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2024-02-11- Sunday School- Good Cheer in the Storm
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The speaker begins by greeting everyone and acknowledging the presence of Sister Glynda and Brother Anthony. They mention praying for Brother Anthony and his church. They then talk about a verse from Isaiah 53:5 that talks about Jesus being wounded for our transgressions. The speaker expresses gratitude for the price that was paid for them. They mention that they will be turning to Lesson 11 in the Holiness Heritage but apologize for not finishing it. They talk about the importance of Sunday school and how it can impact people's lives. They then discuss Acts 26 and the interaction between Paul and King Agrippa. They mention that Agrippa knew the Jewish customs and beliefs but often showed less mercy to Paul than the Gentiles did. The speaker suggests that Paul was laying groundwork to witness to Agrippa. They talk about the difficulty of winning backsliders to the Lord and quote Hebrews 10:25 to emphasize the importance of not forsaking the assembly. They also mention 1 John Good morning, everybody. It's good to have everybody here. I believe we've got a full class. Sister Glynda's here, praise the Lord. A few extras. Brother Anthony. Up there in Owensboro, we've been praying for him. Praying for that church. As he was singing that song, Draw Me Near, that precious bleeding side, I thought of this verse here, Isaiah 53 and 5 says, but he was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was upon him. With his stripes we're healed. Thankful for the price that was paid for us this morning. And we will turn to Lesson 11 in the Holiness Heritage. And I didn't get all the way through. I apologize, I didn't get all the way through. And hopefully I didn't miss the mark on how far we will get. But I don't anticipate to get all the way through the lesson this morning. I had went over it a couple times, and it might have seemed like I've gone on a few rabbit trails, which I tend to do. But I feel like the Lord had helped us this morning and gave me something for the class. Thank you, Lord. I didn't realize Sister Lindsey was going to be in here. I guess they're out too. It's good to have her in here this morning. I pray for her Sunday school a lot. And for her, and I think it's very necessary. Some might say, you know, what are you doing in there? Maybe, you know, with the elbow macaronis and things like that. But it's very, very important. We've already seen Brother Juddy has been touched and saved. And I think a lot of that has to do with Sunday school. We heard her testimony. I think it's very important what she's doing. I'd heard one time that Hamas had been teaching their children, Brother Tim, they had teddy bears and they decapitate them and teach them that that's what they need to do to God's people. And if they're doing that, how much more important is it for us to teach the Word of God to our young children? And I think it's necessary. I don't have time to ramble. I'm sorry. Last Sunday, we read the majority of Acts 26. We were introduced to a man, King Herod Agrippa, and his sister, Bernice. History tells us that they was much more than brother and sister, but that's, you know, take it for how you want. Paul tells Agrippa that he is happy to plead his case to him in Acts 26 and 3. If you all want to turn towards that way and, like I said, lesson 11 in your holiness heritage, good cheer in the storm. And we'll get to that. Acts 26 and 3 says, especially because I know thee to be expert in all customs and questions which are among the Jews. The governors Felix and Festus were Romans, but King Agrippa was one of the Herods appointed by Rome, and Paul says he was an expert in Jewish tradition and beliefs. Realistically, this should have been in Paul's favor, but often Paul got more mercy from the Gentiles than he did the Jewish people. Paul's plea for freedom was secondary to what he really wanted to do. We've been talking about that, which is to show Agrippa the error of his ways. When Paul says in Acts 26 and 2, I thank myself happy, King Agrippa, because I shall answer for myself this day before thee touching all the things whereof I am accused of the Jews, especially because I know thee to be an expert in all customs and questions which are among the Jews. Wherefore, I beseech thee to hear me patiently. I can't help but think that Paul, in his wisdom, Brother Ronnie, is laying some groundwork to witness to Agrippa here, saying, finally, I get to talk to someone that knows and understands exactly what Jesus has done for them. Sometimes when we're talking to somebody, we need to relate to them and say, you know what God, especially when we're dealing with a backslider, we need to bring them to that realization that you know the price that was paid. And I feel like Brother Paul was doing that to King Agrippa this morning in our reading. He drives this point home after giving a wonderful testimony once again in Acts 26 and 26. He says, For the king knoweth of these things, before whom also I speak freely. For I am persuaded that none of these things are hidden from him, for this thing was not done in a corner. Christ's death and resurrection