The Forest Is Not Your Friend

If you have your Bibles, you can turn with me to Second Samuel, the 18th chapter. Second Samuel, chapter 18, verse number one. Man, it's exciting to be in the house of the Lord, believing God's going to do great things here today. Second Samuel 18. I'm going to be reading from the New Living Translation, just for the sake of the story, for understanding. It says: "David now mustered the men who were with him and appointed generals and captains to lead them. He sent the troops out in three groups, placing one group under Joab, one group under Joab's brother Abishai, son of Zariah, and one under Etai, the man from Gath. And the King told his troops, 'I am going out with you.' But the man objected it strongly, and they told King David, 'You must not go. If we have to turn and run, and even if they kill half of us, it will make no difference to Absalom's troops, for they will be looking only for you. You are worth ten thousand of us, and it is better that you stay here in town and send help if we need it.' So King David said, 'If you think that's the best plan, I'll do it.' So he stood alongside the Gate of the town, as all the troops marched out in groups of hundreds and thousands. And the King gave this command to Joab and Abishai and Etai. He said, 'For my sake, Dill gently with my son Absalom.' And all the troops heard the King give this order to his Commanders. So the battle began in the forest of Ephraim, and the Israelite troops were beaten back by David's men, and there was a great Slaughter that day, and 20,000 men laid down their lives."

Verse 8 says that the battle, the fight, it raged all over the countryside, and more men died because of the forest than those that were killed by the sword. Twenty thousand people died in this gruesome battle, but the Bible records that more people died that day because of their location than because of the enemy's weapons. More deadly was their surroundings than their enemies' swords. And so I want to preach today on this title: The forest is not your friend. The forest is not your friend.

And I'm not going to beat around the bush this afternoon. I've come with what I feel like is a direct word from the Lord for somebody today. The words that I, I preach today may not be desirable to hear or Pleasant to the ears. It may not be preached in other churches in our city or in our region. But I, I've got to be transparent from the very beginning of this message, that I would rather help somebody get to heaven than to be liked by you all. I'd rather see a soul be saved today than to preach what's comfortable for us to hear. My purpose and my requirement and my, my job today is to sound the alarm for each and every one of us, and that, that alarm is to say this: that there is a present danger in our world, and it's called worldliness. And I believe that in 2023, that God is still against the church looking like the world. Again, I know this is not going to be the most popular message that's preached in Murfreesboro today, but I believe that the Lord has sent me today to tell you that we cannot afford to look like the world.

I want to be understood today. I, I don't — this is not a message that I wanted to preach. I don't sit in my office and type up these notes and think, "I can't wait to preach this message." I've never — and if you've heard me preach, I hope you feel this way — I've never wanted to be the, the fire in Brimstone kind of preacher. I don't want to be the preacher that everybody is afraid to hear. And, and today, I'm not trying to be that preacher, and I'm definitely not trying to be your pastor. You got the world's best pastor right there, sitting in that seat. He doesn't need my help. He's a great communicator and a great preacher, and he's led by the Holy Ghost. But I feel today that God has sent me to preach a principle out of the word of God that is still as applicable today than it has ever been.

I, I believe that God wants the church to be aware that there is a danger in this thing called worldliness, and it is not God's will for the church to be worldly. It's not God's will for a generation of students to look like the world. It is not God's will for a congregation, for Center Point, to look just like everybody else. I want to be heard today with, with Clarity. I'm not preaching today a cult mentality. Nobody leave this place and say, "Well, Pastor Wes, he, he wants Center Point to be a cult. He wants Senator Center Point to be a, a closed off church that's disconnected from the world, that, that is cut off from those around them, that is spiritually speaking us for and no more." I, I don't believe that. I believe that we have — are dealing with a, a world that is hurting, and with a world that is desperate for truth, with a world that desperately needs to know about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I, I believe the Harvest is full, and that we are primed, ready for Revival. I don't think we should be asked for and no more. But what I am saying, and what I want to be heard saying today, is that while we are in this world, it should never be said of our church — it should never be said of Center Point — that we are of this world. While we may be in it, we cannot afford to be of it. Because the values, and the systems, and the thinking, and the affections, and the priorities of this world, if we're not careful, can seep into the church itself.

