How to Be Happy at Home and Work

Welcome to this week's message from the church at Chelsea Westover.

Our core values are vibrant worship, intimate fellowship, fulfilling service, and clear biblical truth.

We pray that this message changes your life.

Let's tune in to today's message and see what God has in store for you.

I want you to turn with me in your Bibles to the book of Colossians.

What a study it's been this last uh six to eight weeks as we've been going through the book of Colossians.

And tell me God's not a God of order.

I did not have any idea what was going to happen with the Supreme Court's verdict.

When I was started the book of Colossians, we knew we had the God of order, and boy Joe Hancock brought some powerful truth for you.

Ladies, did you not enjoy that?

Was that not a blessing?

And uh she started out her conference Friday night with the first hour of doing nothing but praying for America because of the recent decision our Supreme Court made.

And uh, so with that said, who would have ever thought that I would be in the section in Colossians about the home?

Perfect timing.

I didn't plan it, Joe didn't plan it.

We definitely didn't plan the Supreme Court's verdict.

But God knows what we need when we need it.

Every preacher in America is preaching, if you've been listening since Friday, on the home and the foundation of biblical marriage and what it should be and what it ought to be and what it must be if America's going to survive.

And sadly to say, we will see today what God says about the home.

I've titled the message, How to Be Happy at Home and Work.

Because those are two of the arenas that you and I spend most of our time in.

At home and at work.

And then also at home, there's two entities, well, actually, three entities that are involved in the happiness in the home.

That's the husband, that's the wife, and that's the children.

And then, in order to be happy in the work arena, there's basically two entities.

It's you as the employee, or you may be the employer.

And then there's the employer.

And so basically, Paul deals with those entities.

So it's going to be exciting.

So let's get started.

Colossians chapter 3, verses 18 through chapter 4, verse 1.

Colossians 3:18

And then next Sunday will be our last message.

We'll pick up the next paragraph, verse, in Colossians 4, verse 2 through 6.

Colossians 4:2–6

And remember, we started the whole series with verses 7 through 18.

We started with Paul's companions and the help in the ministry when we started this.

So, and next week's, hey, next week's message will be the title of the message, talk is cheap.

Hello.

Talk is cheap.

So you don't want to miss the last message in the book of Colossians.

And then Susan and I are going to be gone for a couple of weeks on vacation.

And then when we get back, we're ready and geared up.

And I'm thinking, be praying where I need to go next.

If God doesn't change my heart, but sometimes he does, because I'm very sensitive to what our church needs, is uh I'm looking at starting the new year off in August with a series on Jonah.

You know, I kind of like an Old Testament book, then a New Testament book.

That's kind of what we've been doing for the last year, over a year.

And uh the title of the series, if I go with Jonah, will be What happens when you get on the wrong boat?

What happens when you get on the wrong boat?

And that'll be challenging.

There's four chapters in the book of Jonah, and uh I've got one message.

I've never preached through the book of Jonah, I've got one message uh on what happens when you get on the wrong boat, but I'm gonna kind of take us verse by verse.

It's a powerful book.

I've been reading through it.

So, but today, how to be happy at home and work.

Well, first of all, the first few verses, verses 18 through 21, let's look at those.

Because today something is radically wrong with our homes today.

Would you not agree?

The last report I saw just recently indicated, and Joe was alluding to this, that in America there are now more broken homes and divorce homes in the history of America.

We have reached an epidemic of the breakup of the home.

I'm telling you, it's running rampant.

It's unbelievable.

There is almost a 50% divorce rate now in America.

And let me tell you, no country has ever survived that kind of massive breakup of the home.

None.

In fact, we will see today one of the one of the signs of the end times is the disintegration of the biblical home.

And we're getting close, folks.

We're getting very, very close.

So, with that said, we see that there's more single parent families on the increase every day than there's ever been.

Over half of all the mothers are now working outside of the home instead of being the influence in the home.

And many, many of these have small children.

And listen to this the average American child from the ages of six to sixteen, are you ready for this?

Spend 20 to 30 hours a week either in games or texting or computer or watching television.

I'm talking about 20 to 30 hours.

And what an influence that has had on our society and in America today.

God help us.

It really is.

The battery child syndrome continues to increase from 2 to 4 million reported every year.

Two to four million.

And a lot are not reported.

So the home is in a mess.

The first institution God founded on this earth was the home.

Genesis chapter 2, verses 18 through 25.

Genesis 2:18–25

You got to read it.

It's there.

I'm not going to take time to read that long passage, but I am going to go to Matthew chapter 19, and I want you to look at what he says in Matthew chapter 19, verses 1 through 6.

Matthew 19 · chapter mention Matthew 19:1–6

And it came to pass that when Jesus had finished these sayings, he departed from Galilee and came into the coast of Judea beyond Jordan.

Now look this.

And great multitudes followed him, and he healed them there.

And verse 3, the Pharisees also came unto him, tempting him, and saying unto him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause?

And he answered and he said unto them, Have ye not read, and this is from the Old Testament, that he which made them at the beginning, made them.

Now listen to me, listen to me, read it.

Jesus said it, made them male and female.

Amen.

That's what the book says.

Male and female.

Not male and male, not female and female, but male and female.

And he said.

Now here's a marriage.

Here's a biblical foundation of what a marriage should be.

For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife, not cleave to his boyfriend or to her girlfriend, and they too shall be one flesh.

