Wednesday Night Bible Study
by Billy McCool
First Apostolic Church of Knoxville (Knoxville, TN)
Kind: Bible study
Scripture: Matthew 4:17-25, Isaiah 40:1-6, Matthew 5:1-12, Psalm 30:4-5, Matthew 11:29, Psalm 149:4, Numbers 12:3, 1 Peter 3:4, Isaiah 55:1, Psalm 51:10, Acts 9:26-28, Galatians 5:19-25

Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/billy-mccool--wednesday-night-bible-study-75
Published by Acts 2:38 Life from the sermon transcript on that page.
Free to copy and share with attribution.

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we greet you tonight in the wonderful name of the Lord Jesus Christ I need a little bit more monitors up this way praise the Lord thank you hey that that's that is better thank you we got such great technicians around here you can just almost think of what you want they'll they'll get it done I appreciate it so very much well are you ready to get into the word of the Lord tonight you ready to get into the study of God's book we have a great lesson tonight uh and I'm I'm excited about it and tonight and the the the days to come we're going to be studying about one of the most um famous or popular subjects in in the Bible and that is the Beatitudes and it's a also better known as The Sermon on the Mount um Robert Schuler of the late Robert shooter who pastored the the glass cathedral way out in in California he had a a little book that he called it the be happy attitudes be happy because uh actually the the Beatitudes the word bliss means happy so uh if it sounds a little bit repetitious I always tell the story Bishop Payne told me many years ago and these I've told us so many times you either remembered are you forgot it but these two little boys was in the same class and they were they were brothers and the teacher wanted them to write an essay to get them experience in writing and thinking and putting things together and wanting to write an essay on my dog because that's the title of it my dog and so the the older boy wrote the article and the teacher gave him an a it was an excellent article about his dog and then when his younger brother turned in his paper it was word for word as his older brother and the teacher called him up and says I got to talk to you he said you you turned in this paper about my dog now your brother turned in that same paper word for word he said yes ma'am it's the same dog so what I'm preaching tonight and teaching is the same thing it's it's the same message we've always the book hasn't changed different preachers have different ways of of presenting it uh my wife I tell her that she don't know how to fix a regular meal she'll uh she'll fix a midnight snack and make it look like a Thanksgiving dinner or something and she'll do something that she'll have the plate fixed a little this way or that way and she'll make it it tastes good anyway but she'll make it even taste better by the way she she said one thing she hasn't been able to do she hasn't been able to fix fish to make me like it yet um she and she's so sensitive about pleasing me uh one day I was going for a little and came back and she had put a grill out on the back porch and runs uh electric cord out the window and fixed her some fish on the back porch so it wouldn't smell up the house now I said now honey you're going too far with this business and don't smell fish don't hurt me that bad I might not be one of my favorite dishes but you don't have to go out on the back porch and fix the fish but having said that let's get into our lesson this is a brand new series this is the first lesson in this summer series and it is entitled Kingdom living Kingdom living now are are we are we kingdom-minded are we determined to build the kingdom of God and be pleasing to the Lord in his in his great Kingdom and um uh if you have one of our books if you didn't get what you need to get a Sunday school book and follow along with us brother Crabtree I noticed the other day when I was back there he has one of the books and you can follow along however I always go back behind the scene and I think of other things that won't it won't be in your book and uh I'm calling it tonight background that's first of all let's pray father we thank you for this great opportunity of speaking to your wonderful people the great family of God I pray Lord that you'll anoint the lips of clay with the spirit of God give what you would have spoken in this service tonight in Jesus name we pray amen background Matthew chapter 4 verse 17 the lesson the Beatitudes are in chapter 5. and I'll say this now Luke also writes the Beatitudes but he writes it a little bit different than Matthew did Matthew wrote it that Jesus said blessed are the poor in spirit and Luke just simply said Jesus said blessed are the pure and I know blessed are the poor I'm I should have said uh but you see Jesus was like the a lot of us as preachers to this point uh he he preached the same thing to different congregations but he didn't use word for word and it might sound like a little bit different it's the same message but it it may not be spoken identical and and verbatim to what he said to the last congregation but it means the same and we need to understand that's when preachers come to this Pulpit Pastor or either one of our pastors and and remember that they may they may preach a same topic that you heard them preach before but it won't be the same message God's given them something else and it'll be it'll be a little different now this is the background of the the chapter just before of what we're going to be studying and Matthew 4 17 I'm going to read rather briskly because I don't want to take up all the time in background from that time Jesus began to preach from that time what time and to say repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand and Jesus walking by the Sea of Galilee saw two Brethren Simon called Peter and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea for they were Fishers and he said unto them follow me and I will make