I feel like the Lord has already
enabled me to worship a little bit. I'm thankful for that, and
worship through the reading of the Word is a blessing, and the
playing of that great, great hymn, My Faith Looks Up to Thee. And then the singing of that,
that was a blessing that he needed. I often think that preaching
is unnecessary sometimes after the Lord blesses the reading
of the word and so forth. We'll see. Time will tell. Matthew 16, Matthew chapter 16. Let's read verses 23 through
25. We're going through, as you know,
the Gospel of Matthew. Matthew 23 through 25. The Lord
turned and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan. Thou art
an offense unto me. But thou savest not the things
that be of God, but those that be of men. Then said Jesus unto
his disciples, If any will come after me, let him deny himself,
and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his
life, his life shall lose it. And whosoever will lose his life
for my sake shall find it. I do not believe that we could
hear a more, I believe that we could not hear a more important
message, a more urgent one. I am convinced beyond doubt that
we are in those last days described by the Apostle and Second Timothy
3, perilous time. You know those verses well. The
last days perilous time shall come and the greatest peril,
I believe, the greatest danger that we are in and face is not
from terrorism or physical dangers, but from worldliness. Bi-worldliness is meant being taken up with
this world. That's it in a nutshell. Worldliness
is thinking of the world, thinking like the world, consumed with
the things of the world and following after or pursuing the world. That's what worldliness is, thinking
like the world. Satan is called the God of this
world. So therefore, his temptations,
the way in which he works, Brother Dan, is in the world, is with
the world. You remember when he tempted
our Lord? He took him up into a high place and showed him all
the kingdoms of the world. And he said, these things will
I give unto you. So apparently it's somewhat in
his power to bestow the things of the world. And those whom
God gives over to Satan, he gives them the world. But now he said of his people,
Christ said of himself, he said, I am not of this world. Nothing and no one had any effect
on him at all. He desired nothing but God. If you want the meaning of Godliness,
that's it. If you want the meaning of worldliness,
I just don't And I believe that's the greatest danger of peril
that we face and God's people. He said, Christ said, obviously,
he said, they are not. Stay with me, as I said, this
is a very important message. You've heard these things before.
You've looked at this with me several times. And I know you
need it because I need it. I'm a man of like passions. And
I need to be reminded of it. I need to remember. I need to
be taught this again, don't you? Now, the Lord just rebuked Satan
who was working through Peter. It was not Peter. Satan. Can you take comfort in that? It was not Peter. Later on, when
Peter denied him, That's all he could plead with
the Lord, but, Lord, I know what I did. You know what I did. You
know me. You know me. And the Lord rebuked
Satan, who used Peter to try to stop Christ from going to
the cross. And Satan, you know, his ministers are preachers. And he's not having to preach
Christ crucified. He knows what the power of God
is. He's seen it take his captives
from him. You know, Satan has seen that. He's seen what God has used,
the sword which God has used to take to set free those who
he held captive at his will. He knows what the power of God
is. It's the gospel. His great design is to keep men
from hearing the gospel. Christ crucified, which is the
gospel. And Satan, through Peter, attempted to keep Christ from
the cross. Do you see that? That's a great design he has
in preaching to that preach anything but the cross. Well now he said
something in this verse twenty three he said thou savorist not
the things that be of God but those that be of men the things
of men. You savor rather than the things
of God and so it is with those that are of God and those that
are of the devil. Stay with me, OK? The things
of God. What is God? What does Scripture
say? God is what? Yeah, spirit. God is spirit. The things of God are spiritual
things. The things that are seen as physical
things, was good to say that things are. Temporal. But the things are not saying
you know what. So very simple the things of
God. Things of God are eternal. And whole books in this book
are written about the vanity. Of this world the whole world
is meaning. Nothing that lasts, there's nothing
of any real value, there's nothing to satisfy, nothing, nothing,
nothing, nothing, no one, nothing. We're ignorant creatures, aren't
we? We have to go 70, 80 years or
