Faithful Preaching

[0:00] Good evening, good evening.

[0:13] Welcome to our service this evening. Let's begin by taking our songbooks, looking up the screen, standing up, singing 153, my faith has found a resting place.

[0:25] So I'll stand as we sing. My faith has found a resting place. Ready?

[0:42] Ready? Let's sing. My faith has found our rest Is not in you my true greed I trust the ever-living ones His rules for me shall lead I need another argument I need another plea It is enough that Jesus died And that He died for me Not for me as Jesus saves This is my fears and doubts

[1:47] A sinful soul I come to Him He'll never pass me out I need another argument I need another plea It is enough that Jesus died And that He died for me My heart is leading on the Lord The rich and good of God Salvation by my Savior's name Salvation to His blood I need another argument I need another plea

[2:52] It is enough that Jesus died And that He died for me My great physician heals the sick The lost He came to save For me His precious blood He shed For me His life He gave I need another argument I need another plea It is enough that Jesus died And that He died for me Amen Leon, would you open us in prayer this evening?

[3:52] Sorry, this evening Thank you You may be seated Just a matter of our announcements we have Notice this We do have our Bible study Starting on the 5th Excuse me, it's actually the 4th This Wednesday And so we have the 1.30 And then at 7pm The 1.30 Bible study We'll be doing on the book Covering the book of Job For however long it takes I don't know how long it took To get through this last one But they'll just be taking their time As God directs them And just looking at the story of Job The life of Job And that book of Job Just to see the challenges we have in it

[4:53] And then we'll continue our study Of our doctrines of the faith As we'll be going through The doctrine of Christ presently In our Wednesday evening Bible studies So please be sure to join us Either one of those or both You're welcome to come along If you have a free moment We'd love to see you then Of course Monday night We have 7pm our prayer time Right here meeting in the back A wonderful time of fellowship But just a really nice time of prayer A lot of times it's just praying As God directs us And bringing our requests We have before him And sharing our burdens With each other And just watching God work there So we encourage you to come to that If you have the chance This upcoming Sunday the 8th In the morning We'll be having one of our missionaries Ricardo Portillo Visiting with us Sharing his ministry And his burden And challenging us Through the word of God They're going to Argentina So be sure to come along And listen And encourage him And be a challenge to him As far as the support Of his family there And then 15th of February We do have our church lunch Anniversary lunch

[5:54] Here after the morning service So welcome to come along And join us then And be sure to bring A plate Or a dish And I usually challenge people To bring enough For your family Plus one more person To ensure that there's Enough of food To go around for everybody So we look forward To these things We have going on this month And then continue to pray For the Masakis As they're continuing To do a fundraiser I think they had A fundraising thing Tuesday This past week I think they hosted Something then I'm not sure Of the results of that But they're putting together A container To send supplies To a medical mission That they have there As well as to help The churches that they have In that area there So encourage them Pray about that as well And then be in prayer For me just to request At the end of the month I'm heading out of the country To another country To be with my father-in-law I can give you more specifics later But just be in prayer for us As we're ministering In that country there And our trip there So just remember that At this time I will have Stuart come And bring us the Bible reading

[6:57] And we'll continue on Okay if you can turn in your Bibles To Psalm 108 Psalm 108 We'll begin in verse 1 O God my heart is fixed I will sing and give praise Even with my glory Awake Sultry and harp I myself will awake early I will praise thee O Lord Among the people I will sing praise Unto thee Among the nations For thy mercy Is great Above the heavens And thy truth Reaches Unto the clouds Be thou exalted O God Above the heavens And thy glory

[7:57] Above all the earth That Thy beloved May be delivered Save with thy right hand And answer me God has spoken In his holiness I will rejoice I will divide Shechem And meter out The valley of Sukkoth Gilead is mine Manasseh is mine Ephraim also Is the strength Of my head Judah Is my lawgiver Moab Is my washpot Over Edom Will I Cast out my shoe Over Philistia Will I triumph Will I triumph Who will bring me Into the strong city Who would lead me Into Edom Who will not O God Who has cast us off Who will not O God Go forth With our hosts Give us help From trouble For vain Is the help Of man Through God We shall do Valiantly For he Is That shall

[8:58] Tread down Our enemies Through God We shall do Valiantly Thank you Thank you Stuart I appreciate that With that Let's go ahead And take our Stand up one more Time and go to Our next song We're going to do 168 O Lord my God O Lord my God We're just going to do Four verses there This evening on that And we'll continue on With our service And just continue To see how God Is going to direct 168 O Lord my God When I in awesome wonder Consider all the worlds My hands have made I see the stars

[10:01] My new holy wonder I bowed you up The universe displayed Then sings my soul My sacred God The universe displayed How great thou art How great thou art Then sings my soul My sacred God How great thou art How great thou art And when I think My God The universe displayed Send him to the Lord I scarce can't believe That on the cross My burden gladly buried He bled and died

[11:03] To take away my sins Then sings my soul My sacred God How great thou art How great thou art Then sings my soul My sacred God How great thou art How great thou art When Christ shall come With shout of affirmation And take me home What joy shall fill my heart Then I shall bow!

