The Growth and Correction Connection | November 2, 2025 AM

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The message you're about to hear was preached at Liberty Baptist

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message from God's Word will be a blessing to you.

Acts chapter #10 As we get to these last few weeks here, of

looking at the life of the apostle Peter and how he has

grown, and once you get to Acts chapter 10, would you also put

Acts 10 · chapter mention

your place in Hebrews chapter #12 All right, we're going to

look at both of these texts this morning, kind of bounce around a

little bit in our Bible reading, Acts chapter 10 and also Hebrews

Acts 10 · chapter mention Hebrews 12 · chapter mention

chapter 12. If you prepare yourself for

that, that would be wonderful. Now, I know it's going to be a

surprise to you for me to say this this morning because you're

looking at this extremely handsome face.

And so I know. Why are you?

Laughing. That was not the part for

audience participation. Unless it's an Amen.

All right. But there you go, my man.

All right, So this is you and me, Ralph against the world,

baby. All right, Looking at this face.

But believe it or not, when I was a kid, the teeth in my mouth

grew in about every direction and set the directions they were

supposed to grow, you know, had no chin.

My chin was all the way kind of back and all of that.

And so it required some correction.

And I'll talk maybe a little bit about what that was a little bit

later. But the body doesn't always

cooperate, does it? Depending on what the issues

are. And sometimes the body, the

physical body needs correction. That could be the teeth, it

could be the chin, it could be something like allergies.

And a lot of us deal with allergies and have different

things like that. And you might need allergy shots

or something like that that require correction, might have

had surgery or an injury or a fall and you had to go to

physical therapy, don't you? They work you over.

I call them physical terrorists, not physical therapist.

And you know, they'll work you over a little bit, try to get

you back where you need to be, put some correction in line.

You know, we often need correction for these, don't we?

To be able. All right, well, you're still

there, all right, To be able to see.

I've got progressives now to be able to see, to see far and to

see near, hearing aids for hearing all of these different

things. They are necessary because

there's something in the physical body that's just not

the way it ought to be. And so we need some correction

to help make it what it needs to be.

We understand this in a physical sense.

Every single one of us deal with this in some way, shape or form,

and sometimes in many different ways.

Shapes and forms of the body kind of betrays us here and

there, but you know, as much as it's.

True that our body, our physical body needs correction.

You as a spiritual being also need correction.

You. But before you get too worried,

you and I as spiritual beings, we need correction from our Lord

because there's things within our spiritual life that aren't

what they ought to be. If that's true physically, how

much more is it true for us spiritually?

Now this morning, Peter in our text has a deficiency in his

thinking and it's one that could have seriously hindered his life

and. Hindered his ministry.

So what happened? God brought him some gentle,

some loving, but very real correction to challenge his

thinking. And because Peter was open,

because Peter was willing to listen to the correction of God,

he was able to help others in his life who needed to grow

spiritually. You have to allow God to correct

you without complaint. Listen, if you get anything from

this message this morning, get this.

If you want to grow spiritually, you have to allow God to correct

you without complaint. Would you stand, please for the

reading God's Word where in Acts chapter 10 we'll begin in verse

Acts 10 · chapter mention

#9 Got to be careful about speaking quickly this morning.

You know, sometimes I get excited.

I start saying things quickly. I those you were at the end of

Sunday school. You know, I was trying to pray

for the morning worship. But we've been talking so much

about Mormons. I prayed for the Mormon worship

this morning, and that's definitely not what I wanted us

to pray for. So I'm going to try to take it

easy. I'm going to try to slow down

and make sure we get everything in that needs to be said.

All right. Verse #9 Says, On the Morrow, as

they went on their journey, and drew nigh into the city, Peter

went up upon the housetop to pray about the 6th hour.

And he became very hungry, and would have eaten.

But while they made ready, he fell into a trance, and saw

heaven open, and a certain vessel descending unto him, as

it had been a great sheet knit at the four corners, and let

down to the earth, where they were all manner of four footed

beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and

fowls of the air. And there came a voice to him,

Rise, Peter, kill and eat. But Peter said.

Not so, Lord, for I've never eaten anything that is common or

unclean. And the voice spake unto him

again the second time, What God hath cleansed that call not thou

common. This was done thrice, and the

vessel was received up again into heaven.

No, well, Peter doubted himself what this vision which he had

seen should mean. Behold.

The men that were sent from Cornelius had made inquiry from

Simon's house, and stood before the gate, and called and asked

whether Simon, which was surnamed Peter, was lodged

there. While Peter thought on the

vision, the Spirit said unto him, Behold, three men seek

thee, arise, therefore get thee down and go with them, doubting

nothing, for I have sent them. Why don't you be seated as we

pray together and look at this issue this morning of the growth

and correction connection. As we continue to look at the

issue of growth, there's a connection between growth and

correction. Heavenly Father, do pray to help

us this morning as we look at the life of Peter.

Lord, there was something in his life that just wasn't the way it

needed to be. His thinking was wrong and you

had to correct it. Or how much more so in our own

lives do we have to deal with this as well.

Help us to have the right type of attitude.

And to take the correction, the chastening, and count it joy, or

help us to be open to what is said today.

