Principles from the Judgments, Pt. 2

[0:00] It's a good song. It's a good song. It might prick your heart a little bit while you sing it, which is good.

[0:12] It's good for you. It's good for all of us. Amen. Alright, so please open your Bibles now to the book of Exodus, chapter 22 this morning.

[0:24] So, Exodus chapter 22, we've been covering, now that we've gotten past the Ten Commandments of chapter 20, now we've found ourselves in three chapters of judgments.

[0:39] And the materials we looked at last week is somewhat random in covering a variety of topics. And the goal here is not to spiritualize every aspect of the Jewish law, but rather to learn how God expects His people to operate and to handle situations that come up in everyday life.

[1:00] Because that's where you live. You have an everyday life. You have interactions. You have relationships. And there's just sometimes you need to be taught how to handle it or you need to be reminded of just what's right or what the mind of God is on this.

[1:14] And so I find that there's much benefit in reading through these things, even though some of the particulars don't really relate completely. still we're finding much principle that I think is very applicable.

[1:26] In chapter 21, last week we covered the entirety of the chapter, and we saw some, I guess, I guess broke it down into some categories or things I called issues.

[1:37] For instance, the first was the issue of entitlement, where that servant that fulfills his role is not entitled to anything else, and the master doesn't owe him anything, and vice versa. And so we covered that.

[1:48] Our nation and our generations today find themselves very entitled and very expectant of either the government or just everybody in their life to just bow down and do what they need them to do so that they can have a good day or have an easy day.

[2:01] And that's just not true. It's not right. And so we dealt with that issue of entitlement. We dealt with the issue of conflict last week, where in that middle of the chapter there's smiting and there's striving going on in many different situations and realize that you're not permitted to take matters into your own hands and you're not allowed to finish something that someone else starts.

[2:22] And in the case where you do and where there's damage done, you have to pay up and you have to make good on the damage and fix it. And you're responsible for what your hands do. And so we saw some things about the category or the issue of conflict.

[2:35] Then the final one toward the end of the chapter was the issue of negligence of someone's carelessness and someone's reckless behavior in affecting other people. And that's going to kind of spill into the beginning of this chapter in chapter 22 because as we begin this one, we're going to do the same thing, try to cover the entire chapter and put it into categories and different issues that come up in our everyday lives.

[3:01] And as far as sermon material goes, we'll just be doing topics. Like summarizing these things, it's not, these chapters just don't lend themselves to just a perfect three points in a poem where it's all theme based.

[3:14] It's going to be a little more just categorically addressing these things as God puts them in the scriptures. And then trying to take away principles from these judgments. Remember, these are judgments.

[3:26] These are, the commands were given. And now what do you do if you violate that command? Well, here's what you do. And the judges were to enforce these judgments upon the people. Some of the stuff here we read is a repeat from the commands.

[3:43] Some of it's kind of like sub points to the commands. And then some other things are just, the command is broad. And now it identifies a specific scenario or specific application.

[3:54] For instance, thou shalt not steal. And now in chapter 22, verse 1, if a man shall steal an ox or a sheep and kill it or sell it, then we have to deal with what happens when somebody violates that command.

[4:06] So we're going to read together to start this, the first 17 verses, which is going to be kind of the first chunk we take together. And as we read it, I think you'll see as it comes through clearly what this category or issue is that people have to deal with in their everyday life and relationships.

[4:23] So it's not really going to be about stealing. But you'll see. Verse number 1,

[6:58] I would call this the issue of restitution. That is of making things right. There's a wrong way to do it and there's a right way to do it. And sometimes handling these situations are not handled the right way.

[7:12] And sometimes or some people, they're famous for causing chaos and then moving on and burning the bridge behind them and severing a relationship and they can never see or talk to them again because they never dealt with what caused the fraction in the first place.

[7:29] Some people are never to blame. And yet they'll make a problem and they'll consider themselves to be the victim of the problem. And it's frustrating, as you probably know, to deal with somebody that refuses to admit that they're wrong or that refused to make the situation right.

[7:44] It's very frustrating to deal with that. And in some cases, you lose a relationship because they refuse to make restitution. Now remember this while we're reading these judgments and looking at these everyday situations and how to handle them.

[7:58] Remember that God is cultivating a culture built upon honesty, upon integrity, and upon righteousness. This is the formation of a nation that is going to go on and live and govern themselves within a land.

[8:15] And so all of this is at the onset of that. This is still at the Mount, Mount Sinai. And he is trying to cultivate a culture in these people to be a holy people and the people that love one another.

