Numbers 32, I'm sorry, Numbers
32. Again, I will not read the whole chapter. It is quite lengthy.
It is 42 verses, but I will read some portions of this chapter
as we progress through, or as I progress through the message. I pray we progress through it
because I pray you come along with me as I go through this.
But before I say anything directly concerning the context, Those
of you who, maybe even if you're retired now, or if you are not
retired and you're still working out in the public, were you ever
in a situation to where an individual or individuals at your place
of employment, one or maybe more than one, were breaking the rules,
were not doing things according to the policy of the business
for which you worked? And then, once it is discovered
that this individual or individuals were not conducting themselves
according to the policy, then everyone was summoned into a
meeting and all were scolded because the policy was not being
correctly kept. You ever had that happen to you?
You ever had that happen and you wasn't the one that was breaking
the policy, but you were the one following the policy? Did
you feel a little angry because you had to sit through the meeting
and be scolded as well as everyone else? Our egos, our egos does
not allow us to feel good in situations like that. I say that,
I said that rather, to preface now what I'm about to say. I
thank God for the modern contrivances that we have today. There are
some who cannot make it that are near this local assembly
that would love to be here right now this morning, that would
love to be here but cannot be here because of an actual hindering
cause. But I would venture to say that
every one of us here this morning probably knows someone or ones,
more than one, who find it quite easy to become complacent They
give lip service to belief in Jesus Christ, and yet will make,
and Paul, I'm glad you preached what you did, no sacrifice whatsoever. No sacrifice whatsoever. The
complacency that I see all about us concerning the viral, the
virus, rather, circumstances under which we live, has made
me wonder, Mason we talked a little bit about this, but made me wonder
how many people give lip service to God and their hearts are far
from Him. What if, what if in even this
nation in which we live, What if God Almighty in his own wise,
sovereign purpose, what if, I don't know whether it'll happen or
not, but if God's purpose for it to happen, it will happen.
But what if God has purposed even for this country to one
day, martial rule comes down and we are told you will not
gather at all because we think this is a danger to society. What will we do then in light
of what some, not you, what some do now in complete complacency? I'm too afraid. The word of God
says, perfect love casteth out fear. And that's not my love
for God. That's me by grace knowing his
love for me. And if I believe he has perfect
love for me, I got no reason to be afraid of anything or anyone. That does not mean we do not
take precautions. Some of our brothers and sisters
in times past had to meet in secret and hide when doing so. But bless God, Mason, they at
least still did it. They at least still did it and
did it under the threat of death. Death by the government. And
we're afraid of a virus. Let me change that. We're not afraid of the virus.
Some of us has had it. And guess what? We're still here.
And if some of us yet get it and God takes us out of this
world, you know what I say? Praise be to God. We're done with this world. Now having said that, Numbers
chapter 32. Israel, that is the nation of
Israel. National Israel was one people. They were one people. They were
one nation. They were one called out assembly. Israel on a national scale was
called out of Egypt Correct. We have seen this we've come
through this history thus far Israel is called out of Egypt
But when you're called out of something by God you are going
to be called to something by God Many gloat in the fact they
think they've been called out of something, but they never
have evidently, evidently, I can't see the heart, I don't know,
but I must preach the truth as it is in this book, knowing the
rebellion and unbelief of men. Many are, they glory in being
called out of something, but they have no connection to something
afterwards. Yet, yet, though Israel was one
people, one nation, one called out assembly, and they were called
out into the what? The wilderness. But they had
a destination to arrive at. And though because of their rebellion,
they did not enter in at first, Mason, if they hadn't have rebelled,
they could have entered in right at first. But because of their
rebellion, God kept them in the wilderness for 40 years until
all the unbelievers, dead carcasses, lie in the wilderness to rot.
