["Do My Pain Have A Love For You?" playing in the background. People talking in the background.]
["Do My Pain Have A Love For You?" playing in the background.]
["Do My Pain Have A Love For You?" playing in the background. People talking in the background.]
["Do My Pain Have A Love For You?" playing in the background.]
Take out your bulletin. We'll go through a couple quick announcements.
I'm always worried singing songs like that because I'm thinking,
oh, no, you know, we're going to have a lot of rain later or something like that.
So I guess we'll see. But let's count up salvations from the past week.
Did anybody have any salvations to report? Anybody? Two? All right.
Praise the Lord. Anybody? One? All right.
Anybody else? Salvations? Anybody? All right.
Well, hopefully no storm later and then we can have our soul winning.
But let's see. A couple other things real quickly.
So our Bible memorization challenge, it's chapters 23 through 41.
And basically for every chapter you memorize, you get a prize.
And so we do have the prize in case you weren't here when I announced it in the first service.
So here's what we have. And when we run out, we'll have more of them.
So you have basically lots of different types of chips.
And then we also have like various types of candies.
So basically first come, first serve.
So if you're the first person here next Sunday to church,
then you can basically come in here and say, all right, I memorized one chapter.
Then I'm going to walk away before you rush up here.
Let Marlon get away too, you know, as he's done with the last song before you stampede, okay?
But we're going to have that. Every week we're going to restock it.
So we want to motivate you to memorize the Bible.
Because I didn't mention that as a pillar in your life.
If I'm memorizing the Bible, it really keeps me meditating on God's word.
It's a great, great thing to do.
The other announcement is for our September visitor challenge,
we do have the prize here today.
So we have a mango bravo cake in the freezer.
And 14-3, right?
14-3 if your last name is S through Z, then you get the prize.
But we might have individually, it's probably unlikely that the person you guys say will come.
But if 20 different people really work on bringing people,
then we're going to have visitors, right?
You know, just by sheer numbers of inviting people.
Anyways, I think that's it for announcements.
We'll have Brother Marlon lead us in another song.
Jesus
some gold
some
so
the big tree
the blue
for me
for you
sad hearts
oh
so
it's dark
like him to be
oh
jesus
some gold
jesus
some gold
so
the big tree
some gold
for me
for you
oh
no tears or crying
shawty more eyes
love once united eternally
oh what a day great
that more will be
some gold and a great jesus
will come some gold
and a great battle's all
won he'll shout the big tree
rain through the blue
some gold and a great
for me for
you
so
amen for a scripture reading please open your bibles to the book of psalm
psalms 26
right in the middle of your bible psalm 26
and as our custom we will be reading the entire chapter
psalms 26
amen if you're there amen psalm 26
first one judge me oh lord for i've walked in my integrity
i have trusted also in the lord therefore i shall not slide
examine me oh lord and prove me try my
reins in my heart for thy loving kindness is before mine eyes
and i have walked in thy truth i have not sat
with vain persons neither will i go in with dissemblers
i have hated the congregation of evildoers and
will not sit with the wicked i will wash mine hands in
innocency so will i come past thine altar oh lord
that i may publish with a voice of thanksgiving and tell of all thy wondrous
works lord i have loved thy habitation
of thy house and a place where thine honor dwelleth
gather not my soul with sinners nor my life with bloody men
and whose hands is mischief and the right hand is full of bribes
but as for me i will walk in mine integrity
redeem me and be merciful unto me my foot
standeth in an even place and the congregations will i bless the lord
amen bless the name of god's word let us pray lord god in heaven
thank you lord for the stage you've given to us a privilege to bless the lord for our lunch fellowship later on
also lord for our soul winning give us lord good weather and bless the preaching of your word lord
amen
alright we're hearing psalm 26 and the name of the sermon is the examination from the lord
well just think about in a courtroom what is a hearing
a hearing is the formal examination of a cause civil or criminal
before a judge according to the laws of a particular jurisdiction
so let's say you're on trial for something there's a hearing and the judge is gonna basically
look at the case look at the evidence and he's gonna make a decision based on it
well here it says in verse number 1 judge me oh lord
and the psalmist is basically saying i want you to put me on trial
i want you to check out my life god i want you to look at it
and see whether or not i'm innocent or guilty
that's not something a normal person is gonna do in the secular world
are you gonna go into the courtroom and just tell the judge i want you to deeply examine my life to see
if i've done anything that i can get thrown in jail for
well in a statement like this they must be confident that they're innocent
right now that doesn't mean confident that you're sinless because none of us are sinless
but blameless right confident that you're also in the lord
therefore i shall not slight so the psalmist says you know what
i have walked in mine integrity i'm doing what's right
i'm obeying god's commandments i want you to judge me god
now of course a question you can ask yourself in your heart right now is
do you feel confident to ask god to judge your life
do you feel confident that if you were put on trial by god
he would say you know well done my good and faithful servants
it's a question for you to ask inside your own heart and in your own mind
but the psalmist says you know what i've walked in mine integrity i've trusted also in the lord
therefore i shall not slight examine me oh lord
and prove me try my reigns in my heart for thy loving kindness
