From "Wretched I Am" to Become Like "Great I AM"

Sam, I am. I am Sam. I am Sam. Sam, I am. I would not like them here or there. I would not like them anywhere. I do not like green eggs and ham. I do not like them. Sam, I am. Now, in my opinion, Dr. Seuss should have stopped right there. Ham isn't fit to eat, and green eggs sound rotten to me. But Dr. Seuss finishes with, saying, I like green eggs and ham. I do. I like them. Sam, I am. You know, God says we shouldn't eat ham. Not swine ham, anyway. Not pig ham. Turkey ham's okay. So Sam has become a wretched man because he's eaten swine ham. He's been disobedient to God's law. Now, what did the Apostle Paul say in Romans, chapter 7? Did he not say, oh, wretched man that I am, who will deliver me from this body of death? Sam, I am. Wretched man that I am. The great I am. Who are you? Are you Sam? Are you a wretched man or woman? Do you want to become like the great I am? That's what this Passover season is all about. Not staying the wretched man that I am. Not staying like Sam, but becoming like the great I am. So today, let's talk about wretched I am to become like great I am. If you like titles, let's just call it that. Wretched I am to become like great I am. How do we become like the great I am? I assume you know why I'm referring to God as the great I am. We'll go there in a minute. Brethren, complete total unconditional surrender must become our goal, our purpose in life. It must become our magnificent obsession. If we are to become like the great I am, because that was the key to Jesus Christ's success in becoming our Savior, it was complete, total, unconditional surrender to His Father's will, not His own will.

So if you want to really become like the great I am, you will be working on unconditional surrender. You will be working on submission to God. You will say, like Jesus Christ said, nevertheless not my will be done, but your will be done.

Jesus Christ was truly flesh, flesh and blood. He had pain, like you and I have pain. He did not relish the idea of being crucified. He didn't relish the idea of having to lay His life down in the flesh, because Jesus Christ did die. His blood was poured out. He was beaten until He was really unrecognizable. He didn't relish that idea, did He? But He did say, nevertheless not my will be done, but your will be done. The Father's will be done. Let's go to Matthew 6 and let's notice something very important here. From our Savior Jesus Christ, Matthew 6.

Matthew 6. This is the chapter that has what we often refer to it as the model prayer.

Notice it starts out talking about doing charitable deeds so that we're not seen by others, so that we're not hypocrites. Like the Pharisees, we're hypocrites who just wanted to be seen and glorified by others. They wanted to seem great. They wanted people to think they were great, but they really were not great at all. Notice verse 4, that your charitable deed may be in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly. Now, I want you to notice something as we go along here and read these verses, because I'm going to go through several verses here, and I want you to notice something. Verse 5, And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites, for they love this prey, standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the street, that they may be seen by men. Surely, I say to you, they have their reward. That is their reward. They're seen by others. Others think they're great. That's their reward. But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in secret or in the secret place, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions, as the heathens do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Therefore, do not be like them, for your Father knows the things that you have need of before you ask Him. In this manner, therefore, pray. Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors, or forgive our sins as we forgive those who sin against us, who trespass against us. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen. And then let's read just a little further. For if you forgive men, their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men, their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites with the sad countenance. They disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assurely I say to you, they have their reward. But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting. But to your Father, who is in the secret place, and your Father who sees in secret, will reward you openly. Your kingdom come, your will be done. Did you notice how many times Jesus mentions the Father in this model prayer given to his disciples? It really wasn't about him. He did not make it about him. Just in the model prayer, I think there's about 10 times that he mentions the Father and your will be done. 10 times in 18 verses. Now, I may have added some more verses, but when I counted it was like 10 times in 18 verses. Jesus Christ's focus, his focus was not on himself. It was truly on doing his Father's will. Jesus spoke of his Father's kingdom, his Father's power, his Father's glory. He didn't speak about his glory or his power. He didn't speak about his kingdom.

Let us follow Jesus Christ's example this Passover season. Let us become like him, the true servant who washed his disciples' feet, just as you'll be washing one another's feet tomorrow evening. Christ set the example. He said, do it as I have done it unto others. We are to learn humility, brethren. We are to learn to lay our lives down for one another. In Exodus 3, we find the I AM revealed here. Sam I AM, wretched man that I am, the great I AM. Exodus 3. Let us notice verse 13. Then Moses said to God, Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, the God of your fathers has sent me to you, and they say to me, What is his name? What shall I say to them? Moses was concerned about this. This was at the burning bush. Moses was concerned. What shall I say to them?

