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Amen. All right. Well, we are in first Thessalonians chapter number five and let's start reading in verse eight Verse number eight of first Thessalonians five the Bible says but let us who are of the day be sober and I'm taking the title of my message this evening from this verse the title. My sermon is be sober now I'm gonna give you the world's Definition of the word sober and then we'll talk about some things in the Bible But the dictionary definition of the word sober it actually has seven different definitions from the dictionary that I found number one It says not intoxicated or drunk number two habitually temperate number three quiet or sedate in demeanor number four marked by seriousness gravity solemnity number five subdued in tone Number six free from excess and number seven showing self-control and I actually like all of these definitions and I'm gonna show you that the Bible actually teaches and Uses the word sober in all of these different contexts. And so this evening I want to give you six Characteristics from the Bible of what a sober person looks like number one this evening a sober person does not do drugs or Alcohol does not drink alcohol does not do drugs now look at first Thessalonians 5 7 it says for they that sleep Sleep in the night and they that be drunken or drunken in the night So if you notice the pronoun there says they so it's not talking about us It says they are drunk, but it says but let us who are of the day be sober Putting on the breastplate of faith and love and for an helmet the hope of Salvation so in this context in this chapter the Bible saying hey They are drunk those that are of the night they're drunk But let us be sober and just one of the meanings that the Word of God uses for the word sober Is that we do not drink alcohol and we do not do drugs. You know, that should be our mentality as Christians Now I have an article here from Northwestern Medicine. It's called how alcohol Impacts the brain and let me tell you why I want to read this article Because a lot of Christians get the idea of where they'll say well, you know, the Bible says don't get drunk But it's okay if we drink just a little bit right as long as we don't get drunk But notice the verses we just read it said what it said let us not be drunk But not only that it says that we should be Sober so not just don't be drunk, but be sober. Here's what this article says it says Alcohol affects your body quickly. It is absorbed through the lining of your stomach into your bloodstream Once there it spreads into tissues throughout your body Alcohol reaches your brain in only five minutes and starts to affect you within ten minutes So if you start drinking alcohol right now Ten minutes from now there's going to be a change in your body and your behavior in your attitude It says the whole body absorbs alcohol, but it really takes its toll on the brain Alcohol interferes with the brain's communication pathways. It can also affect how your brain processes information Dr. Amanda Donald, so here's some MD here says there is no Designated safe level of drinking So, you know when you look at the commercials, especially coming from the alcohol companies, what are they gonna show you? They're gonna show you people drinking alcohol and they have a great life They have a great time But when you talk to someone that is actually educated and honest about alcohol like this doctor here They will tell you there is no safe level of drinking alcohol Why because alcohol is a poison that's literally what it is Alcohol is just a poison. That's all it is And for some reason man people get really defensive when you tell them the truth about alcohol I'm and even people that don't claim to believe the Bible it is like you are You know killing their dog by telling them. Hey alcohol is a poison For some reason people get really fired up about defending alcohol But if you are just honest with yourself Bible or no Bible Alcohol is literally a poison. It's terrible for you And if there's no safe level of drinking alcohol according to real science and real information Now here it lists the several stages of alcohol intoxication First stage is this subliminal subliminal intoxication With a blood alcohol content between point zero one So this is like a tiny amount of alcohol and point zero five This is the first stage of intoxication. You may not look like you have been drinking but your reaction time behavior and Judgment may be slightly altered Depending on weight most people enter this stage after one drink So according to the doctors here if you drink one drink You're entering a stage of intoxication Where your reaction time your behavior and your judgment are going to be lowered and altered Just off drinking one drink now. How do you compare that? How do you make that fit with the Bible where not only does the Bible just teach that we shouldn't get drunk but it also says to be Sober and Let me just tell you something when your actions and your judgment and your behavior is being changed by another substance That's you not being sober, you know You know, you may not be at the blood alcohol content that defines you as drunk by the laws But you're still not sober because your attitude is being changed The second stage is this euphoria During the early stages of drinking your brain releases more dopamine This chemical is linked with pleasure during you for euphoria You may feel relaxed and confident but your reasoning and memory may be slightly impaired Often referred to as tipsy this stage occurs when your blood alcohol content is between point zero three and point One two now go to Isaiah chapter number 28 Isaiah chapter number 28 So what have we learned in these first two stages of intoxication your attitude is going to be changed your behavior your judgment your memory your reasoning All of these things could be changed at or below the legal limit of being Drunk according to the laws of the state yet. You can still be all of these things. Look at Isaiah 28 verse 7 it says this But they also have aired through wine and through strong drink are out of the way The priest and the prophet have aired through strong drink. They are swallowed up of wine They are out of the way through strong drink Notice they air in vision they stumble in Judgment doesn't that sound exactly like what this article is saying is going to happen to you when you drink alcohol You know your visions gonna be being messed with here and most importantly you're going to air in Judgment and this is the most dangerous thing about drinking alcohol is all of us right now in our sober minds We think a certain way we have a certain Logic and reasoning skills about us, but as soon as a person starts drinking alcohol that goes out the window So what happens if someone says hey, I'll just have one drink, you know, I got to work in the morning I'll just have one drink But then after having one drink their judgment has now been impaired and then they say hey What's another and then their judgments even more impaired and they say hey, what's a third and then they keep going down this road? And next thing, you know, what are they doing? They're driving home drunk They're getting into all sorts of different areas of sin that they did not intend to go down But because they took that first drink they started going down a road of intoxication and they stumbled in judgment Here is the fourth level of intoxication excitement At this stage or the third I should say at this stage with a blood alcohol content from point zero eight So that's the legal driving limit to point two five. You are now legally intoxicated So never mind. You already have been tipsy. You already have lost your judgment You already have changed your behavior and your reasoning skills and your memory has already happened Before getting legally drunk now, this is what's going to happen when you're legally drunk This level of intoxication affects the occipital lobe temporal lobe and frontal lobe in your brain Drinking too much can cause side effects specific to each lobes role including blurred vision slurred speech and hearing and lack of control respectively The parietal lobe which