Things Applicable for God's Servants — Paul Washer

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I just wanted to share once again what a privilege it is for me to be here. Last night I was here until about, I don't know, 11 o 'clock. And I think I'm getting too old for those kind of things. But I talk to a lot of people that are really kind of looking for a church, things like that.

You know, I'm sure there are some good churches in this area. But I've talked to the men here and know something about them. I really find a like spirit here. A group of men who... One of the best things I can say about somebody is an Israelite in whom there is no guile.

Someone who just sincerely wants to follow Christ. And I see that here. And I really want to recommend to the young people, if you're not in a strong body, you need to be. When I mean a strong body, I don't mean a perfect body.

The Necessity of a Sincere Church

But a sincere one. One that's honestly seeking to follow Christ. I've been following Christ for quite a number of years now. It's still just... Well, He never fails. But my way has been a way of bumbling and stumbling and grasping.

I really want to encourage you to get in a good church. To be dedicated. A place where the word's going to be preached. It doesn't have to be exciting. It doesn't have to be this magnificent eloquence.

But the word of God preached. Because you don't grow on eloquence. You grow on truth. In a place where people are concerned about the world. Concerned about the world. Another thing that I'd like to say is.

I have heard some phenomenal, thus far, missionary testimonies. Wow, I've sat back there every night. Not knowing whether to grin or to cry. God is so good. And He's doing so much through so many people.

And people so different from one another. With gifts so different from one another. You know, I was listening to the story about the young man, Andrew. Who the Lord took home. And it's amazing. I was reading.

I finished up this morning. Or this afternoon. Andrew Bonner's work on Robert Murray McShane. Really recommend that to you. Just a little bitty book. You know, it's so amazing. God is so sovereign. There's no coincidences.

But Bonner asked the question. Towards right at the end of the book. He asked the question. Why was McShane taken at such a young age? As well as a lot of young men at that time. Who were so godly. McShane died at 29.

And this is what he said. God chooses to pluck some. When their bloom is full. When their bloom is new. You know, some of us. Well, we flowered a long time ago. And by the time we get to heaven. We're going to look like a bunch of old vines.

Maybe. But he chooses to pick some. When just recently. Their bloom has exploded into color. Another thing I remember one time. Someone asked a preacher. Kind of. Not like what was said tonight. But sort of with an embittered spirit.

Someone asked a preacher. Where was God when my son died? And the preacher said. Oh, dear soul. God was exactly where he was. When his son died. On the throne. On the throne. That brings great comfort to me.

Some people get very angry. About a sovereign God. I wouldn't be sane without one. Wouldn't be sane without one. Well, I want us to go back to. First Timothy tonight. And then we're going to go on to something else.

The Great Commission and the Two Great Commandments

And then tomorrow night. Please, if you can. Come back. We are going to start on. A full push. For the Great Commission. For the Great Commission. Because you see. I can't tell you. With the authority of God.

Or the authority of the Word of God. What part you should play. In the Great Commission. I cannot tell you. That God has ordained and decreed. For you to be a missionary. But I can tell you this. God has ordained, decreed and commanded.

You be just as involved. In the Great Commission. As those who do go. I can't tell you that. The Great Commission. The Great Command is to love the Lord your God. With all your heart, soul, mind and strength.

The second is like it. Love your neighbor as yourself. And I doubt. The validity of your confession. With regard to obedience. To those two commandments. If you're not concerned about the Great Commission.

About souls. Perishing. Without the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Let's go to 1 Timothy chapter 4. We'll just read our text again. Starting in verse 1. But the Spirit explicitly says. That in the latter times.

Sound Doctrine and the Discipline of Godliness

Some will fall away from the faith. Paying attention to deceitful spirits. And doctrines of demons. By means of the hypocrisy of liars. Seared in their own conscience. As with a branding iron. Men who forbid marriage.

And advocate abstaining from foods. Which God has created. To be gratefully shared in. By those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good. And nothing is to be rejected. If it is received with gratitude.

For it is sanctified. By means of the Word of God and prayer. In pointing out these things. To the brethren. You will be a good servant of Christ Jesus. Constantly nourished. On the words of the faith.

And of the sound doctrine. Which you have been following. But have nothing to do with worldly fables. Fit only for old women. On the purpose. On the other hand. Discipline yourself. For the purpose. Of godliness.

For bodily discipline. Is only of little profit. But godliness is profitable. For all things. Since it holds promise. For the present life. And also for the life to come. It is a trustworthy statement.

Deserving full acceptance. For it is. For this we labor and strive. Because we have fixed our hope. On the living God. Who is the savior of all men. Especially of believers. Prescribe. And teach these things.

Let no one look down. On your youthfulness. But rather in speech. Conduct. Love. Faith. And purity. Show yourself an example. Of those who believe. Until I come. Give attention. To the public reading.

