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[0:00] That's what we're talking about, the old landmarks, the old landmarks. Now there's a saying that goes, it's an oldie but it's a goodie. Who's heard that one? It's an oldie but it's a goodie.

[0:10] This is an oldie but it's a goodie. Amen? The word of God. In Proverbs 22, 28 it says, Remove not the ancient landmark which thy fathers have set.

[0:22] Remove not the ancient landmark which my fathers have set. Now Julie and I, as I say, we're on our anniversary weekend. Monday is 35 years since she started to suffer or enjoy my husbandship.

[0:37] She joined in holy matrimony 35 years ago. Now she needs a medal for that. And so we were staying away at a bit of a country location and it was a bit of a windy navigating road to get there.

[0:52] And then last night she wanted me to go out and get something for tea. So I had to go down to the local town which was a wiggledy way as well. And I had to work out with the GPS and try to figure out how am I going to get there.

[1:06] And, you know, it was saying still calibrating. And then I fumbled and muddled my way through and got there.

[1:17] And then I've got to go and find my way back. I've got to find my way back. And I thought, I've got to look for those landmarks. Those landmarks along the way. That big shed.

[1:29] That house with the red roof. That low bit. That high bit. That big tree or whatever it be. And I thought, oh, yeah, that black sign.

[1:40] I turned there. And there was a corner here and a corner there. I'm going to have to find this way on my way back to Julie after this service. I've got to follow those landmarks. And find my way back.

[1:53] To where I need to be. And in some ways it's like that with scripture, isn't it? The landmarks. Those signposts along the way.

[2:04] Those direction markers. So that we can go back. To where we need to be. Amen. Back to the Bible. And the scripture here tells us, remove not the ancient landmarks.

[2:16] Some people are removing the ancient landmarks. They're taking them away. And, of course, in the context here, the old boundary markers is what it was. So, you know, people who live out in the country or even in the city.

[2:30] You've got those stakes driven in the ground that designate the land borders or limits. And those survey markers that we put out when we got a new house block to build on.

[2:41] They need to know definitely where the edge of the property is. And without the boundary marked out, we've got no clear idea of where we are. And this is what the devil is doing today in our world.

[2:54] He's trying to remove those ancient landmarks. He's trying to pull those stakes out so we don't know where the boundaries are anymore. We don't know where the line is anymore. It's blurred. It's lost.

[3:06] In Jeremiah 6.16 it says, Old isn't necessarily right.

[3:32] And new isn't necessarily wrong. I'm not saying that here today. We know that old isn't popular. It isn't trendy. It isn't cool.

[3:42] The crowd isn't there. There's a new brand. A new breed today. A new Bible. A new Jesus. A new church. When I say old, I mean as it was spoken of in the Bible.

[3:54] It means the original. In the original. We aren't meaning old in the sense of cobwebs and rust and decay. Stuffy, stodgy. Stuffy. We're meaning getting back to the book.

[4:07] The book. Back to the foundation. And we need a wake up call in our nation today. Around the world. The church of God desperately needs a wake up call. In this dying hour of planet earth.

[4:17] I know someone was telling me before how things are hotting up. You know, turn on the news and it's revelation at six o'clock, isn't it? There's lots of talk today about religious fundamentalists. Well, we are a fundamentalist church.

[4:31] Julie likes to say some of us are fun and some of us are duh and the rest of them are mental. You know, we're fundamentalists. That's what we're meant to be, isn't it? Fundamentalists. We believe in the Bible fundamentals.

[4:42] That's what we're meant to be believing. The fundamentals. We're not meaning radical Islamic fundamentalists. We're talking about fundamentalists. Biblical fundamentalists.

[4:53] Bible fundamentals. The ancient landmarks that God has set in his word. They're still, the stake's still driven in. Don't toy with it. Move it.

[5:04] Stick with it. Now, that's not to say as fundamentalists we're going to blow up some buildings. But maybe there is some demolition work that is needed. Demolition work. You know, we talked about strongholds in a recent time.

[5:17] There's some tearing down of Baal's altars that needs to happen sometimes. Amen? Like Elijah. He didn't try to decorate Baal's altars and kind of Christianise them, try to make them to suit Jehovah.

[5:30] He smashed them to bits and laid them waste. And there's some tearing down of Baal's altars that need it in our day. And some reject these fundamentals today. The fundamentals of the faith.

[5:42] They would rather have a man-made substitute. Now, it's been said, and these are American statistics, but Aussies are just as bad as the Americans. Let's face it. 71% of American adults believe there is no such thing as absolute truth.

