The Word of the Truth of the Gospel

[0:00] Welcome. Thank you for listening to this wholesome word by David Entry. The words you catch will change your world. May your story change from this message. Be blessed.

[0:13] Colossians chapter 1, reading from verse 1 to 8 again. Reading from the King James Version. Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the will of God and Timothaios, our brother, to the saints and faithful brethren in Christ, which are at Colossae.

[0:32] Grace be unto you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love which ye have to all the saints.

[0:50] For the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof ye had before in the word of the truth of the gospel, which is come unto you as it is in all the world, and bringeth forth fruit as it does also in you, since the day ye heard of it and knew the grace of God in truth.

[1:12] As ye also learned of Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is for you a faithful minister of Christ, who also declared unto us your love in the Spirit.

[1:31] Here ends the reading of God's holy word. Amen. Well, in our last session, I spoke mainly about the three essential platforms for the Christian faith, which are faith, you can't be a Christian without faith.

[1:54] If someone says he is or she is a Christian, you have to look out for the signs of true faith. If there's no true faith, you can't be a Christian.

[2:06] I'm talking about faith in Christ and Christ alone. And then number two, love. Love for God and love for the brethren.

[2:19] If you love he that begat, then you will also love him that is begat of him that begat. 1 John chapter 5 verse 1.

[2:33] He said, I'm trying to do the King James team, but it wasn't working for me. Whoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God. And everyone that loveth him that begat.

[2:45] So it's not begat, begat. Loveth him also that is begotten. So if you love the one who gave birth, then you automatically love the one who has also been birthed.

[3:02] How come you claim I love God, but you can't stand Christian? You are not a Christian. You don't really love God. If you really love God, you will love Christians.

[3:15] In other words, when you see Christian, you say, oh, I'm happy. I'm just happy to be a Christian. Some people travel to go. You go somewhere and you are on a holiday and Sunday you are still in the hotel room.

[3:33] Won't you even bother to, are there any Christians here? Even if it's one or two hours. Let me just. A holiday doesn't mean you don't eat. If you see Christian gathering as a chore, your walk with God is not straight.

[3:53] There's something wrong with your walk with God. If you see Christian gathering as a chore, so when you are not there, you find it like, ah, sabbatica. Thank God. Breath of fresh air that I won't go to church.

[4:09] But you never say that about food. So, love. Faith, love. And then I spent much of the time talking about the Christian hope.

[4:23] The Christian hope, which is one hope. One hope. There are other things human beings can hope for, which can cut across the board. You don't have to be a Christian to hope for those things.

[4:34] And if you hope for those things, it doesn't make it wrong if you're a Christian. For instance, hoping for a good job. It's actually better to hope for a good job, please. Hoping for good marriage.

[4:47] Hoping for good health. I'm hoping that I will get a good marriage. There are people sitting here and your biggest hope is that I will get a good man to marry. Because it's one thing getting married.

[4:57] It's another thing getting married to a good man. A good man. Badabas. A good man. Good man. Many guys who want to marry and haven't married yet are just looking for a good woman.

[5:11] A woman who will help them to be the kind of man they should be. So, all right. You can hope for other things. We can all hope for things.

[5:23] But if you're a Christian, there is a particular hope that every Christian has. It said that in 1 Corinthians chapter 15, it said, if only in this world we have hope in Christ.

[5:36] In other words, if your Christian life and the Christian hope is hinged on natural things. Natural things and good life. Just all. That's all.

[5:46] Then we are of all men most miserable. But the Christian hope is actually Christ himself. And when he returns, the salvation that he's going to bring with him.

[6:00] And then our body is being changed. You know, our vile body is being transformed. Hallelujah. Into his glorious body. It's fashioned into his glory. But that's the Christian hope. An unbeliever cannot hope for that.

[6:12] An unbeliever cannot make Christ her hope or his hope. An unbeliever cannot hope. Even this one is becoming a problem among believers. That we shall reign with him for a thousand years.

[6:24] We shall reign with him on this earth. The unbelievers don't have that hope. But you should have that hope when you're a believer. It will also help you live an effective Christian life. Because you know that you reign with him.

[6:36] Well done, thou good and faithful servant. And then the eternal enjoying Christ in eternity. In the new Jerusalem. Permanently being with God and enjoying.

[6:46] That's a Christian hope. You can't be an unbeliever and hope that one day you spend time with Christ. That's all. No, no. That's only the exclusive privilege of the believers.

[6:59] Now, so when you are a Christian, faith, love, and hope. It's that these three abide forever. Faith, 1 Corinthians 13. Faith, love, and hope.

[7:10] They abide forever. So then, as I said from what we read from Colossians chapter 1. You can tell that this tripod of Christianity is littered in all the epistles.

[7:24] So, it's the, Paul will make reference to, sometimes they are set one after the other. They are just gathered together as a bunch. Sometimes, like 1 Thessalonians chapter 1, verse 3.

