How did Heaven rule in the disciples' lives | Elder Ang Peng Hoe

You're listening to a message to go from acts church. We hope this message

will light up your day. I've simply entitled the message how did heaven't rule?

In the disciples lives? Okay? I realized this as I was studying

a little bit of God's word and that Jesus Disciples, this was an interesting

bunch. I think there's a lot that we can learn from them, but

they themselves. If you, if you go into h and read the Gospels,

you realize that they had to live practical and ordinary lives, and they

had to cope with whatever problems that were presented to them in life. And

I have to say this, no, I don't think they cope very well

in all honesty, because when you study true scripture, you find a lot

of land in the disciples lives in terms of their decision making, your reaction,

their response, everything basically. I mean, when I read about the

Disciples, I find I actually take a lot of comforts, uh, you

know, realizing that, oh, if the Lord could manage a bunch of

jokers like this, I'm sure he can do something with me. Really that

that's that's the part that I learned when as I was preparing his message as

we study through the lives of the Disciples of Jesus. And so I'm going

to be taking reading from Mark chapter nine, Mark chapter nine, and we're

going to be reading a whole portion, quite a large portion of scripture.

But I'm going to be breaking it down to sort of like highlight some of

the weaknesses of the disciples, and then let's see how how Heaven ruled in

their lives, how did the Lord actually help them in their decision making,

uh, and basically see whether changes happened or not. And of course,

I think if we read through the entire scripture, we know, we know

that the disciples, we know how it ends. That's the beauty of it.

I can start off by telling you the conclusion. The conclusion is they

all died believing, everyone of the disciples. I think if you study the

life of the disciples, you can probably say that all of them were markered.

Maybe only John. John was the one that lived until an older age,

because when he wrote the Gospel of John, I think he was an

old man already. And of course we know John also wrote the books of

the Letters of First second John and also Revelation, but he was already an

older person living on an island called But if I'm not mistaken, if my

history and my recollection helps me, but the rest of them were most likely

markered. That means they died for their faith and something had to happen in

their lives for them to die believing. I want you all to know that.

But they were they were definitely a flawed buncheler. Okay, a flawed

bunch. And that's what we want to look at some of these shortcomings,

and then I pray that I'll be able to help you draw some truths out

from this portion of scripture. So I'm going to be reading verses fourteen to

all the way to fifty. I'll break it down in portions. So let's

start off with the first bunch of verses. And the first thing that we

need to take note of is this the disciples were not that strong. A

lot of people think that they were like this really strong bunch no when around

doing heroic stuff. But there were times that when they were actually important.

That's the that's the word I'll try to highlight. Basically, all the eyes,

Okay, I'm going to try to break it down to all eyes,

and let's read the scripture first, and then I'll explain it, says Versus

fourteen. Jesus heals a demon possessed boy. I'm reading from the New Living

Translation. When they returned to their other disciples, they saw a large crowd

surrounding them, and some teachers of religious law were arguing with them. When

the crowd saw Jesus, they were overwhelmed with awe and they ran to greet

him. What is all this arguing about, Jesus asked. One of the

men in the crowd spoke up and said, teacher, I brought my son

so you could heal him. He is possessed by an evil spirit that won't

let him talk, and whenever this spirit seizes him, it throws him violently

to the ground. Then he forms at the mouth and grinds his teeth and

becomes rigid. So I asked your disciples to cast out the evil spirit,

but they couldn't do it. Jesus said to them, you faithless people,

how long must I be with you? How long must I put up with

you? Bring the boy to me. So they brought the boy. But

when the evil spirit saw Jesus, it threw the child into a violent convulsion,

and he fell to the ground, reading and foaming at the mouth.

How long has this been happening, Jesus asked the boy's father. He replied,

since he was a little boy. The spirit often throws him into the

fire or into water, trying to kill him. Have mercy on earth and

help us if you can. What do you mean if I can, Jesus

asked, Anything is possible if a person believes. The father instantly cried out,

I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief. When Jesus saw

that the crowd of onlookers was growing, he rebuiked the evil spirit. Listen,

you spirit that makes this boy unable to hear and speak. He said,

I command you to come out of this child and never enter him again.

Then the spirit screamed and threw the boy into another violent convulsion and left

him. The boy appeared to be dead. A murmur ran through the crowd

as people said he's dead, but Jesus took him by the hand and helped

him to his feet, and he stood up. Afterwards, when Jesus was

alone in the house with his disciples, they asked him, why couldn't we

cast out that evil spirit. Jesus replied, this kind can be cast out

only by prayer. Okay, So here is a story of a young person

or a young boy. I'm not sure how. I think he's probably a

young man because it says that the evil spirits has been in him since he

was a child, So I reckon it's maybe in his teens or you a

young person who is in a group of evil and then nobody can help him.

