Worship (Lesson 9) First Fruits to God – Aaron Cozort – October 14, 2026

In Admonition Podcast, Biblical Principles, Exodus, faith, first fruits, God's ownership, keywords Bible, Obedience, sacrifice, stewardship, worship by Aaron Cozort

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Good evening.

Take your Bibles, if you will, and open them to the book of Exodus.

Exodus chapter twenty-three.

Let’s begin with a word of prayer.

Gracious Father in Heaven, we come before your throne grateful for the day that you’ve

blessed us with, for the opportunities that we have this day, for the ability that we

have, the energy we have to be able to serve you.

Lord, we pray that you be with those who are ill, those who are struggling with poor

health, those who have chronic diseases.

And Lord, we pray that you give them strength.

We pray that you be with those who are going through hardships of other sorts, that you

give them the courage and the strength to walk before you in faithfulness and always serve

you in a way that’s right in your sight.

Lord, we pray for those who have upcoming procedures.

We pray especially for Eric that his procedure tomorrow will go well.

Pray for those who are sorrowing over lost loved ones, and we pray that you give them

comfort and strength, and may they seek that comfort and strength through your word.

Lord, we strive always to walk in the light as you are in the light.

But we know sometimes we sin and fall short of your glory.

We pray that when we do so and when we are willing to repent of those things, that you

will forgive us of those things.

Pray that the worship that we offer to you week after week is right in your sight, is in

spirit and in truth.

We pray for the nation that is around us.

We pray for the elections that are going on in our state and throughout this country, and

we pray that you will help them to be peaceful elections, that people will be able to uh

Make the the will of the people known, but we also pray that the citizens of this country

will moderate their will based upon the word of God.

All these things we pray and ask in Jesus’ name.

Amen.

In Exodus twenty-three, we are introduced to the some of the annual feasts that are in

Israel.

And as God is going to introduce these topics, we’re going to learn some things about not

only what Israel was expected to do, but hopefully some things concerning.

Our worship as well.

We’re going to open in Exodus 23 and verse 10.

He says, Six years you shall sow your land and gather in its produce, but the seventh year

you shall let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of your people may eat, and what they

leave the beasts of the field may eat.

In like manner you shall do with your vineyard and your olive grove.

Six days you shall do your work, and on the seventh day you shall rest that your ox and

your donkey may rest, and the son of your female servant and the stranger may be

refreshed.

And in all that I have said to you be circumspect.

And make no mention of the name of other gods, nor let it be heard from your mouth.

As God is telling the Israelites concerning the law, concerning the things and the

ordinances that they are to have, in this particular area, He’s going to mention to them

concerning the Sabbath year law.

He is going to give them an ordinance that says, seventh year.

What are they not supposed to do?

Not supposed to plant.

They’re also not supposed to do what?

Harvest anything that grows on its own.

If they didn’t plant it, but it comes up anyway, they don’t go out to the field and go,

hey, it I didn’t plant it, but it came up, so it’s mine.

Who are they to allow to take the things that were planted or the things that grew during

that year?

The poor and the animals.

You know, one of the things that Jesus mentions in Matthew chapter six is that God even

provides for the what type of animal?

The sparrows.

God provides for the sparrows and Jesus’ point is if he provides for the sparrows, don’t

you think he’s going to provide for you?

How many times do we

Look at our laws and have the mindset.

Well, no one has a right to tell me what to do with my stuff.

Nobody has a right to tell me what to do with my property.

Nobody has a right to tell me what to do with my land.

Now, is everyone else God?

No.

But it’s worth pointing out that God is very much telling them what they can do with their

stuff, with their land.

But bear in mind who gave them their land.

Did.

If you were to go through the laws and the ordinances in Exodus, in Leviticus, you might

be able to rightfully pick it up and look at it and read through it and go, here are the

terms of the contract.

I’ll give you the land.

I’ll give you the benefits.

I’ll give you the descendants.

I’ll make you into a mighty nation.

I’ll make you dwell in safety.

I’ll make it where you have prosperity.

I’ll make it where you lend to others instead of borrowing from others.

I’ll do all these things for you.

But there are stipulations on the contract.

God always has conditions on relationships.

And for an individual to enter a relationship and say, listen, you can’t expect anything

from me.

I get to lay all the conditions on you, and you don’t get to claim anything.

Have you ever seen two people in a marriage where one person dictates everything and the

other person doesn’t get a say about

Anything?

Those rarely turn out well.

God is going to give first.

Notice this, God doesn’t say, after I see that you’re going to obey every command that I

give you, then I’ll let you enter the land.

After I see that you’re going to be the people that I expect you to be, then I will bless

Abraham’s descendants and make a name for him.

God is in a continual give and take, but God always gives first.

Yet God holds us accountable for what we do with what He gives.

So the key thing that I want us to draw from this section is this.

God talks about what they’re going to be doing with their land, but then he says, And in

all that I have said to you, be circumspect and make no mention of the name.

Of other gods.

God says, you want to know how you can dwell in the land and come year seven, you don’t

need to plan anything?

Imagine if there were a business that every seven days they just closed, didn’t open.

You know, there used to be a lot of businesses that way.

Used to be a lot of businesses that two out of seven days they weren’t open.

There’s still a few.

But imagine if you had a business that every seventh year

Every every staff member still got paid.

All the bills still got paid.

All the stuff was still there that needed to be done.

They just didn’t open.

Would you consider that business to be well run?

Well, I guess it depends on if you want to eat at Chick fil A or not.

You know, every seven years there’s no you no Chick fil A, no chicken.

But as they were doing this, what were they supposed to learn from this?

They were supposed to learn that didn’t matter how hard they worked, God was in control of

how they prospered.

That they could never look at all that they had and go, I’m pretty sure the God Molech did

this for me.

No.

God says, every time you wake up, you walk outside, you look at the land around you, you

look at the harvest coming up, don’t you dare.

Say that that came from Baal.

Don’t you dare say that that came from a golden calf.

Don’t you make mention of Ra, the sun god of Egypt?

Because you have what you have because of what I’ve done.

But with that

Call for them to be circumspect.

There’s a warning.

If you want to ruin the covenant relationship you have with the Lord, introduce someone

else into the relationship.

Introduce another God.

Go ahead, say their name, let it come out of your mouth, and you’ll see this covenant

relationship fall apart.

God gives them bountifully what they need, but God sets some stipulations.

Then you notice verse 14.

He says, Three times you shall keep a feast to me in the year.

You shall keep the feast of unleavened bread.

You shall eat unleavened bread seven days, as I command you, at the time appointed in the

month of Abib, for in it you came out of Egypt, none shall appear before me.

Empty.

God says, You’re going to hold a feast to me, the feast of unleavened bread, and for seven

days you’re going to eat unleavened bread.

Why unleavened bread?

Alright.

First, now this is this is pre-MANna, but that’s what that’s what manna was.

It was unleavened bread.

What else?

There’s a actually a couple of things that that are involved in this.

He commanded it.

Alright, he commanded it.

All right.

On the occasion of the tenth plague at the Passover, the unleavened bread was commanded.

They were told to sweep their house.

They were told to clean out their house.

They were told not to have any leaven found anywhere in their house.

What does leaven do to bread?

Makes it rise.

So if we were to think about it this way, unleavened bread is natural bread.

Leavened bread is unnatural bread, in the sense that the leaven has changed the very

nature of the bread.

If you take a loaf of bread,

And you put it out on the counter with no leaven in it, and you come back three hours

later, how big is the loaf?

Exactly the same size.

I if you come back a day later, how big is the loaf?

Same size.

Leaven changes things.

You go over to First Corinthians chapter five, Paul’s going to point out that leaven

actually changes everything.

He says, you put leaven in the lump, and everything in the lump is affected.

So you have first the commandment.

You have second the fact that God had commanded this when they were uh in the Passover and

in Egypt.

You have third the fact that leaven is viewed often in a ceremonial way as a corrupting

agent.

But think about this.

Who puts the leaven in?

Whoever’s making the bread.

There’s a there’s a point here, at least the way I understand it, God’s saying, you be

satisfied with what I gave you.

You understand what I gave you.

Yep.

Now, in most people’s opinion, which one’s better?

Light, fluffy, airy, leavened bread or dense, thick, hard tack.

Most people go, Can I have the light, fluffy, airy stuff?

But notice God is going to tell them you take what came from the ground and you make the

bread and you show up and you eat what I produced for you for seven days.

Because when they eat the bread, who are they honoring in eating the bread?

The one who made it.

The Lord.

God is telling them, you show up.

And you eat the bread that I’ve given to you.

And you don’t show up empty-handed.

But there’s another aspect to this, for he says, none shall appear before me empty.

Does he mean make sure everybody makes their own bread?

Or does he mean it is everyone’s responsibility to make sure that everyone has bread?

I think it is the second one that you are to not appear before him empty handed if you

have the ability, but also that if there is someone without the ability.

That you are to make sure that they have what they need as well.

Then notice, he says, verse 16, and the feast of harvest, the first fruits of your labors

which you have sown in the field, and the feast of ingathering at the end of the year,

when you have gathered in the fruit of your labors from the field.

So the three feasts that they were commanded to observe every year.

was the feast of unleavened bread, and the feast of harvest, or the feast of first fruits,

and the feast of ingathering, or the f the feast that came at the end of the harvest.

Okay.

I want us to spend a little bit of time in considering this verse sixteen and this first

or sorry second feast that’s mentioned.

The feast of first fruits.

What do you think the feast of first fruits involved?

Okay.

When did the feast of first fruits happen?

Alright.

this would normally have occurred.

So in in Israel, in that land, they had a early rain and a latter rain.

All right.

The latter rain is the one that generally preceded the larger harvest.

You would get the majority of your crops at that latter rain portion.

The earlier rain would begin to bring some of the

Fruits of the ground, the produce out of the ground.

So you have an earlier period of harvest and you have a later period of harvest.

And what you typically have is you have the beginning.

But the feast of first fruits or the feast of the harvest is really about them taking the

very first things that come off the field and offering that to God.

They were to understand that the very first thing belonged to the Lord.

Now, when you go over into those who were keepers of sheep and those who were keepers of

oxen and uh animals, they had a command that the first thing of the flock be offered.

They had a command that the best of the flock be offered.

So

God is establishing a principle that the first thing belongs to him.

And the best thing belongs to him.

And when the harvest is all over, you’re again supposed to remember that it belongs to

him.

Okay?

Now there’s a few gardeners in the room.

Tell me.

For those who live in a house that has a garden, do you get excited when that those first

things start coming off the vine?

The the first okra shows up in the row, the first beads come off, the the the first

tomatoes for those who who like tomatoes.

I can’t figure that one out.

But anyway.

You talk to people and and and they’re they’re excited.

They they’ve been watching They’re just standing back waiting, all right, I’ll wait until

it’s ready to pick.

Some people get a little anxious and they ooh, that wasn’t quite right.

But people are excited when they plant something and the fruit starts to come off.

The produce starts to come off.

They can find they’ve been they they they they waited, they tilled, they prepared the

ground, they planted, they waited, they watered, they weeded, all to where eventually the

plant would come up.

And then they watched the plant and then they made sure there weren’t too weren’t too many

bugs and they made sure the weeds didn’t overtake it, so that eventually the first

blossoms would come out.

And they’re still waiting.

And then finally the produce starts to arrive and God says, That’s not yours.

That belongs to me.

When we pause and consider.

That God is

He’s not just saying, Hey, you know what?

I I like what you’ve done for me.

Thank you.

I’m gonna take the first, I’m gonna take the best, I’m gonna take this much, I’m gonna

take a tenth.

I I God’s all about himself.

No no no, that’s not it.

God is tichingas.

Just exactly what he’s doing.

There was a movie

If I remember correctly, it was Shenandoah.

uh Jimmy Stewart is head of a older man, head of a large family.

And there’s a moment in that movie where Jimmy Stewart and and the family have all sat

down to eat, and Jimmy Stewart begins to quote unquote say grace.

And he begins to tell the Lord about all the things they’ve done.

and if you could take that and put it right next to the Pharisee praying in the temple and

telling the Lord just exactly how wonderful he is, you you can see, and it’s it’s the

point.

We did the tilling, we did the planting, we did the harvesting, we did the weeding, we did

this, we did this, we did this.

Thank you for letting us have it.

As if Lord would you do?

And sometimes I think

We may not say it, but sometimes we kind of live it.

Think I got the job.

I did the interview.

I went, showed up Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday.

I was there late every day.

I was there early every day.

I was the one who made sure that the kids still got taken care of when I got home.

I was the one who did this.

I paid the bills.

I did this.

I did that.

I don’t know what you did, Lord.

But for the Jimmy Stewart character in Shenandoah, and for the Israelite in the land of

Israel.

They needed to remember now whose land did you till?

Whose dirt did you put the seed in?

Whose seed was it?

Whose nutrients caused the seed to perish and produce a plant?

Whose sunlight caused it to grow?

Who watered the ground?

Whose water did you use when you watered the ground?

Whose oxygen did you use as you labored?

Whose carbon dioxide did the plant consume to put out the oxygen?

We act as though we did all the work.

Except all the tools we use belong to the Lord.

God is making the point to the Israelites.

You might put the seed in the ground, but it’s my ground you’re putting it in.

Talked with a few people who their family or people in their family grew up sharecroppers.

And you know, the premise behind the sharecropper was there was the family that did all

the work, and 80% of everything that came out of the ground belonged to somebody else.

And it wasn’t the last eighty percent.

It was the first eighty percent.

Because they didn’t own the ground.

They got a portion of what the ground produced for the labor that they put into it, but it

wasn’t their property, it wasn’t their crop, it wasn’t their seed, it wasn’t their

produce.

God is telling Israel.

When you get really excited about what that harvest is about to produce, when you’re

watching those blossoms on the vine, when when you begin to see that first produce coming

off the branch.

You remember who put it there.

And as you consider this, turn over to Exodus chapter thirty four.

In Exodus thirty four

We begin in verse 17, and God says, You shall make no molded gods for yourselves.

The feast of unleavened bread you shall keep, seven days you shall eat unleavened bread,

as I commanded you, in the appointed time in the month of Abib, for in the month of Abib

you came out from Egypt.

All that open the womb are mine, and every male firstborn among your livestock, whether ox

or sheep.

But the firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, and it will not uh and if you

will not redeem him, then you shall break his neck.

All the firstborn of your sons you shall redeem, and none shall appear before me empty

handed.

God is going to lay a second principle here.

Not just the first fruits of the ground, but the first fruits of what?

The livestock and the children.

God is going to tell Israel, it’s not just the ground that I own.

It’s not just the ground that I’m giving to you.

But your possessions are mine too.

And your children, your offspring are mine too.

You say, wait a minute.

The wife and I we produce that child.

Well, ask yourself this question: In Israel, was there going to be a wife and I to produce

a child if God hadn’t first given an Isaac?

Whose lineage are you a descendant from?

Because that lineage wouldn’t exist without the Lord doing what the Lord did.

God’s making the point.

everything you have.

Your land, your possessions, your family, your life,

Belongs to me.

And God’s not doing this to browbeat somebody and say, Give me my portion.

‘S trying to get the people.

to understand what he’s doing.

But did you notice that verse 17, again, this is in a context of other gods.

You think that another deity out here gave you this?

You think that by worshiping the sun god you’re gonna get more sun tomorrow?

You think by worshiping the storm god you’re gonna get rain?

You think that you can bring it over to this continent, dance around a fire long enough

and have the right sayings and somehow it’s gonna rain tomorrow?

Don’t think so.

But notice what else God’s doing.

God’s not just telling them, you need to realize what I’ve given you.

He’s also helping them understand the value, the importance of sacrifice.

Not the importance of a burnt offering, but the importance of taking what we cherish, what

we desire, and saying, that doesn’t belong to me.

God is going to tell them when it comes to the firstborn of the livestock.

That the firstborn of every male belongs to him.

But he gives them a way to redeem that oxen.

What does he say they can do?

All right, they can exchange a lamb.

What’s gonna happen to the lamp?

It’s gonna be offered as a sacrifice.

going to be a part of the feast.

Pay attention to the fact that God’s saying you’re going to permanently lose access.

To this.

you are going to have to sacrifice the lamb.

Now if they chose not to redeem the donkey with the lamb, now what do they have to do with

the donkey?

They gotta sacrifice the donkey.

Which one produces more over its lifespan, the donkey or the lamb?

More frustration, the donkey.

But in some scenarios, there may be some member of the Israelite nation that the the lamb

is more important to them than the donkey is.

God gives them an option.

But can they get out of the situation without something dying?

No.

Can they get out of the situation without something being sacrificed that they would

really just prefer to keep?

And the answer’s no.

God is teaching them.

about the cost of something.

Now if you go back in Exodus to Exodus chapter 13, God is going to connect the firstborn

to their redemption out of Egypt.

God is going to tell them, the firstborn of every male is mine.

Of all the oxen and all the sheep and all of oh the males of the house, they all belong to

me.

Why did all of the firstborn of the house and the sheep and the oxen belong to the Lord?

Because in the tenth plague, they didn’t die.

Those that had the door over or the blood over the doorpost and on the lintels of the

house.

God spared all the firstborn.

And God said, as a result of them being spared, they’re mine.

And he gives them a way to redeem them.

As a matter of fact, when you read through the text, you’re gonna find that the Le the

Levites as a tribe will become the redemption for the firstborn of all Israel.

God says the firstborn of all your people belong to me, but I’m gonna take all of the

Levites as a tribe instead.

And they had to number the Levites to find out what the difference was that they had to

pay.

Because they had to pay the difference.

If there weren’t enough Levite males to be equal the number of firstborn in all the

nation, the nation had to pay the difference.

But God is telling them.

You’re gonna sacrifice something.

You’re going to have to give up something.

You’re going to have to give up that which you desire.

Now what did the Lord tell Abraham he had to sacrifice?

His first son.

His firstborn?

And what is God going to redeem Isaac with?

Lamb a ram.

Then we come forward.

To James chapter one.

James chapter one, we read every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes

down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.

Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of

First fruits of his creatures.

James is going to tell the Christians.

That God didn’t have to do what he’s done.

God didn’t have to save those who were lost.

God didn’t have to send his gospel.

He didn’t have to send his word.

He didn’t have to provide a sacrifice for us.

He was not required to do any of it.

But he did.

And he did it for the same reason that he did what he did for Israel.

He did it so that there would be a produce.

He did it so that there would be something of value.

He did it to redeem something from humanity.

So James tells us, you know.

