Let's take our Bibles once again
and turn with me to the book of Proverbs, chapter 13. Proverbs 13. I'd like to look
this morning at 1, verse 20. Proverbs 13, 20. says, he that walketh with wise
men shall be wise, but a companion of fools shall be destroyed. Every man, every woman born into
this world comes into this life with one particular attitude. There's an attitude that is common
to all men. And according to Ephesians 2.2, that course of life is revealed
like this. All men walk according to the
course of this world, according to the prince of the power of
the air. Everybody, what the Apostle Paul
was saying there, under the inspiration of God's Spirit, they walk, or
they live, or they follow after, or they're occupied with a particular
manner of life. That's what he's talking about.
They walk according to the customs and the manner of this world. Everybody thinks alike as they're
born in Adam. They have the world's care, the
world's temptations that they succumbed to the desires of this
world. Men by nature are all desired, hung up. This is just the nature. They're all concerned with the
temple. I know men will not say that. They'll say, well no, men are
concerned with eternal things. Everybody that goes to church,
they're concerned with going to heaven. When they die, they
don't want to go to hell. No, they're not. No, they're not. They're concerned. with the temporal, because, well,
just the last verse of scripture, we just looked at it. When the
Lord says, labor not for the meat that perishes, men say that
they're concerned with eternity. But the source of what they rest
in is still temporal. It's still something that they
need. Man is concerned with only right now. according to the course of this
world. According to the prince of the
power of the air. Not that Satan has got control
over the weather. You know, you've heard, there's
two struggles. Well, it's one struggle between
two entities, they say. God has got his desire to do
men good and Satan's got his desires to do men evil and they're
just always in a battle and they're just struggling. I may have told you about somebody
wrote me an email the other day. I get emails periodically. Most of them encouraging. But
this one wasn't. I was being reprimanded. This
person said, I just can't see how you can continue to set forth
that Satan is a roaring lion going about seeking whom he may
devour. When the scripture clearly sets
forth that Satan is bound in chains for a thousand years in
the bottomless pit. And I just wrote him back. I
just told him, I said, thank you for your comments. I thanked
him because it made me have to think again on the wonder of
God's grace that Satan truly is bound. Not in a physical chain. Chains of darkness. Bound. And when scripture says bound
for a thousand years, I'll just remind you. We looked at that
in the book of Revelation. It says, and he is bound for
a thousands of years. A word that is set forth, He's
eternally bound, is what it's saying. Bound from being able
to stop God Almighty from doing that which Almighty God is eternally
purposed to do. That's what Satan is bound in.
He's bound from being able to prevent the Lord of Glory from
calling His people out of darkness, God's people are brought unto
the sound of the gospel of God's grace. The only message, and
I've said that, you know, people say, do you believe that the
Lord saves under any other message? No. No. I mean, so many scriptures. If any man preached any other
message than that, any other gospel than that which you preached
unto him, let it be a curse. As I said before, even so say
I now again. I'm not ashamed of the gospel.
It's the power of God. The gospel that's able to make
you wise, these scriptures on salvation. No, there isn't. There's no other message except
one message. And it's the message that gives
all honor, glory, and praise unto the Lord Jesus Christ. Coming to Him. And not coming
to anything else that we could do. It's not by works of righteousness
that we've done. It's according to His mercy that
He saved us. Is there any other message? No.
There's no other message. Is there a struggle going on
with God desperately trying to save His life? All that the Father
giveth me shall come to me. And Him that cometh to me, I
will in no wise cast out. Well, didn't that just settle
your heart? Do you know what that causes us to do? It causes the
believer to say, Lord, tell me that one more time. I struggle
so much with hearing that, struggling. Oh, man, want me to not believe
that? Tell me one more time. A believer
says, I'd like to savor that bread one more time. I'd like
to drink of that cup one more time. Bring that to my mind again,
just bless that to my heart. Man by nature is born walking
contrary to that thought. Man wants some honor, he wants
a little bit of glory. He walks, the scripture says,
according to the prince of the power of this air. Walking around,
right now. He's here. God, He's here. The Lord of Glory is here. You
see, Satan is here. The Scripture says forth, Job
1, 6 and 7, There was a day when the sons of God came to present
themselves before the Lord. We're here today. the sons of
God. And Satan came also among them.
And the scripture reveals that there was a conversation that
was going on in the midst of an assembly. And the Lord said unto Satan,
Which comest thou? And Satan answered the Lord and
said, From going to and fro in the earth, And walking up and
down in it, Satan has yet to be cast into
the left side. And contrary to popular belief,
he is going to die as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. But I will tell you this, he
is not going to eternally devour God's people. But he now works in the minds
of an unregenerate. The scripture sets forth concerning
Satan and being in this earth. Revelation 12, 7 and 9, there
was a war in heaven. Now you think about that. There was rebellion in heaven?