[8:28] And so when they do right in these areas of conflict, of things coming up within just everyday life, when they do the right thing, they are to believe that God will bless that behavior.

[8:41] He's giving them the command and he's expecting them to obey it. And when things happen and things go wrong and this takes place there, then I'm expecting you to do the right thing and to make it right.

[8:54] And by the way, I'd like to say here, that's evidence of faith right there, is believing that God is aware of the situation, that this happened and it was unfortunate, but it happened and now I need to make it right, but I can't afford to do it.

[9:07] God expects you to do what it takes to make it right and to trust that that's a pleasure to him and that he'll bless my obedience to his word. That's what walking by faith is, is the word of God says this, I'm going to live according to that, I'm not going to justify it, I'm not going to calculate whether I can afford it or whether it's going to work out good for me in the end, I'm just going to do what I think God says to do, what the book says, that's living by faith.

[9:32] The pastor I grew up under would say that all the time, faith is simply taking God at his word. If God said it, then that's it, that settles it for me, that's how I'll live my life.

[9:43] And so in this area of restitution, it takes a bit of faith for somebody to make something good, especially when they feel like there was nothing I could have done about it or I can't afford to do that or I can't restore fivefold, five oxen for the one or four for the one sheep.

[9:58] And yet doing it is the right thing to do. Now, I told you last week that one time I borrowed a hammer drill and when I borrowed that drill, I broke the chisel bit and I was completely felt like this wasn't my fault.

[10:12] I've used these things all the time and I've never broken one like that and I wasn't putting too much pressure, I wasn't being reckless or careless with another man's tool and I truly felt like it wasn't my fault.

[10:24] Yet I told you I replaced the bit because it was the right thing to do and it was the right testimony to have toward who was a brother in Christ that I borrowed it from. And so I felt pretty good about doing the right thing there, making restitution.

[10:40] I felt pretty good about it. But I'll have to admit and be transparent that I'm not always innocent and haven't always been innocent in these things. I want to tell you a little story here. I feel like I may have mentioned this in either a doctrines class or part of this here, but I'll just give it to you this morning.

[10:55] I'm sure it's new to many of you. Years ago, probably I want to say about 15 years ago, when we were back in Pennsylvania and we were working, living at the church, on the church grounds, there was a Wednesday night where a missionary came through the church and he was a friend, a brother in Christ, a friend of mine that I knew.

[11:13] And it was fun to re-quaint with him and see him and his family, his wife, and just be able to talk a little bit Wednesday night after church. And so we said goodnight and he went to the room that we had for him there at the prophet's chamber, they called it.

[11:26] And my wife and I and family went to the house and the kids went to bed, wife went to bed. And I was sitting up, reading my Bible out there on a couch I had a lamp on and I was just reading through the book of Leviticus, early in the book of Leviticus, and a knock came at the door.

[11:42] And it was, you know, Wednesday night, and everybody's in bed. It's not three in the morning, but it's pretty late. And I just thought, what's that? You know, who in the world? And sometimes living on the church grounds, just there's things like that.

[11:55] But I opened the door and there was that missionary. And I was like, what's going on? I expected something's wrong in the room, the heat's not working, something we'll have to, but no, he said, brother, he had an envelope and he handed me an envelope and he said, the Lord told me, I feel the Lord would tell me to give this to you.

[12:11] And as I took it, I just was like, what is, and he said, it was a couple hundred bucks. And I was trying to give, I was like, no, no, like you're the missionary, we're to give to you.

[12:23] You're the one that's trying to, you know, live it on the road, got your family, like all of that. I don't want to take a dime from you. I wish I could give you more. And he's like, he was adamant, he's like, I'm not leaving here with this money.

[12:36] Like, I feel God, like it's, and I understood the situation. That hour and night, he felt convicted to do it, he went and did it, like, I'm not going to stand in the way of that, even though I feel awkward. And so I just said, okay, I understand.

[12:49] And meanwhile, I'm thinking, could I send this to the mission board? Could I, like, how can I get this off my hands? Because I just didn't feel right. It just, you know, it's probably pride. But nevertheless, we said goodnight, and I just set that envelope down on the table, and I sat back down, and opened my Bible up, and turned to the book of Leviticus quickly, and look at chapter number six.

[13:12] Just giving you a little story here, a little insight into something that took place in my life, and how the Lord used it to work in a situation that I needed to make right. Leviticus, the next book over, chapter number six.

[13:28] So there was the envelope, sat on the, on the table. I picked my Bible up, just to continue where I left off, and I begin reading, and this, this passage just applies to what we're studying in Exodus.