[7:35] So, by this particular text, in two verses, let's go back to Colossians chapter 1, verse 4. Since we heard of your faith.

[7:45] Say your faith. Your faith. We heard of your faith in Christ Jesus. And of the love which you have. Say the love. The love. Which you have for all the sins. And verse 4. For the hope.

[7:57] Say the hope. The hope. So, you see, faith, love, and hope appears here. And then we go on. That's what I actually emphasized on more last week.

[8:07] But it says that, for the hope which is laid up for you in heaven. This is a very interesting phrase. Hope is laid up. The hope is laid up for us in heaven.

[8:18] What does that actually mean? Let's look at it amplified. It says, because of the hope of experiencing what is laid up.

[8:31] Reserved. You know, there is this hope that one day this thing will become my reality. This thing. You know, the greatest of all hope, if you're a Christian.

[8:42] Now, if that hope is dwindling in your life, that means you are backsliding. So, you really have to do something. What's the hope? The greatest of hope is that we will see him. Hallelujah.

[8:53] One day we will see him. Yes. We will see our Lord. Yes. We will see our Savior. One day we will see him face to face. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Stephano. Yes. Yes. Yes. Maybe. Jeff, you can say away.

[9:03] Yes. Yes. Well, what's the first time? Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. You can say well, I wo-as-a-one if we're given the same wall. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.

[9:14] Yes. Yes. You belong. Yes. Yes. Good. Yes. Yes. Yes, sir. Yes. Yes. Yes, yes, sir. Yes. Yes, yes.

[9:24] Yes. It doesn't look anymore. Thank you. The love of God that you should be called the prince of heaven. Not Baccham Palace. And you've gone through all the legal proceedings and it is legitimate.

[9:38] We have a judicial adoption. We have been judicially adopted as prince of heaven. Princes of God. Prince.

[9:49] He has made that. Kings and priests. It's judicial. It's not like arbitrary. God thought, okay, you. No, no, no. He had to go through the legal process.

[10:01] God went. It's like an adoption. You have to go through a legal process that this is my actual child. It's my child. Because it has the certificate.

[10:11] It has all the documentation. It's judicial. In the same way, our redemption and our adoption is judicial. That's why Christ has to die and tick all the boxes in the justice of heaven.

[10:24] That is required to make you a sinner, a saint. It's judicial. It's not arbitrary. But it's on the grounds of the mercies of God based on his love.

[10:39] Hallelujah. So, we have been made the children of God. And he says that what manner of love the Father has bestowed.

[10:51] He just bestowed an honor. This is such an honor. He's been bestowed on us. What manner of love the Father has bestowed on us. What is the love? That we.

[11:01] That we. Did you see that? That we should be called. When you read the Bible, New Testament comes across we. It's not every human being. He's talking about the church. Please. He's talking about the church.

[11:13] That we should be called the sons of God. That's what the cross did for us. Someone say the cross. The cross. That's what. That's why Easter is more important than Christmas.

[11:25] But we should be called the sons of God. Then he says that therefore the world. Who is the world? Who is the world? He's talking about the others.

[11:36] Who are not in this us? Who are not born again? Who have not put their faith in Jesus? Who don't share the hope with us? Who don't have the love for God the way we love?

[11:50] He said therefore the world knoweth us. The world knoweth us. They don't know us. They are working with you but they don't know you are a son of God. You've gone for an interview and they don't know they are interviewing a son of God.

[12:05] Hallelujah. But there are times you meet someone you don't even know is a Christian and you are just doing your job. Yes because you are operating as a normal person.

[12:16] But if you step in the spirit. If you step in you will know that there is a child of God. That is why every Christian must learn how to be more sensitive to the spirit. Because if you are not sensitive to the spirit you operate by normal common sense and natural senses.

[12:31] And there is nothing wrong to operate by natural senses. But there is a lot of reality that you will miss. So your neighbors don't know that they are dealing with a child of God.

[12:42] You are pretty. Absolutely. You have sent your child to the school and the teachers don't know they are teaching the child of a child of God. So therefore the world knoweth us not.

[12:59] The world know. Why? Because the world don't know God. If they knew God. If you are sensitive to God. You will know those who belong to God.

[13:12] Look at the next verse. It is getting interesting. The next verse says. Behold. Now we are the son. Now. When? Now. When? Now. Not later. We are actually. We actually.

[13:23] Even though we still look the same like everybody. There is another dimension of us the world doesn't know. Now we are. Now we are. Now we are.

[13:34] We are. Some of the times when you read the Bible and come across like the epistles. You come across you. It's not talking about the singular you. Because he said we are.

[13:47] He didn't say I am. Really. The New Testament language is not I. It's we. It's we. Even the you. It's talking about. Like for instance.

[13:57] Ephesians chapter 2. Verse 1. And you. That you is not talking about a singular you. And 1 Corinthians when he talks about. When he says that you are the temple of God.

