[0:00] Please open your Bibles up to the book of 1st Timothy. We'll begin in 1st Timothy chapter 1.
[0:30] 1st Timothy chapter 1 and let's notice verse number 18 where the Bible reads, This charge I commit unto thee, son Timothy, according to the prophecies which went before on thee, that thou by them mightest war a good warfare.
[0:53] Now come over to chapter 6. Chapter 6 and verse number 12. Paul writing in the same book saying to Timothy, Fight the good fight of faith.
[1:11] Warring a good warfare, fighting a good fight. Paul says in 2nd Timothy chapter 4, I have fought a good fight. Now look at 2nd Timothy chapter 2.
[1:23] And let's park here on the first four verses. 2nd Timothy chapter 2, verse number 1.
[1:34] Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus, and the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men who shall be able to teach others also.
[1:47] Thou therefore endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth and tangleth himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.
[2:02] Now I think a soldier is the end result of growing in Christ, is the end result of what you're aiming to be.
[2:14] The Bible likens the Christian to a lot of different things, and one of them is a babe. When you're first saved, when you first come to the knowledge of the truth, and you trust Jesus Christ, you're born again.
[2:25] And he references you, tells Peter to, as newborn babes desire the sincere milk of the word. And even Paul tells these carnal believers in Corinth that they're babes, and they're carnal.
[2:37] And the idea there is you start young, and the picture is that as a child then you grow to adolescence, to teenagers, to adulthood perhaps. There's other ideas of what the Christian life is from the Bible.
[2:49] One of them is likened to an athlete or to a runner, who's, Paul says, I finished my course. In 1 Corinthians 9, he's likened to a runner that's running for the prize. But I think the ultimate is a soldier.
[3:02] And not just any soldier, but as he says in verse 3, as a good soldier. A good soldier. Now the reason I'm pointing this out, because God's not interested in you being a bad soldier, or a mediocre soldier.
[3:18] I won't use the word great. We'll reserve that for the Lord Jesus Christ. But a good soldier. If you think about a soldier, or one that you might say is a good soldier, you think a strong, tough, somebody ready, somebody trained and faithful and focused and prepared and brave.
[3:36] And you think of somebody that's going to defend you or defend your country and that can stand up against anything. But not all soldiers are good soldiers, are they? As a matter of fact, there are so many accounts of when push comes to shove, when men and women get placed into battle, in the heat of the moment, some defect.
[3:57] Some turn out to be cowards. And it's not to attack them. It's probably in all of us to be a coward. And spiritually speaking, we've probably shown ourselves to be yellow at times when push comes to shove.
[4:11] But there's traitors. They were men that were trained. The government of that country spent money and time and effort into them and prepared them and outfitted them. And then they turned their back and ended up doing harm.
[4:25] Not a good soldier. Some are lazy. Some soldiers are unprepared. Some make real bad mistakes under pressure. There's accounts of some in certain warfares and jungle warfares of just being too scared and giving up the position and causing great tragedy because they weren't a good soldier.
[4:46] And I want to say a few things this morning about a good soldier that we're called to be in Jesus Christ, to be that strong and brave and faithful and ready soldier in the fight of faith and war of good warfare.
[4:58] And I want to point these things out from this passage. Begin with me in verse number one again, where Paul says, Thou therefore my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.
[5:08] The first thing I want us to think on this morning is that a good soldier is strong. He's strong, but it's not his build or his brawn. It's not his brains.
[5:21] In Ephesians chapter six, where we get that illustration of the whole armor of God, the Bible says, Be strong in the Lord. This man is told to be strong, notice verse one, in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.
[5:38] Now I want to get back to that. Understand though, the strength is not physical strength. Paul says, I put no confidence in the flesh. Paul says, We do not war after the flesh.
[5:49] And because of that, we can't rely on our physical abilities, on our mental abilities. But Paul says, to be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.
[6:00] Why does he tell us to be strong in the grace? Why is it that a good soldier is strong in the grace of Christ Jesus? Grace we often use in its theological sense, and forgive me here for big words, but grace in teaching the appropriation of salvation.
