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Hardened Hearts - Part 2 of 3

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• 1 Timothy chapter 4, and this is the second message on the brief series "Hardened Hearts." 1 Timothy chapter 4, and let's read verses 13 through 16. 1 Timothy chapter 4, verse 13. The Apostle tells Timothy, "Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine. Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery. Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all. Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee." I'm just reviewing for a few moments. You remember last week when I began this series, I said when we think of the phrase and the term "hardened hearts," we normally think of the unsaved who are deeply sunk in rebellion and sin. However, yet in our text we found out it was not just Christians that possessed hardened hearts.

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• There was even our Lord's own disciples. And arguing then from the greater to the lesser, if those disciples who were with Jesus Christ on a daily basis had their hearts hardened, how much easier it is for you and I who are not around Him on a daily basis to have our hearts hardened as well. I quoted from Mark 6 and verse 52, "For they considered not the miracle of the loaves: for their heart was hardened." And then Jesus, of course, asked them in Mark 8 in verse 17, "Have ye your heart yet hardened?" And I pointed out also by way of reminder that when we talk about a hardened heart, we're talking about our minds, our understanding, our reasoning ability.

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• When the Bible commands us in Proverbs 4 and verse 23, "Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life," He's telling us to keep our minds, to keep our understanding. When you look in the New Testament, our Lord says, "For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications." In other words, you cannot commit anything without first thinking about it. So all of the evil thoughts and everything proceeds from the heart or from the mind.

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• Now, I pointed out the word "hardened" is from the Greek word "poroo," which literally comes from the word "porous," which is a kind of rock. The word is translated "blind" twice in our Bibles. And it actually refers to a callous, something that has been covered with hard skin, which, of course, a hardened heart then talks about a mind that is dull, a mind that cannot perceive, a mind that's not quick. It would refer to an obtuseness of mental discernment and dull perception and a lack of consideration, understanding. And I pointed out in the application last week that a hardened heart will evidence itself in smallness of faith, because in Matthew chapter 16, verses 6 through 12, our Lord said to His disciples,

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• "O ye of little faith," and it's in the same context, in the same story. Now what I want to show you right now before I ever begin in today's lesson, I want to show you a verse of Scripture that will put together unbelief and hardness of heart, or a slowness to believe and a hardness of heart. So if you look in your Bibles, holding 1 Timothy chapter 4, but look in your Bibles to the book of Mark chapter 16 and look at verse 14. And here again, our Lord is reprimanding His disciples. Notice if you would Mark chapter 16 and verse 14. Mark 16 and verse 14, note if you would what the Scripture says: "Afterward He appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them

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• which had seen Him after He was risen." So notice if you would, unbelief and hardness of heart. So last week I gave you three things that led to a hardened heart. The first one, of course, was imperfect consideration. The second one was improper reasoning. And the third one, of course, was incomplete perception. And these things build on each other and, of course, they feed each other as well.

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• And our Lord is telling the disciples, had they really considered the miracle of the loaves, they would not have been frightened when they saw Him walking on the water during the storm. Had they understood how He took five loaves and two fishes and fed about 15,000 to 20,000 people, and how He took seven loaves and fed 4,000, then obviously they would have understood that He indeed was the Sovereign God of Heaven and Earth. Everything was under His control. Everything is under His authority. He can walk on water if He pleases.

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• In fact, that's what He said in Matthew 28 in verse 18, "All authority in heaven and earth is given unto Me." So many people say, "Well, let me see it and I'll believe." No, you believe and then you see. The problem that the disciples had was not necessarily an intellectual problem. It was a spiritual problem. Because if you believe, then you're going to understand. If you do not believe, you're not going to perceive and you're not going to see and you're not going to understand regardless of the proof and regardless of the evidence. So faith comes first. Now.

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• We talked last week about imperfect consideration. When you understand that our consideration is always imperfect, simply because we are sinners, it should not discourage us from a proper consideration. While we could never be perfect in this life, yet we can be persistent, practical, and perpetual in consideration. We may not be able to achieve perfection, but we're certainly going to reach a higher goal than we would without trying and without considering, and certainly we want to be obedient to Scripture. I mentioned this last week.

