Fulfilling the Christian Calling

I will get into Part 4 this way. How would you define the converted mind? That's very important to know because how would you know if you're taking it on? How would you know if you're growing in it, truly converted? We want to be converted. We want to be considered converted. We know without having a converted mind, we don't have much of a future, do we? So, how would you define it? Where would you start? Let's build a definition. Let's put one together. So, let's say, number one, you would start with the awareness that you're not self-sufficient. You would start with the awareness that you're not self-sufficient. I know we have the term self-made men, and sometimes they've not done a very good job. But you would start with the awareness that you're not self-sufficient, that you need God. You know, when we talk about needing God, is it that we only need God while we're mortal? Or do we still need Him when we're immortal someday? Again, I always think about a third of the angels led by Lucifer, who came to a point where they didn't need God. They were spirit beings. They didn't need God. What you and I come to realize, and should come to realize, is that we need God now and forever. It's a forever thing. One of God's names is the eternal provider. And you think about it. I have had a number of people over the years say to me, well, how do I know I won't get bored for eternity? Eventually get bored. And of course, I'll have a discussion with them. God's name is provider. He will always provide peace, happiness, joy, plans, purposes, goals. He will always have programs. And of course, that gets down to an issue of faith, obviously. But needing God and needing the relationship with Him, that doesn't stop at the resurrection. We just simply go into a perfect situation at that point in time. If you start with the awareness that you're not self-sufficient, you would be convinced of that and you would go about putting that conviction into action that you need God. You would operate by that and you would actively pursue the fulfilling of those needs through God. That is the beginning of a definition that results in addition. In other words, for addition is growth, increase, change. Okay, number two. This would go hand in hand with a yearning, burning desire for a better way, a better day for you and for the world. In Amarillo, Texas, I was sitting in a waffle house, working on some stuff, having a cup of coffee, and the table next to me had a little boy. And I guess his age was probably, I don't know, four, five. He was very young.

And there were three men, and one of them was obviously his daddy. And they were picking on him. They were aggravating him, all three of them, the daddy included, and they were doing it to get the little boy to say cuss words.

And he'd say cuss words, and they would just die laughing because they thought it was funny for this little boy, four or five, to be using cuss words. And I'm sitting there listening to it, hearing it, cannot avoid hearing it, and I'm thinking, do you not know what you're doing to that little fella? And the fact that you all love doing that, what does that say about the father? And the other two men who loved doing that, that's just why I say that number one point would go along with number two, that it go hand in hand with a yearning and burning desire for a better way, and a better day for us and the world.

You know, if you hear things on the news sometimes, and in fact a lot of times you hear things on the news that are disconcerting, I remember hearing on the news January 2017 about how a mother was being prosecuted for burning her toddler 15 times a cigarette, smoking and then doing, burning the kid, and boyfriend just stood by. The world has got to have a better way. Christ has got to come back, and the heartfelt, gut-deep driving impetus in us to see that better day come. It needs to be a burning fire in our fiber. It really propels us. I mean, we don't have the power to change things right now, but boy, I want to be attached firmly to the hope of the future, to that hope. Because someday there won't be a table next to me where three men, a father included, or aggravating and egging on a little boy, and obviously they taught him the cuss words, or he wouldn't know to say them. Number three, and this generates a willingness to cooperate fully with God. You think about that. You realize you're not self-sufficient. You've got this yearning, burning desire for a better way, a better day, and that plays into generating a willingness to cooperate fully with God. How can God develop me? How can God develop a converted mind if He doesn't have my yieldedness? And in developing that converted mind through the yieldedness to God, that entails submitting to the unity of teamwork. Because we're going to forever be part of a team, a family, an eternal team, an eternal family, to be yoked with Christ. You know, if you look at the church landscape today, now don't you think about this. Look at the greater church of God landscape. How many – and I could name some names. I won't name names, at least not today – but how many go off on their own unilaterally? Their own direction? They're not set within a multitude of counselors? They're not part of a team? They're not submitted to the unity of teamwork? They simply are doing their own thing with no oversight, no checks or balances? I get up here and start preaching false doctrine to you folks. Rick Shaby's going to know it. Steve Myers is going to know it. Gary Petty's going to know it. Manager of Ministerial Services, member of Ministerial Services, and the President and the regional pastor is going to know it. You know why? Because you're going to tell on me. And I know that. Now, that's not why I don't preach. I mean, that's not the reason I don't preach false doctrine. I don't preach false doctrine because I don't want to preach false doctrine. I don't want to condemn myself. I like true doctrine. But there are men who are preaching some false doctrines and there's no oversight over them. There's no checks and balances. There's nobody to call their hand on it. A willingness to cooperate fully with God, to yield to His development, to submit to the unity of teamwork, to be malleable, to be shaped, informed, and fashioned, and to say, not my will, but your will, Father. What does it do? It produces a workable humility in you. It produces, allows great spiritual activity to take place in you. And number four, that spiritual activity works up an appetite, doesn't it?