[5:56] A view that's shared by 64% of born-again Christians, supposedly, and 40% of evangelical Christians. People don't want the old landmarks. There's no such thing as absolute truth.

[6:08] We just take it or leave it. We choose which bits we want and we discard what we don't like. So let's look at three of these ancient landmarks, if you like. And the first one is old salvation.

[6:21] Bible salvation. Acts 16. And the jailer brought them out and said, sirs, what must I do to be saved? Here was the earthquake that happened. Paul and Silas were in the jail.

[6:33] And suddenly the prison bars were shattered and the doors sprung open. And he knew he was going to be in trouble. The prisoners were going to get out. And he said, sirs, what must I do to be saved?

[6:44] And they said, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved and thy house. Bible salvation. Old salvation.

[6:55] It's old, but it's true, isn't it? Salvation hasn't changed in its definition from way back when. But the devil now loves to con people and have a substitute gospel.

[7:08] And he's always sought this way to trick men to believing you can climb up some other way. Don't go through the door. Just jump over the fence. But Bible salvation is not a religion of works.

[7:21] It's not climbing a ladder to find your own other way. It's not made up or a conjured up decision. It's not some vague, airy, fairy, general, some kind of believing in God.

[7:32] We're talking about a true faith in Christ from a repentant heart. As we're radically born again. Radically saved. Radically changed.

[7:44] There was a little boy wanting to join a church one day. And the deacons were examining him. Is he really a Christian here, this little boy? He's just a little boy. Just a little boy. And they asked him, how did you get saved?

[7:57] His answer was, God did his part. And I did my part. They thought this was something wrong with his doctrine here. So they questioned him further. God's part was the saving.

[8:09] Then he explained, and my part was the sinning. I did run from him as fast as my sinful heart and rebellious legs could take me.

[8:21] He took out after me until he ran me down. Now that's the sense of it, isn't it? God is still in the business of running people down and saving souls.

[8:32] His church is still preaching the message of salvation. The blood of Christ is still the blood of Christ. And it's still the only way to wash away sin. There's no other formula.

[8:43] There's no other name. And there's still no other name. There's no other religion. Certainly not a religion of good works. And there's not a hope so salvation as if we don't know whether we are or not.

[8:55] Or we are one day and not the next. Many still need to trust Christ. To turn to him. From their own way to trust in him. As Lord and Saviour.

[9:07] And yet today there's many that are using weakened and watered down methods. Such things as the Alpha Course. They lack these fundamental teachings and they add a whole lot of other baggage.

[9:18] And doubtful things. Doubtful things. And many churches aren't preaching a biblical salvation. It's a weak watered down version. Moody has said this.

[9:32] Salvation is worth working for. It's worth a man going around the world on his hands and knees. Climbing its mountains. Crossing its valleys. Swimming its rivers. Going through all manner of hardship in order to attain it.

[9:44] But we do not get it in that way. It is to him who believes. It is to him who believes. You know there's many well-meaning people. They work themselves ragged.

[9:55] But they don't trust. Trust. Believe. There's a true life-changing salvation. As God sets people free. It's a rescue mission. Radically saved.

[10:07] And that's our mission. That's our purpose. We need this ancient landmark. Old Bible salvation. There's no new improved model. There might be some new models but they're certainly not improved.

[10:22] You know. But we can have that joy. That relief. Of forgiveness of sin. To know the saving grace of God. And the just shall live by faith. It changes our way of thinking.

[10:34] Of living. Now Daniel Boone was a man. Who explored the great wilderness of Tennessee and Kentucky. I should put my American accent on for this one.

[10:45] But I'll be shot down in flames. It was Boone who marked the wilderness road. That brought settlers into the new land. He was a pioneer. And he often wandered through these vast areas of forest.

[10:57] Living off the land. And dodging arrows. And once he was asked if he had ever been lost. He replied no. He said he had never been lost. But he said this.

[11:07] He said he did admit he was a mite confused once for about three or four days. He was too proud to admit that he got lost. He just got a mite confused.

[11:18] Just a little bit confused. And sometimes folks our pride can get us such that we don't admit that we're lost. That's where it begins isn't it? I'm lost. I need a saviour.

[11:30] Sometimes we're too proud to keep from admitting that without Christ we are lost. It's where it begins. It's not of works. It's not of any of your well doing or good doing or deserving.

