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. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Yes, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. And when the battle's over We shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. And when the battle's over We shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. And when the battle's over We shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. on flowery beds of heat, while mothers fought to win the prize, and sailed through bloody seas. And when the battle's over, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. And when the battle's over, we shall wear a crown in the new Jerusalem. Wear a crown. Wear a crown. Wear a bright and shining crown. And when the battle's over, we shall wear a crown in the new Jerusalem. On the last tour, I was fighting. I would reign in Greece by courage, Lord. Alleluia, adore the pain supported by thy birth. And when the battle's over, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. Yes, we shall wear a crown. And when the battle's over, we shall wear a crown in the new Jerusalem. Wear a crown. Wear a crown. Wear a bright and shining crown. And when the battle's over, we shall wear a crown in the new Jerusalem. Amen, all right, great singing. Great to have you back here with us this afternoon. At this time, we'll go through our announcements. Once again, if you don't have a bulletin, slip your hand up real high. We'll make sure that we get one out to you. And if you open up to the first page, Sunday morning at 1030, Sunday afternoon at 4 p.m., and Wednesday night at 7, as our Bible says, we're going to be at Isaiah 58. Now, we are going to be changing our Sunday afternoon service time, so I'm going to announce it now, but it won't be updated in the bulletin until we actually change it. So we're going to be postponing from 4 p.m. until 5 p.m. the service start time on Sunday evening. So the purpose for doing that is literally just to have more time to go soul winning in between the church services. And I apologize if people really love the 4 o'clock time because it gets you home earlier, especially those of you who are driving. I've been trying to find the right spot and the right time to try to please everybody. Obviously, you can never please everybody all the time, so I'm sure that this change is going to make some people upset, but it's going to make a lot of other people happy. But just as long as you understand the point of this, it's not to try to make things more difficult on you. It's literally just so that, you know, I kind of feel like we don't get very much time in between the services because we eat lunch and everything else, and it's nice to be able to fellowship a little bit after church. So I really just feel like we need to have that extra hour. So that's the reasoning behind it, and that will go into effect on our anniversary Sunday at the end of the month. So I'm going to give people enough time to chew on that a little bit and be prepared for that. Now, the worst case scenario is you show up a little early, right? You show up to church a little early. Oh, I forgot, we started at 5 now, and then, you know, you hang out and get a refreshment or something while you're waiting for church to start. Or, you know, go out and try to get someone saved close by. Go try to find someone to give the gospel to. Wow, I got an extra hour. So, yes, I just want to give a heads up about that, that we will be changing that, and the whole point is to, and I'm going to go into a lot more detail on our anniversary service. I've got a vision I want to go over for our church as we evaluate the last four years up until where we're at now and where I see ourselves going. So, it's all going to be tied in. I'll go a lot more in depth on that Sunday, but I need to let you know about it before that Sunday so I'm not springing on you going, whoa, okay, so we're starting at 5 now, all right. Yeah, so that's the case. That's going to be happening here in a few weeks. And then, of course, our Bible study's not changing. That's Wednesday night at 7 o'clock. We're going to be on Isaiah 58 this week, so hopefully we can make it out for that. As well as the salvations and the baptism for the month of May as well as for the year. Let's go ahead and count up. First of all, before we count up today, is there anyone who had any salvations to report for earlier in the week that we did not already get numbers for? Anything earlier in the week? Okay, now, how about for today then? Any salvations from the soul-winning efforts today? One, Jesse? One. One, sir. Did I miss anybody? All right, very good. Keep up the hard work. As it gets hotter now, we're getting into the hot season. We're getting into summer. And I know it's going to be kind of grueling going out there and sweating and everything, but put in the work. Go for as long as you can. If you feel like you can't go physically or you're having problems, go for an hour. Come back here. We've got AC here. It's nice and cool. Get refreshed. Bring water with you. I'm going to be getting another large refrigerator since we've been having more people just to have stock completely full with water so that we'll have plenty of cold water for you. The Gatorades, by the way, for soul winners, that's wide open. You go out soul-winning, help yourself to all the refreshments that are going to keep you hydrated. The coconut waters, the Gatorades, the stuff that we have to help hydrate you. Please feel free to partake with those beverages. We really want to equip you with everything that you need to be successful. So appreciate all the time put out there in preaching the gospel. So offering totals on there at the bottom page for the month of May. Prayer requests. I mentioned this morning, Kristen Miller had her baby this morning, early this morning. And I read all the stats and stuff. We'll have the picture in the bulletin next week. So we're excited about that. We're really thankful that everything went well. Mom's fine. Baby's fine. Everyone's doing really well. And if you are going to participate in the meal train for them, obviously, if you want to get them gift cards or something, go ahead and just send it to them. If you want to prepare a meal and have it delivered to them on Wednesday night, Brother Micah offered to take that food to them personally since he lives up that way. Anyways, he doesn't live very far from them. So if you want to bring food in on Wednesday evening, then he could drop it off for them on that day. So we also have more women in our church that are pregnant. So please continue to pray for them. And also, we're going to be doing the meal trains for them as well when their time comes. We saw Mrs. Gonzalez already again this morning. We're glad that she's back here with us and has recovered from the shingles. I know that is not, I don't know personally, but I've heard from many people it's not pleasant experience having that. So we're glad that she's healed and back with us. And then pray for Shield of Faith Baptist Church, Pastor Joe Jones in Boise, Idaho. Pray for the church, pray for the ministry, pray for the pastor and his family and that God will bless them. And of course, today we have Pastor Robinson with us from Mountain Baptist Church. And as he already mentioned in the sermon, he's a good friend of mine. I've known him for a real long time. And I appreciate the kind words he had for us this morning and everything. And I'm glad you were able to make it out here. Hopefully you all have had a chance to speak with him a little bit and get to know him. And they're in our prayer list from time to time. So now you put a face with, if you haven't met him before, I haven't seen any of his sermons. I recommend listening to his sermons too. He's very knowledgeable. He's got good insight on the scripture. You said his bread and butter is doctrine. He's not lying about that. I've listened to some of his sermons and he does a really good job of explaining doctrine too. So I encourage you to, if you have extra time, listen to people online, you like listening to preaching, then look up Pastor Robinson's sermon. He has a really good job. We're very in line anyways doctrinally. So I'm sure you'd learn a lot by listening to him. So appreciate him being here with us again. He's gonna preach for us in just a little bit here this afternoon. We've got the June challenge where we're attempting to give the gospel to at least one person every single day of the month. Try not to forget this. Try to keep it forefront of your mind. Make it a point to just make the attempt. You don't have to give the gospel. You don't have to get someone saved. I mean, we're trying to, but approach someone. If they just shut you down, say, you know what, I'm not interested. You're on your duty for the challenge. I mean, if they just don't even want to hear it before you could even, well, I'm from a Baptist. You've made the attempt, all right? So I mean, it's really, the threshold's very low as far as what you have to do. The problem is you have to go out and do it, right? I mean, you have to go and try to do this. Now, again, I don't like settling for that usually. I want to try to find at least somebody who I could talk to, but for the challenge, you just make the attempt one time and you're good. So think about co-workers, think about, you know, other people in your life or whatever, and seize the opportunity. So great challenge this month. We've got the anniversary Sunday. We're going to kind of talk about this briefly. We've got the picnic on Saturday the 25th at that park, and that's going to be from 10 to 5. All kinds of fun stuff going on there. Everyone's welcome. I'll be asking for a show of hands a little bit later in the month just so we know how much food we're going to have. We'll have some lunch provided. We'll have a lot of refreshments and things like that. So it should be a lot of fun. And then Sunday, of course, we'll be celebrating as well here in church. Bible memory passage, we're on week two of three for verses seven through 12 of Hebrews chapter three. We're going through the entire book of Hebrews trying to memorize the entire book