If you take your Bibles and turn to Psalm 82, we're going to start this morning with Psalm 82. There are two verses in the Psalm, verse one and verse six where it uses where the word in Hebrew is translated gods, little g. Christ points out in referring back to this in the New Testament as well that that word translated gods there is not a reference to deity, false or otherwise, but to but to rulers and to judges. People that have been ordained of God as rulers, authorities in this world are the ones being referenced there by the little g gods in verse one and in verse six. So just keep that in in mind as we read through Psalm 82.

It's a reference to rulers and judges who God has ordained and given his authority, therefore, over men in certain areas and to a certain degree. So that these are the people primarily who are the audience, the target of this Psalm not written by David, but by another man named Asaph. So let's read it here. God standeth in the congregation of the mighty. He judgeth among the gods.

How long will you judge unjustly and accept the persons of the wicked? Selah. Defend the poor and fatherless. Do justice to the afflicted and needy. Deliver the poor and needy.

Rid them out of the hand of the wicked. They know not, neither will they understand. They walk on in darkness. All the foundations of the earth are out of course. I have said you are gods, and all of you are children of the most high.

But you shall die like men and fall like one of the princes. Arise, o God, judge the earth for thou shalt inherit all nations. Let's go to the Lord in prayer. Dear heavenly father, thank you, Lord, for your word. Guide us as we look into it today.

Lord, I pray that you would be honored in all that's said and done, that you would challenge us in our service to you. And if there be anyone here that is yet to receive the mercy and grace of God through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, that today would be their day of salvation. In Jesus' name, do pray. Amen. In this passage, God is the ultimate judge of all judges.

He is the king of kings and what? Lord of lords. And those to whom he has ordained as rulers, judges, they will all answer to who? They will all answer to him for the decisions that they make, particularly in regard of those whom they rule and those, particularly, who are vulnerable under their authority. And I I I'm gonna show this morning how, in a manner of speaking, those people are us.

We are accountable to God, particularly in this society and country in which we live. And God will hold us, I believe, accountable for the decisions we make and the actions we take that affect the lives of others who are our fellow citizens. So if you would take your Bibles and turn to Matthew five thirteen through 16 or you can look up here on the screen, we will continue on this morning with a New Testament passage in regards to being salt and light in the earth. Matthew five thirteen, ye are the salt of the earth. He's speaking to his disciples and followers in particular here.

He is also speaking to who? He is speaking to us. Also, in the Old Testament, the salt was meant to be the nation of Israel that represented him in that time period. He says, ye are the salt of the earth, but if the salt have lost his savor, wherewith shall it be salted? It is thenceforth good for nothing but to be cast out and trodden under the foot of men.

Particularly in the day that this was written, salt was contained a lot of impurities. And over time, salt, the actual salt, would begin to dissolve, and what would be left behind was the impurities and the impurities really didn't serve the function. They didn't taste like salt. They didn't preserve things like salt. And so when it got to that point, you just threw out what was left and you started over because that salt, which was mainly the impurities, was good for what?

Was good for nothing. Okay? And that's the picture here, the metaphor that Christ is using. But let's continue. Ye are the what?

The light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick, and it giveth light to all that are in the house. As Jesus was speaking, teaching, oftentimes, he was around the Sea Of Galilee. And from where I stayed when I was in Israel, in Galilee several years ago, on the shores of the Sea Of Galilee, there is a prominent city that sits on a hill that you can see from pretty much anywhere around the Sea Of Galilee.

It is the city of Tiberias. It is the only remaining city from Jesus' day that is still there today. The rest are just ruins, but the city of Tiberias, obviously named for a Roman emperor, is still there today, and you can see the bright lights at night. Of course, they might not have been quite as bright in Jesus' day as they were candlelight, but still in the utter darkness of the day, you would have been able to see a bit of light coming from the city on the opposite side of the shore. You don't take a candle and light it and then cover it up.

That defeats the purpose. You light the candle so its light will shine so you so you can see. So Christ continues on. He says, let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your father which is in heaven. The fact is people cannot see the father.

We cannot see the father today, but what people can see is who? Us. They can see us, the children of God, the representatives and ambassadors of Jesus Christ to this dark world. And it is our privilege and duty to not cover up our light, but to let it wine, to let it shine that others may see Jesus in us, To let our light shine that others may see our good works, the works of God in our life, and glorify him who is in heaven, who is unseen. The salt of the earth again, the salt is a preservative and spice which makes things more palatable and keeps them from what?