First John, chapter 2, verse 15, says: "Do not love the world or the things in the world, for if anyone loves the world, the love of the father is not in him." Today I'm looking for a church that will rise and make a commitment, that we are going to be like Christ, and we are going to reject worldliness. I'm looking for every man to make a commitment at a personal altar, that they're going to stay away from worldliness. And I'm, I'm looking for every lady to make a commitment at an altar, to live righteously and separate from the world. I'm preaching on this last Sunday in January, that this church, that his church, should not look like, and talk like, and walk like, and smell like, and dress like, and think like, and sound like, and worship like the world we're surrounded by. But that this church ought to look like and reflect the very image of Christ himself. Yes, the world might look friendly. It might look enticing. But I want to remind somebody today that the world is not our friend. This Forest is not our friend.

First John 2:16 goes on to say: "For all that is in the world — the, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life — it is not of the father, but it is of the world. And the world passes away." I want to remind somebody today: this world is not going to last forever. Its values will not last forever. The treasures stored up here will not last forever. I'm reminded of that song that says, "The, this world is not my home, but I'm just passing through, for my treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue. The Angels beckon me from Heaven's open door, that this world cannot be my home anymore." This world cannot be our home. They're — the heavens' doors are open today for a group of people to realize this is not our home.

I prayed today that, that I live a life that's balanced, and I want to be reasonable. I want to be able to connect with real people with real problems in our world. But before I, I desire to be balanced, and before I even desire to be reasonable, I must be biblical. I said, I, I must be biblical. I must live a life according to the word of God. And in 2023, the Bible still says in Second Corinthians 6:17, "Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord." I believe that in 2023, we still ought to be separate from the world. I still believe that in 2023, that Jesus is looking for a church that pursues Holiness, that pursues righteousness, that looks like the very image of Christ. I'm not trying to beat anybody up today. I hope I'm not coming across that way. But I think it's high time that we face the facts, that we smell the coffee. This world's getting dark, folks, and it's getting darker by the minute. It's getting more chaotic by the second. This world is not getting closer to Jesus. We're not going to wake up tomorrow and the entire world — I prayed it would happen, but I don't see a revolution of Holiness taking place tomorrow morning. We need to be aware that this world is trying to pull us further away from God. But I want to remind us that this world is trying to pull us closer to the Lord. The world is trying to pull us away, but this is trying to get us more like Jesus. That's why I decided a long time ago, that whatever this man of God over here preaches, I'm not going to sit there and be mad at you, and I'm not going to be angry at you, but I'm going to be your Amen Corner, and say, "You Preach what thus saith the word of God." Whatever this says, I need to preach in my life. We don't need a watered-down gospel. We don't need a watered down truth. But we need the word of God, rightly divided. It's preaching that's going to get us back to righteousness. It's preaching that's going to get us back to holiness.

In Acts chapter 8, we find the, the, the, the eunuch — the Ethiopian Unity. He has scripture. He's reading scripture. But he invites Philip into his house, so that Philip can teach him what thus saith the word of God. I want to remind somebody today that you still need a man of God that will stand up and preach what this word says. Paul said, "How, how can they know without a preacher?" We have to, to be thankful that every once in a while, our toes get stepped on. I know not every sermon You Preach is what you want to preach. I know the Psalms where God asks you to preach things that are heavy and hard for us to hear. But I'd rather hear those things. I'd rather hear those truths. I would rather hear what thus saith the word of God than anything else in this world. I, I feel like I don't need to say this, but I want to go on record and say it anyways: Washington DC and Hollywood, their agenda is not to pull us closer to Jesus. Their objective is not for us to be more christ-like. The only thing, the only thing that is trying to get us more like Jesus is the word of God. Every once in a while, I need the word to speak to me. I need the word to, to correct. I think it's all right every once in a while that we get corrected by the word of God. "All scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable." It's profitable up to even correction. It's okay to be corrected every once in a while. Everybody believe that? Everybody okay with that?

