Could You Cause a War?

I think anytime I go away, and usually it's only two weeks, you know, when we're apart, it seems like a lot changes during that time. This time it was three weeks since the last time I've been in Orlando, and a lot has changed. A lot has changed in the world.

Seems like every day there's something new that goes on in the world that changes even what you think was happening. But, you know, when we left here three weeks ago, COVID was winding down. And it was being said that COVID was over. Back when I look at the news anymore, COVID isn't even mentioned, which is a nice thing to have that behind us. We learned a lot of lessons during that time of what happens during a pandemic. A lot of things, we saw a lot of things that could be in our future by how some things were reacted during that COVID time, but it apparently is gone. I know the first day I was up at the home office, I mentioned that in Florida it seemed like there were no cases. The news locally wasn't doing it. We looked on the thing. No cases in Ohio that day, no cases in Florida that day, and it has just disappeared. We could thank God for that, and we've seen things go back a little bit in that way to normal. But as we left, there was this new problem on the horizon. Russia was beginning to amass troops on the Ukrainian border, and it was a guessing game that was going on as to would Russia invade? When would they invade? Is this just something that Putin was doing to get the world's attention? And as we were gone, indeed, he did invade. And as you and I have been able to look at the news, we see war in real time. We see the real devastation that is happening over there in Kremlin. We're very much aware of the 2.3 million people who have had to leave their homes, go to another country. We see the pictures of really senseless, just complete destruction of cities and apartment buildings and human homes. And we are seeing for the first time, at least in this generation, what the devastation of war is. It's been an eye-opener to see that. And when we think about why is this happening? Why does one country just decide they're going to go in and take over another country? It makes us see what human nature is like.

As we've watched the Russian invasion over there, we see the things that have happened as well.

Along with the devastation, we see some other things that have resulted. Europe was threatened. Just this morning, someone sent me an article that says the 27 members of the European state met, and they decided this Russian thing was so big that no longer were they relying on anyone else. It was time for them to join together militarily and not to allow anyone else to have their future at stake. Now, we know what the prophetic implications of that is. The Bible has always, and the Church has always talked about, a unified Europe before the return of Jesus Christ. This Russian invasion certainly has had that effect on the world, and Europe is on notice. This is dangerous. This is something that we didn't foresee coming. We've seen over here the effect on us. This is not just a regional war like wars used to be. This is affecting us as well. As we hear about rising gas prices, we've all kind of been surprised. I know the first two days we were back, actually three, within the first week, gas rose 60 cents a gallon after we got back. We see the inflationary impact it has had on us, and this is just the beginning of it. When you see and begin to realize Ukraine is not just this little nation. It has quite a bit of importance in Europe. It is the breadbasket of Europe. They've got much of the wheat that comes for Europe. In Russia, it comes from that country. There are other resources that are there. We can begin to see why Russia would want it. We already hear the things about how wheat is now at record prices. It reminds you of the verses that we read in Revelation. We just read them, I think, the last time I was here about wheat being a bushel of wheat for the dairies, the day's wages. We hear about now fertilizer. That is, three times more than it was at this time last year, even for American farmers, that it's at record prices. You and I will feel the effects of this war in our pocketbooks. Last night, or I guess not last night, but over the last few days, I've heard talk for the first time in news circles about the reserve currency and how Russia and China are combining closer together and that they want to offset this American dominance in the dollar being the currency of the world. When that happens, every economist will tell you things change literally overnight.

Literally overnight for everyone in America if that happens. It is likely to happen. There is a time, there is a time that, you know, we know that the world's economy is going to completely fall. The Bible has always said that. We know at the time of Revelation 13, the beast arises out, and people marvel at the economic power that that union over there has and how it kind of rescues the world from the dark, dark place that it finds itself in. So the war in Russia has prophetic events, and it is one disaster.

Also this week it came out that there are bio labs in the Ukraine. On the national news last week, or last evening, it mentioned that the United States is concerned if Russia gets its hands on those, or even in some of the missiles that are fired, what happens if the contents of those bio labs are there. So there's also the prospect and now the specter of another pandemic coming as a result of the war. We know in the past that famines, pestilences have come during war. It was after the world war one that the great flu pandemic of 1918, when 50 to 100 million people died, came as a result of that.

All of this as we see one thing disappearing or fading away, and then we watch this Russian invasion that has significance and the things that are developing as that war goes on may remind us of scriptures that we read back in Ezekiel 7. So let's go back to Ezekiel 7. Something we can remind ourselves of. It hasn't been too long ago that we read these verses. Now I'll read the first four verses of Ezekiel 7, then I'm going to drop down to verse 23. But Ezekiel 7 verse 1, of course we remember that at the time God gave Ezekiel this prophecy, the ancient nation of Israel had already gone into captivity.

