Leaving it All By Faith Wed 8-28-96

Hebrews chapter 11 tonight.

Hebrews 11 · chapter mention

Hebrews chapter 11.

Hebrews 11 · chapter mention

And let's look at one more aspect of faith.

And I know you know everything there is to know about faith, but let me just remind you about one tonight and stir up to remembrance the former things, even though you do know those.

Just I told you on uh Sunday, go Sunday morning, Sunday night, and Wednesday night, just a quick shot on the concept of faith.

Hebrews chapter 11.

Hebrews 11 · chapter mention

Look with me if you would, and uh look if you would at verse number eight, brethren, verse number eight.

Now, by the way, I did go back and do what I told you I would do.

I I know for sure now who built the ark, amen?

All right, good.

Hebrews chapter 11.

Hebrews 11 · chapter mention

If you can't laugh at yourself, you might as well, everybody else is laughing at you, amen.

Hebrews chapter 11, and look if you would at verse 8.

Hebrews 11 · chapter mention

By what?

Say it.

Faith.

Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, he did what?

He obeyed.

Now, you know that is interesting because he took a risk.

And really what faith is, is taking somewhat of a risk because he left his country, his kindred, his secure place, if you would.

And uh he went somewhere.

He didn't even know really where he was going, he just knew he was supposed to go, and he obeyed, not knowing whither he went.

And by the way, uh, when you talk about Abraham, at least Abraham got direct words from God to go.

Sarah had just to obey Abraham and what he said we was going to do.

And sometimes I have to say that uh the wives are the ones that really live by faith.

Amen.

Say amen, guys.

I mean, when you think about it, God showed Abraham and said, This is what you're gonna do, you're gonna leave your country, you're gonna leave your kindred, and you're gonna go off, and you're gonna take off.

I uh I think somebody like a missionary's wife is is of a high esteem with the idea that, well, God showed me that I'm supposed to go to such and such a place.

Now, listen, I've sit on uh groups and and meetings where the missionary comes in and we question him a little bit about his calling and everything.

And man, I always uh I always want to question the woman a little bit.

Do you really want to go with this guy?

Now I know what the Pat answer is, and she says, Well, I want to do whatever the Lord wants.

And I look her in the eyes and I said, I'm not asking you that.

Are you ready to go?

By faith.

Believing that God spoke to your husband and told him what to do.

You know what I'm asking her?

Do you really trust your husband to walk with God?

Well, I've had some of them go, well, to be honest with you.

And I've always uh told the husband, uh, listen, uh, let me make a suggestion.

Um go back and start over again.

Make sure your wife's going with you out of her heart before you go out there and have a big conflict.

Oh, well, let me let me go on to something else here.

By faith, Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obey.

I want you to see something.

Abraham, through a step of faith, not understanding where he is going, what he's going to do there, he received an inheritance.

If you would, it was a reward.

Look at verse 6.

But without faith, it's impossible to please him.

For he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a what?

He's a rewarder of him that diligently seek him.

Brethren, there are rewards that God wants to give out, and it's based on our actions by faith.

Let me show you two scriptures.

Look at James chapter 2 and 1 Corinthians chapter 3.

James 2 · chapter mention 1 Corinthians 3 · chapter mention

We'll get back to Hebrews chapter 11 in just a minute.

Hebrews 11 · chapter mention

James chapter 2 and Hebrews 3.

James 2 · chapter mention

Now, sometimes scriptures, you know them, but we correlate them together and you go, yeah, you know, I never quite saw it that way.

Look at it.

James 2 and 1 Corinthians chapter number 3, if you would.

So by faith he left.

He went, not knowing where he was going to go.

And afterwards, when he went, when he acted upon his faith, he received an inheritance, if you would, and it was in a reward for his obedience.

Look if you would at James chapter 2.

James 2 · chapter mention

Familiar verse of scripture to start out.

Look at verse 17.

Verse 17.

Even so what?

Say it.

Faith, if it hath not what?

Works, is what?

Dead being alone.

Uh works, what are works?

Works are actions upon the faith.

That's all.

A work is an action, and works and the actions upon faith here is simply saying in verse 20, look at it.

But wilt thou know, O vain man, that, say it, faith without works is what?

Dead.

Now look at verse 26.

For as the body without the spirit is what?

Dead.

So faith without works is dead also.

When the spirit leaves this body, this body will grow limp.

Is that right?

The spirit gives this body life.

Without the spirit, this body is dead.

Is that right?

Now stay with me.

Then faith, without actions upon that faith, is what?

Dead.

Somebody says, I don't understand what actions upon the faith is.

Look over at James again, and look at James chapter 1, and look, brethren, at verse 22.

