See To It That You Are Not Deceived

Lord, we're grateful that we can be in your presence. I pray that your Holy Spirit would speak to our hearts. You would open our minds and understanding to the truth of your word. We would hear your voice. Lord, your word says our sheep, my sheep hear my voice, they follow me and I pray that we would hear your voice even today, every day Lord, and follow you in Jesus name. Amen. It's around this season that the geese and the ducks start to bear their young and as we have a pond here and we watch them moving about the pond, in years past we see that wherever the mother goes that's where the little ones are going. It's like they're on a track. The mother goes a little to the left, the babies are following her. Right behind, always behind, in a line. And for some reason nature itself understands the order of things and they're able to discern who their mother is, or who their father is, and they stick close by. But yet we as God's people, we have a hard time knowing who our mother is and who our father is. I'm going to read something from Galatians in chapter 4. The Galatians were a bunch who had an encounter with the Lord, they received the Holy Spirit, they received some gifts and all that. They began well in faith, but then they got sidetracked, they got diverted from the course. And seeking to pursue holiness and righteousness and truth, they got their eyes off of the Lord Jesus somehow, even though they didn't realize that they had. They weren't following the Good Shepherd, they followed another voice which led them into error. And it can happen to us that we have an encounter with the Lord, we have a born-again experience, we get a little excited, and now we figure we got it now. We can go and do things that, whatever seems best to us, because God is our father and Sarah is our mother. But the reality of it is we can be deceived. And we have to be careful that we see to it that we're not deceived. Jesus told the disciples many times, see to it that you're not deceived. It can even happen after you receive the Holy Spirit you can be deceived, as these Galatians were deceived. It happened even with our brother Peter. And even Barnabas was being carried away with hypocrisy when certain men of reputation came around them. They behaved in a different way than they did when they were with the brethren. And they were kind of using wisdom. But this is a deception. And so it was that Paul, when he was there, he saw that there was two tiers of Christianity going on there. There were the Jewish believers and then there were the Gentiles who were believing. And they had like different tables. They were sitting at different tables. And Paul, he stood up in front of them all and he rebuked Peter directly. And he said, you who seek to live like a Gentile, and you seek to be established according to the law now, what is going on with you? You seek to be of reputation? Are you part of that elite Jewish status where you're a Shalom guy? Now and then what about these other brethren that you have a revelation? You yourself, Peter, had the revelation that Cornelius and his whole household, who were Gentiles, received the same Spirit and the same baptism. What's going on now? And it can happen to us that we can begin in faith, our righteousness which is by faith, a walk of God through faith in Jesus Christ, and then in our pursuit for God, because without holiness no man will see the Lord. The Lord calls us to be perfect as He is perfect. He calls us to be holy for I am holy. Yet somehow in the process, rather than trusting in Him, rather than allowing Him to break you and make you holy, you somehow get strength in the journey and you seek holiness by the works of the law. Not by the hearing of faith. And instead what we try to do is we try to make ourselves perfect by doing the right things, rather than trusting in the Lord and being obedient when we hear His voice to follow Him. Faith comes by hearing. We need to hear the voice of God. We can't just do our own thing and think we're justified. You'll be as dead as a post. You'll be as religious as anything and there'll be no life in that place, even though you don't know anything against yourself. Peter was on that journey, all of a sudden he'd taken a detour. And you know what love did? Love called him out on it. We need to call one another out in love. And it says because Peter was a leader, it says you can rebuke leaders publicly that the rest might fear. You know someone who's in the church, we don't rebuke them publicly, we take them aside. But it's not wrong to exhort and to rebuke and to convince one another, hey this is the way, walk in it man. Because you know what, you can take a little detour, a little diversion, it doesn't seem like much. But you know what, after you walk that way for a year or two, where will you end up? What is the aharita, the matter? And so we have to have some good fear. You know that we don't drift away after we've heard so great a salvation into legalism. Into just dotting I's and crossing T's because therein is no life my friend. Therein is bondage. You know all the right things to do, yet how to do it I cannot find. You know you can have no peace and joy through the works of the law. You can maybe have some boasting, you may be able to feel proud about yourself and good about yourself, you maybe get your joy out of exhorting others who are not doing what you're doing. But that's