was not news to anyone at this time. Everyone would have known, especially Herod, what it was done. Even Paul's name would have been fairly public knowledge, I believe, Camden. He made quite the stir before his conversion, and more so even after. His conversion is estimated between four to seven years after Christ's ascension into heaven. Remember in Acts, the Lord spoke to Ananias in a vision to go to Paul, who was still Saul at the time. And God said, Acts 9 and 13, Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man how much evil he hath done to thy saints at Jerusalem. So none of this, Paul's testimony and what Jesus had done for him, none of that is really great news to King Agrippa. He would have known all this. Often, those are the hardest to win to the Lord, unfortunately, it seems. The writer of Hebrews, I believe, addresses this to his people in Hebrews 10 and 25. In Hebrews 10 and 25, if you want to turn there for me, or with me. The writer says, Not forsaken the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the day approaching. For if we sin willfully, after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaining no more sacrifice for sins. But a certain fearful looking of judgment and fiery indignation which shall devour the adversaries. He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under two or three witnesses. How much sore punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden underfoot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done to spite unto the Spirit of grace. We can relate to this text when we witness to a backslider. They know the truth, they know the price that was paid, and they still say, No, thank you. I'm not interested right now. It's hard for me not to take that personally, Brother Ronnie, and I can't even imagine how much harder it is for Jesus to hear that rejection after the price that was paid. We try to get them to come back to church, and they'll push us away. They'll give excuse after excuse. I've experienced this with my family, unfortunately. We get them to come to church. We preach our hearts out to them, and they show little to no interest. If the Bible gave no indication of hope for these people, we should unfortunately just ignore those that have turned their backs on God and focus our efforts on others, but thankfully that's not the case. 1 John 2 and 1, I believe, addresses that. 1 John 2 and 1 says, My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. Fr. Michel spoke about this the other night, and he is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. Luke 15 and 1 says, Then drew near unto him all the publicans and sinners, for to hear him. And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them. And he spoke this parable unto them, saying, What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it? And when he found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbors, saying unto them, Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost. I say unto you that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons which need no repentance. That word repent in the Greek is metanoio, which means to reconsider, not just consider, but reconsider. Luke 15 and 8 says, What woman, having ten pieces of silver, if she lose one piece, doth not light a candle, and sweep the house, and seek till she find it? Seek diligently. We can rejoice in the fact that God not only wants that backslider back, He diligently seeks them. I believe we even play a crucial role in that by calling their name out to God and reaching for that lost as well. Paul tells in Romans 10 and 1, I know there's a lot of turning if you choose to do so, Romans 10 and 1, Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they might be saved. For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For they, being ignorant of God's righteousness and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. Paul knew the power of prayer for the Jews and even the Gentiles. He quotes Jesus while talking to Agrippa in Acts 26 and 15, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest. But rise and stand upon thy feet, for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness of both these things which thou hast seen and of those things in which I will appear unto thee, delivering thee from the people and from the Gentiles unto whom now I send thee, to open their eyes and to turn them from the darkness to light and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me. So Paul prayed and reached for both the Jew and the Gentile as we are called to today. Sometimes it might feel hopeless, but don't give up on it. James 5 and 16 says, Confess your faults one to another and pray one for another that you may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. The effectual fervent prayer for someone else will produce results. I believe that this morning. Stay focused and trust the process that Jesus has laid out. I've heard people testify, and I want to be careful with this part. I've heard people say that God has promised them that he would not let their loved one die lost, that he gave them a promise in prayer. And I would just say to that, praise the Lord, but please don't let that stop you from effectual fervent prayer for that