The Nations are Mad

[0:00] A theme this morning is about the nations are mad, the nations are mad, about the madness! that prevails in our world you could say and the remedy to it. So we go to Jeremiah 51 verse! 7 just to introduce that theme today. Jeremiah 51 verse 7 says this, Babylon hath been a golden cup in the Lord's hand that made all the earth drunken, the nations are drunken of her wine, therefore the nations are mad. Let's pray. Lord we thank you again for this time we can gather and feed together as your people and Lord for your blessing we ask Lord for your word let it minister to our hearts and Lord for every soul to be uplifted and stirred to deeper faith and action. Lord that you would be glorified. We depend upon you our Lord God your Holy Spirit power for your own function and enabling for our hearing and my speaking

[1:04] Lord for your words to have free course and be glorified that you above all things would be lifted up and that your name would be that name that we pay our utmost regard to and love and allegiance to you our great God and Saviour our Lord Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.

[1:25] Madness and its remedy. Well the nations are mad you could say. Now the word sermon is a lantern word which means to stab or to thrust and my message today is that the nations are mad and trust will be a bit of a prod, a bit of a stab as it were. A world gone mad. That's what we're living in isn't it you could say. As you hear and see the media you see what's going on in the world all around us. A world gone mad. And it's been prophesied that this would happen. And we're witnessing it on a global scale aren't we. This moral meltdown. It's all over the globe.

[2:05] Not just Australia but we're part of it too. Australia's just as mad as all the other countries I think. And 2 Timothy 3 verse 1 it says this. This note also that in the last days perilous times shall come. And we're seeing that aren't we. The perilous times. This crazy world. A world gone mad.

[2:26] And these are sick days sadly. And judgement looms you know. It's all a sign to us of the midnight hour that we're just one minute too aren't we. It seems the way things are going. The topsy turvy world.

[2:41] And where are the nations preachers and churches at such a time as this. Where are the men and women who will stand for Christ in these days of apostasy. Those that will speak out against the evil tide.

[2:55] In Psalm 94 verse 16 it says this. Who will rise up for me against the evil doers. Or who will stand up for me against the workers of iniquity.

[3:06] The men and women of God will stand up. Will rise up. And our text tells us here that the nations are mad. Australia. Our own nation. Our beloved nation. Is in this same toxic status isn't it.

[3:24] This sick society. It's Australia today. It's the evil of our own nation. Of our own land sadly. Where we see a proud, pleasure loving, worldly minded, godless, thankless generation.

[3:38] No morals, no shame, no responsibility. Perilous times surely are upon us. Welcome to Australia. This is our land. Our sad land. Immorality abounds here.

[3:52] Our film stars take God's name in vain. Our school children are taught that they're nothing but animals. Evolve from slime. And the stage is being rapidly set for the last days, isn't it?

[4:07] We see that. A world gone there. Before that final act of rebellion, we see then our Lord will come. And reclaim earth as its rightful king.

[4:19] For the meantime, judgement is imminent. We're at the midnight hour. But the wicked don't care. They couldn't care less. They just want to eat, drink, marry, party.

[4:30] It's just like in Noah's day, isn't it? As our Lord said it would be. Just like in Noah's time before the flood. He preached righteousness through Christ for 120 years.

[4:41] Because really the ark is Christ. That was the message of Noah. And only Noah and his family were spared. Only they got on the ark. You can think how when they tied to it in small number.

[4:54] It was just like in Noah's day. It's all the more a telling picture, isn't it? A telling symbol. Graphic. It shows how wicked the world is. Just as it was in Noah's day.

[5:06] As our Lord foretold. And in Luke 18 verse 8, our Lord says, When the Son of Man cometh, will he find faith on the earth? He says he will come.

[5:17] As a thief in the night. These are darkening days, aren't they? It feels like it's night. And it's fallen upon this planet. And it's a time of darkness. It's a time of night. What of today?

[5:28] Of this nation. Of our nation. Of our land. We're witnessing this dramatic shift away from Judeo-Christian values. Moral values. There's this evil agenda that our nation's adopting.

[5:41] Public wickedness is all around. And celebrated. You know, we hear, I sadly hear, they call it the feast festival coming up in Adelaide.

[5:51] Where it's this blatant, in-your-face immorality. And it's celebrated and it's funded by our state government. And we're seeing the shedding of the blood of the innocent.

[6:02] As being told of in Proverbs 6 verse 6, 17. And we're seeing this programmed indoctrination of wickedness that's poisoning the minds of our children.

[6:14] And in Australia we could say also we're a boozy nation. It's a nation where it's boozy. Full of booze and drink. As Billy Sunday said, Whiskey and beer are alright in their place.

[6:28] But their place is in hell. You know, we see many just seem to think there's nothing wrong with that. Even Christians. We need to pray for our government, don't we?

[6:41] In such a time as this. And its leaders. The Bible tells us there's spiritual wickedness in high places. There's some of them over our land too. As we hear of some involved in Freemasonry and such things.

[6:55] There's spiritual wickedness in these high places. In our land. In Canberra. Some misguided leaders will call evil good. And good evil. As it says in Isaiah 5 verse 20.

[7:07] The wicked are pushing their way. All the time. Pushing on us. Their evil agenda. For the deviant to be normalised. And for the normal to be made deviant.

