The God Who Loves Designed The Family

Posted on January 13, 2026 by bibleteacherorg

Photo by Dawid Zawiła on Unsplash

Today you’re going to need your Bibles, as Ron is not able to be with us. We’re going to be talking about the Family. I hear a lot of preaching today, and a lot of singing that “God is love”. Let’s stand in honor of God’s Word, showing our love to Him. Listen as God tells us how He loved us by creating the Family:

Ephesians 5:21-33 Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God. 22 Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the Savior of the body. 24 Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing. 25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; 26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, 27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. 28 So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself. 29 For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church: 30 For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. 31 For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh. 32 This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church. 33 Nevertheless let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself; and the wife see that she reverence her husband.

God designed the Heavens, the stars, the galaxies.
God designed this earth, separating light from darkness.
God designed the plant life, and the animals.
God designed the Man and Woman.
God designed both man and woman in His image (Genesis 1:27).
God designed Marriage.
God designed the Family.
God designed human sexuality to procreate in the family (Genesis 1:28).
God designed work.
God designed local, state, and national government.
A loving God designed everything for our good.

The Federal Governments did not design marriage, nor the family. Though governments and judges may legislate, and order that the design of the family be re-ordered, the law of man does not change what God has ordained. God designed the family.

And God loves us. In love, He knows what is best.

We’re going to talk about family today, about marriage. We’re going to discuss what the Bible says and, as I go into this, I know that some of you will be upset with me. That’s all right – I’d rather you be upset with me than GOD be upset with me. I’m just going to tell you what the Bible says. As an American with First Amendment rights you can marry anything you want, and you can call anything your family that you want. But you will not be satisfied with your life until you come under God’s loving design. Do you know why?

The God Who LOVES YOU, and Who designed YOU, designed the FAMILY.

The God Who Loves You Ordered The Family

Ephesians 5:21 SUBMITTING YOURSELVES one to another in the fear of God.

The Family is the basic building block of the community, of the nation. When God – the God Who loves you – created everything, He created with order. Light was made first (Genesis 1:3), because “God is LIGHT, and in HIM there is no darkness” (1 John 1:5). Then, within this LIGHT, God created all other things. God created DAY and NIGHT BEFORE He created the Sun and Moon (compare Genesis 1:3-4 with Genesis 1:14-16). Some people have said, “No, that can’t be. The Bible must be in error! The SUN gives us light by day, and the MOON by night.” That’s true now. But God created LIGHT independent of the sun or moon. Light comes from the sun and is reflected from the moon because GOD RULED IT SO. But the sun and the moon are not the source of light. GOD is the Source of light. The Psalmist sang:

Psalm 27:1 The LORD IS MY LIGHT and my salvation—whom shall I fear?

Psalm 36:9 For with You is the fountain of life; in YOUR LIGHT WE SEE LIGHT.

There is an order in creation. God creates Light, and light rules. When God created man and woman, we are told:

Genesis 1:27-28 (LSB) God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; MALE AND FEMALE HE CREATED THEM. 28 God blessed them, and God said to them, Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and SUBDUE it; and HAVE DOMINION over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that creeps on the earth.

Both man and woman were created of equal value. Man and woman, TOGETHER, are in the image of God. God told BOTH man and woman together to be fruitful, multiply, and fill the earth. The first family was also together to SUBDUE and HAVE DOMINION over the earth. They were a team. But Beloved, in any team there is a leader.

Marriage is made in the image of God. So let’s think about God Himself. Within the Triune God, all three Members are equally God. The Father is God.

1 Corinthians 8:6 Yet for us there is ONE GOD, THE FATHER, from whom are all things and for whom we exist …

There is “One God and FATHER OF ALL, Who is over all and through all and in all” (Ephesians 4:6). But Jesus Christ the Son of God is God:

John 10:30 {Jesus said} I and the Father ARE ONE

The Pharisees hated Jesus, because “He called God His own Father, making Himself equal with God” (John 5:18). The Father told the angels about Jesus, “let all of the Angels WORSHIP HIM” (Hebrews 1:6). The Father even directly spoke of Jesus, saying “Your Throne, O GOD, is forever and ever”.

But the Bible also says the Holy Spirit is God. Peter told Ananias,

Acts 5:3-4 Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit…? YOU HAVE NOT LIED TO MEN, BUT TO GOD!

The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are equally God. But within the Godhead the Father sent the Son (John 5:36-37; John 6:38-39; John 7:16), the Son sends the Spirit (John 15:26; John 16:7). There is SUBMISSION within the Godhead. There is SUBMISSION within creation.

When God made man and woman “in His image and in His likeness” (Genesis 1:27), just as each Member of the Godhead has equal value, each member of the Marriage has equal value. But God created the Man with the leadership role. The role is seen in the design itself.

Man was created first from the dust of the ground (Genesis 2:7)
Man was given oversight of the Garden of Eden (Genesis 2:16)
Woman was created from Adam’s rib (Genesis 2:21-22)

Man was created to lead in the union of marriage, but woman was created to follow and be cherished. Man was to submit himself to GOD, and to love Him above all else. Woman was to submit herself to her mate as long as he followed God. “We MUST OBEY GOD rather than MAN” (Acts 5:29). God must come first.

Ephesians 5:21-22 Submitting yourselves one to another IN THE FEAR OF GOD.22 Wives, SUBMIT YOURSELVES unto YOUR OWN husbands, AS UNTO THE LORD.

The phrase “IN THE FEAR OF GOD” emphasizes that the submission to the husband, or the submission that the husband shows to the wife, is never to override what God has said. “IN THE FEAR OF GOD” doesn’t mean to be in terror of God. It means to understand that God LOVES you, and God wants the best for you. When you step away from God and try and do it your way, there is a consequence. God tells us to DO certain things, and to NOT DO other things because He LOVES US. When we step away from that path we invite disaster.

“Wives, submit yourselves unto YOUR OWN HUSBANDS, AS UNTO THE LORD”

Your husbands do not have the authority, nor the right, to ask you to do anything that is contrary to the Word of God and the spirit of love. When God leads you, dear women, to the man He has planned for your life, you will experience a wonderful love that I can hardly describe.

Men, You Must Be Worthy Of The Woman

Ephesians 5:23 For the husband is the HEAD {kephalē} of the wife, even as CHRIST IS THE HEAD OF THE CHURCH: and he is the Savior of the body. 24 Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing.

Modern feminists hate this scripture. They love to speak of “toxic masculinity”, and how women do not need men, that they can do everything a man can do. Sadly, reality does not bear this out. If a woman is going to have a child, she needs a man. I saw this video the other day where a woman said,

“I think we need to normalize borrowing another woman’s husband. If I need something moved, or something repaired, I ought to be able to call a married friend and borrow her husband for the heavy lifting.”

That’s foolish! Let me suggest this, dear one. Women are different from men. You were designed with less structural strength for lifting, and with a different mindset than the man. That’s not bad. Men can’t have babies (praise the LORD!). Men can’t breastfeed (praise God!). Women have skill sets that men don’t have.

If you need a man to help you, go first to JESUS CHRIST and SUBMIT TO HIM as Lord and Savior. Begin to attend a local Church, and ask Godly men in that Church to help you do the things you can’t do. A Godly man will help you if you ask – we’ve often done that in this Church.

Preach: I believe there is a “toxic masculinity”, but it’s not what the world calls “toxic masculinity”. “Toxic masculinity” is the man who will not lead his wife in a God honoring way. Toxic masculinity is the man who lets his wife take the helm on everything, and stands by and watches then blames her when a mess comes. Toxic masculinity is the husband with the wandering eye, who pays no attention to his wife. Toxic masculinity is the emaciated effeminate man “in touch with his feminine side” that never lovingly restricts his wife from doing that which is ungodly. Do you want to see a picture of toxic masculinity?

Go look at Adam.

God gave Adam charge over Eden, and gave Adam very clear directions.

Genesis 2:16-17 (LSB) From any tree of the garden you may surely eat; 17 but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat from it; for IN THE DAY YOU EAT FROM IT, YOU WILL SURELY DIE.

That’s as clear as it can be! Yet when the serpent (that Old Serpent is Satan, see Revelation 12:9; 20:2) came in the Garden and began to talk to his wife, Adam stood back and said nothing. When Satan tempted his wife, and mocked the command of God, saying:

Genesis 3:4-5 (LSB) You SURELY WILL NOT DIE! 5 For God knows that in the day you eat from it YOUR EYES WILL BE OPENED, and YOU WILL BE LIKE GOD, knowing good and evil.

Where was Adam? He was right there. The Bible says:

Genesis 3:6 (LSB) Then the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make [one] wise, so she took from its fruit and ate; and she GAVE ALSO TO HER HUSBAND WHO WAS WITH HER and HE ATE.

It is a toxic male that stood by watching his wife do that which he KNEW God said don’t do. It was a toxic male that abdicated his leadership in that beautiful union called marriage.

What Adam did would be as bad as the Heavenly Father walking away from His Throne. What Adam did is as horrible as the Father saying to Jesus, “Go make payment for the sins of the world”, and Jesus saying “No, I’m not going to go!” It’s toxic. It’s evil. God would never do that. The Father sent the Son. The Son went without complaint. The Son sent the Spirit. The Spirit came without argument. God is not toxic – but Adam was.

His toxic behavior polluted humanity with a pollution that drags us down today. The Bible says:

Romans 5:12, 17 (NKJV) Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned– … 17 For if by the one man’s offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.)

Adam is a picture of a toxic man. But Jesus Christ is a picture of the man God wants us to be.

Ephesians 5:25-27 Husbands, LOVE YOUR WIVES, EVEN AS CHRIST ALSO LOVED THE CHURCH, and GAVE HIMSELF FOR IT; 26 THAT HE MIGHT SANCTIFY IT AND CLEANSE IT WITH THE WASHING OF WATER BY THE WORD, 27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it SHOULD BE HOLY AND WITHOUT BLEMISH.

Illustrate: When I came by the Church yesterday, I saw a buzzard standing in front of the doors of the Fellowship Hall looking in. I watched it for a while, and it stared in the windows of the doors intently. I realized the buzzard was staring at its own image in the window. When I walked up, the buzzard took off. It left behind two nasty piles of stomach spit on the sidewalk in front of the door. Yuk!

Adam didn’t love his wife. If he had loved his wife, he would have told her not to eat. He would have told her “don’t talk to a talking snake”. He would have done ANYTHING better than he did. After eating, Adam stared not at God’s Word but at his own reflection in the window. Like an old buzzard he didn’t look to God, but to himself. He made fig leaves for them to wear (Genesis 3:7), a human solution for a terrible divine tragedy. When confronted by God, Adam did not take credit for his failure. Toxic masculinity always looks for someone else to blame. He told God:

Genesis 3:12 (LSB) The woman whom YOU GAVE TO BE WITH ME, SHE GAVE TO ME from the tree, and I ATE.

“I only ate, God, because you gave me THIS woman. I only ate, Lord, because SHE gave it to me”. Toxic masculinity does not stay true to the Word of God. Toxic masculinity sets its own standard, its own agenda. But true masculinity is found in the Lord Jesus Christ.

CHRIST ALSO LOVED THE CHURCH, and GAVE HIMSELF FOR IT

Here is true masculinity. Not to hide behind your woman, but to stand up for her. Jesus Christ loved the Church. Whereas Adam brought sin into the world, Jesus Christ died to make payment for our sins. He laid His life down to redeem us, to bring us into the Light of God.

John 10:11, 17-18 I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd LAYS DOWN HIS LIFE FOR THE SHEEP. … I lay down my life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I LAY IT DOWN OF MY OWN ACCORD.

The toxic male focuses on his life, his wants. The man God made us to be is like Jesus, willing to die for his wife. No one made Jesus lay down His life, but He laid it down to bring us closer to God.

The man God wants us to be lays down his life willingly to bring our wives, our children, our friends, our communities, our nation closer to the Kingdom of God.

THAT HE MIGHT SANCTIFY IT AND CLEANSE IT WITH THE WASHING OF WATER BY THE WORD

Jesus did not die and rise again so that He might bring the Church – His Bride – in alignment with the world. Jesus died and rose again so that His Church might be Scripture centered, that it might be a society of SAINTS TOGETHER who are JUSTIFIED by faith and living HOLY lives pleasing to God. God did not give Adam his Eve to be a sex toy or a maid or a mommy. Had Adam loved Eve he would have done everything he could to draw her closer to God the Father.

Jesus Christ died and rose again so that His Church “SHOULD BE HOLY AND WITHOUT BLEMISH”, not part of the world. The toxic male allows his wife to wander from God, and supports that wandering.

Now let me say this quickly: Some of you may have wives or husbands who do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior, nor do they care to do so. The Bible tells us:

1 Corinthians 7:12-15 (LSB) …. if any brother has A WIFE WHO IS AN UNBELIEVER, and SHE CONSENTS TO LIVE WITH HIM, HE MUST NOT DIVORCE HER. 13 And A WOMAN WHO HAS AN UNBELIEVING HUSBAND, AND HE CONSENTS TO LIVE WITH HER, SHE MUST NOT DIVORCE HER HUSBAND. 14 For the UNBELIEVING HUSBAND IS SANCTIFIED THROUGH HIS WIFE, and the UNBELIEVING WIFE IS SANCTIFIED THROUGH HER BELIEVING HUSBAND. For otherwise your children are unclean, but now they are holy. 15 Yet IF THE UNBELIEVING ONE LEAVES, LET HIM LEAVE. The brother or the sister is not (BOUND) in such [cases], but God has called us to peace.

There are instances where a believer will find themselves in a marriage with an unbeliever. The Bible tells the believer to stay with that unbeliever if they so consent to it, for who knows, if by your example the other be saved. I know in our own Church I have heard the testimony of one who was saved through the witness of a spouse. God calls us to be peacemakers.

Ephesians 5:28-20 So ought men to LOVE THEIR WIVES AS THEIR OWN BODIES. He that LOVETH HIS WIFE LOVETH HIMSELF. 29 For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, EVEN AS THE LORD THE CHURCH

Oh, how Jesus loves His Church. How He loves you and I. Men, we are called as Christians to love our wives as Jesus loves the Church.

The Mystery Of Marriage

Ephesians 5:31-33 For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh. 32 THIS IS A GREAT MYSTERY: but I speak concerning Christ and the church. 33 Nevertheless let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself; and the wife see that she reverence her husband.

A good, God blessed marriage is a “GREAT MYSTERY”. I love “mystery” books, detective novels, where the plot is eventually revealed. When two come together as God has intended, the two become one. Marriage is the completion of the full image of God. The two are to be one. This is the basis of the family, the family as God means it to be.

What of those who have lost their loved ones? Lost their spouse, their mama, their daddy? Church, this is where we need to come alongside of those in need. We as the wonderful Church that Jesus died for must show our love for those who have suffered the loss of their other. We must stand in the gap for children who need the representation of a father or a mother.

We need to stand with those in the valley, and point them to Jesus. We need to help those women that need help – and men too – that are in the valley of loss. The Bible says:

Galatians 6:9–10 And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, AS WE HAVE OPPORTUNITY, let us DO GOOD TO EVERYONE, and ESPECIALLY TO THOSE WHO ARE OF THE HOUSEHOLD OF FAITH.

In marriage, you have an immediate family. But in the Church you have an eternal family. Draw near to your family. Let your needs be known. We cannot read minds. But given the opportunity, we will help. For we are the Lord’s.

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Steps To Peace With God

Posted on January 13, 2026 by bibleteacherorg

Photo by Lindsay Henwood on Unsplash

Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

You Need To Be Careful With Them “Smart Phones”

I was watching a documentary a few years ago that explained the rise of Social Media, and so called “Smart Phones”. They really exploit the users to get rich off of your information. The Social Media founders know all about Dopamine. God made us so that, when we are frightened, excited, happy, that our bodies release a substance called Dopamine into our brains. It is Dopamine that gets people addicted to drugs and alcohol. It is Dopamine that tells your brain “pay attention to this” or “this is important” or “do this again” or even “DON’T do this again”. Dopamine is released when something is rewarding, novel or new, surprising, or motivationally significant (whether good or bad). It’s like a spotlight in your brain.

And it is addictive.

In his article “Is Phone Addiction Really That Bad?” Pastor and Author Patrick Miller writes:

“The consequence of dopamine abundance is addiction. To understand how this works, Lembke says it’s helpful to imagine your brain like a seesaw. On one side is pleasure; on the other side is pain. Your brain wants to retain equilibrium, to keep the seesaw flat. … But when you live in a society awash with dopamine factories—social media, pornography, gaming, high-calorie foods, alcohol, online gambling—you face a constant, pathological temptation to press the seesaw on the pleasure side. The problem is that the more you repeat a dopamine-releasing behavior, the greater your tolerance becomes. This applies to social media—a proven dopamine-releasing substance—which was designed to be addictive.2 Thus, if it took only two TikToks to spike your dopamine the first time, it will take four the tenth time, and dozens the hundredth. Whatever your drug of choice, you need more and more of it to get the original high and more and more of it to reduce the psychological pain you experience when you come down from your high.”

It’s all about mind control. Social Media is big business. In 2025 Social Media brought in $307-341 billion in annual revenue. The Facebook and Instagram platforms made $160 billion. The YouTube platform generated $36 billion. Those “free” services that you use are not free. They sell advertising – but they also sell your information. Do you know why you get scammers calling you, trying to get you to get the “New” Medicare Card, or telling you “This is Transunion Credit, and you owe $$$$ for tolls on the New Jersey turnpike”? It’s because these Social Media platforms have sold your information (name, address, likes, dislikes, etc) to bad actors who will rob you if they can.

I recently enlisted the aid of a company called Cloaked because I was being covered up by scammers and salespeople. Cloaked found 1340 records with my information on the Internet – and removed them. They’re still looking, and still finding data breaches.

If the fallen world can control your mind, they can control your wealth, your health, your political sympathies, even your religious persuasion.

The devil is into mind control – and he’s found a great tool in media. The devil blinds our minds the the Gospel of Christ:

2 Corinthians 4:3-4 (NKJV) But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, 4 whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.

The devil wants your mind, to keep you from the life that Jesus wants you to have. The world wants your mind so they can make merchandise of you. The Bible speaks of false prophets – but these people are not just preachers, but businesses and groups that want not to help you, but to rob you. The Apostle warned:

2 Peter 2:1-3 (LSB) But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. 2 And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned. 3 And in [their] greed they will exploit you with false words, their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.

The Devil Wants Your Mind, The World Your Money

The Apostle knew that the battle for your soul begins with your mind. This is why we are told to “think on these things”. To control where our minds go. To guard our minds, by being careful what we watch, what we flood our minds with. Do not let the world take control of your life, Beloved of God. Remember always that Jesus is with us. Jesus is with us.

The devil uses mind control. The attacks us at our weak points. How did the Devil attack Jesus?

Before Jesus preached His first sermon, God Himself led our Savior into the wilderness.

Matthew 4:1 (LSB) Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

How would the Devil tempt Jesus? I believe the reason that God the Holy Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness was to show us HOW TO DEFEAT THE DEVIL’S MIND GAME. The Spirit specifically led Jesus into the wilderness – not to teach Jesus – but to teach US. How do we guard our minds from the devil’s influence? How do we prevent the world from taking over our lives?

We’re going to look tonight at how the Devil attempted to influence Jesus. The Devil did not come to attack Jesus immediately. Note that Jesus was in the wilderness for FORTY DAYS AND NIGHTS, eating nothing (though He had water).

Day after day, no Devil.
One, two, three days … no Devil.
Four, five, ten, fifteen days. No devil.
Thirty, thirty-five, thirty six, 39 days. No Devil.