soul. That's all I'll say on it. Don't let go of that burden. Also, while studying the prodigal son this week, I had that in my message this past Wednesday, and Camden had spoke on it a while back, too. I had to think, how much sooner would that prodigal son return home if he had a brother that was reaching for him instead of the attitude that we find out that he had? I know we've read it a couple times this month. Let's turn to it real quickly. There's a couple of points I'd like to make. Luke 15 and 14. We won't read the whole thing, of course. It's Luke 15 and 14. Sometimes I feel like there's a whole lot of dead air, and then sometimes I start reading and I see people turning and I feel bad, so it's kind of a... Luke 15 and 14 says, Notice that the prodigal son had to come to himself. There have been times that I've had to do that, and praise God we're able to do that. God gives us the ability to talk to ourselves. We can get in a really low spot, and I've been there, and sometimes we don't even want someone else to know that we're there, so we don't reach out to anybody. So we just have to preach to ourselves sometimes. Sometimes we can be our own worst enemies, but sometimes we can even be our own best preacher. This is what I think Paul was meaning in Philippians 4 and 6 when he wrote, Be careful for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God which passeth all understandings, he'll keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report, if there be any virtue, if there be any praise, think on these things. Take it to God first. He says, but in everything by prayer and supplication. So take it to God first. And even if you don't feel that much different right away, walk away positive. Focus on the good things. Take your burdens to the Lord, but don't forget the most important part, which is to leave it there. Brother Ronnie sings about it all the time. Why do we unload all our troubles at the cross, and then once we're done, pick them all back up and go about our day? So back to the prodigal son. He had to come to himself. We don't read of anybody else around that he could go to except a pig farmer that wasn't paying him to talk about his feelings. He had spent all of his money, so those harlots that he was entertaining his life with, they're not even around to pretend to listen to him or even care. But wouldn't it be nice if this son had someone to talk to, an older brother perhaps? It's a shame that this man had to wonder if he would even be accepted as a servant if he had the guts to go back home, especially knowing what we know now, looking back. His father couldn't wait to catch a glimpse of him cutting across that field. I'm sure that he'd return the same way he had left. Can you imagine his father looking out there time after time across that field? No, that's one of the servants. No, it's just a deer. But one day it was him, and his father ran to him. If you walked away from God this morning, you can find Him. And all you have to do is return the same way you left. You will find mercy. But he could have returned so much sooner. Things didn't have to get so bad. If he'd had a brother that would have just went to him on his father's behalf and said, you know, the father still loves you. He still talks about you all the time. He still waits for you to come home. He still likes it when I talk about you. Was the elder brother back home receiving blessings from the father? No, he was out in the field, so far away from the father himself that he had to ask what was going on when his brother showed up. What's all the festivities about? What's going on over there? Now, I tell on myself a lot, but I feel like we can relate to those things. And I'm a little bit maybe sometimes too transparent. But when I read this story, I thought about a time that I wasn't living right, that I was in and out of church, and, you know, I'd be in the church real strong, and then something had a hold on me and I couldn't let it go, and so I wouldn't come to church so often. I was what you would call a yo-yo Christian. And, you know, I'd have a burden at times, and then I would let go of that and then get distracted on other things. And I was at this point in my life when my kids came home one morning, and I let the devil win and I didn't go to church. And my wife and kids come home and they said, Brother Henry Dalton got saved. Now, I'd prayed for this man I don't know how many times. I had a burden for this man multiple times in my life. And my kids come home, and here I am, lost myself and aggravated at God because He wouldn't take this thing away from me. And, you know, I felt like I'd done all I could do and didn't know how to let go of it and didn't know what to do. And here I am all by myself, and my family come home rejoicing because they had just seen Brother Henry Dalton get saved. And they were so excited. And, you know, I mustered up a little bit of a, what? That's good. And I acted like it didn't affect me much at all. And, Brother Tim, I can remember just kind of casually going off into the bathroom. And I broke down and I started crying. And I had a mix of emotions because I was so happy for him. And, you know, I was rejoicing in that. But I was lost myself, and I was aggravated