Sermon

Whatsoever Is Right in Your Eyes AUGUST 2, 2026 Pastor Steven L. Anderson

Faithful Word Baptist Church

Open publisher episode ↗

Publisher transcript

Transcript

View source ↗
  1. In your name we pray, amen.

  2. Man, the title of the sermon this evening

  3. is whatsoever is right in your eyes.

  4. Whatsoever is right in your eyes,

  5. the Bible says in Deuteronomy 12 verse eight,

  6. ye shall not do after all the things

  7. that we do here this day,

  8. every man whatsoever is right in his own eyes.

  9. So the law of God says, hey,

  10. do not just go through life doing whatever is right

  11. in your own eyes.

  12. We as a church, we as a congregation,

  13. we're not just gonna do whatever is right

  14. in our own eyes, right?

  15. God is the one who determines what is right and wrong,

  16. and more specifically, it is the word of God

  17. that spells out right and wrong,

  18. not just what we think is right

  19. or what we feel is right.

  20. Of course, famously in the book of Judges,

  21. we have this statement that comes up over and over again

  22. in the end part of Judges

  23. where we just have horrific things going on.

  24. And really, there's one case of just absurd idolatry,

  25. just outrageously unbiblical, ungodly idolatry,

  26. kind of just showing the total disregard for God's law

  27. with regard to spiritual things, right?

  28. Then you have another story at the end of the book of Judges

  29. showing just the most outrageous violation

  30. of people physically,

  31. where you have the concubine that ends up getting

  32. violated and killed and so forth by sodomites.

  33. And so it's like you have these two examples

  34. at the end of the book of Judges,

  35. one having to do with man's relationship with God

  36. and one having to do with man's relationship

  37. with his fellow man.

  38. And both of them, it says of it,

  39. in those days there was no king in Israel,

  40. but every man did that which was right in his own eyes.

  41. So when we do what's right in our own eyes,

  42. when we just follow our heart and just trust our instinct

  43. instead of going to the word of God,

  44. we're going to end up violating God's law spiritually.

  45. And also we're going to end up violating our fellow man

  46. and harming the people around us.

  47. And that's what we're going to see tonight in the sermon.

  48. And so in those days there was no king in Israel,

  49. every man did that which was right in his own eyes.

  50. Well, here's the problem with that.

  51. Proverbs chapter 21 verse two says this,

    Proverbs 21 chapter mention

  52. every way of a man is right in his own eyes, right?

  53. I mean, people do what they think is right.

  54. Virtually everybody on some level,

  55. no matter how evil or sick they are,

  56. they think like, oh, well,

  57. this is what I'm supposed to be doing.

  58. I'm doing the right thing.

  59. You know, and I brought up this example before,

  60. I just brought it up recently in a sermon,

  61. but you know, the suicide bombers over in Israel, right?

  62. You'll have these Muslim jihadists over there.

  63. And look, I'm not for the Jewish state,

  64. I'm not for Israel, I'm not for the Jews,

  65. I'm not for Judaism, but what you'll have

  66. is all these Muslim extremists

  67. that will literally just get on a bus in the morning

  68. where men, women, and children are on their way to school,

  69. on their way to work, and they'll just blow themselves up

  70. and just blow up innocent people.

  71. And I was reading about a particular young man

  72. where his mom is literally making him his favorite meal

  73. because she knows that he is gonna go

  74. blow himself up on a bus.

  75. He's just gonna go get on a bus

  76. and just randomly kill Israelis.

  77. And so she's making him his favorite meal,

  78. she's hugging him and saying,

  79. son, I'm so proud of you, you're such a good boy.

  80. Mommy is so proud, she sends him out the door

  81. to go blow up a bunch of innocent people, okay?

  82. But why?

  83. Because he thinks that this is what is right,

  84. because he's following a sick twisted evil religion

  85. called Islam.

  86. And you know what, there are all kinds of Jews

  87. following Judaism, doing evil things as well,

  88. because guess what, I got news for you,

  89. every religion other than Christianity is false and evil.

  90. It's of the devil.

  91. I don't care if it's Hinduism, Buddhism, atheism,

  92. there's no other name under heaven given among men

  93. whereby we must be saved

  94. than the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth.

  95. That's what the Bible says.

  96. And so, again, this attitude of just,

  97. well, you just gotta do what you think is right,

  98. follow your heart.

  99. Well, the Bible says the heart is deceitful

  100. above all things and desperately wicked who can know it.

  101. You know, Jesus talked about this too in John chapter 16.

    John 16 chapter mention

  102. He said, the time will come when whosoever killeth you

  103. will think that he doeth God's service.

  104. I mean, the Jews are being super religious

  105. as they're crucifying Jesus.

  106. They're like, well, I wanna crucify Jesus,

  107. but we gotta make sure that we don't get defiled

  108. because we gotta do the Passover.

  109. What?

  110. Jesus is the Passover.

  111. You know, they're missing it.

  112. But people doing what's right in their own eyes

  113. is always gonna lead to a moral failure.

  114. We've got to follow what the Bible says.

  115. Why?

  116. Because every way of a man is right in his own eyes,

  117. but the Lord pondereth the hearts.

  118. The Bible says in Proverbs 12.5,

  119. the way of a fool is right in his own eyes.

  120. But he that hearkenedeth unto counsel is wise.

  121. He's saying, look, you've gotta sometimes listen

  122. to other people and most importantly,

  123. you gotta listen to the Lord.

  124. Because when it says whoso hearkened unto counsel

  125. is wise, yeah, you could get counsel

  126. from other godly Christians and good people

  127. who know the Bible, but at the end of the day,

  128. there's also just the counsel of the Lord.

  129. What is the Lord counsel in his word?

  130. Now you're there in Psalm 33, hopefully,

  131. that's where we started the service.

  132. Psalm 33, verse 10 says this,

    Psalms 33:10

  133. the Lord bringeth the counsel of the heathen to not.

  134. Right, so whatever their stupid advice

  135. that they give you, God's gonna bring that to nothing.

  136. He makeeth the devices of the people of none effect,

  137. the counsel of the Lord standeth forever

  138. the thoughts of his heart to all generations.

  139. Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord

  140. and the people whom he hath chosen for his inheritance.

  141. Notice how God's counsel stands unto all generations,

  142. meaning that God has the same advice for me in 2026

  143. that he had for my dad back in the 70s

  144. or my grandpa back in the 40s and 50s or whatever.

  145. And it's the same every single generation,

  146. God's word is still saying the same thing.

  147. Although, culture can dramatically swing

  148. one way or the other, where people are super strict

  149. in one generation, super lenient in another

  150. and then they get overly strict, overly lenient,

  151. just making it up as they go along, folks.

  152. But the Bible says the counsel of the Lord

  153. standeth forever his thoughts to all generations.

  154. And so, bless is the nation whose God is the Lord

  155. and the people whom he hath chosen for his inheritance.