And there's something so real about that, right. You know, his

anguish parents know they were so devastated, but they couldn't do anything to help

them, even though they wanted to. And then there were this group of

followers of Jesus, his disciples. They tried to help him, but it

looked like they sort of messed up the situation even more. And then there

were also some scribes. You read the start of it. And we always

have people like that, the critical arguing group, constantly discussing your failures,

trying to take take advantage of your embarrassment, etc. You'll get these kind

of different groups in and around us, and it really sometimes just reminds us

of this mess that we live in the world today, because there are always

people in a group of evil in this world that we are living in.

Parents are constantly anxious about their children, is the reality of life. Christians

are desperately trying to help and often getting discouraged because they seem to make the

situation worse. And then they're always and there will always be critics around us.

There's nothing new and novel about the situation that we read in scripture,

especially in the world in which we live in today. But here Jesus identifies

what is wrong, and in his own words it sort of reflects his father's

words, the same words that were actually artered and mentioned towards Israel centuries ago,

because back then Father used to Father God used to refer to them as

an unbelieving generation, and he said, now, how long shall I put

up with you? If you read the Old Testament? Is always there this

whole generation. I mean, they were in exile. The reason why they

were in exile because they were disobedient and basically and then they never learned,

and you know, how long shall I put up with you? It sounds

like Father God was also equally as exasperated with them as Jesus is here with

this generation as well, and so he actually made it no no that the

real problem and the real trouble that arises right now is that they are faithless.

They do not believe in God's power to do something, and they are

all trying to put the problem right themselves. And then he tells them to

bring the boy to him. That's what Jesus did. So at this point,

I want to help you focus your attention on two kinds of people.

Two kinds of persons. One is a group that doubts too much, someone

who doubted too much, or some people who doubts a lot. And then

the other group that I want you to also focus on is someone who is

too confident. Okay, two groups, Okay, let's let's break it down.

First of all, someone who doubted too much. Who is this his

sister in the scripture that we just read, the one adopted disciples. No,

it's the boy's father. Actually, the boy's father. The boy's father

does not believe enough. He comes to Jesus and he says something that he

should actually never have said to him. If he had known Jesus any better,

he wouldn't have said it. And I don't think any of us would

have said that this to Jesus if we know him better. But the boy's

father actually said, if you can do anything, take pity on us and

help us. And then Jesus look at him, and then he said,

if you can. Is that how you're actually asking me if you can?

And it almost sounds like there is a disillusionment in the father's remark, Not

just disillusionment, it's almost a remark of despair. If you can. It's

almost like resigned that I'm not sure. No, I've met people who have

this bad in Christ ever helping them because they have asked Christians and Christians have

not helped them. That's the reality of it. And this man is saying

something like this, No, if your followers couldn't help me, I wonder

if you can. If your followers who have your authority can help me,

I doubt if you can. So that was how the Father was actually approaching

Jesus. And I want to appeal to all of us here if we are

in this position, if you have been ever in your lives this illusion with

Christians, you sought help from the Church and then you didn't find it,

I beg you please do not assume that Christ himself cannot help you because of

this, because it will be a tragedy if you judge Jesus based on what

his followers did. And I'll be the first to confess as a follower of

Christ, as a minister for the Lord, that those of us who follow

him sometimes we are far from being the best advertisements for him. That's the

reality of it. And that is why we say, please, don't put

your faith in earth, per se, put it in Christ. If you

put it in earth, you will be disappointed. If you put it in

earth on earth, you'll be like the Father. Because like the disciples,

we all have our shortcomings. But when you come to Jesus, you don't

say if you can, You actually say something else. Sure, if you

remember the story of the leper who came to Jesus, and he actually said

this, if you will, you can make me clean, And that is

the right thing to say. This man did not say if you will,

He said if you can. Of course Jesus can. Why did he even

second guess Jesus in that sense, because Jesus says to that man everything is

possible for him who believes. And then later we read of Jesus actually in

the next few chapters, this is chapter nine. In chapter eleven, you

actually read of Jesus speaking to a tree. I don't know whether you remember

that account or not. He sort of cursed the tree, and then the

next day the tree is dead. And then of course the disciples were like,

hey, Rabbi, rabbi, and look the fig tree that you curse.

As we that this is Mark chapter eleven, verse twenty one. And

then Jesus told them to have faith in God. And then he added something

in verse twenty three of chapter eleven. He says this, if anyone says

to this mountain, go through yourself into the sea. And there's no doubt

in his heart, but believes that what he says will happen, it will

be done for him. Amen. So this is ultimately what Jesus is trying

to tell them. You don't need very big faith, but you need faith

in a very big God. I say that again, you do not need

very big faith, but you do need faith in a very big God.

