Latest / Bible Study with Pr. Daniel Batarseh | Verse by Verse Series | Maranatha Bible Church - Chicago / A Warning About Serving & Sinning | Mark 9:38-50 | Pastor Daniel Batarseh (Gospel of Mark Bible Study Series)

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A Warning About Serving & Sinning | Mark 9:38-50 | Pastor Daniel Batarseh (Gospel of Mark Bible Study Series) · Bible Study with Pr. Daniel Batarseh | Verse by Verse Series | Maranatha Bible Church - Chicago

• 0:01
  Well, I hope you have a Bible in your hands.
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  And if you do, meet me in the Gospel according to Mark in
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  Chapter 9, as we come to the conclusion of this chapter
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  together and trust that the Lord will indeed speak to us as He
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  always does. You know, one of the beauties of
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  taking a book and going by chapter by chapter, verse by
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  verse, is that you were held captive to what the text has to
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  say in that particular day, over that particular week.
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  And it makes it exciting because it causes us to see the entirety
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  of the Scriptures. But it also shows us that God is
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  harmonious in his thinking, in his will, in his desires for us
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  throughout the Scripture. And so I'm I'm excited to come
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  to this text and you might hear and see some very familiar
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  thoughts, especially we've been coming to Bible study on
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  Fridays. But even as we go through these
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  texts and we just do what we need to do and see what the Lord
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  is saying, in his Providence, he can also emphasize certain
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  truths. It's unplanned, right?
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  It's not that we're trying to emphasize these truths, but even
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  as we're just honouring the flow of thought and we see a
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  repetition or an emphasis, take heed to that and lean in and
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  say, Lord, we're trying to discover all that you're trying
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  to say. And here we are in the season
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  where we're seeing and hearing very familiar truths at this
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  time. And so I'm going to lean in and
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  perhaps you're trying to say something to me.
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  Perhaps you're trying to say something to us as a church.
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  And I believe that will be particularly true as we come to
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  this text beginning in verse 38 and Mark 9, verse 38.
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  Let's read this together, John said to him.
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  Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we
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  tried to stop him because he was not following us.
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  But Jesus said do not stop him, For no one who does a mighty
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  work in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of
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  me. For the one who is not against
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  us is for us. For truly, I say to you, whoever
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  gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to
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  Christ will by no means lose his reward.
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  Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to
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  sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung
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  around his neck and he were thrown into the sea.
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  Father, we submit ourselves to the Word.
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  Lord, our hearts are in desperate need of your help and
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  understanding your Word. And so we pray that you would
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  indeed open our eyes. And we pray, Lord, that it would
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  materialize in lives molded and transformed into the very thing
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  that you desire from us. So, Lord, we just pray that
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  there be a particular grace in the delivery of this word, and
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  there be a grace in the reception of it.
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  Lord, we ask that your presence would manifest in our midst and
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  if there's any end goal of this, that Lord, we would indeed draw
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  closer to you. This is our desire and our heart
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  cry as a church in your presence on this day.
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  In Jesus name we pray. Amen.
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  Amen. In the verses that you and I
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  just read, Jesus pronounces to to whoever statements.
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  The 1st is located in verse 41 where Jesus says for truly I say
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  to whoever gives, whoever gives. And the second one is in the
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  next verse where Jesus says whoever causes, whoever causes.
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  And it's in these statements that we see Jesus giving, in
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  essence, warnings. They're in the format of
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  warnings and they address aspects of our relationships
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  with other believers. Whoever gives, whoever causes.
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  The one facet you can say focuses on how we as believers
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  should serve and serve with other believers, and the second
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  deals with the danger of sinning against or sinning with other
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  believers. And this is essentially the
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  format of what Jesus is saying. This is the summary Jesus in the
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  scriptures that we will discover and unpack today is giving
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  warnings about serving and about sinning and the goal of Jesus.
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  Words here are no different than they were for the original
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  disciples, that in understanding what He's saying here, we would
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  be renewed in our minds. And being renewed in our minds,
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  we would be made more holy and acceptable in our spiritual
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  worship. So let's deal with these two
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  warnings, shall we? Warning number one warning about
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  serving. Why is John bringing up this
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  random event up? At this point?
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  It seems to be a diversion from what Christ just finished
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  teaching His own, but upon meditation it makes complete
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  sense. Let me remind you, because we
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  had a break last week and the week before where we left off,
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  Jesus finished saying there in verse 37, whoever receives one
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  such child in my name receives me.
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  Whoever receives me receives not me but him who sent me.
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  In other words, however you treat the most insignificant,
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  vulnerable weak among believers, you essentially are doing it to
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  me the way you treat other Christians.
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  Jesus is saying, in essence, is the way you are treating me.
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  And then all of a sudden, John seems to just bring up something
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  that doesn't make sense as a response to what Jesus just
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  finished explaining. He seems to reach back to a
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  recent episode, and he's asking Jesus for some clarity.
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  A teacher. We saw someone who was trying to
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  cast a demon out in your name, but we stopped him.
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  We stopped him. Why would John bring that up?
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  What's the relevance? Here's the relevance.
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  He just heard Jesus saying. However you treat other
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  believers, you treat me. It seems like John has a very
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  tender conscience because he remembers something that just
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  took place. He remembers that the disciples
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  stopped, or in other words rejected somebody who claimed to
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  minister in the name of the Lord, and he wants to know
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  whether or not what they did was correct.
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  Did we mess up in light of what you're just saying now?
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  Jesus, did we mess up? And what we did with this
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  unnamed disciple, this person who was trying to serve you and
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  honor you and the Lord, we should thank God is going to
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  give a response to this. And the reason why we should
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  thank God for this response is because John's concern here
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  might be a concern for believers today, might be a problem that
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  some believers are dealing with today.
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  In what sense? While there is some serious
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  servants of Christ who don't know how they should relate or
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  identify with other believers who are not immediately in their
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  context of spiritual service or worship, those who are not
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  directly connected to their world, to the body of believers
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  that they serve with, how do I view others?
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  How do I relate to others who might not be part of my specific
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  expression of service and honor to the Lord Jesus Christ?
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  And there are a variety of reasons why people struggle with
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  that. But let me present to you one
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  simple struggle that some have. They have trouble admitting.
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  They have trouble admitting that God could be at work beyond
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  where they are involved. Or worse, worse, worse, worse.
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  You have some people who actually believe down deep
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  inside though they would not admit it and are convinced that
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  they have monopoly on God's power and favor in their arena
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  of influence. God is only really working here
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  at NBC, right? That kind of thinking, and it
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  can, it can be expanded to network of churches or
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  denominations that think that way.
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  We have the monopoly of God's wisdom, we have the monopoly on
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  God's favor, We have the monopoly on God's power.
