That's so good, that's a good hymn. So scriptural, that fourth verse. Faithful and just art thou. He
just confessed his sins, didn't he? Well, if we confess our sins,
he's faithful and just. Scripture says, forgive us our
sins, and cleanse us. That's a good hymn. Thank you,
Jesus. Romans chapter seven is our text tonight. I couldn't help but think of
the proverb which says, as in water, face answereth to face,
so the heart of man to man. As in water, you know, you look
in a still water, this word is still water. You look in a steel
farm pond and you see your own reflection coming. So, the heart
of man to man. David. David and his song, you
know. If you want something to touch
you, if you want to go somewhere in the scriptures and read something
that really meets your needs, you can go to the song. David,
a man after God's own heart, you find, says things right out
of your heart. You can relate to Psalm 38, can't
you? David's confessing his utter
sinfulness, Psalm 51, and on and on he goes. And now a New
Testament saint, the Apostle Paul, in Romans 7, I was talking to your husband
on the phone, Brother Todd, and I said, I'm going to preach from
Romans 7. And he said, oh, I'm so thankful that God wrote Romans
7. He said, oh, he said it twice,
I'm so thankful for Romans 7. I said, I see, Paul confesses,
pours out his heart in Romans 7. And I can relate. All believers,
young and old, new believers, or those who have
known the Lord a long time, all struggle with this one thing. They start out struggling, and
they struggle to the day they die with indwelling sin. And it causes us to cry, like
Paul, in Romans 7, verse 24, O wretched man that I am. Who shall deliver me from this
wretched man?" Paul said, O wretched man that I am, did he? On that
spot that I was, like 1 Timothy 1.15, Paul said, I am the chief
of sinners. Christ died for sinners of whom
I am. And I take great comfort from
that. A man like the Apostle Paul saying that. A man like
David. I take great comfort. Every believer can enter into
what he's saying. I'm a sinful man. When Peter
said, Lord, depart from me, I'm a sinful man. When Job said,
I have borne myself. When Isaiah said, I'm a man of
unclean lips. When Daniel said, When I saw
God, my countenance melted to corruption. Did you enter into that? Face
and through the faith. The heart of man. Every believer
has two principles at work within them. Every believer. Paul calls
them law. I see another law, he said. Look
at verses 22 and 23. He says, I delight in the law,
that is the principle, the force, the power, the spirit of God,
after the inward man, the word of God, after the inward man,
new man. But now I see another law, another
force, principle in my members, warring against the law of my
mind, warring against my mind, bringing me into captivity at
times. to the law of sin, which is in
my memories, in my body. And Paul called it a war, and
that's what it is. And now this is something only
believers can relate to. It's a war now. It's a struggle. It's a war. A war now. You're a student of, like, the
Civil War. This book I was telling you about,
just read. War now, war. That civil war
was a bloody battle weapon. Just reading the horrors of that
war, it's just indescribable. A warring force, a force that
opposes you, that's what he's talking about. I see another
law in my memory, warring. Paul said that in Galatians 5,
he said that flesh mustest against the Spirit. That is, battles,
wrestles, wars against the Spirit. So you cannot do the things you
want. The object in a war is to prevent the other side from
making any progress whatsoever. In that book, Grant was, it was
the end of the war, and Grant was pursuing Lee, the Army of
Virginia, and they surrounded him. Lee was trying to go this
way, and they confronted him, and it was, until finally he
was hemmed up and he could not move, and they had to shoot him. And that's what this thing is,
this inward struggle of the believer. Paul said, look at verse 15. That which I do, I just don't
know. He's saying, what I do, I don't
know why. What I would, what I want to
do, that is, I don't do. And what I hate, that's just
what I do. Verse 19, the good that I would,
I don't do it. And the evil, which I don't want
to do, that's what I do. Faith centering faith.
