Why Should We Live For God?

Thank you. Take your bibles, please, and let's turn to Proverbs chapter 29, and let's stand together out of respect for God's word. Proverbs 29. Where we saw two people saved, I think, last week. We had a meeting before that.

We saw five or so saved and God's still working and people are being saved. We've been going on mission trips, went to Honduras. We saw over 30 people trust Christ there, and we're planning to go to Liberia next mission trip, possibly Philippines, is on the agenda too as we've been wanting to do that for years. Now, we'll finally get that one in. I've got it on the schedule but I might need to cancel that one and move it to another year for finances etcetera but the Lord knows what he wants to do but good things are happening and we're thankful for God putting us into the ministry.

Proverbs chapter 29 this morning and we're going to read verse 18. Are you glad to be in the house of God today? Yes. Amen. Amen.

There's some guests here, first timers here and these two right here pastor met you yesterday. Yep. Yep. And what are your names again? I'm Todd.

This is Kaylen. Everybody say hi. Hi. Hi. We're glad they're here and looking forward to them being regulars around here at least occasionally you coming around.

Yeah. It'd be great. They both said they're planning to be here all week. Is that is that right? Yes, sir.

That's really good. And so, they're going to come all week and this is their first Sunday. I hope those of you that are able also plan to plan to be here through this week. We're going to have a great one. You gotta get built up in the faith.

Alright, Proverbs chapter 29 and we're going to read verse 18 as our text. Where there is no vision, the people perish but he that keepeth the law, happy is he. Heavenly father, we pray for you to bless the message, Lord, for the good of the people and the glory of God. We pray Lord that my lips would be opened under your control and your holy spirit would move in my heart and your holy spirit would move in the heart of each one who is listening. In Christ name, we ask for you to do these things, amen.

Thank you. You may be seated. Many times, you'll hear a guest missionary or an evangelist as myself come in and preach on the subject of soul winning and will quote the verse where there is no vision, the people perish but he that keepeth the law happy is he and it is true that we need to have a vision for unsaved people being saved or they'll perish but I don't believe that's the primary meaning of this verse but rather I believe the verses teaching this, if you have a vision to live for God, you will. If you don't have a vision, you won't. Where there is no vision, the people perish but he to keepeth the law, happy is he and it's speaking more about a reason that we wanna keep the law or follow the bible way of life.

In Belmont, Pennsylvania, I ran across the street fighter by the name of Dane who said that he'd been in 73 fights and had only lost three because he was fought dirty against. A friend of mine asked him if he would like to get saved and he said, get saved, that's a joke. I've dated too many Christian girls to wanna get saved. Now, the girls that he was talking about were girls who were in a local Christian academy and as he was dating these girls, their life was so evil and they were just as wicked as anybody else that didn't even claim to be a Christian and so, he didn't want anything to do with Christianity because he thought there was nothing real to it. Now, those girls didn't have a vision or a motivation to live for God.

They didn't think about how what they did really did affect other people whether they'd be in heaven or whether they go to hell and so they didn't have the vision of how important it is and what their life could do to affect another life. In Bob Jones University, that's where I graduated from Bible College. They had a basketball tournament with several young people from our Christian schools and they asked them, how many of you when you go to college feel that God wants you to study the school of religion? Now, with three fifty young people at that tournament, do you know how many expressed an interest in the school of religion? Only one, a young lady.

Now, I know that God doesn't call three fifty out of three fifty teenagers to be preachers and missionaries but he's certainly calling more than our responding and what that shows is that there's a general apathy or an unconcern about spiritual things and we've lost our motivation. We've lost our burden as to what it's all about. In my youth group back home, a deacon son. He used to work in a bus route, used to go soul winning, used to try to get people to church but then as soon as he got out of high school, he quit going to church and he actually started visiting the clubs and I went to him and I said, Dale, you're a graduate from a Christian school, your deacon son and you know that it's wrong for you to be going to the clubs and the drinking parties. Why are you doing this?

And I never will forget Dale's response. He said, Mike, the Bible says there's pleasure in sin for a season, right? I said, yes, why? He said, well, I'm just going to live my season. Then, I'll get right with God.