Of scripture. To exhortation. And teaching. Do not neglect. The spiritual gift. Within you. Which was bestowed on you. Through prophetic utterance. With the laying on of hands. By the Presbytery. Take pains with these things.

Be absorbed in them. So that your progress. Will be evident to all. Pay close attention. To yourself. And to your teaching. Preserve. Persevere in these things. For as you do this. You will ensure salvation.

Both for yourself. And for those who hear you. Let's pray. Father. Father, I praise you. I worship you. I adore you. Your steadfast love. Oh, Lord, extends to the heavens. And your faithfulness to the clouds.

You are a great God. And a great king. Above all gods. Your name is a strong tower. And the righteous man runs into it. And is safe. Lord, I praise you. I praise you. I worship you. Honor and glory. Wealth and riches.

Fame. And honor. Belong to you. Glory. Ascribe to you. Pull for a thousand tongues. To sing my great redeemer's praise. Father. Pour out your spirit upon us. Honor your son. By making us worthy servants.

That we may lay down our life. Effectually. For him. Help us. Oh, God. And we will be helped. Answer this prayer. In his name. Amen. Over the many, many years. I have seen many, many missionaries. And I have seen many trends.

Planting Biblical Churches and Measuring Missionary Effectiveness

And missions. Let me share with you some things. Missions is very, very difficult. Especially when you are concentrating on this one thing. Planting biblical churches. You can do a lot of things. And the devil will not bother you so much.

Because a lot of things we do. That have great names about them. In the end. When we reach eternity. We will find out that they are very superficial. But the one thing you can count on. That the devil will oppose.

Is that of planting biblical churches. When I am listening to missionary statistics. I do not care to hear. How many people prayed a prayer in a certain country. Or how many people walked forward. Or even how many people necessarily were baptized.

I want to know the state of the churches. Are there churches being formed? Are there people being brought together? And are they growing in Christ likeness? For a missionary to be truly effective. He need not be eloquent.

She need not be brilliant. But godliness is necessary. There are so many gifted men. There are so many gifted devils. But godliness. Is a thing that God can use. Now before I get started. Let me say this.

As I always say. There is no such thing as a great man of God. There is only a great God. God of tiny miserable little men. And there are no men who have reached high degrees of godliness. So as to set them apart from everyone else in the community of faith.

We are all people simply advancing. Looking unto Christ. And seeking to follow Him. And many times it is two steps forward. Three steps back. Five steps forward. One step back. It is a struggle against the world.

Against Satan himself. Against our flesh. It is difficult. But it is in this one thing. Seeking to be more and more conformed to Christ. That we become usable. Usable. A missionaries greatest asset. Is godliness.

Godliness. Now we began our text yesterday. Talking in verses four. Verses one through five. We hear of the chaos in the world. Even in the church itself. There would be apostasy. And false teaching. And all sorts of maladies.

All around this young minister. Named Timothy. Now while the world is all falling apart. And as I said last night. Going to hell in a handbag. What does Paul admonish Timothy to do? To get active? No.

To start some new ministry? No. To join some new strategy? Absolutely not. What does he admonish Timothy to do? Isn't this amazing? He admonishes him to get in his study. To get on his knees. To get in the word.

To be a man of God. My dear friend. We have so many movers and shakers today. We have so many brilliant speakers. We have so many people, persons. But the man who spends more time with God than he does men.

The man who is shut up to God. That's rarity. That's rarity. I was telling the young ministers. The young men last night. That when I was called to preach. This pastor. That I've never met another man like him.

He was such a man of God. It was almost frightening to be with him. And he looked at me. And I'll never forget this. And he said. Boy. Can you be alone? And I thought that what he meant was this. If I preach the gospel truly.

Men will hate me and I will be alone. That's not what he was asking. What he was asking is this. When all the other preacher boys are going to Bible conferences. And Christian retreats. And hanging out in bachelor packs.

And doing all the things they do. Can you go alone? Can you meet with him in the mornings alone? Can you meet with him in the evenings? In the midnight watch and be with him alone? When everyone else is going to Colorado to ski in the name of Jesus.

Can you go out into the hill country and fast for a week? Throw rocks at heaven until God comes down. Can you do that? Do you see the difference? This is missing. I love what my brother John Piper says.

Gentlemen, we are not professionals. We are prophets. We belong to God. So that when we stand before men. We can say the God before whom I stand. Has sent me. Now. He's telling him in verse 6. In the midst of many well-meaning people in the church.

Pointing to all sorts of things that really don't matter. He's saying Timothy. Point men to this. Point them to Christ. Make Christ everything. You know I have done something of a study. Of men and women of God.

Down through the ages of the church. That have been unusually used of God. And I find very little in common. Among them. Not as much as you would expect. But I find two things. That seem to run in the vein of all of them.

