Lord's Day Worship (May 17, 2020)

Worship Songs and Call to Gather

Stand with us. Water you turned into wine. Open the eyes of the blind. There's no one like you. The darkness you shine. The ashes we rise. There's no one like you. Stronger God. You are higher other. Our God is healer awesome and power.

You turned into wine. Eyes of the blind there's no one. The darkness you shine. Ashes we rise. There's no one. None is greater stronger God. You are higher than healer awesome and power our God. If I God is for us then who could ever stop us.

And if I God is with us then what could stand against. God is for us then who could ever stop us. And if I God is with us then what could stand again. What could stand again is greater stronger God. You are higher than our God.

Is healer awesome and power our God. Amen. And good morning. And welcome to Sovereign Grace Family Church. I want to invite you to be seated as brother. Mike comes forward and he's going to open our worship this morning with a reading from God's Word.

Reading Romans 16 and Recapping the Book of Romans

We have been reading through the New Testament and today we're reading in Romans 16. There is no Roman 17 so that screen is that. That screen is incorrect. There is no Roman 17. It's Roman 16 that we're going to be reading.

From today we're closing this book so I wanted to quick recap. I'm not gonna preach a sermon but I'll make it quick. Chapter 1 we verses 1 through 17 we had the exaltation of the gospel. Verses. Chapter 1 verses 18.

Through the end of chapter 3 we had the condemnation of men before God and the righteousness of God being revealed. Chapters 4 5 we had the justification by faith and its results of that justification.

Verse. Chapter 6 through 8 you have the believers identity in Christ. In 9 through 11 you have election and reprobation. Chapter 12 we have the the call for Paul for us to be living sacrifices. Chapter 13 it is our submission to the governing authorities.

14 is issues of conscience conscience and Christian charity. And chapter 15 would have been last week with self-denial encouragement and I don't know if y 'all caught this. Paul's reason for writing this last week or as Andy read was for him to raise money to go to preach the gospel in Spain.

And we get to the last chapter and it's going to be Paul's expressed love to the Saints and I'll pick up in chapter 16 verse 1. I commend to you our sister Phoebe who is a servant of the church which is at Kent Ria that you receive her in the Lord and maintain worthy of the Saints and that you help her and whatever matter she may need of from you for she herself has been a helper of many and of myself as well.

Greet Priscilla and Aquila my fellow workers in Christ Jesus who for my life risked their own necks to whom not only do I give thanks but also the churches of the Gentiles also greet the churches that are in houses.

Greet a Panagiotis my beloved who is a who is the first convert to Christ from Asia. Greet Mary who worked hard for you. Greet Andronikos and Junius my kinsmen and fellow prisoners who are outstanding among the Apostles who also were in Christ before me.

Greet Amplitius my beloved in the Lord. Greet Urbanus our fellow worker in Christ and Stychus my beloved. Greet Apellas the approved in Christ. Greet those who are of the household or of Aristobulus. Greet Herodian my kinsmen.

Greet those of the household of Narcissus who are in the Lord. Greet Triphenea and Trophus the workers also in the Lord. Greet Perseus the beloved who worked hard for us in the Lord. Greet Rufus a choice man of the Lord also his mother and mine.

Greet Acinonycritus, Philegon, Hermas, Petrobus, Hermes and the brethren also who are with them. Greet Phililogos, Julia, Marius and his sister Olympias and all the Saints who are with them. Greet one another with a holy kiss.

All the churches of Christ greet you now. I urge you brethren keep your eye on those who cause dissension and hindrances contrary to the teaching which you have learned and turn away from them for such men are slaves not of our Lord Jesus but are of their own appetites and by their own smooth and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting for the report of our obedience has reached to you all.

Therefore I'm rejoicing over you but I want you to be wise and what is good and innocent and what is evil. The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

Timothy my fellow worker greet you. And so does Lucius and Jason and says a Pater my kinsman Taratius who write this letter greet you in the Lord Gaius host to me and to the whole church greet you. Erastus the city treasurer greet you quartus the brother.

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Now to him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ according to the revelation of the mystery which has been kept secret for long ages past but is now manifested by the scriptures of the prophets according to the commandment of the eternal God has been made known to all nations leading to obedience of faith to the only true and wise God through Jesus Christ to be the glory forever.

