(Saved Through the Fire) 01 - the Path of True Salvation — Milton Green

One in a series. We urge you to listen to all the tapes in the series in numerical order. So that the whole teaching can be received and understood. Listening to a part of this series or to the tapes out of sequence can lead to a misunderstanding of the nature the intent and the importance of the series.

Malachi 3. Malachi 3. If we start right there, let's start in verse 1. Behold I'm going to send my messengers. John the Baptist is a messenger. He's going to clear the way before me the Lord Jesus Christ Lord speaking and the Lord whom you will seek will suddenly come into his temple and the messenger of the covenant glory be to God to his name in whom you delight.

The holy is coming said the Lord of hosts, but who can endure the day of his coming who can stand when he appears? That word stand is a key word, but who's going to stand you're either going to stand and hear the Word of God and not Act on it and the floods going to sweep you away.

That's the flood of the last days or else you're going to stand and you're going to come through this fire and you're going to Have the nature and character of God, which is a golden siver. We the wood hay and stubble.

Are we going to be golden siver? Now verse two. But who can endure the day of his coming and who can stand when he appears for he's like a Refiner's fire there it is and like fuller soap. And he's going to sit as a smeller and he's going to be a and a purifier of silver and he's going to purify the sons Of Levi that's us.

He's going to refine them like golden silver. That's us. That's that divine nature so that they may present to me what? Offerings and righteousness can put up the Lord Jesus Christ right there, brother.

I want to show you what the offerings and righteousness are. It's when this comes out of your mouth right here. There it is Love joy peace goodness gentleness meekness tempers and faith. Because you know what the fire is going to do.

It's going to remove The nature and character of Satan now your life all the works of pride and all the works of selfishness and self-centered is going to be Removed that's what Jesus came to do because all of these works right here are the works of the law there are Judgment and wrath on the powers of darkness that'll so you'll know on the front end attach themselves to every one of these fleshly sins.

You follow me so far. I don't care what kind of a Religious position you have any of these things that's being practiced in your life the powers of darkness have attached themselves to it. You have strongholds and fortresses in you and Death is working in everyone in the world.

And the only way that they can be set free from that is through the Lord Jesus Christ, and that's what salvation is. Salvation is being set free healed and delivered and you never get set free healed and delivered because some man comes in a town and waves some magic wand over you and Doesn't even have a message of holiness.

That's where the powers of darkness work. To make men look good and deceive you because that's what second Thessalonians 2 are talking about. But what the what the Lord Jesus Christ has come to do to is the Word of God in the Spirit of God to wash all of these sins and nature and character of Satan out of your heart and out of your life, amen and then you'll have a pure heart and the goal of this instruction is love from a pure heart and when you have a pure heart you're going to bear the fruit of Love joy, this is a fruit of righteousness, and that's what the refiners fire for so when you run from the fire is fire.

You're not really loving the Lord with all your heart. And you don't have understanding because every time he goes through the fire something going to leave. And when you get there in that fire right there I'm gonna tell you what you're gonna be freer and You're gonna be different and a grace and a presence of God are gonna be on you more and more.

That's what grace is. Grace as James said is the power of the gospel to conform you to the image of the Lord Jesus Christ. It's all grace. Grace is not a canopy. Grace is not a canopy. But if you to go through some form of godliness or religious Traditions and still walk in the nature and character of Satan the wrath of God is still on you.

It's still there all right now when he as he removes these things see these fortresses and strongholds now. Let me just tell you what they operate off of. These fortresses and strongholds operate off of roots.

The only roots supposed to be in our heart is a love of Lord with what all our heart. Now if we do not love the Lord with all our heart that means we are loving something else more than Lord. Amen. And if you're loving something else more than the Lord you have other gods and other idols.

Now that's where the law comes in. Jesus didn't come to abolish the law he came to fulfill the law and the law said you're not gonna have any other gods and Idols, do you want me to tell you what the Ten Commandments were really saying?

Love the Lord with all your heart your neighbors yourself. Now we're going to go through some kind of a basic things. And we're not going to any scriptures and things we've ever used before and in these meetings.

We're not after revelation. We're after truth. So it's not a thing for me to go do a whole bunch of word studies and show you how much revelation now. We're going to deal with what's killing us. We're going to deal with the fire we're going to deal with what's happening to us.