of Hebrews. We're going section at a time, portion at a time to get through this. If you are good at memorizing or you've been doing it for a while and you think our pace is too slow, keep going forward. Go through with us. Try to get the whole book. Get ahead of us. That's fine. But if you're able to quote these passages then without making any mistakes, you can quote it out loud and people will check your work. Then you'll earn a prize for being able to do that. This has popped in my mind too. We have bookmarks. We have like little Bible bookmarks where it has the books of the Bible on there and stuff. It's kind of fun. It was intended more for children but it's open to children and adults. If kids or adults alike, if you want to be able to quote back the order of the books of the Bible, Old Testament, New Testament, all of them, you got to go all 66 books. You quote them out in the right order then you'll get that free bookmark too. I keep forgetting about that. We've been sitting on that and then what was the deal with the DVDs? Was that for any Bible memory? That was what I did for that? As a bonus prize, because we were giving away these for free. We had a limited stock on some of these DVDs up here. All the DVDs out on the bookshelf, all those DVDs are completely free for distribution or whatever you want to do with them. They're free to give out. These ones specifically up here is from the Massa Conference of 2019 and then there's one left of these special edition after the tribulations up here. If you do any Bible memory passage, if you've done any Bible memory passage, you're welcome to take one of those for yourself. Again, that's something that I did that two or three years ago now at this point. It has 2019 sermons on there. I'll tell you what, don't think, oh, 2019. We're reading from thousands year old Bible. The truth doesn't change. It's just as relevant in 2019 as in 2022. Especially the Massa Conference stuff, that's Make America Straight Again. That's what Massa stands for. Just to give you an idea of what that DVD is about. Things have not gotten better since three years ago. They've only gotten worse. That's just as relevant today as it ever has been. If you do any Bible memory, you don't even have to ask me. Go ahead and help yourself to one of those up there. I forget about that. As long as we're on the subject, if you're interested in doing any type of music for church, let me know. We provide song books and things like that to help you develop your musical ability to play for church. We have resources. We're glad to help you out. Anything we can do to equip you to serve God better, we're going to help you do that. If that's financially by providing all these materials, then that's what we're going to do. That's why we have the free Bibles. That's why we have the DVDs. If you're interested in serving God in a particular area and you need help with that, let me know and we'll do what we can do for you. Alright. July 10th, Pastor Anderson's going to be preaching for us there in the upcoming events. It's a Sunday, so try to make it out for that. And then the birthdays and anniversaries are listed there for the month of June. And I'm going to stop rambling. That's it for the announcements. Brother Peter, will you please lead us in our next song. Alright, Sheriff, you can open up your handles to song number 360. Song 360. Song 360. Pray about everything. Song 360. Let's sing this song in the first. Once I was burdened with many a care, problems too hard for my weak soul to bear. Then in God's Word came a message so clear, pray about everything. Prayer is a wonderful treasure. Prayer is a wonderful thing. Blessing all Lord's without measure. So pray about everything. Ask of your Father, he love it to please. Unlock his treasure, he give us the keys. Claiming his promise, I drop to my knees. Pray about everything. Prayer is a wonderful treasure. Prayer is a wonderful thing. Blessing all Lord's without measure. So pray about everything. Telling and praying can only bring shame. Worry and fear will dishonor his name. Go to your Savior, his promise to claim. Pray about everything. Prayer is a wonderful treasure. Prayer is a wonderful thing. Blessing all Lord's without measure. So pray about everything. On the last, riches in Jesus abundant and free. Beaten our work for whatever it be. Ours for the asking, his solely his plea. Pray about everything. Prayer is a wonderful treasure. Prayer is a wonderful thing. Blessing all Lord's without measure. So pray about everything. Pray about everything. Pray about everything. Pray about everything. Pray about everything. Pray about everything. That is Proverbs chapter 24. As we do customary here at Stronghold Baptist Church, we're going to read the entire chapter and ask Pastor Virgins if he can please read for us. Alright, Proverbs chapter number 24. You can follow along silently while I read. Sorry verse number one, the Bible reads, The wisdom is too high for a fool. He openeth not his mouth in the gate. He that deviseth to do evil shall be called a mischievous person. The thought of foolishness is sin, and the scorn is an abomination to men. If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small. If thou forbear to deliver them that are drawn unto death, and those that are ready to be slain, if thou sayest, behold, we knew it not, doth not he that pondereth the heart consider it? And he that keepeth thy soul doth not he know it, and shall not he render to every man according to his works. My son, eat thou honey, because it is good, and a honeycomb which is sweet to thy taste. So shall the knowledge of wisdom be unto thy soul. When thou hast found it, then there shall be a reward, and thy expectation shall not be cut off. Lay not wait, O wicked man, against the dwelling of the righteous, spoil not his resting place, for a just man falleth seven times and riseth up again, but the wicked shall fall into mischief. Rejoice not when thine enemy falleth, and let not thine heart be glad when he stumblest. Lest the Lord see it, and it displease him, and he turn away his wrath from him. Fret not thyself because of evil men, neither be thou envious at the wicked, for there shall be no reward to the evil man, the candle of the wicked shall be put out. My son, fear thou the Lord and the king, and meddle not with them that are given to change, for their calamity shall rise suddenly, and who knoweth the ruin of them both? These things also belong to the wise. It is not good to have respect of persons and judgment. He that saith unto the wicked, Thou art righteous, him shall the people curse, nations shall abhor him. But to them that rebuke him shall be delight, and a good blessing shall come upon them. Every man shall kiss his lips that giveth a right answer. Prepare thy work without, and make it fit for thyself in the field, and afterwards build thine house. Be not a witness against thy neighbor without cause, and deceive not with thy lips. Say not, I will do so to him as he hath done to me. I will render to the man according to his work. I went by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding. And lo, it was all grown over with thorns and nettles, had covered the face thereof, and the stone wall thereof was broken down. Then I saw and considered it well. I looked upon it and received instruction. You had a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep. So shall thy poverty come as one that travelth, and thy want as an armed man. Let's pray. Dear Heavenly Father, Lord, we thank you so much for another opportunity to gather together here as a church, to hear your word preached. Lord, I pray that you would please just fill Pastor Robinson with your spirit and with just wisdom. Lord, help us all to have ears to hear and hearts to understand the things that you'd have us to learn today. I pray that you would please help us to stay focused and stay attentive and bring the distractions to a minimum, as many of us have been out in the sun all day and have become a little weary. Lord, I pray that you would please just help us to be attentive and, Lord, just help us all to grow this afternoon. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Amen. So you're there in Proverbs chapter 24. Actually, let me read this real quick. Proverbs chapter 24. And again, I just want to thank everybody for, you know, obviously being so gracious to me and obviously it's been it's been really great to meet everybody. And just again, it's an honor to come out and preach here at Stronghold. And and like I said, I just want to thank the Bursons family for all the hospitality. But just everybody as far as just the warm welcomes and all that. And hopefully hopefully I've been a blessing a little bit to you. And just I pray obviously that this sermon will be a blessing as well. And this sermon is I titled it Rise Up Again. And I didn't realize that the Falcons like is like rise up is their theme. So this was not in any way like trying to pander to like the Falcons or anything like that. But I guess it fits. You know, it's the area. But but Proverbs 24. Look down there at verse 15. Proverbs 24 and verse 15. It says, Lay not wait, O wicked man, against the dwelling of the righteous, spoil not his resting place, for a just man falls seven times and rises up again, but the wicked shall fall into mischief. So what I want to preach on is the fact of rising up after you fall. Now, what it's stating here is really he's warning the wicked man saying, don't even try it. Don't even try to take down the righteous because he's going to get back up. Right. And so what I want to preach about is not obviously this morning. Some was more so about not falling, staying stable so you don't fall. But know this, that if I do fall, I'm getting back up. Right. The idea is that it doesn't it doesn't matter, you know, the idea that if you fall, then you're just going to stay down. You need to get back up. And as Christians, we need to know that, hey, if I have air to breathe, if I'm still alive, then God wants me to get back up. He wants me to rise up again. And go to Psalm 12. I want I want you to look at this verse here and this one always. Every time I read