A prayer life. And. A pointing unto Christ. A pointing unto Christ. A pointing unto Christ. They were saturated. Consumed with Christ. As the oil in the temple lamps burned out. They burned out. For Christ.

Point men to Christ. If you're a missionary. If you're a member of this church. If you're witnessing to people in your factory. Or in your business. Or in your schools. Point them to Christ. To Christ.

To Christ. Magnified Christ. That is one of the reasons why you should know Him deeply. So you can love Him deeply. And in knowing and loving Him deeply. You can explain Him to others. With a glory. That the superficial does not understand.

Now he goes on. He says in 7. And he says. But have nothing to do with worldly fables. There is so. Much noise. In Christianity today. So many voices. So many books. So many things vying for our attention.

Put them away. So I recommend young men. Don't read anything. You know that hasn't. Wasn't written a hundred years ago. Or older. Now that's a broad statement. Because there are. There are some good men today.

And women writing some good things. But. Most of it is dribble. Most of it is dribble. Focus on Christ. The things that truly matter. Not fables. And then he goes on. And he says. Instead of thinking about all these things.

That do not matter. This is what I want you to do. Timothy. I want you to discipline yourself. For the purpose of godliness. As a great athlete. Will waste his entire life. To win a gold medal. Will literally throw away.

His childhood. Throw away. His teenage years. Throw away his life. As a young adult. And lose it all. For the sake of a gold medal. He's saying. Timothy. Discipline yourself. For the purpose of godliness.

He doesn't say. Try to make yourself an eloquent speaker. Don't try to. He's not saying. Try to learn the new fads of Christendom. He's not telling him. To figure out a way to be relevant. He's saying.

You do this. Discipline yourself. To be godly. Now what does it mean? You know the flesh profits nothing. And it's the spirit. And only the spirit that gives life. We're not talking about a legalistic system.

Of trying to cross every T. And dot every I. To force yourself. Into being like Christ. No. We're talking about this. Saturating your life. With the word of god. Crying out to god. As one impoverished in spirit.

Oh god. Fill me. Fill me. It's being around things. And people that lead to greater edification. It's cutting away from yourself. The things that are not profitable. And especially for you young people.

Listen to me. One hour. Of television. Will destroy 16 hours. Of good bible study. Don't think you can be holy. Without separating yourself. From things that contaminate the mind. And the soul. Some of you could study the bible 24 hours a day.

And you would still not be useful to god. Because of all the filth being pumped into you. Take this to heart. There are things in this world. That you cannot have a part of. You cannot. Not in be a useful servant of Christ.

Verse 8. For bodily discipline. Is only of little profit. It is profitable. I am amazed at some of the great theologians. And bible teachers of the past. Who would take long walks. Cut firewood. Ride horses.

Do all sorts of things. So that they would be strong. So that they would be healthy. To live their life to the glory of god. Even Jonathan Edwards. But it only has a little bit of profit. You know if I were to take.

The hours spent. Just among the people that I see. The hours that you spend. Either at the gym. In front of the mirror. Or involved in athletics. Either participating or watching. And I could convert that to bible study.

There would be something quite different here. This evening. It's true. It's true. Now he says. But godliness is profitable for all things. Since it holds promise for the present life. And also for the life to come.

I always tell everyone. Especially young men and women. You live for two days. The day that he hung before all men. And the day when all men will stand before him. For what is eternal. The one who follows the things of this world.

The one who lives for the temporal. Is a fool. A fool is not a person who lacks intelligence. Not a person that learning is beyond them. No. A fool is someone who does not hear the word of god. So as to obey it.

You are temporal. Everything. Will rot. And rust. Or be taken from you. Except that which. Matters to the soul. Remember years ago. An old preacher. Heard him preaching. And he said. There's only three things eternal.

God. The word of god. And the soul of a man. Your investments. How are they going? I'm talking about your life investments. How are they? If you were to take up all the time. That you've walked upon this planet.

As a Christian. How well have you invested your life? There are pictures of monks. Paintings. Sculptures even. Of monks. Who are sitting there. Sort of morbidly. Holding a skull. In their hand. Looking at it.

And you think. What a perverse and dark thing. Well yes. As far as they carried it. It was. But there's something to think about there. What were they doing? They were contemplating. Their mortality. They were contemplating the fact.

That in a moment. They too. Will be nothing. But bone. How should they live? How should. We live. In light of these things. Should we invest. Our lives. In our strength. And things that do not matter.

You know. I have talked to so many. Old missionaries. Seen them in nursing homes. Seen them buried. You know. I have never. In my life. Heard a missionary. Who regretted. That he gave so much. Or that he invested.

Too much in eternal things. But I have met. Countless men. Who regretted. Investing everything. In this world. You want to live. For that which has. That is profitable. Listen. Every bible study. Every bit of prayer.

