Well, that was good, was it not? I tell you what, I have the privilege, and you all don't have this vantage point, but I wish you could see the reaction of the crowd while they were singing. So I saw one person doing this on his shoe. I saw about three or four of you ladies going. And some of you go the different direction. And then my favorite is I'm seeing some people And I wanna know what's in your brain. Oh, that is good. Thank you so much, guys. I tell you what, I love stringed instruments, amen? And I, you know, sometimes when you see somebody with talent sing or play an instrument, it's hard not to get jealous, right? You know, but I thank God for those that use it for the glory of God. Thank you so much, man, for doing that. Take your Bible, turn over to John chapter number nine this morning. John chapter number nine, we're gonna read the first First three, actually first five verses this morning, then I'll have a word of prayer, and then I'll give you the message. So if you would, go ahead, stand with me as we read the scriptures this morning. You'll just read along quietly and I'll read out loud here in John chapter number nine. The Bible says here in verse number one, And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth. And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man or his parents, that he was born blind? And Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents, but that the works of God should be made manifest in him. I must work the works of Him that sent me, and while it is day, the night cometh when no man can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world." I want to preach on a thought, the man called Jesus. Let's pray. Lord, thank You so much for the opportunity to be back in Your house today. All the music, the fellowship, the prayer time and the giving. But Lord, we know that you've chosen the foolishness of preaching. And so we ask that you would use this time. Lord, you know, I've tried my best to study and to read and prepare and pray. And so God, at this moment, I pray that you just simply take whatever words come out of my mouth, Lord, that it would be honoring to you, but you would use it to speak to the heart. God, I can only speak to that ear, but I can't speak to the heart or the mind. So God, I beg you, Holy Spirit of God, may you use this message for someone who's here as a Christian, who might be just trying to make a decision in life, or needs clarity, or just needs to get reignited in their fire for you, or for the one who doesn't know you as Savior, that today they would trust you. Lord, may you have your will and way in this service. It's in Jesus' name we pray, amen. You can go ahead and be seated. A man called Jesus. You know, what a person, what a man or woman believes about Jesus will determine whether or not you have eternal life or whether or not you have eternal death. So this is important. What you believe about Jesus will affect you after you pass away from this life. Now, if you know Christ as Savior, what you do in terms of how you follow the Lord Jesus Christ will affect you practically while you're here on this earth. So you may know Christ as your Savior, and you may know for sure when you die you're going to be in heaven, and that's great, that's the most important thing, but now that you have the rest of your life here until the Lord takes you home, How does your life play out? Is it gonna be blessed by God? Or are you gonna have to do life all by yourself? Nobody wants to do life all by yourself. So if you're a Christian, let's not travel down that path. Let's follow God and His Word so God can bless my life practically. And by the way, let me say this, your Bible, even though it was written over 3,000, 3,400, 3,500 years ago, the first book, Your Bible is as applicable today in 2024 as when it was first written thousands of years ago. You say, well, I don't believe that. Well, let me give you a couple of verses to help maybe jog your memory and show you it does apply in 2024. Turn in your Bible to hold your place in John, but turn to Genesis chapter 41. In Genesis chapter number 41, there's a verse that applies to how you and I handle our money. Now, everybody likes money. And everybody's afraid to say amen. But I didn't say everybody loves money. The love of money is the root of all evil. I said everybody likes money. You say, but preacher, I don't know about that. You're happier on payday. Right? You're discouraged when you pay all your bills and there's not a lot of money. You're smiling because you know I'm right on that. We're all in the same boat, right? You know, the Bible applies to your life today in 2024, even with how to handle your money. Look at what the Bible says. in Genesis chapter number 41, the Bible says in verse number 34, this is Joseph becoming the prime minister of Egypt, but he interprets the dream to Pharaoh and he says to Pharaoh, this is what you need to do in seven years of plenty. He says in verse number 34, let Pharaoh do this and let him appoint officers over the land and take up the fifth part of the land of Egypt in the seven plenteous years. So he says, look, When you have seven years of prosperity, you better save one-fifth of that or 20%. Now, that's