[11:53] In humble admiration And there will claim My God How great thou art Then sings my soul My sacred God Be How great thou art How great thou art Then sings my soul My sacred God Be How great thou art How great thou art Wonderful.

[12:32] Thank you. You may be seated. And then as we go To our prayer time We had a few Mentioned this morning Annie has a Friend who's going Into the hospital This week So remember that And then we had Linda mentioned Is that a cousin Linda Or is that just Graham Is that a friend Of yours Linda She stepped up Okay no worries She has another friend I believe Who's having Who has Some issues With cancer So pray about That as well And then of course We have many others Ian mentioned The persecuted church This morning And I've talked about Looked at Nigeria And this is a really Troubling situation Nigeria presently as well Which I think Seems to get most Of the attention But just remember that And people ask To pray for a government Just that they would Rule justly And rule properly And rule for the reasons That we elected them Therefore So just remember that

[13:34] Unfortunately That doesn't always happen They say one thing And do another But just pray that They'll actually Do what they say So And that'll be Properly and right So any other Requests this evening Yes Barry You usual Your mom Bisa Jerusalem Yes Bisa Jerusalem And remember Your mom and family As well For their salvation And things there Any Yes Son Isaac Yeah Yes Just Somebody asked me About that this morning And I apologize They've been keeping Up to date With what's going on Through their sports evangelism They saw about 105 professions of faith So we rejoice With that And the services They're hosting They're going very well So just continue To remember them In your prayers Lord bring them back Safely to us as well And I haven't received A most recent update

[14:34] I think they're presently Actually helping somebody Who's Who's trying to Work through The asylum paperwork As well And so they're trying To help him with that So just pray for that He's got a meeting I think The person who's looking To get it Has a meeting with Somebody I think this week So just remember that Keep that in your prayers And then Any other requests Yes Yes Yes that too Yeah they are They're being Very brutal So Put that up with Nigeria And the persecuted church And all that Yes David Yeah Yeah She's got a bad cold So remember her health There's several others I think we're missing today I think because they're sick Or other things So just remember them In your prayers Any others Once Twice Sold

[15:36] All right Let's go to Lord in prayer And then We'll continue on With our service Father we do thank you For this day We thank you For the service This morning Just how you guided And directed And we pray That your word Will sink into our hearts That we heard this morning As far as Building As far as Building properly And building smart And building Prop right And having the right Things to build upon Building upon thy word Building upon Building upon Proper homes And building upon Fellowship And other things That we need to work on And we just ask you Please work And mold this church And shape it together And become a stronger unit A stronger family And with every family You have ups and downs And challenges We ask for your grace And direction Through it all We ask that you Please May the people come May the people attend here And find peace And rest within these walls Among the brethren Find encouragement And a challenge here Among us And may we be Found as having

[16:37] All things common And may we be Of like mind And seeking to Encourage and challenge And exhort one another We just ask you Please work there In a great and mighty way We ask these requests Mentioned before us I know many have been sick I know Ian's been Mentioning his son And needing a new house We just ask you Please direct And open the doors there I know it's not always Easy to find a new place But we just ask you Please direct It may be in a place That keeps him away From any bad influences That might be around him And just work there Be with Annie And her friend Who's going to the hospital This week As well as Graham Linda's friend And also Linda's Mentioned her cousins Who are Dutch That she's been praying for And might have an opportunity To witness to them Through Facebook We ask you Please work there And use Linda's witness To them In a great and mighty way On that end We ask you Have your hand upon Our government Guide and direct them Work in their hearts And lives We ask you

[17:38] Please perhaps Bring along believers Across your path To share the gospel With them If they knew Christ As their savior And that they'll hear What Christ has done For them And put their faith And trust in you And live And do what they ought to And be godly examples To this nation And just work there But I pray That you have your hand Upon them And direct In their judgments Direct in their guidance In their rulings In the laws Which they pass And may they be In accordance With your word And may they be In accordance With what's best For the protections Of this country We just ask you Work there In a great and mighty way We think of Moses And Peter And they're basically I think their final week here We ask you Please work in their hearts And their lives Bring them back safely to us To rejoice With the results Of the sports evangelism We pray you use those churches To follow up with those people To see these people grow And be nurtured In admonition of the Lord To be strong and faithful believers Seeking to grow in their faith And witness to others around them

[18:39] We think of Mary Clap Who's sick As well as Barry mentioned The peace of Jerusalem As well as the issues With the persecuted church And the issues The issues Of that region Is just so much turmoil And strife We ask you please Stop the bloodshed And provide peace In that area In a great and mighty way We just ask you Continue to be with the service Work in our hearts And lives Be with Andrew As he preaches Give him grace And strength Guide him in thy word May your word Be what goes forth And may we be challenged And pricked in the hearts To change our lives Be more like thy son Jesus Christ We love you We look forward to seeing What you're going to do In Christ's name Amen Amen With that Let's go ahead And take our next Go to our next song And as we take the offering And Barry and Ian If I could have you help With that If you could come Collect our offering for us And you sort of Staying seated For the first Couple verses here Of 158 158

[19:41] Nearer my God To thee 158 Nearer my God To thee Nearer to thee Nearer to thee Nearer to thee To thee Be a cross that praiseth me.