Blessed I do ask humbly in Jesus name, Amen.

You may say, Pastor, we are in Acts chapter 10.

Acts 10 · chapter mention

Weren't we in Acts chapter 10 last week?

Acts 10 · chapter mention

And the answer was yes, we were. We looked at the beginning of

Cornelius who was the centurion of the Italian band.

Remember that wasn't a music group, that was a men that were

soldiers together. And we saw that he had this

desire to be able to know who God was, and we saw last week he

was respected. He was religious, but he was

lost, wasn't he did not know Jesus Christ.

But then we picked up at the end of the chapter, we saw that

Peter came to this group of Gentiles 1000, preached the word

of God to them, and that they were gloriously saved.

But what we didn't read last week was this middle part.

How did Peter end up a few miles away in Joppa to be able to

preach to these people and let them know about salvation?

Well, it's explained to us here beginning in verse #9 that there

he was. And he was with a man named

Simon the Tanner, and he was there in his house.

And by the way, without getting too deeper this this morning,

the fact that he was even. Spending time with a man named

Simon The. Tanner Simon, a typical Jewish

name. Of course, we know Peter, Simon

Peter as well. But a man who is a Tanner, you

have to understand that to a Jew, being a Tanner was not a

typical occupation in previous time.

Why was that? Well, because you'd have to

handle dead animals to be able to tan their hides.

This was not something a Jew would typically do because they

would be ceremoniously unclean, well, almost every day.

And so for this man, Simon, to be a Tanner was still pretty a

new thing at that time. And for Peter to be spending

time with him was almost a scandalous thing to be able to

be around him. So Peter's already in.

His thinking being. Pushed a little bit because

remember when Jesus Christ died in the cross the veil was rented

too. Do you remember the veil in the

temple was torn apart? Why?

Because now we have bold access before Jesus Christ.

And those things that were a shadow of that which to come

were no longer pertaining to the Jews.

Why? Because now they have Jesus

Christ. And Peter knew this to a certain

point, but he's there. It says he's on a housetop and

he's waiting for lunch. It's about the 6th hour.

That's about noontime. And I'll tell you a lot of you

could probably, you could feel what Peter feels here because it

says he was hungry. They were making ready and he

goes into. A trance and maybe some of you

say pastor. That's how I feel about 11:45

every week. When you preach, it's like, is

he ever get done? I'm in a trance right now.

I'm so hungry. And it's like, listen, that's

not the kind of trance that he was in, all right?

This idea of a trance that he was in is actually from the

Greek word. Ecstasis and ecstasy, if you

will, that he wasn't asleep, but rather that God was speaking to

him in a very real way. And it says the heavens opened

up here in this this experience that he's having that came from

the Lord. And falling down from heaven,

slowly coming down is a sheet that's gathered together in the

four corners, kind of like a knapsack that a kid would put

together on a stick and put over his shoulder that it's falling

down from the sky. And in the midst of it are all

types of animals. Now, why is that important?

Well, because inside of this knapsack, inside of this sheet,

if you will, are animals clean and unclean.

Now to us, that doesn't mean a lot, does it?

You are like me. You go to market.

Basket, you go to Walmart, you go to Big Y and you get the

market, you get the the meat that's there and you just pick

whatever sounds good that week or whatever's on sale that week

or whatever you just want to. Cook that week.

But for the Jews, they had to be very particular about the type

of food that they ate. Why was that?

Because God had ceremonially called some foods clean.

And some foods unclean for the Jews.

They could eat animals that chewed their cud and had split

hooves, like cows or sheep or goats.

They could eat fish with fins and scales.

Most birds except for the forbidden ones, eagles,

vultures, owls, typically scavenger type birds.

They were allowed to eat specific jumping insects like

locusts. And I'll be honest with you, I'd

prefer those to be in the unclean.

Part, but the Lord knew what He was.

Doing so, I don't want to question the Lord there, but

they could have eaten locusts and we know that on the Baptist

would have eaten locust and wild honey.

But everything else including pork, shellfish, rabbits, eating

animals that had died on their own and then you would happened

upon or or even mixing meat with dairy.

None of it was allowed. Do you know what that means?

No bacon, no shrimp, no shrimp wrapped bacon, none of it.

It was not allowed. Now why is that?

Well, in essence, because God by His design wanted His people to

be different. I'm going to run that by you one

more time. God by design wanted His people

to be different. That doesn't mean that we can't

have shrimp and that we can't have bacon today, but I will

tell you this. He still wants us to be

different from the world. He still wants us to look

different than those who do not know the name of Jesus Christ.

But you go to Exodus 15 verse 26 and he says and said, If thou

Exodus 15:26

wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, and

will do that which is right in his sight, and will give.

Ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes.

I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have

brought upon the Egyptians, for I am the Lord that healeth thee.

God gave Israel the very particular and very precise

promise that if they just followed His laws, if they just

followed His commandments, they would be a healthy people.

In fact, there's a book that I read years ago.

I don't have it anymore, but I would suggest to you, if you're

able to get your hands on it, called None of These Diseases

specifically showing how people following the Jewish dietary

laws and people following the Jewish laws, particularly at

that time. How much healthier they would

have been because God. Cares for his people.

