Well, this evening we'll be talking regarding the
book of Psalms, and we've chosen Psalm 1,
and it is verse 1, and then after
10 hours we won't be talking about verse
1, we will be just talking about the
psalm, but there will be a continuation for
this topic, God willing, next Friday, by the
grace of the Lord.
So today's topic is the book of Psalms,
Psalm 1 and verse 1.
Blessed is the man who walks not in
the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in
the path of sinners, nor sits in the
seat of the scornful.
And all glory be to our Lord and
Savior, Jesus Christ, forever and ever, Amen.
Okay, the book of Psalms, to give it
a title, we call it Blessed is the
Man, and these are the very first words
that Psalm 1 and verse 1 begins with,
and we're going to give it this title,
Blessed is the Man.
In the book of Sirach, which probably a
lot of you maybe have not even heard
of it or even read it, but in
the book of Sirach, chapter 14 and verse
1, this book is of the deuterocanonical books.
So in the book of Sirach, chapter 14
and verse 1, it says, Blessed is the
man who does not blunder with his lips
and need not suffer grief for sin.
Now we are tying Sirach 14.1 with
Psalm number 1.
They go hand in hand.
When we look at Sirach 14.1, it
says, Blessed is the man who does not
blunder with his lips.
What does that mean, does not blunder with
his lips?
It means does not make a mistake in
his speech in the way he talks.
So blessed is the man who never makes
a mistake when they talk and need not
suffer grief for sin.
It means he does not make a mistake
in his actions.
So in other words, blessed is the man
who does not make a mistake neither the
way he talks nor the way he walks.
Blessed is that man that does not make
a mistake neither the way he talks nor
the way he walks.
This applies to none of us because all
of us are sinners and all of us
have sinned with the way we talk and
with the way we walk.
This is why both in the book of
Sirach 14.1 and in Psalm 1.1,
they refer to the man, not a man.
Blessed is the man, the man.
So the man means there is only one
man and no one else but him.
Because every other man failed and sinned with
the way they talked and with the way
they behaved and walked.
But there is the man who never sinned
neither with the way he spoke nor with
the way he went about his obligation, his
duties.
And the only man which both verses apply
to is none but Jesus Christ of Nazareth.
All glory to his holy and mighty name.
Jesus is the perfect sinless man that never
sinned neither with the way he spoke nor
with the way he walked.
And as the man, he is perfect sinless
like God.
But obviously he is also the perfect God.
And as the perfect God, he is perfection
in itself, does not need to say anything
further.
However, our topic today is about the man,
the perfect man.
We connected Sirach 14.1 and Psalm 1
together as they both speak about the man,
Jesus.
The first part of Sirach 14.1, so
verse 1, we can divide it into two
parts.
The first part of verse 1, it says,
blessed is the man who does not blunder
with his lips.
We find the meaning to this in Psalm
1 and the first half of Psalm 1,
which is verses 1 to 3.
And the second part of Sirach 14.1
that says, and need not suffer grief for
sin.
We find the meaning of this in Psalm
1, the second part of it, which is
verses 4 to 6.
So Psalm 1 consists of six verses.
This is why we connected Sirach 14.1
and Psalm number 1.
Now, before we come into this Psalm, my
beloved, I want to say something here before
we comment on Psalm number 1.
There is something called the divine project.
Many people ask, why did God create me?
Many people ask this question, why did God
really create me?
What is the purpose of it all?
Since after being born, raised, started working, got
married, raised a family, being successful, and after
all this hard work and many, many years
of suffering and sacrifices, I depart from this
world and leave it all behind.
And I say, I wish it never existed
in the first place.
What is the point of going through all
this and at the end, just farewell everything
and put it to rest?
So we question this.
However, my beloved, there is an objective as
to why God created us all.
God has a goal and he wants to
achieve this goal.
And when I say God, I mean the
triune God, Father, Son, Holy Spirit, one in
nature, one in essence, one God.
So, this God, who is Father, Son, Holy
Spirit, is all love and he has infinite
goodness.
God has only one begotten Son.
But God wishes to have many children to
inherit his infinite goodness with his beloved Son.
Because he is love, he wants to share
this love.
Because he is good, he wants to share
this goodness and the only one who shares
it with is his beloved Son, Jesus Christ
of Nazareth.
So he wanted to have, instead of just
one begotten Son, he wanted to have many,
many children to share his goodness with his
children along with his beloved Son, Jesus Christ
of Nazareth.
This is God's objective.
Now, his Son is Christ and whoever believes
in Christ, they are the children who will
inherit God's goodness, i.e. glory.
His Son is Christ and whoever believes in
Christ, they will be those children who will
inherit God's goodness, which is his glory.
Now, a question.
How would God bring these children?
He wants to have many children.
But how is he going to do it?
Well, my beloved, there are two ways to
have children.
No more, no less.
There are two ways.
One of them, I'm sure a lot of
us here are aware of.
The first one is called the physical connection.
When the man and the woman get together
in a matrimonial bond, sanctified by the almighty
God, and they bear fruits, they bear children.
So there is the physical way of making
children possible.
However, this physical, biological way, it cannot work
with God.
It is impossible to work with God because
simply God is only one and there is
no other God like him to be together.
So he is only one and one God
only.
So the biological, physical aspect is out of
the question.
Then we are left with the second option,
how God went about to make children and
plenty of them.
The second option is called mortification or simply
death.
Through death, God made children.
Through death.
Can death give birth?
The answer is yes.
I'll give you an example.
Let's say I have a grain of wheat.
And I want this grain of wheat to
have many children, many grains of wheat.
Can I bring another grain and unite them
together in order to bear children?
Can I?
I'm asking you.
Can I bring one grain of wheat and
bring another one and say, okay, now you're
united in a bond now and to bear
children?
Of course not.
But how can I make this grain of
wheat bear fruits, many children, when the grain
is buried into the ground?
When the grain is buried into the ground.