James 1 · chapter mention

James 1, 22.

But be ye what?

Doers of the word and not hearers only.

A doer of the word of God is obedient.

So the question is this.

If faith without works is dead faith, then the works are actions upon the faith.

Then ours we're saying is, if we're not obedient to the faith that God has put in us, faith dies.

Is that right?

For example, God is the author and what?

Finisher of our faith.

And every one of us individually has faith that he's authored.

If we do not act upon that faith, then sooner or later the Bible says that faith that he has authored will never be finished.

It will never be matured, it'll never be complete, it'll literally die.

You agree with that?

I know, I'm making you think, aren't I?

Come on.

Say it again, alright?

God authored faith in me.

He says, if you're going to be a hearer, you have to be a doer also, obedient.

And the only way my faith can be matured is if I act upon the faith that He's given me.

Thank you for your faith.

If I don't act upon that faith, sooner or later that faith is not going to grow and mature, it is going to die.

Because there's no actions on that, what I believe.

For example, why do we push people to go soul winning?

Because it's the Great Commission.

And God commands it.

Amen.

He commands us to get the seed out of the barn to get the gospel out.

If somebody says, well, you know, that's for someone else, sooner or later their faith is going to be hindered because they're not being obedient to that great commission.

Amen.

Yes or no?

And we talk about giving, tithing.

If someone doesn't tithe, they're only robbing themselves.

What are they robbing themselves of?

Of the possibility for their faith to mature.

Say amen.

Even though you can doesn't matter whether you're tithing or not, that's a principle, and it's true.

The idea is, I know by faith I'm supposed to give.

If I don't obey what I know I'm supposed to do and put works, put actions to it, then there's a possibility that faith not growing because I've been disobedient.

So what I'm supposed to do is act upon what I know, and it's not, well, so-and-so doesn't do it.

So-and-so is not the one that's living in this body.

God gave me the faith and gave me the understanding and gave me the accountability for it, and it has nothing to do with what someone else is doing.

Amen?

Hey, somebody says, Well, you know, so-and-so doesn't go out and go soul winning.

So what about so-and-so?

That has nothing to do with you and me.

Amen?

The idea is when we understand something, we're supposed to do it.

When we do it, then faith grows.

If we don't do it, we're disobedient, and faith can suffer and stagnate.

Oh.

Oh.

You know what, too?

Oh.

Look at 1 Corinthians 3.

Come on, this is a Wednesday night crowd.

1 Corinthians 3.

The message is getting longer because you're not saying anything.

Is that Marcello back again?

First Corinthians 3.

Now watch verse 13.

Every man's work, that's his action, shall be made manifest, uh, be made known.

For the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire.

And the fire shall try every man's what?

Uh work, action, activity, obedience.

Every man's work, of what sort it is.

If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a what?

A reward.

If any man's work shall be what?

Burn, he shall do what?

Suffer loss.

So the idea then is there's the opportunity for Christian brethren, male and female, to receive reward, but there's also that opportunity that that which we could have received, we suffer loss, and we don't receive it.

Look at verse 8.

Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one.

And every man shall receive his, you ought to underline the next word, own reward according to his, say it, own labor.

It's an individual thing, yet, I believe this.

God looks at the collective work, for example, Brother Miracle is working in our church, but he will receive his own reward based on his own labor, but one of the things he'll be judged on is how he collectively works with the pastorate.

Amen?

The idea is that you may have a job and a task, and you're part of this church body.

You'll receive your own reward according to your own labor.

I believe this, brethren.

Then what I receive is based on my actions.

Now, somebody says, Well, what about somebody that doesn't know?

Are you that somebody?

Then why worry about somebody else?

See, it's always like, well, what about so-and-so?

What if they don't know?

You know, so-and-so had the opportunity to study this Bible.

And so-and-so had the opportunity to build their faith, just like, hey, I don't know about you.

Uh maybe uh you never had the opportunity to go to Bible college.

If you did, praise the Lord.

If you didn't, that doesn't mean you can't understand this book.

I never had the opportunity to go to Bible college per se, but now I'm the what am I at the Institute?

Chancellor, I'm the Chancellor, that's right.

I knew I had a title, I just didn't know what it was.

Brother Wade.

No, no, no, no, no, no.

Dr.

Wade is the president of our Bible Institute.

We made him that because he's got an earned doctorate.

I don't, so I'm just the chancellor.

I don't even know what a chancellor is.

Now, if the chancellor tells the president what to do, then I am the chancellor.

I'm gonna have to look up that word chancellor and find out what I am, amen?

The idea, brethren, is this.

It's good to have the college, the education, and by the way, I'm for that.

