.

Psa 119:8 I will keep thy statutes: O forsake me not utterly.

Why did God reveal Himself to Moses? God decided to reclaim His children!

God has a plan much greater than any plan of man and God's plan cannot be stopped, nor can it be hindered or slowed down!

What is the truth of God?

Mat 7:20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.

Mat 7:21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

Mat 7:22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?

Mat 7:23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

Mat 7:24 Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:

We can be wise in the wisdom of God or we can be ignorant of the truth of God, we cannot be both!

As we learn more of the Character of God and take those thoughts back to the Book of Genesis and see that when God said let there be light, then that was the Light of Lord who had the same character that we have learned to know and to love about our Savior.

It is God's love for us who sent His Son to Mount Calvary!

God wants us to be Holy as He is Holy and this is not asking too much, it is only learning the truth and realizing the lies of this world that is influenced by the Devil!

*****1Pe 1:15 But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation;

1Pe 1:16 Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.

The Lord God Jehovah is Holy in all His ways!!!!!

Isa 6:3 And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.

We can disagree but that just makes us fools!

Rev 15:4 Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest.

To be Holy is to be perfect! The triune God is perfect! So to be holy is to have purity and integrity of moral character.

To be holy is to be conformed to the will of God!

Rom 6:22 But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.

Rom 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

These things are not so hard to understand!

Eph 1:4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:

Eph 1:5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,

Eph 1:6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.

Being holy is something God is working on us every day, because it is not an overnight thing. Holiness is learned gradually!

2Co 7:1 Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

Eph 4:23 And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;

Eph 4:24 And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.

Holiness is not something that is appointed it is something we learn by the Scriptures and with the help of the Holy Ghost (Holy Spirit)!

1Th 4:7 For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness.

And yes, we are to have a reverent fear of our Holy God!

But we should also how powerful our God is and have a physical fear of Him also.

*****1Pe 1:17 And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear:

Our fear of the Lord is the basis of a good relationship with our Father in Heaven!

Pro 1:7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Job 28:28 And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.

Psa 19:9 The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether.

If our fear is joined with hope and love, we can have a close and personal relationship with our Savior, and these are facts!

What did Adam say after he had sin in his life?

Gen 3:10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.

Adam had never feared the Lord before his sin!

If we do not hold our Heavenly Father above all others, then we are not reverencing our Father!

If we call God our Father, then we need to act like we are His blessed children!

We need to stand against all sin.

We need to stand against all trials.

We need to stand against all persecutions, all temptations, and all evil in this life!

If we do not respect our Father, then why pray because we are wasting our time!

Jesus gave us this example:

Mat 6:9 After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.

Mat 6:10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

If we cannot "hallow" our Heavenly Father, then our life will be meaningless!

We must understand that it is Jehovah God who is the "Judge" of this world.

We must hold God in reverence, but we must also live in "awe" of our mighty God and fools not to do so!

1) Every person who has ever lived will be judged and God is that judge! You will stand at the feet of God one day!

2) It is the works we have done that will be judged! For the believer, he will be judged only on what he or she has done since calling on Christ for forgiveness. For the unbeliever it will be the things he or she has done all their lives with the first and greatest sin is rejecting our Savior, and rejecting this Judge!

We are saved by "faith" if that faith is in the works of Jesus Christ! Jesus did all the works so we have no works to get us saved and if we attempt to do works to please God then we will fail. Our works begin after salvation and not before salvation!

No matter who we are we are all judged the same. Billy Graham will be judged the same as Adolf Hitler. God does not show favoritism!

Each sinner has already been judged and condemned to death. This death is an eternity without God to save them in the pits of misery in Hell!

God just does not show partiality or favoritism!

You see once we know Jesus as our Savior, we are adopted into the family of God and we are just aliens on this planet, Heaven is our true home!

All these good things come when we have a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.

All these bad things come when we reject the Lord Jesus Christ. It's just that simple!

How are we to act around other Christians?

1Th_2:10 Ye are witnesses, and God also, how holily and justly and unblameably we behaved ourselves among you that believe:

You see when we accept the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior, we then are the redeemed!

*****1Pe 1:18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;

1Pe 1:19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:

What is the "atonement"?

The state of being at one with God the Father or "reconciled" to our Heavenly Father.

Our atonement came about by the death of the Lord Jesus Christ!

