Pentecost

Well, brethren, let's consider the very first countdown to Pentecost. You know we're supposed to count 50 from the Sabbath during the days of Unleavened Bread. So there is a countdown every year from the days of Unleavened Bread to Pentecost. So let's consider the very first countdown to Pentecost from the very first Passover. Were those 50 days filled with tests for the Israelites, or were they on Easy Street? How did it go for the children of Israel on that first countdown to Pentecost?

And also, what about now? Do any of you have any tests as Christians? Does God test His people from time to time? Have you had any tests or trials these past 49 days since the Sabbath during the days of Unleavened Bread? Now, I would think that some of you have had some trials. I know in our congregation in Dallas there are a few that have been out of work for a while. I know that's a trial. That is a challenge. That's a test in regard to their attitude and their approach toward not having that job and not becoming overly anxious but trusting God and having faith and watching their savings go down and wondering how bad is it going to get.

That can be a test. Also, I just recently heard from another area. I think I'm the regional pastor and sometimes I hear things from different church areas. Sometimes pastors send me emails and ask for some advice on things. I got an email from a pastor who was basically saying that one of his members was not going to be allowed to get Pentecost off of work.

They were expected to work on the day of Pentecost on Sunday. It was a big company and so it was going to be a problem for this particular person. It was a test regarding her faith and trust in God and how much she believed in observing the Sabbath and not working on the Sabbath. Some of you, I'm sure, have some severe health trials. Even now, some of us are getting older.

Every day is a severe health trial. For some of us, as we try to get out of bed, I'm not that bad yet. I could get out of bed and I'm getting down the steps. No, that's not bad either. I'm still okay with that. I certainly am a little different. I used to bound down the steps, like four at a time. Now I kind of just shuttle down the steps a little bit until I get warmed up, until I have my coffee.

Then I feel better. There's always going to be health trials upon God's people. I just mentioned Miranda Patton and what she's been through. We're all very aware that there are continual health issues. We are still in the flesh, aren't we? God does not make us supermen and superwomen.

That just isn't happening while we're still in the flesh. There will continue to be trials and problems. Some people have life-threatening illnesses from time to time. Some people have deaths in the family that become real, severe trials and tests. In regard to one's attitude, I already mentioned the financial tests that can come along. There are many ways to be tested. Of course, God allows Satan to tempt us, too, doesn't he? Sometimes we give in to that temptation. We're also being tested as to whether or not we will obey God or whether or not we will sin against God.

We might ask, what tests did the Israelites face on that first countdown to Pentecost? Maybe you've never really thought of it or looked into it. We'll talk about that some today. What about in the New Testament? What tests did Christ's disciples face on their countdown to Pentecost right after Christ was crucified? Did they have any tests? What trials do we face today in God's church, as God's people, as we countdown to Pentecost?

How do we overcome our trials and tests? How do we endure these trials and tests? How do we pass our tests? A title for today's sermon is Pentecost, Passing our Tests in Life. Pentecost, passing our tests in life. There are certainly tests that have centered around the day of Pentecost and the countdown to Pentecost.

The Holy Spirit makes all the difference in the world when it comes to passing our tests in life. I hope we all realize that. If we yield to God's Spirit and we allow God's Spirit to lead and guide us, we will pass all of our tests in life. If we're yielding to God, in fact, we will pass them with flying colors if we're truly yielding to God and to His Spirit and allowing His Spirit to guide us, to move us, to inspire us. If we fail to yield to the Spirit of God and we sin against God, what will we do then? Will we harden our hearts and continue to defy God and continue to sin against Him? Or will we seek repentance and forgiveness for our sins? These are all tests. If you sin against God, you're going to be tested as to whether or not you're going to continue down that path or if you're going to repent and stop heading down that path and get yourself on the right track. So let's consider the trials and tests that besought the Israelites after that first Passover observance. Let's go back to Exodus 14. Now, we're quite familiar with the story, so I'm not going to read a lot of the verses here. But you remember that the children of Israel were headed toward the Red Sea and they're getting into the Red Sea, basically, and they look behind and they notice that, hey, Pharaoh is after us again. Pharaoh has not given up. Pharaoh let God's people go, but then he changed his mind and he decided that he was going to go after them.