[11:43] Some people think well they must deserve to be saved and oh that one they don't look like they deserve to be saved. They discount people. But friends we're all in the same boat and we need to get in his boat.

[11:56] Amen. This world is lost and it's going to a Christless eternity. Man is lost. He's lost without Christ. And there's no other way. We need to be saved and there is no other way.

[12:08] So don't move the ancient landmark. Get back to the Bible salvation. That's what we need. So many count decisions. Just some shallow emotional response. But do we see true heartfelt repentance of faith.

[12:21] Of that joyful trust in Christ. Of a sinner pardoned. There's only two options. To be pardoned or to be punished.

[12:33] Don't we want pardon? Now some people they're offered pardon and they still refuse it. How sad that is. If you were a prisoner and you were offered pardon. And you refused it.

[12:44] And this Bible salvation. It's not a week. Say this prayer after me. And then do as you please kind of Christianity. It's a joyful heart change. As we trust him.

[12:54] As we know him. Bible salvation. Bible salvation. Bible salvation. Now it's an old salvation. That's not to say we can't communicate it in new and novel ways. In inventive and creative ways.

[13:05] And using perhaps youth outreach. Or Sunday school outreach. Or maybe we can start a Christian radio station as some churches have done. By all means save some. Get the message out there through every media that we can.

[13:17] We are not a club though. We are a mission. That is what our purpose is. We're not here to be a bless me club. So that we have particular events or meetings such that it's all about just being some insular holy club.

[13:34] But we're meant to be a soul saving rescue mission. That everything we're on about is about the mission of soul saving. Of rescue. To help reach the unreached.

[13:45] So that every time we can. Every opportunity we can. It's about reaching souls. And friends life is a one way street. There is no coming back.

[13:55] We've only got this life to make it happen. It's been said that law condemns the best man. But grace saves the worst man. Amen. Isn't that good?

[14:06] Thank God for grace. Amen. Thank God for grace. There was an Arab chief that was telling a story of how a spy was captured. And was sentenced to death by a general in the Persian army.

[14:17] And this general had the strange custom of giving condemned criminals a choice. Between the firing squad. Or the big black door. And as the moment for execution came the spy was brought to the Persian general.

[14:33] Who asked him this question. He said. What will it be? The firing squad? Or the big black door? The spy hesitated for a long time.

[14:45] It was a difficult decision. But he chose the firing squad. Moments later shots rang out as the execution occurred. And the general turned to his aide and said.

[14:56] They always prefer the known way to the unknown. It's characteristic of people to be afraid of the undefined. Yet we gave him a choice.

[15:07] And the aide said. What lies beyond the big black door? Freedom. Replied the general. I've known only a few brave enough to take it. You know many reject Bible salvation.

[15:20] They'd rather follow the crowd. Follow the lemmings. Follow the masses to the destruction. The multitudes. The broad way.

[15:32] Few there be that find it. The narrow way. Yet freedom is there. Many reject Bible salvation today. Oh. Must be. That sounds too simple. To believe.

[15:43] To trust his dying on the cross for my sin. It sounds too simple. And they reject that simple door to freedom. And they are lost and bound for an eternal hell. So we need to remove not the ancient landmarks.

[15:58] Bible salvation. Old salvation. It's old. But it's still relevant. It's not changed. Secondly. Old separation. Bible separation. Psalm 4 verse 3.

[16:09] It says. But know that the Lord has set apart him. That is godly for himself. In part it says. But know that the Lord has set apart him. That is godly for himself.

[16:22] Old separation. Separation. It's defined in an old book I picked up recently. As the opposite of amalgamation. Separation.

[16:33] Is the opposite of amalgamation. It means separating yourself from all that you know to be wrong. And a yielding yourself to the Lord.

[16:43] God. It's holiness. Now the devil has always had another method. He's always sought to confuse. To blur. To water down. The separation of God's people from the world.

[16:54] You know we see the Israelites. God's people of the Old Testament. They're constantly being misled. Led astray to the idols. And the heathen practices of the idolatrous nations around them.

[17:05] There's this constant tendency to veer off track. You know once or twice trying to follow those landmarks. To get back home. I thought.

[17:16] Is it that way? Or that way? And there's one time I did. Go that way. I said. No that doesn't look familiar. There's no landmarks there. And I did a U-turn.

[17:28] And I saw the landmark. Yeah. Going to get back on track. Back on track. We can get off track. When we miss this.