I'm for you getting uh that's why we have a Bible institute.

The idea is, man, study the word of God, uh, learn it.

But may I say this: if we don't do something with what we learn, that degree means nothing.

Amen.

A guy goes to college, he gets his degree, he goes to master's, he gets his degree in master's, he becomes a doctorate.

If he doesn't do anything with it, it's just a piece of paper.

Amen?

The idea here is that I'm supposed to study.

It builds my faith and my understanding, and then he shows me to do something.

I'm supposed to be a doer, because if I don't become a doer, then faith without works is dead faith, it's dying faith.

But when I do, then he's offered a reward.

Wait a minute.

Now, if I don't do, then he said, All right, the reward you're gonna have, you don't get it.

And you suffer loss.

Amen?

Now, let's go a little bit further.

Stay with me.

I'm enjoying this tonight.

Are you?

You don't act like it.

Look at Matthew 16 and Mark 10.

Matthew 16 and Mark chapter 10.

Mark 10 · chapter mention

Matthew 16, Mark 10.

And I realize this, you don't say amen when you're thinking.

Or when you're sleeping.

No, I'm just kidding.

Mark chapter 10 and Matthew 16.

Mark 10 · chapter mention

Watch this.

According with what we're talking about, faith and works.

Matthew 16 and Mark chapter 10.

Mark 10 · chapter mention

By the way, uh, if somebody says, all right, well, now wait a minute.

How do you suffer loss?

I don't understand that concept.

Okay, it would be like this: the children of Israel had the opportunity to go into the promised land under Moses.

They got to Canaish Barnia, they came back, and the ten spies discouraged the hearts of the people, and the people decided we can't do it.

You know what they did?

They suffered loss.

Why?

Because by faith they limited Psalm 78, the Holy One of Israel, and he said, All right, I'm done with you.

By principle, they could have gone in.

By action, only two went in.

Amen?

So those children, the adults, suffered loss because they by faith didn't act.

They were hearers, but not doers.

Faith without works is dead.

And because they didn't act upon their faith, they decided they'd rather fight with each other.

Korah raised up, Datham, Abira.

And God said, No, I'm done with you.

Why don't you all just wander around out here for 40 years?

I'll take care of you, I'll feed you, when you die, I'll use the next generation.

And they suffered loss.

Amen?

Look, if you would at Matthew chapter 16 and Mark chapter 10.

Matthew 16 · chapter mention Mark 10 · chapter mention

In Matthew 16, notice this, verse 24.

Then said Jesus unto his disciples, stay with me.

If any man will come after me, let him do what?

Say it again, let him do what?

Deny himself.

Say it again, deny himself.

So there's there's a certain amount of self-denial that goes on along with this thing of living by faith.

And take up his cross and follow me.

Whosoever save his life will lose it.

Whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.

For what is a man profit if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul?

Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

Look at verse 27 with the idea of denying himself, verse 27, for the Son of Man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels.

And then he shall do what?

Who's going to do the rewarding?

Jesus Christ, the Son of Man.

The Son of Man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels, and then he shall reward every man according to his what?

Works.

You say, that's Matthew, preacher.

Don't you know that's not for us?

Who told you that?

That applies to me.

Let me say it again.

That applies to me.

Why?

Because the Son of Man, you say, well, see, there, there it is.

That's a Jewish connotation.

If it was to the Gentiles, it'd be Son of God.

I've heard all that stuff.

Don't divide yourself out of truth.

I believe in rightly dividing the Word of God, but I'm not a hyper-dispensationalist.

The Son of Man is a connotation, and the Jews did understand that better than the concept Son of God.

But, brother, I understand that when the Son of Man, or Son of God, if you would, when Jesus comes in the glory of his Father, He's going to give a reward to every man according to His Word.

You say, Well, there it is.

Works for salvation.

By the deeds of the law shall no man be justified.

Amen.

Amen.

Now somebody's saying, I don't get it.

It's good you don't.

Just take it for what it says.

The idea is he is going to reward us according every man to his works.

But the point I'm getting at is there's some self-denial.

There's some letting go in verse 24.

There's some picking up of the cross.

Sometimes in order to live by faith, we have to let go of something.

Look if you would at Mark chapter 10.

Mark 10 · chapter mention

Stay with me.

Mark chapter 10.

Mark 10 · chapter mention

Mark chapter 10.

Mark 10 · chapter mention

Thank you for turning there.

And look if you would at verse 28.

The idea of self-denial, taking up our cross.

Stay with me.

You're doing well tonight.

Verse 28.

Then Peter began to say unto him, Lo, we have, say it, left all.

We left all.

We left it.

We left everything.