you Fishers of Men brother Raymond Bishop Bishop Raymond Bishop preached the message one time I heard he said that Jesus said follow me and I'll make you officially he said if you're not fishing you're not following Jesus said follow me and I'll make you Fishers of Men and I thought that was a great statement to make if you're not fishing you're not following Jesus said follow me and I will make you Fishers of Men so if our our little slogan around here is our goal is souls and that means that our number one and an object in every service and every activity is to reach a lost soul and they straightway lift their Nets and followed him and going on from fence he saw other two Brethren James the son of Zebedee and John his brother and a ship with Zebedee their father mending their Nets and he called them them and they immediately left the ship and their father and followed him now this was the very beginning of Jesus Earthly Ministry he was putting together his staff and and he just goes by and he sees Jupiter said follow me and I'll make you fixes Him Father me and men that other than being a God that knows everything he called these unskilled unlearned in fact there at one time were called ignorant and unlearned by the Civil Authorities but said they they took note of these men though they were ignorant and unlearned that they had been with Jesus but I want to tell you something you can have all the degrees in the world but if you haven't been with Jesus then you're not really educated and I I was a pastor at McCool or Bobby McCool said you can go to college and you can go to school but if you ain't called to the Lord you just an educated fool that may be a little bit straightforward but God calls you and if you will study God will will let you be taught he'll put you under a good preacher or teacher and you'll learn so Jesus would just calling a minute ago and and just blow it but oh I mean they just dropped their nest Daddy I'll see you later I'm gone and and they started following Jesus and Jesus went about all Galilee teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel of the kingdom and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people and his Fame went throughout all Syria and they brought unto them all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments and those which were possessed with devils and those which were lunatic and those that had the palsy and heal them and there followed him great multitudes of people From Galilee and from decapolis and from Jerusalem and from Judea and from Beyond Jordan now this is the way he started his his ministry and you can understand with the Miracles that were performed the crowd just got larger and larger and and larger and they started following him because there were many many sick folks and uh I Want To Praise what I'm about to say as careful as I can God still heals and there used to be a term Divine healers well there's not been one Divine healer and that's Jesus that's the only Divine healer but some use that title and they went and went about and prayed for the sake and a lot of the revivals and I'm not scoffing at anybody God does heal and I think the reason some people don't get healed is is they're not taught to have faith but Jesus himself now Mark this down Jesus himself said you will surely say physician heal thyself and then Jesus said a prophet is not without honor of saving his own country and one scripture said a certain place he could do no many mighty Works due to their unbelief now excuse me Jesus reminded them that in the days now Naaman was a Syrian leader captain in the uh the king's Army and he was a leper and he was healed of his leprosy by dipping seven times in the river of Jordan and there was a widow in those days who was a a gentile and the Lord multiplied the oil and she was able to pay her debts because the prophet that came by and prayed and God gave a miracle but Jesus reminded them them he said in those days they were many lepers but only one got healed there were many widows the Widow of name there were many widows that needed help but there was only one that got to experience that great miracle so Jesus himself pointed out the fact and I'm not for one minute trying to preach doubt but I'm going to tell you something if if if you don't get your healing or you don't get your prayer answered don't give up keep praying and put in the hands of the Lord the Bible said delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart I thought about that one time I said man if I'll just Delight myself to the Lord he said he'd give me the desires of my heart man I'd like to have an airplane I I would like to have a boat I'd like to have them and and the Lord said you haven't delighted yourself yet but when I got delighted in the Lord I didn't that wasn't the things I want he changed my Delights he changed my wants to something else now when we Delight ourselves in the Lord we start seeking for the things of his kingdom and and and I get everything I want when it comes delighting myself in the Lord all right so be it we're still we're still back growling and I'm taking a lot of time on that all right now I've got it in my notes it's not in your book let's look at the strong implications of the following scripture because it's leading up to the Beatitudes what I just read is leading up to the Beatitudes and what I'm about to read now also leads up to the Beatitudes Isaiah 40 1-6 Comfort ye Comfort ye my people saith your God speaking comfortably to Jerusalem and cry unto her that her welfare is accomplished that her iniquity is pardoned for she hath received of the Lord's hand double for all our sins now this is rather unusual he sells Jerusalem all and God said I'm going to give you double for what you've done in your sinful life well look God said come let us reason together saith the Lord though your sins be discarded they should be white as wool though they'll be read like Crimson they should be white as snow and then he said the Lord wants