[17:39] And that's what the Israelites did. They got off track. Quite a lot. As we know through the record. And it's the same today isn't it? People get off track. You know people have been gathering to pray.

[17:51] Muslims, Jews, Billy Graham. Let's pray. Together. To the same God. Huh? Who are they praying to? Is it right for people to pray to some general fuzzy kind of person?

[18:03] God? There's a news clipping I saw. As there was some recent catastrophe.

[18:13] It wasn't recent. But it was a catastrophe. Some disaster had happened. And there's interfaith activities. Were conducted in the National Cathedral in the U.S. And there was a memorial of the victims of the recent of these terrorist attacks.

[18:30] And they would gather all religions and worship the same God. And in the opening prayer by Nathan Baxter, the Dean of the Cathedral, he addressed the prayer like this. He said, To the God of Abraham, Mohammed, and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

[18:46] Now this is blasphemy. It's blasphemy. And those who knew better should have exposed it as such. Rather than join in. And the God of Mohammed, small g, the God of Mohammed, is not the God of Abraham.

[19:02] It's not the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ. The God of Mohammed, small g, he had no son. And he did not make atonement for the sins of the people. The God of Mohammed requires works for salvation.

[19:15] The Muslim religion denies that Jesus Christ is the only begotten son of God. It denies his blood atonement on the cross. And Muslims, when they can control the government, do not allow freedom of religion.

[19:27] These are facts. Christianity is restricted in most Muslim states. And Christians are being slaughtered in Indonesia, Sudan, and other countries. The Pakistani government, which publicly stated its support for America following the recent, well, there weren't recent terrorist attacks, but they have sentenced a Christian to death.

[19:47] There's all sorts of things going on in Pakistan, as we know, of recent times. And many Muslims are trying to distance themselves from some of these acts. But Mohammed himself was a warrior who destroyed and tormented those who disagreed with him.

[20:01] And as the Quran has said, it's got this plain command, strike terror into the enemies of God and your enemies, into their hearts.

[20:12] Strike terror. Fight and slay the pagans wherever you find them. So we can't accommodate that. We can't join that. I did get a recent, this is a recent story.

[20:25] Roman Catholic clergy welcomes Islam into the church. This is last month this was written. Imam Sali Salim recites a verse from the Quran in Rome's church of Santa Maria.

[20:41] He says, For the first time during a mass in Italy, now we know a mass is not particularly Christian anyway, but for the first time during the mass, a verse of the Quran was recited from the altar.

[20:55] And another occasion in Italy, they dressed the Virgin Mary in a Muslim burka for the Christmas nativity scene.

[21:09] The Roman clergy is probably disoriented by Pope Francis himself because he was the first to allow the reading of Islamic prayers and Quran readings from the Vatican.

[21:20] Church of England Bishop Harry's, you know, the pommies are just as bad as the Americans. Probably worse. Church of England Bishop Harry's suggested that Prince Charles' coronation service should be opened with a Quran reading.

[21:40] That's what we've got to look forward to. The head of our state. God help us. And in the US, more than 50 churches, including the Washington National Cathedral, hold Quran readings.

[21:51] What's going on? We need separation, don't we? There's another story here. This is St. Asaf Cathedral in Wales.

[22:01] The Welsh are just as bad. They're showing a new short film about LGBT people. All One in Christ, it's called.

[22:14] As if there's something right about that. What is going on, people? There's many more things we could say. In New York, a female preacher who has become pregnant outside of wedlock says she won't step down from the pulpit, stating that she is not sorry or ashamed.

[22:38] She is the pastor of First Corinthian Baptist Church in New York City. And she says, At one point, someone told her fornication was an abomination to God.

[22:51] But she shrugged it off as antiquated language. Antiquated language. There's more I could say, but it's all pretty sad.

[23:04] Pretty sad. I really don't want to give it any air time, really. Just because it's so sad what is going on. But this is what is characterising what's going on in the church today.

[23:15] The church. Not the church. Not his church. But the church, as in the compromised church. And so we need Bible Christianity. A Christianity that's bold, that's fearless, that's dogmatic, that's plain, that's intolerant, that's unaccommodating of sin and error, that's inflexible concerning the truth.

[23:36] Controversial. Offensive to those who are disobedient to God. Passionate. And while the battle rages between truth and error, it always has and it always will.

[23:48] Until he come. But for the meantime, many are sitting on the sidelines and getting misled. They've taken some back road.

[24:00] They've lost track of the landmarks. They've gone way off track. And we know through the word we see many strong instructions about such things. Through the word of God it tells us about false teachers.