this verse, it just kind of hits hits hard because. A lot of times you'll see things that are in the Bible and you're in and you almost read it and you're just like, Lord, let it not be so. Let it not be said about our church. Let it not be said about our generation. That this be the case. And I think about this verse right here in verse one. So Psalm 12 and verse one, it says, Help, Lord, for the godly man sees it for the faithful fail from among the children of men. So there is there's a story here where it's stating that he's he's basically warning the wicked man saying, don't even try to take out the righteous because he's going to get back up. But then there's a verse where where it's stating the godly man sees it. It's just like we can't find the godly man. We talk about the virtuous woman, but a faithful man who can find. Right. The Bible also says that about men, but it also says about women, you know, who can find a virtuous woman for her price is far above rubies. You know what? Every man will will basically and I'm going to misquote this, but it basically tell his own good or state his own well-being or something like that. But it says a faith man who can find. And the idea there is that, yeah, it's hard to find godly men. It's hard to find godly women. But we need to be the ones to stand in that gap. Right. We need to be the ones to say, you know what, I'm going to be that righteous man that God is talking about there. I'm going to be that righteous woman that God is talking about. So where, you know what, the wicked are going to try to come at you. But the warning is you try to do that. They're just going to get back up and you're going to be the one that's going to fall. Now, what I want to teach on is the idea of when you fall. I'm stating this when you fall. OK. Get back up. And there's going to be cases where you're going to be by yourself. You're going to be alone when you fall. Now, what you want to do and what I'm preaching on is that you want it to be the case where you're not alone. Because it's going to be a lot easier to get back up if you're not alone. But you still need to have integrity as a Christian to get up when no one else is there to help you. Go to 1 Kings Chapter 9. I think of David the king when I think about someone falling. Now, what I'm going to be getting into is obviously a sin. He sinned. But there can be times that you fall that don't necessarily have to do with sin, but more so just things happen to you. Things happen to you that are outside your control to where you can fall. And 1 Kings Chapter 9 and verse 4, it says here, and it's talking about Solomon. It's talking about basically God promising Solomon to establish his kingdom and all that. But he's calling back to his father David. And it says in verse 4 here, it says, And if thou wilt walk before me as David thy father walked, notice this, an integrity of heart and an uprightness to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments, then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel forever, as I promised to David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel. When you think about David, the thing that's stated about him is that he was perfect in heart towards God. He obviously sinned, but his integrity towards God and following God never faltered. Though he did fall into sin, go to Psalm 51, Psalm 51. I mean, David committed adultery with Bathsheba, and then he had Uriah killed to try to cover it up. I mean, major sin. I mean, you're talking about adultery and murder. And you say, well, David didn't really, he's not the one that actually killed Uriah. Well, it says that thou art the man and you killed Uriah with the sword of Ammon. So he was charged with murder, even though he's not the one that technically, you know, pierced him with the sword. Right. And so major sins, obviously. And God had mercy on him. But Psalm 51 is really hitting on this in the fact that he falls, but he gets back up. And in David's case, you can see how someone can fall in that major sin. And obviously he's called out for it and he pays for it. He doesn't pay for it with his life. God spares his life. But there's a lot of stuff that happens. The child dies. The kingdom's taken away from him from his own son. Then that son has to be killed. And just all these different things. And obviously with Absalom and his wives and concubines and everything that goes on there, he pays for it four-fold on what he did with Bathsheba and killing Uriah. But his life is spared. But notice this in Psalm 51 verse 1. It says, Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness, according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity and cleanse me from my sin, for I acknowledge my transgressions and my sin is ever before me. So notice that David is owning it. The difference between David and Saul is Saul says, I've kept the commandment of the Lord. Whereas David is stating, I've sinned and he owns it. So the first step to getting up from falling is owning the fact that you made a mistake. And there's a lot of people out there that will sin and even sins where you can say, I can understand it. On a fleshly level, you can understand how people can fall into sins. I mean, if sin wasn't pleasurable, no one would ever do it. But on a fleshly level, you can look at it and be like, I can understand how someone falls into that. And I can just sympathize with that or empathize with that. But the difference is, does that person justify it or do they own it? In order for you to get up after that, you need to just own it and say, I messed up. And just say, God's right. I'm wrong. And I'm going to move on from that. Obviously, the cliche thing is that the first step to getting over a problem is admitting that you have one. And there's a lot of truth to that. I mean, even in salvation, in order to get saved, you have to realize you're a sinner. Or what are you getting saved from? So when it comes to rising up again and falling, if you fall into sin, for example, you have to realize that. Notice in verse four it says, Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight, that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judges. Behold, I was shapen in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me. Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts, and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom. Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean. Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Make me to hear joy and gladness, that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice. Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence, and take not thy Holy Spirit from me. And obviously this is talking about the Old Testament. We didn't have the dwelling of the Holy Spirit in David's day. So we're not talking about losing our salvation here. We're just talking about the Spirit of God coming upon him and being filled with the Spirit. And it says in verse 12, restore unto me the joy of thy salvation, and uphold me with thy free spirit. So he's stating, I have a problem. I messed up. I want that relationship back with you that I had before. Right? I mean the sweet psalmist of Israel, the man after God's own heart. He wants to be where he was before with God. But notice that he's not just stopping there. He wants to go on back where he was and get up to the point where now he can teach others as well. Notice what it says here in verse 13. It says, then will I teach transgressors thy ways, and sinners shall be converted unto thee. Deliver me from blood guiltiness, O God, thou God of my salvation, and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness. Notice that progression there. It doesn't just like he falls into sin and then he's still trying to basically teach others about their sins. It's kind of like take the beam out of your own eye. That idea of not being a hypocrite when you're judging people and trying to teach others. And with this, we see that there's a progression here of how you get back up out of sin. Acknowledge it. Obviously, the Bible says that if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. In the New Testament, the great thing is we don't have to bring some animal sacrifice and go up to a priest. We go to Jesus Christ himself. We come boldly into the throne of grace that we may find grace to help in times of need. And we can come to the Savior directly. He's our high priest and get that sin taken care of. So David is a great example of someone getting up out of that. David rose up out of that and he went back into his kingdom, became king again. And obviously, he died in old age and he died living for the Lord. Saul's not that case. Saul died killing himself after he did a bunch of wicked things to other people and just falling, falling, falling, falling. So when it comes to sin, that's one thing to think about. Now, when you see this verse in Proverbs 24, it says, A just man falls seven times and rises up again. The question may ask, well, what if you fall eight times? Well, go to Matthew chapter 18. Go to Matthew chapter 18. Now, one, the number seven a lot of times is a number for perfection. And there's obviously kind of a correlation with number seven. But here's how I look at it. How many days are in a week? Seven. And it resets the next week. So you fall every single day during that week. You get up every single time and then you know what? Seven other days. You fall, you get back up every single time. But here's another way to look at it because it's interesting that you think about like a brother offending you or falling towards you. Think in Matthew chapter 18, verse 21. Then came Peter to him and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Till seven times? And it says, Jesus saith unto him, I say unto thee, or I'm sorry, I say, Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee until seven times, but until seventy times seven. Now, if you don't want to do math, that's 490 times. Okay? What if it's 491? Obviously, he's making a point here that it doesn't matter, okay, how many times. It doesn't matter how many times your brother sins against you. If he comes to you and wants to reconcile