For the Perfecting

[00:00:00] So today, just on this thought for the perfecting, let's pray together. Lord, thank you today for your word. Thank you for the gifts that you have given unto men, Lord. And today I pray that we can just hear what the spirit would say. Understand what your word is teaching us now, Lord. Lead us in these things. Help us today, God father, we just ask it in the name of Jesus. Glory to God. Give the Lord one more hand clap of praise before you're seated. Glory to God. [00:00:36] Thank you, Jesus. You can be seated and God bless you for the perfecting. [00:00:47] God wants to do a complete work in his body. [00:00:53] This letter to the church that Paul wrote here is very powerful, insightful to what God thinks about his people. [00:01:06] It said that he gave gifts unto men. [00:01:15] The heavenly gave gifts to the earthly, the eternal. God gave gifts to mortal men. [00:01:27] The God that created all things, everything you see, that formed us in his image, the God that washed us, saved us, rose from the dead, coming back to get us. This same God gave gifts unto Mendez. Frail, fragile, imperfect, incomplete, make mistakes, mess up, deformed, diseased, addicted, whatever. There's so many labels you can just stick to humanity because of our frailty. Even the scripture tells us God's not ignorant of that. He remembers our frame, that we are dust and still this perfect, holy, sovereign, righteous, eternal king of glory gave gifts unto men. [00:02:21] I imagine a gift from the king is unlike any other. [00:02:27] You know, if you were to get a gift from someone very rich in this world, royalty, things of that, it would be different than gifts from people who have nothing. [00:02:39] When we were little, and maybe some of you remember this. You know, my grandmother, my granny Walden, when we were kids and we would go to her house around Christmas time, she would give us a brown paper sack. [00:02:52] It would have oranges and peppermint sticks and walnuts and things like that in it. And we loved it. [00:03:01] That's what she had. [00:03:03] You know, your parents got a little more money. That's where you get the new bike. [00:03:12] So think about how perfect the gift is that God gives. [00:03:18] The Bible tells us that every good gift and every perfect gift is from above that the father gives us. [00:03:28] And so it's amazing to me that God could look down at humanity and see it with all its mess. [00:03:37] Many times in scripture, you see where God looked down and saw how men were doing, and he just repented him that he had made us because of the evil or the wickedness or the things that we were doing, ignoring him. But still, God gave gifts unto men. Maybe that's why when the scripture says, when we were without strengthening, Christ died for the ungodly. [00:04:06] But to the church, his body. The Lord said, I'm building a church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And one reason that the church can stand firm and strong and shine like a bright light in this dark day is because of the giftings that God has given to men. I'm not just talking about the gift of the Holy Ghost and the nine spiritual gifts that come with that. I'm not just talking about that. I'm talking about these gifts that he began to list that the world today has seemingly forgot about. [00:04:47] So he gave gifts unto men, and he gave some. Verse eleven says apostles. Apostles and some prophets, and some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers. And today there is a line of thought in Christianity that there are no more apostles, that the apostles of the lamb were the last ones. There are some organizations that everybody is an apostle. [00:05:12] I mean, it's from one extreme to the other. [00:05:15] But goddess gave apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, teachers. I'll tell you, what I don't see in the list that he gave was motivational speakers, inspirational speakers, doctor feelgood. [00:05:42] He gave workers, he gave gifts unto men for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ. God wants his church to be glorious. [00:06:06] And let me tell you, it started with the washing. [00:06:10] It started with the infilling. But the work of the building comes from the ministry that God gave. [00:06:19] And if we're going to be part of that perfect building, then this fivefold ministry is going to have to do more than just be something you read about. It's going to have to touch your life, or somebody ought to clap your hands. [00:06:37] I will tell you that this church would not be here today without the fivefold ministry. And I'm not talking just about the body as a whole. I'm talking about this building full of people today in Winterville, Georgia. But somebody preached to me. [00:06:57] Somebody preached to you, and you're