The Trap of Self-Powered Transformation: Why Decisions Don’t Save

• 2 Corinthians and Paul's Ministry [00:00:32 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor introduces 2 Corinthians as a letter from Paul to Corinth, highlighting its difficulty and Paul's suffering to establish his authority and empathy.
• Suffering and Endurance [00:03:29 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor catalogs Paul's afflictions (beaten, shipwrecked, anxious) to show that believers are in good company with Paul when facing adversity, yet must not lose heart.
• Intellectual and Spiritual Deterioration [00:08:14 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses Karl Marx and Charles Darwin as examples of men who lacked the Lord Jesus, resulting in miserable lives and false teachings, contrasting them with Paul's faithful endurance.
• The Spirit's Ministry [00:12:21 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor begins to unpack the solution to keeping the mind right: focusing on the 'ministry of the Spirit' (New Covenant) as opposed to the 'ministry of death' (Old Covenant/Law).
• Old Covenant vs. New Covenant [00:13:22 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor contrasts the 'ministry of death/condemnation' associated with Moses and the Law against the 'ministry of the spirit' which brings life, mercy, and transformation.
• The Function of the Law [00:14:57 ▶️ 📄]
  > Explains that the law's purpose is to 'inform' and diagnose sin (bringing death/condemnation) so that individuals recognize their need for a Savior.
• The Ministry of the Holy Spirit [00:22:25 ▶️ 📄]
  > Describes the Holy Spirit's role in transforming the heart, providing peace, and enabling believers to take thoughts captive, distinguishing this from the condemnation of the law.
• Source of Sinful Thoughts [00:19:39 ▶️ 📄]
  > Argues that thoughts are 'downstream' from the heart; therefore, external influences are less critical than the internal state of the heart, which requires the Gospel to change.
• Tampering with God's Word [00:24:29 ▶️ 📄]
  > Warns against 'false belief' and twisting or watering down Scripture, noting that wrong thoughts about God are more dangerous than no thoughts about Him.
• False Teachers and Spiritual Deception [00:25:07 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor warns about false teachers and believers who twist and distort God's word, urging the congregation to have their 'radar up' to detect these deceptions.
• Tampering with Scripture [00:26:02 ▶️ 📄]
  > He explains the Greek word 'dolo' (tampering/watering down wine) to illustrate how pastors and media figures dilute biblical truth to avoid offending people's sensibilities.
• Testing the Spirits [00:28:44 ▶️ 📄]
  > Citing 1 John 4:1, he instructs believers to test spirits and not assume popularity or church size equates to biblical truth, using Jim Jones as a cautionary example of a gifted but false preacher.
• Berean Examination [00:30:05 ▶️ 📄]
  > He references Acts 17 and the Bereans to encourage the congregation to actively examine scriptures to verify if a pastor's teaching is truthful, regardless of the speaker's platform.
• Worldly Opinions vs. Biblical Truth [00:30:51 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor argues against adopting opinions from unbelievers, describing them as 'blind' and 'darkened,' and shares an anecdote about a woman leaving his church because he preached God's view on homosexuality rather than his own.
• Popularity vs. Truth [00:35:51 ▶️ 📄]
  > He asserts that 'true Christianity is not popular' and 'popular Christianity is not true,' citing Luke 6:26 to warn against seeking human approval over divine righteousness.
• Digital Algorithms and Distraction [00:37:17 ▶️ 📄]
  > He identifies the 'algorithm' in Silicon Valley as a modern tool of deception that curates content to mislead, urging believers to put down their phones and open God's word.
• Focus on Christ [00:38:02 ▶️ 📄]
  > As a final safeguard, he advises keeping the mind focused on Jesus—His death, miracles, and healing power—as the ultimate anchor against spiritual deception.
• Digital Algorithms and Media Consumption [00:37:17 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor warns against curated content from Silicon Valley algorithms that dictate what users see, urging them to put down devices and open God's word instead.
• Mental Focus and Spiritual Discipline [00:38:02 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor outlines steps to keep the mind focused on Christ, including keeping oneself in the pure word of God and avoiding worldly opinions, with Jesus as the ultimate 'fire escape' for the mind.
• Grief and Spiritual Dryness [00:38:59 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares a personal experience of grief where he could not read the Bible, illustrating how repeating Jesus' name brought peace when intellectual engagement with scripture failed.
• The Role of the Holy Spirit [00:40:43 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor asserts that the Holy Spirit is stronger than negative thoughts, worldly opinions, and the human heart, capable of shutting down destructive belief systems and renewing the mind by transforming the heart.

• Sermon Illustration [00:00:32 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor recounts a trip to the ancient ruins of Corinth, noting the temple to Aphrodite and the city's pride in knowledge and sophistication despite its corruption.
• Sermon Illustration [00:08:18 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor describes the life of Karl Marx, detailing his chronic physical illnesses, personal tragedies, and hostile personality, linking his atheism to communist revolutions and millions of deaths.
• Sermon Illustration [00:09:39 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor describes the life of Charles Darwin, listing his numerous physical and mental health issues (hallucinations, depression, etc.) and accusing him of fabricating the theory of evolution.
• Sermon Illustration [00:17:23 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares a personal anecdote about being pulled over by a police officer for speeding, where his wife immediately confirmed he was going too fast, illustrating the 'ministry of condemnation' that points out flaws.
