From Possessed With Devils to Purposed Disciple

[0:00] Amen. I appreciate that song, and I hope you can answer yes to that question. And if you can't, then today's that day, hopefully. The Lord will speak to your heart.

[0:13] Turn with me to Luke chapter 8. Luke chapter 8 is a full chapter. There's a lot going on here. In the first couple verses, we see Jesus Christ, he's casting out devils, specifically mentions three women.

[0:33] One who has seven devils cast out of her, and then after that, it says many others. So who knows how much. The Bible even says that if they were to record everything that Christ did, there would just be so many books, we wouldn't be able to read them all.

[0:45] After that, we have the parable of the sower. He explains that to his disciples. Then we see that he passes over a stormy sea to get to the Gadarenes, and that's where I want to focus today, is he meets a man there who's possessed with a legion of devils.

[1:06] After that, we're introduced to Jairus' daughter, and she's resurrected from the dead. There's a woman that had an issue of blood ever since her birth, and Jesus heals her. I mean, this chapter is just packed, and it's exciting to read about.

[1:19] Hopefully, you've found your place in Luke chapter 8. Don't stand yet. I wanted to just share a little, I call them nuggets. When I go through Scripture, my type of personality just naturally is cynical.

[1:36] I'm doubtful of things. I question things. So when things immediately don't add up, it sends up a red flag. And there's parallel passages. Matthew chapter 8 and then Mark 5 both share the same account.

[1:51] And it stood out to me, even though I've read it several times, Matthew 8, it says that two men in the Gadarenes who were possessed with devils met Jesus. And then in Mark and Luke, it just says a certain man.

[2:03] So immediately, you know, my cynical self is like, Oh, this doesn't add up. You have two, and now these other guys are mentioning one. And so I had to study this, because I believe God's Word is infallible.

[2:15] There's no mistakes. So if there is a misunderstanding or a mistake, I realize that's on my end. So I had to start digging, figure out what is going on here. And to make something a contradiction, it would have to be the one statement would be impossible.

[2:31] So Matthew, he mentions that there's two men. Mark and Luke, they both just mention a certain man. They don't say one. They just choose to focus on this certain man. I got to thinking about that.

[2:42] Well, why? Well, because this man, the Bible says a legion of devils. That word legion is a military term that the Romans would use. And that's kind of like we would call like a unit or a platoon today.

[2:54] It's 6,000 military men. That's a big deal. In the beginning of Luke chapter 8, he specifically mentions these three women. And he says one has seven.

[3:06] So if seven would be a big number, maybe they hadn't met somebody who had seven devils cast out. Now they're meeting somebody with at least 6,000 devils.

[3:17] That's pretty notable. So that's why they focus on this guy. Matthew, he's also a tax collector. He's good with numbers. I think that's maybe why he focused. He has to be very deliberate, make sure these numbers add up.

[3:28] That's just something he does in his normal life. So I saw that. It was interesting. I think it also shows character, the different gospels, just the different authors and how God uses those people.

[3:41] So I just wanted to share that with you. If you happen to see that, or if you happen to read through scripture and notice, hey, things aren't adding up. Take the time. If you realize that God's word is perfect, I guarantee you, if you take the time to study it out.

[3:53] I don't like grammar or composition, but that was a composition thing. God will give it to you because it's true. God's word is true. Stand with me, if you will, since you should be there by now.

[4:05] Luke chapter 8. We'll start reading in verse 26. It says,

[5:36] Then verse 37.

[5:57] It says, Lord, I ask that you would just let our hearts be open to your word.

[6:35] Lord, I ask that you would calm my nerves and just let me speak what you've put on my heart. And I just pray, Lord, that my studying will come through this morning.

[6:46] Lord, I just ask that you be with those who are not here. Lord, we especially think of Brother Josh. Lord, I just ask that you would touch him and help him with his recovery. And just be with his family.

[6:58] I thank you and I love you in Jesus' name. Amen. You can go ahead and be seated. As I was kind of studying this, I noticed there was kind of three forces at work during this passage of Scripture.

[7:09] And these three forces are still at work today. The first one is Satan. He's a thief, a liar, a murderer. And his ultimate purpose is to destroy.

[7:21] And he's still at work today. The second is society. All that society can do with problem people is isolate them, maybe keep them under guard.

[7:34] If they're really bad, they'll put them in bondage. And I think we can be thankful for the restraint that society can put on these people. But ultimately, they're still in trouble.