[14:09] That you. Most of the time. We have always interpreted it as. A singular you. But really. In context. You. You are. Ye are.

[14:20] No ye not. That your body. Is the temple of God. And the Holy Spirit. Of God. Dwells in you. Well. So. It says that.

[14:31] Now we are. Son of God. I think you should put it somewhere around you. Maybe you can even. You know. A label. And put you on your wig or something. I am.

[14:43] Now I am. The child of God. Now I am. The child of God. Now I am. All right. Please do me a favor. Please do it. Can we all read it from the screen? Let's go. Let's read it out loud. Let's go. Louder. We lie.

[14:55] Now I am. Jesus is the Lord. And he does not yet fear. What we shall be. We know. When we shall be. We. We shall be like people.

[15:05] We know. See. I see. This is the Christian hope. It is. You can't be an unbeliever and talk like this. On what grounds? It is not possible. It is foreign. Yeah.

[15:16] It is foreign to unbelievers. So when you come to church. These are some of the things. That church must help you to understand. There is a reality in your spirit. That must be taught.

[15:27] From the scriptures. So these things. When you become born again. All these things are in your spirit. But now it must be taught. So that your mind can be renewed. To catch up. To be in sync. To what is in your spirit.

[15:39] He said. We are the sons of God. Now we are. And he talks about how. It does not yet appear. What we shall be. We actually even don't know.

[15:49] The way. The whole thing. How it's going to work. But we know. Now we are the sons of God. And that one thing we know. When we see him. We shall. When he appears. Wow. But we know that when he appears.

[16:01] We shall be like him. What? When he appears. We shall be like him. That makes sense. When you look. Remember. Philippians chapter 3 verse 21. Where he says that. Our vile bodies.

[16:12] Shall be fashioned. Kabadashah. He said. Who shall change our vile body. That it may be fashioned. Like his glorious body. We know that when he shall appear. When we see him. We shall be like him.

[16:23] We shall be like him. This is Christian hope. Hallelujah. And so going back to the text. When we are Christians. We have faith.

[16:34] When we are Christians. We have love. When we are Christians. We have hope. And this hope is laid up for us in heaven. That hope is what I just read about. We know that when we shall see him.

[16:46] When we shall see him. It's being laid up. It's being laid up. It's being laid up for us in heaven. Someone shout hallelujah. Hallelujah. Let's go back to the text.

[16:57] Verse 5. For the hope which is laid up for you in heaven. Whereof ye had before in the word of truth of the gospel.

[17:10] Did you see that? Yes. Did you see? I don't know if you noticed what I noticed. The hope is the subject now. He said. And the hope. How about the hope? It's laid up for you.

[17:23] Where? In heaven. Whereof. Give us the new King James. Let's see how the new King James said. Of which. Whereof means of which. Okay. Of which ye had before.

[17:36] That means if you have been preached the gospel. There are some things you should hear. Yeah. He assumed that you had this hope. You've had before. In the word of the truth of the gospel.

[17:50] The word of the truth of the. That's how we can only tell that. The word of the truth of the gospel. Is it the word of the truth of the gospel?

[18:01] But let's go to you head off. What have the authenticity of your Christian life or your Christian journey or better still your Christian walk is what you have been hearing.

[18:13] What you have been hearing. The quality of your Christian walk is at the mercy of the teachings you've been hearing. There is the word of the truth of the gospel.

[18:27] Which every preacher is supposed to make the core of their message. The core of your message. If you are a messenger for God.

[18:39] Should not eclipse what the essentials of the gospel is. So the gospel of Christ. Okay. Is actually good news. Good news is not everything.

[18:51] Baby don't worry about a thing. And every little thing. Gonna be alright. That's comforting. That's comforting.

[19:02] It's okay. You have to comfort somebody. Say something good first. Good news is not necessarily saying something good. Many people especially in the times we live are being forced.

[19:15] Preachers are being forced to look for something good to say. Because life is very stressful. Food prices. Living standards are going high. People are under stress.

[19:26] Pastor find something good and comforting and encouraging to say to people. That you are changing a pastor into practically a politician.

[19:38] So the good news of the gospel. Watch this. This is very important. The reason why Colossians is so important in our days, in our time. It's always been important.

[19:50] But it's very important. Because the subject of Colossians is Christ as God. When someone tells you, show me. Where in the Bible does the Bible say that Jesus is God? Oh, please.

[20:01] Everywhere. Everywhere. Everywhere. But it's like the laser beam is in Colossians. Narrow it down. Colossians makes it very clear. And we are going to explore that more.

[20:13] Much more. But in the days of the Colossians, when Paul wrote this letter from the prison, different opinions and ideologies were invading the church.

[20:23] So, you know, it's not just the gospel. It's all this. Sometimes, if you talk about cross, cross sometimes looks too bloody. And it will offend people. So, you know, don't talk about the cross.

