First Timothy chapter six, look at what it says in verse nine.
But they that will be rich
fall into temptation and a snare and in many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.
For the love of money is the root of all evil.
Which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
But thou, O man of God, flee these things and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.
Fight the good fight of faith.
Oh, these guys, they want to fight. Yeah, Paul said to fight.
He said, Timothy, fight.
You know what? You need to fight the good fight.
And you know what the good fight is? It's not for money.
It's not for enrollments in your stupid Bible college.
It's not for the attendance.
You know what? It's standing up for the truth.
And you know what? Would to God this church would never compromise on the truth because of money.
And you know what? These guys are a bunch of
compromises because they know if they stand up and they start calling people out, people are going to leave their Bible college.
And people are going to leave the pews. And people are going to get mad. And you know what? Their five-star Google reviews will turn into three.
Because it'll be a mix of five and ones.
You know it's a good church. It's fives and ones.
You know it's a crappy church. Everything's above a four.
But we don't get four stars. It's five or one. That's it. Either hate it or you love it.
But at least you know where we stand. You're not confused. You're not like, well, I
don't know what Pastor Shelley's trying to say. Do we fight or not? Is the Lord a man of war?
It's like I know he's a man of war. He already told us.
Hey, I already know war's ugly.
He showed me lots of gruesome pictures in the Bible. And number two, the Bible plainly says you have to fight the good fight.
Now what's the good fight? The spiritual battle. Not the carnal battle.
Now go over to 2 Timothy chapter 4. 2 Timothy chapter 4.
Look, I hope I never have such a fancy building or any of these ministries that would cause me to
compromise on doing that which is right. I'm saying, you know what? I'm going to lie about somebody.
I'm going to be deceitful about someone.
Just so as I don't lose any membership. I don't lose any of my fellowship.
I don't lose any of my buddies. And look, any time I try, and I've tried, I
tried really hard in 2020 to reach out to all kinds of different people and say, hey, would you preach for us?
Would you come to an event with us? We would love to be friends with you. And it's always the same thing.
Yeah, sure. And then a few minutes later, it's just like, oh, everybody told me that you're associated with Pastor Anderson. No.
Oh, is there a doctrinal issue? Oh, I don't know.
Just can't do it.
People immediately called me and told me that, you know, they shouldn't have, they shouldn't be friends with you.
They can't trust you or what. It's like, what did I do?
I don't even, I'm not trying, look, I'm not trying to pick a fight with anybody.
You know what? I will defend my friends and I will defend the new IV when they're going to slander every single one of us
and say we have a bad attitude and that the attitude of the Lord is not to want to fight or to contend.
You're just blaspheming the Bible at this point, and I don't want to water down church.
I don't want to compromise church that looks at it like, well, I think they fight a little too much.
Have you read the Bible?
Well, y'all guys are full of drama. Have you read the Bible?
Hey, it's full of drama.
Hey, it's full of fighting. Hey, it's full of contending for the faith. And you know what? If you don't want to fight, get out.
Go somewhere else.
I'd rather not sit here and think we have an army when we really don't.
Hey, it's a battle. Hey, why do we have so many hymns about fighting if we're not supposed to?
Who are we supposed to fight?
Now look at 2 Timothy chapter 4 verse 7. I have fought a good fight. Oh, it sounds like the same message.
I have finished my course. I have kept the faith. Henceforth there's laid up for me a crown of righteousness
which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day and not to me only,
but in all them also that love is appearing. Now, let me paint you two pictures.
The Apostle Paul's ending of his life and your standard IFB pastor retiring.
The Apostle Paul ending his ministry.
Everyone's turned against him. Everyone's forsaken him. He basically has Timothy left.
Was it a successful ministry?
Yes. What is the typical IFB? Everyone praises them and congratulates them and everyone's giving them an honorary doctorate.
And they're making graven images of them at the end.
Sounds like they didn't finish their course.
Because let me tell you what, you don't gain friends, you gain enemies when you do the work of the Lord.
Jesus Christ at the end of his ministry had no one with him left.
Everyone left him. Everyone forsook him. Everyone was like, see ya.
You know that Peter thought he was gonna die with Christ, but a little girl, you know, scared him away.
I like being able to preach the truth. And you know what, if we don't exercise the truth, if we don't preach what the Bible says,
we'll lose it.
Hey, if we don't preach that sodomites are filthy dogs, we'll lose that doctrine.
Hey, if we don't get up and preach that the King James Bible is the only acceptable English Bible, we'll lose this Bible.
Hey, if we don't get up and call false prophets false prophets,
every church will be a false prophet. And you know what? It seems like it's close.
Seems like it's real close.
And you know what? We need people to rally by men that have a backbone and that want to fight for the Word of God.
And want to fight for the truth and want to contend for the truth and not be like, oh, you have a bad spirit.
You want to fight for the doctrines of the Bible. Yeah, you're right.
And so does the Lord. The Lord gets mad when nobody wants to fight. He says, you know what, you won't fight,
then I'll just fight you.
First let me chapter 1, look at verse 18.
This charge I committed unto thee, son Timothy,
according to the prophecies which went before on thee, that thou by them mightest swore a good warfare,
holding faith and a good conscience, which some, having put away concerning faith, have made shipwreck, of whom is Hymenaeus and Alexander,
whom I have delivered unto Satan, that they may learn not to blaspheme.
Oh, it sounds like Paul likes to name names.