What are the Conditions of Answered Prayer?

Happy Sabbath, everybody! Good to see you all. I was going to say Happy Sabbath, y'all, because I went back to Arkansas. I remember when I was at Ambassador College, the professor, the speech professor, could always tell when a student received a letter from home, because it was reflected in their accent. It was by osmosis that the letter conveyed even the way that their parents or their family talked. So anyway, it's good to see y'all today. And our trip was wonderful. We took our time going back. We went on I-40.

Going back, went up through San Ofe and saw that area, and on out to Arkansas, and through Texas, and all of that. And you know, it was just amazing to me. I haven't driven across country in probably, I'm guessing, 30 years. It's been that long. It always flew.

But this country has changed a lot. That's one thing I did notice. Especially on part of the road we went, we saw Route 66. And I sort of reminisced what it was like back in the 60s when we came from Oklahoma out to Bakersfield. And we traveled on Route 66. And I remember going back home, and we actually camped out on the side of the road. Family just pulled over. People, mobbed through down some blankets, and we slept.

And you know, the cars were going by, and nobody thought about danger or anything like that. It was a different world back in the 60s. But one thing that was interesting is we were driving along on I-40. I-40 used to go right by our house in Oklahoma. And I told my wife, I said, that's where I used to go right there.

That little creek down there. And that's where I meditated. And that's where I prayed when I was like 16 years old. And I was wondering, you know, what I was going to do and where my life was going to lead. And then later we moved to another place in Maldro. And our home was across the street from a barn. And I would climb up to the top of the haystack. And that's where I would pray when I was like 16 and 17 years of age before I know what I was going to do.

Prayer was very important. And prayer is one of those most valuable tools that we have in our toolkit as Christians. And we really cannot neglect it. But, brethren, do you sometimes feel your prayers don't make it beyond the ceiling?

Maybe they ricochet off the ceiling, they go back down, and they don't make it to God. And sometimes we wonder, what's wrong? It seems like God doesn't hear us. And when we are talking to Him about the problems of our lives or the the needs that we have.

But, you know, the real question is, do we really believe in God? Do we really believe He's real? He's not some ethereal being up there, you know, some amorphous blob as sometimes, you know, some of the theologians would like to lead us to believe about God and how God is. But is God real to us? And do we really believe in Him? Let's notice over in Hebrews 11 and verse 6, it's probably a very good place to start to give the introduction here for this message and get into the reason why I'm giving this message.

But in Hebrews, Hebrews 11 over here, it's called the faith chapter for all of us who are certainly studiers of the Bible, the students of the Bible. But here in verse 6, we're told here, but without faith, it says it is impossible to please God. It's impossible to please Him. For He who comes to God must believe that He is. You've got to believe that God exists, that He's real, that He sits on a powerful throne in heaven, and that He's a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

We really have to believe that. So the number one way that we can get through to God is we've got to have faith, real faith. Got to believe He exists, and we have to have faith in Him and trust in Him. But in this sermon, we want to discuss the conditions needed for answered prayer. We know that we again have to have faith in God and believe in God, and we have to diligently seek Him, as we've already seen in Hebrews 11.6. I'm not going to go to it, but in 1 John 3 verse 22, I want to read this to you.

It says, and whatsoever we ask, we receive from Him because we keep His commandments. There we see another condition that must be met if we're going to get God's attention, and He's going to answer our prayers. We have to keep God's commandments. We have to be obedient to God. And the Scripture goes on to say, and do those things which are pleasing in His sight. I remember Mr. Armstrong many, many times when the work years ago, the income would slide down.

He would always make this statement. He would say, you know, when our ways please God, God will bless us. God will bless us.

Many of you, how many of you remember that, by the way? I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one that remembers that. Many of you do. Remember that He would say that time and time again.

And you know, when our ways please God, guess what? God will bless us. He will answer our prayers.

Now, that's a fact, and it's what it says here in John 3, verse 22. So again, in this sermon, the purpose is we're going to discuss the conditions needed for answered prayer.

And we see here, again, in this scripture, and whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight.

And frankly, though, brethren, we must admit our ways don't always please God. I know sometimes my ways don't please God, and I have to repent, I have to go to God, and I'm sure that you have to do the same thing. What does please God, though?