[7:18] As if we're somehow deviant. Because we believe in some kind of moral foundation. In God's standard. Friends, leaders are accountable to God. And our leaders.

[7:29] Our Prime Minister. Our Premiers. They are unanswerable. All of our leaders. And the Lord warns us. For those who lead. He cause you to err. That's Isaiah 3 verse 12.

[7:42] Leaders who cause a nation to err. They're accountable for that. In Proverbs 29. 1 through 2. It says. When the righteous are in authority. The people rejoice.

[7:54] But when the wicked bear a thrill. The people mourn. There's an answerability there. And friends. It's happening incrementally. Where we're seeing this. Where the wicked are ruling.

[8:06] And we're in this dilemma. Of course. We need to obey government rules. And such. And some are for our good. Even some of the COVID restrictions. Yet. You see.

[8:17] When the wicked rule. Then the people mourn. And we're seeing this today. Where we're seeing marriage and family. Is undermined. The very building blocks of society.

[8:27] They're under threat. We're seeing feminism. That's engineered women. To not reverence their husbands. Divorce is skyrocketed. And many young people aren't getting married.

[8:38] They're getting married. They're ending. Education is a weapon.

[9:12] whose effect depends on who's holding it in his hands and at whom is aimed. That was 1934. Education is part of the plan.

[9:24] Discipline's gone from homes and from schools. It's now being replaced with mind-numbing drugs. Many youth and young people, children, are being brought up when they're given this diet of pills, of drugs.

[9:39] Mind-numbing drugs. The world draws our youth in these days. The world has drawn a gift to follow Satan. To be careful about morality.

[9:53] To be careless about our relationship. To become god-nakers. Young people especially. People often take years off of gospel. That's why, after your Creator, our nation is rotten to the core, friends.

[10:09] And Australia is heading down this slippery slope, this slide into immorality, and ever-grating carelessness, and ultimately into hell. And it's time for us to wake up, to rise up as God's people.

[10:24] In Psalm 9, verse 17, it says, The wicked shall return into hell, and all the nations that forget God. You know, this nation-national, this nationwide and worldwide madness, it's ultimately, it leads to hell.

[10:41] In Psalm 10, it says, If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do? There's something we can do. What will we do? What will God's people do?

[10:52] What will the church do? Where ought we to be? What ought we to be doing? We ought to fear the Lord. These are fearful times. But the one we ought to fear is not the COVID, or some other natural disaster, or man-made disaster.

[11:07] Our fear is to fear the Lord, to fear Him, to put our reference towards Him. And we ought to love the truth. It says in 2 Thessalonians 2, verse 10.

[11:17] And who is the truth? The Lord Jesus, isn't He? Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. And the Word of God is truth, it says in John 17, verse 17.

[11:30] Truth matters in a world where lies are pumped at us in every which way. Truth matters. And the truth matters to God. We are told by the truth how we ought to live and what we ought to do.

[11:45] One of the things it says is we ought to hate sin. Hate it. Psalm 97, verse 10. It says, You need that love the Lord, hate the evil.

[11:56] Mate, we need to get a hatred in us, and to that which is hateful to God. Hates it. Hate it for God's glory. We're commanded to love the Lord.

[12:21] and ethics are laughter and such messages as this when we call it a hate crime.

[12:36] Simply to preach the truth. This is the craziness, isn't it? The nation's a man. Ephesians 5 verse 11 says, and have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them, speak against them.

[12:53] Let's not be afraid to say that's wrong, because God says it's wrong. A man wisely said one day, evil triumphs with good men.

[13:07] Do nothing. Isaiah 58 verse 1 says, cry aloud, stand on, lift up thy voice like a trumpet. Show my people their transgression.

[13:20] We need to be informed by God's truth, realise what is sin and not be afraid to say it's sin, and ask God for help to overcome, for his strength to avoid and oppose sin, and stand for what is right and good and uplifting and godly and gracious and God glorifying.

[13:41] Bible believers need to see what is happening and not be afraid to speak up, to wake up. We're meant to see an incremental change. It's incremental.

[13:53] Just like, you know, the picture of the frog in the kettle on the stove, and the frog doesn't even realise they're slowly being cooked to death. They don't realise it, because it doesn't happen suddenly.

[14:05] It's incrementally that the water is boiling before they know it, and they're dead. Incremental change. It's happening little by little. Song of Solomon 2, verse 15, it says, in part, the little foxes spoil the vines.

[14:20] The little things. Just little. It's nice. It's just a little bit of sin. It's just a little bit of accommodation, of error, or untrue. And before you know it, it's a big mess, isn't it?

[14:33] It's a shameful thing. And as a nation, we must repent. It's time for godly parents to teach their children godliness, and not be afraid.

[14:44] And if we can't tell them, who will tell them? They're not going to get it from the schools. History has been repeated. Historians have documented Rome's decline. As it had this declining emphasis on morality.

[15:01] And gradually, Rome fell. You know, the great empire of Rome that was huge across the world, wasn't it? The Roman Empire. It was a massive empire. But it came to nothing.

[15:14] And the reason why was because of this declining of morality. And observers have commented that they were seeing this reemergence. of a pagan mentality.