Now, how many of you got up this morning and said, I wonder how wicked I could be. Now, nobody would have done that unless it was pastor Polar but I do believe there probably are some that are here today that you're not completely surrendered and you're not totally dedicated and and just if I may even say, you probably need to get it this morning or you're not going to get it this week because frankly, if you don't get some motivation this morning, you're probably not going to be motivated to come back Monday through Friday and so what we have to look at is why we want to live for the Lord and what it's all about and get our motivation back because if we don't get motivation, we're not going to live for the Lord. If we get motivation, then we'll live for the Lord. So, what I'm going to do in this first service is just talk about some basic motivations for why we should, why we need to be dedicated people truly living for the Lord. Alright, now, the first reason is because of Jesus, because of Jesus.

Now, take your Bibles and if you will turn to Amos chapter eight and verse 11 and while you're turning to Amos eight eleven, I'm going to read to us another verse. It's Psalm 9,710. So, you find Amos eight eleven. I'll read Psalm 9,710. It says, you that love the Lord hate evil.

Ye that love the Lord hate evil. Now, there's a principle from that verse. Love increases hate. I'll say it again. Love increases hate.

Now, you say it. Love increases hate. Hate. Now, when I say love increases hate, how many of you say I know what you're talking about? I understand.

Would you raise your hand? Okay? How many say, I have no idea what you're talking about. Love increases hate. Alright, then let me explain.

When I was first interested in dating my wife, Becky, at the time, she was dating another man. I hated him. Love increases hate. The more I loved her, the less I loved my competition that kept her from me. Now, do you understand what I'm saying?

Now, the more that you love somebody, the more you're going to hate what keeps that person from you. Now, once I talked her into marrying me, I was traveling with her dad and he is a preacher and I stayed in the prophet's chamber of the church and I slept in there. It's like a motel in the church building and she stepped out in the trailer with her mom and dad. Isn't that what you're supposed to do before you get married? But anyway, one night, I looked out the window and I saw a group of teenagers pull up in a Transam automobile with tinted windows and loud music And I thought they were a rowdy bunch.

Now, I didn't know what they were going to do, but I did know what they were gonna try to do bodily harm to my future wife. I would hopefully do bodily harm to them first. So, I put on my blue jeans, went to the kitchen, and grabbed the biggest butcher knife that I could find. I put it in the back of my jeans and went out and stood in front of the Trans Am and held the knife out and they drove away. They probably thought it was a madman out of a mental institution walking around at midnight.

But the point is love increases hate. The more I love her, the less I would love a criminal who would try to harm her. The more I love my children, the less I'm going to love a drug pusher who would try to ruin their lives. And the more I love, the more I hate. And the more that I love God, the more I'm going to hate what hurts him.

And what hurts God more than anything is when we sin and when we sin, it's an indication that at least for that moment that I'm not walking in my love for God, I'm walking in love for myself or love for sin. Now, some people will say, I love God. But then over here, they'll say, I love Budweiser. Over here, they'll say, I love God. But then over here, I love marijuana.

Over here, I love God but then out of this side of the mouth, they'll say, I love sex before marriage. You're out of marriage. Now, when somebody is in love with God, then they're naturally going to try to stop doing things that would hurt them, hurt him. Now, it's not that we're going to always get it right. I don't always get it right.

In fact, I wish I got it right a lot more than I get it but I will tell you this, I want to try to get it right and with God's help, I get it right most of the time but I want to try to get it right and that's because I've got motivation for why I want to live for the Lord and that first motivation is because of Jesus. When I love him, I'm going to naturally try to stop doing the things that would hurt him and that's what we need to do. We need to fall in love with Jesus. Now, if we fall in love with Jesus, it'll take care of 90% of the sin problem. If we fall in love with Jesus, it'll kick up our dedication level.

There's some of you that need your dedication level kicked up and again, I'm telling you, from the bottom of my heart, I don't mean to judge anybody. I mean to lift up people And I'm telling you from the bottom of my heart, this not to be mean. I have been in revival meetings now for twenty nine years. Can you believe it? And in twenty nine years of preaching revival meetings, I know there are people that are already dedicated when I begin the meeting.

There are people that are half in when I begin the meeting. And there are people that are on the fringe. And you know what I see? When people get motivated for why they should live for God, they become really dedicated Christians and we have got to persuade people why we need to live for the Lord and I'm trying to give us one reason because this very first service, you have got to become motivated if you're really going to have a productive life and a good life for the Lord because if you're not motivated for what it's about, you probably won't even come back to the meeting to hear more about what needs to be done in your life. So, I'm challenging you get motivated this morning what it's all about.