it, you get it right with him. And it doesn't matter how many times you fall. It could be 365 days a year that you're falling, you get back up. And we live in a time, like I said, where the godly man sees it. And where is the faithful? They fail. Here's how you fail as a Christian. Don't get back up. That's how you fail. You know, any time you go through persecution or tribulation, the only way that you fail is you give up. All you have to do is just keep going. All you have to do is just keep getting up. And the thing about falling, you know, you think, man, 490 times? You want me to fall and get back up? Yeah, but what you have to understand is that each time you fall or falter, it actually makes you stronger when you get up. Okay? These things that will beat you down, if you overcome them, will actually make you stronger. I mean, that old phrase, if it doesn't kill you, it makes you stronger. Except for bears, they kill you. So we'll go to Romans chapter 5. Romans chapter 5. So I want to give you a little bit of hope here. One, we all fall. We all falter. Okay? Not all of us fall to David's, like, type of sin. I'm not saying to, you know, like, we all get into adultery. You know, we all kill people. I'm not saying that. Okay? But we all falter. We all fall into sin to a certain extent. I mean, if we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. So don't come up to me and tell me you're sinlessly perfected because I've got some verses for you. So we all fall into sin to a certain extent. And we need to, one, realize, wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall. Right? The person that ends up falling the most is the person that doesn't think he can fall. Think about adultery, for example. Think about David's situation with Bathsheba. If you think that you can't commit adultery, you're opening yourself up to commit adultery. You know what David should have been doing? One, having a good relationship with his wife, wives. You know, at least pick one that you're going to have a good relationship with. But if he had a good relationship with his wife, he wouldn't have been up on that roof in the middle of the night. If he would have been doing something like going out to war like he was supposed to do, he wouldn't have been up on that roof. And if he would have put standards on himself to say, I'm not going to look upon a maid and not look at a woman when she's bathing, then that wouldn't have happened. Okay? But even a man after God's own heart, the sweet psalmist of Israel, David, who killed Goliath, killed a lion and a bear with his own hands, fell. But I think, one, you need to do what you're supposed to be doing, but second, know that you're able to fall. Know that you're able to fall and that you can fall into these same sins that anybody, you know, there's no temptation taking you but such is as common to man. And just know that. But, Romans chapter 5, I love this passage when you're dealing with tribulation, and I think about falling in persecution, falling in tribulation, or even falling into sin, is the idea that if you get back up, it gives you experience. It gives you hope. Notice what it says in verse 3, Romans chapter 5 and verse 3, it says, And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also, knowing that tribulation worketh patience, and patience experience, and experience hope, and hope maketh not ashamed, because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. Let me give you an example of, like, tribulation. Obviously, we're in the month of June. In many churches, I know pastor versions, and I know steadfast, and faithful word, and even our church, to a certain extent, dealt with, you know, the sodomites, for example. You know, that they will come after you, they'll come after your job, they'll come after, you know, your church, they'll try to get things shut down, whatever the case may be, and when you endure certain things like that, it gives you experience, one, right? You're kind of like, oh, I experienced that, I experienced, I had to go through that. When it ends, because it does, okay? Know this, that that persecution is only for a short period of time, okay? And even with Pastor Jimenez, I remember talking to him when, you know, I had the sodomites coming after my job, and coming after me, and I talked to him about it, and he's like, yeah, you know, because he had a huge, a huge protest that went on for months, and he said, I thought it was, you know, it got to the point where I'm like, I'm going to deal with this the rest of my ministry, these people coming out, protesting, but guess what, eventually it ended. It dwindled down, dwindled down, and eventually it was over. You know what that gives Pastor Jimenez, you know what that gives Pastor Burzins, or any pastor that has had to deal with that, or had any protest, or even had just stuff that was happening to them personally, that gives them hope, because the next time it happens, when it happens, they're going to say, oh, I remember when that happened before, that's going to pass, right? Because the first time you go through it, you're like, what's going to happen? And you're like, am I going to lose my job? How long is this going to be? Is the whole community going to be against me? There's so many things that go through your mind. You go through the store, and you feel like everybody's against you, when they're not. But you're just like, are people staring at you? They're like, that's the guy. That's the guy. That's against the homos. That's the guy. And you're just thinking all this stuff, and it can bear down on you, and it can make people want to quit. It can make people want to just stay down. And you know what, experience, one, tribulation work is patience. It gives you patience, but it gives you experience. I'm not saying to just let yourself fall all the time so you can get experience. That's not what I'm telling you to do. You're like, well, Pastor Robinson told me that the more I fall, the more experience and hope I get. That's not what I'm saying, but what I'm saying is that the next time, if you fall again, you're like, I remember falling before, and you know what, this isn't the end. Because a lot of people, when they get down there, they think, this is it, I'm done. No, get back up, because you're not done. You're only done when you stop breathing as a Christian. So we need to rise up again. That's the principle that we need to think about here. Go to Matthew chapter 13. There's many things that we can deal with when it comes to falling, and not all of it is sin. Some of it can be sin, but sometimes we just have faults. We have things that can cause us to not do what we should be doing. And I think about the parable of the sower when it comes to this, and dealing with the fact that there's different things that could take someone out. And when you think about the parable of the sower, I'm pretty sure Pastor Burson and I are on the same page here, but the seed that fell by the wayside, that person didn't get saved, but the rest are saved. So I got an amen, so we're good on that. But the last three are saved, but the last one is the one you want to be. In good ground, you're fruitful and all that, bearing 30-fold, 60-fold, 100-fold. The other two are saved people, but there's two different types of things that are taking them out, that are bringing them down. And notice what it says in Matthew chapter 13, verse 20. It says, But he that received the seed into stony places, the same as he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it. Yet hath he no root in himself, but dirth for a while, for when tribulation and persecution ariseth, because of the word, by and by he is offended. So here's a case. The stony ground is someone that is not rooted and grounded or established in the faith. So you kind of think about that sermon about stability. They're not a stable Christian, so when persecution comes around, they're just like, it's time for me to get out of this. And then there's other people that, that's where they take root. And they're just like, you know what, I'm digging in. So it's either you wither away, or you take root in those times. And once you take root, then you're not going to wither away like these on stony ground. But that is one thing that I see happen to a lot of Christians, especially young Christians. Those that maybe sprout up real quick, and they're excited, and they may even be going out soul winning, and they're getting on fire for the Lord, but they're not stable. They don't have all these doctrines down. They don't have the stability of being like someone that's been in church for a while, they're seasoned. They don't have the experience that a lot of Christians have from just being in it in years, whereas if something happens, you know, the one person may, this is the end of the world, the other person's like, this happens all the time. Like, this is another day in the office, right? Like, what else is new? It's June, you know? You know, that's the difference between someone that's rooted and grounded and stable, and someone that's just, you know, basically they're a Christian, they're saved, and they're maybe trying to do something, but as soon as something comes along that's going to knock them off, they fall. The other side I see here is the next verse here, the thorns. Notice what it says in verse 22. It says, he also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word and the care of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word and he becometh unfruitful. Now, here's someone that may be rooted and established in the faith, but the things of this world have taken a hold of them. Now, this is one that I've seen happen to great soul winners. I had friends that used to be great soul winners that I thought, that person's starting a church. That person's going to be in it for the long haul. Now they're not doing anything. And the cares of this life took a hold of them and brought them down. Choked them and brought them down. But here's the thing though, with those that are in Stony Ground and with those that are choked by the thorns and the things of this life, they can all get back up. It's not like there's