1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:03,520 Hello and welcome to the Middletown Baptist Church Podcast, 2 00:00:03,600 --> 00:00:06,480 where we are proclaiming the truth to the world. 3 00:00:06,640 --> 00:00:09,720 My name is Pastor Josh, and I want to thank you for listening to 4 00:00:09,720 --> 00:00:10,480 this podcast. 5 00:00:10,960 --> 00:00:14,680 I hope that this podcast can be a blessing to you and strengthen 6 00:00:14,680 --> 00:00:16,080 you in the word of God. 7 00:00:16,800 --> 00:00:20,160 Now, come along, let's look into the Bible and see what God has 8 00:00:20,160 --> 00:00:21,440 for us here today. 9 00:00:23,440 --> 00:00:26,240 Let's go ahead and start our Bible study here this evening. 10 00:00:26,240 --> 00:00:31,110 If you have your Bibles, we're in Third John, the third Epistle 11 00:00:31,110 --> 00:00:35,270 of John, and we're wrapping up the study that we've had in First, 12 00:00:35,270 --> 00:00:36,310 Second, and Third John. 13 00:00:36,310 --> 00:00:39,430 And if you haven't been with us the whole time, I encourage you 14 00:00:39,430 --> 00:00:40,310 to either one. 15 00:00:40,310 --> 00:00:43,950 You can check back on the videos that we have on our YouTube 16 00:00:43,950 --> 00:00:45,670 or Facebook or study it yourself. 17 00:00:45,670 --> 00:00:48,990 I know that it has been a blessing for me to walk through First, 18 00:00:48,990 --> 00:00:52,550 Second, and Third John as a complete thought, because we really 19 00:00:52,550 --> 00:00:54,910 do see each one of these building on top of each other. 20 00:00:55,670 --> 00:00:58,270 With First John, it speaks of that relationship that we find in 21 00:00:58,270 --> 00:00:59,070 Christ through faith. 22 00:00:59,070 --> 00:01:01,230 And in that relationship, we find fellowship. 23 00:01:01,230 --> 00:01:02,430 And what that looks like. 24 00:01:02,430 --> 00:01:06,030 Fellowship with God is manifested through fellowship with 25 00:01:06,030 --> 00:01:06,310 others. 26 00:01:06,390 --> 00:01:08,710 So if we say we love God, we love our brother. 27 00:01:09,190 --> 00:01:11,350 And so that's the idea of First John. 28 00:01:11,350 --> 00:01:14,950 And First John is also a great passage of scripture to take someone 29 00:01:14,950 --> 00:01:17,750 to that has been struggling with the assurance of their salvation. 30 00:01:18,470 --> 00:01:21,710 Many people that you might come across in your life or maybe 31 00:01:21,710 --> 00:01:26,170 yourself at some point have struggled with that idea of security, 32 00:01:26,170 --> 00:01:26,970 of salvation. 33 00:01:27,370 --> 00:01:30,770 And First John is one place that we can take someone to show 34 00:01:30,770 --> 00:01:32,890 them, hey, this is what it means to be a believer. 35 00:01:33,210 --> 00:01:34,490 This is what it looks like. 36 00:01:34,890 --> 00:01:35,250 And. 37 00:01:35,250 --> 00:01:38,970 And so what we can see through that passage is that it's not about 38 00:01:38,970 --> 00:01:41,450 what I do, and it's not about how I feel, but it's about what I 39 00:01:41,450 --> 00:01:44,090 know Christ has done for me and what I am believing in. 40 00:01:44,490 --> 00:01:47,850 And so sometimes the lack of assurance and the doubts come through 41 00:01:48,310 --> 00:01:50,230 a break of fellowship with God. 42 00:01:50,630 --> 00:01:54,150 Then we saw Two John, which Two John was dealing with speaking 43 00:01:54,150 --> 00:01:57,990 the truth in love and specifically dealing with false teaching 44 00:01:57,990 --> 00:01:59,350 within the church. 45 00:01:59,750 --> 00:02:03,830 And John was writing to the elect lady there and warning her 46 00:02:03,830 --> 00:02:06,910 against the false teaching that could seep in and warning her 47 00:02:06,910 --> 00:02:09,430 what that looks like, and then how to deal with that false teaching, 48 00:02:09,910 --> 00:02:11,230 to speak the truth in love. 49 00:02:11,230 --> 00:02:13,790 And we look at every relationship that we deal with in 50 00:02:13,790 --> 00:02:16,870 our lives, whether it be with an unsaved person. 51 00:02:17,270 --> 00:02:19,110 It's a relationship of evangelism. 52 00:02:19,430 --> 00:02:23,270 And then if it's a saved person, it's A relationship of edification, 53 00:02:23,510 --> 00:02:26,710 of building and encouraging that Christian up in the faith. 54 00:02:27,190 --> 00:02:30,110 And then we are looking at Third John, which Third John essentially 55 00:02:30,110 --> 00:02:33,830 is dealing with how we should live practically in our lives. 56 00:02:33,830 --> 00:02:36,950 And he gives us an example, actually, he gives us two examples 57 00:02:36,950 --> 00:02:39,750 of good people, and then he gives us an example of someone that 58 00:02:39,750 --> 00:02:40,790 we should not live like. 59 00:02:41,220 --> 00:02:43,700 And that's what we talked about last time we were here. 60 00:02:43,700 --> 00:02:45,460 So I wanted to catch you up with all of that. 61 00:02:45,860 --> 00:02:49,020 And so just by way of review, we're going to go back to Third John 62 00:02:49,020 --> 00:02:51,740 and we're going to go to verse number nine, because this is where 63 00:02:51,740 --> 00:02:52,900 we left off last time. 64 00:02:52,980 --> 00:02:54,940 We looked at a good example of Gaius. 65 00:02:54,940 --> 00:02:58,500 And Gaius is mentioned really verse one, all the way through verse 66 00:02:58,500 --> 00:02:58,820 eight. 67 00:02:59,300 --> 00:03:02,980 And Gaius was an individual who was humble, and because of his 68 00:03:02,980 --> 00:03:05,700 humility, that brought about hospitality. 69 00:03:06,340 --> 00:03:10,220 And he spoke of the blessing that it is to be hospitable to other 70 00:03:10,220 --> 00:03:10,860 believers. 71 00:03:11,260 --> 00:03:14,340 And in this case, in this context, it was the apostles that 72 00:03:14,340 --> 00:03:17,580 were coming in, and Gaius was hospitable to them. 73 00:03:17,580 --> 00:03:19,420 And so I want you to think about that. 74 00:03:19,580 --> 00:03:23,739 When, when we are believers walking in the truth of God and understanding 75 00:03:23,739 --> 00:03:26,100 the power of God and understanding the grace of God, we 76 00:03:26,100 --> 00:03:26,860 walk humbly. 77 00:03:27,260 --> 00:03:31,180 And in our humility is manifested hospitality or grace. 78 00:03:31,820 --> 00:03:32,100 And. 79 00:03:32,100 --> 00:03:35,750 And then we look at a new guy that comes on the scene, verse 9. 80 00:03:35,750 --> 00:03:37,110 His name is Diotrephes. 81 00:03:37,430 --> 00:03:39,470 Diotrephes was the opposite of Gaius. 82 00:03:39,470 --> 00:03:42,230 Diotrephes was steeped in pride. 83 00:03:42,550 --> 00:03:46,230 And so it was his pride that led to a sense of preeminence. 84 00:03:46,790 --> 00:03:51,230 And so humility bringing hospitality, pride bringing the spirit 85 00:03:51,230 --> 00:03:53,910 of preeminence, meaning he believed that he was better than 86 00:03:53,910 --> 00:03:54,710 everybody else. 87 00:03:54,950 --> 00:03:57,870 And because he believed his way was better than everyone else, 88 00:03:57,870 --> 00:03:59,430 he treated everybody else in a. 89 00:03:59,770 --> 00:04:01,370 In a way that was destructive. 90 00:04:01,370 --> 00:04:04,810 It said in verse 10, Wherefore, if I come, I will remember 91 00:04:04,810 --> 00:04:08,330 his deeds which he doeth, praying against us with malicious 92 00:04:08,330 --> 00:04:08,730 words. 93 00:04:09,450 --> 00:04:13,730 And so how it started was he was speaking evil against other believers, 94 00:04:13,730 --> 00:04:15,370 specifically the leaders of the church. 95 00:04:16,170 --> 00:04:18,450 And then it says, and not content therewith. 96 00:04:18,450 --> 00:04:22,410 And so we see what, what was the source of his praying words. 97 00:04:22,970 --> 00:04:25,930 It was his discontentment with his own life. 98 00:04:26,360 --> 00:04:29,240 And that's really what pride ultimately brings, is discontentment. 99 00:04:29,640 --> 00:04:31,560 When it's all about us, we'll never get enough. 100 00:04:32,120 --> 00:04:33,840 When it's all about getting our. 101 00:04:33,840 --> 00:04:37,680 Our share and turning other people away, we'll always go back 102 00:04:37,680 --> 00:04:40,360 to that place where there's a sense of discontentment. 103 00:04:40,840 --> 00:04:44,320 So inwardly he has pride, which brought discontent, which brought 104 00:04:44,320 --> 00:04:45,160 malicious words. 105 00:04:45,160 --> 00:04:46,120 And then it went further. 106 00:04:46,120 --> 00:04:48,080 Neither doth he himself receive the brethren. 107 00:04:48,080 --> 00:04:50,480 So he actually rejects the true teaching. 108 00:04:50,480 --> 00:04:53,160 He rejects those that have a heart for God. 109 00:04:53,760 --> 00:04:55,840 And that's often what we see with someone who has pride. 