[20:24] Still all my songs shall be. Nearer, my God, to thee. Nearer, my God, to thee.

[20:37] Nearer to thee. There led the way of me. Stems unto heaven.

[20:49] All that thou sendest me. In mercy give. Angels to beckon me.

[21:02] Nearer, my God, to thee. Nearer, my God, to thee. Nearer to thee.

[21:13] Let's stand up. Then with my waking God's pride. With thy praise. Out of my stoning reams.

[21:27] And thou all raise. So by my woes to thee. Nearer, my God, to thee.

[21:40] Nearer, my God, to thee. Nearer, my God. Nearer to thee. For if I'm joyfully leaving the sky, sun, moon, and stars for God, upward I'll fly.

[22:05] Still all my songs shall be, nearer my God to Thee, nearer to Thee.

[22:22] There in my Father's home, safe and a rest, there in my Savior's love, perfectly blessed.

[22:39] Age after age to be, nearer my God to Thee, nearer my God to Thee, nearer to Thee.

[22:57] Thank you. You may be seated. Pastor Andrew. Bless you tonight.

[23:11] Coming through clear enough? Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for your grace and goodness to us in this time. We can just gather around your word together today.

[23:24] Lord, may your Holy Spirit speak to each heart what words you want each one to hear. And act on tonight. For your glory we pray. In your name, Lord Jesus. Amen.

[23:37] I was wondering how to present this message to you today. I thought maybe I should call it negative preaching. Or hard preaching. But really, simply, it is faithful preaching, I pray.

[23:50] Faithful preaching. Because every time I get up here to preach, or whoever preaches, it's uncomfortable for me. So I'm going to have to say some things people may not like to hear.

[24:01] But I trust, I pray, being simply a faithful messenger, communicating the message of another, of our God.

[24:12] That is my prayer. And so, what I say may be confronting sometimes, and discomforting. But it's not my opinion I want to bring here.

[24:24] But I want to communicate what God wants us to hear. Prayerfully, that's my mission. Simply to speak his word to you. And I know it's not unusual to hit a nerve sometimes.

[24:35] And it seems almost like I can expect it. That someone will get offended with me along the way. This doesn't surprise me.

[24:46] Because it's what happened throughout the Bible. And deep down though, I truly prefer not to offend anyone. But I must be a faithful messenger of what I believe the Lord would have me to say to his church.

[25:01] And Jeremiah was such a one. Jeremiah was such a faithful one. A faithful messenger. And he was someone who says it like it is on behalf of his Lord.

[25:13] In Jeremiah 23. We see Jeremiah 23 from verse 28. The prophet that hath a dream, let him tell a dream. And he that hath my word, let him speak my word faithfully.

[25:26] Let him speak my word faithfully. For what is the chaff to the wheat, saith the Lord? Is not my word like as a fire, saith the Lord? And like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces.

[25:43] I should have brought a hammer and a rock to smash up. Just to make it graphic today. But God says, Is not my word like a fire, like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?

[25:57] And God says to Jeremiah, Speak my word faithfully. How did it all begin with Jeremiah? We see of his commissioning in Jeremiah 1.

[26:08] Jeremiah 1 from verse 4. It says, Then the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee. And before thou camest forth out of the womb, I sanctified thee and I ordained thee, a prophet, unto the nations.

[26:25] And then said I, Ah, Lord God, behold I cannot speak, for I am a child. But the Lord said unto me, Thou shalt go to all I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee, thou shalt speak.

[26:41] Be not afraid of their faces, for I am with thee, to deliver thee, saith the Lord. Now you've all got good looking faces here tonight, at least so far. But God says to the preacher, to the prophet Jeremiah, Don't be afraid of their faces.

[26:56] You know, when you start to scowl at me, I've still got to love you, and I've still got to be faithful in declaring what God has put on my heart to deliver. Verse 9, Then the Lord put forth his hand and touched my mouth, and the Lord said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.

[27:14] See, I have set thee this day over the nations and over the kingdoms to root out, to pull down, to destroy, to throw down, to build, and to plant.

[27:26] Jeremiah would be considered, and maybe called by some, a negative preacher. Some churches would have sacked him, because his preaching was straight down the line. Maybe he would have found it hard to find a pulpit.

[27:43] And I like the idea of building and planting. That's the good part of being a preacher, of being in ministry. But sometimes preachers are also called to declare God's word faithfully, to root out, to pull down, to destroy, and to throw down.

