Amen. Right, so Matthew chapter nine, and it's part two from verse 18 this evening.
So we're going to be going from verse 18, having done one to 17 last week.
And last week we saw Jesus heal another guy with the pools.
He's saying, Thy sins be forgiven thee.
And remember, you know, he's making that statement that Jesus Christ has the power to forgive sins.
And he then, you know, if you remember, he calls the publican Levi.
Right now, you know, we then know him as Matthew to discipleship.
And we looked at that last week.
And he then has a meal with these publicans and sinners, which is when we're comparing the other gospels.
It's at Matthew's house.
And he's then invited these other publicans and sinners as something we should all do, shouldn't we?
If we, you know, we know the gospel, we know the Lord Jesus Christ, we should be inviting others as well.
Those from our kind of, you know, from our life, from outside the church, obviously, as well.
We want to be trying to get people saved, don't we?
And then we also looked at the principle of they that a whole need not a physician, but they that are sick.
And, you know, and we looked at obviously just the primary application of that as well.
And just how different that is to our sort of modern medical system now.
And, you know, we kind of looked at examples of how that doesn't seem to be the case in our world,
that people don't seem to believe that.
And then we finished with verse 16 and 17, which was,
No man putteth a piece of new cloth unto an old garment,
for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the garment and the rent is made worse.
Neither do men put new wine into old bottles,
else the bottles break and the wine runneth out and the bottles perish,
but they put new wine into new bottles and both are preserved.
And, you know, I was preaching how I believe it pictures the old and new covenants
and how those set in their religious ways just find the new way so hard, don't they?
And we talked about that and how hard it is for people that are set in their sort of old ways,
their old religious ways and whether that's just for salvation in the first place or even after that.
And just to be able to be discipled, to be able to come and attend, you know, a proper church,
trying to do things the way that God wants us to do them and how hard people find it
when they come from bad religious backgrounds or even just, you know,
maybe even if they're not that bad, but just from backgrounds where they don't do things,
really how Jesus Christ, we believe, wants us to do things.
So we had a look at that last week and we're going to continue now with verse 18, which reads,
While he spake these things unto them, behold, there came a certain ruler and worshipped him,
saying, My daughter is even now dead, but come and lay thy hand upon her
and she shall live. I'd also like to pray before we continue.
So, Father, thank you for this great chapter of the Bible.
Please help me to preach the second part of it just loudly and clearly and boldly
and help everyone here to just have attentive ears and attentive hearts,
to be able to just focus and pay attention to what I'm preaching today and what you want me to preach today.
And, Lord, just help everyone here to just be blessed by hearing your word preached.
In Jesus' name, pray all of this. Amen.
So we're levelling up now, aren't we? So far in Matthew's Gospel,
we've seen a general kind of summary of healing of all manner of diseases,
sickness back in Chapter 4, verse 23 or verse 24, where it said,
And his fame went throughout all Syria, and they brought unto him all sick people that were taken with diverse diseases and torments,
and those which were possessed with devils and those which were lunatic and those that had the palsy, and he healed them.
We've then seen specific cases of leprosy, the palsy, which we saw was kind of this paralysis-type disease,
a fever, possession with a legion of devils, which was pretty extreme, wasn't it?
But now this certain ruler, it says here, is saying that his daughter is dead.
Now, in the other Gospel accounts, she's at the point of death, she's about to die,
basically he's saying, look, she needs help, she's dying or she's dead.
Now, Mark's account, and you don't have to turn this, says that he's a ruler of the synagogue named Jairus.
So this guy, the certain ruler, is a ruler of a synagogue.
And don't miss here that he worshipped Jesus again.
And we talked about that previously, how in Matthew's Gospel, we keep seeing examples of people worshipping Jesus,
and Jesus not stopping them, worshipping him because he is God.
Yeah, he is God in the flesh, he's the son of God.
He is perfectly entitled to be worshipped, but he worshipped Jesus.
And what faith, though, that he's basically saying, having worshipped Jesus,
he then says, my daughter is even now dead, but come and lay thy hand upon her and she shall live.
So what faith that he's able to give life to his dead daughter.
And look, that is a strong faith, isn't it, for someone to just go, look, this girl is dying.
And like I said in other accounts, well, she's about to die.
And that's basically what he's saying here.
Either way, isn't he, that you need to come and bring her back to life.
But isn't that a picture of the faith that we all have?
This is a picture of the faith that we all have, don't we?
Ephesians 2, 1, you have to turn this, says, and you have he quickened who were dead in trespasses and sins.
So everyone here who's saved has faith that Jesus Christ is able to basically raise them from the dead, so to speak.
Right. Well, that's what we all believe.
I hope here that not only has Jesus done that for us, but also that he could do that for our family and friends, don't we?
So when we go and preach the gospel, when we're here and praying for our family and friends who are unsaved and things like that,
we're ultimately putting our faith that Jesus Christ is also able to basically bring them back from the dead.
Right. And just spiritually speaking, the fact that everyone here before they were saved was a dead man walking or a dead woman walking or a dead child walking.
But this certain ruler said, but come and lay thy hand upon her and she shall live.
She shall live.
He had the sort of faith that goes hand in hand with someone that worships the real Jesus.
Right. Some of that worships the real Jesus.
I'm not talking about these false churches with their own version of Jesus.
No, he said she shall live.
And if you're saved, then it means that you know that you have eternal life.
Right. First John 5 13 says, These things are written unto you that believe in the name of the Son of God, that ye may know ye have eternal life, that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.
And I hope everyone here knows that they have eternal life.
And this guy is saying she shall live, not she might live.
I hope that you can do something she shall live, because that's the sort of faith.
That's a picture we're constantly seeing in this gospel so far is all these physical healings.
And here it's actually bringing someone back to life for pictures of Jesus Christ's spiritual healing.
But I want to say there's something else that I see here as well that we're going to see in a minute, because it says in verse 19.
And Jesus arose and followed him and so did his disciples.
And behold, a woman, which was diseased with an issue of blood, 12 years, came behind him and touched the hem of his garment.
For she said within herself, If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole.
But Jesus turned him about.
And when he saw her, he said, Daughter, be of good comfort.
Thy faith hath made thee whole.
And a woman was made whole from that hour.
So he's on the way to this ruler's house.
This woman comes and touches the edge or bottom of his clothing.
OK, what was the problem that she had?
Well, it says here in verse 20 that she was diseased with an issue of blood, 12 years.
Now turn to Mark 5.
Basically, this poor woman couldn't stop bleeding for 12 years.
This is known nowadays as abnormal uterine bleeding.
I mean, it's this is, you know, a pretty terrible thing that the poor woman is having to deal with.
Now, why so long?
Why wasn't she healed?
12 years, 12 years of this, right?
Well, in Mark's account, we're given a bit more information.