only temporary. Our joy comes from walking with the Lord and being in covenant with Him. When we look in Galatians in chapter 3 he says, O foolish Galatians, who has caused you to walk according to witchcraft? Who has bewitched you that you should not walk in the truth before whom Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified? This only I want you to learn from me basically. Did you receive the Holy Spirit by the works of the law or by the hearing of faith? So they began well and then they were hindered from obeying the truth by walking in faith, by trusting in the Lord, by hearing His voice and following Him. Somehow they got diverted and you know what happened is they got their eyes off of the cross. And you know there's a big difference between gathering around the cross and admiring the cross and talking about the cross. You know my son how he puts a cross in the dirt with his back you know and other guys they do this and then other guys they got one hanging here. That's got absolutely nothing to do with the cross. In Galatians he says you have come to despise the cross because the cross has everything to do with denying self, dying to your desires, your passions, your lusts. Because it's those desires and those passions and those lusts that may be good but Peter found himself on a track that would lead to destruction if you would have continued in it and Paul called him out on it. Just a little pride, just a little thinking myself better than the two-tier Christians who are sitting over there. We'll take you down my friend and it was taking the Galatians down and Paul was calling them out on it. He says before whom Jesus Christ was clearly crucified among you. It's the message of the cross. It's foolishness to those who are perishing but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. Well if I could work my way around the cross, I could get another way worked out, well then I could be justified. But by the works of our own doings and according to what we think right and wrong is, no flesh is going to be justified. But if we go through with the Spirit, the leading of the Holy Spirit, that the Holy Spirit is leading you to deny yourself and die to your pride, to die to your reputation, to make yourself an off-stowering to those around you as a Christian. Then you will have joy and peace in the Holy Spirit and you'll come to know the true righteousness which is from faith. But seeking to justify ourselves we are found sinners. Is Christ the minister of sin? Absolutely not. We who died to sin should no longer live in it. So we have to pick up our cross. It's not about gathering around the cross, it's about picking up your cross and following after him. Are you prepared to pick up your cross? Or do you want to have much talk about the cross? Because there's a vast difference between picking it up and talking about it. Are you willing to suffer with him outside the gate? Are you willing to be made a public spectacle because you're a Christian? Or are you one of those Secret Service Christians? You know I find that there's a whole pile of them in circulation. All of a sudden one guy stands up for something and then also you hear a few voices. Here, here, here, here. What are you guys? You're Christians? Oh yes. We'd never deny the Lord. Never piped up once. Secret Service. Cowards! There's no cowards in the kingdom of God. You know you talk about the sexual immoral and the drug addicts and the drunkards. Oh them nasty bunch. Absolutely. What about the cowards? The don't know the man. You know we just keep our mouth shut and use wisdom. Brother, sister, confess the Lord Jesus with your mouth. Confess him before men when opportunity arises. When they say, hey buddy how come you're not like us? Why aren't you joining in? Why don't you have a beer with us after work? You say I'm a Christian. I used to do those things and my desire is to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against my soul. Oh you're one of them eh? And all of a sudden they start picking on you. Man, I should have never said anything. No, you should have because that's the way of the cross. There's nothing exciting about the cross. The cross is gruesome. The cross is painful. The cross is shameful. The cross is bloody. The cross is agony. And you have to remain there. You can't call down a legion of angels and get off that cross. You have to finish what God calls you to do. Is to bear your cross and follow after him. This is a faith walk my friend. No one tells you what you need to do. It has to come from your heart. It has to come from within. It has to come through genuine saving faith. Otherwise you'll just be part of the Holy Club and you won't have life and you won't have joy and you won't have peace. You'll have all the right recipe. You'll have all of the right genes in that seed. That seed that comes from this good word has all the right genes. All the good DNA is in it. But unless it goes into the ground and dies it remains alone. But if it dies it will reproduce after its own kind. And you will see righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit bursting forth from this seed. The word of God is this seed. But unless we join ourselves in allowing the word of God to penetrate our hearts. Many of us we come to fellowship or we go and we do our devotions with rain jackets on. We will we don't mind getting a little times of refreshing. But we don't want to cross and deny