  156. Go through it to Proverbs chapter 19,

    Proverbs 19 chapter mention

  157. Proverbs chapter 19, and while you're turned

    Proverbs 19 chapter mention

  158. to Proverbs 19, I'm gonna read for you

  159. from Jeremiah chapter 23.

    Jeremiah 23 chapter mention

  160. Actually, turn to Proverbs 19

  161. and then turn to Proverbs, or that, Jeremiah 23.

  162. I want you to look at both, Proverbs 19

  163. and then we're gonna go to Jeremiah 23.

  164. But we're talking about the counsel of the Lord.

  165. It says in Proverbs 19, 20, here counsel

  166. and receive instruction that thou mayest be wise

  167. in thy latter end.

  168. There are many devices in a man's heart.

  169. Nevertheless, the counsel of the Lord,

  170. that shall stand, right?

  171. And you know what?

  172. This right here is a rock.

  173. It was here before I was born.

  174. It'll be here after I'm gone.

  175. People can get mad at it.

  176. They can rage against it.

  177. They can try to replace it with a counterfeit

  178. and some watered-down, NIV,

  179. numeric and standard, legacy, standard Bible or whatever.

  180. But you know what?

  181. At the end of the day, the King James Bible

  182. is not going anywhere, because it's God's word.

  183. It's a rock.

  184. It'll always be here.

  185. Jeremiah 23, verse 16 says this.

    Jeremiah 23:16

  186. Thus saith the Lord of hosts,

  187. harken not unto the words of the prophets

  188. that prophesy unto you.

  189. He's saying, you know,

  190. these preachers that are preaching to you,

  191. he says they make you vain.

  192. They speak a vision of their own heart,

  193. not out of the mouth of the Lord.

  194. They say still unto them that despise me.

  195. The Lord has said, you shall have peace, right?

  196. So people that just totally despise God,

  197. hate the Lord, don't care what the Bible says,

  198. they just tell those people,

  199. oh man, it's gonna be great, you're fine.

  200. You'll have peace.

  201. There's no consequences.

  202. Love ya girl or whatever.

  203. You shall have peace.

  204. And they say unto everyone that walketh

  205. after the imagination of his own heart,

  206. no evil shall come upon you.

  207. For who hath stood in the counsel of the Lord

  208. and hath perceived and heard his word?

  209. Hey, I got news for you.

  210. I have, you have, we all have,

  211. because we have the Bible.

  212. We have stood in the counsel of the Lord

  213. and we have heard his word.

  214. What a blessing it is to have the entire Bible

  215. at your fingertips right here.

  216. We've heard it.

  217. We're there.

  218. Behold, a whirlwind of the Lord is gone forth.

  219. Verse 19, in fury, even a grievous whirlwind,

  220. it shall fall grievously upon the head of the wicked.

  221. The anger of the Lord shall not return

  222. until he hath executed,

  223. until he hath performed the thoughts of his heart

  224. in the latter days, ye shall consider it perfectly.

  225. And here's the problem,

  226. is that unfortunately the blessings

  227. and the judgments of God,

  228. they're on a delayed reaction, unfortunately.

  229. Quite unfortunately, as it turns out.

  230. And so the problem is,

  231. things will not happen immediately

  232. and then people will kind of think like,

  233. oh, I'm getting away with it, right?

  234. Or somebody will do a lot of really good things

  235. and say like, why am I not being blessed by God?

  236. Where's the reward?

  237. Where's the blessing?

  238. Ever since I started going to church

  239. and soul win and do good,

  240. it's like my life's gotten harder.

  241. Things are getting worse.

  242. The problem is that these things happen on a delay

  243. and so it says here,

  244. in the latter days,

  245. ye shall consider it perfectly.

  246. So it's like, yeah, God's gonna punish the wicked,

  247. they're all getting smoked.

  248. And it's like, in the end,

  249. of course you're gonna look back and see that.

  250. You're gonna look back

  251. and see how the good people were blessed

  252. and the bad people got smoked.

  253. But the problem is,

  254. when you're living it,

  255. when you're there,

  256. when you're in the middle of it,

  257. it doesn't feel that way,

  258. it doesn't seem that way

  259. because of the timing of it.

  260. And this emboldens the wicked

  261. and discourages the righteous, unfortunately.

  262. But without faith,

  263. it's impossible to please God.

  264. And so we just have to believe

  265. that God's promises

  266. are ultimately going to come true.

  267. And in the latter days,

  268. yeah, you look back,

  269. you consider it perfectly,

  270. it all makes sense.

  271. And you say, like the song says,

  272. Jesus led me all the way.

  273. Look at verse 21,

  274. it says, I've not sent these prophets yet they ran.

  275. I've not spoken to them yet they prophesied,

  276. but if they had stood in my counsel

  277. and it caused my people to hear my words,

  278. then they should have turned them

  279. from their evil way

  280. and from the evil of their doings.

  281. Now go if you were to Romans chapter 13.

    Romans 13 chapter mention

  282. So we notice so far you got people doing

  283. what's right in their own eyes.

  284. Every idiot thinks that their way is right.

  285. The Bible says everybody in general

  286. thinks that their way is right.

  287. We saw in the book of Judges

  288. the horrible spiritual atrocities

  289. and the physical atrocities that take place

  290. when people just make their own conscience

  291. or their own heart or their own opinions,

  292. the guideline instead of,

  293. thus sayeth the Lord,

  294. engraven in stone, black and white,

  295. thus sayeth the Lord.

  296. That's the problem.

  297. And we see that the counsel of the Lord

  298. stands forever, every generation.

  299. It doesn't change.

  300. Somebody could listen to a recording of this sermon

  301. 500 years from now and it's still gonna make sense.

  302. They could listen to recordings of most of my sermons

  303. and 500 years from now,

  304. 99% of it's still gonna make sense.

  305. And it's still gonna be the same type of things

  306. that people are dealing with,

  307. maybe in different quantities,

  308. but life is life, human nature is human nature.

  309. Romans 13 though is important

  310. because it talks about the latter half of the law

  311. because remember the law really is in two sections,

  312. loving God and loving your neighbor.

  313. And we talked about how in Judges

  314. they failed on both accounts

  315. from doing what's right in their own eyes.

  316. But look at Romans 13, verse eight,

  317. it says, oh no man anything,

  318. but to love one another,

  319. for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.

  320. And of course, Brother Sigoura

  321. preached a great sermon this morning

  322. about charity and about the importance

  323. of loving one another.

  324. But here's the thing about loving one another

  325. is that the Bible says let's not love in word,

  326. neither in tongue, but in deed and in truth.

  327. Love is shown by our actions.

  328. And so if you're loving your neighbor,

  329. you know what you're not gonna do?

  330. You're not gonna commit adultery.

  331. What does the Bible say?

  332. That shall not commit adultery, verse nine,

  333. that shall not kill, that shall not steal.

  334. Oh, and by the way, if you have one

  335. of these stupid worthless modern versions

  336. like the NIV or the ESV,

  337. it'll leave out that shall not bear false witness.

  338. Isn't that funny?

  339. That shall bear false witness.

  340. A book of lies leaves out the commandment,

  341. that shall not bear false witness in Romans 13.

