May 2, 2021 - Romana 16:1-27

Fuel. Something like the The lame person who was healed in Jesus said, take up your bed and walk says it is old preacher. Take up your pulpit and walk.

Good to see Trevor and Maria Hollis here, stand up. And let us welcome you.

We love you guys.

Thank you for joining us today. What a blessing.

We spent the last 4 months together on Sunday morning, studying the book of Romans together. Along with the Roman Christians in the first 11, chapters, we've covered all the major doctrines of the Christian faith. Paul, then begins chapter 12 with therefore, Based upon everything that we've talked about that, we believe what God has done of what he's teaching us there for here, at the Practical applications. Here's how you walk. This Faith out how you live as Christians. Now we're coming to the conclusion of Paul's letter to the Roman Church, chapter 15 ends with. Now be the god of peace. Be with you all. Amen. What do you think of when somebody says amen at the end of a prayer? Done, right? Let's get up and go. That's what you would think. When you see that in the 15th chapter, you think he's finished. Not so you turn the page chapter 16.

He has it's not really quite a PostScript but it goes on from the amen. To talk make it very personal in the first several verses of chapter 16 he's greeting. Many of the Christians who are in the church at Rome and in the theme is it goes through. You can tell he has a personal relationship with these people. He's thanking them for their faith and for their obedience as they've been living out their faith, After he does the greeting to all these people. It's almost like he gets serious. Nice is located one more thing. We talked about what you believe, and why you believe it, we celebrated The Fellowship of this Roman Church. I've given you practical steps on how to live out your faith, but And then he starts a warning.

Even though the church is sound and filled with faithful Believers, Paul knows the Satan. The Great Deceiver. Is always lurking. Do you like the word lurking? Has kind of a Sinister sound, doesn't it? I could be following somebody if you see I'm following them that's different than to say. I'm lurking behind them. Flirting inserts insinuates, a negative behavior about to come and so Peter says, watch out. He's like a roaring lion prowling around seeking someone to devour. He wants above all else, to wreak havoc among believers. Listen to what he says in Romans chapter 16 verse 17. Melly urge, you Brethren note those who cause divisions and offenses. Contrary to the doctor and what you learned avoid them, for those who do not serve our Lord, Jesus Christ, but their own bellies. And by smooth words, and flattering speech, they deceive, the hearts of the simple, Your obedience has become known to all therefore I'm glad on your behalf but I want you to be wise and what is good and simple concerning what is evil and the God of Peace will crush Satan under your feet. Shortly the grace of our Lord. Jesus Christ be with you. Amen. Then jumped out of 25. Nottingham who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept secret since the world began, but now made manifest. And by the prophetic scriptures made known to All Nations according to the commandant of the Everlasting. God for obedience to the faith to God. Alone wise be glory through Jesus Christ, forever. Amen. Lord, as we spend a few minutes looking at Paul's words here. We're so thankful that you're Holy Spirit, inspired him to write this epistle. Lord, he wrote it to the Roman Christians, but it's Timeless Herodotus also. So, I pray that as we look through this, you'll give us understanding And she'll help us Lord to catch Paul's heart. And Lord to. So do what he says to do. What you say, we pray this in Jesus name, amen.

We Christ Church at Red Hills, like the early New Testament Church are not immune to the danger of false teachers.

How many of you had your covid-19 Nations? Hopefully you're immune to getting that, that virus. I wish there were a vaccinations I could get it would make me immune to Satan's Wiles. He starts to come. And he, he looks, and he's ready to prowl and to jump them and didn't cause all sorts of problems. Is that all that guys? Aren't you and any of these people. Would she like it? If you just leave you alone Unfortunately. There is no such vaccination. This morning, we're going to look together and how to deal with the reality of false teachers. We're going to learn how to recognize them, how to respond to them and then we'll look at God's rule in that battle. The first, what is the Battleground that we face today? What is it? There is false teaching creeping into the church. I'm not talking about Red Hills, or you and me, but I'm talking about Christchurch generally, and we're not immune from that happening. Two main Battlegrounds. When is Doctor scriptural? Authority, authority. I used to belong to a Brethren Church in Long Beach, California and I love their theme. The Bible the Holy Bible and nothing but the Bible. They were sold out to God's word and they were convinced that there is scriptural Authority. What do you think we mean by scripto Authority? When you got a question, should I do this? Should I do that? You have a decision to make somebody think know we had to go here. We got to go there. Scriptural Authority. Means let's go back to the word. What does God's word say? Is that true? Is that something I should be involved in? Is that some place I should go? Is that something we should do as a church? Scriptural, Authority is starting to erode among the Evangelical churches in America. It's a Battleground for Satan is sneaking in, and he sings are you sure? They got really say that. Surely, he didn't mean that.

