As a way of introduction this morning, I want to mention something. In teaching a class, in any role, if you're in front of God's people trying to tell them what the Word says, I try to be mindful of what the Lord wants. I don't want to just get up and just say things out of the Bible. I want to be led by the Lord. And one thing occurred to me recently that, especially in this day and age we live in, It's not our burden to bear. It's not our responsibility to take on all the things that are happening in the world. And a lot of those things come by social media. So I'm not accusing anybody of having any kind of issue out of social media. I mean, if you do, you do. If you don't, whatever. But it occurred to me when studying the Bible and trying to maintain a relationship with the Lord, the Bible says to lay aside every weight and put idols aside, put everything that would present itself between who we are and who God wants us to be, and it's a line of communication, and being able to communicate with God. And you know, when you get on Facebook and you hear things, and there are things that come across, and things we ought to pray for, and tragedies like Ms. Leanne mentioned about that thing on Smith Lake. But I'm telling you, as long as you and I live, there's always going to be tragedies. There's always going to be problems. That stuff's never going away. And a lot of our responsibility lies within the church to take care of the church first. to pray for church people first. You know, you hear a situation and crimes and different things across the country, and we don't know those people, and it's okay to pray for those people, but I guess what I would encourage God's people to do is to be concerned about their lives, their relationship with God, and what's going on in your local church. It's just, it's not, most of those things are not our burden to bear. They're just not. I don't believe God designed us to carry a load like that. I just, I don't think, I think, I'm not going to quote that verse right, I guess, but it's sufficient. Today are the evils thereof. But there's plenty of stuff that we're always gonna be concerned about. And again, don't bear that burden. If it's not your burden to bear, don't take it on. That's my encouragement to God's people. And that's all throughout the scripture, man. Getting things out of our lives that would stop and hinder communication, worrying and fretting and fear. And Jesus never hurried, worried, or feared. He wasn't worried about it. and we ought to emulate Christ, we ought to be like Him. And those things are so easy to come into our minds. And the idea, too, is to understand and to realize when something comes in our lives that takes time away from God, that takes away a line of communication with God. And it's not our job to worry about those things, it just isn't. But last week, we left off with talking speaking on humanity, and the fact that the Bible says there's none good, no not one, for a moral aspect, and the Bible talks about Paul concerning the law, Paul was a great man, but of course it goes beyond a moral aspect, and it's the idea that Adam is our father. And so we're, the Bible declares a sinner, a lost sinner, we're by nature the children of wrath, So your inheritance, your earthly humanistic inheritance is sin. That's what you and I inherited. And I know this is basic, but that's the issue. And so it's easy to look at people and look at situations and judge situations by our own knowledge. The Bible says, lean not to thine own understanding. And so you look at a situation, and I find myself slipping occasionally, looking at a situation and making a judgment call. And I'm thinking, hang on a second, there was no Bible involved with that at all. And we ought to have a Bible answer. We ought to have an answer from the Bible when it concerns every situation. And sometimes there's a social pressure. That's why the best thing to do is to fall in love with God entirely and completely to the point to where you, I don't wanna escape it. I wanna hear God, you know, when you're sitting down, you're standing up, put it on the walls. The Bible says, put it on the front lens of thine eyes. It should be who we are, inseparable from who we are. And that's not gonna happen with the cares of the world. This is not gonna happen. Little foxes spoil the vines. It's not some big, great thing most of the time. It's daily walking with God. And you and I would do well just to deal with the small things that present themselves, again, against Christ in our life. That's enough battle for a day. A lot of the big victories that God's people win are over time. It just is. I know a lot of Christians that when they got saved, they smoked and they drank and they still did all those things. I mean, six, eight months, a year down the road, they were still doing those things, and God slowly took those things out of their lives. And so that's who we are. And so that's who humans are. And when you deal with somebody, if you ever do any personal work or deal with a lost person, that's what you have to understand. And that's where you have to stay. You can't say man is inherently good. And I don't care what church that you attend. The thing is, if you up against Christ, that's the standard. The standard is Christ. And against them, they're