Those Are Fighting Words (part 2)

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Beyond The Basics 5 - The Need For And The Necessity Of The Work Of Christ (part 3)

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All right, let's talk about the message tonight. I'm doing a few different things on Sunday night Not pure verse -by -verse exposition
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But I've had some ideas in my mind and they're fleshing themselves out on Sunday night And so this is part two of a sermon
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I've entitled fighting words words that we need to fight for and words that we need to fight against and Let's turn our
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Bibles again to Jude to just set the scene. Maybe you were here two weeks ago Maybe you were not but Jude found towards the end of your
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Bibles Right before the book of Revelation Gives us our marching orders.
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I believe there are some in the church that are too pugnacious. They fight too much They criticize too much and we wouldn't want to do that.
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But when the Bible tells us that we should stand up and guard the truth and to Contend earnestly for the faith then we ought to do that We're not labeled sinfully pugnacious and and fighters if we obey the scriptures and as we talked about two weeks ago
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Fighting for the truth is not just something that elders should do not just something that the men should do not just for leaders
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But is everyone and I can prove that by this wonderful letter the book of Jude and if you look down in verse 3 he says to all who would dare call themselves
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Christians But there's a time to fight Christianity is not for weaklings
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It's not for those who are emaciated and just want to get run over by everyone Of course were to be gentle Of course when offended were to turn the other cheek, but there's a time to fight and here's the time to fight
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One time at least to fight Jude 3 beloved and you can hear the pastoral heart His personal love as he's going to talk to these dear
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Christians in a time of trial in a time of fire Persecution and he comes alongside in a you know, you know, not just a watchman fashion, but a very pastoral fashion in the bond of Christian fellowship
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Beloved what a great one -word definition of a Christian loved by God and loved by the
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Saints and loved by this pastor Beloved while I was making every effort to write to you about our common salvation
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I was compelled to write the Spirit of God was compelling me to write you a letter about Salvation like Romans or maybe like Galatians without all the
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Doctrinal Differences something that's just pure truth and I was spurred on like a horse is spurred on by its rider
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I was I was sitting there and it was like my spiritual funny bone was hit and I and I had to do something
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I was compelled that was Necessary for me to write and what was I to write? Was to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith again
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Not just pastors not just leaders Of course there to contend for the faith, but here the beloved to contend earnestly for the faith
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Which was once for all delivered to the Saints and he says I'm appealing to you
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I'm coming alongside as a brother coming alongside as a friend I'm putting my arm around you and saying we've got to do this
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This is worth fighting for some things aren't worth fighting for but this is this is the faith once delivered
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It's been delivered to us and it's like a trust and you just don't take this trust and say whatever Someone's entrusted this to you and you've got to guard it and protect it and pass it on and stand up for it
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And so I believe as Christians that we need to guard the faith and we need to contend for the faith And I wanted to give you several things that we should stand up and contend for the first one from last
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Time was the inerrancy of scriptures inerrancy the Bible says in Psalm 19 the law of the
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Lord is perfect Restoring the soul and we want to stand up for the truth of scriptures without scriptures
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We have nothing number two in review standing up for blood
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I'm willing to fight for the theological term blood who can tell me just quickly what blood means as We talked about two weeks ago and even on the
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Sunday morning series blood What would blood mean? Theologically, yes
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Brian Okay, it contains not just bleeding but it has an aspect to a it has a it has a view toward Vicious sacrificial death right all the language that we see in Scripture Would not say it means death
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But the preponderance of evidence has its view not towards the the the liquidy substance in your veins
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But it is death I'll never forget when Al Mohler said he went to Southern Baptist Theological Seminary You want to go you've gone you you've gone you are going who else you are going you were going
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Mohler first went to Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville and one of his theological professors said this to the class
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This is when it was liberal. I will have no more bloody cross religion in this classroom
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Southern seminary that sounds like Doris Williams of Union Theological Seminary I don't think we need folks hanging on crosses and blood dripping and weird stuff
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If you would turn with me to first Peter I know this is in review, but this verse isn't in review first Peter chapter 1 it may be crude
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It may be obscene, but it is biblical and when you have been changed by grace alone
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You respond to the blood not as weird and dripping and somehow Halloween ish you start saying this is an amazing thing
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Oh purchase Oh Perfect redemption the purchase of blood and you sing and you say
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I understand this first Peter chapter 1 verse 19 in verse 18 it talks about redemption and how we're redeemed with something that's not perishable
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It's imperishable and what is the imperishable thing that redeems us, but with what kind of blood what's the word?