because I'd missed that celebration. And I was a little bit mad because Henry had found what he wanted, and I didn't have what I needed. And I relate to this elder brother here. He was so far away from God. He was at the Lord's house. He had everything right there, but he was out in the field. And he was aggravated, and he was mad, and he didn't have what he needed. So what was the brother's response? Luke 15 and 28, And he was angry and would not go in. Therefore came his father out and entreated him. And he answered and said to his father, Lo, these many years do I serve thee. Neither transgressed I at any time thy commandment. And yet thou never gavest me a kid that I might make merry with my friends. But as soon as this thy son was come, which hath devoured thy living with harlots, thou hast killed for him the fatted calf. And he said unto him, Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine. It was meet that we should make merry and be glad. For this thy brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found. Is there anyone in this house this morning? You've never left the Father's house physically. And don't get me wrong, we're all called to be servants, but are you forgetting that He is simply your Father? It's just become a drudgery of what you can and cannot do. You've lost the joy. Maybe it's time you come to the altar and say, God, I've never left, but somehow my joy has. I somehow forgot that first and foremost, I'm your child. I want to see our relationship like that again. There are stages in my kids' life, and most of the time it's when they have a boyfriend or something like that. You know, in the teenage years, I've learned that sometimes we get stuck in this place of you can't do that, you can't go there, I don't want you to do that, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. And, you know, I go off to work and come back and it's just, no, you know, every conversation is no, no, no, no. And I mean well, and that's really, I'm giving the right answer, but we just get stuck in that spot. But then, you know, at some point the questions stop. They quit coming to me, and things are a little awkward, things are a little bit weird for a week or two. But you know what we have to do? We get to a place where we just sit down and talk about it. We've got to sit down and talk, and I've got to say, you're my child, and I'm your dad, and I love you. And this has become a no, you can't do that situation, and it just seems like there's a distance between us. Let's talk about this. Don't forget that I'm your dad. I'm the same man I've always been. God is the same way. He plays a lot of roles in our life. He's like the Lord. He directs us in every way, and I'm thankful that He does. But sometimes we just need to stop and say, God, I just need one of those hugs today. I need You to fall on my neck today. I've seen You put a robe on that one over there. I saw You put a ring on this one over there. I saw You put shoes on that one's feet. And I haven't felt those blessings in a while, but until I do, I just want to feel the blessing of being Your child. God will do that for you. The Father said the returning son was dead and is alive again. But sometimes there's a dead one right in the house of God that has never left. What about that one? Are you that person this morning? Was the elder son any more alive because he never left? He could have been receiving the blessings all along, going out and telling his brother about it. He could come back home and see what Dad's doing back home. Look what he did for me. I don't know what kind of work he was doing for his father out there in the field, but it wouldn't have been as important as going out and convincing his brother to come back home. We can stay busy doing this and that, but the most important thing we will ever do is bring a soul back to the Father. Matthew 11 and 28 says, Come unto Me, all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me, for I am meek and lowly in heart. And you shall find rest unto your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light. In our homes, us dads can get a little bit militant at times, especially through the teenager years. We can get stressed, and that's why we really need those kitchen table talks and those devotions and those prayers as a family, and I fail at those a lot of times, but we really need those talks like that. We need a reminder that I'm your dad and you're my child, and things are getting a little hustle and bustle, but we always need to have that father and daughter, father and son relationship. Luke 10 and 38 says, Now it came to pass as they went that he entered into a certain village and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house. I love this story. And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet and heard his word. But Martha was cumbered about much serving and came to him and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? Bid her, therefore, that she help me. So Jesus stops to visit Mary and Martha, and John records that these are the sisters that had the brother Lazarus that he raises from the dead in John. Martha is fussing about serving. She's in the kitchen doing the dishes and being at Jesus' beck and call and being a good