Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord. He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored. He hath loosed the fateful lightning of his terrible swift sword. His truth is marching on. Glory, glory, hallelujah. Glory, glory, hallelujah. Our God is one. I have seen Him in the watchtowers of a hundred circling camps. They have builded Him an altar in the evening dews and damps. I can read His righteous sentence by the dim and flaring lamps. His day is marching on. Glory, glory, hallelujah! Glory, glory, hallelujah. Glory, glory, hallelujah. Our God is marching on. He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never sound retreat. He is sifting out the hearts of men before His judgment seat. O be swift, my soul, to answer Him. Be jubilant, my feet. Our God is marching on. Glory, glory, hallelujah. Glory, glory, hallelujah. Glory, glory, hallelujah. And in the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea With the glory in his bosom that transfigures you and me As he died to make men holy, let us die to make men free While God is marching on Oh God Jesus who died upon a cross and rose again to save the lost. For can we now, of all my sin, compete in my Savior, Lord and friend? Take my life and make it new, and help me, Lord, to live for You. Change my life and make it new and help me, Lord, to live for you. Change us who died upon a cross and rose again to save the lost. Forgive me now of all my sin, Come, plead me, say, the Lord, and friend. Change my life and make it new, and help me, Lord, to live for You. Change my life and make it new, and help me, Lord, to live for You. Change my life and make it new Help me, Lord, to live for you Change my life and make it new Won't you make it new? And help me, Lord, to live To live for you Thank you, young people. We are always thankful. We're so blessed with all of our young people. Thank God for them. Thank the Lord for the morning service already. Today, as we open our Bibles, I'd like to invite you to turn to the book of 1 Kings, in chapter 21. The message that we have today, I know, is a message It's a little bit different in nature than normal, but it goes right along with what Brother Jim was speaking on already. And I pray that the Lord's Holy Spirit will take his word today and use it for our benefit and his glory. I want to bring a message dealing with Naboth's Vineyard, but actually what I want to bring a message mainly on is the tale of Jezebel and Ahab. Here is two people that were bent on the destruction of one righteous individual. You know, there's a lot of times in our lives we have different things that come up, different things that happen in our lives. And this world is no friend of the Christian for sure. But, you know, everything seems to be even, especially in this day and time which we now live, It just really seems to be that everything has got its teeth set against the saint of God, the one that strives to live righteously and wholly. And it seems like in the world in which we live today that everything is against the Christian. Folks, I want you to know God is the just God that Brother Jim spoke of this morning. He is the God who will leave the enemy of the children of God with no remedy. That, my friend, is for a fact. That word, no remedy, there is a phrase that means no hope. As Brother Jim was bringing forth his lesson this morning, I couldn't help but see all the parallels that we're going to be dealing with today. And I pray that God will enrich our lives with his word. I do pray that you hear the man of God today. There is this senses in the world in which we live that nobody wants to hear the truth anymore. And I praise God for a church family that still loves the old word of God, amen? Still love the truth. In 1 Kings chapter 21, we're going to read all this. It's a lengthy reading. We're going to read this one whole chapter. We're going to take our message from this word and pray God would just bless it today. If you're in this house, maybe you feel bewildered. Maybe the problems of life just seem to be overwhelming Think about Naboth's vineyard, and I want you to think about a place of tranquility. No doubt the vineyard of Naboth was a place of peace and contentment for him. It was a place where, you know, the world today would love to have when it comes to the life of the Christian. They would love to have their joy. They would love to have their peace, but they don't want to sacrifice their selves Today, we look at this in verse one, it says, and it came to pass after these things that Naboth, the Jezreelite, had a vineyard which was in Jezreel, hard by the palace of Ahab, king of Samaria. And Ahab spake unto Naboth, saying, Give me thy vineyard, that I may have it for a garden of herbs, because it is near unto my house. And I will give thee for it a better vineyard than it. Or if it seemed good to thee, I will give thee the worth of it in money. You know, right at the very beginning and the onset of this, I want you to know there was nothing wrong with what Nabof had just done. And there was nothing wrong with what Ahab had introduced to Nabof. Nothing wrong with that. But what really became the problem is Nabof's answer. And that shows the covetous heart of Ahab to begin with. And Naboth said unto Ahab, The Lord forbid it me that I should give the inheritance of my