here because you heard what the spirit was saying through the gift that God gave. [00:07:08] I'm not trying to break my arm patting myself on the back because I'm listed as a pastor, and that's in verse eleven. [00:07:18] I know where God got me from, and I'm very humbled by where he has put me. But let me tell you, don't mistake it. God did put me here, and he put me here for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of ministry, and for the edifying of the body of Christ. [00:07:46] Listen. God's a giver. [00:07:49] God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son. He said, ask and it shall be given. [00:07:56] The scripture says, he gives talents to some. He gives liberally. My cup runneth over. [00:08:03] Wisdom, understanding, joy, peace, love, mercy. Whatever you want to talk about, the gift of the Holy Ghost and everybody. I want everything that God will give me until this list of five shows up. [00:08:19] Because there is no way for you to glean from this list of five fold ministry without you letting it in to your life. [00:08:38] When the five fold ministry begins to rain, the umbrellas go up. [00:08:45] People don't want a pastor. They want a preacher. [00:08:50] Do you see preacher listed in that group right there? [00:08:57] Just say some good words to me, but don't get involved in my life. [00:09:04] Don't try to work on me. Don't try to give me no instruction. [00:09:10] I'm talking about, hey, I'm not mad at nobody today. Now get along. [00:09:15] But I'm telling you right now that this is the way it was from the beginning in the church. And any thriving church, any real church, any growing church, any church that has a move of the spirit is going to have 12345 elements of ministry working in it, because it is for the work of. Of the ministry God gave it. I don't want to be work. We used things. I'm working on the building. Well, I don't want to be working on the building without the gifts that God gave. [00:09:50] I don't want to be. My work on the building is simply all the neat little programs that we have. [00:09:58] I want somebody telling me, thus saith the Lord. [00:10:03] I want somebody telling me, here's what I see coming in this world, and here is our course of action. I want somebody that will stand up and say, hey, brother, you're going to have to stop that if it goes against God's word, and then not be heard at him because he told me what I was doing wrong. [00:10:23] Where would Israel have been if David had to quit when Nathan came up and said, david, you are the man. [00:10:31] But instead he said, oh, you're right. [00:10:36] Instead he fell down and said, oh, God created me a clean heart and renew a right spirit within me. [00:10:44] David would not have been David if he had not let the prophet work in his life. Now I feel the Holy Ghost. Come on. I feel what I'm talking about today. [00:10:57] Oh, we want the shout and the bounce and the run and the programs and the big numbers and all the other things, all the frill and all that stuff that goes with it. And I'm all about the shout and the fire and the running and the jumping and all that I can do. But, honey, I don't want to jump myself into the flames of an eternal hell. I don't want to be burning with praise on my lips. I want somebody to tell me what it takes to be saved, what it takes to stay saved, what it takes to make it through in this last day, because perilous times are coming on the world, and the church is gonna stand, but only if the gifts that God gave are involved in the building. Oh, come on. You oughta get excited about what you're part of. [00:11:46] Let me tell you, in these next few years, you're gonna see church doors closing left and right. But the church of the living God that has the influence of apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers working fervently in the midst of it, it will stand. [00:12:07] I tell you, this new age, feel good church makes me sick to my stomach. [00:12:18] It's not that I don't believe there's sincere people involved in those things. [00:12:23] It makes me sick to my stomach because so many people have bought into, this is all there is, and they never hear anybody stand up in their service and give a message in tongues or it be interpreted. [00:12:36] They're not praying people through to the Holy Ghost and the altars. They're not baptizing them in Jesus name. [00:12:45] Yeah, Paul said to the church in Galatia, he said, I marvel that you are so soon removed from the gospel to another. He said, which is not a gospel. [00:12:57] It's not a gospel. They preaching it as a gospel, but it's not a gospel because the gospel is the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and it is obeyed in the form of acts 238, repentance, baptism in Jesus name, and being filled with the Holy Ghost, being born of water and