A divine challenge
Hello, welcome to the Daily Grind podcast Ministry of Faith Baptist Church Sedalia podcast Monday through Friday on our daily walk with Christ posted by Stephen and Andy bitsko myself. Today. We're going to be using our Bibles. You can use a physical Bible if you have one or you could go to the logos, download the Logos Bible software, which is free. We also utilize C 365 days of Spurgeon devotional, which you can also download at logos.com it is however, not free and totally optional.
How do I get that fly April 23rd at Divine challenge? First Tech that we're going to be raining today is James chapter number 3 verses 3 through 6 take a moment to find that in your Bible. Please feel free to pause the podcast why you get there?
James chapter 3 and verse number 3 through 6. We see behold we put bits in the horse's mouth that they may obey us and we turn about their whole body behold also the shift which know they be so great or driven a fierce winds yet or they turned about with a very small Helm whithersoever governor listed even so the tongue is a little member and both great things behold how great a matter a little fire Kindle it and the tongue is a fire a world of iniquity. So is the tongue among our members that the files to whole body instead of some fire the course of Nature and did it set on fire of hell. What about that time? Very powerful. What what do you mean by power? Music you can use it in a lot of different ways to get from good things. You can use it for for bad things. Yeah it in either way you can use it has the ability to have a great impact on the tongue is a fire. It can be the fire of God.
Depends on which way you use it. So what is a world of iniquity?
Do a lion Equity with that tongue not old enough for that. I've been in a bunch of churches never seen that happen. It happened after we've left and move to a different place but never personally seen happen. I have heard stories so that when you choose carpet at your church be very very careful don't go to that meeting is the legend about carpet in church carpet and churches the color pattern how fluffy it is a hard it is you don't show up to those days because you know from those meetings are from those businesses or from how people perceive other people. There's a thing called gossip. No way. Yeah, I don't know. I didn't know that exist right now like a Mack truck and you know, it's actually defiles the whole body the whole body of them are the members of church yet. Even themselves. Nobody never talk bad about anybody. That's not a good thing afterwards. I know I do what I can say that yeah, it's going to get me and it will and it did you know, it defiles the whole body. All right. Let's go ahead and talk about with the there is Charles Spurgeon over there on the left. C is in this picture looks very comfy as he does have bags under his eyes. So I'm sure he's tired and the message that he preached was called the Divine challenge. This is an excerpt from that my sermon a Divine challenging those delivered on April 22nd 1900 years there in the year of 1860 and I was at the new Park Street Chapel in South work. Okay, that's where he deliver this message. And the message is Moses Costa Pharaoh yet again and says thus saith the Lord let my people go that they may serve me and at one time. The hottie Monarch says he will some golf at another time. He will let them all go but they are to leave their cattle behind he would hold onto something if he cannot have the whole will have a part. It is wonderful. How content the devil is if he can be nibble at a man's heart. It does not matter about swallowing it whole only let him nibble and he will be content let him but bite at the hands and be satisfied for he is wise enough to know that if the serpent has but bare flesh distinct, he will poison the whole when Satan cannot get a great sin in he will let a little one in let the thief who goes and finds shutters all coated with iron and bolted inside. At least he sees a little window in the chamber. You cannot get in heat. So he puts little boy in that he may go around and open the back door. So the devil has always his little sense to carry about with him to go and open back doors for him and we let one in and say
yes, but how that little one becomes the room of the Tire man.
Let's not take care that the devil does not get a foothold for it. If he gets a foothold he will get his whole body in and we shall be overcome. You'll just like Danny and I discussed a little bit earlier about the tongue. And how little gossip has bigger gossiping bigger gossip becomes. The truth in the sense of the other people and they turn their backs on each other and it destroys them that little bit that little conversation that little talk destroyed the whole body.
You know why? I see a lot of little tiny sin. That destroys a lot of the body.
I know many people that when they were younger. They had just one cigarette. And that one cigarette throughout the life became cancer and destroyed the body. I seen.
How horrible sin can destroy the body.
Spurgeon talks about this in Exodus chapter 8 verse number one and it says the Lord spake unto Moses going to marry going to pharaoh and say hi to him. Thus said the Lord let my people go that they may serve him.
He stood in front of pharaoh. He told him let my people go feral as the Bible describes God hardened his heart.
Girl at times did let them go a little bit. I mean didn't say I'll let you go be a leaver cattle. He did say I'll let you go. And then at the very last minute God hardens his heart and he changes his mind.
You're right. When Moses took away that flag.