What's happening around this where we're going and how we're going to get there. Amen. Glory be to God forevermore. And if it's in the balance and context of this word. You receive it and it's going to change your life, but we have where we headed for the bearer of the fruit of righteousness now.

That's what the I want you to know to understand this on the very front end that God doesn't have any problems with the powers of darkness. He doesn't have any problems with it you and I do. Amen. They are his instruments of indignation, and we've been brought up in traditions That have totally made us ignorant of enemy come to kill steal and destroy simply for the reason that our tradition religious traditions permitted us to walk under the God's law instead of.

So that's reading judgments left out. You're blind. When you when you have some kind of tunnel vision or doctrine that permits you to walk after the Character nature of Satan you're still walking on the wrath of God.

Therefore the enemy is not understood and so then what you do is develop controversial question. Christian can't have demons. You can't be full of spirit of God in the spirit of the devil and all this kind of thing and then see that becomes You new theology and you just explain your ignorance away about the rest of the Bible that you don't understand about Powers of darkness or you know way to Be going to teach holiness and righteousness, then we have a doctrine up here.

Where is me one? And here's one. We have a doctrine up here. You know what we have to protect it because it's just partial truth to begin with so you have to have all the Controversial questions with it and I want to go through this thing on it most of you hadn't even been in a meeting here Before I don't think and so you have all your you have a partial truth there.

It captures the heart of people and what you have to do is have all these Controversial questions to protect the people's ignorance about the rest of the Bible coach just using part of the Bible here.

You hear what I'm saying? So then if you don't deal with the powers of darkness right here. But then you teach you people that Christians can't have demons and you can't be full the spirit of God in spirit of the devil although that's what comes out of your mouth and then if you're going to deal with obedience being led by the Spirit of God and Walking in holes and right you like the Bible tells us we will walk then you have controversial questions that well.

You have another in here to protect this doctrine dear Lord make it stand that He believes in sinless perfection and Then all these kind of thing and then the powers of darkness have things for people that don't want to pray for the sick, you know God doesn't want to heal everybody and just all these different kind of things and all these kind of controversial questions protect doctrines.

Are you seeing what I'm saying? And so but what it does it protects your ignorance. So then a person that sits there under a doctrine. It does not conform you to godliness. He doesn't understand. See he doesn't learn what the Bible says.

He learns to support his doctrine right there. And then when he comes to read the Bible, there's over 400 doctrines and traditions in this country. Now when he comes to read his Bible right here, the only thing he can see in this Bible right here Is what fits in his doctrine which captured his heart?

He has tunnel vision now, you follow me? So then The church what is called church is divided up in the kingdoms of men. Men who've never repented from selfish ambition right here. They're still there they take the Bible and they don't teach you if you'd have a selfish ambition.

You're not going to teach righteousness and holiness. You can't build a kingdom with it. You can't you can't fulfill pride. You can't fulfill greed in these things. So he just stand up there with sheep's clothing and he'll look like a lamb.

But he'll speak like a dragon. Here's the way the dragon speaks right here. That's the nature and character of Satan. And so he'll sit up there and he'll flatter you. He'll tell you how righteous you are and your stiff-necked stubborn rebellion.

You show up bring your bricks and straw show up on Sunday morning. Support people who are comfortable in a religious system and Kings and Lords over God's heritage. While they have to use the banner which is the image of the beast you but when you when you come to this image right?

Here you're going to be like the beast that's the beast right here. You become the image and character in nature of Satan instead of being conformed to the image of the Lord Jesus Christ through the Spirit and Word and that can only comes through obedience.

You don't follow man. You follow the voice of Jesus and a stranger's voice. You will not follow Glory be to God. So then let me just share one thing. You'll either come through the fire and you'll have the divine nature of God.

You're looking at it or else you're going to be wood hay and stubble and You will not let the fire the fire the Spirit the Word Is not going to remove these works and it's the fire who is the powers of nursing going to burn you down and cut you.

Down you in a fire and you're going to be burned up in the fire. Salvation is being saved through the fire. Salvation is being removed the wrath of God. What is salvation being saved from a wrath of God in that true?

So salvation comes through Jesus Christ in the word as you repent and these deeds in your Heart right there and you don't have to go around and figure out how you're going to do it. I mean if you're loving if you're in a love affair of the Lord Jesus Christ love with all your heart you'd be in a Beat it.