ourselves. This morning I was up there in my study in my room and seeking the Lord. I just called on the name of the Lord. And I'm reminded of a dozen people falling on the left hand and on the right hand. And I said Lord what is going on? And I heard the voice say follow me. Though a thousand fall at your side and ten thousand at your right hand. Sin is like a plague my friend. It's taking you down. But it says it won't come near your house. Because Joshua had said to the children of Israel when they all said we'll serve the Lord. He said ask for me in my house. We will serve the Lord. You purpose it that you're going to serve the Lord. And you lead by picking up your cross. And you lead by walking in faith. Because the righteousness of the law will lead you absolutely empty. You'll have some boasting. But you won't be any different than the basketball players and the football players. When they put their header up like this and they got that cross hanging on their neck. We have to be careful that we don't allow ourselves to be deceived. He goes on from there and he says in verse 4 have you suffered so much in vain? If it even was in vain. Verse 3 says are you so foolish having begun in the spirit? Are you now being made perfect by the flesh? Romans 8 verse 12 to 14 says brethren we are not debtors to the flesh. To live according to the flesh. If we live according to the flesh. Our own fleshly desires. Our passions and our desires. We have all these fleshly passions and desires that we see as being good. They're not wrong. There's nothing sinful about them. The only problem is it's in the heart. The scripture says they set up their idols in their hearts. Where are the idols? Oh we don't bow down to a Buddha or to some kind of gold calf or some image. These idols have been set up in our hearts. You know what? The biggest idol that we worship is our image. What men think about us. How many likes we get. Are people following us? Do people think us to be somebody? Jesus is the only one that we need to be interested in whether he likes us or whether he's following us or whether we're following him rather. We need to be careful that we don't get caught up into the who's who of what's going on in the world about us. We are not of this world. He's purchased us with his shed blood. He's redeemed us from the fiery clay and he's placed us upon the rock and his name is Christ. It only matters whether we're being obedient to follow him. We're not debtors to the flesh to live according to the flesh. If you live according to the flesh you will die. What does that look like? Brother get some good fear of God and stop walking after the flesh when you catch yourself drifting in the things of the flesh. Get a soberness about you. You know it says that we should be sober. We should be watchful in our prayers because the enemy is like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour and he's lurking there in the bush waiting for you to destroy you in your passions and in your lusts to take you down. May the Lord give you light on these things. Satan never takes a day off but sometimes we take a day off and that is the day that he comes as a thief in the night. The Lord says he's coming on a day when men are not looking for him. When men are not watching. The day that the man who is supposed to be preparing his food at the proper time and distributing among the children of God to have become a teacher and a preacher of the gospel to give them the right things at the right time. Yet what does he do? He begins to eat and drink with the drunkards. That's what Peter was doing and Barnabas was getting carried away with it. He was eating and drinking with those drunkards who thought themselves to be something and Paul loved them enough to call him out on it. You seeking to live like a Gentile you know are pretending to be first-rate. We need to be careful brothers, careful sisters that we don't have a form of godliness in denying the power. You know what the Word of God says? Genuine believers need to stay away from folks like you. You're dangerous. And you know what? Such were some of us and such are some of us. We need to be careful that we don't have this form of godliness. There'll be no power. What kind of power are we talking about? Number one power over sin. There'll be no power over the sin. There'll be justification. Oh well it's just not really sin. These aren't really idols. We don't really love money. We're just good stewards. We're not sexually immoral. You know we're just human. We just battle with lust. You know and we just make excuses rather than calling sin what it is. I heard a song not too long ago. It says preacher you tell me you want to be your friend. You want me to be your friend. Don't be afraid to call my sin what it is. Don't tell me the way I wish it was. Tell me like it is. That's what we need in this hour. We need a voice of one crying in the wilderness preparing the way for the Lord. Making his path straight. Because without holiness we're not going to see the Lord. And we need a righteousness which comes by faith. We need a sanctification which is by the Spirit of God. So what shall we say then brother? We move from there to Galatians chapter 4 and verse 21. Tell me you who desire to be under law. It's very easy to live under law in this regard. Tell me what to do. I'll do it man. It's very simple. Give me a list. I'll follow the list. And you know what? I'm a good guy. But you