All that spiritual activity gets you hungry and thirsty. I mean, you go out and get into physical activity and you will build a physical appetite. Well, you get into a lot of spiritual activity and you will get hungry and thirsty. You'll build up an appetite. And what do we do when we're hungry? We feed ourselves. That's about as natural as it gets. We get hungry, we feed ourselves.

And on the nourishing cuisine of the righteousness of God, on the nutrients of His mind, His makeup, His nature, the spiritual things of His.

Okay, that takes us up to point five. And that engenders and molds and implants in us one of the most beneficial and wonderful, valuable, important, and powerful elements that's entailed in the makeup of the mind and nature of God.

And it's because of this beneficial, wonderful, valuable, important, and powerful element that's entailed in the makeup of the mind and nature of God that you and I are here.

That God keeps working with us in spite of our frailties sometimes and our flaws and our shortcomings.

And what I'm talking about is a merciful mind. A merciful mind, a merciful heart. Remember when Christ told the Pharisees, He said, for the hardness of ...

We've got to get this figured out, whatever it takes.

For the hardness of ... Do I need to crowd the mic more?

We'll try this. Maybe I can speak up more.

I'm not hitting on all cylinders today anyway myself, but the hardness of your hearts.

God can't work with a hard heart, and a converted mind is not hard-hearted.

A converted mind has a merciful heart. It's a mind on a positive bent.

It's a mind of being willing to give another chance, another opportunity.

It's a mind that doesn't just say, well, I'm writing you off. That's it. That's just one time too many. I'm writing you off. Don't bother me anymore.

You just don't trouble me anymore. That's it.

It's also a merciful mind, a merciful heart, that gives the benefit of the doubt.

I would extend the benefit of the doubt to you.

It's a mind that's willing to reappraise.

It's a mind of an extended hand, where you reach out a hand to help. It's a mind of a hand held out to help. It's a mind extending opportunity.

And it's a mind that is mellowed in maturity.

I'm not interested in trying to be too dynamic in the way that I give this message, because I'm not hitting on all cylinders today.

But the content, these things to think about.

It's a mind finding no joy in vengeance.

Do we realize how much of mankind takes joy in vengeance?

They get on avenge and they take joy in it.

It's easy to show that and prove it. It's a mind, though, that takes no joy in vengeance.

It doesn't participate in vengeance. It takes no pleasure in harming and hurting.

I don't like to see people hurt. I don't like to see them harmed.

It has no anticipation for such.

One of God's most outstanding attributes is the merciful mind.

Ezekiel 33 In verse 11, Ezekiel 33, in verse 11, says this, Say to them, As I live, says the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked.

There will come a time when God is finished with all of mankind, and the plan of salvation has been fully and totally, completely processed with mortality with mankind, where there will be those who will experience the second death in the lake of fire.