When you consider every good gift, when you consider every perfect gift,

You remember where it came from.

You

Give some contemplation.

To the fact that just like Israel.

Owed everything that they were, their very existence, and everything they had to the Lord.

So do we.

And because of that, we are to realize that part of our worship

involves giving to God first.

One of the principles of giving when we give on the first day of the week is that the

first belongs to the Lord.

That we set aside what belongs to him before we consider what belongs to us.

And sometimes

People are a little challenged to go, but if I just kept a little bit more.

You know, we could afford that new add on to the house.

Yeah, w if we just cut our giving back a little bit, we we could we could we could we

could

And the challenge of understanding the scriptures is to ask yourself, Well, really?

Can you?

Because the Israelites could have said, Well, if we just cut back a little bit of what we

sacrifice to the sacrifice to the Lord, we’ll be able to have more in our barns.

But was that true?

No, because God says ah I can give you abundance or I can give you the opportunity to

learn what it means to be destitute.

And then there’s one more example before we close.

When Jesus speaks concerning the rich fool.

The harvest comes in.

And it’s more than it’s ever been.

It’s beyond your wildest dreams.

So the rich fool decides, I’m good.

I’ve got plenty.

I’m going to tear down my barns, I’m going to build bigger barns, and I’m going to say to

myself, self.

God says you fool.

Tonight your life will be required of you.

Every time we measure what we give by just what we prospered instead of by what God has

supplied in our very existence, we’ve mismeasured.

He’s only asked us to measure based upon what we’ve prospered as far as how we measure

what we give.

But when we only consider what we’ve prospered and not the fact

that everything already results because of him.

We’ve misunderstood the lesson.

All right.

Thank you.

Ways to Live Holy – Parker Christian – October 11, 2026

In Admonition Podcast, biblical meditation, Christian living, gentleness, joy, keywords Christian mind, prayer, Spiritual Growth, trust in God by Aaron Cozort

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Also, Paul writes in Romans 12 and verse 1, I beseech you, therefore, brethren, by the

mercies of God, that you present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto

God, which is your reasonable service.

And be not conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind

that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

As Christians, we’re supposed to live lives that are holy.

And the Apostle Paul here is begging the brethren, I want you to live holy, I want you to

live what’s right.

This is what God is commanding you.

But there’s a way to live holy.

He says, Don’t be conformed to this world.

Don’t fit the mold of the world, don’t fit that pattern.

But instead renew your mind.

Change your mind.

And that changing of your mind is supposed to produce that action.

When you change your mind toward the ways of the world and you turn away from that and

turn it in.

To the way of right, then you can be transformed, changed, and right.

As Christians, we’re supposed to have a different mind.

A mind that is not like the world’s mind, but a mind that is different, that is holy, and

ultimately is acceptable in the sight of God, and we’re doing the will of God when we have

it.

If you turn with me to Philippians 4 for this morning, Philippians 4, we’re going to be

discussing the mind of a Christian.

All from this text in Philippians 4.

And there are four imperative statements that we’re going to key in on this morning.

The mind of a Christian.

First, we might observe that the mind of a Christian rejoices in the Lord.

Philippians 4:4, rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice.

I think that might have been one of the earliest um songs that we were singing, where we

were singing scripture with my mother, of course.

And singing we sing, rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice.

You sing that over and over again.

It’s something very crucial and very key to understand.

But there’s really two aspects of this being given here.

For one, there’s the command.

We’re to rejoice.

We have to rejoice.

It’s stated twice.

And then there’s the place of it.

We can rejoice when we’re in the Lord.

We can rejoice when we’re right with Him.

First, we might observe that rejoicing is a command.

It’s a choice that we can make.

We can decide that we’re not going to be bitter about this life, but we’re going to be

glad.

We’re going to be happy because we are right in the sight of God.

We might observe that this is a daily choice.

The psalmist said in Psalm 118 and verse 34, this is the day that the Lord has made.

I will rejoice and be glad in it.

I will rejoice.

I’m choosing that because God has given me today, because He has given me an opportunity

to live for Him, I’m going to rejoice and be glad in it.

I’m going to take what God has given me and use it for the best.

This is a daily choice.

It’s also a constant choice.

First Thessalonians 5 and verse 16 rejoice evermore.

We need to rejoice always.

Rejoice evermore.

This is a choice that we must have through whatever may come.

James one and verse two, we see those brethren as he tells them about their trials and how

they’re going through it and how they need to have patience, but he tells them, Count it

all joy when you fall into diverse temptations.

Count it joyful when you fall into these trials, these persecutions that you’re going

through.

Count it joy, because the trying of your faith works patience.

And patience, when it has its perfect work, you will be perfect and entire, wanting

nothing.

We need to be joyful.

We need to be right.

We’re going to count it joy.

We have to choose to count it as joyful.

And there’s this attitude that we are looking for the joy in these things.

We are looking for that attribute where we can see through the lens through which we can

see it as joyful.

First Peter 4 and verse 12, if you would turn there with me for a moment.

First Peter four and verse twelve.

He’s talked the apostle Peter there is writing to these brethren, and he’s telling them

about this trials they’re going through, but he’s telling them to count it as joyful, to

see the benefits in these things.

He says there, Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try

you, as though some strange thing happened unto you, but rejoice insomuch as ye are

partakers of Christ’s sufferings.

That when ye when his glory shall be revealed, you may be glad also with exceeding joy.

If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye, for the spirit of glory and of

God resteth upon you.

On not their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified.

He said, Don’t think it strange, don’t think it wrong that you’re going through these

things.

This is normal for a Christian, but he says, See the joy in that.

See that when you’re going through these sufferings.

You’re glorifying God.

You’re pointing others to him.

You’re pointing um you’re glorifying God in that you also are looking toward heaven and

seeing the ultimate joy that you can have when he shall be revealed, when he shall come.

We can have joy in those things.

Ultimately, we can look through these trials and those things that are happening in life

and see that heaven’s waiting, that that’s on the other side.

So we don’t need to allow these.

Trials and that what happens to us in this life to make us bitter, but instead we need to

look at it and find joy.

But we must also observe that this joy comes in a place.

It comes in a right relationship with God.

Of course, you think of that Psalm, and it’s likely David repenting of after his sin with

Bathsheba.

And he’s looking at his sin, he’s looking at his sinful self, and he says there in Psalm.

51 and verse 12, restore unto me the joy of my salvation.

He says, Right now, how I am, I can’t feel joyful.

I can’t feel right.

I don’t have any joy because I know I’m not right with I I know that I’m not right with

God.

So this godly joy comes in a right relationship with God.

It can’t come in any other place.

We have to be right with Him.

There is this is of course so important because if we want to have the joy that we have,

that we are seeking.

If we want to have the joy and the ultimate fulfillment in this life, we have to be right

with God.

Ultimately this must be found in his church.

If you look with me in Isaiah sixty one, Isaiah sixty one

Isaiah writes, and he’s of course prophesying so much in this book about the church.

And we see this joyfulness that’s supposed to be found here.

And he says there, I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, Isaiah 61 and verse 10.

My soul shall be joyful in my God, for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation,

he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom deck decketh himself

with the ordinance.

And as a bride adorneth herself with jewels, he says, just as there is joyfulness on the

marriage day, the same way there can be joy in the church, the same way there can be joy

in the salvation that God is providing.

We are to be cr as Christians, we are to be joyful.

Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say, rejoice.

We are to be those who show moderation to all men.

Let your moderation let’s go ahead and read it there.

Philippians 4 and verse 5.

He says there, let your moderation be known unto all men.

The Lord is at hand.

He says, Let your moderation be known.

This moderation is um more of what the word we would use today would be gentleness,

self-control.

This is control in how you treat others.

And you think of this, we’re to renew our minds, we’re not going to be conformed to the

world.

So we change our minds, we change how we treat others.

Instead of treating them poorly, instead of treating them with a sense of how much if I

can anger them, if I can upset them, instead we treat them as gently as we can.

We treat people around us right.

Gentleness is, of course, expected of a Christian.

If you think of those fruits of the Spirit,

Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and

self-control.

There’s a gentleness to be found in the Christian life.

We’re to be those who are gentle to others.

We don’t see how much we can push somebody until they break, until they get angry and they

snap at us.

We don’t try to hurt them, but instead we’re gentle.

And we try to help them see what a cr the Christian behavior should be like.

Gentleness is key.

In consideration of others.

Proverbs 15 and verse 1.

A soft answer turns away wrath, but grievous words stir up anger.

If you respond to somebody angrily, if you respond to somebody grievously and saying, I’m

going to try to get you angry, you are going to do it.

But if you respond with a soft answer, if you respond to somebody else’s mistreatment with

a gentle approach, you won’t be stirring up anger.

You’ll be

turning away any anger that’s there.

And of course that’s the wisdom being displayed in Proverbs fifteen and verse one, but

it’s also crucial for us to understand this as we try to reach those around us.

If you would look with me at Second Timothy two and verse twenty three.

2 Timothy 2 and verse 23, of course, Paul is writing to this younger preacher, and he’s

telling them how to conduct himself.

He says there in 2 Timothy 2, 23, and the servant of the Lord must not strive but be

gentle unto all men.

That’s not the right verse.

I am on the right verse.

I’m on the wrong part of the verse.

But foolish and unlearned questions avoid, knowing that they do gender strife.

But be gentle unto all men, apt to teach patience and meekness, instructing them that

oppose themselves, if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of

the truth.

The servant of the Lord must not strive.

He should not be one that goes about trying to see how may he me c he may cause strife,

how he can harm others around him, but instead he is gentle unto all men.

Apt to teach, he’s patient.

He sees and considers how he may teach others around him, and uses his gentleness

As a means of doing so, not immediately turning people off around you by how you behave.

If we’re not gentle, people are not going to see our Christian behavior.

If we are not gentle, we are going to struggle to convert those around us to the gospel of

Jesus Christ.

We need to be gentle.

And ultimately we need to remember that the Lord knows if you’ve been gentle.

The Lord knows if you’ve been treating those around you correctly.

The Lord is at hand.

That’s meaning, of course, that he’s near, he sees how you’re behaving.

We are going to be held account we’re go What we do in this life we will be held

accountable for.

Matthew twelve and verse thirty-six says, But I say unto you that every idle word that men

shall speak, they shall give an account thereof in the day of judgment.

We will give an account for those words that we shouldn’t have said, for those words we

should have held back, for those words that we should have substituted with a gentle

response.

We will give an account of those things.

The Lord sees and He knows how we behave.

And we need to behave different from the world, not conformed to this world, but

transformed by a renewed mind.

We need to be those who rejoice in the Lord, those who respond correctly to people around

us, respond gently.

And we need to be those who replace worry with prayer as Christians.

Replace worry with prayer.

Look with me back at Philippians four and verse six.

It says there, Be careful for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with

thanksgiving, let your request be made known unto God.

And the God of peace peace was and the peace of God, which patheth salvati passeth all

understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

For some reason I couldn’t read that.

But We need to be those who replace our worry with prayer.

He says there, be careful for nothing.

Don’t be anxious.

Don’t worry.

But by prayer and supplication, let your request be kno known unto God.

And God will guard your hearts.

He will um that’s a military term of protection.

He’s guarding it.

He’s keeping it secure where it’s at.

So we cannot worry.

Matthew chapter 6.

Of course, the Sermon on the Mount, the of Jesus is, of course, speaking of worry in this

context, and he speaks very detailed of it.

We’re going to read from verses 24 through 34 here.

This is, of course, the key tea a very key teaching on worry: how we can’t worry as

Christians, how we need to trust that God will provide.

It says there: no man can serve two masters.

For either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will hold to the one and

despise the other.

Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

Therefore I say unto you, take no thought for your life that you shall eat or that you

shall drink, nor yet for your body what you shall put on.

Is it not your is not the life more than meat in the body than raiment?

Behold the fowls of the air, for they sow not, neither do they reap near gather into

barns, yet your heav your heavenly father feedeth them.

Are you not much better than they?

Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?

And why take ye thought for the raiment?

Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow and they toil not.

Neither do they spin, and yet I say unto you that even Solomon in all his glory was not

arrayed like one of these.

Wherefore if God clothe the grass of the field, and today is and tomorrow is cast into the

oven, shall he not much more clothe you?

O ye of little faith.

Therefore take no thought of your life, saying what we shall eat, what we shall drink,

what shall

Wherewith or wherewithal shall we be clothed?

For after all these things do the Gentiles seek, for your heavenly Father knoweth that he

that ye have need of all these things.

But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be

added unto you.

Take therefore no thought for the morrow, for the morrow shall take thought of itself.

Sufficientness of the day is the evil thereof.

He’s urging them not to worry.

He’s urging them not to

To prioritize their worries and their cares over the things of God.

He says there, first, you can’t serve two masters.

If you are put placing your worry as a thing that is crowding your mind above that of God,

you’re looking at the wrong thing.

If you’re looking at this material life as that which is more important, we’re looking at

the wrong thing.

But we need to look at our worries and our concern and put them in the proper perspective

and say, I can’t control that.

That’s out of my hands.

So instead I’m going to have faith in God, I’m going to trust that He can provide, and I’m

going to say and I’m going to give it to Him and trust that He is able to care for me just

as He does to all those things of lesser importance than even man.

The psalmist said in Psalm thirty seven and verse twenty five, I have been young and I am

now old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.

We can trust that so long as we’re faithful to God, He will take care of us, and we can be

right before Him.

It may not even be here, but we can certainly have that joy that is waiting for us on the

other side of this life.

We need to give our worries ultimately to God.

1 Peter 5 and verse 7 says, casting all your cares upon him, for he cares for you.

We need to cast our cares upon him, recognizing that when we give him our worries and our

anxieties, he will hear us and he understands them.

And he cares for us and understands what we’re going through.

Hebrews 4 and verse 15, of course, thinking of Jesus and his what he went through in this

life.

It says, therefore, we have not high preach which can be cannot be touched with the

feelings of our infirmities, but was in all points tempted, like as we are yet without

sin.

Let us therefore come boldly before the throne of his grace, that we may obtain mercy and

find grace to help in time of need.

We should be those who trust that when we come to him and we bring our cares and our

desires to him, he hears us and he understands us.

And that Jesus walked through this life.

He understood what it was like to be a man as our high priest.

He understood what it was like to suffer and to deal with the things of this life.

And he knows what we’re going through.

And that when we pray to the Father through him, he is hearing and he understands, and we

can pray to him in confidence, knowing that he will hear us and that we will be cared for.

The psalmist said, and demonstrating a very much absolute trust in God in Psalm 23 and

verse 4, he said, There, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will

fear no evil.

For thou art with me, thy rod and thy staff comfort me.

Though I walk through this valley that’s dangerous, that I’m I don’t I’m not in control, I

don’t know necessarily what’s happening.

This is, of course, the picture of leading these sheep through what would be a wadi, where

it would be where a water could come in any time and flood this area.

Though this valley is dangerous, and though it might lead to my doom, I can trust God and

I can know that.

He understands my worries, he understands those anxious thoughts that might not be the

most rational, and that he can hear it, and he we can give it to him and trust that he has

it.

I can’t be control of everything, so I let him be control of the important things.

And I give it to him, and when I give it to him, I should give it to him with

thanksgiving.

There’s an attribute there where we need to count our blessings.

When we look at our worries and we look at our anxiousness, when we look at what God has

given us, we can trust that He will keep providing for us good things.

He will keep providing for us just as He has cared for us already.

First Thessalonians five and verse seventeen seventeen, pray without ceasing in everything

give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

We need to give thanks.

We need to recognize just how much God has blessed us.

And not worry about the things of this life.

Replace that worry with prayer.

The Christian mind is one that rejoices.

The Christian won mind is one that replies gently.

The Christian mind replaces worry with prayer.

And the Christian mind is one that rests on godly things.

It rests on godly things.

We have things that we must not think of.

There are things we can’t think of because they’re wicked, because they’re evil.

Genesis five Genesis six and verse five.

And God saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every imagination

of his heart was only on evil continually.

Their minds were set on evil.

They were set on the whatever pleasure they could find, however, they could harm others

and give to themselves gain.

They were set on what they wanted.

Their minds were set on evil.

Our minds cannot be set on evil things.

Our minds, if they are only set on evil things, they will do us harm and we will be led

astray, and we will ultimately be destroyed in judgment.

So instead we need to do as the Proverbs writer would tell us, to keep our heart with all

diligence, Proverbs 4 and verse 23, for out of it are the issues of light.

If we guard our heart, if we don’t allow those evil influences to come in, we will be

right and we will be where we’re safe.

So then we have to, of course, not think of evil things.

We can’t think of these these wrong things, but instead we need to think of what is right.

Go ahead with me to Philippians 4 and verse 8.

I forgot to read this, but it’s so key to this point as we look at it.

It says there, Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are

honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are

lovely, whatsoever things are of good report.

If there is any virtue, and if there is any praise,

Think on these things.

We need to think on these good things, those things that are right.

If we look at these attributes and we say, does my mind rest on these things?

Does my mind more often than not contain these things that are good and holy?

Or are they containing things that are impure and unholy?

If we recognize that our minds are not on the right things, then we need to renew our

minds.

Then we need to start making changes and make the conscious act a effort to not think on

those evil things anymore, not think on those things that are wrong.

But only think on those things that are right in the sight of God.

And might I also add that when we think on these things, our conversations are going to be

different.

If I might not recognize that I’m thinking on these things, but the only thing I can bring

up about somebody is what’s wrong and what does not match these qualities, then I’m

looking at the wrong things and I’m thinking the wrong things about others.

We need to be those who think right about godly things.

Colossians three and verse Colossians three, one.

If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sits on

the right hand of the throne of God.

He says there, set your affection on things above, and not on things of this earth.

We can’t be those who seek our set our affection here, on those things that are wicked, on

those things that are whole only fleshly, but we need to set our minds on things above and

look to those and prioritize those things as we dwell on them.

Of course, ultimately, this means we must meditate on the Word of God.

If you want to meditate on something holy, you have to meditate on the holy book.

If ultimately you want to renew your mind, you need to look to the source of a renewed

mind.

That mind that is renewed by the study and by the meditation in the Word of God.

We will never have that transformed mind if we do not look at the thing that can transform

it.

Psalm 1

Says, Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the godly of the ungodly, who

stands not in the path of sinners, who sits not in the sea of the scornful, but his

delight is in the law of the Lord, and in his law he meditates day and night.

He shall be like a tree by the rivers of water, who brings forth his fruit in his season,

whose leaf does not wither, and whatever he does shall prosper.

