Pest Control - Part B

Paul answers what that means? Then we would translate that someone, someone, what is a matter what. Then every way pretense there pretending to be sure their motives are not in pretense or in truth, Christ is preached, and in this I rejoice.

Yes and will rejoice in you cannot stop this due even though the apostle Paul faced opposition when sharing the gospel rejoice that the gospel was being preached today on connect with Skip Skip shares how you can have that same attitude of Paul and live a gospel centered life and at the end of today's program Skip his wife when vital insight to help you keep your focus on sharing the good news of Jesus. Bottom line is the God please are not a man please please God, but anybody else who loves God wants to please God will be pleased with you and the rest let them go. And frankly Were expected to have enemies any part of being a Christian is that the world won't love you Thanksgiving when you be sure to stay tuned. After today's message to hear the full conversation know what to tell you about a resource that will help you live victoriously through the power of the Holy Spirit. Counselor comforter advocate helper. These are some of the names for the Holy Spirit found in the Bible. The Holy Spirit isn't a warm fuzzy feeling or a vague cosmic force. He's a person who loves you and cares for you and wants to empower you to be everything God calls you to be here. Skip, I think I think there's a lot of questions with heard the term Holy Spirit. Obviously they have a very vague idea of who the spirit of God he is and what he supposed to do in their lives.

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800-922-1888. Get online securely connectwithskip.com/offer Skip Heitzigs it starts to this in mind next time you hear gossip in there. There are unfortunately too many people, even in the church glop to spread gossip when you hear gossip somebody's ego is being exalted. It's usually shared because I know this and you don't and I am concerned and ego is being exalted is that information is being Diebold a man wrapped up in himself makes a very small package and selfish ambition was part and parcel of what was wrong with these people ever suffer so they're jealous of contentious their selfish, Paul mentions them not by name. He doesn't want to make too much out of it. He did Ben want us be self-serving, but he mentioned what they did but there's 1/4 thing they were malicious on notice in verse 16.

The former preach Christ from selfish ambition, not sincerely no watch this. Supposing or hoping to add affliction to my chains. Now Paul is revealing their motivation.

They're doing all this, they are this way. There there pushing me down to pull themselves up, and here's why they want to add affliction to my bonds was at me, dorsiflexion is a common new dust morph…… Is a word that means pressure or trial, but it literally means an irritation. It means friction is the irritation caused by the rubbing of an object over another object, not notice it says pulses they want to add affliction or irritation to my chains for two years. Paul was in chains.

I know you've heard that. I know we've read that we discussed that, but I just want you to think of what that means. That means for two years. Paul couldn't take a potty break alone.

He had no freedom. He had no isolation. He had no privacy.

He couldn't eat a meal alone. He couldn't have a conversation and that rented house in Rome for two years. He was chained to a guard that means there was a shackle around his wrist with the chain attached to the shackle of another soldier who only occupied the place for a few hours at a time. But Paul, 24 hours a day seven days a week two years get a chain that means that that shackle would irritate his skin and his bones, and scabs will develop and it would bleed in it would thicken, etc. you get the picture. So he says the reason these people are this way toward me as they want to add to the irritation that I already have in my chains. That is their motivation then want to evangelize the lost that I want to feed the flock.

They're not really concern for the church, even those and will I'm saying this about polkas. I'm really concerned for the church.

Also, that's not the truth. The truth is that one motivation they want to add irritation to my already irritable situation of being in chains, please understand again, these are preachers pulses they preach Christ they are Christians.

They are Christian preachers. They are not antichrist but they are anti-Paul and they are anti-Paul with a vengeance and I can't think of a worse reason to preach a message than that I can't think of a worse motivation to write a book or have a blog site than that. Let's just make life hard for Paul the apostle Mr. like scorpions, you know that if you leave scorpions together alone will kill themselves and eat themselves a guided experiment with 100 scorpions in a huge glass jar in a few days.

Only 14 survived. They had killed the others and were eating them. There was even a pregnant scorpion and that jar that killed and started eating her younger soon as they were born. One of those babies escaped on the mother's back, and eventually killed her any leader who has some lead anything, even not Christian leaders in Christian churches know that every church, every group has the Tate family among them every every church has the Tate's. There's old man Dick Tate who wants to run everything while uncle rotate tries to change everything their sister agitate stirs up plenty of trouble with help from her husband era. Tate whenever new projects are suggested. Has it Tate and his wife vegan Tate want to wait till next year. Then there's and imitate wants our church to be like all the others devastate provides the voice of doom while potentate wants to be a big shot and of course there's the black sheep of the family amputate who has completely cut himself off from every church anybody as a leader knows those people exist. So what you do. I suggest you do it. Paul does you don't spend all your time worried about them you pipit. Yes, you identify the troublemakers. But then you ratified the truth makers and notice what Paul says in verse 15. Some indeed preach Christ from envy and strife and some I want to go feels better already.

