Faith, but you have your works, you just nullified grace.
You just made it void, null and void.
It doesn't count.
Because you can't have one without the other.
You have to have all grace.
You have to trust in Christ 100%.
It's not like you can do both.
Because here's the thing, if you believe you're saved by grace through faith, but you're still
trusting in your works, that means you haven't trusted in Christ 100%.
That means you're doing your part.
Or you don't believe in the eternal security of the believer.
Because if you trusted in Christ and you believe that salvation is forever, that it never ends,
why would you need to work?
Right?
There'd be no reason for you to work.
That's why I often give the illustration when I'm out soul winning, and I'll tell them,
I say, look, what if an airplane's going down?
There's two guys on the airplane.
And by the way, let me say this, no illustration is perfect.
Illustrations are meant, they're parables.
They're meant to shed light on biblical truths.
So if you have something different, you use whatever you gotta use.
This is what I've used.
I've used this for years.
It's worked for me.
And you can use it if you want.
I don't care.
It's not copyrighted.
So I tell them, I say, look, airplane's going down, two guys on the airplane.
One's about to jump out and says, you know, I need to put on a parachute.
But when I jump out, I feel like I need to do my part.
I need to flap my arms like a bird.
Now we laugh, and we're just like, that's ridiculous.
But you know what?
People who believe in a words-based salvation, that's how ridiculous they sound.
Right?
Well, we both know that the person who jumps out of the airplane but is trusting their
ability to supposedly fly is gonna die.
Okay?
They're not gonna fly.
It's the stupidest thing ever.
Well, the second guy says, well, no, that's dumb.
I'm gonna put on a parachute, and I'm only trusting in the parachute.
I'm not gonna try to flap my arms like a bird.
I'm trusting only in the parachute.
The person who survives is the person who you trust solely upon the parachute.
Okay?
And often when I tell them that, it's like the light bulb goes on, it's like, oh, okay.
I say, so you can't trust in your works, because if you say you trust in Christ but you're
trusting in your works, what does the Bible say?
You're not really trusting in Christ to begin with.
Okay?
Very important.
Verse 8 says, or verse 10, for we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good
works which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
May I say this?
Man, we as Christians need a work.
We need to be characterized as workers.
And I'm thankful for our church because a lot of work is getting done here.
I mean, we're seeing a lot, I think we didn't even take the salvation for today, huh?
What's that?
We didn't.
We'll get them later.
I see a lot of people say it was like five here, five there, two here, one here.
You know, it's great.
Jack and Bier, how much did you guys get?
Be honest.
Amen.
See?
There's work being done.
There's a work being accomplished, okay?
And God, you know, I'm thankful that salvation was free, but now that I am saved, you know,
I want to work for God now because I want to earn a reward.
I want to earn something else other than just, now, obviously, I don't earn salvation.
We understand that.
But now that I'm saved, I have the opportunity to work for God to earn something from him,
okay?
Because the Bible says that he's going to bring his reward with him.
And the Bible says that he is like my boss.
And now that I get to work for him, I get to win souls, I get to put in a lot of work
for the work of God to earn something when I get to heaven.
You know, there's a lot of people who, when they get to heaven, they're going to be saved
yet so as by fire.
You know, their works are just going to burn because they didn't do anything for God.
They wasted their time here in this world not doing anything for God.
They'll be in heaven, praise the Lord.
But you know what?
They'll be the least in the kingdom of God.
Why?
Because they didn't do any work until the work of God.
Verse 11, now we get into the replacement theology.
Wherefore, remember that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called
uncircumcision, but that which is called a circumcision in the flesh, made by hand.
So he's saying like, he's saying basically, we who are Gentiles in the flesh, you know,
obviously the flesh, and when it says Gentiles, it's anybody who's not a Jew, okay, obviously.
And he makes a contrast here between the uncircumcision and the circumcision.
Well the uncircumcision is anybody who's not a Jew, and the circumcision were those who
were Jews.
Made, but that's why it says made by hands.
Verse 12, that at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth
of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God
in the world.
But now in Christ Jesus, ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of
Christ.
And look at what it goes on to say, verse 14, for he is our peace who hath made both
one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us.
So what is he saying?
Now that we're in Christ, there is neither Jew nor Greek.