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  And it can dwindle down to the individual believer who
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  constantly measures themselves up against other believers who
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  share in the same gifting that they have.
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  Maybe you do struggle with that. Maybe you don't.
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  Regardless, Jesus wants to give clarity of how we as believers
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  should identify and relate to other believers who might not be
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  closely related to your day-to-day or weekly spiritual
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  expressions of worship. Look what he says here in verse
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  39. But Jesus said, do not stop him,
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  do not stop him, For no one who does a mighty work in my name
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  will be able soon after work to speak evil of me.
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  In other words, what the Lord is saying here is that a person who
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  performs acts of mercy that are undeniably empowered by me
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  cannot at the same time testify against me.
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  What Jesus is trying to say is if you want to know who's on
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  your team, just look at the fruit.
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  Just look at the fruit. If you want to know who's on
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  your team, just look at the fruit.
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  Now, I'm fully aware that the same Jesus who said this is the
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  same Jesus who warned that on the final day you will have
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  many, not some. Every time I think about it, it
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  terrifies me. Many on that day who will stand
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  before the Lord and argue their innocence, argue their
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  righteousness based on the performance that they had on
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  earth and the resume that they had is quite impressive Prophecy
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  and the casting out of demons and supernatural endeavors.
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  And Jesus will also say in response, I don't know you, I
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  don't know you. Have we met before?
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  And I'm also aware that like the sons of Skeva and Axe, where
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  there are some who take the name of Jesus as a mere formula and
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  utilize it and do ministry in that name, though they are void
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  of the convictions that that name demands.
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  But what Jesus is saying about this unnamed man who was
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  attempting to cast out a devil and was stopped is that he was
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  no phony disciple. He was not a wolf in sheep's
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  clothing. Now Jesus is is defending him.
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  In a sense, Jesus is confessing that he was legitimate, and if
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  you look closer to what John is saying on behalf of the
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  disciples, you get a better idea of what he is dealing with.
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  The complaint that the disciples had against this outsider was
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  not about what this man believed.
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  It wasn't. Look again here in verse 38,
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  John said to him, Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons
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  in your name and we try to stop him.
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  Why? Because he was not following
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  who? Us.
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  He was not following us. Jesus.
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  He's not part of our group. He's not part of our spiritual
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  elite roster. Who does this man think he is to
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  have the approval and freedom to do ministry without us first,
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  guaranteeing it? He's not part of us God.
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  He's not part of us Lord. And so we attempted to stop him.
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  And Jesus says don't stop him. You made a mistake in doing
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  that. And this is so important to
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  determine because what the Lord is saying here is not a proof
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  text that we should partner with absolutely anybody just because
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  they bear the name Jesus. Regardless of what they believe.
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  Jesus is not giving an ecumenical defense.
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  Oh yeah, anybody who has a cross, anybody who claims to
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  believe in the Bible. Anybody who claims to believe in
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  Jesus and just just go along with them and and dismiss
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  everything else. That's not what Jesus is
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  teaching what Jesus is teaching based on John's own confession.
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  He's not following us, the Lord says.
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  And you perceiving other genuine Christians, be careful of seeing
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  them as competitors and rivals instead of partners and friends.
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  That's what Jesus is saying. Be careful looking at other
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  genuine believers and seeing them as opponents and seeing
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  them as challenges to you instead of seeing them as Co
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  laborers, though they may not be immediately associated with you.
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  This is what Jesus is conveying, and this is a wonderful place
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  for us to examine our own hearts.
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  We have a duty to look at the fruit of other people claim
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  Christ, other ministries? Other churches?
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  Do they have true fidelity? Are they truly honorable?
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  Do they truly submit to the word of God?
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  But what Jesus is saying here is also a warning, because if we're
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  not careful in the name of so many things like discernment, we
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  can end up actually fighting against other believers, when in
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  fact we should be working with them.
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  And the disciples are a perfect example of how that can happen.
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  Again, I told you, what's the real reason?
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  Here? They see that they're not
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  following them, but think about the context further.
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  How is it that they're thinking this way?
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  Well, they just finished doing what?
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  Why did Jesus teach about receiving Little children?
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  Receiving. Why do you teach about true
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  greatness? Because at the end of their
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  trip, the disciples were fighting amongst themselves
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  about what? Who's the greatest?
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  Who's the greatest? Now think about it.
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  If they're willing to fight each other, if they're willing to
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  bring down one another in order to exalt self, is it difficult
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  to understand that they're willing to actually fight others
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  outside of their own group? It's not difficult.
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  And so there's an issue of pride here, and it's spilling over
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  into other streams of ministry, other people of God.
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  But it's even deeper now. Think, think, think, think.
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  Even wider than that. What did they try stopping this
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  man from doing? Casting out a demon?
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  Remember, they're very specific. We saw this man trying to cast
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  out a demon, and we try to stop him.
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  Well, think again. The previous verses, when Jesus
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  came down with the close three descending from the Mount of
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  Transfiguration, he came to the disciples.
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  And the disciples failed to do what?
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  They failed to cast out a demon. They failed to cast out a demon.
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  Jesus teaches them about the power of faith and prayer.
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  They go on a trip, They're talking about themselves.
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  Who's the greatest? And John brings up this incident
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  where he says we saw somebody trying to cast out a demon and
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  we try to stop them. I suggest to you that in light
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  of all the evidence that we have up to this point, that the main
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  reason why these disciples try to stop this man was because
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  they were intimidated by him and they were jealous of him.
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  This man could do something we could not do.
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  This man was able to accomplish something that we could not
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  accomplish. So let's try to stop him.
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  This insecurities bubbling over and now is affecting others.
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  So let's pause from analyzing this historical moment and look
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  at our own selves. Can I ask you a question, my
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  beloved brother and sister? How do you respond to the
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  success of other Christians around you?
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  Often times when we hear about our relationship with other
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  believers and the need to check our hearts, it tends to be
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  overwhelmingly about the need to reflect in humility in light of
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  the failures and the mistakes of others.
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  And that's important. We need to we need to be gentle.
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  We need to be kind. We can't be puffed up.
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  But how often do we hear of the need to check our hearts in
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  light of the inspirationally successful and spiritual people
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  around us that are very fruitful, that are very loved,
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  that are very much praised and sought after?
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  What does our heart feel about those kind of believers?
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  That's what the Lord is getting at here.
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  And the disciples need to deal with this very quickly.
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  Because if we don't deal with this in our own hearts, if we do
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  struggle with insecurity, if we do struggle with jealousy, if we
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  begin to see people that God is using amongst us as opponents
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  rather than partners, you know what that will end up doing.