[24:12] Mark them. Avoid them. Come out from among them. Shun their babblings. Turn away from them. Their mouths should be stopped. Reject them. Do not receive them or bid them Godspeed. But people will argue, but we're all Christians.

[24:26] We're all children of God. We all love Jesus. March for Jesus rallies are being held in some places annually. And they seek to draw together all professing Christians for a united testimony for Jesus.

[24:42] And the national coordinator for March for Jesus in Canada, Marty Klein, he's testified this. He said, Mormons are welcome to participate in the March for Jesus.

[24:53] And this man wrote to Klein and asked, I'm interested in the March for Jesus. Can a devout Mormon who loves Jesus march in the March? And he replied, all are welcome to join us.

[25:09] However, we make it clear that this is a march for Jesus. It's not a protest. We are not promoting anything but a person, Jesus. And we will not allow Christians or otherwise to parade their various causes.

[25:21] So let them march with you, but don't say anything about what they believe, is what he's saying. And it further writes here, if I want to call myself a good Mormon, then I must believe what the elders teach, that Lucifer is Jesus' brother.

[25:35] And that Jesus was a polygamist. Jesus had lots of wives. And that his wives included Mary and Martha, the sisters of Lazarus, and Mary Magdalene. This is all orthodox Mormonism.

[25:46] Can a devout Mormon who believes these things but loves Jesus and wants to praise him still march in the March for Jesus? And this man who's organizing the event said this, No one knows what is going on in one's heart except God and that person.

[26:01] Jesus told us, believe on him and keep his commandments. If we have a personal encounter with him and know we are indwelt by his spirit, then we are his children. It goes on here. It's just off track.

[26:13] A Mormon does not love the Bible Jesus that we know. They do not know him. It's another Jesus. You know, it shows the incredible ignorance that's happening. False Christ will arise, we're told.

[26:28] You can take your pick. There's a smorgasbord of these Jesuses. There's a smorgasbord of them. You can choose the wafer Jesus, who's worshipped in the Roman Catholic Mass.

[26:38] When the priest holds up the piece of bread, that becomes Jesus. The wafer Jesus. The Mormon Jesus, who was a polygamist. The modernist Jesus, who was not born of a virgin.

[26:50] The Unitarian Jesus, who was not God. The universalist Jesus, who will not send anyone to hell. The prosperity Jesus, who was wealthy. The laughing Jesus, who slays people with his spirit and causes them to laugh uncontrollably and to stagger like drunk men.

[27:05] The self-esteem Jesus, who never called man a sinner and who came merely to build up his self-image. The revolutionary Jesus, who was the founder of liberation theology.

[27:17] There's many false Christs out there, people of God. False Christs, false teachers. And so it's impossible to love the true Jesus without hating the false Jesus. We hate those Jesuses because they're not real.

[27:30] They're not our Lord. So come out and be separate. I received a letter one day from someone who took issue with our church about our stand on separation.

[27:43] And she said, I'm trying to be a part of the world. Many Christians want their foot on both sides of the fence. They want to toy with the sin and carnality.

[27:54] They want the world and what it has and is. They want what the world counts as successful and attractive. And they're led astray by the partying, the drunkenness, the materialism, the mindset of the world.

[28:05] And they say nothing wrong. They see nothing wrong with Christians being sucked into that vacuum of that emptiness of a life lived for pleasure and self. But people of God, we must be faithful to the faithful word, to the word of God.

[28:18] We'd be part of a soul-saving, Bible-honouring church. A church that's sold out to win souls. A church that is a centre for aggressive evangelism. Where we're taking the gospel to the Christless.

[28:30] This is our vision. This is our calling. To be such a church. A church on fire for souls. For God. For the truth. Note that the Bible warns that a person can believe in God and not be saved.

[28:43] A person can pray to Jesus and not be saved. A person can prophesy in Jesus' name and not be saved. A person can do many wonderful works in his name and not be saved.

[28:54] A person can have zeal for God and not be saved. And a person can be very interested in Christ and not be saved. A person can profess to know God and not be saved.

[29:05] And a person can follow and serve Christ and not be saved. There's the sense where some were not saved. As much as it had all the signs that they were.

[29:17] We must know him. Personally know him. Personally know him. And we need the revival of truth. We're called unto holiness unto the Lord.

[29:31] Holiness unto the Lord. That was the slogan. There's many slogans preachers have but they don't use that one so much now. Holiness unto the Lord. To be a people set apart for God's praise.