And so God says, I don't want you to eat these things, I want

you to be different. And the Jews took this

seriously. Now listen, there wasn't a lot

that they took seriously about the law.

Just had to go through the old. Testament.

Find out. They weren't typically very

seriously about the law, but they were very serious about

kosher food. They were very serious about

eating that which was clean. And so all of this takes place

and this all comes down in the sheet.

And what does God say? He says this rise, Peter kill

and eat. And Peter looks in there and

sees a pig. And Peter looks in there and and

he sees a rabbit and he says, excuse me, he says.

No, Lord, I can't do that, that it's not something I can do.

It's not something he'd ever done in his life before, that he

had never done such a thing. But yet the voice responds to in

verse #15 and says, what? God has cleansed that call not

thou common. Now God has a very curious way

of taking things that are understandable, that are right

down home where we are. To be able to help us to learn

about things that maybe are not quite as understandable.

That's why there were parables, There were earthly stories with

heavenly meanings that the Jews would not have understand

certain things about heaven that we wouldn't have.

But as an Agricultural Society, there were certain things that

he could talk about with seeds and sowing that immediately

would help them to be able to understand.

Is God really talking about animals here?

Is God super concerned with Peter making sure that he has

bacon in his life now? I'm concerned about Peter

getting some bacon his life. I hope he did before the

marriage supper at the Lamb. I think it's be unlimited bacon

there that I'm looking forward to that.

It's going to be like a Golden Corral, but like good, you know

what I'm saying? That's what it's going to be

like. But but he's not concerned about

that. What he's concerned about is

this is that there's a man named Cornelius who happens to be a

Gentile. There's a man named Cornelius

who happens to be, according to the Jews, unclean.

There's a man named Cornelius who needs to be saved.

He, he needs someone to come along and give him the good news

of the gospel. In fact, there's been a vision

that's already taken place. There's some men, three men who

are going to be coming to Peter's door, there where Simon

the Tanner lived, where Peter was lodging.

And they're going to come and they're going to ask for Peter

to come and preach the good news.

And God is trying to tell Peter when that time comes, don't

hesitate. When that time comes, you go.

They may be Gentiles, but don't call them common.

Don't call them unclean, he said.

I want you to know they need to be saved just as much as the

Jews do. Now why was God doing this?

Because he wanted Peter to know. Don't look down upon the

Gentiles. Don't look down upon them.

Now why was this important? Is this news to Peter?

Had Peter not known this or heard about this?

The problem is, Peter had already heard about this.

Peter should have already known this.

Acts chapter 1 don't turn there because I want you to turn to

Acts 1 · chapter mention

Hebrews chapter 12 in just a few moments, but I'm going to read

Hebrews 12 · chapter mention

you Acts chapter 1. Remember Jesus about to ascend

Acts 1 · chapter mention

into heaven. And it says in Acts chapter one

verse 6, it says, when they therefore were come together,

they asked of him saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore

again the Kingdom of Israel? And he said unto them, It is not

for you to know the times of the seasons which the Father had put

in his own power, but you shall receive power after that.

The Holy Ghost has come upon you, and you shall be witnesses

unto me. So what does He say when the

Holy Ghost comes upon you? You will be witnesses.

Now where He says to Jerusalem, in all Judea, in Samaria, and

unto the other most part of the earth, which happens to be the

domain of the Gentiles. You see, the Church had already

been given the commandment to go to the Gentiles, yet they had

not yet. O Peter was faithful.

We've seen him grow. Peter was doing well, there's no

doubt about that. But there was this little bit of

a hitch that he had in his spiritual life where for

whatever reason, even though he was becoming more comfortable

being around Jewish type gentiles, like a Simon the

Tanner, who maybe he wouldn't even have associated with not

that long ago, he had not completely given himself to

ministry of the Gentiles. He'd even preached to the

Samaritans, who were the half Jews, the people who had

animosity against the Jews and back and forth between them.

But yet he had not gone to the Gentiles, but.

Peter had to be reminded by God. I had already told you this

before, by the way, in case you're curious about it.

Jesus had great concern for the Gentiles as well, not just.

The Jews. Jesus.

Had said this several times, the disciples Matthew chapter 8

Matthew 8:10

verses 10 and 11. After healing the centurion

servant, Jesus said many shall come from the east and the West,

and shall sit down with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob.

In the Kingdom of heaven, to go to Matthew 28, don't go there,

but Matthew 2819 go ye therefore and teach all nations, baptizing

them name of the Father, the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.

Luke 2447 Repentance and remission of sins should be

preached in His name among. All nations beginning at

Jerusalem. What I'm saying is, is that

Peter should have already known, Peter should have already

understood. But yet what happens?

God brings this vision down. And here he says it not just

once, but twice, but three times.

He has to be told by God and that sheet goes back up into

heaven, the animals. Go away if it was me, he's like.

No, no bacon, come back. Please come back.

But it goes away. And it says he doubted in

himself. What was the meaning of this?

What happened? Well, Peter needed some

correction. If he was going to grow

properly, he needed to be corrected here and there.

God had told him before. God had told him again, all

nations, all nations, all nations.