Why? Because God is holy. But yet
notice, in the midst of this stiff-necked and rebellious people,
and I'm here to tell you and you and me, that's what we are
too. This stiff-necked and rebellious
people, yet they were to be separated geographically by tribe one day. Were they not? This is kind of
the context of Numbers chapter 32. Israel has now went through,
per se, the 40 years. Thousands have died in the wilderness
under God's holy severity. And now Israel is poised to enter
into the land. But the tribe of Reuben and the
tribe of Gad had lots of animals. Did you read the chapter? Lots
of animals. And they realized that on the east side of Jordan,
just below what is now known as Damascus, stretching all the
way down to the Dead Sea on the east side of Jordan, they realized
that this land was great for animals. Great for animals. And they come to Moses and Eleazar
and the princes of the congregation, and they say, grant us the request
to have this land on this side of Jordan. And Moses agrees,
but he gives them one stiff command. You can have the land on the
east side of Jordan. And eventually it was divided
between Reuben at the most southern end, and Gad in the middle, and
forgive me if I have this a little wrong, and the half tribe of
Manassas to the north, all on the east side of Jordan. But
one thing Moses makes sure, here's one thing you best make sure,
and look at what it says in verse 20. They said, we want this land
over here. Moses says, that's fine, but
the promised land is on that side. And the rest of your brethren
are going over to that side. You could have this land over
here, but you must pass over to that other side first and
fight the battle of all the battles. Then you could have the possession
on the other side. And he says in verse 20, They
had agreed. They had agreed. Gad and Reuben,
they are the two main ones mentioned here. There was, of course, the
half-tribe of Manasseh. Verse 20, And Moses said unto
them, If ye will do this thing, if ye will go armed before the
Lord to war, and will go all of you armed
over Jordan before the Lord until he hath driven out his enemies
from before him, and the land be subdued before the Lord. Then
afterward ye shall return and be guiltless before the Lord
and before Israel, and this land shall be your possession before
the Lord. But if ye will not do so, behold,
ye have sinned against the Lord. And be sure Your sin will find
you out. You see that? Be sure your sin
will find you out. I know, I realize that that passage,
that phrase from that one verse has probably been used so much
by modern day free will preachers, and they're basically telling
men and women today that if you're out behind the building smoking
cigarettes, but you know you really shouldn't, then God's
gonna get you one day. This ain't about cigarettes.
Like our beloved pastor Earl Cochran used to say, there's
some preachers that preach more against a pack of cigarettes
and a can of beer than they do for the glory of the Lord Jesus
Christ. This ain't about sins in general. What did he say? Be sure your
sin, a singular sin, what is that sin? Not engaging in the
battle with the rest of God's people. Well, I just want to
be a believer and sit at home. I can read my Bible. I can watch
the internet. Yes, you can. But if you're God's
people, you will join in the battle with God's people. That's
what this book teaches. That's what our chapter is teaching
us. You see, God's church is one church. There's only one
church. It is one people, we are one
people, united to Christ by one God-wrought calling. And you
can see that clearly if you wish later to turn to Ephesians chapter
four, verse one and six, where it says things like, one Lord,
right? One faith. One baptism, one hope
of his calling, all of it, one, one, one. Why? Because we are
one people. If you are a member of the church,
it means God has called you out of the world, placed you in the
church, and the church is people. the church is people. And whether
they meet in a remodeled house, or whether they meet in some
great citadel somewhere, or whether they meet in a cave somewhere,
you will desire to be with God's people. If you've been called
out of Egypt into the wilderness, you will engage in the battle. Isn't it amazing? All of these
tribes, 12 of them, with their stiff neckness, Paul, that might
not be a word either. And their rebellion against God. Yet, I don't find one tribe saying,
we're gonna leave the group and go on our own. You ever notice
that? You know why? Because God ordained,
he made us this way. Whether it's in our natural state
or our spiritual state, we need other people. We need, and if
you think you don't, you are, you have deceived yourself. Even the great prophets said,
Lord, I'm all alone. Didn't they? Boy, don't we like
to have those pity parties? Oh, boy, I'm the only one standing
true for God. God told him, now I got 7,000.