People are turning the common sense. If there is such a thing anymore. What are turning to tradition? Or they're turning to somebody else? Who's teaching something just a little bit different than what God's word says and they're abandoning the authority of God's word.

what will be the reaction if someone says something is not true and you say what the Bible says, if a sports is not a Believer, what kind of reaction do it again? But the Bible says, usually it's it's not real positive one. It is kind of look at you as being Antiquated stuck in Tradition, not in reality. Along with scriptural Authority is absolute truth. Do you believe? The God's word is true. How many would agree with that? I better see a bunch of hands, God's word is truth. How many believed in absolute standards of right and wrong.

Well, you're in the minority today. You really are

Truth today. Is Venus relative. That is true for you. That's okay. It's not true for me. And you got to respect that. And I accept. My truth is being equally as good as yours. What's the standard today? That's not the standard of God's word. God's word says, right and wrong. Thus says the Lord. I'm going to ask you a question. This is not a rhetorical question rhetorical. Question is what? What? Preachers ask you, but don't expect an answer. I expect an answer. Okay, do you. Are you convinced that God's word is absolutely true? Pathetic.

I'm sorry, but this is a this is a life-changing question. This is a stand, we take it. If we really believe it, we're going to be targets. So I ask you again enthusiastically. God's word is it totally inspired. Is it absolutely true? Yes, amen. Okay, we're done.

But you know what was Society? Turns away from accepting God's word is being authoritative and absolutely true. It opens the door to all sorts of compromise. and if you're not standing on that foundation of the truth of God's word and the authority of God's word, you are vulnerable to compromise,

Tolerance. That used to be a very positive word in our English language. It meant everybody has the right to his own opinion and his own way of life and I'll respect your differences and my differences. Tolerance, has changed over the last 20 years now, has it stopped in our universities and all the way down tolerance has changed towards. Not only do I respect you or difference of opinion. I accept your opinion as equally true with mine or equally true. With the truth of God's word. Your truth is your truth. Mine is mine and there are equal. That's not what God's word says. He says the heart is deceitful Above All Things. The mind of man is going his own way, but it's not the way that God wants him to go. Totally convinced from the truth in the foundation of God's word. We're open to compromise compromise happen cuz I'm walking right where God wants me to go. And all of a sudden I'm going the opposite direction just like that. No compromise goes. Maybe I was wrong on that.

If you go on a little bit but you're not on the on the perfect path and the more decisions you make in the more error that you agree to that, doesn't line up with God's word. Pretty soon. You find yourself going the opposite direction. Not even realizing it. That's compromised. That's what's happening to many Christians today.

The whole world word of scientific thought with Evolution being taught as absolute truth and a creation narrative. Just that a story That's happening. Not just in the schools and in a scientific platforms. It's happening in the churches, evolution is accepted by many, many Christians as being true. But if you look at the foundation of God's word and the absolute truth of God's word to make a decision, or is he not We get some moral issues like abortion and in the whole transgender homosexual world. Being pushed into our churches. It's not just out there.

How do you deal with it? When you talk to somebody about truth and error about issues in our culture that are directly related to principles and God's word? Again, as you take a stand up, Target. The reality of false teacher, we find them everywhere. It's like Jesus, talk about the chairs in the Wheatfield. Sometimes, can't tell them apart. I just read something that Lauren Swenson sent me from Christianity Today. The April issue, it's an article called the splintering of the American Soul. It, this is just the opening paragraph, new fractures are forming within the American Evangelical movement. Fractures the do not run along the usual Regional denominational ethnic or political lines, couples families, friends and congregations once United In their commitment to Christ or now dividing over seemingly, irreconcilable views of the world. In fact, they're not merely dividing, but they coming in, comprehensible to one another. You ever think you'd hear that being said about the American church, if we go back into our texts and verse 17, I said, I heard you Brethren note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the dock, and what you learned and avoid them, for those who are such do, not serve our Lord, Jesus Christ. But their own belly. And by smooth words, and flattering speech, C2C the hearts of the simple, Their method. Is smooth words and flattering speech with their goal is deception. And contrary to what you have learned.

Deception. It would Jesus talk about wolves in sheep's clothing and their method being. Smooth words, that sounds good. It sounds logical. It fits in and yeah, they're all doing that to this. Go that direction. Their motive is says, is their own belly trying to serve dream about talking about our flesh nature, trying to get self gratification.

I was reading a commentary by a fella named Richard. Lenski he was a nineteenth-century Lutheran, pastor and feel Ogen and he made some observations that. I thought we're really kind of interesting. You said what we're reading here in Rome with a strikingly similar to Eve's experience in the garden. One talks about the goal of these false teachers is deception.