Amen. Because he says that faith as small as a mustard, see,

it is enough for you to actually command the mountains to be removed in your

life. So a little bit of faith is what we need. But we

need to have that little bit of faith in a very, very big God

now comes one of the most honest prayers that probably have ever been prayed in

scripture, because what the dead is. How he responded is I do believe.

Help me over come my unbelief. And this is one of the greatest

virtues of prayer. It's just simple sheer honesty. You see, prayer begins

when you're really honest with God. And this father had doubts. He knew

that he did not believe enough. He had a bit of faith and asked

the Lord for help to overcome his unbelief. He wanted Jesus to start with

him as he was. And you see, that's the beauty of it.

The glory of it is that Jesus can start with men wherever he is,

provided he is honors, and provided he tells Jesus the truth about himself or

herself. This is the Christ in whom we worship. And we read that

Jesus healed that boy on that day. And when they got into the house,

the disciples came and asked him no, why they couldn't do anything?

They now learn the lesson of their importance. Why is it that they are

not strong? And it is a lesson that most of us who are Christian.

Sometimes we learn it the hard way, but it is a very important

lesson for us to learn, a very deep one. Why could they not

do it? After all? You think about it? Just a few chapters

before Mark chapter nine, a few weeks before that, Jesus actually sent them

out two by two to go and cast out demons, you remember that account.

And they had gone out and they succeeded in doing it. Now here

is all of them, know, all twelve of them and one young lad,

and they couldn't do anything. So what had gone wrong? And the

answer is they were now too confident. They thought they could do it themselves.

And Jesus was teaching them that what had gone wrong was that they were

no longer plucked in anymore. And that's why he said this this kind and

only come out by prayer. And this is the lesson that sometimes sometimes people

tell me, you know, sometimes people tell me, I remember when I

had a real sense of God's presence, God's power, God's joy, God's

peace in my life. No, I heard all these wonderful things, but

I don't know where they ran to. I don't know where is it now?

And the answer is we are no longer plucked in. You See,

we must understand that we can never have anything ourselves. We can only have

power in Jesus. We cannot have power ourselves. We can have peace in

Him, we cannot have it ourselves. We can have joy in Him,

but not by ourselves. See, the reality is only if the plug is

plucked into the electric socket, will the electricity flow, and will the current

flow? And will you experience it direct from the source. So whenever I

find myself thinking out loud, where is it what I once had? Where

has it gone? Where would the previous high experiences? You know, sometimes

we go for youth cams and it's like, ah, it's so amazingly high.

I love it. I experience God's goodness. And then three weeks down

the road, suddenly that seems like a figment of your imagination, something of

the past, something that I don't even know where it is right now because

it doesn't feel the same, or it doesn't feel like what it used to

be or what it had been. And always ask yourself this question, what

has happened to my prayer life? Because prayer means being plucked in and switched

on. And if we do not keep up our prayer life. We cannot

expect to have what we once had. We cannot expect to have the power

of God that we once had. We can only have it in God.

We cannot expect a holy spirit and powered life if we do not seek the

Lord and we do not go to him face to face. I believe that

the greatest need of every church is more prayer, more prayer on the part

of every partner who are plucked in. Just because we once did things in

the past, we should not expect it or we should not expect God to

do it again, especially if we have lost contact through prayer time and time

again. I always get people asking me why do we need to pray so

much? It's so routine, you know, it's a repetitive It's like,

no, does it even mean anything? And you know, I believe in

prayer. I believe in it with all my heart. I believe that I

don't do it enough as a church leader. So I will tell you that

days when I wish I could pray more. It's not something that comes naturally,

is something that there's a cost to be paid when you take time off

to pray. I actually I actually write down prayers. I list them down.

I pray the prayer that your prayer after service every day, the one

that prays for our leaders, because as a leader of the church, I'm

praying for all our leaders and our care I don't think we can ever pray

enough. There's so many things that we can pray for. But some people

used to ask me, why do we pray all those repetitive prayers. No,

it doesn't mean much, it doesn't mean anything. No, it means

everything to the person who is depending on your prayers, and it means everything

to the person who's praying as well, because that means that we continue and

remain to be plucked in. That's something that we need to take seriously.

So I write down prayers. I pray prayers which are what they call liturgical.

You know, I used to attend the Catholic Church a long long time

ago, and the Catholic Church is filled with liturgy. Your entire rosary.

Okay, I'm not saying that you al should go and pray the Rosary or

anything like, no, no, no, but it's it's a it's a

structured prayer that means it's exact one. You pray to our Father's you pray

the you recite the Apostles Creed all those things. As Christians, you can

do it. Maybe you can just take away the Hail Mary's. Other than

that, no problems, because it's declaration of your faith. I do that

every day. I declare the Apostles Creed every day. Why because I don't

have all the words. I mean, how much can you pray? Uh?