[6:19] For by grace are ye saved through faith. We understand that doctrinally. And that's often where we go to with this thought about salvation in this age, and the word grace, but there's more to grace, and there's a practical aspect to the grace that is in Christ Jesus.
[6:38] And I believe God gives grace to the good soldier, allowing him to endure some things, some hardness, he says in verse three, and so that he doesn't fall out.
[6:52] There's a practical side of the grace of God. And I want to study that with you just briefly. It's something that God administers to believers for a purpose, and maybe for a specific time, the time of need.
[7:05] Now look with me at 2 Corinthians chapter 12. We're going to come back to Timothy. 2 Corinthians 12. And let's learn. We'll do a little bit of a study here and really get this point clear.
[7:18] Why it is being strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2 Corinthians chapter 12.
[7:35] This practical aspect to the grace of God. Notice the apostle Paul describing some conversations that he's had with his Savior.
[7:48] And the conversations was to get rid of this, what he calls thorn in the flesh in verse 7, the messenger of Satan. In verse 8 he says, For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me.
[8:02] So whatever this thing is particularly, it's wearing him out. He's fed up with it. He's begging God to take it away. And does God take it away?
[8:14] No. Verse 9, He said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee. For my strength is made perfect in weakness. Then Paul adds, Most gladly, Therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
[8:30] Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, and reproaches, and necessities, and persecutions, and distresses for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then am I strong. Now Paul didn't start off by taking pleasure in infirmities.
[8:44] He three times was begging God to take it away from him. But when he got the answer, I'm not taking it away, Paul, but instead I'm going to give you the grace to put up with it, and to endure it, and to live through it.
[8:58] And when he got that understanding and realization, that God's going to give me the grace, he's not taking the problem away, but he's giving me the grace to go through it, Paul says, Well, I'm going to glory in this thing then, because this is a gift from God.
[9:11] And I'm going to take that, and I'm going to glory in it, because he's given it to me, he's putting it in my life, and I'm going to rest in his strength now, and in his power, he says. And when I'm weak, this thing's wearing me out, I'm strong in the Lord.
[9:24] And something changed there. He thought this was killing him. He thought this was terrible. And now he turns it and says, No, I'm becoming strong in the grace, which is in Christ Jesus. Now there's more.
[9:35] Look at James chapter 1. James chapter 1. The apostle Paul found that God's grace was sufficient for him to continue on.
[9:55] There was no reprieve. There was no removal. Just God's grace. And that's what it is. God's grace will give the soldier what he needs to endure some things, and to put up with unpleasant situations, to say the least.
[10:11] And to allow him to stand when everything inside of him is screaming, Quit. Give up. Now James chapter 1. And here in these latter epistles, there's a cord that runs through these books toward the end, to Revelation, from Hebrews to Revelation, a cord that connects these books with some doctrine and some training and teaching for a tribulation saint.
[10:37] And there's a thread that's interwoven into that cord of the grace of God. And I don't say that this is all for the tribulation saints by any means.
[10:47] There's a practical application for us today right out of these same teachings. But notice this in James chapter 1. The context of this book begins in verse 2. My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into diverse temptations, knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.
[11:05] In verse 12, Blessed is the man that endureth temptation, for when he is tried, right away in chapter 1, it's about these hard things they're going through. Now come to chapter 4 of James.
[11:17] James chapter 4. And in verse 1, he describes there's wars and fightings among them and he's saying, you're fighting the wrong battles here. And I want to come down to, well, I'll just pick it up in verse 6 here for time.
[11:33] In verse 6, he says this, but he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. Submit yourselves, therefore, to God.
[11:44] Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners, and purify your hearts, ye double-minded. Be afflicted and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning, your joy into heaviness.
[11:55] Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord and he shall lift you up. And in verse 11, there's something that's going to connect through these epistles. Speak not evil, one of another, brethren.
[12:08] And we'll get to that again in a second. Come to the next book, 1 Peter. Now, we caught a few statements about grace.
[12:18] Did we not? He giveth more grace. He giveth grace unto the humble. Now, in 1 Peter, notice the context here. Something going to be very similar.
[12:30] Verse 6 and 7, wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations that the trial of your faith. That's just what James got done saying.
