Unity — Roy Daniel

Good morning. If you'll excuse me, my voice is slightly gone. It's wonderful to stand up for the last time here in this short time. I'd just like to say thank you first. I really appreciate that I could come over here.

I'd like to thank Ezra and Brandon and Timothy and everybody in the church for all that you've done. And I really, really, really, really appreciate it. I'm not very good with words in thanking people, but from my heart, I don't deserve it, and I appreciate from my heart that you organized this as you felt led.

Also, my daddy said on the phone this morning, he said I must thank everybody, and he's looking greatly forward to coming over here. And he said something else, but I can't remember. But it was perhaps important.

I love my dad. He's one of those jewels as a father to me anyway. I love him, and I love him, and my mom gets very irritated when I say to her, you're the best mom I ever had. But I mean it from my heart.

I've yet to find a better mom, but until I look around the world and make absolutely certain, I just tell her she's the best I ever had. And I'm sure she sends greetings as well. Before I start with my sermon, this morning when I woke up, I wrote down a few thoughts, and this isn't to do with my sermon, but I'd like to mention them, because they might help some of you.

I'm sorry I missed the meeting last night. I heard it was wonderful, and I'm supposed to get the tape and listen to the tape, I suppose five times. But I don't know what Timothy preached, but everybody says it was wonderful, and that's blessed.

I listened to Brandon and Timothy. I think they should really take that idea of touring and get on the bus and go. I don't know how it works practically, but they should do that. And the thing I'd like to share before I come over to my sermon is this.

Guarding Against Legalism and Liberalism

Well, I'll come to the point after a thought. You know, the devil loves extremes. I was amazed when I read through a book of church history. I like small books, but it was a smaller book of church history from year 01 probably to about 1800s, and how again and again the devil, he would either get people totally involved in one side or totally involved in the other side of extremes.

And at some times it was extremely interesting how the church, they were scared in one extreme, and so they swung over to the other extreme as the answer to that. And the devil loves that. And you must be wary.

Some people are going to legalism of a thousand, thousand rules, and when they eventually realize that it's wrong and they come out of that, they do the opposite. They're going to liberalism of anything goes.

And that has happened. And I'd just like to talk about failing in your Christian walk, how God can forgive and forget in a moment after you've failed if you ask for forgiveness. I just had a thought this morning on that.

Failing in your Christian walk, how God can forgive and forget in a moment if you ask Him. And I'd like to be careful here. Very careful. Because some people when they read of Paul's grace, he speaks of grace and grace and grace, they come to the point where they think God has got so much grace that sin is actually not such a terrifying thing.

Sin is not a terrifying thing. And in fact, some of them say we might as well accept that we're just going to sin a lot in our lives, and therefore, and good will come of that. Good will come of that.

And that's not the Bible which I read before I come to the balance on the other side of grace. Romans 3 verse 8. This is the Bible I read. And not rather as we be slanderously reported and as some affirm that we say, says Paul, let us do evil that good may come.

What's Paul saying? Yeah, he says whose damnation is just. He's saying these people are looking at this grace I'm talking about, and they're saying, Paul is saying we can do evil and good will come of it.

And throughout the ages, people have fallen for that. Grace has been such a wonderful thing it becomes an umbrella. And I can take out my umbrella of grace and I can go around sinning. And it doesn't matter.

God can't see me. Sin is not a terrifying thing. And if I look at Gethsemane, if I want to know how terrifying sin is before I come to why God can forgive you in a moment anyway. I just look at Gethsemane where Jesus, he who knew no sin became sin.

He who knew no sin became sin. And he looked in that cup. And in that cup, I believe he, that was the point where he became sin. He who knew no sin. And what happened? No one had hit him. No one had hurt him.

But blood began to fall onto the ground. Because he was a purer eyes than to even behold sin. Sin is a terrifying, terrifying, terrifying, terrifying thing. That's the reason why so many people are going to hell is sin.

Grace That Teaches Righteous Living

Titus 2 verse 11. This is the grace I read of in the Bible. For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world.