But right now it's just Jews and Samaritans and God knows that if

those three men come and his meth is thinking is not

corrected, what's going to happen?

He may not go with them and may not preach to the Gentiles as

God wants him to do. So we all need correction here

and there, don't we? You know, Can you relate to

Peter this morning? Been told and told again.

But then the Lord has to kind of rattle your bell.

Bring your cage a little bit to be able to tell us what we need

to do. When your life doesn't line up

with God's expectations for you, you need correction.

Listen, When your life doesn't line up with God's expectations

for you, you need correction. He tells us what we need to do

and when we don't do what He wants us to do, we need to be

corrected. Now, where can we find some

great teaching about that in the Word of God?

Hebrews chapter 12. Now the good news is you're

Hebrews 12 · chapter mention

already there. So put your ribbon in Acts

Acts 10 · chapter mention

chapter 10 and go to Hebrews chapter 12 very quickly because

Hebrews 12 · chapter mention

I want you to see this this morning.

I could quote it for you, but there's so much that's here you

need to be able to see it for yourself.

I'd encourage you if you're a Bible marker, you mark in your

Bible. This is a place you need to mark

in your Bible. All right, for Hebrews chapter

Hebrews 12 · chapter mention

12, look at verse #5 and. We have forgotten the

exhortation which speaketh unto you as children.

My son despised not the chastening of the Lord.

You say, What is the chastening of the Lord?

Well, keep reading. Nor faint when thou art rebuked

of him. Oh, OK, you weren't sure about

the first part you got in the second part, isn't it?

A chastening is when God has to correct us.

And what does it say to those of us who are believers?

Don't despise the chastening of the Lord.

I don't know about you, but I don't like anybody correcting

me. I'm like anybody correcting me

about nothing. Why?

Because I think I'm right all the time.

You say, well, that's a pretty. Arrogant thing to do?

Well, of course you think you're right when you do things, if

you. Didn't think you were right.

You wouldn't do them. But there comes a time maybe

you're in the middle of something.

You say, I don't think this is right.

Or sometimes you get to the end of it and you're really sure

you're right and you're way. Off.

But we all have places and times and seasons where we need

corrections. So he says.

Do not despise. When God corrects you in your

life or 6. For whom the Lord loveth he

chasteneth and scourgeth every son who he receiveth.

You know my evil wicked father, His name is Victor Rivero.

He he brought physical. Punishment to my life?

Say what kind of physical punishment?

I'm not sure if the statue of limitations has passed yet, so I

don't know that I want to say, but it involved making sure that

my hindquarters understood. What up here should have

understood? And that's all I'll say about

that. And I thought my dad hated me.

Now, I'm not talking about my dad decking me.

I'm not talking about my dad making me pick myself up off the

floor, by the way, There's nothing biblical about that.

I'm talking about physical correction in a place that is

very well designed for physical correction if done properly and

lovingly. And I remember one time my dad

said it's time for, you know, And so I remember before he came

to the room, I went into my room.

I was probably about 6 or 7, and I had a crayon box, a big

plastic crayon box inside, had all the change that I had

amassed, probably about four or $5 worth of change in there, you

know, in the 1980s. That's a lot of money, you know.

And so I gave it to my dad and I said, will you please not do

what you're about to do? I'll give you all this money and

my dad said all right, kid, all right, that's it.

No, he didn't say that. You asked my.

Dad to say, well, I'm about $5 light anyway, so this is

perfect. Opportunity knocks.

You answer, you know, you know what my dad, because he loved

me, said, no, son, you need what you need.

And at the time I didn't like it.

But, you know, I look back now and I said, well, I'm thankful I

had a dad. They caught a mom who was

willing to not give me what I wanted, but what I needed.

You know, I didn't understand at the time, but now I look at, I

say I did not. I don't despise the correction I

received now because I needed it, because I would have been a

spoiled punk if I continued the way that I was going without the

correction of my parents. Look at verse #7.

For if you endure chastening, God deal with you as sons.

For what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?

But if now listen to this. But if you be without

chastisement, whereof all are partakers, you are bastards and

not sons. Now somebody say, oh, hold on a

second pastor, that's not good language to be able to use.

And I would understand that if that word is used in a very

casual way today, certainly it's a curse word and not a word that

should be used in the mouth of a believer.

But I will say that this word here as it's used is not used as

a slur, but rather it's a neutral legal and social

designation. Meaning someone that was born,

that was outside of the family. Someone.

Who is not within the family? Again, this is not a slur.

This is not someone using this as a curse word here, but rather

legal and matter of fact of what it said.

And why is this important? Because if you are part of the

family of God, if you know Jesus Christ as Savior, He will

correct you. Amen.

Remember my wife and I talking to a young lady several years

ago and we were unsure about whether she really knew Jesus

Christ as our Savior. And we were talking with her and

counseling with her, and her parents were there.

And she had done some things that were, well, not good, to be

honest with you, and done some things that I knew would not.

Please the Lord. And so we asked her after she

came to talk to us, it had been probably a couple weeks of that

issue taking place. And I said, did you ever feel

guilty about it? Did the Lord ever correct you?

Do you ever feel within your spirit that you needed to get

right? And she said.