[12:42] Something about being tried. And in this book, Peter deals with suffering and trials in chapter 2 and Jesus Christ being that example toward the end of that chapter.
[12:53] In 1 Peter chapter 3, a load of material about suffering. And come now to chapter 4 of 1 Peter. Let's pick a few thoughts out of here. Let's start in, let's start in verse 8.
[13:11] Well, verse 7 says, But the end of all things is at hand. Be ye therefore sober and watch unto prayer. And above all things, have fervent charity among yourselves, for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.
[13:24] And understanding this, I don't want to just be so doctrinal in tribulations thoughts here, but this is going to be real, real, real in that day when they're going to have to have charity with each other and deal with their problems and deal with things.
[13:37] And in verse 9, use hospitality one to another without grudging. They're going to have to be taking care of each other like he says back in James chapter 2 and really making sure that they stay together.
[13:50] And in verse number 10, As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. What's the gift?
[14:02] It's the manifold grace of God they're ministering one to another in these times of trial and in tribulation and temptation when push comes to shove God gives them all the grace to have charity among themselves to use hospitality one toward another to minister the grace of God to each other.
[14:22] And he goes on in verse 12 talking about the fiery trial which is to try you and being partakers of Christ's sufferings and verse 16 suffering as a Christian. And on it goes.
[14:33] Now come to the next chapter, verse chapter 5. And notice there's the verse 6, verse 5.
[14:45] Likewise ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder, yea, all of you be subject one to another and be clothed with humility for God resisteth the proud and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore unto the mighty hand of God that he may exalt you in due time casting all your care upon him for he careth for you.
[15:02] Be sober, be vigilant because your adversary the devil as a roaring lion walketh about seeking whom he may devour whom resist steadfast in the faith knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.
[15:15] And verse number 10 says, but the God of all grace who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus after that you have suffered a while make you perfect, establish, strengthen, settle you, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever.
[15:29] Amen. Last verse, verse 12 by Silvanus, a faithful brother unto you as I suppose, I have written briefly exhorting and testifying that this is the true grace of God wherein ye stand.
[15:42] Now to put this thought together, this is not a theological statement about the age of grace wherein ye stand as many would see that and go that direction, but no, this is the source or maybe we could call it the resource that God imparts to his children enabling them to stand and to have charity one with another and to care for one another and to stick with it through the sufferings that he says they're going to endure.
[16:08] And even though that has some future implications to the tribulation and it will be very real to them, this is so true to us and really applies, I suppose somebody that's in a communist country, they get this stuff.
[16:24] Somebody where they're being told you can't meet together under the name of Jesus Christ, you can't worship in that name, you'll go to prison. They understand what that means and what it's like and how to get together and to take care of one another and to not be turning each other in or to cover the multitude of their sins because we're children of God, we're sticking together through this thing.
[16:45] But grace, now back to this thought here with the good soldier, is to be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. The true grace wherein ye stand. This is the thing that God gives and puts inside of his children so that they can endure hardness.
[17:02] Peter was fast asleep in prison the night before he was to be executed in Acts chapter 12. What in the world is he doing sleeping? Because the grace of God was abundant. The apostle Paul, that guy was in prison in Acts chapter 16 and he's shackled up and at midnight he's singing praises.
[17:21] Something's not right there. Something's not adding up. Oh wait, no, there was the grace of God present in Paul and Silas' hearts. Stephen in Acts chapter 7 is having grown men hurl rocks at him to murder him.
[17:37] And he's not crying and he's not screaming and he's not running but he's looking up to heaven and calling out to God. Because God in those moments of trial imparts grace to the good soldier of Jesus Christ.
[17:53] He gives them something that allows them to endure it. I wonder if the authorities would burst in here and start making threats. I wonder what fear might cause you to do.
[18:06] I can tell you this much. If you stand up for Jesus Christ you will automatically as a result receive the grace of God to do whatever.
[18:17] You think, I could never go to prison. I could never go to prison for being a Christian. I could never do it. Yes, you could. You don't think you could. You feel like you're too weak. You feel like you're too scared. You feel like that's the worst case scenario.
[18:29] But the truth is that's what the grace of God is. That's what it's for. When something comes down and I'm not prophesying about America but maybe, maybe in our lifetime.