110 00:04:56,400 --> 00:05:00,320 They are angry with other people who are living for the Lord. 111 00:05:00,400 --> 00:05:02,560 Like, if I'm not living for God, I don't want anyone to live 112 00:05:02,560 --> 00:05:02,920 for God. 113 00:05:02,920 --> 00:05:03,160 Right? 114 00:05:03,160 --> 00:05:05,200 If you have the joy of the Lord, I don't want you to have the 115 00:05:05,200 --> 00:05:05,760 joy of the Lord. 116 00:05:05,760 --> 00:05:07,680 And that's essentially what we see with the Atrophies. 117 00:05:08,320 --> 00:05:11,360 And he says that he himself didn't receive the brethren. 118 00:05:11,360 --> 00:05:13,280 And then he went even further. 119 00:05:13,760 --> 00:05:14,680 And so he. 120 00:05:14,680 --> 00:05:17,040 He rejected the people that were living for the Lord. 121 00:05:17,040 --> 00:05:19,720 And then he got mad at everybody else who supported them. 122 00:05:19,720 --> 00:05:24,490 And so it says there that he forbid them that would help and cast 123 00:05:24,490 --> 00:05:25,250 them out of the church. 124 00:05:25,250 --> 00:05:27,650 And so you see that progression happening. 125 00:05:28,210 --> 00:05:31,410 It was inwardly he was discontent with his pride. 126 00:05:31,730 --> 00:05:34,050 That led to rejecting other Christians around him. 127 00:05:34,210 --> 00:05:37,130 That led to getting mad at other people and then eventually 128 00:05:37,130 --> 00:05:37,970 cutting them off. 129 00:05:38,450 --> 00:05:39,610 That's what happens in verse 10. 130 00:05:39,610 --> 00:05:42,770 He was actually casting, trying to cast people out of the 131 00:05:42,770 --> 00:05:45,810 church that were being kind to other people of the Lord. 132 00:05:46,780 --> 00:05:52,420 And so he says in verse number 11, beloved Christians follow not 133 00:05:52,420 --> 00:05:53,340 that which is evil. 134 00:05:53,340 --> 00:05:54,700 He says, that way is evil. 135 00:05:54,700 --> 00:05:56,140 Don't follow that example. 136 00:05:56,300 --> 00:05:57,740 Don't go down that path. 137 00:05:58,380 --> 00:06:00,540 Pride leads to destruction. 138 00:06:01,020 --> 00:06:03,660 He says, what you should follow is that which is good. 139 00:06:03,820 --> 00:06:05,660 He that doeth good is of God. 140 00:06:05,660 --> 00:06:09,620 Meaning, when we do the things that God tells us to do, we are showing 141 00:06:09,620 --> 00:06:11,260 that we are following God. 142 00:06:11,500 --> 00:06:14,680 But on the other side of things, he that doeth evil has not 143 00:06:14,680 --> 00:06:15,400 experienced God. 144 00:06:15,400 --> 00:06:16,520 He does not see God. 145 00:06:16,840 --> 00:06:18,840 It doesn't mean that Christians will never do evil. 146 00:06:18,840 --> 00:06:22,160 What it says here is that if we're living in the truth of God 147 00:06:22,160 --> 00:06:25,320 and we're experiencing that fellowship with God, we won't act 148 00:06:25,320 --> 00:06:26,840 in the way that Diotrepes did. 149 00:06:27,080 --> 00:06:32,120 But when we focus on ourselves, when we focus on our best 150 00:06:32,360 --> 00:06:36,240 wishes and our best outcome, then, yes, there will be pride. 151 00:06:36,240 --> 00:06:37,720 Yes, there will be destruction. 152 00:06:38,770 --> 00:06:40,770 There's a few passages of Scripture that I'd like to point 153 00:06:40,770 --> 00:06:43,250 you to when it comes to that area of pride. 154 00:06:43,330 --> 00:06:45,970 And then obviously, in the contrast of the positive side and 155 00:06:45,970 --> 00:06:47,410 humility, what it should look like. 156 00:06:47,810 --> 00:06:50,370 Most of you know Proverbs, chapter 16, verse 18. 157 00:06:51,490 --> 00:06:52,570 It's a proverb. 158 00:06:52,570 --> 00:06:55,370 And obviously the proverbs are there to give us wisdom and how we 159 00:06:55,370 --> 00:06:56,610 should live our lives for God. 160 00:06:57,250 --> 00:06:59,850 And I encourage you to do a study in the book of Proverbs. 161 00:06:59,850 --> 00:07:00,530 At some point. 162 00:07:00,690 --> 00:07:02,970 Actually, what's really interesting is that in the book of 163 00:07:02,970 --> 00:07:07,540 Proverbs, there's 31 chapters, and in the longest month, there's 164 00:07:07,540 --> 00:07:08,260 31 days. 165 00:07:08,260 --> 00:07:11,460 And so I encourage some people to go through and do a proverb a 166 00:07:11,460 --> 00:07:12,060 day for a month. 167 00:07:12,060 --> 00:07:14,100 And that would be a really interesting study that you could 168 00:07:14,100 --> 00:07:14,380 do. 169 00:07:14,860 --> 00:07:21,180 But here in Proverbs 16:18, it said, Pride goeth before destruction 170 00:07:21,900 --> 00:07:23,980 and a hottie spirit before a fall. 171 00:07:24,940 --> 00:07:28,100 Now if you rewind just a little bit more in that passage, 172 00:07:28,100 --> 00:07:31,020 he says, how much better is it to get wisdom than gold? 173 00:07:31,510 --> 00:07:34,550 Verse 16, and to get understanding rather than to be chosen 174 00:07:34,550 --> 00:07:38,470 than silver the highway or the path of the upright is to depart 175 00:07:38,550 --> 00:07:39,350 from evil. 176 00:07:39,350 --> 00:07:41,750 He that keepeth his way, preserveth his soul. 177 00:07:42,150 --> 00:07:44,230 And then he speaks to what that looks like. 178 00:07:44,310 --> 00:07:47,150 Well, when you're walking that path of pride, it's going to lead 179 00:07:47,150 --> 00:07:49,670 to destruction, it's going to lead to a fall. 180 00:07:50,070 --> 00:07:54,710 But then verse 19, he says, better it is to be of a humble spirit 181 00:07:55,510 --> 00:07:58,990 with the lowly than to divide the spoil with the proud. 182 00:07:58,990 --> 00:08:01,590 He says, you don't want to walk with the prideful crowd. 183 00:08:02,070 --> 00:08:05,830 So what that is teaching us is that even if we aren't initially 184 00:08:06,230 --> 00:08:10,430 walking in pride, those that we spend time with will eventually 185 00:08:10,430 --> 00:08:11,310 rub off on us. 186 00:08:11,310 --> 00:08:14,870 And if we're around a group of people who are prideful, we eventually 187 00:08:14,870 --> 00:08:16,870 will fall into that trap of being prideful. 188 00:08:16,870 --> 00:08:19,110 And that leads to destruction, that leads to a fall. 189 00:08:19,110 --> 00:08:22,110 And he says, it's better to have a humble spirit be around those 190 00:08:22,110 --> 00:08:22,870 that are humble. 191 00:08:23,590 --> 00:08:25,990 He that handles a matter wisely shall find good. 192 00:08:25,990 --> 00:08:28,710 And whosoever trusteth in the Lord, happy is he. 193 00:08:29,590 --> 00:08:31,310 So we could go longer in that passage. 194 00:08:31,310 --> 00:08:35,750 But essentially the teaching there is the warning of a lifestyle 195 00:08:35,830 --> 00:08:36,550 of pride. 196 00:08:36,630 --> 00:08:41,030 The lifestyle of pride will always lead to a moral failure, whether 197 00:08:41,030 --> 00:08:42,470 we have good intentions or not. 198 00:08:42,470 --> 00:08:47,070 That pride will eventually say this, I'm going to put my way before 199 00:08:47,070 --> 00:08:47,750 God's way. 200 00:08:48,150 --> 00:08:51,230 Humility says, no, I'm going to give it over to the Lord. 201 00:08:51,230 --> 00:08:52,150 It's his path. 202 00:08:52,230 --> 00:08:53,830 He's better than me. 203 00:08:54,240 --> 00:08:56,120 He has given me things that I don't deserve. 204 00:08:56,120 --> 00:08:59,040 And therefore I'm going to trust in him and I'm going to walk 205 00:08:59,040 --> 00:08:59,600 his way. 206 00:09:00,080 --> 00:09:02,480 Another passage in the New Testament that speaks to this. 207 00:09:02,560 --> 00:09:05,840 We could go to many that use this principle. 208 00:09:05,840 --> 00:09:10,760 But in 1st Peter chapter 5, the Bible speaks of this understanding 209 00:09:10,760 --> 00:09:13,040 that we must submit ourselves. 210 00:09:13,040 --> 00:09:16,080 And in verse five of First Peter chapter five, he. 211 00:09:16,080 --> 00:09:18,640 He's speaking to younger people within the church. 212 00:09:19,610 --> 00:09:21,930 So he says, hey, younger people submit yourselves to the elder. 213 00:09:22,730 --> 00:09:25,450 But then he goes further and he says, yay, all of you. 214 00:09:25,610 --> 00:09:28,130 So he's, he's telling the younger people in the church to, 215 00:09:28,130 --> 00:09:29,290 to be humble. 216 00:09:29,610 --> 00:09:30,010 Why? 217 00:09:30,010 --> 00:09:32,810 Because a lot of times in youth comes pride. 218 00:09:32,970 --> 00:09:36,010 And so he says, hey, young people, respect your elders. 219 00:09:36,010 --> 00:09:36,610 Don't have pride. 220 00:09:36,610 --> 00:09:38,010 But then he says, hey, all of you. 221 00:09:38,490 --> 00:09:42,090 So, so lest we think that once we get to a certain age we have victory 222 00:09:42,090 --> 00:09:47,060 over pride, naturally he says, all of you be subject one to another. 223 00:09:47,700 --> 00:09:50,620 And then he uses this phrase that, that I love because I think 224 00:09:50,620 --> 00:09:54,340 it's so picturesque to what it looks like to be humble. 