Every godly fellowship. Every sitting. Under biblical preaching. Is an investment. In eternity. Every dime. Given to this. Missionary endeavor. Everything. Lost. For the sake of Christ. Is not lost at all.

Everything. Kept outside of his name. Is lost. We should not live as fools. But live as wise. We should walk. Circumspectly. Knowing that time. Is fleeting. Strength is fleeting. Physical beauty. Is fleeting.

Wealth is fleeting. It is all fleeting. But he who does the will of God. Abides forever. Isn't it amazing. That we are so. Such a fortunate people. That you and I. Can actually do something. That has eternal value.

Did you ever think about that? It is absolutely. Well it is. It is. Well. It is a reason to be alive. You can actually do something. That will never be lost. You can give a cup of cold water. In the name of Christ.

To a disciple. For the sake of Christ. And that will be written down. In God's account. His book of remembrance. And yet that has got to cast a dark shadow. On the other side. That there are so many investments.

We have made. That will give us no return. What so ever. What so ever. He is telling him. He says look. Godliness is profitable. For all things. Do you know. The scriptures. One of the greatest problems.

In evangelical Christianity. Is that we have decided. We have written out our creedal statements. That scripture is infallible. And it is inspired. The problem with that. Is this. That is only half the battle.

Once you determine. That scripture is inspired. You must go one further step. And that is what the evangelical community. In America. Is refusing to do. You have got to say. It is not only inspired. You have got to say.

It is sufficient. I don't need anthropologist. I don't need psychologist. And I don't need cultural experts. To tell me how to do the ministry. The scripture is sufficient. Okay. For every good work. That a minister has to do.

Godliness is also profitable. For all things. There is nothing you can encounter. That godliness won't help you with it. Now he goes on. And he says this. It is a trustworthy statement. Deserving full acceptance.

He is saying believe me on this. It is trustworthy. You know what this reminds me of. John 8 46. Jesus said. If I speak the truth. Why do you not believe me? Do you know. Every one of you. Or at least most of you.

The great majority of you. Would acknowledge. That everything I am saying is true. Why is it so hard? Well for one thing. It is this. You allow yourself. To get too close to the fire. You allow yourself.

To walk too close. With temptation. You snuggled up. Too close to the world. So that even though you know. You ought to live for that. Which is eternal. You are still pulled. Pulled toward the temporal.

How does that happen? We are not a thinking people. We are not a people. Who even stop. To think. What are we doing? We are not a people who meditate. We are not a people who listen. We are so busy. We know nothing about silence.

I had a professor. Years and years ago. This is what he told me. He said. Mr. Washer. My intention for you is this. To so teach you. To be still. That you can sit out. In the middle of a hundred acre field.

And hear. A bug walking across the leaf. I want you to be able to meditate. To think. To just be silent. Remember. A poem that was written many years ago. Talks about Jesus coming in. From the wilderness.

Hungry. And coming to the temple. It says. Hungry to worship. And join in the praise. He wants to be in the temple. He wants to be there. In fellowship. In the presence of God. It says. That shock met with anger.

That burned on his face. As he entered the wasteland. Of that barren place. There was so much noise. And selling. And activity. In the temple. That he becomes angry. And he drives them all out. And then finally in the poem.

It says this. The noise and confusion. Gave way to his word. At last. Sacred silence. So God could be heard. We are not a silent people. We need to be. You need to learn to sit. Before the scriptures.

And think deeply. About your destiny. About your activity. Goes on. He says in verse 10. For it is for this. We labor and strive. The Christian life is not easy. We labor. And we strive. Because we have fixed our hope.

On the living God. Who is the savior of all men. Especially of believers. Why do men. Labor. In the great commission. Why do women strive. In the great commission. I'll tell you. Because they believe.

They believe. God. They believe. That there is a God. Who created them. They believe. That there is a God. Who redeemed them. And therefore. Holds a double claim. On them. One as creator. And the other as redeemer.

They believe. That what the Bible says. About man. Is true. All men are born. Radically depraved. God hating. And destined for hell. They believe. That God sent his son. And died on a tree. And rose again.

On the third day. And ascended up to heaven. And is seated. At the right hand of the majesty. Upon high. They believe. That by his name. And his name alone. Can a man be saved. They believe. That no one will believe.

Unless they hear the gospel. And no one will hear. The gospel. Unless they are sent. Unless they go. They believe. And therefore. They must go. They must. I agree. So many times. With a statement. It was a very immature statement.

But a powerful statement. Made by Keith Green. Okay. God hasn't called you to go. Has he called you to stay? He told you to go. So I suppose. The only way you can stay. Is if he tells you to stay. Do you realize.

Let's think about this. Sometimes I wish. You could see. What I have seen. And what these missionaries have seen. What other missionaries have seen. People dying without Christ. People. Children starving.

War. And chaos. And rape. And pillage. Sin after sin. Leading to death. After death. And destruction. After destruction. And it is all caused. By one thing. Sin. The only problem man has. Is sin. And the only solution for it.