That's the grace that Paul teaches. Romans 12 verse 9 says,. Let your love be without dissimilation. That means in English, sincere. Abhor that which is evil. Cleave to that which is good. 1 John 1 verse 6 says,.

In 1 John he says,. If we say that we have fellowship with him and walk in darkness, we lie and do not the truth. And why did he write that? He said why I wrote this. My little children, I write these things unto you, that ye sin not.

And I'd like to say, I believe God. When he says there's a great victory in Christ Jesus concerning sin. When he says in Corinthians, I thank God always which always doth cause me to be victorious in Christ Jesus.

That's the God I serve. And I love him for that. But, he goes on. And at that point I'd like to say, you must always seek this. Seek victory in Christ Jesus. There is a victory. Don't be satisfied with the everyday sinning life.

Where you're failing every day. I can guarantee you, I know there is a victory in Christ Jesus. Which is wonderful. But then he goes on and says, If any man sin. Not when. God says there is a way out of temptation.

But if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father. And that Greek word just means a person who's near. It's not that it's not a calamity when you sin. It's not that it's not wrong. It's not that it isn't a problem.

But he's near. He's running to help you in your problem. An advocate. Who died for you. And paid for every sin that you ever committed. So I'd like to come back to that question. What happens if we fail?

In our Christian world? Sin is kind of a calamity. But God is a glorious answer. And I'd like to say a little story. When I was a child, I did third level first aid. That doesn't mean anything. They teach you how to do everything.

Help people dying, whatever. Childbirth. And all I can remember after about a month is that you must put ice on everywhere where it's sore. So don't ask me to help you. And I remember I went to school and they decided that everybody had done this course of first aid.

We had to go. And when they were playing these sports games, yeah, I suppose they do it with helmets. And there they just tackle each other. And I've seen people with their jaws hanging out and he wants to go back on the field.

I don't know, it's almost barbarian. And I remember one day, it was one of my first times that I was ever doing this first aid. And there was a person called Charlie Bongo. He was a black person in Africa.

And he was with me and he just finished his course and I'd finished my course. And we had these lovely radios that we could call the ambulance. And if anybody, the doctor, if there was help, it was a big sporting thing.

And I stood there and this person came off the field and he had a sore finger. He had a sore finger. And Charlie Bongo, who was with me, we were supposed to be a team, a big, big, I wouldn't say fat, but he was very big, fellow with his big white teeth, he said, it's an emergency.

Call the ambulance. And I thought he was joking. But he wasn't. He thought this finger was the worst thing that ever happened in his entire life. And he got out of there. I said, stop, please. Of course, a good name is rather to be had than many things the Bible says.

But my name was also at stake, yeah. And he started, it's an emergency, crisis, bring the ambulance on this radio. And luckily, the lady on the other side asked him what was wrong and he kind of told her, and he got into big trouble for that.

But I was just amazed, someone, he looked a little intelligent. Before that happened, I wondered. And it's true that we can overdo things. We can overdo things. And there's a verse in the Bible, before I bring a little illustration, just the end of this thought.

Forgiving the Repentant Without Overwhelming Sorrow

It's those 2 Corinthians 2 verse 7. So the contrary wise, this is a person who's failed. I mentioned it to Brandon yesterday. So the contrary wise, you should rather to forgive him. This is someone who's penitent.

He's sorry over where he failed greatly in his Christian walk. And comfort him, lest perhaps such a one should be swallowed up with overmuch sorrow. You know, I've met many people who are swallowed up with overmuch sorrow.

They fail and then for a long time they go into darkness and they're swallowed up with overmuch sorrow and they think they've lost everything that God ever did for them in that moment. And I don't believe that.

You know, from my own life, I remember a time when I was in Africa. It was a few years back. And I was at my grandfather's farm and I'd been going through a time of about three months where God was working in His mercy.

And it was wonderful. The communion that I had with God. And it was precious like a diamond that I didn't want to lose. And I remember there on the farm I stood one day and I failed. I failed. And I was down.