Oh, we've already covered some of those main areas that please God. We've got to keep His commandments. We can't just talk about it. We have to live God's way of life. Let's go over to Proverbs 6. Proverbs 6, and notice what Solomon writes about this topic. Very important topic.

And that is your relationship with God. But here in Proverbs 6 and verse 16, let's notice this. Solomon obviously himself did not please God, but at least God put in his mind those things that he could convey to us that indeed do please God and those things that do not please God. But notice here, God really spells it out by inspiring what's written here. Here it says in verse 16, These six things the Lord the eternal hates. So we're about to find out the things that God does not like. And if we can do the opposite of what these things suggest, then we will again meet the conditions of answered prayer. But let's go on here. Notice, yes, seven or an abomination to him. And he begins, he says, here in verse 17, a proud look, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that are swift and running to evil.

In verse 19, a false witness who speaks lies. And the latter part of verse 19, he says, and one who sows discord among brethren. And so these are seven things that God is against, that God considers to be an abomination. So if we want to know what God is pleased by, we have to avoid these things. And I want to maybe take a microscope and look at these things more in depth to see where we can improve in these areas, if indeed those are things that we may have trouble with. And considering the fact that all of us here, you know, we're born with carnal human nature, and you know, we are prone to fight, have to battle our carnal human nature all of our life, we probably do sometimes have problems with some of these things that God doesn't like. Well, let's look at the first one. A proud look. You know, pride comes out of the eyes as a look of arrogance. As a look of arrogance. I don't know if you've ever seen anybody that was arrogant, just plain arrogant. I'm not going to name people, but I could name you some in our society that come across as being very arrogant.

You know, they think that they're better than other human beings. Much better. And you know what happens when people are arrogant? You know, they tend to do things that they're not supposed to do.

They actually do things that are not in their domain. And when somebody is arrogant, there's a problem of the human nature of being just plain stubborn. People are stubborn.

They're arrogant. They think they know more than anybody else. And they will not do what the right thing is to do, even when they know it is the right thing to do, because of stubbornness.

Now, why is being stubborn so evil as far as God is concerned? Well, because it's because of pride and stubbornness that, in fact, we have the world we live in today.

I can name you one individual who is full of pride and vanity and stubborn, and that, of course, is none other than Satan the Devil. And this world is the world that Satan the Devil has engendered. He brought it about.

You know, the Bible says, I'm not going to go to it, but you might want to write this down if you're writing any notes down. In Proverbs 16 verse 18, it says, pride goes before destruction.

You know, somebody has so much pride. You know, I think of somebody who had an arrogant look. If you go look up Benito, Mussolini, you know, in a in a in Sacchia, and look at one of the pictures of Mussolini, and you have the look of an arrogant man. What it looks like, what arrogance looks like. And, of course, he was a very stubborn man as well. But, you know, in 1 Samuel 15 in verse 23, it says, for rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft. So here, in the book of Samuel, rebellion is compared to witchcraft, or the work of the devil. And stubbornness is as iniquity and idle worshiping.

Now, idle worshiping is, of course, in this case, someone worshiping their own mind, their own their own way as being above everybody else. I love me, and I don't care about anybody else. It's either my way or the highway. And, brethren, we've had no small amount of trouble with this kind of thing in the in the Church of God. Some being so arrogant that nobody else could be in charge but them. Yes, we had that, brethren. And we had a major split a couple of times because of that. You know, in the United Church of God we did because of arrogance and stubbornness.

So it's a very evil thing, and it's very destructive. Pride, as I mentioned earlier, is something that Satan majored in, and it caused him to rebel against God.

It's the pride, in fact, the very source of the very first sin ever committed.

It had a role in the downfall of Lucifer, who was changed to Satan. It had a role in the downfall of Cain. Cain was arrogant himself, and he brought an offering that was not acceptable to God, and God corrected him. But because of his pride and his arrogance, he wouldn't say, God, okay, I understand, you've done the wrong thing, I'm sorry. He could have brought again an offering that was acceptable to God, but he didn't. And God told him, look, if you don't repent, then sin lies at your door.

And we know Cain's story is he let his pride continue, and he ended up killing his own brother, the first homicide that took place, you know, in the Bible as it's recorded. But all of these things again happen, and they're a matter of record and history.

You know, the different approach of David, by the way, was that David was a man who was humble, a very humble individual, even though he's very capable. I mean, he here he slew Goliath, an incredible thing. Here, young boy basically killed a giant with a sling of all things, and then chopped off his head, you know, as the Bible says.