So some of them were greatly tested at that point. In fact, they complained. They were concerned that they were all going to die at the hand of Pharaoh's army, or they were certainly going to be drugged back into Egypt. So there was an issue there and they were complaining to Moses, and Moses told them to stand still and see the salvation of the Lord. Moses had faith. He believed that God was going to deliver them. But remember what God said. He said, hey, get them moving. They can't just stand around and count completely on me. They need to move forward. They need to get through the Red Sea. Because the plan was to cover up the Egyptians in the Red Sea. So they had to get started. They had to get moving through the Red Sea. And we know that's what happened. The Egyptians got swallowed up in the Red Sea. God protected them. Let's look at Exodus 14 verse 31 for a moment. Well, it says in verse 30 that, "...so the Eternal saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. They drowned in the sea. Thus Israel saw the great work which the Eternal had done in Egypt. They were impressed. God had poured plague after plague upon Egypt. He basically decimated that land, the most powerful country on earth at the time. He decimated the land, and then now He's drowned the greatest army on earth in the sea.

So they saw the great work which the Eternal had done in Egypt. So the people feared the Lord. They feared God and believed the Eternal and His servant Moses." Now, one thing that you'll notice about the children of Israel is they're not always real consistent.

Now, sometimes they react properly, and they see things more clearly than at other times because the truth of the matter is, they're a stiff-necked people, right? And I'm afraid all humans are somewhat stiff-necked. That would include you and me, believe it or not. We all have to fight that, don't we? And we see it in our children. They get stiff-necked. They don't necessarily want you to do what you have in mind. They want to do what they have in mind, and they can be quite resistant. And we've all experienced that if we have children. So, the children of Israel were no different. There were times when they exemplified greater faith than at other times. But again, not very consistent. In Exodus, actually, they were more consistent in being stiff-necked and rebellious than anything else. Let's go to Exodus 15, where it talks about the Song of Moses. If you haven't read this song in a while, I would encourage you to do that. Because it is a very encouraging song, and it goes through how God saved the children of Israel that day and how He protected them. In verse 13, it says, So God was taking them to the Promised Land. Now, they weren't there by any means, but they were on their way to that Holy Habitation where they were to dwell, the Promised Land. Of course, that's also symbolic of the ultimate Holy Habitation, when we will be born into the family of God and we'll live forever with God. God is out to save His people, not just from physical things, but spiritually to save us forever. So here, they show some faith. This song is written, and they all are excited about being protected and so forth. But then, let's notice down in verse 22, there were two million people all becoming quite thirsty, and there is no water.

So, when they came to Mara, they could not drink the waters of Mara. I'm sure they were all excited because they saw the water, but then they realized that the waters were bitter. Therefore, the name of it was called Mara, and the people complained against Moses, saying, What shall we drink?

So he cried out to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a tree, and when he cast it into the waters, the waters remained sweet. So, miraculous. God, again, delivers the children, but they were tested. And what did they do? Did they all wait patiently, or did they begin to complain? Well, some of them, we know, complained. I'm sure there were some who were not so quick to complain.

There was probably a wide difference in how people were reacting. Some were more passive, some were more agitated. People's temperaments and personalities really come out under certain tests like this. Some were more patient than others. It says in verse 27 that they came to Elam, where there were 12 wells of water and 70 palm trees. Now, that may sound like a lot, but again, 2 million people.

God was certainly protecting them and watching over them and blessing them. They camped by the waters. They actually had some shade. But God was testing them. Now, in chapter 16, verse 1, they journeyed from Elam, and all the congregation of the children of Israel came to the wilderness of sin, which is between Elam and Sinai on the 15th day of the second month, after they departed from the land of Egypt. So, again, they're on their way to Pentecost.

They're counting down to Pentecost. They're moving. They're traveling. Then the whole congregation of the children of Israel complained. Now, it says, the whole congregation complained. Now, if that's truly literal, maybe Joshua and Caleb weren't complaining. There might have been a few that weren't complaining, but the vast majority of the congregation of Israel were complaining against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness.

And the children of Israel said to them, Oh, that we had died by the hands of the Eternal in the land of Egypt when we sat by the pots of meat, and we ate bread to the full.

So, they remembered the food and the drink that they had back in Egypt. And they weren't happy campers, frankly. They were camping, but they weren't all that happy. It says, For you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.

You, Moses, have done it. Notice they're turning on the leadership. They're saying, You're to blame. But the Eternal said to Moses, Behold, I will reign bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a certain quota every day, that I may test them. Okay, so that proves my point. God was testing them on the way to Pentecost. And God will continue to test his people, not just on the way to Pentecost, but throughout our lives on the way to the kingdom of God.

We will continually be tested along the way, that I may test them whether they will walk in my law or not, and it shall be on the sixth day that they shall prepare what they bring in, and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily. So on the preparation day, it worked for them to gather twice as much. It didn't stink. It didn't spoil. It was fine.