The godly man is one who sees God’s word as the guiding principle of his life.

He meditates on it.

It’s always on his mind, it’s always in his thoughts, and he lives by it.

He’s planted, he’s grounded, he’s not going to move, he’s not going to sway through the

cares of this life.

He doesn’t move because he has the right source and he has the right mind about his life.

The Psalm this also keeps us from sin.

The Psalmist says in Psalm one nineteen and verse eleven, Thy word have I hidden mine

heart, I’ve hidden mine, that I might not sin against thee.

If you have trouble sinning, we have to go to the book.

We have to go to the source of where our minds can change, and our minds towards sin may

change.

Of course this should cause repentance second Corinthians seven.

But we need to be right.

We need to change our minds.

So we need to rechange change our minds.

We need to do so by changing it to a mind of rejoicing.

We need to change it to a mind of gentleness toward others.

We need to change it to a mind where we rely on God, where we trust Him, where we replace

our worries with prayer.

We need to change our mind to one that rests on godly things.

And we need to do what’s right in the sight of God.

Maybe today you are not a Christian.

Well, you can make it right.

Well, you you can come to Him and you can come to Him and be cleansed.

And you can come to Him, and when you come to Him, you’re expected to change, and you’re

expected to be right, but you can come as you are with the willingness to change and with

the willingness to be right.

Maybe today you’re not a Christian, you can do so by hearing the gospel.

By hearing that gospel, by believing that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.

And that he came and he suffered, that he died for you, and that he was resurrected the

third day, first Corinthians fifteen.

And that by repenting of your sins, by changing your mind towards sin, Acts seventeen and

verse thirty, you then confess the sweet name of Jesus, that he is the Son of God, Matthew

ten, verse thirty two and thirty three, and then you’re baptized into Christ, Galatians

three, twenty seven.

When you’re buried with him in baptism, you’re cleansed, and you’re right in the sight of

God.

And then you leave faithfully, you live right.

Maybe today you’re a Christian, but you need strength, you need encouragement.

Maybe today you’re a Christian and you’ve sinned and you need to make it right.

Whatever your need may be, come now as we stand and as we sing.

Jesus: Our Example in Doing Good – Aaron Cozort – October 11, 2026

In Admonition Podcast, Bible Study, Christian living, Compassion, doing good, example of Jesus, keywords Jesus, peace, prophecy, unity in Christ by Aaron Cozort

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Good morning.

We are told in Scripture.

The when this life is over.

We will receive in eternity the things

that

we have done in our body.

That we will j be judged by the things

that we have been we have done

in this life.

We are told that what we do now.

What we do while walking this earth,

how we live, how we behave,

Jesus indicates even the words that we

speak,

we will give an account of in the day of

judgment.

If you are in this life

Facing a challenging test.

If you were preparing for the bar exam as

a lawyer,

If you were preparing for a difficult test

or a challenging criteria that you had to

meet in an employment scenario.

If you were dealing with the challenges

that maybe

a medical diagnosis presents you.

One of the things that may help you

overcome that situation.

Is by talking to someone who’s been

through it before.

Talking to someone or following the

example of someone

who knows where the path goes and how to

get there.

Well, if we are going to give an account

in eternity on the day of judgment

for how we live.

then it is valuable to us to find

an example of how to live.

And Christ

is our example of doing good.

Christ is to be

our example of how to live.

Paul would write to the church at Corinth

in 1 Corinthians chapter 11,

verse 1.

Follow me as I follow Christ.

Paul is going to tell the church at

Corinth,

you should already understand that Christ

is your standard of how to live.

So for every one of us.

We will encounter parents, siblings,

grandparents, family members,

co-workers, members at church,

people who we meet throughout our lives,

people who are mentors to us in our jobs,

people who are mentors to us in our lives,

and every single one of them should be

measured against the standards.

Not are they perfectly like Christ,

but what is in their life that is like

Christ that

I can follow?

But we can also just go back to the

example.

I want to spend a few moments considering

some of the ways in which Jesus went about

doing good.

First, consider that Jesus is our example

of doing good by bringing peace.

In Ephesians chapter two,

Paul is going to write to the church at

Ephesus,

a church which he loved, a church which he

spent a great deal of time with,

and that he sent Timothy back to on at

least one occasion,

if not multiple occasions, that he sent

other of his co-workers to to encourage

and

That he met with the leadership,

the elders of that congregation as he met

them in this life for the last

and final time on his way to Jerusalem.

And we read in Ephesians chapter 2,

beginning in verse 13, but now in Christ

Jesus,

you who were once far off have been

brought near by the blood of Christ.

He’s describing Gentiles.

He’s describing those who,

because of their past as pagans,

because of their history and people who

did not receive.

the word of God in the old testament and

had not been following

it for generation generations,

who were not described as the people of

God,

who were not descendants of Abraham.

He says, You who once were afar off.

Have been brought near by the blood of

Christ.

For He Himself is our peace,

who has made both one.

The both here is the Israelite nation,

the people of God, historically in an Old

Testament context,

the Jews and the Gentiles.

He says, You he has made both one and has

broken down the middle wall

of separation, having abolished in his

flesh the enmity.

That is the law and of commandments

contained in ordinances,

so as to create in himself one new man

from the two,

thus making peace.

Scripture tells us.

That God loves peacemakers.

Jesus would say in the Sermon on the

Mount,

Blessed are the peacemakers.

Jesus is pronouncing a blessing,

a ~ happiness to those who make peace.

Paul will tell the church in Rome,

as much as lies within you,

live peaceably with all men.

But as Paul writes to the church in

Ephesus,

he’s going to tell these brethren.

There was once a wall of separation.

Between you and the Jews. It was a natural

wall of separation.

They had a law you didn’t have.

They had a law that told them they weren’t

even going,

~ weren’t even allowed to marry with you.

They weren’t allowed to give their sons to

marry your daughters

and their daughters to marry your sons.

God created a wall of separation.

And he did so for a reason.

But now in Christ, He’s torn down the

wall.

He has made

one people in Christ.

It is hard in this life

to not see differences between people.

Raise your hand if you grew up in the mid

south and have lived here most

or all of your life.

That’s quite a few of you.

Raise your hand if you’ve lived in more

than one country.

That’s a few of you. Raise your hand if

you’ve lived on both sides

of the Mississippi.

Now here’s the good one. Raise your hand

if you ever lived in the north.

Careful now.

Is everybody the same everywhere?

No. No.

So everybody is not the same.

And as humans we see the differences,

don’t we? We experience as experience the

differences.

And sometimes the differences separate us

naturally.

Language will separate you, won’t it?

You don’t speak the same language?

There’s that’s pretty hard. Cultures will

separate you.

Traditions will separate you.

Think about what Christ did.

In his sacrifice, in his flesh.

He took everyone from every nation under

heaven,

from every tradition, from every

background,

from every culture, from every family,

from every language and every tongue.

And made it possible for them to be one in

the body of Christ.

Notice the word in verse 15. Create.

So as to create

in himself one new man.

One of the things we need to realize as we

consider how we live in this life.

is if we only work with the resources the

world gives us.

If we just assume that the things which

the world tells us are okay to do,

that we should naturally do, that culture

tells us we should do,

that we are involved in doing on our daily

in our daily lives because

the world says this is just normal.

If we only use the resources of the world,

we will fail to be one in Christ.

Because we will be divided in Christ,

because the world is divided. The world

will separate

the Chinese Christian from the American

Christian.

The world will separate the person who

comes from Nicaragua

who doesn’t speak English from the

Christian who was born in Mississippi.

But Christ rejected the world’s resources.

Christ rejected the world’s plan.

Christ rejected the world’s structure.

And Christ created something unique.

Over in Galatians chapter three.

Verse 22 we read, but the scripture has

confirmed all under sin,

that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ

might be given

to those who believe.

But before faith came, we were kept under

guard by the law,

kept for the faith which would afterward

be revealed.

Therefore, the law was our tutor to bring

us to Christ,

that we might be justified by faith.

But after faith has come, we are no longer

under a tutor.

Paul, in the letter to the Galatian

brethren,

is writing about the same thing that he’s

writing about over in Ephesians chapter 2.

That function of the Old Testament law,

which was causing division in the body of

Christ in the first century because

Judaizing teachers were coming to Gentiles

and saying,

no, no, no, you’ve got to keep the Old Law

to be saved.

You’ve got to be circumcised according to

the law of Moses to be saved.

You’ve got to keep the things that we used

to keep.

You’ve got to eat the foods we have to

eat.

And Paul said that was a tutor.

To bring us to Christ, not to have

forever.

But then he says, verse 26, for you are

all sons of God through faith

in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as

were baptized into Christ have

put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor

Greek,

there is neither slave nor free,

there is neither male nor female,

for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

And if you are Christ, then are you

Abraham’s seed and heirs according

to the promise?

Paul rides to the churches of Galiacia and

high lets them know.

If you’ve been buried in baptism with

Christ.

You’re part of one new nation.

You’re on an equal plane with everybody

else.

You’re not a slave in Christ.

You’re not a free person in Christ.

You’re not a man in Christ. You’re not a

woman in Christ.

You’re not a bond servant in Christ.

You’re not a person who is measured by

whether or not you were once

a Jew or once Gentile. ~

You’re a Christian.

But that structure didn’t exist in the

world.

That structure didn’t exist in the nation

of Rome.

You know, Paul had an advantage.

When those soldiers got ready to start

beating him in the city of Jerusalem,

Paul could ask

Are you a Roman citizen?

Because if you were a free born Roman

citizen

No one had authority to lay hands on you.

No one had authority to beat you,

except Roe.

wasn’t a structure of the world.

It was created in Christ.

So as you consider all

of the ways that you might go about

in this life doing good.

Understand this, that as Christians we do

good

by observing that Christ has made

all people one in Christ.

That a Christian on any side of the planet

from

any culture in the planet is simply a

Christian.

That we have fellowship with one another.

And with God.

Because Christ brought peace.

But then consider number two. Christ went

about doing good

and is our example of doing good in that

he did the work of the Father.

In Luke chapter two.

Luc is going to describe the events.

As Jesus will be taken to the city of

Jerusalem

by his parents. Verse 49, he said to them,

Why did you seek me? Jesus has remained

behind in the city of Jerusalem,

there in the temple. He’s asking questions

of the priests and of the elders,

and they are marveling at his questions.

And when his parents returned to find him

still there three days later

He says, why did you seek me? Did you not

know that

I must be about my father’s business?

At the age of twelve, Jesus knew why here.

When you go forward to John chapter four.

John chapter four

Verse 31 we read in the meantime,

his disciples urged him, saying,

Rabbi eat. He’s been talking with the

woman at the well in Samaria.

He’s now sent the woman back into the

city.

She’s going back to tell them,

I found the Christ, I found the Messiah,

I found the one we’ve been waiting on.

But as she prepares to go back,

the disciples have arrived and they found

her found Jesus talking with this woman.

So as she leaves, the disciples say,

Teacher, eat.

He said to them, I have food to eat of

which you do not know.

Then the disciples said to one another,

Has anyone brought him anything to eat?

They went into the city to buy food.

They’ve come back with the food.

They tell the teacher,

Here’s the food. He says,

I ate when you weren’t here.

And they’re like, who brought him food?

Jesus said to them, My food is to do the

will of him who sent me

and to finish his work.

And as Jesus was hanging on the cross,

as we mentioned in our Bible class this

morning,

he said those words, it is finished.

Jesus is our example in doing good in that

he measured everything that

he did against whether or not it was the

work of the Father.

He measured everything and its merits

based upon

did it fall into the work of the Father.

When Jesus would pull the disciples aside

and go into the land of Tyre,

and He would separate Himself from the

multitudes that were constantly thronging

the disciples and thronging Him so that He

had no time with the disciples,

He would separate Himself with the

disciples to teach them and to help them

to learn. And as He’s there, a woman

comes.

Having heard that Jesus is in the city,

she comes and she says, Heal my daughter.

Jesus will point out that he’s doing

something important in that very moment.

He’s providing food to the children.

He’s taking care of the ones God has

placed in his hand and that he will give

an account for for how their state.

In Acts chapter seven, sorry, John chapter

17,

Jesus will pray to the Father before he

goes into the garden and he’d say,

I kept all those who you delivered into my

hand.

Speaking of the apostles, except one,

the son of perdition.

So he says, I’m I’m dealing with the

children right now.

And she will point out that even the

crumbs that fall from the children’s table

get given to the dogs.

And Jesus will heal her daughter.

But he’s measuring the importance and the

priority of the things that

are coming his way against the work of the

Father.

We need to understand in our lives.

There will be times where we will say no

to things the world would say yes to.

There will be times that we will say no to

the things that

the world says that is a no brainer.

You’ve gotta be stupid to pass up that

opportunity.

And we might just have to say,

well, I have other priorities.

And at times we will have to say yes to

things that the world says that can’t

possibly work.

There’s no way. How could you make that

decision?

There was a woman.

Who came into the temple? Jesus and his

apostles were standing there by

the door of the temple, by the gate of the

treasury,

and as the woman came in.

She stopped at the location where the Jews

would place their offerings.

And into the offering she put too much.

Jesus will speak to his apostles and say,

This woman have giv has given more than

all of the others.

Now, had you been the individuals who at

the end of the day were responsible there

in the temple of counting the things that

had been placed in the offering box,

you would have gone through all of the

coins and you would have gone through

the things that had been placed in the

offering,

and you would have counted them,

and you could have gone past those two

mites and not have thought a thing about

it.

It would have paled in numerical number to

comparison to the things that were

in the box.

And the world would say.

How can a woman who’s a widow?

Give everything that she has.

That Doesn’t make any sense. What’s she

going to do?

She needs to use one of those mites to buy

food for today and maybe

try and just hold on to one of them,

one more for a little while longer.

To where maybe she can get to three,

and maybe someday she can get to four,

and maybe someday she can get to five,

and to ten, and to twenty, so she can

provide for herself.

The world would say she’s doing it wrong.

And Jesus would say, She’s doing it right.

And more people need to learn from

Jesus is our example in doing good because

he showed compassion.

In Matthew chapter fourteen.

We find beginning in vers thirteen.

When Jesus heard it, that is that John had

been killed.

He departed from there by boat to a

deserted place by himself,

but when the multitudes heard it,

they followed him on foot from the cities.

And when Jesus went out, he saw a great

multitude,

and he was moved with compassion for them,

and healed their sick.

Jesus has just lost his cousin.

being beheaded by Herod.

So that Herodias could

Have a little peace in her life as she

lived in adultery with her husband.

And Jesus goes to a deserted place.

And Jesus has a reason for going to a

deserted place.

But the multitudes follow him.

And notice something as you think about

this text.

As Jesus goes to this deserted place and

as the multitudes follow him,

it’s not just the multitudes bringing

themselves to.

It is the multitudes bringing the sick

with them.

Have you ever had to transport someone

who’s not feeling well on a long trip?

On foot.

You remember the friends of the lame man?

Who transported him to Jesus and let him

down through

the roof of the place where Jesus was so

that he could be healed?

They transported him on his bed.

As you picture in your mind, because I

don’t think we often do this,

as you picture in your mind Jesus here in

this deserted place on the Sea of Galilee,

and as you see the multitudes coming,

I think quite often we imagine a bunch of

people walking up.

All in good health, all perfectly fine,

all able to travel with ease. That’s not

the picture.

You would rather more accurately see

people.

And here’s one person walking and here’s

one person who’s lame and he’s leaning

on that person and they’re hobbling along.

to get to a deserted place to find Jesus.

And there’s another group over here,

and they’re carrying someone on a bed.

If you were to maybe picture it in your

mind,

think about a defeated army coming back

from a war.

And that’d probably be a little closer to

how this multitude would have.

Bandaged.

Ill? Sick? Struggling

for a step?

And he was moved with compassion.

When it was evening, his disciples came to

him saying,

This is a deserted place and the hour is

already late,

send the multitudes away that they may go

into the villages and buy themselves food.

Jesus said to them, They do not need to go

away.

You give them something to eat.

Jesus is going to challenge his disciples.

to provide for this multitude.

They are saying, these people need to

disperse.

Do you know what time it is? They’ve been

out here all day listening.

They’ve traveled and they’ve had the

hardship of getting here

and they’re listening to you, and they

have nothing.

They need to go get food.

Send them away. Tell them to fend for

themselves.

Tell them to take care of themselves.

Send them away.

He said, they don’t need to go anywhere.

He’ll give them.

And they said to him, We have only five

loaves and two fish.

Lord, you were to use the common phrase I

hear sometimes,

the math doesn’t math.

What do you mean? How how are we going to

feed this multitude?

We have five loaves and two fish.

And there’s already thirteen of us.

Jesus says, Bring them here to me.

As we consider doing good.

We need to remember that it is his

resources and not ours.

When we consider doing the work,

it is his resources.

And not the widows.

When we consider bringing peace,

it is his nation and not ours.

But Jesus also went about doing good and

being our example by fulfilling prophecy

in Luke chapter four.

Luke chapter four beginning in verse

fourteen.

Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit

to Galilee,

and news of him went out throughout all

the region surrounding region,

and he taught in their synagogues,

being glorified by all. So he came to

Nazareth where he had been brought up,

and as his custom was he went into the

synagogue on the Sabbath day and stood

up to read.

Jesus has been down in Judea and all of

these miracles have been occurring

and all of these signs have been happening

from the time that Jesus went

to be baptized by John to the moment where

Jesus came up out of the water

and the spirit descended like a dove and

said,

and the voice came from heaven saying,

This is my beloved son, hear him.

And as the news of Jesus and all that he

has done has spread throughout the land.

Jesus comes home.

And as he comes home, he does what he

always did on the Sabbath day.

He goes into the synagogue in Nazareth.

And he stood up to read.

If it was valuable for Jesus to read the

scriptures,

If it was important for Jesus

to read the scriptures,

How important is it for us?

And yet when Jesus opened the scriptures

It was kind of like reading an

autobiography.

He was handed the book of the prophet

Isaiah.

And when he had opened the book,

he found the place where it was written.

Now I I want you to think about something.

There is not one passage in all of

Scripture that indicates to us that

as Jesus journeyed around the region,

and as the twelve went with him around the

region,

that they had a sack back on somebody’s

back that had a bunch of scrolls in it.

So when Jesus went into the synagogue,

that was the time that he had access

to the physical copies of the scriptures.

He didn’t have one of these that he could

cart around in his pocket,

throw into his backpack, keep in the car,

have available at hand,

pull it up on his phone.