That is scriptural, and I probably in due time will give a sermon on that.

But God says, I take no pleasure in that.

It is something that will need to be done of pure necessity when you understand the reasons.

But it is not pleasurable for God. He takes no pleasure in it.

Chapter 18, verse 32 It is interesting how God repeats it.

You find things like this mentioned many times more than once, for emphasis, but it is so intrinsic to God's makeup. For I have no pleasure in the death of Him that dies, says the Lord God.

Wherefore, turn yourselves and live. For I have no pleasure in the death of Him that dies.

When God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, He didn't take any pleasure in it. It was something that had to be done.

When He washed all of mankind off the face of the earth, except for Noel and his family, God took no pleasure in it. It was something that had to be done, and He did that which had to be done.

But God wants us to develop the same kind of mind where we take no pleasure in others being harmed, we take no pleasure in seeing others hurt, we take no pleasure in vengeance, no joy, that we don't have anticipation for such. He wants us to have a mind that is mellowed. Now, we're not talking about softheadedness. We're talking about softheartedness. God is not softheaded. He's softhearted, but He's not softheaded, and there is a difference.

And He wants us to have, want to say a mind, a converted mind. Obviously, we're incorporating the heart into that, obviously, but mellowed in the magnitude of mercy. A magnitude that rises above the petty things, this is the big picture, the mind that is elevated above the immediate hurts and harms and hindrances, because you will get harmed. You will get hurt.

You will get hindered. And you got to rise above that to keep in view the big picture and what God expects of you so that by you maintaining and growing in what needs to be a view of your heart and your mind, the converted mind, that you can join Him in eternity in due time. But to the ultimate outcome, to what can and will be in the final outcome, and frankly, we have to come to a point, and if we are growing and developing in the converted mind, we will come to a point where we get beyond the limitations of the carnal mind that needs vengeance and retaliation.

How many, let's be honest about it, how many of you have family members? How many of you have friends? How many of you have relatives? How many of you have neighbors? Have co-workers? That if something is done against them, whether it's insult or injury, they're going to immediately counter-strike. They're going to strike back, verbally, physically, whatever, because that's the natural human way. And it's been that way for 6,000 years. And God says, okay, I understand that that's the natural way, but I'm asking you not to be natural. I'm asking you to be like me and develop my mindset, develop the converted mind.

You know, look at life. Look at this life. So much of this life, this time of mortality, is made up of hurt. There's not one of us in this room that hasn't been hurt by others. There's not one of us in this room that's not been harmed by others. There's not one of us in this room that's not been hindered. And may be felt, to some degree, the desire within us to take some kind of vengeance or retaliation. Now, obviously, let's just be very plain about it.

Say, in our pre-conversion days, we probably practiced that as much as we could, as far as retaliating. But again, God's called us to leave that kind of stuff behind. And He wants us to have a mind that begins leaving behind those carnal snares and traps of wounded human nature. A mind that can be free of the carnal need for condemnation and retaliation. A mind that begins to feel and experience a special freedom. And it is a freedom, because when you don't feel a need to have to retaliate, and again, we're not talking about the issue of stopping evil.

We're not talking about that. But the freedom from feeling the need to condemn or to retaliate. Well, He did that to me, but wait and see what I'm going to do to Him. He thinks He got away with that. Watch how I get Him back. We leave all that behind. And it's a special freedom that comes from forgiveness. The forgiveness that we extend to others, even as we have been extended forgiveness. To be free from the shackles of hate. You know, hate shackles us. People are prisoners of hate. The shackles of hate and vengeance, again, that hold so many of mankind.

On this planet, there are tribes, there are nations. There are, you might call them sub-nations, almost. But there are people, people who have been enemies for generations. This thing with Hamas and Israel, and what Hamas did on October the 7th. Again, I think about how the shackles of hate and vengeance control go to my ear. And I've said this before, but boy, what a classic statement.