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Precious blood the same word that's actually used of Christ Jesus this precious Savior And I will stand up and defend the word blood because of the
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Atonement Number three we looked at the word substitution substitution the substitutionary
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Atonement I shouldn't be shocked but When I read things
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Like this from Dominic Crossan the substitutionary
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Atonement is quote the most unfortunately successful idea in the history of Christian thought
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Substitutionary Atonement That is fascinating to me. Well.
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We had the passion movie come out years ago and Reverend Schaefer at very Atonement That is fascinating to me
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Well we had the passion movie come out years ago and Reverend Schaefer at rest of mercy and forgiveness that God offers to us sinners and Second to model for us the perfection of love that God is and that those who accept
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God's forgiveness are invited To become it is not Jesus's death that can save us, but his life
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I'll stand up for substitution where Jesus the just dies for thee what?
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Unjust that's exactly right word number four if I had to pick another word that I would stand up for and defend to the
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My dying breath what word might that be? Well there could be lots of words, and I was gonna try to give about ten tonight
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And I don't know how many probably gonna give about three extra, so we'll see how it goes the next word is hell If you haven't read that book by John Blanchard whatever happened to hell you ought to get that book
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Short of the first couple chapters it reads like a novel in the sense that you want to keep reading
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He writes so well you begin to understand how bad hell is And it'll motivate you and I'll ask you right now because I know it's
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Sunday night Why is it important for the church to understand Universal Church and our church that hell is real?
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Is it is a big deal? What would it affect I mean come on it's just a small doctrine right
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Or is it? Okay, there's only one hand up, and you've already answered your question. Why is it important yes?
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Okay We lose understanding who got we lose a thought of understanding who God is because he's not a just God okay good
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Anyone else John? Okay, if there's no hell.
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We don't need a Savior. We can just go down to the Universal Unitarian unit not united for for Whatever they're united for we drive by the one in Lancaster all the time, and I always like to look on the side of the
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Sign to see what they say the church service will be and I'm sure the dog blessing service will be soon But if everybody's going at least it's a tax write -off for people that like to have fellowship
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All right next Brian So could increase your gratitude
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But the one that I'm thinking about is what would happen to the evangelism of a local church if hell was gone Hey, everybody goes there.
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Why waste your time? Why offend why confront who likes confronting? But it is rare to find these days a church that will stand up and preach sermon about hell
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I'm gonna give you a quote you tell me who said these quotes. All right. This is gonna be fun This is called pastoral fun.
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You want to know what makes me happy things like this all right? Who said this heaven and hell are states of thought not places people experience their own heaven or hell right here on earth?
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These are all going to be religious leaders from sex and heretical groups that deny hell
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What Okay, Mary Baker Eddie good If I was gonna be technical
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Mary Baker Eddie Glover Patterson Frye, but who's counting? the destiny of the soul as of all creation is to become one with the
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Creator and No soul is ever lost a little harder Edgar Cayce All right, how about this one?
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God will not desert any person eternally all will be restored by some means sung young moon
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The false doctrine that the punishment to be visited upon erring souls is endless is but a dogma of unauthorized and erring sectarians at once scriptural unreasonable and revolting
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Now it may be revolting, but who said that it's unreasonable unscriptural and revolting if you get bored
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Tell me I don't have to have much more fun, but you're all just kind of looking at me Joseph Smith founder of Mormonism The teaching about a fiery hell can rightly be designating a teaching of demons.
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It's not true. Demons made it up Who said that? Jehovah's Witnesses founder
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Charles Taze Russell. I've got a huge long list here So I better not do too many more because I can tell where this is going
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I'm I can see your faces, but I'm gonna just do a couple more It seems safe to say that no Unitarian Universalist believes in a resurrection of the body a literal heaven
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Our hell are any kind of eternal punishment Doesn't tell me it just says some
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Unitarian Universalist said that I knew you couldn't get that one, right? Okay, one last one
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God has never judged you or anyone. No, there's no hell and there's no devil God punishes no man
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Who said that any guesses that is
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JS Knight? As she is a medium for the spirit Ramtha But let's turn our
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Bibles to Matthew and I want to show you that Jesus Christ himself Discussed hell and we ought to discuss it as well
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And we ought to discuss it with sadness and with grief and we ought not to ever swear and say people
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You know to say to people horrible things about it I think it's right to talk about it, but it's not to be used as some kind of whipping stick
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But I think we need to follow JC Riles advice as you're turning to Matthew chapter 5
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JC Riles said let others hold their peace about hell if they will I dare not do so I see it plainly in Scripture and I must speak of it
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I fear that thousands are on the broad road that leads to it and I would feign arouse them to a sense of peril before them
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What would you say of the man who saw his neighbor's house in danger of being burned down and never raised the cry?