of the spirit. We watched that young lady last week as she stepped into the water, and she stood there and prayed till God filled her with the Holy Ghost. And we baptized her in Jesus name, just like the church has always done. [00:13:28] Until men decided they didn't need apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, teachers. [00:13:37] They wanted priests and cardinals and things of that nature. [00:13:42] They created new titles for themselves and began to write new doctrines for men. But that's not the work of the ministry, and that's not for the perfecting of the saints. [00:13:57] Let me tell you, every gift that God gives is perfect. [00:14:01] These offices are perfect in their function and their operation and their value to the kingdom. [00:14:11] Our problem is because the ministry is these gifts are given to men. [00:14:20] When he says God gave some apostles, he's talking about men, but he says prophets. He's talking about men, women, prophets, prophets, he called them. He gave perfect gifts to imperfect vessels. [00:14:39] And since we like to look at people's faults, then we find fault with the ministry. [00:14:50] But the office is perfect. [00:14:53] If God gives it, it will be perfect. [00:14:56] And David was the perfect king for Israel. [00:15:01] He was anointed by the prophet. He was appointed. [00:15:07] He was a man after God's own heart, and yet he made mistakes. [00:15:17] Adultery, but he was still the king. [00:15:23] He made mistakes, but his office of king, prophetess, worshiper was still intact. [00:15:36] The minister may not be flawless, but the calling in the ministry is, it was given by God. [00:15:43] So before we shake our finger at those that are in leadership or ministry and try to discredit them, it would be nice that if the body, if we as saints would show the same mercy we expect, I expect mercy from my pastor. Then show him some. [00:16:11] The merciful shall obtain mercy. [00:16:17] Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. [00:16:24] Show me some grace, minister, and show the ministry some grace. [00:16:30] And realize that I don't know any pastor, any of my good friends, that pastor, I don't know none of them that claim they're perfect, that they don't have to pray and say, God, have mercy on me. Forgive me of my faults. I pray every day, God forgive me for my faults. Cleanse me from my faults. Help me because I know the frailty of my flesh. [00:16:53] But I will tell you this, that the church will not survive, the church will not thrive, it will not grow, and we will not be everything that we could be without the fivefold ministry they were given for the perfecting of the saints. And if I. You are called to ministry, to one of these offices, you need to strictly adhere to the guidelines of scripture. [00:17:28] You need to make your calling and election. Sure. [00:17:33] I mean, you need to go the extra mile. Let me tell you, if you don't think being in ministry requires sacrifice, you're wrong. [00:17:43] Ministry doesn't get to do everything that everybody else does. [00:17:47] It's a fact. But the Bible tells me to abstain from the very appearance of evil. And so there are things that I would never do, places I would never go simply for the appearance. [00:18:01] I knew men of God, back when I first got in church, they would not enter a restaurant that served any kind of alcoholic beverage. [00:18:10] They knew they weren't going to order one, but they said, I'm not going to go anywhere where somebody might would say, yeah, I saw him in that place sitting at the bar. I saw him ordering a drink at his table. He said, I'll never frequent a restaurant. He said, that's ridiculous. Is it? [00:18:27] He kept his reputation, he kept his appearance. He kept himself pure and maybe even kept himself from temptation. Don't judge people on the things they do to consecrate themselves. [00:18:42] Ministry wants to be able to stand and do and fulfill anybody who really loves the calling they have given. They know they have these marching orders. Perfect. The saints work in the ministry, edify the body. That's what I called you to this office to do. [00:19:05] But to do that, we don't have a bottle of edification that we just spray on people. [00:19:14] I don't have this big fire hose of perfecting that I can just, you have to allow the ministry to work and speak into your life. [00:19:31] No man is your dictator, no man is your ruler. No man should have their thumb on you. But you've got to allow the perfecting, the perfection of the gift. If God gave that gift, it's got qualities in it. If it's able to perfect us, then there are qualities in it in each one of those offices that will work in us as an individual and as a whole. But if we won't allow it to happen, if, you know, Tylenol will cure your headache, but you don't do