no hope for them. I think about them and I'm like, man, they used to do this. They used to be involved. They used to be zealous about the things of God. What happened to them? It's easy to lose hope for that, but that person can still get back up. And as Christians, you need to know that one, you can follow the tribulation. You can be offended. So what do you do? You make up in your mind and say, I'm not going to be offended. Know that you love the word of God and great peace have they which love thy law and nothing shall offend them. You need to have that mind to say, you know what, the Bible doesn't offend me. They offend me. And you need to get that root, that stability in the word of God that, you know what, that's not going to take me down. But also the cares of this life, the deceitfulness of riches. Listen, it is easy to look at people on Sunday and what they do on Sunday. They're getting their boats out. Listen, in my neighborhood, it's like everybody has a boat. And on Sunday, they're just all taking their boats out to the lake. And I'm like in a suit going to church, you know, and it's like a million degrees outside. I'm like, why am I wearing this jacket? It's like 95 degrees with 100% humidity. They're out there in their shorts and the tank top, getting on their boat, getting ready to go do whatever. And it's easy to look at that and say, man, that would be nice. Just to relax, Sunday fun day, you know. Sunday, you know, the people that are like, you know, Sunday's a Sabbath. You need to keep Sabbath. It's like, I don't know about you, but I work probably more on Sunday than any other day of the week. You know, from preaching to soul winning, that is a work day. I go over to work on Monday to take a break. Drink my coffee in the morning and, you know, get on with my day. But that being said is that we need to know we can all have faults, not all of its sins. Some of it could just be just, you know, getting out of things. And obviously I believe it's a sin to, you know, to him to know what to do good and do it and not to him to sin. Don't get me wrong with that. But it's not like you're getting into adultery. You're getting into like some major sins. It's just the fact that there's things that you have faults with. The Bible says in, go to James chapter 5, James chapter 5 and verse 16. I look at faults as being the opposite of talent. Okay? Meaning this is that some people are very talented at something. And a fault that you would have would be what you're not talented at. Like you're kind of bad at doing that. Okay? Let's say you're bad at reading, for example. It's kind of a fault that you have that you're just not good at reading. Well, that could be bad, right? Because obviously the Bible says that we should be reading the word of God and you should be doing that. And so that could be a fault that can cause you to fall, right? And I'm just giving an example on there as far as like there's things that we're just maybe not that good at. And it's just a fault that we have. And the Bible says here in James chapter 5 and verse 16, it says, So when it's saying confess your faults, I don't believe this is a confession booth where you need to tell me all your sins. Okay? You could just say, hey, man, I'm having a really hard time reading through the Bible in a year. Okay? It's a fault that you have, right? It's just hard for me to do it. Can you help me with that? Can you pray that I can get through that and I can just push through that? It's a fault I have, right? Or maybe memorizing, right? We were talking to, you know, Brother Austin and I were talking about memorizing chapters. And sometimes it's harder for some people than others. And listen, I'll just say this, memorizing's hard. Okay? You're like, oh, you know, this person over here has so much memorized. It's hard. It was hard for them to do it. It's hard for you to do it. It's hard. Okay? It's not easy. No one's just like, yeah, you know, I just read that chapter and I got it down. All I had, you just, I didn't even read it. You read it to me. Like Pastor Bergen's read Proverbs 24. I can put it off right now. Doesn't happen. You know, it doesn't happen by osmosis. It happens by hard work is what it happens by. Okay? So when it comes to this, go to Galatians chapter 6, is that we all have faults. We all have things that we're not good at which can cause us the fault. Okay? And Galatians chapter 6 here is the thing that I want to get to here is that there's going to be times where you're going to fall and there's no one there to pick you up. And you know what? The things, when I think about this, especially when I think about men that want to get into the ministry, men that want to be pastors, what do you do when no one's watching? Everybody, your kids are asleep. Your wife's asleep. What do you do? That defines the type of Christian that you are. Because there's a lot of times where we do things just to be, you know, because we want people, we don't want to, we don't want to be embarrassed, right? It's not necessarily that you want to be seen of men, right? You're just like, I just do this because I want people to see me do it. Sometimes you're just doing it because people are holding you accountable, right? It's kind of like you're around people and you're like, I can't do this because you know what? These people around me, and it's a good thing, okay? This is a good thing that people around you that cause you to do right. But what do you do when they're not there? Okay? So we got to think about that as far as when you fall and no one's around to help you, what do you do? Do you just stay down, lay down, or do you get up? And the idea with life, life is going to beat you down. Your finances are going to beat you into the ground, especially with the gas prices the way they are. Although it's better here, actually. Too bad I don't have my truck here, although it wouldn't matter by the time I got up to West Virginia. I'll have to fill it up again. But with everything that's going on, the instability of our economy and just everything, things are going to beat you down. Don't watch the news, by the way, because all that's going to do is depress you and make you angry. I don't care what you're watching, it's depressing. And things are going to beat you down in this world. What do you do when there's no one to help you? This is why church is so important. The assembly of believers. The church of God that Jesus bled and died for. This is the church. You. The people. Not the chairs, not the building. You. And being together. Notice what it says in Galatians chapter 6, Galatians chapter 6 and verse 1. It says, Notice this. Considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted. Notice how he's saying, if you're spiritual and you're not dealing with that, help that person out. But beware. When you're helping someone with a fault, beware that you don't fall through that same fault. And notice what it says here, it says in verse 2, Bear ye one another's burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ. When someone's having a fault or they're having trouble with something, you know what our job is? To help them. And what I love about this passage too is that, keep reading there, where people will say this is a contradiction, but really it just shows you the balance of things here. In verse 3 it says, For if a man think himself to be something when he is nothing he deceiveth himself. So, you know, don't think that you're above getting tempted by any type of fault that someone else is dealing with. But then keep reading there, it says, But let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone and not in another, for every man shall bear his own burden. So which one is it? You know, a contradiction in the Bible, you know, you're supposed to bear everyone else's burdens or just your own, right? Here's what the Bible's teaching on this. Is that you need to take responsibility for your own burdens, okay? Meaning that I'm not passing off my burdens to everybody, okay? You're like, listen, I've got some problems, I need you to take care of this, okay? But on the flip side, us as a congregation or, you know, as church members, we should say, you know what, that person's dealing with a burden, I want to help them. And then I'm going to try to help them with that burden. That's what we're called to do. Deal with our own burdens, help other people with their burdens, okay? And you know what, there may come a time where, hey, I need help. But I'm not going to just like, I'm not entitled to someone helping me with my burden, but God is telling us to help others with their burdens. Does that make sense? There's a difference between, you know, taxation and charity, okay? Taxation's theft where you steal my money and give it to yourself probably, you know, like they don't actually do anything with it, but you know, that's the difference between charity where I'm not forced to give it, but I want to give it because I love you, okay? And so, go to Ecclesiastes chapter 4, Ecclesiastes chapter 4. So the importance of church here and the importance of the assembly, or having brothers and sisters in Christ that are there to help you, is that when you fall or when you have a fault or you falter, they're there to help you. And you know, it just comes to, you need friends. We all need friends to help us out in time of need. And we're all going to have that time where we need this help. Ecclesiastes chapter 4 and verse 9 here. Ecclesiastes chapter 4 and verse 9, it says, Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their labor. Notice this, for if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him that is alone when he falleth, for he hath not another to help him up. And if two lie together, then they have heat, but how can one be warm alone? And if one prevail against him, two shall withstand him, and a threefold cord is not quickly broken. The idea here is that you need to have the integrity that if you fall, you get back up again. Listen, there's enough weak men in the world today that we need some men that'll say, you know what, I'm falling, but I'm getting back up. But it's the difference between, let's say I'm