Heart to heart. It's the heart to heart message
isn't it? It's a constant struggle. It's a war. It's a battle. It's
a never-ending battle. Never-ending in this life. Is that the way it is with you? I hope so. But do you know what that means?
It means there's two laws. That means there's two opposing
forces. That's good news, man. This struggle itself is not good.
There's nothing good about it. It's not pleasant. It's a horrible
battle. It brings grief, this indwelling
sin. But now if there's a struggle,
that's good. A man living by himself never
gets an invite at all. No arguments, no fights, no problems.
You get two opposites, though, living in the same house, you've
got a battle. So you see, you see how there's
comfort here. There's comfort here. There's
a new creature, a new creature created in Christ Jesus, which
God predestinated to be conformed to the image of Christ, created
in Christ Jesus unto a good one. Now, we all know, and it's going to have you turn to Ephesians
2, you can if you want, or I'll just read it to you, but we know
these scriptures by heart. We all know that man, every man,
woman, and child is born in sin. We know this, but you can't say
it enough. We're born in sin. Dead in sin,
Paul calls it. David said, In sin did my
mother conceive me. In other words, my mother was
a sinner. My daddy was a sinner. And what
they conceived was a sinner. Right, parents? The act of conception
is not sin, but what he's saying is, You're a sinner, your husband's
a sinner, your wife's a sinner, and what you've produced is somebody
just like you. That's the right reason when
we tell our children, you know, I know you. I can read you. They can't read themselves yet,
but you know, don't you, because they're just like you. They came
from you. David said, in sin, he said,
I was brought forth from the womb, speaking lies. That's what the scripture says.
Sinner by nature. We're not born innocent. We're
not born free. We're born guilty of sin. It
just takes a little while for it to come out of us. And we're
born bound to this sinful nature. That's what Paul says in Ephesians
2. He said, In time past you walked
according to the course of this world. Children of disobedience. By nature, children of wrath,
even as others. In Romans 6, turn there, Romans
6, Paul describes it here, Romans 6. See, the natural man doesn't
love holiness. Natural men love meanness, sin. Natural man doesn't love God.
He doesn't want to be reigned over and ruled. Natural man loves sin. He's not
subject to the law of God. Well, Romans 6 verse 20 says
this, When you were the servants of sin, you were free from righteousness.
See that, in other words? Before, when you were dead and
trespassed in sin. Paul said it this way, Romans
7, he said, I was alive without the law. I was alive. To God? No. In this world, having a good
time. Enjoy the pleasures of sin for
a season, going after it and no pains of conscience about
it. You follow what he's saying here? Free from, you were servants
of sin, but emboldened, but didn't know it, thought you were free,
free spirit. Huh? A wild guy, you know, and
emboldened to sin, and no pleasure in righteousness. But now, he says, verse 18, you're
made free from sin, become servants of righteousness. Or Paul said
in Ephesians 2, but God. You at one time were dead, but
God now hath quickened. Now this is what we're talking
about. This is what Paul's talking about. A new creature. New life, that's what quickened
means. But God. And you hath He quickened. made
alive. You must be born again, that
is, born from above, a new creature, a new creature, God. And how
does he do this? Well, right here, in the preaching
of the Word, Peter said, by the incorruptible, born again by
the incorruptible seed, the Word of God was submitted and abided
forever. The Word which by the Gospel is preached unto you.
And God sends His Word the gospel into the heart of a dead sinner
who had no interest in the Word at all, no interest in God. Now, and this is all the marvelous
goodness of God, sovereign providence of God in bringing one of these
dead sinners into the place where the Word of life is. They don't
want to be there, but for whatever reason, they're there, they're
there in the fullness of time. And God sends forth His Spirit,
sends forth His Son through the preaching of the gospel. And
this dead sinner, something happened. They could have heard
and heard and heard, like me. I heard and heard and heard and
heard. I was a PK, preacher's kid, you know. Heard a message
and a message and a message and a message and a message. No effect. Dead. No ears, no eyes, no heart,
all alive in its world, no interest. But God is rich in mercy, in
the fullness of time. He didn't have to, but He did.