Jesus is made like us, but without sin (Hebrews 4:15). Jesus’ body produced Dopamine, just as ours does. Day after day, Jesus is getting hungrier. When He hits the fortieth day, the Bible says “Jesus THEN became hungry”. The Dopamine kicked in. He’s HUNGRY. And comes along just as the Dopamine kicks in?

Chef and Theologian Extraordinaire, the Devil!

Matthew 4:3 (LSB) If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.

When you’re HUNGRY Dopamine activity increases in your brain circuits, demanding that you seek food, look for food, work for food. The hunger hormones (Ghrelin) increases when you haven’t eaten, increasing your desires. How did our Lord deal with the Devil’s temptation, and the release of Dopamine in His body?

Jesus Examined The Situation: Is It True?

Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true {alēthēs}

When the Devil comes to tempt you, He will come when your flesh is hurting. He will come when you’re FAMISHED. He will come when you’re HURTING. He will come when you’re LONELY. He will come when you are at your weakest point. This is what the Devil did with Jesus. The Bible says that

Matthew 4:3 (LSB) And the TEMPTER {peirazō} came and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”

Word Study: The Devil is called the “TEMPTER”, the Greek peirazō which means “the One who examines for quality or genuineness, the assayer who checks the purity or the quality or a person or a thing, a refiner. The Devil is testing the genuineness of Jesus. Is He truly the Messiah? Is He truly the Son of God, or is He just another Jewish savior? The Bible tells us the Spirit of God led Jesus to be tested. The Devil is testing Jesus – but God is using the Devil. Our God is the Ultimate Refiner, the Ultimate Tester. The Bible says:

Malachi 3:2-3 (AP) For our God is like a REFINER’S FIRE …. He will purify His people and refinbe them like silver and gold …

Proverbs 17:3 (AP) The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold, and the LORD tests our hearts.

How does the Devil start out testing our Jesus?

Matthew 4:3 (LSB) And the tempter came and said to Him, “IF You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”

The Devil asks Jesus, “Is it REALLY TRUE you are the Son of God? Prove it to me. Feed Yourself. Satisfy your cravings.”

The Devil did the same thing to Jesus three and a half years later when our Lord hung on the Cross.

Matthew 27:39-42 (LSB) And those passing by were blaspheming Him, shaking their heads 40 and saying, “You who [are going to] destroy the sanctuary and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” 41 In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking [Him] and saying, 42 “He saved others; He cannot save Himself. He is the King of Israel; let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe in Him.

If it’s TRUE, then FEED YOURSELF, Jesus. If it’s TRUE, then COME DOWN from that Cross. Show us that it’s true, and THEN we’ll believe (says the devil and his followers).

What the Devil did with Jesus, he does with us. He tempts us. He tells us, “If you are REALLY who you say you are, THEN do this. Dance to my song! Please ME. Satisfy ME. THEN I’ll believe”. Our Lord Jesus never played their game. He said:

Matthew 11:16-19 (LSB) But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces, who call out to the other [children], 17 and say, ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.’ 18 “For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon!’ 19 “The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.”

Jesus refused to be controlled by the Devil. Before He did anything, He asked the question to Himself:

Is it TRUE? Am I TRULY the Son of God? Do I need to do ANYTHING to prove that truth? Yes. IF I AM THE SON OF GOD, I WILL FOLLOW TRUTH, NOT SATAN’S SUGGESTIONS!

Christians get on Social Media trying to win the war and to battle the lies spoken. Jesus didn’t debate Satan. He ignored what the Devil suggested. He asked Himself, “Is it TRUE?” Is any part of it true? Beloved, do you want to know what TRUTH is? It is what God has said. Before Jesus went to that Cross, He prayed for His Church.

A Christian or a Church BOUND to this world and its pleasures cannot be BLESSED.

John 17:15-19 (LSB) I do not ask You {Dear Father} to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. 16 “They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. 17 “Sanctify {hagiazō, dedicate them to that which is Godly} them BY THE TRUTH; YOUR WORD IS TRUTH. 18 “As You sent Me into the world, I also sent them into the world. 19 “For their sake I sanctify Myself, that they themselves also MAY BE SANCTIFIED {hagiazō, dedicate them to that which is Godly} IN TRUTH.

What is the truth for Jesus? Jesus is God. He is the Son of God. Jesus could have easily spoke, and stones could have been made bread. The Scripture says:

Colossians 1:16 (LSB) For IN HIM ALL THINGS WERE CREATED, [both] in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities–all things have been created through Him and for Him.

That Bible text tells us that ALL THINGS were created in Jesus. This tells us that even the DEVIL was created by Jesus. Think about this. You have one of your children come to you, and say, “Mama – Daddy – you say you’re my mama or daddy. PROVE IT!” How are you going to do something in the flesh to “prove it”? You don’t have to prove it. The only home that child has ever had is the one you provided. You have given them life, and fed them. You would be very foolish to attempt to prove something so foolish in itself!

When the Devil comes to us tempting, even if we’d get a Dopamine rush from it, we need to stop and ask ourselves “Is It True?”. The truth is what the Word of God says. Jesus told that old Serpent:

Matthew 4:4 (LSB) “It is written, ‘MAN SHALL NOT LIVE ON BREAD ALONE, BUT ON EVERY WORD THAT PROCEEDS OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GOD.'”

Jesus went to the Word of God, the Word of Truth. He quoted Deuteronomy 8:3, the Holy Scripture, and relied on the truth of God’s Word. When He did, the Devil didn’t go away – but he stopped that particular temptation.

We need to live by the Word of God, not by the word of this world. God’s Word is always true. The Scripture tells us:

Psalm 119:160 (AP) All Your Words {O God} are true; all your righteous laws are eternal.

Proverbs 30:5 (AP) Every word of God proves true; He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him

Though God incarnate, Jesus did not use His own power to defeat the Devil. He spoke the Word of God, the Truth, to defeat the enemy. He proved He was the Son of God by referring to the Word of God.

Does It Honor God? Is It Righteous? Is It Pure?

We don’t just stop with “Is it TRUE?”. Tempted by the world and the Devil, we put ourselves into neutral and ask …

Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are TRUE, whatsoever things are honest {semnos}

Word Study: Is it HONEST? The word rendered “HONEST” is the Greek semnos, which means “to be honorable and serious”. The word semnos is not just an action, but an action that comes from the heart.

Those who serve the Lord are to be serious in honoring Him.
Is what you are going to do honoring to the Lord?

Our Lord Jesus had His heart set on honoring the Heavenly Father no matter what might come. We have peace with God when we honor God – not just outwardly, but from the heart. Though Jesus rebuffed the devil with the first temptation, the Bible says that the devil didn’t stop. We read:

Matthew 4:5-6 (LSB) Then the devil took Him into the holy city and had Him stand on the pinnacle {pterygion} of the temple, 6 and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written, ‘HE WILL COMMAND HIS ANGELS CONCERNING YOU’; and ‘ON [their] HANDS THEY WILL BEAR YOU UP, LEST YOU STRIKE YOUR FOOT AGAINST A STONE.'”

Word Study: The Devil is very methodical. He took Jesus to the “pinnacle”, the pterygion or the very highest place he could take Jesus on the Temple. Why?

When God had Solomon build a Temple for Him, after Solomon prayed and dedicated the Temple the Bible says “a Cloud filled the Temple, for the Glory of the Lord filled His Temple” (1 Kings 8:10-11). God did not live in the Temple, for the Lord said “Heaven is My Throne, and earth is My footstool. Where is the House you will build for Me? Where will My resting place be?”. The Temple was not where God resided. But The Temple existed to glorify God, just as the holy City Jerusalem existed to glorify God.

Satan took Jesus to the VERY TIP TOP of the Temple, ABOVE the glory of God, and said “Glorify Yourself! Throw Yourself off of the Temple, for the Bible says the Father will protect you”.

Oh, how many have been down this terrible path! The Devil twisted scripture, twisted the truth of the Word of God to get Jesus to make it all about Himself. Had Jesus done so, then He would have been no fit Savior. The Savior came to “lay His life down for the sheep” (John 10:11, 14-15). Before doing anything, even though Satan said “Now, this is TRUE”, Jesus asked:

Does the action glorify GOD, or does it glorify Me?

Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are TRUE, whatsoever things are HONEST, whatsoever things are JUST {dikaios}

Word Study: But beyond honoring God, “Is it RIGHT or RIGHTEOUS”? Jesus didn’t put Himself on the pinnacle of the Temple, above the glory of God. Would jumping off the pinnacle, expecting the Father to save Him, be spiritual. The word translated “JUST” is the Greek dikaios, which means “that which God has deemed righteous, in keeping with His commands”. Spirituality begins in the heart. Jesus chastised the Pharisees, because they had an OUTWARD spirituality – but no relationship the Spirit of God. Jesus told them …

Matthew 23:28 (LSB) … you also outwardly appear RIGHTEOUS (dikaios) to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

Those who love the Lord will live for the Lord. God will never ask you to do something outside of the written Word of God. I’ve had people say,

“I feel like God wants me to do this”. (or)
“I had a VISION God wanted me to do this”.

Your visions and feelings are cute – but are they RIGHTEOUS? The Prophet Jeremiah was often confronted by false prophets. God told Jeremiah:

Jeremiah 14:14 (LSB) Yahweh said to me, “The prophets are prophesying lies in My name. I have neither sent them nor commanded them nor spoken to them; they are prophesying to you a vision of lies, divination, futility, and the deception of their own hearts.

God will never tell us to do something unsupported by the Scripture. If it violates His Word, it is a lie. Jesus told the Devil:

Matthew 4:7 (LSB) Jesus said to him, “Again, it is written, ‘YOU SHALL NOT PUT THE LORD YOUR GOD TO THE TEST.'”

Again, Jesus quotes Scripture. It is true that Jesus is the Son of God. It is true that Jesus will not die until the appointed time. Jesus knows that if He puts the Father to the test, His action would not glorify God but dishonor Him. Jesus refused to play the devil’s game.

Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are TRUE, whatsoever things are HONEST, whatsoever things are JUST, whatsoever things are PURE {hagnos}

Word Study: Those things that are PURE {hagnos} are those things that “show reverence to God as opposed to satisfying the flesh. Things that are Christ driven, not flesh driven. Is what you feel led to do self satisfying, or God satisfying? The Bible says:”

James 3:17-18 (LSB) But the wisdom from above is first pure {hagnos}, then peaceable, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruits, without doubting, without hypocrisy. 18 And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

Do Your Actions Please God?

Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are TRUE, whatsoever things are HONEST, whatsoever things are JUST, whatsoever things are PURE, whatsoever things are LOVELY {prosphilēs}

Word Study: The word rendered “LOVELY” is the Greek prosphilēs, which means “acceptable or pleasing to God”.

The Devil wasn’t done with Jesus. We read:

Matthew 4:8-9 (LSB) Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory; 9 and he said to Him, “All these things I will give You, if You fall down and worship me.”

God has said “You shall have NO OTHER GODS before Me” (Exodus 20:3). You are not to be god. You are not to worship any who profess to be god. You are only to worship the God of the Holy Scripture. God is not pleased when we worship anyone other than Him (Isaiah 46:9; Deuteronomy 6:5). Jesus told the Devil:

Matthew 4:10 (LSB) “Go, Satan! For it is written, ‘YOU SHALL WORSHIP THE LORD YOUR GOD, AND SERVE HIM ONLY.'”

As we close our message for tonight, let’s focus on one more admonition:

Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are OF GOOD REPORT {euphēmos}

Word Study: That which is “OF GOOD REPORT”, the Greek euphēmos, means “that which is well spoken of”. If God doesn’t say He likes it, don’t do it! Paul ends with:

Philippians 4:8 if there be any VIRTUE, and if there be any PRAISE, think on these things.

“VIRTUE” {aretē} is thinking that leads to moral and spiritual excellence. “PRAISE” {aretē}is thinking that leads to commendation from God. That’s what should be driving us. Not social media, not the network news, but that which honors the Lord Who saved us. We are as Christians to be lights in this present darkness. Let us live so as to lead others to Christ.

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What NOT To Find In A Christian

Posted on January 13, 2026 by bibleteacherorg

Photo by Javier Mazzeo on Unsplash

Proverbs 26:13-16 The SLOTHFUL {ʿāṣēl} man saith, There is a lion in the way; a lion is in the streets. 14 As the door turneth upon his hinges, so doth the SLOTHFUL {ʿāṣēl} upon his bed. 15 The SLOTHFUL {ʿāṣēl} hideth his hand in his bosom; it grieveth him to bring it again to his mouth. 16 The SLUGGARD {ʿāṣēl} is wiser in his own conceit than seven men that can render a reason.

Slothfulness Should not Be Found In A Child Of God

Word Study: In the King James text, the word SLOTHFUL or SLUGGARD (Hebrew ʿāṣēl, “a sluggard, one who is lazy) is found 14 times in the Book of Proverbs – and never in a good way. The word ʿāṣēl refers to the person who idles away the gift of life that God has given them. We aren’t talking about those who occasionally take a rest, for God established a Biblical Sabbath where we are to rest ourselves, and focus upon our Savior and Lord. Life is a gift from God: “GOD GIVES TO ALL LIFE, and BREATH, and ALL THINGS” (Acts 17:25). The soul of man is made by God. The Prophet Job wrote:

Job 33:4 The SPIRIT OF GOD HATH MADE ME, and the BREATH OF THE ALMIGHTY HATH GIVEN ME LIFE.

Our God is the One Who kills, and makes alive (Deuteronomy 32:39). He is “the FOUNTAIN OF LIFE” (Psalm 36:9). God does not give us life so that we can squander it. The man on his deathbed knows how precious every minute is. No man dies wanting one more dollar, one more acre, one more thing, one more social media follower, one more truck or car. The one on his deathbed wants one more minute of quality life, one more breath without pain and suffering, one more good day.

We realize how precious life is when we reach the end of our race. When we leave HERE, we go to Him Who made us. We will be judged for damnation, or be judged for what we did for Him before continuing His Presence forever (Ecclesiastes 12:7).

God never made us immune to work. When God put Adam in the perfect Garden of Eden, He gave him the command “Tend My garden, and guard it” (Genesis 2:15). Had Adam spent more time DOING what God said rather than JUDGING what God said, we would all still be in Paradise this very day.

Work is not only HONORABLE, but the worker who honors DOUBLE HONORED. “In all LABOR, there is PROFIT” (Proverbs 14:23). “Whatever you DO, DO IT HEARTILY, as TO THE LORD and not men” (Colossians 3:23). It amazes me that there are many who profess to be CHRISTIAN, but who never DO anything for the Lord. Jesus saved us so that we can DO, so that we can BE THE LIGHT.

Proverbs 26:13 The SLOTHFUL {ʿāṣēl} man saith, THERE IS A LION IN THE WAY; a lion is in the streets.

Some who profess Christ always have an excuse as to why they cannot leave their homes to serve the Lord. They have been told “Salvation is a free gift”. Yes, it is true that salvation is a free gift. The Bible says:

Romans 5:18 (NKJV) Therefore, as through one man’s offense [judgment came] to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man’s righteous act THE FREE GIFT CAME TO ALL MEN, RESULTING IN JUSTIFICATION OF LIFE.

Salvation is a FREE GIFT. That’s partially true. The full truth is that salvation is a free gift that results in a changed life. Once you are saved, you are changed from a sinner to a son of God. And sons of God WORK for God.

The Christian who will not work because “there is a lion in the way”, finding one reason or another to get out and serve the Lord, may not in fact be a Christian. Jesus made it very clear that the Christian is to be a worker for God. In His Parable of the Vine and Branches Jesus said:

John 15:5-6, 8 (NKJV) I am the Vine, YOU ARE THE BRANCHES. He who abides in Me, and I in him, BEARS MUCH FRUIT; for WITHOUT ME YOU CAN DO NOTHING. 6 If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw [them] into the fire, and they are burned. … 8 BY THIS MY FATHER IS GLORIFIED, THAT YOU BEAR MUCH FRUIT; so you will be My disciples.

You do not work to be saved – but once saved, you work for the Lord. You glorify God not with excuses (I can’t do it because there’s a lion in the street. I’m scared. It’s inconvenient). You glorify the Father by FRUIT.

Christian, you are saved to DO. You don’t have to do PERFECTLY, but you have to DO to glorify the One Who will judge you one day.

Preach!; Some Christians work hard at being excuse factories. They churn out one reason after another as to why they cannot serve the Lord – then wonder why God will not bless them. We’ve all seen them come and go. They join the “Church”, but have never joined the Kingdom. They are good “Baptists”, but not good “Children of God”.

Proverbs 26:14 As the door turneth upon his hinges, so doth the SLOTHFUL{ʿāṣēl}upon his bed.

The SLOTHFUL Christian will not get out of his bed, but expends his energy like a door hinge. Have you ever seen a SCREECHING DOOR HINGE? It makes a sound like eeeakkkkkerrrrrr, an annoying sound. The SLOTHFUL will toss to and fro on their bed or comfort, COMPLAINING about every little thing that they can, and yet never wanting to do anything constructive to fix it. “The soul of the SLUGGARD DESIRES, but HAS NOTHING – but the SOUL OF THE DILIGENT, the WORKER SHALL BE MADE FAT” (Proverbs 13:4). “The WAY OF THE SLOTHFUL is like a HEDGE OF THORNS: but the WAY OF THE RIGHTEOUS is CLEAR” (Proverbs 15:19).

The slothful finds fault with every Church, but never joins in with the Kingdom Workers to improve the situation.

Rather than bail out a floundering ship, the slothful rest in the desk chairs, complaining. They toss a bucket overboard, and when full use their energy to its contents inside the ship.

Our Lord Jesus spoke a parable in Matthew 20, saying:

Matthew 20:1-2 For the KINGDOM OF HEAVEN is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to HIRE LABORERS INTO HIS VINEYARD. 2 And when he had AGREED WITH THE LABORERS A PENNY A DAY, he sent them into his vineyard.

God calls His people to work. He calls some into His Kingdom early in the morning, at the beginning of their lives. He calls others at the third hour, at the sixth hour, at the ninth hour, at the eleventh hour. There are some saved later in life. There are a few, like the thief who died next to Jesus, who was called into the Kingdom on his deathbed. At the end of the parable Jesus said each worker got paid the same wage, regardless as to when they became workers for the Master. What is the point Jesus was making. Christians, if you are Christians, you will ALL GET THE SAME BLESSING OF HEAVEN. But here’s the other truth.

You ALL ARE WORKERS.
There is not a single person in the parable of the KINGDOM OF HEAVEN who is not a WORKER FOR THE MASTER!

What about the eleventh hour workers? What about the thief who died next to Jesus on the Cross? What work did this reformed thief do? This thief defended Jesus against those who were mocking him, against the unrepentant thief who demanded that Jesus do something. Jesus was doing something. He was dying for our sins. The thief also publicly professed Jesus as his Lord and Savior, even in the midst of his suffering. And to this diligent man, this newly saved son of God, Jesus told him:

Luke 23:43 Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with Me in paradise.

That thief entered at the eleventh hour, but receive the penny a day wage of eternity. But he worked. He didn’t complain.

Proverbs 26:15 The SLOTHFUL {ʿāṣēl} hideth his hand in his bosom; it grieveth him to bring it again to his mouth.

There are many who profess Christ, but never feed themselves. They will not open the Book, nor bend the knee. They will not do the work, but want someone else to feed them.

What is the first thing the baby will do upon birth? It will cry for the touch of its mother, and make known a desire to be fed. The slothful person hides his hand in his bosom. He will not reach out feed himself. Even a baby, when its mother puts her breast to its mouth, will reach out and grab the breast and drink its mother’s milk. I’ve seen the healthy child feed, heard its sucking sounds as it fights to find nourishment. A dead child will not do that.

Neither will a dead soul.