[13:40] Verse one, the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, if a soul sin, and commit a trespass against the Lord, and lie unto his neighbor, and that which was delivered him to keep, or in fellowship, or in a thing taken away by a vine, violence, or hath deceived his neighbor, and as I read those words, deceived his neighbor, the Lord brought to mind something that was completely unrelated to the missionary, and to the money, to, just, just like that, brought to mind something that took place, I want to say, three to four years prior to that.

[14:16] And, what happened in this situation was, I was working a job, and working, installing sprinklers in buildings, like hospitals, and grocery stores, and libraries, and schools, and things, and those, the fire protection, and, and I, as I was working, I was there, going to church, there, and just working this job, and there was a young man, that was in Bible college, and he come home for the summers, and, and I got him a job, working with me, as my apprentice, or helper, in the job, and so it was wonderful, that we had this great relationship, and we were able to, listen to Christian music, and read the Bible, and study the Bible together, during the day, we loved, I loved it, he loved it, we had a great time, one of the things we did on the job, just what you do on the job, was we collected copper, that the electricians would leave behind, copper wires, little snips of it all over, copper you could, exchange for money, and recycle, so we started doing that, we started collecting, and by the time after job, to job, to job, we had boxes of it, and just tons of it, and so we burned it off, some of the things, don't do that by the way, probably not allowed to do that, we burned, we cleaned up the copper, and we turned it in, and we got,

[15:24] I turned it into the scrap yard, I don't know what I got, like seven or eight hundred dollars, whatever it was, it was a pretty, you know, for then it was like another paycheck, it was probably two paychecks, who knows, but we were, you know, the idea was we split this money, and for some reason, I kind of said, you know what Toby, you did more work than he did, you're the one that was, tending to the fire, or stripping some of this stuff off on your own, you were really the one doing it, you deserve more than he does, he did a little dumpster diving, yeah, but still, and so I in my heart justified, that I should keep more than half, and so when we got together the next day, or something at work, and I handed him, I don't know, 250 bucks, or 300 bucks, whatever it was, it was not half of the money, and I led him on to believe, I didn't say this is half, I never lied, but I kind of implied that we were splitting, and I kind of let him believe that anyway, and, but I knew in my heart, I kept back, and I never was clean, or honest about this, and so, when, when I read that, if a soul sin, it says, or lie to his neighbor, or hath deceived his neighbor, and I'm telling you, years have passed, and right now, in this night,

[16:38] I'm reading that passage, and it just, boom, that thought hits me, of what I did there, I had let that go, I had justified that, I had pretended it wasn't a big deal, but I guess the Lord, didn't forget about it, and a couple years later, he brought it back, in front of me, and said, you deceived him, you are guilty, and I keep reading here, in verse 3, or I have found that which was lost, or lieth concerning it, and sweareth falsely, and any of these things, that a man doeth sinning therein, than it shall be, because he hath sinned, and is guilty, and I'm reading this, I'm just like, getting smacked around, back and forth, this is me, my heart is smiting me, he shall restore, that which he took away violently, or violently away, or the thing which he hath deceitfully gotten, or that which was delivered him to keep, in verse 5, it says, or all that about, that which he hath sworn falsely, he shall even restore it, in the principle, and shall add the fifth part more, thereto, and give it unto him, to whom it appertaineth, 120% was what God's saying, you owe, and in verse 6, and he shall bring his trespass offering, unto the Lord, and so you need to make it right, with that man, and then you need to make it right, with God, is what was coming out of that, and the priest makes an atonement for him, be forgiven him, and so forth, and there I sat that night, and I thought, and I looked over at that envelope, couple hundred bucks, and it was just like, this is not coincidental stuff, this happened, the Lord laid it on his heart, and then the Lord just smacks me, with something I felt,

[18:13] I'm guilty of, I deceived my brother, over some money, and I felt like, I've got to make this right, and this is what I'm going to have to do, and so it was easy come, easy go, with the cash, but I wrote a letter, got the address, to where this man was, and he was married, and he was down south, and sent him the money, told him, and I apologized, told him the truth of the matter, and the cause, and part of it was inside, I thought, I don't want to wait, to the judgment seat of Christ, to have to find out, how many people I've wronged, in my life, and how now I've got to get, if I could get it right now, that's how I want to do it, I want to make restitution today, and so I did, and I was determined, that I'm not going to carry this, to the judgment seat of Christ, I'm glad I got that one, off my conscience, it's one that I had forgotten of, but the Lord remembered, and brought it to my mind, when I was reading the word of God, how about that, don't be afraid to read your Bible, it's a good thing, it'll help cleanse you, sanctify you, get things right, now for the Christian, restitution then, isn't just the right thing, to do today, to fix the, to mend relationships, or keep from burning bridges, but it's also getting things, right down here, so that they don't have to be dealt with, in front of the throne, or the judgment seat, of Jesus Christ, and I think we'd do the best, to eliminate, some of those things, if we just humble ourselves today, now this is how I feel about it strongly, and I want you to get this, the best part, of that story that I told you, how the missionary gave up some money, felt God telling him to do that, and me, the Lord deal with my heart, and giving me the opportunity,