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• I'm going to mention it again. In our text that we are reading in 1 Timothy chapter 4, the Apostle Paul in 2 Timothy chapter 2 in verse 22 told Pastor Timothy to flee youthful lust. And I pointed out Timothy was probably in his 40s when Paul told him this. You have to remember in Bible times a man was not even counted a man till he was 30. That's why our Lord did not enter into the ministry until He was 30 years of age. So young Timothy is probably in his 40s, he could be in his 50s, but God, through the Apostle Paul, tells him to flee youthful lust. So, in order to get away from youthful lust, the answer is always to flee. And it doesn't matter how old you are, there are always the temptations to youthful lusts. The answer is to flee, to get out of trouble, get out of harm's way, like Joseph did when he left his coat and fled from Potiphar's wife. Now, when you look in 1 Timothy chapter 4, the Apostle Paul is not only telling Timothy how to be a good pastor, he's also telling Timothy how to be a good Christian witness.

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• I want you to look in verse 12, 1 Timothy chapter 4, verse 12. He says, "Let no man despise thy youth." Now we would smile at that when we think Timothy's probably forties and fifties, but the Apostle Paul says, "Let no man despise thy youth, but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity." So the Apostle says, "I want you to be an example. I want you to be a type. I want you to be an emblem of believers." Now, in verses 13 through 16, he tells him how to be that example. He says, "Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine."

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• Then he says, "Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery. Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all. Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee."

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• Now, Paul commands Timothy, "Give attendance." Look at it in verse 13: "Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine." The word "give attendance" is "prosecho" in the Greek, and it literally means to apply oneself to, to attach oneself to, to turn something over in the mind. And listen to me. It literally means to become addicted to. So literally what he is saying is, "Till I come, become addicted to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine." You remember it was the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 16 and verse 15, when he was commending the house of Stephanas, he said this: "I beseech you, brethren, (ye know the house of Stephanas, that it is the firstfruits of Achaia, and that they have addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints.)" They have addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints. So the Apostle Paul is telling Timothy he is to addict himself basically to reading, to exhortation, and to doctrine. Now the word "doctrine" here is the Greek word "didaskalia," from the word "didaskalos," which basically means teaching, instruction. Doctrine. And so he tells him this is what you have to be addicted to till I come. You addict yourself to reading, to exhortation—that isn't only giving exhortation, but receiving

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• exhortation. And then of course he says, "to doctrine." And then notice he says in verse 14, "Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery." Now, Pastor Timothy was set aside and hands were laid upon him. And there was a gift bestowed upon him through the laying on of the apostles' hands. Usually, when an individual is set aside for the ministry, the elders of the church will come together and they will lay their hands upon his head and pray over him and set him apart to the ministry. I've often said today, it's not like it was in Bible times, because today, usually it's empty hands on empty heads is what it amounts to. But it wasn't that way in Bible times, because these men were certainly godly men. And the Apostle Paul is talking about the gift that was given unto him. And in 2 Timothy, chapter 1, in verse 6, Paul said it like this: "Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands." So whatever Timothy had, it was the gift of God, and it came through the Apostle

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• laying his hands upon Timothy. So all the Bible is telling us in verse 14 is this: that his gift and his ministry were sanctioned by the laying on of the hands of the presbytery. The call of God was thus recognized by the church, by the approbation of the elders, and all this was expressed in setting him apart to the ministry. And whatever gift and whatever benefit he received at this particular point, it was called the gift of God, and he was not to neglect it. Now, note if you would, after he tells him this, look in verse 15.

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• He says, "Meditate upon these things." Well, wait a minute. Stop. Ask yourself, "What are these things?" Then you have to go back. These things that he is to meditate upon is that he's to be an example in word and conversation and charity and spirit and faith and purity. He's to meditate upon giving attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine. He's to meditate to the ministry that's placed upon him. And so Paul then tells him to meditate. The word is "Meletao," which literally means to care for, to attend carefully, to be diligent in, and to practice and apply. So actually, he says, "Meditate upon these things." Now watch.