is before mine eyes and i have walked in thy truth so
the psalmist says you know what i've walked in mine integrity one thing he mentions in verse 3
is thy loving kindness is before mine eyes and what he's saying is
basically that god is kind god is loving well none of us
are sinless but if you're right with god you can still be confident that god
will look at your life and he's blessing you right if you're doing what's right
and he's saying you know what i'm confident i'm obeying but i also know you're
kind so any mistakes i'm making i'm not making a grievous sin i'm trying
to do what's right go to john 3 john 3 john
3 john chapter 3
now in many ways when you go to
a church like this what are you saying you're saying
judge me oh lord judge me oh god you say why
because when a church is actually preaching the bible and pointing out sins
and teaching what the bible says you're basically on trial every single week
now of course i don't individually know everybody's sins and nobody else knows
but you know inside of yourself and if you're going to come to a church like this you're obviously
telling god i want you to judge me so if i'm messed up in an area
i want to fix it right that's why you would go to a church like this
because we shine that flashlight so bright into your eyes
to let you know here's the problems in your life
you say brother sucky i was at my old baptist church for 20 years i never felt bad about
not reading the bible but now after this morning you're like read the bible every day read the bible every day
you say what is that well it's called that you're basically on trial you're being judged
and if there's an area you got to change change it right
but that's why you like this church if you consider yourself a member of this
church you like this church for that reason because we're trying
to help you fix the problems in your life john 3
verse 19 and this is the condemnation that light
is come into the world and men love darkness rather than light because their
deeds were evil now why is it that people want to dwell in darkness
because their deeds are evil because they're doing something wrong
now of course there's a symbolic reference here
but in a literal aspect as well when people do wrong don't they like
to be in dark places aren't bars a dark place aren't
clubs a dark place don't people commit murder in the darkness so people
don't see it don't people commit adultery in darkness
the bible says they that are drunken are drunken in the night you say why well they don't do it in the day
generally because they know it's wrong people commit sins and do wrong
in darkness and in a symbolic sense people that are
doing wrong don't want the light to be shown on them to
show all of their problems right so people love
darkness rather than light why because their deeds are evil why do a lot
of people not like a church like this because their deeds are evil
that's what the bible says i'm not being arrogant by saying that
that's simply what it says in john 3 a lot of people don't like their sins
pointed out they don't want to know if they're doing anything wrong they just want to be patted
on the back you're great you're awesome well done even
if they're not good even if they are messing up now this is a very
foolish thing though think about just in any area of your life think if you're taking
free throws and then you air bowl the free throw and then your friend is like
that was great your form was awesome you were just the wind caught it
right the wind caught it that's why it missed by ten feet right you
did great they're doing it the exact same way wouldn't that be foolish
and yet people walk into churches all the time and yet their lives
are a mess and yet they walk out feeling like man that free throw was awesome
i just got unlucky right that's the reason why my life has been a mess
for 25 years right it says men love darkness
rather than light why because their deeds were evil for
everyone that doeth evil hateth the light neither cometh to the light lest
his deeds should be reproved but he that doeth truth cometh to the light that his deeds may
be made manifest that they are rotten gods now look this is true for
saved and unsaved people most saved people don't want their flaws
pointed out either but it's also the reason why a church like ours is going to be the one that gets
persecuted by the world because we're actually pointing out sins
how dare that preacher say that you shouldn't do this
how dare him say that's a sin how dare him say that that's
a sin that's worthy of death according by what I mean how dare how arrogant that pastor
is but see it's because their deeds are evil
right you're not going to be offended if you're innocent right
turn your Bible to someone 39 someone 39
someone 39
I mean I guess it really comes down to what your concept of what
a church is supposed to be like you know for me I always thought you know with church you know I
want to just fix the errors in my life I want to know the truth and I want to try to follow it
see for a lot of people to go to church because it makes them feel good right they feel emotional
they feel spiritual I feel good so I go here because it pumps me up
and it motivates me I'll be dead honest you know what if I wouldn't
even go to church if that was my mentality right if I wasn't seeking for the
truth I wouldn't just go to feel spiritual if I wasn't spiritual I would have
plenty of hobbies to do other than that I have always gone to church
to learn I went to the church that taught the truth the best church in the area everywhere
I've lived you say why I want to know the truth I want to change the areas
of my life I need to change I don't understand why people don't have that
mentality but the truth is most people want to be told that what they're doing is right
no matter what right I mean it doesn't even matter what it is
you can look at anything in the world you can you can point out to people some flaw
in articles they're reading and why what they're saying doesn't make sense got all these articles
you say well here's statistics that prove you're wrong well you know
