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All right, we're here in Matthew chapter 7 in the Sermon on the Mount, continuing verse by verse through the book of Matthew, and the name of the sermon is Ask, Seek, and Knock. Ask, Seek, and Knock. And we're here in Matthew chapter 7, verse 7, and in this passage it is not 100 percent only applied to salvation, but certainly that is a great application. That's the main application we're going to be making in these verses, and in verse 7 it says, Ask and it shall be given you, seek and ye shall find, knock and it shall be opened on you. So when it comes to salvation, what does asking have to do with salvation? We'll go in your Bible to Romans chapter 10, Romans chapter 10. Notice what the Bible says in verse number 13, Romans 10, verse 13, for whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. Another word you could use for pray, because you'll see sometimes in the Bible, I pray you, and you could say, I ask you, is another way to say that, and so praying is basically asking. The Bible speaks about calling upon the name of the Lord to be saved. Now, of course, this is the famous soul winning or salvation section here. You have verses 9 and 10, believe in your heart, confess with your mouth. And then in verse 13, calling upon the name of the Lord to be saved, which is basically just asking for the gift of eternal life, asking for the gift of salvation. Now, go to John chapter 4, John chapter 4, John chapter 4. And here in John 4, Jesus is giving the gospel and he talks to this woman and he's giving her the gospel and as he's going along with his gospel presentation, a lot of it's going over her head. She doesn't yet get it toward the beginning. And it says here in verse number 10, Jesus answered and said unto her, if thou knewest the gift of God, what is the gift of God? The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord, right? The gift of God is eternal life. He's speaking symbolically with the everlasting water. The gift of God is eternal life. And who it is that saith to thee, give me to drink. So who is it that's telling her, give me to drink? It's Jesus. So what is he saying? If you know what the gift is, eternal life, and who's giving the gift, Jesus, what's the result? He says, thou wouldest have asked of him, asked of Jesus, and he would have given thee living water. So according to Jesus here in John 4, verse 10, if you understand what the gift is and who's the one giving the gift, then you will ask for the living water, right? And I've said this before, like when you're looking at salvation, you've got to believe that Jesus is who he says he was and that he do what he said he would do. There's basically two steps there, believing on who he was and understanding who Jesus is. And then, you know, realizing what he did, he paid for all of your sins, right? But the Bible says that if you believe this, you understand this, then you will ask and he will give you. You say, well, what if, Pastor Stuckey, what if there's this option where a person 100% truly believes and they realize that Jesus is the only one, but they just will not call upon the Lord to save them? Impossible. Impossible. You say, why do you say that? John 4, verse 10. That situation is not going to happen. The Bible is saying if you know what the gift is and who's giving it, you'll ask for it. It's really that simple, right? Look, when you think about being saved, an example we can think of is somebody drowning in water, right? Let's say somebody's drowning in water and they know they're going to die. They're in the middle of the ocean, the ship just kind of gets, say, tossed overboard, and they see somebody right there that they know 100% can save them, and they're the only one there, but it's like, you know what, I refuse to ask for help. That's ridiculous when you really think about it. I mean, anybody, if they get thrown overboard, whether they see anybody or not, what are they doing? Help! Help! Save me! Right? I mean, it's just common sense. I mean, if somebody's inside of a burning house, they can't get out, what are they going to do? Help! Does anybody hear me? Help! Help! Save me! That's what everybody would do. I'm in a situation where someone, I'm going to die, I can't make it, somebody's there that can save me, but I just refuse to ask for help. It's not going to take place, and obviously that's an example that I'm giving, but we're talking about the example of being saved, so think about being saved. I mean, it makes sense, and here's the thing, according to Jesus, if someone understands the gift and who's giving it, you would as to ask of him, because the Bible is very clear in John 3.16 that every single person that believes is going to go to heaven. No doubt about that. There's nobody that truly believes that is going to end up in hell. But see, here's the thing, if someone does truly believe, they will also ask for it. Now, I've said this before, and I believe this, many people we talk to, before we end the presentation and audibly pray with them, inside their heart they probably already called upon the Lord to save them, because honestly, that's just kind of the reaction when you realize and understand who Jesus is and what he did, and I think oftentimes we're not even done, especially if you're talking to a group of like six people, there might be a couple of people along the way that have gotten saved during the presentation because they're like, man, that makes sense, and in whatever words they would say in their head, God save me, God help me, or whatever, and