  342. That shall not bear false witness,

  343. that shall not covet.

  344. And if there be any other commandment, right?

  345. Because the Ten Commandments

  346. is like a Cliff's Notes version of God's moral law.

  347. So he's saying, look, these are the basics.

  348. Don't kill, don't steal, don't commit adultery,

  349. don't bear false witness, and don't covet.

  350. And those five will keep you pretty busy anyway,

  351. and those five will condemn

  352. a lot of our society right now.

  353. But he says, look, this is all summed up

  354. along with all the other commandments

  355. that are along those lines.

  356. Briefly, you could just put it

  357. on the back of a postage stamp,

  358. thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.

  359. Love worketh no ill to his neighbor,

  360. therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.

  361. And it's funny how people will say

  362. that they love you as they're harming you.

  363. As they're working you ill,

  364. as they're bearing false witness,

  365. oh, but I love you, I love you so much

  366. as they're bearing false witness against you.

  367. And you know what's funny about that is

  368. these are the same people that say,

  369. oh, you're mean, you're harsh,

  370. you're tone, or whatever.

  371. Now, when I was a teenager,

  372. this was a major, major problem in churches,

  373. and I'm sure it still is today,

  374. but this was all the rage when I was a teenager.

  375. This doctrine was sweeping the nation

  376. of, hey, we are free in Christ.

  377. Everybody had this on the tip of their tongue,

  378. and to them this meant commandments don't matter.

  379. So it was like everybody had on the tip of their tongue,

  380. we're free in Christ,

  381. and any time when I was a teenager,

  382. if you took the Bible and showed someone,

  383. hey, what you're doing is a sin.

  384. This is wrong, this is not okay.

  385. Look what the Bible says about it.

  386. Here's what they would say to you.

  387. They'd say, look, I'm glad that the Holy Spirit

  388. has spoken to you about that,

  389. but the Holy Spirit hasn't spoken to me about that.

  390. And you know, God doesn't want us following the letter.

  391. He wants us to walk in the spirit.

  392. And so, you know, if the spirit speaks to me about that,

  393. then I'll stop doing it.

  394. But until the spirit speaks to me about that,

  395. now you shouldn't do it,

  396. because it's clear that the Holy Spirit

  397. has spoken to you about it.

  398. So it's like different rules for different people

  399. based on what the spirit is saying to who.

  400. Now, put up your hand if you've heard that idea before

  401. of like, hey, the spirit hasn't spoken to me about that.

  402. And they will literally act like

  403. there's different rules for different people

  404. just based on what the Holy Spirit brings up.

  405. You know, here's what I think is going on.

  406. I think some of us are just actually listening

  407. to the Holy Spirit,

  408. and then other people aren't.

  409. So it's like the Holy Spirit hasn't spoken to me about that.

  410. Well, he probably doesn't tell you much.

  411. He probably hasn't spoken to you about much,

  412. you know, which explains the way that you're living.

  413. But what a wicked thing to just look at the Bible

  414. and just say, well, that doesn't matter to me

  415. because I'm waiting to hear a still small voice

  416. tell me that.

  417. Well, why don't you just let the Bible tell you that?

  418. You know, you can't just sit there

  419. and wait for God to tell you everything.

  420. Like basically what they'll do is

  421. this is how they test right and wrong.

  422. They do something and if they don't feel guilty

  423. they're like must be fine.

  424. Because feeling guilty is the Holy Spirit

  425. speaking to me about it.

  426. So if you can just do it without feeling,

  427. but here's what I've noticed is some of the most rotten

  428. people can just do bad things

  429. without feeling bad about it.

  430. But they're just so free in Christ.

  431. But here's what's going on, my friend.

  432. Because a lot of people will try to twist this

  433. and say, well, it's all about

  434. just follow the Spirit's guidance

  435. and just walk in love.

  436. And look, obviously every lie is based on some truth.

  437. The true story is that if you're being led of the Spirit,

  438. yeah, you don't even need to even worry about commandments

  439. because when you're being led of the Spirit

  440. you're gonna be automatically doing the right things.

  441. Because if you walk in the Spirit

  442. you'll not fulfill the last of the flesh, right?

  443. And obviously if you love your neighbor as yourself

  444. you're automatically not going to kill, steal,

  445. commit adultery, bear false witness or covet.

  446. Because you're walking in the Spirit

  447. because you're walking in love

  448. because you love your neighbor.

  449. Why would I steal from my neighbor

  450. if I love my neighbor?

  451. But what they're twisting it though

  452. is they will be violating God's word,

  453. working ill to their neighbor,

  454. doing things that are just boldly against the word of God

  455. and just saying, oh, I'm following the Spirit

  456. and I'm walking in love.

  457. No, you're a liar is what you are

  458. because you're just lying and saying you are

  459. but this is the check, the test.

  460. See, yeah, we wanna walk in love,

  461. wanna walk in the Spirit.

  462. But here's the test.

  463. If we're truly walking in the Spirit

  464. and if we're truly walking in love

  465. we were following the Bible.

  466. So if we go to the Bible

  467. and the Bible is inconsistent with our life

  468. then that is proof that we're not walking in Spirit.

  469. Like if I'm stealing

  470. then that's proof I'm not walking in the Spirit, right?

  471. Is it possible for someone to just be

  472. committing adultery in the Spirit?

  473. Absolutely not.

  474. And that's where this bizarre doctrine falls apart

  475. of claiming that freedom in Christ simply means

  476. that we just let our conscience be our guide

  477. and we just do what's right in our own eyes

  478. and just go through life waiting to feel bad

  479. or not feel bad about things

  480. and that that's how we determine right or wrong.

  481. Basically everybody's just being their own God

  482. and just deciding what's right and wrong

  483. instead of submitting themselves onto the law of God.

  484. Now look, when it comes to salvation,

  485. yeah, we don't have to keep commandments to be saved.

  486. We don't have to live a good life to be saved.

  487. If we did, we'd all be in trouble

  488. because we've all sinned

  489. and come short of the glory of God.

  490. There is none righteous, no, not one.

  491. But after we're saved, once we've believed on Christ,

  492. once we're saved, we are eternally secure.

  493. No man can pluck us out of his hand.

  494. Nothing can separate us from the love of God

  495. which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

  496. But we still should do the right things.

  497. Not to earn our salvation.

  498. Our salvation's already paid for, it's already done

  499. so that we can please God

  500. so that we can have a relationship with God

  501. so that we can help other people,

  502. be a blessing to other people

  503. so that we can avoid chastisement

  504. so that we can earn rewards and so forth.

  505. That's why we should continue to care

  506. what the Bible says about what's right and wrong

  507. even though we're already saved.

  508. See, the famous verse says,

  509. for by grace are you saved through faith

  510. and that not of yourselves it is the gift of God,

  511. not of works lest any man should boast

  512. for we are his workmanship

  513. created in Christ Jesus unto good works

  514. which God has before ordained

  515. that we should walk in them.