Now you don't know about, you know about them now, but I've
got 7,000 men that I have reserved and they've not bowed the knee
to the image of Baal. You see, God's holy, wise, sovereign
purpose separates his own, not only from the world in heart
and mind, but from each other geographically. Even here, in
this small group of people, some of us drive almost an hour to
get here. And I don't know how many times
people have asked me, you go that far to go to church? And I wish I always had the appropriate
response, no, I am going together with the church. And it takes
me that long to get there. Because there are very few places
in this world where the truth of the person and work of Jesus
Christ is proclaimed without apology. Nowhere is the truth
and the work of Jesus Christ proclaimed perfectly. But there
are some groups of people that by God Almighty's grace, they
strive to preach the truth of the person and work of Jesus
Christ faithfully from this book in spite of their faults and
their failures. I would love if all of God's
people were together, but we'd be just like Israel, wouldn't
we? be just like we'd be at one another's
throats in a heartbeat. Again, I say God's wise, holy,
sovereign purpose separates us not only from the world, but
from each other geographically. And his purpose separates us
to distinct different places. difficulties. I'm not going to
read it, but you can read that if you read chapter 32, verses
33 through 42. You find out that Gad, Reuben,
and the half-tribe of Manasseh had their own particular battles
to fight on their side. Did they not? You read that.
But one thing they must do is engage the battle with the rest
of God's people. Think about it. The church at
Corinth and the church at Thessalonica was one, they were God's one
church. Mason, they were one church.
But they were still separate churches geographically. And
the same problems at Corinth were not all the same problems
at Thessalonica. Right? I mean, Paul had to give
strong rebuke to immorality in Corinth. He warns Thessalonica
about immorality but gives no specific rebuke. Paul had to
rebuke an individual in Corinth and the rest of the believers
at Corinth were putting up with what was going on. He didn't
do that to Thessalonica because that wasn't going on in Thessalonica.
But there was one battle common to both those churches. Geographically
one battle what battle was that the preaching of the gospel of
the person and work of Jesus Christ That is common to every
local assembly. There are some assemblies ones
of which I am familiar There are more I have no doubt because
I don't know all the people of God But there are some who may
have won 200 people and I guarantee you some of their problems are
far more complex They're just our small group here Don't you
figure so? I mean the more of us wicked,
corrupt, rebellious, stiff-necked people you put together, the
worse we screw things up and make it for everything else.
There are times when I become discouraged but then I look out
here over this small group and I say, thank God. Thank God. Think of it, the seven churches
of Asia. Now they were God's one church, were they not? Those
who were actually called out, they were one church. Yet all
seven churches had various things going on. But who's the one head
of all those seven churches? Jesus Christ the Lord. You see,
and yet, Yet the battle is common to all. I read it, verses 20,
21, 22, 23 specifically. That battle is the truth of the
gospel. Look at verse six, let's read
that. Remember, Gad and Reuben came and said, this is great
land over here for our animals. This is great land. This would
work well for us. Moses says, that's fine. But
you look out and look what he says, verse six. And Moses said
unto the children of Gad and to the children of Reuben, shall
your brethren go to war? And he said here. Now here's
the question. And I could ask it. I can't point
at individuals and say, you're this one, you're, I can't do
that. But I must stand here and warn. I must admonish, I must
rebuke. Are they really your brethren
if you're not willing to get in the heat of the battle with
them? Now, come on now. If I tell my
wife I love her but I don't want to spend time with her because
I'm afraid I might get the COVID. I don't mean this to be mean,
but my wife and I still lived in the same house when one of
us had it. My wife and I still ate the same
food when one of us had it and the other one didn't. My wife
and I still slept in the same bed when one of us had it and
the other didn't. Why? Because we just believed
God so much? No, because it's nonsense to
think you can separate yourself from someone you love. And if
you don't want to be here with us, and you're close enough,
you could be with us. The reason you're not here with
us is because you don't love us. because you're not willing
to engage in the battle with us. And you think, what do I
do for the Lord? You show up at this small group
every Sunday that you possibly can. And that says to people
around you, they might not say it to you, but they know that
person's weird. They're really connected to that
weird group of folks over there at that place called Sovereign
Grace Chapel. Huh? That's right. And I went, I went
to a place one time, I think I've told you this, I went to
a place one time and I was supposed to get me a free camera. If you
listen for a spiel to buy some property. So I thought, I'll
go get me a free camera. I didn't get my free camera.