hospitable person. And she's just putting on a good impression for Jesus and doing everything, nothing wrong, actually serving the Lord and getting him anything he might want, all the while Mary is simply sitting at Jesus' feet enjoying his company. Well, Martha finally has enough of it and says, Jesus, I'm serving all by myself, and Mary's just sitting there. Why don't you say something to her? Surely she thought Jesus would be on her side. I mean, she was the one doing everything. But in 41 it says, And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things, but one thing is needful, and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her. Charles Spurgeon had a commentary on this. It says, Martha's frustration is typical of those who diligently serve with good intent but forget to also sit at Jesus' feet. The Martha spirit says, If the work is done, is that not all? The Mary spirit asks whether Jesus is well pleased or no. All must be done in his name and by his spirit, or nothing is done. It's great to be working out in the field like the elder son. It's important to serve Jesus. But if we neglect that one-on-one time ourselves, those father and son talks, how do we know what is pleasing to Him? Are we pleasing to Him? You may be able to look at someone else and say, They don't even mow the church yard. They never get up and preach. They never sing a song. But if you're focused on your relationship with God, you're not even keeping score. Let's do a work for God, but don't ever say, I don't have time to pray, but I've got a message together. We've got it backwards if we do that. Preacher, if God is knocking on your heart to hit the altar, don't walk around putting your hand on everybody else and praying for them. That's good. That's needful. But if you need to pray, you need to pray. Don't have too much pride to hit your knees yourself. Those that play instruments, it's very important. I wish I could do it. That's a talent that God has given you, and it's very needful in this church. If you need to get down and pray, every one of these instruments up here can wait. We can do without it if you need to pray. If God is knocking on your heart, that's where you need to be. It's great to do a work for the Lord, but let's make sure we're spending that one-on-one time with Him, that we've got everything right, that we're talking to Him, that good part. Now, what does this all have to do with Paul? I don't even remember. Let's go to Lesson 11, the theme this morning. It says, Storms come to every life. Sometimes they are of our own making, and sometimes they are because of others. There can be victory in the storm. Our golden text says, Wherefore, serves to be of good cheer, for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me. Introduction. We'll read that real quick. We usually do. A camp meeting was interrupted by a tornado warning. Everyone went to the fellowship hall for fear of the impending storm. Adults looked very worried, and some were crowding around the weather radio to hear the latest forecast. While many adults were very fearful, it was noticed that little children were playing and having a great time near their parents. The presence of their mother and father gave them peace and even joy during the time of storm. By the way, the tornado never came or did any damage. Paul was a confident man, but in this lesson he displays a fearlessness and cheerfulness that can only be explained by the visitation he had from God. Let's turn to Acts 26 and 30. Acts 26 and 30 says, And when he had thus spoken, the king rose up, and the governor, and Bernice, and they that sat with them. And when they were gone aside, they talked between themselves, saying, This man doeth nothing worthy of death or bonds. Then said Agrippa unto Phestus, This man might have been set at liberty if he had not appealed unto Caesar. So once again Paul is found not guilty, but still bound by these men. Apparently once you appeal unto Caesar you must go. And Paul had made the request, so he had to go, Sister Lindsay. When you read commentaries on this part, most will make the point, and it's probably overused, but I still like it, Paul is headed to Rome on the devil's dime. This is exactly what he wanted, but it probably wasn't just how he thought it was going to be. Acts 27 and 1, moving along, says, And when it was determined that we should sail into Italy, they delivered Paul and certain other prisoners unto one named Julius, a centurion of Augustus' band. A centurion is simply a Roman officer over 100 men, so you've got centuries. These men were Roman, but you will find that they were usually, maybe not always, great men. They seemed to be really great men. When you read about a centurion in the Bible in the New Testament, they seemed to largely believe or easily persuaded of Christ. They usually helped the man of God, it seemed like. So I'm usually impressed by these centurions. Verse 2 says, And entering into a ship of Adramidium was launched, meaning to sail by the coast of Asia, one Aristarchus, a Macedonian of Thessalonica, being with us. That day we touched at Sidon, and Julius courteously entreated Paul and gave him liberty to go unto his friends to refresh himself. Aristarchus shows up once again. He