[7:46] They still need help. And that's where the third force comes in. And that's the Savior. He came to these people in love. He braved a stormy sea to get to them and to talk with them.

[7:59] And Jesus is still wanting to talk to us today. If you can't answer yes to the song that was sung, I'm telling you, Jesus wants you to say yes. He's here waiting. He wants to talk to you.

[8:12] I've heard people tell me, well, I'm just too far gone. God can't save me. Me. Wrong. That's a lie. Look at this man possessed with all these devils. God can touch his heart.

[8:25] I think about Saul, a man who was so zealous in murdering Christians. God changed him. You know, we have to be willing to put away our pride, be willing to let God break us down and talk to our heart.

[8:41] The first thing I saw here is what sin does to the soul. Let's just look at this individual. We see, starting in verse 26, it says, And they arrived at the country of the Gadarenes, which is over against Galilee.

[8:58] And when he went forth to land, there met him out of the city a certain man, which had devils long time, and wear no clothes, neither abode in any house but in the tombs.

[9:09] So this is Jesus' welcoming party. There's this one crazed lunatic who isn't clothed. He's been living, it says, in the tombs for a long time.

[9:23] I would venture to say he was dirty. He was filthy. He was probably quite a sight to see. Verse 27, or I'm sorry, verse 28, it says, This guy had problems.

[9:56] Sin, first off, left this man unclothed. As I was studying this, I was thinking to myself, Do we see the type of, and I say devil, just another tidbit, demonism in the Bible, and I think the most scriptural is devil, because that's who they, devils, they do the devil's work.

[10:18] It's just like Christians, Christ, we do Christ's work. So devil's is the most accurate account. Do we see people possessed of devils today? Got me thinking about that.

[10:31] And I would say we do. If you look at these things that we're going to look over, we do. And that's where society kind of comes in and tries to help polish some of that up.

[10:42] Just a quick example, in the Bible you have the word drunkard. People find that term offensive. So then we changed it as a society to alcoholic. That makes it easier for us.

[10:54] But then even alcoholic, now you say that word, and ooh, it's bad. Now they say someone with alcohol disuse or disorder, alcohol use disorder. Society is constantly trying to make things fit.

[11:07] God is just saying what it is. This man had a problem. He was unclothed. Turn with me to Isaiah chapter 64. We're going to be doing some running around in the Bible. So I hope you're ready.

[11:18] Isaiah 64 verse 6 says, It says, But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousness are as filthy rags, and we all do fade as a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

[11:36] I believe it is in Mark. It talks about this man had unclean spirits. Romans chapter 3 verse 10. Many of us could quote that.

[11:47] Romans chapter 3 verse 10. It says, There we go. As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one.

[12:00] That's what sin does to us. It just unclothes us. It makes us unclean. That's the second thing we see here. In the parallel passage in Mark chapter 5 verse 2, it says, And when he was come out of the ship, immediately there met him out of the tombs, a man with an unclean spirit.

[12:17] Isaiah 59. We'll look at verses 1 through 3. Starting verse 1, it says, Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear.

[12:30] But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you. That he will not hear. For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity.

[12:41] Your lips have spoken lies. Your tongue hath muttered perverseness. Basically, that's debunking the whole, I'm too far gone. It doesn't matter. God can hear. God is waiting for us to come to him.

[12:54] Not only was this man unclothed and unclean, he was uncontrollable. See that in verses 28 and 29? They had tried to bind him before, and he would just break those fetters, break those chains.

[13:06] That's scary to think about. I mean, the work that I do, I work with trees, and I've had big, heavy trees break some really thick ropes.

[13:17] And that's scary, because that's a lot of power. Think about it. This man had 6,000 soldiers, evil spirits inside him.

[13:28] Basically, this type of devil possession, it just means the devil has taken over the mind and the body. So you think you've got 6,000 men, strong fighting men?

[13:41] They can probably do some serious damage, break these chains. It's something scary to think about. He was uncontrollable. 2 Corinthians 4, starting in verse 3, says, But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost, in whom the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should not shine unto them.

[14:06] I know that we still have people who are possessed today, because I came up to two conclusions. We have them, and maybe society, you know, has done a good job of kind of letting them camouflage in.

[14:24] You can still see this stuff. But then my other thought was, and I think this is a scarier thought, what if as Christians, we're not effective enough for Satan to resist? There's no reason for him to show himself because we're not doing our job.