[20:34] And they were being made to feel like, you know, the cross is just basic. There are deeper truths. Deep. Deep. Deep. Deep things that I will tell you.

[20:46] You know, your pastor hasn't told you a lot. He hasn't told you a lot. If you want to know who the true Jews are. True Jews. The true Israelites. When I see a person who is so frustrated that he said, now I am the queen of England.

[21:13] I'm not the queen. You don't believe it. But me, I'm telling you. You don't know. My great, great grandparents. And when you look at the family tree, the way the succession plan is, I am actually the queen of England.

[21:27] I am the queen. But they don't know I'm the queen of England. And one day, it shall happen. So all kinds of ideas, Gnostic ideas particularly, and other amalgamation of religious ideas coming in and saying that, you know, those religious things, we are all the same.

[21:47] All religions, we are all the same. So just for the sake of peace, let's minimize on this Christ Christ thing. Because the Christ Christ thing might push people off.

[21:59] Now, if the Christ is pushing people off, what is happening in our generation is that sometimes people want to preach what will attract people and eclipse the Christ a bit, a bit, a bit.

[22:13] It's still Christ, but don't let people know. Because people don't like it to offend them. Let's shield the Christ. And let's watch this. This is what they do. They shield the Christ and try to defend the gospel.

[22:29] I'm defending the gospel. This Christ, but you let's not. I don't want them to touch the Christ. Let's hide Christ and let's defend the gospel. You know, Charles Pergian, 19th century preacher, one of the greatest preachers, I think he's the greatest preacher of Great Britain.

[22:45] He said that the pure gospel is like a lion. Why have people caged a lion and now they are standing by the cage with a knife to try and defend the lion?

[23:00] Get off. Open the cage. Let the lion out. The lion doesn't need you to defend him. He will defend himself. The gospel doesn't need anybody's intelligence to defend it.

[23:12] Just preach the Christ. Preach the gospel. And the gospel will defend itself. Preach the gospel. Preach the Christ. Christ alone and nothing else.

[23:22] I'm talking about the word of the truth of the gospel. Christ alone and nothing else. Christ alone and nothing else. Christ alone and nothing else. This is how Paul puts it in 1 Corinthians chapter 1, verse 17.

[23:36] He said, I thank God I was not sent to baptize. That text is quite interesting. For Christ did not send me to baptize. Hey, when you go and you're preaching and someone says, I've not been baptized.

[23:50] Please tell me I'm not preaching, I'm a baptism. Christianity is not baptism. Being baptized doesn't mean you're a Christian. You know some of us were baptized.

[24:03] Yeah, you were actually baptized before you became a proper Christian. Your parents were in church, so they got you baptized. And you were no different from a mini devil.

[24:18] Until I was baptized before I became born again. And then when I became born again, now I did a Christian baptism. But I was baptized in church tradition. There's nothing wrong with it.

[24:30] But really, it doesn't really make you a Christian. Well, so, he said, Christ did not send me to baptize. But to preach. What?

[24:43] To preach the gospel. When you go out and when you are talking, don't put too much emphasis on my church and my pastor and my... Just put the emphasis on Christ.

[24:56] Put the emphasis on Christ. Who is Christ? So, the problem is, if you don't know who Christ is, how can you preach him? People are trying to preach and they don't know Christ.

[25:08] So, Jesus said, before you go, please say, who do men say I am? Who do you also say I am? And he said, upon this platform, I will build my church. And if I build my... The gates of hell cannot pray. You just leave the church. Gates of hell can never prevail against the church.

[25:21] So, he said that, I preach Christ. Watch this. This is very interesting. He said, but to preach the gospel. Not, ooh, ooh. This is where...

[25:32] Pastor, pastor. He said, I am sent to preach the gospel not with wisdom of ways. You see? We are trying to sound very intellectual.

[25:44] Just to appeal to people's intelligence. There's nothing wrong in being intelligent. There's nothing wrong in being rational.

[25:56] There's nothing wrong in being sensible and reasonable. There's nothing wrong in that. But when it comes to preaching the gospel, don't put the weight of the message on your convincing powers.

[26:11] Don't put the weight. You are a lawyer, so you know how to argue your case. So, you are trying to convince people. If you focus on convincing people, you block the Holy Spirit from convicting them.

[26:22] We should focus on convicting, the Holy Spirit convicting people. And when they are convicted, what you are saying will sound convincing. He said the strength of the gospel is not based on the wise saying.

[26:40] It's not based on the wisdom of words. You know what? That's not even what brought me to this text. What got my attention in this text. He says that if you put the weight of the gospel on the wisdom of words, you will make the cross of none effect.

[26:56] You have actually emptied. Emptied. You bought coke. How many of you have experienced that you bought coke? It doesn't happen in UK, but other places can happen. You buy coke and you almost like, you have the bottle, but there's nothing inside.

[27:08] It's sealed, but there's nothing inside it. You emptied the cross of Christ. You made it of no effect.