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• "Give thyself wholly to them." That is completely. "That thy profiting may appear unto all." So Timothy then was to give himself completely and totally to meditating and applying all of these things that the Apostle has laid out for him. In doing so, he tells him in verse 15, that his profiting or his progress in the Christian faith would appear unto all. Now, I want you to note, if you would please, in verse 16. Because in verse 16 you have not only a word of admonition and warning, but you also have a word of command. So he says, "Take heed to thyself and thy doctrine." Now the word "take heed" is "epecho," and it literally means to give heed to, to observe, to hold upon, to give attention to, and to hold forth.

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• And by the way, it is a present active imperative. The present means it should be something that is continuing. The active means that Timothy is himself doing it. And it's an imperative, which means it's a command. So when Paul tells him to take heed unto thyself and to thy doctrine, he's actually commanding him to do this constantly and continually. It is to be something that is done perpetually. Timothy must take heed to himself and to his doctrine.

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• I'd like to pause and point out that this is one of the greatest failures in the ministry today. Because most pastors, most preachers do not take heed to themselves and they do not take heed to their doctrine. And that is why their families and their churches are usually in total disarray and complete and abysmal confusion. When you think about doctrine, there are very few Christians that can explain doctrine, whether it's justification, sanctification, adoption, effectual calling, election. Very few. Because the pastors do not give attention to it, they do not take heed to that, and they do not give that to their people, and their people are absolutely ignorant concerning this doctrine.

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• But here is a command. "Take heed unto thyself and to thy doctrine."

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• Now, notice, if you would, in verse 16, here's a second command, and it's the same present active imperative. The first one is "take heed unto thyself and thy doctrine." Now, here's the second one. "Continue in them." So he commands him to not only take heed, but to continue in taking heed to himself and to his doctrine. Then he said, "For in doing this thou shalt both save thyself and them that hear thee." In other words, Timothy, if you want to be an example to believers, if you want to be able to reach people, you must take heed to yourself and you must take heed to your doctrine. Now, let me explain it like this. The Apostle Paul is telling Timothy the tools that he needs for a successful ministry. Those tools are only two: godly living and biblical doctrine. If you want to succeed biblically in the ministry, Paul says, "Timothy, you need godly living and you need Bible doctrine." Now, when you look around today, you will find people who claim to be successful in the ministry.

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• They have big works, they have big buildings, they have lots of money, have private planes. I don't even have a helicopter. No, I'm just pointing this out. Do you understand that you can build a huge ministry, a big ministry, if you so choose, through entertainment, programs, music, plays, drama, and a host of other things. But Paul tells Timothy the only way to do this biblically is through godly living and through doctrine. So what Paul has done in 1 Timothy chapter 4, actually verses 12 through 16, he has exhorted Timothy, he's examined Timothy and commanded Timothy to give himself wholly and completely to the Bible doctrine and watch himself to make sure that he lives a godly, holy, obedient life as he preaches the Word of God.

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• And he said, in doing so, you'll be able to save yourself and others as well. Now, here's my question. How do we apply this to ourselves and how does this relate to a hardened heart? Where do we begin? How do we make application of the things that happen to us in our life so that our hearts will not become hardened? We are not walking and talking with Jesus Christ

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• the way the disciples did. We're not sitting down and watching Him physically or eating with Him physically or walking with Him physically. And yet they saw all of those miracles. They participated in the miracles, and yet their heart was hardened. So how do we today prevent a hardened heart? And the answer is we do so in a number of ways, and I'm only going to cover one of them today, and it's based upon what the Apostle Paul told Timothy. Here it is. I'm going to summarize it.

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• We must consider the Word of God predominantly. Whatever happens, whatever transpires in our lives, we must consider the Word of God predominantly. Why? The Bible is the full, final, and finished revelation of God. He's given us everything that we need for life and godliness.

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• Now, I want you to hold 1 Timothy, but I want you to turn in your Bible to 2 Peter 1. And as you're turning there, I want to quote to you Deuteronomy 29. You see, so many people are interested in secretive things. It's kind of like in the Apostle John in the book of Revelation, when the seven thunders uttered their voices, the angel said, "Seal up those voices and write it not." And yet I read about one preacher who preached seven messages on what the seven thunders said. How do you know what the seven thunders said? It wasn't written. But the Bible says in Deuteronomy 29:29, "The secret things belong unto the Lord our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law." I don't know the secret things of God until they come to pass in time and history. But the things which God has revealed belong to us and our children that we may obey them. Now I want you to watch.