[28:03] I think of it, I often use the example of my beloved garden. And if you know how hopeless a gardener I am, it will help you understand. But I think of my garden and how I try to look after it, and just lately I got some grass.

[28:18] Our daughter cleared some space for a shed, and I got to dig up some of the grass, and I got some down the shop too, and I laid it in my garden. But I didn't pull out the old weeds, and the rubbishy grass that was in the garden.

[28:34] And it's not a good way to go, is it? We've got to pull the weeds. We've got to root out and pull the weeds, and not just lay the grass on the rubbishy ground.

[28:46] And it's something that we all need to think about. And I suppose it's like that when we're preaching, and when the prophets of old came, they had to tear down the altars of Baal, didn't they?

[28:58] And smash them and destroy the idols, and then to help the people seek after God. And so there's this twofold thing, a building up, a planting, but also a rooting out and a pulling down, and a destructive thing that we are to do.

[29:15] And in each of our lives too, we've got to, as it were, look for those weeds, those spiritual weeds, and remove them. So Jeremiah is known as the weeping prophet.

[29:26] That's how some called him. He lamented. He wept. He pleaded with God's people to turn from idolatry. You know, people might have thought he had a bit of a problem, because he was always in this state.

[29:39] And he likened the sin of the people to a wife committing adultery. Now, that's a pretty graphic picture, isn't it? That's gross. That's grievous.

[29:51] When someone is unfaithful to their spouse. Adultery, it's repulsive. And God says that sin is such a vile thing to him. Unfaithfulness.

[30:03] And God's prophets cry out on his behalf, Oh, do not do this abominable thing that I hate. Jeremiah rebuked the people as they caused their sons and daughters to pass through the fire unto Molech.

[30:16] They sacrificed their infants to this idol. Jeremiah did not mince his words when he had to exhort the people of God of the message of judgment against their sin.

[30:29] Jeremiah 23 verse 40, he says, And I'm speaking on behalf of God. I will bring an everlasting reproach unto you and a perpetual shame.

[30:40] Jeremiah publicly rebuked the leadership for disobeying God. Jeremiah 23 verse 1, Woe be unto the pastors that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture.

[30:53] For both prophet and priest are profane. Yea, in my house I found their wickedness. Behold, I'm against them that prophesy false dreams. The prophets prophesy lies in my name.

[31:05] I sent them not. Neither have I commanded them. Neither spake unto them. They prophesy unto you a false vision and divination and a thing of naught and the deceit of their heart.

[31:17] You know, there's preachers today and you can tune into them and they can tell you all sorts of fanciful stories of trips to heaven and visions and dreams and prophesy over you, it would seem, and some receive that.

[31:31] But God says to Jeremiah, of some such as these, I sent them not. They prophesy a false vision. Jeremiah did not hold back to expose the false teachers of his time.

[31:45] He said it like it was. And we must too. My heart cries out for some people in this fellowship who still hearken after things that are wrong in God's sight.

[31:59] And they turn to the false TV preachers, not saying they're all false and wrong, but many are doubtful and giving people the wrong, they're giving them a lie.

[32:14] They're prophesying lies in his name. Jeremiah did not hold back from telling the people. It was hard preaching. You know, it's hard for me to say to you, Joyce Myers is a false teacher.

[32:29] She is a false teacher. Some of you will say, well, I like tuning into her. Look, I've got to tell you straight, she is a false teacher. It's not easy to say things like that.

[32:45] In Jeremiah's day, it was hard preaching. But the truth had to be told. He that hath my word, let him speak my word faithfully. If I don't speak out against things that are wrong, how will you know that they are wrong?

[33:00] Through Jeremiah, the Lord called the people to get out of Babylon. They weren't to toy and compromise with it. For us today, I believe that Babylon speaks of the mishmash and apostasy of the whore of Babylon, the great harlot, the Pope's Rome and her harlot daughters, the ecumenical movement and the Pentecostal charismatic movements.

[33:25] These are things that people are blindly following and swallowing and accepting without any discernment or question.

[33:36] and it is incumbent on me or whoever is preaching to expose that which is false and doubtful and of error. Faithful preaching.

[33:50] In Jeremiah 51, 45, God says to Jeremiah, My people, go ye out of the midst of her, talking about Babylon, and deliver ye every man his soul from the fierce anger of the Lord.

[34:04] We must get out of Babylon. Not hanker after it, not toy with it, not try to sit and cozy up to it, but to get out of it. So, Jeremiah was told.

[34:18] God's word through Moses was also quite straight down the line. It must be. Deuteronomy 5, verse 6 through 9, I am the Lord thy God which brought thee out of the land of Egypt from the house of bondage.

[34:33] Thou shalt have none other gods before me. Thou shalt not make thee any graven image. Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them nor serve them. Hear that hath my word. Let him speak my word faithfully.