There are many who say “I am a Christian”, but will not seek out the Word of God. After Jesus fed the 5000 Jews, He headed to Capernaum, where large crowds followed Him. Jesus told them:

John 6:26-27 (NKJV) Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. 27 Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for THE FOOD WHICH ENDURES TO ETERNAL LIFE, which THE SON OF MAN WILL GIVE YOU, because God the Father has set His seal on Him.

The Bible tells us that “man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word that proceeds out of the Mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). Jesus Christ is the Living Word of God (John 1:14), and the Bible is the written Word of God. Jesus told those at Capernaum “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst” (John 6:35). He took this illustration further, saying “I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world” (John 6:51). Then Jesus shocked them all. He said:

John 6:53-58 (NKJV) Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you EAT THE FLESH OF THE SON OF MAN AND DRINK HIS BLOOD, YOU HAVE NO LIFE IN YOU. 54 Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. 55 For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. 56 He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. 57 As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me. 58 This is the bread which came down from heaven—not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever.

Why did Jesus use such a dramatic way to describe the child of God? Because, Beloved, if you do not hunger for the Word of God, if you do not believe Jesus has the words of life (John 6:68), THEN YOU ARE NOT SAVED.

Jesus said “If you’re not hungry for ME, if you’re not thirsty for ME, then you have NO LIFE IN YOU”. Salvation is a free gift that changes you. If you are saved, you are a son of God who wants more of Jesus every day.

Proverbs 26:16 The SLUGGARD{ʿāṣēl}is wiser in his own conceit than seven men that can render a reason.

I am certain as I talked about the spiritual sluggard today, many who are in this state will pop up and angrily say “How dare you judge us?” I’m not judging you. The Christian is called to hunger and thirst for Jesus. The Christian is called to work for the Kingdom. The first work you do for the Lord is to believe on God:

John 6:29 THIS IS THE WORK OF GOD, that ye BELIEVE ON HIM whom {the Father} hath sent

But that’s not the only work we do. Once saved, we are called to “seek FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD and HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS” (Matthew 6:33). Light cannot be light without expending energy. We are told:

Colossians 1:10 …..to be FRUITFUL in EVERY GOOD WORK

Colossians 3:23-24 …. to SERVE THE LORD CHRIST

1 Corinthians 15:58 …. to BE STEADFAST … ALWAYS ABOUNDING IN THE WORK OF THE LORD

1 Corinthians 3:9 … we are LABORERS TOGETHER WITH GOD

And one of my favorite Scriptures, which is consider the Gospel in three verses:

Ephesians 2:8-10 (NKJV) For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, CREATED IN CHRIST JESUS FOR GOOD WORKS, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

Christian, God saved you to work with your mind toward eternity. Do not expect to rule and reign with Jesus THEN if you will not work with Him NOW (2 Timothy 2:12; Romans 8:17; Revelation 3:21).

What do we sing in our hymnals?

O land of rest, for thee I sigh!
When will the moment come
When I shall lay my armor by
And dwell in peace at home?
We’ll work till Jesus comes,
We’ll work till Jesus comes,
We’ll work till Jesus comes,
And we’ll be gathered home.

Or what about:

Sowing in the morning, sowing seeds of kindness,
sowing in the noontide and the dewy eve;
waiting for the harvest and the time of reaping,
we shall come rejoicing, bringing in the sheaves.

Bringing in the sheaves, bringing in the sheaves,
We shall come rejoicing, bringing in the sheaves.
Bringing in the sheaves, bringing in the sheaves,
We shall come rejoicing, bringing in the sheaves.

I had a fellow write my website one day, saying, “You would get more followers and more likes if you stayed with grace. Your words will discourage the young Christian!” I did with the comment what it deserved – I gave it no answer, and trashed it. Beloved, I do not care if I get more “likes” or more “followers”. I just want to clearly present the Word of God. I can tell you for a certainty, our Lord Jesus expects us to DO.

The Christian Should DO The Right Thing

Proverbs 26:17 He that passeth by, and MEDDLETH WITH STRIFE NOT BELONGING TO HIM, is like one that taketh a dog by the ears.

Opinions are great things. Everyone has them. But the Bible tells us, dear Christians, to stay in our lane. The Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission back in 2016 saw fit to get involved with “The proposed construction of a mosque in New Jersey”. Our representatives filed a “Friend of the Court” brief supporting religious freedoms for Muslims, supporting the building of the mosque. As Americans we have First Amendment rights, including freedom of religion. But as Baptists we should not be involving ourselves in any worldly disputes or arguments that are divorced from the Scripture and the Gospel of Christ.

At that time ERLC President Russell Moore stated “The United States government should fight, and fight hard, against radical Islamic jihadism. But the government should not penalize law-abiding people, especially those who are American citizens, simply for holding their religious convictions, however consistent or inconsistent, true or false, those convictions are”. That may be true. But Jesus never asked His Church to do anything to advance the false gospel of any faith – period. When the Christian gets involved with something that is NOT his fight, it’s like grabbing a strange dog by the ears.

You’ll get bit!

As Baptists, we are to be focused on sharing the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ with a lost and dying world. My commentary notes:

“Moses had to flee from Egypt because he got involved in a fight between two Israelites (Exodus 2:13-14). And King Josiah died unnecessarily because he tried to stop Pharaoh Neco from engaging the Babylonians in battle (2 Kings 23:29).”

I support the First Amendment rights of every American, even when they do and say things that are repugnant to me. But the Bible tells us “If it’s not YOUR dog, leave its ears alone!” Let the Muslims fight for their Mosque, and the Christians fight for their Church buildings. Though Muslims are not necessarily bad people, it is hard to ignore that in Nigeria, Iraq, Syria, the republic of the Congo, Mozambique, Pakistan, Egypt, Libya, Afghanistan, Somalia, and Yemen Christians are massacred, kidnapped, churches are burned, and tens of thousands of Christians murdered and martyred by Muslims. Their holy book, the Quran, states:

“kill the idolaters wherever you find them and take them prisoners, and beleaguer them, and lie in wait for them at every place of ambush. But if they repent and observe Prayer and pay the Zakat, then leave their way free. Surely, Allah is Most Forgiving, Merciful.”

Christians are considered idolaters by the Muslim. They do not kill us in this country because of the First Amendment – but in Muslim majority countries there is no First Amendment. Christians are called to be peacemakers (Matthew 5:9), but we need to leave the darkness alone (2 Corinthians 6:14). We as Christians have enough legitimate work to do without meddling in other religions affairs. The Apostle writes:

1 Peter 4:15-17 (NKJV) But let none of you suffer as a murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or as a BUSYBODY IN OTHER PEOPLE’S MATTERS. 16 Yet if [anyone suffers] as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this matter. 17 For the time [has come] for JUDGMENT TO BEGIN AT THE HOUSE OF GOD; and if [it begins] with us first, what will [be] the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God?

We don’t need to go to court to defend the building of another religion’s house of worship. We need to be sharing the Gospel. Our Lord Jesus was careful to stay in His own business. Last Sunday we saw in Sunday School these verses:

Luke 12:13-15 (NKJV) Then one from the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” 14 But He said to him, “MAN, WHO MADE ME A JUDGE OR AN ARBITRATOR OVER YOU?” 15 And He said to them, “Take heed and BEWARE OF COVETOUSNESS, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.”

Jesus refused to get involved with the passing wild dog of a family dispute between brothers. But Jesus quickly turned that moment into a valid teaching point – “BEWARE OF COVETOUSNESS”. Jesus stayed with the Gospel, with the Word of God. So when someone comes to you with a “passing dog” sort of thing, dear Christian ask yourself,

Does the Bible address this point?
Does this have anything to do with the Kingdom of God?
Will my answer draw someone closer to Jesus?

Let me quote another commentary:

“Even with Christian intentions many of us are too fond of meddling with strife not belonging to us. We constitute ourselves too readily judges of our neighbor’s conduct. Neutrality is often the plain dictate of prudence. Uncalled for interference seldom avails with the contending parties; while the well meaning mediator involves himself in the strife to his own mischief. Our blessed Master reads us a lesson of godly wisdom. He healed the contentions in his own family. But, when called to meddle with strife belonging not to him, he gave answer — “Who made me a judge or a divider over you?

Must we then ‘suffer sin upon our brother’? (Leviticus 19:17 .) Certainly not. But we should ponder carefully the most effectual mode of restraining his sin. Think of the special ‘blessing to the peace-makers.’ (Matthew 5:9 .) But the true peace-maker, while he deplores the strife, well knows, that interference in the moment of irritation will kindle rather than extinguish, the fire. Yet his self control is not indifference. He commits the matter to Him, whose wisdom he so greatly needs. He will seize the first moment for favorable remonstrance; “and a word spoken in due season, how good is it!” (Proverbs 15:23 ).”

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Submission Is Not A Dirty Word

Posted on January 5, 2026 by bibleteacherorg

Photo by Kristaps Ungurs on Unsplash

Ephesians 5:17-21 Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. 18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; 19 Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; 20 Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; 21 Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.

Opening: Sovereign Citizen?

I was watching a Police camera video the other day where a woman was stopped for a minor traffic violation. I think she did a rolling stop at a stop sign. Not a big deal. The Policeman asked her, “Please give me your license and registration, along with your proof of insurance”. It was a reasonable request. The woman said, “I don’t have to give you anything. I’m a Sovereign Citizen of the United States.”

I didn’t have a clue what she was talking about. I looked it up and found out. The “Sovereign Citizen Movement” is a bunch of anti-government activists who believe that they are not subject to any government regulation or statute that they have not personally agreed to. This idiocy started in the early 70’s in the United States, and has grown and has infiltrated Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand. As the officer asked her very politely – more times than I would have asked her – she continued to be a jerk, defying his request. Finally she said, “I have no driver’s license or insurance. I don’t have to have that. I’m a Sovereign Citizen!”

Then she put the car in drive, and took off.

You can guess what happened next. Off she went to jail, in handcuffs, for reckless endangerment of a police officer, resisting arrest, unlawful operation of a motor vehicle, etc, etc. These people actually make up license plates for their vehicles like this:

I think it’s particularly interesting that they quote part of a Bible verse from Luke 2:14:

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

Having just been through the Christmas Season, you know that this was a sermon preached by Angels the night that Jesus Christ was born. And this verse is all about submission.

The phrase “Glory to God in the highest” is all about submission. “Glory to God” means that all glory should go to God, not to us. He is the Creator, and we are the created. When the Angels sang “to God”, they were emphasizing that all praise goes to Him Who is faithful (1 Corinthians 1:9, 1 John 1:9; 2 Thessalonians 3:3; Lamentations 3:22-23). And why is there “on earth peace, good will toward men”? Because the Messiah, the LORD of all has come. The Angel of the Lord said:

Luke 2:11 (LSB) For today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, WHO IS CHRIST THE LORD.

That Baby in the manger is “CHRIST THE LORD”. He’s not a “good old Boy”. He’s not your buddy. He is “God with us” (Matthew 1:23). God has SUBMITTED HIMSELF to come down and be with us. “CHRIST THE LORD”, the One and Only Messiah, had been born into His creation. Jesus Christ Who is “King of kings and Lord of lords” (Revelation 17:14; Revelation 19:16) has come from Heaven to this earth. He has come to:

“save HIS PEOPLE from their sins” (Matthew 1:21)

Who does Jesus save? HIS people. Those who belong to Him by faith. Submission is not a dirty word. Submission is the basis for peace on earth and good will toward men.

Our country is scrambling today, struggling in an economic and political swamp. We live in a day where many reject authority. When you read in the Old Testament ….

Judges 17:6; 21:25 (KJV) In those days there was no king in Israel, but EVERY MAN DID THAT WHICH WAS RIGHT IN HIS OWN EYES.

It sounds just like America today. There was no king in Israel – not even God Himself. People rejected all authority but that which they themselves thought was right and proper. What happened with Israel? The nation was overcome physically by external enemies, and internally by economic disaster. The Old Testament as well as the New Testament picture of Israel, an Israel that did what was right in their own eyes, is that of victimization. We’re headed in that direction in America. Why?

“Submission” is not a dirty word. There can be no prosperity nor blessing without submission. Everybody can’t rule the world. Everybody can’t be the boss. Nothing works when anarchy reigns.

The worst thing that ever happened to America was the removal of the military draft. I remember going to Basic Training. The Basic Training I went through is nothing like the sissified training they give out today. From the time I got off the bus at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas, I had drill instructors telling me how to do everything. We were issued everything we needed, and whatever person stuff we brought with us was put in storage until we left training. We were told when to wake up, when to sleep, when to eat, where to go, how to get there. We washed our bodies in mass showers with fixed water pressure and temperatures. We dried our bodies with government issued towels. After washing, we dried our soap off, and put it in containers issued to us. We folded our underwear the same way. We did what we were told, without discussion. And, if we excelled at submitting, we were released from training in six weeks. If not, we went to eight weeks. Do you know what we got out of that? A respect for authority. The ability to work together for the good of our nation. Those who could not or would not submit were dishonorably discharged. Why? Because in the midst of battle, in the midst of fighting for our nation, I needed to know that the man or woman next to me had my back. Nobody wanted to go in harm’s way with an anarchist, a “me first” sort of person.

Right Submission Is The Basis Of Salvation

Ephesians 5:17-18 Wherefore be ye not UNWISE, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. 18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but BE FILLED WITH THE SPIRIT

You can’t get better if you don’t submit to the doctor. You can’t be cured unless you surrender yourself to the surgeon. You cannot be spiritually saved and blessed if you will not SURRENDER and SUBMIT to the WILL of the LORD.

There has been so much preaching about “all you need to do is believe Jesus, and you’ll be saved”, and “salvation is a free gift”, without preaching about REPENTANCE. Preaching the Gospel without REPENTANCE is like baking a CAKE WITHOUT FLOUR. It’s like having a BARBECUE WITHOUT PORK. It’s like having a CAR WITHOUT TIRES. It just don’t make any sense. It’s a fantasy that cannot be supported by Scripture.

You are “UNWISE” if you will not submit to the will of the Lord. This is REPENTANCE. Repentance is when God opens your eyes to your state of being, and you choose to follow Him. Repentance is a gift of God (Acts 5:31; 11:18). Repentance is spiritual submission to the will of God.

You will not find any New Testament preaching about salvation in Christ that does not begin with REPENT or REPENTANCE. The Herald of Christ, John the Baptist, preached:

Matthew 3:2 (LSB) REPENT {metanoeō}, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Our Lord Jesus preached:

Matthew 4:17 (KJV) From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, REPENT {metanoeō}: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

When Jesus sent His disciples out preaching, what did they preach?

Mark 6:12 (KJV) they went out, and preached that MEN SHOULD REPENT {metanoeō}.

When people asked Jesus about various trials and problems that were all the news in His day, Jesus told them:

Luke 13:3-5 (LSB) I tell you, no, but UNLESS YOU REPENT {metanoeō}, YOU WILL ALL LIKEWISE PERISH {apollymi}. 4 Or do you think that those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them were [worse] offenders than all the men who live in Jerusalem? 5 I tell you, no, but UNLESS YOU REPENT {metanoeō}, YOU WILL ALL LIKEWISE PERISH {apollymi}.

Word Study: The word REPENT {metanoeō} means to change the mind, to submit your mind to another authority than what you were following. People are fond of that Bible School verse we all read:

John 3:16 (LSB) For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not PERISH {apollymi}, but have eternal life.

They say, “Oh, all I’ve got to do is BELIEVE in Jesus, and I won’t PERISH”. Well, that’s true. But believing in Jesus STARTS WITH REPENTANCE. Jesus said “UNLESS YOU REPENT {metanoeō}, YOU WILL ALL LIKEWISE PERISH {apollymi}”. The Christian is the person whose eyes have been opened by God, and who has stopped being a little god and started – albeit imperfectly – following the True God.

Word Study: Believing in Jesus requires submission of your mind, of your life. That word PERISH is the Greek apollymi, which means “to be given over to eternal destruction, eternal wilderness, eternal misery in hell”. The word to PERISH encompasses both temporal as well as eternal judgment from God.

Unless you REPENT, unless you turn your will over to Jesus, you cannot be saved. “Repent” means “I’m going to listen to God and receive Jesus as my Lord and Savior”.

The world follows itself, follows the desires of the flesh. Submission means to let God suppress the desires of the flesh, and let GOD FILL YOUR LIFE.

Ephesians 5:18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but BE FILLED WITH THE SPIRIT

The Christian submits to the Lord, and lets Him suppress the flesh. The Christian seeks – not the stuff that God can give us – BUT GOD HIMSELF. The goal of the Christian is to be FILLED WITH GOD, not with self.

The lost person turns themselves over to drugs and alcohol. They will not submit their will to God, but submit their will to drunkenness. Have you ever seen a drunk? They give themselves over to alcohol – and lose their ability to function. They slur their words. They drive drunk, and kill people. They get in fights over nothing. The alcohol, the drug, it takes over the will, and destroys the person. It destroys the liver. It destroys the reputation. A drunken woman lies down with a worthless man, gives herself to him, and becomes pregnant. Now she uses her will to destroy the life within her for convenience sake. As she ages, what she did preys on her mind. What will she do? So many go into depression, and some even to self destruction.

The beginning of salvation is REPENTANCE, submission to the will of God. Evangelist Billy Graham spoke of the salvation of the Assyrian capital Nineveh. He preached:

“The Bible says that the greatest Revival, the greatest Evangelistic Campaign in human history took place in Nineveh. It was a city of probably 600,000 people, and the whole city from the king on down REPENTED. And God had mercy not only on the king, but upon all the people, and all the people were SAVED. That can happen here!”

If you are not a Christian, God calls you to REPENT and SUBMIT to Jesus. If you are a Christian, God calls you to DAILY REPENT and SUBMIT to Jesus. The Christian is to be filled not with SELF, but to be “FILLED WITH THE SPIRIT”. Give yourselves fully to Him Who loves you and came to “save HIS PEOPLE from THEIR SINS” (Matthew 1:21).

What Does Following God Offer You? Joy!

I often hear the statement, “You DESERVE to be happy”. Is that true? No, it’s not. In our Declaration of Independence our forefathers – many of whom were Christian men – wrote:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.-”

There’s nothing in our United States founding documents that gives you a RIGHT to happiness. Our forefathers said that you have a RIGHT TO PURSUE HAPPINESS, to chase after it.

Do you know where you will find happiness? It comes and goes based on your circumstances. The greater thing, JOY, is only found in the presence of the God Who loves you, and gave Himself for you.

Psalm 16:11 (LSB) You {O Lord} will make known to me the path of life; IN YOUR PRESENCE IS FULLNESS OF JOY; In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.

If you fill yourself with yourself, you will not find joy. You may find a temporal happiness, but it will not last. So, how can I find joy? Submit yourselves to God your Father. Let God fill your life.

Ephesians 5:19 Speaking to yourselves in PSALMS and HYMNS and SPIRITUAL SONGS, singing and MAKING MELODY IN YOUR HEART TO THE LORD

Word Study: Look at the phrase “SPEAKING TO YOURSELVES”, the Greek laleō heautou. That’s not speaking to yourself. If you speak to yourself, it’s a bad habit. If you speak to yourself and answer yourself, you are psychotic! This is not “speaking to yourself”, but “speaking to others like YOU”. Submitting your time to be with others who are saved by Grace in Christ. And you are not to just speak anything.

Word Study: The word laleō means “to speak to others so as to build them up, to prosper them, to benefit those around you”. When God possesses you, your communication is not like the drunkard or drug abuser’s. It isn’t nonsense. The Holy Spirit is also called The Word of Christ in:

Colossians 3:16 Let the WORD OF CHRIST dwell in you richly in all wisdom; TEACHING and ADMONISHING ONE ANOTHER in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

The Holy Spirit is given us by God to “guide us INTO ALL TRUTH” (John 16:13). Jesus said,

John 14:26 (LSB) the Advocate, the HOLY SPIRIT, whom the Father will send in My name, He will TEACH YOU ALL THINGS, and bring to your remembrance ALL THAT I SAID TO YOU.