was at that riot in Ephesus. You may or may not remember. It seems odd that Paul, a prisoner, was allowed to have company like Aristarchus and Luke. I didn't really find an answer as to why. Does anybody have an opinion on that? I think it probably speaks to the fact that Paul was knownly an innocent man. Is that what you think? I mean, it just seems like that to me. It's kind of odd. Acts 27 and 4 says, And when we had launched from thence, we sailed under Cyprus, because the winds were contrary. When we had sailed over the sea of Cilicia and Pamphylia, we came to Myra, a city of Lycia. And there the centurion found a ship of Alexandria sailing into Italy, and he put us therein. When we had sailed slowly many days, and scarce were come over against Nidus, the wind not suffering us, we sailed under Crete, over against Samon. And hardly passing it, came unto a place which is called the Fair Havens. Now whereunto was the city of Lycia. Now when much time was spent, and when sailing was now dangerous, because the fast was now already past, Paul admonished them, and said unto them, Sirs, I perceive that this voyage will be with hurt and much damage, not only of the lading and ship, but also of our lives. This is not in your book, but I'd like to read this short explanation from Brother Vance concerning this time. He says, Luke gives us a reference point that we may understand the time of year in which they were sailing. He says that it was after the fast of the Day of Atonement. In the Jewish calendar, this was on the tenth day of the seventh month. Our calendar is different from theirs and varies from September to October on the exact days. After the fast, the weather was very unstable upon the Mediterranean. I didn't bother to look up the calendar. I would like to do that at some time, but I really don't have a grasp on the differences of the times, but I thought that was interesting, and I leaned on Brother Vance for that. Paul was not a sailor, but he had done his fair share, and while establishing churches, he'd been on these waters quite a bit. He warns the captain, master, and owner of the ship that he has a good feeling that trouble might lay ahead for them. The ship and the lives might be lost. I love Paul's boldness here because I'm so opposite of this. I think if I was like the master of the ship or even the captain of the ship, I would probably be like, what do you think we ought to do? But Paul, a prisoner, and he knew that he had great perception. He knew he was led by God. He had no trouble. He leaned on God's understanding, and he was confident in that. He had a boldness about him. Sometimes it's to our advantage to speak up if we know what's right. Maybe somebody will say, hey, that guy shows a lot of good judgment. Maybe he's right about the Lord also. That seems like kind of an elementary point, but I think it might be a good point to make. We need to show common sense. Acts 27 and 11 says, nevertheless, the centurion believed the master and the owner of the ship, more than those things which were spoken by Paul. Because the haven was not commodious, which just means suitable to winter in, the more part advised to the part that's also, if by any means, they might attain to finish. And there to winter, which is in the haven of Crete, and life toward the southwest and northwest. So the centurion believed the master and the owner of the ship more than he did Paul's words, which shouldn't be surprising. If they went on the wrong course or something went wrong, you don't want to be the guy going to Nero and saying, yeah, the prisoner told us to do this. That probably wouldn't go over very well. And the popular vote on the ship was to sail on, so they did. And verse 13 says, and when the south wind blew softly, supposing that they had obtained their purpose, losing thence, they sailed close by Crete. Well, it looks like the man of God was wrong after all, don't it? They go against his advice, and it looks like smooth sailing at first. I wonder if word ever got back to the prodigal son's older brother while he was out spending his father's money. It seems like it did, like what he was up to out there. And I know y'all are like, oh, he goes on the prodigal son again. In Luke 15 and 29, if you want to turn back to it, you don't have to. Luke 15 and 29 says, and he answered, and we're talking about the elder brother here, and he answered and said to his father, Lo, these many years do I serve thee, neither transgressed I at any time thy commandment. And yet thou never gavest me a kid, that I might make merry with my friends. But as soon as this thy son was come, which hath devoured thy living with harlots, thou hast killed for him the fatted calf. So this older brother is working for his father while his younger brother is out sowing his wild oats with wild women. If anybody had a right to spend his father's money, it probably would have been the older brother, which Camden had made the point the other day that neither one of us should have got this inheritance until his father was dead. So it was essentially just saying, you know, you're dead to me. Give me my money. But if anybody had a right to spend the money, it would have been that elder brother. But here it is. The younger brother is out