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Fire and now listen to JC Riles Amazing call it bad taste if you like to speak of hell
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Call it charity to make things pleasant and speak smoothly and soothe men with a constant lullaby of peace
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From such notions of taste and charity. May I ever be delivered? My notion of charity is to warn men plainly of their danger
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My notion of taste is to declare all the counsel of God if I never spoke of hell
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I should think that I had kept back something that was profitable and should look on myself as an accomplice of the devil
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How about that? Look at Matthew chapter 5 and self as an accomplice of the devil
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How about that? Look at Matthew chapter 5 and then any other person was
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Jesus our Savior The teaching of Jesus the Redeemer who's the one who's talking about?
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Hell I can't imagine when people say well, you know Paul's too hard So, let's see what
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Jesus has to say. They forget he talks about hell more than anyone else Matthew 5 22
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But I say to you that everyone who's angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court whoever says to his brother
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You good -for -nothing shall be guilty before the Supreme Court and whoever says you fool shall be guilty enough to go into a what?
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into the fiery hell verse 29 you'll see it again at The end of the verse to lose one part of your body then to lose your excuse me
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Then for your whole body to be thrown into what? hell Let's look at another verse verse 30 if your right hand makes you stumble cut it off and throw it from you for it is better for you to lose one
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Of the parts of your body then for your whole body to go into Hell it is everywhere chapter 8 if you go there with me
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For those of you that have concordances you look up the word hell and you will quickly say I Might not like it that it's in the
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Bible, but it's certainly in the Bible Matthew chapter 8 verse 12 but the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into the outer darkness in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth
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Chapter 10 verse him who is able to destroy both body and soul where in hell
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Jesus taught about hell in Matthew Chapter 11 chapter 12 chapter 13 chapter 18 chapter 22 chapter 23 chapter 25
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John talks about it in Revelation Paul talks about it in 2nd Thessalonians Peter talks about it in 2nd
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Peter 60 % of Americans in a Gallup poll said they believe in hell it could have been zero it could have been hundred
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But I believe in hell because the Bible teaches it and once you start understanding How bad hell is you should say to yourself like we just learned tonight?
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God, I'm grateful. I don't have to go there. I deserve it. And I also don't want every anybody else go to go there
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Listen what Calvin said as he was trying to describe hell for there can be no doubt But that by such modes of expression the
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Holy Spirit intended to confound all our faculties with horror So when you start reading about destruction and the worm and the pit and endless fire
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Calvin is right when he says that is just to make us afraid So we're supposed to do is to say that is something
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I don't want to be in eternal suffering Spurgeon said about hell
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It is labor in the fire, but no ease no peace. No sleep.
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No calm. No quiet everlasting storm eternal hurricane unceasing tempest in The worst diseases there are some respites.
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There is no peace in hell's torment You cannot compare the pains of this life with the agonies to be endured hereafter
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Could all the misery that ever startled the keepers of our hospitals be conceived? It could not convey the least idea of the pains of the spirits that are doomed to dwell in eternal fire and everlasting burning the memory aghast hope and fear thoughts and imaginations
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Conscience and judgment all will be racked. Everyone will be stretched on a bed of fire
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Every nerve strained to its utmost Every vein made a road for the hot feet of pain to travel on and just give you an example
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Why don't you turn your Bibles to mark chapter 9 and all this is for me? I deserve to go and I'm not going and I want to have my friends and everyone
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I know every neighbor Can you imagine every person that you meet in your life at the store at your home wherever you go?
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They will all live eternally their souls are eternal and they'll either be in the presence of God in heaven or in the presence of God in hell.
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We'll talk about that in just a minute mark What mark chapter 9? verse 48
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Verse 48 9 48 if your eye causes you verse 47 to stumble throw it out it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than having two eyes to be cast into hell and Describing hell here where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched
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Horrible description should keep people up at night And it is forever as heaven is eternal so to hell is eternal
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Turn with me if you would to Revelation chapter 14. This was a thought when I first learned it I couldn't quite get my arms around but I think
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I get my arms around now. What makes hell hell? Sometimes people think because God isn't there and the absence of loving
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God and all those things and I think they're thinking kind of Rightly, but if you go to Revelation chapter 14
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Verse 10, I believe what Edward said is right. What makes hell hell is that God is there?
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Now if you start thinking about it, what do you mean God is there first of all, is there anywhere God is not?
