Wednesday Night Bible Study

praise the lord everyone we greet you tonight in the wonderful name of the lord jesus christ the only name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved and what a joy it is to be in this service tonight we've had such a tremendous weekend service with our think about that our 64th anniversary of our church my my who who would have thought it and sister mccool and i came with that old ragged tent and set it up on lee and baxter street and started a tent revival on august the 24th 1957 and now we've gone by 64 years that is so so tremendous and we had such a great weekend with uh our great evangelists uh what a job brother smith did and i i was just thinking on the way to church tonight this has got to be preachers paradise because i get to hear some of the greatest preaching i i hope i hope we all recognize good preaching when we hear it and we have some of the greatest preachers brought in here to preach and then our our pastor our pastoral staff does such a great job and i can tell i can recognize having preached 73 years myself i can tell when somebody's been before the lord and also when a man has been before god is studying the word of the lord but we've heard such great great preaching and say i am excited about that elevator and i think we need to get with that because we need to get that upstairs done and uh didn't say anything about an offering for my birthday i must say thank you to everyone i've had so many kind words and cards and also there's been uh some some cash offerings to me personally and been noted uh this is personal not not to the church but uh i i would still like to see a memorial offering that would get get that elevator put in so let's be praying about that holy ghost will move one of these days soon i hope and we'll start out and get that get that elevator put in are you ready to study the word of god this is bible study and by its very title it's a little bit different to preaching and that is we're going to be studying uh the word of god more on a line by line um uh comment on the the word of god and tonight uh i may have you doing a lot of reading i hope you have your bibles of course we'll have the scripture on the screen but i announced last week that i was going to be speaking on this subject or studying this subject the violent take it by force the violent take it by force father we pray that you'll anoint the lips and play with the spirit of god give what you would have spoken for this service tonight in jesus name we pray amen now we do not believe in violence in any shape form or fashion when it comes to physical natural violence but now that word violence in the the scriptural term that i'm going to be using in the greek the greek word means to crowd one's self in two to crowd oneself and push yourself ahead of the crowd push yourself into uh the action push yourself in to get what you are wanting you know kind of like some of these women do at sales at walmart you know you better get out of the way because they believe in pressing and so this is the context of that word violent the violent take it by force my scripture is taken from first one is matthew 11 and 12 and from the days of john the baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence and the violent take it by force now this is a little bit strange to understand from the days of john the baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence and the violent take it by force now let's get a little background to that let's go to luke chapter and we'll start reading at verse 28. for i say unto you jesus is talking among those that are born of women there is not a greater prophet than john the baptist but he that is least in the kingdom of god is greater than he and all the people that heard him and the publicans now in your mind let's circle that word publican and all the people that heard him and the publicans justified god being baptized with the baptism of john but the pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel of god against themselves being not baptized of him now think with me now as we look at this this scripture first of all a publican was they were under the domination of rome and you could buy yourself a job as as one of the uh oh what are they called now or they're they're on a they're not elected but they're what what no not lobby so those that's on these committees that give orders and tell you what to do but they wasn't elected to do it what that that's the word i'm looking for bureaucrat and you could buy that bureaucratic position of being a tax collector slip a little money here and a little money there and and you could buy that that office you know kind of like it is today in politics but uh then once you got that office you had the authority to go around and collect taxes from people and you were not checked up on very closely you could pretty well charge what you wanted to rome demanded a certain amount but your pay was determined by how much you added on to the price and so these and they were mostly jews taxing their jewish brethren and i understand they were very despised because they were taking money and actually extorting money and that money that shouldn't have been taken and so they were despised they were they were disliked by everybody i mean if you you want to have a bad name you just be a publican and uh that's that branded you as a cheat as an extortioner and as an oppressor of your own people and so the bible said that from the days of john the baptist and now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence and the violence taken by force and all the people heard him heard jesus or heard john the baptist and the publicans those despised hated sector people bureaucrats they justified god because they believed in john the baptist and was baptized by john now here we go with this press business they were slipping ahead of the the the line they were accepting the forerunner of jesus even though they were despised and hated they had pressed their way in and accepted the baptism of john now stop and think about that and but it said that the pharisees but the pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel of god against themselves being not baptized of him now the pharisees on the other hand were the most righteous most strict living people they fasted they paid tithe they they