He went into the synagogue to have access

to the scriptures.

And yet he knew where to find what he was

looking

for in the prophet Isaiah.

In other words, Jesus spent enough time in

the synagogue that

he knew where in the scroll it was.

You ever get a new Bible and you’re so

used to the old one you know exactly which

side of the page and how far down the page

is the passage that you’re looking for?

And then you get a new Bible that was put

together by a different publisher,

a different font size, different print,

different page size, and now you can’t

find anything?

Jesus knew where the passage was that he

was looking for.

Which tells you Jesus spent some time with

the scrolls.

Jesus opened the book, found the place

where it was written,

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,

because He has anointed me to preach the

gospel to the poor.

He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted,

to proclaim liberty to the captives,

and recovery of sight to the blind.

To set at liberty those who are oppressed.

to proclaim the acceptable

day or year of the Lord.

Then he closed the book, gave it back to

the attendant,

and sat down.

As you picture this in your mind,

picture not some grand place.

This is Nazareth. Remember the question

Philip asked?

Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?

This was a small city with minimal

resources in a region of the Galileans,

the group of people in Israel who were

known for being uneducated,

not prosperous, not well off, and not

worth much.

And this was the city of which.

Of those cities they said there ain’t

nothing there worth having.

So picture a small room.

With poor people.

And Jesus is just come back from all that

time in Judea.

And he stands up and he reads,

and all of them have heard the rumor.

They’ve all heard about the miracles.

They’ve all heard about the things that it

has been said that

the son of Joseph and Mary is doing in

Judea.

You probably could have heard a pin drop

in that.

As he gets up, as he reads from Isaiah,

and then closes the scroll, hands it back,

and just sits down.

And all eyes who were in the synagogue

were fixed on him.

Nobody’s distracted. Nobody’s looking

around.

Nobody’s wondering what time lunch is.

Everybody’s just waiting.

To hear what’s said next.

And he began to say to them today this

scripture is

is fulfilled in your hearing.

Jesus

Said I came to do the father’s work.

But if you go back into that passage.

Yes, he talks about the blind seeing.

Yes, he talks about healing the

brokenhearted.

Yes, he talks about bringing liberty to

the oppressed.

Yes, he talks about bringing liberty to

the captives.

But it’s bookended by this.

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because

He has anointed

me to preach the gospel.

to proclaim

The acceptable year of the Lord.

We can talk about Christ bringing peace.

We can talk about Christ doing the

Father’s work.

We can talk about Jesus showing

compassion.

And those are all aspects of what Jesus

came to do.

And they’re all aspects of doing good in

this life.

But when Jesus stood up in his hometown

In his home synagogue with the scrolls

that he would have opened and read

as a child.

He said, I came here to preach.

And I came here to proclaim.

And I came here.

to do the work of God.

So when we’re looking for the example of

how to live to be ready to stand before

God.

Christ is our example.

Our example of tender hearted compassion,

our example of love

for God and for one another.

but also our example of what we are to say

and what we are to speak.

And if you read a little bit further in

that story about Nazareth,

you would find that the world’s not always

gonna like.

If you’re here here this morning and

you’re outside the body of Christ.

Christ came to be your example,

how to live, how to stand before God in a

right relationship with Him,

how to be free from the oppression of sin,

how to set yourself free from the

captivity of this world.

and it’s through the message that’s

preached.

Paul would write to the church at Rome,

for the gospel is the power of God unto

salvation,

to the Jew first, and also to the Greek,

Because Christ created

one new nation, made of every nation under

heaven,

every tongue, every culture, every

tradition,

every background.

And he did so by preaching the gospel.

If you’re outside the body of Christ this

morning,

if you have need of the salvation and the

forgiveness of sins that

is offered in Christ, you do so by being

obedient to that gospel.

Jesus preached that except you believe

that I am He,

ye shall die in your sins. Believing and

hearing is necessary.

Jesus preached,

except ye repent, ye shall all.

likewise perish. A change of mind that

brings about a change of action is

necessary.

You can’t be in alliance with the world

and right with God.

But Jesus also taught that we must confess

his name before men.

Because Jesus said he who confesses my

name before men,

I will confess his name before my Father

who is in heaven.

And Jesus said, He that believeth and is

baptized shall be saved,

he that believeth not shall be damned.

Jesus came, that we might have life,

and that we might have it more abundantly.

If you have need of the invitation this

morning,

why not consider doing those same things

and entering into

the body of Christ, the nation of God,

so that you too can follow his example in

doing good.

If you have need of the invitation,

why not come now as we stand and as we

Revelation 21 (Lesson 2) – Aaron Cozort – October 11, 2026

In Admonition Podcast, biblical prophecy, church as bride, eternal life, Jerusalem, keywords Revelation 21, new earth, new heaven, spiritual kingdom, spiritual transformation, victory over death by Aaron Cozort

image

Good to see everyone this morning.

take your Bibles, if you will,

and open them to Revelation chapter twenty

one.

We’re going to be continuing our study of

chapter 21

and chapter 22 as John presents

us a picture of the bride of the lamb.

And as we get into these passages.

You’ll read things and go, Well,

that sounds like heaven. That sounds like

eternity.

That doesn’t sound like here and now.

And we’re gonna do we’re gonna discuss a

little bit of that ~ as

we go through and help us hopefully to to

be able to frame in context

why John is talking this way. But let’s

begin with a word of prayer.

Our gracious Father in heaven,

we bow before your throne grateful for the

revelation that

you have given us through your holy

prophets,

through your apostles, through your Son,

that we might have knowledge of things

that without the word of Scripture

we would not know.

And that guides our actions, guides our

life,

teaches us concerning you and what you

would have us to do.

And may we always have a heart willing to

hear that word of yours,

willing to install it into our memory,

into our heart, into our lives,

into our actions, and into our words.

That we might be a shining light to the

world around us.

That we might reflect your glory,

that through us they might see you.

Lord, we pray that you help us to grasp

what you’re

teaching us about the church in these

passages,

that we might learn

to apply the appropriate glory and respect

to the body of Christ,

to the bride of you the of the Lamb.

Lord, we pray that you be with us as we go

through this day.

We pray that you be with those who are

mourning from the loss of loved ones,

those who are struggling with health

issues,

those who are anticipating upcoming

procedures,

and those who are seeking to recover from

long term difficulties.

Lord, we pray that you be with each and

every one of them,

and help us to be a support and a comfort

to them in all of their needs.

We ask that you forgive us when we sin and

fall short of your glory.

All this we pray in Jesus’ name.

Amen.

Chapter 21 opens. And John says,

I saw a new heaven and a new earth.

For the first heaven and the first earth

had passed away,

and there was no more sea. Then I,

John, saw the holy city, the new

Jerusalem,

coming down out of heaven from God,

prepared as a bride adorned for her

husband.

And I heard a loud voice from heaven

saying,

Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men,

and he will dwell with them, and they

shall be his people.

God himself shall will be with them and be

their God.

And God will wipe away every tear from

their eyes.

There shall be no more death, nor sorrow,

nor crying, there shall be no more pain.

for the former things have passed away.

John

Is writing to them to tell them all of the

tribulation,

all of the difficulty, all of the things

that I’m telling you

you are going to go through.

They all have an end.

They have an end in which they’ll be

finished and they’ll

be swallowed up in victory.

If you go over to First Corinthians

chapter 15,

Paul, as he is writing about life,

and as he is writing about the

resurrection,

he is going to tell the Christians in

Corinth

in this passage concerning our final

victory.

In First Corinthians chapter 15,

verse 50, he says, Now this I say,

brethren.

That flesh and blood cannot inherit the

kingdom of God,

nor does corruption inherit incorruption.

Is the kingdom of God made

up of fleshly, earthly things?

Is it made up of fleshly,

earthly people? No.

Do you know why John has been

differentiating from the beginning

of Revelation to the end of Revelation?

Those who dwell on the earth as those who

are sinners and reject the Word of God,

and those who dwell in heaven as those who

are alive in Christ.

The reason he separates the two is because

he knows the same thing Paul

knows. Kingdom of God isn’t made up of

fleshly.

Things. Now the people who are alive on

the earth whose dwelling place

is in heaven are alive on the earth.

They interact in fleshly ways.

They walk around in fleshly bodies.

But Paul says that’s not the part of you

that is

in the kingdom of God. Because you can’t

inherit the kingdom of

God in the flesh.

You can’t take part in the kingdom of God

in the flesh.

And that’s completely consistent with what

Jesus said to Pilate,

isn’t it? Jesus said, if my kingdom were

of this world,

then would my what? My servants fight.

If I was coming to build a fleshly,

earthly kingdom.

You’d have a host of people out here

starting a riot and taking this city apart

till

they got to me.

He also would warn Pilate that if he were

to sow order,

he could have ten thousand legions of

angels show up.

But Paul’s point, John’s point,

Jesus’ point is the kingdom of heaven that

Daniel

interpreted a dream about in Daniel

chapter 2,

and that Daniel saw a vision about in

Daniel chapter 7 is not a kingdom

on this earth.

And so Paul will go on to say,

Behold, I tell you a mystery we shall not

all sleep,

but we shall all be changed. In a moment,

in the twinkling of an eye, at the last

trumpet,

for the trumpet will sound, and the dead

will be raised incorruptible,

and we shall be changed.

For this corruptible must put on

incorruption,

and this mortal must put on immortality.

Notice that Paul says,

you cannot inherit eternity with

God in a fleshly existence.

He says it’s impossible.

You must be changed into an immortal

existence.

An undying, unending existence.

Now what part of our existence is undying

and unending?

Spirit and the soul. The soul and the

spirit.

James tells us very clearly what is death.

Separation of the soul and the body.

Now I I appreciate there are difficult

passages in the New Testament,

but the ones that aren’t difficult we need

to not abuse.

Paul tells us that our eternal existence

with the Father

at the resurrection involves

no zero fleshly existence.

None.

So

How could we get to a new heaven and a new

earth that are physical

and a new Jerusalem that is physical and

an existence being written about

and interpreted out of Revelation twenty

one that is physical?

What makes these two passages contradict

one another?

Rather, Paul is talking about the last and

final day.

And John is talking about the existence of

the church coming

out of a period of persecution.

And they’re using similar language.

They’re not talking about the same thing.

Verse fifty four, so when the corruptible

has put on incorruption and

the mortal has put on immortality,

then shall be brought to pass the saying

that is written Death is swallowed

up in victory. And then he quotes the Old

Testament minor prophets and says,

O death, where is your sting, Hosea

chapter thirteen?

O Hades, where is your victory?

The sting of death is sin,

and the strength of sin is the law.

The sting of death is sin and the strength

of sin is the law,

but thanks be to God who gives us the

what?

Victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Question there in verse fifty seven,

is that present tense or future tense?

Does he say will give us

the victory or gives us the victory?

Already gay.

Absolutely. It is an active present

description.

The resurrection that Paul is writing

about is a future event.

The victory that he’s writing about

happens in the present tense. We have it,

we live it, it is continual,

and it is ever present with us.

You say, Aaron, how can that be?

We’re still going to die. Yeah.

It’s true.

Well what does that death mean to us?

The director of the school of preaching

where Eddie and I attended,

Brother Wesley Simons, had a habit of

reminding us that for a Christian,

death is not a sad thing.

It’s a graduation. It’s a graduation from

this life

to the next one. It is simply a transition

from a lower point to a greater point.

And Paul is writing to Christians who are

giving up on the concept

of the graduation and saying this is all

there is.

Well, Anyone who holds to a position of

the new heaven and the new earth being

a physical existence, even an eternal

physical existence like was had

in the garden has missed it.

Paul says, flesh and blood cannot inherit

the kingdom of God,

and corruptible cannot inherit

incorruption.

And We already have the victory.

And so John will write, God’s going to

wipe away every tear from their eye.

There will be no more death.

Why? Death’s already defeated.

There will be no more sorrow. There will

be no more crying.

There will be no more pain. For the former

things,

the tribulation, the anguish, the

persecution from Rome,

the use of Rome by the devil, it’s over.

When Christ defeated Satan in the use of

Rome,

he defeated him completely.

Unlike the United States of America for

the last eight eighty years,

when Christ starts a war, he finishes it.

And wins every time.

Now notice we read verse five:

Then he who sat on the throne said,

Behold, I make all things new.

And he said to me, Write, for the words

are true and faithful.

And he said to me, It is done.

Where where have you?

Where have you read a a phrase like it is

done?

When Jesus Christ spoke from the cross.

And says it is finished.

And we read, It is done. I am the Alpha

and the Omega,

the beginning and the end, I will give of

the fountain of the water

of life freely to him who thirsts.

He who overcomes shall inherit all things,

and I will be his God, and he shall be my

son.

But the cowardly, unbelieving,

abominable, murderers, sexually immoral,

sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall

have their part in the lake which burns

with fire and brimstone, which is a second

death.

And you say, see, this is the judgment.

He’s talking about the punishment of all

the wicked for all time.

No, he’s not.

He’s talking about Verse 17 of chapter 19.

Then I saw an angel standing in the sun

and cried with a loud voice,

saying to the birds that fly in the midst

of heaven,

Come and gather together for the supper of

the great God,

that you may eat of the flesh of the

kings,

the cap the flesh of captains,

the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of

horses,

and those who sit on them, the flesh of

all people,

free and slave, both small and great.

And I saw the great kings, ~ I saw the

beasts,

the kings of the earth.

And their armies gathered together to make

war against him who sat on

the horse and against his army,

then the beast was captured, and with him

the false prophet who worked signs

in his presence, by which he deceived

those who received the mark of

the beast and who worshipped his image,

and those two were cast into the lake of

fire burning with brimstone.

He’s talking about the end of the war.

The war with who? The war with the beast,

the war with the sea beast, the war with

the dragon,

the war with Satan, the war with Rome.

He’s talking about all those who put the

mark of the beast on their head,

who said, I will pledge my allegiance to

Rome,

God says, and you’ll get the same judgment

they get.

What did God in the Old Testament prophets

tell the children of Israel?

He said, if you go after the idols that

this land went after,

I’m sending you into a land and I am

displacing and bringing

to judgment all these nations.

And if you go into the land and then you

begin to follow after the idols that they

followed after, and you begin to sacrifice

your children.

to their gods the way they did,

and you begin to participate in the

fornication and the adultery that they

participated in, then I’m gonna do to you

what I did to them.

And when the leadership of Israel began to

do exactly what God said not to do,

and the kings of Israel began to

participate in the things that God said

not to do,

God is going to tell the people,

if you follow after them,

to do the same things that I told you not

to do,

then I’m going to do to you, the people,

the same thing that I’m going to do to

them.

That’s what this passage is about.

Now, is it true in the world today,

and at the day of judgment,

that all unbelieving and abominable and

murderers and sexually immoral

and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars

shall have their part in

the lake which burns with fire and

brimstone,

which is the second death? Is that a true

statement about an eternal judgment

of God? Yes.

So now you get the picture. They’ve taken

a statement about judgment and said,

God’s doing it right now to these people

who are your enemies.

You asked Romans or Revelation chapter

six,

how long, O Lord, faithful and true,

until you judge the people who are

persecuting us?

And God says, Let me tell you,

I’m not gonna miss.

One of them.

Do you notice the emphasis here?

As he gives this list

In the word all

The word all liars.

Sometimes we appropriately teach children,

using this passage, that lying is wrong.

Revelation twenty one eight.

That’s not the lie that’s being talked

about.

What is the lie that these people believed

and repeated?

There’s there’s part of it. But what was

the message of Satan? What was the message

of the dragon?

What was the message of the sea beast?

What was the message of the land beast

about who God is?

They said, Caesar is God.

They said if you want to participate in

this economy,

you have to say Caesar is God.

You go back to Exodus chapter twenty.

And what does the Lord say?

You shall have no other gods before

me.

The

Is there is someone who’s God other than

the Lord?

There is allegiance to someone other than

the Lord.

John doesn’t say all the cowardly,

all the unbelieving, all the abominable,

all the murders. I mean, it’s in it’s it

it’s implied in there.

But why is the word all attached to liars?

Is it because lying is the worst sin of

all sins?

You got a guy out here murdering people,

and you got a guy over here lying.

Which one do you think we’re gonna put in

jail first?

The point isn’t about the sins,

the point is about the lying was the

culmination of them saying there

is a God other than Jehovah.

Pharaoh’s question to Moses.

was who is the Lord that

I should obey him?

Revelation twenty one, God says

I’m going to show you who he is.

He’s the one who can take every single

person

who allies themselves with Satan,

with his minions, with his puppet

governments,

with his rulers that he claims to be God,

and declares them to be equal with me,

and judges every single one.

Now the language in Revelation 21 is

Isaiah language.

There’s been times in the in the book of

Revelation we’ve been

in is Exodus language. We’ve been in

coming out of Egypt language.

But Isaiah 21 is Isaiah, or sorry,

Revelation 21 is Isaiah language.

New heaven and new earth is Isaiah

language.

New Jerusalem is Isaiah language.

This description here.

Is all about Isaiah. Because Isaiah was

the prophet

who continued to say to Israel,

Go ahead, get your idols to speak.

Get them to do anything.

Get them to judge someone.

Get them to punish someone. Get them to

give you a blessing.

Get them to do anything.

God says they can’t do it.

And this passage is a reiteration of that

to the church.

You serve a God who speaks,

you serve a God who creates, you serve a

God who blesses,

and you serve a God who judges.

Eddie, did you have a comment?

Okay.

Then one of the seven angels who had the

seven bowls filled the seven last plagues

came to me and talked with me,

saying, Now, let me jump ahead here in

some slides.

~ he says,

Come, I will show you the bride,

the lamb’s wife. We talked about this

briefly.

There’s an abundance of passages that tell

you exactly who the bride is,

who is the bride of Christ.

Church. End of discussion.

So when the angel who had one of the bowls

says,

Let me show you the bride, who is he

showing John?

The church. Any other interpretation?

is incorrect.

Okay. Now bear in mind that we have then

to discuss the church when, and the church

in what state,

and the church from what point of view.

But what we cannot argue about is it is

the church.

So notice what he says. And he carried me

away

in the spirit to a great and high

mountain.

And showed me the great city, the holy

Jerusalem,

descending out of heaven from God.

Where did where did Satan take Jesus

during the temptations?

First, they were in the wilderness.

And Satan says to Jesus, Take the stones

and and turn them to bread,

so you can have some nourishment.

And then now Luke and Matthew they flip

flop the second and the third one,

as to which order they were in.

Doesn’t matter. Then they go to the

pinnacle of the temple.