From spoiling. We as Christians are God's salt on this earth. Not only should we make it more palatable to a holy God, but we should have a preserving effect on the morals moral and spiritual condition of this world. That's what it means to be the salt of the earth. In order for that to happen, we need to be genuine in our faith, growing in our relationship with the Lord, and starkly different in our purpose, outlook, and morality from the world around us.

If we're just like them, then we have lost our savior and are good for nothing but to be what? Cast out and trodden under the foot of men. We do not take the opportunity to take a stand for the Lord and for what is right. Then, again, we have lost our savior. If not, we are good for nothing to be cast on the street and trodden under the foot of men.

In second Corinthians chapter six, it says, wherefore, come out from among them and be separate, saith the Lord. Touch not the unclean thing and I will receive you. I will be a father unto you and you shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord almighty. Paul is quoting from the Old Testament. God does not intend for us to physically separate ourself from the lost around us.

But what God does desire is that we be different, not just for the sake of being different, but we be different as we are like who? Jesus. The name Christian means Christ like or little Christ. We need to be the salt of the earth. The only way that we will be that salt is to open our mouth and to live in such a way as to point people to God, to his holiness, his love, and his mercy.

Matthew sixteen twenty four says, then said Jesus, son of his disciples, if any man will come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. That is what God desires of his children. That is what he deserves of his children. That's what this world needs from his children, you and me, to be salt of the earth. First John two fifteen, love not the world, neither the things that are in the world.

If any man love the world, the love of the father is not in him. You're not showing forth the love of God. If the world and the things and the lusts of the world take precedent over obedience and service to Jesus Christ and allegiance to our citizenship which is in heaven. God told Ezekiel, he was looking for somebody to stand in the gap for Israel and be salt, the salt they needed to preserve them, to keep them from going over the cliff. But God found no one, particularly within the leadership of Israel.

And so the nation went over the what? The cliff and faced the judgment of God in the days of Ezekiel. Maybe God is looking for someone to stand in the gap for him today and is not too excited with what he is seeing as we see our society heading more swiftly for the cliff every year. We are to be the light of the world. The light light reveals things.

It reveals the truth of what is around us. If you're in here in pitch blackness and you haven't been in this room before, you might not know where those pews are. You wouldn't know what the ceiling looks like. You wouldn't know where the pulpit was. You need light.

It reveals the truth of what is around us by overcoming the darkness which obscures the truth that we might not see it. Physical light does that. Spiritual light reveals the truth of God, the way of salvation, and many other wonderful things. If the light shines inwardly, it reveals the truth of who we are. Sinners in need of a what?

A savior. Jesus said in John three that men love darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. They didn't want they don't want to be reminded. They don't wanna be exposed. Why did the Pharisees and many other religious leaders in Jesus' day hate him?

Because he was the light that exposed their hypocrisy, And they didn't like that, and so they hated him. It can light our path and point the way. We're reminded by David in Psalms, thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. We're reminded by Jesus in John fourteen six, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes to the father but by me.

By Jesus who is the light of the world, who points the way to the father in heaven, the way of salvation to all that are lost. Light gives hope and light gives direction. Jesus said that he is the light of the world, but also that we are too. Right here in this verse. Ye are the what?

The light of the world. We are that light as we reflect the light of Christ into a world revealing his holiness, love, mercy, and grace. We are not only to speak, but we are also to live in such a way that others will see our good works and glorify our father which is in heaven. They cannot see Jesus. They cannot see the father, but they can see who?

You, us. We're to live in such a manner that they can see the glory and holiness and love of God in us and glorify our father which is in heaven. Are those goods works? Are those good works limited to the preaching of the gospel or do they include other activities as well? Well, they certainly include the preaching of the gospel.

No doubt. But I they also include our every behavior, attitude, and action such as moral conduct and abstinence from sinful habits and pursuits, such as demonstrating kindness and compassion in our dealing with our neighbors, our coworkers, our customers, our employees, our family. They include things such as standing for what is right and being unashamed to speak up for God and his word, though others may revile it or disrespect it, it does not change what it is. I've mentioned this before. I used to see a bumper sticker that said, God said it.

I believe it. That settles it. Good bumper sticker. Accept the fact that the middle part isn't necessary. God said it.

That settles it. You don't have whether you believe it or not does not change the truth. It changes how the truth impacts you, but it is still true whether you believe it or not. God said it. That settles it.