225 00:09:54,420 --> 00:09:56,500 He says, be clothed with humility. 226 00:09:57,220 --> 00:10:00,980 So it's not just a matter of, of having a humble moment, but literally 227 00:10:01,139 --> 00:10:02,460 be clothed with humility. 228 00:10:02,460 --> 00:10:04,060 Wrap humility around yourself. 229 00:10:04,060 --> 00:10:08,260 And the picture really here in the original Greek is taking the 230 00:10:08,260 --> 00:10:09,460 form of a servant. 231 00:10:10,420 --> 00:10:14,180 Back then they would have long tunics and a servant, when he was 232 00:10:14,180 --> 00:10:17,460 about to do his work, would roll his tunic up into his belt and 233 00:10:17,460 --> 00:10:19,580 tuck it in so that he could get down to work. 234 00:10:20,060 --> 00:10:22,820 That's the exact same thing that Jesus literally did when he 235 00:10:22,820 --> 00:10:24,060 washed the disciples feet. 236 00:10:24,060 --> 00:10:27,220 Back in John 13 it says Jesus took the form of a serpent. 237 00:10:27,220 --> 00:10:28,220 He humbled himself. 238 00:10:28,540 --> 00:10:31,180 And I can't help but think that Peter, when he's teaching about 239 00:10:31,180 --> 00:10:34,260 this issue of pride and humility, that he's not thinking 240 00:10:34,260 --> 00:10:37,340 about Jesus doing that and saying, hey, be clothed with humility 241 00:10:38,630 --> 00:10:39,110 for God. 242 00:10:39,110 --> 00:10:39,350 Why? 243 00:10:39,350 --> 00:10:40,950 Why does he say to be clothed with humility? 244 00:10:41,270 --> 00:10:46,150 For God resisteth the proud and giveth grace to the humble. 245 00:10:47,110 --> 00:10:50,470 If we want grace, what does it say to do humble ourselves? 246 00:10:51,670 --> 00:10:54,029 Well, we, if we're proud, what, what happens? 247 00:10:54,029 --> 00:10:55,110 God resists that. 248 00:10:55,670 --> 00:10:58,230 And there's other passages in the book of James that speak to the 249 00:10:58,230 --> 00:10:58,950 same principle. 250 00:10:59,430 --> 00:11:02,350 And you can see that over and over again as a theme that when we 251 00:11:02,350 --> 00:11:05,620 are harboring pride like Diotrephies did, we're never going 252 00:11:05,620 --> 00:11:07,380 to be able to be completely used by God. 253 00:11:07,380 --> 00:11:12,020 Sometimes our pride makes us appear to be more spiritual because. 254 00:11:12,020 --> 00:11:14,700 Because why do we want people to think that we're spiritual? 255 00:11:14,700 --> 00:11:17,860 So that people will think that we're something, that we're good. 256 00:11:18,180 --> 00:11:21,540 And a lot of times what happens is, is that we try to formulate 257 00:11:21,540 --> 00:11:25,540 an environment around us that causes people to think that we're 258 00:11:25,540 --> 00:11:28,820 spiritual on the outside, but in the inside, what did Jesus say 259 00:11:28,820 --> 00:11:29,660 about the Pharisees? 260 00:11:29,660 --> 00:11:32,720 He says, you're like whited sepulchers on the outside looking 261 00:11:32,720 --> 00:11:34,960 beautiful, but on the inside you're rotting flesh. 262 00:11:35,600 --> 00:11:38,760 And oftentimes that's how we are as Christians is we think, hey, 263 00:11:38,760 --> 00:11:42,080 as long as everybody thinks I'm spiritual, I'm okay. 264 00:11:42,640 --> 00:11:45,240 But the only person that actually matters is the one who can 265 00:11:45,240 --> 00:11:45,920 see the heart. 266 00:11:47,360 --> 00:11:50,400 I really shouldn't be as concerned about those around me as 267 00:11:50,400 --> 00:11:52,400 I am concerned about how God sees me. 268 00:11:52,960 --> 00:11:56,080 Because at the end of the day, the, the fear of man. 269 00:11:57,240 --> 00:11:58,680 What does the Bible say in the book of Proverbs? 270 00:11:58,680 --> 00:12:01,240 The fear of man is a snare, it's a trap. 271 00:12:02,040 --> 00:12:06,000 Because if I, if I'm living my life to fear people more than I'm 272 00:12:06,000 --> 00:12:06,560 fearing God. 273 00:12:06,560 --> 00:12:08,440 And by the way, when I'm talking about fear, I'm talking about 274 00:12:08,440 --> 00:12:09,880 that awe and respect. 275 00:12:10,040 --> 00:12:13,640 Not fear of judgment, but fear of, hey, I want to make sure I'm 276 00:12:13,640 --> 00:12:14,920 making that person appeased. 277 00:12:14,920 --> 00:12:18,680 If I try to appease a person more than I'm trying to appease God, 278 00:12:18,840 --> 00:12:19,360 guess what? 279 00:12:19,360 --> 00:12:21,640 It's always going to turn back to my ego, my pride. 280 00:12:21,640 --> 00:12:24,680 And that's what he's warning against here with the attributes. 281 00:12:25,240 --> 00:12:28,920 He says, don't fall into that trap of pride, because it is a trap, 282 00:12:28,920 --> 00:12:31,000 because eventually it's going to become fear of man. 283 00:12:32,280 --> 00:12:35,360 You know, a lot of times for me in my own life, I can speak by 284 00:12:35,360 --> 00:12:40,000 way of example when I'm wanting people to think a certain 285 00:12:40,000 --> 00:12:43,240 way, I'm trying to think about what they want me to do, what would 286 00:12:43,240 --> 00:12:44,400 so and so want me to do. 287 00:12:44,400 --> 00:12:46,720 Okay, now I'm going to try to fit their mold. 288 00:12:46,720 --> 00:12:48,920 And that's, that's a never ending struggle. 289 00:12:48,920 --> 00:12:49,720 Because guess what? 290 00:12:50,070 --> 00:12:53,270 If I have, even If I have 10 people in front of me and I have 291 00:12:53,270 --> 00:12:55,550 this person over here and I try to do everything that I think 292 00:12:55,550 --> 00:12:58,670 that person wants me to do, that's probably going to conflict 293 00:12:58,670 --> 00:12:59,750 with these other nine people. 294 00:12:59,990 --> 00:13:02,670 And then I turn around and go, I need to go help person number four. 295 00:13:02,670 --> 00:13:05,030 And I want to be who I should be for them. 296 00:13:05,030 --> 00:13:07,670 And then all of a sudden, number one is upset with us again. 297 00:13:08,390 --> 00:13:10,350 And that ultimately is a, is a trap. 298 00:13:10,350 --> 00:13:14,310 Now, I'm not saying we should neglect people around us, but we 299 00:13:14,310 --> 00:13:16,790 must think about the Lord first as pleasing him. 300 00:13:17,110 --> 00:13:19,430 If I'm pleasing Him, I'm going to be okay with everybody else. 301 00:13:20,070 --> 00:13:22,390 And the reality is, is that we're not going to please everybody. 302 00:13:22,470 --> 00:13:26,710 I remember as a pastor, one of my prayers that I had as a young 303 00:13:26,710 --> 00:13:31,630 pastor and you know, as, as I got into the ministry longer, I realized 304 00:13:31,630 --> 00:13:34,030 that this is an impossible thing to ask is I was like, lord, 305 00:13:34,030 --> 00:13:35,390 help everyone to be happy with me. 306 00:13:35,390 --> 00:13:37,670 I want everyone to approve Me, I want everyone. 307 00:13:37,750 --> 00:13:40,430 And then I stopped that prayer because I realized that's a prayer 308 00:13:40,430 --> 00:13:41,510 that's not God's will. 309 00:13:41,750 --> 00:13:44,270 Because sometimes when you're following God's will, there will 310 00:13:44,270 --> 00:13:45,910 be people that will not approve of you. 311 00:13:46,470 --> 00:13:47,670 It's just the reality of it. 312 00:13:47,670 --> 00:13:52,070 And so I say, lord, let me please you and let everything else 313 00:13:52,630 --> 00:13:53,510 come as it will. 314 00:13:53,910 --> 00:13:54,870 And that's what he's saying here. 315 00:13:54,870 --> 00:13:58,950 He's saying Diotrephy fell into that trap and we don't know 316 00:13:58,950 --> 00:14:01,630 what Diotrephy's reasoning behind it, but we ultimately see 317 00:14:01,630 --> 00:14:04,830 that it was a prideful failure that he had. 318 00:14:04,830 --> 00:14:08,350 So nevertheless we see what the Bible says there in First Peter. 319 00:14:08,350 --> 00:14:09,750 He says, be clothed with humility. 320 00:14:11,190 --> 00:14:13,630 God gives grace to, to those that are humble. 321 00:14:13,630 --> 00:14:15,710 God resists the, the prideful. 322 00:14:15,950 --> 00:14:18,350 So we go back to third John. 323 00:14:19,550 --> 00:14:22,830 We, we see a new fellow that comes onto the scene here. 324 00:14:22,990 --> 00:14:24,350 His name is Demetrius. 325 00:14:24,590 --> 00:14:27,710 There's not much to be said about Demetrius other than that he's 326 00:14:27,710 --> 00:14:28,510 a good example. 327 00:14:29,150 --> 00:14:33,230 Demetrius, as it says here in verse 12, Demetrius hath good report 328 00:14:33,710 --> 00:14:36,190 of all men and of the truth itself. 329 00:14:36,190 --> 00:14:39,510 And so we see that Demetrius has a good testimony from everyone 330 00:14:39,510 --> 00:14:40,990 that he comes across in his life. 331 00:14:41,520 --> 00:14:42,960 And so John recommends. 332 00:14:44,480 --> 00:14:48,760 Him as a good example and he says, hey look, we don't know a lot 333 00:14:48,760 --> 00:14:49,760 about Demetrius here. 334 00:14:49,760 --> 00:14:51,280 All we know is that he's of good report. 