[19:51] I see that as God, doing those things, to give me an opportunity, not just to get something right, with somebody, which by the way, that brother wrote me back, and said, praise the Lord, thank you for that, you don't know, that we needed that right now, I mean the Lord just knew, what to do, and when to do it, and he worked it out, to God be the glory, but something better, in that in my mind, is that because, I dealt with that situation, it spurred my heart, to think about, what else, have I not gotten right, where else am I at odds, with a brother, or just, do I need to make restitution, and as I prayed, the Lord brought something to mind, that I was involved in, in the present tense, that it was just kind of like, out of sight, out of mind, almost swept under the rug, it just, you know, if I have to deal with it, I'll deal with it, if not, don't want to make a big scene, it just was something, but it was ongoing, and the Lord, because I was able, to take care of the one, gave me the courage, and the confidence, to,

[20:57] I want to be innocent, and I want to be clean, with my brothers, and I don't want to, be at odds, and have to deal with this, in some other way, in some other day, and so, I went to a brother, who now is with the Lord, by the grace of God, I was able to go to him, and sit down, and talk some things out, and got it fixed, and restitution, was made, and agreed upon, and I get to stand, innocent before God, with some of these things, that have happened, little stumbling blocks, along the way, I've got to clean, some of them up, by the grace of God, and I think that missionary thing, was just opening the door, to allow me to be able, to get the other one better, before, I couldn't make that right today, if I wanted to, there's no way, I could make the other one right, and so the Lord, allowed me to take care, of that one too, and I thank him for that, and I praise him for that, and I'm not declaring you, to be some holy, innocent person, up here at all, I'm just saying, I'm to be an example, of the believers, and this is one case, in conversation, and so when we deal, with the issue, of restitution, maybe God's just going, to use this, parking on this today, in my testimony, and stories to you, to say, hey, it's time for you, to start thinking, let's clear the slate, if the slate needs to be cleared, don't just, put it off, put it off, put it off, if God's bringing it to mind, then today's the day, because I'm not bringing anything, to your mind,

[22:22] I'm not telling you, anything you did wrong, I don't even know, but you know, in your heart, and the Lord puts his finger on it, and says, that thing, that person, that situation, let's get it right, so the issue, of restitution, it's a principle here, that we can take, that we need to make, our relationships right, we need to restore, those things, we need to make restitution, in the areas that we're guilty, and don't wait, till the judgment seat of Christ, alright, from there we stopped, at verse 17, let's take a look, at the next three verses, things get ugly here, pretty quickly, verse 18 through 20, thou shalt not suffer, a witch to live, whoso lieth with a beast, shall surely be put to death, he that sacrificeth, unto any God, save unto the Lord, only, he shall be utterly destroyed, so here we got some, just boom, boom, boom, three, back to back to back, really quick, and seemingly random, strong statements, and I'm going to say, this is God's judgments, about the issue, of abomination, abomination, an abomination, is an act, or an object, in some of these cases, that is held, with intense hatred, or contempt, it's vile, it's depraved, and in this case, we see three separate things,

[23:40] I'll give you some scripture, if you're taking notes, you want to scribble it down, or look it up later, he just, just quick fires, one, two, and three at him, and doesn't give any explanation, or any, it doesn't, divulge any more information, or connect anything else, to this, but, for the witch, in verse 18, you can write down, Deuteronomy 18, verses 9 through 12, you're going to see him, expand upon that, in that passage, so he just, fires out one thing, witch, but there's a whole lot more, necromancy, and enchanters, and sorcerers, and all of that, that's all of that, to be put to death, and so he's, these are just quick ones, these are judgments, these are things, that he's not, expounding everything upon, but he's, you know, when, if the judge hits, somebody who claims, to be some, prognosticator, or sorcerer, they'll know how to handle it, because of this principle, or this statement, in verse 18, alright, in verse 19, this thought of bestiality, you can write down, Leviticus 18, verses 20 through 30, where he deals with that, in a little more, in depth, or at least, expands upon it,