What was the first falsehood others? In world history. When Satan the serpent was talking to Eve, did God really say that? Any planted doubt in her mind in her heart. Has God really said that that still operates the day. He works that way in Believers when we're reading God's word and we read something.

Feel like we like to do that the question cuz it will be really mean that. Maybe not, maybe we'll just take it. Symbolically instead of literally he deceives. His goal is to divide the body, Eve's sin. Think about this for a second, Eve's sin separated separated the entire human race from God. That one sin of disobeying, taking Satan's words, allowing her mind to be distorted, or thinking, and disobeying, God and obeying Satan separated the entire human race from God. It cost the blood Of God's own son. To reinstate that Union between us and God. He wants to cause division in my version in vs17e says, I heard you Brethren note those who cause divisions and offenses. You may have stumbling blocks or something like that. In your word, literally the word for offenses means a trap. Stick is the picture of a a bent sapling. Way down with a rope tied to it. Internist tied to something down here, with a tripwire.

And you're walking along thinking everything's okay. You trip that wire the sapling Springs up, and you're caught and this net in your hanging weight above up here. It's a death.

These false teachers, the ones who would come in and deceive and divide their goal isn't to line up even if they don't believe it. It lines up with Satan's deception and his goal killing us. It's a fatal trap with talks about Billy think about Eve what was her action that commemorate her seeing what did she do? She ate the fruit went into her belly again. There is a really cool connection here between what we're seeing here and the whole battle between Adam and Eve and Satan.

The verse where it talks about Satan is going to be 20, God of Peace. Will crush Satan under your feet shortly. What was the prophecy that God gave to Seton in chapter 3? Verse 15 of Genesis.

He said I will put enmity between you and the woman between your seed and her seed, he shall bruise your head and you shall bruise his heel talking about Satan's relationship to the Messiah. Satan bruised. Jesus heal by allowing him to die. Physically. He thought he won the battle. But what happened? Through that crucifixion and Resurrection Jesus Stomps on Satan's head mistress is right here. God's going to do through us to Satan as we learn to recognize and reject things that are opposed to God's word. The point is this, this Satan, The Great Deceiver has been operating in the same philosophy, the same strategy since the very beginning of time, actually be tight. Before Time begin remember, Satan was once called what is your love life and what did he do? Because he wanted pridefully to become like God, he deceived a third of the angels in heaven.

That's a pretty powerful Angel and he's at work, trying to do the same thing to you. He deceived a third of the angels, He deceived Eve he was using false teachers in New Testament times the main Newton Falls teachers were called judaizers, they were Christians who were Jews but believe that. In order to be a good born again, Christian, you had to obey the law. You had to follow all of a Jewish commands. That was okay for the Old Testament folk but Jesus came to the New Covenant and Paul was battling these false teachers all the way through his ministry, wherever Paula go. They would follow and cause disruption within the city and within the churches. In John Steinbeck time of the first John in the Book of Revelation, the false teachers were gnostics. Gnostics comes from the Greek word, gnosis with means knowledge and they were very spiritual teachers, who would come in and say, you want to get some more knowledge, the real truth. And they would take these young believers and they will start teaching this Greek philosophy that the body was essentially evil in the spirit or Soul was especially good. One was asceticism, where they would have to beat the body into submission and there was some self-flagellation and all this other stuff. In the other office at fault, they would say. Well, since the body Z will put my spirit, the real me is good, I can do whatever the body wants to do and I'm okay. that was creeping into the church and John was riding against at

How do you recognize, mm? How do you do? What Paul says, take note of these false teachers really important word for us as Believers today discernment. Can someone tell me what discernment is to discern between right and wrong?

Yeah it's telling a difference between right and almost right I love that for a moment. Thank you. If it fits, what when the price of Timothy says study to show yourself approved unto God a Workman, not needing to be ashamed who rightly divide the word of Truth or handling a write, the word of Truth studying God's word with discernment so that you can separate what God says, is true, from what others are saying, or what others are doing, or what you might be feeling you want to do this term. That is how you are able then to recognize false teachers. I've got just a few bullet point will go over them kind of quickly. The first one is be committed to the absolute authority of the word of God. That's the foundation. The foundation of the Apostles and Prophets has the word of God, With Jesus Christ, is the Chief Cornerstone Cornerstone. I used to think was the thing that added strength first ability to up to a foundation, or to a slab, but it's not true. The Cornerstone is the stone that fits in the corner along which everything else lines up with the stone. That must be perfectly Square, 90° angles. So that as they build off of that stone, horizontally and vertically, they're building a solid structure.