out there running, I'm doing some kind of exercise, I'm running out and doing like some marathon or 5K or whatever, and I fall, you know what, no one's around me, you know what I need to do? I need to get back up. And you need to have some tenacity to say, you know what, this isn't going to take me out. You make pain your strength and you keep going. Because there's going to be a time where that pain goes away. But that, listen, when it comes to lifting weights, when it comes to working out, and I'm using bodily exercise to show spiritual exercise, but listen, you ever heard the phrase, no pain, no gain? When it hurts, that's when I'm like, oh, I must be doing something. It's actually going to actually grow my muscles now. I'm actually going to get better here. If I'm not sweating, I'm probably dogging it and I'm not going to get any better. And we need to have a little bit of grit to say we're going to get back up. But we need to have a group of people around us that will help us in time of need, that it's not always this case. You don't have to do it alone. The whole point of church is that we're not doing this alone. The reason we go out two and two, out soul winning, is that we're not in it alone. Soul winning is by pairs for a reason. And not to say that you can't win somebody by yourself, or you can't talk to somebody by yourself, but when you go out door to door, there's a reason it's two by two. And it's to help if one falls, they pick them back up. Let's say you're at the door and someone just starts berating you, saying that you're an idiot and nuts to your religion, and they just start dogging on the person that's trying to give them the gospel. That other person is going to be there and be like, that guy was an idiot, and that guy didn't know what he was talking about. Let's keep going. But if you're alone, it's harder. When you're alone, you're like, oh man, that was rough. I remember going out with, it was either Pastor Burzins or Pastor Anderson, but this happens all the time. When you go to the door and someone just starts yelling at you, they don't even know who you are. You haven't even told them you're a Baptist yet. For all they know, you're a Mormon. And we were having a conversation before we got up to the door. We were talking about something, and then we get up to the door and it's like, ah! This guy comes out and he's just bull-rushing us. And we're just like, good night, man. And then if you're alone, you're kind of like, what just happened? But then when you're with somebody, the conversation just picked up right where it left off. Nothing ever happened. We didn't even stop there. That never even happened. We just forgot about it. And that's the type of stuff. And obviously, soul wing is a good way of understanding falling and getting back up, dealing with basically shaking off the dust of your feet to a door or to an area. And having people around you when that happens, that's what needs to happen. And that's where it's going to be easy to get back up. Now, Hebrews chapter 10 here, go to Hebrews chapter 10, just to show you the verses on here about being in church. Because we're kind of talking about how you can listen to sermons, and that's all good. Let's say you're at home, you're listening to sermons, you're reading your Bible, and let's say you're even going out soul winning on your own and doing that type of stuff. You're still missing something. You're still missing the fellowship of the believers, and there is something that you can't get by just watching online. And the people that just listen but they're not in a church, they end up fading out. And they may know a lot. You can be strong, but if you don't have stability, what's that worth? And you can know everything about the Bible and have all this knowledge, but if you're not using it and if you fall, if you're down on the ground, what profit are you? I mean, the Bible talks about how a living dog is better than a dead lion. And when it comes to a Christian, if a Christian's not doing anything, what good are they? What profit are they? Hebrews chapter 10 verse 23, it says, Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering, for he is faithful that promised. And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works. So this is the famous verse, verse 25, Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together as the manner of some is, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see today approaching. Let me ask you a question. In 2022, in June of 2022, do you think that we should be in church less or more? Of course, right? So much the more as you see the day approaching that we need this exhortation. I mean, the world right now is just so much against Christianity, the Bible, everything that we do. You need a place to come to and say, There is a place where there's people that believe like we do. There is a place where people actually love God. And you can get that three times a week. You can get that on Sunday morning, Sunday evening, and you can get it in the middle of the week. I love the Wednesday night. Now, Wednesday night's hard, because I still work, and Pastor Virgin still works, and I'm working till five o'clock. You know, it's like trying to shove something down my throat, write my sermon. No, I'm just kidding. Sometimes. Write my sermon as I'm driving down the church and, you know, get to church. But you know what? Every Wednesday after the church is done, I'm glad I was there. I mean, who regrets being there on Wednesday evening? Everybody knows it's hard to get there on Wednesday evening. Everybody that's working knows that it is a chore to get there. But you know what? I believe that that Wednesday is keeping a lot of people from falling. Because some people can't make it to the next Sunday. And listen, I'm not one to say that you're forsaking the assemblies, and this is just my personal belief. If you come every Sunday, I'm not one to say that you're forsaking the assemblies. But I'll say this. You should try to come to every service. That should be your goal. That should be the end game, is that I'm going to try to get there for every single service. Because I'll say this. Some Christians, they can't make it to the next Sunday without needing help. Without needing that extra boost. And it may not be every week, but there are weeks where you need it. I'll confess to you, there are weeks, I'll confess my faults to you, there are weeks where I need that Wednesday night service. I need that singing. I need that fellowship. I need the other men in the church to be behind me and say, We're for you pastor. We're here for you. We're here to support you. We're here to do the work. I need that. And you know what? I believe there's many Wednesday night services that have kept me from falling. And kept me from falling out of things, or whatever the case may be. It just revives you. And kind of going back to working out or lifting, and you say, why are you bringing that up? Why are you bringing that up? Because that's why I do that. I bring up what I know. Sorry. But when you work out, there's a difference between working out alone and working out with somebody. I do free weight type stuff. Think about doing squats or bench press. You're doing it by yourself. One, you're going to do a lot of weight. You better have something there to hold your bar after you drop it on your chest. So having someone there to spot you, just for safety purposes. But second of all, who here has gotten an extra rep because they had someone screaming in their ear saying, get that up? You know? And that type of motivation, you know, and it's kind of like the idea that no one's around, and you fall to the ground and you're like, I could just lay here and no one would even know. Maybe I'll just take a nap while I'm down here. You know? I need a life alert. But let's say people are around. Let's say I fall down right now. I guarantee someone's going to be like, Pastor Robinson, are you okay? Do you need a hand up? If you don't, then bye. I'm going back to West Virginia. But that idea of like, get back up, that you're going to have a helping hand, if need be, you may have people just yelling, get back up. And you know what? Sometimes Christians need a good kick in the pants to get back up. You say that sermon was hard. That sermon hurt my toes. Well, it needs to hurt your toes. You need a good kick in the pants. Listen, there are people out there that you love and you want them to get out of drugs. You want them to get out of some type of sin or whatever. You know what? There's a thing called tough love. And remember this is that the wounds of a friend, the faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful. And you know what? I remember rebuking a friend and they're just like, oh, you bring all this judgment on me and everything else. It's like, well, I care about you and I want you to get right. And when it comes to sermons, sometimes there's going to be a sermon, it's going to feel like a wound. You're going to feel like, meh. But listen, we're not here to enable people. We're not here to coddle people. We're here to exhort and comfort, but sometimes you need to say, hey, you need to get right. You need to do what you should be doing. You need to get that sin out of your life. It could be anything when it comes to what you could be falling to, but we need to know that, hey, church is very important for this reason. And you have to know that we're all going to fall, we're all going to falter, and let's make it easier to get back up. And go to 1 Peter 5. I want to make a point here that the devil wants you to stay down. The devil wants you to fall and he doesn't want you to get back up. So what I want to talk about right now is motivation to get back up. Motivation to get back up. Because you've got to think about that, if you're down and you're hurting, what's your motivation? What's your motivation for living for Christ? What's your motivation for reading the Bible? What's your motivation for going soul winning? What's your motivation? Why do you do it? You may have different reasons and they may all be valid reasons, but motivation to go soul winning is that people don't go to