And we as God's representatives need to believe it, need to stand on it, need to speak it, need to demonstrate it in our lives. Faith without works is what? Dead like salt that has lost its savor. We can demonstrate it such as to care for the vulnerable and innocent and downtrodden in our society, to protect to seek to protect them from those who would intentionally do them harm. Such as to here's the word.

Such as to vote for those who we feel would best protect those who are vulnerable, To vote for those we feel would best protect our freedom to worship the Lord and to share the good news of the gospel. To vote for those we feel who would best care for the helpless and punish the evildoer, which is, among others, the purpose of government. This we not only have a privilege of doing in our country, but as we are in some measure, we have the power to effect these changes in a way that few in history have ever had. We have a responsibility, therefore, to do so. If we can be salt and light, if we can have a effect on the lives of others, not only through the preaching of the gospel, not only by being kind to our neighbor, but by having the privilege of the vote.

We need to take advantage of that. To represent the interests of heaven where? On earth. To the best of our ability and wisdom, we must seek to fulfill the interests of God in our world today. This responsibility by no means ends with a vote, but it seems to me that it certainly does include it.

First Corinthians ten thirty one, whether therefore ye eat or drink or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God. Does that include voting whatsoever ye do? I think it does. And I think as Christians, as citizens of heaven, our first responsibility is to the Lord and to his word and to represent him in all that we do including our vote. Why would I bring this up this week?

Well, if I am correct, I think early voting begins this week in the state of Florida. So it seemed pertinent to me. Consider this passage. Proverbs twenty four eleven and twelve. If thou forbear to deliver them that are drawn unto death and those that are ready to be slain.

If thou sayest, behold, we knew it not, doth not he that pondereth the heart consider it? And he that keepeth thy soul, doth he not know it? And shall not he render to every man according to his works? That is a challenge to us today. We can close our eyes.

We can hide our head in the sand. But God knows, and I believe God holds us accountable, when we choose to keep our mouth shut, when we choose to do nothing, when innocent, vulnerable people are being led to the slaughter. If thou forbear to deliver them that are drawn unto death, assumption here is innocently, And those that are ready to be slain. If thou sayest, behold, we knew it not. Doth not he that pondereth the heart consider it, and he that keepeth thy soul doth not he know it, and shall he not render to every man according to his works.

Consider the word of God. Not the words of Rick Polar, but the words of God today. Abortion is on our ballot this year in the state of Florida. Amendment four, it is called. If it should pass, it would nullify the attempts of our governor and legislature to restrict access to abortion in the state of Florida.

Many lives hang in the balance as to whether it passes or whether it does not. It also, if I understand correctly, will do away with parental consent for minors also in the state of Florida. By adding amendment to the constitution, it keeps the legislature from having any effect, any way of restricting most abortions in the state of Florida. I believe with all my heart, as is declared in our statement of faith, that abortion, the termination of the life of an unborn child is murder. I'll read from our statement of faith.

Section 16, abortion. We believe that human life begins at conception, that the unborn child is a living human living human being. Willful abortion constitute unjustified, unexcused taking of an unborn human life, which is murder. We reject any teaching that abortion of pregnancies is for any reason acceptable. Do we believe that doctors sometimes have to make hard decisions when the life of a mother is at stake?

Yes. We understand that. But willful abortion, the termination of a pregnancy, the termination of a life is unequivocally wrong. Every human life is created in the image of God according to the scripture. And by all means, that includes children developing in the womb.

A few thoughts. Paul told Timothy, God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of what? Sound mind of sound reason. Consider a few reasons that abortion is murder. Number one, the unborn child is alive.

Within weeks, they have a heartbeat and brain waves. And even before that, the cells that are dividing and developing are very much alive. That is there is no question. It is living tissue. It is alive.

Number two, the unborn child is a human. It is a living human. It is not something less than human. It is not just a a ball of cells. It is a developing human being created in the image of who?

In the image of God. An unborn child is unique. It has DNA that is different from its father and even the mother that carries it. It is a unique living human being created in the image of God. It has its own blood, its own brain waves, its own soul.

The unborn child is is a stage of development that will continue through age 20 physically and cognitively. It is part of a process that begins at conception and continues till that child reaches adulthood. The unborn child is dependent upon his or her mother for us for life as it will also be after it is born for several years. Take a baby that has been born and set it aside to take care of itself, and it's not going to live very long. The fact that it is dependent upon its mother does not make it any less a human life worthy of protection.