know what? That doesn't justify you before God. Jesus was with his the multitudes. I was reading this this morning at the end of Matthew in chapter 12. And some brothers came and said hey your mother and brothers are here to see you. Jesus was at the multitudes and his disciples were there. And they said hey your mother and brothers are here to see you. Oh you would think you'd say oh hang on guys I'll be back in five minutes let me just talk to my family here. He said man who is my mother and who is my sister and who is my brother? But those who hear God's Word and obey it. These are my mother and sister and brother. Those who hear God's Word and keep it. Who do the will of God. What is the will of God? Your sanctification. That's what it says. Your sanctification. It says in 1 Thessalonians in chapter 5 that we should abstain from fleshly lusts which war against our members. Also sexual immorality and all these other kind of lusts. That we would be sanctified. It says at the end of 1 Thessalonians 5 spirit soul and body. There's a process in which this temple which is made in the likeness of that old tabernacle which was standing. Three-part body spirit soul and body. Three-part temple. That we would be holy. All of us holy. That our hands would become holy. That our tongues would be holy. That our feet would be holy. That our eyes would be pure. That our ears would become clean. That we would become a vessel of honor as it says in 2nd Timothy 2 in verse 21. Sanctified and juiceful to the master through faith in Jesus Christ. A sanctification which is spirit soul and body. We purify our souls it says in 1 Peter 1 21 22 through obeying the truth through the Word of God. That's obeying by faith. Not by works of the law. Not by keeping rules and regulations. There's no faith in that. The man who does these things shall live by them. But you're not justified in it. According to the law this one Saul of Tarsus was blameless. He knew nothing against himself but he was not a happy man. He was an angry man. And he was seeking to persecute those who were leading his people astray. But he did not know Christ. But according to the law he was blameless but he was not justified by this. It's a justification by faith in Christ. You can do everything right. You can have everything clean. You can make everything spotless. And you can have anger and bitterness and hatred in your heart towards those uncleans who don't care. You know what? You are like the the Saul of Tarsus. That's what you're like. You need to have an encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus. On your way you need an encounter with the Lord Jesus. You know what Jesus said to him? He blinded him there and he said you who see you might become blind. And he said listen it's hard to kick against the goads, against the sticks, against the sharp pointy sticks, the pricks. You're fighting against me man. You think you're doing God's service but you're actually fighting against God. You and your keeping of the law. What is it produced in you? You don't even acknowledge Jesus Christ. You have no light on that. Because your heart is not right within you. We need to have a heart after God. That's when we're gonna hear his voice like the little ducks and we're gonna follow after the mother. Tell me you who desire to be under law. Do you not hear the law? For it is written that Abraham had two sons. One from the bond woman and the other from the free woman. The name of these sons is Ishmael, was born of Hagar, was a work of Abraham what he could do to fulfill the purpose in the call of God. And another son was born according to promise by faith. When his body was good as dead and he couldn't get her done. Isaac born of Sarah. Two covenants, two women, two mothers. And he's speaking here about a mystery. And we need to understand this mystery in order for us to become liberated. Who is your mother man? Are you following after Hagar? You might be a little duck and you might be following after Hagar. That's not our mother my friend. Sarah is our mother. We need to make sure we're following after the mother of faith. Not the mother of works. He goes on from there. The woman was born, this child Ishmael was born according to the flesh. For he of the free woman which is Isaac was born by Sarai according to faith, according to the promise. And it says in verse 24 these things are symbolic. Now we're spiritualizing these things because the Word of God says they are symbolic. So it is important when Jesus said my words are spirit and they're spiritually understood that we have ears to hear and eyes to see. That there's a way that seems right to a man but the end of it is destruction. We can't follow in the way of Hagar and think that somehow we're going to end up in the way of Sarai. That's not how it works. You have to be born again. You have to come to a revelation that you're no good. You have to come to the understanding that you're spiritually blind. When you meet Jesus on the road to Damascus we have to see that we began maybe in the spirit but now we are dotting I's and crossing T's and we have a form of godliness and it's working well for us. But we're on our way to hell. We have to get out of this way. We have to repent of trusting in our own righteousness. We have to see ourselves in the light of the way Jesus sees us. We have not been justified by our own efforts. We have not been justified because we have so many good works. We