they just make up some sort of excuse it's like because people don't want to be told they're
wrong it's a matter of pride they're not humble enough to admit that
they're wrong. Psalm 139
notice what it says in verse 23 and verse 23 is very similar
because the phrase judge me is throughout the book of Psalms
throughout the book of Psalms the Psalmist is saying judge me
judge me judge me judge me but he also says here in Psalm 139
verse 23 search me oh God search me oh God
it's basically the same thing where he's saying look at my life and search
to see if you see anything wrong this is actually you know there's that song in the hymnal
we sing where it's like search me oh God
and know my heart today it actually comes from
this verse search me and know my heart
try me and know my thoughts and if you're going to make that statement
of search me and judge me and look at my life it obviously
means that you think for the most part you're innocent that you haven't done wrong
right and it also means that if there's an area that is wrong
it's like God help me fix that area right that's why you come to a church
like this if there's an area of your life you got to fix you say I want to know what it is
but judge me search me oh God and if you're not confident
to ask God to judge you and help correct your problems it's probably because
you've got a lot of problems that you're trying to hang on to you don't want to make those
changes but if you want to actually fix your life you're going to say judge me God
search me God and know my heart try me and know my thoughts
and what he's saying is know my heart that I'm not just
on the outside doing the things that make it look like I'm spiritual
inside my heart and inside my thoughts
they're pure now I cannot see your thoughts here today
but ask yourself that question if your thoughts were to be up here on a
big board right what did brother so and so think about you know
before he came into church would you feel okay with that would you feel
confident or would it be like whoa what in the world was you know he doing
right it's just like you know the psalmist here is confident you know what I've had a pure
heart I've had a pure mind I'm trying to serve God I'm trying to do
right search me oh God and know my heart try me and know
my thoughts and see if there be any wicked way in me and lead me
in the way everlasting so he's saying God judge me search me look
at my life and you can tell there's nothing wicked inside me I'm right
with God I'm doing what's right not even on the outside but my
thoughts in my heart are pure and you have to ask yourself
is that the case with you here today are your thoughts pure throughout the day
I mean are you meditating on God's word day and night the Bible
says you know that basically whatsoever is pure whatsoever is lovely what's
I mean there's plenty of good things whatsoever is a virtue of good report
plenty of things that you can think about that are pure and fine but are you
thinking worldly thoughts in your free time are you thinking sinful thoughts in your
free time are you just focused on everything that does not matter and
things that you would be ashamed of who was brought to the public well the psalmist says you
know what on the inside I am right with God and he's confident
well notice what it says in verse 21 because you know we
sing that song and I feel like people have never actually
read it in the Bible right Baptist sing that song all the time it's a famous song
search me oh God and know my heart it's a great song
I love that song it's an awesome song and Baptist sing that song
all the time and sometimes I wonder if they've just never read it in the Bible
because let's look at the context because he says search me God judge me look at my heart
look at my thoughts I am pure I have nothing wicked inside of me
notice what it says in verse 21 do not I hate them
oh Lord that hate thee and am not I grieve with those that
rise up against thee I hate them with perfect hatred
I count them mine enemies and the psalmist says in verse 23 and verse
24 search me oh God nothing wicked inside of me
my thoughts are pure my heart is pure that is right after
he said God I hate people that hate you do not I hate
them oh Lord that hate thee and am not I grieve
with those that rise up against thee and see the Bible says that those that hate the Lord
we are to hate and the psalmist says I hate those that
hate you God search me look at my heart
look at my thoughts there is nothing wicked inside of me
the context is right after he talks about hating the wicked and then he says there is nothing
wicked inside of me do not I hate them oh Lord
that hate thee and am not I grieve with those that rise up against
thee I hate them with perfect hatred
I count them mine enemies search me
oh God and know my heart
today right I mean he is saying that he hates the enemies of the Lord
and then he is like search me oh God there is nothing wicked inside of me
no bad thoughts nothing bad in my heart you know what that teaches
there is actually people we are supposed to hate
those verses alone would say it but it is just really interesting that is right before you ask God
to search him check out my life is there anything wicked inside of me
it is like brother Stuckey you are a hate preacher you hate people
yeah I am a hate preacher the Bible says there is people we should hate
we should hate those that are the enemies of God that is what the Bible says
and right after that he says search me God look if there is anything
wicked inside of me and you know what he is saying there is nothing wrong with hating those that hate the Lord
in fact the Bible tells us to do that go back to Psalm 26
Psalm 26
it is funny how people try to explain this away in the book of Psalms
they will say things like well you know that is just what David said
but that does not mean that God is telling you to do that I mean that is the word of God
there is nothing there that would say that what he did was sinful
it is not like the story of Job where it is clear that the guys are wrong
the Bible tells us what they said was wrong I mean this is the scripture