Blessed be God, for it is He who has chosen us in Christ for
the foundation of the world. He revealed His Son and sends
the gospel one day. I've seen it. I've seen it with
my own eyes. I've looked in the face of those
who, time and time again, like looking at a zombie, a dead person.
And then one day, I see a new creature being born. And it is a forming of a new
creature, a new creature created in Christ Jesus, a new man born
from above, a new creature that loves God, that loves Christ,
that loves righteousness, that loves the Word, that loves the
Word. Faith in Christ, it wasn't there
before. Now, people, this is in direct
opposition to everything that's being preached today. What most
people believe in, what most people believe is that there's
a spark of light in every man, that God, that faith, everything's
right there. You just touch a kindling. The
man has free will and all that. You know that. You've heard it.
But that's just not so. Man's dead. You know yourself. You know yourself. Those who
have been quickened, you know. You were dead. You didn't have
any interest in God. But God. But God. And He creates faith
in Christ. I mean faith in Christ. And this
is all Paul said according to the working of his mighty power. according to the work of His
mighty power. It's just like when two parents get together
and conceive a child. The child had nothing to do with
it. They weren't even in existence,
were they? They had nothing to do with being
born, did they? That's a certain thing about
it. But neither does any human being
whom God gives birth to. God the Father,
God the Son, God the Holy Spirit got together and conceived a
Son of God. And it's according to the working
of His mighty power. And that life wasn't there before.
And now there's a new creature, like I said, that loves God,
that loves righteousness, that wants to be holy, loves the Word
of God, even the Word that convicts them of it, the Word that smites
them, they love it. And so now there are two forces
at work. You see, there's a new creature,
one that loves God, but there's still that old man. God doesn't,
and this is what Paul is dealing with here, God does not, Christ
did not totally remove the old man. He put away our sins. He paid for our sins, all right?
And he put this new creature in us. And this really can't
be explained. That's what I'm trying to do,
though, isn't it? But it has to be experienced.
You try to tell this to a person in the world, a self-righteous
person. I'm not a sinner. You can't get with Paul, man. You can't relate to David, man.
And Job must have been lost. Right? David must have been lost. David wasn't living a victorious
life like you, I reckon. You're a super-Christian, I guess.
But that's just not so now. Every believer has this constant
struggle. Never a better man to walk this
planet than the Apostle Paul, after the Lord Savior. But John,
now he said, old wretched man that I am, didn't he? He said, John, what I want to
do, I don't do. What I don't want to do, that's
what I do. Now that doesn't give occasion to sin, or liberty to
sin, or license to sin, or make others want to sin. It just gives
us comfort in knowing that believers have the same problem. Every
believer knows this, feels this. And so, therefore, why didn't
Christ remove the old land totally, completely? Why didn't He take
it away? Well, we couldn't live in this
planet if we were so far above it. Huh? Enoch, apparently, obviously, became so close to his God, God
took him. He couldn't have stood it. And now, most importantly, he
leaves this old man that begs us so that we'll need him. So they will continue to need
him, need this gospel, and to help one another. Well, and to
every believer that feels this war, they know that their salvation
is 100% in the blood of Jesus Christ. Those who are plagued with this
old man, Those who are Roman seven sinners. You know, when
we say that from here on out, you'll know what I'm talking
about. Those who can't do what they want to do. Who do what
they don't want to do. Who say, I'm a wretched and vile
creature. Roman seven sinners need a sovereign,
successful, eternal Savior. Right? Roman seven sinners need
an advocate who's never lost a case. Right? David, that's the reason David,
all through his psalms, says, I'm poor and needy, yet the Lord
makes it not me. That's the reason David said,
now the Lord is my shepherd. I shall not walk. Not my helper,
not my co-pilot, my shepherd, who does it all. Jehovah-seeking. Only a Roman
seven sinner needs a Jehovah-seeking. If you're not a Roman seven sinner,
you'll be a Roman ten sinner. You understand that? Romans 10,
we said, is going to let the sinners go. But if you're a Romans 7 sinner,
you'll see you need the Lord to be your righteousness. Well,
what Christ did—now here's—what Christ did was, he was made sinful. Paul says in verse, and I'm getting
way ahead of myself, but the bomb might drop, so we better
get to it quick. Paul said, Who shall deliver
me? I thank God. Through Jesus Christ
our Lord. Now, that sounds, I just thought
of David and Nathan. Remember when Nathan came to
David and exposed his sin? Remember David's awful sin? Hadn't
that man killed? Joker was bad enough, but having
a man killed, this was premeditated, man. Wicked man, man. He did, he's in a bad way, bad
way, man. And Nathan came to him, God in
His goodness sent a prophet to him and exposed him to it. Remember? And before Nathan said, You're the
man, David was self-righteous. Well, he was self-righteous.
