Blessed Are the Bankrupt

No more within a god willing to battle daily and I thank God through Christ for my present deliverance in the coming future deliverance and when I sin I have no one to blame but myself when I repent of that sin and ask for strength today and I the wretched man that I am thank you all. God or Jesus Christ my Lord you say both you live in both. This is the war within the Bible teaching ministry seem to have holiness and obedience locked up well the truth is, sin is a universal struggle. Think of the apostle Paul. He had so much he could posted he was an apostle, he planted churches he received visions from God. But despite all of this when we study Paul's letters were struck by his humility when he looked in the mirror. He did not see the same that we will explore this next in a lesson called Blessed are the bank and if you were following that is a couple of days ago when the story broke at least in some circles about an Egyptian lawyer who sits as the dean of the law faculty of one of Egypt's universities of law which is rather intriguing thought that he actually sits as the Dean of the school, always planning to sue the world of Jews is going to sue the world of Jews for plundering Egypt thousands of years ago, as recorded in the Bible that when Egyptians let the Israelites, God says on the book of Exodus chapter 12 verse 3536 of the Israelites plundered Egypt they were given the gold and silver and fine clothing, and so the state of Egypt today is not as good as it could be unless the Jews pay back so is now trying to find out what court to go to to find out if plunder has a statute of limitation we can somehow pull this off. The fascinating thing about Paul's testimony in Romans seven verse 24 is that it comes from the pen as we learned of a maturing, deeply devoted believer is reached, the truth and the truth is not so wretched people who live around me. It is so wretched man who lives inside of me. We arrived the point where he says who will set me free from this body of death. No pets or sports ministry this morning is give me a golf outing.

I would like to go.

I probably want to go.

If I go, the worms are going to tremble with fear because that's about where my balls go I can get out there and hit a little bit and if IT that ball understood over that I could simply claim my life verse for my golf game which would be the things that I want to do. I do not do things that I know I shouldn't do. I do I go every once in a while with my boys. That's a really like to go play with their now taller bigger stronger than I am telling that they so secret I get my golf club out to the ball and stand over. I know exactly what I'm supposed to do.

I'm left-handed so that's the first problem I can fix that and I swing and that ball head in this direction. I thought that ball takes a few little bounces and jumped in the pond because my sons are watching me. I refuse to say anything.

I shouldn't say so I just step over here and I let one of them to make and crush that ball. But guess what I do when my 70s up his ball on over here I go figure them, just in a little too close to the goal. Unfortunately my sons never looked at me and said that where's your boring Mr. waterlogged yourself, you know, Melissa and I don't want my mother would your ball just did what I know and they do do. I could probably coach somebody in improving their swaying but just don't watch me do it myself, knowing does not necessarily mean doing will occur. There's another Psalm pursue new experiences and are told and taught that what they need is some new experience with Christ some dramatic encounter with the Holy Spirit some moment when the light shines and mysteries break forth into Plainview and you're liberated from yourself and sinful desires. It might be speaking in tongues.

It might be a second blessing it might be some special commitment or some moment of Val some moment of worship.

Some second work of grace or whatever, something that brings you to a state of perpetual victory where you never have to battle it again sort of over in your above it. You can feel sorry for all the people the commoners that are still struggling with it, but you had the experience and now you're over well that's true, then Paul would surely have arrived on the mountaintop right think of what he experienced.

Think of what he experience listen to some of them as I have compiled a short review of his rather breathtaking resume personally arrested by the risen Lord along the Damascus road and he heard that voice audibly speaking in acts 94 that we have probably said to ourselves. If we could just hear his voice that would set us apart.

That would solve it. He heard it in acts chapter 9 verse four. He was secondly privately tutored by the Holy Spirit for three years. Galatians 1 verse 12. Paul was then given miraculous ability to heal, and even those he touched his garments were at one point healed of their diseases in acts chapter 19 were told verse 12. Paul even raised somebody from the dead, imagine that experience.

Paul raised somebody from the dead and would not be the mountain. Would you ever come down. I wonder I could come over and work my wife say sweetie under day go great with the funeral today just decided to raise the guy from the dead. Everybody's happy pleased. Spent a great day raised somebody from the dead.

He'd been taken out of body into heaven for a personal tour or singer in his 12. Get personal visions as Christ came to him with Revelation acts 18. He was one of the apostles. Galatians 1 Romans one another verses in summary, he was the leading missionary. He was the leading church planter. He was the leading brilliant theologian.