But when they tried to store up some on other days, that was a different story. You know, God was testing them daily. You know, would they obey God? Would they do what he said? Would they trust him and collect exactly what he said to collect, even though some of them were fighting their attitudes? Okay, I'm going to get more, just in case he doesn't come through tomorrow.

Then I'll have a little extra. That's not how God wants us to look at him. He wants us to trust him. He said he would provide daily for them, and that's what he was doing. Giving them just enough mana. They were to collect just enough mana so that they would need more the next day, and he would provide for it.

So he was testing them to see how obedient they would be. Verse 7, Moses says, And in the morning you shall see the glory of the Lord, for he hears your complaints against the Eternal. So Moses turned the tables on him and said, You're really complaining to God, you're not really complaining to me. You're complaining to God, but what are we that you should complain against us? Think about it. What could Moses really do with two million people out in the wilderness? I mean, his hands were tied, weren't they? He had no power of himself to deliver the children of Israel. So why are they complaining to Moses?

Instead of saying, Well, we're all in this together, we're out here, and God's been with us, he's revealed his power to us, he's promised us. We'll have complete faith, and trust him, and we'll just follow Moses faithfully, and we won't allow anything to change our minds. None of us will complain. Well, that's not the way it works. Because there is still human nature in all of us, and Satan is still alive, and he is also trying to work against us, he wants to tempt us to sin.

God will test us, but he won't tempt us. He does allow Satan to tempt us, but the result is we'll be tested whether or not we're going to obey God or not. In Exodus 17, I don't think we'll take the time to read about it here, but there was no water again, and they were complaining. They ran out of water, and they're complaining again, rather than just being patient.

They should have really been patient, right? No complaints? Well, probably, but I'm not too sure you and I would do a lot better under the circumstances, although hopefully we would. If we've had God's Spirit dwelling in us for a number of years, you would hope that we would be more patient, more like Joshua, more like Caleb, more like Moses, and not like the majority of the people. I would expect that to happen.

I would expect the best out of you people, and me too. But we may find out someday, because God may test us as to whether or not we will be complainers, or we will trust God and be patient. So there were complaints in Raphidim because there was no water. Moses struck the rock there, and water came out. They asked, is the Lord among us or not? They doubted. They fought with Amalek there, and remember that's when Moses held up. Moses had his hands held up by Aaron and her, because every time he would put his hand down, they would start losing the battle.

So it had to be a team effort, and God was blessing them, but only when they were working together. So the leadership has to work together, and the members have to work together. That's what I get from that. When we all do our part, and we all work together, then God will bless us.

And when we complain, and we bicker against each other, then we're not going to be blessed. We're failing the tests. So there will be tests ahead. In Exodus 19, the children of Israel said, whatever you say, we will do. Whatever you say, God, whatever it is, we'll do it. And then the Ten Commandments are given, and then shortly after that, they're bowing before a golden calf. They didn't exactly follow through on that, did they? Again, that's the stiff-necked, doubting Israelites. The law was likely given on Pentecost.

I don't know that you can actually prove it from the Bible, but many people believe that it's likely that the law was given on the day of Pentecost. You know, they showed how much they feared God. God was thundering the Ten Commandments, and they were all frightened. They really didn't want God that close to them.

So there was a problem there. They didn't really love God and trust Him enough. They feared Him more than they loved Him and trusted Him, and that's part of our test. Learning to love God and to trust Him, to have faith in Him and to believe in Him and know that He will provide for us. So again, they continued to be tested. After the Golden Cap incident, they discovered what they called giants in the land. They were supposed to go into the Promised Land. They sent the spies in there. Ten of them said, Oh, no way! These guys are giants! They had the grasshopper mentality. We're like grasshoppers in their eyes. They said, we're like grasshoppers in our eyes. We are grasshoppers in our own eyes. That's how they looked at it. Rather than saying, with God on our side, who is the true giant, God is the biggest of all and the most powerful of all, He is the real giant. They had Him on their side, but instead, they were not trusting in God. They were not willing to go in and take the land at the time, even though Joshua and Caleb encouraged them to get in there and take the land, trust God, have faith. They yielded to God's Spirit, and so they passed the test. But the other ten who will remain nameless, because you don't remember them anyway. You remember Joshua and Caleb, but you don't remember the other ten, because who wants to remember ten doubting, unfaithful people?