So when he talks about what this is what's going to happen to the land of Israel, this is a time for the future. This is a time we're living in now, and as you go through the chapter, you begin to see, indeed, this is an end time prophecy. Ezekiel 7 verse 1, Moreover, the word of the Eternal came to me, saying, You, son of man, thus says the Lord to the land of Israel, an end. The end has come upon the four corners of the land.

Now the end has come upon you, and I will send my anger against you. I will judge you according to your ways, and I will repay you for all your abominations. My eye will not spare, nor will I have pity. But I will repay your ways, and your abominations will be in your midst. Then you will know that I am the Lord. So God, you know, we could make any law, we can make any change in morality, we can change anything we want, but when we go against God, there is a price to pay.

Now you can read the intervening verses between there and verse 23, but let's go down to verse 23. It says, Make a chain. Make a chain, for the land is filled with crimes of blood. The city is full of violence. And of course, in the midst of all this, we see, you know, it's almost a nightly news thing, at least before the war, where we would hear about what's going on in this big city, what's going on in that big city, and the senseless killings that go on, the shootings that go on, the crimes that are just being committed in broad daylight.

And the city is full of violence. Therefore, I will bring the worst of the Gentiles, and they will possess their houses. I will cause the pomp of the strong to cease, and their holy places will be defiled. Destruction comes. They will seek peace, but there shall be none. Verse 26. Disaster will come upon disaster. One will end, another one will begin. That will fade, but there's always another disaster in the wings. Disaster will come upon disaster, and rumor will be upon rumor. Then they will seek a vision from a prophet, but the law will perish from the priest and counsel from the elders.

Wisdom will disappear from the land. There will be no sound counsel. There will be no government official or man of state that has the wisdom to lead Israel through the time of the end that God has prophesied. Wisdom disappears. We come to the realization as you and I look at the world around us, there is only one way through what is going to happen. There are no answers in the world. As we watch personalities change, as we watch what's going on in Russia, as we watch and see what's going on behind the scenes with China, and the formation of that eastern block that the Bible talks about in Daniel 11 as well, we see all these things happening. The world is powerless. The world has no answers how to stop this. We know that we are in all likelihood living in that time that it talks about in Revelation 12 when the war in heaven has occurred and God has cast Satan down to earth and he says, woe, woe unto the earth for Satan has come down to you having great wrath. As we watch what's going on in the world around us, one disaster after another, the next one a little worse than the one before, and continuing to increase, you and I should be very very aware of what's going on and it should motivate us motivate us to get closer to God. Here we are just a little over a month from the time of Passover. As this is happening in the world, I can't think of a more motivating thing that could happen to us to help to have us really look at this Passover and do what God said to be examining ourselves, to be looking at ourselves, to be doing the things that he said and getting ourselves right with him. It's time to really really assess our lives. It's time to really really look at what we're doing because the time for play is over. The time to get busy and the time to get serious about our calling is very much at hand. Very much at hand and God has given us that opportunity to do this. You know, we look around and, you know, as you watch the TV, you know, you watch the news and you see the pictures of what's going on in Russia, it is hard to look at those pictures and wonder, you know, why? What is it all for? I know that, you know, we probably don't understand the forces of the world and it's good that we don't understand the ways of Satan, but as we look at it and we see the cruelty that's out there, you see the pictures of people being just abandoned and having to leave their homes, go to a place that they have no idea where they're going. Everything they've known, everything they've worked for, to no fault of their own, just being washed away. Who knows what untold, brutal crimes are yet to be committed, you know, as a part of this war and certainly, certainly will be as the years go on. The Bible talks about how the times coming is worse than any time that has ever been on the face of the earth. And as you read history and as you see even in movies, some of the things that people have come up with to cause pain to other human beings, it's unspeakable. It's unspeakable and you have to think, where do these ideas come from? Well, we know where they come from.

Back in 2 Timothy, 2 Timothy 3, you know, God inspired Paul to talk about a time like we live in now, the end time he calls it in 2 Timothy 3. As we see these things played out in real time, as we see the pictures that come to us and hear the stories and see, that is, I have a feeling we all have quite an empathy for the people in Ukraine. Probably have an idea about Russia and its president and wonder how can someone just enact or exact all that trouble, all that trouble on someone and just keep going, just dig his heels in, even in the face of some of the problems that he's facing. 2 Timothy 3 in verse 1, it says, Know this, know this, that in the last days, perilous or dangerous times will come. Men will be lovers of themselves. They're going to do what they want to do. My idea is best. I'm going to get what I want. No matter what I want, I am willing to sacrifice you for anything to get what I want, right? Men will be lovers of themselves. They will be lovers of money. All you got to do is look at the world around us today to know that greed and corruption exists everywhere. There's just this lust and this greed for money. Lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving.