He's pivoting here and some also from good will are 17 further describes them, but the latter out of love knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel. This is the silver lining in the dark cloud of contention and Paul has found yes in any group.

There's good to be irritated and agitated and vegetate. But there's also gonna be advocate and celebrate and you want to find those people and and here's what Paul does is gather some like this. But then there are some like that. You see, rather than just focusing on the smudge that is on the white linen garment pulses yeah but there's a lot of white linen garment around that's much if not all the smudge.

There is a smudge I grant you that I can identify the troublemakers. But there's a lot of others who are not like that. That's part of the strategy starve the problem and feed the solution find those who love you love the work of God in you and run with them, ratify them, encourage them and empower them build with them and just keep running ahead of the irritate send the agitates in the amputate their voice will diminish as you go further ahead now to share something with you that will probably be shocking to you.

Did you know that Paul the apostle probably lost his life as a result of troublemaking Christians in Rome. I want that to settle in your hearts. Paul probably lost his life because of the trouble caused by troublemaking Christians in Rome using the Lindemann II always heard that it was Caesar Nero that killed Paul the apostle beheaded and well that's true. Here's the problem we have very little information about the death of Paul from early church records there very silent on. We just have a snippet here or there, but it would seem like the envy the jealousy of many Christians in Rome denounced Paul before Caesar Nero, which added the weight to the death sentence you say why do you know that while there are several sources I discover a blemish or two with you one come from second Timothy chapter 1. A guy by the name of on this set for us. How's that for a name. Don't name your son on a server, so he was a good guy will be hard in school on a surface came to visit Paul while he was in Roman prison. The problem is once he gets to Rome. It seems like nobody will tell him were Paul the apostle is that I want to tell him. Maybe they don't know or maybe that I want to tell him listen to what is says second Timothy chapter 1 Paul writes may the Lord show special kindness to Anna Severus and all his family because he often visited and encouraged me. He was never ashamed of me because I was in prison when he came to Rome, he searched everywhere until he found so he came to Rome. Nobody told him her. Paul was even though he kept open house for two years.

People came and visited him and he influenced church leaders. We are told, but he had to search for him until he could find him.

And Paul made a special note Q1 ashamed of me being in prison which indicate some work.

They saw this as a defeat in embarrassment. But then a second source comes from a letter that was found from 90 A.D. written by a man named Clement of Rome to the church at Corinth and in the book and the letter from Clement Clement addresses jealousy and envy among God's people that have led to the destruction, death, or trouble caused by other of God's people and he gets seven. Examples of that through history and one of the examples is Paul Clement writes this in a quote by reason of jealousy and strife Paul by his example pointed out the prize of patient endurance, and when he had borne his testimony before the rulers he departed from this world and went to heaven. The point Clement makes is that envy among Christians. Somehow help bring the execution brought on by Caesar Nero. If you still have further doubts you have only to read second Timothy chapter 4 is the end of Paul's life is right before he died. Pulses this listen to Paul at my first offense. No one stood with me, but all forsook me breaks my heart to just read that this is Paul, the stinking apostle at my first offense. Nobody stood with me. Everybody forsook me but then he quickly adds, but the Lord stood with me.

He was utterly alone in terms of human fellowship.

At that point so Paul identifies a troublemakers tells us that they are jealous, contentious, selfish, malicious, but then he pivots and ratifies the truth makers.

But here's the third part of the strategy and the best of all, magnify the true message. Verse 18.

Look at what a Paul answers this he says what them know that means little question what them. Now we would translate that.

So what so what what is the matter what, then, only that in every way, whether in pretense there pretending to be pure in their motives, but they're not in pretense or in truth, Christ is preached, and in this I rejoice yes and will rejoice.

Man, you cannot stop this dude he is in jail. He has been in jail he will be in jail for a total of two years he will be released, brought back into prison.

He will be executed. He is in jail he is persecuted by unbelievers. He has picked on by believers and go so what and then he says I rejoice not, I do know how many of us would have the courage to say you know there's a lot of people that are against me, and it's a so what most of us would write. Shame on them. Don't they know that I am the great Paul the apostle about a vision of the living Christ, who will write 13 New Testament books. Don't they know who I am because so what I rejoice and will rejoice almost like this defiant iMac let anybody steal my joy and amazing reaction and amazing reaction.

Now I don't want you to think in them looking at this because a lot of people do think this that Paul came to a point where he was just this stone statue of a man impervious to the criticisms of others. It is rolled off his back. I don't believe that he was a person with the motions and heart and feelings, and he was wounded very deeply by these people.

What he is saying is I'm not gonna let mean people robbed me of joy. In fact, I have found cause and reason to rejoice and that is this the message of the gospel, even when preached with bad motives there preaching the right message right message wrong motives unlock and worry about the motives that's between them and God. On or about the message that is the gospel.

