Jesus: the Master Encourager (Part 2)

No Compromise Radio

Subscribe

Download

Share

00

00:12

Welcome to No Compromise Radio Ministry, where sometimes we even sing.

00:19

I sang a little bit at the Pactum Conference, the 2024 Pactum Conference put on by Pat Abenderoth and Omaha Bible Church, and Fesco and Van Droonen were in the congregation.

00:30

I still sing. I know this list is wrap up the show right now.

00:36

So, met a lot of old friends there, made some new friends.

00:44

The weird thing is at 64 years old, I'm kind of one of the older people. When I'm preaching,

00:49

I don't feel old. When I wake up in the morning, I feel old. But anyway, you can write me, mike at nocompromiseradio .com.

00:57

I'm working on a book, parenting, might want to pray that I could just be motivated to finish that thing before I die.

01:06

My aortic aneurysm, I have a scan next, I don't know, six weeks from now, see if it got any bigger from last year.

01:14

Hopefully it didn't. If it didn't, carry on. When it gets much bigger, I think they have to do something, so we'll see.

01:20

It's the latest saga. I think I have four lives left, five have already been used. So, prostate cancer,

01:28

COVID, 16 days in the hospital, anaphylactic response to hazelnuts in the

01:35

Czech Republic after the ER, leukemia, there's four at least,

01:41

I don't know, there's an aortic aneurysm, five, what's the next one?

01:48

I have a little book and it talks about the hymn for the ineffective Christian, come thou fount of every blessing, give me what

01:59

I want today, entertainment never ceasing, paths of comfort line my way.

02:07

All right, I'm not going to be able to get these next ones. Teach me some, no, sorry, teach me nothing that will make me grow.

02:14

I want to stay right where I am, true meat comes from your word

02:19

I do know, but I crave spiritual spam. I'm laughing at both of my singing and the content of that song.

02:32

I try hard to lead a good life, I recycle, clean my feet. I buy presents for my good wife, help old ladies across the street.

02:41

I have quit my game of poker, and I'm trusting you'll be glad. My life is so mediocre, but I'm really not that bad.

02:56

O to self, how much I'm focused, daily I'm constrained to be.

03:02

You give manna, I choose locust, and the world revolves around me, prone to squander, love so infinite, to forget my loving

03:12

Lord. Take an hour, no, take two minutes, that's all I can afford.

03:22

I'm purposely banging the table, I usually don't purposely do it. What I need is some kind of background music or something, that would have been better.

03:32

You know how they sing Hallelujah a bunch of times? Hallelujah, hallelujah.

03:39

You can sing Ineffective eight times too. Anyway, that's

03:47

Mike Gabendroth, No Compromise Radio Ministry. That's all we got going on here today.

03:54

You can write me, mike at nocompromiseradio .com. You can tell your friends about NOCO, then you won't have friends, you'll have more people to evangelize.

04:05

What's going on today with the show? As I told my brother, sometimes we just start the show and we just see where it takes us.

04:13

And Pat's different than I am because he actually tries. He spends hours on his show and it shows, that's what he does.

04:22

Speaking of conferences, I think the best conference I've been to lately has been the Pactum Conference, excellent, 2025, maybe you can register now.

04:29

I just got sent something from someone, and I don't know when this conference is, but you can go on to the tickets .blazemediaevents

04:44

and buy tickets to go to this conference September 28th for a $1 ,000

04:55

VIP package. You can join Allie, Beth, Stucky, and Candace Cameron Bure for dinner, and then you can join them for breakfast,

05:04

VIP seating and parking, tote bag, and VIP lanyard. That's something

05:11

I always wanted was a lanyard. I've saved a lot of lanyards over the years. You never know when you might need a lanyard.

05:18

If I was in Survivor or Alone, I just got done watching season three, I believe, of Alone on Tubi TV, and maybe they could use the lanyard or two when they're trying to catch a fish.