• Sermon Illustration [00:16:44 ▶️ 📄]
  > Uses the analogy of a speed limit sign on the highway to explain how the Law simply 'informs' a person that they are breaking the law, without providing the power to stop breaking it.
• Sermon Illustration [00:18:30 ▶️ 📄]
  > Compares the human reaction to the Law to a child's reaction to being told 'don't pick up that dirty wrapper,' illustrating how the Law often provokes sin rather than preventing it.
• Sermon Illustration [00:19:22 ▶️ 📄]
  > Uses the analogy of a medical diagnosis: just as one must know they are sick to seek a doctor, one must feel the 'diagnosis' of the Law to seek the 'cure' of Jesus.
• Sermon Illustration [00:26:02 ▶️ 📄]
  > Explains the Greek word 'dolo' (tamper) by referencing the practice of adding water to wine to dilute it, illustrating how false teachers water down God's word.
• Sermon Illustration [00:26:02 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses the analogy of distilling wine, where 'tampering' (dolo) meant adding water to dilute the strength of the wine, to explain how false teachers water down God's word.
• Sermon Illustration [00:29:15 ▶️ 📄]
  > He recounts the story of Jim Jones, a gifted preacher who shared the stage with Billy Graham but led his followers to mass suicide in Guyana, illustrating that popularity and gifting do not guarantee truth.
• Sermon Illustration [00:32:21 ▶️ 📄]
  > He references the song 'I Have Decided to Follow Jesus' to illustrate the need to ignore the confusion of unsaved family and friends who do not understand the Christian walk.
• Sermon Illustration [00:33:39 ▶️ 📄]
  > He shares a personal anecdote about a woman who left his church after he preached God's view on homosexuality, stating she would 'rather go to hell' than attend a church that teaches biblical truth, highlighting the heart of the unbeliever.
• Sermon Illustration [00:37:17 ▶️ 📄]
  > He describes the 'algorithm' in Silicon Valley as a coordinated effort by men to coerce computer language that feeds curated content directly to users' eyes via phones, serving as a modern form of spiritual deception.
• Sermon Illustration [00:38:59 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor recounts a period of intense grief following the death of someone precious to him. He describes being unable to sleep or read the Bible, feeling spiritually dry. He illustrates finding peace not through intellectual study, but by repeatedly saying 'Jesus, Jesus' until he fell asleep, demonstrating the power of simple invocation over complex theological engagement during emotional distress.

• Pastoral Charge [00:00:08 ▶️ 📄]
  > Take out notes, fill in blanks, and follow along with the sermon.
• Pastoral Charge [00:12:21 ▶️ 📄]
  > Mark up the Bible by underlining the word 'ministry' and following the pastor's visual cues.
• Pastoral Charge [00:12:21 ▶️ 📄]
  > Open Bibles and mark them up
• Pastoral Charge [00:16:44 ▶️ 📄]
  > Write down the distinction between the Law and the Spirit in their notes
• Pastoral Charge [00:25:49 ▶️ 📄]
  > Write down the warning about the enemy twisting God's word
• Pastoral Charge [00:34:25 ▶️ 📄]
  > The congregation is asked to verbally affirm their agreement with the pastor's stance on prioritizing God's opinion over human opinion.
• Pastoral Charge [00:37:48 ▶️ 📄]
  > The congregation is asked to verbally affirm the command to put down phones and open God's word.
• Pastoral Charge [00:37:49 ▶️ 📄]
  > Agree with the previous statement verbally
• Pastoral Charge [00:38:02 ▶️ 📄]
  > Write down the instruction to keep their mind focused on Christ
• Pastoral Charge [00:39:59 ▶️ 📄]
  > Write down the note that the mind is downstream from the heart
• Pastoral Charge [00:41:23 ▶️ 📄]
  > Bow heads, close eyes, and mentally say yes to Jesus
• Pastoral Charge [00:41:54 ▶️ 📄]
  > Recite a specific prayer of surrender and acceptance of Jesus

[00:00:00] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]
[00:00:00] And I want to talk to you on the subject, if you've got your notes, they look like this, on the subject of keeping your mind right in a world gone wrong.
[00:00:08] Keeping your mind right in a world gone wrong. Like I said, 2 Corinthians chapter 4, and take those notes out, fill in the blanks, follow along.
[00:00:17] There might be a test when you get to the pearly gates, so you want to have all the information possible. Amen.
[00:00:22] man. Okay. Now, now, now I want to take to talk to you about this book of second Corinthians, because it's not a book. It's a letter. It's a letter from the apostle Paul to a church in the
[00:00:32] ancient city of Corinth. In October, I was there with a group of people, some of which were from Apollo beach. Uh, we went to the ancient city, the remains of Corinth. We saw, uh, the mountain
[00:00:44] on which this, the temple to Aphrodite, the goddess of love sat the remains of that ancient Greek mythology temple. And we saw the institutions, the remains of the institutions of that city. It was a city that prided itself on knowledge and wisdom and intellect and
[00:01:02] sophistication. And yet at the same time was a city that was utterly corrupt with all kinds of, you know, city oriented indulgences in the flesh. Paul shows up at that city in Acts chapter 17.