processes sensory information is also affected You may have a loss of fine motor skills and a slower reaction time. This stage is often marked by mood swings impaired judgment and even nausea or vomiting Now I read this and I just don't get why people want to do this I don't get why people want to go out and get drunk when this is what happens to their body You know, you lose your sensory information You can't speak you can't see you can't hear as well. You lose your judgment. You're vomiting you're nauseous I mean, why do people do this and why do people defend this, you know, at least when you tell a smoker? Hey smoking is unhealthy. They're like, yeah, I know Yeah, they're like, yeah, I know I'm addicted. I want to quit it is what it is I'm trying my best, but I know it's bad for you I've never had a smoker say like smoking is actually really good for you Having a cigarette with dinner will really help your life One cigarette or a day is wonderful, but yet alcoholics They're losing their vision. They're hearing their judgment. They're vomiting. They're getting cirrhosis of the liver They're getting a big fat nose. They're getting a beer gut. They're having all these negative things. They're like, this is so great This is great for my health one beer at dinner is wonderful It's like dude, you have a problem Why are you defending this when it's so obviously terrible and you know, it does seem like there is and I even saw an article saying this that there kind of is a movement coming back of Saying no to alcohol among some of the youth in America And if that's true praise God because it does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that this is terrible for you That there's nothing good and here's the thing because people ask me at work, why don't you drink This is one of the things I said, there's nothing good that has ever come from drinking alcohol There's nothing good that's ever happened You know every single person that I know in my personal life whose life has been destroyed There's always alcohol involved in some shape or fashion, you know every divorce I know of every person who's been to jail for something, you know alcohol was common denominator there I never see people drinking alcohol and then going out and winning someone to Christ, you know I never see someone drinking alcohol and then praying for their brothers and sisters in Christ You know what? You see people drinking alcohol and destroying everything in their life and the lives of those around them You see them drinking alcohol getting on the road and killing your family member that you'll never see again Because they were so selfish as to drink and drive. That's what you see them doing You see them harming themselves and other people look at Isaiah 28 verse 8 it says for all Tables, you're still there in Isaiah 28 Isaiah 28 verse 8 for all tables are full of vomit and filthiness So that there is no place clean Isn't that what this article is saying is gonna happen Nasha Vomiting and once again the Bible is true, you know You you drive past these homeless camps where people just sleep all day and they just drink alcohol day and do drugs all day You know what? It's full of vomit and filthiness Because let me just tell you and people get really upset about this The vast majority of homeless people in America are homeless by choice Because they choose to be a drug addicted alcoholic Alcoholic that's why and look there there's a lot of drug addicted alcoholics that go to work every single day, too But what I'm saying is the people that are homeless 90 plus percent of them are homeless because they are drug addicted and Drinking alcohol. That's just the truth because you know You could find a job in America if you want to work you can a lot of these people they just don't want to work They've decided to go down this road and look the exception proves the rule whatever But just the vast majority of them that is the case Because I drive past their stuff all the time and what do I see alcohol bottles? Heroin needles. I don't see King James Bibles in their camp for some reason. I see a bunch of alcohol and drugs is what I see Look at or I'll read for you. This is the fourth stage of intoxication confusion a blood alcohol content of point eighteen to point thirty Often looks like disorientation your cerebellum which helps with coordination is impacted as a result You may need help walking or standing Blackouts or the temporary loss of consciousness or short term short term memory are also likely to occur at this stage This is also a result of the hippocampus the region of the brain that's responsible for making new memories not working Well, you may also have a higher pain threshold Which may increase your risk for injury? So at this stage something happens that's often referred to as blacking out and to me This is just crazy that this is actually a real phenomenon. You know, I hope people in here have never experienced this I've never experienced this so it's hard for me to wrap my brain around the fact that this is actually true But people can drink so much alcohol that they can go live their life They can go you know get in a fight with someone go drive to a new city do all these weird activities and then wake up and have Zero memory of it ever happening That's a lot of alcohol you have to drink for that to happen to you But the Bible does kind of talk about this to go to Proverbs 23 Proverbs 23 Proverbs 23 Verse 29 it says Who hath woe who hath sorrow who hath? Contentions who hath babbling who hath wounds without cause who hath redness of eyes They that tarry long at the wine. They that go to seek mixed wine Look not thou upon the wine when it is red when it giveth his color in the cup when it moveth itself aright at the last it biteth like a serpent and Sting it like an adder your Bible saying that at the end of alcohol is gonna harm you it's gonna hurt you Nothing good is gonna come from it verse 33 thine eyes shall behold Strange women so this I think is the part of intoxication where you're starting to lose your judgment where Married people will start to you know lose judgment in the sight of like hey I'm married to someone and they'll start lusting after other women. That's what it says thine eyes shall behold strange women It's not saying you just saw a strange woman You know, you're starting to lust after her and have wicked thoughts toward her and you know people wake up Sometimes in a bed with someone that they don't know and not even remembering what happened as a result of alcohol Says thine heart shall utter Perverse things again, you're losing your judgment. You're losing, you know who you are as a person you're starting to just say Stupid perverse things. Have you ever been around a drunk person? You know, they say a lot of crude things They say a lot of you know, stupid things Says in verse 34. Yea thou shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of the sea Or as he that lieth upon the top of a mass you know you picture that you're Lying down on a boat up on the crow's nest And if you've ever been in a boat in the ocean before that boat is just constantly going back and forth back and forth and people That are drunk. They're feeling that way just standing on the ground when nothing happening. The world is just spinning around them You know, that doesn't sound like fun to me Verse 35 they have stricken me shout thou say and I was not sick They have beaten me and I felt it not So notice this person's drunk and they're waking up from their drunkenness seeing they have all these injuries But they're like, hold on a second. I wasn't sick. I don't remember getting beat up. How did this happen to me? What happened? They literally blacked out and so many people Every single day in this world gets seriously injured as a result of drinking alcohol You know the proverbial rednecks on the 4th of July You know the EMTs and firefighters are really busy on the 4th of July why because everyone's getting drunk and blowing off their hands and Blowing off their fingers why because they're waking up with wounds saying oh what happened? Here's what happened You're an idiot is what happened you drank alcohol because you're a moron. That's what