And God said to Moses, I AM who I am. Notice the big capital letters here. I AM who I am. I AM is the one who sent Moses. I AM who I am. And he said, Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, I AM has sent me to you.

I AM has sent me to you. Now, this word that's translated, I AM, is from the Hebrew word, the Strong's word, 1961, hollyaw, is the way they say to pronounce it. It is a primitive root. It means to exist. That is to be, to be. God is. God exists. God has always existed. I believe this is from, it is a primitive root. And then also, Hebrews 19.33 is halvah, or halvah. It's a primitive root. They're closely related here. It's supposed to mean properly to breathe. To breathe. You know, God has existed always, eternally. Spirit. He's always been here. He's the self-existent one.

I'd like to read from Matthew Henry's commentary regarding verses 14 and 15 of Exodus chapter 3. Let's read verse 15 before we read this, however. It says, Moreover, God said to Moses, Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, the eternal, the eternal, L-O-R-D, the tetragrammaton, the eternal God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is my name forever, and this is my memorial to all generations. So go and gather the elders of Israel together and say to them, The Lord God, the eternal God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and Jacob, appeared to me, saying, I have surely visited you, and seen what is done to you in Egypt. And I have said, I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt, to the land of the Canaanites and the Hittites, Amorites, Parazites, Hivites, and Jebusites, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the promised land.

Now, let me read from Matthew, Henry's commentary. He says, this is speaking about a name that denotes what he is in himself from Exodus 3.14, I Am. I Am that I Am. This explains his name, Jehovah. And signifies, and that's how they pronounce it, but you know, is that really how it's pronounced? It signifies, number one, that he is self-existent. He has his being of himself, and he has no dependence upon any other. The greatest and best man in the world must say, by the grace of God, I am what I am. But God says, absolutely, and it is more than any creature, man or angel can say, I Am that I Am. Being self-existent, he cannot be self-sufficient.

I'm sorry, he cannot but be self-sufficient. God is self-sufficient. I knew that didn't make any sense. He cannot but be self-sufficient, and therefore all sufficient, and the inexhaustible fountain of being and bliss. Number two, that he is eternal and unchangeable, and always the same, yesterday, today, and forever, and he will be what he will be and what he is. And he references Revelation 1, verse 8. Thirdly, that we cannot by searching find him out. God has to reveal himself, in other words. This is such a name as checks all bold and curious inquiries concerning God, and in effect, says, Ask not after my name, seeing it as secret. Do we ask what is God? Let it suffice us to know that he is what he is, what he ever was and ever will be, how little apportion is heard of him. Job 26, verse 14. And then number four, regarding this word, that he is faithful and true to all his promises, unchangeable in his word as well as in his nature, and not a man that he should lie. Let Israel know this, I am, hath sent me unto you. And then secondly, this name that denotes what he is to his people. Lest that name I am should amuse and puzzle them, he is further directed to make use of another name of God more familiar and intelligible. The Lord God of your fathers hath sent me unto you. From Exodus 3, verse 15. Jehovah, this is from the Hebrew 3068, which comes from 1961 that I mentioned earlier. It means the self-existent or eternal one. So, this is why I refer to I am, because the Bible speaks of I am. And then if we go to the New Testament, we'll see that Jesus Christ says he is the I am, the God of the Old Testament. Christ is the one that created all things. He was the one that was in the Garden of Eden. He is the one who is now revealing his Father. And he was there in the very beginning with the one who became known as his Father, because Jesus Christ was the Word, the spokesman, the Logos. There were two beings in the very beginning. The one who became known as the Father, the one who became known as Jesus the Christ.

And Christ is pointing us to the Father and is revealing to us the Father.

