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I told you earlier that God allows us

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to fail and fail and fail and fail

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and fail and come to rock bottom.

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And when you come there, you learn two

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lessons.

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One of those I already mentioned that I

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can never get victory.

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No matter how hard I try, it's like

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those disciples who went fishing.

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I can fish left side, right side, front

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side, back side, I won't get fish.

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I try, try, try, try for six hours

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and I say, okay, enough, I can't get

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any fish.

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I'm going home.

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Then the Lord comes, cast your net on

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the right side and suddenly the whole boat

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is full of fish.

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That's how we get victory.

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When you come to rock bottom and you

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say it's hopeless, there's no hope for me,

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I'm the worst case of all, the Lord

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says, now you're ready for victory.

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Because when you get the victory, you won't

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come to the shore with this bag full

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of fish and saying, see what I caught.

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You'll come with your head bowed and say,

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I could catch nothing, but the Lord gave

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me victory.

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You will say that till the end of

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your life.

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I've seen people who get victory and they

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get proud of it and they fall again.

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Why do they fall again?

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Have you had that experience, where you get

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victory for a little while and then you

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fall again?

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I'll tell you why.

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There's only one reason to fall.

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When you got victory, you became proud of

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it.

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God has to save us from pride.

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It's no use God saving us from a

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ten foot pit called anger or lust and

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you fall into a thousand foot pit called

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pride.

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That's not victory.

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That's defeat.

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That's what's happened to so many people.

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You can get up and preach a good

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sermon one day and so many people are

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blessed and you get so puffed up that

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for the next one year your sermons are

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all boring because God took away the anointing.

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It's very easy for God to bless a

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man, it's very difficult for God to keep

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him humble after he has blessed him.

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It happened to me.

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I remember in the early days, sometimes I'd

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experience an anointing and then I'd get puffed

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up and the next time I got up

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it was dry as a bone.

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And I knew why.

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I didn't even have to ask God.

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God does not give his grace to the

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proud.

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The greatest work God can accomplish in you

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is he can keep you humble after he

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has blessed you and anointed you immensely.

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Given you victory, given you a ministry, keeps

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you down in the dust before his face,

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God's done a work.

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But he cannot do that until you have

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failed and failed and failed and failed and

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failed and failed and you say, Lord it's

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impossible, I cannot catch fish.

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Then he'll fill your boat.

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The second lesson that we learn when we

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have failed so much is this, that we

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never despise another human being after that.

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I can honestly say that today before God.

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Now, I do not feel that I'm better

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than any other human being because I know

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how much I've failed.

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I know God's done a tremendous work in

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my life.

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Imagine a man like me who was discouraged

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most of the time and now rejoicing every

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day of the year.

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What a work that itself is.

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Man who has defeated my thoughts, God's given

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me purity.

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God's able to control my tongue, a man

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who used to get angry and upset and

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all that.

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It's God.

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It's 100% God.

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I can't take any credit for it.

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But when I look at another person who

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falls into sin, I can say before God

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I don't despise him.

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Do you husbands despise your wives?

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I'll tell you why.

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You have not hit rock bottom yet.

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You've got miles to go before you come

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to a genuine life of victory.

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You know that you have come to victory

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when you despise nobody.

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You know that you are victorious that when

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you don't despise your wife, when you don't

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despise your husband, when you don't despise that

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other brother who has fallen so much, you

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don't agree with him, but you don't despise

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him.

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You can look at everybody and say, I

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don't despise him, I don't despise him, I

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don't I was worse than that and God

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did a work in me, so I have

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faith that God can do a work in

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that person too.

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That's the mark of a man who has

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hit rock bottom.

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I really believe my brothers and sisters, until

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you hit rock bottom, whatever victory you have

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will only be temporary, shallow, superficial, only to

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impress others.

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It will not be genuine.

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Don't be satisfied that other people in your

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church think you are victorious.

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That is worthless.

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It's like painted gold, wood painted to look

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like gold, what's the use of that?

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It says in the days of Rehoboam, you

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read that in the Old Testament, when the

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enemy came and took away the gold shields,

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he put some bronze shields that looked like

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gold to fool the people that it's still

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here.

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It wasn't there, the enemy had taken it

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away.

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Very often we do that.

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When the enemy has taken away our joy

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and our victory, we still try to pretend

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that it's there.

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It's not there.

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You know a lot of people who are

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song leaders in a lot of charismatic churches,

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they are great people at smiling and laughing

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and cracking jokes and all, it's only for

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those few hours in the pulpit, go and

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see how they live on Monday and Tuesday

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in their home.

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There's no joy.

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It's froth.

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A lot of these meetings where they whip

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people up to be emotional and excited, it's

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like putting soap into water and stirring it

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up, there's a lot of bubbles.

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Go back a half an hour later, there's

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nothing there.

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I don't want a joy like that, that

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comes like soap bubbles and disappears after a

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while.

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That's not godliness.

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There's a lot of this superficiality among Christians.

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Don't be satisfied with it.

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God has to allow you to become weak,

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weak until you come to zero, and the

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proof of it will be you'll never be

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proud after preaching an anointed sermon, you will

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never be proud if somebody got healed when

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you laid hands on that person, you will

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not be proud when you got victory, and

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you will not despise any other human being.

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You won't look down on the Roman Catholics,

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you will not look down on the CSI

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or people in other denominations.

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You'll disagree with them, you may not work

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with them, but you will not look down

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on anyone.

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Because you'll say, I'm the chiefest of sinners

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and God did a work in me, why

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can't he do it in other people?

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That's the mark of a man who's got

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genuine victory, and God wants to bring every

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one of us there.

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That's why he allows failure, that's why he

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makes us weak, that's why he allows so

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many circumstances in your life that appear to

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be frustrating you, you blame people, don't blame

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people, it was God trying to break you

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and humble you, and then he'll give you

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wisdom.

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He'll give you words of wisdom, he'll give

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you a solution to the problems that you

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find in your life, but it's in that

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low place.

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You've got to lie there with your mouth

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in the dust.