[15:27] And this pagan mentality, I'm quoting here, it believes there's no fixed truth, no final good, no ultimate meaning or purpose, and that the living God is a primitive illusion.

[15:41] And every one of the symptoms of decline of Rome, what led to Rome's collapse, are present today.

[15:52] things such as lawlessness, degenerate art and music, overspending, corruption, a decline in religion, in education, and traditional values.

[16:04] In ancient Rome, they had these kind of similar things to what we have today, materialism, abortion, murder, divorce, and sexual diversion.

[16:15] And we're seeing today that it seems like the churches are becoming worldly, and the world is almost becoming churchy by this spiritual attitude that, I'm spiritual, you know, I meditate, or I'm into this truth, or that truth, or this philosophy, or that one.

[16:34] And the Bible says in 1 John 5, 19, and we know that we are of God and the whole world life in wickedness. So, this, this, truth that the nations are mad is, in effect, the whole world, it's on a global scale.

[16:49] It's like every nation is facing the same battle for truth. And men are deceived. Many are believing a lie. As the Bible says, they would believe a lie in the end days.

[17:02] And many don't want to face the truth. They despise the lie and they cling to their sin. And they fight against churches like this one. Like churches like our churches.

[17:14] They want to silence you. They want to silence those who speak the truth. And the wicked want to do what is right in their own eyes. They've got a morality of sorts. They've got a moral code of sorts.

[17:25] They want to do what's right in their own eyes. That's, that's where they set their morality. by what they define as truth. Because truth to them is relative.

[17:35] There's no absolutes. There's no standards. And they believe readily there's lying spirit. Because they're not attuned to actually this is what defines what truth is.

[17:47] This is what defines the right and the wrong. And many are overtaken. Friends, it's a madness. That's what it is. The nation's a man. And we're seeing this craziness such that many are overtaken by delusion.

[17:59] Now delusion means an error which when viewed from certain standpoints of observation has the appearance of truth. A delusion has an appearance of truth. That's what we're seeing.

[18:11] Many are deluded in that they think that they are right. You know, I've had some arguments on doorsteps witnessing to people who are very fully convinced in their false teaching that they've received.

[18:25] You know, many false cults. They are so deluded. They think what they believe is right. And they claim to be honest in their convictions and they are. But they are deluded.

[18:37] Friends, the world is full of delusions. So we as God's people, as any mindful thinking person should be, we ought to be aware there's delusion around us.

[18:49] You know, who's ever had these, like a phone call or a message and, you know, just send us your name and account and there's been a problem with you or whatever it is. There's people out there that are deliberately scamming, conning, deluding, trying to trick people to give their information so they can siphon money out of their bank accounts.

[19:09] There's a lot of delusion out there and there's people deliberately doing it to others. And friends, the world is full of delusions and the devil's behind all that, isn't he?

[19:20] He wants us to be tricked and conned and sadly many follow him and they have no real hope. It says, as the Bible says, Proverbs 14, 12, there is a way that seemeth right unto a man.

[19:33] It seems right. Oh, it feels right. But the end thereof are the ways of death. We've got to be very careful, don't we? Because there is one who wants to delude and deceive.

[19:45] And we ought to be very mindful and not afraid to speak the truth. The knowledge of God is true. And in the church scene, we've seen this today too, where there's some wacko things going on in the name of God.

[19:59] False prophets that need exposing and spiritual forces that are at work within the church. And there's people, good people, just like you and me, that don't realise they're being conned.

[20:13] There's counterfeits out there. There's dangerous doctrines of devils. And 2 Timothy 3, 13, it says, evil men and seduces shall wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived.

[20:26] They themselves are deceived. Charles Spurgeon declared this, the devil has seldom done a cleverer thing than hinting to the church that part of their mission is to provide entertainment for the people with a view to wean them.

[20:41] Providing amusement for the people is nowhere spoken of in the scriptures as a function of the church. The need is biblical doctrine. So understood and felt that it sets men on fire.

[20:54] Not entertainment, amusement, biblical doctrine. Sets us on fire, doesn't it? To know him and the truth. Paul repeatedly urges believers to be wise, to not be ignorant.

[21:08] It says in 1 Thessalonians 4, 13, he says, I would not have you to be ignorant forever. The nations are mad. It's mad and it's getting madder, isn't it?

[21:20] You've seen it. I mean, you tune into the world to news now and again and you think, what next? The nations are mad. One preacher put it like this, while recently pondering why so many people today are insensitive, greedy, insulting, rude, liars, unappreciative, self-righteous, hateful, slanderous, fine-minded, cold-hearted, deceitful, self-centered and cruel, I realise that we are living in a mentally ill society where people have gone crazy, murdering their own children, throwing away their marriages by divorce, legalised same-sex marriage, adoption rights for homosexuals, people swarming to watch a movie that has some lunatic killing people with a chainsaw, etc.

[22:16] etc. A mentally ill society where people have gone crazy. He goes on, where does it end? The world is a large insane asylum.

[22:28] People behave the way they do because they're mentally ill, being part of the living and insane culture of death, fornication and love for skin. someone needs to take a stand for God.

[22:39] The feminists take a stand for rebellion. The homosexuals take a stand for perversion. The witches take a stand for idolatry.