are justified to the shed blood of Jesus Christ through faith in his sacrifice. The one who believes on him will not be put to shame. So when we say these things are symbolic they're spiritually understood because Jesus said the natural man in 1 Corinthians 1 does not understand the things of the spirit because they're spiritually understood. So these things which are symbolic these are two covenants. An old covenant and a new covenant. Now some of us would believe that Jesus he paid the penalty for all sin at the cross and so now since 2,000 years ago we're all under new covenant. I'm going to tell you that when these Galatians were walking in old covenant this is after Christ was was crucified and resurrected. So they were still going back under bondage. There were Jewish people who were still living according to the law. Even Peter was getting caught up in the hypocrisy and he was going back to keeping letters and laws and rules and regulations. People today are still under the old covenant Levitical priesthood and they're trying to justify themselves by keeping the commandments of God by their own efforts and they've had the promise of God but somehow they're making it happen by their own efforts, their own strength, their own righteousness and you are found that Sarah is your mother that Hagar is your mother and that you're of Ishmael. It says in Romans in chapter 9 and verse 6 verse 5 and 6 somewhere in there not all Israel is Israel neither are they all children because they're descendants of Abraham because Abraham had two sons. The first son came because his wife Sarah was barren and nothing was happening they couldn't nothing was going on so somebody had to do something so his wife said listen why don't we take the servant girl Hagar and she's gonna have a child by you and you marry her and now I'll raise that child and we'll fulfill the promise of God. We're gonna work it out according to the flesh. Seemed a fantastic plan. Seemed like wisdom and Abraham did not inquire of the Lord he said do what seems best and he took another wife and probably was happy for the moment but you know what it caused him grief even to this day. Ishmael is causing grief to the people of God. In the churches today Ishmael's rising up their voices loud like goats. Hey we want the church blue man who are you guys to say we should make it red they'll fight over everything hey we want German songs now the English we're not we're tired of English we want to keep the traditions you know we like the Romanian spoken and we want to have it make sure that we don't lose our heritage and it's all of a sudden is this loud these goats are yelling they want their way. Ishmael man we need to repent this is not the nature of the of the sheep of God we need to have unity of the Spirit and the bond of peace we need to endeavor to keep that unity who is my mother and sister and brother those who hear God's Word and keep it these are the people of God not the masses that come to meeting the people of God the ones who have a desire to follow Christ no matter what the cost you might wrestle for a while it might be a struggle for you but you're gonna overcome because you are part of the overcoming people of God in every one of the seven churches in Revelation 2 and 3 there is an overcoming people of God who fear God who say man where is this gonna take me what's the a hurry to this man and they relent and they turn away from it and they repent and they get in the way again but the children of Isaac these are the children of faith this is the covenant we want to get in the righteousness which comes by faith in Christ these things are symbolic these are two covenants one from the Mount Sinai which gives birth to bondage which is Hagar now what do we know about Mount Sinai what happened at Mount Sinai the Ten Commandments came the law came and while Moses came down bringing those tablets those people were down there Aaron had made a golden calf for them from their gold they were worshiping a calf they were rose up to eat and drink and play and what was the end result Moses took those tablets and he smashed them on the ground they were breaking the commandments of God even before he had come down to relay them to them because they could not keep what was written why did the commandments come there so that there would be a knowledge of sin so that all would be condemned that you would know man I can't I can't I need to repent I need to find a true relationship with Jesus Christ by the keeping of commandments and dotting eyes and crossing teeth I have no joy I have no peace this is Mount Sinai this Hagar these are the children of Hagar Ishmael the children of the flesh they're fleshly but they justify themselves by doing good things by keeping the commandments of God by their own efforts and it produces in them pride looking down on others judging others thinking themselves to be better when we ourselves are no better because our justification through faith comes through the shed blood of Jesus Christ now he speaks about Hagar in verse 25 he says this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia and it corresponds to the Jerusalem which now is the one that's in Israel it corresponds to the Jerusalem which now is and is in bondage with the Jewish people these Jewish people seek to be justified by law by the Torah by the Old Covenant but they haven't had a revelation of a righteousness by faith in Christ which is Jesus