Back to my texting, Second Samuel 18th chapter. We're finding a battle between David and Absalom, father and son. In the events that, that lead up to this opening text that I read earlier, they're sad events. See, everything was going pretty well in David's life and his kingship. David had led the nation of Israel to its most successful time as a nation. The people of God, they, they're prospering. They're, they're becoming more successful. The nation as a whole is at its apex. The, the borders of Israel have been expanded. Uh, Israel is, is more successful, uh, militarily, economically, and, and maybe even spiritually, than ever before. Jerusalem, their home, is safe, and the Ark of the Covenant has been returned back to Israel. They, they have the presence of God right there with them. Yet it's during this time of, of great prosperity and success that we see the story of David take a troubled turn. Because you see, he, he found him safe himself at the wrong place at the wrong time. His, his season of life should have had him out on a battlefield with, with, with his men, taking on the enemy. But instead, his life takes a troubled turn, because he has an affair with a woman named Bathsheba. Instead of being at the right place at the right time, David finds himself in the wrong place. And he's caught lounging on the rooftop, and he sees a, a beautiful woman named Bathsheba bathing. In this Glimpse, it sends him down a road called Lost. And lost, once acted on, leads to the conception of a child. And David's seeing his sin, and realizing he's messed up, calls for Uriah to come home, because his hope is that Uriah will cover up his shame, and cover up his mistake, and not let everybody know that he's completely messed up. And Uriah comes in, but Uriah is a man of integrity. He's a man that's honest, and he says, "I'm not going to go in with my wife while the rest of the men are out there fighting." So he refuses David's plan. Thus, David has to send Uriah to the front of the battlefield for a, a timely death, because David knows that he can't afford the truth to get out. So now David, instead of just being an adulterer, has now become a murderer. And the prophet Nathan, the, the prophet of God, comes in, and he confronts on Stephen. He says, "David, you're not living right. You're not doing right." He starts to name his sin, and he reveals the heart — harsh verdict from his sin, that the sword of the Lord will not depart out of his house. And so David sins, David's mistakes, puts an emotion events that will, that will cause heartache after heartache, and tragedy after tragedy. The baby that is born from the affair will die. But his family continues to be more and more jacked up. His son Abnon will assault — his assault — his daughter Tamar. In Absalom, Tamar's full brother, will become so Furious that he will arrange the death of not. And, and Absalom, because he's made this mistake to have his half-brother killed off, he has to flee for some time. But after some time, he gets, I guess, Grace. So he comes back.

And as he's there, and he stands in the gates — the Bible says that Absalom is a handsome fellow. He's got charisma. He's got charm. He's got some personality. And as he stands at the gates, as people come to see the king, he, he starts inquiring, "Why are you seeing the King today? What makes you want to talk to King David?" He hears the problems, and he begins to tell them what he would do if he were King. He begins to tell him, "Hey, if I was King, I would rule in favor of you. If I was King, I would perform this kind of judgment. I would execute this kind of judgment on your behalf." And slowly but surely, Absalom begins to change the hearts and loyalty of those that are around him in Israel.

Hear this today. I want one to be very clear when I say this: that, that we should be careful and guard ourselves with anyone who tries to come in and undermine God's Authority. Anybody that's trying to come in and talk down about God's leadership — those people ought to be very careful, and you ought to be guarded against such conversations. Yet Absalom, he is effective. He's Charming. He's handsome. He, he has a way with the people. And So eventually, most of the nation, they, they begin to look at Absalom as their leader. And this causes David to, to flee, because there's a Revolt, or revolution, at hand. Absalom begins to take the Throne of his father, and David flees Jerusalem. But most people say that David didn't — we know that David didn't leave empty-handed. He had people followed him. But most people say that 4,000 people went with him. These are David's men. These are the ones that he could take into conflict, to try to regain his throne. And so David, he takes these, these men, and he begins to divide them into thirds for the conflict. He put captains over each of the thirds of the army. And he — as he sees the Army marching out, one by one, ready to take on Absalom and, and Absalom's Men — he, he says, "Guys, please, if you catch Absalom, show him Mercy. Take it easy on them. Do deal with him gently, because after all, he's my son." And so David's men, they go on their, their way to the battle. And it's a ferocious battle. Bodies falling everywhere. It was a bloody and awful, uh, war, that the fight that took place, resulting in 20,000 people dying on that particular day.