not easy to do. Am I right? But should that not be a goal? And can I tell you this? If everybody saved one-fifth or 20%, I think we would all be doing really good financially. So the Bible applies in 2024. So how about this in 2025? Make it a personal goal to save one-fifth. And even if you only save 10%, That's better than nothing. And not only save, but even invest it. But let me just take a little side note. You ought to give God the very first. You ought to give Him the 10% off the top. And by the way, Uncle Sam shouldn't have the gross. God should have the gross, 10% of that. And then Uncle Sam can have the rest. And by the way, I'll say this, you will do more and succeed more and have more if you honor God with your substance than if you say, God, I'm going to do it alone by myself. And you say, well, I know a lot of people that are successful financially who don't tithe. That may be true, but they don't have God's peace in their heart. No, do they? I want God's peace more than I want money. But if God can give me money on top of that, that's icing on the cake. Can I get an amen? But notice how the Bible's applicable. Turn over with me to Proverbs chapter 26. We're establishing the principle that if you and I follow God's Word, it will apply to your life today like when it was first written. In Proverbs chapter 26, the Bible says, in verse number 17, Scripture says this, "...he that passeth by, and meddleth with strife, belonging not to him, is like one that taketh a dog by the..." What's the next word? You ever heard of someone saying you're meddling? Right? You're sticking your nose in somebody else's business. And the analogy is this. If you went up to a mad dog, if you went up to a rottweiler, and if you grabbed that dog by the ears, you're in trouble. Right? If you let go, you're going to get bit. If you hang on, you're probably still going to get bit. At some point, you're probably going to let go. The point of the matter is this. If you get into somebody else's business, they're going to get into your business. So it's a lot better to stay out of their business. Don't grab the dog by the ears. Don't get involved in the gossip. Don't get involved in the criticism. Just stay away from that. And by the way, we have this in our Christian circles where we have our Christian gossip. Pray for so-and-so. Well, what's wrong with them? Well, let me tell you. Now, if they're sick, yes, pray for them. But if they got marriage trouble, you don't need to broadcast that. If they got children trouble, you don't need to broadcast that. Now, if they want you to say, please share it with so-and-so, that's great, but you and I just leave that dog alone, and listen, the Bible is as applicable today as it was when it was first written. Here's another scripture I'll show you. Turn in your Bible to Hebrews chapter number 12. So we see how the Bible applies in money, it applies in relationships, or rather in gossip if you will. But look over in Hebrews chapter number 12, and notice what the Bible says in verse number... Verse 14, now this one is the hard part. Hebrews 12 says in verse number 14, follow peace with all men and holiness without which no man shall see the Lord. Verse 15, looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God, lest any root of what? Springing up, what's the next two words? Trouble you, and thereby many be defiled. Do you know what bitterness is? It's something that just keeps gnawing at you. And you can't get rid of it because you've not turned it over to God. Now look, the only way you can have bitterness is if you've been done wrong. And by the way, at some point we've all been done wrong. And you say, but preacher, but you don't understand what I'm dealing with. No, I probably don't. But can I say this? I don't think any of us understand what Jesus went through on the cross. And yet he did it willingly. Because he saw a bigger picture, he knew that it was to cross the Calvary that was necessary in order to purchase my redemption. And can I tell you what? If he was willing to forgive me of my sin, I ought to be willing to forgive you of your sin against me. Because if not, here's what happens. They did me wrong the first time, that's their fault, right? But now that I refuse to forgive them and I hang on to that anger and that bitterness, they hurt me the first time, now they're hurting me the second time, and they don't even know that they're hurting me the second time. In reality, it's you hurting yourself by hanging on to that bitterness. What's that old saying, fool me once, shame on you? Fool me twice, shame on me. I highly encourage you to go online and Google Bushisms, B-U-S-H-I-S-M-S, George W. Bush. If you want a good laugh, I voted for Bush, but you type in Bushisms and you'll see an interesting story where he got hung up on when he was trying to say that phrase. He says, we have an old saying in Texas that says, fool me once, shame on me. Shame on you. Fool me twice, you can't get fooled again. Can I tell you what? You do this often enough. You know how many times you'll mess up speaking. But can I tell you, as a Christian, if you and I will follow the Word of God, we'll get rid of those things, even in the area of bitterness. And