observed all the law most and they they condemned everybody else that didn't do it and they were the very best of the best when it comes to reputation but when john the baptist came preaching saying that there's one coming after me mightier than i whose shoes i'm not worthy to lose he'll baptize you with the holy ghost of fire they rejected him and and and doing so they actually condemned themselves they rejected the counsel of god against themselves being not baptized of him now while the most righteous living and they did they live they live good there's no question about that um i believe this pastor and i was talking about this talking about there's nothing wrong with the way the way they believed in the way they lived it's right to live right it's right to do right but what's bad about it is when i do write and i keep pointing my thing at you and saying it you're not as good as i am because you don't do like i do that's right i not only fulfill all the law i i i do even better than that uh like old brother hell on that 70 years ago or 60 years ago in augusta georgia and he was a great big dutchman brother hell of that he jumped up one night and he loved this wonderful truth he said i died and go to hell before i deny this truth well he he went a little bit overboard and that's what the pharisees were nothing wrong with what they believed they taught they believed the law the bible was there but they became so righteous they became self-righteous and while they were claiming their position as being the absolute epitome and the example of what folks should be the load down tax collectors the chiefs the the the the extortioners they slip to the head of the crowd because they believed what john the baptist was preaching and was baptized by john and prepared themselves to get ready for the new baptism that was on the way which was the baptist the holy ghost and what they did this was their violence they pressed their way in against the criticism against all the condemnation of the self-righteous pharisees they press themselves to the head of the crowd you know if we're not careful we can get so hung up on on who we are rather than really what the what the word teaches if i'm not careful the old uh drunk or the drug addict or whoever prostitute they can slip in and feel the conviction of the holy ghost and they can feel so condemned they can come to this altar and get the holy ghost and if i'm not careful they'll slip to the head of the crowd while i'm saying wait a minute you you're not doing this other than you're not doing that are you hearing me all right i pressed the violent tape they pressed the violent take it by force but the pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel of god against themselves being not baptized of him luke 19 1-9 and jesus entered and passed through jericho and behold there was a man named zacchaeus which was the chief among the publicans and he was rich now already they got several strikes against him he was not only a cheater he was a chief cheater he was a chief of the of the public as a tax collectors he had other tax collectors under him and no doubt he exacted more taxes than he was supposed to but he also was getting a kickback from all those under him that was collecting taxes so he he was he was the worst of the worst but the bible said that there was a man named zakis which was chief among the republicans and he was rich no wonder he was rich he was getting rich in in every direction and he sought to see jesus who he was and could not for the press here we got that violence again there were so many others that was pressing their way to see jesus that this little zakis couldn't get to jesus because he was of little stature he was at a disadvantage because of his occupation he was at a disadvantage because he was chief of his republicans he was at a disadvantage because he was rich and folks despised the rich man because they knew he got it the wrong way so he was behind when it comes to the opinion of everybody and he sought to see jesus who he was and could not for the press here he had another big thing against him a big strike there was too many other people that wanted to see jesus and he was a little man too small to see over the crowd and he ran before and climbed up into a sycamore tree the violent take it by force he had a lot of things against him when it comes to being a christian he had a lot of things against him when it comes to becoming a follower of jesus his height his stature was against him everybody nobody would let him in the line get away you you we know who you are they they was willing to crowd him out but he had violent determination he hadn't got to where he was by being passive he had done a lot of pressing he'd done a lot of shenanigans to get to where he was and now then he wasn't about to be crowded out from seeing that man jesus and so while they were crowding him out he knew the territory he probably knew the territory well because of his his uh scanning over the tax collecting crowd so he ran ahead he was going to find himself an advantage and he ran before the and he climbed up he was willing to be violent in his faith in his determination to see jesus so he ran ahead he knew where there was a a tree and that's the way jesus was headed and he said i'm so sure i can't say but i'm going to climb up because i've got to see that man jesus let me tell you something if you want to you can see jesus you don't have to let obstacles stand in your way the height of your statue the reputation and those that tell you that you can't make it those who tell you that you need to be out of the way don't you listen to the naysayers i'll find me a perch i'll find me a place that i can get to jesus i'm determined i'm going to have violent faith get lowly hand clapped [Applause] so he ran ahead climbed up in a sycamore tree for he was to pass that away and when jesus came to the place he looked up and saw him and said unto him zacchaeus my case and come down for today i must abide at that now at thy house now now go with me down that road and let's walk with jesus and let's be one of the crowd as we pushed and uh joshua one against the other elbow and this one all the way and and when we get to this place they looked up and when he just uttered the word zacchaeus it sent a chill through the crowd psychos because they all