But Joshua and Caleb, we well remember their names, and they were trusting in God and having faith in God. But unfortunately, the children of Israel ended up wandering in the wilderness for 40 years. Even then, God took care of them on a daily basis, because there are 2 million of them. They're having babies, no doubt. There's probably more and more all the time. There's not enough water to feed 2 million people continually out in the wilderness. There's not enough food. God was providing manna, He was providing quail for them, He was providing food and water and keeping them alive throughout the 40 years in the wilderness. Even their shoes were not wearing out. Their clothing was not wearing out. God was blessing them. But He was also testing them along the way. We know that the Sabbath was one of the key commandments and a test commandment. As I mentioned earlier, God even continues to test us in regard to the Sabbath. Will we compromise? How will we observe the Sabbath? Even if we're not working on the Sabbath, as far as being gainfully employed, will we keep the Sabbath in the way God intended? Is the Sabbath a delight? Is that how we look at the Sabbath? Is it a time when we're not seeking our own will and we're not speaking our own words? We're putting God first in our lives? And again, we're looking to Him. So the Sabbath continues to be a test every week. Every Sabbath, once a week. You've got 24 hours where you're going to be tested as to whether or not you're going to obey God and really strive to keep the Sabbath in a way that's pleasing to Him, and that's right and good in His sight, or whether or not you're going to compromise.

So we see that there were plenty of tests on the way to Pentecost, that very first Pentecost. God was testing His people. Now let's go to the New Testament and let's consider were there any tests going on right after Christ died? Well, we all remember the big test that Peter had just before Christ was crucified. Remember Peter said, I will never deny you, no matter what. You can always count on me. And then He denies Him three times. The very night that Jesus was taken and then shortly thereafter crucified, Peter was being tested and he failed the test three times. The rooster crowed and he felt horrible because he knew that he had failed the test. Let's go to Luke chapter 24. Luke chapter 24.

And let's read a little bit here in verse 1. Now on the first day of the week, very early in the morning, very early, probably not even light yet, it was very early in the morning, they and certain other women with them came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared, but they found the stone rolled away from the tomb and they went in and did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.

And it happened as they were greatly perplexed about this, that behold, two men stood by them in shining garments. Then as they were afraid and bowed their faces to the earth, they said to them, why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen. Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee. He told them that He would die and that He would be resurrected. That He would rise. So instead of going there knowing that He would be gone, they went there doubting.

They didn't grasp it. You know, they didn't really get what He had been telling them. But the angels, the two angels here, verse 7, saying, The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, and the third day rise again. And they remembered His words.

So they had forgotten His words, then they remembered His words. They returned from the tomb and told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. Of course, Judas Iscariot was dead, who had committed suicide. It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them, who told these things to the apostles, and their words seemed to them like idle tales. And they did not believe them.

So they're saying that the Christ is risen, but others are not believing them. But Peter arose and ran to the tomb, and stooping down, he saw the linen clothes lying by themselves, and he departed, marveling to himself at what happened. So Peter is starting to believe now. Still somewhat doubtful, but his faith is building. And then it goes through the incident on the road to Emmaus. It's always puzzled me why they didn't recognize Jesus after He talked to them for quite a while. But they didn't really understand who they were talking to. So I don't know if He was just blind, you know, kind of blinded them, or just for a time, or exactly how He manifested Himself at that time.

But it's interesting to consider, to speculate on. So He's talking to them and telling them about these events, these things that are happening. Verse 19, So they said to Him the things concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet, mighty indeed and word before God and all the people, and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to be condemned to death and crucified Him. But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, today is the third day since these things happened.

Yes, and certain women of our company who arrived at the tomb early astonished us. When they did not find His body, they came saying they had also seen a vision of angels who said He was alive. And certain of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but Him they did not see. Then He said to them, O foolish ones and slow of heart, to believe in all that the prophets have spoken. Ought not the Christ who have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?

And beginning at Moses and all the prophets He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself. Then they drew near to the village where they were going and He indicated that He would have gone further. But they constrained Him, saying, Abide with us, for it is toward evening and the day is far spent. They were tired. He was willing to go on, to walk further, to explain more things. Now it came to pass as He sat at the table with them that He took bread, blessed and broke it, gave it to them.

Then their eyes were opened and they knew Him. So He had basically blinded their eyes to understand who He was until this moment. Their eyes were opened, they knew Him, and He vanished from their sight. And you would think that would make even greater believers of them. Not too many people just vanish from their sight.

So He had a glorified body. He could manifest Himself in physical ways. He could eat. They could see Him. They could eventually touch Him.

So they were beginning to grow in faith because He was revealing Himself to them. And it's fascinating reading, to read these accounts and to consider what it would have been like to have been one of Christ's disciples and to have gone through the crucifixion with Him and the resurrection and His appearances and the day of Pentecost and all of that. Quite remarkable. Let's go to verse 36.