[27:18] Of none effect. You made it of no effect. Why? Because you are focusing on wisdom, trying to convince people. You want to sound so wise. You want to appeal to their intellect.

[27:30] Yes, yes, yes. So you don't want them to say what you are saying is stupid. You don't want them to say what you are saying is stupid. Watch this. That's where I'm going. We don't want the world to think our message is stupid.

[27:44] Our message at core can come across very stupid. That's the nature of the cross. And that's where I'm going.

[27:55] That's where I'm going. Because you don't want it to sound foolish, you are now spraying perfume on it. Embellishing it. You are adjusting it because God, God, God, God, God, please.

[28:09] You should understand the generation we are in. People think. People, we have Google. We have Alexa. We have Siri. We have Siri. So people, please, God, your gospel, your message in its rawness does not appeal to this generation.

[28:25] Who told you? May I also say to my fellow church leaders who are trying to reach out to young people? You think young people, what they like is the way you appear.

[28:36] Please, drop it. The way you appear is not what attracts young people. So long as Christ is concerned. What attracts people to Christ, whether young, old, new, across the ages is the same thing.

[28:49] It's when you let the lion out of the cage. Those who he's calling, they will be attracted to. Why have you eclipsed the pure gospel and you are using rap music, you are using dancing style, you are using dressing down, you are using gang culture, you are using drill music, you are using everything in order to attract young people to your church.

[29:09] You are making a mistake. You are making a mistake. It's only Christ that can attract people to the church. Whether they are young, whether they are old, whether they are wise, whether they are not wise.

[29:19] It's only Christ. And so preach Christ, Christ the Lord and him crucified. Shout hallelujah. Hallelujah. Christ the Lord. Christ the Lord.

[29:30] Christ the Lord. Christ the Lord. Christ the Lord. Christ the Lord. Christ the Lord. Yes. Yes. Christ the Lord. For those of you in universities, you are in Cambridge, you are in Oxford, you are in Southbank, you are in Westminster.

[29:48] You are in Goldsmith, Exeter, Birmingham, Manchester, wherever, Liverpool, wherever, wherever.

[30:02] It doesn't matter who is there. Don't think because it's Oxford, you know, you have to, you have to, you know, don't focus too much on what the gospel is focusing on.

[30:15] Just start on these other things, you know, yeah, try and explain. And please, please, there's a massive difference between trying to argue a case out and preaching the gospel.

[30:30] Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Preach the gospel. What does it mean to preach the gospel? Colossians 128 actually tells us what it is. He said, look at Colossians 128. He said, whom we preach.

[30:40] That's all. The gospel is a whom. It's a whom. It's a whom and it's a person. Him. We preach him. Whom we preach. Him we preach. Him we preach.

[30:52] Him we preach. Him we preach. Let those who argue argue. But him we preach. As they argue, you are still preaching him. They say, but it doesn't make sense. You are still preaching him. That's it. I'll describe. Some people can be very angry.

[31:04] Some people can be very, I'm telling you, just for the fact that you are preaching Christ, it's very infuriating to some people. But please, don't change the gospel. Just preach Christ. And you have to remember 1 Corinthians chapter 1, verse 18.

[31:16] Verse 17 talks about, let the cross be emptied of his power. But verse 18 says that, watch this. Because at core, by nature, this kind of preaching is foolishness.

[31:31] The Greek word translated foolishness is the same as moron. Foolishness. Foolish to those who perish. There are certain groups of people.

[31:42] It doesn't matter what you do. If the cross that saves is coming in, they will see it as foolishness. But on the flip side, this same message that is foolishness to people, this same message is the power of God.

[31:58] So watch this. Watch this. If you take the message and you preach reason, what you will do is, those who like reason, they will still not be saved.

[32:08] They will say, okay, okay. They won't be saved. But the worst thing you will do is that you block those who are supposed to be saved. Because it's only the gospel that saves.

[32:22] It's only the cross that saves. Only the cross that saves. And so, we are supposed to say that for the preaching. Listen to what it says.

[32:35] The focus is the act of preaching. If you are preaching the cross, you are meddling in foolishness to certain people. They will say, I can't believe in this modern day.

[32:46] In this modern day. You are still believing this kind of crap. In this generation.

[32:56] My argument is, I can't believe that in this generation. People are still murdering. People are still stealing. People are still cheating on their wives.

[33:09] In this enlightened generation. We still have prisons in times like this. Why would you need a prison when there's so much enlightenment? How can you believe in something like this in these modern days?

[33:28] You believe that there's a man called Christ. He died for maxes. How? Excuse me. I'm too smart for this. Meanwhile, you can't be handling your own alcohol bottle.

[33:40] You are so smart. But you can't handle an alcohol bottle. The bottle is handling you. It's dealing with you. You can't keep your sexual desires under control.