knew who he was they all hated him he had taken money from them that it wasn't supposed to be he was he was crooked and he had become rich at their expense and when jesus stopped it says zacchaeus everybody stood still and looked up and jesus said zakis make haste and come down for today i must abide at thy house now psychists could have stayed up there he could say not me i'm afraid of that crowd their level to that level to string me up they're liable to to tear me limb from limb they hate i'm hated by all those folks some folks allow the opinion of others to keep them from jesus there's a lot of people that would be apostolic today if it wasn't for the reputation of the apostolics being who they are and being jesus name and they've we've borne the name of holy rollers and goose jabbers and tongue talkers and things like that and some folks i witnessed to a group of men several years ago in a bible study they wanted me to teach them the apostolic doctrine and they had a little group they met every week and i agreed to come and teach the episodic doctor i said in one condition i want you to promise me that if what i am teaching is wrong you'll help me out and you'll you'll point out what i'm wrong on and if i am right i want to baptize all of you in jesus name and we had somewhat of a unwritten uh unspoken but a head-nodding agreement and so i gathered with them for several weeks and i taught the apostolic doctrine and when i finished i said all right brothers uh i want you to tell me where i'm wrong and straighten me out there was one of those men that was a well uh respected businessman and he was the head of a large company here if i if i told you the name of it you'd recognize that name and ask him now he said preacher i cannot find one fault with a thing you've taught us that everything you've taught is the truth and i said i i it's nothing i can correct but he said i've been uh told me what denomination he was and he said i've been teaching a sunday school class for so many years and if i've been wrong all these years i guess i'll just have to stay wrong now isn't that a sad situation isn't that a sad situation i have seen i had one businessman's uh wife she would meet with the sister mccool to myself and i taught her and she called me up one day and she said brother mccool i want to get baptized in jesus name i said praise god that is wonderful she said that but there's one thing she said my husband teaches a class and told me the church and she said i don't want this known i want you to baptize me in private because i don't want my husband to know and i don't want my church to know it i said ma'am the bible said this thing was not done in a corner and i said man as much as i love you and i love your soul jesus was not crucified in private jesus was not crucified in secret and i said i would love to baptize you in jesus name but there's no way i'll meet with you in private now had you not said that we i've taken people at midnight and baptized them in the creek i've baptized them when when there's uh ice on the edge of the the water there was nobody there but if that was a condition of their baptism i said man there's no way i'll baptize you in secret i said the first thing i need to do is tell your pastor that i'm baptizing one of your members in jesus name now what i'm saying right now i'm not being arrogant and i'm not being flaunted with it but listen this is a way you're going to press your way into it you may not receive one word of criticism but you must be willing to bear the persecution you may have everybody to be thankful for you getting in the church and getting the holy ghost but if they don't you have still got to be willing to pay the price jesus said make haste in a hurry get down from there and the bible said and he received him joyfully even though the crowd probably let out a mo oh oh is that oh no can you imagine all the people in jesus says psychiatrist oh no oh no jesus said make haste and come down because today i'm going to i must abide at your house here's this little short crook he jumps to the head of the crowd he jumps he presses his way to the front and jesus said i'm gonna come to your house today because you're showing me that you're willing to be violent with your faith you're willing to press your way into and now that i'm gonna let me tell you something folks if you are determined with god he's gonna come to your house if you're willing to pay the price if you're willing to press if you're willing to press your way he is going to come to your house and he'll dwell in your house give the lord a handclap [Applause] well i'm got to be careful i'll jump in the preacher's gear and when they saw it oh wonderful look at that psychics is getting to go with you that's what no listen to this next line and when they saw it they all murmured no no no exactly we thought he was the son of god look at that well he he's going to be the guest with a man that is a sinner let me tell you something if you're going to make it you're going to have to sometimes have to swim upstream you're going to have to press your way remember anthony's message pressed for a purpose god sometimes allows us allows us to be pressed and zacchaeus stood now he ran he climbed he came down and now then he stood and said unto the lord behold lord the half of my goods i give to the poor and if i have taken anything from any man by false accusation i restore unto him fourfold you talk about now he didn't just jump to the head of the crowd he he minutes he began to say i'll put my money where my mouth is you've heard me say it before but that's one of these lines of scripture that i get i get a chuckle out of it when i read it because my mind is a little bit wiry and imaginative i imagine things sometimes may not be but i just imagined zacchaeus going back around over his route where he collected taxes and knocked on the door and wife said honey that old tax collector is at the door again yes i see it well i haven't got any money get get some money the last time he was here he overcharged us here he is again but he knocked on the throne came to him there he said by the way i overcharge you i'm going to give you four times my my what effect it must have had on the folks that he went back around making listen when you press your way into the lord that don't mean he let you get by with sin