You know, I think, but that's what I just read scriptures.

I declare scriptures. No. Now, I declare there's a scripture about world

peace that is part of the United Nations Charter. Uh if you if you

read the United Nations Charter, there's something about beating spears into plowshares or something

like that along those lines. I declare that that whole portion of scripture because

I believe one day Jesus, when Jesus comes back, we will see and

we will experience world peace. I believe it. I declare it over the

will daily because again I just want to write down something, spend some time

with the Lord pray. If that helps you, I want to encourage you

to do that. It doesn't mean that because a lot of times when people

tell me about pray, they always be like, I don't know what to

say. What is that to say? Pray everything really, then pray in

the spirit, desire for the Holy Spirit to feel embrace your life, because

the Spirit knows, the Spirit understands, and the Spirit of God can pray

in in truest. I mean, how did the apostles pray non stock?

How did Paul pray NonStop? I really believe. I don't think his vocabulary

was all that great in all honesty, because there will come a point in

time when you run out things to pray. Pray in the spirit. But

what I want to say is this, keep yourself plucked in, because you

see, the strongest man in the Bible was also the weakest. Who's the

strongest man in the Bible? The Old Testament? Sampson? Okay, this

big, great guy with big physics, strong muscles, tough chap Okay.

But time and again, no, all he know. He he just went

around beating people up. That was how strong he was. Then came one

day and he just felt fat, flat on his face. Why why did

he fall flat on his face? Because he thought that he had the power,

and in fact the Lord was the one who had the power, and

he was not plucked in and then the Lord departed from him. Remember reading

that the Lord departed from him. So of course the disciples could not do

it. They not realize that that Jesus himself drew his power from constant prayer

with his father. Jesus spent hours. I'm not saying that we have to

spend hours in order, but you get what I'm saying. Basically, Jesus

spent time with his father. Did they think that they can the disciples can

just go around having done something once and then continued doing it without power,

They would have been fooling themselves. That is ultimately what Jesus is telling them.

You can't do it without prayer. That is the power of prayer.

And I want to continue to encourage all of us here. You see,

the disciples were weak because they were not plucked in. The Father was weak

because he did not have faith enough faith. But yet the reality is we

have God and we have Jesus in our lives, and look at how Jesus

taught them. So that's the first. The first shortcoming that we see of

the disciples. Okay, they were mainly important the first eye. The next

one is this they were ignorant. Okay, the next eye that amusing is

ignorant. Okay, let's read verses thirty onwards, and now Jesus says he

predicts his death basically verse thirty. Leaving that region, they traveled through Galilee.

Jesus didn't want anyone to know he was there, for he wanted to

spend more time with his disciples and teach them. He said to them,

the son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of his enemies.

He will be killed, but three days later he will rise from the

day. They didn't understand what he was saying, however, and they went

and they were afraid to ask him what he meant. Okay, again,

I'm just reading the scripture chronologically. I'm not going here, there, everywhere,

as it is. Ultimately, what is happening here is this, you

will never make a good follow of Christ unless you learn. You see,

knowledge is important to the followers of Christ, and there is so much that

we need to learn. You see, what was happening now was they were

passing through Galilee, and they were beginning this big, long journey down south

because Jesus was actually hating for the cross which was going to be in Jerusalem

and Jesus actually knew that his time was shot ready and right now his focus

of his mission has changed. No longer to see one and extensive mission.

Previously, you see what he does. He speaks to the crowd, et

ceteraction. Then he came to a point in time when he's like, don't

go and tell people about what I've done for you. He was from moving

from an extensive missions into a more intensified one and he did not want the

crowd, so he was traveling quietly, trying to conceal his identity. Almost

not because he realized this, I have got a few more weeks to teach

my disciples. And we are told that he kept on teaching them to things.

If you go on reading the scripture, he kept on teaching them to

things. He was teaching them that I am going to die and I'm going

to rise again. They needed to learn that Christianity is primarily about death and

resurrection. And there are people who think, no, Jesus was this great

man, great great profit, great teacher, great leader, and if that

is all we do is not enough. Some people think that if I try

to leave out the sermon on the Mound and do whatever that Jesus thought there,

this will be a wonderful world. But that is not what Christianity is

about. You see, the twelve Disciples were not getting the message either,

because they thought it was a matter of going around helping people and healing people.

Only. Yes, it includes this, but at the heart of it

all is basically the death and the resurrection. That was the heart of the

gospel. But still today we still meet people who think that Christianity is a

matter of trying to do good. It is not. Is a matter of

learning that Jesus died and rose again and the meaning of those two events.

That's what Christianity is about. You see, Jesus knew there was a traitor

in the camp because he said this, the son of Men is going to

be delivered into the hands of men. They will kill him, and after

three days he will rise. That's in verse thirty one of Mark chapter nine.