[14:39] That kind of stung me. I was like, wow. Because obviously when Jesus is around, there's a struggle. So it got me thinking, we need to be doing better as Christians.

[14:51] He was uncontrollable. Ultimately, I think this led him to be unhappy. The first thing he says to Jesus is, torment me not. As you read, I didn't want to spend a whole lot of time on this, but you read through Scripture about people who are possessed.

[15:09] The Bible, it talks about, first off, there's physical things that happen to these individuals. They can get deformities. The Bible even talks about suicide.

[15:21] They will try and cast themselves into fire. The Bible talks about stuff like that. But here he is, this man. He's hurting. He's unhappy.

[15:32] It left him homeless. We see that. It left him helpless. Mark chapter 5, verse 4, it says, because that he had been often bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been plucked asunder by him, and the fetters broken in pieces, neither could any man tame him.

[15:49] He was helpless. He needed help. He was hurting. Again, in Mark chapter 5, verse 5, it says, And always night and day he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying and cutting himself with stones.

[16:05] Turn with me to Proverbs chapter 8, verse 36. I mean, sin is spiritual suicide. And he's, this man needs help.

[16:15] Proverbs chapter 8, verse 36. But he that sinneth against me wrongeth his own soul, and they that hate me love death. Turn with me to Isaiah chapter 57.

[16:27] Isaiah 57, and we'll start reading verse 20. But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.

[16:39] You know, earlier in Luke chapter 8, we see that Jesus, he's asleep in the back of the boat, and a storm rages up, and the disciples are scared.

[16:52] And it's interesting, he kind of rebukes them a little bit, asks, where's your faith? Have you ever been woke up for something in your mind that had been kind of silly to be woken up for?

[17:03] You're just kind of irritated. And I can kind of see Jesus, because he's fully God, fully man, and wakes up, and he's like, I'm in the back of the boat. What is in the back of the boat? The rudder, okay?

[17:14] So I'm at the driver's wheel. You know, we were going fine. You wake me up for this? And he just talks to the wind and the waves, and he's like, you know, be still. And I just think he turns around to the disciples, and he's just like, where's your faith?

[17:30] And he goes and lays down to kind of let them think about that. You know, Jesus, he was able to speak to the stormy sea, and now here he is. He's speaking to the stormy soul.

[17:41] This man, just sin has wrecked him. That's what sin does to the soul. But secondly, I want to focus on what the Savior does for the sinner. Turn with me again to our text there in Luke chapter 8.

[17:55] We'll start reading in verse 30. And Jesus asked him, saying, What is thy name? And he said, Legion, because many devils were entered into him. Now, this is just my take on all this, so you do with it what you will.

[18:10] But Matthew, or I'm sorry, Mark chapter 5, to me, gives the best description of what happens here, because Jesus asks him, What is thy name? And the man says, My, okay, that's singular.

[18:24] Trust me, I never, I had to take remedial English twice. I am not an English anything, but some things stick. My is singular. He says, My name is, and then it says, Legion, for we, that's plural, are many.

[18:41] I think this man, right in front of Jesus, was trying, maybe he was sober enough to say, My name is, and then these devils took over, Legion, for we are many.

[18:53] I personally believe 6,000 voices came out of that mouth when they said, Legion, for we are many. I don't know about you, that would give me the heebie-jeebies. There's been a handful of times where I have, I'll just say, met evil face-to-face, and that's something, it scares me.

[19:14] And here Jesus Christ, he dealt with this, and they said, Legion, for we are many. I think it's interesting, you know, God asks a question and they answer, because they're subservient to Jesus Christ.

[19:28] He's all-powerful. Not only does the wind and waves obey him, even these devils. We see here the effort of the Savior. We see the work of the Lord, verses 22 through 25.

[19:43] We see that he passed through the storm, but also Jesus Christ passed through the storm of Calvary for us. You know, he loved us enough that he was able, when I think about him being in heaven, deciding to become mortal, be born, a lowly birth, be raised, and be able to be God, and allow earthly parents to have the, you know, leadership and the authority over him, to be raised up, knowing what he's going to do for us, to be beaten, mocked, ridiculed, to know ultimately that he's going to die for people who, frankly, are undeserving, completely, and he loved us enough to go through all of that.