[00:01:15] he preaches the gospel he doesn't talk to them in lofty speech we talked about this last week he doesn't talk to them in high-minded arguments he doesn't play their sophisticated arguments game he shows up he says i decided to know nothing amongst you except jesus christ and him crucified
[00:01:31] and wouldn't you know the gospel went to work the holy spirit convicted sinners the hearts were changed a church was born jesus was glorified and now he writes to that church two letters that are in our Bibles, two letters that are not in our Bibles. Paul wrote four
[00:01:47] letters to this church, four letters from Paul. Do you know what that means? That means that your church needs serious help. Amen, somebody. Well, we got two of those letters recorded in the Holy Scripture. The first one is 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, and we're talking about what many
[00:02:03] historians believe was the fourth letter from the apostle Paul to this church in the city of Corinth in the first century. And what's amazing about this letter is that this letter, and this is one
[00:02:14] of the hardest books. If you've ever read through the New Testament, you probably get to 2 Corinthians and you say something like this. I have no idea what this is talking about. This is beyond my
[00:02:23] understanding. Well, that's why you got a pastor like me. Amen, somebody. Somebody who can teach you the word of God and help unpack it for you. But I got to tell you something. It's also sometimes
[00:02:34] challenging for me. This passage is challenging. And what looks like a passage that doesn't deal with the mind actually will give us the tools on keeping our minds right in a world gone wrong.
[00:02:45] Let's take a look at the very first verse, because what does he say here in this passage? It's a hopeful verse in verse one. He says, therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God and
[00:02:56] these five words, we do not what? Lose heart. I wonder who needs to hear that today. There is a way that you can keep your heart. There's a way that you can keep going and not give up. There is
[00:03:09] a tool chest that God has to open for you so that you can be strong in the face of whatever adversity you are going through. Have you ever wanted to give up? Have you ever been to the end of your
[00:03:20] rope? Have you ever thought this is the end for me? Well, guess what? You're in good company with the apostle Paul. This is kind of like the centerpiece of this chapter of this book because
[00:03:29] second corinthians paul talks about all of his problems it's a book where he recounts all the ways in which he suffered in fact let me do a quick tour through the book of first second
[00:03:42] corinthians for you starting with chapter one when he talks about the fact that he was afflicted uh in a major way in verse eight of chapter one here's what he says we do not want you to be
[00:03:54] aware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. And notice how he describes this. We were utterly burdened, and check this one out, beyond our strength. How many have ever heard the phrase God doesn't give you more than he can handle? It's not true. Beyond our strength means God gave
[00:04:15] us more than we can handle. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Beyond our strength, we were despairing of life itself. And I don't want to ask anybody this question. I mean, I don't want you to answer this question out loud, but some of you have been to the place where you're like, Lord, just take
[00:04:28] me. Oh, Lord, I'm done with living. And if you've ever been there, I don't want you to beat yourself up. Paul, the apostle, despaired of life itself. He says, we felt we had received the sentence of
[00:04:38] death. And then notice this. Why does God give you more than you can handle? So that, so that you can rely on not yourself, but on God who raises the dead. How many know we got a dead raising God
[00:04:52] on our side. So he was struggling. He went through it. He's been there. If you've ever struggled, if you've ever been through it, Paul the apostle knows exactly how you feel. Then fast forward to
[00:05:04] our chapter, chapter four, and just pass our text that we just read together. Look at what he says in verse eight. We are afflicted in every way, but we're not crushed. We're perplexed. If you've
[00:05:16] ever been confused by your life, you're in good company with the apostle Paul. He says, I've not driven to despair in spite of him. He said, I've been persecuted, but I'm not forsaken. I've been
[00:05:26] struck down, but I'm not destroyed. I'm carrying in my body the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus might be made manifest. If you've ever been afflicted, perplexed, despaired, struck down, or persecuted, you know you've got a friend in the apostle Paul. Then if we fast forward to chapter
[00:05:46] 7. Check this out. Verse 5. He says this. He says, when we came to Macedonia, we had no rest. We were afflicted at every turn, fighting without and fear within. How many know you can have problems on the
[00:06:02] outside of you, but your real problems are the problems inside of you? And Paul the Apostle is testifying to that here in 2 Corinthians chapter 7. And then perhaps the archetype chapter of Paul's struggles and wrestlings in life is in chapter 11 of second Corinthians, where he unpacks all
[00:06:22] the ways in which he struggled and suffered for the cause of Christ. In verse 25, he says three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned and Gen Z that actually means people had rocks
[00:06:37] thrown at him. Just so we're keeping that clear. Three times I was shipwrecked a night and a day I was adrift at sea on frequent journeys in danger from rivers, in danger from robbers, in
[00:06:52] danger from my own people, the Jews, in danger from other people, the Gentiles, in danger in the city.
[00:06:59] He couldn't go anywhere. In danger in the wilderness, in danger at sea, in danger from false brothers, in toil and hardship through many a sleep. How many of you have ever been through a couple of sleepless nights? Paul the apostle has been there in hunger and thirst without food and
[00:07:13] cold and exposure and apart from all this the daily pressure of all my anxiety for all the churches who was weak and i'm not weak who was made to fall and i'm not indignant in other words
[00:07:23] paul could testify man i've been through the ringer and yet here we are in chapter four the centerpiece of this of this incredible letter that unpacks all of his struggles and all of his afflictions and all of his wrestlings and he says we do not lose heart can i tell you that no
[00:07:41] matter what you're going through, you don't have to lose your mind. And Paul impacts why that's true here, because this little word, therefore, shows you we've got to take a look at what it's there for, to help us understand how we can keep our mind and our head in every situation.
[00:07:59] But before we get there, let's talk about two guys who didn't keep their minds.
[00:08:05] And I'm going to mention these guys on purpose at the end of how I described their lives, so that you can understand how important it is that you have the Lord Jesus in your life.