Our Heavenly Father was satisfied with the debt that Jesus paid for our sins.

Rom 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

It is this death of Jesus Christ that satisfied all the demands of the 613 laws of Moses and the demands of God for all Gentiles!

The work of Jesus Christ for our sins was His suffering and His obedience in the eyes of His Father!

The atonement is the consequence of God's love to guilty mankind!

Joh 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Joh 3:17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

Joh 3:18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

The truth is, you can refine silver over and over again and it will never be 100% pure and when placed in the hands of man it becomes less pure. It is the same for gold!

The same cannot be said of our Savior, Our Savior is 100% pure and so is His blood. Jesus was incorruptible then and He is now because He lives!

A slave could be bought with silver and gold in fact a rich man could also be bought with silver or gold, but these things can never buy our reconciliation to our Holy God.

In the eyes of God, gold is nothing more than asphalt for paving roads!

Gal 3:13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:

Gal 3:14 That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

The blood of Jesus is our means of eternal life!

Lev_17:11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.

Joh_6:53 Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.

Joh_6:54 Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.

Yes, we are a bloody religion because it has to be this way!

It is by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ that we have been made free from the empty life that we are taught to live by this evil world!

An empty life is useless to our God and it dooms us to eternal death in a place that was created for Satan, the Devil, HELL!

It is the spotless blood of Jesus that washed us as white as snow!

Jesus Christ is the Word that became Flesh. The blood of Jesus is the blood in which God was manifest. There is no blood so precious as that of The Lord Jesus Christ.

"What can wash my sin away? Nothing but the blood of Jesus!"

Jesus and God are one and the same!

*****1Pe 1:20 Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you,

1Pe 1:21 Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.

God had a plan of salvation put together before the first day of Creation!

2Ti 1:9 Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,

2Ti 1:10 But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel:

The New Testament Church rises or falls according to the "Gospel" of Jesus Christ!

Will the redeemed of the Lord say so?

We must understand that it is the resurrection of Jesus Christ where our hope of eternity stands!

Jesus Christ is the God of the Bible and the God of all creation!

It is through the Lord Jesus Christ that we can be "faithful" toward God. It is the Holy Triune God that was at work for our salvation!

1Co 2:7 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:

The same God who raised up the Lord Jesus Christ from His death can raise us all up from death to live in eternity with Him!

Jesus Christ is the perfect Mediator between us and God the Father who seeks perfection for us all.

It is the work of Jesus Christ who has made us acceptable to God the Father!

To approach our Father in Heaven we can only go by the Lord Jesus Christ!

Joh 6:28 Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?

Joh 6:29 Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.

It is only Jesus Christ that we can be made whole!

Act 4:10 Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole.

To be whole is to have purified our souls!

*****1Pe 1:22 Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:

1Pe 1:23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.

Besides prayer there is no greater force upon this earth than "love"!

To God the Father, love is the key to our salvation!

Two people that love each other will do anything to please each other.

Why should it be different in our love of God?

Why should we not have brotherly love toward each other?

It is by love that families can be families.

A purified soul will contain a purified love for all God's people!

2Co 6:6 By pureness, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned,

Unfeigned means genuine, sincere, without hypocrisy or play-acting.

What is it to be "Born Again"?

How did the Apostle Paul say it by the Holy Spirit?

1Co 15:53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.

1Co 15:54 So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.

Notice to be "born again" is a complete change!

Just as Mary the Mother of Jesus was found with child by the Holy Spirit, then each and every believer is "born again" by the Holy Spirit who lives within each child of God!

The Word of God is that incorruptible seed that we must absorb into our souls and planted in our hearts.

To born again is a Spiritual rebirth, a rebirth of our spirit, a new life, a renewed soul, a godly nature!

Joh 3:3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

Joh 3:5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

Joh 3:7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.

If we do not have a rebirth we still live in that old sinful flesh and be a servant of Satan!

Just keep this in mind, we must be reborn and not reformed!

There can nothing good come from that old body of flesh!

*****1Pe 1:24 For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away:

1Pe 1:25 But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.

When we are born into this world as a babe, we know nothing but after a few years we feel invincible but as we get older, after the prime of our lives we begin to see that life is really very short.

We realize that what has said is very true. Our flesh is as grass and the glory of the grass is its flower and soon it begins to wither away, until it is gone forever.

The Word of God on the other hand speaks its truth until time runs out, and it will run out.