fathers unto thee. And Ahab came unto his house heavy and displeased, because of the word of Naboth the Jeserite had spoken to him. For he had said, I will not give thee the inheritance of my fathers, He laid him down upon his bed and turned away his face and would eat no bread. And Jezebel his wife came to him and said unto him, why is thy spirit so sad that thou eatest no bread? And he said unto her, because I spake unto Naboth the Jezuriach, and said unto him, Give me thy vineyard for money, or else, if it please thee, I will give thee another vineyard for it. And he answered, I will not give thee my vineyard. Jezebel his wife said unto him, Dost thou not govern the kingdom of Israel? Arise and eat bread, and let thine heart be merry, and I will give thee the vineyard of Naboth the Jezerite. So she wrote letters in Ahab's name and sealed them with his seal and sent the letters unto the elders and to the nobles that were in his city dwelling with Naboth. And she wrote in the letters saying, Proclaim a fast and set Naboth on high among the people. and set two men, sons of Bilal, before him to bear witness against him, saying, Thou didst blaspheme God and the king, and then carry him out and stone him that he may die. And the men of his city, even the elders and nobles which who were in the inhabitants in his city, did as Jezebel had sent unto them. And as it was written in the letters which she sent unto them, They proclaimed the fast and set Naboth on high among the people. And there came in two men of the children of Benal, and sat before him, and the men of Benal witnessed against him, even against Naboth, in the presence of the people, saying, Naboth did blaspheme God and the king. Then they carried him forth out of the city and stoned him with stones that he died. Then they sent to Jezebel, saying, Naboth is stoned and is dead. And it came to pass, when Jezebel heard that Naboth was stoned and was dead, that Jezebel said to Ahab, Arise and take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezeraite, which he refused to give thee for money, for Naboth is not alive but dead. And it came to pass, when Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, that Ahab rose up to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, to take possession of it. And the word of the Lord came unto Elijah the Tishbite, saying, Arise, and go down to meet Ahab, king of Israel, which is in Samaria. Behold, he is in the vineyard of Naboth, whether he has gone down to possess it. and thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the Lord. Again, Brother Jim brought this out this morning, and it will behoove each and every one of us to take heed, to realize that all of this word is the word of the Lord. This is God's holy word. This is the very voice of the Almighty. This is his voice in pen and paper. Thus saith the Lord. Hast thou killed and also taken possession? And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the Lord. In the place where the dog licked the blood of Naboth, shall dog lick thy blood, even thine. And Ahab said to Elijah, Hast thou found me, O mine enemy? And he answered, I have found thee, because thou hast sold thyself to work evil in the sight of the Lord. Behold, I will bring evil upon thee, and will take away thy prosperity, and will cut off from Ahab him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up in the left in Israel. And he will make thine house to be like the house of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, and like the house of Bathsheb, the son of Ahijah. For the provocation wherewith thou provoked me to anger and made Israel to sin. And of Jezebel also spake the Lord, saying, The dog shall eat Jezebel by the wall of Jezreel. Him that dieth of Ahab in the city the dogs shall eat, and him that dieth in the field the fowls of the air eat. But there was none like unto Ahab, which did sell himself to work wickedness in the sight of the Lord, whom Jezebel his wife stirred up. And he did very abominable in following idols. according to all things as did the Amorites, whom the Lord cast out before the children of Israel. And it came to pass, Ahab heard those words, that he rent his clothes, and he put sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went softly. And the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, Seest thou how Ahab humbled himself before me? Because he humbled himself before me, I will not bring the evil in his days, but in his son's days will I bring evil upon his house. Almost gracious and divine Heavenly Father, Lord, as we come before your throne today, we do so with thankful heart. We thank you, dear God, that as your children, there is nothing that thou hast not seen and hast not heard. Lord, you have seen the witnesses that have come against thy children, the redeemed of the Lord, and Father, I pray today that thou will protect thy child. heritage, you would see to it that they are blessed beyond measure. Father, even though we see Naboth and his demise, yet Lord, we know that Thou art all-powerful. Thou art the God of heaven who rules in the lives of men and governments. Lord, I pray that You'll bless today and help us to see the blessings that actually flow from Thy hand to Thy children. Lord, I pray again, thy protection be upon thy child. Watch over us and Lord, forgive us our sin. In Jesus Christ's