And at the highest peak of the temple,

Satan says to Jesus, cast yourself off

because the scripture has said that

the angels will not allow you to dash your

foot upon a stone.

Test the Lord. See if he’s true.

He made a promise to you, see if he’ll

fulfill it.

What did Jesus say in response?

Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.

Then he takes him where?

To a very high mountain. And what does he

show Jesus?

All the nations of the earth, name one

mountain you can go stand on

and see every nation on the planet from

there.

You can’t.

Not physically.

But the point is not that they did all

of these things and used only physical

resources to do them.

We’re not reading about a nice long

journey that Satan and the Lord hopped

on the boat together, we’re gonna go climb

the Himalayas,

we’re gonna get to the highest peak,

and then we’re going to use an eyeglass

that happened to be installed up there

to go look at every nation. No.

How long did it take Satan and the Lord to

get there?

Satan shows him all the nations of the

earth,

and what was it that Satan said I’ll give

you?

Everything you see. If you’ll simply do

what?

Sound familiar to the message of a beast?

Sound familiar to the message of a dragon?

So now John gets escorted to a very high

mountain.

And John sees descending out of heaven

The bride adorned for her husband.

But as he sees it, he says,

it is the new Jerusalem.

Notice the text He carried me away in the

spirit to a great and high mountain

and showed me the great city.

The new, sorry, the holy Jerusalem,

descending out of heaven from God.

So ~ when we come back here earlier on in

the chapter,

and we read verse chapter twenty one,

verse one, and I saw the new heaven and a

new earth,

for the first heaven and the first earth

were passed away,

and there was no more sea, then I,

John, saw the holy city,

New Jerusalem. What is it?

It’s the bride.

When John sees the new Jerusalem in the

new heaven and the new earth,

he sees

We know that because we’re told that.

He says, I saw the holy Jerusalem

descending out of heaven from God.

He’s over here on the mountain and he’s

watching.

And out of heaven comes the bride.

And it’s the holy Jerusalem.

And he sees it descending from heaven.

out of heaven from God. Whatever we have

in this passage,

it is not heaven.

Because it is descending out of heaven.

Now put two things together. Satan took

Jesus to a high mountain and said,

I’ll give you all the nations.

And John gets taken to a high mountain.

And John sees the new Jerusalem descending

out

of heaven from God. Now connect that

and that back to Daniel chapter two.

Head of gold, nation of Babylon,

arms and chest of silver,

nation of Medo Persia, belly and thighs of

brass,

nation of Greece, the legs of iron and

feet of iron mixed with clay,

the nation of Rome.

And God tells Nebuchadnezzar, I’m gonna

tell you what I’m gonna do.

And Daniel tells Nebuchadnezzar,

the Lord has seen fit to show you as the

greatest of

all of these kings.

What I’m gonna do.

In the days of these kings, the kings of

Rome,

the God of heaven will set up a kingdom

which shall never

be destroyed.

And it is going to break in pieces and

crush all of these kingdoms.

It’s gonna grind them into powder.

You see, Satan came along and said,

If you don’t set up your kingdom,

I’ll give you all these.

And Jesus in essence says, I I’m I’m gonna

worship the Lord God.

He’s already got all of these.

You just don’t know it yet.

And he did what Isaiah always says the

Lord does.

He told you how it’s going to end before

it ever began.

John sees the holy city, the new Jerusalem

coming up.

So, so ~ good question. All right.

So is John seeing something that’s going

to happen?

Is John seeing something that has already

happened?

Is John seeing something that is

happening?

And the answer to that is John’s seeing

the fulfillment

of Daniel’s prophecy. Daniel’s prophecy

didn’t

big didn’t end with the coming and the

establishment of the kingdom,

did it?

It ended with the crushing of the earthly

kingdoms and doing away with them.

This is it. Absolutely. This is God

saying,

I’m going to show you that we win.

I’m going to show you that I set up a

kingdom and it is going to

do exactly what I promised it would do.

And it’s going to do to these kingdoms and

these four nations and these four beasts

exactly what I said they were going to do.

And when you look at it, you’re gonna go,

that kingdom’s never gonna be destroyed.

Now, Watch how he pictures the kingdom.

Watch how he pictures the bride.

Watch the picture,

if you were to think about it from earthly

terms,

that John now sees as he’s there on the

high mountain and he’s watching this

happen,

and he sees the bride descending out of

the very presence of God.

And notice how John is getting that

described.

He says, having the glory of God.

Her light was like a most precious stone.

And we’re going to talk about that light

again later here at the

end of this chapter. But her light was

like the most precious stone,

like a jasper stone, clear as crystal.

Also, she had a great and high wall with

twelve gates

and twelve angels at the gates.

And the names written on them,

which are the names of the twelve tribes

of the children of Israel.

You look at the gate as John sees the city

descending out of heaven,

and he sees it descending from the

presence of God,

and he sees it with God’s glory and the

light of God,

and it’s so beautiful. And he sees a gate

and a gate and a gate and a gate

and a gate and a gate and a gate and a

gate and a gate and a gate.

Three entrances on every side because by

the way,

it’s City Four Square.

And he sees all of these gates.

And they’re adorned with all of these

precious stones.

And written

on the gates are the names of what?

twelve tribes of Israel.

Here’s one more Exodus reference.

In the tabernacle.

Which by the way we just read about in

chap earlier on in this chapter,

right? The tabernacle, God being with his

people,

and they’ll I will be their God and they

will be my people.

We already read about the tabernacle.

How was the camp of Israel set up when

they were there at Mount Sinai

and when they traveled and everywhere they

went in the wilderness for 40 years?

Tabernacle was in the center,

and the tribes were arrayed around the

tabernacle,

by tribes.

Just another picture. John sees the city,

and he sees the gates, and on the gate,

every gate, one tribe of Israel.

And notice he says,

Now on the wall of the city had twelve

foundations,

and on them were the names of the twelve

apostles of the Lamb.

Someone comes along and says, ~ see,

this is this is just inaccurate.

~ there were thirteen tribes.

True. Because Levi’s not among the twelve

tribes of Israel.

Levi’s the thirteenth tribe of Israel.

Because Joshua, or Joseph’s rather,

has two tribes, Ephraim, Manasseh.

So are there thirteen tribes? Yes.

Well, guess what? There’s 14 apostles.

But what does the number twelve represent?

God’s people. It’s not about exact

numbers,

it’s about what the number represents.

God’s people

And so he says, I I looked at this city.

Now he hasn’t told you what the city looks

like in size yet,

so you don’t really know just exactly how

big this foundation really is.

But he looks at the foundation and written

on the foundation,

of which there are twelve.

Are the names of the apostles.

You think Judas’ name was on one of them?

I don’t think so.

I think if John had had his way,

the only name left off would have been

John’s.

But he sees the names of the apostles of

the Lamb.

On the foundations of the city.

He sees the names of the tribes of Israel

on the gates of the city.

How many thrones were there that were

elders were sitting upon

in Revelation chapter four as John looks

into the throne room of God?

twenty four twelve apostles twelve tribes.

Twenty-four thrones. It’s a picture of

God’s people.

So notice, he says.

Now the wall of the city had twelve

foundations,

and on them were the names of the twelve

apostles of the Lamb,

and he who talked with me had a gold reed

to measure the city,

its gates and its wall. Now this is

Ezekiel language,

right? Ezekiel’s given a rod and he’s told

to go measure the city of Jerusalem.

So he takes this gold reed and he’s gonna

measure the city and the gates

and its walls, and the city is laid out as

a square,

and its length is as great as its breadth.

Okay, well that means it’s a what?

Square. John’s not done.

And he measured the city with the reed

twelve thousand furlongs,

its length and its breadth and its height

are equal.

Fifteen hundred miles.

One thousand five hundred miles.

Hmm.

I don’t know about you, but if God’s

planning on making this on a new heaven

and a new earth and it happens to be

physical,

we’re gonna have to have some

restructuring of the laws of gravity.

And also Elon Musk’s satellites are gonna

be running into this thing a lot.

Fifteen hundred miles tall.

And think about the days of John.

You think about a city that was

impenetrable.

What did ~ for all those who enjoy the

Lord of the Rings series,

what do you have to do to take a fortress?

You gotta get over the wall or you gotta

get inside the gate.

But at every gate there’s an angel.

What did one angel do in the days of

Hezekiah again to the Assyrian army?

Hundred and eighty five thousand in one

night.

Good luck with the gates.

But that’s okay. Can’t get through the

gate.

We’ll get over the wall. Good luck.

One thousand five hundred miles tall.

That’ll be fun.

Dad. Yeah. It’s quite a ladder.

What’s God saying?

You only get in if I let you in and

there’s no nation under heaven defeating

this.

See the pictures of the church.

And you say, Aaron, I just need to know

what floor I’m on.

~ And where’s Michael?

Michael, you need to work on that

elevator.

Because those steps are really long.

All right. Thank you for your attention.

We’ll be dismissed. We’ll pick up here.

Worship (Lesson 8) – Aaron Cozort – October 07, 2026

In Admonition Podcast, Bible, Christian life, Grace, holiness, keywords Worship, Mount Sinai, New Testament, Obedience, Old Testament, spiritual sacrifice by Aaron Cozort

image

Let’s begin with a word of prayer.

Gracious Father in Heaven, we humbly bow

before you,

grateful for the day that you’ve blessed

us with,

grateful for the opportunity that we have

in this life to serve you,

to worship you, to praise your name,

to glorify you, and we are grateful for

your plan

of redemption that has been brought down

through the ages from

the beginning of creation.

All the way forward so that we might have

the hope of eternal life.

And we are grateful for your son who came

and died on the cross for our sins,

that we might have that redemption,

that paid the purchase price that we could

not pay.

We pray that you are dealing or you be

with those who are dealing with sickness,

those who are facing upcoming procedures,

Lord, we pray that you will give them the

strength to go through

the hardships that they feach and every

day.

And Lord, we pray that you forgive us when

we sin and are willing to repent

of those things. And all this we ask in

Jesus’ name.

Amen.

In Exodus 19, if we as we’ve been studying

worship,

I wanted to jump forward a little bit in

the Old Testament history

to the time when Israel is coming out of

Egypt.

They have come to Mount Sinai.

They’ve been delivered through a series of

plagues that have been brought

on the Egyptian nation. They have been

delivered through the Red Sea on dry

ground.

And they arrived now at Mount Sinai.

Does anybody know why they came to Mount

Sinai?

Say again? All right. Because Mount Sinai

is where Moses

saw the burning bush. And it is God’s

instruction when

Moses is at the burning bush, that he is

to return with

the people back to this place.

Okay? So if you go back and read Exodus

chapter three and Exodus chapter four,

you’re gonna be like,

That’s why they’re at Mount Sinai.

And ~ that’s where the burning bush is.

The burning bush was at Sinai.

The location was the location God told

Moses

you go into Egypt, you get the people,

and you bring them back here. Okay.

Now there’s some rabbit trails that could

be discussed as to where Sinai is.

often we r hear of the the triangle shape

that that’s there between

the two red seas as the ~ sinai peninsula

and

we have often heard it called that because

historically for many years that’s

generally where people assume sinai is

they believe it’s down there in the base

of ~ of that peninsula

There’s not great evidence for that,

but there’s not really great evidence for

exactly where it is.

~ other than to say it’s on the other side

of the Red Sea.

There you go. It’s on the other side of

the Red Sea.

also bear in mind that the Red Sea,

even at that point, was considered to be

both of those fingers.

If you look on the map, ~ you’ve got one,

~ the Gulf of Aqaba and

And I’ve lost the name of the other one.

Suez. ~ yeah, Suez Canal. Yeah.

that some little place that some people

have been talking about recently

on the news. so you’ve got the Gulf of

Era,

you’ve got the Gulf of Suez, and and

depending upon whose opinion you accept,

~ depends on which one of those Moses and

the Israelites crossed on dry ground.

~ because

Some believe that they went down into

Egypt and then crossed

the the westward finger, and others

believe they went into the Sinai

put what we call the Sinai Peninsula and

crossed the eastern finger over into

~ the land that would have been known as

Arabia.

I’m more of the second camp.

~ I I think that the Sinai Peninsula is

actually in Arabia.

~ I believe that because that’s where Paul

says it is.

~ in the book of Galatians, but also

because if you are a shepherd

of sheep over the flock of someone who

lives in Midian,

which is where Moses’ father-in-law lived,

it would be very unreasonable to take

those sheep all the way down into

the horn of the Sinai Peninsula just to

water them and feed them.

That’s a very long trip

To take sheep on for the sake of food and

an unlikely place

to take them because of food. And when

you’re introduced to the Sinai Peninsula

or to Mount Sinai at the burning bush,

why is Moses at the foot of the place

where he sees the burning bush?

Because he’s tending his father-in-law’s

flock.

So there’s a lot of things that don’t make

sense about.

Sinai being down in the middle of the two

fingers,

the two gulfs. ~ just my opinion.

you can spend some time studying it on

your own.

But in the text, we’re at Mount Sinai.

We’re at the place where the children of

Israel having come out of Egypt will

remain

for almost a year, but they’ve just

arrived.

And as they arrive.

We find this in the third month after the

children of Israel had gone

out of the land of Egypt, on the same day

they came to the wilderness of Sinai,

for they had departed from Rephidim,

had come to the wilderness of Sinai,

and camped in the wilderness, so Israel

camped there before the mountain.

And Moses went up to God,

and the Lord called to him from the

mountain,

saying, Thus you shall say to the house of

Jacob,

and tell the children of Israel.

You have seen what I did to the Egyptians

and how I bore you on eagle’s wings

and brought you to myself. Notice there

is a directional declaration here.

God had sent Moses to get them,

and God had told Moses to bring them back

to where he was.

And so he declares I brought you to my

Self. Okay? Now he says,

Now therefore, verse five,

if you will indeed obey my voice and keep

my covenant,

then you shall be a special treasure to me

above all people,

for all the earth is mine. And you shall

be to me a kingdom of priests

and a holy nation. These are the words

which you shall speak to

the children of Israel.

Now you’ll notice

as God speaks to the nation,

that he’s going to use language that

interestingly,

over in Peter’s epistle, Peter’s going to

use similar language

to describe Christians. Turn over.

To the New Testament.

In first Peter

Sorry, second Peter chapter two.

I always know I’m saying the right one in

the other Bible that I

use because it’s always on the same column

on say page has been on for 20 years.

But when you use a new one,

~ sometimes you’re like, ~ it’s not where

it used to be.

Second Peter chapter 2. Notice what Peter

says as he describes Christians.

He says, Coming to him.

As to a living stone, rejected indeed by

men,

but chosen by God and precious.

Who’s he talking about?

He’s talking about Jesus, all right,

coming to him as to a living stone

rejected by men.

All right. Who’s the him that was rejected

by men?

It’s Christ. Okay? So he’s saying,

coming to Christ as to a living stone,

rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God

and precious.

You also as living stones are being built

up a spiritual house,

a holy priesthood. And I just realized I

am in first Peter chapter two.

I apologize. I mean everybody’s got weird

looks because they’re doing what

I say and not what I do.

All right. First Peter chapter two,

beginning in verse four. Get it right.

He says, coming to him as to a living

stone,

rejected indeed by men,

but chosen by God and precious.

You also as living stones. So the first

for verse four is talking about Christ

coming to Christ. Verse five is talking

about Christians.

He says, You also as living stones are

being built up a spiritual house,

a holy priesthood.

To offer up spiritual sacrifice acceptable

to God through Jesus Christ.

Peter says you Christians

are a priesthood. Okay?

He says you are a holy,

consecrated, set apart is what that word

means.

You are a separated from the world

priesthood.

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.

Now again, that’s talking about Christ.

He’s making an analogy and making a

comparison between Christ and us,

Christ and us. So he describes this

passage that speaks concerning

in Zion God is going to lay a chief

cornerstone.

And he who believes on him will by no

means be put to shame.

Therefore, to you who believe,

he is precious, but to those who are

disobedient,

the stone which the builder rejected has

become the chief cornerstone,

and a stone of stumbling and a rock of

offense.

Po Peter’s going to make it clear that not

only did God lay a chief cornerstone,

he also laid a d a stone that would

destroy those who refused to believe.

He says they stumble, being disobedient to

the word,

to which they also were appointed.

But you, now notice this terminology,

verse 5 and verse 9. But you are a chosen

generation,

a royal priesthood, a holy nation,

his own special people,

that you may proclaim the praises of him

who called you out of darkness into

his marvelous light.

Who were once not a people, but now are

the people of God,

who had not obtained mercy, but now have

obtained mercy.

Now, when Israel went into Egypt,

were they a nation? No,

they were a family. Seventy five people.

They came out a nation.

God says you weren’t a people when you

went in.

You are now. To the Christians,

Peter says, You weren’t a people before.

As a matter of fact, they were a group

pulled out of every nation under heaven.

Day one, you’ve got seventeen different

nations represented at the day of

Pentecost.

And seventeen different languages

represented at the day of Pentecost.

And moving beyond the day of Pentecost,

you have more and more and more and more

until you have Gentiles included.

He says, You’re not a people. God didn’t

call a nation.

Like he did in the Old Testament.

Rather, he selected out of all the nations

his people who were willing

to be obedient to him.

But I want us to see the comparison

between what Moses is told

by God to declare to Israel about who they

are and what they would be

to God and what Peter says. Peter says,

You’re a chosen generation,

a royal priesthood, a holy nation,

his own special people. Now,

why did God make Christians

A chosen generation, a royal priesthood,

a holy nation, his own special people.

He says that you may do what?

Proclaim the praises of him. What is that?

We were to just put a one-word answer or

description on it?

Worship. You remember what Jesus said

there

at the well outside Samaria? Where he said

that

God would seek those to worship him

who would worship him in spirit and in

truth.

So God was looking for a people.

He was looking for a people out of every

nation,

separated to become a chosen people.

For the purpose of worship.

Go back to Exodus.

And think about those terms. A royal

priesthood,

a holy nation, his own special people,

a chosen generation. And look once again

at verses five and six.

Now, therefore, if you will indeed obey my

voice and keep my covenant,

then you shall be a special treasure to me

above all people,

for all the earth is mine.

And you shall be to me a kingdom of

priests

and a holy nation. These are the words

which you shall speak to

the children of Israel. God is declaring

to Israel in

the days of Moses a very similar message

that

God through Peter declares to the church.

You are

God’s people for the purpose of worshiping

him.