And have followed thee.

Now, you know what?

Oh Peter, he's kind of got a martyr complex.

We have left all.

We left it all.

I left it all.

Wait a minute.

Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, there is no man that have left house, or in context, left brethren.

Right?

Or left sisters, in context, yes or no, amen?

Or left father, or left mother, or left wife, or left children, or left lands for my sake.

And what?

The gospels.

But he shall receive an hundredfold when?

Now, in this time.

Houses, plural, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands with what?

Persecution.

And in the world to come, guess what?

Eternal life.

Now the concept is we leave something sometime in order to by faith do his will.

For example, Ruth.

Ruth left a country, kin, social culture, everything.

But let me ask you a question.

Did God restore her?

Ruth left everything, and the end result of that was being in line to succession of the lineage of Christ.

And having a place in this book that men and women of like have used her as an illustration and as an example of some woman's obedience by faith.

She left it.

Sometimes God may require us to leave things that we we purposely want to leave.

Look at Hebrews chapter 11 and Philippians 3.

Hebrews 11 · chapter mention

We okay tonight?

You say it's hot.

Oh, come on.

It's comfortable.

It's comfortably warm for you ladies.

And it's hot to amen.

Amen?

And somebody says somebody said, no, it's hot.

Okay, it's hot.

Look at Hebrews chapter 11.

Hebrews 11 · chapter mention

And also, would you pick up Hebrews chapter 11 and Philippians chapter 3?

Hebrews 11 · chapter mention Philippians 3 · chapter mention

Sometimes preceding to actions of faith comes a leaving of something, a denial of self.

Hebrews chapter 11.

Hebrews 11 · chapter mention

And look at verse 24.

By what?

Faith.

Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter.

Verse 25, the first word is what?

Judah.

It was his choice.

It was his free will choice.

And brethren, may I say something?

Denying ourselves is our free will choice.

Letting go of something, leaving all.

When Jesus said to them, follow me and I'll make you fishers of men, it was their choice.

So he chose rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the pleasure.

Of sin for a seizing, esteeming the reproach of Christ.

Greater riches.

He had different priorities than that of being called the son of Pharaoh's daughters.

Greater riches, the treasures in Egypt.

Brother, you know, sometimes our family, when we leave something, they think we're crazy.

I don't understand why you did that.

It doesn't make any sense.

Well, we did it by faith.

What's faith?

Well, faith is doing something.

It's kind of like taking a little bit of a risk based on the principles of God and doing something that you've not yet seen, the outcome.

But you're trusting that God's going to work it all out, and the end result will be better than when you started.

Is my uh mother-in-law in here tonight?

Do you remember when I packed up Patty and we went to Samoa?

You remember, don't you?

It did not make a whole lot of sense.

Um I got out of the Marine Corps and I gave everything away.

I wanted to lighten the ship.

I had a bunch of stuff.

I mean, I'd been to the Philippines and I'd been to the Far East, and it was when the yen rate was 300 yen to the dollar.

330, I believe, at the time I was there.

Stereos were cheap.

Big stereos with big speakers that played everything loud.

And I had a big carnal worldly stereo system.

The components filled one wall in my little apartment.

And I mean I could make the walls rock.

I know, I know.

I'm sanctified now.

It was amazing when I announced to some of the guys at church that I was getting rid of everything.

Because I was going to go to the mission field and I didn't want anything.

Do you know they wanted to hear the gospel very loud in their home?

I gave it all away.

Just this component and that component and just just gave it all.

Why?

Because to me it represented something else.

To me, I used it for something else.

I gave away papa-san chairs and mamma's on chairs and all kinds of stuff that I'd picked up along the trail.

Hey, when you're a lieutenant in the Marine Corps and you're not married, you got all kinds of money and nowhere to throw it.

So I just buy stuff.

I had bought a bunch of stuff and I gave it all away.

I saved my van because I had to give come out here to California.

And I chucked the rest of it to anybody who'd take it.

I said, no, no, you sold it, and I just gave it away.

To me, it was get rid of it.

Lighten the ship.

Don't sell it.

Just chuck it.

Now all my tapes and my music, I burned all that.

Every bit of it.

I mean real-to-reel tapes.

You say, well, you could have recorded over it.

I just burned it.

What it represented to me was putrid.

I burned, I burned cassettes, I burned, I had a lot of stuff.

Unfortunately, it still is up here sometimes.

And I just got rid of it all.

I came to California and I met the man who I was going to sail across the ocean with, and I left my vehicle here.

So it was a free will leaving off.

We left here in March on a little boat, and it took us four months to get to Samoa.

We pulled in on July 4th.

Long trip, amen.