Now, in the Old King James, instead of unloving, it says, Without natural affection.

You know, that's quite a statement, Without natural affection. The natural affection that people should have for one another means that when we see someone suffering, we should feel something for them. We should not naturally want to inflict pain on someone else. When we see someone hurting or in need, we want to help. We certainly wouldn't go out and destroy someone's home. We wouldn't intentionally inflict torture upon them and think that it's okay to do, no matter in what name they may be doing it, without natural affection. And as we look at what's going on in the world, and that Russia-Ukraine is not the only war in the world. There are thousands who are dying even more painfully in Ethiopia and Yemen as we speak here today, wars that aren't talked about very often. But we see this and we think, where's the natural affection? How could you do that to another person? How could you do that to another person? But, you know, we know that these things are attributes of Satan. This is what he's like. Without natural affection, unforgiving, slanderers, you know, liars, people who just will say anything to turn someone against you.

Slanderers. Without self-control, brutal. We haven't seen brutality yet. We've seen some of it in the past. Despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God. All about themselves. All about what they want. Can't look at those verses. Can't honestly look at the world around us and say, that isn't an accurate description of the world we live in today. And you and I are seeing it play out in living color, as they say. When we look at the news and we see those pictures, we see all those traits. We see it happening in ways that you and I haven't been exposed to in our lifetimes before, unless we were alive during World War II, when there was another heinous trial upon all of humanity. But this is only the beginning.

This is only the beginning. We're beginning to see, and God is showing us, what is the despicable side of human nature. You and I are having an opportunity to see what mankind, apart from God, is like. And that's a very, very awful thing to see, isn't it? What mankind is like, apart from God. What mankind is like. When we read verses like Romans 8 verse 7 that says, the carnal mind, the natural mind is enmity against God and not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.

It becomes a little more real to us. When we read scriptures like Jeremiah 17 verse 9 that says, the heart is deceitful, and wicked above all things. Who can know it? We're beginning to see, wow, mankind, apart from God, is an awful existence. It's an awful existence. When we look at the man who leads Russia and what he's doing and how he is so focused on getting that land for himself, doing it for whatever reason he has in mind. We see he doesn't care who he hurts. He's not listening to anyone. He wants it. He's going to do it. He started the war, and he's not listening to anyone but himself. No matter what, and he could care less what happens to the world around him as a result. What's it about? You know, as we see these things, maybe you and I can ask a self-examination question. Could we be like him? Could we start a war? Could we be the cause of a war?

Well, let's go back to James 4, because as we look and see what the Bible says about war, and those who had started, we could see, well, we might not have a national stage. We might not have the national presence or international presence to do that. The very same things could happen to us if we were allowed ourselves to depart from God or start looking to ourselves and what we want more than what God wants. James 4, verse 1. Where do wars and fights come from among you?

Well, God gives us the answer. Where do wars and fights come from among you? Don't they come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? It's because you're sitting there and you want something so bad, you are going to have it your way. You don't care about what the other person thinks. You don't care about what's going on. I want what I want so bad. I will just march forward and do it. I don't care who stands in my way. On an international scene, I'll send in the tanks, I'll send in the artillery, I'll send in the air cover. I'll even, if I need to, do some biological work on the nation. But if we bring it down to ours and the nature that we have is no different, that's the natural nature that is within us. When we're looking at how we do things, it wars between us because we know what should be right. If God's Spirit is in us, we know what's right, we know what's wrong, we know what attitudes we should have, and yet we will have these things that war in us. I really want that. I really want that, whatever that is, and we'll get to that in a few minutes. In verse 2, he says, you lust, you lust and you don't have, you lust and you don't have, you murder, you covet, and you cannot obtain, you fight and war. Well, we kind of do that, even among ourselves, even in families, right? There's fighting and warring. You get two people, you know, even in a marriage, and if it dissolves and they fight and war with each other, if you see people who have one time loved each other, who no longer can stand being in the same room with one another, you look back to it and think, there was lust, there were things going on, there was no working together. It was, I'll do what I want. No matter what you want, there's no combining between the two. You fight and war. It happens in families, it happens in neighborhoods, it happens in companies, it's even happened in the Church of God.

It all comes down to exactly what God said. Are you doing my will, or are you more interested in having to put your will first? You lust and don't have. He says in verse 2, you don't have because you don't ask. And then you ask, you don't receive because you ask amiss, God sees what's in our heart. You're asking because, again, you want me to just say, okay, you can have it your way.