happened. That's why you lost your hand That's why you crashed your car. That's why you crashed your boat And you know these type of injuries are the least of some of the things that happen related to alcohol Stage 5 is called stupor if you reach a blood alcohol content of 0.25 You may have concerning signs of alcohol poisoning at this time all mental physical and sensory functions are severely impaired The risk for passing out suffocation and injury is high stage 6 coma At a blood alcohol content of 0.35 you are risk at risk of going into a coma stage 7 death a blood alcohol content over 0.45 may cause death due to alcohol poisoning or Failure of the brain to control the body's vital functions. Tell me this isn't a poison when you just keep drinking it You know what's gonna happen to you? You will literally die and when I went to high school I had classmates that died as a result of drinking alcohol because they went out and they got drunk and they drove up to the foothills in Boise, Idaho and they drove their car off a cliff and all of them died and you know according to statistics 2,200 Americans die of alcohol poisoning. That's literally just drinking yourself to death hundred a hundred and seventy eight thousand Americans die of alcohol Related deaths every single year. So, you know when I was living when I moved to Boise, Idaho in like 2010 That's about the size of the entire city of Boise, Idaho Every year dies from alcohol related deaths That's being drunk and playing with a knife and cutting yourself and bleeding out. That's being drunk and Vomiting in your sleep and choking yourself on your own vomit and dying That's going out on a boat and drowning from an alcohol incident That's going in the car and getting in a head-on collision and dying You know that is a lot of the deaths every single year in America And so when it comes to being sober man One of the most important things that we could do as Christians is set the example of being sober When it comes to alcohol and drugs, you know say no to all of alcohol and drugs and let people make fun of you Let them make fun of you who cares, you know I'm not the one that's gonna be you know Falling all over myself and puking all over myself or getting in some sort of accident like that You know, you should be the one that is ashamed of yourself Don't feel like you have to explain to people or like you're embarrassed that you don't drink alcohol It's like why why do people have to feel embarrassed that they don't do this poison. It's really weird in our society It's like what if you just walked up to someone you'd be like, huh? You don't do meth. What's wrong with you? It's like that doesn't even make any sense But people like make fun of you for not drinking alcohol like what's wrong with you what you don't like to have fun It's like that's like asking me. Why don't you do meth? Because both are a poison both will ruin your life Good acts chapter 26 acts chapter 26 Number one a sober person does not drink or do drugs Number two a sober person is serious about life and about serving God You know, that's one of the definitions of sober is a person that is serious A person that takes life seriously and specifically takes serving God seriously Paul is preaching here in verse 23 he says that Christ should suffer and that he should be the first that should rise from the dead and should show light unto the people and to the Gentiles and As he thus spake for himself Festus said with a loud voice Paul thou art beside thyself much learning doth make thee mad and He said but he said I am not mad most noble Festus, but speak forth the words of truth and soberness You know, it's okay to joke around every once in a while and have fun I'm not against someone having fun or anything like that If you know me, I'm a person that likes to have fun, but some things in this life require seriousness and Festus thinks that Paul is crazy here because Paul is so, you know Earnest in what he's preaching and he's preaching with such power and sincerity That Festus is thinking like man much learning has made you mad. You're crazy, but he says look I'm not crazy He says I am not mad most noble Festus, but speak forth the words of truth and Soberness he's saying hey what I'm telling you right now is Serious and look there's nothing more serious in the world than the gospel of Jesus Christ There's nothing more serious in the world than the work of God than the house of God and us as Christians Our goal is to go out and fulfill the Great Commission and we need to take that work very seriously Every aspect of it, you know We talked a little bit this morning about going out soul winning when we go out soul winning We should take that job that we're doing seriously You shouldn't be messing around you shouldn't be having you know loud inappropriate conversations You know remember that there's ring cameras everywhere these days, you know one time I got a call on the church phone and from this lady just being like hey You just there was just these people knocking my door and they were just like arguing about Jews And I was like, okay. Yeah, I had a feeling who that was But it's just like look what we're doing is serious work And you need to remember that when you're out soul winning that we're out to speak the words of truth and soberness Not it's not time to play around. It's not time to talk about inappropriate things. It's time to get people saved And by the way, the rest of the Great Commission is very important as well It's important to get people in here and get them baptized and it's important that all things are done Decently and in order in this church why because this is a sober work that we're doing here This is a serious institution that was purchased by the blood of Jesus Christ and church is not a game It's not a social club. This is a place where we come to serve God This is a place where we come to fulfill the Great Commission that Jesus Christ gave us and many churches today They look like a complete clown show I didn't go to church that much when I was a kid But the few times that I went I remember walking into a building and seeing a tee a line of TVs and Xboxes and Basketball hoops and foosball tables and pool tables, but I don't remember anything about the Word of God I don't remember anything about serving God. It was just all fun and games And while I want to have fun Here right here in this institution is a place for the words of truth and soberness go to Hebrews chapter 12 Hebrews chapter number 12 Hebrews 12 look at verse 28 Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved. Let us have grace whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear The Bible teaches that we should serve God with reverence. What is reverence reverence is a Extremely high level of respect and not only an extremely high level of respect also fear You know, how much should we? Reverence the house of God how much should we have godly fear when we're in the house of God? You know, we could show our reverence for church in a lot of different ways One of those ways is just showing up on time and you know Especially if you're involved in any type of ministry if you are an usher if you're on the safety team if you're a musician You know if the service starts at 4 30 start that sucker at 4 30 not at 4 32 not at 4 33 Why because this is a serious work that we're doing. This is not a game and hey We're here to serve God with reverence and godly fear and you know, we could show reverence in a lot of different ways How about just the way that we dress You know, I believe that church is a place where we should show reverence and godly fear and look There's no verse in the Bible that says thou shalt wear a shirt and tie But I for myself have put the standard on myself that I will wear a suit and tie every time I'm in church Why because I want to show the work of God Reverence and if you're a part of this ministry if you want to serve in some way in the ministry I do want you to wear a shirt and tie because we want to show that this is a serious work that we're doing here And you know I'm not just saying this because I'm a preacher Because I've always had this mentality ever since I first started going to church