I wonder what Judus felt when Jesus said that. Actually, because Jesus

is basically saying that men are going to kill him, God is going to

raise him. And that is what it is all about. That is the

heart of our faith. If we are ever going to follow Christ, we

must understand the death and the resurrection so that we can explain it to someone

else why Jesus died and why he rose again. But the disciples did not

get it, because we go on reading after this is chapter ten, Jesus

is telling them again about his death and his resurrection. Then in chapter eleven

Jesus was telling them again about his death and resurrection, and then in chapter

twelve he's telling them again about his death and resurrection. Is almost as if

they did not get it. And still to this day, sometimes we preach

and we continue to preach Christ crucified and Christ's reasons, and people still think

we are trying to tell them to live right. Only Christianity is to come

and say Christ died for my sin and Christ rose again to be my lord.

That's what Christianity is about. That is this is what we need to

hold onto. And these twelve guys they did not, They did not grasp

that, and they were still ignorant of the fundamental gospel. But we know

Jesus continued to teach, and he continued to live out every part of his

teaching. He continued to do he teach, and he did he teach,

and he did he showed them one needs to be done. And then of

course we know he really did go to the cross and die for them,

and he was resurrected three days later, and then he ascended to heaven to

be at the right hand of God the Father. And then a later account

in xt chapter two, we read Peter, the same Peter who gongong Win.

He was there preaching at Pentecosts to where three thousand was saved on that

day. I believe they got it eventually, But what is it that they

got Go and study? What better preach on the day? What was it

he was sharing about. He's not sharing about you try to be good,

live your lives, get all the browning points that you have, and then

that's your ticket to heaven. Know, he's just telling you that Christ died

for you and he rolls to be your lord. Can you acknowledge that Christ

is lord of your lives? That's all? Okay, that's the second thing.

So let's not be ignorant like the the disciples were. Because firstly we

read that they were they were important, but we know now how to go

around that. Then after that we read that they were knowledge is something that's

very very important. Go back to your scriptures, go back and understand what

is it? What is it that we believe in? Because you can't sell

how can we be an advertisement? We can't market anything that we don't fully

believe in. If we are going to be Christians and we are going to

tell the world that Jesus lives, we better jolly well believe that he lives.

Because if we think he's still buried somewhere in a tomb, and we

can go back there and find his bones, then no longer is whatever that

we believe in. It holds no water anymore. Amen. So knowledge,

and then knowledge must translate into how we live our lives, the faith in

which we have in God. The third thing that was wrong about these twelve

men was that they were self important. Basically, they're self centered. Okay,

let's read. Let's read on verse the de three onwards and this is

just entitled the Greatest in the Kingdom. After they arrived at Kappernom and settle

in the house, Jesus asked his disciples what were you discussing out on the

road, But they didn't answer because they had been arguing about which of them

was the greatest. He sat down called the twelve disciples over to him and

said, whoever wants to be first must think last place and be the servant

of everyone else. Then he put a little child among them, Taking the

child in his arms, he said to them, anyone who welcomes a little

child like this on my behalf welcomes me. And anyone who welcomes me welcomes

not only me, but also my father, who sent me. So as

they were walking their journey down south to Jerusalem, Jesus overhears his disciples bickering,

and then when they got to the house, he asked them, they

what you're all arguing about on the road, And then they actually did not

tell him no, because they were almost a shamler. But basically, is

this who will be the greatest? They had been discussing about their status.

They were still thinking of the Kingdom of God in terms of power, politics,

in terms of social standing. And you know, I have no doubt.

I can just imagine Peter James and John, Peter James and John,

the tree heroes right, the one that will no experience God and the transfiguration

saw his face all glowing. They probably thought that he we're the we treat

at the top of the power, and that's probably the gist of their discussion.

But who was to be the most important? Is it the most important

thing? Right now? You see, Christ cannot do anything with people until

they stop discussing their own importance because pride is one of the most difficult things

to deal with. And I say me included, because really many times I

find that, Yeah, it's always pride that kicks in. I want it

my way, I think I'm right. And what did Jesus say? No,

what did Jesus say in this? He actually gave them. He gave

them a verbal review and then he gave them a visual rebew. Okay,

so this was a verbal rebeiw very simple. He said. He wanted to

basically tick their social values and turn it upside down. So he told them,

if anyone wants to be first, he must be there, very last

and the servant of all. They were to go to the bottom, and

if they wanted to be the greatest, they should choose the humbler's most menihial

position and become the slave to others. This was something that none of them

could get hold of. In fact, it's something that we can't get hold

of it either. Until today. Because we still talk about who is important

in the wrong way in many sense of it. You know, I've come

to this place where it doesn't matter that I'm standing here and say Winston is

behind working the sound and no one knows what he's doing, or he's doing

XTV. You know, is it insignificant? No, Ultimately, who is

it that we are serving. We're serving God doesn't matter what kind of status

do Some people think that, oh, just because I got the MIC,

I have all the power in the world. That's not That's not it.