So they were, again, they were not great in faith at this point. They were still doubting a great deal. And He said to them, why are you troubled? Why do doubts arise in your hearts? Then He had them touch Him and He also ate some fish.

And He opens the Scriptures to them and explains more things. So He is beginning to help them grow in faith. Now, remember, there were only 120 followers that were actually there on the day of Pentecost. Initially, only 120. Of course, we know that there were many baptized, was it 2 or 3,000 that were baptized very shortly, later that day. So we know that there were a lot of people around who knew about Jesus, who knew about His crucifixion and His promise of resurrection to life.

So many were baptized, many listened to that powerful sermon that Peter gave. Peter, who had denied Him three times, was now led by God's Spirit and endued with the Spirit of God and great power. God's Spirit is not the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. That's what was coming through with Peter, so he was able to challenge them.

They said, you know, what can we do? That's when he told them to repent and be baptized, every one of you, for the remission of your sins, and then you will be saved. So God was working mightily in Peter, who had denied Him not many days before that. It was about, you know, roughly 50 days. So there was a great transformation that was taking place on that countdown to Pentecost. They were being tested. They were growing in faith. They were beginning to believe. In Acts 3, we see that Peter and John healed a crippled man who was lame from his mother's womb, something that had never...

they'd never heard of anyone ever being healed who had been born lame from his mother's womb. Remember what Peter and John said? Silver and gold, have I none, but what I have, I give you. Stand up, rise up, walk in the name of Jesus of Nazareth. So it is very encouraging to see the faith that is building in Christ's disciples.

Even Peter's shadow passing by was instrumental in people being healed at that time. So there was great power that God was pouring out through his Spirit. Now, in Acts 5, we see a huge test that came upon Ananias and Sapphira. Now, they didn't do so well, did they? They flunked their test. Ananias and Sapphira, in Acts 5, pay a great price because they lacked faith in God. They lied to God, lied to the Spirit of God.

They said that they sold a certain amount of land for a certain price, but that wasn't the truth. And so they died for that. And I'm sure God was using them as an example. And it is something that we should all consider.

Ananias and Sapphira, are they that much different from all of us? Sometimes we're tempted to lie, aren't we? Sometimes we might shade the truth just a little bit. Ananias and Sapphira were followers of Jesus Christ. They were following God to a certain degree. They were partially doing what they should do, but it wasn't good enough, was it? So I really believe that we should consider this example a little more carefully at times and realize that God does expect us to obey Him. He does expect us to pass the test and not be so easy on ourselves and make excuses for our sins.

God is also very merciful. Who knows, Ananias and Sapphira, perhaps they were not truly converted. They didn't have God's spirit, perhaps. They hopefully will come back in the Second Resurrection and they'll have an opportunity to live again and to do it right and to pass the test. So we really don't know much about Ananias and Sapphira, except they died that day and they lied to God and to God's spirit. So we're all going to be tested in various ways as we continue through our lives. What about you? Is there any chance that you might gossip later on today or tomorrow or next week?

Is there any possibility that you might lose your temper? Has that ever happened? Have you ever gotten really angry for no good reason? Really, no godly reason? Did you ever covet something that belongs to someone else? Will you be ungrateful in the future, unthankful? Will you get angry again for no good reason and you'll fly off the handle and say something? That you know a true Christian ought not say? Is that possible? Is it even possible you might even steal something little in the days ahead?

Is it possible that you might lust and commit adultery in your mind, in your heart? Will you ever lie again? Will you allow yourself to become envious? Will you harbor hatred or resentment toward others? Will you be lazy and not use your time carefully, wisely, not redeem the time as we're told to do? We're all subject to sin, aren't we?

We're all sinners, and I hope that we realize that and are willing to admit that there's not a single one of us who is perfect because we're still flesh. But we ought not quickly make excuses for our weaknesses and our sins, and we should strive to pass the test. God's merciful, and we're saved by grace. We're saved by the blood of Jesus Christ. Christ died for us. He is our Savior. And if we've truly accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior, and we're striving against sin, we're striving to put sin out, and we're growing spiritually, and we are overcoming, then we don't need to worry.

We don't need to be anxious about that, but we should be honest with ourselves and be certain that we're moving in the right direction, and that we're not sliding backwards. If we're sliding backwards, then we need to get a grip on ourselves and repent and start walking more faithfully with God and pass those tests. Because we're going to be tested. All of us are going to be tested. We leave this room.