And it's got to be God's way. That's what we've been called to. If we go back to Acts 20, and I mentioned that even in the Church of God, you can have problems. Those who have been around for decades have seen problems in the Church. They happened when Paul was there, they happened when Peter was there, they happened when Jesus Christ was there. In Acts 20, verse 28, we read this not too long ago in the Bible study, it's one of those things that marks the Church of God. Satan will always attack the people of God, and he has his tactics, and we know what they are. Therefore, in verse 28 of Acts 20, it says, therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers to shepherd the Church of God which he purchased with his own blood. For I know this, Paul said, after my departure, savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. People from the outside, you're wrong. What kind of senseless thing are you believing? That Bible was for the old times, it was not for the 21st century. And some people will listen and they will follow. They're not close to God, they don't love the truth, they haven't been living and allowing God to lead them in the way that he must be leading us. If we're going to come from here and be standing with him at the time that Jesus Christ returns. In verse 29, he says, I know this, after my departure, savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. Also from among yourselves, men will rise up, speaking perverse things to draw away the disciples after themselves. They'll have their own ideas. They'll get on the internet or they'll do something and they think they've got the idea that no one else has, God's working all through them, and they will continue to work and work and work on people. What do they want? I want it my way. I want it my way. I want people to follow me. I want this. I want that. I want that. It's all about I. I. I. And it's always got to be about what God wants, what God wants, what God wants, what God's will is. Anytime we feel ourselves thinking, this is what I want, and we're maybe told or hear something, don't, you know, maybe that's not the way to go. Maybe we need to be looking at what we're doing because it has to be God's way. And so Paul will talk about that. Paul talked about that. It happened. It happened in his time. It's happened in our times, you know, back in 1st Peter.

It'll be 1st Peter 1.

I don't want 1st Peter 1. I think I'm thinking of 2nd Peter. 2nd Peter 2.

2nd Peter 2 and verse 1.

Peter talked about it as well, right? The whole 2nd epistle of Peter talks about false prophets and people coming in. What do they want to do? They want people to follow them. They want it their way.

Verse 1. There were false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly, secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their destructive ways because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed. You know, blasphemed isn't just raising your fist against God and saying, I reject you and I don't want you. Anytime we mess with the Word of God, any time we use our own interpretation and say, well, God said that, but in my case, it really means that. And I tell people, that's okay. I don't have to do what God said because of this or that or whatever. I can do this because, you know, it's really an innocent thing and God doesn't really care. It's not that big a deal. It is a big deal. That's how Satan gets us to do the things and fall away from him. Just a little bit at a time. It can be apathy. It can be complacency. It can be doing something that you would never have thought a year or two or three or three years ago that you would do. It all comes down to, what do I want? I want it to be that way. The Bible says this, but I want it to be that way. And so you tell others and others think, well, yeah, that's okay. That's okay, I guess. No. The Bible is true. The Bible's words are absolutely exactly what God would have us do. There's really no confusion when we read God's Word.

There's really no justification that we can do except that we are trying to do things our own way. Paul says, he comes down to it in verse 3, by covetousness, by covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words. For a long time, their judgment hasn't been idle and their destruction does not slumber. Covetousness. Covetousness. James says that's where wars and fights come from among you.

That's where church splits come from. Someone covets something that they don't have that they want. It's about them. It's about what they want rather than what God wants. It's not hard to figure out what God wants. If we're close to God, if we are living our lives always practicing, if I can say that, to yield to God when we see ourselves doing something that is apart from the word, saying, I'm not going to justify, I'm simply going to change. It disappears. It disappears from my life. God help me to not go that way anymore and to just make the change to follow you implicitly. Without doing that, without coming to the point where we can just follow God with all our hearts and minds, we don't have to pretend we're going to be there when Jesus Christ returns. God did not call us to a social club, even though He wants us to be in fellowship with Him and with one another. He didn't call us just to be friends. He called us to love one another as brothers and sisters, to love Him as our Father, Jesus Christ as our elder brother. And we've talked about it, God, so we know exactly what it is that God wants from us. We just have to do it. And God gives us the time. He gives us the opportunities to become what He wants us to become and to develop those things. And as we're here before Passover, one of the things among the many things that we can examine might be this idea of covetousness. Covetousness doesn't, you know, you don't become, I won't say His name, you won't become, you don't become a Russian leader doing what a Russian leader is doing today overnight. He's been on the world scene for a number of years and He's come to this point. You know, you don't end the marriage overnight. It comes to it because, and people don't like each other, you don't end friendships, you don't leave churches where you know the truth is simply because overnight. It's because you want something different than what God wants for you by covetousness. Let's go back to Deuteronomy. Deuteronomy 5, and look at that 10th commandment. And as we look at ourselves today, and we look at that commandment because we see it playing out in full living color, as I say, and the world around us today in our national economy, in every aspect of life in America, we see covetousness, we see it on the world scene, we see it in the wars, we see it in the price hikes, the corruption, you name it. You name it, that marks our world today. Deuteronomy 5, verse 21, says, you shall not covet your neighbor's wife.