335 00:14:51,440 --> 00:14:54,360 And it says the reason why he's of good report is because he's 336 00:14:54,360 --> 00:14:55,560 walking in the truth itself. 337 00:14:55,560 --> 00:14:59,120 So basically the truth reveals that Demetrius is a good man. 338 00:14:59,520 --> 00:15:02,000 Demetrius doesn't have to come tell us that he's a good man. 339 00:15:02,720 --> 00:15:05,840 You know, like so for example, if someone's going around the church 340 00:15:06,080 --> 00:15:09,320 telling everybody, hey, I'm the, I'm the most humble person at 341 00:15:09,320 --> 00:15:13,460 the church, okay, that's in and of itself a disclaimer for the 342 00:15:13,460 --> 00:15:16,180 fact that he is not the most humble person at the church. 343 00:15:16,420 --> 00:15:19,380 And so it's not Demetrius coming and saying, hey, I'm a good 344 00:15:19,380 --> 00:15:19,660 man. 345 00:15:19,660 --> 00:15:20,900 Trust me, I'm a good man. 346 00:15:21,060 --> 00:15:24,140 It's the truth itself is revealing that Demetrius is a good 347 00:15:24,140 --> 00:15:24,420 man. 348 00:15:24,420 --> 00:15:25,740 And that's what we have to do as Christians. 349 00:15:25,740 --> 00:15:29,460 We have to allow the truth to be seen in our life. 350 00:15:29,780 --> 00:15:30,220 So that. 351 00:15:30,220 --> 00:15:31,060 What's the test? 352 00:15:31,140 --> 00:15:33,140 The test is not my opinion of myself. 353 00:15:33,460 --> 00:15:38,310 Because everybody to some degree has a probably, unless you're 354 00:15:38,310 --> 00:15:39,590 just a self deprecating person. 355 00:15:39,750 --> 00:15:42,550 Most of us have a better view of ourself than maybe even the truth 356 00:15:42,550 --> 00:15:42,870 is. 357 00:15:43,110 --> 00:15:46,350 You know, a lot of times I always know my intention, but sometimes 358 00:15:46,350 --> 00:15:48,430 I'm come across to someone really wrong. 359 00:15:48,430 --> 00:15:50,710 And I didn't mean for it to be that way, but that's just the reality 360 00:15:50,710 --> 00:15:51,750 I came across wrong. 361 00:15:52,390 --> 00:15:55,510 So Demetrius here is not petitioning for himself. 362 00:15:56,230 --> 00:15:58,750 What it, what it really essentially says here is that it's 363 00:15:58,750 --> 00:16:01,470 the truth that reveals his faithfulness to God. 364 00:16:01,470 --> 00:16:05,330 So Demetrius was so faithful to the truth that even as it says 365 00:16:05,330 --> 00:16:07,210 here, the truth was a witness on his behalf. 366 00:16:07,210 --> 00:16:08,410 So the test is this. 367 00:16:08,410 --> 00:16:09,890 Does he follow the word of God? 368 00:16:10,690 --> 00:16:15,450 Does his life reflect the love that God has shown him? 369 00:16:15,450 --> 00:16:17,730 And that's really what our testimony should be. 370 00:16:18,130 --> 00:16:20,530 Now, I know that sometimes we get up and give testimonies. 371 00:16:20,530 --> 00:16:20,970 That's. 372 00:16:20,970 --> 00:16:22,610 That's not what we're talking about here. 373 00:16:22,610 --> 00:16:24,290 We're talking about our reputation. 374 00:16:24,770 --> 00:16:27,090 When we're not talking about giving a testimony of God working 375 00:16:27,090 --> 00:16:27,650 in our life. 376 00:16:27,650 --> 00:16:29,330 That's something completely appropriate. 377 00:16:29,650 --> 00:16:31,610 The Bible says, let the redeemed of the Lord say so. 378 00:16:31,610 --> 00:16:34,170 We should proclaim the goodness of God in our life, not 379 00:16:34,170 --> 00:16:36,690 in a prideful way, but in a way that gives glory to God. 380 00:16:36,690 --> 00:16:41,290 By the way of our testimonies are glorifying ourselves more than 381 00:16:41,290 --> 00:16:41,610 God. 382 00:16:41,610 --> 00:16:43,050 It's not a testimony for God. 383 00:16:43,050 --> 00:16:44,210 It's a testimony for me. 384 00:16:44,610 --> 00:16:45,649 Look how good I am. 385 00:16:45,649 --> 00:16:46,770 Look how much I have done. 386 00:16:47,010 --> 00:16:47,890 It should be. 387 00:16:47,890 --> 00:16:50,290 Look what God has been able to do in my life. 388 00:16:50,290 --> 00:16:51,890 Look what God has done in my life. 389 00:16:51,970 --> 00:16:54,330 Look what he's continuing to do in my life. 390 00:16:54,330 --> 00:16:56,290 God should be the one who is the. 391 00:16:56,820 --> 00:16:59,820 Is the source and the sustainer of all the good things 392 00:16:59,820 --> 00:17:01,020 that we have in our life. 393 00:17:01,020 --> 00:17:04,420 And so that's what he's saying here is he says, Demetrius, his testimony, 394 00:17:04,580 --> 00:17:08,820 his reputation is that he's in the truth, that he walks in the truth. 395 00:17:09,380 --> 00:17:10,940 And so that's a good thing. 396 00:17:10,940 --> 00:17:14,740 And that's something that we all should strive for our but again, 397 00:17:14,740 --> 00:17:18,220 not for praise, but so that God could be glorified. 398 00:17:18,220 --> 00:17:22,709 And most of you know a verse that I quote quite frequently, Matthew 399 00:17:22,709 --> 00:17:23,309 5:16. 400 00:17:23,629 --> 00:17:27,309 Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works 401 00:17:27,469 --> 00:17:29,789 and glorify your Father, which is in heaven. 402 00:17:30,029 --> 00:17:33,869 Meaning I do these things that are accordance to the word of God, 403 00:17:34,269 --> 00:17:37,709 not so that people will recognize me and not so people will 404 00:17:37,709 --> 00:17:40,789 praise me, but so that people will see the goodness of God in my 405 00:17:40,789 --> 00:17:42,269 life and glorify Him. 406 00:17:42,749 --> 00:17:44,509 Our life should always reflect him. 407 00:17:45,389 --> 00:17:50,240 And so the more the church, the more the individual reflects 408 00:17:50,240 --> 00:17:53,080 the Lord, the more we're following the will of God in our 409 00:17:53,080 --> 00:17:53,280 lives. 410 00:17:53,280 --> 00:17:57,560 Instead of if church is all about an individual or a celebrity 411 00:17:58,040 --> 00:18:00,840 or a movement or whatever it is. 412 00:18:01,400 --> 00:18:04,200 That's where we, that's where pride starts. 413 00:18:04,840 --> 00:18:07,960 And unfortunately we see that a lot with our society today. 414 00:18:08,840 --> 00:18:12,440 The, the cult of personality, so to speak, where there's an individual 415 00:18:12,520 --> 00:18:16,350 or a group of people that are likable, that do have a lot of talents 416 00:18:16,350 --> 00:18:20,510 from God, but the focus becomes a person instead of the Lord. 417 00:18:20,830 --> 00:18:24,270 And it starts with maybe good intentions, but it ultimately becomes 418 00:18:24,270 --> 00:18:29,870 a show and an exaltation of an individual, a human that is not needing 419 00:18:29,870 --> 00:18:30,990 that type of worship. 420 00:18:31,230 --> 00:18:33,230 And again, that's what First Peter says. 421 00:18:33,230 --> 00:18:37,590 First Peter says that he will exalt you, let God exalt you, don't 422 00:18:37,590 --> 00:18:41,760 exalt yourself, don't allow others to exalt you, let the Lord 423 00:18:41,760 --> 00:18:42,240 exalt you. 424 00:18:42,240 --> 00:18:43,720 And that's what the Bible says will happen. 425 00:18:44,120 --> 00:18:47,120 If not on this side of heaven, eventually we will be exalted with 426 00:18:47,120 --> 00:18:47,280 him. 427 00:18:47,280 --> 00:18:48,360 And that's exciting. 428 00:18:48,600 --> 00:18:50,040 That's something that we should look forward to. 429 00:18:50,040 --> 00:18:52,760 So that's ultimately a good example is Demetrius. 430 00:18:52,760 --> 00:18:55,160 Demetrius was faithful to the truth. 431 00:18:55,160 --> 00:18:57,240 And that's how, that's what our testimony should be. 432 00:18:58,840 --> 00:19:01,080 You know, a lot of times we think about our testimonies in the 433 00:19:01,080 --> 00:19:05,200 way of gifting, like, well, he is so gifted here or she is so gifted 434 00:19:05,200 --> 00:19:05,360 there. 435 00:19:05,360 --> 00:19:08,350 And that's good to notice. 436 00:19:08,670 --> 00:19:12,510 I believe all of us as Christians should identify the gifts 437 00:19:12,510 --> 00:19:14,590 that God has given us, specifically the spiritual gifts 438 00:19:14,590 --> 00:19:15,470 that God has given us. 439 00:19:16,190 --> 00:19:20,190 And if, and by the way, side note, if that is not a study that 440 00:19:20,190 --> 00:19:22,790 you have gone through and identified the areas that God has 441 00:19:22,790 --> 00:19:25,670 gifted you specifically with the spiritual gifts, I would encourage 442 00:19:25,670 --> 00:19:28,750 you to do so because that should be the goal of all Christians, 443 00:19:28,990 --> 00:19:32,670 is to find or identify the gift that God has given you and use 444 00:19:32,670 --> 00:19:34,330 that within in the church. 445 00:19:34,330 --> 00:19:36,530 That's, that's really what our purpose is to do. 446 00:19:37,410 --> 00:19:39,530 And so I know, I've heard some people say, well, I'm not gifted 447 00:19:39,530 --> 00:19:40,050 in anything. 