name, his sake that I pray. Amen. I know that was a lengthy reading, these 29 verses of scripture, but I want you to realize the importance of God's people getting hold of the fact that we serve a mighty God. We serve a living God, a God who sees and a God who hears and a God who witnesses everything that is done against His children. And I'm not just talking about the children of Israel, the Jew itself. but I'm talking about us Gentiles as well, as we have been grafted into the family of God, and God still watches over all of his children regardless of who they are and what their names are. Today I want to bring a message. The results of working wickedness are the Jezebels and Ahabs of our lives. Emmanuel to our visiting friends and our radio audience, What we have before us today is a picture of the tragedy which can and will befall any and all of those who are bent on selling themselves to work wickedness in the sight of the Lord, the God of heaven. As we see from this portion of God's holy word, it's often not just the perpetrator of the sin, but others around will always pay the price as well. Sin thought upon is often sin carried out. And as God's word declares, but every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust and enticed. That's what we saw with Ahab and Jezebel. Ahab was lifted up in pride, and Jezebel done that to him, and lifted him up in such a way that he was filled with that pride, and he was able to carry out his covetous acts. Because the Bible says, then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin, and sin when it is finished, bringeth forth death. That's what we see in the book of James in chapter one and verse 14 and 15. So in our preparation for the Lord's Supper this evening, let us be careful to be sure that we ourselves have not fallen into the devil's snare of pride, lust, and covetousness. But today as we look at this scripture, I want us to look first of all at something that I feel that each and every one of us need to get a hold of. I want you to notice Jezebel selling of herself to work wickedness. In 1 Kings 21, these first 16 verses of Scripture, we see that very act transpiring. We see exactly what God's Word is saying here, how that this one woman has conspired to be a seller of wickedness, so to speak. She is that one that done that. Now, we go back to John chapter 17 for just a moment. This was also mentioned this morning in the devotion. But I want you to notice what it says in verse 14. I have given them thy word, and the world hath hated them. You know what, that's exactly what happened there. That's the reason why Jezebel and Ahab had no fear in what they were doing. They actually hated this righteous man Naboth. They hated him because he would not give them what their hearts actually coveted after. Now I want you to think about that. He says again in verse 14, I have given them thy word, and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Listen, I want you to know something. A conniving heart filled with mischief is a danger to any of God's people. We've got to be careful ourselves and not to allow that one who is coming up against us, that one who is using all kinds of different things to enact our feelings, so to speak. We've got to be careful and not to be sinning ourselves. Listen, there are several red flags to be aware of. when in direct communication and federation with one who has sold themselves to work wickedness against somebody else. The first thing I want you to see is a red flag that comes up. And the first thing to watch for is the appeal to one's pride. You know what, I believe today as you look at what was going on here with Ahab, Jezebel had appealed to his pride. She had, that he was bound to fail because of his pride and his covetousness. She began to lift him up and said, well, aren't you the king? Aren't you the one who's in charge here? Aren't you the one who's got the power to say or not to say what happens and what does not happen in thy kingdom? She began to lift him up in pride. You remember Tobiah and Sambalek when they were dealing with Nehemiah. They began to try to lift him up in pride, but Nehemiah fought off that pride, did he not? Listen, Nehemiah said, who am I that I should leave the work? Folks, I want you to know something today. That's where God's people need to be. everything in her power to disrupt your joy, to take away your peace, and to remove you from the comfort of your own pleasant vineyard. Listen, you know that the devil's in the background. You know that and you understand that the devil's in the details when it comes to that, and you've got to be careful yourself not to get yourself so wrapped up in the things that are going on that you yourself begin to sin and come short of the glory of God. Think about it. In 1 Kings 21 verses 4 down through verse 7, the Bible says, And Ahab came into his house heavy and displeased, because the word of Naboth the Jesuit had spoken to him. For he had said, I will not give thee the inheritance of my fathers. And he laid him down upon his bed and turned away his face and wouldn't eat no bread. But Jezebel, his wife, came in and said unto him, why is thy spirit so sad that thou eatest no bread? And he said unto her, because I spake unto Naboth the Jezerach, and said unto him, give me thy vineyard for money, or else, if it please thee, I