more to learn that, and that by experience. The things of God. are holy. And I have not seen here's part
of the problem. I have not seen here have not
heard neither have entered in the heart of man that they. That
got prepared. My pastor preach. From second
Corinthians twelve on The man who went to the paradise. That man says he heard things. That were possible to repeat. But anyway. And. Sister Nancy I think from
that time forward is when he said how ready to depart. You know. So I have a desire
to depart me of the law. I heard. You know we saw something. But sometimes our Lord enables
us to get a little glimpse. That's why we come here. You've
heard me say so many times I'm not trying to prepare us how
to live in this life so much as to prepare us to die. Prepare
us to die. The things of God, things that
have to do with God are eternal things, spiritual things. And the things of man is what? That which is of the earth is
what? Earthly. Man, Adam, dust. Dust thou art, and to dust ye
will return. Dust everything is, and to dust
it will return. Everything will turn back to
that. And. Our Lord says. The things of
God are savored by those that be of God, but the things of
man knows it. Be a man. Now, he said in verse
24, then said Jesus unto his disciple. Now this is to his
people. His feet, those these men were
following him. These men loved him, they did. They were following him, they
loved what he said. And they loved what he said,
they loved him. Like Peter, remember Peter said,
when the Lord said, will you go away when many walk not no
more with him, so-called disciples quit. He said to them, will you also
go away? And they said, Peter said on
their behalf, to whom shall we go? Right, James? Right, John? Yeah, right. We
don't want to go anywhere. They said, thou hast the words
of life. That's life. This is life. I
was dead until you came. I didn't know God. Wasn't interested
in God. Didn't even know God is God. Didn't care until you came. And
spoke to me and drew me cords. Appealed yourself to me and and
I've seen all this honor and all this glory and all this wisdom
and heard this wisdom and and I just fall in love with, you
know, I'm not leaving. By your grace, I'm not leaving. We're
going to see in the next chapter. Can't wait to get to that. Well,
Wednesday night. Just have to wait a few days. The Lord took
three up on a mountain. That's really a Sunday morning
message, but I'm not going to say it. Took three men up on
the mount to behold his glory. And after it was all done, they
said, let's just stay right here. They didn't want to go. That's
what Peter said, to whom shall we go? This is lie to me. This
is lie to me. So he said this to his disciples.
Now, did they need to hear it? Why, yes. They're flesh and blood. Our Lord said the Spirit is willing.
The spirit, the new man, the Zinnah, is willing. But the flesh,
that flesh is weak and there's an old man that just keeps pulling,
keeps pulling, that appeals to the, you know, that the world
appeals to, and so keep pulling. The flesh is weak. Greater is he that is in you
than he that is in the world. Well, he said this to them and
we need it too. He said in verse 24, if any man,
if any, Man is in print if any man woman
boy or girl. We'll come after me. Let him deny himself. And take up his cross. And follow me. If any will come
after me. Now this means more than just
You're going to tag along behind me. If you're coming after me,
this means to pursue. I watched, may I pick on you,
Sam? I watched that young man, not
too young anymore. When he was young, I watched
him go after somebody. Everybody saw it. When it's happening, it's no
secret. You know what I mean. There was
a girl he was after. And you know and she tried to
act like you know how girls do. Oh well you know girls that's
what they're taught to do. But she was after him too. Am
I right? Do I tell the truth? Because
they couldn't get up here quick enough. And I watched him in
the course of that ceremony when I asked him all those questions
he wasn't really listening. Because he was gazing with love
and affection on his soon to be bride this one he was after. And he would have scaled the
highest mountain I know I did the same thing you did the same
thing didn't you think back when you used to be. Let me tell you. We were after these gals. They,
and if you're really after something, and you know, and they're willing, if they're willing, you'll get
them. That's what the Lord is saying here. If any will come
after me, if it's me you're after. This whole thing is called a
marriage. It's not a change of doctrine. It's a change of masters. It's
a union with a person. It's a change of masters from
being a son of Satan to a son of God. It's more than just a change
of your mind. It's a change of your heart.