All of this is going to happen. Because when you love Jesus more than you do stealing stealing is going to go when you love Jesus more than you do retaliation. Retaliation is going to go when you love Jesus more than you do Bitterness you love God more than you do any of these things.

You're going to give them up. Why because you love the Lord with what? Are your heart and that's what the law tells us in Matthew 22 36 to 40. We saw it last night love the Lord with all your heart mind soul and strength.

If you love if you love somebody with all your if you love I've often referred to some Love relationship like a boyfriend, you know our girlfriend or when you married your wife here your husband when you fell in love with them.

What did your mind stay on? Stayed on them and if you've really got your heart brother, you didn't want to sleep at night. Can I tell you something else? You didn't want to talk about anything else and you didn't want to think about anything else.

You know, why? They had all your heart mind soul and strength. Now if you have a relationship with the Lord, that's where he's going to bring us to. I believe that's what we're in the middle of right now and that right.

Love him all our heart soul and strength then when we love the Lord with all our heart. When we love in the Lord with all our heart, we don't have any other idols. We don't have any other gods and so then we come the Bible the Bible come worships because we want to be free from the nature and character of Satan because we.

We give we love the Lord more, but when we won't give it up. What do these things become we see in Colossians 3 5 it becomes idolatry when you what that's reading. It said do not prick the practice in Galatians 5 19 through 21.

That's in the Bible. In order to not be you know, not in the kingdom of kingdom of heaven kingdom of God rather. Amen. So then so we've seen what the fire is all about. I just want to just touch on that just a little bit.

So what do we what do we want him to do verse 3 and he was said as a smeller that Jesus the purifier of silver. He'll purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver so that they may present to the Lord.

What they're going to present offerings and righteousness, you know, what righteous is a prudent righteous once again is love joy peace long-suffering goodness. Jealous meekness temper the faith. That's the nature and character of God.

Amen. Now look at verse 15 so now. So now we call the arrogant blessed of God at our arrogant people called blessed of God today. People are walking in arrogance and say they're God's people in other words of blessings of God on and that's kind of the religious Conversation it goes on today.

I won't say the blessings of God not all over all of them. The curses and hell is all over them. Amen. Now so now we call the arrogant blessed but not only of the doers of wickedness build up. That's they build up right here because there's no repentance talk but they also test God and escape.

Another word verse 16 then those who feared the Lord now when. When we know the real truth that and the judgment of God is not left out of the word and we know that. Then we we're going to have a fear of God which is beginning a wisdom then those who feared the Lord.

That's the eternal gospel of the last days in Revelation 14. Then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another and the Lord what he did. The Lord gave attention he paid attention and he heard it in a book of Remembrance was written before him for those who fear the Lord.

To esteem his name. That's this word of God right here. It's the ones that fear of God in the same his name. That's who this word bar and they are going to be mine. Says the Lord of hosts on the day that I prepare my own possession.

That's his holy special treasure. And I'm going to spare them. I'm going to put a hedge around those that walks in this righteousness and holiness as a man spares his own son and serves him glory be to God.

Isn't that good? Now verse 18, so you will again going to distinguish between the righteous and the what? The ones who walk in lawlessness. This is what we got to do. We got to distinguish between righteousness and law now.

It's not enough just to say righteousness and learn is. Righteousness means walking in the character and nature of God and that love and that's what we would be and dealt with and Lord is Dealing with our hearts right now.

Amen. That's what we talked about this morning. We're going to distinguish between the righteous and the law ones that walk in lawless, which is wickedness. Between one who serves God and a one who just what?

Serve gun, can I tell you if you serve God? You're gonna be led by the Spirit of God. You know what Galatians 5 5 16 says walk with the Spirit and you will not carry out the desires in the nature of Satan.

The flesh amen, which is lawlessness. All sin is lawlessness now now folks. Well, let me just go on right here in chapter 4 verse 1 for behold the day is coming that's a day of the Lord it's burning like a furnace and All all all the arrogant and every every every evil doer will be chapped.

He's going to be burned up and the day that's a day of the Lord is coming. He's going to set him ablaze said the Lord of hosts. So he's going to leave them neither root nor branch in other words by your standard of measure.

