Well, it's a very awesome thing
to know the Lord Jesus Christ, isn't it? What a glorious, blessed
privilege. First Corinthians 16. I suppose the only thing that
you could say that would be better than knowing Christ is him knowing
me. I love what Paul said in Galatians
chapter four, verse nine, where he said, now that you've known
God or rather are known of God. Now that you've known Christ,
I do know him, but or rather are known of Christ. 1 Corinthians 16, I'd like to
read verses 13 and verse 14, I've entitled this message, five
things to do. Five things. To do. Beginning in verse 13. Paul says,
watch ye. Stand fast in the faith. Quit ye like men. Be strong. Or be strengthened. Let all your things be done with
charity. Paul is closing this epistle
to the Corinthians, and this was a true church. With. True believers. And a lot of problems. There were divisions among them.
There was pride. There was moral problems. There
were doctrinal problems. There was the abuse of the gifts
of the Holy Spirit. There was the abuse of ordinances. There was failure to love one
another. They were actually suing each
other and bringing each other to court. And Paul had addressed
all of these issues and more. And he's giving them closing
instructions and he gives them five things to do after writing
this glorious epistle. He says, watch ye. Be watchful. Stand fast. Don't be moved. Stand fast in
the faith. Quit ye like men. Act like a
man. Play the man. Grow up. Grow up. Be a man. Be strengthened. Not so much be strong. Be strengthened. And let all your things be done. With charity. Now, if by the
grace of God you and I are enabled to do these five things. And
actually put them into practice, it'll be a great blessing to
us. And it'll save us from a lot
of heartache. that will come into our lives
if we don't do these things. Five things to do. I want to
do what the Lord says, don't you? And I know it's only by
His grace I can do it, but I want to do what He says. The first
thing He says is, Watch ye. Watch ye. The word means be awake. Don't sleep. Be on your guard. The disciples slept when they
should have been watching, and they all ended up forsaking the
Lord Jesus Christ and fleeing and playing the coward. Samson
slept while his locks were cut off and he lost his power. The servants slept while the
enemies or the enemy planted the tears. The Shulamite woman
who pictures the Lord, pictures the believer in his relationship
with the Lord Jesus Christ in the Song of Solomon, she fell
asleep. And she lost her communion with
her beloved. Falling asleep brings on troubles
that we would not have if we would stay awake. That's why
he says, watchy. Turn with me to Mark chapter
13. Now, this falling asleep means a whole lot of things,
you know, it's. It's seldom that I preach a message where somebody
doesn't fall asleep. Seldom. One time I read where
Charles Spurgeon was preaching and somebody fell asleep. And
he said to the person beside him, wake him up. And the fellow
replied, this person, you put him to sleep, you wake him up. I'm sure I've done that a few
times. But. Don't fall asleep. Don't fall
asleep in the preaching of the gospel. Don't fall asleep in. Spiritual things where you become
looking like you're dead. That's what he's talking about.
Be awake, don't fall asleep. Now look in Mark chapter 13,
beginning in verse 35. Or verse 33. Take ye heed. These are the words
of the Lord to his disciples. Watch. Don't fall asleep, watch
and pray, for you know not when the time is, for the Son of Man
is as a man taking a far journey. who left his house and gave authority
to his servants and to every man at work and commanded the
porter to watch, to stay awake. Don't fall asleep on the job.
Stay awake. Watch ye therefore, for you know
not when the master of the house cometh, at even or at midnight
or at the cockcrow or in the morning, lest coming suddenly
he find you sleeping. And what I say to you, I say
to all, watch. Watch. Be alert, be on your guard. And who's the first person we
need to watch out for? Now, if you're a believer, you
already know the answer to that question. The one you need to
watch out for is yourself. Not somebody else, you know,
some people are good at watching out over other people. It's a
waste of time. You don't need to be doing that.
You have plenty enough reason to be watching over yourself. You know, every one of us ought
to have a very healthy fear of ourselves and a distrust of ourselves. You know, the scripture says,
he that trusts his heart is a fool. Watch out over yourself. You've
got plenty of reasons to watch over yourself, don't you? If
you know yourself at all. You have plenty of reasons to be
paranoid about yourself, to watch out over yourself. And that's
the first thing he's talking about, is watching out over yourself.