[33:53] You are so civilized. But you have never been able to maintain one relationship. For more than two years. I thought you are smart. We can be so developed and civilized.

[34:06] That we don't sleep. We can be so civilized. That we don't eat. We can be so developed and civilized. That three men can father one child.

[34:23] Human nature is human nature. So then what saves? What has been saving from the day of old? Is the same.

[34:34] We have never been so civilized. Now we drink tea through our ears. No. You know, the problems, you'll be shocked.

[34:45] Let me tell you this. I know some of you have never thought about this. You'll be surprised. If you go back into the Middle Ages. Or let's say you even go back to BC.

[34:56] Maybe 1,000 years BC. Or 998 BC. You'll be shocked that the problem, the human problem they had is the same. People were stealing.

[35:08] People were fighting. People were taking somebody's land. It's human. Just that the style, the technology changes, but human nature doesn't change. Human nature, look, look.

[35:21] A while ago, your phone, your mobile phone was so backwards. When you compare today, but you see you haven't changed. It's the same you. Just that you can now do WhatsApp. But it's the same you.

[35:31] And the content of your conversation is the same. Gossiping about somebody. Complaining about your ex. Saying about how you can never forget your ex and forgive you. It's the same. You change the phone, but the message is the same.

[35:42] So we can't say we should change the message. The gospel has not changed. Because the means of salvation is the same.

[35:54] People have changed, but core of humanity is the same. Soul, spirit, and body. It always remains like that. Soul, spirit, body. Now, back to the text now. So I want to finish the 1 Corinthians because it's so sweet.

[36:06] The 1 Corinthians chapter 18 says that, For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness. But unto us which are saved, it is the power of God.

[36:17] So that means the pastor, if you stop preaching the cross, you have blocked the power. The power to save have been blocked. Yes. You switch off the power to save when you stop preaching the gospel.

[36:30] And the gospel, you know what I noticed? Actually, preaching of the gospel, at the heart of it is the cross. Because he said, he sent me to preach the gospel.

[36:42] Not with words of wisdom, but, as he said, less the cross. Ah, so you might be preaching the gospel. What sounds like the gospel? But because it's based on words of wisdom, and the cross has been made of non-effects, it has lost its saving power.

[36:58] That is why you can have a preacher preaching always, but no one is getting saved. You've been preaching, preaching, and preaching, preaching, preaching, preaching, preaching, because the saving element that must be in preaching, you have taken it out.

[37:12] You have become a public speaker, saying nice things people want to hear. Tell people you don't have to steal. Come, we'll give you money. Don't be stealing. That's not a gospel please. Don't be stealing. So, let's go back to verse 19.

[37:27] Look at verse 19. For it is written, huh? I want to strain and wisdom on the white. This is God talking. I will destroy the widow, and I will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.

[37:37] So, those who, whose strength is based on intelligence, God said, I will just make it nothing. When it comes to the actual work of God, the move of God, he said, I will sidestep what men call smart.

[37:52] I will sidestep it. He said, I will bring to nothing the understanding or the prudent. So that takes all professors, all academics, it puts them on the side.

[38:03] You are either saved or not. And the only means to be saved is believing in the cross of Christ. That's all. I need you to tell me something more.

[38:13] I don't have anything more to say. What is interesting is when God is ready to save you, this is what I found. Let's go on the text. I'll show you something. I'll move out. So verse 20.

[38:24] Verse 20 says that, where is the wise? When it comes to the real work of God. So where is the wise? You think you're wise? You don't matter in this subject.

[38:35] So you don't matter. Don't say because I'm well educated. No, no key education. Please. What I'm trying to say is don't use our natural mental strength to assume that you can understand everything.

[38:48] So everything must make sense. It doesn't make sense to me. If it doesn't make sense to me, watch this. He says that. He said, where is the wise? Where is the strife? Where is the disputer of this world?

[39:01] Those who are able to argue. When it comes to the real move of God, God will not factor you in. Why is the disputer of this world? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?

[39:13] Why are we not importing the worldly wisdom as the core of the message we are preaching? Something which God has invalidated when it comes to the saving power and the work of the cross.

[39:26] God has invalidated the worldly wisdom. Why is the church trying to bring it in? Colossians. Colossians. Because you want to be relevant. You want to be relevant to their community.

[39:38] Relevant to their society. And so you are changing the message God gave you? He said that God has made foolish the wisdom of this world.

[39:50] This is interesting. When you go home, go and read it again. Look at the next verse. For since in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know him. So if you want to know God through research, you will find him.

[40:04] You will find him. You will find him. God has done it on that purpose. Do you know that? It would have been more advantageous for the West and those who are highly educated to control everything.

[40:16] Because now they are the ones that can be saved. So if you are not educated, you can't be saved. Because you need to be a master of research. The level of your salvation must be based on the quality of your research.

[40:28] But Bible says in the wisdom of God, he has chosen that the way through the path of wisdom can find him. That's why you can go to school and go and go and go and still be lost and go to hell.