that I will take the house of God seriously You know like we talked a little bit about this morning During service, it wouldn't be appropriate. It wouldn't be respectful to just spend the entire service Just scrolling on your phone doing nothing and you know I've mentioned it before I've been in churches all over this country where I've walked by and someone's on eBay and Another person's checking their stocks and another person's on Facebook and it's like hey, you're not taking life very seriously You're not being sober. You're not showing respect and reverence to the house of God The Bible says to serve God with reverence and godly fear go to 2nd Corinthians chapter 5 2nd Corinthians chapter number 5 You Know I've not been perfect throughout the years, but like when I worked for Pastor Shelley I remember in the Watauga building. I had a little office and I would work from there all day at the church So on a Wednesday, I'd be there from the morning till the church started and there was I had a lot of time Obviously in that amount of time and one thing I would do is like I would go around all The rows and I would make sure that all the hymnals are put correctly Facing the same direction looking nice Why because you know anyone really cares maybe maybe not but I just want to take the house of God seriously I want to do things decently and in order and show reverence to the house of God Look at 2nd Corinthians 5 9 it says wherefore we labor that whether present or absent we may be accepted of him verse 10 This is a really important verse right here for we must all Appear before the judgment seat of Christ That everyone may receive and the things done in his body according to that he hath done whether it be good or bad You know, one of the things that motivates me in life is that I know that this life is just a little vapor It's just here and gone But one day I will literally stand before the Lord Jesus Christ And I will give an account for my life and he will judge me according to my works and here's the thing he will judge You according to your works as well you as well if you're saved will stand before the Lord Jesus Christ and that day is a real day that is coming for all of us and This life doesn't matter where you live doesn't matter. What kind of car you drove doesn't matter You know how much money you had? Doesn't matter all you're gonna be thinking about during that time is you'd wish you had done more for Christ You'd wish that you had been a more sober person and actually took the work of God seriously You actually, you know lived your life to the point where you wake up in the morning and you read your Bible Why because you're serious about the work of God and because someday, you know, you'll stand before him. Look at verse number 12 Says for we commend not ourselves again unto you But give you an occasion to glory on our behalf that you may have somewhat to answer them which glory in appearance and not in heart for whether we be beside ourselves It is to God. So notice some people are saying like Paul you're crazy You're beside yourself and he's saying look if me and the Apostles are beside ourselves You know what that level of zeal that we have it's just directed towards God. It's not that they're actually crazy It's just that they're working like crazy. Why because they're sober. They're serious Look what it says or whether we be sober it is for your cause, you know, I just picture people Going up to Paul and be like don't you think you're taking this Christianity thing a little too seriously Paul it almost seems like you're a little too sober, but he says it's for your cause Why because Paul's a minister and just like Paul knows that he himself will stand before Jesus Christ someday He also knows that the people he's ministering to will also stand before Jesus Christ So he says yeah If I seem a little serious if I seem a little sober if it seems like I'm taking church a little seriously It's for you that I'm doing that why because I and you will both stand before Jesus Christ Go to 1st Timothy 3. Let's look at some other verses about being sober 1st Timothy 3 is a famous passage regarding the qualifications of a bishop and it says in verse 11 Even so must their wives be grave not slanderers sober faithful in all things Just notice not only should a pastor be sober be serious But even the pastor's wife should be taking the work of God very seriously Because you know a pastor is not a one-man show, you know He's got to rely on his wife a lot and she herself has to be a spiritual woman to be a pastor part of the qualifications of that is having a spiritual wife and part of her qualifications is that she's Sober and you know the young ladies of our culture today are not very serious about life It makes me think of the Bible verse where talks about silly women laden with sins I mean that is our culture right now for a lot of young women and you know We need to raise a generation of ladies that actually take the work of God Seriously that serving God is not just something for men soul winning is not just something for men But that serving God is something for men women and children Go to Titus flip over a couple pages to Titus chapter 2 Titus chapter number 2 verse 1 Says but speak thou the things which becomes sound doctrine that the aged men be sober And then it's gonna explain what that means grave. That means serious temperate sound and faith in charity and patience So notice the aged men men they're a little little older They should be setting the example in this area of someone that is living a serious life Someone that is dedicated to the Lord and you know, we need in every church needs young people children Teenagers, you know young adults middle-aged people and elderly people that is an important part of a church Why because One of the things that elderly people can do the age and man they could do is they could set an example for the next Generation and say hey, you see me as an older guy. You see how what I've done in my life Notice how I'm not spending my entire life on tick-tock Notice how I am NOT smoking pot notice how I am NOT spending every night playing video games Notice how I'm sober and then the young men could say like hey I want to grow up to be like that person and then they could follow their example look at Titus 2 4 that they may teach the young women to be Sober, so also young women should be sober. Let's go to Titus 2 6 Says young men likewise Exhort to be sober Minded so really God just wants everyone to be serious Have you noticed that the young women the older man the elder women the young men? God just wants us to be serious. Why because outside of serving God this life is completely meaningless So you might as well get get dedicated to serving God verse 7 in all things Showing thyself a pattern of good works in doctrine showing uncorruptness gravity Sincerity you say, you know, oh, I'm a young man. I'm a young person and I want to be taken seriously How can you do that by showing a pattern of good works showing that you know, you're not spotty in your tenants to church or you're in your attendance to Bible reading or in attendance to your Volunteer capacities at church that you're faithful that's going to show people that you're serious And we need some sober young men in our world today You know, I talked about this before The bar is so low right now for young men. Like just have a job and you'll find a girl pretty much Just just show up and obey the boss and your boss will just love you Like it's really not that hard right now If you could just get some sobriety in your life if you could just be serious and take your life seriously You know you will stand out Notice verse 8. Here's the big one for young men sound speech That cannot be condemned that he that is of the contrary part may be ashamed having no evil thing to say of you That's a common mistake that young men make is just blowing off their mouth and saying a lot of stupid things You want to be taken seriously? You need to have sound speech that cannot be condemned go to Romans chapter number 12 Number three this evening a sober person does not think too highly of themselves Sober person is not prideful. Look at Romans 