Now, one of the reasons is because of Jesus and you've been looking at Amos chapter eight. Let's go ahead and I'll read that verse. Amos chapter eight and verse 11. It says, behold the days come saith the Lord that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread or of water but of hearing the word of the Lord. Now, usually when you think of a famine, you think of lack of food or lack of water, bellies are bloated from malnutrition.

Now, it's not a nice thing but this famine is not a physical but a spiritual famine and it says, it is a famine of hearing the word of the Lord, a famine of hearing the word of the Lord. Now, notice, it doesn't say it's a famine of preaching. There's preaching that goes on all the time in our churches but it is a famine of hearing. Now, how's that work? We can hear sermons and when we hear them, we can hear them but not hear them.

We can hear them in our head but not in our heart. On the bottom of a cigarette carton, it says warning, surgeon general says smoking causes what? Cancer. Now follow me. If you smoke cigarettes, I'm not beating you.

I'm building you. Now follow me. Every American believes that smoking causes cancer. But watch me. They believe it, but they don't believe it.

They believe it up here, but not down here. Why? If you believe it down here, you try to quit smoking because nobody wants to walk around with a stomach full of cancer. Am I right? Now, a head belief is I believe that's a fact.

I believe that's true but a hard belief, it grips you and it changes the direction of your life. Now, we've been talking about Jesus since you were born. You've heard it in one church or another. You've seen it on television. You've heard it in this church and we've talked about the crucifixion for years and years and maybe you've heard it for years and years but if we're not careful, we hear it in our head, not in our heart and until it gets out of the head and grips us in the heart, it's not going to do anything.

Now, here's what I want to do. I'm going to speak to us about Jesus' crucifixion briefly but I want to do it in a different way. I want us to hear it in our heart this time, not in our head. It'll do something to us. Alright, turn to Mark chapter 15 and in Mark chapter 15, you have the account of the crucifixion.

Alright, Mark 15 beginning at verse 15. And so Pilate willing to contend the people, released Barabbas unto them, and delivered Jesus when he had scourged him to be crucified. And the soldiers led him away to the hall called Praetorium and they called together the whole band. And they clothed him with purple and plotted a crown of thorns and put it about his head and began to salute him. Hail king of the Jews.

And they smote him on the head with a reed and did spit upon him and bowing their knees, worshiped him. Now, if I was to ask you what Jesus went through for you on the cross, you could tell me because you know it. You've got it in your head and many of you in your heart but you at least have it in your head. But I want us to hear it in our heart. Now, first of all, I don't wanna be sacrilegious but imagine yourself being God and you're in heaven and you're surrounded by the beauty of heaven and anything you want, the angels give it to you, you're in heaven and you're on the throne And then leave heaven and come to this place, Earth.

Now question, how many of you when you get to heaven are going to wanna come back to Earth? Not me. How about you? Now that was a sacrifice. Hear it in your head, no big deal.

Hear it in your heart, let it grip you that he would leave heaven and he would come here that'll change your behavior and your direction. Now, he took on the form of a man. Did he really become a man? Yes or no? Yes.

Became flesh and dwelt among us. John one fourteen. Now, when he became a man, God limiting himself to human body. Did he stop being God? No.

But he did limit himself to human body. Sickness, fatigue, all of the problems of being a human being, hunger, all of the problems inquired, and and and that he received by being a human, a human being. Now, that was a sacrifice. That would be like you going to a nursing home, finding somebody paralyzed from the neck down and trading bodies with him. Would you be willing to do that?

Then, he went about doing good. He fed the hungry, healed the sick, raised the dead. You would have thought all those good things. People would have loved him but they hated him and then they backstabbed him. Have you ever done something good for somebody and then they backstabbed you?

That's what we did to Jesus and then we crucified him. Now, before we crucified him, it wasn't an easy road. First thing we did was we scourged him in verse 15. Now, scourging is beating a man with a cat of nine tails. It is a handle with nine leather strips.

On the end of those leather strips are tied pieces of three or four inch long sharp rock, bone, or metal. They would take a man, tie him spread eagle in the air through four rings. Sometimes one ring dangling in the air. Other times, they'd bend his body over a rack and tie his wrist to his ankles. And once the soldier was secured, secured the prisoner, then he would pull that cat of nine tails back and with a mighty arm, he would lash it across his back and when he did it, he would snap it and when he would snap it, the leather would snap and it would shoot the bone rocking metal right into a man's back.