  516. So works don't save us.

  517. We're saved by faith, not by works,

  518. but God has saved us unto good works

  519. meaning that once we're saved,

  520. he now has works that he has before ordained

  521. that we should walk in them

  522. and we should do those things

  523. and we should be every day seeking the will of God

  524. and denying self and taking up the cross

  525. and following Jesus.

  526. That's what we should be doing.

  527. It's nothing to do with whether we go to heaven

  528. but it has a lot to do with whether we're a good son

  529. or a bad son,

  530. whether we're an obedient Christian

  531. or a disobedient Christian, right?

  532. Whether we're right with God walking in the spirit

  533. or just carnal and backslidden and whatever.

  534. And so we wanna make sure that we get that right.

  535. But here's the thing,

  536. just not committing adultery,

  537. not stealing, not killing,

  538. not bearing false witness and not coveting

  539. and also obviously any other such law,

  540. that's only half of the equation.

  541. If you want God to look down on you

  542. and say, hey, you're a good person,

  543. you're doing well,

  544. obviously nobody's perfect

  545. but we want God to look down on us

  546. and be pleased with us

  547. and we want him to be happy with our lives

  548. and we want him to bless us and so forth.

  549. This Romans 13 passage right here

  550. is only half of the equation

  551. and not only that,

  552. it is the less important half.

  553. How do I know that?

  554. We'll go to Mark chapter 12.

    Mark 12 chapter mention

  555. Go to Mark chapter 12 verse 28.

    Mark 12:28

  556. Now it's super important, don't get me wrong.

  557. It's super important,

  558. but the other half is even more important

  559. to where this takes a back seat actually.

  560. And let's see what Jesus Christ Himself

  561. had to say about this

  562. in the Gospel of Mark chapter 12

    Mark 12 chapter mention

  563. and we're gonna begin reading in verse number 28.

  564. Let me get there myself.

  565. Mark 12, 28

  566. and one of the scribes came

  567. and having heard them reasoning together

  568. and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him,

  569. which is the first commandment of all?

  570. And Jesus answered him,

  571. the first of all the commandments is,

  572. hero is real, the Lord our God is one Lord

  573. and thou shalt love the Lord thy God

  574. with all thy heart and with all thy soul

  575. and with all thy mind and with all thy strength,

  576. this is the first commandment.

  577. And the second is like, namely this,

  578. thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself,

  579. there is none other commandment greater than these.

  580. So it sounds to me like it's 51% love God

  581. and it's 49% love your neighbor

  582. or whatever percent you wanna put on that,

  583. but number one is loving God

  584. and number two is loving your neighbor.

  585. So if you're gonna screw one of these up,

  586. you certainly don't wanna screw up

  587. the one about loving God, right?

  588. And I'm not condoning not loving your neighbor

  589. because you're supposed to do both.

  590. They're both connected, you know?

  591. And if you say, oh, I love God

  592. and I hate my brother, you're a liar, right?

  593. The Bible says, he that loveeth God

  594. should love his brother also.

  595. Obviously they're connected, obviously they're entwined,

  596. but what we have today is a bunch of people

  597. who wanna completely ditch the first part

  598. and go straight to the second commandment and say,

  599. all that matters is just that we just love people

  600. and just follow basic morality.

  601. Well, no, there's a bigger commandment

  602. than loving people and following basic morality.

  603. You know what the biggest commandment is?

  604. Loving God.

  605. So how about this one?

  606. Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

  607. Isn't that super important?

  608. Go if you would to Exodus chapter 20.

    Exodus 20 chapter mention

  609. Let's go take a look at it, Exodus chapter 20.

    Exodus 20 chapter mention

  610. This is the moral law of God.

  611. The moral law of God is not simply just

  612. thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not kill,

  613. thou shalt not commit adultery.

  614. No, the moral law of God is

  615. thou shalt have no other gods before me.

  616. That's step one.

  617. And you say, well, yeah, but the stealing,

  618. that's the most important part, really?

  619. Because Jesus didn't say,

  620. the first commandment is love your neighbor

  621. and the second is love God.

  622. Is that what he said?

  623. No, he said, the first commandment is love God

  624. and the second commandment is love your neighbor.

  625. And it's not a coincidence, there's 10 commandments

  626. and in Romans 13, the latter five

  627. are summed up as love your neighbor.

  628. To me, that would mean that the first five

  629. are summing up love God.

  630. So it's like you got five commandments for love God

  631. and five commandments for love your neighbor.

  632. That's how the 10 commandments break down.

  633. And so this is what the Bible is teaching

  634. that we need to first and foremost,

  635. love the Lord our God with all our heart, mind, soul

  636. and strength.

  637. Remember that famous interview where that guy interviewed me

  638. and he said, isn't the first commandment

  639. and the 10 commandments, isn't it thou shalt not kill?

  640. Right?

  641. He's a Jew.

  642. He doesn't even have to mess with the New Testament.

  643. He doesn't even have to think about the New Testament.

  644. It's like, bro, you had one job.

  645. You guys only think that the first five books

  646. of the Bible are even super holy.

  647. You had one job and you can't even figure out

  648. the most famous passage in the most famous part

  649. of the most famous, you know, part

  650. that you supposedly care about as a Jew.

  651. Isn't the first commandment, thou shalt not kill?

  652. I said, no, the first commandment is

  653. thou shalt have no other gods before me.

  654. Let me take you to Shula, Mr. Jewish Shlomo,

  655. whatever your name is, or not Shula, I'm speaking German.

  656. Shul, that's what they call it.

  657. In Yiddish it's shul, so I goofed up the joke

  658. just a little bit, but not much.

  659. Nobody cares, because most people here

  660. don't speak Yiddish anyway.

  661. But look at Exodus chapter 20 and it says in verse one,

    Exodus 20 chapter mention

  662. God spake all these words saying,

  663. I'm the Lord thy God, which have brought thee

  664. out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.

  665. Commandment number one is,

  666. thou shalt have no other gods before me.

  667. So you say, oh, I'm gonna go to heaven

  668. because I'm a good person.

  669. Well, not if you're not worshiping the Lord Jesus Christ.

  670. Not if you don't believe that the Lord Jesus Christ

  671. is the son of God.

  672. If you're worshiping some other God,

  673. how are you a good person?

  674. And by the way, if you don't have the son,

  675. you don't have the father.

  676. So no, you're not a good person

  677. if you have a God other than the God of the Bible

  678. because step one in the moral law is,

  679. thou shalt have no other gods before me.

  680. Okay, let's continue to test

  681. whether people are good people or not.

  682. Verse four, thou shalt not make under the integraven image.

  683. Look, if somebody's doing idolatry,

  684. oh yeah, but they mean well,

  685. their heart's in the right place.

  686. Hey, thou shalt not make under the integraven image.

  687. It's idolatry.

  688. You bound down to statues, you're praying to statues,

  689. you're serving images and idols.

  690. That's idolatry and you're not right with God.

  691. The third commandment is this,

  692. thou shalt not take verse seven,

  693. the name of the Lord by God in vain,

  694. for the Lord will not hold him guilless

  695. that taketh his name in vain.