Verse 6, wherefore they are no more two but one.

God created a woman, God created a man so that they could come together when they get married in that unity of sexual relationships, and they both there's nothing more sanctified, more holy, and more godly than when a godly man and a godly woman come together and become one.

God intended it that way.

God designed it that way when he told Adam it's not good for man to be alone.

He created a woman.

Did you hear me?

A woman, go all the way back to Genesis 2.

Not a male, not Adam and Steve, but hey, Adam and Eve.

And I'm not trying to be curt with that.

I'm being honest.

Amen.

Male and female.

In fact, he put Adam asleep and he took the woman, hey, from the side of Adam, his rib.

Ladies and gentlemen, you know what that means?

That means you're prime rib.

Amen, ladies, amen.

You say, well, guys, what does that mean we are?

Well, we God created us from the dirt.

I guess we're just a bunch of dust balls.

But the ladies, just a thought.

But but the ladies are prime rib.

They're special, they're unique, and they complement who we are.

Centuries ago, listen to what Confucius said.

Here's what he said.

The strength of a nation is derived from the integrity of the homes.

Wow.

The strength of a nation is determined by the integrity of its homes.

One of the greatest things we can do as individuals is help to build godly homes.

And thank God for CCW because that's one of our main purposes, is to build godly homes.

That's why we're so excited about our children's ministry and all that we do for our kids.

The population in this whole region here in Westover, Chelsea, with about a 15-mile radius of 280 and a highway 55 right here.

Listen to me.

Average age is 34 with two and a half kids in each home.

And 82% of them are unchurched.

God help us to build these fields.

God help us to build this complex here that are bringing hundreds, thousands of kids home to this campus to hear the good news of Jesus Christ and to help families, young men and young couples to build their homes God's way.

Psalms 127, verse 1 says, Except the Lord build the house, they labor in vain that build it.

Psalms 127:1

So we see how important this is.

Joshua said, Choose you this day whom you're going to serve.

For me and my house we're going to serve God.

So we see Paul here addressed the various members of the family and pointed out the factors that make a strong and godly home.

And we're going to look at three of them.

The first one deals with husbands and wives in your outline.

Husbands and wives.

And the two things we want to look here in verses 18 through 21.

Well, actually 18 through 18 and 19 to start with.

Listen to what it says.

Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husband, as it is fitting the Lord.

And then husbands, love your wives and be not bitter against them.

Now the two words I want you to fill in the blanks there is love and submission.

Now, Paul did not address the wives first because they were the neediest.

I want you to understand that.

The gospel radically changed the position of women in the day that this was written.

I mean, as far as the historical setting for women in the Roman period, they were considered objects and not companions.

And eventually leading to the abolishment of slavery.

Praise God.

Praise God.

But we see right here, there was a new freedom.

And the stature that some of them, these ladies and the women were under, some of them didn't understand how to handle it.

Look at what 1 Peter 3 says, and powerful verse in reference to the exhortation to the ladies.

1 Peter chapter 3, verse 1.

1 Peter 3:1

And it says, likewise, you wives be in subjection to your own husbands.

That if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wise.

Now the word conversation there means, ladies, don't misinterpret this, especially if you have a different translation.

A lot of people's ladies, I've heard them say conversation.

That means, bless God, I'm going to preach the devil out of my husband.

That is not what that means.

The word conversation there means behavior, the way you live, not what you say.

Okay?

So what they're saying is part of being submissive, and we're going to look at the Greek word hopitasso, is what that means, and I'm going to explain that to you in a minute.

What that really means to line up under.

It has nothing to do with superiority or inferiority.

Nothing whatsoever.

But it deals with rank, basically, like a colonel and a sergeant.

It doesn't mean that the sergeant's better or the colonel's better, but they all have their position in the rank.

So, with that said, though, it means that you can win your husbands by living such a godly life and praying for them that you can bring them to Christ.

We must not think of submission as slavery.

It is not a uh, should I say a doormat.

Women are not doormats.

Women, hey, and by the way, just because the husband is the leader, hey, doesn't mean that he's the dictator.

Can I get an amen?

Amen.

Amen.

No, not at all.

And you're going to see this in a minute.

So we see that the Bible, listen to what the Lord says.

God has an order.

And what's happened with this recent Supreme Court ruling, he what's happened, Satan has used all this garbage for the last 15 years.

For the last 15 years, you couldn't watch one television program without seeing some type of gay couple.

I mean, you couldn't.

I mean, they've been brainwashing us, brainwashing us for years until we've come to this point.

But what's sad is that we are in America the problem, we're allowing judges and people that have not been elected by the people to make, hey, rulings that would take this country in the wrong direction.

That's where we've made our mistake, and God help us.

Now listen, listen to what he says.

And I love this.

1 Corinthians 14, 40.

Let all things be done decently and in order.

God has an order for everything.

Can I get an amen?

And God's order for the family is the husband and the wife to be one.

The husband is the leader, the wife is the supporter.

And they work together.

But let me remind you, Ephesians 5.21 says that not only do the wife submit to the husband, but watch this: submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.

And we're going to be looking at Ephesians 5 today, the parallel passage with this passage on being filled with the Spirit.

So it's a mutual submission.

Now, a lot of men don't like to hear that, but that's true.

We men submit to our wives as well.

We submit to each other in our place, in our position, so that we can both submit to Almighty God and be pleasing to Him and build a home that will be pleasing to Him in His order.

Did you get that?

