Book of James - Ch. 4, Vs. 1-7 (03/05/2000)

Park Meadows Church

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Take your Bibles, please, and open to the book of James, to the fourth chapter, chapter 4.

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James says, where do wars come from? From whence come wars and fightings among you?

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Come they not thence even of your lusts that war in your members?

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What is the very basic reason for church conflicts, personal arguments, world wars?

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What causes it? Joy. But that's not the bottom line.

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That's not the bottom line. What'd she say?

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I'm going to turn my hearing aid up where I can hear you. Greg, what's the bottom line on all of it?

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Well, I think you could if you could sleep on it. Paul, tell them what causes all of the problems in the world.

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It's what? Satan. Satan out of the mouths of babes will be led.

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Satan is the cause of all arguments, all wars, all church conflicts, everything.

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Now, you were very typical in your answer. I have here a clock.

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David thought that this was a hint for him. What's the purpose of a clock?

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So we'll have some judge for the correct time. Now, is this one correct?

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Could we say that the hands are in the wrong position? Well, you could, but that'd be the surface.

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What's really wrong with that clock? Yes, it's running.

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What? It's not set by the right standard. It has power and it's been set.

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It's not running right. Take that and dig a little deeper. Try not to listen to him.

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We're talking about wars and arguments. To blame the hands of a clock is equal to the symptoms of the situation.

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How many people have you ever heard of that died from symptoms? We don't, do we?

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So the clock hands are wrong, but to blame the hands is just the symptoms. You have to go much deeper.

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There's something way down inside that's wrong. When there's an argument, too many times we try to treat the symptoms.

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When there's something far deeper that's wrong. Now, on the way to that deeper subject, you run across lust, pride, the desire of people to do everything their own way, to have what we want.

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But all of that is the symptom of the real problem. The real problem is deep inside somewhere.

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And in that case, it's in our innermost being. James says, from where do wars and fighting come from?

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They come from your lusts that war in your members. What is your members,

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David? The group of five. Not just your five, your whole self.

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All right. We fight not what? Life and blood. But we do fight principalities as what?

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It's like a hierarchy. Right. The group.

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So the real battle is not that that you can see. It's not that on the surface.

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It's in the spiritual world. In the case of the clock, it's in the workings way down inside.

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So happens this one is correct. I just missaid it. But it was to prove a point.

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So, it's the same in our life. So quit trying to fix symptoms.

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You lust and you have not. You kill and desire to have and cannot obtain.

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You fight. It should be you cannot obtain so you fight and war.

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Yet you have not because you ask not. Now, it plainly tells us that the reason things are not going right is because we don't ask.

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When is it that you can pray and not pray? When is a prayer not a prayer?

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All right. When is prayer evil? There's a good one.

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Right. And in all reality, it's not a prayer. It would just be experience and exercise.

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In Matthew 21, 22. And all of these things whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer believing you shall receive.

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But you have to understand more of the scripture than just that. Luke 18, 11.

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The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself. Notice he prayed with himself.

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God, I thank thee that I am not as other men are. Extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this dirty old publican.

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I fast twice in the week. I give tithes of all that I possess.

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But the publican did what? Standing afar off, he would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying,

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God, be merciful to me, a sinner. So what did the

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Pharisee do when he praised himself?

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In all of it, you'd be surprised. And if you'll learn to listen, not in this church, thank goodness.

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Thank the Lord. But in the average church, you'll hear a lot of gossip if someone prays.

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You'll hear a lot of things that should not be repeated. Let me say this.

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You do not pray in public like you do in private. We know a young man in the other church that did that.

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He would go on and on and on. You could go get a drink of water and come back, and he'd still be going on and on.

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It takes more than just sincerity. The next verse tells us,

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I tell you, this is in Luke 18. I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other.

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For everyone that exalteth himself shall be abased, and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

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So what's the difference between abased and exalted, Bea? Abased is bad and exalted is good.

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All right. You're absolutely right. Matthew 23, 14.

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When the Lord says you have not because you ask not, he means that it is the same as not praying.

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Unless your thoughts have originated in heaven, it's not a prayer. Now, I cannot explain to everybody's satisfaction that statement, but I know it's true.

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He will give us the thoughts that are needed for the prayer that we give. They originate with him.

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We express it in our words. God accepts nothing but that which originated with him.

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He accepts nothing from man, because man can generate nothing but sin.

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Verse 3. It is not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God.

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Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. This word enmity,

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Harvey, what do you think that means? All right.

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Enmity means there is a state of war that exists. And it's between God and the flesh.

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So anytime that you're a friend of the world, you're an enemy of God. Now, let's explain a friend of the world.

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First of all, let's talk about adultery for a moment. Does anybody remember our definition of adultery?

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Well, let me give it to you in case you answer wrong. Adultery is taking the love that belongs to one and giving it to another.

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That's why the Lord could call these Pharisees adulterers. They were giving their love to themselves and not to God.

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And God is where it belongs. In the book of Romans, chapter 8, verse 7.

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Because the carnal mind is enmity against God, for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can it be.

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The carnal mind can never be redeemed. Greg, what does

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He do to our carnal being? What does

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He do to us? Let me put it that way. All right.

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Why is the carnal not redeemed? Don't ever think you can give your life to God because you cannot.

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He will not take it. He does not want it. He doesn't take your old life and work it over.

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Refurbish it. Put a new chassis under it. New paint job. And call it new.

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It is still the old flesh. There is no plan of redemption for the flesh.

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You adulterers. This carnal mind is enmity.

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It did not say is at enmity. It is enmity. It is the war against God.

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And it is not subject to the law of God. And it can never be. As the intimate alliance of God with the people of Israel was likened to a marriage.