[34:46] When God commissioned Isaiah, he was told, Isaiah 58, verse 1, Cry aloud, lift up thy voice like a trumpet. Show my people their transgression and the house of Jacob their sins.

[34:57] Isaiah was told, tell the people about sin. Isaiah had a negative message. It was full of woes. Isaiah 3, verse 11, Woe unto the wicked, it shall be ill with him.

[35:10] Isaiah 5, 11, Woe unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong drink, that continue until night. Woe unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity and of sin, as it were with a cart rope.

[35:23] Woe unto them that call evil good and good evil, that put darkness for light and light for darkness. Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes. Woe unto them that are mighty to drink wine and men of strength to mingle strong drink.

[35:37] Woe unto them that decree unrighteous decrees. Woe to the rebellious children. Woe unto him that striveth with his maker. Woe, woe, woe.

[35:47] Some might say Isaiah was a negative preacher. Isaiah's commission was a strong word. Cry aloud. Spare not.

[35:59] Lift up thy voice like a trumpet. Show my people their sins. Isaiah 30, verse 9, he said, This is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the Lord.

[36:12] Which say to the seers, See not. And to the prophets, Prophesy not. Unto his right things, speak unto us, smooth things. Prophesy deceits.

[36:23] Get you out of the way. It's like that today. People want the smooth things. They can swallow things with that sugar candy coating.

[36:37] The prophet Jonah was another such faithful preacher. A negative preacher, you could say. He was charged by God to go to Nineveh, the capital city of the Assyrian Empire to preach that in yet 40 days and Nineveh shall be overthrown.

[36:52] It wasn't a very positive message, was it? It wasn't something, a feel good kind of warm and fuzzy kind of message. It says, In 40 days, your city's going to be destroyed and you are going to be overthrown.

[37:05] Nineveh was a mighty city and the nerve center of a great empire but it was grossly wicked and the rulers of Nineveh were brutal and harsh with the nations they conquered.

[37:18] It was a nation that shed much innocent blood and Nineveh was bent on idol worship. Friends, God judges evil nations and calls them to account as he does with us and we should get a wake up call as Nineveh did.

[37:34] The word of the Lord came to Jonah and he declared it faithfully. He did not hold it back. It was stern and short but it was true. And such a prophet would be laughed today, laughed to scorn and dismissed as a fanatic.

[37:50] But how did Nineveh respond? It says they proclaimed a fast. They laid aside, the king laid aside his sackcloth, his robe rather and was covered with sackcloth.

[38:01] And it says, verse 8 of Jonah 3, he called unto the people, cry mightily unto God. Yea, let everyone turn away from his evil way and from the violence that is in their hands.

[38:13] Who can tell if God will turn and repent and turn away from his fierce anger that we perish not? So the result of this negative preaching was positive. Amen? The result of this negative preaching was positive.

[38:26] As it says in verse 10, God saw their works and turned from their evil way. God repented of the evil that he said he would do unto them and he did it not. So friends, there is a positive angle for something that the world would say is negative.

[38:45] Our Lord says the people repented at the preaching of Jonah. Matthew 12, 41. He that hath my word, let him speak my word faithfully.

[38:56] Micah was also given a hard and heavy word to deliver. In Micah 1, verse 1, it says, the word of the Lord came to Micah. And verse 4, it says, the mountains shall be molten under him.

[39:08] The valleys shall cleft as wax before the fire. Verse 7, and all the graven images shall be beaten to pieces. The idols thereof will I lay desolate.

[39:18] Micah declared, Micah 3, verse 8, but truly I am full of power by the spirit of the Lord and of judgment and of might to declare unto Jacob his transgression and to Israel his sin.

[39:31] He preached against sin. Now that can be hard. I'd rather preach unto you smooth things tonight, but the Bible says that sometimes we've got to hear the hard things so that we can wake up to our state, our standing, our danger before our awesome God.

[39:47] Micah was a woeful preacher to him. He said, woe to them that devise iniquity and work evil upon their beds. And the remedy is this, what doth the Lord require of thee but to do justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly with thy God.

[40:03] Micah 6, verse 8. So we see these ones, see Jeremiah, Isaiah, Ezekiel, the same, Jonah, Micah. You might say these are all old covenant preacher, this is old covenant stuff.

[40:16] That's the Old Testament, these are just old covenant Old Testament prophets. But then we come to the New Testament, the New Testament and we see the same theme. Our Lord himself was negative as he denounced the Pharisees.

[40:29] Matthew 23, read the whole chapter, woe unto you scribes, Pharisees, hypocrites, for you're like whited sepulchres, like these tombs painted with white, yet full of dead men's bones.

[40:44] Verse 28, even so you outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within you're full of hypocrisy and iniquity. Now we can be like the Pharisees, have everything all together and looking good on the outside, but God knows our heart.

[41:00] And that's what the Lord was pointing out here. John the Baptist was the voice of one crying in the wilderness, repent ye for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. What did he say to the Pharisees?