[40:39] You can be so intelligent, you can be so academic and still not find God. You can research everything and know everything about life and know so much because you are a fellow.

[40:50] You are a master of something. You are so good at research. But guess what? It has, please, God is happy. That to search for me, let me move it outside the realm of research.

[41:00] I will move it away from the realm of research and I will put it in the realm of preaching. Pure preaching and just preach the word. Let the lion out. The lion will defend himself.

[41:11] And now watch this. It might not sound reasonable, but when you believe, suddenly you realize, ha, this is so amazing. This is so great. That's true. So when you are saved, suddenly you see the reason inside it.

[41:24] You will see that it's so reasonable, you will actually blame yourself. You will say, am I so dumb? How come I didn't see it? How come I didn't see it? So people are making a lot of noise about what they don't understand.

[41:38] They don't know anything about the gospel. They don't understand about the world. What they don't understand about our gospel. What they do? They say, I've done the research. I've checked all religions. I've done this. I've done this. And you see, they didn't tell you.

[41:48] The white man didn't tell you the truth. Or the green man didn't tell you the truth. The blue man didn't tell you the truth. The ice man didn't tell you the truth. And you know, I'm a historian. And blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. You watch them. And sometimes what they say sounds intellectually convincing.

[42:02] But when you know Christ, you know in your spirit something is off. Something is off. Have you tasted food? That is almost off. But you think it better. Later on when you start having severe tummy problems, you say, yes.

[42:19] I knew that something was off. And the one who knows how to control his appetite, as soon as he's tasted it, he said, no, no, I won't have this. I won't have this. I won't have this. But you can't control your appetite.

[42:31] So he said, it doesn't matter. I'm decay, poison. Anything goes. Anything goes. I'll eat. I'll eat. So there are people, some of us here.

[42:45] Let me also add this. When you become born again, you realize that before you become born again, you still have questions. Especially if you are given to intellectualism. If you are given, it's okay to be given to intellectualism because God saves everybody.

[42:58] Or it saves everybody. Whether you are given to intellectualism, you are not given to intellectualism. God saves everybody. But if you are given to intellectualism, you tend to have a lot of questions. Because, listen, the more you research, the more you find out there are so many things you can't answer.

[43:11] Especially when it comes to that God thing. When it comes to the God thing, they say, no, okay, I know there's something, but I don't want to call it God. Excuse me. You are not being reasonable. I know. So you, what do you want to call it?

[43:22] You tell me, what do you want to call it? What do you want? Excuse me. What's your name? I'm David Enchi. I know there's a bad guy. I don't want to call you David Enchi. Who do you think you are?

[43:38] That's pride in this extreme. You've come across something and someone is telling you, this is what it is. But I say, no, I still don't want to take it. I have to. I can't deny it.

[43:49] I can't deny it. But now it has moved from intellectual problem. Because the reason why you can't deny it, because when it comes to intelligence, the evidence is obvious.

[44:00] So now it's a heart. It's a moral problem. You have chosen, I don't want to. I don't want to accept it. I don't want to. So it's a moral problem. It becomes a moral problem. So when the gospel is preached, watch this.

[44:12] When the gospel is preached and suddenly it enters your heart and you receive, all of a sudden the questions you had, one after the other, with time as you walk with God and you realize, oh, okay.

[44:29] Okay. Some of you have questions before I started preaching. But you plan, when you finish service, I would like to ask them a question. But sometimes by the time you come, you actually answered my question. Through the preaching.

[44:39] Because you see, sometimes we think we know what we usually don't know. Time. And after a while. So what I'm trying to say is that when the light of the gospel shines in your heart, I like that one too.

[44:52] That God has commanded the light to shine in our minds. The only light that can shine in the heart is the light of the gospel. Yeah. It's not a surgical light.

[45:02] It's actual light. It shines. God has commanded the light. He has shone in our hearts. The light has shone in our hearts. In your heart.

[45:13] So you are sitting there. Somebody doesn't know what's going on. Sees that you're having, but light is shining in your heart. Amen. Light is shining in your heart. Amen. And that is what happens when the true gospel is preached.

[45:25] Hallelujah. Suddenly, light shines in your heart. And what you thought used to be foolishness, or what you used to think was foolishness, suddenly you realize, this is the most, the wisest thing I can ever think of.

[45:36] This is the most fantastic. Oh, wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Can you tell me more? I can't have enough of it. I can't. But preachers, if we eclipse the gospel, we are hurting the generation.

[45:50] We are hurting the generation. I'm actually talking about collusions, but the subject has forced me to come to 1 Corinthians. Look at the verse. It says, it's pleased God that through the foolishness.

[46:02] Watch this. This is very interesting. It says, for since in God's wisdom, the world through wisdom did not know God, it has pleased God through the foolishness of prayer.