He was the leading author and pastor of his generation and after 25 years of incredible ministry experiences and personal visits of Christ and the Holy Spirit and private instruction.

You would think he knew the formula he had had the experience.

If there was something that now he knew it. If there was something new experience. He experienced by now he should be breathing the Celestia layer of mountaintop experiences and we would all stand down here in St. Paul. What's it like on the mountain now that Paul cried after knowing what he knew and after having experienced what he did after 25 years of faithful commitment and dedication and worship and service of wretched man that I now someone says well but Paul experienced snow beyond that criminal hard to get the latter part of the verse you know the next verse, thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord. You're right, this is a great statement of victory someone say it signals the end of the battle and for Paul will of an end of the battle for Paul.

Why in the very next breath we go beyond that phrase in the latter part of verse 25 and say so. Then here's my summary on the one hand, I myself with my mind. Observing the law of God, but on the other with my flesh the law of sin. In other words, why did he have a continual battle within between what he knew was right. The law of his mind that new mind the law of God and what he did that was wrong.

The law of his flesh that sometimes sin widen the battle remaining Paul between his new mind, and his old flesh. It is because the battle remains the truth is by taking this passage at face value. Literally, there is no formula would be wonderful if I could tell you five words. Here it is, is the formula I can give you some secret if I can tell you to pursue some experience. None of that will remove from the maturing believer. The war within third way I would add to this list. The Christians are pursuing in an attempt I believe to avoid the responsibility for sin excuse a refusal to personally battle sin is what I would call spiritual deflection whenever you're having a problem with sin is the devil's fault, right blame it on the devil.

Delegates going for a lot of things I do.

It's a demons doing so, you need to go to some deliverance ministry and be freed from the demon of those sins and we've given sins now demon attributes. It is now the demon of lust. It is the single loss that you do.

It's the demon of lust is making you do it or it is the demon of pride or the demon of gluttony.

Now you can even be freed from the demon of debt. I turn on the television sometime you watch the pastor tells crowd of thousands in a television audience. I'm sure millions to send in their credit card bills and he would pray over them as he collected them, and then the people would be released from their demon of debt debt is now demon and you send them your MasterCard bill and he will pray for deliverance and while I know more debt. I was actually tempted to send mine in that be great if that would work with it. What about compulsive spending will tell me about that and what I discipline I don't talk to me about that limit financial planning what personal responsibility to creditors is money.

We are using none of that to demons fault.

Will this particular view is a generation of naïve, impressionable misled believers some of them very passionate about their walk with Christ under the impression that bad thoughts and bad deeds are not their fault and not their responsibility at the demon they need to exercise. It is the devil they need to bind only tell you ladies and gentlemen, Paul knew all about demon you know all about the devil he knew everything he probably would ever want to know about spiritual warfare. He wrote the manual on true spiritual warfare. He sensed it and a young woman who followed them back. 16 he warned the believers about the wiles of the devil.

Does the Methodius the methods the strategies of the devil. In Ephesians 6, Paul was no novice. He knew full well what spiritual warfare was all about.

And there is ladies and gentlemen, not one mention of a demon. In Romans seven there is no devil here Paul is not shifting any blame doing unseen world and you don't know how is either he is saying, in effect, my primary problem is me and you know what the flash is impossible to cast out.

So let's just call it a demon try to be rid of it.

Paul says who's going to set us free from this flesh that we battle what is he mean will a number of things that me take you first to just simple history that gives us the culture of this phrase during the days of Paul.

Roman tyrants would often change the dead bodies of the soldiers upon the backs of enemy captive soldiers following a battle and they were made to carry those dead corpses upon their backs back to their hometown a gruesome task would be certain types of criminals during the days of Paul were executed by the Romans fact some report that this practice actually began near Tarsus were Paul was born. It was special brutality, sometimes of the man committed murder.

He was bound hand-to-hand face-to-face torso to torso leg to leg with the corpse of his victim and then thrown out into the heat of the Mediterranean sun or hung on the cross and as the corpse decayed literally eight deaf into the living manual often died in saying, even centuries later. Great Britain had the practice that seamen who killed or took the life of another seaman while at sea they would bind they would shame the living murderer to the corpse of the one he killed and throw them both overboard and they would both drown he would be pulled down by the corpse of the one he killed bound were to this body of death. I believe Paul has this kind of scene in his mind when he cries out who will deliver me from this body of death bound to him was this sense of arriving decaying corrupted sinful flesh. No wonder people want to think he's talking about somebody else, certainly an unbeliever. Certainly an immature believer.