[41:12] He said, oh generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come, bring forth therefore fruits, meat for repentance. That was straight talking, straight shooting.

[41:25] That's what we need. We need that. You need that, I need that. John was put in prison when he rebuked the king Herod for sleeping with his brother's wife and John got beheaded.

[41:40] Maybe we've got to see some preachers beheaded in Australia. Chances are we will. The preaching of Peter was also strong. The preaching of Peter at Pentecost.

[41:51] When he spoke of Christ he said, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs which God did by him in the midst of you as you yourselves know and him you have taken and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.

[42:08] The people he was talking to he said, you killed him, you killed him with your wicked hands and you killed him, you slew him, you nailed him there. It wasn't exactly positive preaching that day.

[42:22] It was a heavy indictment but it was true, it was true. That is what they had done, they killed the prince of life. Yet God rose him from the dead and declared him both Lord and Christ and in anguish they hurt this negative preacher and they were wrecked in their hearts and said what can we do?

[42:46] What shall we do? That's what preaching should make us respond to the danger and the judgment, the wrath, yet the mercy while it is extended, the mercy still extended and it says they were pricked in their heart.

[43:08] And then verse 41, here's the good part, they gladly, gladly received his word and they were baptized and the same day they were added unto them 3,000 souls.

[43:20] Wow, negative preaching can have a positive result. Paul said also to Timothy, preach it straight, preach it brother, reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and doctrine.

[43:36] There's a couple of negative things there isn't there? Reprove, rebuke, exhort. reprove and rebuke, that's in your face.

[43:49] That's how Paul told Timothy to preach it. Standing for the truth not only involves preaching what we must stand for, but likewise what we must stand against. Now I don't normally preach such a heavily negative message, I must confess, but that's the theme tonight.

[44:08] Okay? Jude is another faithful messenger, he calls God's people to contend. In Jude 1 3 he says, Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation it was needful for me to write unto you and exhort you that you should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.

[44:30] Now there's some things we call to contend against, it's not all positive. we're against the devil and all his works, we're against the world, it threatens the purity of the church, we're against the works of the flesh, we're against false doctrines and teachers, we're against hell, we don't want people to go there, hell's negative, but there's a need of hellfire preaching.

[44:56] We're against the wishy-washy gospel that makes false converts, makes people think they're saved when they're not. There's a hell to shun, got to get right with God, stop playing games.

[45:08] There's a danger for you Christless ones here tonight unless you hear his voice and turn, my plea is turn, turn, turn while you have time. The gospel is not always pleasant and easy to take in because at the centre of it all is a bleeding and dying man, shredded, shredded to bits, bleeding, cursed, bearing most of all your vile sin and mine.

[45:36] That's graphic, that's ugly, that's negative. The cross is not comfortable. It's not comfortable. It's not positive.

[45:49] Some might say it's a positive sign, a plus sign, but no, the cross is not comfortable. Friends, think of the cross. We must get back to the cross and think of the warning of the cross and the blessing of the cross.

[46:04] Sometimes I just want to shout out. I was thinking maybe a good sermon title one day would be it's about time you stop being slack. Is that judgmental?

[46:15] Maybe it is. Maybe I should retract that. Maybe I should put my name there. It's about time I stop being slack. Amen? You can say amen to that one.

[46:26] You don't get offended then because it's about me. God is intolerant. Intolerant. Does such preaching offend you? We must take a stand. Do you say preacher you're being judgmental?

[46:39] Legalistic. Oh they love that one. God says judge. Righteous judgment. There's even a rightful place to be a preacher of hate. It gets worse.

[46:50] It gets worse. I'm only halfway through. Psalm 119 it says through thy precepts I get understanding. Therefore I hate every false way. God hates some things.

[47:03] We know God is love. Right? We know that. God is love but there's some things God hates. He detests some things. Proverbs 6 gives us a list of six of them.

[47:14] Six things the Lord does hate. Yea seven are an abomination unto him. A proud look, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that are swift in running to mischief, a false witness that speak of lies, and he that soweth discord among the brethren.

[47:32] These are things God hates and we should hate them too. The fear of the Lord is to hate evil, pride and arrogancy and the evil way, and the froward mouth or the perverse mouth do I hate.

[47:46] There's some things God hates and we as God's people too should hate every false way. So there is a time, there is a time to be negative. negative. If something is wrong with your body, you want the doctor to tell you, don't you?

[48:02] Wouldn't it be terrible if the doctor knew you got something drastic with your body and he didn't tell you? Well, I just want to tell you positive things. Maybe he could tell you, look, there's some things you can do about that condition to give your life, extend your life.

[48:19] eat less fried foods, eat more vegetables, whatever it be. Do this, do that, some exercise. We need to hear the negative stuff so we can do something about it.

[48:37] And the doctor that tells the patient what he needs to do also needs to tell him the bad news. And it's the same with the gospel.