You shall not desire or covet your neighbor's house. You shall not covet his field, his male servant, his female servant, his ox, his donkey, or anything that is in your neighbor's.

God lists a lot of things there to not covet. He doesn't say simply do not covet. These are the things we can covet, literally anything in life we can covet. We can go back through the Bible, we could read through a lot of scriptures and show that people who departed from God, that God was not pleased with, coveting, coveting was at the root of what they were doing. There's a reason that God has coveting as the tenth commandment, because when we covet something, we're ready and willing to do whatever we can to get it. It's that important to us. Just by the nature of coveting, we put that thing is more important than God. That breaks the first commandment.

We're willing to put it. It's an idol. It's so important to us. It's an image that we worship. We'll do whatever it takes to get it done. We've taken God's name in vain, obviously, because we said we would follow Him and put Him first in our lives. But now all of a sudden there's this thing or idea or position or whatever it is that now is more important. We'll break the Sabbath day. Because what? If we break the Sabbath day, God understands, right? We'll dishonor mother and father. We'll kill. We'll steal. We'll lie. We'll do whatever we do. Whatever we need to do. You break all the commandments when you covet because it's so overwhelming that's what you want. It drives you.

It drives you. So let's look at a few of these things and just recall a few examples from the Bible of people who have fallen prey to coveting. First one there. You shall not covet your neighbor's wife. Who would be one that we would think about who fell prey to coveting his neighbor's wife?

King David, right? King David. Here's a man after God's own heart who became a man after God's own heart. But somehow in the time of his kingship, he didn't go out to war. He kind of was taking it easy. He was just kind of drifting along, a little complacent, you know, don't have to go out to war. Everyone else can do that for me. I'm the king of Israel. I don't have to do anything. And all of a sudden he's looking at Bathsheba and coveting overtakes him. He wasn't at war. He wasn't putting on his armor every day that God says. And then all of a sudden he's committed adultery with Bathsheba. And he was blind to it all those months. He was blind to it until the prophet came and gave him the story. And then David, to his credit, immediately said, I'm guilty. I repent. And from that time forward, he changed his life. No longer would he lay down, lay down, you know, and be complacent, apathetic, just kind of go through life without thinking what's going on. You know, God, as I was thinking about it, God told David, from here on out, you're going to be at war.

And you know what? David was at war. What God tells you and me is we're at war every day. Don't let down your battle. Don't let put down your armor. Don't just kind of coast along and think it because you know what? When we're asleep, when we're coasting along, Satan has an opportunity to come in our minds, and all of a sudden we become spiritually weak. We have to stay awake. So David is one. But David, to his credit, he, you know, he repented and he changed his life. There was a price to pay for the covenant. I mean, look what David did, right? Not only adultery, he killed, he killed Bathsheba's husband. The baby died. He lied to himself. He lied to God.

If David could do it, could we? You shall not desire your neighbor's house or his field.

Well, there's the story. Remember the story about Ahab and Jezebel. Jezebel was a wicked king. God said Ahab was a queen. Ahab was a wicked king. Remember the story about Naboth and the vineyard? It's in 1 Kings 21. You can look it up later and read it, but you will remember that one day King Ahab is walking out and Naboth has a vineyard right next to his. And Ahab decides, you know, I'd really like to have that as part of my property. So he goes to Naboth and he says, you know, hey, I'll give you this other vineyard. I want this one. I want this one. Naboth refuses. It's in power in my family forever. I'm not going to give it up. He becomes all sullen and he's, you know, and he's crying and weeping and all these things. I can't get what I want. I can't get what I want. And so Jezebel hears him and Jezebel says, don't worry about it. I'm going to get that vineyard for you. You want it. Whatever it takes, you'll have it. And so she gets with some of the people in the land. They decide to accuse Naboth. She sets up two people, two witnesses to say he's blasphemed God or whatever it is they accuse of, he becomes stoned. Nothing's going to keep Ahab from getting that, getting what he wants. And so Naboth dies. Ahab gets the vineyard. But God tells Ahab and Jezebel there's a price to pay. And indeed, later on when Jezebel falls, exactly what God said, the dogs would lick up her blood right from that vineyard where she or she murdered because they wanted that field so badly. We could talk about other things that people have. You remember the story of Achan? Achan went to the Battle of Jericho. He was there. There's this gold. There's these belongings that he wants. It's in Joshua chapter 7, I believe. And he's all alone. He thinks, how can this hurt? I can secretly take this gold. I can secretly take this stuff. If I bury it, what's the harm? What's the harm? I'm not going to flaunt it to Israel. I'm not going to go out and announce it to everyone. Hey, look what I did. I took gold from Jericho, even though God said destroy it all. Don't take any of it and whatever. Achan does it.