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If you think about God's omnipresence, he's everywhere. And so what about hell and certainly here?
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He's not going to be The God of love and mercy and common mercy and and all the things and patience
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Kindness but in his pure holiness in his pure wrath in his pure justice in his pure immutable holiness
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We see Revelation chapter 14 verse 10 Talk about how
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God is there let's go to verse 9 It's tribulation then another angel a third one followed them saying with a loud voice
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If anyone worships the beast in his image and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand.
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I Think what's true for them? It would be true for anyone in hell He will also drink of the wine of the wrath of God.
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What a picture which is mixed It's not diluted It's in full strength in the cup of his anger and he will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the
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Holy Angels and in the presence of the lamb
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That is amazing That is amazing over and over and over forever forever forever
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Spurgeon said they are forever forever lost on every chain in hell that there's written forever in the fires
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There they blaze out the words forever. That's why we have words like the worm does not die
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Mark chapter 9 unquenchable fire mark chapter 9 day and night forever and ever Revelation chapter 20
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And it almost makes you laugh because you want to release because it's so much pressure thinking about hell
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Richard Baxter said They were want to think sermons and prayers long how long will they think of these endless torment and then you start to think
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There's some hell that's bad and then there's other parts of hell that are worse do you believe that They're worse
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Just quickly go there Hebrews 10 29. We just were in Hebrews, but I didn't talk about it much We just talked to you for a moment that we need to wrap this section up But Hebrews chapter 10 verse 29
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Would indicate to us that there are different levels of hell and I'm glad I'm not in any part of hell
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I'm glad I'm never gonna go there by the promises of God and the same for you But there are other people who every day as they sin they are heaping up for themselves judgment.
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You might say to yourself. Well It might be better for people to die younger if they're not going to go to heaven
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That might be true, but we don't know if God will save them So, of course, we want them to be alive. And if you look at Hebrews chapter 10 verse 29, there's punishment and there's more severe punishment
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How much severe punishment do you think he will deserve who was trampled under the foot the
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Son of God and is regarded as? Unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified and has insulted the
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Spirit of grace For we know him who said Vengeance is mine. I will repay and again the
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Lord will judge his people. It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of Of a living
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God, I'm only wondering tonight. I don't think it's true, but it certainly could be
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I Wonder if you aren't a Christian tonight Do you know you're gonna go to hell if you're not a
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Christian if you don't believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, I? Believe it's correct when
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I hear theologians say if you aren't a Christian you are probably flattering yourself That somehow you won't have to go to hell, but as Jonathan Edwards influenced
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Spurgeon He said many of you are hanging over the mouth of hell by a solitary plank and that plank is rotten
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So the only hope is Christ Jesus and for us I can't get rid of hell because then I get rid of Christ's words
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I get rid of the justice of God. I get rid of my own gratitude and I get rid of evangelism I can't do that.
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All right next word number five took longer than I thought but that's alright number five lordship
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One of the words that I want to fight for is lordship Let's go to Matthew excuse me Mark chapter 8 for those of you that want verse -by -verse exposition.
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I'll give you some right now This is the lordship of Christ Jesus Matthew excuse me
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Mark chapter 8 I've been in Matthew so long. I keep saying it every time I think of Mark here. We go to this go gospel.
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It's fast It's action if you ever meet an unbeliever, and you say hey you should read your Bible sometime
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You should say to them Why don't you read the book of Mark? Because it just shows Christ in his glory and his fame and when you read it
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You just sit back and say that is the most amazing person I've ever seen in the history of the world this
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God man is amazing in Mark chapter 8 we dive right in as God shows Peter who he is and Then we see what the response is when you know who
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God is then there's a response and it's all about lordship Jesus is Lord and that's who
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God made him and here's a wonderful passage Mark 8 verse 27 here God is going to show
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Peter about his son Jesus went out Mark 8 27 along with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi and On the way he questioned his disciples saying who do people say that I am and that is the eternal question, isn't it?
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that is the question that everybody must answer the question of the ages and Here we have close by Caesarea Philippi a place where they would worship the false
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God Fred you've been there a couple times. Remember that false God that they worship right there by Caesarea Philippi Do you remember the name of that false
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God? pan Remember pan is who they worshipped right there the
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Roman God of the fields and of nature Who do people say that I am and they told him verse 28 saying
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John the Baptist Elijah one of the prophets Ask modern scholars ask other people
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I wonder what they would say but back to point verse 29 and he continued by questioning them saying but who do you say that?