nothing but stare at the bottle, you'll live with a headache. You're going to have to open it and ingest it. You're going to have to do follow the instructions on the label when your doctor gives you a prescription. And, oh, this prescription really works. Well, it works because you take it as prescribed. Some doctor said, this is what you need. And he said, yes, okay, I'll take your word for it. And then you go pick that prescription up and you look at the directions. Take two times a day with food or without food, whatever the. You take it just like it says, and it worked because you followed list. You listened to the one who said, I know what's wrong with you. This is what will help. And you allowed it to work. Yet when it comes to our spiritual well being, we want to self diagnose, self medicate, instead of listening to the authority that God has placed in your life. [00:21:13] Do we think it makes us less of a person because we say, yeah, that's my pastor, or, that's my prophet, or that evangelist said these words and I listened to it. [00:21:29] Oh, you just led around. You're just like a little puppet. That's what church people are. Y'all just like little puppets. Y'all just do anything that pastor says. [00:21:38] But you know what? Let me just clear that up. No, you don't. [00:21:53] That's just the truth, man. Come on. I've been pastoring 17 years. I've seen some stuff, but it doesn't make us puppets. [00:22:07] We're nothing. [00:22:12] We're obedient to the word of God. [00:22:16] The Bible says that a pastor is akin to a shepherd and he leads sheep. The Lord said in the Old Testament, and I will give you pastors after my heart. He told us to feed the flock of God. [00:22:31] He equates the sheep. Now, a pastor is still a sheep. Even though he's a shepherd. He has to have somebody he'll answer to. And I don't only answer to the Lord. I have men in my life that can speak to me, and that could tell me, brother, you're wrong. And I would listen to them. Cause I don't think just because God called me to be a pastor that I'm infallible. [00:22:56] I have to stay in check as well. [00:23:00] And that's why I'm still pastoring today. [00:23:03] Because men that go after their own thing don't last very long. [00:23:09] Cause eventually people will. They get it. They understand it. [00:23:16] Listen, you all in this country, there's a big issue about guns. [00:23:22] And one of the big arguments, well, guns don't kill people killed. There's no inanimate object that has the ability on its own to kill nobody. [00:23:33] It can't think about it. It can't make the decision. It can't attack you. [00:23:38] It's in the hands of a spiteful, vengeful, hateful, murderous person. [00:23:46] That's how it happens. The ministry, on its own is only designed for perfecting and edification. [00:23:54] Sometimes it gets in the hands of wrong men. [00:23:58] And don't get me wrong. I know that there have been men that have abused their office and have hurt people and caused people to be gun shy. [00:24:08] But the office of pastor, teacher, evangelist, prophet, apostle, all given by God. [00:24:16] If there's nothing greater than when you have someone who really loves that calling, is striving to be the best of that calling, really working in that calling when they have a voice in your life, because it will save you from a lot of heartache, it'll save you from a lot of despair, it'll keep you out of a lot of trouble. [00:24:40] It'll help you get to places you want to go. [00:24:44] I wouldn't take nothing for the man of God that preached to me, me into this truth for the words of wisdom that he spoke into my life. Young man, when I came into the church, man, I was young. You couldn't tell me nothing before I got in church. Boy, I tell you, I knew. I knew it all. [00:25:04] But I would sit and listen to him talk to me, just me and him, for hours, telling me things of the glory of God and of the church and of the things of the church and opening scripture to my mind and showing me those things. And it made me who I am today. [00:25:21] I watched that man, so humble and so kind and so loving, and I said, lord, I want to be just like him. I want to follow him like he's following you. And it didn't make me a puppet or his slave or anything like that. I willingly listened to his voice. I took what he said because I knew he would never hurt me, not intentionally. He may say some things that smote my heart because I knew I was wrong. [00:25:54] But I'm not going to be mad at him for that because it made me better. It caused me to get in line. [00:26:02] One psalmist said, before I was afflicted, I went astray. [00:26:05] I'm glad somebody brought the rod back around to me. [00:26:12] I get it. I understand why people are hesitant sometimes to allow a minister to have a voice in their life. [00:26:20] But