For You See Your Calling

Hope that you've had a good week. It's hard to believe that we're in the last month of 2011. Imagine that in 2012 we can all get prepared for the end of the world. Of course, I'm just being facetious. As you know, 2012 will no doubt come and go, and we'll have 2013. But we know that eventually there's going to come a time when prophecies are going to be fulfilled to the extent that, of course, it won't be long before we see the tribulation and we see the other things that come along with that before the return of Jesus Christ. I don't know if you've followed the news this past week, but in Saudi Arabia, Muslim scholars have come together. You may not be aware that in Saudi Arabia women want to drive there, and that's a real push now in Saudi Arabia for women to have that right to drive. Well, Muslim scholars in Saudi Arabia have concluded that if women are permitted to drive, there will be more men and women who will become homosexuals. I don't know if you saw that particular scholarly work that was done by the Muslims in Saudi Arabia, but I mean, at first when I heard that this has got to be a joke. But apparently it is not a joke. Looking at some of the conclusions that people come to in this world, one cannot help to wonder about the wisdom of men and of mankind, the way that human beings reason. And oftentimes, again, very failed in their reasoning. And of course, there are a lot of people that have this idea that they are very wise in the world. You have the intelligentsia of the world that know what is best for all of us. I heard that Brzezinski, by the way, who was one of the lead foreign policy makers in the Carter administration, was saying that the United States leads the way in terms of violation of human rights. That we are the most unequal place on the planet now as being a place where people don't get a fair shake, basically. And I had to laugh at that. Again, these are people that are the ones that should wear the big, big hats, that have got the brains that are out here. You know, the Apostle Paul said to the Corinthians, I'm not going to turn there right now, but you might want to turn over to 1 Corinthians 1 because we're going to be reading there a little bit. But Paul said to the Corinthians, you know, God said, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. You know, the things that men in this world think that are wisdom. God said he was going to destroy that wisdom and bring to nothing the understanding of the so-called intelligentsia, the prudent of this world and this society. I think you can tell that God does not have very much regard for those who consider themselves wise in this world. And yet sometimes, brethren, we look in the Scriptures and God says that the wisdom of the world is better than the wisdom we have in the church. You know, it's amazing, isn't it? God doesn't think much of the wisdom of the world, but sometimes we, you know, have the wrong kind of reasoning and the way we think. You know, and that maybe should tell us something, because oftentimes we don't think the way we should, and obviously we don't think the way God does because he thinks much higher than we do. But let's notice here in 1 Corinthians 1, down in verse 21, it says, In the wisdom of God, it says, the world through wisdom did not know God. Through all of their wisdom, through all of their vast research, you know, in their reliance on science, but through their wisdom, they did not know God. It pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.

And, you know, if we believe the message, then God is going to give us the opportunity for salvation. And, of course, we have to put it into practice, not just believe it. But let's turn this on down here in verse 25, because the foolishness of God is wiser, it says, than men. And the weakness of God is stronger than men. And so God's weakness, if he had a weakness, and, you know, he doesn't have any weaknesses, but would be stronger than men.

In verse 26, For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise, according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. And he says, For God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty. And so God has chosen us, brethren, to put to shame those who consider themselves so wise in this world.

You know, God has sort of called us out of this world, and we are not the brightest bulbs that were shining upon the earth. In fact, the dimmest bulbs that were shining, and God called us out of this world. And Paul cites the fact that God hasn't chosen the weak, the wise of the world, but he's chosen the foolish ones of the world. And then his statement here, I think, is very important for us, brethren, because it says, For you see your calling. You know, that phrase right there, For you see your calling, brethren, should cause us to ask the question of ourselves, Do I see my calling?

Again, if sometimes the wisdom of the world is wiser than our wisdom, then do we see our calling? Do we grasp it? Do we fully understand the calling that God is offering us here and now in this time that we're living in? That word, see, by the way, is actually in an imperative sense. You know what something is if it's imperative that you do it. In other words, it's a command of God that we see our calling, that we consider our calling. Again, look around you, brethren. Has God called the great and mighty of the world? Are you sitting next to somebody who was in the news yesterday?

You know, no, we aren't, are we? We are not sitting among the so-called wise of the world and the movers and the shakers of the world. And we're not that either, any of us individually. So, brethren, do we see our calling? Do we know why God called us?

Do we know why He called us, brethren? Do you know why God called you? What He intends for you? What His purpose is for you? Are we wise enough to grasp it, in other words? You know, a lot of times in the world, when people want to turn to God, they go down to the local church, whatever that church is, that denomination, and they tell the pastor, I want to become a Christian.

And he says, that's fine. And they take you back to the baptismal tank and dunk you in under there, and now you're a Christian. It's so easy that way, isn't it? The way it is in society and the world. No argumentation, just dunk you. Don't think about much of anything else, just get you under that water, and now you're a Christian. Voila! You know, all of a sudden. Well, in the church, it's not that way. And it never has been that way with those that God is calling in this age.