  696. And so taking God's name in vain,

  697. meaning that you are using God's name,

  698. naming the name of God flippantly

  699. and in a cavalier manner,

  700. just using it as a cuss word,

  701. using it as an expletive.

  702. You know, whenever you say the name of God,

  703. you should be talking to God or about God.

  704. You shouldn't be just throwing it out there

  705. as a, you know, like some kind of a valley girl,

  706. kind of, oh my God, you know, it's blasphemous, right?

  707. You need to not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.

  708. What does in vain mean?

  709. In vain means empty.

  710. It means there's no point.

  711. There's no reason.

  712. It's just you're just using the name of God

  713. and there's no purpose.

  714. You're just using it

  715. because you hit your thumb with a hammer.

  716. You're just using it as an expletive.

  717. And then the fourth commandment is this,

  718. remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy.

  719. Now here's the thing about this

  720. is that in the New Testament,

  721. it is specifically spelled out

  722. that Jesus Christ is our Sabbath.

  723. The whole point of working six days

  724. and then resting on the seventh day

  725. was that he that has entered into his rest,

  726. meaning that we are trusting in Jesus Christ as our savior,

  727. we're resting in the finished work of Christ.

  728. We have ceased from our own works as God did from his.

  729. God worked for six days, he rests on the seventh day.

  730. We have to cease from our own works,

  731. trying to work our way into heaven

  732. and rest, trust, rely on the finished work of Jesus Christ.

  733. Salvation is rest.

  734. It's the exact opposite of work.

  735. What's the opposite of work?

  736. Rest.

  737. What's the opposite of work?

  738. Sabbath, okay?

  739. Well here's the thing,

  740. most people out there,

  741. are they trusting in that Sabbath to get them to heaven?

  742. That rest of resting in Jesus

  743. and ceasing from their own works

  744. and trusting the finished work of Christ?

  745. No, they're trusting in works.

  746. We're trusting in rest.

  747. We are resting in his promise.

  748. We are trusting in the finished work of Christ.

  749. That is what gets us to heaven.

  750. So with respect to our salvation, the work is done.

  751. We're just resting in the finished work.

  752. Now obviously physically, literally on this earth,

  753. we're working to serve him as his servants,

  754. but when it comes to salvation,

  755. it's just, we just relax and kick back

  756. and say I'm going to heaven because Jesus paid it all.

  757. And that is spelled out.

  758. I don't have time to preach that,

  759. but it's in Hebrews chapter four.

  760. Go read it on your own.

  761. And if you read Hebrews chapter four

  762. and you still think that salvation is by works

  763. and you still wanna just think

  764. that you gotta take every Saturday off and whatever,

  765. well maybe you're just not even saved then.

  766. So sorry that you can't understand the Bible.

  767. But that's what Hebrews four spells out.

  768. I don't have time to develop it.

  769. But here's the thing,

  770. is that the Bible says in the New Testament,

  771. the priesthood being changed,

  772. there's made of necessity a change also of the law.

  773. The Bible does not say throw out the law.

  774. The law doesn't matter.

  775. Ignore the law.

  776. No, what the Bible says is the law of the Lord's perfect.

  777. And the Bible says all scripture,

  778. including Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy,

  779. all scripture is given by inspiration of God

  780. and is profitable, is profitable for doctrine,

  781. for reproof, for correction,

  782. for instruction in righteousness.

  783. In the New Testament, old Testament scripture

  784. is for instruction in righteousness.

  785. How do I know how to live right by following the Bible?

  786. And I can read Old Testament, read New Testament.

  787. Now, the Bible says the priesthood being changed,

  788. there's made of necessity a change also of the law.

  789. So there's no more Levitical priesthood.

  790. There's no more animal sacrifices.

  791. And the Bible spells out the meats,

  792. the drinks, the carnal washings,

  793. the diverse ordinances.

  794. Those are not New Testament practices.

  795. And he even spells out, he says,

  796. look, the Sabbath days, the holidays,

  797. the feasts, that stuff is done away in Christ.

  798. But we're not gonna throw out the entire law,

  799. all we're doing is we are basically saying,

  800. okay, the moral law still stands.

  801. The moral law still stands.

  802. What has been changed is the ceremonial law

  803. as far as the tabernacle, the Ark of the Covenant,

  804. and animal sacrifices.

  805. Those things are no longer enforced in the New Testament.

  806. And the Sabbath, according to Colossians chapter two

  807. and Hebrews chapter four and Romans 14,

  808. falls under that.

  809. And so here's the thing.

  810. When you're looking at this commandment,

  811. remember the Sabbath to keep it holy.

  812. You know how I would apply that

  813. as a New Testament Christian in 2006?

  814. I'd say, hey, remember salvation is not by works at all.

  815. It's all rest in the finished work of Christ.

  816. So therefore it becomes the most important

  817. of the Ten Commandments.

  818. It's the critical one because if you're not trusting

  819. in that rest, if you've not entered into that rest,

  820. and the Bible says in Hebrews three,

  821. they didn't enter into the rest because of their unbelief.

  822. But it says, we, which have believed,

  823. do enter into rest.

  824. Boy, if you screw this up,

  825. I don't care what you do with the other nine.

  826. If you screw up entering into Christ's rest,

  827. you're going to hell, buddy.

  828. Because you gotta believe in Jesus Christ

  829. and you gotta rest in his finish.

  830. That's how you get to heaven.

  831. That's the most critical of all.

  832. And so here's the thing.

  833. I'm supposed to love the Lord my God with all my heart.

  834. That means I've no other gods before him.

  835. I'm not going to make a graven image

  836. and serve it or anything like that.

  837. I'm not going to take God's name in vain.

  838. I'm not going to try to take credit for my salvation

  839. and try to work my way to heaven

  840. and try to get to heaven on filthy rags.

  841. And then the fifth commandment is of course,

  842. honor thy father and thy mother

  843. that thy days may be long upon the land

  844. which the Lord thy God giveth thee.

  845. And you know, this would seem like

  846. it would go better with the second half

  847. so that maybe you could say, okay,

  848. the first four are about God

  849. and the next six are about your fellow man.

  850. But I think that there could be a pretty strong case

  851. made though, since God is our father,

  852. which is in heaven, that honoring your father

  853. and your mother is pretty much on earth

  854. the analog of that.

  855. And here's the thing about that,

  856. is that before you know who God is,

  857. you know who your mom and dad are.

  858. Who did you meet first?

  859. God or dad?

  860. Right?

  861. You met dad first and you learned to honor dad,

  862. you know, and then you earned honor.

  863. And you know what?

  864. The same people who hate their father and mother

  865. hate God as well, right?

  866. And if you're disobedient to your father and mother,

  867. you're disobeying God.

  868. Because God is the one who ordained parental authority

  869. and when you see people scoffing at

  870. and rebelling against and defying parents,

  871. you know what?