As Christians we know the end and the new beginning is 1007 years plus the time God allows till the rapture of the Church. That may seem like a long time but in reality, it is not.

If there ever was a time to get right with God, then now is that time!

We can see the reality of what God is saying here.

We look around and we see those who have aged until one day they are gone!

Before that day takes place, we need to make an appointment with God and we can only do that through His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

If and when the Holy Spirit knocks on the door of your heart, please say yes quickly, very quickly, we are not promised any more time at all!

When we have been "born again", we are at peace with God and these things lose their relevance and only the going home seems to be of importance.

We welcome death but at the same time we all have family members and friends who have not said yes to the Lord.

The Word of God will never change because our God will never change.

You do not have to look for things that are better when you already have the very best!

One day we will be living with the Lord forever and nothing on this earth can be better than that.

Forever and Eternity, have no time limits because time will cease to exist!

Amen

Let's Pray!

Rules For Discipleship

The Certainty Of Christ's Rules For Discipleship

Book of Luke 14


What is a disciple?

A disciple is a follower of the doctrine of another.

We are to be followers of the doctrine of Jesus Christ to be His disciples.

There are some things we must do to be His disciples:

1) We are to believe the doctrine of Christ.
2) We are to rest on the sacrifice of Christ.
3) We are to absorb the Spirit of Jesus to think as He thinks.
4) We are to follow in the examples that Christ has given to us.
5) We must esteem Christ above all other things.
6) We are to deny our own desires and seek the desires of Christ!
7) We must realize that if we have any questions at all, the answer is always Jesus Christ!

No one can be a disciple of Jesus Christ unless his love for Christ is greater than that of another person they love.

No one can serve two masters:

Mat 6:24  "No man can serve two masters": for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

It is impossible that the love of God and the love of this world to be in the same heart!

To be a disciple of Jesus Christ, we must lay all our own desires at the feet of Jesus!

In fact we must be willing to lay down our own life at the feet of Jesus!

**We must show a love for all mankind!

Joh 13:34  A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.

**We must cling to the Word of God!

Joh 8:31  Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
Joh 8:32  And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

**We must bear fruit!

Joh 15:8  Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.
Joh 15:9  As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.

If these things are not true, then there could be no Church.

You see God will have His Church in spite of the Devil!

God will have His Church in spite of wicked men!

Jesus Christ had certain rules for being His disciples and we should know them and allow them to rule in our own lives.

The Book of Revelation states that when Christ offers us the rewards for being His servants we will because of unworthiness place those rewards at the feet of Jesus.

Rev 4:10  The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and "cast their crowns before the throne, saying",
Rev 4:11  Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.

If we are not willing to lay our substance in this world at the feet of Jesus, then we are unworthy to be His disciples!

In fact we should be willing to lay down our lives at the feet of Jesus because that is what He did for us that believe!

Jesus Christ is not interested in cheap imitations!

*****Luk 14:25  And there went great multitudes with him: and he turned, and said unto them,

Huge crowds had been following Jesus for some time now.

The cross still lay ahead, but it would be only days before Jesus bore the cross of our salvation.

Jesus would pay an enormous cost to keep us all out of the Burning Lake of Fire, prepared for the Devil and his angels.

Jesus needed disciples who would also sacrifice themselves if the message of salvation was to be carried throughout the world.

To be second best would not be good enough!

God will only occupy the first place in our lives!

Jesus decided that it was time to make this very clear to all those who were following Him this day of these Scriptures.

*****Luk 14:26  If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.

This verse may sound harsh but we must consider how the word "hate" is used here.

The word hate can mean to detest, but it can also mean to "love less", as it is used in this verse.

This can best be understood as showing preference to.

The truth is, we must put Christ Jesus first in our lives, we must show preference to the things of Christ Jesus!

Christ must be before our selves, we must deny our own flesh.

Christ must also be before our families, we must prefer the things of God more than the things of this world!

Christ was not saying we are to hate our families, in fact God says we are not to hate anyone.

We must remember the royal laws of King Jesus.

Mat 22:37  Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
Mat 22:38  This is the first and great commandment.
Mat 22:39  And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
Mat 22:40  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

There is no one on this earth that we are to hate!

Mat 5:43  Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.
Mat 5:44  But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;
Mat 5:45  That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.

We must never take the Word of God out of the context that He intends!

God will never go against His own word!