That scene is too much for me.

I don't like to talk about myself like that is why we change the him in our hymnal where used to say a worm as I we now say a sinner like me that makes a little bit better more palatable phraseology for us. We then changed by the way, we get to that point I still sing a worm as I is a need to remind myself of this body flesh. Paul asks who will deliver me. Do you think you know the answer. He knows the answer.

The Greek verb Carisa tie, who will deliver me was used to refer to the act of a soldier who rushes to the aid of a fallen comrade is crying out for help because he's fallen in enemy hands. Paul is in enemy hands is a were in the enemy's own corrupted flesh who will rescue him from get this himself. The deliver goes on to say is Jesus Christ who delivers us at that moment of conversion from the penalty of sin, who delivers us presently daily as we submit to him and who will future tense. In this text here.

I think he's looking off into the future who will deliver us eternally from this corrupting flesh as this flesh is put away as this corruptible is put off and placed upon us is the incorruptible that glorified body. If you can believe it, coursing through our veins. The inability to sin coursing through her mind. The inability to ever have a sinful thought in that glorified state perfected and confirmed in holiness. He earns for that day. The deliver. It is Christ. Listen to this. The answer to this body of death is his body of death, for he bore in his body are sin, he bore upon himself the corpse, as it were of our fleshly deeds he paid for it all and will one day entirely deliver us from even its very possibility and presence supposing crying here a prayer defeat, but a prayer of reality and a prayer of acknowledgment.

He is both sinful and he is saved, he is in agony over his sinfulness and he is rejoicing at the same time over his Savior. You don't stop and either place. You don't ignore your sinfulness. If you do for a moment you can be pulled back into its waves and you don't ignore the Savior to ignore him would bring great and lasting despair. You live with a sense of both O wretched man that I am all but thanks be to God.

I thank my God through Jesus Christ, my Lord, and the more immature the more you are aware of his grand grace and holy character and the more you are at the same time aware of your great corruption, Robert Haldane, a Scottish theologian Olivia some time ago. Put it this way. He said we perceive ourselves to be sinners indirect proportion as we have discovered the holiness of God. If you have not discovered your corruption. You have yet to discover the holiness of God. This is the testimony of Paul. The truth is were just not used to hearing it our way, were used to hearing somebody get up on a platform it's on you and how they won the war and of my three steps to victory. Six things to fix all my relationships, my steps to financial victory in all of that and how he overcame the flash and we buy their books and we listen to them right. We want somebody that can tell us they one. Paul says I am still fighting so were you.

Be wary of somebody says, let me tell you what life is like on the mountaintop when I used to hearing this kind of talk orally.

True repentance, conversion, true faith. A true attitude and spirit of contrite nests and humility. Here's a prayer in Psalm 38 verse three.

Listen to David as he writes there is no health in my bones. Because of my sin for my iniquities are gone over my head is a heavy burden. They way too much for me. My wounds grow foul and fester because of my folly. I bent over and greatly bowed down I go morning all day long for my loins are filled with burning and there is no soundness in my flesh I am been numbed and badly crushed. I grown because of the agitation of my heart it would do Christians well to pray this prayer brokenness is no longer a part of our modern day formula. For those who pursue the formula contrite. This is not the experience to pursue for those who pursue the experience while want to listen to Jesus Christ as he delivers a sermon and I want to take you there just in your minds without taking time to turn is the sermon you know is the sermon on the mount. He delivered the very first sermon and when you come to the end of the text says that his audience was amazed. That's a little weak. It literally means they were stunned they were beside themselves act play so they were totally turned upside down in their minds as to what they have heard. Why because Jesus Christ turned everything upside down everything they had ever learned in Sunday school.

He said to them, in his first words blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of what heaven and other words, the people who are getting into heaven are poor in spirit. What is that mean well in the days of Christ. There were two kinds of poor people one poor person or kind of poor person was the penne's. This was the individual who had a job, going to work and at the end of the day got paid because I got paid every day and he took that money that he had any pay the debts of the had that Danny got enough food to eat and just enough for tomorrow and then he went to work again. I got paid and he got just enough money to make ends meet in the care for his family and put clothes on their backs and enough food in their bellies to last another day if he got sick he didn't get paid. There was nothing to fall back on.