so even though naturally they're children of Isaac spiritually these people including many people who are in the church today are children of Ishmael because they're fleshly but we ought to become spiritual and how does that happen conversion it comes by faith and faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the rhema word of God the living Word of God grab it man make it your own don't go along with the masses don't just follow because many are following find the voice of the shepherding get in line follow him that's where the life is now he says here in verse 26 the Jerusalem which is about the heavenly Jerusalem the one in the spirit my friend the one that's coming down as a bride adorned for her husband this one from Hebrews in chapter 12 but you have come to the heavenly city to the heavenly Jerusalem you have come have you come to it are you found in him are you seated with him in heavenly places in that city whose builder and maker is God Abraham sought far off and the writer of Hebrews said brother sister if you're in Christ you come to it Ephesians says when we're in Christ and he's in us we are seated with them in heavenly places and he is in his temple has the Lord come into his holy temple let all the earth be silent before him he says heaven is his throne and the earth is his footstool where is the house you will build for me and where is the place of my rest on this one will I look on him who is humble and who was contrary and he trembles at my word brother sister you are God's house in this earth you are God's temple if Christ lives in you you are God's building we need to allow the Holy Spirit to sanctify us to purge us from all the filthiness of the flesh and the spirit perfecting holiness in the fear of God we need to purge ourselves from 2nd Timothy in chapter 2 verse 19 to 21 of all the carnal things of all the earthenware of all those things that are perishing of all that stuff that is passing away and begin to value those things which are gold and silver and precious stones meaning your faith that your faith be strengthened refined in the fires of God go through the tribulations man don't go around them allow the Lord to refine you and make you a vessel of honor so that you might be useful to him to fulfill the purpose and call of God on your life it says those who turn many away from wickedness to righteousness will shine like the stars and be like the firmament in the heavens this is what we want we want to be like Jesus we want to have an inheritance which is incorruptible and undefiled waiting for us in the heavens Jesus himself will make a special treasure for himself and I want to be part of it how about you I'll finish here verse 26 so brethren as verse 28 as Isaac was are the children of promise but he who was born according to the flesh then persecuted him who was born according to the promise even so it is now what you're gonna find and this is what I found when I got born again my church friends who were ungodly living like devils the way I was they start saying oh you think you're more righteous than I say oh you're more holy than us now oh you're better than us oh is that what's going on no no no I just want to follow the Lord out and you'll start to drift apart from those because you once were children of wrath we once were in darkness but now we're children of God we're children of light so now we're walking as children of light we're not walking as the rest in in lewdness and lust and drunkenness and revelries and drinking parties and an abominable idolatries you know and in loving money and living for the world and the things in it we're walking with Christ now and so now the two ducks are separating now right and the one is falling Ishmael and they seek to be justified because their church doors and the other is justified by faith because they're picking up your cross if you want to follow Christ you will be despised and rejected by men your likes will go down not up I prophesy that in Jesus name if you stand up and be counted for Christ by faith your likes will go down not up Jesus came to his own and his own did not receive him but as many as received him to them he gave the right to be children of God we need to receive Christ by faith my friends and we can receive an inheritance which is incorruptible and undefiled waiting for us in the heavens and that is when we can claim promises the promises of God in Christ are yes and amen in the Spirit because the Spirit gives life so in verse 27 which I skipped rejoice O barren you who have not born break forth and shout you who are not in labor because you know why Jesus is coming he's coming to his temple he's coming quickly and his reward is with him may the Lord give you understanding when the brothers were together and they said Lord when will these things be and what will be the sign of your coming he says when they say go here he's in the wilderness or go over there he's in the bush or go over there he's in the city don't believe him he said the word is near you it's in your mouth it's in your heart that word which we preach the mystery of the gospel the mystery of Godliness Christ in you the hope of glory you don't have to go out there to find Christ wherever you are Jesus come and meet with me walk with me talk with me lead me and guide me in the way that leads to life and you won't be barren long my friend you're all of a sudden bear the Christ child and you're gonna see fruit people