Remember, he said, Who would do such a thing? You remember
the story, don't you? David was self-righteous, even
in all his sin. And Nathan said, You're a valid
man. David, God showed his heart.
And what, you remember what happened? David said, I've sinned against
the Lord. A little while later, that's
when he went out on the hillside and wrote Psalm 51. Against thee
and thee only have I sinned, done this evil by sin. God might
speak just when you judge, clear when you speak. But right after David said, I've
sinned against the Lord, what did the angels say? The Lord's put away your sins. I mean, just as soon as David
said, I've sinned against the Lord, if we confess our sin,
John said, He's faithful and just to forgive us and cleanse
us. I've sinned against the Lord.
The Lord's already put it away. Oh, wretched man that I am, who
shall deliver me? And he immediately had his answer,
I thank God, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Oh my, chapter 8, verse 1 says,
There is therefore a man right in the face of y'all your sin,
so come to me. To who? To them that are in Christ
Jesus. Them that are in Him by faith.
This is our hope. That's our hope, Lord, a person.
Our hope is built on nothing less than Jesus Christ's blood
and righteousness. Therein I trust the sweetest
throne. Holy lean on His holy name. On Christ the solid rock
I stand. I bless you. That's your hope.
If you give every man a reason for that hope, he can do it,
meekness and faith. That's our hope. Not my prayer
is my hope. Not my life is life. All I see
in my life is like Paul, sin. Like David, sin. My loins are filled, not with
good, but with a loathsome decease. Who shattered everything? I thank
God, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Then they're in Christ
by faith, and that's what it takes, to be in Christ by faith. Who? Now, let's look at verse
1 of Acts chapter 8. Who walked not after the flesh,
but after the spirits? That can give you a little trouble. What does this mean now? To walk
after the Spirit, not after the flesh. What does it mean? Well, we don't have enough time. But, to walk after something,
what do you do when you walk after something? There's that
water. I want it. I pursue it. I go
after it. That's what I want. Walk after
it. I mean, you pursue it. That's
what you want. That's your desire, your craving. That's what it means to walk
after something. Walk after the flesh. That's everything. That's everything
in this world. Lust for the flesh, lust for
the eyes, and pride in life. That's everything in this world.
All right? Now, stay with me, because there
are times when all of us seem to walk after the flesh. But now, wait a minute. Now,
that's not the general tendency of God's people. Now, examine
your own self. No, you're not your own self.