There is neither Jew nor Gentile, we're made one in Christ.
Now look at verse number 12, look at it again, so now that we're in Christ, we're not aliens
from the commonwealth of Israel, we're not strangers from the covenants of promise, we
have hope and we have God.
You see what I'm saying?
We have all those things.
And what are the covenants of promise, what is that talking about?
Talking about the covenants of promise made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
Well guess what, we get that.
Now we're not aliens, we're not foreigners in that respect, now we're partakers of those
same promises and covenants made to them.
Verse 14, for he is our peace who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle
wall of partition between us, having abolished in his flesh to enmity even the law of commandments
contained in ordinances, for to make it himself of twain, that means to one new man, so making
peace.
Now go to Galatians, we looked at this last week, but it will reinforce it.
Galatians, let's see here, let's go to chapter number 4.
In verse number 28, now we brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise, but as then
he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the spirit, even so
it is now.
Nevertheless, what saith the scripture, cast out the bondwoman and her son for the son
of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the free woman, so then brethren, we
are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free.
And what does it talk about?
The free is the wife of Abraham, right?
We're children of Sarah, we're children of Abraham, we're part of that covenant that
God made with him.
And here's the thing, and if you go back to Ephesians chapter number 1, or excuse me Ephesians
chapter number 2.
Here's the thing, often those who believe that the Jews are God's chosen people solely
rely upon the Old Testament teachings of the covenant.
But in Hebrews chapter 8, it says that Jesus Christ is the mediator of a better covenant.
They neglect to read that.
Now go to Hebrews chapter number 8, let me show you something.
Hebrews chapter number 8.
Hebrews chapter number 8 is a quote from Jeremiah.
And here's the thing, Calvinists and those who criticize the King James Bible love to
use Hebrews chapter 8 to prove their point.
Because simply because Hebrews chapter 8 is actually quoted a little differently than
Jeremiah.
Look what Hebrews chapter 8 says in verse number 6, but now hath he obtained a more
excellent ministry by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was
established upon better promises.
For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for
the second.
For finding fault with them, he saith, behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will
make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.
Now I don't know what they don't get about that.
It's a new covenant.
He's going to make a better one.
And by the way, that is taken from Jeremiah.
He's telling them in the Old Testament, I'm going to make a better covenant than the one
that they're in at that moment.
Verse number 9, not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day
when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, because they continued
not in my covenant.
Now, here's where the Calvinists and people who criticize the King James Bible like to
use because in this verse, in Jeremiah, it says, I was a husband unto them, okay?
But here in Hebrews chapter number 8 and verse number 9, it says, and I regarded them not,
saith the Lord.
And they'll say, see, there's a contextual error right there.
The King James Bible's in error because in Jeremiah, it says that he was a husband unto
them.
But in Hebrews chapter number 9, it says that he regarded them not, saith the Lord.
See, Paul's quoting from the Septuagint, you know, he's quoting from these scriptures,
and that's why the King James Bible's in error.
It's not in error, buddy.
Is this that your theology's wrong?
And here's the thing, those who are Baptists, I wonder what, and those who are Baptists
and pro-Israel, I want them to explain this verse to me.
Because Baptists, one thing about Baptists is that they are King James only, amen?
They're King James only.
They believe the King James Bible is the inspired and preserved word of God.
Well, answer me this, Mr. King James only, if Hebrews chapter 8 says something a little
different than what it's being quoted in Jeremiah, where in Jeremiah, it says that he was a husband
unto them, but in Hebrews chapter 8, it says that he regarded them not, what's your answer
to that?
Because whatever you say, are you gonna agree with the Calvinist that says that the King
James Bible's in error?
No, here's the answer.
In Jeremiah, where he was a husband unto them, he was a husband unto them.
But guess what?
Now, in the New Covenant, and because they did not regard that covenant, he regarded
them not, saith the Lord, does that make sense?
So he was a husband unto them, they were God's chosen people at one time, but guess what,
now in the New Covenant, he regarded them not, saith the Lord.
I mean, there's no other way to really explain that.
But if you understand what the Bible teaches us here, if we understand Hebrews chapter
8, if we understand Hebrews chapter 9, if we understand Galatians chapter 3 and 4,
and Ephesians chapter number 2, and John chapter 8, and Romans chapter 2, and Romans chapter
4, 10, and 11, and 9, it makes perfect sense.