Not really. And she thought about saying no,

not at all. It was that moment I realized

this young lady doesn't know Jesus Christ as our Savior.

Why? Because he corrects his own.

I live at 7922 Woodvale Circle. Growing up for 17 years, I

didn't go to 7924 Woodvale Circle to get correction and I

didn't go to 7920 Woodvale Circle to get correction.

I didn't go to 7920 Woodvale Circle to get correction.

I knew her correction came from 7922 Woodvale Circle, Tampa, FL

33615, phone number 81388623511. Of the last numbers that I

remember. None of us remember phone

numbers anymore because of our phones, right?

But I knew that's where correction came from.

Why? Because that's where my dad

lived and I was part of his family.

You know, if you belong to the Lord, He will correct you.

And if He doesn't correct you, can I tell you, you need to get

saved today If you've never been corrected by the Lord, He says

right here, that's problematic. Because he corrects his own.

Look at verse #9 Furthermore, we have had fathers of our flesh

which corrected us, and we gave them reverence.

Didn't you come to a place where you understood that what your

father did was right? Didn't you come to the place

where he said this is going to hurt me more than it hurts you

and at the time? You're like, yeah, right.

And then you get to a place in your life where you realize,

wow, he was right, particularly as you may have children of your

own. And you have to go through that

process and it tears you up inside.

And it says, if you give reverence to your father's in

this life who aren't even perfect, don't you give

reverence to God Almighty who always chastises you in the way

that's perfect and the way that's right.

Listen, He never chastises us out of control.

He never chastised us in a way like like we could where we just

get riled up within ourselves and maybe say something we ought

not or do something we ought not Listen, God has never chastised

someone incorrectly ever. He always does right.

They barely 1st 10 for a few days chastened us after their

own pleasure, but he for our What's that word prophet that

what? We might be partakers of His

Holiness. No chastening, for the present

seemeth to be joyous, but grievous.

If there is ever a truer saying in the Bible, that's it, isn't

it? In the moment never feels good,

but nevertheless, afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of

righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.

Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble

knees. Listen, you need God to correct

you in your life. If you want to grow.

You want God to correct you in your life.

If you're going to grow, and when He does, it's good and

right and it will be joyous. Why?

Because it brings the peaceable fruit of righteousness.

If we just go on our own, if we just go our own way and God

ignores us, that's not love on His part.

No, no, He loves us so much. That he corrects us when our

thinking is wrong. He didn't do it for his joy, He

did it for love. And that brings US joy.

You know, he is joyous that we are reconciled to him, but he

didn't do it out of a twisted sense of I'm going to get even

with them. Know the joy that he has.

And you can go to the very top of the chapter and find out that

Jesus, for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross

and the shame it was he did that.

Why? Because he knew what the end

result would be. How do you feel about

correction? It says here we're supposed to

take it and we're supposed to take it with joy.

Well, how did Peter take it? What can we learn from Peter?

Go back to Acts chapter 12 quickly.

Acts 12 · chapter mention

I know you got your ribbon there.

Acts chapter 10 rather, I'm sorry, what do you need to do in

Acts 10 · chapter mention

these situations to grow? Peter gives us an understanding.

The first thing you need to do is this.

Recognize when God's speaking to you.

Recognize when God speaking, Do you look at verse #13 It says

there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter, kill and eat.

And Peter said not so what's the next word, Lord?

He recognized it was the Lord who was speaking to him.

Peter recognized the voice of God.

When correction comes in your life, it need not be an audible

voice. It's the Holy Spirit who speaks

to our hearts and tells us what we have done wrong.

John 16 verse 8 And when he the Spirit has come, He will reprove

John 16:8

the world of sin of. Righteousness and of judgement.

It's the Holy Spirit who's the one who tells you you ought not

to do that. It's the Holy Spirit says you

ought not to touch that. You ought not to turn that on.

You ought not to think that. You ought not to let that come

out of your mouth. It's the Holy Spirit who tells

us after we do those things that we ought not to do.

You shouldn't have done that. You need to make it right.

You need to repent. You need to get right with the

Lord. Listen, if you're reading your

Bible, you should be seeing things that need to be

corrected. You shouldn't just be reading

your Bible. Well, I want to know more about

Abraham, or I want to know more about Isaac, or I want to know

about Jacob. Well, listen, I find myself in

parts of Abraham's life, and I find parts of myself in Isaac's

life. And I find parts of myself in

Jacob's life, you know, like, not like the polygamy part, but,

you know, all the other stuff in his life.

I mean, what's the matter with you people?

What are you thinking? All right.

But I see lots of myself and Jacob, the instability in Jacob,

the way they bounce from one thing to the next.

And when I read that, it's not like, wow, I learned something

new about Jacob today. It's wow, I learned something

about myself today that the Holy Spirit revealed to me and I

don't like it. I need to get it right.

When we come to hear the word of God, is it just to hear some

platitudes is just to be able to say we've done our religious

thing. Do I just get up here to preach

so I can show you how eloquent I am?

If I've done that, I've failed. Remember Mormon worship this

morning. That's not what it's about.

No, it's about this that thus sayeth the Lord means that

there's some things in my life that aren't right.