Do you want this world? Is it your chief desire? Can't you say at this early point,
Steve Parks, thirty-eight, how old are you? Thirty-six? Close
enough. That you've tried it, and can
you not say, like Solomon, it's family? Huh? Can you? Can you? I know you
70-year-olds can. I know you're a 70-year-old,
you can say that. But God, now, makes a 27-year-old
get nuts. Huh? To walk after something,
it means it's your general tendency. Walk after the world. Wherever
the way the world is walking, that's the way you walk. So walk
after. You see what I mean? Where's
that bike going? We're going this way. Well, I'm coming after
you. See? Walk after the flesh. That's what that means. Now the
flesh, that means the world, everything, world, things, and
that, you know, whatever thing you do, is that what, is that
the way you walk? Huh? Think like them, do like
them, want to be like them? No. God forbid. Huh? God forbid. The walk after means the general
inclination, the first, the reigning principle within. That's just not with belief.
Paul, our Lord, is... Paul, our Lord. He's not the words of Paul, he's
the words of God. He's just saying a fact here. He's not saying that if you be
a super-spiritual person, then you'll be saved. That's not what
he's saying, I think. You understand? He's just stating
a fact, like Matthew 5, when our Lord said, Blessed are the
merciful. Now, I'm not merciful. When I think of myself, I don't
think of myself as being merciful. Do you? I think of myself as being hard
and selfish. But it's just, but it's not,
but it's so with religion. They're merciful people. The
world's not merciful. It's dog-eat-dog, man. Yeah? You see that? It's just a fact. This is not written for us to
convict us. It's to comfort us. See? Examine
yourself. Is this world what you really
want and what you want to walk like and be like, huh? No. They walk at the Spirit. Holy
Spirit. All right, look at verses 5 and
6. That's what he says here in chapter 8, verses 5 and 6. They
interrupt the flesh. They're thinking about the things
of the flesh. And boy, that really applies to religion, doesn't
it? Doesn't it? That really applies
to religion. They think it's something to do with the flesh.
God's going to look at the flesh and He's going to accept you
by what the flesh does. Now the deeds of the flesh works
the flesh. Nobody else does. Verse six,
to be carnally minded, that is, minding the flesh is death. That
means you're dead. But to be spiritually minded
is life and peace. Look down at verse nine, you're
not in the flesh, but in the spirit. If so, be that the Spirit
of God dwelleth in you. That's the only man, have not
the Holy Spirit of Christ. Well, you're not the one to give.
If Christ be in you, now here, look here, this is what Paul
just was saying, verse 10. If Christ is in you, the body
is dead because of sin. The Spirit is life because of
righteousness. See if I can be a little trustee
of this. I know it's difficult to trust
faith. Do you know that back hundreds and hundreds of years
ago, faith would sometimes punish someone who had killed someone,
a murderer, by strapping the dead body of that person on their back? and make them carry it around
until it was just, phew, loads. Can you imagine? Isn't it horrible
to think about? That's what we have. That's what
we live with for the same reason. We carry it around this way.
That's what he means there in verse 10. That's what Paul said in chapter
7. Christ be in you now, there's two, two. There's a dead man
and he stinks. That's what David said. My wound
stinks. This old man that's with me,
Lord, would you remove him? That's what Paul said. Would
you get him off my back? Huh? No, you don't care? No. Well, you'll keep calling on
me. And one of these days now, put
him in the grave. I'll give you one of these days.
One of these days. Let's walk after the Spirit.
Verse 14 says, Many is led by the Spirit of God. They're the
sons of God. Can I give you a little help
on this thing of indwelling sin? Do you want a little help? How
to deal with it? Man, I need this bag. How
to deal with indwelling sin? Now remember this, the old man's
never going to get better. Remember that. The old man's
never going to get better. It's the new man created in Christ
Jesus, which grows in grace, the knowledge of Christ. And
the old man has been subdued in a family. He's not getting better, but
he's been subdued by the new man, all right? Christ in you. That's the hope, the holy glory. All right, how can we deal with
indwelling sin? Boy, you may want to jot some
of these things down. If not, you better listen to
me tell you. How can we deal with indwelling
sin? Well, number one, we can. Now listen, Christ said, without
me, Think about it. Without me, you can do how much? Some things, nothing. You will succumb to the slightest
of things, eat the most perfect woman on ever to live, really. One little temptation, because
God left her alone, without me. And so, you know why Paul said,
Pray without ceasing? That's why. This is what it means to look
to Christ. He said, Now I'm in every present
hell and time of trouble. How often is that? My sins ever
repent. I'm an ever-present help in times
of trouble. Call on me in the day of trouble, and I'll be there. Ever-present help. Pray without
ceasing. This is why the Lord said this after this manner of
prayer. Lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and
thine is the power. Now, John, this is the verse
you like, but I can do all things through Christ, which strengthens
me. We can't do anything to flesh.