Look at Mark, chapter five and from verse 25, it reads,
And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood, 12 years, and had suffered many things of many physicians,
that had spent all that she had and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse.
Look at verse 25 again.
She had an issue of blood, 12 years.
Then look at the beginning of verse six and had suffered many things of many physicians.
That sounds pretty horrific.
And notice it didn't say she wasn't healed by many physicians.
She had suffered many things of many physicians.
Now, we looked last week at Matthew 9, 12, didn't we?
Which read, But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them,
They that behold need not a physician, but they that are sick.
And we looked at some principles, didn't we, from that, one of which being at the end of that,
that if you are sick, then look, there's nothing wrong with going to a doctor, is there?
Jesus said, They that behold need not a physician, but they that are sick.
And we talked about how our just crazy medical, you know, Western medical system here
basically teaches you to go to the doctor when you're not sick and to go and kind of get vaccines
and all sorts of tests and all sorts of preemptive medications and other things where you're not even ill.
But then we obviously said, look, but the end of that does say, but they that are sick.
But like as some people might refuse to ever see anyone, because there are those people out there
that, you know, that they will probably try and take daily echinacea to regrow that limb that's just been severed.
There are those sorts of people out there.
OK, there are other extremes that just believe that the doctor God will solve everything.
Yeah. And we're probably more likely to run into those types who just believe that the doctor God
and obviously I'm using a small G here because they think he's a God and they treat him like a God
will literally solve anything and everything.
And all they have to do is say, here I am, here I am, Dr.
God, just tell me what to give me, what you like.
Just just and how many people do you know like that?
Anyone come across people like this in their life?
Yeah, pretty much the whole room.
OK, a few late hands going up.
OK, they're everywhere, aren't they?
And wow, isn't it frustrating when you have family and friends like that?
Well, but what does the doctor say?
What does the doctor God say?
But you know, what medication, what drug should I take?
Right. And there are many people like that, aren't there?
And they do think they'll say, but now why do they think that this doctor God is a God?
What is it that does that?
You know, I've often thought about this, you know, when myself, my wife, you know, over
over kind of several years, we spent a lot of time in hospitals with family members and kind of it.
And it was something that always used to struck me as bizarre, the kind of whole way it works there.
Obviously, you've got the uniform, the outfit.
So, you know, for many people, that's like the sort of priest uniform or outfit, isn't it?
They have kind of this special, you know, special, different clothing and different outfit.
Already that elevates them up here.
But then it's sort of the the the special medical terms.
Now, if you've ever anyone ever questioned a doctor here about something and notice how they'll just try and bamboozle you with long medical words,
which you shouldn't know or understand, which should then disqualify you even daring to ask them to explain themselves.
Anyone ever had that happen?
Yeah, we got a few here.
Yeah, quite a few already.
So this is sort of you know, this is where, well, if I go over technical and you probably had this in other areas of life as well, where you dare to challenge
someone and they'll instead of trying to explain, which is what the normal person with some integrity would do.
And let's be honest, if you're a doctor who's been trained for five years plus whatever it is, then you would assume they might maybe use the layman's
terms while explaining to a layman why it is they've come to this conclusion or told you that you need to go on a course of some highly potent toxic
drug for however long to cure something that didn't seem to be that much of a problem in the first place.
But no, a lot of the time they'll do the old classic, which is resort to very technical words, and that should then basically just disqualify you, shut you up and everything else.
Now, if you've dared to research anything and look into anything and actually be able to talk back to them with those terms, then you end up with some sort of sometimes spontaneous
combustion, sometimes not.
But a lot of the time they just start and then they ask you, well, what's your background?
You know, and just because you've bothered to read up on something for, you know, maybe it's a family member that you're interested in and wanted to make sure they receive good care.
But sadly, the vast majority of people just go, wow, long words, wow, uniform, wow, five years of medical, just tell me what to do.
Yet they seem to ignore just what pretty much the whole of human history where we've just seen medical error after medical error after medical error.
Look, I'm not saying these people are completely useless, but like with this woman here that had suffered, suffered many things and many physicians.
How many people in this world suffer many things and many physicians and have spent all that she had?
Now, of course, we live in the UK with the NHS, and it's a bit of a strange dynamic when you go to a hospital because you're being treated like you're getting a freebie.
You've got a very just low morale workplace anyway, where people are usually overworked, underpaid.
It's like just being in a sinking ship.
It's a depressing place to be.
You've got, you know, nurses who are trying to deal with two wards at once and things like that.
You've got doctors who are rushing about and not happy about the fact they've done years of medical college to then end up just, you know, having to deal with drunk people in A&E every night or something else.
But you're also treated like you're getting a favour, but you're not because we're paying taxes, we're paying our national insurance, our taxes, whatever it is towards this.
So we should be getting treated like a customer, shouldn't we?
And the problem with our whole medical system is that you're not treated like a customer most of the time.
Now, now and again, you find, you know, a kind of a jewel amongst the rough, don't you?
You find someone who actually treats you nicely, but it seems to be rarer and rarer, doesn't it?
And most of the time you're treated like you're getting a favour, you're treated like it's just some sort of, you know, some sort of freebie and you should just be grateful for whatever you get.
But the vast, the vast majority of countries and really ultimately because what it comes down to is ours too, we are paying for this service.
So you're paying for a service, which a lot of the time you could spend a lot of money, a lot of your money is being spent on the service where often nothing is better, but rather people grow worse.
And how many people do you know who go to the doctor and years down the line, they're suddenly on extra medication, extra medication and more drugs for the side effects and more drugs to the side effects, they're just going, well, just keep going, keep spending the money.
Well, the tax man's paying it or whoever's paying it, the government's paying it, so we just keep going, keep going.
And it's maddening, isn't it?
This woman had spent 12 years, 12 years of suffering and a lot of people suffer because you go and you start on one drug, which for something which a lot of the time could have been cleared up if you maybe sorted out your lifestyle or something else.
Well, who even cares how you got it?
Here's a drug that will solve it.
So you start taking that drug and next thing you know, I've got a new problem.
And now you're suffering more things by many physicians.
And now you go to the next doctor who's got nothing, who doesn't even care what your background of your drugs were with that one.
And now you've got a new drug and now you're going to suffer through the next physician because it's becoming many physicians and then you're starting to suffer more and more things is now you've got a new side effects, which dealt with by another so-called specialist.
But sadly, we live in a system where so often what they really specialists in, how to give out drugs.
That's kind of it seems to be the vast majority of the training and the whole system seems to be revolve around how to give out drugs to people.
And it's a wicked system, isn't it?
And this woman is just I mean, for me, this verse is just such a just just a picture of of the world's medical system, isn't it?
And it suffered many things of many physicians and had spent all that she had, this poor woman, and in many nations, many people spend all that they have and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse.