then they're getting saved right there in their heart, they've called upon the Lord, because that's just the reaction you're going to have if you believe. Now what I would say is, if someone does not want to audibly pray at the end, 99% of the time it's because there's something they don't yet believe or get. But it is possible for a very unique situation, someone would believe inside of their heart and they just don't want to make it known. I'll give you an example. Let's say you talk to a group of Muslims. If somebody actually believes what you're saying, there's a good chance they're just going to do it in their heart and not audibly because they don't want to let their Muslim friends know that they're changing their beliefs. That could certainly happen. But I would say that if you get to the end and someone doesn't want to pray, what I personally do is I'll be like, is there something that you don't get about this? Is there something you didn't understand, something you're not sure of? And then oftentimes they'll say, yeah, you know, I'm not sure about what you said about this. It's kind of like it all of a sudden reveals itself there was something that was stopping them from really believing. Because they really do believe in general they're just going to call, right? It's just what the Bible says. And obviously that can take place in the heart. Usually it's going to come out loud. Now, I will say this. When the Bible speaks about, you know, not being ashamed in Romans 10, that is not in reference to audibly calling. The Bible is saying that whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. Basically, you're not going to be let down. You will go to heaven is what that's referring to. But I would also say that is true in general if you really do believe you're not going to be ashamed or embarrassed or shy to call upon the Lord audibly. But if we talk to big groups, isn't it true sometimes you kind of wonder? There might have been a few people that got it but, you know, at the end they didn't say anything. Because if they're more of the quiet person and the person who's more outgoing is sort of the leader and they believe it, it's kind of like they're waiting for their friend to call and then I'll do it audibly but they're a bit shy to do it themselves. So obviously at the end of the day, man looketh on the outward appearance. We don't always know. The Lord looketh on the heart. If they truly believe, they will call, the Bible says. Verse 11. The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou is nothing to draw with in the wells deep, from whence then hast thou that living water? Art thou greater than her father Jacob which gave us the well and drank thereof himself and his children and his cattle? Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again, but whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst, but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw. Now what is taking place essentially in verse 15? She's asking for the gift but she doesn't understand it at all. And here's what I would say. When we are preaching the gospel, if somebody is willing to listen to you, they're probably willing to pray with you. That doesn't mean that they actually believe it though. I mean you could end a conversation after a minute and there's people that would pray or say the words, but if they don't believe it, they don't understand it, it means nothing. So we need to make sure when we're giving the gospel that we're being thorough, we're being clear. I mean it takes some time to give the gospel. Our soul winning tips here in Manila are not aligned perfectly with the ones in Pampanga, but the tip yesterday kind of applies to what I'm saying because like how long should your gospel presentation be? That's a common question a lot of people ask and really it's about how much information you can clearly explain, but what I would say is for me, I would not recommend people trying to go under 15 minutes. And you can agree or disagree, but I think if you're going under 15 minutes, it's a little bit on the shallow side and you're going to get a lot of false conversions along the way. Now I'm not saying people can't get saved in less than that amount of time. I'm just saying I think 15 minutes, I mean usually what I recommend, 15 to 20 minutes in a perfect situation where there's no hang ups, where they perfectly get it is probably about the right amount of time. Now obviously situations are different and if I'm talking to someone of a weird religion, it's going to be more than 20 minutes. It's going to take a lot of time, but I would say in general I wouldn't recommend trying to go under that because if you're actually trying to ask them questions and make sure they're getting it, it's not something that takes place in a couple minutes. I mean it takes time to find out what is inside their heart to make sure they're getting it. The churches on the mission field, obviously we're trying to get a lot of people saved, which all churches should be doing, but at the same time I don't want to report a false amount either. We want to make sure we're doing a thorough job, an accurate job, and I do believe that when we're going out soul winning and we have a lot of people going all day, I do believe you can get a lot of people saved in a day. I'm not saying you can't, but let's just make sure we're being thorough about it and there are real results, right? I go in your Bible to Romans 3, Romans 3, Romans chapter 3. Now, you know, here's also a good way to kind of tell whether or not you're doing a good job. It's like