There's a new creature put within you that loves Christ supremely. This is within every one of God's
people. Yes, it is. They love Christ
and they go after him. It's him they're after. It's
him they're after. David, let me tell you what a
man after God's own heart said. This is how he said. He said, whom have I in heaven
but thee. Now, David had lost some loved
ones. Some friends, some loved ones,
some brethren, some family whom he loved, whom he hoped to see
someday. But that wasn't why he wanted
to go to heaven. What made heaven for him was
someone was going to be there, Christ. Whom have I in heaven but thee?
And he went on to say, and there's none on earth. I desire beside
the so did David know the Lord. Absolutely. He was with him. All the way. Married to him. Married to him. Our Lord says
that any man will come after me. It's me you're after. And
you know God the Holy Spirit has to do that, doesn't he? We've tried, my wife and I have
tried to arrange. People getting together and you
know coming together and loving like you can't do that. You can't
do that. You can't make somebody love
somebody. I'll tell you who does. Who must. Spirit of God saying
that's the way it is with Christ. I preach men preach message after
message after message hoping wishing wanting praying desiring
that everybody in here especially our young people will fall in
love with the Lord Jesus Christ. That's the aim, that's the goal,
it really is. Beside, in conjunction with the glory of God. That they
might know Christ and be found in Him. But you can't do it. You can't make them do it. The
wind blows where it is. And our Lord said, but if any
man will come after me, three things, let him deny himself
and take up his cross and follow me. And we'll look at these in
just a moment, but our Lord went on to say four. You notice the
word four in each of the next three verses. Four. If it's me you're after, this
is what you're going to have to do. Is there anything that
we are to do? Well, he said so. Three times. Four, he said. Now, if it's me
you're after, these three things. For verse twenty five whosoever
will save his life. Shall lose it. And whosoever
will lose his life for my sake shall find it. Whosoever will
save his life. Now what is your life? And you've seen it. You've heard it. People say things
about this is my life. This is my life, meaning that
everything they are is given to. All their happiness, all
their joy, everything is wrapped up in this one thing, whatever
it may be, there's many things and. It's it's crazy things and
people are. They make their life the craziest
thing. Right now, there's a hundreds
of thousands of people sitting in an arena somewhere watching They can't hear a thing because
they've got earplugs in their ear. Now as I describe that as it
is you think that's the most stupid thing a person could possibly
do. Doctors lawyers and so forth.
That's a lot of the other thing that people. out there you know
that their whole desire in life is to shoot an eight point ten
point twelve point deer. Or catch the big one you know
or just on and on and on. They're children of their life. Their jobs are their life. Women make their husbands their
life. and on and on or some ridiculous
religion. Is there. But now Christ said to you and
me brother Dan you're listening very carefully I'm glad he said
to you he said to me if it's me you're after you have to lose
your life your life. If you lose your life for my
sake you'll find it what Life. Real life. The things of this world die.
Here's one thing that all things in this world, be it people or
things, have in common. They die. That's why it's so foolish to
make it your life. Because if you spend your whole
life, are you listening to me, Davis? If you spend your whole
life Seeking something and you get it, you're going to lose
it. Count on it. Doesn't matter what
it is, you're going to lose it. It's going to die. Be it a person or a thing. And when our Lord talks about
saving our lives, it also means trying to preserve, trying to
keep your place in the world and your reputation and your
place in society and connections and associates and all of it. But you'll lose it. Try to save
it and you will lose it. The richest men die with nothing. That Job said, naked, I came
into this world. That's exactly how I'm going
to go out. I cannot take one thing with
me. Have you read of these fools that get buried with whatever
their prized possession was? One man got buried in his favorite
Cadillac. I mean, they actually put him
in his Cadillac and buried the whole thing. He was sitting in
the front seat. You'd think, what a fool. No more foolish
than anything else. But the richest man and the most
famous man. I asked you not long ago about
a certain man. I mentioned his name. I said,
does anybody know who that man was? And nobody in here knew.