Once was in there, they would jerk it and it would take nine tracks of flesh off with it. Now, usually, they would beat a man 13 times from the left side and then they beat him 13 times from the right side and then 13 times down the center, ripping flesh this way, this way, and this way to do a thorough job. Now, after man was beaten with a cat of nine tails, his back would look like a piece of raw hamburger meat. Hear it in your head. I know it.

Hear it in your heart. Let it grip you. It'll do something to you. And then it says, that they planted a crown of thorns. If you go to Israel, the thorns are not little but they're up to six inches long.

They're very strong and very sharp. They put that on his head and they hit him on the head with a stick and they drove it right into his skull. That's like nails going right into your skull. They clothe them with purple. Now, how long was that robe on Christ back?

We don't know but maybe it had time to coagulate and if that's the case, shortly before they crucify Christ, they ripped off his robe and if that had dried, the robe would have dried right into the scabs and it would have ripped open those scabs the second time. Now, I used to play sports. If I would hurt my knee, it would dry over a scab. The next day, fall on the same knee was twice as painful the second time. Turning your Bibles over to Psalm 22, a messianic prophecy speaking of the crucifixion.

Psalm 22, a thousand years before Jesus was ever born, it was prophesied, someone would die on a cross and they would pierce his hands and his feet and this is one reason we can be sure the Bible is truly from God because of the fulfilled prophecy but notice what he said in Psalm twenty two fourteen, Christ on the cross. I am poured out like water. All my bones are out of joint. Now, why would Christ say he was poured out like water? If you put water in a round bowl, it'll take the form of a bowl.

If you put water in a square box, it'll take the form of a square. The form of water goes into whatever you put it into. Now, the form of a man's body is his bones. If his bones were all out of joint, he'd be like water with no form. Now, why would Christ say, I am poured out like water?

Verse 14, keep reading. I am poured out like water. Why? All my bones are out of joint. There used to be a torture in Bible days where they would tie man's body to two different huge animals.

They would hit those animals. They pull that body in opposite directions and pull that body completely apart. Anybody heard of that? Now, it's not in the Bible but his bones had to get pulled out somehow of their sockets. Some people think that Roman soldiers grabbed the arms and the legs and pulled the bones out of joint.

Some people think when they nailed Jesus to the cross and dropped that cross into the ground. The cross piece weighed over two fifty pounds. The long piece weighed quite a bit more and they had a deep hole to be able to hold that up and as the soldiers lifted it up and slid it down and it hit us a drop and thud, they think that may have jerked his shoulders out of joint. I don't know but somehow, his bones were out of joint. Now, nurse said, if Jesus bones were out of joint on the cross, his rib cage would have sunk around his lungs and it would have cut off his capacity to breathe.

It would have cut off some of his organs and she said, Jesus then with his knees out of joint and with his shoulders out of joint probably likely his elbows out of joint. He would have had to lift up his rib cage so that his inward organs could function and he could breathe. Imagine the excruciating pain. Now, notice verse 15, my strength is dried up like a potsherd that's a clay pot. My tongue cleave it to my jaw.

Jesus was so thirsty, his tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth. And what did we give Jesus to drink when he was on the cross? Anybody? Vinegar. Vinegar.

Alright, verse 16, halfway through. They pierced my hands and my feet. That's the 10 to 12 inch railroad size spike nail right to the hand and right to the foot. Think of that. Hear it in your head, I know it.

Hear it in your heart. It'll grip you. Amen. It'll it'll motivate you. Now, look at verse 17.

He said, I may tell on my bones why they look and stare upon me. Now, how else could your bones stare on you unless they were protruding through your flesh? Protruding through your flesh. Now, not one of Christ's bones were broken but maybe where they were pulled out of joint at the shoulder, they came back through the skin. Not one of his bones were broken but maybe where they were pulled out of joint at the elbow, the bone came back to the skin.

I'm saying a maybe. Maybe it's talking about where his back was beaten with the whip of the cat of nine tails and as it's lacerated flesh and lacerated flesh and removed flesh and lacerated more flesh and ripped off a layer at a time. You could see the bone of his back so he could talk to his bone. All I know is there were places where you could literally see his bones. Imagine that.

Now, it's not just trickle of blood. It wasn't just a little thing. Turn your Bibles over to Isaiah 52 and it sums up the crucifixion of Jesus and then Isaiah 53 reminds us why he went through that but Isaiah 52 and verse 14, why you're turning there? I'll just get a little drink of water. Now, Isaiah 52 and verse 14, it says, as many as were astonied at thee, astoning means amazed.