let's say we send out 50 soul winners today, and let's say over the course of two months we're sending out 50 soul winners every day, and every single time you get the most salvations at our church. And I'm not saying that's taking place. I'm just using the example. Maybe the other 49 are not doing a worse job than you. Maybe you're just not doing a good job yourself. Now, obviously there's some days you go out and you know what, it's a great day and you're getting a lot of success, but realistically over the course of a long period of time, the amount you get should probably be about the same amount as everyone because the person that I talk to that gets saved, you would also talk to and get saved also if you know how to give the gospel. Very rarely is there a distinction where it must be this one person to get them saved. No, usually if they listen to me, they're going to listen to you. This is kind of the way it works. And so that's kind of a good way to kind of judge yourself. If you're getting, you know, way on the high side or way on the low side, then maybe something's wrong with how you're giving the gospel. So we see with asking, we see about calling upon the Lord, asking for the gift of salvation. Asking for the gift of salvation is a manifestation of the belief that you have in your heart. And as I said, you're not going to run into a person that fully believes but then just refuses to call. That situation will not take place. What about seeking? What does seeking have to do with salvation? Romans 3 verse 10, As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one. There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. Now look, by ourselves, none of us seek after God on our own. But the Bible speaks about that if I be lifted up from the earth, I will draw all men onto me. Speaking of the death, this spake is signifying what death he should die. So Jesus said that if I die, if I get lifted up, I will draw all men. Now here's the thing. On our own, we're not going to come unto God. But God is actively drawing unsaved people. Now it is possible for someone to reach the point where God is no longer drawing them. But when God is drawing us, we've got the choice, are we going to gravitate toward that pole or not? Right? Just think about a magnet. But with a magnet, it's kind of like you can't resist it. If it's pulling you, it's going to suction that thing. We have the choice though when we feel that pole to either just go with it and seek after God or just say, you know what, I don't want to follow this. I want to reject it. Right? Go in your Bible to Romans 11. Romans chapter 11. Romans 11. Now you'll have Calvinists that will turn to verses like Romans 3, which says there's none that seeketh after God. And they'll say, no unsaved person ever seeks after God. I don't believe that for one second. Now they're not going to seek after God on their own unless God is drawing them. But look, before I was saved, I was seeking after the truth. I wanted to know the truth for a couple years before I got saved. I was thinking about it. I was worried about my eternal destiny. It was something I was considering. In fact, I'd say many people in this room would say the same thing. Before you were saved, you were seeking after the truth. And you know what takes place when you seek after the truth? You find it. Seek and ye shall find, the Bible says. Now the way that you find may be different than you think because here's the thing. If you seek after the truth, you're not going to get saved on your own. It's kind of like in the Song of Solomon where the woman's looking for her husband. And what does it say? She's going out to the broad way to find her husband. She's looking for him. Where is he? Where is she? She's seeking after her husband. What takes place? The watchman of the city finds her and says, here's your husband. And see, when we're going out soul winning, we are running into people that are seeking after the truth, but they're not finding it. And we're like, there's Jesus right there. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. It's that simple. And so nobody can get saved just on their own. They're seeking and they come to the truth. But you know what takes place when you're seeking after the truth? You stumble across the truth somehow. Maybe you stumble across our church. Maybe a soul winner knocks your door. However, it would be. But the Bible says, if you seek, you're going to find. Romans 11, verse 5. Even so, then at this present time also, there is a remnant according to the election of grace. And if by grace it is no more of works, otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then it is no more grace, otherwise work is no more work. What then? Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for, but the election hath obtained it and the rest were blinded. Here's the thing. When you're seeking after the truth, you better actually be seeking after the truth. See, there's a lot of spiritual people in this world that are seeking after something. Why is it a Hindu that would say they're searching and seeking after the truth comes to completely different results than us? Why is it that an atheist that says they're seeking after this wisdom comes to some completely different result than us? The reality is a lot of people aren't actually seeking after the truth. They want to be spiritual. They want to feel good. They want to do whatever. But honestly, when the truth comes, they reject it. And if they were really seeking after the truth, they'd find it. You say, well, how do you know