We've got plenty enough to look at with ourselves. We don't have
to watch over anybody else. Watch over yourself. And anytime you can watch over
somebody else, I fear that you're leaving where you need to really
be watching. And if I start watching out over somebody else, I'm leaving
my post. I'm the one I need to watch out
for. Do you believe that about yourself? You ought to. You ought to just trust yourself
and just automatically assume that you're wrong. I wish I could
do that all the time. I don't, but I know I ought to.
Watch out for yourself. You know, there's a million reasons
we need to do this. Watch out lest I grow complacent.
Watch out lest I grow fatalistic. Watch out lest I grow self-righteous. Isn't that an idea of me that
comes up in so many different forms? Watch out lest I develop
some bad and wrong attitude. We have such a reason to watch
out over ourselves. Now, I think of the different
scriptures that deal with watching. In Acts chapter 20, verse 31,
we're told to watch out concerning false doctrine. He said, remember,
by the space of three years, I cease not to warn you night
and day. Now, watch. Watch out for this. He said, of all of
your own selves shall men arise speaking corrupt things to draw
away disciples after them. Now, watch. Watch. Watch out
for false doctrine. Watch out for false doctrine
in the church. A little lemon. Leavens the whole lot. Watch out. I know that scares
me to death. I don't want that to happen here.
Watch out. Paul said in Colossians chapter
four, verse two, continue in prayer and watch in the same. With Thanksgiving. In first Peter
five, eight. Peter says, be sober, be vigilant
or Watchful, that's the word. It's just translated vigilant
there. Be watchful because your adversary, the devil, goeth about
as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Watch out. You
know, when the Lord taught us to pray, he said, deliver us
from evil. Deliver me from this evil one.
Deliver me from that evil one. Watch out. Turn with me to Revelation
chapter 16. Verse 15, Behold, I come as a thief. In another place, it says, I
come as a thief in the night. Blessed is he that watcheth. And you know what he's doing
while he's watching? He keeps his garments, lest he
walk naked and they see his shame. You watch and you keep your garments.
Now, what's your garment? Your garment is the righteousness
and merit of the Lord Jesus Christ. And you make sure that every
thought is brought into obedience to His righteousness. You make
sure, by the grace of God, be paranoid about not trusting Him
only. I mean, be scared of yourself. Be paranoid about looking somewhere
else other than Him. Oh, blessed is that one who keeps
His garments, who looks only to Christ and nowhere else. You
know, the Lord said to the church at Sardis, if therefore thou
shalt not watch, I will come upon thee as a thief in the night. Paul said, let us not sleep as
do others, but let us watch and be sober. And once again, let
me repeat this. The one I'm to watch out for
is this one. May God give us grace to do that. Watch ye, watch ye. And then
he says next in our text, go back to our text in 1 Corinthians
chapter 16. Watch ye, stand fast in the faith. What timely instruction at all
times. Stand fast. Don't be moved. Stand
fast. Don't be like a reed shaking
in the wind. Stand fast in the faith. Now the faith is another name
for the gospel. The faith signifies what we believe
and the act of believing. The faith signifies the object
of faith and the act of faith. Now stand fast in the faith,
and the Bible uses Genesis to Revelation to define the faith. Now, I've used this so many times,
and I like it more now than ever have, as far as a summary of
the faith. I mean, like I said, the whole
Bible gives us the faith, but I like this. It was called the
watchword of the Reformation, the sola fide, that's Latin. Scriptures alone, Christ alone, grace alone, faith
alone, the glory of God alone. Stand fast in the faith, the
Scripture alone. I look to the Word of God alone. We really believe that the Bible
is our only rule. of faith and practice. You know why I don't have a church,
whatever it is, constitution and covenant, I don't even know
what they are, creeds and all those big things, you've got
a four or five hundred page document, tell them what we... I've got
the Bible. Isn't that enough? I really believe the Bible is
the Word of God. And I don't need anything else. We look to
the Scriptures alone. I want to hear what God has to
say. And if I can't See what I believe. Understand this. I don't go to the Bible to prove
what I believe. May God deliver me from that.
I don't go to the Bible as a proof text to prove what I believe.
I go to the Bible to find out what to believe and bow down
to what God says. I bow to what God says. The Scriptures alone. You don't have any interest in
hearing what I've got to say, do you? As far as my opinions, you
want to hear what God's Word has to say. the Scriptures alone
as our only rule of faith and practice. Christ alone. Christ Jesus is
the ground of my salvation. Here's where my assurance comes
from. Christ alone. Here's where my confidence comes
from. Christ alone. Here's the object of my faith.