[18:41] It's all over the world. And I don't pretend to be exempt from it because I live here. But whatever the case may be, if it push comes to shove, God promises you to give you the grace to, he says it's sufficient.
[18:56] It's sufficient. It's enough. And you say, well, I don't feel like I could do it. You don't need to feel like you could do it because you're not being tested with it right now. But if that day comes, God will give you the grace to handle it.
[19:09] He'll give you the grace to endure it. I can't explain it because it's, I haven't experienced it to that end. And I hope I don't have to. But if I do, I know and I believe.
[19:20] I've read, you know the martyrs of the past, men and women that have been burned, tied up and lit on fire. And what were they doing? Singing?
[19:31] Singing songs to the Lord Jesus Christ? That's evidence of something, folks. That's the grace of God saying, okay, they're going to light you on fire, you're going to be able to handle it.
[19:42] And here's my grace. And the grace of God comforts and comes over them to where it's not that they don't feel the pain, but it's that the tolerance just got a little bit greater to deal with whatever this circumstance they found them in because of Jesus Christ.
[19:59] So Paul says to the soldier, the good soldier, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. A good soldier, strong in that grace. Not strong in the flesh, not putting confidence in the flesh, but in that the grace of God is going to get me through anything I face for Jesus Christ so I can endure hardness.
[20:19] Come back to 2 Timothy chapter 2 and let's notice something else about this soldier. The good soldier. Notice this good soldier is an example to other soldiers.
[20:37] In verse 2 it says, the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men who shall be able to teach others also. So Timothy has a duty now of passing on what he's received, of training others, not just so that they, not just putting the truth out to others, but to others that will be able to train others.
[21:00] So it's imparting a whole lot. And so Timothy now, look back at 1 Timothy chapter 4. Timothy is to be an example. 1 Timothy chapter 4 and verse number 12.
[21:18] Let no man despise thy youth, but be thou an example of the believers in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.
[21:30] Timothy's life is an example to others. A good soldier is going to be an example to other soldiers and to be training them how to follow them and to serve the Lord Jesus Christ.
[21:43] I felt like this in the years past and in my years at a church in Pennsylvania as an assistant and going up, going to that place with a, basically, just a six-month-old son at the time and in those next 15 years just growing the family and I felt that verse, 1 Timothy 4, 7, or 1 Timothy 4, 12, I felt like that was my calling in that church was to be an example and to show other young couples how to raise your kids in church and how to be faithful to church and how to be active and ready to go and serve the Lord and do anything I can and how to keep them involved in other things but never let those things take the priority from what we're doing here.
[22:28] And that's just something that God put on my heart and that was just a belief that I had that I was to be an example and to raise my family in church faithfully and show them how to do it.
[22:41] And the Lord used that. I know He did. In Hebrews chapter 13 it describes the man that faithfully teaches the Word of God and labors in the Word of God that it says, whose faith?
[22:52] Follow. Follow Him because He's to be an example to you that you can follow. Not all soldiers are good soldiers but all soldiers look up to the good ones.
[23:03] The good ones are strong. The good ones are proven. They're experienced. They're knowledgeable. And they're worth following. They've received training and they understand their responsibility to pass it on to others.
[23:17] A good soldier teaches others also. Their lives are not wrapped up in themselves but in ministering to others. The Lord Jesus Christ called His disciples by saying, follow me.
[23:32] And in years of training and equipping and teaching and preparing those men to be used of God. The Apostle Paul taught Timothy as we read. He's also commanded the church at Corinth to be ye followers of me.
[23:46] He says the same thing to the church at Philippi. He says the same thing to the church at Thessalonica. He teaches them to be followers of him and of his behavior. In Titus he tells the aged men and the aged women to be teachers of good things to show thyself a pattern of good works.
[24:05] A good soldier is an example to follow. Where are the examples in Bible Baptist Church? Where are the examples in this church of a good soldier?
[24:20] active, engaged, knowledgeable, faithful, seeking to serve, to teach, to train, to lead by example. Are you a good soldier?
[24:32] Are you an example? Should I tell my kids hey, you know brother so and so or just watch them. Follow them. They're a good example for you.