Why?
Because he is not a Jew which is one outwardly, right?
He is a Jew which is one inwardly.
And we of the New Testament are under the New Covenant, and those Jews, those Christ-rejecting
Jews, he doesn't regard them anymore.
Because the Bible says in Romans chapter 2 that he is a Jew which is one inwardly,
and that circumcision is that of the heart and of the spirit, and then it says this,
whose praise is not of men, but of God.
Well, what does praise mean?
It means God, that's what God recognizes.
That's what God sees as being legitimate, a legitimate Jew is that which is of the heart
and of the spirit, those who believed on the Lord Jesus Christ.
Those are the people he regards as the chosen generation.
Go back to Ephesians chapter 1, I hope that made sense, Ephesians 2, I'm going on two
hours of sleep, verse 16 says, and that he might reconcile both unto God in one body
by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby.
And look, Jews have to get saved too.
And I believe that Jews can be saved, I don't think they're all reprobates.
Now there's some that aren't, but I don't believe all of them are.
Because the Bible says it right here, that he might reconcile both unto God in one body
by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby.
God wants them to be reconciled, but guess what?
Once a Jew gets saved, he's a spiritual Jew, he's no longer a Jew according to the flesh.
And no, there's no such thing as this Judeo-Christian, Masianic Jew, where it's just like, okay, yeah,
he's saved, but he's a special, he's under that special category.
He's Masianic.
Shut up, we're all Masianic, right?
We're all Masianic Christians, okay?
But better yet, we're just in Christ.
We're just Christians, we're just born again, we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ.
None of this Masianic Jew, that they're so special, and they've been endowed, they have
a covenant, no, no, no, they're under the same covenant we are, if they're saved.
Verse 17, they came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that
were nigh, speaking of Gentiles and Jews, for through him we both have access by one
spirit unto the Father.
Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints
and of the household of God, and are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets,
Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone, not Yahweh, not Yeshua, not, give me another
name.
Is that, does anybody know Hebrew here?
None of these, you know, Immanuel, there's one, right?
No, Jesus.
Jesus.
Let me say, I remember I was in Monterey Park and I was witnessing, and I actually witnessed
a Jew and a Greek, believe it or not.
You know the Bible says the gospel is to the Jew first, and also to the Greek, well I fulfilled
that.
I literally witnessed to a Jewish rabbi, who was surprised and of course rejected the gospel,
and then I witnessed to a guy, literally he's from Greece, he's Greek, he speaks Greek,
I mean he had a really thick accent, and he got saved, amen?
Surprisingly enough, right?
I said, I got a question for you, how do you say church in Greek, and he said, ekklesia.
I said, how do you say Jesus in Greek?
He said, isus.
I said, so it's not Yeshua?
He's like, no, it's isus.
I'm like, it's not Yahweh?
He's like, no, it's isus.
He's looking at me like, what's wrong with you?
I just told you, it's isus.
You know what I mean?
I'm like, I was just wondering, you know what I mean?
I hear some stuff, you know?
He's like, no, it's isus, you know?
I was like, okay, cool.
And I said, what do you, I said, do you have a Bible?
He goes, yeah, I have a Texas Receptus, right?
And I said, so you read that?
He goes, yeah.
I said, how vastly different is that from, you know, your modern Greek?
And he goes, not very different at all.
He says, I read it, you know?
And then, you know, and the reason I say this, because so many people will say, well, you
know, you can't, you know, you can't learn the modern Greek, you know, in order to learn
the Greek of the Bible, right?
You have to be like a scholar in order to know that, okay?
It's not the same.
And the people who say this don't even know Greek, first and foremost, okay?
They don't even know how to speak another language other than English.
And here's the thing is, look, it's the same thing as what the King James Bible in our
modern language.
Obviously, we don't talk necessarily like all the words in the King James Bible.
How art thou?
You know what I mean?
We don't say, hast thou not known?
You know, we don't talk like that.
But here's the thing is we know what we're saying when you say that.
So the Greek of the Texas Receptus is as different to modern Greek as the English of the King
James Bible is to our modern English.
It can be understood.
You don't need to go spend $30,000 to learn scholarly Greek.