  872. They're the same people that are gonna go defy God.

  873. Oh, not me.

  874. No, it's just my parents are such a drag, man.

  875. They're just always on my case.

  876. You know why your parents are always on your case?

  877. Because you're being an idiot, that's why.

  878. Your parents are always on your case

  879. because you're not obeying, right?

  880. And you say, well, yeah, but you know,

  881. they just, it's a generation gap, man.

  882. And they just, you know, and in the words of Brother Hiles,

  883. the generation gap is bridged with the razor strap.

  884. That's what Brother Hiles said.

  885. Now, modern fundamental Baptist don't believe that.

  886. He said, you cure the generation gap with the razor strap.

  887. That's what Brother Hiles said.

  888. And you know, I think that he also has the spirit of God.

  889. But today we have this attitude of like,

  890. well, I will honor my father and mother

  891. if they are worthy to be honored.

  892. And you know what that is?

  893. That's you doing what's right in your own eyes,

  894. what that is.

  895. It's you deciding whether your parents are worthy to be honored.

  896. I don't know, God just told you just to do it, right?

  897. I guess you also sit around and decide

  898. which people to kill, which people you can kill,

  899. and not go, I mean, I could say the same thing.

  900. I could say, well, the Bible says that's not killed,

  901. but you know, this guy, you know,

  902. I could just, or, well, the Bible says

  903. not to commit adultery, but you know,

  904. see we need some moral absolutes, don't we?

  905. We need some absolutes like just don't dishonor your parents.

  906. Just don't steal, don't kill.

  907. Well, and people come at you with some wild scenario

  908. where they think abortion's okay, right?

  909. Well, what about this situation?

  910. And they'll paint some picture for you

  911. of some horrible situation.

  912. But you know what, there are certain lines

  913. that we just shouldn't cross, right?

  914. You just don't murder.

  915. Don't commit murder, you know, it's like,

  916. well, what about this situation?

  917. Can I murder my baby in this situation?

  918. No.

  919. Can I commit adultery in this situation?

  920. No.

  921. Just get some moral absolutes.

  922. Don't bear false witness.

  923. Don't covet.

  924. Don't commit adultery.

  925. Don't murder.

  926. Don't dishonor your parents.

  927. Get some moral absolutes and you say,

  928. no, I know what's right.

  929. No, you don't.

  930. The counsel of the Lord is what's gonna stand forever.

  931. And we need to follow the Bible.

  932. And that is what determines what is right and wrong,

  933. not your prerogative.

  934. And so if you would flip over to,

  935. well, let's have you jump over to,

  936. let's go to Proverbs 16.

  937. Proverbs 16, I'm gonna read for you some stuff

  938. while we're getting there.

  939. But you know, the Bible says

  940. in Malachi chapter three, verse six,

  941. it says, for I'm the Lord, I change not.

  942. Therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.

  943. That's why the counsel of the Lord just stands forever.

  944. You know, he doesn't change.

  945. The world changes.

  946. He doesn't, the Bible says in Hebrews 13,

  947. 8 Jesus Christ the same yesterday

  948. and today and forever.

  949. Psalm 119, verse 89, forever, O Lord,

    Psalms 119:89

  950. thy word is settled in heaven.

  951. Right?

  952. I mean, it's there, it's settled.

  953. It doesn't change.

  954. We have the original up there

  955. and God has made sure that on this earth,

  956. heaven and earth may pass away,

  957. but God's word will not pass away.

  958. He said, verily I say unto you,

  959. till heaven and earth pass,

  960. one jot or one tittle shall know why it's passed

  961. from the law till all be fulfilled.

  962. Whosoever therefore shall break

  963. one of these least commandments

  964. and shall teach men, so the same shall be called,

  965. excuse me, let me make sure I get this right.

  966. Whosoever shall break one of these least commandments

  967. and shall teach men,

  968. so the same shall be called the least

  969. in the kingdom of heaven,

  970. but whosoever shall do and teach them

  971. the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

  972. And you know, one interesting thing about that

  973. is that even if you break commandments

  974. and even if you teach people to break commandments,

  975. you can still go to heaven potentially.

  976. How does that work with workspace salvation?

  977. He says you could break commandments,

  978. you can teach people to break commandments,

  979. you'll go to heaven,

  980. but you'll be called the least in the kingdom of heaven,

  981. meaning you're gonna be sweeping the floor,

  982. you're not gonna be ruling and reigning,

  983. you're gonna be cleaning the toilets, okay?

  984. But hey, I would love to clean toilets for all eternity

  985. if it's in heaven.

  986. Amen?

  987. Let's do it.

  988. I'd rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God

  989. than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.

  990. I'd rather have the most,

  991. I'd rather be the bottom run guy,

  992. I'd rather just show up and God be like,

  993. man, you are the most screwed up person

  994. that has ever gotten into heaven

  995. and it's amazing that I'm even letting you in.

  996. You are the ultimate testament to my grace.

  997. Come on in, son.

  998. I'd rather be that any day of the week

  999. than to go to the other place, amen?

  1000. I'll just be like, great, hey,

  1001. I miss this as good as a mile, you know?

  1002. Made it.

  1003. Obviously I'm being a little silly,

  1004. obviously I wanna please God,

  1005. I wanna earn rewards, I wanna do right,

  1006. but I'm saying, man, there's a big difference

  1007. between heaven and hell.

  1008. So a real big difference.

  1009. But you know what?

  1010. The one who's gonna be called great

  1011. in the kingdom of heaven

  1012. is not gonna be some guy

  1013. who's teaching a bunch of permissive living

  1014. and hey, just whatever the Holy Spirit tells you

  1015. and ignore the Bible, just go with your gut,

  1016. follow your nose like toucan Sam

  1017. and you know, it's all gonna be great.

  1018. Nope.

  1019. And you know this whole thing of like,

  1020. oh man, why would you bring up the law, man?

  1021. Why are you bringing up the Old Testament?

  1022. Well then, okay, well then nobody can tell you

  1023. to love God then, cause that's Old Testament.

  1024. Right?

  1025. Whoa, love the Lord by God,

  1026. that's the greatest commandment in the law.

  1027. Greatest commandment in the law.

  1028. What part of law don't you understand?

  1029. We're free in Christ, I don't have to love God.

  1030. What are you talking, love my neighbor?

  1031. What the heck, that's the greatest commandment in the law.

  1032. I'm free in Christ.

  1033. I just follow my nose, it always knows, you know?

  1034. See how stupid that is?

  1035. It's dumb, no, no, the Old Testament

  1036. is profitable for instruction and righteousness.

  1037. It doesn't mean that we're following the law

  1038. as like we're under the law, we're living in Israel,

  1039. following these exact to the letter, no, no, no.

  1040. But it teaches us how to live right

  1041. and guess what?

  1042. The definition of sin is transgression of the law.

  1043. Sin, this is a New Testament definition.

  1044. Sin is the transgression of the law.

  1045. So how do I even know what sin is?

  1046. Well, the Bible said, don't covet if I do what I'm sinning.

  1047. If I murder, I'm sinning.

  1048. If I steal, I'm sinning.

  1049. If I bear false witness, I'm sinning.

  1050. If I dishonor mom and dad, I'm sinning.

  1051. That's what the Bible says.

  1052. The grass withereth, the flower faded,

  1053. but the word of our God shall stand forever.