[24:44] The choices they make, the response they have, follow them. Training others, leading by example. Not to be successful, not to be funny, not to be popular, but to be spiritual.
[24:57] To train others, to teach others also. A good soldier is an example. A good soldier lives a life worthy of following. Now in 2 Timothy chapter 2 look at verse number 3 and let's notice also that a good soldier is engaged in the fight.
[25:17] He says in verse 3, Thou therefore endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. If he's facing hardness, I know why. It's not because he's on the couch.
[25:29] It's because he's in the fight. A good soldier is engaged in that fight. Life's harder living in the barracks than it is living in the peace and quiet and comfort of your home.
[25:41] It's more difficult to be constantly training and fighting and sharpening your weapons and preparing yourself for battle than it is to perfect your golf swing or to get to the next level of a video game.
[25:56] It's a lot harder to condition yourself for endurance than to work on your suntan. A good soldier is engaged in the fight. That's why he's facing hardness.
[26:09] And if he's enduring hardness it's because he's battling and he's warring the good warfare and fighting the good fight of faith. He's not on the sidelines. He's not supporting from a distance but he's engaged.
[26:22] Look at chapter 3 of this same book in verses 10-12 the apostle Paul's testimony of his engagement. In verse 10 he says Thou hast fully known my doctrine manner of life purpose faith long suffering charity patience persecutions afflictions which came upon me at look at these places Antioch 1 Iconium 2 Lystra 3 everywhere he went what persecutions I endured but out of them out of them all the Lord delivered me yea and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.
[26:56] The good soldiers engaged in the fight he's not a spectator. I had a friend when I was in Bible school a guy that we're in the same class going through these training and preparations for the ministry and he displayed felt called to preach and he felt led to the Lord to go to school and we were we connected we kind of had similar personalities we were friends and over time as we matured and worked our way through the school there was an opportunity that came up to me to preach in a convalescent home and so every time that I just felt this this just obligation this burden that if God gives me an open door an opportunity to preach I'm not really good at preaching at all but I'll do it I'm not going to say no to God so I felt like that's my duty if the Lord gives me a chance he's given it to me for a reason I'm going to say yes and so this guy approached me asked me if I'd preach every other
[27:58] Saturday at a nursing home and so I felt like oh I've got to preach I've got to get sermons together every what every two weeks I have to be ready that was like scary for me because I had very little experience of doing this at all but I said yes I felt inside God saying this is for you and I thought right away as soon as I said yes I just like wow this is going to give me experience I'm going to be you know preaching to people who aren't going to be paying attention anyway and it's just good for everybody nobody's going to care and so I began doing this and as I went I was riding around in this fellow's vehicle out in Alabama and we were just going off with some is this being recorded I better not tell you what we were doing but we were just having a good time letting off some steam from school now we were out there and I just said to him I said hey why don't you preach why don't you come to the nursing home with me some Saturday and preach and he's like no and I was like I was shocked
[29:01] I thought we're all in this together kind of thing like everybody's ready to go or at least interested and he's like nope right away just sharp nope and I didn't believe him I'm like are you kidding me you won't do it he's like nope not preaching and now I'm really like okay what's going on here this is something wrong with this guy and I didn't perceive this at all and I said what's going on or why not he says I'm not preaching unless the Lord makes me or until he forces me to and so when he's forced to would be in class we had different classes about this and there was you know different things required of every student and so he knew that was coming but other than that that was he wasn't doing it and I didn't get it that just blew my mind and I said why not I said this will be good for you it's been good for me it's it forces you to do something you don't want to do and it helps you get all these things and he said no I won't do it and I look back and that guy graduated Bible school with all these high hopes and he didn't even last a year he got involved in the local church for a little bit and then gone and friends of mine back in those days were contacting him pleading with him trying to get him to get right wouldn't happen and anyway you know why because he wasn't a good soldier you know why I know that because he wouldn't get engaged in the fight he had an opportunity and he said no I'm not doing it it's not for me and he was scared the truth is he was scared to do it but he didn't didn't understand the grace of God would have been there and he could have done all things through Christ which strengthen him but instead his fear dominated him and he's out not a good soldier come back to second Timothy we're in chapter 2 and read the final verse here in verse number 4 Paul says no man that woreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier notice verse 26 of this passage and it says they that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil who are taken captive by him at his will there's a snare of the devil taking people captive and he refers in verse 4 about entangling himself with the affairs of this life and the fourth thing