You know what I mean?
Just learn the modern Greek and then you can read it.
It's possible.
How did I get on that?
Now therefore, verse 19, ye are no more strangers and foreigners but fellow citizens with the
saints of the household of God, so on and so forth.
So we're gonna stop right there.
Chapter number three.
Chapter number three, verse one says, For this cause I Paul the prisoner of Jesus Christ
for you Gentiles, if you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God, which is
given to me to you, Lord.
Now, here's another false doctrine that often comes up is this matter of dispensationalism.
Now dispensationalism is a damnable heresy and is the father of all damnable heresies.
And I don't know where, I mean I talked to a guy one time who's a hardcore dispensationalist
and I said, where do you get your definition of dispensations?
And he said, Hebrews chapter one, where the Bible talks about that God spoke to us in
diverse manners.
I'm like, but the word dispensation is not in there though.
So where do you get that from?
He goes, it's there.
God showed me.
I'm like, what God?
What God showed you, the Hebrews chapter number one, verse number one is teaching us that
dispensations means different ages.
Here's an English lesson for you.
What does dispense mean?
Look, Alex, can you give me some water from the water dispenser?
That the water dispenser is a thing that dispenses water.
It gives it out.
That's what dispensation means.
It doesn't mean different ages.
It means something that is given in the Bible clearly teaches that in verse number two,
if you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God, what does that say?
God gave Paul the grace to preach the gospel, to know these things.
That's what that means.
Well, why didn't he just use given?
Because the King James Bible is so awesome, it tries to expand your vocabulary by giving
you different words.
If you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God, which has given me to you word,
and here's the thing is those who hold, those who are dispensationalist, okay, there's hyper
dispensationalist.
There's weak dispensationalist, or whatever, mild dispensationalist, sweet sauce, weak
sauce dispensationalist, I don't know, all kinds of dispensation.
The ones in our movement, not in our movement, but those in the independent Baptist movement,
they would hold to a more mild, the spiciness is a little more mild.
You have to accept the entire thing if you're going to hold to a dispensational doctrine.
Because they just want to hold to the dispensational doctrine that justifies the Jews being God's
chosen people and the pre-tribulation rapture.
And then they want to reject the rest of it, where dispensation is major on our workspace
salvation.
When they believe that salvation is by works in the Old Testament, and it's going to be
by works again in the book of Revelation, eh, wrong.
It's not.
Okay?
How that by revelation he made known unto us the mystery, as I wrote in few words, whereby
when you read you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ, which in other ages
was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and
prophets by the Spirit, that the Gentiles should be fellow heirs.
Man, I mean, it's right there.
The Gentiles should be fellow heirs.
And it's funny, because even Paul's writing this in the book of Ephesians, but guess who's
battling with this, Peter and the rest of the apostles, who just want to give the gospel
to the Jews when they're supposed to give it to everyone.
I mean, that should have been Locke's, it should have been just done with at the great
commission of Matthew 28, yet they're still going only to the Jews.
And what happens?
He gives them the commission in Acts chapter one, verse number eight, they don't do it,
so what does he do?
He brings persecution in Acts chapter eight, verse number one, to scatter them so they
can go preach the gospel to other people.
Then he takes Peter, and he gives them the vision to show him, hey, don't just go to
the Jews, you need to go to the Gentiles as well.
Go where the fish are biting.
Okay?
And by the way, in a practical aspect, that should be the same for us, right?
We don't want to keep going to an area that's closed.
I want to go preach the gospel to some people who are willing to get saved, they want to
learn of it, they want to be saved, it's easy to get them in, I want to preach the gospel
to them.
But these guys were said on preaching the gospel only to the Jews.
You know?
And look, Paul had a heart for the Jews, right?
That's what he says in Romans chapter nine and 10.
He had a heart for those who were Jews according to the flesh, Israelites according to the
flesh.
He didn't allow his emotions to get in the way of preaching the gospel to every creature.
Verse number seven, wherefore I was made a minister according to the gift of the grace
of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power unto me who am less than the
least of all saints.
This is his grace given that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches
of Christ.
Skip down to verse number 11, according to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ
Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of
him.
And I want to talk about this a little bit.
You know, a key quality of a Christian ought to be boldness.
We ought to have confidence in what we do, right?