12 3 For I say through the grace given unto me to every man that is among you not to think of himself More highly than he ought to think notice but to think soberly according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith One of the aspects of being sober in the Bible is that you don't view yourself higher than you should And this is just man's human nature is to think I'm great Why hasn't everyone else gotten on my level yet? This is just how men are This is just how human beings are and you know We need to take captive those thoughts and think of ourselves soberly go to Matthew chapter number 23, Matthew chapter number 23 You know the Bible says that every man will proclaim his own Goodness if you want to know if someone's great just ask them they'll tell you how great they are Right. I mean don't ask other people just go to them to be that are you a great person? Of course, I am. Do you have any problems? No, what are you talking about? But that's not really thinking soberly of yourself. Is it no a sober thought would be like hey, I'm not great Hey, in fact, I'm actually a sinner that deserves hell And the only thing that's good about me is the grace bestowed by Jesus Christ. Look at Matthew 23 verse 12 It says and whosoever Excuse me, and whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased So, you know you want to end up in a place in your life where you're low where people think very lowly of you You know, they despise you they make fun of you. They think your life is a joke well, all you have to do is exalt yourself and that's exactly what will happen and it's just so funny because people that exalt themselves Even if they are skilled in a certain area Even if they are talented or they're beautiful or they have some sort of great achievement I don't know about you, but when I hear someone exalting themselves, I immediately dislike them And isn't that funny how that works how that person they want to be liked because they're prideful, right? So they tell you man I'm so great man. These these people don't understand anything. I'm the one with the intelligence Look at how much money I have man. These people suck at every athletic event. Look at me though Look at how good I am when someone does that. It doesn't even matter if what they're saying is kind of true I just immediately like I just don't like you and it's just funny because they're actually getting the exact opposite of what they want Meanwhile, a lot of the people that are truly the best in this world are oftentimes pretty humble people And I'm thinking this is not even gonna be a reference. You're gonna understand. I'm a baseball guy Okay, I'm thinking of a catcher named Buster Posey. Does anyone know who this guy is? Of course Okay. Well, he had three World Series titles. He was one of the best baseball players and every interview with him He's very humble very meek He's always elevating his coaches and his team and he's passing the credit on to them Meanwhile, he's like one of the best catchers that's ever played the game of baseball and you look at him and you're like This guy's awesome. This guy actually is the real deal and when he talks about himself he's not boasting himself and so you actually like him on top of it and So he humbles himself and what happens he's exalted But people that are prideful and saying I'm the best you immediately just despise them. Let me give you another example You're not gonna understand who knows who Mike trout is. Dang. Okay. All right We got one guy Mike trout is another really famous baseball player and his career. He's been plagued with injuries He's had a lot of injuries and he was interviewed and this lady said hey What do you think would have happened if you didn't get injured? He's like man I just hate that I've had all these injuries because I know That if I wasn't injured I would have been like the best baseball player to ever live it's just like You hear that? He's just like oh, it's just cringy to hear right and it doesn't matter that he's a good baseball player When someone exalts themself you immediately view them much lower Doesn't matter if they're cool or not And so you want to be liked by other people you want to get along with other people? You want to fit in in the house of God? Don't be prideful Don't think of yourself more highly than you ought to think I'm sorry. I had you leave Romans 12 go back there really quick Romans chapter number 12. I Got to come up with some new references for you guys what Oklahoma's like no skin Matthew or Romans chapter 12 verse 4 For as we have many members in one body and all members have not the same office So he's saying, you know, we have a body We have all these different body parts and our body parts don't have all the same function, right? You know, my mouth doesn't have the same function as my toes Right. Look at verse number five. So we so likewise Being many are one body in Christ and everyone members one of another Just like the human body this church is a body and we all have different offices We all have different roles to play verse 6 having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us Whether prophecy let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith or ministry Let us wait on our ministering or he that teacheth on teaching or he that exhorteth on exhortation He that giveth let him do it with simplicity He that ruleth with diligence he that showeth mercy with cheerfulness So notice in the body of Christ we all have different roles to play some people are gonna be preachers Some people are gonna be really hospitable. Some people are going to be great givers They have more to give some people are very good at ministering Some people are gonna be ruling things but whatever your role is whatever body part you are You know you play an important role in this body and it would make no sense To brag about being the hand Because it's like, okay cool. You're the hand but we also need feet You know, we also need legs. We also need ears. You're like, well, I'm the eyes I mean, I'm I'm obviously the best it's like eyes are good. So is a mouth So is every body part So it just does not make sense to get prideful and think well because I am so-and-so Because I do something I'm better than other people that's like saying that your hand is better than your foot You know both are important and whatever God has given us to do in this life Just be content with it and stay humble in doing so. Otherwise God will abase you first Corinthians 8 flip over to 1st Corinthians 8 You Say well, here's the thing. I actually am really smart though. I actually am really great. You just don't understand brother Dylan I actually am the strongest person in this room. Oh, you don't understand. I actually am the most attractive person in here I actually have read the most I understand the most in here. Okay. We'll look at first Corinthians 8 2 and if any man Think that he knoweth anything he knoweth nothing yet as he ought to know So here's thing. Let's just say you're the most educated person in here Let's just say you know, you're the best in a certain area. You know what the attitude you should have is is okay I'm educated to this level, but you know what? I don't know as much as I ought to know yet I still have a lot of growing left to do because you know, God has blessed us all in different ways There's some people let's just face it that are going to be smarter than other people and that's okay There's some people that are gonna be taller than other people There are some people are gonna be able to dunk and jump higher. Okay, just look at the NBA You don't see a lot of guys that look like me. Am I mad about that? No, not I don't want to I have no desire To play basketball. I'm sorry for you basketball fans in here, you know, I don't have that desire But here's the thing, you know something you're good at something Well, you're not as good as you should be that's the attitude that you should have I don't know as much as I should know. I haven't done enough in my life I haven't done as much in my life as I should have done. Oh, you're a good parent. Okay Well, you're not as good of a parent as you should be yet. I'm a great wife You're not as good as a