will come to the brightness of your rising Isaiah 60 as you walk with Jesus the abundance of the sea will be turned to you the goal is walk with Jesus man keep going with Jesus and the abundance of the sea will be turned to you no one can come unless the spirit draws him but you follow Christ and Paul says follow me as I follow Christ that's where the life is if you get your eyes off Jesus nothing good will happen but if you fix your eyes on him the author and perfecter of our faith who for the joy set before him endured the cross you also endure your cross he despised the shame it's shameful to be a Christian embrace the shame as Jesus embraced it we've not yet resisted unto bloodshed striving against sin we need to strive against the works of the flesh we need to strive against self-righteousness need to strive against outward holiness and seeking to be a reputation we can get caught up in it we can get deceived by but may the Lord help us and keep us in the way and if you get your eyes on him and you stay close to the Lord he will keep you and no one's going to snatch you from his hand if you walk with him you have protection when you're in the in the sheepfold with Christ there'll be some who come in there some other way and they'll try to deceive you but you know what when you you get to know the genuine you have genuine saving faith you don't know an imposter because my sheep hear my voice and they follow me follow Jesus and finish your race may it go well with you what does it say here he says the one born according to the flesh persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit even so it is now you're going to be persecuted by your Christian friends who are not serious from the walk with God they're gonna call you radical they're gonna say oh yeah you know all these things don't mock you and different things in the same way that Ishmael mocked Isaac and the word came he said cast out the bond woman and her son because the son of the bond woman cannot be heir of the inheritance with the son of the free woman and this is when he calls us to come out from among them and be separate not to touch unclean things what fellowship has Christ with Belial you have people who want to live like the world and you want to follow Christ you have no fellowship because it says in Amos in chapter 3 and verse 3 how can two walk together unless they're in agreement Ishmael and Isaac will be in the same house for a period of time but there's a time coming when there'll be a separation because the son of the bond woman cannot be heir with the free one may the Lord give you understanding in what I say nevertheless what does it say cast out the bond woman and her son verse 30 for the son of the bond woman shall not be heir there's no inheritance for those who live according to the law who seek to be justified by law who walk according to the flesh who live according to the flesh if you live according to the flesh you will die but if by the Spirit you repent you put to death the deeds of the flesh you will live as many as are led by the Spirit of God through faith in Jesus Christ these are the sons of God and genuine faith and fruits are inseparable you will know them by their fruits not by their gifts for many will come and say Lord Lord and did all these things in his name and he'll say you practice lawlessness you were not doing the Word of God by faith you were seeking to be justified maybe by works and what did they produce in you all manner of sin that you covered up but I saw it all you're my Lord Jesus though you were you'd never made me Lord you had you had another God no Jesus you're my Lord open to me no I don't know you who are you Jesus you're my Lord no you had another God you're my Lord no you worshiped another Jesus you had another Lord his name is SELF you worshiped yourself let's be careful brother that self isn't remain on the seat of the throne in this temple we have to deny ourselves we have to die to self we have to pick up our cross and follow after him we were buried with him in baptism into death you died your life is hidden in Christ and God and when Christ who is our life appears you will appear with him in glory amen amen so let's continue to persevere and to press on so brethren in 31 we are not children of the bondwoman but of the free chapter 5 one stand fast therefore in the liberty in Christ Jesus by which Christ has made you free and don't get entangled again with rules and regulations embrace the cross put to death the deeds of the flesh by faith trust the Lord though he slay you yet will you trust him and the end of that thing will be like you'll be raised up with Christ my friend you'll be seated with them in heavenly places you'll be quoting the promises of God they'll be yes and amen because you're in him and he's in you and you're going to be able to see many sons and daughters come to Jesus Christ through your testimony you'll see it man but you be faithful God is with faithfulness God is with loyalty God is with self-discipline we need to continue to persevere through the better for the worse we're in covenant for the richer or for the poor we're in covenant man in sickness and in health till death do us part but we'll never be apart from the Lord we'll always be together with the Lord remain on fire for him and don't be deterred by the fleshly lusts that come up here and there cast them off like grave clothes and look to him and be saved in Jesus name