The moment this grain of wheat is buried
into the ground, the secret of life that
is hidden in it becomes revealed.
For as long as this grain of wheat
was outside, above ground, there is no sign
of life, there is no sign of multiplication.
But the moment it is buried, the secret
of this very life that was hidden in
this seed became revealed the moment the grain
was buried, i.e. when it died.
The moment the grain died, gave life.
And the moment it's buried, it shoots out
roots, stump, flower, and then in that head,
40 grains of wheat are produced.
Exactly identical to the very one that was
buried into the ground.
One died, produced 40.
Fully identical.
Through death, children were made possible.
And this is exactly the way God used
to bring us into existence.
This is exactly the same way God used
to bring us all into existence.
This is revealed to us by Christ himself.
We read in John 12, 24, the Lord
Jesus is speaking here.
He says, When
we study the four gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke,
and John, we do not see the Lord
Jesus referring to anyone prior to his crucifixion.
We do not see the Lord Jesus referring
to anyone as my brother.
I guarantee you, read them.
And I encourage you to read, please.
Please do.
Read Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
You will never see the Lord Jesus prior
to the cross, prior to his resurrection, referring
to any human being as his own brother.
Yes, people said to him, your mother and
brothers are waiting outside.
People said it.
But did Jesus say it himself?
Never.
When did the Lord Jesus say, my brothers?
For the first time ever, after resurrection.
When he met Mary Magdalene in that garden.
And he said to her, go and tell
my brothers.
I am ascending to my father and your
father.
To my God and your God.
When did the Lord Jesus refer to us
as his brothers?
After he was risen from the dead.
So that grain of wheat is Christ himself.
Because what do you make out of the
grain of wheat?
Bread.
And in John 6, he says, I am
the living bread that descended from heaven.
He who eats me shall live in me
forever.
So the grain of wheat is himself.
Unless that grain of wheat is buried into
the earth, it will remain alone.
But if it dies, it will bear many
fruits.
The grain of wheat Christ, he was buried
into the grave.
And when he rose from the grave, he
bore many fruits.
And that was the only time he said
to us and called us brothers.
That was the only time.
Prior to the cross, what did he refer
to his disciples as?
Friends and beloved.
That's all.
After resurrection, he called them my brothers.
Now Jesus Christ is the son of God.
And if Jesus Christ, who is the son
of God, calls us brothers, so what are
we now to God?
Sons of God.
If we are brothers to the son of
God, then we are the sons of the
almighty God at the same time.
And who made this possible?
Jesus, the grain of wheat, when he got
buried and died and rose and brought forth,
gave birth to many children.
God the father gave birth to many children
through his beloved son when he was buried
into the ground and rose from the dead.
All glory to his holy and mighty name.
This is the divine project.
My beloved, any project, any project requires three
parties.
First one is the project owner.
Second one, the engineer who will design the
project.
And the third one, the financier who will
fund the project.
So there are three parties to any project.
The owner, the engineer, and the financier who
is going to fund the project.
Now the project owner is God the father.
The project owner is God the father.
The father wants many children.
That is his project.
He wants to achieve this.
So what does he do?
He brought the engineer into play to make
it, to draw it all for him.
And who is the engineer?
The Holy Spirit.
And who is the financier?
The son of God, Jesus Christ.
He financed the project with his own precious
blood.
He paid the price of the project in
full on the cross.
So now, since the engineer is the
Holy Spirit and the financier, Jesus Christ of
Nazareth.
For this, the engineer takes from the financier
and implements it.
And that is where the Lord Jesus said
it in John 16.14 about the Holy
Spirit.
He says, he will, he meaning the Holy
Spirit, he will glorify me.
So the Holy Spirit, the engineer will glorify
me, I the financier.
For he will take what is mine and
declare it to you.
The engineer will take from the financier and
declare it to you.
John 16.14 The Holy Spirit takes from
Christ and gives us until Christ is reflected
and revealed in us clearly and vividly.
The Holy Spirit's job or role is to
make us Christ-like, imitating Christ.
John the Beloved in his epistle, the first
epistle, chapter 3 verse 2.
He says, Beloved, we are God's children.
We are God's children now.
It does not yet appear.
Now if I ask you, you are a
child of God.
You're going to say, oh please Father, like
I'm a mighty sinner.
I can't be the child of God.
You know, I've got too many defects.
There are too many wrong things in me.
It just cannot, I cannot be the son
to the Almighty God.
God is perfect, how can I be his
son and yet I'm full of errors.
And that's why John the Beloved is saying,
we are God's children now.
It does not yet appear what shall be,
what we shall be.
But we know that when he appears, we
shall be like him.
So on the second return of Christ, when
he appears, we shall be like him in
the next life.
We will be Christ-like in the next
life.
But here we're struggling.
But the grace of God and the power
of the Holy Spirit and the sacrificial lamb
of God trying frantically in us to shape
us and form us and mould us and
make us Christ-like.
We're struggling, but getting there.
But if you trust in the Lord, he
will make sure at the end you will
end up like him.
He will make sure, you need to trust
him.
Now my beloved, you will say to me,
why did you say all this yet we
haven't even entered into Psalm 1?
Why all this introduction?
And I will reply and say this to
you my beloved.
Because Psalm 1 is telling us the following.
No one will enter heaven unless they are
Christ-like.
Psalm 1 is telling us, no one can
ever enter heaven unless we are Christ-like.
If anyone comes to you and says that
with your deeds and with your sacrifices and
with your hard work you can make it.
Well, the law will say this to you.
Yes, theoretically speaking, yes you can make it.
However, if you can get a hundred out
of a hundred in God's law.
If you sit in an exam, God's exam,
and you get a hundred out of a
hundred, then you can enter heaven with your
own hard work.
But can anyone fulfill God's law in its
perfection?
That is the question.
You need to be like the man.
Blessed is the man.
Can we have the verse on the screen
please?
Blessed is the man.