[48:49] There's the bad news and there's the good news. We've got to get the bad news straight, that we're a sinner lost, condemned for hell. And the good news is there's salvation, free and offered.

[49:04] So there's a need for that divisive preaching, because negative preaching leads to positive living. We know what to avoid, we'll avoid it and we'll go the way God wants us to go.

[49:16] And so I'm not here to tell you what you like to hear tonight. I'm sorry to disappoint you, if that's why you've come here tonight, to give you smooth words, that's not why I'm here.

[49:28] I'm here to give you the truth, the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. I'm not here to prophesy to you, peace, peace, everything's going to be fine and dandy, yeah, she'll be right, Jack, pat you on the back and just go and just ignore God for another six days till we see you next time.

[49:46] We're told that wrath shall be poured out and we need to take it seriously. We need to flee from the wrath to come. We need to realise the danger of messing around when we should get right with God.

[50:00] And Jeremiah 7, the Lord says through Jeremiah, amend your ways, there's a change, amend your ways. Jeremiah 7 verse 20, it says that God says, mine anger and my fury shall be poured out.

[50:15] Now we want to be negative in a positive way. Let me put this to you, I'm positively against sin, I'm positively against false teachers, I'm positively against all that God hates.

[50:28] So we need hard preaching, holiness preaching, hellfire preaching, preaching against sin, because there's needful warning. It says he that believeth not shall be damned. That's heavy, isn't it?

[50:39] Well, it's almost a abusive, isn't it? That's almost, God's being a bit legalistic there, isn't he? He says if we don't believe we're going to be damned. That's what he says.

[50:50] So we better think about that one. Paul says, do I now persuade man or God or do I seek to please man? For if I yet please man, I should not be the servant of Christ.

[51:01] He says that I'm your enemy because I'm telling you the truth. Paul tells Titus rebuke them sharply that they may be sound in the faith.

[51:24] I'm scared to say the tiniest little thing lest I offend someone. Paul said for I have not shunned to declare unto you the whole counsel of God.

[51:39] Now there's a place for rebuking, a place for hard preaching because we must know what error is and what sin is so we can steer away. The preaching that we're called to have, to hear, is not to impress the influential and draw in the powerful and to make some big mega church.

[52:00] One of the worst things that can happen is where we're just toning it all down. So we just please everyone. Someone has said take a look at practically every single Old Testament prophet, 90% of their preaching was negative.

[52:17] And even in the New Testament too, they're often jailed, beaten, killed. They were more familiar with prisons than with pulpits. And they were despised by the political leaders and religious leaders of the time.

[52:31] people. Here's what one preacher put it. I know I shared this YouTube with someone. And it's an interesting way he puts it.

[52:46] He says it like this, when the enemy shall come in like a flood, the spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him. I like that word against. There are things that you and I are against.

[52:58] Yes, we are against them. I'm against the Pope. You remember that. I'm against the World Council of Churches. I'm against the National Council of Churches. I'm against the great apostate denominations whether they be Episcopalian, Presbyterian, Baptist or called by any other name.

[53:14] I'm absolutely and totally against them. From the top of my head to my big toe. I'm against them, every bit of me against them. And I want to tell your brethren when you go to a little country town to start a church you let people know you're against something.

[53:30] You let them know you've not come as a sob voice sissy to be another pulpit ornament two times on Sunday that you're not a soft pedaling fence straddling cream puff pie preacher that you are a man of God with fire in your belly and you're going to preach the word with power you know I believe we've got preachers in our church such as that he goes on I'm against the devil and all his works of darkness now this is this is me now I will contend earnestly for the faith once delivered for the saints I will preach against apostasy which is false doctrine liberalism feminism the abominations that cover our land you know our nation legalises abominations whether it's killing babies or celebrating sinfulness the massacre of innocence in the womb I'm against the Pentecostal movement and their false tongues and all their false prophets like Benny Hinn David Wilkerson Joyce Meyer I'm against

[54:30] Hillsong I'm against the Uniting Church and the like and its accommodation of sin I'm against the ecumenical movement in all its forms I'm against the false bible translations I'm against Calvinism I'm against Arminianism so I'm going to please lots of people by that one I'm against contemporary charismatic Christian music I'm against the smooth cross I'm against demon drink and all the damage that strikes Christians who dabble with drinking booze I'm against the backsliders the compromisers and the carnal who try and excuse their sin I'm against the leaven in the lump and pray that God will perform radical surgery where it is necessary I'm against any fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness I'm against any compromise of working with false teachers I'm against those who gossip and murmur and backbite and speak evil of one another I urge you to get it sorted out with God you may say how judgmental preacher I'm getting a bit worried myself here

[55:34] I'm not going to have anyone come back next week but God is a judge God judges righteous judgment and the Bible tells us clearly sin is ugly and hell is hot and we shouldn't play games with God we shouldn't play church I'm against the health wealth and prosperity gospel it's a lie from the pit of hell I'm against those who will not leave their sin but still cherish it and excuse it I'm against the attitude in some that have no loyalty to fellowship and commit to a church but rather want to float around instead of being stable and faithful and fruitful I plead with you I plead with you I have to speak plainly with you I'm against those who claim thus saith the Lord when the Lord has not sent them I'm against the Christians who gossip and backbite and sow discord the Lord is against you and the Lord hates that that's negative but it's the truth it's the truth people tonight you may say

[56:35] I'm being unloving but we have to be lovers of the truth you may say preacher you're being threatening making me feel uncomfortable well good I say to you unless you repent you shall likewise perish!