Go to my ear, the late Go to my ear, who was Prime Minister of Israel, obviously quite a few years ago at this point, the Detroit housewife became Prime Minister. Go to my ear said, when the Arabs, or Palestinians, when the Palestinians love their children more than they hate us, then we'll have peace. What kind of parent, shackled by what kind of hate and vengeance, can help strap on a suicide vest on an 11-year-old, hold a celebration, hold a celebration for the event that's about to happen, and send them to the point in the crowd, wherever it is, to set that off and kill Jews.

There is, there is, there are bars, there are shackles of hate and vengeance that nobody can free them from in this age. We will take the Kingdom of God on this earth. But God calls us to raise our eyes to a higher calling that rises above this carnal plain, and it is, I mean, even as we observe it. But a merciful mind, a special calling, a special freedom, and you know what? It clears your conscience.

It's easy to lay your head on your pillow at night with a clear conscience and have peace of mind, calmness of spirit, and sleep. And it lets your motives become pure. And that is part of the true liberty in Christ. And that brings me up to point 6, as the way I'm numbering these. All of that helps produce a purity of motive. These points are progressive. One is progressing to the next. They're cumulative.

One becomes part of the foundation for the next one. They're progressive, they're cumulative. And so that's why point 6, all that helps produce a purity of motive. What is a motive of purity? Because we all have motives. Motivations, those are the things that move us. We do according to our motivations and all. So what is a motive of purity? If that all helps produce a motive of purity, what is a motive of purity? It's a motive without guile. It's a motive without devious design. It's a motive that is above board. It's a motive that's not underhanded. It's not ulterior. Nothing to hide.

It's a motive of simple and sincere desire and design, which leave you clear-eyed, clean-minded, clear of conscience, which again generates a proper confidence and boldness, confident assurance. Hebrews 4 and verse 16.

This is what comes out of that. Let us therefore come boldly. See, a motive of purity, a pure motive, pure motives, does allow us to come before God, to come into the throne of grace boldly. And it's interesting that we may obtain mercy.

God is extremely merciful and finds grace to health in time of need, but boldly to where we can come with confident assurance, boldness, before the throne. And point 7. When you're flowing along this progressive flow, kind of a chronology, what results is you feel you experience a strong sense of peace. A strong sense of peace, first with God, and with yourself, and with others. You do begin to know the true peace of God. You feel right with God. Boy, how that affects each day, feeling right with God.

And out of this begins to come the basis for being right with others, a basis for being right with others, at peace with them. Out of this begins to come the basis for peace, for the product of peace. And you begin to be a force for peace, maybe a small one, but still you are an additional force for peace. You begin to be a peacemaker. And you're at peace with God. You're at peace with God.

And again, you therefore can be at peace with yourself. Because you ever notice when you can be at peace with God, you are at peace with yourself. And that's the true beginning of being able to make peace with others, to function as a peaceable force with others, to work towards peace with others, to reflect the product of peace and desires and dealings, even as you're being more fully formed as a product of peace, peacemakers.

That is the definition of a converted mind. This is the accurate definition and description of a converted mind. This is why these things were spoken to only His disciples, those that He was bringing into the process. This is Matthew 5.

This is verses 3-9. These points, these seven that I have gone through, I was talking about these seven points. Because it is a progression. The poor in spirit there in Matthew 5 verses 3-9. The poor in spirit. They that mourn. The meek. They that hunger and thirst for righteousness. The merciful. The pure in heart. The peacemakers. This is why these were spoken only to His disciples, those that He was bringing into the process, because He wanted them to have a converted mind. The multitudes had a carnal mind.

They weren't called to have a converted mind at that point in time. Their time will come in the last great day. But these are the very things, these seven scriptures, poor in spirit, they that mourn, etc. These are the very things that we have just described. I just used a little bit different wordage. But you go back and look at those seven points and then compare them to these seven. That's what we're talking about. These are the defining elements of the converted mind, and this is the accurate definition of a mind like God's. This is the guide and framework for having a mind like God's.