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  If it's unhinged, if it's not combated with truth and the
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  power of the Holy Spirit like the disciples in some way, you
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  will stop it. It will so irritate you, it will
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  so eat you up inside that if you're not careful, it will go
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  from a feeling to actually friction.
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  And so I don't know how the disciples try to stop this man.
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  I don't know if they just interrupted the whole thing and
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  said you got to stop this, You're not part of us.
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  And down deep inside, the real motive of this correction is
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  this guy's bothering me because he did something we couldn't do.
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  You know how people can do this today?
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  They can do it in many ways. It can be as seemingly innocent
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  as you and I criticizing a ministry, criticizing a brother,
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  sister, and the Lord in our own church.
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  Criticizing them to others as a way of diminishing the
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  reputation in order for us to look better.
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  And it can be as aggressive as making moves to disqualify
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  others from ministry so that I no longer stand in the shadows
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  and I can now shine so that other people can see what they
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  fail to see and need in me. And I'm sure that you're aware
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  that there are many creative ways where we can stop something
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  or someone that God is blessing because we realize that we are
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  not the vehicle of blessing that God is using for his glory.
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  Disciples try to stop this man. What was the real reason?
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  It's so obvious. They're already dealing with
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  their own struggle. Who's the best?
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  And now there's somebody out there that's showing that they
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  can actually do what they could not do, and it killed them
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  inside. And Jesus said, don't stop him.
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  What are you doing? And one of the ways to combat
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  this, because we are all susceptible, even the greatest
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  servants of God, the most godly people, can be visited by this
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  temptation to look at others and to feel threatened by them.
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  But how do I combat that? How do I deal with that?
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  How do I rescue myself from envy, determining my behavior
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  and determining the depths of relationships I could enjoy,
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  instead severing those relationships?
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  I think one of the ways to do it is to is to see people the way
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  Jesus sees people. Look what he says in verse 41.
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  For truly I say to you, whoever gives you a cup of water to
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  drink because you belong to Christ will by no means lose his
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  reward. So again the Lord is re
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  emphasizing and revisiting what he taught.
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  Before John bring up this scenario and he's saying let me
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  remind you again of what true greatness is in the Kingdom of
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  God. But but it's more than that.
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  I believe the Lord is communicating something even
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  deeper because he says, for truly, I say to whoever gives
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  you, whoever gives you disciples a cup of water to drink because
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  you belong to Christ. Let's just pause there.
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  I love that phrase. You belong to Christ.
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  These disciples are so stubborn. They're so slow and learning.
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  They're so irritable in a sense, just like you and I.
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  And yet Jesus, even in this moment, says you belong to
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  Christ. You still belong to me.
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  You know you're not getting it, but you still belong to me,
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  loving parents. You know what that feels like
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  with your children, do you not? You don't abandoned them and
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  disown them because they're not getting it right away, even
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  after months or years. Here's the Lord saying
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  indirectly you belong to me. If you struggle in this area,
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  realize that God is merciful even to you and gracious towards
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  you. But he says here, for truly I
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  say to Whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you
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  belong to Christ will by no means lose His reward.
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  Hey, you try to stop a man for casting out a demon.
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  I'm telling you, never mind that extravagant thing that even if
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  somebody comes and gives you a cold glass of water on a hot
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  Middle Eastern day, I will see that servant and I will keep in
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  mind I have to reward him. It shows the absolute value that
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  Jesus has for all of his servants.
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  It shows how he views all of his service.
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  Significant in the human standard.
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  Insignificant according to human standard.
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  Casting out demons or giving out glasses of water and cleaning
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  the tables in the basement after fellowship.
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  I see them and I will reward them.
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  Wow. And the impression that's
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  supposed to make on us is, how am I supposed to comfortably
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  live with the idea that this servant of God is a threat to me
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  or my opponent when Jesus values them so much, when he esteems
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  them so much, when he thinks so highly of them, when he will
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  reward them? Do you want to know how you can
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  save yourself from relational pain and allowing your problems
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  internally because of a lack of approval in your own life and
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  your own upbringing? Or whatever the case may be?
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  Ask God. Take the word, staple it over
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  your eyebrows and may His mercy help you see people the way
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  Jesus sees people. You know, I read a verse.
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  I was reading First Corinthians not too long ago, and there was
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  a verse that stood out to me. And it's it's a it's not even
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  the full verse. It's the last part of a verse
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  that changed me. That's what the word of God is
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  supposed to do, right? It just touched me and
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  ministered to me. It impacted me on that one
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  Tuesday afternoon, just opening my Bible on my desk.
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  Can I share it with you? Turn with me to 1st Corinthians
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  chapter 811. Here's what Paul is doing.
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  He's speaking to strong believers and weak believers.
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  The strong believers are those who understand their freedom in
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  Christ, and they understand we can go to the market and we can
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  buy food, that we're dedicated to idols because they're not
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  really gods and we can eat freely without our conscience
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  being disturbed. The weak believers are not like
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  that. You would think that the weak
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  believers are those who have that freedom and the strong
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  believers are those who are a little bit more meticulous.
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  You know, the weak believers, according to Paul, are those who
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  who see those kind of things, and it bothers them.
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  How can you be eating that food? It's halal, right?
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  How can you be doing that? That's dedicated to a false God.
• 23:01
  And Paul's, Paul's trying to bring some guidance here, right?
• 23:05
  He's trying to give some instruction.
• 23:06
  And what he wants to do is he's not coming down hard against the
• 23:10
  weak believers. He's speaking to the strong
• 23:11
  believers saying, hey, listen, you stronger believers, you have
• 23:15
  to understand that though you have these rights, there's a
• 23:16
  greater thing than your rights. And that's the law of love.
• 23:20
  It's a law of love. And so don't be a stumbling
• 23:22
  block for the weak believer. Don't do things in the name of
• 23:25
  your right that would cause their conscience to be pricked
• 23:28
  and for them to feel disturbed. And he says this phrase again.
• 23:35
  Why? To motivate the believers to
• 23:38
  live in the law of love, he says.
• 23:41
  And so by your knowledge, this weak person is destroyed.
• 23:45
  This is the phrase the brother for whom Christ died, the
• 23:53
  brother for whom Christ died. That phrase just ministered to
• 23:55
  me so deeply. You strong believers understand
• 23:58
  something the person that you're dealing with here, no matter
• 24:02
  what you feel about them, no matter what your criticism is,
• 24:07
  no matter how much they might be infringing on your spiritual
• 24:09
  rights, no matter what. I want you to frame how you deal
• 24:12
  with them, how you speak to them, how you respond them.
• 24:15
  In light of this, Jesus shed his blood for them.
• 24:22
  The eternal Son of God came into this world and paid a high price
• 24:25
  for that brother. Oh, you might not think highly
• 24:29
  of them. Oh, you might be much more prone
• 24:32
  and willing to speak down about them.