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• Our Lord has given us everything that we need in the Bible. So if you'll look in 2 Peter chapter 1, if you would please, beginning there in verse 3. The Bible says, "According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust." Now, let's stop and go back to verse 3. "According as His divine power hath given us all things that pertain unto life and godliness." So God has given us everything that we need in the Bible that pertains to life and to godliness. I want you to look. He says, "According as His divine power has given us all things that pertain to life and godliness through the knowledge of Him." We cannot get this, all things that pertain to life and godliness, except through knowledge of Him.

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• Now watch verse 4. "Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises." Where are these promises? They are in Him, but they are in the Word of God, "that by these," that is by these promises, "ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust." So what God is telling us is this: He's given us in His Word everything that we need for life and godliness. He's given us everything we need to escape the corruption that is in the world through lust.

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• Listen to what I'm about to say. When a Christian refuses to read and study his Bible, he is not only sinning against God, he's not only in rebellion to God, he's actually seeking to thwart the work of Jesus Christ. You say, "How can you say that?" I'll show you how. Look in your Bibles to the book of Galatians. Turn back just a few books, the book of Galatians, and look if you would in chapter 1. Galatians chapter 1, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians. Go back to Galatians chapter 1 and look what the Bible says.

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• Remember now, God has given us everything we need that pertains to life and godliness through the knowledge of Him, and it is by these exceeding great and precious promises that we escape the corruption that is in the world through lust. Now watch, Galatians 1 verse 3, "Grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father: to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen." So it's His will that we be delivered from this present evil world. And our Lord gave Himself for that. And how are we going to escape all the corruption that is in this world? And the answer is through His promises, which are given to us in His Word, which is everything we need for life and godliness. So here's the question: Does the Word of God permeate, predominate, and pervade your mind?

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• Do you continually have thoughts of deliverance from sin? Thoughts of living holily and obediently and godly? Have you reached the point in your Christian life when you have come to the conclusion that the Word of God has all the answers? Have you reached the point in your Christian life that you come to the Bible whenever you have a problem, whenever you have a difficulty, and you seek to find the answer from the Word of God? Here's another question. I want you to listen to it. Do you understand that the Word of God

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• is to interpret your experiences? Your experiences are never to interpret the Bible. One of the biggest failures we have in Christianity today is everyone wants to put their experience first and foremost and make it paramount. I've heard people say, "But I know what happened to me." I've heard people say, "I know what I went through. I experienced something different." Let me tell you something: your experience is not determinative; the Bible is. And I do not care what kind of experience you can have, you must allow the Bible to interpret it. And some people all they want is an experience. That's all. You remember I told you there's one man in the Bible to whom Jesus Christ would not even speak? He wouldn't even acknowledge him. You remember who that was? It was King Herod. Because the Bible says that Herod had wanted to see Him for a long time because he wanted to see some miracle done by Him. And our Lord wouldn't even speak to him. Why? Because all he wanted was an experience. If you want an experience, your flesh will give you an experience. The devil will give you an experience.

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• And if you don't believe that, tonight before you go to bed, you eat yourself a peanut butter, mayonnaise, pumpkin, and pickle sandwich and throw in a few onions, and your stomach will give you an experience before morning. I can assure you, you can have an experience. You know, the Bible is determinative, not what we experience. And the Bible must always interpret our experiences and not our experiences interpreting the Bible. Now, I said all that just to say this. I'm going to try to give you just one illustration today, and that illustration is going to be dealing with sickness. Each one of us has been sick. And each one of us, by the grace of God, has recovered. So here's my question: When you were sick, did you ever ask yourself why you were sick? When you were sick, did you ever ask yourself, "What am I to learn from this experience? Is God trying to teach me something, trying to show me something?" Have you ever considered the sources of sickness? Now, I'm trying to tell you that the Bible has got to predominate our minds.

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• We must consider the Word of God predominantly. First, let me say this: We all understand that sin is the general cause of sickness and death. Because if sin had not entered into the world, there would not be any sickness and there would not be any death. Romans 5:12, "Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned." So sin brought sickness and death into the world. We understand that.