Can you be like this man, the man?
Well, in James, the epistle of James chapter
2 verse 10, he says, For whoever shall
keep the whole law and yet stumble in
one point, he is guilty of all.
In other words, what St. James is saying,
if you sit in an exam, in God's
exam, and you get 99.9999 out of
a hundred, God will give you zero.
It is either a hundred or it's nothing
with God.
Because God is perfect, He will never allow
anything enter His presence unless it is perfect
like Him.
So 99.999 is not a perfect number.
The perfect number that will get you to
heaven is a hundred out of a hundred.
So unless you get a hundred out of
a hundred, you can never make it.
No human being can ever fulfill God's law
in its totality.
We all failed.
God gave us ten commandments through Moses.
We miserably failed in all of them.
In all of them.
Someone might come and say, well one of
the commandments says do not kill.
I never killed anyone.
Really?
Maybe you didn't kill somebody physically, but you've
killed somebody mentally, emotionally.
What about your gossip?
Talking behind people's back, stabbing them in the
back.
That is called murder.
That applies to the commandment.
You are now a killer in the sight
of God.
Gossiping.
So I didn't kill him with a bullet,
but I killed him with a word.
So there is the physical murder and there
is the spiritual murder.
It all falls under do not kill.
All of us failed, my beloved.
If ten commandments we were not able to
fulfill, how can we fulfill the fullness of
God's law?
It's impossible, my beloved.
It is impossible.
Therefore, no one can make it to heaven.
This is why the grain of wheat came.
Jesus Christ of Nazareth.
Since God the Father wanted children, and God
the Father realized, these children, even if He
makes them, they won't be able to get
back to Him, because they will not be
the perfect ones He intended for them to
be.
That's why He sent His beloved Son, Jesus
Christ of Nazareth, to be that grain of
wheat that was buried into the ground, died,
and through death, God the Father gave birth,
through His beloved Son, His death gave birth
to many children who believed in Him.
Are you with me?
To fulfill the fullness of the law of
God on our behalf.
That's why Jesus came.
To fulfill the fullness of God's law on
our behalf, where we failed.
Now, to fulfill the fullness of the law,
I'll give you several biblical references that talk
about Jesus fulfilling the law on our behalf,
and it's just a few, just a very
few of them.
Read Matthew 5, 17-18.
Read Romans 8, 3-4.
Read Romans 10, verse 4.
Read Galatians 3, verse 13.
And Colossians 2, verses 13-14.
Just a few to name, where Christ fulfilled
the law on our behalf, in order for
us to get a hundred out of a
hundred.
Christ came to pay our debt in full,
and fulfill the law of God in full.
So when we say, blessed is the man.
The very beginning of Psalm 1 and verse
1.
Blessed is THE man.
The word THE means, this is the man,
and there is no one else but him.
Period.
No prophet, no holy man, whoever you want
to bring.
All humans are sinners, and the wages of
sin is death.
Only one man was sinless, like God.
This man is THE man mentioned in Psalm
1-1.
Blessed is the man.
So when we say, blessed is the man.
Then who will enter heaven?
Jesus, the man.
Since he is the only one perfect, the
only one who fulfilled God's law, then he
is the only man that will enter heaven.
Then the question is, what about me?
Well, if Jesus is the only one who
fulfilled the law, therefore he is able to
enter heaven, then what about me?
What will happen to me?
Well, you want to enter heaven?
You need to cancel yourself and enter through
Christ.
You need to cancel yourself and enter through
Christ.
Look at St. Paul, understood it.
Galatians 2-20, St. Paul is saying, It
is no longer I who live, I cancelled
myself.
It is no longer I who live, but
Christ lives in me.
You want to enter heaven?
It is no longer I who live, but
Christ who lives in me.
In our terminology, in our simple English, Stop
being stubborn and doing things your way.
Stop going downtown.
Stop going here and there and so-called
having fun.
Stop doing it your way because Christ purchased
you with his own precious blood.
You no longer belong to yourself, you belong
to him.
And the only way to enter heaven, you
need to be perfect as God.
And the only man that is perfect as
God is Christ the King.
Therefore, you want to enter with Jesus to
heaven?
You better live for him, no more for
yourself.
As a Christian, we cannot be worldly.
My son, my daughter, don't ever fight for
materialistic things.
I see so sadly, even in marriages they
became materialistic.
Even in baptisms they became materialistic.
We've introduced materialism which is the world.
We brought it into the church and we
made the church worldly.
And Christ established the church to change the
world into heavenly.
When as Christians, fight over a diamond ring,
fight over a house, fight over a block
of land, fight over clothing, fight over a
car, fight over money, we haven't lived Christ
yet.
We haven't.
Christianity is not a story being told.
Christianity is not a song being sang.
Christianity is not an eloquent preach given.
Christianity is Christ being lived.
Christ needs to be lived, not talked about.
It's so easy to talk about the Lord,
yet so hard to live the Lord.
That is why many talk about the Lord,
but only few live him.
Only few.
The Lord says, to enter God's kingdom, you
need to be perfect like God.
The only one who is perfect like God
is Jesus the man.
So the only one who is going to
enter heaven out of the entire human race
is Jesus.
But God the Father wants many children.
So therefore you need to die for yourself
and live for Jesus Christ of Nazareth in
order to enter heaven through him, by him,
with him and in him.
That's the only way.
Otherwise we are all going to die eventually
anyway.
And whatever we worked hard for will go
astray.
It will be just a vanity.
What a loss.
What a great loss.
If I don't have Jesus in my life,
whatever I've gained on earth, even though I've
worked hard for it, it is all a
loss at the end.
The grave will take everything away from you.
But when you have Jesus as your portion,
whatever you worked hard for, you will see
a massive credit for you in heaven.
The Lord will say, come my child, this
place is yours, because you made me your
portion.
You made me your savior.
You made me your redeemer.
You made me your king over your life.