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I am Peter answered and said and here we go thou art the Christ Jesus I want to know who you say he is very emphatic pronoun
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You're the ones who have seen me who've been with me intimately I've taught you you've walked behind me
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Peter the spokesperson for the twelve says you are the Christ You are the son of the
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Living God Then he does something
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I'd never do verse 30 And he warned them to tell no one about him warned is the word ordered.
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I order you you can't tell anybody about who I am They're gonna try to make me into some kind of political hero and right now is not the time for them for you on the inside Circle, yes, but I'm ordering you not to tell anyone that I am the
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Messiah It was a stern order and now there's gonna be a prediction of the passion verse 31 and he began to teach them that the
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Son of God must suffer many things be Rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed and after three days rise again
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He says the Messiah is not this political Messiah that everybody else believes and I don't want you to believe in him either
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This Messiah I must suffer I'm going to be rejected. I'm gonna be killed and I'm gonna be raised from the dead and Then we have the passage that every time you read it you think
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I can't believe this is happening verse 32 And he was stating the matter plainly
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Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him Jesus wasn't speaking in a veiled allegory or some kind of parable or some kind of illusion
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Don't really kind of get your point. Here's the point a plus B equals C and Jesus you're gonna die.
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I can't take that and Peter does the unthinkable When Jesus rebukes a demon that same word to rebuke the demon is used by Peter to rebuke
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Jesus But turning around and seeing his disciples here.
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He rebuked Peter and said There's a lot of things, you know, you want to hear God say to you, but this isn't one of them get behind me
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Satan For you are not setting your mind your mental disposition
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Is not on God's interests but on man's One man said he went from a straight -a student to putting on the dunce cap in just about a moment
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Satan opposes Jesus's sacrificial death Peter now is basically in the same campus
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Satan Satan doesn't want Jesus to redeem people and to die a substitutionary death on Calvary and now
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Peter's saying the same thing Glory no suffering. That's Satan's mo
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God's mo is suffering turns in to glory and out of that here comes these demands for discipleship our lordship
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Linked together who he is and if you know who he is, you have to be willing to follow him
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Costly difficult hard the stakes are high Not like Churchill when he said blood sweat and tears
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Not like Garibaldi when he said soldiers all our efforts against superiors forces have been unavailing
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I have nothing to offer you but a hunger thirst hardship and death. It's even worse than that Three demands from Jesus.
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I call him three spiritual gut checks Demand number one the person that wants to follow
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Christ must deny himself and these all Say Jesus is Lord the person that wants to follow
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Christ must deny himself that goes for everybody in this room verse 34 and He summoned the multitude with his disciples and said to them if anyone
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Wishes to come after me Let him deny himself take up his cross and follow me
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By the way, this is not self -denial like Lent what do people do burn for Lent?
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I'll never forget it we're downstairs at our house and we have some neighbors who have come over once in a while and He came over this young man very innocently and and we offered him some food and some snacks and he said no
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I gave that up for Lent Then he said what'd you give up for Lent? I Said I decided to eat more stuff for Lent just because Just because the
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Bible says if you receive things with Thanksgiving 1st Timothy chapter 4 says it's all good to eat
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And when people start telling you can't touch things and you can't taste things that doesn't have anything to do with Christianity This is not giving something up This is denying who you are all your plans all your dreams all your five -year plans ten -year plans
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This is an asceticism. This is no to self. This isn't an option. By the way, this is an imperative
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No exceptions. This isn't a time. This isn't a season This is you say no to self denial of self renounce self
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And it's a decisive thing. It's it's an aorist imperative.
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It is to deny with decisiveness At all costs. I'm going down with the ship for Jesus.
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By the way, this is exact opposite of What we talked about this morning instead of affirming self and esteeming self and promoting self and having you at the agenda at the top
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Of the agenda of self. No, it's all gone. Not self -esteem. Not self -worth. Not self -interest.
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It's all gone and Who could ever do this unless God was working in their hearts?
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Being a disciple. I'm sitting on the throne. I can't sit on the throne anymore and you say yeah
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But how far should I be willing to take the self -denial? There's got to be some kind of degree
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I don't want to go too far. Oh, yeah number two demand number two Not only must you deny yourself demand number two
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If you know Jesus is the Christ if you know, he's the only Savior if you know, he's the substitutionary
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Lamb for sinners then it's not just a one degree thing This is second degree the person who wants to be a disciple of Christ.
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Jesus must take up his cross It might cost you death It's not just deny self, but it's deny self all the way to death.