[29:43] Set apart for his service. Not meaning we set apart that we're holier than thou. But set apart unto him. Unto him. Unto his praise. Separation.

[29:54] It's an ancient landmark. But still desperately needed in the 21st century. And thirdly we see. We've seen salvation. We've seen separation. The spirit filled life.

[30:04] Is a landmark. John 7 38. Our Lord says. He that believeth on me. As the scripture hath said. Out of his belly. Shall flow rivers of living water.

[30:15] Now there's a lot of talk about the Holy Spirit today. And there's a heavy emphasis on the Holy Spirit. In some quarters of Christianity. And the Bible does emphasize the fundamental of the faith.

[30:27] The need for a Bible based. Spirit filled. For a world life. For that terrific power. For service. Yet I don't see that.

[30:40] In reality. Going on in the Pentecostal and charismatic movement. It's a substitute. It's a counterfeit.

[30:51] And people are being swept along with all manner of false doctrine. As we see. It's a movement filled with. Counterfeit miracles. Doctrinal confusion.

[31:02] Disorder and error. Now Martin Lloyd-Jones. A preacher of old said this. Nothing is more dangerous. Than to put a wedge between the word and the spirit. To emphasize either one. At the expense of the other.

[31:13] It is the spirit and the word. The spirit upon the word. And the spirit in us. As we read the word. We're not discounting that. We need the word. We need the spirit of God.

[31:24] To enlighten. To illuminate. To refresh. To speak. Through the scriptures. And this is what the modern day charismatic movement is doing. It's a movement astray from the word of truth.

[31:36] You know. A truly holy spirit filled life. Is what we need. Not a load of gobbledygook. And wacko spooky counter carry on. Not an unhealthy emphasis on signs and wonders.

[31:46] And hyped up emotions. Not a preaching of another gospel. Of health, wealth and success. It's foreign to the scriptures. It's not there. But we need the real thing.

[31:59] The real thing. The real thing. The true move of God. Like the revivalists and reformers of old had. Like Moody. Wesley. Booth. Edwards. Sunday. Men of God through history.

[32:10] And women of God. They had the power of God move on them. The hearts of God's people were broken up. And there was a conviction of sin. And a true dedication to God.

[32:22] And they saw God's people awakened out of slumber. And set on fire with a deeper love for Christ. And a love for souls. Spurgeon said one time he visited two palaces in Venice.

[32:34] And he realised the contrast of life and death. The first was tenanted by a noble family. They maintained it in good repair. They adorned it with fresh beauties. And furnished it with the most sumptuous manner.

[32:46] And everything was fresh and fair and bright and charming. From the paving of the mosaics in the hall. And the ceilings glowing with the creations of the artist's pencil. With the chamber paintings.

[32:59] And tapestries and statues. And all the decorations of rich kind. And the other was a palace too he said. This palace had marble pillars and carved works.

[33:09] But the stones were loosening. And the columns were shifting. And the grass grew in the halls. And the roof led in the rain. And decay was there. And desolation. Yet the palace was as noble in its architecture as the first.

[33:24] And thus when God dwells in a person. All his powers and faculties are bright. With a sacred light and joy and peace. And beauty adorns his entire person. But if the Holy Spirit depart.

[33:35] The heart becomes empty and void. And becomes a ruin. Everywhere decaying. And too often haunted. By the demons of vice and iniquity. What a picture that is. We've all seen such things.

[33:47] Buildings left in a state of disrepair. As the occupants leave them. And they just crumble. And the weeds sprout. What a picture that is of neglect.

[33:58] And so too for the Christian. We need to keep the passion for God. Keep that on fire spirit for God. Leaning on his life giving power.

[34:10] Trusting his equipping and emboldening. His empowerment. Longing for the divine comforter to come. To fill our hearts. As we have that heartfelt seeking after him.

[34:22] In fervent, patient, believing prayer. Not a focus on manifestations and goosebumps. But a real desperate seeking after God. A blazing love for the truth.

[34:34] A stand for Christ. A true infilling with God. And a mighty dedication of the inner man. To a life on fire for God. Not a focus on an experience.

[34:46] But on a person. With a capital P. And that person's work. The Holy Spirit. His aim is to glorify Christ. And the only prayer language there is. Is that deeper communion with him.

[34:58] That deeper communion with him. This is what we need to seek after. And live out. It's a daily walk. A daily striving. To be filled with him. Do we seek visions?