You know why? Because the subject of religion
came up. I didn't bring it up. I was wanting
my free camera. I knew that would probably stifle
the free camera. This individual who had control
over the free camera brought the subject up. Now, once the
subject is broached, Ellen, what must I do? Speak the truth of
God and Jesus Christ. And he said, well, why do you
drive all the way to Beckley? I said, because it's all heretics
down in Mercer County. But I didn't get my free camera. After that, I wasn't worried
about the free camera. People will find out the truth about
you if you engage in the war with your brothers and sisters.
You don't have to stand behind the podium to do it. Do it where
you work. Do it where you live. Do it online. But make sure that the battle
you're fighting is concerning the person and work of Jesus
Christ, not once saved, always saved. Did you know that's not
the battle? Because once God convinces a man or a woman or
a boy or a girl, black or white, rich, bond-free, male or female,
once God convinces an individual of the absolute efficacy of the
person or work of Jesus Christ, they ain't worried about the
subject of once saved, always saved anymore. They will begin
to recognize that they have been saved since the world began.
since the world began, and God called them out of the world
and placed them amidst his people so they know in this world, God's
done this for me. Yet, that one battle's common
to all. That battle is the truth of the
gospel. It is preach Christ, preach Christ, preach Christ.
If you argue with people about whether you ought to have a musical
instrument or not have a musical instrument, you've went off on
the cusp. You're out there fighting a battle
on the east side of Jordan and leaving your brethren over here
who's preaching the personal work of Jesus Christ. And it's
just that simple, but should we gather on the Sabbath day
or on the first day of the week? That's not the battle. Do you
understand that? That's not the battle. I could
get along with a local assembly that believed it was better to
meet on Friday evening sometime six o'clock, Mason, to Saturday
evening sometime six o'clock if they preach the truth of the
personal work of Jesus Christ. If I didn't have a place to go,
I'd meet with them on the Sabbath day and not on the first day
of the week. If they're preaching the truth of the person and work
of Jesus Christ. Because that's where the battle
is. So my title is this, Gospel Called,
Gospel Gathered, Gospel Centered Assemblies. And if you don't
find yourself there, then you've never been gospel called. You
hear what I just said? Gospel called, gospel gathered. Gospel called, oh, I believe
the truth. But I, you know, it's just too
much trouble to have to get up every Sunday morning. It's too
difficult. I work late Saturday nights.
It's just too difficult. Gospel called, gospel gathered. The word church means called
out, but it means called unto an assembly, called unto a congregation. As a matter of fact, one of the
words used in the Old Testament where it talks about the congregation,
The writer of Hebrews translates that word in Hebrews, congregation,
he translated it this way, church. Church. This building is not
the church. This building is Sovereign Grace
Chapel. These people who gather here and believe Christ, they
are the church. They are the church. The war
is defined by Paul. Turn to Romans chapter one. Let
me move along. Romans chapter one, this war
is defined. Now here is an apostle. Here
is a man who was taught personally by Jesus Christ. Mason as any
apostle must have been to be an apostle. You had to be personally
under the ministry of Jesus Christ to be an apostle. Saul of Tarsus
was one he called himself, born out of due time. But Jesus Christ
taught him personally. He went into Arabia by himself,
and he didn't seek man's opinion. And there, God Almighty taught
him his gospel, and Mason, I believe he used the Old Testament scripture
to do it with. Because he just wasn't getting it out of thin
air. Because God's truth, the gospel of Jesus Christ, person
and work, is as much in the Old Testament as it is in the New
Testament. The words define, here's an apostle, Paul, a servant
of who? Not the church. Not the mission board, right?