wife as you should be yet And none of us have arrived and we need to think of ourselves soberly not above that which we ought to Think go to Galatians 6 now Here's the thing about pride in the Bible the prideful person is often compared to the drunk person and I kind of connect these two people in my mind because there actually is a lot of similarities between someone who's drunk and someone who's prideful look at Galatians 6 verse 3 it says this For if a man if for if a man think himself to be something when he is nothing he Deceiveth himself. So notice this person he thinks I'm great But in reality He's not what happens he deceiveth himself And excuse me, it's not that the Bible compares these two It's that when I read these verse this verse I think of a drunk person because what does a drunk person do? Think about this if a man think himself to be something when he is nothing he deceiveth himself What is a drunk person like they think that they're faster bigger? Stronger a better fighter than they actually are and This is what a prideful person is like a prideful person is like a drunk person Which is why the Bible calls people that are not doing alcohol sober and people who are not prideful Sober because pride has the same intoxicating effect on your brain where you think Bigger of yourself than you actually are and this is how people get hurt. This is how people get a based in real life You know, they drink alcohol and they say oh, yeah, I could take that six-foot-eight guy No problem And then they just get their teeth knocked out because they thought they were something when they're nothing and let me tell you in life you think you're something when you're nothing the only person you're deceiving is yourself and God will make sure to abase you Go to 1st Peter chapter 5 1st Peter chapter number 5 Number 4 a sober person is on the lookout for danger This is another attribute of a sober person in the Bible. Yes, they're not drinking. Yes. They're taking life seriously They're not prideful, but they're also on the lookout for danger 1st Peter 5 8 It says be sober and it's going to define what that means be vigilant because your adversary the devil as a roaring lion Walketh about Seeking whom he may devour the Bible tells us to be sober to be Vigilant someone who is vigilant means that they're taking their job as a watchman very seriously, you know They're staying on the lookout, you know picture a guy that's on a watchtower He's got binoculars and he's scanning the ridge line seeing if enemies are coming You know, he's looking at the bushes see if he could see movement or a rifle sticking out from something You know, he's looking for danger. That's what someone who is vigilant is doing and you know us as Christians We live in a world where we need to be on the lookout for danger The Bible says this know also that in the last days perilous Times shall come and we are living in some perilous days right now We are living in a time where violence is on the rise There's a lot of literal physical carnal danger in this world You know, we live in a world not like that of our grandparents where they you know We're out riding their bikes all over the town and they just were out at all hours of the night No one knew where they are. Those days are long gone No one's out. Just letting their kids do whatever unless you're in like a section 8 housing area for some reason I wouldn't recommend doing that why because we're living in a dangerous time and we need to be vigilant. We need to be Sober and Us as men, you know We've been tasked by God to defend our families and it's very serious that us as men Take this task very seriously And you know in the United States of America, we've been afforded certain rights like the Second Amendment Now that you know enshrines our right to keep and to bear arms And I think that if you are a man in this room, you should take advantage of that I think that you should be very sober and say hey, I'm gonna take this seriously. I'm gonna get a gun I'm gonna get some training and not just that but that you're gonna carry that thing all the time as much as you possibly can Why because hey, we're living in a perilous time and us as men It's our job to be the protectors in this world and you don't want to just rely on the police That's a bad idea because their response time could be 12 minutes down the road. You know us as Christians They a lot of times Christians they get this mentality that men Christian men should be like soft and Just gentle and here's the time There's a there's there's a time and a place to be soft and gentle and loving and caring but you know Christian men should also be able to snap something inside of them and be able to kill a defend intruder into their home Right like us as men, you know We should be soft with our wife and our kids and hey, we'll preach you the gospel and we're harmless as a dove We're not gonna hurt anyone. We're not gonna assault anyone We're not gonna violate anyone But we should be ready and be able to step up that if violence comes to us If someone wants to hurt our family our church our wife that something can snap inside of us and we could be the most dangerous Deadly men in the society people look at being like having the capacity To harm someone or to hurt someone as a bad thing. That is a very good thing Every single man should be really good at harming other people But you would only want to use that when it's necessary to do so to defend other people, right? Because here's the thing when there's when there's someone shooting up a school. What are you gonna do? you're gonna call people that are really good at hurting other people and really good at killing other people and That's a good thing to have police But you know what you shouldn't rely on the police to take care of your wife and kids you should rely on yourself and Someone's breaking into your home and wants to hurt you and your family the police aren't gonna get there in time So you better be sober men and be ready to take care of the problem yourself I'm not saying that you know, you should become addicted to this and this is your main focus in life Some people they take this way too far and just like prepping and and all this stuff becomes their life You want to make sure that serving God is your life but you also don't want to neglect this area of your life and You know men if you are not in shape and you don't know how to fight and you don't know how to shoot There's a serious hole in your life. I'm just telling you right now There is a serious lacking of your life as a man that you need to fix Because the Bible says to be sober be vigilant because your adversary the devil is as a roaring lion walk at the bow Of course that's true spiritually, but that's also true physically now also, let's talk about that spiritually for a second go to Genesis chapter 3 Genesis chapter number 3 We should be vigilant as men to the dangers of this world be ready to fight But the most important thing is being vigilant spiritually and looking out for danger and harm and evil Spiritually and a good story to illustrate. This is in the garden. Look at Genesis 3 1 It says let's start reading in verse 2 it says and the woman said unto the serpent We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden God had said you shall not eat of it neither shall you touch it lest you die And the serpent said unto the woman you shall not surely die For God doth know that in the day you eat thereof then your eyes shall be open and you shall be as gods Knowing good and evil And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food and that it was pleasant to the eyes and a tree to be Desired to make one wise she took of the fruit thereof and did eat and gave also under her husband with her And he did eat You know Adam here failed Being sober in the sense that Adam failed to look out for spiritual evil in his family You know Adam should have been being vigilant and being like hmm, why is my wife talking to a serpent? Maybe this is a bad idea right and and we apply this Men women we need to be on the lookout for our families that wicked influences are not reaching our homes and this is Super super hard in this day and age that