this is the word of God and the Bible is saying you know actually we are supposed to hate them
that hate God and count them our enemies
well it says the same thing in Psalm 26 verse 4 remember he said in verse 1 judge me
and then notice this I have not sat with vain persons neither will I
go in with dissemblers I have hated the congregation of evil doers
and will not sit with the wicked so in verse 5 he says
I hated the congregation of evil doers
see there are certain people the Bible says that we should hate
hated the congregation of evil doers you say what would be a good example of that
well how about a gay pride rally right there is a congregation of
wicked people that hate God there is a congregation of people that you should hate
according to the Bible there are people the Bible says are enemies of God
and those that are enemies of God the Bible says we should hate
you know one of the things that makes the book of Psalms repetitive is how much the book of Psalms
talks about the wicked people it's like every single week
it's like in chapter after chapter it's a song book
that's what they are supposed to be singing right just talking about the people that they hate
now go to Matthew 5
Matthew 5
you say brother Stuckey I don't know because maybe this is new to you
I've never heard this before there's people that we should hate I've always heard
hate the sin love the sinner you know what's interesting about that
I gave you Bible verses show me hate the sin
love the sinner in the Bible right now don't misunderstand me
we're going to look at it here in a second that when it comes to our personal enemies those are not
people that we're supposed to hate and we're going to look at that in the Bible but those that are God's enemies
those that hate the Lord the Bible says we are to hate
okay you say brother Stuckey I'm not sure about this you know I just have so much
love inside of me so much love
okay well let's say that you have a little puppy you have a little puppy
you have a little kitty cat and then all of a sudden you see this snake eating your
cat or eating your dog I just love that snake so much
I don't want to harm that snake I mean I love that I mean I love
my cat but I love that snake I mean God bless the heart of that snake
I mean it's eating my cat but it's just like I'm not going to have a young child
and then there's predators and people that want to harm a little child yeah those are people
that we ought to hate you can't say well I love this little
baby and I love the person that molested that baby I just love both of them right
I'm just so filled with love you know I'm not you know and you know you've
heard these stories before in the public where someone will get caught doing something like this
and people cover it up because they're so full of love
that you know what even though someone did wrong they're willing to forgive no matter what
is that what the Bible teaches the Bible says do not I hate them oh Lord
that hate thee there are people that we should hate you say well who should
I hate brother Stuckey well notice what it says in Matthew 5 verse 43
Matthew 5 verse 43 let me let me help give you
the difference here because I'm not sitting around here saying that basically you can just hate anyone
you want and no matter what I mean somebody you know messed up your order
at a restaurant and now you hate that waiter and you're cursing at him you're screaming at him
blah blah blah well that's not what I'm saying because notice what it says in Matthew 5
verse 43 you have heard that it hath been said thou shalt love thy neighbor
and hate thine enemy now I want you to realize something in verse 43
the Bible does not say that the word of God tells you
love your neighbor and hate your enemy okay he says he have heard that
it hath been said so he's saying this is basically what's commonly reported people are saying you know
love your neighbor and hate your enemy okay the Bible does not
tell us to hate our enemy the Bible tells us to love our enemies now people
are going around saying this and he said Jesus said ye have heard love your
neighbor and hate your enemy but he's going to say the opposite because the Bible does not tell us
to hate our enemies the Bible tells us to hate God's enemies not our enemies
then he says in verse 44 but I say unto you love your enemies bless them
that curse you do good to them that hate you and pray for them which despitefully
use you and persecute you so Jesus is not changing the law where in the Old Testament
it's hate hate hate now it's love love love no actually it was the same in the
Old Testament you're supposed to love your enemies as yourself
love your neighbor as yourself you weren't supposed to hate your enemies
if somebody is your personal enemy you are not to hate that person
unless they're an enemy of God unless it's someone
who hates God if it's someone who hates God you ought to count them
as your enemy but look your coworker that does not like you
because they don't like the church you go to or whatever
reason it's like that's not someone that you should be hating
right because they've done nothing for you to hate them now they might be your personal
enemy but we're not supposed to hate our enemies we're supposed to love our enemies
we're supposed to hate God's enemies there's a big difference there
now turn to Acts 7
now really the context
of being searched or judged part of that context is actually hating the wicked
so here's a question for you today how's your hate life
well I just love everybody well you know you're not ready to be judged by God then
because God says I expect you to hate certain people
people that hate God now if we're walking down the street you know you won't
necessarily know all the time whether someone hates God or not now here in the Philippines
there are a lot of people that make it pretty obvious but you know there's people in a crowd
you don't know whether they hate God or whatever like that but people that actually do hate God
the Bible says we're supposed to hate those people right I mean you say what about
what let's give an example what about the pope I hate the pope