Okay, so let's go to Matthew chapter 8. Matthew chapter 8. Now, this is John chapter 8. It's not Matthew chapter 8. John chapter 8. I wrote that down wrong. John chapter 8. And remember last time we went through John chapter 6 quite a bit about Christ saying, I am the bread of life. Christ saying that we should eat his flesh and drink his blood. And we talked about how there is eternal life in Christ's blood. And Christ is certainly our Savior who shed his blood for us. He is the Lamb, the Passover Lamb that laid his life down for us. Now in chapter 8, it begins by talking about an adulteress who was caught in the very act of adultery and how they brought this woman to Christ. And Christ had gotten up very early in the morning, as his custom was. Abraham's custom was to get up early in the morning too. That's a good custom. They were up early in the morning. Christ was teaching in the temple. The people were coming to him. They were wanting to hear what he had to say. So the scribes and the Pharisees in verse 3, they brought a woman caught in the act of adultery. And he wrote, stooped down, he didn't say a word, he just wrote things in the ground. We don't know exactly what he wrote, but whatever he wrote convicted those who had brought her, and they laughed one by one. Verse 10, when Jesus had raised himself up and saw no one, but the woman, he said to her, Woman, where are those accusers of yours? The accusers of the brethren, where are they? Has no one condemned you? She said, No one, Lord. And Jesus said to her, Neither do I condemn you, go and sin no more. Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, I am the light of the world. He who follows me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life. Again, there is eternal life in Christ Jesus.

So going back to verse 10, this word condemned is the Greek word 2632. It's catacrino. It comes from a couple of words that basically mean to judge against, that is to sentence, to condemn, to damn. So verse 10, where he asked the question, Has no one condemned you? They all laughed. They were no longer condemning her. And Jesus said, Neither do I condemn you. The same word used here. Catacrino. Christ said, I do not condemn you. I do not damn you. Now, in verse, let's read on in verse 13. The Pharisees therefore said to him, You bear witness of yourself. Your witness is not true. The Pharisees were not great fans of Jesus the Christ. Of Jesus Christ. They said, Your witness is not true. And Jesus answered and said to them, Even if I bear witness of myself, my witness is true. For I know where I came from, and I know where I am going, but you do not know where I come from and where I am going. You don't understand who I am. This was the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. They did not get this. They did not comprehend it. They did not understand it.

Verse 14, Jesus answered, I already read that, where I am going. Verse 15, You judge according to the flesh. I judge no one. This word in 15 is the word crino. It is closely related to catacrino. It means properly to distinguish, that is, to decide mentally or judiciously. By implication, it means to try to condemn, to punish. Christ said, I do not condemn you. I condemn no one. Christ in the flesh isn't going to condemn anyone. Christ did not come to condemn people. He came to save people. He came to show them the way to eternal life. That is what Jesus Christ is all about. No, Christ is going to judge in the future. And some may be condemned at that time, and no doubt some will be condemned at that time and will be cast into the lake of fire. But that was not His purpose the first time. He came to lay His life down. He came to die for mankind. Verse 16, And yet if I do judge, my judgment is true, for I am not alone, but I am with the Father who sent me. It is also written in your law that the testimony of two men is true. I am one who bears witness of myself, and the Father who sent me bears witness of me, two beings, the Father and the Son, two beings that were there in the very beginning, two self-existent ones. I mean, this name could apply to both the Father and the Son, the great I am. I and my Father are one, even though they're two. But they think the same. They are this they came from the same. They're from the same mold, you might say. They were there in the beginning. Christ came to reveal the Father. Christ was the God of the Old Testament. Now, the Father is mentioned a few times in the Old Testament, not nearly as much as the one who became Christ. You want to became Jesus Christ. In verse 16, and yet if I do judge, my judgment is true. This is the word creases. Again, all these words are closely related. The word judgment here, translated judgment, is subjectively or objectively for or against by extension a tribunal, by implication justice, specifically divine law, again, accusation, condemnation, damnation, judgment. Now, we are to discern righteous judgment, but we are not to condemn one another. You know, that is not your job. It's not my job. It wasn't even Jesus Christ's job when he was here in the flesh. But we are to judge righteous judgment, and certainly Christ did that.