We're helpless. But now Christ said, I'm with
you. Come on. Pray without ceasing. But we look to Christ, call upon
Christ, and now listen, this is important. Janelle liked it. You gotta believe that your sins
are all paid for. You've got to believe that. You
can't, you cannot. Listen very carefully to this.
This is important. William Bernal dealt with it. William Romaine
dealt with it. Unless this sin issue is settled
in your mind and heart, you'll try to do something about your
sin. You'll try to, you'll try to fix it up yourself. And that's
legal. That's self-righteousness. In
other words, you want to turn over a new leaf. But if you follow
me, you'll try that. I've done this, but I'll make
amends. There's only one thing that makes amends, and that's
the blood of Christ. So guilt of sin has got to be
settled first. Any man sin, we have an advocate.
Don't sin. If you do, you've got an advocate.
Does that make sense? You've got to believe first he
paid for our sins, or else we'll try to. Don't do that. God may leave you alone and may
leave, may, may you become self-righteous. That's the thing. All right,
so how can we deal with indwelling sin? Well, without Him. You can't
do anything. Pray without ceasing. Watch unto
prayer, he said. Call upon me in the day of trouble.
Look to Christ. Christ wants all your strength
to be with Him, all of it. If we in our own strength and
pride, this striving would be loosed. All right, next, feed on God's
Word. I heard my pastor say this once,
and it's so faithful. You feed the new man, you starve
the old one. How does something grow? Feed
it. Desire the sincere milk of the
word that you might grow thereby. Grow in grace, Peter ended up
his epistle with. And the knowledge of our Lord's
time when he just declared the word. And this is the word that
was by the gospel. The gospel's principle of food
is the gospel. We feed on the gospel. Christ
personally and his word. That's our food. That's not principle
and good things and moral values. No, no, no. It's I sense it.
We feed on it. Preaching. Barber of life says
this all the time. I come in here, I get cleansed. That's right. Word of God, man
is cleansed. Get your feet washed. Oh, who
heard that? Who heard your opinion? You heard
that. What a bad son of a bitch. You're going to get your feet
washed if you don't come here to God. That's just one of them. Have you forgotten it pretty
much? I hope so, because I'm going to preach it. I'm sorry
that many of you heard that, but man, I want to preach that,
because I've got to wait six months. Gospel cleansing, it
sure does cleanse you completely, like Bo James didn't get saved
all the way. Feed on God's Word,
oh it's cleansing. Oh now I see the cleansing. Fountain
deep and wide. And reading God's Word, you feed
on it, you feed on it, you feed on it. David, that's the reason
David said, hide your word in my heart, that I watch. might
not sin against you." This leadership of the Spirit,
following the leadership of the Holy Spirit, this is what the
Holy Spirit does. Now, He implants the Word of
God in you, so that time, He brings it up to your mind. Does
that happen? Does that happen, brother Don?
In the face of a temptation, something comes to mind. God's
Word. Doesn't it, Dad? It warms you.
That's that fountain from which you draw from, that you need.
The Holy Spirit leads and guides by God's Word. Listen to the
Spirit. He says, don't quench Him, don't grieve Him, but listen
and follow the leadership of the Holy Spirit. And think about this. Thirdly,
consider Christ in light of temptation and sin. Consider Christ. You
know what it took to put away our sins? Brother Carroll Griswold, a brilliant
great preacher years ago, said this about the death of Christ
and our sins. He said Christ had to die for
our sins. He had to pay for every sin.