Paul, a servant of who? Jesus Christ. Called an apostle. Now, to be doesn't destroy it,
but it may convolute a little. He wasn't called to be an apostle,
he was called an apostle. Separated into what? Separate
unto what? What is now, we're separated
from a lot of things. And we're separated to a lot
of things. But where is the battle? That's what I'm getting at. What
is the hub of all of these other spokes that go out to make up
the whole of the wheel? What's the hub of all this? Separated
unto the gospel of God. And this wasn't some new thing,
Paul says. which he had promised afore by his prophets in the
holy scriptures. And now it's even more compartmentalized
concerning his son, Jesus Christ our Lord. I don't say this to
beat a dead horse, as folks say, but there are people, there are
local assemblies, groups, or a local assembly, they have split
and splintered because of musical instruments. Or whether you ought
to wash feet when you have the Lord's table. Or whether when
you have the Lord's table, is it only for members of that local
assembly? There are so-called churches,
Mason, that have split because of things like that. The real reason is they really
don't believe and agree concerning the truth of the personal work
of Jesus Christ. And I mean by that, they think
it's important, but it's not all important. These other things
are just as important. What was Gad and Reuben told?
Over here on this side, over on the west side of Jordan, there's
the battle. and you don't fight with your
brethren, be sure this, your sin will find you out. It's defined, concerning his
son, Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David
according to the flesh. and declared to be the Son of
God with power according to the spirit of holiness by the resurrection
from the dead. It is not done with this yet,
look at, by whom we have received grace and apostleship for obedience
to the faith among all nations for his name. This ain't just
the way it is for one local assembly. This is the way it is for all
the local assemblies over all the face of the earth. Jesus
Christ is the sum and substance of all things. Again, the war
now was made public. First Corinthians chapter one.
And you know it. Let me just look at verse 17. Gotta move on. For Christ sent
me not to baptize. Do you know there are people
who make baptism the matter of contention? How you do it, how
you don't do it. Whether you gotta do it or whether
you don't gotta do it. Am I telling you the facts or
not? But Paul said, Christ did not send me to baptize. He's
not throwing off on baptism. But everything's got to be in
its proper perspective. You exalt anything, even attempt
to exalt anything, to be equal with or even right under the
absolute necessity of the truth of the personal work of Jesus
Christ, it is idolatry. You can make baptism and it can
become, you can make baptism essential, you make it to be
your idol. Christ sent me not to baptize, but to do what? Preach
the gospel. Know what he says? Now I, by
God's grace, I want to stand with Paul. Mason, I want to fight
that battle. Now there may be battles to fight
against baptism. Man comes along and says, well,
so and so baptized me. Who cares? Right? Paul deals
with that, doesn't he? Well, I was baptized in the old
church. So what? unto what were you baptized?
Well I was baptized face down. Well whoop-dee-doo. Well, it
was said, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, not Jesus only when I
was baptized. Do you really think that's gonna make, that's what
it's all about? Baptism is what? The answer of
a good conscience before God. And this book bears out that
we baptize by immersing in water. And it don't matter whether it's
front forward or back first, front first or back first, it
don't matter. Dip one time or three. There
are people who argue over that. Yeah. Well, at least we all believe
in dipping. We can get along on that, don't
we? Hmm, what does he say? Let's go on. For the preaching
of, look at verse 18. Wait a minute, no, I didn't read
all. For Christ sent me not to baptize,
but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the,
what? Now here's the gospel. The cross
of Christ should be made of none effect. For the preaching of
the cross is to them that perish foolishness. But unto us which
are saved, it is the power of God. The preaching of baptism
is not it. We instruct in baptism, but we
preach Christ. We instruct concerning the truth
of the law, the facts given in the law, but our preaching is
what? The person or work of Jesus Christ. We encourage men and women not
to forsake the assembling of yourselves together as the manner
of some is. And why is that? Because we need
one another's companionship and help. And if you don't, then
that means you're not a part of the group. It's that plain
and simple. For it is written, for it is
written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise. I will bring to
nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the wise?
Where is the scribe? And no, God does not deny this
wisdom in men because Jack Meadows, God gave men and women this wisdom.
But men and women abuse that wisdom. Men and women use that
wisdom to stroke their own egos and their own sense of self-worth.
Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is
the disputer of this world? God, help us. Let's quit arguing
with people about things. Tell them about Jesus Christ.
and who he really is. Because until God opens their
eyes and their ears and the hearts to see him, I don't care how
orthodox they are on every other subject, they've missed him whom
to have his life. Where is the wise, where is the
scribe, where is the disputer of this world? Had not God made
foolish the wisdom of this world? That's a conundrum, is it not?