spending all of his inheritance, all of his dad's money on harlots. But how did the brother know what he was doing in the first place? Do you think maybe he got on Instagram and seen his brother taking pictures with these women and all the fun his brother was having? If we aren't careful, our burden can quickly turn to spite and jealousy of a backslider's lifestyle if we do way too much digging. There are some things we don't even need to know about. And we may investigate or maybe take in the back of our minds, hey, I need to see what they're up to so I can pray for them. But we can get ugly pictures in our mind about somebody, and our burden will quickly turn to bitterness, and not over that sin, but over that backslider's lifestyle and toward the backslider. You might have a voice inside your head saying, I could be doing that. I don't have to dress like that. I don't have to dress like this. That person left a year ago, and she looks happier than she ever was. That's one thing about social media. They don't post the negative things and those lonely nights in their room where they're crying and lonely and don't have anybody, where they would usually go visit with their friends that they used to have, and now it's just loneliness and sadness. They're not going to post that. They're going to post all the pictures of the smiles. They're going to put on a happy face. And if we're not careful, we could get jealous of something like that. She didn't quit church. She just went to a different church. Let's be careful what we entertain. How was he so busy if he knew what his wayward brother was up to? He was busy in the field working for his brother, but somehow he knew that his brother was out spending his time with harlots. And he knew about his brother, but he never bothered to go try to pull him back home. If we're not careful, we will be rightfully sickened by a backslutter sin, but our concern will turn to bitterness towards that backslutter. Fellowship in itself. Fellowship is a wonderful thing. I know I should do more of it. We should go to different churches and fellowship one another. Camden is so happy that he's got a truck now that he can go to HPC way more often than I take him. I know I fell in that, and I need to do more of that. But sometimes we need to ask ourselves, are we fellowshiping for the Lord if all we have to do is report back what that youth group was wearing, that what they're allowing behind the pulpit now? We're quick to talk about, no, nobody got saved, but you can't imagine what they're letting them do now, what they're letting them wear now. We have to be careful of that thing. I heard of a story, well not a story, it's a real life situation. There was these two ladies in a church, and then there was a backslutter lady that used to go to that church. She has a social media account, and at least one of the other sisters has a social media account. These two women that still go to the church are at odds with one another. They have an aught against one another, and it's kind of commonly known. It's made its way around the wholeness circuit that these two don't like each other, that they're at odds. The backslitting sister definitely wants to justify her lifestyle and why she left. She loves to hear about these goings-on in the church. As soon as she sees something on social media about one of them, she'll call the other one and tell them, hey, this one's doing this, this, this, and this. This happened. She's seen something on social media, and she called the other sister and told her what was going on. What do you think the appropriate response would have been? She should have said, you know, that's my sister. I don't want to know about it. I'm sorry if you'd heard that we have been at odds, but I love her. I'm praying for this relationship. Something of that sort. But what she said was, send me a copy of that. I need all the ammo I can get. To the backslitting girl that's out of church. And I know these people, and they love this person that's out of church. I know that they do, but they're blinded. The devil has blinded them, and they're using this backslider as a pawn in their trouble. That is the worst possible thing that we can do as a church, to even let them know that things are going on. How am I going to win my mom back down here if I tell her, yeah, me and Brother Tim ain't really, you know, I've done something he didn't like, and we kind of, we had words. First of all, I'm sure that would never happen, but I would never go to my mom and tell her that. I mean, I want her to come here. We want them to be saved. We want them to have what we've got. We shouldn't be fighting if we have something against a brother who says we should go to him anyways and get that fixed as soon as we possibly can. Some things are harder. I know some things are harder to fix than other things. Sometimes it takes time or whatever, but we definitely don't need to let those backsliders that have left the church hear about those things or be a pawn in that. Let's be careful. This older brother is working for his father while his younger brother is out sowing his wild oats. But somehow he knows everything that that brother is doing, and his response is to get angry. He's in the church. He hasn't left. He's getting angry about it. So let's be careful. Acts 27 and 14 move along. Let's be careful of those things. Acts 27 and 14, I need to hurry. But not long after there arose against it a tempestuous wind called Uroclodon. I had it the way I wanted to say it, and I looked it up, and it was different. So now I'm having trouble saying it. It might not be tomorrow. It might not be next year. It might not even be until the backslider leaves this world, but we're going to find out. The things went God's way, and I take no pride in saying it. They will find out the man of God was right. 