Whatever you worked hard for, because you've done
it in my name for my glory, I
will glorify you in heaven the way you
glorified me on earth.
Amen.
Come on.
Amen.
So my beloveds, stop seeking the world and
its pleasures and temptations.
Glorify Christ in everything you do.
Glorify Christ when you are with your friends.
Don't let your friends take you away from
the Lord.
And if they do, they are not your
friends.
Walk away from them.
A true friend is the one who takes
you up, not down.
Is the one who takes you to the
church, not the club.
Is the one who takes you to the
light, not darkness.
Is the one who takes you to Christ,
not Satan.
That is the true friend.
So you want to enter heaven?
Cancel yourself and live for the Lord Jesus.
And since you live in the man, you
will enter heaven.
Enter heaven in a perfect way.
Psalm 1 will apply to you completely.
You enter heaven through Jesus Christ.
Psalm 1 will apply to you completely and
perfectly.
We will enter heaven perfect.
There are two important verses that reveal this.
That we will enter heaven perfect.
Two vital verses that reveal this to us.
Verse 1 is Ephesians 5.27. Look at
Saint Paul.
That he might present her.
That he here means Jesus Christ.
That he might present her, meaning the church.
That he might present her to himself a
glorious church.
Not having spot or wrinkle or any such
thing.
But that she would be holy and without
blemish.
That he might, Jesus, present his beloved church,
the bride.
In the end, to the father, perfect like
him.
That is telling us, he will bring us
into heaven as perfect as he is.
The second verse is Matthew 25.21. This
is when you enter heaven.
What the Lord will say about you as
you are entering heaven.
This is true by the way.
Trust every word that is written in the
Holy Bible.
This is the only place that truth exists.
Trust me, not me.
Trust this perfect God, perfect man.
Jesus Christ of Nazareth.
Look at Matthew 25.21. As you are
entering heaven, the Lord will get up to
welcome you.
Look what he will say to you.
His Lord said to him, well done, good
and faithful servant.
So the Lord will say to that person
who enters heaven.
He will say, well done, good and faithful
servant.
Now hang on.
The Holy Bible teaches us, there is no
one good but God.
There is no one good.
But hang on, God himself is saying in
Matthew 25.21. I will say to that
person who enters heaven, well done, good.
But hang on.
The word good only applies to God.
Why are you calling me good?
I'm a sinner.
No.
The Lord says, the only reason why I
called you good and faithful servant, because I
did not see you, I saw my son
in you.
That's why I called you good and faithful.
Because I know, I'm God, you don't need
to tell me who is good and who
is not.
My son is the good God.
And my son, he is the good God
in his divinity.
And he is the faithful servant in his
humanity.
So that's why I saw my son in
you.
And that is the only reason I refer
to you as good and faithful servant.
Because you entered through my son.
Otherwise, I do not know who you are.
Away with you, oh evil doer.
Go to hell, a place prepared for Satan
and his foul spirits.
But if you enter through Jesus Christ, you
will hear God's calling you, the good and
faithful servant.
And God is good, and since he called
you good, then he made you like God.
We will be Christ-like in the end.
This is why John the Beloved says in
1 John 3 verse 2, We shall be
like him.
In the end, we shall be like him.
Now, Psalm 1 verse 1 says, Blessed is
the man.
In this verse, this the man, blessed is
the man, this man has three qualities.
In verse 1, it tells us that this
perfect man has three qualities.
In the same verse, first quality.
Blessed is the man, the first quality is,
who walks not in the counsel of the
ungodly.
This perfect man does not walk in the
counsel of the ungodly.
Second quality, nor stands in the path of
sinners.
Third quality, nor sits in the seat of
the scornful.
Those who ridicule and make fun of people.
So the qualities of this perfect man, One,
he never walked in the counsel of the
ungodly.
He never associated himself with ungodly people.
Are you associating yourself with ungodly people?
You need to ask yourself this question.
Number two, this perfect man, he never stood
in the path of the sinners.
Are you walking with sinners?
Doing what they do?
Living the way they live?
Because this perfect man never did.
And number three quality, third quality is, he
never sat in the seat of the scornful.
Those who make fun of things.
If you're sitting in the midst of group
of people, and you say something and they
laugh at you and make fun of you,
don't associate yourself in that kind of an
environment.
You need people that would appreciate, you need
people that would respect, honor, honor Christ who
is in you.
So if they're gonna make fun and joke
and laugh, and ridicule you, and what kind
of a group you're with, you need to
ask yourself this question my beloved.
We need to be very, very, very cautious
of what we do, where we go, and
how we live our life.
Now, on the other hand, we are sinners,
we are weak.
Yes, we get drawn, we get tempted, we
slip, we slide, we walk away, we fear
of the road.
I know this, God knows this, more than
all of us put together.
But there is a difference.
God came to call not the righteous, but
the sinners to repentance.
That's what the Lord Jesus said.
I did not come to call righteous, but
sinners to repentance.
The Lord Jesus said, I am the doctor,
that's why I came, because you are sick.
If you were not sick, the doctor wouldn't
have come.
I know you are sinners, I know you
make mistakes, I know you are weak, I
know your fragility.
You don't need to tell me this.
But I came, I chose to come for
the sinners, because my dad wants many children.
At the moment you are not ready to
be my dad's children.
I have to make you ready.
So I came seeking the sinner onto repentance.
And the Lord gave us two examples of
sinners.
You see, when the Holy Bible talks about
birds, plants, animals, He is referring to them
in order to pass a message to what
people are like.
So through the animals, He is saying, there
are certain characteristics in these animals.
You, my children, I don't want you to
be like them.
So through those animals, He has given us
a very profound spiritual lesson.
What are the two animals the Lord Jesus
spoke of?
One, sheep, the other, pig.
When it comes to sinners, He says, One
kind of people is a sheep, and the
other kind of people is a pig.
You are either a sheep or a pig,
one of these two.
But, if you choose to be like the
pig, then I can't choose you.