say why do you hate the pope because the pope is on his way to hell and he's a false prophet
there's no hope for someone like that no hope for the pope my friend
there is no hope for him he's a child of the devil and you say
he's a child of the devil and you say well how do you know that well look it's obvious
that the pope is a child of the devil right I mean how many cases the Catholic
church covered up a pedophilia but they stand for everything against what the Bible says
that is someone that we should hate but he seems so nice
on TV it's an act it's fake and he stands for
everything opposite of what the Bible says right you can see videos
online this kid goes up to the pope and he says you know he's crying he's like
I'm really worried my dad died and he was an atheist you know
is he in heaven and pope Francis is like well don't worry son
was he a good man oh he was a good man well then I'm sure he's in heaven
look that up on YouTube look it up on Google not
making it up you can go there and he told some kid your atheist
father is in heaven because he was a good person that's funny
because I thought my Bible said there's none righteous no not one
you say why do you hate the pope I hate him because he's like the biggest false prophet in the world
he's probably the biggest every single person in that church will know
because how many of them really hate God probably a very small percentage
right I mean the average person that walks into a Catholic church they don't hate God
there's no reason for you to hate that person just because they have the wrong religion
they're just an unsaved person that needs the gospel right but someone who does
hate God is someone that we should hate the Bible says
Acts 7 let me show you an example a very extreme example
where there's a group of people and not all of them in Acts 7
are children of the devil go to the end of the chapter into the chapter chapter verse 54
verse 54 Acts 7 verse 54 and this is the
chapter with Stephen and this is where he gets stoned to death
okay Acts 7 verse 54 when they
heard these things they were cut to the heart now what does it mean that they're cut to the heart
well I mean think about a sword is something that cuts
right but they're cut to the heart because the word of God is quick and
sharper than any two edged sword piercing even and dividing asunder of soul and spirit and of the joints
and of marrow and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of
the heart right so the word of God is quick and powerful and
sharper than any two edged sword it cuts to the heart right so when it's saying that they're
cut to the heart what's taking place Stephen is preaching the word of God
and guess what the sword cuts to their heart right
a physical sword only cuts the body cuts the outside but to actually get on the
inside to the thoughts and intents of the heart it actually takes the word of God
and the word of God is a way to get on the inside and when it gets on the inside
you can have two reactions you can say okay I'll make the change or you
can stone Stephen which is what they do in Acts 7 because they're mad
so it says they were cut to the heart and they gnashed on him with their teeth
you say brother Stuckey they gnashed on him with their teeth
I mean are these like some sort of zombies or a Mike Tyson situation
now when it's saying they gnashed on him with their teeth with their words they're not actually
okay no bite okay
they're just gnashing on him with their teeth they're basically casting
things against him with their words they're not actually biting him okay
and you've been watching too many zombie movies if you know
just like basically yelling at him and complaining they gnashed on him with their teeth
but he being full of the Holy Ghost looked up steadfastly into heaven
and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing on the right hand of God and said behold
I see the heavens open and the son of man standing on the right hand of God then they
cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears so they don't want to hear it anymore
they stopped their ears because the word got to the heart and they were mad
about it they don't even want to hear what Stephen says they're so angry at Stephen
they don't even want to kill him and look the word of God is quick and powerful
right I mean to say something that would make people so mad that they would
kill you that they would stone them to death you say why because the word
of God is a way to get on the inside and many people get very angry at that message
people get angry when they hear sermons that are just straight from the Bible
and they get mad because they don't like the words that are being said
it doesn't matter how you say it either now you know obviously we should preach the truth and love
sometimes you can say it as loving as possible but here's the thing when you're
going soul winning you can be as loving as possible and you should be
but you're still telling people they're going to spend forever in hell
well that's a message that can make people mad right especially when you run
into someone that's already saved right you run into a Baptist
it's like I'm a Baptist too right like yesterday I ran into a Baptist
door to door they said oh you know the Bible Baptist church here I was like no I'm not familiar with it
but they said you got to repent of your sins and you know they believe you have to
change your lifestyle to be saved and everything I was like well the Bible says that you don't have to repent
of your sins you just have to believe it's amazing how someone that's so excited to see
another Baptist all of a sudden can get so upset when they find out wait you don't have
to repent of your sins excuse me right they get very mad about
that sometimes now this person actually he didn't get mad okay but oftentimes
they do because they don't like what you're saying they don't like the message
and we should try to speak the truth in love because we don't want to try to offend
people as we're trying to preach the gospel but sometimes people get offended
when we're preaching the gospel because they're mad at what the Bible