we're starting 2025. Let's get rid of whatever bitterness that you may be dealing with. Because it's hurting you. But let's go to the focus of the servant. Go to John chapter number 9. What is the story? You've got a husband and wife. They give birth to a son. He's born blind. He's now a grown man. The disciples asked Jesus the question, said, Oh Lord, who did sin? Did this man sin? Or did his parents sin? And Jesus said, No. Nobody sinned. This is for the work and the glory of God. He begins to go through the story. He heals the guy of his blindness. The Bible tells us that the scribes and the religious Jews of the day, they're trying to figure out, how did this happen? Who did this? And they're upset because it was done on the Sabbath. And so they ask him some questions. And I want you to notice, the man that was healed by Jesus, who he's telling them who Jesus is, what Jesus is like. Let's look with me in John chapter number 9, and notice what the Bible says in verse number, oh, let's look at verse 8. The neighbors therefore, and they which before had seen him, that he was blind, said, Is not this he that sat and begged? A little side note, when you get on fire for God or when you get saved, either case, your neighbors are going to talk about you. So, and by the way, they talk about you anyway. You know what I hate about some people that are blunt? Is that they're blunt. For whatever reason, in the deaf community, where my family's deaf, they will do this. If I haven't seen someone in a long time, my parents, friends, or college mates, whatever, they'll say, oh, Jeff, man, you've gained weight. I'm like, oh, thanks. Now here's the problem. They've got enough guts to say it. You thought it, right? We all think it. But here's the truth. They're talking about him. How did you get to the point where you can see? Everybody's talking. Look with me at verse number 10, or verse 9. Some say, this is he. Others said, he is like him. But he said, I am me. I'm the guy. Look at verse number 10. Then said, therefore said they unto him, how were thine eyes open? In other words, how did this take place in your life? We thought you couldn't see, now you can see. What happened to you? Look at verse 11. He answered and said, A, what's the next word? that is called Jesus. The first thing I want to point out that he said in response to how did this happen and who did this to you, he said, look, I don't know, but I know this. There's a man by the name of Jesus that showed up one day. I sure am glad for the day that the man, Christ Jesus, showed up in my life and showed me that I needed a savior. And as the Bible says, I once was, or as the song says, I once was lost, but now I'm found, was blind, But now I see. Praise God for His amazing grace. When the man Christ Jesus showed up in your life and mine. The Bible says He's a man. By the way, let me just say this. He did not say He's a woman. Little side note. There are versions out there that want to emasculate in Scripture. And our society's doing the same thing. We're living in a day when men act like girls and girls act like boys. And can I say this? It's high time for men to be men. And yes, that means being physically strong, but it also means being like God. And we've got plenty of men out there that are heathen strong men. We don't need more of those. We need some more godly men who are also strong. Are you with me? We need both of those, and as Christian men, that should be our goal. And so here the Bible says, a man by the name of Jesus. Hold your place in John, and I want you to look with me over at, look at Hebrews chapter number four. Notice what the Bible says in Hebrews four and verse 15, talking about the humanity of Jesus Christ. Hebrews chapter four, I want you to look with me at what he says in verse number 15. The Bible says, For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities, but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. You know what the Bible is telling me here? That Jesus Christ, God's Son in the flesh, knows exactly what you are dealing with. The same temptations, the same burdens, the same problems, He's been there. He's been rejected by His own family. A prophet is not without honor, saving his own country, his own family. He's had no place to lay down his head if you've ever been homeless, right? He's had places where he just slept outside. There have been times where he had no food. Now, certainly, he fasted for 40 days and 40 nights, but everything you and I have gone through in life, Jesus has experienced that. The only difference is he's God, and because of that, he overcame sin. But he knows how you feel. You say, but preacher, no one else at church knows. That's true. But he does. And if he does, why not go to God in prayer and say, God, I need your help in this area of my life. Here's my burden. Here's the need. And I know that you understand better than anybody else. Take your Bible and go back to John chapter number 9. Not only did he say he was a man, here's something else he said about Jesus. And I want you to skip all the way down to verse number, let's look at verse number 13. In John 9 verse 13, they brought to him the Pharisees. him that aforetime was blind, and it was the