us to come and reason with him and when will if God's willing to reason with us we ought to at least be willing to meet him halfway and reason with him just just take take a little thought of what I what I just said now here he said speak you comfortably to Jerusalem and God told me to feed the sheep not beat the sheep and I've heard preachers talk about I skint their hide you know I skint their hives and and but you can share a sheep and you can get wool I think about once a year they shared the Sheep but once you skin that sheep you ain't gonna get no more wool you're not going to get no more mutton either that's one time and that's all so God told us to to feed the sheep and it so blesses me when I hear sermons I I get to sit out there and every one of these preachers give they feed my soul brother uh Whitley when he gets up I where is he going now I said and when it gets done my soul is so blessed uh I'm reading one of his books right now and the reading it blesses me into what when when Pastor Mark what he preach Sunday night so bless my soul and and Anthony uh Sunday morning he just just that's the thrilled my soul and he fed my soul and this is what preaching should do for us now there there Comes A Time Paul told Timothy said reprove rebuke exhort with all long suffering and Doctrine now it's not the pleasant past for the preacher to rebuke uh as Paul said reprove rebuke and exhort with all long-suffering I got to remember this uh if I do any reproving and rebuking I need to do it with long suffering I don't you've heard me tell this I was a preacher friend of mine many years ago he was a good preacher and he said more jokingly than it was serious he said you get me half mad and half annoying and I can really preach well he he said that more of a joke but if we aren't careful we'll sometimes preach from from uh uh what we see instead of real inspiration from from the Lord and that's why I don't like a counseling session before church before preaching I don't I don't I don't want anything and when I was evangelizing I never wanted the preacher to tell me what what's wrong with this church and this needs to be preached to that because uh I'm I'm influenced by him I want God to and yet if if the preacher preaches under the anointing of the Holy Ghost it'll sound like somebody told him and time and time again more times than could possibly be coincidental uh I'll have a sermon in the making I'll have my notes already made I'll have my notes part of it typed out and brother Mark again honey he's preaching my sermon right now that's what I plan to teach Winston and listen that's look I said look at this scripture it's the same scripture and he didn't know a thing about what I was going to say or do and you know what that says to me the Bible said the mouth of two or three Witnesses let every word be established and when when Pastor Whitley and Pastor uh Mark McCool when they preached the same it's because it is because they have collaborated other than they've talked to God and God has told them what we need I say well oh well praise God same dog same dog same I'm not calling anybody dogs want to say that I'm just using that as an illustration all right Comfort ye my people said to God speaking comfortably to Jerusalem Cried unto her that her welfare is accomplished that her iniquities pardoned for he hath for she hath received of the Lord's hand double for all our sins how many of us have not received double for armeness for our our routiness for Our Gospel Port uh there's a well he says you were just seven years old that don't matter I had Adam's nature in me when I was seven years old and God gave me twice as much good as that could ever been in me any other time and what God has said is no matter what you've done and this the devil uses this on a lot of folks you've done this and you've done that and God's not going to forgive you and no God's not going to forgive you he's going to give you twice as much good as the bad that you've does that do anything to you do you see what I'm saying speak you comfortably cry to her her welfare is accomplished that her iniquity is pardoned for she hath received of the Lord's hand double for all for all her sins no matter how bad you are you're not too bad for the blood you're not too bad you're not too bad for Jesus glory to God I want you to know whatever you have done and I've had folks feel like you know they've got to enumerate they've got to categorize they've got to put it in a imaginary encyclopedia I did this and this and this forget it don't need to know all the things are done rather not even know it you don't have to tell me this this is the word is s i n you don't have to add anything to it that says it all that says it all your sin be forgiven you it don't matter what you've done he's got more blood than you've got meanness he's got more love than you've got meaning to say he's got more mercy and forgiveness all you've got to do is come and lay it at the feet of Jesus at the foot of the cross hmm Hallelujah the voice of him the craft and the wills prepare ye the way of the Lord and make straight in the desert a highway for our God every Valley shall be exalted and every mountain and Hill shall be made low and the Crooked shall be made straight and the rough places plain basically the above scripture it says what God is going to do he's going to level the playing field the mountain is going to bring down and the valley he's going to bring up the Crooked Road he's going to make it straight now basically this is exactly what the Beatitudes do it compares the bad and he's going to turn it into good are you following me now I'll show you what I mean now the voice of course this is talking about John the Baptist here the voice of him the Christ and the Wilderness prepare you the way of the Lord make straight in the desert the highway of our God every Valley shall be exalt every Valley shall be exalted Every Mountain and every Hill shall be made low and the Crooked shall be made straight