God's word is the foundation. Jesus crisis that which makes everything fit according to what God intends That's the authority of God's word. Be grounded in the word. Commit, the studying. I know that most of you spend some time during the week reading the Bible, maybe you do it every morning when you get up, or when you go to bed at night, there's a difference between reading the Bible. And studying the Bible. Pause Wars 2, Timothy study to show yourself approved unto God as a Workman who does not need to be ashamed. You need to set aside time. To ponder to study to read commentaries or other books that help you understand. When you have questions learn how to use a concordance. So that you let the Bible be a commentary on itself your release illegal, what? If not sure what that means, maybe this explains somewhere else and I'll go back to my concordance and look for a keyword and find other scripture. So the Bible is the the best commentary on the Bible. Spend time studying God's word, and here's a hard word starts with m and it's one that you don't like. Memorize God's word. Because as you commit God's word to memory, it doesn't just stay in as Poirot with say, your little grey cells. As you memorize God's word as a Believer, the Holy Spirit takes that work and puts it into your heart and it becomes part of you. So that like Peter says, always have an answer for the hope that is within you. You have an answer you have ammunition for the Holy Spirit to use. When you come into a situation for you ask for discernment or you need wisdom. God's word comes to your mind is like a flash card coming back up or reading President Biden's teleprompter.

I'm sorry, that was the picture that came to my mind.

I want the holy spirit's teleprompter. I want to be able to when I enter the Temptation the same throws at me. God's word comes right back. Up a verse from Proverbs, perhaps you know what four are from one of Paul's letters where God speaks to me interrupts that the flow of that that deception or that Temptation and allows me to take a breath and then go on the right way. It happens, but you have to have God's word in your heart, for it happened in the Book of Joshua. Chapter 186. This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth but you shall meditate on it day and night. It goes on and then then you're going to success. But you got to spend time and God's work and parents. Here is the other part who's teaching your children?

Who is your children's primary teacher? You know, a lot of you personally in here and Iron County, our kids have been in school in Parowan will realize they've been face-to-face learning since August and it's been great. But do you know what your children are being taught? We have some wonderful Public School teachers within our own congregation and they're able to, to discern between truth and error when they're teaching their kids. But they're not. They don't write the curriculum. It was happening as our curriculum is being changed. And not just now in this last couple of years, it's been processed and since the 1980s that's there's been a trend in changing curriculum and it's becoming more humanistic as opposed to Gun Center. Know what your children are learning, know what they're watching on TV, you are the primary teachers for your kids and if they don't get grounded in God's word and the same commitment that you're making, now they're going to be right fruit for Satan and deception later on. Your primary responsibility. Our primary responsibility is parents, is teaching the truth of God's word to our kids. John and I are blessed to have three grandchildren and we're watching them grow up, and we have a great relationship with them. In the prayer of our heart, is it? God will use us to come alongside our granddaughter in and help her and that job of training for kids. And righteousness be committed to the absolute authority of God's word. Be familiar, be grounded in the word, compare the teaching of others to the teaching of the word. That's what it means when he says be wise and what is good? The word wise is different than the word. Wisdom is different than knowledge knowledge is is the set of facts. The truth wisdom is the skill in applying or using the truth, the wise skillful and what is good in Acts chapter run 17. Paul was talking about the Berean Christian and he said they were more noble than the Saints in thessalonica because they compared what was being taught to the word of God. Don't just swallow everything you hear, don't just take, what I'm saying is truth, compare it to God's word be wise and doing that. I learned something recently about how you identify or learn to identify counterfeit money, I would think you start studying, you speak bills and so you can tell the difference but that's not true. You don't study the counterfeit money. You study the real thing, you study banknotes. So you know all the aspects and idiosyncrasies, a secret about how to identify a real $20 bill. When you see a counterfeit $20 bill and you can hear it to what, you know, to be genuine, you can recognize the counterfeit. That's pretty cool about how do you recognize false teachers by wreck it by knowing God's word and comparing what they say? The gods were? That's where you say that's really interesting. But but the Bible says Get in the habit of doing it, healthy skepticism. Surround yourself with Godly role models. 2nd Timothy chapter 3, talking about Paul writing to Timothy. Said, I know where you learned the truth. I know who you're with and and Timothy then became like a spiritual son to Paul. And Paul was his mentor, find somebody more mature than yourself in your spiritual walk. Watch them carefully. That's what Paul said, watch me do what I do. I'm scared to say that. I'm not going to say that to. Anybody do what I do because I'm not perfect. But at the same time as as a young believer, find a mature believer and learn from them. Watch them carefully learn for their mistakes. Also.