Brethren, again, we're talking about how to become like the great I Am. You know, we're never going to become the great I Am because we're not self-existent. None of us are. No, we all fall short of the glory of God. But the Scripture clearly says that we shall see Christ as He is, and we shall become like Him at His return. Those who are firstfruits shall be changed to spirit, spirit beings. But we have a fleshly existence that started when a man and a woman got together, and you know the process. You know, that isn't how Jesus got started. Jesus was always around. Now, Jesus was conceived of the Holy Spirit. He was born of a woman. He was flesh. He is unique. We are not that unique. Jesus Christ is very unique. Nevertheless, we are to become like the great I Am, in every sense except the fact that we are not self-existent. We haven't always existed. But we shall be very much like Him. We will have spirit bodies like Christ. When He was changed after He was resurrected to life, after living in the flesh, we will become like Him. We will no longer be flesh. We will be spirit. Now, let us go to Luke 15 and consider the story of the prodigal son, because this is a very, very important parable for us to grasp this time of year, especially. The Passover season is all about becoming like the Father, and also the prodigal son as well. Luke 15. Oh, notice, by the way, in verse 10, Likewise I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents. Now, when we baptized the people that we baptized this week, and I have another baptism this evening, we talked about how there is joy in heaven when a sinner repents. The angels rejoice. We all rejoice. We're all rejoicing with those who were recently baptized because they repented of their sins. They accepted Christ as their personal Savior. They know they're not playing games. This is for real. This is for eternal life. Are you playing games? Are you compromising? Are you doing your own thing? You need to ask yourself that. And if you are, you need to repent of it. And all of us are to some degree. We all need to repent this Holy Day season because we all seek our own will. None of us are perfect like Jesus Christ who sought only His Father's will. So let's all repent. Let's think about this before we come to services tomorrow. Let's all get down on our knees and repent of what we've been doing that is contrary to God's way. Are you totally surrendered? Completely? I doubt it.

We all need to repent.

The prodigal son, verse 11, chapter 15 of Luke, then he said, A certain man had two sons, and the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that it falls to me. So he divided to them his livelihood. And not many days after, the younger son gathered altogether, gathered altogether, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living. So one son stayed with the father, but the one son took his inheritance early.

It says, he gathered altogether. Actually, it says he divided to them his livelihood. So he actually divvied out to both of the sons. One took the monies that he had, and he went into a far country, and he wasted his possessions with prodigal living, with wasteful living, with ungodly living, with unrighteous living. But when he had spent all, this was a very irresponsible young man, wasn't it? He went and spent everything. He's like the U.S. government.

Spend it all, and then keep spending. Borrow more, and spend that.

So he went, he spent all that he had, and there arose a severe famine. That can happen, you know. It can happen if you're not prepared. A famine can come into your life. A spiritual famine. All kinds of different ways a famine can strike your life. So a famine came into that land, and he began to be in want. He lacked things. He didn't have the money any longer. He didn't have what he needed. He was beginning to hurt. And he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine ate. Now, imagine that. I mentioned earlier that we shouldn't even eat swine, let alone the pods that the swine eat. I mean, I'd rather eat the pods than the swine, but I think you'd give my drift. This was very humbling for this young man. He would have gladly eaten the slop that they were giving the pigs, but when he came to himself, he said and thankfully he came to himself, and he said, how many of my father's hired servants have bread enough and despair, and I perish with hunger? I'm dying. I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. So this man was repentant. He was sorry for what he had done. Now, he had to pay a price for his foolishness, and that's what woke him up, frankly, if he'd still be spending money right now. If he had enough, I mean, he'd still be spending money now until he started to hurt. Is that how you have to learn? You have to start hurting before you learn, or will you judge yourself so that you don't have to be judged? Because that's really what it was. The famine was a judgment upon him. He was bringing upon himself what he had brought upon himself. He was being judged. He was being tried. He was being tested. And he brought it upon himself. How often do we bring trials upon ourselves, brethren? Because of our unfaithfulness, because of our sins, because of our disobedience. It happens all the time. So this young man, thankfully, repented of this behavior after he was hurting. He says, Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. So he was greatly humbled. He said, I am no longer worthy to be called your son.

Remember, I gave a sermon last Passover season about, are you worthy? Are you worthy to take the Passover? Are you worthy? None of us are worthy to take the Passover. God deems us worthy when we repent. God makes that choice. He deems us worthy. So the man was humbled. I'm not worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your higher servants. Look, I'll gladly come back. Let me just be a higher servant. You don't have to recognize me as your son. You know, I blew it. I messed up. And he arose and he came to his father, and when he was still a great way off, his father saw him. Now, do you think his father may have been looking for him? Do you think his father may have been hoping that today would be the day that he came back? Do you suppose that's possible? That a father would love a son enough that he would look every day for him to come back? It is possible, isn't it? Every day.