For after that in the wisdom of God, the world by wisdom knew
not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching. Now
let me ask you, do you preach to yourself? I didn't ask you
if you talk to yourself. I know some of us probably talk
to ourselves. No, preaching is a public thing. Whether you're a person sent
by God to stand in a specific office, like it is right here,
or whether you're doing it on Facebook with somebody over the
internet, or whether you're talking with someone at work, or whether
you're talking with someone at Walmart, it is to proclaim. Now this ain't about pastoring,
it's preaching. Pastors are to preach and teach,
okay? They're to be pastors and teachers.
But preaching is different than pastoring. Preaching, it pleased
God by the foolishness of preaching to save them to believe. And
somebody said, but preacher, we're preaching. I mean, we're
on the internet, we're on TV, and just nobody's believing.
It's because God ain't ordained one to believe right now. Is
that right or wrong? Noah preached for 120 years. And he preached God's righteousness
for 120 years. And only seven other people of
all the millions, if not billions of people that were on the face
of the earth at that time, and only seven others were allowed
by God to enter into the ark. Noah's preaching was for the
sake of those seven other people. and the glory of God. For the
Jews require a sign, the Greeks seek after wisdom, and it's still
so today. The religious person says, prove
what you're saying to me. That's the Jews seeking a sign,
is it not? Prove what you're saying from that Bible is true.
I don't have to prove it, I just preach it. You don't have to
prove it, just preach it. Just say what this says. You
don't have to even explain it. I think we pastors, Think we're
so great at explaining everything else when nobody else can, and
our egos strokes itself like no one's business. For the Jews
require sign, the Greeks seek after wisdom. What does the intelligent,
educated person say? Bring me all of the evidence
that you can. I need empirical evidence. Prove this mathematically and
scientifically. I had a guy come into my house
one time to sell me, I think it was insurance. And of course,
he was in my own home. And in my own home, I would speak
about what I wanted to speak about. So I was not quiet about
the personal work of Jesus Christ like I was when I was trying
to get the free camera. And when I started talking about
the personal work of Jesus Christ, he wanted to start showing me
mathematics. Folks, I am not kidding you.
And he sat for 10 minutes. But you need to see this. This
will open your mind. I said, mathematics don't open
your mind. God does. And he don't, I mean, I watched
on YouTube, God help you on YouTube, where one and one actually can
equal zero. And this great mathematician
was showing how it's so. And after it was over, I thought,
he's an idiot. He was proving with mathematics
how one and one's not just two, but it can be zero. And I thought,
boy, these are the people that are teaching our young folks
in our schools now. But we preach, what is it we
preach? If we're preaching the gospel,
Christ crucified. And there's the problem. because
you could preach about baptism, you could preach about church
membership, you could preach about the Lord's table, you could
preach about feet washing, you could preach about musical instruments
or no musical instruments, and you will find somebody else that'll
agree with you somewhere. But no man by nature agrees to
who Jesus Christ really is and what he actually accomplished
until God Almighty opens up their eyes and their ears and their
heart. You see, the war, this one war is preeminent. Paul told
the Corinthians that when he first came to them, he determined
to know nothing among them, saving Jesus Christ and him crucified.
And I know that may sound, because a lot of us preachers, those
we're associated with, we say this a lot, but think about who
the Corinthians were. It was the center of, a center
of great commerce, Mason. A center of great religious worship. Temples everywhere. It was one
of the centers of the world at that time of great pleasures
in the world. Immorality ran rampant in that
city. And when Paul come in, what did
he preach? What did he stick to? Jesus Christ
and him crucified. That's the context of what he
was writing there. When he wrote to the Corinthians,
he warned them about immorality, did he not? He warned him about
whether you ought to, if you're a believer, and if you're a believer,
you ought not marry someone that's an unbeliever. You're just asking
for nothing but trouble. Didn't he warn him about that?