05:32

That guy almost got the fox, but the fox, as they say, outfoxed him, outsmarted him.

05:38

For $5 ,000, too bad I missed this, I could have saved up my money from the

05:44

Pactum thing and I could have just gone to this. For $5 ,000, I hope this is a joke, but I don't think it is, premium all access package, enjoy backstage access throughout the event.

05:55

Well, we always want that. Dinner with Allie Beth Stuckey and Candace Cameron Bure, VIP parking.

06:08

Oh, so $1 ,000, you just get to have dinner with them and breakfast. For $5 ,000, you get backstage access throughout the entire event.

06:16

Well, I don't know about you, but when I'm doing a conference, I don't really want other people backstage, all our people doing equipping women with clarity, courage, and conviction.

06:35

I just got sent the link, share the arrows event, Allie Beth Stuckey, Prestonwood Baptist Church.

06:42

Of course, $150 to get in, 500 for the breakfast package, so I forgot that.

06:49

I did a show recently about Elyse Fitzpatrick and how crazy it was what her riders were.

06:56

I think the one had, have to have tap water and a glass only on the pulpit or on the teaching stand and no plastic bottles.

07:04

Those hurt you, make sounds. I guess

07:15

I could say grifter. I guess I could say other things, but probably ought not to.

07:23

Mike Abendroth, No Compromise Radio Ministry, seven minutes in, what have I said? I don't think I've said much. Let's continue our series,

07:30

Jesus the Encourager. Now, lots of times you'll read somewhere on the plane, Luke 6, somewhere on the mount,

07:35

Matthew 5, that was weird.

07:43

I don't know why that just happened. I tried to clear my voice. I hit the mute button. Something else happened.

07:49

Spencer, take that out, would you please? Thanks. The master encourager,

07:57

Jesus, is equipping his apostles to go out and do the difficult work of ministry, and that's

08:04

Luke 6. It's not an evangelistic call. He's saying you're going to get persecuted for the Son of Man. They're already believers.

08:10

He's saying that there's going to be a reward in heaven. These are going to be for believers. He's saying this to his disciples.

08:17

He's just called out the 12, not called out in a negative way. He's called the 12 out of the group, and he's given a couple of them kind of new names, and they're going to go do the work of ministry.

08:27

It's difficult. So now Jesus, with a divine proclamation, promise, declaration, says you're blessed.

08:35

There's four blessings and four woes. Another synonym for a blessing is wheel,

08:42

W -E -A -L, not W -H -E -E -L, like a wheel on the bus goes round and round, but W -E -A -L, wheels and woes.

08:50

And so we have four of each, and Jesus is giving these blessed statements to his disciples to encourage them.

08:59

Jesus, the master encourager. So he said, if you're poor, yours is the kingdom. Blessed are those who are poor, and poor people are dependent upon the

09:07

Lord. And so for earthly things, tangible things, food, healthcare, all kinds of things, you're dependent on the

09:17

Lord. If you're rich, you don't have anybody else to go to. And of course, for all of us, in a spiritual sense, figurative sense, any way to get to heaven, it's going to have to be by grace.

09:28

And so we're dependent on God, and we're poor in spirit, as Matthew 5 would say. And it works out so that we realize what we're going to need is sovereign grace and a blessing of God, from God, through Christ Jesus, by the power of the

09:42

Holy Spirit. So the second one is, blessed are you who are hungry now, for you shall be satisfied.

09:48

So real blessing is dependence upon God. That's verse 20.

09:53

Now he's saying real blessing is trusting for all your provisions, trusting

10:00

God for all your provisions. Hungry now will be satisfied.

10:09

Well, it's interesting. You're hungry now, okay? I'm sure the disciples who went out, the apostles did ministry, they had some real hunger.

10:19

But there's also a spiritual hunger. That's what Matthew would be talking about. And so the one who can satisfy any hunger, physically or spiritually, is going to be the

10:31

Lord. You're blessed people, and you'll respond with that kind of attitude.