So, brethren, how does God evaluate who he calls? How does he evaluate who he calls? Did God consider any characteristics you had before he called you? He looked down and considered anything about you when he decided he was going to call you? And we know that the Father himself thought about you, personally. Not about the church. You know, and maybe the hundreds or the thousands that he would call, but he thought about you. And, you know, this Armstrong used to use the Scripture, John 644, that says, No man can come to me, Jesus said, except the Father which hath sent me draw him, and I will raise him up the last day.

And so the Father has to be the one, brethren, draws us to the church. Draws us to Jesus Christ. And the Father, again, at a given point, thought about us, and he drew us to Christ. He decided now is the time to begin to draw that person to Christ. You know, this person is not going to be like the Christian, so-called Christians of the world. This person is really going to be drawn of the Father to Christ. This person is going to be living a different way of life, and I have great plans for this person I'm drawing to Christ.

And so it's not something that is happening all the time in the world. But, brethren, it is happening to maybe the hundreds and the thousands, not the millions. The time will come, we know, in the world tomorrow when God is going to begin to impact millions of people, multiple millions of people, in fact. But God drew us to Jesus Christ, and brethren, realize this, it wasn't the other way around.

You didn't just choose to come to Christ. You didn't choose to do that. Now, you may think that while I was looking for something, I was looking for the truth, and I found it. And sometimes we can get a little vanity out of that. But in reality, it was Jesus Christ and the Father who dealt with us.

You know, Christ died for us while we were yet sinners, and the Father began to draw us, probably when we knew nothing about the truth at all. You know, it has to begin that way. You know, when we look at how God creates, we know that He is a perfect God in everything that He does. You know, if you see God's creation, it's like the more you look into the creation, the more awe that you see.

I mean, you look inside of a cell, and it's just more complex. You know, we think it's simple when you look at it on the outside, but the deeper you look into it, the more complex it is. And we see how very perfect it is. You know, think about yourself, brethren. Here you are. You're sitting in church. You walked in here. You sat down. Now, sometimes, as a person goes through life, they can be injured. And, you know, maybe there's a pain that they have. And then it becomes a little bit harder to come in and sit down, doesn't it? So we find out that the body is a system, a complex, immensely complex system, that allows us to get up out of bed, to feed ourselves, to hop in the car and drive down here, and to walk in and sit down, and to breathe and to listen and to reason and to think. But God did all of that. He created all of that. Again, I know I don't have to tell you that. But, you know, the Father and Jesus Christ are creators, and they have a perfect creation. You know, they created the earth the way they wanted it to be. We know it's been created temporary for the time being. But we know, brethren, that God created, and He is a perfect God. Now, God did not, haphazardly, brethren, make a choice to call you. That's what sometimes we think God does. Oh, God made... He must have made a mistake. You know, does He know I snuck in the door? You know, that I got in here? Sometimes people actually think they sneak in the door. I didn't... They say, well, nobody invited me to come to church. You know, they think they snuck in the door. And so God didn't know. And then when they got in, God said, all right, I'll go ahead and call you. You know? They can have that mentality, can't they? But, you know, He places us, the Bible says, in the body as it pleases Him. As it pleases Him. And so God is very much involved with us, brethren. The Father did not capriciously send Jesus Christ to be a sacrifice, to suffer the way that He did for us and for all of mankind.

Just so He could just haphazardly choose people to be a part of His church. And that church, by the way, is going to be the bride of Jesus Christ. You know? I don't know about you, Fathers, but when I look at my sons, and I'm sure that any father, he looks at his daughter, he wants his daughter to marry a good man. And, you know, any parent has a son, wants a son to marry a good woman.

A decent woman. Now, we care about those things, don't we? And so he cared about us, brethren, and he's aware of what we're about. And when God looked down from heaven to call us, we no doubt, brethren, had latent talents which God could develop, that He could see in us.

There were latent talents. I mean, not that you had anything that was developed, but God could take what was in you, and He put it in there, by the way, and He could develop that talent. I remember when I went to Ambassador College, you know, prior to that, I went to Northeastern State University. And when I went to Northeastern University, my sole goal was to get the sheepskin, you know, to get that diploma, and, of course, go on to medical school, and then the things that happen along the way.

And, you know, when I ate and drank, academics. And that's all I did. I studied, studied, studied, you know, the whole time, for two years. I really tried to apply myself, and I did very well at college there. But when I came into contact with the church, I began to realize that God expects a little more of me than just to be some egghead, you know, that studies all the time. And when I applied for Ambassador College, by the way, I didn't know whether I was going to get accepted, but I put my faith in God, and I said, God, all right, I've got an application here to Oklahoma State University, and I've got an application here to Ambassador College, and you're going to make the decision.