[00:08:14] The first guy lived in relentless misery.
[00:08:18] His body was wracked by chronic illness, painful boils, liver trouble, migraines, digestive disorders, exhaustion, insomnia, so severe it crippled his ability to work.
[00:08:30] His personal life was marked by poverty, instability, bitterness, repeated family tragedy, the deaths of his children.
[00:08:36] Friends and critics alike describe him as combative, suspicious, domineering, cynical, explosively hostile. His writings drip with resentment, contempt, rage against his rivals. Historians debate what kind of diagnosis might fit him best in today's psychological programs, but what cannot be denied is that he lived under
[00:08:58] crushing emotional strain, chronic physical suffering, and deep psychological darkness for his entire adult life. And his name was Karl Marx. Karl Marx was an atheist who introduced the idea of shared economy, socialism or communism. His ideas, by the way, led to communist revolutions
[00:09:21] in many countries. Thank God, not this country yet that claimed the lives of hundreds of millions of people. And today, higher institutions of our culture are claiming this man knew what he was talking about. I think history begs to differ. Another guy. For decades, this guy battled
[00:09:39] constant physical and emotional torment. Though remembered publicly as an intellectual giant, privately, his own writings to friends, his own writings to friends, reveal that he was a twisted individual, a sadist who took great pleasure in killing. He suffered from depression, agoraphobia,
[00:10:02] insomnia, vision alterations, hallucinations, vertigo, heart issues, fainting spells, trembling, nausea, vomiting, spasms, tremors, cramps, colic, bloating, headaches, nervous exhaustion, skin blisters, tinnitus, and sensations of impending death. He became incapacitated at the age of 28, and he lived as an invalid recluse for the remaining 43 years of his life. And his name
[00:10:26] was Charles Darwin, who fabricated, and I mean fabricated, the idea of the evolution of the species. Friends, when you do not have the Lord Jesus in your life, your mind is going to completely deteriorate and cost you your sanity. Paul the Apostle, on the other hand, as we just cataloged
[00:10:48] in 2 Corinthians, had been through the ringer, had been attacked by friends and family, had experienced troubles inside himself and outside himself and yet still leaves a testimony of faithful endurance and keeping his head straight no matter how wrong the world was
[00:11:11] you could say it like this he knew that greater is he the lord jesus that is in him than he that is in the world and if you believe that can i get a good amen at every location how do we keep our
[00:11:24] minds in a world gone wrong. Our minds are under attack constantly. Today's young people diagnosed with every kind of anxiety and psychological disorder. The DSM manual, what psychologists study to unpack the complications of the human brain, it's always getting revised and edited
[00:11:48] and changed. Do you know why? Because you can't understand the human brain if you don't know the engineer behind the human brain. God made us. And until we know him, I dare say we don't
[00:12:03] know ourselves. So how does Paul unpack keeping your mind in a world gone wrong? Number one, write this down. Keep your mind on the spirit's ministry. That's what he says here. Just if you've got your notes out and if you've got your Bibles out, would you do me a favor? And I mark up this
[00:12:21] screen so that you learn how to mark up your bible amen somebody write up your bible here's what he says having we don't we don't lose heart why because we have what this ministry underline
[00:12:36] this and underline ministry because he's talking about something i've got a minish a service in the in the greek a service to mankind that is distinct and different from any other kind of service to
[00:12:49] mankind and to understand what this ministry is i've called it the spirit's ministry because all you got to do is whenever you get by the way here's a here's a bible study hint whenever you
[00:13:00] see a therefore in the bible you have to ask yourself what it's there for yeah so therefore means turn back the page to to chapter three and in chapter three verse seven he talks about
[00:13:14] the ministry that he has. And he compares it to a ministry that was belonging to a guy named Moses.
[00:13:22] In verse 7 of chapter 3, he says, now if the ministry of what? Of death carved in letters of stone. What is he talking about? He's talking about the tablets of stone that Moses got delivered
[00:13:33] to him by the hand of God. The law, the Torah, the Old Testament, the Old Covenant. And Paul calls this the ministry of death. It came with glory that the Israelites could not gaze at Moses's
[00:13:45] faith. They saw the glory of God on the face of Moses and they shrinked back. And he says it was being brought to an end. We aren't old. We aren't old covenant people in Christ. We are new covenant
[00:13:59] people. Amen, somebody. And he says it will will not the ministry of the spirit. There it is. The ministry of the spirit have even more glory for if there is glory in the ministry of condemnation
[00:14:11] now he's called it the the law by the way he's talking about the law he says the law is a ministry of death and the law is a ministry of con these are important terms ministry of death ministry
[00:14:21] of condemnation the law he says the ministry of righteousness the ministry of spirit must far exceed it in glory and then he says in verse 12 since we have such a hope we are very bold we are
[00:14:31] not like moses who would put a veil over his face so that the israelites would not gain it the outcome of what was being brought to an end.
[00:14:36] Their minds were hardened.
[00:14:37] What is he saying?
[00:14:38] He's saying, listen, we have the testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
[00:14:43] We've got the power of the Holy Spirit that dwells in the human heart.
[00:14:47] And we've got a word that transforms people from the inside out.
[00:14:52] What the law does, and this might be a little bit complicated, but let me just bear in here.
[00:14:57] What the law does is the law brings death.
[00:14:59] What the law does is the law brings condemnation.