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John the Apostle, when he was 95 years

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old and he saw Jesus, he immediately put

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his face in the dust.

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Imagine having walked with God for 65 years

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of spiritual life and his face in the

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dust.

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And I see brothers who haven't even walked

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with God for 2-3 years, their faces

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all lifted up.

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They haven't learned what John learned.

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It's in the dust, when your face is

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in the dust, that the Lord says, John,

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I'm going to give you a message to

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these seven churches.

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And he gave him.

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When your face is in the dust, he'll

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give you a message to many churches, but

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you lift up your head and you won't

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hear him.

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But if your face is in the dust,

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you'll hear his voice like a trumpet.

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God makes us weak with a purpose.

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This is the new covenant.

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John the Baptist came to prepare the way

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for Jesus and for Jesus' ministry.

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And one of the things he said in

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Matthew 3 and verse 10 was, the axe

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is laid to the root of the trees.

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See, all sin has got a root cause

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to it.

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In the old covenant of the Old Testament,

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the root was never hit by the old

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covenant message.

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The law could only deal with the external.

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Don't murder.

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Jesus said, go to the root of it,

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anger, hit that.

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The old covenant was don't commit adultery.

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And Jesus said, go to the root of

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it, it's in your thoughts, lusting after women.

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Everywhere he was going to the root, that's

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what he said here, the root, the axe

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is laid to the root of the trees.

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The sad thing I have found in many

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Christians, even born again Christians, is they are

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dealing with the fruit.

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That's old covenant.

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There were many old covenant people who lived

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an externally good life.

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I mean, think of John the Baptist.

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Think of Elijah.

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They were not living externally bad lives.

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I think their life was probably better than

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the lives of many of us.

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So what does the new covenant bring?

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The axe is laid to the root of

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the tree.

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And in the Old Testament, nobody understood where

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the root of the tree was.

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We can say the law was like a

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pair of scissors.

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You know, bad fruit is coming there, you

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cut it off.

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Another bad fruit coming here, you cut it

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off.

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And if you have a tree that's always

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producing bad fruit, you'll have to keep on

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going around with your scissors all the time.

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You have to preserve your testimony.

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You have to always cut off here and

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cut off there so that your testimony is

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not spoiled.

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That's not new covenant Christianity.

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But if you hit the root of that

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tree, you won't need the scissors anymore.

275
00:10:54,440 --> 00:10:56,900
The root is hit and the bad fruit

276
00:10:56,900 --> 00:10:57,780
does not come.

277
00:10:59,200 --> 00:11:01,100
So that's what John the Baptist said.

278
00:11:01,760 --> 00:11:04,520
Now Jesus is coming, the axe is laid

279
00:11:04,520 --> 00:11:05,920
to the root of the trees.

280
00:11:07,480 --> 00:11:09,960
So all the sins that you face, you

281
00:11:09,960 --> 00:11:12,660
know, we are tempted by so many things

282
00:11:12,660 --> 00:11:13,300
in our life.

283
00:11:14,220 --> 00:11:16,080
There's a big list of sins in some

284
00:11:16,080 --> 00:11:18,740
epistles in the New Testament.

285
00:11:19,420 --> 00:11:20,860
It gives a list of number of sins.

286
00:11:20,960 --> 00:11:23,680
Jesus spoke about a number of sins that

287
00:11:23,680 --> 00:11:24,960
come out of the heart of man.

288
00:11:25,660 --> 00:11:27,000
But what is the root?

289
00:11:28,660 --> 00:11:32,400
The root is found when we look at

290
00:11:32,400 --> 00:11:33,860
the origin of sin.

291
00:11:34,040 --> 00:11:36,260
Where did sin originate?

292
00:11:37,860 --> 00:11:42,740
Sin did not originate with adultery or anger,

293
00:11:43,460 --> 00:11:46,340
the things we are battling with, or with

294
00:11:46,340 --> 00:11:47,100
the love of money.

295
00:11:48,120 --> 00:11:49,900
None of these things, the things we battle

296
00:11:49,900 --> 00:11:53,100
with is not the origin of sin.

297
00:11:53,100 --> 00:11:54,180
And you can try to cut off the

298
00:11:54,180 --> 00:11:56,060
love of money and cut off that anger

299
00:11:56,060 --> 00:12:00,520
and cut off watching pornography, but you haven't

300
00:12:00,520 --> 00:12:01,100
hit the root.

301
00:12:03,400 --> 00:12:07,740
The root is described in Ezekiel 28.

302
00:12:10,740 --> 00:12:15,320
In Ezekiel chapter 28, the word of the

303
00:12:15,320 --> 00:12:21,160
Lord, it says here, came to Ezekiel saying,

304
00:12:21,460 --> 00:12:23,700
say this to the leader of Tyre.

305
00:12:23,700 --> 00:12:27,780
That was a human leader, an earthly king

306
00:12:27,780 --> 00:12:30,480
of the city of Tyre.

307
00:12:32,080 --> 00:12:36,800
But behind that earthly king, earthly leader, was

308
00:12:36,800 --> 00:12:39,660
the real king of Tyre, and that was

309
00:12:39,660 --> 00:12:40,440
the devil himself.

310
00:12:42,720 --> 00:12:44,580
And then, so the Lord says in verse

311
00:12:44,580 --> 00:12:47,560
11, now take up a lamentation over the

312
00:12:47,560 --> 00:12:48,300
king of Tyre.

313
00:12:49,100 --> 00:12:50,740
That's the one who's behind the leader.

314
00:12:52,260 --> 00:12:54,160
And you know that now he's talking to

315
00:12:54,160 --> 00:12:57,840
the devil because he tells him, this is

316
00:12:57,840 --> 00:13:01,240
not any human being, Ezekiel 28, 12, you

317
00:13:01,240 --> 00:13:04,980
have the seal of perfection, full of wisdom

318
00:13:04,980 --> 00:13:06,020
and perfect in beauty.