Say, uh-huh.

Amen?

It's so important that you understand that.

And uh it's loving leadership.

That's what a headship is not dictatorship, it's not lordship, it's loving leadership.

And that is the point that Paul is making.

True spiritual submission is the secret of growth and fulfillment in God's plan and God's home.

That's why he says in Ecclesia, and by the way, let me go ahead and give you.

Here's one of the greatest scriptures for several principles, but especially for the husband and wife.

Notice what he says in Galatians 3.28.

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there's neither bond nor free, there's neither male nor female, for you're all one in Christ Jesus.

In other words, hey, no one's superior over the other.

Can I get an amen?

No social status.

Hey, hey, no, no, no race is superior over the other, even though the Jews thought they were.

No, we're all one in Christ.

But Christ has an order.

He has a social order.

He has a, hey, an order for the home.

He has an order for the society.

That's why we have life, hey, the policemen, and that's why we have the armed forces to keep order.

Can I get an amen?

Can you imagine?

And look how Satan's trying to destroy the order even with our policemen today.

He's trying to destroy it totally because he knows if he can get God's out of order, hey, Christians out of order, there'll be chaos.

And that's where we're headed.

That's where we're headed.

If we don't see a radical change.

However, notice the second word.

We have the word submission.

Powerful word.

Powerful, powerful.

But we also have the word love for the husband.

The husband.

And this is so good.

This is so good.

Loving leadership.

Listen to what it says.

However, the husband has a responsibility of loving his wife.

As the word for love here is agape.

Now let me tell you, it's not the heiress.

Most people get married on the heiress.

The feeling love, the sexual love, the attractive love.

But I've got news for you.

Ladies and gentlemen, I've been married to a wonderful woman for 33 plus years.

Miss Susan back there.

But let me just say something.

When you're in your early or late teens, early 20s, and you're so attractive to your mate.

And let me let me just tell you, sometimes age will change.

You and me.

Okay?

You might not be the beauty queen for 30 years.

You may be the beauty queen for 10 years.

Are y'all getting what I'm trying to say here nicely?

All I'm saying is the feelings and the looks and the drawing attraction of the era stuff, hey, won't be there forever.

Hello.

You can lose 25 pounds, but I'm still bald.

Amen?

I can't help it.

I've changed.

I'm getting a few wrinkles.

Okay?

I mean it changed.

But what I'm saying is, that's what most people get married on, and that's why they don't last long.

The only love that lasts is agape, and the word agape literally means serving and self-sacrificing.

If you're not willing to serve and self-sacrifice for your mates' needs instead of your own, you're not, hey, you're gonna, you may have a marriage, but if it won't be a rich marriage, it won't be a lasting marriage, it'll be an enduring marriage.

Hello?

I don't know if I can stand the pressure.

You won't have a lasting marriage if you don't understand how to serve and self-sacrificially give to your mate.

And that's for both of us, but especially the husband.

Amen?

I'm serious.

It's not, hey, it's not what you want, it's what she needs.

Well, bless God, dude.

She needs me.

Well, you male chauvinists, go ahead, uh-huh.

That's your problem.

It's all about you and not about what God wants.

Amen.

I'm sure, guys, you get up in the morning.

Didn't you get up in the morning this morning and say, How can I serve my wife?

Can I get an o me?

Amen.

Owe me.

Barbara, did not Mike Mike's over there.

You're turning red, Mike.

I mean, but but that's what the book says.

So it's, hey, our responsibility is actually, ladies, let me just say this.

Hey, it's a lot easier to submit to someone that loves you and serving you and giving them, hey, self-sacrifically giving to you.

Hey, you don't have a bit of problem serving them or submitting to them, do you?

If they're treating you as the queen, hey, hey, you don't mind treating them as the king.

It works both ways, guys, and we're too dumb to understand that.

Or we're too selfish.

Amen?

Paul, you okay over there?

PAM! You alright over there, aren't you, Captain?

All right, just check it.

Just check it.

But but that's that's really what Paul is saying.

It's spiritual agape love.

A marriage may begin with that normal, human, romantic love, and it's there, but it must grow deeper into spiritual agape love.

We must love our wives like Christ loved the church, and he gave everything for the church.

Now, notice what Paul said in verse 19.

He added a special word of warning for the husbands.

Be not bitter against them.

Now, let me tell you what that means.

Be careful, guys, not to harbor ill will or grudges towards your wife.

That's what it means.

Ill will.

In other words, you just ugh, she just doesn't appreciate me.

Yeah.

I meant that's very powerful.

How many of you have been upset, guys, and had ill will before towards your wife?

Well, there's one, two, three, four, five, the rest of you are lying.

Or you're not married.

They're lying.

Yeah, they're lying.

Amen.

Ladies, I'm gonna go ahead and put you on.

How many did watch the ladies' hands?

How many of you had ill will toward your husband?

See?

They're always honest.

Yeah.

Yeah, I want to kill him.

I want to kill him sometimes.

That's ill will.

Don't kill him, please don't kill him.

But but again, Paul added a special word of warning.

And here's what he said.

He said in Ephesians 3, uh, excuse me, Ephesians 4, 31-32, be ye kind.

Well, first of all, he said, let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and evil speaking be put away from you with all malice.

You ever, you ever, you may not have said it, but he ever thought a bad word toward each other?

Hello?

Hello?

Man, you didn't know it's gonna get this tough, did you?