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Do you see the text? Must deny himself and take up his cross by the way, that is not a nagging spouse
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That is you know, I got a cross to bear. I mean I read this all the time. I got a cross to bury
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That's my it's my wife It's my husband I'm burying my cross or sometimes people will say it's some kind of irritation in your life or some kind of physical ailment
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Physical ailments are real, but that's not what Jesus is talking about here Everybody knew back in these days cross equals what if you're an
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English major? This word is set in apposition to this word cross and what what would be the word our words?
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When you thought of cross back in those days, you would think of one thing and one thing only and that is what? Capital Punishment that's exactly what you would think of death
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Up to the point of death if God sees fit show me someone says, you know, I'll follow Jesus for all the good stuff
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They don't understand what Jesus said when he said he was the Messiah and if you understand he's a
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Messiah You're in it for good. You're in it to the end It's gonna cost you everything or it might cost you anything one man translated like this
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If anyone wishes to come after me let him be prepared to be led out to public execution following my example
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Let them be willing to go to Jerusalem in a procession of condemned criminals with halters around their neck
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They knew what it was Abandoned all earthly hopes when you knew you're gonna get crucified
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What did you do? What did you say to your family? What did you try to plan? So after you were dead, maybe they could do
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X Y & Z But one things for sure, you knew if you're gonna be crucified it was over all hope gone
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They knew what was at the end of the road The broad sense of cross -bearing for the
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Christian is whatever God gives us the narrow sense is up to death Are you willing to follow Christ up to death and demand number three the third demand
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Jesus is Messiah Self up to death number three Person who loves
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Jesus must be willing to follow him. Are you willing to follow him? By the way, this is interesting word. This is in Mark chapter 8 present tense.
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Keep on Following I ask people all the time when I want to know if they really believe
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God or not They really trust in Christ Jesus believe can mean anything Savingly not savingly demon faith non -demon faith saving faith.
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I just ask people this Do you believe Jesus Christ enough to follow him because that's what a true disciple is
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Do you believe Jesus enough to come after him and look at these reasons?
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He gives the demands verse 35 Look at the first reason for whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it
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But whoever loses his life for my sake and the Gospels shall Save it in other words.
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Let's read it this way verse 35 for whoever wishes to save his life Physically or temporally shall lose it
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Eternally, but whoever loses his life Temporarily by living for Christ for my sake and the gospel sake shall save it eternally
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I'm gonna read that again for whoever wishes to save his life Physically or temporally shall lose it eternally, but whoever loses his life
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Temporarily by living for Christ for my sake and the gospel shall save it eternally.
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Recklessly abandoning your life for Christ Jesus. Gaining eternal life. That's the first reason.
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The second reason is found in verse 36. It's reasonable. It's useful. It's profitable.
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Question, for what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his whole soul?
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Forfeit his soul? Nothing. No profit. It's not useful at all.
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What does it benefit? It doesn't benefit anyone. If you gain
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Christ, the flip side is true. Reason number three. Salvation can't be purchased with anything.
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Verse 37. For what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? Answer? Nothing.
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You can't give anything for it. You can't buy eternal life. And reason number four.
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There are serious consequences. Verse 38. Whoever is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the
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Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.
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One man said Satan promises you glory, but in the end you receive suffering. God promises you suffering, but in the end that suffering is transformed into glory.
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Who preaches by the way like that? God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life, including suffering like the suffering servant.
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I'm glad Mark doesn't end there. You'll have to read what happens after that.
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Alright, just a few more things. Let me give you a few words that I'm going to fight against. Alright? I can tell some of you are sleeping and getting tired and kind of fading off, so let's just throw a firecracker in the middle of the room and see what happens.
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Words that I'm going to fight against. Okay? I'm going to fight against this word. Tolerance. Why would
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I fight against the word tolerance? Now there's a good nuance and a bad nuance, but for tonight
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I'm going to maybe just talk about the bad nuance. I'm going to just say that I'll fight against the word tolerance.
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Who can give me a definition of tolerance? By the way, don't be too tolerant when you give that definition. What's a good definition of tolerance?
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That is the watchword of today. You gotta be tolerant. Tolerance. Who can tell me what tolerance is?
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Okay, Brian, give it a shot. Okay, good.
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Patience with somebody else's view. Alright. Anybody else? Okay. Not offend.
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Good. Scott? Ecumenical comes to mind. Okay. I think
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I heard a sermon recently about that whole religious partnership thing. Oh yeah, that was this morning. That was this morning.
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That's right. I got one of the definitions from answers .com.
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Here's a definition of tolerance. I'm going to be very kind as I read this.
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Very loving. The capacity for are the practice of recognizing and respecting the beliefs or practices of others.