319
00:13:06,140 --> 00:13:08,940
This is what Lucifer, or whatever his name

320
00:13:08,940 --> 00:13:11,860
was, we don't know his name, he's called

321
00:13:11,860 --> 00:13:16,780
star of the morning, and it's commonly referred

322
00:13:16,780 --> 00:13:18,360
to as Lucifer, but that's not in the

323
00:13:18,360 --> 00:13:18,580
Bible.

324
00:13:21,040 --> 00:13:23,080
Every precious stone was your covering, and it

325
00:13:23,080 --> 00:13:26,380
goes on to say, on the day you

326
00:13:26,380 --> 00:13:29,280
were created in verse 14, here's what he's

327
00:13:29,280 --> 00:13:32,480
described as, the anointed cherub, he's an angel.

328
00:13:33,880 --> 00:13:39,760
The anointed cherub who guards Eden, verse 13,

329
00:13:39,980 --> 00:13:41,060
you were in Eden.

330
00:13:42,760 --> 00:13:45,900
Before Adam and Eve went to Eden, there

331
00:13:45,900 --> 00:13:47,000
was somebody else in Eden.

332
00:13:48,480 --> 00:13:51,620
That was the star of the morning, who

333
00:13:51,620 --> 00:13:52,680
we know today as the devil.

334
00:13:54,380 --> 00:13:59,320
He was the anointed cherub, or angel, who

335
00:13:59,320 --> 00:14:00,840
guarded Eden.

336
00:14:02,160 --> 00:14:06,040
And that's what made him jealous when one

337
00:14:06,040 --> 00:14:08,560
day he saw God putting somebody else there

338
00:14:09,040 --> 00:14:11,060
to guard that garden of Eden.

339
00:14:13,260 --> 00:14:17,240
That's what...he was determined to get that fellow

340
00:14:17,240 --> 00:14:19,120
out of Eden, where he was supposed to

341
00:14:19,120 --> 00:14:19,320
be.

342
00:14:20,140 --> 00:14:22,700
You know, it's like when you're appointed in

343
00:14:22,700 --> 00:14:25,400
some important position in an office, and then

344
00:14:25,400 --> 00:14:27,020
you're removed from there, and somebody else is

345
00:14:27,020 --> 00:14:29,720
put there, who is junior to you, and

346
00:14:29,720 --> 00:14:31,160
you want to somehow get him out of

347
00:14:31,160 --> 00:14:32,480
there, because you're jealous.

348
00:14:34,260 --> 00:14:37,340
And that's why he was against Adam and

349
00:14:37,340 --> 00:14:38,080
Eve over there.

350
00:14:38,640 --> 00:14:40,640
And the Lord says, I placed you in

351
00:14:40,640 --> 00:14:42,720
Eden, verse 14.

352
00:14:43,380 --> 00:14:45,440
You were on the holy mountain of God

353
00:14:45,440 --> 00:14:54,020
until the day, verse 15, unrighteousness was found

354
00:14:54,020 --> 00:14:54,320
in you.

355
00:14:54,400 --> 00:14:55,780
Here's where the root of sin comes in.

356
00:14:55,840 --> 00:14:57,440
It was perfect until that day.

357
00:14:59,670 --> 00:15:02,050
And it says here, in verse 17, what

358
00:15:02,050 --> 00:15:02,790
the root was.

359
00:15:03,080 --> 00:15:07,690
Your heart was lifted up because of your

360
00:15:07,690 --> 00:15:10,390
beauty, because of your wisdom.

361
00:15:12,000 --> 00:15:13,650
So there you have the root of sin.

362
00:15:14,170 --> 00:15:15,030
It's not external.

363
00:15:17,360 --> 00:15:19,120
Sin is not in anything external.

364
00:15:20,240 --> 00:15:21,180
It's in the heart.

365
00:15:22,040 --> 00:15:25,020
And it comes from the heart becoming proud

366
00:15:25,020 --> 00:15:30,960
because of something God has given us.

367
00:15:32,080 --> 00:15:34,060
God had given him wisdom.

368
00:15:35,060 --> 00:15:37,980
God says, you corrupted your wisdom, it says

369
00:15:37,980 --> 00:15:38,800
in verse 17.

370
00:15:39,340 --> 00:15:41,920
Beauty, see the two things mentioned in verse

371
00:15:41,920 --> 00:15:42,280
17.

372
00:15:42,400 --> 00:15:43,840
Your heart was lifted up because of your

373
00:15:43,840 --> 00:15:47,320
beauty, and your wisdom, and your splendor.

374
00:15:49,120 --> 00:15:51,560
Our heart can be lifted up because of

375
00:15:51,560 --> 00:15:53,720
some wisdom God has given us, or some

376
00:15:53,720 --> 00:15:57,800
glory, or something that makes us stand up

377
00:15:57,800 --> 00:15:59,460
above other people.

378
00:15:59,460 --> 00:16:00,660
Maybe victory over sin.

379
00:16:01,960 --> 00:16:04,640
Something that maybe you can preach better than

380
00:16:04,640 --> 00:16:04,860
others.

381
00:16:04,960 --> 00:16:07,460
Maybe you're smarter than others, or you can

382
00:16:07,460 --> 00:16:09,700
do something far better, and your heart is

383
00:16:09,700 --> 00:16:10,160
lifted up.

384
00:16:10,220 --> 00:16:11,560
It's nothing on the outside.

385
00:16:12,600 --> 00:16:14,800
You can still act very humble with, you

386
00:16:14,800 --> 00:16:17,580
know, speak the right humble words and fool

387
00:16:17,580 --> 00:16:19,320
people, but God's not fooled, and the devil's

388
00:16:19,320 --> 00:16:19,800
not fooled.

389
00:16:21,240 --> 00:16:24,340
That root in the heart, if it's not

390
00:16:24,340 --> 00:16:28,980
hit, you remain defeated all your life.

391
00:16:30,040 --> 00:16:31,980
It will spring out here in one way,

392
00:16:32,040 --> 00:16:34,360
and spring out there another way, and God

393
00:16:34,360 --> 00:16:35,660
wants to hit that root.