found wanting. Okay, and what Bible knowledge does for you and I is it's a reassurance, and we're gonna get into some of this, but know what you know. That's what makes a good Christian, is knowing what the Bible says. All right, we read this last week, how then can a man be justified with God? That's the question. There is a God, and most people know that. An atheist is typically not going to be honest. They're just not. They're not going to be honest with you. They'll spend more time trying to disprove that there's a God rather than just admit that they just hate Him. Typically, if you speak to an atheist at some point, what they're going to tell you is, I don't believe in God, and I also hate Him. The thing that's not real, I hate the thing that's not real. OK. That's the crux of the matter. are to be justified with God. Before Christ, it was impossible to be justified with God. Impossible. Cannot be. Thank God for the death of Christ on the cross. Without that, there'd be no justification with God. How can he be clean that is born of a woman? And we're going to get into some of this, too. Coming right up. Behold, even to the moon and it shineth not, yea, the stars are not pure in the sight, how much less man that is a worm, the son of man which is a worm. Now again, someone more eloquent of speech or greater knowledge than myself can help explain this sufficiently, but we don't walk around in some slumped shoulder some false humility, and I'm just a big nobody. While that may be true, that's not who you are as a Christian. And you put those things behind you. And Paul said himself, forgetting the past. Forgetting the past. Okay, put it behind you. You messed up today, put it behind you. You have to forgive yourself. You do. Now you go to God. You don't just absolve yourself. Tell it to Jesus. Tell it to Jesus. Tell it to Jesus alone. Tell him. And put those things behind you. It doesn't matter. In eternity, it's just not going to matter. Go on for God, looking forward to the things. All right, Jeremiah 1710. I, the Lord, search the heart. I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways and according to the fruit of his doings. Okay, if you're going through something, to me, I would always assume that God is doing something. Make the assumption. You're not wrong making the assumption that if something has occurred, God has allowed it. What we'd like to see is a huge difference between us and lost people, meaning this, we're not better than lost people, we're just saved. There's a friend of mine, I'm not sure if he's saved or not, he claims to be, but his actions speak otherwise, and he hasn't been in church. I remember the day he walked out of church, I mean, that's been 15 years ago, and he's very self-righteous, and he's got plenty of good deeds, or what he thinks. But yeah, walked away from church all those years ago, And he declared himself righteous. And I forgot where I was going with that. Y'all bear with me this morning. My head is all over the place. I, the Lord, search the heart. I try the reins. That's what it was. Assume that God is doing something in your life, even if it's bad. We think we have a leg up. I know many people who have the Midas touch. I don't know if anybody knows that. Everything they do just turns to their favor. It just does. They're good at making money. I mean, they can turn a bad situation, they can turn a bad deal somehow into a good deal. And we think that, you know, I've got favor with God. How come I'm not in a better situation than them? Because the Christian life does not work that way. It just doesn't. And for my friend Caleb, I'll mention his name. I don't think anybody here knows him. But for Caleb, he's always had that track record. Everything works out for him. And then he believes that all these good things that are happening to him, and he'll even give God glory, he will not go to church. Tosses like a sailor. I'm telling you, he lives his life in a wicked manner that is against the Lord. And so, When you look at your life, what Christians ought to value over everything else is our relationship to God. Christ is my friend. He is near and dear to me. If somebody said something against your friend, You think to yourself, well, God can take care of himself. Well, that's true. That's true. But you know that God said, if you'll confess me before men, I'll confess you before the Father. And I don't appreciate someone saying something against my friend. And that's how close that we ought to be to God. He ought to be close, close, near and dear to our hearts. And I should not want to make a step until I consult with my friend. He saved me. He changed my life. And if I died today, I'd be in hell. I know that. There's no question in my mind. He's taken care of us. He's provided for us. I mean, we wouldn't be where we are without that friend. That's how close he ought to be to you and I. And there are many of professing Christians who do not know the Savior in that regard. They don't. And they're absolutely miserable. When you think about the fruits of the Spirit, one indication of someone that loves God, they're gonna have some fruit of the Spirit. One out of the nine, surely. I mean, come on. I, the Lord, search the heart, try the reins. When you get in a situation, immediately go to God. I don't care