Oh, I was terrifyingly down. I felt terrifying. I thought I'd lost everything that God had done. He would forgive me but he wouldn't restore to me immediately what all that he was doing through me and so on.

And then I went up that hill with my daddy. My daddy is a wonderful person. He walks up hills faster than me probably. And we were walking up this hill and I remember at first I was down. Oh, I was down.

And he did what this verse says. It says, rather you should forgive him and comfort him lest such one should be swallowed. He started to comfort me. He said, St. Royce, you're not so bad. You're smiling and so on.

And after a while I didn't get comforted. I just went on. And I'm being honest with you today for a reason. My dad eventually turned around at a moment. And I've rarely seen my dad so serious. I stood still.

My daddy looked down at me and he said, Roy! And I don't hear my daddy shouting. He said, Roy! Don't crucify yourself! Don't give up! Get up! I said, yeah. And the amazing thing is I got up and I asked the Lord to forgive me.

And it was all the same again. Everything was back. I found after that God didn't take anything away. And my dad taught me a lesson. Well, this is what I thought, but my dad used to speak about this. Hebrews 4, verse 16.

He says, Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in times of need. Now, if you fail, and I know people have had great problems with this, there's a few things the devil will do.

And before I mention these, I'd just like to say one of the things you're trying to do is to say to you that you must come later. You can't come now. You can't come now. Number two, he'll want you to have amazing feelings so that you know you're forgiven.

Instead of just standing upon God's word, he'll tell you that God will forgive you, but he won't forget. He won't trust you like he trusted you before. And my dad said for this word, Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in times of need.

He said, God says come boldly. Come now. He doesn't say come brazenly as if you've done nothing wrong. You have done wrong. But come now. And God will forgive and forget in a moment so that you won't even remember what you did.

Come now. And just leave it behind you. There's two things the devil wants to do. He wants to get you down. Number one, he wants to make you fail. My little children, I write these things unto you that you sin not.

And the devil wants you to sin, not the Lord. But if any man sin, the second thing the devil wants to do is he wants to keep you down. He wants to get you into a hole. Oh, I've failed. Now everything's over.

Now I've got to wash the dishes for six weeks. What Brendan said. And so it comes that people are swallowed up with overmuch sorrow. And the reason I say it because I've met many, many, many people who don't go through little darkness.

They go through great darkness after they've failed. Great darkness that they didn't have to go through because it wasn't right. But now there's a Saviour, Jesus Christ, an Advocate who's waiting to forgive you and forget and trust you again.

If you turn, he said, 70 times 7, you must forgive. Well, if he told it that we must do that, then he'll also do it. If you turn, it says, that's my God. And I'm glad he did that because I'm not one who hasn't failed.

I've failed quite a few times. But, I can testify to the victory in Christ Jesus has been wonderful. Wonderful. And constant. Not that every day you have to fail at all. Okay. Now I'm going over to my sermon.

I'm sorry, that's terrifying. I probably preached twice today. But, I felt like that when I woke up. You must forgive me. Let us pray. Father, thank you so much for thy word. Thank you for thy grace. Thy love.

Thy holiness. That you're not one-sided, Lord, but that there is great grace to those who need it and who want it and are sorry. And Father, I ask today that you'll be present. This is the last meeting I'm preaching.

Father, I need you every meeting I ever preach. In every part of my day, I need thy grace. And I ask for thy presence now. You said, what God is like unto our God is near unto us in all things. Near unto us in all things which we call upon you for.

Cain, Abel, and the Test of Brotherly Love

And I call upon you now to be near, Lord. I ask you to be near in thy mercy. In Jesus Christ's name. Amen. You know, I often thought, I often thought of Cain and Abel when, now I've never had a wife, obviously, but when Eve had Cain in her hands for the first time, this little baby child had come out of her, and she was holding this baby for the first time, she'd never, ever, ever seen a little child before.

She'd never, ever, ever seen a little child before. And there these little, tiny, wonderful fingers were wriggling at her. And the little eyes were poking themselves out at her. And Pratchett sneezed and coughed, and the little cute belly button was sitting right over there.