[31:22] I want to say about a good soldier is that he's aware of opposition and he's aware of distractions and he views these things through spiritual eyes eyes that have been renewed by the word of God the good soldier is aware that there's an enemy and he's aware that things will get wrapped around him and hold him back and even snare and snare him from fulfilling his calling and duty and so he exercises discernment a good soldier has the word of God as his lamp to his feet and light to his path a good soldier sober and vigilant aware of his adversary not ignorant of his devices a good soldier walks circumspectly not as fools but as wise understanding what the will of the Lord is a good soldier is not deceived like those men in verse 17 of chapter chapter 2 and verse 18 who concerning the truth have erred but not a good soldier he's aware he's not deceived he's not distracted like in verse 22 with his own youthful lusts or with verse 23 foolish and unlearned questions no a good soldier sees through it and he's exercised in the word of God he's not going to get entangled in the affairs of this life for one reason that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier his eyes are on the captain of his salvation he cares only what his captain thinks he cares only what his captain says he doesn't care what's popular he doesn't care what the brethren think he's not caught up with the shifty sands of politics of our day or the national news he doesn't care if man approves because he studies in verse 15 to show thyself approved unto God a good soldier is not swayed by popular opinion a good soldier is not tempted by loose women a good soldier is not interested in the praises of men because he has orders to follow and all he cares about is pleasing him who hath chosen him to be a soldier I know a man a pastor that would go out in the street he was a street preacher in our area and I met up with him a few times and and over time as the years passed he really got hooked on standing against the government and he got his whole congregation obsessed with the laws of the land with their rights and with the amendments and they would always every chance there was something going on in the news they would rally and they would be at it and they weren't wrong in what they were saying they were scriptural as far as taking the you know the biblical stance maybe or the right stance we'd say and they'd hold signs but after a while I noticed where's the gospel why is it that your ministry has really become overshadowed with the government and addressing the government and trying to fix the government and it stood out to me and I kind of after time separated myself from him because I didn't want to be known as that and I didn't want to be that to get sucked into that I wasn't going to get entangled with what I believed was the affairs of this life I know there's preachers today that that are deluded about revival in the United
[34:55] States of America and they believe they're going to make a difference when they contact their congressmen and send them a Bible and they study the Constitution more than they study the Word of God and they have this theory that we're going to influence the government and win them the Christ and then we're going to have Christians running the nation and it's it's such it's not a biblical perspective in theory it makes sense sure I mean yeah that'll work let's let's get them all saved and then we'll be a Christian nation for real but it's not going to happen it's never going to happen you won't be able to find a Bible verse to back that theory up either but these fellas go on trying to establish a Christian government and save America and they're deluded and they're entangled in something and a good soldier stands with a King James Bible under the banner of the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ and refuses to be distracted by the world and by the flesh and by the devil and even by the brethren the ones that are deceived a good soldier cares only about pleasing him that have chosen him to be a soldier so this morning a good soldier and there's plenty of them there's plenty of soldiers I should say but there's few good ones a good soldier strong in the grace that is in Jesus
[36:13] Christ a good soldiers and examples for other soldiers and he's worthy of following a good soldiers engaged in the good fight of faith that's what he's known for it's his reputation and as a result he faces hardness and endures it and comes out on top and even when he has hardness that's okay because he knows and he's aware that there's going to be plenty of opposition to a work of God and he's aware he gets that a good soldier are you a good soldier this morning have you enlisted in the fight of faith are you born again have you have you come into that family and and stood shoulder to shoulder with the believers of Jesus Christ and taken rank but are you a good one because there's a lot of soldiers but there's only a few good ones and if I had said could you write down on a piece of paper five men or women that you think are good soldiers of Jesus Christ could you do it and if we all did it I wonder would your name be on any piece of paper the question is not do you think you're a good one do your brethren know and believe that you're worthy of following are you a good soldier let's bow our heads together you you you you you you you you