Is the gospel of Jesus Christ. And for this reason. We labor and strive. Because of that. You see. That is why there must be preaching. If you are here tonight. And you have truly been regenerated. By the Holy Spirit.

You have truly been converted. You are agreeing with everything I am saying. You agree with it. But how many days do you walk. And you forget it. You forget it. I mean. This is what I do. And I do the same thing.

That is why I must constantly be hearing preaching. I must constantly be reading good books. I must constantly be around men. And women. Who burn for Christ. Why? I don't want to forget what I know is true.

Christian Fellowship, Accountability, and Mutual Correction

You know. I can go to every manner of Bible conference. And literally. Someone gets up. And speaks about super lapsarianism. Versus infralapsarianism. And the decrees of God. Okay. Wonderful. Studied that.

It is a really deep thing. But I usually don't walk away from there. Thinking. Man. I just learned something new. Or talking about the Trinity. And the relationship between the three persons. I hear great lectures on that.

But I usually don't walk out going. Never heard that before. Do you know what encourages me? You know what I have discovered. About the Christian life. Several years ago. I was teaching out in Kansas.

At a university setting. And before I was to speak. They let. About four. New converts. Get up and share their testimonies. Now their language was wrong. The way they expressed. What God had done in their life.

Was not. Refined theology. To say the least. I learned nothing. From what they said. But you know what happened? I remembered. A whole bunch of stuff. I forgot. There's not a whole lot of new things. To learn.

Under the sun. And our great problem. Is not necessarily. That we don't know enough. Our great problem is. We forget what we know. You know what I'm saying is true. That it is a worthy thing. To lose your life.

For the cause of Christ. And labor and strive. With everything that is in you. For him. It is a worthy cause. To give up everything. House and home. And comforts. And security. And insurance. And everything else.

For him. It's all. Worthy. But we forget. And start thinking about. Man, I need that. New car. I need a bigger house. I need that name brown. Clothing. Do you see? That's why preachers. Do people. No service.

When they're afraid. To agitate them. To stir them up. And to cause them. To remember. The things they have forgotten. He says for. It is for this. We labor. And strive. Because we fixed. Our hope on God.

On the living God. Who is the savior. Of all men. Especially of believers. Now. I'd love to get into that. But. I'm going to do. What I did last night. I was supposed to preach. This last night. But I got stalled on something.

I want to go on. To verse 11. Prescribe. And teach. These. Things. Now. I want you to. Note something. That's very, very. Important here. Extremely. Important. This can be. Translated. Keep commanding.

And teaching. These. Things. Now. What's important. About that. Just that. It reaffirms. What I've already. Said. We are a forgetful. People. One of the reasons. Why we must have. Sound. Bible study. One of the reasons.

Why we must read. Good books. One of the reasons. Why we must. Enter. Into. True. Christian. Fellowship. In. A. Church. That consists. Of people. Dedicated. To the things. Of Christ. Is that we must. Constantly. Be. Reminded.

We must. Be like. Iron. Sharpening. Iron. We must. Constantly. Push. One another. Now. Christian. Let. Me. Ask. You. A. Question. How. Many. Times. In. All. Your. Fellowships. Do. You. Talk. More. About. Sports. After. The. Church. Then. How. Does. That. Sermon. Apply. To. Life.