And you know, this little baby was in her hand, and man, she must have been proud. I can't remember the word she said, the Lord has given me a man. Wow. And I wonder if it could have come into her greatest, into her wildest imagination, if it could have come into her wildest imagination that this cute, little, cuddly child that she was holding in her hand was going to become the first murderer that the world would ever know.

I wonder if that could have passed through her mind as she looked at this cute, little, wonderful little child, that this child was going to become the first murderer that the world had ever known. In 1 John 3, it says, for this is the message that you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another, not as Cain, not as Cain, who was of that wicked one and slew his brother, and wherefore slew him, because his own works were wicked, and his brother's righteous.

Mother, not my brethren, if the world hates you, we know that we are passed from death unto life if we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death. Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer, and we know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.

Hereby perceive we the love of God, because He laid down His life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. What an amazing verse, hereby. I wonder if you've pondered over that verse.

Hereby perceive we the love of God, because He laid down His life for us, and so ought we to lay down our lives for the brethren. But whoso hath of this world's good and seeth his brother of need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?

My little children, it does not love in word, neither in tongue, but in deed, and in truth. What is God saying here? Not as Cain. Cain, one day, went to a field. He was jealous of his brother that his offering was not accepted, and his brother's wife.

And he took up a stone or something, and he physically killed his brother. And here God says that we should love, not as Cain. My little children, it does not love in word, neither in tongue, but in deed, and in truth.

What is God saying here? He's saying, apart from it being a test of your salvation in the first place, He's saying, just as Cain showed his hate, just as Cain showed his hate, by his deeds, by physically picking up a stone or something and smiting his brother dead, so we ought to show our love, but by words, by our deeds.

Unity as a Spiritual Weapon

My little children, it does not love in word, neither in tongue, but in deed, and in truth. We ought to, says the Bible, lay down our lives for the brethren. You know, the devil knows our precious is unity.

The devil knows our precious is unity. But Christians often forget. Christians often forget. Let me ask you a question. How did Gideon, with just 300 men and a few clay pots, a great army, take on over 100 ,000 Midianites, and they won?

Well, if you read your Bible, the Midianites fought among each other. How did Jonathan and his servant take on a great Philistine garrison and achieve victory over that great, just two men? Well, read in the Bible that the Philistine garrison fought among each other.

How did Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, when the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir came, this great mass of people, you know, Jehoshaphat had over 100 ,000 people in his own army, and yet he said the words, we have no might against this great company.

How did it come that the next day when he came down into the camp, there was no one alive? And they could just take the spoil. Well, we read that Mount Seir, Ammon and Moab rose up against Mount Seir and destroyed them, and then Moab rose up against Ammon and destroyed them.

Prayer Meetings Destroyed by Debate and Division

They destroyed each other. You see, the devil knows, I mean, he knows history. The importance of unity. But Christians often forget. Now, I was there in Africa, and Rudy Fonseau, he's a student, an ex-policeman, came out of the world, but after he was saved, he said a very sad thing happened.

He talked of how near his home in up South Africa, somewhere, there had been a prayer meeting, a wonderful prayer meeting where people came together and they sought the presence of God, and God was using that prayer meeting.

Sad how few people pray nowadays, truly. And then he said something very sad, he said a sad thing happened there, a very, very sad thing. He said instead of praying for the whole time, they started to have about five minutes at the beginning to talk.

And he said that time of talking became times of debating. And that time of debating became angry arguments. And that wonderful prayer group split up. And there was only a few people left praying in that prayer group.

You see, the devil knows the importance of unity. But Christians often forget. In the Khamtus Valley then, my grandpa's farm, it's wonderful to hear how much of my family was saved in a great movement of God.

There was conviction of sin. Many of the African people were streaming to God in brokenness. The white people too, the farmers. They ploughed in the tobacco. It was wonderful. They burned up what they had.

They turned to God. But you know, I often wondered when I preached and came then to that little valley, how was it? How was it that revival stopped? How was it that revival stopped? And I think the answer is in a little hill, smaller than this patch of white out there.