what it is. Assume it's God doing something. He wants to know, who are you? But, O Lord of hosts, that triest the righteous, and seest the reins in the heart, let me see thy vengeance on them. Run to thee, have I opened my cause. Seest the reins, triest the heart. Now, I was speaking to Brother Carl recently, and he told me a story. birth this, what I'm about to tell you here. And one of the most discouraging things, and I suppose somebody could do a lesson on Southern Christianity. And Southern Christianity is a damnable heresy. It's awful. It's terrible. And Southern Christianity is the idea, they get all their doctrine from the three times they go to church in any given year, and they get all their doctrine from country music. And what you're going to find out is that country music is just about a religion unto itself. It really is. And they can quote you any country music artist, especially if you happen to sprinkle God in there, or the Bible, or angels. And all of a sudden, it's gospel truth. That's their gospel. It is. And gospel means the truth. As Brother Carl was telling me about a situation, and he'll correct me if I get this story wrong, but there's a friend of his, I remember he asking prayer for this guy many months ago, but the guy had a brain tumor. And unfortunately, the man ended up succumbing to the tumor, he ended up passing away. Well, this other coworker of his was concerned about this man who had died. He said, I'm not sure, I'm not certain of this man's salvation. I don't think he was saved. And so Brother Carl's telling me every morning they open up in prayer, and he mentioned this man, and then he mentioned the song, Have You Heard This Song by Blake Shelton. Now, when anyone says, Have You Heard This Song by any country music artist, I turn it off immediately. uh... that's not one of the things the devil tempts me met with matter-of-fact i've read several books that say they use uh... one of the cia interrogation tactics is playing country music non-stop i'd believe it if they interrogated me in that fashion i would tell them whatever they want to know to please stop playing country music is the bane of my existence i hate it now the devil tempts me in other ways it's not country music it's awful there's a tear in my beard and i'm crying for you dear You know, what kind of life is that? Listen, if anybody's ever heard, listen, any lyrics in country music, hide the gun, please. You don't want to shoot yourself, well, others, and then yourself first, probably. It's awful. Not only that, it's not just something that's funny, it's wrong. It's dead wrong. And we're going to see some of that here. But so this man said, listen, I don't know if y'all have heard that new song by Blake Shelton, but it blessed my heart. OK, here we go. Let's see what Mr. Shelton has to say. And what he was concerned about is, is this man saved? Well, he heard this psalm by Blake Shelton, and he was encouraged. This psalm blessed my heart. Let's see what it says here. This is called, Let Him In Anyway. Ain't it a scary thing when somebody's time here ends, laying flowers on their grave, wondering where their soul went? I tried, I tried. He was starting to listen. I brought him to church. He was feeling conviction. But you took him away before I could convince him, so I'm here on my knees saying, hey God, I know what I'm about to pray, God, I just had to suck it up and say goodbye to my best friend, I don't ever wanna never see him again. And I know the only way to get in is through you, and he wasn't quite the Christian he was supposed to be, and Lord, it ain't my place, but would you let him in anyway? Absolutely ridiculous, nonsense. I can't imagine the day on my heart's last beat when I walked through those gates and he ain't waiting on me. All I needed was a little more time, I swear. I was so dang close, it ain't fair. Eloquent, wonderful poetry. So hey God, I know you know what I'm about to pray, God. I just have to suck it up and say goodbye. This is repetitive here, let's see, this is the chorus or whatever. Because he was going to let you in any day. Oh, he was so close, and I'm just asking for a miracle. All right, let's start back at the beginning here. You can go down a rabbit hole with this kind of stuff, because these lyrics are very indicative of what's behind. One of the things about country music singers, and I'll grant you this is true, they sing of their own experiences. So when you have a country music song, what they're singing about is what's happened to them. They're not shy about it. If they're doping and fornicating, right? If they're doing and stealing and thieving, they'll tell you about it. They're not shy about it, but they got their pride. That's Southern Christianity. Southern Christianity is, I brought myself up by my bootstraps, you can't tell me nothing. And you can't talk me out of what I got. Well, what do you got? Self-righteousness. And a good Southern Christian is self-righteous. And guess what? You can't tell me what the Bible says, because I've got my heroes in the country music scene, and I'm ready to meet God. We'll see. We'll find out. All right, first of all, ain't it a scary thing when somebody's time here ends, and death is so final? When somebody's dead, that's it. And if you wanted to tell them something, you