Here's the great truth, the great truth in all of this can be boiled down to the irreducible minimum which is this the power is in the message, not in the messenger. The powers in the message, not in the messenger is somebody tampers with the message. Go Adam. If people tamper with the messenger ignored him was just talk about that for a moment if people mess and tamper with the message.

Go Adam called it Paul wrote to the Galatians and he says I'm noticing a people among your preaching a different gospel a different gospel, the one that is the true gospel and he goes I want you to know if we, or an angel from heaven preached to you, any other gospel than the one you have received, let me curse below the lowest hell is that for confrontation so you mess with the message. I'm in a come at you. You mess with the messenger I'm good to ignore you. What then so what what is it matter I rejoice that the message is being preached. So Paul has his comrades. Those are partners in the gospel.

He rejoices because of them. Paul has his critics detractors of Paul. He rejoices in spite of them.

Why because their brothers suppose that their brothers yes they're ornery yes they're stupid. Yes, there irritating but their brothers, their brothers in Christ. So Paul is saying on my call to defend myself on call to defend the gospel are not called to protect myself on call to proclaim the gospel now want to close on a couple of thoughts. We often make too much over what divides us and not enough over what unites us. I know I know we have to use discernment. I know we have to be careful about what the truth is the true gospel like Galatians chapter 1, but sometimes I fear that we are known more for what were against them over for and some people actually like being that way they like be known for what they're against. And and they are known for their sometimes I think we make too much of it is the truth. God reserves the right to use people who disagree with you. Newsflash God reserves the right to use people who disagree with you as people who disagree with you on the rafters people to disagree with me on the rapture or spiritual gifts are a number of things that aren't the real crux crucial matters of the gospel, death, burial and resurrection vicarious atonement. All that sent.

So what I began with talking about denominations and changing light bulbs.

Mattia true story about denominations in the late 1700s, John Wesley, you know, John Wesley, one of the great leaders in England at the time Wesley was concerned because there were so many denominations springing up and this always bothers people who study church history because you know the church history is a history of people not getting along and dividing so somebody in the group. Unlike the group leads a group and start their own group and as a group grow somebody negative like that group and they start another group in that group grows and submit our group make get together with the first group and start another group. Those are denominations of this bothered him so one night John Wesley goes to bed has a dream and in his dream he is ushered to the gates of hell, and in his dream he asked the question, are there any Presbyterians here and the answer comes back. Yes, there are you shocked he is.

Are there any Baptist areas. Yes, there are are there any Methodists. Are there any any Episcopalians yes yes yes please troubled by this and immediately in his dream. He is now ushered to the gates of heaven. Yes, the same set of questions. Are there any Presbyterians here know was the answer any Baptist, no Methodists know any Episcopalians no and he said no who then is inside in this answer came back. There are only Christians here there only Christians or you don't get to heaven by being a Presbyterian, Baptist, Methodist Episcopalian at Calvary Heights but by trusting in Jesus death burial and resurrection.

And you are a Christian you believe that and that message is that Skip the message from the series technical knowledge school the studio with his vital insights to help you keep your focus on sharing the good news of Jesus. There will always be people who are against us.

And sad but true And have enemies and turn your enemies that true. Unfortunately, some of them are even fellow believers, that we should let them rob our joy or distract us from being God's messengers in the world asking what are some steps that we can take to deal with these people. Well, I want to give you some encouragement. I have a friend who encouraged me with the book and he said that there is in any group of people any church group.

He calls of the 10 1080 principle. And here's what he means 10% of the people like you automatically. They just love you. They like the way you love the way you smile. Everything you say 10% like you 10% don't like you, they just don't like you then enter well and they never will.

80% are suspending judgment that is there waiting to see if you're on a super faithful with her once in whatever so that's a good rule and what he encourages people to do is to be willing to lose the customer. We have those 10% who don't like you don't cater to them, don't try to win them over. Let it go lose the customer. You know the old saying I think it was Lincoln's and to complete some of the people some of the time and all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time but you can never please all the people all the time so bottom line is, be a God pleaser. Not a man, please, please, God, than anybody else who loves God wants to please God will be pleased with you and the rest let them go.

And frankly that were expected to have enemies and be part of being a Christian is that the world will love you and I so sometimes that's not a bad thing sometimes. That's actually evidence that the Holy Spirit is working in your life and death. So anyway, be encouraged.

The Lord knows what you need and he is your friend and that he will bring you email to our more Thanksgiving we hope you enjoyed the Internet given Lang after this conversation can be a part of life through the go by helping these vital messages going strong on the air just to connect.com/connect.com/donate or call 892, 819 to you to them tomorrow is six years joy and confidence. God has your future is so presentation of connection communication through ever-changing time