Christ alone. I love that scripture where it
says they saw no man save Jesus only. There's two words that
go well together. Jesus only. Jesus only is everything
in my salvation. Christ alone, not Christ and.
You know the word alone is very important. You can stand for
the scriptures and Christ and grace and faith and the glory
of God, but if you don't use that word alone, you've missed
it. Christ alone. I tell you what, this gives me
such confidence and such assurance. Christ is all in my salvation.
I love thinking about it. Christ only is everything in
salvation. Grace alone. Don't you love the word grace?
Grace is a charming sound, melodious to the ears, free grace, God's
grace. In every aspect of salvation,
you begin an election when God shows a people to glorification
where those people stand perfectly conformed to the image of Christ
and everything in between. Salvation is by grace alone. Not grace and anything. Grace
alone. You like that, don't you? It
takes the pressure off. It makes me feel good. Faith. alone. Christ is received by faith. I can't see that I'm perfectly
holy in God's eye, but I believe I am, because I'm looking to
the Lord Jesus as my holiness and my righteousness before God.
Faith alone, not faith in something. Faith alone. And the glory of
God alone. That's the only right motive. All other motives are wrong motives. I'm not preaching trying to get
a crowd, trying to get a big church. No, the glory of God
alone. And if that's not really my motive,
I have no business preaching. May the Lord deliver us from
a man that has any other motive than the glory of God alone. Now, you stand fast in the faith. Don't be Let me give you a scriptural
illustration of this. Now, what I'm talking scriptures
alone, Christ alone, faith alone, grace alone, the glory of God
alone. These are given. If we waffle on any of these,
we're certainly not standing fast in the faith. And here's
an example. Turn with me. Hebrews, Chapter five. Hebrews, Chapter five. Verse 11. Of whom, speaking of
Melchizedek, of whom we have many things to say and hard to
be uttered, seeing you are dull of hearing. For when for the
time you ought to be teachers, you have need that one teach
you again what be the first principles, the ABCs of the oracles of God. And you become such as have need
of milk and not a strong meat for everyone that uses milk.
is unskillful, inexperienced in the word of righteousness,
for he is a babe. But strong meat belongeth to them that are
of full age and of rich maturity, even those who by reason of use
have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. Therefore,
leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go
on to perfection, not laying again the foundation. Now, before
we go on, if you're always happy to lay again the foundation,
superstructure never comes up, does it? These are things that
were to be grounded in and we can't have to always. He doesn't
mean we don't preach these things anymore and go off into bigger
and better things. He's saying I'm going to be grounded
in this. This is the ABCs. And if I'm not grounded in this,
I'm in trouble. Not laying in the foundation.
And here are the six principles that we should not be always
going back and forth on, not laying in the foundation of repentance
from dead works. Have you ever repented of your
dead works and looked to Christ alone? I shouldn't have to be
laying that foundation all the time over again to where you,
well, he says, no, we shouldn't be doing that. Or faith toward
God. That's faith in Christ. Is faith toward God faith in
Christ? Sure it is. Of the doctrine of baptisms.
Now, what is the doctrine of baptisms? We know what the act
of baptism is. It's immersion. Going under the water and coming
back up. Well, what is the doctrine of
baptisms? Well, it's union with the Lord Jesus Christ. What I'm
saying when I'm baptized is here's my hope of salvation. When he
lived, I lived. When he died, I died. When he
was raised again, he was raised again for my justification. The
doctrine of baptisms is union with the Lord Jesus Christ. And
then he talks about the laying on of hands next. Now, when he's
talking about the laying on of hands, that's not talking about
where religious people put their hands on one another and so on.
That's talking about The high priest laying his hands on the
head of the sacrifice, and it represents the transference of
guilt, the transference of righteousness. And that's what happened on the
cross. My sin was transferred to him. His righteousness is
given to me. Don't be waffling back and forth
on that. What joy there is in the doctrine
of the laying on of hands. And next, he says in verse three. And of the resurrection of the
dead. Christ's resurrection from the dead and what it accomplished,
the justification of his people. Spiritual resurrection, the new
birth. The final resurrection, when
God's people are raised from the dead. And I like this statement
of eternal judgment. It doesn't just say judgment,
but of eternal judgment. I love to think of the eternal
security of God's people. Eternal judgment. My judgment
in the purpose and mind of God took place when the Lamb was
slain from the foundation of the world. I like eternal judgment. I like eternal redemption. I
like eternal justification. Everything God does is eternal.
