25-0323p Transcript

Preacher: Mike Mathis

(0:48) I’m going to continue. (0:51) A lesson began this morning that’s entitled Being Honorable.

I basically took the text from 1 Peter (1:13) 2 verses 11 through 17. I really didn’t get to cover the second reading (1:35) of scripture reading this morning. So I’m going to read that, then I’m going to turn to 1 Peter 2 (1:46) and continue with what I started this morning.

For because of this, you also pay taxes (2:00) for they are God’s ministers attending continually to this very thing. (2:10) Render therefore to all their due, taxes to whom taxes are due, (2:18) customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor. (2:27) O no man anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law.

(2:42) For the commandments, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not (2:50) steal, you shall not bear false witness, you shall not covet. And if any other commandment (3:01) are all summed up in this saying, namely, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. (3:11) Love does no harm to a neighbor, therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

(3:23) So I was correlating Romans 13 with 1 Peter 2, 11 through 17, (3:34) because they both seem to agree and say about the same thing. (3:47) I’m going back to 1 Peter 2, I’m going to begin with verse 13, where he says, (4:06) Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, (4:16) whether to the king as supreme or to governors as to those who are sent by him (4:26) for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good. (4:34) For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men (4:45) as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bond servants of God.

(4:56) Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king. (5:06) Now we started out this morning showing that we are to obey those things that are lawful for us (5:25) to obey that men make and brought out that some things that may be good that we should not do (5:46) or should do that may be in conflict with God. (5:56) We need to know that we should obey God rather than men, as Peter told those religious leaders (6:10) who told Peter and John not to teach anymore in the name of Jesus, but he told us that we ought to obey God rather than men.

(6:30) We’re talking about those rules and ordinances that man lays down (6:40) that do not conflict with what God wants us to do. (6:51) We should submit ourselves to the government bodies. (6:59) Then they had the king who’s the king of the Roman people which would be Caesar (7:13) and those would be governors under the king that would be sent by him for punishment of evildoers.

(7:27) And that’s what we want to concentrate just a little bit. (7:35) If we do evil, we break the laws that says that you do such and such, this is on the books as a criminal act. (7:55) It may also be one of the commandments of God that we should not do.

(8:03) We should not, as we see, want, thou shalt not commit adultery, you shall not kill and such like. (8:17) And as I pointed out this morning, to do these things we will surely have those authorities, (8:28) figures to look after, to come after and to arrest the evil workers. (8:43) And the governors and these ones that are sent by whoever’s in authority (8:55) go after and arrest these people and it’s for the punishment of evildoers.

(9:03) And then it is for the praise of those who do good. (9:14) As Romans 13, about the third verse, as Paul asks, do you want to be unafraid, says, then do good. (9:35) And by doing good we can have the praise of these.

(9:42) We can also have the praise of those that do good and see us doing good. (9:56) Anyway, it is said in verse 15 of 1 Peter 2, (10:05) For this is the will of God, it is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men. (10:27) We know that the Apostle Paul and the other apostles and disciples went about doing good (10:43) and yet they faced persecution and yet there were times just as (10:54) Peter on that occasion told the religious leaders that we ought to obey God rather than men.

(11:07) And so we should do that which is good. We should do good works so that when (11:22) foolish men accuse us of doing wrong, that is we’re not obeying some law that they dream up (11:38) and it is not right and it goes against what God tells us to do. (11:48) And by doing good they can be put to silence and he says that that’s free.

(12:02) You know when we obey the gospel and we become children of God, we are set free (12:15) from the bondage of sin and we are free. We have liberty and we’re supposed to have freedom in this country. (12:32) We have freedoms such as the freedom of the press, freedom of speech, freedom of religion.

(12:44) We shouldn’t take these freedoms lightly and the freedom that we have, especially in Christ, (12:58) we need to really be thankful of that and not try to use that liberty as a cloak for vice. (13:12) That’s doing wrong. That is doing things that are wrong and we, but we have surely (13:26) been finding out that there’s a lot of vice that is taking drugs, these illegal drugs (13:40) and these pressures that are pushing these drugs, trying to smuggle drugs and managing to smuggle these drugs into the country.

(13:58) But also as Christians, there are some Christians that may use their liberty as a cloak for vice (14:13) or things that they shouldn’t be doing, but we should be as bond servers to God. (14:24) We should be serving God and making him the one to whom we serve and you know (14:40) as I pointed out this morning, I’ve been thinking about the things that (14:50) have been taking place for the past two or three months (14:59) and what is going on that I, I see that there are things that are taking place that just (15:16) you would think that instead of this being the United States, we would be the divided states because (15:29) those, those that seem to not care and just let things take place that should not have taken place (15:44) in verse 17 of 1 Peter 2, Peter says honor all people and you know it’s sad (16:06) that, that the people in this country have been overlooked. They have been (16:19) crying out about things that are happening and seemingly the last administration (16:30) didn’t pay any attention to, just let things go and that is sad.

Yes, we not only (16:45) should we, we are to especially take care of our fellow countrymen as Paul put it in one place, (17:04) he said do good unto all men, especially those of the household of faith. So we should, (17:16) we should make reference to those in the church, in the brotherhood, those in our family, (17:28) God’s family first, but then we certainly are to do good to all people and then he says we are to (17:45) love the brotherhood and you know here’s another sad thing. I’ve seen that much of the brotherhood (18:06) seems not to care for our fellow Christians, those brothers and sisters in the church.