But what's the one message? Jesus Christ and him crucified. Let me move on. Has this war
ever been defined and made public and made preeminent to you, to
me? There are people that have been
in this assembly, Listen to either Joe, or Paul, or me, or others,
and they come in, boy, and oh, they just, tears come down. Oh,
they just know they're a sinner. But have they come to that point
in time where they're ready to engage in the battle with the
people of God? Paul, according to his writing
in 2 Corinthians 10 verses three through five, God will come in
with the weapons of our warfare, which are not carnal. They're
not carnal, but they're mighty through God. And they do what?
They pull down strongholds. They cast down what men think
up here about themselves and about God. Casting down imaginations. And it brings every thought into
the obedience of Christ. It makes you begin to think about
the person and work of Jesus Christ. When you go to work and
you're stocking a shelf, all of a sudden Christ and who he
is and what he accomplished pops into your mind, does it not? But that is not so with those
who give lip service to God only. A good Calvinist is only saved
if he believes Jesus Christ. And an Arminian can be saved
if God brings him or her to believe Jesus Christ. The gospel is the
battle. The gospel is not. Righteous
people can be called, gathered, and gospel-centered. God's never
called not one righteous person in this world. Did you know that?
Christ said, I didn't come to call the righteous, but sinners
to repentance. And listen to me. People that
may hear this later, maybe hearing it now, or maybe later. The battle
for the people of God is not against the beer joints. and
the strip clubs, and the gambling parlors, and all the dope fiends. That's not where the battle's
at. Those are the people that need to hear the personal work
of Jesus Christ. Like I said, I've never had one
drunk, anytime I ever talked to one, I've never had one drunk
get mad at me because of the truth of the personal work of
Jesus Christ. They may not have believed what I said, but Mason,
I've never had one get mad at me. Let me change it. I did have
one get mad at me. It was at a golf course one time.
He was so drunk he couldn't even hardly walk. But he was an ex-Free
Will Baptist preacher, so there you go. Had he been a drunk laying in
a ditch underneath some overpass somewhere, he probably would
have said, preacher, what you're saying may well be right, but
I can't help myself. Don't you think? You know where the battle's
at? The battle is with the pride
and the righteousness that man has down here in his heart and
heart and his mind. That's where the battle's at.
You see, the gospel is Christ, Christ, Christ, Christ. If you
say, if you think within yourself, well, I think Walter got a little
off kilter over here on this thing. Just coming and hammering
on me about that thing. will never accomplish one thing.
Here's what's going to accomplish it. I will end with this. Colossians
chapter two, for I would that ye knew what great conflict I
had for you. What have we been talking about?
A battle, right? The war. What great conflict
I have for you and for them at, look at that word right there.
Do you see that? Laodicea. You remember Laodicea? That's
the local assembly, one of the local assemblies in Asia that
Christ said, I'm gonna vomit you up out of my mouth. Look,
and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh, that their
hearts might be comforted, be knit together in love, and under
all riches of full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgement
of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ, in
whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. But
preacher, I got this one book and it just has such great insight.
If it's not about the personal work of Jesus Christ, it don't
have no great insight. It may well be that thing that
leads your soul straight to hell. For though I be absent in the
flesh, yet I am with you in the spirit, joying and beholding
your order and the steadfastness of what? Your faith in Christ. As ye therefore have received
Christ Jesus the Lord, how are you gonna walk then? So walk
ye in him. I'm gonna tell ya, if the preaching
of the personal work of Jesus Christ doesn't stir you up to
serve God, then you do not know God. I don't care what you profess. I don't care where you think
you are. I don't care how long you've attended this place. If
the preaching of the personal work of Jesus Christ doesn't
stir you up in your soul, you've missed Jesus Christ. Rooted and
built up, how? In Him, and established in the
faith as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. And as I beware lest any man
spoil you. You know what that means, don't
you? What is it when something spoils? It's made to rot. Correct? Made to rot, beware
lest any man spoil you through philosophy and empty deceit after
the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not
after Christ. For in him dwelleth all the fullness
of the Godhead bodily. Since that is true, What is it
that will motivate me outside of that? There is nothing else. Mason,
would you close us in prayer, please?