the absence, the absence of that voice is terrible, destructive. Because when that voice is gone, you lose insight, instruction that comes from goddess accountability. [00:26:38] It will leave a hole in your heart that nothing else will ever be able to fill. You won't be able to read enough memes, post enough quotes, read enough motivational books to fill the hole of any of the ministry that God has placed in your life. You can't substitute the fivefold ministry for anything else because you can't substitute the good gifts that God gave for anything that'll work. [00:27:04] It'd be like taking your Mustang muscle car out there and trying to put bicycle tires out there. It won't work. I like the way them bicycle rims work, so I'm gonna put them on there. They won't work, bro. They're not made for that. [00:27:21] And you gotta have the things that are made for the church to be the church. [00:27:28] Anything else is having a form of godliness but denying the power thereof. [00:27:35] Or when a minister is really fulfilling the calling that God gave, it's priceless. [00:27:42] He said it was for the perfecting. [00:27:45] The word there, perfecting, means complete furnishing, complete to complete thoroughly. Now, here's where we don't like, but in that word, perfecting, there is also the word repair. [00:28:01] If you repairing something, you gotta work on it. [00:28:05] And that's where the rub comes. [00:28:10] Don't try to work on me, pastor. [00:28:13] Don't be trying to repair me. [00:28:16] Well, God, he's the repairer, but the ministry, we got the message, we got the instructions. We can tell you what it's going to take to repair. It also means adjust. [00:28:32] Used to be a song years ago, way back, said you need an attitude adjustment. [00:28:39] It was popular. [00:28:41] I didn't listen to it much because it was country, but ain't headbang to that. But, but all people loved that. They took it, man, he's printing it on t shirts, everything you need. Attitude adjustment. Need an attitude adjustment. [00:28:59] Boy, don't bring no adjustment into the house of God sometimes. Hey, listen, adjustment ain't that bad. [00:29:08] It's like when you get in the shower and the water's too hot. Ah, well, you just ease it up a little, adjust it just a tad and it's perfect. [00:29:15] It's just a little, just a little adjustment and it's good. [00:29:20] Sometimes your pastor sees you getting a little bit out of alignment. [00:29:24] He says, hey, I don't think that's a good idea. [00:29:27] I won't be back Sunday. [00:29:32] I'm just trying to help you stay on course. Don't talk to me no more. [00:29:37] Don't speak to me. [00:29:39] I'm blocking you, I'm unfriending you. You're gone. [00:29:44] Just want it to help you. [00:29:47] But if you won't allow the ministry to speak into your life, even among the saints themselves, you should be able, as brothers and sisters, to lift one another up, encourage, speak words of encouragement and without being offended, that people that you pray and worship with every week realize something's off. [00:30:13] I can tell. Ain't nothing wrong with me. I have worshiped with you for years. I know when something's off, I can tell. [00:30:26] For the perfecting, for the complete furnishing, for the repair, for the adjustments. [00:30:36] The shepherd's view of a perfect flock. [00:30:41] That there would be no wolves, so I wouldn't have nothing to preach against. [00:30:47] That there would be no wanderers, that there would always be green grass and plenty of water. That's what any shed, if they told you what would be your perfect, ideal situation? Watching your flock in the natural. Oh, that I'd have a beautiful green pasture that never ran out, plenty of water, no wolves would ever show up and every sheep would stay right in the thing. That would be so awesome. [00:31:13] But it don't happen like that. And so that shepherd sees a sheep wandering off. [00:31:19] And he has to get it. [00:31:22] And sometimes he don't want to come, so he may have to drag it. He might have to pop it with that pole. Get back up here. [00:31:30] Trying to get you back to where you're safe. [00:31:35] Has to cry out against the wolves, the things that come to devour, destroyed, to bring fear and kill, has to work against those things, has to fight those things. [00:31:48] And at the end of the day is to make sure he's all right for the perfecting of the saints and for the ministry. [00:32:01] Whew. It'd be nice to have no wolves. [00:32:05] Second Timothy, 315 through 17. Paul wrote to Timothy, he said, from a child you have known the holy scriptures, which are able to make you wise unto salvation through faith, which is in Christ Jesus. Well, how did he know him? [00:32:28] From a child, somebody was speaking into his life. They were taught to him he had a voice in his