10:40

People approved by God, trusting in the Lord Jesus, they realize He's the only one that completely satisfies.

10:47

We're empty without the Lord. And even if we are satisfied with food through we work, get money, go to the grocery store, take it home and prepare it, it's still ultimately from the

11:01

Lord. And you might be hungry now, but there's a time you'll never hunger. And obviously, that's talking about heaven.

11:09

There's going to be a satisfaction one day, a complete satisfaction. And people talk about four stages of world history, and it'd be creation, fall, redemption, and what's the last one?

11:21

Consummation. And in glory, when everything is done, you're never going to thirst again.

11:30

You're never going to be hungry again. You will be satisfied. I think that's a good way to describe heaven, is satisfaction.

11:41

The Belgic Confession 37 says, The faithful and elect shall be crowned with glory and honor, and the

11:47

Son of God will confess their names before God, His Father, and His elect angels. All tears shall be wiped from their eyes, and their cause, which is now condemned by many judges and magistrates, as heretical and impious, just like the prophets that would get persecuted.

12:05

You can think about Luke 6 comments and Matthew 5 comments. Will then be known to be the cause of the

12:14

Son of God. And for a gracious reward, the Lord will cause them to possess such a glory as never entered into the heart of man to conceive.

12:22

Therefore we expect that great day with the most ardent desire, to the end that we may fully enjoy the promises of God in Christ Jesus our

12:29

Lord. Amen. Even so, come Lord Jesus. Satisfaction, for sure, reminds me when it comes to hunger and satisfaction and thirsting as well.

12:44

Jesus said to the woman at the well, Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give will never be thirsty again.

12:51

The water that I give him, will give him, will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life. And then three chapters later in John chapter 7, on the last day of the feast, the great day,

13:02

Jesus stood up and cried out, If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.

13:13

So hunger satisfied, thirst satisfied. It was Blaise Pascal that talked about the infinite abyss that can only be filled by an infinite and immutable object.

13:23

That is to say only by God himself and everybody is born wanting and longing and yearning and hungering for something, someone transcendent.

13:36

And we know who that someone is. And then there's this great satisfaction, eating one's filled, eating one's filled.

13:46

I'm looking ahead at my notes, eating one's fill. That's a weird thing in English anyway, isn't it?

13:54

Eating one's fill. You eat so much you're full.

14:02

Eating one's fill, F -I -L -L, Psalm 107, for God has satisfied the thirsty soul and the hungry soul he has filled with what is good.

14:19

Psalm 34, the young lions do lack and suffer hunger, but they who seek the Lord shall not be in want of any good thing.

14:30

Well, Jesus goes on to continue to show what real blessing is and encourage people in gospel ministry.

14:38

Verse 21, blessed are you who weep now, this is the third blessing, the third wheel, W -E -A -L, for you shall laugh.

14:48

Blessed are you who weep now. So these disciples are going out, going to do the Lord's work, great commission work, obviously, preaching, casting out demons.

14:58

That's what Mark says that they were doing, Mark chapter three, and they're going to be weeping now.

15:04

You say, well, why were they weeping? Because of their own sins as they were going out?

15:10

Certainly, we could weep because of our own sins. That's right there, against you and you only have

15:15

I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, David said in Matthew 51. But I think the other thing, they're going out there and they're going to see the effects of sin.

15:25

And they're going to see what sin does and how it ravishes, how it makes people stupid, what just the disaster of sin.

15:33

And they're going to be sad about it. You're out doing ministry. You're going to be sad about it. Jude 15, the deeds of ungodliness, which the ungodly have committed in such an ungodly manner.

15:43

I hope that doesn't make you happy. As a matter of fact, I know it doesn't. How awful sin is, it makes you sad, makes you weep.