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• Yet there are some sins that bring special sicknesses and other problems upon our body. I'm going to just show you two very quickly that everybody can identify with. You'll understand where I'm going, and then I'm going to turn it around on you. Okay? Talk about the sin of drunkenness. If you look in your Bibles to the book of Proverbs chapter 23. And by the way, drunkenness is a sin.

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• It is not a disease. Okay, drunkenness is a sin. It is not a disease. So in Proverbs chapter 23, beginning there with verse 30. In fact, let's begin with verse 29. Proverbs 23, verse 29. Here's the question: "Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes?" Then he says, "They that tarry long at the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine."

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• That is, they want it more potent, more powerful. God says, "Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth itself aright." That's another story. Then he says, "At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder." What will happen when you're drunk? "Thine eyes shall behold strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things. Yea, thou shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of the sea, or as he that lieth upon the top of a mast. They have stricken me, shalt thou say, and I was not sick;

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• they have beaten me, and I felt it not: when shall I awake? I will seek it yet again." So, here's all kinds of problems, not just talking about cirrhosis of the liver and a whole host of other things that usually drunks have. And you don't have to be a drunkard to have cirrhosis of the liver, I understand that, but that's one of the predominant diseases that they possess.

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• But notice he said, "Thine eyes shall behold strange women." One of my pastor friends used to be a drunk. He's a great big man. I mean a big man, probably weighs 250 pounds, big man. His wife, little thing, maybe 110 soaking wet. And so he came home one night drunk as a skunk, so drunk that he passed out on the sidewalk in front of their house. And his wife went outside.

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• I think it was raining even. Somehow she picked up that heavy man. She got him on her shoulder. And she was walking him to the door of her house. And he looked at her drunk, and he said this: "If my wife knew I was going home with you, she'd kill me." He didn't even know it was his wife. I said to myself, and I told Joy, I said, "I would have dropped him right there."

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• I would have left him on the sidewalk in the rain just as sure as this world. But this is what he is talking about in Proverbs chapter 23. I mean obviously there are all kinds of physical problems that drunkenness brings on itself, not counting the mental, the moral, the familial, and the economic problems. And all of these problems basically could be avoided if you would not be a drunkard.

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• And the same thing is true with immorality. Sexually transmitted diseases could not happen if the sin was avoided and if abstinence and if morality prevailed. So you can see that there are a lot of sicknesses and things like that that are brought upon by specific sins. While I'm sure we don't have any drunkards and any whoremongers in this assembly, I want to point out it's not just simply the grosser sins of the flesh that are sins. In fact, the truth of the matter is spiritual sins are even worse than fleshly sins.

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• When you stop and think, our Lord reserved His highest condemnation for the Pharisees, and the Pharisees were basically moral because they were self-righteous. "I don't drink, and I don't smoke, and I don't chew, and I don't go with the girls that do." I mean, you know, that was their philosophy. And boy, they would condemn the prostitutes, and the drunkards, and the publicans. They would have nothing to do with them because they were self-righteous.

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• So you have to understand there are indeed spiritual sins as well. But do you remember when Rebecca, Isaac's wife, was pregnant with Jacob and Esau, the Bible says in Genesis 25 and verse 22 that the children struggled within her womb. And the Bible said, Rebecca said, "Why am I thus?" And she inquired of the Lord. Her attitude was, "What's happening to me? What's going on in my womb?

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• Why are these babies struggling? Why are they fighting?" And she inquired of the Lord. The wise thing to do when there is any sickness is to inquire of the Lord as to why am I thus? Sin does bring sickness, and it's not just physical sins. There are a whole host of spiritual sins, such as pride, idolatry, covetousness, and many more. Let me just show you one particular.

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• If you look in your Bibles, the first Corinthians chapter 11, 1 Corinthians chapter 11. And by the way, I'm going to point out again in this passage, we're talking about Christians. We're not talking about the unsaved. We're talking about Christians. So in 1 Corinthians chapter 11, we're talking about some people who abused the Lord's Supper. In 1 Corinthians chapter 11, notice if you would please beginning there with verse 27.

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• He says, "Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord." And then he says, "But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup." Now watch. "For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body.