Sabbath day when Jesus made the clay and opened the eyes. Then again the Pharisees asked him how he had received his sight. He said unto them, He put clay upon mine eyes, and I washed and do see. And then he goes on, verse 16, Therefore said some of the Pharisees, This man is not of God, because he keepeth not the Sabbath day. Others said, How can a man that is a sinner do such miracles? And there was a division among them. Now look at verse 17. They say unto the blind man, again, what sayest thou of him? That he hath opened thine eyes. He said, he is a what? Oh, not only did he say he's a man, he said, Jesus is also a prophet. Why is he a prophet? If you study the Bible, the Bible tells us in the book of Matthew that God knows the very number of hairs that we have on our head. And for some of us, he doesn't have to count much, right? If God knows the hair follicles, then that tells me He knows more about me than I know about myself. He can predict or prophesy about the future. Little side note, you can trust your Bible. Why can you trust your Bible? One of the many reasons is this, the Bible is full of prophecies that have come true. Turn over with me to Matthew chapter number 24. If Jesus is a prophet, and He is, This man said he's a man, he's a prophet, and we know the Bible tells us Jesus made a statement in Matthew chapter 24 that actually came true. He made this statement in around, Jesus would have been anywhere between, it would have been right around 30 to 33 A.D., give or take, and when this would have happened. The Gospel of Matthew, they say, was recorded, some say as early as 40 to 45 B.C., others as late as 60 B.C., I'm sorry, not B.C., A.D. But notice what he says here in Matthew chapter 24 and verse number one. When Jesus went out and departed from the temple, his disciples came to him for to show him the buildings of the temple. Verse two, Jesus said unto them, see ye not all these things? Verily I say unto you, there shall not be left here one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down. Now why is that verse important? Because when Jesus would have made that statement, It would have been right around 30 A.D. It was recorded as late as 60 A.D. And that event of when the Jewish temple in Jerusalem was destroyed and they took every stone down actually took place in 70 A.D. when the Roman general Titus came in to Jerusalem and the saying says they told him to leave the gold alone but there was a fire that broke out in Jerusalem and that the gold began to melt and actually began to seep into the cracks of the stone, and those soldiers got paid in bounty, and so they saw the gold, so they started literally ripping down that temple, stone by stone by stone, to get to the gold. So at least 10 years after this was recorded, or several decades after it happened, or when Jesus prophesied, the Word of God came true when the Bible says they took down every single stone. So how do you know God's Word is true? Because prophecy has been fulfilled. How about this one? How do you know that the Bible is true today in 2024? I'll give you an example. Go to Daniel chapter number 12. In Daniel chapter number 12, we see an interesting statement that God gives to the prophet Daniel. He records it. And I want you to see how this verse has come true today, even though this was written years before Jesus was ever born. The Bible says in Daniel chapter number 12, in verse number 4, it says, But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, seal the book, even to the time of the end. Now let me stop. I believe we live in the last days. There's many reasons for that. But God told Daniel, write this down, and then don't, you know, we're going to seal this until the end. And I believe now's the end. Let's look at the rest of verse number 4. He says, and seal it until the time of the end, and many shall run to and fro. There was a day that you only went to your church that was right down the road. Right? Because it was too far to walk. And to ride a horse, yes, it would be faster, but you were not traveling more than five miles. or 10 miles, really, to church. You're just going down to your local church. That's why there's a First Baptist Church of, let's say, Winchester, First Baptist Church of Mount Sterling, and we go on and on and on. You got all these churches locally because people couldn't travel everywhere. Now we have church members that travel. We didn't until we moved up here last night, but we traveled from Danville to here, and we moved up last night to this area. Praise God, amen. I don't have to drive an hour and 20 minutes to church. But do you know that there are people that literally, they don't just drive an hour and a half to work. Some have their own private plane and fly every day to work. They're running to and fro. We send them to the moon. They're now talking about sending them to Mars. We're running to and fro. You know how many people run back and forth? Run there, run here, run there because of technology and transportation, which is great. I like it. God said to Daniel, write this down. In the end, people are going to run to and fro, to and fro. By the way, all that running makes you like a mouse running in a wheel, the rat race. I