When you repent and yield yourselves to God, God will make your life profitable to those around you. But if you feed the flesh and stay in yourself, you are a curse and not a blessing. Christians are to lift one another toward Christ.

The Holy Spirit does not give new revelation that contradicts Scripture, but guides believers to rightly understand and live out the truth God has already revealed. The Holy Spirit is NOT the conscience, but a Person, the Third Person of the Godhead. He is not a power, but the Empower-er of God’s people.

Birds sing even in the rain. Why aren’t you singing, Christian?

Those who are God’s people SING! Their hearts are filled with God, not themselves. They have “joy unspeakable, full of glory”. Three types of singing are mentioned here:

1. Psalms (psalmos), sacred scripture set to music. The Psalms speak of the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus said, “all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and IN THE PSALMS, CONCERNING ME” (Luke 24:44). Christians sing about and celebrate Jesus Christ, the fulfillment of God’s Promise of Eternal Redemption.

2. Hymns (hymnos), sacred songs that celebrate and glorify God. Unlike Psalms, hymns are not written by Divine Inspiration and are not a part of Scripture. This doesn’t mean they aren’t Bible based or doctrinally true. They are. Our Lord Jesus sung hymns. The Bible says that just before His death at the end of the Lord’s Table, “they SUNG A HYMN {hymneō} and went out into the night” (Matthew 26:30). Hymns focus on glorifying not self, but the God Who saves us and keeps on saving us.

3. Spiritual Songs (pneumatikos ōdē), songs that are spontaneous but Spirit filled. Spiritual songs may not specifically sing praises directly to God, but they teach doctrine, encourage others, and inspire us to love and good works. My commentary notes:

“From Psalms to Revelation, the Bible encourages us to “sing a new song to the Lord” (Psalm 96:1; 144:9; Isaiah 42:10; Revelation 5:9; 14:3). Psalm 40:3 says, “He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God.” A new song is one that arises from the spirit of a person whose heart overflows with adoration for God. Paul’s instruction to the Ephesians about music is preceded by the command to “be filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18). When we are filled with the Spirit, then psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs are the natural expression of our hearts. A Spirit-filled person is a singing person. One clear indication that a person is filled with the Holy Spirit is a natural desire to sing and praise God. Musical ability has little to do with it. God created us to find great spiritual expression through music (Psalm 135:3; Judges 5:3). Scripture is filled with music, and God delights when we use what He created to worship Him (Deuteronomy 31:19; Psalm 33:2; 149:3)”

Singing To God And Praising Your Savior Is
The Fruit Of Your Salvation

Ephesians 5:20 GIVING THANKS ALWAYS FOR ALL THINGS unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;

If you are saved by Grace, a Child of the Living God through the Blood of Christ Jesus, God calls you to a thankful existence. Are you going through a valley now? Thank God anyway! Thank God that He has saved you, and that He has promised never to leave nor forsake you. The Bible tells us that “what you sow, you will also reap” (Galatians 6:7-9). Some of you are miserable all the time because you never thank God for what you do have. You are focused on what you do not have. That’s selfish. The Bible tells us:

2 Corinthians 9:6 (LSB) Now this [I say], he who SOWS SPARINGLY will also REAP SPARINGLY, and he who SOWS WITH BLESSING will also REAP WITH BLESSING.

God has given you surpassing Grace. “Thanks be to God for HIS INDESCRIBABLE GIFT” (2 Corinthians 9:15, LSB). We are to thank God for the good as well as the bad. We ourselves are told:

GIVING THANKS ALWAYS FOR ALL THINGS

Why do we thank God for ALL THINGS at ALL TIMES? Because God is our Maker, our King, our Savior. We know that whatever comes our way, comes our way because the God Who loves us has allowed it. The Bible says:

1 Thessalonians 5:18 (LSB) in EVERYTHING GIVE THANKS, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

The trials that come our way, come to prove and strengthen our faith. The trials come to prepare us for the next stage of life. The trials are not there to defeat us, but to strengthen us. The trials shape us, and make us more like Jesus. God did not just love you at the point of salvation. God loved you from eternity past. God loved you before you were ever formed.

God loved you so much that He submitted Himself to His own creation, even unto death. God became Man, and gave Himself to you for your salvation. You can only be saved if you have given yourself to Him.

Here Is The Constitution Of The Healthy Church

Ephesians 5:21 SUBMITTING yourselves one to another in the fear of God.

The Christian is not like the world. You become a Christian by repenting, by giving yourself to Jesus. The Church is not like the world. We “SUBMIT OURSELVES TO ONE ANOTHER”, not according to human tradition or desires. But “IN THE FEAR OF GOD”. If you are loyal to God, loyal to Christ, you will be a unified Body that honors the Lord Jesus Christ. It’s not about what “I” want, but about what Jesus wants. Jesus said:

John 13:34-35 (LSB) A new commandment I give to you, that YOU LOVE ONE ANOTHER, EVEN AS I HAVE LOVED YOU, that you also love one another. 35 By this all will know that you are My disciples, if YOU HAVE LOVE ONE FOR ANOTHER.”

How did Jesus love us? He gave up His rights in Heaven, and became part of His creation. He SUBMITTED Himself for us. He SUBMITTED Himself even unto the Cross, so that we might be saved. Jesus rose from the grave, and even now SUBMITS Himself, sitting at the right hand of God the Father, making intercession for us.

As Christ submitted, and now submits, we are to submit to one another in the fear of the Lord. Submission is not a dirty word. It is the heartbeat of the Christian way of life.

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Stand Fast In The Lord

Posted on January 5, 2026 by bibleteacherorg

Photo by Winggo Tse on Unsplash

Philippians 4:1 Therefore, my brethren dearly beloved and longed for, my joy and crown, so stand fast IN THE LORD, my dearly beloved.

As Adrian Rogers once said, tonight “We’re going to do a checkup from the neck up”. What is the focus of your minds? Where is your head at?

Opening: I grew up in an era when cigarette smoking was falsely sold as something that was good for you. The magazine ad for Camels cigarettes had a doctor holding a pack of Camels. He said “More doctors smoke Camels than any other cigarettes”. An ad for Lucky Strike cigarettes stated 20, 679 Physicians recommend our product. Why? Because “Toasting the tobacco removes dangerous irritants that cause throat irritation and coughing”. Or “Us Tareyton smokers would rather fight than switch”. They had the activated charcoal filter. And then there was the ad for Viceroys cigarettes, that had a man standing there saying “As your Dentist, I would recommend Viceroys”. All along the tobacco companies knew that the product they were selling was dangerous for the consumer. Yet their ads with the cowboy saying, “Come to where the flavor is. Come to Marlboro Country” took your mind off of the fact that the warning label on the package said:

“Cigarette smoking may be hazardous to your health.”

The companies knew that to focus on the warning would not be good for the bottom line called profits. So they made it look good in the advertisements, knowing that their product was killing people. If you control the mind, you control the person.

Satan is a master at mind control.

As the Apostle Paul writes this letter we are studying, he is in prison. Not a prison like we think of today, but a miserable, rat infested, dark, with the smell of death in the air prison. Paul was imprisoned, and there wasn’t one single thing he could do to get out of that prison.

Christianity does not guarantee we will have sunny days every day, and steak dinners every night. In fact, Christians are more challenged than unbelievers in this fallen world. Satan our enemy will do two things over and over, because he has discovered these two things work. The Bible says that, number 1,

2 Corinthians 4:4 (ESV) … the god of this world has BLINDED THE MINDS OF UNBELIEVERS, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

But if that doesn’t work, then Satan will try controlling the mind of the Church by controlling the individual Christians. Paul told us:

2 Corinthians 11:3 (KJV) … I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent BEGUILD Eve through his subtilty, so YOUR MINDS SHOULD BE CORRUPTED FROM THE SIMPLICITY THAT IS IN CHRIST.

Adrian Rogers said about our focal text:

“There are some right here tonight who are in a dungeon of despair. Others are surrounded by walls of resistance. And you’re trying to break out, but you’re not able to break out. There are others who are in chains of poor health. Others are behind iron bars of disappointment. Some are in the bondage of circumstance. And really, you can’t escape. There is no way out. Some have other things that restrain them, that bind them. Now, since Paul couldn’t get out, he decided to remodel the prison; he’d turn it into a palace.”

Paul Stood Fast In The Lord

Imprisoned, in misery, Paul remodeled his prison into a palace. He refused to let the dark place he was in drag him down. The devil loves to drag us down. Don’t let him. Stay “in the LORD”, not in yourself.

Philippians 4:1 Therefore, my brethren dearly beloved and longed for, my joy and crown, so STAND FAST IN THE LORD, my dearly beloved.

Word Study: The phrase “STAND FAST” is the Greek stēkō, which is means “to set your feet, to focus on so as to persevere”. The word is used in battle. In the Septuagint, the ancient Greek translation of the Hebrew text, a form of the word stēkō is found when Israel was stalled at the Red Sea. The people were frightened, for the Egyptian army was advancing, and they could not cross the sea. They cried out to Moses:

Exodus 14:11-12 (KJV) … Because there were no graves in Egypt, hast thou taken us away to die in the wilderness? wherefore hast thou dealt thus with us, to carry us forth out of Egypt? 12 Is not this the word that we did tell thee in Egypt, saying, Let us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians? For it had been better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness.

Moses told Israel:

Exodus 14:13-14 (KJV) … Fear ye not, STAND STILL {Imperative of στήκετε, root stēkō}, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever. 14 The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.

Israel was focused on their entrapment, their circumstances, the impassable Red Sea and the great armies advancing toward them. Moses commanded that they get their minds IN THE LORD.

Look at our focal text again:

Philippians 4:1 Therefore, my brethren DEARLY BELOVED and LONGED FOR, my joy and crown, so STAND FAST IN THE LORD, my dearly beloved.

Word Study: Why should we STAND FAST when tried? Why shouldn’t we just collapse as the unbeliever will do? Because God loves us. If you are God’s child by faith in Christ, you are DEARLY BELOVED, the Greek agapētos. This word is significant because it is a word that the Father used for God the Son first at His baptism:

Matthew 3:17 (KJV) And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my BELOVED {agapētos} Son, in whom I am well pleased.

And then repeatedly throughout His earthly ministry (see Matthew 12:18; 17:5; Mark 12:6; Luke 3:22). Jesus is the dearly Beloved of the Father. We who belong to God by faith in the Beloved are, ourselves, dearly beloved (see Romans 1:7; 12:19; 1 Corinthians 10:14; 2 Corinthians 7:1). The Christian is loved of God with an infinite love. Jesus told us:

John 16:27 (NKJV) … for the Father Himself LOVES YOU, BECAUSE YOU HAVE LOVED ME, and have BELIEVED THAT I CAME FORTH FROM GOD.

When we receive Jesus as Lord and Savior, believing Him to be the only Way unto the Father, the Father loves us. We share not only the righteousness of Christ, but the love of God is imputed to us by Grace. Even though Paul was in prison, he knew that he was still loved. The Scripture says:

Romans 8:37-39 (LSB) But in all these things we overwhelmingly CONQUER THROUGH HIM WHO LOVED US. 38 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the LOVE OF GOD, WHICH IS IN CHRIST JESUS OUR LORD.

Nothing separates us from the “LOVE OF GOD, WHICH IS IN CHRIST JESUS OUR LORD”. When tried, we are to “STAND FAST in the LORD”.

Stand Fast TOGETHER In The Lord

Philippians 4:2-3 I beseech Euodias, and beseech Syntyche, that they BE OF THE SAME MIND IN THE LORD. 3 And I entreat thee also, true yokefellow, HELP THOSE WOMEN which LABORED WITH ME IN THE GOSPEL, with Clement also, and with other my fellowlabourers, whose names are IN THE BOOK OF LIFE.

If the devil can’t get you focused on a dark valley, he will try and get you focused on the imperfection of another believer in the Church. You need to be focused IN THE LORD.

I have heard of a movement called Deconstruction, where people leave the Church and Christianity itself because of something another professing believer did or did not do. The devil loves to bring disharmony into the Church. But we need to realize three things, and keep this in the forefront of our minds:

1. We are all broken, imperfect, and subject to failure. If you don’t understand this, you are a Pharisee.

2. We are all saved by an unbroken, perfect, and flawless Savior, Jesus Christ our Lord.

3. As His children we are to live our lives so as to please HIM. Disharmony displeases Him, unless the disharmony is doctrinally based.

These two women, Euodias and Syntyche, had worked with the Apostle Paul. He said that they “LABORED WITH ME IN THE GOSPEL”. They were workers for the glory of God’s Kingdom. Paul considered them to be key workers. He noted that their names were “IN THE BOOK OF LIFE”, that is, based on the fruit of their profession they appeared to be saved by Grace. Yet they had somehow gotten turned sideways toward one another. What caused this rift? Paul doesn’t tell us. But he does ask those who are “TRUE YOKEFELLOWS”, true believers, along with “CLEMENT” to help them resolve their conflict.

What causes conflicts in the Church? It comes when we make things about ourselves, and do not keep our minds IN THE LORD. The Apostle wrote the Church at Rome (which was also experiencing disharmony):

Romans 14:4 (LSB) Who are you to judge the servant of another? To his own master he stands or falls; and he will stand, for THE LORD IS ABLE TO MAKE HIM STAND.

Every Christian ultimately reports to Jesus. Paul went on to say:

Romans 14:7-10 (LSB) For not one of us lives for himself, and not one dies for himself; 8 for if we live, WE LIVE FOR THE LORD, or if we die, WE DIE FOR THE LORD; therefore whether we live or die, WE ARE THE LORD’S. 9 For to this end Christ died and lived again, that He might be Lord both of the dead and of the living. 10 But you, why do you judge your brother? Or you again, why do you view your brother with contempt? For WE WILL ALL STAND BEFORE THE JUDGMENT SEAT OF GOD.

The Church at war is the Church stalled. Jesus prayed for His Church that it would be unified (John 17:20-23). The Apostle wrote, “make every effort to keep yourselves united IN THE SPIRIT, binding yourselves together with peace” (Ephesians 4:3). We will have disagreements at times, but we must always remember that we live IN THE LORD, seeking to please Him.

Rejoice IN THE LORD Always

Philippians 4:4-5 REJOICE IN THE LORD ALWAYS: and again I say, REJOICE. 5 Let your MODERATION be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.

Why could Paul rejoice though he was in a terrible prison? Why does he tell us to “REJOICE IN THE LORD ALWAYS”. Because “The LORD is at hand”. God is with you no matter what you are going through. The Christian knows that …

The only HELL we will ever experience is on this earth!

Yes, we as believers have bad times. But we who are saved were purchased at a great price. The Bible says:

Romans 5:6-8 (HCSB) For while we were still helpless, at the appointed moment, CHRIST DIED FOR THE UNGODLY. 7 For rarely will someone die for a just person — though for a good person perhaps someone might even dare to die. 8 But God proves His own love for us in that WHILE WE WERE STILL SINNERS, CHRIST DIED FOR US!

1 Peter 3:18 (HCSB) For Christ also suffered for sins once for all, THE RIGHTEOUS FOR THE UNRIGHTEOUS, THAT HE MIGHT BRING YOU TO GOD, after being put to death in the fleshly realm but made alive in the spiritual realm.

It is not my PLACE that gives me rejoicing, nor my POSSESSIONS, but it is WHO POSSESSES me.

Illustrate: Grandma taught her grandson how to play Monopoly. At first, Granny won every game. But the little boy vowed, “I’m going to get good at this game, and one day I’ll beat you, grandma!” Sure enough, the day came when the little boy beat his grandma. As he began to gloat and mock Grandma, she said “Honey, there’s one more thing I need to teach you about this game”. With that, she picked up all the hotels, all the property, all the money, and put it back in the box. She told her grandson, “Honey, no matter what you do or how well you play, sooner or later it all goes back in the box”.

You dare not rejoice IN YOUR PROPERTY or in your CURRENT POSITION. Life changes quickly. No matter how much stuff you have, one day it all goes back in the box. All the hard earned money you make goes back in the box, into a house, a car, or a bank. All the food you eat is eventually flushed into a box, and leftovers are placed in a box and hauled away. All your property will one day belong to another, and at the end of this life your very body will go into a box and be buried in the ground. What matters most to me – and should matter to you – is that Jesus Christ has promised me that my soul will not be tossed into the box of hell, but when I leave this place I will forever be with Him. The Lord is at hand.

What will you do if, like God did with the Prophet Job, all is taken away tomorrow? Will you despair? Will you deconstruct your faith? Or will you rejoice because the LORD is AT HAND?

Illustrate: Adrian Rogers defined the difference between JOY and HAPPINESS. He said, “Happiness and joy are two different things. Happiness depends upon what happens, and that’s why we call it happiness. If your hap is good, you’re happy. If your hap is bad, you’re unhappy. … joy is like a thermostat. Happiness is like a thermometer. Joy controls conditions. Happiness registers conditions. The thermometer of your happiness can go up or down by what happens, but you regulate your life with joy.”

Our focus is to be on the Lord.

Philippians 4:4-5 REJOICE IN THE LORD ALWAYS: and again I say, REJOICE. 5 Let your MODERATION {epieikēs} be known unto all men. THE LORD IS AT HAND.

Word Study: The word rendered “MODERATION” is the Greek epieikēs, which means “patience”. If your faith is in you STUFF, and you lose all your STUFF, then you will not be patient, but outraged! But if your faith is in your SAVIOR, the fact that “THE LORD IS AT HAND”, then you will patiently endure. If you are going through it, God led you to it. The One Who led you TO it will lead you THROUGH it.

Habakkuk 3:17-19 (KJV) Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither [shall] fruit [be] in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and [there shall be] no herd in the stalls: 18 Yet I WILL REJOICEin the LORD, I WILL JOY IN THE GOD OF MY SALVATION. 19 The LORD God [is] my strength, and he will make my feet like hinds’ [feet], and he will make me to walk upon mine high places.

His freedom taken from him, the Apostle wrote:

Philippians 4:11 Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be CONTENT.

Word Study: The word rendered CONTENT is the Greek autarkēs, which means “to be complete in what I have, to be independent of external circumstances, needing no aid or support”. Paul was saying “I am satisfied where I am. Why? Because I am “IN THE LORD”. I thought as I looked at this text how important those words “IN THE LORD”are in the Bible. The phrase is found 111 times in the Scripture. The first time it’s used is with Abraham,

Genesis 15:6 … Abraham believed IN THE LORD; and He counted it to him for righteousness

The beginning of salvation is to repent, and put all your trust and hope IN THE LORD. To believe that I am not able, but that God is. When you believe IN THE LORD, what you are saying is “Lord, I’m broken, but I know You’re not. I trust Your power. I trust Your knowledge. I trust Your plan for my life. I trust You, not me.”

How Do I Stay IN THE LORD? Focus On Him!

Philippians 4:6-7 Be CAREFUL {merimnao}for NOTHING; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving LET YOUR REQUESTS BE MADE KNOWN UNTO GOD. 7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Word Study: The phrase “Be CAREFUL for NOTHING”, literally means “do not WORRY or be ANXIOUS about ANYTHING”. When we begin to dwell on something that we cannot fix, something greater than us, then it takes us away from being “IN THE LORD”and focuses us on being “IN OURSELVES”. That’s exactly what the devil wants.

When our Lord Jesus was in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11), having fasted 40 days and nights, He was very hungry. The devil came to Jesus and said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread”. How did Jesus respond? “IT IS WRITTEN, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God”. Each time Jesus was tempted, He replied “IT IS WRITTEN”. Jesus knew Who He was. He knew the Lord was at hand. He submitted to God.