But here you had Saul, who was very humble at the beginning, but after a while he became very prideful and arrogant, and he did things he wasn't supposed to do. He made an offering, which was not in his domain. You remember the story of how he didn't wait for Samuel to come, and he went ahead and made an offering. And that's when God rejected him, because he was arrogant. But David was a very humble individual.

Over in Psalm 131, in verse 1, let's notice what it says over here.

David said, Lord, my heart is not haughty, nor my eyes lofty.

Neither do I concern myself with great matters, nor were things true profound for me. You know, David was of the kind of mentality that basically he said, God, I don't concern myself with those things that are above my pay grade, you know, those things that are higher than I am. But I do not really have any conception about. He was a very humble individual. And when somebody is humble, they're willing to obey. They're willing to follow instructions.

Remember, when Jesus came and he preached a certain amount, he said, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of God. You want to be in the kingdom of God, you have to have a humble heart. So, brethren, God is not pleased with a proud look.

He's not pleased with those that are lofty. So, if we want our prayers to be answered, choose humility to please God in prayer, and God will answer.

Next, what is listed is a lying tongue, a lying tongue that God considers to be an abomination. And, of course, it's foible that all of us are faced with. Sometimes we say things that maybe are not completely a lie, but not completely a truth, either, is it?

Seems to be the story of the age we're living in. When David's life was in jeopardy, and he was running from Saul, and he thought that Saul was going to kill him, and Saul certainly was going to do that if he had caught him, and no one came to David's aid. This is what he said, I said in my haste, all men are liars. You can't depend on anybody. It seemed like with David, everybody deserted him. It's incredible what happens when somebody's life is in jeopardy like that, as it was for David, and we've seen these kinds of things even in our own society. You know, it can seem like that, doesn't it? But no one tells the truth. We live in a society where lying is more the rule, and in fact, Satan, of course, is the father of lies, and he's the author of the world that we live in. He's influenced everyone, and so that in the world of news, frankly, you know, we, of course, heard it called fake news. And if you watch news any time recently, just about all of it is fake. It is amazing how much of the news is just filled with lies. Not just that, but of course, politics. If you're listening to politicians, who do you believe? Who do you believe? You know, like David thought, it seemed like everybody was a liar. Everyone was out for themselves and lying. You know, how can you tell, brethren, when people are lying in the world today? Well, when they move their lips.

That's how you can tell. I know it's hard to believe in any horror. Anybody, isn't it? And I know that certainly that's not the case with everybody, but it sure seems that way.

You know, people tell big lies that are patently false. There's no way that it's even remotely true.

And they can tell it with a straight face, which is even more unimaginable that they can do this. They tell things that are half-truths or partial truths. Or they twist words to say what they want to say. Or they presume something. I got a letter, in fact, recently from somebody that presumed something about the church. And I wrote him and I said, well, you're right about this, and you're right about that, but this you are wrong about because you just presumed it. Because it is not true. And I recommended to the individual, why don't you read our literature and find out for yourself? That's a novel idea, isn't it? Just read the literature. Either you agree or you don't agree with it, but just read it. But just read it.

Telling lies that are technically right, and of course in the world today, what do you call them? Little white lies. I never really understood that. You know, little white lies. I think they should be called little dark lies. Or insinuating something. Like the way the subtlety of Satan in the guard of Eden in chapter 3. He insinuated, you know, has God said that this you're not going to surely die, you know, if you eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Oh, you're not going to drop dead right now, but you will die, is what God was trying to tell Eve and Adam. Sometimes people, you know, I've been in circumstances where people sort of winked because they were being deceptive, you know, and that is a way of society, too, isn't it? People winking, you know. If anybody winks at you after they say something, that usually means that they're not really telling the truth. So, you know, these are the ways that people lie in our society, in our culture. How many of you remember Secretary of State Alexander Heg?

And even very few of you probably do. He goes back a long way, and I don't think he's alive, anymore, but he was formerly the Secretary of State. I believe it was during the Reagan administration, but don't quote me on that. But this is what he once said, that's not a lie. It's a terminological exactitude, also a tactical misrepresentation. In other words, it is a lie. It is a lie. I just have never heard anybody use such large words, $25 words to describe. You know, we've heard fib. We've heard misrepresentation, you know, but I've never heard a terminological exactitude.