  1054. Psalm 119, 142, thy righteousness

  1055. is an everlasting righteousness,

  1056. and thy law is the truth.

  1057. Psalm 119, verse 160, thy word is true from the beginning

    Psalms 119:160

  1058. and every one of thy righteous judgments endure forever.

  1059. And so Exodus 20, one through 17,

  1060. we have the Ten Commandments,

  1061. which is the Cliffs Notes version of God's moral law,

  1062. and you got people today violating the Ten Commandments

  1063. and thinking that they're right with God and they're not.

  1064. Why?

  1065. Because they're just doing what's right in their own eyes.

  1066. Oh, but I prayed about it, brother.

  1067. I prayed about it.

  1068. You do not have to pray about what God explicitly tells you.

  1069. I don't have to pray, should I murder?

  1070. I mean, can you imagine me just getting

  1071. on my knees every night and saying like,

  1072. oh God, I'm contemplating murder, adultery, stealing.

  1073. Can you give me peace about it, God?

  1074. It'd be stupid, right?

  1075. Well, guess what?

  1076. It's stupid with all the other sins

  1077. that you plug in there, too.

  1078. Because people would never do that about stealing or murder,

  1079. but they'll pick other sins and they'll plug it in

  1080. and then they will pray about,

  1081. I'm praying about whether to dishonor my father or mother.

  1082. I'm praying about whether to divorce my wife.

  1083. I'm praying about whether to do whatever.

  1084. See what I'm saying?

  1085. It's like, no man, you need to just do

  1086. what the Bible says to do.

  1087. And look, I'm 100% for prayer,

  1088. but there are times when God told people,

  1089. get off your face and quit praying

  1090. because you need to just go fix the problem.

  1091. Joshua is on his face praying

  1092. and he says, get off your face

  1093. and get rid of the accursed thing.

  1094. That's why you're not being blessed

  1095. because you're not obeying the word of God.

  1096. Did I have to turn to Proverbs 16?

  1097. Look at verse 25, it says there is a way

  1098. that seemeth right unto a man,

  1099. but the end thereof are the ways of death.

  1100. There are a lot of things in this world that seem right.

  1101. Do you really trust yourself to always be the one

  1102. to make the judgment?

  1103. This just feels right.

  1104. Some people will say, yeah, I know Pastor Anderson

  1105. is preaching the Bible, but it just don't feel right.

  1106. Doesn't seem right.

  1107. Well, you know what?

  1108. Have you read the Bible cover to cover?

  1109. Because maybe that's why I don't feel right.

  1110. Because your feeler is broken.

  1111. Okay, and it's like, oh, it just doesn't seem right.

  1112. Okay, go read the Bible 10 times

  1113. and then you're gonna come back

  1114. and tell me if it feels right.

  1115. But this is what people say, right?

  1116. And then you flip it over and it'll be like,

  1117. oh, I don't know, this just feels so right.

  1118. This just seems so right.

  1119. It'll be some sin.

  1120. It'll be something blatantly against God's word.

  1121. Just honor just feels right to me, just seems right.

  1122. Well, there is a way that seems right

  1123. unto a man.

  1124. People in this world, they're not going out

  1125. and just doing stuff that seems wrong.

  1126. They're doing stuff that seems right.

  1127. I would say the vast majority of America in 2026

  1128. does what they think is right.

  1129. They do stuff that seems right, feels right.

  1130. But the problem is, the vast majority of our country

  1131. is in severe disobedience to God.

  1132. I mean, look, this is what the young man

  1133. is gonna tell you, young lady,

  1134. as he seeks to fornicate with you.

  1135. Hey, stop me at any time if this doesn't feel right.

  1136. Hey, this should feel right.

  1137. Folks, no, it's called flea fornication.

  1138. It's called this is the will of God,

  1139. even your sanctification,

  1140. that you should abstain from fornication.

  1141. Not like, well, stop me if it doesn't feel right.

  1142. Just cause it feels right or it doesn't feel right.

  1143. No, how about is right?

  1144. According to the Bible.

  1145. Not right according to the Bible.

  1146. That's what matters.

  1147. All kinds of skeevy guys out there seeking

  1148. to deflower good, godly, Christian girls.

  1149. They're out to devour them and deflower them.

  1150. And also there are the girls that are out there,

  1151. the sleazy, strange women of this world

  1152. that are out there to corrupt good, godly young men.

  1153. And oh, but it just seemed so right.

  1154. It just felt so right.

  1155. No, my friend, what saith the Lord.

  1156. This is the love of God that we keep his commandments

  1157. and his commandments are not grievous.

  1158. That's what the Bible says.

  1159. Now go through it to Romans chapter three.

  1160. Romans chapter three, I'm almost done.

  1161. Romans chapter three.

  1162. Man, I mixed up the hour hand and the minute hand

  1163. kind of freaked out for a second.

  1164. I was like, I know I haven't been preaching that long.

  1165. I'm almost done.

  1166. And you know, by the way, I encourage you,

  1167. if you get a chance, you know,

  1168. listen to some of the sermons that I've preached

  1169. over the past few days and the past couple weeks

  1170. that I preached in other places.

  1171. Okay, you know, you missed me this morning,

  1172. but obviously you had a great sermon from Brother Sigura.

  1173. But guess what?

  1174. I preached three sermons elsewhere

  1175. in the last week and a half.

  1176. And I would love for you to go listen to those sermons

  1177. because I did a sermon called Railing Defined.

  1178. And you know what's interesting is

  1179. when we look at what the Bible teaches about railing

  1180. and when you listen to that sermon

  1181. where I'm preaching all that Bible about railing,

  1182. you know what you'll find is that you end up

  1183. with a really clear, concrete definition of railing

  1184. that can actually be enforced.

  1185. But what happens is this other foolish definition

  1186. of railing that I preach against in that sermon,

  1187. this is kind of a little infomercial for that sermon,

  1188. railing defined, that I preached at Sher Foundation,

  1189. Baptist Church in Vancouver, Washington.

  1190. And in that sermon, you know,

  1191. I'm talking about how these people are just saying,

  1192. oh no, no, railing is just when you're really

  1193. like harshly rebuking someone

  1194. or you're mocking them or scolding them in a mean way.

  1195. You know, then it just becomes totally subjective.

  1196. So whenever it's them and their friends doing it,

  1197. it's not railing.

  1198. Whenever it's people that they don't like, it's railing.

  1199. That's their definition.

  1200. That's how they do business.

  1201. So and here's, it goes perfectly with this whole like,

  1202. oh, the Holy Spirit hasn't told me, blah, blah, blah.

  1203. Because what happens is they will bear false witness

  1204. but they'll be nice about it.

  1205. Super nice when they bear false witness.

  1206. Just super nice, just kind of just sliding the knife

  1207. into you like, oh, you're gonna feel a little prick?