100 miles a day on the ocean, it's 7,000 miles, and you get there in a few months.

Do you remember when I proposed to you, Patty?

Was it I don't know.

Must have been after July 4th because we didn't have the chance to write to each other.

Did I call you or yeah, I called you.

I knew that.

I knew that.

And we talked kind of, you know, how you, well, let's see now.

You gotta understand, I was in Samoa and she was back here, and we were kind of kind of filling each other out for God's will and everything.

And I said, What do you think?

And she said, Well, it looked good and everything.

And uh, so I got on a Mac flight, and probably in August, late August, I flew back here.

And uh we were married, and the latter part of September, I had the opportunity to ship everything we owned by being out of the military for almost a year.

I could ship it all free, anywhere in the world I wanted to.

You know, do they still have that?

Are you bored with my story?

No, sir.

So we had one year, and I I said, Patty, listen, just trust me, let's ship everything.

I had a van.

I think that was all I had left.

And she had all her stuff.

And we put it all in the cargo container and shipped it all to Samoa.

Everything she owned, everything I owned.

Off to Samoa went.

When we got to Samoa, we were living on a little boat, and all the stuff was in storage.

If you want to call it that.

It was up on a mountain in a house that someone had said you could put your stuff in.

And when Patty's medical complications came up, and God brought us back into the States, and God showed me that I was supposed to be back here.

Please look up here.

We left everything in Samoa.

Except for what we could carry in a suitcase.

I mean, we left all.

Now to me, all wasn't much.

But to Patty, all was everything.

Pictures, sentimental things, all those things she had bought with her charge card that I later paid for.

Amen.

And she had five or six of them filled up.

Charge cards?

Charge cards.

Amen.

Is that true?

Amen.

Montgomery, Wards, Broadway, Macy's, a couple others.

Filled up.

With everything that she owned.

When we came back to the States, God taught us another kind of leaving all.

It's a leaving all when you don't have a choice.

You just have to accept it.

See, there's leaving all by choice, like, okay, he chose.

Like I chose the first time to get rid of everything.

That was my choice.

But then there's a leaving all which he orchestrates, which you have two choices accept it or get bitter.

For a few months, uh, Patty really wanted her stuff back.

You remember?

I mean, really wanted her stuff back.

We don't argue, but I know she wanted it back.

I remember specifically when she let it go in her heart.

She only had two choices.

Well, you say, now, if you were a good husband, why didn't you just, you know, call up, have it shipped back over here.

One word.

Money.

We didn't have it.

And to me, it was just stuff.

Oh no, let me let me put it in the biblical terms.

Look at Philippians three.

Philippians three.

It was verse eight.

Yea, doubtless I can count all things but loss, for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I've suffered the loss of what?

All things, and do count them but what?

That's what that stuff was to me.

It was just junk.

Now, you say that's terrible.

I didn't write the Bible.

Paul said it was dumb.

I didn't.

But that's how I counted it.

I say, I can't believe that.

You took Patty's stuff over the snow, and you were responsible for all that priceless sentimental stuff.

And then you left it there and brought it back here, and you didn't have the auda you had the audacity not to bring it back and say it was done.

If I were your wife, well you're not.

And God had a point and a plan for us.

And it wasn't me he was working on.

Come on, preacher.

It was Patty.

And I'm probably gonna get it later on.

But I want you to know the Holy Spirit orchestrated and authorized this message tonight.

And sometimes you have the opportunity to choose to leave all, and please look up here.

Sometimes you don't.

You say, what choice do you have?

To accept what he did or get mad?

It's already done.

You say, what did Paul count dumb?

Verse 5.

Verse 4, what he was in the flesh, stock of Israel, tribe of Benjamin, Hebrew of Hebrews, a Pharisee.

That's status.

Persecuted the church, touching the righteousness which in the law, blame us.

I mean, as far as the world looked on him and religious looked at him, man, he was somebody.

He said, you know what?

As far as I was concerned, the things that I lost or I counted lost for Christ, it was just dumb.

You say, when does it become dumb?

When it happens?

No.

Normally later, when you look back on it and say, why did I put such a high priority on that?

You know, it's so easy to preach this tonight about me and my wife.

Or my wife and I.

You're preaching anyway.

Because God has replaced it all a hundredfold.

We have more now than we've ever had.

But you you missed the part of our life when we were living in the little apartment and eating hot dogs, and I was given blood to buy food.

Sometimes God takes you through something to test your faith and your trust in Him and what you're willing to give up in order to go into that obedience of faith to later receive the reward.

I mean, if I started telling you what my wife and I have right now compared to what we started with, I mean, it's not like we're living in La Jolla or anything, but we're very rich.