You’re set apart so you can. It’s

interesting we often think about

the idea of worshiping God, and we don’t

necessarily always connect to that,

that we cannot worship God appropriately,

correctly, and pleasing to Him unless He

has already made us holy.

Now we discussed a few weeks back that God

desires all men to worship him.

God commands Israel to allow the strangers

to worship him,

the foreigners to worship him,

to join in on some of the feasts.

As a matter of fact, David will describe

how that it was part of his goal

and his purpose in the Psalms to declare

God’s name to those

who were not Israelites.

So it is important that we use our worship

to influence those who are lost,

those who are not right with God,

and it is appropriate for those who are

not yet right with God,

but recognize who He is to still honor His

name.

But in order to worship as God desires his

people to do,

they have to first be his people.

So God is going to speak to Moses in what

he is going to declare

to Israel here at Mount Sinai.

And notice, so Moses, verse 7,

came and called for the elders of the

people and laid before them

all these words which the Lord commanded

him.

Then all the people answered together and

said,

All that the Lord has spoken, we will do.

So Moses brought back the words of the

people to the Lord.

You might remember that over in Joshua

chapter 23,

a very similar description is made by

Joshua

to the next generation. And when they

said,

We’re going to do everything the Lord

says,

Joshua says, You should beware.

Because the prior generation had said they

were going to do everything that

the Lord said too.

And how many of them made it into the

promised land?

The answer is the children and two.

So the people say we’re going to do

everything that the Lord says.

So the Moses brought back the words of the

people to the Lord.

The Lord said to Moses, Behold,

I come to you in a thick cloud,

that the people may hear when I speak with

you and believe you forever.

Moses is going to be spoken to by God.

But who’s going to hear the message as

well?

All people.

So he says, Go to the people,

verse ten, and consecrate them today and

tomorrow,

and let them wash their clothes,

and let them be ready for the third day,

for on the third day the Lord will come

down upon Mount Sinai in the sight

of all the people. You shall set bounds

for the people all around,

saying, Take heed to yourselves that you

do not go up to the mountain

or touch its base for

Whoever touches the mountain shall surely

be put to death.

God is going to tell Israel, I’m going to

speak with Moses.

And I’m going to speak to him from the

mountain,

and you’re going to listen to me speak to

him from the mountain,

and you’re never gonna doubt Moses’

relationship to the Lord ever again.

Now will that be true? In the sense of

will they ever doubt it?

~ sure they will. You get all the way to

the edge of the promised land

and they’re gonna say, you know what,

let’s kill Moses and go back to Egypt.

But it wasn’t for a lack of evidence.

It wasn’t because it hadn’t been proven.

Step all the way forward to the time of

Jesus.

And did Israel need any more signs than

the ones they had already received

to confirm that Jesus was the Christ,

the Son of God? No. Did they still refuse

to believe it?

Yes.

So they’re at Mount Sinai, they’re told to

consecrate themselves,

the third day God is going to come down,

God is going to speak from the mountain,

and God says if any of you come up on the

mountain or touch the mountain,

you’re dead.

How you want to show up for worship with

that qualification?

How how would you like the scenario where,

you know what, if you cross that pew,

you’re a goner.

That’s not really the way we in this

country at least act in any scenario.

I mean, we occasionally might be somewhere

where there’s very important people

or leaders or whatever, and you know,

hey, don’t you don’t cross that line

because you’re gonna be considered

a threat if you do. But turn over to

Exodus chapter,

sorry, Hebrews.

Hebrews chapter twelve

Beginning in verse 18. Hebrews 12,

verse 18, we read, For you have not come.

Now, this is the Hebrew writer writing to

Christians.

And as he’s writing these Christians,

he says, Let me tell you what situation

you’re not in.

He says, For you have not come to the

mountain that may be touched,

and that burned with fire, and to

blackness and darkness and tempest.

And the sound of a trumpet and the voice

of words,

so that those who heard it begged that the

word should not be spoken

to them anymore. For they could not endure

what was commanded,

and if so much as a beast touches the

mountain,

it shall be stoned or shot with an arrow.

What event is the Hebrew writer writing

about?

He’s writing about Exodus chapter 19.

The Hebrew writer is saying, You are.

Christians have not showed up at a

mountain where you were warned if even

an animal touched the mountain,

they were to be killed. If you touch the

mountain,

you were to be killed. That’s not what

you’ve shown up at.

He says, and so terrifying was the sight

that Moses said,

I am exceedingly afraid and trembling.

But you have come to Mount Zion and to the

city of the living God.

The heavenly Jerusalem to an innumerable

company of angels,

to the general assembly and church of the

firstborn who were registered in heaven,

to God, the judge of all, to the spirits

of just men made perfect,

to Jesus the mediator mediator of the new

covenant,

and to the blood of the sprinkling that

speaks better things than that of Abel.

As you’re reading Exodus nineteen,

you should be thinking

That must have been amazing to see,

but I’m very glad I don’t have to witness

it.

Because the Hebrew writer says,

You you’ve come to someplace so much

better.

He goes on to say, See that you did not

refuse him who speaks.

For if they did not escape, who refused

him who spoke on earth,

much more shall we not escape if we turn

away from him who speaks from heaven,

whose voice then shook the earth,

but now he has promised, saying,

Yet once more I shake not only the earth,

but also heaven.

Now this yet once more indicates the

removal of those things that are being

shaken,

as of things that are made, and not of the

things which cannot be shaken,

~ excuse me, that the things which cannot

be shaken may remain.

Therefore, since we are receiving a

kingdom which cannot be shaken,

let us have grace by which we may serve

God acceptably with reverence

and godly fear, for our God is a consuming

fire.

The Hebrew writer says, You go look back

and you go read Exodus

and you go understand what they showed up

at.

And then you consider the grace that

you’ve been given.

You put in your mind an understanding of

the grace that God has granted to you,

and then you remember this.

Still the same guy.

So if you reject the grace.

All you’re left with is the God who

judges.

Eddie, did you have a thought I saw a

hand?

Absolutely. We’re gonna go into that just

a little bit deeper.

You know, that idea of when we show up at

worship,

we should be we should be realizing who

we’re showing up in front of.

So go back to Exodus nineteen.

I want to read a little bit more into

Exodus nineteen.

And then we’re gonna get into chapter

twenty and see a little bit more there.

And we’re gonna come back to Hebrews.

So you might just keep a finger over in

Hebrews.

God says, beginning in verse fourteen.

So Moses went down from the mountain to

the people and sanctified the people,

and they washed their clothes.

And he said to the people, Be ready for

the third day,

do not come near your wives. Then it came

to pass on the third day

in the morning that there were thunderings

and lightnings,

and a thick cloud on the mountain.

And the sound of the trumpet was very

loud,

so that all the people who were in the

camp trembled.

What did the Hebrew writer write about?

He wrote about this.

He’s telling you what happened.

And Moses brought the people out of the

camp to meet with God,

and they stood at the foot of the

mountain.

Now Mount Sinai was completely in smoke,

because the Lord descended upon it in

fire.

Its smoke ascended like the smoke of a

furnace,

and the whole mountain quaked greatly.

Why don’t you think about something?

The last time that Moses was here,

there was a bush on fire.

And when Moses approached it, and when the

Lord spoke

to Moses from the bush, and when Moses

observed that the bush was on fire,

but the bush was not consumed.

The text tells us that Moses fell down as

dead.

And God tells Moses, Take your sandals off

your feet,

for the place you stand is holy ground.

Now they’re back. And as they are encamped

at the base of Mount Sinai,

and as they have consecrated themselves

and prepared themselves and arrived

now at the base of Mount Sinai,

they are observing

not a bush on fire.

But the whole mountain on fire.

But is the mountain consumed?

There’s some in the,

I don’t know if I’d really call them the

archaeological world,

but at least the ~ profitable

archaeological world,

i.e., they always have something to sell,

that believe they have found Mount Sinai

because

it is a mountain that is just charred,

~ darkened. And so their their belief is

that.

This is Mount Sinai because of its

appearance.

My only disagreement with that is i if you

think about what’s going

to transpire from here, where’s Moses

about to go?

Moses is about to go right up that

mountain and talk to the Lord.

And Moses is going to be on that mountain

for 40 days.

So in the same way that the bush was on

fire and wasn’t consumed,

I suggest to you that the mountain was on

fire and wasn’t consumed.

Not explicitly stated, but certainly worth

considering.

Not saying it was at all n certainly not

saying it was their imagination.

No, the fire was real.

Just like the fire of the burning bush was

real,

but it didn’t consume the bush.

It was God manifesting himself in a

way that the people could comprehend there

is no one else like me.

Because that’s been God’s message from

plague number one all

the way to plague number ten. There is no

one like the Lord.

So they arrive at the mountain,

they gather around the mountain,

they’re told to consecrate themselves,

they consecrate themselves, they arrive at

the mountain on the third day,

and they witness the mountain surrounded

by thunderings,

lightnings, a thick cloud, the sound of a

trumpet was very loud,

so that the people who were in the camp

trembled,

and the Mount Sinai was completely

engulfed in smoke.

Descended upon the Lord descended upon it

in fire,

its smoke ascended like the smoke of a

furnace,

and the whole mountain quaked greatly,

and when the blast of the trumpet sounded

long and became louder and louder,

Moses spoke, and God answered him by

voice.

So imagine you’re standing there and you

begin to hear the sound of a trumpet.

And it just keeps going.

And then it gets louder and louder and

louder.

To the point of being unbearable.

And then God speaks normally.

Moses hears him. I the idea is not God’s

having a shout up no no.

God is heard directly.

Then the Lord came down upon Mount Sinai

and on the top of the mountain.

And the Lord called Moses to the top of

the mountain,

and Moses went up. So now God is going to

manifest Himself on the

top of Mount Sinai. God is going to call

Moses up onto the mount.

Moses is going to go up on the mount.

And the Lord said to Moses, Go down and

warn the people lest they break through

to gaze at the Lord, and many of them

perish.

And let the priests who come near the Lord

consecrate themselves,

lest the Lord break out against them.

First message Moses,

come up the mountain. Moses gets up the

mountain.

Moses, go back down the mountain.

Why? You go tell the people I’m dead

serious.

Literally. Don’t don’t touch the mountain.

And the priests, by the way,

at the time, how many priests are there in

Israel?

None, actually.

Aaron and his sons aren’t consecrated yet.

God has just called them a nation of

priests.

But he does give you a little nugget

that’s gonna help when you

get over to Leviticus chapter ten.

And when the priests are consecrated and

when the very first occasion

of worship is consecrated and the events

transpire on that day,

and God is going to send fire from heaven

and consume two of the five priests.

The sons of Aaron, Nadab and Abihu,

and God is going to reiterate the message

which he had already spoken,

not very much earlier than that,

but somewhat earlier than that.

God spoke from the mountain and told

Moses,

Your priesthood show up in front of me,

and they better be holy.

Now watch the connection. Do you remember

what Peter called Christian?

A holy nation, a royal priesthood.

If God was serious enough about you and me

showing up,

or let’s go back to the Old Testament.

God was serious enough about the

priesthood of Aaron showing up before

God in holiness, so much so that he sent

fire from heaven down

to consume two of the ones who didn’t.

What should we be considering as we show

up at worship?

You remember that Paul is going to write

to the church and tell them

as they’re observing the Lord’s Supper

that they are to examine themselves

whether

they are in the faith.

As we as we look at this passage,

we’re supposed to be looking at ourselves

and going,

what am I supposed to be when I show up

before God to worship him?

Humble for sure.

Holy Humble

But notice then Moses said to the Lord,

The people cannot come up to Mount Sinai,

for you warned us, saying, Set bounds

around the mountain and consecrate it.

Then the Lord said to him, Away,

get down and then come up, you and Aaron

with you,

but do not let the priest and the people

break through to come up to the Lord,

lest he break out against them.

So Moses went down to the people and spoke

to them.

So here envision.

Moses goes up the mountain. God tells him

to go down the mountain.

Moses basically says, Well, the Lord,

you told us to build a barrier around the

mountain,

so the people aren’t going to come up.

God says, I said go down. And when you go

down,

you bring Aaron back.

So Moses goes down.

And the way I understand it is as Moses

reaches the bottom,

God begins speaking.

And God spoke all these words,

saying, And he gives what we know as the

Ten Commandments.

Now we’re not going to go through all of

them for the sake of time,

because I want to get to this at the end

of the chapter before we get there.

Verse 18. So God gives the Ten

Commandments,

He speaks the word as Moses has been

commanded to go back down,

get Aaron, and remind the people,

don’t touch the mountain.

Now all the people witnessed the

thunderings,

the lightning, the flashes, the sound of

the trumpet,

and the mountain smoking, and when the

people saw it,

they trembled and stood afar off.

Then they said to Moses, You speak with

us,

and we will hear. But let not God speak

with us lest we die.

They have witnessed God’s plagues,

they have witnessed God’s miracles,

they have witnessed God delivering them

through the Red Sea,

and now they are so afraid because of what

they’re witnessing at Mount Sinai that

they tell Moses, listen, you go up the

mountain and you find out what

the Lord has to say, because we cannot

bear hearing the voice of

the Lord any longer. We are afraid for our

lives.

Verse twenty, and Moses said to the

people,

Do not fear, for God has come to test you,

and that his fear may be before you,

so that you may not sin. So the people

stood afar off,

but Moses drew near the thick darkness

where God was.

Then the Lord said to Moses, Thus you

shall say to the children of Israel,

You have seen that I have talked with you

from heaven,

you shall not make anything to be with me,

gods of silver or gods of gold.

You shall not make for yourselves,

an altar of earth you shall make for me,

and you shall sacrifice on it your burnt

offerings and your peace offerings,

your sheep and your oxen in every place

where I record my name,

I will come to you and I will bless you.

And if you will make me an altar of stone,

you shall not build it of hewn stone,

for it for if you use your tool on it,

you have profaned it.

Nor shall you go up by steps to my altar

that your nakedness may not

be exposed on it.

So God says to Moses, here are the

instructions for altars.

Moses, you tell the people,

when they build an altar, they do it my

way.

When they show up before me,

they show up in holiness. When they show

up before me,

they take care to maintain their holiness.

Go back over to Hebrews.

In Hebrews chapter four, verse fourteen.

The Hebrew writer will say, seeing then

that we have a great high priest

who has passed through the heavens,

Jesus the Son of God,

let us hold fast our confession.

For we do not have a high priest who

cannot sympathize with our weaknesses,

but was in all points tempted as we are

yet without sin.

Let us therefore come.

boldly to the throne of grace,

that we may obtain mercy and find grace to

help in time of need.

Multiple times in the book of Hebrews,

the Hebrew writer is going to tell the

people of God.

Israel came before God in fear.

Israel came before God with a priesthood

that could never

be truly holy in and of themselves.

Israel came before God with sacrifices

that could never make them truly holy

before

God. And Israel came before God in fear.

But through Christ we come in boldness.

Now, the Hebrew writer is not implying by

that we come nonchalantly with

a lack of care. No, still the same God.

Still the consuming fire the Hebrew writer

writes about.

But rather that we approach God not with

our merit,

not with our holiness, not with our

righteousness,

not with the blood of bulls and goats,

but with the blood of Jesus Christ his

son.

So when John writes in 1 John chapter 1,

he says that the blood of Jesus Christ

continually cleanses us from all sin.

And that as a result of that,

we have fellowship with the Father and

with

the Son and with other Christians.

We need, as we worship,

to use worship as an opportunity.

to examine ourselves whether or not we are

holy,

whether or not we are right before God,

whether or not

we

are His special people.

Okay? Thank you.

Our Christian Family – Justin Evergarden – October 04, 2026

In Admonition Podcast, baptism, biblical identity, Christian growth, church relationships, eternal life, fellowship, God's promises, keywords Christian family, spiritual nourishment, spiritual unity by Aaron Cozort

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As Christians, we often hear or use the

phrase brother and sister in Christ.

When I first attended the Memphis School

of Preaching,

it was a rule that we call each other

brother or sister so and so.

Not literally so and so, but insert their

last name.

So it was always Brother Mosier,

Brother Rutherford, Brother Clark,

Sister Tish.

Sister Evergarden, things like that.

We use the word brother and sister so

often among Christians.

But when we call someone by that name,

when we call them a brother or a sister in

Christ,

we are saying something about what God has

done

to them in their lives. We are also

acknowledging that we belong

to the same family.

That relationship should make a difference

in everyday life.

It should affect what happens when we

notice someone is struggling,

when someone new comes to us, and when two

Christians specifically have

a disagreement. The question is what is

whether our treatment of

one another matches the term by which we

are using.

Turn your Bibles over to Ephesians chapter

three,

specifically verses fourteen through

fifteen.

Listen to the way Paul begins his prayer

in Ephesians chapter three.

He’s explaining something very important.

He says, For this cause I bow my knees

unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,

of whom the whole family in heaven and

earth is named.

Paul had been explaining how people who

were once separated have been brought

together into the very same family through

Christ.

In the previous chapter in Ephesians

chapter 2 and verse 19,

he writes the following words.

Now, therefore, ye are no more strangers

and foreigners,

but fellow citizens with the saints and of

the household of God.

Now I want you to think for just a moment

about the change that happens

in that verse. People who have been

strangers up until now now share

the very household of God through Christ.

They have a place in his family,

is what Paul is saying. Their relationship

with God,

therefore, gives them a relationship to

each other.

Now, our experiences with earthly families

are going to differ.

For many of us, when we think of our

earthly families,

we have joy in those memories.

Unfortunately, for some, memories of those

families,

even immediately, could be pain.

Scripture directs us to the character of

God and teaches us that what life

in his household ought to be. We will need

patience with one another as we grow,

because God has made us children,

specifically his children, and we must

learn to treat each other as one family.

And so because of this, we’re going to

look at five different points this

evening,

and I’m going to go through a little

faster than normal,

because typically a sermon consists of

three,

not five. So I’m going to try to go

through them.

Of what all we share as members of

Christ’s family.

First and foremost, turn your Bibles over

to Second Corinthians eighteen.

And we’re going to look at the fact that

we all have the same Father.

The one speaking here is the Lord God

Almighty,

and just as a reminder, he has all

authority and all power throughout

the gospel that’s written. And he says in

chapter six and verse eighteen,

and I will be a father unto you.

And you sh ye shall be my sons and

daughters,

saith the Lord Almighty.

Now he’s speaking to people in very

personal terms.

He’s using terms like father, sons,

daughters. And we should pause long enough

when reading this scripture

to appreciate the promise that’s been

given to us.

We were received into a relationship in

which we belong to him.