[24:47] I'll say, and in both of those passages, I mentioned already now, this is where they're identified, as abominations, from the Bible, the text, it says, this is an abomination, to the Lord, and the same thing's true, of idolatry, the third one, in verse 20, sacrificing to any God, you can note, Deuteronomy 27, 15, and Deuteronomy 29, 16, and 17, both these cases, the worshipping of idols, or graven images, is called, idolatry, or sorry, it's called an abomination, so that's the right word, to plug on, to put on top, of these three verses, that go back, to back, to back, the issue of abomination, now what can we say about it, in this passage, we're not going to deal with these, as individual things, that we're supposed to go out, on a witch hunt, but what we will say, is that the judgment, for all three of these, is death, death, death, put them to death, God said, man, God would not be, he would not be allowed, in our society, oh he's not, one nation under God, oh you weren't going to hear them, talk like that, death, put them to death, only a brief sample here, in these three quick verses, just real shotgun snaps, but, there's certain defiling behavior, certain defiling sins, and depraved behavior, that are common, among the heathen, that were never to be permitted, and never to be committed, by a holy people of God, and they're called an abomination, something that, is extremely hated, or disdained by God, things that God loathes, things that God hates, and what we learn here, is that some sins, are worse than other sins, and I know the Bible says, all unrighteousness is sin, that's absolutely true, but there's some sins, that God says, you don't get to make up, for that one, you don't get to move on, from that one, you're done, you're dead, because you did that, and so,

[26:45] God's showing us, extreme sins, call for extreme punishment, and it's apparent, that some sins, then carry more weight, and deserve greater recourse, God didn't kill everybody, for every single trespass, against the law, and we've already studied, he made provisions, within that law, for them to bring their sacrifice, to the altar, to the priest, and make atonement, for their sins, even like I read, in Leviticus chapter 6, where it can be forgiven him, for a sin, but certain sins, these are abominations, and there's no recovery, and so the principle here, I want to bring into us, is when it comes to creating, a holy culture, when it comes to creating, a holy nation, there are things, that can be forgiven, and fixed, and there are things, that must be removed, and cannot go on, there are lines, that when they're crossed, the remedy is removal, in this Old Testament sense, in case, it's death, it's exactly what it is, capital punishment, now this principle, and I'm saying principle, don't take this to mean, that we need to start, killing people, or don't take this to mean, that this has anything to do, with your salvation, in Jesus Christ, we're not going to try, to tie everything down, to where we live today, but understand by principle, where some sins, are worse than others, and need to be dealt, with differently, by principle, this can apply, to a marriage, to where there's, an unfaithful spouse, that's crossing a line, and you can seek restoration, but you also have, biblical grounds, to remove, from that situation, this can apply, to rules in a home, where certain things, are never permitted, in this home, and if that's something, you want to bring, into this home, then you can see, your way out the door, and it's drawing a line, and you have the liberty, to judge that, in your own home, your bosses, do that at work, they'll say, there's certain behavior, at work, that will not be tolerated, it's grounds, for dismissal, and that's the same, kind of principle, concept, we're not talking, about killing, but you get the idea, it's removing, and you could say, that this applies, to members of a church, just the same, as all these other, areas in life, so there are boundaries, there's rules, there's certain behaviors, that are not to be tolerated, not to be overlooked, and the judgment, is removal, in principle, is death, in literal sense, of the Old Testament, but I need to remind you, while we're talking about this, these are abominations, these are like, the worst of the worst, things that we read about there, these are, the Satanism, and filthy debauchery, this is not stealing, and fighting, there's some things, and many things, that can be restored, we're not looking, to cut people's heads off, this morning, because you're this, or you're that, but these, in these abominations, or at least in the principle, what we can see is,

[29:36] God does weigh sins differently, and some do deserve, graver consequences, and the goal is, to create a holy nation, a holy culture, that's a goal, for a Christian life, is to create holiness, God still wants to do that, within you, and within this place, and so, sins need to be removed, things that are violating, his word, need to be removed, now we'll go on from there, we got to verse 20, and that's the issue, of abomination, now let's take another look, at the next category, if we could call it that, and I'm going to call this, I don't have a great word, for this, but I'll say, this is the issue, of outcasts, meaning there's, there's certain people, in society, we'll read about them, briefly here, that are strangers, they're not Jews, they're not Hebrews, by birth, and they could get, treated differently, or looked upon differently, there's people, that have had bad things, happen in their lives, women that have lost, their spouse, it's not their fault, but now they're, without a husband, they're a widow, their children, don't have a father, sometimes they're orphans, and how are you going, to treat them, what about the poor people,