Hello, huh?

Hey, if you can't get honest, you can't get, hey, you can't get repentance.

Amen.

You listening?

You ever been bitter towards your wife?

Huh?

Yeah.

Okay.

I mean, all those things we just read.

Go back, go back to verse 31.

Wrath, anger, clamor.

Clamor when God says, how many of you ever clammed up?

Well, you just sleep on the couch for a week, sucker, and I ain't fixing you supper, I ain't doing squat.

Okay, just wonder.

Well, I'm just leaving.

Evil speaking, put away from you with all malice.

Now, here's what we do.

Here's what a spirit-filled home and a husband and wife have toward each other.

Be kind one to another.

Forgiving.

Tender heart.

Tender hearted.

By the way, you can't be forgiven if you don't have a tender heart.

Amen.

Tender hearted, forgiving, one another.

Even as God, for Christ's sake, have forgiven you.

Let me tell you when I learned when I don't want to forgive Susan, you know what really God speaks to me?

He says, you don't have a choice.

And I don't like that.

Amen.

But Lord, you don't know what she did.

Do you don't think God knows what she did?

He says, Remember what I did for you?

Here's what he says, sweetie.

You don't have a choice.

Because immediately he says, Remember what I did for you?

How about when you were rotten?

You were no good.

You were lost.

You were a rebel.

You're running.

And I loved you and I forgave you and I died for you.

All your righteousness was as filthy rags, and I still died for you.

Now you're going to forgive her.

Well, I've already forgiven her, yeah, but you're going to forgive her seven times 70.

Why wouldn't he just say forgive him once or twice?

He knows us, doesn't he?

Huh?

Ephesians 4.15.

We must speak the truth in love.

Hey, loving your wife is being honest and open to your wife.

Can I get an amen?

Speaking the truth in love that you may grow up into him in all things which is the head even cry.

And then watch Ephesians 4.26.

This is hard to do.

Be angry, sin not, do not let the sun go down upon your wrath.

In other words, you should never go to bed mad.

I'll never forget the first fight Susan I had.

I grabbed my pillow and I went and got on the couch.

About 10 minutes later, I heard the bedroom door open and I heard these feet coming down the hall.

And she had a pillar in her hand, a blanket in her hand.

She said, if you're sleeping on the couch, I am too.

I thought to myself, this ain't big enough for both of us to sleep on the couch, so let's go back to bed.

But over the years, we've done our best to try to not go to bed mad.

Now, sometimes that means I end up on the couch.

But we try to work it out.

What an example for your kids to grow up in a home watching mom and dad never go to bed mad.

What an example.

Knowing that there's conflict because they're going to have conflict, but knowing there's two people that love God and love each other and they work their differences out.

Can I get an amen?

That's what he's talking about.

A husband who truly loves his wife will not behave harshly or try to throw his weight around in the home.

Hey, why?

Look at 1 Corinthians 13, 4 and 5.

Here's what love is.

Love is patient.

Oh, say that with me.

Love is patient.

Read it the next verse, next phrase.

Love is what?

Alright, next.

It does not what?

It does not what?

Boast.

It's not proud.

It's not rude.

It's not self-seeking.

It's not easily angered.

It keeps no record of wrongs.

Can we do that?

Only through the power of the Holy Spirit of God.

Now that is true love.

And if a home has this kind of agape love, it will not end in divorce.

I didn't say they would not struggle.

I didn't say they wouldn't have problems, but they will work it out.

Can I get an amen?

Amen.

I'm telling you, I'm telling you.

You know what my daughter just recently said?

Thank you, Dad, for you and mom loving each other for all these years and the example that you set for me.

What a testimony.

And I told her, I said, well, honey, I'm sorry for the times that we didn't act like Christ.

She said, she said, but the, hey, I don't even remember those.

Because the others so outweighed them.

Woo! Glory.

Glory.

Were Susan and I perfect?

Absolutely not.

Were we perfect parents?

Absolutely not.

Are we perfect now?

Absolutely not.

But what we've tried to do is to take the word of God and do our best, hey, to live it.

And when we fail, ask God to forgive us, get back up and keep trying to live for what God's Word says.

Can I get an amen?

And do it God's way.

Do you realize the toughest thing you will ever do is to build a godly home?

And let me tell you why.

You've seen it and you have lived to see it in history because Satan has done everything since the Garden of Eden to destroy the home.

Because as goes the home, goes the church.

As goes the church, goes society.

And look where we are.

Hello.

Now, let's go to the next entity in the home.

The parents and the children.

Notice what he says.

Children, verse 20, obey your parents in all things, for this is well pleasing unto the Lord.

Fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged.

Wow.

Wow.

There were children, no doubt, that were Christians in these homes because he's alluding to them.

In Genesis chapter 1, verse 28, he tells the parents, Adam and Eve, and the parents to be fruitful and multiply.

Genesis 1:28

God's design is for us as godly parents.

Listen to the to be godly parents, to raise up godly children.

In fact, the scripture says, blessed is the man who has his quiver full.

I don't know what quiver means, but it means more than one.

That I know.

So that the rest of us between you and the Lord.

Okay?

It really is.

But all I know is that we're to raise them up as arrows, Psalm says, arrows, mighty arrows.

In other words, we are to raise up champions for Christ that have a heart for Christ.

That's why when I see these young people at their age living for Christ, it's so, because we have so many in this nation today that are anti-Christ, anti-word of God, anti-anything, anti-authority.