The surrounding verses there, if you have

time.

Also help us understand what a

relationship requires.

Paul is calling the Corinthians to

separate themselves from idolatry

and uncleanness. But God’s promise to

receive them goes with his call

for them to live as his people.

His children under honor him by the way

they live.

That includes the way we treat his other

children,

the other membly members of our family.

If God is my father, and God is your

father,

then we have a reason to care about one

another before we discover.

Whether we have something else in common

or not.

Doesn’t matter if we both like sports.

Doesn’t matter if we’re both gearheads or

tech heads.

Doesn’t matter who won at the Super Bowl.

Whether we have something in common with

one another or not,

we need to treat each other the same way

as our relationship in Christ.

Because that relationship in Christ gives

us a place in each other’s lives.

It’s natural to spend time

With people whose company comes very

easily to us.

People who we have lots in common with one

another.

And we ought to enjoy those friendships.

But consider the member who comes in the

building,

takes a seat, and leaves scarcely with

anyone speaking to him.

He belongs to the same father as the same

person who is surrounded by friends.

His presence matters just as much.

And his burdens matter. We’re told in

another verse.

Rejoice with them that do rejoice and weep

with them that weep.

We’re told to be one with all of our

family in Christ in both the good and the

bad.

Our common father also gives us a reason

to be careful

of things during disagreements.

A brother may need correction,

and we may need correction ourselves.

We should approach that work with a desire

to help one another,

first and foremost, please the God in whom

we serve,

and please the God in whose family we

become a part of.

Before we speak carelessly about a fellow

Christian,

we ought to remember whose child we are

discussing.

They are still a child of God.

We have the same father, and we both

answer to him.

But also we have the same mother.

Turn over to Galatians chapter four and

verse twenty-six.

Now before we read the passage,

there’s an expression we need to

understand in the setting of this verse.

Paul has been discussing Abraham’s two

sons and their mothers.

And Sarah. He uses them to illustrate two

covenants,

Hagar’s associated with Mount Sinai and

bondage,

while the free woman belongs to the

picture of promise and freedom.

It says in Galatians 4 and verse 26 But

Jerusalem,

which is above, is free, which is mother

of us all.

Paul is contrasting the present Jerusalem

with the Jerusalem above.

Not one that’s horizontal to us that we

can walk into,

but one that is vertical of us,

which he calls our mother.

Now he’s speaking figuratively about our

spiritual belonging.

He’s not talking in the physical sense.

But the next part of his explanation makes

the point very easy to understand.

Move forward to verse 28. Now we,

brethren, as Isaac was,

are the children of promise. Those that

are a part of the body of Christ,

those that have put on Christ,

share in God’s promise for them.

And it’s important to note that earthly

ancestry gives no Christian

a superior standing among other of God’s

children.

We’re all on the same level, we’re all

brothers and sisters.

That goes vertically.

One person may have been taught the

scriptures from childhood.

Others don’t get into the scriptures and

become a Christian until way later in

life.

We should be very thankful for the

blessing of a faithful upbringing

if we’ve been brought up in the church

since a young age.

But we need to be very welcoming of the

person who’s only recently obeyed

the gospel. So many times, I’ve and I’ve

seen it in other congregations

of the Lord’s church. Someone who was

raised in the church.

Treat someone who’s a newcomer completely

different than they should.

And that’s wrong of us as Christians.

A congregation can have families whose

connections go back many years.

And these relationships, again,

can be a wonderful blessing to the church.

But we should consider how a new Christian

experiences life among us.

Can that person find a place at our table

and in our conversations?

One of the rules that I had to learn very

quickly when I started at BI,

the Business Networking International.

that I go to with Aaron is one of the

rules that we have set is no closed

circles

of conversation. We don’t have our backs

turned outward.

We always leave part of the circle open so

that other people can come

in at any point in time. At no point in

time should the Christian have

a closed circle of conversation in this

church building or out

of the church building for that member.

We should always be welcoming to have

other people into the congregation.

Can that person find a place at our table?

Does he have someone to ask when he

doesn’t understand someone?

Does she know that her presence is wanted

in the room?

And a lot of that goes back to even

something as simple

as our bodies and how they’re standing.

Being new should never mean being treated

as less of part of the family.

Paul caused the calls the Galatians

brethren and children of promise.

This is how we should learn to see each

other,

both new and old. We share a belonging

that reaches beyond family into that which

we were physically born. It goes into the

spiritual family.

But now I want you to think about it as

well,

and we don’t typically have this problem

at this congregation here,

but we all eat at the same table.

Now we typically do that here in the

physical sense every Sunday,

and I’m so glad that we invite visitors

and everyone else to come and

sit down on us. Families depend upon

nourishment.

They depend upon food. My little one

couldn’t go more than three hours without

a snack, or he would lose it. But when we

talk about spiritual needs,

God provides for the spiritual needs of

his people.

Look at Isaiah chapter sixty six and verse

eleven.

Isaiah gives us a picture of that

provision.

He says in Isaiah 66 11, that ye may suck

and be satisfied with the breasts

of her consolations, that ye may milk out

and be delighted in the abundance

of her glory. Now, Isaiah pictures

Jerusalem here as a mother nursing her

children.

In the surrounding passage, God promises

comfort to his people.

The picture is of children receiving the

care and nourishment that they need.

It reminds us that our dependence is upon

the provision of

That our God makes from day to day.

Peter uses the imagery of a hungry child

in 1 Peter chapter 2 and verse

2 to teach us Christians about the need

for the Word.

He says in 1 Peter 2 2, as newborn babes

desire the sincere milk of the Word,

that they may grow thereby. As I told you

before,

my son Laios does not have to be persuaded

to eat his food.

So why is it that when we as adults have

to be persuaded when spiritual fruit food

is concerned? I want you to take into

account just a thought.

The human body, scientifically speaking,

can go one to two months without food.

I was looking into ~ weight loss programs

recently,

and I’m about to start a seventy two hour

fast,

but I wanted to make sure that that was

safe.

And I came across this and said,

Well, some people have gone as far as two

months,

to which my response was no, thank you.

I’m not going two months. It’s hard enough

to go the three days to try

to lose a little weight.

That’s provided you still have access to

water.

The body, without water, can only live for

around three days and then it dies.

We have a very solid dependence on water.

But spiritual matters are so far more

important than the amount of water

and food our body eats. So why?

Why do we make ourselves go so long

without eating at God’s table?

Why do we go without the nourishment that

our souls need?

To spend an eternity with them.

We are starving ourselves if we do not

spend time in God’s Word.

Peter tells us to bring that kind of

desire to the Word of God.

We need to know what God has provided if

we are ever going to grow and survive

in a spiritual manner. And this need

belongs to every single one of us.

Yes, the preacher still needs to receive

the very word he teaches.

And that’s something I have to remind

myself as a preacher on a daily basis.

When I’m studying and I’m getting these

ready for presentation for you to teach

you,

I have to apply these lessons to my very

own life,

first and foremost. The Christian who

studied for many years still needs

to examine his life in the light of God’s

word.

Let me be very clear. There is not a

single person on this planet,

no matter how intelligent, no matter how

wise they may be,

will ever reach a point.

Where they do not need to learn more of

God’s word.

It’s not possible.

Notice too that what Peter tells his

readers to put away immediately before

speaking

in this verse. He names several things:

malice, put away deceit, put away

hypocrisy,

envying, and evil speaking. Those things

are things that

can damage our relationships within our

Christian family.

As the Word of Christ helps us to grow,

it should become evident in the way that

we treat people around us.

A spiritually mature Christian is going to

love.

those that he’s around. A greater

knowledge of Scripture ought to

be accompanied by a greater willingness to

obey it.

And there’s a direct connection between a

shared table and our fellowship

in Christ that we observe every single

week.

Look at first Corinthians chapter ten,

verses sixteen through seventeen.

We remember as the Lord’s sacrifice

together as people who depend

on that sacrifice for our eternal

well-being.

The cup of blessing which we bless,

is it not the communion of the blood of

Christ?

That bread which we break, is it not the

communion of the body of Christ?

For we being many are one bread and one

body.

For we are all partakers of that one.

Bread. As a Christian, if I’ve been

nursing resentment towards a brother,

I should take that seriously. If I have

wronged someone,

I should be willing to seek forgiveness.

The fellowship we acknowledge together

calls for care in the way we live

together.

I was taught somewhere else in the Bible

that if you have aught against your

brother, you go to them. You take care of

that problem before making your alms

and sacrifices to God.

But I want you to also think that we wear

the same garments.

Not only do we have the same mother,

the same father, eat at the same table,

but we wear the same thing, Galatians

three,

twenty six through twenty eight.

Paul is going to bring several thoughts

together in this passage.

He speaks of being children of God by

faith,

of being baptized into Christ and the

unity shared by those who belong to him.

Let’s look and see what he wrote.

For ye are all the children of God by

faith in Jesus Christ,

the faith. Only one Lord,

one faith, one baptism. This is not

teaching faith only.

Let’s be very clear about that.

For as many of you have been, there it is,

baptized into Christ, have put on Christ.

It’s something you wear. There is neither

Jew nor Greek,

there is neither bond nor free,

there is neither male nor female,

for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.

His expression to put on Christ gives us

the picture of clothing ourselves with

Christ.

As much as we want to admit it or not,

in the world that we live in right now,

clothing can very much influence how we

are treated by the outside communities.

A person in expensive clothes may receive

attention,

while someone dressed very simply,

very poorly, does not. Typically those

that are dressed in rags are looked down

upon

by the world standards. People can make

judgments about importance before

a conversation has ever begun.

I don’t know about you, but it happened in

my high school all the time.

If you weren’t wearing the football

jersey,

you clearly weren’t part of the jock crew.

They would put you in these labels,

these little boxes.

In this passage, Paul directs our

attention to the identity we share in

Christ.

And the differences he names were

significant in the lives of his readers,

the people he was directly writing to

there at the Corinthian church.

Yet none of them established a superior

claim to the blessings

of belonging to Christ. Every person in

him stood in need of his grace,

and they still do today. Every person in

Christ belongs to Christ.

And thus that should treat that should

shape the way a congregation treats

its members. There’s also a sense of

personal responsibility,

however, in this image. If we have to put

on Christ,

then our behavior should reflect to whom I

belong,

to what I am wearing. This is called

dressing for the job.

Everyone here would have something to say

if I walked up here in board shorts

and a Hawaiian shirt to teach the evening

lesson.

You dress the job. When we were at MSLP,

we had to have the tie, the jacket,

thankfully, after a while, was optional.

But you dress for the job. If you’re gonna

change the oil in the car,

you’re not gonna wear a three piece suit.

You’re not gonna wear your best shirt,

which I made the mistake of lying under my

truck the other day in one

of my favorite shirts and realized what I

was doing.

So now I have to rebuy said shirt because

I ruined it with a little bit of oil.

You gotta dress for what you’re doing.

His patience, his grace, his love towards

us should influence the way

we respond to other people. His humility

should influence how we’re willing

to admit how sometimes we’re wrong.

We always need to base all of our

knowledge upon his infinite knowledge.

We wear the same garments because we have

put on the same Lord in Christ,

and that shared identity gives us every

reason to treat one another with dignity

and love.

I also want you to consider that we work

in the same field.

We’re not all preachers, but we work in

the same field.

Matthew 13 and verse 38, Jesus is

explaining the parable of the wheat and

the tares.

He says in Matthew 13 and verse 38 The

field is the world.

The good seed are the children of the

kingdom,

but the tares are the children of the

wicked one.

Now he’s told us what everything is.

His people live in a world where evil is

so present,

awaiting the judgment he describes at the

close of the parable.

As his people live in that world,

they also have work to do.

What do you do with seed? If you’re

responsible,

you plant it. You water it. Paul gives us

a dire a direct relating farming

illustration doing this. In First

Corinthians three,

six through nine. He says, I’ve planted,

Apollos watered, and God gave the

increase.

So neither is he that planteth anything,

neither is he that watereth, but God that

giveth the increase.

Now he that planteth, and he that watereth

are one.

Hm. They’re doing different jobs,

but they’re working in the same field.

And every man shall receive his own reward

according to his own labor.

For we are fellow laborers together with

God.

Ye are God’s husbandry, planters,

farmers. Ye are God’s building,

the church.

This principle should guide the way we

work together.

Consider how someone may come to a Bible

study.

A Christian takes time to build the

friendship,

build the relationship. Eventually that

friendship creates an opportunity

for the study. Another Christian may help

teach,

and after the person obeys the gospel,

other people should help encourage that

person to grow further in

the knowledge of God. We all have a part

to play.

We can also learn something from the

ordinary responsibilities of a household,

not just farmers.

Lots of families organize their family

chores on something called a chore board.

Everybody has something to do.

Family life requires which we’re not quite

to that point with him yet,

he can’t read. But family life requires

one to notice what needs to be done

and how to contribute. Typically it’s my

job as the husband to take out the

garbage.

Typically me and Megan both share doing

the dishes.

If I cook, she does the dishes.

If she cooks, I do the dishes.

We don’t have a board yet, but that’s

coming.

The same willingness is needed among

Christians.

A congregation’s works depends on the

members who are prepared to serve.

We all have different ability.

Our circumstances differ from person to

person,

and sometimes it can change over time.

Some can do things today that others

cannot today.

Look, I’m good at some things,

as a friend of mine once said,

and you’re good at some things.

We all have different areas of expertise.

The question each of us should ask is what

we can faithfully contribute with

the opportunities God has given us.

There’s encouragement in knowing that we

do not labor alone,

that we serve the same Lord and God,

that we have a family backing us up

because we can strengthen one another

for the work that’s ahead of us.

Something that would be insurmountable by

ourselves is very,

very achievable and sometimes easy when

put together as a group.

Think of how the pyramids were made.

It wasn’t by one man.

And then I want you to think as well,

we dwell in the same house together

forever,

if we are part of God’s family.

David says it a real good way in Psalm

chapter twenty three and verse six.

David has described the Lord’s care

through the circumstances of his life.

The shepherd provides and guides,

and his present gives comfort even in the

valley of the shadow of death.

He says, Surely goodness and mercy shall

follow me all the days of my life,

and I will dwell in the house of the Lord

forever.

Here David closes with confidence in God’s

enduring goodness and

the blessing of dwelling in his presence

at the end of his life.

But Jesus speaks directly to his disciples

about a home with the Father.

Let’s look at what he says in John chapter

14,

verses two through three.

And the comfort of this promise should be

very personal to all of us.

And I’ll explain why. In my father’s

house,

he says in John 14, 2 through 3,

are many mansions. If it were not so,

I would have told you, I go to prepare a

place for you.

And if I go and prepare a place for you,

I will come again and receive you unto

myself,

that where I am, there ye may be also.

First off,

We have the Son of God going and preparing

our room for us,

and he knows us more intimately than

anyone else on this planet,

probably ourselves. Definitely ourselves.

And in the first section of chat of verse

two,

he says, In my father’s house are many

mansions.

The Greek there does not mean multiple

mansions,

multiple houses. What it is accurately

describing is multiple rooms.

That’s one house,

one family under one roof.

God is not saying that we’re going to be

some extended family out there that

we can call up on the telephone line

because we’re in a mansion six doors down.

When we think on terms of earthly life

here,

one unit living under one household is

considered a family.

Now, if I had a brother over here that

also had a family,

yes, we’re all the same family,

but you would say they’re two distinct

families.

This is not the case in God’s case.

He’s saying we will be all one family

under one roof,

altogether brothers and sisters in Christ.

That’s why I say the comfort of that

promise is deeply personal.

A faithful Christian dies, and sometimes

congregations can feel the absence,

we miss people to whom we are connected

too deeply.

The person who sat beside us or encouraged

us at one point during a difficult time,

and those losses hurt because those

relationships matter.

Our hope in Christ should be something

that reaches beyond

the separations we experience now.

As we remain faithful to him, we can look

forward to the promise that those

separations will not be permanent.

We are a family with a future in Christ.

So we need to help one another remain

faithful toward the goal of reaching that

home

together. That’s the whole purpose of

Christ.

For the Son of Man came to seek and save

the lost.

Part of that is also to keep the family of

Christ in Christ.

Because if they leave the family,

they’re lost again, aren’t they?

Just like the fold of sheep, one that s

lids astray,

the shepherd has to go back and get.

When Paul prayed to the Father,

he spoke of the family that bears his

name.

We have considered what relationship means

in our lives.

We depend on the same Father, we share in

his promises,

we receive the nourishment he provides,

we put on Christ, and we have to do the

work together as we look forward

to the promise of living in the Father’s

house.

Now, where does this all culminate with?

Each of us needs to consider how we are

treating the family.

Perhaps there’s someone among us we

scarcely have taken time to know.

When’s the last time we invited each other

over to each other’s homes for dinner?

To really truly get to know them just

outside of this building.

We can begin changing that. Perhaps we’ve

allowed an offense to harden into some

sort of resentment. Could be something

small,

but now we avoid them. Whatever needs

attention,

we need to be taking a real step forward

to getting it right and changing it.

If we have aught against our brother,

we need to go to them. If you’re a

Christian who’s grown distant from the

Lord,

your brothers and sisters should want you

to help or help you.

Your brothers and sisters should want to

help you return back to Christ.

Turn from the sin that’s drawn you away,

seek God’s forgiveness, and encourage you

towards a new commitment towards Him.

There’s no better room to be in.

Our spiritual family here is going to

outlist

any physical ties on this earth that we

have.

Wearing Christ runs deeper than blood and

bone.

If you’ve never become a Christian,

the gospel tells you how to respond to the

Lord who died for you and rose again.

Paul writes in Romans 10, 9 through 10:

If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the

Lord Jesus,

and shalt believe in thine heart that God

hath raised him from the dead,

thou shalt be saved. For with the heart

man believeth unto righteousness,

and with the mouth, confession,

is made unto salvation. And when those who

have heard the gospel

on Pentecost asked in response to this

what they should do,

Peter answered them in Acts chapter two

and verse thirty eight.

Then Peter said unto them, Repent and be

baptized,

every one of you, in the name of Jesus

Christ,

for the remission of your sins,

and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy

Ghost.

We’ve already read in Galatians that those

baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

In faith they turn from sin. Confess your

belief in the Lord Jesus

and be baptized into him. God offers

offers forgiveness through his Son

and a place among his people. If we can

help you do that tonight in any way,

please let us know as we stand and as we

sing.