• 24:35
  But understand how Jesus values them.
• 24:38
  He bought them. If you really believe that, to
• 24:47
  see the great and heavenly value that Jesus places on that weak
• 24:52
  believer, yes, they might annoy you.
• 24:56
  Yes, they might cause you to be very much willing to vent to
• 25:00
  others about how annoying they are.
• 25:04
  But be careful. Jesus shed his blood for that
• 25:08
  brother. If they truly belong to Christ,
• 25:13
  if they truly have conviction, if they have fruit, yes, they
• 25:16
  have some weaknesses. Remember this.
• 25:19
  Christ bought them. When I saw that, I said Lord,
• 25:23
  Amazing. It's amazing what your Holy
• 25:26
  Spirit is trying to get in me. To see people the way Jesus sees
• 25:30
  them. That will change you.
• 25:35
  That will change you if you really believe it.
• 25:38
  So Jesus gives warning about how we as believers should serve
• 25:43
  with one another. Listen, we are all partners in
• 25:47
  this thing, yeah? And from time to time, as we're
• 25:49
  doing the work of the Lord, let me give you a heads up.
• 25:52
  You might step on somebody's tone.
• 25:53
  They might step on yours. Jesus shed his blood for them.
• 25:58
  Forgive them. Forgive them.
• 26:02
  Love them. Be patient with them.
• 26:05
  There is a cross that is stained with royal blood.
• 26:08
  And there are hands that were pierced and feet that were
• 26:10
  pierced and a side that was pierced for them.
• 26:14
  I hope we can see each other this way.
• 26:16
  Yeah, I hope. If not, may the Holy Spirit help
• 26:20
  us. We are walking in this thing
• 26:22
  together, moving forward together, needing one another.
• 26:26
  And the and the God of this Bible can so work in you and I
• 26:29
  that when somebody graduates, when somebody's promoted with
• 26:31
  somebody's praise, when other people praise them, you don't
• 26:33
  have to act like Saul. Saul had no problem with David.
• 26:38
  I mean, Saul even rejoiced that David killed Goliath.
• 26:40
  He loved it. All of Israel loved it.
• 26:42
  But according to Saul, Israel loved that a little bit too
• 26:44
  much, because the moment that the song started going out, what
• 26:47
  did they say? Saul has slaying his thousands,
• 26:50
  but David his what, 10s of thousands.
• 26:53
  You know your Old Testament. And Saul was bothered by that.
• 26:57
  I had no problem people praising David.
• 26:59
  But when they start praising David more than me, Oh yeah,
• 27:05
  people can love David. People can appreciate David.
• 27:07
  But if they love David and appreciate David and talk about
• 27:09
  David more than me, now we got a problem.
• 27:14
  That's flesh. That's flesh.
• 27:17
  That's not Holy Spirit. Holy Spirit is.
• 27:21
  Look at what God is doing in that person for his glory.
• 27:23
  Hallelujah. Do it more, Lord, do it more in
• 27:27
  them. And if I can have any part in
• 27:28
  it, let me do it as well. But Lord, if you're in your
• 27:30
  sovereignty, choosing them, gifting them, opening doors for
• 27:33
  them, then I say yes and Amen. That's Holy Spirit warning about
• 27:39
  serving how we serve with believers, how we serve God
• 27:43
  alongside believers. But now we come to warning about
• 27:47
  sinning. Put your seatbelts on verse 42.
• 27:54
  Whoever causes now, this is the second.
• 27:56
  Whoever. Jesus continuing his thought
• 27:58
  here, there's no break of thought.
• 27:59
  He's continuing based on this, based on this scenario that John
• 28:04
  presents. Whoever causes one of these
• 28:06
  little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him
• 28:09
  if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he was
• 28:12
  thrown into the sea. Now here's what's happening.
• 28:16
  In the same way that there is great reward reserved for those
• 28:21
  who do acts of service toward other believers, somebody gives
• 28:25
  you a cup of glass, a cup of water to another because you
• 28:28
  belong to Christ. There's reward for them.
• 28:29
  In the same way that there is great reward reserved for those
• 28:32
  who serve other believers in like manner, there is also great
• 28:37
  punishment reserved for those who sin against other believers.
• 28:45
  Jesus, in mentioning the little ones.
• 28:46
  He's not speaking about actual small children, Not primarily,
• 28:50
  at least. Little children is a picture of
• 28:54
  weak, vulnerable, trusting, sometimes newer believers.
• 29:03
  This is who Jesus has in mind primarily, and it says here that
• 29:07
  to be responsible for intentionally persuading.
• 29:10
  Listen to my words very carefully here.
• 29:12
  To be responsible for intentionally, intentionally
• 29:17
  persuading or causing another to stumble is highly offensive in
• 29:22
  the sight of God. So unacceptable is it in the
• 29:26
  sight of our holy God that for one to have a selfish or
• 29:30
  careless attitude about their sin and its effect on others,
• 29:37
  Christ said it would be worse to live in that kind of state and
• 29:43
  it would be better for you to actually die a horrific death.
• 29:48
  Not my words, The words of the Master, for somebody to cause
• 29:52
  one of his children to fall. It's better for you to tie a
• 29:58
  giant weight around your neck and to be launched into the
• 30:01
  heart of the ocean and to drown very strong language.
• 30:06
  And if anybody takes the words of of Jesus seriously at this
• 30:09
  point, they would want to know, well, how can I avoid the severe
• 30:13
  consequences that the Lord is alluding to?
• 30:16
  And that's a right response. And take heart, because the next
• 30:20
  few verses will spell out the solution to living free from
• 30:22
  this dreadful fate. Here's the summary.
• 30:26
  If you and I want to avoid leading others into
• 30:29
  unrighteousness, then you first have to eliminate the
• 30:32
  unrighteousness in yourself. If we want to be protected from
• 30:38
  being the reason why other people sin, then Jesus is about
• 30:41
  to explain and you got to deal with the sin in your own life
• 30:43
  first. So he gives us very, very common
• 30:46
  and familiar passage of strong Radical Exhortation verse 43.
• 30:52
  If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off.
• 30:57
  It is better for you to enter crippled, then with two hands to
• 31:02
  go to hell, to the unquenchable fire.
• 31:05
  And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off.
• 31:08
  It is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to
• 31:10
  be thrown into hell. And if your eye causes you to
• 31:14
  sin, tear it out. It is better for you to enter
• 31:17
  the Kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown
• 31:21
  into hell where the worm does not die and the fire is not
• 31:25
  quenched. Your hand, if it causes you to
• 31:29
  sin, slice it off your feet, amputate it your eye, pop it
• 31:37
  out, let it shrivel up and die. What's Jesus speaking about
• 31:43
  here? Self mutilation?