[00:15:02] And I want to say something. Some of you are here today, and you don't even realize it. You're living under the law of death. You're living under the law or the ministry of condemnation.
[00:15:16] All the law can do is tell you what you're doing wrong. That's all the law can do. It points out your flaws and your failures. This is why some people avoid going to church like the plague,
[00:15:30] because they are under the impression that God is just up in heaven as a cosmic killjoy waiting to strike you dead as soon as you do something wrong.
[00:15:40] You know you don't add up.
[00:15:41] You know you don't measure up.
[00:15:42] You know you can't do enough to be saved.
[00:15:44] You're just a bad person and you know it.
[00:15:48] And so you live under this condemnation, this guilt.
[00:15:51] And Paul calls that the Old Testament, the testament that Moses gave to the Israelites.
[00:15:57] And by the way, he gave it and they couldn't gaze at it. He had to wear a veil over his face because it was passing away.
[00:16:05] And what you have to understand is the relationship between the old covenant and the new covenant.
[00:16:10] The old covenant brings death. The old covenant brings condemnation. The old covenant brings guilt and fear of God. But the new covenant brings the love of God, the mercy of God, the forgiveness of God, the grace of God. The old covenant kills. The new covenant resurrects so that you live
[00:16:31] not according to the law, but through the Holy Spirit that dwells in your body. Let me put it real simply in your notes so that you can remember this. Write this down. The law informs us. The
[00:16:44] Spirit transforms us. The law informs us. When I'm driving down the highway, I see a sign that regularly reminds me that I am breaking the law. It's called the speed limit sign.
[00:17:05] And all that does is just inform me you're a law break. If I get pulled over by a cop, I never argue because I know he's got a valid reason to pull me over. And I remember one time
[00:17:23] I was driving with my wife who also loves to tell me that I'm going too fast.
[00:17:30] I call it the ministry of condemnation.
[00:17:34] Come on, somebody.
[00:17:36] And one time a cop pulled me over and I put down my window and the cop comes up.
[00:17:43] He doesn't even get a word out.
[00:17:44] My wife says, yes, he's going too fast.
[00:17:47] I tell him this all the time.
[00:17:49] I'm like, you're on my side.
[00:17:54] That's the law.
[00:17:55] The law is constantly, are you following this?
[00:17:59] Are you tracking this?
[00:18:00] the law shows us what's wrong with us in Romans chapter 7 Paul says that when the law came to my ears when I learned what God's law said here's what he said sin sprung to life and I died
[00:18:15] it's this way for every human being every human being has a problem with the law and all you got to do is have a young child to understand it because the moment you tell a child not to do
[00:18:30] something, they do it. Don't pick up that dirty wrapper on the ground. Why not pick that up?
[00:18:38] This is what Adam and Eve suffer with. This is what we all suffer with. And this is what we're going to suffer with outside of the ministry of what? Of the spirit. So Martin Luther said it
[00:18:51] like this. The law kills us so that the gospel can raise us. If you feel overwhelmed by the guilt of your sin and shame before God, I got good news for you. You're exactly where you need to be
[00:19:08] to receive the mercy and grace of Jesus through the gospel. Because until you know you need a savior, you won't look for one. Amen. Until you know you got an issue with health, you won't look
[00:19:22] for a doctor. But the law brings the diagnosis. The law tells you, you're dying. Now, here's what Jesus said. And you've got to understand this about your thoughts. And we're building a foundation for taking thoughts captive in these first two weeks. Your thoughts are downstream
[00:19:39] from your heart. Your thoughts, your mind. I know that your mind is technically physically higher than your heart. But can I tell you that your heart floods your mind with all kinds of thinking?
[00:19:53] Here's what Jesus said in Matthew chapter 15, verse 19. Here's what he says. He says, for out of the heart come what? Out of the heart comes what? Now think about what Jesus is saying.
[00:20:06] Out of your heart come thoughts of evil. Some parents are in our churches and you are playing this game with your kids that you think is going to work. You think as long as I keep my kid from
[00:20:17] every bad influence, as long as I keep all the bad friends away from him, as long as I keep all the R-rated movies out of our house, as long as I make sure he never sees anything evil in his life,
[00:20:28] he will be a nice, good Christian boy. Friends, some of the worst people I've ever met were raised by parents like that. Because the problem is not outside your child. The problem is inside them.
[00:20:43] Are you hearing this? I'm preaching and you're really quiet, which means I'm really preaching.
[00:20:49] Your problem is not the person outside of you.
[00:20:53] Jesus diagnoses and says the problem is inside of you.
[00:20:57] Your heart floods your mind.
[00:21:00] Here's what I'm saying.
[00:21:01] You're going to think according to what your heart receives.
[00:21:04] This is why the Bible says in Proverbs 4.23, Keep your heart with all diligence, for from it flows the springs of life.
[00:21:12] And here's what you have to understand about guarding your thoughts.
[00:21:15] you can't guard your thoughts if your heart isn't changed. Your heart needs the gospel.