I'm not. And I said, God, if you want me to go to Ambassador College, then I will get accepted. If you don't, well, I'll go ahead and pursue what I was pursuing. And lo and behold, I got accepted. And I decided, well, I guess that's what you want, isn't it, God? You know, because that's what I asked you for. And when I got to Ambassador College, I decided to throw myself into Ambassador College and to try to develop in every area that I possibly could.

You know, I wanted to develop in terms of personality. I wanted to develop in terms of talents. But that's what I mean in terms of latent traits, you know, things that maybe you have that capacity to do it, but God is going to have to bring that out. And in certain ways, He has been able to work with me even though I have a hard head. And it's kind of difficult sometimes to get through to me about things. But, you know, if we realize that, brethren, that God is looking for things in us that He can bring out and be able to utilize in the right way, in the right manner.

But, you know, we are purposely called, brethren, because, in fact, we are not the wisest in the world. And God is showing us what wisdom is. He's trying to demonstrate to us and show us what wisdom is. But like I said earlier, brethren, there's a danger because we are the base things in the world. Because we are not so much wise of the world. There's a danger that we don't comprehend our calling, what God is doing for us and in us. He's trying to transform us. He's trying to change us in every sense of the word, brethren, and to remake us.

Let's go to Jeremiah 1. Jeremiah 1. In fact, the word remake maybe is not a good term because we are a new creation. There's no remaking. When he's done with us, we'll be a new creation.

Someone that would be different, much different than we would have been if we had not come in contact with God and His way of life and His church and His people. Jeremiah over here, by the way, in Jeremiah 1 and verse 4, it says, Then the word of the eternal kingdom, saying, you know, here God is talking to Jeremiah, Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you. Interesting, isn't it? Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you.

Before you were born, I sanctified you. I set you apart. In other words, I knew what it was going to use you for. Before you were born, I ordained you a prophet to the nations. He said. And so God had a special reason for calling Jeremiah. And so think about this, brethren, that God started with Jeremiah before he was formed in the womb. But how about us? When did God start working with you? When did he start working with you, brethren? I guess it depends on how hard your head is, you know. I really personally believe that God starts working with us when we were, most of us are little kids.

Before we knew anything about God, anything about the Bible, anything about God's church, and we were surrounded by people that knew nothing about God either fully. I know I grew up in a family that, you know, of course we believed in God, we believed in Jesus Christ, we believed in those things, but the people I grew up around didn't know the truth, didn't know about the Sabbath, didn't know about the Holy Days, didn't know about the plan of God and the gospel and the incredible human potential.

Didn't know these things. Verse 6 going on. And then I said, O Lord God, behold, I cannot speak, for I am a youth. I can't speak. I'm a youth. I can't do this. I can't take up that gauntlet. But the Eternal said to me, do not say I am a youth, for you shall go to all to whom I send you, and whatever I command you, you shall speak. And so God said, shut up and just listen to what I have to say.

He said, do not be afraid of their faces, for I am with you to deliver you, says the Lord. So God says, I am with you. But Jeremiah's reaction, brethren, is the same of ours in our calling. I can't do this. You know, it's like I remember seeing people give speeches when I was at services, and I thought, well, I told you, I never wanted to be a minister. I've said that to you a number of times. I, frankly, could not even fathom the thought of standing up in front of a group of people.

I don't know why I thought I was going to be a doctor, if I could stand up in front of people. But, you know, that was my problem at the time. I just couldn't imagine it. You know, why me? Why did you call me? And, of course, if it had been up to me, I wouldn't have been in the position in the first place. But it wasn't up to me. And it's not up to you, either. Not up to you, either. Verse 17, let's go on over here. In verse 17 through 19, it says, Therefore prepare yourself, God said to Jeremiah, and arise and speak to them all that I command you. Do not be dismayed before their faces, lest I dismay you before them. For, behold, I have made you this day a fortified city, an iron pillar, bronze walls against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the princes, against its priests, against the people of the land. And they will fight against you. In other words, God is telling Jeremiah, they're going to fight against you. They're not going to be for you. There's no question about that. But they shall not prevail against you. For I am with you, says the Eternal, to deliver you.

And, you know, the same is true with us, brethren. They can fight against us. And by that I'm talking about the work of the church, and I'm talking about us as we strive to obey God and walk in His way. But in the end, they will not win. They will not win. I hesitate to say that we will win. We won't win, but God will win.

And hopefully we'll be a part of that when God wins, because He is going to fight our battle for us. Yes, it is He fought the battles for Jeremiah. And interestingly, Jeremiah 1-1 up here says that Jeremiah's father was Hilkiah.

Now, Hilkiah was of the line of Aaron, so he was a Levite. He was of the Levitical line. And, you know, the Levites had a special service as the priest during the days of the old wilderness tabernacle. And, you know, they were chosen of God for that purpose.