[30:40] Christ said, the poor you have with you, always, and so how are they, going to deal with that, so I'm going to call these, the outcasts, in the sense of, just misfortune, or just abnormalities, in society, because, we got plenty of that, so take a look, at verse 21, and let's read through, here a little bit, verse 21, thou shalt neither vex, a stranger, nor oppress him, for ye were strangers, in the land of Egypt, you shall not afflict, any widow, or fatherless child, if thou afflict them, in any wise, and they cry at all, unto me, I will surely hear their cry, and my wrath shall wax hot, and I will kill you, with the sword, and your wives, shall be widows, and your children fatherless, if thou lend money, to any of the people, that is poor by thee, thou shalt not be to him, as an usurer, neither shalt thou lay upon him, usury, if thou at all, take thy widow, or thy neighbor's, raiment to pledge, thou shalt deliver it unto him, by that the son goeth down, for that is his covering only, it is his raiment, for his skin wherein shall he sleep, and shall come to pass, when he crieth unto me, that I will hear, for I am gracious, and so I'm just calling these outcasts,

[31:48] I don't know that's the greatest, word to deal with this, but you get the idea, that people in less fortunate situations, people that are, a bit of a abnormality, of what a traditional home, and family would be, in the first case, the stranger is the outsider, they're the outcast, and the command is, that you're not going to mistreat them, you can't vex, or oppress them, he says that again, later in chapter 23, in verse 9, look at that one, 23, 9, also thou shalt not oppress a stranger, for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers, in the land of Egypt, and God's not going to permit them, to treat them, in any abusive way, or as if they're inferior, and he tells them, remember your past, remember that you were strangers, and let me just, the only thing I'm going to give you, on this section here, this verse, and thought, is that it's a very, it's a great thought, that goes beyond these judgments, is remember your past, because you're going to be quick, to think well, why don't they do this, why don't, just turn it around on yourself, and you know, back up five years, or ten years, or twenty, or whatever it needs to be, and remember what you thought, when you were in sin, or when you were, in the world, or carnal, or just, just consider, what God forgave with you, or what he was, long suffering, and patient in your life, don't be so quick, to start casting stones, at somebody that's nearby, because they don't live up, to the standard you live to, he tells them, you don't dare oppress them, you don't dare vex them, because you were a stranger, remember what you were, before God delivered you, and don't be so quick, to despise a stranger, that doesn't live up, to the lifestyle that you do, and don't look down upon them, and despise them, you might pray for them, you might be an example to them, but be careful how you treat them, secondly here is a, is the widows, or the fatherless child, if they cry, if you afflict them in any wise, and they cry at all unto me,

[33:54] I will surely hear, God takes such a strong stance, and says I will kill you, with the sword, if you mess with them, they're defenseless, they're helpless, and it'll be very easy, for you to take advantage of them, and to run right over them, and there's certainly people, in this world, and in this life, that you could take advantage of, instead he expects them, to care for them, to show compassion to them, do you know the last thing, he said unto them, in verse 27, when it came to that poor person, he said, for I am gracious, you take care of them, I'm gracious, that's what I expect, to see out of you, that same exact attitude, this is what God wants to, instill into this culture, into this people, is not selfishness, is not bearing false witness, against their neighbor, so that they can take, possession of their neighbor's property, or because the husband, the man is dead, and now I have an opportunity, to devour a widow's houses, and for a pretense, make long, no God says, I want you to be gracious to them, I want you to be giving to them,

[34:56] I want you to be caring to them, in their loss, have compassion on those, that are less favorable, in their situations, and granted, I'm considering these situations, to be not of their own making, meaning, they're not strung out on the street, and if you give them 20 bucks for food, they take it, and spend it on alcohol, or something else, we're not dealing with, that kind of situation here, when he says the poor, or the widows, these are situations, that they didn't get themselves into, and putting 20 bucks on them, is not going to fix their problem, in our society, but these are outcast, or misfortunate peoples, that could be taken advantage of, and the command is pretty plain there, to not mess with them, let's finish up here, in verse 28, it says, thou shalt not revile the gods, nor curse the ruler, of thy people, the reference here, the word gods, is connected back to, verse number 9, where the cause, is supposed to come, before the judges, and whom the judges, shall condemn, he shall pay double, unto his neighbor, if the judges, condemned me, and I had a beef, with my neighbor, and we took it, before the judges, and they condemned me, the command is, you don't rebuke them, you don't say, you don't know, what you're talking about, you just do that, because you,