He's God. If it's not eternal, God didn't
do it. Everything He does is eternal. It has its roots, and
here we're struggling for words because what can you say about
eternity? We don't much understand it, but everything is eternal.
I like it that way. Eternal judgment. And this we
will do if God permits. We shouldn't have to be going
back and forth trying to lay these things down. Don't have
to lay this foundation again. Be settled. Be grounded. Stand
fast in the faith. Stand fast in faith. Believing
God. You know what glorifies God? By trusting Him. And it dishonors
Him when we don't believe Him. There's nothing. You know, some
people act like if you don't have insurance, that's a good
thing. No, it's not. There's nothing good about it.
Is Christ not worthy of complete trust? Is there a reason to not
completely trust Him? Has He ever given you a reason
to doubt Him? Oh, staying fast in faith, believing the Gospel,
really believing that Jesus Christ is all in salvation, that He's
interceding for me. I really believe. that I stand
before God without guilt because of the Lord Jesus Christ. Stand
fast in the faith. Don't be waffling back and forth.
Like I said, some people almost act like it's spiritual to doubt.
There's nothing spiritual at all about that. It's unbelief.
Believe the gospel. Now, I realize the flesh will
struggle with faith, but realize that it's the flesh. The only reason that I would
not have full assurance of faith is because I'm looking in here.
I'm looking somewhere in myself to find assurance. If you do
that, you ought not have any assurance. You don't deserve to have any.
Why are you looking there anyway? I'm speaking to myself. I'm not
just speaking to you. Of course you're going to doubt if you
look within. Look thin. Listen to these scriptures. Paul
said, Be of good cheer, for I believe, God, that it shall be even as
it was told me. Acts 24, 14, that this I confess
to thee, that after the way they call heresy, so worship I the
God of my father, believing all things which are written. In
the prophets, the psalm, the law of Moses concerning him.
You know, we're told in 2 Corinthians 13, 5 to examine ourselves. Anybody
know the rest of the verse? Whether you be in the faith.
Now, I'm always examining myself. I'm examining my motives. I'm
examining my, you know, how much I love, how much I believe and
all that kind of stuff. And boy, you know, it's rough. But that's not what he says to
do. He doesn't say examine yourself to see how you're doing, examine
yourselves, whether ye be in the faith. If you believe the
gospel, are you trusting Christ as your righteousness before
God? Are you in the faith? Do you believe? Are you relying?
Examine yourselves, whether you be in the faith. We're told in Jude to earnestly
contend for the faith. And we're told here to stand
fast in the faith. Now, back to our text in 1 Corinthians
16. Here's the third thing he says
to do. First, he says, watch it. Then he says, stand fast
in the faith. And then he says, quit ye like
men, literally play the man, be a man, be mature. You know,
when you say to somebody, be a man, you're saying, be responsible,
be mature, do the right thing, grow up. You don't want to grow
up, don't you? I want to grow in grace and the
knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Now, Paul had previously
said to this bunch, you're acting like a bunch of babies. Look
in First Corinthians, Chapter three. He says in verse one. And I,
brethren, couldn't speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as
unto carnal. Even as unto babes in Christ,
I fed you with milk and not with meat, for hitherto you were not
able to bear it. Neither now are you able. For you're yet
carnal, for whereas there's among you envying and strife and divisions,
are you not carnal and walk as men?" Envying. It's so contrary to faith. Envying. You know, there isn't anything that
smites me more than when I see myself envying somebody. That
lets me know just how sinful I am. No, if you love somebody,
you don't envy them. Do you envy your children? If
your children prosper, are you jealous? No, you're happy. You want them to prosper because
you love them. You want the best for them. Envying is so contrary to the
spirit of grace. Strife, that's competition and
contention, competing with one another. There's so much strife
in religion. Trying to prove who's the godliest,
or who's the most spiritual, or who's used the most, or who's
used as much as I am. foolishness. It's so contrary
to the spirit of grace. Division. Making a difference
between people. You know, remember this. Here's
a good rule of thumb regarding all of God's people. We're all
nothing. You believe that? We're all nothing. And we're all somebody in Christ.