Don't say that.

They'll think we got money.

I didn't say we had money.

I say we're very rich.

And God giveth all things richly to enjoy.

We have some things.

Uh we we have uh one paid-off vehicle that my oldest daughter drives.

It is a limousine.

Amen.

You say, really?

Literally?

No, it's a Toyota van, but it's it's ours.

I drive a vehicle that's paid.

My wife drives a vehicle that we're paid.

But I mean, we got three vehicles.

You say, I don't understand.

We left it all.

We live in a house, we left it all.

We have furniture, we left it all.

I'm telling you, sometimes when God says, just leave it, obey.

Trust him.

Try.

Now, I'm not saying go home and you know, have a big garage sale and say, okay, God, I'm ready for what you have for me that's better.

You may be sleeping in a sleeping bag for a while.

We left it all in God's will.

There's no doubt in my mind we were in God's will.

I appreciate my mother-in-law.

She loaned us some things to come down here on.

It's amazing as I think of it how God has worked in her life and how we're in the same church, and now the brothers and sisters come down to visit us and just watching what God's done in our life.

And you know, after a while, you can't deny God's blessings.

Look a little further with me and stay with me.

Look if he would with me, and I'm almost finished.

Look at Revelations 22 and 2 John.

Revelations 22 and 2 John.

I think these are the last two scriptures I'll ask you to turn to tonight.

Revelations 22 and 2 John.

Faith sometimes allows us a choice, and that choice has to do with denying self and maybe leaving a position or leaving status.

But God said if you leave it, not only will He take care of you in this present world, but in the world to come.

And I believe there is a world to come.

Oh, yes.

You know, somebody looks and says, Oh, that poor missionary suffering that way and leaving all and going over there and doing that, and not having this, and not having that, and living in a little uh hut where there's an outhouse when they could have been living back here.

You're looking at it the wrong way.

Maybe they have to suffer a little bit now.

But if they're in God's will, they're happier being in God's will with that than being out of God's will living in La Jolla.

Because a nice bed and a marble floor and flushing toilets and gold-plated faucets don't bring the peace of God.

Which path us all understanding.

Now, if you have that and you're in God's will, you can have those possessions and be in God's will and also have peace.

So don't get this idea that if you have something that you're out of God's will, you can have stuff.

You can be a millionaire and be peace with God.

As long as you tie it to the local church.

Look at Revelation 22.

Verse 12, you're holding your place in 2 John.

Behold, I come how?

You say, you know what, they've been saying that for a long time.

Our life's a moment.

And when you look at it, quickly it's coming fast.

I'm in my 40s.

If I live to the three score and ten, I've got twenty-eight years left.

You know how fast that is?

And it's over quickly.

So whether he comes and blows the trumpet or I go in a natural way, I'm still going to see him quickly.

And my reward is with me.

To do what?

To give every man according as his work shall be.

I believe with all my heart that we Christians have the opportunity to work, and there's reward.

You say, well, we shouldn't be working for the reward.

You know what?

Whether your motive is to please him or allow him to be pleased by giving you a reward, whatever, the reward is still there.

And he says, you know what?

It won't be long.

I'm coming.

And I've got the reward with me.

And it's going to be given to every man according to his own labor.

You know what's so great about this whole thing and this whole setup?

I don't judge you, and you don't judge me.

You know why that's so good?

Because judgment will be perfect.

You see, you see me, and you may say, you know, it seems like the pastor's slacking off, and you don't know what I'm doing.

You don't know how hard I'm praying, you don't know how I'm studying, you don't know what I'm doing behind the scenes, you have no idea.

Or I may be looking at you and saying, you know, you're slacking off.

And you may not be slacking off at all.

You may go through something, a great test and trial that God's uh uh taking something away from you and testing you, and I can't see it at all, but he sees it.

I mean, you may be doing some things uh for God that nobody sees.

Nobody in here, uh, save one or two men know what anybody else gives.

You may be giving out tracts and nobody even knows it.

You may be doing something for God and I'll never see it.

But may I say to you, God sees it all.

And he's a rewarder according to the labor, according to the work, according to the actions built on faith.

And sometimes, you know, somebody says, Oh, we only talk about those that are going to the missionary field.

Sometimes faith and actions upon faith are people that stuck in the same church, stuck in the second Sunday school, to be second-going Sunday school for 30 years, and some of those little boys and little girls become missionaries, and missionaries work, and they can step up and endure the hardships, endure the suffering, give them all kinds of things for God, but you don't see them on the mission field.

Their mission field is San Diego.

And if that's what God's called you to do, as long as you do it with all your might.