will give thee another vineyard for it. And he answered, I will not give thee the vineyard. And Jezebel, his wife, said unto him, does thou now govern the kingdom of Israel? She began to lift him up. Look at your position. Look at who you are. Look at the power that you hold in your own hands. She began to encourage him to think about himself and not anybody else. Folks, that's the way the devil works. That's what the devil does when he begins to get into our minds. and he begins to lift us up in pride. He begins to cause us to think that who is that that they should ask such a thing as that. Folks, I want you to know today, be careful because the devil is in the details many times. We've got to be careful not be sinning against the God of heaven and allowing our pride to move our emotions and cause hurt to somebody else. We've got to be careful about that. Don't play the fool and don't be played like a fool. Listen in Proverbs 16, you go over there with me for just a moment in Proverbs 16. Notice what it says over here now. Verses five to begin with. In verse five of Proverbs 16, the Bible says, everyone that is proud in heart is abomination to the Lord. Though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished. You know, as we look at these things that transpire in our lives, There may be those that are around you that are doing everything in their power to destroy your joy. It may not be just one person, it may be all kinds of people who are taking in league with each other to try to bring you down, to cause you to sin yourself. Listen, though they be joined in hand in hand, you realize God is on your side. If you're a child of the King, listen, God is with you. He is the powerful being that He is. He is omniscient, He is omnipotent. And without Him, there is nothing done that is done in the earth and in the skies above. Listen, know that. Realize that. The Bible says in verse 18 and 19 here, the highway of the upright is to depart from evil. That's what we've got to do, child of God. Listen, it won't be long. We're gonna be coming into a time of refreshing. In less than a month, we're gonna be in a time of revival, praying that it begins, even here today. But know this also, that tonight we're doing a very serious thing in partaking of the Lord's Supper. We've gotta have not only our minds right, but our hearts have gotta be right, amen? We've got to be careful that there be no pride in us that can be lifted up to cause us to sin against the holy God of heaven. That's the reason why the Bible says that we're to examine ourselves. Listen, I know that there are those in the world today that are doing things, that are saying things, that are manipulating the things that are in this world to try to hurt you and harm you. Listen, you understand God's still on the throne. God is still in charge of our lives. God is still the one who tells us where we are and where we're not gonna be. Listen, that's God's power. I thank God that I just trust in him today. Listen, if I was to worry about all the things that's been said in my life since I've been a minister, since I've been a pastor, listen, if I was to worry about all those things, it would truly bring me down, but I know that God has got me in this place for this time, for this particular time with this particular people, and he has so for a reason. Now listen. Whenever I say that, listen, hear what I've got to say. Thus saith the Lord, he says, this is God's word, this is God's work, and this is God's power and authority. And listen, who is it that can stop us? Who is it that can condemn us? It is God. Thank God for that, amen. Thank the Lord that it is God who is on our side. Thank the Lord above. The Bible goes on to say, in verse 18, pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. That's what Ahab ended up in. That's what happened with Jezebel. Listen, you're going to see in just a moment the death of Ahab and Jezebel. And let me tell you something, it's not a pretty picture. Especially that one who caused everything to take place, Jezebel herself. The Bible states the fact that the men of the city threw her down off the wall. And when she hit, she burst asunder. And blood splattered everywhere. Folks, I want you to know something. There's a reason why that there was nothing left but her head and her hands and her feet. I want you to know her feet were swift to shed blood. Amen? That was a witness against her. Her hands were always working mischief. And her mind was always conscribing and working that which is unseemly. That's a reason why. They were all testimonies against that woman. I jumped ahead of my message, but that's alright. But I get excited when I realize that, listen, the God that we serve, He's there for us in all these situations. He is that one who knows the problems that His children go through. He's that one who realizes that everything that we see in our lives are... Listen, I want you to know something. And this is going to be hard for some people to get a hold of. But you know this and you understand, everything that we go through in life is by design of the holy God of heaven. Now a lot of people don't believe that. A lot of people don't understand that. I don't quite get a hold of all of it when bad things happen to good people, but this one thing I do know, everything that happens to a child of the