Paul tells us that – instead of worrying – “LET YOUR REQUESTS BE MADE KNOWN UNTO GOD”. How do we do this?

By PRAYER: We talk to our Heavenly Father. The LORD IS AT HAND.

By SUPPLICATION: We humble ourselves. Our prayers are requests, not demands. “Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time” (1 Peter 5:6). We dare not demand anything from God. What He decides is always best.

With THANKSGIVING: Thank God for what you do have. If God tells you NO, then be satisfied that this NO came from His loving heart. The LORD IS AT HAND.

Do not deconstruct your faith – grow in it. Jesus tells us:

Matthew 6:25-34 Therefore I say unto you, {Do not worry} for your life,what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? 26 Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? 27 Which of you by {worrying} can add one cubit unto his stature?28 And why {do you worry about clothing}? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: 29 And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? 31 Therefore {stop worrying}, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? 32 (For after all these things do {unbelievers} seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. 33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. 34 {Do not worry} for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

Let God have all of you!

Pastor Ralph Spaulding Cushman wrote this sweet poem:

I met God in the morning when the day was at its best.
And His presence came like sunrise, like a glory in my breast.
All day long His presence lingered
All day long He stayed with me,
And we sailed with perfect calmness o’er a very troubled sea.
Other ships were blown and battered.
Other ships were sore distressed,
But the winds that seemed to drive them
Brought to me a peace and rest.
Then I thought of other mornings,
With a keen remorse of mind
When I too had loosed the moorings
With the Presence left behind.
Now I think I know the secret, learned from many a troubled way.
You must meet Him in the morning
If you want Him through the day.

Don’t let the devil use you. Trust in the Lord! Stand fast in the Lord. Be of the same mind in the Lord. Rejoice in the Lord. The Lord is at hand, dear Christian. Grow in Him.

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Don’t Play The Fool

Posted on January 5, 2026 by bibleteacherorg

Photo by Rachel on Unsplash

When I was a little boy – just 14 years old – a song come out by a group called “The Main Ingredient”. It was their largest hit, called “Everybody Plays The Fool”.

Everybody plays the fool, sometime;
There’s no exception to the rule.
It may be factual, it may be cruel,
I ain’t lyin,
Everybody plays the fool.

The song was all about falling in love with the wrong person, and how it can make you end up looking like a fool. If you fall in love with the Person of Jesus Christ, and follow Him closely, you will never go wrong. In the Bible, the “Fool” properly is someone who rejects a loving and obedient relationship with Jesus in order to follow the other guy, Satan. In the Psalms we are twice told:

Psalm 14:1 (KJV) The FOOL {nāḇāl} hath said in his heart, [There is] no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, [there is] none that doeth good.

Psalm 53:1 (KJV) The FOOL {nāḇāl} hath said in his heart, [There is] no God. Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity: [there is] none that doeth good.

Word Study: The Hebrew nāḇāl or “fool” refers to a godless person, a person who has rejected Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, and who lives their lives totally apart from their Creator. In Proverbs 26:1-12we aren’t necessarily talking about lost people. There are five Hebrew words for “fool”:

nāḇāl – the godless person
baʿar – the person who acts brutish, like an animal
lets – the arrogant, mocking fool
pethi – the simple minded fool in the making

It is the fifth type of “fool” Proverbs 26 addresses: kesil, the morally stubborn person who knows better, but refuses wisdom or Bible truth.

It was this type of “fool” that Jesus spoke of when He said:

Matthew 7:26-27 (NKJV) … everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a FOOLISH {mōros} man who built his house on the sand: 27 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.

Our English word “moron” comes from the ancient Greek mōros. The word was brought into English by Psychologist Dr. Henry H. Goddard in 1910 to describe intellectual disability. As we read through Proverbs 26, the Bible is describing someone who knew building on sand next to a seashore was a bad idea, but who did it anyway. This action – kesil – is seen by those who adhere to common sense and Biblical sense as being mentally off.

Proverbs 26:1 (KJV) As snow in summer, and as rain in harvest, so honor is not seemly for a FOOL {kᵊsîl}.

Proverbs 26:8 (KJV) As he that bindeth a stone in a sling, so is he that giveth honor to a FOOL {kᵊsîl}.

Snow in summertime seems out of place. Rain during the time of harvest is not only out of place, but it is detrimental to the harvest. You really ought not to harvest wet produce – it quickly rots. Fools should never be honored. And yet, our society seems to idolize those who pursue foolish things. To idolize and vote for or cast your vote or support to a foolish person is to harm yourself. In verse 8 the foolish person wields useless power.

The stone in the sling only works if it is placed loosely in the sling. If BOUND to the sling, it is of no purpose, for the stone cannot be released against the enemy.

When you vote for a politician who has shown no common sense nor any Biblical sense in their lives, you are putting honor on someone who should not be receiving honor. You also put yourself at danger. Such a person cannot protect you in their office, but will likely abuse your trust while robbing your purse.

Proverbs 26:2 As the bird by wandering, as the swallow by flying, so the curse causeless shall not come.

The FOOL {kᵊsîl} will try and curse others without cause. When I read this verse, I thought of that travesty of television called “The View”. These women are often cursing and blaming people they don’t like, based on contrived allegations. What they are doing will – in the end – come to no effect. In Solomon’s world a curse was only effective if the basis of the curse was true. Had the person so cursed been actually guilty of what they were accused of?

There is an interesting story in 2 Samuel 16. As King David moved into that area with his men, Ziba the servant of Mephibosheth, the grandson of Jonathan, met him with provisions and blessings. David and Saul’s son Jonathan were best friends. Though Jonathan was deceased, David honored Mephibosheth, and he in turn honored King David.

But as David and his men came to Bahurim, near Jerusalem, in the territory of the Tribe of Benjamin. An obnoxious man, a FOOL {kᵊsîl} by the name of Shimei the son of Gera came out and cursed David and his men. The Bible says:

2 Samuel 16:5-8 (NKJV) He came out, CURSING CONTINUOUSLY AS HE CAME. 6 And he threw stones at David and at all the servants of King David. And all the people and all the mighty men were on his right hand and on his left. 7 Also SHIMEI SAID THUS when he cursed: “Come out! Come out! YOU BLOODTHIRSTY MAN, YOU ROGUE! 8 The LORD HAS BROUGHT UPON YOU ALL THE BLOOD OF THE HOUSE OF SAUL, in whose place you have reigned; and THE LORD HAS DELIVERED THE KINGDOM into the hand of Absalom your son. So now YOU ARE CAUGHT IN YOUR OWN EVIL, because you are a bloodthirsty man!”

One of David’s warriors Abishai the son of Zeruiah begged David, “Please, let me go over and TAKE OFF HIS HEAD”. David refused to allow Shimei to be punished.

2 Samuel 16:11-12 See how my son who came from my own body seeks my life. How much more now may this Benjamite? LET HIM ALONE, AND LET HIM CURSE; for so THE LORD HAS ORDERED HIM. 12 It may be that the Lord will look on my affliction, and that THE LORD WILL REPAY ME WITH GOOD for {SHIMEI’S} CURSING THIS DAY.

Rather than lower himself down to the level of Shimei, David in essence said “Since God allowed this cursing to happen, let it happen. The cursing is for my good. Let the man live. If God sent him, then I can’t undo the curse by killing him. And if God allowed it and I trust the Lord and honor him regardless, then God will in the end bless me.”

The curse of a fool is like a wandering bird. It flits about, but never lands on you. The causeless curse will not land on you. Just trust God, and do good!

Bruce Waltke wrote, “Since the Creator and Lord of history is the source of blessing and cursing through a fellow human being, the proverb infers that the undeserved/unfitting curse is ineffective because the Sovereign does not back it up.”

Proverbs 26:3 A WHIP for the HORSE, a BRIDLE for the ASS, and a ROD for the FOOL’S {kᵊsîl} BACK.

The HORSE that will not obey nor learn is often persuaded by pain, by the WHIP. Who yields the WHIP? Only the master of the horse! The owner of the horse has the right to inflict pain on that horse, especially if such pain will keep the animal from a worse estate. The ASS or the DONKEY, being more stubborn than the horse, will resist the whip, but will often be persuaded by theBRIDLEwhich pulls at the head and mouth. Again, the bridle is installed and used by the master of the donkey.

The FOOL, however, responds best to the ROD of punishment. Who provides that punishment? The Master of the Fool – God Himself.

It is not our place to punish the fool unless they have committed criminal acts, and we are in the place of law enforcement. Our Lord Jesus told us to let God avenge those who wrong us. The Scripture says:

Deuteronomy 32:35-36 (NKJV) VENGEANCE IS MINE, and recompense; Their foot shall slip in due time; For the day of their calamity is at hand, And the things to come hasten upon them.’ 36 For THE LORD WILL JUDGE HIS PEOPLE And have compassion on His servants

Romans 12:19-21 (NKJV)Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY,” says the Lord. 20 Therefore “If your enemy is hungry, FEED HIM; If he is thirsty, GIVE HIM A DRINK; For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.” 21 DO NOT BE OVERCOME BY EVIL, but OVERCOME EVIL WITH GOOD.

We are not to lay the rod of punishment on the fool. God will deal with the fool. We are to do good even when bad is done to us. Does this mean we should ignore what the foolish do? No. They should be corrected BIBLICALLY, according to the Word of God.

Proverbs 26:4-5 Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest thou also be like unto him. 5 Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own conceit.

These verses seem to contradict one another, but they do not. The intent of verse 4 is “do not lower yourself down to the level of the fool when talking with them”.

Our Lord Jesus was always careful as to speak only when He could refer to the Scripture.

When a woman taken in adultery was brought before Jesus (John 8:3-9), the Pharisees repeatedly asked Jesus should the woman be stoned or not. The Bible says,

John 8:6-7 (NKJV) This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear. 7 So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.”

Jesus did not reply to these fools until He replied with the Word of God (Jesus was quoting Deuteronomy 17:6-7, “the hands of the witnesses shall be FIRST against him to put him to death”). Jesus did not lower Himself to debating with these silly foolish Pharisees!

When Jesus was first brought before Pilate to be judged, Pilate sent Him to Herod to be judged. The Bible says:

Luke 23:9-11 (NKJV) {Herod} questioned Him with many words, but HE ANSWERED HIM NOTHING. 10 And the chief priests and scribes stood and vehemently accused Him. 11 Then Herod, with his men of war, treated Him with contempt and mocked Him, arrayed Him in a gorgeous robe, and sent Him back to Pilate.

Brought back before Pilate to be judged for crucifixion, we read:

Matthew 27:12-14 (NKJV) And while {Jesus} was being accused by the chief priests and elders, HE ANSWERED NOTHING. 13 Then Pilate said to Him, “Do You not hear how many things they testify against You?” 14 But HE ANSWERED HIM NOT ONE WORD, so that the governor marveled greatly.

Jesus said nothing because He was fulfilling Scripture:

Isaiah 53:7 (NKJV) He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet HE OPENED NOT HIS MOUTH; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, And as a sheep before its shearers is silent, So HE OPENED NOT HIS MOUTH.

Proverbs 26:4-5 Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest thou also be like unto him. 5 Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own conceit.

Verse 4 refers to using your own opinion to address the fool. When you return an argument to a fool with your opinion, then “YOU ARE LIKE UNTO HIM”. Verse 5 tells us that fools should be corrected – but only with the Master’s truths. Tell the fool “thus saith the Lord” or “it is written”. Do not trust in yourself, but in God and His provision.

Proverbs 26:6-7, 9 He that sendeth a MESSAGE by the hand of a fool cutteth off the feet, and drinketh damage. 7 The legs of the lame are not equal: so is a PARABLE in the mouth of fools. … As a thorn goeth up into the hand of a drunkard, so is a PARABLE in the mouths of fools.

When a fool says something, it doesn’t come from God. Cutting off a messenger’s feet makes it impossible for him to deliver a message. Giving a fool wise sayings to deliver is to waste your time. God sends His Word through committed believers who love Him. Those whom He chooses are not fools, but those who faithfully relay that which He has said.

Proverbs 30:5 (NKJV) EVERY WORD OF GOD IS PURE; He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him.

Psalm 18:30 (NKJV) As for God, His way is perfect; the WORD OF THE LORD IS PROVEN.

God would not send His message by a FOOL {kᵊsîl}. If He sent His message by a FOOL, then it would be like cutting off the feet of the message. It would defeat the message. A parable in the mouth of a fool does not travel well – it limps. The message is screeching, like a drunkard with a thorn in his hand. The fool takes the message of God’s Word out of context, and no good comes of it.

Illustrate: A black man from Ghana who called himself Ebo Enoch or the Ebo Noah prophesied that God would send a three year rain on the earth this past Christmas, wiping out all creation. Ebo claimed that God had told him to build a series of Noah style wooden arks told people their only salvation was to get on his arks before the deadline. When no rains came, Ebo said that he prayed and God gave him more time to build more arks. People sold everything they owned to get to Ebo. Without funds, now they are stranded without hope. Oh, by the way, Ebo bought a new Mercedes Benz worth $89,000.

You can’t make this stuff up!

Our Lord Jesus spoke in parables (Matthew 13:10-17; Mark 4:12). God will not put parables nor messages in the mouths of fools.

Proverbs 26:10 The great God that formed all things both rewardeth the FOOL {kᵊsîl}, and rewardeth TRANSGRESSORS {ʿāḇar}.

Bible teacher David Guzik notes:

“God’s guidance and governing over all things extends to the fool and the transgressor. He will make sure they get what is due, as both their hire and their wages. … “As He made all so He maintains all, even the evil and the unthankful…or He allows them a livelihood, gives them their portion in this life, fills their bellies with his good treasure, but by it sends leanness into their souls, or if He fattens them, it is to fit them for destruction, as fated ware is fitted for the meat market.” (Trapp)

Dr. R.G. Lee wrote in his sermon “Payday Someday”:

“‘According to God’s constitution of the world, the wrongdoer will be abundantly punished’. The fathers sow the wind and the children reap the whirlwind. One generation labors to scatter tares, and the next generation reaps tares and retribution immeasurable. To the individual who goes not the direction God points, a terrible pay-day comes. To the nation which forgets God, payday will come in the awful realization of the truth that the ‘nations which forget God shall be turned into hell.’ When nations trample on the principles of the Almighty, the result is that the world is beaten with many stripes. We have seen nations slide into Gehenna — and the smoke of their torment has gone up before our eyes day and night. To the home that has no room for the Christ, death and grave clothes are certain. ‘Ichabod’ will be written about the church that soft-pedals on unpleasant truth or that stands not unwaveringly for ‘the faith once delivered’ — and it will acknowledge its retribution in that it will become ‘a drifting sepulcher manned by a frozen crew.’ A man can prostitute God’s holy Name to profane lips if he will, but he is forewarned as to the pay-day in the words: ‘The Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh His Name in vain (Ex. 20:7).’”

Proverbs 26:11 As a dog returneth to his vomit, so a FOOL {kᵊsîl} returneth to his folly.

The mark of the fool is that they do not learn from their failures. Sin sickens the soul. The Bible pictures the fool as someone who, doing wrong and suffering for it, returns to the same wrong to drink of it again. What is worse than a fool?

Proverbs 26:12 Seest thou a man wise in his own CONCEIT {ʿayin}? there is more hope of a fool than of him.

Word Study: The word rendered “CONCEIT” is the Hebrew ʿayin, which means “eyes”. Those who cannot be taught – who are wise in their own eyes – can never be reached. The fool, bad as he or she is, have more hope than the self righteous or the self certain. Someone once said,

“The greatest fool is the fool who does not know he is a fool”.

Pride blocks wisdom. Those who would be wise need to first have “fear of the Lord” (Proverbs 1:7). Those who would be wise need to be willing to listen to others, to not believe themselves the center of the universe (Proverbs 12:15). Wisdom requires humility (Proverbs 11:2). As we are told in:

1 Peter 5:5-7 (KJV) Yes, all of you BE SUBMISSIVE TO ONE ANOTHER, and be clothed with humility, for “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.” 6 Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, 7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.

I’ll be preaching a message from Ephesians 5:21 this Sunday morning called “Submission Is Not A Dirty Word”. Since I’m heading there next, I think I’ll stop for tonight. Hope you’ll be with us this Sunday. May God touch your hearts with His Wisdom.

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Only A Fool Would Cancel Christmas

Posted on December 31, 2025 by bibleteacherorg

Photo by Venti Views on Unsplash

Matthew 1:18-25 (KJV) Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost. 19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privily. 20 But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. 21 And SHE SHALL BRING FORTH A SON, AND YOU SHALL CALL HIS NAME JESUS: for He shall save His people from their sins. 22 Now all this was done, that it MIGHT BE FULFILLED which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, 23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and THEY SHALL CALL HIS NAME EMMANUEL, which being interpreted is, God with us. 24 Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife: 25 And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and HE CALLED HIS NAME JESUS.

The Devil Is Killing America With “Feelings”

We live in a “feelings” day. Over half of our nation is driven by not FACTS, but FEELINGS. You see it on the news. It doesn’t matter if it’s FOX or CNN, it’s all about FEELINGS. FOX was talking about a fellow that was imprisoned in England for a social media post, bemoaning the loss of “Second Amendment” privileges. Did you read what the man posted? It was horrible. He was advocating MURDER and ARSON against a people group! The man ought to be in jail – or a psychiatric hospital!

You see it on social media. People attacking one another, rather than focusing on FACTS. People mocking other people rather than sharing ideas.

Confused and emotional people attack people, because they rely not on facts but on feelings. The wise, the Christ follower is supposed to attack devilish ideologies or thoughts, not people. We are to be a factual people.

Think about the protests going on around our country. People marching at a “No Kings” rally. Our First Amendment protects your right to march. There are “No Kings” in America. If there were a king, you could expect execution, imprisonment, torture, and loss of property. Have you EVER SEEN BRAVEHEART?

You can march against fascism. Most people don’t know what fascism is. If our country were fascist, the marchers would be arrested and imprisoned, tortured and interrogated, executed or just “disappeared”, placed in forced labor or concentration camps, and whole families were brutally disciplined. The First Amendment protects us from what the citizens of Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, Francoist Spain (under Francisco Franco), or Imperial Japan went through. It protects us from what Communist China’s and Northern Korea’s citizens suffer daily.

The First Amendment protects us from state run religions like the Muslim nations and the Catholic nations of years past. Czechoslovakian Christian Martyrs like Jan Hus (pronounced yahn hoose) was burned at the stake in by order of the Council of Constance (a Catholic church council) on July 6, 1415, after refusing to recant his views. Brother Hus preached:

👉 The Bible is the final authority (not popes or councils)

👉 Salvation is by grace through faith alone (not indulgences or works), and

👉 All believers are priests (no need for a special clerical class to mediate)

Before dying in flames, Jan said: “You are now burning a goose [“Hus” means goose in Czech], but in 100 years God will raise up a swan you will not be able to burn or silence.”

Mormons under Joseph Smith murdered those who departed from their faith. Buddhists, Muslims, and Hindus kill those who will not convert. They feel that they are doing the right thing. Beloved, Jesus said:

Matthew 12:25 (NKJV) Every KINGDON DIVIDED AGAINST ITSELF IS BROUGHT TO DESOLATION, and every city or house divided against itself WILL NOT STAND.

Be it nation, community, or church, we cannot stand. We cannot stand based on FEELINGS, because FEELINGS come from a broken heart.

Jeremiah 17:9 (NKJV) The HEART [is] DECEITFUL ABOVE ALL THINGS, And desperately wicked …

Mark 7:21-23 (NKJV) For from within, OUT OF THE HEART OF {PEOPLE}, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, 22 thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. 23 All these evil things come from within and defile a man.”