we're living in when every kids show it seems Has some sort of propaganda has some sort of satanic message that wants to be shown to your children You know We need to make sure that we're being vigilant that we're taking care of the books of the podcast the videos the movies the shows that are getting into our homes that we're paying attention and making sure we're being vigilant and Watching out for evil and for harm Because there's a lot of people Jews that work in these industries that they make this material Simply to attack Christianity, you know the pornography industry That stuff is created to destroy families to harm individuals to ruin marriages to ruin children You know, that's why that stuff is even created wicked people, you know devising mischief They can't sleep until they've figured out a way to harm someone. There's people like that There's people like that coming after your kids today. It's called the LGBT community You need to be vigilant that you know if your kids go to public school that they're gonna be around a bunch of queers and freaks and sodomites and This is constantly gonna be being pushed on them from every direction I went to public school in Idaho, which is one of the most conservative states in America I graduated in 2015 and in my high school in Idaho a very conservative area There was the LGBT Alliance Club and every single morning our school had announcements where they rolled in a TV and they had announcements for the day and every single day in my high school the LGBT Club had a little message had a little play had a little dance where they're dressing up in drag Dressing up as the opposite gender and pumping that message to us Let me just tell you if that's happening in Idaho it's happening in Oklahoma if it's happening in Oklahoma It's happening everywhere else in America And so just realize that there are people that are coming for your children today And by the way, they even sing songs admitting that there's videos of these pride parades Where they're running up and down the street saying we're coming for your children. I Mean if you would have played this video back to me ten years ago I wouldn't even believe what I just said like I always knew sodomites were bad But the fact that they're saying we're coming for your children the fact that the you know, San Francisco gay men's choir singing songs about how they're coming for your children and Yet we have parents today that are completely asleep We have parents and grandparents today that are not vigilant. They're not sober They're not looking out for the evils in this life And let me tell you what moms and dads need to be sober they need to be vigilant It's not enough for some preacher to get up and yell and scream about it You know your kids probably don't care, but they'll care more about what you say. So you need to be vigilant I'll skip some of this for sake of time. Let's go to Titus chapter 1 Actually before that first Timothy 3 it's right next door first Timothy 3 One more verse on this point here Says in first Timothy 3 to a bishop then must be blameless the husband of one wife notice vigilant sober of good behavior given to hospitality apt to teach One of the qualifications of a bishop is to be sober and right before sober you see that word Vigilant meaning that they're looking out for problems And what are the jobs of a preacher of any preacher and of a pastor is to be looking out into this world? You know spending your time in the Word of God knowing what the Bible says knowing what the right attitudes actions behaviors are and then looking out into the world and seeing Where bad attitudes pop up or bad philosophies pop up or bad doctrine pops up and in order to do that You're gonna have to be what vigilant Sober I saw this stupid comment today on a pastor sermon saying like oh here comes the the passive-aggressive Preaching because you know people sometimes perceive that a sermon is about them or about a situation that they know of And it's like let me just explain to you what the job of a preacher is and especially of a pastor it's to identify bad attitudes and behaviors and Doctrines that creep up and to squash those things So yeah The preaching sometimes will be about you and guess what when I was in the pew the preaching sometimes was about me Because that's literally the job of a preacher is to be on the lookout for bad ideas and to correct those bad ideas It's like oh, this is passive-aggressive because he's preaching about a situation that I'm aware of. It's like that's his job people have this Unbelievably stupid idea that pastors and preachers should never preach against individuals and I'm just thinking Have you ever read the Bible? the Bible is just full of Individuals names being called out. What sense would it make that a preacher can't get up and preach about individuals How stupid is that? I get like here's an example and I'm just gonna use a really silly example that I don't think will ever Okay, let's say two men in here, you know every single day before church They're out in the parking lot and they're getting in fistfights every day I mean, they're just really pissing each other off and they just you know, descend into chaos every single time before church They're just having fistfights, right? It just happens over and over and over and over again Like I said silly example because I don't think this will ever happen Would it be then? Inappropriate for me to get up and preach a sermon about I don't know loving your brothers in Christ Or like like having unity in church or like not being violent or not being a striker It's like yeah, but I know who you're talking about. Who cares and Here's the thing oftentimes these types of things are preached where it's like yeah You may know the situation that the preacher is talking about because you're privy to certain information But if a random person listening online listen to that sermon, they wouldn't necessarily know But yet people are so offended and so just weak-minded on this issue to think you know preachers can't ever preach against individuals You're insane You're supposed to be sober. You're supposed to be vigilant meaning you're looking out for danger You're looking out for bad ideas and you're correcting those issues Number five turn to Titus chapter number one My lungs are almost given out here Titus one Number five a sober person lives a separated life So I just want eight says but a lover of hospitality a lover of good men Sober and it's gonna define that just holy Temperate, you know a sober person takes their life Seriously, like we talked about before and part of that is that they take sin very seriously that they're striving their best to live a godly Separated life and of course, we know that no one's gonna be perfect But Jesus Christ said be ye holy for I am holy You know, Jesus Christ is perfect and the the standard that Jesus demands is perfection That's what he demands now, of course He has grace and knows that we won't reach that but God wants us to be holy just temperate, you know separate he wants us to live a Separated life and part of this is taking sin seriously, you know, the Bible says this I'll read Proverbs 14 9 says this fools make a mock at sin And so this would be an example of someone not being sober Someone that's making light of sin someone that's making fun of sin. You know, that's a really bad attitude That's someone that's not being sober. I remember when my wife and I were dating someone made a joke to us They're like, oh you guys gonna have a sleepover tonight and they're just like making light of fornication. They're joking about fornication There's nothing funny about fornication We've talked about that in the previous weeks how it destroys people's lives how it's a sin that God literally killed Thousands of people for that is it's a sin that actually gets you kicked out of church And that you know prevents you from having fellowship with God's people. That's not something to joke about Hey drinking alcohol, hey, man, you want to get some beer tonight? Just kidding. Shut up. That's not a funny joke You know let us in this church have fun joke around sure But you know where it crosses the line for sure is when you're