actually says I mean look you talk to a Muslim
you can say I am the way as nicely as possible
but when you say you know whether you say I am the way
or I am the way or I am the way I mean however you say it
you're still saying Jesus is the only way to heaven anyway that makes
a lot of Muslims mad right it makes a lot of Hindus mad they get mad at what you're
saying because they don't like the words and it cuts to the heart
it says in verse 58 and cast him out of the city and stoned
him and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man's feet whose name was Saul
this is Paul the Apostle Saul before he was saved verse 59
and they stoned Stephen calling upon God and saying Lord Jesus receive my spirit
verse 60 and he kneeled down and cried
with a loud voice these are the dying words of Stephen Lord
lay not this sin to their charge lay not this sin to their charge
now here's the thing the Bible has always told us to hate those that hate God
and Stephen is asking God to forgive these people lay not this sin to their charge
and you know what it's indicating that Stephen is saying not all these people
are reprobates not all these people are children of God
he believes that there's still hope for some of these people and the way I look at this is he's
basically saying God give them another chance you know basically give them a chance
to still be open to the gospel it's pretty similar to when Jesus Christ said
Lord forgive them or Father forgive them for they know not what they do
and guess what we see in Luke 23 right around when he says that the person who's
beside him on the cross ends up getting saved the same
person beside him who's mocking him earlier ends up getting saved
because of the attitude of Jesus right and he's willing to be receptive
and what does that tell you well many people that mock Jesus were not actually
reprobates right some of them were I'm sure
not all of them here lay not this sin to their charge
it's like saying God give them another chance and what he's indicating is you know what
not all these people are reprobates I still want them to hear the gospel even though
they're killing me right now you say well how is it that these people
could do something so wicked and not be a reprobate well number one
Saul or Paul the Apostle is obviously not a reprobate and
he's sort of like overseeing this or one of the main people involved here
but it's because of the fact they have the wrong religion
and Paul said that God was merciful to him because he did it ignorantly
and unbelief and see Paul had the wrong religion and it led him
to do very zealous things that were very wrong and very wicked but he thought
what he was doing was right it's not like Paul the Apostle was going out in his life and
getting drunk and committing stealing and lying and doing all these sins
he was doing something because of his religious belief and he thought it was the right thing to do
did you know that there are some people that are extremely zealous in false religions
that are not reprobates and they might argue with you they might
yell at you it doesn't necessarily mean that they're reprobate so we see that
in Acts 7 we see that with Jesus Christ let me give you a couple of secular examples
there's a famous guy by the name of Jim Elliot who's heard of Jim Elliot
anybody heard of Jim Elliot he's like a famous Christian missionary and I don't
know the exact beliefs of Jim Elliot but he's kind of the most famous Christian
missionary and he's very famous because he was martyred he was killed
and there was a group of Christians that went to this tribe in Ecuador to preach
the gospel to a group of people that are these natives that aren't that
familiar with Christianity and they got there and five of them were just killed
by these people because they were mad at the message that they were bringing
and Jim Elliot's wife Elizabeth Elliot she forgave them and everything
and she ended up actually working in that community later on some of the people in that tribe
ended up getting saved now I don't necessarily know their exact
beliefs I'm not you know you could look something up online and maybe you'll just prove me I don't know the exact
beliefs of Jim Elliot and what gospel they heard obviously but what I'm saying is this
it doesn't mean that they were all reprobates just because they had a part in killing Jim Elliot
because they're very zealous for the wrong thing and a lot of people just kind of go along
with what everyone else is doing everybody else is doing it
I'm going to do the same it's like you know step one step forward
turn left back you know they just do whatever they're told
and they don't even think about it for themselves well the Bible says that we ought to
actually you know use our own minds and use our own logic and use the word of God
but not all those people that did that were necessarily reprobates
another example that happened in 1999 was with Graham Stans who was
in Australian missions they stopped overnight in the car
it was cold and they were waiting they were going to go the next day 50 Hindus
surrounded the car this was in 1999 they set it on
fire and they tried to escape and they didn't let them escape they let them burn to death
look I don't believe all 50 of those people were reprobates you say why
well Acts chapter 7 not everybody that stoned Stephen
was a reprobate not trying to go soft in the doctrine I'm just trying to be honest
with the scriptures and say when people believe a false religion sometimes they do
terrible things I mean the main person that orchestrated
that killing that missionary he was hailed as a hero
in India by the hardcore Hindus because good job
you know you killed the Christian right and the main reason why
let me let me read you from this article it says Dara Singh who was
convicted of the murders was treated as a hero by the hard line
because of them people are eating hamburgers
and they murder them oh Hindus don't worship
cows whatever right it's like you're liable to get killed over that's what
happened in 1999 nothing new under the sun same thing happens with them killing people today