We might even be tested in this room, in certain ways. So, we will be tested. So, let's talk about some Scriptures that will help us pass the tests that happen in our lives. Let's go to 2 Corinthians 10. This is a powerful couple of Scriptures here, five or six Scriptures, verses that the Apostle Paul has written to the church at Corinth. Of course, the church at Corinth, they were a test for Paul, I'm sure. They were not exactly the easiest church to pass, I wouldn't think, based on what I read.

2 Corinthians 10. Let's read verse 1. Now I, Paul, myself, am pleading with you by the meekness and gentleness of Christ, who in presence am lowly among you, but being absent and bold toward you. So, he's writing this letter in boldness. He says, But I beg you, that when I am present, I may not be bold with that confidence by which I intend to be bold against some, who think of us as if we walked according to the flesh.

So, obviously, there were people in Corinth who opposed Paul, or they did not respect him as well as they should have. They had issues with Paul. They weren't exactly obedient servants. They were complainers. There were some there that were complaining against Paul. He says, For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, they're not fleshly, but they're mighty in God for pulling down strongholds.

Now, who's the master at setting up strongholds? I think we would all agree that Satan is pretty masterful at setting up strongholds. And to me, a stronghold can be anything that is difficult for you to overcome. If you're failing the test repeatedly, I would say that's a stronghold.

It could be some kind of an addiction, whether it's alcohol, whether it's some kind of drug abuse, whether it's just a lustful mind. But these, pornography, that could be an addiction. These are strongholds that Satan wants to set up in our minds and in our hearts. And he wants to get the best of us. He wants us to fail the test.

He wants us to flunk those tests. So he's saying that our warfare is mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments in every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. So what is the main spiritual weapon that we have?

Wouldn't you say it's God's Spirit? That if we yield to God's Spirit, then God's Spirit is the Spirit, not of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. So if we're allowing God's Spirit to work in us, then we will be overcomers. And we can pull down strongholds through the power of God's Spirit. But if we're not yielding to the Spirit of God, and we're following Satan's temptations, and we're following the flesh, we're walking in the flesh instead of walking in the Spirit, then we're going to have trouble ever getting a grip on those strongholds. I don't know if I've mentioned this lately, but I remember there was a fellow in Grand Rapids, Michigan, who was at least 20-30 years older than I am. He may be dead now. I really don't know if he's alive or not. But back when I was in my 30s, I would say, we had a pretty good relationship, and he confided in me that he had a problem with lust and with that sort of thing, pornography. He called me 20 or 30 years after that, maybe it was probably more like 20, and said that finally God gave him the victory over that. He struggled with that for years and years and years. I mean, it was a stronghold in his life that he didn't give up on, but it was a major problem for him for a long time.

I think the way he put it is that God just finally took that away, that he no longer was tempted in that way. God was merciful to him, and God lifted that trial. God lifted it. I don't know that he truly ever overcame it. Maybe in a way he did, or maybe he did to the point where God decided to just take the whole thing away from him. I don't know that God always does that. I think sometimes he just lets us continue to fight that fight and never just takes it away. So the point I'm making, though, is that God is going to test us, and with God's Spirit we can overcome those tests. We can have victory through the power of God's Spirit.

It talks about bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. I believe that's obviously a major key, is that when we're first tempted, what do we do?

Do we bring that thought into captivity? Do we say, this isn't right, I can't go down there? I can't go down that path, I can't continue to think that way, I can't continue to dwell on that, because if I do, then it's going to be just like it's been 100 times before. I'm going to do the same thing that I've done 100 times before. So you have to bring the thought into captivity. The Bible clearly says, resist Satan and he will flee from you. So if we resist and we fight against those wrong thoughts and don't allow them to continue, then we can have victory. But if we dwell on those thoughts and if we want to do what it is that's... If we want to do it more than we want to obey God, then we're going to sin against God. So we have to grow in love so that we love God more than we love fulfilling the lust of the flesh or the pride of life or whatever it is that's tempting us.

And it says, and then you'll be ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled. So we can help others a great deal more if we get a grip on ourselves. If we're not struggling with a lot of sin in our own life, then we have a lot more credibility when it comes to helping other people.

So those are interesting scriptures. Bringing every thought into captivity. Now that's not an easy thing to do, is it? To bring every single thought? If every husband and every wife brought every thought into captivity, there wouldn't be many fights going on between husbands and wives.