Now, why did God select the Levites over the other 11 tribes to serve as priests? Was God unfair in this? I mean, and decided He was going to only use Levites? You know, rather than Reuben, and Reuben, you would think, would have been right up there. He was the first born son. Why wouldn't He have used the Reubenites? But He did not. He did not choose to use the Reubenites in that way. So why did God select the Levites for His priests? You know, actually there's quite an interesting story behind why that happened. Because it was not the original intent of God to do that. You know, this is another example, by the way, in the Bible where God is not this stone-stayed God up there. Like the law of the Medes and Persians that never changes His mind. You know, God can change His mind about something. He can say something, and then He can change His mind. I'm not going to do that. I've decided I'm going to change my mind about that. And so God is able to do that. And God did not intend the Levites to be the priests in the beginning. During the time of Jacob, remember Jacob had 12 sons. Jacob's daughter Dinah was out and about in the land in Shechem. And you remember the story of how a prince of Shechem took Dinah and raped her and dishonored her. During this time, if something like this happens, it was a terrible stigma that impacted someone. Of course, it still is quite a stigma, even in our day and age now. But she was raped and she was dishonored by this prince of Shechem. And afterwards, the prince's father, because the prince so loved Dinah, he wanted to make her his wife, the prince's father asked Jacob if Dinah could be given to his son as a wife.

And he said, he said, I'll give you anything. Whatever you want, I will give it. Now, Dinah's brothers, by the way, the 12 brothers, particularly two of them, were so raw and so angry at what this Shechemite priests had done to their sister. They were so angry that they simply could not let it go, that their sister was defiled. They couldn't let that go. It was something that burned within them very, very deeply. Let's go over to the book of Genesis, the book of Genesis, and we see this story here that begins to develop as to why God chose the Levites. But here in Genesis 34, and we'll go down to verse 13, it says, then God, well, in chapter 35, sorry, down to verse 13, you're breaking into the thought, it says, But the sons of Jacob answered Shechem and Hamor his father, and spoke deceitfully.

Remember again, Hamor had said, look, give me, ask me anything, and we'll do it. As long as you give your daughter Dinah as a wife to my son. And so when, in fact, the sons of Jacob answered Shechem, they spoke deceitfully because he had defiled Dinah, their sister. And it says, And they said to them, we cannot do this thing to give our sister to one who is uncircumcised, for that would be a reproach to us.

And in other words, we just simply can't do that. And you can go on and read the rest of the story here. But the rest of the story is that the sons of Jacob tricked, you know, the Shechemites into getting circumcised. And when they were the sorest afterwards, they came in and slaughtered all the males, and they took captives of the women and the children. They spoiled the Shechemites and took all of their wealth, all of their cattle, and everything from them. And Jacob, you remember the story, was deeply disturbed by what Simeon and Levi had done.

However, in this particular case, oftentimes we read over an obvious trait that was in Simeon and Levi. They had an inherent quality which, if it is channelled in the right direction, can be a great benefit and a great good. You've probably seen people like this, that, you know, they got tremendous talents and abilities, except they put them to the wrong use. But if you could put them to the right use, then it would be a good thing. But Levi and Simeon were those two brothers who came in and did this.

They were action-oriented. Now, these men, if they tell you they're going to do something, they are going to do it. You know, they are action-oriented. And so that category of having the ability to act on something, to carry through and do it, that is a good quality.

That is a good quality to have if it can be channelled in the right direction. Now, by the way, God was not pleased with what Levi and Simeon did either. Jake wasn't pleased. But God was not pleased with their wild hair, redneck way of doing things.

In fact, there's some that say that a lot of the rednecks, you know, probably are Levites. You know, we've talked about that before in Arkansas and down through there, by the way. So I hope I wouldn't offend anybody. If I do offend anyone, I have to remind you I was born in Fortranets, Arkansas.

But, you know, Levi and Simeon were men of actions, but the unfortunate thing is they were very cruel. At the end of Jacob's life, let's go over here to Genesis 49. Genesis 49. Genesis 49, in verse 1, I think also about the two sons of thunder who wanted to call fire down out of heaven and destroy those people because they didn't receive Christ. You know, Christ didn't like the attitude in them, but, you know, James and John were men of action. Let's do something.

And again, channel rightly, that's a good thing. But notice here in verse 1, it says, and Jacob called his sons, this is at the end of his life, and he said, Gather together, thy may tell you what shall befall you in the latter days.

So rather than the end of the age, in other words, when the families have multiplied and when things have developed and grown, this is what is going to befall you. But in verse 5, let's notice down here, it speaks again, focuses right in on Simeon and Levi.

Simeon and Levi are brothers. You know, say they apparently were two peas in a pot here that stuck together. But notice, he said, instruments of cruelty are in their dwelling place. Maybe they were also not only that way in the case of the Shechemites, but they were also that way in their dwellings.

And maybe that need to be diluted a little bit. But down in verse 7, notice, cursed be their anger for his fears and their wrath for his cruel.