Greatly significant. I find my significance in the
Lord Jesus Christ. And I really do. I don't find
my significance in my preaching. I don't find my significance
in what I quote do. I find my significance in who
I am in the Lord Jesus Christ. I'm complete in Him. And there's
not to be a division among God's people. You have this group and
that group. You know, just the very idea of denominations. Where
are denominations in the Bible? They're not there. They're God's
people. No divisions. Now Paul is saying
quit acting like spoiled brats, immature children. Be men, be
mature, be responsible. A man accepts responsibility.
Children shirk from it. But a man lives up to his responsibilities. When we say be a man about it,
we're saying do what's right. No matter what it costs you. Be a man. Be mature. That's what real men do, and
that's what mature believers do. So he says, Quake ye like
men, act like a man. Back to our text in 1 Corinthians
15. Here's the fourth thing he says. Be strong. Literally, be strengthened. He doesn't so much say be strong,
he says be strengthened. Does somebody say, well, how
can you be strong when you're weak? You know, I'm too weak
to bench press 250 pounds. It won't happen. If I try to
bench press 250 pounds, it's going to come crashing down on
my chest, and I won't be able to get it up. And it won't do
me any good to say, well, tell yourself you can. Be positive
about it. No, it won't do me any good to be positive about
it. I can't do it. So how am I supposed to be strong when
I'm weak? The key to spiritual strength
is what? Weakness. I fear we don't much believe
that, but it's still true. Paul said, when I'm weak, then
am I strong. We're called upon to be strong
in the Lord and the power of His might. And we read in Ephesians
3, 16, of being strengthened by His Spirit in the inner man. He strengthens us. Now listen
to me. Listen real carefully. I hope
I'm listening to this. If He's the one doing the strengthening,
I don't have any excuse to not be strong. Isn't that so? If strengthening is His work,
and it doesn't say be strong, lift weights to get stronger.
No, it says be strengthened. It's strengthening is His work.
There's no excuse for you and I to not be strong in the Lord
and the power of His might. Be strong in the grace that is
in Christ Jesus, he said to Timothy. Be strong in grace. I tell you
what, we're grace believers, aren't we? This is the Todd's
Road Grace Church. We believe in grace. The grace
of God in Christ Jesus. Be strong in graciousness. I
tell you what, if I'm strong in the doctrine of grace, it
better lead to graciousness, or I don't believe the grace
I claim I believe. If you really believe grace, it'll make you
gracious. It'll make you merciful. It'll
make you kind. Be strong in grace. Be strong in faith. Turn to Romans
chapter 4. I love this passage of Scripture.
Romans chapter 4. Beginning in verse 17. As it is written, I've made thee
a father of many nations. This is God speaking to Abraham
before him whom he believed, remember, were to be strong in
faith, even God who quickens, who gives life to the dead and
calls those things which be not as though they were, who against
hope, believed in hope. There wasn't much hope that his
wife, who had already gone through the process of menopause, and
was 90 years old, and he was 100 years old, there wasn't any
hope that she'd have a baby. But God said she would, therefore
she would. He believed the Word of God,
who against hope believed in hope that he might become the
father of many nations according to that which was spoken, so
shall thy seed be. And being not weak in faith,
he considered not his own body now dead when he was about 100
years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarah's womb. He staggered
not at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strong in faith,
giving glory to God, being fully persuaded that what God had promised,
he was able also to perform. Do you believe that what God
has promised, he's able also to perform? Paul said, I can do all things
through Christ which strengtheneth me. Is anything too hard for the
Lord? Is it too hard for Him to make
me strong? Be strengthened. Growing in grace
has something to do with becoming stronger. Ask and you shall receive. Seek and you shall find. Knock
and it shall be opened to you. Ask the Lord and let me be one
of these people that are strengthened. And if you're not, You didn't
ask because the Lord said you have not because you ask not.
And then finally, he says in our text in 1 Corinthians chapter
16, let all your things be done with charity. And you remember
what he said about charity, love. I love 1 Corinthians chapter
13, that wonderful chapter. And he ends up saying, now abide
in faith. Hope and charity, these three.