(18:23) Seemingly they disagree with someone and it just seems like it’s, (18:36) I don’t want to have anything to do with that person. It seems that hate, (18:46) the same kind of barbage that you hear from those in Congress and those that are in the world, (19:05) they have the same attitude and you know I’ve been watching the video of this man (19:19) and his son from Virginia as they have a TV program and it’s also on YouTube and the thing (19:36) about YouTube on the computer goes all across the country and even overseas and like this last week (19:56) Caleb Robertson, Johnny Robertson’s son, was asking what do you want me to do (20:07) because he will be interviewing people that the brotherhood seem to shun because of (20:25) particular things and yes I will admit that some of these have ideas that are unscriptural and yet (20:43) Caleb has had what he called candid Christian interviewing people that if you mention their (20:55) names to those in the brotherhood, oh I wouldn’t have anything to do with them. (21:04) They don’t want to have anything to do with Robertson’s Caleb or his father (21:14) because they get down on those in the brotherhood.

It seems that they are doing work (21:29) and it seems that others in the brotherhood are not really making an effort. One such person that (21:43) he interviewed, he was criticized by some because they expected him to give this individual (21:58) a blistering for something that he believed and was saying and (22:10) and obviously to them it’s just not correct and then there are times when in speaking to these (22:29) men he gets encouraged. He says just what do you want me to do? He’s having these interviews (22:42) where because people are disagreeing with these men they don’t want to have anything to do with (22:52) these men and they’ve been getting down on the schools of preaching most of which they say are (23:08) teaching people but when the preachers get out they are following their allegiance to that (23:22) particular preacher school and not allegiance to the bible and yet the brotherhood just seems to (23:36) be in an attitude of you know letting somebody else do it.

Now there are some out there that (23:47) are diligently working and there are some that seemingly have the idea that just because you (23:59) disagree with the individual that well you shouldn’t talk to them. Why not? That was one (24:09) that Caleb talked to that said something unscripturally about women and Caleb told him (24:19) he said I don’t agree with that but this wasn’t a time for him to get down heavy on (24:32) their false teaching unless they were they at that time were trying to (24:42) force them or try to teach it but that wasn’t what they were just talking (24:47) interviewing and learning he was learning about these men. Yes when there’s false doctrine we should (25:00) we should mock those that are teaching falsely and do not want to to repent of teaching falsely (25:17) but then not to want to have anything to do with these same people not to try to have an avenue (25:25) of talking to them and saying you know well that’s what Caleb was doing.

Yes on the one hand he was (25:37) getting praised on the other hand he was getting criticized because in some’s opinion he should (25:47) really have been heavy you should have blistered that that person. Well all I can (25:58) if I was there all I can tell Caleb is you cannot please everybody (26:06) there’s going to be some that’s going to encourage us there’s going to be some that’s (26:11) going to criticize you but we ought to love the brotherhood we ought not have the attitude (26:21) that we’re not going to have anything to do with it unless unless the person has made it known that (26:29) has no intention of giving up his false teaching and errors that is according to the scripture (26:45) and then Peter says fear God that’s what we ought to do we ought to be fair enough (26:58) you know Jesus when he came into the world he was criticized because he was out there among sinners (27:09) and he was told that he was a friend of sinners and publicans (27:19) and such and but we should fear God and then he said honor the king the king at that time is (27:39) Caesar and if I if my study is correct it would be at that time (27:50) Negro if my study is correct but it’s Caesar now again no matter what (28:03) one thinks of the president I have seen videos of President Trump and Elon Musk (28:18) out with guitar and in the front of the White House singing hymns singing songs to Jesus (28:33) I can’t conceive of Caesar praising God for they wanted worship and yet Peter tells (28:52) Christians then to honor the king honor the king certainly (29:02) if the king could be honored then certainly the president of the United States should be honored (29:18) in conclusion the scripture that I read righteousness exalts a nation (29:29) but sin is a reproach to any people that’s Proverbs 14 34 (29:39) you know it makes no difference what the party is wrongdoing can be practiced by either party (29:49) when one party seems not to care for the American people that is a shame (30:00) in the church we are supposed to do good to all men especially those of the household of faith (30:09) as a nation we should take care of all people there’s a right way to do that (30:19) but when we disregard those fellow Americans as I said this morning that (30:30) President Trump in his speech was talking about in their struggles that the opposing party (30:41) did not stand and applaud it wasn’t applauding their suffering it was applauding their (30:51) endurance going through these difficulties with faith and with strength (31:04) that’s what should have been applauded but when they just sat there when they became disruptive (31:16) and walked out they were showing disrespect for their fellow Americans (31:25) and as it says in 1st Peter 2 17 honor all people love the brotherhood (31:36) fair god honor the king and as we said we have a president not a king (31:49) and yes we are formed in such a way that we have a democracy (31:58) we have a right to slow down someone that seems to be overstepping authority (32:05) but we need to respect those that are in authority so as we do let us be honorable (32:23) having a conduct honorable honoring all people honoring (32:34) the king and in this case the president those that are in authority let us be honorable (32:47) now if there’s anyone that is subject to the gospel in any way we would urge you to come forth (32:57) let it be known what you need to do you need to bring it forth to the church we’ll be (33:09) glad to assist you in it we’ll pray to god for it so if you’re subject in any way to the gospel (33:18) invitation why not come while we stand and while we sing.