[22:50] Bless God, I'm going to take a stand for Jesus. End quote. It's a good one, isn't it? You know, I was down in the local shops where I live lately and I saw a bookstore and it had a spiritual section and I was looking through this spiritual section and they were just full of total garbage.

[23:10] I thought, oh, I wonder if there's a Bible here. And I started to have a look to see if there was a Bible in the spiritual section. This is the major shop where I live and I found a Bible.

[23:26] I found a Koran for one thing. Then I found a satanic Bible. That's what it was. A satanic Bible. I searched and I actually did actually have a King James Bible farly enough they did.

[23:40] have some King James Bibles but honestly it's like the satanic Bible seem to be more prominent and all these psychic, psychedelic things. Friends, there's lots of religious, spiritual stuff out there which is totally anti-God.

[23:57] Look at the time of year we're in now, Halloween. It's like, oh, it's so in your face, isn't it? The devil just delights in it. As Psalm 94.16 says, who will rise up for me?

[24:14] Our Lord speaking, against the evildoers. Who will rise up for me against the workers of iniquity? Genuine faith makes things happen for God.

[24:25] By faith, Noah built the ark. By faith, David went out to fight Goliath. Judges 21.25 says, when there was no king in Israel, every man did which was right in their own eyes.

[24:38] When there was no king in Israel, every man did which was right in their own eyes. He's a man to a man to get to the man to man the!

[24:54] He died diedยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยย and I think that's a lot of people who are not in the world.

[25:32] I think that's a lot of people who are not in the world. I think that's a lot of people who are not in the world. As I like to what I say, I think that's not the gay community as in Haku because they're very sad, actually.

[25:48] The gay community has decided that homosexuality is right. Feminists have decided that rebellion is right. Feminists have decided that booze is right. Communists have decided that tyranny is right. Only God has a right to decide what's good and evil.

[26:03] Only God has that. Catholics have decided that it's right to chant to Hail Mary and to bow to statues. The Vatican has decided that it's right to do what is right.

[26:15] But God says that such a religion will be seen now. There are 16 people who say, I'll do what is right, but I will decide what is right.

[26:27] Friends, we need to get a clear understanding of what is right. And then know God, know Him, know Him, love Him, follow Him. And then we need to do what is right.

[26:38] We need to do what is right. Friends, we need to get a clear understanding of what is right. When they put emotion and experience above the word and it takes its place, it's a substitute and it's a delusion.

[26:52] Friends, we need biblical convictions to get back to the word, to love His truth and to stand for that. The church is increasingly liberal and apostate.

[27:04] We're seeing this syrupy weakness, this prayerlessness, this worldliness, that's sapping the strength, this comfort-loving crowd. Something is wrong.

[27:16] The nations are mad. That's what it is. The nations are mad. And this madness is such that even churches are getting swept into the same direction. It says, as we've read, it's almost just really just capturing that phrase, the nations are mad.

[27:33] But in the context, it talks about that Babylon have been a golden cup in the Lord's hand, but made all the earth drunken. The nations have drunken of her wine. Therefore, the nations are mad.

[27:44] It's like the world has got drunk. See this drunkenness, this, you know, staggering, you know, over-wet on, overcome, they've been overtaken by this drunkenness, this stupor that is dulling their senses of right and wrong, this decay of modesty, this moral decline, this moral slide into humanism, the breakdown of the family, effeminate men and masculine women.

[28:14] What is going on? This is crazy, isn't it? You walk down the street and you think, what is that? The madness is sin. Everything is backwards. Everything is upside down. As this quote is really good, doctors destroy health, lawyers destroy justice, universities destroy knowledge, governments destroy freedom, the major media destroy information, religion destroys spirituality, and Bible publishers even destroy God's Word, taking it away.

[28:57] And it's like we're becoming increasingly profaned. We're offending a holy God. And it's like they don't even care or know it.

[29:09] That's what's happening. It's a spiritual vacuum. Friends, this culture we're living in, it's sick and it's hellward. It's degenerate.

[29:20] So what's the answer though for this madness, this madness that we're living in, this mad world, this mad nation? The fault is at the heart a neglect of the Word of God, isn't it?

[29:33] And it's to Him that we must turn. As we're facing God's wrath, we must find God's Word, that faithful Word, that Word which tells us that we're born again of this corruptible, this incorruptible seed, the Word of God.

[29:50] The grass withereth, the flower batheth away, but the Word of the Lord endures forever. And this is the Word which by the Gospel was preached unto you. We need a return to the faith of the Bible.

[30:02] That's what we need. The purity of it, the authority of it, to take it as read and to stand on it firmly and squarely. It's been protected, preserved and provided.

[30:14] What a blessing that we have it. We think of, there's a recent anniversary, was it Tindale or Wycliffe was burnt at stake? And that's what we're translating this word into our English tongue.

[30:28] And friends, we would do well to think of the blood of the martyrs, the blood of the faithful that's been shed for us to have these pages in our language today. It's been preserved by God.

[30:39] It's got power. It's got purity. And we have the testimony here of a God-honouring church, the pillar and ground of the truth. We need more churches just like this one, all across this city.

[30:51] Satan wants to destroy the Lord's church. And he would rather that Christians would have some weak and worldly ecumenical church. Really, it's Babylon.