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• For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world." Now I want to call your attention to the fact that the Bible talks about in verse 29 partaking of the Lord's Supper in an unworthy manner, and then he says in verse 30, "For this cause," because they committed this sin, these Christians, he said in verse 30, "many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep," that is, they died. So here then our sicknesses and infirmities and weaknesses and even death attributed to a wrong partaking of the Lord's Supper. Now the Apostle John in 1 John 5, verse 16 and 17, tells us that there is a sin unto death and there is a sin not unto death. He said, "If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death.

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• There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it." And then he says, "All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a sin not unto death." So Christians can sin and get sick and weak. Christians can sin and die because sin is a violation of God's law. You must remember Hebrews chapter 12 tells us that God chastens all of those that are His. Chastisement, if you will look down in your Bibles to 1 Corinthians chapter 11, notice if you would what he said in verse 30: "For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. For if we would judge ourselves,

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• we should not be judged. But when we are judged, we are what? Chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world." So one of the means that God uses in chastening is sickness. And so God says, if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged by Him. But if we're judged by Him, He whips us. He chastens us that we might not be condemned with the world. So when we become sick, one of the questions that we must first ask ourselves, making the Word of God predominantly,

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• is there any sin, any particular sin that I have committed that I've not repented of? See, that is how we keep our hearts from being hardened. It's not just that I'm sick. "Lord, is this sickness brought upon me because of a particular sin? Have I done something? Have I done something unawares, unknowingly?" You have to remember the heart's deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. And only God knows the heart. And only God can open your eyes and let you see what is really and truly in your heart and what is in your life. One of the first sources of sickness is sin. The second source of sickness in the Bible is Satan. There is satanic affliction. Satan certainly attacked Job.

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• There's no two ways about that. We may not deem ourselves a worthy target of Satan, but you have to remember this: He has plenty of minions to help him to willingly do his work. He does not have to turn himself loose upon us. He's got plenty of helpers that would be delighted to attack us. There are obvious illustrations in the Bible of satanic affliction. If you would turn in your Bibles to the book of Luke chapter 13, you will see that our Lord Himself deals with one of them. Look in Luke chapter 13. Beginning there with verse 10. Luke 13, verse 10. Look at what he said. Luke 13, verse 10: "And he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath. And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself.

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• In South Georgia, we would say she's crooked back. She's bent over, she can't straighten up. Verse 12, "And when Jesus saw her, he called her to him, and said unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity. And he laid his hands on her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God." And the ruler of the synagogue, here's that Pharisee with the pride, "and the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because that Jesus had healed on the sabbath day, and said unto the people, There are six days in which men ought to work: in them therefore come and be healed, and not on the sabbath day." Then the Lord answered him and said, "Thou hypocrite, doth not each one of you on the sabbath loose his ox or his ass from the stall, and lead him away to watering? And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?" And when he had said these things, all his adversaries were ashamed: and all the people rejoiced for

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• all the glorious things that were done by him. But our Lord specifically says that Satan had bound her lo these eighteen years. You also have to remember in Mark chapter 5 there was the man who was possessed of the demons, and when our Lord asked their name, their name was Legion, for they said, "We are many." And of course He cast them out. But I want you to turn if you would to 2 Corinthians chapter 12, because I want you to see that the Apostle Paul even ascribed his affliction to a messenger of Satan. 2 Corinthians chapter 12, notice if you would please there at verse 7. 2 Corinthians chapter 12, verse 7. The Apostle said, "And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure." So Paul identifies his problem as a thorn in the flesh and as a messenger of Satan. Now, I will be absolutely honest.