Amen.

But when we raise up kids in a godly home and they see parents that live their Christianity, don't talk it, but live it.

It influences every decision they'll make in the future.

It's amazing when my girls were in their mid-teens and teens listened to me, and you thought your parents didn't know anything.

Now they're in their late 30s and they both all have children, and guess what?

All of a sudden, out of their mouth, they sound like mom.

The influence works.

Now they understand why we said what we said and why we did what we did.

It was for their good.

Now notice, hey, hey, kids, please listen to me.

You know how much I love you.

And by the way, look at what it says.

The child who does not learn, here I wrote this to all of us, who does not learn to obey his parents is not likely to grow up obeying any authority.

Where's America today?

No authority.

Used to, if I went to school, hey, if I got in trouble at school, I beg my teacher not to tell my dad.

He would, I didn't get one whipping, I got two because I got one when I got home.

I'd get one.

By the way, when I went to school, they'd take his office and take the puddle out and then they'd send a note home.

Actually, they'd tell the call.

Remember when that happens?

You know what?

The parents can't wait to run down there, or if they get a bad grade, even at the college, it's a bad teacher.

They never take the side, hey, of the teacher anymore.

They take the side of the kids because their kids are perfect.

But you know what?

Listen to me, parents, when we do that.

You know what we're reflecting?

We're reflecting our lack of submitting to authority.

And they're just acting like we act.

Hello?

You okay out there?

So first and last time I'll come to this church.

I told you, we're gonna preach the truth, folks.

I need this.

I need this.

The reason we see them not submitting to authority of teachers and the law enforcement is because they grew up in a home where there was no authority.

Or the authority was a wrong authority because authority was all about them and not about the brothers and sisters in Christ.

I'm telling you, the greatest thing you can do is learn to submit to authority.

If you can do that, you'll go places.

Wherever you are.

Listen to what he says in Psalms 127, verse 3 and 5.

Psalms 127:3

This is powerful.

Lo, children are a heritage of the Lord, and the fruit of the womb is his reward.

Did you hear?

They are rewards for us.

They're not items, and they're not to be just abused and confused.

Lo, children are a heritage of the Lord, and the fruit of the womb is reward.

Now look at verse 40, verse 4.

As arrows are in the hands of a mighty man, so are the children of the youth.

Verse 5: Happy is the man that has his quiver full of them.

They shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.

You know what he said?

That he'll raise up children that'll be able to withstand the enemy, Satan himself.

Wow.

Thank God for a church that trains up children at an early age.

Thank God for our children's ministry.

Thank God for our children's workers.

Thank God for you that work in those children's ministry once a month.

Listen, that is a major part.

We're training up a child in the way it should go, and they'll never depart from it.

Proverbs 22, verse 6.

Proverbs 22:6

Hallelujah.

Now notice, notice, for the most part, children do not create problems.

You say, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, wait a minute.

What?

You don't know my child.

Children do not create problems, they reveal problems.

See, we don't have a kid's problem, we have a parent's problem.

Hello?

Because we have failed to teach them discipline.

Very important.

Proverbs 17, 6, listen to what it says.

Children, children are the crown of old men, and the glory of children are their fathers.

When you raise up a godly family, hey, right now we're beginning to see that with my grandkids.

Oh, they're crowned, they're crowned.

And I'm praying fervently every morning right now that my little grandkids are raised up to be arrows that'll be mighty for God.

Mighty for God.

Lord help us.

Please, Lord help us.

A great deal is being said about the rights of children today.

By the way, they do have rights.

One is they have the right to be born.

Hello! They have the right to be born.

Abortion is murder.

Not freedom of choice.

You don't know how many young ladies in college, when we were at Liberty in Tennessee Temple, we dealt with that had an abortion.

Listen to me.

If you've had an abortion, God loves you, and He forgives you, and all you have to do is say, Lord, forgive me for that act.

Listen to me.

Listen to me.

I've known young ladies 30 years later still with guilt because they never asked God to forgive them.

If you confess your sins, He is faithful and just to forgive you of your sins and to cleanse you from all unrighteousness.

Everything.

Amen.

You have to acknowledge that sin and ask God to forgive you.

And I'm telling you, there's liberty.

Just with any other sin, can I get an Amen?

There's liberty.

Secondly, children have the right.

Are you ready for this?

And the response, hey, they have the right to be raised in a Christian home, even though a lot of them aren't.

They have a right to have a Christian mom and dad, even though they're not.

Some of them aren't.

They have that right.

That was God's order.

That's God's plan.

And don't forget that.

It's so important.

They have that right.

They have godly parents.

They have the right to learn to be taught the word of God by godly parents.

They have that right.

But sadly, a lot of them aren't.

But the greatest right is to live for Jesus.

But not only do they have rights, watch.

They have responsibilities.

Can I get an amen?

John H.

Starkey was a violent British criminal criminal, excuse me.

He murdered his own wife, killed his kids, then was convicted for the crime and executed.

The officials asked, no one wanted to do his funeral.

So they asked General William Booth, the founder of the Salvation Army, to do the funeral.

Nobody would do it.

So he accepted.

And when he stood up at the beginning of the funeral, he faced the most horrible mob he had ever faced in the history of his ministry.

And the Holy Spirit grabbed his heart and noted his the first words he said.

I mean, they were woo, oh, he need he gets what he deserved.

They were all, and here's what Mr.