394
00:16:35,800 --> 00:16:37,160
Jesus came to hit that root.

395
00:16:38,400 --> 00:16:40,660
That root is your heart getting lifted up,

396
00:16:41,160 --> 00:16:43,380
maybe because of spiritual reasons.

397
00:16:44,580 --> 00:16:47,020
Like we heard just now, you could preach

398
00:16:47,020 --> 00:16:49,540
a powerful sermon, and then for the rest

399
00:16:49,540 --> 00:16:53,700
of the time, you're thinking, what a wonderful

400
00:16:53,700 --> 00:16:56,340
message I preached, or something like that.

401
00:16:56,400 --> 00:16:59,100
The heart is lifted up, or you look

402
00:16:59,100 --> 00:17:01,320
down at others, and you're always feeling, you

403
00:17:01,320 --> 00:17:03,220
know, this feeling that when you have a

404
00:17:03,220 --> 00:17:05,740
conflict with somebody, that guy's wrong.

405
00:17:06,220 --> 00:17:07,119
He's definitely wrong.

406
00:17:07,180 --> 00:17:07,859
I'm right, of course.

407
00:17:07,900 --> 00:17:08,660
I'm never wrong.

408
00:17:09,119 --> 00:17:10,140
I'm always right.

409
00:17:10,500 --> 00:17:11,380
That person's wrong.

410
00:17:12,220 --> 00:17:14,560
That is where the root of sin is.

411
00:17:15,339 --> 00:17:18,920
It's pride that makes you feel you're always

412
00:17:18,920 --> 00:17:21,540
right, and the other person is wrong, and

413
00:17:21,540 --> 00:17:24,380
you don't consider the possibility that you could

414
00:17:24,380 --> 00:17:25,480
be wrong, at least sometimes.

415
00:17:27,720 --> 00:17:29,540
The devil does not allow us to think

416
00:17:29,540 --> 00:17:30,200
like that.

417
00:17:30,940 --> 00:17:33,840
I want to say, brothers and sisters, that

418
00:17:33,840 --> 00:17:39,340
that will hinder your spiritual growth, and I

419
00:17:39,340 --> 00:17:42,700
believe that many of us could have gone

420
00:17:42,700 --> 00:17:46,980
far ahead spiritually in humility and in conformity

421
00:17:46,980 --> 00:17:49,260
to the likeness of Christ if we had

422
00:17:49,260 --> 00:17:52,420
allowed the Holy Spirit to hit the root

423
00:17:52,420 --> 00:17:56,640
down below in our heart, the root of

424
00:17:56,640 --> 00:18:01,060
exalting ourselves, and as soon as it comes

425
00:18:01,060 --> 00:18:03,520
up—see, we are tempted to pride.

426
00:18:03,620 --> 00:18:06,140
Pride is the primary characteristic of Satan, and

427
00:18:06,140 --> 00:18:11,000
all the sin in the world originated here

428
00:18:11,000 --> 00:18:14,920
in what you read in this chapter, and

429
00:18:14,920 --> 00:18:17,240
God tossed him down, not because he committed

430
00:18:17,240 --> 00:18:20,460
adultery, not because he stole money or he

431
00:18:20,460 --> 00:18:24,620
loved money, or not because he did anything

432
00:18:24,620 --> 00:18:26,700
other than he was—and even his pride was

433
00:18:26,700 --> 00:18:27,220
not visible.

434
00:18:27,520 --> 00:18:29,560
It says your heart was lifted up means

435
00:18:29,560 --> 00:18:32,640
it was invisible, so there are a lot

436
00:18:32,640 --> 00:18:34,320
of lessons we can learn from this.

437
00:18:34,720 --> 00:18:37,680
What is the root to which the axe

438
00:18:37,680 --> 00:18:38,460
has to be laid?

439
00:18:39,240 --> 00:18:42,360
If I identify that, and you allow the

440
00:18:42,360 --> 00:18:46,360
Lord—say, Lord, hit that root in my heart.

441
00:18:48,710 --> 00:18:51,470
I took a long time after being born

442
00:18:51,470 --> 00:18:55,530
again—I'd say more than 15, 16 years as

443
00:18:55,530 --> 00:18:58,490
a born-again Christian before I discovered where

444
00:18:58,490 --> 00:19:00,310
the root of sin was, because I never

445
00:19:00,310 --> 00:19:01,570
heard anybody preach about it.

446
00:19:02,310 --> 00:19:05,610
People were preaching about external sins—don't do this,

447
00:19:05,650 --> 00:19:07,530
and don't do the other thing, and I

448
00:19:07,530 --> 00:19:09,930
had my scissors ready to cut off anything

449
00:19:09,930 --> 00:19:11,230
that I heard was bad.

450
00:19:11,450 --> 00:19:12,970
That's a bad testimony for a Christian.

451
00:19:13,250 --> 00:19:14,650
This is a bad testimony for a Christian.

452
00:19:14,750 --> 00:19:16,050
I had my scissors ready to cut it

453
00:19:16,050 --> 00:19:18,010
all off, and this is how most Christians

454
00:19:18,010 --> 00:19:20,730
are living, and yet the root is never

455
00:19:20,730 --> 00:19:22,390
hit, and Jesus came to hit the root.

456
00:19:24,470 --> 00:19:28,030
All the conflict in families, all the discord

457
00:19:28,030 --> 00:19:30,470
that comes between husband and wife, all the

458
00:19:30,470 --> 00:19:33,970
divorces in the world, and all the conflict

459
00:19:33,970 --> 00:19:37,990
between believers is always because of this root

460
00:19:37,990 --> 00:19:40,850
not being hit, sometimes in both people or

461
00:19:40,850 --> 00:19:41,890
sometimes in one of them.

462
00:19:43,870 --> 00:19:45,470
And even if the other person—if you have

463
00:19:45,470 --> 00:19:48,750
a conflict with somebody in your home, with

464
00:19:49,250 --> 00:19:51,390
your children or with your wife or husband,

465
00:19:52,930 --> 00:19:55,690
instead of concentrating on where the fault is

466
00:19:55,690 --> 00:19:58,130
in the other person, ask yourself one question.