[31:03] That's what it is. At the heart of the problem is Babylon. And we see that, really, the Babylonian spirit, if you like, of this compromise, this undermining, this weakening, this worldliness, that saps the stream of what once were godly churches.

[31:25] You think of the Salvos today. What would Booth think of them? What? The Methodists today, or the Uniting, what would Wesley think of them as to what they've become? And friends, I saw this quote about Billy Graham in 1957.

[31:40] And as he was talking about his crusades. G'day, mate. In 1957, Billy Graham had an interview with the San Francisco News. He said, Anyone who makes a decision at our meetings is seen later and referred to a local clergyman, Protestant, Catholic, or Jewish.

[31:56] Honestly, that's Babylonian, isn't it? What a compromise that that would be. And Billy Graham later stated, I find that my beliefs are essentially the same as those of Orthodox, Roman Catholics.

[32:08] That was 1978. Now, that's pretty telling, isn't it? A telling quote. There's a Babylonian, this kind of... Wow, where did that come from? That's not Bible.

[32:19] And friends, we need to get back to the Word of God. In Revelation 17, it tells us of the end of the world. It tells us of the soon-coming Antichrist is going to come. And this totalitarian, new world order.

[32:32] And who would have thought that we'd be under such restrictions and restraints and constraints and rules and regulations about international travel and about control, about where we meet, how we meet, all the kind of rules and regulations we're under today.

[32:49] It sort of sounds like a free loop to what ultimately will be this control that the world will be under. And this near-world order that they're talking about quite openly now, aren't they?

[33:03] And it's almost like, as the Bible tells us, even religion-wise, there's got to be a kind of Babylonian religion worldwide. This kind of global kind of mishmash and mixture.

[33:15] This conglomeration of all kinds of beliefs and ideas. As if there's no solid, firm. Thus saith the Lord, truly.

[33:27] As we said before, evil triumphs when good men do nothing. This is the time for you and me, who trust in Jesus as the Lord, to stand up. To stand up against this flood tide.

[33:40] And now, popular Christianity stands guilty as judge. There's a lack here. And we need, as God's people, this is the time for us to rise up.

[33:52] To be mature Christians. To not follow the popular mantras. To not swallow the toxic propaganda that would turn people away from God.

[34:04] But rather, to seek the truth of God. And to get firmer and more solid. And more outspoken for Him, for our Lord. This is a time when we need some men who will take a stand.

[34:19] Men who will wear the pants. We need a manly spirit. I've seen some pictures lately of some men modeling some skirts.

[34:30] I don't know what country it was. But it was just so gross to see men wearing these skirts as kind of fashion models. The world has gone absolutely mad, hasn't it?

[34:42] That such a thing would be thought of. Let alone that people would actually do such a thing. Men, put your pants on. Now it's time for us to stand up for God, isn't it?

[34:53] To have the manliness. To come to church. To bring your family. To stand up for Christ. And we need women who will be modestly dressed. And with biblical modesty. We need to get back to what the Bible says about the contrariness to madness.

[35:08] The actual soundness of mind. The mind that comes from knowing Christ the Saviour and Lord. And knowing his truth. That lives on the inside and flows out of our whole being.

[35:22] To preach and know and love the whole counsel of God. And that covers every aspect of our lives. To know the terror of the Lord that should make us actually, I want to be right with God.

[35:37] Not by my own working, but by my trusting in his saving. To know him. To know that I'm his. And he is mine. And the Bible says, To him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not.

[35:51] To him it is sin. James 4, 17. Sometimes the problem is what we don't do. You know, sometimes we think, oh thou shalt not, thou shalt not. But it's actually, thou shalt. We should take either those two.

[36:03] What does God say we should do? Do that. Do that. And we should do the, do not, the do not to. But the main thing is, we should be doers of the word, shouldn't we?

[36:15] Put it into action. If you know something's good and you don't do it, that's sin. So let's do the right. Let's do the good. And let's sound the alarm. Now liberty depends on it.

[36:26] You need the Bible, friends. And the Bible is the very word of God. That's what it is. This is truth. It's life changing. It's eternity changing true. And it's the greatest authority for our lives.

[36:40] Knowing of the friendship of the world is enmity with God. It's hateful towards him. This way that therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.

[36:53] Don't be a friend of the world. Try to seek after God to know him. To trust him. And there's a sense where we should think, well, what is the best that I can be?

[37:06] What is the, what is the highest and grandest thing I can do in my life for God's glory? You know, so young men, young people, there's a sense where, wow, what's God putting on my heart to do for the future?

[37:21] It could be something outlandish. It could be something so extreme that you could actually even think that you could be a missionary or something. Or that you could do, you could do some bold venture for God.

[37:33] And that could even be being a missionary in this heathen land, this mad nation of Australia. You could be a stand-up, a stand-out Christian.

[37:44] And God helping you. What God puts on your heart to do. So friends, let's discern the times that we're living in. Talking about the madness that the Bible says the nations are mad.

[37:56] In part, in one verse it says the nations are mad. So in a mad world, we need to regain that sense of sense, of brightness of thinking, of soundness of mind.