Amen. Amen. What a wonderful.

Passage. And what a wonderful reminder of the importance of greeting the brethren. Isn't it wonderful that we can be together and greet one another this morning. Well we're gonna stand again and we're gonna sing.

This is an old hymn it's a it's an old hymn that was brought back into a more of a modern praise chorus. But I want you to encourage you to stand and sing with us now as we sing this this hymn together.

Depth of Mercy and the Call to Give Cheerfully

Depth of mercy. Can there be mercy still reserve for me. Can my God your wrath forbear me the chief of sinners. It's my only hope. You're my only hope. It's my only hope of heaven. The cross forgiven and I have long with stood your grace long provoked you to your face.

Would not harken to your cause. Grieve you by a thousand falls. It's my only hope. You're my only hope. It's my own above heaven at the cross forgiven either save your sins. Shows his wounds and spreads his hands.

Face the depth of mercy vast and free so much deeper than the sea. God of love you heard my cry. Now into your own side. It's my only hope. You're my only. It's my only hope of heaven. My it's my. At this time we're going to invite anyone who has brought with them today an offering that they would like to give rather than passing the plates we're going to invite you to actually come and drop the offerings into the plates.

We have two plates at the front one on either end of our table. We have one near this back door and one near that back door. So as we sing this next praise song this is a newer praise song. Some of you may not have heard this before.

So I encourage you if you if you have difficulty with it we're gonna sing through it twice. So just sing as best you can. And and while we're singing we invite you to come and give our offerings. As the word of God tells us each of us should give what we have decided in our heart to give not reluctantly or under compulsion for God loves a cheerful giver.

Let us give. Why should I fear man when you made the heavens. Why should I be afraid when you put the stars in play. Why should I lose heart when I know how great you are. Why should I give up when your plans are full of love.

In this world you will have trouble but you have overcome the world. Shine better than the brightest stars. Your is pure or is taught to shine and strain. Why should I fear man. Ate the heavenly afraid the stars.

Why should I lose heart. How great you are. Why should I give up when your plans are full of love. Trouble. You have overcome the world than the brightest star. Oh you're than the shine a switch and strain to follow.

Shine brighter than the brightest star. Oh you're than the purest. With courage and strain. Amen. You may be seated. And at this time I'll invite Brother Andy to come. And he's going to lead us in our.

Corporate Prayer, Submission, and the Hope of Christ's Return

Time of corporate prayer. It's good to see everyone couldn't help but think as brother Mike was reading the final chapter of Romans. How so many people would say that Paul was some dry theologian. And and and yet you read that chapter and and you see how his heart's desire was to greet the brethren and I say it's good to see everyone here this morning.

And now as we as a people as a body have the great privilege and the great responsibility to come before our God together. So with that let us prepare our hearts and come before the great and glorious God of truth.

Oh our great and glorious God. Again we come to you in Jesus name. Not only Lord do we consider the name of Jesus but the name of Jesus as it pertains to his person and his work. That he so loved us that he gave himself for us.

We thank you Lord for saving our souls. We confess Lord how often we take that for granted. That you have shown mercy to us when you are not obligated to show mercy to any. And as we were dead in sin as we were willfully rebellious to you.

You came you arrested us you turned us. You gave us life Lord. You put new hearts within us. You gave us new desires. You gave us a new principle of life. Oh God. Thank you that you did not leave us to our own selves.

That you've had mercy on us. And in that we have become the adopted sons and daughters of the living and true God. And we shall be with you forevermore. Oh God may our understanding of that truth grow more and more unto that day.

May we see the things of this world fade more and more. May the things of yet what is yet to come become more desire and anticipation on our part Lord. That we would not be weighed down with the affairs of this life.

And we would not be ignorant of the Lord but we would not be overtaken. We would see the Lord Jesus Christ as he will one day come with all his holy angels. And then every nation and tribe and kindred and tongue will stand before him and and he shall be exalted and admired.

And he shall separate the sheep from the goats. The sheep will be gathered to be with him forevermore. And the goats will be dispensed to that great place of torment. Thank you all God that we can pray.

Thank you that we know that you hear our prayer. That you are not a God of wood or a God of stone. But you who made the eye shall you not see. And you who made the ear shall you not hear. We thank you our Lord this day that we can gather.