for eating cow meat but here's the thing I don't believe now I would probably presume
this guy is probably a reprobate that orchestrated this but look even though it's very
wicked not to let them out of that car there's probably some of those people that are
just kind of doing what everybody else is doing got a mob of 50 plus people
a lot of people are just kind of going along for the ride they don't know what's going on
it's like they start running it's like oh let's go get them then they start running it's like what are we doing
then all of a sudden you're setting someone on fire it's like whoa right it doesn't mean that they
were all reprobates because they did something wicked though some 26
some 26
so we don't necessarily know in all cases whether or not someone's
a wicked person but we should have a hatred
for those that hate the Lord the Bible says point number one was a hearing from the Lord
basically being on trial point number two is a hatred for the wicked
point three is happiness from innocency happiness found
from innocency some 26 verse six I will
wash my hands in innocency so will I compass thine altar oh Lord
that I may publish with the voice of thanksgiving and tell all thy wondrous works
verse six I'm innocent I haven't done anything wrong
verse seven he says I'm going to publish with the voice of thanksgiving so he's happy
so what do we see well in verse seven he's happy
why because he's innocent right did you know that the Bible
teaches you will be in a good mood if you're obeying God's commandments as a
safe person the Bible says if you know these things
happier ye if ye do them
not if you know these things happier ye if you have a lot of money
not if you know these things happier ye if you have a great job not if you
know these things happier ye you know if you're really successful you know if you know these things
happier ye if ye do them what gives us
happiness in our Christian lives is obeying God's commandments that's the truth
the times in your life where you're depressed and you're down and you're miserable
you know it's usually because of the fact that you're not right with God
right I mean I'm honest with myself at times when I'm not in a good mood
usually it's because my life my stability is
just a little bit all over the place and I got to get back to the things I need to do
but when you're reading the Bible and you're praying and you're going to church
isn't it true that you're in a good mood even if things are messed up at work
even if things are messed up in other areas of your life it's just like man I shouldn't
be in a good mood but I'm in a good mood read the Bible today
I saw a couple people get saved you know why would I complain
when my life is not about me because here's the thing when you realize your life is not about
you and it's about other people when you invest in other people you can be happy
why because you see the success as a result you see
other people get saved when you preach the gospel it will make you happy
the most miserable people are the people that focus all their attention on themselves
when you focus on yourself you're going to be miserable you say why because none of us
is that special right none of us is that great
we think we are we think we're awesome but
if we're honest we're going to find out we're not right miserable I mean think of
Haman in the Bible Haman was the second most powerful man in the world
was he happy he said he will not be happy unless
Mordecai dies it's like really because you know for me I
I'm happy and I don't need anybody to be killed right
it's like I'm happy just going about my life I'm in a good mood I will not be
happy unless so and so dies what is what Buddhism is it's a very selfish
religion that focuses only on yourself because how can
you get nirvana how can you reach that attainment of salvation
it's like actually happiness is found when you invest in other people
and you don't invest in yourself that's what the Bible teaches
psalm 51 let me give you an example
psalm 51 and this is after David has been rebuked by Nathan
and he's gotten right with God and notice what he says in verse 7 psalm 51
verse 7 purge me with hiss up and I shall be clean
wash me and I shall be whiter than snow make me to hear joy and gladness
that the bones which thou has broken may rejoice hide thy face from my sins and blot
out all mine iniquities create me a clean heart
oh God and renew a right spirit within me now this is not a story of somebody
getting saved this is a story about a saved person getting right with God
because our sins are forgiven past present and future
that doesn't change the fact that if you commit sins that in this life you're going to be judged
and when you commit sins you ought to go to God and ask for forgiveness
and say God please help me make some changes but he's already spiritually
saved he's already on his way to heaven verse 11 cast me not away from thy presence
and take not thy holy spirit from me you say brother Stuckey why
does it say take not thy holy spirit from me if he's already saved because
people would get filled with the spirit when see in our
modern day we get in dwell with the spirit after Jesus left the comforter came
the Holy Ghost and you get in dwell with the spirit but you still can get filled with
the spirit as you're doing something for God and in the Old Testament they did not
get in dwell with the Holy Ghost they were saved eternally
but they were not in dwell with the Holy Ghost but they could get filled with the spirit when they're doing
something mighty for God a great example as we go out soul winning
we pray that God will bless us and fill us with his spirit to get people saved
you say why do you need to be filled with the spirit being filled with the spirit
gives you boldness look if you're bold as a soul winner
you're going to be 20 times more effective than if you're not bold right
because sometimes we go out soul winning and maybe we're in a bad mood we're depressed
isn't it true that our gospel presentations aren't as good we're not as
confident we're not as effective but when you go out and you're filled with the spirit