There just wouldn't. But when we don't yield to God's Spirit, then it only takes one. But oftentimes it's both in a marital relationship. I gave a sermon, I'll probably give it here sometime in the future. It was about marriage and the Holy Spirit. I gave it a couple weeks ago in Dallas. But God's Spirit makes a huge difference in our marriage. If we yield to God's Spirit, then we'll have a much more successful marriage and a happier marriage than if we're not yielding to God's Spirit. If we're yielding to our own flesh and our own selfishness, and our own hard-heartedness, then we're going to have a lot of issues in our marriages. So it's important to bring every thought into captivity. Admit where you've been wrong and don't point the finger at someone else. Take care of your own sins. Own your own sins and then hopefully everyone will do the same and things will improve. In Romans chapter 13 there's another very important scripture when it comes to overcoming and growing, putting sin out of our lives, passing our tests. And that's Romans chapter 13. Romans chapter 13 verse 11. Romans 13 verse 11. And do this knowing that now it is high time to awake out of sleep. This was about 2,000 years ago. So do you think it's high time to awake out of sleep today? It was high time about 2,000 years ago, so it's certainly high time now. It's high time to awake out of sleep, for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand, therefore let us cast off the works of darkness and let us put on the armor of light. Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy, but put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the flesh to fulfill its lust. Put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the flesh. How do you make provision for the flesh? Well, there's a lot of ways you can make provision for the flesh.

Look, if you have a problem with pornography, you're making provision when you start looking at anything that causes you to think along those lines. It doesn't have to be pornography, it can be something else. If you let your thoughts go a certain direction, then it's going to continue down that path. So you don't want to make provision for the flesh. Sports Illustrated, they have one issue every year. It's the hottest selling issue of the year. Do you know which one it is? The Swimsuit issue. Not a lot about sports.

But it's the best-selling issue because it's the most enticing. If you go down that path, that will lead you. You're providing for the flesh. So it's better not to allow yourself that kind of thing so that it continues and gets worse. That's the point I'm making. Make no provision for the flesh. Whatever it is, whatever your temptations are. If certain TV shows stir up bad feelings, whether it's anger or whatever it is, don't watch them. There are certain things on TV, videos, and so forth, and some of these games that people play, these violent games, is that godly in any kind of way? I mean, these shoot-em-up games and murdering people and whatever. I don't do them, so I don't know much about them. But I know there's a lot of them out there, and they sell billions of dollars worth of those kinds of games, and people love them. But that's making provision for the flesh. The things that we listen to, the things that we read, the things that we watch. If they're moving you in the direction of walking in the flesh, then stop them. Do yourself a favor, and then you'll start walking in the spirit. Again, it says, put on Jesus Christ. Philippians 2.5 says, put on the mind of Christ. So we know that Christ did not make provision for the flesh, or he would have sinned.

He would have sinned if he'd made provision for the flesh. If he would have gone down that road, if he'd provided for the flesh, then he would have sinned. So we know that that's not the way Christ thought. So we should put on his mind, learn to think like he thinks, and then we'll be overcomers. Also, Philippians 2, verse 8 says, think on these things. Whatsoever things are right, whatsoever things are good, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely. Think on these things. Don't meditate on other things that are opposite to that, because if you do, then that's the result you will get.

So think on those things that are right and good, that have virtue, and that are praiseworthy, not on the other things. And then in John 21, let's go to John 21, where Jesus is talking to Peter again.

Of course, Peter is now a true servant of God in many, many respects, a faithful disciple, a powerful disciple. Well, yes, it's not yet. No, I shouldn't say that. Let's go to John 21. John 21. Let's read this example here. Peter is growing in faith. This is part of the process. He's growing in faith. This was obviously after Jesus was resurrected, the apostles were commissioned. And then, this was obviously before the day of Pentecost, though, before the spirit of God was poured out. And when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said, I think this was the third time that he revealed himself to his disciples, or the third time that he'd come to Peter anyway. I think it was maybe the third time to the disciples. You can look that up. It says, So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me more than these? Now, the word love is agape. He said to him, yes, Lord, you know that I love you. And actually, he responded, I affiliate, filio, or whatever it is, I love you. So, I don't know how much we can make out of these Greek words, but certainly there's something here. Jesus uses a different word. Peter responds to him, yes, I filio you. In other words, brotherly love. Perhaps he was owning that he truly did not love God the way God is love. I don't know that for sure, but that may have been what he was saying. And I'm pretty confident that the reason he asked him three times is because he had denied him three times. And he wanted to bring the point out to Peter that Peter needed to be careful, that Peter could be subject to temptation and to sin. And he had a job for Peter to do. He expected great things from Peter. He had something in mind for Peter. Verse 16, so he said to him again a second time, Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me? Again, using the word agape. He said to him, yes, Lord, you know that I love you. He used the word filia back to him. I love you. He said to him, ten my sheep. For the first time, he said, feed my lambs. Then he said, ten my sheep. He said to him the third time, Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me? And Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, do you love me? This time he used the word filia. Do you filia me instead of agape? Do you love me? And so he was grieved. Again, maybe it's because Peter knew that Jesus was just reminding him that, you know, you denied me three times. Now are you going to take care of my lambs? Feed my sheep? He said, you know all things. You know that I love you. I filia you. Jesus said to him, feed my sheep. Most assuredly I say to you. Then he prophesied that he too would be crucified, that Peter would end up dying for the faith. He said, follow me. And Peter was faithful, and he did follow him to his death. So Peter grew in faith. No doubt he grew in love. But he was also being careful about who he was and that he was fleshly and that he wasn't perfect. John 14 verse 15 says, Jesus says, if you love me, keep my commandments. So we show our love toward Christ and toward the Father by keeping God's commandments. If you love me, keep my commandments. So we're going to be tested in the days ahead to determine the strength of our faith. You can count on that. You're going to be tested as to your faith. You'll also be tested to determine the power and the depth of your love toward God and toward each other. The two greatest commandments is love toward God and love toward one another. So we're going to be tested in that.