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• I do not know what his thorn in the flesh was with absolute certainty. I think I have an idea. Could be wrong. But I do tend to think along with some others that it was probably some type of ophthalmic disease which not only affected his eyes but his body as well. For instance, in the book of Galatians chapter 4 and verse 15, he asked these Galatians, he says, "Where is then the blessedness ye spake of? for I bear you record, that, if it had been possible, ye would have plucked out your own eyes, and have given them to me." So evidently had some type of eye problem, or at least the Apostle is saying, "You loved me this much at one time that you would have plucked out your own eyes and have given to me." When you get to Galatians 6 and verse 11, the Apostle Paul says, "Ye see how large

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• a letter I have written unto you with mine own hand." And the Greek word there for "large," "pelikos," denotes a geometrical magnitude and not an arithmetical magnitude. In other words, the book of Galatians is not a long book. It's only six chapters. And when he says, "Ye see how large a letter I have written with my own hands," he's talking about the size of the letters that he used to write. Paul usually had an amanuensis, that is, he had a secretary, and they wrote the letters and Paul just signed his name. I mean, he dictated to them and then he signed his name. But in the book of Galatians, evidently he wrote that one himself, and he was saying, "You see how large a letter I've written with my own hands." So this eye disease would have made Paul unappealing, it would have made him weak, it would have been infirmity that he had to bear. And his critics in 2 Corinthians 10 in verse 10 exploited that, for they said, "For his letters, say they, are weighty and

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• powerful; but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech contemptible." So they did not think much of the Apostle Paul. Now whether or not his thorn in the flesh, his messenger of Satan, was an ophthalmic eye disease, I do not know for absolute certainty, but I do know whatever affliction he had, he ascribed it to a messenger of Satan. So if you look back in your Bibles, the second Corinthians chapter 12, let's read verses 7 through 10. Note, if you would. He said, "And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.

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• For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong." So the Apostle Paul said, "I'll take the messenger as long as God's grace is sufficient, and I will have the power of God in my life." So whatever Paul's thorn in the flesh was, whatever messenger of Satan afflicted him, he had to bear it all of his life. Okay. So when you consider the Word of God predominantly, and you're just taking sickness as an illustration, you have to consider first of all that sickness can come from sin. Secondly, sickness can come from the afflictions of Satan. Thirdly, sickness can come also from self. And when I say self, I'm simply referring

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• to the fact and the reality of our creaturehood. We are mutable, frail, weak, and dying creatures. That's all there is to it. You do not have to be a great and exceeding sinner, nor do you have to be afflicted by Satan to become sick. There are many viruses, bacteria, spores, fungi, and a host of other communicable diseases that are just willing and ready to attack your weak body. That's all there is to it. You don't have to be a sinner and you don't have to be afflicted by Satan to have a cold or to catch the flu or to have bronchitis or to get the mumps or the measles or to fall and break your arm. You don't have to be a great and horrible sinner to catch some communicable disease. I mean, that is just part and parcel of being a creature. We're not God. So you have to consider the fact that, yes, we are sinners. And yes, there is a Satan, but we are creatures as well. And our sickness could be just something that happens by virtue of the fact that we are creatures.

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• We cannot undo our creaturehood. You know, Norman Vincent Peale wrote a book, "The Power of Positive Thinking." I like what one fella said. He said, "I find Peale appalling and the Apostle Paul appealing." Well, you know, I trust, you know, we will keep our minds predominating upon the Word of God. And yes, we can keep positive thoughts there, but positive thoughts will not negate the fact that we are creatures and we are human.

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• And that's all there is to it. There's a fourth consideration. If the Word of God is going to predominate our minds, and I'm just using the illustration of sickness, we have to consider this: our sickness could come from sin. Our sickness could come from Satan. Our sickness could come from self. But the fourth one is this: our sickness could come from the sovereignty of God. What do I mean by that? I just simply mean that God is absolutely sovereign and God will allow things in our lives that we don't understand. He will allow them for His honor and for His glory. A good illustration of that is found in John chapter 9, and let me show you. Turn there if you would. In John

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• chapter 9, our Lord healed a man who was born blind. Never before had a man born blind been healed. But I want you to note if you would please that the standard thinking in those days was that if you had some type of infirmity, some type of affliction, either you sinned or your parents. And the disciples thought that as well. So if you look in John 9, verse 1, "And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth. And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind? Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him." I would encourage you to read all of this chapter. It's a wonderful chapter. Our Lord healed this blind man. The Pharisees kept asking him,

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• "How did he heal you?" He said, "I told you once. If I tell you again, will ye also be his disciples?" And they said, "Thou art his disciple; we are Moses' disciples." And they cast him out of the synagogue. But here our Lord just sovereignly, powerfully healed this man that had been born blind. The same could be said in the case of Job. Job had not necessarily sinned particularly against God. In fact, the Bible calls Job perfect, that is, mature and complete and upright, one that feared God and one that eschewed evil. He spit it out. He couldn't swallow it. And yet God in His sovereignty allowed Satan to attack Job. And, of course, in the end, Job was vindicated and amply rewarded.