Especially us as Baptists.
We need to have boldness and confidence, why?
Because that's been, it's available to us now, okay?
And look, I understand that if you're here and you're timid and maybe you're a little
shy to give the Gospel or you're shy to talk to people about the Gospel, look, I get that
but you know what?
The Bible says that we have the access to the boldness and confidence that's in Christ
Jesus our Lord, okay?
You say, well, how do I get that?
Well, number one, you need to pray for boldness, okay?
Because the opposite of boldness is fear, right?
It's being afraid of the spiritual boogeyman, right, of soul winning.
No, what we need to do is get on your, you need to get on your knees and pray, God, please
make me bold to preach the Gospel.
Help me to be confident to preach the Gospel.
Fill me with your Spirit and your power to preach the Gospel with all confidence.
Because let me say something, people are more apt to listen to a confident person.
I'm telling you, I've talked to people and it's just like I pray for boldness and I know
that I'm filled with the Spirit when I'm preaching the Gospel to these people and they're just
like I'm willing to listen.
Because obviously you know what you're talking about and you know what you believe.
But if you're timid and it's just like, you know, they're not going to want to listen
to you.
They're not going to want to listen to you.
You ought to be, I don't want to talk about being prideful, I'm talking about being confident.
There's a difference between pride and confidence.
Pride is because you're trusting in yourself, confidence is because you're trusting in the
Lord.
And you believe that the Lord can use you to lead people to Christ.
Look what it says, verse 13, wherefore I desire that you faint not at my tribulations for
you, which is your glory.
For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom the whole
family in heaven and earth is named, that he would grant you, according to the riches
of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit and the inner man.
So Paul here is saying, look, you look at my tribulations, I don't want you to faint
because of it.
Because obviously Paul went through some hard stuff.
He went through some hard persecutions and maybe some weak Christians were looking at
his example and saying, man, I don't know if I can do that.
I don't know if I can go through such a persecution or such trials.
And you know what Paul did?
He prayed for them, that they would be strengthened with might according to his Spirit, the Bible
says.
And look, we need to pray for those who maybe are weaker in the faith than us.
Whether husbands, maybe you need to pray for your wife to be more bold in the Lord.
Maybe you're the bold one, maybe you're the gospel preacher of the family, and maybe your
wife is a little more timid, well pray for her.
Pray that she can become bold in the gospel, that she can be strengthened with might by
his Spirit and the inner man.
That's what we need.
And look, pray for one another.
We need to pray for the brethren in this church, right, that they would be bold in their witness
to preach the gospel.
Because look, there's a great work that needs to be accomplished, there's a great work that
needs to be done.
And we don't have time to be timid and shy to present the gospel, we need to just do
it to see people saved.
That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith, that ye being rooted and grounded in love
may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth and length and depth and
height and to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge that ye might be filled
with all the fullness of God.
That's an amazing verse right there.
You know, immediately I think about the peace of God that passeth understanding, and then
it talks about the love of God that passeth knowledge.
It goes to show that that which God has to offer us is beyond our human understanding
and comprehension, right?
His ways are above our ways, His thoughts than our thoughts, He's far beyond the vastness
of our human reasoning and understanding.
But it's a blessing to know that because we're saved, we have Christ in us, we can come to
those who understand.
We can come to a certain aspect of that understanding even in this life.
But look, what does it say?
Which passeth knowledge, to know the love of Christ.
How do you know the love of Christ?
Through the word of God.
Not through some like, you know, pixie dust experience that you have because you had a
dream last night that you met Jesus with long hair.
There's people like that.
You know, and they base their relationship with God based upon a dream that they had.
You know, I saw Jesus, He was six foot four, with a long beautiful brown hair, white skin
and a white rope, and a dress.
And they'll base their experience off of those things.
No, you know what we base our experiences off of?
The word of God.
Because He is the word.
He is the word.
Look what it goes on to say, now unto Him that is able, I love this verse.
Now unto Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think
according to the power that worketh in us.
You know what that goes to show me is that God is able, we need to make sure that we
dream big, right?
We need to make sure that we dream big and that our goals are far beyond what we're capable
of doing.
It needs to go so far that it has to be the power of God that lies within us, right?
And we need to ask for things, because the Bible says that He's able to do exceedingly
abundantly above that.