life. We know through Paul's other writings that his grandmother and his mother were both great women of faith. So no doubt that was a voice in their life. But Paul was father figure in the Lord to Timothy, and he could tell him things, and he said so. There you go, Timothy. I know you know these things. Now he says, all the scripture is given by inspiration of God, and it is profitable for doctrine. [00:33:09] Another thing that the world leaves out of Christianity today. [00:33:14] For reproof. [00:33:16] Wait, the word of God is for reproof? Yeah, and for correction. You know what that is? That's repair and adjustment for instruction in righteousness. [00:33:28] So the word was given for all these things. And where does the word come from? How will they hear without a preacher? [00:33:38] And he said, so the man of God may be perfect or thoroughly furnished unto all good works. The reason that the scriptures are there go beyond salvation, because we're not just saved and snatched up to heaven as soon as we believe and obey the gospel, but we've got to live. And he said, so the word of God is given so that the man of God may be perfect or complete, thoroughly furnished unto all good works. He's been repaired. He's been adjusted. Now he's perfect. That's the reason for the word. That's the reason for the ministry. You need the voice of the ministry in your life. [00:34:25] Let me jump to one. Corinthians 14 and ten. I know I'm running out of time, and I want to get down here. It says there are, it may be so many kinds of voices in the world, and none of them is without signification or without significance. [00:34:41] All these different voices in the world, and every one of them has significance. [00:34:46] The voice of the apostle, prophet, pastor, evangelist, teacher. [00:34:55] Their voice has significance. [00:34:59] There's a lot of voices. [00:35:04] They're not saying nothing, but they have significance because they let you know there's nothing there just by what they say. [00:35:12] You got to be careful to the things that you let come into your ears, and you need to be careful about the things that you don't let in your ears. [00:35:26] Don't shut your ears off from the voice of the ministry that is simply there for the perfection and edification of the body. [00:35:37] Second corinthians 520, he said, we are ambassadors for Christ. [00:35:43] And it's like that. God is beseeching you by us. [00:35:50] God is speaking through us, pulling for you, calling to you, offering to you, instructing you. [00:36:00] We pray you in Christ's stead, be reconciled to God. [00:36:07] We're speaking on behalf of the Lord. We're ambassadors for him. [00:36:12] Be reconciled to God. Get back in favor, divine favor with Goddesse. That's reconciliation. Bible says, we were given a ministry, a word of reconciliation. That's what we're trying to do. [00:36:24] Edifying. [00:36:26] The word edifying refers to architecture. [00:36:30] That's strange, isn't it? Well, the edifying is confirmation. Building, dwelling, a home. [00:36:40] There's another place that Jesus talked about. Homes. He said, the home that is built on the solid rock. What is that? He said, that's the man who has heard my word and obeyed my word. [00:36:57] That's the man that his building is standing firm against the storm because he has heard the voice of my ambassadors speaking for me, saying the things that needed to be said. [00:37:11] That's what he's trying to tell them. He said, I'm trying to build the church so that the gates of hell will not prevail against it again. No man is to be your ruler or your dictator, but he should be your shepherd. He should be your teacher. He should be a mentor or maybe even a father in the Lord to you. [00:37:32] We need those people. [00:37:35] The old testament refers to him as the watchman on the wall. [00:37:40] If he's on the wall, he's up higher. [00:37:43] He sees things. They used to keep watchmen on the wall, and they would look and say, hey, I see. When they were expecting the message, I see a runner. And they would turn around and tell the people behind the wall, I see a runner. And they would say, what does it look like? Because they can't see what he sees up there. [00:38:01] And God has put into the ministry, depending on their office, where they are, there's things that he shows them so they can show the church. [00:38:15] But if you can't trust the voice coming to you from the ministry, how can you say you trust God, who gave it for the perfecting of the saints? [00:38:30] It's hard for us as ministry to feed sheep that refuse to eat or that are never present to eat. [00:38:44] That's how you stunt your spiritual growth when you cut the ministry out of your life. [00:38:51] In two Timothy 224, he said, the servant of the Lord must not strive, but be gentle unto all, apt