[35:09] Or do we seek his face? Do we seek his truth as it's revealed to us in the word? We don't want to miss that blessing. And miss that waiting upon him. The presence and power of the Holy Spirit.

[35:21] It came as the early church really surrendered to his moving. And so we see one of the main problems of the modern church. Someone has called it the leakage of spiritual power.

[35:36] Have you had a leak as it were? That the power has leaked out. You've got a bucket with a hole in it. You wonder what's going wrong. You keep filling it and it doesn't. Has the power leaked out.

[35:49] From your spiritual life. Could it be through idleness. Carelessness. Prayerlessness. Is something blocking our spiritual blessing. Our blessing channel.

[36:00] Is there a blockage in that pipeline from heaven. What is the blockage? Could it be doubt. Carnality. Unforgiveness. The cares of this life. May we be a channel.

[36:13] For the river of God. A channel. For the river of God. And you know it's a bit like. Talking to someone lately about the gutters here. There's a blockage in the gutters.

[36:24] And it causes all sorts of problems. And we can have a blockage can't we? In our spiritual life. There's a blockage. Got to clear it out. Get that hose pipe.

[36:35] Shove the water through. Get it flowing again. As it were. Let the Holy Spirit flow through you. You know we can get clogged. And blocked. And the muck and leaves and mess.

[36:50] Block the channel. Let God clear it. Amen. Amen. And so there's many imitations and counterfeits. But we know there's the real.

[37:01] The real. We don't discount that. We want that. We want him. We want the real. Genuine article. That's what we need. And true spirituality. Tozer said.

[37:12] Is true spirituality. Manifests itself. In certain dominant desires. True spirituality. Now this is just one man's opinion. But I think there's truth here.

[37:23] He says this. First is the desire to be holy. Rather than be happy. Get it right. Amen. The desire to be holy. Rather than happy.

[37:35] Now we hopefully we get both. Amen. To be holy is to be happy. In a real way. But of course if we're just focusing on making ourselves happy. We can miss what God really wants.

[37:47] To be holy. He goes on. A man may be considered spiritual. When he wants to see the honour of God advanced. Through his life. Even if that means that he himself.

[38:00] Must suffer temporary dishonour or loss. If you want to see the honour of God advanced. Be prepared.

[38:10] For some battles. You know there's some of us who have gone through some battles. I've been through some times of testing. People accusing and attacking. Constant. When you stand up for God.

[38:22] When you stick your head above the trenches. Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang. Don't let it stop you people of God. Amen. If you want to see the honour of God advanced.

[38:35] Expect some testing. The spiritual man. Wants to carry his cross. Don't lay it down brother. Sister. The spiritual man. Wants to take up his cross.

[38:46] Take it up. Sometimes it's easy to lay it down isn't it? Take it up. Take up your cross. Don't be ashamed. He goes on.

[38:56] A Christian is spiritual when he sees everything. From God's viewpoint. Where are we seated? In heavenly places. See things from his dimension. Get a helicopter view.

[39:07] We're with him in the heavenlies. This life is just a. Let's make the most of it. See things from God's point of view. Another desire of the spiritual man.

[39:20] Is to die right. Rather than to live wrong. Die right. Rather than to live wrong. Choose carefully what you're going to do with your life. The desire to see others advance.

[39:32] At his expense. Encourage one another. The spiritual man habitually makes eternity judgements. Instead of time judgements. Do we do that?

[39:45] Sometimes you're just so blinkered. Oh I'm going to do this. Do that. Do this. Do the other. And you forget eternity. Eternity. Don't get caught up. In time judgements.

[39:55] But rather have eternity judgements. Good advice there I think. So we need to tap into the real awesome. Soul shaking. Power of almighty God. To have more of God. And for him to have more of us.

[40:07] The fullness of the spirit. We can know it. In the 21st century. Can you believe it? We can have more of God. And he can have more of us.

[40:17] Such that we're entirely possessed. By the spirit of Christ. He's got ownership. Christ in you. And such that we see his true fruit.

[40:29] And spiritual growth happens. As we surrender. To our Lord. And I was. Blessed to. Officiate at a wedding yesterday.

[40:41] And a new couple. From our fellowship. Joined in matrimony. Holding matrimony. And. As I was addressing them. I touched on.

[40:52] How I was thinking about. Relationships need to be cultivated. And. They need to be nourished. And. Fed. And watered. Such that.

[41:02] As a marriage has to. And what about our spiritual life too? Are we cultivating our spiritual life? Cultivate it. Break up your fallow ground.