So that means we're supposed to ask for something so big, believing in faith, that He can do
even more than that.
You know, the danger of the Christian life is this matter of doubt, right?
Because we doubt.
We're like, yeah, I know that happened to so and so, but I don't know if that could
ever happen to me.
You better be careful.
Because once you start thinking that way and you have doubt in your mind, you know, the
Bible says that without faith it is impossible to please God.
For he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and He is a rewarder of them that diligently
seek Him.
We need to walk by faith and not by sight and believe that God can.
And doubt can just destroy a Christian.
Why?
Because doubt is the opposite of faith.
We need to believe, well, you know, I've heard of people wanting a lot of people to Christ,
but I just don't think I can do it.
You'll never do it because you don't have faith.
You ought to say, man, I have the faith that God can use me.
Just like Paul said, you know, the power that effectively worked in Peter is the same that's
wrought in me.
Right?
Peter was older in the faith than Paul, right?
But yeah, he said himself, the same power that he has is the same power that I got.
I can preach the gospel just like him.
Verse 21.
I like how he ends the chapter here, just taking a blow to the dispensation.
Listen, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end.
Amen.
Throughout all ages.
That's in Revelation 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, all ages.
It doesn't say all ages up until Revelation 4.
All ages up until Revelation 2 and 3.
No.
All ages.
Okay.
I wonder what they, I've never even had someone rebuttal that.
It's like, how do you explain that?
Well, you know, the church age, we're in the times of the Gentiles until Revelation chapter
number 4, and then the church is taken out, then you're making God a liar.
Because He says the glory will be in the church until all ages.
And yes, all really does mean all.
Chapter 4.
I don't know if we're going to be able to finish.
I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that you walk worthy of the vocation
wherewith you are called, with all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing
one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit and the bond of peace.
So now he begins to get into the practicality of the Christian life.
You know, he says, look, you need to walk worthy of the vocation wherewith we are called.
What calling is he talking about?
The call to live a life that's pleasing unto the Lord.
And we need to walk worthy of that vocation.
Well that word vocation often is associated with what?
Work.
And the Christian life is work.
Why?
Because we need to work for Christ.
We need to work on developing the right relationships.
We need to work with one another.
We need to endeavor, the Bible says, to keep the spirit of unity.
You know, there ought not to be divisions in the church.
And one of the things we always need to put in check is, man, is there some little tiff
going on in the church?
Now there is no, don't think I'm going to call something out because it's not, not that
I know of.
Now if you know something tonight, don't let me know and I'll preach on it at the next
service, amen?
But we need to keep unity in the church.
Let me say this, if you got beef with someone in the church, you need to go to that person.
Okay?
Don't go gossiping to other people about your little problem because Sister So-and-So didn't
say hi to you or didn't do this or Brother So-and-So looked at you in a weird way or
he said something to offend you, he made fun of your hair, whatever.
No if you got beef with someone you need to just go talk to that person and say, hey man,
you know, this happened, I just want to make it right, you know, this bothered me, I just
want to say I'm sorry, or whatever, you know.
But just be a man and just go talk to the person.
That's what the Bible says to endeavor, to keep the unity of the spirit and the bond
of peace.
What does endeavor mean?
It means we got to fight to do it.
Because here's the thing, the temptation is just to harbor bitterness in your heart
towards people.
Right?
And what happens when you harbor bitterness?
It defiles you.
That's what the Bible says in Hebrews.
It defiles you and then it begins to defile others.
Why?
Because a bitter person makes other people bitter because they try to go around and just
gossip around everyone.
And look, here's the thing is, in many churches, man, that happens so much.
Often with ladies.
Amen?
Amen.
With ladies, I'm serious.
Ladies, man.
Men, we don't have this problem, amen?
Ladies, man, I've seen so many, I mean, like, major problems.
I was part of a Spanish ministry, and in the Spanish ministry, that stuff was big.
You ever heard of this word?
El chisme.
You know what that means?
It means the same thing as gossip, but it just sounds so much worse in Spanish.
Chismosa.
You know?
Chismoso.
And what do they do?
They're just bickering and fighting one another, devouring one another.
They're not endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit with the bond of peace.
They're devouring one another.
They're tearing down the pastor.