And when the pastor preaches, when Jeff Abel's preaches,

whoever it is that preaches the Word of God, here there comes a.

Time in our life where we say he's saying that's what the

Bible says, but it's not what I'm doing.

So I need to be correct. I need to get it right.

I use the term guilt a few moments ago, and I said that

incorrectly. You know who tries to make you

feel guilty? Satan.

Second Corinthians. 710 For godly sorrow worketh repentance

to salvation, not to be repented of, but the sorrow of the world

worketh death. You know what guilt from Satan

does that makes you feel like you'll never get right?

Guilt from Satan says, you know what, you ought not to go to

church. They're good people and you're

not, by the way. We're just people saved by the

grace of God and hanging on by a thread some days.

But we're here. And it's guilt that says you

don't belong, you can't get right.

Oh, you're going back to him again?

How many times you're going to ask forgiveness for that?

What? What kind of loser are you

spiritually? Do you keep going to him over

and over again? And by the way, what does that

accomplish? You say, well, I'm going to go

to him again. I've asked for forgiveness 10 *

20 * 100 times. Listen, the Bible says that we

could say 70 * 7. And the alternative is this.

I'm not going to ask for forgiveness and just not be

right. Well, who wants that?

Satan does. In your life, recognize when God

is speaking to you. You know what the voice of God

says to your heart. Repent.

The voice of the Lord in your heart says this.

Get right. Let your life be in alignment

with God's word. But don't just recognize when

God speaking to you. Secondly.

Resist telling God no. Resist telling God no.

Looking at verse #14 it says but Peter said not so Lord Peter had

a bad habit of telling Jesus no. There were several times that

Peter said, Jesus you need to get this right to the point

where Jesus said get thee behind me, Satan, don't.

Don't tell me no. Listen, you could have a lot of

honest conversation with the Lord.

I believe that the Lord in his grace, the Lord in his

benevolence toward us, is so patient.

But I will say this. That patience is exhausted when

you flat out tell God no. Where do we find an example of

that? You could find an example that

Moses. There's the Lord in the burning

Bush, and God tells Moses what needs to be done.

And Moses? Starts with the.

Excuses, doesn't he? He says I'm I'm nobody

important. Who am I?

He says They'll ask me what your name is and what am I supposed

to tell them? They won't believe that I am the

the the speaker of the Lord. I'm his emissary.

I won't believe nobody believe me because I'm a terrible

speaker. And every time Moses gave an

excuse, God gave him an answer, didn't he said What's that, nine

hand a rod? Throw it down.

By the way, that worked out pretty well with Pharaoh, didn't

it? He says I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm,

I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm. Slow speech, He says.

Your brother's coming. He's going to speak.

And by the way, once Moses got rolling, you couldn't shut him

up. He started, he may have said he

he needed Aaron's help, but it seems like Moses got that

speaking thing figured out after a while.

But the 5th and final thing Moses did was he told God, nay,

send someone else. And it says the anger of the

Lord was kindled against him. Was God angry when he said I

don't know what to say? Was God angry when he said I

don't know what to do, I don't know who to tell him who sent

me, I don't know what to do with this mouth of mine.

But. When he finally.

Got to the place where God says, listen, if I've called you to do

it, I'll do the work I'll do. Just make yourself available to

me. I will do what needs to be done.

You can't make rivers turn to blood.

You can't make lice come out of nowhere.

You can't turn the sun to darkness.

You can't do it. Just be available and be a

vessel that I can use. But Moses, after God gave him

all of his. Provision.

He said no. And the Lord got angry.

The anger of the Lord was kindled.

Now let's say this, I want you to listen very carefully while I

say, listen to it all the way through.

Don't just take the first sentence or two and then go into

a trance. You know what I'm saying?

But if you have never responded at an invitation, if you've

never responded when the Word of God is being preached, either

God's not speaking to you or you're saying no a lot to him.

And neither one of those are good.

Now, here's the part where I know some of you were thinking,

OK, pastor, so you're saying if I don't March myself up to this

front, you're saying if I don't March myself all the way up here

and make a performance or make a show and make sure I get down

here, So what? So I could be seen am in so

everyone can see that I'm coming down here.

Oh, here's the parade. I bet, pastor, you know, they

count the offerings and they count how many people are.

I bet they count how many people are at the altar.

I bet they count all those kinds of things.

That's what you want, pastors. It's just so so you can go on

social media and say look at all.

All the people that came to the altar.

And the answer is no, I'm not talking about that kind of

response. Now, is the altar available

here? Yes.

Do I think it's good to use the altar?

Yeah. Like we built it here so that we

could use it. But you know, I've seen people

going on the altar and Boo hooed and cried buckets of tears and

got up, sat down and live, live like hell on earth on Monday and

never really got right with the Lord.

There's not godly sorrow that worketh under repentance.

But I've known people that maybe have never come forward, but you

can tell in their heart God spoke to them.

Then we say bow your head and close your eyes, that they're

not really paying attention to everything else that's going on.

They may kneel at their seat, they may just bow their heads,

but they're getting something right with the Lord.

You know, I'm not looking for a performance.

God's not looking for a performance.

He's looking for us to get right.