Ultimately, when we serve, it doesn't matter whether you are saying hello to

someone at the bottom of the basement kapa, or you are up here on

stage. You are serving God. If you remove the pride from anything,

you will be able to meet God face to face. That's the reality of

it. No, let's jump slightly ahead. Because when it came to the

Last Supper, they went to the upper room. Remember they had this last

supper. They went to the upper room. It was most likely a secret

meeting because we read of no one else being there, which also means that

there won't be any servant there to sort of wash the feet of those who

came into the house, which is the usual custom and the usual hospitality of

a Jewish household in the past. So can you imagine this? Disciples allel

came in walking tata data and then all saw the basin, and then all

look at each other, and then all went heck, no, I'm not

going to be washing your feet, right. I'm sure you can imagine.

But what what happened? It was Jesus that took you quote off. It

was Jesus that picked up the bowl of water and told them that he was

going to wash deid. I don't know. He must have been pretty disheartening

for the disciples. But Jesus teaches us that what we have got to do

is this, We've got to think of it upside down to the world.

We've got to turn the world right way up. Actually, if you want

to be great in the Kingdom, then serve. Choose the bottom most position

and serve. I want everyone to take pride in their service to the Lord.

It doesn't matter what you do, take pride in it. When you

come. Even coming to a Sunday service, it is a service unto the

Lord. It is ministry. When you come up, when you pray for

the person next to you it is ministry. Do that and then keep doing

more for the Lord, because ultimately you are serving him and him alone.

So that that was what he was trying to teach them, turn the world

right side up, even though actually what the disciples was they turned the world

upside down. Actually what they did, that are the choices that they made.

They really turn it upside down. But let's turn it right way up,

right way up. Then he went on to give a visual rebuw what

do you do? He took a child, and he said to them,

whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me, And whoever

welcomes me does not welcome me, but the one who sent me. If

we think we are important, not only must we reverse the way we think,

we must also minister to the unimportant people. You see, Jesus was

teaching them that if you give your time to a little unimportant child, who

basically think about it, cannot give you anything in return. On if you

do it in his name, you receive Jesus as the father. That's what

the child is. That the child can give you nothing. A baby can

only give you very bad. If I say this, I give you grief,

but you know, give you a leg of sleep, I got to

wake up or you know, do everything. You've got to do everything for

the child. The child can't do anything for you. That's the reality of

it. And Jesus is actually teaching them if you do something for the least,

the very people who can't do anything in return for you, Now that

that is something. That's why I really want to take my heads off to

all the ex kids teacher, all the youth leaders. You know, sometimes

sometimes in the adult world, is you scratch my back, I scratch your

back. In the kids world, is not there. No, We've got

to do everything for them. They've got to run around. I mean most

execus teacher are very fit. One they are healthy because they've got to be

completely mobile, moving around, know, helping one another, helping the kids.

That's why I really, I really take my heads off to them.

Because those who are young don't always rang very highly in society. They don't

have write, you know, they don't have a lot of things that they

can do. And that's the reality of it. But year Jesus is saying

he gave them a visual rebuw. He chose those who would deem as not

important, and said these are important people. The disciples would challenge, why

are you just discussing about your own importance when essentially what I'm telling you is

everybody is important. Amen. Okay, Yeah, I a bit passionate,

but I'm not calling anyone. Okay. I also learned the next two things.

We lump it together, so we start off with importance, ignorance self

importance. Okay. Now you find out that they were intolerant with others,

but they were indulgent towards themselves. Okay, intolerant with others, but could

tolerate themselves a little bit more. Okay, let's read the scripture final few

verse today eight using the name of Jesus. Okay, it says this John

said to Sorry. John said to Jesus, teacher, we saw someone using

your name to cast out demons, but we told him to stop because he

wasn't in our group. Don't stop him, Jesus said, no one who

performs a miracle in my name will soon be able to speak evil of me.

Anyone who is not against us is for us. If anyone gives you

even a cup of water because you belong to the Messiah, I tell you

the truth that person will surely be rewarded. But if you cause one of

these little ones who trust in me to fall into sin, it would be

better for you to be thrown into the sea with a large millstone hung around

your neck. If your hand causes you to sin, Carlidorff, is better

to enter eternal life with only one hand than to go into the unquenchable fires

of hell with two hands. If your foot causes you to sin, carriid

Off, is better to enter eternal life with only one foot than to be

thrown into hell with two feet. And if your eye causes you to see,

gouge it out. It's better to enter the Kingdom of God with only

one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell, where the

maggots never die and the fire never goes out. Strong words, strong words,

for everyone will be tested with fire. Salt is good for seasoning,

but if it loses its flavor, how do you make it salty again.