As many as were amazed beyond comprehension, that's what astonied means. I cannot believe what I'm seeing when they looked at Christ. As many as were stunned at thee, why? His visage, meaning his face was so marred more than any man and his form more than the sons of men. Now, what does that mean?

His face was marred more than any man. Alright, they grabbed his beard. They twisted his beard and they pulled out his beard, right? They blindfolded him and they hit him in the face. Remember?

What would a face look like with 100 soldiers hitting a person in the face? What would he look like after the fiftieth punch? What would he look like after the hundredth punch? We don't know how many soldiers hit him in the face but they slapped him and they hit him and said, who hit you? And he could've told him but he didn't and all of this is true.

It's in our Bible. Now, then, the crown of thorns, his face swollen, his skin cut, his beard ripped, his face emaciated, his body responding by swelling and sending water to that area so it would swell. What would his face look like? It looked more than a man. It didn't look human.

And his bones pulled out of joint. His back lacerated and the swelling at the joints and all that he was in nailed to the cross. He didn't look human more than any man. Now, why was Christ's back ripped off with a cat of nine tails? Here's where we need to get down to where we are.

Why did he let them? I say, he let them because Jesus could've stopped it all. Am I right? Amen. Why did he let them pull his beard out?

Why did he let them beat him? Why did he let them spit spit on him? Why did he let them crucify him? Why did he let them beat him to the point that he didn't even look like a human in his face or his body? Why did he let them do all that?

Isaiah fifty two fourteen because of Isaiah 53, I believe it's verse five but he was wounded for what? Our transgressions. Our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was upon him and with his stripes, we are healed.

Now, I want you to remember the pronoun there. Our transgressions. Our iniquity. We are healed. Now, I know that this happened two thousand years ago, but if the bible's true and it is, then it's still applicable that this was our sin.

Amen? Amen. Our chastisement that we shoulda had in hell was on him on the cross. Amen. And with his stripes, we are healed and here's the reminder, why we want to do what do?

Why do we want to be dedicated? Why do we not want to be somebody who says, well, I go Sunday morning. Don't push me. Don't pressure me for Sunday night. Don't push me, preacher.

Why do we want to be more than a don't push me any further preacher Christian? Because he was wounded for our transgressions and he died for us. So, frankly, we should live for him. Amen. Amen?

Amen. And the way that we show God we love him is we hate the sin that hurts him. Now, there could be somebody here today that you're struggling spiritually and one thing that'll help you would be every time I'm tempted to do wrong, Jesus knows I'm being tempted. And this is an opportunity for me to say, Jesus, see, I really do love you. I'm not going to do the sin that's going to hurt you just because I love you.

That's my motivation. Right now, if we don't have motivation, we're not going to do what we need to and so, this very first service, I know it's I know it's a one time shot but it can be something that can last a long time. Do you think it's possible that one forty minute sermon could change a person's life? Yes. I do And this could be something that might help you to go from here to here just to get you going the right direction and then you hear more things in the week but the first is because of Jesus.

Now, the second reason you want to give your life completely to God and be dedicated is because of you. I turn your Bibles to Proverbs chapter 28. Proverbs 28 and verse 14. Proverbs 28 and verse 14. You've got two alternatives for life.

You can have a good one or you can have a bad one. Alright, Proverbs 28 and verse 14. Happy is the man that feareth all way but he that hardeneth his heart shall fall into mischief. So, you can have happiness or you can have mischief. The two alternatives for life, happiness or mischief.

Now, the positive side is happiness. The three things that people want in life more than anything, I can tell you what they are. Love, joy, and peace. Now, why do people have extramarital affairs? They want to feel loved.

Why do people get drunk? They call it happy hour. They want to feel happiness. Now, why do people take drugs? They want to forget their problems that they're dealing with and they want to have a little peace, right?

But you, the Bible says, you get apples from an apple tree, you get oranges from an orange tree but love, joy, and peace comes from God's tree. Amen. The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, and peace. Now, I let a 68 year old lady to the Lord by the name of Jeanette and the first thing she said was, I've got peace. I let a 19 year old teenager to the Lord and the first thing he said, this is better than any high that I've ever had.

And whenever people come to Christ, they get that love, that joy, and that peace. Amen. And that's where we get what we've been looking for. Amen. And that's where we keep what we're looking for.