God is just saying that we must consider what it takes to be His disciples, God must come first in our lives before all things of this world.

Jesus continues:

*****Luk 14:27  And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.

We must die to ourselves and conform to the will of God that He has for our lives.

When Jesus Christ was nailed to His cross, He was completely naked, Even His garments were taken away from Him and divided among those that delivered Him to Golgotha.

If we cannot deny ourselves of the things of this world if God so demands it, then we are not worthy to bear our own cross, we are not worthy to named a Christian.

The cross means shame and reproach.

If we are not willing bear the shame and reproach of being a Christian (Christian means like Christ) then we cannot be His disciples!

We all have a tendency to fulfill our own desires but we must put them aside to fulfill the desires of the Lord Jesus Christ!

We must count the cost!

*****Luk 14:28  For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it?
Luk 14:29  Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him,
Luk 14:30  Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish.

These people that Jesus was preaching to this day knew exactly what He was talking about.

They had seen many a Jew crucified.

We should remember, Romans were never crucified. The Roman government felt that to be crucified was too harsh for the Roman people. They had no problem crucifying the Jews!

God just says for us to think about what He is asking us to do, this is why it is called "faith".

If we cannot have "faith" that God will provide all our needs, physically and spiritually then we cannot be a disciple of Jesus Christ.

We must count the cost!

We must understand the consequences of our decision!

For instance: If we decided to build a tower, we would first sit down and plan for that project and see if we had the resources to complete the work once we had started it.

Notice that the Lord chose a tower and not just some building because a tower is always reaching toward Heaven.

A tower more closely represents the spiritual building of the believer.

We should never forget our goal is to make it to Heaven!

A tower requires a sure foundation and the sure foundation of the Christian must be the Lord Jesus Christ.

1Co 3:11  For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

Eph 2:20  And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;
Eph 2:21  In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:

When our "faith" is in the Lord Jesus we will build upon Him!

The difference being is that God will provide all the building materials and we provide only the vessel for those materials.

We should also consider that it can be very costly to build upon Jesus Christ.

We do not really know persecution here in America but there are those in our world that know if they accept the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Savior it will probably cost them their lives!

Their faith in the Lord will put most of us to shame.

In the least we must give up all our own desires.

We may have to lose everything that we once counted gain in this world.

In most cases we will have to part from our former companions and expect that they will mock us.

We will be under the consistent attack of the storms of Satan and we must count the damage from such storms.

BUT, if our strength remains in Christ we need not to fear any of these things!

Php 4:13  I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

A false profession of "faith" can always be readily seen by those who have already rejected the Word of God!

We also see many who have lost their zeal to serve the Lord or grow cold and fall away because they did not count the cost!

God says: Jas 4:7  Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

When we submit ourselves to the Devil we have submitted to a loser!

The builder of the tower might give up when he finds that he does not have the resources to complete the project.

The wise Christian builder will discover that he never had the resources to become a disciple of the Lord.

He will discover that the work far exceeds any resources at his command and he must forsake all that he has and proceed to build trusting in the Lord to provide.

A life for Christ far exceeds anything that this world can provide!

Remember when we pick up our own cross daily we become pilgrims on the road to Heaven!

All that we have belongs to God and He will provide what we need on a daily basis!

Remember Christ will never ask us to do anything that He has not already done Himself!

If we follow in the ways of Christ, be a true Christian, no one will ever say "he began to build but he was not able to finish".

And Jesus gives us another example:

*****Luk 14:31  Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand?
Luk 14:32  Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sendeth an ambassage, and desireth conditions of peace.

War:

There have been great wars in our past but in reality there has been only one time when our world was at peace and that was before sin entered into the world.

In our Scripture one king had only 10,000 men in his army while the king that was coming to attack him had a 20,000 man army.

That king with the smaller army had to sit down and do some serious thinking.

We see immediately the importance of a strong army.

This king had to look at all his resources and he had to consider the loss of life and a possible defeat.

This king had to decide if it were better to fight or to surrender and make peace before the battle started.

This king had to decide if would forsake all in the name of peace or fight a battle that he would lose.

If we consider the invading king as being Jesus Christ and the defending king has being ourselves or some individual we can see the point that Jesus was making.

We can see that we must forsake all to be at peace with God!

When we choose to follow the Lord Jesus Christ we must be willing to forsake all we have.