And I wouldn't have known had I not looked it up. And he happened
to be one of the presidents of the United States. The highest
office that men aspire to. But nobody knew him. And so it
will be with all of us. We'll be gone and the place Scripture
says will be remembered no more. No more. Except by those who
really knew them and they didn't have a good picture. Christ said I'll remember you.
Well and that's all it's important you say and they'll lose it I
try I remember trying you know when the Lord began to deal with
me and all of you believers in here. Try this this happened
to you. I remember trying to maintain
old friends and old associates and even trying to kind of hang
with them a little bit when the Lord was You know, it would give
me a new heart and new family and new pursuits and so forth. You see, God's people have one
ambition. They really do. With the Apostle Paul, they say
for me to live is cry. That's right. That's why you're
here, isn't it? Isn't that why you're here? Yeah. That I might
win, cry. You say with Apostle Paul, I
want to know him, be found in him. I want to win, cry. Huh?
And I just forget those things behind and press. It's a pressing
matter to God's people they want to know. It's life. Christ our
life. But I remember trying to hang
with. My old dead friends. Do you remember that? Anybody? It won't work though. You're not walking together.
Two can't walk together except they'd be agreed. And I remember
getting in all sorts of fusses with them. I remember distinctly one time.
I live in an apartment and. One of my old buddies was there
spent the night with me and. He took the Lord's name back. And it never bothered me before. It never really bothered me. It started to bother me rather.
I didn't like it and he was in my house. And I said, I'd appreciate
if you didn't do that in my house again. You know what he did? He said it about 10 times in
a row. I said, get out and don't ever
come back. And I haven't seen him since.
He could be dead. It's more than a doctrine to
me. I had the same thing with my
brother and all my friends confrontation until this line drawn the sand
until finally we just can't walk together can. We can. Lose your life. Whoever whatever it may be for
my sake. You're going to find it. Now, I had a bunch of old
friends, and they weren't friends. Listen to me, young people. You
think you've got friends now. You think these classmates are
friends of yours. You really think, oh, they'll
stick through me thick and thin. We'll see. We'll see about that. If you're ever without anything,
without anything they can use, without anything that they need,
or, you know, if you ever become a nobody and a nothing, not popular
and so forth, they'll drop you like a hot cake. That right,
old folk? I found some friends that stick
closer, literally, than a brother. Have you? Honestly, this is the
truth. This is my family. Your family? Yeah, it is. How long have you
been here? Years. A hundred years. Nancy,
a hundred years. Christ is our life. And if it's
if it may be in crisis a new creature old things pass away.
Our Lord said nothing and no one's your life from that day
for Christ. May I use you John. John Davis
was a pretty good musician. I think he's still a pretty good
musician but if he went out there in the professional world right
now John how many groups would have you. To be a successful professional
musician, it has to be your life. To be that in anything, business,
whatever it may be, you have to give your life to it. Right, John? Give your life.
You have to go out on the road, don't you, and play five nights
a week. And give no thought to home, family, God, anything. And this is my life. And you'll
get good at it. But what will you be in the end?
An old used-up, washed-up, forgotten musician. You see what our Lord is saying?
But now, whatever or whoever, it doesn't matter. You give up. My Satan? You've found it. What? It? What? Talking about life
here. Our Lord's talking about life.
And he said, Deborah, life more abundant. Solomon, as we said, spent a
whole book telling us, do you think this is life? Do you think
this is living? He said, I tried it. I had it all. I tried it all.
He said, I came to this conclusion. Nothing. Nothing was of any value. But this one thing. Now, this
is life, he said. This is living. This is life
more abundant. You see, man seeks... What do
people want? What do men and women and young
people want? Happiness. They want to be happy.
That's the pursuit of all flesh, isn't it? Isn't it, Teresa? Everybody
wants to be happy. and they think well this will
make me happy. This will make me happy. You know anything everything.