that? Seek and ye shall find. I found the truth when I was 18 years old. I mean, if you're a member of our church, you found the truth, didn't you? I mean, many people in this room that were at churches where you had the wrong gospel, but you really wanted to know the truth. And guess what? Somewhere along the lines, you heard the truth. What's the difference between you and the other members of your old church that are not saved? You were actually seeking after the truth, and they were not. That's the difference. That's the difference. Turn your Bible to John chapter 10. John 10. John chapter 10. So the Bible says ask. The Bible says seek. The Bible says knock. And by the way, you see A-S-K, it's like ask, right? Ask, seek, knock, but then the acronym A-S-K, you know, A for ask, S for seek, K for knock, also spells ask, which is also kind of interesting. But then we see knocking. What does the Bible say about knocking? Well, the Bible says here in John 10, verse 1, Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that enterth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same as a thief and a robber, but he that enterth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. Now the Bible says that the one who's the shepherd of the sheep, they enter in by the door. So think about your own house. When I go into my own house, guess what? I don't climb through the window. I don't do that. I don't wait until 2 in the morning to make sure everybody's asleep. You know what I do? I take out my keys, I unlock the door, and then I walk inside the door. I use the door. You say, why? Because it's my house. Now I've never robbed a house, but I'd imagine if I were going to rob a house, I would try to go in some other way where you're not going to get caught. And that's the analogy Jesus is saying. He's saying that, hey, you know what? If you're the shepherd of the sheep, you've got nothing to hide. Isn't it interesting, though, with false religions, it's like they try to hide a lot of information? You see, I'm an open book. You can come to me and ask me, pastor, what do you believe about this? And I will tell you what I believe. I don't hold back because I don't have anything to hide. I'm not ashamed of what I believe. Now, it's not to state that I think I'm right on everything I believe, but I'm not ashamed of anything that I believe. I'm not going to hide anything I believe. And you can ask me, and you can agree or disagree, and that's fine. You know, it's regular. People ask me things about, what do you think about this topic? Maybe some other pastor preaches something different. I just say, this is what I believe. It doesn't mean I'm right on everything, but it's like I don't have anything to hide. But it's interesting with false religions, they often have something to hide. They don't just want to be open and honest. I'll give you a perfect example of this. Take that church right over there. We go soul-winning, and we talk to them all the time, and I will ask them, what do you think a person has to do to go to heaven? Guess what? They never respond, become a member of our church. I have never heard a member of INC be honest and say, you must be a member of our church to go to heaven. But isn't that what they believe? They never admit it. What are you ashamed about? Because I will just directly ask them, because they say, well, live a good life, repent of your sins, get baptized. Don't you believe I have to be a member of your church to go to heaven? Oh, yes, you do. Why are you hiding that? That's kind of an important piece of information if you think my eternal soul rests on that. So why wouldn't you just tell me I have to join your church to go to heaven? Because they've got something to hide. Just be open and honest about it. And maybe your experience is different, but out of the hundreds I've given the gospel to, not a single time when I've asked that question have they ever told me to be a member of their church? Why? Why are they hiding something? Because, look, if I believe that, I would tell you, you've got to be a member of our church. And that would be kind of foolish when our church is like 80 people. You must be a member of this church to go to heaven. And, of course, it goes against what the Bible says when it says believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. And he doesn't mention anything, Paul and Silas, about joining a church or getting baptized or repenting of your sins or anything like that. But my point is this, that if you have the truth, you have nothing to hide. You're not ashamed of it. Verse number seven, Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. By me, if any man enter in, he shall be saved and shall go in and out and find pasture. So Jesus uses the example, I am the door. In fact, there's three common examples in the book of John that Jesus uses to show how easy it is to be saved. One of them was found in John 4 where he said, I'm the living water. How hard is it to drink water? It's pretty easy, isn't it? Nothing easier than to drink water. I mean, my son Ezra, before he was one, drank water on his own. Jesus uses the example, I am that bread of life. How about eating bread, eating tinopah? Is that hard? Once again, my son Ezra figured it out well before he was one years old. I mean, I think it's probably like four months he's like stuffing bread in his mouth. Or here, I am the door. How hard is it to turn a doorknob? That's pretty easy. You know what isn't so easy? Getting rid of all your vices, going to church every week, never being angry, always patient, not