But what is astounding, and what has caught my eye in scripture, and what has gripped my heart and has not let go of it, is the fact that on that battle, on that day when 20,000 people died, more than half of them — more than half of them — did not die from the enemy soldier. They did not die from an arrow that pierced their body, or a sword that was slung their way, or a spear that soared through the air. No, they died that day not because of Any weapon formed against them. They battle — they lost that battle because of where they were. The majority on that day did not die because their enemy was too capable for them. They did not die because they were not trained well enough, for they didn't have enough armor, or they didn't have enough Provisions, or they, they weren't talented or gifted enough for the battle at hand. No, more than ten thousand people that day died because they found themselves in the forest.

Imagine with me: more than 10,000 people dead, not because of the battle, not because of the enemy, but because of their proximity to the woods. I feel like today this should be astounding alarm for the church. Because if on that day, more than ten thousand people died because of the forest, not because they lacked ability, then we need to be careful that we don't die ourselves, because the proximity to the woods. They didn't die that day because of their lack of ability. They didn't die that day because I didn't go to Sunday school. They didn't die that day because they didn't have a Bible. They didn't die — they did — because they didn't know how to act in church. They didn't die that day because they didn't know the lyrics to the songs. They didn't die that day because I didn't have a couple of verses hit in their heart. They died that day because they allowed themselves to get too close to the forest. They were in the wrong place at the wrong time.

I want somebody to hear me today: while it is true that no weapon formed against you will prosper, if we're not careful, we can get ourselves in bad enough situations, bad enough environments, bad enough surroundings, that the surroundings could do far more damage to us than our enemy could ever do. Hear this today: some environments don't care if you've been baptized in Jesus' name. Some environments don't care if you're full of the Holy Ghost. Some environments don't care if you're on the serve team. Some environments don't care if you're a great preacher or great teacher of the word of God. I've come today to tell somebody: the forest is not your friend. The forest is not your friend. This world is not your friend. This world is not going to get you closer to Jesus. How — I've been in Ministry, I've been living for God even for long enough to see people fall because of the forest. The enemy wasn't strong enough, but what they have surrounded themselves with was strong enough. The Bible says that on the countryside, in the forest, they, the people, died. They died in the wrong environments. They died because they got too comfortable with the woods.

Hear me today: there are people, even in this room — you're getting too comfortable with the wrong relationships. You're getting too comfortable with the wrong friendships. You're getting too comfortable with the wrong type of entertainment, with the wrong type of music, with the wrong type of clothes, with the wrong types of conversations, with the wrong types of attitudes. I have seen spiritual Giants fall because they got too close to the forest. Don't think it can't happen to you. I've seen people who think that they could handle this world, that they think they can handle this thing called worldliness, only to find, once it's too late, that this world is not as safe as it appears. Hear me today: this Forest is not your friend. Force, this world is not your friend.

There are some places that you and I, being Holy Ghost filled, should not be comfortable with. The Holy Ghost Inside of us ought to get uncomfortable and certain, certain circumstances. Not every — not everything this world says is okay, it's truly okay. There ought to be a check inside of us, though. There ought to be some Holy Ghost conviction inside of us that says, "There's something about this. There's something about this truth that the world is presenting that does not feel right to me." Anybody ever felt conviction before? I'm not, I'm not talking about maybe something specifically the word of God says, but there's just something you feel: this ain't right. This ain't good. I, I believe in 2023, it's okay for us to feel some conviction. I didn't think anybody was going to be taking laps on that one, but I think it's all right that every once in a while, we're watching something and we say, "Oh, this just does not feel right," and we hit the off button. There ought to be some things we see posted on social media that we say, "I can't follow this person anymore, because this does not feel okay."

I'm gonna get a little personal here. There are some Facebook posts from your friends that say things that are so inappropriate, that the best thing you — I'm not saying unfriend them, but mute them. Hide them from your feet, because you don't need that negative energy in your life. There are some things the Holy Ghost should just be convicting Us by, because the forest is not our friend. People have died in the forest. Holy Ghost people, buried in the name, have died in the forest. Force is dangerous, folks.