joking about committing sin and sometimes even very wicked people They do this to test you Oftentimes sodomites will do this to test you they'll make a joke with you They'll say something super filthy to see how you react to know. Okay. This is a person that I could target This is a person that I can you know Target to do something wicked to and so we're not gonna play around with that whatsoever We shouldn't be joking around about sin go to Titus to Titus chapter 2 verse 11 it says this for the notice grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared unto all men. So what are we talking about God's grace? It says in verse 12 teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lust we should live soberly righteously and Godly in this present world You know, you have a lot of churches today that say well, we're in the New Testament We're under grace So we don't have to really take the commandments of God that seriously We don't really have to worry about living a separated life, but notice what your Bible said. It says that grace Teaches us that we should deny ungodliness. It doesn't say, you know, God's anger teaches us God's Disciplinary hand teaches us it says that the grace of God is what teaches us that we should live soberly Righteously and godly in this present world. So if anything because we're in the New Testament We should take living a separated life even more seriously be even more sober about living a separated life Let's go to 1st Peter 1 1st Peter chapter number 1 1st Peter 1 verse 13 says wherefore gird up the loins of your mind be Sober and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ as Obedient children not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation Because it is written Be ye holy for I am holy so, you know Bible says that being sober one of the Characteristics of sobriety is being holy and you know that is going to be the goal of this church The goal of this church is going to be preaching holiness preaching godly standards Preaching the Bible's commandments and it doesn't matter if that's gonna fill our church with a lot of people It doesn't matter if that's gonna make us, you know Popular with the mayor here or the police chief here or it doesn't matter if that type of preaching is gonna get us the big Beautiful facilities, you know what? I'm just interested in doing what God told us to do I'm interested in striving to be holy because he's holy I'm interested in knowing that the grace of God teaches us to deny ungodliness and to live soberly holy and Righteously in this present world go to first Peter for this will be the last point We're wrapping up here first Peter for the last characteristic of sobriety number six a sober person Has a consistent prayer life Look at first Peter 4 7 but the end of all things is at hand be ye therefore sober and watch unto prayer You know a sober person a person that takes life seriously a person that's not drunk a person that doesn't think too highly of themselves You know a person that cares about the things of God They're gonna know that they cannot do this life on their own that they're gonna know that they can't accomplish The things that they want to accomplish in this life on their own and they know that there's a lot of danger out there They know that they have to be vigilant And so what a sober person does is lives their life watching unto prayer and Look, that is just the attitude that we need to have is a sober attitude that says God I can't do my finances on my own God. I can't succeed in my job on my own I can't raise kids in 2024 America on my own, you know I can't, you know have the best marriage possible just on my own power. I Need you God. I need you to help me and you know what that's watching unto prayer. Look at Hebrews chapter number four Hebrews chapter number four You know every single person in this room needs help from God and I hope you're at a place in your life where you at least realize that my wife hears me say this all the time I need God to help me today I said that a lot today as I'm waking up this morning coughing my lungs out being like, how am I gonna preach today? It's like I really need God today But here's the thing We all need God all the time and I hope you're at the point in your life where you at least realize that But let me tell you every person will realize that someday because life is gonna hit you like a ton of bricks You know if you're living at home life is just easy and you may not even realize this right now But you'll know in a few years like you do need God God knows we need help and we have help look at Hebrews 4 14 Seeing then that we have a great high priest that is passed into the heavens Jesus the Son of God Let us hold fast our profession for we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feelings of our infirmities But was in all points tempted like as we are yet without sin Let us therefore come boldly Unto the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need You know, Jesus knows our sorrows our weaknesses and our temptations We don't have a high priest that has not been touched with the feelings of our infirmities. What does that mean? We have a high priest that has been touched with those things. We have Jesus Christ who yes He's hundred percent God, but he was also 100% man meanings that he knows what it feels like the human emotion of being rejected of being hated of Being made fun of of being belittled of being hungry He knows what it's like to be forsaken. He knows what it's like not to be appreciated. He knows Every single human emotion that is to be known. He knows it not just a head knowledge. He's experienced it himself And here's the thing I would love to help you and I hope that you guys all want to help each other and that you guys can help me but here's the thing if I'm going through something you can only really be touched with a feeling of my infirmity if you've been Exactly through the same thing that I've been through and I want to help you but here's the thing I can only really fully understand the feeling of your infirmity if I've been through exactly the same thing that you're going through But Jesus our great high priest has been touched with every single infirmity that you feel Every single one so he knows what you're feeling. He cares about what you're feeling He cares about what you're going through and when you come to him, he's ready to help He's ready to give grace in time of need. So come before him boldly, you know That's what a sober person does is they are watching unto prayer. That's what the Bible says Go to 1st Peter 5 this would be the last verse we go to 1st Peter chapter number 5 1st Peter 5 verse 8 Says be sober be vigilant because your adversary the devil as a roaring lion walketh about seeking whom he may devour whom resist steadfast in the faith Knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world But the God of all grace who have called us unto his eternal glory by Jesus Christ After that you have suffered a while make you perfect establish Strengthen settle you to him be glory and Dominion forever and ever Amen, you know the Bible says to be sober to be vigilant and in doing that that we should resist the devil Steadfastly and you know, we need to remember that our Christian life is a fight It's a battle and we need to be taking this seriously We need to be sober people as Christians. How are we gonna do that? Number one don't drink alcohol or do drugs That's step one. That's the easy one Okay, number two take the work of God seriously take church seriously take soul-winning seriously Number three, don't be prideful Don't think of yourself more highly than you ought to think number four be on the lookout for danger You know us as men be ready to defend Physically and spiritually in our homes and number five be watching unto prayer. Let's have a word of prayer Lord Thank you for this day. Thank you for your word, and I just pray that you would help all of us to live our lives Soberly and that All the characteristics of soberness in the Bible would be characteristics of our lives as individuals as well Pray that you bless this evening help us to get home safely. We love you in Jesus name we pray. Amen