God has a hand and a purpose in the life he has made and is forming in the womb. He knows them as human being. He knows them by name and purpose. Jeremiah one five, before before I formed thee in the womb, I knew thee. Before thou camest forth out of the womb, I sanctified thee and ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.

Does it seem to you that God only considered Jeremiah a human being after his birth? I don't think so. In Psalm one thirty nine Psalm one thirty nine, David writes this. He says, for thou hast possessed me my reins, thou hast covered me in my mother's womb. I will praise thee for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

Marvelous are thy works and that my soul knoweth right well. My substance was not hid from thee when I was made in secret and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Thine eyes did see my substance yet unperfect. And in thy book, all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned when as yet there was none of them. When he was just an embryo, he was still a living human being with a soul created in the image of who?

God With a purpose. The unborn child. Is it the most innocent and vulnerable state of their entire life when they are in their mother's womb and worthy of protection, dignity, and to grow into adulthood. To terminate such a life is morally and unequivocally wrong. The midwives of Egypt put their lives on the line to save the male children of the Hebrews who were consigned to death at birth by Pharaoh.

And if Pharaoh could have reached into the womb and killed them before then, he probably certainly would have done so. But he did not possess the technology that we do today to do that by surgery or surgical instruments or medication. But nonetheless, it is still what? Murder. And the midwives of Egypt refused.

They put their lives on the line. In the least in the least, should we not consider their lives as we vote? Is it not what God would want? No. It's not the only thing you should consider as you vote, but it is a big one.

Millions of lives have been lost, have been taken in this country. God judged Israel for doing that. They sacrificed their newborn children to Molech. God turned the place that they did that into a garbage heap, the Valley Of Hinnom. They were never allowed to build upon it ever again, and God destroyed and judged them because of it.

Yes. We should do what is in our power to protect that life. One way you can do that is to vote no on amendment four. Not only do we have the responsibility to vote against such an amendment, but also to consider which candidates for office would seek to protect innocent lives or take them. Furthermore, I think we have a responsibility to consider supporting ministries which would help mothers in difficult situations to make the right choice, to provide for their children, adoption agencies who would seek to place unwanted or orphaned children in God fearing homes.

I think that would be a worthwhile pursuit. There are several organizations like that. Yes, it is compassionate and right to care and to sympathize with those whose choices have led them to a difficult place or in some cases, the choices of others have put them in a difficult spot. But to ignore the right to life of the child out of the concern for the mother is wrong. You can care for what?

Both. Not just one. If we are to point others to Jesus, to his holiness, and to his love, then we should do both to the best of our ability. What did that verse say again? If thou forbear to deliver them that are drawn unto death and those that are ready to be slain, if thou sayest, behold, we knew it not, doth not he that pondereth the heart consume doesn't God know?

In the least, you could have voted. Now I wanna pause for just a moment and mention something before I finish. If you're listening today and you have, in some way facilitated the death of an unborn child as a mother or father or doctor or counselor, what you have done is a what? It is a sin. It should not be sugar coated.

It should not be denied, and it cannot be justified. But it can be what? It can be forgiven. There are people who worked in the abortion industry whose eyes were opened, who have confessed their sin and come to Christ, and they have been forgiven. There are many mothers and fathers and counselors who facilitated the death of an unborn child and have come to Christ and have been, what, forgiven.

Like Paul was forgiven. Paul, who we first meet as Saul, who was responsible for the imprisonment and torture and death of believers in Christ. Jesus forgave and gave to him a ministry. Don't think for a minute that you are beyond forgiveness because you are not. Because as Jesus loves the little children, he also loves you.

And he can forgive you. And he can still use you if you will trust him. There is hope for you. There's forgiveness in Christ who gave his life for you, who is risen again and inviting you to come that he might forgive and to save your soul. Please let him.

Please let him. There are other things that we might consider as representatives of heaven besides just the issue of abortion with our vote. We might consider the children in our society today who have been born to protect them from the predatory lies of Satan who seeks to destroy them. And we can see the result of that in our society today. To protect them from those who would teach them there is no God or no absolute morality, thus fulfilling the words of Romans one when it says there is no fear of God before their eyes.