[41:15] I'm preaching to myself. How can I be a more productive Christian? How can I be a more fruitful Christian? How can God have more of me?

[41:27] How can I produce that. True fruit. For his glory. Such that I'll be. Eternity minded. And have. His. Interests.

[41:38] As my primary. Concern. For my life. And how can my service. Be more effective for him? How can I be more empowered. From on high? You know.

[41:49] It's. A bit of. I guess you could talk about. Such things as. The glass. Half empty. Half full. But you know. If I was to. Want that glass to be full of water.

[42:01] Full of air. If I was wanting this glass to be full of air. I would have to pour out the water. And so too. As we want to be full of God's spirit. We've got to be pouring out of ourselves.

[42:12] So that he can have more of us. He can have more of us. That he can fill us. With himself. And so. There's a sense where we die to self.

[42:24] And we made a life to God. And so friends. Just to wrap this up now. How can we know. These. Ancient landmarks. Now when I'm heading home to my wife.

[42:38] After this service. I've got to look for those landmarks. Where's that black sign? Where's that big shed? Where's that low bid? Where's that.

[42:50] That sign post? And as I retrace my steps. As I retrace my journey back through. And I notice the landmarks.

[43:02] Oh yes. There it is. I've got to turn right there. Oh there's that one. I've got to go straight there. The landmarks. Guide my way home. To my wife.

[43:13] And so too. The ancient landmarks. They guide our way back to a Bible Christianity. A Bible Christianity. Because we know really the ultimate landmark.

[43:24] Is the old scriptures. The old Bible. But we see. Salvation. It's old. But it's new isn't it? It's real. It's the same message.

[43:35] That came out of Paul's lips. The same message that came out. Of Peter's lips. The same gospel. The same salvation. We see.

[43:46] Bible separation. We can't join forces with other religions. And pretend we're worshipping the same God. Come on.

[43:57] That's not rocket science. That one. And there's a Bible separation. Make it straight down the line. And there's a spirit filled life. We need his spirit.

[44:09] We can't do it of our own accord. We must depend upon him. To be more like him. To know that life in the spirit. Spirit filled living. Day by day.

[44:20] Moment by moment. As we make those judgments based on eternity. Not on this time. Which is a limit. It is finite time. But on eternity's time. Let us pray.

[44:31] Our Lord God. We thank you that. You are gracious to us Lord. And we know that. We should remove not the ancient landmarks.

[44:42] As it were. Those things that are set. And clear for us. The scriptures are clear. The fundamentals of the faith. Have not been changed. Just as you.

[44:54] Are the same yesterday. Today. And forever. And your love. Is eternal. Your mercies are everlasting. And your truth endureth forever. Lord. We thank you for your word.

[45:06] Thank you Lord. For every Christian that is here. Pray if there's any. Here present who. They don't know that Bible salvation yet. They've. They don't know the Bible Jesus.

[45:16] Lord. I pray. For each one. That they might know what it is to. Know Christ died for our sins. And we can be saved. As we trust. As we call on your name.

[45:27] As we know your saving grace. Lord. We can know. An eternity. Transformed. From hell to heaven. From death to life.

[45:40] From being blind to seeing. From being lost to be saved. Lord. We thank you that. There's no. Other name. There never has been. Another name. And there never will be. Another name.

[45:51] Other than the name of Jesus. There's no other name. Under. Heaven. Given among men. Whereby. We must be saved. And we pray that each one. Would know what it is. To call on you. And your saving.

[46:03] Power. To trust your work. At the cross. Where you died. And then rose. And are coming again. For those who will believe. Lord. We pray. Each would know.

[46:13] What it is. To put their hearts trust. And to know. An eternity changed. Because of your love. And Lord. Help us to be a people. That are separated.

[46:23] Unto you. Unto your glory and praise. Because. It's all about. Blessing and pleasing you. And Lord. To have that spiritual life. That.

[46:34] We make spiritual decisions. In the choices of life. Guide us Lord. To choose wisely. To choose scripturally. And to be encouraged Lord.

[46:44] That we can. Know a great. Fulfillment. In that. Blessed. Walk with you. Pray for every believer. Who might be going through. Struggles here this morning. Everyone who might be.

[46:59] Crying out Lord. For. For direction. For answers Lord. For peace. That you'd comfort every heart. Help us Lord. To find. Peace. At the foot of the cross today. In Jesus name.

[47:10]  Amen. Amen.