think it's a good idea that we find more efficient ways to kind of slow down and get a lot of things done with one trip. Are you with me? Here's another part of verse number four. The Bible says here, many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be what? Have you heard of artificial intelligence? Have you heard of super artificial intelligence? The knowledge is exponential. What used to be incremental is now off the charts. We're living in that day and age. Take your Bible and turn over to Revelation chapter 13. So when they asked the man, they said, who is this guy? And they said, well, he's the man named Jesus. He's a prophet. And then notice what he says here in Revelation chapter 11. Another proof that your Bible has come true many times over in terms of prophecies. And even right now in the day that we live. In Revelation chapter number 11, notice what he says in verse number eight. This is about the two anointed prophets in the tribulation that will be killed. They'll let their body just lay there in the middle of the street in Jerusalem. Notice what he says in Revelation 11 in verse eight. Their dead body shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified. Jesus was crucified in Jerusalem, but they're calling the city Sodom and Egypt. Verse number nine. And they of the people and the kindreds and the tongues and nations shall see their dead bodies three days and a half. Now let me stop or actually read on verse number 10 and verse 9, and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves. In Middle Eastern culture, the Jewish people especially, when you die, you are buried the same day. So the mere fact that they let their bodies rot for three and a half days was another offense to these two people. Not only did they hate them and they killed them, but then they said, well, we're going to violate the culture and say, we'll just let your bodies rot for three and a half days. But here's the interesting part of the verse. Look at verse number nine again. It says, and they of the people, kindreds, tongues, and nations shall see. How can I see what's happening in Jerusalem when I live in Winchester, Kentucky? satellite technology, smartphones. When they used to read this and preach this a hundred years ago, they'd think, I don't know how that's going to happen. I believe it, but I don't understand it. You and I read it, and now we understand it. Are you with me? The Bible is just as applicable in 2024 as it was when it was first written. Let's go a little bit further. Look with me at Revelation chapter 13. Here's another passage that proves God's Word, the prophecies of the Bible, are coming true right now. In Revelation chapter 13, the Bible says, in verse number 14, referring to the beast and the Antichrist, verse number 14, it says this, And he deceiveth them that dwell on the earth, by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast, saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an..." What's the next word? Stay with me. "...make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live." Verse 15. He had power to give life unto the... What's the next word? He does not say he had power to give life to the beast. Reread that. It says, power to the life of the image of the beast. We go a little bit further. He says here that the image of the beast, not the beast, but the image of the beast should both speak and cause that as many as would not worship the, not the beast, but the image of the beast should be killed. So what does that mean? It means this. Before, their image was a stone or wooden god that they would hand carve and make and say, that's our god. Now, we don't have those, especially in the Western world, right? We don't see people bowing down before a statue. But here's what we do see. People doing this all day long. To the point, it controls our life. To the point that the only person I ask questions to to find an answer, To the point that how do we talk to our family and friends? Not in person. To the point that everything we do, right there. Now I love technology, don't get me wrong, but understand everything is setting it up. How can you see these two bodies lay there for three and a half days? How do you begin to worship the image of the beast? I remember when COVID hit. When COVID hit in New York State, where we were there at the time, they locked everything down. I mean, it was a ghost town. I'd get on Interstate 90 and travel to Albany, New York, because I was doing an interpreting job when everything shut down and they needed somebody to do something. And so I was driving. I was the only one on the interstate. And you say, preacher, did you do the speed limit? That's not for you to know. All of that being said, they said, pay attention to your phones. They communicate to your phone. When they started to open everything up, here's what they said. The only way you can get into a restaurant, you got to have it on your phone. You've got to have your vaccine record on your phone. And if you don't have the app, if you don't have the vaccine, you can't go to the restaurant. You can't go to the Yankees game. You can't go to the Bills game. Y'all stay with me. You can't buy, sell, and trade. I'm not saying that