We want our sons to come back. Those who love their sons, who love their daughters, they want them to come back. They want them to repent. And the father is like that. God is merciful. If a human being can care, if a human being can love like that, how much more the great I am? If a wretched man can learn to love like that to some degree through the grace of God, how much more can God our Father love us? God just wants to see us repent. That's what he wants to see all of us do. Repent. Are you too young to repent? Are you? Ask yourself that. You teenagers out there? Are you too young? Do you want to go ahead and have some prodigal living? Some wasteful living? So do you think it'll make you a lot smarter? You'll be happier because you went out and did it? Or are you so stupid that you want to go out and suffer? The choice is yours. It's a choice you'll make. You will pay the consequences, either good or bad, based on the choices that you make. Let's get back to the story. The son said to him, okay, let's go back to verse 20, the Father saw him and had great compassion.

You know, he wasn't stewing inside himself saying, well, finally that boy of mine has come back. What is he going to want now? I gave him his inheritance. Now what's he going to want? Okay, there's no indication that this is the attitude that the Father had. His Father saw him and had compassion and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. And the son said to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Now, what do you think that meant to the Father when he heard those words? If his heart wasn't already soft, trust me, that would have just decimated him.

I'm no longer worthy to be called your son. But the Father said to his servants, bring out the best robe, bring out the very best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet and bring the fatted calf here and kill it. Let us kill the fatted calf. When I was in Port of Aerta for the feast, for Vessra music, one of the songs was about this very thing. Rejoice, rejoice. My son is coming home again. Rejoice. We should all be rejoicing this time of year because we're all coming home. We're all like the prodigal son. We all need to repent. We all need to come back to the Father and we need to know that he'll receive us in love because that's who he is. God is love.

Bring out the fatted calf, kill it, let us eat, let us be merry. For this my son was dead and now he's alive again. He's alive. He was lost. Now he is found and they began to be merry. They began to rejoice. What a glorious time. Passover season is a glorious time. Yes, it's a sobering time, but it is a glorious time. The sons, the daughters are coming home again.

So his older son was in the field and surely the older son would be like the father, wouldn't he?

Now the older son is just a little too human, a little too selfish, a little too self-centered. The older son was in the field and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. So he called one of the servants and asked, what do these things mean? And he said to him, your brother has come. And because he has received him safe and sound, your father has killed the fatted calf.

But the boy was angry, the brother was angry and he would not go in. Therefore his father came out and like a loving father he pleaded with his other son. He pleaded with him and he answered and said to his father, lo, these many years I have been serving you, I never transgressed your commandment at any time. I mean, he was a faithful son. As far as the letter of the law, you know, this son was really a faithful son. Letter of the law. He was a faithful son.

I've never, you know, I've been, I never transgressed your commandment at any time. And yet you never gave me a young goat. That I might make merry with my friends. Well, maybe his father should have done that. You know, that would have been a good thing for his father to have done that. But it was the father's choice.

I mean, should we hold it against our fathers if they don't do exactly what we want them to? Is that what we should do? But as soon as the son of, as soon as this son of yours came, you know, he's not referring to him as my brother, my brother that I love. You know, that's not the sense we're getting, is it? There was rivalry here between the two brothers. There was strife between the two brothers. Maybe that's one reason why the first son left. You know, it doesn't say, but there was strife here.

So as soon as this son of yours came who has devoured your livelihood, see the judgmental, condemning approach that he has as opposed to the father? Now, the father doesn't bring these things up, but the brother does. This son of yours, he's devoured your livelihood with harlots. Harlots. Can you think of it? Can you imagine? Harlots. Yeah, and that's bad. And I, you know, I certainly don't condone that. That's evil. Shouldn't be done.

You killed the fatted calf for him, and he said to him, son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours. All that I have. You know, anything else that I have here, it's going to go to you. Because you were the faithful son. You didn't go off and do the prodigal thing. I acknowledge that. I respect that. I love you for it.