And I will divide them in Jacob and scatter them in Israel. And so, God had to scatter among Israel, of old, the Levites and the Simeonites because of their characteristics. In other words, in the latter days, they had been scattered among the Israelites, blanketing the earth and different parts of the world, where, of course, you have modern-day Israel today. But he condemned their cruelty, but obviously their traits could be channeled for the good of all of Israel.

God desires their zeal. That's what he desires, the zeal.

But, you know, to be focused in a righteous manner, and so he chose them for the priesthood.

You know, God has chosen us, brethren, for the priesthood as well. You know, keep that in mind. Is there that latent characteristic of zeal within us that has to be brought out? Or has to be brought out in us? Do we have other, again, latent characteristics that have to be brought out if we're going to again be in the priesthood, and we know ultimately our assignments will come in the time of the millennium when we're going to be the kings and priests who will rule under Jesus Christ? Let's go over to 1 Peter 2, because God, again, has specially called us, brethren. He's specially decided to call us into his church.

In 1 Peter 2, and verse 4 and 5, notice it says, And you also, as lively a living sown, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. Therefore, it is also contained in the Scripture, Behold, I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, elect precious, and he who believes on him will by no means be put to shame. And so we know we came to believe in Jesus Christ and his Savior, the fact that he is our Savior. And down in verse 9 it says, But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, his own special people, as it says here again in the New King James Version, that you may proclaim the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light, who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy and now have obtained mercy.

And so God made us into a people. And so we are chosen, brethren, and specially called. He's chosen us as a part of the royal priesthood, not just being a priest, but a royal priest. And so our calling is special and our characteristics, brethren, as to why God called us have played a part in it. No, it's not because, again, we were super righteous, you know, that God called us.

It's like the Levites, before he decided that he was going to use them in the priesthood. They weren't chosen because they were righteous, were they? There had to be other reasons for that. And like I said, the Levites, Levi was a very actual-oriented people and also Simeon. But, you know, we as God's people need to realize that God expects us, brethren, to develop certain traits. Now, whose traits should we be developing?

Well, shouldn't we mimic Jesus Christ? He's the high priest, isn't he? Shouldn't we follow the lead of Jesus Christ, who is our elder brother? What are the characteristics of Jesus Christ? What is Christ like? Well, He is loving and He is tender with people. Very loving and very tender with people.

He's a man of great emotions. He can have great emotions. He can have compassion for people. He also, He's multifaceted. He has a great capacity for righteous indignation as well. So, on the one hand, you know, Jesus Christ can be very, very tender.

But when the time comes, when the judgments need to be made, He can make those judgments too. And they may, must be sometimes incisive. And an example of this is when Jesus Christ called the tribes of the Pharisees hypocrites. Now, these were the leaders of the day. He's out there saying, you hypocrites.

He said that they were like white enseplikas full of dead men's bones. You know, this would have been a great insult to the people of the day. Also, how about, brethren, when He threw the money changers out of the temple? You think Christ was nice about that? You think He went up to the money changers? Just sort of move on. You know, I don't think so. He had a cord in His hand and made people know He made business with it.

Well, brethren, God expects us to become righteously indignant with the times that we're living in. He expects us to stand for the truth and cry aloud about sin and spare not, and woe to us if we become complacent about sin.

Lot's soul was vexed by what He saw in Sodom. Oh, brethren, we're here right next to it as well. How about us? Hopefully it's not easy for us to live in the midst of these types of things, but obviously we have to live where we have to live. Let's go to Ezekiel 9. In the end of the age, God is going to save those that have the attitude of crying and sighing for the times that we're living in. He's going to protect those who are not a part of this world in society, who are striving to come out of this world and be different.

But in Ezekiel 9 and verse 4, God said to Ezekiel, go through the midst of the city. Ezekiel 9 verse 4, go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and put a mark on the forehands of the men who sigh and cry over all the abominations that are done within it.

And to the others, He said it in my hearing, go after Him through the city and kill. Do not let your eyes spare, nor have any pity. Utterly slay old and young men, maidens and little, children and women, but do not come near anyone upon whom is the mark and begin at my sanctuary. In other words, begin at the sanctuary. Begin at the church, if you will. And it says, so they begun with the elders who were before the temple.

And so God is going to begin with His sanctuary, brethren, to make sure that we are all sighing and crying about the times that we're living in, in this world and society, that we're against sin, that we're not for sin. You know, part of the job that we have as a church is not only preaching the gospel of the good news of the kingdom of God, but to also warn this world of what is coming and why it's coming and why it is we're going to have the troubles in the future. It's going to be, again, because of man's sins and the way that men live.

They want to live contrary to God's way of life. Now, in the Bible, God selected Aaron as the high priest, and He selected the Levites as the priesthood. Now, again, why did He do that? Remember, other Scriptures said the firstborn was consecrated. If you look back in Exodus 13, verse 2, God says that the firstborn of every family was consecrated to him. And what that meant is the firstborn child was going to be used as a priest. That's what that meant.