Spurgeon says beware of giving Satan a window of opportunity. Be aware of giving Satan a window of opportunity what's going on around you be aware of who you're with what you're talking about where you're going. The Bible says in Ephesians chapter 4 verse number 27 neither give place to the devil don't give that opportunity to him. You know. Really evaluate what you are doing in your life. And what weaknesses and what holds the whole you can get that you have available that the devil can get in Hardin those up hardened those postures up crate that defense. I'm not saying. you know, I don't talk to anybody put walls around and just don't talk to him about saying no, I mean You know if there's some things in your life that is damaging to your family that is damaging your walk with Christ. Yell. You may need to evaluate it and see I might have to get rid of this or I might have to change this or may have to move this. I know when the internet first was invented this dating myself in the in the 90s in the late night midnight in early 90s mid 90s late 90s, however was talking about you know, how evil was to come into the home is going to bring those things in Devon to the house and there's not that many homes today. I know there are still homes out there that don't have the internet but there's not that many homes there. That do not have the internet. And yes, there are evil that can come come into your house is pornography that can come into your house or messaging with the with not appropriate people that can come into your house or do you mean that there's movies or music? There's all there's all type of worldly things that can come into your house through that internet and you know it as a Christian you don't want to be influenced by those evil devices that you know, you may have to get a filter to filter those things to protect you and your family and that's what I'm asking and that's what I'm saying. Is that do an evaluation of your life. Take you to Wet The Devil With the Devil can do and he don't give him a place for that and say hey I might have to harden this posture up this defense posture. Spurgeon also says it is amazing how much damage can be caused by something apparently little so if we look at the the verse the 1st Corinthians chapter 5 verse number 6 it says your glory is not good know. Ye not that A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump lump, you know a little bit of sin to make a bigger sin, like seeing a little lie that could become a bigger lie or saying that you know what this little bit of pornography of this little bit of looking at a modesty me and up where you're in addicted to pornography a little sip of alcohol. You may be coming to an alcoholic, you know, that would take you away or physical capabilities away from God into focuses on to other things saying that. That little bit to be something bigger. You know, I know Andy Andy, let's talk come on over here and you right here. Okay, tell me about baseball.
A little bit of Base golf Camino everything in your life about baseball if you let it get away. I mean, we love baseball we watch we can't watch baseball right now because of the covid-19.
Take my church time.
Going to church. I might have to want to stay home to watch a baseball game or you know, if you're a football fan of football game, you know, if you have devotions you need to do or if you have a Bible reading you need to read and set a reminder Bible instead of having devotions or stay going to church or stead of spending time with your family or stead of talking to your wife or instead of playing video games with your son. Go on Spaceball. We will talk about that later.
But I mean just a little bit to be a big distraction that the devil has on you that can take you away from Christ. I think that's true is just about anything. Everything has to have a balance that it would take the baseball friend since The baseball inherently is not wrong when it takes control of what your focus is when it becomes your focus. Then there's a problem. I could I could take it a step further and say even if it was your focus. It's still might not be wrong. But it had did the potential is getting larger and larger and larger until it's no longer potential it to reality. Every once in awhile, you just have to step back and you know do a reality check of evaluation.
Is this really good for me? Is this really where I should be going this really what I should be doing. the point Hebrews chapter 12 verse number 15 the Bible says lick diligently lest any man fall of the grace of God lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you and thereby maybe defiled talk about that better than You've been better know I don't think so. The talk thing. Yeah, you know, it doesn't hit you all at once.
Turn up a little bit irritated, you know, and then they are Titian becomes where you're mad. And he do all upon that mad because bitterness bitterness guess what happens next is that hatred in the spring enough trouble because what you get that bitterness your bitter could become trouble and you know, you're not doing any anything good entire focuses on what you're mad at its like Let's say you wanted a gaming computer. Okay, instead. I bought you a Mac Pro. Okay, if he doesn't doesn't he know that I can't play any games on Mac Pro all you can do and I don't have a Mack truck. All you could do on a Mac Pro is I want to watch video edit videos. Yeah, but I want to play a game but I can't because I got Mac Pro all he's stupid. I hate him. I can't I'm on there now. I hate you and then you get fitter. I'm never going to talk to him again because it's all he doesn't know me because he just gets me a Mac Pro and then after that you start hating me because he's stupid. He doesn't know what to get me and that's just not the Mac Pro anymore. He decided to get me 900 megabits per second on internet. It doesn't know that stupid. I don't need that much internet, you know, and then you just hate me all together over a Mack truck. I think one of the most interesting things about anger and let me know taking a couple steps back from bitterness. One of most interesting things about anger is in the moment. You are Justified regardless of whether in reality or just fine in the moment that you are angry in the moment that you were mad. You are 100% correct 100% of the time. That's why you're mad. But then you start back. An hour 2 hours, once you're once you realize what you are actually mad about you may or may not have been had a reason to be mad. You could have just been like it's if it's a $2,500 computer. He loves me enough. To get me a $2,500 computer he could buy. So many sunflower seeds with $2,500 but instead he got me a computer. But in the moment, you're focusing on the fact that you didn't give what you want. You are justified in being that and I think that we get mad a lot of the time because we feel Justified and if we feel justify it drives us to stay mad and the longer we feel Justified the longer we stay mad. The more chance that has two turning into bitterness. When we first started we talked about the talk about, you know, when you're mad you're in a passing your in the moment. If you don't control that tongue, you can destroy everything and then you're so our actions are very important on what we do on how we act and how we how are you how we portray ourselves to others? Send to take away skin destroy the whole body. Don't let that little send in your life. If you're bitter. Don't let them control their anger in control the madness that you have control your tongue because you don't want to have remorse later on and that's going to end us for today and I hope you enjoy this message. I hope you share share share. I hope you spread Spread spread and please visit us at the El Paso. Org. That's her main website that we have. You can go there and watch a stream live not us pastor and And you can join our community there. You can see all the media that we have available for you. Also our communities at faithlife.com Faith. El Paso base. El Paso. Facebook group is called Faith El Paso as well. And we do have Bible studies that happen throughout the week. Please check them out of their website. Most of all, thank you. God bless and have a wonderful day.