Christ. Now, many people think that holiness is a bunch of don'ts. Don't listen to the wrong music. Don't date the wrong kinds of people. Don't drink beer.

Don't use cuss words. Don't have hair that pertains to women. Don't miss church. Don't don't don't and don't do that either and many people think that all Christianity is is holiness is a bunch of don'ts. Now, follow me.

Holiness is not negative, it's positive. Now, if one man is walking this way and another man's walking that way, can you walk with them both at the same time? Yes or no? No. God's going this way and the world's going that way.

Would we agree they're going different directions? Yeah. Can we walk with God and the world at the same time? So, why do we want you to walk with God instead of the world? You walk with the world.

There's pleasure in sin for a season. You know what that means? You're gonna have a good time at first but summer's not here very long and then comes the payday. And it doesn't last but then you walk with God, you get real love, real joy, and real peace. You shall be holy unto me for I, the Lord, am holy and have severed you from other people that you should be mine.

Leviticus twenty twenty six. Without holiness, no man shall see the Lord. Hebrews chapter 12 and verse 14. So, we want to say no sin, yes, Jesus because when we walk with Jesus, we get what we're looking for, the love, the joy, and the peace. Now, the positive side, we walk with God, we get happiness.

Now, how many would agree that heaven is better than hell? And so this is why we chose Jesus. Now, the negative side, it says, the wicked shall fall into mischief. Now, mischief, preachers sometimes almost preach like they hope that people's lives get ruined if they mess up so they have a better sermon illustration. Right now, I've seen a lot of people ruin their lives by messing up and going in a route of sin But I will tell you, I've never smiled one time when it's happened.

I've seen people get divorced. I've seen people be in misery. I've seen people end up in a premature grave because of sin. I never one time have smiled. I never one time will smile.

But there is a way that seemeth right unto a man but they are never the ways of death, ruin, destruction. Now, sometimes, there are self inflicted wounds. When you choose to not go God's way but you choose to go sin way. Self inflicted wounds. I was in one place in North Carolina and this car sped past me.

It went this way, this way, hit a median, rolled, landed upside down. And when it landed upside down, I then saw smoke coming out of the engine and I knew there was gonna be an explosion. So, I pulled over to think I better get that person out of that car before it blows up and I go down, look inside that automobile and I did not see anybody in the automobile but I did see a whole lot of corona beer bottles. And I put two plus two together and equals drunk driving. So I didn't see anybody in there, and I knew enough from my background to know that somebody could be ejected.

So I'm looking all over, and I see what looks like possibly a human being back about a 100 yards. So I run over there to where he was, and sure enough, he had been ejected. And as I looked at that body that I realized it was a result of drunk driving, it was ejected from that automobile. I looked that body over. I saw several fingers had been scraped off on the pavement.

I saw his bones were broken on his arms. I saw his legs were broken, his legs were back behind his body. And I saw he had a hole in his chest the size of a tennis ball. And I felt for a pulse. His eyes were open, but he was very dead.

And what that was was a self inflicted wound. Now, I don't boast on that. I don't delight in that. I don't say great sermon illustration I got from that. I say, how sad.

And yet though, there are others who are in the same direction pointing their nose in the same direction and you will fall into mischief. Now, then, as a Christian, if we get out of God's will, then, we also have to deal with God's chastisement. God chastens whom he loves. Now, God's not up there with a baseball bat waiting for you to step out of line to crack you on the head. If he was, I'd be in trouble already But he's patient.

And this is something that some of you are going to have to just decide. If you think I'm being judgmental, I'm not trying to be. I'm trying to build not to beat up. But I do want you to understand, you're going to wrestle with them. I really going to believe what the preacher's saying on this.

Alright, here's what the preacher's saying. God says, not the preacher. He chastens whom he loves. For what son is he whom he receiveth? Who he chasten not?

If he be without chastisement where of all sons are partakers and you bastards and not sons. You know what God is saying? If you're a child of God and you're half in instead of all in, he's going to work to get you all in instead of half in. Amen. If you're a child of God and you just won't yield some sin to him, he's going to work on you to get you to yield so you'd be better as the son of God and he's going to chase in you just like your parent would.