And, you know, the firstborn child usually does have certain characteristics. The secondborn and the thirdborn do not. And so God was going to use the firstborn in the priesthood. And the reason why that He was going to do that, probably again, is because of those characteristics the firstborn tend to have. You know, in them. However, the Levites were taken instead of the firstborn of all families. Now, why did God change His mind? Let's go over to Exodus 32. Exodus 32. You know, there come a time where, in the time when action is needed, that for God it is a game changer of what His plan originally was going to be. He changes his mind about something.

You know, it's like in your life, you know, you can look at the example of, in our lives, we can look at the example of Jacob who wrestled with God. Remember, he wrestled with God and he didn't give up. And as a result of that, God blessed him. What if Jacob had given up? And so there was a characteristic in Jacob that God liked that was important.

But there was a moment of time where, you know, people of action were needed. But let's notice here in Exodus 32 down in verse 7.

Here God is speaking to Moses in verse 7 and it says, It's interesting how God says, your people, not my people here. Sometimes it's my people, but here when they're doing wrong, you know, God says, they're your people, Moses. What about your people? Some people's kids, you know.

In verse 8, they have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them. They have made themselves a molded calf and worshipped it and sacrificed to it and said, This is your God, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt. You can imagine how God must have felt, you know, when they were saying this, you know, there in the camp of Israel, that this false God, this idol had brought them out of the land of Egypt. Let's go down to verse 19.

In verse 19, You know, this was something that Moses detested as to what they did. Now, let's go down to verse 25. And when Moses saw that the people were unrestrained, for Aaron had not restrained them to their shame among their enemies, the people weren't restrained. They were out of control here. And I think there's every indication, too, that they may have had something intoxicating that was occurring here.

But in verse 26, All the sons of Levi gathered together to Moses. And apparently only the Levites did.

And, you know, God prizes, brethren, the characteristic of being faithful, of demonstrating loyalty and dedication.

God hates traitors kind of traits in people. You look at the in the book of Timothy, it talks about, in the last days, people will be traitors. It talks about how they turncoats so easily. But God prizes the characteristic of being loyal. And clearly in this the Levites were a breed of part. They were different. They were different in this regard. Verse 27.

And so here we see that they stood out. If you look, by the way, in Moffat here for verse 29, you know, Moses is saying here, Be installed as a priest to the eternal this day. Consecrate means to be ordained. It means to be set apart. And so from that day forward, you know, the Levites were used as the priests of God because of what they did. You think God looks for those characteristics in us too? I think He does. He wants to see again how loyal we are to Him. No, there's a strong vein, brethren, of loyalty that is in the people of God. A strong vein of loyalty. And they are loyal to God. And God prizes this in us. And this is likely one of the reasons we've been tested in recent trials. Because of loyalty. There are probably other things. I think we were tested on spiritual perception as well, but we were tested on loyalty. Will we be loyal to God? Will we prove loyal to God and Jesus Christ, who is the head of the church? Do we recognize Christ is really the head of the church? Or do we just say that? No, Christ is the head of the church. You know, when Jesus Christ came along, and I'm not going to go to Matthew 12.30, but He said, He who is not with Me is against Me. So if we're not on Jesus Christ's side, who is the head of the church, we're not on the Father's side. He that is not with Me is against Me, Christ said. And He that does not gather with Me scatters abroad. Someone who doesn't gather with Me, along with Me, scatters. In other words, this person is a divider, trying to cause people to scatter, rather than bringing people together in unity. And we must within the church do those things, brethren, that make for peace and unity in the church.

If we're people that cause division, God hates that person that does that. You look back on the book of Proverbs, and we see that in the book of Proverbs. If somebody is causing dissension, somebody is a divider, if somebody is a scatterer of God's people, God hates that.

And within the church, we need to hold fast. We need to be loyal to God.

And Christ said that our job is to be gatherers, and the work of gathering, we must be unified as God's people, as much as possible. And we'll never be perfect, by the way, in unification within the church. I hope we recognize the fact that we're not perfect. So therefore, we can't be perfectly unified. But as much as possible, the Bible says, is as much as lies in you live peaceably with all men. Live peaceably with all men. And it has to be this way for us to stand, rather. Otherwise, we would fight and bicker, and we would fall apart. And that's what the Bible says as well. If you backbite one another, you're going to collapse. The Bible says that. We can't wage war against ourselves within the church.

The unrighteous Israelites, brethren, threatened the unity of the church and the wilderness. And the Levites used a sword to slay the sinful Israelites, in order to bring things back to where God could utilize Israel. What type of sword are we to utilize, brethren, to do that?

What are some of the traits of those who will be future kings and priests? Let's go over to Ephesians 6. I've said these things before, but in different ways. Hopefully, different angles to help us to understand and grasp. Again, we need to see our calling, what our calling is.