448 00:19:40,050 --> 00:19:41,170 Well, that's not true. 449 00:19:41,170 --> 00:19:45,250 The Bible says that every single believer is given a spiritual 450 00:19:45,250 --> 00:19:45,650 gift. 451 00:19:45,890 --> 00:19:48,570 Now it doesn't mean that every single person has the exact same 452 00:19:48,570 --> 00:19:50,290 spiritual gift at the same level. 453 00:19:51,010 --> 00:19:53,410 And a lot of times I'll hear people say, well, my spiritual gift 454 00:19:53,410 --> 00:19:54,770 is, you know, cooking. 455 00:19:54,930 --> 00:19:59,570 Well, again, you can use cooking for one, so he gives us talents. 456 00:20:00,010 --> 00:20:01,850 But someone can be an atheist and be a good cook. 457 00:20:02,170 --> 00:20:03,530 You understand what I mean by that? 458 00:20:03,770 --> 00:20:08,010 So, so, so there's a difference between a God given talent 459 00:20:08,810 --> 00:20:10,170 and a spiritual gift. 460 00:20:10,570 --> 00:20:14,770 God gives talents to many people and then he gives us a spiritual 461 00:20:14,770 --> 00:20:16,490 gift to use our talents in. 462 00:20:17,050 --> 00:20:18,690 And so I would encourage you to think about that. 463 00:20:18,690 --> 00:20:20,410 But what I, what I'm saying here is this. 464 00:20:20,650 --> 00:20:23,770 When people are hearing our testimony, we really don't want them 465 00:20:24,010 --> 00:20:24,570 personally. 466 00:20:24,570 --> 00:20:28,410 We, we shouldn't say, well, that person's such a talented person. 467 00:20:29,050 --> 00:20:31,650 Really, what our goal should be is that people should say, that 468 00:20:31,650 --> 00:20:33,330 person is sticking to the truth of God. 469 00:20:33,330 --> 00:20:34,170 They're faithful. 470 00:20:34,810 --> 00:20:37,050 He or she is faithful to the truth of God. 471 00:20:37,370 --> 00:20:40,410 And by the way, that's what the Bible says is a mark of a true 472 00:20:40,410 --> 00:20:44,770 steward, is that we be found faithful because our talents can 473 00:20:44,770 --> 00:20:45,370 come and go. 474 00:20:45,770 --> 00:20:49,770 I mean, the truth is, is that we could be physically talented in 475 00:20:49,770 --> 00:20:53,210 an area or mentally talented in an area, but that can be taken 476 00:20:53,210 --> 00:20:54,610 away from us very quickly. 477 00:20:54,930 --> 00:20:58,090 But the beauty is, is that God will never take away our spiritual 478 00:20:58,090 --> 00:20:58,610 blessings. 479 00:20:58,930 --> 00:21:00,210 And so just take note of that. 480 00:21:00,210 --> 00:21:01,890 Just take note of, like, if someone. 481 00:21:02,050 --> 00:21:05,850 I thought about this a lot, and again, not in a prideful way, 482 00:21:05,850 --> 00:21:09,010 but in a way of checking myself if someone was to talk about 483 00:21:09,010 --> 00:21:12,890 me, maybe even, you know, I have the privilege and sometimes 484 00:21:12,890 --> 00:21:15,010 the difficulty of officiating funerals. 485 00:21:15,730 --> 00:21:19,730 And I'm always interested to hear what the family and friends 486 00:21:20,370 --> 00:21:22,570 say about an individual, because that's like, that's summing 487 00:21:22,570 --> 00:21:23,010 up everything. 488 00:21:23,490 --> 00:21:27,250 And I often think, you know, what would people say at my funeral? 489 00:21:28,690 --> 00:21:30,610 Well, he, you know, he liked this sports team. 490 00:21:30,610 --> 00:21:33,290 I mean, I'm not saying that's bad, but if that's what my whole 491 00:21:33,290 --> 00:21:37,290 life is summed up by, maybe I, I didn't do what I needed to do for 492 00:21:37,290 --> 00:21:38,290 the cause of the gospel. 493 00:21:39,090 --> 00:21:41,250 And so I, I think about that a lot. 494 00:21:41,250 --> 00:21:43,530 And, and I think that all of us should, as Christians, think about 495 00:21:43,530 --> 00:21:48,210 the bigger picture of what, how we're being perceived in the 496 00:21:48,530 --> 00:21:49,490 world around us. 497 00:21:50,610 --> 00:21:51,570 And every. 498 00:21:51,810 --> 00:21:53,890 The people that are closest to us know our flaws. 499 00:21:54,850 --> 00:21:55,930 That's the reality of things. 500 00:21:55,930 --> 00:21:56,850 We're all flawed. 501 00:21:57,170 --> 00:21:58,410 And that's not what that's saying here. 502 00:21:58,410 --> 00:21:59,570 It doesn't say that he's perfect. 503 00:21:59,570 --> 00:22:00,570 It just says that he's. 504 00:22:00,570 --> 00:22:01,890 He's faithful to the truth. 505 00:22:02,610 --> 00:22:03,650 So we move forward here. 506 00:22:04,130 --> 00:22:07,410 In the conclusion, John explains what this is all about. 507 00:22:07,410 --> 00:22:09,210 He said, I had many things to write. 508 00:22:09,210 --> 00:22:11,010 So he says, I have a lot to talk to you about. 509 00:22:11,820 --> 00:22:13,780 And every, every good preacher understands that. 510 00:22:13,780 --> 00:22:18,580 It's like, I've got a lot to say, but I will not with ink and 511 00:22:18,580 --> 00:22:20,220 pen write unto thee. 512 00:22:20,780 --> 00:22:23,740 So he basically says, I. I have a lot to tell you, but I don't 513 00:22:23,740 --> 00:22:24,460 want to spend. 514 00:22:24,700 --> 00:22:25,660 I don't want to do it over. 515 00:22:25,660 --> 00:22:27,100 Over writing. 516 00:22:27,340 --> 00:22:29,860 It's kind of like Today, like, if I have a real big thing, I need 517 00:22:29,860 --> 00:22:30,500 to tell somebody. 518 00:22:30,500 --> 00:22:33,220 I don't want to do that over a text message or an email, rather 519 00:22:33,220 --> 00:22:33,620 just meet. 520 00:22:33,620 --> 00:22:35,420 What he's saying is, I want to meet you face to face. 521 00:22:36,220 --> 00:22:39,220 And so, so we can sometimes sympathize with John's preference 522 00:22:39,220 --> 00:22:42,230 for a personal face to face face conversation. 523 00:22:42,550 --> 00:22:43,910 Instead of writing the letter. 524 00:22:44,550 --> 00:22:46,950 We're thankful that he wrote down the words that he wrote down, 525 00:22:46,950 --> 00:22:50,110 but certainly we know that there's an importance to face to 526 00:22:50,110 --> 00:22:54,430 face communication with other believers, and I encourage you to 527 00:22:54,430 --> 00:22:55,110 think about that. 528 00:22:55,270 --> 00:22:58,230 We live in a world today that has. 529 00:23:00,310 --> 00:23:04,550 Given us a lot of connection pieces with communication on devices 530 00:23:04,710 --> 00:23:06,600 and Internet, which is good. 531 00:23:06,600 --> 00:23:08,000 I think we should utilize those things. 532 00:23:08,000 --> 00:23:10,640 But at the end of the day, that is never a replacement for face 533 00:23:10,640 --> 00:23:12,240 to face communication. 534 00:23:13,280 --> 00:23:16,560 The Bible says that that is vital for the Christian to follow 535 00:23:16,560 --> 00:23:17,520 and to live in. 536 00:23:18,400 --> 00:23:22,800 And I think that if we were all honest with ourselves, unless 537 00:23:22,800 --> 00:23:27,120 there is a physical, medical reason why we can't be together, 538 00:23:27,120 --> 00:23:29,520 I think that we all understand the importance of getting together. 539 00:23:30,480 --> 00:23:34,020 And we, I think we saw that even a lot with, with COVID Right. 540 00:23:34,020 --> 00:23:36,220 I'm just going to be honest and frank about that. 541 00:23:36,220 --> 00:23:39,500 There's a lot of, there was a lot of conversation about, well, 542 00:23:39,580 --> 00:23:40,300 even coming. 543 00:23:40,300 --> 00:23:41,820 I heard people even questioning. 544 00:23:42,060 --> 00:23:43,740 Is even coming together really? 545 00:23:43,980 --> 00:23:45,420 Like, is that really necessary? 546 00:23:45,820 --> 00:23:50,300 Like, can't you be with God wherever you are, at your home, out. 547 00:23:50,620 --> 00:23:52,820 Of course God's with us no matter where we go. 548 00:23:52,820 --> 00:23:54,380 All right, that's, that's the reality of things. 549 00:23:54,460 --> 00:23:56,940 But coming to church is not about finding God. 550 00:23:57,420 --> 00:24:01,350 You can find God in, in your house and out in the wilderness, 551 00:24:01,350 --> 00:24:02,030 wherever it is. 552 00:24:02,110 --> 00:24:05,070 But coming to church is more than just worshiping. 553 00:24:05,230 --> 00:24:06,430 It's fellowshipping. 554 00:24:06,430 --> 00:24:07,950 That's the, that's the reality of it. 555 00:24:07,950 --> 00:24:10,190 Christians need to be around other Christians. 556 00:24:10,670 --> 00:24:15,510 And if a Christian is isolated on an island, there is not full potential 557 00:24:15,510 --> 00:24:16,590 that can be reached. 558 00:24:17,070 --> 00:24:18,630 You, you must be around other Christians. 559 00:24:18,630 --> 00:24:19,390 And so that's what he says. 560 00:24:19,390 --> 00:24:21,310 I want to talk to you in person. 561 00:24:21,870 --> 00:24:23,230 I want to be with you in person. 562 00:24:24,110 --> 00:24:27,420 And I know that sometimes we're limited. 