hell. Another motivation is that Jesus deserves the glory for what he did when he died on the cross. And he deserves for every single person to believe on his name. And you can think about why do I keep doing it? Like all these doors came slamming in my face, you know what? But there's that one person that I know is waiting for it. There's that one person that says, I've been praying about that, I'm glad you came to my door, and they want to get saved, and you know that that's why you're going out there. And you have motivation to do that. One motivation is that the devil loses. That you do not give credence to the accusations of the devil. Notice what it says in 1 Peter 5 verse 8. It says, be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary the devil as a roaring lion walketh about seeking whom he may devour. Notice that the devil is out there wanting to devour you. He wants to cause you to fall. And keep reading there, it says, whom resist steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. But know this, notice how it says, know this, you're not alone. You're not alone. The devil, here's the big thing the devil wants you to think, that you're alone. You're the only one. You know, like when you get persecution on your church, the thing that comes to your mind, first of all, is that it's just me. I'm alone out here. I'm taking this alone. But you're not taking it alone. Because everybody that's living godly is dealing with persecution at some level, and at some time, and there's other men that are dealing with that same problem, and that the devil's trying to take them down. You're not alone in this fight. That's why church is so important, but at the same time, seeking who he may devour. Now who do you think he's seeking? Do you think he's seeking the person that's sitting on their couch, eating potato chips off their chest, not doing anything for the Lord? Or do you think that he's seeking the person that's sitting in church tonight that just got done soul winning, that's trying to do great things for God? Who do you think he's seeking? The person that's already on the ground? The person that's already laying down? Or the person that's actually doing the work? Know this, that if you're doing the work, he is coming after you. His devils are coming after you. He is trying to take you down. Are you going to let him win? Go to Revelation chapter 12, Revelation chapter 12 and verse 9. Did you know that the devil is called the accuser of the brethren? The accuser of our brethren. Notice what it says here in Revelation chapter 12, verse 9. This isn't, I'm not getting into end times. This is just to talk about who the devil is, what he does on a daily basis. Verse 9, it says, And the dragon was cast out, that old serpent which called the devil and Satan, which deceived the whole world. He was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now has come salvation and strength in the kingdom of our God and the power of his Christ, for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them from before our God day and night. You say, is this going on? Go to Job, go to Job chapter 1, Job chapter 1. This is happening day and night right now. You say, I thought the devil wasn't in heaven. The devil still can go into heaven right now. And not only is he going into heaven right now, he's accusing the brethren to God right now. Day and night, he's going throughout the earth, to and fro, and in this case, he's going to bring up Job. Or basically God is going to bring up Job, and Satan's going to accuse Job. Job 1 and verse 6, it says, Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan came also among them. Now just so you know, you're reading a King James Bible there, it says the sons of God, not angels. That's because it's the sons of God. That's because it's the children of God. And the wish of the angel said to you at any time, Thou art my son, this day have begotten me. We're talking about children of God that are in the presence of the Lord, and Satan came also among them. Which makes sense when you think of Revelation, that he's accusing the brethren. Okay? It says in verse 7, And the Lord said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it. And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, Doth Job fear God for not? Hast not thou made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? Thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land. But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face. And the Lord said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power, only upon himself put not forth thine hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord. And if you know the story, he loses everything. All his children, all his riches, the only thing that's left is his wife, who says, Curse God and die. Now obviously they reconcile their relationship at the end of the story, but he loses everything, but yet he didn't sin. This is a case, if you think about Proverbs 24, where it's stating that the wicked are trying to take out the righteous, and it says a just man falls seven times and rises up again. And God is proving Job here, and saying he's going to get back up. And Job chapter 2, it doesn't stop there, because Job chapter 2, same thing happens here, where Satan comes to present himself before the Lord, or the sons of God present themselves before the Lord, and Satan's basically accusing Job again. But here he's saying in verse 4, And Satan answered the Lord, and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life. But put forth thine hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse thee to thy face. And the Lord said unto Satan, Behold, he is in thine hand, but save his life. And remember, you get all these boils on his body, and basically took away his health, if you will, and yet he still didn't curse God. Even though his wife is telling him to do it, he still didn't do it. And what happened with Job? The patience, we have heard the patience of Job, and seen the end of the Lord, that the Lord is very pitiful and of tender mercy. Why? Because he was given back, you know, a hundred fold. He was given back, everything was doubled. And it says that, Job 23 in verse 10, But he knoweth the way that I take, when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold. Know this, is that sometimes you're being pushed down by Satan, and Satan's trying to cause you to fall. Know that sometimes that could just be God saying, Hey, here's my just man, what are you going to do with him? He's going to serve me. He's going to serve me, he won't curse me, and the question you have to ask yourself, are you going to indulge the devil, or are you going to actually stick up for God? Because, one motivation to get back up is that the devil doesn't win. Because the devil knows that he can't take your salvation. There's nothing you can do to touch that. But what he can do, is he can stop you from allowing someone else to get salvation. There are people that only you can reach. You say, who am I talking to? Every single person in here. There are people that only you individually can reach, and no one else is going to end up reaching them. And don't let the devil actually stop you from doing that. Don't let the devil take you down. So when you think about that time where you're falling, the devil's pushing you down, he's trying to take you out, have some tenacity to say, you know what, you're not going to win. And remember this, is that he's accusing you before God. He's accusing you and saying, he's going to fall, he's not going to get up, he's not going to keep going, but you know what, why don't you instead be like Job and say, you know what, no I am going to get back up. You're not going to stop me. And really what it comes down to, the only thing that can stop you is yourself. Because you have to make that choice, that whether you're going to stop. You know that song, I decided to follow Jesus. The cross before me, the world behind me, no turning back, no turning back. You need to have this mentality that I'm not going to stay down. There may be times where you fall, but know this, that if I fall, I'm getting back up. If the devil tries to beat me down, I'm getting back up. If I fall into sin, I'm getting back up. And until I die, I'm getting back up. And we need to have some faithful men, we need to have faithful women that will say, you know what, I'm going to keep going, I'm going to keep getting back up. And being in a church that will affirm that. You're falling to the ground and you have men around you saying, get up, come on, let's go. They're helping you up, they're like Aaron and her with Moses, where they're holding up his arms to win the victory. Sometimes you are lacking the strength to go on, but you have men and women in this church that will keep you going. Don't let the devil win. And go to first, where do I want to go here? Go to Colossians chapter 3. This is the last point I'm going to make here. One, know that you can fall and that you probably will fall from time to time, to a certain extent. Maybe not into some deep sin. But even if you did fall into deep sin, be David and rise up out of that. But know that you will fall into certain faults, you're going to maybe fall into certain sins, and just decide now that you're not going to let the devil win. You're not going to let his accusations come true. He's accusing you, why don't you put it in his face to say, you know what, your accusation is actually a false accusation. And here's a big reason to get back up for Jesus. And I know this is cliche, but one big motivation that I have to do anything that I do for Christ is because he deserves the glory. Go to Colossians chapter 3 and verse 1. Because if ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory. Now, what it comes to, obviously we can think about Jesus Christ being eternal life, and he's our life, meaning he saved us from hell, and we have eternal life. But also think about this, is the fact that he is our life. That's why I'm alive, right? If I didn't need to do something for the Lord, then why am I still here? I mean, think about that, right? You get saved, you have eternal life, what's the