Our Message : The Gospel – Aaron Cozort – October 04, 2026

In Admonition Podcast, Bible Study, Christian Doctrine, Christian faith, Corinth, Jesus Christ, Keywords Gospel, Obedience, Paul, resurrection, Salvation by Aaron Cozort

image

Good morning.

It’s good to see all of you here.

It’s good especially to see our visitors

with us.

We want you to know that you are honored

guests.

We appreciate your presence and we hope

that you’ll be back with

us at every opportunity that you have.

We also hope that you’ll stick around for

a few minutes afterwards and allow

us to get to know you and greet you.

First Corinthians chapter fifteen is where

our study will come from this morning.

Over the course of recent months,

we’ve discussed much of the book of First

Corinthians in view

of First Corinthians thirteen and its

focus on love

and the things which love is and is not.

I want to spend a few moments this morning

with the beginning

of First Corinthians fifteen. If you’re

familiar with this chapter,

you know that the chapter at large is

dealing with the subject

of the resurrection. And it is a pivotal

message that Paul

is writing to the church at Corinth

because there are some there within

the church of Corinth that are teaching

that there is no resurrection.

That this life is all that there is.

Doctrines haven’t changed much in two

thousand years.

There are still many in the world today

insisting that this life

is all that there is.

But Paul will insist that they know

better.

Where I want us to focus this morning,

though, is actually on the first eleven

verses.

Not in this lesson taking on that signal

message

of the resurrection, but rather the

preceding message which

Paul builds his argument about the

resurrection upon.

And that is our message.

The gospel of Jesus Christ. Paul is going

to begin to deal with

the argument that they make concerning the

resurrection by first emphasizing

the message that was preached.

If you go back in your minds to 1

Corinthians chapter 1,

Paul is going to write to them in 1

Corinthians chapter 1 and insist that

he preached to them when he was present

with them,

when he was at Corinth, Jesus Christ and

him crucified.

He preached to them a message that

confounded the Jew and the Gentile.

Because the Jew wanted a sign,

the Gentile wanted to seek the wisdom of

this world.

And Paul insists that the wisdom of God

defeated the wisdom

of this world. In sending his son to die

on the cross for our sins,

to be put to death, something that

A Gentile mind would think is foolishness.

To to worship a God who gets killed?

To worship a God who seems to be defeated?

What kind of God is that?

And yet, Paul will make clear that he

didn’t come with

fancy words, he didn’t come with the

wisdom of the age,

he didn’t come with

the worldly presentation that would have

convinced

the Gentiles.

Nor did he come with all the things the

Jews were looking for.

Rather, he came with a very simple

message.

Jesus Christ and him crucified.

And as Paul opens up 1 Corinthians chapter

15,

he’s going to go back to that discussion

about the message which he preached

and the message that they heard.

And that’s where our focus is going to be

this morning.

In chapter 15 and verse 1, he writes:

Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the

gospel which I preached to you,

which also you received, and in which you

Stand. Consider first

the gospel was received.

The gospel was a message that the person,

the individual, the hearer

in Corinth could receive and understand.

There are those within the religious world

today that will insist,

they will tell you until they cannot tell

you anymore that you,

if you are outside the body of Christ,

if you are a sinner, if you haven’t had a

miraculous operation on your spirit

and on your soul, you cannot receive the

gospel.

You cannot understand the message of God.

Paul was completely unaware of that.

Because Paul said, I declared to you the

message

of the gospel, and you received it.

Paul doesn’t say that the Holy Spirit laid

it on their hearts.

Paul doesn’t say that they received it by

the direct operation of the Holy Ghost.

Paul says, I taught it to you,

and you received it.

Consider that the gospel was something

that reached this city.

The gospel was something that had been

brought to them by the work of Paul,

by the work of Timothy, by the work of

Sylvanas,

by the work of others, by the work of the

church in Antioch,

by the work of the church in Jerusalem,

they had ~ been able to have the gospel

reach.

Them

The gospel message went no further

and no faster and to no greater distance

than those who were willing

to take it and preach it.

But the gospel had reached Corinth.

But also consider that the gospel is going

to be reiterated to them.

Paul is going to remind them of what

he already taught them. He says,

Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the

gospel which I preach to you.

I taught it to you when I was there,

and I’m going to remind you of it right

now.

And it was received.

They didn’t insist on getting something

different.

They didn’t come to Paul and say,

Well, I like that part, but not interested

in this.

When someone gives you a gift

Is it your habit to look at the gift and

say,

Well, thank you.

But I only want half of it.

When somebody ~ is so kind as to bring one

of my favorite desserts to

the meal we often have after I I don’t I

don’t like someone else have

the other half.

No, thank you. I’ll take the whole thing.

No, I do share.

But when someone brings you a gift

Grandparent shows up, grandchild’s

sixteen,

grandparent arrives, says,

Grandson, here’s a car.

You think the grandson says, Well,

Graham, can I just have the front half?

I appreciate getting the whole thing,

but I think really just the left half will

be fine for me.

No. When you’re given a gift,

you receive the gift.

The concept of they received the message

is not that they picked

and chose the portions that they wanted.

It is not that they got to decide they got

~ the Messiah and not the rest of it.

No, Paul says, I brought the message and

you received

it as it was given. Matter of fact,

the problem.

that Paul has with the church at Corinth

right now is after they have received it,

now they wanna parse it and they wanna get

rid of some of it.

Paul’s not going to let them do it.

Paul says, you received it, and you stand

in it.

But then consider as well the gospel is

that which saves

and sustains. Paul is going to insist it

is the message that

was preached to them that saved them from

their sins.

Paul is going to make it clear that they

do not have salvation apart from

the gospel. Notice what he says in chapter

15.

He says, by which also you are present

tense,

saved. The gospel that I declared to you,

the gospel that you received, the gospel

in which you stand,

is the reason you are. ~

Saved.

When you go back to Acts chapter eighteen.

We read concerning Paul’s time in Corinth.

In Acts chapter eighteen, after these

things,

Paul departed from Athens and went to

Corinth,

and he found a certain Jew named Aquila,

born in Pontus, who had recently come from

Italy with his wife Priscilla,

because Claudius had commanded all the

Jews to part from Rome,

and he came to them. So because he was of

the same trade,

he stayed with them and worked,

for by occupation they were tent makers.

And he reasoned in the Sabbath synagogue

every Sabbath.

And persuaded both Jews and Greeks.

When you read the words that Paul was in

the synagogue every Sabbath,

persuading the Jews and the Greeks,

you are reading about what Paul’s telling

them about in 1 Corinthians 15.

You are reading about him preaching the

gospel,

the gospel that they received,

the gospel that had reached them,

the gospel that he’s reiterating to them.

And he reasoned in the synagogue every

Sabbath and persuaded both Jews

and Greeks when Pi when Silas and Timothy

had come from Macedonia.

Paul was compelled by the Spirit and

testified to the Jews that Jesus is the

Christ.

But when they opposed him and blasphemed,

he shook his garments and said to them,

Your blood be upon your own heads.

I am clean. From now on, I will go to the

Gentiles.

And he departed from there and entered the

house of a certain man named Justice,

one who worshipped God.

Whose house was next to the door of the

synagogue,

then Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue,

believed on the Lord with all his house.

Now be careful.

Because some will want to come to First

Corinthians chapter fifteen

and they’re going to want to say,

You notice this, you hear the gospel,

you believe it, and you’re saved.

And that’s all you gotta do. And then you

can stand in that salvation because that’s

the last action.

Except that Paul’s writing to a group of

people who knew better.

Because they knew what they did when they

received the gospel.

Paul doesn’t have to spell out every act

of the obedience of a sinner

to receive salvation, because they’ve

already done it.

Paul simply says they believed,

and now they stand in it. But when you

read Acts chapter 18 and

you read about Crispus, the ruler of the

synagogue,

and what he and his household did,

notice what the text says he did.

Then Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue,

believed on the Lord with all his house,

and many of the Corinthians hearing,

believed and were baptized.

He’s not saying in that text that many of

the Corinthian Christians were baptized.

He’s saying many of the Corinthian

Gentiles were baptized.

All those who believed were baptized.

When you come over to First Corinthians

chapter fiftin.

Paul, as he writes to them, says,

You know what I preached. You know what

you received.

You know that when you believed,

you obeyed the commands of God,

and you received salvation.

The gospel message saves the sinner.

It does not save them apart from their

willingness to believe it.

It does not save them apart from their

willingness to obey it.

But rather they’re saved when they hear it

and obey it.

That’s not new. Jesus would say that he

compared the person who hears these

sayings

of mine and does not do them to a fool.

And he compares the one who hears these

sayings of mine and does them to a wise

man.

Paul says the gospel message which he

preached to them saved sinners.

When they heard it, like Crispus did,

when they believed it, like Crispus and

his household did,

and when they obeyed it, like the

Corinthians did,

because they are the Corinthians.

But he also says it sustains the saved.

When you go through this life and you

struggle with this life.

May I encourage you to not allow yourself

to be separated from

the gospel message which saves your soul.

That would be like waking up one morning

and deciding that oxygen just

was unnecessary for you that day.

That would be like suggesting that perhaps

water is just not something that really

needs to be a part of your every weekly

life.

Paul says, Moreover, I declare to you the

gospel which I preach to you,

which also you received, and in which you

stand,

by which also you are saved, if you hold

fast the word which I preach

to you unless you believed in vain.

Paul says, you have an active

responsibility every day of your life as a

Christian.

And that is to hold fast to the Word of

God.

That is to hold on to the message which

you were delivered.

The message that was preached,

the simple gospel that God has delivered

to you.

You are not to hold on to an inner

feeling.

You are not to hold fast.

to an inner faith that comes up out of

yourself.

You are to hold fast to a message which

saves your soul.

Unless you believed in vain.

Paul will point out there are some who

will believe,

who will be obedient,

who will begin a walk with God only to

turn back.

But then notice he says the gospel

has one foundation and only one.

In verses three through eight,

he says, For I delivered to you first of

all that which I also received,

that Christ died for our sins according to

the scriptures.

Consider as Paul is presenting to them.

Reiterating to them what he already taught

them.

He’s going to remind them that I ~ what I

taught you was what I received.

What I taught you is what I was given.

I didn’t create something new.

I didn’t invent some new doctrine.

This didn’t originate with Paul.

He says, rather, for I delivered to you

first of all that which I also received,

that Christ died for our sins according to

the scriptures.

And that he was buried, and that he rose

again the third day,

according to the scriptures.

Now notice some some assumption that’s

right in there that is necessitated

by the passage.

In order for someone to die, they had to

first what?

Live.

Paul insists that the gospel message means

nothing if Jesus Christ didn’t actually

walk this earth.

The foundation of the message of the

gospel is Jesus Christ was a real person

who walked this earth in reality,

that was born of a virgin, that was born

in Bethlehem,

that was raised in Nazareth, that taught

in the synagogues,

that taught in the temple, and that went

to the cross.

And if you’re not certain of that.

We’d love to study with you.

Because without a certainty of that you

can’t hold fast to the gospel.

Because the fact that Christ lived is the

first foundational truth of the gospel.

If that’s not true, none of the rest of it

matters.

But there’s more than that. It’s not just

that Christ lived,

it’s that he died.

Remember, Paul said, I preach to you Jesus

Christ,

that’s the fact that he lived,

and him crucified, that’s the fact that he

died.

Some even today.

struggle with the very idea and skeptics

promote the struggle.

What kind of a god do you worship that has

to kill his own son?

And what’s the point of having a cr a God

who comes,

who lives, and who dies only to know he’s

gonna live again?

What sacrifice is that?

If you were to think back.

To Abraham.

And you were to think back to the time and

the occasion where Abraham

in Genesis 22 is told to take his only

son,

Isaac. The son of promise.

The son that God said he would receive,

the son through which God said the promise

and the fulfillment would happen,

in which his descendants would receive a

land and an inheritance and would become

as the stars of the sky and as the sand of

the seashore.

And God tells

Abraham take your son.

Go to the mountains and offer him as a

sacrifice to me.

The Hebrew writer tells us Abraham was

convinced that God would cause

his son to live again.

I would suggest to you that did not in any

way diminish the command.

It it did not in any way diminish the

willingness of Abraham

to sacrifice everything.

For God.

And as we read Psalm twenty two,

as we think concerning the words of Christ

on the cross,

my God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

to leave any implication or diminish in

any way the sacrifice of Christ

for our sins?

is to completely disregard all of

scripture.

Paul points out that Christ lived,

that he died.

And he wasn’t kind of dead.

He wasn’t, as the movie quote goes,

mostly dead all day today.

You know what movie that is.

He died.

And he was buried.

They laid him in that tomb. One of the

things that

you can rest assured of is governments

aren’t good at a lot of things,

but governments are good at killing

people.

And making sure they’re dead.

And the Romans were especially good at it.

You weren’t getting off the cross alive.

But it’s more than just conjecture.

More than just a suggestion that perhaps

maybe he had fainted,

maybe he had passed out, may maybe he

appeared to be dead,

but he wasn’t.

For when that centurion took that spear

and ran it into his side,

out came blood and water.

A process that occurs when a person is

dead because the water that’s

in the blood begins to separate from the

blood.

He was dead. And he was buried.

And for three days he was in the grave.

And Jesus had told the Jews,

I’m going to give you no other sign except

the sign of Jonah.

For Jonah was in the belly of the whale

for three days and then came forth.

And Jesus was speaking concerning his

death,

his burial, and his resurrection.

Paul says

I delivered to you first of all that which

I received,

that Christ died for our sins according to

the scriptures,

that he was buried, and that he rose again

the third day.

According to the Scriptures.

Paul insists over and over and over again

as

he declares and reiterates the gospel that

the gospel didn’t ever stand alone.

It wasn’t a message that just popped up

out of the minds of twelve individuals.

It wasn’t something that the Jews just

began to preach in Jerusalem by chance.

It was founded in the scriptures that

for 2,600 years,

God had been telling his people about what

was coming.

And God fulfilled everything he said.

Verse 5, and that he was seen by Cephas,

that’s Peter. And by the twelve,

after that he was seen by over 500

brethren at once,

of whom the greater part remain to the

present,

but some have fallen asleep. Paul,

as he declares this message to the

Corinthians,

is challenging them.

He says, I preached this to you.

I taught this to you. I told you about his

life.

I told you about his death. I told you

about his burial,

and I told you about his resurrection.

And some of those who laid eyes on him

after he walked this earth,

after he was risen from the dead,

you can go get yourself and travel to

Jerusalem and talk to them in person.

If you don’t believe me.

He was seen.

It wasn’t secret. He was witness.

By first one, then more,

then more, until there were hundreds

of eyewitnesses to his resurrection.

The gospel has one foundation,

and that’s it.

You remove any one piece of that,

and Christianity is worthless.

But if those things are true

Then Christianity is undeniably true.

Paul will also point out that the gospel

produced one entity,

the church which belongs to God.

Paul will point out. After that,

he was also seen, verse 7, by James,

then by all the apostles. Then last of

all,

he was seen by me also as one born out of

due season.

For I am the least of the apostles who am

not worthy to be called an apostle,

because I persecuted the church of God.

Imagine Paul would have liked it.

If he could have looked back on his life

and have identified parents that were

waiting for the Messiah.

That heard the message of John.

that pointed him directly at the Messiah

and said,

Go follow him.

And that from the beginning of Paul’s time

he could have walked with Christ,

could have been raised up to follow

Christ,

and that he could have been faithful from

his very earliest days.

I imagine Paul would have liked to have

had that opportunity.

But that wasn’t Paul’s life.

Rather, his parents put him at the feet of

Gamaliel.

And Paul spent years of his life after

Jesus Christ went

to the cross, imprisoning

and killing and persecuting Jesus Christ

and his church.

And as he was on the road.

And as he saw that light and as the voice

from heaven came to him and said,

Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?

Saul had enough honesty in his heart to

admit.

That whoever’s talking to him exists,

but he doesn’t know who he is.

If the voice from heaven had said,

Saul, Saul, I am the God of Abraham,

Isaac, and Jacob, Saul would have thought

he knew who he was.

But when the voice from heaven said,

Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?

Saul is quite certain he doesn’t know who

he is.

Who art thou, Lord?

And the answer from heaven is,

I am Jesus of Nazareth.

Whom thou persecutest.

Paul never once in all of his life raised

up a stone against Jesus

of Nazareth in the flesh. Paul never once

in his life raised

up the threat of imprisonment to Jesus

Christ of Nazareth in the flesh.

So how is it that Jesus Christ of Nazareth

is saying to Paul,

you are persecuting me?

Because when you persecute someone’s

bride,

you persecute them.

The gospel brought forth, it produced one

entity,

the Church of God, the entity that Paul

had persecuted.

And Paul says, I am last of all,

and I am least of all.

Because I persecuted the church.

But he says by the grace of God.

I am what I am. And his grace toward me

was not in vain, but I labored more

abundantly than they all.

Yet not I, but the grace of God which was

with me.

You consider two things are true.

The gospel produced the church that

belongs to God,

and the grace of God produces the church

that belongs

to God.

Paul says it was grace working through him

that made it possible for

him to preach the message, for them to

receive the message,

for them to stand in the message.

This morning.

I want you to consider the gospel.

Our message. It hasn’t changed.

It’s not ours to change.

It’s still the one that Paul preached.

It’s still unchanged.

We can’t have part of it. We can’t have

half of it.

We can have it or we can reject it.

Over in the end of First Corinthians

chapter fifteen,

Paul will write

Verse 57, but thanks be to God,

who gives us the victory through our Lord

Jesus Christ.

Therefore, my beloved brethren,

be steadfast, immovable,

always abounding

in the work of the Lord.

For you know that your labor is not in

vain in the Lord.

Our message is the gospel of Christ.

Our message is Jesus Christ and Him

crucified.

Our message is one that does not originate

with us,

is not changed by us, is not altered by

us.

It is simply declared by us.

It is believed by us.

It must be obeyed by us. It saves

a sinner from their sins.

And it sustains a Christian in faith.

And if you’re here this morning and you’re

outside the body of Christ,

we encourage you to be obedient to that

message.

We won’t ask you to do anything that Paul

didn’t ask Crispus to do.

Paul taught Crispus the gospel.

Crispus, a Jew. Crispus,

the ruler of the synagogue. Paul taught

Crispus the gospel.

What did Crispus do? He heard,

he believed, and he was baptized for the

remission of his sins.

That’s all we ask of you. Because that’s

all we’re authorized to ask of you.

Because that’s the gospel.

If you have need of the invitation of our

Lord,

why not consider being obedient to that

message this very morning as we stand

and as we stand.