[20:31] That says a lot. And he didn't just do that for Christian people. He did that for everybody. Before you were even born, God loved you enough that he did this for you. I see through here, not only do we see the work of the Lord, we see the winds of the Lord.

[20:51] Turn with me to 1 Corinthians, chapter 15. I once heard a joke. They said, why is Christianity the most dramatic religion? And the answer was, because all other religions say do, do, do.

[21:05] But Christianity, through Jesus Christ, it's been dun, dun, dun. You know, God has done it all for us. All we have to do is accept what he's done.

[21:16] It's mind-blowing to me. You know, my daughter's about to have a birthday, and we're, you know, she's going to get presents. She has grandmas. She's going to get presents. And can you imagine if she just said, no thanks.

[21:29] I'm good. Can you imagine if she rejected those gifts? But here, Jesus Christ, he's offering to everybody, here's a free gift of salvation.

[21:41] The only stipulation is you have to receive it. And people are like, no thanks. I'm good. It's crazy. 1 Corinthians, chapter 15. Let's look at verse 54.

[21:51] So when this corruptible, or I'm sorry, let's start over. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, death is swallowed up in victory.

[22:07] O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord, Jesus Christ.

[22:18] Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. The winds of the Lord, he's defeated sin, death, hell, Satan.

[22:32] Turn with me to Colossians chapter 2. I love that song. I'm on the winning side. Colossians 2, 15. It says, And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it.

[22:44] Again, Christ is victorious. He's a winner, and we're on the winning side. Revelation chapter 1, let's look at verse 18.

[22:55] I am he that liveth and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, amen, and have the keys of hell and of death. He's a winner. Christ has done all these things for us. All we have to do is accept.

[23:08] We see here also the effects of salvation. Let's go back to our text in Luke chapter 8. And we'll look at verses 34 and 35.

[23:20] It says, When they that fed them saw what was done, they fled and went and told it in the city and in the country. Then they went out to see what was done and came to Jesus and found the man or I'm sorry, and found the man out of whom the devils were departed sitting at the feet of Jesus clothed and in his right mind and they were afraid.

[23:48] First off, he had peace. Romans chapter 5, verse 1. This world needs peace. Romans chapter 5, verse 1 says, Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

[24:00] Christ. The only way that you can have true peace in your life is through Jesus Christ. I mean, we read earlier about having sin in your life is like a raging storm that throws up the mire and the dirt.

[24:16] Peace can calm all those things. We see that with Jesus Christ, he had provision. Turn with me to Isaiah chapter 61. Isaiah 61, verse 10. I will greatly rejoice in the Lord.

[24:28] My soul shall be joyful in my God, for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation. He hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth himself with jewels.

[24:41] Christ has done that. He's provided those things for us. Turn with me to Philippians chapter 2. We see that he has presence of mind when he's with Christ. Philippians chapter 2, verse 5.

[24:53] Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. When we get saved, we can have that same mind. It's sin that rejects that.

[25:06] Another effect of salvation was power under Christ's control. Again, in Philippians chapter 2, let's look down at verse 13. For it is God which worketh in you, both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

[25:19] Then turn over to chapter 4, verse 13. Many of us are very familiar with this. I can do all things through Christ, which strengtheneth me. I used to have a co-worker.

[25:30] He would wear a shirt, and it says, I can do all things. It used to annoy me because it's like, well, you can't. It's through Christ that you can do all things. As I was studying this, I noticed through this passage three requests.

[25:46] This was just something I thought was interesting. First off, the demons, the devils, they requested that Jesus send them into the pigs. We see that in verse 32.

[25:59] And I got to thinking, why? Why would they want to be sent into the pigs, but be sent into the swine? I think, for one thing, doing it this way, Jesus gave proof to all the spectators that a miracle of deliverance had really taken place.

[26:20] I think the destruction of the pigs gave assurance to the man that had the unclean spirits that they were actually gone. Frankly, I think seeing 2,000 pigs drown would be an object lesson that no one would ever forget.

[26:35] The society saw all of that. It was definitely a vivid object lesson to that Christ-rejecting crowd. I think it was an object lesson that to Satan, a pig is just as good as a man.

[26:54] And under Satan, he can make a man as good as a pig. You know what I'm talking about. If you've been around and seen the way unsaved people act, it's true.

[27:07] The second request we see is in verse 37. The citizens, they request that Jesus leave the area. I was thinking to myself, this man, we'll call him Legion, if that's his real name, I think you would be wanting to have Jesus stay around.