Booth said.

His first words stopped the crowd in their steps.

Here's what he said.

John H.

Starkey never had a praying mother.

Thank God for my praying grandmother.

Some of you are where you are today because your mother or your grandmother or whoever it was got on their knees every day and prayed for you.

Thank you, Lord.

I'm where I am today because of my praying grandmother and granddaddy.

My grandmother was emblem in the bed 13 years and she prayed for me fervently.

She told me when I was 14 years old I was going to be a preacher, and I said, No, I'm not.

She said, Yeah, you are, Danny Boy.

And I ran and on the verge of divorce.

Long story short, then I finally said, I'm so ready.

God's called me, I'm going.

And Mama started crying.

She said, I told you.

And you know what?

She's up there now, she's just smiling, saying, You're right.

Tell them, Danny Boy, tell them.

Tell them.

I want you to look, teenagers, children, look at the what I want you to see that changed your life about obedience.

We have, as children and even adults, we all have responsibilities and the foremost responsibility, notice to obey.

Notice what it says.

Watch this now.

Obey in what?

All things.

Let's say that together.

Verse 20.

Children, obey your parents in what?

All things.

Not the things that you want to do, but all things.

All things.

You say, but what if it goes against God's word?

Well, first of all, I hope your parents would never make you do something that goes against God's word.

Or even a wife if the husband asks you to do something against God's word.

I hope that never happens, but if they do, then you have to stand, just like the Supreme Court has said that we've got to accept now, you know, gay marriages.

No, if it goes against God's word, you can't.

You have to stand for what God says and not what man says.

Acts 5.29.

We have to do that.

But hopefully that will not happen.

But we are to be obedient in all things.

Now look at the motive.

Why?

Here it is.

It is well pleasing unto the Lord.

Listen to me, young person.

One of the greatest things you can do is submit to your parents, and God will bless that more than he'll bless anything else.

And if you can't learn to submit to them, you will not be well pleasing to the Lord.

Now that's a powerful, that's that is one of the most toughest things you're going to do.

But if you can't submit to your parents, how can you submit to the Lord?

It's a must.

Motive to please him.

And then, but hey, hey, look at the word fathers.

Ready?

Look at the next verse.

Fathers provoke not your children anger lest they be discouraged.

The word fathers there also in Hebrews 11 23 means parents.

It's talking to the parents.

Provoke not your children is a command to the parents.

And how often, hey, it is disobeyed.

In other words, how many times parents say no?

Without even listening?

And the young people said, It's okay.

They won't shoot you.

Maybe they will, but amen.

We are to be patient and listen to our children before we make a hasty decision.

We are to let them know that we care and that we listen.

We need to help them with their frustrations and their problems.

And we can't do that if we don't listen.

Be still and listen.

Be swift to hear, slow to speak, and slow to wrath.

James 1.19.

Most of us say, hey, it doesn't matter, you just do what I say.

That is as wrong as it can get.

And by the way, they're not going to do what you say, they're going to do what you do.

That's why we're to be doers of the word, not hears only, deceiving your own selves.

Amen.

Amen.

That's it.

That's it.

That's what it says.

Fathers and mothers should encourage their children, not discourage them.

And let me tell you the best way to encourage your kids.

Spend time with them.

Can I get an Amen?

Spend time with them.

Friday was Daddy's Day at my house.

I don't care what anything was going on when I was growing up.

Dave and Christy were there, they know that.

Friday was my son, Eric, knew that when he got home off the bus, all the kids would come over.

We were going to play basketball.

We were going to do something.

But it was Daddy's Day.

And when my girls got older, we went to the mall, and they love Daddy's Day.

In fact, just recently, Stephanie's now married and got two of my grandchildren, and she came and jumped in my lap when we were out there in May and said, When are we going to have a Daddy's Day?

I know what a Daddy's Day is.

I go to the mall and buy them something.

Hey, that doesn't change even after they get married.

And oh, the daughter said, Amen.

Parents should never use their children as weapons.

We see that too much in divorce situations.

God help us.

God help us.

Then the last thing I want us to look at.

There's a third relationship, and it's between because they're now the context here is a reference to how slaves back then, okay?

But slavery has been abolished, and we all say what?

Amen.

But the principles apply right here to employer or employee.

So it's important that we understand what Paul said.

A Christian servant owed complete obedience to his master back in Paul's day.

So in our society, we do not have slaves, but these principles apply to any kind of honest employment.

A Christian worker ought to be the best worker on the job.

Why?

Watch.

Servants, workers, obey in all things.

Uh-oh, uh oh, there's that same thing with the children, all things, not what you think's right.

How many of us always sometimes are tempted to think we know better than our authority?

Man, we got a lot of people today, aren't it?

Mm-hmm.

We all do.

We all do.

How many teenagers think sometimes they know better than their parents?

See, the kids are always a lot quicker to be honest than parents, and then you wonder why they're deceptive.

Ha ha.

Hello.

Some of y'all didn't get that.

Servants obey in all things your masters according to the flesh, not with eye service.

Watch.

Not as men pleasers.

You know, a lot of you work hard when the boss is around.

But it's not how you work when the boss is around, it's how you work when he's gone.

Can I get an amen?

David Wilson pulls up the surf pro, you watching people gonna find something to do.

Then I've watched a few of them after he leaves, they go back to doing nothing.

Hello.

Not in the office, Carolyn.

Not in the office, not in the office.