[00:21:24] Your heart needs the Holy Spirit. Your heart needs the work of a miracle-producing Savior to come in and do what the therapist can't do, the counselor can't do, the psychologist can't do, the psychoanalysis can't do, what Charles Darwin and Karl Marx can't do, what a better economy
[00:21:43] he can't do. Only Jesus Christ can change the human heart. And he brings the Holy Spirit into your heart. When you come to Christ, you receive the Holy Spirit. Now, I also believe that you can
[00:21:59] be filled with the Holy Spirit and he will give you spiritual gifts and spiritual wisdom and words of knowledge. And he'll give you supernatural gifts that are yours in Christ Jesus. But you've got to receive Jesus. And then the receiving of Jesus brings the Holy Spirit to dwell in your
[00:22:16] body, and he changes you. And so here's a simple prayer. You might want to write this down. There's no place to fill it in your notes. But a simple prayer. When you've got thoughts that are wrecking
[00:22:25] your mind, and you're a Christian, here's what you say. It's a simple four-word prayer. Are you ready? Help me, Holy Spirit. Help me, Holy Spirit. Because I believe there is a ministry, a service of the spirit that paul is talking about here in chapter four is this ministry
[00:22:50] it doesn't bring now not now listen to me here's how you know it's the ministry of the holy spirit if it brings condemnation it's not the ministry of the holy spirit if it brings guilt and fear
[00:23:01] before god it's not the ministry of the holy spirit if you are walking in constant fear guilt and condemnation, it might be because you have yet to surrender your life to the Lord Jesus Christ.
[00:23:16] Are you hearing this? If you walk, however, in gratitude for God's goodness, if you've got a love in your heart for the Lord Jesus, if you're at peace down deep inside, it doesn't mean that
[00:23:31] the enemy is not going to try to attack your peace and momentarily steal your peace. But if you've got an internal peace that's deeper than your circumstances, can I tell you, rejoice and be glad. It means the Holy Spirit of God is at work in your life. And when the enemy comes and
[00:23:46] tries to steal it, my Bible tells me he comes in like a flood, but the Spirit of the Lord raises up a standard against him. In other words, the Spirit of God builds a dam against the onslaught
[00:23:56] of flooding thoughts from the enemy so that we have authority in the name of Jesus to take our thoughts captive. We don't have to believe every thought. We don't have to think every thought that the enemy puts in our minds we've got the ministry of the holy spirit number two write this
[00:24:12] down keep your mind on god's pure truth keep your mind on god's pure truth let's take a look at this chapter here again chapter verse two he says we have renounced disgraceful and underhanded ways
[00:24:29] we refuse to practice cunning in other words we refuse to walk deceptively or to tamper circle that word, tamper with God's word. You know something? There's something more dangerous than unbelief. There's something more dangerous than not thinking about God. Do you know what it
[00:24:47] is? It's thinking wrong thoughts about God. There's something more dangerous than unbelief. Do you know what it is? It's false belief. Jesus warned more than anything else against false teachers and false believers. He said there will be many false teachers. He said there will be many false
[00:25:07] brothers. There'll be many people who will come and they will deceive. They will twist. They will distort God's word in your ears. And you've got to have your radar up because wrong thoughts about God are more dangerous than no thoughts about God. And some of you don't even realize this,
[00:25:24] but you've got to get your thoughts right about the right God. Wrong thoughts about the right God are more dangerous than no thoughts about God. What thoughts in your mind are not right?
[00:25:37] Well, here's what Paul says.
[00:25:39] He says, we know how important it is not to tamper with God's word.
[00:25:44] We know how important it is not to twist and use it.
[00:25:47] Write this down in your notes.
[00:25:49] The enemy wants to twist, distort, and water down God's word.
[00:25:53] The enemy wants to twist it.
[00:25:55] He wants to distort it.
[00:25:55] He wants to water it down.
[00:25:56] Now, this word tamper in the Greek, dolo, it means it was actually used in distilling wine.
[00:26:02] And it means that you added water, extra water to wine.
[00:26:05] When you wanted to water down wine, you would tamper with it.
[00:26:08] That's the word Paul uses here in the original Greek language.
[00:26:11] In other words, there are people, and listen, there are pastors, and many of them are on television who want to water down God's word.
[00:26:21] In other words, they keep some of what God says out of the ears of God's people.
[00:26:26] Why? Well, because it might hurt them.
[00:26:28] It might confront them.
[00:26:29] It might conflict with their sensibilities.
[00:26:32] It might make some people unhappy.
[00:26:35] If you know anything about me, and some of you, this is what you love about me, if it's in god's word i will tell you what it says i will tell you what this word says regardless of
[00:26:46] whether or not you like it in fact sometimes you got to not like it to come to grips with the fact that there's a reason why you don't like it and you need god to change you need you to change
[00:26:54] not god god doesn't need to change i need to change amen somebody so he says i'm not going to water it down i'm going to tell you what it says now if there's something that you understand
[00:27:04] need to understand is that the enemy has been in the business of tampering with God's word since the beginning. In Genesis chapter two, the world was perfect. Everything was fine.
[00:27:15] And the Lord commanded the man saying, you may surely eat of what? Every tree of the garden.
[00:27:22] Fast forward to Genesis chapter three, the serpent shows up and his first words are to the woman, did God actually say you shall not eat of what? Any tree. Isn't that just like the devil?
[00:27:36] That's exactly his MO from day one.
[00:27:39] From the first pages of scripture, we get a picture of the devil's work.
[00:27:43] He doesn't keep us from God's word.
[00:27:45] He twists God's word.
[00:27:48] He manipulates God's word.
[00:27:50] He waters down God's word.
[00:27:53] And then he confuses the woman.
[00:27:55] God said, you can eat of any tree in the garden.
[00:27:59] Every tree is yours.
[00:28:00] Just one tree you can't eat.
[00:28:03] And here comes the devil and says, you see that?