OK, so like I said, how many people then do grow worse yet have faith?
They still have faith in what are so often physicians of no value.
Now, the argument is, well, this is a 21st century, brother.
And there is this kind of feeling, isn't there, that we're something now we've got it sorted.
Now we've got it. So, oh, well, that was always like those people back thousands of years ago, those morons, those idiots.
We know so much.
Yeah, but you're going to people that think you evolved from a monkey.
You're the vast majority of those morons think you evolved from a monkey and you're going to them and going, just tell me what to do.
Oh, special one who's so wise, who's so clever because, you know, some medical terminology.
I mean, it's ridiculous, isn't it, when you look at it.
And we as God's children, we need to be wise.
I'm not saying ignore and just go down the go down that weird, you know, pink haired herbalist in the in the health food shop.
I'm not saying that yet.
But what I am saying is that we should we we should really try and take some ownership of our health.
We should try and understand, try and try and ultimately, what should we always do first?
Pray to the Lord. Yeah, pray to God and don't just trust anything the doctor God says.
But definitely not some evolutionist who has basically spent five years learning how to prescribe drugs or maybe four and a half years of those five years.
Now, go back to Matthew nine, where verse 20 says.
A beholder woman, which was diseased with an issue of blood, 12 years, came behind him and touched the hem of his garment, for she said within herself, if I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole.
But Jesus turned him about and when he saw her, he said, daughter, be of good comfort.
Thy faith have made thee whole and a woman was made whole from that hour.
Now, like I said earlier, I believe that these physical healings and I think most people would believe this as well.
A different picture of salvation.
OK, and here you have this woman who, according to Mark 5 26, you don't have to go back there, had suffered many things and many physicians spent all that she had.
It was nothing better, but rather grew worse, which I believe is a picture of the false gods, the false ways, even the money spent on these wicked false religions, because a lot of people spend a lot of money on these wicked false religions.
And I think that's part of the draw as well, in the same way that the person, especially in a country where they're spending all this money on the doctor, almost doesn't want to believe that it hasn't done anything but rather grew them worse.
And they'll convince themselves, well, it must have been, you know, well, the way it is, you just got to deal with the side effects.
Well, that's the only thing they could have done.
Well, I probably would have got more sick anyway.
And in the same way, the person that's just spent all this money on false prophets, on false churches, on throwing money in to get extra blessings, extra healings, they don't want it to be false, do they?
They don't want it to be false.
And I think it's even harder for them.
And here for this woman, she spent 12 years, but it's a picture of, we're going to see a picture of spiritual healing, of salvation.
And I believe then the picture is of just this time and effort.
But what's happened, she grew worse.
She grew worse. Why?
Because these false religions lead you further away from the truth, don't they?
That's what happens. You go to these false religions, you go to the false church and you don't go, oh, yeah, well, I've done a bit of Roman Catholicism for a while, now I'm ready for salvation.
The sad truth is the majority of the time they're going to just keep going further and further away from the truth.
The longer they spend in that false church, the harder it is to get someone saved, isn't it?
And I know we often see someone, they've got a religious background.
Well, you know, look, they wouldn't be better off without that false religious background.
OK. And a lot of the time you'll find you get a youngster who hasn't just been poisoned by any sort of false religion.
And it's all false religion ultimately.
They're going to get poisoned if it's not by the C of E church or the Pentecostal church.
It's going to be poisoned by atheism or some other weird version or some idolatry of someone in the world.
Well, look, those people, the longer they go, the harder it is.
But you find a kid who just hasn't been poisoned by any of that, they just haven't an innate knowledge of God, don't they?
You just go, well, would you like to, you know, would you like me to tell you about how you can know you're going to heaven?
Yes, please. No problem at all.
The longer they're in that false religion, the harder it is, isn't it?
But obviously, when we get them young, a lot of the time we have more chance of getting them before it gets worse.
Well, with Jesus Christ, with the Saviour, it's so easy that just the hem of his garment was enough, OK?
That for me is what that's a picture of.
She didn't have to make him Lord of her life, did she?
No, and you don't have to make him Lord of your life, do you?
You don't have to give your life to him.
You don't have to give your life to Christ.
Anyone heard that one? Yeah, yeah, of course.
Any one soul winning will have heard, got to give your life to Christ.
But you don't have to give your life to Christ.
You don't have to take up your cross daily and follow him to get saved, do you?
You just have to simply believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved, right?
And that's what that picture is.
She literally just touched the very outside, the hem of his garment.
And that's a picture of just the ease, just the simpleness of salvation.
He said, Thy faith hath made thee whole, and the woman was made whole from that hour.
Notice how she was made whole from that hour.
She wasn't made whole for that hour.
She wasn't made whole until she sinned again or until she then went back to the physicians.
She was made whole from that hour.
OK, for me, that's just a great picture of just the simplicity of the gospel, right?
That's 23, and when Jesus came into the ruler's house and saw the minstrels and the people making noise.
So he's moved on now.
He's got, this woman's got healed, these people, the minstrels and the people making noise.
Minstrels were musicians, so it was basically what they would do when they were mourning.
They'd get these people in, that was like a cultural thing they'd do.
People are coming and playing music in the same way that maybe, you know, if you go to a funeral,
you're going to hear music being played.
It might not be someone live playing, but people, a lot of the time, will associate music with mourning, won't they?
Sometimes it'll be what they consider sad music or music which will remind them of them.
So you've got the minstrels, these are musicians making noise.
He said unto them, Give place for the maid is not dead, but sleepeth, and they laughed him to scorn.
But when the people were put forth, he went in and took her by the hand,
and the maid arose, and the fame thereof went abroad into all that land.
OK, so a couple of things to mention here.
First off, she wasn't in hell, OK? This woman wasn't in hell.
Jesus Christ is the first and only begotten of the dead, OK?
So this woman didn't go to hell.
He said that she is not dead, but sleepeth, which is how he also described Lazarus.
If you turn to John chapter 11, we see that in John chapter 11,
where he describes Lazarus before he raises him as sleeping as well, like he's just described this woman.
He said the maid is not dead, but sleepeth.
And John 11 and verse 11 says, These things said he, and after that he saith unto them,
this is John 11, 11, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth, but I go that I may awake him out of sleep.
Then said his disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well.
Howbeit Jesus spake of his death, but they thought that he had spoken of taking a rest in sleep.
Then said Jesus something plainly, Lazarus is dead.
So what's the deal here? Was Lazarus dead or asleep?
Well, when it comes to believers in the Bible, they're often described as sleeping when they physically die,
because their bodies will rise again, won't they?
OK, their bodies are going to rise again.
It's talking about their bodies here, their bodies are sleeping because they will rise again in the resurrection.
Now, here and back in Matthew 9, we're seeing a picture of, I believe, of a believer's resurrection.