Now, that's creative. That is really creative.

You know, in God's character, you might have written to write this down, Hebrews 6 and verse 18, it says it's impossible for God to lie. God cannot lie. Jesus Christ cannot lie.

Jesus is the same today, yesterday, and forever. And when we are changed out of this flesh in the spirit, we will never lie again. And we'll have perfect character. And Christ tells us in Matthew 5, verse 48, he says, become perfect like the Father in heaven is perfect. So God doesn't tell lies. We should adapt as a part of our character, brethren, that very thing. You know, telling lies tears down character faster than anything else. And interestingly, it does say in Revelation 21, verse 8, it says all liars are going to be cast into the lake of fire. I'm sure sometimes, brethren, when we lie or tell something that is not quite true, that certainly God is not pleased with it. And if we ask forgiveness, he will wipe it away.

But those who practice lying, that is a way of life. And I've met a few people like that.

Nothing that they say is true. Or you can't really depend on anything, they say.

But it does say in the Bible, all liars are going to be cast into the lake of fire.

You know, George Orwell, who was the author of The Animal Farm back in 1945, wrote this during times of universal deceit. And, brethren, I do believe we're in one of those times right now. And it's going to get worse. And let me assure you, brethren, there are some very wicked people operating in the world today that have some very wicked schemes that they're planning.

But he says, during times of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act. You tell somebody the truth, and it will bow them over. They can't handle it. Can't handle the truth.

God wants us to be honest, brethren, and upright in a world that is often the very opposite.

If so, we will please God, and He will hear our prayers on high, brethren. So we want to rid from our character any lying or deceit or any of those things, which are contrary to God's way. And I think we should all know that even before you even read here in Proverbs 6 about it. But sometimes we need to be reminded of how serious it is. The next thing that God hates, hands that shed innocent blood.

You know, since Cain slew Abel, men have been killing each other. It's incredible what men do to each other, what men and women do to each other. You know, God told Cain. He said, Abel's blood cries to me from the ground. Imagine what the blood of so many people, brethren, who have lived on this earth, who have died very tragic deaths at the hands of evil people. What that blood is doing and what it has been doing the last 6,000 years in the ears of God.

That God will take vengeance, and that, He said, vengeance is His. That He will repay. We don't have to do it. We don't have to do that at all. You know, interestingly, one of the reasons why God caused man to perish for the earth in the days of Noah was because it says back in the book of Genesis that violence filled the earth. I mean, look at what is going on in the world today.

It's incredible. You know, you have these mad human beings who want to open fire and kill people, right and left, and schools, or wherever it might be. And all the things that are taking place, it's just amazing. You know, the FBI said in 2020, during the pandemic, that murders were up 25% over 2019. It's incredible. And you can do the arithmetic if you want to, because there were 4100 extra murders during 2020. So that was 25% more than the previous year. You know, they don't give the number in 2019 because they don't have that exact number, but they think the project is going to be 25% as much as 5,000 more than 2019. You know, God's Word says, thou shall not kill. Thou shall not murder is what it means as we understand in the Hebrew.

Well, what about, brethren, when we talk about, thou shall not murder, what about the 40 or 50 million fetuses that are aborted every single year around the world? And do arithmetic on that one, brethren, for the last, you know, 20 years. Add it up. How many people are that that have been, you know, slaughtered? We talk about, in fact, about the Holocaust, of how much potential was lost. I don't know if any of you saw Schindler's List. It was out many, many years ago, and I wouldn't recommend it unless you really have a very strong stomach, but it was about the Holocaust.

It was talking about all of the potential that was lost because of the people that were, you know, actually killed during Adolf Hitler's reign of terror under the Nazis, and all the potential that was lost, that every person, basically, that Schindler was able to save was like a potential that could contribute, you know, to society. But think about 40 or 50 million, you know, infants that could have been born. Maybe the potential there was an Einstein, or, you know, Mozart, or whoever it would be, or somebody that could have done something incredible in our society.

And God is very displeased, brethren, with anyone who considers, you know, a child, and the potential that is there of slaughtering or innocent as something not slaughtering a human being. God is not pleased with that, brethren. Let's go over to Romans chapter 3. Romans chapter 3.