Yes, there was. Michael and his angels fought
against the dragon, and the dragon fought with his angels and prevailed
not. He never shied. Neither was there
a place found anymore in heaven, and the great dragon was cast
out. An old serpent called the devil, and Satan, which deceiveth
the whole world. He was cast out into the earth,
and his angels were cast out with him. So until the Holy Spirit is pleased
to call a sinner against Almighty God out of spiritual darkness
into the glorious light of the Lord Jesus Christ, that sinner,
according to Leviticus 26.21, walks contrary before Almighty
God. Now, this is where the Lord is
going to bring a man and bring a woman, and He's going to teach
them. But you're lost. Without Christ, a man is in rebellion
against God. Men will say, I'm not in rebellion.
Yes, you are. All of us are. Without Christ,
men walk contrary. without Christ, unregenerated,
walks with a hostile attitude. That's what contrary means. He's
hostile against the Lord. He will not hearken to the Lord. He will not hear. And I'll tell you the fastest
way. You may not see it at first, but I'm telling you that until
the Lord gives a man or a woman a heart with the gospel of God's
free grace, They hate it. They may not say it openly at
first, but in time they will. They hate God being silent. They hate God being the ruler. They hate God on the throne.
They want God to be a Well, I'm going to live rebelling. Well, I'm not really rebelling,
but they say I am. And before I die, I'm going to
give my heart to Jesus. And I'm going to straighten up
and fly right. But I'm just not ready. I'm just not ready. I had a lady
tell me the other day. She said, you know what? Invite
her to come. I said, why don't you come? Why
don't you come sit? Why don't you listen? Well, she said, I've
just never really been into that religious stuff. But for the grace of God one
day you will. One day. Man by nature thinks I'm going
to live forever. No you're not. Not in this world. Yeah you'll live forever. But
not in this world. Man walks in rebellion. He will
not hearken. He walks with a darkened understanding,
dead, the Scripture says, alienated from the life of God through
the ignorance that's in him because of the blindness of his heart. Oh, but for all that the Lord
everlastingly loved. The Scripture says forth, For
those that He looked upon in mercy and grace and compassion. That song we just sang, Gary,
where He chose Christ, that was His first act. There, He chose
us in Him. All of God's people chose Him.
before the foundation of the Lord at one time. And truly,
we were born into grief. I can read some of these old
writers. Isaac Watts wrote that song. I don't know exactly when Isaac
Watts lived. Neil, you probably do. A long
time ago. And I'm reading something and
I'm thinking, you know what? That's just exactly what I'm
thinking. I believe what he's preaching out there. Robert Hawker,
John Gill, Scott Richardson, all these departed saints. What do we have in common? The
Lord's given them the life of Christ. And you believe that.
You say, that's what I believe. I believe in Almighty God. Those
that the Lord has given a heart for. He turns that man. turns him from darkness. Jeremiah
31, 18, Thou hast chastened me, and I was chastened. Oh, it's
like he's thanking the Lord. You turned me from revenge, and
I was revengeous, as a bullock, unaccustomed to the yoke. Turn
Thou me, and I shall be turned, for Thou art the Lord. They're so thankful. They're
so excited. You sit and you listen to the
gospel and you think, I'm so glad I'm here. I'm so... Lord, You chase me. You taught me. Taught me what
I am in nature, by nature and Adam. brought me unto the Scriptures,
the Gospel. It gave me life in Christ. I
walked contrary to this before the unbeliever. Oh, he'll get
a little, every once in a while, he'll get a little awkward. But I need to tell you quickly,
Everything else, make everything else a second fiddle to this. You let Almighty God give a man
a heart, give a woman a heart, and I'm telling you, everything
else is a second fiddle. Oh, I can't do that. I'm going to go worship God.
I'm going to be where God's honored. I'm going to be where Christ
is preached. I will seek first the kingdom
of God and His righteousness. And all these other things that
we added to me, according to the Lord's good pleasure. Lord,
you turn and I'll be turned. May wives are the salvation,
faith that is in Christ. So now, the objects of God's
mercy, those who Once walked in that spirit of lasciviousness,
lust, excess of wine, falsehood, revelings, bankruptcies, abominable
idolatries. Now they walk, as John the Apostle
greatly rejoiced in, in truth. As we've received a commandment
of the Father. Let me tell you how a believer
He walks. He thinks. He's sitting here
and he's always struggling. He's struggling. Always struggling
with the nature of that old man that's still there. He's always
struggling with it. But I'll tell you what he's doing,
too, because there's a new man that's there. And that new man
believes God. That new man does not sin. That
new man, sin is not. That which is born of God, sin
is not. Here's a man, the Scripture says, created in righteousness
and true holiness in Christ. Does it sin? Here's another man
over here, and he does nothing but rebel against God. He does
nothing but rebel against God. Contrary. Fighting all the time.