can't. And I understand that. But if you're a Christian and you believe in heaven, and just as a precursor here, let me show you this. There's three things here. Fact, faith, and feeling. And that's the foundation of who we are as Christians. Fact, faith, and feeling. And most people, their salvation is based off of feeling, not fact. There are some days I don't feel saved. Okay, well then what do I have to go back on? The fact that the Bible says it. The truth of God's Word. The established truth of God's Word. It's got nothing to do with feeling. Alright, ain't it a scary thing? Well, I suppose so. Paul said it'd be far better for me to be departed. Paul had a suicide wish. He was putting himself in dangerous situations. He wasn't scared to die. And I forget who I was talking to, but no, it wasn't anybody here, but I was talking to a friend of mine the other day, and it was Jeffrey. And, you know, it's the same thing. We don't so much fear death as you do suffering. I don't think anybody wants to suffer, but the idea of death, especially if the best is yet to come. All right, ain't it a scary thing? Well, it's a scary thing, I'll grant you that, but let's see what the Bible says. Verse 10 is 413, but I would not have you ignorant brethren. That's the problem. You know what the problem is? Ignorant brethren. Lack of knowledge. They don't know what the Bible says. I will not have you ignorant brethren concerning them which are asleep, that you sorrow not. Okay, now are you going to be sorrowful? Yes. Okay. You know what it says here? That you sorrow not even as others which have no hope. We're not going to sorrow like they are sorrowing when they're trying to pull their loved ones out of the casket. When their world falls apart and they have to have drugs and alcohol to make it through because as far as they're concerned, they'll never see that person again. That's not the outlook that I've got. That's not the outlook that God's people have. Listen, death is gone. Death was killed. How about that? God took the keys to death and hell. I don't fear death. I fear suffering. I don't want to suffer. I mean, I don't suffer well. We sorrow not, even those that have no hope." Okay, wherefore, comfort one another with these words. Ain't it scary when somebody says... Now, I'll grant you, I'm not trying to pick this apart. What aggravates me is when people say things concerning religious, spiritual, or godly matters, and they don't have a clue in the world what they're saying. Because there's people out there that listen to this stuff. And if it's somebody here, then God bless you, and that's between you and the Lord. Ridiculous. Laying flowers on their grave, wondering where their soul went. I don't have to wonder. When my dad died, I knew exactly where he, I know where he is right now. I know that. Okay? Now listen, truly, the only person that knows you're saved is you and God, truly. But listen, by their fruit shall you know them. And when you've been around them, you can know, you'll know. It's obvious. And it's really obvious when they're not saved. And somebody that may, you know, it's so funny, you hear people, you be in the workplace somewhere, worked there for five or six years, and then, slowly but surely you make your way through the company and learn everybody and then you mention the fact that you're a Christian. All of a sudden, all these people are Christians. I read an article from this guy and he said, he said, he said, I'm tired of Christian worship music. Great, but this guy may be going somewhere. I don't know how I found the article. I just came across it. Tired of Hillsong. Tired of Bethel. Tired of all these mainstream artists. I don't get nothing out of it. He said, as far as I know, as far as I'm concerned, I've exposed all these people. There's nothing there. I'm thinking, all right, this guy's on the right track. He said, yep. What I've turned to for my Christian music is country music. I'm not sure that you didn't go there. Well, I don't know which one is where. You're picking between two evils, and they both have spirits. I'll tell you that right now. Both of them. And what he said is, this is real Christianity. And you know what he said? He said, I don't always feel like worshiping God, but I can go to country music, and I'm a sinner like they are, and so I understand where they're coming from. Well, then you're probably not saved. That's where you end up with people. You end up giving everybody a pass, and that's where it leads to apostasy. is the fact that you keep compromising, and it could be from social, not everybody has that social pressure, whatever, but a lot of churches do. They feel the pressure. They're like, well, you know, they'll do these cards and people come in, they fill it out, and in some instances, they'll ask people, hey, we appreciate you visiting us, we'd like to know the reason why you didn't want to stay. Well, this is what our needs are in a church. And so what you have is little churches, and they're starting to dwindle. As a whole, church numbers are going down. They just are. You have exceptions to that in some very populated areas. But as a whole, what I'm looking and seeing is numbers are going down. And you know what God's people are doing? How do we get them up? And just a little bit of leaven, just a little