I mean, I heard this week about a story of a friend of mine who the members in that church,
they're just tearing down the pastor's wife.
And I told him, I said, you need to kick those people out.
Give them a boot for Christmas.
They need to be booted out of that church, and not even in a kind manner either.
I said, you know what I would do if I were you on Sunday?
Get behind the pulpit and call that person out by name.
And say, look, this person's causing division in our church.
They're criticizing the pastor.
They're criticizing the pastor's wife.
All in favor, say aye.
Even if you don't say aye, they're getting out of the church today.
Why?
Because unity is so important in the eyes of God.
You know, the fight from without will just strengthen us, but you know what will destroy
our church is the visions, and we won't tolerate it.
Look, if you're apt to just cause divisions in the church, you need to just grow up, okay?
And you want to be a chismoso or a chismoso in our church, be a chismoso to God.
Don't complain to God.
Don't go to the church, remember?
Don't try to recruit people to your little agenda, you know?
Don't criticize the pastor.
Don't criticize my wife.
Don't criticize the members.
Just grow up.
Because here's the thing, if we hear about that stuff and you're causing divisions, you're
getting in the boot.
Well, I'm taking my tithe somewhere else.
Go take your tithe somewhere else.
Go take it to a Spanish ministry that tolerates chisme, because we won't.
You say, you're making a big deal.
It is a big deal.
We need to endeavor to keep the unity, okay?
And look, all of us have different personalities, right?
So you know what that means?
It means we're going to annoy each other.
Let me just give you, let me just tell you something.
You're going to annoy someone in our church.
In fact, you probably already did.
But you know what?
Who cares?
You know, in a family, brothers and sisters fight with each other all the time.
They always annoy each other, but they're still brothers and sisters.
And here in the church house, if someone annoys you, they offend you, just grow up, take it
like a man, love the person, and endeavor to keep the unity in the church.
Why?
Because there's a bigger picture than your little tift and your little problem that you're
having with your brother and sister in Christ.
There's something called the church, okay?
And your little problem and your little tift is going to cause a division that's going
to hinder the work of God, which is far more greater than your little problem that you're
having.
Look what it goes on to say.
There's one body and one spirit even as you're called and one hope of your calling.
One Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is above all and through
all and in you all.
But unto every one of us is given grace, although he should have put dispensation,
huh?
It means the same thing.
Given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ, wherefore he saith when he
ascended up on high, he led captivity captive and gave gifts unto men.
Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts
of the earth, referring to hell.
He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens that he might fill
all things.
So what is the gift that he's referring to in verse number eight, verse number 11, and
he gave some apostles and some prophets and some evangelists and some pastors and teachers.
You know these offices are a gift to the church.
These people are meant to, they're given as a gift from God to edify the saints.
Look what the Bible says in verse 12, for the perfecting of the saints, for the work
of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come in the unity of
faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the
statue of the fullness of Christ.
So he's saying look, these offices are meant to mature us, to help us to be complete, to
help us to grow in the Lord.
But not just for that, because look what it says in verse 14, that we henceforth be no
more children.
Refer to the sermon earlier today, amen.
No more children, don't be immature, grow up.
No more children, tossed to and fro, carried about with every wind of doctrine by the slight
of men and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive.
So according to the Bible, these offices are here to teach you, right?
So that you become mature and you're not just believing every stupid doctrine that comes
through the doors.
There's a lot of stupid doctrines out there.
There's a lot of foolish things that come about, and especially in these last days.
But then these last days, it's like, I think in 2017, we've heard of a lot of stupid doctrines
that have come, and it's like, what in the world?
You are an idiot.
Bill Grady, perfect example.
I mean, you have to be retarded to believe some of the stuff that he's saying.
He said, you're mean-spirited.
Yeah, so?
Because this man is teaching a lot of false doctrine and heresy.
And he's been, look, I know who Bill Grady is, okay?
In fact, I think I have one of his books on the King James Bible.
My wife's heard him preach.
This guy's been around for a long time, and everyone just thought he was just a saved
man.
He loved the King James Bible.
And look, you notice that these false prophets always come into the cloak of being King James
only, right?
Because Sam Gibb came under the cloak of being King James only too.
Well, so does Bill Grady.
Why?