We thank you the Lord even that we live in a state that has allowed us to gather. We thank you Lord that you have ordained governments and authorities and powers even as we anticipate this morning as brother Keith would bring a message concerning governments and authorities and powers and rulers.

And and Lord they're all your servants. Everything serves you. God help us this morning as your people to know even as all the Jesus Christ taught to render on the Caesar the things that are Caesar's and to render unto God the things that are God's and help us to discern Lord where that works out in our lives.

That we would not be rebellious and that we would be submissive and yet in that Lord that we would be even as those three men Shadrach Meshach and Abednego that when they were threatened with with fire when they were threatened with with torture because they would not bow to to the graven image.

And and they said whether or not you delivered them they would still serve you. Thank you all Lord that you are still who you have always been the great and glorious God. Be what I sick this morning. Be with.

Be with those that are hurting Lord help us to minister to one another. Be with Sharon as she continues to to seek to recover. Be with Adam. Be with that family. Be with the others that are sick. Be with Chuck's mom Lord so many issues that we have in our own lives the physical and Lord the spiritual as well the emotional.

Help us this morning as your people to to be those who will submit to your word those that will follow your instruction. That we would not be proud and rebellious but that we would be humble and that we would submit willfully and willingly to the Lordship of Christ in our lives.

Thank you again Lord for this day. Be your brother Keith. Be with our thoughts this morning and all God change us. Change us. Help us to be more like the Son of God. Help us to be more like Jesus. Help us to be living epistles known and read.

And that when men see us they would see even just the mere beginnings of the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. Bless us this morning. Bless our prayers but our thoughts and make you be glorified this morning.

And all that we.

Say and do in Jesus name I want to invite you to take out your Bibles and turn with me to the 13th chapter of the book of Romans and hold your place at verse 1. Romans 13 verse 1. Most of us who were alive remember with great clarity what we were doing on the morning of September 11th 2001 I was working in a bread truck.

I had just delivered some bread to publics and had been told that a plane had hit the twin towers and it wasn't too long later that I heard that the second had hit. It was a day that was etched into the minds of most of us and the images have been seared into our memories.

But one particular memory for me regarding this event was that it became the first time that I would ever preach a sermon. I've been saved for a few years. I've been working here at the church with young people and our pastor who had been many weeks earlier in a car accident had been unable to preach and so they needed someone to preach.

Tom Watts came to me who was an elder at the time and he asked if I would preach the sermon. I knew that this was a time when the people of God were looking for answers. The pain of a national tragedy was fresh in our minds.

Many were scared that worse attacks would be on the way. Others were angry that such a terrible plot could be perpetrated. They were demanding retributive justice and so I prayed God give me what you want me to preach.

And I ended up preaching on the same passage that I'm gonna preach on this morning. This passage is Paul's explanation of the role and responsibility of government in 2001 I focused on the responsibility of the government to enact vengeance on evildoers.

And this passage says that I knew we were likely headed for a very difficult season of war and so I called on our people to pray for our leaders. Today is almost 20 years later if you can imagine and I want to look at this passage again and I'm doing so because we are at a time of unprecedented change in our country over the past several months things that seemed unimaginable just a year ago have come to pass.

The government for better or for worse has had a huge part to play in these changes. And the question that I want us to ask today is how should we respond. How should the church respond. How should the individual Christian respond.

How should we respond to the demands of government. How should we react when it seems to be that there is an overreach of power. How should we behave when injustice is being perpetrated against our neighbors.

How should we react to the governing authorities. I hope to show that there is an unbalanced understanding on both sides. And when we fall into unbalanced understandings that leads us into grievous error.

So I want to invite you again to open your Bibles if you haven't already and turn to 13 Romans 13 verse 1. And I want to invite you to stand. We stand when we prepare to study a passage we want to focus our minds and our attentions upon the word we're going to read verses 1 through 7.

The title of today's messages church and state let every person be subject to govern to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God. And those that exist have been instituted by God.

Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed in those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority.

Then do what is good and you will receive his approval. For he is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong be afraid for he does not bear the sword in vain for he is the servant of God. An avenger who carries out wrath God's wrath on the wrongdoer.

Therefore one must be in subjection not only to avoid God's wrath but also for the sake of conscience. For because of this you also pay taxes. For the authorities are ministers of God attending to this very thing.