[38:11] And the Word of God shows us of such things. It tells us, don't touch the unclean thing. If it's doubtful, don't. Redeem the time, it says. In other words, rescue the time.

[38:23] Find the time. Make the time. Let's discern the times too. These are intoxicating times. Times of deceit. Of Babylon, as the verse we read again just to re-quote it.

[38:35] Babylon hath been a golden cup in the Lord's hand that hath made all the nations drunken. Made all the earth drunken. The nations are drunken off the wine. Therefore, the nations are mad.

[38:47] It's like there's this sense where the world is drunk. It's almost like they've lost the sense of discernment, of sensibility, of rationality.

[39:01] And they're going along with something that's evil and wrong and hateful and hurtful as well. When someone gets drunk, they don't have any sense of reason, of mindfulness, of this sense, no sense of responsibility, of accountability, of the outcomes of their actions.

[39:30] And sometimes they'll wake after this drunkenness and don't even know how they got where they are or what they did just hours before. Or, you know, you hear a son driving behind a steering wheel and they finish their trip and they don't even know how they got to their destination.

[39:48] And who knows what dangers they could have had and hurts of others. You know, drunken drivers. The sense of drunkenness is such a dangerous thing.

[39:59] It's such a terrible risk. And the Bible says it's like the earth is drunk. The nations are mad. It's like a madman on the loose.

[40:11] A madman behind the steering wheel, drunk, not knowing the consequences of their actions, the hurts and harm to themselves and their loved ones and of others. And so the Bible says about this idea of Babylon, Jeremiah 51 verse 6, it says, flee out of the midst of Babylon and deliver every man his soul.

[40:33] The Bible speaks about Babylon as being something that's corrupt and of the devil and of wickedness and of compromise, of complacency.

[40:44] So the Bible says beware of Babylon. It's that sense of being hateful. Not fooling and bowing to Babel, you know, the false god of Babylon.

[41:01] Who can deliver us from this madness? The nations are mad. The Bible says the nations are mad. Who can deliver us? And we think of someone who's got a mental health problem and I'm not meaning to denigrate such a person because we all can have such moments of mental health, of feeling overwhelmed, of feeling overcome, of feelings of depression, of sadness, of grief, of hurt, of loss.

[41:28] And mental health is something we all are subject to. And so our body health, our mind health, it can affect us too. But we know for some that in this mental health status where they never seem to get out of it.

[41:43] And there is a mental health solution. It says the knowledge of the holy is the solution. In Proverbs 9 verse 10 it says this.

[41:54] Proverbs 9 verse 10 it says, The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. And the knowledge of the holy is understanding. Now understanding, that's the opposite of drunkenness, isn't it?

[42:05] To have understanding. It's actually, yeah, I understand. I get it. I grasp it. I've got a grip on this. And the Bible says the knowledge of the holy is that.

[42:17] To know the one who is holy. The Bible calls him the holy one. The holy, the Lord of laws, the king of kings, the knowledge of the holy, the holy one is understanding.

[42:28] And friends, it's our privilege to be able to fear God, to know God. And if you get to fear and to know him, today could be that day when your eternity changes.

[42:40] And you know that you know, you know God, to know him. And we're going to know him to know his life eternal. To actually know the Lord Jesus as his saviour. That is just the most precious knowledge and the most vital truth.

[42:55] It's the reason for being. It's our reason for existence. It's to know him. To know his life. To know eternity. To know eternal life. And that's by coming to know the Lord Jesus as saviour and Lord.

[43:08] That is the ultimate mental health solution. Isn't it? The ultimate solution for our life to have that redirection. To know the saviour. And God's word is really, this is the mental health solution.

[43:22] You know, if we're looking for something that will help us to know truth. To know right. To understand. It's the beginning of wisdom is to fear God. To know him.

[43:33] And these pages are jam packed full of his love letter to us. The very words of God. And just take it. Take it and read it. Take it as read.

[43:44] Make it a point to put time into this book. So you can, it can change you. For God's glory. To give you wisdom. Be on your own.

[43:55] It says in Acts 17, 11. That these were more noble than those in Thessalonica. It says of these that they received the word. With all readiness of mind. And they searched the scriptures.

[44:06] They searched the scriptures. Whether these things were so. They wanted to get the word on it. God's word on it. And it says in Psalm 119 verse 130. It says the entrance of thy words.

[44:18] Giveth light. It giveth understanding. To the simple. Wow. He puts the light on. The glorious. High. High.

[44:29] Lumen. Spotlight. As it were. The brightest of brightest lights. The light goes on. Wow. Bam. Bam.

[44:40] God hits you. In the heart. In your mind. The light goes on. It's just a revelation. The illumination. Of his word. And the quickening of the word.

[44:51] Bringing it to light. It says it gives light. It gives understanding to the simple. And it tells of the word of God. It says the words of the Lord are pure words. A silver tried in a furnace seven times.

[45:02] Purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them O Lord. Thou shalt preserve them. From this generation. Forever. All right. These words are thousands of years old. Yet.

[45:13] More current than tomorrow's newspaper. Aren't they? It's so true. Friends. When we have a mental health problem. And friends. We all.

[45:24] In effect. We can. And have. From time to time. And even as Christians. We can have things where. Mentally. Like. Mind wise. You can feel. Wow.