bitter, that's pretty hard. Never being covetous, that's pretty hard. You know why? Because salvation's actually pretty easy and repenting of all your sins is actually pretty hard because nobody's ever done it. People ask me, have you repented of all your sins? It's like, no. It's like, what? I still sin. And if you say that you have no sin, you deceive yourselves and the truth is not in you, the Bible says. All of us are sinners and none of us have just given our entire life to God. It's like, well, what do you have to do to be saved? Well, give your life to God. I thought that God gave his life for us. And last I checked, I have not given 100% of my life to God. Turn in your Bible to Revelation 3. Revelation chapter 3. I mean, look, you could literally have a great day serving God and just do about everything right. But if you really like to look at all the details of your day, you'd actually find that, you know what? You spend a lot of time just being lazy and not actually serving God at all. Right? I mean, even on days when I read the Bible a lot or I memorize the Bible a lot, still, if I were to really break down that day, there's a lot of time that I have not given 100% to God. None of us have given our entire life to God. We don't have to. We just have to eat of that bread, drink of that water, open that door. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. It's that simple. Right? Revelation 3, verse 20. Behold, I stand at the door and knock, and if any man hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to him and will sup with him and he with me. So often Jesus gives this example of being a door, and it's really just as easy as just opening that door. That's how easy it is to be saved. By the way, it's also that easy to become a reprobate as well because isn't this what God said to Cain? Sin lieth at the door, and then he opens that door and he opens up a world of being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, covetous, maliciousness, all of those things. Right? And so it's really a choice you're making where it's like, you know what? I hear the gospel. I'm going to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. And then there's other people that reject God, reject God, reject God, and then they basically make a decision, I'm done, and God's like, OK, you're done. That's the way it is. Go back to Matthew 7. Matthew 7. Matthew 7. The Bible says in Matthew 7, verse 8, For everyone that asketh receiveth, and he that seeketh findeth, and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will ye give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will ye give him a serpent? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more so your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him? See, the Bible says if your son asks for a fish and you were to give him that fish, you gave him a good gift. Right? You're not going to give him a serpent. You're going to give him a fish. If he asks for bread and you give him bread, what did you give? You gave good gifts because it says in verse 11, good gifts and it says good things. Those are used interchangeably. And it says at the end of verse 11, to them that ask him. What's your point? My point is that asking for something does not negate it from being a gift. Do you see that in Matthew 7? Because if you ask for something and somebody gives it to you, the Bible still refers to it as a gift. So for example, if I were to ask, I got a million dollars from you and you gave it to me, I didn't work for it. It was a gift that you gave me even though that I asked for it. That does not negate it from being a gift according to Matthew 7. Right? And so when you link that to salvation and think about that, if someone is asking for the gift of eternal life or telling people, hey, you believe this, do you want to call upon the Lord to save you right now? That is not adding a work to salvation according to Matthew 7, according to Romans 10, according to John 4. It's not adding. Now of course, if you were to give the gospel and not try to end with calling upon the name of the Lord but you were very thorough during the gospel, you would still get a lot of people saved because if they truly believe in their heart, the result is going to be that they're going to call even if it's just inside of their heart. But when we go soul winning, a lot of people have not really made up their decision what they believe until we get to the end of the conversation. And so the best way to close it and to be thorough is to try to get them to call at the end of the conversation. Now of course, they can call and they don't really believe it and it means nothing, but it is the best way. It's the example we have. Go to Romans 10. I'll show you one more verse in this. Romans 10. Romans chapter 10. I'll tell you this. Before I was saved, I'm pretty sure every day for years leading up to when I got saved, I asked God to forgive me. But here's the thing. When I did that, I did not understand forgiveness meant past, present, and future, big and small sins. I thought it meant my past sins and hopefully the bigger sins also, not just telling little white lies. I just wasn't sure. I wasn't confident in that. I didn't know the Gospel. And I prayed to God every day. I mean, many times during the day asking God, Forgive me. Forgive me. I've done wrong. Forgive me. Give me another chance. Right? And so I'm sure that most people do that that are unsaved. They pray to God all the time and ask for forgiveness when they do wrong. But then when I understood the Gospel, all of a sudden there's a clear difference where I'm realizing calling upon the Lord is not about I got forgiven for what I did 20 minutes ago, but I'm getting salvation. 