You're. Excited. I know. Part. Of. Going. To. Church. A. Big. Part. Of. It. For. Me. Is. What. Happens. Afterwards. I'll. Be. Honest. With. You. I love. My. Brothers. And. Sisters. In. Christ. And. I. Just. Love. To. Talk. With. Them. About. All. Sorts. Of. Things. But. Look. At. What. We're. Doing. We're. Going. To. Church. Going. To. Meetings. Like. This. Soon. As. It's. Over. We. Talk. About. Every. Manner. Of. Thing. You. Should. Be. Talking. About. What. You. Heard. You. Should. Be. Applying. It. Should. Be. Sharpening. One. Another. You. Should. Be. Calling. One. Another. On. The. Telephone. You. Should. Be. Talking. Much. About. The. Word. That. Was. Given. You. Should. Be. Sharing. Scripture. With. One. Another. You. Should. Be. Constantly. Prescribing. These. Things. The. Only. Malady. The. Christian. Has. Is. The. Forgetfulness. Of. The. Goodness. Of. God. And. The. Duties. That. Laid. At. His. Feet. So. It. Constantly. Must. Be. Prescribed. To. Him. And. Represcribe. To. Him. We. Must. Constantly. Be. Telling. One. Another. These. Things. That's. What. Body. Is. For. That's. What. A. Church. Is. For. Iron. Sharpening. Iron. I. Am. So. Blessed. With. The. Men. That. I. Work. With. Why. Because. They'll. Walk. Right. Into. My. Office. The. Youngest. Guy. Who. Works. At. Heart. Cry. Who's. Never. Been. To. Seminary. Never. Been. To. Bible. College. Is. About. Twenty. Four. Years. Old. And. Knows. He. Can. Walk. Right. Into. My. Office. And. Sit. Down. And. Say. Brother. Paul. You. Said. Something. Yesterday. And. I. Think. Your. Attitude. Was. Wrong. And. Here's. Scripture. Brother. Paul. I. Know. You're. Older. Than. Me. And. You've. Served. The. Lord. A lot. Longer. But. Brother. Paul. You. Were. Wrong. He's. Prescribing. He's. Sharpening. He. Is. Moving. Me. He. Is. Helping. Me. I'll. Never. Forget. One. Time. I. Was. Preaching. And. All. Was. I. Preaching. This. Is. About. Fifteen. Years. Ago. I. Was. Tearing. The. Place. Apart. And. After. I. Got. Done. I. Was. Walking. Down. This. Big. Platform. And. I. Noticed. This. Elderly. Gentleman. Who's. A friend. Of. Mine. Was. Coming. Straight. Out. His. Seat. Right. Toward. Me. And. Made. It. Halfway. Down. The. Platform. And. He. Met. Me. There. Halfway. Up. And. He. Said. This. He. Said. Paul. You. Preached. The. Truth. Tonight. You. Did. Son. And. You. Preached. It. In. The. Flesh. And. You. Need. To. Get. Down. On. Your. Knees. Right. Now. And. Ask. God. To. Forgive. You. Don't. You. Need. That. But. If. Someone. Did. That. To. You. You. Be. Out. Of. This. Church. So. Fast. No. One. Ever. See. You. Again. That's. Pastor's. Job. That's. Your. Brother. And. Sister. In. Christ. That's. Their. Job. He. Saved. My. Life. That. Day. Do. You. See. That. And. Constantly. We. Need. To. A. Body. This. Church. Here. I. Was. Asked. To. Come. To. This. Church. In. This. Place. And. This. Body. Here. Needs. To. Be. A. Body. Of. People. That. I'm. Open. Admonish. Me. Encourage. Me. Teach. Me. Tell. Me. Be. Gentle. Be. Patient. But. Do. What. You. Have. To. Do. To. Me. I'd. Like. To. I. Won't. Do. It. But. I'd. Like. To. Get. Every. Member. In. This. Church. Right. Here. To. Stand. Up. And. Say. I. Make. A. Commitment. To. That. So. That. Your. Pastor. Can. Hold. You. Accountable. Next. Time. He. Comes. Knocking. On. Your. Door. We. Need. That. Now. Look. At. Twelve. He. Says. Let. No. One. Look. Down. On. Your. Youthfulness. First. Of. Just. Because. Someone. Is. Old. Does. Not. Make. Them. Wise. Never. Forget. The. Fables. Are. The. Ones. Carried. By. Elderly. Women. There. Are. A. Lot. Of. Old. Fools. Who. Have. No. Business. Giving. Counsel. In. The. Church. Because. Their. Counsel. Is. Based. On. Their. Experience. I. Don't. Need. Your. Experience. Unless. It. Is. Only. Given. As. An. Illustration. To. What. You're. Teaching. Me. In. The. Word. Do. Not. Give. Your. Opinion. It's. Worth. Nothing. Be. Able. To. Open. Up. Your. Mouth. And. Give. The. Word. Well. I. Think. It. Really. Doesn't. Matter. What. Does. He. Say. And. So. Just. Because. Someone. Is. Old. Does. Not. Make. Them. Wise. And. Just. Because. Someone. Is. Young. Does. Not. Make. Them. Foolish. I. Read. Again. I. Go. Back. To. Robert. Murray. McShane. And. If. You. Think. I. Appreciate. Him. A. Great. Deal. Then. Read. Him. And. Understand. Why. I'm. Amazed. He