Struggling all the time. Tore up all the time. You get
relieved. You know what I'm talking about. While he's struggling, you know
that heart of stone, the Lord said, I'll remove it from being
on the throne. I'll remove it. It doesn't rule. It doesn't rule in your life
anymore. Let me tell you what happens. Because that old nature
doesn't dominate, that new man, I'll tell you what he does. Everything
in his life, Everything in his life now is
governed in light of Christ. Everything he thinks, he detects
inconsistent thoughts. You don't have to tell a believer
when he's inconsistent. He knows it. He knows exactly. He governs. Everything is governed. Led by the Spirit of God. Directed
by God's grace. Kept. Kept. That man now, the verse 20 that
we read, one verse, verse 20, for he used to walk this way.
Now, he that walketh with lies, man again is in italics there,
he that walketh And in fellowship, I go along
with that, no doubt about that, he that walketh with wise, he
that walks with wisdom. And those that God has made wise,
shall be wise. He shall be wise. He shall be
kept, those that live. They're in this world, but they're
not of this world. And they walk believing the gospel
of Christ. He that is created in righteousness
loves God's gospel. He believes it. Those that walk
with wisdom die in the pain of wisdom itself, and die just like
Those who are made wise unto salvation. They walk after the Lord Jesus
Christ as He set forth in the Gospel. Struggling. Somebody said, well, I tell you
what, I just, sometimes I just wonder, has the Lord done anything
for me? Boy, I tell you, do I love to see a struggling sinner. You know why? That's a sign of
life. I'll tell you a sign of deadness. I'm not like other men are. I'm
talking about those, you know, adulterers, fornicators. I'm not like they are. A believer
says, but for the grace of God, there go I. That's me right there. But for the grace of God, I'll
be somebody somewhere else today. This ain't that thing. This is
not that at all. Really. Those that walk with wise, those
that walk with Christ, not in just a casual manner, I'm telling
you, those that walk in wisdom of Christ, with wise men, with,
in companion with, in association with, those where God's raised
up the gospel. And it's just, what wisdom is
in that one scripture, those that wash with lies, in comparison
that in this world, born in this flesh, there's none wise, there's
none good. With those that walk in a manner
of life, they're in agreement. We're walking with an agreement. I tell you, there's a walk that's
outward, just casual. That's not what I'm talking about.
I'm talking about those that walk in heart, in love for Christ,
in fellowship with God's people. He shall be wise. you shall be wise, because he
that hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the
day of Jesus Christ." Oh, I know that there's coming
a time, by the grace of God, when this mortal shall have immortality
put upon him, changed, and seen through a glass Knowing, but knowing in part. But in that day, ready to see
Him as He is. And to realize, oh, as Queen
Yeshiva said to Solomon, a half of it is not so bad. To realize in that day, truly
and fully and completely, Lord, You're worthy. He is wise. He doesn't walk after the flesh.
Oh, he sees the evidence of the flesh in it, but that's not the
way he walks after it. He walks contrary, struggling
against it, striving against it, contending, striving after
to enter in, making his calling and election sure. I'm telling
you, a believer is not an arrogant, I'm telling you, that's why I
say I, when I hear somebody say, well I tell you I struggle just
like I hear you say it, I say I'm glad. I'm glad because that's
consistent. That's walking with wise. Walking in this world struggling.
Walking fellowship. we're closing, being knit together
in love and under all riches of the bold assurance of understanding
to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God and of the Father
and of Christ. The companion of fools shall
be destroyed. It's going to be broken. that to himself, to trust in
himself, to look to himself. You that believe, what do you
see when you look to yourself? I don't want to go there again. I'm so tired of looking. Scripture says, when I look within,
all is dark and wild. You that believe, isn't it that
way with you? But I deem myself a child when
I look and see it to the end, because he that walks is wise. He that walks in the light of
Christ realizes salvation is all of grace. He thinks, oh,
Lord, thank you for that again. Thank you for teaching that again.
One that grazes with the foolish is going to be broken. But by the grace of God, Those that are called out of
spiritual darkness. 2 Corinthians 6.17 says, Wherefore,
come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord.
Touch not the unclean thing, and I will receive you. God give
a man and a woman a heart and teeth. You know, I just, I want that. I want that. Thanks be unto God
that God would give a man one heart and walk after him. He that walks with wise men shall
be wise. He that walks with fools shall
be broken. Lord keep me for Christ's sake. Amen.