That's the only illustration I can think of.

Give me a break here.

Okay.

Now watch.

But hey, but in singleness of heart, you know what that means?

Work sincerely.

Work with hey, work with everything you got wholeheartedly, because in verse 23, whatever you do, do it heartily.

Why?

That's to the Lord, not unto men.

Hey, hey, if you got a job or start pro, you're not working for David Wilson.

He may sign the paycheck, but you're working for the Lord.

Hey, I'm not working for the church at CCW.

I'm a pastor.

I'm working for the Lord.

Now, thank you for paying me.

Thank you very much.

Hello?

But my testimony is to the Lord.

My testimony is to you.

But the reason I want to please you is because I want to please him.

And my job is to shepherd you.

And I want to do that.

So when you hear me call you or I come by and you say, man, he's just putting his nose in my business.

I am.

I am.

And if you're a covenant member, I really will.

Because I'm your shepherd.

That's what I'm supposed to do.

When I stand before the Lord, he will not be able to say that I didn't take care of you, I didn't teach you, I didn't protect you, and I didn't do everything that I'm supposed to do as an under-shepherd.

I am going to stand before him, not you.

I take this seriously, folks.

Church membership here means something.

You just don't walk down the aisle and sign a piece of cards and say, oh, I'm a member.

No.

We want you to be a part of the church.

Why do you think we have 30 or 40 people here at 8 o'clock already in this new church?

40 people doing work and using their gifts, cooking and cleaning and setting up.

And they'll be doing it after.

Why?

Because they're doing it unto the Lord.

They're not doing it for me.

They're not doing it for hey, them, they're doing it for the Lord.

And there's nothing more pleasing than to serve him.

Find you a place and get to work.

It's fun.

Hey, I remember when we started, I look at Paul.

Paul can't wait to drive the van and play and all.

I mean, man, I saw two van loads today.

And five months ago, we just got the van started, and we had two van loads of people this morning.

Can we give God ahead?

Because somebody wants to come early.

They got a vision and they want to be a help and they want to go bless somebody.

The problem in America today, all we want to do is be blessed.

We don't want to bless.

These kids have been going door to door, and they want to see, you know what they have to say?

How can we be a blessing to you today?

Woo! Everybody you meet, starting with your wife in the morning, honey, how I'm glad mine walked out.

But hey, honey, how can how's I joke?

How can I be a blessing to you this morning?

Does she hear that in the kitchen?

I'm in trouble.

Amen.

But really, that's what we're talking about.

You ought to be the best.

You ought to be the best.

Obey.

Hey, don't argue with the boss.

Just do, as long as he doesn't tell you to do something illegal or wrong, you just be obedient.

And watch what gotta do.

You say, but, but, but no, there are no butts.

No billy goat Christians.

Now watch.

You say, but no.

Gotta take care of your boss.

Why?

Watch.

Are you ready?

Here it is.

Look at chapter 4, verse 1.

Masters, employers.

Give unto your servants that which is just and equal.

If they mistreat you, God's gonna deal with them.

God's gonna deal with them.

Amen.

God's gonna deal with.

You don't avenge not yourself, for it is written, vengeance is mine.

I will praise the Lord.

I don't have to worry about what's done to me.

I've been in the ministry 33 plus years, and I've had good done to me, I had bad done to me.

And I've learned this much.

Whatever happened, God takes care of me if I stay faithful to him.

Now, if I mess up and do wrong, then I deserve what I get.

Hello.

Be not deceived, God is not mocked, whatsoever man sowh, that shall he reap.

Galatians 6, 7.

But if I'm faithful, he's gonna take care of me.

I've never worried about a job.

Can I tell you something?

People say I need a job.

I see a lot of signs in a lot of these places where I go to eat help wanted.

Some of you not not looking for a job, you're looking for a handout.

Hello, hello.

Are we looking for a position?

There's plenty of jobs out here, folks.

If you're willing to work.

Yeah, but I won't, I want, I am, I don't want to be making$10 an hour.

I want to be making$20 an hour.

Well, why don't you start out at$10?

Let's see what you're made out of.

Earn it.

Earn it.

Hello.

I learned something.

I never asked what I was gonna make.

I was just thankful they gave me a job.

Clay, how many years have you been where you are?

35 years.

Is that the only job?

You got that right out of college.

And he does quite well.

You can't do quite well if every other month you're changing jobs.

Hello?

You okay out there?

The average graduate, college graduate now has had 22 plus jobs.

Mercy.

I've been in the ministry 35 years now.

I don't know any other thing.

I don't know if I'd do anything else.

Amen.

But I don't want to do this.

Let me tell you something.

I don't see my j listen to me.

I don't see my job as a 40-hour a week job either.

It's a 24-7.

Hello.

If you had been with me this week, you'd have looked at me and said, Preacher, I'm going to pray harder.

I've gone from suicides.

I've gone, I'm telling you, it's been eight, I mean, it's been 10, 12 hours a day all week long, and I could come here and say, I'm tired.

I'm tired.

Oh, I hadn't had time to be at home.

Oh, Susan, I'm sorry.

Oh, look, just just thank God and keep going.

God's come on you.

God's gonna provide for you.

Quit being a will and go to water.

Amen.

I was working Friday, supposed to be awful day.

Saturday morning I'm supposed to be my.

I'm preaching.

I'm coming back yesterday saying, woohoo, hoo hoo, hoo! I didn't get them off.