I think it's dangerous because it looks enticing. It's, it's dangerous because it looks appealing. Let's be honest today: a, a wooded area is a beautiful place to see. There's a reason why folks Gather in Gatlinburg. Are you gonna — you go to Gatlinburg on some weekends, it looks like there's an Apostolic convention taking place. Skirts everywhere. You know, like, "If I missed something, is this youth congress now?" And there's a reason people go to, to the smokies in mid to late October, and it's not because of the fudge. The fudge isn't that great there. It's because they go up to the smokies, and it's, it's, it's for its views. It's because it's beautiful there. It's, it's picturesque. It's stunning. People go to, to Gatlinburg because they like the views of the mountains and the leaves changing colors.

This past fall, we had our, our church leadership meeting in Gatlinburg in November. Of course, the, the area looked beautiful. But when we got there, this particular core — what we all noticed was, on our back porch, there was a family of bears. I think we got some pictures of the Bears here. They're going to show you. He went out there, and we, we saw these bears, and they were so cute. They were — oh, there they are. Oh, isn't that so sweet? We love these Bears. We — I felt like the longer we were out there, the closer we got to the Bears. At first, we were all on the porch, behaving ourselves. And then at some point, we got to like 10 feet away from, from Mama and these Cubs. Now, I will say this, because I sent some of these pictures to my wife from the Bears, and she said, "Babe, do you not realize we have three kids?" I was like, "Yes, I know that." She's like, "Then get away from the Bears." But see, what she didn't realize was, I always had a plan. See, I kept somebody between me and the bears at all times. In fact, I'm ashamed, but once it was pastor — Pastor was between me and the bears at one point. I learned a long time ago: I don't have to be the fastest Out of the Woods. I just can't be the last one out of the woods. Sorry, Pastor, I did that too that day. But that's mama and her, her Cubs, and I was so excited to see these bearish folks. I'm just telling you, they were — I thought they were so cool. I felt like we were close enough to give like bear hugs to each other.

But, but afterwards, I thought to myself — and after my wife kind of, you know, corrected me with my, you know, having three kids, and not being a good time to die and all — I just Googled, "How often do bear attacks take place in Gatlinburg?" And don't you know that four days prior to us being at that cabin, a black bear had broken through a set of French doors into a person's Kitchen, in a cabin just like the one we were at. And they were — the bear was going through, getting food. And the man came out and saw the bear, confronted the bear — I don't know why he confront the bear, but he did — and he got attacked. Got his face all jacked up. And I thought to myself, "You know what? Tomorrow, I'm not going to go looking for those bears. I'm probably just going to stay in the cat. I may just stay in my room the whole rest of the trip." Because what once looked very cute and innocent and appealing was hiding the danger that was always there. And I feel like that's what the world has done to the church. The world has shown you an image of what it looks like to be in the world, yet at the same time, hiding all the dangers that exist in the forest. I've come to remind somebody: the Devil — he's not the smartest — come to you and say, "Hey, if you commit to sin, this is a danger behind the door." No, he's going to show you a picture, and he's going to hope that you'll open that door foolishly, and walk into the forest, not knowing that there are dangers in the woods. Devil, he knows he can't take your soul. He knows that he can't come to you and calls you to Backside. He can't destroy you. Do you believe that today? Devil can't destroy you. But I've seen, and we've all seen, too many of our friends taking an innocent walk in the forest. They, they convinced themselves they could handle one more drink. They convinced themselves they could handle one more drug. They convinced themselves they could handle one more bad dating relationship, or they could handle one more slip up, or they can handle that one website. They, they said to themselves, "I can do this. I'm not getting caught, and I will be okay." But how many times have we seen those people walked in the woods, yet they've never returned back to the church? Yes, we have prayed for their return. We have fasted for their comeback. We have longed to see them dark in the church hallways again. But they've not come back. Why? Because there was danger in the forest. There was an enemy in the woods, waiting for them to get out there where they weren't safe anymore, were they weren't protected by the blood of the Lamb anymore.