I cannot choose you.
If you choose to be like a pig.
Let me tell you a few characteristics of
the pig.
Number one, the pig loves living in filth.
Loves it.
You take the pig out of the filth,
and you wash him clean, give him a
nice bath, and you make him spotless, he
will hate you for it.
He will get so upset with it, he
can't stand cleanliness.
He will run straight away and jump into
the filth.
And the moment he is in the middle
of the filth, and he is on cloud
nine.
He is saying, Yo, what's up, bro?
Get down, brother, lay me some skin, bro.
Now you are talking, brother, get down, what's
up?
That's the pig, loves filth.
You can't clean him.
He can't stand being clean.
That's one.
Two, for as long as the pig's eyes
are on the filthy world, on the filthy
ground, the mouth never shuts.
Oink, oink, oink, oink, oink, oink, oink, oink,
oink.
He is always oink, oink, oink, oink, oink,
oink, everywhere.
Old MacDonald had a pig.
Oink, oink, oink, oink, oink.
As long as the pig's eyes are on
that filth, the mouth never shuts.
In the olden days, where there was not,
there wasn't sort of those tranquilizers, you know,
being sort of invented yet.
They used to steal pigs, professional thieves.
Do you know how they used to steal
a pig?
Obviously with experience.
They timed it in a way, where they
had to run so fast at that pig,
before he screams, because if the pig screams,
he will wake up the entire neighborhood.
Very noisy, and very annoying noise.
So before the pig goes off, they run,
they grab the pig, the first thing they
do, they turn the pig on its back.
They turn the pig on its back.
The moment the eyes of the pig see
heaven, the mouth shuts.
You want to kick the pig, you want
to punch the pig, you want to open
the pig with a knife, will never make
a sound.
The moment the eyes see heaven.
But the moment the eyes see the filthy
ground, the mouth never shuts.
But the moment it sees heaven, no matter
what you say to the pig, it will
never talk.
The Lord Jesus says, do not associate yourself
with people, when the subject is about the
world, and worldly things, the mouth never shuts.
But the moment you invoke the name of
Jesus Christ, everybody shuts up, and finds an
excuse to get up and walk away.
Do not associate yourself with people, that are
not interested in God.
They just love worldly things.
You talk about who got married, you got
divorced, yes, I'm all for it.
You talk about people, how many millions they
have, yes, the mouth will never shut.
You talk about politics, about anything that is
worldly, the mouth never shuts.
But the moment you say, I just want
to share with you, what Jesus has done
in my life.
Oh, sorry bro, I just realized, I have
to go, I have a very important meeting.
Wow.
Just like the pig sees heaven, and who
is in heaven?
God.
And the world?
What are you going to get out of
the world at the end?
The grave?
You will not take anything with you.
Nothing.
We came empty handed through our mother's womb,
and we will go back to mother earth,
also empty handed.
But he who has Christ, as his portion,
you will go full, and filled, and perfect.
Chase the world, you'll end up alone.
Nothing with you.
Choose your friends wisely.
The holy bible tells us about friends.
It says, a friend is closer than a
brother to you.
A friend is closer than a brother to
you.
Then my question to you, who is closer
to you than your own brother?
Who can tell me?
Who is closer than a brother to you?
Your partner in marriage.
No one beats that.
God said about couple, married couple, He said
they are one, no longer two.
Every other one is another person, a totally
unique separate person to you.
Your brother is separate from you.
Your mother, your father is separate to you.
The only one who is one with you,
is your partner in marriage.
So, the friend, the holy bible says, the
friend is closer than a brother to you.
Meaning, the friend is as influential as your
own partner in marriage.
That means, friendship is extremely dangerous, if we
do not choose it wisely.
You see, how much does your wife influence
you?
So as your friend can influence you.
How much does your husband influence you?
Maybe nowadays not much.
It's more so the wife.
But, how much your partner can influence you?
So as your friend.
That's why the holy bible says, when you
choose friends, make sure you do not exceed
three.
Uh-oh.
I think I'm talking to myself here.
Bishop, you're making it very difficult now.
Brother, what am I going to do?
I have about 200 of them.
You know, you need to have, if you
are going to choose a friend, choose a
friend that you can trust blindfolded.
You know why?
Because a friend, in the friendship, all levels
are equal.
All levels are equal in friendship.
The moment the level is equal, you will
open up and tell your secrets to that
friend.
The reason why you open up and tell
your secrets to a person, is when you
see that person in the same level as
you are.
If that person is not in your level,
you will never open up.
Why?
Because you know, if you talk, they will
misunderstand you, or they will not understand you
at all.
That's why, so many times, the son doesn't
speak to his dad, but he speaks to
his friend.
The daughter doesn't speak to her mom, and
she speaks to her friend.
Why?
Because if the mother treats that child as
a mother, that child will never open up.
Because the mother's level is here, and the
daughter's level is here.
Two different levels cannot fathom, cannot comprehend.
If the father's level is here, and the
son's level is here, they will not understand.
When will the levels become one?
When the father befriends his son.
And when the mother befriends her daughter.
The moment we are friends, we are equal
level, then I'll tell you what's in my
heart.
That's why, friends must be chosen wisely, and
closely, because the moment they know about you,
and if they're not trustworthy, they will let
the whole world know about you.
And the more friends you have, the more
heads you have, meaning, the more different intellects
you have.
So, the more friends, the more different perspectives,
the more different opinions, the more different visions.
So, next time you want to do something,
you'll have a hundred different ideas.
You want to ask for an advice, you'll
get a hundred different advices.
Which one do you take?
You don't know, you're lost.
That's why you need to come to someone
like me.
One head, one idea, can't go wrong.
And I'll say to you, you want to
marry this guy?
Let me scan him for you.
I am that MRI scan.
I'll scan him, and then I'll send you
a full report, and I'll say, yes, he's
got a thick head, good head, no head
at all.