It's going to be measured to you you and I folks. Look at me. That's what the law of God is. We're talking about here. Whatever you give out is what you get. That's the judgment. That's a law of God today.

By your standard of measure, that's a righteous judgment of God by your standard of measure is measured to you right now. That's a law of God. That's a blessing thing curses, but religious people call the arrogant and wicked blessed and no distinction between the Righteous and a wicked and they you know, that's explained very well over in Ezekiel 44 and you might want to put you a note there sometime and look at it.

But this day of the Lord and this is when the day of the Lord what it does now look at me up here the day of the Lord comes and This is a judgment of God's law the ones who come to love the Lord. They're seeking the Lord with all their whole heart.

And they love the Lord to the whole heart now, that's a body of Christ then when they come to the Word of God and I won't explain this and You read and the Word of God right here and the Word of God shows you that you have rebellion in your heart bang.

You'll see that rebellion right there and in your heart now. This is how you're gonna be set free in this meeting and then when you have this rebellion in your heart bang the Spirit of God is going to show you and Then in your heart you're saying well I love the Lord more than I do rebellion and in your hearts.

You're going to repent as we just read along in a word. You've already repenting these things and the powers of darkness attached himself to rebellion and criticism and fun. Forgiveness and all these things in there the word begins washing you and you know what happens.

Your countenance changes, you know, why the powers of darkness and the strongholds begin coming off of you. You're being perfected in love the nature and character of God through the Word of God. Are you hear what I'm saying?

And these things that begin coming off of you because you love the Lord with all your heart, but if you're just sitting some religious setting. Then you go through some form of godliness and your tickets already punched or whatever like that.

Then you come to read the Word of God you'd go through you what you call you private quiet time or whatever and your life never changes. You never really change it all and you always wonder what happens you just stay on a condemnation and all these things are happening.

And it's not a real victory in your life because you've got yourself another Jesus. Because for you when you come to love the Lord with all you see if you don't love the Lord with all your heart you. When you come to pride right here and the Lord to deal with you to deal with pride.

You know what you're going to do. You'll shrink back from the Word of God. You know why? You learn to love pride more than you do the Lord because you've already got your ticket punched. You've got a false assurance.

Are you hear what I'm saying? You don't have a law with all your heart. So we go when you love pride more you do God see pride helps God out and the more he helps in the proud he gets. Gives him money and stuff like that, you know, God broke.

Greed see if greed if you're seeking treasure in this world, you'll take part of the Bible. You'd be like a rich young ruler. Rich young ruler asked Jesus said how can I have eternal life? He said well, you know what the law says.

What does the law say love the Lord with all your heart your neighbors yourself and he said well. So he named off some of the Commandments all he didn't name off the tenth one and then and the rich young rules that I've done him those from my from my youth and you know, he won't know what I'm lacking and Jesus just told him one thing.

You know that 10th Commandment still got you. Because the rich young ruler loved greed. More they did the Lord and so what he just told him. He said if you want to be complete that means say be mature.

He said sell all your possessions. And give it to the poor. You sell all your possess to give the poor and then come and follow me. Because there's no use you follow me as long as you love greed more than you do me because it you can't be perfected and if you want to be complete go let greed go and.

So what the rich young ruler did do he just walked away. Sadly why? Because he loved greed more than he did the Lord and Jesus didn't call him back because Jesus didn't need his money and He didn't need you know today that fella got rode up all over the country, wouldn't he?

He could he'd get assurance that he could. He could he could be a you get assurance of kingdom of heaven and he could go walk with Satan the rest of his life. Which would be a false assurance and so see what happens when you when you're faced with this truth in the word you get shook Up, and this is what Paul said.

I'm you know, I'm sorry that my letter made you sorry the letters of the gospel but I but I'm but I'm still glad it made you sorry because it led you up to a repentance according the will of God and This repentance is not a worldly sorrow which lead to death.

But it's a as a as a repentance without regret in other words. You turn from these things without regret and I'm going to tell you what you and liberty and freedom and love folks. Why. Because your citizenship is no longer in this world when you come to Jesus because he's doing the will on earth.

As he's doing it in heaven. He wants his will done in your life and my life as it is in heaven now the people of God are going to walk in the will of what I could do in heaven and Everybody else is going to be obvious and evident.