I hear the words of John: "Love not the world. Love not the world. Love not the world." Why? Because the forest is not your friend. Matthew 16:26: "For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul?" We like to stop there a lot, but that next phrase — it, it convicted me. It said, "Or why will a man give in exchange for his soul?" Oftentimes we think you have to gain the whole world to lose your soul. No. I've come to tell you that there can be a simple exchange of one walk in the woods that costs you everything that God has promised you. What today will you exchange for your soul? What single pleasure will you say, "I'll give a, my, my promises, for that walk in the forest, today"? I'm not trying to be too brushed, but I'm curious: what one movie are you willing to exchange your soul for? What one Netflix series is worth your soul? What, what inappropriate website is worth going the hell over? What conversation, full of Gossip, is worth it's changing your soul for? What, what seemingly small secret sin is worth giving up eternity with Jesus Christ for? I've come to tell somebody: is it where — I've not come to ask: is it worth your soul? Is it worth your soul?

There's danger in the forest. The force, that it looks appealing, but it also disorients its victims. We've all heard of people who wander off the campsite — a hunter, a hiker, a camper. They, they walk in their, in the forest. They walk into the woods, only to lose their sense of direction. Here's the truth. If you don't get anything else today, get this. Hear this today: getting out of the forest is always harder than walking into the forest. Whoo. It's easier just to stay out of the forest. Anybody can walk into the woods, but not everybody can get out of the forest. It's — and I know, I know what I'm teaching here. It sounds like it would be easy just to walk in the woods and come out the same way. It seems like, like anybody could just return to the altar when they're ready, or, or that anybody could just drive back to the church and start all over again. But, but when you get yourself in the forest, the forest has a way of tingling you and confusing you. You think, "I can just walk back the same way I walked in," but it's not that easy.

When I was a teenager, me and a few of my buddies went squirrel hunting in Bon Aqua, Tennessee. Anybody that's been in the campgrounds — there we go. Yeah, one bad Aqua person here today. I've been to the campgrounds, our sister campgrounds that's in Bon Aqua. We went out there and went with some friends. It was just — for the second story, was to say that their last name is Smith, okay? I go with the Smiths, and they have an uncle named Elvis, because you have uncles named Elvis when you live in Bon Aqua. So we go out there, and we go a couple hours in the woods. And right before it started getting dark, a realization hit us all: we have no clue where we're at. So we start our way, and start walking back towards what we think is the direction of the car, only to, to realize, several hours into this walk, that if we have walked back further than we walk coming into the woods. For, for hours even after that — I'm talking about early in the morning — we still did not know exactly where we were at. One point, we finally found the back of a house. So we left our guns by the edge of the woods, because we don't want to look like those people. And we start walking towards — we're like, "This is salvation. You know what this is about? Maybe he can tell us where we need to go." As we start walking, we get by this tree, and, and then, the, the man that lived in the house, he sticks out a revolver out of the back window. My buddy, he, he puts up his hands like we're getting arrested. He says, "We put our guns back there. We don't mean harm. We're just lost." He said, "All right, what's your name?" He said, "We're The Smiths." I'll never forget this. Man said, "There's some bad smiths in this area." My friend said, "We're not one of those friends. We're not one of those Smiths. We're the, we're the good ones. We're the friendly Neighbors. Please don't shoot us." Luckily, he helped us get out of the Woods. We spent so much energy that night just trying to get out. Spent very little energy getting into the woods. Why? Because it's easier to stay out than it is to get out of the woods.

Not everybody — I wish it wasn't this way — but not everybody that walks in the forest walks back to the altar. Not everybody that they get stuck in, in the forest gets out and finds the relationship with God again. The, the forest is littered with people who are stuck with addictions, who are hurt with bad feelings, who are messed up with immorality. And despite even their past efforts, they can't get back to where they once were.

Romans chapter 1, verse 28, it gives us a very daunting portion of scripture, and it says: "And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do things which were, are not convenient." Well, we see this in the world that we're living in today. People who think themselves to be wise are really foolish. We've got people — and I'm not trying to be Brash here — but we got people in our world, they don't even know if they're a guy or a girl anymore. They're so lost in the, in the force, they don't even know who, what gender they belong to anymore. I'm not, I'm not trying to be harsh here, but, but we've got to realize that God has given people over to a reprodate mind. What's crazy about some of these people is, they think they're actually wiser than the people that are following the word of God. They look at us and they think us as foolish, but God's given them over to a reprobate mind. And people, even in the church, have been given over to a rep of my mind. They thought that they could handle one walk in the forest, but they now find themselves not being able to even acknowledge God in their life. They, they're doing things that they never thought they would do. There, they're seeing things that they thought they would never see. They're, they're hearing things that they never thought they would hear. They are experiencing things that they never thought they would experience. Why? Because they took a walk in the forest.