bit to change it. And that's what leads to apostasy. That's the end of it. Laying flowers on their grave, wondering where their soul went. I don't wonder at all. I know that I know that I know. And no one will ever change that for me. These, 1 John 5, 13, these things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life. Now, do you know this morning? How sure are you? Again, it goes back to feeling. I don't feel saved today. Yeah, but do you have a verse? Is there a verse that God showed you that smote your heart? Amen. Is there a verse that you have to quote yourself sometimes when things get tough? I believe there ought to be. I tried and tried. He was starting to listen. wrong with a lot of God's people in Southern Christianity, that's the problem. They're trying, they're trying. And when they're able to get the things that they want and get to the point in their life that they want, then they'll go to church and dedicate their life to the Lord, and then it'll be too late. It'll be too late. I tried and tried. Well, that's good. You're witnessing to him. I brought him to church. He was feeling conviction. But you took him away before I could convince him. All right, God, it's your fault. I don't know how, if you're out in public spaces, you talk to people, they start getting personal things and telling you about their life. It's amazing to me how so many people felt like they got a bum rap. And ultimately, I'm surprised by the amount of people that blame God for where they are. And my roommate in Bible college, that's exactly where he ended up. He had a problem. He couldn't fix his problem, so he blamed God. God is responsible for the way that I am. Awful. You took him away. God, it's your fault. I almost had him. There was a sign years ago I saw that says, we catch them and God cleans them. And man, you know what your responsibility is to sow the seed. That's what it is. To live a Christian life in front of somebody. That's what it is. Plant the seed, let God water it, let Him give the increase. And you know what the problem with Southern Christianity is? They already know it all. You can't tell them anything. The question that a real Christian should ask is, Lord, what would you have me to do? Lord, what do you want me to do? What is it that you have for me? And where are God's people asking that question? They make the decision and the determination for themselves. I remember one time there was this guy trying to date my sister, and he put in security systems. He said, well, I believe that's what God has for me to do. I'm going around putting security systems in and keeping people safe, and that's what God has for me to do in my life. He made that determination. He said, I make people happy and safe, so I believe that's what God wanted. No! Where did you come up with that? Vain imagination. Ridiculous. I brought him to church, he was feeling conviction, but you took him away before I could convince him, so I'm on my knees saying, hey God, I know you know what I'm about to pray. God, I just had to suck it up and say goodbye to my best friend. I don't ever, this is double negative, I don't ever want to never see him again. 2 Corinthians 6, 2. Now look, the fact is, listen, I know some people personally that have a problem with this. They do. The idea that a loved one, a good moral person, a relative of theirs, is somehow in hell, I know that person. They treated everybody very nice. They were good to us. They were friendly. They were kind. They were giving all these things. And they said, I just cannot believe that God would send somebody like that to hell. You understand, especially with Easter upon us, Resurrection Sunday, there are things left out on purpose so as not to offend people. The gospel is offensive. Either half the Son, half life. You got the Son, you got life. If you don't, you don't. You know what the Bible says? Depart from me, I never knew you. That's a tough thing. And there are people that refuse God based on that right there. There's no way that God would do that. That's not what the Bible says. And even though some of these things are hard to understand, the problem comes. You know what happens? This is what happens. I don't like what this says, so I'm going to write my own version of the Bible and change the entire thing. And I appreciate that friend of Carl's, Matt, his favorite version of the ESV, and thanks to a conversation with, no? NLT. His favorite version was the NLT. And then he was talking to Brother Andrew, gave him some few verses, and guess what? He said, you know what? I'm changing my mind. You're right. I don't like what I'm seeing in here. How wonderful is that? An open heart, an open mind, an understanding that there's something greater than myself. Perhaps there's something outside of the scope of my knowledge I appreciate that, amen. 2 Corinthians 6, 2. All right, what does the Bible say about salvation? For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted. When it comes time for someone to get saved, there's an accepted time. There is a window. It's a window of time. And in the day of salvation, have I succored thee? Behold, now is the accepted time. Behold, now is the day of salvation. I'll do what I want to, when I want to. That's Southern Christianity. I still got time to go to church. No, you