and the rough place is plain verse 5 and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and All Flesh shall see it together for the mouth of the Lord has spoken it now we've just now got to tonight's lesson what do you know Matthew 5 and 1. and seeing the multitudes and I will remember we just have been reading in verse in chapter four we've skipped down and haven't skipped but we've read ourselves right into the fifth chapter the first verse and seeing the multitude he went up into a mountain and when he was said his disciples came unto him now there was a reason there was such a large crowd he couldn't he couldn't speak to all of them because he would be right here in this such a huge crowd they couldn't hear him so he went up in the mountain and found him a good place where he could be elevated above the people and and and and he started speaking to him now we don't have to go to a mountain now but I say hey my monitors aren't turned me up the lights were got in lights God's given us a modern way of doing the things that he did the same thing he was elevating himself so his voice would project and he could see and he could reach more people by getting in an elevated position and that's why it's called The Sermon on the Mount the reason we've got these speakers the reason we've got all the it's so that we can do a better job now I do admit sometimes we might get a little too loud and we have set up I understand and we'll try not to we'll try not to blast anybody's ears out but we do want it loud enough that you can hear plainly what the word of God is saying to us so this is what Jesus did and he opened his mouth and taught them saying blessed are the poor in spirit now Luke put it just said blessed are the pure but now let's go let's look at this a little closer blessed are the poor in spirit now remember he's going to bring the mountains down and the valley is up he's going to take the Crooked Road and make it straight blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven now he's talking about a humble attitude not thinking more highly of oneself than you should those who are humble those who seem to be cast down those who are laboring under whatever difficulty or handicap it may be he's going to he's going to Elevate you now here's here's what here's what he said blessed are the poor in spirit Kingdom theirs is the kingdom of heaven you might feel lowly you might feel like small you might feel like it but let me tell you something the Lord takes note of that and says yours is the kingdom of heaven now how can you beat that to know that if you'll just stay humble before God he's going to make you part of the Kingdom of Heaven and then verse 4 blessed are they that mourn for they shall be comforted listen to this Psalms 30 Verses 4 and 5. sing unto the Lord O ye Saints of his and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness for his anger endureth but a moment in his favor is life weeping may endure for a night but joy cometh in the morning blessed are they that mourn for they shall be comforted there is not a person under the sound of my voice tonight that hasn't at some time another gone through something that brought you to tears and sometimes it's the loss of a loved one sometimes laughs Mark and jamian moved to grandkids a half a mile away broke our heart I'm telling you that they lived we pray we really went through some trials they live our driveways came out and they lived on the other side of the street and our driveways come out together and uh sister Jamie and brother Mark they were both in college getting their degrees at that time and and we had the privilege of keeping those children much of the time and early in the morning we'd open that here they'd come across that street and sometimes dragging the little blanket and Old Murphy the little dog would be he'd outrun them and and they'd see who could get to our door first and Anthony would be a holiday me thirst me thirst me thirsting because Ashley could always outrun him and but when they moved to uh away from that it it it broke our heart yes but we got over it pretty quick you know we were realized it don't take but five of ten minutes to get to the house but I'm just using a little illustration that little things sometimes can affect you but sometimes those folks has got big things in your life that are not to be made fun of but it's to be taken seriously remember this blessed are they that mourn for they shall be God the Bible even speaks about him did you know the Bible speaks of bottling up your tears did you know that spiritually speaking I'll put it your tears God is taking note of every tear you shed now then he said morning may uh are weeping may may last tonight but said joy cometh in the morning I got news for you there's going to be a better day tomorrow it's not always going to be like it is when you're going through the valley you may feel like it is or how long how long am I going to be going through this I don't know and I can't tell you but I'll tell you this there's an old fella sitting on the park bench and feeling Saddam beside him and they got to talking about the Bible and he said the old man said uh what is your favorite scripture he said my favorite scripture is and it came to pass I said what yes so what do you mean well he said whatever comes my way no matter how bad this it came to fact it is going to pass it's not going well he may have misused the scripture just a little bit but there's a lot of Truth what you're going through right now is not going to last forever God sees your tears God bottoms up your tears and he's concerned about his children and and you're you're weeping may last tonight but joy is coming in the morning there's going to be a morning there's going to be a new day oh Hallelujah I'm going to prophesy not under the spirit but but I'm going to prophesy that it ain't going to rain every day in Tennessee now that may sound a little bit odd now because it's rained every day for the last I don't