What is the truth? We must die to ourselves before we will ever live again in Christ!

No one can fight against God and expect to win but a fool!

In fact the greatest battle we will ever face in this life is the war we have between our body of flesh and our eternal soul.

God requires devotion and commitment!
God requires us to choose what we will look at.
God requires us to be careful of what we listen to.
God requires to be careful of what we touch and what we pick up.
God requires us to watch where we go and what we do.
God requires us to watch what we eat and what we drink.
God requires us to control our desires.
God requires us to follow in the cause of Jesus Christ!

It's not always easy to be a Christian!

2Co 6:17  Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,
2Co 6:18  And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.

If we are what we were then we are not what we need to be!

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

If we cannot pick up our own cross and die daily for the Lord then we are not saved!

Gal 5:24  And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
Gal 5:25  If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

To be at peace with God can cost us all we have!

We may be like the Jew or the Muslim who have to give up their own families.

We may have to give up friends we have known all our lives.

We may have to give up our homes and live in places that we never thought we would have to.

We may have to share what little we have with those that have even less than we do.

We must be willing to use all we have for the cause of Christ.

God may not ask for any of these things or He may ask for all these things, it is our willingness to obey Him that sets us apart from this world!

To reject the Lord Jesus Christ means we will never know true life!

We will never know a life of peace.
We will never feel we have a purpose in this life.
We will never be free from the reality of death.
We will never know the love of God!

Surrendering to God is an easy choice once we realize the benefits of serving a loving God!

Psa 116:12  What shall I render unto the LORD for all his benefits toward me?
Psa 116:13  I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the LORD.
Psa 116:14  I will pay my vows unto the LORD now in the presence of all his people.
Psa 116:15  Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints.

We are worthless to the Lord unless we are committed to the Lord!

*****Luk 14:34  Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be seasoned?
Luk 14:35  It is neither fit for the land, nor yet for the dunghill; but men cast it out. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

We do not give much thought to salt but salt is genuine!

Salt is an important commodity in our world today and salt preserves life.

Salt keeps our oceans from becoming polluted.

Salt adds buoyancy to the oceans making it easier for ships to travel.

In fact the Dead Sea has so much salt that even humans can float without flotation devices.

Salt aids in turning carbon dioxide back to breathable oxygen.

Salt is good for many things.

In the days of Rome, salt was even used to pay the soldiers because unlike some monies, salt was accepted in every land that soldier traveled.

But salt that has lost it's savour is useless!

This salt represents our Christian character.

The disciples of Jesus Christ are destined to be in this moral world as salt is to the natural world.

It is the Church, the disciples of Jesus Christ, that is to keep in check the corruption of this world.

The disciples of Jesus Christ are the "good salt" in this evil world!

We see in our world today that there are many who bear the Christian name but they have lost the qualities of Christianity.

To be a Christian is to follow in the examples of Jesus Christ, those that detour from the ways of Christ have lost their saltiness and are as the sand that needs to be swept out the door and trampled upon!

Salt loses it's savour when the Christian deviates from the truth of God and His Word.

Salt loses it's savour when the Christian allows the world to influence his obedience to God.

Salt loses it's savour when we have one foot in the Church and the other foot in the world.

Salt loses it's savour when we refuse to repent of our ways before God and try to defend our character before men!

When we yield to Satan we have lost all our savour!

For the Christian it is the "Grace" of God that provides our salt and it is "Grace" that that fashions every Christian into something worth while and makes us salty!

Salt is one of the most abundant elements in our world today and so God intends for the Church.

When we have lost our saltiness, Jesus we are not even fit for the dunghill!

When we have lost our saltiness we are not fit for the land!

When we have lost our saltiness we are only fit to be trampled upon by the world!

We can see that the world is beginning to walk all over the Church and we seem not to understand why.

Maybe it's because the Church has lost it's saltiness!

Jesus says: "he that hath ears to hear, let him hear".

The truth is salt this is exposed to the atmosphere will lose it's savour and become tasteless.

The Church that allows the world inside it's doors will also become tasteless and then useless!

We must always consider that God knows exactly what He is talking about because God always speaks the truth!

Joh 3:33  He that hath received his testimony hath set to his seal that God is true.
Joh 3:34  For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him.
Joh 3:35  The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand.

We can either accept the truth of God or reject it there is nothing that lies between the truth but for the truth!

Questions?

Let's Pray!