27 and 15, and when the ship was caught and could not bear up into the wind, we let her drive. And running under a certain island, which is called Clauda, we had much work to come by the boat. Which when they had taken up, they used helps, undergirding the ship and fearing lest they should fall into the quicksand. Strike, sail, and so were driven. And we being exceedingly tossed with the tempest, the next day they lightened the ship. And the third day we cast out with our own hands the tackling of the ship. And when neither sun nor stars in many days appeared and no small tempest lay on us, all hope that we should be saved was then taken away. So the good news is Paul was right, and the bad news is Paul was right. I don't know anything about sailing, so I'll say this a little bit. A south wind seems pretty self-explanatory. You're in a ship, and a south wind's blowing, and it's pushing you along on the right path, hopefully. But the wind turned, and 15 says they could not bear up into the wind, so it seems now that they're facing a headwind. And we've all seen pictures or videos of a ship facing a headwind, and they're getting sloshed up and down, and it's way harder to sail. It goes so bad that they just left the ship drive itself. This often happens when we don't listen to God. Things start out fine, and we have it under control, but then things turn, and before long, it gets so out of control that we're in situations that we could never imagine. And we don't even know how. We're on autopilot of the devil. Sixteen, and running under a certain island, which is called Clauda, we had much work to come by the boat, which when they had taken up, they used helps undergirding the ship and fearing lest they should fall into the quicksand, straight sail, and so we're driven. That's pretty wordy. Sailing past a small island, it seems they got just enough break to get a boat and a ship. This boat is a lifeboat or a skiff, and it usually trails behind the big boat. It's a safety measure. It's a lifeboat. But they got this break, and they had to bring that lifeboat in into the ship. And it was hard work, but they finally got to do it. They got the boat in. Then they were able to tie up this ship to itself so it wouldn't bust apart. They undergirded the ship and tied it to itself where it was just going to bust apart in the sea. Next, they dropped an anchor so they could get some drag and slow down to miss the sandbanks. This would slow them down and hopefully get the storm out in front of them. Verses 18 and 19, they start throwing out the ship's equipment, and lastly, the tackle. These were desperate measures, but apparently the ship was sitting low and taking on water. 20 says, and when neither sun nor stars in many days appeared and no small tempest lay on us, all hope that we should be saved was taken away. Even Luke appears to have lost hope. But after long abstinence, Paul stood forth in the midst of them and said, Sirs, you should have hearkened unto me and not have loosed from Crete and to have gained this harm and loss. After a long abstinence means that they hadn't eaten. They most likely, because they was fighting for their lives, not because they was observing the Lord or fasting for the Lord. Paul gets his moment to remind the men that he warned them that this was going to happen. 27, 22 says, and now I exhort you to be of good cheer. For there shall be no loss of any man's life among you but of the ship. For there stood by me this night the angel of God, whose I am and whom I serve, saying, Fear not, Paul, thou must be brought before Caesar and lo, God hath given thee all them that will sail with thee. Wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer. For I believe, God, that it shall be even as it was told me. I love the contrast, Brother Ronnie, between verse 20 where Luke writes, No sun nor stars in many days appeared. All hope that we should be saved was then taken away. What they didn't know was that even though Paul was experiencing the same things, an angel of the Lord was speaking to him and speaking hope to him. Fear not, Paul, you're going to complete the mission that I set forth. All these men are going to make it as well. Isn't that what Gospel Light Holiness Church has been put here for? Isn't that why we settled on the name Gospel Light? Maybe someone in Clarkson is going through a dark, lonely time. We are here to bring hope and light unto those people. And I'll close. I went over Acts 27-25 using that same verse. Wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer. For I believe, God, that it shall be even as it was told me.
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