To protect them from the lie that no sexual activity of any kind is destructive or immoral, including homosexual activity. To protect them from the lie that they can choose their own gender or change their gender by the use of drugs and hormones and brutal surgeries. God made them male and female. Again, we have a section on it in our statement of faith. The devil wants to destroy our youth.

To the degree that we can help protect them, we should. We should support laws and candidates and school board members who would seek to protect children from such lies and exposure to such dangers. We do have such a responsibility, and it may take a little more work on your part than just looking for a d or an r beside their name. We have an opportunity to protect them from the use of mind altering, highly addictive drugs, such as one that used to be called pot, and then it was called weed, and then it was called marijuana. Now it's cannabis.

That kind of sterilizes it. Right? It's not so bad. It's just what? It's just cannabis.

But how many young people's minds have been altered and lives destroyed by the use of such drugs? And one of the amendments on our ballot seeks to legalize recreational use of such drugs starting with marijuana, which is destructive in ways maybe that you don't can't imagine to the minds of young people. Just because it is legal does not make it moral. But for most young people, it does tend to send that message. If it's legal, it must be what?

Okay. And you say, but there are age restrictions. Does that keep underage kids from drinking and getting drunk? Does did that keep underage kids from smoking tobacco in the past or vaping today? The answer to that is no.

You put enough of that stuff out there, they're gonna get their hands on it. We should seek to protect them by saying no to giving them that temptation in greater quantity than it already is. We need to do what we can at least by our vote to protect young people from child predators and young women from men who would invade their private and safe spaces such as bathrooms and locker rooms. You say that's a political issue. Keeping vulnerable children safe is only political?

Read the verse. I don't think it is. Jesus said when but when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased and said unto them, suffer the little children to come into me and forbid them not for such is the kingdom of God. I think Jesus had a special place in his heart for children when their heart was tender and moldable, when they were vulnerable and easy targets. Again, in Matthew eighteen sixteen, it says this, but who shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me?

It were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea. Is that a strong statement? Yeah. I think so. And should we have the opportunity to help protect them in any way simply by a vote?

Should we not seek to do so? Yes. Children are first and foremost the responsibility of their parents. But if we should shun the opportunity we have been given to put laws into place to help protect them, I believe God will hold us liable also. In our land, we are the government.

You are. You have the opportunity to represent the interests of God, the word of God in heaven by your vote, and in many other ways to be salt and light. And we can't simply say we have no choice in the matter because we do. That choice may be restricted. That choice at times may be undermined, but the choice still exists.

And I believe that we should take the opportunity to make the right choice, to take responsibility for that choice, to represent the interests of heaven on earth, particularly to protect the lives of the vulnerable, the innocent, whether they be in the womb or out of it, and to point people to Jesus. Israel failed, and God turned to you, the church. Will we fail also? In many ways, I fear we already have. Not primarily by our vote, by compromise in many aspects of our life, by cowardice and fear.

So often we vote out of loyalty to a party or heritage or a pocketbook. Many people's vote is primarily selfish as is must much of their behavior, thinking only of themselves and what will make their life easier. But I challenge you, Christian, today in every aspect of your life to consider the interest of your father in heaven, to be salt and light on the earth. Because if you're not, who is? God is looking for someone to stand in the gap.

Is that someone you? Oh, Christian. You must rise above the pettiness and selfishness to consider first and foremost, what would Jesus do? How would Jesus vote? How can I best represent the interests of God and bring glory to my father in heaven?

The vote is important. Your testimony is important. The gospel is important. They cannot see the father and they cannot hear the son, but through you and his word today. Do not take that privilege lightly.

And if you've never received Christ as savior, if you have yet to come to him in repentance and faith for the forgiveness of your sins, whatever they may be, he beckons you with open arms today. He will forgive your sin. He will save your soul. Let's pray. Dear heavenly father, thank you, Lord, for the word of God, for the privileges that we have as children of God, and the privileges we have, citizens of The United States.

Lord, I pray that we would take those more seriously than sometimes we do. That we not throw up our hands and say it's all bad and wicked when we have, to some degree, an opportunity to make a difference. Lord, challenge us. Give us wisdom. Give us diligence to search out the truth.

The truth will set us free and others also. Lord, help us not to allow fear to win or pride or selfishness. Help us to be the witnesses of Christ, the salt and light on the earth that we need to be. And, Lord, if there's one here that is yet to receive the Lord Jesus as savior, I pray as we sing this hymn of invitation today that they would come. In Jesus' name, do pray.

Amen.