But the greatest of these is charity. Make this your aim. Make this your ambition. I want
to be somebody who really loves, don't you? Follow after charity. Make it your aim. Why is the
greatest of these charity? Because faith is going to be
turned into sight. Hope is going to be turned into experience.
There won't be any need for faith in heaven. There won't be any
need for hope in heaven. But charity will always be. Let all your things be done with
charity. Whatever we do is to be done
with charity. Are we preaching? We're preaching
in love to God. I love the God I preach, and
I love the people I preach to. I like what one fellow said.
It's one thing to love to preach, and it's another thing to love
the people you preach to. It's totally different. Let all your things
be done in charity. Are you working? I don't care
what your job is. I don't care if you're digging a ditch. I
don't care if you're working in front of one of those computer
screens and whatever it is people do. Whatever you're doing, do
it as unto the Lord. That gives it significance, doesn't
it? Everything I do is important because I'm doing it as unto
Him. There's nothing mundane to a belief Nothing is mundane. Whatever I'm doing, it's as unto
the Lord. If you're a spouse, husbands,
make your wives love you by the way you treat them. Treat them
in such a way as they just feel so loved and so special. Let
all your things be done with charity. Wives, make your husbands
feel like they've just got it made. They've got the best wives
in the world. Do all your things with charity
as a parent. Love your children. Seek what's
best for them. Let all your things be done with
charity. Do you believe? Love him whom
you believe. Are you repenting? Oh, we're
grieved over the one we love that we've sinned against. Let
all your things, whatever it is, let all your things be done
with charity. Charity never fails. Now, here are five things to
do. Watch. Stand fast in the faith. Be a man. Be strengthened. And let all your things be done
with charity. And these are commands. This is not good advice. These
are commands. And thank God, He will not Command
us to do what he does not enable us to do. Everything. He requires. He gives. I can't tell you how encouraging
these scriptures are to me. Let me let me quote three scriptures
to you. The first is found in First Thessalonians, chapter
five, verse 21, where Paul says, Faithful is he that calleth you,
who also will do it. Now, would you turn with me there
for a moment? First Thessalonians 5. Let's begin in verse 14. Now
we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly. Comfort
the feeble minded, support the weak, be patient toward all men.
See the none render evil for evil against any man, but ever
follow that which is good, both among yourselves and to all men.
Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing in everything. Give thanks for this is the will
of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. Whatever it is you're having
a hard time giving thanks for, whatever it is you're having
trouble with, remember God brought it your way. And this is the
will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. Evidently, it's what you
needed. Do you believe that? Evidently, it's what you needed.
Quench not the spirit. Despise not prophesying or preaching. Prove all things. Test what you're
hearing according to the Word of God. Hold fast that which
is good, and abstain from all appearance of evil. And the very
God of peace sanctify you wholly, and I pray, God, your whole spirit
and soul and body be preserved blameless under the coming of
the Lord Jesus Christ, faithful as he that calleth you who also
will do it. All these things that He calls
upon us to do, He says, God will do it. That's encouraging, isn't
it? Listen to this scripture. In
Hebrews chapter 13, verse 20 and 21, we read now, The God
of peace that brought again from the dead the Lord Jesus, that
great shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the everlasting
covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do His will
working in you. That which is well-pleasing in
your sight. Now turn to Philippians chapter
2. This is the last scripture we'll look at. Verse 12. Wherefore, my beloved, As you've
always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my
absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. You give attention to everything
that's contrary. That's what he means. You work
it out. You know, when I say I'll work it out, I'll work on
it. I'll work it out. I'll work out. Work out your own salvation.
You give yourself to this, working out your own salvation. That
teaching salvation by works, you know better than that. Remember
to look at all scriptures in the light of other scriptures.
You know it's not teaching salvation by works. But what is it teaching? You work out your own salvation.
Everything that's contrary to Christ, you work it out with
fear and with trembling. And look at this promise in verse
13. For it is God which worketh in
you, both to will and to do His good pleasure. You want to do
His will, don't you? He worked that in you. And the
doing of His good pleasure is His work in you. You work out
what God has worked in. Watch Him. You have every reason
to be encouraged. The Lord will enable us to do
this. And I want to do these five things. Watch Him. Stand
fast in the faith. Be a man. What's the fourth one?
I forgot. Be strengthened. Be strengthened. And let everything you do, by
the grace of God, be done with charity. Amen. Let's pray together.