[00:28:05] God's trying to keep things from you. I wonder who here, that's what you believe about God. He's trying to suck the life out of you. He's trying to make you miserable. The fact is, is that God is,
[00:28:15] some of you say, the more miserable I am, the happier God is. Nothing could be further from the truth. He's a loving heavenly father who wants it to go well with you. He's a loving heavenly
[00:28:26] father who wants to prosper and bless you. He wants to keep you from evil that will destroy you.
[00:28:32] and so if he confronts you it's for a good reason amen somebody what you got to do is have your spiritual radar up to say am i hearing the truth about god's word there's a passage in first john
[00:28:44] and i love this first john chapter 4 verse 1 here's what the bible says do not believe every spirit but test the spirits to see whether or not they are from god why why is that because many
[00:28:57] false prophets have gone out into the world. There are false prophets in the world in John's time.
[00:29:03] Friends, there are false prophets in the world in our time. Just because a church is massive doesn't make it truthful. Just because a pastor is popular doesn't make him biblical. Amen, somebody.
[00:29:15] There's a pastor by the name of Jim Jones. Some of you remember that name. He was a phenomenally gifted preacher and speaker. He shared the stage with Billy Graham one time. He was a pastor in San
[00:29:25] Francisco, California. And one day he took those people in his church, moved them to the jungles of Guyana, had them drink cyanide laced Kool-Aid and had them all commit mass suicide. It was the Jim Jones, the Jonesville massacre. But he came across as a biblical preacher. You got to have
[00:29:41] your spirits testing whether that spirit is from God. You say, well, how do I do that, pastor? Now you got me nervous. Are you going to move us to the jungle somewhere? No, I'm not. Here's how you
[00:29:54] do it. Acts chapter 17, Paul goes to a city called Berea. He preaches the gospel after having been chased out of the city of Thessalonica. And here's what it says about the Bereans. The Bereans
[00:30:05] were more noble than the Jews in Thessalonica, for they received the word with all eagerness.
[00:30:11] And check this word out. What does it say? Examining what? The scriptures to see if these things were so. You got to have a Berean inside of you. You got to say, okay, pastor said this,
[00:30:22] but is it biblical pastor said it but but is it truthful and and this is so important in a day where you can log on to youtube tiktok instagram and hear almost any preacher anywhere and look
[00:30:36] like they're a self-made prophet of the age but you got to test the spirit and not deviate from the word of god number three write this down keep your mind free from worldly opinions there are
[00:30:51] opinions that have captivated some of your hearts, and they're from the world. And let me show you why it's important that you avoid worldly opinions. Here's how Paul talks about this in verse 3. He
[00:31:03] says, even if our gospel is veiled. Okay, so one of the attacks against Paul the apostle in Corinth was that not everybody listened to him. Not everybody received his message. So if there's people who don't receive it, it must mean that he's not speaking the truth. Therefore, we can
[00:31:21] ignore Paul the apostle. No, no, no. He takes this on head on. He says, even if our gospel is veiled, in other words, it's just not getting through to some people. He says it is veiled to
[00:31:30] those who are what? Perishing. In their case, the God of this world, this is John chapter 12 language. The God of this world is Satan. Satan has blinded the minds of the unbelievers to keep
[00:31:47] from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. You have to understand something about unbelievers. Write this down. The unbeliever is blinded. If you take your
[00:31:58] opinions from unbelievers, watch out. They're going to mislead you in the things that God has called you to do. You have to understand this. This is how the Bible scriptures diagnose unbelievers in your life. Unbelievers should not be the people you draw wisdom from. Amen. God's wisdom,
[00:32:21] God's word. Who cares what the world thinks? Well, we used to sing a song in the church.
[00:32:27] I have decided to follow Jesus. The world behind me, the cross before me. How many remember that old song? What a good song. I don't worry about, oh, they don't, my unsaved family doesn't understand
[00:32:41] why I'm at church every week? It's because they're blind. My unsaved friends think that how I handle money is crazy. It's because they're blind. They don't know the truth.
[00:32:54] Hey, if you follow the blind, you're a fool. You're a fool. Jesus said a blind man following a blind man, both will fall into a pit. Let me give you some more diagnosis from scripture about
[00:33:05] the mind of the unbeliever from Ephesians chapter four, verse 18. It says they are darkened in their understanding. It says they are alienated from the life of God. This is Ephesians 4.18. He says there is ignorance that is in them due to the hardness of heart. They've become callous. They've
[00:33:22] given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. But that is not you. You're not blind. If you're in Christ, your eyes are open. Now hear me, friends. You've got to get a hold of this. If you're going to come to Water Church for any amount of time, you've got to
[00:33:39] get used to this because I hear it and I see the Google reviews about our church. You've got to get used to the fact that some people are going to, while I'm preaching, get up and walk out in a
[00:33:54] statement of protest or whatever, because I mentioned something that they weren't cool with.
[00:33:59] Just a couple of weeks ago at one of our locations, I heard that this lady just decided I'm not coming to church anymore. And her reason was I heard what pastor said about homosexuality. Now it wasn't what
[00:34:11] I said about homosexuality is what God's word says about homosexuality. Friends, listen to me.
[00:34:18] My opinion about homosexuality is irrelevant. It's his opinion that matters. Are you hearing me?
[00:34:27] I know it's Memorial Day, but give me a good amen if you hear me. It's his opinion. Okay, so I said it, and then she walked out, and then somebody went after her, chased her down. Why are
[00:34:35] you leaving? She says, I don't want to go to a church like that. And here's her next statement.