Pay to all what is due or rather the ESV pay to all what is owed to them. Taxes to whom taxes are owed. Revenue to whom revenue is owed. Respect to whom respect is owed. Honor to whom honor is owed. Father in heaven.

As I pray as I preach I pray that you would keep me from error for Lord God. I know that I'm a fallible man and capable of preaching here. I thank you Lord already that your Holy Spirit is here and I thank you Lord that your Holy Spirit is ultimately the teacher.

And I pray that he would teach hearts that he would open up minds and ears. And Lord God that at the preaching of your word that you would be glorified. We pray this in Jesus name. Please be seated. Bring my trusty friend up.

I'm trying to make it where everyone can see. As you all know my my instinct is to teach even when I preach. And so this morning you're gonna get a little bit of that because I think it's necessary to understand what it is we're going to be talking about.

God has established three spheres of authority in this world. Understanding these three spheres of authority is essential for the believer because these are not spheres of authority that man has produced.

These are spheres of authority that God has established. And no it's not the judicial the executive. And that's not what I'm talking about. Came come up three branches of government. It's not my notes.

I don't know it. It's not the judicial the executive and the legislative. Yes thank you. That's not what I'm talking about. The three spheres of authority that God has established is first the home. The second is the church and the final is the state.

Now one might argue there's also an individual authority every every man has the ability and the right to self-govern in a sense he has to make decisions. And so you could say there's a fourth where every man has to decide for himself what he's gonna do.

In every man has a certain amount of authority over his own body his own life. But for the sense of what I'm talking about today I'm talking about spheres of government that God has established. The first fear of government that God has established is the government in the home.

The father in the home stands in a position of primary authority and responsibility. His wife and children both are called to submit to his authority. He is called to protect them to provide for them and to pastor them.

Every home stands as sort of a miniature government. In fact it has been recognized even in secular writings that the family is the smallest unit of government in a society and it is a building block upon which all the rest of society is built.

So the home stands as an established sphere of government. The next is the church. We might not consider the church is a sphere of authority but the Bible certainly does. The church has a responsibility in the lives of believers to exhort to correct and even to discipline its members.

The church also has a prophetic voice in the world. We call all men to repentance even men and authority over us in the state. The head of the church is Christ. The governing document of the church is the Bible.

The elders are God's appointed leaders responsible to teach and lead from the Bible. The deacons are God's appointed ministers responsible to care for the members of the church. And the members themselves are responsible as citizens of the church to use their gifts and service to God and to one another.

Therefore the church functions as sort of a miniature government. And then we have the state and people say well when did the concept of the state actually begin. Well I would argue that the concept of men governing other men goes all the way back to Genesis.

When Noah came off of the ark he was given the first form of governmental procedure that we see in the scriptures. Genesis chapter 9 and verse 6 Noah is told this by God whoever sheds the blood of man by man shall his blood be shed for God made man in his own image.

In that we have the Constitution and the institution of capital punishment the most basic form of retributive justice. If you kill someone maliciously and with the intent to murder them then you have forfeited your life because you have attacked an image bearer of God and therefore you have sacrificed yourself.

You have forfeited your right to life. But who would enact this justice. Moreover who would be the person. How would the person be tried. How would the person be found guilty or innocent. This would require a position of authority a government to ensure justice there.

So we therefore we can say government was instituted as far back as the time of Noah and it has evolved over the eons into various forms of government. And now when we look out into the world we see various ways that men govern themselves.

But we understand this that the Bible tells us that governing authorities have been instituted by God. That's what Romans 13 says. It says that the governing authorities have been instituted by God meaning that God has placed them where they are and he has placed them there for a purpose.

Now all three spheres of authority are instituted by God the home the state and the church. And all three of them are liable to corruption. The home can become corrupt amen. The father can shirk his duties and his responsibilities.

The mother can seek to usurp the responsibilities and role of the father. The children can rebel against their parents. And we can see families that become corrupt. And therefore that miniature government can become a corrupt government if it doesn't function properly.

Likewise within the church. Within the church we see pastors misuse their pulpits and abuse their congregations. We see congregations mistreat their pastors and abuse one another. We see false doctrines perpetuated finances mishandled and ministries neglected.