OK, so I don't think it's just because we've seen these different spiritual, you know,
these different physical ailments, them being that healing, that new life, you know, getting saved by faith in Jesus Christ.
But here, I believe we're seeing a picture of basically, I think here, even the rapture, the resurrection here.
We're going to have a look at that in a second.
So and obviously, we are all going to be resurrected, our bodies at the rapture.
So if anyone's unsure about that, we're going to look at a couple of verses here.
But basically, what's going to happen is there's coming a time when there's going to be some tribulation coming.
There's going to be then some great tribulation.
And then we're going to see the Lord Jesus Christ return.
And when he returns, we are going to be raptured.
Now, if we're alive and remain, we're going to meet the Lord in the air and our body shall be changed.
We'll get this new, incorruptible body.
And if we've already died or we're already sleeping, our bodies are sleeping, then those bodies will rise.
And again, they will, in the twinkling of an eye, they're going to be changed and they're going to become these incorruptible, immortal bodies in the likeness of Christ.
OK, so turn to 1 Thessalonians, chapter 4.
Now, in 1 Corinthians 15, 23, it says,
But every man in his own order, Christ the firstfruits, afterward they that are Christ's at his coming.
I want you to remember that it's at his coming because our bodies will be resurrected at his coming, won't they?
OK, it's not, it's not, it's not the secret special rapture where Jesus Christ doesn't really come.
He just kind of half comes.
You know, it's kind of like, you know, like some people joke about like a kind of half a coming and then there'll be another one.
It's going to be like a two and a half because we don't really want to believe that we have to go through some form of tribulation.
You know, Jesus Christ comes and that's when we get raptured.
Yeah. Now, it says, it says in 1 Corinthians 15, 52, you're turning to 1 Thessalonians 4, but 1 Corinthians 15, 52 says,
In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye at the last trump, for the trumpet shall sound and the dead shall be raised incorruptible and we shall be changed.
OK, so there's a changing there.
Now, look at 1 Thessalonians chapter 4 and from verse 13,
it says, But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep.
Again, it's talking about them being asleep, that you sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
Why would you sorrow that someone is asleep?
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
Because he's talking about those that have died in Christ.
For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.
For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trump of God.
And the dead in Christ shall rise first.
Then we which are alive remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.
And so shall we ever be with the Lord.
Wherefore comfort one another with these words.
So pretty clear, isn't it?
Pretty clear in the Bible.
Those words sure are a comfort, aren't they?
And these miracles by Jesus, I believe, are a picture of this time to come.
So when he's resurrecting people from the dead, if you would look, go back to Matthew chapter 9, verse 24.
And this is something I see here, isn't it?
You know, again, it's what I see when I read this, whether or not, you know, it's still we're seeing a picture of Jesus Christ being able to give life to people.
But this girl, she still has a soul with her, OK?
She still has a soul with her because her soul hasn't gone to hell.
Her, you know, Jesus Christ, like we know, is the first, the first fruits of the resurrection.
OK, so he's the only begotten of the dead, though, as the Bible clearly says.
But so I believe her soul still with her in this in this story here and what actually happened.
He said unto him, verse 24, give place for the maid is not dead, but sleepeth.
And they laughed him to scorn.
Now, scorn is extreme contempt, isn't it?
And how many still laugh him to scorn, by the way, to this day?
How many still laugh Jesus Christ to scorn, right?
And we see that, we see that everywhere.
You'll see that when you're out preaching the gospel, you get people laughing you to scorn for daring to even suggest that you're going to preach the gospel to them.
How many mock the resurrection?
How many just mock it, laugh, I believe I'll be in the ground, you know, this sort of thing, I believe in heaven and hell, you know, you get this so often, don't you?
Mock eternal life, you know, it's just control.
Oh, you believe in your eternal skydiving, all this sort of stuff.
Mock Christ's ability to save.
They do, don't they?
And that's what we're seeing here.
And they mock Christ's ability to save you, don't they?
And isn't that going to be the vast majority of the people just before the rapture, though?
Yeah, because there's a difference between someone just going, I don't believe or someone going, I'm not really interested and those people that mock and scorn.
And look, they're not always reprobate, but some reprobates do mock and scorn, don't they?
OK, and that's going to be the same when it comes to rapture.
There's going to be a lot of people that are taking that mark, aren't there?
There'll be a lot of people that are taking that mark.
A lot of people that are going to be mocking and scorning at that point.
But verse 25 says, but when the people were put forth, he went in and took her by the hand and the maid arose.
And the fame here of went abroad into all that land.
Now, just if you go back, we see that Jesus came in verse 23 into the ruler's house.
He said unto them, give place for the maid is not dead, but sleepeth.
They laughed him with scorn.
And then when they were put forth, he went in, took her by the hand and made a rose.
So Jesus Christ came, she arose.
Right. OK, again, that's why I see that a possible picture of the last days here, at least the rapture here.
Now, said and the fame here of went abroad into all that land.
And again, maybe it's just me.
I'm still seeing pictures of the rapture and second coming.
If you think Matthew 24, 27 says, for as the lightness cometh out of the east and shineth even unto the west, so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be.
And we've just seen in verse 26 and the fame here of went abroad into all that land.
OK, so again, that's what I'm seeing there.
And it might just be a small picture.
It might not be. It might be that I'm really into that.
But Jesus Christ has just brought her back from the dead.
And look, this is the daughter of this synagogue's ruler that he's managed to do that with.
And I even you could even argue about these two guys afterwards.
It says, And when Jesus departed thence, two blind men followed him, crying and saying, Now, son of David, have mercy on us.
When he's come into the house, the blind men came to him.
And Jesus saith unto them, Believe ye that I'm able to do this.
They said unto him, Yea, Lord, then touched she their eyes, saying, According to your faith, be it unto you.
And their eyes were open and Jesus straightly charged them, saying, See, no man know it.
But they, when they were departed, spread abroad his frame in all that country.
And what's the two witnesses whole point of them is to spread abroad the gospel, isn't it?
So again, I might be I might be just, you know, going down going down a rabbit trail there.
But that's what I believe there.
Either way, either way, Jesus Christ has just brought back this this this daughter of Jairus from the dead.
That's amazing.
He's come to her.
She's been raised from the dead.
He said she sleepeth.
Obviously, we see that as as as what believers do.
They sleep there.
I think physically as well.
At least her soul is sleeping.
I don't think that.
And that's not something normal.
It's not that your soul sleeps.
So when you die, OK, when you die, your your your soul, either you either wake up, your eyes open and you're either in heaven or you're in hell.
OK, that's it.
OK, you've got two options, heaven or hell.
OK, and for everyone here, I would hope you're going to be going to heaven because you put your faith in Jesus Christ.
OK, but for this girl here, this is obviously a miracle for Jesus Christ, for the glory of God.