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You're to respect the practices or beliefs, the religious beliefs of others.
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Now my question for you, congregation, is should you respect the beliefs of Islam?
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Now, should you respect the beliefs of Moonies? Should you respect the beliefs of evolutionists?
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Should you respect the beliefs of any other non -Christian religion? What would you say?
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Should you respect them? Now, notice that intolerance is not saying
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I should not respect the people, but what about the belief system? I like this.
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In our age of tolerance, moral relativism is touted as the supreme virtue.
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Every philosophy, idea, and faith system has equal merit, says the relativist, and is worthy of equal respect.
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Those who favor one faith system over another are even worse, claim a knowledge of absolute truth, are considered narrow -minded, unenlightened, or even bigoted.
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So, I ask you again, should you respect the religious beliefs of someone else?
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Are you sure? Are you going to be a fundamentalist kind of bigot or something? Okay, how would we do that?
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I mean, two opposing truths, or things claiming to be truth, can't be true.
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For instance, it's appointed for men once to die, Hebrews 9 .27. Someone else who's an
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Eastern person, with Eastern religion, believes in reincarnation. Are they both true?
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They both can't be true. The capacity for our practice of recognizing and respecting the beliefs of practices of others.
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Now, listen, I used to be a pagan. I used to be a secular humanist.
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I used to be all these other kind of things, and I am now the recipient of the grace of God. So, I'm not better than the other people, and I don't want to come across as I'm better.
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But I have been saved, and been given the charge to contend for the faith, and to give a reason, and to give an answer. And I want to tell them, and I want to proclaim to them the truth.
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Turn with me to 2 Corinthians chapter 10, and I'll show you why it's a battle for the mind. I will dispute and dialogue over these doctrines, and I'm willing to say
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I am right, and they are wrong. I'm not gonna disregard the people, and say horrible things in an ad hominem fashion, but I'm not going to give their belief system that damns people to hell worthy, equal respect.
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I'm not gonna do it. So, you probably don't want to invite me to that big family party that you're gonna have this
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Christmas, but that's okay. 2 Corinthians chapter 10, diving right in here, parachuting in, here's
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Paul, talking about the thoughts that we're after. I'm not after trying to tell people that they've got, you know, problems, personal problems, but I will attack these thoughts, and these ideologies, and everything that's in you that wants to do it a certain way,
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Paul tries to correct, to do it not with intuition, but with godly wisdom. 2 Corinthians chapter 10, verse 3, for though we walk in the flesh, we don't wage war according to the flesh.
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We live in the world, we have our bodies, but we don't have a certain kind of strategy that goes along with the world's ways, or the world's methods.
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Why? Verse 4, don't forget what we're doing here. It's not the person who believes in Islam, it's not the homosexual, it's not anyone else, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but are divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.
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We have warfare, we have a strategy, is the Greek word, and that strategy has to use the right tool, and the right weapon.
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If we don't use the right weapons, it's going to be like Patton's tanks against the
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Panzers, our kind of pea shooters against the tanks. What is the weapon? The truth of God, and how do we go about using the truth of God?
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Verse 5, by the way, when you read this verse, Paul wants you to go for the kill.
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He doesn't want you to shoot the knees, shoot the feet, hamstring the person, he wants you to go for the jugular.
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Look at how he goes for the jugular. How do we fight? With what do we fight?
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Who are we fighting against? We are destroying speculations. These are imaginations, these are reasonings.
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It's what people think about as they reckon and think. We have to destroy those, and every lofty thing, all these high things, it's like a military high tower.
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Except here it's thoughts. Every thought, basically, that's against the knowledge of God, and we're taking every thought captive for the obedience of Christ.
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We are after people's minds, and their thoughts, and their opinions, and you want to take prisoners of war, and what are those prisoners of war?
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Thoughts. That's a military metaphor all the way. Their thoughts are sinful, their thoughts are defiant, their thoughts are mutinous, and we want to take them and throw them into jail.
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Not the people, but their thoughts. How about Arkane Hughes when he said, unless it is cast down by the gospel of God's grace in Christ Jesus, his tower becomes his tomb.
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If you think we ought to tolerate Islam that is in direct opposition to Christianity, you need to rethink what
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Paul says in 2 Corinthians chapter 10. If you think we should tolerate open sin in other people's lives, homosexuals, we ought not to do that.
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We ought to love them, but tolerance doesn't mean accept as a belief system, nor does it mean celebrate.
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How about this? I think I've got you. If you don't agree with me on any of this, I think I've got you right here.
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Ready? Should you tolerate sin in your own lives? Why would you tolerate sin in someone else's lives?