don't. And I know the only way to get in is through you. Well, at least you got that part right. Now, this is what drives me nuts right here. Because if you talk to them, you talk to southern people, this is what they'll say, well, I'm not quite where I need to be, but I'll get there one day. Here it is right here, and I know the only way to get in is through you, and he wasn't quite the Christian he was supposed to be. What does that mean? Wasn't quite the Christian? Okay, if you're not doing well, could you just do better? You know what the problem is? That Christians try to do better on their own. You have got to have God. You have to. We are entirely dependent upon God. Entirely. Yes, I use God as a crutch. No, I cannot even walk without Him holding my hand. What does that mean? Genesis 4-7, If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? If thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. How simple is that? and unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him." See, this idea that I'm not quite the Christian I'm supposed to be and I could do better, they're telling you that while they've got a cigarette in one hand and a beer in the other. One day I'll do better. No! The Bible says, and that's when it comes to witnessing, you have to be, you've got to take a hard line. My dad, when he used to witness, go out in the street, he'd approach somebody. I mean, it was a cold opener. I mean, he'd be like, listen, are you saved and on your way to heaven or lost and on your way to hell? And they'd just take him by surprise. Well, aren't you blunt? That's it. There is no other way. You're lost or you're saved. And you're either living a life that's acceptable to God or you are not. Why lie to yourself? Lord, it ain't my plate, could you let him in anyway? No. Can you imagine that? You think God would tell somebody no into everlasting darkness, prepare for the devil and his angels? Yes. It doesn't bring me any joy to say these things, but God's people are delusional. or they've lied to themselves, I don't know what's happened, amen? But you can rest in the scriptures, amen? And God's gonna make it right one day, all these things. I can't imagine the day on my heart's last beat when I walk through those gates and he ain't waiting on me. Brethren, can I tell you something? Southern Christianity is that if I try hard enough and I do good works, I'm gonna have a big family reunion in the sky. It's got nothing to do with God. Oh, I can't wait to see mom and them. That's all it is, and that's awful. When I get to heaven, listen, I've got relatives up there. I'm gonna see my dad, I'm gonna see my friends that died over the years. But do you know what, who I'm concerned about greater than any of those people is the one who died for me. That's what is near and dear to my heart. That's who I want to see. You know, I've got the rest of eternity. I want to spend about 5,000 years with the Lord. And then after that, maybe I'll hang out with my dad by the Crystal River or something. Who knows? We'll see. I've got plenty of time. It's him I want to see. The one that bled and died and gave his life for me. I can't imagine the day on my heart's last beat when I walk through those gates and he ain't waiting on me. All I need, oh, if I just had a little bit more time. More time. Can I tell you something? If God gave you more time, what would you do with it? That's a good answer. I'm serious. You know what mortality does for you and I? It gives us a deadline. If you had 250, that's more time for you to waste. I can speak for myself too. I would waste 100 and then, well, no, probably 150 of it. Give God the rest of it. Oh, I just need more time. No, you don't need more time. You need to lay down all the things in your life that you cherish most and say, God, I'm giving it all to you. And Lord, if you give some of it back to me, I'll be happy and I'll be thankful. Don't need more time. This guy's broken-hearted. I mean, just, you know, it's beer, guns, God, country, and I'm just doing the best I can. Well, God bless your soul. I wouldn't give you two cents for that Christianity. Exodus 29, 37 says this. Seven days thou shalt make an atonement for the altar and sanctify it. It shall be an altar most holy." Now look at this. You say, what is holiness? What is righteousness? You know what? Here's a little definition of holiness. Whatsoever toucheth the altar shall be holy. You know what the first step to holiness? Offering yourself up. Christians think, what's it going to cost me to be holy? I don't want to be some oddball. No, that's not what it is. If you lay yourself on the altar, present yourself holy before God. That's it. Does that sound like an impossible task? God wants you to make the first step. Present your body as a living sacrifice, okay? Look here, the presentation, I'm presenting my body. A living sacrifice. Okay, after that, right? Holy, acceptable unto God. The presentation. That's half the battle. Is giving yourself to God entirely. And I know it's so easy to do. It's 1030, I can't believe it. It's easy to rest on your laurels. It is. You say, I tithe, I attend church, I do these things for God, and that's enough. And that's not enough to God. All right, well, that went quick. I hope that made some sense. Brother Bowen, would you close us out?