But you need to grow up. You need to grow up. You need to become like the father. If you will, you will be happy.

You are right that you should not fail to be happy. For your brother is dead. He is alive again. That's what we need to focus on. He's alive again manned. He was lost. And now he is found. You know, that's what God is focusing on all the time. That's the father that we and I serve. That is the father that Jesus Christ revealed to us.

Because Christ is just the same. He is that Son who shows us how to live, to surrender ourselves to our Father, not my will, but your will be done. The will of the Father, not my will, not my selfish will, but your will be done.

Brethren, the Bible says that nothing shall offend God's people. Now, that doesn't mean that, again, we don't discern righteous judgment. Sin does offend us. Right? You should be offended by sin. You should first be offended by sin in yourself. That's where you really need to focus, is the sin that's in yourself, and be offended by that. That should offend you. You should be ashamed of yourself.

That should offend you. However, this is talking about what other people do. Nothing shall offend you. Because you love others. You're not condemning others. You're not sitting back in judgment condemning them. No, you're loving them. You're wanting the best for them. So, nothing shall offend them. Total, complete surrender. Nothing shall offend. God says, so all that you have, give it to the poor. Doesn't He say that in the Scriptures? If you really want to please God, sell all that you have. I know that's somewhat figurative, but I think a lot of us like to think it's more figurative than it really is.

There may be some literal aspects to that. We could be more generous, perhaps. We could do more for others. We could take care of the poor better than we do. Let's repent of that. Let's use what God has given us to bless others. And God will give us even more. Not that that should be our focus, but if we would all just surrender to God and start pouring our hearts out to God in service to others, then God would pour His heart out to us.

We would have more than we could hold. Malachi 3, verse 8. You rob God in tithes and offerings. If you do your part, then God will bless you and it will overflow. But that's total surrender. That's not easy. That's hard. That's real hard. But that's what this Passover season is all about. It's surrendering totally, unconditionally, completely. How many of us are there? Do we have anything to repent of between now and Passover? We all do. Hebrews 12, verse 6.

Remember, God will never leave us nor forsake us. What does never mean? It means what it says. It means what you know it means. Let us have faith in the God who loves us to know that He will never leave us and He will never forsake us. That's not even the right verse, is it? Well, we know it's in the book of Hebrews.

This is about, for whom the Lord loves, He chastens, He scourges every son whom He receives. God will never leave us, He will never forsake us, He will always correct us as we need to be corrected because He loves us. We need to have faith in God and trust that He will correct us as it's needed. And also that God will never leave us nor forsake us, no matter what's going on in our lives. I have no doubt that He hasn't forsaken Mary Fuller. Mary Fuller is not here today because she's suffering.

She's hurting. She's being tested in various ways, as we all are tested in various ways from time to time. And who knows who will be next? Because we're all going to be tested. Others who are sick, who have seriously serious illnesses, perhaps on their death beds, God loves them. God has never forsaken them. God has never left them. God is always there for them because God never leaves. God never forsakes. The Bible says we are to forsake all. You are to forsake all in order to follow Christ. That's what the Bible says. That's complete and total surrender.

That's unconditional surrender. Pick up your cross and follow Christ. Follow Him. Follow Him to your death, if necessary. Isn't that what He did? He had to carry His cross, the stake that He was crucified on. I mean, someone else carried it for a while, too. Simon the Cyrene.

But take up your cross. Follow Christ. Remember, Christ said, I can do all things. Paul said, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Do you believe that? That you can do all things through Christ who strengthens you? That God can help you overcome? That God can help you put sin out? That He can help you put leaven out of your life? That you can truly be an overcomer? You can be different? I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. The Bible says, love not the world and the things of the world.

But do we love it? Now, I love certain things that are good in the world, but there are some times I think I probably love things that are not so good. God says, love not the world. He says, come out of her. Come out of her, my people. Don't be so worldly. Come out of her. Lay up your treasures in heaven.

Not on the earth where moth and rust corrupts. Lay up your treasures in heaven. The Bible says, narrow is the path that leads to eternal life. It takes unconditional surrender. That's what it takes. That's our goal. That's our magnificent obsession. It's been my obsession now for a long time. Now, have I done it perfectly? No. But it is my obsession. This is who I am. This is who I'm becoming. Through the grace of God.