know how long but it's it's not going to rain it's going to dry up one of these days and some of these days will be wishing it would rain but whatever you're going through whatever you're going through now psychologists they've studied this and almost everyone that commits suicide if they would wait 24 hours they wouldn't do it but at that very moment when they're in this Valley of despair and depression and and anxiety they think that's the only way out well hold on just hold on it's going to get better mourning is on the way morning is coming Friday may be here Jesus may be crucified but there's going to be an Easter Sunday he's going to come out of the grave and instead of us weeping over and being crucified let's Rejoice because we found an empty tomb he told us destroy this Temple and in three days I'll raise it up Joy is coming in the morning Give the Lord a hand clip whatever you're going through tonight it's going to pass by and by hold on to the Lord let's go to verse 5. blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the Earth you notice I noticed something uh blessed are the meek you notice uh the mighty Majestic eagle it's against the law to kill one right now in this in the state of Tennessee if you kill a bald eagle and known you'll pay a a high price for it but have you ever heard of anybody being arrested for killing a sparrow they're plentiful the Bible said the sparrow has found a nest we've blessed are the meat for they shall inherit their we have to pass laws to protect lions and tigers and elephants and and Panthers and all of this but you don't have to pass a law to protect rabbits they multiply rapidly and and I in my yard sometimes they'll be two or three just one I I don't know where they live against other bushes or something but but they're there and I'm giving an Earthly well now the same thing with three individuals blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth Matthew 11 29 Jesus said take my yoke upon you and learn of me for I am meek and lowly in heart and you shall find rest unto your souls there's a man traveling in the east and he passed by an apartment and there was a farmer out there plowing and he had an oxen on one side of the Oak and had his wife on the other side of the oak and he said that's the most ridiculous thing I have ever you talk about abuse that man is out there working his wife like a like a oxen I'm going to stop and ask him what he thinks he's doing stopped and he said so just with fun to here you are what are you doing this lady in your wife yes she's my wife said what are you doing that can hurt plow with that auction he said sir I'm a very poor man and I had a yoga box I had two of them and one of them died and I don't have the money to get another and one oxen can can pull this plow but if you leave the the yolk it'll drag and this oxygen can't pull unless somebody holds up the other side of that yoke and all my wife is doing is just holding up that yoke and The Oxen is doing the pulling I want you to know all that Jesus said my yoke is easier I'm just holding up one side he's doing the pulling he's got it all in his hands blessed are the meat that you'll hear I just I'm just holding up he said coming to me owe you that labor under Heaven Laden and I'll give you rest take my yoke upon him and learn of me for I am making low at heart and you shall find rest unto your souls all I'm doing is just holding up the Yoke he's doing the pulling sorry I heard years ago there was a young preacher and I don't want to pick all young preachers because I was one once and I told myself I've had my shins kicked by the best of them I've been told what to do what not to do and and I needed every bit of it uh but I said when I when I grow up when I get over I'm going to try to remember what it's like to be a young man and a young person but this young preacher hadn't been preaching too long and he had been asked to speak at a conference of one office one of the speakers and they was having different preachers one after another and when it came his turn he was at another audience and now we want brother Billy McClure to come to the pulpit he's going to bring the message and he took his Bible and with great dignity he he marched to that platform with shoulders Broad and he stepped up there with firm steps and and in a very in a very steady uh way of of a marching strutting somewhat and he read his text and he tried his very best and everything is said just fell on deaf ears and it just made a miserable flop of himself which reminded me of myself well the first sermon I preached was in braggadocia Missouri didn't know I was going to preach I was wearing overalls in a red flannel shirt my dad is necktie I got up to testify the Holy Ghost fell on me and I preached for over and out they said I preached for over an hour I didn't I think I preached for 15 minutes it seemed like an hour to them but that whatever but anyway I I got I preached things I didn't know anything they said I quoted scripture and I and I just told her about things that they were amazed and I was too well I couldn't wait to get a chance to preach again I let the word out that the little church I was going to a little uh Trinity Pentecostal Church in in pascicola Missouri and I saw truth that the word got out and and the the the preacher asked me to preach to come and Wednesday night man I went to the Old Red Barn and I prayed and I studied and I prayed and I said if I can preach like I did without saying what can I do with a little study so I prayed and I studied I got me a sermon and and I think it was John 3 16. and for God so loved the world and and I was going to set them on fire and I got I couldn't wait for the singing to get over they sung far too many songs you know they need to get to get this preliminary business over with and and back then the pulpit was here and there was a preacher's chair here and one over there the Evangelist was and they they faced and said well I was saying I really felt great because