563 00:24:27,500 --> 00:24:32,420 I know that sometimes we can't be in person, but the desire should 564 00:24:32,420 --> 00:24:35,020 at least be to that I want to be with other Christians. 565 00:24:35,820 --> 00:24:36,740 So he goes on further. 566 00:24:36,740 --> 00:24:41,140 He says, verse 14, but I trust I shall shortly see thee and we shall 567 00:24:41,140 --> 00:24:42,060 speak face to face. 568 00:24:42,300 --> 00:24:42,620 Again. 569 00:24:42,620 --> 00:24:43,580 We see his heart here. 570 00:24:43,580 --> 00:24:46,140 He wants to be with Gaius here. 571 00:24:46,220 --> 00:24:50,140 John the Apostle, he says, peace be to thee. 572 00:24:50,710 --> 00:24:52,590 Now sometimes we can just skim over that phrase. 573 00:24:52,590 --> 00:24:53,390 Peace be unto thee. 574 00:24:53,390 --> 00:24:57,270 John Paul starts most of his letters with peace, grace and peace. 575 00:24:58,310 --> 00:24:59,630 And sometimes we can skip over that. 576 00:24:59,630 --> 00:25:03,150 But again, remember that John is writing to individuals who are 577 00:25:03,150 --> 00:25:07,830 dealing with conflict, who are dealing with, in some cases, contention. 578 00:25:08,470 --> 00:25:12,910 And so John's prayer for the church, this church is for peace. 579 00:25:12,910 --> 00:25:16,150 And that's really God's prayer for everybody, is for peace. 580 00:25:17,800 --> 00:25:18,000 And. 581 00:25:18,000 --> 00:25:20,920 And I know that that kind of seems like. 582 00:25:20,920 --> 00:25:24,800 Of course, but a lot of times we're not pursuing peace within the 583 00:25:24,800 --> 00:25:25,240 church. 584 00:25:26,120 --> 00:25:28,600 We're kind of just hoping that it happens naturally. 585 00:25:29,320 --> 00:25:32,759 And the only way that we can have peace in our midst is through 586 00:25:32,759 --> 00:25:38,360 walking in line, step with, step with other Christians in Jesus 587 00:25:38,360 --> 00:25:38,680 Christ. 588 00:25:39,000 --> 00:25:41,400 Remember, at Christmas, we're getting into the Christmas season. 589 00:25:41,480 --> 00:25:42,760 He's the prince of peace. 590 00:25:44,190 --> 00:25:45,910 He's coming to be the prince of peace. 591 00:25:45,910 --> 00:25:49,510 And so therefore, we can't walk in step with one another outside 592 00:25:49,510 --> 00:25:52,150 of Jesus Christ because eventually we're going to have a 593 00:25:52,150 --> 00:25:52,670 conflict. 594 00:25:53,470 --> 00:25:55,590 And no one wants to talk about conflict. 595 00:25:55,590 --> 00:25:58,630 Some people enjoy conflict, but the average person doesn't look 596 00:25:58,630 --> 00:26:01,110 for conflict or expect conflict. 597 00:26:01,110 --> 00:26:03,470 But the reality is that there always will be conflict. 598 00:26:04,030 --> 00:26:05,110 And so how do we do that? 599 00:26:05,110 --> 00:26:07,390 Well, we walk in peace in Jesus Christ. 600 00:26:08,110 --> 00:26:11,390 We walk with the common bond of knowing that we're serving him, 601 00:26:11,720 --> 00:26:15,680 knowing that we are walking in the same salvation, knowing that 602 00:26:15,680 --> 00:26:16,840 we are on the same team. 603 00:26:17,720 --> 00:26:22,400 I think that's one of the things that, you know, we struggle 604 00:26:22,400 --> 00:26:23,480 with within the church. 605 00:26:24,120 --> 00:26:29,280 Instead of fighting the enemy that's outside that is really wanting 606 00:26:29,280 --> 00:26:32,240 our demise, we fight with people that we should be on the same 607 00:26:32,240 --> 00:26:32,520 team. 608 00:26:32,760 --> 00:26:34,240 I'll give you guys an analogy of this. 609 00:26:34,240 --> 00:26:35,480 We were playing a football team. 610 00:26:36,840 --> 00:26:39,460 I played football in high school, and we were playing this 611 00:26:39,460 --> 00:26:40,300 really, really good team. 612 00:26:40,460 --> 00:26:42,140 And they were really. 613 00:26:42,140 --> 00:26:42,820 They were dirty. 614 00:26:42,820 --> 00:26:43,220 They were. 615 00:26:43,220 --> 00:26:43,420 They. 616 00:26:43,420 --> 00:26:45,260 When they would tackle you every time they would get you on 617 00:26:45,260 --> 00:26:45,540 the ground. 618 00:26:45,540 --> 00:26:47,180 Some of you don't know what I'm talking about. 619 00:26:47,180 --> 00:26:47,820 Some of you do. 620 00:26:47,820 --> 00:26:49,620 But every time they would get you on the ground, they would try 621 00:26:49,620 --> 00:26:52,580 to, like, twist you or punch you where the refs couldn't see you. 622 00:26:52,580 --> 00:26:53,420 And it was really bad. 623 00:26:53,579 --> 00:26:56,700 So we're out there playing, and there was a guy in our team. 624 00:26:57,100 --> 00:26:57,940 He says, you know what? 625 00:26:57,940 --> 00:26:59,900 I'm tired of them doing that to us. 626 00:26:59,900 --> 00:27:00,700 He says, and I. 627 00:27:00,700 --> 00:27:03,420 We were at a Christian school, but, you know, not everyone was walking 628 00:27:03,420 --> 00:27:04,140 with Christ at that time. 629 00:27:04,140 --> 00:27:05,460 He says, I'm giving it back to them. 630 00:27:05,460 --> 00:27:08,380 He told me that on defense, and he said, I'm giving it back to 631 00:27:08,380 --> 00:27:11,060 him next time I get in the pile here I'm going to give him. 632 00:27:11,060 --> 00:27:13,020 I'm going to give him something, I said or whatever. 633 00:27:13,260 --> 00:27:15,820 And so we, you know, we jumped on the pile, and we're all in the 634 00:27:15,820 --> 00:27:19,980 pile, and I hear one of our guys yelling, ow, Ow. 635 00:27:19,980 --> 00:27:21,820 And I'm like, oh, man, the other team's at it again. 636 00:27:22,460 --> 00:27:23,060 And no one. 637 00:27:23,060 --> 00:27:24,300 No one talked at the end of the game. 638 00:27:24,300 --> 00:27:27,700 And the guy that was really complaining, he hurt his ankle, and 639 00:27:27,700 --> 00:27:29,900 he was talking to me, he's like, man, they were twisting my 640 00:27:29,900 --> 00:27:30,180 ankle. 641 00:27:30,180 --> 00:27:31,340 They were twisting my ankle. 642 00:27:31,340 --> 00:27:33,620 And the other guy that talked to me, he came up to me and said, 643 00:27:33,620 --> 00:27:34,620 yeah, that was actually me. 644 00:27:34,960 --> 00:27:35,360 He was. 645 00:27:35,360 --> 00:27:37,320 He was thinking that he was trying to hurt the other team, and 646 00:27:37,320 --> 00:27:38,280 he was hurting his own team. 647 00:27:38,280 --> 00:27:39,400 And I'm like, that's silly. 648 00:27:39,400 --> 00:27:40,080 That's crazy. 649 00:27:40,160 --> 00:27:41,360 And that's sometimes what we do. 650 00:27:41,360 --> 00:27:41,560 We. 651 00:27:41,560 --> 00:27:41,760 We. 652 00:27:41,760 --> 00:27:44,960 We think that we're fighting evil around us, but we're actually 653 00:27:44,960 --> 00:27:47,600 fighting our own people that are on our side. 654 00:27:48,080 --> 00:27:50,440 Now, they might be against us, and. 655 00:27:50,440 --> 00:27:54,240 But again, First Corinthians 13 tells us, if we love our brother, 656 00:27:54,240 --> 00:27:55,680 we don't assume evil in them. 657 00:27:55,680 --> 00:27:59,760 They might be trying to be evil against us, but our first reaction 658 00:27:59,760 --> 00:28:03,160 should not be combative against other Christians, whether 659 00:28:03,160 --> 00:28:04,280 they're combative or not. 660 00:28:04,680 --> 00:28:06,000 And so that's what we can see here. 661 00:28:06,000 --> 00:28:08,120 He says, peace, Peace be unto thee. 662 00:28:08,840 --> 00:28:11,240 And he's not just saying that because sometimes we have Christian 663 00:28:11,320 --> 00:28:11,880 cliches. 664 00:28:12,440 --> 00:28:14,040 God bless you, Peace be to you. 665 00:28:14,600 --> 00:28:17,840 But that's really a prayer that he's asking the Lord to have 666 00:28:17,840 --> 00:28:19,480 peace in the midst of the church. 667 00:28:19,480 --> 00:28:20,920 And I think that should be our prayer today. 668 00:28:20,920 --> 00:28:26,000 I mean, obviously we can see examples of a lack of peace in our 669 00:28:26,000 --> 00:28:28,360 world, and we should actually expect that. 670 00:28:28,360 --> 00:28:30,880 We should expect the world who is unsaved to. 671 00:28:31,030 --> 00:28:34,950 To live in a state of destruction, to live in a state of 672 00:28:34,950 --> 00:28:35,550 contention. 673 00:28:35,550 --> 00:28:37,430 But we within the church have to be different. 674 00:28:37,830 --> 00:28:41,030 If, if the church looks exactly like every other organization 675 00:28:41,030 --> 00:28:44,710 outside of the church, we're not accomplishing the task that God 676 00:28:44,710 --> 00:28:46,070 has called us to accomplish. 677 00:28:46,550 --> 00:28:47,830 We're supposed to be different. 678 00:28:48,310 --> 00:28:49,990 We are the pillar and ground of truth. 