And if you've never contemplated at the end of a message, Lord,

are you talking about me? You know, not as pastor talking

about me. I know this might be hard for

you to believe, but I don't sit in my office during the week and

say, let's see how many people I can get this week.

Oh man, I want to know. I'm going to look on their

social media. I'm going to call their friends.

I'm going to call their I'm going to call their bosses.

I want to find out what they're doing.

I want to find out what they're saying.

I want to know everything coming.

Honestly, I don't want to know nothing.

I want to be your friend. I want to love on you.

I don't want to know about those things.

I don't want them in my mind. I don't want them in my heart.

I want to know when I preach the word of God that I'm just

preaching. And if it lands, listen.

That's because the Holy Spirit landed it.

Amen. Amen.

But if you never respond, not here.

But if you never respond in your heart, either God's never spoken

to you and that's problematic, or you're consistently telling

God no, and that's problematic too.

Listen. Not so, Lord, hey.

Don't do that. Recognize the voice of God.

Resist telling God no. And 3rd and finally, retain the

lessons that you learn. Retain the lessons that you

learned. And I know we talked about this

briefly on Wednesday night that we have to be reminded things

over and over again. But when God has you get

something right in your life, make some steps to be able to

retain the things that God has taught you.

Look at verse #28 Peter goes. What I love is that in verse #17

it says that while Peter doubted in himself, but in verse #20 God

says, listen, go with them and doubt nothing.

So the Lord knows what's happening in our hearts, by the

way, because as Peter's doubting, the Lord says, don't

doubt, just do what I'm telling you to do, but then drop down

again to verse #28 And he said unto them, you know.

How it was, how that is an unlawful thing for a man that is

a Jew to keep company or come unto one of another nation.

But God has showed me that I should not call any man common

or unclean. 3 days later, by the way, Peter standing in front of

these gentiles in a way he never has before, and he looks at them

and says on my own I wouldn't be here.

If you'd asked me 3 days ago where I'd be.

I'd be back with Simon the Tanner.

God spoke to me. He said I need to be here

because it's not just salvation for the Jews, salvation for the

Gentiles. By the way, salvation for the

Gentiles ought to get all of us excited because I'd say we're

probably all Gentiles here. So thank the Lord for salvation

of the Gentiles. But you know.

It wasn't just that go to Acts chapter 15 and we're going

Acts 15 · chapter mention

moving a lot in the word of God today.

That's OK. If you that's, that's a lot.

Wait till tonight. We're going to be moving a lot

in the word of God tonight. Acts 15, the verse #1 There was

a problem. 15 years later or so, give or take, there's a problem.

Peter and Barnabas had gone out and given the gospel to Jews, or

the Gentiles rather, and there's some Jews that were.

Upset about this, at the end of the first missionary journey, it

says that certain men came down from Judea, taught the brethren,

and said, except you be circumcised after the manner of

Moses, you cannot be saved. Whoa.

Oh, that's not the gospel. 1st 2:00 and then therefore Paul.

Barnabas had no small dissension and disputation with them.

They determined that Paul and Barnabas, and certain other of

them should go up to Jerusalem under the apostles and elders

about this question. And being brought on their way

by the church, they passed through Fennis and Samaria,

declaring the conversion of the Gentiles.

And they caused great joy and all the brethren.

And when they were coming to Jerusalem, they were.

Received. At the church and of the

apostles and the elders, and they declare all things that God

had done with them. But there rose up certain sect

of the Pharisees which believe saying that it was needful to

circumcise. Them and to command.

Them to keep. The law of Moses so Paul

Barnabas talk about how wonderful it is the Gentiles are

saved then these judaizers get up and say, listen, they may you

may think that they're saved, but they're not saved unless

they keep the law of Moses they got to live like Jews and the

church was at an. Impasse.

But there was a man. Who learned a lesson a few years

ago and it says verse 6 and the apostle and elders.

Came together for to consider this matter and when they're

been much disputing, Peter rose up.

And said unto them, Men and brethren, you know how that a

good while ago God. Made choice among us that the

gentiles by my. Mouth should hear the word of

the gospel. And believe.

And God, which knoweth the hearts, bear them witness,

giving them the. Holy Ghost, even as He did unto

us, and put no difference between US and them, purifying

their hearts by faith. Now therefore, why attempt he

God to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither

our fathers nor we were able to bear?

He said we couldn't have kept the law.

Why are you making them? Keep the law, but we believe.

That through the. Grace of the Lord Jesus Christ,

we shall be saved even as they. Peter learned his lesson and

years later Peter. Peter remembered his lesson kind

of encourage you if God spoken to your heart during a.

Message if God is just put upon. Your heart there's.

Something that needs to get right.

You know what would be great thing to do in your Bible?

Write it down next to the text which was preached today.

Maybe the back of the flyleaf? Of your Bible just write down

some decisions that God has had you make if you're in the

journaling group that likes to journal write that down I'll be

honest with you I I I don't like journaling at all but just

recently I've gotten A5 year journal it's just a couple lines

every day for five years I'm looking.

Forward. In year 234, looking back at

some of the things God spoke to me about from before you can

find them online. You could.

If you're of the persuasion, you could make a note on your.