In Romans 3 over here, we see what God says about the world that we live in. And I think these statements are more profound in our age, probably, than in his time when Paul wrote these things. But here in Romans 3 verse 12, let's notice this, they have all turned aside. They have together become unprofitable. There is none who does good. No, not one. Romans 3 verse 12 or verse 13. Now, their throat is an open tomb.

With their tongues they have practiced deceit. The poison of asp is under their lips, whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness. Their feet are squiffed to shed blood. Destruction and misery are in their ways, and the way of peace they have not known. There is no fear of God before their eyes. It's describing the world we live in. Brethren, the topsy-turvy upside-down world we're living. We're a life as of no value, seemingly. And this world is, again, full of violence now. And this is why we need, brethren, the return of Jesus Christ. God's people, God's people on this earth, are the salt of the earth that represent the way of peace. We are the ambassadors of the world to come that will bring peace to the world. Let's go over now to Matthew chapter 5. Matthew chapter 5 over here. In Matthew 5, here Jesus again talking.

He says, For I say to you, unless, and verse 20 here, unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, and he called them white and sepulchres, by the way, you will by no means enter the kingdom of God. You've heard that it was said, those of old you shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment. I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment.

And whoever says to his brother, Rocka, shall be in danger of the counsel, but whoever says you fool shall be in danger of hellfire. Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, go your way, first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. That's how serious God is about this attitude of reckless abandonment of killing and murder in the world that we live in today. We can't even hate our brother. That is murder. You hate your brother.

He says, you're going to give a gift to me. You go settle with your brother first, and then you come and give me the gift. And then God says, I'll receive it.

But, brother, we have to get rid of attitudes that are in this world. And, of course, it's led by Satan's spirit that acts on human beings, on that spirited man that affects us, builds that rotten character that is in us. I'm not going to read it, but read the last part of chapter 5 here where we're told that we are to love our enemies, do good to those that despitefully use us.

And we ought to become like our Father in heaven.

But we are to love our enemies. Christ did not come to destroy the world, but He came to save the world. And if our ways, brethren, please God, we're going to be a peaceful people, a very peaceful people.

The next thing that God does not like, that God hates, is a heart that devises wicked plans.

And again, we've had this happen in the church, believe it or not. And we don't have to go, we could go back to the first century of the church. We have Ananias and Sapphira, you know, that is mentioned in the book of Acts, that they had a plan that they hatched. And you could read the result of that plan didn't turn out too well.

The Pharisees and the scribes were constantly hatching plans to trap Jesus Christ. They were always trying to trip Him up. They came to Him. Let's go over to Matthew chapter 15 over here.

And they came to Jesus Christ, complaining against Him, and against the disciples, as they did very often.

Why do your disciples display the elders in washing hands? And by the way, the scriptures do not talk about this. This came from the elders.

These were things were passed down eventually that were, you know, actually bound up, and they lived more by those things that were said by the elders than what it said in the Bible.

They placed more significance on what the elders said than what God said in His Word.

So they asked, why don't your disciples wash their hands like the elders say that we should?

Let's begin here, though, in verse 1, Then the scribes and the Pharisees who were from Jerusalem came to Jesus, saying, Why do your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders?

For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread. And of course, all of us understand that the washing ritual, they had to wash up to the elbows.

It's not that the disciples never washed their hands. They didn't do it at the point that the scribes and Pharisees did of washing up to the elbow.

You know, but of course, that was what the elders, so-called elders, taught.

But notice that Jesus Christ comes right back at them. And he lambasts them for what they themselves were doing contrary to what the commandments said.

Notice here what he says, and he answered and said to them, Why do you also transgress the commandments of God because of your tradition? See how he came right back at them. You're accusing us of doing something that the elders instructed, that the elders instructed, but why are you going against the commandment of God?

And he goes on to say, For God commanded, saying, Honor your father and mother, and he who cursed his father and mother, let him be put to death.

Pretty serious thing if you break this commandment.

But you say, Who were assessed to his father and mother? Whatever profit you might have received from me is a gift to God.

In the book of Mark, it is called Corbin.

And the word Corbin is a Hebrew word for gift.

And so that a son could say, Well, this money here, mom and dad, is a gift to God. And if he declared a gift to God, you couldn't break the vow that you made.

So therefore, you could ignore what the fifth commandment said about honoring your father and your mother. And this is why Christ says, Why do you negate the commandment by your tradition?

Whoever thought that was right? Whoever thought that was something that should be done?