You'll get just as much as the big name preacher, the world-renowned missionary, the one you think, oh, well, he's gonna or she's gonna get so much.

Because God has a way of equaling it all out.

For what you and I are called to do.

See, you gotta look at what you're doing, as in the Lord, and say, you know what?

I better get focused on it.

I better labor with it.

I better, if I need to, you know what?

I I gotta I gotta preach if I'm a man, or you know, I got some some children to teach if I'm a lady.

I better deny myself and not sit in front of that TV on stuff and not better work on my lesson, and better pray for those kids and not just start it and not better start out in the way to put something into this thing and get some visual props and talk about this thing and how we start it about and just judge me.

I'm starting to find this child, but I'm gonna have and how much I was running and how much I was on the house for God, but judgment on that.

And be your own reward for your own labor.

You know, to some people, it just comes easy and they don't put much effort into it.

Or for those people, I'd say, then there's more you can do.

For other people, I mean they they they work and work and work and work at that thing that it just, and God knows that.

If I was a bus worker or a bus captain, I'd look at that thing and say, this may be the last position God ever gives me.

I'm gonna do it with everything I got.

If I was a nursery worker, I'd look at that thing, I'd say, I'm gonna be a nursery worker to the glory of God, and I'm gonna give it everything I got.

Brethren, that's our activity by faith.

I'm glad our church is full of night with adults.

I am.

Because by faith you came here to get something.

Now, you may be saying, I don't know if I like that message.

It doesn't matter whether you like it or not.

It's a matter of what we do with these scriptures.

I already know, I don't know who, but I already know God is dealing with somebody in here to leave something.

Maybe in the future, five years from now, maybe three years from now, maybe next year, I already know somewhere tonight God's dealing with someone to leave something.

And it's not easy.

It may be a job, it may be a business, it may be a past situation, it may be.

I don't know what it is.

It may be some things, it may be a portion of your paycheck monthly.

Praise the Lord.

I don't know what it is.

It may be leaving a hobby that you're, you know, really like, and God says, I want you to give that up because you've got this job to do now in the church, and that hobby is conflicting with what I want you to do.

I used to play rugby.

When I got saved, I was playing rugby down at Hilton Head Island, south of Paris Island, South Carolina.

I loved it.

I know I loved it.

I love getting hit, and I love hitting people.

You may say that's terrible.

I know.

I was carnal.

There was nothing like putting my shoulder into a guy's solar plexus as watching him going and trying to get his breath.

You say, that's terrible.

I know, I know.

I was only saved for three months.

I still loved it.

Sunday morning I'd go to church.

Sunday school.

Church time.

At 12:15 or 12:30 when church was out, I had my rugby closed in my van.

I played rugby in the afternoon.

Went to church in the evening.

Hurting.

But I consider it a good full day of rest.

About two months into that, God began to deal with me about my hobby.

Because there were times I would sit in Sunday night church going, my head's hurting.

It's ringing.

Because I got my bell rung that day.

And I wasn't listening to the preaching.

I was thinking, I can't wait to get home.

I remember one night I came in bloody.

I thought I had the I had a cut and I wiped it off, and right in the middle of the service, this blood started dripping down.

I thought, I can't leave.

What am I going to do?

And so I just kind of sat there with like this.

Somebody turned back at me and went.

It was about two weeks later that God said, Time for you to give rugby up.

First thing I thought of was I had read that scripture about try the spirits.

You can justify a lot of things.

And I said this when I got that thought about giving rugby up, I said, Is this you, God, or not?

Because I don't want to be deceived here.

Come on, do you know what I'm talking about?

You see, I didn't want to give it up.

I liked it.

I'd played in college, I'd played in the military, and I liked it.

And God showed me through a message that it was it was Him.

I remember walking down and I was a fairly good player.

I remember walking down and giving him my stuff and said, I can't play anymore.

And I said, What?

We're coming up to the championships.

I said, I can't play anymore.

And the leader of the team got me aside and said, why not?

I said, well, I go to church on Sunday morning and Sunday night.

And we always play our games on Sunday.

And I can't do both.

And, you know, I'm a Christian now, and I just got to give it up for that reason.

The guy looked at me and said, okay, I understand.

Didn't ask me another question.

Didn't call me a dumb name or anything like that.

He just said, okay, I understand.

I got in my little van that night, Tuesday night practice, and I drove away, and um never played since.

Kicked the ball a few times, but never played since.

To you, that's not that big a deal.

But to me, that was important.

Whatever it is that's important to you might have to be denied to be obedient, obedient to faith.

That opened up a lot of doors for me.

I started in the ministry on Sunday afternoon, a couple of ministries that they had at church.

I said, I got all this time.