[00:34:39] Are you ready for it? I'd rather go to hell. That's the heart of the unbeliever. Now, what kind of fool would I be as a pastor to try to cater to somebody like that? Are you hearing what
[00:34:55] I'm saying? What kind of fool are you if you cover up your faith in Christ to appease the opinions of people who are on their way to hell? And there are churches across the country that desperately
[00:35:12] want, desperately want people in the pews so badly that they'll keep some of God's word quiet because it's offensive to modern day Americans. I am not going to stand on the day of judgment before modern day Americans, friends. I'm going to stand on the day of judgment before an almighty,
[00:35:31] righteous, holy God. And I want to be able to say, Father, I told them what you said, and I didn't worry about what they said. Here's something you got to understand and write this down, true Christianity is not popular. And popular Christianity is not true. If everybody
[00:35:51] likes it, something is wrong with it. One of my passages that I hold near and dear to my heart comes from Luke 16, Luke 6, verse, where is it? Verse 12. Oh, I hate when I take this on
[00:36:06] in this moment. Oh man, I'm not going to find it. Where is it? Luke 6, verse 26. Yes, found it. Okay, here we go luke 6 26 check this out ready woe to you when all people speak well of you and that
[00:36:23] in our instagram follow me like me thumbs up me generation jesus like whoa whoa to you hey kids when you're doing it for the likes when you're doing it for the follows because they did the same thing to the false prophets. True Christianity is not popular and popular
[00:36:48] Christianity is not true. And Paul's concern for the Corinthians, check this out, 2 Corinthians 2 11. He says, I want to make sure that Satan will not outsmart us because we are familiar with his
[00:36:59] evil schemes. I want to make sure that Satan doesn't outsmart you, Waters Church, because he's out there trying to do so right now. There are words from Christ you need to hear, receive, even if you don't want to hear them or receive them. And one of the things you got to keep your radar
[00:37:17] up about is the algorithm in this generation. The algorithm. What do I mean by that? I mean that there is a select group of people, mostly men, in a place called Silicon Valley that have coordinated
[00:37:29] and coerced the computer language that has a direct line to your eyes through your phone that every time you swipe, every time you pull down and release, every time you refresh your feed. You're getting curated content based on what a computer thinks you need to hear.
[00:37:49] Put it down. Open God's word and let the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ shine in your heart. Can I get a good amen? Hey, number four, write this down. Keep your mind
[00:38:02] focused on Christ. So these points are actually steps. The Spirit's ministry, Holy Spirit, help me. Come on, somebody say, Holy Spirit, help me. Keep yourself in the pure word of God. Keep yourself from worldly opinions. You don't need to appease the people who don't believe. But if all
[00:38:21] else fails, listen to me, here is your fire escape switch on the wall of your mind. If all else fails, just focus on Jesus. Just think about him. See him on the cross, dying for your sins.
[00:38:41] see him in the boat, stilling the storm, see him reaching out and touching the leper and bringing healing through his hands. Many, many years ago, somebody died. That was precious to me, man. I'll tell you. I just went through a series in where I just could not get over it. They were
[00:38:59] died. They were gone. I had to say goodbye. You go through the grieving and I went through some sleepless nights. I couldn't sleep, couldn't sleep. And so all I did couldn't read my Bible.
[00:39:09] If I just, I opened my Bible, but it just nothing. I just, I couldn't do it. Anybody ever been there?
[00:39:13] even as a Christian, sometimes that happens. So I just started to say, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, just started saying his name over and over again, Jesus, Jesus. And the more I said it, the more peace came into my heart. And I fell asleep saying the name of Jesus. Here's what Paul
[00:39:33] says at the end of this text in first Corinthians and second Corinthians four. He says, for what we proclaim is not us but jesus christ and ourselves as servants for his sake for god who said let
[00:39:48] light shine out of darkness has shown in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of god in the face of jesus christ check this out remember i said to you you might want
[00:39:59] to write it down in your notes um the mind is downstream from the heart the mind is downstream from the heart get the heart right the mind will take care of itself notice what it says here in
[00:40:12] this text that God has spoken he gave us the light where in our hearts father I'm not just going to ask you to to say something into my ears I'm going to ask you to say something into my heart
[00:40:30] so that my heart receives it and my mind is renewed sermon in a sentence write this down i need the holy spirit to transform my heart defend my mind and keep my focus on christ
[00:40:43] that's what you need that's what i need the holy spirit listen to me is stronger than negative thoughts and attitudes the holy spirit is stronger than the opinions of this world and listen this is most important ready the holy spirit is stronger than even
[00:41:06] your own heart some of you say i just can't stop thinking these things no you can't but the holy spirit can the holy spirit can shut down that voice shut down that belief system and give life
[00:41:23] to your innermost being i want you to bow your heads and close your eyes at every location because i want to give you an opportunity to receive jesus right where you are to say yes to him in this moment.
[00:41:43] You need Jesus to receive the Holy Spirit.
[00:41:46] And how I do this is I lead you in a prayer, a prayer to say yes to him, to surrender your life to the Lord.
[00:41:54] So if that's you, would you, right where you are, with your mouth and quietly from your heart, say these words after me.
[00:42:02] Say, Heavenly Father, I receive Jesus for the forgiveness of my sins.
[00:42:10] Cleanse me, make me your child.
[00:42:13] today I surrender my life to you and I declare Jesus is Lord in Jesus name