• 31:45
  Oh, you have some ancient church people who believe so.
• 31:48
  No, Jesus is speaking metaphorically here, of course.
• 31:51
  And the metaphor here is to illustrate the intensity and the
• 31:55
  drive and the inflamed ambition to go to war with your sin, and
• 32:03
  to identify and find the source of any temptation and to kill
• 32:08
  it. That's what Jesus is describing
• 32:11
  here. And he he takes his time to
• 32:14
  actually elaborate on these different body parts.
• 32:17
  Why? To communicate that we must look
• 32:20
  for all. We must scan every part of our
• 32:22
  lives to see What is it that's causing me to sin?
• 32:26
  What is it that's pulling me deeper Into Darkness and away
• 32:29
  from light? What is that thing?
• 32:31
  So here's how you can translate it.
• 32:33
  If there's anything that you are doing that's causing you to sin,
• 32:38
  cut it off. If there's anywhere that you're
• 32:40
  going that's causing you to sin, never go again.
• 32:44
  If there's anybody, this is probably the hardest one.
• 32:47
  If there's anybody that's constantly alluring you and
• 32:51
  tempting you with no sign of a tender heartedness towards your
• 32:55
  faith, your God, the truth, sever that relationship.
• 32:59
  If there's anything that you're eating, tasting, hearing,
• 33:02
  watching, that's entertaining sin in your life, more and more
• 33:10
  uproot it, throw it away and never turn back.
• 33:13
  This is what Jesus is speaking about.
• 33:15
  This is actually the call to discipleship.
• 33:18
  And you might want to What does that look like?
• 33:20
  What is that actually? How is that lived out?
• 33:24
  How do I live like that? And I thought of one example
• 33:27
  that came to my mind because I heard it far back.
• 33:30
  It was a man who was. I don't know if he was speaking
• 33:34
  out of this text, but the idea of what a true disciple looks
• 33:37
  like, and he gave this example of his own life where he said
• 33:40
  that he hates getting a haircut. I don't know what kind of
• 33:42
  experience he had for him to hate getting haircuts, but as an
• 33:45
  adult he hates getting haircuts. He he dreads it, he tries to
• 33:49
  prolong it as much as possible, and one day he has to go to a
• 33:52
  place. And it's not his usual place.
• 33:55
  The usual place he went to, it wasn't available.
• 33:56
  So he goes to this place and there's this young lady who
• 33:58
  offered to cut his hair. And so he's a married man.
• 34:01
  He has children, And he got his haircut.
• 34:02
  And he enjoyed a lovely conversation with this woman.
• 34:07
  And something happened to his heart because when he realized
• 34:09
  that he needed to get his hair cut again, he was actually
• 34:10
  really excited about it this time, really excited about it
• 34:14
  because he thought, you know, I can talk to this woman.
• 34:16
  I really enjoyed my conversation with this woman.
• 34:18
  So he goes again. And then from there, he
• 34:21
  developed this kind of friendly relationship.
• 34:23
  But now he's like, looking forward to getting his hair cut.
• 34:29
  And he realized something's wrong.
• 34:32
  Something's wrong here. I should not be feeling this way
• 34:36
  about someone who is not my wife.
• 34:39
  So you know what he did? He never got his haircut there
• 34:42
  again. He cut it off.
• 34:47
  If your hand causes you to sin, you cut it off.
• 34:51
  If your foot is causing you to sin, you cut it off.
• 34:54
  If your eyes causing you to sin, you pluck it out.
• 35:01
  That's just one example of many of what a true disciple does,
• 35:05
  and perhaps that was helpful. But maybe what's unclear to you
• 35:08
  and I is the caution here about hell.
• 35:10
  Hell is mentioned here because having a great millstone tied
• 35:14
  around your neck and being thrown into the sea is better
• 35:17
  than going to hell. Hell is a real place.
• 35:20
  Hell is a dreadful place. Hell is an eternal place.
• 35:22
  I know that liberal theologians would have you believe
• 35:26
  otherwise. No, no, no.
• 35:27
  Hell is real, Heaven is real, and hell is just as real.
• 35:31
  God created both and it is a place of unquenchable fire.
• 35:36
  It is a place of internal and external torment and is a place
• 35:40
  where God will express his eternal wrath and justice
• 35:43
  against those who have denied the gospel.
• 35:48
  That that's clear. We believe that is a church.
• 35:51
  But what again might be unclear is what does the warning about
• 35:55
  hell have to do with followers of Jesus Christ who have been
• 35:59
  saved by grace? Jesus is speaking to his
• 36:02
  disciples, and so some would use this as a proof text to say what
• 36:08
  you can lose your salvation. You can lose your salvation.
• 36:12
  Moment you lie, your name is erased, the book of life.
• 36:16
  And you do better that week, it's written back again.
• 36:19
  You get into a little scuffle or you get irritable because you
• 36:21
  didn't have breakfast and somebody's taking too long and
• 36:23
  you want to go out for lunch and so you throw a little tantrum
• 36:27
  and God forbid you get hit by now.
• 36:29
  You were saved before that, but now you're not saved.
• 36:33
  That's not salvation. That's not the power of the
• 36:36
  gospel. Not because I feel something
• 36:38
  about that truth. It's because I'm convinced that
• 36:41
  the truth says if he saved you, he's keeping you.
• 36:47
  What about the verse, though? What about the verse?
• 36:50
  There's a warning here. If you don't deal with sin,
• 36:54
  you're in danger of Hellfire. And I believe the best way to
• 36:59
  explain this is in this following thought.
• 37:03
  If someone does not have the radical attitude and approach in
• 37:07
  dealing with their sin and the way Jesus just described.
• 37:10
  If one is unbothered or unconcerned about leading other
• 37:14
  true followers of Christ away from the will of God, if their
• 37:17
  sorrow in their disobedience is merely for worldly reasons and
• 37:21
  God is not in the equation, then such a person may not be a
• 37:26
  believer to begin with. And that person, no matter what
• 37:32
  kind of creed they adhere to concerning the person of Jesus
• 37:35
  Christ, is in fact in danger of hell.
• 37:39
  You know what you learn from this?
• 37:40
  One of the strongest marks of a person who is truly born again
• 37:43
  of God. One of the strongest marks
• 37:46
  according to Jesus standard of the discipleship is this.
• 37:49
  That a true follower of Christ is known by how they view and
• 37:55
  how they tolerate sin in their daily lives.
• 38:00
  That's how you identify a true Christian.
• 38:02
  One of the main marks I present to you not what you say merely
• 38:07
  about Christ, not how much you like Christian worship music.