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The marriage was used so many times as an illustration. Those who relapse into idolatry are said to commit adultery or play the harlot.

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Those of we Christians. If we go off and sin, we are taking what belongs to God and giving it to Satan.

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Now, friendship of the world. He said that is a very dangerous ground.

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To be at friends with the world means this. To be on good terms with persons and organizations that are indifferent toward God.

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In some cases, openly hostile to God. This is enmity with God.

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This is why his church does not accept money from unsaved souls.

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Lots of times around tax time there will be some companies and some individuals want to give money to the church so they can write it off on their tax.

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Unfortunately, I know some churches that would take it. But that is doing no one any good.

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Especially the giver of it. He thinks he has made some points when he has not. The church is just overwhelmed because of all the money and all the good they can do.

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It does not work like that. In Joshua the 24th chapter and the 20th verse says.

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If you forsake the Lord and serve strange gods, then he will turn and do you hurt and consume you.

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After that he has done you good. For thou shalt worship no other

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God for the Lord. His name is Jealous.

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He is a jealous God. God says,

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I am jealous. What does the word jealous mean Pat? Demanding that which is yours and you are jealous of that toy and will not share it with your brother.

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God says, I am jealous. Now according to a worldly definition we would not want to serve a

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God that was jealous. But he says, I am. Now David, how do we reconcile that?

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Humanize. It is wrong for a human, simple creature to be jealous.

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It is not wrong for someone who has the right to possession to be jealous.

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God is the only one who can create everything. Desire, power, hold, heart.

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None is part of it. Alright. Would you want someone else raising your children when it was possible for you to do it?

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Would you want someone else teaching your children? Why? You are jealous.

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There is a good jealous and a sorry jealous. Worldly jealous. God is jealous.

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That means he will not share his love with anyone except his.

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And he demands that they pay full allegiance to him. You cannot pray and be angry.

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You cannot communicate with God and think about what you are going to cook for lunch.

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You cannot think about the movie you saw last night on TV and worship

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God. It does not work like that. It will not work like that. You can fool the one sitting next to you, but very seldom can you fool

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God. Almost never. In fact, never.

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2 Samuel 6, 6

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He reached up to grab it to hold it in place. What happened to him? He had a heart attack and died.

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He was killed. By who? By the oxen? God slew him.

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Now that seems awfully very much unfair.

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What is the lesson that is teaching us? He not only does not want, he will not allow.

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He will not permit it. He will not abide it. He says, I am a jealous

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God. I take care of everything. God needs no help to do anything of his.

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He does not need us. We have work to do and we are held responsible for it.

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But the man that tried to save the beautiful ark was killed. That is hard.

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But it is true. And it was to teach us a lesson. In 7 it says,

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And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Isaiah, and God smote him there for his error.

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And there he died by the ark of God. Do you think that the scripture saith in vain,

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The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy? Do you think that was an unnecessary statement of the

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Lord? Do you think that the scripture is lying when it says that?

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The spirit in us seeks only to satisfy itself. It wants nothing except what it wants.

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He, God, yearns jealously over the spirit which he has made to dwell in us.

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He will not tolerate divided allegiance. David, give me an example of divided allegiance.

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Be very wise and very careful in your allegiance and your friendships and your contacts.

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Galatians 5 verse 4 tells us, Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law, you are fallen from grace.

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You are fallen from the fellowship of God. It doesn't mean you lost your salvation, but the joy of your salvation.

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James 6, But he giveth more grace, wherefore he saith,

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God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. He gives us the power of the

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Holy Spirit to resist the evil tendency to be a friend of the world.

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Now, the next three verses, and that's as far as we're going to go, but I want you to look for something.

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In the next three verses, we'll find some verbs. All are very important to keep, and to keep us from the sin of the world.

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The first one is submit. In verse 7,

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Submit yourselves therefore to God. The next word is resist. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

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The next one is draw. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you.

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Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double -minded.

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Now, we have the words submit, resist, cleanse, purify.

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The word submit is to act in accordance with another's wishes, opinions, or decisions.

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To resist, to set yourself against. To draw, he will draw nigh to us, only it is us that move, not him.

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Cleanse, reference to outward conduct from inward motives. Purify of our heart to set our love on only one thing, our

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Lord. Now, you'll notice all of these verbs are active in the present tense.

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That means something that we do right now. Every time we think of it, we do it.

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These are things we can do by the power of the Holy Spirit, and we must do them to remain in close fellowship with our

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Lord. Resist, draw, cleanse, purify.

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The word draw in verse 8, draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. It doesn't mean that he moves, it means that we move.

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Cleanse your hands. Confess your sins. You sinners.

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Now, we know we that are born again are not habitual sinners, but this is talking about wavering, doubting

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Christians, and we're told by the Scripture to do nothing from doubt. If you have doubt concerning anything, just don't do it.

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You say, well, I must. No, not unless you're convinced.

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Wait until you're convinced one way or the other. And purify your hearts, you double -minded people.

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Greg what is a double -minded person? Okay. He's a

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Christian, but he wants a little bit of the world and the Christianity too. And he cannot have but one.

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You cannot serve two masters. You cannot even think of two things at one time.

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You cannot study and have the TV going. Now, our mind is such a wonderful computer that it has the ability to switch back and forth so fast that it fools you.

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You think that you're listening to the TV and you're studying too. But you've been tricked.

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That cannot happen. All right, that's as far as we're going today.

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David will take it up somewhere near there. Are there any questions or thoughts from anyone?

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Paul, you have any questions? Well, let's stand and we'll be dismissed.

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Harvey, would you dismiss us today, please? I will.