king, listen, is for our good and his glory eventually, amen? That's what we need to get a hold of. You say, well, I don't know how this is all working out. I don't understand why this is all coming to pass. Well, listen, we don't understand a lot of things in this life. Just trust God. Just know that He's in charge of your life. Just know that He is the one who is orchestrating our life. He's the great architect of our lives. That's one thing that we all need to get a hold of from time to time. The Bible states in Proverbs 29, I'll go over here and read this for you for just a moment. I want you to think about this though. In Proverbs 29, the very first part of that scripture, in verse 23 it says, A man's pride shall bring him low. And folks, that's exactly what you saw with Ahab. It was his pride that got him in trouble. It was his pride and his covetousness that got him in trouble. And Jezebel was just as full, if not fuller than he was. There was the instigator, the troublemaker. Go whip, if you will, to the book of Psalm and chapter 73. Psalm and chapter 73. And I want you to look here for just a moment at these scriptures and think about what God is saying, these first 11 verses of scripture. I could read it all, but I'm not gonna take time to read the whole thing. But the Bible says, truly, God is good to Israel, even to such as are of a clean heart. Folks, that's to you and I today. Is your heart clean? Listen, you're gonna be taking the Lord's Supper this evening. You better know that your heart's clean. You better know that you're ready, you've examined yourself, and you've repented of anything that might stand in the way of your partaking of the Lord's Supper. And I've heard some people say, well, I just can't partake of the Lord's Supper tonight, I've got something in the way. Listen, get it out of the way, because you're commanded of God to partake of the Lord's Supper, amen? That is your responsibility. That is a commandment of God for you to do and to carry out. Now think about it. Baptism and the Lord's Supper, two of the great ordinances, the only two great ordinances in the God's Word for God's people. He says to make sure that you do this. From time to time we've got to check our own selves out. We gotta examine our own hearts. We gotta see if there'll be any pride in there that we need to deal with. We gotta see if there's any sin that we need to ask God to forgive us of. Listen, that's what we need to be doing. I go back and I think about Naboth. Now Naboth had, I mean he was not wrong in telling him, I ain't giving this away. This is what God has given me. Listen, that's the reason why today that I don't believe in gambling. I don't believe you ought to give away what the Lord's given you. I don't believe you ought to take chance on what God has given you. Listen, God has given that to you for a reason, and that is to make good use of it. But I go back and I think about Naboth. Naboth was not wrong to tell away, I ain't giving you this. I'm not even gonna sell it to you. This is what God has given me. And Aboth had all the authority and power to do just that. Think about it. It was his, God give it to him. God endowed that to him, to his family. Now, there are those in the world today that's gonna try to take away that joy out of your life. There are those in the world today that's gonna try to eliminate the peace and comfort that comes in your vineyard. Listen, don't let them have your vineyard. Again, that vineyard speaks of a place of tranquility and a place of peace and a place of solace. I don't know about you, but I enjoy getting out in my garden. I enjoy walking among the fruit trees that I have and just watch how God works all these things out. I enjoy setting back as I watch God grant the increase to the harvest that I'm going to partake of all summer, fall, winter, and spring to come. I enjoy realizing that that gives me peace to know that God is taking care of my needs. Listen, don't let the devil's crowd rob you of that. Don't allow the devil's crowd to rob you of anything that's bringing you peace and comfort and joy because they're sure about to try to do just that. They're about to try to take away all your comfort. That's what Ahab wanted. He wanted and he coveted and he sinned and death happened. Think about it. Verse 15 down through verse 20 of this text. Notice what it says here. Now think about this in Psalm 73. Verse 15, the Bible states this. If I say I will speak thus, behold, I should offend against the generation of thy children. When I thought to know this, it was too painful for me, until I went to the sanctuary of God. Then understood I their end. Folks, do you understand what happened to Ahab and Jezebel? Do you understand why it happened? Do you understand how it happened? This was God's power and God's work because of sin in their lives. Because of their covetous heart. Because of the pride that stirred them up. Says, surely thou didst set them in slippery places. Thou castest them down into destruction. How are they brought into desolation? As in a moment. They are utterly consumed with terrors. It's a dream when one awaketh, so O Lord, when thou awakest thou shalt despise their image. Be careful because the first thing that somebody's gonna do is gonna try to appeal to your pride. They're gonna try to lift you up. They're gonna try to encourage