You must have the qualities of salt among yourselves and live in peace with each

other. Okay, so this is John. We know he's the son of

Thunder. Okay, so a very impetuous guy came and said to Jesus,

Hey, we saw these men driving out demons in your name, and we

told him to stop because he's not one of us. Then you notice the

word us. They did not say he didn't follow you know. I mean,

if John says, no, Lord, those flowers didn't follow you,

it might be a different thing. He said, it didn't follow us.

They were probably thinking that they were the only one two disciples, basically only

them, and so they told the men to stop it because he was not

joining the right group. So John was actually proud of this, and he

thought Jesus would also be pleased with his actions. But instead Jesus actually said,

don't stop them. No one who does America in my name can in

the next moment do anything bad about me. For whoever is not against us

is for us. Do not stop him just because he does not follow you,

just because he is not in your band of disciples. This man was

doing something for Jesus and no one is to stop that. That's essentially what

Jesus is saying. You see, casting out a demon can seem like a

very difficult thing to do. But Jesus goes on to say something very interesting

here, because he goes on and say, I tell you the truth,

anyone who gives you a cup of water in my name because you belong to

Christ will certainly not lose his reward. If a person just gives you a

cup of water because you belong to Jesus, because you are a Christian,

that counts to don't even stop that. So, whether a man is doing

a difficult thing like casting out demons, or whether he's doing a simple thing

like giving, if he's doing it in the name of Christ and in the

power of Christ, don't stop that. Jesus was telling his disciples that they

had to have a big enough heart to recognize chrisis work wherever it happens very

important. In fact, No, not just recognize it, they should rejoice

in it. They should rejoice in it. And that's what he was telling

and rejoice in every little So I say, every single person who gives whatever

they have to the Lord serves the Lord wholeheartedly. I take my heads off

to them. You see, until today, the woman with the two mites

is remembered. You know what she's You think she's remembered for what she gave.

No, she's remembered for what she did not hold back. That is

the part that we remember because she gave her Oh, she did not hold

back anything. I pray that we too will learn and understand what Jesus is

trying to teach us here. Not just recognize it. Rejoice, Rejoice in

whatever that a person can give, and each of us be challenged to give

more unto the Lord. Amen. And now the final thing was that was

wrong with the twelve uh? And the real problem is that usually they are

intolerant with others, but tolerant with themselves. That's what indulging, indulging in

yourself means. Uh. You know this, This often happens. No,

we can be terribly strict with other people, but we are very slack when

it comes to our own decision makings and choices as life. And Jesus actually

teaches us to be strict with ourselves and be more tolerant with one another.

There's a bit of a reverse and so Jesus says a negative thing and then

he says a positive thing. Okay, let's let's let's go to I'm coming

to the last lik. Really, it's very clear that it is not meant

to be taken literally. Okay, if if any of these portions of scripture

is taken literally all over us. You will be sitting down with no eyes,

no feet, and no legs. Okay, but he actually said,

don't take it literally, but take it seriously. If your hand causes you

to sink, crtadorff. He goes on to say, and if your foot

causes you to sink, cut it off. He also says, and if

your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. What does that mean?

Here is what he means. No, if there is anything that you

are doing, if there is anything that you are watching, and if there's

anywhere you are going that is actually hindering you from being a good Christian,

cut it right out. Basically, he's saying, stop it, stop it.

It is as simple as that, you see. The point is is

this something that I am doing, or something that I'm watching, or someplace

that I'm going. Does it hinder me from doing God's work? If the

answer is yes, cut it right out, because any of these three things

could lead a person to destruction. Those strong words, I didn't use those

words. It is words that we use in the scripture by Jesus himself.

So he's just saying it better to cut these things out and live a narrow

and boring life that other people will deem as narrow and boring, than to

ruin yourself and bring yourself to a place of destruction. Jesus was just being

very real and very true. You know, we love to recite John three

sixteen. It always can memorize John three sixteen for God's love the world and

whoever gave his only son, that whoever who believes in him should not perish,

but have eternal life. You know, perish is that very strong word.

Actually, it means destroyed, destruct, to be completely destroyed. So

rather than perish, rather than become useless, rather than be ruined. He's

essentially saying, cut it out right now for yourself so that you can enter

into life, abundant life. Amen. And then he uses this illustration now

to further explain. I know, Simes, you read the scripture, You're

like, why he talked here talking the talk about hell, talk about no

hands, no feet. Then's a little about salt. But again I'm not

plucking it from it is growing. I'm just going as the scripture is teaching.