It's for for, you know, for this to be able to be told forth and everything else.
For me, she wasn't in hell and she wasn't in heaven and brought back down again.
She slept at this point.
And he he then shows that picture of of believers sleeping in Christ and being raised by Jesus Christ there.
So, OK, since then, let's continue here.
It said in verse 31, but they, when they were departed, spread abroad his fame in all that country.
Now, these two blind men, they have their sight given to them.
And again, it's due to their faith, isn't it?
And what was it based on their belief that he was able to do it?
That's what he said to them, didn't he?
Now, Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone.
Did they become blind again because they because they did go and tell anyone?
Anyone notice that? So, no, because the healing doesn't get reverse if you don't follow Jesus commandments, does it?
OK, Jesus Christ healed them, gave them a clear commandment.
They go forth, break his commandment, but they didn't go blind again.
They didn't get. And obviously, again, it's a picture of salvation.
OK, their eyes are opened, but they clearly disobeyed the first commandment they're given.
And they can still see they're still saved.
OK, because everyone here is going to break commandments.
No, they didn't. Well, as long as they ask for forgiveness each time.
I think I had someone, did someone say that today?
Possibly. But you have this all the time, don't you?
You're not asking for forgiveness every time you sin.
That is ridiculous, because every single one of us has foolish thoughts, has moments of pride,
has moments of many, many other sins, moments of coveting something, moments of you name it, whatever it is.
And we're not asking for forgiveness every time.
OK, it is not of works.
You are saved. If you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, you have everlasting life.
Well, here, obviously, they didn't follow his commandment there, but they were still, they still had their sight.
Now, they spread aboard his fame in all that country.
And verse 32 says, as they went out, went out, behold, they brought him a dumb man possessed with a devil.
And when the devil was cast out, the dumb spake and the multitudes marvelled, saying it was never so seen in Israel.
So there are physical issues, obviously, here that the Bible is saying can be a result of a devil.
Yeah. And look, you know, we can go one of some people a lot of the time, a lot of the time in life,
you get people that go to one of two extremes, don't they?
You've got the one extreme where absolutely everything is due to possession and devils and people obsess over this stuff too much.
And it's always something to watch out with.
People are just obsessing over devils and possession and stuff like that and the dead and all this stuff.
That's a bit of a big red flag, right?
And then, but then you've got the opposite end of people that are like, oh, I'm so rational, you know, there's no such thing.
It's all got some sort of special scientific name for it.
Yeah. But the truth is somewhere in between, isn't it?
And there are people that are dumb for some for a reason that's not possession.
But for me, there's a there's a case here of a guy that was dumb because it seems he was possessed with a devil,
because once the devil was cast out, the dumb spake.
So we don't want to just just dismiss all of that, because for me, I don't see any reason why that's.
Oh, well, that's not the case anymore, because we've got some people that wear lab coats that tell us that actually they understand it all.
But they don't seem to understand much because they don't seem to be able to cure these people.
Do they? They just seem to be able to drug them up.
And basically all these special sounding drugs, a lot of the time with all these different names and pathways,
which they don't even seem to know themselves because they never actually with most psychological drugs,
even know what the pathway and how it even works.
Ultimately, what are they really?
Just some form of tranquilizer.
Yeah. Different type of tranquilizer for different people and different tranquilizers work better on different people.
And basically they just tranquilize people, don't they?
Drug them up and try and just keep them down and, you know, not doing too much.
But that's not really curing it, is it?
And the Bible says that it can be due to possession.
And there are people that are possessed and we have all we will continue to run into people that are possessed.
But there are people that aren't possessed and that do have, you know, actual physical issues as well.
Yeah. So here we see this guy possessed with the devil and Jesus Christ.
You know, he casts out the devil and the dumb spake and the multitude is marbled, saying it was never so seen in Israel.
So these people are just like, this is absolutely amazing.
But the Pharisees said he casteth out devils through the prince of the devils.
So what are these reprobates saying here?
Because this is a sign of reprobation.
We were talking about it. I was talking about this earlier.
Well, turn to Mark, chapter three, because there is a bit of confusion about this topic
and there's many different sort of, you know, interpretations.
And that doesn't need to be because Mark chapter three just makes it very clear what this is.
So it helps to explain it.
We're going to see it here from Mark chapter three and verse twenty two.
The Bible reads and the scribes.
So this is a different occasion here.
This is a scribe. We just saw the Pharisees do this.
This is now the scribes and the scribes.
These are kind of, you know, these are like the type of people that are like, we translate the Bible.
We know everything.
We're scholars and everything else.
Well, they came down from Jerusalem.
They said he hath Beelzebub and by the prince of the devils casteth he out devils.
So they've just said the same thing as the Pharisees, basically in Matthew, Matthew nine thirty five,
who said he casteth out devils through the prince of devils.
They've just said he hath Beelzebub and by the prince of devils casteth he out devils.
Now, prince being the principal, you know, the kind of the head, the boss of the devil, Satan himself.
Beelzebub being another name for him, because he then says that and he called them unto him and said unto them in parables,
how can Satan cast out Satan?
Obviously, Beelzebub being Satan here.
And if a kingdom be divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.
And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand.
And if Satan rise up against himself and be divided, he cannot stand but have an end.
No man can enter into a strong man's house and spoil his goods,
except he first will first bind a strong man and then he will spoil his house.
Verily, I say unto you, all sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men and blasphemies wherewith so ever they shall blaspheme.
So the blood of Christ washes away all sins, all blasphemies.
OK, it's not a sin.
Oh, I've done this sin. I don't know if it can be forgiven.
No, that's not the issue. And that's where people get confused.
Oh, well, if if you did, if you got into some filthy, vile homosexual act, well, that means no, no, no, it's not the sin.
That's that's a symptom of your deranged, reprobate mind.
Yeah, that means you cannot get saved.
It's not that you can't be forgiven.
OK, that's where people get confused, because basically all he said, all sin shall be forgiven unto the sons of men and blasphemies wherewith so ever they shall blaspheme.
But he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost have never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation because they said he has an unclean spirit.
OK, because they said he has an unclean spirit.
So what's blaspheming against the Holy Ghost?
It's saying that Jesus Christ is possessed.
It's saying that Jesus Christ is possessed with a devil.
It's saying that he has a devil.
So when if and when you've ever anyone ever heard anyone say that.
I remember you put your hand up before this.
Yeah, brother, Max are back.
So I've had someone say this to me and he's just said, I try to preach him the gospel.
He said to me, no, I he said I think he was possessed.
And and this guy, like, look, weird looked, you know, what you would you would look at this guy like that guy looks like a reprobate.
I said to him, do you really believe that?
He said, yes. See you later.
Like, what are you going to say to that?
The Bible says he had never forgiveness.
Now, a couple of things to point out here in danger of eternal damnation.