If you look there in that little hill, there's about 11 churches. 11 churches. Oh, they fought about this little thing, and they split. They fought about that, and then they split. You see, the devil knows the importance of unity, but Christians often forget.

Humility, Purity, and Practical Unity

Spurgeon said that unity is so important that it's like when two goats come up onto a log across a river, and they've got a problem. Like me, they weren't looking where they were going. And they say, oh, there's someone in front of me.

And they can't go back because they're too clumsy with their legs, they'll fall in. And they can't go forward because there's two of them. So nature has taught them. Nature has taught them that the one must bend down and allow the other one to trample over them so that they can both get to the other side.

And unity is so important that sometimes when it's just a matter, not something important, but just a matter of doctrinal, something of the will, that we must bend down and allow the other to trample over.

Of course, we don't have to bend down to sin. The Bible doesn't teach that. James 3 verse 17 says, for the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable. First pure, then peaceable. So first comes purity.

But maybe you say we are unified. I'm not saying we're not. We come together every week in the same building. We sing. Well, imagine George W. Bush woke up a few years back when William Carey was, I don't know how you pronounce his name, was canvassing against him.

And he woke up and he had this revelation. And he picked up the phone and he phoned William Carey and he said, William Carey, I've had a revelation. What's that, George Bush? We're unified. We come together in the same building every so often.

And we talk to each other. The Senate. Well, I think William Carey would either laugh or say something else. But the thing is, we must not just be together. The Bible says we must lay down our lives one for another.

Christlike Love as the Mark of Discipleship

We must lay down our lives for the brethren. And this must be practical, not just in words. People must be able to see it. It does not love word, neither in tongue, but in deed and in truth. John 13 verse 33 to 35 says, Little children, yet a little while, I am with you.

You shall seek me, and as I said unto you, the Jews, with I go, you cannot come. So now I say to you, a new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, as I have loved you. That you also love one another.

By this, shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have loved one for another. What is God saying here? Little children, yet a little while, I am with you. You shall seek me, and as I said unto the Jews, with I go, you cannot come.

God is saying, Jesus is saying, I am going now. I am going. And no longer can people see that you are my disciples, by you physically walking after me, and following me. No. The only way that they are going to be able to see that you are my disciples, is if you have my love one for another.

My love one for another. He does not say about this by going to church, or by singing, or by reading your Bible only, or by giving out tracts that people will know that you are my disciples. I have met unsaved people, running down the streets giving out tracts.

No, people must be able to see Christ's love in you, one for another. It amazes me, I think the second century Christians, they so loved each other, they so laid down their lives, one for another. It is someone that started with the T, I can't remember his name.

He wrote, the heathens say, look how those Christians love one another. Look how those Christians love one another. Isn't that wonderful? You know, I don't know about you, but there is something that irritates me sometimes.

And that is when I go into a lift, it is an elevator in America. You get in that lift, and nobody talks. And I was in Africa once, and I was going to see a lawyer up in the fifth story of some building.

And I remember coming to this, parking my car outside, coming inside, signing the security guards, something or other. And I saw this lift, and I had to go to the fourth floor or something. We pressed the button, the lift opened, we went inside, there was about six, seven people.

And we stood. And what generally happens is you stand, and you stand, and you stand, and eventually the door opens, and you leave. And this irritated me very much, to the point that I thought, no, this is getting too much.

So I turned around, and I said, hello, my name is Roy. And they were silent. And then suddenly, everybody was saying, hello, my name is Beatrice, and Pogongoulis, and John. So that was wonderful. Everybody knows who everybody is.

Communication and Comfort Within the Church

One of the persons said, we don't normally do this, we didn't grow up this way. But you know what I think? Christians often forget to communicate. To communicate. You know, the principal of our college in South Africa is a wonderful, wonderful man.

I look up to him as a person who seeks the Lord, Mr. Myberg. And he, he went through more fires than most people on earth have gone. And that's hard to say, because many people have gone through very hard fires.