It's where it begins. And to maintain it, you have to stay in this frame that's laid out here. Think about it. It's not complicated. It's so basic. And yet it's so comprehensive. It's so simple, and yet it is so expansive. The definition of a converted mind is found in those verses.

If a person does not identify with those, they're not converted. If a person doesn't come to the point where they can identify with those, they cannot be converted. If a person does not accept and grow in those, they can't grow in the mind of God, the supreme converted mind, the epitome of the converted mind. If a person does not accept and grow in them, well, there's no chance of conversion ever taking place in them. Think about it.

Our success depends on God backing us. Our success depends on God giving us of His power in His help, through His Spirit, through Christ. It depends on us making the growth that's necessary. And that has to come from God, but we have to do our responsible part to do our best to fit within that framework in which it can occur.

It's this definition, and I'll go back to Matthew 5. It's this definition when it's put in place and it's practiced that produces the light. That's why he says in verse 14, you are the light of the world. You're the light of the world because when that is all applied and you are of a converted mind and God is working with you and developing you and His Spirit is flowing through Christ into you, made possible by Christ, it makes you be light.

It produces the light. You reflect the light of God in you because it's a converted mind. It reflects the light because you are preserving through practice what you have been given. And you find that in verse 13 as we talk about salt. You're the salt of the earth. Salt is a preservative. And so you have the light, just like verse 16 to go back down there, Let your life so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father, which is in heaven.

Let your life so shine before men. It will shine. The more you fit, verses 3 through 9, the more your light will shine because you're going to be practicing it. You're going to be preserving it with practice. And what you truly preserve in your being, salt, is illustrated in your living. That's light. Did you know you're the salt of the earth? We're the salt of the earth. And you don't find us piled up in one place, do you? We're sprinkled all over and sprinkled very widely. But we're the salt of the earth projecting the light of God.

Now, take the definition away. In other words, remove that definition. In other words, don't fulfill that definition. Don't practice that definition. The salt loses its savor. The light dies out. It down and dies. And I know that's something easy for us to understand.

That's why Christ put us there. So, if the definition of a converted mind generates the light of God because these things of God, that mind is preserved like salt, then therefore, anything that diminishes or undoes the definition of the converted mind diminishes the savor of the salt, the preservative power of it, and dims the light. Maybe even to the point of turning it out. I started off talking about defining the converted mind.

Okay, let's move on to another aspect. Instead of necessarily talking now about the definition of the converted mind, let's talk about maintaining it. Maintaining it. Because defining it is one thing. Seeking it and attaining to it, yes, maintaining it is another issue, especially if it has enemies. And it most certainly does have enemies. Probably prime as an enemy of the mind of God, probably prime as an enemy of the mind of God, the converted mind, is what is listed or dealt with in Matthew 5, verses 21 through 24.

Matthew 21, verse 21 through 24. You've heard that it was said by them of old time, You shall not kill, and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment. But I say to you, that whosoever is angry with his brother without cause shall be in danger of the judgment, and whosoever shall save his brother, Raka, shall be in danger of the counsel, but whosoever shall save you fools shall be in danger of hellfire.

Therefore, if you bring your gifts to the altar, and then remember that your brother has ought against you, leave there your gift before the altar, and go your way. First, be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Now, it's interesting in this sermon on the Mount that he talks about, and if I use one word to express the core of what he's talking about here, it gets down to the issue of this one word, anger. Anger. He puts this in right after, you know, defining the converted mind in all of that, because if there's anything that can take you out of the framework of a converted mind, if there's anything that can diminish the practice of such, it is anger.