Give me a break.

Thank God you're alive.

Thank God you're well.

Thank God you got a job.

Thank God you got a wife.

And just say to God be the glory.

Thank you.

Anybody can complain it takes a peon to do that.

But what about thanking him?

Woo! All right, let me finish.

All right.

That's the way to be happy.

Someone say, oh, I ain't gonna be happy.

It's your fault.

It's my fault.

You know what I've learned when I'm not happy?

You know why?

I'm gonna just get gut on it.

Because I'm not getting my way.

And that's why you're not happy.

And most of the time when we're not getting our way, it's because we're not wanting to do it God's way.

We're selfish.

Now, I'm gonna end.

I'm gonna share something.

And I'm through.

That's alright.

We eating here.

You you don't have to beat the methods in the cafeteria.

Boy, my toes are hurting.

Your toes hurting?

Alright.

Now, what's the key to doing this?

You gotta be filled with the spirit of the living God.

A lot of people don't understand what being filled with the spirit is.

A lot of people say it's evidence of speaking in tongues.

It's evidence of this, and it's evidence of that.

I'm gonna show you scripturally this way.

Always answer your question.

Oh, this is so good what I'm about to show you.

What the Bible says being filled with the Spirit of God is.

In fact, I'm gonna tell you what it is.

I'm gonna start out with telling you exactly what it is.

It's allowing the Holy Spirit to take the word of God and teach you how to live.

That is what being filled with the Spirit of God is.

Did you understand that?

Say amen, preacher.

It's the Holy Spirit taking the Word of God.

The Holy Spirit's in you when you get saved.

He takes the word of God, he teaches you how to live.

And if you live according to what he teaches you, you are filled with the Spirit of God.

You got that?

Come on.

We'll be here all afternoon.

You gotta stay with me because this is life-changing.

I'm trying to teach you.

Don't you want to be happy?

At home and at work?

Yes! Here it is.

Here it is.

And don't miss it.

Colossians 3:16.

Colossians 3:16

Watch.

I'm gonna do it real fast.

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

Now watch.

Verse 15 the peace of God.

Here's the inward evidences of being filled with the Spirit.

Here's how you know inwardly if you're filled.

One, there's peace.

I don't care what you're going through.

All hell be coming against you.

There's peace.

There's peace.

Because you know he's in charge, not you.

And you know, I was preaching yesterday, he's in the boat.

And the storm came, but yet they still, he said, We're going to the other side, the storm came.

They all jumped up and said, Ah, we're gonna drill, wake him up.

They woke him up.

He got up in the boat and he said, Peace be still.

There was a calm.

And then he said, Why are you so faithless?

Mark chapter 4.

Mark 4 · chapter mention

So there's a peace.

Notice second, sec, second inward evidence.

There's joy.

There's joy.

You're singing to the Lord.

I mean, and then thirdly, you're thankful for everything.

Somebody say that's good, preacher.

There's joy, there's peace.

There's singing.

That's that's inward.

Now watch the outward.

You ready?

Outward.

Here's the evidence of being filled practically.

Unbelievable.

Number one, here we go.

First of all, notice what he says.

Mm-mm-mm.

This is good.

There's peace, yeah, but now watch.

Watch the outward.

Here we go.

One, there's uh Christian wives are submitting to their husbands.

Two, Christian husbands are loving their wives.

Three, children are being obedient to their parents.

Four, parents are not provoking their children to wrath.

They're sensible.

They lead them in righteousness.

They're being examples to them.

Okay?

Five, the employees, the best employee to the employer that he can have.

And number six, the employer is the best boss you could ever have.

Is that not good?

Do you see that?

That's what the book says.

That those are the outward expressions of the letting the Word of God dwell in you richly.

You got that?

Now watch when you go to Ephesians 5, verse 18.

Ephesians 5:18

Be not filled, hey, here we go.

Here it says.

And be not drunk with wine, weird in his excess, but be filled with the Spirit.

Watch.

Speaking to yourselves in Psalms and hymns, spiritual songs, singing, making melody in your heart.

There it is.

Singing in your heart.

Verse 20, giving thanks.

There it is.

Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear and honor and peace.

There's the peace, that inward action.

And then watch.

Then go notice what he says.

Hey, wives, submit to your husbands.

There it is.

There they are.

Verse 22.

Verse 23.

Husbands are the head.

And husbands then drop down there to 23 are to love their wives.

Children are to obey their parents.

Parents are not to provoke their children to wrath.

Hey, employees are to be honorable to their employer and servants and then servants to the employer and then masters to the employer.

Same identical, identical principles.

Being filled with the Spirit of God.

Identical.

So next time you want to know if you're walking in the Spirit, there'll be joy in your heart.

There'll be peace in your heart.

There'll be thankfulness in your heart.

And then guess what?

You're going to be submitting to one another.

That won't be a chore.

That won't be hard.

You'll be loving your wives, guys, like Christ loves the church.

You'll be the best employee employer could ever have.

Employers?

You'll be the best boss any person could have.

Parents, you'll be the best parents.

Ask these little girl on Facebook the other day.

I said, I have the best mama, Christy mama you could ever have.

What a testimony.

Thanks again for tuning into this week's message.

We pray that your life has been changed.

If you would like to find out more about us, visit us on our webpage at thechurch at cw.com.

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Need prayer or more information?

Send us an email at office at the church at CW dot com.

We hope you have a wonderful day and again, God bless you.