[56:48] We need to challenge the status quo look at our Lord he was no weak sissy he was forthright and plain with his preaching he cleansed the temple and he threw out the evil workers Titus 2 verse 11 it says for the grace of God that bring us salvation have appeared to all men teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lust we should live soberly righteously and godly in this present world looking for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purify unto himself a peculiar people zealous of good works these things speak and exhort and rebuke with all authority let no man despise thee you know people come up to me sometimes when I've preached and they say oh I didn't like what you said about this I didn't like what you said about that well look I'm open to correction but honestly before God

[57:54] I need to be faithful to him for the message that he puts in my heart we must be vigilant today brothers and sisters I know this is a heavy message tonight we must be resolute we must not back down there is authority in this word and I will stand without apology for it without apology we believe in this book and we will proclaim it without compromise and without pussyfooting around and we will contend for it and we will fight for it till our dying breath we must it's not about drawing a crowd or making you smile at me it's about the truth it's not my word like a hammer like a fire like a hammer that break at the rock in pieces I pray you'll be lumped some broken pieces of rock tonight before God I pray that he'll break you up you know when I had to sort that garden out the ground was hard I had to get the pickaxe or the shovel the spade

[58:57] I had to do some digging and turn it over and that's what we've got to do break up the fallow ground people break up the fallow ground that hardness of heart before him let's be sensitive and tender and open to him you know it goes against the grain for me to give such a heavy word but it's a needful thing that we need to get right with God if we're not right with him I'm exhorting Christians largely but if you're not saved here tonight the simple message is God is going to pour out his wrath one day as he did say he would do with Nineveh but because the people repented and they asked God to save them God showed mercy and he still shows mercy to those who will respond to him thank God I want to urge you to be positively faithful and let God's hammer do its work you know we can have an altar call and I can hit you on the head with it you know that might be a new church tradition we can start in church for you

[60:08] I can slay you in the spirit by banging you on the head with this thing amen so you can get the truth let it sink in between the ears in the grey matter and is not my word like a fire like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces I love you today I love you that's why I'm telling you the truth people won't tell you the truth in some places they'd rather tickle your ears and tickle your fancies and give you nice quaint stories but we must let God's hammer do its work and yield to his word yield to him and so look I've preached a lot of negative stuff but the negative preaching brings a positive result as we see our need our sin the wrath to come we can repent and receive his mercy while it's time and that's the good news today the good news is there's a bleeding dying man and you are on his mind on the cross now he's buried risen ascended praying for us wow that's tremendous isn't it and he loves you his mercy is still extended tonight if you're not a

[61:30] Christian today the simple message to you today is trust him trust Jesus Christ with your eternal life with your eternity your destination adoption is hell unless it's changed you're not born a son or daughter of God you've got to be reborn reborn born again adopted into God's family wow that's that's special isn't it I think if you were an adopted son or daughter that's something very special and it's the same with God it's special that he adopts those who will trust him and I pray that you'll come into God's family and ask God's family that we'll all be encouraged as much as this has been somewhat of a heavy word the positive message sorry the negative message can make a positive difference in our lives and I trust it will let us pray heavenly father we praise you and thank you lord for the cross the ugly brutal cross the bleeding dying form of our saviour there and we thank you lord that our sin was was paid for there help us lord to know your will to recognise the truth from that which is not to see evil and to see good and to know the difference between the two help us lord to have our eyes opened and to feel exhorted tonight to walk closer to you that you would be glorified there's any yet to trust you they'll simply cry out lord forgive me forgive me of my sin forgive me and save me

[63:14] I trust you I receive you lord of my life and for believers to lord help us to recognise the ugliness the exceeding sinfulness of our sin and not to excuse it but to deal with it tonight that your holy spirit would have his way in each life and each home tonight in jesus name amen a Thank you.

[64:41] Thank you.

[65:11] Thank you.

[65:41] Thank you.

[66:11] Thank you.

[66:41] Thank you.

[67:11] Lord, upon that cross, that we might have eternal life by simply saying, thank you, Jesus, you died for me. Send us a way, Lord, to proclaim this, Lord.

[67:21] To proclaim it more powerfully, Lord, to each and every one that will listen. Let them have ears, Lord, God.

[67:31] Let them have eyes. Let's say to take off the blinders in Jesus' name that sinners might come, Lord.