This is the element, the emotion, that stands the greatest chance of undoing the mind and purposes of God in our lives. And you think about what anger has caused over the years. Moses striking the rock in anger cost him being able to lead physical Israel into the physical promise man. He repented of it, but it cost him, instead of him getting to lead physical Israel into the physical promise land, Joshua was used for that. There's probably no emotion that is more common to and more often with man. I mean, I will head to Gadsden after a while, and obviously there's the possibility that something will happen on the highway or somebody will give me a very close call that scares me or runs me off the road, or I have to take evasive action, and immediately I'll feel anger at that because something happened that shouldn't have happened, and I will feel anger.

It's the natural emotion. It's not something unnatural. Of course, also it has to be processed properly, too. It can take control, and it can do a lot of wreckage. There's probably no emotion that is more common to and more often with man, and there's no doubt it's the most intense. We see classic cases of rage, where a man goes out here and kills a bunch of people and then kills himself. We see road rage, where anger has taken over the person, and they do things that if they didn't have that anger, they would think twice about. But they get angry, and they do things, and that anger, it's like they're out of control.

And they are. Some of these folks are just out of control. I want to be clear on one thing. Anger, on itself, is not wrong. Look with me at Ephesians 4, 26. Anger of itself is not wrong, but it has to be processed properly. Ephesians 4, in verse 26, Paul said, Be you angry. He knows that there are going to be things that cause anger. And just anger, per se, is not sin. But he does say sin not, and sin not. Make sure that any time, whenever you deal with anger, what are the reasons?

You've got to be careful not to let sin occur in that anger. But not the sun go down upon your wrath. There is no prohibition on anger, per se, but the prohibition is on unbridled anger. Anger on a rampage, anger that's uncontrolled, anger improperly directed, improperly processed. Again, I tend to think that, since anger itself is not as sin and humans being what they are, that they don't always take seriously the injunction to handle anger properly. And I apply that to church members sometimes.

If you let go of the reins of anger, like a horse that you're riding, and you've got the reins in your hand, if you let go of the reins of anger, it can take you where it wants to take you. And believe me, it will. It'll take you.

I find it interesting here in verse 26 that, Be you angry and sin not, don't let the sun go down upon your wrath. And what is right on the heels of that verse? Neither give place to the devil. The devil is connected with anger there. He's connected with anger. And when Paul told the Corinthians in 2 Corinthians 2 verse 11, when he said, For we are not ignorant of his devices, and he told the Ephesians in Ephesians 6 and 12, for we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but wicked spirits, if there is one thing that Satan really will use as much as he can maximize it, that's anger.

And again, look at road rage. Look at, we all can think of some wreckage and breakage that's been done. You know examples and cases of great harm and hurts and destructions done because of anger, someone's anger. Tell me something. Where does hatred start? Where does hatred start? Where does it originate? Well, basically with anger. With anger. Where does bitterness begin? With anger. Because bitterness is a fruit, is a fruit of not properly processing anger. Look at verse 26 again.

Be you angry and sin not. Don't let the sun go down upon your wrath because what he's talking about there is there's going to be sin involved if you let your anger become institutionalized in you. It can be in the form of a grudge. It can be in the form of hatred. It can be in the form of bitterness towards somebody. What happens when a person gets so angry they don't care what happens? I've dealt with people like that who in their anger, they didn't care what happened. The only thing that mattered was satisfying their anger. Where does condemnation, let not the sun go down upon your wrath, a hurt, a grudge becomes institutionalized.

Roots of bitterness develop and they grow and they expand. And there's great sin involved. This has the power to take you out of a converted mind, to destroy the converted mind in you. Where condemnation and unforgiveness begins with anger, it feeds revenge and vengeance. Anger itself is not a sin, but boy does that have to be properly processed and you can't give it free reign. Psychologists will tell you that many times discouragement and depression is the effect of deep angers.