I was sitting up there with a preacher always sat and as I said they sent far too many songs and had tested on me and they took too long to testify and they took too long to take the offer I couldn't wait that here I am let me let me add them and so I got up and and I read my texts and and almost great spiritual truths and I saw in the red barn by Bella Haye they just vanished in the air and I read my scripture again and I stumbled around and I was I read the scripture again and and I was so out of place and and I and I was and I'll look back at my older sister Debbie that's sister uh Jessica's uh grandmother my my older sister she was sitting back there and she's looking up she's she was sad cut it off cut it off she was telling me to cut it off well I read her lips but the trouble is I hadn't been preaching long enough to know how to cut it off I didn't I didn't know how to bring into a clothes but I was like this preacher my little story and and the preacher when he got done preaching was shoulder slumped head bowed he came down off of the pulpit and made a terrible mess and when he got a chance to talk to his Pastor he said pastor he said I don't know what happened I thought I had a great message I was I was I thought I'd what what was wrong pastor and the Pastor said Son I'll tell you had you gone up the way you came down you could have come down the way you went up if you'd have gone up with head bowed and the humble attitude you could have come down feeding thankful and proud of what you did God taught him a great lesson about meekness Lord help us to know the value of meekness uh very few folks likes a bragette somebody that struck on themselves uh if somebody tells you how if you tell somebody how great you are you're going to be twice as great to be as great as you left them with the impression blessed are the meat blessed they shall inherit the earth the word meek is mentioned 17 times in the Bible and all 17 times it is accompanied with a blessing every time 17 times in the Bible the word the word meek is mentioned and each time it was mentioned in a manner in which a blessing goes to the meek Psalms 149 and 4 for the lord taketh pleasure in his people he will beautify the meek with salvation he will beautify the meek with salvation um I had a I'll tell you who it was that don't matter but it was in a conference and this preacher had a he had a Lincoln a Continental Mark for one of those with the spare tire on the back of it and there's one of the more expensive Lincolns of that day and he really loved to show it off it felt like he was very important and we were with him was going to going to to was leaving the hotel he had that Lincoln parked in a high-rise garage and um he went gave his ticket and and he was so haughty and harsh with that poor boy that was getting the cars and he was giving him orders to hurry up and again I I've got to be in such and such a place and and he was very rude to the to the young man that was going to get his car and I was rather embarrassed but the young man finally came down and brought his car and uh his brother got in the car and we drove him off and we got about a block from the hotel he said Look to Him and some backseat he said didn't anybody get my camera no he said my camera's gone what he said I left my camera back there at that garage and I delighted and that was wrong in me I was as wrong as he was he went back and he had to ask that young man sir did I leave again did you find the camera that I left for the sitting with my young man said yes you did I've got it in my office here a little little cubicle where that's at and he went in there and he got the man's camera and brought it back in and the Lord surely let that happen to teach him a lesson and listen if you can't be kind to waiters waitresses parking lot attendance people that are service to the rest of us you need to get closer to God and pray through get closer to God and pray through because you need to be kind huh the Shoney's out here on Emory Road I don't know if all shownes has to sign him but they went out there cool and I go out there but now and then and and there's a sign that says uh be kind to our employees that did show up for work they're having such a hard time getting said be kind to our employees that did show up for work and listen when you go and arrested you treat that waitress or waiter with respect their performance of valuable service to you without them you'd be in a bad shape the parking lot attended whoever whoever if you have somebody to mow your love be kind to them and treat them with respect because they deserve it and you deserve to be that kind of person now go ahead and give the Lord a hand clap for the lord taketh pleasure in his people colon not same colon don't stop reading this is an incomplete statement for the lord taketh pleasure in his people colon he will beautify the meek with salvation there are some people God has given somehow God has given them the gift of meekness I don't know exactly I can I can name some people in in in in this in this church and I don't want to risk the chance of them getting on Meek but I don't think there'd be any danger in that uh brother caught brother Paul Cook and our brother Crabtree they're they're to the meekest men and then and yet there's they're they're so powerful in personality to me but yet they are what I'd like to be they're they they exude the attitude of meekness God help us all to be that way numbers 12 and 3 now the man Moses was very meek above all the men which were upon the face of the Earth and now when his brother and sister rose up against them when he they didn't approve of his marriage they didn't like who he married and when they rose up against him God came on the scene and a cloud came down from heaven and God spoke out of the cloud and here's what God Said to Aaron and to to his sister and Adam said I'm going to paraphrase it who do you think you are coming against my servant Moses he said no if you've got a prophet