you to sin against God. They're gonna try to encourage you to do that which is wrong. You be sure that you walk the walk and you talk the talk. You be sure you stay by the stuff. Now, the second thing is we've got to beware of actions in motion. Verses 8 down through verse 13, you see that Jezebel set things in motion. Folks, I want you to know something. There's a lot of Jezebels in this old world. They're setting things in motion to try to hurt the children of God. They're doing everything in their power to try to stir you up, to cause you to sin against the God of heaven. Listen, you be sure to know that when the evil work begins to come, that that's the Jezebels in your life that are trying to destroy you. You know, the Bible tells us to try the spirits. You know what? You need to try the spirits and know this, that that which is going to cause you to sin is not the Spirit of God. Amen? Anything that causes you to sin is not the Spirit of God. It's the Spirit of the dark one. And you need to realize that. Understand that and be careful. We notice how the words of Jezebel were fulfilled in order to gain the prize possession. She had lies spread forth in character assassination to the demise of an innocent man named Naboth. She had been to lie on him. What happened to Jesus? The very same thing. Men had to lie against our Savior, the Sovereign of the Universe. Know this, that a lying tongue Oh, God abhors it. Go with me, if you will, to Psalm 120 for just a moment. Psalm 120. I think about Naboth here. I wonder what he might have been thinking when those men began to witness against him. I think about our Savior. as he was standing in the four courts that were designed to put him to death. I wonder what he thought about that when those men began to rail lying accusations against him. The Bible says in verse one and two of Psalm 120, in my distress I cried unto the Lord and he heard me. Deliver my soul, O Lord, from lying lips and from a deceitful tongue. Oh, my people today, be careful to know that there are those that's going to lie against you. They're going to say all manner of things to cause your character to be assassinated. We've all seen it. Each one of our families probably have gone through a time of testing such as this. Oh, I tell you, it's a hard thing to go through. I've witnessed it, I've felt it, I've understood. I've understood the lies that have been brought forth and how they damage individuals. But know this, God has already seen it all. The Lord has already heard it all. And one day, everything is going to come out. You remember that. You keep the faith. You walk the line. You stay Christ-like. Yes, there's people gonna lie against you. They're gonna do everything in their power to destroy you. And I mean, I've heard it, I've seen it. I've had it gone against me and I've had it to go against some of our church members. But you know this, you keep your character. You keep your faith. God already has heard it, God knows all about it. God will repay, thus saith the Lord. Proverbs 6, the Bible states this now in verse 12 down through verse 19. A mighty person, a naughty person, a wicked man walketh with a forward mouth. He winketh with his eyes, he speaketh with his feet, he teacheth with his fingers. Forwardness is in his heart, he deviseth mischief continually, he soweth discord, therefore shall his calamity come suddenly. Suddenly shall he be broken without remedy, or again without hope. These six things doth the Lord hate, yea, seven are abomination unto him. A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devise of wicked imaginations, feet that be swift to running to mischief, and a false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among the brethren. Think about this. The third thing I want you to get a hold of is the fulfillment of the wicked bartering of Jezebel. The death and elimination of the perceived threat and problem. Verses 14 down through verse 16 of 1 Kings 21, we see where Paul Naboth was stoned to death. She carried out her threat. An innocent man died. Folks, there's innocent people that go through things all the time. And they become bewildered. They die spiritually. I'm talking about not losing their salvation, but they just feel like, what's the use? Listen, don't get in that place. Don't get to that place where you think that everything is against you and everybody is going to do everything they can to destroy you. Don't get in that place. It's a lonely place to be. Listen, you know this, that God is always by your side. He's always there and He always will be. Think about it. We serve a mighty God. So this is one thing that I want you to get a hold of. There are those in this world who are going to get exactly what they wish for. And all the reward of the wicked and the consequences are weighed and finaled. I think about even the children of Israel. They just thought they had to be like everybody else. They thought they had to have a king. And when God gave them the king, boy, then they were sorry. Folks, we look at people like Ahab, and you wonder, why in the world are they even in the world? They're there for God's glory. One way or the other, folks, that's the only thing I can say. They're there for God's glory. God will get the glory one way or the other. The last thing I want you to consider today, we see the revelation of