Not always, but so many times discouragements and depressions can be traced back to deep-set angers. There's a connection with anger in the vast majority of cases. So the whole point is anger is too dangerous to just dally around with. It's got to be set when the framework of Godly checks and balances doesn't it? Given free reign, it will destroy a person. And it has destroyed some people. You know, for some, this is probably the greatest challenge for some, because it's a real struggle. Some people, you know, those two sons of thunder, they had tempers and they got angry. And they had to learn to properly process their anger because what Christ told them, they're on that mountain in Matthew 5, John and James.

What he told them along with the other disciples, John and James, they had a lot of work to do in taking on the converted mind. And of course, they did in time. They did. But they obviously had an anger issue. It's just too dangerous to just not put it within checks and balances.

You can't give it free reign. Because that is some people's spiritual Waterloo. Here's the thing, and I've seen this happen. I have seen people get so angry and angry, be so deep-stayed in them, that it became their spiritual Waterloo and destroyed God's work in them. I've had to deal with people that would be so angry that there was nothing I could say that would appeal to them. There was nothing I could say that would bring them out of it. There was nothing that I could say that would convince them to turn loose of their anger.

They were justified, they were right, they were going to satisfy their anger, no matter what. And it destroyed the converted mind in them. Anger, unbridled, unchecked, destroys. Guess what it destroys? It destroys the poor in spirit. When you're dealing with somebody who's really angry and they say, I don't care, don't you want to be in God's kingdom? I don't care. Don't you want to be happy? I don't care. When they are so mad, either at God or at another human being.

Think about it. Poor in spirit, they don't care what their needs are. If they're too angry to care what those needs are, their mind becomes turned against someone. It could be God. And the focus is on certain hard feelings they have towards someone. And a peacemaker? I could care less about having peace with that person. In fact, I'm not even sure I want to be in the kingdom if that person is going to be there, because I don't even want to be in the same room with them.

Hunger and thirst for righteousness? No, that doesn't satisfy, because I want to satisfy my anger. He hurt me. She hurt me. They hurt me. I've been done dirty. I'm mad. And I'm justified to be mad. And anything that I do in retaliation, it is justified. Hunger and thirst for righteousness? That doesn't satisfy. When a person gets caught up and controlled by anger, what satisfies them is the carnal satisfaction of being able to vent their anger and do what they want to in their anger.

So, in meek, there goes the mildness, there goes the gentleness.

Soothing nature? Mm-mm.

Merciful? Anger will keep you from taking anything off of anybody.

Yeah, I remember a woman years ago, a member of the church. She brought her fist up and she says, Somebody punches me, I'm punching them back. I thought, well, that's a good Christian attitude. Now, I don't blame you for getting out of the way so you can't get punched. But it's interesting what you run into. No, the element of anger contains the potential to wreck the converted mind totally and fully from beginning to end. It's the crossroads of your Christianity because it's a natural part of your makeup that can be stimulated at any given time by something that happens. You're never far from the opportunity to have something happen that can stimulate anger. But processed properly, it's no impediment. You recognize, well, I'm angry and I've got right to get angry because that shouldn't have been done, but I must process this properly. Or the sin that was committed, I will be joining in sin with them by not processing this properly because it doesn't have the power to destroy a person. I've dealt with those who have quit the church because they got angry. They got angry at somebody in the congregation, or they got angry at home office, or they got angry at some ministry and they quit. I've dealt with somebody recently that quit because they wanted the church to change its teaching on a certain teaching. And it's a teaching that's been vetted going all the way back into worldwide days, been looked at and looked at, and there's no need to change it because we have it right. We've got it correct. And I got informed in recent times by the person that they wouldn't be back because the church won't change its teaching. They got mad. They got angry. And so they've broken off fellowship with us. It's what anger can do. It's what anger can do. And that's why this is one of the prime things that Satan will use if it's not processed properly. And we really do have to process it because it can take us out and destroy us. Anyway, in defining and maintaining the converted mind, this potential enemy cannot go unchecked. So, I might stay more on it a little bit later time, but I'll let that suffice for today.

Thank you.