you're going to go around making restitution you're going to make things right you're going to apologize where you need to apologize you're going to be right where you were wrong somebody say amen luke 5 27 after these things he went forth and saw a publican another tax collector a publican named levi sitting at the receipt of custom and said unto him follow me whoa hold it here we go again my my thought is the violence taken by force and now then jesus is not going around to the temple and getting the high priest and the chief priests and the elders and all those good folks he's going around all these hated fellows and now here was another tax collector sitting at the had his office set up and jesus went to his he was called levi you know him as matthew who wrote the book of matthew so he said jesus said to to matthew follow me follow me and he left all rose up and followed him and levi made him a great feast in his own house and there was a great company of publicans and of others that sat down with him my isn't that wonderful isn't that beautiful think about that he he chose another despised fellow of his occupation and he he put out a great feast and there was a great number of other tax collectors rome's going to experience a a drop in the income because a bunch of publicans followed matthew in and they begin to accept jesus let me tell you when we press our way in it may be an orthodox it may not be the normal way but if you'll press your way in you're going to bring some more with you some of the best evangelists we have are those that's been the deepest in sin but but but the scribes and pharisees the good people the righteous folks the well-respected folks what did that they murmured when they should have been said oh thank god there's no matthew and look at all those tax collectors that's coming to jesus but they didn't they murmured against the disciples saying why do you eat and drink republicans and sinners and jesus answering said unto them they that are whole need not a position but they that are sick i came not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance this is something that we have it's become a kind of a slogan for us our goal is our goal is our goal is good folks our goal is righteous folks our goal is no souls no matter how wicked they've been they may have a bad reputation in the community they may have done a lot of things that's been displeasing to the lord but our goal is souls let everybody murmur against us do you know do you know who you've got going to that church do you know who is singing in that choir do you know who's doing this or that or the other do you know it don't matter jesus said i didn't come to save the righteousness i came to save sinners i came to say a sinners oh i didn't come to save righteous folks oh they that are whole need not a position oh hallelujah glory you go to the doctrine what's wrong with you well nothing's wrong with him take my temperature my temperature's right my blood pressure's right what are you here for i'm well well what are you doing here you don't need me if you're well a sinner is the one that needs jesus you and i who are in the church we become doctors of salvation we become doctors and promoters of this gospel to reach out to folks that's lost that lost their way and they need to find jesus and that's what this is this is a spiritual hospital this is the place where we conduct the soldier with the blood of jesus christ that covers all sins the violent take it before the timid the backwards i i've got to jump ahead with this scripture here because i feel it's the right time to say it amos 6 and 1 woe to them that are at ease in zion and trust in the mountain of samaria which are named chief of the nations to whom the house of israel came woe to those that are who was the preachers with pastor whitley had the fellow sprawled out on the couch up there he's taking it easy well the bible said in ames six and woe to them that are at ease in zion i'm not worried about the loss i got right with god i'm saved i'm on my way to heaven and listen let me tell you jesus didn't save us just to take us to heaven he said go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature go you therefore and teach all nations all right you and i are his hands and feet his eyes we are his representatives and we must not be said and it was brother whitley said the other night we didn't build this building and these pews for you to have plenty of elbow room that's right and he he said it pretty powerfully he said you don't you don't set your purse down here and say this is my seat we had something happen years ago sister mccool i went to the steakhouse over on broadway it was back when the western citizens steakhouses were going big and there was a young lady in there she was so distraught and and we witnessed to her about the lord and invited her to church and uh she came to church and she sat down you know one of the pews and i later i found this out because we went back to that western citizen steakhouse and the lady revealed this to us she said i sat down and there was a lady and i i i know who she was she no longer comes to this church but she came she said this is my seat this is where i sit would you please move and had this lady to move now that was at our church our church and she was so heartbroken and i don't guess she's ever been back well first of all she should have shook oh we're so glad to have you here god bless you i'm sorry and not let them know that that's where she'd been sitting and she ought to found her another seat now i don't know why i'm telling all these negative stories but the bible said these things happened as an example we were having a funeral and there was a man he really wasn't in the church all that deep all that but um a gentleman that that i loved very much loved his family was out of and he came to that funeral and he had a cap and this other fellow took it upon himself to went over and told him to take his cap off you're in church the fellow said i'll never be back now i'm telling some extreme things but you and i need to understand that we're here to see souls saved not to tell folks to take their hat off to do this or to do that we're to be loving and kind and gentle and if i i if i have to sit over here i'll do that because the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence and the violence taken by forces we've got to be more violent we've got to be more pressing than those that are at ease in zion somebody say amen amen all right let me get back to my thought are you still with me now you haven't gone to sleep all right luke 15 and 1 then drew near to him all the republicans and senate again republicans and sinners for to hear him and the pharisees and the scribes murmured saying this man receiveth sinners and eaters them and he spake this parable unto them saying what man of you having a hundred sheep if you lose one of them does not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness and go after that which was lost until he find it and when he found it he led the only shoulders rejoicing does that not give us a picture of what we are to be and what i believe you are i believe i'm not i'm not preaching this because i think that that this congregation is by and large in that way at all but i have seen a few instances down through the years under my ministry and in my congregation i've seen folks that fail to live up to that highest expectation of pressing for sinners and when he cometh they called together as friends and neighbors and said and rejoice with me i have found that sheep that was lost i say unto you that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth more than over ninety and nine just persons perceive them now you know how much i brag on the choir and and uh yeah i even preached that that was part of the ministry and and i i talked about that just the other night and i'm not taking from the musicians and singers at all the choir and i'm sure not taken from i love the way our people come forward offering time and other times and fill this front keep on doing that don't don't let up and i see all these little children dancing they've seen their mom and dad and and this is the most beautiful sight in the world but do you know when the angels are shouting when that old sinner gets up and comes out of this altar and he he he's lived like the devil he's got a bad reputation and he may not be dressed good he may not smell good he may but when he comes down here and comes up shouting all the angels in heaven all the angels in heaven are rejoicing give the lord another handclap praise this is what we are our goal is sold well let me go on the angels rejoice luke 18 and 2 there was in a city a judge which feared not god neither regarded a man there was a widow in that city and she came unto him saying avenge me in my adversary and he would not for a while but afterward he said within himself though i fear not god in regard not man yet because this will troubleth me i will avenge her lest by her continual coming she weary me and jesus said hear what the unjust judge said and shall not god avenge his only elect which cry to him night day and night though he bear along with them i tell you that he will avenge them speedily nevertheless when the son of man cometh shall he find faith in the earth and he spake this parable into a certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous and despised others two men went up to the temple to pray one was the pharisee the other republican the pharisees stood and prayed thus with himself god i think that i'm not as other men are extortioners unjust adulterers or even as this publican i fast twice a week i give tithe of all that i possess and the publican standing far off would not lift up would not lift up so much as his eyes toward heaven but smote upon his breasts saying god be merciful to me a sinner couldn't even raise his head just be merciful to me because i'm a sinner i tell you this man went down to his house justified rather than the other for everyone that exalteth himself shall be a base and he that humbleth himself shall be exhausted exalted and they brought on him infants that they would he that he would touch them but his disciples saw it and rebuked them and jesus called them unto him and said suffer little children to come unto me and forbid them not for of such is the kingdom of god are you getting the picture of what i'm saying tonight the violent those who are pressing we may not press physically but you you press by facing opposition to what we should be doing matthew 5 27 when she heard jesus came in the press behind and touched his garment this woman that had an issue of blood for 12 years there was such a crowd she couldn't get to jesus but she pressed her way she didn't make a big to-do she just said if i can just touch the hem of his garment and behold a woman which was diseased with the issue of blood 12 years came behind him and touched the hem of his garment for she said within herself if i may but touch the his garment i shall be whole but jesus turned about and when he saw her he said daughter be of good comfort thy faith had made thee whole and the woman was made whole from that self same hour could you stand your feet with me please we started this message weeks ago and we talked about the dangers of being careless quiet and secure so i'm following through with the general thought and theme is peter said as long as i'm in this tabernacle i'm going to stir you up i'm i'm not gonna let you get at ease by the help of the lord as long as i'm in this tabernacle i am gonna continue to keep us reminded that our goal is souls we must not find i well i me and my wife and my two children might as foreign and that's not what we are to i believe it was said just a while back we're here now to see all these pews filled and then when they get filled i'm not going to be satisfied with that if we get if we get enough people in here to fill every pew and stand around the wall i'm not satisfied with that i'll say let's dig out of that that and then let's build a bigger building let's build let's build a wall around the city of knoxville and say this is our church this is our church we're here for souls father we thank you tonight for the word of god we thank you lord for your people that are dedicated to the salvation of lost humanity god we shall not be careless quiet and secure but we're going to be a purposeful in our pressing forward with this great gospel to reach more folks than we've ever reached in our life i pray god you'll dismiss us from this place but not from your presence bring us back at the appointed time and may we reach people for you in jesus name we pray