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• James says it correctly and concisely in James 5 and verse 11. He said, "Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy." And, of course, He is that.

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• Now, whenever I think and I speak of God's sovereignty, I can't help but think of some of the choicest saints that have had horrible afflictions. Fanny Crosby was blind. I've told you the story of how the hymn, "It Is Well With My Soul," came to be written, when the Christian brother lost his children when the ship sank. There are so many saints that have suffered immensely. I remember one particularly.

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• She had cancer of the bone. A simple woman. Never made it, I don't think, past the third grade. The world would call her ignorant. But she had more knowledge and more understanding than probably a lot of people today and a lot of preachers today. And she was dying with cancer of the bone, which is absolutely horrible. And you could go in the hospital, and I did many times to see her, and you could hear her screaming and moaning and groaning with pain 50 yards before we ever got to her room. And you'd walk in a room and you would say, "Well, Mrs. Kitchens, how are you today?"

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• "Oh, I'm fine, by the grace of God. I'm so thankful." Never complained, never bellyached, just endured. And you think of all these afflictions that people have gone through. Stop and think, if you would, please, of the children that were born with organic diseases that relate to the brain. Alice and I have some friends. They had a daughter that was born with Down syndrome. That little girl today is probably in her forties, fifty maybe even. I would go to visit, and she was just happy to sit on the couch and color. 20 and 30 years old, just sitting there coloring.

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• Well, if she could help her mother, she would. And she would always kiss her daddy and kiss her mother and say, "I love my daddy. I love my mother." And I would go to visit her and visit that home, and she would always come up and hug my neck and kiss me. And she'd say, "I love John Weaver." Just so simple and yet... just so simple. And yet at the same time, I could not help but think how God in His grace and mercy is going to somehow let this young woman and others like her redound to His honor and His glory. He's going to do it. And I'd also think this: I would see her. No, she did not have much ability. But what little bit she had, she wanted to help her mother. She wanted to help her daddy. And I often thought, I'd much rather have a child like her than I had a child that was considered normal, that hated Jesus Christ and hated the Word of God and was full of rebellion and wickedness and sin.

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• I'd much prefer someone like that. And yet you stop and think. What about these people? God is sovereign and He allowed it for reasons we don't understand. We don't know. But He's in control and I'm content to wait until the day that He reveals all of His goodness and mercy in these people. I want to show you something. Look in your Bibles to the book of Exodus, chapter 4. Everybody knows this passage because God is calling Moses to go and deliver the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt. And of course Moses has many excuses; he doesn't want to go. In Exodus 4 and verse 10, "And Moses said unto the Lord, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue." I don't talk

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• well. He must have been from South Alabama or South Georgia. I don't know. But look what God said: "And the Lord said unto him, Who hath made man's mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the Lord?" God said, "I made them. They're mine." And you must remember that all things were created for God's honor and God's glory.

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• And we have to stop and think. It doesn't matter what type of sickness it is. It could be from my sin. It could be a satanic affliction. It could be from self. It could be just for God's sovereign glory and grace and mercy. It could be. And if our hearts are not hardened, we'll consider all of these things in light of His Word. His Word will be predominating in our lives.

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• And we should always be willing to submit to Him and always willing to bow to Him. Why? Because He's too loving to be unkind and too wise to make a mistake. He does not make mistakes. So if we do not want hardened hearts, we have to learn to consider everything in light of the Word of God. Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, we bow to Thee this day. We thank You for Your Word. We thank You for Your truth. We thank You for Your grace and mercy. Help us, Lord, to have the Word of God predominate in our lives. Help us to learn to consider everything in light of Thy Word, to search Your Word, to have understanding. And Lord, keep our hearts from being hardened. And Father, may we give Thee the honor and the glory. In Christ's name we pray. Amen.

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• so so

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deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-05T23:22:18Z