679 00:28:49,990 --> 00:28:54,710 And so we want people, okay, this, this should be the case that 680 00:28:54,710 --> 00:28:58,710 people should see the inner workings of a church, meet the people 681 00:28:58,710 --> 00:29:01,470 that are Christians and say there's something different about 682 00:29:01,470 --> 00:29:03,230 the way that they respond to one another. 683 00:29:03,710 --> 00:29:05,190 Doesn't mean that they're supernatural. 684 00:29:05,190 --> 00:29:07,470 It doesn't mean that they're perfect people. 685 00:29:07,470 --> 00:29:10,390 It doesn't mean that they're going to be right in every single 686 00:29:10,390 --> 00:29:11,470 decision that they make. 687 00:29:11,470 --> 00:29:13,230 But at the end of the day, there should be peace. 688 00:29:13,550 --> 00:29:15,710 And so he says, our friends salute thee. 689 00:29:16,270 --> 00:29:19,790 And so as Christians, we can have a sense of peace even in difficult 690 00:29:19,790 --> 00:29:20,110 times. 691 00:29:20,990 --> 00:29:24,430 And we can call people friends that are separated from us, from, 692 00:29:24,670 --> 00:29:27,550 in this case, they're separated by, by a distance, miles. 693 00:29:28,590 --> 00:29:31,390 But in general, people that are different than us by distance 694 00:29:31,390 --> 00:29:35,110 are people different than us by looks, Are people different than 695 00:29:35,110 --> 00:29:36,190 us by background? 696 00:29:36,270 --> 00:29:37,710 We can still call them friends. 697 00:29:38,430 --> 00:29:41,990 And that's, that's a hard thing to do sometimes to see someone 698 00:29:41,990 --> 00:29:44,590 that's different than us as a friend because. 699 00:29:46,110 --> 00:29:49,750 We'Re, we've just always been taught and as humans, we are somewhat 700 00:29:49,750 --> 00:29:50,910 to some degree tribal. 701 00:29:51,400 --> 00:29:54,760 And so like, we usually are attracted to people that are physically 702 00:29:54,920 --> 00:29:57,400 or culturally similar to us. 703 00:29:57,880 --> 00:30:00,240 And again, there's nothing necessarily wrong with that. 704 00:30:00,240 --> 00:30:03,760 But at the end of the day, if you are a brother in Christ and you 705 00:30:03,760 --> 00:30:06,560 believe the same thing I believe about Jesus, we should be 706 00:30:06,560 --> 00:30:08,440 able to call each other friends and brothers. 707 00:30:09,320 --> 00:30:11,960 And that's something that we should strive to do. 708 00:30:11,960 --> 00:30:14,160 Now, am I friends with every Christian in the world? 709 00:30:14,160 --> 00:30:17,040 No, that's not, that's not possible for me to be friends with 710 00:30:17,040 --> 00:30:17,680 every Christian. 711 00:30:17,680 --> 00:30:20,360 But if I have an interaction with a fellow brother in Christ who 712 00:30:20,360 --> 00:30:23,970 was walking in fellowship with God and not in open, unrepentant 713 00:30:23,970 --> 00:30:26,730 sin, because by the way, the Bible clearly teaches of what we 714 00:30:26,730 --> 00:30:30,210 do with a fellow brother or sister in Christ who is walking in 715 00:30:30,210 --> 00:30:31,450 complete rebellion to God. 716 00:30:31,610 --> 00:30:33,010 And that's a study for another day. 717 00:30:33,010 --> 00:30:35,130 But there are actual things that we should do. 718 00:30:35,370 --> 00:30:38,570 And in some cases it is to step away and to separate ourselves 719 00:30:38,570 --> 00:30:39,290 from somebody. 720 00:30:39,450 --> 00:30:42,050 So this isn't talking about someone who's living in open rebellion 721 00:30:42,050 --> 00:30:42,650 to God. 722 00:30:42,650 --> 00:30:46,410 This is talking about someone who is hopefully clinging at, searching 723 00:30:46,410 --> 00:30:48,810 the Lord, clinging to the Lord, searching after him. 724 00:30:49,480 --> 00:30:53,720 So he says, our friends salute thee, greet friends, greet the friends 725 00:30:53,720 --> 00:30:54,280 by name. 726 00:30:55,480 --> 00:30:58,080 So even if we're separated by distance, even if we're separated 727 00:30:58,080 --> 00:31:01,240 by culture, we can still be brothers and sisters and friends 728 00:31:01,240 --> 00:31:04,440 in Christ and we should greet one another that way. 729 00:31:05,160 --> 00:31:08,240 And there's a lot of things that we could talk about in that 730 00:31:08,240 --> 00:31:12,320 regard, but there is a, and we'll see a little bit more about 731 00:31:12,320 --> 00:31:14,440 this in the Book of Romans when we're, during our study in the 732 00:31:14,440 --> 00:31:15,000 Book of Romans. 733 00:31:15,000 --> 00:31:18,960 But there is a proper way to deal with other Christians, specifically 734 00:31:18,960 --> 00:31:23,440 with the area of hospitality, specifically in the area of service. 735 00:31:24,240 --> 00:31:26,720 And it's hard for us to understand because we don't come 736 00:31:26,720 --> 00:31:27,920 from this culture. 737 00:31:28,640 --> 00:31:34,960 Most of us are not living in first century Jewish or Roman culture. 738 00:31:35,280 --> 00:31:36,000 None of us are. 739 00:31:36,000 --> 00:31:36,480 Okay. 740 00:31:36,960 --> 00:31:39,440 Most of us are living in the American culture. 741 00:31:39,440 --> 00:31:42,400 Some of you have a broader scope of understanding to a different 742 00:31:42,400 --> 00:31:42,800 country. 743 00:31:43,520 --> 00:31:48,160 But most of us live in a society, in a culture that is very 744 00:31:48,160 --> 00:31:49,200 individualistic. 745 00:31:49,200 --> 00:31:51,320 Like we, we promote individualism. 746 00:31:52,360 --> 00:31:56,200 And I, as an American, understand that and actually can 747 00:31:56,200 --> 00:31:59,880 sympathize and actually get excited about that, like independence 748 00:31:59,880 --> 00:32:01,080 and individualism. 749 00:32:01,080 --> 00:32:03,640 And we've got this, and I've got it all under control, and I don't 750 00:32:03,640 --> 00:32:04,520 need anybody else. 751 00:32:04,760 --> 00:32:08,440 But really, if you look at the Bible, I'm not saying that those 752 00:32:08,440 --> 00:32:12,080 principles in, in other realms are, are good or bad. 753 00:32:12,080 --> 00:32:13,080 I'm not speaking to that. 754 00:32:13,220 --> 00:32:14,780 What I am speaking is what the Bible says. 755 00:32:14,780 --> 00:32:17,620 And the Bible does speak of the collective unit of the body of 756 00:32:17,620 --> 00:32:19,620 Christ together, right? 757 00:32:19,620 --> 00:32:19,900 Read. 758 00:32:19,900 --> 00:32:20,780 Read First Corinthians. 759 00:32:20,780 --> 00:32:22,500 Read First Corinthians 11:12. 760 00:32:22,500 --> 00:32:27,300 All that you'll see that there is a specific need for the body of 761 00:32:27,300 --> 00:32:28,260 Christ to come together. 762 00:32:29,140 --> 00:32:30,780 The whole hand's not the arm. 763 00:32:30,780 --> 00:32:33,500 The whole hand, I mean, the whole church is not the arm. 764 00:32:33,500 --> 00:32:34,180 It's not the hand. 765 00:32:34,340 --> 00:32:36,980 The whole church is the body and Christ is the head. 766 00:32:37,380 --> 00:32:39,700 And so when we think about third John and we think about second 767 00:32:39,700 --> 00:32:43,750 John and even one John, there is a huge emphasis on how we treat 768 00:32:43,750 --> 00:32:44,470 other Christians. 769 00:32:44,550 --> 00:32:50,150 And so the expectation would be this, okay, the, the, like, it's 770 00:32:50,150 --> 00:32:53,510 not even spoken to here, but the expectation is that we be around 771 00:32:53,510 --> 00:32:57,750 other Christians and we live in a society today that says, you 772 00:32:57,750 --> 00:32:58,150 know what? 773 00:32:58,390 --> 00:33:01,750 You, you can be a Christian and never be around other Christians. 774 00:33:02,230 --> 00:33:02,550 You. 775 00:33:02,550 --> 00:33:03,870 You can be a Christian and just. 776 00:33:03,870 --> 00:33:05,270 That's a private thing for you. 777 00:33:05,270 --> 00:33:06,710 And don't let anybody else know. 778 00:33:06,710 --> 00:33:07,990 That's your individual thing. 779 00:33:08,340 --> 00:33:11,300 But at the end of the day, yes, it is individual faith in God. 780 00:33:11,540 --> 00:33:15,900 But at the same time, we are called to be around and to grow and 781 00:33:15,900 --> 00:33:16,580 to edify. 782 00:33:17,780 --> 00:33:21,460 When we look at Hebrews chapter 10, the passage that says, 783 00:33:21,780 --> 00:33:24,900 don't forsake the assembly of yourselves together, it's not saying 784 00:33:24,900 --> 00:33:26,580 that so that we can have good church attendance. 785 00:33:26,580 --> 00:33:29,380 It's saying that if you read the rest of that verse, it talks 786 00:33:29,380 --> 00:33:32,540 about exhorting one another to provoke one another to love and to 787 00:33:32,540 --> 00:33:33,140 good works. 788 00:33:33,300 --> 00:33:34,660 That's why we come to church. 789 00:33:35,880 --> 00:33:38,160 And so I want you to understand that. 790 00:33:38,160 --> 00:33:43,680 And, and I need to understand that, that the every element of the 791 00:33:43,680 --> 00:33:45,080 church is important. 