When I was a child, my mom didn't beat me senseless all the time, just sometimes but she would spank as hard as she had to but never harder. First thing she do is she look at me and she give me a hairy eyeball. If that didn't work, she'd come down a little harder. She might say, Mike, and if that didn't work, she called my middle name, Michael Andrew and if that didn't work, there'd be bloodshed in the woodshed. I can remember one time I got a spanking and I went upstairs and told my brother Paul didn't hurt.

Still had an attitude. Paul being a good brother went down and said, hey, dad. Mike said, it didn't hurt. So, dad said, hey, Mike. Come here.

I'll make it hurt and I got a second spanking and that one hurt and so dad was trying to go easy on me and I didn't learn my lesson so then he had to come down harder on me and it was my own fault. Now, some of you going to have to decide. I'm going to believe the preacher. Am I going to believe the Bible on this one and the application the preacher's given or not. I know you believe the Bible.

He chastens whom he loves but we believe this application. I believe that you cannot be a half in Christian without God disciplining you to try to make you an all in Christian. Follow me? Now, with that, I believe God's not going to crack you on the head if you're only coming Sunday morning but I'm going to tell you, he's going to work to get you more faithful. And what's he going to do?

First thing he'll do, he might give you that hairy eyeball and that little conviction. That means, you know, you should be doing more than this. I'm not beating you. I'm building you. I'm asking you, have you felt that from God?

You should be doing more than this. Alright, that doesn't work. He may come down a little harder. He may put you in an automobile wreck. Now, not every time you get an automobile wreck is a judgment from God.

Sometimes, it's women drivers, right men? But anyway, it maybe God puts you in a car wreck. It might be God brings a financial problem. He might bring some other physical problem. You say, well, that's not a wish judgment.

No, it's not but sometimes, it is and you usually know if you're surrendered to God and if he's trying to get your attention. How many remember that guy who said there's pleasure in sin for a season? I'm going to live my season. Remember him? He lived his season.

He went to beer party, got drunk, and he got in a fight. Afterwards, three young men came and said, do you want revenge on the guy who beat you up? He said, sure, what do we do? They took him over to the car in the back of the car with three rifles. They said, Dale, you get in and we'll drive over to the house and the guy beat you up.

At midnight, you knock on his door and when you knock on his door, he opens the door, you can say payday. And we'll blow holes in his house. True story. Dale said, that'll get him. He got in the car, drove over to the home with the guy who beat him up supposedly with these three guys and they had set him up.

Dale was still drunk. They were friends of the guy who beat Dale up. And they took him to an abandoned home and they said, Dale, get out, knock in the door, we'll blow holes in his house. So, he got out, was going to knock on the door, they pulled out the rifles, and instead of aiming them at the house, they aimed him at his back. And they pulled the trigger and they hit the target.

Now, God was trying to get a hold of my friend, Dale. You say, how do you know it was God? Here's how I know. Dale lived. You don't live through three rifle holes in your back unless it's God.

Does that make sense? Now, my preacher went to visit him and said, Dale, God's been trying to get a hold of you. Dale, are you ready to get right with God? Now, I wasn't there but I was told, Dale laughed in my preacher's face. Now, some of you say, man, if God tried to get a hold of me that way, I wouldn't laugh Some of you, God's been trying to get a hold of you with conviction but you've laughed.

Some of you gods trying to get a hold of you a little bit harder with something else to try to get your attention but you just shake it off. If you would shake this off, you'd probably be full enough to laugh if something like deal were to happen to you. You say, oh, nothing will ever happen to me. Yeah. God chases whom he loves.

That's what he said. Amen. So, are you going to believe it? You cannot be a disobedient or half in Christian without God trying to make you an all in Christian. Years ago, I can remember a missionary talking about a missionary an event that took place.

He said, one day, they were on the mission field and they were in an area in Northern Brazil, Northern Bolivia, I believe, where they worship the python or an anaconda which is like a python that wraps itself around its prey, contracts, and then it eats its victim. Well, this particular day, they were in there trying to win a family to the Lord and they heard cries from the backyard where the kids were playing. Mommy, daddy, mommy, daddy, and then they ran out to see what was wrong. They saw an anaconda had come out of the woods. It wrapped itself around those two little children.

So, they were screaming for someone to help em and the screams got louder. Mommy, daddy, mommy, and then somebody ran, got a shovel, was going to chop the snake's head off but the parents grabbed him and said, no, leave it alone. Leave it alone. They worship the snake. So, the person couldn't do anything and the snake contracted and it contracted to the point that you could literally hear the bones crack as the snake squeezed the life out of those two children.