Our hearts are not naturally pure. People are not innately good. God tells us to take our broken hearts to HIM, and let HIM fix them.

Proverbs 3:5 TRUST IN THE LORD WITH ALL YOUR HEART and lean not on your own understanding.

Give your HEARTS, your FEELINGS to Jesus. Put that on the back burner, and do as Jesus did. Ask yourself, “What does the FACTS teach? What is the reality? What does God say in His Word?”. King David was a broken man like we are – but he cast himself on the Lord. He said:

Psalm 51:8-12 (NKJV) Make me hear joy and gladness, [That] the bones You have broken may rejoice. 9 Hide Your face from my sins, And blot out all my iniquities. 10 CREATE IN ME A CLEAN HEART, O God, And RENEW A STEADFAST SPIRIT WITHIN ME. 11 Do not cast me away from Your presence, And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. 12 RESTORE TO ME THE JOY OF MY SALVATION, And uphold me [by Your] generous Spirit.

The devil wants you living your life by feelings. God says, no, come to Me. God’s Word says you must “confess with your MOUTH that JESUS IS LORD, and believe IN YOUR HEART that God raised Him from the dead … then you SHALL BE SAVED” (Romans 10:9). You are not saved by feelings, but by facts, Bible truths.

What If Joseph Has Went On “Feelings”?

Matthew 1:18-19 (KJV) Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, BEFORE THEY CAME TOGETHER, SHE WAS FOUND WITH CHILD of the Holy Ghost. 19 Then Joseph her husband, BEING A JUST MAN, and not willing to make her a public example, WAS MINDED TO PUT HER AWAY PRIVILY.

Every year we come to the Christmas story. We think about Mary, we think about Jesus. That’s fine. But I want you to take a minute and wonder about this: HOW IMPORTANT WAS JOSEPH TO THIS EVENT? The Bible says of Joseph that he was:

BEING A JUST MAN

The phrase “JUST MAN” tells us that Joseph was a man who walked with God. God uses the “JUST MAN”. When God sought to rid the world of out of control evil, He chose “Noah, a JUST MAN” (Genesis 6:9). Those who are “JUST MEN” trust in God’s Word, not in their feelings. “The just man walketh in his integrity” (Proverbs 20:7). A “JUST MAN” is not perfect, but he looks to the Lord and is blessed:

Proverbs 24:16 (KJV) For a JUST MAN falleth seven times, and riseth up again: but the wicked shall fall into mischief.

Mary is with Child, but Joseph has not consummated the marriage yet. They had not yet “COME TOGETHER” as husband and wife should. Imagine this! You’re a man, and your intended Bride is with child. What will control you? Your feelings? If Joseph had been controlled by his feelings, Mary might not have been killed, but she would have been shamed and shunned by her world. Among ancient Judaism people were executed for adultery – but were called to accountability for fornication. Mary would have been a cast out.

Joseph loved Mary, but walking in his integrity as a just man he could not marry her. Joseph thought Mary was involved in egregious sin (Deuteronomy 22:23-24). If led by feelings, he would have made her estate public. Instead he was “MINDED” to “PUT HER AWAY” or divorce her quietly.

Had Joseph went on feelings, Jesus Christ would never have been born into this world. Jesus is the “Only Begotten” of the Father. As Eternal God, Jesus has always been with the Father. As long as there is God, which is forever, Jesus has been with God. It was planned by the Father that humanity be redeemed from the slave market of sin by the Incarnation of Christ.

Matthew 1:20 (KJV) But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for THAT WHICH IS CONCEIVED IN HER IS OF THE HOLY GHOST.

Joseph was a “JUST” man, but he wasn’t perfect. When the Messiah came, He had to be born a perfect Man, completely without sin. The Bible says that after Adam sinned, Yahweh told the Serpent (Satan):

Genesis 3:15 (NKJV) And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel.

This is what theologians call the Protoevangelium or the first preaching of the Good News of the Messiah. When Adam sinned, he brought sin into the world. The Scripture says:

Romans 5:12 (KJV) Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

By following his feelings instead of the fact of God’s Word, Adam brought sin into the world. God cannot look the other way on sin. God detests sin! So Yahweh promised Satan that Serpent that “the SEED OF THE WOMAN” would come and crush his head – though He Himself would be injured (but not forever). The Messiah would come – not through the seed of the man but the seed of the woman. By man sin entered into the world. Man cannot fix sin. But if sin were to be forgiven, and the wrong righted, then a Perfect Man would have to do so.

This is why there was a virgin birth.

Joseph, though a “Just Man”, was not a perfect Man. Being imperfect, he could not sire the Messiah. But God could. God the Holy Spirit worked within Mary to create a Perfect and Sinless Man. This was the same thing that the Angel Gabriel told Mary:

Luke 1:35 (KJV) … The HOLY GHOST SHALL COME UPON THEE, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also THAT HOLY THING which shall be born of thee SHALL BE CALLED THE SON OF GOD.

I was reading Elmer Towns book “Learning From God’s Imperfect People”, and came across this quote:

“How can you be more perfect? By getting a vision of what God can do through you, or more importantly, what God can do with you.”

Joseph could not create the Messiah. But he could get out of the way, and support Yeshua as He took upon Himself human flesh. Joseph loved Mary, and loved the Lord. Love is the laying down of your life – and your rights – in order to bless another. Jesus said in John 15:13, “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends”.

Joseph laid down his life for Mary and the Messiah, so that the Messiah could one day lay down His life for us. “God loved us, and sent His Son to be the satisfactory payment for our sins” (1 John 4:10).

Matthew 1:21 (KJV) And SHE SHALL BRING FORTH A SON, AND YOU SHALL CALL HIS NAME JESUS: for He shall save His people from their sins.

In the ancient world, the father usually named the child. Joseph was not the father, so he could not name the child. God was the Father of the Messiah.

It was prophesied of the Messiah:

Isaiah 53:9-10 (NKJV) And THEY MADE HIS GRAVE WITH THE WICKED–But WITH THE RICH AT HIS DEATH, Because He had DONE NO VIOLENCE, NOR WAS ANY DECEIT IN HIS MOUTH. 10 Yet it PLEASED THE LORD TO BRUISE HIM; He has put [Him] to grief. When YOU MAKE HIS SOUL AN OFFERING FOR SIN, He shall see [His] seed, He shall prolong [His] days, And the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in His hand.

Jesus would grow up to die on Calvary for our sins. He would die between two thieves, a man found innocent by Pilate the Governor, yet nonetheless executed. He would be buried in a rich man’s tomb. Jesus would die on Calvary for us.

2 Corinthians 5:21 (NKJV) For He made Him who KNEW NO SIN [to be] sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

Because Jesus, pure and sinless, bore our sins, we can believe on Him and receive His righteousness.

Christmas Is A Commemoration Of God’s Love

Matthew 1:21-22 (KJV) And SHE SHALL BRING FORTH A SON, AND YOU SHALL CALL HIS NAME JESUS: for He shall save His people from their sins. 22 Now all this was done, that it MIGHT BE FULFILLED which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, 23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and THEY SHALL CALL HIS NAME EMMANUEL, which being interpreted is, God with us.

Christmas commemorates a time when God kept His promise. God always keeps His promises. God promised that He would step into creation. Why? We see it in the text:

YOU SHALL CALL HIS NAME JESUS: for He shall SAVE HIS PEOPLE FROM THEIR SINS

Word Study: The Bible says in 1 John 3:5, “He was MANIFESTED or REVEALED {through incarnation} TO TAKE AWAY OUR SINS; and IN HIM IS NO SIN”. Why did the Father name the Messiah “Jesus”? The name “JESUS” is the Greek iēsous, which is equivalent to the Hebrew Yehoshua (or Joshua), which means “The Lord saves”. One of the heroes of Judaism was Joshua, the man who led Israel into the Promised Land. Joshua led God’s people into a Promised Land that was physical. Jesus leads His people into the Kingdom of God, a much greater blessing. Joshua saved God’s people from the enemies who occupied the Promised Land. Jesus saves God’s people from slavery to sin and Satan.

Jesus came to save us from our sins. Sin separates us from God, and robs us of the joy of living. Sin brings death and disease, slavery and suffering. Jesus saved us from more than hell. He saved us from a life without God both now, and into eternity!

Joseph was to name the Messiah “Jesus” or “The Lord saves”. The Bible goes on to tell us that this was a fulfillment of Isaiah 7:14, “THEY SHALL CALL HIS NAME EMMANUEL, which being interpreted is, God with us”. One reference I found noted:

“‘Emmanuel’ is a title, not necessarily a personal name. In Hebrew culture, to be ‘called’ something often meant to be known as or to embody that reality—not that it would be the name on a birth certificate. So ‘Emmanuel’ describes who the Child is, not what people would shout when calling Him for dinner.”

Christmas commemorates the great love that God had for us imperfect humans. He sent His Eternal Son from glory to this broken world. Jesus came not to be “Superglue” or “Duct Tape”. He didn’t come to put a patch on us. The Messiah came to “save His people from their sins”. God did this supernaturally by taking Eternal God and containing Him in Finite but Perfect Man. Only God could do that.

About this time every year the Liberals and the Progressives begin telling us how they feel when we speak of Christmas. I’ve heard it called “A War On Christmas”. The war on Christmas, on Christ Himself, has always been here. It was there in the Garden of Eden, it was there when Noah built an Ark, it was there when God called Abraham. Beloved, our war is “not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places” (Ephesians 6:12). Several years ago the Washington Post ran an article by a Jewish woman named Julia Ioffe. It was titled “Please don’t wish me ‘Merry Christmas’”. She wrote:

“Christmas is a lovely holiday, but it is definitely not a secular one. It is a celebration of Christ, as its very name implies. … Whenever I hear the name, I hear the “Christ” in it. To me, it’s strange that many of its celebrants do not. … “This is always the time of year I feel most excluded from society,” one Jewish friend told me. Another told me it made him feel “un-American.”” …. There’s something a little deranged about taunting someone of another faith with “Merry Christmas” after they’ve politely asked for a recusal. It feels out of step with what Christians say this holiday — and Christianity — is all about: peace, love and mercy. It feels, instead, to be of a piece with the warring tribalism that has consumed our politics.”

When someone – especially a Jew – tells you “Don’t wish me Merry Christmas”, understand you are talking the color red to a blind person. They do not see it. To them, Jesus is just a Rabbi or a Teacher of just another world religion. Jesus is much more than this. Jesus is THE Christ. The reason there are Jews is because God chose to send the Messiah through Israel. He came “to the Jew first, but also to the Gentile” (Romans 1:6; 2:9-10). God sent the Messiah through Mary and Joseph to save whosoever will.

Israel exists because of Jesus. It continues to exist because of Jesus. Jesus will return, and rule Israel. No Jew is saved apart from Jesus.

God made a promise to Abraham (Genesis 12:1-3) that through his progeny “all peoples on earth will be blessed”. Israel was chosen to be the CONTAINER through Whom the Messiah, the Christ would come. Having come, He came to save Israel – and us – from our sins.

Beloved, only a fool would want to cancel Christmas. Only a fool would reject the wonderful message that God gives us at Christmas. Oh, how I hope in the midst of this holiday buying and wrapping of presents, setting of trees, that you forget the great Gift of the Messiah that God gave us.

Merry Christmas!

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You Can’t Run Looking Backwards

Posted on December 31, 2025 by bibleteacherorg

Photo by Miguel A Amutio on Unsplash

Philippians 3:12-14 (KJV) Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. 13 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, 14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

I’ve seen a lot of horror movies, and found out one of the biggest problems people have is running away while looking backward. You can’t run looking backward. Well, you can, but you’ll fall and become a victim rather than a victor.

Running while looking backwards makes for victims, not victors.

Life is very much like a race – maybe that’s why we’re called the human race. It’s not a sprint. It’s a marathon. If you stop running, they throw dirt on you. People run their race pursuing all types of things. The run their race depending on their own power, on their ego, on the I can do all things.

Opening: The Rap singer Fifty Cent (Curtis James Jackson III) had an album called “Get Rich or Die Trying”. He’s rich – he has lots of money. His net worth is estimated at $60 million. Yet when you look at his life, what does he really have? He was shot 9 times in 2000 and said when he survived, he believed in “God”. But his faith is in himself, on the Irather than Jesus. In an interview with beliefnet he said:

“I believe in God. I didn’t survive being shot nine times for nothing. I didn’t claw my way out of the ‘hood just ’cause it was something to do. I know I‘ve got a purpose – a reason for being on this planet. I don’t think I‘ve done everything I‘m supposed to do yet. But I do know this: I ain’t going nowhere ’til I‘ve done it all.”

In this one paragraph the Rapper used the word “I” eleven times – but “God” only once”. I didn’t bring this out to put the Rapper down, but this is the mindset of many people in our world today. They want to be spiritual, but their focus is I. This man, like many others, run the race looking at the I, at themselves. This will wear you out.

You Can’t Run Looking Backward: I’m reminded of the singer “Whitney Houston”. Whitney believed in God. Raised a Baptist, she said “I learned to sing in church. Church is where I got my strength. … God is the source of my talent. I never thought it was mine. … I know He’s real, because He lives inside of me.” Yet Whitney died at just 48 years old, drowned in a bathtub with cocaine found in her system. I don’t know if Whitney was saved or not, but I do know that if she was saved, a Child of God, she tried running her race looking backward. I don’t doubt she was a child of God, but even children of God hurt themselves if their eyes are on the wrong thing. Our Jesus said:

Luke 9:62 (NKJV) No one, having put his hand to the plow, and LOOKING BACK, is fit for the kingdom of God.

If you are a Christian, God has called you into salvation to serve Him. You need to realize ….

Your Life – Both Physical As Well as Spiritual –
Is A Stewardship, A Gift Given By God

Philippians 3:12 (KJV) Not as though I had already ATTAINED {lambanō}, either were already PERFECT {teleioō}: but I FOLLOW AFTER {diōkō}

A lot of people looked at the life of the Apostle Paul and thought, “Paul, you’ve arrived! You’re at the top of your game! There’s nothing left for you to do. Jesus called you on the Damascus Road to go to the Gentiles to preach the Gospel. Yes, you have been persecuted. But you’ve started Churches all over the place. God has used you in wonderful ways to spread the Gospel. YOU ARE THE MAN!” Paul replies,

“No, I HAVE NOT reached the goal or seized the prize”
{lambanō}
“No, I am NOT PERFECT. This is NOT a finished product”
{teleioō}
“I am still STRIVING, RUNNING SWIFTLY toward the goal”

What was Paul’s goal? What did he want to achieve? The rest of verse 12 seems convoluted, but it’s not. He says:

I FOLLOW AFTER {strive, run swiftly with all my strength}, if that I may APPREHEND {katalambanō} that for which also I am APPREHEND {katalambanō} of Christ Jesus.

Word Study: The word “APPREHEND” {the Greek katalambanō} means “to grab so as to possess”. What’s he’s saying is that “Jesus laid hold on me for a purpose – and I want to find and achieve that purpose that Jesus has for me”. Let’s read this in other versions for clarity:

[NKJV] I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.

[ESV] I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.

Paul is saying “God made me for a purpose. God saved me for a purpose. I will keep striving, I will keep following Jesus until I fulfill His purpose for my life”

Those who are lost wander about, looking for purpose. If you have detached yourself from God Himself, then your life will be purposeless. It was not God’s purpose for Adam to destroy himself with sin, and to get himself banished from Paradise. Adam made this decision. God wants the very best for our lives.

When Israel disobeyed God for 70 Sabbatical years, the Lord had them exiled as a nation for 70 years. As Israel despaired under Babylonian captivity, the Lord told His people:

Jeremiah 29:10-13 (ESV) For thus says the LORD: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I WILL visit you, and I WILL fulfill to you My promise and bring you back to this place. 11 For I KNOW THE PLANS I HAVE FOR YOU, declares the LORD, plans for WELFARE and NOT FOR EVIL, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then YOU WILL CALL UPON ME AND COME AND PRAY TO ME, and I WILL HEAR YOU. 13 You will SEEK ME AND FIND ME, when you SEEK ME WITH ALL YOUR HEART.

God wants the best for each and every one of us. He gave us life. He purchased us salvation in Christ Jesus. What does God expect of us? He wants us to FOLLOW HIM, to FOCUS ON JESUS, to PURSUE THE MESSIAH. We are to realize that we are NOT COMPLETE, and will never be complete in this life. We are all imperfect. We know nothing. We understand nothing. God is all in all.

What Satan is constantly doing is trying to get us to follow the I. To make life about ourselves. To make ourselves the center of all things. Beloved, this type of life is destined to fail.

If You’re Still Breathing, You Haven’t Arrived

Philippians 3:13 Brethren, I count not myself to have APPREHENDED {katalambanō}

Paul says, “I’m not there yet. I’ve not arrived.” So many of you think, “When I was young I did these things, but now I’m older I have no purpose, no plan, no thing that I must do”. Beloved, if you are still on this earth, you HAVE NOT ARRIVED. The Apostle wasn’t done yet. God wasn’t done with him. Do you know when God is done with you? When the preacher says a few words over your empty shell. When they put your earthly body in a resting place. But while you are alive,

1 Jesus Christ wants to save you if you are yet lost. While Paul was Saul, he couldn’t really be used of God. Jesus must reach you. You must say yes to Him and Him alone. People say, “Why won’t God use me?” The answer is He will not use a dead thing. Every work you do apart from Jesus is a dead work. God is good, but you are not.

“No one is good – except God ALONE” (Mark 10:18, NIV)

The Bible tells us that “there is NO ONE RIGHTEOUS, no, not even one. There is no one who seeks after God, no one who understands. All have turned away from God, and have become worthless. There is no one who DOES GOOD, no, not even one” (Romans 3:10-12, AP). The lost person without Jesus cannot do even one good thing that God considers worthy. The lost person is enslaved to sinfulness. The saved person follows the Lord Jesus.

John 8:34-36 (NKJV) Jesus answered them, Most assuredly, I say to you, WHOEVER COMMITS SIN IS A SLAVE OF SIN. 35 And a slave does not abide in the house forever, [but] a son abides forever. 36 Therefore IF THE SON MAKES YOU FREE, YOU SHALL BE FREE INDEED.

You need Jesus. Jesus Christ came to save sinners, broken people like you and I. You are a child of the devil if you are not in love with Jesus. The father you have, is the one you will serve. Jesus said, “{if} you are of your father the DEVIL, and the desires of your father you want to do”. We are all born into this world lost and undone. But Jesus Christ came into this world to save you from your sins. He came to change you, from a servant of sin to a servant of God. When you receive Jesus as Lord and Savior, God changes you from the inside out. The Bible says:

Romans 6:16-18 (ESV) Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? 17 But thanks be to God, that you who WERE ONCE SLAVES OF SIN have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, 18 and, having BEEN SET FREE FROM SIN, have BECOME SLAVES OF RIGHTEOUSNESS.

The one God uses must be first saved by Grace in Christ.

Ephesians 2:8-10 (ESV) For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, CREATED IN CHRIST JESUS FOR GOOD WORKS, which God prepared beforehand, that WE SHOULD WALK IN THEM.

We are saved by casting our lives on God, by trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ. He made us on purpose. He remakes us on purpose.

2 Once saved, this is not the end of your journey. The saved spend the rest of their lives on this earth serving the Lord Who saved them. Our focus is to be on Jesus.