Now, we would look at that as, oh, well, that means that, oh, you know, if he doesn't change his ways.
No, no, no. He's just said have never forgiveness, but is in danger.
Basically, that means he is going to have eternal damnation.
It's not saying how we would look at it. You're in danger.
Be careful. No, it's saying you're in danger of eternal damnation.
That's what you're getting. OK, that's what you're going to have eternal damnation because they said he had an unclean spirit.
Now, ultimately, if you think about Romans one, it's changing the truth of God into a lie, isn't it?
OK, you have this knowledge.
You know, we know deep down Jesus Christ doesn't have a devil.
It's not like because people get confused.
Oh, well, got to be careful.
I don't blaspheme. No, no, you're never going to blaspheme the Holy Spirit because we know Jesus Christ doesn't have a devil.
No one here is going to go, yeah, I don't know.
Oh, I better not say that one time by mistake.
No, because it's Jesus Christ, because everyone knows that.
Everyone in the world knows Jesus Christ isn't possessed with the devil.
These people are changing the truth of God into a lie.
They're choosing.
They're choosing to basically reject God, reject the truth of God and Christ.
Therefore, they're given over to a reprobate mind.
OK, that's what it's about.
This is this is behaviour of a reprobate.
OK, this is behaviour of a reprobate.
Now, you could go, oh, well, is that what causes you to be a reprobate or are they saying it because of it?
Well, it kind of goes hand in hand, doesn't it?
Because by saying that, you're basically just change the truth of God into a lie.
You're rejecting it.
God and God rejects you and gives you over to a reprobate mind.
OK, that's what it's talking about here.
Now, if we go back, go back to Matthew nine.
And verse 34 said, but the Pharisee said he casteth out devils through the prince of the devil.
I mean, what a wicked, blasphemous bunch they are.
Right. And these are the people that basically spawned that wicked religion of Judaism.
OK. And by the way, this like blaspheming the Holy Spirit is something that is what is commonplace in that wicked,
blasphemous religion called Judaism.
OK. And this is what many of these this is what they say.
They try and say he was a magician.
He was possessed with a devil.
All these wicked blasphemous things.
I don't even want to say here because it's just so disgusting.
Yet, like many times, you know, you just end up having to point out how many Christians around the world seem to think that these are some special people.
Who who who worship this vile religion, who follow this vile religion, who have their own completely their own God in many various ways and blaspheme the Holy Spirit and anyone who who believes that and anyone who's spouting that off is a reprobate.
OK, look, some guy who's, you know, born into some Jewish family and gone down the synagogue a couple of times doesn't necessarily believe that.
But but that religion spawns a lot of reprobates, doesn't it?
And that's why we see what we see in the world today with these people.
And that's why it's so wicked.
It's so wicked that the nonsense being preached from pulpits in this country and around the world trying to tell us we need to bless them, we need to send money to them, we need to pray for them and all this nonsense.
And it's absolute junk.
It's absolute trite because these people hate the Lord Jesus Christ.
And these Pharisees are, you know, in a way, well, not even the start, because obviously, you know, that false religion has been going on for a long time, but these Pharisees are cut from the same cloth.
They're the same people, aren't they?
If anything, it's just gone further and further away from the Bible now, hasn't it, to where they've actually had it all printed out and they have their wicked, vile, disgusting, you know, Babylonian, Talmud, you know, making for doctrines the commandments of men.
And now they got it all written out before that.
I think it was just all verbal, verbal, wasn't it, stuff and what a wicked religion.
But anyway, so verse thirty five, let's continue.
Verse thirty five says,
And Jesus went about all cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel of the kingdom and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.
But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them because they fainted and were scattered abroad as sheep, having no shepherd.
Now, notice how our God has compassion on the people.
Yeah, God, God is a compassionate God, isn't he?
Yeah, he's a loving God, you know, but God commended.
He exalts, he lifts up his love toward us in that while we were yet sinners.
Christ died for us like that is a loving God, isn't it?
And you have to turn up at Lamentations chapter three just always makes you think of that when you think of the word compassion.
And verse twenty two says,
It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed because his compassion's fail not.
They are new every morning.
Great is thy faithfulness.
What an amazing God we have.
And here he's just looking at these people, the multitudes.
He's moved with compassion on them now because they fainted.
OK, so specifically here, it's because they fainted and were scattered abroad as sheep, having no shepherd.
Now, you know, that's saying that these people are, you know, basically weak, maybe falling asleep, whatever it is.
Maybe it's because they're following him.
They don't have food.
They're scattered abroad as sheep, having no shepherd.
The fainting and scattering as sheep is due to a lack of food, isn't it?
Yeah. So as sheep having no shepherd.
If you have sheep that are, you know, fainting and scattered abroad, it's because they're seeking food, isn't it?
Because they don't have food.
They're scattered abroad because they're trying to seek green pasture, right?
They're fainting because they obviously haven't had, you know, the necessary nutrition that they should be having and been grazing in the right places.
And for sheep to do that, sheep are pretty dumb animals, right?
OK, sheep need a shepherd, don't they?
They need someone guiding them.
They'll just be all over the place.
I mean, sometimes a guy's not enough.
He needs a dog rounding them up as well because they'll just be wandering off everywhere.
And sheep need a shepherd, don't they?
Now, it's due to a lack of food.
And you could talk about spiritual food here and, you know, I don't see why not at all here.
But we're going to look at something else here as well, because they need a shepherd to be led to the green pastures.
And there are two ways of looking at this.
Number one is that these are the unsaved multitudes, OK?
So the sheep is the Lord Jesus Christ, right?
The sheep is the Lord Jesus Christ.
These are the unsaved multitudes.
And then number two, you could say that these are the saved multitudes because we see both in the gospels.
We see saved and unsaved talking about the multitudes that are in need of leadership, a shepherd, be it Jesus Christ or under shepherds, pastors.
Yeah, what we call pastors, which are the under shepherds.
You can look at that both ways.
And it's funny for me because you could also say that with the next two verses, which are traditionally used as soul winning verses and rightfully so.
Verse 37 to 38 says,
Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few.
Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.
So we apply these verses as there aren't enough soul winners out there.
And that's true, isn't it?
OK, there definitely aren't enough soul winners out there because, OK, tonight was a rare night, even in places where we're just trying to stay local to our church in an area which shouldn't necessarily be that receptive.
We're pretty, usually pretty surprised when we don't get salvation's.
Could you imagine if we had 100 going out of here?
Could you imagine if we had 500 going out of here?
Could you imagine if we had 500 going out of here and 500 going out of every town in the UK, how many people would be getting saved?
Yeah, what, does anyone think, oh, they'd stop getting saved then?
Oh, no, it's only people in Essex, it's only people near Basildon right now that are receptive to the gospel.
Oh, no, all those other people would get saved online, would they, though?