Fellowship regularly with other believers, commit yourself to a church that Faithfully teaches truth that will help you then to recognize error. Acts 2:42 says that the church there in Jerusalem devoted itself to the apostles, teaching the fellowship to the breaking of bread into prayers. That was their foundation for their lives.

And keep growing in your faith. Be intentional in your faith. Don't just have has early float through. And and think that, you know, if you put your Bible under your pillow at night, somehow, through spiritual, osmosis put God's word in your head. I used to think that was true before step when I was studying for a test didn't work It's work, B, have a consistent quiet time and have a personal Bible study. Keep growing in your faith. That's how you recognized for teachers. How do you respond to them? He says, turn away from Falls, teachers, separate yourself from them and separate yourself from their teachings. As be simple, it should be. She said for the wise but be simple in relationship to evil. What is that mean? The word simple. There has the idea being innocent. You don't have to go after and learn all about how to do bad. You don't have to study falsehood to the point where Satan can use that then to get you focused on it. When I was doing my graduate work, back in the 70s, I was taking up a course on demonology and in the Seminary. That was a course, I should have shied away from, although it was required course. We had learned about the Holy Spirit and now we're learning about Satan black and white or white and black. It's like I took this course in demonology, took it from a professor who has been a missionary in West Africa and he had learned through experience the dangers in the power of Satan working through, which doctor is all of this. Piqued my interest and I thought you know I should know more about this and I began reading books on it. Christian books with about different aspects of demonology and my wonderful wife who is wiser than I Pulled me aside. When they say I think you're getting too far into this You know, as much as you need to know about this focus on the positive and she was right. And Satan was using that to wasn't really up session, but it was moving that direction. And it wasn't healthy.

Satan is a Deceiver. And he will take you from purelight and gradually shipped it to an off-white until maybe a light gray, and pretty soon. You see what I'm saying. You got to be careful.

What's the result in us with all of this? Look Down 2 verses, 25 through 27, I love this. Is first of all, like we talked about God's going to give you victory over Satan. Going to crush Satan under your feet. How does that happen?

I do, but I used to work in the mountains in college at a camp. We would take the young students on a nature hike, but in Southern California, the mountains were dry, and there were lots of rattlesnakes. So one of us would be at the front one of the back and one of the middle of the line with a shovel and our job was not so much to heard the kids was to watch out for and listen for a rattlesnake. And when I heard what rattlesnake, I found it coiled up there and I wanted to kill something more than I ever thought it would want to kill something. I didn't I wasn't foolish enough for my food out there to step on his head and stick the shovel out. And he was a strike against the blade of the shovel and we is stretched out. I chop his head off. I'm going to chop his rattles off and keep them for a souvenir. You'll learn how to kill a rattlesnake. You learn how to defeat Satan with them. They are temporary victories. When Satan is trying to draw you away or get you involved in something, you shouldn't get involved and through the power of the Holy Spirit, you have Victory. You don't say OK, I won battles done Wars over the war's not to be over. Till Christ comes again. Takes you home? But we getting victory over Satan sometimes that means walking away separating ourselves and then he says, God will establish you in. This is really cool. 27, who is able to establish you? What is the word? Establish me? What picture did you get in your mind? Is it somebody, who's, who's standing in quicksand and getting a good footing, or the somebody who's standing on Solid Ground and is able to, to resist, a whatever is coming at him. Establish, if that's what he talks about in the Ephesians chapter 6 about spiritual warfare. By putting on the armor of God, God is able to make you stand and having done all. He says to stand firm. That's God's will for you and me. And as we follow what he says to do here, as we put into practice, all of these doctrines that we've learned in the power of the Holy Spirit wearing our Spiritual armor were able to have Victoria Stand Fast Against The Wiles of the devil. He says so he's able to establish you. And here's how we establish if it's according to the Gospel, According to the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept secret talking about the fact that God has a plan bigger than Israel fitting Foods, the whole world,

But it's now made manifest according to the prophetic scriptures that are made known to All Nations according to the commandant of the Everlasting, God for the obedience to the face.

He's talking to you and me. And he says then we should all with one Accord say to God Alone wise be glory through. Jesus Christ. Forever.

Which one? Taking off a big chunk of stuff today and I hopefully you're going to be like the bereans church and then you're going to took what I take. What I said, you can compare it to what you knowing God's word. You're going to pray and ask God to use it to give you a discernment, wisdom strength and power through the Holy Spirit to be who God wants you to be. To recognize those who are not telling the truth and to confront them in the stand firm in the power of the Holy Spirit. You pray with me. Lord, we thank you for this time together. Thank you God for your word.