792 00:33:45,240 --> 00:33:46,160 It's not just. 793 00:33:46,160 --> 00:33:48,320 And I'm speaking to the crowd who's here on a Wednesday night, 794 00:33:48,320 --> 00:33:49,320 so fantastic. 795 00:33:49,480 --> 00:33:52,520 But it's not just coming to church once a week and going Home. 796 00:33:52,680 --> 00:33:55,800 That's, that's not biblical church. 797 00:33:55,800 --> 00:33:59,200 It's partly biblical church, but a lot of times what people see 798 00:33:59,200 --> 00:34:02,500 church as is, it's when we get together on Sunday mornings, we sing 799 00:34:02,500 --> 00:34:04,980 songs, we read the Bible, the preacher gets up and talks and we 800 00:34:04,980 --> 00:34:05,380 go home. 801 00:34:06,100 --> 00:34:08,500 That's one element, that's corporate worship. 802 00:34:08,900 --> 00:34:11,260 But the church is so much more and that's what he's talking about 803 00:34:11,260 --> 00:34:11,460 here. 804 00:34:11,460 --> 00:34:14,220 Friends and friends would be someone that we want to spend time 805 00:34:14,220 --> 00:34:14,500 around. 806 00:34:14,500 --> 00:34:17,540 It's people that we want to encourage. 807 00:34:17,780 --> 00:34:20,820 You know, my friends, my, my personal friends outside of the church, 808 00:34:21,940 --> 00:34:23,300 I'm invested in their life. 809 00:34:23,300 --> 00:34:24,620 I want to know how they're doing. 810 00:34:24,620 --> 00:34:26,100 I want to know how I can help them. 811 00:34:26,290 --> 00:34:28,530 I want to know how I can spend time with them. 812 00:34:28,610 --> 00:34:32,210 My friends that live far away distances, we, we talk all year about 813 00:34:32,290 --> 00:34:35,610 when we get to see each other again, you know, next time, next, 814 00:34:35,610 --> 00:34:37,810 next time I'm back where I'm, we're, we're going to get together. 815 00:34:39,010 --> 00:34:41,850 And so, so often we forget about the need to do that with those 816 00:34:41,850 --> 00:34:42,610 folks around us. 817 00:34:42,610 --> 00:34:46,250 And so that's first, second and third John and, and one word 818 00:34:46,250 --> 00:34:49,490 that I want you to think about with, with first John, but specifically 819 00:34:50,130 --> 00:34:53,100 all of the, the first, second, third John is fellowship. 820 00:34:53,340 --> 00:34:54,940 Fellowship with God, fellowship with others. 821 00:34:54,940 --> 00:34:55,780 The word is coin. 822 00:34:55,780 --> 00:34:58,940 And that's why we put it up on the screen and that's why we have 823 00:34:58,940 --> 00:35:03,740 special days for it because fellowship is so, so important and 824 00:35:04,060 --> 00:35:05,500 we live busy schedules. 825 00:35:05,660 --> 00:35:09,500 I know that I, I can speak to way of example on that. 826 00:35:09,820 --> 00:35:13,140 My, if I was to show you my calendar, I keep my calendar on my 827 00:35:13,140 --> 00:35:13,500 phone. 828 00:35:14,060 --> 00:35:17,100 Some of you keep it the old school way in your, in your notebook, 829 00:35:17,580 --> 00:35:19,120 which is fine, that's good. 830 00:35:19,120 --> 00:35:20,040 However, it works for you. 831 00:35:20,040 --> 00:35:22,760 But if you looked at my calendar, I've got everything color 832 00:35:22,760 --> 00:35:25,000 coded and it looks like a rainbow every single day. 833 00:35:25,000 --> 00:35:27,200 I've got like 17 things that I have to do. 834 00:35:27,440 --> 00:35:31,040 And so I, I completely understand the busyness. 835 00:35:31,920 --> 00:35:36,920 And if I'm not careful, the busyness can supersede the need to 836 00:35:36,920 --> 00:35:41,800 pause and be with fellow Christians and just commune with 837 00:35:41,800 --> 00:35:42,640 fellow Christians. 838 00:35:42,640 --> 00:35:46,610 And just to be completely honest with the Lord, we can be so 839 00:35:46,610 --> 00:35:50,730 busy trying to do the things that we know are or we believe are 840 00:35:50,730 --> 00:35:54,130 right that we can forget about pausing and just being still and 841 00:35:54,130 --> 00:35:56,290 knowing that God is God and spending time with Him. 842 00:35:56,770 --> 00:35:58,850 And so again, we live in a busy society. 843 00:35:58,850 --> 00:36:01,609 We don't get so busy that you overlook your time with God and your 844 00:36:01,609 --> 00:36:02,610 time with other Christians. 845 00:36:02,770 --> 00:36:06,010 And that's something that we can all pray about in our lives to 846 00:36:06,010 --> 00:36:09,730 maybe grow in that area of our Christian walk. 847 00:36:09,730 --> 00:36:11,050 So, first, second of three, John. 848 00:36:11,050 --> 00:36:13,010 That's the conclusion of the study. 849 00:36:13,720 --> 00:36:15,960 I had some people asking me, where are we going next? 850 00:36:16,280 --> 00:36:19,680 We're going to do a small series just up to the end of the 851 00:36:19,680 --> 00:36:24,080 year on Old Testament prophecies about Jesus Christ's birth. 852 00:36:24,080 --> 00:36:27,040 We're coming to a Christmas season, and there's a lot of people 853 00:36:27,040 --> 00:36:29,160 that are interested in Christmas things. 854 00:36:30,200 --> 00:36:33,760 But obviously the reason why we do anything about Christmas is 855 00:36:33,760 --> 00:36:35,000 because of the birth of Jesus Christ. 856 00:36:35,000 --> 00:36:36,280 That's what we're celebrating. 857 00:36:36,760 --> 00:36:38,400 We're unapologetic about that. 858 00:36:38,400 --> 00:36:40,280 Like, I don't care about all the other. 859 00:36:40,280 --> 00:36:41,880 I mean, I like Christmas lights. 860 00:36:41,880 --> 00:36:42,800 I love that kind of stuff. 861 00:36:42,800 --> 00:36:44,000 I love all the other things. 862 00:36:44,160 --> 00:36:47,280 But it's all, for me, a conduit to get to Jesus. 863 00:36:47,280 --> 00:36:47,600 Right? 864 00:36:47,760 --> 00:36:49,080 And that's what we're doing. 865 00:36:49,080 --> 00:36:51,040 And so I want to talk to you. 866 00:36:51,760 --> 00:36:54,400 Many of you know these things about the Old Testament prophecies 867 00:36:54,400 --> 00:36:56,160 fulfilled in the birth of Jesus Christ. 868 00:36:56,160 --> 00:36:59,320 I mean, where Jesus was going to be born, how he was going to be 869 00:36:59,320 --> 00:37:02,000 born, who, who would, you know, how you know, where he would 870 00:37:02,000 --> 00:37:04,400 be, who would give birth to him. 871 00:37:04,400 --> 00:37:08,040 All those things are there in scripture, in the Old Testament. 872 00:37:08,040 --> 00:37:12,080 And it's an amazing thing if you can go through the study on a 873 00:37:12,080 --> 00:37:15,560 larger scale to see all the fulfillment of Jesus Christ there 874 00:37:15,560 --> 00:37:16,720 in the Old Testament. 875 00:37:16,880 --> 00:37:18,000 It's an amazing thing. 876 00:37:18,000 --> 00:37:20,960 It's one of those things that brings me back to a place of confirmation 877 00:37:21,120 --> 00:37:22,880 and confidence in the word of God. 878 00:37:23,360 --> 00:37:24,840 This could not be a mistake. 879 00:37:24,840 --> 00:37:28,120 This is not a coincidence, could not be a forgery. 880 00:37:28,120 --> 00:37:29,320 And so we look into that. 881 00:37:29,320 --> 00:37:32,920 And I want to just scratch the surface with you on that and look 882 00:37:32,920 --> 00:37:35,590 at some of those Old Testament prophecies and really how they are 883 00:37:35,590 --> 00:37:36,630 fulfilled in Jesus Christ. 884 00:37:36,630 --> 00:37:37,630 Because that's, again, another. 885 00:37:37,950 --> 00:37:41,350 Another confusing point is like, okay, so he was born in Bethlehem. 886 00:37:41,350 --> 00:37:41,990 What's the big point? 887 00:37:41,990 --> 00:37:44,390 Or it says that he's the Prince of Peace, but what does that 888 00:37:44,390 --> 00:37:44,550 mean? 889 00:37:44,550 --> 00:37:46,670 And so we'll talk more about that in the study. 890 00:37:46,670 --> 00:37:49,550 It'll only be a few weeks, obviously through the month of December. 891 00:37:50,030 --> 00:37:53,310 And then when we get to January, we'll start another book 892 00:37:53,310 --> 00:37:53,910 of the Bible. 893 00:37:53,910 --> 00:37:55,550 And I hope that'll be a blessing for you. 894 00:37:57,390 --> 00:38:00,030 Thank you again for listening to the Middletown Baptist Church 895 00:38:00,030 --> 00:38:00,670 podcast. 896 00:38:00,910 --> 00:38:03,150 I hope that this sermon has been a blessing for you. 897 00:38:04,180 --> 00:38:06,180 You would like to find out more information about our church 898 00:38:06,180 --> 00:38:09,620 or this sermon, you can find us at middletownbaptistchurch.org 899 00:38:09,940 --> 00:38:12,500 or find us on Facebook or YouTube. 900 00:38:13,220 --> 00:38:17,740 You can also email me directly at Josh Massaroiddletownbaptistchurch 901 00:38:17,740 --> 00:38:22,140 dot com if you've enjoyed this podcast, please subscribe and follow 902 00:38:22,140 --> 00:38:24,980 along for future podcasts and updates. 903 00:38:25,620 --> 00:38:26,580 Thank you so much. 904 00:38:26,740 --> 00:38:27,460 God Bless. 905 00:38:27,780 --> 00:38:29,060 Have a wonderful day.