467
00:19:59,750 --> 00:20:02,110
Is there a root something in my heart

468
00:20:02,110 --> 00:20:04,530
that the Lord wants to lay an axe

469
00:20:04,530 --> 00:20:04,790
to?

470
00:20:05,650 --> 00:20:09,370
Open yourself up to that possibility and say,

471
00:20:09,430 --> 00:20:12,370
Lord, lay the axe to the root.

472
00:20:14,090 --> 00:20:17,790
I want to eliminate that which made the

473
00:20:17,790 --> 00:20:21,250
highest archangel into a devil in a moment.

474
00:20:21,970 --> 00:20:23,530
It didn't take him 10 years to be

475
00:20:23,530 --> 00:20:23,890
the devil.

476
00:20:25,070 --> 00:20:30,250
One moment he was the anointed archangel, the

477
00:20:30,250 --> 00:20:31,510
highest of all the angels.

478
00:20:32,090 --> 00:20:33,710
The next moment he was the devil.

479
00:20:34,770 --> 00:20:37,930
It doesn't take long for an archangel to

480
00:20:37,930 --> 00:20:38,590
become a devil.

481
00:20:40,290 --> 00:20:41,670
Why can't that happen today?

482
00:20:42,730 --> 00:20:46,790
For a godly man suddenly to become so

483
00:20:46,790 --> 00:20:49,750
evil, and what is the cause?

484
00:20:50,390 --> 00:20:51,470
He didn't commit adultery.

485
00:20:51,590 --> 00:20:52,710
He didn't steal anybody's money.

486
00:20:53,650 --> 00:20:56,190
He just got puffed up with what?

487
00:20:57,030 --> 00:21:02,970
Verse 17, his spiritual attractiveness, at least that

488
00:21:02,970 --> 00:21:06,390
he thought he was attractive, that everybody thought

489
00:21:06,390 --> 00:21:08,330
he was a wonderful saint because he had

490
00:21:08,330 --> 00:21:10,330
built up such a reputation in the church,

491
00:21:10,930 --> 00:21:14,630
and his inner idea of his own wisdom,

492
00:21:15,430 --> 00:21:17,230
how he feels he knows more than anybody

493
00:21:17,230 --> 00:21:17,730
else.

494
00:21:18,610 --> 00:21:23,430
That can happen to any of us, and

495
00:21:23,430 --> 00:21:25,090
it's a wonderful thing if God can give

496
00:21:25,090 --> 00:21:26,970
us light on this.

497
00:21:28,540 --> 00:21:32,670
That's why you often heard me say the

498
00:21:32,670 --> 00:21:37,950
three secrets of the Christian life are humility,

499
00:21:39,510 --> 00:21:44,330
humility, humility, and where do I get that

500
00:21:44,330 --> 00:21:44,630
from?

501
00:21:44,690 --> 00:21:45,970
I get it from Philippians 2.

502
00:21:49,280 --> 00:21:53,020
If pride was the root of all sin,

503
00:21:53,740 --> 00:21:56,500
it has to be the opposite of that

504
00:21:56,500 --> 00:21:59,540
that is the root of all salvation, definitely,

505
00:22:01,120 --> 00:22:04,620
and that's why salvation came through the humility

506
00:22:04,620 --> 00:22:08,120
of Christ, just like sin came through the

507
00:22:08,120 --> 00:22:09,660
pride of the archangel.

508
00:22:11,890 --> 00:22:14,270
Pride is that which elevates a person.

509
00:22:15,530 --> 00:22:17,630
Humility is that which brings a person down.

510
00:22:19,820 --> 00:22:21,940
The archangel exalted himself.

511
00:22:22,040 --> 00:22:23,800
I mean, he got so crazy he thought

512
00:22:23,800 --> 00:22:24,940
he could go above God himself.

513
00:22:25,500 --> 00:22:27,160
That's how stupid pride can be.

514
00:22:28,420 --> 00:22:30,640
Now you see how salvation came.

515
00:22:30,960 --> 00:22:33,800
You see how sin came, and the opposite

516
00:22:33,800 --> 00:22:36,600
of Ezekiel 28 is in Philippians 2.

517
00:22:38,980 --> 00:22:45,240
Philippians 2, it says in verse 3, do

518
00:22:45,240 --> 00:22:49,260
nothing from selfishness or empty conceit.

519
00:22:50,800 --> 00:22:54,260
Empty conceit is the root of sin in

520
00:22:54,260 --> 00:22:54,600
the heart.

521
00:22:54,600 --> 00:22:57,820
A conceit in the heart that makes me

522
00:22:57,820 --> 00:23:02,980
think I'm better than everybody else, but with

523
00:23:02,980 --> 00:23:05,140
humility of mind, look at this exhortation.

524
00:23:05,240 --> 00:23:07,860
I don't know how many of you really

525
00:23:07,860 --> 00:23:09,180
have taken this seriously.

526
00:23:10,140 --> 00:23:15,680
With humility of mind, regard one another as

527
00:23:15,680 --> 00:23:18,960
more important than yourself.

528
00:23:19,800 --> 00:23:22,180
Take that one statement and meditate on it

529
00:23:22,180 --> 00:23:22,820
for this week.

530
00:23:24,720 --> 00:23:28,840
Regard others as more important than yourself.

531
00:23:28,940 --> 00:23:30,020
Now, don't misunderstand it.

532
00:23:30,140 --> 00:23:31,720
Not more spiritual than yourself.

533
00:23:32,620 --> 00:23:33,580
That's impossible.

534
00:23:34,240 --> 00:23:35,960
If somebody is not more spiritual, how can

535
00:23:35,960 --> 00:23:38,220
you fool yourself and believe he is?

536
00:23:39,320 --> 00:23:41,320
But it says here, regard others as more

537
00:23:41,320 --> 00:23:42,080
important.