The church can become corrupt. That's the one that's hard to amen. But we ought to and the state without a doubt experiences various levels of corruption. People with positions of power abuse their power as I have often said from this pulpit power corrupts.

And what absolute power corrupts absolutely. Citizens can also become corrupt refusing to submit to even the most reasonable legal standards. The weak become exploited the powerful become untouchable and injustice becomes commonplace in a corrupt government.

However even within the possibility of corruption the Bible calls Christians to be obedient in all three spheres in the home if you want verses for this Ephesians chapter 6 verse 1. Children obey your parents in the Lord.

That's a command from God. Ephesians 5 22. Wives submit to your husbands as to the Lord. There's one that everyone loves to hear but yet it's there and it tells us there is a authoritative structure in the home and we're called to submit in that authoritative structure.

Likewise in the church did you know that the church is called to submission to the leaders. It says in Hebrews 13 17. Obey your leaders and submit to them. For they are keeping watch over your souls as those who have to give account.

Let them do this with joy and not with groaning for that would be of no advantage to you. You realize church. That's your responsibility to the elders. Your responsibility to the elders is to listen to them understand that they're seeking to manage in and shepherd your souls.

And they should do that with joy and not with grief. And oftentimes it's not that way but that's the call right. That's the call of submission. And likewise we have a call of submission in the government.

We've already read Romans 13 one let every person be subject to the governing authorities. But there is the same almost the exact same wording in first Peter. So it's interesting this is one of those times when Peter and Paul are both in complete lockstep agreement on something and they say it in almost the exact same way first Peter chapter 2 verse 13.

Be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution whether it be to the Emperor as supreme or to the governor's assent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good. For this is the will of God that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people.

Live as people who are free not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil but living as servants of God. Honor everyone. Love the brethren. Fear God. Honor the Emperor. Now remember this is the same Emperor who would eventually put Peter to death.

When Paul says submit to the governing authorities. This is the same governing authorities that would eventually behead him. That kind of puts it into a interesting context. So in the most basic sense and without any reservation we need to understand that Christians are called to obedience.

We are called to obedience to authority however. And this is a dangerous time to put in a however because the problem with most of us is not that we're too obedient. The problem is we're not a pity enough.

So when I give the caveat of the however I was nervous I was like maybe I should take a five-minute break. We all go get a cup of coffee and then I'll come back and get the however just so that my last statement that were called to be obedient will sink in because I know you're all waiting for the however.

I know you're all anxiously awaiting for me to give you the escape clause. So please just understand that nothing I'm about to say is going to contradict what I've just said that we as Christians are called to be obedient people obedient in our homes obedient in the church and even obedient citizens of the state.

Ok. This is important because as I said an unbalanced approach on either side is dangerous. We can be unbalanced in our obedience and we're gonna see that to the point that we allow the state to perpetrate evil without any words of response.

That's not good. But we can be unbalanced in our desire to rebel to the point that we are ungovernable. And that's not good either. We as Christians should be the best citizens and we'll see that. So let me go back to the however Christians are called to obedience to authority.

However the authority which is vested in these fears is never absolute because every authority whether it is in the home whether it is in the church or whether it is the state is always subject to a higher authority and that authority is God.

Therefore there are times when God honoring resistance to authority is necessary. Some might then say but pastor we just read Romans 13. We read all seven verses of the introduction. And doesn't it demand unquestioned loyalty to the governing authorities.

And the answer is no not when taken and considered with the context of all of the Bible and even all of the book of Romans the governing authorities have an important place. They should be obeyed they should even be honored.

But they can never demand something contrary to God's commands and expect to be obeyed. They can never demand something contrary to God's command and expect to be obeyed. The government has a responsibility even in Romans 13 you know do you notice here.

It says that the government is from God. It says that they have been appointed by God but it also says they've been appointed for a purpose and therefore they bear a responsibility. And what is the responsibility of the government under God to approve what is good and to punish what is evil.

The passage very clearly says that they have a responsibility to approve that which is good and to reward those who do good and to disapprove of that which is evil and to punish those who do evil notice that the government is called God's servant three times in this passage three times the word servant is used and that word servant in the Greek is very important because it is the same word for deacon.