[45:35] This is. Things are tough right now. Christians can have that. But it says. We can. Cast all our cares. Upon him. We can cast. We can go to Fred. We can pray to him. He'll hear us.

[45:46] And. I just love to. The idea. That really. This. We've got a help line. That. Never switches off. And there's not some. Record a message. Or.

[45:57] Press a. A number. You know. In that 24 by 7. Prayer. God's. Responsiveness. Is 24 by 7. And he's always there to talk to. And when we have mental health problems.

[46:08] As it were. We need to seek godly counsel. And this is the ultimate godly counsel. It really is. And. And. We just love. In our church.

[46:19] We often. Give out. The gospel. John. Romans. We. We want to give out. You know. A full new testament. A mark new testament. And.

[46:30] It's the best track. Really isn't it. Is actually. Read that. The bible says. Get it straight from god's. Word. And then there's no question. It's straight from god's.

[46:41] Word. And. That's the ultimate counsel. Not the counsel of the ungodly. And someone goes to the counsel of the ungodly. As in. They'll return to. The counsel of those who.

[46:52] May not. Really. Believe. Yet. The word of god. Is. Without error. It's complete. And it's absolute. Straight from god.

[47:03] So. In a well gone man. The question is. Who. Will you follow. That's the big question. And. As we know the words of. Psalm 1 verse 1.

[47:14] It says. Blessed is the man. Blessed. You know. Joyful. Glad. Truly blessed. Is that man. That walketh not. In the counsel of the ungodly.

[47:26] Nor standeth in the way of sinners. Nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. And his delight. It's in this. This is his delight. This is. Wow.

[47:37] Yeah. I'm jumping for joy. This is delightful. This is full of delight. My heart's delight. The word of god. The bible warns us. Not to walk in the counsel of the ungodly. So.

[47:48] Ungodly counsel is everywhere. You know. We're tuning into it all the time. It's constantly. In the ear gate. In the eye gate. Isn't it? Everywhere we go. Constantly bombarded. With. The ungodly counsel.

[47:59] Our only defence is the. Word of god. This is the defence to that. Yeah. I'm going to filter things through this book. This is the lands through which I see. True.

[48:10] Thy word is a lamp. Unto my feet. A light. Unto my path. In the here. And the. Hereafter. In the present. And in the future. The counsel.

[48:23] The counsel. Of the ungodly. Is. Ungodly. So. We've always got to filter that. Question that. The bible wants us not to walk in that. You know.

[48:34] Sometimes we can. Kind of. Accommodate. And we can. Can. Make those. Just. Just a little bit of. Allowance.

[48:45] Like. Lot. Like Lot. Genesis 13. 12. He pitched his tent. Towards Sodom. He just. Put his tent. Facing. Towards Sodom.

[48:56] This is Genesis 13. Verse 12. Once you have to lay it. Genesis 14. Verse 12. Lot lived in Sodom. You know. We can make that mistake. Can't we? Accommodate a little. And then.

[49:07] A lot. Like Lot. Of sin. Lot's heart was. Inside of him. Before he moved there. And we've got to watch ourselves. Check in yourself. Hey. I want to check in there.

[49:18] And maybe there's something that I'm. A bit cozy enough to something. Or. Accepting something in my life. That actually is a bit of a question mark. Now.

[49:29] Human psychology. Would try to repair the human soul. Without addressing the reality of sin. You know. I know some people. They have some studies of psychology. Look.

[49:40] There's some interesting and informative things. We've always got to be careful though. The psychology is not the answer. It's the human soul. It's not the answer. Without the knowledge of sin. There can be no healing of the soul.

[49:52] It's not the answer. Psychology doesn't really help. Education. Look. There's good education. There's bad. But education is not the answer of itself.

[50:05] No reformation. No rehabilitation. No rehabilitation. It's not some human means. What is the answer is. Regeneration. That's all we need.

[50:16] Not a rehabilitation. It kind of patches up. But a regeneration. A new heart. A new mind. I know Jesus. That's the ultimate. Friends. The council of the ungodly will lead to worldly thinking.

[50:29] Worldly action. Worldly standards. Worldly methods. And the false tensions of evolution. And it's poison really.

[50:40] And the lying news media just manipulates. And we're constantly having to actually think. Oh. Is that ungodly counsel? Oh.

[50:51] Maybe I've got to stop that. And get good counsel. Get counsel that doesn't conflict with God's truth. And always question. Always counsel that.

[51:03] We see the ungodly news media is owned by and controlled by ungodly families. The people that hate God. Many of the modern movies of today.

[51:14] Friends. They're. It's kind of weaved into it. It's craftily. It's crafted such that. It's in there. It's embedded. It's woven into the storyline.

[51:26] And it's the council of the ungodly. It's dangerous. It's not good. We'll be walking ungodly counsel. Or we think.

[51:37] Actually. Yeah. Actually. What is God's word on that? What does God's word say? And. You know. There's helpful Bible helps. There's concordances. There's materials. You can.

[51:48] You know. Helpful Bible study guides. You can get support from your pastors council. From. Godly men. Godly women in your church. And. Talk to others. Who know the Lord.

[51:59] And get their advice. Their counsel. That will be good. For our mental health. Friends. We're looking at. This question again. Just as we're wrapping up here. Ungodly counsel is everywhere.