538
00:23:43,560 --> 00:23:45,940
And then it says, have the same attitude,

539
00:23:46,060 --> 00:23:47,400
verse 5, that Jesus had.

540
00:23:48,280 --> 00:23:50,480
Jesus did not go around thinking everybody is

541
00:23:50,480 --> 00:23:51,360
more spiritual than me.

542
00:23:51,360 --> 00:23:53,680
That's a foolish idea that some people say.

543
00:23:53,960 --> 00:23:56,120
Yeah, consider the other person as more spiritual

544
00:23:56,120 --> 00:23:56,520
than you.

545
00:23:56,700 --> 00:23:57,140
Rubbish.

546
00:23:58,600 --> 00:23:59,840
That's not what Jesus did.

547
00:24:00,720 --> 00:24:02,600
Paul did not consider all the Corinthians as

548
00:24:02,600 --> 00:24:03,680
more spiritual than himself.

549
00:24:03,860 --> 00:24:04,880
He said, you're all carnal.

550
00:24:06,000 --> 00:24:09,100
So this is a false humility where you

551
00:24:09,100 --> 00:24:11,680
go around pretending that you think other people

552
00:24:11,680 --> 00:24:13,040
are more spiritual than you, and when you

553
00:24:13,040 --> 00:24:13,680
know they're not.

554
00:24:14,220 --> 00:24:16,760
I don't believe others are more spiritual than

555
00:24:16,760 --> 00:24:17,460
me if they're not.

556
00:24:19,360 --> 00:24:20,320
But I...

557
00:24:20,320 --> 00:24:21,340
Because Jesus never did that.

558
00:24:21,420 --> 00:24:22,540
We don't follow Jesus there.

559
00:24:22,800 --> 00:24:27,100
But Jesus did consider everybody as more important

560
00:24:27,100 --> 00:24:27,860
than himself.

561
00:24:29,870 --> 00:24:31,650
That's why when the bucket of water was

562
00:24:31,650 --> 00:24:34,170
there at the Last Supper, which a slave

563
00:24:34,170 --> 00:24:36,170
was supposed to take and wash people's feet,

564
00:24:36,310 --> 00:24:38,610
and none of the disciples did it, Jesus

565
00:24:38,610 --> 00:24:40,610
said, well, I'm the least important person here.

566
00:24:40,650 --> 00:24:41,130
I'll do it.

567
00:24:42,070 --> 00:24:44,430
There's a difference between knowing you're the least

568
00:24:44,430 --> 00:24:48,150
important and pretending to be the least spiritual.

569
00:24:49,720 --> 00:24:50,720
No.

570
00:24:51,380 --> 00:24:53,140
Or pretending to be humble.

571
00:24:54,040 --> 00:24:55,520
Pretending that others are more spiritual.

572
00:24:55,640 --> 00:24:56,300
That's all garbage.

573
00:24:57,180 --> 00:24:59,740
Consider others as more important than yourself.

574
00:25:00,460 --> 00:25:01,580
Treat others...

575
00:25:01,580 --> 00:25:03,500
If you believe that someone is more important

576
00:25:03,500 --> 00:25:06,420
than yourself, you will always treat them with

577
00:25:06,420 --> 00:25:06,960
respect.

578
00:25:08,140 --> 00:25:12,040
For example, how would you treat a dignitary,

579
00:25:13,380 --> 00:25:15,680
a state dignitary like the governor if he

580
00:25:15,680 --> 00:25:16,440
came to your house?

581
00:25:17,720 --> 00:25:19,080
That's the way I examine myself.

582
00:25:19,080 --> 00:25:20,360
I mean, I've been down to the poorest

583
00:25:20,360 --> 00:25:24,440
villages in India, extremely uneducated people who are

584
00:25:24,440 --> 00:25:29,080
very, very simple and very poor.

585
00:25:29,880 --> 00:25:32,320
And the Lord told me, treat these people

586
00:25:32,320 --> 00:25:33,500
as dignitaries.

587
00:25:34,560 --> 00:25:35,260
Respect them.

588
00:25:35,460 --> 00:25:37,460
Consider them as more important than yourself.

589
00:25:38,340 --> 00:25:41,040
And that's what I've striven to do in

590
00:25:41,040 --> 00:25:42,540
all the 50 years that I've gone to

591
00:25:42,540 --> 00:25:43,100
those places.

592
00:25:44,680 --> 00:25:46,040
Consider others more important.

593
00:25:46,040 --> 00:25:48,360
That is the attitude of Jesus Christ.

594
00:25:49,080 --> 00:25:50,360
I want to say to you, my brothers

595
00:25:50,360 --> 00:25:52,100
and sisters, as you sit in this church,

596
00:25:52,620 --> 00:25:55,740
if you follow that exhortation, consider others not

597
00:25:55,740 --> 00:25:56,400
as more spiritual.

598
00:25:56,520 --> 00:25:57,240
You know they're not.

599
00:25:57,760 --> 00:25:59,240
You know some people sitting here are very

600
00:25:59,240 --> 00:25:59,560
carnal.

601
00:26:00,160 --> 00:26:02,660
But more important than yourself.

602
00:26:03,200 --> 00:26:06,140
Respect them as more important, like a dignitary.

603
00:26:07,340 --> 00:26:08,920
Don't treat them lightly.

604
00:26:10,160 --> 00:26:13,240
Recognize yourself as least important, even if you're

605
00:26:13,240 --> 00:26:13,900
the most spiritual.

606
00:26:13,900 --> 00:26:16,400
I believe the most spiritual person here will

607
00:26:16,400 --> 00:26:18,580
definitely think of himself as the least important.

608
00:26:19,240 --> 00:26:19,940
The two go together.

609
00:26:21,220 --> 00:26:23,740
And here is the three steps of humility

610
00:26:23,740 --> 00:26:24,360
I mentioned.

611
00:26:25,340 --> 00:26:27,380
Now, this is the opposite of the highest

612
00:26:27,380 --> 00:26:27,940
archangel.