Phone and just. Write down things that the

Lord's taught you. Remember the lessons that God

has taught you. Why?

Because you need to grow and I need to grow.

And the only way we truly grow is by correction.

What does God tell us to do? Well, there's a.

Lot of things that we need to get right.

It could be about gossip. Having a gossiping tongue could

be about being angry. A hasty and angry spirit could

be about speaking. Words that are of health and

kindness. Job 625.

How? Forcible are right words, he

said. Could be that lust.

Is eating you up. We're going to look at that

tonight. Could be a while since you've

read your Bible and prayed be living a spiritual double life.

You look good on Sunday. Everyone thinks there's nothing

going on but you and the Lord. No different.

But what do you need to do? If you want to grow, you have to

be willing to be corrected, and sometimes that correction hurts,

but it's needed. By the way, nobody makes it

without being corrected by the Lord.

You know, don't let Satan get you in this place.

Well, why do I always need corrected?

Because you're saved and you're human and you're still dealing

with the flesh. We'll look at Romans chapter 6

Romans 6 · chapter mention

tonight. It's going to speak.

Much to that to crucify our flesh to deal with this every.

Day, we're going to need correction.

Proverbs 12, verse one. Whosoever loveth instruction

loveth knowledge, but he that hateth reproof.

Is. Brutish.

Don't be a brute. Except correction Proverbs. 1532

He that refuses instruction despises his own soul.

But he that heareth reproof. Getteth understanding why do we

hate correction so much? It's 5 little letters.

PRIDE, remember? We think we're right.

That's why we do what we do and no one likes God telling us what

we're wrong. But there's physical correction

that's needed. Spiritual correction is needed.

And sometimes it hurts. Remember I talked to you a few

moments ago about my my teeth and my chin growing up actually

had flat feet as. Well.

And I was about 5 or 6 years old and they put metal plates inside

of my shoes. I don't think they do that

anymore. There's probably a good.

Reason. Why they don't do that anymore?

But I remember having, you know, my kids because, you know, back

in the 80s, like, that's the the thing, you know what I'm saying?

I got my kids and inside my kids are steel plates.

I'm glad there's no TSA back. Then because they.

Would have wondered what am I carrying in my shoes but they

hurt man walking around with steel plates.

Inside of your shoes. But they did the job, you know?

About second, third grade. Didn't have a chin, remember?

They gave me a dental. Appliance now wasn't.

That headgear that some of those had back in the day, remember

the headgear that was just like, you know, medieval barbarism,

you know, back in the day. But I had, it wasn't even a

retainer. It filled my whole mouth.

I couldn't move my teeth. So I talked.

I had to talk like this. For two years.

And every month I would go to the orthodontist and they would

move that a little bit. They turn a key and it would

come out a little bit and it would make my chin come out.

And I want you to get, can we get a close up of this?

I mean, look at this right here, this my mom, if my mom was still

with us, I mean, she was very proud of this Chin, let me say,

because she it was most of her pension.

I think she pulled out early to be able to get that Joe.

That's good. No, that's, that's that's my

stomach. All right, Just don't let's not

focus in there, right. This is why I shouldn't have

that screen back there because now I know what they're focusing

on. It's throwing me off, but I'm

just going to move over here, all right, anyway.

But then I had braces after that.

Had to get the teeth right, you know, then they.

They put the the different stuff in there and move it around.

You have to put wax in there because it was scraping on your

mouth. Then when that was done, I had a

retainer to make sure that everything stayed where it need

to stay. So basically from about first

grade until about 10th grade, I had some sort of appliance on my

body trying to make it what it needed to be, and they hurt do.

You know what today. I'm glad that I went.

Through it. Because there was some stuff

that needed correction. Listen, when God corrects you,

listen. He don't smack you around, you

know what I'm saying? He doesn't just Willy nilly,

just. Kind of.

God with love, concern, and care will correct you.

Why? Because he loves you so much and

if you weren't part of the family, he'd let you on your

own. But he loves you so much that he

wants you to be corrected. People say, well God loves me

just the way I am. God loves you just the way you

are, but He loves you far too much to keep you that way.

He wants you to be conformed into His image.

When was the last time you gave in to God's correcting measures

in your life? When was the last time you got

to the end of a message? When was the last time you were

in the middle of your Bible reading?

Like I got to read 2 chapters today, but you had to stop.

Like Lord I, I got to stop, right?

Here because this is me and I got to.

Get this right? If not, then why are we reading

our Bibles? Why are we listening to sermons?

He wants to make us better, not better.

He wants to make us conform to the image of Christ.

And that requires correction. By the way, that includes me,

because if I don't get it right then I can't stand up here and

be able to tell you. I say it the Lord if.

I'm not willing to have the same thing happen in my life.

Are you willing to be corrected? And if you've never been

corrected, do you truly know if you're born again or not?

Perhaps today is the day you need to come to know Jesus

Christ your Savior. Thank you for listening to the

sermon from. The Pulpit of Liberty Baptist

Church If this message was a blessing to you, or if there's

any way we can serve you, please let us know by contacting us at

[email protected]. Or you can visit us this Sunday

at 800 Washington St. in Easton, MA.

May the Lord bless you as you grow in His Word.