Stupid thing. And I use that word because it's
the crudest word. The woman at the well. You might
listen to the radio. The woman She wanted to be happy. What? She wanted to be a good
wife and a homemaker, a mother, and so forth. So she tried men. Five of them. And was living with another man,
thinking, well, this is the one. No. He's not going to make you
happy. And bless her heart. Oh, bless
her heart. Blessed be her God who came to
bless her heart. Her husband, the maker, was her
husband. He came one day, Nancy. He came
to her and said, Honey, I'm the man you're looking for. You don't even know it. You're
looking for, you don't know what. You worship, you know not what.
You don't know what you want. You don't know what you need.
You want to be happy. You don't know what's going to
get it for you. I'm going to show you. It's me. Me. Well it is isn't it? Isn't it? I'm not, this is, it's just the
way it is isn't it? Until Christ truly crosses our
path and says, you've been looking for so many things. You weren't
looking for me. Brother John God the scripture
says is no peace to the wicked no rest to the wicked no happiness
God not let anybody have find real happiness why. Man was made
for God. Man was made for God. His glory
his honor to enjoy God Adam didn't need anything did Adam need anything
in the garden? He had food, didn't even have
rain. Didn't have shelter. What'd he
have? Gone. Happiest man to ever live. Except one. The Lord from below. And where am I? Our Lord said,
What is a man profited if he gained the whole world and lose
his own soul man has a man has a soul a beast an animal doesn't
have a soul a dog dies he's dead. That's the reason it's not cruel
to put an animal to sleep. Not at all. It's not you know we'll miss
him and all that but it's just an animal and when they're dead
they are dead. In fact, they're out of all their
misery, they will not suffer again. The scripture says that
a whole creation grown, grown and waiting for the manifestation
of the sons of God. All animals experience pain and
suffering, this and that and the other because of sin. And
when they're dead, no more suffering. Not so with man. Not so with
us. God created man, his image made
him a living soul. A true man is his soul, what
you can't see. Proof of this is when you go
to sleep at night, you don't cease to exist. Your body doesn't
really function, but you're living. That's the soul. And the soul
goes somewhere. When this body is laid in a grave
and it rots and corrupts, the soul doesn't. It's eternal. Go somewhere and the whole world
is seeking answers. Christ said. I. The resurrection. You oh you're blessed and you
understand what he said that you saw it in your face. He that
liveth and believeth in me shall never die. And in this world, you have tribulations,
but in Christ, it's joy, it's still joy. You lose your soul. What will
you give in exchange for it? I mentioned some of those things
that people will just trade for 30. Just think of the utter,
utter, utter foolishness. of man that he will exchange
eternity for 30 minutes of pleasure. And that's right. And we're all
the same way, but by the grace of God, 30 minutes, just give
me 30 minutes of pleasure and I'll give you my soul. That old
story of man bargaining with the devil, we all do it. If you'll
just let me be this, I'll give you my soul. That's right. And our Lord said in verse twenty
seven he said now. Here's the end of it all the
son of man shall come. Though the whole world scoffs
and says where is the promise of his coming I don't believe
any of that. He's got. He's got. We're waiting on him, aren't
we? Mary, we're waiting on him. He's coming. Do you believe that?
I believe you do. And we're waiting on him. He
can't lie. He said he's coming. He shall
come. Don't you like the sound of that?
The Son of Man shall come in the glory of his Father. With his angels. What. I can't even comment on that
and then he shall reward every man according to his work whose
work. I got to go back up to the up
to verse twenty four and finish with this OK. Our Lord said so
if it's me you're after this is what you must deny yourself. Now young people. Please listen
to me OK just a minute. The Lord does not forbid you
from going to college to get a degree or from taking training
to accomplish whatever and to get you a job and to seek a husband
or a wife or to build a house. No, no, no. The Lord does not.
When the Lord said in Matthew 24, in the days when Christ comes,
they'll be buying and selling, marrying and giving marriage.
He's not condemning those things. He's just saying life with people
will be carried on as it always has doing what they do. There's
nothing wrong. Here's here's when it becomes
simple and here's when it might be your destruction. It's if
these things become your all consuming goal and ambition and
your life. You need to keep in mind that
you will go to college now if you can. It's possible you have
greater earning power. It takes a lot of money, doesn't
it, old folks? Stan? It takes a lot of money. You can't believe how much money
it takes. I remember I was about 21, 22
years old, started working on the railroad and earning a lot
of money at the time. How much was it? Twelve to fifteen
dollars an hour. And I got my first paycheck.