Because half the people I preached the gospel to weren't going to be getting saved.
Some of them are so elderly, they don't even know how to go online.
Yeah, some of them are kids who aren't going online.
Look, and look, of course, there are those that really seek the truth, and I believe when they really seek it with an honest heart, they're going to find it.
But many people that get saved, it's like, oh, they're just so always just seeking.
Look, a lot of people aren't, are they?
Some people, they're like, oh, go on then.
Oh, yeah, whatever.
And then sort of 10 minutes later, you see kind of the eyes lighten up and you think, wow, OK, no, they're getting it now, the word of God is doing it.
And that's because we've gone out and preached the gospel.
Yeah, but like you said here, the harvest truly is, but it is plenteous.
Even in a nation like the UK, where you'd expect it not to be very receptive, the harvest truly is plenteous, isn't it?
I mean, every time we go out, pretty much, and this is probably not the best night to preach this because you just had a night where you didn't, but there weren't many people out tonight.
Yeah, but pretty much every time we go out in most areas, we get the salvation, aren't we?
And it's a bit surprising when we don't.
And even when we don't, we're still giving out videos with the gospel on it.
We're still getting some verses out.
We're still preaching some stuff.
Look, the harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few.
The labourers are few.
And isn't that sad?
Isn't that sad?
Because here's the thing.
If you just look to our stats and look, I appreciate I've said this many times and sadly, we had crowns at this church coming back from soul winning with eight salvations, ten salvations, you know, like where everyone else is kind of getting
one salvation, if at all, you know, and obviously we've had that.
And I understand the numbers are going to be a bit skewed because of these clowns.
Yeah, but there's also there's going to be those, like I've said before, that have gone away and maybe have got saved.
There are those that have watched our videos and there are many that do, by the way.
I mean, like I said to you before, up to like a couple of thousand views on our Bible way to heaven.
OK, people are and on Facebook, it's up to something like one hundred fifty thousand views.
OK, so there are people that have got saved as well, I believe, off that.
And look, those people, those numbers alone, imagine if every single person that we got saved out of this church went to a proper church and went out soul winning.
Could you imagine how many people get saved in this nation?
Imagine that if they if they alone just went, went here.
Look, there's still a load of built up areas around here where we could easily hit on a Wednesday evening, on a Sunday, on a Tuesday night and and on a Saturday.
And there are soul winning times right now.
Can you imagine if we were sending out that amount of people, if we were sending out everyone that we got saved?
It'd be amazing, wouldn't it? Imagine how many you think they'd just dry up.
Would the UK just dry up? No, there were people there that if they don't hear the gospel, they won't get saved because the harvest truly is plenteous.
But the labourers are few. Pray ye therefore, this is, look, we should all be praying.
The Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.
Now, we should be praying for soul winning labourers.
OK, that's something we should be praying for.
That's something I should be praying for on a Wednesday night, but something we should be praying for ourselves as well.
Yeah, we should be praying that the Lord, it's not, oh, Lord, just send us some people here so we could just buff up the numbers.
Yeah, and obviously we've had a bit of a, we've just kicked out, basically it's total to 22 people, OK?
And yeah, we've got some numbers.
But ultimately, people coming in to sit and listen to some preaching and pat themselves on the back isn't really what we're praying for, is it?
What are we praying for? We're praying for labourers.
We're praying for people who are going to go out and preach the gospel.
Now, admittedly, some people, it might take them a while to do that, OK?
And that's what preaching is about.
And we're trying to build them up and strengthen them to then get inspired to go out and preach the gospel.
Ultimately, that's what we're praying for.
We're praying for the Lord to just build this church, to build labourers to preach the gospel.
But notice how it's labourers, OK?
Pray ye, he said, pray therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest because it's work, because it's labour.
It's meant to be hard work.
You're not, it's not, oh, I just don't fancy it today.
No, you're not going to fancy it all the time because it's work.
That's the whole point.
That's why we need to have a bit of badness and just be like, no, I'm still going to go out anyway because I'm working for the Lord.
Because it's not, you're not going to every, every soul winning night that you've decided you can do, go, I just really want to go tonight.
I can't wait. No, we've got to go anyway.
And look, I appreciate there are times when you can't go.
There are mums with young kids and there are issues, there are problems, there are pregnant women we're going to have in our church, there are others, there are times when maybe it's not so easy.
But it's not meant to be easy, OK, is the other point.
So, you know, if we get to the point where it's, oh, well, I just really fancy something and that's when I go, you're not going to go much.
It's labour, yeah?
The labourers are few, it's hard work.
It's not, now sometimes it is fun, though, isn't it?
I love soul winning, OK?
Sometimes you don't always feel like going, then when you go, you come back like, that was fun.
I mean, there is nothing like it.
I'll tell you what, there's nothing like it for an education for children either, is there?
I mean, they meet people and hear people that they would never come across otherwise, could they?
Especially when you go to those squalid just holes where, you know, kind of the moths start flying out when they open the door and you're like stepping back because of the smell coming out.
They would never see those people, those people don't even go shopping.
I don't know how they eat, you see, you get those people, don't you?
Right, and that's an education for children, isn't it?
If there's anything to tell your kids, look, stay in church, stay with God, because that's how you could end up.
And look, there is nothing like it and you have experiences.
You know, I look back and think, what was I doing before I was, I don't know, what were we doing?
What was everyone here doing before there was soul winning?
Because there's nothing like it.
What a waste of time without it.
And it is amazing.
And it's a great thing to do, but it is work.
It is work, though, isn't it?
And some days you don't feel like going, some days that you're pounding the pavement and some days when it was, I don't know, every Wednesday, I don't know what it is here.
The sun's low down this road.
I've been doing this Bruce Grove for a long time.
I mean, that sun's beating on you today.
It's a bit cooler other days.
I mean, I've been sweating like it could feel like labour and I'm not trying to get a pat on the back.
Everyone here who's soul wins has had a hard time, other times it's freezing cold, isn't it?
Other times you just feel like your legs are dropping.
Other times you have children running wild, you know, or you're trying to, you know, you're trying to coach and train your children while you're...
Look, it's not always easy, but it's not meant to be.
It's not meant to be.
We're labourers, we're working for God and what a privilege to do that.
And we should be praying for more labourers, but we also have to be an example ourselves, don't we, with that.
But, OK, but if the sheep in verse 36 could be the saved, yeah, you could also suggest that the harvest
of the saved, the seed sown was a success, yeah?
Here's another way you could look at it.
Think how many saved there are around this world, around the UK alone.
And how many are under a shepherd?
How many are under an under shepherd?
How many are in church?
Look, I remember, I can't remember who it was, it might have been Deacon, wrestler, a long time ago.
I think I'd emailed them and just talked about our need for a church here and stuff.
And he said, you know, he actually quoted this verse to me.