  1208. You know, it's like, it's like going to the doctor

  1209. or something, right?

  1210. Like, okay, there's gonna be just a little prick.

  1211. You know, as they just smite you under the fifth rib.

  1212. As they're doing evil, but they're nice about it.

  1213. They're so nice.

  1214. And they will literally get up and say,

  1215. oh, I love you as they bear false witness,

  1216. as they dishonor father and mother,

  1217. as they cheat, steal, commit adultery, murder,

  1218. whatever, oh, I love you so much.

  1219. But here's the thing.

  1220. Then they'll get on somebody who's doing right

  1221. and speaking truth and preaching the word of God

  1222. and say, oh, you're really, even though it's true.

  1223. And of course, I totally destroyed that in that sermon.

  1224. But here's the thing about that.

  1225. I love what Brother Hiles said again.

  1226. He said, I'd rather do right wrongly than wrong rightly.

  1227. You know, you got a bunch of people who wanna do wrong

  1228. but they'll do it right.

  1229. They do wrong rightly, meaning that they're so nice

  1230. and kind and friendly as they do evil and hurt people, right?

  1231. But then you got people that are actually doing

  1232. the right thing, but it's like, oh, but you're so mean.

  1233. Now, obviously we wanna do right rightly,

  1234. but if I had to choose, I'll do right wrongly

  1235. before doing wrong rightly.

  1236. I'd rather stay married wrongly

  1237. than to get divorced rightly.

  1238. I'd rather be a virgin when I'm married,

  1239. but you know, on the day that I get married,

  1240. I'd rather be a virgin wrongly, right?

  1241. Maybe some guy touches you or something

  1242. and you punch him in the face or something, you know?

  1243. It's like, hey, maybe you shouldn't have

  1244. punched him in the face.

  1245. Yeah, but you know what?

  1246. You did right.

  1247. Whether you did it wrongly, you did right.

  1248. Versus just, oh, I was too nice to say no

  1249. and oh, you know, one thing led to another or whatever.

  1250. No, man, you got to flee fornication.

  1251. Do right.

  1252. We need some moral absolutes.

  1253. We need some lines that we don't cross in our lives.

  1254. We need some rules that we follow.

  1255. Major sin needs to be eschewed

  1256. and not made excuses for it and whatever.

  1257. But then you get this attitude of just,

  1258. well, you just be nice and be kind

  1259. and as long as you're positive and friendly and nice,

  1260. that's what the world defines as good.

  1261. And then evil to them is like Star Wars,

  1262. the dark side, fear, anger, hatred.

  1263. This is the path to the dark side

  1264. when in reality, like the fear of the Lord

  1265. is you're on the right path.

  1266. Like that's step one, fear of the Lord, right?

  1267. Hey, and you know what the Bible says?

  1268. The fear of the Lord is to hate evil.

  1269. We've already lost Yoda in the dust at that point.

  1270. When it said the fear of the Lord is to hate,

  1271. he's like, his little ears are like,

  1272. fear of the Lord is to hate evil, right?

  1273. What about when the spirit of the Lord came upon Saul

  1274. and it says that he was filled with wrath?

  1275. While he's spirit filled and he chops up

  1276. a couple of innocent oxen.

  1277. He just chops up a couple oxen

  1278. and just mails them out everywhere.

  1279. Just takes a bunch of bloody pieces of oxen

  1280. to the post office and mails them out, right?

  1281. And says, hey, this is what I'm gonna do

  1282. to all of y'all's oxen if you don't show up for this.

  1283. I mean, does anybody read the Bible or is it just me, right?

  1284. You know, I mean, Jesus got angry.

  1285. We know he's 100% spirit filled

  1286. every second of every day.

  1287. God gave not the spirit by measure unto him.

  1288. Just maxed out just infinity,

  1289. Holy Spirit's power all the time with him.

  1290. And so, you know, don't get your religion

  1291. from Buddhism and Eastern mysticism and Star Wars, okay?

  1292. Get your religion from the Bible.

  1293. But in Romans chapter three, verse 19,

  1294. it says, now we know that what things

  1295. so ever the law sayeth, it sayeth to them

  1296. who are under the law that every mouth may be stopped

  1297. and all the world may become guilty before God,

  1298. therefore by the deeds of the law

  1299. there should no flesh be justified in his sight,

  1300. for by the law is the knowledge of sin, you know?

  1301. The law tells us what sin is.

  1302. That's why it can't save us.

  1303. All it does is just, you know, condemn us.

  1304. And that's why we need Jesus to save us,

  1305. which is why a couple of verses later,

  1306. it says, therefore we conclude

  1307. that a man is justified by faith

  1308. without the deeds of the law.

  1309. But here's the thing, every mouth will be stopped

  1310. by the law, meaning that God's law condemns everybody

  1311. because it's not like, well,

  1312. the Holy Spirit didn't speak to me about that.

  1313. It's like, well, no, no, no.

  1314. If you stole and the Bible said thou should not steal,

  1315. it doesn't matter whether you got a special telegram

  1316. from the Holy Spirit about that,

  1317. like you got the Bible and that should be enough,

  1318. thou should not steal.

  1319. You know, the Bible says in James chapter two,

  1320. whosoever shall keep the whole law

  1321. and yet offend in one point, he's guilty of all.

  1322. For he that said, do not commit adultery,

  1323. said also, do not kill.

  1324. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill,

  1325. thou art become a transgressor of the law, you know?

  1326. And so God's got these laws

  1327. and it's not like we pick the ones that we wanna do

  1328. and we're gonna do this one

  1329. and we're not gonna do that one.

  1330. You know, at the end of the day,

  1331. God's law is the determining factor

  1332. for what is right, what is not right.

  1333. Even in the New Testament,

  1334. it gives us instruction in right living,

  1335. instruction in righteousness.

  1336. How to be right with God,

  1337. how to be right with your fellow man.

  1338. You gotta read the Bible and go by that.

  1339. And so we should not do here this day

  1340. every man whatsoever is right in his own eyes.

  1341. That is the way the world does it.

  1342. That's the way America does it in 2026.

  1343. But the people of God, nope,

  1344. we've got a much firmer council here to follow the Bible.

  1345. Let's bow our heads and have a word of prayer.

  1346. Father, we thank you so much for your word.

  1347. And Lord, we thank you for just clarity, Lord,

  1348. and the rock that we can be founded upon

  1349. and that we don't have to just shift

  1350. with the sands of every generational fad

  1351. that comes along, Lord.

  1352. Help us to study to show ourselves approved, Lord.

  1353. Help us to meditate in your word day and night, Lord.

  1354. And help us to follow your word

  1355. and not follow our gut

  1356. when it comes to moral issues

  1357. that are already spelled out in the Bible.

  1358. Thank you for this day that we've had at church,

  1359. for the people that have been saved

  1360. and for all the people that are here, Lord.

  1361. Bless us now as we go our separate ways.

  1362. And in Jesus' name we pray, amen.