Because he told the disciples that they needed this discipline of cutting these things

out for this reason. If they did not do it. They could not

be the salt of the earth. They will not have that distinctive quality that

makes salt useful. And you again, now, now you've got to imagine

me a little bit. Is it raining? Ah? Okay, yeah,

so hot, Okay. They use salt for two things in those days.

Uh, they didn't only use it to flavor food as we do. Okay,

and we continue to do that, and they use it for that.

So but the two main things that you salt for, and it's got to

do your landmin They use salt first of all to fertilize the gardens because it

had quite a lot of a compound called potash or potassium. So that's what

they do. I'm guessing I'm not a farm with the double salt and it

becomes like a fertilizer. But they also use it to this in fact,

heaps of polluted soil. So basically this they use salt to promote good growth

in the garden. And they also use salt to this infect and inhabit any

evil pollutants in the soil. So Jesus said this, no, salt is

good. But if it loses its salt in us, how can you make

it salty again. How could it be used for the field or the polluted

silt. How the salt loses flavor is the question that we have to ask

ourselves, because sodium chloride does not lose his quality. It is always salt.

So the answer is simple. Some people what they used to do is

they used to make it. They used to mix salt with sand. And

then of course sometimes consumers who go and by and then they will taste it

and it doesn't taste that's salty, it's just sand. And so Jesus was

teaching his disciples that unless you are prepared to cut out anything you do,

anything you watch, anywhere you go that causes you to stumble, the salt

will lose its saltiness and you will neither cause good things to appear, nor

will you hold back back things from appearing. And that's what a Christian disciple

should do. Don't allow your life to be mixed with things that will cause

you to lose your saltiness. That's what he meant by you got to cut

it out. You see a Christian working in the marketplace, going to schools,

we should actually be there to promote good and to sort of this in

fact, what is not good? That's our purpose. I mean, if

if you're in a marketplace, if there's gossip happening, I mean, promote

good means, don't go and participate and stop the gossipl We're gonna spread it

even more and like we're gonna bash the flur Uh you'll stop it, actually

stop it. Learn how to be more kind to one another. Learn learn

how to be sought of the earth. That's what the scripture is actually saying.

If there's anything a Christian should not tolerate, it is this, that

he must cut out everything in his life that stops him from being the salt

of the earth. I know, it's not it's not easy. It's it's

something that yeah, you're like, well, what's the cliffhanger? Okay,

I mean the disciples were not perfect, far from it actually, But remember

I started off by saying that we know how it all ended, because it

ended they all ended believing. So the disciples were important. We read they

lacked faith, they were ignorant, they lacked knowledge, they were too self

important, They lack humility in their lives. They were intolerant with one another

because they lacked love, and they were so indulgent, they lacked holiness.

Yeah, think about it. You know, the whole future of the church

depended on men like that. And Jesus had only a few weeks with them

to mold them and to shape them, and then he had to leave.

And you know what's amazing thing, he did something with them, and we

read that he did something with everything that we read today. Jesus actually gave

us and answer what we need to do if he can do it with that

man, all those twelve men, I know one failed, but the rest

of them went on. And think about it now, how the eleven ordinary

men with no proper training, no proper qualifications. Some were fishermen, some

were freedom fighters, some were God knows what they were, some were relatives

or Jesus. They were just ordinary young people, mostly youths, probably in

their late teens, early twenties. Maybe, How did eleven men bring about

the fact that today we still have our Bibles with us. Christianity is still

and I pray it will remain and you will continue to be the largest religion

in the world. Not just out of religiousity, I pray, but because

people truly believe that Christ died for them and he resurrected to be their lord.

Think about it. If he can do something with those men, he

can do something with you. Because some people have this idea that you have

to be extremely religious or extremely good to be a Christian. But those disciples

were just ordinary men and women or men. But I'm sure there were other

women involved like us, And if Jesus could change them, Jesus could do

it for any one of us. Jesus can still change us, provided we

led him, and provided we follow him all the way and acknowledge that Heaven

rules in our lives. It has to start somewhere, and he has to

start with every decision that we make on a daily basis. Lord, I

need you, Lord, help me to know that when I'm plucked into you,

that's when I can do things in your mighty name. Help me to

continue to not remain ignorant in my lives, because Lord, you have left

us your word. You have blessed us the spirit of God, which helps

us to understand the word. Help me to just not think about myself.

Help me to realize that we are to love others because that's what loving you

is about. And help us to not just be intolerant with others, help

us to tolerate others more, and help us not to overindulge in ourselves,

because ultimately, it is your plan and your purpose that we want to see

come to pass in all that we do. We hope you've been blessed by

this message. For more information on our church, please visit as church org.

We are also active on Facebook and Instagram. We're believing that this week

is going to be a good week. I hate for you. God bless