100%. Paid in full. Eternal life. Everlasting life. All sins forgiven. Past, present, future. Big and small no matter what they have been, no matter what they will be. The Bible says, Nothing can separate us from the love of God, neither life nor death, nor things present nor things to come. Nothing that can take place in the future is going to cause me to be separated from the love of God. Now here's the thing. If somebody ends up in hell for all eternity, does God love them at that point? No. He's torturing them forever. They're tormented day and night forever and ever. But when you get saved, nothing can separate you from the love of God. Nothing. Not a single thing in this world. You are saved forever and God loves you forever. Doesn't mean He's always happy with you, but He does love you forever. Romans 10, verse 8. But what saith it, The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth and in thy heart. So in thy mouth and in thy heart, notice this. That is the word of faith which we preach. So the Bible says this is the word of faith. What's it saying? It's saying the word of faith is including being in your mouth and in your heart. So when we preach the gospel, of course our main focus is believe, believe, believe, because what they've got to change to be saved is their belief. But we also end the conversation by telling them to call upon the name of the Lord. Turn your Bible to Matthew, chapter 7. Matthew 7. And we'll look at one more verse here. You know, a lot more verses, but one more verse in Matthew 7. And you know, this other verse could be kind of its own sermon. We're going to kind of attach it here. Matthew 7, verse 12. Therefore, all things whatsoever you would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them. Do ye even so to them, for this is the law and the prophets. So essentially, everything that the law and the prophets said, so everything from Genesis all the way through Malachi, right? But the entire Bible, Matthew through Revelation also, it's like, hey, you know what? Do unto others as you would have done unto you. Love other people. Care about other people. Your life is not about you. I've said this before in sermons, and this is the truth, that the central message in the Bible is that your life is not about you. And that flies in the face with everything you hear in this world, but that's the truth. Your life is not about you. Now, let me give you a good example. When you're a parent and your children are born, you know what you learn? My life is not about me. It's about your kids. Because I promise you as a father, there are times when your kids need something and you do not want to help. I just want to relax. I just want to have my time or whatever. But there's an obligation that goes there with being a mom or a dad, a responsibility that God has given you, and your life is not about you. And that's the central message throughout the Bible. And here's the thing. The Bible says Jesus, He came not to be ministered onto, but to minister and to give His life a ransom for many. He didn't come as a conquering king. He came as a servant when He came the first time. Go in your Bible to Matthew 22. Matthew 22. Matthew 22. The Bible says in Matthew 22, verse 36, Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Now, that's a tough question to answer. What is the biggest, most important commandment in the entire Bible? Right? Now, when it comes to the commandments in the Bible, how many commandments are there? Ten's a common guess, but actually the ten are a summation of I have no idea is my answer. Maybe you do have an idea. I haven't done a deep study on it. Hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of commandments. But we can basically just boil them down to ten commandments that just kind of give, you know, kind of a summation of all the commandments. And what's taking place in Matthew 22 is those ten commandments are boiled down to two commandments. Here's what it says here in verse number 37. Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. Now, He says the first and great commandment is loving God with all your heart. Then He says, And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbors thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. Now, why do all the law and the prophets hang on these two commandments? Well, think about the ten commandments. The first commandment, thou shalt have no other gods before me. That relates to our relationship with who? With God. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image. Our relationship with God. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain. Our relationship with God. Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. It's kind of a unique one because it's not something we follow today, but that's about your relationship with God, but it's not something we really follow now because that was done away. Judge no man in respect of an holy day or of new moon, Sabbath days, and all those things the Bible says. It symbolized Jesus, right? Then we get to the fifth commandment and we've got honor thy father and thy mother. Right? That deals with your relationship with man, with your literal mom and dad. Now, I suppose some people say, well, that also relates to your relationship with God. I mean, I guess, but there is no God the mother. So for me, I think he's referring to your relationship with your actual literal father and literal mother. So honor thy father and thy mother. Thou shalt not kill. That's about your relationship with man. Thou shalt not commit adultery. Thou shalt not steal. Thou shalt not bear false witness. Thou shalt not covet. Those deal with your relationship with your fellow man. Well, here's the thing. If you seek to be right with God and you seek to be right with your fellow man, you know what's going to take place? You're going to find that you're keeping the commandments. Why? Because when you break the commandments, you're harming your fellow man. I mean, if I steal from somebody, I harmed my fellow man. Right? I mean, if I break those commandments, I've harmed my fellow man. If I lie to someone, I've harmed my fellow man. And so by breaking the commandments, what you're doing is damaging your relationship with man. So really, truly, I mean, it comes down to loving God and loving man, and on these two, hang all the law and the prophets, the Bible says. Go in your Bible to 1 John 3. 1 John 3. 1 John 3. You know, actually, the book of 1 John is really the book that talks about it a lot. The Bible often says in 1 John, we don't have time to look at all the verses, and there's other places, too, but basically, it's like you say you love God, but you don't love your fellow man. It's like, no, you really don't love God. Because you cannot say you love God when the same God tells you to love your fellow man, love your neighbor as yourself, and you're not having a good relationship with your fellow man. You can't say that. I mean, if you're really loving God, you're also going to do what he says when he says, hey, you know what? Have a good relationship with your fellow man. Love your neighbor as yourself. Be forgiving. Be kind. Don't sin against your brother. Right? 1 John 3, verse 16. 1 John 3, 16. Hereby perceive we the love of God because he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. Now, 1 John 3, 16 is a great verse to remember to prove the deity of Jesus Christ. It's an easy verse to remember because John 3, 16 is probably familiar with you. And then 1 John 3, 16. But notice, Hereby perceive we the love of God because he laid down his life for us. God laid down his life for us is what the Bible is saying here in 1 John 3, 16 because obviously Jesus Christ is God. As we sing that thou, my God, shouldest die for me as we sing in and can it be. Right? And so God died for us. And it says because he laid down his life for us, we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. Now, is this saying that I should literally die for my brothers and sisters in Christ? Well, that's probably not going to take place. I seriously doubt I'm going to have to make a decision to die for you. And Jesus said in John 15, Greater love hath no man than this that a man laid down his life for his friends. And he's saying, I want you to do as I have done already. Well, here's the thing. Jesus at that point had not yet laid down his life and died on the cross, but you know what he had done? Every single day esteemed others better than himself. The Bible says, Look not every man on his own things, but every man also in the things of others, and so we should esteem others being better or more important than ourselves. What does that go back to? That goes back to the fact that your life is not about you because God commanded you to love others more than yourself. The Bible says every man loveth his own body. Right? But it's like, well, what about other people, though? Right? And it says we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren, but whoso hath this world's good, and seeth his brother of need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him? So imagine that your brother or sister in Christ is in desperate need in a situation and you have no compassion at all. Let's say, for example, we go out soul winning today and one of your fellow soul winners at church just doesn't drink water and so they pass out during soul winning because it's very hot. And you're just walking by and it's like, ah, I've got more important things to worry about. It's like, what is wrong with you? And I hope that's an extreme example. Right? Because that's about the most wicked thing that you could do. Just leave them there to just die or whatever. It's like, how can you say the love of God's in you? But the thing is when your brother or sister in Christ is in need and you just refuse to help, you just have no compassion whatsoever, it's like, what's wrong with you? When someone at our church is in desperate need of a health situation or a scary situation and you don't feel any compassion for them whatsoever, the love of God is not dwelling in you. Now, I didn't say you weren't saved. What I'm saying is the love of God is not dwelling in you. You don't have to love God to be saved. If you love me, keep my commandments. It doesn't say to be saved, keep my commandments. It doesn't say if you love me, that means that's what proves your salvation. No, but you cannot say that if you don't have any compassion towards your brother and sisters in Christ that have need, you can't say that you love God. Because the Bible says right here, how dwelleth the love of God in him? It doesn't mean that they're not saved, but you don't have the love of God dwelling in you. My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue, but in deed and in truth. Why does it say let us not love in word, neither in tongue? Everybody would say that they love their brothers and sisters in Christ. Is there anybody that would say right now, you know what, I hate my brothers and sisters in