Because they bear the fruit of righteousness in heaven. They love the Lord with all their heart and their neighbor in herself in heaven. Amen. So there we are in verse 2. But for you who fear me. That's the ones that love the word and that's who this gospel it said he's going to spare them down there.

You know, we saw that back in 2 3 17. They're going to be mine. But to those who fear me. The Son of righteous are going to re-rise with healing in his wings. You're going to go forth and skip about like what?

Cashmas soul, so I won't tell you something folks. When I've been going through all my meanness and some things, you know. And just had a whole lot of truth in the word. It wasn't helping me. You know, I'll tell you what I was.

I was just sapped for the powers of darkness because I was walking in lawlessness. And I'm getting where I skip now. Yeah, you get some of this fire off of me. Are you following what I'm saying? When you start repenting and start getting this stuff off of you folks.

You're going to skip like a cave while in the people in the fire the ones who practice these things the power tonight to build those fortresses and strongholds and All their strength and sickness disease and everything.

I've gone get on with this wrong. I mean, I see what I'm saying. Hold up your hand. Okay now so the curse and Judgment and wrath is on the whole earth today. Why is the curse judgment wrath on the earth today?

Because the whole earth walks in the nature and character of Satan this is what they practice they don't love their neighbor. That's what the law says love the Lord with all your heart. Matthew 22 36 to 40 and your neighbors yourself.

So the judgment of God and as the people walk and they attach the powers of darkness they practice these deeds right here the powers of darkness attach themselves to them and they bring in destruction is stealing and destroy them and They're walking in spiritual darkness.

That's reason Jesus came. To a people sitting in spiritual darkness in the shadow of death had been destroyed don't have any idea. Don't even know and it don't understand where this disease came from disease is not the blessings of God.

It's on the curses if you want to look in Deuteronomy 28 and it's well we're going to see how these things work here just on the very front end and so Jesus I want you to remember in Matthew 5 17 17 he came.

He did not come to abolish God's law. Now. We know the rituals and sacrifices have been abolished. But he came to fulfill the law and he didn't come to fulfill this law with a form of godliness that you just simply agree.

That Jesus Son of God died on the cross and raised my dad and you go back to the bar room or sit down or whatever that's just the beginning your spirit received the Spirit of God and the Spirit of God begins to perfect you and the goal of this instruction is love from a pure heart and that's what salvation is and this is what I want you to see.

Very clearly and I want you I'm honest you're going to see it just like looking at that wall over there. It's very very clear and Now Jesus, I want you to see this first everyone to look at it right here.

We got a few preliminaries here to go through and then we're going to really deal this walk. Let's go to John. John 15. I want everyone to see it John 15. There's a few basic things we want to get into and so everybody will be at the same place right here.

Now I want to ask you something. Now that you've turned to John 15. Don't you look at me? How can you and I love the Lord with all her heart and her neighbors herself? It's impossible to for us to obey the law of God.

That's the reason Jesus came in his grace the Word in the Spirit to perfect this love in us and he came. That we would bear this fruit. Right there. Love joy. Peace long-suffering goodness. Don't that's the nature and character God that kind of love is the nature of God and It doesn't break God's law.

Are you here one thing? It doesn't break God's law, but none of the world walks in this right here and we know a good tree Cannot bear bad fruit and a bad tree cannot bear what the fruit of holiness the bad tree.

You can't unless you belong to the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. So that's the race we run right there. Now I want you to see it right here. Now Jesus came to fulfill the law on you and we obey his commandments and we know first John 2 if you don't obey his Commandments you're a liar.

Now. Let's let's let's say what the Bible says Amen, because if we don't have any goal of walking in love and holiness if we don't have to walk. You know what flesh is going to do. You're just not going to do it.

You're just going to be religious. So let's see what we have to do right here. Now first, let's just decide something. Is anything wrong loving the Lord with all your heart? You're not against that. Are you?

What about loving your neighbors yourself folks? Do you understand whether that's the greatest enjoyable thing that ever happened? To be able to love everybody else yourself. Folks when you love everybody else yourself, you don't want nothing.

You don't be tied down to it. You're too busy sloshing and loving people. Amen, and then what happens when you love them people the more you love God just pours out more on you. But you're a standard of measure.