I cannot take that for granted. I owe it all to God. You know, God gives me the victory. Because I am a wretched man.

Just like Paul. Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God through Jesus Christ, who loved me.

Come out of her. In James, it talks about a double-minded man is unstable in all his ways. He says you can't serve God and mammon. That's what the Bible says. Satan wants you to serve him. You make a choice every day who you serve. Sometimes you serve Satan. Be a single-minded man and woman. Be single-minded. That is your goal. That is your magnificent obsession. To become single-minded. The Bible says choose life. That both you and your seed may live. What kind of an example do you set for your son?

What kind of an example do you set for your son or for your daughter? You'll be held accountable for that. I abhor myself and I repent in sackcloth and ashes. I believe that's in Isaiah. I didn't have time to look up the Scripture. It's been a busy week. A very, very busy week. I abhor myself and I repent in sackcloth and ashes. I think it's somewhere around Isaiah 58 or 56 or somewhere like that. I abhor myself, I repent in sackcloth and ashes. Do you abhor yourself, your carnal self? Do you? Do you want to be like Sam? Sam I am. I don't want to be like Sam. Luke 9.62. No man having set his hand to the plow and looking back is fit for the kingdom of God. That's what your Bible says. Are you looking back? Have you been looking back? Have you been compromising? Are you doing the very best you can do? Are you setting the best example for each other? Or are you just getting by? Is that all you're doing? Just getting by? Dragging yourself here? Oh, half the time. Is that the kind of person you are? Ask yourself, is that the kind of person you are? Do you get yourself out of bed and come here? Unless you're sick. I think we're supposed to be here. I think this is a commanded assembly. That's what I believe. Because I believe the Scriptures point that out and prove that. What kind of person are you? How committed are you? You know, some of you are here every Sabbath, unless you're sick. And some of you aren't. Some of you compromise in that area. Those who are here every week, they compromise in other areas. But your area is visible. I can see that as your pastor. I can see that you compromise in certain ways. Because it's not important enough for you to be here every Sabbath, or almost every Sabbath. Again, I'm not sitting up here as the judge or the condemner. But I'm not up here speaking smooth things either.

What kind of person are you? Are you a Sam I Am? Or do you want to become a great I Am? Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might. It's the Ecclesiastes 9 verse 10. Is that not what the Scripture says? Whatever your hand finds to do? If you want to be here, then be here. Do it with all your might.

Go and sin no more. That's what Christ told her. He told the woman to go and sin no more. Now, he didn't condemn her. He didn't kick her out of the temple, even, did he? Look, you've committed adultery. You've got six months. I don't want to see your face. I don't want to see your ugly face for six months. That's not what Christ did. Christ just said, go and sin no more. Now, I'm sure if he continued in her adultery, he would have more to say to her. There's a time when a minister has to suspend people. It happens. Thankfully, it doesn't happen a lot. It's not something that I want to do. It's not something I've done very often at all. In the years I've been in the ministry, it hasn't happened much at all. And it has to be an extreme case when it does happen. I'll tell you, go and sin no more.

Moses looked to the promises. He gave up the temporary pleasures of sin, and he looked to the promises. Is that what you're looking to? Or are you losing sight of the promises? Don't the promises mean enough to you?

Look at the promises, the promise of eternal life. What's important in your life? Where are your priorities? The Bible says, love God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, with all your mind, with all that is in you. The Bible says, bring every thought into captivity, unto the obedience of Jesus Christ, every single thought.

You know, God is very gracious, and God is merciful, and God overlooks an awful lot. But, you know, there is a time when God says, enough is enough. Now I'm going to have to punish you. I'm going to have to punish you now. I didn't really want to. I was hoping you'd judge yourself, like the Scripture says. Judge yourself that you be not judged. Change. Turn around. Repent. Reminds me of a cat I have. Another cat story.