[36:08] I don't, I have to, I have to receive, that punishment, and make rest, whatever it is, I am not permitted, to speak against, the authorities, I'm to show submission, and we'll call this, verse here, an area, or issue of submission, which is very relevant, in many areas, it's dealing with, respect for authority, and we're open, rebuke of authority, reviling them, whether they're the judges, or the priests, is not permitted, remember the apostle Paul, in Acts chapter 23, where he was smitten, and he said, God smite thee thou, and the guy's like, you're reviling, the Lord's high priest, and he backed off, right away, and he said, I wish not, that he was the Lord's high priest, I should not have done that, because the scripture says, and he quotes the verse, right here, that you're not allowed, to revile them, or curse the ruler, of thy people, and so the apostle Paul, realized that he was wrong, even though the high priest, was wrong, and what he commanded, Paul was wrong, in his rebuke, and so we're dealing, with the issue of submission, here, respect, and submitting to authority, and respecting the position, regardless of how you feel, about the individual, in the position,

[37:18] I'm not a fan, I've told you this before, and I just, I'll take this to my grave, I'm not a fan, of people openly, rebuking, the highest position, in their life, and you could say, well God's the highest, but no, people openly rebuke, the president, of the United States, and you could take it, for what you want, but that's the ruler, of thy people, that's the ruler, of our land, and I'm not talking about, you can have your opinions, you can have your conversations, and you could say, whatever you want, to anybody, but to stand in a pulpit, is what I'm really getting at, to stand in front of God's people, and say, oh sleepy Joe, did this, I find that very unbecoming, of a child of God, to just publicly, revile, the rulers, the authorities, that we're to submit to, and I could put you, on some scripture, on this pretty quickly, of how we're supposed to, with Romans 13, and 1 Timothy 2, and to stand up in front, and just to take that attitude, of just mockery, and I think it's wrong, and by the grace of God, I'll try to keep it, out of my mouth, and if I have an opinion,

[38:21] I can tell you, in conversation, but I'm not going to stand up here, and just openly, declare things, that I just don't, I think it's unbecoming, like I said, now, that's just one area, and it shows pride, inside of somebody, and I'm not going to go down that road, but we could for a while, talk about why that's in our culture, and what you're listening to, that drives you to talk like that, and the word of God, is not going to permit it, it's going to tell you, to submit yourself, to be quiet, to be humble, and to pray for him, as a matter of fact, and so, I was always afraid, to say things against my pastor, growing up, or as I was a young man, and I went to Bible school, and then I was under a pastor, for a while, and when I got into the ministry, like inside, and saw the inner workings, and the nuts and bolts of it all, it was a far different view, than what it was, just coming to church, with my Bible, eager, and hungry for the word of God, and then knowing I got to go back, to work in the world, but then to work inside, and be around Christian, it was a different beast, and it quickly turned me off, in some ways, and I had to learn how to deal with that, because you see things differently, and you see things, that you don't necessarily agree with, or you don't understand, really, and the temptation can be, to just start running your mouth, well that shouldn't be, that's not right, that's not, and in reality, you just don't know, what you're talking about, until the buck stops with you, and there was a temptation, to run my mouth at times, and I would say things privately, to my wife, but I would never get up in a pulpit,

[39:50] I would never stand before God's people, and try to turn them away, from their pastor, and cause such a division, or sowing discord, among the brethren, such like that, I was always afraid, to speak against him, when sometimes he's preaching, in the pulpit, he'd say something, that I just thought, I don't know if I like that, or I don't know if that's right, I would think, the Lord would just be like, yeah but what about, when you're in that position one day, if you're ever in that position, you're going to want that guy, sitting on the front pew, or the back pew, just nipping at you, with everything you say, you'd do best just to keep your mouth shut, and keep it to yourself, because one day, if that's ever you, you're going to want God's people behind you, not stabbing you from the back, or talking behind your back, and so I thought, you know what, it is the right thing to do, is just submit to authority, and to mind my manners, and keep my opinions to myself, and not revile the gods, or curse the ruler, and so I think it's a good thing, for all of us, in all areas of life, is to learn that, submission for authority, it's something God put in your life, it's something he established, and you can't get around that, alright, finally let's kind of get to the end here, verse number 29, and 30, we'll call this the issue of giving, thou shalt not delay, get that, thou shalt not delay, to offer the first of thy ripe fruits, and of thy liquors, the firstborn of thy sons, shalt thou give unto me, likewise shalt thou do with thine oxen, and with thy sheep, seven days it shall be with his dam, and on the eighth day, thou shalt give it me, give it me, give unto me, we're talking about the area, or issue of giving, and I believe it's always an issue of obedience, and the thing I want to point out here quickly, is that, is to be diligent, to offer to the Lord, that's verse 29, to offer to the Lord, what is his, to offer to the Lord, what is his, be diligent to it, he said, thou shalt not delay, because the longer you hold on to it, the harder it will be, for you to be obedient, in giving, the more reasons you'll find, that you can't part with it, or the more reasons you'll find, to justify holding on to it, and so, hesitating, can, and often does, lead to disobedience, and so God says, these words plainly, thou shalt not delay, to offer, well if that phrase wasn't in there, it would just kind of be like, you need to give, you need to, but he tells us a reason why, and the principle,