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You're not going to be the theological police for them, but this whole idea of tolerance and everything to coexist is going to drive you away from evangelism.
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I have to leave them alone, I don't want to offend them. Listen, Christianity is going to offend them. We want to be kind and nice.
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Jesus ate with sinners, but he didn't confirm them in their sin, did he? He didn't celebrate their sin.
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We don't want to tolerate sin in our own lives, and we don't want to tolerate sin in some system that will damn them.
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Alright, well, I think I've pretty much done, as I said to Isaac this morning.
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You were in my seminary class, and that wasn't really verse -by -verse exposition, but do as I say, not as I do.
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So you're not supposed to say at the end of a sermon, I'm pretty much done. That would be a bad way to end a sermon. I think
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I'm done. I'm cooked, my brain is fried, I have other ones, universalism, sin, and the list goes on and on, but I think
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I'm pretty much done. That's a way never to end a sermon. We ought not to run around and every time someone says something, bash their faces with our words, but we ought to be very sly and very wise that when people say things, and they say things over and over that are wrong biblically, we ought to be men enough and women enough to say, but I know the truth.
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Your friends will tell you the truth, and you are not a friend to your other so -called friends if you won't stand up for the truth.
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We can be strengthened in grace, and we can tell people what the truth is. And my biggest fear in life, well, maybe that's hyperbole, but I want people to like me, and when
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I open my big fat mouth, the opposite happens. Sometimes it's because I say it in a wrong way, but more often than not,
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I say it in a very nice way. Even this week, I said to one of my friends, he's a very powerful thinker, high
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IQ, he's one of the smartest guys I went to school with, he's not saved, and I told him that people that stand up to defend a certain kind of faith,
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I said they're farcical, I said it doesn't matter, there's only one faith, and he wrote back to me a verse from Matthew, and he called me a hypocrite, and he called me what
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Jesus called unbelievers, and everything in me wanted me to get on that phone and smash his words.
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I thought, you know what, take it easy, be calm, this guy's a pagan, I want to act in a godly way, but I'm going to have to address it.
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It's not very often, let's see if I can even find the verse, not very often I get called this, called a variety of things, but he called, he quoted this verse to me, when
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I said not everybody who believes in some god that's not Jesus is going to heaven. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you shut off the kingdom of heaven from people, for you do not enter it yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering it to go in.
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And he said, you're just like a Pharisee who says, no, you can't come to the kingdom of God, and I thought, I'm doing the exact opposite, and I wanted to just smash the guy.
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Then I waited, and sometimes it's not good to email right away, by the way.
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If you don't know this lesson, it's wise not to hit reply, right away.
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You should learn that lesson. So I just waited, and then
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I said, number one, that was inappropriate. Number two, what does that verse mean?
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And number three, tell me exactly how you get to heaven. And he wrote back, and he said, you know, when
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I sent that message, I thought it was inappropriate after a little while, and I want to take it back and say, sorry. I was so glad I didn't bust the guy with my fists through my words.
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We have to tell people the truth. We have to stand up and fight, and I don't like it that they don't like me.
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I don't like it that my neighbors think that I'm just a weirdo. I like it when everybody thinks
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Rhonda is now a weirdo. Remember from the baptism this morning? But we know the truth, and if we have friends that believe the wrong things, they are going to die, and that or God is going to use someone like you to open their eyes.
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And I just think we ought to be men and women enough to stand up and say, it might cost us something, but I'm a man who's looking backwards anyway.
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No, I'm a man who's looking forward, and who am I? If all my friends don't like me, I guess that was a good lesson.
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I started with my mother, I'll end with my mother. She said, Mike, it took me to be 40 years old to figure out that not everybody in the world liked me.
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Let me ask you this in closing. Are you willing to lose a friend because you told them the truth?
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And if you are, you understand who Jesus is and what the demands of discipleship are. All right, let's pray.
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Thank you, Lord, for this night. We come with grateful hearts knowing that we deserve hell 50 times over.
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I've thought so many times in my life that I should have died as an unbeliever, and then what would have happened?
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But your grace and your mercy keeps the elect alive long enough to believe, and we were recipients of that.
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And so, Lord, we'd ask that you'd help us not to be fighters for no reason, but that we would stand up for the truth.
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Lord, when we act cowardly, we know we're not relying on your grace, and we would ask that you'd help us to stand up for the truth and to not be ashamed of your son.
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And, Lord, many people that we know in our families, many people in our neighborhood, you've given us entree into their lives.
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So now help us to be bold enough to tell people the truth, speaking the truth in love.