Actually, this is the neighbor's cat, and this is a big pregnant mother cat. And for months now, I've been feeding this stupid cat, because she wouldn't leave the food alone. I mean, I had to... I ran... I tried to run her off with a BB gun. I have a weak BB gun. Very weak. It didn't scare her. I threw rocks at her from time to time. Finally, I just gave up. And I just fed her along with all the other cats. But you know, this morning... and this is the cat's modus operandi. She is so selfish and so self-absorbed, she has to eat first. And even if there's all the food in the world, she has to lash out at the other cats that aren't that way. She's one of a kind. She is nasty and she is mean. And she is hard-hearted and she is so selfish that I was trying to protect the other cats again this morning when I fed... when I was feeding them. And she was lashing out at the other cats. And again, there's no reason because I give them plenty of food. And a lot of times there's food left over after all six of them have eaten. And by the way, only two of them are mine. The other four are the neighbor's cat. And they're feeding there every morning now, though, and every evening because they like it better, evidently, at my house. So anyway, this big pregnant cat lashes out and I put my finger down to kind of push her out of the way and she scratches me and the blood flows this morning. Now, I'm a pretty mild-mannered guy, but I didn't like... I was... I'm getting sick and tired of her. I'm getting tired of her behavior. And I told my wife, she's done. Now, I'm probably not going to kill her, but I'm going to do my best not to feed her anymore. I'm going to make her life miserable. She is going to suffer. In many ways, she doesn't deserve to live. She doesn't. She's mean, she's nasty, she's evil. All the other cats are not like that. She doesn't have to be that way, but that's her nature. That is her nature. I don't know that I would ever convert her. I've tried. I've tried to be nice to her. I've tried to convert her. I've tried to, you know, give them all plenty of food and be sweet and nice. You know, I really have. But that's her nature. What kind of nature do you have? Are you mean and nasty, or are you just a compromise? Is that what you are?

Or are you the kind of person that, if a minister hints at something, you do it? Or can a minister tell you, I'd really like to see you do this, and ten months later, you're still not doing it. What kind of person are you? The Bible says the minister looks out for your good, if they're a decent minister. So sometimes I have to ask myself, why does a person not listen to instruction? Why is that? What is it about themselves? You know, what is it? Is it because they know better? Evidently. It's because they know better.

What type of sacrifice have you been giving? Have you been giving the kind of sacrifice that Abel gave, the kind that God accepted? Or are you a little bit more like Cain? You're just getting by. Are you going to be here next year, ten years from now? Are you going to let Satan get in there and make you stumble? Make you fall? Make you suffer? It's up to you. God said, move forward. The Exodus, remember? The Pharaoh was coming. Moses said, stand still. God said, Moses, get a move on. Get him moving. You know, that's what God wants out of you. He wants you to keep moving. Don't stand still. Don't expect God to do everything for you. Take responsibility for yourself. How old do you have to be before you get it?

Go in and possess the land. Isn't that what God told him? Go in and possess the land. Take it now. I am with you. Joshua and Caleb said, God's with us. That's more than enough. Let's go in and take the land. And now the unbelievers said, no, we're like grasshoppers. They're giants over there. We can't go in and take the land. So what happened to them? They wandered in the wilderness for 40 years because they wouldn't go in and possess the land. God wants you to move forward into the land. God wants you to be strong. He wants you to be of good courage. Remember what Ruth said, where you go, I will go. Your God will be my God. That's the kind of attitude that Ruth had. What kind of an attitude do you have? Are you like the one that didn't go with Ruth? With Ruth and Naomi? Are you like the one that decided not to go? Just getting by. She stayed. She didn't go with the one who believed in the God of Israel. What kind of person are you? Are you more like Ruth? Or are you a little too much like whoever the other was? I didn't look it up. Shoot me if you want.

Now's the time to cleanse the temple, isn't it? Josiah, Hezekiah, remember a few years back I gave sermons on that? Cleansing the temple. Now's the time to do that. Cleanse your temple. Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. It's time to cleanse it. Father, forgive them. They know not what they do. God is very, very forgiving. But there are some things that you do know to do. And you better be about doing them. Sam, I am, O wretched man that I am. There's a way that seems right to a man. The ends thereof are the ways of death. There's also a way to become like the great I am. You know the way. It's revealed in the Bible. Follow it. It is through the deep meaning of the Passover service that we learn these lessons that we need to learn. Learn to surrender more fully to God. Unconditional surrender must be our goal. It must be your goal to become like the Son so that we will also be like the Father. We need to become like the Son so we'll also become like the Father.