Christ. I don't care about them at all. Nobody's going to say that. Everyone's going to say, I love my brothers and sisters in Christ. Okay, that's great, but let us not love just in word, but in deed and in truth, the Bible says. Go in your Bible to 1 John chapter 4, and we'll close out 1 John 4. And let me say this, that throughout the Bible, you're going to find this, that love implies action. God so loved the world that he gave. Now, I'm not saying that feelings are not associated with love. Obviously, that is true, but no action's being associated. That's not really love like the Bible says, because throughout the Bible, when there's love, there's also actions associated to prove that love. It's not just an empty feeling. God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, right? And if you really love your brothers and sisters in Christ, and there's no evidence at all, well, then you don't really love them. If you have no compassion at all, how dwelleth the love of God in you, right? You might feel that you do, but you don't really, according to the Word of God. 1 John chapter 4, verse number 10. Here in his love, not that we love God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. So God loved us. What's the proof? He sent his Son. Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. Go down to verse number 19. Verse 19. We love him because he first loved us. If a man say, I love God and hated his brother, he is a liar. For he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? So the Bible says that, hey, you know what? If you say you love God, but you hate your brothers and your sisters in Christ, you don't really love God. It's interesting because most people, probably everybody would say they love God. Just about everybody except the most wicked reprobate would say that they love God. They would say they love God. But the Bible says if you really love God, then you're going to love your brothers and sisters in Christ. You know, one thing that's amazing to me is when you look at churches with pastors that are really standing up for the truth, you'll see a lot of people hate those people, don't they? A lot of people try to rip them apart and criticize everything about them in their sermons, and it's like, you say you love God, but you hate your brother whom you hath seen. How can you love God whom you hath not seen? Right? Obviously, you really don't, even if you claim that you do. Right? Verse number 21. And this commandment have we from him that he who loveth God love his brother also. So if this is in the Sermon on the Mount, God commands us, you know what? Love your neighbor as yourself. Care about other people. Don't just care about yourself. Esteem others better than yourself. Look, and just the thing to remember from this sermon that I want you to be reminded about is this. Look, your life is not about you. You know, a lot of times people have this attitude. It's like, well, I want to do this to be happy. This is what I want. These are my goals. This is my dream. Well, here's the thing. Who cares what your dream is? Who cares what you want? I can't believe you'd say that. Look, if you don't want to read the Bible today, who cares what you want? What does God want? Your life is not about you becoming happier, having every desire that you have in your life to be fulfilled. That's not what life is about. You know what your life is about? Pleasing God. And that God would be pleased with you. That's what it's about. So don't live your life... And look, I get it. The way the world lives their life, they live their lives just to fulfill all their desires. But here's the thing. If you're a Bible-believing Christian and you've got the Holy Spirit of God inside of you, you know what? You ought to live your life a little bit differently. You ought to live your life in a peculiar way. Your life is not about you being happy. And that might just sound the exact opposite of what you thought or what you're hearing on talk radio or whatever podcast. That's the truth. Your life is not about you being happy. Now, one thing I'm very thankful for is that when you serve God, you know what you find that you're not seeking after? Happiness. Isn't that true? The Bible says if you know these things... And look, you know what I'm saying is true right now. That's exactly what the Bible says. If you know these things, happy are ye if you agree with what I said. Is that what it says? No, no, no. If you know these things, happy are ye if you do them. And if you want to live a happy life, you know what you're going to do? You're going to wake up every day and say, You know what? My life is not about me. It's about God and it's about other people. And if you follow that principle in your life, you know what you're going to find? You're going to find something you are not seeking after for. You're going to find a fulfilled and happy and contented life even though you're making so many sacrifices that the world would say make you miserable. You're going to find yourself being happy. Let's close in a word of prayer. Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for allowing us to be here today and ask you to help us to apply this sermon to our lives, help all of us to consider these things and meditate and apply this, including myself and my family. Help us not to live our lives for ourself. Help us not to make ourselves the main character of the show, so to speak, but help us to live our lives for you and put aside our own personal desires to try to be pleasing in your sight, God. We pray these things in Jesus' name. Amen.