Again, you see the lack of wisdom here. And so, you know, we notice here that Jesus Christ talks about what comes out of an individual. Not what you eat, in the sense of if you eat some dirt, your body is going to process that dirt. He's not talking about, by the way, eating unclean food.

That would, of course, would have been a gas death of eating pork or anything like that.

But Jesus was talking about your body has the natural ability to process the impurities out.

It could do that. I mean, how many kids have not, you know, had rocks in their mouth and eat dirt?

You know, how many children, you know, and I don't want to gross you out, but, you know, when they go to a restaurant, you know, they put their hands under the table, and then they put their hands in their mouth. And yet, they don't drop dead, do they?

You know, the body does have a natural ability, again, to take care of some of those things.

Sometimes we would take our boys many years ago. This is many, many years ago, you know, when they were like 20 or 30. But no, no, I'm just kidding about that.

When they were little boys. But, you know, you'd have to keep them from not licking the banisters, or doing something like that. And I'm sure that Stephen has never had a problem with that.

I think all kids, of course, go through different things with that. But anyway, God has, again, given us incredible systems to take care of those things. But Jesus explained it's what comes out of the heart that proceeds out of the heart, the evil that comes from within men that we need to be concerned about. And this is what he taught. God is very concerned about what comes from within us.

And he certainly, you know, he didn't want to sleep with dirty hands, not suggesting that either. But what is more important is what comes out of the mouth, what comes out of an individual, the form of evil. And of course, they were devising wicked plans.

And that was evil in the sight of God trying to do what they were doing to Jesus Christ.

You know, Proverbs 4 and verse 23 says, keep your heart. The Bible talks about being unspotted from the world. But Proverbs 4 verse 23 says, keep your heart with all diligent, for out of it are the issues of life. It does matter what comes out of our mouth, what comes out of our minds. And we know the old adage, garbage in, garbage out. You know, if we put good things in, though good things could come out. And by that, I mean putting good things in our minds, in our hearts. We need to be more concerned again with what God's will is than our own plans, our own ideas. We are to pray every day. In fact, this is one of the conditions of answered prayer as well, and that is seeking God's will, not our will. Although there are many, again, conditions that we need to meet as God's people, and we grow in maturity, we learn these things.

The other thing we see that God did not like, that was an abomination to God, is feet, swift, and running to evil. If you read in the King James Version, running to mischief.

Somebody getting in trouble all the time. It's amazing how some seem to always be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Maybe hanging around the wrong people, huh? That may be one of the problems.

Hanging around with the wrong people. Where trouble is taking place, that is where they want to be.

You know, they had, in fact, one of these individuals that they, I think, was up in New York that they were interviewing about why he was protesting, and who he was protesting for.

And he couldn't name the name of the person that he was protesting for. He didn't even know why he was out there protesting. It's amazing. Some people just want to be where the action is, so to speak, and where the trouble is. I remember when I was at Northeastern State University.

I stayed out of the riots that were going on back in the 60s. I remember, though, a lot of the students wanted to be there.

They didn't really, they really weren't involved in why it was going on. It was being conducted by, you know, a group called the SDS back in that time. You know, they were really not a part of that movement, but they just wanted to be there. And in some cases, one individual, in fact, in the riots that took place one night back in the 60s, it would have been 68 or 9, somebody, again, being in the wrong place at the wrong time, caught a brick in the face.

Somebody threw a brick and bashed the side of this guy's face and severely injured him. But being in the wrong place at the wrong time was a big mistake on his part.

So, you know, we as gods, people shouldn't be of that mentality.

You know, it says in Exodus 23 and verse 2, you should not follow a crowd to do evil. Don't follow a crowd to do evil. Like Cora, Dathan, and Abiram, people that gathered with them during the time when they rebelled against God and against Moses and Aaron. Many of those people lost their lives.

Be, again, in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Think about what happened even in Washington there, you know, where people were storming, you know, the Capitol Building.

There was one lady that was killed there. And I really think that, again, it's the same type of thing as back in the 60s. I was telling you about people getting involved in things and being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Well, we shouldn't want to be involved in that kind of thing anyway.

No, we're representing, in fact, a world that is going to take over all of the governments of the world. We're not going to have to fire a shot. We're not going to have to do a solitary thing.

All we have to do is stand back and let Jesus Christ do what He will do when He returns.