[42:27] I'll leave with you here, is to give to God immediately, what he requires, immediately, without delay, show him that your heart, is bent on obeying him, because obedience to the Lord, is your priority, and so be quick, to give to the Lord, if he says it's his, it's his, you don't get to have a conversation, and justify it, you just give, so, that's the issue of giving, is to do it quickly, so that you don't hold on to it, because it'll be harder, for you to obey, and like I said, more reasons for you to hang on, and now let's conclude, with the final verse of the chapter, verse 31, and ye shall be holy men, unto me, neither shall ye eat, any flesh that is torn, of beasts in the field, ye shall cast it, to the dogs, some things were just, to be despised, and were not clean, and the point here, in verse 31, as ye shall be holy men, unto me, holiness is the goal, holiness, is the goal, be ye holy, for I am holy, this is a, this is a culture, that he's trying to establish, and in everything, and in all manners, of their disputes, and all manners, of their relationships, and all manners, of their human interaction, in life, the goal, is for God's people, to be holy, and to maintain innocence, to punish iniquity, to right the wrongs, and learn from them, of course, learn, and then be better, to go forward, living a life, that has been changed, by the word of God, we had this situation, go down,

[44:07] God said, to handle it this way, I handled it that way, and that's changing, how I live my life, I'm now in submission, to the word of God, the word of God, changed, how I handle my, situations in life, God says, things are wicked, then I abstain from them, God says, to respect, and submit to those, in authority, then I'm going to do it, I'm to give to the Lord, I'll do it, without delaying, and doing it, to be a pleasure to him, I'm to have compassion, on others, and in all these areas, that we're studying, and covering in the judgments, just practical principles, to implement, that are going to cultivate, and develop, a holy people, and lives that are lived, with holiness, that are pleasing, to God, so there's the second chapter, phase two, or two thirds, of the judgments, next week, we'll try to get chapter 23, or two weeks from now rather, we'll try to continue this, and I hope that you see, that this stuff, although it's not just like, this cohesive sermon, you see that throughout, these chapters,

[45:10] God's given them stuff, for their everyday lives, and these things apply today, they absolutely find their place, in principle at least, in our lives, and in our relationships, with others, and so could I close, by just saying, God help us, to submit, where we need to submit, and to be innocent, to be innocent, to be different, the world doesn't want, to be innocent, they want to win, they want to be right, they want to be on top, that's not our approach to it, our approach is, what does God say, and what he says then, even if it's hard, even if it's a tough pill, to swallow, I want to be right with God, let's pray, our Father, help us to be right, with you, to be holy people, before you, to be innocent, in our relationships, on this earth, with one another, in business, in family, in the neighborhood, and wherever we find ourselves, God may we make right, those things, that we've done wrong, give us courage, and conviction, to do that, help us to be faithful, in our giving, and do it with a cheerful heart, and not delay, help us to, have compassion, and care for those, that are in worse situations, than we are, and to not despise, or look down upon them, but to be a helper to them, and to be charitable, and caring, and loving, help us to show, a different attitude, because of the work, that your word, has done in our hearts, make us a holy people,

[46:31] Father, challenge us, and call us, to this holiness, and drive us, to make changes, because Lord, if you don't do it, we're not going to do it, and we need your spirit, to convict us, and we need your word, to guide us, I want to thank you, for this morning, and for the message, and for the challenges, that came out, I pray that we take them, to heart, we take them home with us, that they change us, that is again, your word, would renew, a right spirit, within us, and renew our minds, into a transformed life, so help us to submit, to these things, this morning, we ask and pray, and Lord.