It was about $800 for that week's work. I thought, I'm retiring
at 30. I'll have a condo. I'm rich. I got laid off the next month. But if you'd have told me then,
It's going to take what it takes now just to be expensive. No
way, no way. Isn't it so? It takes a lot of
money. So the point I'm saying is there's nothing wrong with
going to college and this and that and the other to obtain
a job. But remember, the only reason you're doing that is not for this to be your career.
your goal, your ambition, your life, but it's to pay bills. Pay bills. You're going to need
a bunch of that green stuff to pay bills, because they're going
to come in a lot faster than these green things do. All right. Pay bills. I love what that old
plumber said one time, a believer. He said, what do you do for a
living? He said, well, He said, I am a plumber to meet
expenses, but Christ is my life. That says it enough. Deny yourself. Self-ambition, self-worth. Want to be somebody? Don't seek
great things for yourself. We've been trying to say that.
No matter how high you get, you'll come down real fast. Self-worth. Self-righteousness. There's not
enough time to finish this, John. Self-seeking, everybody on the
top side of this earth is in it for themselves. And Christ
said, what you'll get is you'll get what you want. And then you'll
get what I'm going to give to these self-seekers. But if it's
me you're after, you'll get what you want. And you get what I
have. You get what I get. And take up your cross. Take
up your cross. That's the truth, the persecution
for the truth. That's what that is. That's not
carrying some stick of wood down here and making a parade of your
religion in front of people. That's not it at all. It's taking
up the truth. Why was Christ crucified? Why
was he nailed on a cross? For the truth's sake. And that's our cross. He said,
you'll be hated for my sake. Truth's sake. The offense of
the cross. And those that really love Christ will take it up,
won't they? I was sentenced to many years
of hard labor for this girl. You didn't hear that. I was hoping
you were with me. I was sentenced to many years of hard labor.
That's what men have to do. Sweat of their brow. Ah, it's
not work. If I ever really made out like
I don't want to do this for you ever never sure we complain I
don't go to work today but. I love her. And this you know
if anybody truly loves Christ. I don't care if the world loves
me or not you. Nobody's inviting me invite me
to their gathering. I don't really care to go anyway.
I'm right where I want to be. Aren't you? Sure, take up the
cross and follow me. What does it mean to follow somebody? Where are you going? I'm coming.
Where are you going to be? That's where I'll be. You can't
follow somebody if you're not where they are. If you're not
going in the direction they're going, if you're not listening
to what they're saying, it's very simple. The youngest child
in here knows what it means to follow somebody. I almost got by a message without
bringing up a dog. My dog loves me supremely. You know, a dog cannot serve
two masters. It just can't do it. Neither
can a man. It can't serve God and man. Our Lord said that. And whenever
I'm outside my dog it loves me. Like a shadow. Right. And he follows you then. You
know like a shadow at your feet the whole time. And that's good. That's good. Our Lord said follow
me. Follow me. Following him, you're
not going to get in trouble. You're not going to perish. Nothing
and no one can harm you. You're not going to fall off
a cliff. You're not going to go hungry. You'll get shot at,
but he'll take the arrow. Is that good advice? Follow me. I know where I'm going. I know where I'm going. If you're
with me you'll. Show you. The game. In number five hundred and eleven
and let's say. We'll sing the first and second
verse. Face to face with Christ my Savior
Face to face what will it be When with rapture I behold Him
Jesus Christ who died for me Face to face I shall behold him
far beyond the starry sky. Face to face in all his glory
I shall see him by and by. Second at the last. Only faintly
now I see Him With the darkling veil between But a blessed day
is coming When His glory shall be seen Face to face I shall
behold him far beyond the starry sky. Face to face and all in
glory I shall see him by and by. I love you.