's. A. Boy. When. He's. Writing. Some. Of. This. Stuff. A. Boy. And. Yet. I. Could. Spend. A. Thousand. Days. Locked. In. My. Study. And. I. Be. Able. To. Come. Up. With. What. He. Has. Written. In. A. Paragraph. Young. People. Listen. To. Me. You've. Been. Taught. The. Lie. Of. Adolescence. So. That. You. You're. Not. To. Become. A. Man. Or. A. Mature. Woman. Until. You're. In. Your. Thirties. There. Are. Twelve. Year. Olds. That. God. Has. Used. To. Change. The. World. Why. Don't. You. Join. The. Ranks. Lay. Aside. The. X. Boxes. And. All. The. Silly. Things. On. Television. And. Discipline. Yourself. To. Godliness. So. That. God. Can. Use. Now. Now. He. Goes. On. And. He. Says. Let. No. One. Look. Down. On. Your. Youthfulness. But. Rather. In. Speech. In. Conduct. In. Love. Faith. And. Purity. Show. Yourself. An. Example. Of. Those. Who. Believe. You. Know. The. Hardest. Things. For. Me. When. I. Was. A. Missionary. In. Peru. I. Honestly. Believe. That. Missions. Is. Carried. Out. Yes. There. Times. When. God. Does. Just. Magnificent. Things. But. For. The. Most. Part. Missions. Is. A. Series. Of. Many. Many. Small. Things. That. Do. Not. Seem. That. Significant. But. When. They're. All. Bound. Together. They. Have. Great. Eternal. Value. By. Dedicated. Myself. As. A. Missionary. To. Disciple. To. Disciple. One. On. One. To. Carry. Young. Men. With. Me. When. I. Preached. To. Have. Them. In. My. Home. All. The. Time. And. You. Know. What. That. Is. A. Difficult. Thing. The. Devil. Can. Preach. And. Many. Devils. Who. Do. Preach. I. Had. A. Church. Walk. Up. To. Me. Several. Years. Ago. After. I. Preached. A. Sermon. They. Were. Looking. For. A. Pastor. And. Soon. As. Finished. This. Pulpit. Committee. Came. Up. Toward. Me. You. Can. Always. Tell. Because. They. Have. The. Fake. Nose. And. The. Glasses. And. The. Disguises. They. Came. Up. And. They. Said. We. Want. You. To. Be. Our. Pastor. And. I. Said. Are. You. Crazy. And. They. Said. What. Do. You. Mean. I. Said. You. Don't. Know. If. Love. My. Wife. You. Know. Nothing. About. Me. You. Don't. Know. If. I. Train. My. Children. You. Don't. Know. Anything. About. My. Financial. Integrity. You. Know. Nothing. About. Me. They. Knew. Nothing. About. What. My. Speech. You. Say. Well. They. Heard. You. Preach. Not. The. Same. Thing. He's. Talking. Speech. Here. He's. Talking. About. Your. Daily. Conversation. They. Knew. Nothing. About. My. Conduct. Or. My. Manner. Of. Life. They. Did. Not. Know. If. I. Had. Grown. To. Maturity. Enough. To. Love. They. Did. Not. Know. If. Was. Pure. Young. Christians. Who. Want. To. Be. Missionaries. Do. You. Seek. To. Be. Pure. You. Are. Engulfed. In. A. Physical. Sensual. World. An. Immoral. Pornographic. World. That. Has. Made. Its. Way. Into. The. Church. Do. You. Seek. To. Be. Pure. Innocent. Harmless. Being. A. Stumbling. Block. To. No. One. Purity. Simplicity. Are. Those. High. Goals. Categories. For. You. Goes. On. He. Says. This. Show. Yourself. An. Example. Now. The. Preposition. Here. In. The. Greek. Can. Go. Either. Way. It's. Either. Show. Yourself. An. Example. Of. Those. Who. Believe. Show. Yourself. To. Be. What. A. True. Christian. Is. That. When. People. Look. At. You. They. Understand. What. A. True. Christian. Is. That's. One. Greatest. Problems. In. Evangelism. Today. Because. The. Moment. You. Go. On. A. University. Campus. Or. You're. On. An. Airplane. Or. Any. Other. Place. And. You. Start. To. They. Immediately. Identify. The. Christian. Faith. With. These. Heretical. TV. Preachers. Now. There. Are. Some. TV. Preachers. That. Are. Biblical. Not. Many. But. Many. Of. Them. Are. Heretics. Their. Wolves. In. Sheep's. Clothing. Who. Whose. God. Is. Their. Belly. And. They. Rob. People. And. Provide. Them. With. Nothing. But. Fodder. But. We. Should. Be. Different. People. Ought. To. Able. To. Look. At. Us. And. Understand. That's. What. A. Christian. Is. Not. Something. Perfect. Not. Something. Without. Blemish. Not. Something. Without. Spot. Not. Something. Without. Weakness. But. Something. Truly. Following. Christ. Someone. Truly. Loving. Christ. Truly. Seeking. Christ. And. Truly. Broken. Over. Their. Inability. Or. Lack. Of. Devotion. A. True. Christian. He. Says. Here. Show. Yourself. An. Example. Of. Those. Who. Believe. But. It's. Also. Possible. Show. Yourself