Achan does it. And God troubles Israel because, you know, there is nothing hidden that God doesn't reveal. Christ said that Himself. And it is one thing for you and I to remember, there is nothing that is hidden that God won't reveal. And so, as Israel was troubled and Joshua was there, God eventually revealed the problem is Achan. He took the silver. What was the price?

What was the price? Achan lost his life. His whole family lost his life, their lives, because He coveted that gold. He just didn't simply do what God said.

We know there's... we can go talk about in the New Testament Ananias and Sapphira. Remember them from Acts 5? They were there at the time that people were selling their property and giving it all to the apostles so that they could live in that community together. And it would have been very good for your reputation to be able to say, I told my property and I gave it all to the church. And as Ananias and Sapphira saw that happening, they wanted that reputation. They wanted that reputation. They wanted people to look at them and say, look at us. Look how converted we are. Look how dedicated and committed we are. So they went out and they sold their property. And what did they do? They wanted that reputation so badly they lied to God. And the apostles only wanted to give half of it. They could have said we're only giving half. That would have been fine. But they lied to the apostle. God immediately let Peter know what was going on. They died on the spot. What did they do? They coveted so badly that reputation. There is literally everything, anything that we can covet. We can covet our own ideas. We can covet something so much that, you know what, I'm doing it regardless. I don't care what law I break. I don't care what God says. I don't care what anyone else says. I want that so badly I'm doing it anyway. Because it becomes an obsession and something that we look at. Not immediately. Because coveting doesn't become full-blown coveting overnight.

James tells us, you know, where God is talking about coveting, how these things develop in us. So let's go back to James and see what God tells us, what to look out for as we examine ourselves and as we look into who we are and what we're doing. And maybe some of those things that we feel a little bit uneasy with, but we keep justifying, ah, God's okay with that. He says that and he says, do this all the time, but it's okay. It's okay if I do what I want to do a couple of the times and whatever. It's not what God called us to. James 1 and verse 12, he tells us how coveting or really any sin develops. James 1 verse 12, blessed is the man who endures temptation. Thoughts come into our minds. I want to do this. By the way, that sounds like a really good idea. Boy, if that was the scenario, if that's the scenario of the end time, if I know the date, if I know the time, if I know exactly how that prophecy is going to come about, look how special I am.

Or whatever it is, right? Blessed is the man who endures temptation, for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life, which the Lord has promised to those who love him.

Let no one say when he's tempted, I'm tempted by God. God will try us. He doesn't try us because he wants to see us fail. He tries us. He tests us because he wants us to develop the strength to be able to stand right through the end. Now, whatever comes our way, little trials now, little opportunities to trust and rely on him now rather than the world around us, which will become bigger opportunities to rely on him going forward, to come out of the world going forward, to trust in him as time and events intensify as we go on. Let no one say when he's tempted, I'm tempted by God for God can't be tempted by evil, nor does he himself tempt anyone. He tries for the absolute purpose of us being stronger. Satan tempts for the purpose of having us fall. I always got to remember that. Satan wants us to fail. God wants us to call on him and to look to him and develop the strength to rely on him always. Verse 14, each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires. This is what I want, and this becomes really important. I have this little desire, and it grows and grows. What each one is tempted when he's drawn away by his own desires. Notice the word drawn away because there's something going on there and enticed. Then when desire has conceived, I'm doing it. I'm going for it. I'm going for it. I want it, and it's just too strong now. No matter what goes on, I'm doing it anyway. Then when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin. That's what happens when we covet or any sin. It gives birth to sin. If I have to lie to get it, fine. If I have to steal to get it, fine. If I have to slander someone to get it, fine. If I have to break God's Sabbath to get it, fine. If I have to murder to get it, fine. It's important to me. Therefore, all the cards are off the table. I just have to do it. That's human nature at work, unchecked by God, not using the Holy Spirit, not using the self-control that God gives us the gift of if we would stop and think and not just give in to self all the time. When desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin. And sin, when it is full grown, brings forth death. That's the end result of it. So the question for you and me is, what's more important? What we want? How we want to do things? How we want to interpret God's law? Or is it more important to do God's law regardless of the price we pay? Regardless of what sacrifice we need to give? What little idea or what little comfort or what little whatever it is that we might need to give up? Because we are called to agape God with all our hearts, minds, and souls. That means to trust in Him with all our hearts. That means to yield to Him whatever we see a difference between our way and His way. That means using His Holy Spirit and calling on Him when we find ourselves in time of battle and training ourselves, I need you, God. I need your strength. I want to do your way. I want to become what you want me to come. I don't need me anymore or any part of me. That was supposed to be buried. But we learn we spend the rest of our lives burying ourselves as God leads us and directs us. When we see these things, when we begin to feel the tension, we need to check ourselves. And as we're examining ourselves, think, I've got to put that away. If we go back to Revelation 12. Revelation 12.