Now, do you know what the parents did after the snake killed their two little children, their children, their little babies? They walked over together, got down their knees together in front of the snake, and bowed their heads and worshiped the snake saying, thank you for counting our babies worthy of a sacrifice. And some of you say, what kind of a parent would worship the snake that killed their two little babies? What kind of a fool would worship a snake that kills their own little babies? Listen to me.

In a more civilized way, you do the same thing some of you. You say you're being mean. Follow me. You worship your sin. It's wrapping itself around you.

It will one day contract. It'll one day hurt you. It'll destroy your life and it may send you to hell and a preacher preaches against it. You say, leave it alone, you big mouth preacher. Who are you to tell me not to do that?

Preach on cigarette smoking. It's wrapping itself around you. It's squeezing out your health. Every puff and it's wrapping and contracting and you preach against it in love. People say, leave it alone, preacher.

All I'm trying to do is kill the snake before it kills you. Can of beer. Leave it alone, preacher. Jesus turned the water and the wine. First of all, he didn't turn it into the kind of stuff that's out there today.

And he did not turn it into strong drink. And he did not turn it into fermented. Because he says, look on the wine when it is red when it stirreth in the cup. That's the formation process. And if you're not supposed to look at it, how are supposed to drink it?

And the Bible says, wine is a mocker and it doesn't just condemn getting drunk and condemns the substance. Don't have it in your refrigerator. You say, well, I can control it. Well, can your kids? And we're trying to kill that snake before it kills you or kills one of your children one day and what we have to do is recognize sins, bad, deadly, dangerous, and it's mischief but if we follow Christ, we'll find happiness.

Alright. Now, number one, because of Jesus, if you don't have that motivation that you love God, you're gonna hate what hurts him. Number two, for your own sake and very briefly in closing, number three, Turning your Bibles to Psalm chapter nine, Psalm chapter nine. One reason we want to live for God is because of Jesus. Number two, because of you and if for no other reason, because of them, outside these four walls, there really is a world that people are on their way to hell and I know you know that.

I know you know that. How many of you would say, brother Mike, I do believe that the that there are many people in the world that are on their way to hell and they need Christian witness. If you agree with that, would you slip up the hand and put it right back down, okay? Now, Psalm nine seventeen, the wicked shall be turned into hell. It's really going to happen.

The wicked shall be turned into hell and all nations that forget God. Hell is not a fairy tale. It's what I'm saying. Romans six twenty three, the wages of sin is death. Revelation twenty fourteen, death and hell were cast into the lake of fire.

This, the lake of fire is the second death and there really is a world where people are dying and on the way to hell and we've got to do something about it. I close with one illustration. In Dalton, Georgia, 1979, four young men went to their favorite swim hole. They had not been there in a month. The first teen dove in.

Second teen was about to dive in when the head popped up from the first teen who dove into the water and he screamed, go back. Go back and got sucked under. Realizing his friend was in danger, he put his foot in the water, tried to help him. His friend, and that head popped out the second time of his friend and he screamed the second, go back. Go back and got sucked under.

One last time, he tried to help his friend and the head popped up with the final blood curling scream. Go back and got sucked under. This time, they set a pool of blood rose to the surface of the water. They ran to get help. They brought the fire department.

The fire department came and they went through the water, scraped it out, and they brought out that young man's body and they found what had happened. That young man had dove head first into a nest of water snakes. He was eaten alive. Now, when I read that story and I heard it, I've had three people tell me that that's exactly what happened. They were in Dalton, Georgia when it happened.

It made the newspapers, it happened. When I read that, I began to think, what would it be like if I could come in front of the crowds that I get to preach to and take a magic saw and cut a hole in the lid to hell. Cut a hole in earth, cut down into hell, open the lid to hell, and reach down and take a hold of one damned soul who's been burning in hell for a few thousand years. Put him behind the pulpit and let him preach and may sit down. I imagine we hear the most eloquent sermon ever heard by mankind.

Go back. Go back. Don't come here. I'll go back. Why does it seem that we never want to warn the wicked about hell anymore until they get there?

And when we're looking at them in a casket, it's too late to do anything about it. And so these kind of meetings are important because we can work to get people to hear about Jesus and we need to and this kind of ministry is important because of its ability to help people go to heaven instead of hell through the gospel of Jesus Christ. Let's bow our heads and we'll have a word of prayer.