Philippians 3:13-14 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this ONE THING {heîs} I DO, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, 14 I PRESS TOWARD THE MARK FOR THE PRIZE of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

Paul says that this is the “ONE THING {heîs} I DO”, that is, this is his focal point. He keeps his focus on “the PRIZE”. What is the prize the Christ follower seeks? To discover what it is that God wants us to do, then to DO IT. We are not to be hindered by our failures, our stumbles, but keep looking to Jesus. Paul said that he keeps …

FORGETTING those things which are BEHIND

We all fall. We all fail. Put the failures in the rear view mirror – and don’t dwell on it. You as a Christian are a creature in transition. You are a caterpillar God is changing into a butterfly. We are children of God, sons of God through Christ Jesus. The Bible says of the believer that I am a …

“new creature in Christ: OLD THINGS are PASSED AWAY; behold, ALL THINGS are become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

Your past should not define your present. This is what destroyed Israel.

When Israel was in Egypt, they were a nation of slaves. God told Israel:

Exodus 6:6 (ESV) … I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I WILL DELIVER YOU FROM SLAVERY to them, and I WILL REDEEM YOU with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment.

and once Israel was freed, God reminded them …

Leviticus 26:13 (ESV) … I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that YOU SHOULD NOT BE THEIR SLAVES. And I have broken the bars of your yoke and made you walk erect.

God said “OUT OF EGYPT I Called MY SON” (Matthew 2:15). Egypt is a picture of the lost, pagan, godless world. When God saves us, He calls us OUT OF EGYPT. What is it that God has said?

2 Corinthians 6:17-18 (NKJV) Therefore “Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. DO NOT TOUCH WHAT IS UNCLEAN, And I will receive you.” 18 “I will be a Father to you, And YOU SHALL BE MY SONS AND DAUGHTERS, Says the LORD Almighty.

Israel was saved from Egypt. They PHYSICALLY came out of Egypt. But SPIRITUALLY they stayed in Egypt. Any time things got tough Israel didn’t look forward to Jesus, but looked BACK TO EGYPT. When they were trapped at the edge of the Red Sea with the armies of Egypt coming upon them, they cried out to Moses:

Exodus 14:11-12 (NKJV) … Because [there were] no graves in Egypt, have you taken us away to die in the wilderness? Why have you so dealt with us, to bring us up out of Egypt? 12 [Is] this not the word that we told you in Egypt, saying, ‘LET US ALONE THAT WE MAY SERVE THE EGYPTIANS’? For [it would have been] better for us to SERVE THE EGYPTIANS than that we should die in the wilderness.”

Rather than look UP to God, they looked BACK to Egypt. Though God saved Israel by parting the waters and by destroying the armies of Egypt, they continued to look to Egypt. In the wilderness of Sin they cried out:

Exodus 16:3 (NKJV) And the children of Israel said to them, “Oh, that we had died by the hand of the LORD IN THE LAND OF EGYPT, when we sat by the pots of meat [and] when we ate bread to the full! For you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.

God gave them manna from Heaven, yet their minds were locked on Egypt. In Rephidim they found no water. Rather than look to God, they cried out:

Exodus 17:3 (NKJV) And the people thirsted there for water, and the people complained against Moses, and said, “WHY IS IT THAT YOU HAVE BROUGHT US UP OUT OF EGYPT, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?

Is it any wonder that when Israel got to the base of Mount Sinai that they demanded of Aaron:

Exodus 32:1 (NKJV) Come, MAKE US GODS THAT SHALL GO BEFORE US; for [as for] this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.

God saved them, but their minds were in Egypt. They quickly made “GODS” that they could worship, rather than turn to the God Who saved them from Egypt. God has said,

Isaiah 42:8 (NKJV) I [am] the LORD, that [is] My name; And MY GLORY I WILL NOT GIVE TO ANOTHER, Nor My praise to carved images.

If you are a Christian, you are to be in constant transition. Keep following Jesus. Keep your eyes on the Lord. Don’t let your failures define you.

You do not belong to Egypt any more, dear Christian. You are God’s possession. You are not slaves of sin, and of darkness. This is the land of the lost, not the Promised Land of the Christian.

forgetting those things which are behind, and REACHING FORTH unto those things which are before

Had the first generation kept their mind on the lord Who saved them, they could have gone into the Promised Land. But they didn’t. They kept looking backward. You cannot run the race set before you looking backward. If you do, you will stumble. You will fail. The Apostle Paul looked back over his past life, and learned from his mistakes. But he did not allow those mistakes to define him.

1 Timothy 1:12-17 (NKJV) And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who has enabled me, because He counted me faithful, putting [me] into the ministry, 13 although I WAS FORMERLY A BLASPHEMER, a PERSECUTOR, and an INSOLENT MAN; but I obtained mercy because I DID IT IGNORANTLY IN UNBELIEF. 14 And the grace of our Lord was exceedingly abundant, with faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. 15 This [is] a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that CHRIST JESUS CAME INTO THE WORLD TO SAVE SINNERS, OF WHOM I AM CHIEF. 16 However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life. 17 Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, to God who alone is wise, [be] honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.

Paul said “I am the LEAST OF THE APOSTLES. I am NOT WORTHY TO BE CALLED AN APOSTLE, because I PERSECUTED THE CHURCH OF GOD” (1 Corinthians 15:9; Galatians 1:13). He remembered, I am sure, the Christians he had murdered in his unbelieving ignorance. He remembered the bad things he did. But Paul remembered that Jesus brought him out of Egypt. He remembered that it was BY GRACE He was saved:

1 Corinthians 15:10 (NKJV) But BY THE GRACE OF GOD I AM WHAT I AM, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, YET NOT I, BUT THE GRACE OF GOD WHICH WAS WITH ME.

Paul remembered where he came from – and learned by it. Paul got his mind out of Egypt, and into the kingdom of Christ. His focus was on following Jesus.

reaching forth unto those things which are before

Beloved, you have not finished what God has planned for your life until you get to glory.

Immature Christians Focus On Egypt – And Lose The Prize Of The Victorious Life!

Philippians 3:15 (KJV) Let us therefore, as many as BE PERFECT {teleios, mature}, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you.

Paul has already told us in verse 12 that he is not PERFECT {teleioō, Perfect Passive Indicative} or COMPLETE. So unless Paul is contradicting himself, Paul is not talking about perfection in verse 15. The word here is the Greek teleios which means “to be mature, of full age”. The NKJV renders this verse:

Therefore let us, as many as are MATURE, have this mind

If you are a Christian, if God the Holy Spirit lives inside you, then you will stop looking back to Egypt. If you are otherwise minded – that is, if you don’t agree with this, then if you are a Christian “God shall reveal even this unto you”. Those who are Christians, though they may deceive themselves for a while, will eventually be brought to a right and a righteous mind by God. Here’s the truth:

You cannot be a joyful Christian and wallow in Egypt!

To those who say, “I’m a Christian – but I think thus and so sin (as the Bible defines sin) is fine”, if you’re really a Christian God will change your mind.

God does not give one set of rules for one Christian, and another set of rules for another. This is hogwash!

Philippians 3:16-17 Nevertheless, whereto we have already attained, LET US WALK BY THE SAME RULE, LET US MIND THE SAME THING. 17 Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample.

If you are a Christian, you are a child of God, a member of the kingdom of God. You do NOT get to make your own rules. You must follow God’s directives. Jesus said, “If you love Me, you keep My commandments”:

John 14:15, 21 (KJV) If YE LOVE ME, KEEP MY COMMANDMENTS. … 21 He that hath My commandments, and keepeth them, HE IT IS THAT LOVETH ME: and HE THAT LOVETH ME SHALL BE LOVED OF MY FATHER, and I WILL LOVE HIM, and will MANIFEST MYSELF TO HIM.

You don’t get to make your own rules. You are members of the kingdom of God. Even in the early Church, there were people who PROFESSED to be Christian …. but walked with their hearts in Egypt. Paul says of these:

Philippians 3:18 (For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the ENEMIES OF THE CROSS OF CHRIST: 19 Whose END IS DESTRUCTION, whose GOD IS THEIR BELLY, and whose glory is in their shame, who MIND EARTHLY THINGS.)

Those who run looking backward are not children of God. They are enemies of the cross. Jesus Christ came to save us from our sins – not to enable us to revel in them. Those who love Jesus – love Jesus. Those who love Jesus – look for Jesus.

Philippians 3:20-21 For our CONVERSATION {politeuma, community, commonwealth, citizenship} is in heaven; from whence also we LOOK FOR THE SAVIOR, the LORD JESUS CHRIST: 21 Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby He is able even to subdue all things unto Himself.

We live for Jesus, not for ourselves. May God move on your hearts! The great Pastor and Preacher C.H. Spurgeon wrote of the false Christian, saying:

“These professors have… learned to sleep over the mouth of Hell and dream of Heaven while damnation is denounced upon them.”

And the great Evangelist Billy Graham said,

“Millions of professing Christians are only just that — ‘professing.’ They have never possessed Christ. They live lives characterized by the flesh.”

If you are saved, you will desire Jesus. You will love God’s Word. You will want to grow into what He wants you to be. May God lead you to His side daily! Amen.

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Redeeming The Time

Posted on December 31, 2025 by bibleteacherorg

Photo by Aron Visuals on Unsplash

Ephesians 5:15-16 See then that ye WALK CIRCUMSPECTLY, not as fools, but as wise, 16 REDEEMING THE TIME, because the days are evil.

Colossians 4:5 Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, REDEEMING THE TIME.

Opening: We are all so very fragile, and we never know when our time on earth will end. Just a few days before Christmas, Michael Dickinson of Nebraska died in a McDonald’s drive thru. Pulling up to the payment window, Police Chief Dean Elliot said “It appears the deceased opened the door to further reach out of the window for payment purposes,” he said. We’re not sure if the vehicle lurched forward or what happened, but he became pinned between the door frame and the drive-thru window counter”. A McDonald’s employee attempted to save him, but could not. A life cut short in a McDonald’s drive thru just before Christmas.

We never know when our time on this earth will end. About the same time Michael passed from this life, a Florida man named Jason Kenney killed his wife and shot his step daughter before taking his own life. He was drinking when his wife Crystal suggested he turn off the NFL Game between the 49ers and the Colts. Enraged he took her life, then his own. The step daughter was shot twice, but is recovering. Searching the home in the aftermath of the shooting, deputies found a note that Crystal had written to her husband:

“You’re drinking, you’re using cocaine again. This is not the way the family should be. You need God.”

I wish Jason had found the Lord before the devil found him. Nothing good came of what he did. And if he left this life without Jesus – and I suspect he did – he is in a hell that he brought on himself even this day.

Christians Are To “Walk Circumspectly”

Ephesians 5:15 See then that ye WALK CIRCUMSPECTLY, not as FOOLS, but as WISE,

The Bible uses the word “WALK” as a picture of living. This is the seventh time that the Apostle uses “WALK” in this book. How you walk is how you live out your life. How you walk will effect your eternity.

Word Study: We are commanded to “WALK CIRCUMSPECTLY”. The word “CIRCUMSPECTLY” is the Greek akribōs, which means “in an accurate and diligent manner, in a way that avoids flaws”. When we encountered the word “WALK” in the earlier passages of this book, we read:

Ephesians 2:2 (LSB) ….. you FORMERLY WALKED according to the course of this world, according to the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience,

When you were lost, you walked carelessly. You walked as “fools” do. When the Bible uses the word “fool”, it is a reference to those who are godless. “The FOOL has said in his heart, ‘there is no God’. They are corrupt, and do abominable works” (Psalm 14:1). But once you met Jesus, you were saved by Grace (Ephesians 2:8-9). At that moment, your “walk” changed. We were told:

Ephesians 2:10 (LSB) For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that WE WOULD WALK IN THEM.

To walk “circumspectly” is to walk not in sin, but in good works, in works that glorify the Lord our God.

You are not like the unbelieving world. You are changed by Grace. You are changed by the indwelling Holy Spirit of God. We are to “WALK WORTHY” of our calling (Ephesians 4:1). We are to “STOP WALKING” like the unsaved, confused persons (Ephesians 4:17).

Ephesians 5:2-3 And WALK IN LOVE, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour. 3 But FORNICATION, and all UNCLEANNESS, or COVETOUSNESS, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints;

The Christian walk is characterized by LOVE, not LUST. We are to care for others, and to give ourselves for others just as our Lord Jesus did. But we are not to be involved in “FORNICATION” {porneia} or sexual sin. We are not to be involved in “UNCLEANNESS” {akatharsia} or perversity and rot. We are not to be GREEDY, chasing after the riches of this world.

Ephesians 5:4-6 (KJV) Neither FILTHINESS {aischrotēs, obscenity}, nor FOOLISH TALKING {mōrologia, moronic statements}, nor JESTING {eutrapelia, speech which tears down}, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks. 5 For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. 6 LET NO MAN DECEIVE YOU WITH VAIN WORDS: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.

Walking circumspectly means to control your tongue and your actions so as to glorify the Lord in your life. The wages of sin is always death, whether you are a Christian or a lost person. When you follow after things which ridicule the Way of Truth, you open yourself up to the disciplined of God. The Scripture says:

Colossians 3:23-24 (LSB) Whatever you do, do your WORK HEARTILY, AS FOR THE LORD rather than for men, 24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. Serve the Lord Christ.

We have an enemy, Satan, also called “the Prince of the Power of the air” (Ephesians 2:2). “Air” is what envelopes this earth. Satan and his demonic followers are where ever there is air, where ever there is emptiness. If you’ve seen the devastation that a hurricane or a tornado can bring, you know that air can be destructive. The Bible says that:

1 Peter 5:8-9 {LSB} Be of sober spirit, be WATCHFUL. Your adversary, the DEVIL, prowls around like a roaring lion, SEEKING SOMEONE TO DEVOUR. 9 But resist him, firm in the faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished among your brethren who are in the world.

The devil and the darkness did not give up when Jesus resurrected from the Grave. The devil and the darkness doubled down. The forces of darkness are all about us – we MUST be circumspect, be careful in how we walk. The Apostle said:

2 Timothy 3:12-13 (LSB) Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. 13 But EVIL MEN AND IMPOSTERS will proceed [from bad] to worse, deceiving and being deceived.

The Redeemed Should Redeem The Time

Ephesians 5:15-16 See then that ye WALK CIRCUMSPECTLY, not as fools, but as wise, 16 REDEEMING THE TIME, because the days are evil.

I have heard it said, “We are to redeem the time because we ourselves are redeemed”.

Word Study: The Christian is a REDEEMED person. The word “REDEEMED” is the Greek exagorazō, which means “to pay a price for someone to recover them from the power of another; to ransom from enslavement or entrapment”. This what Jesus did for us when He died on the Cross. The Bible says:

Galatians 3:13 (KJV) Christ hath REDEEMED {exagorazō} us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed [is] every one that hangeth on a tree:

Before we met Jesus, we were enslaved to sin. Jesus said, “everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin” (John 8:34; Romans 6:20)

Before we met Jesus, we were enslaved to Satan. We were in the “snare of the devil, being captured by him to do his will” (2 Timothy 2:25-26; John 8:44)

Before we met Jesus, we were enslaved to the darkness. It is only Jesus who can “deliver us from the dominion of darkness, and into the Kingdom of God’s Beloved Son” (Colossians 1:13)

Before we met Jesus, we were enslaved to the Law as lawbreakers. The Law was not a blessing for us, but a CURSE. It condemned us as sinners. The Law said, “Do this”, but we could not in our own power. We were slaves to sin and Satan. But Jesus came, and died on Calvary for us. When we believe on Jesus, we are redeemed from the curse of the Law. Why?

Galatians 4:5-7 (KJV) To REDEEM {exagorazō} them that were under the law, that WE MIGHT RECEIVE THE ADOPTION OF SONS. 6 And because ye are sons, GOD HATH SENT FORTH THE SPIRIT OF HIS SON into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. 7 Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

As Christ has redeemed us, we now redeem time on this earth for His glory. We do not walk as those in darkness, but walk as children of God.

Ephesians 5:7-11 Be not ye therefore partakers with them. 8 For ye were {at other times} darkness, but NOW ARE YE LIGHT IN THE LORD: WALK AS CHILDREN OF LIGHT: 9 (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;) 10 Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord. 11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.

What God has condemned, we who are His children will not do. We cannot walk in sexual sin. We cannot walk in greed. We cannot walk contrary to the Word of God. Should we befriend unbelievers? Yes, I believe we should. However, when we reach out to unbelievers, we must NEVER CONDONE THAT WHICH GOD CONDEMNS. We are told:

no fellowship with the unfruitful WORKS OF DARKNESS but rather REPROVE THEM

It doesn’t say we can’t reach out to the WORKERS of darkness. We should reach out to the lost. But you cannot lead the lost to salvation by justifying that which God forbids.

Illustrate: There was a group I used to listen to called “The Newsboys”, and I was horrified to find out that their lead singer Michael Tait was involved in sexual misconduct and substance abuse. There were accounts that he actually molested young men who looked up to him. After he resigned from the Newsboys (being replaced by Adam Agee) there were many who excused Tait’s behavior. Some even stated that Christians should lower the standards, so that Tait didn’t have to live a double life.

No, dear friends, we cannot lower the standards, because God sets the standards, not us. The Bible draws the line, and here is where we stand.

Those who are redeemed should be redeeming the time. We do not redeem the time by twisting the Scripture. We stand on what the Word of God has clearly stated. We were purchased from the darkness by a great price. Jesus REDEEMED US TO GOD by His Blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation (Revelation 5:9). We are freed from the prison of sin, Satan, and self. We do not want to go back into that prison. We do not want others left in that prison. So we will redeem the time for our Lord.

If We Do Not Redeem The Time, The Lost Will Not Repent,
But Sleep Their Way Into Hell

Ephesians 5:13-14 But all things that are REPROVED are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light. 14 Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.

Read that first statement carefully. “All things that are REPROVED {elegchō} are made MANIFEST BY THE LIGHT”. People sleep in the darkness, not in the light. The Christian cannot compromise with the darkness. When you fly a “rainbow flag” in front of your Church, you are telling those who follow that doctrine that there’s nothing wrong with it.

Word Study: Unless something is REPROVED {elegchō, to point out fault, to reprehend severely, to call to account, to admonish}, people will think there is nothing wrong with what they do. It is only when an action is REPROVED, and the doer is angered, can there be any possibility of the light manifesting the reality to that person.

No reproof. No repentance. No redemption.

Now this isn’t popular in the local church of America today. Churches seem to want to compete to try and get as many people in its doors as possible. Jesus never asked us to do that. He commanded that we “make DISCIPLES”, that is, teach people what Jesus and the Word of God say. The church cannot afford to be in the darkness. The church cannot afford to sleep. A sleeping church will not lead others to Christ. The church must be light. It must walk accord to God’s Word.

Romans 13:11-12 (ESV) Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to WAKE FROM SLEEP. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us CAST OFF THE WORKS OF DARKNESS and put on the armor of light.

We who are saved belong to Jesus. We who are saved have the Holy Spirit indwelling us. We are to walk according to God’s Word and with God’s Spirit.

Author Brennan Manning once stated,

“The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians: who acknowledge Jesus with their lips, walk out the door, and deny Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.”

Though I agree with the statement, Manning himself lived a double life. He died an alcoholic’s death, but not before losing his family because of alcohol. We are all broken, yes, and we all need Jesus. But we must realize that God does not warn us against sin because it hurts Him. He warns us against sin because it hurts US, and condemns those who will not repent of it and turn to Jesus to a life of misery and darkness.

We must reprove sin. We will be called homophobic, racist, hateful, demonic, uncharitable, mean spirited. Yet if the Book tells us it is wrong, we must declare it wrong.

In John 7 we read about Jesus. We read:

John 7:1 (LSB) And after these things Jesus was walking in Galilee, for He was UNWILLING TO WALK IN JUDEA BECAUSE THE JEWS WERE SEEKING TO KILL HIM.

Why were the Jews seeking to kill Jesus? Was it because He fed the 5000 Jews, or fed the 4000 Gentiles with a tiny bit of food? No. It was because Jesus spoke the truth. After feeding so many with so little, the crowds started following Jesus not for the Word of God – but for the FOOD. Jesus REPROVED them.