And it made me think about it and think, because I was talking about the need for us having a pastor here in a church.
And he said, the harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few because ultimately
there's not many men out there who are willing to do this job, who are willing to pastor and willing to do this.
And look, this isn't about myself, because we need more and more people like this, don't we?
We need labourers who are willing to take on the job of running a church
because we want to plant churches.
It's not enough here, is it?
We're not going to just build like a palace in Essex and that's it.
Oh, well, we've done great, guys, you know, 40 years from now, man, we got up to however many.
I don't know what's what's what's I don't even know what's realistic.
How are the attendants, the attendants?
We've got a really cool building.
That's not what we're looking to do, is it?
We're looking to get people saved in the UK and we can't cover the whole UK from from Wickford Essex, can we?
And we need people around the UK and we need we need churches around Europe because where are the sole winning churches?
Where are they? But we need men.
We need men and their wives and their wives to be willing to step up to be a labourer.
And it's not easy.
And it's not, look, I'm not a pastor yet, but it's a tough job.
It's it's it's hard labour, really hard labour.
The preaching is the easy part.
OK, maybe not week in, week out and knowing, you know, and sometimes you can feel like, you know, you're really kind of under pressure with it.
But the rest of it and I'm not a pastor yet.
I mean, think our pastor, he's got four churches.
And he's doing this job in another church and then got then he's overseeing and having to deal with myself and and two other evangelists.
That's a tough job, right?
And let alone everything that goes with it, all the attacks, everything else.
And it's labour and we need men and their wives have to support that as well.
So there's no point having a man whose wife doesn't want to do that.
And we need them to be able to step up to be a labourer.
But why? For the right reasons.
OK, and that's the important thing, isn't it?
It's not because, oh, well, because they just really want to be in the limelight.
And I think, like, you know, a lot of pastors say the same is when like the heyday of sort of Pastor Anderson and maybe Pastor Jimenez and those early documentaries and before YouTube was just banning channels and stuff.
There were a lot of people that wanted to be a pastor and there were a lot of people that were like, get married, get two kids.
I'm here. I read the Bible 10 times, skin red, you know, but there's less and less now.
Because the more they saw the persecution, the more they saw the tribulation, the more they kind of and the novelty started to wear off with it as well.
And now probably without that sort of YouTube fame, kind of that's as obvious anymore because these pastors aren't even allowed on YouTube anymore for daring to preach the Bible.
It may be a lot of people have been put off.
But I think that's a good thing as well, in a way, in that at least you're going to have people that want it for the right reasons.
But you've got to have that right, that right reason.
What's the reason? It's because the Lord wants us to labour, because the Lord needs men.
He's asked us to pray.
He's told us to pray.
He will send forth labourers and we want to plant churches.
We want to make a difference. We want to serve the Lord.
We want to make a change to this country.
We want to do the things of God.
Yeah, that's it.
And if you have that motivation as men here or men watching and men in the future and whatever it is, then what do we do?
Well, we keep labouring, don't we?
Keep working.
Keep working for the Lord.
Because whichever way you look at it, whichever way you look at it, the labourers need to be sent out to labour.
So whether it's the soul winners, you know, whether this is just talking about soul winning, and it probably is, yeah.
And that's what it's traditionally always been referred to as then.
Well, who's going to send those people out?
Where are they coming from?
Look, I'll tell you what, some people had a honeymoon period when they first got saved or maybe soon after they listened, preaching and went, I'm going to go out to soul winning.
But anyone here for the long term did more soul winning before they came to church?
No way, no way.
I mean, you know, coming to a church like this, you're only going to do more soul winning, aren't you?
And you're going to do it consistently and you're going to go and weaken, weaken because you're being sent out from a church to go soul winning.
But we need more churches to send more people out.
And that means we need pastors and we need people willing and prepared and able to meet the qualifications to be a pastor to do that.
And how do people do that?
They just say, here I am, Lord, send me.
And you just you just got to get right with God, look at the qualifications, go, yeah, be patient, keep serving God, get out there labouring, do the things of God.
And God, God wants to use people, doesn't he?
God wants to send forth labourers into his harvest.
And that we need pastors to be able to do that as well.
So how does the Lord of the harvest send him?
Through his church.
So they're sent, aren't they?
And given a great commission by a church.
And look, even if you, you know, and if you look, if you're if you're someone here and you think, well, that's not me.
Yeah, maybe I can't qualify.
Maybe I'm not qualified.
Maybe I just know that I'm not going to be suited to that or whatever else.
What can you do?
Pray for that.
We need to all be praying for that because we don't want this to just be our, well, we've got Wickford, we're done.
No, we want to we want to make a difference, don't we?
Pray for that, but also support and help and get out soul winning and being an inspiration for others and show other people and get out and preach the gospel.
And with that, the more we're doing that as a church, the more we're going to just have people coming here building and we're going to have those men, you know, who are just going to grow quicker and be ready to do that.
OK, because ultimately what your surroundings are are going to make a change to you.
But and last point in that, if you just listen to all that and gone, no, for me, just talking about going out soul winning, well, then get out and soul win.
Yeah, get out and soul win.
The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few.
OK, we have to labour, we have to go out, we have to preach the harvest is plenteous.
How many? It's so receptive, isn't it?
Yes, it's not the Philippines.
Yes, it's not Uganda.
Yes, it's not places like that, but it is receptive.
There's a lot of people here ready to ready to hear the gospel.
You've got to get out there and preach it.
I'm going to finish up there.
And that was Matthew chapter nine on that list.
Father, I thank you for your for your word and that you know, this great chapter of the Bible and obviously we just focus on that last truth there at the end.
And you know how the harvest is is plenteous, but the labourers are few.
Help us to want to be those labourers, be it soul winning or be it those sending out those labourers to soul win.
Just help us to help us to to all just just, you know, want your will in our lives, in the life of those in our church.
Just want to serve you, want to get out and get people saved and know that you're able to use us.
And we might not be some of us maybe aren't the most articulate, maybe some of us aren't the most confident.
But Lord, we know that you use us for every one of us.
You know, we're half a pair, whether we want to speak or not.
And Lord, you need those people coming out.
You sent them out two by two.
That's a model that we follow.
That's a model we should follow.
And we should be going out two by two and preaching the gospel to every creature, Lord.
And I pray that you just help us as a church to never, never forsake that, to always just keep preaching that, keep encouraging people.
Help those that aren't doing that not to feel discouraged,
don't feel like they can't be part of this church, that we want to build people up.
We want to we want to be patient with people as well.
And we want to strengthen them and get them to a point where they're confident and able to go out and preach the gospel, to go out and just be willing to help someone by being a silent partner.
And Lord, we pray that you just help everyone in this church to want that, to want to be a part of your army, Lord, a part of your workforce.
And in Jesus name, we pray all of this.
Amen.