[52:10] It's everywhere. Will we. Be. Mindful of the word. And search the scriptures. Actually. This is. What God says to do.

[52:21] Search the scriptures. The nation's a man. It's like there's a madness. That pervades. The world. It's global. And it's in Australia.

[52:33] This. This. Contrariness to God. This. Really hatefulness to God. And they see. They think. Well it's right in their own eyes. Yeah. Oh look.

[52:44] Everybody's doing it. And. If it feels good. Well. That's the ultimate. Um. Decision. Standard. That people use. Isn't it?

[52:55] Feels good. You know. Actually. Hmm. No. That's my godly counsel. I want to do what God says is right. To do. To be. To do what's. He says.

[53:06] The solution is not. Drugs. Uh. I hear stories of some. Uh. And. It's sad. When some people are just. Uh. They're not clear thinking anymore. And.

[53:17] I'm not saying. Maybe there's. Some need for some medication. Or. Such things. But. Some. They're not clear thinking anymore. And. I'm not saying. Maybe there's.

[53:28] Some need for some medication. Or. Such things. But. Some that seem. They're so. Chemically. Um. Affected. That.

[53:39] They've lost their. Personality. Even. And. The world. Would sometimes just drug people. Rather than really treat. What the matter is.

[53:50] And. Some would teach. Self esteem. As if it's about. Feeling good about yourself. And some. Words of self affirmation. Or. Self love. But.

[54:01] If the problem is the heart. That's not going to help. The heart has to be changed. We need to know. The Lord Jesus is our saving. We need to know. His saving. It's not.

[54:12] Drugs or. Or. A. Self esteem. It's not worldly psychology. That's going to really fix the problem. The madness. It's. It's.

[54:23] The one who made. The one who made. Our mind. The one who made. Truth. And. He is the truth. We need to know him. And. I believe the solution is.

[54:36] To reprove the darkness. To. To oppose. That which is. Clearly wrong. And evil. Against God. To stand against it. It's.

[54:47] It's. It's. A recognition of. We're made. In his image. He's got the best plan. He's got the master plan. He's got the ultimate. Best for us. In.

[54:58] His heart. And he wants. To give it to us. And to realize. His truth is. Beyond and above all. And. The highest.

[55:09] The highest. And wisiest. Noblest truth. His. His message of love. For us. His life. That he wants to give us. His final authority. And so.

[55:20] Friends. I put to you. To close that. We need a mind. That's reordered. By the spirit of God. And the Bible says. We can have. It's called. A renewing of the mind. In Ephesians 4.23.

[55:32] In Romans 12.2. It says. There's a transforming. Of the mind. Our mind can actually. Be transformed. So. Just. Completely. Revolutionized. That.

[55:43] We can have our mind. Rewired. By the maker. Of our mind. And the one. Who loves us so. He's made us. He's created us. And. He has the best.

[55:54] Intent for us. And so. What is that good. And acceptable. And perfect. Will of God. To actually. We. As mere mortals. As mere flesh.

[56:05] And it's just human. Vessels. Who know. The one. Who's got. The perfect. Will. For us.

[56:16] His perfect. Will. His perfect. Will. Is. The best. And. Friends. It says. We can have peace with God.

[56:27] Through our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 5. Verse 2. The nations. Of man. Australia's. Man. It's getting. Man. It's getting.

[56:38] It's getting. Man. It's like. This insanity. That's pervading. But we can know. The one. Who can give us. Soberness. And soundness. Of mind.

[56:49] We can know. The one. His. Ultimate purpose. Is for our very best. And we can know him. Personally know him. And I urge you today. If you get to trust him.

[57:00] The ultimate. And the. Highest. And best. Step. Of faith. We can. Is to know. His saving.

[57:11] To know. As. Let's just. Prayfully close this time before. Our song. To close. And maybe just. Let's just. Spend a moment. Just quietly.

[57:22] As we just. Come to. A few. Just a moment. Of reflection. In. I pray. If you get to trust. The saving. That.

[57:33] Today. Will be the day. That you are saying. Lord Jesus. I know you died. On the cross. For my sin. That you paid. The ultimate price. For my sin. That.

[57:44] My sin. Was nailed. To the cross. That you paid it. The penalty. Of death. You paid that penalty. For me. And I receive your gift. I'll be telemarked. By trusting in you.

[57:55] Because Lord. I know that you have. The best for my mind. My health. My future. My family. My world. This nation. That we can know.

[58:06] A sure. And sound mind. To know you. As Saviour and Lord. And we know that transforming power. That you can renew our mind. Day by day.

[58:17] Make it. Make it. Such that we know. In a world that is. Seems so crazy. So. So mad. Lord. That yet. We are in your hands.

[58:28] And your purpose. Is for our best. And Lord. That we can know you. Your perfect will. Just. To be saved. To be. Your possession. Lord. Each one might know that comfort.

[58:40] That peace of God. Which keeps our hearts and minds. Through Christ Jesus. That even. In trying and troubling times. Yet. We have a peace. That. Is. Beyond anything.

[58:51] Beyond compare. And. And it is a peace that. Will keep our hearts and minds. Through Christ Jesus. Amen.