Paul told the Thessalonians — the Second Thessalonians 2, verse 10: "And with all unrighteousness, deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this reason, God will send a strong delusion, that they should believe a lie." Be careful today. Be careful today, that you don't find the woods to be so enticing that you start believing lies and things that aren't true. Today, I pray that we would have a love for the truth. That we would have a love for the truth — not tomorrow, not the next day, but today, on this Sunday. That we, if you have fallen out of love and with the word of God, today is a great day to fall back into love with the truth.

The woods can be disorienting, but they also — the, the force can also be fatal, with injuries that exist inside of it. Bible commentaries, they say of the, of the, the force that's found in Second Samuel 18, that the forest was, was full of what they would call quicksand. It was a swampy land. It was full of quicksand. So these men, as they were fighting the battle, they would actually fall in, into this quick side, and the quicksand would consume them completely.

Hebrews chapter 12, verse 1, says: "Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin that easily, which so easily ensnares us." These guys, they went into the forest thinking that there was nothing that's going to harm them there except for the enemy. But when they got out there, they found this quicksand. They began to sink, and the quicksand would consume them completely. And likewise today, in 2023, sin can still easily ensnare us. It can still easily tangle us. It can still easily trap us. We've got to be careful that we don't take an innocent stroll in the force, because of forest is not our friend. Force is not a friend.

Today, I'm preaching this not because I thought it would be popular, or not because I, I thought people would be taking laps. I felt like it would be just like this, to be honest. But I'm preaching this today, that we ought to be careful with where we go, and why we allow to surround ourselves with. And the reason why is because today, just like many of you, this message is personal. Because I've had friends. I've had friends who knew so much Bible that it scared me, because I didn't know half as much as they knew, yet they don't find themselves in the church today, because they took a walk in the forest. Friend, you and I, we, we can get so close to the forest, so close to this thing called the world, and we can realize, once it's too late, that we're stuck there.

They were stuck. Coming to a close here in a second. But David's men — going back to Second Samuel 18 — they're out fighting Absalom's man. They're fighting Absalom. You may Wonder, well, what happened to Absom? The 20,000 died that day. Ten thousand died because they got in the forest. What happened to Absentee? I said earlier that Absalom was a handsome fella. Good looking, a little bit like me — something that was unlike — thank you for that extra laugh there. Something that was a little different about Absalom than me was that Absalom had long hair. I kind of see him having like that Kentucky waterfall. The Bible says in Second Samuel, verse — chapter 18, verse 9 — that has the Absalom was fighting in the battle, that he went under an oak tree. And when he went under the oak tree, the oak tree grabbed a hold of his hair, and his mule that he was riding on kept on going, leaving Absalom hanging by his hair in the oak tree. Absom was looking at the enemy around him, and little did he know that his worst enemy was the force itself. And the force got a hold of Absalom, and he was hanging Between Heaven and Earth. And a man saw Absalom there, and so he ran and told Joab, "Joab, Absom is stuck in a tree." The Bible says that Joab did something very interesting. It says in verse 14 that Joab, he took three darts, and while Absent was still alive, stuck in the tree, Joab began to thrust three darts and the Heart of Absalom. He took his time to kill Absol. AB, who was in this battle, surely has a sword. Could have just come up and thrusted him one time, I have some, in the stomach, and killed the man. But instead, he takes the time to find three darts, and to plunge them, one by one, Into the Heart of Absalom. Why in the world would Joab do this? And why is it important today?