[27:25] Be like, hey, this guy was a serious problem. You know, we couldn't walk around at night for fear of this lunatic. There's other people in the area that need help. Why don't you stick around? We'd love to have you.

[27:35] But instead, they're like, we're afraid. You need to get out of here. And I got to thinking, why would they do that? You know, I think these pig herders, whatever you call them, farmers, their business was being interrupted.

[27:49] I don't know what the cost of 2,000 pigs is, but that would be quite a hit to your little economy. And they were more concerned about money than this man's soul. And that's just how it is.

[28:02] This world is more concerned about material things and we can't fault them for that. That's just natural. The last thing is this man, he requests of Jesus, he says, let me come with you.

[28:16] I want to be a disciple and follow you. And you would think to yourself, that's a good, that's a righteous request. That's a good thing. And what does Jesus tell him? No, you stay here.

[28:30] And I think that would probably hurt at the moment thinking, why doesn't he want me? Is it because I used to be this devil-possessed individual? And I think this is what it was.

[28:41] The man's request was motivated for love of Jesus Christ because what a testimony he had. But Jesus knew that the man's place was in his own home with his loved ones where he could bear witness to the Savior.

[28:54] After all, effective Christian living must begin at home where people know us best. If we honor God there, then we can consider offering ourselves for service elsewhere.

[29:05] This man became one of the earliest missionaries to the Gentiles. The Bible said that he went throughout Decapolis, another English thing, Decc, that's ten.

[29:16] These ten cities all clumped together. And if you remember when we first read when Jesus and the disciples showed up to the Gadarenes, there was one person, one welcome wagon.

[29:27] We'll look at verse 40. And it came to pass that when Jesus was returned, the people, get this, gladly received him for they were, what's that word?

[29:37] God, all waiting for him. You think that man did his job? It shows right there he did. Here we have this guy who's possessed. People are like, we just want him gone.

[29:49] We've tried binding him up. We want him out of here. And now, he's leading the way and everybody's with him. And they're happy. They're grateful that Jesus is coming back. What a testimony.

[30:01] That's awesome. It gets me to our third point. What the saved do for the Savior. First off, we see this man's mission was from the Lord.

[30:13] His motive was right. Let's turn to 2 Corinthians chapter 5. When I was younger, I used to be kind of discouraged about my testimony.

[30:26] It would be called what I would say vanilla. I grew up in church and I got saved. The end. And I remember thinking, that's not a cool testimony.

[30:38] And I remember a guy that I went to Bible college with, his testimony was cool. They even wrote a book about it.

[30:48] And it's, I mean, he's in a rock and roll band and then he goes to jail. He comes up with this contraption with a shotgun to get money from this guy who rips off drug dealers.

[31:01] He goes to solitary for years. And I remember thinking, oh, that's cool. What a testimony. That'll really talk to people. And I remember making a comment to him one time. I wish I had something like that.

[31:13] He's like, brother, your testimony is amazing. He's like, I wish I had your testimony. He's like, I wish I didn't have to have the temptations of the things that I do.

[31:23] And he's like, you'll never know that. And I got to thinking about that. And I was like, wow, that's true. And I started taking a little more pride in my testimony, even though I thought it was vanilla. And then you read through scripture.

[31:35] I think about the blind man. What was his testimony? He said, I don't know. I was blind, but now I see. What a great testimony. He's like, I don't know what happened.

[31:45] I just know this man, Jesus, he healed me. That's all I know. And you know what? That's all you need to know. You share your testimony. If you're out there trying to witness to people, that's all you need.

[31:56] I'm telling you, I'm living proof in the moment. God just gives you words and you're like, oh, this is great stuff. This is good. I got to remember this because God gives it to you. If you're out there trying, you're doing his will, he will equip you.

[32:09] That's one of the greatest things. God does not call equipped people. He equips the called. So you don't have to be, you know, any person that has a whole library of books.

[32:21] You don't have to have a college degree behind your name. Just be usable and willing and God will do the rest. It's awesome. All right, let's get back to my notes.

[32:32] His motive was right. 2 Corinthians 5, verse 14 and 15. But their minds were blinded for until this, oh, I'm sorry, that's chapter 3. What's getting right? Here we go.

[32:43] 2 Corinthians 5, verses 14 and 15. For the love of Christ constraineth us because we thus judge that if one died for all, then we're all dead and that he died for all that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves but unto him which died for them and rose again.