to teach, patient in meekness, instructing those that oppose themselves, if God for eventually will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth, and that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil who are taken captive by him at his will. [00:39:22] That's what the ministry is trying to facilitate in every single individual saint that makes up the body, so that they can get repentance, acknowledge the truth, recover themselves out of the snare, get out of that captivity. That stuff that's got you, get away from it. [00:39:49] We see it over and over in the scripture. Where would Cornelius have been without Peter? [00:39:54] Because the Lord said, he's got words to tell you how you and your house can be saved. [00:40:00] John's disciples needed to hear what Paul had to say so they could be saved. [00:40:07] Apollos needed to hear what Aquila and Priscilla had to say so his ministry could be perfected. [00:40:16] And, hey, guess what? Peter needed Paul to stand up and withstand him and correct him in his error. [00:40:26] The man that preached the message on the day of Pentecost had the man who had once been a persecutor get in his face and say, you ain't right, key holder. [00:40:39] You're not right in your spirit. [00:40:42] But Peter didn't. [00:40:44] He had learned a long time ago, I know I make mistakes. [00:40:49] And I came from a background of cutting off people's ears and rebuking the Lord and even denying him, I know what it's like to fall. And he heard what Paul said, and he continued in his ministry and continued as an apostle of the church. [00:41:04] But he didn't punch Paul in the face. [00:41:07] He didn't try to have Paul excommunicated or send out letters to all the land saying, don't have nothing to do with Paul, because Paul was mean to me. [00:41:19] Instead, he appreciated the correction that Paul could give him in two Timothy three. And I'll finish with this if you go all the way back up to 13. This is why, in this day and hour, it's so important. [00:41:35] Because evil men and seducers will wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. [00:41:42] But, Timothy, continue in the things you've learned and have been assured of knowing of who or whom you have learned them. [00:41:52] Remember that you learned them from somebody, then from a child you've known. The holy scriptures, which are able to make you wise unto salvation through faith, which is in Christ Jesus. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, profitable for doctrine or proved correction, instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works. I charge you, therefore, before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom, preach the word, be instant in season, out of season. Reprove. [00:42:25] I don't know my pastor. Reproving? Yeah, he said, reprove. Rebuke when it's needed, but then when it's needed, exhort with all long suffering and doctrine, for the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but after their own lust shall they heap to themselves teachers having itching ears. They're going to get their own teachers, not the ones that God gave. [00:42:49] They shall turn away their ears from the truth and be turned to fables. But watch in all things endure afflictions through work of an evangelist and make full proof of your ministry. Can you stand with me this morning? [00:43:05] It's not like that in churches everywhere today. [00:43:09] The fivefold ministry has no place. [00:43:15] Oh, five fold ministry. [00:43:17] That's too invasive. [00:43:21] I just want to twist the scripture and say, I'm going to work out my own salvation. [00:43:28] Well, it's the fivefold ministry that gives you the workout plan. [00:43:35] From the beginning, it was not so. As the Lord said, from the beginning of the church, there were apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers, and the church grew and multiplied, and the gospel went everywhere because of the fivefold ministry. [00:43:52] That's what it's going to take for revival in our land, for that revival of the fivefold ministry and for us as saints. That's why I have ministers like Brother Green come in because we need prophets. [00:44:06] That's why I have people like Brother Doug Smith come in. We need the voice of the evangelist to come in, and that's why I stand up. [00:44:16] Cause you need the voice of your pastor. [00:44:19] Teachers. That's why we have these other young men and ladies that stand up in our church and bring the word, because we need teachers that can teach us about prayer. They can teach us about godliness and holiness and the things that the scripture talks about. We need that so we can be the church that God designed us to be. Let's lift our hands and pray together. Lord, thank you today for your word. Thank you for the instruction, for the light.