The same word that we use in the church for a deacon of the church is used of the government and therefore it could be rightly translated that the government serves as God's deacon to reward what is good and to punish what is evil and so my question would be this who determines what is good and evil the government.

No there is a higher standard of determining what is good and evil. There is a higher standard than our legislature that determines what is good or evil. There is a higher standard than our president that determines what is good or evil.

There is a higher standard than our Senate that determines what is good and what is evil and as God's servant they are responsible to that standard whether they believe it or not and whether they like it or not.

When the government is promoting evil and injustice, it is in rebellion against God. Therefore, we call the government to repentance, as we would any unbeliever. We point them to their responsibility toward God.

And like the prophets of old, we say, Woe to you who call evil good and good evil. We cannot simply rubber stamp everything the government does as good if it is not good. We have a primary responsibility to a higher authority, and that authority is the God of heaven and earth.

And this may at times require that we take a stand against the earthly authorities and power. Now, I want to quote a pastor. Many of you have heard him. His name is Jeff Durbin. He's out in Phoenix. And he said this, and I thought it was a very good thought.

When we think about the issue of authority and we think about the issue of responding to authorities and we think about the issue of resisting authorities, he said this, and I thought this just stuck with me.

It stuck in my brain. It percolated for a while. He said this, Some of the greatest heroes in the history of the Christian faith are those who stood against authorities. Some of the greatest heroes of the Bible are those who stood against authorities.

I want you to look at these because I don't want you to take my word for it. Open your Bible back to Exodus and go to Exodus chapter 1 and go to verse 15. Now, remember what the context is here in Exodus 1.

The Jews are multiplying in the land. The Pharaoh sees them as a threat, and so he gives the command to the midwives of Egypt, the ones who are helping to give birth to these newborn children, that they are to kill the male children.

Because if you can destroy one sex or the other, you can destroy an entire generation. And you can introduce the concept of mixing with the Egyptians and creating more Egyptians rather than more Jews.

So this is what he says in verse 15,. Then the king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Pua, When you serve as midwife to the Hebrew women and set them on the birthstool, if it is a son, you shall kill him, but if it is a daughter, she shall live.

Verse 17, But the midwives feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but let the male children live. They had an authority over them. The authority was the king, unquestioned ruler.

We don't understand unquestionable rulers here in America because we live in a republic, a democratic republic, where we vote for our representatives. But this was a time when the king was an unquestioned ruler.

His word was law. He was considered to be divine. And when he made a statement, it was a statement as if it were coming from Almighty God Himself. And He said, When that baby is born and you look at that child and that is a male child, you will take that child's life.

And the midwives said no. Now if you go on into the story, you'll see they didn't say no to him directly, but they went behind his back and did what they were supposed to do. And they honored God and not the king.

They feared God. And I don't even know if these handmaidens really understood who God was at that point. Maybe they had been introduced to the God of heaven by the Jewish women that they had been working with.

Maybe they had understood who God truly was because they had all the false gods. They had all of the Egyptian gods, but they knew that the God of heaven and the earth had said this is wrong and I'm not going to do it.

Go a little further in your Bibles to the book of Daniel. Brother Andy mentioned this in his prayer earlier. I mean, we're skipping over many examples to get to Daniel. But Daniel is one that I think is so, it sticks in the soul so much because of what happens in the book of Daniel.

In Daniel chapter 3, King Nebuchadnezzar sets up a statue to himself, a golden image, and he commands everyone to bow down to that golden image. When the horn, the pipe, the lyre, and all of the bagpipes are played, then you are to get down and you are to worship the statue.

And here's the thing about this, and this is, boy I don't want to go off on a rabbit trail, I've got too much to say today, but very quickly, just how easy would it have been for everybody around Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to say, hey, don't make waves, it's not that big a deal.

All he's asking you to do is take a knee. All he's asking you to do, you don't even have to mean it. You don't even have to really worship. All you've got to do is pretend. Think about what social media would have said of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.

They're just troublemakers. They're just problems. We don't need guys like that because they're just going to bring the whole world down on us. We don't need those kind of voices in the Jewish community.

We don't need those kind of Hebrew rebels. Listen to what they said, verse 16, Daniel 3, 16. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and by the way, that isn't even their real names. That's the names that they were given by the Chaldeans to try to rob them of their Hebrew roots, their Hebrew heritage.