And God commands us to do that. But Ephesians 6 and verse 11, it says, In that evil day, as he says, and having done all to stand. You know, we don't want to fight a battle and then collapse and die. We want to remain standing, as he says, Stand therefore, having girded your waist with the truth. Have the truth and hold on to the truth.

Having put on the breastplate of righteousness. In other words, living righteously. And having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel. Have in your mind that you want to help to get the work done. To preach the gospel. And, brethren, the more unified we are, the more we're going to be able to preach that gospel that needs to be preached to this world and this society that is out there.

And it says, And above all, taking the shield of faith. We can't answer all questions, brethren. So that's why we need the shield of faith. Because we walk by faith. We cannot know all things. Some people think that they know all things about what is happening in Zambia. And they've never been there. They don't have a clue as to what really is going on over there. Because they haven't been there. But I was reading somebody's blog the other day on the internet about what they were saying about Zambia, and they've never been there.

But yet, their writing is like they know all about it. All about it. You know, I think there's a time when we have to say, Look, I don't know all about it. And I'll just have to wait to hear what the situation is. But faith is necessary because we don't have all the answers and never will have all the answers. So we can sit before Christ and ask Him. And we needed also that faith to fight off the fiery darts of Satan that He throws at us. And it says, Take the helmet of salvation. In other words, you want God's salvation more than anything in your life.

And you're going to keep moving forward. And then the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. So this is your sword right here, brother. Live by this book and you'll be in the Kingdom. I know that's a simple thing to say, isn't it? It's a big book. But God leads us to the truth. Like I said, we didn't find Him, He found us. And if we trust Him, He will continue to lead us. We need to hold on to the truth, brethren, we've been taught. And, you know, Revelation 3.11 tells us, Behold, I come quickly, Christ said.

Hold that fast what you have that no man take your crown. He talked about how there would be many false prophets who would go out in the world. You know, Paul in Acts 20 said that there would be those who would rise up among us to take followings off to themselves. And yet, why are we so, as it were, incredulous when these things do happen? Because it's a part of what God said was going to happen. The sword of the Spirit must be used to sort things out so that we can get down to the truth.

And those who have lived their lives, letting the Holy Spirit lead them, based on the Word of God, come to see the truth. Spiritual discernment was needed, like I said, to see the difference between right and wrong and what happened to the church recently. You had to have the spiritual discernment. In 1995, all you had to know was the doctrines of the church and believe them.

But here you had to have spiritual discernment. God wants it to be the kind of people, brethren, who cannot be carried about by every wind of doctrine that is presented by crafty men in this world. The Bible tells us to speak the truth in love, and we need to wield the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God. So we need to be able to give an answer from this book of the hope that lies within us with meekness and fear. And God's people, brethren, must wage their own warfare with zeal. Because Hebrews 11 tells us that we have to have faith, and God looks to those that diligently seek Him, to diligently seek to please Him.

And we must take the King of God by force, because Satan is in charge of this world. We're pushing through, brethren. We're pushing through this world as the church of God today. And the reason is that Satan is in charge of this world. It's not easy to live God's way of life.

It's not easy to preach the gospel in a world cut off from God. It's almost like we're in the bowels of hell, aren't we, here upon this earth? And I mean that in a figurative sense, because of the kind of things that we see in the world. But, brethren, God saw traits in us, some of them latent, and they have to be brought out. A Christian must develop those traits that God wants us to develop.

And the reason is, is God wants us to have very high standards within the church. You know, it's interesting, the closer you get in service to God, the higher God expects your standards to be. Hopefully we're all close to God, aren't we? Hopefully we're all striving to obey God.

The Levites were the closest to the Tabernacle, and they had to live by higher standards than the other tribes. Let's go to Leviticus 21.

You know, we can't take the tack, by the way, of saying, well, I'm not a Levite, so I'm going to live by a lower standard. Because we're all going to be priests in the future. But in Leviticus 21, in verse 1, it says, So, you know, the priests were not allowed to touch certain dead people.

It says, Also, That's an interesting, it's a physical thing, but it was a higher standard that God expected, again, of the priesthood. Now, let's notice down here, in verse 10, And it says, And it says, And it says, And it says, Post you get to God, the higher the standards are. And it says, So again, the closer we get to God, brethren, the higher the standards God expects us to have. And imagine what our standards will be when we are changed out of this human flesh, and we become spirit beings, and we can be like Jesus Christ, because the Bible says we're going to be that, because we're going to see Him as He is.

Our conduct, though, has to be on a high level, brethren, because we are going to be kings and priests in the kingdom of God. That's why God has chosen us. And we are a chosen generation. Now, again, I'm not saying to you we can't touch a dead body in the same fashion that God said here with the Levites, because that's a ceremonial thing.