613
00:26:29,420 --> 00:26:31,920
If sin had to come through an archangel

614
00:26:31,920 --> 00:26:36,080
trying to exalt himself, salvation had to come

615
00:26:36,080 --> 00:26:39,260
by the opposite of that, by somebody humbling

616
00:26:39,260 --> 00:26:39,640
himself.

617
00:26:40,820 --> 00:26:43,020
So we see Jesus, you see the three

618
00:26:43,020 --> 00:26:44,920
steps of humility there, because it says here

619
00:26:44,920 --> 00:26:48,260
in verse five, have the same attitude in

620
00:26:48,260 --> 00:26:49,880
yourself which is in Jesus Christ.

621
00:26:50,640 --> 00:26:51,480
And what is that?

622
00:26:51,720 --> 00:26:55,280
Number one, though he was God, verse six,

623
00:26:56,240 --> 00:26:58,540
he did not hang on to that.

624
00:26:59,900 --> 00:27:02,680
But emptied himself of all that sense of

625
00:27:02,680 --> 00:27:05,140
importance and being what he was.

626
00:27:06,180 --> 00:27:07,560
You know, there's a lot of it in

627
00:27:07,560 --> 00:27:07,720
us.

628
00:27:07,720 --> 00:27:09,960
We may think we are very humble, but

629
00:27:09,960 --> 00:27:11,200
we've got a lot of thing in our

630
00:27:11,200 --> 00:27:12,540
head which makes us feel we are pretty

631
00:27:12,540 --> 00:27:13,320
important.

632
00:27:13,480 --> 00:27:15,520
And it's only an act of humility very

633
00:27:15,520 --> 00:27:16,580
often in our language.

634
00:27:17,220 --> 00:27:20,100
But it says he humbled himself and came

635
00:27:20,100 --> 00:27:24,040
right down to become a man.

636
00:27:24,420 --> 00:27:25,600
First step of humility.

637
00:27:28,000 --> 00:27:31,600
Second, as a man, he could have walked

638
00:27:31,600 --> 00:27:32,840
around as a king, but no.

639
00:27:33,620 --> 00:27:37,320
He took the place of a slave, a

640
00:27:37,320 --> 00:27:39,140
bond servant, it says, verse seven, which is

641
00:27:39,140 --> 00:27:39,660
a slave.

642
00:27:40,280 --> 00:27:42,400
God becoming man itself is a big thing.

643
00:27:42,660 --> 00:27:45,140
But then as a man, he became a

644
00:27:45,140 --> 00:27:48,340
slave, the lowest level of the human race,

645
00:27:48,440 --> 00:27:50,640
slaves, which is lower than even servants.

646
00:27:51,740 --> 00:27:53,260
And you'd think he'd reach the bottom.

647
00:27:53,400 --> 00:27:53,640
No.

648
00:27:54,800 --> 00:27:56,320
He went one step further.

649
00:27:57,200 --> 00:27:59,840
He went down to being thought of as

650
00:27:59,840 --> 00:28:00,360
a criminal.

651
00:28:02,060 --> 00:28:03,780
Those are the three steps of humility.

652
00:28:03,940 --> 00:28:05,900
God becoming man, man becoming like a bond

653
00:28:05,900 --> 00:28:07,840
slave, and a bond slave going even down

654
00:28:07,840 --> 00:28:09,460
and being considered as a criminal on the

655
00:28:09,460 --> 00:28:09,780
cross.

656
00:28:10,400 --> 00:28:12,420
And it says here, that's why I say

657
00:28:12,420 --> 00:28:14,220
three steps of humility, humility, humility.

658
00:28:14,320 --> 00:28:15,560
That's the secret to the Christian life.

659
00:28:16,060 --> 00:28:17,440
And it says here, you must have the

660
00:28:17,440 --> 00:28:18,200
same attitude.

661
00:28:19,220 --> 00:28:22,680
And this is not something that, you know,

662
00:28:22,740 --> 00:28:24,080
we want other people to recognize.

663
00:28:24,240 --> 00:28:26,000
It's not that you go around getting a

664
00:28:26,000 --> 00:28:28,480
reputation now for being very humble, for humility.

665
00:28:28,480 --> 00:28:30,040
That's a lot of garbage.

666
00:28:30,460 --> 00:28:34,720
But you recognize in yourself what you are

667
00:28:34,720 --> 00:28:37,300
and seek to follow Jesus inwardly.

668
00:28:38,020 --> 00:28:40,180
That's the only way I want to say

669
00:28:40,180 --> 00:28:42,680
to you, dear brothers and sisters, that the

670
00:28:42,680 --> 00:28:44,420
devil will have no power over you.

671
00:28:45,420 --> 00:28:47,820
The devil has power over anybody who's got

672
00:28:47,820 --> 00:28:49,540
even an atom of pride in him.

673
00:28:50,460 --> 00:28:52,200
If there's conflict in your home, it's because

674
00:28:52,200 --> 00:28:54,680
the devil has brought pride in somebody there.

675
00:28:55,360 --> 00:28:58,300
And you cannot overcome pride with more pride.

676
00:28:58,860 --> 00:29:01,860
You cannot overcome somebody's arguing by arguing against

677
00:29:01,860 --> 00:29:03,700
that person, husband or wife.

678
00:29:04,500 --> 00:29:06,500
The only way you can overcome is the

679
00:29:06,500 --> 00:29:08,980
way Jesus overcame, humility.

680
00:29:09,380 --> 00:29:12,380
Go down, go down, go down right to

681
00:29:12,380 --> 00:29:12,800
the bottom.

682
00:29:14,120 --> 00:29:14,860
Keep quiet.

683
00:29:15,200 --> 00:29:17,720
Let the other person think they won the

684
00:29:17,720 --> 00:29:18,120
argument.

685
00:29:19,080 --> 00:29:19,760
Go down.

686
00:29:21,980 --> 00:29:24,360
Didn't the devil think he had won on

687
00:29:24,360 --> 00:29:25,460
the cross of Calvary?