And maybe, at most, probably we'll get to watch some things, you know, as they occur. And then, after Christ sets up His government, He's going to set up the saints, you know, as kings and priests over the entire earth. We don't have to march. We don't have to protest.

And, brethren, I don't know how anybody could think somehow that repairing the world today is going to be a permanent solution. It won't be. You know, we're going to have to ... you know, people might actually be able to quell some of the problems in the United States and other parts of the world. And you might have a temporary peace, but it's not going to be permanent.

You remember what the Bible says when they say, peace, peace, then what does it say? Then sudden destruction comes. Don't kid yourself.

Proverbs 11, verse 27 says, So, if you're seeking good, if you're wanting to do the right thing in your life, you're going to find God's favor. And now, they're not only going to find God's favor, you're going to find the favor of those that, you know, you need to have their favor in order to survive in the world today. But trouble, you know, Solomon wrote in Proverbs 11, verse 27, But trouble will come to him who seeks evil. You're seeking to do evil, you're going to find, come your way, as a way of coming upon us. And we're praying that God does not lead us into temptation every single day. God does not lead us into evil, but he delivers us from evil, as it says again in a model prayer. We pray that God will deliver us from temptation and keep us away from the evil. The final thing that God considers to be an abomination is he who sows discord among brethren. Now, this thing is different from the rest, because it says God hates this individual. The other is just the action. It's what people do, the evil things that people do. But someone doing things to separate brethren, to separate the church of God. You know, we've been called out, brethren, of this world to be one with God and one with one another. And we ought to promote unity, always, and anyone that promotes division and chaos, brethren, God hates.

I've seen it happen in the church far too many times, where people sought to cause division. It is a sad thing. I'm not going to go to it, but in 1 Corinthians 1, over in verse 10, Paul had to plead with the Corinthian brethren. He said, I plead with you. We all should speak the same thing. In other words, we should be unified with one another. We should have the same beliefs. We should have the same doctrine. And we should have the same judgment about things, generally speaking. And that we need, again, strive for the unity, as we're told in Ephesians 4.

You know, God's desire for us, brethren, are to be at peace with one another, in unity with one another. You know, if we think somehow, you know, if we can't get along with one another now in the church, what makes us think we're going to be in the kingdom? Where we're going to do it for the whole world? The way of life that we have, brethren, is going to eventually go to the whole world.

So these seven things, brethren, are repugnant to God. On the other hand, we're told there are nine things in the Bible that God loves. And you could read them in Galatians 5, verse 22 and 23.

God loves the fruits of the Holy Spirit, of love and of joy and of peace, long suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance, or self-control. And it says, against such there is no law. No law against any of these things.

We need to again incorporate that into our character the way we are, because it represents God's character. It's the way God is. I would like to go to one final scripture over in Luke, chapter 18. Luke, chapter 18. You know, Jesus taught his disciples, and they wanted to know, they want to know how to pray. He taught his disciples what kind of prayer pleases God through a striking parable that he gave over here in Luke, chapter 18. Notice this in verse 9, and we'll go down to verse 14. But it says, and also he spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and despised others. Two men went up to the temple to pray. One a Pharisee, and the other was a tax collector. You know, a tax collector was the lowest form of a human being in the eyes of the Jews.

But notice it goes on. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank you that I am not like other men. Extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. I fast twice a week. I give tithes of all that I possess.

And you know, maybe he did all those things. Maybe he was faithful in those things. But he was very arrogant and full of pride. And the tax collector, standing afar off, he didn't even feel like he was worthy to even stand close, you know, to God. It's like he had to maybe be off in a corner somewhere because he just didn't feel like he was worthy of anything. He said he would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but he beat his breast, saying, God, be merciful to me, a sinner. And Jesus said, I tell you, this man went down to his house, justified rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself shall be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted. You know, these two attitudes, I think, really sums up what we're talking about here on, you know, what conditions allow us to make that contact with God and get an answer to get an answer to a prayer. One is rejected, the other is answered with a blessing. So, brethren, let's endeavor to root out those things which are abominable to God, and let's bring in the fruits of the Spirit. Let's bring in, brethren, humility. Let's bring all of those things in. If we can rid ourselves of things God hates and demonstrate to God the godly fruits that He talks about, then our prayers will rise above the ceiling to the very throne of God and will be a sweet savor in His nostrils. And our prayers, brethren, will be heard on high, and they will be answered.