It's measured to you. Hey, man, and it's just one your whole conversation changes from what God is then God did this and God did that. What's God gonna do now? There's a phone ring. Let's see what God's done now.

Amen. But see we've been program in our traditions to walk in. That we can go through some form of God's religious activity and we can still care this fear unforgiveness and retaliation and Sarcasm and bitterness and cut judgment and condemning and by your standard of measure.

It's married you when these things come out your mouth for a few back for you. If you acquire a platform, you've got a problem with a demon and he's not on your shoulder. That's a law of God. You know what God's law is love.

Loving the law are not enemies. God said walk in love or get destroyed. That's how severe God is and you know something. It's a rest. And it's a piece to walk in it. This whole Bible is saying you have a love affair with God because Adam started out that way walking in innocence.

He walked in holiness and righteousness and he fell away because he wanted to Go eat off of that tree of the knowledge of good and evil the lust the flesh the lust the eye and the boast of Pride life, you know what a false teacher teaches you today.

He takes this Bible and teaches you and you off of that tree you get the tree of death. He teach you how to continue to walk at the lust of flesh the lust the eye and the boast of pride life and you walk In these things and hit death is all over you.

Dissension division you bite and devour one another words spoken against one another. That's a tree of death. What did covenant why do we have covenant to get in the presence of God to to have fellowship with him.

Well, why I have a covenant. Because the covenant is what caused you to walk in holiness, but I was who will ascend into the hill the Lord he that has what. Clean hands and a pure heart and that's all over.

That's what covenant. Old covenant was too far. It's too hard to get you in the nature and character of God again where Adam fell from and that's what it is today. And Jesus come today to perfect this love now.

They had their sacrifices back then when they broke God's law. They had the rituals and sacrifices. Let me just tell you today. You have you walk in peace and when you break God's law. Immediately, you're going to lose your peace.

The law is written on your heart. Why is the law is written on your heart and Hebrews 8 and 10? Brother when you are when you're walking in love. You have confidence in your heart, but you don't have to go have to ask something and have things going between you and God.

What is peace. Powers of darkness are not doing anything with you they can't touch you. You know why you got a hedge around you when you're walking in the character and nature of God when you're bedding the Lord and this.

What Jesus came to do for us? Well, how do we put the death the deeds of the flesh? You don't put them to death you get in on it God, you don't even know what's in your heart. What do you know what to put to death?

The spirit you just get in a love affair of the Lord Jesus Christ you walk around with the law on your mind all the Time. Absolutely not you walk around with the Lord on your mind and your love affair with the Lord instinctively Leads you to do the law to be doers of God's law through Christ.

Romans 2 13 said not the hearers of God's law to me. Just before God, but the doers have got to be just just before God because the Gentiles who do not have the law instinctive do do the the works of law because they show the law is written in their hearts and we're going to to look at net look at net and Say it so when trials and everything come in our life.

They're to test you and you and you're going to count it all joy because see if you've been responding in anger then the things that come to make you angry are going to keep coming back until you. Usually when I win it, you know that pie in other words the powers of darkness their instruments of God they can bring set up situations where it'll make you angry and Then if you respond with anger, then they can just put more and more bondage on you until you destroy it.

But then if you if all your motivation now is the love of Lord with all your heart now listen to me if all your Motivation love the Lord with all your heart. You no longer have to have the approval of people.

You no longer that selfish thing. You have to look good to people. You no longer have to prove your case to somebody although you know that you're right and they're wrong. What you do you stand when this pressure comes and something trying to rise up in you.

You said what glory be to God here is a place. The time to please God because all the motivation since I love the Lord with all my heart all my motivation now is to please the Lord. Amen. So since all your motivation, please the Lord you're going to stand there right in that fire.

And you're going to resist it. You know because all your you're entrusting your soul to a faithful creator Lord on to please you. I'm not going to prove my point to this person. I'm not going to have to look good to everyone else you have given me so much that that person is attacking me right there Lord.

Your grace. I Want to see that person don't know what they're doing. They're breaking your law. You're judging them and they're getting con they're getting judgment all over them and I want to love them.

I want the same grace for them that you've given for me. So I choose to be just exactly like you. I'm not gonna be like the devil in walking anger and unforgiveness anymore and so Lord I Just stand there.