• 38:11
  No, no. The one of the strongest marks
• 38:13
  that you belong to Jesus. Don't tell me about Jesus.
• 38:17
  Let's talk about sin. Let's talk about your sin.
• 38:21
  Let's talk about sin. How do you feel about sin?
• 38:24
  What's your attitude towards sin?
• 38:27
  Show me the scars of you going to war with sin.
• 38:31
  Because Jesus said if you really belong to me, this is what you
• 38:36
  will live like. And yes, we stumble along the
• 38:40
  way and yes, we do miss make mistakes.
• 38:41
  So if you're hearing this and you said I've made mistakes with
• 38:43
  my hands, I've done wrong things with my feet, I have looked at
• 38:46
  things that I should not have looked at, that's possible for a
• 38:50
  Christian to do. The case that I am making here
• 38:53
  is what's your attitude toward it, though?
• 38:58
  What does it make you feel? What does it do in here?
• 39:02
  That's what makes a difference. And so if you can say with
• 39:05
  confidence now I hate my sin. I want to go to war with sin.
• 39:09
  Why? Because I love my Lord more than
• 39:11
  anything. I want to honor him and worship
• 39:13
  him. He saved me.
• 39:14
  How can I drink from this cup when he himself drank the cup of
• 39:19
  wrath on behalf of my soul? How can I?
• 39:23
  And even in those seasons where you might struggle and you feel
• 39:25
  weak in your spirit, down deep inside, you know this is not
• 39:29
  where I'm supposed to be. A person who's not a Christian
• 39:32
  doesn't think like that. A person who's not a Christian
• 39:36
  can even hear a message like this.
• 39:37
  And you have plans to send this week and nothing is going to
• 39:41
  stop you. You have every reason to be
• 39:45
  fearful. Because if you don't seek to go
• 39:51
  to war with sin that visits you or a limb tries to grow again
• 39:55
  and drive you into another direction.
• 39:56
  If and you see that you're saying, oh, you're back again,
• 39:58
  I'm going to war with you once more until I give my dying
• 40:01
  breath. You have every reason to sit
• 40:03
  back and tremble right there. The message of hell, Where did
• 40:11
  it go? I've had people tell me.
• 40:15
  Not too many people, but people still who have told me, you
• 40:17
  know. I want to be using hell too much
• 40:20
  to motivate people. Hey, hey.
• 40:24
  I'm not coming. Do you think?
• 40:25
  I just came up here, so you know, I think I'm going to talk.
• 40:27
  This is Jesus. This is Jesus.
• 40:30
  Clearly, Jesus knows something more than you.
• 40:35
  For him to speak about hell as a motivator, to pursue salvation
• 40:40
  and to pursue holiness in Christ.
• 40:42
  Who? What did Jesus save you and I
• 40:45
  from? A lonely life.
• 40:50
  A prosperous life as a result of your salvation.
• 40:54
  A disease free life. What did Jesus?
• 40:58
  Jesus saved you from hell. He saved you from hell.
• 41:05
  People will be going to hell if they don't repent and believe
• 41:10
  so. I have every right.
• 41:10
  I know we like to put hell in the peripheral of our thinking.
• 41:13
  And like, yeah, we're orthodox Christians, so we have to
• 41:15
  mention it. No, no, I like to think about it
• 41:18
  because I know Jesus saved me from it.
• 41:20
  I'm delivered for I have all the more reason not to rejoice.
• 41:23
  He saved me from my sin. He did save me from a lonely
• 41:25
  life. He did save me from a life
• 41:28
  that's void of purpose. He did.
• 41:29
  But he also saved me from eternal punishment.
• 41:32
  And I'll put an extra note to your singing, extra strength in
• 41:37
  your voice. I'm safe from wrath.
• 41:40
  I'm safe from separation from God's glorious and loving
• 41:42
  presence. So Jesus says here this is what
• 41:49
  a true disciple looks like. And then he concludes something
• 41:53
  with something quite interesting, one that has caused
• 41:55
  much of debate in terms of interpretation.
• 41:57
  Look at verse 49 for everyone will be salted with fire.
• 42:03
  Now if you have the King James, the new King James, it would
• 42:05
  read with an addition that yes, everyone will be salted with
• 42:09
  fire, but that that there will also be a seasoning of salt on
• 42:12
  sacrifices. Something along those lines.
• 42:14
  And the reason why the ESV and the NASB omit that phrase
• 42:18
  whereas the King James and the new King James includes it, is
• 42:21
  because those two word for word translations, right?
• 42:25
  People ask what's the best translations get the translation
• 42:28
  that seeks to translate the closest thing to the original
• 42:32
  language. You have word and paraphrase,
• 42:35
  translations, NIVNLT, and then there are word for word
• 42:39
  translations, ESVNASV, King James, New King James.
• 42:43
  And why am I doing this? Because the ESV and the NASB,
• 42:47
  they're getting their source of manuscriptal evidence and
• 42:51
  translation from a different family of manuscripts, some that
• 42:54
  are much older than the ones that the King James and the new
• 42:57
  King James derived from two different families of
• 43:00
  manuscripts. Well, do we have contradictions
• 43:02
  here? No, just slight variations of
• 43:04
  certain verses, including this one.
• 43:06
  Nothing that will deal with doctrinal major foundational
• 43:09
  truths. I argue that even if you have
• 43:13
  the ESV, which we preach from, you can still come out with the
• 43:16
  same understanding that you would if you have the King James
• 43:18
  of the new King James. What does Jesus mean when he
• 43:22
  says for everyone will be salted with fire?
• 43:25
  Well, let's deal with the context.
• 43:27
  Up to this point, he's been talking about hell with
• 43:29
  unquenchable fire, eternal fire. So the fire he's speaking about
• 43:34
  here cannot be disassociated with the judgment.
• 43:38
  OK, that's clear. So is Jesus saying everybody is
• 43:41
  going to hell for everyone will be salted with fire.
• 43:47
  Well, can't mean that. Then we're all in trouble.
• 43:49
  Let's pack up and go home. What helps is verse 50 where he
• 43:55
  says salt is good, salt is good. But if the salt has lost its
• 43:59
  saltiness, how will you make it salty again?
• 44:02
  Have salt in yourselves and be at peace with one another.
• 44:05
  So the salted with fire here in verse 49 does mean everyone will
• 44:11
  be salted with fire. But with what kind of fire?
• 44:16
  There is a fire of unquenchable eternal judgment.
• 44:20
  But clearly in Jesus. Next thought.
• 44:22
  Next point in describing the quality of life of believers.
• 44:25
  There is a salting with fire. Listen very carefully.