[46:15] It's not saying that the message is actually foolishness. But that's why, what it might look like, it has pleased God that through this means, the message preached to save those who believe. Now look at the next verse, and I'll move away from there.

[46:28] For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek a wisdom. But it says that, but we preach Christ. Then I think the next verse after that talks about how, verse 24, talks about Christ is the power and is the wisdom of God.

[46:45] Look at the verse 25, I think. Because the foolishness of God, that also got my attention. All right, now watch this. You are thinking his foolishness. He's saying that.

[46:56] What do you even say foolishness? The highest wisdom of man is higher than the wisdom of man. So it doesn't matter how civilized and how advanced you can get to. That basic thing that looks like foolishness.

[47:08] Let's even assume God has got foolishness, okay? His foolishness is higher. His wisdom is wiser than the highest wisdom and the highest research is coming.

[47:20] So don't leave the gospel, the Christ-centered gospel, going for something that sounds wise. Because even if you think God's own is foolishness, it is actually better than that wise thing you are going for.

[47:36] It's better. It doesn't matter how wise it looks. He said, this thing is better. This thing is more authentic. This thing is more reliable. I'm about to say something. A very expensive replica watch is still not close to the original.

[47:55] Yes, yes, yes. Because someone told me that the replica watches, they have some that cost 100 pounds, some that cost 250, some that cost 800, some that cost even about 2,500.

[48:09] Can you imagine? Yes, 2,500 pounds to buy a Rolex replica watch. Now watch this, what I'm saying. It does not matter. You can spend 10,000 pounds buying a replica watch.

[48:22] It's still not anywhere close to the original. The lowest, the cheapest of the original is still not close to it. Now what's the point here? It doesn't matter how eccentric or flamboyant or glorious the wisdom might appear.

[48:39] That's the, once it's man's wisdom, it never comes anywhere close to what they think is even the foolishness of God. So that means God has chosen, you are safer staying on that.

[48:51] Let me bring it close to you. You are safer staying in church. Safer staying in church. Safer staying in Christ. Nowadays, all this church church thing, you know, you have to, sometimes you have to enjoy your life, you know.

[49:05] Now, for nation is coming December, you know. At least from January to October, I've done this church thing, so let me also prepare and go a bit, a little bit.

[49:17] This church thing, sometimes, you know, you have to be wise. And listen, listen, I've been around a little while, not too long. People go around and later on realize that they have actually traded off their premium time.

[49:30] Your premium time, the core things of life, which has to do with family life, career, spiritual work, core things of life, you can trade them off.

[49:42] Because it looks like something else is better. This gangster boy seems to have a lot of money. He doesn't mind church. He doesn't mind that. So I'll follow him.

[49:55] I'll follow her. I'll do this. I'll do that. And cut corners. And leave church. Leave church during lockdown. Hey, let me talk to someone watching me. You, you have run away from church during lockdown.

[50:13] The most boring of church services is better than the most exciting of raving or partying. I'm telling you. Yes, yes, yes, yes. I'm telling you. And you, you come and look for Jesus.

[50:25] You come and receive the gospel. Because it's too far. It's too far. It's too long. Church service and nightclub. Which one is longer? If the doctors tell you something bad, they've seen something bad, will you go to party?

[50:46] No, no, no. Church service. No, no. Church service, I'll try to be here. I'll try to be here. I'll try to be here. No. So what I'm trying to say is, don't run away from church. Don't. Come back to church.

[50:57] Come back to church. Come back to church. You are not doing it for the pastor. Because the most basic things in church is better than the highest thing in the world. It's basic things in church.

[51:08] come back to church come back to church come back to church I wish I could title this message come back to church hallelujah I can't believe I didn't go past verse 5 we have the whole year and this year we are here for the word so we bask in the word hallelujah so we are encouraged we are happy to settle under Christ we might look obsolete we might look out of date we might look out of fashion but please leave me at the altar with my father we are happy to settle in Christ and I want to submit to somebody Christ alone and nothing else it's enough it's enough it's that my grace is sufficient I believe it doesn't matter what you're going through with regards to your family life your marriage your health your career your mental health your relationships your finances your education your parenting there are different things that bother different people at different stages in life and life will not change you are either in a trouble or you are coming out of a trouble or you are about to enter into trouble trouble is part of life but one thing is constant the love of God the mercy of God the word of God the word of God if you latch onto the word of God he said heaven and earth shall pass away but my word will never pass away why don't you stay with God's word the word of the truth of the gospel the reality of the gospel why don't you stay with it sometimes you may feel oh it's getting boring but stay with it just stay with it we have to learn how to have stay in power stay with the gospel stay in church stay in church come back to church and stay in church stay in church do the church thing right and do it well thank you for listening to this message by David Entry you're welcome to connect with David Entry on Facebook

[53:17] Instagram Twitter and LinkedIn you can also find more spirit filled messages from Karis Church on YouTube and all relevant streaming platforms don't forget to subscribe like and share the message be blessed