you're going to have boldness and confidence and you're going to do a better job
so he's saying God I don't want your Holy Spirit to leave me because I want to
do mighty things for you and I can't do that in my own
power I need you to help me okay
then he says this in verse 12 restore unto me the joy of thy salvation
so here's the thing he doesn't say you know I need to get saved he says restore
unto me the joy of thy salvation already
saved but lost his joy why when you're
living a sinful life you have no joy you're not going to be happy
if you're doing wrong look if you're committing sins and doing wrong
and disobeying what God says you are not going to be in a good mood because
happiness is found in serving God that's what the Bible teaches he said restore
unto me the joy of thy salvation and uphold me with thy free spirit go back to Psalm 26
Psalm 26 we'll close up Psalm 26
so look we see happiness
from innocency or happiness found from serving God so point number one a
hearing from the Lord being on trial point two a hatred for the wicked
point three happiness from innocency and point four we see habitation
of God habitation of God verse 8
Lord I have loved the habitation
of thy house and the place where thine honor dwelleth so
where would be the habitation of God's house today well it would be the local New Testament
church right verse 9 gather not my soul with
sinners nor my life with bloody men in whose hands is mischief and their right hand is full
of bribes but as for me I
will walk in mine integrity redeem me and be merciful unto me my foot
standeth in an even place in the congregations
will I bless the Lord what is he saying in the congregations
he's saying in the congregation of the Lord in the house of God
in the congregation of the Lord I will praise God right
now one thing that you can attach to this is not only is happiness found by
doing right and obeying God's commandments it's also found
in the house of God happiness is found as they're praising
God in God's house isn't it true you come to church
sometimes you're in a bad mood and then all of a sudden man I'm in a good mood
you say why you start fellowshipping with people you're
hearing the preaching singing praises to God it causes
you to be in a good mood because happiness is actually found in God's house
right and look this is the only congregation that you're
going to find where you're filled full of people that are you know zealously serving
God you're not going to find that in a congregation at a basketball game
now I'm not saying it's wrong to watch a basketball game but if you go to a basketball game
it's not like you're going to look around and say man we're all these zealous soul winners that's not
going to happen right you're not going to find out a congregation of you know
a concert you're not going to find out a congregation of a certainly not of a
gay pride rally you're going to find
it in a congregation at a local church
congregation and church are used interchangeably in the Bible right
it's a group of people that are saved that are bonded together because really church
has the total package you're hearing the word of God preached you've got
fellowship you've got the service to God as you go soul winning we have activities
we have prayer you know once a month we have our you have everything combined together
you're not going to find that anywhere else look you might have a lot of
co-workers that you like but you can't tell me as you go to your secular job
tomorrow that you're filled full of people that are just like minded that love
the Lord you know when I worked in Maryland I had people
that walked up to me all the time and they would ask me hey what'd you think about that you know they
talk about a sporting event or whatever nobody ever came
up to me and said hey you know Matt I just wanted to ask I was reading
this verse you know in you know Job
37 I wanted to get your opinion of this you know that never happened at my old job
maybe it has happened for you it didn't happen at my job
right nobody ever came up and said let's talk about the word of God you say why
because it's not a congregation of people that love God you're going to find that
in the habitation of God in the congregations will I praise the Lord
that's found in the local New Testament church so what do we see well we see number one
a hearing from God point number two we see let's see
I forgot my points point one a hearing from God point two hatred for the wicked
point three we see happiness found from living a godly life and also we see
the habitation of God which is God's house look these things are intertwined
together so look if you're on trial for God it's like well you need
to have a hatred for the wicked right according to the Bible you need to have a hatred for the
wicked if you're not happy it probably means you're guilty
right I mean obviously we can go through trials and difficult times in life
but if you're just always miserable it's because you're doing Christianity
wrong it's not like God said you know what I want you to be
saved but I want you to be miserable every step of the way no actually he says
you can be happy serving God and if you're not happy serving God
you say brother Stuckey I don't want to read the Bible I don't
want to come to church I don't want to go so I don't want to do any of it right I don't
find enjoyment in it well that's probably because you're not doing it because your feelings
are going to follow your works okay but if you're not happy serving God
let's go
game number 34 let's sing a song I know that my
I know, I know that Jesus
did it and on the earth
against us then I know I know the life he gave it that's racing bar are you
sir I know he's promised never be like the world he's being it cannot die
though that my pleasure see that yet I shall see him by and by I know I know
and on the earth against us and I know
that very is there I may be oh one or suffer me he care
and he at last will come for me I know I know that he's asleep and on the earth
again Justin I know I know the light he gave it that way isn't bar are in his
hand
amen