Hear this today: if the forest can get a hold of your head, then the enemy will take its time to kill off your heart. Some of you in this room, you think you're safe because you found your way back to church today. You think you're safe because you're still alive, because your heart is still beating. You think you're safe because you can still look the part of an Apostolic, and talk the part of an Apostolic. You even know how to, to, to, to, to lift your hands during the right portions of the song. You think, because your heart is still beating, that you're still safe. But I want you to know today, that if the devil realizes he has you by the head, he will take his time to kill off your hearts. I have seen too many people get called in the church cold when they're here, not because their heart wasn't here, but because their head was stuck in the world. If the devil knows he has you by the head, he'll toy with you. He'll take those darts, and he'll slowly plunge them into your heart. He's — oh, the devil doesn't care if you come to church. The devil doesn't care if you look like the church. The only thing that scares the devil is when you start being the church. When you start allowing your thoughts to be held captive by Jesus Christ, in him alone — that's the only time that he starts getting worried about you, is when you show him, "I am not stuck in the woods." As long as the devil can control what you watch, and control what you read, and control what you see, and what control what you talk about, and control how you dress — he's not concerned about you. But the second you follow what Paul said in Romans 12, 2, and you say, "I'm not going to be conformed to this world, but I'm going to be transformed by the renewing of my mind" — we've heard pastor preaching about this a lot now. I love it. The battle, it truly takes place right here. It surely takes place right here. And if you can get this out of the world, and you can get your mind on Christ, you become so powerful for the kingdom of Christ. But as long as the world has you by the head, you're nothing to the devil, and you're nothing even to the kingdom of God.

Second Samuel, chapter 18, verse 8: "The battle raged all across the countryside, and more men died because of the forest then we're killed by the sword." What are you allowing to surrender — surrender — to surround your life with? What environment are you allowing yourself to be caught in today? Because that's the place that we should truly be worried about. Your enemy is not the devil. Your enemy is truly your environment. And if you can control your environment, then God can do great things in your life.

Let's all stand to our feet. First John, chapter 2, verse 15: "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the father is not in him." The forest is not our friend today. The forest is not your friend. This world — hear me — oh, it's not your friend.

I like to — I like to end on a more positive note, if that's okay. Because I, I feel in this room that there are some of you — if you're honest, you would admit right now, "I'm stuck in the forest. My thoughts are hurt — God honoring thoughts. I'm stuck in the middle of a dilemma, I can't get out of the forest." If today that's where you're at, I want you to know something that's really good, and that is this, is that Jesus was a carpenter. Let me just say it this way: Jesus knows how to work with things that are coming out of the forest. Some of you are stuck in a tree, but I believe Jesus wants to tell you, "Hey, that same tree that you're stuck in — I took that tree, and I went up a Hill Called Calvary, and I died for you, and I shed every ounce of blood for you. And while you may feel stuck today, I can get you out." Hear this today: you don't have to be like Absalom. You can be the person who Jesus has called you to be. But you've got to trust him to get you out of the Woods.

Let's bow our heads right now. I want to begin to pray for us. Jesus, I pray right now, Lord, that you begin to do a work in the Supernatural. God, I believe that there are people in this room that are hurting, that are stuck, that are struggling in their sin, their addiction, God. And I pray right now, through the power of the Holy Ghost, God, that you begin to minister into hearts, into Minds, right now. God, I pray right now that everything the devil has a hold of, that you would command him to release it right now, that you would command him to let it go. And God, I pray that today there would be people that would walk out of the forest, that would walk out of the woods, with their calling still in line, down, with their reputation still in line. God, that you would restore things today to your people. God, believe that you can do a work in this place. I believe that you can restore marriages, restore friendships, restore relationships. God, I believe that you can restore callings. In Jesus' name, in this place, God, I believe that you can do a work right now.

I'm going to open this altar. I'm going to ask everybody would come forward. I'm asking that everybody would come forward today. Maybe you find yourself stuck in the forest. You're stuck in the trees. Imma ask that you would come forward and lift up your hands, and believe that the very God that's here could, could get you out of that mess, and put your feedback on the Rock to stay. Maybe today you're not in the force. Maybe you're not stuck in the woods, but you know you're too close. You know you're too close to the world. I pray that today, God will begin to do a work in your life, to get you further away from the world, and get you closer to the Cross. Get you closer to Jesus. Come on right now. Nobody looked around. Just lift up your hands, and lift up your eyes, or close your eyes, and lift up your hands, and let's begin to pray as a church right now. God, I pray right now for each and every person that's in this room. God, begin to do the work that only you can do. Guys, right now, God, I'll pray that you begin to work supernaturally in people's lives. Restore them, change them, and help them. In Jesus' name.