Forget it.
You know, it's like this joke.
This husband and wife, they used to fight
and argue a lot.
So, one day the husband came, and he
said, Honey, you know what?
I've been thinking about it.
Enough fighting.
I can't stand it anymore.
It's not right.
It's not healthy.
Neither for me, neither for you.
Nor for you.
So, you know what, honey?
We need to stop fighting, but I've got
a problem.
I want you to take me to the
doctor.
I need help.
She said, Honey, with pleasure.
So, she took the husband to the doctor.
They did some scans as x-rays for
the head, for the brain, and then the
result came out.
They went back to the doctor.
The doctor has got the x-rays on
that sort of projector, and then he looks
at the x-rays, and he looks at
the man.
The man is looking at the face of
the doctor.
He got worried.
He said, Doctor, you don't look very good.
Is everything okay?
He said, I don't know.
He looks again.
He said, Come on, doctor, I'm worried now.
Tell me, what is it?
He said, Well, I don't know what to
say, but I'll have to say this.
When I'm looking at your left side of
the brain, there is nothing right.
And when I'm looking at your right side
of the brain, there is nothing left.
Did you get that one?
Yeah?
There is nothing left.
It's not like left, but there is nothing
left.
Left, right and left.
When I looked at your left side of
the brain, there is nothing right.
And when I look at your right side
of the brain, there is nothing left.
That's your problem.
That's why your wife fights with you all
the time.
It was actually about the wife, but I
swapped it, and I've done it about the
man.
Because I don't want to die as yet
tonight.
Women, please take it easy.
Don't kill me.
I'm a good boy.
My son and daughter, choose wisely.
Your friend is extremely influential.
But remember, choose a friend that loves Jesus
Christ of Nazareth.
Exactly the way you choose your partner in
marriage.
If you do not choose your partner in
marriage that loves the Lord, you will have
problems.
Because if the two do not agree on
Christ, there will never be peace in that
household.
If the husband says, I want to go
to church, and the wife says, No.
Or the wife says, I want to go
to church, and the husband says, No.
Then there will be issues.
And especially when the children come, what are
you going to do?
Are you going to go on your own,
leave the children behind and your partner?
Or are you going to take the children
and leave your husband or your wife behind?
The whole family must worship the Lord like
Joshua, son of Nun.
As for me and my family, we worship
the Lord.
Incredible.
Amazing.
Joshua.
That's why he entered the Promised Land with
the Israelite nations.
He led them into the Promised Land.
Because he and his family worshiped the Lord
Jesus.
Make your home a church.
This church that you come to on Sundays,
this is called the Universal Church.
There are three kinds of churches.
One is called the Individual Church.
Second is called the Family Church.
And third is called the Universal Church.
Each one of them is made out of
three components.
The Personal Church is made out of body,
soul, and spirit.
Three.
I am the church because I'm made out
of three.
Body, soul, and spirit.
The Family Church is made out of three.
Father, mother, and children.
Three.
And the Universal Church is made out of
three.
Priest, deacon, and faithful.
And God is triune.
Three.
That's where love is revealed.
When the three come together in that unity
of love for Jesus Christ of Nazareth.
So when will we die to ourselves in
order to live for Christ?
If giving up on a cigarette is too
hard to do, when will I fulfill the
law?
If giving up on chocolate is too hard.
If giving up on material things is too
difficult.
Like I can't, when I see a Lamborghini,
I just can't, I have to have it.
I can't say I don't have a Ferrari.
Or a private jet.
Now, if someone in the world has a
private jet, yes.
But someone in the church has a private
jet, why?
What do you need the private jet for?
Your portion is Christ, not the private jet.
Your portion is Christ, not the mansion.
Your portion is Christ, not money.
And as Christians, we do not belong to
this world.
We live in it, but we are not
of it.
For Christ has chosen us and purchased us
with His precious blood.
Took us out of the world to live
for Him, no longer for me, for Him.
So my son, my daughter, I beg you,
every time you do something wrong, run to
the Lord Jesus.
Don't ever run away from Him.
Run to Him and say, Lord, I made
a mistake, I sinned.
I am ashamed of myself.
And the Holy Spirit just reminded me.
The Lord Jesus came for the sinners and
He says there are two kinds of sinners.
One is the sheep and one is the
pig.
Both of them are equally sinners.
But there is a difference between this sinner
and that.
The pig loves filth.
There is a kind of people, when they
sin, they love it.
Like the pig.
When they sin, they enjoy it.
And if they don't sin, there is something
wrong.
But there are kind of people like the
sheep.
When the sheep gets dirty, oh, it loses
it.
I can't stand being dirty.
The sheep hates filth.
That's true.
Ask people that know about animals.
They will tell you.
The sheep can't stand filth, dirt.
The moment they get dirty, they will come,
they say, please clean me.
Immediately, I can't stand it.
I'm suffocating.
Pig gets dirty, starts breathing.
The sheep gets dirty, starts suffocating.
The Lord says, I came for those who
sin and suffocate.
I came to save them.
I came for those, when they sin, they
run to me, begging me for mercy, begging
me for forgiveness, because they can't stand the
sinful status.
These are the people that I came to
choose.
And these sinners, if they hold on to
me, I will make them saints in heaven.
I'll bring them perfect like me, without a
stain, without a spot, without a scratch, without
a blemish.
We will be like Christ.
Or Christ-like.
Perfect.
From sinners to saints, from worldly to heavenly,
from earthly to spiritually, from slaves to sons
of God.
That's what Christ is offering all of us,
every single moment of our life.
And what are we doing?
Too busy for Him?
Too preoccupied with material things that are absolute
vanity?
And Christ has given us the heaven of
all heavens.
Christ has given us not only heaven, He's
given us Himself.
He is much greater than heaven.
You see, it is Christ who makes heaven
heaven.
If it wasn't for Christ, there wouldn't have
been heaven.
That's why my advice is always to you.