15:56

And I hope you say, not just because of what it does to people, but because how it dishonors God and how it doesn't give

16:03

Him glory. Daniel chapter 9, O Lord, hear,

16:08

O Lord, forgive, O Lord, hearken and do, defer not for thine own sake, O my God, because thy city and thy people are called by thy name.

16:19

You're going to mourn for sin, but you're going to laugh. What? Well, you're going to laugh one day.

16:27

Some people call this a divine passive. God's going to give you laughter. God's going to console you.

16:35

God's going to give you joy. When people came back to Zion, Psalm 126, when the

16:41

Lord restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dream. Then our mouth was filled with laughter and our tongue with shouts of joy.

16:48

Then they said among nations, the Lord has done great things for them. The Lord has done great things for us.

16:54

We are glad. Restore our fortunes, O Lord, like the streams in the Negev.

16:59

Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy. He who goes out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.

17:11

Bringing in the sheaves, bringing in the sheaves. Oh, I already sang of the show, sorry. Blessed, you're going to laugh.

17:20

You're going to have joy. You're going to cheer God, the great God who forgives, who pardons, who guides, who protects.

17:30

This God is angers but for a moment and his favors for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes in the morning.

17:43

Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of his inheritance?

17:50

He who does not retain his anger forever because he delights in steadfast love. He will again have compassion on us.

17:56

He will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. You will show faithfulness to Jacob and steadfast love to Abraham as you have sworn to our fathers from the days of old.

18:07

God, that's what you're going to do. And one day, the consummation, the great second coming, eternal state, there's going to be nothing but joy, joy, joy, joy down in everyone's heart.

18:21

Wow. This is a world of weeping. Doesn't mean we can't have some laughter now and probably, you know, the disciples laughed.

18:30

I'm sure they did. But the ultimate salvation called glorification, can you imagine?

18:41

Revelation 7, for the lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd and he will guide them to springs of living water and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.

18:53

Revelation 21, he will wipe away every tear from their eyes and death shall be no more.

18:59

Neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain anymore for the former things have passed away.

19:06

You dear Christian, you're going to laugh one day. It might be awful now. I think

19:11

Johnny Erickson taught a wheelchair 60 years or something like that. I don't know how old she was when she hurt her neck, but I think she's 74 now.

19:19

So let's just say 60 years or so. She's going to be laughing. I mean, I'm sure she's had some laughing now, but while there's a present comfort, certainly a peace, a joy, the eternal comfort is going to be something.

19:37

It'll be something. That's what they say. On this mountain, Isaiah 25, the

19:44

Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well -aged wine, of rich food, full of marrow, of aged wine, well -refined, and he will swallow up on this mountain, the covering that is cast over all peoples, the veil that has spread over all nations.

20:00

He will swallow up death forever and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth for the

20:09

Lord has spoken. It will be said on that day, behold, this is our God. We've waited for him that he might save us.

20:15

This is the Lord. We've waited for him. Let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation for the hand of the

20:22

Lord will rest on this mountain and Moab shall be trampled down in his place. A straw is trampled down in a dunghill.

20:29

He will spread out his hands in the midst of it as a swimmer spreads his hands to swim, but the

20:35

Lord will lay low his pompous pride together with the skill of his hands and the high fortifications of his walls.

20:41

He will bring down, lay low and cast to the ground to the dust, lamenting, wailing.

20:52

One day, tears gone, grief gone, joy.

20:59

I think that's pretty good. I'm happy about that, aren't you? Blessing doesn't mean happy, but I'm happy.

21:06

The last one that Jesus encourages them with, which we can be encouraged with as well, the fourth wheel, the fourth blessing, it's in Luke 6, 22, blessed are you when people hate you and when they exclude you and revile you and spurn your name as evil, not just for just because you're dumb, not just because I do something foolish, but on account of the son of man, rejoice in that day, leap for joy, behold, reward in heaven is great for so their fathers did to the prophets.

21:36

This is persecution for righteousness sake, persecution because of Jesus. And Paul will later say, for I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us, right?