This is the chapter, of course, where it says that. I'll read verses 10 and 11 here. I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now salvation and strength and the kingdom of our God and the power of His Christ has come for the accuser of our brethren who accused them before our God day and night has been cast down. And how did they overcome Him? When He's cast down to the earth and He is unleashing every every tactic that He has to make the world worse and worse. As Christ says, evil impostors will grow worse and worse. As He enlaces all those attacks on us and as He works in our minds and the things that we do, how do we do it? They overcame Him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony.

They relied on Jesus Christ. They remembered their calling. We talked this last Bible study in Ephesians 1, remembering what God has called us to, drawing our strength from what God has called us to, drawing our strength from Him. Without Him, we cannot survive. Without Him, and on our own, we will simply fail in the years ahead. They overcame Him by the blood of the Lamb only through Jesus Christ, only through yielding to Him, only as we look to pass over, committing to Him, and really, truly committing to Him, not just in word, but in every aspect of our being.

And that includes searching ourselves. What is it? What is it, God, that I need to clean up in my life? And they overcame Him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they didn't agape their lives to death. Agape their lives. And yet, sometimes we agape whatever it is, whatever it is, little idea, position, you name it, right? You name it. That we would put between us and God. We want that so badly. We have a long way to go to be ready for the return of Jesus Christ. He'll get us ready. He will do that if you listen closely, if you allow the Holy Spirit to work with you and guide you and lead you, and if you listen and read closely and aren't in denial, if you wake up, as it says in Ephesians 5, wake up and realize the time we're in. God will get you ready, and He'll see us through as we've talked about in the last couple sermons when we talked about birthing and the pains that are associated with it. That's how, that's the way we get through, not on our own power, not on our own might, but by the Spirit of God and using it. Back in Colossians, Colossians 3.

Colossians 3, verse 1.

It says, if you were raised with Christ, if you really, if you were baptized, and you committed yourself to God, and meant it when you were baptized, that you would follow Him no matter where He leads, do whatever He said, give up whatever it is that He asks us to give up, live our lives as a living sacrifice, as Paul says in Romans 12. If you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above. Keep your eye on that goal. That's the thing that you seek, not recognition, power, approval, all the physical things of the earth. Make your life looking to the spiritual. God will add all those other things, He says, if we seek first His kingdom. If you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth, for you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, appears, then you will also appear with Him in glory. If we do those things that God has called us to do, therefore, He says, you want to be there when Jesus Christ returns? You want eternal life? You want all those things that we talk about, that the Bible talks about? Put to death your members, which are on the earth. Put to death fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil, desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. Put them all away. Put them all away.

We all have some work to do, and as we look to God, He will show us—we don't know everything we need to overcome yet—but He shows us little by little, and if we're examining ourselves, and if we're getting ready for Passover, God will show us the things that He wants us to be overcoming and recognizing this year, and not recognizing just so that we can go to Passover and feel good about ourselves, but a real commitment to not go back to the way we were before, to really change for good for the rest of our lives.

You know, God gives us all different gifts. He gives us all different talents. He knows, as we've talked about, He knows everything that every single one of us has. He has put us all in His body. As we talked about Bible study and many other times, He has put us all in His body for a purpose. He knows exactly what it is He wants us to do. We just have to grow together and see how every joint does perfectly fit together in the way that God said, and all work together to build what God wants us to build. There aren't own lone wolves, as I say. It's a body. It's a body that God is building, and He's building it through His Church. And so we look at the things that we have, but, you know, not everyone, not everyone is given the same gifts. But what is one of the principles that God tells us? What's one of the principles that Paul taught us? Now, Paul gave up a lot when he turned to God. He was kind of this high guy in the Pharisaical realm, and you know what? I go out and I chase these Christians, and I'm given letters by the chief priests. They love what I do.