• 44:29
  That is purging and purifying. It's a purging and purifying
• 44:35
  fire that as a result of that work creates in you a new inner
• 44:41
  and even outer substance. So there's no neutrality, right?
• 44:47
  Everyone is going to be salted with fire in the same way that
• 44:51
  there's no neutrality in where you stand with Jesus Christ.
• 44:53
  Let me remind you here, verse 40.
• 44:55
  Go back to verse 40 quickly. For the one who is not against
• 44:58
  us is for us. No middle, huh?
• 45:02
  No. Yeah.
• 45:03
  Jesus is a nice guy. OK?
• 45:04
  Is he Lord? No, He's.
• 45:05
  No, no, no, you're you're against him.
• 45:08
  Oh, Jesus is a prophet. But Jesus is a good teacher.
• 45:12
  OK? Are you for him or are you
• 45:14
  against him? There's nothing in between.
• 45:15
  There's no third option. There's no neutrality with the
• 45:17
  person of Christ. I'm either on his side or I'm
• 45:20
  against him. No matter how nice you are about
• 45:22
  him, he has determined the standard of which you are for
• 45:25
  him, and anything outside of that standard, you're against
• 45:28
  him automatically. None.
• 45:29
  My rules, The rules of the perfect Lord.
• 45:35
  Everyone will be salted with fire.
• 45:38
  Everyone. Everyone.
• 45:39
  And the one will be salted with eternal fire for the rejection
• 45:43
  of Christ. The other is for those who have
• 45:46
  received Christ and their inheritance.
• 45:48
  Is that the Holy Spirit does a burning work in you.
• 45:54
  He melts and molds and cleanses and purifies.
• 45:58
  And the result of that burning work is that you become
• 46:02
  something else. And one of the things that you
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  and I are is salt. Salt.
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  He continues this metaphor with salt.
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  Salt is good. But if the salt has lost its
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  saltiness. Jesus taught about you and I in
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  the Sermon on the Mount. We know it.
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  We have teachers about it, we've memorized it.
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  It's second nature, almost, or true nature.
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  You are the salt of the earth. You are the light of the world.
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  Salt light. Same idea.
• 46:32
  Are you speaking about believers?
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  Being salt. But as much as you and I inherit
• 46:37
  this life of being salt in the world, which means that there's
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  a preventative power, there's a healing power, There's a
• 46:43
  flavoring power, there's a responsibility on our end.
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  Yes, we received that because he has salted us.
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  But we have a responsibility because, look what he says.
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  If the salt has lost its saltiness, it's possible for me
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  as a believer to lose those properties, those heavenly
• 47:04
  properties that make me who I am as a Christian.
• 47:07
  Then he goes on to say, have salt in yourselves.
• 47:10
  So are you commanding me to do something that's outside of my
• 47:12
  power? By the grace of God, he helps
• 47:15
  you. But I have a conscious decision
• 47:16
  to make. As a believer, I am to be a
• 47:18
  salty person. Not in the negative sense.
• 47:23
  I am to be a salty person. So you've heard it, Christians.
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  I'm ending here. You've heard it your whole life.
• 47:29
  If you've been a believer your whole life, you are the salt of
• 47:32
  the earth. You're the light of the world.
• 47:34
  And we, we know the the interesting studies about here's
• 47:37
  what salt does, naturally speaking, here's what light
• 47:39
  does. And then we parallel that with
• 47:40
  spiritual truth. Wonderful, but have you ever
• 47:43
  asked a question? But what does it actually mean
• 47:45
  to be solved? I know what Real Salt does, and
• 47:50
  you can make clever points of what that translate into
• 47:52
  spiritually, as Christians we heal the world.
• 47:54
  As Christians we prevent the world from erosion as that's.
• 47:57
  But what does it look like? Like how has it lived out?
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  Have you ever thought what Jesus is about to say?
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  Because Jesus here explains one of the qualifiers, one of the
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  realities of what it means to be solved.
• 48:11
  Have it? Has it ever come to your mind
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  and your interpretation of what it means to be the salt of the
• 48:15
  earth? You ready for this?
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  Have salt in yourselves and be at peace?
• 48:21
  Be at peace with one another? What does it mean to be salt?
• 48:26
  Be holy? You don't swear.
• 48:27
  You don't do this. That's what it means to be salt.
• 48:30
  Being salt means many things. You know what Jesus has in mind
• 48:33
  in describing what it means to be salt?
• 48:34
  Out of all the things he could have said, being at peace with
• 48:40
  one another, what makes Christians salt?
• 48:45
  How we deal with one another. That's that's what makes the
• 48:50
  world say, wow, there's flavor here.
• 48:54
  Wow, there's healing here. Wow.
• 48:56
  There's preservation here. Wow.
• 48:59
  There's something different here.
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  How is it measured? Being at peace with one another?
• 49:06
  So we have a full circle here, do we not?
• 49:08
  You have the disciples fighting one another.
• 49:10
  And there's another. Guy's like let's get him.
• 49:11
  Hey, you cast a demon. We couldn't.
• 49:13
  But you know what? You're not part of us.
• 49:14
  That's the reason why you can't do ministry.
• 49:15
  And Jesus brings into full circle.
• 49:17
  Hey, disciples, you've been called to be salt.
• 49:21
  You want to know how you're going to be effective as salt.
• 49:23
  Get along. Get along now.
• 49:27
  Here's we can go into the next hour which I will not do to you
• 49:31
  to talk about what it means and how it is that we can be at
• 49:33
  peace with one another. Look at us here.
• 49:35
  I mean, I rejoice every time I come here.
• 49:36
  Every single time. The different faces, the
• 49:38
  different colors of skin, the different backgrounds, the
• 49:41
  different ages. It's amazing here.
• 49:43
  This is really a miracle. How is it that we can gather
• 49:45
  here with all the variety and get along?
• 49:50
  Because we're here under the banner of the Lord Jesus Christ
• 49:53
  that's why. But let's get practical here,
• 49:55
  because even people under the banner of what do they do?
• 49:57
  They step on each other's toes and they're intimidated by one
• 50:00
  another and oh, you're doing this.
• 50:01
  And I know. Let's turn to James.
• 50:06
  In closing, I'll give you a summation of how we can know
• 50:09
  perpetual peace. And as a result of perpetual
• 50:11
  peace, we can know saltiness and true witness in this very
• 50:16
  depraved age. James and James Chapter 3 and
• 50:30
  this has come up recently in our Bible study.
• 50:32
  That's why I opened up with how I opened up, because this will
• 50:36
  be very familiar to those who attend on Fridays.
• 50:39
  I brought this up recently and perhaps the Lord wants us to
• 50:43
  hear it again. Look here at verse 17.
• 50:48
  But the wisdom from above is first what word do you see?
• 50:53
  Pure. Pure is first pure, then.