. An. Example. To. Those. Who. Believe. Show. Yourself. An. Example. To. Those. Who. Believe. We. Ought. Be. Very. Very. Evangelistic. In. Our. Pulpits. But. I. Know. Some. Preachers. All. They. Do. Is. Preach. On. Evangelism. They. Preach. To. Lost. People. While. The. Sheep. Starved. To. Death. We're. Also. Always. Worried. About. Being. Good. Examples. To. The. Outside. World. Being. Good. Examples. To. The. Outside. World. We. Ought. To. Also. Concern. Ourselves. With. Being. Good. Examples. To. Our. Brothers. And. Sisters. In. Christ. How. My. Life. Has. Benefited. From. Examples. Oh. I. Have. Known. Men. And. Women. Who. Glowed. What. An. Example. They. Have. Me. The. Greatest. Thing. I. Could. Do. For. The. World. If. I. Could. Just. Somehow. Bring. Them. All. On. To. One. Platform. And. Just. Let. Look. At. Them. The. Glory. The. Kindness. The. Love. Knowledge. And. I. Needed. Them. Do. You. Know. Warren. Wiersbe. Several. Years. Ago. I. Think. Was. Warren. Wiersbe. Wrote. A. Book. Walking. With. The. Giants. And. It's. A. Little. Biographies. About. You. Know. Spurgeon. And. Tozer. And. Brainerd. And. All. These. Different. Ones. Just. Very. Short. Excerpts. Warren. Wiersbe. I. Get. To. Heaven. I'm. Going. To. Tell. Him. What. A. Blessing. That. Was. To. Me. Do. You. Know. Why. Because. Believe. It. Or. Not. I. Don't. Want. And. Yet. I. Just. Didn't. Have. It. In. Me. I'd. Pull. Out. That. Book. And. I'd. Read. About. Alexander. McLaren. Who. At. Times. Would. Spend. Sixty. Hours. On. One. Sermon. And. After. Reading. That. Little. Excerpt. On. Him. Now. I. Knew. I. Wasn't. Going. To. Spend. Sixty. Hours. But. I. Was. Motivated. To. Go. Back. In. Study. And. Then. Reading. About. Brainerd. The. Great. Revivals. Wrought. Through. His. Inner. Session. Among. The. North. American. Indians. Praying. Hide. Read. About. Him. For. A. Long. Pause. It. We. Ought. Surround. Ourselves. With. Godly. Men. And. Women. Who. Are. Alive. And. Godly. Men. And. Women. Who. Are. Dead. Because. Though. They. Are. Dead. They. Still. Speak. And. We. Ought. To. Be. An. Encouragement. To. One. Another. I'm. Amazed. About. The. Partner. God. Has. Given. Me. My. Wife. Because. It. Just. Seems. Like. When. I'm. Weak. She's. Strong. And. You're. Expecting. Me. To. Say. And. When. She's. Weak. I'm. Strong. But. Usually. It's. Just. Again. When. I'm. Weak. She's. Strong. I. Come. Back. Out. But. See. There's. Such. Thing. As. Lone. Wolf. Christianity. And. Guess. What. Else. Church. Don't. Think. That. It's. Always. A. One. Way. Street. That. Your. Elders. And. Pastors. Are. To. Be. Encouraging. Strengthening. You. You're. To. Be. Encouraging. And. Strengthening. Them. You. Think. Missionaries. Are. Super. Spiritual. They're. Not. They're. Just. Obeying. They. Need. Prayer. Great. Amounts. Of. Prayer. Intercession. Prayer. I can. Remember. Right. Now. Was. Right. Before. I was. Married. Since. Ninety. One. The. District. Of. Mia. Flores. In. Lima. Right. There. By. The. Plaza. Parque. Kennedy. That's. How. Specific. This. Is. And. I'm. Walking. Down. The. Road. There. Getting. Ready. To. Deal. With. All. The. Street. Kids. We. Bunch. Of. Kids. During. The. War. That. Had. No. Place. To. Live. And. We'd. Feed. Them. Quaker. Oats. And. Stuff. And. I. Remember. Walking. Down. Through. The. Over. A. Corner. Just. Thinking. I. Was. Literally. Going. To. Explode. What. In. The. World. And. Then. All. Of. A. Sudden. I. Knew. I. Don't. How. I. Knew. But. I. Knew. I. Knew. Exactly. What. Was. Happening. Somebody. Somewhere. Was. Interceding. For. A. Single. Missionary. Working. All. Alone. In. The. Middle. Of. In. Lima. Peru. So. We. Need. To. Be. Examples. We. Need. To. Help. One. Another. Now. Look. At. Verse. 13. Until. I. Come. Give. Attention. To. Public. Reading. Of. Scripture. To. Exhortation. And. To. Teaching. This. Is. Missions. It. Doesn't. Change. For. Missions. What. Does. The. World. Need. It. Needs. Christ. Centered. Bible. Saturated. Preaching. The. Communication. Of. Truth. That's. What. It. Needs. You. Would. Be. Surprised. How. Little. Of. All. Our. Missionary. Activity. Has. Anything. To. Do. With. Doctrine. You. Would. Be. Surprised. How. Little. The. Missionary. Activity. In. The. World. Has. Anything. To. Do. With. Planting. Churches. And. That's. The. Reason. For. The. Weakness.