688
00:29:26,460 --> 00:29:31,260
Jesus is willing to let everybody think that

689
00:29:31,260 --> 00:29:32,280
the devil finally won.

690
00:29:33,740 --> 00:29:35,020
The Pharisees finally won.

691
00:29:35,620 --> 00:29:36,680
Let them think that.

692
00:29:38,020 --> 00:29:39,720
And have you noticed that he did not

693
00:29:39,720 --> 00:29:41,620
even want to prove after his resurrection?

694
00:29:42,280 --> 00:29:44,480
You know how a human being would have

695
00:29:44,480 --> 00:29:47,800
such a temptation after the resurrection to go

696
00:29:47,800 --> 00:29:51,060
and stand before Pilate and say, hey, you

697
00:29:51,060 --> 00:29:52,020
thought you could get rid of me.

698
00:29:52,120 --> 00:29:52,680
Here I am.

699
00:29:53,440 --> 00:29:55,040
Or to go before the Pharisees and say,

700
00:29:55,140 --> 00:29:56,360
you thought you could get rid of me.

701
00:29:56,460 --> 00:29:56,920
Here I am.

702
00:29:57,420 --> 00:30:00,420
Do you know that Jesus never showed himself

703
00:30:00,420 --> 00:30:04,540
to a single unbeliever after he was resurrected?

704
00:30:05,860 --> 00:30:11,900
He never wanted that carnal, evil delight in

705
00:30:11,900 --> 00:30:14,880
humiliating other people by saying, hey, I triumphed.

706
00:30:15,400 --> 00:30:16,340
You tried to crush me.

707
00:30:16,340 --> 00:30:17,880
I could not be crushed.

708
00:30:18,840 --> 00:30:19,860
Do you have that desire?

709
00:30:20,800 --> 00:30:23,380
When somebody tried to harm you, to somehow

710
00:30:23,380 --> 00:30:25,340
prove to that person that you triumphed?

711
00:30:25,740 --> 00:30:26,920
It's not the spirit of Christ.

712
00:30:29,200 --> 00:30:31,240
He did not want to show himself to

713
00:30:31,240 --> 00:30:32,440
anybody after the resurrection.

714
00:30:32,960 --> 00:30:35,020
He showed himself only to believers who already

715
00:30:35,020 --> 00:30:35,740
trusted in him.

716
00:30:36,640 --> 00:30:38,220
That's a tremendous example for me.

717
00:30:39,160 --> 00:30:42,040
There should be no cheap triumphalism.

718
00:30:44,250 --> 00:30:47,810
A triumphalism that is cheap to show other

719
00:30:47,810 --> 00:30:49,450
people, I triumphed over you.

720
00:30:50,390 --> 00:30:52,630
There must never be even an atom of

721
00:30:52,630 --> 00:30:53,770
that spirit in us.

722
00:30:54,690 --> 00:30:57,430
No desire to show, see, you tried to

723
00:30:57,430 --> 00:30:58,570
harm me, but see what I did.

724
00:30:59,290 --> 00:31:00,270
I overcame you.

725
00:31:01,790 --> 00:31:04,050
What a lust there is in us to

726
00:31:04,050 --> 00:31:06,150
show, and we think we are glorifying God

727
00:31:06,150 --> 00:31:06,590
that way.

728
00:31:07,250 --> 00:31:08,830
Jesus could have thought that I can glorify

729
00:31:08,830 --> 00:31:10,950
God by standing before Pilate or standing before

730
00:31:10,950 --> 00:31:12,510
the Pharisees and say, see, I'm resurrected.

731
00:31:13,010 --> 00:31:14,450
See how God honored me.

732
00:31:15,570 --> 00:31:16,470
Has God honored you?

733
00:31:17,290 --> 00:31:18,450
Keep quiet about it.

734
00:31:19,290 --> 00:31:19,910
Bury it.

735
00:31:20,970 --> 00:31:23,130
Let the Lord show it in the day

736
00:31:23,130 --> 00:31:23,750
he returns.

737
00:31:23,870 --> 00:31:24,290
Not today.

738
00:31:24,430 --> 00:31:26,610
This is not the time to reveal those

739
00:31:26,610 --> 00:31:26,830
things.

740
00:31:26,910 --> 00:31:29,190
When Christ returns, he will be exalted.

741
00:31:29,810 --> 00:31:31,770
We don't want to be exalted before that.

742
00:31:32,510 --> 00:31:35,850
We must have no desire to prove ourselves

743
00:31:35,850 --> 00:31:37,370
right to anybody in the world.

744
00:31:37,490 --> 00:31:38,970
Let the whole world think we are wrong.

745
00:31:40,390 --> 00:31:42,770
Even today, the whole world thinks that, I

746
00:31:42,770 --> 00:31:44,470
mean, when Jesus died, he never showed himself

747
00:31:44,470 --> 00:31:46,830
to anybody, and even today, people say that

748
00:31:46,830 --> 00:31:48,090
he never rose from the dead.

749
00:31:50,980 --> 00:31:54,160
It's a wonderful thing to see this, the

750
00:31:54,160 --> 00:31:56,740
way that Jesus went, and if we allow

751
00:31:56,740 --> 00:31:59,280
this to happen in our lives, and the

752
00:31:59,280 --> 00:32:00,760
axe is laid to the root of the

753
00:32:00,760 --> 00:32:04,300
tree, I believe our victory will be genuine.

754
00:32:05,460 --> 00:32:08,880
We'll come to a real overcoming life where

755
00:32:08,880 --> 00:32:11,800
there'll be no strife or conflict in our

756
00:32:11,800 --> 00:32:16,600
heart or no attitude in our heart that

757
00:32:16,600 --> 00:32:19,580
is negative towards any other human being.

758
00:32:19,660 --> 00:32:21,000
We've got to work towards that.

759
00:32:22,340 --> 00:32:23,960
Work on it, brothers and sisters.

760
00:32:24,380 --> 00:32:25,260
God will help us.

761
00:32:25,980 --> 00:32:26,540
Amen.