in your midst now this is what he said if you've got a prophet he said I will speak to him through dreams and visions but said not so with Moses I am now listen to this he said your prophets I'll give them dreams and Visions but with Moses not so he said I'm going to speak mouth to mouth to him he's not going to have a dream he's not God I'm going to talk face to face him because he's a meekest man on the face of the Earth and I'm going to talk face to face with him you better watch out when you come up against the man of God Hallelujah well let me go on God said if there'll be a prophet among you I'll speak to him in dreams and Visions but not so with Moses for with Moses I will speak mouth to mouth first Peter 3 and 4 but let it be the hidden man of the heart and that which is not corruptable even the ornament of a Meek and quad spirit hmm forgive me for giving myself as an example of good things because the reason I do that is there are so many bad things I don't want to tell you all about them but system of cooling I just simply have a kind of a habit when we go to town we we we dress and we're never going to tell if the person don't tell us how nice to look if we're dressed as soon and and we went in um Marshalls are somewhere out there and there was a a lady clerk back there and I went back to the and she said there comes that man so I saw you coming through the door and said I said there is a keen dressing man would you look at that well um when I looked at my JCPenney coat that I had on that I paid a a nominal price for yet I did the best I could a little Hank in my pocket a little now the reason I'm saying that he said he's going to address the meat for salvation beautified me and then Peter said called meekness an ornament like a necktie like a pretty Broach you put on your your dress your ladies dressed so beautiful I said that's so beautiful just I mean there you and I'm not up here trying to throw off on anybody that's not dressed tipped up I we we dress casual and all that but but but what I'm saying is do you get my point Peter called meekness an ornament that's not religion that's not salvation but it sure makes salvation look good meekness that that's not your religion that's not your Doctrine that's what I was but I want you to know if you can wear the ornament of meekness you're going to be a whole lot better witness because Peter called it an ornament and but now if I go around uh extra the hell or I go to I I was raised in the hospital years ago and somebody from another church came in and whoever and um maybe I don't need to call the name of the denomination but because the denomination is not responsible for the person but this person sorry I'm brother first episode I'm such a so I'll say Baptist because everybody we got to play in the apostolics that don't live up to what we really need and it really should be and got plenty of Baptists that don't live up to all the Baptist teachers but and I said I'm Baptist and proud of it he really made an impression on me if I was considering being a Baptist that really made me interested in becoming I'm a Baptist and proud of and his attitude well I've heard folks talk that way because they're they're Apostolic I'm Apostolic well we need to wear our meekness as an ornament because it'll open doors for you but let it be the hidden man of the heart and that which is not corruptable even the ornament of a meek and a quiet Spirit which is in the sign of God of great price verse 6 blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness for they shall be filled Isaiah 55 and 1 whole that's to get attention hey ho everyone that thirsteth Come Ye to the waters he that hath no money Come Ye buy and eat yea come buy wine and milk without money and without price oh Hallelujah blessed are those that hunger and thirst after righteousness for they shall be filled two illustrations I've got to give you years ago uh I preached the eighth out of the uh uh meant the uh midnight service on New Year's Eve the New Year's Eve service in Pontiac Michigan and um we left here and sometimes we would be on the road Christmas because we stayed with my mom and dad and we were traveling it was before interstates and all these uh uh service stations that have everything and we couldn't find anything open to buy something to eat and we were we were getting quite hungry and nothing makes you more hungry than to think you can't get it if you was just a little bit of hungry and you think you panic oh you you your stomach really starts gnawing but we finally got off of the road and went and found a hotel that was open and they had a a restaurant in it and Mark was just a little bitty little boy how do you remember what I'm talking about you remember what happened when we said and back then they had butter on the table they'd put the patties of butter out there and take your order and when Mark saw that he he lit in there he started eating just raw butter just I mean he he was hungry and thirsting after something it might not have been righteousness but he showed his his desire the other illustration we were on our way to Canada with a bus load of young people any young people will remember this I didn't realize that once you got above New York City that have signs out and no buses No Buses No Buses and we was on the interstate and up there they have in the middle of the interstate that a place where he could buy fuel but place after Facebook Say No Buses and we got off of the interstate looking for some place that the Young Folks could eat and so they didn't have a place but they said up the road so many miles 60 miles or whatever there's a Denny's that if you call they they maybe will accept take a bus and so somebody called and told me we had 50 some odd people I think it's 51 52 whatever we had to had a folding chair and the aisle had more than we had seats for and when we got there and we pulled into Dennis they had a great big long table they already had their water poured they already had the napkins