But he's been through many fires. And I remember him standing up in front of our students, when I was a student a few years back. And he looked at us and he said, you know, there was a time when I was going through great fires.

And I know what those fires were, he didn't say what they were, but I knew. And he said, no one talked to me about it. No one comforted me. He said, once I was lying in the bath. Lying in the bath. And somebody, suddenly, the telephone rang.

And I don't know how the telephone was in the bath, don't ask me. But he picked up that telephone, he said he was in the bath. And some old man, he didn't know very well, said, Mr. Myberg, I just want to tell you that I'm praying for you.

I just want to tell you that I'm praying for you. He said, I burst into tears that someone actually dared or thought to phone me to tell me I'm praying for you. Hebrews 13 verse 16 says, but to do good, and to communicate, forget not.

For with such sacrifices, the Lord God is well pleased. I don't know if you've noticed that verse before, but to do good, and to communicate, forget not. For with such sacrifices, the Lord God is well pleased.

I was in a town called Middleburg in South Africa. And there was a minister, there was about 90 congregations connected together across South Africa in this certain church. And there his wife was literally every day dying in hospital, getting worse and worse.

And he himself was getting sick and going through terrifying times. And do you know what he said? Not one of those 90 ministers, not one, not one evangelical minister ever phoned me to comfort me. And they all knew about it.

But to do good, and to communicate, forget not. For with such sacrifices, God is well pleased. Do you know the only reason that God ever comforts you? Read about it in 2 Corinthians 1 verse 4, who comforted us in all our tribulation, that we may be able, this is the reason, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble by the comfort whereby we ourselves are comforted.

That's the reason you get comforted, is so that you can phone someone and comfort him. That's what God says in the Bible I read. And it's a sacrifice, says the Bible, which God is well pleased in. Paul was comforted by the coming of Titus with communication from the church.

Sacrificial Love That Gives Itself Away

Now when I was at Bible college, I know a young pair of people who were on fire for God and loved each other with a great and wonderful love. They used to call them David and Jonathan, because they so loved each other and so were on fire and so went out on the weekends just to seek souls.

And what is wonderful about this love is it was a peculiar love, a peculiar love. I remember one day one of them couldn't afford a bus ticket to go and see his mother. And the other one of these two, he had a guitar.

And I happen to know that this guitar was his pride and joy. It was what he'd saved up for. Some people had helped him also at one stage eventually to get this guitar. And he couldn't easily ever afford another guitar.

But when he heard that his friend needed a bus ticket to go home, he didn't tell him. He got in the car with another person and he went down to the second hand shop and for a little bit of the price he sold that guitar.

He came back and he made sure his friend got it, got that bus ticket. He said, that's going a bit too far. Wasn't it a peculiar love? Jesus laid down his life for us. And the Bible says, so ought we, so ought we, so ought we to lay down our lives for the brethren.

Love That Makes the Gospel Visible

These two people went to a farm where people were. And they, as usual, were trying to win everybody for the Lord. But, and I met this woman. They were going on there and a lady they met. They didn't speak to her, they just said a few words to her.

Well, they spoke to her and that's it, but they said a few words to a group of people. They didn't speak to her individually. You know, a few months later, I was there as well with this woman. And she stood there and she said, you know, she had a piece in her eyes.

She talked about throwing away drink and smoking and everything and turning to God. She said, there's two things I remember about you two. There's two things I remember. The one was that one of you said, I know where I'm going if I die.

And I didn't know. She said, the other thing was the love that you had won for another. The other thing was the love that you had won for another. And she had turned to God. She brought other people to the Lord.

People who were, they used to call lions. They were so cruel. Do you believe that verse? Ye are and shall men know that ye are my disciples. If you have love one for another. I know a very old man and I love this old man.

He's 91 years old. And I met him when he was about 89, just before his 90th birthday. He wanted me to come. And he was a wonderful man in the sense that when he was younger, God used him in revival. More people came to the Lord in one city's prisons through this man than any other man, they say.