What I'm about to say, don't get me
wrong.
Yes, there is hell.
Yes, there is heaven.
And some people believe there is something in
between.
But regardless what you believe, and the Bible
tells us that there is hell and there
is heaven, yes.
But I'll say this to you.
Don't focus on hell or heaven.
Focus on Christ.
Because the place matters not.
What matters is the owner of the place.
As long as I am with the Lord,
who cares where I am?
I don't care about the place, Lord.
I care about you.
You know, I don't want to talk too
much.
Between Abraham and Lut, Abraham was Lut's uncle.
So he is much older, much wiser, and
much more respected than Lut.
But when Abraham heard that the shepherds of
Lut and Abraham started arguing and fighting because
the flock started mixing, and someone said, some
said, this is my land, don't bring your
sheep here.
And the other one said, no, it's my
land, don't bring your sheep here.
They started arguing as shepherds.
Abraham, being the wise father and leader, he
called his nephew to him.
And he said, we are family.
Don't let strangers get between us and separate
us.
So I'll give you the first preference.
You choose a land for you, for your
family, and for your flock.
And you go, and God be with you.
The older, the more respected, gave the preference
to the younger one.
Because Abraham was humble.
So Lut looked around, seeking a land.
And his eyes fell on a very fertile
land with rivers flowing through it.
And he said, that's it, I found this
perfect place for me, for my family, and
for the flock.
And he went away, and he ended up
in Sodom and Gomorrah, where God burned it
to the ground.
Same sex, LGBT.
So it's not something new.
It's very old, this LGBT.
And then Abraham chose a land for himself.
He looked around, and he chose the most
desolate, the most dry, dead land you could
ever think of.
And he said, this land will be perfect
for me, my family, and my flock.
And he went to that land, and that
land ended up being the promised land, Jerusalem.
Because Lut seeked a land with his physical
eye, but Abraham seeked a land with his
spiritual eye.
And Abraham said, I do not care about
the land, I care about the honor of
the land.
For as long as the honor of the
land is with me, he will turn that
desolate, dry, dead land into an oasis.
So when you focus on Christ, the land,
the place matters not.
So therefore I'll say this, Lord, by your
grace and mercy, I say, Lord, I don't
care about heaven.
I don't care about hell.
All I care about is you.
All I want is to be with you,
Lord.
If I am with you, and you take
me to hell, matters not.
Because as long as I'm with you, even
if I'm in hell, I am in heaven.
Because my heaven is not a place, it's
a person called Jesus Christ of Nazareth.
But if I go to heaven, and you're
not there, then it is hell for me.
Because you are heaven, Lord.
I want to be where you are.
I don't care about the place, I care
about you, Dad.
I want to be with you, Lord.
Wherever you go, I want to be with
you.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of
the shadow of death, I will fear no
evil, for you are with me.
Amazing.
King David so beautifully said it in Psalm
23, 4.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of
the shadow of death.
Yea, though I walk through hell.
The valley of the shadow of death is
hell.
Yea, though I walk through hell, I will
fear no Satan, because Jesus is with me.
And when Jesus is with me, then wherever
he goes, it's heaven.
Amen.
I pray, and we ask the Lord Jesus
from the bottom of our heart, that he
grants us this precious gift.
Lord, teach me how to live for you.
I just want to live for you, Lord.
My daughter, if you're getting married, don't focus
on the man that you're marrying.
If he's got money, if he's got wisdom,
if he's got this and that.
Focus on Christ that is in his heart.
And I'll leave you with this.
This is for marriage.
And Christ is the heavenly groom.
He came to betroth his bride to himself,
the church.
Every Christian baptized soul, in the name of
the Father, of the Son, of the Holy
Spirit, is the bride of Christ.
He is the heavenly groom, and we are
the bride.
King Solomon, in the book of Proverbs 31
.10, which is the last chapter of the
book of Proverbs.
Book of Proverbs teaches you wisdom, how to
be wise on earth.
How to be wise on earth.
In Proverbs 31.10, he says, A virtuous
woman, who can find, a question mark, for
her price exceeds the precious pearls.
It's one verse, divided into two parts.
A virtuous woman, who can find, question mark,
for her price exceeds the precious pearls.
Very quickly.
A virtuous woman, who can find, this is
for the man, to seek and find.
For her price exceeds the precious pearls, this
is for the girl, to seek and find,
a partner for her marital life.
He comes to the man.
He says, Son, are you looking for a
girl to marry?
Yes.
Well, let me advise you, since I am
the wisest man on earth, and I received
wisdom from God himself.
King Solomon is saying.
So let me advise you, through my wisdom
received by God, and through God.
My son, if you are seeking a woman
to marry, find a girl that is virtuous.
Now, what is the word virtuous?
Literally it means, loving the Lord, fearing the
Lord Jesus.
My son, find a girl that loves Jesus
Christ of Nazareth.
You know why?
Because the moment you find the girl that
loves the Lord, fear her not.
Since Christ is embedded in her heart, she
will be nothing but good to you.
Because the good God is in her, she
won't do anything but good toward you.
And my daughter, you are seeking a man
in marriage.
Seek the man that sees you as exceeding
the precious stones.
Now the question is, what exceeds the precious
pearls?
Saint Paul answers King Solomon.
He says, He, meaning Jesus Christ, He who
has purchased us, not with silver, not with
gold, not with precious stones or pearls, but
with His own blood.
So what exceeds the pearls?
Blood.
And what is blood?
Life.
And isn't life more precious than pearls?
What are you going to do with pearls
if you are dead?
So he is saying to the son, to
the man, find a woman that loves Jesus
Christ.
And my daughter, when you are seeking a
man, find a man that sees you in
his eyes more precious than pearls.
In other words, find the man who is
willing to put his life on the line
for you, my daughter.
Love the Lord in order to find yourself
and to find the right person in your
life.
But you better find that person through Christ.
And the only way this is going to
happen is when you let Jesus take over
your will.