out and they were so I'll be forever grateful and thankful to them because they would talk about a hungry bunch of young folks that was us but we got filled let me tell you something he said blessed are the hunger for the blessed are they which do Hunger after the righteousness for they shall be filled oh everyone The Thirst has come I ye to the waters he that hath no money come by eat yay come buy wine and milk without money and without price I'm over time one minute blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain Mercy last week our study told of a man who owed more than he could pay and he went to his creditor and said sir I can't pay it he said just if you'll just give me time I'll I will pay it if you'll just give me give me time and his creditor frankly forgave him the debt said sir you can you don't owe me anything consider that debt paid the man that owed the money he had folks who owed him money and he went to the man that owed him some money and said Pay Me He said I I'm sorry I don't have it right now give me a little time and and I will pay it and he grabbed him by the throat and said Pay me or I'm gonna have you and your family throw it in jail your children and he had no mercy and Jesus and tell him this story said the word got back to the man that he owed money and the man renewed his demand for what he owed him blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain Mercy let's go to the next with blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God Psalms 51-10 David said created me a clean heart o God and renew a right Spirit within me I want to tell you if anybody needed a heart cleaned and A Renewed it was David because you're not going to read of a character in the Bible with more skullduggery and more wickedness than David though he's a great king now and a man after God's Own Heart he did some terrible things but he also went to God and repented and and said created me a clean heart oh God blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the children of God actually I'm just going to read my scriptures and Skip through quickly acts 9 26-28 we're talking about peacemakers and when Saul was coming to Jerusalem he has saved to join himself to the disciples but they were all afraid of him and believed not that he was a disciple but Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles and declared him and declared unto them how he had seen the Lord in the way and that he had spoken to him and how he had peaceably boldly had preached beg your pardon had preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus and he was with them coming in and going out a peacemaker blessed a peacemaker Barnabas was the the son of consolation is what his name means and he was a peacemaker they the disciples wouldn't even accept Paul had it not been for Barnabas verse 10 blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness sake for theirs of the Kingdom of Heaven blessed are ye when men shall revile you shall persecute you and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake rejoice and be exceeding glad for great is your reward in heaven for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you would you stand with me wait a minute I had that written down several times in my notes and I overlooked it I was gonna hey I've got time to come and get ready for the baptizing go ahead and start getting dressed all right let me go ahead and and I I just abbreviated it so let give me a little time then to to uh comment on this blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness sake for theirs is the kingdom of heaven now just because you're persecuted don't mean you're being persecuted for righteousness but if you're persecuted for righteousness he said you're blessed because theirs is the kingdom of heaven and then he said blessed are you when men shall revile you and persecute you and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake rejoice and be exceeding glad for great is your reward in heaven for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you Galatians 5 19 through 25. now the works of the flesh are manifest which are these adultery fornication uncleanness lasciviousness idolatry witchcraft hatred variance emulation wrath stripes seditions and heresies endings murders drunkenness revelings and such like of that which I tell you before as I have also told you in times past that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God but now here we are the next verse but the Fruit of the Spirit is love Joy peace long-suffering gentleness goodness faith Magnus temperance against such there is no law and they that are Christ have crucified the flesh with the affections and lust if we live in the spirit let us walk in the spirit in my book common questions concerning Apostolic Doctrine after I have written a little book on the common questions asked about the the apostolic Doctrine I I say that we need to be able to address it and present it in a beautiful manner and I read that I use the scripture adorning the doctrine similar to what I said tonight that the doctrine Let It Be An adornment and I use the illustration of a beautiful bride when she gets dressed for the wedding she has on a beautiful wedding gown she has a veil over her face and though you cannot see her total Beauty uh the the way she is dressed it's a beautiful sight she she looks so beautiful and the Bible uses that term adorning the doctrine and and I hope I'm saying what I'm saying and that that are we getting along they're ready all right let me finish this uh adorning the doctrine we apostolics listen to me we can have the greatest truth in all this world the only truth but if we don't Adorn the doctrine with the meek Spirit a good attitude a good personality we claim to be the friendliest Church in town and we need to prove that to everybody that comes in because you're not going to do any good if you have a bad attitude and you turn people off God bless you Pastor forgive me for going over time