[33:03] Drop down to verse 20. It says, Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ as though God did beseech you by us. We pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.

[33:16] Not only was his motive right, his mission was clear. Let's turn to Acts 1, verse 8. Many of us know this. Acts 1, verse 8. But ye shall receive power. After that, the Holy Ghost has come upon you and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem and in all Judea and in Samaria and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

[33:34] Just if there was somebody here wondering, once you're saved, the Holy Spirit comes in, there's no room for anything else. So, saved people cannot be devil-possessed.

[33:45] If that question was floating around, they can't be. His mission was clear. Thirdly, his message was life-changing. 2 Corinthians 5, verse 17.

[33:56] I'll read this real quick. Therefore, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature. Old things are passed away. Behold, all things are become new. I think for this man, this verse probably would have been even more personal because he was a creature.

[34:12] Here he is running around without clothes, filthy and dirty, cutting himself. That'd be terrifying. Any of us would be concerned. We would, whoa, what's going on? And the Bible says that God can take all of that and create you into something new and something beautiful.

[34:27] That was his mission from the Lord and now we see his commitment to the Lord. First off, we see his obedience. Turn with me to Luke chapter 14. Start in verse 16. It says, Then said he unto him, A certain man made a great supper and bade many and sent his servant at suppertime to say to them that were bidden, Come, for all things are now ready.

[34:49] And they all with one consent began to make excuse. The first said unto him, I have bought a piece of ground and I must needs go and see it. I pray thee, have me excused.

[35:00] And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen and I go to prove them. I pray thee, have me excused. And another said, I have married a wife and therefore I cannot come. So that servant came and showed his Lord these things.

[35:13] Then the master of the house, being angry, said to the servant, Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city and bring in hither the poor and the maimed and the halt and the blind. And the servant said, Lord, it is done as thou hast commanded and yet there is room.

[35:28] And the Lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges and compel them to come in and or that my house may be filled. For I say unto you that none of those men which were bidden shall taste of my supper.

[35:42] And there went great multitudes with him and he turned and said unto them, If any man come to me and hate not his father and his mother and his wife and his children and his brethren and his sisters, yea, in this life also he cannot be my disciple.

[35:55] So I think about that. This man had a very clear message. We see he was obedient. He went and told all these people they came. We as Christ's disciples, we're also given this to go out to the highways and hedges.

[36:09] So many times we look at people and we're like, ugh, you know, they're not wearing the right clothes and they don't talk the right way. Those are exactly who Jesus wants to be at church with us.

[36:21] We see his obedience. We see the opportunity. Turn with me quickly to Acts chapter 5, verse 28, saying, Did not we straightly command you that ye should not teach in his name?

[36:34] And behold, ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine and intend to bring this man's blood upon us. Then Peter and the other disciples answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men.

[36:46] The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree. Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a prince and a savior for to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.

[36:58] And when we are his witnesses of these, I'm sorry, I'm going to start in verse 32 again. And we are his witnesses of these things and so is also the Holy Ghost whom God hath given to them that obey him.

[37:12] We also have the opportunity, when you read that verse in the Bible and it says that the fields are white unto harvest, in Scripture, in that time, the white means it's ready.

[37:25] It's ready to be picked. It's ready to be, you know, reaped. A lot of times, it's so easy to get discouraged when you watch the news and you see the craziness and to think, oh, no one's heart is open.

[37:41] That's not true. God said their heart is open. It's white. It's ready to harvest. The only thing God needs is willing people to go out and pick. So, that's my message and I'd ask that you'd bow your heads, close your eyes as we have the song leader come forward.

[37:59] If God is working in your heart today, maybe you can say, you know, I don't know Jesus Christ as my Savior, but I'd like to. I pray that you would come forward this morning and ask about that, get that taken care of.

[38:14] You may be saved already. You may be born again. Maybe the Lord has spoke to you through this sermon and I just pray that you would deal with the Lord as He's calling to you.

[38:29] Dear Heavenly Father, I just thank you, God, for the stay you've given us. Lord, I just ask that you would speak to our hearts as the music is about to begin. Lord, I just ask that we would be found faithful servants of you.

[38:44] Lord, I pray that we would not let any excuses into our hearts. Lord, I just ask that we would want to serve you and share others what you've done in our lives.

[38:56] I thank you and I love you in Jesus' name. Amen.