It is no longer me who lives, but
Christ who lives in me.
It is no longer my way, it is
Christ's way.
It is no longer my will, but it
is Thy will, O Heavenly Father.
You sent Your beloved Son as a sacrifice,
as that grain of wheat to die for
me, to be buried for me.
But He rose from the dead also for
me so that through His death, burial, resurrection,
the Heavenly Father brings many children.
Through death, God gave birth to many sons
and daughters.
Isn't God amazing?
God works in the impossible, not the possible.
What is possible, He leaves it to you.
But what is impossible, He never asks you
of it.
And I'll give you this and definitely I'll
leave you with it.
I'm so sorry.
I get tempted.
What can I say?
Now I'm talking about the love of my
life.
How can you stop talking when you are
in the presence of your love?
How can you stop breathing when you are
in the presence of the one you love
the most?
How can you say, I can't, I need
to go, I need to leave, I'm huffing
and puffing, I'm not comfortable and I'm in
the presence of my sweetheart Jesus.
How can I?
So I'm sorry not for taking so long
of your time because tough luck.
When you come to this bishop, this bishop
is crazy.
When it comes to Jesus, He will never
shut up.
When it comes to the world, you will
not hear a whisper from me because that's
what my Jesus has done to this piece
of wreck called Bishop Murray.
And He's waiting for all of you to
teach you how to live for Him.
God works in the impossible, not the possible.
The possible He leaves to you but the
impossible He will never ask you to do
it.
John chapter 11, the Lord Jesus calls to
raise Lazarus from the dead.
Look at this.
The Lord Jesus stands before the tomb.
He says to the apostles, to the disciples,
the 12 disciples, He says, remove the stone.
Remove the stone from that grave, from the
tomb.
So the disciples go and remove the stone
and then Jesus stands by Himself in front
of that tomb.
He says, Lazarus, come forth.
Removing the stone.
Now I go to the Lord Jesus, I
say, Lord, sorry, pardon my ignorance.
I ask you this question, my Heavenly Father.
Which one is harder?
To say with a word, stone move or
to say with a word, a rotted body
get up and rise?
He will say, well, definitely what is the
harder is to raise the dead.
If I'm able to raise the dead with
a word, I'm definitely able to move the
stone with a little word.
But why didn't you remove the stone yourself?
He says, no, removing the stone is what
you are capable of doing.
Therefore, I will expect you to do what
you are capable of doing.
I will never interfere with what you're capable
of doing.
But I will never allow you to interfere
with what God is capable of doing.
So, removing the stone is you.
You are capable of doing that.
I won't interfere, so I'm expecting you to
remove it.
If you don't, I won't raise Lazarus.
So you better move the stone.
They move the stone.
The Lord Jesus never said, raise Lazarus.
Because only God can raise the dead.
And we are all human beings, except Jesus.
He is the perfect God revealed in this
perfect man.
That's why He stood alone and He said,
Lazarus, come forth.
What God can do, only God will do.
And what man can do, God will expect
the man to do in order to see
God's glory.
Jesus will say, come to church.
You're capable of coming because He gave you
the brain, He gave you the body, He
gave you the intellect, He gave you everything
to make you this human being.
You're capable of getting up and coming to
church.
That's why He will not force you.
He will ask you to come.
But the moment you come, faithfully, you will
leave with God's glory.
Trust in this.
When you come and you mean it, God
will reveal His glory.
One hundred percent.
I've tried it a million zillion times.
God never fails you.
There was never anyone like Jesus.
There is never anyone like Jesus.
And there will never ever be anyone like
Jesus.
Jesus Christ is the only way, is the
only truth, and is the only life.
And He is the only true living God
who was revealed in the flesh.
And He was crucified in the days of
Pontius Pilate.
He was buried.
He died in the flesh on that cross.
He was buried and rose with His own
authority from the dead and ascended to heaven
and sat in glory at the right hand
of His Father.
He will come again one hundred percent to
judge everyone, the dead and the living.
For there is no one in Him salvation
and redemption were made possible except in the
name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth.
Period.
Love Him.
Breathe Him.
And digest Him.
Let Christ be in every fiber of your
being and you be in every fiber of
His being.
Dissolve in Him so that you are no
longer what it is Him who is seen
in you.
This is the perfection that Christ is calling
us to enter heaven with.
Christ-like.
Blessed is the man, the only man who
is the only man that can enter heaven
because He is the only one who fulfilled
all of God's law.
Never sinned, neither through speech nor through action.
Perfect like God but as a man.
You want to enter heaven?
He is the only way to get you
to heaven.
There is no one else.
Look, the Lord took me to heaven and
took me to hell.
You're not going to find anyone but Jesus
Christ in heaven.
Hell is very ugly.
Satan is very ugly.
Satan, you can't last with him a split
second.
You cannot.
He hates the Lord and hates whoever carries
the Lord.
And you don't want to be there.
Trust me, hell is real as heaven is.
Trust me.
Satan is real.
And what is happening in the world?
Satan is behind it.
Have a look at the world.
What a joke.
Fighting, killing, destroying.
What is this?
Everybody is trying to get a nuclear bomb.
Now, why are you getting a nuclear bomb?
Oh, because I want to destroy humanity.
What a genius you are.
Why don't you want to be a reason
for something constructive rather than destructive?
That's the fallen human nature that lives in
darkness.
Christ is the light.
Come to Him to see what life is
all about.
And I pray every human being finds Jesus
Christ of Nazareth.
And I mean it with love and humility.
I love everyone.
I don't care if you're a Muslim, you're
a Buddhist, you're a Hindu, you're an atheist.
I love you all.
Even if you're an LGBT.
I love you.
But I can't approve what you do.
But I love you.
I pray for you.
Because that's my Lord.
That's my Lord.
I pray for everyone's salvation and redemption.
But you will never find anyone except Jesus.
Love the Lord, my beloved.
Blessed is the man.