Did he not? Every sin. So the sins we commit in the
future add it to the suffering of Christ. You understand what he's saying
there? That's profound. Something to
think about. You follow? It's a restraining
influence. You men, you think about that
wife who loves you will restrain you from sinning against her.
You understand? And vice versa. For that child
who looks up to you, you'll restrain him. You understand? Now you understand enough. How
could I do this? How could I bring reproach? How can I do this? That's what
it took. Here's another thing. Number
four. He said in Romans 6, reckon yourself
dead in sin. Reckon yourself. He said in Romans
6, how can we either be dead in sin or live any longer there?
Reckon yourself dead in sin. That means consider yourself
dead in sin. In this way, both Dan Man, I'm not a dog anymore. I
don't have to go back and lick that thigh. Yeah, that's what, that's what,
man, I'm, I'm supposed to be a son of God. Sure as I'm above this. That's what he said, sure as
I'm above that. And God gives me any grace at all? Grumble? Yeah, reckon yourself
dead to sin. Here's another thing. Romans
13, 14 says this, Make no provision for the flesh. Make no provision
for the flesh to fulfill the lusts thereof. Everybody in here
knows what that's talking about. There are pleasures in sin for
a sin. There is pleasure. And we're not above that. Flesh,
this is what Paul is dealing with. And so Paul said later
on, don't make conditions for the flesh to fulfill to us there.
In other words, don't make arrangements. If you don't get in a situation,
don't put yourself somewhere where you know you'll be tempted
by it. That's easy. That's the reason
our Lord said, pray this, lead us not into temptation. Put me in paths of righteousness,
but I'm anything. Leave me not, don't let me go
where the temptation's going to be. Do you understand that?
That's what they're saying, don't make provision for the flesh,
fulfill the lusts thereof. And that brings me to this next
thing, this very good counsel and a very good help. When are you a soldier? When you're alone. When you're alone. Peter was
alone. And I, David, was alone. In a multitude of councils, the
same thing. Why do you think the Lord sent
his disciples out to? Help each other. Help each other. Ah, boy. Fellowship of the Saints
is a great help. Well, and above all, that's the
reason we started with, look to Christ. Look to Christ. Don't look, don't lean on the
arms of the flesh of anybody else. Look to Christ. Look to Christ. I hope that's what happened.
It was to me. And these things are well worth
reconsidering. So, do you struggle? Do you feel
this law of warring? Is there a war going on? Good. Good. Like that fella said to
a preacher we know one time, he came up to me as all alone.
He was under conviction. He didn't know it. He kept saying,
oh, I'm an awful terrorist and sinner, and the preacher kept
saying to him, I'm wonderful. Glad to hear it. He didn't understand.
I mean, it's evidently somebody else lived at that time. You
understand that. But there's heaven, there's heaven,
there's heaven. We're never going to get rid
of this old man until the day we die. But Paul said there's
a mortifier, there's a flooding of dams. Put off, Peter said,
Paul said, put off the old man, put on the new man. That's right where he said that
Romans 13. Put on the new man that was created in Christ Jesus.
Make no provision for the flesh. All right, let's stand. Our Lord, thank You for Your
Word. Without it, we're dead, we're lost, we're helpless. Thank
You for Your Word. Thank You for Your Spirit, Your
Holy Spirit, who leads us and guides us into all truth. For
Thy Name is saved. Christ is saved in His glory.
Lord, apply your word, plant it, hide it in our hearts. One word, just one word from
your word tonight, plant it in our hearts so that we might draw
from it in a time of need. Oh Lord, we pray for your glory. Be true to your promise. We know
you will. It calls us to set our faith on things above water,
after thy Spirit, not after the flesh. We need your help. In Christ's name we pray. Amen.