And then God turned him around on a dime, and Paul willingly lived a life that was miserable. None of us would want what Paul's life was. We look at Paul—I'll use the word hero—as a hero. He gave his life to God. Would any of us have done it the way that Paul did? Wholeheartedly the way he did it? And what did Paul say? Let's go back to Philippians. Philippians 4. Actually, we're in Colossians, so just back one chapter. Philippians 4. In verse 11, he says this, and he, throughout his epistles, as you—this is one of those prison epistles that we talked about—as he was nearing the end of his life, he learned a lot of lessons that he passes on to us. In verse 11, he says, not that I speak in regard to need, for I've learned in whatever state I am to be content.

Whatever state I'm in to be content. If God wants me suffering, okay, that's what I'll do. If God wants me happy and prosperous with lots of money in the bank, fine, that's what I'll do. If he takes it all away from me and I have to learn to live on next to nothing, beg, go out and work, do whatever I need to do with jobs that I don't really want to do, I will do it. Whatever state God puts me in, I will be content. Whatever position he puts me in, I will be content. I'm not going to be one of those people who look and say, I want this, I want that. I'm better than this. I'm not going to be, you know, like, Cora, hey, Moses, what's Moses? I think I could do the job better than Moses can.

God gave Cora his answer. Satan, oh, I could do the job better than the logos can.

We have the answer on that. We know where those aspirations come from. We know where those thoughts come from. They don't come from God. Whatever state you're in, be content. Just do what God has you to do. You know, we talked about the blessings in heaven. We talked about the unity that's in heaven. You know, all those angels that are up there, they're very happy in whatever position they are. You know, Michael's angels aren't looking at him saying, man, I could do the job better than Michael. They're happy to do. They're just happy to be there where God placed them. Whatever angels work with Gabriel, they're not sitting there, I could do the job better than Gabriel. I don't know why he's got the job and me and not me. 24 elders aren't saying, well, you know, I should do this and I should do that. Everyone is happy in the state that God put them in.

Everyone here and in the church, whatever God puts us in, let's be content. Let's have the unity. Let's let's give God the credit that he knows what he's doing. He knows how to build his church. If you and I don't, he does, and our job is to follow him. You know, Paul also says in verse Timothy 6 verse 6, godliness with contentment is great gain. Quit striving for something. God will give you what you need. Have our hearts right before God.

Back in Psalm, Psalm 139.

You know, David, you know, David who fell prey to lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, pride of life, and so many others like him and all of us who have fallen prey to that in our lives sometimes. Lust of the flesh. I want what I want. Lust of the eyes. Oh, I see that. I've got to have it. Oh, the pride of life. Oh, people could just look at me that way and whatever I need to do. You know, David, you know, in Psalm 139 says some deep words for us that as we head toward Passover, maybe we can look at them, we can study and really look at these words this time and do them. Verse 23 of Psalm 139. David says, Search me. Search me, O God, and know my heart.

You know, when you contemplate those words, when you just think about them, search me and know my heart. Show me what it is that I really want. God knows our intents. He knows our motives. He knows what's in our heart. We have to learn sometimes what's in our heart. Sometimes when we learn out, we're kind of stunned that that was really a motivation or whatever. Search me. Do we pray that with something other than words? Search me, God. Would be afraid to have God reveal to us what's really in our hearts? Search me and know my heart. Try me. Put me through the test. Let me see who I'm about because I'm not here. I'm not here for just the here and now. I'm here for eternity, and I know that in order to be there for eternity, I need to become who you want me to become. And I know I'm not there today. Try me and know my anxieties. I need to know those. I need to know what I need to overcome, and then I need your strength in order to do it. See, verse 24, if there's any wicked way in me. Now they've added any. See if there is a wicked way in me. I kind of want to know what it is because I'm not here for me. I'm not here just to fill a couple hours on Saturday afternoons. I'm not here as a social club. I'm here because I know you.

I want to do your will. I understand my calling. See if there's any wicked way in me and lead me in the way everlasting. Lead me in that way. Don't say those words emptily.

Don't say those words emptily and, you know, insult God that way.

Think about them. And as we are here five weeks away, do that. And I asked a while back, could we start a war? Could we be the cause of a war?

We know the Russian leader is the cause of a war. We know his desires were unbridled.

And we see it being played out before us in ridiculously evil ways. But we could do the same thing, not on the scale that he's doing. We could do it with each other. We can do it in our families. We can do it among the Church of God. We all have to be committed to yielding to God, to doing the things, to be on the lookout for covetousness in any sin that's there, because if we allow it to grow in us, if we continue in sin when we know it's sin, and when God reveals it to us, then we're well on the road. To becoming someone who could create that division and that problem in other people's lives, none of us want that. All of us here want each other and everyone else who God calls to be in his kingdom. Let's do our part. Let's do our part in yielding ourselves to God and being here with each other where we can encourage each other to stay on that road.