that was, but here's what I am saying. It is all a precursor to preconditioned society for what's coming. And it's all the image. By the way, young ladies, you don't need to follow some influencer and what she looks like on the phone. Because everybody can look good for a picture. Y'all with me? And guys, same way. We need to get back to some old-fashioned Bible principles. Utilize technology for the good that it can be used for, but let's not allow that to take us down the wrong path. But let's go back with me to John chapter number nine. Notice this. So he says, look, he's a man. They said he's a prophet, but then all things get even better than that. When they ask him again, who is this guy? This healed, this blind man that was healed, he responds. The Bible says here, If this man were not of God, verse 33, he could do nothing. Who is Jesus? The simple answer, He is God. Let me just stop right here and say this. If you don't know Jesus Christ as your Savior, your God in heaven who created you, loves you so much that he sent his only son that he might give you eternal life and you can have a relationship directly with your God. Listen, I don't know about you, but that gets me excited to know that a God in heaven is not too busy for one out of 7.9 near-80% Billion people on this earth and that he loves me as much as he loves the man in Russia as much as he loves the Man in China as much as he loves the man in New York State or California or New Mexico Hey the fact that he loves me enough that he wants a relationship with me and he sent his son to die for me He's not too busy to listen to my prayer. We serve a good God this morning that not only will he change your life He wants to bless your life. He wants to use you in this life. All you got to do is give him your life So he says there's a man, he's a prophet, and he's also God. And then the last thing. The Bible says back in John chapter number 9, look at what he says in verse number 35. Jesus heard that they had cast him out. Let's stop. What had happened was they said, tell us who did this. He said, well look, I don't know. He's a man named Jesus. He's a prophet. He's God. But in that process they said, well wait a minute. You know, he doesn't even observe the Sabbath. He violated that. They asked his parents, and they said, look, he's a grown man. You ask him. He can answer for himself. And they asked him again. He says, look, he's not just a prophet, but yes, if he was not God, this could not be possible. And then they kicked him out. You know what's interesting? Religion will kick you out, but God's relationship with him through his son gets you closer. The Bible says here, in John chapter number 9, in verse number 35, Jesus heard that they had cast him out. And when he had found him, he said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son of God? He answered and said, Who is he? What's the next word? Who is Jesus? He's Lord. Now watch. And I'm done. Jesus is Lord. whether you make Him Lord or not. If He's already Lord, why not make Him your Lord? So He can bless your life. You know what a lot of people are doing? What the Bible says in Matthew chapter 6. No man can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon, or riches. I'll never forget this, Brother Yeager, you shared it with me last Wednesday night, and I have chewed on it all weekend. He made a comment, he said, I heard a preacher say this one time, and he said, the story goes, a man is on the fence, and you've got the Lord telling that man or woman, come to me, come to me. And then on the other side of the fence is the devil, and the devil's not saying a single word to us. And eventually, the man on the fence looks to the devil and says, you're not saying anything. How come? And his response is, I don't need to. I own the fence. Oh, I don't want to be on the fence. Make your decision. Make him your Lord. Heavenly Father, thank you, Lord, for the opportunity to be in your house today. Oh God, I pray Lord, certainly if there's somebody not saved, that today they would make you their savior by calling upon you and asking you to save them. And then for those of us who have been saved, maybe we've been tempted to sit on the fence. Maybe we've cozied up to the fence, or maybe we honest to goodness are straddling it, or maybe we've jumped over the fence to go to the other side. We've allowed the world, the devil, and the flesh to pull us that way. God, I pray that today we'd say, Lord, I want to follow you as my Lord. Yes, I know I'm saved, but I want you to be my Lord. May you bless in this invitation. With every head bowed, every eye closed, I want to challenge you this morning, this last Sunday of the year, If you're here and you say, preacher, I'm not sure I'm saved, why don't you just come forward in just a second and we'll have someone take the Bible and show you how you can be saved. If you're here and you're saved, but maybe you've been doubting or maybe you've been tempted to jump that fence or just straddle it, why don't you do business with the Lord? Or maybe you have a different burden, whatever it is, let's do business with God at this altar. No one looking around, let's all stand, she's gonna play. Why don't you come this morning?