There was no such thing as financial security. That's why they would dig a hole in put their goods in it.

There was no bank there was very little ways of getting any kind of security unless you're extremely wealthy and you had financial resource if you are able even put money in the temple. The average poor person just live day by day. The penne's within it was another kind the total costs total costs didn't have a job they didn't have any money didn't have any clothing didn't have any food they were totally destitute, totally dependent upon somebody else to give them food to give them shelter. These were the village beggars.

These were the bankrupt.

These were the ones that had no way to provide for themselves and when Jesus Christ said here's the happy one here is the fulfill one here is the blessed one. He said blessed are the Patel Koi Blessed are the spiritually bankrupt destitute the ones who are in effect totally poverty stricken in and of themselves they have nothing to offer God. They are totally dependent upon him. Blessed are the spiritual beggars for righteousness.

They get to go into the kingdom of heaven, not the people to push subpoena with her nose or walked around the earth or at all these things or burn the candles and pray the prayers were showed up in church or whatever those found they were absolutely destitute and entirely poor came to God to receive from him what they entirely needed the righteousness of Christ.

Blessed are the bankrupt, to the apostle Paul was merely reflecting the kind of spirit and attitude in Romans chapter 7 and unfortunately we live in a day and in the mist of a generation is little of the spirit of contrariness spiritual abasement and humility.

The Lord illustrated it for us.

He told about the time when two men came into the temple. You remember they were both Jews both came in to pray the had rights to the God of Israel, so they thought. One was a Pharisee.

The Pharisee was the icon the model of religious and spiritual maturity and the other one was the tax collector.

Remember that was the icon the category of corrupted people. This was the Jews who sold to the Romans or purchase from the Romans, the right to turn around and taxes fellow Jewish brethren, and so he would tax them and give Rome there do.

But if you remember anything about your study to the Gospels, you know, the tax collectors were poor or wealthy, very wealthy right why how to get that way because they taxed their Jewish brethren, more than was due.

They gave Rome the Dylan pocketed the rest members.

IKEA's the tax collector who came by faith in Christ. He said I'll immediately give back what I have stolen. He came in pray to the Pharisees stood and he prayed. You remember filled with self-assurance and self confidence and he prayed and said, Lord, I thank you that I am not like other people that tells prayer begin. If you start that way.

Stop. You are praying as the text says the Pharisee prayed to himself like that he prayed thus to himself.

Lord I thank you that I'm not like other people, swindlers, unruly or unjust, adulterers, and then he must've peaked and he saw the tax collector, standing over there any got it all.

Yes, Lord, and like the tax gatherer.

And while he talked to himself, the tax gatherer was praying and he was beating his chest and he was saying over and over again. God be merciful to me, the center God be merciful to me, the center God be merciful to me, the center and Jesus said, I'll tell you something Pharisee went home righteous in his own eyes, the tax collector went home righteous in the eyes of God. You want to know what I discovered in this diary of Paul here in Romans chapter 7 I have discovered a man totally entirely unimpressed with himself and even his own reputation and a man who was totally entirely impressed with the reputation of God. Poor in spirit filled with the treasure of heaven. You don't have to walk 24,000 miles to press God.

You don't have to grovel on the sidewalk you want to take the skin off your nose unless you want to take it off your nose by simply bowing before God, and saying with humility and at the same time, great joy, O wretched man that I am. Thanks be to God. I acknowledge the war within a God and I am willing to battle it daily, and I thank God through Christ for my present deliverance and that coming future deliverance and when I sin I have no one to blame but myself and I repent of that sin and ask for strength today and I know wretched man that I am thank you all. God or Jesus tries my Lord to say both you live in both. This is the war within, and you will not finish it until you stand before him and you want to hear him say to you who like Paul say I fly.

Well done. Some Paul closes his diary thought were so glad you were with us today here on wisdom for the heart are Bible teacher Stephen Devi is in a series called the war within what I want to give you a special invitation to join us next time we have a very important lesson coming up called the King's pardon.

We all struggle with sin and finds sin to be a daily battle and the solution to our sin problem is found in Christ and that's what will look at next time our ministry is on social media and that's a great way to stay informed and to interact with us. If you're on Facebook look for and then like the wisdom international use that page to post regular updates about our ministry again, thanks for joining us today. I hope to be with us next time for that message entitled the king's pardon right here on wisdom