I used to play rugby.

I'm not going home and sleep.

I guess I'll get involved.

Look at 2 John and we close.

Watching the time.

We're finished in three minutes or four.

2 John.

Everybody.

I don't care if you're tired, asleep, whatever.

I want you to read the scripture with me.

This is important.

Because you never can tell.

At our church, somebody says, I heard a pastor once say, he says, I've heard so many life-changing messages, I don't know who I am anymore.

You have to think about that for a minute.

But you never can tell when you walk in on a Wednesday night and God does something to modify your thinking just a little bit.

Just a little bit.

I mean, you could have a message.

This message tonight could be, you know, I just came to church on Wednesday night, and really I didn't even think that much of the message, but I went away, and God really started working on me.

Look at verse 8.

First three words are look to yourselves.

That doesn't mean look at someone else.

Look to yourselves, husband, look to yourself, wife.

That we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a what?

A full reward.

That's an interesting little scripture.

It goes along with the idea of not letting things slip.

Look to yourselves.

Take a good look at yourself.

Me too.

Make sure you don't lose those things which you wrought.

What's wrought?

Work.

Those actions.

But that we receive a full reward.

And brethren, that's not talking about working for your salvation and holding on to it.

That's talking about keeping going in the ministry that you have.

If you don't have one, get one.

Everybody in the local church ought to have a place.

Everybody in the local church ought to have a position that they're responsible for.

Whether it be working beside somebody, whether it be an usher, a bus driver, a bus mechanic, a nursery homeworker, find a place.

Street ministry, find a place.

Of service.

Military wife, I'm a part of the Lady Beacons.

Whatever it is.

Find a place.

And in that place, please look up here.

Work.

Work like you're getting paid.

Work like you're getting 25 bucks an hour.

And there's commission and bonus.

Work at it with that logic in mind.

You know what?

Honestly, I don't work for a paycheck.

Now, you can take that a couple different ways.

What I'm saying is the pay does it not motivate me.

It's necessary for my family to live on, but it doesn't motivate me.

This book motivates me.

The Holy Spirit motivates me.

The promises of God motivate me.

And the idea of God being pleased with me, that motivates me.

Giving something up?

When you look to his pleasure, it gets easier.

What do you want?

You gave it to me, anyways.

What do you want, Lord?

What do you want that's supposedly mine?

You gave it to me.

You made it to be where I could purchase it.

You bought it for me, or you worked it out.

So whatever you want, then it's yours.

Because you gave it to me in the first place.

And if I don't give it to you, you have a way of taking it.

So I know, I just want you to know it's yours.

It may be giving up a dream.

A plan that you had for your life.

A position, a career.

Things.

A relationship.

But look at what Christ gave you.

And all of a sudden it'll start looking so small.

And then look what Christ gave up.

His throne of glory.

His place in heaven for 33 and a half years.

And look what he suffered.

And then what we have to give up doesn't look so big at all.

And then he said, and I'm going to give it back to you in this life and in the world to come.

I'm going to give you a reward.

Now we don't have time to look at the rewards tonight.

I chopped that out of the message because of the turret.

Brethren, let me reiterate and say this.

Faith without actions upon that faith is dead faith.

Faith without obedience to that belief will not allow faith to mature.

Allow faith to grow and then act upon that faith.

But if we know and we don't act, we could suffer loss.

By the way, we may have to suffer some persecution.

Like when Job, when it was all taken from him, that God took and he went through the persecution, but when he came out on the other end, didn't God give it all back and more?

Or it may be that, like Job, we don't have a choice of whether we give it all up or not.

He just decides I'm taking it from you.

You've got two choices.

Accept it and be glad and be happy and trust me or get mad.

It'd be better just to trust me.

And when it's all over, you'll see my plan.

And you'll see that I made more out of your life than you could ever make out of it.

And even though you thought you had it all planned, I had a different plan.

And it's good that you did what I wanted you to do.

Now I'm going to reward you.

Well, I plan to be a preacher, and I'm a Sunday school teacher.

Then give your Sunday school class all you got.

And be a preacher in that Sunday school class.

Well, I thought I was going to be this, and now I'm not.

Well, be what you are.

And let God use you.

And He will reward you.

Whatsoever you do, do it with all your might.

And don't do it to please man.

Do it to please God.

Let's see.

Is anybody looking?

Oh, somebody's looking.

I'm going to do a good job.

Oh, nobody's looking.

Just kind of hold off until you've seen him do that in the military, haven't you?

Hold off until you watching the door?

Alright, let me know if they come.

Here they come.

Well, you better get busy.

Alright, good job, man.

Oh, he's gone.

God's watching all the time.