John 6:26-27 (LSB) Jesus answered them and said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. 27 Do not work for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you, for on Him the Father, God, set His seal.”

Jesus told them that they had to REPENT and BELIEVE on HIM. He told them that He was the “bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world” (John 6:33). Jesus chastised them for not believing in Him. To Jesus, faith was more than just a simple “I believe”. Faith in Him is like feeding on Him. He told them:

John 6:54-58 (LSB) He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. 55 For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink. 56 He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. 57 As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats Me, he also will live because of Me. 58 This is the bread which came down out of heaven, not as the fathers ate and died. He who eats this bread will live forever.

That day, many Jews left following Jesus, and began to plot against His life. So when we come into John chapter 7 we see that Jesus no longer goes to Judea because they want to KILL Him!

The Pharisees and the Chief Priests had a meeting at the end of John chapter 7, and plotted to kill Jesus. Though Nicodemus stood up for Jesus, he could not persuade the other Jews not to kill Jesus. The darkness HATES the Light.

John 3:19 (KJV) And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and MEN LOVED DARKNESS RATHER THAN LIGHT, because THEIR DEEDS WERE EVIL.

After this meeting of Jesus’ enemies, we read in the last verse of John chapter 7:

John 7:53 (KJV) And every man went unto HIS OWN HOUSE.

They thought Jesus was a heretic. They thought Jesus was a menace to Judaism. Did they go to God? No. they went to their OWN HOUSES. But where did Jesus go? In the next chapter, first verse, we read:

John 8:1 (KJV) JESUS WENT UNTO THE MOUNT OF OLIVES.

Jesus went to where He often prayed. He prayed all night long, then went to the Temple and taught the Word of God. Jesus was able to go to the Temple where His enemies were, and teach a class in the midst of danger, because Jesus redeemed the time.

Time spent with God in prayer and in His Word is never wasted. This present life is a gift from God. What you do in this present life will effect your eternity.

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Winning Christ

Posted on December 17, 2025 by bibleteacherorg

Photo by Samantha Rodríguez on Unsplash

Philippians 3:1-3 Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to you, to me indeed is not grievous, but for you it is safe. 2 Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision. 3 For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.

Rejoicing In The Lord, Our Safe Place

Word Study: When Paul begins this section with the word “FINALLY” (Gk. Loipon), it makes us think that this will be the last chapter of this book. It’s not. The word loipon means “now, furthermore, or from this point onward”. Paul has spent the last two chapters telling us the glorious riches we who are Christians have received from Jesus Christ. What do we who are Christians have?

1. We are all “saints of God”, set apart in God the Father’s eyes because of our faith in Jesus (Philippians 1:1).

2. We did not earn this sainthood. We have “grace and peace with God” as a free gift from our Heavenly Father and our Lord Jesus Christ (Philippians 1:2).

3. We are “filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God” (Philippians 1:11).

4. Death nor our enemies have no hold on us. “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21).

5. We have been given the “mind of Christ” (Philippians 2:3-8; 1 Corinthians 2:16).

6. We are the “sons of God in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation” (Philippians 2:12-16). We are to shine as His sons, not grumble nor complain.

Six major truths found in Jesus up to this point. The Bible says that God created earth and all that is in it over six days – “on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made”(Genesis 2:2). Up to this point, Paul has pointed out all that God did – at least six wonderful things – and now we are “brethren”, children of God together. The word Loipon means that – because of all that God has done for us in Christ – we now REST. What do believers do on the Sabbath, the Lord’s day? We REST, and REJOICE in the Lord Who saved us. From this point on, brothers and sisters,

REJOICE in the Lord

The phrase “REJOICE in the Lord” is found 232 times in the Bible. We “REJOICE in the Lord” because we know who we are are, and Who our God is. The Prophet said:

Isaiah 61:10 I will GREATLY REJOICE IN THE LORD, my SOUL SHALL BE JOYFUL IN MY GOD; for He hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, He hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.

Bad times may come our way, but one thing that cannot be taken away from us is this: because we love Jesus, the Father loves us. We are His prized possessions. The Bible says:

Habakkuk 3:17-19 (NKJV) Though the fig tree may not blossom, Nor fruit be on the vines; Though the labor of the olive may fail, And the fields yield no food; Though the flock may be cut off from the fold, And there be no herd in the stalls– 18 YET I WILL REJOICE IN THE LORD, I will JOY IN THE GOD OF MY SALVATION. 19 The LORD God is my strength; He will make my feet like deer’s [feet], And He will make me walk on my high hills. To the Chief Musician. With my stringed instruments.

Trials may come and go, and yet they will not defeat me. Why? Because …

Romans 8:28 (NKJV) we know that ALL THINGS WORK TOGETHER FOR GOOD TO THOSE WHO LOVE GOD, to those who are the CALLED ACCORDING TO HIS PURPOSE.

In chapter 3 the Apostle tells us who are saved by Grace to REST, to REJOICE in the Lord.

Philippians 3:1 … rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to you, to me indeed is not grievous, but for you it is SAFE {asphalēs}.

Word Study: Paul says “what I’m saying to you NOW is what I’ve said numerous other times. It does not grieve me to say this again. Why? Because for you it is SAFE (the Greek asphalēs, a certain or sure foundation on which to abide)”. The same word asphalēs is used for the promises of God in salvation in Hebrews 6:19. God cannot lie. God has promised to whosoever believes in Christ that they have eternal hope and everlasting life with God. God’s Word is SURE and STEADFAST.

The Apostle has used the word JOY or REJOICE a total of 16 times in this little book of Philippians. He commands us to REJOICE IN THE LORD.

That which is safest for the Christian is to REJOICE IN THE LORD. To focus on what you have in Christ, and the new identity He has given you. The safest place to be is in the Presence of Jesus, to read and hear the Word of God that He so loved. As we go through our daily trials, we are to fix our eyes on Jesus. As Jesus went through this life, bullied by the Pharisees and the religious leaders, did He lose heart? Was He defeated by the suffering He endured, the loneliness of Gethsemane, and the horrors of Golgotha? The Bible tells us:

Hebrews 12:1-3 (ESV) Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also LAY ASIDE EVERY WEIGHT and SIN which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 LOOKING TO JESUS, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him ENDURED THE CROSS, DESPISING THE SHAME, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 CONSIDER HIM who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.

No matter what you are going through, look unto Jesus. REJOICE IN THE LORD. “My eyes are ever toward the LORD” (Psalm 25:15). Pray. Praise. Rejoice in the Lord! Keep looking upward, trusting in Him. The Scripture admonishes us:

Colossians 3:1-4 (ESV) If then you have been raised with Christ, SEEK THE THINGS THAT ARE ABOVE, WHERE CHRIST IS, seated at the right hand of God. 2 SET YOUR MINDS ON THINGS THAT ARE ABOVE, NOT ON THINGS THAT ARE ON THE EARTH. 3 For you have died, and YOUR LIFE IS HIDDEN WITH CHRIST IN GOD. 4 When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

“REJOICE IN THE LORD” is not a request, but a command of Scripture. Happiness depends on our circumstances – but joy is based on knowing whose we are.

Beware Those Who Will Rob You Of Joy

Philippians 3:2Beware {blepō} of dogs, beware {blepō} of evil workers, beware {blepō} of the concision.

Word Study: Paul mentions three things that will rob us of joy. Three times he uses the word blepō, which means “look for with your physical eye, and then mark so as to avoid with your mental eye”. Several commentaries note that Paul is just talking of the Judaizers who are trying to tell Gentiles they must be circumcised. But Paul uses three “bewares” or “look out” here, so I think he is talking about three elements of people who can rob you of your joy in Christ.

“Beware {blepō} of dogs”. In early Judaism (of which Paul was well acquainted) “DOGS” are those who are pagan, who are unbelievers in God but believers in false gods. Dogs can be those who pretend to love God outwardly, but inwardly are spiritually dead and unclean. Solomon wrote:

Proverbs 26:11 (ESV) Like A DOG THAT RETURNS TO HIS VOMIT is a FOOL {an unbeliever, see Psalm 14:1} who repeats his folly.

The Apostle Peter used the term “dog” to describe the false believer:

2 Peter 2:17-22 (ESV) These are waterless springs and mists driven by a storm. For them the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved. 18 For, speaking loud boasts of folly, they entice by sensual passions of the flesh those who are barely escaping from those who live in error. 19 They promise them freedom, but THEY THEMSELVES ARE SLAVES OF CORRUPTION. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved. 20 For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are AGAIN ENTANGLED IN THEM AND OVERCOME, the last state has become worse for them than the first. 21 For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them. 22 What the true proverb says has happened to them: “The DOG RETURNS TO ITS OWN VOMIT, and the sow, after washing herself, returns to wallow in the mire.”

The Church in America has many who profess that they are saved so that they can freely sin. We are not freed from sin so that we may more freely sin. The Bible says:

Romans 6:18 (ESV) having been SET FREE FROM SIN, you HAVE BECOME SLAVES OF RIGHTEOUSNESS

Those who are saved, but feel that they are saved so they can freely sin, are like the “dog who returns to its own vomit”. The Bible warns that such people shall not be in Heaven (Revelation 22:15).

Sin not only brings disease and death, it kills joy!

beware {blepō} of EVIL WORKERS {kakopoios}

“EVIL WORKERS” is the Greek kakopoios, which refers to those who are not just thinking evil thoughts, but they are seeking to actively corrupt others. Several years ago the LGBTQ+ “Community” rallied and fought that they could be “married” like the traditional one man one woman couple was married. They wanted the same legal and civil rights that the traditional couple had. They said over and over again, “It will have no effect on traditional values, no effect on Christians. Trust us.” But what happened once they were given the legal right to marry? They began to demand that Christian florists and bakers cater to their affairs. They began to push the local churches to participate in their sinful fantasies.

Beloved, we should love the sinner, and tell them the Gospel of Christ. But we need to keep a sharp eye out and not bind with them until they repent and receive the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior. Light and darkness cannot walk hand in hand.

beware {blepō} of the CONCISION {katatomē}

The word rendered “CONCISION” is the Greek katatomē, which means “those who cut or mutilate the skin”. This is indeed a reference to Judaizers, unconverted Jews who crept into the Church and say “Jesus is not enough”. Judaizers taught that you had to be circumcised to be saved. Many of these were Pharisees told Christians “you’re not fully saved until you satisfy the Law of Moses. You must be circumcised. You must keep the ceremonial laws of Judaism”.

This matter had been settled in the early Church among the Apostles. Once Paul began to reach the Gentiles with the Gospel of Christ, he went to Jerusalem to discuss the matter with the other Church leaders. The Apostle Peter along with James, the Overseer at Jerusalem, declared:

Acts 15:19-20 (NKJV) Therefore I judge that we should not trouble those from among the Gentiles who are turning to God, 20 but that we write to them to ABSTAIN from things polluted by IDOLS, FROM SEXUAL IMMORALITY, [from] things strangled, and [from] blood.

Circumcision was a command that God gave to Abraham and his descendants. But circumcision was never mandated for the Gentiles. God would promise the children of Abraham that one day there would be a New Covenant where the HEART would be circumcised. Paul talked about this in …

Romans 2:28-29 (ESV) For no one is a Jew who is merely one outwardly, nor is circumcision outward and physical. 29 But A JEW IS ONE INWARDLY, and CIRCUMCISION IS A MATTER OF THE HEART, BY THE SPIRIT, not by the letter. His praise is not from man but from God.

Under the Old Covenant the Jew was circumcised in the flesh. But circumcision today is not required, not in the flesh. Paul goes on to say…

The Saved Have A Circumcised Heart

Philippians 3:3 (KJV) For WE ARE THE CIRCUMCISION, which worship God in the Spirit, and REJOICE in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.

There are three types that we should avoid: dogs, evil workers, and the cutters/ those who demand circumcision. They rob us of our joy. Those who are saved:

1. Worship God in the Spirit. We were not saved by our own power, we were saved by the power of God. Now as children of God, we worship God – not in our own strength – but through the Spirit of God Who indwells us. The lost person is bored by God – unless God is doing something for them. The saved person loves God, loves learning of God, and loves the Word of God.

2. REJOICE in Christ Jesus. We are not ashamed of Jesus, but love Him, and want to know more of Him. And,

3. Have no confidence in the flesh. We who are saved give all glory to God. We do not believe that we are, within ourselves, “good enough” for Heaven. Paul wanted to be a good steward of the Grace that God had given him. He wrote:

1 Corinthians 4:2-4 (KJV) Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful. 3 But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged of you, or of man’s judgment: yea, I judge not mine own self. 4 For I KNOW NOTHING BY MYSELF; yet am I not hereby justified: but he that judgeth me is the Lord.

Some people love to stand around judging others, thinking they are better than those around them. The Christian should do the best he knows how – as UNTO THE LORD. Whatever we do, we do it not to be saved, but out of love for Him Who saved us. We are always mindful that we are all broken, even though now we are saved.

I wish some of you understood that.

The genuine Christian has NO CONFIDENCE in the flesh, NO self righteousness. Paul says:

Philippians 3:4-6 Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh, I more: 5 Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee; 6 Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.

Before Paul was saved on the Damascus Road, he pointed to six things he thought proved he was right with God. None of these things had anything to do with Jesus.

1. RITUAL. Paul was “Circumcised the eighth day”, just as the Law declared.

2. RELATIONSHIP. Paul was “of the stock of Israel”, of the chosen nation, God’s Old Covenant people.

3. RESPECTABLE. Paul was “of the tribe of Benjamin”. That was like saying, “My family came to this country on the Mayflower!”

4. RACE. Paul was “an Hebrew of the Hebrews”. There was not a drop of Gentile blood in his veins! He and his family stayed blood-pure!

5. RELIGIOUS CONSERVATIVE. Paul said, “as touching the law, a Pharisee”. The Pharisees were the most strict, the most Bible based, the most intensely orthodox of the religious denominations. Pharisees were religious, but heartless and mean. Paul said, “concerning zeal, persecuting the Church”. I heard a story of a little boy who brought a dead mouse in the house, holding its tattered body by its tail. He said, “Mama, look! I beat him with a broom. I ran over him with my tricycle. I hit him with big rocks, and then stomped on him!” His mother said, “Wasn’t that cruel, son? That’s horrible!” The little boy thought, then said “When I was done, the Lord called him home!” Pharisees were religious, but MEAN!

6. REPUTATION. “touching the righteousness which is in the law, BLAMELESS”. Paul was a whitewashed tomb! Then he met Jesus.

Once the Lord saved him, Paul’s attitude changed. He said:

Philippians 3:7-8 But what things WERE GAIN to me, those I COUNTED LOSS for Christ. 8 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but DUNG, that I MAY WIN CHRIST,

Winning Christ Is The Goal Of The Believer

Word Study: In the phrase “WIN CHRIST”, the word for “WIN” is the Greek kerdainō which means “to gain, to win over, to gain Christ’s favor and fellowship”. Paul counted all the benefits that he used to have as “DUNG” {skubalon, animal manure}, as something well worth losing, in order to gain a closer, more intimate relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.

There was a group of people called gnostics who twisted the Gospel of Christ, and made it into fire insurance. They made statements like “Why should I continue to strive and to work for Jesus, after we have been saved? If I am assured that the Blood of Christ cleanses me from all sin (1 John 1:7) then why not, after I have professed Christ, just relax. Why not just do what I want, even if it is sin? Why gather with the Church? Why give? My ticket is paid! I’ll see Jesus in Heaven”. This is the attitude of many in America today, the gnostic way. They know about Jesus, but do not have a personal relationship with Him.

This is not what the Bible teaches!

When I was a young man going through the Air Force Academy I thought that the greatest thing I could ever have was to be the best in that school. So I worked hard and poured every ounce of my strength into excelling in my studies, in my drills, in all that I did. I won top in class, and had my picture taken with the Commander. Twice! Oh, how I struggled to get here. Oh, how sweet to get to the top of the class. Do you know where those awards are today? I have no idea. The newspaper clippings of my “great victory” are gone, lost in time. That thing that I struggled to get is today dung, manure, of no lasting value. It was a waste of my time! The Bible says “You do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while – then vanishes away.” (James 4:14, AP). The things of this world are fleeting.

The most important thing you have is your relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.

People today are chasing after everything – and finding nothing. The child sees a parent love a dog or a cat, while ignoring the child. The child seeks to be a “furry”. A man, weak and discontented as a man, seeks to be a woman. A woman wants to have “equal rights” with all men – then pines for the children she wish she could have had. Everyone is chasing nothing, and finding nothing.

God designed us to walk with Him – not just in Heaven – but NOW! Our father Abraham understood this principle, that the greater thing we should be seeking – friendship with God. We should be striving, driven to win Jesus’ as our Friend. I’m not talking about salvation, Beloved. You cannot earn nor deserve your salvation – salvation comes by faith alone in Christ alone (Titus 3:5-6). Abraham understood this.

We must set our life’s compass by Someone greater than ourselves if we want our life to have meaning. Beauty passes, money is spent, fame is fleeting, but friendship with Christ … this is a blessing that continues into eternity.

Do Not Trust In The Flesh, But In Jesus

Philippians 3:9-11 And BE FOUND IN HIM, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: 10 That I MAY KNOW HIM, and the POWER of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being made conformable unto His death; 11 If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.

Paul said, “If you’re looking for me, I’ll always be “FOUND IN HIM”. Paul wasn’t staying close to Jesus because he was afraid of going to hell. Salvation is a free gift from God. “By the deeds of the Law no flesh will be justified in God’s sight. The Law gives us knowledge of sin” (Romans 3:19-20, AP). If you are saved, Jesus is your Friend. You cannot go to Jesus as His Friend and say, “I cannot trust what you said about salvation”. Friends trust one another. Jesus paid the penalty for my sin on the Old Rugged Cross. I have accepted Him as my Savior so now I am free to pursue a deeper relationship in Him. Friends trust one another. Friends rely on one another. Listen to what Jesus our Friend did for us:

2 Corinthians 5:21 (KJV) For {The Father} hath made {Jesus} to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.

Your Friend Jesus gave so much for you on the Cross. He did not call us to salvation so that we could walk through this life by ourselves. He called us to salvation so that we can live VICTORIOUSLY, right now. And once this life is over we have a much greater life beyond this one with our Friend Jesus Christ. Jesus said:

John 15:14 Ye are My friends, if ye do whatsoever I COMMAND YOU.

Jesus is a Friend Who will never let you down. Beloved, life is hard, we are fragile, and time ends unexpectedly. A quiet walk in the beautiful woods of Tennessee can quickly turn into pain and death if you step on a copperhead. We live our lives day in and day out expecting things to be easy, then tragedy strikes without warning. The wise man sets aside a few savings for a rainy day – because the rainy days will come. The wise man buys fire insurance for his house, and medical insurance for his family. You stay prepared for whatever comes, and life is much sweeter. Be prepared.

But better than savings, insurance, whatever, it is good to have Christ as your Friend. The Apostle knew this. Those who seek friendship with Christ Jesus find real power for living. There is no value in pursuing Christianity as a religion, but as a relationship with Christ – Beloved, there’s great value in that! There’s a song I love to sing – perhaps you’ve heard it? No one knows who wrote it – but I know. It was a broken creature like me!

I am weak but Thou art strong;
Jesus, keep me from all wrong;
I’ll be satisfied as long,
As I walk, let me walk close to Thee.

Thro’ this world of toil and snares,
If I falter, Lord, who cares?
Who with me my burden shares?
None but Thee, dear Lord, none but Thee.

Just a closer walk with Thee,
Grant it, Jesus, is my plea,
Daily walking close to Thee,
Let it be, dear Lord, let it be.

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