But I'm saying, brethren, that the standards, that's why Paul says, don't be many masters, because they're going to receive the greater condemnation. So the closer you get to God, the closer a person strives to get to God, the higher the standards need to be. What is God doing in our lives, brethren, by this change, these gradations of change for us? Well, every animal has its own DNA with their characteristics. They've figured out that that double helix has all the traits of a human being or all the traits of an animal. And the animal, in fact, can be clones because of that.

This is why science is able to do that. They were able to do that with Dolly, and they've done it with many, many other animals since that time. It's not an easy thing now, but it's getting easier for them to do this in the laboratory. Now, so far as we know, the first human has not been cloned. But no doubt, someone either has secretly done it or will do it. I mean, think this is the way human beings are, aren't they? Tell somebody they can't do something, and they're going to do that regardless of what they are told to do.

Well, brethren, in essence, God, His DNA is being replicated in each one of us. This is why we're changing. We're being changed. We're being transformed to become like God. I know we've got a long way to go in order to do that. But God is putting His DNA in us, brethren.

And His very character is being built within us. And Paul said in Philippians 1.6, he says, that you can be confident of this very thing, that what God has started in you will be finished. You know, it's going to be finished. God is carrying this process through, and He's going to finish it. He called you, He began to work with you. You know, again, when was that? Maybe when you were five, you know, maybe when you were ten, He began to look at you. Maybe God was walking by one day, and He saw something in you.

Oh, I like that in that person. No, God is like us in that regard, brethren. He can see things, and He can examine, and He can observe. But God is, again, in that process of beginning to change us into what, in fact, we will become at the second coming of Christ, and that is we'll become like Christ, because the Bible says we shall see Him as He is.

Let's go to Ephesians 1. And brethren, this process started in us a long time ago. God started working with us before, again, we ever came into the church. But there came a time, came a time when a minister laid you back in a water grave and pulled you back out of that water grave, and the ministers laid their hands on you and asked God to give you God's Holy Spirit, that this really, in earnest, started with you spiritually and with me, spiritually speaking.

Ephesians 1 and verse 3, it says, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who have blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places of Christ.

And it's just as He chose us, He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love. Now think about this again. God said at that particular time, I'm going to call a certain number of people. I don't think God said, well, I'm going to call, you know, Joe Smith, eons ago.

But I believe God decided, I'm going to call a certain number of people at that time. And so, in other words, He planned for us to come on the sea. And so God chose us. And it says, Having predestinated us to adoption of sons by Jesus Christ to Himself. In other words, God had in His plan that He was going to adopt sons. They were going to be adopted sons by Jesus Christ to Himself. And it says, That God desired to do this. In verse 6, So we've been accepted in the realms of heaven, brethren, for this incredible destiny that God has for us.

All wisdom and prudence, having made known to us the mystery of His will. Now we've got to be wise enough to see it, brethren. Wise enough to see our calling, according to His good pleasure, which He purposed in Himself. That in the dispensation of the fullness of times He might gather together in all, in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth in Him. So God is going to bring it all together. This is what Paul is saying into one government, if you will. Not a heavenly one and an earthly one. It's going to be all together, in other words, according to what Paul is saying here. In Him also we have obtained inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will.

And so we've been called again for this incredible calling, that we who first trusted in Christ should be in the praise of His glory. Because we first trusted in Christ. God had to bring us to that point and we began to trust in Jesus Christ. I mean truly trust in Christ. I don't mean going up the sawdust trail, as people used to do when they were called up to the altar, and giving your heart to the Lord and then going to get dunked, as many people in this world do. I'm talking about people who really do trust God, really do want to obey God. In Him who also trusted after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and whom also having believed you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise. Who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession to the praise of His glory. And so as a proof of this, God said, I've given you a down payment. And it's my spirit. God put His DNA in us, brethren, then. And He's been developing us ever since, in a spiritual way. So we have the earnest payment, brethren, for eternal life. We have the earnest payment also that is the Spirit of God, the spiritual DNA of God that helps us become like Jesus Christ.

What a wonderful calling we have, brethren. God has called you and me, brethren, at the most exciting time in the history of mankind. Think about it. You and I live in a very surprising time. They're not going to be boring by any stretch of the imagination. It could be scary sometimes, but if we again have faith in God, we'll make it through in every sense of the word. But we live at the end, the tail end of man's society and on the cusp of the kingdom of God. We're going to see some transitions here that we're going to be talking about for eternity when all is said and done. The Apostle Paul says, for you see your calling. Well, brethren, do you see your calling? Do you consider it in the imperative sense? In other words, you follow God's command and see your calling. You have an anointing from God, and your calling is indeed special. And since God has called you, He will preserve you, He will bring you into His kingdom if you continue to trust in Him and have faith in Him. And, brethren, that is why you've been specially selected by Almighty God. So let's see our calling. It's a great one, a tremendous calling that God has given.