point for the rest of the time? And the Bible says in 1 Corinthians chapter 10 and verse 31, it says, Wherefore, whether therefore ye eat or drink, whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God. And I want you to think about this, and sometimes this is simple, but think about the cross. I want you to think about Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, and he's sweating, as it were, great drops of blood. It says he was in agony. It says that he had great strong crying and tears, and that he feared. Did he fear man? No. But what happened when he was on the cross? What did he say? My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? The wrath of God was upon Jesus to pay for our sins. They spit on him. They covered his eyes and started hitting him in the face, saying, Who hit you? Mocking him. They put a crown of thorns on his head, and then they hit him on the head with a reed. Then they started bowing down to him, mocking him, as if he's nothing, when he created everybody. Think about how he was going to the cross, and they were literally giving him vinegar mingled with gall. They were spitting upon him. They were mocking him. While he's on the cross, they were ridiculing him, saying, If you're the Son of God, then come down. Think about all the pain, shame that he endured, and think about when you're pushed down, why you get back up. The reason I get back up is because he deserves every last inch of everything that I have. Not for salvation, because you know what? Everything I do for God, he'll never let that be put to the count of salvation. He literally repays everything that I do for him. Listen, we only have a short period of time to actually serve God. What is your life? This is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. We have a short little period of time. Listen, every inch and every ounce of my being and my strength should be to serve God. Like I said, you should have stability in that so that you don't falter and you don't fall. What is your motivation? Say, Well, it's hard. It's hot outside. Think about Jesus at the cross. Think about him in the Garden of Gethsemane and the sorrow and the pain. Think about the fact that his soul was in hell for three days and three nights. And he made his soul an offering for sin. He saw the travail of his soul and was satisfied that Jesus conquered death and hell and that he was dead for three days and three nights. But everything that led up to that. He was a man of sorrows. He was smitten of God, afflicted, and we esteemed him not. King of kings. Yet all the stuff that he did for us that he loved us so much. God the Father loved us so much that he would allow his son to die for us. I'm sorry, but you know what? I don't have that that that great of love like the Father has. I have kids. And you know what? To give one of my kids to save the world, I don't know if I could do it. But God the Father loves us so much. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that who's ever believed in him should not perish but have everlasting life. And Jesus loved us so much that he went through all of that, all that shame, all that pain, so that he can give us salvation. While they were spitting on him, he died for them. So what's a couple of hours here and there? What's a little bit of time to go to church? What's a little bit of time to read your Bible? What's a little bit of time to go out soloning? What's your motivation when it comes to when you feel like quitting? When you feel like giving up? Know this is that any one of us can give up. I can give up. Pastor Burzins can give up. Pastor Anderson can give up. Every single pastor and great man of God can give up. You can give up. But the question is when it all comes down to when you're on the ground, what is your reason for going on? Is it to be seen of men or is it that you live for your savior? That you give your life for your savior? That you give your body a living sacrifice for your savior and it doesn't matter what kind of pain or persecution or tribulation that comes by, you will give that for your savior. And that is the motivation that you need to have. That's where you're going to be that just man when God says to him, when he says, Lay not weight, O wicked man, against the dwelling of the righteous. Spoil not his resting place, for a just man falleth seven times and riseth up again. Be that man. Be that woman that God can say, listen, take him down. If you're going to take him down, you better keep taking him down. Seventy times seven, they're getting back up. And we need to have the tenacity, especially in the world that we live in today. There's too much weak Christianity that's out there in the world. There's too much of the CCM, you know, garbage, fake Christianity that's out in the world. We need a bunch of men and women that are going to rise up and say, You know what, it doesn't matter how much you beat me down, I'm getting back up. I'm going to rise up again. And you say how many times? Until I'm dead. And by the way, I'm going to rise again. Because the resurrection. So, but that is something I hope is a blessing to you. Just something that I think about as far as why I don't want to give up. And so be that just man. Be that just woman. Children, be the next generation. Be the next generation that's going to rise up. Don't be like these weak Christians out there. Be the strong soldiers of Christ that anything that comes at you, you'll get back up again. And let's end with a word prayer. Heavenly Father, we thank you for today. Thank you for your word. Thank you for this passage in Proverbs. And just praise you to help us to be that just man, that just woman that will rise up again if they fall. And Lord, just thank you for your word. Thank you for the souls that were saved today. Thank you for this church. And I pray that you'd be with us as we travel and be with us as we go back to church at a point in time. And Lord, we love you. Pray all this in Jesus Christ's name. Amen. Amen. All right. Thank you once again, Pastor Robinson, for being with us. Great sermons this morning. Great sermon this afternoon. Really appreciate it. It's awesome how they go hand in hand. I think that's great how you're able to, you know, this morning teach on keeping us from preventing from falling. Essentially, right? And then if you do fall or when you fall, hey, don't say that out loud, right? Because it worked out perfectly. I mean, this is how masterful Pastor Robinson is at preparing his sermons. He puts them together. He doesn't even realize how well they fit together. But they did. But no, I do appreciate it. It was a great tandem of sermons. And being able to hear you preach this evening was another blessing. I appreciate you being out here very much. Thanks for taking the time out of your busy schedule away from your family to come and preach for us here. I know I was edified a lot by the preaching. I hope you were, too. And I actually wanted to just take this moment. I pretty much never do this, but I felt after hearing your sermon, you know, there's one last point that I want to just make to everyone here. I've made this point plenty of times in the past. But even to people who are watching, if people watch this sermon online, people are listening online, if you used to come to Stronghold Baptist Church and you stopped for whatever reason, you've fallen, you've faltered, and you're not coming to church anymore, come back to church. Come back to church. And if you're sitting here now and you go through hard times and you fall and maybe you're down for a little while, come back to church. We are here to help. And if you know anything about our church, if you've been part of our church, you should know that already. Don't be too embarrassed or ashamed or whatever because this church cares about you, okay? We all have hard times and will face our own failures. Come back to church for all the reasons that Pastor Robinson was stating. Come back to church for Christ's sake, okay? Don't get over yourself and be able to come back to church. It is vital. It is so important to be here. We're here to help. You need those helping hands that Moses needed with Aaron and her holding his hands up. We all need that. We need that type of support, and you get that here. You'll have that here. Don't forget, if you fall, come back. I mean, obviously, if there's a major sin, get it right and come back. You know, it won't be brought up and thrown in your face here. And if it is, let me know about it because I'll correct that issue right away. We won't tolerate that. So anyway, that's all I wanted to throw in there because it fits in perfect with what Pastor Robinson was saying here. And I just want to make sure everybody's aware of that, continuing, going forward. I'm going to repeat that over and over again. I've seen too many people get out of church and stay out of church for way too long. And oftentimes, it's just their own pride or whatever reason that they don't get back in. It's like, look, that's a waste. Get back in. And even if it's not our church, just get back in the church and serve God. Appreciate you being here. Brother Peter's going to lead us in our last song, and then we'll be dismissed. So thanks for being here this afternoon. Church, if you can open up your hymnals to song number 413. Song 413, stand up, stand up for Jesus. Song number 413. All right, church, let's sing this out with all our hearts. Stand up, stand up for Jesus, ye soldiers of the cross. Lift high his royal banner, it must not suffer loss. From victory unto victory, his armies shall be fleeing. Till every foe is vanquished, and Christ is Lord indeed. Stand up, stand up for Jesus, the trumpet call away. For to the mighty public in this his glorious day. Ye that are men now serve him against a number falls. Then courage rise with danger, and strength to strength oppose. For the last stand up, stand up for Jesus, sit in his strength alone. The arm of flesh will fail you, ye dare not trust your own. Put on the gospel armor when watching a tomb prayer. Because your danger be never watching there. Amen, church, great singing. Thank you so much for coming. You guys are dismissed.