the hidden agenda dealt with by God. In verses 17 down through verse 26 of 1 Kings 21, God's word tells each and every one exactly what their fate's gonna be. You know what, I'd be scared to death if I was somebody against God's child. I would be terrified if I was somebody who wanted to hurt one of God's children. Because God says, I will repay, thus saith the Lord. You know what, God doesn't go back on his word. God's promises are sure. His word is true and truth never changes. Be careful, child of God. Know this, that we are brothers and sisters in Christ. We are of the redeemed. Now one thing that we must do, which I'm telling you, it seems like it's getting less and less in the world, but God's people need to be there for each other. We need to stand together. We need to be unified. It seems like in this world today, everybody's fighting against everybody. Why? I cannot understand it. But I know the devil is grinning like a possum eating sauerbein. Now know that. I want you to know that the devil really rejoices when he sees God's children bickering and fighting and complaining. You know how that begins? It begins with the wrong spirit. That dark spirit. That's the reason why I want to try the spirits. That's the reason why I want to stop and consider If I do this, what will it do? If I say this, who will it hurt? You see what I'm saying? That's what the devil wants us to do. He wants us to bite and devour one another. That's the reason why when it comes to the Lord's Supper, we've got to be careful and make sure. And that's the reason why I ask for the moment of silence before the Supper ever begins. that if there be alt against anybody in this house, we take care of it then and there. So we can partake of that supper in a worthily manner. Not that we're worthy of it, but that we take it in a worthily manner. In other words, we're identifying the blood and body of Christ. We're not partaking of that supper and trodden it underfoot. In 2 Kings 9, we have about five minutes left on our broadcast. I want you to think about this. In 2 Kings 9, you see the awful demise of Jezebel. Folks, I want you to know something. God is not mocked. Men today even sit in the house of God and they mock God when they do so because they do not hear, they do not see, they do not believe. God is a just God. Remember last Wednesday night's sermon as I get ready to come to a close. Of course, we deal with Ahab's demise as well, but I want you to just think for just a moment in Romans, what it says there in chapter 12 and verse 19. The Bible says, dearly beloved, he's talking to the saint, just like this pastor's talking to you saints today. Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves. Don't take matters into your own hands. Don't be a hothead. Don't lash out prematurely, just wait on God. Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath, for it is written, vengeance is mine, I will repay, saith the Lord. You say, well, I just don't think I can do that. Well, you know what? The Christian thing to do is to do what it says in verse 20. And I had a man one time, oh, he got up all over me over this. The Bible says, Therefore if thou an enemy, hunger feed him, and if he thirst, give him drink. For in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good. This man, he got, I mean, he got mad. I mean, he was ready to fight one day. He says, you don't know what that person done to me. No, I don't know. But I know who does know. If you're a child of the King, I know who knows all about it. You see, when people say bad things about you, You're the king's child. You know that the king already knows it. He'll take care of matters. He'll fix it in the end. Your name will be re-established among the inhabitants, not only of the community where you live, but among all people who had that thrown at them. I'll close with Hebrews 10 and 30. Where the Bible says, For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense saith the Lord. And again the Lord shall judge his people. It's a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. Naboth's death and the theft of his vineyard was made right. Yes, Naboth lost his life, but he was yet vindicated through His Word, and even today we're still talking about it. That shows his vindication. That shows God's grace. You say, well, that's not hardly fair. Well, just like Brother Jim said this morning, listen, a lot of times people look at things that happen in their lives and they say, God's not equal, God's not fair. But He is. We just have to come to realize that our lives are in His hands. Know this, that God's timetable is not ours. If He says He will repay, understand. God will always keep His work. Child of God, that's something to be encouraged about today. Yeah, we've gone through some issues. We have had lies told upon us. We have had people to take stands against us. Family members have even taken a stand against us. Oh, I was here one night preaching my heart out and I kept feeling that phone go off in my pocket. Boy, I tell you what, I was getting what for. Know this, God knows all about it. I could have looked at that and just been bewildered. But I wasn't because I knew God knew. God still knows. And God still takes care of business. It may not be on our time, but it will be on His time. Just know that He loves His children. Let's all stand please.