Because they're trying to infiltrate Baptist churches because they know Baptist churches
are King James only churches.
Anyways, but look, if you're maturing the Lord, if you're not the schlooter type, you
know what you're going to do?
You're going to see it.
You're going to be like, this is dumb.
You know what I mean?
I'm not going to be tossed about with this wind of doctrine.
You know, I shall not be moved.
I'm not going to be swayed by every wind of doctrine.
No, the Bible says that we need to give heed to ourselves, right?
So we can save ourselves from false doctrine.
Give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine, the Bible says.
Next, verse 15, but speaking the truth in love may grow up into him in all things, which
is the head, even Christ.
So one aspect of growth requires a lot of knowledge and information, right?
I mean the Bible says, but growing grace and in knowledge.
We have to know knowledge.
But the other half of that is that the truth needs to be told in love, right?
What is that with the motive that we want to teach someone because we love them?
You know, when we rip face from the pulpit, it's not because I hate you.
I don't hate God's people.
You know, we hate sodomites, but we don't hate God's people.
I don't hate you.
I'm not like, man, I can't wait to rip on this guy.
I've been wanting to do it for so long.
Yes, there's a big crowd today, so they're all going to say, no, that's not how it works.
We speak the truth in love because the truth is often harsh.
But we do it with the motive of love because we want you not to be swayed.
We don't want, I don't want you to be tossed about, carried about with every window of
doctrine.
I want you to mature in the Lord.
I don't want you to be a child.
I want you to grow up because I love you.
Not because it's like, man, this is a good sermon where I can just rip your face off.
No, it doesn't work that way, okay?
I rip face because the Bible says open rebuke is better than secret love, right?
So if I openly rebuke from the pulpit, it's because I have an open love, right?
And look, someone who loves you will take a risk, right?
They'll take a risk to tell you the truth and possibly offend you because the possibility
of you getting that thing right is worth taking the risk of preaching the truth.
Because it's like, man, if I preach this, maybe this person's going to get offended,
but I love them so much that I'm willing to take that risk because if they turn from
that, man, that makes it all worthwhile.
But we've got to speak the truth in love.
We're out of time.
So verses 18 through 32, it gives a lot, it speaks a lot about just the practical aspect
of putting off the old man, the old conversation, and it talks about really those who are Gentiles
who are past feeling, and it's a reference to reprobates because reprobates are past
feeling.
They're seared.
Their conscience is seared with a hot iron.
So what does that mean?
They're numb to certain things.
But the Bible says, but ye have not so learned Christ, it so be that ye have heard him and
have been taught by him as the truth is in Jesus.
Then it talks about how we're supposed to perfect holiness, and it gives us some practical
aspects how we can do that.
Verse 26 is be angry and sin not.
So that's a command.
Be angry.
You're supposed to be angry.
You know, this world teaches us to be what?
Sensitive.
Right?
Don't throw, you know, you need to calm down.
We need to be able to talk.
Do you have anger issues?
Do you need to go to anger management?
No, this is my anger management right here, is this pulpit.
This pulpit manages my anger, okay?
When I'm ticked off about a certain false doctrine, this is where I let it off.
But look, I'm not sinning when I'm spewing out my anger here.
Be angry and sin not.
I'm not sinning because I'm not violating anyone through my anger.
You see what I'm saying?
And then it talks about your conversation, your labor, so on and so forth.
So sorry we didn't get to finish the book of Ephesians, but you know what?
We went over to Ephesians chapter 6 last week, so I hope you benefited from that.
Let's go ahead and bow our heads and have a word of prayer.
Father, we thank you so much for your goodness.
Thank you so much for your love.
Thank you for the book of Ephesians, and of course I did a disservice.
There's so much more that could have been said and so much more doctrine that could
be gone over, Lord.
I just pray you help us.
Of course, if we could just break it down into two parts.
Help us to learn the doctrine, to realize what salvation is and the depths of salvation
and what the Bible teaches about salvation.
But not only that, help us to realize that we're supposed to practically live out these
principles that we're learning.
That our doctrine is supposed to determine how we behave ourselves.
It won't always, but that ought to be the goal that we have, is to conform our actions
to the things that we believe.
And please bless us as we go on our way.
Thank you so much for praying these things in Jesus' name, Amen.
Amen.