Again, we should ask ourselves, why do we sin? Isn't it primarily because we do lack faith and also we lack love. We lack faith and we lack love, and therefore we don't always obey God. If you love me, keep my commandments. If you had all faith and all love, then you would keep His commandments. Of course, if you had all faith and you had all love, then you would be God, and none of us are there yet.

But that's something that we should want, we should desire, to be just like God and just like Christ. So God is love and He doesn't sin. God is true and faithful. He's not going to leave us. He's not going to forsake us. So just a couple more verses. James 4 talks about a spiritual mindset. Again, these are scriptures that will help us pass the test in the days ahead. James 4, verse 7. I already mentioned verse 7 about submitting to God, resisting the devil.

He will flee from you, draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. So we need to be single-minded, not double-minded. And the single mind that we should have is the mind of Christ. Put on the mind of Christ. Bring every thought into captivity, unto the obedience of Christ. And then one last scripture in Colossians 3, verse 2. It gives us some instruction here in regard to our minds. The fact is that you really do have to work at setting your mind.

You need to have a certain mindset. It needs to be a spiritual mindset. Not a fleshly one, not a physical one, but a spiritual one. So it is a battle to put off the flesh, and to put on Christ, and to put on the Spirit. But in Colossians 3, verse 1 and 2, If then you were raised with Christ, now we were raised with Christ, and that we were baptized. When you accepted Christ as your Savior, and were the repented of your sins, you went under a watery grave, and then you were brought out of that watery grave to walk in newness of life.

So in a sense, you were resurrected at that time. That's what it's talking about. If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God. Christ is our high priest, sitting at the right hand of the Father.

Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. So we have to start thinking in godly ways. And only then will God help us. If we read a little bit further, it says, For you died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.

So this is a positive statement, and we should all believe that we're going to be there with Christ. We are among the first fruits. That's also what Pentecost is all about. We are the first fruits. We're the ones that called out and chosen. Judgment has begun at the house of God, so there is judgment upon us. We are being tested. We need to pass the tests. So when Christ, who is our life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.

When Christ returns, we will be changed. If we're alive, we'll be changed in a moment in the twinkling of an eye at the last trumpet. If we've already died, then we will actually rise first. And we will rise to meet Christ in the air, and it says we will forever be with the Lord. So there is a tremendous blessing for those who learn to pass these tests. Therefore, put to death your members which are on the earth. We're going to list a bunch of these. Fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, covetousness, idolatry, and the like. Anything that's like it. Filthy language, blasphemy, anger, wrath, malice, lying. He says we're to put all of that off.

Put off the old man, verse 9, with his deeds, and have put on the new man, who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of him who created him. So, again, we're to put on Jesus Christ, and we're to have faith that God will truly save us. So we do have to have faith in order to stay with it. Because some people get discouraged, because since we are flesh, it's hard to always be good, isn't it? It's difficult to always be good, because we're in the flesh. We're going to sin, and we have to have faith that God will forgive us our sins.

As long as we fight the good fight and continue to battle, God will give us victory. So we just have to keep on and never give up, never give in, and have greater faith. And then we will learn to overcome more. And we will pass our tests with flying colors, with God's Spirit being the driving force. So, brethren, as we continue our countdown to Pentecost, we have just one day now. Less than a day. We're almost there. Let us face all of our trials with renewed courage and strength through the power of God's wonderful gift, His Holy Spirit.