21:52

Paul will go on to say for this light momentary affliction in 2 Corinthians 4 is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison as we look not to the things that are seen, but the things that are unseen.

22:06

For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. Some say, now this is the paradoxical one.

22:15

You know, when you're persecuted, you're blessed. When you're hated, you're blessed. When you're ostracized, you can, you know, shout for joy and leap and jump around.

22:25

Now for most of us, we're not like we're in China or in the Middle East in a Muslim country where there's real persecution.

22:33

Most of the persecution we have now is by words. But Spurgeon said persecution of the tongue is more common, but not less cruel than that of the hand.

22:45

It does hurt. And there are people that have lost their jobs because of their Christian testimony and that hurts.

22:50

But if it's for the sake of the Son of Man, you're blessed.

22:58

When they persecute you, they're really persecuting Jesus. Remember Saul? Saul saw, why are you persecuting me?

23:06

And he said, who are you, Lord? And I am Jesus whom you're persecuting, right? Persecuting the church, but it's really

23:11

Jesus, really persecuting Jesus. And so the response is, be glad and leap.

23:19

Those are the two commands. Be glad and leap, because there's going to be a reward that's wonderful in heaven.

23:29

1 Peter 1 says, It's an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

23:42

In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you've been grieved by various trials.

23:50

And all this after this testing, it may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

24:01

Fathers used to treat the prophets the same way, and this is just the same old thing. Sermon on the plain, here

24:07

Luke 6, maybe it's the same as Sermon on the Mount. Same discourse, they're delivered two different times, it doesn't matter to me, but Matthew 5 .10

24:15

does say, Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you.

24:26

Here's the key, because of me, Jesus said, rejoice and be glad for your reward in heaven is great, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

24:35

You can see how similar these things are. And when you're persecuted for these things, what do you do?

24:42

You leap, you're glad. Remember the jailer? And he brought them into his house and set food before them and rejoiced greatly, having believed in God with his whole household.

24:55

1 Peter 4, to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of his glory you may result.

25:07

I'm trying so hard, I have like three minutes to go, and I just was hoping to make it through, just hoping, but I just quite couldn't do it, couldn't quite do it.

25:18

But to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of his glory you may rejoice with exaltation.

25:29

By no means let any of you suffer as a murderer or thief or evildoer or troublesome meddler.

25:35

But if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not feel ashamed, but in that name, let him glorify

25:41

God. I made it. I made it on No Compromise Radio Ministry.

25:49

Mike Abinath, NOCO Radio, Duplex Gratia Radio. I love it that Jesus is the master encourager.

25:58

P .S. Do you need encouragement? What a friend you have in Jesus. Are you discouraged?

26:06

Why don't you take it to the Lord in prayer? Do you say, well, nobody in my life seems to encourage me?

26:12

The ministry that I have that I've been given at the church or that I ask for, just unknown. Nobody sees me.

26:18

Nobody ever says thank you. Nobody ever says, attaboy. Kim said somebody always would say to her, attaboy, girl.

26:27

Nobody ever says that. Well, the Lord knows, and if there's anything that you need, you can take it to the

26:39

Lord. You can ask him. You can say, Lord, help me to be more content without encouragement.

26:44

Thank you for the encouragement you've given me. You've equipped me. You've given me spiritual gifts, everything

26:49

I need for gospel ministry. I have. I have the Word of God. I have the Spirit of God. I can say yes to ministry.

26:55

I can say yes to ongoing ministry. Thank you that I'm not having to get martyred for ministry and more.

27:03

My name is Mike Abenroth, No Compromise Radio Ministry. Don't forget, if you want to order some books, cancer books, gospel assurance books, sexual fidelity books,

27:13

Discovering Colossians book. By the way, if you want a book to go through, like a Bible book, very, very easy commentary to read through with discussion questions,

27:23

Discovering Colossians by S. Lewis Johnson. I think you'll like it. Mike Abenroth, No Co -Radio.