• 50:57
  Now look what happens as a result of purity.
• 51:00
  The next thing following pure is then what?
• 51:04
  Peaceable. Peaceable.
• 51:06
  So James is describing the fruit of heavenly wisdom.
• 51:10
  And the first thing that he says is that heavenly wisdom will
• 51:12
  produce in you as a believer, Purity, purity.
• 51:15
  And then following purity. Notice what he says.
• 51:18
  Peaceable. It's peaceable.
• 51:21
  Not just internal peace, but relational peace.
• 51:24
  You ready for this? How can I know?
• 51:26
  Peace? Please pay attention, please.
• 51:30
  How can I know peace in my marriage?
• 51:32
  How can I know peace in my friendships?
• 51:35
  How can I know peace with my relatives?
• 51:37
  How can I know peace in my church, in the ministries that
• 51:42
  are part of, in my church, with the church as all?
• 51:44
  How, how, how, how, How? You need purity.
• 51:50
  You need purity. You can't have peace unless
• 51:54
  there's purity. So what do you mean purity?
• 51:56
  Like sexual purity, modesty, honesty, the purity that James
• 52:05
  has in mind is the opposite of what he describes in verse 16.
• 52:09
  Look at verse 16 for where jealousy and selfish ambition
• 52:16
  exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice that's
• 52:21
  the opposite of peace. So the purity that James has in
• 52:26
  mind is that which is in us, that is void of jealousy and
• 52:31
  selfish ambition. That's what purity is according
• 52:34
  to James in this context. So how can I know peace in my
• 52:37
  marriage? How can I know peace in my
• 52:39
  church? How can I know peace in my
• 52:40
  business partnerships? How can I know peace?
• 52:42
  How can I know peace? Well, all the parties involved
• 52:45
  have to be free from jealousy and selfish ambition.
• 52:54
  You have to be free from that. It's an attitude thing.
• 52:57
  It's an outlook thing. It's a thing just like the
• 52:59
  disciples who are what? Struggling with the very things
• 53:01
  James is talking about, selfish ambition and jealousy and Jesus.
• 53:07
  Like, hey, you're supposed to be at peace with one another.
• 53:10
  That's what makes you salt in the earth.
• 53:13
  And you know how that peace is achieved.
• 53:14
  You got to get that thing out of you.
• 53:17
  You got to be cleansed from this ambition.
• 53:20
  Self seeking, self exalting, self praising, self loving
• 53:24
  attitude that has to die and listen when that dies.
• 53:29
  When we crucify that in our own hearts, day by day, day by day,
• 53:32
  by the power of the Holy Spirit, you know what we receive as a
• 53:35
  result. The reward of that peace.
• 53:39
  Peace. You want to talk about church
• 53:42
  split? You want to talk about church
• 53:43
  friction? A lot of the times it's not
• 53:45
  because of doctrinal issues. Those are legitimate reasons to
• 53:48
  have confrontation. Most of it is about selfish
• 53:53
  reasons, personal preferences, issues about this and that.
• 53:57
  You did this, you did that, and things are destroyed.
• 54:00
  There's no peace. I'll tell you why there's no
• 54:03
  peace because there's no purity. And you know what the beauty
• 54:07
  about this wisdom is that James talks about, that results in
• 54:11
  purity, that results in peace and gentleness, and open to
• 54:13
  reasons full of mercy. When you go back to verse five
• 54:16
  of chapter one, if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God.
• 54:26
  Lord, I'm honest enough to say before you that as a servant of
• 54:28
  yours, I have not taken heed about your warning of how I
• 54:33
  should serve and serve with other believers.
• 54:37
  It's because I have these issues.
• 54:39
  Can you give me this wisdom that gives me this purity, that gives
• 54:44
  me this peace? That's what this is all about.
• 54:51
  These disciples who wanted to be effective and wanted to be great
• 54:55
  would not be able to go very far because they didn't have salt in
• 54:58
  themselves. And why didn't they have salt?
• 55:00
  Because they didn't have peace. And why didn't they have peace?
• 55:02
  Because they lacked purity. This can save your marriage.
• 55:07
  This can save your marriage. Both parties need to be pure,
• 55:13
  free from jealousy, free from selfish ambition.
• 55:15
  This can save your friendships. This is why is there always
• 55:19
  tension and drama in your friendships.
• 55:21
  Probably because there's lack of purity in it somewhere.
• 55:24
  At one party or both not being pure.
• 55:26
  Same with the church. May God preserve us.
• 55:29
  May God cleanse us. May God heal us.
• 55:31
  Do you receive like this? Listen, don't get down.
• 55:34
  Be excited. Wow, peace is possible, but it
• 55:38
  can only come from purity. Can we ask God for this purity
• 55:44
  in our ministries? And again, our marriages and our
• 55:46
  friendships and our businesses? Lord, please.
• 55:50
  We've heard your warning about serving and about sinning.
• 55:54
  And if you're in this place and you don't have the strong
• 55:57
  confidence that yes, I have this radical attitude toward my sin,
• 56:02
  I hate my sin. I loathe my disobedience.
• 56:05
  Then ask the Lord to change your heart.
• 56:07
  Ask the Lord to open your eyes. Ask the Lord to see how
• 56:11
  beautiful and awesome He is. That would make everything else
• 56:14
  seem so disgusting and evil in light of His Majesty.
• 56:19
  Father, as a church, we've heard your word, and we sincerely pray
• 56:24
  right now, no matter how tired or hungry we might be.
• 56:27
  In this moment, we give you our reverence and prayer, and we
• 56:30
  ask, Lord, help us be salt, Strengthen the purity of this
• 56:37
  Church. Help us be at peace with one
• 56:40
  another. Help us.
• 56:40
  Never forget that the way to peace is purity, and the way to
• 56:44
  that purity is you depositing a way of thinking known as wisdom.
• 56:50
  Lord, we rejoice in you and we want to be more like you.
• 56:54
  And that's our request and praying.
• 56:56
  Change us deeply. Do surgery in US whatever needs
• 56:59
  to happen for us to be more like your son.
• 57:02
  We thank you, Lord, for this time as a family.
• 57:05
  We give you glory and thanks in Jesus name.
• 57:07
  Amen. Amen.
• 57:08
  Church, let's stand. Let's worship this God.
• 57:11
  And if you need to even pray, say, Lord, I heard you, I want
• 57:15
  to be more like you. Please do that work.
• 57:17
  And I want to leave here different.
• 57:19
  He's here. He hears us.
• 57:20
  He's a good God. You belong to Christ.
• 57:24
  You belong to Him. He doesn't give up on us in our
• 57:26
  weakness. He keeps us and perfects his
• 57:30
  work in US.